…or, looking for tips on stuff that are useful to have that most people don’t think about.
I carry around a few tampons, as a cis man.
Part of my “be prepared” strategy cause you never know what life throws at you.
On one hand, tampons are perfect kindling for starting a fire in an emergency - a wad of cotton in a water-proof hull.
But in reality, it was useful a few times already, to help a female friend out.
Or pull one apart to improvise ear plugs when a concert turns out to be way too loud.I’ve carried a couple of tampons and pads in my car for years, just because sometimes I can save the day for someone. I never thought about using them for earplugs though, that’s a good one.
Gas jet lighter. I do not smoke. But when people ask for a lighter and I pull my lighter out, they always ask “How come YOU have a lighter?” Funny every time.
Donegan OptiVisor Headband Magnifier - https://doneganoptical.com/product/optivisor/
with optiloupe - https://doneganoptical.com/product/optiloupe/
and Quasar LED lighting attachment. https://www.esslinger.com/led-visor-lighting-system-attachment-for-optivisor-headband-magnifier/
I originally got it when I was doing a bit of electronics work. But every couple of months there’ll be times when I really want a hands-free magnified view of something I’m working on, even if it’s just for a household chore. There are plenty of cheap knock-off out there, but I believe this is the original. I was at the Intrepid Museum in NYC and there was a photo of a NASA engineer wearing one of these.
I can’t be the first person to say this, but a poop-knife.
No i still don’t believe this is a real thing. I’ve personally never needed one and I’ve had some dire situations in the bathroom - all sorts of dire situation one can have in the bathroom.
You not needing one yourself doesn’t equal the average person’s experience. Probably less than 10% of Americans eat enough fiber daily.
It’s a real thing for some of us. Wish it wasn’t, but not all of us have it so easy.
Tbh it’s completely logical, it’s a good use of tool, but i think most people actually use the toilet brush to break it into seperate pieces, then wash the toilet brush after. Again, haven’t got into thst situation myself i just flush and flush and eventually it goes.
I just shit myself so the problem doesn’t apply
Am I the only one who didn’t think that story was very funny? Sure haha poop and all but it’s achieved legendary status that I don’t get.
I think the popularity wasn’t so much about the tool itself but about the original poster not realizing it was unusual. Like the cumbox.
I’ll probably regret asking this but… cumbox?
Yes. You will regret asking.
To put it simply, a redditor repeatedly jerked off into (IIRC) a shoebox for an extended period. The same box, no disposal or cleanup of any sort. He made a casual reference to this box and was surprised when others couldn’t relate. He posted pictures.
I never saw the pictures and I don’t intend to, so if you are interested to learn more, you’ll have to do your own searches.
I mean, if poop knives are as commom as everyone says, then of course it’s not funny! It’s totally mundane!
A handheld calculator and a slide rule. If the power goes out for a long time, I’ll still be doing math while the rest of you chumps will be using your fingers to count to 10.
Joke’s on you, I can get to 20 because I also use my toes!
Jokes on you, I can count to 21 all by myself. I still need to call my buddies for anything above that tho
Keep a solar power calculator in case of apocalypse.
No lie, my calculator is solar.
A handheld 2 way radio. The cell network is the first to go even before a disaster since the lines saturate with people calling out.
I happen to have a handheld maritime emergency radio around, mostly because I got my hands on it for free* a few years back. It could serve the same function, provided someone else is using the same frequencies. I live in a coastal environment, so there’s always someone around that are legally required to listen on Ch16.
*: I used to work with maritime electronics, and one day we had a recall order from one of our suppliers. Turned out one batch of this one particular handheld radio had a potential minor problem with the squelch, so they were no longer IMO approved for emergency use. We were to throw them away and a refund would be issued. I took one home and just paid for a battery and charger. It’s now sitting in my kitchen.
The longest ones also have (or at least had) a max of a few days of battery and many just 1-2 days. Found this out when Hurricane Ike rolled through Houston.
Nail clippers. Small but powerful penlights.
I have a roll of dental floss in my hike bag. It’s small, super strong, and there’s one pile of it in a roll. Could be used for replacement shoelace, laundry line, tying wood together for a shelter, etc.
Stick a sewing needle in it. Find one that fits inside with the spool of floss. I’ve carried one in my bag for decades at this point.
I have a dosimeter/geiger counter. So far, it’s only been a neat toy for about an hour. I hope it never is more than that.
I keep a Windows 11 installer USB on my person almost at all times. I’ve had to perform an impromptu utilman.exe trick (consensually) multiple times. (Replacing the ease of access menu EXE with a command prompt somehow still allows you to get an administrator CMD window on the lock screen, even in 2026).
I have something similar but with a Ventoy USB with different Linux distros in case I need to do an emergency reinstall or need a live USB
I’ve done something similar in windows 10 when it decided to shit itself and lock me into safe mode. Interesting that it’s still a thing in windows 11. You can use Ventoy and keep a couple of Linux images too on that usb.
I keep a bowling ball in my car. It doesn’t make sense to have it at home.
I have no logical reason other than I like it but I have my keys on rings that are on a actual climbing grade carbiner and then on the keyring I have a thing from the internet that can sharpen knives and has a ferro tod and a whistle. then a can opener thats swag from some conference.
LEGO brick separator.
Not unusual, but surprising how many times it has come handy in group gatherings.
I always have a lighter on me, so I never need to find a bottle opener.
I have a field transfusion kit as part of my first aid kit in my vehicle, as well as in my bike kit.
So far, it hasn’t been useful at all, and hopefully never will be.
