RAS - The longest I have walked in them is about 2 miles; enough to know that I could have kept going for a while. There may be something more comfortable, but these work for me.

Some light weight plastic bags that can be worn inside shoes and over socks will help keep ones feet dry and reasonably warm should you get "surprised" by bad weather.

I hadn't either until this semester. A ~33gal trash bag didn't mix well with a large pack unless you split it and holding the split closed got old quick.

Not something I'd want to test for real, 2 miles isn't much of a test -- they're your feet.

Kurt,

As always, lots of good thoughts in reply to your question. Let me see if I can add some value. I recently added a Petzel e-light headlamp to my business carry bag. Nice light and lightweight, small enough to carry on a belt or bag strap, not expensive.

I also EDC a second wallet in which I carry an assortment of "flat" objects like bandaids, antiseptic wipes, sewing kit, floss card, sheet of aluminum foil, gaffers tape (stuck on some release paper from some old mailing labels), 4 quarters, phone card (based on the theory that if cell towers are down old fashioned payphones, if you can find one, might work), two Aquapur tablets in foil packs, A BCB credit card tool, a Picopad note pad and pen, credit card sized fresnel lens, a County Comm signal mirror, paper matches, tinder card, $20 and probably a few other items I can't remember.

Another suggestion is to look for a 2M HT with wideband receive so you can tune AM/FM maybe even shortwave (Kenwood and Alinco have such models). I carry a Kenwood F6A in my work bag and an Alinco DJ-C7 in my jacket pocket.

If you have maps and a small button compass you'll at least be able to decide whether to turn left or right.

Let's hope for another mild winter in the Delaware Valley.

"Art_in_FL - I tried the suggestion of wearing seperate commuting outfit when I worked in NYC and found that it just didn't work for me. Maybe I'm lazy, maybe something else But I try to buy clothes that are both appropriate for work and as comfortable as possible. Thanks for the suggestions on OTC meds but I think your post got cut off at the end."

The suitability and importance of changing the outfit is a question of the sort of clothes you wear at work and the sort of neighborhood, environment, you cross going home.

Most business suits are pretty marginal for rough use. And in some localities wearing a suit, outside the sort popular with used car salesmen and police detectives, announces a certain level of wealth and vulnerability. Mirrored glasses and a imposing figure wearing a high dollar suit telegraphs that your a body guard or secret service. The illusion evaporates once you step onto public transportation IMO.

Switching out to a more blue collar outfit makes you look less like a juicy target. Nobody is going to hassle you for a half-eaten tuna sandwich and sweaty gym clothes. Work boots and the rest of the hard wearing working man's outfit are tough and adaptable. Exactly the sort of clothes you want in an emergency.

Of course if your travel distance, or time, isn't long and the territory is routinely frequented by suits, like the subways in NYC, changing may be more trouble than it's worth. Perhaps just a change of footwear and picking up a satchel with your gear would do it.

I no longer wear office livery and work in and around construction so my everyday outfit is pretty much good. Throw the gym bag over my shoulder and I blend and have what comes covered.

OTC meds - Amazing what good can come from a tiny vial with a few pills. It isn't often but my allergies do sometimes crop up. The fast acting stuff can make life a lot easier. Hard to concentrate on the problem at hand when I'm sneezing every five seconds. To the good the trail of snot makes retracing my steps easy. If a bit slippery. LOL.

Aspirin is good for some types of heat attacks. ER doctor told me it can make a big difference. It is only fair for pain. Ibuprofen is better for pain. Particularly muscular or joint pain. Benedril is a good antihistamine but it is also good for motion sickness and as a sleep aid.

My internet connection is very slow. If I'm doing anything in addition to posting on this forum the message gets cropped.To get the whole thing in intact I have to stop everything for a couple of minutes. I may have to adopt the practice of hitting "submit" and wandering off to get a cup of coffee to give the system time to digest my input.

The last bit was a suggestion of a small travel pack of wet wipes for cleaning up and emergency toilet paper.

I would want some tool that could help me escape from a stuck subway train, eg if there was an underground accident or it just stopped due to a power cut or something. Something that could break the windows, probably.

You say water is always available. Is that still true on the train? I wouldn't count on it on the London Underground.

Otherwise what you have looks pretty good. Certainly do the whistle thing. I'd make at least one of the torches a head-torch. Money is often useful.

I carry a small Gps nothing fancy but gets the job done. i pre loaded several check points and maps of home, work, hospital, etc.. I live in Oklahoma so tornadoes are a threat and in the event that signs are down and main routes congested all i have to do is turn it on and go towards home. years ago i got stuck comming home from texas when the may third storm hit and i was stuck on I-35 for hours i tried to cut through back roads and got lost basicaly in my own backyard.

Learned this one years ago...

One of the best tools (for men) when riding a subway or elevated transit system is an empty 1L (qt) water bottle and a coat/sweater for coverage.

Sometimes the train gets stopped outside a station for an extended period of time (1-1/4 hours is the record for me). I think most here can figure out the rest of this...

The windows on the metro rails I've been on were designed to be popped out without needing to break the glass first; the pane leaves the frame intact. On the stoppage I was on I just put my head back and caught some zzz's. No problem with the train, no action required, but we weren't going anywhere. Stuff happens, roll with it.