"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.