For those of you using 35mm film containers, Susan's tip ("don't wad them tightly into a tiny container. If you can't get your finger in far enough to grab the cotton, you're going to have a real problem when you're shivering from cold or fear and can't feel your fingertips.") got me thinking (always a dangerous thing). How about cutting a disc of thin plastic, poking a hole in the center of it, threading some bright colored string through the hole, and putting the disc on the bottom of the film can before stuffing the cotton balls in, leaving the end of the string sticking out the middle of the mass? That way you could pull on the string, using your teeth if necessary, and the cotton balls would kinda pop out...