Things You Should Just Have

A few weeks ago I went for a run. At the time I hadn’t been doing much serious sweat inducing exercise, just walking, maybe jogging up and down some stairs if I was feeling particularly fit that day. So I bounded off down the road, runners tightly laced, iPod on full ball, brimming with enthusiasm.

The following day I couldn’t bend. That is, bend, period. All of my muscles, they ached, they burned, they refused to move at all.

This led me to buy a jar of Red Tiger Balm after I borrowed some from a dear friend. It was heaven in a tiny jar for my sore, stiff all of me. It was one of those things that someone should simply always have, and on realising I didn’t have something so integral to normality, I started to wonder what else from this inventory of necessities I was lacking. So I compiled a list of things that One should simply, just have:

RED TIGER BALM
So brilliant in so many ways, Red Tiger Balm comes in a conveniently small jar, smells like cinnamon and eases muscle pain without having to use very much of it at all. 1 Jar can last for many applications; will fit right in in your first aid kit.

PAW PAW OINTMENT
The first time I discovered “pawp” as it’s colloquially known was as a young lass helping my Nanna cook. She kept the a red tub of it on her microwave for kitchen related burns and mosquito or sandfly bites, all of which are quite common when you cooked as much as my Nanna does and live in waterfront housing in central Queensland. Later I came to own my own tube of the fruit I loved fermented but loathed fresh. Great to use as lip balm or to gloss over a coat of lipstick, great for bites, stings and burns, reliable, multi-purpose and reasonably cheap.

TWEEZERS and THOSE SPLINTER GET-ER OUT-ERS
Ever had a splinter? I know I have – once I had one so large in the ball of my foot I couldn’t stand on it and had to call in sick to work. It was really more like a stick than a splinter. I like to refer to the Easter over which it happened as Splintergeddon. So in case of rogue pieces of wood lodging themselves in your person, be equipped with a pair of tweezers, and what I like to call a “splinter get-er out-er” - a utensil with one pointy needle-like end and a tiny hook on the other end. If you know of its actual name don’t hesitate to let me know.

A SEWING KIT
If you’re anything like me, you can never find a needle when you need one. At least, that was what I was like until I took a basic sewing kit home with me from a hotel suite I stayed in once! I somehow manage to lose buttons off of things and bust shirts open in the bust region quite frequently, and being away from my mother and her large collection of needles, pins and cotton reels makes mending problematic. How good it is, however, to have your own sewing kit to bring your button-less, dropped-hemmed, holey garments back to life as good as new – sure is cheaper than buying new ones!

DUDE’S DEODERANT THAT DOESN’T SMELL TOO MANLY
It’s really hot and your regular deodorant isn’t cutting it, or you’re going clubbing and dancing makes you so sweaty people mistake you for contestants on the Biggest Loser. Solution? Wear dude’s deodorant. Not only will you smell like you’ve been making out with the Old Spice ad guy, but the super-powered deodorant will hide your little-lady-armpit-stank with ease that chick’s deodorants never seem to be able to.

TEA TREE OIL + EUCALYPTUS OIL
These guys are beneficial for so many things. Tea Tree is great for skincare; a few drops in some boiling water and you give your face steam a kick, rub some onto your legs after waxing and the regular unsightly redness is halved (especially when icepacks are used as well), and at it’s name acne collapses in fear. Eucalyptus oil helps to clear the sinuses and battle colds, take those black-shoe-scuff marks off lino and get rid of stubborn sticky messes. Both are natural antiseptics, so great for cuts and scratches. Having one or both of these guys at hand will be worth the trouble!


So there is my list so far. I hope it helps even just a little – if you have any other suggestions of things that you think are useful to “just have”, please let us know by commenting!