All That You Can Leave Behind.

In yet another manifestation of the dysfunctional randomness that seems to typefy me, I'm contemplating the 'Shipwrecked on a Desert Island' scenario. Ok not quite, it's kind of a 'Shipwrecked on a Desert Island meets Burning House' scenario.

I'm trying to answer, as honestly as I possibly can, the question: If you were forced to leave behind your life as you knew it, what would you take with you? (Just so we're perfectly clear, by this we mean - in exchange for life as you do not know it, not death or the general absence of life. Also, obviously this applies to material possessions only because no, you can not take your best friend or the local barista who after 3.5 years has finally mastered the art of brewing your java fix just exactly the way you like it.)

So, here's what I've come up with so far - In The Event Of Imminent Unavoidable Long-Term Existential Relocation, Take:

*Paper - All certificates and documents - Because lets face it, someone's always going to want to see your birth certificate. (The warranty on your blender may not be of much use but take medical records and old love letters.)

*Pictures - Take your photographs with you. Always take your past with you. If it's been a good one, it'll help remind you who you are, who you've known, who you've loved and been loved by.
Hell, if nothing else, your photographs will serve as a warning that fashion is a fickle mistress and you are truly not as cool as you think you are. (Did someone say parachute pants.)

*The Gizmos - Lets face it: Ipod, therefore I am.
While early man may have forged blithely into the unknown armed with nothing more than a piece of flint and a sharp stick, humankind today can do nothing without the aid of a device that supports any less than 3 USB ports.
So - The Laptop, The Cell Phone, The Camera and of course, The Ipod.
Just the basics, though. Leave the GPS and the electric toothbrush behind unless you're that new breed of human - the kind that's never heard of stopping to ask for directions and comes with USB ports in lieu of opposable thumbs. In which case, the point is moot since you will die if unplugged from the mainframe and/or by exposure to direct sunlight and fresh air.

*Entertainment - You won't have friends to begin with. Take a book. Preferably a familiar one that is like an old friend. If you have no books you think of as old familiar friends, then take a bottle of Whiskey. This will either buy you new friends very quickly or help you forget you don't have friends, new or old. (Nintendo is acceptable but will give you carpal tunnel and decimate your attention span.)

*The Essentials: clothes, shoes, corkscrew, reading glasses, Swiss Army knife in case you need to channel Robinson Crusoe...

Problem is, it gets murky right around the 'All That You Can Leave Behind.'