Jim has me pegged! I only take a small scissors all the time and a small super-light kitchen paring knife if I fish. Gutting fish with the little knife is not easy but hey, it only takes a few more minutes and I do not have to lug around a big heavy knife. If I had to, I could gut a fish with my teeth. Some fishermen can, but I cannot bite fishing line when I tie on a fly. A fingernail clipper is nice to have but when I forget to bring it, my teeth work fine. I do not bite nails now, but did as a kid, so am pretty good at it! I could still bite my toenails if it came to that. I really have very little feet or toenail problems- if I did I would be more inclined to always take a nail clipper.

I think you find uses for stuff you bring; you get creative and usually do just fine without. When I am solo, I can bite off cheese chunks and then spit them in the macaroni- nobody around to gross out.

I tossed the compass after 30 years and never using it. I read maps by matching topography and find north by shadows.

I never have had a need to make kindling- I find plenty of dry tiny twigs under trees and a good assortment of sizes of branches already no the ground for my fires.

My essentials include: needle and thread (or dental floss), one extra button, several safety pins, duct tape, small tube of seam seal, roll of FA tape, one ace bandage, one square of moleskin, a few bandaids, and my bottle of assorted pills- allergy medicine, Advil, a few cold tablets. I am a bit obsessive about taking several small boxes of matches and put them in different places. I take very little sunscreen (mostly wear clothes and hat), and an extra tube of lip balm (I am absolutely addicted to lib balm!). And although this sounds silly, several hair bands to tie a ponytail. You cannot believe how annoying it is not to be able to tie up long hair.

I have actually USED every item listed above, some several times. I really do not think I have anything I regularly take that I have never used.