I could swear I saw a similair thread somewhere recently
Consumables:
PX Generic POP Tarts, six to a pack, enough for one each day.
1 tube of Chips Ahoy chocolate chip cookies and 1 tube of Ritz or generic rits they go much better with the MRE cheese especialy if its warm, almost like a can of cheeze whiz which was sometimes taken too.
1 bag of dried pinapple chunks, or papaya spears or mango pieces.
1 Bottle of Tobasco Sauce.
Apple or Orange <oranges travel better> snatched from the chow hall the last meal before heading out.
Occassionaly the half cans of stew, ravioli, viena sausages or similiar foods would be brought if they were available.
Ramen packs, occassionaly, usualy one or two packs would be stored in plastic in the top flap as a "just in case" measure
Walkman, spare batterys in a 1st Aid Kit case, and three tapes.
Mini Crossword puzzle book and mechanical pencil in plastic bag and some notepapper. Perfect for sitting on airport runways or landing zones or compartments/halls and decks of ships and goes into the pocket very easily.
One book in plastic with a larger letter sized notepad and a couple envelopes in fanny pack with two more books in the main pack with notepad, pends and pencils wrapped in plastic.
Minimag light X2 one in your pocket or webbing, the other in the top flap compartment of the pack, angle lights were crap!
Personaly Owned Binoculars, our issued ones were seldom issued.
Spare 2 liter canteen <we never got water resupply>
Camo compact, much easier to put on than those camo paint sticks, and the mirror worked wonders for shaving.
Personaly made 1st Aid Kit, Generic Tylenol, Tweezers, Nail clippers, Mole Skin, neosporin bandaids and allergy/cold tablets. Nothing more miserable than having a wicked dripping nose in the feild coupled with fever, anti fungal ointment.
LARGE container of baby powder, helped with jungle rot, athletes foot and other issues.
2 pilots flasks, water or a few times "other" beverages. Easily carried when you don't want to wear webbing and a canteen will bounce around to much in a cargo pocket.
Personal Survival Kit in a plastic cigarette box (tin foil, fishhooks, line, snare wire, 2 nails, 1 roll dental floss, split shot, 1 book waterproof matches wrapped in plastic, 1 mini lighter, 1 liter plastic ziplock baggie, 2 razor blades, MRE tissue, 4 bullion cubes, 2 trick birthday candles that relight.
Airline Pillow; grabbed it from a flight, a little bit of comfort in the field was always nice.
Can or more of OFF insect repellant when it could be found, issue stuff worked for crap.
Of course cigarettes, usualy 1 open and one unopened in the pockets, 2-4 packs in the ass pack and about as many in the top flap of the ALICE pack.
Metal Spoon aquired from the Chowhall! MRE spoons used to be to too small <remember the tiny white ones?>, or break <the long handled brown ones with brittle plastic>, or once was defective with just a handle. Screw that!
Sterno, found a can in Infantry School while on a working party in the field where it had been freezing all week. a sheild was made from cutting both ends off a tin can and poking vents along the top for air. So you could then have some heat, or cook your coffee or cocoa without giving off alot of light.
1 roll electrical tape
Small pocket knife
Issue items that always were brought in pockets or ass pack:
Gloves, watch cap and fieldjacket liner
Those were some of the none standard items I usualy carried. Nothing really major as weight was always a factor, and at times some of the above would not be available.