Thursday, August 11, 2011

Retiring the Battlebox

At the end of July I moved to a different neighborhood in DC which meant packing EVERYTHING. Lauren, who is an expert in most topics, instructed me on best practices for packing heavy items, such as books, by putting them in my suitcases.

Lauren: I love that old thing you carry around
its like so 1960s
Me: WHAT THING
Lauren: someday you need to UPGRADE to fancy rolling suitcase
Me: WHAT THING.
I have a rolling suitcase.
what are you talking about?
LAHP: that battlebox you carry around
Me: ??????????????????
Lauren: your hard suitcase
that thing you take everywhere
it weighs 100 lbs
you need a rolling duffle

It's a black samsonite, not quite as bad as shown below, but this is how Lauren remembers it:

This is a typical convo btwn us--Lauren identifies something I'm doing wrong then suggests expensive, corrective action. continuing with our chat...

Lauren: You can put a bike pump in a rolling duffle.
Does that hard case even have WHEELS?
Were wheels even INVENTED when you got that thing?
OMG NEW RIHANNA SONG ALERT

I ordered a near-weightless rolling duffle for my upcoming travel and we revisited the topic:

Me: I told my roommate about the battlebox
Lauren: and someday you can tell your kids about it
put it in a museum
Me: haha
Lauren: I mean where DID you get that?
it is SO unconventional and not conducive to good traveling
it's like riding a hybrid in a triathlon
Me: lol I know
my grandma bought it for me
it can be a family heirloom
Lauren: hahahha right. my grandmother had that thing in the 70s
I remember when I first met you thinking "wtf is she carrying"
"she must not travel much"
perhaps the camp was your first time on a plane
sheltered life in ohio
Me: I'm glad I have you
Lauren: to brighten your day and to keep you cool looking
Me: to point out my archaic tendencies
and anachronistic luggage
Lauren: haha you should hold onto that thing bc it will be vintage soon and it's always cool to turn vintage luggage into furniture

Friday, August 5, 2011