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Earth> The Perfect
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The Perfect Bag
By Jeffrey the Barak
Published November 2004
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Ever since I was in
my teens I have had a thing about luggage.
Being a man I couldn't very well go around
with a ladies purse/handbag, but I always
seemed to have a lot of stuff to carry about.
Even living in England
in the seventies and eighties, where it
was not legally required to carry identification
and many men therefore put money in their
pockets without a wallet, I always seemed
to have a lot of stuff that couldn't comfortably
fit in my pockets.
Now obviously when
we know that we are surely going to be carrying
large items or many items, it's easy to
select a good backpack, Gladstone bag, shoulder
bag or briefcase and load it all in, but
when it's just a few small items, you could
then have an over heavy and largely empty
shoulder bag, and you really could use something
smaller that does not look too feminine. |
So where would you wear
such a thing, if you could find it? Possibly on
your tummy, or on your lower back, or (unless
your waist is bigger than your chest), at your
side above your hip. You could attach it with
a shoulder strap over the shoulder opposite to
the side you wear the bag, or with a waist strap.
If worn at your side, your arm over the bag will
keep the bag protected from pickpockets and the
whole thing will be in a handy place so you can
do a Quick Draw McGraw for your PDA or sunglasses.
I acknowledge that for many
people, the perfect or ideal bag may not be this
one, but for me at least, after decades of trying
different systems, I think I've found perfection
in the REI Personal Organizer.
As the name suggests, this
bag is organized. Have you ever had a bag with
just one compartment? You always seem to be rummaging
for the item you're looking for. Over time, everything
gets scratched from rubbing against everything
else. On the other hand, bags with too many compartments
can be just as bad. How can you remember which
of those fifteen little sections contained which
item?
The REI Personal Organizer
has a large pocket, big enough for a water bottle
and a couple of eyeglass cases but it's the smaller
pocket that really shines as it has soft fleece
lined pockets for your PDA and your phone. There
are other pockets of various size and shape, but
not so many that you will be unable to find anything.
One problem many bags have is that they are black
inside, so when you open them up and look in,
it's too dark to see anything so you have to rummage.
This bag is orange inside. That's one simple idea
that's been on my bag wish list for years, but
I never saw it until I found this bag.
 |
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| Main Section - Easily
big enough for a water bottle and two glasses
cases |
Center Organizer Section
- Designed to perfection |
If you are not using the
waist strap, it hides itself behind the padded
body side of the bag, and if you are not using
the non-slip shoulder strap, it detaches and goes
in the bag. You are then left with a great handle
so you can adopt the mini-briefcase hand hold.
Also it should be noted that the main outside
zippers have tags on them that feature little
pads that make them easy to grip; such an amazing
detail.
So let's assume that on
an average day out in the city you make a spread
on the table of the things you need to take along.
Let's say for example that includes a mobile phone,
a handheld computer, a digital music player, a
compact camera, sunglasses, reading glasses, wallet,
keys, and a small bottle of water, plus a few
tiny sundries like eye drops, a flashlight and
a couple of pens. This bag will offer you an ideal
slot for each item, and after a couple of days
of use, you won't even have to glance into the
bright orange interior to find what you are fishing
for.
Now try putting all of the
above into your coat pockets. Now try putting
the above collection in a backpack. Obviously
the pockets are too small and the backpack is
far too big. At 10 inches high and 8 inches wide,
with a thickness of between 3 and 4 inches, depending
on contents, REI made this bag the perfect size.
How does it look? Well it's
not, as the Governor of California might say,
"girlie", it's not too casual and it's
not too formal. It looks great wherever you wear
it. And it's not just for men. Many women are
finding that their purses are like one way gateways
to another dimension. Stuff goes in, and it doesn't
come back out unless the entire contents of the
purse are dumped out, and then the item they are
looking for is always the last one to exit. Women's'
bags are either too small, or too big, and as
electronic devices replace make-up and drugs as
the things to carry in the modern world, the average
girl's personal luggage has changed with the times.
Perhaps there is no
REI in your town and you don't like to shop online.
Well for all I know there may be other bags as
clever as this one, but on the other hand, perhaps
this gray Cordura nylon marvel is indeed the perfect
bag. It certainly is perfect for my needs.
Jeffrey
the Barak is the publisher of the-vu and
can be found efficiently carrying various small
objects around in his bag.
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