Is it weird to be sentimental about a minor piece of luggage?
After 15 years and . . . eight? nine? trips to Africa, plus countless other journeys, my old Hartmann leather dopp kit finally reached such a level of degradation as to spur Roseann to diplomatically hint it might be time for a new one. Zipper broken, plastic lining petrified and cracked, pervasive stains—I had to admit she had a point.
Sadly, Hartmann no longer offers this model. A bit of surfing landed me on a suitably sturdy-looking replacement from Filson, but before I got around to ordering it, Roseann took her diplomatic hint a step further—in the form of the exact kit I'd been looking at, as a Christmas present.
This afternoon I finally got around to swapping the contents. Procrastinating? Maybe. I then walked the old Hartmann out to the trash. The hand holding it hovered over the bin, then drew back. Maybe a photo before . . . ? Pathetic. So here it is.