Moneywise Monday: It May Not be Perfect...

Jack Bauer has adventures--and a bag to go with them

Lately I've been on the hunt for a new adventuring bag.  An adventuring bag is a very important item to have in one's collection and differs from a regular purse in a number of ways.

1. An adventuring bag is generally larger than a purse.  Since the Adventuring Bag comes into play while one is out on adventures, it must hold all the things that one needs to remain comfortable and avoid spending money i.e. room enough for water, snacks and a cardigan--sometimes knee socks sometimes a sun hat.
2. An adventuring Bag, while large, should not be cumbersome.  This is tricky, as you can imagine, but it can be done.  It should also squash down easily for storage in cars, under plane seats, and on touristy rides of all types.
3. A Adventuring Bag must be durable!  No delicate clutches need apply!
4. An Adventuring bag must have a wide strap.  Since you (like me) probably do most of your adventuring while on vacation, you need to make sure this bag is as comfortable to wear as possible for long periods of time.  Since it will hold more than you carry on the average day, you need a wide strap to distribute the weight and make sure you don't cripple your shoulder.
5. An Adventuring Bag should have a long enough strap so it can be worn cross-body.  This also helps distribute the weight and makes it much, much more comfortable.

I had an Adventuring Bag that suited me quite well for a number of years, and that I got at Target for about $15.  Sadly, this bag was starting to break down, so I've been on the hunt for a replacement, and I think I found one.

I was snooping through Endless.com and I found this:

Cute, functional, spacious, cross-body strap AND it has a giraffe on it!  But the price is a bit higher than I would like.  So I started seeing what else was available in this brand, and I found this: 

Almost exactly the same bag except it has a peacock on it and it's 40% off!  The reason for the deep discount, I'm assuming, is that it only has one two star review which says this: "The bag was perfect! Except it smelled awful. Perhaps it was the leather/vinyl but I couldn't keep it. It smelled just awful. Very unfortunate. Endless was great and took it back ASAP of course!"

I don't love the idea of having a stinky bag, but I figured I might as well try it out.  It does smell, but I'm also not using it right away.  I've had it airing out in the window for a couple days, and the smell is already dissipating. I'm well on my way to having an unscented Adventuring Bag that I love!

How did everyone else do this week?