trial and error

There was a certain bag that I saw on the Urban Outfitters website long ago, in the early spring.

I immediately loved it and dreamed of the day that I might own it. I would often go back and look at it, fantasizing about the edge it would lend to my wardrobe. This infatuation went on for months; I saw it in stores once or twice and lovingly caressed its fake leather, longing for the day we would finally be together.

Finally, in August, I ordered it. At the time, I was on vacation, so I knew that the bag would be waiting faithfully for me when I got home. The day arrived at last, and finally I owned the bag of my dreams, after months and months. This bag, in fact:

Deena & Ozzy Chain Tote, $58. Urbanoutfitters.com

In the minutes after I removed it from its packaging, every detail of the bag was perfect. For a couple days, all my fantasies and expectations came true. Unfortunately, nothing lasts forever.

The main zipper at the top of the bag was cheap and flimsy. It didn't zip smoothly; I had to backtrack and make sure the teeth were lined up in order to close the bag. That was something I could learn to live with, I thought. Then one of the stud details popped off when I touched it lightly. That, too, could be fixed easily, but it told of worse things to come.

I went to the Apple Store to get a case for my mother's iPod Touch. As I was leaving, the stud that held the piece of leather that held the ring that the shoulder strap clipped onto gave way as well. Like with the other stud, I stuck the male and female pieces back together and the problem was temporarily fixed.

But that stud kept popping off. I kept fixing it, still desperately hoping that we would get past this problem and work together after all. The stud just kept popping off, though, and the more it popped off and the more I stuck it back into place, the worse it got - the hole in the canvas through which the stud passed was getting ripped up from all the stress.

The weak spot.

After a week of owning the bag, I had to admit that it was never going to get better and I gave up on it. I returned it for store credit, and went back to a trusty H&M bag from November '08 - that somehow only cost a quarter of the price of the Urban Outfitters bag.

It's been about two weeks without that (seemingly) lovely two-toned bag. I'm still a little bitter and disappointed, but I have moved on. Actually, during move-in I saw a girl with the bag, but in a different color and I felt a little silly about the whole thing. This bag is mass-produced and aggressively marketed to young people. It's an overpriced piece of crap.

Also, its page bears this cryptic message in small, light-colored print down at the bottom:

"This item does not comply with California Proposition 65. Please visit help/info for more details on Proposition 65.

What could this mean???? This mystery will be solved!

VERDICT: don't buy dis crap ever rrrrr