Freitag

I have a new obsession, which combined with the compulsion to count that I borrowed from Michael, makes me... an obsessive compulsive.

My new obsession is something very Swiss - the Freitag bag. Freitag bags are made of used truck canopies, used seat belts, recycled airbags, and bycicle inner tubes beyond repair. They are one-of-a-kind, colorful, and super tough. They are made by Swiss, in Switzerland, and are of arrogant Swiss quality, as they note on their webiste: "As for us, we are Swiss, which means we are acutely quality-conscious. We apply our recycled materials in a totally new way, insisting on superlative design and functionality. "

These bags are super expensive (from $200 up), but they're supposed to last a lifetime. Swiss actually use them for a lifetime, it seems - because the ones I see on the street look so dirty that it makes you think they we run over by an airplane and then a dirt truck, some 50 years ago. And they are ultra popular. I tried to count them one day on the street, but since a number doesn's say much, I will just illustrate. Yesterday, as we were having a drink in a hip bar on our date night, as one Freitag bag came in for a beer, another Freitag bag was leaving. So yes, everybody has them. And yes, they're expensive, not delicate, and if I buy one I will just make some rich people from a rich country even richer. But look, isn't she pretty?