REI

was my downfall this weekend. Having received notice of my dividend plus 20% off any item in the store, I immediately purchased this camera bag to replace the one that came with my camera as part of a special. The old camera bag had a habit of spitting out film, lens caps, etc and wasn't really good on hikes. I had it delivered to my local REI store and yesterday went to pick it up. And then wandered into the footwear section where I proceeded to buy teva's and new hiking boots. My justification: I need Teva's!!! For the sporadic tubing and whitewater rafting, chilling in between climbs, resting the feet after backpacking, and of course all around wear in the city during the summer. I justified my boot purchase by thinking of the bloody socks I would pull off my feet after hiking in the past six months from old boots, which while protecting my feet from raggedy trails, would maul my poor feet after a mere 4 miles or so.

It was REI's fault for carrying my size in women's.

Well I thought the Teva's didn't fit properly so I went back to the store ... and of course came out with another extra shopping bag: this time with hydration day hiking pack and socks. I need socks for hiking right? Socks for anything really right? And the hydration pack is great for biking, hiking, rockclimbing, et al ... absolutely need it right???

Yeah, just don't let me into REI with a credit card again, thank god I got my tax return and student loan money. I occurred to me that once I finished school and the student loans kicked in, it might be a good idea to get a second job, like maybe at REI ... or The Limited.