Why am I always buying new luggage? I don’t know, but here I go again. It seems that I cannot keep decent luggage for some reason, and every time I go somewhere, I have to buy a suitcase.

My red luggage looked so nice when I bought it years ago, three pieces all matching. A trip or two with airport luggage handlers playing soccer with it and it began to crumble. The inside had pieces of shattered plastic to clean out before packing. The outside trim left a trail of plastic crumbs behind me like being followed by ants. I could not bear the humiliation any longer.

I have a nearly new suitcase that I bought when we went to Egypt, a carry-on size. It is purple. When I bought it, purple was the only thing I could find on short notice that would meet the airlines specifications for size. Do the math. This is not a very large suitcase. However, I have now learned to travel light and to always buy a good suitcase.

As it turned out, purple was not such a bad color choice.

When hundreds of black suitcases all looking identical come tumbling out on the carousel at the airport, my purple one is easy to spot. So, I figured I would use the purple one again this time. I forgot that my daughter borrowed the purple suitcase and it now belongs to her. I agreed that she could have it, forgetting that there might be a next time. Besides, newer luggage now has four wheels and two-wheels are obsolete. Don’t tell my daughter.

I can never seem to keep decent luggage. About the time that I purchased a nice set of leather Samsonite years ago, luggage with wheels came along. My no-wheels luggage was instantly obsolete. Who do you see walking around carrying a suitcase these days — no one.

After my leather luggage went the way of the dinosaur, I bought a new black suitcase with wheels, the largest one I could find. “This will hold everything,” I thought. And it did. And it weighed a ton. Most airlines charge $25 these days to check luggage, and it is much too large to carry on. My brother-in-law finished off the big black suitcase when he dropped it and one of the wheels broke.

This time my new suitcase is blue. The purple, red, and green ones were all the wrong size. I hope blue will be different enough that I can find it. The suitcase salesman said that business travelers want black. Seasoned travelers have a carry-on and take it with them. No checking luggage, no delays, no lost luggage.

Unlike the two-wheel versions, which still require a certain amount of balance and strain your back when you pull it through the airport, my new suitcase is a spinner, four wheels. You can push it, pull it, or walk beside it. And unlike the other suitcases, it has round wheels like a ball instead of flat wheels. It’s the latest thing, the luggage salesman assured me.

Now that I’ve spent big bucks, I’m certain they will come out with something even better, something indestructible that can do cartwheels instead of merely spin. My little spinner will be obsolete before I can use it twice. Suitcase designers are busy every day dreaming up new ideas.

They now have smart luggage with a battery that will put out an electronic signal so it can’t be lost. Traveling gets more complicated every day.

Copyright 2013 Sheila Moss