The "want"

I have a "want" that has suddenly become a bit of a "need." Let me explain:

Several months ago I started going to the gym at lunch. It's not the ideal situation, given that my carefully coiffed hair never looks the same after a workout, but I really enjoy the total break from the work environment. Plus it gives me an energy boost for the rest of the afternoon.

(I used to work out in the morning, before work. And I loved it! But when the boyfriend* and I moved in together last year, it was kind of weird to go to bed an hour and a half before he did and then wake up way before he did. Aren't those moments some of the best parts about living together? That and having someone else to do the laundry while you cook dinner.)

I happily packed my gym clothes and shoes in my backpack and headed off to work every morning. Sure, my backpack wasn't stylin', but it looked fine with my puffy, unfashionable black coat. And it even worked with my fashionable black trench as the weather got warmer. But it was kind of heavy and pretty bulky. Still, I refused to embrace the idea that I need to buy another bag, when I already had a perfectly fine one!

Now we're slowly, but surely, transitioning into warmer weather (sooooo slowly...) and my backpack looks awful with my summer skirts and dresses. It completely overpowers my girly outfits with its inherent ruggedness.

So this morning I was determined to find something else in my closet of many bags. I thought I'd found a winner - a cute little nylon sac. Brown with blue and cream polka dots. It seemed a tad on the small side when I crammed in my shoes and clothes, plus my water bottle, but it worked. I fit my ginormous lunch in my purse (I am the Tupperware queen, so my lunch bag is always a little on the large side.) and off I went. Before I left for the gym, I transferred my wallet into my sac, filling it to capacity now, and set off, enjoying the lightness of my step.

Post workout, I peeled off my sweaty clothes (sorry if I'm giving you a visual) and stuffed them in the sac. On top of my wallet. And my water bottle.

Ew.

Then the sac full of sweaty gym clothes and shoes sat under my desk all afternoon. Open, because it's only closure is a little snap at the top, but it's too full for the snap to close.

Ew again.

Suddenly I realized the benefits of having a roomy bag with a separate compartment for wet stuff. So after work I went on a reconnaissance mission to Lululemon and found an awesome bag! Cute, sizable, with lots of extra pockets and a whole separate section for wet stuff. Exactly what I'm looking for.

The only problem = $59. On sale from $74, but still $59.

I'm not ruling it out yet, but I definitely can't afford it this week.

What is with the "want!?"

Total debt: $6999 and a bit
Spent today: $8.69 ($6 for my SATC matinee ticket for tomorrow, plus some sour cream for our dinner of perogies.)

* Today is the one-year anniversary of the boyfriend and I moving in together, so now we're common law. I've decided to call him my domestic partner now.