I was walking in from the parking lot to my office this morning following two women faculty members in high heels pulling those large rolling brief cases through the slush, snow, and ice. I am walking in my boots and I carry nothing in my hands because you are supposed to have your hands free in case you slip on the ice. I have my Blackberry and reading glasses in my right jacket pocket and my iPod touch in my left. Sometimes I carry a backpack with my computer, but most mornings there is just my jacket and the predictable content of my pockets.
I am not certain why the combination of high heels and a rolling brief case annoys me. Maybe it is the sound of the wheels clicking along over the side walk and the sight of it sliding around in the slush. Then there are those trails of mud and water down the hallway carpets. At least leave your boot prints as a sign of your entrance. If I offered my honest impressions on this matter, I would probably also be accused of being sexist, anti-lawyer or some such nonsense.
I think I regard those folks with rolling brief cases as posers. If they would have been male faculty members, they would probably wear jackets with patches on the elbows. What could you possibly carry in a rolling brief case that would be worth the effort. If I read 100 or so pages in an evening, I would regard my evening as productive and would have had time to do no other work. One book is more than enough. You really don’t need your computer. Most of us have multiple computers. Do your writing in Google Docs and just connect from your home desk top. The library offers online access to far more journals than I have on my shelves and how would I know what I want to look at 5 hours from now anyway. No need to load up a suit case and carry it with me.
Maybe those in the rolling brief case crowd are not so much posers as unable to plan ahead.
Just in case they should read this, I really hope my daughters do not pull rolling brief cases. I doubt it, their mom is a great role model. She has this giant bag of tech stuff she carries over her shoulder. Need a mini projector. Need a cord for a 1998 Mac to monitor interface. A miniature screw driver set in case you must take your laptop apart. A couple of terabytes of backup. She is ready. Now that is planning ahead.
OK – I feel much better now. Tomorrow a comment on those big, hard plastic water bottles.