it's a calpak day.

i drive to tj maxx with one purpose: find a suitable carry-on. suitable in this case being 20", hard-sided, roller. i march on in and right on over to the luggage department, in which i peruse many lovely bags. jessica simpson, nicole miller, samsonite, they're all there. i move some around, pick some up, shift something on an upper shelf nearly causing a suitcase to fall on my head.

then, i see it. on the bottom shelf, lying on its side, is a small, black case. hmm. this is promising. not yet quite the believer, i pick it up and find it to be lightweight with a nice shape and well-working rollers. boom. done.

well, almost. i have seen its ilk before, but have not wanted to fork over the dough. bags like this can run in the $80 range. or higher. but, that's why i am at tj maxx, right? things at tj maxx are less expensive. that's the whole point of maxx -- maxx has the minn prices.

no tags on the outside. hmm. i open the case and find no tags inside. odd, but okay fine, i will find another like this one. long story short, there is not another like this one. okay fine. i am sure they can find a price -- i'll just take it to the checkout. the checkout... between which and me there are like a gajillion people.

#sigh

turns out the line is moving along pretty well. when i reach the counter, i explain what's up and the cashier lady is all like, no problem. she calls over some guy and asks him to get a price and he goes to the luggage area which we can see from where we are so we sort of watch him rummaging in the baggage while making small talk.

i am being real patient because i smell a deal coming on. cashier lady mentions that she can check other stores, see if they have one, and i am all no-o-o-o, i need this bag today. chat, chat, chat. i peruse the snacks beside the register, the snacks across the aisle, select some dried salted caramel apple bits. she takes them, scans them, hands them back -- "so you can start on those, hon."

he's finally back with a comparable bag. same make, but larger. it's priced at like $80, so he's thinking this bag i want is like $49. ugh. i definitely don't want to pay $49. by this time, i am thinking $29. i say it - $29? the guy just looks at me, sort of smiles. cashier lady points out the scratches she & i have previously identified. still, he won't budge.

cashier lady is with me, really, and says she should have just keyed the price. i patiently agree - yeah, i am not paying $49... she says hang on, walks away, comes back with the mocked up price tag that guy (is he the manager?) has made so there's something to scan. she scans it and overrides the price, to $29.

i pay and whatnot, thanks and have a nice day, walk out with my new bag.

that, my friends, is how it's done.

this is not precisely what i purchased, but is an adequate representation from the calpak (brand of my purchase) website.