A Nibble Bit

Everyone reacts the same when they hear the phrase "2020". Their eyes widen, heart rate increases, and a sense of doom starts to creep. For the entirety of the last calendar year, we all muttered hysterically to ourselves, "2020 will end soon, it has to end..." As if once "2021" flashed on our smartphone home screens, the world would instantly become a better place. 

Well, it didn't. 2021 is here, and while it seems that the pandemic has become less of a worry in the United States (yay, vaccines!), scary, and frankly downright depressing, things didn't stop happening. It seems that the avalanche of negative news will never come to a halt. Our mental health is constantly teetering on the edge while we struggle to balance our personal and work lives without collapsing into a breakdown. If this doesn't sound familiar to you, well, I am deeply envious of your home under a rock. 

It was during these trying times that I decided to delete Instagram off my phone. I was slowly growing conscious of the fact that every time I doom-scrolled through my feed, my mood was souring more and more. I was constantly fearful and negative due to the bad news that was being shared by peers. It was growing to be a very toxic place for me.

So I deleted the app! And it's been a while since I've felt this...free.

1. I stopped mindlessly opening Instagram. I was growing aware that I was developing a terrible habit. I would tap the Instagram app on my phone without even thinking. I would scroll through my feed and read through the content over and over again. I was doing this when I was between meetings at work, eating meals, during a slow TV show. It was such a time suck, and I never got anything productive out of it.

2. I stopped reading negative news that other accounts were sharing. I believe in staying informed and aware of what is going on in the world. But I also believe that there is marginal utility. At a certain point, information becomes too much and it is not longer helpful. In fact, it became really negative for me. This isn't just applicable to social media; over the course of 2020, I had the New York Times delivered to my inbox daily. That did not fare well for me since, as you can imagine, the news sensationalizes everything. And the more negative headlines = the more traffic and readers. When I unsubscribed from everything but the New York Times' "Breaking News". I felt my mental health improve.

3. I realized how repetitive most updates from people are. Don't get me wrong, I genuinely enjoy seeing some (keyword: some) people's updates. I care about my friends. But what I don't care about is a daily picture of your baby or meal. 

4. I value real-life conversations more. I knew what my friends were up to by looking at their Instagram updates. But let's face it - that's not very personal at all. If I only know what's going on in your life because of social media, we're probably not that great of friends. Since deleting the app, I've had some really great conversations that I appreciate even more. Shoutout to my real homies, you know who you are.

5. I am more productive. This goes hand in hand with #1, but not having my time sucked into this app has given me more time to do things that I actually enjoy. For one, I'm writing a blog post for the first time since 2016. And for another, I sat down and read a physical book. 

While I have deleted the app, I do sometimes login via my mobile browser to check my direct messages on my personal account and scroll here and there. (Sidenote: I heartily recommend this approach - it is harder to mindlessly open and scroll through Instagram this way. I have to manually log in and use a clunky mobile experience. I never stay on for long.) I also use a platform to schedule my Trader Joe's recommendation for my @anibblebit Instagram account. 

And you know what? Nothing's changed when I do log into Instagram occasionally. Bob* is still posting about how the government wants to take our rights away (I couldn't believe this person was still getting my attention, so I muted him), Sally* is brunching it up with her homegirls in the Marina (complete with a "HaAYYy girl hAYyYYY" commentary in her story, ah, classic), and Joe* is still eating a lot of takeout (your fiber intake ok there, buddy?). So I haven't missed anything at all. 

*Not real names 

It is not a secret that I am an overpacker.

My husband is always miffed at how full and heavy my luggage is whenever we go on a trip. I myself am miffed (“How did I stuff this luggage for an overnight trip?” I mutter to myself, sitting on top of my hard-shell luggage while struggling to zip it closed). But ya know, a girl’s gotta have options - I just want to make sure that I have *choice* when I am on vacation. I never know when I might be feeling too bloated for that tight dress, or if the weather might change on a whim so I’ll need that extra crewneck...and my skincare regimen is oh so important, so of course I need all my face products!

• Undergarments and socks for 2 days
• Tshirt and long pants
• A soft-cover book
• Comb
• Crewneck sweater
• Maxi dress
• Pair of sunglasses in case
• Cross-body purse
• 2 blouses
• Portable phone charger
• Phone chargers and other cables
• Airpods

• Bag filled with skincare products
• Makeup bag
• Pair of jeans
• Flats

• Better quality than Beis
• Zippers slide more easily
• Top compartment has 2 zippers for easy closure
• Includes a crossbody strap, which is a great option
• Smaller size could ideally sit underneath airplane seat

• Small size is too small, Large size is too large
• Price point seems high for what the bag is - though there are usually sales which reduces the price

• Size is perfect - not too small and not too big
• Great price point
• Has a laptop compartment inside of the bag
• More structured - easy to get in and out of the bag

• Could be better quality; inner lining feels cheap and not certain about duration of the bag
• Top compartment only has one zipper
• Zippers are hard to pull and not smooth

• The Catalina Deluxe Small has a capacity of 32.2 liters, and the Catalina Deluxe Large has a capacity of 38.9 litres
• According to the Beis team, the litre capacity is about 30-35L, but I am inclined to say that it is 35 L based on my packing experience with both bags

I am the type of person who relentlessly researches products before making a purchase. I like to ensure that I've explored every option out there so that I am getting the absolute best option for my needs. Case in point: it took me months to find a gym bag that fit my every need/want, and it took me just as long to find a luggage that I deemed perfect.

(Note: I of course do not do this when shopping for basic goods, such as clothing or grocery items - can you imagine how long that would take?!)

Before a recent trip to Maui, Hawaii (another travel post coming soon!), I decided that I needed a new suitcase. My old suitcase, while a durable and wonderful Samsonite that was purchased over 10 years ago, only had two wheels. During my trip to Peru, I had borrowed my boyfriend's four-wheeled luggage and could not go back to a two-wheeler.

What is the difference between a two-wheeled luggage and a four-wheeled luggage?

two-wheeled luggage

A two-wheeled luggage can only steer in one direction - forwards. This makes it extremely hard to turn corners quickly, to wheel your luggage down the middle aisle of the plane, as well as walking around with your luggage in general.


A four-wheeled luggage allows you to effortlessly wheel your luggage alongside you. This means you can walk right next to your luggage, spin it around 360 degrees if you want, and generally push your luggage along without much force. This is very crucial when you are walking in the airport with a lot of bags, or are in a rush.

What was I looking for in a new luggage?

• I wanted to be able to carry on my luggage. I try to avoid checking in my luggage whenever possible - not only do you save time at the baggage carousel, but you save money now that airlines have decided to nickel and dime everything, including checked luggage. Thus, I was seeking a baggage that was 22" (height) x 9" (depth) x 14" (width).
• I wanted a hard-shell luggage. I saw first-hand how useful it would be to have a hard-shell luggage whenever the weather was unpredictable - when it rained, my friends who had hard-shell luggage were protected from water damage.
• The aforementioned four wheels, of course!

Pros of a hard-shelled luggage

• Clean and durable. One of the gripes I have about soft-sided luggage is that every time i return from a trip, I feel the need to wash my luggage. With a hard shell luggage, that is not necessary as I would only need to wipe down the outside of the luggage.
• You have the option of other colors aside from the standard black carry on, which makes your luggage instantly recognizable.
• Waterproof/weatherproof. When I went to Peru, it started to rain unexpectedly while our stack of luggage was on top of the car. All of my friends were not worried about their hard-shelled luggage, but I was. We had to stop the car to bring my soft-shell luggage down into the van so my things would not be soaked. After all, few things are worse than having wet luggage! This encounter taught me how useful a hard-shelled luggage would be.

Pros of a soft-hard shell luggage

• There are more pockets that are on the outside of the bag, as well as inside of the bag. This enables you to organize your belongings better.
• A soft-shell luggage will enable you to pack more into your bag, as they typically have more "give". You can sit on top of your luggage to ensure everything is zipped up, but that would be fairly difficult for a hard-shell.
• One might argue that it is easier to squeeze a soft-shell luggage into the overhead compartment of an airplane. (I personally am not sure about this, since if the dimensions are within TSA regulations, the bag should fit?)

I really found the pros of a hard-shelled luggage appealing.

However, as I continued my search for a hard-shell luggage, I found that most hard-shelled luggage open halfway:


While this is most likely not an annoyance to most people, I personally would find it more difficult to pack. Additionally, when you arrive at your destination, you would need more space to open up your luggage. You would be unable to prop it up against a wall as I usually do.

I then came across Delsey's Helium Shadow 3.0 21" Carry-On luggage and found that it was everything that I was looking for!


Pros of the Delsey's Helium Shadow 3.0 21" Carry-On luggage:

• Hard-shelled luggage
• Within TSA's carry-on luggage dimensions, ensuring that I could carry this on most flights (sometimes the plane is just too small to accommodate any luggage)
• Four-wheeled
• Interior pockets to organize your belongings
• Well known-brand. After countless research, I concluded that the best luggage brands that offer the most bang for your buck was Samsonite and Delsey. I found that these two brands offered the highest-scored product reviews, and also offered 10 year warranties on their products. Not only are these brands reputable, but their products were fairly affordable compared to other high-end brands such as Tumi.
  
  Also, my old luggage was a Samsonite that lasted me for over 10 years!)
• Built in TSA lock, which is very convenient for the times you may want to check your luggage, or leave it in the hands of a hotel's lobby.
  
• Zippered expansion. You can expand the luggage by 1", which is extremely helpful when you want to fit some souvenirs on your return home.
• And most importantly...this particular hard-shell luggage has a front lid closure!

The front lid closure, to me, combined the durability of a hard-shelled luggage with the practicality of a soft-shell luggage. I felt that I could really pack a lot and my items remained protected.

I personally purchased my Delsey Helium Shadow (in purple! I am absolutely in love with the color) from Irv's Luggage. The experience was seamless, and my luggage came relatively quickly. I believe there is free shipping, and they also offer free returns if you are unsatisfied with your purchase.

In addition to having a quality luggage bag, you may find that using space saver bags to pack convenient. Space saver bags will allow you to compress your clothes so that you can pack more.

I hope that you found this review on luggage helpful! If you have a favorite luggage, let me know what it is in the comments below!

*All the images used in this post were not taken by me. Images were sourced from Google and Irv's Luggage.