I’m not too sure if this is the right place to post this. Hell, I don’t know if anyone’s even gonna see it. I want to start this off by saying that this story isn’t to be taken lightly. I don’t want you to read this and try to copy what is done, instead take it as a warning. A warning to never play this game, a warning I wish I had gotten before I made that mistake.
I lived almost my entire life in the middle of Delaware, if you forgot that was a state I wouldn’t blame you. In my neighborhood there were 3 kids I always played with everyday. Kyle, Jimmy, and Seth. Our houses were close enough to each other that we played together whenever we had the chance.
We did all the typical things a couple 13 year old boys would do. Swimming in the local pool, going to the Walmart and buying nothing, or just hang in one of our basements and being jack-asses. It was almost a Disney-like childhood. Sleepovers were nothing new for us, I think we had one almost every weekend. What was new was not having any parents there to watch us.
Seth offered to host the next one and included that his parents were gonna be gone for the night. They were staying down at the beach and told Seth it would be fine for him to invite us over. Fine for him, not so much for the rest of us. I think me and the other guys pleaded and begged our parent’s multiple times to let us go.
Our parents knew each other and trusted us but the idea of 4 pre-pubescent boys being alone in a house was any parents worse nightmare. Somehow, by the grace of god, they agreed the night before. After all this time, I still wish they had denied us. Maybe things would have ended differently.
I wanna tell you about the events that happened that night that changed me into who I am. It changed my life and every families that was involved in it. This is the night I played Hide and Seek with my friends.
“Hide and Seek? Won’t that get boring with just 4 of us?” I asked suspiciously as I took a handful of Doritos from the bowl on the table. It was about 10:30pm when Kyle suggested we play a game so we could try and stay up later.
“Yeah man and besides, we have an Xbox.” Jimmy pointed out. Seth came walking down the basement with some sodas in hand, almost dropping the cans
“What are you guys talking about? You better not be thinking of touching my controller with your greasy hands Jimmy, not after last time.”
“It was an accident! I got you a new one.” Jimmy responded before chuckling a bit.
“No guys, I saw this on the internet a few nights ago. We have to try it.” Kyle said. He almost sounded like he was pleading with us.
Kyle was always the kind of kid to believe in spooky things. Ghost, werewolves, demons. You name it, Kyle probably believed it. I remember one time he somehow got us all to go in the woods with him during the winter to look for dog people that a YouTuber said was out near us. We all got the flu after that.
“Oh god, another one of these? Is it gonna be like that dog thing again?” Seth chimed in.
“It’s not like that, this one is real. I promise dude.” Kyle seemed genuine about it. I almost felt bad as the other guys called him stupid for it.
“Alright man, we try your game for a bit. Then if it’s a bust, we play Xbox.” I suggested. Kyles face lite up as he got some paper out of his bag.
“Who said you were in charge of deciding when to play my Xbox?” Seth questioned. I just shushed him as Kyle got some more stuff out of his bag. Candles, lighters, a knife. I would have hated to see what would happen if we said no to his idea.
“Alright, first. We gotta turn all the lights off. Not a single one can be on during the game.” We looked at each other before we went off to get the house started. I had been in Seth’s house almost as much as mine but there’s strangeness to it when the lights were all off. We got back to the basement where we found Kyle lighting the candles and placing them on the ground around the paper. As we sat around him I could see some words on the paper. “Ready or Not, here it comes”
“What’s that for?” I pointed as Kyle placed the last candle down.
“That’s to start the game. I saw these Indian guys play it and they said you have to start the game just like this or it doesn’t work.” Kyle answered as he slowly pulled the knife up and turned to face us.
“Now, we have to cut ourselves.”
“Like Sarah from home room?” Jimmy chuckled
“I thought that was a rumor?” Seth remarked as he leaned towards Jimmy
“Guys! Focus! Just a small prick on your finger. Then you put it on the paper.” Kyle demanded as he slowly pressed the knife tip into his finger
“This feels very, extreme. Is this safe to play?” I asked, seeing Kyle whence as blood slowly pooled on the top of his finger
“I think so, the guys seemed like they were having fun when they did it.” He held the knife towards me next, the guys watched as I reluctantly took the knife and plucked my finger. I did encourage us to play this for Kyle sake, I couldn’t chicken out now. The other two did the same, Jimmy had more tears then the rest of us but when he finished he handed the knife back to Kyle.
“Now?” Seth asked, rubbing his finger on his Pokémon pajama bottoms.
“Now, repeat after me.” We all listened to Kyle and repeated
“ 1, 2, 3. Ready or not, come find me.” We stared at each other. Silence filled the basement as our eyes kept darting to see if anything happened.
“Do you hear that?” Seth whispered We listened as the most quiet fart escaped him. He fell on his back and laughed. Jimmy joined him and so did I. We laughed and laughed, I looked to see if Kyle found it as amusing but was met with sadness. He looked almost heart broken, I knew he lived for these kinda things and for it to not work most have broken him. I moved to him and smiled
“Hey, at least we didn’t have to sit out in negative degrees to get results this time huh?” He smiled slight back
“Yeah I guess you’re right. I don’t know how those guys made it look so convincing.”
“CGI probably, my dad says that’s how most things are done like that.” Seth said as he got up to go turn the light back on. Before he hit the switch, a loud thud filled the room. I’ll never forget the look on his face as he rushed back to the floor where we were all sitting.
“W-what was that?” Jimmy whispered to me. I didn’t know what to say until Kyle reluctantly chimed in.
“It’s him, the seeker.” We sat still as another thud could be heard. Like it was right above us.
“What the fuck dude? S-Seth? Did you invite someone else over? Duncan or Josh maybe?” Jimmy was frantic with his questions as his eyes filled with tears.
“No, it’s him.” Kyle answered before Seth could respond.
“Who?” I asked
“The seeker. The person who plays the game with us.”
“Well tell him we don’t wanna play anymore.” Seth demanded, making sure to keep his voice down.
“We can’t, they said he plays until everyone is found.”
“What do you mean until we’re found?” I asked, I kept looking at the stairs. My brain was trying to wrap around what was happening while also trying to keep reason in it.
“It’s like hide and seek. We play until we’re all found or he can’t find us.” Kyle answered
“Ok, let’s go get found so the game can be over.” Seth tried to stand before Kyle pulled him down.
“No, we don’t wanna be found. Bad things happen if we’re found.” Kyle looked at the carpet as he said it. The thud got louder, almost like it was searching the house.
“Ok, ok. Then we should just stay down here right? If we hide down here it won’t find us….h-how long do we have to hide man?” I stuttered as I waited for Kyle to answer.
“I…I don’t know.”
We sat there in silence, thuds and crashes from upstairs made the silence somehow louder. I had wished it was all a prank. Seth and Jimmy loved pulling those and Kyle was usually the target for them. But I knew it wasn’t that, I knew this was real. I don’t know how it was but at that moment there was something upstairs, tearing the house apart trying to find us.
We stayed like that until Seth finally spoke “Let’s run.”
“What?” Kyle mumbled out, his face covered by his hands. Tears were rolling down his cheeks.
“Let’s run, the doors not to far from the basement entrance. We unlock it and run to a neighbors.” Seth looked for nods or any sign of agreement. Jimmy nodded and I slowly shook yes. I looked at Kyle, grabbing his leg and squeezing it.
“Come on man, we’re definitely faster than it. We’ll be out before it even sees us.” I smiled at him.
He looked up and slowly smiled, nodding. We all slowly moved to the base of the basement stairs. Looking down into a dark basement is scary, but looking up into a dark house is another whole kind of fear. I don’t know how long we took going up those steps but it felt like ages, we were slowly ascending into what could be our end. Seth held the doorknob and just stared at it. I knew he didn’t wanna be the one to open it, to potentially be the one to see what ever it was that was on the other side. I scooted around Jimmy and slowly turned to knob.
The door silently opened, the house was almost pitch dark. The only light we had was from the moon herself, shining into the windows and illuminating the destroyed house. He quietly but quickly moved towards the front door. I peered into the living room to see the chairs and couches turned upside down, some side table doors ripped off they hinges.
“Hurry up man.” Jimmy urged Seth on as he fumbled slightly with the deadbolt. I looked to see Kyle slight behind, close to the basement door. I moved over to get him ready to run
“Let’s go Kyle, we gotta get-“ I almost finished my words as I watched his face turn from scared to horrified. I turned slightly to see Jimmy on the floor crawling away from the door.
I’m not sure even after all this time how to describe what we saw that night. I had wished it was just a man. Some man that was in the house with us but it sadly wasn’t. The best I can try and give a description is to think of a Picasso painting. It had a crookedness to it. Its arm jagged and legs crumbled as it towered over Seth. Seth didn’t move, he didn’t try and fight. All he could do was stand there and look up to see its eyes peering down at him. It picked Seth up and like a rag doll threw him into the living room. A mean and disgusting noise came from his body as he hit the wall of the fireplace. I quickly got Jimmy to his feet and Kyle to snap out of his gaze. Me and Kyle ran to the bathroom as Jimmy made his to the kitchen. I locked the door as I tried to catch my own heart from jumping out my chest. “J-Jimmy? Where-“
My question was shortly answered as I heard Jimmy whimpering and crying outside the room. I unlocked the door and peaked out the crack. I watched “it” linger its way towards him and all I could hear was wet sounds. I quickly shut the door and relocked it. My mind didn’t really process what had just happened in what couldn’t have been more than 3 minutes. My two friends I had been with almost my entire life were gone, just like that. I sat on the cold tile floor as I listened to the thudding from outside. My breathing was dull as I looked to see Kyle shaking by the toilet. I slowly moved my self over and gave him a hug. I knew what he was thinking, I knew the horrible things he was saying to himself in his mind. I didn’t know how to tell him that what was happening wasn’t his fault. I’m not sure that even now I could find the words to tell him that.
“We’ll be fine, we just gotta stay here. It won’t find us.” I tried to reassure him.
“No, it will find us. We can’t stay here.”
“Kyle, Seth and Jimmy are dead. We can’t go back out there and run. I don’t know why we thought it would work.”
“No we…we…I need to get to the basement.” Kyle said, he looked up at me.
“Why? It’s a dead end there. It will-“
“Maybe, I can try and end the game. Rip the paper up…something, I don’t know.” I didn’t know what to say.
On one hand it was the only idea we had besides hiding and waiting to be found. On the other, I couldn’t bring myself to put that hope in his mind. To encourage him just to watch as it fails, He knew this as he came to his own conclusion.
“I’ll go down there, and you head for the coat closet. If it doesn’t work I’ll run back up and I’ll head there to hide with you. Ok?” He nodded to himself. I just stared at him as I nodded back slight. We stood up and slowly unlocked the door. It wasn’t anywhere we could see, which made it all more frightening. We slowly made our way to the basement door
“Good Luck” I whispered to him. He smiled and went our separate ways in the house. I quickly got in the coat closet that was almost directly in front of the basement door, and Kyle made his way down stairs.
That was the last I saw of Kyle, it wasn’t long after I heard loud thudding outside the closet door that quickly went down the stairs. All I could do was sit there, and listen as I heard the silent screams and the pounding of flesh over and over and over again. Soon the hits became more wet, and the screams became more silent.
I sat in the closet and accepted my fate. I slight covered myself with a fallen coat as I heard the thudding move around the house. It was only a matter of time before it got me, before it ripped the door open and I would be met with its horrifying figure. I looked out the slits of the closet door and saw the moon light shining through the windows.
I’m not sure when I fell asleep or even how I did. My body must have been so exhausted that it decided sleep was more important than survival. My eyes slowly opened to see daylight peering though the house. The night was gone and the day had come to save me. Although I was relieved I still forced my eyes shut. The small amount of what I saw was enough to make me do it. I saw the closet door was open, I didn’t wanna have them open as it might slowly peer from the corner and look at me. I didn’t want my last image to be that. I just kept them closed and covered my ears. And then I felt it. Thuds.
I could feel the thudding get closer, closer, closer. Two hands grabbed me, this was it. My flight or fight kicked in and I started to fight. Kicking, hitting, screaming. Anything I could think of I was doing.
“Calm down son, calm down. You’re safe.” Those words hit me like a wall, a calmness I hadn’t felt since the day before came over me. My eyes slowly opened to see the face of a young man kneeling in front of me, his hands holding my arms. He was a police officer.
“It’s gonna be alright.” He reassured me again as he slowly brought me to my feet. He walked me out of the closet and faintly said “Keep your eyes down kid, I’ll lead you out.” I think he said it more for himself, cause I knew what he didn’t want me to see.
Seth was laying in the living room, he’s body bruised from the impact with the wall and his bones broken.Jimmy was on the kitchen counter, multiple wounds and slashes were found on him. Kyle…I’m not sure what really happened to him. The reports on his body never came out. I just know I’ll never forget those sounds from when I hid in the closet.
Seth’s parents moved away almost immediately after the incident. Just left, didn’t take a single thing from that house. It was later taken down, I guess no one wanted to live in a house where something like that could happen.
I saw Jimmy and Kyles parents every once and awhile when I walked around the neighborhood. They would give me small smiles and waves and I would return them back. No more, no less. After high school I moved away for college, my parents knew why and never argued that I should stay closer.
That was a little more than 15 years ago. Few weeks back my dad called to tell me mom had passed away. He offered if I wanted to stay at home for the funeral, stay in my old room. I hesitated. I thought of that night every day for the past 15 years, never really bringing myself to wanna be back in that neighborhood. I refused and opted for a hotel a few miles away in town.
And that’s where I am now, in my bed writing my tale. I want you to take it as a warning, cause as I write this I know I’m not alone. It’s here, it’s in the closet of the hotel room. I can just make out its outline. It’s crooked legs crouching to fit inside, its arms slight poking out from some clothes, and its eyes staring at me. It knows I see it, and it knows I’m writing about that night. I’m not sure why now it decided to finish the game from all those years ago but here we are. Once I finish and close my laptop, it will kill me. My father will have to bury his son just moments after burying my mother.
I say this again, this tale is a warning. If I could I would go back and tell myself to never play that game. I would tell my parents to never let us have that sleep over. I would do everything in my power to stop that night from happening, to be able to save my friends. So please, I beg and plead to you, don’t play this game. Cause if you do, whether your ready or not…
He’s coming to find you

I have a kanken laptop 17 inches and it's quite hard to organize the stuff inside the bag. I am considering buying the bag organizer (not from Fjallraven), is there any option/alternative for this? thanks!

Hi,
I am traveling to Chicago and will reach MDW airport chicago at 8:30AM on weekend. My check-in time at the airbnb is around 2:00PM. (I will have 2 checked bags, a carryon bag and a laptop bag)
So was wondering if I will be allowed to stay around baggage claim area using my laptop for 5-6 hours until 1:30PM?
Or……..Is there any other better option?
P.S.: I do not want to commute twice to different place for lockers and also don’t want to spend some extra bucks.

I bought this at around P12,500 with its charger and a few freebies like a mouse, laptop bag case, mid speakers, and mouse pad.
It's been 7 months and it's still in great condition. The battery life lasts about 4 hours for typical browsing activities. I usually have two windows open since I study online.
Wondering how much I can resell this since I have a new laptop now. Thanks!

I bought this at around $215 with its charger and a few freebies like a mouse, laptop bag case, mid speakers, and mouse pad.
It's been 7 months and it's still in great condition. The battery life lasts about 4 hours for typical browsing activities. I usually have two windows open since I study online.
Wondering how much I can resell this since I have a new laptop now. Thanks!

I've been using my current bag for about 4-5 years, and while it's been pretty solid with only minor issues, I'm in the market for a new one. I'll be traveling in about a month and a half, so I need a bag that can accommodate my MBA 15" with a sleeve on. My current bag can fit it, but it's a tight fit.
One essential feature I'm looking for is a water bottle compartment, which my current bag lacks. Although it has side pockets, they're not large enough for a water bottle. In addition to my laptop with its sleeve, I'll also need space for a tech pouch, a low-profile keyboard, a mouse, and a calculator. Furthermore, I'd like the bag to have enough room to fit about three notebooks, as I'll be using them when I return.
TL;DR: Seeking a new bag for upcoming travels in six weeks. Need room for 15" MacBook Air with sleeve, water bottle compartment, tech gear, and three notebooks.

Okay, I know they’re basic and boring and not “in” but I have been carrying the Longchamp Le Pliage nylon tote for 6 years. Long shoulder straps, medium size. Why? Because my husband gifted one to me once and it ended up being the most convenient bag (I placed an organizer inside) and since it’s nylon I’ve never felt guilty about throwing it in the back of my car, jamming it into a tiny cubby at work (restaurant and retail jobs), dragging jt to the beach, shoving it under an airplane seat, anything. It’s a good size, straps are great, it zips closed, and it travels well.
The downside is that I’ve gone through 2 because the dang corners rip. And I know they can be fixed once for free, that’s not my point. My point is that now I have a grown up (though work from home) job with grown up money and I want a grown up bag. But realistically I want something that has secure closure, long shoulder straps, and is still relatively the same size and under $500.
I know I could get the leather version of the same bag but I’m not sold on it. What other options do I have for upgrading my bag with a simple design, good for everyday and multipurpose use without being the size of a laptop bag or work bag? I don’t have kids so I don’t need a diaper bag size thing. I want a daily bag that I love that matches everything I wear without thinking about it. I’ll be more delicate with a higher quality bag but I would still like durability to be a factor if possible.

I’m looking to invest in a personal item size backpack that meets all my “must haves”. There are SO many options and as I dive deeper down the rabbit hole I’m hoping others can make their top recommendations that meet the below criteria. Mainly will be used as a personal item on planes/during travel to carry laptop, travel documents, regular personal items, toiletries, and a couple outfits should checked luggage be lost. Hoping to find something versatile that could also be packed out for shorter trips if I want to skip checking a bag. Next trip will be mid June 2024 and would like to have the new pack for this trip.
Must haves:

• 22L to 30L in size
• Padded laptop compartment (not required but would love to have a TSA approved sleeve that folds open and eliminates need to remove laptop)
• front admin compartment ideally with a few pockets
• clamshell middle compartment
• water bottle holder
• chest/sternum strap
• luggage strap
• prefer as light as possible
• comfortable (good padding on back and straps)

Here are a few bags i am eyeing that meet most of my requirements but it is difficult to know which one to go with. For reference i am 5’8” female. Please share your feedback on these or share any other recs you may have!

• Aer Travel Pack 3 small
• Tortuga Travel backpack pro 30L
• Alpaka Elements Travel Backpack
• Nomatic Travel Pack 20L (offers pretty much everything but on the heavier side and not my favorite esthetic. Have also seen mixed reviews)

Like the title states, I'm looking for a backpack lunch box. I have a rolling laptop bag for work because I have shoulder pain. I have a tote that I've been using to carry my lunch but I'm just realizing how much its also impacting my shoulder.
I carry a s'well salad bowl that also needs to fit into here, but to start with - any backpack lunch box recs or recs for lunchboxes that have luggage sleeves?

In case you don't know, the Sun Princess is Princess Cruises' latest behemoth ship. I just got back from a 2-week sailing and took meticulous notes on this epic new vessel. Here's my extremely detailed, no-BS review:

The Sheer Size is Nuts

When I say this ship is massive, I mean it's absolutely nuts how big this floating city is. Especially when you get off in ports and have to walk back down the dock to reboard - that's when the sheer scale of the Sun Princess really hits you. Even though it carries a ton of people, the only time it really felt crowded was during breakfast. The Eatery fills up quick and the International Cafe, which sits outside The Eatery doesn't lend itself well for crowds of people wiaint for their coffees. You kind of end up waiting in the middle of where the walking traffic moves.

The Medallion Life

Your entire cruise experience revolves around the new Medallion wearable device and app, for better or worse. I'll admit it has some creepy "Big Brother" vibes with how much it tracks your every movement and purchase. But the convenience it provides is undeniable.
The medallion is your modern day "cruise card" that you tap everywhere to make payments, order drinks, unlock your stateroom, get on/off the ship, and more. But what's crazy is the app can use the medallion to detect your location anywhere on board. Order a drink or meal through the app and the server will manage to find you anywhere on the ship to deliver it, usually within 15 minutes. Caveat: there were times when it took longer and other times when our order was marked "delivered" and it never arrived.
The medallion definitely feels like getting on/off the ship is way faster. The only time we ever waiting in line was for the few minutes it took people to run through security.
This made getting food/drinks almost too easy. On port days when we needed to get off the ship early for excursions, setting up a scheduled delivery of my Egg McMuffin, fruit plate in coffee was really convenient.
Fair warning though - if you're anti-tracking and value privacy over convenience, the ubiquitous Medallion system may not be for you.
Story: we were sitting by the Crooners bar having our nightly pre-dinner cocktail. The bar was packed on this night for some reason. A staff member in a suit started wandering the room, made eye contact with me from 40-feet away and then made a b-line for us. He wanted to sign us up for a wine/food pairing event they were having. I have to believe this is because of the tracking being done via the meddalion. They could see we drink our share of wine. It definitely felt like targeted marketing.

Premium Package Was Best for Us

We opted for the Premium beverage package at $80 per day and I'm glad we did for a few reasons:

1. If you need to have more than one device connected to the internet at a time, Premium makes sense just based on that (you can have four devices). The cheaper Plus package only allows one device, which was a non-starter for me needing both my phone and laptop to be online. I'm unfortunately not able to just live off the grid for almost three weeks and need to periodically check in with my clients.
2. The wine selection is way better with Premium vs Plus. As a wine drinker, the upgrade was 100% worth it.
3. Two free speciality dining meals are included, which was clutch on our 2-week cruise to break up the repetition of the main dining rotation.
4. Unlimited premium desserts and ice creams - a nice perk for those with a sweet tooth.

Basically, Premium removed almost any need to think about or worry over costs on board. For $80 per day, the premium drinks, speciality dining, better wines, desserts and internet made it an easy choice for our group's needs.
And for those wondering about the 15 drink per day limit (since there's almost a weekly post asking about it) - it was never an issue for me. I'm a scrotch drinker and to get a decent pour, you basically have to order a double. Even drinking doubles, I never got to 15 drinks/day. This even includes sea days where we'd typically have a mimosa or two with breakfast, a few cocktails/beers at the pool, an cocktail or two before dinner and then wine at dinner.

Staff & Service

I can't say enough about how incredible and friendly the service was across the board on the Sun Princess. Our room steward, waiters, bartenders - everyone went so above and beyond daily, it really elevated the experience. I'm always amazed how they remember everyone's names.
However, we did notice a clear slip in the quality of service in the second week compared to the first, likely due to a crew changeover partway through our sailing. Simple things like forgetting drink orders or getting meals wrong became more frequent from our new set of MDR servers.

Suites & Staterooms

We originally booked a balcony room. When the bid offer came in I followed some old advice and just placed bids on upgrades because "you don't have to take the offer if you don't like it." Well guess what, that's not the case anymore. My offer was accepted and we automatically became the proud recipients of a Reserve Mini-Suite for an additional $500. In hindsight, I'm glad it worked out. The room has noticably more space than a standard balcony room. These mini-suites are spacious, basically a separate living room and bedroom divided by a curtain you can close off. Having two TVs and an extra closet was great.
As mini-suite guests we also received a nice amenity of free premium wines in our room - on the second week they even topped us up with two more complementary bottles! I guess each week is looked at as a new sailing -- so you get two more bottles! Some older posts complained about the wine quality. It looks like it's been upgraded because we received a Pinot Noir and Chard from La Crema. Being California wine people, La Crema works great for us. If you can swing it, I'd highly recommend going for a mini-suite over a regular balcony.
That being said, I'd avoid the "Cabana" balcony suites. The layout is really bizarre and in my opinion a downgrade. When you walk out onto your balcony, it's not really a balcony. There's another area in front of your balcony that connects a few other cabana suites. The idea is that a few rooms share a private balcony with jacuzzi. However, it also means that walking out onto your balcony doesn't give you a private ocean view because there's this 20-30 feet of additional patio in front of you and everyone above you just looks down into your balcony area.

Dining Highs & Lows

Main Dining Rooms

It can be confusing because there are three floors (Decks 6, 7 and 8). We reserved dining in the MDR prior to the trip via the app for the first few days just so we knew there was a guaranteed place to eat. On night one, the dining room manager introduced himself to us and said he went ahead and booked our table for us every night of the trip. If we didn't show, it was fine.
Food quality in the main dining rooms (MDRs) was consistently good across breakfast and dinner. On port days, it's an "express breakfast" which just means a shorter list of options. Nothing mind-blowing, but solid and tasty. My biggest gripe here is the operating hours. On sea days, the MDR closes for breakfast at 9:00am. You basically have to choose between sleeping in a little, hitting the gym, or getting a decent breakfast.
Pro-Tip: Biggest breakfast tip is stay away from the scrammbled eggs -- they're gross. We figured out that the scrambled eggs come from a bag. If you want real, cracked eggs, either get an omelett or over easy/medium/hard/etc.

Reserve Suite Dining Access

The Reserve mini-suite gives you access to the Reserve Restaurant. It's a little bit more elevated of a dining experience and reservations aren't needed -- you just show up. We dined her a few times and it did feel more elevated. Unlike the MDR, the server in the Reserve Restaurant feels more personal because they're handling smaller groups.

Lido Deck

For more casual fare, the Lido deck had some surprises like an awesome made-to-order salad bar station that became my go-to for healthier meals between all the indulgent dining. The burger grill, taco station and pizza areas were pretty standard, but that salad bar slapped.

Lackluster Buffet

On the flip side, The Eatery buffet left a lot to be desired. Despite different themed stations, the quality was mid at best. We largely avoided eating at the buffet outside of quick breakfast grabs. The Eatery closes for breakfast around 10:00 AM. At which point if you move further into the ship, the restaurants that are normall Catch and Butcherblock become a buffet extension that's opened later -- it's kind of funky.
The layout of the buffet is weird and leaves people wondering if they're cutting in line especially when you go to the extended buffet at Catch/Butcherblock.
What's odd to me is you can go grab a million cheese plates, fruit plates or hummus/veggie plates at the buffet. But if you order those things through the Medallion app, it's not "complimentary." You have to pay like $4.99-$5.99 for those items. We still can't figure out why it costs $5 to order a tiny cheese plate but ordering a cheeseburger is free.

Specialty Dining Winners

We used our two speciality dining credits at Crown Grill and Butcher's Block. I was a little worried because I had read mixed reviews on here about both of these restaurants. However, both meals were really good and before you come at me, I'm a foodie guy -- I'd tell you if they sucked.
We chose Crown for my parent's anniversay dinner. The service was awesome and they made us all feel really special. The setup here is like a steakhouse, where you order your beef and then the sides are a la carte family style. We had a group of seven -- the manager just said "we'll bring you out all the sides, enough for your whole party" which was great.
The next week, we hit up Butcher's Block by Dario. I've never left a meal more full on a cruise ship than at this place. It's family style dining and they just bring out everything for you -- almost like a brazilian barbecue place. We started with a bread appetizer and a glass of wine while you wait for them to get the dining room setup. Then there's more bread on the table + veggies. Then the food starts coming out: beef tartar; beef carpaccio; etc. The main event is the massive tomahawks and porterhouse steaks they carve up tableside. They'll just keep putting beef on your plate until you beg them to stop. Finally, there's desert and a grappa digestif.
Both restaurants were great experiences and a very welcomed change from the MDR after a week of repetition. The food, service and overall vibe were a noticeable step up.

Spellbound

We also splurged one night for the Spellbound immersive magic/dinner experience and it was easily a cruise highlight despite the $150/pp price tag. After an elevated multi-course meal, you get ushered by a guy in a top hat into an exclusive hidden club. While waiting for the magic show, you hang out in their bar which is reminiscent of the Dinseyland Haunted Mansion. While enjoying your drink, there's a magician perorming more intement magic for everyone at the bar. Once they're ready for the show, you're brought into the room where the actual magic show takes place. Afterwards, you're welcome to hang out in the Spellbound bar and continue drinking.
If you're from LA, you probably know about the Magic Castle in Hollywood. Spellbound is an extension of the Magic Castle. Just like with the Magic Castle, you show up in formal wear. This means a coat and tie for the men and an evening gown/dress for the woman.
Overall, we really enjoyed it.

Room Service

This was hit or miss for us. You fill out the paper door hangar and place it on your doorknob before heading to bed. Then you hope and pray that it will actually arrive -- which in two of our instances, it never did. Your options are also super limited. You also may or may not receive what you actually ordered. With coffee for instance, you have a choice of ordering it to-go (paper cup) or stay (actual coffe cup). We always seemed to get the opposite of what we ordered to the point where it became a running joke for us.

International Cafe

This became our goto for a lot of things: coffee, snacks, quick breakfast food (pastries, coffee cake, avodcado toast, Egg McMuffins). Werid fact though: if you order the Egg McMuffin through the app, it comes as an egg patty just like McDonalds and with cheese. When you get the one at International Cafe, it's just an over easy egg and no cheese. Why they can't just be the same is odd.

Night Owl Needs

My main dining gripe was the lack of solid late night food options for us night owls. The Eatery buffet closed at an absurd 10:30pm, leaving only spotty room service or mobile ordering as the choices if you worked up an appetite after evening activities. More robust late-night casual dining would be appreciated.

Bars & Alcohol

Overall, great selection of cocktails. All of the bars have their own little theme and different menus. The ladies I was with were consitently impressed at the quality and thought of the cocktails at each bar. They were also super impressed with the quality of the glassware being used. I must admit, everything from the rocks glasses to the martini glasses really were beautiful.
If you just want straight spirits, you have to order a double to get a normal pour (they're actually measuring out the pours). That being said, with either Plus or Premium, you'll get a good selection of top quality booze.
You gotta try really hard to hit the 15-drink max. Some days I had drinks at breakfast, during the day, lunch, before dinner, during dinner and after dinner. I never hit my max.
One thing that impressed me was staff actually being concerned about drink quality. We were having drinks at one of the bars on the Lido deck. The supervisor was upset with the bartenders because they ran out of premium liquor and hadn't requested more. He made sure to remind them that when someone orders a premium drink they get a premium liquor -- no exceptions.
You also must checkout the Good Spirits bar. There's a few times throughout the night where you watch a live cocktail demonstration. The bartenders at GS are so fun and playful -- really makes for a great vibe.

Amenities - Hits & Misses

The gym facilities on board were a bit of a disappointment, especially for a new ship. While they had a nice assortment of cardio machines, the actual weight room was laughably small with only a few pieces of strength equipment that were always monopolized. Not a deal-breaker, but an area that could be improved.
The pool areas were nicely spread out across different sections of the Lido deck. On sailing days, there was typically a band, the DJ and then a random movie on the jumbotron. The random blasting of action movies at 3pm really ruined the pool vibe and it's typically when the deck would thin out. One minute you're relaxing in the jacuzzi, the next an action movie with explosions is shaking the pool area. It made no sense and seemed tailored for a much younger crowd despite this sailing's passengers being mostly older adults.

Technology & Support

In addition to the Medallion app, the overall internet speeds on board were fast and reliable enough for me to easily stay connected for basic work needs.
The technology support via the app's live chat feature, however, was utterly useless. Any time we had issues properly being charged for drink packages or had to modify reservations, the live chat was a time-wasting nightmare. You're clearly just talking to an outsourced rep with zero actual knowledge of Princess' systems or operations. Your best bet is to go in-person to the guest services desk.

Other Notes & Quibbles

• Dress codes weren't enforced at all. We did the whole suite/gown routine for formal nights only to see plenty of people still rocking jeans and t-shirts in the MDR. Same lack of enforcement for the "formal attire required" Spellbound event. Either lose the formal nights or enforce them.
• Our drink package tallies often had errors, with our group's drinks randomly getting combined onto one person's account. Always double check and ask for corrections.
• The "Cabana" balcony suite layout is bizarre - your balcony is just a shared landing in front of other suites, rather than a private space. We avoided these after hearing the lack of privacy.

Hello everyone, Just need your kind opinion,
I am flying on Malaysian airlines from Seoul with economy flex with 35kg check-in and 7kg hand luggage allowance on including a extra laptops/camera bag. My worry is my hand luggage and laptop bag total exceed 7kg and really wont to know do they weigh hand luggage always?
Really appreciate if you could share your experiences, Thank you in Advance

Hi,
Tumi Backpacks are pretty pricey. Especially the leather ones. My question is would you all use a Tumi laptop backpack if you are going into an office? I guess theft can be taken into account even if it’s a nice office.
Plus do you want to be throwing your work stuff in your backpack?
Do you prefer the regular generic backpacks for work? If so, when do you use your Tumi laptop bag?

So I have been camping more often and have mostly junk gear, so looking to do a pretty big overhaul of everything. It's mostly camping, but I do some hiking + camping so anything that is light is a huge advantage. With sleep items I tend to just deal with the additional weight, as I prioritize having a good sleep. I originally had quite a few things picked out, but stopped by my local REI to look at some stuff in-person and was told about the sale that would be happening soon. Wanted suggestions on the items I had picked out to see if I should change any of the items to REI-branded items specifically to take advantage of the sale.
Tent: Mier Lanshan ($160) Sleeping Bag: NEMO Disco 15 ($300) Sleeping Mat: BA Rapide SL ($200) Pillow: NEMO Fillo ($45) Chair: Kelty Low Loveseat ($130)
Would love any suggestions towards the gear I've picked out, or even add some things I may have missed that you think would be worth getting!

In need of a better bag solution for when I travel, especially when I am traveling with a fair number of electronic devices
I currently have my personal laptop, work laptop, portable display, and steam deck in my large work backpack, I would like a bag that will fit under the airplane seat where I can keep my steam deck and my personal laptop (Framework 13), earbuds and other things I might want on the plane, instead of trying to pull it all out of my backpack/pockets as I'm getting on/off.
This backpack is too big to fit under the seat, and has to go in the overhead (it's rediculous... And awesome)
I would also like to use this for a day pack when we are on vacations/day trips into various cites
So far I've been looking at the Timnuk2 classic messenger small, but wanted to see what other bags would be a good option (and preferably a bit cheaper)
Thanks!

Timestamp and album
https://imgur.com/a/6rufnPF
Up for sale are two items. Please review the photos carefully as they represent the best depiction of condition. All prices are shipped in the US.
Saddleback Fourteener Briefcase - $245
Specs
https://saddlebackleather.com/leather-laptop-bags
This specific briefcase is the dark coffee brown. The leather is thick and substantial, and the pigskin lining brings it over the top in leather luxury. I bought this briefcase directly from saddleback 18 months ago as a second or as they call it a “Dave’s deal”. There was one mark on it and I couldn’t find anything else to warrant it being a second. The outside has marks from everyday use, but very few of them are substantial or enter in to the material so to speak. I have not tried to polish or otherwise work any mark on the bag. I normally carried my work laptop, a notebook, and a charging cable in it. For anyone familiar with saddleback you’ll be assured that this bag is just getting started. Let’s call it C condition.
Ashland Private Stock Capone “Epic Shell” Money Clip - $135
Specs
https://ashlandleather.com/products/capone-leather-money-clip-2
This wallet was carried and has a couple indentations that I tried to show in the light. Just getting started in terms of coloring and patina. The pattern you see is what Ashland calls epic I believe, a natural shell cordovan that has these patterns to it. Let’s call it C condition.

https://www.ikea.com/us/en/p/vaerldens-travel-back-pack-black-20487934/ I bought this to compare with other backpacks for one bag travel. I decided to keep it but this isn't going to be a backpack that I am going to take it for international trip because I like other bags better.
Pros
-price (50 bucks)
-comfort.
-brief case mode
-nice laptop compartment with super thick false bottom
-very light weight (about 1lb)
-looks: very minimalist which I like. Nice bright interior color. No strap dangles even for shoulder strap.
-perfect amount of pockets (4) to organize. You could use strap pockets for organization as well.
Cons
-no belt strap
-no compression strap
-zippers don't look that durable. I just found out its made by OPTI, which supposedly makes quality zippers.
-Waterproof is question mark. This doesnt matter to me much because I carry around rain backpack cover.
This is a very versatile backpack for various uses (grocery, motorcycle, camping, picnic, gym bag, etc) but for one bag travel it may lack some features that are important to you. I decided to keep it for domestic travel and grocery shopping.

Hey folks — heading to graduate school this fall after years of working as a software engineer and looking to grab a new bag to replace my current EDC, a Timbuk2 Prospect Laptop bag. I also periodically use a Peak Design v1 Everyday Backpack (I'm a photographer), but rarely for daily carry.
I'm looking for:

• Something durable (Timbuk2's bottle holders tore really quickly), Cordura or equivalent is ideal.
• Dedicated laptop sleeve (holds 16"), reasonable level of internal organization
• Weather resistant (rain/snow), though okay if not fully waterproof
• No "black hole" problem -- this is my biggest issue with my current bag, and that's just with a laptop and a notebook and cords.
• Flexible enough in organization to accommodate clothes/books/laptop/camera cube. Love my PD bag, but it's quite tedious to move the dividers enough to shift it from a camera carry to a general carry bag.
• (not a hard requirement) prefer made in the US, or at least designed here.

Some bags I've seen and considered:

• Evergoods CPL
• AbleCarry Daily Plus
• Mission Workshop Rhake
• Chrome Bravo

I'm sure there are some great brands out there that I'm missing out on — where should I be looking? Thanks in advance.

I would love some help choosing a backpack. Long-time Tom Bihn fan; have mostly used cross-body bags, Parental Unit when my boys were younger, Swift, etc. The one bag I haven’t done yet … a backpack.
My use case: I don’t usually need a backpack to leave the house on basic errands, but I do when I have a family trip/outing. I’d also like built-in laptop space for a 16” MacBook Pro when I do work travel. I’m used to modular life, like a grab bag with kid essentials and a ghost whale with knitting essentials.
I’m 5’2” & above average weight but narrow shoulders. I am a little worried about a bag being too big / cumbersome as a hobbit-sized person, but I also don’t want a mini-style like the Paradigm (even though it’s cute!) because I have other bags to fill that capacity situation.
Would love guidance! Thanks!

Can anyone recommend a new everyday work bag for me? My current Messenger bag is falling apart.
I was going to buy the navy blue Bellroy Tokyo Work Bag as I liked the look of it and it was on sale for £125 but sadly has now sold out just before pay day. https://bellroy.com/products/tokyo-work-bag?color=navy&material=looma_weave&size=16in#slide-2
I've been thinking about the Via Work bag instead as they still have that in the navy blue colour but I think it might be slightly too small and I'm not sure it is made of strong dyneema type material. https://bellroy.com/products/via-work-bag?color=navy&material=looma_weave&size=16in#slide-2
I really need a bag that can take the strain as mine can get quite heavy with the big laptop sometimes a 15 inch Dell or 16 inch MBP, the heavy power supply, A4 notepad and everything else I need to carry. Even after decluttering and losing a bit of weight my bag is still quite heavy unfortunately so I need something quite strong that can take the weight.
I like all the organisation in the Bellroy products although I think they are slightly less business/pro looking and more urban overall. Not sure what is going on with their colour schemes. I'm unable to tell the difference between two of the colours they both look black and the other is a boring gray colour.
Any suggestions of what to take a look at besides the Bellroy stuff would be appreciated. 16 to 18 litres in volume with lots of organisation for storage would be ideal for me and the ability to take up to 16 inch Macbook.
I do really like the look of the Samsonite brief cases I think it was the Specralite 3.0 (sp?) but sadly they can't take the 16 inch macbooks and the company has no plans to make any that can. They are quite rigid with only going for that business class jet setting traveller market that has the 15 inch or 13 inch latops.