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I had forgotten about the store Unitude until I updated our roundup of great laptop bags. This brand has a lot of nice options, at nice prices.
The pictured bag has a rectangular top panel “echoed by curved handles,” is made of full-grain cattle leather, and fits most 13″ laptops.
(The real leather is noteworthy because at this price point you usually see faux leather or nylon! Nylon can be great if you want a very lightweight bag, though.)
It's $145, available in three colors.
This post contains affiliate links and Corporette® may earn commissions for purchases made through links in this post. For more details see here. Thank you so much for your support!
Sales of note for 9.30.24
- Nordstrom – Beauty deals through September
- Ann Taylor – Extra 30% off sale
- Banana Republic Factory – 50% off everything + extra 20% off
- Boden – 15% off new styles
- Eloquii – Extra 50% off sale
- J.Crew – 50% off select styles
- J.Crew Factory – Up to 60% off everything + 50% off sale with code
- Lo & Sons – Warehouse sale, up to 70% off
- M.M.LaFleur – Save 25% sitewide
- Neiman Marcus – Friends & Family 25% off
- Rag & Bone – Friends & Family 25% off sitewide
- Spanx – Lots of workwear on sale, some up to 70% off
- Talbots – Fall Cyber Monday sale, 40% off sitewide and $5 shipping
- Target – Car-seat trade-in event through 9/28 — bring in an old car seat to get a 20% discount on other baby/toddler stuff.
- White House Black Market – 40% off select styles
Anon
A former company I worked for issued me a W2-C related to my education expenses (because of an early termination meaning repayment was required). I re-filed my taxes for that tax year, however, I got a note from the IRS 8 months later that my former company has not sent the IRS the W2-C, so they can’t verify the updated amount! I have called the service center (they don’t handle payroll), emailed an HR contact I had years ago (no luck), and emailed both self-service and payroll. Self-service emailed me in December saying they were processing this years, they’d get back in a week – they didn’t, and I’ve contacted them 3x since, but can’t get ahold of anyone.
Is this something a lawyer can/should help out with? Could I send a certified letter to the payroll department? I don’t know how else to move forward.
Anon
Certified letters are cheaper than lawyers – start there. Include all the information that the IRS needs from them; making their lives easy helps.
Anon
Here’s what I would send:
A copy of the form they sent you (with first five of SSN blacked out)
A copy of the letter from the IRS
An address for the IRS
A record of the times you have tried to contact them
Your current address, phone, and email
State that you need this letter sent within a week.
Anon
Anyone have any experience with pink eye as an adult/any hacks to get it to go away faster
Anonymous
Going to the doctor to get eye drops
Anon
+1
don’t mess around with the eyes
Cat
go get the eye drops!
Anon
Is there a specific kind of eye drops? I haven’t had pink eye in like 20 years, so I’m out of the loop :)
Anon
You need a prescription; there is not an OTC drop for this.
Anon
It’s antibiotic drops. You need a prescription, you can’t get this over the counter in the US.
BeenThatGuy
Woke up to it on Christmas morning after being with a child with it the day before. Teledoc and a quick trip to CVS and I was being on my way to getting over it.
anonshmanon
yep, I talked to a nurse hotline and they sent a prescription to the pharmacy.
pugsnbourbon
Get the eye drops. Urgent care or a CVS/Walgreens minute clinic can prescribe. Damp washcloths over your eyes can help with the itching.
Anonymous
Doctor, and then follow the directions on the prescription…the eyes are definitely not a place to fool around with hacks…
Anonymous
My doctor once told me wash my eye with tea (before I had time to get a prescription). It worked!
Anon
And remember – it is very easy to spread it to others, so keep your hands away from your eyes and keep your hands clean or you risk giving it to others.
Curious
Viral, allergic, or bacterial? Drops don’t help if it’s viral, but frequent eye washing does. Not sure for allergic. If very pink and lots of yellow ooze, then all the advice above is right!
Anon
Antibacterial (eg polymycin or erythromycin) eye drops do not work for viral conjunctivitis. Most cases of pink eye are viral and will resolve in 3-5 days.
anon
So annoyed with shopping. I have a gray pair of the J Crew Factory Ruby pants that fits perfectly. I wanted navy, too, so I ordered pairs in two sizes just to be safe. Size A (the same size as my gray pair) is uncomfortably snug, especially for work. Size B has too much fabric in the stomach area even though it fits better in the waist. I freaking give up.
anon
Furthermore, I constantly have to remind myself that sizes are almost meaningless anymore and it’s the problem of the pants, not my body, but I don’t think my brain really and truly believes that.
Rainbow Hair
This is true! Tell your brain this internet rando agrees with you.
Cat
I’ve had that happen before, too. Different dyes do different things to fabric, and as a special bonus, if you’re ordering Factory level quality, you might reorder the same pair in the same sizes and get better fitting pairs, just because they were closer to the top of the stack of fabric when it was being cut…
Rainbow Hair
Yup, imagining the visual of a tall stack of fabric being sliced into pants-shape, the possible stretching/slipping around… it really helps me wrap my head around how different two pants of the same size could be.
Anon
I was really annoyed when I bought my favorite (expensive) bra in black and found it way too small and couldn’t return it. On this site I learned that black dyes can make things smaller in this way. It amazes me they don’t try to account for this somehow by designing the item a little larger if it will shrink.
Anon
Factory’s not the highest quality; is the fabric going to stretch at all? Maybe the one that’s the same size will loosen up a bit and fit like your current pair.
anon
My original gray pair has some stretch. The navy does not.
Anon
It’s a manufacturing issue. Different colors are usually produced at different factories. So the patterns and machines aren’t the same and there’s often size variation.
Anonymous
Sounds familliar…
I love the results of factories cutting huge stacks of fabric, don’t you?
Wheels
Do you love them enough to return the navy ones and try again? If there are so many different variations then the right size might still be out there!
Mpls
Or – take the biggish one to a tailor and see if you can alter it to fit.
Anon
Thanks everyone who commented earlier in the week about also having breathing problems and migraines from artificial fragrances in laundry products and perfumes (and thanks to the kind poster who only wear her perfumes at home!).
It’s so life-limiting with stinky hanging scents in taxis, auto sprays in bathrooms, the laundry aisle at the grocery store and neighbours venting their dryer sheet scented laundry even makes being outdoors at home hard. Makes it easier knowing I’m not alone.
Anonymous
I mean no. Neighbors laundry? Outside? Really? At some point don’t you have to consider this is partly psychological?
Anon
Considered, and since I can’t see the laundry and still have physical affects, dismissed. Definitely physical.
Cat
have you never lived in a dense area? I can always tell which of my neighbors has clothes in the dryer based on the scent of the exhaust… it wafts over all our back patios. One of them uses Glamorous Wash, I’m pretty sure.
Anonymous
Not OP, but no, asthma attacks are not a trick of the mind.
Anonymous
Are you kidding!? You do know how air currents work, right!?
As someone else who suffers from scent-triggered migraines, I am exhaused by the “it’s all in your head” rhetoric thrown around by people who refuse to understand.
Anon
Disagree, I can smell neighbor’s laundry scent (it’s Tide) from 20 feet away on a bike path. I honestly don’t know how they don’t choke on it in their house. Thank god I don’t get migraines.
Nesprin
You sound just like the kid who decided his office was the right place to use shoe deodorizer. I’m 3 offices down, allergic to scents and up to 6 asthma attacks in 2 weeks.
Wheels
You aren’t alone, University of Melbourne did a study which one in three (!) people get sick from the same things.
“New research from the University of Melbourne shows that one in three Australians report health problems, including migraine headaches and asthma attacks, when they are exposed to common fragranced consumer products such as air fresheners, cleaning products, laundry supplies, and personal care products.” https://pursuit.unimelb.edu.au/articles/fragrance-fallout
Air quality is a big factor in health, for all sorts of reasons (think Covid, carbon monoxide, smoke).
Anon8
Are you on medication for this? I’m on migraine medication which has completely eliminated some of my prior triggers. Or maybe you need allergy medication if it’s causing you breathing problems.
Anon
That’s excellent! What were your triggers?
Tried over the counter antihistamines, medication, supplements, diets and seen all the top specialists in the field and the only thing is avoidance.
I feel like a canary in a coal mine. All the things that affect me are toxic to everyone, but just tiny quantities affect me.
Next time you see someone wearing a mask, it might be me avoiding artificial fragrances rather than someone concerned about Covid. At least it’s less weird for me to wear a mask now!
midwest atty
I’m in need of a new hairstyle! I have straight, shoulder length-hair, and have been doing balayage blonde for the past 5 years. I have NO CLUE what to change up, but know I need to. Any hot tips on what is a professional haircut/color style, but an updated look? I’m not *yet* dealing with gray and I am a professional 37 y.o…
Anon
Same age as you and I just did a (salon) gloss to get my hair about the same color as my natural dark brown hair and I plan to grow out the highlights. Two women I work with just did the same thing. Somehow having hair all one color after 2 decades of highlights of various types/levels feels… fresh. Salon told me to expect the gloss to last 1-2 months, but I’m already planning to go for another one when this one fades out because I’m liking this so much. Just be warned though, it took me a couple of days to get used to it. My cut is just simple layers a couple of inches below the shoulder and I generally just wear it down.
Anonymous
I could have written this. I also did a salon gloss to get to a richer brunette, and it feels fantastic after a decade of highlights.
anon_needs_a_break
Maybe a modern shag cut? Links in reply/moderation.
Anon
Are there specific life insurance providers I should look into? Our home and auto insurance right now is with State Farm, so it seems easiest to go with them for life insurance, unless I should be considering other things?
Anon
Life insurance is suuuuper easy to comparison shop for and buy. I used the website term 4 sale (not using link to avoid mod), found the cheapest reputable one and bought it. Insurance companies have a nurse come out to your home/workplace to do the medical exam.
Anon
I just started the quote process online with the provider rated highest by NerdWallet and they wanted to me to click yes to a waiver allowing them to get my medical records and I thought that was outrageous for a quote. Not sure if other companies are going to ask for similar just for a quote.
Anon
No reason to use State Farm for life, they’re probably not the cheapest. Try SelectQuote for term insurance.
Anon
Second this. I used SectQuote almost 20 years ago for 20-year term policies for my husband and me, and all these years later, they still send us notices when the issuer’s rating changes. I’m impressed that they are still tracking it even though our terms are so close to expiring.
Anon
Don’t get whole life insurance, get term life for whatever period your dependents will need support.
Anon
I’m turning 40 next May. We have a big family trip planned for the summer when kids are out of school, but I hope to go somewhere with my husband for a three day weekend over my actual birthday. I would love to stay in a nice hotel, have good food and wine, do light fitness like easy hikes and yoga and enjoy nice scenery. I was thinking about Napa but would love other suggestions, or suggestions for things to do in Napa. I think the one thing that’s giving me pause about Napa is that my husband doesn’t like wine and I’m not passionate enough about it to go wine-tasting all day (I’d order a glass with dinner but that’s it) so I’m not really sure what we’d do between meals. I think this trip needs to be in the continental US given time constraints. I guess parts of the Caribbean and Mexico would be possible but we go there frequently with kids, and I think they’d be more upset about missing a beach resort trip, so I’d prefer not to do that.
Anonymous
It sounds like you may be on the west coast, so these ideas may not work due to the travel time, but look into Old Edwards Inn (Highlands, NC) and Inn at Blackberry Farm (in Tennessee) for luxurious places with an outdoorsy/light adventure vibe.
OP
I’m in the Chicago area actually. Pretty sure BlackBerry Farm is way out of our budget but I will look into Old Edwards Inn, thanks!
Anne-on
What about one of the Miraval Resorts, Canyon Ranch, or Blueberry Farms in TN?
OOO
DH and I had a lovely vacation in Sedona that checks off all your boxes
DC Inhouse Counsel
Here to recommend Sedona as well!
OP
Will check out Sedona, thanks!
anon
I think Napa is actually great for light hiking, great food, and scenery. I did a girls’ weekend there and we only did one wine tasting. We spent the rest of the time doing spa stuff (mud baths!), went on a gorgeous and easy hike, rented bikes and rode all around, and swam in the pool.
OP
This sounds perfect – any more details on where you stayed, the spa or the hikes you did?
Anon
I will remind myself of the details and post on tomorrow’s thread!
Anon
Go to Indian Springs in Calistoga. It has all this and more. The town is cute for browsing, it’s a little lower key than other parts of the valley and you can still also easily explore St Helena.
Anon
I’ve done a hot air balloon ride over Napa!
Calrayo
There are lots of great state parks and open spaces near Napa (I’m partial to Bothe Napa Valley State Park) for light hikes. If you want to do some wine tasting but want something a little less touristy than Napa, I love the Anderson Valley. Check out The Madrones in Philo for a romantic weekend. The restaurant on site is fantastic, and there are other good options in nearby Boonville. I also recently did a weekend in Jenner (where the Russian River meets the ocean) and loved it.
NYCer
Big Sur or Santa Barbara would also be nice options.
Anon
Reposting from this morning’s thread – thanks to everyone who already replied! My gyno did prescribe me an anti-anxiety med to take on the day of, so will definitely plan on taking that now. I do use a menstrual cup and have a pretty heavy flow, so it is possible it’s fallen out. Kinda hoping that’s the case, to be honest!
—-
Hoping to be talked down/hear from anyone who’s had a similar experience. My husband and I are planning to start TTC…so I made an appointment to have my IUD removed. I was nervous because I haven’t been able to feel my strings since September, but figured my gyno would have better luck. Well, she didn’t. After 15 minutes of poking around up there with various tools, I had to schedule a follow-up appointment next month with an ultrasound tech.
I am SO nervous. I had a really painful insertion and ended up fainting in the lobby when I originally got my IUD. My gyno said she can give a numbing injection in my cervix for this next appt, although the shot does hurt… but if she’s going to be “digging around in my cervix” it was probably worth it. Has this happened to anyone else? I’m also scared/nervous that this is supposed to be the “easy” part of TTC and I’m already running into complications and delays… SOS
Anon
So, I’m just fascinated when people post something asking for input or to be “talked down,” and they get responses, and then they repost the question anyway. Is there a threshold number of responses you need to receive to get to your internal “talked down” threshold? Do you strongly feel there must be someone out there who had an amazing experience with this kind of thing, where it didn’t hurt at all and it was all sunshine and roses, and you just need to give that person another opportunity to step forward and share their experience? You got some pretty decent responses to your first post. What else are you hoping to learn by reposting the question? Genuinely curious.
Anon
Lol. Well played.
toweley
Maybe someone missed the previous post but will reply if they see it now? I’ve definitely tried to exhaust all avenues of information when I’ve been anxious about an upcoming medical procedure.
Does it make you feel better about yourself to be nasty to someone who’s already feeling anxiety about an upcoming procedure? gEnUiNeLy cUrIoUs
OP
Thank you…genuinely :)
OP
I realized I posted right before the afternoon post went up – because it was a weird time, I thought it was worth reposting. If I posted it at 9am and got five responses, I wouldn’t have reposted because I would assume that already got max visibility. But considering the timing, I thought it was worth seeing if I could get additional insight…because I thought the responses I did receive were helpful, as I noted. I am clearly not assuming it’s going to be sunshine and roses, and am trying to gauge other people’s experiences to mentally prepare myself for the range of scenarios/determine if and for how long I should proactively block my calendar at work/see if there are other requests I should make of my doctor (like the prescription someone recommended).
Also, “I’m just fascinated” when people post paragraph-long comments complaining about other people’s posts when it’s quite easy to collapse them and scroll past. Are you this condescending in real life? Genuinely curious.
Anonymous
You need to man up. You are going to have a small medical procedure. It will be uncomfortable for a short time and you will survive. People deal with far worse.
Anon
Way to continue a long misogynistic tradition of dismissing women’s pain!
Anon
+1,000,000,000 women always have their pain dismissed while men get pain killers for a paper cut.
Anonymous
Just saying I had a double mastectomy. This IUD thing is nothing.
Anon
@Anonymous at 8:43, I’m sorry that happened to you, but that doesn’t mean that other women’s pain doesn’t matter. Yes, this is less invasive. But it’s still scary and potentially quite painful. This is not a competition. I hope you’re in therapy to continue processing your experience and are able to find peace.
Anon
Love to see women supporting women :)
OP
Didn’t realize that asking for guidance would be this controversial!
Anonymous
Not sure if this is what you want to hear, but this happened to my sister. She ended up having to have the IUD surgically removed. She also went on to have two healthy children after. She had some pregnancy complications, but probably not related to the IUD. (One child was born a little early, so they had her on progesterone injections the next time.)
OP
Thank you – this is actually helpful and the kind of feedback I was looking for! Glad to hear it didn’t affect her long-term fertility, as that’s something I have in the back of my mind.
Anon
I was wondering your gynecologist didn’t check with ultrasound if she couldn’t see the strings or any signs. My gyn did check, found it, gave me local anesthetics and something to soften the area and he was done in 10 mins. He was talking to me during the while procedure to distract me (as I tend to faint when in pain or stressed). Maybe I was lucky, but it wasn’t painful, but I could feel the movements, it that makes sense. I am in Europe, in case it matters, so every gyn has well-equipped office.
Anon
Trump indicted! I still think he’s going to win next year though.
AIMS
I don’t get this line of thought. He lost in 2020. Who is seeing the indictment and going, “you know what, I need to vote for this guy now”?
Anon
I think it revs up his base because they think he’s being “persecuted” by the “radical left.”
Anon
And I think 2020 was an unusual situation because many on the left were concerned about the pandemic which Trump was not taking seriously. If the election were held now, the pandemic would be a non-issue and inflation (which people blame Biden for) would be top of mind for many. I also think not being able to campaign much in person helped Biden. Fewer opportunities for gaffes and looking senile (and I say that as a Biden fan). Unclear how everything shakes out with the indictment and potential conviction but if there had been a Trump-Biden election yesterday, Trump likely would have won.
anon
Agree with this.
Anon
This is nonsensical. Look at the 2022 midterms – Trump’s candidates fared extremely poorly overall. It will be a miracle if Trump can even win the republican primary. He’s, as he would, “so over.”