My school days “backpack”

Long before the hard attache-case became popular in the seventies, I already was ahead of my times in the fifties when I started elementary school. Since my parents were not particularly wealthy, I didn't get a typical school bag like the other kids, but instead, my dad slapped a few pieces of pine together and build me a wooden case that would be the forerunner of the legendary Samsonite attache-case.

That container, made to receive notebooks, books and writing instruments, only had one single compartment, a convenient shoulder strap and proved to be quite sturdy. It was also extremely versatile; because of its beveled front, I could also use it as a lightweight sled in winter (and God, did I do a lot of sliding on it!) I used it from 1953 to 1958 and I might have been one of the few kids who owned one (everyone else already had regular leather school bags,) but never felt ashamed of it. That's what happens when you're an “early adopter!”