Camelbaks and Longs Drugs.

Picture it . . . (oh, wait, you don't have to) . . . The glorious Camelbak water bottle. It is probably the best invention ever. No, not probably. Definitively.

When I was in third grade, we did a project where we had to come up with an original invention. Mine was a straw connected to the top of a baby bottle. (I think I was still sucking my thumb at the time. I admittedly forfeited Barbies and thumb-sucking at a comparatively late age. )

My invention didn't work too well. Which is why I'm not rich now. But Camelbak came to me in my moment of need.

Try (pause for dramatic effect) adult pacifier plus water at your convenience. It can't get better than this, girls and boys.

Perks? You don't have to tip the bottle. Despite some indiscreet leaking, there is no possibility of spillage. You don't even need hands (although I wouldn't recommend carrying around the bottle in your teeth; I've tried it, and it's not the best idea).

I also drink more water than a pack horse. (Appropriate comparison?) Ask any of my friends from high school what they remember about me most and they'll probably say something about water bottles, and maybe that annoying head-pushing stage. (But we'll just pretend that never happened.) The point is, I like water. Hydrate or Die, it's your choice.

End of story. Camelbak's new-ish water bottle is, simply put, the best thing ever.

Also, I ordered a textbook online and received a surprise inside. It's a video membership card for Longs Drugs in San Anselmo, CA, belonging to someone named Sir Francis Drake. I believe this person's existence is fraudulent (see the real deal here), but if Sir Francis Drake happens to come across this blog, I want to tell him that I still have his membership card, and am holding onto it valiantly, in the advent of his video rental need. (Comma count in previous sentence: 4)