Lifestyle

Is helicopter parenting actually lazy?

— Katy Schneider, features editor, New York

All I gave actor and writer Annie Hamilton by way of an assignment was a list of items to consider writing about. Mattresses? Blow-dryers? Loafers? Backpacks? All she said in reply was “LET’S DO BACKPACKS.” A few weeks later, she sent in 2,000 words on her unexpected turn from “mistress” to “person in a healthy, happy relationship.” Within this meditation emerged a surprisingly vivid and useful guide to three kinds of backpacks: the one she used when hauling her underwear around the city while dating a guy with specific aesthetic preferences, the JanSport that felt right in the aftermath of that relationship’s end, and her current tiny nylon one. The last is “kinda like Prada, but you could soak it in the rain because it’s not Prada.” It’s suitable for sleepovers and has no room for makeup. She doesn’t need any — her new boyfriend kisses her too much.
My Backpacks, My Boyfriends Annie Hamilton went from being a mistress with a Montbell to a relationship person with a tiny little Hedgren.
Photo: The Strategist; Photo: Laura Fitzelle
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Photo-Illustration: by The Cut; Photos: Retailers
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