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Umbrellas. I always like to have one by the front door or in the back of the car, but I hardly ever use them.
Either because it's too windy for the umbrella to be of any use and will probably get turned inside out or because I have no idea what to do with it when I get inside wherever I'm going. Who wants to carry around an umbrella, much less a wet umbrella?
What item do you think is a good idea in theory, but is not quite as useful in practice?