Exactly the same here! My MBP in college had a safety case and everything... and in hindsight its awful and bulky and hides the fancy finish.

One important thing to remember, at least for me, is I just had significantly less disposable income back then. Replacing the MBP would have been financially impossible for me, so I took more care of it. I'm in a much more privileged place now... so replacing something like this would only be a significant inconvenience.