Purses, Wallets and What's Most Important

An interesting hint of a thought pinged it's way across my day yesterday.

Ideas do that in my life. As I go about my business making contacts with those around me, keeping everything on an even keel and making sure the school work gets accomplished, ideas like to ping, like one bouncing off a trampoline errant, right across my field of vision. They are usually pretty interesting ideas - especially to one who likes to ruminate on various obscurities. Often, they ping into my mind, then ping around inside my head until I have a quiet space to capture them and beat them into submission.

Anyway...this idea was a simple one. Not sure where I saw it, but it got to pingin'.

What are the three most important things in your purse?

I found myself thinking about what I carry around in that rather inconvenient and irritating bag called a purse. Purses are a fascinating item to me. Women carry them - it's just a given. Why? Men don't have to carry stuff with them, do they? Now, I'm not talking about the new fad of sorts called the man-purse; no one can convince me for a minute that any self-respecting man would carry some of the common items you might find in a woman's purse around in a bag. And, without the appropriate items, the man-purse is automatically disqualified as a purse at all. I'm alright with calling them messenger bags...not purses. But, that's just me - call me weird.

I've never come to a good, logical reason for why women are shackled with these bags, usually slung over their shoulder. (Some women call their purses pocketbooks - do you find that odd? Me, too.) I find myself attentive to the type of purse a woman chooses to carry, too. Have they chosen an impractical fashion bag, or the ever-popular 'big bucket' where everything is just thrown together like a big 'stuff party' she carries around every where she goes? Or have they opted for the the 'as small as I can get away with' bag? (This is the trap I tend to fall for frequently, then get snagged someplace not having what I need at a most crucial time.) Older women, just a generation or two ahead of me, like to carry the smaller satchel-style purse with short handles. They typically are stuffed to the gills with...well, important stuff. What is interesting is that these women pay no mind to the fact that the purse has shorter handles and attempt to carry the silly thing on their shoulder. And, just because they are smaller than the large fashion bags or the big-bucket purses, don't think they are lighter. They are like carrying around a brick with handles. Truly. Perfect if you ever need to defend yourself, though.

Some women have rejected the whole purse idea, and have opted for the backpack option - this is usually the younger women or college students. That's cool, but isn't that awkward when they need to pay for something? Shimmying out of those straps, if they are utilizing them both, is a lot of physical movement that draws attention to the wearer at the front of the checkout line, for sure (kind of like getting out of a too-small garment). I'm always worried someone behind the backpack wearer could just take what they wanted without hindrance - that's not good. And if you don't use both straps as they were intended, and sling it over one shoulder, why not just use a purse, for pete's sake? The backpack has then been converted into a giant canvas 'big bucket' purse referred to above.

And what about the woman who refuses to carry a purse at all, deciding to carry only cards and cash in a wallet, similar to a man? Is this kosher? So many of the young people carry stuff (phone, iPod, etc.) in their back pockets these days; honestly, it messes with my mind. For all my life, only men carried stuff in their back pockets. Now, when I see young people carrying stuff in their back pockets it just doesn't seem right, adding extra 'baggage' to lycra-infused jeans. Not good in my simple view.

(And speaking of men's wallets, isn't there some sort of rule about which side...?? I have also heard of men who have hip or leg joint problems from having too fat a wallet in their back pocket - you, too? In our family, we don't seem to have this problem...)

Alright, I have successfully deviated from the subject at hand, haven't I?

The three most important things in my purse...hmmm. I have a lot of stuff in my purse, but not as much as my mom carried in hers, that's for sure. She had it all - important papers, kleenex (usually used but still usable), cash (she like to carry quite a bit of cash - never know when you may need to buy something, she would say), various keys, and long-forgotten tubes of lipstick forever banned to the chasm of darkness that was the bottom of her purse. Always change down in the bottom, too, just in case someone had the urgent need to avail themselves of a gumball on the way out of the grocery store. She always had aspirin or tylenol in there; shoot, I'm surprised she didn't carry a small bottle of water, too. She actually had two purses - one for work and one not for work. I could never figure out why she couldn't just carry the same for both personas...

So...three things. In my purse...
See why this fascinated me so?

Third Most Important Item in my Purse
Practically, my identification and debit cards are the most reached for item in my bag. Stuck all together in a little zippered pouch, it's like the bank in my purse. Sometimes receipts and some loose change find their way in there, but not for long. It just gets too irritating after a bit. Oh, and cash has sometimes been known to be in there, too...but it's rare.

Second Most Important Item in my Purse
This one is a tie between feminine goodies and pain-killers. Man, when you need either of these things, you really need them. Keep 'em well stocked, 'cuz it's when you don't, you will find yourself in a mess...or pain. Yeah, some hand sanitizer is a good thing, too, but not as important as these other two items.

Number One Most Important Item in my Purse
And the one thing that is most essential that I absolutely must carry in my purse?
Lip Smacker.
Yes, that's right. Not my phone, not my reading glasses or my inhaler. Lip Smacker.
That little burgundy tube of Dr. Pepper goodness that has saved me time and time again from dry lips and slagging confidence. Slide some of this wonder-gloss on and you can conquer the world. No, really...it's true. I not only keep at least one in my purse, but one in each vehicle, in most of the pockets of my jackets or vests ...even in my besties purse (who has one of the best mom purses in the world, second only to my daughter's purse, which has absolutely everything).

So, there you have it. The three most important items in my purse.
I'd sure like to hear about yours.

“When a man meets catastrophe on the road, he looks in his purse, 

but a woman looks in her mirror.”

~Margaret Turnbull

A woman's mind is as complex as the contents of her handbag; 

even when you get to the bottom of it, 

there is ALWAYS something at the bottom to surprise you!

~Billy Connelly

As a side note...one time I witnessed a purse weighing contest at a women's retreat - it was absolutely hilarious! I think the winner's purse weighed in excess of forty pounds. And men think women are weak...ha! You carry around that weight everywhere you go, and you won't be weak, I'm tellin' you!

Y'know, I could do a clever little 'drash on how this relates to our lives, something really introspective about what's most important and how G-d works into the whole affair...but...not today. I'll just leave you with that thought hangin' out there. Kinda like the shorty brick purse stuck on the shoulder of a 50-ish year old shopper.