Last night, I attended a dinner/cupcake party chez Stephanie. She invited college friends who were vacationing in Europe and friends from her law school who I hadn't met. Good food, good wine (standard), and new friends - it was great.
One conversation from last night struck me as particularly interesting. Suzanne and I were speaking with Stephanie's friend Sangwani about the convenience of purses. The conversation began because Stephanie was trying to pawn off leftovers on Sangwani, and he was complaining that he had no way to carry them. Suzanne and I suggested that Sangwani would find a male purse useful (all the rage in Europe). We explained that the ''murse'' was usually a leather satchel shaped like a laptop or book bag but smaller and more narrow. Sangwani, visiting from America, was appalled at the ''murse.'' The conversation proceeded as follows:
Suzanne: Well, how are you going to carry things around without some sort of bag?
Michelle: I guess that's why every man needs a woman. Because every woman has a purse.
Sangwani: I completely agree with that statement.
Michelle: But if a man doesn't have a woman? Then obviously he needs his own ''murse.''
Suzanne: Or maybe the man already has his ''murse'' and that's why he doesn't have a woman.
Sangwani: Another good point.
Michelle: It's like the chicken or the egg. What came first? The Murse or the Purse?
We pondered that question for at least 7 seconds.
Perhaps that doesn't make much sense. But after three types of chocolate desserts and a few glasses of wine, we found it quite funny.
But, the conversation got me thinking. In my purse, I carry water, snacks, wallet, phone, metro pass, sometimes IPOD, the list could go on. I don't have uncomfortable bulges in my pockets, my hands are free, and I'm always prepared. Why are men in the United States denied that luxury? Who decided only women should (and must) carry a bag? We have to carry the children, isn't that enough of a burden?
When exactly did ''murse'' become a four-letter word?
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The murse appears quite a bit in history: The kilt comes standard with a little front-bag, the pony express riders carried a sachel and what rifleman could function without his ammunitions case?
ReplyDeleteLet's continue the fight for the murse! Then American women won't have to carry all their man's junk, too.