Manbags

[JC]

Somebody mentioned their manbag on here and I wanted to see how popular
they are amongst the GTD crowd.

I used to have a Jansport bag that was just a simple pouch. Loved it
but it grew to be too small and had no compartments.

Then I found a dreamy bag in Japan that has a top flap with a velcro
closing and a few compartments that do the job.

Other than that I haven't really found a bag that pleases me, but this
one looks promising:

http://www.roadwired.com/store/product.cfm?productid=75

JC

[Paul]

They're not all GTD'ers, but some of the whatsinmybag photos on Flickr
are interesting. After a few, they begin to look the same (iBook,
iPod, PDA, cell phone) but you might get some manbag inspiration there.
You'll also run across a Hipster PDA or two, which is cool.

I haven't had the chance to look at one up close, but the Tom Bihn bags
at www.tombihn.com look very nice.

[Larry Wright]

I keep threatening to buy one of those Tom Bihn Smart Alec bags (http://www.tombihn.com/page/001/PROD/100/TB0103) and join the "man bag" club, but so far I've held off. Has anyone used that particular bag? Also, can we find a different term besides "man bag" :)

--
Larry Wright
http://www.approachingnormal.com
http://www.welcometoparenthood.com

[Tolovana]

Once you've had and used a Tom Bihn bag, most (if not all) others will
seem shoddy in comparison. They use the best zippers and closures
I've seen, the fabric is very durable and stays good looking for a very
long time. Their cafe bags are great! My daughter loves her buzz sling
bag. She's been through at least 2 backpacks a year for the last 15
years, and this is the first bag she's owned that's held up to her
active daily use.

Great customer service, on top of it.

[Larry Wright]

Their reputation is outstanding, I've never heard a bad thing about them.

Has anyone tried any of these: http://www.booqbags.com/index.html ?

[Nik]

On Jan 30, 2006, at 10:22 AM, Larry Wright wrote:

I keep threatening to buy one of those Tom Bihn Smart Alec bags (http://www.tombihn.com/page/001/PROD/100/TB0103) and join the "man bag" club, but so far I've held off. Has anyone used that particular bag? Also, can we find a different term besides "man bag" :) 

I can't say enough good things about Tom Bihn bags. They're great. Check out the forums on the Tom Bihn site for user comments about the individual bags.

The Smart Alec is a nice bag. Roomier than you'd think (given that it's the smaller backpack TB sells, but the Brain Bag is  HUGE), looks very nice and slim, too. The buzz is more along the "Man Bag" or "murse" side of things.

Before I started grad school, I carried around a Victorinox ass pack. Wonderful little bag, and it converted into a murse for those occasions when I didn't want something hanging off my tuchus. Very sturdy, well made, bag. Lots of pockets.

--Nik

[bill7tx]

Let me inject a Neanderthal note here: if he's not travelling or in a
war zone, a man does not need a bag or a backpack, unless it is thrown
across the posterior of his horse (and then it should only contain oats
for the horse). Otherwise you have pockets in your pants and your
jacket. If you can't fit your stuff in your pockets, you have an
overinflated sense of your own importance, too many toys, or both. Get
over yourself. Lighten up. Simplify.

This has been a public service announcement. Now go back to work.

[Cinemafia]

Here's my 'manbag':

http://flickr.com/photos/cinemafia/87468133/

[bill7tx]

This is the only "bag" I ever carried, and don't even tote this one
since I quit the habit.

http://images.auctionworks.com/hi/6/6264/s91.jpg

[S. William Schulz]

On 1/30/06, Larry Wright <larry...@gmail.com> wrote:
>
> Has anyone tried any of these:
> http://www.booqbags.com/index.html ?

Yes, the booqbags are very nice! I carried one of their backpack
style laptop bags for several years before downsizing to a Timbuk2
messenger style laptop bag (which is also very well constructed).

SWS

[John Sullivan]

>
> Has anyone tried any of these:
> http://www.booqbags.com/index.html ?
>

Yep, I use one of their smallest size of shoulder bag for carrying
around my Thinkpad X40. It's the PowerSleeve 12 that I have
(http://www.booqbags.com/Detail.bok?no=64). It's very solidly made and
protective. However, they went a little overboard with the Booq logo
on it, which does make me feel like I'm carrying a designer purse
around. Nonetheless, I've really liked the change from a big
Kensington backpack. I carry less stuff and "strangely" don't miss the
extra things I thought I needed before at all.

--
John Sullivan
http://www.wjsullivan.net

[David Douthitt]

bill7tx wrote:
> Lighten up. Simplify.

I'm with you! I bought a nice big laptop bag, and found myself lugging
a huge weight about, for no reason. Better to get the small laptop bag,
thin out the wallet, and so forth.

I found that when I looked at bags I had two (conflicting) ideas in
mind: 1) "I want to carry everything I could possibly need"; 2) "I want
to carry *only* what I absolutely need and nothing else". Guess which
one won out?

So when you look at these bags - go minimalist!

[Chewie]

JC wrote:
> Then I found a dreamy bag in Japan that has a top flap with a velcro
> closing and a few compartments that do the job.
>

> Other than that I haven't really found a bag that pleases me...

May I recommend the Pack-Rat
http://www.specopsbrand.com/assets/product_images/pack-rat_body.jpg

[Daly de Gagne]

I have carried a bag for 30 years. First, it was simple and cheap canvas
bag with one main compartment.

I went through a couple of bags like that.

I bought an Eagle shoulder bag in Dallas about eight years ago. It had a
few compartments, and held a lot of stuff.

About two years ago I got a boxy little doctor's bag in the med school
bookshop at the University of Manitoba. Unfortunately it is not large
enough to carry letter-size folders easily. But most of the time it is
more than adequate to carry a couple of books, the Moleskine large size
lined notebook I use to create my day pages, a few fountain pens, a
blade for clipping articles from newspapers and magazines, Post-its,
index cards, etc. There are two zippered pouches built into the zipper
top for the large main compartment. As well, there are two smaller
zipper compartments, and some more pouches.

It's an ideal bag for anyone who, in addition to carrying the usual
assortment of stuff also wants to take along a small digital camera

The bag has both a good quality should strap and carrying handles.

This bag comes in a variety of colours (mine is a dark blue), and is
made of heavy duty padded Cordura type nylon. I paid about $40 for it on
sale.

It is made by WestRidge Designs, Portland, Oregon.

Daly
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Getting_Things_Done/

[Michael O'Henly]

I see this bag features a compartment for your handgun. Just what the really
well-organized guy needs...

M.
--
Michael O'Henly

[teri.p...@gmail.com]

I bought a cafe bag this year. I bought the medium size, which is
actually bigger than I need. I once worked in a sewing factory, so I
can definitely vouch for how well made and sewn these bags are. And the
strap on it is perfect. And my favorite part is that the lanyards that
hold your keys are long enough that you can unlock your front door
without unhooking the key ring. So far, I'd say that all the
recommendations for Tom Bihn are right on and I'm very happy with mine.

[Brian Short]

I have a medium cafe bag as well, and I love it.

I've been using it as my daily bag for about a year and, other than
getting an Empire Builder, I can't imagine using a different bag.

--
-Brian

--------------------
Photos - http://www.bshort.org
Blog - http://www.bshort.com

[JC]

Here are a couple of other promising bags I stumbled upon a while back:

http://www.globaltravelgear.com/Shoulder/bb009

http://www.chromebags.com/sling.php

JC

[Larry Wright]

I've seen the Cafe bag, and it looks nice. My only problem with it is that it looks a little too much like a purse. At least with a backpack, I can pretend....

[Chris Thompson]

I carry a cheap Eastpak backpack I bought at the local megastore
during a "Back to school" Sale some years ago.

It's got three compartments, the largest having a padded laptop slot.
It's held up remarkably well.

A friend of mine used to carry a Czech Plumber's bag...

http://www.bohemianbag.com/plumber.html

until he moved to a large powerbook.

To bill7tx, I both agree and disagree. I would prefer to carry nothing
but an RFID chip in my hand, and a list of a bunch of easily
accessible, free internet terminals.

Sadly, that's not feasible any more. I've seriously cut back my carry,
but it still requires a backpack, though it's not overly heavy and not
packed full.

I'm changing jobs, and will be re-evaluating everything shortly. I'm
pondering a Bluetooth cell and a PDA, either a Dell Axim x51v or a
Nokia 770. I'm not sure I'd be able to carry all that bagless,
especially if I throw in a BT mini keyboard, but since most of what I
do is now web based, GMail, Bloglines/Gregarius, etc, I don't need
much. The 770 looks REALLY promising.

--
------------------------
Chris Thompson

[bill7tx]

Chris,

A lot of people like the Palm Treo 650, with Cingular EDGE service and
a memory card to support some mobile apps. It's more than what I
typically "have to have" but it sounds like it might be something that
would relieve you of toting a backpack.

The Palm LifeDrive, with a roll-up keyboard (not a fold-up) could also
work for you if you are in WiFi environments most of the time. If you
wear a suit or a sport coat, or even a windbreaker, these would fit. I
sometimes carry a Palm Zire 72 in an Enfora WiFi case, with a fold-up
keyboard, all of which goes in my jacket or in my hand.

But that's only when I want to have the Zire for some particular reason
(I can run PowerPoint presentations from it, sometimes do document
edits, sometimes need one of the apps I've installed on it, can put
eBooks and music on memory cards for travel). If I'm visiting some
place where I can use a desktop system, I'll carry a thumb drive with
whatever I need on it. You can set one up with your own computing
environment on it and never affect whatever desktop you are borrowing.

Usually I just have a Motorola mobile (has my contact book on it, gets
me to my email via a Yahoo! lashup) and a Moleskine notebook. Pen goes
in shirt pocket. No bag required. It sounds like you're pretty much in
the same place, or getting there.

Travel well, travel safely, travel light.

Bill

[S. William Schulz]

On 1/31/06, teri.p...@gmail.com <teri.p...@gmail.com> wrote:
>

> I bought a cafe bag this year. I bought the medium size [. . .]

What is a cafe bag? I'm sorry if I missed the link in a previous message.

SWS

[Brian Short]

I (and I think he) was talking about the Tom Bihn Medium Cafe Bag.
It's just the name of one of their bags.

[Larry Wright]

Yep: http://www.tombihn.com/page/001/PROD/200/TB0202

On 1/31/06, Brian Short < brian...@gmail.com> wrote:

[DALY DEGAGNE]

Bill, the Neanderthals had far fewer books than we do today -- for example, they didn't have Moleskines. As well, the absence of fountain pens, digital cameras, magazines, and newspapers necessitated the need not to have bags.

Daly

----- Original Message -----
From: bill7tx <bi...@billbrandon.com>
Date: Monday, January 30, 2006 2:26 pm
Subject: [43F Group] Re: Manbags

>

> Let me inject a Neanderthal note here: if he's not travelling or
> in a
> war zone, a man does not need a bag or a backpack, unless it is thrown
> across the posterior of his horse (and then it should only contain

> oatsfor the horse). Otherwise you have pockets in your pants and your

[bill7tx]

Daly, they also didn't have pockets, so far as we know. "Neanderthal
note": I was anticipating that someone would accuse me of being part of
the knuckle-dragging crowd for suggesting that purses and bags are not
only silly, they are mostly not necessary. (I am actually a redneck
knuckle-dragger at heart, but that's beside the point.) Most of the
time the men and women I see are toting far more than they need, either
for the sake of looking important, or because they aren't confident
that they can function for a few hours without technology support, or
because they can't make decisions about what to take and what to leave,
or because they can't bear to leave any of their toys at home (God
forbid they should actually have to entertain themselves, or spend a
little quiet time in contemplation, meditation, or speculation). Women
have somewhat more justification, since for some reason the designers
don't give them pockets in their clothes, but it grieves me to see them
lugging a big purse and a knapsack or laptop luggage when most of what
they are carrying is purely extraneous.

By the way, all of the items you mention can be carried simultaneously
in pockets and in hands (you are only carrying one magazine or one
newspaper, right?), without any need for a bag of any kind.

[Nik]

On Jan 31, 2006, at 6:00 PM, bill7tx wrote:

> Most of the
> time the men and women I see are toting far more than they need,
> either

> for the sake of looking important, or because... [run on sentence
> snipped
> for brevity's sake]

Bill, you aren't wrong, but that doesn't mean you're right.

I appreciate your luddite sense and your desire for simplicity. It's
a wonderful thing to be at peace with everything while carrying
nothing. For me, being well prepared creates its own sense of peace
and calm.

I tend to take my Mac everywhere I go. Why? Because WiFi's
everywhere, and I can readily steal 10 minutes of 'Net time to work
on some schoolwork, catch up on email, or quickly find some
information on the 'net. I could always fill the time with quiet
contemplation, but sometimes getting something done clears the mind
more than that.

Same goes for the swiss army knife (when it comes in handy, it's
awful handy, but I'd say 27 days out of the month, I don't find a
need for it), the digicam, the cell phone, and possibly even the
Moleskine. (Isn't the computer enough?)

The Nintendo DS, well, that's inexcusable. But as long as I've got
the bag....

And when I do want a quiet moment of contemplation, I can just turn
off the cell phone so that nothing disturbs me. ;)

--Nik

[David Douthitt]

Nik wrote:
> I tend to take my Mac everywhere I go. Why? Because WiFi's everywhere,
> and I can readily steal 10 minutes of 'Net time to work on some
> schoolwork, catch up on email, or quickly find some information on the
> 'net.

I am the same way. However, I've two bags: one is about the size of a
small overnight bag (which is the way I think of it). The other is the
size of the iBook itself. When I take the "overnight" it is always
heavy with "stuff" - is this what we need to lug around with us, and
never use?

Strip it down to what you *really* use, and chuck the rest into
well-deserved home storage.

[Chris Thompson]

On 1/31/06, bill7tx <bi...@billbrandon.com> wrote:
> A lot of people like the Palm Treo 650, with Cingular EDGE service and
> a memory card to support some mobile apps. It's more than what I
> typically "have to have" but it sounds like it might be something that
> would relieve you of toting a backpack.

Bill, I have a slightly broken Treo 600 in a drawer at home. I found
it makes neither a good phone, nor a PDA. It had no bluetooth, which,
granted, the 650 does. It's too big for a phone, and difficult to
dial. On all systems, my criteria has always been screen resolution. I
hate tiny little palm screens. The Nokia 770 is 800x480, the Dell Axim
x50v is 640x480. Quite a bit more than a treo screen. Accomplishing
anything web based on the 770 is a breeze, on a Palm at 320x320, it's
painful.

My current plan is for a Nokia 6021 in a horizontal belt case. That's
GSM/GPRS/EDGE in a small form factor, with bluetooth. No Camera.

The 770 can fit in another belt case, or in my pocket, though it's too
large to carry there permanently. I'd prefer an OQO, but $2700 is out
of my price range.

I'm looking for a good small digital camera that could be every day
carried as well. I'm really interested in the newer Casio Exilims.

I actually am planning on having an RFID chip implanted in my left
had, getting rid of the need for keys. A back pocket with some index
cards, and a Zebra F-301 pen, and I'm good to go, no bag needed.

[Cinemafia]

Morgan Parker wrote:
> This is actually really cool, but doesn't it bang into your hip when
> you walk?

Not that I've noticed, or been bothered with anyway. And yes, I know
it's very purse-like and probably retarded, but I just really hate
having all this stuff I put in it in my pockets...it's hard to get to
(ever try to fish a cellphone out of a deep pants pocket while
driving?), and it can hurt!

[jozecuervo]

Man purse? Fahgettaboutit, it's all about crumpler for me... I met the
crrumpler cats at Macworld05 and they obviously target the photo and
beer crowd. I use the farmers double because it fits my laptop, video
camera, digital camera, ipod, plenty of wires, portable mouse, hard
drive, a notebook and a fleece. They have smaller ones too. The
sidebags are alright. Only drawback to having a nice daypack like this
is traveling long-term with a full-size pack, in which case I have to
leave the crumpler at home and squeezee all that stuff into the other
pack. Usually for week-long and shorter trips, I just carry a small
duffle bag for clothes and strap a skateboard to the bottom when I need
to get to the train station. Much better than a suitcase with wheels,
because I always have transpo, and suitcases with wheels are no good in
rain or snow. For short trips where I need not so much stuff, I just
wear my snowboard jacket shell and fill up the pockets.
Ultra-functional and so much cooler looking than a man purse,

crumpler.com.au i think...

[James Kendrick]

Speaking of man bags I reviewed a gadget bag called - The Man Bag.

http://jkontherun.blogs.com/jkontherun/2004/09/the_man_bag_its.html

JK

[Michael O'Henly]

Gawd, that site is absolutely hilarious! Thanks for the post.

Everybody else...even if you're not looking for a bag, do visit
http://crumpler.com.au and turn up your speakers.

M.
--
Michael O'Henly

-----Original Message-----
From: 43Fo...@googlegroups.com [mailto:43Fo...@googlegroups.com] On

Behalf Of jozecuervo
Sent: Wednesday, February 01, 2006 10:40 AM
To: 43 Folders
Subject: [43F Group] Re: Manbags

[S. William Schulz]

On 1/31/06, Brian Short <brian...@gmail.com> wrote:
>

> On 1/31/06, S. William Schulz <swsc...@gmail.com> wrote:
> >
> > On 1/31/06, teri.p...@gmail.com <teri.p...@gmail.com> wrote:
> > >
> > > I bought a cafe bag this year. I bought the medium size [. . .]
> >
> > What is a cafe bag? I'm sorry if I missed the link in a previous message.
>
> I (and I think he) was talking about the Tom Bihn Medium Cafe Bag.

Thank you, I've ordered one to try.

SWS

[David Douthitt]

Michael O'Henly wrote:
> Gawd, that site is absolutely hilarious! Thanks for the post.
>
> Everybody else...even if you're not looking for a bag, do visit
> http://crumpler.com.au and turn up your speakers.

Bags look nice - at least as long as I had patience to wait for the site
to finish loaded all that stuff. Never did hear anything.

I got too tired of waiting for all those megabytes of "pretty" to
download over my dialup connection - I canceled it. Perhaps some day...

[Daly de Gagne]

I sure hope that the person who designed that website isn't the same
person who designed the bags -- because if he is, then the bags may also
be atrocious, reflecting a triumph of form over function.

In a world where the medium is the message, this is an example of a
message that is getting mangled beyond reason, sacrificed on the
designer's altar of self-indulgence.

Frankly, much as I like bags, and enjoy seeing new ones, I don't have
the patience to play around with a web site like http://crumpler.com.au/

Even with super high speed internet that web site is a pain to navigate.

Daly

David Douthitt wrote:

> Bags look nice - at least as long as I had patience to wait for the
> site to finish loaded all that stuff. Never did hear anything.
>
> I got too tired of waiting for all those megabytes of "pretty" to
> download over my dialup connection - I canceled it. Perhaps some day...
>
>

--
Discuss and learn about David Allen’s Getting Things Done:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Getting_Things_Done/

[Josh Rothman]

I bought my "man bag" from Filson (http://www.filson.com). It is, in
fact, really manly, and tough as nails.

[Michael O'Henly]

Hah! You guys need to get out more. Less moleskin, more daylight...

First, anyone who's using dialup has to expect frustration just about
everywhere on the web. You can rant about usability all you want, but the
form-versus-function debate is over and form won. Secondly, there's a place
for in-yer-face, loud, user-hostile design -- in the right proportion.
Consider it web homeopathy. ;-)

The Crumpler site (http://crumpler.com.au for anyone who's still interested)
is just plain fun!

M.
--
Michael O'Henly

-----Original Message-----
From: 43Fo...@googlegroups.com [mailto:43Fo...@googlegroups.com] On
Behalf Of Daly de Gagne
Sent: Wednesday, February 01, 2006 2:46 PM
To: 43Fo...@googlegroups.com
Subject: [43F Group] Re: Manbags

[leshall]

I too have used bags since I was a kid in the UK. Then we used to use
old canvas gas-mask bags from WWII I guess. I have tried them all from
Billingham fishing bags through the actual Man Bag but have finally
settled on one that I REALLY like.

I am in the middle of remodeling my house so this has been perfect to
hold plans, notebooks, tape measures, flashlight, digi-cam etc etc. The
fact that is has a hidden pocket for myGlock just makes it somehow even
more manly :)

It's the Bail Out Bag and you can git one here -
http://www.countycomm.com/BAILOUTBAGGEN5.htm

$40 plus shipping. I for one really dig all the separate pockets
because I truly believe in "A place for everything and everything in
it's place."

I have been using it to hold regular manilla folders. It carried my 12"
iBook fine. LOVE IT!

[Garfield226]

I sometimes use an army surplus "map bag," like this:
http://www.armysurplusworld.com/product.asp?ProductID=1133

It's small, but it'll hold my laptop (not much bigger than 8.5x11),
notebook, magazines, newspaper, whatever. Enough.

[Sam Williams]

I just wanted to add a hearty recommendation for Brenthaven bags:

http://www.brenthaven.com/

They're made from military-grade ballistic nylon, which is *incredibly*
durable. I've given mine what should have been a damned good battering
over the years and it still looks brand new. The zips are also
amazingly good and the layout and configuration of the pockets is
perfect. Functionality comes first in any real man's manbag.

[Joe Ganley]

I'm a bit late to the party here, but let me plug my Man-Bag Buying
Guide at http://ganley.org/bags/bags.html.

The one I'm currently carrying is from Waterfield (http://sfbags.com/),
and I *love* it.

[Lance]

bill7tx wrote:
> Let me inject a Neanderthal note here: if he's not travelling or in a
> war zone, a man does not need a bag or a backpack, unless it is thrown
> across the posterior of his horse (and then it should only contain oats
> for the horse). Otherwise you have pockets in your pants and your
> jacket. If you can't fit your stuff in your pockets, you have an
> overinflated sense of your own importance, too many toys, or both. Get
> over yourself. Lighten up. Simplify.

I beg to differ. I've been carrying a bag of one sort or another for
several years because I don't want my pockets filled with a wallet,
cell phone, change, etc. for purely mechanical reasons. Due to my body
shape my waist is the widest part of me. Adding mass to my slacks
causes slippage problems. A bag to carry my stuff in minimizes the
risk of unsightly exposures.

And yes, I *am* working on correcting the body mass issue. In the
meantime I proudly carry my manbag.

[Matthew Cornell]

In answer to the "GTD" part of your question, I had this comment on one
of my posts:

> My personal favorite is @bag. I always have my messenger bag, so I can
> always do the items on the list wherever I happen to be. It always has a
> nice mix of fun tasks (Nintendo DS games or brainstorming in my
> moleskine) and quick tasks (filling out forms or addressing an envelope).
>
> Rusty Haskell, http://www.bactroid.net/user.php/fuzzcat

The original post is here, if anyone's interested: "My favorite GTD
list? Waiting For!" -
http://ideamatt.blogspot.com/2005/11/my-favorite-gtd-list-waiting-for.html

matt

[GeeWhiz]

If you are worried about you messenger bag being mistaken for a man
bag/purse, then why not just use a back pack or a sling/single strap
back pack.

[Cinemafia]

Well, as is usually the case, SAF has worn down on my hand-made
'man-crate' ( http://flickr.com/photos/cinemafia/87468133 ). In fact,
my wife absolutely hates it. So, I guess I'm back in the market. I
really like the looks (and price) of the Lewis N. Clark Bicentennial
Guide Bag (
http://www.ebags.com/lewis_n_clark/bicentennial_guide_bag/product_detail/index.cfm?modelid=15248
), I just want to make sure it will fit a classic (8.5"x5.5") size
organizer in it. The classic size is really a little big for me, but
my dad gave me a nice/expensive Franklin Covey one as a gift and I feel
compelled to use it. Anyway, does anybody know whether this will fit
one of those?

[g.lu...@gmail.com]

JC wrote:
> Somebody mentioned their manbag on here and I wanted to see how popular
> they are amongst the GTD crowd.
>
> I used to have a Jansport bag that was just a simple pouch. Loved it
> but it grew to be too small and had no compartments.
>
> Then I found a dreamy bag in Japan that has a top flap with a velcro
> closing and a few compartments that do the job.
>
> Other than that I haven't really found a bag that pleases me, but this
> one looks promising:
>
> http://www.roadwired.com/store/product.cfm?productid=75
>
> JC

I use a regular-sized Messenger Bag from Timbuk2. It's a little large
for my needs most of the time -- hauling lunch & Moleskine & USB thumb
drives & pens & calculator, etc. etc. etc. between work and home -- but
when I need to take an overnight trip, it's perfect for all of the
above + toiletries & a changed of clothes. The bag is as sturdy as I
could want, and the workmanship excellent. Being able to chose its
colors -- violet, purple, and blue, with orange interior and black
fittings -- was a plus too.

[stevecooper]

> I've been carrying a bag of one sort or another for
> several years because I don't want my pockets
> filled with a wallet, cell phone, change, etc. for
> purely mechanical reasons.

For me, it's just easier to change clothes. ;) If everything is in one
bag, you just grab that before leaving the house. You know you've got
your keys, your money, and all the other guff. No need to pick
everything out of half-a-dozen jacket and trouser pockets. And it keeps
the line of your jacket looking better; too much in your pockets makes
you look saggy and ill-fitting. And your jacket, too.

[Cinemafia]

Well, I ended up purchasing the Lewis N. Clark Travel Shoulder Bag (
http://www.ebags.com/lewis_n_clark/bicentennial_travel_shoulder_bag/product_detail/index.cfm?modelid=15247
), which was only $24 thanks to eBags having a 1-day-only 20%-off-sale
yesterday. I was going to go for the Guide Bag, but since this one
should be big enough to hold my Mac Mini and everything else, it'll be
much more convenient as an everyday, take-to-work bag. I'll let you
all know how it goes when it arrives!

[LarrySF]

I've been seeking an alternative to the messenger-type bag I currently
use. It's large enough so I can indulge myself at times, putting in
more items than necessary, "just in case" I might want them. I want
to pare down, but still want more than I can fit in a pocket or two.
And one thing about bags is they're one more thing to keep your mind
on, you can't put them down and forget about them or you're SOL.

It occured to me that something like a holster might be kinda
convenient for a few smaller items (probaby not big enough for
documents, say). I've been looking around, and so far I've only found
one place that comes close. Most holsters are for guns or camera
equipment. But look at these "e-holsters"
http://www.eholster.com/eholsters1.html
http://www.eholster.com/evolutionbag.html
etc etc.

I'm not sure if the actual holsters make you look like a cop...
But these are definitely manly manbags. Who would dare call this a
purse? ; )

[LarrySF]

One more on holsters:
here is a review, written by a guy in Singapore. He likes the feel,
but warns that it looks like a gun holster and gets reactions from
people -- in particular, when he reaches for his bag to get a pen,
say... looks like he's going for his guns. Not for airports.
http://www.spug.net/reviews/reholster.htm

[Michael O'Henly]

Ditto for the codpiece-style manbag.

M.
--
Michael O'Henly

-----Original Message-----
From: 43Fo...@googlegroups.com [mailto:43Fo...@googlegroups.com] On
Behalf Of LarrySF
Sent: Tuesday, February 07, 2006 12:17 PM
To: 43 Folders
Subject: [43F Group] Re: Manbags