Regular readers of the Satchel Pages are probably aware that we do not shy from media criticism, especially when the work of journalism in question exhibits shoddy reporting or lazy generalizations. But if we’re going to point out flaws when they are apparent, we should also dish out kudos when they are deserved, especially in [...]

Think nobody’s paying much attention to you at the coffee shop as you pause while paying to noodle for quarters at the bottom of your surprisingly deep pockets?
Think again. That seemingly blasé waitress is not only judging you: she’s blogging your annoying habits too.
And if you live in California and your waitress happens to call [...]

What? Could the end of the great man-purse experiment be upon us already?
A brief item in last week’s Variety treats the current wave of man-purse confessions (see Puff Daddy’s, for example, below) as if it were merely the wake resulting from a fashion belly flop.

A mere four sentences, the featurette describes two non-pursey options for [...]

Rap and fashion authority Sean Combs (aka Puff Daddy; P. Diddy; Sean John; Jennifer Lopez’s ex; his mother’s son) dishes out advice about elevator scents, home lighting, and body hair in a recent issue of Details magazine. But we know what you’ve all been waiting for from the hip-hop mogul: his guidance on men’s carrying [...]

Men got along fine for quite some time without carrying purses. Why the need now?
The obvious, short answer is gizmos. The number of iPods, cell phones, and handheld computers has increased exponentially, whereas the number of pockets has stayed pretty much the same (cargo pants, of course, being the valiant exception).
But is there any more [...]

To continue making the case that the connection between drawing talent and carrying some sort of man bag is not so incidental, we feature today the graphic work of Shawn Granton, a self-described “‘freelance artist’ (aka penniless bohemian that occasionally draws)” who lives and bikes in Portland, Oregon. Mr. Granton has created a four-page comic [...]

We hate to be the ones who have to break this to you. But someone’s got to do it.
It’s about that, uh . . . bag you always have with you. Yeah, that one.
It’s a man purse.

Yeah, we know, you call it something else. It’s a bookbag, or a courier bag, or an attache, or [...]

What? This? A purse? No, silly, it’s not a purse. It’s a . . . a messenger bag. A shoulder bag. A “European carryall.” I’m a man. Please don’t call it a purse.
There’s a fine but important line between man-purse humor and man-purse denial. Man-purse humor is . . . well, funny. Man-purse denial is [...]

Here’s our quick, uninformed take on the glamorous, fast-paced world of man-purse-accessory design:

High pressure

High fashion

High speed
Highly specific

Hi, Mom!

Sorry, we’re still new at this. But it seems to us that most accessories that make it easier to use your gizmo, and that you therefore carry in your “tote” with it, succeed or fail by how brilliantly [...]

At this very moment, all around the world, untold numbers of young men are aching with desire — for a man purse. If only they could carry one without being thought . . . you know, “sissy.” Or worse, unfashionable.
Don’t believe it? The private writings of Winnipeg teenager Michael Remis provide a small window into [...]