Men and women and their baggage. Accumulated. Unnecessary. Inevitable. Excess. Baggage by proxy.
In another life, I hauled around all kinds of baggage in my purse:
- pacifier
- folding potty seat
- baby bottle
- diapers
- picture book
- baggie of animal cookies
- couple of Hot Wheels
- a stuffed animal or two
Along with:
- an overstuffed wallet
- checkbook
- lipstick, lip gloss, lip balm, Carmex
- keys
- tissues
- bulging organizer full of laboriously clipped coupons
- brush, mirror
- sunglasses
- pen, notepad
- feminine products
- pain reliever
- tweezers
- Band-Aids
- receipts
- shopping list
This baggage hanging off my shoulder started off weighing more than the infant cradled across my chest. Over time, it served to offset the weight of the squirming toddler wedged against my hip and the insistent other child tugging my arm.
My husband’s baggage fit neatly in his pockets.
Swap out the baby items for anti-aging supplements, props and promising potions, add a cell phone and charger, reading glasses, an ATM card or two, dry-eye drops, stick in an E-reader, an eco-friendly reusable shopping bag, chuck the Carmex, the checkbook and the coupon organizer, and the baggage I’m shouldering today weighs about the same – maybe more – but now one hip is out of line and one arm is longer than the other.
He still doesn’t need a purse for his baggage.
Men are from Mars, Women are from Earth. Look it up. 
vivinolavita 
Hi Rae Ann, So true, but the consoles of my own Martian husband’s various vehicles are stuffed with peanuts, sunflower seeds, hand sanitizer, sunblock, the Carmex you got rid of, glasses of all kinds, pens (mostly imprinted with business names), a gazillion business cards, Kleenex, handkerchiefs, microfiber cloths, duct tape (!), receipts, paper clips, screwdriver, flashlight. They’re worse than my purse because they only get cleaned out when he sells the vehicle.
Anyway, nice to hear from you! Barbie asked me how you were doing and I confessed I’d been bad about keeping in touch.
It has been an unusually humid summer here and continues to be hot even in Santa Fe, miserable in Las Cruces. I used to think I loved summer. Not the case any more!
Wayne and I took a great road trip to the Grand Tetons and Yellowstone in June. We loved the Tetons! Just breathtaking.
We are reading “The Boys in the Boat” for book club. You would enjoy it if you haven’t read it. It’s about rowing. (Are you still rowing?) I never knew it was so hard! Looks so peaceful out there on the water!
Hope you are all well. All well here.
Xox, Joanna
>
LikeLike