# Purses



## Bilma

I have a question for the ladies:

Where do you put your purse when you are in a restaurant, theater, doctor's office, etc. Do you put it on the floor? Do you put it on the chair? on your lap?


Tengo una pregunta para las damas. Cuando van a un restaurante, al cine o a un consultorio médico ¿Dóndo ponen su bolsa, en el suelo, en la silla, en sus piernas?


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## Daphne27

Generally I put my bag on the chair when possible...

May I ask you the reason of this poll?

Bye, 

Daphne


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## PaoPao

Bilma, yo lo hago de esta manera:
Restaurantes : En mis piernas, debido a lo rapido que son los ladrones de carteras en mi ciudad.
Cine, teatro, doctores, etc : En el asiento, si es posible a mi costado (pegada a mi cuerpo) o en la espalda (entre el espaldar de la silla y mi espalda)


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## Bilma

Daphne27 said:


> Generally I put my bag on the chair when possible...
> 
> May I ask you the reason of this poll?
> 
> Bye,
> 
> Daphne


 
I know it might seem silly. It is just a cultural difference I have seen between Mexico and USA. I think most Mexican ladies would never put their purses on the floor (My mother used to tell me it was bad luck). I have notice American ladies do put their purses on the floor they do not really care. I just wanted to know how this is done in other countries.

After  I got married I handled my purse to my husband for a second and he put it on the floor....I almost fainted  and told him right away, please NEVER put my purse on the floor! Of course he did not understand  why since all the women  he has know put them on the floor.

Thanks


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## maxiogee

It's not bad luck to put your 'purse' (handbag) on the floor in Ireland, but if you're in a bar or restaurant it's an invitation to have it stolen.
My wife would never dream of leaving her handbag out of her sight - and wisely so.


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## Bilma

maxiogee said:


> It's not bad luck to put your 'purse' (handbag) on the floor in Ireland, but if you're in a bar or restaurant it's an invitation to have it stolen.
> My wife would never dream of leaving her handbag out of her sight - and wisely so.


.



Thanks for your answer


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## Alxmrphi

Might I ask what prompted you to ask this question?


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## natasha2000

What a coincindence! Something similar happens in Serbia...

In Serbia, it is not bad luck to put your purse on the floor, but nevertheless, women don't like to do it, since it is said that if you put your purse on the floor, you'll never have money. So, you can imagine that I, too, never put my purse on the floor. On the chair, on the lap, on the table... But never on the floor.


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## Bilma

natasha2000 said:


> What a coincindence! Something similar happens in Serbia...
> 
> In Serbia, it is not bad luck to put your purse on the floor, but nevertheless, women don't like to do it, since it is said that if you put your purse on the floor, you'll never have money. So, you can imagine that I, too, never put my purse on the floor. On the chair, on the lap, on the table... But never on the floor.


 

Yes, my  mom said the same thing.


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## argosdex

In almost any large US city it is "bad luck" to put your pocketbook/bag on any seat of a car. Because when you are at a traffic light they will smash your glass and grab your bag, briefcase or anything else on it, aptly it's called a "smash'n'grab" so the best place for your bag in a car is either in the trunk or the floor.


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## natasha2000

argosdex said:


> In almost any large US city it is "bad luck" to put your pocketbook/bag on any seat of a car. Because when you are at a traffic light they will smash your glass and grab your bag, briefcase or anything else on it, aptly it's called a "smash'n'grab" so the best place for your bag in a car is either in the trunk or the floor.


 
This is very reasonable and practical thinking...


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## Bilma

Alex_Murphy said:


> Might I ask what prompted you to ask this question?


 

I was just curious. It might seem stupid but I just thought it was intersting to know the different behaviors women have regarding purses in different cultures.


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## GenJen54

I believe women started putting their purses on the floor when there was some public warning about purses being stolen off of the chair back from which they were hung. On the floor, tucked close to the woman's feet, the purses are considered more hidden and less likely to be stolen.

Of course, recently another news article hit nationwide that talked about the disgusting amount of germs and potentially harmful bacteria found on the bottoms of women's purses, mostly from being set on the floor.


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## Bilma

GenJen54 said:


> I believe women started putting their purses on the floor when there was some public warning about purses being stolen off of the chair back from which they were hung. On the floor, tucked close to the woman's feet, the purses are considered more hidden and less likely to be stolen.
> 
> Of course, recently another news article hit nationwide that talked about the disgusting amount of germs and potentially harmful bacteria found on the bottoms of women's purses, mostly from being set on the floor.


 

You are right. I wouldn't put it on the floor either because it is dirty.


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## paulol

Hi Blima,
When you say "purse" do you mean the bag that most women carry with them when they go out (here we call them "handbags") or the small thing that you keep your money in?
I mention it because on this side of the Atlantic, a "purse" is usually just the thing you keep your money in, so you definitely wouldn't leave it on the floor, but maybe this is a British/American vocabulary difference that I didn't know about.


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## panjandrum

paulol said:


> [...] ... maybe this is a British/American vocabulary difference that I didn't know about.


 It is.
AE purse = BE handbag.


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## paulol

panjandrum said:


> It is.
> AE purse = BE handbag.


Thanks, I just learnt something new.


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## Bilma

paulol said:


> Hi Blima,
> When you say "purse" do you mean the bag that most women carry with them when they go out (here we call them "handbags") or the small thing that you keep your money in?
> I mention it because on this side of the Atlantic, a "purse" is usually just the thing you keep your money in, so you definitely wouldn't leave it on the floor, but maybe this is a British/American vocabulary difference that I didn't know about.


 
I mean the handbags


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## ireney

Never on the floor because it's dirty and then if I leave it on the couch or keep it in my lap etc all this dirt is going to be transfered there isn't it? Unless of course I wipe it clean and a) I have better things to remind myself all the time b) some bags would  be definitely destroyed if I did that.

On a spare chair nicely tucked in its place. In fact scatch that. Rammed as close as possible to the table if I am in any place from which my bag may be stolen.


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## Cereth

I always leave my purse on my legs and belly area...la bolsa es un excelente cubre panza


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## Hakro

Purses/handbags can be stolen both from the floor and from a chair. I give you an example:

There was a group of Finnish ladies in London, mainly for shopping. After having run through shops and department stores all morning, one of the ladies said she's tired, she'd go back to the hotel. The others were worried because this lady didn't speak a word of English: "Are you sure you'll be all right?"
     "Yes, no problem, I have a map, I know where to go."
It was about noon, and she was hungry, so she went in a pizzeria that was full of people having lunch. There she could give her order without saying anything, just by pointing a picture with her finger. She took a small table but then she realized that she hadn't taken a fork and a knife. She went back to the desk to pick them up.
     When she came back to her table she saw a black man sitting there. He had just started to eat her pizza.
She decided to be a brave Finnish lady, not afraid of foreign men. She sat down, draw the pizza plate in the middle of the table and started cutting pieces from her side of the pizza. 
The black man smiled shyly but didn't say a word. Apparently he had the same problem as the Finnish lady: no word of English.
So they ate the pizza half and half. Before leaving the black man brought a glass of wine for the lady and another for himself. After the wine the black man stood up, bowed, smiled and left without saying a word.
The Finnish lady was sitting there and wondering about the habits in foreign countries. Having finished her wine she decided to take her handbag and leave. Suddenly she realized: her handbag was not on the chair where she had left it when she had gone to take the fork and the knife.
     That black man had stolen her purse!
She looked around to see other people who might have seen where the black man had gone. The lunch time was over and the pizzeria was practically empty. She was desperate. 
     Then she saw her handbag on a chair of the next table. And on the table there was a full plate of pizza.


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## PaoPao

cereth, completamente de acuerdo contigo... jajajaja
Regresando al tema, defitivamente dejarla en el piso no es nada limpio. Sin embargo, la teoria de dejarla en el piso es perder dinero, tambien es una frase popular.


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## Alxmrphi

Well that makes sense why I thought it was such a weird question, if you mean handbag, that makes more sense..

I'd never heard of someone putting their purse (BE) on the floor! hahaha.


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## Maja

natasha2000 said:


> What a coincindence! Something similar happens in Serbia...
> In Serbia, it is not bad luck to put your purse on the floor, but nevertheless, women don't like to do it, since it is said that if you put your purse on the floor, you'll never have money. So, you can imagine that I, too, never put my purse on the floor. On the chair, on the lap, on the table... But never on the floor.


 Me too (obviously ). Usually on a spare chair, or on the back of my own chair. But not only because of superstition, but because of hygiene! I would feel outraged if any of my belongings ended up on the floor in a public place...


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## araceli

Buen día:

En el restaurante: La pongo enganchada en el respaldo de mi silla o, si estoy sola, en la silla de enfrente o apoyada en la mesa, bien a la vista.
En la sala de espera del dentista: Sobre la falda o en el piso, entre las piernas.
En el cine: Sobre la falda, enganchada en el brazo, nunca suelta o en bandolera.
Viajando en subte, tren o colectivo: En bandolera o bien apretada contra el cuerpo; es peligroso descender con la cartera en bandolera porque si te la quieren arrebatar, te pueden arrastrar y tirarte abajo del tren o subte, como ya ha sucedido muchas veces, en esos casos conviene llevar la cartera colgada del hombro o del brazo (es preferible perder la cartera y no la vida).
Caminando por la calle: En bandolera o apretada contra el cuerpo.

Saludos y cuidado con los ladrones


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## badgrammar

It is an interesting question, because several women have mentioned to me that I should never put my handbag on the ground - reason being, it's not good for your finances.  I always put it at my feet (before). 

Their reasoning reminds me of what you might hear in Feng Shui, which recommends, for example, that you always close the toilet seat to keep the money energy from escaping down the drain , ditto for closing the bathroom door, especially if it can be seen from an entryway,...  Is it superstition?  I don't know, like many of the ancient wisdoms, there is sometimes solid reasoning behind cultural or spiritual conventions.  

With your handbag, the problem is that you are both physically and symbolically putting your money on the dirty floor down by your feet - you disrespecting your wealth .  If you want to keep your money, you have to respect it.  Same reason I always keep my bills neatly arranged in my pocketbook - a symbolic way of respecting it by putting it in a nice place (lap, table, chair). 

Sometimes I put my purse on the floor anyway.

@Hakro - I lovd that story!


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## maxiogee

badgrammar said:


> Their reasoning reminds me of what you might hear in Feng Shui, which recommends, for example, that you always close the toilet seat to keep the money energy from escaping down the drain ,


What is the "money energy" doing in the bathroom? Why is it there, and not in some other part of the house - the bedroom, say?
Closing the seat is a hygiene thing and any other reason is just fancy-dress 




> With your handbag, the problem is that you are both physically and symbolically putting your money on the dirty floor down by your feet


Many people here have spoken of dirty floors.
How dirty are the places you frequent?
I have never noticed any particularly prominent degree of dirt attaching itself to a package I might place on the floor of a bar, café, restaurant or hotel.


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## Etcetera

I usually try to put my purse on the chair. If it's impossible, I put it on my knees. 
But if I go to the famous American fast food enterprise, on my way from the University to the library, I can as well put my bag (a rather big one!) on the floor, if there isn't a spare chair near me.


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## badgrammar

maxiogee said:


> What is the "money energy" doing in the bathroom? Why is it there, and not in some other part of the house - the bedroom, say?
> Closing the seat is a hygiene thing and any other reason is just fancy-dress
> QUOTE]
> 
> I know it sounds flakey, and probably is ...  But in order to explain what the toilet seat has to do with money in Feng Shui, you have to know the basic philosophy behind it all, go back to the elements, the directions, etc.  And I'm really no expert on the matter, just read a couple of decorating books .


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## LV4-26

maxiogee said:


> Many people here have spoken of dirty floors.
> How dirty are the places you frequent?
> I have never noticed any particularly prominent degree of dirt attaching itself to a package I might place on the floor of a bar, café, restaurant or hotel.


I was going to ask the same question.
I don't have a  handbag but I sometimes have a few objects with me at the cinema (sheets of paper, that kind of thing). I always put them on the floor, next to my feet : I can't be bothered to have them on my lap or in my hands. Bacteria? It's never crossed my mind. That's really the least of my worries.


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## maxiogee

badgrammar said:


> in order to explain what the toilet seat has to do with money in Feng Shui, you have to know the basic philosophy behind it all, go back to the elements, the directions, etc.



My point is to do with the money/bathroom relationship. Are not many more things more likely to influence my monetary energy than the up/down-ness of my toilet seat?


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## Heba

I usually put my handbag on a spare chair or hang it on the back of my chair. A ''neat freak'' like me would NEVER put her bag on the floor for fear of its getting ''contaminated''.

I wonder if there are any certain etiquette rules governing this issue of the proper position of handbags.


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## ireney

maxiogee said:


> Many people here have spoken of dirty floors.
> How dirty are the places you frequent?
> I have never noticed any particularly prominent degree of dirt attaching itself to a package I might place on the floor of a bar, café, restaurant or hotel.





LV4-26 said:


> I was going to ask the same question.
> I don't have a  handbag but I sometimes have a few objects with me at the cinema (sheets of paper, that kind of thing). I always put them on the floor, next to my feet : I can't be bothered to have them on my lap or in my hands. Bacteria? It's never crossed my mind. That's really the least of my worries.



We are not talking about visible dirt here. However I am on of those people who would never allow anyone (myself included) to put his feet on the couch with his shoes on. Nor would allow anyone to step, with his shoes on the couch. It's not a matter of just leaving a mark on it since that's most of the times easily removed.

Now if I have a pack which I will place on the floor when I go home I don't see any reason not to place in on the floor of a cinema, a restaurant, on the street while I search my bag ( usually called by my family a Sport Billy bag).

I would never however put on the floor something that I would afterwards put on my couch or my table i.e. for the reasons I've stated above.


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## natasha2000

ireney said:


> .....while I search my bag ( usually called my my family a Sport Billy bag).


 

hehehe... How interesting...
My bag is also called like this... And many friends of mine also call their bags the same...


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## Etcetera

ireney said:


> Now if I have a pack which I will place on the floor when I go home I don't see any reason not to place in on the floor of a cinema, a restaurant, on the street while I search my bag ( usually called by my family a Sport Billy bag).
> 
> I would never however put on the floor something that I would afterwards put on my couch or my table i.e. for the reasons I've stated above.


Same with me.


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## LV4-26

Yeah, I can see what you're all on about. Take care : you start like that and, sooner or later, you end up spending your life in an oxygen tank.


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## maxiogee

LV4-26 said:


> Yeah, I can see what you're all on about. Take care : you start like that and, sooner or later, you end up spending your life in an oxygen tank.



I couldn't have put it better myself, at least - I can't be bothered trying


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## rsweet

I find this thread interesting because it doesn't address a key issue: Why do we women have to carry purses at all? I admit to having a love-hate relationship with purses. I *love* the look of a really cute purse; I *love* having my crucial stuff with me at all times; I *hate* lugging the thing around. When I take my purse into an alien environment, I have to do an on-the-spot security scan to decide the best place to stash my valuables while I'm eating, watching a movie, going to the buffet bar, running for a last-minute napkin or fork, etc. If I decide it's a high-security area where thieves are likely to lurk around every corner, I keep it in my lap or slung securely across my body. If I'm in church, I may decide that I can leave it in the pew while I go talk to someone across the room. There are also in-between scenarios where I put it on a chair next to me, hang it over a chair back, or, yes, place it on a reasonably clean-looking floor. I even have an alternate method of leaving my big purse (the mother ship) hidden in the car and trying to fit a small wallet and car key into a jacket pocket. 

I really do go back and forth on this issue of women needing to liberate themselves from that ball-and-chain called a handbag. I once remarked on a photo of Margaret Thatcher standing in a group of other heads of state. She was the only one carrying a stupid handbag. I thought it looked ridiculous and somehow exposed the female sex as weaker than their unfettered male counterparts.  

Okay, I've had my rant. It's Sunday and I hear Macy's is having a great sale on leather purses.


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## maxiogee

rsweet said:


> I find this thread interesting because it doesn't address a key issue: Why do we women have to carry purses at all?



Try stuffing all the crêpe which women carry in their handbags into the pockets of your clothes and then go and stand in front of a mirror. What's that? There's no pocket in the skirt you're wearing, okay, change into a trouser suit - I'll wait.




There now, stand in front of the mirror and look at the lovely bulges around your hips - what's that? You think they're 'unsightly', well then I suggest that maybe you don't really need to carry an aerosol of deodorant around with you, or that family-size hairbrush, and maybe the two lipsticks and the eye-liner and the powder compact could stay on the dressing table also. Now, distribute everything else into the inside pockets of the jacket - what? No inside pockets? But that's just a shame, should have asked the tailor to put them in for you. Okay, find one of your overcoats with pockets and load them pockets of it.
Yes dear, of course I'll wait.



Why can't you put your money-purse into it? Because when you hang it up it will be out of your sight? Well then maybe you need to redesign your wardrobe - 


Oh, and dear, if you're not using that clutch bag, I could do with it, these pens in my jeans pocket keep snapping in two, and my keys are too bulky to sit comfortably in my pockets…


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## rsweet

Okay, Tony, I'll send one over. But wait . . . it has to match your outfit. What color shoes are you wearing?


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## maxiogee

rsweet said:


> Okay, Tony, I'll send one over. But wait . . . it has to match your outfit. What color shoes are you wearing?



Don't worry about the shoes, they sell the full range of Lady Esquire over here, I'll dye it to match as required.


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## Bilma

argosdex said:


> In almost any large US city it is "bad luck" to put your pocketbook/bag on any seat of a car. Because when you are at a traffic light they will smash your glass and grab your bag, briefcase or anything else on it, aptly it's called a "smash'n'grab" so the best place for your bag in a car is either in the trunk or the floor.


 

I know what you are talking about...the same story in Mexico City....


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## Bilma

badgrammar said:


> It is an interesting question, because several women have mentioned to me that I should never put my handbag on the ground - reason being, it's not good for your finances. I always put it at my feet (before).
> 
> Their reasoning reminds me of what you might hear in Feng Shui, which recommends, for example, that you always close the toilet seat to keep the money energy from escaping down the drain , ditto for closing the bathroom door, especially if it can be seen from an entryway,... Is it superstition? I don't know, like many of the ancient wisdoms, there is sometimes solid reasoning behind cultural or spiritual conventions.
> 
> With your handbag, the problem is that you are both physically and symbolically putting your money on the dirty floor down by your feet - you disrespecting your wealth . If you want to keep your money, you have to respect it. Same reason I always keep my bills neatly arranged in my pocketbook - a symbolic way of respecting it by putting it in a nice place (lap, table, chair).
> 
> Sometimes I put my purse on the floor anyway.
> 
> @Hakro - I lovd that story!


 

How interseting! Money..purses...floors...bathrooms!


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## florecia

I am Mexican and I have never heard about putting the purse in the floor could lead to bad luck. What part of Mexico is putting in the floor bad luck? I usually put my purse in a chair or my lap not because is bad luck. The floor is a source for germs!


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## horselover

I just keep it on my lap or around my shoulder


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## Elibennet

We never leave it on the floor here. Generally we hang it on the chair back. But if you think the place is not safe you keep it on you lap. The superstition says that if you put your bag on the floor "se va la plata", that is, the money goes away (I always leave it on the floor in my house, I should be broke).
In Paris, at the Café de la Paix, there is a kind of hook under the tables that are on the pavement to "enganchar"(how do you say that?) your bag. I think it´s a good idea.


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## Bilma

florecia said:


> I am Mexican and I have never heard about putting the purse in the floor could lead to bad luck. What part of Mexico is putting in the floor bad luck? I usually put my purse in a chair or my lap not because is bad luck. The floor is a source for germs!


 


I did not really mean bad luck just that the money will go away. I am from Mexico City.  you?


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## Span_glish

If I'm out at a restaurant, I usually put it on my lap.  If it's too big, I put it on the table or in a chair.  But I have to admit I have put it on the floor before, but only when it's at someone's house, carpeted floor and when I don't have another choice.
I have also heard that it's supposed to be bad luck.  You'll be poor for the rest of your life!!! heehee


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