Tote-ally unacceptable

On a walk home from Shirlington last night where we had dinner, I told Chad I'd take the leash for a bit and give him a break from walking Lucy. I handed over the bag with Lucy's bowl, a toy and some treats I bring along when we take her with us and eat somewhere outside. The little thing is quite convenient to just throw stuff into--and it's washable, so I don't worry if dirty toys get in there or if it's drug on the ground.

He took the bag, but a few moments later when I looked over, he had bunched it up and was carrying it under one arm like a rolled up blanket. Frankly, it didn't look comfortable. I told him it was perfectly acceptable for him to put the bag over his shoulder, the way it was meant to be carried. Apparently I incited a controversy.

"Men carry backpacks and duffle bags," he said. "They do not carry purses."

I told him it wasn't a purse, it was a tote, upon which he told me that men do not carry totes either.

So I gave him back the dog and the "tote" and I had a nice walk home.