The reason why I ask is because I work for Mall-Wart, and I’ve noticed that many schleppy middle aged suburban houswives have begun wearing them. Maybe it’s a local thing, but a friend of mine from Arizona tells me that he’s noticed it too. I can’t even begin to think of why anybody would find them anything but disgusting, but that’s just my opinion. So my question is: Is it just me? Has anybody else noticed this?
Arghhh! call it ‘bum bag’ quickly!
‘Fanny Pack’ sounds so much like a beauty product for female genitalia.
Oh, the visuals for Dopers in Australia!!
You see them alot here in town on tourists, not just in wal-merde.
That’s how they identify the bodies.
I remember wearing them when I was little and Mother made me carry snacks in them when we went to amusment parks so she wouldn’t have to buy me expensive stuff there. Maybe housewives are smuggling cheese crackers into your store to quell their mid-day cravings.
Which is precisely why I opened this thread.
A ‘fanny-pack’ is, by our definition, something you pack into your vagina, which for most female folk (unless they are drug runners from S.E. Asia) would mean a tampon.
Just so we have our lingo super-clear here.
Oh, I don’t know kambuckta.
I can see packing something else in there, and more pleasurable, too.
Yeah our visuals aren’t nearly as entertaining. Nah, it’s good for a chuckle.
Ahh… but you need to specify whether it is the packER or the packEE who obtains the most pleasure out of the packING in this instance.
Not that I am being pickEE or anything.
kambuckta’s post reminds me of the joke about the couple having an argument over who enjoys it more. The guy says, “Well, obviously men do, and we’ve got the sticky after-mess to show we did too!”
To which the girl says, “Look, it’s like this; when you have an itch in your ear and you poke your finger in to scratch it – which feels better; your finger… or your ear?”
Schleppy housewife checking in here: I do wear fanny packs but only at amusement parks. They provide a safe place to put my glasses/money on those upside down rides.
Does that make me a fashion disaster, a fashion trend-follower, or a fashion trend-maker? Don’t know. But I make it a point to not get my fashion advice from Mall-Wart employees anyway. Those smocks do NOTHING for the hips, you know?
I’ve used a fanny pack (the non vaginal) kind for 15 years. I would use a purse, but on a man it would look funny. It’s the perfect size for my wallet, keys, PDA, sunglasses, pens, and Leatherman tool.
When I buy them I only get the kind with two change purses built into the side. Silver coins on the left, pennies on the right.
UP WITH FANNY PACKS!!!
If I’m doing any travelling, day trips, visits to amusement marks, etc. then I’ll wear a fanny pack. Well, sort of. The unit I have is completely flat (ie, its not a pouch) and sits flat against my stomach. This way, I can wear a t-shirt over it and nobody can tell I have it on. This is really great for travelling to foreign countrires where street people could otherwise easily target you.
That’s no belly-pack, pal. It’s a superhero utility belt.
I’m a hip-and-cool youth, and I would not hesitate to laugh at non-vaginal fanny pack wearers. 
Well, I don’t know if a contingent of schleppy suburban housewives at a Louisiana Mall-Wart really constitute the cutting edge of what’s “in.”
Is Sarah Jessica Parker wearing them? Have they shown up on the Milan runways? High-ass drag shows in Harlem? The Times “Seen on the Street” feature? Gwynnie and Cameron and Drew?
You know who I see wearing huge ones a lot. Young female Japanese tourists. They wear bags as big as their butts … um, right on their butts. It shimmys pretty mesmerizingly. Kind of like a bustle.
I don’t see it very often on Western tourists or locals.
My mom used to take one along with her when she went grocery shopping. She would keep coupons in it.
Gassendi,
Sorry, I hate to tell you this, but in my book a fanny pack on a man looks just as "funny" as a purse.
I detest this horrible invention and refuse to ever be seen with one. Also won't be seen with my wife if she were to wear one. Thankfully she doesn'tBum bags are in fashion in Asia. I’ve seen girls wearing bum bags here in Shanghai, and I saw some in Hong Kong earlier this year. They’re mostly army patterns, but I’ve seen some very colourful designs.