About half the lawyers I see at the Superior Court have messenger/book bags (what’s the difference?) instead of a briefcase, probably because they’re dealing with several cases that day, and a typical briefcase just won’t hold that many papers.
When I think of a messenger bag, I think of what folks basically call a “Man Purse”, similar dimensions to a laptop bag, maybe thicker, except instead of the whole face zippering open, it has a flap that folds shut over the top. When I say “book bag”, I’m basically thinking of a light backpack, the sort designed to carry books and papers and such to class rather than the bigger types designed for outdoorsing.
I suppose I can’t think of a good reason why a lawyer wouldn’t have a backpack, it’s just not the image I’ve come to expect. Maybe I just watch too much TV and expect lawyers to be immaculately groomed models in bespoke suits wearing gold watches and carrying brief cases while talking about “My client” and “The prosecution.” 
Personally I think carrying a laptop bag is effeminate. It screams “I am a back-office nerd and my masters require me to carry this 20 lb albatross around so I can work no matter where I am”.
And if my job requires me to carry a purse-like man satchel, I would look for another job.
No.
Backpack. I’ve used one for decades.
Messenger bags are are girly-men and messengers. There is absolutely no way to carry or hold one that hasn’t been claimed by the female half of the species.
I can always pretend the purse is not mine 
Been out in public with mine many times. In addition to the mini-overnight-kit, sometimes my multi-tool (the real thing, not a vibrating dildo) even came in handy, as did my camera, notebook and small first aid kit. I have yet to meet anyone who’d point at me and laugh, or call me a “girly-man”, and I’m not dressed like a messenger. I carry it draped straight over my shoulder unless I’m flying and have other luggage, and then I wear it draped across my chest.
I never leave it at home, the more wear it gets the better I like it, and I look forward to the day when I can ask someone, “What’d you just call me?”
Plus, D says it makes me look European, which I am.
And no offense taken. As I told my son, I don’t give a flying fuck what anyone thinks. I’m too old to do anything but enjoy what’s left of my life.
Thanks
Q
Back when I was younger, guys would wear fanny packs strapped over their shoulder and across their chest, so that the pack itself sat just below their shoulderblades. It was considered the only cool way to wear one.
Was this a local thing, or did they do this anywhere else?
Sure? I was at the beach a few weeks ago and I had a big ole girly tote bag that had held the beach towels in the car and my little cousin’s swim trunks because apparently he’s too classy to change at home and my wallet and keys and some books. If we went to the concession stand or some other part of the beach, I just slung it over a shoulder and went. I didn’t even think about how it might look until someone pointed it out. Would I necessarily buy one? I dunno. I still mostly use bookbags as a preferential means of material transfers.
I think messenger bags look fine on guys. They are commonly carried around by young men in metropolitan areas of Asia and from what I’ve seen, Europe too. American guys just need to get over themselves.
I regularly carry a purse. It’s made out of bear skin, from a bear that I shot myself, and the zipper pulls are carved from buffalo horn and inlaid with Viking runes. The shoulder strap is a whole, tanned rattlesnake (complete with head and fangs) that I caught myself (by hand) and killed; the snap closures on the outer flaps are machined from steel salvaged from a Hind helicopter gunship shot down during the Iran-Iraq War. The inside of the purse is lined with real wolf fur, too. Inside the purse I carry a .44 Magnum, a Navy SEAL survival knife, an economy-size pack of extra-large condoms, and a flask of Jack Daniels.
It’s a great fucking purse.
I’ve never thought anyone looked “girly” for carrying a messenger bag.
On the other hand, wearing a backpack just makes you look like a 13 year old.
Add Australia to the list.
…and grow up.
I usually carry a backpack, but I also have a small shoulder bag/satchel which is probably what Americans are calling a “messenger bag”. I use it when I only have a few things to carry.
Nobody has ever hassled me for it. It seems to me that the guys saying “Hell no, bags are for girls!” are stuck in the playground. Bags are for people who carry stuff around.
Bearskin? That’s so girly. I’ve got a poorly-trained Kodiak bear that carries my stuff in its mouth. When I need something, I just reach in for it.
They don’t let me take it into restaurants though.
Also, for the record, messenger and laptop bags seem pretty common in the US as far as I can tell, but then a significant portion of my adult life has been spent around college-aged kids, where having a laptop is kind of a common thing.
Also, 20 pound laptops? Maybe one of those ridiculous three thousand dollar gaming laptops. My Dell weighs a bit under 7 pounds. That said, I tend not to have it with me unless I’m traveling, or if I specifically plan to use it while I’m out and about. For my “just because” electronics needs, I have an iPod and a Kindle (both of which fit easily in my much smaller camera bag)
No.
I am a diabetic so always like to have blood meter, insulin, sugar tablets etc on me. For this I carry a messenger bag that has room for way more stuff. A “man bag” looks way to feminine for me.
Edit:
I do however treat this like a woman treats her handbag. I rarely go anywhere without it.
Why carry a purse when there are so many other options? Like ones already mentioned in this thread - back packs, fanny packs, and brassieres for carrying cherry tomatoes (only from garden to house, of course).
Well I have just read the rest of the thread and it seems that some people seem to find messenger bags girly. Christ knows what they think of an actual man-bag.
I’d carry a tote bag. I actually have several of them, which I use primarily when I’m travelling.
When I was in high school it was pretty common for guys to carry around a satchel. We’d often get them at the Army Surplus store, so there was never any gender-bending connotations to owning one. These were great for carrying around school and art supplies; tobacco and drug paraphernalia; cassette players and tapes; novels, notebooks, or diaries etc.
I still use one to this day, although I’m the only person that I know who does, and there does seem to be more of an effeminate connotation recently. So whenever someone calls my satchel a “man-purse”, I’m always quick to let them know that it’s actually my “ammo-pouch”.