Many ladies will agree that finding just the right purse is no easy task. I made a trip to the mall a few evenings ago to do just that and it took a very long time, not to get to the store, but to finally decide which bag to purchase once I got there.

A woman at my workplace told me recently that she is constantly looking for the “perfect” purse. I guess I should feel lucky that I spent only one evening at it.

Most readers of the nonpurse-carrying kind have likely moved on by now, but just in case there are a few still with me who have never been through the pursepicking process, I will briefly cover just some of the many things that must be factored in during the decision making ordeal.

A purse needs to be the right size, weight, color, price, material and design to fit the need of the moment - kind of like buying a pickup, for you men. Thenthere are all the secondary details to consider. Do I want a light-colored lining that makes it easier to find things in the bottom, or a dark one so random ink pen marks won’t be so noticeable? Do I want to carry my purse with one short handle or two, or let it swing on a longer shoulder strap? Do I want a snap closure at the top, a fold over flap or a zipper? And, finally, how willing am I to pay more for a bag than the amount of money that it will ever realistically carry?

A purse primarily serves as a means of keeping handy things we might need, but just how much we want to pack in them changes from person to person.

Some purses start out heavy before anything isput inside them, which rules them out instantly for me. I attempt to keep my purse from becoming a catch all for everything under the sun, but other people intentionally keep theirs well stocked.

One of my friends is like this. In fact, she once won a prize in a shoe store for being the customer with the heaviest purse. I don’t want to try to carry that much stuff with me, but I have been in situations where it was handy to have that friend and that everything-except-a-cup-holder purse of hers nearby. If I were ever stranded on a deserted island and could only take three things with me, I believe I would choose to take that friend and her purse. With all that, I mightnot even need a third thing. Toothpick, anyone?

As our lives go through phases, so do our purse choices. One mother of an infant expressed that at this point she must have a purse that is small enough to fit into a diaper bag or large enough to serve as one. Another young lady who recently acquired her first post college job felt it was time to go out and buy a “grown-up” purse.

The goal of my search was to find a purse that blended functionality and appearance. If a purse sends a message about its carrier, I want mine to say the right thing, once I figure out exactly what that is. Do I want to appear neat and all business, fun and casual, trendy and stylish, thrifty, rich or wellorganized? There seem to be choices of every kind.

After all these considerations and more, I narrowed my search but still hadn’t taken the bold step toward the checkout counter when my daughter, Megan, called. She suggested that I text a photo of my favorite and she would give me her opinion.

“Like it,” she texted back. “Cute buckles.” That’s the affirmation I needed. I picked it up and headed for the checkout.

Until next time, mission accomplished!

Annette Rowe is a freelance writer from rural Gentry and a speech-language pathologist at Siloam Springs High School. She may be reached by e-mail at awalkinthepark50 @ yahoo.com.

Opinion, Pages 6 on 10/26/2011