the more annoying sex
I was thisclose to switching my second major in college to Women's Studies. Instead, I narrowed my history focus to women's history, because I find the stories of how we won the right to vote and the right to govern our own bodies fascinating. Also, I think there is still a lot we need to be fighting for, especially in today's political climate. Trust me, feminism--and the need for a new generation of feminists--is NOT dead.
But it's girls like the one I saw this morning in the Metro that make me cringe to admit I'm a lady.
The escalator at the stop I get off for work is one of the longer ones in the D.C. Metro system. It's frustrating, especially when you're late to work or, more often, when you just want to get home and are not in the mood to ride an escalator for five minutes. It's pretty steep, but really, in the scheme of things, nothing to write home about. Or, in her case, to shriek and hold on to your father for dear life about.
"It's SCARY!" she yelped as she clutched his back, standing behind him. "Why does it have to be so STEEP?"
Jesus, woman, I thought. Get a hold of yourself. A few of my fellow passengers going up watched her on the way down. I caught their eye and just shook my head.
I was rather tomboyish as a youngin', and although I now embrace the more girly escapes, such as fashion and MAC cosmetics, I still pride myself on being able to look at footage of a mouse without screeching, grill a hamburger to perfection, or watch a football game and admit I'm not really that bored. So why do girls like this morning's even exist? Are they on their way out, or making a comeback? "The weaker sex" was symbolic of the earlier part of the century, so maybe they're there to remind us how far we've come. Or how far we have to go.
Or is their sole purpose to give men a reason to watch them huddle in fear at the sight of a tall escalator and think to themselves, "And that is why they still make just $.75 to our dollar."
But it's girls like the one I saw this morning in the Metro that make me cringe to admit I'm a lady.
The escalator at the stop I get off for work is one of the longer ones in the D.C. Metro system. It's frustrating, especially when you're late to work or, more often, when you just want to get home and are not in the mood to ride an escalator for five minutes. It's pretty steep, but really, in the scheme of things, nothing to write home about. Or, in her case, to shriek and hold on to your father for dear life about.
"It's SCARY!" she yelped as she clutched his back, standing behind him. "Why does it have to be so STEEP?"
Jesus, woman, I thought. Get a hold of yourself. A few of my fellow passengers going up watched her on the way down. I caught their eye and just shook my head.
I was rather tomboyish as a youngin', and although I now embrace the more girly escapes, such as fashion and MAC cosmetics, I still pride myself on being able to look at footage of a mouse without screeching, grill a hamburger to perfection, or watch a football game and admit I'm not really that bored. So why do girls like this morning's even exist? Are they on their way out, or making a comeback? "The weaker sex" was symbolic of the earlier part of the century, so maybe they're there to remind us how far we've come. Or how far we have to go.
Or is their sole purpose to give men a reason to watch them huddle in fear at the sight of a tall escalator and think to themselves, "And that is why they still make just $.75 to our dollar."