Friday, April 14, 2006
Gender and Blogging
| by TFLS | 1:54 AM |Just what is the equivalence of a pat on the head complete with lollipop? Is it the left-handed compliment – ‘well, pretty good, considering you don’t focus solely on politics’. ‘What a nice little blog!’ ‘There’s always room for your sort of thing.’ ‘I’m sure some people will find the information useful.’ Makes you wish they’d not bothered in the first, place, doesn’t it? Make my lollipop cherry, please. Or is it more of a ‘seen but not heard’ kind of thing? ‘If we ignore her long enough, maybe she’ll just go away – we don’t have enough marshmallows to go around, you see.’ ‘She can’t play – she’s a girl!’ ‘Da da da da da da da da da da da – (has she gone yet?) da da da da da da (OK – it’s safe to take your fingers out of your ears, guys – she shut up’).
Of course – one can stake out a niche in the world of feminine and feminist bloggers – women’s issues (lower case, to most of the ‘boys’) are very much in vogue these days, especially those issue’s that have a political flavor. Great to be sure; a generous leavening of the political blogs out there are run by women (and I think the best), but the classification becomes inaccurate if your subject matter strays toward the personal or rhetorical on occasion. And there is the world of diary blogging – chronicling you or your family’s life and times – all worthy to be sure – and all summarily dismissed by ‘the guys’ as not weighty enough; you know what I mean - along with all family related issues diary blogs are usually labeled as lacking in ‘fiber’. Oh, they rarely come right out and say it. Hence employment of the above strategies. But you will get the point – of that you may be sure. Without declaring yourself openly and avowedly political in nature, you might as well pack up your dictionary and go home. Unless you like lollipops, of course; in that case there are plenty to go around (though they’re out of cherry, I’m afraid).
So what’s a girl to do? Smile sweetly and hold some guy’s jacket while he and the ‘boys’ kick around that metaphorical football? Not for me, sister. I’ve never accepted anyone’s labels, and I don’t intend on starting this late in the game. Go marginalize someone else. Think you can pigeonhole me as Mensa-light? I don’t think so. And if you do, then you’ve got another thing coming. There actually are a few men out there who prefer their meals 'spiced'; maybe not enough to keep me in cookbooks – well, not yet anyway. But there are lots of hungry women though – chefs in their own right, capable of sustaining me and mine till hell freezes over, if need be – though I really don’t think it will take that long. In the meantime I will craft my work for me – you’re welcome to the table bucko – but one crack about how I prepared the meal, and I’ll send you on your way, lollipop and all!
