Today, my boss made a poorly worded statement about why he chose who he did to shovel the sidewalk. Now, the discussion had nothing to do with who he chose. We were discussing the importance of being aware of the property and yadda yadda yadda, he got J____ to do it this afternoon. He was the only other guy on and Mr. Boss certainly wasn't going to do it.
He was the only other guy? There were twelve people in the building, but J____ was the one to do it because he's a man? Oh, really.
I am not saying that J___ isn't stronger than me, because he is. I am not saying I'm angry that I didn't get to go outside to play in the snow, because the winter is my nemesis. My point of offense is that J___'s testicles do not make him automatically suitable for any job other than creating sperm.
Physically, yes. Men are built for upper body strength. Science fact. Women are better equipped for lower body strength, and that is also science fact. I am not arguing averages, I am arguing who was on hand. There are plenty of men who are weaker than the average, and there are a lot of women who are stronger. J____ having a penis does not grant him super strength and I did not care for his comment. Of course, Ms. May and her inability to let anything slide, I called out Mr. Boss.
"What did you mean J____ was the only guy? What about the girls?"
I think it was clear from the looks on the faces of the women around the table (which greatly outnumbered the boys) that he had struck a nerve and this was his chance to backpedal. Nah, not Mr. Boss. Not about manly men things. He unapologetically backed up exactly what he had to say and quickly dismissed the discussion.
Why am I so mad? I didn't want to do the stinking job, why does it matter that J____ did it? Really, it doesn't matter, but it was how he made his decision that got under my skin. We have plenty of very capable, able-bodied women on staff. We have people of all shapes and sizes of both genders in our store. Gender relations is a very particular, sensitive subject, but I for one have always been very proud of my company for setting aside those differences. Up until now, I have never felt like I have received any sort of special treatment because of my gender. I never even considered it would be a problem. I, as a business person, have no reason to bring my tits to the workplace (don't get me started on uniforms). Today, I was told there is in fact things I cannot do for my company as well because my genitals are located inside my body.
It may seem like small potatoes, to be so worked up about shoveling the walk. This is where it starts, but where does it finish? Girls are taught that sports and physical activity are unfeminine and butchy. We should sit quietly with our knees together and ankles crossed. Women don't exercise to keep their obviously-important-to-societal-standards weight in control, they diet or develop eating disorders. I suppose a lack of a balanced, nutritious diet may leave a girl physically weak. Hell, I'm not a doctor, I'm just hypothesizing.
For our company's plan for wellness (staffed with virtually all women, one of which is an Olympic athlete), we are encouraged to participate in this year's Bluenose marathon. I knew as soon as the plan was launched that I wanted to participate. At the beginning, we were told to pick an attainable goal to strive for. mine was a half-hearted promise that I made to fill in the blank on the sheet, but I think today I have a new goal. A promise to myself and a point to make. Mr. Boss, you better start putting in some effort to this plan, because I'd like this to be a proper challenge and not just an embarrassment. I'm going to run that marathon, and I'm going to beat you. My vagina does not make me weak.
This may sound awfully petty and spiteful, and it is. I'm letting negativity into my life after very recently writing at great length what a cancer it is. I'm being a hypocrite, and I'll admit that. This goes against every point I've tried to make on this blog, but if I spend my time practicing, when will I preach?
Love.
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