Okay, so I'm not the manliest of men. I cried watching "I Not Stupid, too"; I pants like a dog climbing up all eight floors of my flat; I cringe on my seat, eyes half-closing with fear while watching horror movies. I like to
How does one measures manliness? Or "womanliness"?
Does a man who dons pink any less manly then a man who dons black? Does a man who knits and bakes less of a man than one who hikes and mountain-climbs? For that matter, does a woman who wears pants and works at a shipyard any less lady than one who dons a mini-skirt, sitting pretty in the office, all dolled-up?
Is a man a "sissy" if he plays no sport? And during this World Cup season, do you consider a man who does not follow the matches less of a man than one who stays up all night to keep tab of the scores?
I'm a man. I enjoy cooking (but hate the washing up) and baking (though not as often as my blogofriend Evan). I collect Precious Moments figurines, some of which are displayed on my office desk. I don't drink, and I don't smoke. I'm not into sports. Now, am I considered a lesser man than the guy sitting in the next cubicle in the office? Absolutely not.
Stereotyping - we're all guilty of it, and, much as we hate to admit, have been victims of it at one time or the other.
I once went shopping for fighting fish (now, you'd agree that's quite a man thing to do, ya? heheh) and was looking for a container, available in either green or pink to house the fish. When I opted for the pink, my female colleague expressed surprise and equipped "only girls choose pink"! I always find such stereotyped statements exasperating!
Another incident. My former boss, upon seeing the Precious Moments figures on my desk, commented that my cubicle looked kinda "feminine". I joked that I'd better put up some posters of bulldozers and aircraft fighters to better reflect my "masculinity". That would make me a real man, wouldn't it?
This habit of typecasting is not just confined to the guys. Girls I know have also been victims of stereotyping. "For goodness sake! God made you a woman. Why must you cut your hair so short? Even shorter than the guys!" A colleague of mine suffered this humiliation when she arrived at the office one day.
Who decides girls should have long flowing hair and boys shouldn't wear pink anyway? Who says men should not shed tears (any wonder why we men bite the dust earlier then the girls)? And girls should act like princesses? Social norms? Or some unwritten rules by we mere mortals? Sometimes, I'd like to be like Victor, taking a contrarian stance, and be a non-conformist. This is not to say that Vic acts like a princess, nor keep long flowing hair, not that he could. At our age, it's lucky that we've got hair, even if some of us are suffering from a
We're all God's creatures - big and small, beautiful and not so beautiful. And God made us to be DIFFERENT. People should recognise this fact, and the earlier they do and accept the way some people are, a happier place this earth would be. Period. (Now, that's a woman thing, I know :P)
Category: Musings
11 comments:
Talking about crying, I can't believe I actually shed a few tears, after removing the strut bar off my Sephia, which would be heading for the scrapyard soon. Felt like going to lost a "loved one".
Men are also made of flash and blood, we have feelings too!
Chris; looks like Victor is not your only 'flashy' colleague.
On a more serious note - it appears to me,if you don't mind my saying, you are quite confused about this man-woman thing. Your views here seem to contradict what you have written in earlier blogs. On the other hand, I could simply be guilty of speed reading. Anyway, somebody once said, women are meant to be loved, not understood.
Alex - take heart lah. You're getting a new "Toy"!
Chun See - Show-off, you meant? Yalor. Vic just bought a new toy, too. See if he would "flash" it in his blog. Hee. Next time be more direct lah. I luurrve people who are direct and frank. Hahaha... And why get so "serious"? My post should be read tongue-in-cheek. Where's the contradiction? As for woman being meant to be loved.... I kinda agree... but so many women, so little time... :P
I feel a woman with very short hair and wearing pants may not be less of a woman but would be less feminine.
Chris, I agree that we are all different, especially when you compare yourself with the one in the next cubicle (to your right that is; you have at least one physical similiarity to the one to your left, hehe). You see, you collect feminine Precious Moments while I collect real masculine precious thoughts; you enjoy woman's cooking while I enjoy eating like every man would; you like sissy pink while I like strong colours. Need I say more?
You are advised to pay scant attention to Chun See - he likes to point the 3 Cs - contradictions, contrarian views and condom photos, wahaha.
One more C - clowns
Send in the clowns .... maybe next year ... hahaha..
Ooi Chun See, I noticed you wrote "clowns" and not "clown". Wei, what are you trying to imply, huh? :P
Frannxis - you are typical of people whom I accused of stereotyping people. A women with short hair and who wears pants can be equally feminine. You must see which woman lah :P Next time I show you fotos. Hee.
Frannxis likes his women with heavy makeup.
Not only that, the women must flash him the 三笑 one. Hahah...
The world is small, just having similar thoughts to your Measure of a man posting after a minor op on my manhood.
http://marksearle.wordpress.com/2006/07/10/measure-of-a-man/
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