girl power

I was mildly embarrassed about this, but now I'm just going to go ahead and shout it to the rooftop, to the blogtop.  This weekend I had 3 girl power (well...if you want to call it that...one probably doesn't count) books on my nightstand.  They include, but are not limited to, especially if you look at my bookshelf a mere 8 feet away

• How to be a Woman by Caitlin Moran
• Half the Sky by Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn
• I Feel Bad About My Neck: And Other Thoughts on Being a Woman by Nora Ephron

This all happened fairly serendipitously mostly from book suggestions from my female family members.  However it did make me consider how much time I spend thinking about unfair opportunities for urban families with low socioeconomic status, and yet very little about girls specifically.  Most of my life, I was pushed up by people who believed in me and the fact that women can be just as smart, powerful, funny, strategic, etc. as any man in the room.  Now I think I'm walking on a cloud because more women are going to college then men, but do I need a season of The Wire to help me recognize that women are still breaking that glass ceiling?  In fact, I did need a PBS documentary on Half the Sky to cause me to buy the book even though an old classmate of mine said that it changed her life.  Likewise, I needed Nora Ephron to enlighten me that they are funny women out there in this universe whose names aren't Tina Fey or Amy Poehler, but I don't like to think too hard about that one.

I think each of these texts enlighten me in different ways, and that can really be seen when I decided to read all three at once.  Luckily I've already knocked out the book about being a 60 year old woman, which I must admit I found to be highly relatable.  I hear myself knocking all of womankind after someone cries at work (I am the exception to the rule.  Hidden crying in a bathroom is also acceptable if it goes unknown) or a friend has decided that our meal will not be all that different from one of those breakfast scenes in Sex and the City.  When in fact, I should just be knocking that singular person instead of all females.  Just kidding...but not really.

The moral of this story and each of these books (I think, but I'll let you know if there's a sudden plot twist) is that there is something to be said for holding your own be it in your lovingness, gutsy decisions or admitting your flaws.

And let it be known that grooming for a woman is more complicated than grooming for a man, and we're allowed to complain/laugh about that for chapters at a time if we want to.  However that only applies to certain women.  Not that skinny girl drink maker.