Training
Sunday night I had an experience where the stereotype of women training their boyfriends/husbands to say the right thing played out very real right before me. You know what I mean - how you're not supposed to say anything but "great!" when your wife/girlfriend says, "How do I look?"
We were at a birthday party and the birthday gal had been forced by her inlaws to try on the clothes they got her right there during the party. One of the gifts she received was a very, very bright blue blazer - almost turquoise. You could tell she didn't like it much, it made her look very school-marmy and much older than she really is. But she modeled it in front of the remaining party-goers. She asked the two most obvious "guy" guys in the room what they thought.
"It looks nice!" said one at almost the exact instant the birthday girl got done making the "k" sound at the end of the word "think." His fiancee was next to him.
The other guy also promptly chimed in, too, and I'm not even sure he had looked at her for more than 2 seconds. "You look nice!"
We all laughed and the birthday girl noticed this quick response and told them they didn't have to lie, she wasn't a big fan of the jacket either. To which the well-trained guys again both said, "Oh no, really, you look great!"
Perhaps it was funnier in person. And I know it would've been weirder had they said, "Terrible!" - and maybe it was just further pushing of the stereotype for the birthday girl to them tell them they didn't have to lie, but them then again giving the same response.
It's like that scene in "Full Metal Jacket" (herein starts the part where it's obvious that I have guy tendencies) where Private Joker doesn't switch his answer from no to yes when the drill sergeant asks him again if he believes in the Virgin Mary:
"Sir, the private belives any answer he gives will be wrong and the Senior Drill Instructor will only beat him harder if he reverses himself, SIR!" (clip of that scene here, foul language beware)
I wonder if it's bad when I start thinking up "Full Metal Jacket" quotes in relation to birthday parties...
Sunday night I had an experience where the stereotype of women training their boyfriends/husbands to say the right thing played out very real right before me. You know what I mean - how you're not supposed to say anything but "great!" when your wife/girlfriend says, "How do I look?"
We were at a birthday party and the birthday gal had been forced by her inlaws to try on the clothes they got her right there during the party. One of the gifts she received was a very, very bright blue blazer - almost turquoise. You could tell she didn't like it much, it made her look very school-marmy and much older than she really is. But she modeled it in front of the remaining party-goers. She asked the two most obvious "guy" guys in the room what they thought.
"It looks nice!" said one at almost the exact instant the birthday girl got done making the "k" sound at the end of the word "think." His fiancee was next to him.
The other guy also promptly chimed in, too, and I'm not even sure he had looked at her for more than 2 seconds. "You look nice!"
We all laughed and the birthday girl noticed this quick response and told them they didn't have to lie, she wasn't a big fan of the jacket either. To which the well-trained guys again both said, "Oh no, really, you look great!"
Perhaps it was funnier in person. And I know it would've been weirder had they said, "Terrible!" - and maybe it was just further pushing of the stereotype for the birthday girl to them tell them they didn't have to lie, but them then again giving the same response.
It's like that scene in "Full Metal Jacket" (herein starts the part where it's obvious that I have guy tendencies) where Private Joker doesn't switch his answer from no to yes when the drill sergeant asks him again if he believes in the Virgin Mary:
"Sir, the private belives any answer he gives will be wrong and the Senior Drill Instructor will only beat him harder if he reverses himself, SIR!" (clip of that scene here, foul language beware)
I wonder if it's bad when I start thinking up "Full Metal Jacket" quotes in relation to birthday parties...
posted by H at
11:02 AM
1 Comments:
I miss you. =)
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