Week # 2 "Eureka Moment"

So Saturday 6/23 on my way home from the hair salon, I decided to stop by the Caribbean restaurant to pick-up some lunch (take-out).

As I was waiting by the register for the cashier to ring me up, I over heard a few men discussing sports (the NBA play-offs) as they sat at the bar.

The debate is about which team is better of course The Cav's or the Magic and/or The Laker's or the "Nuggets". As the men choose their favorites, some agreeing while the others disagreed the conversation ultimately switches from better team to better players. Two guys go head to head about Kobe Bryant being able to take on Lebron James and/or Dwight Howard since the latter two are of a bigger statue. The discussion in the room started to get heated as other men and one woman decided to join the debate. As I waited I watched the body language, volume level and tone of the men compared to that of the one woman who was clearly with her mate.

I was not surprised at all by what I was witnessing and could relate everything that was going on at that point in time to chapters 5,6 & 7 of what I just read during my long stay at the salon.

The men raised their arms, their voices and even banged on the bar top to ensure that they had the floor while speaking. The one woman tried to yell over them about the "wing span" that Dwight Howard has over both Lebron & Kobe but they dismissed her verbal communication completely as if she had not even spoken. In fact, besides her leaning forward a little toward the group her demand for attention was minimal. The only thing I could do was look at her and smile which made me chuckle to myself since that too was discussed in our readings.

I've recently discovered why there's miscommunication amongst the two sexes but I venture to ask how do we narrow that gap so that we can be heard & taken seriously. That one woman amongst several guys could have known just as much about the sport of basketball as any of the other men but the guys that were in her presence could care less about her view. What can we do as woman to ensure that we're heard?

Photo and Saturday's lunch courtesy of De Island Breeze: http://deislandbreeze.com/

Hair & Now

I was driving to work this morning, listening to a popular radio talk show that was discussing celebrity break-ups. One of the host began to comment on a rumored split between rapper Kanye West and model/stripper Amber Rose.

He was of the opinion that Kanye need not be with Amber anyway because she resembled a boy (with her brush cut hairstyle). The female host felt that Amber's beauty and style complimented her lack of hair and stated that she was still feminine although she did not have much hair.

Listening to the conversation between the two host allowed me to reflect back to societies twisted depiction of "gender" norms. Does a certain hairstyle, or choice of clothing define who you are? How do you express you're individuality without conforming to societies ideals of "gender"? In your opinion, what actions/behaviors cause gender conflict for both men & women?

Photo Courtesy of : http://celebrity.rightpundits.com/?p=5117