What do women want? According to one of our favorite female feminism-haters, Laura Grace Robins, it’s sort of a a tossup between the vote and designer purses. But that’s not what women really need — which is a husband. Oh, and milk. Can you remember to get milk?
At least that’s what I think she’s saying. See if you can figure it out from this quote from her post “Remove the Needs.” I have taken the liberty of bolding my favorite bits. Anyway, here’s Ms. Robins’ vision of the modern postfeminist woman:
She may have everything she wants, but not everything she needs. She wants independence, the vote, her own income, etc., but she wants all these things like she wants a designer purse. Underneath it all, it is just for show and what she really needs are the basics; like food, shelter, and a husband. She may have fancy clothes and independence, but it is the needs that nourish. She can deny the needs and focus on wants, but a life purely filled of wants is typically shallow and empty. Feminists have been the advertisers that make us buy into wants instead of our needs. If we know what our needs are then we can walk down the aisle of feminism and not be allured by the glossy packaging of independence and income. I’m not here for the “Starbuck Frappuccino”, but for a gallon of milk.
But what if the woman in question is lactose intolerant? IN YOUR FACE, LAURA GRACE!
Also, I’m wondering what exactly a “Starbuck Frappuccino” is. I would love to have a Frappuccino with Starbuck. Either one, actually.
Ms. Robins concludes:
Now most women live hollow lives filled with closets full of shoes and purses, while homes are empty of husbands and children.
I think that, like a lot of the people I write about on this blog, Laura Grace Robins has confused reality with Sex and the City.
The show ended nearly a decade ago! At least get a current TV show to confuse reality with!
lurkerina – It’s really hard for me to find a good fitting swimsuit. Either the bodice is okay but the boob area sags or it fits the boobs fine but it’s way too tight. I only wear tankinis now (I’m not interested in getting skin cancer on my belly), but that just makes it more difficult.
I think there is some sort of mystical middle — and it’s so mystical that almost no one fits.
There are a lot of good corset makers out there. Marvelous Mayhem is fantastic (I may be biased because I’ve met the guy who runs it) but they are all handmade and not cheap. I wish I could remember the name of the business I bought my blue corset from, they had pretty decent quality mass produced corsets and it was only $80. Really good starter corsets.
Yes, that mystical middle.
For swimsuits, I’ve had good luck with Land’s End. They have lots of tankinis, and you can order the tops by bra size (including into DD+ ranges). They also take a lot of abuse–I killed one with three months of 4-days/week saltwater snorkeling + no washing, and even then it was mostly the clasps and some fading.
Yay for leopard print ornaments on a pink tree. I hope you get a knuckle duster purse as a present! 🙂
Actually, now that I look, it seems that Land’s End only has bra sizing for the bigger cup sizes, which may not work.
wordsp1nner – How expensive are they? I might want them sometime in future, but obviously I’m not rich.
As for most expensive thing ever purchased, I’m freaking out a bit because I just bought a timeshare/vacation membership. It was super expensive. I can afford it, but spending that much money kind of freaks me out. It is still less expensive then most people’s cars. Though probably not as expensive as my education.
Physical object – computer. Macbook pro with retina. Expensive but awesome! The most expensive purse/handbag was the aforementioned $120 laptop bag.
I would say 80-150 dollars. They are not cheap, but I wait for them to go on sale.
Though they might be replaced by my favorite combo for outdoorsy-type water things–cheap bikini with a tight rash guard on top.
wordsp1nner – DAMN. Why are they so expensive?
But since it’s durable and stuff, it’s probably worth the money. *nod*
Ooh – I need to check out Land’s End
Ayup. I especially hate tops with a designated bra pocket that should be big enough, but for some reason they make it end across the nipple anyway, so half your boobs are sagging below the band. Are they going for that look on purpose? Why would they do that?
I’ve spent a lot on bras over the years, and especially this past couple of years as I’ve shed a lot of weight. I have no idea what my size is. At my biggest, I was an I cup. I’m much smaller now, but the bra that fit me best (but was $200 for ONE BRA) was an M cup (which, although I love it, I did not buy — $200, srsly. For one). My current ones are G (and I got four for $350). All by different manufacturers, who apparently have different alphabets.
I’m very fortunate to be in relatively close proximity to a really good bra store with an expert fitter (by which I mean I can get there at least once per year, and they’ll ship things to me for a charge).
Oh those are indeed pricey. I’ll have to wait until I’ve got some money in the budget, but my bottoms are wearing pretty thin.
The one set I have left (a pink tankini) has survived several years of random use, including two trips to the tropics and a weekly kayaking class. IMO, it is made of thicker spandex than most.
But the rashguards were like $20 and they make even the cheapest suit supportive enough to be comfortable and modest enough to wear kayaking with my Dad.
Ah yes, unimaginative, the oh so attractive saggy quadriboob look. The reverse of which can be found in too low cut shirts with designated boob pockets and too small bras. I indeed have been there.
Hearing all the bra woes makes me glad I’m an A-cup. I have a couple nice bras for when I need to dress up but everyday I just go with a cami under my shirt.
Noradi – I’m a B cup, but still. I thought I was an A cup for YEARS, and then one day I realized that they were pretty uncomfortable. A few months later, I lost all of my bras. FREAKING $200 for new bras, but WORTH IT.
Clothes seem to presume you’re a C or a D cup though. GAHHHHH
Oh, look, I did an em-dash! It worked this time! It was space-hyphen-hyphen-space between the words for anyone else who has problems with those.
Also, a different rant: why do they not sell unisex stuff? Or are they all in the men’s department, and that’s why I can’t find them?
This one’s for Argenti (and anyone else who likes water creatures) — people saving a baby dolphin caught in a plastic bag:
And another:
Lurkerina, yay kitty!
I’m lucky I don’t have to wear anything like business clothes, so I can get away without a bra most of the time. I’m a 36D, more or less, but I go for loose-ish clothes mostly anyway, since I don’t like the look of clothes clinging to a droopy belly.
@Alice I don’t come close to filling a B-cup, when I was a little heavier I had a lot of trouble finding 38-As so I tried a 38-B and I don’t come close to filling the cup, lots of empty space.
Oh yeah, most clothes certainly do seem to assume you’re a C-cup. Between that and my wide shoulders I’ve given up on women’s dress shirts and buy men’s and tailor in the waist (glad I learned to sew). Most of my shirts are jersey for that reason. Finding stuff that fits my waist to hip ratio is a whole other issue (my hips match my shoulders but I have a small-ish waist)
I’m’a go ahead and guess that this did not end well for him. I hope it ended awesomely for her.
OMG. The cuttlefish movie. You guys have to listen. “Your nose might get pregnant.”