This will not be a feminist rant. I
like my drinks paid for, my doors opened for me, and my spiders
squashed. Not on any principle or anything. It's just that drinks are
expensive, doors are heavy, and spiders are creepy. I'm an
anti-feminist out of laziness more than anything.
I am also a proud, card carrying nerd.
I love video games from FPS to RPG. I read comics from Marvel to all
of the books based on all of Joss Whedon's canceled TV shows. I own 8
lightsabers, and have at least 20 zombie novels on my kindle. I
remember when Doctor Who was just a crazy bug eyed man in a
ridiculously long scarf. I also know a few other girls with very
similar tastes. We are a part of the nerd community.
Or at least we're supposed to be.
Ever since video games hit the next
gen, and every comic book ever written became a big budget movie
everyone seems to be into something nerdy. When I walk through the
mens' department at Target with my husband and see Marvel and DC
t-shirts everywhere and I wonder “what options do they have in the
womens' department?”. The answer? None. Women get shirts with
flowerdy peace signs and Hello Kitty. I like Hello Kitty and all, but
I know the X-Men way better than some kid in a slim fit t who just
bought it because he thought a movie was cool. So where's my t-shirt?
I know that I can go online and order anything I want in a girl style
from Jinx or some other hip nerd site the point is that I shouldn't
have to. I also have this aversion to buying clothes without knowing
how they're going to fit. The online return process is grueling.
Even
when I went to Mavel-town at Universal Studios they didn't have the
heroes I wanted up for sale. I wanted a women's' cut shirt of a good
character. Could I get Deadpool or Psylocke? Hell, I'd have taken
Gambit. But no, according to their women's' shirt selections, as a
girl I'm only allowed to like Rogue, Jean Grey, or Storm. Rogue and
Jean Grey are alright I guess, but I have always disliked Storm. And
there are much better choices in that universe. The X-Men are a huge
group of super and semi super heroes. It's like if they only allowed
guys to choose from Forge, Cypher, or a character who’s only power
is the ability to fold socks with his mind. Men wouldn't stand for
such poor options from such a huge and diverse group. As a nerdy
woman I deserve the same options as a nerdy man. I love slave Leia
every bit as much as I like bounty hunter disguise Leia. A girl's
gotta have costume choices here every bit as much as in a galaxy far
far away. This is why I buy Star Wars t-shirts from Old Navy. It's
the only place I've found anything in an actual women's size that I
can try on before I buy it. I don't particularly want to get my nerd
gear from Old Navy, but something is always better than nothing.
And it's not just the mass market that
ignores us. Non-nerdy women can be downright hostile. Why do you
assume that because I'm talking to your boyfriend that I'm trying to
steal him? Bitch, if I wanted your man I would make an open and
honest go of it. I'm debating the ending of Mass Effect 3 with him
because I want to debate the ending of Mass Effect 3 (which I was
totally satisfied with in case you're wondering) not because I want
to bang him. What is wrong with the female psyche that they think
every woman in the world is out to screw her over and steal her man?
It offends me when people think that a conversation can't simply be a
conversation with no ulterior motives in place. This is also one of
the reasons I have so few female friends. Well, that and most women
have no interest in the things that I like. It's just as bad with men
sometimes. I'm not at Dragon Con to boost my self esteem by seeing
how many times I can get hit on by guys who live in their mom's
basement. It's supposed to be a safe environment for nerds, and that
means for women too. If I wanted your advances I'd be one of the
girls wearing a costume that's ridiculously too small for her body.
Since I only do costumes for Halloween you should assume I'm there to
nerd out in exactly the same way you are. Once you see me pouring out
of a “slutty something or other” costume that's at least two
sizes too small, I'm fair game. Until then, step off.
I
really appreciate games like Mass Effect, Fallout, or Left for Dead
where I have the option to play as a girl. It doesn't change the
gameplay that much, but it's easier to connect with the story when
the character looks and sounds more like me. I think the reason
they’ve thrown so much romance into the new Doctor Who is to try
and make it accessible for women, so they're trying right? And to be
fair, Jinx does offer a women’s' version of all of the men's
shirts they sell. It's only my stubbornness about seeing clothing in
person before I buy it that keeps me from being able to shop there
more. They are also heavily skewed toward W.O.W. which I'm not into,
so there's that too.
It's
a start. We've “come a long way baby” and all that crap, but
there's a long way to go before I feel fully included in the nerd
world. Huh. I guess this turned into a feminist rant of sorts after
all. I just went a really long and roundabout way to get there. Isn't
that just like a woman driver?
-Beth
Beth:
ReplyDeleteYou have just said EVERYTHING I've been trying to articulate for a couple weeks, and flailing at. Thank you! Keep the faith, girl - there are lots of us out here. :-D
-Jen
Thanks Jen. Just glad to have a soappbox, and that someone agrees with me. Nerd girl solidarity!
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