Being a female sports-lover, I always feel I have to clarify a few things immediately after telling this fact to another person. For example: I was interviewing for a room in a house with the three guys that lived there and, naturally, I freely admitted that I love sports, like, really. The words had barely left my lips when I blurted out, "But not like how girls say they like sports and then don't know what 'tagging up' is, or how many players make up a soccer team."
My reaction in my own mind to my comment was that the last line was rather harsh. How do I expect to garner respect as a knowledgeable and informed person on a subject if I point out that my gender is less than well-known for athletics smarts? I just knew that somewhere in the cosmic universe Gloria Steinem heard me say that and was disappointed. So was I.
Then I really began to think about why I genuinely don't know any other woman who knows as much, or are as interested in sports on the whole as I am. I am clearly not that special, so what's the deal? I have met some amazing ladies who can talk with me about basketball, or maybe soccer, and some knowledgeable football chicks as well, but it's when I want to talk about the Blazers' offseason moves, the race for the American League wild card, and predictions for the U.S. Open (tennis) that I always end up turning and looking for the nearest dude who doesn't dress well to speak with on the subjects. Perhaps I am just as bad as the men. Not expecting women to know, so I don't bother to ask. To that end, the times I have inquired further when a girl makes a sports reference, I am mostly disappointed. It never really pans out.
The sporting world is, of course, a boy's club. So how did I get into this club without a disguise? Then I realized that I was in disguise after all, just as myslef. I am myself masquerading as a woman who is completely A-sexual and has no desire to see your peepee. How did I leap to this rather silly conclusion you ask? Well, let's look at the facts of my relationships with men as an O.K. looking 23 year old woman. (we will say for the purpose of compacting the point in what could be a long discussion of insecurities and curiosities that I am not sexually un-attractive) First off, the vast majority of my good friends are dudes and I am not involved with any of them. I just seem to have more of a manly demeanor with firendships, thus giving me tons of practice when interacting with a male with whom I am not well acquainted. Basically, this means I am unable to flirt with males. I tend to disarm with discussion, not subtle looks, sly arm-touching, or hair-twirling.
Not all of this has to do with me either. A lot of this attitude was cultivated because men who like sports are literally not attracted to females who like sports an equal amount. Lots of guys are suprised to learn that I have never had a real relationship in my life, but when you give it just a little bit more thought, it becomes clear that my sports knowledge hinders any potential love life I might cultivate.
It's like this: Sports is a "man thing", so getting upstaged by a female doesn't exactly make you more attracted to that girl. Guys like to compartmentalize, sports is a refuge from girls. Watching the game with your buddies gives you a fool-proof excuse to ditch the lady for the day. Guys don't want a girl to watch the game with, they want a girl to cook them food during the game and then leave (I don't blame them on that one, sounds nice).
Basically, it seems I have blurred some gender roles, that is never good for the dating game, but it works fime for me. I just love sports so much that I don't think I could give them up for one man. Even with just a basketball team I get 5-times as many.
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
The second coming.... of this blog
Well, though no one could possibly be reading this anymore, I shall not let that deter me from posting again. That's right non-readers, I don't even care if you read this anyway.
Anywho, it is now time to get back on the me-track.
On a random note: I watched Bill Maher's Religulous the other day. It was, of course, very funny in the snarky-pretentious-intellectual manner where Maher thrives, but the real surprise was that it is actually a pretty powerful documentary. Though it should be worth mentioning that I tend to sit politically in Maher's proverbial wheelhouse.
In the doc, Maher explores most major western religions searching for some sort of logical leg to stand on in the world of faith-based superstition (knowing full-well there is not one). He basically asks tough questions and watches the devotees struggle to reconcile miracles, politics, faith, violence, and the actual "purposes" of their respective religions with the grim realities of the modern world.
Cutting to the chase, I am not a believer, never really have been. As a kid, I attended a Unitarian Universalist Church in the suburbs of Seattle. That means I never really attended church. It was just a hippy dippy feel goodery where you didn't really have to believe in anything, just be good. Picture the far far far left on the protestant spectrum and there you have it. We had ladies from WICCA who came (very nice ladies) and I played a Druid Sun Goddess in the Christmas play when I was 9. Ahhh memories. When I was a kid, I had no idea that religion was something to be afraid of, I thought every church was like mine, or at least not that different.
Then I moved to Medford, OR when I was 10, a medium sized city tucked away in the Rogue Valley of southern Oregon. The biggest thing between Eugene and Sacramento. There, very quickley, religion scared the shit out of me. My new elementary school was full of kids who loved Jesus, and wanted to tell me about it and get me "saved". Eeeek. That was awkward. I wondered if they knew how crazy they sounded. They didn't.
This inane desire to convert me, like my acne, got worse in high school. I was a "jock" and the biggest "jock club" at my school was the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. Obviously I never attended. I was also confused as to why we couldn't have a gay-straight alliance club, but we could have a school-sponsored Christian athlete club. Also, just for Christian athletes? I could see how that would be a necessary support system because the Christian jocks in a small religious town that worships Jesus and football (not necessarily in that order) are the kids that need a place to go to feel accepted. Good job school.
Back to Religulous, it remined me that there is a large minority in the United States who are like me. They do not identify with any religion, and don't want to, but for some reason, we all just tip-toe around the Jesus nuts and let them use their faith to drive our social, political and even economic lives. It really is bullshit. It made me wish I had ruffled more feathers back in the day. Made the people trying to convert me explain what their thought process was. How can smart people deal with the lies, corruption and perversion of their religion and have no problem with it? It makes no sense and non believers just need to get people to talk about it. Not while screaming that Jesus didn't exist (no proof of that by the way), but just to take them out of the warm cocoon of their homogonous group of drones and ask why? Why is God on our side? Why does God love capitalism? Why does God hate fags?
"It ain't those parts of the Bible that I can't understand that bother me, it is the parts that I do understand." - Samuel Clemens
Anywho, it is now time to get back on the me-track.
- still can't find a job
- not dating anyone
- ditched by my future roommate so he can stay in Texas
- but remaining awesome
On a random note: I watched Bill Maher's Religulous the other day. It was, of course, very funny in the snarky-pretentious-intellectual manner where Maher thrives, but the real surprise was that it is actually a pretty powerful documentary. Though it should be worth mentioning that I tend to sit politically in Maher's proverbial wheelhouse.
In the doc, Maher explores most major western religions searching for some sort of logical leg to stand on in the world of faith-based superstition (knowing full-well there is not one). He basically asks tough questions and watches the devotees struggle to reconcile miracles, politics, faith, violence, and the actual "purposes" of their respective religions with the grim realities of the modern world.
Cutting to the chase, I am not a believer, never really have been. As a kid, I attended a Unitarian Universalist Church in the suburbs of Seattle. That means I never really attended church. It was just a hippy dippy feel goodery where you didn't really have to believe in anything, just be good. Picture the far far far left on the protestant spectrum and there you have it. We had ladies from WICCA who came (very nice ladies) and I played a Druid Sun Goddess in the Christmas play when I was 9. Ahhh memories. When I was a kid, I had no idea that religion was something to be afraid of, I thought every church was like mine, or at least not that different.
Then I moved to Medford, OR when I was 10, a medium sized city tucked away in the Rogue Valley of southern Oregon. The biggest thing between Eugene and Sacramento. There, very quickley, religion scared the shit out of me. My new elementary school was full of kids who loved Jesus, and wanted to tell me about it and get me "saved". Eeeek. That was awkward. I wondered if they knew how crazy they sounded. They didn't.
This inane desire to convert me, like my acne, got worse in high school. I was a "jock" and the biggest "jock club" at my school was the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. Obviously I never attended. I was also confused as to why we couldn't have a gay-straight alliance club, but we could have a school-sponsored Christian athlete club. Also, just for Christian athletes? I could see how that would be a necessary support system because the Christian jocks in a small religious town that worships Jesus and football (not necessarily in that order) are the kids that need a place to go to feel accepted. Good job school.
Back to Religulous, it remined me that there is a large minority in the United States who are like me. They do not identify with any religion, and don't want to, but for some reason, we all just tip-toe around the Jesus nuts and let them use their faith to drive our social, political and even economic lives. It really is bullshit. It made me wish I had ruffled more feathers back in the day. Made the people trying to convert me explain what their thought process was. How can smart people deal with the lies, corruption and perversion of their religion and have no problem with it? It makes no sense and non believers just need to get people to talk about it. Not while screaming that Jesus didn't exist (no proof of that by the way), but just to take them out of the warm cocoon of their homogonous group of drones and ask why? Why is God on our side? Why does God love capitalism? Why does God hate fags?
"It ain't those parts of the Bible that I can't understand that bother me, it is the parts that I do understand." - Samuel Clemens
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