Wednesday, February 2, 2011

Am I A Modern Domestic Goddess?



So I recently read a news article about a survey that said young women don't have certain "domestic skills" anymore such as cooking, cleaning, sewing, etc. As a young women who knows how to do all of those things and more, I agree. And disagree. I agree that fewer young women know how to do things like that, but I disagree that those are exclusively female tasks. Although I'm not certain of the entire depth of the survey taken, I assume they didn't survey MEN to see if any of them had "domestic skills". I can tell you right now that in my household the man does most of the cleaning and some of the cooking (and he even does his own laundry) , while I take out the trash and do most of the cooking. I knit, scrapbook, paint, etc. My boyfriend even admitted to me that he knows basic sewing skills. Maybe fewer women have those "domestic skills" but I'm sure a lot (or atleast a few) more men have those skills now than 50 years ago. As a self-proclaimed feminist bordering on femi-nazi the thought of having the life of a 50's housewife makes my stomach turn. But there is a certain charm to it all. Maybe it's the kitschy-ness of it. Maybe it's because I love working with my hands and appreciate a handmade life of sorts. (Side note: When I think of the term "domestic goddess" it conjures up an image of a petite white female in heels wearing a slim fitting dress under a clean apron adorned with pearls dishing out dinner for her husband who just came home from work. But when I turn the coin and try to think of what a "domestic god" might look like I am drawing a blank. Any readers thoughts on this?). The authors of the article challenged themselves to come up with what they thought were modern skill sets that they were good at. So here is mine:

I'm a fast reader.
I can change a tire. (I've changed more tires than changed boyfriends)
I know how to tie a tie.
I can brew a great pot of coffee.
I remain relatively optimistic about things.
I can multi-task with great efficiency.
I'm good at setting up technology/ figuring things out.