The Tender Gender

No boys allowed

It seems there was a 13-year-old girl in Rhode Island who wanted to help Mommy purchase an Easy-Bake oven for her 4-year-old brother. Now that's nice. One, it's  rare that children think about each other, since their mommies and daddies spend more than enough time thinking about them. And two, this little boy is not afraid to try his hand at baking. Let's hope he's as enthusiastic about cleaning the toilet. But he didn't want a feminine Easy Bake oven.

The nice little girl, completely on her own, (we are encouraged to believe), mounted a huge campaign with Hasbro, the toy maker, to produce a gender-neutral oven. She was joined by 40,000 people with no lives, who spend their time chiming in on Facebook with other people with no lives. And so the Hasbro people, recognizing free publicity,  will produce a silver-colored model. My guess is they'll only sell one of them.

Again, it's our own fault for creating issues like this. One day, some yahoo painted a hammer pink, and now women can't hang a picture without one. (A lot of men will tell you they can't hang a picture with any hammer, because they don't use a level and a plumb line.)

Who said tools and equipment should be gender specific? Trust me, ladies, when you get a flat tire you'll be more than happy to use that ugly, black car jack in the trunk. If we have to use gender-neutral tools, we won't get much done.

But while this craziness lasts, my household will be gender-neutral, like the new Easy Bake oven.  So long, Pepto Bismol, you're just too feminine.  See you later, manly egg separator. Good bye, my frivolous red salad tongs.

I hope it's okay if I wear my pink sweatpants to get my coffee in the morning. My black coffee.