Once upon a time, women took pride in getting married and being the caretakers of their home and family. Women learned how to cook everything from scratch and did not rely on Hamburger Helper to feed their brood. Any twenty-something woman in 1950 would know how to iron, do dishes, laundry, vacuum, all while taking care of her personal appearance and hygiene. Now, fast-forward to this twenty-something generation of women, which I am a card-carrying member, and we have to learn all this on YouTube.
I am not poo-pooing the twenty-something women that don't learn to do their own laundry till college or couldn't properly clean their own bathroom if their life depended on it; after all, it isn't their fault. In fact, the older generations gripe about our "out of control" Gen-Y when they themselves have made little effort to pass on their skills or wisdom about running a home.
As exciting as it is that women now have the potential to attain jobs that pay as much men, and often do, it isn't exciting that we look more and more like them, and we often emasculate them in the process. Yet, looking feminine, knowing how to sew a dress for yourself, and cooking a gourmet meal is as valuable in America as speaking Pig-Latin, unless you turn simple hobbies and pleasantries into all consuming career aspirations and dreams. For example, if you learned to sew when you are thirteen, and showed promise, in today's world you would feel a mound of pressure to then continue on to design school and be a top stylist or famous designer. Not that this is a bad thing, but something is wrong if a paradigm creates a culture in which people are obsessed with selfish-ambition and fame. It's bad when young women who admit at an early age they desire to be married and have children are looked down upon, even though it's part of our nature to desire companionship and to nurture children.
Maybe I am not being fair... maybe it isn't like this all over the country. But in Northern Virginia you should just see the looks I get when I tell someone my age, and that I am Housewife.
The reason I am starting this blog is to create a discussion about the controversy of being a Housewife and also to explore the ins and outs of this role, from hosting a dinner party to removing stains from your All-Clad! Hollywood and the media portray Housewives as "Desperate" (i.e. promiscuous, rich, petty, greedy, crazy, neurotic, alcoholics, work-aholics, plastic, gossipy, arrogant, lazy, gold-diggers, etc.). This is NOT reality. It's entertaining to see those rich women in L.A. and Atlanta wearing clothes way too tight, running around in their mansions and expensive cars, but let's be honest... that's not how life is for most of us! Being a Housewife is not a status thing! It is one of the most humble lifestyles with the greatest rewards a woman could dream. And it's a life completely misunderstood, sometimes even feared, and often belittled. I hope you will enjoy reading, learning while I learn, and going along with me while I uncover many aspects of being a Housewife with a life!
