Had another mentoring session with Susan today.
I asked her if she considered herself to be a feminist, and she said definitely not, as the modern day FFs focuss on criticising men as a whole and is predicated on expecting men to change their behaviour to accommodate women. She said it should be predicated on women changing their choices, habits, outlook, etc., so that they become equal partners with men in the fields they choose and not have the FFs cry foul if they are underrepresented in the fields they don’t choose.
She says if I want to become successful in some field, it wouldn’t hurt if I worked 50-plus hours a week 48 weeks a year in that field for 10 or 15 years, show good judgement and a strong work ethic for all that time, and put myself in a position whereby I could apply for a senior job on an equal basis with the many men who do this. And don’t cry discrimination if I don’t get the job, as nearly all the male applicants won’t get it either.
She says the FFs will know they’ve arrived when a masculism movement is created, involving men complaining that women are discriminating against them because women don’t allow or encourage them to join the institutions they’ve created by working passionately and often pro bono for several generations.
OK. Sorry I asked.
When I got home ants were everywhere. Tiny black ones. I think they were getting water from my sink. Spent half the night finding out where they were getting in, spraying the spots once I’d found them, and then flushing the marooned ones down the sink. A bit callous, but what else am I supposed to do?