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January 07, 2009
How boys and girls are different
I was sitting at a restaurant the other day, when one of the waiters came up to me and told me how he liked my jacket. I said thanks, and told him where I got it and all that good stuff. It was one of the more awkward conversations in my life, because I can think of very few times when a fellow man has asked me where I got my clothes. Especially a stranger.
I think it's different when a friend asks me where I got something. Then it's considered acceptable. In my experience, such a request is usually followed by some kind of faux homoerotic moment, such as "I was just asking because they made your ass look sweet." I'm not sure how that makes it any better, though.
In contrast, I was out with some friends the other day when the waitress told a female in my group how great her shirt was. It was completely normal, and lacked any sort of guile. It's not like anyone goes out searching for approval from waitresses, but there it was.
I know why women ask each other where they got their clothes from, though. There's just so many options. 95% of the clothing stores in Chicago are for women, and in the stores where there are men's clothes, more than three-quarters of it is for women. That's okay, for it makes a man's job that much easier. If I admire another man's shirt, I can be pretty sure he got it at Macy's, Express, or Sears. That's where men shop. But women, there's a billion stores - without asking, it's hopeless. And that's why they ask.
entry no. 1274
Posted at January 7, 2009 11:39 PM