Pink - it's my New Obsession

I am opposed to pink, well not really opposed, but opposed to what it stands for, when it stands for something I am against. If that makes any sense at all. When it comes to my daughter Hannah, I have always resisted when she wants to wear pink, have pink dolls, have pink shoes (or pink camouflage shoes for that matter). Now she has asked us if she can paint her room pink (the second she in this sentence refers to Nicky and I, since our 5 year old will not paint her own room). The funny thing is I have embraced pink in my life, I have a shirt that some people call pink (actually, it is more of a salmon colour), back in the 80's I remember having a flourescent pink t-shirt, flourescent pink shades and many other pink accessories. I also own a beautiful flourescent pink toque that I love to wear on youth nights (or when I was driving the tractor at camp)

I guess my issue is not with the colour pink, it is with the stereotype. I don't want my little girl being taken with pink because it is such a stereotypical girl colour, and I want her to be free to be herself, not what she thinks the world wants her to be like. I want to make a statement myself about stereotypes of men, so I wear pink things. I guess my obsession with pink goes past an old Aerosmith song right to the heart of really important things...OK maybe it's just a stupid obsession...sure Hannah, "you" can paint your room pink (ugh).

Comments

Tiffany said…

That bedroom is very pink!
I don't know where they learn it. Okay, I do know, from the day a little girl is born pink is sort of dumped all over her, and they learn that it's the colour for them. luckily, my daughter is only 3 and hasn't gone so far as to ask for pink walls. Especially since her brother shares her room with her!

4:22 pm

Trevor said…

The crazy thing is when Nicky came home with the colour I thought it was a nice subtle pink (so did she). When we put it on the wall it took on a nuclear quality (it radiates).

I agree, girls (and boys) get socialized pretty quick.

7:10 am

Anonymous said…

Salmon Color? I would prefer pink. Love ya man.

9:10 pm

Anonymous said…

But why are you so obsessed with being so politically correct?

5:28 am

Trevor said…

I wouldn't say I am obsessed with being politically correct (you can if you want). I would say that I am obsessed with wanting people to be who they really are, not what society wants them to be.

8:33 am

My Work Against Homelessness

I have been thinking quite a lot about homelessness (over the last two years especially) and have come to all kinds of conclusions about myself and the things that I (and the church) need to do in order to help people who are in that situation. I have been involved in a few organizations who work with homeless people and met with many people to discuss what I/we should be doing to help. I finally discovered something very important that I can do right now. I am reading t his book called Bent Hope which is a really interesting read. The author is a Youth Worker who works with young people who live on the streets in Toronto. He walks the streets and hangs out with them and helps when he can. He basically just tells the stories of his encounters with people and talks a little bit about what he has learned from them. I am loving it! So, I know what I am supposed to do to help homelessness. In his book, pretty much everyone he encounters he mentions how they come from a family situa

Coffee Drinking Bullies

I feel as though I am about to have a fight with a bully, I fully expect this post to be read as hurtful and condemning to many. That may be the case but here goes anyway. I have long been frustrated by coffee drinkers. I realize that probably 95% of those who are in the blogosphere are those who are regular coffee drinkers, actually *ahem* probably not regular coffee drinkers, they are people who are very particular about the coffee they drink. Most times they take one sip of coffee and declare it to be horrible, or wonderful, or somewhere in between. They do NOT drink any free coffee, especially the coffee served at churches, they do not just go to the corner store for coffee, their coffee must meet very specific requirements and standards. If they make it at home they do not just use a coffeemaker, they must use a various assortment of grinders, presses, and perhaps going as far as to roast their own beans. I know that I am not cool for criticizing coffee drinkers and their habits,

Mustachio

I have entered the dark underworld of a mustache growing contest, having been drawn in by Nicky's (my wife's) brothers. This is a picture of how put together I looked without a mustache. If you look at the picture below, it would seem that the mustache itself has gotten to me. I am not saying that growing a mustache means you become a drunk, sleazy, stuck in the 80s, trying-to-be-young-but-not-being-successful-at-it type of person, but that is what it has done to me. I find that when I walk I have a different gait, one that I tried to use back in Jr. High...to look cool. I find that I have a renewed passion for wearing hi-top shoes with the laces undone. I have a need to wear brigh t coloured clothing, and I have been looking for acid-wash pants at Value Village (unsuccesfully). The thing is that I also have many good friends who are growing mustaches, and have had mustaches for a long period of time, it doesn't seem to have this kind of impact on them. I work at a churc

TREVOR'S WRITING

Search This Blog