Bahahah - I wish I thought of that! Some barbed wire. Then again, there are some weirdos who would think this was a “challenge”.

I absolutely refuse to use the “I’m taken” line, because it enrages me so much. You WILL accept my disinterest, whether you like it or not. (And yes, I know that may mean it’s a hill I die on...but I absolutely refuse to be viewed as anyone’s property or have my worth defined by my status as someone else’s property)

I’m 57, my boss is in her 50s (just) and is dating a man in his 30s. Even when they’re out together she moves a ring to “that” finger so she’ll be left alone.

I once had a male coworker pull my securely pinned nurse ponytail out at the nurses’ station and whisper “I wish you had a twin sister who wasn’t married”. As he ran his fingers through my hair. Ew. I had a new grad with me and it was so infuriating that she’d see this on her first week. After I told him under no…

Yeah, there’s a group in Austin, TX that rides bikes, called the Bikin’ Betties. I really only feel safe riding with them. I don’t know how these girls ride around downtown every day/night alone. It’s not just cars that women have to be concerned about.

“I’m taken” isn’t safe either. Much though I hate it, it does seem more effective than other ways to say no, so I do use it sometimes. The last time I responded to an unwanted advance with “Sorry, I have a boyfriend” the guy put his arm around me and said “Well he isn’t here, is he?”
AAARRRRGGGHHHH.

As street harassment awareness has become more common, my husband (also a feminist) and I have talked about it a lot and in so doing I’ve shared a whole bunch of stories. He is horrified by them and asks “Wait, this happened when I knew you? Why did you never tell me about this?” I was like “This is just normal; more…

I met a guy at a party recently. He kept striking up a conversation with me even though it was clear (to me) that I wasn’t interested. At first, he said “wow - you’re a tough nut to crack!”, then “you seem so reserved - it must be difficult to get to know you, but I want to try! Say, Tuesday night?” (I said no). A…

EXACTLY! I’m not leading you on, being coy, or playing hard to get. I’m Afraid!!

“Why can’t women just be direct and honest if they don’t want to go out with you?!”

“why not be honest and just tell them you’re not interested??”
oh.

After Dana’s placement, Sara was initially allowed to see her daughter for one hour each week with the brief help of her own mother and the supervision of a social worker.

My hesitation is a selfish one. Having cleaned bathrooms for a living; the difference in cleanliness between the men’s bathrooms, and the women’s bathrooms at the end of the day was insane. My OCD gauge was completely blown.

I agree that the urinal situation would be a little uncomfortable for a lot of people. I imagine that if we made the switch, public bathrooms would become stall-only. Most people don’t have urinals in their homes and get by ok.

You know, I have been in gender neutral bathrooms and never had a problem with grown men, but I have been in women's only bathrooms and have had problems when some mom insists on bringing her 12 year old son in there and he peeps through the cracks at the edge of the door or even under the doors.

And because we’re not used to it, people can be HORRIBLE when you mix up their usual expectations.

It’s interesting you feel that way (genuinely, no snark), because I’ve always thought this was a weird issue because I really don’t give a damn. So long as we can get stalls with walls/doors that actually go down to the floor (like in the UK), I’m a happy camper. I don’t care about washing my hands next to a guy. I do…

What are conservatives gonna freak out about 10-15 years from now? Like today it's still gays, transgendered people and what bathrooms they belong in but what's it gonna be a decade from now? What's going to freak out the stony, bony, Lilly white asses of the future?

But I have explosively horrific shits too

One of the more shocking realizations in my life is that I am probably as uncomfortable using a non-gender-specific restroom as my great-grandparents were at using a non-race-specific restroom. (Note: I am not saying that race and sexuality are the same or that their civil rights movements are completely parallel).