Generation Gap
February 1, 2006
He Didn't Marry a Slave
I've never been a fan of Leave it to Beaver or The Donna Reed Show. I'm a child of the '80s and believe in a 50/50 split when it comes to housework. I can't imagine a scenario where I would ever feel the need to wear high heels while whipping up a casserole so laden in fat that my arteries would shrink back in horror. I can't picture my husband coming home from work, propping up his feet, and expecting me to attend to his every need. I can't fathom living a life of white slavery just because I don't have a big penis in my pants. Read more.
It's in the Genes
by Janette Cole
Peering into my mirror, I see a bloated face with a hint of good bone structure lurking beneath the surface. The beauty of my mother, sister and grandmother is hidden under an unsightly layer of fat. How did this happen? I ask myself, as I shrug into my ill-fitting oversized sweater and dash off to meet the graceful, thin women who are not-so-secretly ashamed of their oversized progeny. I dread the meeting, knowing I'll receive a sad tsk of the tongue from my grandmother, the waspish matriarch. Such a pretty face. . . words that etch away my self-confidence with their acidity. I want more than a pretty face. I want recognition that I belong; that I'm more than the fat sheep of the family. That somewhere, somehow the DNA that flows in the veins of my mother and grandmother also flows in me. I want to be a part of a family. Read more.
Marrying Up
by Ellen Buckhorn
My husband was born in 1957. I was born in 1967. For seven months of the year he is eleven years older than I am, though most of the time I don't really feel like it's such a big gap. I'm the fifth of six children so he never seemed much older to me than my oldest sister and her friends. But occasionally, the fact that I am pretty firmly in Generation X and he is from what I've heard referred to as Generation Jones is very apparent. Read more.
Daughter
Kids are growing up so fast these days. It's a cliché, I know, but clichés usually have their roots in truth, and this one is no exception. The lives today's kids are living are worlds apart from the lives we had growing up. Read more.
Family Planning for One
by Sarah Artis
Last month I decided never to have kids.
During the Christmas holidays, I went for a casual hike with a guy from my journalism program. We spent the day getting to know each other by discussing past adventures, current relationships and future goals. Both of us have travelled extensively, I had just ended a relationship and he was just starting one, and we were both considering working overseas when we graduate in April. Read more.
(Don't) Read All About It
by Marian Klatt
Want to talk about a generation gap? Let's talk about blogs. You have a blog, but does your grandmother? Your blog talks about your life, but how would you feel about your 13-year-old cousin spilling her secrets to the world? Read more.
Thanks for the Memories
by Debra Marshall
My husband and I drove cross-country this year to celebrate Christmas with my parents. We stayed for two weeks and my mom took the opportunity of our visit to get some help clearing out their spare room. When we traveled home the week after New Year's, we had not only a trunkful of presents, but also a half-dozen or so boxes of my childhood possessions. Read more.