Bits

[mrissa]

I was in Hallmark this afternoon, as part of the list of everything in the world I needed to do between noon and 3:30 today, and I had to pick up a card to mark the arrival of the wee Benjamin into the world. He's the new son of some of our college friends, and so I was looking through cards, and...do they all have to be so gendered? WHY? Seriously, there was no way to get a card at this store that was clearly for a new baby and not clearly for either a boy or a girl. I couldn't have gotten ambiguous about it, not even by picking a pink card and writing his name on it anyway. They all said "BOY" or "GIRL."

On the one hand, okay, about the only thing we know about the sprout just now is what bits he's got. But on the other hand, does it really matter to me in the slightest that this baby has boy bits? Would I welcome him differently if he had girl bits? I'd probably be less careful of changing his diaper, but as he lives in DC and I live in Minnesota, this is unlikely to be an issue. And otherwise no. It tells me nothing about his future personality, about what he can expect from life or what he'll come to want. So what would be wrong with a card saying, "Welcome, little one"?

I know, crunchy hippie freaks who think things like that aren't supposed to buy Hallmark cards in the first place. Sigh.

Comments

[songwind.livejournal.com]

When greeting cards start to piss me off, I go looking for the blank ones and just write the whole thing myself. :)

[mkille.livejournal.com]

That was going to be my suggestion too. I've done that before.


The other category of cards that bugs me are sympathy cards. Just try to find a card that says "I know you weren't so fond of them, but dealing with them dying is hard, and I'm sorry."

[wilfulcait.livejournal.com]

"I know life has been miserable recently, and both of you were looking forward to the end of her pain, and I'm sorry that you have to feel guilty for feeling relieved in the midst of your grief."

Yeah, they don't do so well with the hard stuff.

[mrissa.livejournal.com]

Hallmark actually anticipated what I had been doing and put out a card reading, "Please accept this fine collection of dog photos with my compliments." Which is roughly what I'd been writing on several birthday cards.