10/09/2007

Pet peeve of the day.

"Oregon stay-at-home dad Thad Starr and his 1,524-pound pumpkin came from out of nowhere today to win the annual world championship pumpkin weigh-off in Half Moon Bay, shattering the competition's old record by nearly 300 pounds."

Link.

"Stay-at-home dad"? What could possibly be the reason for telling us Mr. Starr is a "stay-at-home dad"? How about "Home gardener Thad Starr"?

Stay-at-home dad. Is that me, or does the expression drip with condescension? You're not quite a normal dad if you're a stay-at-home dad. You're special. Do most mothers work in two-parent households nowadays? Should we call the ones who don't "stay-at-home moms"? Would you like to? Is that anyone's business? Ugh.

9 comments:

lisa said...

I agree, VERY lame. Why not tell us something interesting, like "Mole-covered freak Thad Starr", or "Pussy-whipped slave Thad Starr", or "Tight-ass beefcake Thad Starr"? Now THOSE are the kind of trivial descriptions I want to hear!

Unknown said...

I was going to leave a comment... but after reading Lisa's, well, I got nothin'. lol.

Anonymous said...

I hate to tell you, but women who choose to be what used to be referred to as housewives are often called stay at home moms, and use the phrase to describe themselves.

chuck b. said...

Really? I'm so out of touch.

I used to have lots of friends with kids, but for the most part, contact has gradually slipped away. I have one friend who works part-time. Do they have a word for what kind of mother she is too?

That's the problem, isn't it. I'm over-reading "stay-at-home" as qualifying one's parenthood, when really the whole phrase should be read together to identify a particular non-paid vocation.

Okay, I'll get over it.

chuck b. said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Laurene said...

I agree. That description smacked of sexism. It's the old double standard that if a man's staying at home with the kids it must be because he's a free-loading loser or has some emotional problem & can't work. No one says those things about a woman who chooses to stay at home with her kids.

Annie in Austin said...

Well Chuck, I got here too late to be useful, but in plenty of time to be amused. That Lisa!

When I first became a mom, none of the other women in our neighborhood worked outside the home, but we didn't use the stay at home term back then ... we were usually refered to as "PTA Moms".

Annie

Deviant Deziner, aka Michelle said...

I guess I must have thick skin, ... or maybe just a thick head.
But I thought the term 'stay at home dad or mom' was just the current day politically correct term to use to describe someone who is the head caretaker of the kids and daily runnings of the house hold.

I have a cousin who is a stay at home Dad and that is what we call his job.

Anyone who thinks that a stay at home parent is not a working parent is brain dead.
I rather go to work any day of the week and work with adults then stay at home with a bunch of screaming poop filled diapered kids . ick.
someone give me a pain killer - quick !

lisa said...

"..screaming poop filled diapered kids" Hahahahahaha....oops!...now I need a diaper...hahaha! (Kidding)