Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

Gender stereotypes have always frustrated me.

Picture this: a girl who plays video games, who can change her car's oil or a flat tire by herself, who works building scenery, who gets excited about taking a welding class, who owns more tools than she does shoes, who swears like a pirate, and who spent her childhood snowmobiling and dirt biking.

Now picture this: a girl who likes to shop, who is a hopeless romantic, who loves wearing dresses, who thinks chivalry is cute, who loves listening to Katy Perry, who loves dancing, and who freaks out and tells all her friends when a cute boy talks to her.

Now, maybe there are a few people out there who wouldn't picture two very different girls in this situation. More likely, you might picture more of a tomboy for the first girl. Maybe she dresses in baggier clothes, has a shorter haircut, doesn't wear a lot of makeup. And maybe the second girl is more... well, girly. Dresses and pink and long hair and cute shoes.

Maybe your thoughts are even more extreme; the first girl is "butch," the second more "normal," or even more attractive. 

The thing is, everything I listed is something that's true about me. Sure, I have seven or more pairs of high heels (which doesn't even include other types of shoes) and I know all the words to "Firework." But I'm also handy with a screw gun, and I bought Starcraft II at midnight when it was released.

And while I'll never feel ashamed to walk out in my best dress, I'll always hesitate to jump into a conversation about which NHL teams have the best chance at the Stanley Cup.

I know that it shouldn't matter, but society has always taught us that "feminine" women are more liked, and generally more accepted than those of us who venture into the world of traditionally male interests and activities.

But say I were to publicly embrace this other anti-feminine side of myself. Would the world perceive me differently? Or do they already? And what about men who are interested in things that are traditionally considered "girly"? Are they pressured the way I am, or worse?

As time goes on, perhaps we as a society will become more comfortable stretching and breaking our gender stereotypes. But for now I suppose I'll continue to keep my video game playing/car loving/power tool wielding/ hockey watching side to myself.