I apologize for not posting yesterday – it was a busy busy day of work. I am off for more work travel today, so I will not post again until Thursday. Bear with me kittens and I know you will miss moi.
I want to get you thinking before I jet off, though. Surely many of you were watching the Today Show this morning. It was with great skepticism and a definite chip on my shoulder that I listened to Ann Curry’s interview with Leslie Bennetts on her new book “The Feminine Mistake,” but I listened only because she writes for Vanity Fair and I am a huge VF fan. Also, you all might recall Ms. Bennetts for scoring the first interview with our friend Jenny Anny after her break-up with Brad.
So, really, if she’s good enough for Jenny Anny, isn’t she good enough for me for a minute or two?
So I listened.
And I kept my attitude and threats of protest close to the tip of my tongue, until I heard her berate the national media for things like last week’s “ridiculous” news over the consequences of daycare. In fact, she pointed out that in her extensive research, unlike the national media, what she found is that 80% of women are happy with the childcare providers they have and their situations.
OK, KittyTime is on board now.
So let’s get to it kittens. Bennetts new book “The Feminine Mistake” covers the host of possible reasons why stopping to work to take care of your children just might be a bad decision for you, the mom, and your children. What drew me to the interview is not that this is just another book telling us all that we’re doing everything wrong again and our children will suffer, but that her premise seems very harsh and well, somewhat realistic.
Like KT is a guilt-free zone, and Republican-free zone, KT is also a realist zone. Some call me harsh. And I just might be. But I really don’t think I’m walking around town with my head up my ass and I’m pretty confident that I have a very realistic view of the world and the realities we all face – whether they be harsh or not. You don’t come here for me to blow sunshine up your ass because I’m not going too (unless you are a hormonally charged sleep deprived new mommy, then I will assure you that your baby is special and he/she will be sleeping through the night right away, because well, I feel sorry for you and that’s what you need to hear).
And apparently, Ms. Bennetts isn’t interested in blowing sunshine up anyone’s ass either. It sounds like she basically lays out the case that 50% of us are likely going to get divorced. Then there’s the sad percentage of us who lose our husbands too early in life for whatever reason. No matter which way you slice it, she argues that if you remove yourself from the workplace and rely solely upon your husband’s earning power, you are putting your own future and your children’s future at risk.
If your hubby abandons you for that slutty 23 year old in his office, and screws you in the divorce proceedings, and you haven’t worked for 10 years, what the hell are you going to do?
Now, there is a part of me that thinks we have enough to consider when weighing the pros and cons of working as a mom, if we even have the privilege to make that a CHOICE, which frankly most of us don’t, it does seem pretty doomsday-ish to consider the possibility of what happens if our husband leaves us high and dry.
But sadly, it’s also realistic. I believe it is prudent to protect yourselves, kittens, and to be aware of the ways you must empower yourself and your financial future – and it seems that Ms. Bennetts book, which encompasses interviews with moms across the country, does that.
I might be too cheap to purchase her book while it’s only out in hardback (afterall, isn’t there something new and cute from Madonna’s new line at H&M to buy?) but I’ll probably peruse it at a bookstore soon and then maybe pull the trigger.
Until then, I leave you with this interview with Ms. Bennetts and encourage us all to be realistic, it might seem dark but well, it’s just prudent, kittens:
http://parenting.ivillage.com/mom/workfamily/0,,bfw4zv4p,00.html?par=today|pp
