Periodically, we get a bout of articles online making the extremely clever assertion that the modern man isn't any longer manly, because some absurd percentage of modern men are now more comfortable ironing than maintaining a car.
Bloody idiotic, it is.
Here's the thing: ironing has not changed appreciably in the last forty years - take a hot flat plate, and run it over slightly damp fabrics that are placed on another flat surface. The flat surfaces press the clothes flat, while the combination of the heat and the dampness cause the fabrics to 'set' in their new uncreased configuration.
By contrast, car maintenance has changed significantly. Once upon a time, the internal combustion engine was a marvel of engineering, but was fundamentally something that could be taken apart, understood, and put back together. Nowadays, the modern car engine has a hundred different functions controlled by an onboard computer that is sensitive to its environment. Messing around with it without knowing exactly what you're doing is a sure way to run into trouble. Beyond fairly simple maintenance, there's actually not that much the layman can really do.
That said, there's very little excuse for anyone (man or woman) not being able to either iron a shirt or change a tyre.
6 comments:
Dear Steffen,
Congratulations on your new "about me" section.
I do feel, however, that it fails to take into account the modern, hexadecimal system, as outlined by your good self.
I personally hate cars and ironing, but am significantly more at home with the humble iron than with a... [insert complicated part of car that I don't even know the name of here].
Hmmm...
Thank you Kris. I have decided to abandon the hexadecimal system, as it turned out that Molly found it difficult to understand.
Alas, I am only a girl, so I can't understand much. I know my place (thank you Harry Enfield) and I don't dare attempt to engage in anything I know nothing of. Therefore, I can't and won't change a tire. I can, however, check my oil, but it doesn't mean that I do.
Like I said, I am merely a girl and therefore think only of kittens and giggle delicately when appropriate.
Ah, I have offended you. I do apologise.
Although... I'm not sure quite how. I mean, your comment at the time did seem to indicate you hadn't quite gotten the 'hexadecimal' joke, and I'm reasonably sure there wasn't anything sexist in my post.
I'm not offended you twonk! Actually, I am just about to do a post in your honor, so look out for it!
Clyde 1's breakfast show (Clyde 1 is a radio station) were, this morning, doing a thing on "what makes a man attractive?" I was quite interested in what assertions would be made; whether they would confirm or deny stereotypical views of what women look for in guys. But then I reached work, so I didn't get to hear. Bit of a useless comment really.
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