by Melissa Lee (a.k.a. LilaMae)
Unless you’ve been living under a rock the past few days, you are aware of something known as “elevatorgate“. Since clearly every last human being on the planet has posted their comments on this issue, I have been seeing many, many comments from men asking [if I may paraphrase] “Well am I now not allowed to do this or that?” or other expressions implying they are now afraid of what is ok to say or do. I feel for these poor souls & would like to help if I can. I know it’s not a clear-cut issue and can be very puzzling.
So I decided to ask some of my skeptic male friends if they had any questions they would like to ask me as a woman about what’s cool & what’s not. So yes these are actual questions from actual men I know personally. Please don’t judge, I give them full credit for having the guts to ask what they might get chewed out for elsewhere.
Now, I’m not saying I’m any kind of feminist ambassador or anything. I’m just giving answers from my own personal perspective. I hope they are at least somewhat helpful..even with a lil dash of my signature snark. 
Remember, men, we don’t hate you.
(Oh, also remember, I speak frankly here. Very frankly. Be prepared. That’s all I can say.)
When and where is it appropriate to pursue women romantically?
In a bank line. On Tuesdays. But only on Tuesdays. Between 7:30am and 10:15am. Happy dating.
Ok, seriously you can’t possibly expect a clear-cut answer on this, dear, I’m sorry. That’s just the nature of the human mating dance. It’s not our fault. Blame the millions of years of hominid evolution.
I will say this, stop searching for tactics that will work. It’s not about tactics. Forget tactics. You’re not at war. It’s much worse…you’re trying to date. Women will be confusing to you always (for reasons why, see above), yet billions have somehow managed to mate..go figure. For me personally, nothing turns me off faster than a man who is blatantly obvious in his contrived spiel to woo me. Are you trying to get a woman to like you, any woman? Or are you trying to get me to like you? I’d like to feel there’s something special about me that sets me apart from other women that you genuinely feel compatible with.
So again I’m sorry to break it to you but the art of the romantic pursuit is a nuanced process so complex and arbitrary it can’t possibly be explained in words. I’m going with the fortune cookie answer – Let your conscience be your guide in all things. It’s true, people.
If single women aren’t looking for potential mates, what the hell are they doing at functions with like-minded people? Merely to expand their circle of friends?
Ok let’s start with off with why that anger isn’t going to help you in your romantics pursuits. Um, yes anger & resentment..not a good way to start things off…doesn’t get any woman’s panties wet I’ll tell you that.
And to answer your question, YES. You see, women don’t think about sex all the time or at least not nearly as much as men do. We are not hyper aware of potential sex partners all around us. Think of yourself at a baseball game. You’re focused on the game not what the dudes are wearing, I’m assuming. Well pretend any social event for a woman is a baseball game and the presence of potential sex partners as important as what those sexy steroid juice-head hunks are wearing like you give a shit, right?
I know it would be much easier if we just walked by you and sprayed our scent on your crotch and show you our engorged labias to indicate we are ready to mate but that’s never going to happen.
When a woman is interested in you, you’ll usually know it. And if you can’t tell, she’s either not into you or she’s perhaps one of those women that loves to play games in which case you don’t want that dummy anyway…we hate those bitches too. Don’t encourage them.
Can I look at your chest if you’re wearing a low-cut top?
This may surprise some but yes. I think I’d be a hypocrite if I said no. Just please be discreet about it. Don’t stare. Get a sense & look away, agreed? Can we make that the social contract?
It rarely happens but sometimes a dude is so obvious I want to whip out a ruler and politely ask, “I’m sorry, would you mind if I just measure your penis real quick? I just want to see what you’ve got packing.”
Can I speak to you on an elevator?
No. I would think that would be clear at this point. You may never ride an elevator with me. Men must forever take the stairs henceforth. I’m sorry but that’s how feminism works.
7/10/2011 Additions…
Is it ok to hit on a woman while she is at her job( think of jobs like retail, in the service industry, etc.)?
I would say no in most cases. It’s putting a woman in a position where she has no choice but to talk to you. How would you possibly know if she likes you if she’s paid to have to serve you. Well…you know what I mean. If you’re really interested in a girl and she’s at her job, politely wait until her shift ends and then follow her to her car later to ask for her number. And when the blinding sting of mace wears off, realize that I was being sarcastic.
But if you think you’ve found the love of your life and you just can’t let this one go without trying to make a connection, ok fine. Who am I to step in the way of true love? Just remember what I like to call the four “F”s -
1. be friendly
2. be fast
3. be self-effacing
4. get the fuck out of there
If a woman is friendly with me, does that mean she is interested a relationship?
No. No. And no. You are in creepy guy territory. Beware.
Guys get this wrong ALL the time. You have to stop this way of thinking right now. Women will be friendly and smile and show what you in your horny primate brain think is romantic interest, but she is just being polite. That is how women are. We are – surprise – wired differently! Vive la différence, right? Well that means you have to take the good with the confusing. Women evolved to use both sides of our brain simultaneously, that’s going to make us a little more complicated than “You man, me woman, we go to bed.”
Look, let’s be brutally honest here. We have within the skeptics community a slightly higher percentage of socially awkward people. Many are clearly on the autism spectrum. Well, some of you may have to face the cold brutal fact that you may not be ready for dating. If you can’t pick up on the subtleties – which, really are the an essential part of human relationships – you are not going to be successful in any romantic endeavor. If you think you may be completely lost because of your social difficulties, you may not wish to look to women necessarily first for pointers, but to men who do have an easy time with women and seem to “get it”. I think these men could help by taking on a greater role in helping those who are struggling to get it.
By the way if you’re a dude who is intensely frustrated & angry about women, obey what nature has been trying to tell you in the first place and kindly remove yourself from propagating the gene pool.
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More Q&A will be posted as the questions come in. I’m still waiting to hear back from some of my male friends. Feel free to ask a question in the comments section.
Tags: elevatorgate, feminism, sexism
