Jette wrote, in the Cookie thread, "(Don't even get me started on how the Boy Scout equipment was always a higher quality than the Girl Scout stuff. *grumblegrumblegrumble*)." That reminded me of a woman friend of mine who's very fond of mountain hiking with her husband but complained that all the really good and useful hiking shorts are made for men whereas the women's shorts look pretty and somtimes fit better but are of poorer quality and very limited functionality or versatility. She wants shorts that are made to fit a woman's body and are also as good as those made for men. What are some other examples of goods that could be made for both sexes but either are only made for men or made for women but with inferior quality, unreasonable or unattractive "features," and/or less variety?

-- Anonymous, March 19, 2001

Answers

Health care.

-- Anonymous, March 19, 2001

I've never thought about it.

Don't dry cleaners charge more to clean a woman's shirt?

-- Anonymous, March 19, 2001

That's what I've heard, Shelly.

-- Anonymous, March 19, 2001

Mennen makes both "Speedstick" and "Lady Speedstick" deodorant. Fragrance and packaging aside, they are identical products. Lady Speedstick, however, is only available in one size (SMALL), while men's Speedstick comes in two sizes: regular-sized (bigger than Lady Speedstick) and large-sized. And guess what? Lady Speedstick *costs more* than BOTH sizes of men's Speedstick.

Isn't that nice!

I use men's "Fresh Scent" Speedstick, as a result. Stupid sexist Mennen.

-- Anonymous, March 19, 2001

Most clothing stores hem men's pants for free. In college (esp) there have been numerous studies where male students get more time to present their thoughts, more feedback from the profs and more "credit" for their ideas so, in some respects, education.

-- Anonymous, March 19, 2001

Well haircuts, but I guess women's are generally more complex. Razor blades. I always buy men's Schick. I bought some swimming goggles by TRY or something close to that that were supposedly made for a women's smaller face. They put unnessasary crap on the nose piece. But, what really pissed me off was their packaging that said "you won't break your fingernails putting them on." Like any serious swimmer would really give a care.

-- Anonymous, March 20, 2001

Shaving gel...Men's is ALWAYS cheaper. And you can get a 12oz (with 20% more free) for the same price as a womens 8oz. So it smells a bit more manly. works the same.

-- Anonymous, March 20, 2001

The Gap sales racks.

If you look on the men's sale rack, there is always a style of pants from the previous season marked down to $4.99 per pair. I have never seen any jeans marked down lower than 9.99 on the women's racks. And believe me, I've looked.

And this is a personal gripe: I have tiny feet. Because I can wear the large children's shoes, I always go through them, too, when I'm shoe shopping, especially in places that don't carry shoes smaller than size 6 (like the Ladies Foot Locker here!). Children's shoes are so shoddily made that it's a crime. I cannot tell you how many times I have put on kid's shoes and they were absolutely painful, with big, knotty seams that dug into my feet. It so pisses me off, because when a child complains about shoes hurting, you automatically think it's a size problem rather than badly made. Payless Shoes are the absolute worst about this.

And socks are a whole other issue.

-- Anonymous, March 20, 2001

Hey, Robyn, how do Stride Rights (sp) fit? They're expensive though.

-- Anonymous, March 20, 2001

Shoes...women's are cut down versions of men's, that is why the arch support is under your heel...

Bike seats...made for narrow butt bones...have some kids and find out where your butt bones REALLY are! Love a bike seat up the bum!

Jobs...most jobs for men pay more still to this day. It may not even be said outloud...behind closed doors the subject of 'his' family comes up...who cares about her family, she's got 'a man' to support her. Wanna' know why I stay home? It costs more to pay a babysitter than I make!

-- Anonymous, March 21, 2001

condoms.

-- Anonymous, March 21, 2001

A lot of athletic clothes are like that. I couldn't find a lined jacket for running in cold weather until I went to the men's section of the sporting-goods store. Then I found a bunch ... all too big for me.

All you have to do is look at the layout of any sporting-goods store. The men's shoe section is three times as big. The men's clothing section is nearly twice as big. I had to go to several stores before I could find weightlifting gloves in my size that weren't a cutesy pastel color.

Sometimes the clothes aren't made, but sometimes a store just chooses not to carry the stuff. I couldn't find Ryka brand shoes, which are made specially for women, in nearby sporting-goods stores and had to drive across town for them.

Last year Old Navy offered sports-themed onesies (one-piece baby clothes). There was a blue one with picture of a boy in a football uniform and "The Jock" written underneath ... and a yellow one with a picture of a girl in a cheerleader uniform and "The Fan" written underneath. Because, y'know, females don't do any sports, right? We just cheer.

Oh, and one more thing designed for an average man's size and not a woman's: office cubicle setups. There's no way to make my workspace ergonomically correct for someone my size (5'2"). They're designed for taller people with longer arms. The chairs are the same way ... the arms don't drop down far enough.

-- Anonymous, March 21, 2001

Seat belts.

-- Anonymous, March 21, 2001

Shelly, I heard that too. I watched Oprah one day and she gave us tips for dry cleaning, when a woman takes her shirts to the dry cleaners, simply state it is a man's shirt. Heck for all 'they' know I could be a drag queen...lol.

Razor's...mens razors work better than womans too. Whats up with that?

-- Anonymous, March 21, 2001

Men's shirts button differently than women's do. There buttons are on the other side, so I would assume a dry cleaner would know the difference.

-- Anonymous, March 21, 2001

Their! Damn non edit function!

-- Anonymous, March 21, 2001

You don't interact with adults in the real world much, do you Shelly?

-- Anonymous, March 21, 2001

Nah, I just hang around with people like you. It's really exciting.

-- Anonymous, March 22, 2001

If men's stuff is cheaper and works just as well for me, I buy it. I own several guy shirts, including a posh black velvet button-down that rocks. Perhaps it was intended for an effeminate or extra- stylish guy, but I don't care.

I used to like the lime-scented Speed Stick, actually, back when I was wearing fragrances that parfumeries laberl as "green / woody" scents because it didn't clash as much as "girl deodorant". ;)

And guy razors aren't pink, thank god, so they are the ones for me. I hate pink. I hate pastels in general, actually. I don't want a fat, stubby, sparkly razor! Give me a nice black and silver razor with heads that pop in and out any day. I have managed to shave my legs for eons now without cutting myself, so I don't think a special ergonomic pink razor is necessary for me to reach my utmost potential for happiness.

What I hate is how we color code babies and little kids. I particularly dislike how many toy companies think that all little girls groove on fuschia, pink and lavender--I don't care if some do, it's the assumption that ALL little girls like it that chaps my ass. I despise both and always have. Hell, I cried when my parents moved and I had a Pepto Bismol pink rug in my new room. It made me physically ill to have to be in that room, surrounded by a sea of vomitty pink. I'm not keen on yellow, either.

I think men would have a point if they complained about posh ladies' rooms, myself, though I'd be happy with less poshness and more stalls (and toilet paper in the stalls, thank you!).

-- Anonymous, March 23, 2001