The deadly truth about a world built for men – from stab vests to car crashes

Andy

Andy

Retired committee member
When broadcaster Sandi Toksvig was studying anthropology at university, one of her female professors held up a photograph of an antler bone with 28 markings on it. “This,” said the professor, “is alleged to be man’s first attempt at a calendar.” Toksvig and her fellow students looked at the bone in admiration. “Tell me,” the professor continued, “what man needs to know when 28 days have passed? I suspect that this is woman’s first attempt at a calendar.”

Women have always tracked their periods. We’ve had to. Since 2015, I’ve been reliant on a period tracker app, which reassures me that there’s a reason I’m welling up just thinking about Andy Murray’s “casual feminism”. And then there’s the issue of the period itself: when you will be bleeding for up to seven days every month, it’s useful to know more or less when those seven days are going to take place. Every woman knows this, and Toksvig’s experience is a neat example of the difference a female perspective can make, even to issues that seem entirely unrelated to gender.

For most of human history, though, that perspective has not been recorded. Going back to the theory of Man the Hunter, the lives of men have been taken to represent those of humans overall. When it comes to the other half of humanity, there is often nothing but silence. And these silences are everywhere. Films, news, literature, science, city planning, economics, the stories we tell ourselves about our past, present and future, are all marked – disfigured – by a female-shaped “absent presence”. This is the gender data gap.
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https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2019/feb/23/truth-world-built-for-men-car-crashes
 
Not particularly deadly ;) but inconvenient. :rolleyes: 6 foot tall plumber installs shower for 5 foot 2 inch woman. Can't be moved as he's drilled into the newly installed expensive tiles. :mad: Theoretically the shower head is movable up and down, :rofl: but even the lowest possible placing is too high for woman to stand under comfortably. :grumpy: Even worse when sitting on shower stool. :cry:

Have to unhook shower head from holder and spray body while holding it - knackering. :arghh: And also awkward as really need 2 hands just to get the shower cream out of container (pump action) so where do you put the shower head while getting the cream? :whistle:

Liable to spray water all over bathroom despite glass shower screen if you put it down. So it's grab between knees to free both hands. o_O So by time finished shower have sore arms from holding spray for rinsing and sore thighs from grasping shower head to get cream! :eek: :arghh: :dead:

So this is why I usually bath at home!
 
I'm male, only 5'7" these days, and I've never seen/had a shower I didn't have to crouch under i.e. one I could stand up in.

Odd, that 'standard' seems to be so non standard, I'd suspect that a mistake was made and the fitter didn't want to pay for new tiles/work, so claimed it was at a 'standard' height.

Or maybe I'm just a git ;)
 
I have a low profile shower with a stool so bought a specially long shower rail. Had to go to the hospital and came back to find installer didn't have a part so decided to get on with things by putting up the rail without consulting me. Yup, if any 8 foot men need a shower we are always available. Had to get a stick on shower head holder from Home Bargains so I can reach. "Luckily" I can't manage myself any more so don't need it but really!

Oh and the thing about men too.
 
My wife hung up our full-length mirror, with the result that when I look into it the top of my head is missing. I bang my head on the extractor fan when leaning over the cooker ... guess who told the people who installed it how high that should be? Every time I get into the shower I have to slide the shower head up so I don't have to stoop under it. When I use the kitchen sink I have to lean forwards in a stooping position which makes my back ache. The only time I get a break from banging my head or stooping until my back aches is when I leave the house - now that is to be taken away from me?
 
I know your pain @TiredSam, 190cm (6ft 3") here.

In my case the (average male height) plumber had to take out the nice new shower tray, redo all the pipework and lower it, because when I stepped up into the shower my hair was brushing the low ceiling and there was literally no room for the shower head :laugh::laugh:

To make matters worse I now have inflammatory arthritis in my thoracic spine, which makes all those little leaning forwards actions we do every day really great fun...
 
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