We just don’t want to date YOU — I didn’t think I’d be writing about this again so soon, but (some) men just won’t stop with their lukewarm takes on “what women want”. Never mind that they’re drowning out the women desperately trying to clarify exactly what we want. Because obviously, they know better than us, right? So…

People are LYING to you. Don’t be taken in. — I joined Medium in 2020. So, not exactly an old hand, but I’ve been here long enough to know the lingo. I’ve seen a lot of people conflating Medium membership with the Medium Partner Programme lately and at best, they’re confused; at worst they’re trying to con you. …

Why there isn’t always a choice to be made — I’ve noticed a common theme developing in discussions around people who are childfree by choice lately. Alongside those calling us weird or selfish, more complimentary voices are emerging—those who want to thank us for our sacrifice. It’s a positive step, but this narrative is also deeply problematic. Here’s why. It’s…

Should I? — I read something that other day that really got on my wick. In it, the author opined that people who are childfree by choice are all psychologically damaged by the “guilt” we feel over being so “selfish”. A lot to unpack there, huh? I know we’ve all debated a hundred…

He fundamentally misunderstood the stalker-stalkee relationship — Ding! A notification shook me from my Sunday afternoon reverie. A Facebook friend request, years since that had ceased being exciting and instead become a portal to creepy old men and Nigerian princes desperate to send you a fortune, if only you could loan them your bank details. But it…

“It could be worse” — yes, I could be repeatedly kicking you in the balls right now. Oh, wait, I am! — As a lover of languages, I’m usually interested in the origins of famous phrases. With these ones, however, I’m more concerned about their destination — hopefully in the bin, with the rest of the rubbish. “Everything happens for a reason/the best” This is the biggest bit of proto-Christian bollocks I’ve ever seen, and I’ve read The…

Free the corporate nip! — As a boob-haver who doesn’t own a bra, dressing for the office is a delicate operation. I’m aware that occasionally, the nub of a nipple might show through my thinner jumpers — aircon, am I right? — but I do try to take steps to mitigate exposure. One must protect…

Partly from a childfree-by-choice perspective — Perhaps it’s just down to the demographic of writers I follow, or maybe it’s the season (we have just had Menopause Awareness Week after all), but I’m reading a lot of reflections on menopause lately. The symptoms of peri-menopause sound particularly awful, though as someone who’s freezing cold all the…

Especially not one who describes himself as such — If there’s one thing I really, really hate, it’s people speaking for me or putting words in my mouth. This is especially so when the person doing it has no idea what I think or feel about anything or is making a sweeping generalisation about “all women”. And so to…