Know Thy Self

This morning on my walk for fitness, I noticed three types of women walking the streets of Hoboken: the Solo Athlete (I'm using the term athlete VERY loosely since I am including myself in this category), the Working Woman, and the Out and About Mom.

The SAs I spotted this morning ranged from thin to fat and were walking, running, rollerblading, and biking. What is interesting about the SA is that she could also fit into the WW or the OaAM category, too; she could be getting in her morning fitness before heading into the city or while her husband is watching the babe before he leaves for work. Or she could fit into neither of the two categories; she could be a teacher off for the summer, unemployed, a trust fund baby, or retired.

What I noticed about the SAs collectively, is that they (we) all looked focused and a bit miserable but it was obvious that the misery stemmed from exertion and therefore was ephemeral and thus excusable.

The misery on the faces of the WW was a different sort of misery - one that stems from walking to either work or to the train garbed in office wear (some of which, I must add, was exquisite and covetable). The problem with working in an office during the summer is that it's 94 degrees and miserably humid outdoors - hence the sleeveless blouses and modified sundresses - but 63 degrees and absolutely freezing indoors - hence the sweaters thrown over aforementioned blouses and dresses.

That's just one of the reasons, I'm sure, that the WW look miserable. There are much more pressing reasons that I can easily infer to explain those looks, such as, well, working, period. Add office politics, dropping a child off at daycare, not getting enough sleep the night before because said child is colicky (sp?), working in a field that inspires no passion, etc.

The OaAMs (I refuse to call them Stay at Home Moms anymore because the majority of moms who choose to be with their children instead of working never seem to be at home - they are always out and about running errands, shuffling the kids from here to there, taking the child to the park, etc) had a different look on their faces altogether. Yes, there were a few with looks of pain spread across their visage however those looks seemed the result of a temporary set back, such as a diaper issue, etc.

Instead, most of the OaAMs had a bit of a twinkle in their eyes that seemed to say, "I can't believe this is my life - I can't believe I'm walking to Washington Street to grab a coffee and then am meeting up with some friends at the park while all of these unfortunate ladies herd themselves onto a PATH train and are shuttled like cattle through an underground network to the pen where they will be contained for the day".

Of course many of the WW would argue with the OaAMs and many of the OaAMs would argue with me that she wouldn't or would change her situation if she could, which makes me sad because obviously those women don't truly know themselves well enough to have chosen their paths correctly.

I, on the other hand, know myself so damn well that you will never hear me complain once I have a baby and make a choice between being a WW or an OaAM because I'll be blissfully happy and sure of that choice because I know myself so damn well.

Of course I'll do A LOT of bitching on a day to day basis about bits and pieces of my day that are a result of that choice, but bitching is just apart of my personality, as you all know. Mark my word, however: once I choose, you will NEVER hear me complain on a regular or even an irregular basis about which job I've chosen and I invite you to call me out on it if I do.

I can't wait to be an OaAM someday soon - I mean yeah, I wish I didn't need to actually give birth in order to become one of them but unfortunately, Matt won't budge on that point.

Oh, and just a little disclaimer - everything stated above about the OaAMs, well, that only applies to those with only ONE child, possibly two and NEVER to those with THREE or more, which is, like my dear friend Erik always says, a no - no: NEVER LET THEM OUTNUMBER YOU!

I will be having just the one, thank you, unless - dear lord - Matty comes from a family with multiples in the genes and if that is the case, make sure to check out the Etsy shop I'll be opening to view the advertised custom listing for one (or more) half Greek, half WASP baby(ies) for sale.