And women say MEN are pigs?!

This picture has absolutely NOTHING to do with this post but please read on

I knew this girl Shamim back in Sixth Form who will remain partially anonymous and she asked me a bizarre sociological related question; "Are you a New Man or MCP?". I was a little confused by this and the way Shamim explained it was that a "New Man" was a man who believed in helping around the house or letting a woman take charge but of course that would mean you were gay. A man who believed in more traditional gender roles was known as a "MCP" or "Male Chauvinistic Pig" to be more exact. What kind of choice was that? Modern gay man or traditional pig? That event just proved 3 things to me; 1) sociology was a stupid pointless subject; 2) Shamim while being a bright and lovely girl was weir...erm...slightly eccentric and 3) men tend to be judged harshly by women.

I didn't answer Shamim's question at the time because she suddenly wrapped herself octopus-like in the arms of some bloke named A**r; apparently they were a couple, but I couldn't say. It's not as if I saw them EVERY MORNING in the Common room trying to conserve their body heat by holding each other tightly. I've gone off topic slightly but if given the choice again I would probably say I was a "MCP" and that if I ever was on a date (not that I would ever be) I would probably pay for dinner. I only mention this because I recently had a conversation with another girl I know who admitted something that shocked me to the core (well...not really but I found it mildly interesting). She told me that the only reason she went out on dates with men is so that they would pay for her dinner. She didn't care what they looked like  or what they did for a living; as long as they had enough money to pay the bill they were okay.

I don't want to give you the wrong impression of this particular girl so I'd like to point out the fact it wasn't as if she traded sex for food; it was strictly about the dinner. All the poor bastard was going to get was an evening of light conversation and some money out of pocket. The next time the guy tried to set up another date he will find that she is no longer interested in continuing the "relationship". Hopefully you won't think too poorly of her.

She even joined Match.com so that she could go on many more dates. Maybe Match.com should add a new category for its members; "Just looking for food". My biggest concern is whether this kind of behaviour is not unique to this particular girl and that there are many more women using men as a free meal ticket. What would you call these types of women? The term "Gold Diggers" wouldn't apply because they don't want you for your money. At least when Anna Nicole Smith got married to that old guy we knew why she did it and somehow that seems nobler than going on "dates"  with men for free food. Maybe it's just me but it seems rude and slightly cruel. To be fair when a man takes a woman out we all know what he's looking for; it's not exactly a state secret. Of course all I'm looking for is a loving and meaningful relationship (though as far as Shamim is concerned I'm still an "MCP"). And yes, I'm still very single...

The best part of her narrative was when she told me what she managed to get other men to spend (she was bragging a bit by now); $300 on Japanese food; $159 on Mexican; one guy spent $207 at the supermarket. What kind of idiot spends that much money paying for the grocery bills of a girl he had just met? And believe me this girl ain't THAT pretty; she's not really much of a Helen of Troy. Of course when it comes to behaving stupidly over a girl I'm a repeat offender; and people wonder why I have trust issues.

So in the future if I ever go on a date (probably won't) and the moment comes to settle the check, I'm going to be more of a "New Man" and just go Dutch.

Image credit:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/aphasiafilms/3931944/