Just an observation. There are no empirical, evidence based samples or charts with snazzy graphics to back this up. There is simply my in-the-trenches experience and anecdotes provided by others with whom I have shared my story.
Apparently, having two X chromosomes makes you impervious to barf.
Case in point, I was in a room of over one hundred children when one of them began to vomit. The XY members of adulthood that occupied my space, stepped back, (one with hands literally in the air in the universal "Not Me" pose). Another adult pushed the industrial, custodial-sized bin in front of the ill child and stated, "Um, she's throwing up."
Now I don't know this child, but I do know that a child barely topping 60 pounds and four-ish feet, cannot effectively make use of a receptacle that stands at nose height and outweighs her by ten or more pounds. Nor is it fair to ask a child, already queasy, to stare into the maw of a trash bin filled with a building's worth of lunch leftovers. This would not do.
I grabbed paper towels for the little one's face and began to move her to a better spot. Other adults in the building, as we encountered them cleared the path for us, opened doors, etc. And in my largely female dominant workplace, it makes sense that many of the assists were from women. But it made me wonder, how would this have gone down if my double X was not in the room?
I have heard numerous stories from new parents about nascent fathers who say "But you're a girl! You know how to do these things...(diapers, spit-up, etc.)" And our own Mr. Unscripted who has gone into burning buildings and served as an EMT; who has seen traumatic injuries that I beg him not to retell anywhere near the dinner hour or table, can be quoted as saying prior to the birth of Sister Big, "Alright, I'll change the diaper, but if she spits up on me, I'm gonna lose it." (And to give him his due, when the inevitable "spit happens" moment arrived, he did pull his parenting breeches all the way up and handle it with minimal gagging. And I'll be honest, when the dogs have had an accident in the house, I'm always grateful when he is here to handle it as I am a hot mess of heaving, retching, gore if left to my own devices.
So perhaps, XY can handle things outside the body that shouldn't be when there is a genetic link? I just don't know.
In thinking about the two adults in the opening of this post, if we were under threat of violence, I know that they would likely be the first to take on a traditionally male protective role. So it isn't that they are weak or passive. While I don't pretend to understand how a man who can face down a potentially armed intruder can be undone by vomit, I will go on record as saying that given the two, you take the bullets and I'll get the barf every time.
While this may seem a sketchy topic for Valentine's Day, I promise there is a connection. Be grateful for the people with whom you have surrounded yourself, romantically or otherwise. For each time you shake your head over the fact that you are, (possibly again), handling the bilious things life has thrown at you, remember that on any given day, these people might be the ones who would take a bullet for you, or in some cases, provide your bail money. Be grateful for your own superpower and know that the person nearest you just may not have had the opportunity to show theirs yet.
Apparently, having two X chromosomes makes you impervious to barf.
Case in point, I was in a room of over one hundred children when one of them began to vomit. The XY members of adulthood that occupied my space, stepped back, (one with hands literally in the air in the universal "Not Me" pose). Another adult pushed the industrial, custodial-sized bin in front of the ill child and stated, "Um, she's throwing up."
Now I don't know this child, but I do know that a child barely topping 60 pounds and four-ish feet, cannot effectively make use of a receptacle that stands at nose height and outweighs her by ten or more pounds. Nor is it fair to ask a child, already queasy, to stare into the maw of a trash bin filled with a building's worth of lunch leftovers. This would not do.
I grabbed paper towels for the little one's face and began to move her to a better spot. Other adults in the building, as we encountered them cleared the path for us, opened doors, etc. And in my largely female dominant workplace, it makes sense that many of the assists were from women. But it made me wonder, how would this have gone down if my double X was not in the room?
I have heard numerous stories from new parents about nascent fathers who say "But you're a girl! You know how to do these things...(diapers, spit-up, etc.)" And our own Mr. Unscripted who has gone into burning buildings and served as an EMT; who has seen traumatic injuries that I beg him not to retell anywhere near the dinner hour or table, can be quoted as saying prior to the birth of Sister Big, "Alright, I'll change the diaper, but if she spits up on me, I'm gonna lose it." (And to give him his due, when the inevitable "spit happens" moment arrived, he did pull his parenting breeches all the way up and handle it with minimal gagging. And I'll be honest, when the dogs have had an accident in the house, I'm always grateful when he is here to handle it as I am a hot mess of heaving, retching, gore if left to my own devices.
So perhaps, XY can handle things outside the body that shouldn't be when there is a genetic link? I just don't know.
In thinking about the two adults in the opening of this post, if we were under threat of violence, I know that they would likely be the first to take on a traditionally male protective role. So it isn't that they are weak or passive. While I don't pretend to understand how a man who can face down a potentially armed intruder can be undone by vomit, I will go on record as saying that given the two, you take the bullets and I'll get the barf every time.
While this may seem a sketchy topic for Valentine's Day, I promise there is a connection. Be grateful for the people with whom you have surrounded yourself, romantically or otherwise. For each time you shake your head over the fact that you are, (possibly again), handling the bilious things life has thrown at you, remember that on any given day, these people might be the ones who would take a bullet for you, or in some cases, provide your bail money. Be grateful for your own superpower and know that the person nearest you just may not have had the opportunity to show theirs yet.
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