Why do women cook and clean while men simply watch football on Thanksgiving?

[Haole Girl]

This isn't the case in every household, of course, but it's a trend I've noticed.

Anyone care to explain this to me?

:shrug:

p.s., In my next life I'm going to be a man.

[ccharles000]

1. Football sucks

although they have nice butts

[Haole Girl]

5. They do, don't they?

:-)

[Rabrrrrrr]

2. Because women don't tell the men to get off their asses and help.

The men in my family DO help - because the women finally got tired of it, and said, "Either you help clean, or you have no big celebration."

[Haole Girl]

7. Well, it's just me and 4 guys for this Thanksgiving...

and I am *not* doing all the clean-up after dinner!!

[Rabrrrrrr]

13. Then tell them that. They can't live up to an expectation unless they know it exists.

[fizzgig]

37. that was my answer

everyone in my house helps

[matcom]

3. it is your duty

shuddup and bring me more turkey pot pie!

:D

























:hide:




















:scared:

[Haole Girl]

8. Where would you like your pie?!

:rofl:

[matcom]

17. in my penis if possible

i'm a MAN!

DUH!

[taterguy]

4. Because men know how to spell "Why"

And don't you dare edit since I've taken the time to call you out on your typo

[Haole Girl]

9. Thanks. Fixed.

I'm a little tired from cleaning and cooking. :eyes:

[Lydia Leftcoast]

6. I'm glad we no longer have those kinds of gatherings in my family

but if I were hosting such a dinner, there would be a rule: "I don't care what stupid football game is on. I don't care if it's the Angels of Heaven versus the Legions of Satan. I've hidden the remote and it stays hidden until the dishes are washed and put away and the kitchen and dining room are clean."

I hate that "women in the kitchen while the men have fun" mentality.

No wonder I'm not married. I think men can sense from a distance that I would enforce such a rule.

[Haole Girl]

11. Ah, thank you!!

Great strategy! :hi:

[Fire Walk With Me]

10. I'm bringing a book this time, so I'll have something interesting to do

when "sports" begin.

Now pro hockey, I'd watch. Expecially DETROIT RED WINGS. Everything else is anathema.

[Haole Girl]

12. My sis-in-law calls them "wing dings"

I think that's so funny. :hi:

[Fire Walk With Me]

19. Snicker.. I can laugh at myself...

So long as they understand "Multiple Lord Stanley's Cup Winners Wing Dings" :)

Have a great holiday!

[leftofthedial]

14. typecasting

[Haole Girl]

15. No it is not.

I specifically said in my OP that is not the case in all households.

Go pick on someone else. I'm not in the mood.

[leftofthedial]

39. whoa.

please let me remove my piss from your wheaties.

I (a male) am the cook in my house, but in the past, in my extended family, it was definitely typecasting. I wouldn't have wanted the men anywhere near the food preparation. Cleaning, on the other hand, should be a team effort.

Happy Thanksgiving. I get tomorrow off (except for potatoes) for the first time in four years. But I do not plan to watch football.

Peace.


(I'm not sure why my reply made you mad. I'm sorry. I sincerely do think that in most households, the answer to your question is ingrained gender roles.)

[Haole Girl]

45. Sorry

I thought you were accusing me of stereotyping, over-generalizing, or painting with a broad brush. It seems like whenever I start a thread like this someone jumps on me & accuses me of inventing the issue and wrongfully stereotyping.

Happy Thanksgiving to you, too.

[leftofthedial]

57. no worries!

Have a great holiday. All the best to you and yours, whoever does the cooking, cleaning, couch potatoing and football watching.

[redqueen]

16. Because the women in those situations put up with it. (nt)

[Deja Q]

18. They're saving up the energy for the inevitable make-up sex that follows the big argument?

[MrCoffee]

20. Tradition

It's how it's done.

[Ikonoklast]

21. I'm the one that does the cooking here.

I raised my three kids by myself, working two and three jobs without one nickel of support from my ex.

I did it all, and did it by myself. I do the cooking, the cleanup, the whole nine yards.

If you think being a man makes things magically easier, I say go for it.

But you will be sorely disappointed.

[redqueen]

24. Well... it does make one thing easier.

But that wasn't mentioned in the OP.

[Haole Girl]

43. Ikonoklast-

I'd like to explain what it's been like being female in our society. First of all, I'm short. Not that some men aren't short. But most men are not. I was so short, in fact, they asked me if I'd like to be held back a grade in 3rd grade. Correction-- they were going to do it until I stood up for myself and said I refused to stay in 3rd grade another year, just because I was short, and I was just as smart as the other 3rd graders. I was allowed to continue on to 4th grade with my classmates.

Being short & a woman, combined, has held me back from the basic respect I'd earn if I was a tall male (from first impressions to missed opportunities). I am convinced of it. Has anybody ever said, "What a cutie you are!" the very first time you met them? Just think about it. It's a tough gig. And it's not getting easier as I get older.

I have a friend who moved to Cincinnati. He's living downtown. When I asked him if he was nervous about going out at night by himself, he said "Why?" and added, "I'm a tall, big, male."

You know... the grass is always greener on the other side. I'm sure there are difficult things about being male I can't even imagine.

I'm sorry you had to raise 3 children by yourself. That's a rotten deal, no doubt. And I truly hope your children appreciate the sacrifices you've made for them. Hope you have a good Thanksgiving & that neither you nor I have to do more than we can handle. :hug:

[madinmaryland]

22. I'm a guy and I prepare the dinner for Thanksgiving, and most other meals

also.

She gets to clean the mess up!!!

:evilgrin:

[MichiganVote]

23. Um...cooking can be fun and I like it. I cook, they clean up. We share cutting up apples for the pie

and chopping onions and stuff. We have fun.

Try it, you'll like it.

[billyskank]

25. I have no TV and no woman

I guess I'm SOL.

[hedgehog]

26. Becxause some women would do anything to get out of watching football?

[cloudbase]

27. It's a biological thing.

Women have smaller feet, allowing them to stand closer to the sink. Thus it has always been, thus it will continue to be.






















Happy Thanksgiving, y'all!

[Lil Missy]

33. ......

:spray:


Sounds like something an obnoxious and sexist male co-worker told me one day. He said the reason women should be secretaries rather than men is because women have more "padding" in their butts and can sit for longer periods of time.

He was serious. :eyes:

[DarkTirade]

28. ... yeah, that's never happened in my family.

Ever.

[rug]

29. The penis gets in the way.

[trof]

30. Custom

And that custom is changing.
Today I smoked a ham and a turkey breast.
Tomorrow my buddy will deep fry the turkey.
OK, it's kinda 'guy stuff', but we're contributing.
;-)

[JuniperLea]

31. We all do what we do best:)

:hide:

[Kali]

32. because basically those kinds of men could care less what they eat (get fed)

so if those kind of women want to do a big meal and have it cleaned up immediately (something I just do NOT get) they get stuck doing it.

Personally I would rather "cook" than watch football, and besides it's closer to the booze!

About the only real advantage to being a man is you can pee standing up.

[pokerfan]

42. ding ding ding!

That's it! It's just not that important to me to have a big fancy dinner. Couple of years ago it was just me and my nephew. We got Chinese takeout, watched TV and drank beer. If people want to go all Martha Stewart and it makes them happy, more power to them.

[NewJeffCT]

34. That's not how it works in my family

I don't trust my wife's cleaning, so I do most of it.

she cooks more than me, though, and neither of us really watch football.

[tismyself]

35. So the house won't burn down, silly.

[littlebit]

36. My mother hates football

and my dad doesn't know how to cook. My dad does help clean but only after the Cowboys game is over.

[pitohui]

38. well in my case because football is boring/passive and cooking is creative/active

seems to me that the guys have the worst of it here, they are just watching something happen, they are not making anything happen, altho the clean-up is admittedly not the best part of the day

for a lot of women the holiday feast is "showtime"

[HarukaTheTrophyWife]

48. Whatever, they watch it because football is infinitely better than cooking and cleaning up

Especially, the cleaning up.

[DerekG]

40. The women in my family don't want us in there

They take pride in cooking. My ma flat-out said: "You'd just slow me down, honey."

[cemaphonic]

41. I hate football, and if I waited for my wife to do the dishes, the sink would probably collapse.

She does tend to do most of the cooking when we host Thanksgiving, since she enjoys entertaining and family gatherings, but I cook most of our regular meals.

I'm going to have to echo the others that say it's because the women in those houses allow it.

[old mark]

44. I told my wife this is because women are better suited to that kind of work.

And that in primitive societies, women worked whild men sat on their butt and gossiped and drank what ever they had instead of beer.

She can be very rude when she is angry.

I'm living in the car now.
The old car.

mark

[Shine]

46. In OUR house, the man makes the turkey, the stuffing and the gravy

AND cleans up! :D Yup, I married a keeper.

I handle the green beans, the mashed potatoes, the cranberry sauce (out of a can) and the wine.

:rofl:

I also help w/ cleanup, for the record. This year, we're only up to 10 people, total. Not too bad.

:hi: Happy Tday!

[Aristus]

47. In my household, my wife cooks and I wash the dishes. And nobody watches football.

Not a football fan...

And each of us is better at our respective tasks. I can wash dishes like nobody's bidness... B-)

[WritingIsMyReligion]

49. I would vastly prefer to watch football.

Fuck cooking and cleaning. :D

[Whoa_Nelly]

50. You need a new tradition

He cooks and cleans, while you and bestest sistergirls watch chick flicks and drink wine ;)
(i bet Midlo would come over. You could play Bunco, too! :evilgrin: )

:hi: KC2! :loveya: :hug:

[Haole Girl]

52. lol!

Hi Whoa_Nelly! :hug: :loveya:

[AlCzervik]

51. not at my house, i cook and my husband and daughter clean up.

[Missy Vixen]

53. I love football

The meal is OVER by the time the "main" football game comes on. This year, we're DVR'ing because we're going to someone else's house for dinner, and my beloved Seahawks are playing.

Julie

[lizerdbits]

54. My dad usually cleans up after dinner

And my BIL does most of the breakfast cooking. Once my dad walked in the kitchen to when my mom and I were cooking and said "Love to see those women in the kitchen!" (He was being a smart ass, it's not his true opinion.) We reminded him that we have total control of what he was going to eat that night. }(

[Ellen Forradalom]

55. Because we live in a patriarchal society

Trite but true.

[seemunkee]

56. Not in our family

My mom wouldn't put up with it and my brother and I are passing that attitude to our kids. Everyone helps cook, everyone helps clean

[gemdem]

58. I've done Thanksgiving with all the trimmings for years

Did the grocery shopping the other day. Baked two pies today. Will get the bird going tomorrow morning, and will still need to prepare the beans, mashed potatoes, cranberry relish, two kinds of dressing, and if I'm up to it (mainly because I like it) a Waldorf salad.

And I'm the guy... :D

I'd better call it a night -- the morning comes early.

[hippywife]

59. Well, in my house it's because

I love to cook, like things done a certain way, and it's very nerve-wracking having my other half in the kitchen cooking. He did make two pumpkin pies tonight and that's about all I could stand.

[Connonym]

60. Hell in my family the women even get stuck footing the food bill

My mom, my sisters and I buy and cook all the food. We do all the cleanup and my brothers take away bags full of left overs. Basically we subsidize their food for at least an entire week. It's really pissing me off this year because my budget is tight and my sisters and I each spent at least $100 and a lot of time making the food. Meh, plus I have to work 12 hours tonight and 8 tomorrow. I'm feeling like a really crabby bitch and quite honestly I'd just as soon skip the whole damned holiday.

[rcrush]

61. Eat Thanksgiving dinner on paper plates

With plastic forks and knives. And just have a big 60 gallon trash can to throw everything away in.

[Kat45]

62. That's how it was in my house when I was growing up.

It always pissed me off. I did my best to avoid joining in when I could. The men would always fall asleep when they were watching football (and even worse, golf). I'd sneak over an change the station, and they'd inevitably wake up and yell at me when I did.

[BrklynLiberal]

63. I had this same exact discussion this afternoon with a girlfriend of mine!

The men sit and watch TV/Football. The women, after having done the cooking, sit in the kitchen or Dining room, clean up and talk about whatever....