Female role models

I know you were all wondering, and yes, I am a feminist. Not a particularly good one, I will try to eye flirt with a bartender to be served faster (and fail), I'm not above that. But, a feminist nonetheless. My second year politics professor said it best "a feminist is simply a person who believes women deserve equal rights to men. It doesn't mean women deserve more than men, it means equal. I'm a feminist!!". There is a chance he meant to say "feminine" because that he was, but you get the point. Equal rights y'all!

When I was growing up the female celebrities I looked up to were not exactly "idol" worthy. The fact that I was looking to celebrities for guidance was also all kinds of wrong, but hey, we're all teenagers once, it happens. I looked up to women like Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen. Who, now, are badass awesome chicks. But at the time of my worshipping MK could be described as an anorexic drug fiend. That is not the kind of role model for an insecure fifteen year old girl. 

In a conversation with my dad, he asked who each of us would invite to dinner given the chance. The idea was to figure out which famous people you think you would mesh with. My dads answer was easy, as he had thought about this before, but mine took a bit more thinking. The majority of people I would want to invite are dead; Jimi Hendrix "so I hear aside from being the best guitar player of all time, you're actually a really cool dude, let's be friends", Jesus "are you real?", Hitler "what the fuck man?!" Our conversation ended with me being not completely sure. 

Our talk left me thinking about it for a little while after. I mean, if something like this were to materialize, I would need to be prepared. There were, of course, my obvious picks: Conan O'Brien, Jack White, Judd Apatow, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Johnny Depp (I apparently like J named people), Woody Allen and Donald Glover. But then I realized, despite worshipping, (oh and I mean worshipping) an onslaught of various male musicians (and females- I just gravitate towards men a little more), the rest of my dinner party consisted of females. 

The women I would love to sit down and chat with, or rather, listen to them chat while I sit creepily at the side and note their every word, giggling and guffawing when appropriate, would include: Lena Dunham, Mindy Kaling, Kelly Oxford, and Tina Fey. If you'll notice they all have a few things in common. 

1. They are all writers. Mostly comedic writers. These girls are funny. They are witty, clever and well written. 

2. Smart. With funny comes intelligence. A lot of people don't make the link but it's a fact (I made it a fact). The smarter the person, the better chance they have at being funny. Note: the Situation (I don't know his real name, the annoying guy from Jersey Shore with the abs) at the roast for Donald Trump. Intelligence matches hilarity. This is clear here. 

3. They are all hardworking. Crazy hardworking. Kelly Oxford has three kids, and seems to be writing non-stop; for TV, movies (I think) and book that comes out in April! Not to mention her very funny twitter (that I promised myself I wouldn't mention because she is so much more than her twitter, but now I have, so, sorry). Tina Fey starred on SNL, wrote and directed a movie, started a TV show all while raising a daughter! Mindy Kaling completed school (where she kicked ass) went on to pursue her dreams and ended up interning with Conan, started writing for the Office, has a book and her own TV show! Lena Dunham is an all around all star: writer, producer, director. She writes movies, 'Girls', essays all while going through her 20's! These women are constantly busy creating and succeeding.

These are the type of women young girls should be looking up to. I wish I had when I was fifteen. I hate to use the term "real" women because it makes me sound like a Dove commercial, so I'll say "non-artificial" women. These ladies are non-artificial women! That sounds bad. Whatever. These awesome ladies are the type of take no crap from no one, get work done kind of people I find myself looking to now in my wiser years in my twenties. Good, smart, funny, hardworking women. And, I'm glad to see I'm not the only one.

For the first time (that I can think of) it seems as though women are finally getting the foreground they deserve. Girls CAN BE funny! Women ARE smart! At last there are actual female role models who are receiving the attention and praise that a good portion of sort of, male role models receive.