Dear Tell All: Your recent advice to Late Bloomer about finding dateable men in Madison was really sexist ("A Bachelorette's Complaint," 5/16/2014)! Your suggestions included volunteering at a hospital, where she could find a doctor who meets her requirement of being able to fix a faucet.
As a registered nurse who works at a fine local hospital, I feel obliged to first point out that volunteering at an acute care facility (you know, where sick people go) with the express purpose of finding a date is insensitive, unrealistic and a bit immature. Secondly, you assume doctor = man, but a large number of doctors are women nowadays. And none of us go to work just to get dates, shocking as that may be to Grey's Anatomy fans.
If you insist on directing women to a place where sick people receive professional medical assistance to find a man who can fix a faucet, perhaps you should direct her to the engineering or maintenance departments. It is most certainly a poor assumption that a cardiothoracic surgeon has the time, skills or inclination to repair a faucet.
A Local Nurse
Dear Local Nurse: With all due respect, there's nothing wrong with volunteering somewhere -- even a hospital -- in order to meet people. That's called being part of a community. Late Bloomer would be helping people in distress and, just maybe, finding a man she can relate to. Where's the crime in that?
I don't see the sexism in my reply. True, a lot of doctors are women, but some of them are men, right? I didn't think I needed to spell this out, but I guess I do for you. Given the fact that Late Bloomer is a heterosexual woman, she would focus on the males.
And I must say that you're taking the reference to "fixing a faucet" too literally, Local Nurse. Late Bloomer was just trying to say that she desires a mature man, in contrast to the overgrown boys she's met so far in Madison. Rather than harrumphing about what a cardiothoracic surgeon will or won't do, I encourage you to be more compassionate about people looking for love in a professional setting. I guarantee there are a whole lot of them working at your "fine local hospital."
Do you have a question about life or love in Madison? Write Tell All, 101 King St., Madison, WI 53703. Or email tellall@isthmus.com.