I'm No Dummy

As a feminist (cue eye roll), I believe that anything a man can do, I should be able to do that as well. This argument easily goes to one extreme or the other, the most common example I've experienced is sports, namely football and basketball. I am not super athletic, and I won't lie and say that women's basketball is at all interesting to me. And I really don't appreciate Lingerie Football, it's insulting. But, if I wanted to play football or basketball, I should be able, no, encouraged to, and have the same opportunities and respect that a man would have. This amazing world of ours allows for so much success, yet there remains a drastic double standard between women and men.

It's the littlest things that bother me most. I was an avid hiker in Colorado, and since moving to Ohio, I've given up that pastime. One reason was that all of Ohio's state parks are about 90 minutes away, and the other was that I didn't have a hiking buddy. Anything can happen: twisted ankles, bear attacks, bad people who want to hurt you...so I didn't put myself in the situation. Everything you read says not to go alone, but I finally got pissed and figured, if guys do it without a second thought, so can I.

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Even though a man could go hiking in the woods for hours without a second thought of what might happen to him, I'm not a dummy, and I understand that although I disagree with this double standard, I recognize the world we live in. Bad things do happen, and as much as I wish it weren't the case, it wouldn't behoove me to turn a blind eye and pretend nothing bad can happen to me. I believe people are inherently good, but that doesn't erase the few that are the opposite.

This is not to be misunderstood as blaming the victim, but you still have to be prepared so as not to put yourself in danger's way. So I researched the most-visited trails of Hocking Hills and mapped out where I wanted to go (mind you, I still got lost, but I had a general idea of where I needed to be). I visited Dick's Sporting Goods and picked up a rape whistle and Mace. I packed plenty of water and snacks in my super-cute Nike backpack, and I. Went. Hiking. This seems like such a small feat, but taking control to do something I used to love so much is so empowering. I got a couple funny looks from others who couldn't understand why I was hiking with a small canister of Mace death-gripped in my hand; but that was a small price to pay for a feeling of safety and control. I ended up hiking 3 trails for a total of 7.5 miles, and I can't wait to do it again.