Are you a lady?

[Jane101]

Up until now, I've usually tended to refer to women of about my own age as "girls" but, having just had my 39th birthday, I'm wondering if that's a bit sad. "Woman" sounds a bit impolite, somehow, and "lady" is maybe a bit silly, when refering to a 30 something year old (except when talking to ds). I remember reading an interview with Julia Roberts who said she didn't think of herself as either a woman or a lady but "somewhere between a chick and a broad".
What do you all do?

LOL at "some wifey", Toothache!

Does it mean a female person who is no longer a teenager? If it does then maybe we should all start saying that instead of lady (which is what I always used when my kids were small) - "mind that wifey!"

Girl. But I am only 20.

Loathe lady, especially when used by a man. It contrives to sound patronising - don't know why.

Woman sounds like an old bag lady to me so don't like that either.

Will settle for girl. As long as it isn't said in a patronising way, I quite like it. makes me feel young still whilst I know that at 40, I have really passed the young barrier.

I don't know what I say. Will have to listen to myself and find out .

If you are talking to your child and you want them to get out of someone's way and that someone is an adult female, you have to say "Mind the lady" because the alternative, "Mind the woman", sounds really rude. Why should that be? If it was an adult male, you would say "Mind the man" and it would sound fine. "Mind the gentleman" sounds like something out of Jane Austen!

DD1 distinguishes between 'girl' (or rather 'gel', in Sarf lunnon accent)'person' (adult woman) and 'boy' (for male of any age)

In inner city Dublin they say "mind the woman" Lonelymum!

My friend's 2 year old refers to men as "masters" and women as "ladies". I think by these terms it means that anyone who holds these "titles" needs to be shown respect and politeness at all times - for example daddy is not a master!

Chipmonkey, yes but I can hear that being said in an Irish accent, and that doesn't sound too bad actually. The Irish have a sort of down to earth-ness about them that makes calling an adult female a woman OK.

No, I'm not a lady.

I'm a smelly male lorry driver with hairy hands.

I have been meaning to tell you all, but the moment was never quite right.

lol @ masters!!!

I am not sure what I am. I do know that I am not a mummy though.
I was informed this by the 5 yr old I used to look after.
"are you a mummy?2
"yes"
"you aren't because you aren't married. and you aren't 40"

My dd seems to think mummyhood and marriage go hand in hand too. (Not that I disapprove of that).