Feminist Pub 17: The Bluestocking frolics in the fells and fens of feminism

[AKnickerfulOfMenace]

This is the 17th incarnation of the Feminist Pub!

Here be goats, cannons and chat on feminism and related themes. Also snacks. And booze, copious booze.

Welcome!

Indeed Puffins, there is a good book by Richard Gathorne-Hardy about nannies which says that many Victorian/Edwardian adults were still closer to their nanny than to their parents, because she had been the main person in their lives when growing up.

In the 16th century royal children had their own household almost from birth, and would have often been apart from their parents for long periods of time. Poor Mary didn't see Catherine of Aragon for years at a time, though of course that was Henry punishing Catherine for not giving up the marriage.

You see it frequently in novels eg bridesheqd revisited iirc they go to visit nanny and it's v significant

I haven't posted in the pub before but wanted to show everyone this quite amusing review of 50 shades of grey movie from the wonderful Lisa Wilkinson without starting my own thread. LW, for those who don't know, identifies as a feminist and has spoken about the pressure she is put under by viewers wrt looks and outfits - her co host was the one who wore the same suit for a year.
video link from womens weekly

HI digger!

Yes Buffy, which is where Catherine Howard got involved with Mannox (her music teacher, when she was about 13) Dereham (who she had 'relations' with and then appointed as her secretary) and Culpepper (who succeeded Dereham in her affections, and who she considered marrying, and then went on to meet after she married Henry vii)

The Dowager Duchess was also imprisoned when Catherine Howard fell, Henry believed she should also have been put to death, but she was eventually released.

(not a historian either, just an enthusiastic and bored amateur)

And Annie, I've just read that you're moving day is imminent. Good luck with it all. Hopefully you've done the sensible thing and got actual removal men in to do it, rather than having to pack, load and unload everything yourself into a tiny van even though you've assured DH that it won't all fit in

Removal people, Puffins. Don't be sexist!

Yup, Tuesday. Our first move with actual movers!

lol! Well slapped there.

Drink lots of tea, sit in luxury and watch people work around you. It's stressful enough without having to actually do things.

Actual movers are fantastic (fondly remembers a team of people scurrying around the house wrapping and boxing stuff while I wandered round with a cup of coffee directing them with waves of my hand).

We used removal pods for our last move though, which was good because they're cheap to store while you get the new place sorted (rather than having one, huge, chaotic moving day)

Has anyone else read the paternity leave blog article on the blogs bit - God that boss has a good attitude, and then the comments under are the normal British small business whataboutery.

Tell a lie, it's a guest post apparently..

Well, we're too cheap to fork out the extra £200 for packing, and I'm an unemployed layabout with nothing better to do than pack boxes for the next few days. So while all the heavy lifting will be done by Other People, I'm afraid I can't just sit and drink tea all day. Today I am Sorting Out the Kitchen Cupboards. Ah, don't I live the life of Riley!?

You always vow that you'll take the time to throw out the junk while you do it, but everyone breaks on the 3rd day and just chucks things randomly in boxes

Then you have my sympathy. I have packed our house up 6 times in the last 7 years. It sucks. I would recommend wine, or mainlining gin.

Ouch, Puffins! That's lot of moving!!

Even though we're ruthless with clutter because our house is so small, there is still loads of crap. And I can tell you, Chunky, with great smugness, that I have spent the last 2 weeks going through every cupboard and room in the house and throwing away all the crap. So nyah!

Anyway, enough horror stories, I hope your move goes smoothly and without incident, and that you and your family settle quickly in your new home. May it always be an oasis of peace and warmth for you.

Thanks Puffins. Though this house is a scruffy stop-gap rental while the sale on our proper oasis of peace and warmth goes through! But we love our new village and I can't wait to get there and start making friends. This may be the last place we ever live! Which, given how often I've moved in my life, is a mind-boggling concept!

I am currently mainlining mini eggs.

Annie I'm doing the same with a 'sharing' bag of minstrels. As if sharing was an option.

Can I ask for help please? Following the conversation the other day about secretaries, I have an interview next week for what is essentially a secretary position (though different title). I really want the job, and I know I've got the skills and experience they need, I'm just cacking it a bit as haven't gone through the interview process for a few years now. So... what would you like to see at an interview for a new secretary? Anything you would be looking out for in particular?

Can you get someone to fake interview you, hoppy?

I have had three coffees in 5 hours. Zing!!!

Yep, husband is going to help me with that (he's spending the next two weeks at work interviewing people, so it's a bit of a busman's holiday).

hoppy good luck! i don't know about others, but the ability to anticipate, mitigate against and solve problems, as well as putting in place strategies to avoid them happening again, is hugely valued in admin staff in my organisation

ooh also, if it's a big organisation, if you're good at making contacts and developing relationships with people internally who can help you solve problems and answer questions is really helpful. so "if i don't know the answer i know who will" iyswim

Having previously worked as a secretary for many years, and having recently interviewed for related roles: there will probably be questions about how you would prioritise a set of work requests from different people. And how you make sure the daily set of tasks gets done. But I won't suggest any answers to these questions since I seem unable to land a job. Aside from mentioning initiate and proactive and useful words like that that tell the interviewers you won't have your boss having to tell you how to do your job every minute of the day like poor OublietteBravo above.

Oh, and chunky, I'm sorry your question above about the paternity leave guest post is being ignored - I do need to read that post. Getting men and employers more on board with extended paternity leave is a huge issue in my mind. More men taking it, and there being an expectation that men are just as likely to take it as women will help to balance various inequalities in both the workplace and the home IMO. So it's a very important issue.

Yup, agree. Practically speaking, until employers have nowhere to run and men are as likely as women to take leave, there'll be discrimination