Discontent Diaries

I’ve seen some folks online express frustration recently by using statements like:

I am so over Howard County.

Or, was it:

I just can’t even with Howard County.

But one comment I spotted, left as a review of a local nonprofit, takes the cake:

They do nothing to help the real housewives of HoCo.

That’s when my whole train of thought went off the rails. Who are the real housewives of HoCo?

True Confession: I have never watched even one moment of any of the “Real Housewives” shows.  I didn’t watch Desperate Housewives either. Perhaps I don’t like the term “Housewife”. I know I cringe when people call the dramatic play area in a classroom “Housekeeping.” (Maybe that’s just me.)

Here is your question of the day, dear readers. Who are the real housewives of HoCo? What qualifies them to be “real” and what constitutes a legitimate “housewife”? The HoCo part is pretty straightforward.

If ”housewife” means not having gainful employment outside the home, I wonder how many of those we have these days. And, of those, do we think any would fit some archetypal “Real Housewives of HoCo” mold? 

There are many ways to be a housewife, even if there aren’t as many of them as there used to be. You could be married but unable to work due to a disability. You could have young children, need work, but your earning potential wouldn’t cover the cost of childcare. Everyone’s picture does not look the same.

Clearly I have way too much time on my hands right now. But I wonder if it’s a mistake to try to define who is real and who isn’t.