Journal of a Living Lady #341

Nancy White Kelly

If you see a fly on the wall, please don't reach for the swatter. It just might be me and I don't have that many lives left.

When folks allow me the privilege, I do enjoy taking a back seat and quietly watching and listening. One conclusion I have drawn is that everybody has an opinion. Here is mine.

It seems that the hobby of coin collecting is predominantly a man's world. You won't find many lady numismatists. The majority of the clients of Ye Old Coin Shop are senior-age men. I suppose the reason is because at the height of the coin collecting era, men tightly controlled the household finances while the wives raised the children and secretly stashed left-over grocery money in the sugar bowl.

Female pilots are still a novelty too though that is rapidly changing. Getting a pilot’s license isn’t rocket science. Know your clouds, read a few maps, study the FAA manual and practice for a while with a teacher. Graduating from Boy’s High seems to add points. Have you ever noticed what the front part of an airliner is called? The cockpit.

Collecting old coins for pleasure or profit isn’t football or rugby. Still it is considered a predominantly male hobby. It amuses me when customers assume that Buddy is the coin man and that I just bring his coffee.

My Buddy is a significant representative of the male gender, especially to me. If it were not for his physical labor and manly support, there would not be a coin shop. He, too, is a pilot and a much better one than I am. Just don't ask him the key date for the Walking Liberty half dollar or the closing price of gold today. Don't ask me either to wire your house or fix your dripping pipe. Common cents is more than copper Lincolns.

Just this week a friend whimsically remarked that things might have been different had there been three wise women instead of three wise men. For starters, they would have stopped and asked directions. They would have been on time. The wise women would probably have helped deliver the baby and, most certainly, would have brought more practical gifts.

The Living Lady is not a feminist. Far from it. Yet, I enjoy being a girl in a man’s world. Remember that Ginger Rogers did everything Fred Astaire did, but she did it backwards… and in high heels.

nancyk@windstream.net