Age is just a number...right?

Age is just a number!  Well, that is what people say.  I believe that age is just a number, as long as you are the male in the situation.  For a female, you are never in the right.  Never.  Ever.

I have always dated older guys.  I dated guys in college or past that my whole life.  My family was pretty used to it, for the most part, but I did catch a lot of flack from friends...and my sister.  One guy I briefly dated shared the same name as my dad, Gary.  He was 37, I was 18.  I found it strange to call him by his first name and instead used his middle name.  I told my sister about him and this is how the conversation went:
 Me- "Well, he's 37, and his name's Gary."
  My sister-"WHAT????"
 Me- "Well, I don't call him Gary, that'd be weird"
My sister- "What do you call him, DAD?"

After Gary, I met my husband.  He is 19.5 years older than I am.  When we met at a club, I was 18 years old.  He was 38.  All of my friends wondered what I wanted with an older guy.  Everyone assumed I was after his money.  Of which he had none.  Zero.  He had just been divorced and laid off.  I was obviously not a gold digger, but that is not how it was viewed.  Women eyed me suspiciously and made comments about me frequently.  Some people wondered if he was my dad.  Some even asked me if he was.  Overall, even after ten years, people assume I have some negative motivation. 

Meanwhile, Joel would be constantly praised.  "You are my hero" (fake bowing to him) "So, what's it like being with a girl so much younger?  It's like swimming in cotton candy, isn't it?"  Yes...that was actually asked of him.

A friend of mine was recently asked out by a guy in his 20's...and she is 39.  Immediately, the cougar comments started by her friends and coworkers.  For her to be looking at someone younger, she is viewed as a predator..some crazed feline with issues.  People tried to talk her out of it.  The guy, on the other hand, is probably getting high fives from friends for being with a mature woman.

So, if a female dates someone older, she is a gold digger and the man is praised.
If a female dates someone younger, she is a cougar, and the guy is praised.

Must be nice being a guy.

Can you rock a minivan?

I am 28.  The awkward in-between age where you sit precariously on the fence between youth and...well...aging.  My Town and Country van seems to mock my youthful mentality and tries to give me that final push over the fence. 

So, with a nice van with leather seats, navigation, swivel seats, and 2 dvd players, you know I have satellite radio.  Sirius radio is amazing and I love channels 2 and 3 (current hits), 9 (90's songs), 44 (rap), and the comedy stations.  I have the ability to hear so many amazing songs, many which make me dance a bit in my seat....ok, I dance a lot.  I do watch what is played when the kids are in there with me (it starts getting weird when your 4 year old sings "I'm only getting started, I won't black out") but what about when I'm alone?  Do I look like the woman in the clip below?

http://youtu.be/xGr21_8vA8A  Watch :32-:37
  This to me is a classic example of when rocking the minivan is so so wrong.

Do you listen to what you want and keep the windows rolled up tight?  For now, I choose to avoid looking at people and do what I want.  I am a mom, but I'm still me.  However, I promise that when I exit the van, "Juicy" isn't plastered across my rear end.  That to me is going too far.