Less than a week ago, baald first introduced the term metrosexual on birdhouse (“guy who is into fashion, interior design, cooking, but is sexshully straight).” I thought it was funny, probably the result of some joke floating around his office.
Then today in Salon, Sheerly Avni declares death to all metrosexuals! (They cook better, dress better and decorate better than we do.”) As it turns out, Salon introduced the term in July 2002, Meet the Metrosexual.
The typical metrosexual is a young man with money to spend, living in or within easy reach of a metropolis — because that’s where all the best shops, clubs, gyms and hairdressers are.
But as is eventually revealed, the term originated in 1994. So the interesting bit is not that the word has suddenly renewed currency as it is that I am completely and totally out of it, not having heard it blurbled until last week.
Not wanting to feel like a hodad, I scan my life for signs of metrosexuality. I’m a cargo shorts-wearing webmaster. I trudge from baby/wife to webmaster job and back again, day after day, squeeze in some email in the wee hours. Not much energy left for hair stylists or gymnasiums. But I did catch myself recently bemoaning the fact that Barney’s serves American mustard, Dijon mustard, and Grey Poupon, but no stone ground mustard. How can a gourmet hamburger joint not have stone ground mustard? It makes no sense. Poupon too tart, Dijon too sweet, American too plain. Then I find that we are running out of Stone Ground at home, freak out, ask Amy to pick some up at Trader Joe’s, she reports that TJ’s doesn’t stock stone ground!
Am I righteous here, or merely displaying metrosexual tendencies?
Describe the metrosexual in your life.
