The Meaning of Lila by John Forgetta and L.A. Rose for August 18, 2023

Annie likes a challenge.

Gender is overrated anyway.

And you wouldn’t want to, believe me.

Not so much killing them with kindness but disarming them with a solid punch to their ego. While smile while they drink in the pain in your eyes.

Having taught high school and waitressing at a bar on weekend so I could support my kids on a teacher’s salary—- Men get into fights very quickly and for little reason, because they have a need to look macho, like they are not backing down from a fight. Usually, both participants are glad when they are broken up.

Women consider it unladylike and embarrassing to fight physically, and are quite happy with the psychological damage they can inflict on each other. When they actually get into a physical fight, they have lost their minds and are not going to be happy until the other person is dead.

My husband has a different take on it. He says men do the gorilla dance. Beat on chest, lots of noise, fighting to show off and breaking off when needed. Women go for the kill. They rarely go physical but when they do there’s no rules and no pulling back. When he wants to be funny he just raises a finger and says: “There’s no old saying about papa bear, but plenty about mama bear.” That’s usually then that I get him with the pillow.

Or grandma Middleton.

I have never understood why he’s surprised that Annie’s a girl — whenever was “Annie” a boy’s name?