I Posed A Question

I’m not a big social media player, but I do have a LinkedIn page, and I enjoy Instagram and Twitter. I have Tweetdeck open and handy almost all day to feed me news, and once or twice a day I respond to a Tweet I find there.

Most often, I try to capitalize on my Tweets by responding to something on an account that has thousands of followers. I get a good number of hits, sometimes four or five hundred if I remember to use a trending hashtag.

When the success goes to my head, I test the waters and post my own, solo Tweets which, I think are quite profound, artistic really, humorous sometimes and always relevant. And that’s when reality bursts my ego bubble. If I’m lucky I might see a disappointing seventeen hits on my masterpiece by the end of the day.

So, I jumped on the tail of The Washington Post comet when I read an article, through a Twitter link, reporting that men just don’t feel “manly” when they wear masks, and there are things we can say to bolster their masculinity and reassure them that masks are not a sign of weakness. Yes! Things we can say because, while public health is a concern during this pandemic, it can’t override men feeling threatened.

I posed a question. Honestly, it was me venting via a Tweet, my gut reaction to an expectation that has been foisted on women for centuries — whatever you do, for heaven’s sake, keep men happy!

I struck a nerve and discovered I’m hardly alone in my irritation and amusement. I had never seen so many hits, likes, and retweets since I complained about Instagram’s boring new logo several years ago. I’ve even received a few “Yes, we are that fragile” confessions.

Look at that! Over one hundred thousand hits! Reaction went on strong for a couple of weeks. It’s now a month later and my question still has some traction.

Can I duplicate and build on that success? Believe me, I’m still trying to figure that out.

In the meantime, men, based on the comments that came my way, you do need to wear a mask.