Come out of the closet and into the light.

@snapster https://meh.com/forum/topics/morningsave-mystery-boxes
Not much to see there, though…meh

@f00l
thank you for getting the point.
I really didn’t expect anyone to say they were a cisgendered male who was pansexual and femme.

But gender stereotyping is a hot button in so many ways. It’s a label. and maybe not your label or my label but it sure as hell was the boxes label

@Cerridwyn I actually know a cis, pansexual man with some femme traits and behaviors, and he is gorgeous and a sweetheart and one of my best friends.

But I acknowledge my rather queer social circles are relative outliers as well.

@f00l Yeah, I couldn’t care less for girly things. I have no need for makeup brushes, lipstick and things along those lines.

I mistakenly chose the fem box in the past and I just took the entire thing over to my vet’s office and let the kids there have at it. Nothing I wanted. Waste of money.

@Kawa
Not at all!

@Cerridwyn Oh no, you don’t understand, it’s literally queerer than the median because we met at a bisexual support group.

@Kawa
Sweet!

You might be surprised where I have met people

@RiotDemon I identify as a techie so now what?!?

@RiotDemon That would be better. I sure wouldn’t be buying one labeled for women. I’d just be putting a match to my money based on the crap morningsave sells geared at stereotypic women. Do not like or use makeup, facial masks, ugly jewelry (I do like nice jewelry but that is not what is sold there), and all that other crap (no offense to those who like that stuff and thank you my kid the bathroom at my house looked like the make up section at walmart) that is marketed at women there.

@Kidsandliz my wonder is… If they made a jewelry box, how would you determine what goes on it. There is jewelry geared towards men and stuff geared towards women. What would you call it now? Pearls and sparkles jewelry? Bracelets that fit large wrists? Thin necklaces and bangles?

I don’t know how to navigate it nowadays. We are breaking down the norms, so I’m guessing we need new categories.

@Kidsandliz @RiotDemon Yeah, that’s why I suggest they break it down further. Some examples:

The Ninja Intelli-Sense Blender Duo (CT641) Mystery Box! $89

The Vitamask Fruit Mask Machine with Bonus Age Defying System Mystery Box! $24

and

The 22” Neoway Charcoal Kettle BBQ Grill by Cadac Mystery Box! $60

I really think this strategy would solve pretty much every issue people have had with the MorningSave Mystery Boxes.

@Limewater @RiotDemon Maybe you need to google the definition of mystery?

@Kidsandliz @RiotDemon
I’m not sure that stereotype is valid anymore other than in advertising

@eonfifty

strictly apart from considerations of inclusiveness (which matters), rather simply considered as a marketing method:

Do you, or anyone you may know, actually want mystery boxes labeled “for men” or “for women”?

I don’t.
Apart from ethical and social concerns, if someone labeled the mystery items that way, their ideas of what is useful to either gender are unlikely to coincide with mine.

I already don’t want what is in either box. I simply don’t want any “mystery items” that seem to call for classification in that way in order to market to some idealized and standardized consumer.

And that’s quite apart from considering the gender & social politics.

Everytime I get something that is obviously a “generic gift for a specific gender”, I don’t want it, can’t use it, I usually never take the plastic off, it goes to Goodwill eventually.

And seeing such unnecessarily gendered advertised or display items annoys me.

At least, in the Neiman Marcus annual Xmas catalog, each year’s famously spectacular and special “His & Hers” gifts normally consist of two identical or nearly identical extravagantly luxurious or ridiculous items.

His and Hers camels
His and Hers personal submarines
His and Hers islands
His and Hers meditation pods
Or whatever.

@eonfifty @f00l I’ll take the personal islands please.

@eonfifty @RiotDemon

You do have to pay NM for these.

NM does offer its own charge card, if that helps.

I know of a local very very nicely heeled family who bought the camels.
Way way back way when.

They had many acres. That helped.

@eonfifty @RiotDemon

Note.
The store used to be Nieman-Marcus.
Complete with hyphen.

Someone pointed out to me that store removed the hyphenation long ago, but I think long after Stanley Marcus had retired.

So, on Meh, I don’t use the hyphen.
But locally I do use the hyphen. And so does everyone I know.

The store never got the “local regulars’ permission” for the change.
So we locals refuse to acknowledge the terrible “management error”. : )

(Btw I was not in the demographic that shopped there, except during seasonal sales or for very notable occasions. But the store was and is fun just to gawk at.)

(And the FW store still serves the most wonderful popovers with flavored butter.)

@f00l
Yes.
Ok.
Ok.
Ok.
Ok.
Ads that work aren’t going away. Be less annoyed and more observant.
(Dot)
No comment.

@f00l @RiotDemon
I read somewhere that all the good islands are taken. The rest have sandfleas.
/image sandfleas

@f00l @RiotDemon
A “Hers” Camel at least: $4,125 in 1967. Or maybe it’s a unisex camel.
http://mentalfloss.com/article/89283/stories-behind-12-outrageous-neiman-marcus-holiday-gifts
/image his and hers camels 1967

@eonfifty @RiotDemon

sandfleas

Supposedly even the private island Brit aristocracy retreats of Mustique and Necker were pretty much “pure humid mosquito horror” when first purchased by the people who made them into what they are now.

I think you gotta put some serious work and serious money into creating Paradise.

@eonfifty @RiotDemon

A “Hers” Camel at least: $4,125 in 1967. Or maybe it’s a unisex camel.

The people I know of who bought a pair so many years ago (for “Texan roaming decoration”, not for breeding), would have thought of that price as being no more than pocket change.

When I was young, sometimes when we drove that way, we saw the camels hanging out, looking pretty tranquil.

Cool that you dug up that photo.

@eonfifty

Yes.
Ok.
Ok.
Ok.
Ok.

Ok!

Ads that work aren’t going away. Be less annoyed and more observant.

I’m quietly annoyed when I notice them. That’s all. Usually I don’t notice ads.

No comment.

Ok. N/C!

/giphy no comment

@f00l
It’s a really nice photo, but it’s been cropped. A reverse image search suggests the original had a lot more sky. It was on the Neiman Marcus blog, but it’s no longer available

@eonfifty @f00l
Sex sells
hot bodies sell

@eonfifty @f00l i and my guy could use his and hers personal submarines.

@CaptAmehrican @eonfifty @f00l To go to your his and her personal islands. Right?

@Cerridwyn What changes would you make? I’m thinking every product offering could be assigned a “likelihood value” of being purchased by a male or a female customer. This value could be obtained by way of a poll or survey presenting random respondents with a product and asking if the product is best intended for a man or a woman. I understand gender is complicated for many people, but if I am any indication of the general population of consumers, gender is not that complicated for most people. Barring an expansion of one’s gender knowledge, I think most people will think in terms of masculine and feminine, and male and female, hence my simplified poll choices.
Once a product has a gender score, which can be reevaluated at any time by way of the same randomized polling, advertising can be tailored to the target consumers.
In regard to this specific bundled product offering, my idea is unlikely to be relevant because there is a market for male products and female products, and to the best of my limited knowledge, that is the biggest market.
Certainly businesses can do so much more to foster causes, but businesses can also stifle causes if it’s profitable. The fact @snapster replied to your forum topic publicly seems to say a great deal about Meh and suggests they are more a fostering website and less a stifling one.
/image website Pomeranian

@eonfifty @snapster
I have no issue with their being male/masculine or female/feminine boxes. But there should be a ‘gender neutral/irrelevant’ box as well.

It would not contain a purse, makeup, girdles (snicker). It could easily contain a speaker dock (eye roll), a knife, a phone stand. (there is probably a good chance most of the male boxes are gender irrelevant but doubtful that any of the female boxes are).

@Cerridwyn @snapster
Good idea!
/image neutral Pomeranian

@Cerridwyn @eonfifty @snapster
I’m glad you clarified - I was thinking neutral would be more of a “surprise me” type box, with equal chances for makeup and electronics.

You’re asking for more of a Unisex style box?

@eonfifty @snapster @Thumperchick
yeah although that term is not very common in many circles anymore.

@Cerridwyn @eonfifty @snapster @Thumperchick

I think it’s common enough in marketing/product-description lingo.

Usually referring to commonly gender-designated or gender-marketed items such as clothing and personal care stuff.

@f00l

/image Pomeranian Kindle oasis 1

@f00l

Ok I meant this to go into the deals topic.

Apologies.

/image zero brain

@f00l do you want me to delete it?

@RiotDemon

The thing is, I posted this deal to both the Feb book deals topic and the Feb general deals topic.

And instead of re-posting the entire deal, I just posted a link to this post that’s in the wrong topic.

So … If this post gets deleted, then the Oasis contest link info needs to get added to the posts in the book deals topic and in the general deals topic.

Which seems like a huge pain.

If you want to do all that …

I guess it would be cool.

But you shouldn’t have to.

Actually I should have a brain. But I was sneezing at the time.

@f00l
I didn’t win it either
/image meh Pomeranian

@f00l
/giphy you may already be a winner

I also did not win and now have to figure out how to unfollow an author.

Edit: you can unfollow authors by visiting your profile page. It’s actually very easy.