Susie

 "I wish that more clothing options rejected the unicorn-flower-heart motif. This just seems like a celebration of meekness. My son has power tools on his clothing. Why won't my daughter wear a power-tool print?"

My neighbor gets a far-off look in her eyes. "I have an answer," she says. "When my mother died, I became very, very interested in shopping. Very interested." This sobering memory seems to take hold of my neighbor, seems to render her mute. Then she continues.

"You can trick your daughter into wearing STEM outfits. There is a company that celebrates autonomy, research, ambition--but everything is done in shades of pink and purple, so it's acceptable to a kid."

I have nothing against pink and purple; they're just colors.

My daughter now wears STEM dresses. She (mostly) likes them. And I realize I'm not fully consistent with my social-justice crusade. For example, today, I'm seeing "Moana 2," and I'm already regretting that there won't be a romantic subplot. I don't need Moana to fall for a man--make her a lesbian!--and the point is just that romance is interesting. People do odd things when they are falling in love. Can't Moana have a STEM adventure *and* a weird, amusing courtship? Would a Beatrice/Benedick story really "set us back"?

I'll never be fully satisfied. Susie has this trait, as well. Yesterday, I took her to a penguin exhibit at the zoo. "It's fine," she said, "but where are the mermaids?"

Like father, like child.