Last week, BuzzFeed ran an article about women's worst mansplaining experiences. Members of the BuzzFeed community then shared their worst mansplaining stories in the comments section. Here's just a small sample of the things women have had mansplained to them.
1. Their hair color.
I have natural red hair and a man once told me that my hair was not natural because apparently my roots were blonde and there is no way anyone could have my hair naturally. My sister and i have the same color my dad did when he was our age.
2. Where national parks are.
My boyfriend at the time vehemently disagreed with me that Yosemite National Park was in California and insisted it was in Wyoming even though he'd never been there and I had.
3. How C-sections work.
I had a man tell me that having a C-section was the easy way out. Then he told me race car driving was hard because "you can get really hot in there."
4. And how menstrual cycles are supposed to operate.
My boyfriend tried to explain my menstrual cycle to me. He insisted periods happen every 3 weeks and if I got them every 28 days something is wrong with me.
5. How the military functions.
I once got mansplained about how the military works — while I was in the military for four years. Oh, and him? He had joined but voluntary released after a month because he couldn't pass basic training. Cool.
6. HER OWN DAMN ESSAY.
I was in a college course and this guy tried to mansplain my own essay to me. My. Own. Essay.
7. How to build a robot.
This guy (incorrectly) tried to tell me how to follow blueprints to construct a simple robot, and the teacher took his side. Meanwhile, I'd been in an engineering program for four years. The guy dropped it after one.
8. How to install a server.
I was responsible for setting up UNIX servers for my company's Western region. I had successfully installed 36 servers from "out of the box" to production and completed my area ahead of schedule. The project manager sent me to Texas because they were short-staffed and running behind. They had not successfully set up a single site. Sitting with their guy troubleshooting why their plotter was not working, looking for a particular settings file the system needed. Guy tells me how to display the file names EVERY TIME I change directories. My servers are working, theirs are not. I was sent there to help THEM, but even if I'd never seen a server before, he wouldn't have to tell me how to list files EVERY SINGLE F***ING TIME!
9. Women's body hair.
A guy tried to mansplain how women's body hair somehow smells, but men's doesn't.
10. How graphic design works.
My mom's ex-boyfriend tried to explain to me that primary printing colors are RGB, not CMYK. He was wrong. I'm a graphic designer, it's one of the first things we learned at school.
11. Catcalling.
I've had men explain catcalling to me — a woman who has been catcalled since the age of 12.
12. Feminism.
I was wearing a feminist T-shirt and this kid at my school was like, "You don't need feminism because women have more rights than men." I said, "Name three rights women have that men don't," and he couldn't and kept insisting that feminists just want rights for women and no one else.
13. How to pronounce her own damn last name.
A guy told me the pronunciation of my last name was wrong. My own damn name.
14. Tampons.
My brother-in-law once tried to tell me which tampons were the best to buy, and which bras were the most comfortable. LOL. As if he had any personal experience to form his well-thought-out opinion! Haha. His arguments were based on his sisters' and girlfriends' preferences.
15. How to ride a horse.
I am a professional horseback rider and in 2008 I was named champion of the year in the maiden division. One of my guy friends was talking to me a little while ago (he's ridden a horse maybe once in his life). I was showing him pictures of one of my previous competitions (that I won) and he kept insisting that my equitation was wrong and started mansplaining to me different ways to make my form better. He also said that men have been riding horses longer than girls so men naturally have a better skill set when it comes to riding.
16. How transitioning works.
My colleague explained to me how "the sex change" works. I'm transitioning.
17. And finally, MANSPLAINING.
I've had a man try to explain mansplaining to me after I told him he was mansplaining.
Entries have been edited for length and/or clarity.