For the first time in my life (save for productions of The Vagina Monologues), I am working in a group that is overwhelmingly female, although the lead doctor is male. The gender politics are also reversed from what I am used to. For example, there was this exchange in yesterday’s group meeting:
Lead Doctor: So you’re saying {specific drug} affects women differently than men?
Female Doctor 1: Yes.
LD: It must be estrogen related.
*Cadre of women in the room start laughing*
{The following dialogue was all overlapping chatter.}
Female Doctor 2: Oh, it’s *always* estrogen.
Female Doctor 3: Why is it every time I’m a little bit crabby men attribute it to PMS?
FD1: Just because women have periods…
FD2: I know, right? Sometimes I’m crabby just because I’m in a bad mood.
FD1: Men are always so quick to attribute everything to hormones.
FD3: My husband does that too!
etc, etc…
Meanwhile, at the other end of the table…
LD (sheepishly): All I said was estrogen.