The Gender Sweet Spot

(I am in line in the grocery store; in front of me is a young mother with her kid, maybe five years old.)

Kid: *points to some pink suckers* “I want those.”

Mom: *reaches for one*

Cashier: “No, those are for girls.”

Mom: “That’s fine.”

Cashier: “No, those are for girls. Put it back!”

Kid: “I’m a girl!”

Cashier: “No, you’re a boy!” *very condescending*

Kid: “I want that candy so I’m a girl!”

Mom: *red-faced and almost screaming* “You can take all our groceries back. We’re going somewhere else!”

(She stormed out. I paid for my few items, got the sucker, too, and ran after her. The kid felt better after that, especially because his mom was outside, telling him a candy does not make him a girl or a boy.)