I had a long conversation with Hattie recently about tattoos. She said she’d actually spoken face-to-face with a woman who told her tattoos were “for hookers and white trash.”

I read a web page this year by a woman who urged other women considering getting tattoed to be extremely careful where they put their body art, so that they could hide it when necessary because they would without a doubt be discriminated against because of it.

Today, I read a blog entry by a guy whose own mother told him his tattoo was white trash, and he was over 30 when he got it.

I have women friends who recount varied tales of sex discrimination in the workplace, and in companies I’ve personally worked for myself. I’ve heard tales of women being shut out of jobs or opportunities by men who wanted to keep them for themselves.

And all of this, quite frankly, baffles me. I feel like I live on a different planet than the rest of these people.

I honestly can’t remember a single time I’ve ever gotten a “shut up, you’re just a woman” vibe in my entire life. I’ve never had any problems with male customers refusing to listen to me or work with me because I’m female.

I’ve never had anyone ever give me attitude or even dirty looks because of my tattoos. I’ve never even met anyone who had a strong negative reaction to my ink. Or my piercings (I have my nose pierced).

People tell me these kinds of discrimination exist, and it’s not like I don’t believe them, but I’ve never once experienced sexual discrimination in my entire professional life, and I’ve been working since I was sixteen. I’ve never been shut out, refused a promotion, or even strongly condescended to (for the latter case, if I was I never felt that it was sex based. Some people are just condescending fucks, and that’s that. It doesn’t have to be a sex role issue).

Of course I’ve had personal issues with co-workers over the years, but I never interpreted it as being due to my sex.

I’ve worked blue collar jobs and white collar jobs. I’ve worked in warehouses lifting boxes alongside men, I’ve worked in offices with men, I once did my own valve lash adjustment and I’m quite capable of doing basic maintenence on a vehicle, and I currently work in a building full of Internet geeks who are all men – I’m the only woman in this department. And while most of them will hold the door for me if we happen to arrive at it at the same time, none of them have ever doubted my ability, intellect, or competence.

Yesterday a customer came in to pick up a NIC card. He was male, older than me, and we had a long conversation about installing the card (I explained how to do it) and about his network problems (I explained all the possible reasons for the symtoms his network was having). I was clearly the expert in the situation, and I was clearly educating him. I got absolutely no vibe off of him. He was, like every customer I’ve ever dealt with since I became an Internet engineer, attentive and polite.

Which leads me to karma. I mean, clearly I do live on the same green earth as these people who get shit for their tattoos and these women who have had to fight tooth and nail for the right to do the same job a man does only better, but it’s none of it ever happened to me.

This is where the brilliant conclusion would go, if I had one. But I don’t. Sorry. I just think it’s interesting that wherever you go, there you are. (I get my ass totally kicked in other areas, so it’s not like I think I’m special.)