The ultiment fun girl Betsy Johnson puts a little fun in my step with these fabulous cherry patch-work wedges.
In 1984 I heard some of the most life shaping words, “Girls just want to have fun,” when Cyndi Lauper danced across my parents’ television with orange hair and a flare for wild fashion. I was at the tender age of three and danced along with her in my mom’s heels, a leotard, sunglasses, and panties with ruffles on the butt while drinking juice from a wine glass. I was not your typical child and I was learning not from PBS but from MTV. The lesson I was learning was a simple one: girls just want to have fun. And I was having fun. I was “working” half days at preschool, going shopping with my mom, and taking my favorite stuffed animals with me wherever I went.
I was a shoe girl from the start, requesting a pair of patent leather Mary Jane’s in every color as soon as I could speak. By the time my baby teeth were falling out I had moved past the tooth fairy and started negotiating new Jelly shoes and other fashionable items that cost more than a quarter in exchange for a front tooth. My poor mom was once told by my ballet instructor that I should be put in dance class with some faster moves…I was shaking my butt too much for the music that accompanied the graceful non-bouncing dance style. It was a bad sign of things to come in my future.
More than two decades later not much has changed. Cyndi Lauper is on my MP3 player and I still have ruffles on my butt; only now I am in my own heels and I drink wine from those elegant glasses. I still try to negotiate shopping trips from my dad, although his resistance has grown stronger. I am pretty sure I can still re-enact any Madonna video from the 80’s. And I can still say I am having fun.
To me it all seems pretty clear cut what most girls and I want out of life. We want to have fun. We want to shake our butts a little. We want to wear lacy socks and actually I am kind of hoping the lacy headband bow comes back. I know I cannot speak for every female, but I am sure most would agree it is just that simple. Girls just want to have fun.
As basic as it seems, I still find myself banging my head against the figurative wall when it comes to getting guys to understand this simple notion. Yes, there are very complicated women out there screwing it up for the rest of us, but sometimes I think men are making it harder than it has to be. Look at the guy who said, “He’s just not that into you.” Simple, right? Wrong, it must be more complicated because he has written a book, had a television talk show, and even a movie spun out of it! I say honest things all day long and all I get is an understanding smile.
So let me break it down for all of the guys out there who are convinced that dating has to be difficult. Just let her have fun. There! It’s that simple, not even enough for a movie trailer let alone a full-length feature.
Perhaps I should expand slightly. I do not need fancy dinners or events; in fact, that can be kind of boring and put too much pressure on anyone to “fit in” or be equally fancy. Sitting in a silent restaurant with the sinking suspicion that the servers are listening in to our conversation kills the romance quickly. As a girl who over dresses for every event, I have just as much fun dressing up for the bar as I do for an over-the-top display. Seriously, take me and my heels out to the bar any night of the week. Not the fancy one, the one with a barrel full of peanuts and a popcorn machine with a questionable history of cleanliness. I want to sit at the bar and play the jukebox or at least be able to bribe the bartender to turn the radio to my favorite station. Give me a long neck bottle so I can peel off the label. I do not want to pair wines with a main course or eat a four-course meal that consists of two slices of tomato and a piece of cheese. I am hungry; feed me real food!
The truth of the situation is that every girl likes a night where she is treated like a princess and made to feel like a lady, but those nights are not reality. Living in fantasies can only last so long and often leaves you wanting to get back to a more down-to-earth style of life. The reality is that, like everyone else, a girl needs to relax sometimes and just be part of the crowd. She wants to toss peanut shells on the floor and maybe even play a game of dice. She just wants to have fun.
After all, Cyndi Lauper may have summed it up best when she said, “Some boys take a beautiful girl and hide her away from the rest of the world. I want to be the one to walk in the sun. Girl’s they want to have fun.” Hey, we are all at our best when surrounded by friends. I may only be a star with my friends but it’s where I shine the brightest because I can truly be myself and have fun. Any guy who wants this shoe girl can not be afraid to share my world and hopefully walk in the sun with me.
At the end of the day I am still the girl dancing in high heels who shakes her butt a little too much. But at least I am finding what I want and that is to have fun. And it truly is just that simple.
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