Prev
Next

Stretching manners beyond breaking point

Gemma Sutherland

by Gemma Sutherland

29 Jan 05:45am

Must Reads

The Punch is moving house - this is a caption

The Punch is moving house

385

Will Pope Francis have the vision to tackle this? - this is a caption

Will Pope Francis have the vision to tackle this?

122

Advocating risk management is not “victim blaming” - this is a caption

Advocating risk management is not “victim blaming”

251

Filed under: Discrimination, Height, Manners

83 comments

“It must be hard being a tall woman”. That’s the pearl of wisdom passed on to my six foot four female friend by some idiot in a café. It was closely followed by “But you’ve got a good physique for a tall woman” and, at the mention of me, a fellow ‘doing-it-tough tall woman’ at six foot three, the man nodded sympathetically and said “Yeah, I bet you flock to your own kind”.

Birds of a feather… Oh please

Hmm. She laughed and politely exited. I probably would have punched him in frustration.

Our own kind? We’re not martians. Women over six foot are not freaks. Yes, it’s hard to find pants long enough to fit sometimes, but that’s about the only handicap. Chances are I can see if the tosser who just made some stupid remark about my height is balding/has dandruff. I can reach things on top shelves. I can paint ceilings with just a long-handled roller and don’t need a ladder. It’s not like I do that often, but hey, the option is there if I want it.

But If I had a buck for every time a stranger has come up to me and said “Woah! You’re tall! I bet you play basketball?” (sadly I’m a cliché and do). Or “Wow, I’m really sorry to ask but how tall are you?”. If you’re really sorry to ask, don’t ask. I’m not joking when I say a conversation about my height is a daily occurrence.

Here’s a list of other height-related remarks that I’ve had:

* “How’s the weather up there?” (I get this often. Seriously. The weather is the same, just FYI)

* “I bet it’s hard to find a tall man!” (Does it really matter if he’s taller than me? If I’m OK with it, you should be)

* “You must find it so hard to buy clothes”. (Pants, as previously discussed, can be. But generally, it’s not like I’m in tears of rage because nothing fits. It’s just like shopping for a “normal” height person)

* “Do you ever wear heels?” (Yes. What’s your point?)

* “Is your partner taller than you?” (Um, yes. But I dated a shorter man for a long time)

* “You’re really just too tall” (This only happened once but it actually hurt my feelings. Be nice people. Tall people have feelings too)

* “Woah..she’s a big b*tch!” (This was said to me in a nightclub one night. I did want to punch the fellow, but was tactfully diverted by pals)

* “Are you a netballer or a basketballer?” (What if I was neither? Does that mean I’m a failure?)

I’ve also been called Amazonian, huge, and countless other adjectives for tall. I’m a little over it. Do you go up to someone who is very short and say: “Oh wow, you’re so tiny I could just fit you in my pocket. I bet you flock to your own kind”?

Or someone’s who is a little on the portly side and say: “Gosh, you are just so large that it must be hard to buy clothes. I bet you flock to your own kind”?

So, good people of the world, don’t comment on every tall woman you see. It’s just not necessary. If you really, really feel the need to, make sure you give her a dollar when you do. Because then, with all our accumulated comments and dollars, tall women can quit their jobs and live in peace on an island full of “our own kind”.

Comments on this post will close at 8pm AEDT.

Most commented

83 comments

Show oldest | newest first

    • Brando says:

      05:30am | 29/01/13

      I had a long relationship with a woman who at 6’2’” was 2 inches taller then me. The second time we went out she dressed up in a stunning outfit but wore flat shoes.

      I asked her why she wasn’t wearing heels and she said she was worried about towering over me. I told her that at 6 foot there was nothing she could possibly do that was going to make me feel short and if she preferred to wear heels then she should go and find the biggest pair she has and put them on.

      I think from that moment on she was mine.

      Reply

    • ramases says:

      12:37pm | 29/01/13

      I had a girlfriend for three years that was 6’4”, I’m 5’6”. She was great and I didn’t mind the height difference at all. Apart from being very tall she was also built, very attractive and I was the one who coped the comments and I’ve heard them all. Jealousy is a bad thing but I just smiled all the time and that pissed them off more than anything.

    • pa_kelvin says:

      06:33pm | 29/01/13

      Well, I’m as tall as most people my height… smile

    • Pedro says:

      05:48am | 29/01/13

      You forgot - “You’d be worth the climb.”
      Love all women - tall or short. Thin or ... No that’s it.

      Reply

    • Chillin says:

      05:57am | 29/01/13

      Wow, if that’s comments beyond breaking point you have led a sheltered life!  Find it hard to believe you haven’t heard worse on the basketball court?  Never mind, violence is a much more appropriate response.  (Yes I am tall, seems like an incredible over reaction.)

      Reply

    • Rose says:

      09:02am | 29/01/13

      It’s not whether or not the comment itself is so bad, it’s why people feel the need to comment at all. It’s not just tall people, Pregnant women are constantly patted on the belly, asked personal questions that are really no-one else’s business and are often treated as public property. If some one asks if they can feel your stomach and you say no, you are the one who is treated as if you are in the wrong, truly bizarre. As a mother of 6, I also have had to run the gauntlet of people’s inappropriate comments. “Don’t you have TV?” (Yes, what’s that got to do with anything?) Do they all have the same dad? (yes, and we were married before I got pregnant with the first one, and we’re still married, what of it?). How do you afford it? (Its called employment and budgeting) and so on and so on. When the kids were little and we were out together I would always get stopped, as in, every bloody time. People don’t think they’re being rude, but they really are, and whatever joke they are cracking, I promise you, they are not being remotely original or funny.
      It’s not the joke/comment itself, it’s that people feel they have the right to address the point at all and it’s the constant flow of these jokes/comments, it’s relentless. It’s rude, it’s annoying and it’s no one else’s damn business!!

    • Chillin says:

      09:16am | 29/01/13

      Right and you are going to tell me that the author or you or I have NEVER commented on anyone else in this world.

    • Rose says:

      10:46am | 29/01/13

      I can assure you that I have never (not since adulthood at least) walked up to a complete stranger and made a comment/asked a personal question on their physical features or family make up. I have asked questions of people who I am already in conversation with, but I do try very hard to stay within the bounds of what I would be comfortable being asked.

    • S.L says:

      06:09am | 29/01/13

      Gemma the idea of a guy being shorter than his girlfriend/wife sits in the same bolthole as a guy being the younger partner too.
      Yep if you’re tall you’re an Amazon and if you date a younger guy you’re a cougar.
      As you’ve written you’ve developed a thick skin and good for you but to be honest if height is your major problem socially you really don’t have a problem at all in my opinion…...............

      Reply

    • jade (the other one) says:

      08:01am | 29/01/13

      What if you’re both? My partner is about 2 inches shorter than me and 6 years younger.

    • S.L says:

      11:33am | 29/01/13

      @ jade….... good for you!

    • expat says:

      06:54pm | 29/01/13

      What is an Amazon?

    • marley says:

      06:16am | 29/01/13

      Well, I reckon if the author feels this strongly, she ought to make a submission to the Parliamentary Committee to have height included as a protected attribute under the Human Rights act. That should put an end to the comments.  Or possibly put her complaint into realistic perspective.

      Reply

    • mahhrat says:

      06:23am | 29/01/13

      /firstworldproblems.

      Reply

    • Sherlock says:

      07:08am | 29/01/13

      Here’s my pet hate that I’m sick of seeing on forums and blogs.

      Anyone who writes “first world problems”  may think they have written something oh so clever when in reality all they have done is expose their lack of IQ and inability to add something worthwhile to the conversation.

      Apart from the lack of originality in writing something we have all seen a million times before it shows the writers desperation to write something despite the fact that they obviously lack the brainpower to think of anything remotely interesting to say. It doesn’t address the subject at hand and is designed to stifle discussion not promote it.

      So when you see the comment “first world problems”  in future just think idiot

    • Chillin says:

      07:25am | 29/01/13

      @Sherlock

      You seem to be having a ...’ first world problem’

    • Tubesteak says:

      08:09am | 29/01/13

      Sherlock
      “First world problems” is merely shorthand for “stop your whining because this is such a trivial and pointless issue that you really need to get some persepctive on life and grow up.”

      Personally, I think shorthand is always better so will often stick with “first world problem”.

      Capiche?

      OT: Tall women’s boobs are always in a good place. Either horizontally or vertically wink

    • Pedro says:

      08:43am | 29/01/13

      @tubesteak
      Do you mean “capisce?” (I have watched The Sopranos so I know a dozen Italian words)
      I would have thought ignorance of other cultures and languages was a third world problem ...

    • Gordon says:

      08:56am | 29/01/13

      Agreed Sherlock. It’s a snark not a contribution. Mahhrat is usually capable of much better and must be in need of a coffee or something

    • Tubesteak says:

      11:05am | 29/01/13

      Pedro
      I’ve seen it spelled like that in books. But maybe they were wrong. I didn’t check.
      ahfahgeddaboudit

    • Cry in my Gin says:

      02:51pm | 29/01/13

      @Sherlock
      I thought it was a short hand version of “oh what an intellegent, well researched and brilliant piece of journalistic brilliance-NOT.”
      I am with mahhrat on this one.

    • KJ says:

      03:33pm | 29/01/13

      Sherlock, “all they have done is expose their lack of IQ” .  IQ, a simplistic First World way of measuring intelligence.

    • TChong says:

      06:24am | 29/01/13

      I hears ya, Gemma.
      AS someone incredibly muscley ( think “Humungus” Mad Max 2 ), breath takingly handsome, and stunningly brillant, I get comments all the time.
      My tip is let the plebs say what they like.
      They are just being jealous.
      Oh Lord its hard to be humble, when you’re perfect in everyway.

      Reply

    • TimB says:

      07:01am | 29/01/13

      Yes yes, we all know you’re the Great Humungous wink

    • nihonin says:

      07:10am | 29/01/13

      Well stop looking at the reflection of the guy beside you in the public toilet mirror TChong.  wink

    • W J Craig (Mrs) says:

      08:05am | 29/01/13

      “nihonin”
      He’s not looking at the reflections of the guy beside him in the Public Toilet he’s actually looking slightly downward to see if that other piece of male equipment so many men have a psychological problem about is bigger than his own. Envy is a cruel master!!

    • TChong says:

      11:55am | 29/01/13

      TimB
      Yes, an old line, but a good one.
      nihonin
      Very funny reply.
      Mrs C
      You knowledge of trough etiquette is beyond reproach.

    • Super D says:

      06:29am | 29/01/13

      Google tells me that the average height for Australian women is 164cm with a standard deviation of 2cm. Statistically speaking 6 ft or 183cm is almost 10 standard deviations above average. That’s statistically freaky no matter how you feel about it.

      Reply

    • Tim says:

      06:59am | 29/01/13

      There’s no way in hell the standard deviation is 2 cm.

    • Geekgirl says:

      09:02am | 29/01/13

      Agree with Tim. Two inches, maybe, but not two cm.

      I’m a very tall woman, somewhere around 1.9m but I honestly don’t know for certain because I honestly don’t care. One advantage that the writer misses is that height is awesome for intimidating other basketball players. I’m lazy as all hell on the court, but because I look big, the smaller players don’t come near me. It’s great.

    • b2 says:

      06:34am | 29/01/13

      Probably just trying to make conversation or think they’re being funny. People are like that. I used to have magnificent dreadlocks, if I had a dollar for every person who had a friend who worked in a hospital who treated some dirty feral with dreads containing a red back spider nest….

      Reply

    • St. Michael says:

      11:32am | 29/01/13

      Wouldya like some gunja, mon? wink

    • b2 says:

      06:34am | 29/01/13

      Probably just trying to make conversation or think they’re being funny. People are like that. I used to have magnificent dreadlocks, if I had a dollar for every person who had a friend who worked in a hospital who treated some dirty feral with dreads containing a red back spider nest….

      Reply

    • acotrel says:

      06:40am | 29/01/13

      I wonder what happened to the distribution of heights in our population after the selective recruitment programme during WW1 preferentially took our tallest men ?

      Reply

    • TimB says:

      06:56am | 29/01/13

      Considering that we’re getting taller on average, not all that much I’m thinking.

    • Super D says:

      07:10am | 29/01/13

      I’m guessing that after the cream were killed off in the war we wound up with proportionately more Labor voters.

    • acotrel says:

      09:09am | 29/01/13

      @SoopaD
      Liberal voters probably enjoy getting shot at, and put their heads up as targets.

    • marley says:

      05:47pm | 29/01/13

      @acotrel - if there’s anyone who enjoys putting his head up as a target, it’s you.  Every day. Right here. On - get the irony here - The Punch.

    • Tim says:

      07:02am | 29/01/13

      Yes people should have manners but sometimes people don’t.

      So you sometimes get comments about your height, is that the worst of it? Boo hoo.

      Reply

    • Jim Moriarty says:

      07:29am | 29/01/13

      Tim, I’m a short guy and believe me, after thirty years of short jokes, I am really fecking over it. It’s not clever, it’s not funny, it’s bloody annoying.

      Petty, yes, but put up with it for long enough and you need to rant.

    • Tim says:

      08:28am | 29/01/13

      Jim,
      I think nearly every person will get called names of one sort or another.

      Can you imagine the comments if this was written by a fatty whinging about the names they get called?

    • Audra Blue says:

      09:59am | 29/01/13

      It’s like anything about your physicality that gets brought to attention over and over again:  whatever it is that singles you out, that’s not all there is to you.  It’s a pity that people don’t understand that.

      Case in point:  I have waist length, thick curly red hair that has a mind of its own.  I always wear it in a clip of some kind for work to tidy it up and make it look more professional.  Over my life, my hair has been both a blessing and curse, but I live with it.

      There is a woman at work who comments on my hair every.frickin.day.  How curly it is, how thick it is, do I have trouble brushing it, washing it, drying it, how lucky I am to have it like that when women pay hundreds of dollars to get the same look, have I ever straightened it, etc etc etc.  One day I was having a bad hair day and I put it up in a French twist at the back of my head.  You couldn’t even see what it was really like all gathered up like that, but she still couldn’t help saying, “I like your hair up that way”.  Occasionally she even ropes other people into the conversation:  “Don’t you think AB’s hair looks just lovely today?”  *sigh*

      It’s stupid to be annoyed, I know.  But when someone focusses on that one thing about you and constantly makes comments, it starts to grate on the nerves.  So I understand how Gemma feels. 

      I agree with @Jim Moriarty.  Sometimes you just need to rant to make yourself feel better

    • St. Michael says:

      11:36am | 29/01/13

      Audra, perspective.  Your workmate has a lesbian crush on you.  Take pictures! wink

    • Chris L says:

      02:59pm | 29/01/13

      I’ve often wondered why red heads get called “Blue”. I guess it’s just intentional irony.

    • verticallychallenged says:

      07:30am | 29/01/13

      Actually as a 154cm tall (or should that me short?) woman I can tell you that my height gets remarked on constantly.  Comments range from “Well look at you down there,” to an unsolicited, “Don’t worry, you’d probably be normal height in Japan.”

      I’ve also had some very crude remarks from blokes at pubs, generally centering on certain acts that I could apparently perform with a beer bottle on my head.  I’ve found that a well timed elbow does the trick in these circumstances.

      Honestly, short women get harassed just as much, if not more than tall women do.  And the comments come from men AND women.

      Reply

    • Fiddler says:

      09:20am | 29/01/13

      wow, you joke about using violence in response to a smartarse remark.

    • Slightly above average height says:

      01:13pm | 29/01/13

      another short person trying to take the ‘centre of attention’ position

    • Anne71 says:

      01:27pm | 29/01/13

      @Verticallychallenged - I’m also 154cm short and people often feel the need to tell me how “tiny” I am. So I know how you feel! smile

      @Fiddler - I’m sure she’s being facetious about the “well-timed elbow” in response to what would be extremely offensive - not merely “smartarse”-  comments.  Or are we just humourless feminazis if we don’t respond to crap like that with a blush, a giggle, and a tinkly “oh, YOU!!!” ?

    • Zac says:

      07:39am | 29/01/13

      I almost broke down reading white women’s first world problems and the need to punch a man over it. Violence (women’s) against a man is socially cool. No wonder many men search for real women in some Asian country.

      Reply

    • St. Michael says:

      11:35am | 29/01/13

      Yeah, because they want someone with slender fingers to probe their anus in prostate exams.

    • Pattem says:

      05:05pm | 29/01/13

      @St. Michael

      Are you saying that those of us with Asian wives only married them for their fingers and where they can stick them?  That’s somewhat Digitist of you!  smile

      Vesper Lynd: If the only thing left of you was your smile and your little finger, you’d still be more of a man than anyone I’ve ever known.

      James Bond: That’s because you know what I can do with my little finger…

    • Al says:

      07:40am | 29/01/13

      Gemma - the issue isn’t that you are tall.
      The issue is that most people are simply sheep and don’t like anything that disturbs their world view (where they, possibly without realising it look for the general assumptions like women are meant to be smaller than men, or men are meant to be stronger/smarter or that men can’t find a women taller than them attractive (or the reverse that women can’t find men shorter than them attractive).
      If I were you I would simply dismiss them as superficial idiots and move on.
      Now consider men who actually have great difficulty finding shoes in their size without having to go to the kids section (and even most of those are too big). The snide comments regarding ‘you know what they say about a man and his shoe size etc.’, good thing I don’t care anymore.

      Reply

    • Ha! says:

      07:42am | 29/01/13

      ““I bet it’s hard to find a tall man!” (Does it really matter if he’s taller than me? If I’m OK with it, you should be)”

      People say things like that because most girls are crazy weird about dating shorter guys. I’ve been turned down by a few girls who were barely 5’ tall because I was “Too short”. I’m 5’7”... You think you have problems? Spend a day as “Short” man and you’ll see how good you have it.

      Reply

    • Audra Blue says:

      10:05am | 29/01/13

      Compared to a 5’ woman, you are very tall.  I’m 5’ 7” which is tall-ish for a woman and I don’t date guys my height or shorter.  I like wearing high heels so a guy who is at least 6’ is ideal for me.

      You can’t imagine how many guys get snippy because I say, “it’s nothing against you, it’s just my preference”.  But they write it off as some kind of character flaw.  If I only dated guys with blonde hair, or green eyes, nobody would care, but as soon as something like height comes into the equation, life gets difficult.

    • Ha! says:

      12:04pm | 29/01/13

      Of course they get snippy, you’re writing off a huge group of people you don’t know as undateable based solely on one shallow physical characteristic. Who cares if your girl is taller than you when she’s in heels? Or just taller in general? It’s an idiotic thing to be hung up on! Who knows how many amazing guys you’ve met and blown off without a second thought.

      Well personally I’d call someone who did that a racist, but yes, that seems to be acceptable among women too. I tend to laugh when I hear women bitch about how shallow men are. We have preferences, but I don’t know any guys at all who apply blanket rules like that.

    • Tubesteak says:

      02:59pm | 29/01/13

      Funny how women get upset when men are picky over things women have control over (eg weight)

      But don’t realise the double-standard when they are picky over things men have no control over such as race, height or baldness.

      Before I get criticised for being bitter I’m white, 6’4” and have a full head of hair. But I’m capable of pointing out obvious hypocrisy when I see it.

    • Audra Blue says:

      03:30pm | 29/01/13

      Guys don’t apply blanket rules like that because they are generally after sex.  And that is the overriding factor in any decision they make about whether they find a woman appealing.  I’ve spoken to heaps of guys who say they are willing to overlook a lot of things, including totally throwing their preferences and personal rules out the window, if it means they can get their leg over.

      Of course, I could throw your words right back at you and say how many slightly plump women (not huge fatties) are wonderful people and guys are overlooking them simply because of the fact that they are carrying a few extra kilos.  These are the same men, mind you, who are overweight themselves but somehow don’t see that when they look in the mirror.

      I know lots of guys who are great people but because they are shorter than me, I would never date them.  I can’t help not finding them attractive in that way.  It’s not like I deliberately dismiss them as prospective partners.  But somewhere along my developmental route, I found taller men attractive and nothing can change that.  Your preference is your preference and there’s nothing you can do.

      Instead of being bitter about it, you could try just accepting it and keeping your eyes open for a girl who likes the whole lot of you, instead of being angry at random strangers (like me) for being honest about their preferences. 

      FYI, have a very good friend, a hot sexy Spanish guy who is 5’ 7” like me and I was wildly attracted to him and did everything I could to get him into bed.  He felt the same way about me, but he had a girlfriend so nothing happened.  So it’s not always about how tall a guy is, but how I feel when I’m around him.

      And if a woman doesn’t like you because you’re “short” why on Earth would you want to be with her anyway?

    • Ha! says:

      05:06pm | 29/01/13

      Yeah that’s right, guys are all just looking for a quick lay with anything that moves so looks don’t matter at all, that’s totally not sexist or offensive!

      I’d say around a quarter of my guy friends have girlfriends who really need to lose weight purely for health reasons and while I’m not the one to be giving accurate judgments on how attractive guys are I’d say they’re decent looking. So certainty doesn’t seem to be much of a problem to me. Besides, doesn’t this directly contradict your first statement? Do you have a headache from holding two contradictory ideas at the same time?

      Sure you do, you’ve probably got it internalized now so you’re not doing it consciously, but you’re tagging them as undateable on a shallow basis and refusing to look past it. Girls are astonishingly good at getting in their own way and making snap judgments like that. Any guy will tell you, you get five seconds to make the right impression or it’s just about impossible to get her to look at you differently!

      Who’s bitter? I’m just pointing out a common, ridiculous, judgment that most women make. To me the really sick thing is that they’ll often admit that it’s for one of two reasons, either because it “Looks better in pictures” i.e. it’s all about what other people think - or - “Because I feel safer with a tall guy”. Want to take a guess where “Short man syndrome” comes from and why? If men went around openly saying they only date women with D cups or bigger they’d rightly be called an idiot and a pig.

      Oh, and those are some lovely ethics you’ve got there.

    • FZR560 says:

      07:59am | 29/01/13

      Whinger. If you were being ignored, you’d probably have an issue with that too. Surprisingly, some people talk shit. It’s what they do. They even talk shit to short, fat, balding people with dandruff. They could make the assumption that you were a self-centred prat and begin a conversation on that basis. Instead, they’ve chosen to begin a conversation around something they’d hope you were comfortable with. Your friend seems to have a much better handle on this than you do. Like the rest of us, she seems to get that not everything we hear will be pleasant or what we expect. As for punching people, I can’t see to many winners there.

      Reply

    • Stu says:

      08:08am | 29/01/13

      ‘We’re all the same height lying down’.  (An oldie but a goodie).  Lighten up Gemma.

      Reply

    • Merryl Chantrell says:

      08:19am | 29/01/13

      If you can’t say anything nice don’t say anything at all…especially to perfect strangers. We should celebrate our differences not ridicule them. Yes in case you’re wondering I’m tall and I’m overweight and I’m also a proud Aboriginal Elder and I’m married (2nd marriage) to the love of my life. Any takers for smart remarks because I’ve heard them all. There are much more important things to concern ourselves surely?

      Reply

    • Lasa Bailey says:

      08:22am | 29/01/13

      And that is the problem with society, they see the outside not what matters, there is so much more to each and every person, this sort of junk happens when someone feels threatened by someone else, they could be prettier, taller, smarter, the reason matters not.
      Grow up people!
      I did not fall in love with my wife because she was anything but who she is, a women with the biggest, most compassionate heart I have ever known, that is what people should be looking for what is inside!

      Reply

    • Harry Q. Hammer says:

      08:36am | 29/01/13

      You play basketball and your man is taller than you. Sounds like you are indeed fitting the stereotype.

      Reply

    • Gregg says:

      08:37am | 29/01/13

      Somehow I reckon you might need to make it more than a dollar for that island paradise Gemma and then you might even find those full of themselves so much to be overflowing with comments are just likely to be on the stingy side.

      Ignorance is the best way, that’s being ignorant of those ignorant of not just manners but common sense and decency.

      Reply

    • AngusT says:

      08:46am | 29/01/13

      As a tall guy (6’3”), I’d have LOVED to date a girl taller than me! Alas, closest I ever got was 5’11”...all of which meant nothing in the broader scheme of the relationship/s.

      Now have a pretty awesome consolation prize in my better half of 8+ years.

      Reply

    • Gordon says:

      09:10am | 29/01/13

      I guess we could all make a new year resolution never to remark on someone’s physical appearance. It would be nice if we all did that. I’m not gonna hold my breath though.  My experience is people give less of a crap what you look like than you might think, and people will say dumb things by way of making conversattion. It is not a hanging offense however sick you are of hearing it. If your photo does you justice you have a lovely smile (there, blown my resolution already). Treat people well and they will return it, once they get over seeing a 6’3” wonder of the natural world that is.

      Reply

    • Chris L says:

      09:11am | 29/01/13

      I used to get daily comments on how skinny I am (not so much now due to middle age middle bulge). I once met an elderly lady in the supermarket who said she wanted to take me home so she could feed me.

      Suck it up. We’re all different and people are going to point that out. There’s no insult if it’s true.

      Reply

    • Chelsea says:

      09:12am | 29/01/13

      Height, weight, hair colour, shoe size, women get it all. If your a little out of the ordinary, people feel free to comment. As a white woman dating an asian man, I get comments all the time on how lucky he is to find a white woman to date him. Unfortunately I don’t have a strong punch on me…

      Reply

    • ? says:

      11:55am | 29/01/13

      i date a dark guy. you should hear some of the comments and stares from some people that i get.

    • M.G says:

      10:04am | 29/01/13

      Gemma, where have you and your 6"4 friend been? As a average 6"6 lad, I was constantly on the lookout for lovely tall women….but they are so few and far between…..in the end, a stunning 5’7 stole my overly large heart, but damn….i was hanging out at the wrong end of town! Ah well, guess my children will have to settle at being only 6"6 or 6"7 at best…...

      Reply

    • Kate says:

      10:07am | 29/01/13

      I’m 5’11 and I get this quite a lot, especially shoe shopping (I wear a size 11 shoe). I’ve heard ‘wow that’s big!’, ‘you’ll have to wear men’s shoes!’, ‘bet you can’t wear heels around your boyfriend’ etc.
      For the record - yes, I do wear men’s runners and yes, I can still wear heels around my fiance who is 6 feet tall, because he doesn’t think it’s some horrible offence to have a partner who is taller than him.
      My mate at work calls me ‘big bitch’ in jest, but I call her ‘shortarse’ so it’s all fun and games.

      Reply

    • Joe201 says:

      10:18am | 29/01/13

      I’m a man and all throughout my life I’ve had:
      - Did you / Do you play Basketball? Because I’m six-four.
      - Did you / Do you play Rugby? Because I’m built like one.

      I’ve done neither.

      Thankfully there’s a Facebook group for those of us who are outside the natural order of things. It’s called: “Your tall, do you play basketball?”...“Your short, do you play mini golf?!”

      Reply

    • KJ says:

      01:06pm | 29/01/13

      I have a teenage daughter who would love to be around 6 feet tall.  She is ‘only’ 170 cm.  She plays volleyball and netball and height is a definate advantage

    • Loxy says:

      10:23am | 29/01/13

      I hear you Gemma and can completely empathise. I’m not tall, in fact for a woman I’m a very average height, however my fault is that I have extremely fair skin and as a result have had to suffer through the same type of pointed and often rude comments all my life. I’ve never understood why it’s socially acceptable to point out some, very obvious things to people about their appearance i.e. your so tall, short, white skin etc and not others i.e. you’re so fat, ugly, have a big nose etc.

      I used to get so upset about the comments when I was younger and went to great lengths to cover my fair skin with fake tan or long skirts, plants etc. Now in my mid 30’s I couldn’t care less what others think, I have white skin and I don’t tan and that’s that. Besides, given I already look 5-10 years younger than all my friends my age, I reckon I’ll be having the last laugh in later life when they all look haggard and sun damaged and my skin still looks fresh.

      Reply

    • ? says:

      11:49am | 29/01/13

      i work with a lady that is very tall. the worse comment she told me she ever received was that she’s lucky to be tall, but its a waste on her because she’s to unattractive to be a model - horrible !!

      Reply

    • Kate says:

      12:50pm | 29/01/13

      I got the same thing from my grandmother. “You’re tall enough to be a model - shame about the face!”

    • life is but sleep says:

      01:17pm | 29/01/13

      men like short sheilas as they do as they are told !
      tall chicks are a real handful for men and are too sexy for men

      Reply

    • Chris L says:

      03:06pm | 29/01/13

      You don’t have to justify being a lesbian.

    • St. Michael says:

      03:51pm | 29/01/13

      No, you only have to take pictures.

    • life is but sleep says:

      01:19pm | 29/01/13

      men are not high on brains and manners !
      men are high on smells !

      Reply

    • Claire says:

      02:56pm | 29/01/13

      Nice one Gemma, I have been saying this stuff for years.
      “what are you like 6 foot”
      “no i am 6"2”
      “oh thats awful!”
      Tall girls get hurt feelings as well!

      Reply

    • Linda says:

      05:58pm | 29/01/13

      When I was younger I received comments about my breasts from complete strangers everyday.  As if I hadn’t noticed that I was carrying an extra 2 kilos with me!  They even commented when I was out with my parents.
      Now I receive comments about my complexion.  I have a skin condition which I wouldn’t even think about, if some stranger didn’t ask me about it EVERY day.
      What galls me is they think they are being friendly when they ask.  But if I should ask them about their bad teeth or knobbly knees or lack of manners, just imagine how put out they would be.

      Reply

    • TheHuntress says:

      06:40pm | 29/01/13

      I haven’t read all the comments, but I laughed because I ALWAYS hear the same cliches. I’m not quite as tall as you, but receive all the same comments. I get asked how tall I am a few times a day. But I also wear heels everywhere, so I just pretent I’m not tall, it’s just the shoes. I usually get a confused look as people try to do some mental calculation and work out whether I’m telling the truth or not.

      And the solution to my pants problem is I don’t wear them. Dresses only. But because my legs are disproportionately long I have to be aware that what I buy doesn’t turn into a mini. Oh and thigh boots never come up to the thigh. Annoying.

      Reply
 
Sorry, comments are now closed for this article.

Facebook Recommendations

Read all about it

Punch live

Up to the minute Twitter chatter

ToryShepherd

ToryShepherd 19 May 13 10:27PM

@Cmdr_Hadfield @mattpturner Hope you have sweet views while you heal

Lucy Kippist

lucyjk 19 May 13 02:24PM

RT @HeatherSmithAU: Can living in another country change your life for the better? by @lucyjk on @newscomau f. moi http://t.co/E5Ma3kBut2

David Penberthy

penbo 19 May 13 01:02PM

@mooks83 sophisticated response. Think the kids parents saw it differently

David Penberthy

penbo 19 May 13 12:50PM

More class from 9's footy show, lampooning a baby that allegedly looks like Sterlo with a pic swiped from Facebook http://t.co/BGoYP6Pn68

See all tweets

Recent posts

The latest and greatest

The Punch is moving house

by The Punch Team

385

The Punch is moving house

Good morning Punchers. After four years of excellent fun and great conversation, this is the final post…

Will Pope Francis have the vision to tackle this?

by Hannah Harborow

122

Will Pope Francis have the vision to tackle this?

I have had some close calls, one that involved what looked to me like an AK47 pointed my way, followed…

Advocating risk management is not “victim blaming”

by Sarrah Le Marquand

251

Advocating risk management is not “victim blaming”

In a world in which there are still people who subscribe to the vile notion that certain victims of sexual…

Nosebleed Section

choice ringside rantings

From: Hasbro, go straight to gaol, do not pass go

Tim says:

They should update other things in the game too. Instead of a get out of jail free card, they should have a Dodgy Lawyer card that not only gets you out of jail straight away but also gives you a fat payout in compensation for daring to arrest you in the first place. Instead of getting a hotel when you… [read more]

From: A guide to summer festivals especially if you wouldn’t go

Kel says:

If you want a festival for older people or for families alike, get amongst the respectable punters at Bluesfest. A truly amazing festival experience to be had of ALL AGES. And all the young "festivalgoers" usually write themselves off on the first night, only to never hear from them again the rest of… [read more]

Light weight

Gentle jabs to the ribs

Superman needs saving

Superman needs saving

Can somebody please save Superman? He seems to be going through a bit of a crisis. Eighteen months ago,… Read more

28 comments

Newsletter

Read all about it

Sign up to the free News.com.au newsletter