Femininity, clothing, and dealing with heat- was Re: [TheForge] Watch Rob kill me

Thu Jun 20 11:47:01 2002

Yes, Andy, I am very much a woman ;-) My proper name is Philippa. I'm
neither gay nor particularly butch (not that sexual preference has much to
do with essential femininity), although I'm certainly not fluffy effeminate.
I get along very well with most men, because many of my interests are in
traditionally masculine areas, including smithing, and other than asking for
help with lifting things as a result of back and knee injuries, I generally
do for myself.

And, while I'm certainly no beauty queen, I do not lack for interesting,
intelligent male companionship- ask John Husvar, who knows me well. Only
time I dislike being female is for a few days each month, and I think you'll
find most women agree with me on that ;-)

And I really don't see that it matters- I wasn't planning to ask you to
dance ;-)

Back to the clothing- Yes, as I said, I stick with natural fibers around the
forge- not only because I'm allergic to the synthetics, but because I
dislike materials which are likely to melt and stick to me as they burn. On
hot days, I cut back to a halter top and cut-offs. A halter top is not
particularly modesty, although I forge in public enough areas that it's a
consideration, but rather because breasts, even small ones, tend to project
into the way when I'm trying to do things, and they're much more convenient
bound out of the way.

When Duke Andrew was teaching me, he made me wear boots, until I had some
scale fall down one, and got a good burn. Certainly skin is vulnerable to
burning, but if it's uncovered, it is far less subject to having fire
trapped against it, and any burns are in the "ouch, damn it" catagory. Yes,
it's a risk, but much less so than you'd think- I seldom deal with the
molten metal you get when you do certain types of welding, so skin is
sufficiently protective. I also usually smith bare handed- dipping the
non-working end of a piece in a slack bucket keeps it cool enough to handle,
and tongs or occasionally channel locks work just fine for shorter pieces.

I would strongly reccomend against loafers or any short shoe while on the
forge0 wearing jeans over your boot tops prevents scale from falling into
them, but if you've got an open shoe top out there, scale will jump for it
;-)

One thing I've noticed, since two of my hobbys are so involved with fire
(cooking and smithing) is that my hands are much more resistant to heat. I'm
not heavily callused, but I can deal with, and not be burned by, heats that
tend to have other folks yelling for first aid cream, or ice or cold water.
I'm really beginning to think that it's as much a mental attitude towards
dealing with fire and hot stuff, as it is any toughening of the flesh. That
might be, in part, why smithing without clothing against much of my skin
isn't really a problem. What do you guys think?

Phlip

----- Original Message -----
From: "Jeff Harding" <[email protected]>
To: <[email protected]>
Sent: Thursday, June 20, 2002 10:44 AM
Subject: Re: [TheForge] Watch Rob kill me

> Um.... Andy...
>
>    I knew Philip was of the female gender when I made the comment
> about lamenting that more men weren't half the man she was...   ;o)
>
>    Jeff   ><>
>
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Demon Buddha" <[email protected]>
> To: <[email protected]>
> Sent: Thursday, June 20, 2002 10:10 AM
> Subject: Re: [TheForge] Watch Rob kill me
>
>
> >
> >
> > Phlip wrote:
> >
> > > My choice is cotton- jeans, usually, or leather- chaps, apron,
> boots or
> > > jacket when I'm around a forge. Unless it's REALLY HOT out, and
> then I cut
> > > down to shorts and halter top, but natural materials, and bare
> feet. Skin is
> > > more resistant than you think ;-)
> >
> > Um... halter top?  OK, I'm confused... or just stoopid.  May I
> > ask your gender?  I assumed you were male, "Phlip" being some
> > variation on "Philip".  Or do guys  wear halters and I just never
> > knew?
> >
> > -Mr. CluelessAsUsual
> >
> > PS:  As for skin being resistant, you must have some skin.
> > I've had loafers on at the forge and the scale burns attest
> > to how unresistant MY skin is to fire.  My hands are a
> > different story, but the rest of me is comparatively, erm...
> > *delicate*
> >
> > -Mr. I'mSoSensitive
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