Sexual Politics

The other day, as I was getting in the elevator, a man called from down the hall asked me to hold the door for him. Of course, I had no problem doing this as it is the polite and courteous thing to do. But, when the man approached the elevator, he wasn't interested in actually getting on. Instead, he handed me his card, introduced himself, and invited me to lunch. Now, while this is flattering in many ways, I really wasn't at all prepared for a date request at 9:00 AM on a Monday. (Meaning, I responded with general awkwardness, avoided eye contact, and stammering.) But, what really bothers me is that when he asked me to hold the elevator for him, I wasn't facing him. The only thing he could see when he decided to approach me was my back, and he hadn't even seen my face. So, I'm pretty sure he decided to approach me based solely on my backside, and I really don't think I'm comfortable with that. Maybe I'm overreacting, but I really do think you should at least examine both halves of a person before asking them out. (As for this "halves policy" of mine, I can see not checking out the back, but not checking out the front? It makes me feel a bit like a piece of meat. After all, it's not like he's ever spoken to me or heard me talk.) Face time is important. It kind of reminds me of when I was living in D.C. Men on the street would occasionally make comments to me and it was usually on the days that I hadn't showered. It's very hard to feel special when you know that if I man will give a compliment to a greasy-haired, dirty person, he probably gives every woman on the street a shot. Plus, now I have to avoid the elevator at high traffic times of the day because I don't want to have a second awkward, stammering, avoided eye contact kind of moment. We all know how little I like overt objectification - and taking the stairs.