Chauvinists

There seems to be a species of chauvinists out there that just cannot fathom the fact that a woman might be in charge and that she may even be responsible for completing the task at hand. 

I have encountered a being in his natural habitat within the last week. Although, I do not care for the sight, I cannot avoid him. Yucky comments were made without any foreboding thought and snide replies to questions I've asked like "Uh, I thought I just explained that". EXCUSE ME! It is my job to understand requirements and interpret those business needs into functionally sound software on physical machinery that will support it. It is common for me to ask the same question different ways to get the customer to answer the same way each time ensuring the idea or workflow is solid. 

The other irritating characteristic of this creature is that he constantly bypasses my authority or abilities. He will not accept that I write the code. He happens to be an ex-coder and due to this experience he feels that he shares the pain of our team developers but will only look at the male programmers when speaking to this. Comments such as, "...Up really late working... but you especially know how that is.", while turning from me and referring to a more masculine team member. 

I joke about this but it's very insulting. I've been saying things like, "I won't be able to complete that task today because I'm a girl." On the inside I'm thinking WHO DOES THIS GUY THINK HE IS! Here's what I'd like to say...

"With all due respect, Sir, I have worked very hard to get to where I am today. Which happens to be a leader of a fantastic integration and software development team. I am a proud mother of 4 children where each of them receive individual emotional attention and love. I am a wife to wonderful and supportive man where I am treated as an equal, a partner, and a friend.

"I clean a house for 6 people (occasionally), make dinner every night, clean and chemically balance our swimming pool and spend 50 hours a week thinking of how to use everything I know in order to solve problems technically. 

"Please do not forget that I find time to sew, paint, create jewelry and spend an hour or two with extended family. In addition to this, I alternate between reading about building a small business (my studio) and untimely classics. I worry about our foreign affairs and try to stay on top of politics. 

"There is one last thing that I am naturally wired to do, and that is to pay close attention to others feelings and how my actions could potentially make or break the spirit of those that I encounter. This last characteristic is by far the most important for me. It defines who I am no matter what I do or have accomplished. It is not a characteristic of being a woman either. It come from a delicate balance of nurture vs. nature. That means good morals and values instilled as a child, inheritance of good genes and blind luck. Unfortunately, not everyone is quite as lucky."