September 12th, 2023
When I conceived Feminist Friday I was really lonely. My husband was going through prostate cancer treatment and he was lethargic and I was angry and since we moved to Clearwater in 2020 I have been faced with a trifecta of social butterfly challenges; 1) I have worked from home since we moved here during the pandemic, 2) My boys are no longer in school so I am not meeting other moms, and 3) Covid has changed the way people interact with those they don’t know.
I really hate that people don’t say hello to one another in passing anymore. So, instead of bitching about behind the eight-ball when it comes to making friends, I decided to do something about it!
I wanted to connect with women who were close to me in age and that had the same principles. So, I called it what it was to thwart small-minded women from considering it. There, I said it. I want women who are strong, independent, productive, and most importantly passionate about life to be my friends, and so I dubbed my monthly meeting of the menstruating minds, "Feminist Friday." I wanted a place to unapologetically celebrate the chaos that is being a woman and a time set aside to channel that energy together, in order to empower, educate, and edify, and since I do not profess to have all the answers I just lean on the experts.
Here is how it works: once a month, on the last Friday of every month I invite women or gay gentleman to my home. I know…it’s weird to invite people you don’t know to come to your house, but I don’t care. We used to do house parties all the time and when I was a director for The Pampered Chef . We all became used to mixing it up with whomever showed up at parties like this. No one is hosting these types of parties at their homes since Covid anymore. Have you noticed that?
Also, I really have the perfect location for this get-together. We are literally on a main drag; Bay Shore Drive, in fact. We deal with traffic noise at all hours of the day and night, but that annoyance comes along with being easy to find. That may in fact be the biggest reason that we bought this house…so that friends can find their way to our house to have a good party.
On the last Friday of each month, everyone is welcome. Everyone can come to get fed, but not necessarily fed via their mouth, although I always have something yummy to snack on. No, what is important at Feminist Friday is to feed my friends’ minds. Oh, and it’s BYOB and the ladies always do.
I offer a theme each month and center our curriculum around that theme. For the empowerment activity, I find a show to watch and we blow horns when we want to pause the TV to discuss something in the video. For the education piece, I have books, magazines and other printed media centered on the theme available to peruse and I encourage my guests to take a moment to read those books at our meeting and pull quotes out of them, write them down and then post them to a wall in my dining room. Then I encourage them each to grab their favorite quote on their way out the door to ruminate until we next meet up. Finally, the edification segment encourages women business owners to share their cards and coupons and promote their business to the other guests.
This is just my way of spreading some love, making friends, and opening up serious dialogue in a world that really needs it. In case friends want to join from out of the area, I always go on Facebook Live during Feminist Friday. I also encourage those outside of the area to get involved with their comments, or better yet, to start their own similar group where they live. Our Facebook group is growing steadily, but I wanted to write this blog so people could understand my intentions.
This group is new to Clearwater and more specifically, Safety Harbor, but it’s been brewing since 2011 when Erica, Andrea, Lindsey, Griffin, Tammy and a few other of us gals started meeting once a month on 30A for Women Connecting Women. Those were the days…but so are these. Let’s embrace them and rage in a fierce yet focused and classy way. Life is way too short not to do it together. If not now, WHEN?
Shannon Joy Mekeel’s first book was inspired by her husband’s prostate cancer diagnosis and androgen deprivation therapy. It is entitled You Have Arrived and will be released in fall 2023 and is now available for pre-sale at ShannonJoyMekeel.com.
The companion documentary, Hurry Back will debut April 2024 at the inaugural Redfish Film Fest in Historic Downtown Panama City. This 12-part series tells the story of her family’s struggles and victories over the past century.
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