I have previously written about the mental labour often carried out by women in the home. Not necessarily doing things but things like
- remembering birthdays, buying cards and gifts
- scheduling appointments
- keeping in touch with family
- keeping track of important documents
- arranging babysitters, pet-sitters
You can find my previous article here.
I was interested to find this Checklist for Gender Equality in Everyday Life on a local Swedish site. It is in English and is quite detailed.
I am really happy with the division of labour around our household. Sometimes one of us does more, sometimes less. Sometimes one of us has a grumble. But it’s just the two of us and our three cats. It would be an entirely different story if I were younger and had children living at home. The document linked above would be really good as a starting point for a discussion on gender equality in a relationship.
I grew up in an unequal household with a domesticated housewife for a mother and a factory worker for a father. I went too far the other way in my life choices, not being very domesticated at all because I was fighting against living a life like my mother. She left school at 15, was totally financially dependent on my father, divorce was not an option, and her life revolved around the house. I did not want that for myself.
