You know when a new online quiz comes out and four hundred and seventeen people share their results on Facebook in the same three hours? As I was waiting for my flight back to LA this weekend, one that I kept seeing was "How Basic Are You? I got 78 out of 100!" Now, usually I just scroll through and ignore these things (except for which Friday Night Lights character are you, obviously. That's a pretty telling quiz.) but this one ignited curiosity. First and foremost, who takes the time to answer 100 questions to figure out how "basic" they are? More importantly, what the fuck does being basic mean? So, I explored.
I read the two Cut articles multiple times, watched the College Humor video, laughed at the BroBible piece, read something from a daily titled "50 Ways to Know You're Dating a Basic Bitch" and... I took the quiz. It turns out that "basic bitch" is a commonly used term these days, used to insult women who like certain "boring" or "predictable" things.
This is hilariously ridiculous. Mind you, I'm about as fucking predictable as they come. As you may have guessed, I'm writing this post-spin class, sitting in my two bedroom apartment in Los Angeles, on my MacBook, drinking a soy latte out of a SoulCycle mug; a journal on my left, Lena Dunham's book on my right, and Taylor Swift's new album playing in the background. I'm wearing an oversized Vince sweater with leggings and booties, my hair in a topknot and my wide rimmed Warby Parker glasses over my face. This evening I have an appointment at Shape House and I will come home to video chat with my parents, drink a glass of wine and watch The Voice.
So, basically, by "definition" I'm a basic bitch. And so is every other woman I know. Except NOT AT ALL. Yes, we may like certain coffee drinks in the fall, and a certain workout, but there is absolutely nothing wrong with that. I know women who are the epitome of what is considered a "basic bitch" who have launched successful magazines, who have started their own brands, who write for Vanity Fair and W Magazine, who have picked up their lives and moved across the country alone, who have given up a six-figure career to teach yoga on the beach, who are single mothers, who are on television... the list goes on and on.
And all of them have worn fucking leggings to brunch where they Instagrammed their order, perfectly positioning a mimosa in the background.
Let's stop using "basic bitch" to describe women. It's almost 2015.