In about the middle of this chapter, Ehrenreich describes her experiences going out into the world after her shift. She has on her maid outfit which makes her stand out, and combined with her strong odor, she gets a lot of mean looks and generally poor treatment. My problem (and confusion) comes when she writes, “Maybe, it occurs to me, I’m getting a tiny glimpse of what it would be like to be black” (100).

I genuinely do not understand why she would think that. I get that she said maybe it’s a tiny glimpse, but to me, that statement is such an incredible stretch, and given her past microagressions, I don’t think she is in a position to feel that way. She is a white woman from the middle class. Maybe if she had shown more insight into race relations in the 90’s or even elaborated on her statement, I might understand. But instead, she just drops that sentence at the end of a paragraph and then goes on describing her day. I want to talk more about this in class, but right now, I strongly disagree with Ehrenreich on this one.

As I’m reading this book, I’ve noticed a couple of infuriating times where Barbara falsely equates herself to a war hero or in some way pats herself on the back for “surviving” a day in the life of something she willingly chose to do in contrast to the people who are all but forced to live in these conditions. I’ve compiled a list of quotes again to best voice my frustrations.

1. “‘Hardly anyone comes back after the first day.’ I feel powerfully vindicated -a survivor- but it would take a long time, probably months, before I could hope to be accepted into this sorority” (31).
   • First off, I strongly dislike how she refers to her coworkers as a “sorority”. What they do to make ends meet has nothing in common with the privilege inherently associated with any college sorority. I am also against how making it a single of day working in a diner in any way makes Barbara a “survivor”.
2. “In real life I am moderately brave, but plenty of brave people shed their courage in POW camps, and maybe something similar goes on in the infinitely more congenial milieu of the low-wage American workplace” (41).
   • I shouldn’t even have to say this, but no. The experience of a PRISONER OF WAR has very little in common with Barbara’s situation. It is an incredibly different set of circumstances, especially for Barbara, who again, willing chose to do this.
3. “Much of what happens next is lost in the fog of war” (47).
   • I think this is a totally rational opinion, but Barbara’s experience is very much removed from anything to do with war. I find her continuous analogy between her experiences and  those of war incredibly off-putting.

As I’m reading this book, I’m finding Barbara’s attitude toward the working class increasingly troubling. I want to talk about this more in class, and so here are some of the instances that have bothered me most. (I’ll add to this list as we read on.)

1. “in the American workplace, the only thing people have to call their own is the tumors they are nourishing and the spare moments they devote to feeding them” (31).
   • I can’t even really summarize my thoughts on this one but she writes as if these people don’t have families or lives of their own to value.
2. “the Overseas park is a nest of crime and crack, and I am hoping at least for some vibrant multicultural street life” (39).
   • I feel like this quote undersells that fact her neighbors are on drugs and committing crimes because of a complete lack of opportunity in their lives. It’s insulting how she sees people of color and jumps to stereotypes, hoping for little bit of “vibrant multicultural street life” to keep her middle-class self entertained.

Regardless of the many problems I have with Barbara, I don’t understand the reasoning for keeping her car, or at least using it to the extend which she does. Most people in the working class don’t have the luxury of owning a car. They have to take public transportation, and if Barbara is so committed to living their lifestyle, why does she keep a car? I could understand if she held onto it in case of emergencies, but she uses it everyday to get to and from work. She claims that this decision was made because “a story about waiting for buses would not be very interesting to read” (5), but I don’t buy it. I feel like she was just being lazy. I personally think that including travels on public transportation would have bettered her story and increased its realism.