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Call me spoiled, but despite all the images of gays in the media today, I want more, specifically of gay mothers.
We do have some real-life celebrity lesbian moms who are terrific role models like Jodie, Rosie, Melissa and Cynthia Nixon, but when it comes to those powerful characters of the serial dramas that we tune into each week, I yearn for a gay version of Rosanne who shows what motherhood is really like.
Okay, so we have not one, not two, but three lesbian moms on the biggest hit lesbian TV show ever; but if you think L Word's Bette and Tina or Helena fit the bill, then you are probably not a mother.
Remember Season 2 when Helena's two adopted children were everything to her? She interrupted a business meeting with Bette in order to snuggle with them, and later in the season she fought her ex partner for custody. Then her kids conveniently disappeared so that Helena could pursue other interests, like employment, gambling and of course romance. Her babes got in the way of her babes, so the show producers nixed the tykes and Helena's maternal instinct quicker than you can say character re-write.
Bette and Tina score higher on the mom-o-meter, as they were actually portrayed dealing with child care and pre-school issues, but as a busy mom who barely finds time to watch the show on DVD, I wonder every time Bette and Tina are casually hanging out at the Planet, where is little Angelica? Just like the attachment parenting that Bette and Tina practiced in Season 3 -- when they instilled trust in their infant daughter by holding her in their arms at all times, with even Shane taking a turn -- poor baby Angelica was dropped as soon as she got in the way.
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I fear that like the Dalmatian puppies abandoned by the droves at shelters after the movie 101 Dalmatians made them look so adorable, would-be lesbian moms will think they can have their gaybee and go out for drinks too.
My mother's generation complained about the unrealistic June Cleaver depictions of mothers on television in their day -- those impeccable housewives who kept their men happy and their houses clean, and now we have a similar but different portrayal of lesbian moms.
When we have the ideal opportunity to define ourselves and our role as lesbian moms -- two caring, sharing female figures in a household, we revert back to images of supermoms, but in this case we must not only both juggle successful careers and motherhood but be feminine, beautiful, glamorous and sassy while doing it.
Like the lawyer watching Law & Order who annoys everyone with running commentary, "That would never happen in a courtroom ... blah, blah, blah," I watch L Word interjecting, "Who is babysitting while they are out partying? Don't they ever spend any time with their kid?"
Sure, it's nice to see two hot mommas going at it, but occasionally I think we need to see two ragged moms, up with the kids since 5 a.m., and still in their PJs at noon because they just haven't had time for a shower.
Or we could see a tired mom up at midnight writing an overdue column while her partner comforts their sick one-year-old son who has been barfing all night his nursery, and both of them look forward to a good night's sleep. To me, that would be much more realistic.
