One day after he and Jillian Fink announced their divorce on January 23, Patrick Dempsey said this: "It would be nice to be one-pointed and not spread so thin sometimes. I think where I'm going is to really streamline and be much more specific in balancing things a little bit better than I have in the past."
Huh. Doesn't that sound completely unlike anything you've ever heard a woman say before? And we have to point out—dun dun dun—the double standard here. What sorts of comments would a woman get if she said she wanted to "streamline?" You're being selfish. Think of the children. Think of your husband. Think of your career.
To use one guy to prove a larger point about attitudes that should really have been eradicated by now, let's make a brief comparison between Patrick Dempsey and Women Patrick Dempsey Has Worked with Before:
Patrick Dempsey: actor, racecar driver, husband, father
Kate Walsh, Patrick Dempsey's former Grey's Anatomy costar: actor, founder of lifestyle and beauty company Boyfriend LLC, writer, director, spokesperson, ocean conservation and reproductive health advocate
Reese Witherspoon, Patrick Dempsey's Sweet Home Alabama costar: actor, producer, wife, mother, founder of a lifestyle company, board member of the Children's Defense Fund, Avon spokeswoman
Shonda Rhimes, the saint who gave Patrick Dempsey a job/arguably revived his career: screenwriter, director, producer, single mother, showrunner, and creator of six TV shows
Jillian Fink: celebrity makeup artist, mother, jewelry designer, sculptor
And that's not even counting the unofficial titles most woman have beyond their professional selves: sister, therapist, hairdresser, housekeeper, chef, best friend, semi-close friend, see-you-once-a-month friend, etc., etc.
You should also check out:
Ivanka Trump's New #WomenWhoWork Initiative Tackles the Myth of Work/Life Balance Head On
Is Doing It All the New "Having It All"? A Look at the Changing Face of Women's Careers
Confessions of a Kiss-Ass: How Being "Perfect" Almost Ruined My Career
