I’m not super tall for a human nor am I exceptionally tall for a girl, but I am a few inches on the up side of average. I’m 5’9″ (175 cm), which some of you may agree is fairly tall for a girl.

I say I’m 5’9″, but it’s really something like 5 feet 9 ¼ inches. However, since I aged out of single digits, I haven’t felt the need to count my age nor height in halves or quarters. Though I guess I just did.

Anyway, I thought I’d tell all you short people the benefits and disadvantages of being tall (for a girl).

Pro:

I don’t typically need to stand on something to reach the top shelf. I can reach all the shelves in my garage, closet and kitchen, and things on top of the refrigerator without a stepladder.

Con:

All the short people I know ask me to fetch things off the shelves for them.

Pro:

I rarely have to shorten pants.

Con:

Pants and sleeves are sometimes too short.

Pro:

I can see over a lot of people’s heads in a crowd. This is especially nice at shows and movie theaters since I can stand or sit anywhere, yet I’m not so tall that I completely obstruct views behind me like this guy:

Con:

I’m pretty easy to spot in a crowd even if I don’t want to be noticed.

Pro:

If I’m with my family or certain friends, I almost always get to ride shotgun in the front seat.

Con:

If I do have to sit in the back seat, there’s never enough room for my legs.

Pro:

It takes fewer steps to get places. It’s not like I have exceptionally long legs–I’m rather proportionate–but just by being a few inches taller than most women, I take fewer strides.

Con:

Walking with short people, I have to slow myself way down and I’m naturally a pretty fast walker.

Pro:

I literally look down on most women and a lot of men. This can be a psychological advantage, especially in the workplace.

Con:

I literally look down on most women and a lot of men. It makes me imposing even if I’m not trying to be.

Pro:

People don’t try to swindle me as much as my short friends.

Con:

When they do swindle me, it’s usually so seamless that I don’t notice.

Pro:

I’ve never been any good at basketball, but I was very good at volleyball and soccer because of my long reach and strides.

Con:

People assume I’m good at most sports.

Pro:

I can pretty much wear anything and not have it look totally ridiculous. I’m not as skinny as a runway model, but I can carry floor length dresses without looking like a little girl playing dress-up:

Con:

Miniskirts often become micro minis on me.

Pro:

I’m never required to wear high heels since, even in dresses, I’m tall enough. But, when I do wear heels, I feel like the goddamn queen of the universe. In high heels, I’m six feet of Nordic glory. Alright, perhaps not glory, but six feet nonetheless.

Con:

Sometimes, I’m just not in the mood to tower.

Pro:

I look thin even when I’m not. Carrying an extra ten pounds looks like five. If I were a lot shorter, the same ten pounds might look like fifteen.

Con:

It makes it very easy for me to be lazy about exercising.

Pro:

A lot of men are attracted to tall women.

Con:

They look at us sort of like circus freaks or mountains that need to be conquered. I don’t generally date men shorter than me. Dating guys my height or taller severely limits my dating pool.

Pro:

You get dibs on tall guys. Male is 6’5″ and he thinks I’m short. Even in heels, he’s five inches taller than me. That is if I’m in heels. He doesn’t wear them. That would be overkill.

Con:

Until I mastered my height, I was incredibly awkward about it like a baby giraffe. In grade-school, boys typically don’t like girls taller than them. I didn’t have a proper boyfriend until I got out of high school.

Pro:

People have always taken me seriously, even when I was young. I have a barely five feet tall friend who often complains that people treat her like a little girl even though she’s nearly forty. That never happens to me.

Con:

People often take me seriously when I’m not being serious. They miss my sarcastic intent.

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All things considered, I’m happy with my height. Most people I’ve met who comment on my height, especially women, say they wish they were taller. I’m perfectly happy with my height, but if I had to choose shorter or taller, I’d choose taller, too.