So. Women in technology. As in: women who work in IT or digital media. Women who write code and run databases. Women who test servers and fix bugs.

Do you know any? No, really – I’m asking because I think I need to meet more. Right now, I only know two. One lives in New York. The other lives in Bellevue. Both are very smart, very cool women whose lives are as far apart on the personality spectrum as they are on the United States map.

One is single, the other is married. One is pure fire, the other is pure peace. One has a Manhattan apartment; the other has a long-awaited baby. And although all three of us have our own decidedly (and deliciously) geeky tendencies, my recent round of interviews have really made me wonder – what exactly is it employers think we should be?

I didn’t get that job I told you about last week. I didn’t get the next one, either. Both would have involved producing lots and lots of web pages, all day, every day. Not getting either one was really a shame. Besides the fact that I REALLY wanted it and REALLY would have kicked butt at it; my husband had taken a surprise day off to whisk me away on an adventure to Mount St. Helens. Instead, we stayed home so I could quiz myself on HTML, XHTML, XML, CSS and practice interview questions – over and over and over – for more than 12 hours.

When they called to say they were going with another candidate, both interviewers told me “I seemed way too creative.” That they worried I’d be bored. As though I hadn’t read or understood the detailed job description when I BOTHERED TO APPLY, or even remembered the years of experience I had (and was initially selected for) doing work that was EXACTLY THE SAME or EXACTLY AS REPETITIVE.

So, I had to wonder: Who are the people they don’t worry about being bored? Someone who lives in his mother’s basement with a pet turtle named Fred, spending his nights eating pizza rolls and playing D&D.com for hours on end? BECAUSE HI, I HAVE A CAT NAMED AL, I AM A PIZZA FREAK AND AM ON FACEBOOK 24/7.

I have a very hard time believing anyone interested enough in learning the skills these folks are looking for would also be the kind of dweeb who flakes out five weeks into a job. I have an even harder time believing A) code isn’t creative, B) being creative means you’re too good for anything, and C) they really expect someone who isn’t creative will be less likely to burnout.

By their own admission, I have the skills and experience to do the job. I have a proven track record and a reputation for excellence. I am also a woman – who has a growing suspicion that the expected uniform doesn’t include cleavage, 2 ½-inch heels and lipstick.

But guess what else I have? Enough imagination to do it anyway.