You probably could be a man's equal once you correct for the size differentials. I'm as strong as guys my size. Hell, on Denali we were all carrying roughly the same loads - me, the small guys, the large guys, we all did it. But me and the smaller guys suffered a bit more for it (think about what it means for a 200+ lb man over six feet tall to carry a ~80 lb pack, or carry and tow a combined weight of ~100 lb; now think about what it means for a man or woman who's 5'6" and 140 lb to do the same - it's possible, believe me, it's totally possible, but it's NOT fun).
S is about my size, one inch shorter, roughly the same weight. We can share clothes. That extra inch I've got seems to make all the difference in reaching stuff. S's very male tendency to pack upper-body strength makes all the difference in lifting and carrying stuff. It works. S does get flack for being short, but he's used to it. Though he came home from a caving trip complaining about how, for one reason or another, they needed a short, strong guy and everyone looked at him.
And I've gotten flak for wearing his hand-me-over shirts and having a boyfriend who's shorter than me, though the former's more of a dig at my dressing sub-standards and the latter was such a purely jealous gripe I almost laughed at the woman who said it.
Elsha, I was very self-conscious about my bum too until I had my off-the-cliff revelation.
In all seriousness though, kids in junior and senior high pick on each other over every little thing (I had someone make fun of my
socks once) because everyone's so very insecure about everything and they feel better by poking at each other. The wounds can be a long and hard time healing though.
My former boss has been balding since before I worked for him. He did the rasty comb-over for a while. When he finally surrendered and started shaving his head, it was like ten years had dropped off him. Very impressive in that regard. Frankly, baldness is just part of the total package - if the guy has embraced his baldness and is secure with it, he'll be quite attractive. If he's treating it like a flaw, everyone else will pick up on it.