Published on HELLO GIGGLES

When it comes to HBO’s new show, “Silicon Valley,” about the tech start-up scene, there’s a lot of buzz, but there’s not a lot of estrogen. It’s surprising in this “lean in” era. Hello, women are the CEOs and COOs of major tech companies. Organizations like Women in Technology and Girls Who Code keep springing up. And, as Cate Blanchett pointed out in her awesome Oscar speech, “the world is round” and people want to see female-centric films. (And those films make money!)

The blogosphere caught on, but HBO seems to have missed the memo, as evidenced by the sausage-fest that is Silicon Valley. To help, here is a virtual salad bar of ideas for how the show might balance its diet – we’re not asking it to go vegan, just a little more vagitarian-friendly:

The Nerdy Girlfriend Who’s a Better Coder Than the Guys

She’s got glasses. She might be played be Charlene Yi. She doesn’t say much, and when all the guys are stuck on a coding problem, she can fix it. Probably while getting a healthy snack between chapters of Pride & Prejudice.

The Level-Headed Lawyer

The incompetence and business naïveté of the guys is laughable, but new SNL cast-member Sasheer Zamata could play it straight — she doesn’t have time for that. While her clients search for that pot they misplaced, she zips through inch-thick contracts on the elliptical.

The Hipster Neighbor

Using her letterpress when a “souped up” Frisbee flies into her garage, this now-paint-splattered creative-type (our own beloved Zooey Deschanel?) sees potential in accidents. Over some homemade ginger-limeade, she realizes she could print the guys’ business cards… while listening to Fleet Foxes through her hand-carved wooden iPod speakers.

Any Clerk Anywhere

Have you ever been in a store, sought out someone who worked there, and found the employee to be female?! Maybe Silicon Valley has one such person and she’s surly and sarcastic. Think Rebel Wilson. Or Kristen Stewart. She uses her iPhone too much and has a signature flavor of chewing gum.

The Sheryl Sandberg/Marissa Mayer

Her suits mean business, and their neon accents mean she’s an innovator. Quick with numbers and decisions, she was a child math prodigy and is now the reason her company is leader of the pack. Men in Silicon Valley grumble that her glory’s undeserved. She continues to prove them wrong, and quips that their companies have onomatopoetic names – they all sound like “boo hoo” to her.

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