'Cause I've got you, and you've got me
So I'm still going to complain, but not about my personal life for once. No, here's what's been bugging me as of late:
Ok, I think it was said best on the West Wing, though I can't dig up the exact quote: "Why is there this assumption that gay people can't keep their hands to themselves?"
First of all: don't flatter yourself. Where did you get this idea that you're somehow completely irresistible to GLBTQ members of your own sex? You're not, just like you're not irresistible to every member of the opposite sex. I don't find every girl attractive any more than I find every guy attractive.
But let's assume for a moment that I do find you, as a woman, attractive. Here's the thing: I'm not an idiot. I know you're straight. And not only am I not an idiot, I'm also not any kind of sexual offender. Trust me, I will leave you alone. Now listen up, because I would hope I'm speaking for most GLBTQ people here: We respect you. We understand that you're not interested, and we're not going to waste our time pursuing you -- any more than you would pursue someone who's happily married. Seriously! It's that simple! In the interest of full disclosure, yes, I have remarked jokingly to my attractive straight female friends things like "It's a shame you're straight." But I would not cross any sort of line with them.
I know that I should maybe be more concerned with uber-fundamentalist-conservatives who think that all gays should go to Hell. And I am. But this kind of latent prejudice really and sincerely frustrates me. It tells me that even people who claim to be open-minded and progressive have some kind of deep-seated notion that gay people are somehow inherently bestial and without control.
Let me reiterate it: We respect you. We respect that you're not interested. We are mature adults and able to control ourselves. We're not going to waste our time. We're not going to molest you. Now shut up and be our friend.
("But Carolyn," you say, "Didn't you pursue and pine after a girl who told you she wasn't interested for like, four months?" Yes. But she had a rainbow shoelace on her backpack and also smiled at me and talked to me, and that's just not fair to my gaydar. She deserved it.)
Today started out pretty failtastic. I'm starting to really hate my Child Psych class. The professor is a total idiot, and my classmates aren't much better. I had to call her out on a test question she marked wrong -- "What is the clear sac which cushions and supports a fetus?" The amnion, HURRDURR. But she marked it wrong, saying it was the placenta. UM, NO. And why did I have to call her out on it? Because everyone else in the class said it was the placenta as well. I did get her to admit her mistake, but man, I shouldn't have had to. Know your subject, lady, or shut up and get out of the classroom. I'll teach. Plus, our textbook is all "Yay formula-feeding and C-sections! Boo, breastfeeding, co-sleeping and natural childbirth!" Which, NO. Just NO.
But, I got my usual delicious lunch at Grooveground, then came home and ate cookies and watched a particularly good episode of The West Wing ("The Stackhouse Filibuster").
But basically the best part about my week is that tomorrow I'm going to meet Kris for dinner at Cosi, and then stay over with her and Maggie. WIN.
Also, here's a really beautiful Tegan and Sara song: "When I Get Up."
http://www.sendspace.com/file/ultssl
Ok, I think it was said best on the West Wing, though I can't dig up the exact quote: "Why is there this assumption that gay people can't keep their hands to themselves?"
First of all: don't flatter yourself. Where did you get this idea that you're somehow completely irresistible to GLBTQ members of your own sex? You're not, just like you're not irresistible to every member of the opposite sex. I don't find every girl attractive any more than I find every guy attractive.
But let's assume for a moment that I do find you, as a woman, attractive. Here's the thing: I'm not an idiot. I know you're straight. And not only am I not an idiot, I'm also not any kind of sexual offender. Trust me, I will leave you alone. Now listen up, because I would hope I'm speaking for most GLBTQ people here: We respect you. We understand that you're not interested, and we're not going to waste our time pursuing you -- any more than you would pursue someone who's happily married. Seriously! It's that simple! In the interest of full disclosure, yes, I have remarked jokingly to my attractive straight female friends things like "It's a shame you're straight." But I would not cross any sort of line with them.
I know that I should maybe be more concerned with uber-fundamentalist-conservatives who think that all gays should go to Hell. And I am. But this kind of latent prejudice really and sincerely frustrates me. It tells me that even people who claim to be open-minded and progressive have some kind of deep-seated notion that gay people are somehow inherently bestial and without control.
Let me reiterate it: We respect you. We respect that you're not interested. We are mature adults and able to control ourselves. We're not going to waste our time. We're not going to molest you. Now shut up and be our friend.
("But Carolyn," you say, "Didn't you pursue and pine after a girl who told you she wasn't interested for like, four months?" Yes. But she had a rainbow shoelace on her backpack and also smiled at me and talked to me, and that's just not fair to my gaydar. She deserved it.)
Today started out pretty failtastic. I'm starting to really hate my Child Psych class. The professor is a total idiot, and my classmates aren't much better. I had to call her out on a test question she marked wrong -- "What is the clear sac which cushions and supports a fetus?" The amnion, HURRDURR. But she marked it wrong, saying it was the placenta. UM, NO. And why did I have to call her out on it? Because everyone else in the class said it was the placenta as well. I did get her to admit her mistake, but man, I shouldn't have had to. Know your subject, lady, or shut up and get out of the classroom. I'll teach. Plus, our textbook is all "Yay formula-feeding and C-sections! Boo, breastfeeding, co-sleeping and natural childbirth!" Which, NO. Just NO.
But, I got my usual delicious lunch at Grooveground, then came home and ate cookies and watched a particularly good episode of The West Wing ("The Stackhouse Filibuster").
But basically the best part about my week is that tomorrow I'm going to meet Kris for dinner at Cosi, and then stay over with her and Maggie. WIN.
Also, here's a really beautiful Tegan and Sara song: "When I Get Up."
http://www.sendspace.com/file/ultssl