Monday, September 27, 2004
Queer factor
Three years ago today, I met Luke and thought we were boyfriends just because we made out a little. Luckily, he agreed with me. The last thing I would have guessed back then was that today we would be on opposite sides of the planet and still in love. Hi Luke, wherever you are! I love, love, love you. Everyone else who is vomiting right now can look forward to a new paragraph.
I thought today was going to be my first day of class, but my first lecture actually isn't until tomorrow. I am, of course, very nervous. The question is, what makes me more nervous: making new friends, or tackling my new classes? The ease with which I adjusted to the simple act of relocation suggests that these things won't be nearly as scary as I've built them up to be. Other things suggest that it might be.
Last week, Marianne and I attended a meeting of the Aberdeen University queer society. Marianne is not a lesbian, but as she stated in her defense, "I am a feminist!" We headed down to the pub where the group was supposed to meet. I had no idea what to expect. I didn't know if Aberdeen was going any gay community to speak of, and seeing the state of the gay clubs didn't help any.
Now, I think the group should have been specific about where they were meeting. The reason for this is that Marianne and I arrived and saw groups of people all over the pub, realizing we had no way of knowing which was the one we were looking for. What I didn't want to do was approach a group of people and be wrong about who they were. "Excuse me…are you the gays?" "What the fuck is that supposed to mean?"
Luckily, it wasn't too long before the head lesbian spotted us looking around and thought we looked pretty faggy, so she introduced herself and offered us a seat. There was a moderately large group of people there, but in half an hour there would be twice as many.
I don't know. Sometimes I can do the social thing. Sometimes I know what to say to make people laugh, or at least pay attention. That night I couldn't do it. I sat there watching everyone chat away and thought, Who are these people? What are they all talking about? I must have loads of things in common with some of them. How did I end up with my own half of the table?
After sitting in the pub for a while, the group headed down to the gay club for some dancing. I talked to some really cool people, but who knows if I'll ever see them again. Marianne, on the other hand, was a big hit with everyone right from the start. I felt a bit like her suitcase by the end of the night. "Oh yeah, and this is my friend Eric..."
Like I said, culture shock has set in. I promise improvements in attitude in the weeks to come. Great things are about to happen, starting tomorrow. Stick with me, people.
I thought today was going to be my first day of class, but my first lecture actually isn't until tomorrow. I am, of course, very nervous. The question is, what makes me more nervous: making new friends, or tackling my new classes? The ease with which I adjusted to the simple act of relocation suggests that these things won't be nearly as scary as I've built them up to be. Other things suggest that it might be.
Last week, Marianne and I attended a meeting of the Aberdeen University queer society. Marianne is not a lesbian, but as she stated in her defense, "I am a feminist!" We headed down to the pub where the group was supposed to meet. I had no idea what to expect. I didn't know if Aberdeen was going any gay community to speak of, and seeing the state of the gay clubs didn't help any.
Now, I think the group should have been specific about where they were meeting. The reason for this is that Marianne and I arrived and saw groups of people all over the pub, realizing we had no way of knowing which was the one we were looking for. What I didn't want to do was approach a group of people and be wrong about who they were. "Excuse me…are you the gays?" "What the fuck is that supposed to mean?"
Luckily, it wasn't too long before the head lesbian spotted us looking around and thought we looked pretty faggy, so she introduced herself and offered us a seat. There was a moderately large group of people there, but in half an hour there would be twice as many.
I don't know. Sometimes I can do the social thing. Sometimes I know what to say to make people laugh, or at least pay attention. That night I couldn't do it. I sat there watching everyone chat away and thought, Who are these people? What are they all talking about? I must have loads of things in common with some of them. How did I end up with my own half of the table?
After sitting in the pub for a while, the group headed down to the gay club for some dancing. I talked to some really cool people, but who knows if I'll ever see them again. Marianne, on the other hand, was a big hit with everyone right from the start. I felt a bit like her suitcase by the end of the night. "Oh yeah, and this is my friend Eric..."
Like I said, culture shock has set in. I promise improvements in attitude in the weeks to come. Great things are about to happen, starting tomorrow. Stick with me, people.
