(no subject)
People sure do like to put words in my mouth and walk all over me. I've noticed that a lot in recent years. I try to treat others with respect, why can't they do the same? Is it my quiet, reserved demeanor? Is it that I appear to be much younger than I really am, and the fact that most adults seem to look down on children as if they're nothing but mindless, hyperactive brats whose only purpose is to make trouble for them? I don't understand what it is, but I've met a number of people who have been downright rude or disrespectful to me for no apparent reason.
I get the same thing when I go out in public with brightly-dyed hair, or dressed in an unconventional outfit. I've had a man walk right up and whisper obscenities in my ear. A couple of older women spoke to each other about me as if I had not been standing two feet from them. Does anyone else get this kind of behavior? Those two ladies were commenting quite candidly on my hairstyle (a red mohawk), as if the way I wore my hair proved I was just a rebellious teenager going through a phase. I would "grow out of it." I wonder what it was they assumed I would grow out of?
I think people prefer to assume rather than explore because it gives them a sense of safety. Well, fuck assumptions. Face the things that make you uncomfortable and you'll often find that your initial ideas of them were wildly inaccurate.
I'm sick of being treated badly because of the way other people see me. I'm tired of people thinking that I personally hold on to a selection of opinions and beliefs because I look, speak, or behave a certain way. One thing I have no tolerance for is generalizing. Don't judge an entire group of people based on your experience with one individual.
I am a kind person. Acceptance and understanding, of others and yourself, are two qualities that are especially important to me. I acknowledge my faults-one of which is a tendency toward stubbornness-and I make an effort to accommodate and cooperate with others. But that doesn't mean I'm going to allow people to continually walk all over me. There is a point where that becomes too much to deal with, and I'm pretty sure I'm nearing it.
in other news,
I stalked the ice cream truck today and bought myself a treat. ;) How awkward it was to proclaim I wanted something called a "Lick-A-Color!" Haha.