LGBTAitp 27: Of Shoes, and Ships, and Sealing Wax

[PairO'Dice Lost]

Just a story about stereotypes I thought was worth sharing since I haven't chimed in, in a while.

In my last year of high school there was one girl who I didn't know at all of sudden she became really friendly, and started to make conversation etc.

Later on that year she admitted she had heard from someone that I was gay, and was just trying to become friends so we could go on shopping trips together.

Oh the power of stereotypes. *Facepalm*

I've come out to seven girls so far aside from my sister (most of my friends are guys, surprise surprise), and without exception their first reaction (after the usual battery of "how did you know" etc. questions) was "So...you want to go shopping sometime?"

My standard answer to this was to raise one eyebrow, spread my arms out to draw attention to my outfit (funny geeky T-shirt, cargo shorts with pockets full of stuff, plain white crew socks, and sneakers) and respond, "Would you really want to go shopping with someone who considers this to be the height of fashion?" They generally got the hint.

I used to take my sister and her friends shopping before she or they had a car, by which I mean I would drive them to the mall and read in the bookstore until they were done 6+ hours later, and started not-so-subtly bugging me to allow her to update my wardrobe at an early age. After I came out to her, mentioned the above reactions, and said with a completely straight face "And it's true, you know, all gays love shopping. Does this Saturday work for you?" she burst out laughing for a good five minutes or so and had intermittent fits of the giggles for the rest of the day.