This is Not a Funny Post

A college-aged lesbian couple, a May-December gay couple, and a transvestite were all in the store.

At first, I didn’t realize the girls were a couple.  I thought they were two girls from the nearby university that just went back in session, here to steal shit as a sorority prank or shriek at their own daring when they pick up a dildo.  I kept an eye on them for a few minutes, making sure they weren’t causing trouble. They were talking quietly, walking around nervously looking at stuff, when one of them gave the other a quick kiss on the cheek. They smiled at each other and held hands and browsed for a bit longer before leaving, with a quick wave goodbye to me as they walked out.

The gay couple consisted of a man in his late thirties and another in his early twenties. Generally that large of an age gap is a sign of either prostitution or desperation, more signs to keep an eye on. The two were completely at ease with each other and the store, talking and laughing and browsing. When they brought their purchases to the counter we had a pleasant conversation about the weather and traffic from the college, and they cheerfully wished me a good night as they left.

The transvestite was not a hot mess diva like Mr Ma’am, but an older male looking very put together in a modest blouse, khaki skirt, and a silver-gray wig. Like the young lesbian couple, she and I didn’t actually talk at all. She gave me a terrified look when she walked in, as if I’d kick her out immediately, and she relaxed when all I did was say “Hello”. She walked around idly looking at movies for a while, flipping through a few magazines, all very cautiously, like she would be attacked at any moment. When she left, she smiled and said goodnight.

A lesbian couple, a gay couple, a transvestite, and me, one straight female comfortable in her birth gender and sexuality. We all spent a half hour in the same space, breathing the same air, and…nothing happened.

Absolutely nothing out of the ordinary happened during that hour of my shift.

And yet, when others see a lone gay movie on display at the front counter, they frown at it like they’ve been wronged. Like they, personally, have been negatively affected by that movie.  They tell me I shouldn’t have it on display at the counter where everyone can see it, because “it’s wrong,” “it’s not right,” “it’s disgusting.” The bolder ones actually pick up the movie and turn it around in the display so they don’t have to see the front, hiding it from everyone’s view.

People who are different are not going to hide because you’re uncomfortable with it.

People who are different are not wrong, or “not right”, or disgusting.

People who are different are just as normal and ordinary as everyone else.

The rest of the world needs to realize that and get used to it.

***EDIT- One of my readers, the ever-lovely Charley across the pond at SpeakSlow just did a post about Manchester’s Pride Parade, and wrote a bit about LGBT issues at the end.  She’s super adorbs and wise beyond her years. Plus I imagine she has a real bitchin’ accent.  As a heterosexual, I can’t possibly even comprehend what this amazing gal must go through some days,  nor could I write about it. Go read what she feels and get a better idea of the world around you. Plus, Sir Ian McKellan in a rainbow feather boa- BEST THING EVER. Here’s the link:  http://speakslow.org/post/1059966469/manchester-pride-2010