Mags wrote: >>I know that I take for granted things we are able to do like holding hands and showing each other affection in public ... we 'can' because no one thinks twice about it... we are afterall perceived as 'straight' and yet, if a lesbian or gay couple does the same thing..many people in the mainstream freak out. Infuriating. I just do not get it. I've been told that this reaction is based upon fear...what the hell are they so afraid of? And what is there to hate about people loving each other? I have a postcard with a picture of a woman screaming. It's meant to look like a horror movie poster and it says, "They worked at their jobs! They shopped for groceries! They even went to the movies! They lived.......The Homosexual Lifestyle! See....them do their laundry! Hear....them order from the local takeout! Feel....your spine tingle as they watch TV!" I think that says it all! This list has been a unique experience for me. In my regular life I usually take baby steps out of the closet, and here I feel comfortable being out. It's been great to meet other listers and they may or may not know, but it's no big deal. It's always such a long process in "real life." I get to know someone, kind of do a mental survey of how they might feel about gay people and then finally tell them, hoping they don't freak out. (I recently told a woman at work that I was gay because someone else told me that she was. It turns out she's NOT gay. Was MY face red! Anyway, she was very cool about it.) I agree with Colin though, that most people really don't have a problem with it. It's the smaller, vocal minority who do. If my parents, who are in their 70's can be totally accepting about it, I think anyone can!!! Kerry
