June 06, 2005 :: I'm not gay

... but apparently I like some of the same stuff that gay men like. To wit:

• I like house music. Specifically, San Francisco house music. I don't ever go to clubs that play it, though, because they're full of gay men, and I don't enjoy being hit on by men. But the music is good.


• I have a better sense of color than the average man, by virtue of being a sometimey graphic designer. I actually care about the aesthetics of some things, although I probably overcompensate by letting my home go almost completely uncoordinated and undecorated.


• I have a tendency to wear brighter colors than most men. I think this is because I live in DC now, and it was less of an issue in any of the 3 cities on the west coast in which I have lived. It's been mostly suppressed since moving to DC, which quite possibly is the most repressive city on the planet that I'd still actually want to live in. Apparently it's only acceptable for men to wear blue, black, gray and white here. Any other color draws comments and stares. Lately I've been saying fuck it and wearing what I want to wear, but still.


• I like fancy restaurants. It's enjoyable and fun to me to go to a nice restaurant which is trying to do something more than just shovel grub in front of you. Novel cuisine is an experience I think everyone should have on a regular basis. I don't think it's a coincidence that the major share of such restaurants here in DC are in gay neighborhoods. I like cooking too, sometimes. My chili is swiftly becoming my best recipe.


• I've been accused of being metrosexual. I don't think I groom myself meticulously enough to qualify, but everyone has her own perceptual threshold. I have accumulated a variety of products in my bathroom for various specific purposes. I've gotten in trouble for having shampoo in my shower before. All I've got to say is that shampoo is better than bath soap at cleaning hair.

of course all of this evidence is circumstantial, but that's beside the point. With the hysteria over down-low men, and the special focus of that hysteria on DC, I get asked about this way more than I care to answer. Most people who ask get immediately removed from the mental rolodex as someone I'd care to hang out with, as it often says more about them that they asked than how I answer does about me. Whatever their concept is of how men should behave, I ain't it. There are a few genuinely curious yet still non-judgmental questioners, but they are few and far between.

I just wish I could figure out how to write a book about this and make my millions.

posted by Rainmayun at 4:05 PM -

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