You know, the things that surprise people about you merely because of our interminable human need to shove everyone into a nice, tight Behavioral Box based on (sometimes) arbitrary factors.
For example, I am a Black person who loves the Allman Brothers. Think THAT doesn’t turn some heads? Hee! Once I was driving my Nana somewhere, and bopping my little head along to “Jessica” (instrumental number, which explains why I wasn’t singing) in the car. After a long silence, my Nana turned to me and said, hesitantly, “How did you get tangled up in this kind of music, anyway?”
Tangled up! Like it was obviously a result of my having gotten in with “the wrong crowd” (when really, I don’t have many White friends who like the Allman Brothers…). And it wasn’t just because she didn’t like the music… Hell, she hates Hip-Hop, but never questions any family members as to how they got “tangled up” with THAT…
Example #2: For some reason my friends (the ones in Kansas, anyway) think of me as the Queen of Gourmet Edibles, and so are horribly shocked and disturbed that I love Taco Bell (side note: I do NOT think of it as Mexican food… if I want THAT I go somewhere else). In reality, though, I just like what I like. It’s Kansas, though, so when you like, say, sushi around here, you instantly get labeled, and suddenly it seems “beneath” you to grub on some smothered chicken.
How about being a trained chef that’d much rather just eat peanutbutter and jelly sandwiches most of the time. I do like to eat well, I’d just rather someone else made it. I don’t like to eat my own cooking. I have no idea why.
Maybe because you associate cooking with WORK (kind of like a male or lesbian gynecologist might not wanna have sex. :D)
Or maybe because once you’re done peeling shrimp/cleaning fish/chopping chicken/separating eggs, etc. the idea of eating the finished product kind of grosses you out (happens to me with shrimp all the time).
If you’d like, you can come to my house and cook for ME… and I’ll make you a PBJ in return. Wonder Bread alright?
A lot of people are surprised when they find out I like hard rock and heavy metal music. I realize that people who look at me probably don’t get this impression. I wear good clothes and I’m well-groomed and keep my hair trimmed. I don’t smoke or drink or go to parties, and it’s been forever since I have been to a rock concert. Still, I love my loud music.
My CD collection surprises people. I have eclectic tastes and I’m not sure what I look like I listen to, but apparently people don’t expect Rage Against the Machine, the Birthday Party, Bad Religion, etc.
I drink alcohol. Lots of it in fact. But I do not like the taste of beer. I can drink anything except beer. For some reason people have a hard time fathoming this.
OTOH, this could give your loved ones hope; if you ever become (or are) an alcoholic, they’ll be able to say, “Well, s/he hasn’t gone completely off the deep end… s/he still won’t drink beer.”
This almost seems like a musical confessions thread:
Next to my new wave and punk stuff, I truly enjoy polka music. I even have Frankie Yankovich’s autograph on a one dollar bill (which was the only paper I could find for him to sign when I was at Polaski Polka days)
I also like REO Speedwagon, and even saw them in concert a few years ago.
I don’t know which one concerns people more, reo or polka, but they don’t expect it from me. Oh, and for the record, it needs to be a good upbeat polish polka, none of that german crap.
Interesting. But of course the Allman Brothers, especially Duane Allman and Dickie Betts, considered Miles Davis a huge influence on their music. It impossible to listen to their early stuff without hearing the Jazz influence.
Right you are, absolutely. I personally think that most (“White”, for lack of a better term at the moment) Rock-n-Roll was influenced by Black Blues, Gospel & Jazz musicians… however, that doesn’t mean Black people are flocking to Graceland…
Even among most of the White people I know, the Allmans are considered pretty “Redneck”, along with Skynyrd another band I–cough–like…
Anyway, thanks for the “out” you’ve given me… I can now say that I love the Allmans because I love Miles Davis!
Everybody knows me as an “obessive compulsive clean freak”. For the most part, I fit the description. Let’s just say that I’d never, ever even share a straw with someone.
But only a few people know about the dirty things that I do in the heat of passion. It’s like I’m a totally different person.
Hee! Once I was driving my Nana somewhere, and bopping my little head along to “Jessica” (instrumental number, which explains why I wasn’t singing) in the car. After a long silence, my Nana turned to me and said, hesitantly, “How did you get tangled up in this kind of music, anyway?”
Like it was obviously a result of my having gotten in with “the wrong crowd” (when really, I don’t have many White friends who like the Allman Brothers…). And it wasn’t just because she didn’t like the music… Hell, she hates Hip-Hop, but never questions any family members as to how they got “tangled up” with THAT…