I was on a roll today:

• Got up at 6:00 am
• Stretched (It’s a big deal! Really!)
• Checked the forecast and rode a bike to the office space
• Worked and researched all morning on WordPress themes and plugins

To top it off, I walked to Safeway to pick up some better things to eat for lunch. All was going according to plan and the day was really pretty nice for being an overcast day on the Harbor. I mean, around here, you have to savor any day there isn’t rain coming down.

Okay, hop on another train of thought: I’ve done my fair share of yelling at people out of the car window; “Hey lady!” and “Do you have any Grey Poupon?” being at the top of the list with some random, unintelligible words thrown in. All fun and games in high school and by walking down the road now, I understand that I could fall victim to one of these random shoutings. No problem by me; I used to do it and really, our gobbledygook utterances never were meant to stick with you.

Back to today: I could deal with a lot of crazy comments and I can even play along when someone comments about a weird bike or hat or jacket but, when it pushes a button that’s totally off limits, even jokingly, I just don’t know what to think. That button is called “intolerance,” kids.

When someone yells “faggot,” I honestly don’t know what to think or where they’re coming from. I don’t know if it’s some high schooler stupidly playing a joke like I used to (but totally NOT like I used to) or if it’s someone with a real issue with homosexuals. I’m not confrontational to begin with but if someone goes so far as to assess that they can yell “faggot” at me because they saw me off in the distance with a corduroy jacket, cardigan sweater and black framed glasses, they’ve pushed me into a full on……….. retreat-to-safety mode.

So, thanks random Aberdeen pickup truck driver for freaking out a straight guy who dresses a little different than you with a misdirected and disgustingly intolerant comment. Now to plan some alternate routes for riding my bike so I’m not passing over the same path too often.