Then came being a player, an actor, a clown. You're always watching your fellow humans the way Jane Goodall watched those chimps. And in addition to listening acutely enough to hear shades of meaning in the words themselves, the player soon learns to read/hear subtext in taking in the music, the timing, the timbre of the other's voice. Body language also is always happening and hugely informative.
My next incarnation was as a Gestalt therapist. The therapist is truly doing the work when head chatter is vanquished and is taking in all that the subject in the "hot seat" is expressing and NOT expressing. Blind spots are revealed and embraced in action, rather than analytically. The "knot" becomes obvious --often to all except the hot seater -- until the therapist can help the dreamer see his- or herself beyond their blind spots. Eureka!
On the topic of whether or not the Washington Scarlet Epidermi need to change their team name, folks seem to either voice an opinion that "it's high time that this change comes" OR seem to think that the topic is "lame," that "real Indians don't care," or that the Democrats are falling over themselves with political correctness. Sometimes I wonder whether "Republican" means you were born with fewer empathy genes? [Sorry, Republican reader(s), I'm sure you're an exception to that sweeping generalization.]
You can say, quite correctly, I'm sure, that "inappropriate" is in the ear of the listener. I really don't want to try to persuade or shame anyone into altering their way of expressing emphasis, power or the satisfaction of a good curse word. I do want you, dear reader, to consider the following:
Gay men spend their childhoods hearing, both in florid language of emotion and in everyday lingo, the use of pejorative words that equate their gayness with weakness, flamboyance, femininity and disgust. When a high school pack-o-boys (never alone for this) just left it at tossing a "dirty faggot" my way, I'd count myself fortunate. Sticks and stones and words that hurt were always at the ready.
If you return to my Jan 27 Hoover Sucks blog post, you'll get more of my reflections on this. We all know that insulting a Latino's mother, especially about her sex life, is the go-to serious curse. Well, call a gringo a cocksucker and you'd better be ready to fight.
So hello, my darling hipster friends. By co-opting suck as a swear word and as an everyday expression of distaste, we are once again taking a perfectly good sex word and branding it bad. My people took back gay. We took back queer.
so alright already
I guess it's time for this ol' goat to take back sucks and even cocksucker. Can't we all have good dibs on nipplelicker, necksnuggler, tummystroker, and tonguetickler??
So long. Have a good day. One that sucks, blows, or at least musses your hair.