rantalicious

It's Monday, so I'm cranky.

Adding to the long list of things that have annoyed me lately:

• Do not talk to me like I am a toddler. I am 33 years old; talk to me like I'm an adult, or please don't bother talking to me at all.
  
  The fastest way to get me to disregard absolutely anything you're saying to me is to talk to me in a patronizing tone. If you talk down to me and treat me as if I am incapable of following you before I'm even given a chance to try, then I'm not going to stick around for it. If I can't follow what you're saying, I will let you know. And I know a fair number of 50-cent words myself, no need for you to act like you need to limit yourself to three syllables or less on my account. If you feel the need to ask me not to do something, don't try the verbal equivalent of grabbing a three year old's hand and saying "No, no, no; don't touch". Seriously. I am a grown woman and am reasonably intelligent, "Please don't" and a reason works perfectly well.
  
  
• Not everyone in the South is an ignorant, racist, homophobic hick. This is a HUGE button of mine, which has gotten stomped on hard and repeatedly in the last week. Are there some? Yeah, of course. Are there ignorant, racist homophobic hicks in California, and Washington, and in the Northeast? Yes indeed there are. It's not like the South has ever had a lock on that kind of thing, no matter how superior large segments of the rest of the country like to try to make themselves feel.
  
  I spent years, literally, trying to not discuss where I grew up (easier to do because I don't have a recognizable deep Southern accent most times). I did it because as soon as I said "I'm from Mississippi", I got saddled with a whole boatload of assumptions about who I was and what I believed. In my first week or two at Georgetown, the first thing (almost literally) I heard from more people than I care to count when they found out where I was from was "Oh, did you see Mississippi Burning?", with a tone that implied that they assumed that I was going to be burning crosses out on Healy Lawn. Hi, nice to meet you too.
  
  With the recent election, I'm hearing this sort of "Southerners are backwards hicks" crap a lot more. I just ran across a link to a web site with the url "f*ckthesouth.com"; you can figure out what the ranting content looks like I'm sure. Y'know what? F*ck you too. Make no mistake, those of you ranting about moronic Southerners are every bit as bigoted and intolerant as anyone painting you as a "liberal, elitist, babykilling traitor", so get the f*ck down off your high horse.
  
  And cut it out with the "Jesusland" map already.
  
  
• People from the alumni association who call me at work to "confirm my information" for their upcoming directory (which I believe will be available for sale). You've sent me three hundred postcards at home with dire warnings about how you really need my information in order to make sure I'm included in this directory; the fact I've replied to none of them ought to tell you that I neither care about this project nor want to update my information with you. You've obviously gotten my current contact information somehow or else you'd not have my work phone number, now would you? Idiots.
  

(no subject)

On a less ranty note:

• I must acquire "Give Up" by The Postal Service. Radio Paradise is making sure I don't manage to get withdrawal symptoms from lack of EWS now that I'm (for the time being) not on ecto anymore.
  
• The singing demon camel showed up today. Yikes. The glowing red eyes while it sings make it absolutely perfect. ;)
  
• It's time to plan end-of-year vacations so I can submit requests for time off this week. Hopefully the lower Left Coast visit thing will work out in addition to some weekends away with C.