The All-American Lesbian Couple Next Door

[queerbychoice]

There is a lesbian couple that has apparently just moved into my apartment complex, in the building next to mine; they've hung a huge Americanized rainbow flag on their balcony that was never there before (it's a rainbow flag with a blue box in the corner with fifty white stars in it - maybe it's more of a rainbowized American flag, really), and they're both sitting out on their balcony surveying the neighborhood. At first it was only one of them out there with the rainbow flag, a very extremely butch dyke positively strutting around in front of the flag by herself, and I thought the flag was an awfully over-the-top effort to meet women while sitting there on her balcony - but a few minutes later her very femme girlfriend joined her on their balcony. So now they're both sitting up there with their huge rainbowized American flag, watching while I carry box after box of books to my car to begin the process of moving in with my girlfriend. I think I'd actually greet them and explain the queer nature of my moving project, if only they had a regular rainbow flag instead of the Americanized version. The Americanized version puts me off, though.

(I'm not actually planning to finish moving until around the end of October at the earliest; I just want to get my books moved a few at a time before then so there'll be less left to do later.)

Comments

[belenen.livejournal.com]

I think I'd actually greet them and explain the queer nature of my moving project, if only they had a regular rainbow flag instead of the Americanized version. The Americanized version puts me off, though.

??? Having a rainbow-american flag doesn't necessarily mean that they are rah-rah-america; it could mean that they want to change America to be queer friendly. Or it could be that they happened upon a rainbow-american flag and got it rather than choosing it over a rainbow flag.

The extreme polarization of appearance would probably make me a little hesitant though, because that can be an effect of believing in gender roles. So I'm a bit ass-umptive too, heh.

[queerbychoice.livejournal.com]

Of course, it could mean anything; it could mean they just couldn't find a regular rainbow flag, or someone gave them this one as a gift, or who knows what. But it still puts me off, because I can't imagine myself hanging such a huge Americanized version of the rainbow flag on my balcony.

[jeremytblack.livejournal.com]

I totally hear you on the book moving. That's why, even though I don't have to move just yet, I'm moving my books to my storage area as soon as I can. That way, when I find a new place I can just move the rest of my junk over.

But I have a 10 by 10 space with MOSTLY books in it, believe it or not, and eventually I want those in my new place if they'll fit. The fretting over moving ALL those books eventually just drives me nuts.

I don't have a flag to move, though.

[orangebeaver.livejournal.com]

If your book reading lists are any indication, it's going to take a lonnnnnnnng time to move all your books!

[meaning-making.livejournal.com]

Hilarious! Here's a great story about the Americanized rainbow flag:

During the process of coming out, getting kicked out, finishing school, etc. I lost contact with one of my straight friends. Well, I called one on a whim one day after I finally had my head above water and we got to talking about sexuality. She said, "Okay...I can handle you being gay (her words), but SERIOUSLY...please don't ever get one of those American flags that is replaced with rainbows. I just can't imagine why anyone would do that to OUR flag."

I had to hold down laughter as I assured her that I definitely do not have the Americanized rainbow flag (Or "New Glory," as I later learned it's called). I'm just not the flag waving type.

[dzuunmod.livejournal.com]

Is it the 'America' aspect that puts you off, or the 'national flag' part that does?

[kk0isonlymyname.livejournal.com]

I'd put up a queered up Canadian flag for sure.

They might be trying to imply that being American is compatible with being out and proud.

[queerbychoice.livejournal.com]

Both? I don't know how to separate them, really. I've never lived in a country whose national flag wasn't the American one, so I don't really know how I'd feel about it if I did.

[dzuunmod.livejournal.com]

Well, if a couple moved in next door to you and was flying a Canadian rainbow flag or a rainbow Union Jack, how do you suspect those might make you feel?

[queerbychoice.livejournal.com]

Probably somewhere between how I feel about a regular rainbow flag and how I feel about the Americanized kind. I'd be glad that at least the national flag they were waving wasn't the one most usual around here, and be more inclined to forgive their patriotism on the grounds that they'd be living far from home and showing pride in what here would be a minority cultural background instead of a majority one. Plus, a Canadian rainbow flag would make a kind of sense since Canada has rather wonderful queer-rights laws. But there'd still probably be some small degree of misgiving in my mind about anybody waving any form of any national flag around - at least, unless I got to know them and could hear their own explanation for what exactly the symbolism meant in their own minds.