Appearance can be deceiving

I'm a little of an anomaly to many, hard to stereotype or pigeonhole. I've always been this way, probably owing to my somewhat eclectic living style when I was young. A neighbor came by one day and I was dancing in my living room with my children. The radio was going quite loud to the local popular music station. The neighbor commented, "I had you pegged as one that would listen to country, not hip-hop."

I love to knit and crochet. Awhile back my husband was observing me doing so one evening while I had a movie going for 'background noise' and he commented, "I never would have thought you'd go in for something so... feminine." Now I think my father would have something to say about that comment, seeing as long ago it was quite common for men to knit their own socks. Come to that, I'm really not sure how the idea that knitting is a female chore came to be. Truly, anyone can knit, but these days it seems everyone is surprised if anyone under the age of 70 can do it.

So let me sum myself up for you: I like modern music, but I'm open to just about anything. I love to craft and consider myself to be somewhat of an artisan, but I'm no artist (yes, I believe there is a difference... and artist splashes some paint around and it turns out beautiful, I splash paint around and it turns into a mess. LOL). I love animals of all species and phyla without equivocation. I'm quite knowledgeable on many subjects, but I will be the first to say "I don't know" to many many things, because I don't. I like to make soap, I love to read romance novels and watch comic movies. I don't like horror films and can't stand any kind of 'mealy' bean, no matter how it's dressed up. I love my kids, my husband, my city, my state, and my country, in that order. I'm very much into the 'green' movement, as it's now called, but have been doing things different since before it was popular. I believe in grass roots and sustainability. I have my own way of thinking and will NOT be told by anyone what to think, say, or do. I am very firm in my beliefs, but open to being educated on someone else's. I'm accepting of all walks of life regardless of any minority factor. And I have a southern hill accent that was developed as an early adult.

There now, can people please stop acting so surprised when I don't fit their image of me?