Tag: choice | A Banana Peeled

Tag Archives: choice

No choice no smile

Posted on January 19, 2024 by Minna Hong • 0 Comments

I have railed (recently, even) about how monopolies suck. No, that is not a massive revelation or anything new. We all know this, but it bears repeating. I’m irritated because I got an appointment with CenturyLink (phone company) for a technician to come today. The appointment window? 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. This is, of course, because I was not able to talk to an actual person.

This is on purpose, by the way. Not only is cheaper (obviosuly. You don’t have to pay humans to do this), but it discourages people from trying to contact the company unless they absolutely have to. This happened when I tried to contact ComCost/Xfinity and it’s the same with CenturyLink.

Bottom line: they do this because they can. Given the soft monopolies they have in their respective areas, they don’t have to care about customer satisfaction. We have no options. I can use Comcast/Xfinity or CenturyLink in my area for internet. There are a few other stray options, but they are very restrictive.

I’m tired, grumpy, and irritated. It doesn’t have to be this way. And it really wouldn’t take much to make it a much better experience. Give me the chance to talk to a human, and I’m infinitely more likely to view the interaction in a positive manner.

There is one exception to that. That’swhenI had a problem with my trash person simply not picking up my garbage. This was the week of Thanksgiving, and when I called the day before Thanksgiving to inquire about it, I got a recalcitrant customer service person in return. It was an actual person, which was a plus, but they were not helpful at all–which was a massive negative.

I want to stress that I am very pleasant and kind to the customer service people I talk to. I know it’s a shit job and that they get paid very little money. I just want someone who will answer my questions honestly. I even understand that it’s not always possible because they are given scripts that they have to follow.

In this case, I calmly told the person what happened (no pick-up). She immediately said that it was a holiday week so there was no way I could get my garbage picked up that week. Um, ok? I mean, not ok, really. It wasn’t my fault it wasn’t picked up. I put my container out the night before as usual, so it wasn’t as if I rolled it down late. The person simply did not pick up my trash.

I asked what I was supposed to do. i needde my trash picked up. She said it would have to wait until the regular day–the next week. She repeated again that it was a holiday week, which I already knew. It wasn’t as if I were ignorant of the holidays.

I don’t care…much

Posted on May 6, 2023 by Minna Hong • 0 Comments

Back in my twenties, there was a big discussion in the community* about emphasizing that sexual orientation was not a choice. “After all,” they said. “Straight people don’t choose to be straight.” which, true. But. And this is where my brain gets weird. I’m bisexual, for lack of a better word. Which in theory means I DO choose who I want to date/fuck. And, I prefer sex with penetration, but relationships with people without the hardware. This was back in the day of binaries, remember. I had a more simplistic idea of things.

Anyway, I do think it’s a choice to an extent or a preference. I like people of all genders, but back in the day, I prefered sex with men. I haven’t been with someone in a decade, so I’m not sure where I would stand on the subject these days. I will say that the last person I was eying on Bumble was a woman. Bumble is sadly limited, though, gender-wise.

I have the same feeling with gender identity. I don’t have a strong affinity for any. Yes, I know I’m not a man, but other than that, I feel mostly meh about it. I can’t fully understand peolpe who are rigidly set on their gender, but I respect it. I mean, if someone says their gender is important to them, then I accept that as true. I don’t have to feel something to believe that other people feel that way.

I do wonder if there was no sexism, would I feel the same way? I think if there wasn’t abject sexism in our country, I would be fine with being a woman. Again, I don’t have much affinity for it, but I don’t have animosity, either. I just don’t…care. Much. I think I would be more comfortable with ‘woman’ if it wasn’t so laden with bullshit and impossible expectations.

Story of my life, really. I wouldn’t care so much if not for the gross implications. “A woman is what you want it to be”. Except if you don’t like ANYTHING earmarked as traditionally feminine. This is where I get stuck with people who feel a deep affinity to their gender. I don’t know how to ask without it sounding snarky, condescending, or nasty: Why do you care about your gender? I certainly would not ask someone who is trans because that would be beyond insensitivity.

I really don’t get it, though. It’s not genitalia. But then people with misaligned genitalia can feel body dysphoria. I get both those statements, but not together. And, granted, it’s usually one or the other, but it can be both. That’s what I don’t get. I don’t have to get it, I know, but I would like to when it comes to me.

I like my body. I fucking LOVE my body now. It took a licking and kept on ticking. I like my boobs and my pussy, my thigh-length hair, and all my curves. I love the soft folds of my flesh, and I love that I look the way I do.