Running the Gauntlet:

Walking down the street to an orchestra of comments and dirty looks.     Face set in stone.

      [laughter at someone who looks different]
"Freak!" "Marilyn Manson!" "Hey, Dracula!" "Going to a funeral?"
      [giggle]
"What's all that metal in your face for? What are you a robot?"
      [snicker]
"Nice Pants!" "Nice Boots!" "Nice Make-up!"
"Get a real haircut!" "Fucking Vampire."

    "Faggot!"
       "Slut!"
"Ugly Mother-Fucker!"
       "Whore!"
   "Fucking Queer"
 "Stuck-up Bitch!"

There's five of them, one of you, what are you gonna do? Better keep your mouth shut. Shut it or me and my 4 brave friends will shut it for you. If you don't like all the attention, why do you do it? If it bothers you - assimilate.

An awkward young man in blue jeans and a polo shirt stares at you. You stare back and he quickly looks away. A soldier stares hard at you, you don't stare back.

A little girl says to her mother, "Mommy, that girl looks cool -- I wanna look like that when I grow up!" You smile and the mother hurriedly picks up the child and moves away saying, "Don't say that, honey." She gives you a dirty look as she walks away.

"Oops, sorry."
     -- didn't mean to slam my elbow into your back.
     --didn't mean to spill your drink.
     --didn't mean to hit you from behind when you weren't looking.

"What seems to be the trouble, Officer?" -- "Get out of the car."

Hair bound neatly back, wearing a suit. "This is a professional environment, you do of course realize you will have to get a haircut.." for this $7/hour shit-job??

Always on display. Having a bad day? 50 people staring really helps. Walking up the steps to go in a store, waiting for 5 people to come out.   Each one: stop, stare, go out. Stop, stare, go out. Stop, stare, go out. Stop, stare, go out. Don't stop, stare, miss a stair, fall hard and hit head against the wall.  Crack! I didn't bother to see if she was okay.

The nose stud is okay, but you'll have to take out the lipring, that's not popular enough yet to be acceptable.

"No offense, but why do you dress like such a freak?"

"Huh, what?" (how dare you address me while I was busy staring!)

"No, I can't help you."

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