(My friend is one of those ‘out there’ kind of people. One day we are sitting in the grass on campus enjoying the sun. There are dandelions around and she picks some randomly, braids the stems into a ring, and then tosses them in the bushes as we get up and walk away. My friend absentmindedly starts chewing her fingernail as we cross the quad. She makes a face.)

Friend: “Ew, yuck. I forgot how dandelion juice tastes like ear wax!”

Me: “Why do you even know that?”

(I have a slight accent, as my dad is from the UK and often goes there. However, I haven’t ever been out of the country. I’m on break at a mall, and a stranger hears me talking with a friend.)

Stranger: “You have a beautiful voice. Where are you from?”

Me: “Thank you. I actually live in the city.”

Stranger: “Well, where did you live before here?”

Me: “Uh… [City].”

Stranger: “You’re not from here! Nobody from [City] has that accent!”

Me: “They do if their dad is from Europe.”

(The stranger stormed off. My friend and I stayed away from the busier halls after that.)

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(I usually wear glasses and no makeup, but I decide to wear contacts and makeup. I see a friend in the coffee shop.)

Friend: “Oh, [My Name!] Did you put on eyeliner?”

Me: “Well, yeah, a little.”

Friend: “And your eyes… They’re so blue! Are you wearing contacts?”

Me: “Yeah, but they dry out my eyes so I don’t wear them much.”

Friend: “Don’t you wear contacts all the time?”

Me: “No. Just my glasses.”

Friend: “But then how are your eyes always so blue?!”

Me: “Oh! Those are my natural colour. I wear lenses for vision.”

Friend: “If you don’t want to tell me where you got your lenses, fine!”

(Just over a month ago I had an ovarian cyst that ruptured. It causes the ovary to swell and is extremely painful. Mine doesn’t require surgery, but I’m still recovering at this point.)

Friend: “You okay? You’ve been holding your side all day.”

Me: “Yeah, sometimes my ovary still hurts. It takes about three months to heal from a ruptured cyst.”

Friend: “Ooh, man, that sucks! What happened, anyway?”

Me: “Robert Downey Jr. made my ovaries explode.”

(I’m in a fast food restaurant when two older women sit down at a booth. The booth has two windows beside it, one which is empty and the other which has a big, promotional poster in it.)

Woman #1: “You know what I’m going to do? I’m going to tear down that poster so I can look outside.”

Woman #2: “Well, I can switch with you.”

Woman #1: “No, that’s okay!”

Woman #2: “But I don’t want to look outside! The sun is out there!”