This may be a very bad idea, but I hope I explain my intent properly. I had this thought on the bus yesterday, when it was really crowded:
"Isn't that sweet? That thin person thought there should actually be a lot of room for her to sit down on the bus."
The bus was full of people, full of bags from grocery stores and such, and one person who hadn't bathed in days and was muttering to themselves*, and she acted as if I was the only one on the bus taking up a lot of space. I find now that I am less likely to get mad about these things, but instead to have a bemused "The silly things that thin people think about fat people" thought, like fat people are the only ones to use a lot of physical space. That person didn't notice that I was one of the few people who had all my grocery bags in my lap, leaving pleanty of space for a smaller person to sit next to me.+ Instead, they decided they'd rather squeeze in next to someone else as if my fat ass is contagious. They didn't have any more room over there, but at least they were away from the fatty. I just have to shake my head and wonder why thin people are so fussy.
So, with good intent, what are the things that thin people think that you find silly, absurd, dumb, whatever. I'd prefer it not to be things that make one feel shameful or angry as a fat person, but if that is the way it goes, so be it (I don't control the thread).
I have always felt that most thin people treat crowded public spaces as their personal living room, and rarely pay attention to the ways they take up more space than they should, because they have no awareness that there is anything wrong with using space as if it were a luxury, not a need. In other words, use as much space as you need, not as much space as you want, and fat people tend to understand this, as they are always told they 'take up too much space' when in some cases they don't even take up as much space as they need, let alone want. People who in other situations would spout lines about "Use only what you need, don't waste, leave a small footprint" will take up two seats with their bag and their laptop and so forth, and give me a dirty look when I've got a tower of my crap on my lap so as to free up space for other riders. Thin people, their ways are mysterious.
The other thing that some thin people think, which is absurd beyond belief, is that fat becomes a 'huge burden' (like, immobile status), for fat people at absurdly low weights (and I notice this more with fat women then fat men). They think a fat woman in her mid 200's and above who is active and able to move without pain or limitation is as rare as a unicorn shooting skittles out of it's bum.
Really, thin people?
Really?
If you want to argue with my interpretations, please do. I have never been thin, so I have no idea how thin people process the world. However, being fat in a world that only accepts the way that thin people interpret the world as being the 'common view,' I probably know more about how they view the world then they know about how I view the world, and I'm tired of defaulting my world view to theirs. I feel much better when I don't give them the power of telling me how the world 'is,' and perhaps it would be nice to provide some insight to the thin folks who might be receptive to another interpretation of the world we all share.
*I am mentioning the smell and demeanor of this person because in my observation, the presumed homeless/mentally ill are the one group of people that folks seem less likely to sit next to than me and my gigantic ass. Perhaps I am mistaken.
+ I know there is plenty of room to sit comfortably next to me, as I sit next to people all the time, without sitting on them, and am comfortable myself even when I do not take up all of one seat, let alone two. As well, my slender partner always has plenty of room when we sit next to each other on public transportation.
"Isn't that sweet? That thin person thought there should actually be a lot of room for her to sit down on the bus."
The bus was full of people, full of bags from grocery stores and such, and one person who hadn't bathed in days and was muttering to themselves*, and she acted as if I was the only one on the bus taking up a lot of space. I find now that I am less likely to get mad about these things, but instead to have a bemused "The silly things that thin people think about fat people" thought, like fat people are the only ones to use a lot of physical space. That person didn't notice that I was one of the few people who had all my grocery bags in my lap, leaving pleanty of space for a smaller person to sit next to me.+ Instead, they decided they'd rather squeeze in next to someone else as if my fat ass is contagious. They didn't have any more room over there, but at least they were away from the fatty. I just have to shake my head and wonder why thin people are so fussy.
So, with good intent, what are the things that thin people think that you find silly, absurd, dumb, whatever. I'd prefer it not to be things that make one feel shameful or angry as a fat person, but if that is the way it goes, so be it (I don't control the thread).
I have always felt that most thin people treat crowded public spaces as their personal living room, and rarely pay attention to the ways they take up more space than they should, because they have no awareness that there is anything wrong with using space as if it were a luxury, not a need. In other words, use as much space as you need, not as much space as you want, and fat people tend to understand this, as they are always told they 'take up too much space' when in some cases they don't even take up as much space as they need, let alone want. People who in other situations would spout lines about "Use only what you need, don't waste, leave a small footprint" will take up two seats with their bag and their laptop and so forth, and give me a dirty look when I've got a tower of my crap on my lap so as to free up space for other riders. Thin people, their ways are mysterious.
The other thing that some thin people think, which is absurd beyond belief, is that fat becomes a 'huge burden' (like, immobile status), for fat people at absurdly low weights (and I notice this more with fat women then fat men). They think a fat woman in her mid 200's and above who is active and able to move without pain or limitation is as rare as a unicorn shooting skittles out of it's bum.
Really, thin people?
Really?
If you want to argue with my interpretations, please do. I have never been thin, so I have no idea how thin people process the world. However, being fat in a world that only accepts the way that thin people interpret the world as being the 'common view,' I probably know more about how they view the world then they know about how I view the world, and I'm tired of defaulting my world view to theirs. I feel much better when I don't give them the power of telling me how the world 'is,' and perhaps it would be nice to provide some insight to the thin folks who might be receptive to another interpretation of the world we all share.
*I am mentioning the smell and demeanor of this person because in my observation, the presumed homeless/mentally ill are the one group of people that folks seem less likely to sit next to than me and my gigantic ass. Perhaps I am mistaken.
+ I know there is plenty of room to sit comfortably next to me, as I sit next to people all the time, without sitting on them, and am comfortable myself even when I do not take up all of one seat, let alone two. As well, my slender partner always has plenty of room when we sit next to each other on public transportation.
