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We are three adults living in a polyamorous triad family. The content here is intended for an adult audience. If you are not an adult, please leave now.

9/09/2012

Hiding in Plain Sight


Every now and then, I find myself caught up in a bit of personal insanity that goes like this:  "I've worked with these people for many, many years.  They've seen me work, and they've heard me talk about Tom and T as my neighbors and good friends who I've helped in various ways, and who have been there for me plenty of times.  Surely, as people see us together, at events through the years, they come to understand who we are really.  Maybe some of the more open minded ones could be let in on the secret -- and we could be friends, and not just colleagues..."

That little bit of fantasy came crashing to earth at lunch on Friday.

Our gaggle of junior high teachers gathers for lunch in the art room.  It is a big, bright space with enough room for all of us to gather around the table, and enough privacy for us to chat without fearing that we'll be overheard.  The conversation is wide-ranging, and I am often surprised by the opinions expressed by all these lifelong Catholics.  These are interesting people from the art teacher to the language arts guy to the technology guru to the curmudgeon that teaches social studies.  I enjoy the conversations.

One young fellow, who is a long-term substitute teaching the upper level English and reading classes, has a side business as a wedding photographer.  On Friday, he told us about meeting with a potential client to discuss her wedding.  He told us that he thought she was in her early 30's, a little heavyset...  He met her at a local Panera to discuss the plans and what she wanted in terms of photos.  When he arrived, she was sitting with an "older couple" in their 50's, and he assumed they were her parents.  They talked about the ceremony (pagan), and the location, and the time, and other assorted details.  After some time, the young woman, looked at him and said, "You do know that the three of us are getting married, right?"

Around the table, there were gasps of shock and horror.  I think the word I heard was "creepy!"  As if in a single voice, my colleagues declared that the multiple marriage thing was unthinkable, even though they all declared that they consider themselves to be "open minded."  And then the conversation turned, of course, to whether or not anyone has read "Fifty Shades of Grey."

Me?  I studied the contours of my ham sandwich, peeled my orange, and pried open my yogurt container.  Eat.  Breathe.  Try not to look at anyone.  Keep on hiding in plain sight...

swan  

11 comments:

  1. Check out my site today and see how I used the idea of DD to make my boss uncomfortable. Plan sight is the best place to hide.

    PK

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  2. What element would bother them the most? That it was a 3some? That the other couple was older, a different generation? That it was 2 women and a man? I wonder.

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    Replies
    1. sin -- I think it was "all of the above." The threesome thing elicited significant "ewwwww" response from one and all. The age difference, well... there were plenty of "regular" couples that they could think of where there was that extreme age difference, and that just seemed weird. Finally, they figure that one guy in the threesome must be "getting off on his fantasies." Shrug. However that all falls out, I got the important information that I needed -- Do Not, under any circumstances, let these people in on the hidden parts of my life.

      swan

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  3. Ordalie11:23 PM

    "they consider themselves to be "open minded." Well, of course! Ever heard anyone declaring the opposite?
    It's usual to find friends among colleagues, but in your case I suppose none of them has ever been invited to your house...

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    Replies
    1. I get a thrill when I see the word "none" followed by a singular verb

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  4. Impish18:30 PM

    I'm sorry. I know that was painful for you, and that you think about it every day now when you are at work. I hope you feel better soon.

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  5. Impish -- It wasn't so much "painful" as it was "shocking." I honestly never expect seemingly reasonable people to do that -- knee-jerk reactions catch me off guard, especially when they are so at odds with my reality. I feel as if I was saved from making a really dumb mistake. Confiding in them would have put me in a serious situation.

    I can get "hurt" when I let myself ponder the impossibility that my life and my family will ever be able to live openly in our society. Mostly, I just try not to go there.

    swan

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  6. hrmph. open minded indeed. i wonder if people actually know what that means. and this is why i have NO colleagues whom i consider friends. even among friends, only a few have an inkling as to my "kink" if that's what the mainstream folk are calling it.

    i must go over to PK's site now... to see what she has to say about hiding in plain sight...

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  7. Pretty interesting Sue. You suddenly became the wise old owl that lived in an oak. I am wondering, what was the general opinion of Fifty Shades? Had it been widely read there? Enjoyed? Even all three books? Were people condemning it without reading it?

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  8. Hello, Malcolm! How wonderful to see you here! It has been a very, very long time...

    As to the question about Fifty Shades of Grey, I do not get the sense that it has been widely read by my colleagues. In fact, I have not read it. My understanding is that they generally view it as porn, and not worthy of their attention. I suppose that qualifies as "condemning without reading."

    swan

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  9. Ek I was chatting with my very prudish mother yesterday and my teen daughter brought up the 50 shades of gray book asking what it was about. Color my uncomfortable... :/

    It shows their lack of education in certain lifestyles for them to automate the association of a poly relationship and that book.

    I feel your strain - I am so very comfortable being "this" me yet it is so hard to maintain in certain company.
    ~viemoira

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