Representation matters, but …

Good day, Muggles. I hope your new year is off and running in a magical way. Sure, it feels the world is burning around us, but how is it really going for you, personally?

So, for me it has been pretty boring: I watch TV. I get on the treadmill occasionally. I cook. I do shows three nights a week. I do laundry on Thursdays, and I nap way too much.

It is all just a blur of days that run into each other, making time fly by. I know 2020 was a horrible year but did anybody notice how fast it actually flew by? It’s crazy.

Now I would like to get on my soapbox and bitch a little bit about people and their opinions. First off, I want to say that representation matters; it absolutely does. Have you watched Prom on Netflix? It is a cute little musical from the mind of Ryan Murphy starring Meryl Streep, Nicole Kidman and James Corden. The Late Late Show host plays a gay man in the movie, and it has pissed off a bunch of those keyboard warriors because he is — DUNT DUNT DUH! — straight!

People — and by people I mean the squeaky wheel assholes — have so much to say about a “straight” man playing a gay dude. It is called acting, people! I am just so annoyed by people having a problem with this. I know lots of gay actors, but I don’t know a single one of them that only wants to play gay characters.

Some people complained that he was too stereotypically gay, that he played the part just too gay. Fuck that! I know plenty of gays, and that is actually how some of us act. And I don’t see any shame in that. Some of us have a little more swish in our step and a little more sway in our hips.

I totally get using actual trans actors to play trans parts, and I hate when they whitewash a character that should have been Asian but is played by Scarlett Johansson. That is not what I am bitching about. James Corden was fabulous in Prom. Cheyenne Jackson, an openly gay man, is playing a straight guy on Call Me Kat, and ain’t nobody bitchin’ about that.

There was also an uproar online from people bitching that a hearing individual — Henry Zaga, a total hottie — was playing a deaf and nonverbal man — Nick Andros — in The Stand reboot. They think that the part should have gone to a deaf actor. But if you know the story, you know that Nick can hear and speak in dreams, so I get why they used Zaga. BTDubs, y’all know I am a huge Stephen King fan, and I think this new Stand is really good. They changed a lot to update it, but I’m totally on board with it.

I would love to see more deaf or hearing-impaired actors being used in TV and movies. The Walking Dead introduced a deaf character and a hard-of-hearing character a few seasons ago, and now they are fan favorites. Lauren Ridoff as Connie and Angel Theory as Kelly are so good on the show. It freaks me out when zombies are involved in any way, but to not hear those fuckers coming — that terrifies me.

Okay — I will get off my soapbox about this for now. But in conclusion: In my opinion, you don’t have to be gay to play a gay on TV. You don’t gotta be straight to play straight. Lord knows we have all done that before. I played straight for years and was not particularly good at it.

I should take my own advice and bitch less, but I’ve realized something: It is hard to be a constant beacon of light. First off, being positive isn’t nearly as funny as being bitchy. Second, it is just so easy to go dark; my thoughts are usually already there. And third — fuck it! I don’t need a third.
I like to think I would use the force for good, but more than likely, I would totally turn to the dark side. It just seems more fun. I think I am joking.
I’m not sure if my humor has gotten darker, or if I am just going through a phase. I kind of think that until we get back to whatever the new normal will be, this is who I am. I just feel like I have gotten so negative, and I do not like it. Or have I always been this way but didn’t notice because I didn’t care?
Being self-aware is horrible.

On a positive note, I got pulled over by the police this week. Yes, I said “positive” because I only got a written warning. I pulled up to a four-way stop sign here in Midlothian and did what we call a California stop — you know, where you kinda stop, but it’s more of a slow-down-keep-going kinda stop. Anyway, the second I do that — mind you I am the only car at the intersection — I see the police SUV, and, of course, he immediately puts his lights on and comes after me.

I stop, get my insurance and driver’s license out and wait, just cussin’ myself the entire time: I’m so stupid. This is going to be expensive. God, I don’t wanna tell my husband about this.

Then the cutest, scruffy-bearded officer strolls up to my passenger side window. Bitch, he was fine AF. Every porno I have ever watched where the cop demands services to keep from taking you to jail went through my head. Y’all know I have a dirty mind.
But he said, “I know there were no other cars around, but you still have to stop, Mr. Love.” In my head I had so many witty, dirty things to say, but all I got out was “Yes, Daddy … I mean yes sir.” (JK!)

He went to his car, ran my info and gave me a written warning. It made my day. I didn’t get a ticket, and I added to my spank bank. Win-win!
Remember to always love more, BITCH LESS and be fabulous! XOXO, Cassie Nova