It is bloody annoying though. If it’s friends or people I’ve known for a while then it doesn’t bother me, but often it’s complete strangers. It tends to go:
To me and DP, ‘are you sisters?’
Me or DP, ‘no, she’s my partner.’
Then they look at my DS ‘whose is he then?’ It’s a stupid question because he looks like me.
Me, ‘he’s my son.’
Them, ‘Oh, so how did you have him then?‘
Me, I grew him in my uterus...’
Normally the dead bat and look of irritation makes them leave it there but not always, in which case I normally say, ‘they’re rather personal questions aren’t they?’ Then I either get an apology or a huffy, I was only curious and they storm off.
I don’t mind a bit of curiosity but it can stray into intrusion, which people think they’re entitled to because we’re lesbians. I wouldn’t dream of asking the mother on the bus whether her three kids are by the same father, even if one is black, one is Asian and one is white, it’s just bloody rude. People might be interested but it doesn’t give them the right to ask complete strangers personal questions. Some people I just get the impression they want to know whether I’ve had sex with a man.
People can be bloody nosey, and they aren’t entitled to personal information about us, no matter how nice or curious they are. Being different doesn’t mean we owe them whatever gossip they’re interested in.