my parents :]

my parents and i (i guess more particularly, my father and i) have a love-hate relationship. it's very much all out of love, but my dad and i argue a lot a lot about everything. from gay people to how to defrag my computer to religious values... you name it, we've probably argued about it. (except premarital sex. that's awkward, and i hope my dad never brings it up because i would have NO IDEA what to say.)

anyway, tonight was a good night on the phone with the 'rents, despite the fact that it's that time of the month and i tend to argue with my dad very often during this period of time.

i haven't seen my parents in two months, almost three, and i really miss them, more than i would admit to anyone. i'm an only child so i'm used to the constant (though usually pestering) presence of my parents. and yes, this is my second year in college so i should be used to it. but guess what, i'm not. xP i like nights at home where my mom and i sit watching filipino soap operas for three hours straight. i miss showing my dad cool techy stuff or having intense discussions about real issues. and yeah, i miss having people who i know love me no matter what i do. even if i get yelled at all the time. haha.

on the flip side, when i live at home, my dad and i fight like cats and dogs. it's like wwiii, except even more intense because my mom's the country in the middle that doesn't want to pick sides. :(

anyway, it was a good conversation mostly because we started talking about the upcoming election, and i asked my dad how he was voting on proposition 8 (yep, the one about gay marriage!) my dad is your typical straightedge, catholic, conservative, and slightly judgmental/slightly racist filipino dad. we've had multiple arguments/discussions about gay people where my dad has said some really mean and uncalled-for things. but he surprised me today. "no on prop 8, of course!"
"... really?!"
"yeah! of course! why wouldn't i? your mom and i already talked about this. what gay people do is none of our business. they're not affecting us if they get married. why take that away from them?"

i don't think i've ever felt more proud in my life. this is the same father who had a self-proclaimed "hatred" or "great dislike" for gay people because he thought they were freaks of nature. in previous conversations, he's said "why don't they just change who they like? they're bastos [stupid in tagalog.]"

then he told me how a lot of his mindsets have changed because i've argued with him about stuff, that i tried to show him a different side. for example, with his whole perspective on gay people. he doesn't talk shit about "that kind of people" anymore, and instead just lets them be. and while it's still not 100% where i'd like it to be, i still feel so much better knowing that while it might take years... my dad genuinely listens every once in a while.

AND he recycles now! changing the world, starting with my dad, WOO!

i love you, parents :]

88, <3, janet anne