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Here are the four things I wish I had known before coming out:

1. It won't define you. You have many attributes! Humor, artistry, really bad kitchen dancing skills that no one will witness but your dog! Being gay is part of every gay person's life but not their whole being.
2. Not everyone will like it. But for the most part you won't hear from those folks. They will just slowly fade from your life. And you will find yourself with really close friends because you can finally let your guard down.
3. It turns out being gay is actually "a thing" now.....I'm not sure when it became cool.....or maybe now I only hang out with people who think it's cool. But it seems to be the thing to be. WHY DIDN'T I KNOW THIS BEFORE?! GAH!
4. You will come out of the closet over and over and over and over. Unless I go and shave ALL my hair off. Which personally will never happen. Because me without hair would probably be semi-terrifying. Plus I like being "feminine". And I don't have to revoke that because I date women. I once shaved off 1/4th of it and it didn't help. Point being, no one assumes I am gay. Therefore "coming out" happens at least twice a week. Luckily it gets less and less awkward. Because also, one of the things I wish I had known before coming out is that you get tougher.

Sooooooo since the other day when a stranger and a young girl:
1. saved me when I ran out of gas and drove me to a gas station
2. didn't abduct or murder me
3. actually became my friends

Me: Hey buddy how's it going?
Him(looking defeated): *sigh* It's going.

Family wisdom that has been bestowed upon me:

My Aunt: Justify yourself to no one
My Uncle: If your name is that of a fruit it is acceptable to get a tattoo of said fruit
My Mom: Take care of your feet and buy good shoes
My sister: Always have $20 cash on you for a cab
My brother: Don't give a s*** about what other people think of you
My Dad: Having a sense of irony is equal in value to a sense of humour

Me: One of the first thing I learned about gay culture is to ask what pronoun people like
Her(pensive and confused): ....what is a pronoun?
Me: Like he/she/they. Some queer people like to go by certain pronouns. So it's polite to ask.
Her: So someone would use the word "they" for one person?
Me: Ya. Or some "women" go by "he". And some women identify as "queer" or "genderqueer" because it's more political and gender neutral. It's confusing, right? ....navigating queer culture.... I learn something new everyday