Acting Dumb

One of my teachers once told me she used to ask men stupid questions in order to please them. She grew up doing that with her dad, asking questions about things she knew the answer to. It was her way of making her father feel good, empowering him.

Years later, she did the same thing with her husband. She thought it would make him happy, especially when she felt that a little “sucking up” was needed. One day, he retorted, “Why do you ask these stupid questions? You know the answer!”

All she could say was, “I… I don’t know.”

This week, a friend was telling me she didn’t have the materials needed to make cheesecake. I responded that I had cheese in my fridge, and asked if American was okay. I said that knowing full well that American cheese was not an ingredient in making cheesecake, just to get a laugh out of my friends.

Hours later, I recalled this “joke” I made and wondered if they actually realized that I was joking. I also wondered if I gave my friends the impression that I was a lot dumber than I really am every time I did that. It’s sad that I force myself to go through this kind of self-oppression for the sake of a cheap laugh from my friends.

KFC, every time I think of you, I appreciate you more.