My Mother's Reaction to My First-Ever Homophobic Slur.

I love gay people. My uncle is gay and awesome, as is his self-proclaimed "gay lover." One of my greatest and longest-known friends is a lesbian. I am a pianist so I am constantly surrounded by delightfully (and often superfluously stereotypically) gay men... mostly vocalists. And there are plenty of other examples.

That being said, thanks to Louis C.K. -- perhaps the funniest man in my life -- I've been saying the word "faggot" a lot. (I've also been screaming the word "faggot" a lot out of my best friend's car window whenever we go anywhere.) Only in the right company, of course, and only by itself, not in sentences. Because it's just such a darn funny word. Faggot.

Which is why today, I'd like to share with you the reaction I got from my mother when I was 10 years old and said the words "George Bush is a faggot" at the dinner table because I'd heard an older kid say it at school:

Actual video. I'll never forget it.