{"id":1822,"date":"2012-03-29T00:00:59","date_gmt":"2012-03-28T15:00:59","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.hyogoajet.net\/hyogotimes\/?p=1822"},"modified":"2012-03-26T10:44:18","modified_gmt":"2012-03-26T01:44:18","slug":"love-and-relationships-anti-labels","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hyogoajet.net\/hyogotimes\/2012\/03\/love-and-relationships-anti-labels\/","title":{"rendered":"Love and Relationships:<\/B> Anti-Labels"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"We live in an era of branding, labeling, slogan-ing, identifying, and trying to fit in even when we purposely stand out: an age of individualism, but where you want that individualism to be called something. A period where having no identity is an \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcidentity\u00e2\u20ac\u2122. \u00c2\u00a0A dispensation of \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcme\u00e2\u20ac\u2122, my way. A time of \u00e2\u20ac\u0153I want to do XYZ because I like it, but just because I do XYZ doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t mean I am an XYZ-er.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d We are beings who seek to belong, even when not belonging\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6is \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcbelonging\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 to something. Weird, huh? Well, welcome to the Genesis of the ANTI-LABEL era.<\/p>\n

In fashion, labels are crucial. That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s what sets Versace jeans apart from Arrow Jeans. It tells you what runway that garment should be on, how it should function on the runway and who should take it home. But, without these labels, could you really tell if a sweater is made by Hermes or DKNY? And either way, isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t the sweater fulfilling the same basic function? — keeping you warm on a cold day. So, really, when it all comes down to it, how important are labels? Can we survive without them? Could you function effectively without being labeled? Wouldn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t it be a little more fun just to exist\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 live even, without a \u00e2\u20ac\u02dctag\u00e2\u20ac\u2122, without an \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcidentity\u00e2\u20ac\u2122, without an \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcISO 9000\u00e2\u20ac\u2122, without being forced into one group and subsequently being stereotyped according to \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcoutsiders\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 perception of who you are? I believe it would! And that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s the way the world is heading now: Anti-labels!<\/p>\n

Gay, straight, lesbian, bisexual, top, bottom, versatile, bi-curious, transsexual, transvestite, butch, fem, stud, passive, active, boyfriend, girlfriend, dating, fooling-around, husband, wife, mistress, life-partner, civil-union, lovers, play-mates, and f`@@k-buddies are just some of the labels we ascribe to ourselves in hope of making things \u00e2\u20ac\u02dceasier\u00e2\u20ac\u2122. But does it really make things easier or does just complicate the whole game? \u00e2\u20ac\u201c One way to find out, huh?<\/p>\n

So, two people managed to rise above the disco smoke of a dance floor and found each other at a party while sipping on their cocktails; began seeing each other and sharing lazy lunches, candle lit dinners, romantic French films, walks on the beach, Cherry Blossom BBQs, bowls of ramen, Christmas, New Year, and maybe a birthday, but the minute one of these individuals asks, \u00e2\u20ac\u02dc\u00e2\u20ac\u2122So, where are things going? Are we in a relationship?\u00e2\u20ac\u2122\u00e2\u20ac\u2122, things start to spiral out of control. Is it that in a weird quasi-universe, the absence of a label ensures security? Is it that the whole \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcfree agents of the universe\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 have some weight to it? But there might be some truth in that! Is it that a label applies pressure and people start to \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcfreak out\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 whenever they are labeled? What\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s the deal? Or maybe, just maybe when two persons find each other and are so connected that they do not need a marketing department to come in and brand the uniqueness that they share, but rather live freely as two connected agents of the universe and allow themselves to \u00e2\u20ac\u02dc\u00e2\u20ac\u2122see where things go\u00e2\u20ac\u2122\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 and by going there together, they would both know that they are \u00e2\u20ac\u02dc\u00e2\u20ac\u2122on their way\u00e2\u20ac\u2122\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 and when they have arrived \u00e2\u20ac\u02dc\u00e2\u20ac\u2122there\u00e2\u20ac\u2122\u00e2\u20ac\u2122, they would know that \u00e2\u20ac\u02dc\u00e2\u20ac\u2122they have arrived\u00e2\u20ac\u2122\u00e2\u20ac\u2122, label-less-ly!<\/p>\n

Growing up in a religious household with a mother who had Jesus on speed dial; a father who DIDN\u00e2\u20ac\u2122T; a brother who hated my guts for one reason or the other; and a society that demands you to be on ONE SIDE of the \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcfence\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 and stick to it, I believed that things were either \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcblack or white\u00e2\u20ac\u2122: gay or straight; top or bottom; butch or fem; Bob Marley or Cher; Obama or Bush; Christians or sinners; meat or fish; night or day; crazy or sane. But the older I got I realized that a \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcblack or white\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 universe is a boring one, a narrow-minded approach to existence, a limited belief structure. As you embark upon the \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcrainbow-shaded gray\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 areas, you realize that that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s where LIFE is and that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s where the citizens of Anti-label planet dwell. On this planet, one can afford to dabble here and there in the \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcrainbow-shaded gray\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 area without having to give up their \u00e2\u20ac\u02dc\u00e2\u20ac\u2122citizenship\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 on earth and be forced to be labeled as \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcALIENS\u00e2\u20ac\u2122. But rather feel free to indulge in the splendors of the \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcplanet\u00e2\u20ac\u2122.<\/p>\n

But honestly, I lift my Phillip Treacy hat (the designer who makes Sarah Jessica Parker hats) to our Asian friends who live a little closer to Anti-label planet than most people. These are the guys who don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t even bother to affix a brand to themselves, but happily indulge in any shade the rainbow has to offer. And needless to say, they know how to indulge\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6(lolololol\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6)<\/p>\n

Wouldn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t it be such a wonderful world if we had no \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcidentity\u00e2\u20ac\u2122, no stereotypes, no pre-conceived notions, no expectations, no hang-ups, but just allow ourselves to love, live, experience life and all the different flavors and splendor that it has to offer, label-less-ly? I would be first in line! J<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

We live in an era of branding, labeling, slogan-ing, identifying, and trying to fit in even when we purposely stand out: an age of individualism, but where you want that individualism to be called something. A period where having no identity is an \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcidentity\u00e2\u20ac\u2122. \u00c2\u00a0A dispensation of \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcme\u00e2\u20ac\u2122, my way. A time of \u00e2\u20ac\u0153I want…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":55,"featured_media":1823,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false},"categories":[256,63],"tags":[260],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.hyogoajet.net\/hyogotimes\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/03\/AntiLabels-2.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hyogoajet.net\/hyogotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1822"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hyogoajet.net\/hyogotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hyogoajet.net\/hyogotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hyogoajet.net\/hyogotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/55"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hyogoajet.net\/hyogotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1822"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.hyogoajet.net\/hyogotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1822\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hyogoajet.net\/hyogotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1823"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hyogoajet.net\/hyogotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1822"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hyogoajet.net\/hyogotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1822"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hyogoajet.net\/hyogotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1822"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}