Yes, I had an Easy-Bake Oven as a child. I was remembering it when I was at a recent party with a bunch of middle aged gay men, know as bears. To my wonderful surprise, I met several other men who either had one, or played with their sister’s Easy-Bake when they were little. I got to thinking about gay culture and how for many of us it began before we even knew we were gay. I remember asking my parents for a Barbie doll too! Yes, I had G.I. Joe, but I wanted a talking Barbie. I remember that my father was against it, but I whined so much that I eventually got one. I had so much fun playing Barbie with the girl next door, I didn’t see any reason why I couldn’t have one. It never occurred to me that I could only play with certain toys. It made no logical sense to me even at a young age. In my later childhood, I became obsessed with The Wizard of Oz and Judy Garland. I had never met a gay person, but somehow I was quickly becoming a stereotypical one.
In my teens I loved Valley of the Dolls, Barbra Streisand, and Liza Minnelli. Gay, Gay, Gay! From my earliest memories I had been on the path to raging homosexual. I hated gym class, always thought of girls as pals, and found I had a strange attraction for men’s underwear ads. Before I came out to myself and the world I thought I was some kind of freak! I now know that I didn’t have such a unique childhood after all. The stimuli that I had responded to were the same that many gay men from my generation also found appealing.
How come I can quote Mommie Dearest? Why do I adore Kathy Griffin? No matter what our upbringing, or part of the country we are from, many gay men share the same likes and experiences. What are the odds? Gay people didn’t recruit me. I didn’t know any gay people when I was growing up. Sorry, right wing America… I was born this way!
lol, I guess a lot of us were.
Man I wish I still had an ez bake oven. That’s what I think I’ll get my niece this year, perfect gift for a 6 year old and me of course.
When I was little, my mother and I would often go see her friend “Hilda”, and her kids (“Carlos”,”Hilda Jr.” and “Vanessa”)
I was usually sent to go play with “Carlos” in his room; trains, action figures, etc. And I would oblige…(not so much for the toys, but because I thought he had the prettiest lips) And although HE NEVER molested me, I just knew I liked being around another boy who was TALLER than me, and I REALLY looked forward to hugging him goodbye.
And I was always warned “DO NOT GO INTO THE GIRL’S ROOM” so I would stay away (HAPPY WITH “Carlos”) Until one day..I walked into “Vanessa” and “Hilda Jr” ‘s room…
WOW!!! I saw a shelf full of Barbies, horses, fashions, IT WAS LIKE A SPIRITUAL AWEKENING…
I saw those “little people” and I thought, HOW GEORGEOUS!!! So I grabbed a Barbie, and starting caressing her hair, I wanted to brush it, but I was SO MESMERIZED of HOW PRETTY she was, and TOTALLY AWED by those late 70’s illustrations of the dolls on their boxes.
So then I told my mom I wanted one, and she blushed, and firmly said no. I got home, and asked my dad, after all I was always told that boys do not play with female figures, so i reasoned that having Ken (a male version of Barbie) would be o.k.
So I bugged my parents until my mom bought me my FIRST KEN! Sunsational Malibu Ken. I was so happy, i took him to my room, and I just hugged him with all my might, then I proceeded to sniff his face, armpits, and…when I got to his genital area, I got my earliest ERECTION, but I didn’t know what else to do, and I clearly remember MY HEART POUNDING in curiosity, just wondering what was under his shorts…once I gathered up the courage to remove them, I inmediately sniffed his crotch.
All I knew is that I loved sniffing between Ken’s legs. I never shared this with anyone because I knew this WAS NOT appropiate behavior for a boy. Anywas, BELIEVE IT OR NOT, I didn’t discover masturbation until years later, when I was 13.
got to thinking about gay culture and how for many of
us it began before we even knew we were
That's another thing about toys. It socializes kids into what they will become in the future. However, instances like these where kids want particular toys cannot be explained. Maybe they just enjoy certain toys more.