I remember my dad saying that he was surprised I wasn't dating because I was a cute teenager with a nice smile. Then he said "It's probably because you act as smart as you are. Scare off a lot of boys."
If me acting as smart as I know I am is intimidating to a guy, then that guy is not worth my time. That was my conclusion.
Next one is hidden a bit cause it's pretty much a rant now:
Angry Rant
OHHH!!! I have something related. It's not so much advice, but comfort that severely backfired. Before I lost my first kiddo, I was kinda Agnostic and just open to everyone having experienced some omniscient, omnipotent higher-being differently. So I was pretty fair to religion.
Then I lost my son.
Then I was told, by several people, "It was God's plan." Which, in my rage-filled grief, meant that their version of a higher being was so freaking PETTY and SPITEFUL, that he would take MY FIRST-BORN BABY BOY away from me, as a part of his MYSTERIOUS PLAN. HOW DARE HE!
I am still Agnostic, but I completely reject the Abrahamic, blind adulation of God completely now. I still get angry hearing those words, about anything.
I have complex issues about this cause I do agree that it's good to do some research. I'm Puerto Rican, but I will look up details about Puerto Rico still cause maybe things have changed since I was last there. However, sometimes I feel like people take it too far, like authors shouldn't write anything that is 'outside their wheelhouse' because even if they do ALL THE RESEARCH, they will misappropriate something and HOW DARE THEY. That...really bothers me. People should write what interests them. Yes do research, but don't be scared to explore something...interesting.
That is so sad and I can relate. I had a hard time as a kid seeing characters that look like me in these big stories and myths I loved. So I ended up making quite a few tanned characters. I still get some comments about how I always have OCs that don't have 'insert race here'. It bugs me because I want to create stories with different kind of characters...INCLUDING ONES THAT LOOK LIKE ME. Ugh...that advice is just so bad.
Didn't I rant so much about how I dislike 'Self-Inserts'...not because of the idea of a 'Self-insert' but because once those 'Self-inserts' are described, the words used are 'Pale', 'Stringy Dark Hair'...
...So you know...characters that I can't 'Self-Insert' myself into.
"But that's the DEFAULT" someone cries out, while getting annoyed at another movie showing a POC as a lead ._.