Phenomenon: “resting bitch face.”

Familiar with it? You have a resting bitch face when your neutral facial expression is rather malevolent or arrogant. Think thunderstorm mode. I have a resting bitch face and that can sometimes lead to misunderstandings. When I'm sitting there unsuspectingly staring into space, I get worried looks and questions about whether I'm doing okay. Or, even worse, people (these are always men) who shout things like “keep smiling, okay!” and “can’t you manage a little smile?” Can I decide for myself whether I smile, YES thank you very much?

The problem is that I'm completely unaware of how I look when I'm not consciously focused on looking. In high school, that was also quite problematic; I was called to the mat every other week because “my attitude in class was a problem.” Now, I can't deny that those block hours of math, German, and History mostly went by me but the complaint those teachers had was always that I looked at them so angrily. “But I’m not doing that at all!” I would shout, after which they also didn’t know what to say anymore, and we eventually decided to just let it go, but whether I could at least try to look a bit happier.

In high school, that was also quite problematic; I was called to the mat every other week because “my attitude in class was a problem. Yes, yes.

By now, I don’t necessarily look angry (sometimes I do, but sometimes I’m also just angry) and mostly arrogant. I sometimes see photos of myself where I am not posing standing somewhere in the background, and then I’m shocked myself. You really don’t want to strike up a conversation with that chick. And that while I really am a very peaceful person. Really!

Do you know who else always has a resting bitch face? Cats. A cat always looks at you as if he or she is planning a bloody murder against you. Always. In that respect, it’s quite fitting because they always say that pets start to resemble their owners (or vice versa) and my lovely Cat Disco can also stare quite murderously.

In that respect, it’s quite fitting because they always say that pets start to resemble their owners (or vice versa) and my lovely Cat Disco can also stare quite murderously.

What I want to convey to you is this: if you see me and wonder why I’m such a haughty arrogant woman, I’m not. Honestly not. Feel free to come up to me and you’ll see that I’m the very essence of kindness – except when I’m having a shitty day.