"Are You Scottish?"

Got to thinking more about the people who ask me if I'm Scottish or if I play the bagpipes when I'm wearing my kilt. Why is it that they ask that?

Here are some possibilities I've come up with:

• They want to show off how savvy they are about kilt-wearing.


• They're trying to make sense of why I'd wear it, other than it's just a comfortable item of clothing. Since it doesn't fit into their bifurcated male world view, they have to categorize me.


• Related to the above - they assume that I wouldn't be wearing it IF I wasn't Scottish or didn't play the bagpipes.

I'm sure I'll come up with more.

Also funny to me is how just because I'm wearing a kilt, that these folks think I'm interested in their friend who was in a pipe band, or went to Scotland, or what have you. Folks, it's just another item of clothing. It doesn't have to mean anything other than that. I may not fit into your category of clothing options, but why do you have to categorize at all?