Goth Challenge #3 - Out as Goth

#3: When did you come out the Goth closet? (If you didn't then simply discuss the topic)

(Continuing the Goth Challenge questions -- follow the tag below to see all.)  I didn't really "come out of the closet as a goth," but certainly my mom began to notice, during high school, that I was gradually dressing less in a mainstream fashion. And she wasn't particularly thrilled with it all the time.

I got the "you could be such a pretty girl without all that makeup" speech, along with "why is your hair always hanging in your face?" But she didn't restrict what I could wear or make any demands on me. That wasn't her way. Especially since I was a straight-A student; involved in various 'good-kid' extra-curricular activities like the school yearbook, newspaper, literary magazine, and drama club; plus headed to one of the country's top universities. She had no real complaints, just mild disapproval. (And she's since grown to love and encourage my unique style.)

The most "in the closet" I've been as a goth was probably my first job out of college, when I worked at a horribly conservative, old-school, electronics company as a technical writer. I hated the job, the company, and myself because I couldn't be myself. That's a big part of why I went back to grad school. And ever since, I've had a requirement that I only work at places where I can be me.