• Llewellyn@lemm.ee
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    7 months ago

    I’m sorry, English isn’t my first language. Is that a typical way to say about a state (e.g. being queer) which has begun in the past and still present?

    • june@lemmy.world
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      7 months ago

      No worries!

      Contextually, saying ‘was’ is inclusive of the past and present. But to your credit, saying ‘I am’ would have been more precise.

      My quote is a line from a famous comedian, Mitch Hedberg, who was doing a bit about drugs when he said ‘he used to do drugs’, paused, and then said ‘I still do but I used to too’. It’s a play to subvert expectations because when someone says they ‘used to do something’ they usually mean that they don’t anymore.