I got misgendered at lunch today.
Wait... am I posting in the right thread, you may ask? Why, yes I am... because it's the way I handled the situation like a boss that made me happy.
I was waiting in a coffee shop for my drinks to be made, and the barista asked "Would you like a tray to carry those in, Madam?". (I should point out that I have a short beard at the moment, so I think she needs to get her eyes checked if you ask me). I acted startled and amused, looked behind me to see if there were any women there that I hadn't noticed, and then said: "Uh, no I don't need a tray thanks," then I took a comedic, worried glance down at my nether regions and continued "but 'Madam'? I bloody well hope not!" I laughed and joked about it, and the barista went beetroot and immediately apologised. I said "It's ok, it happens all the time - I think it's because of my height". Oh, how I LOLed.
I then joked with the lady next to me in the queue that the barista's got me worried now and I might want to go to the toilets and double-check nothing's missing, and she said "You don't mind them taking a couple of years off you, but there are some things you don't want to lose!". Oh, Lol. I don't actually have anything there to lose (and I don't even pack, so there's nothing to see), but I acted like I did and I joked about how fond I am of it, etc. etc. etc. Phew, all that acting I did as a kid has paid off, and I came out on top of the situation.
Anyway... the other reason why this whole thing made me happy is because the other drink I was buying was for a homeless guy who hangs out in our town. It's been pouring with rain all day so when I spotted him I asked him whether he'd like a drink. Turns out he likes lattes; I'll remember that for future reference. The smile he gave me when I delivered it to him - complete with the huge amounts of sugar I remembered he likes from the last time I bought him a hot drink - was well worth it.
