A bonging tone from Patti's workstation interrupted them as she sat back down to look at her screens, humming while she clicked rapidly through menus and screens. "Looks like everything is here, do you want to see my application project? It's a short film."

"Sure," Sandra rolled her office chair over to beside Patti's.

The film opened up with a big question for the title, "What is gender?" As Patti's voice narrated some psychological jargon about gender in the Western world in a soft and melodious tone, images of different people zoomed up and away; there were happy, All-American men and women, gay men, and lesbians in various forms of embrace, or at the altar, then drag queens in full carnival-like regalia, and a whole array of androgynous looking men and women, some in suits and ties, and some in outlandish, flirty outfits. The next sequence showed tastefully nude men, and women, in all different combinations, including polyamorous groups, and fully embracing each other, or kissing; the naughty parts were artfully hidden. But all of this was superimposed over blurred background footage of the same combinations of people making love. With Patti's soft voiceover and the hypnotic music, it was easy to see the artistry of the production and overlook the raw sex.

As it ended, Sandra sat back in her chair, legs slightly akimbo, and sighed deeply, her hand had involuntarily gone to cover her mouth, even as her other hand unconsciously rubbed little circles on her thigh. "Wow! Uh, just, wow! That's impressive. And the board approved your application from this?"

"You look shocked, Sandra," she patted Sandra's thigh. "Gender studies is the latest cultural pastime in academia, and it's something I'm very interested in. That and filmmaking... and podcasts... and websites." Her eyes crinkled as she smiled. "There's not going to be a problem, is there?"

"Oh... no," Sandra pasted on a smile. "It's just... well, I don't have much exposure to... uh, lesbians, and gay guys. I mean, I knew some, in drama class. But, hey! Diversity, right?" She grimaced slightly and tried to cover it with a strained smile.