In elementary school, in order to avoid censorship or censure from highers-up, we took to lovingly taunting the objects of our pretend scorn like this:

"You're a bundle of sticks!"

Which replaced this:

"You're a faggot!"

We even directed this jeer to the girls. After all, our hilarity and softcore jibes did not discriminate.

After a while, those whose censure we'd tried to avoid told us to stop using this alternate phrase. The words may have been different, they said, but the intent and meaning was still there.

But we didn't give a frig. Or, for that matter, a fuck.