I don't believe in fairies, either

Recently I came across an awesome post about how to have civil conversations between theists and atheists.  The whole thing is very good, but this part in particular stood out to me:

I don’t need to be certain there is no god in order not to believe in one. Just like I don’t need to be certain there is no such thing as a unicorn in order not to believe in unicorns. I’m reasonably sure that all the stories, books, movies, legends, etc about unicorns are either intentionally or unintentionally fictional, and that’s the same way I feel about (all) gods.

-Dave Muscato, The Official MU SASHA Blog

I've been having a really hard time articulating that idea, both to myself and others.  No, I am not 100% absolutely positively sure there are no gods, spirits, or supernatural beings. I still don't believe any exist.  And those are not contradictory ideas.