This is one of the exception cases in my proposal, variables used inside their own methods don't have __getself__ called when they are loaded.
The proposal basically reads:
class instances that are looked up with a named variable will have __getself__ invoked when the interpreter loads them, except when they are used within their own methods, or when used as an argument to/from a function.
That second part about functions was not part of the original proposal, but is something I am currently exploring to address some questions others have raised. I have not fully thought about what the consequences would be, and it may or may not stick around in the long term. I feel quite strongly about the first exception however, as it makes writing a class body manageable, without over burdening the author to put special escape functions all over the place.