Happy 100th Post: Top 10: Gay Character in Television

List Number 2: The Top Ten Gay Characters in Television (or widely thought to be gay)

 10. Will Truman from Will & Grace – One of the first gay men I saw on television, holding a steady job and has a “normal” life that mimics other sit-coms.

9. Willow Rosenberg from Buffy The Vampire Slayer – Last I had left Willow she was still wearing Sears’ overalls, when I returned she was a full blown lesbian! I miss Oz, but am totally happy with Tara and evil Willow!




8. Andew Va De Kamp from Desperate Housewives - When Andrew came out, it was as revenge against his mom, but he quickly became a staple in my gay character love. He’s now relegated to one off, bit scenes but I still get excited to see him on the screen.



7. Ellen Morgan from Ellen - She came out and it seemed so natural to me. I was too young at the time to truly understand it, but I loved Ellen before and even more after.



6. Stewie Griffin from Family Guy - I’m not sure if he’s completely out , but he continues to play with audiences and making side comments (usually breaking the fourth wall) about his infatuation with men.



 5. Brian Kinney from Queer As Folk - He exudes sexiness. He lingers in awesomeness. He is exponentially hot. However, his bitchiness wasn’t always welcome. His cold heart kept him away from mine.



4. Kurt Hummel from Glee - He’s so adorable. I love that he loves musical theatre. I wasn’t as flamboyant as him in high school, but he reminds me so much of myself.



3. Tenoh Haruka and Kaioh Michiru from Sailor Moon - I don’t think these two ever appeared without each other for more than a few moments. They rocked my world and when they died instead of fighting death, they reached for each other and talked about how much they love each other.

 


2. Michael Novotny from Queer as Folk - Adorable to Brian’s hot. Ying to Brian’s Yang. Michael kept me coming back to QuaF, he is relationship minded, trying to fit in while being completely different. I saw a lot of myself in him (other than being short and cute).


 

1. Scotty Wendell-Walker from Brothers and Sisters - I love how he started as a one off character, and just continued to make appearances. I love how he hasn’t allowed himself to be wrapped up in the Walker world, while still being just off to the sidelines if we need him. I love his face and body. Period.

Share

DC AIDS Walk

On Saturday, October 2nd, 2010, I will join thousands of other people in the 24th annual AIDS Walk Washington.  This event is a 5K fundraising walk and timed run, benefiting and produced by Whitman-Walker Clinic.

I would greatly appreciate your support for this worthwhile cause.  My personal fundraising goal is $100  Would you please visit my personal AIDS Walk Washington website and make a donation today?


If you have any questions about AIDS Walk Washington or Whitman-Walker Clinic, please don’t hesitate to contact me or visit AIDS Walk Washington for more information. 

Thank you so much for your support and generosity.

Every little bit helps, me reach my goal. 

Follow This Link to visit my personal web page and help me in my efforts to support Whitman-Walker Clinic

Thanks a lot,
Future World

Share

New Orleans: Part 2: More Drinking, More Boys and Disney

Streets are cleaned using powerful machines that leave behind soap everywhere.

From March 6 through March 8, 2010 I had a fabulous trip to New Orleans.

Here is Part 2 of a 3 Part Diary Series of the Weekend:

Sunday, March 7, 2010

Last we left off, I was going to reveal that naughty thing that I did twice, after sending Nigel off in a cab to his unknown hotel!

Well, if you know me at all in real life, I’ve been on South Beach for just under a year (and have been very successful with it). I take it serious, but do cheat every now and then; but after Nigel left, instead of turning back upstairs to my room to get some well deserved sleep, I headed across the street and got in line at the pizza place! I ordered two slices and a diet coke (yeah, because at that point the diet coke was really helpful). I waited in line with several extremely drunk co-eds and their boys, then got my slices and returned to my hotel room.

Now, as 3:30 quickly approached, I snuggled down into my pillow-top, king bed and ate two slices of some of the worst pizza I have ever had. Then quickly fell asleep with the pizza plate still on the bed!

I would love to say that I slept soundly in a drunken/food-induced coma but since my hotel room was right above a bar, loud music drifted into my room all night, and despite all my efforts, I didn’t fall asleep until about 6 am!

At 10, I had a rude wakeup call. Maid service couldn’t get into the room, since my security lock was on, so the maid was knocking loudly. I’m actually glad that she did this, as I had slept through my alarm!

So I quickly hopped in the shower, to wash away the sins from last night and begin my quest to find a place that is not a bar, a place where I can get coffee and food. My I-phone came in handy again, with its “Near Me” app, so I searched for “breakfast” and found the Café Fleur De Lis, a little eatery, where I waited about an hour for my omelet (they had lost my order – at least I had Harry with me to keep me entertained).

Hanging moss at the New Orleans Museum of Art (NOMA).

The weather was so nice in the early afternoon that I stopped back in my room to drop off my sweatshirt. Then I hopped back on the trolley away from the river towards the New Orleans Museum of Art (my review can be found here Dreams Come True: Art of the Classic Fairy Tales from the Walt Disney Studio

After spending several hours and $70 at NOMA I began my walking tour of New Orleans!

I started by walking past the Saint Louis cemetery, my original plan was to go in and visit some of the older grave stones. (I have a great interest in old cemeteries. I’ve even gone to several lectures about the importance and significance of tombstones). But hunger won the battle over intellect and I stopped at a café, Santa Fe.

I asked to be seated outside and had a great table in the sun. That’s when I met him. He was tall, dark and handsome! He was my waiter. I ordered a glass of wine and a salad, and began talking to him (first just about the weather and such). We continued to chat with each other, as he would check in on my status during the meal. After the meal, I continued to stay and drink (still that same glass of wine), and read Harry while continuing to chat with my waiter. He joined me at the table, and we finally introduced ourselves. His name was Eban (yes, with a “b”).

As I’m about to finish my wine I asked about the end of his shift, which is coming soon! So I hung around a little longer… Then he says “I’d offer to show you around a bit, but I have a boyfriend.” I’m a little disappointed at this point, but he continued to sit with me. He hemmed and hawed as he tried to decide if he should take me around! I tell him there’s no pressure, and he asked me to stay until his last table left so he could show me the park.

Night was fast approaching (as we had been talking on and off for about three hours) and his boss told him that he needed to stay for the next shift. We had a sad moment and I gave him my card. I told him to give me call, but that I wasn’t expecting it, given his boyfriend and all. Then he asked when I was leaving, and when I told him “tomorrow” there seemed a bit disappointment in his voice and body language. I was sad too, but knowing that I was only in town for a few more hours, I got over it.

My entire plan for the rest of the day was essentially ruined, as most museums and such were closed by now. I began a long walk back to my hotel; a little upset that Eban didn’t even give me a last name, but felt good about all the flirting that happened.

Back at the hotel, I did my own hemming and hawing as I decided whether or not I’d go out tonight. I said to myself “screw being lazy, I’m in New Orleans!” So I changed into some “going-out” clothes and headed back down Bourbon Street.

At La Bayou Restaurant, the host sat me at the bar, but the New Orleans Iced Tea and Long Island Iced Tea and eggplant made the bar seat worth it.

Then I begin where I left off last night, on my gay bar crawl. I started with Oz, which was dead tonight. I got one shot and moved on my way, afraid that all the bars would be like this given the fact that this was Sunday night.

Cafe Lafittes in Exile
I spent several hours here making friends, talking up strangers and hotties, and dancing a bit too. Until finally, I get pulled into this picture, by a gentleman that called himself Violet! I wound up spending the rest of the night hanging out and drinking with this group of twenty-somethings from NYC and DC! We danced to the songs on the video screens, as I continued to drink (mostly vodka/crans but some shots thrown in too). Tonight was the first time I made friends with the bar tender. Tonight was also, the first night that I’ve truly lost track of how much I drank.

Nigel called at some point during this night, but I don't remember what we talked about, other than me telling him where Café Lafittes in Exile was, but he never showed up.

Some time around midnight (after about 3 hours at Café Lafittes in Exile) I thought it would be a good idea to head home; but not before I stopped back in Oz and got a drink. (I actually don’t have much recollection of stopping in Oz, but foursquare says I was there for 15 minutes!) Then I stopped across the street at Bourbon Pub and Parade. I ran into someone that I had met in Café Laftittes in Exile, ordered a drink and left the bar with my drink in hand.

As I walked down Bourbon back to my hotel, I thought to myself, that I needed food. Well what is better than bad pizza? (Yes, I was that drunk) So I got in line at the pizza place near my hotel and ordered two slices of pizza again! (No need for the diet coke tonight, I still had my glass of vodka/cran!)

Back in my hotel, I placed the “Do Not Disturb” sign on the door, and sleep soundly in my food-induced, drunken come! (Huzzah for sleeping through the night).

Stay tuned for a way less interesting part 3 of my New Orleans adventure.

Share

New Orleans: Part 1: Drinking, Boys and The Mississippi

From March 6 through March 8, 2010 I had a fabulous trip to New Orleans.

Here is Part 1 of a 3 Part Diary Series of the Weekend:

Saturday, March 6, 2010

Trolley Tracks

This was my first time driving myself to the airport (which added a whole new stress to traveling) but I was happy that I was in control of my arrival (versus asking a friend to drive).

I arrived at BWI with plenty of time to spare, so after going through security I began my trip with what the Hobbits call “Second Breakfast.” I read a couple magazines and some of Harry Potter Book 3 and soon my flight was boarding (see side bar for info on Southwest boarding).

Southwest: If you’ve never flown Southwest, let me tell you, they have an interesting seating arrangement. You are not assigned a seat when you buy the ticket (or when you check in on-line 24 hours in advance of your flight), but are assigned a boarding Group and Number (for instance A24 or C8). Each letter group is called to line up in numerical order and then its general seating on the plane, so A1 lines up first and has his/her choice of seats/ A1 – 15 is set aside for business travelers and A List members (those who are frequent fliers). Then when you check in on-line you are assigned a boarding number based on when you check in. So if timed perfectly you could be A16, although for $10 on top of the ticket price, you can have Southwest check in for you, and they begin the check in process 36 hours before. (Your place in this virtual cue is based on when you purchase the upgrade). I purchased the upgrade and had a spot of A23, A22 and A21 (three separate boardings for the round trip flight). My boarding position allowed me to take front row seats (with all the leg room I could ask for). Southwest serves complimentary soft drinks and a bag of peanuts/pretzels. They also serve hard drinks for an about average fee. Signature cocktails (that change monthly) are about $4.00

E2 Jefferson County Transit Bus – Airport Express (A new experience) The bus from the airport was about 20 minutes late (something that hasn’t happened to me since moving back to DC, where all busses have GPS tracking devices and can be located using a mobile browser). I’ve ridden a lot of mass-transit busses in my time in many different states (NJ, NY, MA, MD, DC, FL, and in New South Whales, Australia) but this was the first time I ever saw the following: • A cracked window (The windshield had several cracks running through the “passenger” pane). • The driver eating (the bus driver was eating his fast food chicken nuggets and drinking his giant soda while driving the bus). (I actually didn’t even see a “No Eating” sign so I guess this was allowed). • The label “Express” was a misnomer - as this was a local bus, making stops on every other corner. While I’m talking about the E2 here’s some more notices from the return trip: • 20 minutes late again. • The driver had to get out and manually start the windshield wipers. • We took a detour so the cash receptacle could be replaced (I’ve ridden many DC and MD busses where they just finish the route, and more, before pulling over to fix this non-critical problem).

I boarded the flight, and as soon as possible, I started my drinking. I ordered the Signature drink (a vodka, cranberry, apple cocktail), and settled in for a long flight with Harry Potter and Rules of Attraction. We stopped in Alabama, and once we were back in the air, I had a second drink. (I bet you’ll start seeing a pattern of activities this weekend).

After landing at Louis Armstrong International, I skipped the luggage carousel – having packed in a single book bag and purse – and looked for the bus to take me to the French Quarter. Well the bus did not go all the way there, so with my trusty I-phone, I found how to get to the trolley car.

Bourbon Street

Trolley ride over and I check into my hotel: The Wyndham Chateau Bourbon, and I begin exploring the area. I walk up and down Bourdon street, noticing all the drunks at 4 o’clock in the afternoon. I stop at a restaurant: Boudreaux's Backyard, for a drink and a yummy mushroom plate, then back to my hotel for a quick power nap before my dinner cruise on the Creole Queen.

Creole Queen

I walk down to the water front (ahh the mighty Mississippi River). On the paddleboat river cruise, I made friends with the two couples that shared my table. Found common ground with each of the women, but really connected with Joan. I order a Hurricane (apparently a local drink), and Joan gave me her two drink coupons! (Score). The food on the boat wasn’t my cup of tea (I had a mess of veggies and something that looked like chicken but tasted like fish – I later found out it was tilapia. I also tried some gumbo – eh). I had a couple more drinks (thanks Joan) and enjoyed the cool air out on the deck as we returned to port.

Hotel Lobby

I went back to my hotel room for a shower and a quick change for my nighttime entertainment (yes, I brought my glitter make-up with me).

I had used an online site to help me create the walking “tour” for my bar crawl. But once I tried to use it, I realized that the tour did not print out direction or addresses. It only included a map with a pin and a corresponding note that I had assigned (such as “lounge” or “dancers”), so my trusty I-phone saved the day yet again.

700 Club
Reminded me a lot of Efen in DC, a small bar with a lounge type feel, where there were a few groups of people. I had a few drinks here, but left after a while, because no one would talk with me.

Good Friends Bar
Next stop was to be Rawhide, but they had a cover charge so I continued to The Good Friends Bar. Despite the crappy sounding name, this bar, was much more welcoming to the single traveler. I had a few shots and a drink or two, and made a friend: Nigel. Nigel was a cute boy from Mississippi, in New Orleans on holiday with his friend Jeff. Nigel and Jeff had just come from Rawhide and told me I hadn’t missed much. Nigel and I flirt as we chat about traveling and things we’ve in NO. Then I decide it’s time to move to the next bar on my list. Nigel and Jeff join me.

Oz
I had heard some great things about Oz on www.gaycities.com. And was very excited to be going (only to be slightly disappointed with a cover charge). But we go in, and Nigel and I start dancing. We loose Jeff (who returned to Rawhide). Nigel and I decide to make our way back to my hotel room (thus abandoning my bar crawl itinerary). On our way back, I get my first and only set of beads thrown at me, by a girl on a balcony, for the hot make out session Nigel and I had out on Bourbon Street.

I’ll stop there for today, and leave it up to your imagination what Nigel and I did back in the hotel room (though not much imagination could be needed).

Since the rest of this night technically falls under “Sunday” I’ll leave you with this: After getting Nigel a cab back to his hotel (which he couldn’t remember where it was), I decided to go out again, and do something really bad!

Check back tomorrow for Part 2 of my New Orleans trip to find out about: Disney, Mexican Food, more boys and that very naughty thing I did twice on this trip!

Share

Rosa Parks stays at the front of the bus

Barb Davis White; barbdaviswhiteforcongress.com

The fight for LGBT rights have been long compared to those of the Black Civil Rights fights of the 1940's, 50's and 60's (and beyond). I tend to agree with this comparison. I'd also extend the LGBT fight to further into history with Woman's Liberation of the 50's and 60's (and beyond), but also Woman's Suffrage (1920 and before).

These fights have been the oppressed versus "the man" (in most of the cases, "the man" is old, white men). "The Man" tries to strip rights away from "the other." In the case of LGBT, other is defined by their sexuality.

So I can't help but take big offense to the following statement made by Barb Davis White (pictured above).

"Rosa Parks did not move to the front of the bus to support sodomy.”

White was at a legislative committee meeting discussing Gay Marriage in Minnesota. White, a self-proclaimed "tea-bagger" (yeah, I know so sexual...), goes on to say that allowing a white man to marry a black woman (and vice versa) was more fundamentally (and spiritually) sound because the only difference between a white man a black man is skin color; but the differences between men and women is too great!

Denying two consenting adults anything, is wrong. Just because I happen to be in a type of relationship that wasn't "popular" when god sent his words down to the few men who wrote The Bible; doesn't mean I'm wrong.

What does the bible say about interracial marriage?

Deuteronomy 7:3–4

3 Do not intermarry with them. Do not give your daughters to their sons or take their daughters for your sons, 4 for they will turn your sons away from following me to serve other gods, and the LORD's anger will burn against you and will quickly destroy you.

I can take quotes and greatly exaggerate them too! But I won’t, this passage from Deuteronomy was talking about intermarrying with people who are of a different religion, so they won't turn you away from god... but taken out of context, one can see how it’s that fear of the other, that is being highlighted.

So that brings me to the title of this post... why did Rosa Parks take a seat at the front of the bus and refuse to move to the back? In her autobiography, Parks says why she didn't move, "... the only tired I was, was tired of giving in." She said nothing about being gay or black, just tired – tired of oppression.

The connection between Gay Rights and Black Civil Rights, is strong, and I believe that it is just a continuation of the same fight, the fight against oppression. I want all oppression to end, I don’t care about the color of your skin or who you sleep with or which god you pray to or if you have differenting ability; all I care about is that you are afforded the same rights granted to the majority of people in the United States (i.e. straight, white men). I’d have to say the Rosa Parks would agree that oppression of any kind is wrong; and White should look closely at what is causing her homophobia.

Share

Walking into a room...When do I stop thinking about being gay?

Who's gay?

A fellow blogger on Equality 101 recently posted this article Roleplay in the Classroom about a lesbian who recently came out, and was asked to role play in her college class. She was uncomfortable and please read her article for her whole story and reflect.

But she posed a question that I'd like to discuss. When I ever not think about being gay? When I enter a room, I do think about if I'm the only gay one there. I wonder if someone here might throw out a slur aimed directly at me. Will some one be offended by my present they'll want to do physical harm to me? When I'm on a date, are we being judged by the wait staff? Are they treating us any differently because we're gay? Are the parents of my students going to pull them from my class because they think homosexuality is wrong?

And that's just the tip of the ice burg.

Grant it, 5 years ago, these were on my mind all the time, when I was in undergrad, like this blogger. But as time has gone on, I've really learned how to prioritize these "ramblings." First, I decide if I'm in a safe place, and if I am, then sucks to the rest of the questions. I am me, glitter and all, and if someone has a problem with it, they'll just have to deal. I'm not on this planet to make their lives comfortable. I'm here to challenge their version of normal.

So is it my sexuality and gender that I'm thinking about, yes, but it's not all I think about anymore. It has just become one of the lenses that I see out of - like a series of binoculars, while when I was younger I only had a monocle and could only see things in a gay way.

Share

Are you kidding me? I thought this was a joke

So I'm spending this snOMGasm catching up with my dear friends from Miami: Rose, Blanche, Sophia and of course Dorothy. And as I tend to do with marathons of television, I was seeing what the internet has to say about my girls.

I ran across this article that I honestly thought was on some gay humor website, but when I looked at the web address, I noticed it was from Christwire.org. But even then, I just thought the addy was a joke. You know, it's nearly impossible to tell sarcasm over the internet. Then I checked out the mission statement on christwire:

But alas, the Left Wing Conspiracy and Liberal Agenda is spreading like a plague not only through our fine society, but through lesser cultures as well. Their sinful antics and attempt to pass off their wanton carnal desires into mainstream culture is destroying society and mankind.

So this article isn't a joke! The Golds Girls: How One TV Show Turned Generations of American Boys Into Homosexuals

Too lazy to read the several page article?... let me give you some highlights:


Many studies have been done on why the gays love The Golden Girls, but science can’t fathom the moral challenges and social upheaval of those historic times. The 1980s was an epoch of President Reagan’s manly wisdom and the terrifying threat of Cold War annihilation. America had sobered up from the flashy lights of 1970s disco. We were skipping all night cocaine and sex parties to focus on our careers. Spiritual leaders like Jerry Falwell were telling us that Christianity was in the majority again. On the other side, there was a subculture of homosexuality creeping up on our youths. It gave them an excuse to wear tight jeans and to sneak off to public parks for quick releases with hairy men of different ethnicities.

Let's look at "Many studies" first. The link should lead here instead. Where author Jim Colucci is selling his fabulous book about many behind the scenes stories from Golden Girls. Wow, one book equals so many studies (and the study is a basically glorified wiki, that just happens to have a gay spin). And the "gays love" link leads to list on a gay blog. Not a scientific study, just a list.

Cold War annihilation aside, the author of this article Stephenson Billings, seems to just shovel one stereotype after another down our throat! Cocaine? Sex Parties? Tight Jeans? Hairy Men?

And the "homosexuality" link? That leads to a gay blogger who covers LGBT news.


But let's get past the third paragraph. Later on Billings says:


Our horny, lonely boys sought out intimate comforts with likeminded Golden Girls addicts who didn’t mind each other’s theatrical voices and touch-feely hand gestures. Together, these clusters of awkward teens and twentysomethings bonded over their favorite episodes and characters, mimicking the voices and gowns of their tv friends. When the rush of cheesecake and gabfests wore thin, these hairless boys needed a harder thrill. They were so desperate for the next big trend they turned to same-sex sexual experimentation. What woman would have them now, anyway? This led to the worse excesses of early homosexual visibility– the most enormous of drag queens, the dirtiest of leather daddies, the most enticing of twinkie boys, androgyny, overeating, public sex and the birth of “camp.”

A: I think "camp" was around for decades before the Golden Girls.
B: Where's the evidence that "when the rush of cheesecake and gabfests wore thin, these hairless boys needed a harder thrill"? I mean, just because I bond with one person over one TV show, doesn't mean that when the talk of the TV show is over I'll go have sex with the guy. 

Billings goes on to talk about how each of the three leads can be found in the gay society.

Of Dorothy he writes: Dorothy has given them [gay men] permission to be two-faced. Because only gay men can be two-faced.

According to Billings Blanche has set a time limit on gay relationships by: Most gay relationships last a week. It is no coincidence that this is the amount of time between Golden Girl episodes when they first aired on primetime. Blanche’s appearances on the show taught today’s 30-something homosexuals that you need a new strange man on your arm every seven days or else your viewers/friends will lose interest in your life’s plot.

Where's the link this time? I know many straight relationships that only last a week. Why not blame F-R-I-E-N-D-S for the same thing with straight relationships. How many girls did Joey bring home?

About Rose Billings says: Senility is not at all funny, but the careless creators of this awfulness used her stupidity for a relentless barrage of immature jokes. Once again, Rose’s most salient trait was picked up and celebrated by the gay community.

Here we go again, of all the senile people I know, they are Straight! They are Christian! They are closed minded bastards who look at one tiny aspect of a tiny fraction of a community.

By the end of the article Billings is just talking out his ass, spouting Right-wing reteric:

Will they [retired gay men] follow in the lusty steps of their forebears, the Golden Girls? When all these gays are in such close proximity to each other, will we see a huge upsurge in illicit homosexual elderly trysts? Will they vote out Florida’s married Christian Republican leaders, like Governor Charlie Crist? Will they embrace any and every cutting edge social issue that will be hip in 2020? Personally, I do not look forward to the day when we’re having moral debates about robot sex, gay jetpacks or houseplant marriage.

I don't even know how to respond to that! That's just random words put together to make some sense. It's as if Billings were writing in a foreign language and used a bad translator. The words make sense but seem out of place. GAY JETPACKS? HOUSEPLANT MARRIAGE!!!!!

The Golden Girls is a powerful comedy that was a hit in its time and has transcended the '80s. I can't believe that anyone could blame a television show for making someone gay, and on such weak arguments that we were/are trying to emulate these vague caricatures that can be found on every single television sit-com! I could say that playing/watching football made me gay. All those showers after practice, the tight bodies. And the ass slapping is what lends itself for the gay community to embrace BDSM!

Let's face it, Billings has his Christian agenda and wants to hit us in pop culutre. Most of his blogs are about television or the internet, and many have gay-bashing language and un-queer friendly dialogues.
  

Share

Facebook Events of Homophobia

Ok, this one is scary, My State Line is reporting about a high school facebook event in Massachusetts called "Kill All Gay People." Apparently 9 people RSVP'ed "yes" to this event which is supposed to take place on January 19th! The High School's Gay-Straight Alliance is encouraging all queer and queer friendly people to travel in large groups that day, just to be on the safe side.

This kind of Hatred is scary. Is the next generation supposed to be more accepting of "others?" It's this kind of blind homophobia that scares me. How can people hate a whole group of peoples because of one thing. At least when I dislike someone, it's at a personal level (lol).

Sigh, I hope that the f*ckers who made this group get caught by the police (who are actively investigating this threat).  

Share

Legal Male Prostitute!

My friends over at Queerty just shared a great story about Nevada's first, legal male prostitute!

His stage name is "Marcus" and you can have him for $200 for 40 mins (kind of low balling it there if you ask me) (although for his level of attractiveness, this might be right).

Sadly, Mr. "Marcus" is neither gay nor gay for pay. So all my ladies who need this male gigolo, just set your sights on Nevada and don't stop 'till you see the line of women in front of a Rhamada Inn... lol

On a more serious note, this is a major step forward is Sex Workers rights. I believe that all prostitution should be legalized. This is my body and I should be able to do what I want with it.

And the more laws there are to protect Sex Workers, the safer the whole profession would be.

  

Share

The Black Community

So as the holiday season is upon us, Holiday parties are a must! And this weekend I've had two!

Both were a lot of fun.

Friday Night was with my gay family, with a lot of gay people talking about gay issues and gay pop references.

Saturday Night was with a friend from high school, she's black, most of the people at the party were black. At this dinner party we talked about a variety of topics, such as education, teen pregnancy, community, culture, oppression, sex, etc.

Now, here's what I see is the big difference between the black community and the gay community (based on the issues that as talked about at social events):

There is a black community. Literally. Most of the people at the party last night lived in the neighborhood and their goals weren't lofty affirmative action/civil rights; they want to better their community by bettering their neighborhood. The talk last night was about things to better the neighborhood. For instance, how can they keep their neighborhood clean with no trash cans!

But what is the gay community. We don't live in neighborhoods. We're not going to schools where most of the students are gay. This goes back to a previous post of mine about culture. When we define ourselves by just a single trait, what is the connection beyond that?

The wonderful people I met last night, are honestly trying to make the best for their community (by bettering their neighborhood, giving the people on their street the opportunities to make the right choices!)

Check out my new favorite blog at Congress Heights On The Rise to see some of the positive outreach and community growth the blogger is trying to do to better the residents of Congress Heights, DC.  Or my high school friend's Blog River East Idealist.  (Map shows highlighed section of DC, called Congress Heights)

Angels in America

Yesterday I was privileged enough to spend the entire day at the Forum Theatre in Silver Spring, where I just got to see Angels in America: A Gay Fantasia on American Themes by Tony Kushner. This play (in two epic 3.5 hour parts) tells the story of Prior Walter's decent and accent to become a Prophet for the new Millennium and the trials and tribulations of those around him and beyond him in the mid-80s.

The whole play spans 8 acts and an epilogue. (Three in the first play Millennium Approaches and five in Perestroika).

Millennium introduces the main characters of Prior and his lover/boyfriend of 4.5 years, Lewis (over sexed, under paid, Jew, worrier, that can't handle change); the closeted, self-loathing, Republican, Mormon Joe and his Valium-addicted, hallucinating wife;  Roy Cohen, closeted, Republican, lawyer who after dialing 15 numbers can get the president's wife on the phone and feels like he can rule the world; Ethel Rosen (a ghost) killed during the McCarthy Trials - Roy had a hand in her death; Harper, Joe's Mormon mother; Belez, Prior's best friend from their drag days; and The Angel. Along with various other characters that are double and triple cast by the 8 actors.

Prior announces he has AIDS which sets off a chain of events that connects all the characters (Except Ethel).

This is such an amazing script. It talks about AIDS and AZT, McCarthyism, Mormonism, love, sex, drugs and father/son relationships. All this in 7 hours!

Watching the play yesterday was a trial, but worth it. The first part was too reminiscent of the movie (right down to casting and costuming) while the second part had more of the director adding his own ideas. The play was well acted. I believe that this performance was amazing. I hope to one day write a play that is as powerfully performed as this! 

What is Culture?

Today I had a Professional Development workshop and we were asked to define the culture of our school...

Well in order to define the culture of a school, we first have to define what culture is: I wrote down the following notes:

"What is culture?

• people
• holidays
• places
• moral values (beliefs)
• celebrations
• rituals
• handling crisis 
• family? or just a connection or oppression? 

And of course I couldn't think of anything else for about 20 minutes. What is culture? (Wikipedia had several definitions if you'd like to check it out.) Is it a group of people who have shared beliefs? The easy answer is yes, one is part of a culture because of how one thinks, or what one thinks is right and moral. Then I started thinking about the "gay culture." And first I had to decide what is the gay culture. And there are very few things that link us together. Unlike a Native American tribe we have no ritualistic dance (although dancing is a stereotype in the "gay culture"). Unlike Jewish people, we have no linking religion that we all share (although Diva's again are that stereotype). We don't have holidays (Maybe a pride march is the closest we get). We don't have a location that we all come from (for instance Lesbos Island). So what keeps us together.

Sex. Oppression. Crisis. That's what I came down to.

The gay culture is a counter culture, while it can easily be found in any other group of people, we are all connected by our lack of fitting into the norm of heterosexual acts (although Bisexual people and Str8, men on the DL and other exceptions are the rule). As a gay man, I have an automatic familial connection to some one who is gay! I route for them in movies (hell if there's a gay character in a bad movie, it automatically makes is a good movie). We are connected by our sex and that's it.

Because that is our strongest connection to our culture, we unite under times of oppression and crisis when our rights to express our culture are denied. When Mathew Sheppard died because he liked to have sex with men, we united. This crisis took great story telling and helped create a stronger awareness of the crisis the gay culture faces all the time.

These crises are because of oppression! We are oppressed because we are gay. Because we are "counter" the heteronormative  culture we are deemed less. We have our rights stripped away and are looked upon as second class citizens because of who we have sex with!

When discussing culture today, my colleagues talked about shared values and a history of likeness and traditions and foods and dance and stories. Not once did they mention sex. Not once did they mention oppression. They looked at the positive aspects of culture, and I can't seem to stop thinking that culture is just one of those social constructs put into place by the old, rich, white men to help give them a sense of superiority and reasons to oppress those who are different.

What is culture? Culture is a social construct used to connect people. So they will be able to check off a little box on some survey. (Photo credit is actually me!)

Theatre Ketchup

So this weekend I saw a lot of theatre! And it's time to play "catch-up"

Thursday 10/8: A Flea In Her Ear presented at Source Theatre. This French farce was hilarious! All because of a pair of suspenders, one household in France is thrown upside down as one spouse thinks the other is cheating! The show was great, I saw a Pay What You Can. The space is awkwardly long, so some of the action was far from me, but because of the intimate seating, I could deal with it. The acting was great too!

Friday 10/9: The Alchemist by Ben Jonson at Shakespeare Theatre Company. I have a subscription to the Shakespeare Theatre Company this season, and so far, I'm enjoying it. The Alchemist is about two swindlers who's plans unravel as the play draws to an end. This was my first show by Jonson (A Shakespearean contemporary) and was very enjoyable! The acting was superb and I really enjoyed the show (other than sitting next to a woman who thought the show was WAY more laugh out loud than it really was).

Saturday 10/10: Mike Birbiglia at Warner. This man is so funny! I love him, he quickly became my favorite comedian! But I did have some problems with the show as a "Show." I see a lot of theatre. But I've never seen a show start 20 minutes late! That was crazy. Then there was a crappy singing comedian who performed for 20mins! I expected some sort of warm up act, but this guy just never made me laugh. Then there was a 15 min intermission! (Which seemed like a waste of time. )

Monday 10/12: Laramie Project Epilogue presented locally by Arena Stage. Is a look back at what Laramie is like now. This play was presented in 150 cities across the world last night (free). The actors/actresses were amazing as was the script. It still asks the tough questions of what is life like after a hate crime; what can we do to make life easier for GLBT people all over the world. I was in complete tears the entire first act!

Dear Kirk Cameron

In response to my friends blog I have decided to write an open letter to Kirk Cameron.

You might want to check this out first, for context of this post:



Dear Kirk Cameron,

Back in 1990, when I was 6 and you were on Growing Pains I had a weird crush on you and Tracey Gold. I wanted to be a part of the Seaver family. It was a great show that was exciting to watch and always could offer a laugh.

Time goes on, and TV shows disappear and you and Tracey moved from the limelight of my 6 year old eyes into the recesses of syndication.

19 years later, and I've discovered that you are crazy as a loon! Here is a list of my several problems with your video:

1. I'm an agnostic. I have been since YEARS before college! My top 100 university professors did not teach me how to be agnostic. My high school teachers didn't teach me to be agnostic. The Catholic Church taught me to be agnostic. I spent 14 years of my life trying to believe the "word of the lord." But it just didn't make sense to me. How could there be fossil evidence of dinosaurs when the Bible said the world started with Adam and Eve? How could Jesus have been the son of god (yes that is lower case) when god is incorporeal? And hundreds of other questions that didn't make sense: Most importantly, how could the church hate like it does, when Jesus loved everyone.

If we take for a fact that everything in the Bible is true, than Jesus was a miracle worker, he kept company with prostitutes and beggar and lepers. Basically the slums of the people of the time. He preached love, tolerance and acceptance of these people, not total disregard for who they are. He taught everyone to love all of god's creations. Not HATE! (Like you and the Christian right are doing). How could a religion based on the teachings of this "saint" be promoting bigotry and intolerance? That's when I left Catholicism.

When I understood that I was gay, and that god no longer accepted me, I realized that religion wasn't a place where I would find solace and acceptance, just hate and ignorance.

2. I believe there is a higher being, for some of the same reason that you mention. There is no scientific proof that on what actually created the universe (whether some sneezed and we're the by-product on it, or god needed to be created and in the process the big bang happened, but until we have a reason for the big bang, I have to agree that something started the whole thing). But I do hold the believe that that is where it ended. God isn't part of my life, he doesn't control my choices, he isn't holding a scale to weigh my heart against my sins. He's just not around. Where's the proof?

3.  I'm a teacher. I teacher Kindergarten. I allow my students to read whatever they want. I allow them to talk about whatever they want. And as long as they are talking pure and unhurtful words, I allow them to say whatever they want. When they ask if I believe in God, or if I go to church I answer truthfully, and say "Yes, I believe in a god." And "No, I don't go to church. Do you?" And if they ask religious questions I always defer with "This is a question to ask your parents." I don't push an agenda on them, I just help them be tolerant of EVERYONE!! (not just who the religious right think we should be tolerant of).

4. You are a loon! And you and the religious right need to rethink your scare campaigner. Us on the left won't put up with it for long. Even you said that Atheism and Agnosticism are on the rise. You loose more and more people when you preach hate and intolerance (btw, how many modern scientists would agree with your statements, it's easy to pick names from the distant past to give credit to your argument. How many of those same people believed the Earth was flat!!!!!).

It's time to understand that the Bible is not the word of god, but a few men's stories.

"You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye." Matthew 7:5


Thom

P.S. STOP BEING A LOON

"Gotta Sing, Sing..." Why Musical Theatre is the best...

Ok, so I know that I'm pretty gay, but this is one stereotype that I'm proud to have!

Musical Theatre, particularly American Musical Theatre, has changed my life.

Let's begin as a child. I watched 7 movies over and over as a child. 6 of which were musical theatre: Mary Poppins, Hello Dolly, Grease, Grease 2, and Wizard of Oz (and Saved by the Bell Hawaiian Style is the non-MT one). (Look soon for a post on Saved by the Bell). Musical Theatre encompassed a lot of my life.

I would watch these movies over and over and over again. I love the way these movies would make me feel and how I could easily relive the movies by just thinking of the music. As I grew older, you know, like 5, Disney reached it's Animated Renaissance with Little Mermaid, and I found out something important about musical theatre (particularly the Disney genre): Ariel wanted something, she needed it, she had to have it, and she went for it (as with the other movies above). I've since come to realize that my love for Ariel has come from my homosexuality, because she wasn't excepted by her family for the person she loved. I can empathize with her, because I'm ostracized from some of my friends and family because of who I love. So as a young boy I saw myself reflected on the screen in a female mermaid!

Then there came other movie musicals. Best Little Whorehouse! OMG. MAN ASS. That's not the only reason I loved it though. I found this musical by the time I was 6. Again, I found something in the musical that I wasn't getting from the rest of the movies I saw: Adult themes and exposure to things that would matter later to me in life (like female prostitution).

Gypsy came next. We never had this on tape, but I saw this on AMC once and loved it. Mom and I stayed up past midnight to watch it all. Again, this musical was about being something that you're not. Changing who you are and why you do what you do. Louis was being forced to be her sister (which younger bother has never felt like that). And once she found something she was good at (stripping) she finally became confident.

Then I rediscovered Grease and Grease 2. This time, it was Grease 2 that really stuck on me. Just like the original, it has great music, but this time it was a male lead. And he hid in his "Charades" pretending to be the cool rider, while being the "nerd." By the end, after his reveal, he was some sort of combination of the two. Many years later, I auditioned for my high school musical theatre program with his song and little did I know that I had been playing in my own charades and it was only musical theatre that allowed me to confront those issues (discussed later). [BTW if anyone has a motorcycle and a leather jacket, I'd love to reenact the scene when Stephanie gets taken away from the gas station by "cool rider"]

Then something amazing happened! I went to see Beauty and the Beast on Broadway! That opened a new door. When I saw musical theatre live, I finally understood something. You can't lie when your in a musical. You can't lie when you sing. The need for singing comes from you soul and you can't lie from your soul (unless you truly believe what your singing). But look at RENT, despite all the deception that happens it's only when Roger and Mimi sing to each other, does all the truth come out. Sweet from Buffy the Vampire Slayer's musical episode even says something to that effect (and is the point of the episode that Buffy can no longer hide the fact that she is living in hell because she was in heaven)

My "charades": It was when I was performing in Little Shop that I realized I was gay. Because of the accepting environment of the cast of MT, I was able to accept myself for who I was, and just like Seymour, come to terms with who I am (I just hope I don't get eaten by a big plant).

Then came Wicked. Taking one of my most beloved stories from childhood (I had even dedicated the month of May as a child to the Wizard of Oz), and giving it a new twist. The musical explores the friendship of GaLinda (The Good, of the North) and Elphaba (The "wicked" witch of the West). I found this musical when my own friendships were being tested and tried! When I finally saw the musical, I felt like I could never be the same person, because the story was so soul searching, that I can't even describe yet how it has moved me.

Granted, some musicals are purely entertainment: Legally Blonde comes to mind right away, but most have truly struck something deep within me. And in the words of Ariel, "Watch and you'll see, one day I'll be, part of your world!"

 

(As Always, these aren't my pictures)

GLBT Round-up

It seems that the old Gay Marriage horse, hidden the past few months, is rearing it's head (ugly or not) again.

Here's a couple things I've come across:

First is a clip of a new anchor making a comment on how gay-marriage is actually promoting long-term marriage in Massachusettes; divorce is down.



And the second clip is an adorable Adge-prop (not sure if I spelt that correctly) from Ireland, following the story of a man who is seeking permission to marry his love.



I think that it's time for all this shit to give way, and just give every tax paying American the same rights. Enough with fucking taboos and the "institute of marriage." Like Blitzen said in The Eight Reindeer Monologues " by Jeff Goode "An institution doesn't feel./ An institution doesn't suffer./ An institution/doesn't have to look in the mirror/and see how pain has changed it's victim's face./The victim does." Why uphold an institution that has denied so many people so many rights for so long (Interracial Marriages) (hell even women in the Renaissance were just commodities!). It's time that the government got out of the whole marriage business and just issue Civil Unions to all!!!

Marvel and Me...

The internet is abuzz right now with the Disney buy out of Marvel Comics. And I'd like to comment on why I'm a Marvel guy...

Let's start out with guiding you to my close friend's blog about why he's DC (Unsuper) which is the reason I've decided to comment.

Now let me preface by saying I love Superman and Batman (and am in love with Robin) and Wonder Woman, but I have an affinity towards the Marvel Characters. Ever since I was younger my Sunday mornings (when I would worm my way out of church) would be filled with the fantasy world of Fantastic Four and Spider Man (reruns of the 60's shows) (Sometimes Iron Man and more sporadically Spider Man Team Ups). I'd get up extra early to enjoy these old cartoons and little did I know they were in comic books! The plots would intrigue me and the characters would keep me coming back for more.

I cast away my Marvel friends for Power Rangers as I went through Middle School (yeah, I had few friends). But then in high school, something happened: I realized I was gay. And as I was struggling with my duel identities and both internal and external homophobia, so were Peter Parker and the mutants of X-Men.

Daily, Peter struggled to keep his life as Spider Man a secret and "in the closet." It was hard. It was dangerous. He was doing great things as someone he wasn't. (This argument can be played between Clark Kent and Super Man, but I always felt he was more well adjusted and comfortable in his tights than Spidey will ever be - this insecurity between CK and Supes would be played out more in WB/CW's Smallville.) I struggled for 2 years with my sexual identity and here was Peter struggling with his secret identity too!

The X-Men on the other hand represented the fear and hatred of the "other" and I would rush home from high school to watch re-runs of this fabulous series. The mutants were going through what I feared: scorn because of how I was made, verses understanding of who I was.

Then for a few years I left comics and American superheroes for Anime (particularly Sailor Moon). But just a few years ago I decided to turn my attention back to superheroes in tights, and FINALLY buy a comic book to experience the magic that way (I couldn't find the old series on television). I did my research and decided Ultimate Marvel would be the best place to start because it was the shortest run and I wouldn't have to deal with decades of back stories.

I've fallen away from Comics for a while (though I LOVE going to comic-con). And will probably pick back up soon (although it won't take long to catch up with Ultimate Marvel because it's such a few lines).

But, I am Marvel, because Marvel was about real people doing extraordinary things because the things were forced upon them. DC takes the extra-ordinary things and gives it to extra-ordinary people (Batman withstanding). Marvel reflects the "everyday-ness" of being a superhero and how it affects all aspects of ones life.


(Now give me more of this and I'd switch over... lol)