Bullying and why it must stop for LGBT youth.
Topic: Crap I Don't Understand

So, most of us can probably say that they have been bullied or have bullied someone else over the course of their lives. I know I've done both and I'm not very proud of the latter. That being said, a friend of mine asked me recently why the bullying of LGBT kids was so much worse - aren't we supposed to learn how to deal with bullying in school so that we can grow up and stand up for ourselves later on in life?

Well, the answer is yes and no - certainly with the technology we have today, bullying of any kind has hit an all time high and is much more severe than when I was in school. No longer is your embarrassment short-lived and perhaps contained within a small group, but now can be spread quickly and live on permanently within cyberspace. You can be bullied for anything and everything that might make you different. Being poor, being fat and even the age-old wearing glasses. Those things can be very hurtful, but most likely, the bullying is very centralized and coming from one area. For the most part, you don't get the sense from your teachers, parents, churches and sometimes even friends that being poor, being fat or wearing glasses is a horrible thing. Those people that aren't targeting you specifically for bullying are probably generally supportive of you. The same isn't the case for LGBT youth. As they are going through a process of realizing who they are and that they might differ from what society considers the 'norm,' they see things. They see numerous expressions of negative attitudes towards and about people who are gay. The press reports another hate crime against gays; a trusted politician says that he doesn't want children brainwashed that homosexuality is a valid life option; you may hear in your church that if you are gay, you are going to hell; your parents make off-handed comments about how gay-teen suicide is awful, but boy are they glad that their children are 'normal.' So the child who is trying to figure out this part of him or herself believes that there is something wrong with them. Something they know they can never change, and now they have no one they feel they can talk to about these feelings.

Then comes the school bullying, on top of everything else that this child has seen regarding how awful an inherent part of who he or she is. That's when the issue becomes a societal one. These children aren't being bullied simply by other children, they are being bullied by all of us and that's what makes it different. I know that this won't change overnight, but if you know any children, whether you think they are gay or not, please let them know that it's ok to talk to you about anything and perhaps we should all think twice about some of the off-handed comments we make about LGBT people when there are children around. Please.

Hi! It's 2010!
Mood:  a-ok
Topic: Crazy Encounters

Hello Internet People! It's 2010 and I can't believe I've been on and off this blog for, gulp, 7 freakin' years. I think it's been 7, well, close to 7 since I think I started this in the fall of 2003. Back when I started my masters, that still isn't finished. Sheesh - don't be so judgy people. It's hard to write a thesis about television and it's importance on the political agenda. Or something like that.

In any case, 2009 was a huge year. HUGE! Started out like any other year, but quickly included trips to NYC, Chicago, London and Paris. First time in Europe, people and let me tell you, it was AWESOME! Especially the ride in the chunnel. Ok - so that wasn't the highlight, but I don't think I'm capable of picking one highlight b/c it was all awesome. Well, except perhaps for the fact that just after I had been hanging out in Paris's Gare du Nord train station, everyone's favorite tabloid star Lindsay Lohan was spotted there as well. I missed her though...C'est la vie!

Then came summer which included making many new friends, a trip to middle Pennsylvania and a fateful night out at the bar on the bottom level of The Black Cat in DC. Those who were there know what I'm talking about, but suffice to say it had been a long, long time since I opted not to cab home and instead sleep on someone's couch to have a bit more time to chat a particular lady up (or anyone up for that matter.) Fast forward to a sweet tubing/camping trip and here we are 6 months later (almost)...so far, that 6 months (almost) has included Las Vegas, the Steelers, TransSiberian Orchestra, Hipster Night, Sticky Rice, Granville Moore's, a Real World DC sighting, Rock n Roll Hotel, Bowling, the National March for Equality, David Yurman, U2, the Chick Fil A bowl, the Delta Queen, silent q's, scramble, darts and most of all, tons of laughter and fun (oh and maybe some cocktails.)

So, if 2010 starts even half as good as 2009 ended? I'd put myself in the pretty lucky category. Thanks Halli!

DC March for Equality

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Good Lord...Being Older Blows!
Topic: Crap I Don't Understand

So, it's 8 in the morning on a Saturday, a day when I could totally sleep for as long as I damn well please. BUT, I'm awake. I can only attribute this to my getting older. Boo to that. I was out until 1am. I drank many, many beers and yet? Still awake. What is the deal with that? It seems to sleep past 8am, I have to stay out until 4 or 5am. This doesn't seem right. You know what else isn't right? Having to watch Florence Henderson with her Brady and Wesson wisdom, talking about erectile dysfunction. TWICE. Come on Chelsea, I know it's the summer, but can't you at least do ONE new show per week? And before you say it, yes, I know I could have turned it off, but come on, even viewing for the 100th time, anything Chelsea Handler is saying is way funnier than most everything else on TV. 

All that being said, we've got a weekend chock full of America's favorite pastime - beer drinking - with some baseball and softball thrown in. I'm totally prepared that the Nationals, the WORST team in baseball, are going to lose to the Cubs. But, my beer will offer me the comfort I need to deal with such a horrendous display of baseball. 

Ok - it's almost 8:30. I guess I should get up now and take my metamucil and put my dentures in.  

No Idea What I'm Doing
Topic: Crap I Don't Understand

Hello ten people who read this on a monthly basis. I'd like to take the time to thank you for checking this out and staying for a while. 

So, I'm having a bit of an off day. Perhaps it's hormones or whatever, but I just can't seem to find my center. I spent most of the day working, but still didn't feel like I accomplished that much. I'm on the verge of new responsibilities and yet I can't seem to find any motivation to do anything. I'm getting more and more ensconced in digital relationships and I wonder if this is helping or hindering me. It certainly gives me the opportunity to connect with people with similar viewpoints, but how much of a real connection is it? Are we more open with people we will rarely meet in real life or are we more of the best version of ourselves? Sharing only what we want. In some cases, I think it's easier to share more with strangers, but I'm not sure. Now, that's not to say that I'm not getting out there and meeting new people outside of the digital world, but still, and now I'm being so self indulgent in even writing this. It's such a vicious cycle.

Oh well, I'm sure I'll have my life completely figured out by tomorrow. Although  I'll take any and all suggestions for success. If you don't believe me, look how far I've come since I started this blog in 2003. Oh wait...my life really hasn't changed that much since then. Shit.

 

Part 2
After that first night we seemed awkward, you felt distanced from me. The feelings had been expressed but not acted on, not realized and yet we were unable to avoid each other, each craving the other's presence. More discussions until we were both asked why we weren't dating. A shrug of your shoulders an awkward laugh from me were our answer, both to each other and her. That night we went out with mutual friends, both of us alternately wishing we were alone and yet still unsure of what we would do if we were. One by one our friends left, leaving us to deal with the physical aspects of what we'd already verbally expressed. As we left the bar and walked along the cobblestone sidewalks to the campus, I was unsure of whether or not you'd kiss me. Then you did. Leaning down it was at first tentative, almost chaste. Then it deepened in intensity, followed shortly by you pulling back, and leaving me slightly off kilter. We walked along the block, still unsure of what this meant, hands touching, fingers intertwined. In that intimacy alone I felt a kind of electricity I had never known. As we made our way back to campus, a 10 minute walk took over two hours. We kissed on most of the street corners, several brownstone stoops and in a few campus courtyards, not wanting the night to end. However, we knew eventually the sun would come up and our perfect evening would be greeted with the realities that would keep us apart.

Poetray
Topic: Crap I Don't Understand

Each day at work, I'm faced with a task...
usually given by some sort of ass.

Forced to pretend and don my happy mask
When all I'm wishing for is a nip from my flask.

Of course, that could be because I'm a big drunk
But it could also just be that I'm sick of this junk.

Some others say I might be harboring rage,
To them I'd agree, it's not just a stage. 

For now, I admit that I'm really just joking
To avoid seeing colleagues I'd like to be choking.

That being said, it's efforts like this...
Horrible poetry allows me some bliss.

I have a job and for that I am glad,
Cause really, seriously, this job ain't that bad.

 

Testing...Testing...Is this thing on?
Topic: Crap I Don't Understand

Wow, it has been a really, really long time since I've posted anything of substance on this page. I wonder why that is? 

It could be because my life is so super awesome right now that I have no time to report back on the said awesomeness because things are JUST SO AWESOME! Or, it could be that I am just a big old lazy person who hasn't really thought about this page for a while, and no, those two brief posts in March don't really count. I'd like to pretend that I'm going to make more of an effort to update, but I'm attempting not to make more promises that I can't keep.

So, for now, I'll post the following start to a story I'm working on:

I still remember that first night, sitting there, not knowing what you were thinking. Did you want me? Did I even know what I wanted? Breathing you in I was sure I was crazy, my breath catching on every glance from you. How could being in your orbit affect me so much when no one had done so in the past? All I knew was that there was this unstoppable force within me willing something to happen. Silently praying it into existence. Not knowing what would become of this attraction, but knowing that nothing was more important than spending every moment with you. 

Top 5 Women This Week
Topic: Television Obsession

In light of equal opportunity, this week...the women. Who you got?

Chelsea Handler
Sarah Shahi
Tina Fey
Jennifer Beals
Eliza Dushku

Top 5 Men This Week
Topic: Television Obsession

I'm so very sorry I have been gone for a super, super long time and now that I have returned, I don't really have anything exciting to say.

So, I'll put a question out there. My roommate and I were putting a different spin on our top 5 man list to note which top 5 you have right now based on movies/TV/media that you've seen this week.

Here are mine:

Alec Baldwin
David Boreanaz
James Lafferty
Kyle Chandler
Bret Harrison

Anyone else?