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Postings are in chronological order, with the most recent entry at the top. The tunes come from flashkit.com.
Sept 2002 "Hey Brulee! What've you been up to?" Oh, you know, I've been sitting here, plucking my eyebrows, stewing over my inability to affect global change - the usual. To cheer myself, I've been reading some of our country's great curmudgeons. Why, just the other day I was perusing my copy of The Fran Lebowitz Reader and came across this gem: I myself find many - even most - things objectionable. Being offended is the natural consequence of leaving one's home. Isn't this the truth? I certainly thought so as I sat getting my hair cut the other day. Two of the hairdressers next to me, who had no clients at the time, were having a conversation about the pros and cons of moving to Florida. You'll often hear conversations of this ilk as the weather cools in New England. They talked about the low cost of living, the fine weather, the cleanliness, the ease of obtaining a hairdressing license and then there was a pause into which one of them interjected: "They've got great strip joints in Florida." After another brief pause (that may actually have been an uncomfortable silence), his co-worker said: "I guess there are a lot of reasons you could move there..." He then turned to the woman who was cutting my hair and started a completely different conversation. The clueless lout went on to tell whoever might be listening that he planned to obtain an illegal driver's license if he went to Florida. He mentioned how several of his friends, similar sterling examples of the citizenry, had done this. His co-worker turned back and suggested that this might not be the best idea given the increased attention the government is paying to licenses in general. I have no idea why he bothered. Granted, it's not everyday you run into someone who's slime factor is as extreme as this specimens was, but it does happen... and so, I may have to learn how to cut my own hair. Note: The mention of a strip joint in and of itself does not necessarily rate an individual as a slime (if this were the case, half the people I work with would have to be entered in the category and I don't have enough time to type all of their names into the slime database). However, taken in the context of several other factors, it can contribute to one's rating. As can a regrettable reliance on aftershave or perfume. "Mommy, are we in the men's room?" "No sweetie, this is the ladies' room." Pause. "Mommy, are we in the men's room?" Pause. "No sweetie, this is the ladies' room, sometimes they call it the girl's restroom. Now brush your teeth. This isn't drinking water, so just use it to rinse your teeth okay?" Pause. "Mommy, are we in the men's room?" This was the part where Ume and I started cracking up. The embarrassed mother with the two children (2 and 3 yrs. old) at the sink next to us was doing her damnedest to be polite. We were in the campsite bathroom, getting ready for bed. "It's okay," I said, looking at the little cherubs who were scrutinizing Ume in all her androgynous glory. "It's not the first time." And it wasn't. The mother, looking a little red in the face, said, "We sometimes use the men's room in a pinch." We all went about our ablutions. The mother, talking to her kids and listening to one of them lament not having a Teletubbie doll. Us, prepping for a night of outdoor beauty rest. As we exited the women's restroom I took Ume by the arm and said, "Come on Tinky Winky, let's go to bed." Despite the ranty bit at the beginning, I thought this was a good article about the Florida ballot initiative that would have repealed a decades old anti-discrimination law. It sums up some significant victories for gays and lesbians. I disagree that the Florida decision wasn't important, because perception (as Jack Welch will tell you) matters. Click here for the article Just paid a long overdue visit to my niece and nephew. My niece gave me a fat lip (during a moment of overzealous exuberance - Aunts make the best jungle gyms, don't ya know... - even her accidental right hook is worthy of note) and my nephew informed me that my sexual orientation is, and I quote... "sick" (ignore the faint cheers of the religious right in the background, I am so not finished with this young man). When I asked him how he'd formed such an opinion, he said that a kid he knew in school said it was "sick" to be gay. When I asked my nephew if this kid knew people like me, he responded yes. I asked him who. "The girl in my class who thinks she's a boy," he replied. "So you think I'm sick?" I asked, seeking clarification. "Well, not all of you. Just that part." He's nine - I've got time on my side. And my lip is healing up nicely. If you were a punctuation mark, which would you be? Ume says she'd be an elipses, because she's not definite enough to be a period. I'd be an asterisk, because I require further explanation. Time is, like, way flyin'. I'm just managing to hold onto the wingtip... Marvelous linkus politicus, sent in by a generous reader: clickus hereaboutus I'm also keen on this way new car that GM's putting out. It'll be a while before these hit the road... but I'm waiting: click here If you want more info on the fascinating world of hydrogen based fuel (I did...), check this link out: click here I was walking down the street the other day - moving along at a good clip (late for an appointment - what's new?). A clean cut young man, a teenager, if you will, stepped toward me, politely excusing himself and asked if I knew what day it was... I wish that I'd had the presence of mind to tell him that that day, September 11th, was not a good day for mind games. I see the the New York Times is printing commitment ceremonies in its announcement section. My sister called to tell me this - she's my connection to that kind of information. I said, "Of course, this means that they've had an active policy of not printing them up 'til now." "Well, they haven't been having commitment ceremonies before now." This was one of those "Huh?" moments. When you could easily misinterpret something someone says as totally ignorant. What she meant was that commitment ceremonies haven't been recognized by the state before Vermont's civil union law was passed and so the New York Times hadn't felt that gay unions merited printing in their column. Sigh. And still, it's a good thing... |
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