Monday, November 28, 2011

a lesbian tale

Once upon a time there were two girls who loved one another, but had not had time away from being Mom's in such a very long time. A fortunate opportunity finally presented itself, and the two girls went to spend a day away from all the responsibilities of home life.
A good meal out, a nice room away, a huge TV with an even larger tub. All was well in this lesbian tale... O:-)
Until...
One of the lovely lesbian ladies made her way out of the tub and into her pajamas and made the jaunt across the room to climb into the king sized bed. Sounds like a pretty good tale so far, doesn't it?
Here comes the sound of the needle being torn off the record... :-!
What possibly could have happened next?
Before the sapphic sister could hop into bed, she stepped on something on the floor... it was a used condom! =-O Are you kidding me? At a major National Hotel chain charging triple digits for their room? Surely you jest.
But, alas it was true. This lesbian tale had been interrupted by an unbelievably unexpected and unpleasant irony.
After the "hazmat team" was called in to remove the offending latex, the two girls attempted to purge the memory from their minds and the germs from their feet and then drift off to sleep.
At least it would make for a good story, the ladies thought. And so it did. ;-)

 GLBT 
 lgbt

Wednesday, November 23, 2011

Give Thanks

It's that time of year again. That time of year when there is an entire day devoted to giving thanks. Well, or maybe an entire day devoted to turkey, stuffing and football. ;) Be that as it may...
I endeavor to practice a spirit of gratitude and thankfulness daily, and especially at this time of year I meditate on what I am thankful for. So, once again, as inspired by a friend, my 4th annual Thanksgiving list.
Simply some of the things I am very thankful for:

  • Hope.
  • For Jesus.
  • My washer and dryer.
  • DVR
  • A simple warm house.
  • Forgiveness. 
  • A really good meal when I am truly good and hungry.
  • Warm sun in the middle of winter.
  • A good outdoor fire.
  • Laughter!
  • A good book, comfy chair, and coffee at Barnes & Noble.
  • Kind co-workers.
  • My little brothers who always had my back and treated me like a queen.
  • Generosity and genuineness.
  • Music: playing, singing, listening.
  • For a few true and loyal friends.
  • My son. He has brought only joy to me since his first moments.
  • My health.
  • I'm thankful for my partner.
  • My TDI that gets 40mpg.
  • Healthy children.
  • For moments of peace in my life.
  • For the “oil jar” never quite running empty.
  • For the vocation that I get to perform.
  • For my tenacity.
  • I am thankful for an excellent quality chiropractor.
  • Thankful for the health insurance to be able to go get needed medical care.
  • For love. 
  • I am thankful for excellent hearing.
  • I’m also thankful for clear sight.
  • I’m thankful to have a job in this economy.
  • I am thankful for running water.
  • I’m thankful for electricity.
  • I am thankful for grace.

Wednesday, November 16, 2011

Choose wisely

Are you a bridge builder? A bridge burner? A bridge traveler?

Choose wisely.

It's nice to know there are some folks around who are still building bridges.



Sunday, November 13, 2011

Why??!!

Why are people still wearing signs like this and proclaiming things like this? I mean honestly people, gay is not catching!! RELAX!! Go take care of your own family!



Friday, November 11, 2011

11-11-11

First of all, sincere gratitude to all the men and women who have selflessly served our Country and sacrificed to protect our freedoms on this Veteran's Day.


Secondly, one can't help but think that it just may be a fitting tribute to those who fight for the "land of the free and home of the brave" for the Senate to have made the move yesterday to repeal DOMA -- which denies a significant population of America's citizens over 1100 rights and privileges. 

“Because of DOMA, thousands of American families are now being treated unfairly by the federal government,” said Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.). “This unfairness must end.”
Obviously, The Respect for Marriage Act would still need to pass the Republican controlled House (which many say is doubtful), but every step is one step closer to freedom for all Americans. 




Thursday, November 3, 2011

Seventy-two

Welcome to the bridge travels today. It's time for a good old fashioned "building or burning bridges blog" equal rights rant. "I am the 99%!" But it's not what you think. It's not about the occupy movement. No, I am among the 99% who usually don't give a flip what the Kardashians are doing. 
This week one of the family members made news beyond the "E!" channel. The same channel that devoted an entire 2 episode special to cover "Kim's Fairytale Wedding." "Over the course of two days, 10.5 million people spent four hours watching Kim Kardashian and NBA player Kris Humphries tie the knot." (10.5 million people? Wow. That is a fairly large % of the 307 million people in the USA. I wonder if that number is worldwide viewers, but I digress). 

Fast forward, and already Kardashian has filed for divorce from her husband of 72 days. 72 days? Most high school freshmen date longer than that. I bet it took longer than 72 days for Kim to plan for her "Fairytale Wedding." I am simply shaking my head. 

And still we live in a country where committed same-sex couples have no federal rights or protections for their committed relationships. Although there are several states in the United States that allow same-sex unions.  

Any 2 opposite-sex individuals who are not blood related can get married (after knowing each other for mere hours) and are immediately afforded 1138 rights and protections for their pairing. Wait, before you give me the biblical mandate that marriage is for "one man & one woman," in this "One Nation Under God" it is not simply one man & one woman who are the privileged class who can be legally married in the USA. No, you can be legally married in America as long as you have surgery to reassign your gender, and then marry one who then has the opposite gender on paper. Even if you are "half male," as long as your gender has been changed on paper, you can be born a woman and eventually legally marry a woman. Or, if you were born male and have gender reassignment surgery and become a female, you can stay married to the woman you originally married. Now, I have no issue with transgender individuals! I do have an issue with the disingenuous "values" crowd who protect the "sanctity of marriage" like it is the "holy grail" -- but only protect it from certain groups of American citizens.  

72 days?? I have been in a relationship with my partner for greater than double 72 months. And yet, we now live in a State where we have zero rights. If one of us dies (or is injured), the other partner is not entitled to SSI, to make medical decisions, to survivor benefits, to the belongings of the other (if family members decide to come in and take over). 
How does any of that make sense? How are the current laws of our Country even defensible? How can politicians in our Country still win elections pretty much on the platform of "protecting traditional marriage"?

Who knows when the change will come. But for now, I have to get back to work to support the family my Country does not acknowledge or protect. Where's the "occupy" protest for that cause?


PS-- Kardashian Apologizes to queers who can't marry — Sort Of ...

   

Saturday, October 29, 2011

Good to know!!

  1. Breasts are not radio dials
  2. It hurts when you pinch a nipple
  3. Breasts aren't fond of being "goosed"...
  4. Breasts do *not* like under-wire!
  5. Breasts love to be caressed more than squeezed...
Ah heck... I'll let you all think of the other 10 things. ;)






Thursday, October 20, 2011

google + for lesbians

I don't know why so many people are taking their time jumping on the g+ bandwagon... 
it's pretty simple... ;)



Wednesday, October 12, 2011

A need I can't explain






“Sometimes we feel drawn to something that seems forbidden because it feels like a way out of pain; sometimes it feels like an escape from the mundane; sometimes it feels easier than continuing to carry the burdens we bear.
And sometimes we reach a pivotal point in our lives and we don’t realize it until we’ve already turned – just a bit. Enough to turn back if we want, wrenching the gears and causing some pain; or clanging into a new experience with the inelegance of unfamiliarity.
So it’s easier to call it wrong, to feel guilty, to seek restoration to the familiar. Because the familiar is familiar, sure – but also because we are grown-ups. We made our own familiar lives. We made what we live. And we wonder if it’s stupid or impulsive or cruel or immature – or WRONG – to change.
It may feel easier to call that THING "something else" because it’s too complicated and too messy and too disrespectful to call it a drop of water in the desert; or a pinpoint of light in the darkness. This is especially true if we didn’t know we were so thirsty and in such profound darkness.
And it may be an obsession which reveals that something has subtly shifted of-course and needs to get back on track.
Just as often, because we’re grownups, it’s a sign that we’re not really who we thought we were. The things that draw us, call us, reveal us, reach deep inside us, can be endlessly surprising. That kind of vulnerability can feel debilitating when it happens just when everything was going SO well. And it can hurt like the dickens to know that even turning a little bit toward that "something" will bring agony to people we have loved forever.
But we are not two-dimensional children with a penchant for petulance and a love of candy. We are full-grown women making a pathway through life and love where none existed before.

What if there’s nothing wrong with that?

A blogger friend of mine once shared the above amazingly eloquent narrative with me. (After the Rumi quote). It was so creative, memorable and redemptive, that I want to share it again here.
“Come, come, whoever you are. Wanderer, worshiper, lover of leaving. It doesn't matter. Ours is not a caravan of despair. come, even if you have broken your vows a thousand times. Come, yet again, come, come.” (Rumi)

Saturday, October 8, 2011

Get a fire going


Yes, I am a child of the 70′s. I spent many a summer night around a campfire with my guitar and my peers singing camp songs. One of the songs I remember is “Pass it on.”
“It only takes a spark to get a fire going, and soon all those around can warm up in its glowing.”
I thought of that song this recently when I saw that there is one Senator in the large state of Pennsylvania who is bold enough to introduce legislation to bring full marriage equality to Pennsylvania. Senator Daylin Leach is one little spark of hope in the otherwise (mostly) equality unfriendly state of Pennsylvania. In fact, there already others who are attempting to introduce an amendment to the state constitution to ban same-sex marriage (it is currently already banned legislatively). You can listen to senator Daylin Leach in a recent debate over marriage equality for Pennsylvania.
Here is hoping that this small spark can indeed become what is needed to fuel the fires of equality in the Keystone state.

An UPDATE: on protection of PA citizens: 
“As Pennsylvania’s top enforcer of the law, Pennsylvania Attorney General, Tom Corbett should be aggressively advocating for laws that protect ALL of Pennsylvania’s citizens,” Hoeffel charged Monday, calling on Corbett to support two statehouse bills that would create equal protection for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender citizens of Pennsylvania.
HB 300, introduced by Rep. Dan Frankel (D- Allegheny County), would amend the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act to include “sexual orientation” and “gender identity or expression” as protected classes. If passed, this bill will prohibit discrimination on the bases of sexual orientation and gender identity or expression in housing, employment, and public accommodations.
HB 745, introduced by Rep. Josh Shapiro (D- Montgomery County), expands the definition of a hate crime to include crimes motivated by malicious intent toward an individual’s or group’s ancestry, mental or physical disability, sexual orientation, or gender or gender identity.
A recent poll showed that half of Pennsylvanians are in favor of marriage equality, so it's time to get a fire going for relationship recognition in Pennsylvania.