| 7/21/2008 |
NO MATTER WHAT THEY SAY. WORDS CAN'T BRING YOU DOWN.
|
Stories like this make me think. I get torn. Which, I suppose a good article should do. If you're not familiar with the story... I'll give you the short version of the 5-page article. Larry King, 15 years old, was shot twice in the head at school by a classmate, Brandon McInerney, 14 years old.
Larry was a flamboyant, cross-dressing, young man. Make-up. Glitter. High heels. He worked it all. With a troubled past involving a drug-using mother and not-in-the-picture father, Larry was adopted by supportive parents. Larry had been diagnosed with Reactive Attachment Disorder and given ADHD medication.
Brandon's past wasn't much brighter. His parents split after Brandon's father shot his mother in the arm and then his father claimed the mother turned the home into a drug house. Once Brandon's mother entered rehab, Brandon went to live with his father.
Larry was a disruptive student. If not in appearance, then in behavior. Students had created a Mean Girls-esque "Burn Book" and wrote about how much they hated Larry. Larry openly flirted with Brandon in school. Brandon threatened Larry telling Larry's friends to tell him goodbye because he wasn't coming back. Some teachers were very supportive of Larry's right to express himself. Others were concerned about his dress and behavior. They'd go to the school's administration that one of the Assistant Principals, who was also a lesbian, was possible pushing her own agenda on to Larry. She states Larry had sought her out for guidance.
Larry's adoptive father, Greg is upset that gay-rights groups are making Larry the new Matthew Sheppard. He is not wholly convinced that Larry was gay. Greg is more concerned about the ability of a student to get a gun into the school. Where are the resources to help either of these troubled students, he questions.
So my questions are many. Be out. Be proud. Be loud? Is that really the best idea? Did Larry bring it upon himself? Like so many others wondering, how did Brandon get a gun and get it into a group home alternative school? How much do you encourage a child to express themselves?
Putting the victim/accused's gender and sexuality aside for a moment... If this had been a girl killed by a boy, would a lot of these question even come up? What kind of things would be said to a boy who was overtly sexual with a girl? These are issues that do come up in schools. Can they be handled like any other social/behavioral issue?Labels: gay, news |
|
I posted this @ 7/21/2008 05:56:00 AM.............Need a link?..........
|
|
|
|
| 7/18/2008 |
I'LL BE THERE FOR YOU
|
Every so often the planets align and there is a convergence. A meeting of the minds. Then we add liquor to those minds and make them play Taboo. That was pretty much how last Saturday went down.
I'd been stressing about this for at least a week, but it was 'bad' that Saturday. Mark can attest that I was kinda freaking out the morning before the party. A quick trip to the grocery store to procure the needed supplies and we were set. My anxiety didn't really settle down til people were showing up and I started cooking.
We had a good turn out. We had TONS of food!! Seriously... Between salads and dips and appetizers and drinkies we were set.
I love the first 30 minutes to an hour of any party. No one wants to be the first to dive into the food. Do you break out the games already? TV usually pulls people in and away from conversation. Music usually pulls them together. What if there is an awkward silence? Then I realize that these are people that we've known for years.
I went to start the grilling and all was well. People were chatting. Enjoying themselves. Then the food starts. One thing I love about potluck parties is seeing whatever everyone brings. Even if they just buy something from the store. It might be something I've never had. We had some very tasty food there.
Rachel Ray always says to not make something over the top your first time out. Along those same lines, a group of party guests is not the time to experiment with a new recipe. I stuck with pretty standard stuff. A red pepper dip I'd made before. Some tortilla wrap-ups (which I'd never made, but kinda hard to screw up. If you can make a sandwich, you can make these). Mark made a Mexican cheesecake which is a standard request for his work functions. He is the cheesecake king!
We broke out the Taboo. Mark and I are competitive people. Not that we HAVE to win, but we are gonna give it our all. It was a great game of couples, with Angie & Rachael making a psuedo couple for the night. It was fun to see how poorly Mark and I started out. I blame the extra strength spiked lemonade. I love Taboo mainly because it's fun to see what 'inside' jokes & clues people use to help them guess a word. With Mark I know I can use references from musicals that I might know (which are few).
It wasn't long after that we broke out Scene It. This time we mixed it up boys vs. girls. I think we were pretty evenly matched. Angie & Mark were pretty evenly matched on some clues. I definitely sensed a rivalry.
Some how the year book from our senior year was found. What we've discovered is that Mark had the uncanny ability to locate the visually impaired students in our class. It's his new superpower. It's mutant in origin, I swear.
I can tell you that it was a late night (or early morning) when every decided to leave for their respectively homes. It was a great night! I can also confirm that I fell asleep on the floor while Mark sat at the computer. Lovingly, Mark did not leave me there. I found may way up several stairs and to the bedroom.
More of the following day was a blur, rather than the night on indulgence before. It's been a looong time since I've had a hangover at all let alone one of that caliber.
So who's hosting the next game night?!
Labels: friends, party |
|
I posted this @ 7/18/2008 05:31:00 PM.............Need a link?..........
|
|
|
|
| 7/09/2008 |
HOW TO SUCCEED IN BUSINESS WITHOUT REALLY TRYING
|
Another observation as a student of human nature...
They say you can measure a man's worth by the friend's he has. It seems that we also measure a man's success by the work he does. I'm fascinated by worth and success lately. I feel, for the most part, the jobs I've had have been very worthwhile. I felt that I was successful at most of them. Yet when you look at potentials and possibilities I don't know that I could be said to be successful.
I find it interesting that some people can do a job that makes them happy, and as long as they are happy no one says much about how successful they are. How much money do they bring in? How far up the 'ladder' have they made it? It doesn't matter. They are happy doing what they do.
Does age matter? If you are closer to retirement and puttering around a few jobs that make you happy... as opposed to being fresher out of college and doing the same kind of puttering... Is one more acceptable than the other?
At some point, did being happy in what you do quit mattering?Labels: life, work |
|
I posted this @ 7/09/2008 05:12:00 PM.............Need a link?..........
|
|
|
|
|
WISH YOU WERE HERE
|
Airports are emotionally charged places for me. A trip to an airport is usually connected with the arrival or departure of someone I care about. Generally, I like airports because I enjoy people watching. But I'm a sappy guy. So taking Mark to the airport was emotional for me. More so than I thought it would be. He is only going away for a week. He's gone before. What I wasn't expecting the number of things that had become commonplace that I was suddenly missing. It's not one of those "Don't know what you've got til it's gone" things, because I know what I have.
I miss the seemingly random things. I miss talking to him while we watch TV. I miss him singing random musical numbers from shows that I probably don't know. I miss our 'tuck-in' calls at night. I miss telling him about my day. I miss the random conversations. I miss the way he smells. I miss encouraging him. I miss him comforting me. I miss giving him hell about vehemently not liking corn, or seafood, or cellphones.
Come home soon, hon.Labels: love, mark, sad |
|
I posted this @ 7/09/2008 05:00:00 PM.............Need a link?..........
|
|
|
|
|
|
