Vanguard: A Miscellany

Week In Review '08.48

11/22 - I didn't have to start up at job #2 until 11:00, so I got in an early run.  They've been less frequent of late.  I'm scared that the novelty of my Nike plus system may be wearing off. 

I think maybe the novelty of job #2 may be experiencing the same fate.  It was, however, a pretty shitty afternoon with no possibility of breaks from 11:00 to 5:00.  It didn't help that some of the clients were more demanding than typical (read pain in the asses).  Hopefully it was just the shittiness of the day that took the gild off the job #2 lily. 

Afterwards, I hopped in my car, making it home in time to make an entree (Riesling chicken with mushrooms and grapes) for a pot luck dinner with Sunshine, his wife OMG, Razor Burn and Unicorn.  We were doing our Secret Santa assignments that night.  Seemed like ages that we'd all gotten together for a dinner.  It also seems like a lifetime ago that we were actually able to stay up past 11:00 and do any serious partying.  Fuck, I think I'm getting old.

11/23 - It was date two.  Yup, the same guy from a week ago.  It was his turn to take me out, and he did a fantastic job.  We'd talked about wanting to explore more of L.A. and step out of our comfort zones.  He chose Takami, a sushi restaurant on the top floor of a building in L.A.'s financial district.  It was nice.  Beautiful views of downtown.  The food was decent.  I like Katsuya better.  And the design was sort of Japanese bathhouse.  Overall good, but not excellent.  Still, for a date, it was more than acceptable.  We ended up at Roosterfish in Venice for drinks.  It could not have been more diametrically opposite to Takami--divey gay bar,dimly lit and dingy. 

He dropped me off at 9:30 after an almost fraternal goodnight kiss.  Next.

11/24 - Monday.  I was pissed Monday.  I was taken advantage of Monday...well not Monday, but that's the day I realized that it had happened.  So yes I was pissed.  Not so much for the loss of personal property, but because one persons actions will likely make me more reluctant to help, to do favors, more apt to question motives.  Coming face to face with the fact that people are genuinely pieces of shit always pisses me off.

It did make for a really good session with my trainer though.

11/25 - I was supposed to run.  Instead I went to Palomar with Dutch for happy hour.  Yeah, no running, just a couple of pomegranite margaritas, fried calamari and pizza.  That's just as good, right?

11/26 - I had another session with my trainer, then went to see Milk with JewMex.  Really good movie with one major drawback--it should have been released one week before election day. 

11/27 - Turkey Day.  I'm so grateful to live so close to my entire family.  It was nice, just a comfortable late afternoon dinner.  I actually fell asleep at 5:30 because I think turkeys somehow know to make more tryptophan the closer it gets to Thanksgiving.  Didn't matter, I got up at 11:00 anyway.  Had to go into the hospital. It was my holiday to be on call.

11/28 - Not only on call, but working the day after Thanksgiving.  Usually, it is a pretty easy day in the office.  Usually not too many people come in.  They probably want to make the most of a four day weekend and not have to waste it on doctor visits.  This year?  Not so much.  

Week in Review '08.47

11/15 - Southern California was on fire.  From Montecito to Orange County, flames engulfed the southland to the extent that plumes of smoke were visible from space satellites.  And in downtown L.A., thousands of the GLBT community and its supporters were fired up about the passage of Prop 8.  (Check out how I tied that together, the other option had something to do with things that were flaming!) . 

I was honestly pretty bummed about not being able to participate in the protest, begrudgingly driving to job # 2 only to realize that there was actually a silver lining to the fires--they closed down the freeway between my apartment and my job.  So I turned tail and headed for the protest--already documented earlier.

I also left early, a little frustrated by the fact that I had brought all my camera gear with the exception of my batteries.  Wah, wah, wah.

The evening was really nice.  Ken and Barbie invited me to dinner; I brought along JewMex.  We all went to Culver City for dinner at Akasha.  The food was good--organic turkey burger and sweet potato fries washed down with a couple of pomegranate martinis...mmm.  More than that, however, was the simple pleasure of spending time with Ken and Barbie who are such sweet people.

Dinner over, I got a call from Shutterbug.  Fifteen minutes later, we spent an hour or so kicking back on his couch watching Justin Timberlake in a one piece dancing along with Beyonce.  

Mellow, quiet evening after a morning of fires and protests.  It was nice.

11/17 - Went out for a Runyon hike with JewMex, then I had a date--my age, good job, good tight-knit family, well educated, not just politically minded, but politically involved.  The date was nice, great setting, good food, good conversation.  

But the jury is out. The jury if fucking out.  What the fuck is wrong with me?  

11/18 - I'm debating getting rid of my trainer just so I can save money, but he kicked my ass on Monday.  And I'm not sure I can do the same without him.  I finished up at 8:30, grabbed take out (the salmon teriyaki bowl with steamed veggies is beyond awesome), home by 9:00, dinner by 9:30 and in bed by 10:00.  I know...eating right before bed is a no no.

11/19 - After work, I went for a six mile run.  I've been kind of shitty about running recently, and I need to get back into it.  Anyway, afterwards, Shutterbug came by for dinner and a quiet night of chit chat and, strangely enough, cuddling.  Just cuddling, nothing more.  It reminded me of how much I miss that kind of intimacy.  But there is nothing more to Shutterbug and I than that.

11/20 - After my half day, I drove thirty minutes to West Hollywood to get my car washed, then to pick up JewMex for another Runyon Canyon hike followed by a late lunch at M Cafe before driving an hour and a half to a happy hour for the staff from Job #2.

11/21 - OK, after the long week, I was supposed to go to a gay singles mixer.  A friend was hosting a cocktails and concert night at his home.  Drinks and some of his friends who play for the L.A. Philharmonic as a backdrop for getting gay guys to go home and screw.  It's so fancy.  Unfortunately, I was so fucking tired that I just went home and went to sleep. 

Yes On 8!

Yes on Proposition 8!  Yes on 8!

And I claim responsibility for it.  I am responsible for it!

I didn't vote for it.  No, I gladly and proudly cast my vote for marriage equality.  I also actually donated money to the No on 8 campaign.  And I can claim personal responsibility for convincing at least two people that the presidential race wasn't the only matter of importance on the ballot and that they had to vote down Prop 8.

And yet, because of me and others like me, Prop 8 was passed.  It wasn't just the black vote.  Or just the Latino vote.  It wasn't just the religious right.  Or just the Mormons.  A good deal has to do with me...and the complacent others like me who felt that I had done enough, that the majority of the voters of California were intelligent and progressive enough to do the right thing, that my vote was all that was needed.

But I was wrong.  We were wrong.  And I couldn't be the happier for it.

On November 15, I took the L.A. subway for the first time.  I got to the North Hollywood station, not sure exactly where to go or how to get there.  I asked two guys with "No on 8" posters, and they happily gave instructions.  I boarded the train which was relatively empty, save twenty or thirty, many wearing marriage equality t-shirts or holding on to homemade posters with crayon colored slogans like "love is love" or "get your hate out of my constitution".  It was nice, the sense of solidarity and community with perfect strangers.

As the train stopped at subsequent stations to pick up more commuters, it seemed as though all were heading towards the same destination.  It got louder.  People took pictures to document something we all were beginning to recognize as a day of historic significance.  By the time the doors opened at the Civic Center station, the train erupted in spontaneous cheers.  And as we ascended onto street level, hundreds scurrying up the stairs into the sun, a bullhorn screamed "What do we want?"  And everybody responded.  It was electrifying.

The throng moved towards City Hall, but even from that distance and even with our own chanting, I think we all stopped, quiet for a second.  From City Hall, there was a low rumble that quickly crescendoed into a roar that let us all know just how large this gathering was.  

Everywhere there were people.  All listening to Mayor Villaragosa who said that this was a city and a state that will not stand for bigotry.  All listening to Rev. Eric Lee the CEO of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, an organization founded by Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. who argued that yes this was an issue of civil rights.  All listening to Rikki Lake and Lucy Lawless and the actor who played Tracy Turnblad in the movie Hairspray who stated that she had a very important man in her life and she didn't know if he's gay, but since her son was only three, she "[could] only hope".

The crowd was amazing!  Gay men and lesbians.  Gay black men holding up signs that read "It is a civil rights issue".  Latino families with strollers and babies and Raiders gear and signs that read "H8 is not a family value".  And the whole host of straight people that came out in support.  

And every once in a while, it dawned on me that this was only Los Angeles, that this was going on in D.C. and New York and Atlanta and San Francisco and all across the country.  This was huge.  

So yes, I am partially responsible for the passage of prop 8 in my inactivity and complacency.  And yes, I am now glad of its passage.  

The sleeping giant has awakened.  I and thousands and millions like me, have been awakened from our slumber of complacency, no longer satisfied with the status quo, with being the silent minority, with being an accomplice to our own figurative imprisonment.  It has turned a state issue into one that has ignited a nationwide conflagration.  And this protest, this nationwide stand against marriage inequality, this was an indication of where this country is headed.  Yes it is a culture war.  And now there are soldiers willing to join the battle.  This community has been ignited and galvanized and rededicated to fight for this basic human right.  

And this is about human rights.  Yes it is about marriage equality, but in essence it is about equality period.  It is only tangentially about whether or not you want or plan to marry.  It is about being stripped of the opportunity to do so.  It is about being told that you matter less than your heterosexual counterparts.  It is about being told that because of who you love, because of that one intrinsic quality that defines you as different, because of something that is NOT a choice, you are less.  That you aren't qualified to enter into marriage.  That your love is inferior and wrong.

And that is wrong.  So I am no longer taking my life and my rights and my opinions for granted.  I am becoming more active.  There are more protests and more boycotts planned.  And I'm looking for other ways to safeguard my ability to participate in this country as a full citizen in full possession of those rights that the majority of this country takes for granted.

What are you going to do?

Week in Review '08.46

11/9 - After work, I continued in my newfound political activism.  I picked up Shutterbug, a friend with whom I reconnected at the West Hollywood protest, and together we went to Sunset Junction to photograph the protest.  

11/10 - Sunday was disappointing.  Shutterbug accompanied me while I checked out another condo.  The disappointment was in my conversation with a mortgage broker.  Can't afford shit.  Not now.  So I'm hoping the housing market continues its nosedive next year.

11/11 - Nothing really.  Worked.  Worked out.  Then went home.

11/12 - I had the day off.  I planned to run, run some errands.  What did I do?  Shit.  I was a lard ass and did nothing.  Oh except Grey Shorts.  He called to hang out. 

11/13 - 11/14 - It really all was one day.  One long ass day.  Getting to work by 8:30 and finishing up at 6:00.  One of my last patients was Razor Burn, so instead of going out running as planned, I ended up going out for Mexican food with him afterwards.  I got home by 9:00, bed by 10:00 but up again by 11:00 and at the hospital by 11:30.  You see, I was on call.  I took care of the patient and was back in bed again by 1:00, but had to field several calls throughout the night.

I got back to work by 8:30.  Worked until 11:00 then drove downtown for a meeting that had been cancelled without my having been informed.  Instead I had lunch with my sister who works down there in order to kill time before meeting up with my trainer at 2:00.  We finished at 3:30, just enough time for me to get to JewMex's house, pick him and his dog up and get to Runyon Canyon by 3:45.  By the way, that is the perfect time to go cause that's when all the hotties are out.  We finished by 5:00, allowing me enough time to get back to his place, get showered and changed and get ready for the rest of the evening.

I got to TLC's at 7:00.  We made it to Delancey's by 7:30, finished by 9:00, and by this time I was ready to go home, except that Blue Eyed Dan called, asking where I was and stating that he couldn't find me anywhere in the bar.  He was at OBar which is sort of no longer a thing, but hey it was on the way, so I stuck around for a drink and two more which for some reason the bartender decided to comp.  Maybe he knew I was sort of over the OBar thing. 

And that's how that day ended. 

11/15 - I took the day off from the regular job.  There was a training seminar for job #2 that I had to attend.  I started off the day with a six mile morning run, then headed up to job #2.  From 11:00 to 3:00 I was involved in training some of our employees.  It ran longer than I thought, so I didn't have a chance to grab lunch with Smooth.  Yeah, for some reason, he called out of the blue and wanted to get together.  Whatever.  

I had to hurry off anyway because of my ophthalmology appointment.  Is it really pretty typical to have to wait an hour to see a doctor?  I'm asking because I rarely have patients wait more than 10-15 minutes.  

At that point, I just called it a night.

Join the Cause

I'm taking the subway! The shit I do for equal rights knows no bounds. But I'd say at least 50% of fellow commuters are heading down to city hall.

Theme Song

Today is the join the impact protest. I'm going to try to go if I can finish with Job #2 in time. Here's my recommendation for the movement's theme song. It's peppy and fun...and to the point.

Go join the impact.

To the Streets (in pictures as promised)

The WeHo protest on the Wednesday after the decision.

 

 

 

 

November 4, the protest at the Mormon temple:

 

 

 

 

 

 

And the celeb sighting for this protest--Janice Dickinson

Protest!

This Saturday, 12000+ people went out to the Sunset Junction neighborhood of Hollywood to protest the passage of prop 8.

 

Gay, straight, black, white, Latino, Asian, across all demographics, it was an amazing show of support.  Then the cops came.  A shitload of them.  Still, the protest went off without incident.

These were by far my favorits protestors.  Kids who spontaneously got up on the building blocks in front of the Children's Hospital and fired up the crowd by yelling "What do we want?" and "When do we want it".  I loved the little Norma Rae girl (second from the left).  Then the crowd started chanting "You are the future."  And unfortunately for those who voted yes on 8, the crowd was absolutely right.  Marriage equality is inevitable.

One last thing...why can't I get rid of the stupid underlining thing?!?!?

Week in Review '08.45

It was the best of times. It was the worst of times. Seems fitting. 

11/1 - God it seems like such a long week.  I actually had to think for a while about what the fuck I did just one week ago.  Fortunately, Alzheimer's hasn't quite kicked in yet.  So I went to work.  Job #2.  Leaving by 4:00 because I had to leave in order to get to my parents' house in time for the third fucking weekend of birthday celebration in a row which I just.  wanted.  to.  end.  It was cutting way too much into my schedule.  Cut down on running.  And it was another day of eating shitty food.  Not shitty as in gross, but shitty as in not in keeping with my goal of being ripped by the new year.  Why the new year?  Who the fuck knows.  It's my being psychotic.

Oh and I had Pixel done.  Laser resurfacing.  Only cause I was able to get it for free. 

I spent the night watching a movie over at JewMex's.  Note to self, no more movies with JewMex.  The man has no taste in movies.

11/2 - I looked like a fucking burn victim.  Holy shit.  And yet, I went out selfishly with no consideration given to the public whose eyes I was clearly going to offend.  But fuck them.  I wanted to start checking out some condos.  I fell in love with this one...but not for the price.  But the assistant realtor?  6'2", longish blonde hair, beautifully tanned and Swedish, complete with accent?  He was dreamy.

That night, I did my civic duty going to the home of Sunshine and Barbie for dinner and an examination of all the propositions on the ballot.  

11/3 - Pretty low key day.  Work then session with my trainer.

11/4 - Election day.  The best of times and the worst of times.  Already wrote about it.  No need to belabor the point.

11/5 - Already wrote about this too.  The protest in West Hollywood.  I went with Blue-Eyed Dan.  Ran into Groeg.  Oh, and while there, I heard an unfamiliar voice yell my name, "Van!"  In a skull cap and scarf, I did not recognize him at all.  Fuck that, even without the skull cap and scarf, I wouldn't have recognized him at first.  It was a guy i'd crushed on earlier in the year, a guy I'd felt a connection with, who texted me frequently, then all of a sudden fell off the edge of the world with no responses to calls or texts.  

"You probably don't even remember me."  I did.  I remember wondering why he hadn't called.  Wondering what had gone wrong.  What he had found so unworthy of the decency of a single call, a single text.  But it turns out it wasn't about me.  He'd "fallen off the wagon".  And he said he'd finally gotten his shit together.

This time he did text.  "Good to see u call me sometime.  Lunch.  N catchup."

I shouldn't call him.

11/6 - The day was crazy.  My half day again.  Then racing to my opthalmologist.  Then just barely making it on time for the beginning of my second day of protesting.  This time as most know at the Mormon Temple.  I made it five minutes late to my training session, then raced over the hill to the valley for a one on one dinner at Katsu-ya with Razor Burn.

Here's the thing about Razor Burn.  He called as he entered the polls "I'm voting so if I decide to switch teams, we can get married."  Kidding of course.  He texted late that night "When the fuck is Yes on 8 dropping under 50?"  He called the following day, "Are you as fucking pissed as I am?"  It's awesome that a straight man feels as invested about gay rights as I do.

11/7 - What a long fucking week.  The work day couldn't drag any slower.  And the fact that I actually saw something that looked like a box of tongues?  Seriously the worst I've ever seen?  Can you imagine having a doctor think that yours is the worst he'd ever seen?  Ick. That's why I'm gay.

Then I finally got in a 6 mile run, and was fortunate enough that the friend I'd offered to take out for his birthday because his boyfriend had forgotten decided he was too tired to go out.  Aaah.  A night off.

To the Streets, Pt. 2

Next protest will be on Saturday.  At Sunset Junction.  There will be an estimated 20,000 people.  You should go.  As we all know by now, numbers make a difference.