Saturday, May 20, 2006
Columbia Pride
I headed out to the Pride Festival at 12:00 pm after shutting down the pharmacy an hour early. D had checked us in and set up the tent. I brought sunscreen, hand sanitizer, wet wipes, and my business cards. We set these items on our table and hung a sign that said " Forgot your sunscreen? Stop in and get some." I should had put the word "free" somewhere on the sign since dozens of people thought we were selling sunscreen. I probably only talked to 2 people who will actually consider bring their business to me, but the day was success. The tent was close to the stage so we were able to watch all of the entertainment including an awesome comedianne that J and I have hung out with a couple of times. I was sitting in the shade the entire time and people came to me instead of me having to mingle with them. I had two excellent encounters, as well. The first was with a friend of D's. I was explaining to him that I do not like the sun since it doesn't fit with my gothic-like style. He said
"You will be really grateful for that when you get into your thirties."
Ha! I am 20+12 so I really appreciated the comment. The second encounter was with a reader of the blog. It was so awesome to meet someone who reads the blog that I don't officially know. You made my day.
We packed up an hour early because I got 2 pages for patients that needed prescriptions. I came back to Pleasantville and took care of my patients. I talked to J while I was at home. She made it to Canada safelyand was headed out to a women's dinner. I almost stayed home because I did not want to drive back downtown. However, I forced myself to head out to the lesbian bar. I sat with members of the lesbian area network, an email/social group I belong to. B is the coordinator for the network. She is outgoing, funny, and slightly pushy. She is constantly drawing new women into the network and forcing them to interact. Tonight, I met 2 couples that are about the same age and J and I. The first couple was composed of an alternative grocery store employee/doctorate of religious studies and a server/nursing student who just moved here from the small town I worked at during my fellowship. The second couple was composed of a water quality monitor/rugby player and another rugby player/ job unknown. I thoroughly enjoyed talking to both couples and hope to hang out with them again. B coerced me into dancing several time. She will not take "no" for an answer. We danced until about 12:00 pm and B suggested we go to the show bar. I agreed to go because I wanted to stay out until at least 1:00 am. Most of the time, J and I go home by midnight or before. I was trying to prove to myself that she is the one who wants to go home early. However, at 11:30 I was trying to go home, but B won't let me. I went to close my tab, but it mysteriously disappear. I am not sure if the bartender was too busy to find my tab or if she was excited to see me without my girlfriend. Either way, thanks.
When we got to the other bar, B paid cover charge. It was packed. I wanted to leave immediately, but stayed because B had paid for me to get in. I am so glad I stayed. I saw Pepper MaShay perform live and she was great. Pepper MaShay is best known for the song from Queer as Folk that frequently played at Babylon, "Let's get soaking wet". Then, to end my night on a high note, the regular live singer at that bar came out dressed in a cream zoot suit and sang "Minnie the Moocher" (to me). My Columbia Pride 2006 was almost perfect. I just wish J had been here to enjoy it with me.
"You will be really grateful for that when you get into your thirties."
Ha! I am 20+12 so I really appreciated the comment. The second encounter was with a reader of the blog. It was so awesome to meet someone who reads the blog that I don't officially know. You made my day.
We packed up an hour early because I got 2 pages for patients that needed prescriptions. I came back to Pleasantville and took care of my patients. I talked to J while I was at home. She made it to Canada safelyand was headed out to a women's dinner. I almost stayed home because I did not want to drive back downtown. However, I forced myself to head out to the lesbian bar. I sat with members of the lesbian area network, an email/social group I belong to. B is the coordinator for the network. She is outgoing, funny, and slightly pushy. She is constantly drawing new women into the network and forcing them to interact. Tonight, I met 2 couples that are about the same age and J and I. The first couple was composed of an alternative grocery store employee/doctorate of religious studies and a server/nursing student who just moved here from the small town I worked at during my fellowship. The second couple was composed of a water quality monitor/rugby player and another rugby player/ job unknown. I thoroughly enjoyed talking to both couples and hope to hang out with them again. B coerced me into dancing several time. She will not take "no" for an answer. We danced until about 12:00 pm and B suggested we go to the show bar. I agreed to go because I wanted to stay out until at least 1:00 am. Most of the time, J and I go home by midnight or before. I was trying to prove to myself that she is the one who wants to go home early. However, at 11:30 I was trying to go home, but B won't let me. I went to close my tab, but it mysteriously disappear. I am not sure if the bartender was too busy to find my tab or if she was excited to see me without my girlfriend. Either way, thanks.
When we got to the other bar, B paid cover charge. It was packed. I wanted to leave immediately, but stayed because B had paid for me to get in. I am so glad I stayed. I saw Pepper MaShay perform live and she was great. Pepper MaShay is best known for the song from Queer as Folk that frequently played at Babylon, "Let's get soaking wet". Then, to end my night on a high note, the regular live singer at that bar came out dressed in a cream zoot suit and sang "Minnie the Moocher" (to me). My Columbia Pride 2006 was almost perfect. I just wish J had been here to enjoy it with me.
Friday, May 19, 2006
Letter to the editor
This was published in our esteemed newspaper yesterday:
Voters should protect marriage
By KAREN JO GOUNAUD
Guest columnist
Guest columnist David R. Gillespie on April 21 addressed what is perhaps the most important issue of the Nov. 7 election: the constitutional definition of marriage in South Carolina.
The meaning of that institution from the beginning of time has been "one man, one woman." Unfortunately, the homosexual lobby has made considerable progress in recent years toward discounting that sacred definition. With the help of savvy marketing techniques, biased media, relentless legal manipulators and activist judges, the laws and culture have been radically changing. Consequently, more and more Americans now accept or excuse a virtual potpourri of sexual identities and behaviors that our nation once rejected and condemned.
Attacking traditional marriage has become the activists' most important effort in this culture war. Because of all the misleading, inaccurate claims the public has accepted, it has become imperative for South Carolina to protect itself from this aggression in a special way: by creating and adopting the South Carolina Marriage Amendment.
South Carolina citizens can best prepare for this historical voting opportunity through objective fact-finding and respectful discussion. One of the finest reports available is an article by author Frank Turek called "Protecting America's Immune System - A Reasonable Argument Against Homosexual Marriage."
Mr. Turek warns against both homosexual marriage and civil unions. He calls traditional marriage "the national immune system that protects our civilization from destruction." Anyone preparing seriously for the Nov. 7 vote should read his full report.
Here are some of his major points and arguments:
"Traditional marriage is beneficial to the public welfare." The majority of skilled, objective family analysts consider it the gold standard for raising children. It results in lower rates for poverty, suicide and crime while bringing better health conditions. It also lowers government welfare costs and makes men more focused and responsible. It provides women, especially mothers, with more security, improves the life span of both spouses and encourages an adequate replacement birth rate.
"Homosexual behavior is destructive to the public welfare" by increasing health problems among those practicing homosexual sex, shortening the median life span by 20 years to 30 years, spreading disease to innocent people and costing Americans millions of dollars in higher medical insurance premiums.
Legalization of homosexual marriage also leads to more destructive attitudes toward traditional marriage and parenting. For example, in Norway, after a decade of legalized homosexual marriage, out of wedlock births have soared (to)... nearly 70 percent of all children. "When the entry standards for marriage are weakened to include same-sex couples," says Turek, "marriage and child-bearing will just be considered incidental."
Closer to home, Massachusetts' homosexual marriages have a shorter history, but the results are already provocative. For example, concerned second-grade public school parents in Lexington were recently told that because of Massachusetts' legalization of homosexual marriage, children's gay advocacy books like King and King (where the prince marries another prince) are required classroom reading.
Even more disturbing, Catholic Charities of Boston, one of the nation's oldest adoption agencies (specializing) in finding good homes for hard-to-place kids, had to shut down because it could not in good conscience place kids with homosexual couples as it was now required to do for a state license. That requirement is also contrary to the constitutional principles of religious liberty.
Activist Massachusetts judges and weak legislators have proven that only the power of a state constitutional amendment, perhaps even a federal marriage amendment, can keep the Massachusetts story from repeating itself here.
Traditional marriage is America's, and South Carolina's, immune system. Without the structure and strength of true marriage, and the civilized family and community life that flows from it, the fabric of our civilization is in danger of being destroyed.
Strong traditional families still exist across America, but they need help. The marriage amendment is essential to give that help to the children and families of South Carolina.
Ms. Gounaud is the founder and past president of Family Friendly Libraries. She is a Christian musician and writer in Columbia.
So I wrote this letter to the editor:
Karen Jo Gounaud would like us to believe that the "protection" of marriage is the most important issue in the upcoming election. Is she living in the same country that I live in? Every day, we are sending young men and women to fight in a war that most of us no longer support. Many families are struggling to pay bills as gas prices continue to rise. Millions of American have inadequate health insurance and health care. This is divisive and unnecessary amendment that would undermine the Constitution.
She goes on to encourage the citizens of South Carolina to prepare for the vote "through objective fact-finding and respectful discussion". She suggests reading the article "Protecting America's Immune System - A Reasonable Argument Against Homosexual Marriage" by Frank Turek. This article is neither objective nor based in fact. The "fact" that gay men live shorter lives and are sicker than the general population comes from a study done by Paul Cameron. He has been censure by several professional associations including the American Psychological and the American Socialogical Association for his flawed study methodology and misrepresentation of facts. He used the obituaries of gay men in 1983-1984 to create his data. I agree that there should be a respectful discussion. This inflammatory, psuedo-scientific article is not the starting place for this discussion. I suggest instead that you talk to a homosexual person. We will be happy to tell you about our non-legal families and why we want to be able to get married. If you sit down with a gay family and still believe that same-sex marriage should banned, then vote for this amendment. Let's really discuss the issue and not use fear and ignorance as the basis for our decision. If you don't know any gay people, check out www.scequality.org and watch a video about our families.
I hope it gets published. I am sure they got plenty of letters on the topic. J says that they will call me before they print it and there have been no calls so far.
J got on plane to Canada today. She is presenting at a national meeting. I am so proud of her, but I will miss her. I am headed out to Pride. I am bring my cards and sunscreen for people who may have forgotten.
Voters should protect marriage
By KAREN JO GOUNAUD
Guest columnist
Guest columnist David R. Gillespie on April 21 addressed what is perhaps the most important issue of the Nov. 7 election: the constitutional definition of marriage in South Carolina.
The meaning of that institution from the beginning of time has been "one man, one woman." Unfortunately, the homosexual lobby has made considerable progress in recent years toward discounting that sacred definition. With the help of savvy marketing techniques, biased media, relentless legal manipulators and activist judges, the laws and culture have been radically changing. Consequently, more and more Americans now accept or excuse a virtual potpourri of sexual identities and behaviors that our nation once rejected and condemned.
Attacking traditional marriage has become the activists' most important effort in this culture war. Because of all the misleading, inaccurate claims the public has accepted, it has become imperative for South Carolina to protect itself from this aggression in a special way: by creating and adopting the South Carolina Marriage Amendment.
South Carolina citizens can best prepare for this historical voting opportunity through objective fact-finding and respectful discussion. One of the finest reports available is an article by author Frank Turek called "Protecting America's Immune System - A Reasonable Argument Against Homosexual Marriage."
Mr. Turek warns against both homosexual marriage and civil unions. He calls traditional marriage "the national immune system that protects our civilization from destruction." Anyone preparing seriously for the Nov. 7 vote should read his full report.
Here are some of his major points and arguments:
"Traditional marriage is beneficial to the public welfare." The majority of skilled, objective family analysts consider it the gold standard for raising children. It results in lower rates for poverty, suicide and crime while bringing better health conditions. It also lowers government welfare costs and makes men more focused and responsible. It provides women, especially mothers, with more security, improves the life span of both spouses and encourages an adequate replacement birth rate.
"Homosexual behavior is destructive to the public welfare" by increasing health problems among those practicing homosexual sex, shortening the median life span by 20 years to 30 years, spreading disease to innocent people and costing Americans millions of dollars in higher medical insurance premiums.
Legalization of homosexual marriage also leads to more destructive attitudes toward traditional marriage and parenting. For example, in Norway, after a decade of legalized homosexual marriage, out of wedlock births have soared (to)... nearly 70 percent of all children. "When the entry standards for marriage are weakened to include same-sex couples," says Turek, "marriage and child-bearing will just be considered incidental."
Closer to home, Massachusetts' homosexual marriages have a shorter history, but the results are already provocative. For example, concerned second-grade public school parents in Lexington were recently told that because of Massachusetts' legalization of homosexual marriage, children's gay advocacy books like King and King (where the prince marries another prince) are required classroom reading.
Even more disturbing, Catholic Charities of Boston, one of the nation's oldest adoption agencies (specializing) in finding good homes for hard-to-place kids, had to shut down because it could not in good conscience place kids with homosexual couples as it was now required to do for a state license. That requirement is also contrary to the constitutional principles of religious liberty.
Activist Massachusetts judges and weak legislators have proven that only the power of a state constitutional amendment, perhaps even a federal marriage amendment, can keep the Massachusetts story from repeating itself here.
Traditional marriage is America's, and South Carolina's, immune system. Without the structure and strength of true marriage, and the civilized family and community life that flows from it, the fabric of our civilization is in danger of being destroyed.
Strong traditional families still exist across America, but they need help. The marriage amendment is essential to give that help to the children and families of South Carolina.
Ms. Gounaud is the founder and past president of Family Friendly Libraries. She is a Christian musician and writer in Columbia.
So I wrote this letter to the editor:
Karen Jo Gounaud would like us to believe that the "protection" of marriage is the most important issue in the upcoming election. Is she living in the same country that I live in? Every day, we are sending young men and women to fight in a war that most of us no longer support. Many families are struggling to pay bills as gas prices continue to rise. Millions of American have inadequate health insurance and health care. This is divisive and unnecessary amendment that would undermine the Constitution.
She goes on to encourage the citizens of South Carolina to prepare for the vote "through objective fact-finding and respectful discussion". She suggests reading the article "Protecting America's Immune System - A Reasonable Argument Against Homosexual Marriage" by Frank Turek. This article is neither objective nor based in fact. The "fact" that gay men live shorter lives and are sicker than the general population comes from a study done by Paul Cameron. He has been censure by several professional associations including the American Psychological and the American Socialogical Association for his flawed study methodology and misrepresentation of facts. He used the obituaries of gay men in 1983-1984 to create his data. I agree that there should be a respectful discussion. This inflammatory, psuedo-scientific article is not the starting place for this discussion. I suggest instead that you talk to a homosexual person. We will be happy to tell you about our non-legal families and why we want to be able to get married. If you sit down with a gay family and still believe that same-sex marriage should banned, then vote for this amendment. Let's really discuss the issue and not use fear and ignorance as the basis for our decision. If you don't know any gay people, check out www.scequality.org and watch a video about our families.
I hope it gets published. I am sure they got plenty of letters on the topic. J says that they will call me before they print it and there have been no calls so far.
J got on plane to Canada today. She is presenting at a national meeting. I am so proud of her, but I will miss her. I am headed out to Pride. I am bring my cards and sunscreen for people who may have forgotten.
Saturday, May 13, 2006
Random bits
I am having some blogger block today so I am going to string together a few small thoughts.
There was some interesting news on the pharmacy front a couple of weeks ago. A student at the University of Cumberlands (a "Christian" university) was recently expelled as a result of his MySpace page. The student had listed his sexual orientation as gay. The student was expelled and told that he could not finish his last semester and graduate. The kid hired a lawyer and started talking to the school. The interesting pharmacy part is that this university is trying to receive funding for their new pharmacy school. The state briefly considered not giving the funding, but the student settled with the school. He was allowed to finish out the semester and will be transferring to another school. Of course, the school will receive the money for the pharmacy school. I do not think state money should go to a university that does not have the same anti-discrimination policies as the state has. I read a rumor that I have not been able to find again that the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE) may not accredit the school unless it changes it policies. I will try to keep up with that story. It will take a couple of years to build the school and then some more time for accreditation.
I have had to come out to two sets of patients that last couple weeks. Coming out is such an involved process. I put a rainbow sticker on my car and an HRC equal sign on the door of the pharmacy. Do I have to cut my hair into a mullet? :) The first couple were very funny. We were talking about Jennifer. The wife asked me if I was in a relationship with her. Her husband was soo embarrassed. He did not think I was gay (I am actually bisexual, but whatever). He had introduced me to his single friend the week before. The guy owns a restaurant and did not give me a second look. I am not young enough, thin enough, or blond enough. I am so clueless though because I did realize that he was trying to set me up. The second couple just kind of stumbled on the information when asking me if she also lived with me. They then proceeded to tell me about this really cool gay guy that used to live next to them. I felt like they were trying to sell me on how progressive and open they were.
I was watching render, a video about Ani Difranco. She is amazing. I love Ani Fucking Difranco.
Pride season is here. We have been going to Pride fundraisers all over. Tonight, we are going to attend the Mr. SC Pride pageant. We sponsored a contestant. It should be fun since the best of our drag king troupe are competing in the contest. Next week, we are setting up a table at the Pride festival to promote the pharmacy. The week after that I am going to Pensacola Pride.
I am continuing to try and blog at least once a week. It is becoming difficult for me to blog during work hours so I will be trying to blog on Saturday afternoons.
There was some interesting news on the pharmacy front a couple of weeks ago. A student at the University of Cumberlands (a "Christian" university) was recently expelled as a result of his MySpace page. The student had listed his sexual orientation as gay. The student was expelled and told that he could not finish his last semester and graduate. The kid hired a lawyer and started talking to the school. The interesting pharmacy part is that this university is trying to receive funding for their new pharmacy school. The state briefly considered not giving the funding, but the student settled with the school. He was allowed to finish out the semester and will be transferring to another school. Of course, the school will receive the money for the pharmacy school. I do not think state money should go to a university that does not have the same anti-discrimination policies as the state has. I read a rumor that I have not been able to find again that the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE) may not accredit the school unless it changes it policies. I will try to keep up with that story. It will take a couple of years to build the school and then some more time for accreditation.
I have had to come out to two sets of patients that last couple weeks. Coming out is such an involved process. I put a rainbow sticker on my car and an HRC equal sign on the door of the pharmacy. Do I have to cut my hair into a mullet? :) The first couple were very funny. We were talking about Jennifer. The wife asked me if I was in a relationship with her. Her husband was soo embarrassed. He did not think I was gay (I am actually bisexual, but whatever). He had introduced me to his single friend the week before. The guy owns a restaurant and did not give me a second look. I am not young enough, thin enough, or blond enough. I am so clueless though because I did realize that he was trying to set me up. The second couple just kind of stumbled on the information when asking me if she also lived with me. They then proceeded to tell me about this really cool gay guy that used to live next to them. I felt like they were trying to sell me on how progressive and open they were.
I was watching render, a video about Ani Difranco. She is amazing. I love Ani Fucking Difranco.
Pride season is here. We have been going to Pride fundraisers all over. Tonight, we are going to attend the Mr. SC Pride pageant. We sponsored a contestant. It should be fun since the best of our drag king troupe are competing in the contest. Next week, we are setting up a table at the Pride festival to promote the pharmacy. The week after that I am going to Pensacola Pride.
I am continuing to try and blog at least once a week. It is becoming difficult for me to blog during work hours so I will be trying to blog on Saturday afternoons.
Saturday, May 06, 2006
Cirque Du Soleil
This week J and I were so fortunate to attend Cirque Du Soleil Delerium. We had an awesome time thanks to the generosity of friends. I have heard some people complain because the show is very different from other shows they have done. This was my first time attending so I was not expecting anything in particular. It was amazing. I would like to meet the people who envisioned the show and then created it. They used screens and sheer curtains to project images on. The visual media was incredible. The performers sang, danced, and performed acrobatics while different images were used. I would have never thought to bring all those elements together to create a show. Check it out if you can.
I had some interesting insight today about my time in pharmacy school. I got a call from a former classmate. He was sanctioned by the pharmacy school during our third year for academic dishonesty. He came to me and my best friend and asked us to write letters about his character. We both did. I honestly do not know if he ever cheated, but he never cheated off of me. He is from another country and struggled constantly. He was often the last person left working on a test or a lab. He asked many questions in lab and other students felt like he was copying their work. I decided to write the letter because I felt like it was case of racism. There were several students who were suspected of academic dishonesty. He was the only one targeted by the Dean's office. He was the only one who other student "spied" on. We all knew of at least 3-4 students that cheated regularly. The only student that was punished was from Africa and had trouble with English. I am not saying the college or the Dean's office was overtly racist. I think he was a target because the administration was frustrated with all of the cheating that was occurring. This guy was the only one that they could get other students to rat out. So, I wrote a letter stating that I believed that he had a language barrier. I stated that he had asked for my help on several occasions, but had never used my work.
He was sanctioned and told that he could come back in 2 years if he worked on his language, continued to work in pharmacy, and did volunteer work. He told me that after the two years were up, they told him that he would have reapply for the college. They denied him re-admittance. He appealed it to the university and the sanction was overturned. He is not sure what this means to returning to school. He does not want to return to school at that school.
Back to the insight, I realized that my involvement in that issue may have been a contributing factor to why I did not get the residency I applied for. I applied for a residency at the VA. Not only did I not get it, they picked a much weaker candidate who stated after he was chosen that he applied for that residency because it was going to be "easy". Then I started thinking about my over all experience in pharmacy school. The first year, I argued with my fellow students about ethical issues like end-of-life decisions and confidentiality of HIV status. The second year I became vice president of a large student organization. The third year I became president. While I was president, I tried to change the advisor for the organization because our long standing advisor did nothing for us. I tried to hold people who traveled on the organization's money accountable by participating in the conference programs. I worked hard and actively criticized students in leadership positions who did not do their jobs. Basically, I was a pain in the ass. It was not my intention to be difficult, but I always speak up for what I believe in. It never occurred to me then that my actions could have such far reaching consquences. I am sure I would have loved the residency and would be enjoying the job that I got afterwards. That being said, I would not trade in my current situation for anything else.
I had some interesting insight today about my time in pharmacy school. I got a call from a former classmate. He was sanctioned by the pharmacy school during our third year for academic dishonesty. He came to me and my best friend and asked us to write letters about his character. We both did. I honestly do not know if he ever cheated, but he never cheated off of me. He is from another country and struggled constantly. He was often the last person left working on a test or a lab. He asked many questions in lab and other students felt like he was copying their work. I decided to write the letter because I felt like it was case of racism. There were several students who were suspected of academic dishonesty. He was the only one targeted by the Dean's office. He was the only one who other student "spied" on. We all knew of at least 3-4 students that cheated regularly. The only student that was punished was from Africa and had trouble with English. I am not saying the college or the Dean's office was overtly racist. I think he was a target because the administration was frustrated with all of the cheating that was occurring. This guy was the only one that they could get other students to rat out. So, I wrote a letter stating that I believed that he had a language barrier. I stated that he had asked for my help on several occasions, but had never used my work.
He was sanctioned and told that he could come back in 2 years if he worked on his language, continued to work in pharmacy, and did volunteer work. He told me that after the two years were up, they told him that he would have reapply for the college. They denied him re-admittance. He appealed it to the university and the sanction was overturned. He is not sure what this means to returning to school. He does not want to return to school at that school.
Back to the insight, I realized that my involvement in that issue may have been a contributing factor to why I did not get the residency I applied for. I applied for a residency at the VA. Not only did I not get it, they picked a much weaker candidate who stated after he was chosen that he applied for that residency because it was going to be "easy". Then I started thinking about my over all experience in pharmacy school. The first year, I argued with my fellow students about ethical issues like end-of-life decisions and confidentiality of HIV status. The second year I became vice president of a large student organization. The third year I became president. While I was president, I tried to change the advisor for the organization because our long standing advisor did nothing for us. I tried to hold people who traveled on the organization's money accountable by participating in the conference programs. I worked hard and actively criticized students in leadership positions who did not do their jobs. Basically, I was a pain in the ass. It was not my intention to be difficult, but I always speak up for what I believe in. It never occurred to me then that my actions could have such far reaching consquences. I am sure I would have loved the residency and would be enjoying the job that I got afterwards. That being said, I would not trade in my current situation for anything else.
Wednesday, May 03, 2006
Hi!
Moving computers has really screwed up my computer time. I am not as comfortable on that computer. I usually try to blog on Saturdays, but we have been busy the past couple of Saturdays. I am also distracted by my beautiful niece. She requires us to hold her about 85% of the time. She is so cute that she gets away with it. I had a decent month in April. However, have 2 full time employees is killing me. I have cut both of their hours in order to save some money. I will be getting a student in 2 weeks from the College of Pharmacy. I have always wanted to be a preceptor!! More later....
