Posts Tagged “friend”
Posted by: punksmurf in Current Affairs, Film, Food and Drink, Music, Television, Travel, Web/Tech, Weblogs, tags: festival, Food and Drink, friend, Music, same sex marriage, tattoo, transsexual, Travel
Currently listening to Tonic (album: Sugar)
The Russian couple who got married in Toronto, Canada, last week by Justice Harvey Brownstone (an out gay Judge) returned to Russia this week to try and force the authorities to recognize their union.
Justice Brownstone penned a wonderful book, drawing from his experiences in Toronto Family Court, called Tug of War: A Judge’s Verdict on Separation, Custody Battles and the Bitter Realities of Family Court (ECW Press, 2009) and was released earlier this year. I still intend on picking it up and reading it.
Trans people who legally change their names will no longer need to provide courts with a doctor’s note after a ruling from New York’s Supreme Court.
Joan Jett rocks in more ways than one: read her interview for Inked Magazine (Inked for a cause).
The ‘net is buzzing with more Lilith Fair news. I, for one, hope to attend one date (I couldn’t the last time due to financial reasons). A guy friend of mine recounts his time at Lilith Fair - read it here. Its tone differs greatly from the one on Popnography. AfterEllen also asks her readers who they would love to see - here. (Easy guess who tops my list, eh?)
SFGate ran an interesting article on chocolate farms on Hawaii.
Hottie Rena Sofer has joined CBS’ “NCIS” as a potential recurring. She will play a no-nonsense attorney with mysterious motives.
CBC is broadcasting my friend Lara’s short, called Sunfish. It’s not geo blocked, so anyone can watch it *HERE*
eurOut published my latest article on straight allies (yay! Thank you, Stacey) and a heart warming tale posted on Dorothy Snarker’s blog. Sounds like a Hollywood movie, eh?
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The Dutch don’t celebrate Halloween (unfortunately) but I took birthday girl Naomi, who turned 7 on Monday, to a children’s museum - with mom and my best friend WP.
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Happy Coming Out Day!
My friend Stacey has written a piece on why she’s an advocate for “gay” rights. The following is posted with her permission:
Why I’m an advocate of gay rights
Well, apart from the usual “duh! because they’re citizens” reason, I will expand.
When I learned about the civil rights movement of my mom and nana’s time, I was fascinated and horrified. This idea that blacks were separate but equal and determined as ‘other’ (I’m sure you’ll agree) was a revolting period in this country’s history.
When we define a people as ‘other’ it implies a strangeness, an unfamiliarity, a non-sameness. And while each culture in this country has a uniqueness that is to be celebrated, each are still all afforded the same rights.
We belong to this ‘clubhouse’ called the U.S.A. We pay dues and, in return, we get protection and enjoy some privileges. The clubhouse protects us from threats through the military, works to ensure we have access to good food and clean water, works to ensure we have the tools needed to raise a family, educate ourselves, express ourselves… life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
There are also some club rules. Don’t steal from others, don’t kill them, don’t hurt them. You know, the common logical stuff.
Yet, in this clubhouse there are people who are paying their clubhouse dues that don’t get that same protection. They are considered ‘others.’
Now stick and stones can break bones, but names will never hurt people… I guess. But this ‘otherness’ results in some horrible things that I’m sure no one would want to experience.
Stories like in the recent occurrence in Florida in which a lesbian was denied access to her dying partner even though she had a document ensuring medical power of attorney. Their children could not say goodbye to their mother.
My mom died. I was able to say goodbye to my mother. Why couldn’t these kids?
Now the ‘reason’ that this club member of the U.S.A. (and countless others who have experienced a similar, horrific event) was denied rights was because they weren’t given the same protection the other club members have. Even though they pay the dues.
Now, this clubhouse was formed a long time ago by people fleeing religious persecution. Their countries of origin weren’t allowing them to practice their beliefs. Pretty good reason to leave a country. So they all got together and started this clubhouse and, because of that big reason, they decided to lay down some ground rules so that everyone could enjoy the freedoms they were previously denied. One such freedom is written down and taught to everyone. It’s called Freedom of Religion and basically means that everyone can practice their religion in their places of worship. The clubhouse will make sure of that. But it’s a two way street. If the clubhouse stays out of the place of worship, the place of worship needs to stay out of the clubhouse. Sounds fair.
Even given the above, for some reason, some clubhouse members feel it is important to treat some of its members as ‘others’ and not give them the same protection they pay for with their dues. Why?
Well, the logical reasoning escapes me.
Let me think of reasons why some club members should not get the same privileges…
Maybe they are hurting someone?
Nope. These ‘others’ want to raise families and celebrate their love.
Maybe they are trying to restrict other club members privileges?
Nope. These ‘others’ are not trying to take away anyone’s rights.
Maybe they aren’t paying their dues?
Nope. They have to pay dues just like everyone else.
So what could be the reason these ‘others’ are not given the same privileges?
Strangely enough, it seems like some religions think what they do in the privacy of their own home is wrong. But how is it wrong? Are they hurting someone? If they are, then it’s totally wrong. But their behaviors are just like other club members! They are living with a loved one and possibly raising a family. If that is hurtful, then all club members who do that should be punished as well, right?
And what boggles my mind even further is that some of these ‘others’ even subscribe to the same religion as those that restrict their privileges.
Why, then, do these ‘others’ not get the same privileges as everyone else?
Somehow we forgot about the whole reason we started the clubhouse. To escape religious persecution. To keep the clubhouse out of the place of worship and visa versa.
Wow. If you think of it like this, the clubhouse has become that which it originally despised. How did that happen? We escaped from an enemy only to become the enemy itself? That is really embarrassing.
But, don’t let the embarrassment stop you from making it right. When we make a mistake the correct thing to do is to acknowledge our ‘whoops’ (and if you feel embarrassed, that’s fine) but to fix it.
Listen, this isn’t a selfish plea because I like [blank]… um, I’m straight. I could marry the person I’m attracted to.
But maybe it IS selfish. I’m an atheist. I don’t even believe in anyone’s religion. Maybe I should be considered an ‘other.’ Maybe, if this strange privilege revocation continues, I’m next. I hope not. I pay dues.
But I was raised Christian and I support and practice many Christian-like behaviors. The biggie being; do unto others as you would have done unto you. The golden rule.
*If* in this clubhouse we wish to have the freedom to love and raise a family, *then* we are compelled to protect that for every one of our club members.
I’m really proud of this club, despite this black mark in our history, because in our history we overcame prejudices in order to place other ‘others’ to full club standing. We overcame racial segregation. We overcame gender inequality. We are still strong enough to overcome this inequality.
Don’t you agree we’re strong enough to overcome this? I think so. Because I pay the dues and I see how great our clubhouse has been.
And, simply, because it is the RIGHT thing to do.
I really can’t wait to be on the other side of the coin, when my kids ask me about how these ‘others’ were segregated with fascination and disbelief. It will be sad to acknowledge there was ever a period in our history that we did this. But what’s done is done. The only important thing now is that we correct our errors.
Because, after all, this clubhouse is the “Land of the Free, Home of the Brave.” I look forward to the time we can live up to that and pay tribute to the club house origins. It’s called pride in what we stand for or, in other words, patriotism.
Stand up. Speak up for those that are downtrodden. Is is the most patriotic thing you can do.
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Posted by: punksmurf in Web/Tech, tags: friend
A couple of months ago I mentioned a Wilwaukee based site in one of my weekly recurring posts. It was my friend Stacey who pointed it out to me (it subsequently got some coverage by eurOut), and she said she was going to contribute to it. Today, I saw they put her story up: Your Gay Neighbor - Stacey. She rocks, eh?
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Let me start off this post with two recent interviews with Terry Moore in which he talks about Strangers in Paradise and Echo. This one’s interesting for Francophones as it is in French, and in this interview Terry also discusses translating his works to the big screen.
Late last night I found this article on scholars (!) studying Bruce Springsteen - who celebrated his 60th birthday earlier this week - at a weekend event. As a fan I would have attended it if I could, but the idea of actual scholars studying the man… Wow.
Another article that caught my attention was one on US spoof shows. I’m all for that as it shows people’s obsession with celebrities on one hand, and it also shows how ridiculous celebrities’ lives are; just because Britney and Paris are famous doesn’t mean they’re flawless and their lives are automatically more interesting than our own. (Think about it: whenever they screw up, it’s in front of the entire world - and I don’t envy them for that!) I can’t wait to see an episode of “Popzilla”. The article reminded me of a long running BBC show called Spitting Image (I think it was aired in the 80s and 90s) where -British- politics got spoofed. I was a little too young to get all the jokes, but I can imagine it certainly gave the Brits food for thought. I just occurred to me: remember the Genesis video to “Land of confusion“? Those were all Spitting Image puppets!
Staying on British soil: actor Colin Firth has won an award for his portrayal of a gay professor in “A single man”, directed by fashion designer Tom Ford. (Colin got the cute guy in “Mamma Mia!”) I like Colin. He seems like a down to earth kinda guy to me.
In the meantime Iran - amidst all the controversy of another nuclear plant (I do NOT like their President, let’s get that straight) - may allow trans marriages, according to this. Let’s just wait and see, eh.
Also late last night, as I was surfing the web, I noticed just then my Flemish friend Michael Vincent gave me credits on his site. (Check it out; it certainly is worth it.) Wow; I only helped him translate some pages into English. Nothing major. Thanks, dude 
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Earlier this week Krista sent me the following:
Here, without rhythm, harmony or rhyme, is Dave Carroll’s problem: Last year, while he was flying from Nova Scotia to Nebraska on United Airlines, somebody broke his $3,500 guitar.
Big deal, you’re thinking. Who has time to keep track of all the things United breaks? (See bottom of story for some statistics, which suggest that several other airlines are worse.)
But Carroll and his band, Sons of Maxwell, have told their tale with rhythm, harmony, rhyme, not to mention some wicked humor, and their four-minute, 37-second complaint, “United Breaks Guitars,” above, is racking up views on YouTube.
Before we tell you what United has to say about all this, here’s a quick version of Carroll’s saga, as distilled from his website. (Messages to Carroll’s home phone and e-mail address went unanswered Tuesday night.):
In spring 2008, Carroll and company headed from Halifax, Nova Scotia, to Omaha, by way of (shudder now, frequent fliers) Chicago. Just after landing at O’Hare airport, says Carroll, one of his bandmates and another passenger looked out their windows and saw baggage handlers heaving around guitars with wanton disregard.
Carroll says he complained immediately to three flight attendants, but was met with indifference. Some time after arrival in Nebraska, Carroll says, he discovered that, sure enough, the base of his 710 Taylor acoustic guitar had been smashed.
But he had gigs to play, so he found a way to do that. As Carroll acknowledges, he didn’t attempt to complain again until beginning his return flight a week later.
Over the following days, weeks and months, Carroll made many phone calls to United representatives in Chicago and (who didn’t see this coming?) India, but basically he says United did nothing for him.
Meanwhile, Carroll spent $1,200 getting the guitar repaired “to a state that it plays well but has lost much of what made it special.”
The capping blow, Carroll says, was an e-mail from a Ms. Irlweg, who denied his claim for compensation because he didn’t complain in the right place, or at the right time. The airline wouldn’t even give him $1,200 in travel vouchers, Carroll contends.
So he vowed a sort of musical revenge - not one protest song, not two, but three, with a video for each, all to be posted on the Web. Carroll says he told Ms. Irlweg all about it, but got the usual response.
The video was posted on July 6. In its first 23 hours, “United Breaks Guitars” had drawn 461 comments on YouTube, most of them maligning the airline, and one of them hearkening back to Tom Paxton and his tune of aerial guitar trouble, “Thank you, Republic Airlines.” (The viewer counter appeared to be stuck at 3,441, but the video quickly went viral, with the Consumerist showing more than 24,000 views by Tuesday night.)
Among the comments: “Revenge is a dish best served with country accompaniment.”
So what does United have to say about the song?
“This has struck a chord with us, and we’ve contacted him directly to make it right,” said Robin Urbanski, a spokeswoman for United. (Urbanski also said she “loved” the video.)
Urbanski said a phone meeting had been scheduled for Wednesday, and that before the airline decides exactly what to do for Carroll, “we need to have that conversation with him directly.”
Meanwhile, Carroll’s website says he’s written and recorded the second song, with video to follow soon. And he has all sorts of other plans for a third song, and various tactics to achieve a million Web hits, which he believes will give some sense of revenge.
In fact, he writes, “I should thank United…. If my guitar had to be smashed due to extreme negligence I’m glad it was you that did it.”
By the way: In the U.S. Department of Transportation’s tally of lost, damaged, delayed or pilfered baggage in April 2009, United ranked 10th among 19 carriers, with 13,517 “baggage reports” among 4.03 million passengers.
— Christopher Reynolds, Los Angeles Times staff writer
My friend Lara just sent this out:
Hi Everyone,
Just a quick note to say that Curve Productions Inc. would like to congratulate Dave Carroll on the phenomenal success of the first instalment of “United Breaks Guitars”! We would also like to thank everyone for their support in getting the message out there. It is because of you, your friends and your friends friends etc. that this video, and Dave’s message that customer service should not be a victim of tight belts, have reached worldwide attention.
We knew during the filming of the video that it would be well received. Mostly because we laughed our way through the shoot, so we figured that at least some of that humour would translate. Wow. We had no idea. None of us could have seen what was coming.
There have been thousands of comments posted on YouTube and many other sites now, from Russia, Norway, Australia, The UK, Ireland, China…just about everywhere. The public response has been staggeringly supportive and voluminous. The sheer volume of blogs are far too numerous to mention.
As of noon today EST the number of views is 1,384,878. Our original goal was 1 million viewers this year! Goal achieved in less than a week.
The traditional media attention has been staggering as well. I have listed below some of the details. Once again it is all because of you, so thank you very much for your time and efforts.
With warmest regards,
Lara Cassidy
 Awesome, eh? Revenge sometimes is a dish best served cold. Heh… Now if Lara would only use the short story she told Krista and me of a guy digging a hole to China through one of his ears - only to put the digging finger in his mouth. Hungry much? ACK!
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I dragged my letlagged ass to work this morning, and the longer the morning wore on the worse I felt. I was tired, had trouble staying focused and something triggered a headache (good thing the vertigo wasn’t bad).
People asked me about my vacation and the more I talked about it, the more I felt like taking the first plane back to Canada - just like I thought I would *sigh*
Anyhoo, I still have the last part of my trip to recount.
Canada Day starts early (with Krista waking up even before I do): we wanted to be early for the free pancake breakfast at the Grand Parade. Our friend Kelly was supposed to come along as well, but since her boyfriend left in the wee hours of the morning she let us know she’ll sleep in and meet us later.
Halifax mayor Peter Kelly was at the Grand Parade handing out sweets, all dressed up for the day, and doing a short (but good) speech after a choir sang the national anthem. And the pancake breakfast? I prefer my friend Amanda’s who makes killer pancake breakfasts!
It was drizzling throughout the breakfast, and after that Krista and I headed to the boat club… And ended up catching up on some sleep. Then it was time to go back and head for the Citadel for the 21 gun salute. Despite the fog, or maybe because of it, the shots rang out loudly through the harbor as well. How could I have missed those all this time? (They traditionally shoot the canons at noon.) After that we have a bite at Mexicali Rosa’s, where Kelly joins us. Then it’s on to Pier 21, where one of the guides I meet turns out to be Dutch. He and I talk a bit about heritage and the Netherlands… Kelly suggested we try Bannock, a kind of indigenous bread. People were invited to take a little piece of dough, roll it out and add a little filling to it (I picked coconut and butterscotch) before putting it on a big skillet. Bannock is simple, tastes good, and is very filling. I have to say that between the multicultural festival (where the concert at Alderney Landing took place) and this I had sampled some interesting new foods.
We headed back to the boat after that and went for another boat ride; woo-hoo!
By the time the fog started to drift inland again, we had docked Foxglove and were driving home. We ended up missing the fireworks (better next time, eh?), and watching Empire Records instead.
The next day was to be my last in Halifax. Krista and I had planned on meeting one of her friends for lunch (she dressed up for it ’specially - in what she calls her trailer trash outfit. I’m fashion impaired, but it didn’t look too tacky to me…) but he texted her he couldn’t make it. We had a bite at a pub called Durty Nelly’s. The food was good (my dish was a generous portion, and Krista ended up finishing my salad *LOL*), the ladies room even better. Even though I generally try to avoid public toilets this one was a treat with screens mounted into the walls next to the sinks, enabling the ladies to check out music videos instead of their mirror images (the super vain aside). When I went in I definitely felt like dancing, despite the Scissor Sisters singing about the opposite.
And besides Krista picking up volume 13 of Terry Moore’s ECHO and picking up the last of my developed film at the photo lab, the rest is pretty much a blur. The day seemed to pass way to fast, and before I knew it Krista drove me to the airport. It was pretty foggy when we left the apartment, and it was foggy when we reached the airport. I did not want to leave, and Krista joked she could turn the car around. (I was wishing the fog would be too dense no planes would be able to fly out.) Although extremely tempting, I decided to be good and get on that frickin plane.
In Amsterdam I’m surprised to find my brother waiting at the gate - with my mom. I knew my mom was coming to pick my up from Schiphol airport, but I hadn’t expected my brother, too. Yay!
On Sunday my brother Arnold and I drive to Stellendam for a navigation course. It was an introduction really, but really interesting!
That’s what I did on the very last day of my vacation.
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I flew to the Maritimes on Jean-Baptiste Day, a national Holiday in the French province. When I arrived at Halifax’s airport it was just as hot and sunny as it had been in Montréal. Krista looked smashing in her business outfit - and I couldn’t help but grin to myself as I noticed how some of the guys’ heads turn. We start catching up almost instantly, and making plans on our way back into the city. It feels great to be back in Halifax!
Krista made a very yummie veggie chilli, and we invited our friend Kelly (who’s a vegetarian) over for lunch. We caught up on Kelly’s life, who swapped the west coast for the east coast. After we dropped Kelly off at her 2pm appointment, Krista and I headed for the local comic shop (to stock up on additional “Echo”). Then we shopped for a hoodie for me. The one I got two years ago is starting to get holes… I think I drove Krista a little crazy by being fussy (her words, not mine): I knew exactly what I wanted (a red one with a certain font) and I didn’t feel like settling for second best. I ended up getting a fire truck red hoodie that has HALIFAX across the chest - instead of CANADA. Hey, works for me!
Our friend Anie invited Krista and me for a BBQ at her new crib that night. A great new home, I must add. Her pets (a kittie and a doggie) are just an adorable bunch. We briefly talked about my relocation, and that’s when Anie said she thinks Krista should marry me… Long story short: I freaked out.
The next day I met up with one of Krista’s coworkers who relocated from Denmark for lunch. Being an ICT person herself, she had no trouble getting a job. She’s certainly given me some food for thought.
On Friday Krista and I finally took Foxglove for an actual test “drive”. Thanks to a very weak reverse (there is something wrong with the motor) she has trouble docking the new boat. Trusting me with her life she wanted me the first person to accompany her on the first real outing.
I got a general run down on Foxglove and what she expected me to do when it came down to docking; jump off the boat onto the dock with the lines of both bow and stern, and basically pull the boat in.
Krista is now a member of the Armdale Yacht Club (she suggested it as a place for our wedding ceremony) and so we left from there to McNabs. Once we got to the island we tried docking - and it went fairly well. By the time we were completely done, we suddenly noticed that a pretty heavy fog had rolled in. Me being the laid back person I am talked Krista into going back via the Halifax harbour coast.
And by the time we had turned the boat fog was starting to cover the other side of McNabs. It suddenly seemed like a very bad idea to go back (especially without GPS). Needless to say we had to dock again. The second time went extremely well, and I was instantly promoted to First Mate. The downside: we were probably going to spend the night on the island. I really wouldn’t have mind if I hadn’t a prior engagement to meet two friends for a concert at Alderney Landing.
Long story short: Krista called friend Mike Tilley aka Captain Redbeard for help. He dropped me off at Alderney Landing, and dropped Krista off at the yacht club (where the car is).
The concert was good: Sarah Slean was a great new find (musically), Divine Brown reminded me of a Motown singer (she totally had the attitude according to my friend Kelly) and Paula Cole was awesome. She delivered, in my opinion, and I am glad I was there to witness that.
I crashed at a friend’s place, one who’s been promising me a pancake breakfast for the longest time. So, while I was enjoying a pancake brekkie with friends Krista hauled ass: Foxglove had to clear off the dock at McNabs (government regulation). She called me and asked me to meet her ASAP, as she was on her way to meet Mike to get the boat.
In the end Kelly and I took a cab to Bishop’s Landing (that’s on the Halifax side). We took Kelly for a little cruise along the harbor and back to the Armdale Yacht Club. The sun was out and it was a beautiful day.
The docking went perfect. Krista wants me to stay the entire Summer. I wish!
We went out on a little road trip: I wanted to see the tides at Bay of Fundy, so Krista drives us to Annapolis Valley aka The Valley. Also a great region for fresh strawberries, crisp apple cider and Nova Scotian wine etc. I buy some presents for the family and a friend. At one point, Krista turned on the radio after getting back into the car, and I was instantly happy: Serena Ryder’s “All for love” was on! She dubs Serena Melissa junior *lol* because she thinks Serena sounds like Melissa Etheridge.
I happened to cook us dinner a couple of nights in a row, and on the second night Krista was sitting in (what she calls) her “man chair”, watching TV while I slave away in the kitchen, when she says all that’s missing is a beer and *belch* that she feels like the husband *snickers* An interesting analogy, eh? Anyhoo, I teach Krista how to boil rice - NOT the instant kind - the Asian way. (She thinks it’s funny I don’t know how to boil potatoes… Eh, dude, I’m Asian!) After a few good attemps I think she now has the hang of it.
One rainy morning I decided to install Saffron’s cat door. Having to use pre-millennium tools it took me much longer than anticipated. We had dinner at her mom’s place (I really liked her chicken) and went out for boating after that. While Krista noticed I take to it very quickly, I have to admit I was enjoying boating very much.
I suggest you now get a refill of whatever beverage you were having. There’s one more post to go…
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The idiot careening through police barriers and plowing into a crowd of merrymakers cheering their popular queen yesterday in a premeditated assault on the Dutch royal family that killed five bystanders and injured 13 others, made headlines around the world.
I was appalled by it.
On Wednesday an intense brush fire started on the outskirts of Halifax with firefighters still scrambling to contain tall flames whipped up by strong, rapidly shifting winds.When darkness fell, the fire department stopped battling the blaze for safety reasons, although firefighters were watching houses in the area overnight.
The Canadian Red Cross said close to 330 homes had been evacuated by early evening. Officials estimated that about 900 people were out of their homes.
Firefighters said the fire south of the port city was so intense that it was difficult to tell how much damage it had caused to the Spryfield area.
More than 100 firefighters had been called in and waterbombers from New Brunswick were dispatched earlier in the day.
A forest fire in Spryfield lights up the Halifax skyline. (CBC)
A Department of Natural Resources helicopter was helping fight the fire, which sent up billowing clouds of blue smoke that could be seen clearly from downtown Halifax, a 15-minute drive away.
The fire department confirmed it had evacuated some coastal neighbourhoods in Fergusons Cove, a few kilometres east of the main fire.
Strong gusts of wind were feeding the fire, which appeared to surprise firefighters and many homeowners as it flared up in the early afternoon.
Reports from the scene say some homeowners had to run for their lives as the fire quickly shifted direction and grew in intensity, showing the area in hot ashes.
Video images from the Spryfield area showed flames leaping about 15 metres in the air.
The municipal politician for the area, Councillor Linda Mosher, said more than 100 evacuated residents had to be moved from two “comfort centres” and relocate to the command centre as the flames zig-zagged through the trees on the west side of Halifax Harbour.
As the sun went down, the fire was moving closer to the community of Herring Cove, she said.
Fire department spokesman Dave Meldrum said the conditions were becoming more favourable.
“The temperature is falling and the wind is calming,” he said as dusk fell. “That’s helping a lot with the firefighting.”
I just talked to my friend Krista, who has been going over to her mother’s house to work on her boat. She told me there are huge billows of smoke everywhere, with the blaze close. She’s scared the boat (a Cape Islander) is going to burn as well. Her own apartment is just as close to the fire on the opposite side.
She told me the official news is that the blaze is still out of control and nothing can be done until morning, and that she, the kitty and family are fine for now.
I’m crossing my fingers the fire will be contained and extinguished some time tomorrow.
UPDATE: it started raining on May 1st, which helped the firefighters in getting the blaze under control. What a relief.
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Posted by: punksmurf in Weblogs, tags: friend
I know I’m early, but it’s after midnight on this side of the Atlantic, so technically it’s April 26th over here
Have a wonderful day, dude!
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