Amendment One

josh3 Comments

An Open Letter to the People of North Carolina

Dear North Carolinians,

I realize there are hundreds of thousands of you that voted against Amendment 1 this week, and many who campaigned or donated it against it. I’ll start by addressing you, and saying thank you! You’re probably hearing a lot of negative stuff about your state, lumping everyone together. Please understand that most of us are pissed off and hurt and just letting off steam. Don’t take this stuff personally; we know there are some good people in your state. While you didn’t succeed, we appreciate your support. The deck was stacked against you anyway. Rest assured that you, not your opponents, will be on the right side of history on this.

And now on to those opponents. It’s time for me to address you (or should I say “y’all”?). Shame. On. You. What were you thinking?! Do you subscribe to the Pat Robertson philosophy that two dudes (or chicks, but let’s face it you’re more worried about dudes) getting it on pisses God off so much that he punishes everyone around for it? If that’s the case, I can kind of understand. I mean, I think you’re an idiot for buying into that claptrap, but at least there’s a dollop of good in your motives. But I hope you realize this isn’t going to stop gay people from having sex. Not a one (nor two, which would be the minimum required number). So what have you really accomplished here?

But the rest of you Yes voters, what’s your excuse? Don’t tell me, I’ve heard them all and they’re all nonsense. Complete garbage. How does it in any way hurt any hetero marriages if two guys or girls get married in the eyes of the law? We’re talking civil marriage here, folks. No one (except maybe a very small number on the fringe) is talking about forcing your precious Church, whatever it may be, to perform or recognize same-sex marriages. We don’t care about that. We want equal rights (and protection) under the law. And if marriage wasn’t bad enough, your nefarious amendment had to go and include civil unions and domestic partnerships, too.  Why? What possible interest does that serve? Nothing good, that’s for sure.  Let go of the hate and fear! I promise, you’ll feel better.

I am not religious but I hope there is a God. I almost wish I could be there to see the expressions on your  faces, you self-righteous so-called “Christians”, when you die and go to Hell. Meanwhile, those of us–gay or straight–who lived our lives according to the Golden Rule, helping our fellow man and generally minding our own business as long as no one was getting hurt, zip through the Pearly Gates into Heaven. I can’t believe hate and oppression will put anyone on the path to Paradise. No god worth worshiping would allow that to happen. You know, it’s not too late to change.

Finally, for those who didn’t vote at all. I’m glad you didn’t vote FOR it, but why sit on the sidelines? When there’s an injustice you can fight just by taking a trip to the voting booth, why not do it? Are you conflicted? I get it. I do. But remember we’re talking about some pretty basic rights here. You don’t have to to like (or even be comfortable with) gays to give us the rights we deserve.

In closing, North Carolina, thank you, fuck you, and come on!

Regards,

Josh

Naughty Nuns

joshLeave a comment

Check this out. Apparently America’s Catholic nuns aren’t hateful enough for the Vatican.

The Vatican has launched a crackdown on the umbrella group that represents most of America’s 55,000 Catholic nuns, saying that the group was not speaking out strongly enough against gay marriage, abortion and women’s ordination.

(From The Washington Post)

“I’m stunned,” said Sister Simone Campbell, executive director of Network, a Catholic social justice lobby founded by sisters. Her group was also cited in the Vatican document, along with the Leadership Conference, for focusing its work too much on poverty and economic injustice, while keeping “silent” on abortion and same-sex marriage.

(From The New York Times)

This to me exemplifies what is wrong with the Catholic Church. The leadership spends more time worrying about the hereafter than the here and now. It’s more important to stick to the Church’s antiquated doctrine–or those parts of it they still choose to consider relevant at any rate–than it is to try to make the world we live in right now a better place. Instead of concentrating on helping real, living people have better lives and in some cases just stay alive, the Church would have them focus their efforts more on protecting some bundles of cells, attacking the gays and keeping women in their place. How preposterous! It seems like these nuns are sticking much closer to the teachings of Christ than the bishops and the Pope.

It’s not like these sisters were marching in gay pride parades or counseling women to have an abortion. No, they’re getting in trouble for staying too silent in their opposition to the gays and abortion! They are not espousing the hate the Vatican wants them to, and must be punished!

This seems to also be about keeping the “women religious” (as nuns are officially known) in their place, as they were also chastised because a few dozen nuns signed a statement in support of President Obama’s healthcare reform despite the official opposition of American Bishops.

To the Pope and his cronies, doctrine and obedience are key. Hate trumps love. I’m willing to bet most of these nuns didn’t join up to be enforcers of Catholic religious dogma. They probably joined to share their love of Christ and help people in need, which is something on which the male clergy, particularly the bishops, might need a refresher.

And if the Vatican is really so concerned about marriage, maybe they should urge the nuns to speak out more against divorce. Even if gay marriage was legal everywhere there would still be more heterosexual divorces each year than same-sex weddings.

Celebrity Apprentice…Again

joshLeave a comment

Ugh, I got sucked into “Celebrity Apprentice” last season, and I am still stuck on it. This shames me a bit.

So as I type this, the season premiere is on now. There are a fair number of contestants what made me go “Who?” They’re all pretty irrelevant. I haven’t decided who I want to win yet, but I have a couple I’d like to see gone right now.

First, Adam Corolla. I could probably rant on about why I don’t like him, but it basically comes down to him being a major prick. Next, Victoria Gotti. I don’t think being a member of a an organized crime family qualifies you as being a celebrity. Also holy shit is she scary looking! This early on, there’s no one else on my must go list, but as I start to see what some of these peoples’ personalities I’ll add to it I’m sure.

Other random thought: Clay Aiken looks terrible.

Let the games begin!

Movin’ On Up

josh1 Comment

Extra ExtraI have news. This isn’t really a secret but I don’t think it’s exactly common knowledge among my Twitter followers, so this serves as your official announcement. And I’ll see if anyone actually reads this blog! It’s a twofer!

The news is: I’m moving. No big deal, you move all the time Josh! (You think if you’ve known me awhile.) This is a bigger move than usual. I’m moving to New York City.

Here are the basics. More details will come later. Why? Because my boyfriend was offered a temporary position there with his current employer, and I felt like it was a good opportunity, plus I’ve been ready for a change from Chicago and on the job front for awhile. Temporary, you say? Yes, it would be two years with a possible option for a third, after which we could return to Chicago, or possibly go elsewhere. When? Looks like early June. Do you have a job there? No. I’m going to be a house husband and dedicate myself to charitable pursuits. Really?! NO! I wish! But I’ll have to find a job. I don’t have one lined up yet. Isn’t New York expensive? Yes. Yes it is. Good God, yes. =sigh= Where are you going to live? Don’t know that yet. We get two months of corporate housing paid for, so there’s time to figure that out.

That’s all for now. I’ll keep you posted as the planning progresses, and maybe even share some thoughts and feelings (GASP! I know…) on the whole thing. In the mean time, have a great weekend! Feel free to ask questions in the comments.

Saying Goodbye

joshLeave a comment

clutterAfter my last post, you might be expecting something maudlin about dealing with the passing of a loved one. But that’s not what this is about; it’s not something I wish to dwell on. So on to other things!

How do you declutter your life? I am not a hoarder as you may have seen on TV, but I think I’d qualify as a pack rat. I–without a doubt–have too much stuff. That needs to change, and soon! Unfortunately it’s hard for me to get rid of things. I tend to associate objects with memories, as many people do. But the problem is I keep lots of  things that aren’t associated with significant memories. Like a mundane memento from an insignificant trip. I also tend to keep freebies, which I almost never need. Like a Frisbee from some bar that was used a plate at a food event. I can’t remember the last time I played Frisbee! Most of them aren’t even on display or anything. They’re just sitting on a pile or in a box.

So how do you make yourself get rid of these things that are just taking up space in your life? For many people it’s probably easy, but I find myself getting oddly attached to these silly and pointless doodads. Or I think “I might need that some day!” Never mind that I haven’t had a need for it in years and could probably acquire a new one in the unlikely event that the need some day arose.

I’ve been working hard on decluttering the last couple weeks and I’ve made some good progress (the freebie Frisbee is gone). But I am not there yet. I know I’m still holding on to too much stuff.

So how about it? Any other recovering pack rats have advice on how to say goodbye?

Reflections

josh2 Comments

purple violetI am now down to one remaining biological grandparent. My paternal grandmother, Violet, passed away over the weekend shortly after her 89th birthday. She is survived by her 91 year old husband, my grandpa, Burt. For how long, I don’t know. My mom’s parents passed about a year apart, a few years ago. And I still miss them.

In my mom’s family, when my grandparents passed the family started to unravel. I wouldn’t say it’s fallen apart, but it’s not what it used to be. We used to all get together every Christmas at my grandparents place to eat, exchange gifts and play games. There hasn’t been a full family Christmas since they passed. There are occasional family reunions, but they aren’t as well attended, and just really aren’t the same. This makes me sad.

I’m afraid the same is going to happen with my dad’s family, and based on conversations I had this past Christmas, I’m not the only one. Because my relationship with my dad (biological father) was strained after my parent’s divorce, I never spent as much time with his family as with my mom’s or step dad’s. Often I’d only see them at Christmas. There are first cousins on that side that I couldn’t name (in my defense, there are 25 of them in total!) and that’s not even getting into my cousin’s kids. I haven’t spent enough time with these people as it is, and I’d hate to see it reduced even more.

But there will be time enough to worry about that. For now it’s time to mourn, commiserate and remember. Grandma Vi lived a long and happy life and had a big, loving family. She will be missed, but her memory lives on in all of us. RIP, Grandma!

Bruiser Blogs on Burgers

joshLeave a comment

Five Guys burgerOne of the items I’m retrieving from my defunct previous blog is my Burger List. In a nutshell, the BL is a list of places I created based on several “best burger in Chicago(land)” lists from Grub Street, Chicago Magazine and Metromix. These are places I want to try a burger. It is my mission to try them all! The list is as follows, including my current progress toward my goal (*’d places are on the two original lists; the Metromix list was of new places, which I added in 2010): Continue reading →

Bruiser Blogs

joshLeave a comment

This is my new blog. My old one is caput. I will miss it, but it’s time to move on. I’ll try to use Google’s cache of my old blog to bring some stuff over, but most of it will not make the cut. It’s a time for changes.

I haven’t been blogging much in the last year or so, but with another election cycle now in full swing, I have a feeling I’ll be needing an outlet for my ranting, and the 140 characters Twitter allows is barely enough to get started. Also, some big changes are coming up for me (stay tuned!) and this will give me a place to document them.

I can’t promise I’ll blog with any regularity. This is really out here for me, but if people read it all the better! If you do read, please leave comments to let me know. Dialog is fun, yo!

That’s all for now. More to come soon.