family

Messing with Texas 

joshLeave a comment

These hateful laws are coming so fast it’s almost impossible to keep track of them now. The latest I’ve seen is in Texas, where a state law maker has proposed a law similar to the the one enacted recently in Arkansas. It would roll back protections against LGBT people enacted in many of the state’s larger cities. Oh, and the author has a gay son, and that son is not happy. 

Beau Miller wrote on his Facebook wall on Thursday, “As many of you know by now, my dad has authored and submitted a bill in the Texas House of Representatives that, if signed into law, would prevent municipalities in Texas from maintaining sexual orientation anti-discrimination laws. While I love my dad very much, I am extremely disappointed by his actions and will do everything I can to prevent that bill, or any such legislation, from becoming law.”

The more inroads we make the harder they fight back. So much for conservative family values. Good luck, Beau.

Happy New Year!

joshLeave a comment

I’m a little late here, but better late than never. So, happy New Year, everyone. Feliz Año Nuevo.

For Christmas I was in the Chicago/Northwest Indiana area, mostly with the “in-laws” (as we are not married, they aren’t actually in-laws yet, thus the quotes) but also got to see a couple friends. It was…interesting. Entertaining, mostly, but hectic. I started getting a sinus (I think) headache Christmas day, which has been somewhat recurring since then. So it might be a brain tumor. Oh well.

New Years was spent at the apartment of some acquaintances in Manhattan. It was a small party–about 9 people total–but it was nice. We still don’t have many friends in the area, so hopefully some can come out of this.

Well, 2012 was a year of transition for me. There were some major changes in my life, and they are all working out more or less OK so far. I hope for 2013 to change that OK to GREAT! I started a new job a couple months ago, and it’s nice to have a paycheck but I’m really looking forward to getting into the work and being productive. I am also hoping to make some more local friends. And now that I have an income again, I want to do more traveling (including back to Chicago to spend more time with my friends there) and exploring the cultural activities in and around NYC.

Just to be clear, I don’t make resolutions. These are just things I’d like to do this year, assuming  I don’t die from that brain tumor.

So, how was 2012 for you and what do you hope 2013 holds?

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!