Unsurprisingly, the folks at samesexattraction.org caught wind of the last blog post of mine and promptly edited their website to no longer reference my blog.
Fortunately, the magic of the internet is preserved in cached pages from google.
04 August 2009
31 July 2009
Overcoming Same-Sex Attraction
Let me start this post by saying this, "HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA!!!!!!!!!!"
The reason why I am laughing is probably because I am delirious from working approximately 17 hours today. But the thing that originally drove me into the maniacal laughter was the irony of a certain website having a link to my blog.
Who knows, by the time you read this I may not be linked on there any more. But, as I checked the traffic on my blog today, I saw that one person had entered my blog via a link from the site www.samesexattraction.org. Notably, from the page entitled "Do people really overcome same-sex attraction?"
It appears that some time ago, my blog was referred to as a place to go to read about someone who had overcome their same-sex attraction. And that made me ask myself, "Have I overcome my same-sex attraction?"
I would say that yes, I have overcome my same-sex attraction, but probably not in the way that website is referring to the word "overcome". I have overcome it in the sense that:
- I no longer look on it as a burden
- I no longer look on it as something to loathe
- I no longer see it as a stumblingblock to living my life
- I no longer see it as something to be ashamed of
- I no longer see it as something I have to diminish or suppress
- I no longer stress over it
- I no longer see it as something that will keep me from having my own family in this life
- I no longer see it as evil and filthy
- I no longer see it as destructive
- I no longer see it as a hurdle to a completely satisfying relationship
- I no longer see it as a fog, obscuring me from feeling the warmth of love
Yes, I have indeed overcome the dark side of same-sex attraction.
The reason why I am laughing is probably because I am delirious from working approximately 17 hours today. But the thing that originally drove me into the maniacal laughter was the irony of a certain website having a link to my blog.
Who knows, by the time you read this I may not be linked on there any more. But, as I checked the traffic on my blog today, I saw that one person had entered my blog via a link from the site www.samesexattraction.org. Notably, from the page entitled "Do people really overcome same-sex attraction?"
It appears that some time ago, my blog was referred to as a place to go to read about someone who had overcome their same-sex attraction. And that made me ask myself, "Have I overcome my same-sex attraction?"
I would say that yes, I have overcome my same-sex attraction, but probably not in the way that website is referring to the word "overcome". I have overcome it in the sense that:
- I no longer look on it as a burden
- I no longer look on it as something to loathe
- I no longer see it as a stumblingblock to living my life
- I no longer see it as something to be ashamed of
- I no longer see it as something I have to diminish or suppress
- I no longer stress over it
- I no longer see it as something that will keep me from having my own family in this life
- I no longer see it as evil and filthy
- I no longer see it as destructive
- I no longer see it as a hurdle to a completely satisfying relationship
- I no longer see it as a fog, obscuring me from feeling the warmth of love
Yes, I have indeed overcome the dark side of same-sex attraction.
20 July 2009
The Boom Boom Room
The Boom Boom Room was a landmark gay club in Laguna Beach, CA. It closed a couple of years ago due to being sold. The new owner had plans to tear it down and build a boutique hotel. But, up to this point it has just sat vacant, and thanks to the crappy economy appears to be up for sale again.
You have to understand gay history here in So Cal a little before I go on. Orange County is NOT gay friendly by any stretch of the imagination. This is where the crux of the Yes on 8 people came from. It's where all the crazy televangelists come from. It was spoken of with disdain in the movie Milk:
ANNE KRONENBERG: Not great. State Senator John Briggs is Anita Bryant's go-to guy in California for sure. He's filed his petition for a statewide referendum to fire all gay teachers and anyone who supports them.
[A pall falls over the room. This is worse than expected.]
HARVEY MILK: How many signatures will he need to qualify for the ballot?
CLEVE JONES: Whatever. He can get them in two Sundays at church in Orange-f***ing-County.
Being gay in O.C. is not all that great, except for in one place: Laguna Beach. It was established as an artist's community, and drew a lot of gays early on. It has always been a haven of sorts for the gay community of O.C. who don't want to travel up to West Hollywood. It was home to the first openly gay mayor in the US. It's quaint. It's artistic. It has a great gay beach. And for decades, the club scene in Laguna Beach was served by the Boom Boom Room.
D and I met a guy who spearheaded the effort to save the Boom Boom Room. He had someone follow him around with a video camera and record a documentary about it. It's been shown at quite a few film festivals around the world. It's not a high quality film, but it is a high quality story. We got the chance to see it at it's premiere showing in Laguna Beach last week. It was great. If you have some time and want to see the documentary, go to savetheboom.com and click on the video links on the left hand side of the page. It's excerpts from the full documentary.
And, if you happen to know anyone with $10-12 million that wants to buy a large, beachfront property in Laguna Beach, D and I will be happy to reopen and manage the Boom Boom Room and adjacent hotel for you. :)
View Larger Map
After the film, we got to meet some of the local gay crowd from Laguna Beach. It was crazy. There were 8 of us that went to dinner, and 4 of us were raised Mormon. I swear there's a gay gene floating through the Mormon veins. I need to write another blog about that experience. Hopefully I remember to later this week.
You have to understand gay history here in So Cal a little before I go on. Orange County is NOT gay friendly by any stretch of the imagination. This is where the crux of the Yes on 8 people came from. It's where all the crazy televangelists come from. It was spoken of with disdain in the movie Milk:
ANNE KRONENBERG: Not great. State Senator John Briggs is Anita Bryant's go-to guy in California for sure. He's filed his petition for a statewide referendum to fire all gay teachers and anyone who supports them.
[A pall falls over the room. This is worse than expected.]
HARVEY MILK: How many signatures will he need to qualify for the ballot?
CLEVE JONES: Whatever. He can get them in two Sundays at church in Orange-f***ing-County.
Being gay in O.C. is not all that great, except for in one place: Laguna Beach. It was established as an artist's community, and drew a lot of gays early on. It has always been a haven of sorts for the gay community of O.C. who don't want to travel up to West Hollywood. It was home to the first openly gay mayor in the US. It's quaint. It's artistic. It has a great gay beach. And for decades, the club scene in Laguna Beach was served by the Boom Boom Room.
D and I met a guy who spearheaded the effort to save the Boom Boom Room. He had someone follow him around with a video camera and record a documentary about it. It's been shown at quite a few film festivals around the world. It's not a high quality film, but it is a high quality story. We got the chance to see it at it's premiere showing in Laguna Beach last week. It was great. If you have some time and want to see the documentary, go to savetheboom.com and click on the video links on the left hand side of the page. It's excerpts from the full documentary.
And, if you happen to know anyone with $10-12 million that wants to buy a large, beachfront property in Laguna Beach, D and I will be happy to reopen and manage the Boom Boom Room and adjacent hotel for you. :)
View Larger Map
After the film, we got to meet some of the local gay crowd from Laguna Beach. It was crazy. There were 8 of us that went to dinner, and 4 of us were raised Mormon. I swear there's a gay gene floating through the Mormon veins. I need to write another blog about that experience. Hopefully I remember to later this week.
08 July 2009
Q and A
Q: What do you do when your mom and all of your aunts send you friend requests on Facebook?
A:
A:
29 June 2009
Belief-O-Matic Quiz
I read Abelard's post on the Belief-O-Matic quiz and thought that I would give it a go. Here are my results:
1. Mainline to Liberal Christian Protestants (100%)
2. Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (Mormons) (75%)
3. Liberal Quakers (74%)
4. Mainline to Conservative Christian/Protestant (72%)
5. Unitarian Universalism (72%)
6. Baha'i Faith (67%)
7. Jehovah's Witness (65%)
8. Orthodox Quaker (62%)
9. Reform Judaism (58%)
10. Mahayana Buddhism (57%)
11. Neo-Pagan (57%)
12. Theravada Buddhism (56%)
13. Sikhism (55%)
14. Christian Science (Church of Christ, Scientist) (53%)
15. New Age (52%)
16. Eastern Orthodox (50%)
17. Roman Catholic (50%)
18. Seventh Day Adventist (49%)
19. Orthodox Judaism (46%)
20. Jainism (43%)
21. Hinduism (42%)
22. New Thought (41%)
23. Secular Humanism (38%)
24. Taoism (37%)
25. Islam (34%)
26. Scientology (33%)
27. Nontheist (20%)
I would like to see the criteria that they use to give you the percentage results from your quiz. Some of the questions had answers that I thought were pretty close to identical. Other questions I read the answers and partially agreed with a few of the answers, but not fully with any of them. As such, the results are only as accurate as the inputs you give them. As we say in the engineering world "garbage in, garbage out."
All in all, I guess that my experiences and evolution over the last few years have altered my views on some theological points.
1. Mainline to Liberal Christian Protestants (100%)
2. Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (Mormons) (75%)
3. Liberal Quakers (74%)
4. Mainline to Conservative Christian/Protestant (72%)
5. Unitarian Universalism (72%)
6. Baha'i Faith (67%)
7. Jehovah's Witness (65%)
8. Orthodox Quaker (62%)
9. Reform Judaism (58%)
10. Mahayana Buddhism (57%)
11. Neo-Pagan (57%)
12. Theravada Buddhism (56%)
13. Sikhism (55%)
14. Christian Science (Church of Christ, Scientist) (53%)
15. New Age (52%)
16. Eastern Orthodox (50%)
17. Roman Catholic (50%)
18. Seventh Day Adventist (49%)
19. Orthodox Judaism (46%)
20. Jainism (43%)
21. Hinduism (42%)
22. New Thought (41%)
23. Secular Humanism (38%)
24. Taoism (37%)
25. Islam (34%)
26. Scientology (33%)
27. Nontheist (20%)
I would like to see the criteria that they use to give you the percentage results from your quiz. Some of the questions had answers that I thought were pretty close to identical. Other questions I read the answers and partially agreed with a few of the answers, but not fully with any of them. As such, the results are only as accurate as the inputs you give them. As we say in the engineering world "garbage in, garbage out."
All in all, I guess that my experiences and evolution over the last few years have altered my views on some theological points.
23 June 2009
Didn't Expect That One
Wow! I did NOT expect the question that was asked of me today, and therefore didn't have an answer for it. It made me think all afternoon, and I still haven't come to a complete answer yet.
The person who asked me the question is a coworker of mine who is a lesbian. She and her partner worked the company booth at LA Pride with D and I last week. I hadn't talked with her very much before then. But, after two hours in the booth, chatting in between visitors, I got to know her a bit more. She is a pretty interesting person. I'll call her Consuela.
Today was my monthly lunch outing with one of the other guys from the work GLBT group. I'll call him Steve. Consuela had mentioned to me that she'd like to go out to lunch sometime to chat some more, so I invited her to come with Steve and I today. We spent an hour and a half (oops) eating and chatting at Chipotle (mmmmmm, so tasty...) and enjoying each other's company.
Well, apparently between our time in the booth last weekend and lunch today, Consuela deemed me to be a pretty decent person, because here is the question she asked me later in the afternoon on Facebook: "I was wondering if you ever thought of being a donor?"
What? Like a kidney or bone marrow?
Oh!
*That*
So, would I ever be a sperm donor for a lesbian couple?
First of all, I was extremely flattered that I was even asked that question. Apparently I am charming to all women, straight and lesbian. ;) Then, after I got over my flatteredness (?) I started thinking about it. And thinking hard.
On the one hand, at this point in my life I probably won't be able to father my own kids. Obviously, D does not have the biology conducive to something like that. And, as we have researched donor eggs and surrogate mothers, we have found that it is out of our financial powers - unless there is some majorly wealthy moho benefactor out there who wants to pitch in $150k. Any takers? So, in order for me to pass along these fabulous genetics of mine, it seems that sperm donor is about the only realistic avenue.
On the other hand, I don't know if I could live with the thought of knowing I had a son/daughter of my own flesh and blood out there who wasn't a part of my life. Maybe I would have visiting rights, but for legal reasons I would probably have to sign away my parental rights.
Would if they turned out to be lousy parents, and I had no rights and could only sit back and watch disaster fall upon my only offspring? Then again, would if they turned out to be wonderful parents and I was able to be involved in the child's life?
So many thoughts are racing through my head over this one.
What do you guys/gals think? I'm open to thoughts/concerns from all sides of the spectrum.
The person who asked me the question is a coworker of mine who is a lesbian. She and her partner worked the company booth at LA Pride with D and I last week. I hadn't talked with her very much before then. But, after two hours in the booth, chatting in between visitors, I got to know her a bit more. She is a pretty interesting person. I'll call her Consuela.
Today was my monthly lunch outing with one of the other guys from the work GLBT group. I'll call him Steve. Consuela had mentioned to me that she'd like to go out to lunch sometime to chat some more, so I invited her to come with Steve and I today. We spent an hour and a half (oops) eating and chatting at Chipotle (mmmmmm, so tasty...) and enjoying each other's company.
Well, apparently between our time in the booth last weekend and lunch today, Consuela deemed me to be a pretty decent person, because here is the question she asked me later in the afternoon on Facebook: "I was wondering if you ever thought of being a donor?"
What? Like a kidney or bone marrow?
Oh!
*That*
So, would I ever be a sperm donor for a lesbian couple?
First of all, I was extremely flattered that I was even asked that question. Apparently I am charming to all women, straight and lesbian. ;) Then, after I got over my flatteredness (?) I started thinking about it. And thinking hard.
On the one hand, at this point in my life I probably won't be able to father my own kids. Obviously, D does not have the biology conducive to something like that. And, as we have researched donor eggs and surrogate mothers, we have found that it is out of our financial powers - unless there is some majorly wealthy moho benefactor out there who wants to pitch in $150k. Any takers? So, in order for me to pass along these fabulous genetics of mine, it seems that sperm donor is about the only realistic avenue.
On the other hand, I don't know if I could live with the thought of knowing I had a son/daughter of my own flesh and blood out there who wasn't a part of my life. Maybe I would have visiting rights, but for legal reasons I would probably have to sign away my parental rights.
Would if they turned out to be lousy parents, and I had no rights and could only sit back and watch disaster fall upon my only offspring? Then again, would if they turned out to be wonderful parents and I was able to be involved in the child's life?
So many thoughts are racing through my head over this one.
What do you guys/gals think? I'm open to thoughts/concerns from all sides of the spectrum.
22 June 2009
Gay Parenting Article
I found this article to be an interesting Father's Day tribute, and thought I'd share it with you all. I think I caught the link on someone's blog, but I can't remember who. Sorry for the plagiarized link, whoever you are. :)
http://www.edmontonjournal.com/Life/Parenting+withpride/1717139/story.html
The last two stories in it are about gay Mormons - one in a M.O.M. and the other divorced.
http://www.edmontonjournal.com/Life/Parenting+withpride/1717139/story.html
The last two stories in it are about gay Mormons - one in a M.O.M. and the other divorced.
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