And Another Thing....

GLBT Expo

Gays and lesbians drink. A lot. Mostly top shelf alchohol that's sweeter than candy. Oh, and light beer. Cheap. Mostly Bud.

We also travel--either to New Jersey or Thailand. And we worry about our health. And we dig drag queens.

Oh, and did I mention we drink?

I just got back from the GLBT Expo at the Javitts Center, and it was such a strange collection of advertisers---and way more free alcohol than I've seen anywhere but a wedding.

Freedom

This is my first day of not-working for City Hall.

Remind me that I hate working in government, OK? Next time I try to take a job in government, pull me back and tell me No!

The people I worked with were lovely and completely committed---and several were amazingly talented. But I think I'm not the sort of person who easily blends into the woodwork, or can speak only as the words attached to someone else's name.

My new job should be a better fit---writer for 365gay.com, MTV/LOGO's online news site. If you have suggestions for what stories I should cover, please let me know!

Strange

How very odd, but I realized something this weekend: I'm happy. Really happy. The kind of happy where "zippity do da" is sometimes playing in my head, when all I'm doing is squeezing into the subway or watching the clouds roll along the river. My life isn't perfect, there are things that frustrate me--and yet I'm completely happy.

and I realized: I've never been this happy before when I'm not in love.

'swonderful.

The Rookie

I just watched The Rookie again, the baseball movie staring Dennis Quaid. It's a true story about a guy who, at 35, kind of magically became a major league baseball player---his dream since he was three.

I cried through the whole thing. It's a happy movie---it's Disney, for crissake. But there's something about his story, about how he was  astonished by his own luck, how his family and his community came out to support him---it makes me happy every time. And I think especially now, when I feel like the risk I took last year paid off, that I'm actually in the place I should be.

It really is astonishing. That we can unexpectedly stumble on our dreams no matter what age we are--it's astonishing. And wonderful. And very, very lucky.

Trees

Ugin is fine. Phew. Went through a hard time, but fine---and sends out hellos to Rob and Flossie.

In the meantime, SHE sent me this lovely poem, and I thought I'd share:

"A tree,whose roots firm and deep,
will never sway away by the storms and rain.
you are that tree..."