Championville

Chicago Tribune | Vatican banishes gays from seminaries
The Vatican is ordering seminaries to bar candidates for the priesthood who “practice homosexuality,” have “deeply rooted homosexual tendencies” or support “gay culture,” according to a document published Tuesday by Adista, a Catholic news agency in Rome.

I’m not a Catholic, not even a ‘Recovering Catholic’. Still, everytime the Catholic Church comes out with some statement that at it’s heart is based in hate and rejection I am angered. Afterall, I am still impacted…the Churches acceptance and encouragement of prejudice and discrimination sets an example for the lay person. Sends the message that gay people are not worthy of the simple respect and standard rights that everybody else is.

Love thy neighbor…unless they are gay, of course.

I can’t believe that in less than a month my same sex salsa group will be giving it’s performance. Luckily, the routine has fallen into place nicely. We have basically learned all the choreography (aside from about 6 seconds for the ‘final pose’). Now we are just refining everything.

The biggest task left now seems to be the costumes. Four of us need to find shirts or jackets with big, flowing, multi-colored sleeves. May end up having them custom made.

Today Mike and I are getting some extra dance practice, although not with the upcoming routine. We are heading to El Rio for an afternoon of Salsa Dancing to celebrate a friend’s birthday. Hopefully it doesn’t get too crowded…otherwise it will be way to hard to actually dance.

Too tired for a long analysis and summary right now, but today was San Francisco’s annual Pride Parade. Have a look for yourself.

Yesterday Mike and I met a few friends at the annual ZAP Festival. Tasted some fantastic wines, and a few that could be best described by the words ‘paint thinner’. I’d avoid those, if given the choice. Just sayin’.

The only drawback, aside from the annoyingly high concentration of Marina Boys, was the lethargic feeling that set in after the festival. After a full afternoon of wine tasting it was no surprise to find myself falling into bed by the time 11PM rolled around.

I am now wrestling with a question of great import:

Since Mike and I shall be joining another couple for a ski trip during Ascent … does this mean I’m now a Circuit Boy?

Yeah, I didn’t think so either. Whew!

I think I’m gonna take some classes at Princeton and join the surf team:

Bigoted people annoy me:
Texas Schools Scrap ‘Cross-Dressing’ Day (AP)

Sometimes the midwest can surprise me:
Judge: Transsexual Didn’t Lie About Gender (AP)

Can we alienate the rest of the world even more? Sure, just give her a chance:
ABC News: Bush Nominates Rice to Be Secretary of State

Is it just me, or are we as a nation just becoming more and more puritanical?:
ABC Sports apologizes for sultry MNF intro

Here I always thought imitation was an ultimate form of flattery:
Marvel Battles Role Players

As usual, Folsom Street Fair was highly enjoyable. Not too hot to be uncomfortable, but certainly warm enough to allow for maximum exposure. Of course, the only problem with that is the standard effect on the self-image. Luckily, it only took a slight beating this year. One of the benefits of actually making it to the gym on a regular basis.

Whoever is responsible for should be subjected to the same.

Sometimes it seems like the battles of childhood never end. I remember very well fighting over this toy or that toy. Granted, none of them were worth the price of this particular one. At least these guys are taking care of the dispute in a civilized manner instead of the time honored method of childhood….the schoolyard fight.

State high court invalidates SF’s same-sex marriages / By 5-2 vote, justices rule against Newsom, say mayor went too far

This ruling is not a surprise to me, or most people I have talked to.

It’s important, however, to keep in mind that the ruling was not about Gay Marriage itself. Rather, were the marriages conducted this past year legal. There is a fine distinction between the two.

I await the court challenges on the legality of defining marriage as a union between a man and woman. That is where the real battle lies.

Still, the actions by Major Newsom are certainly powerful…bringing local/national attention and debate.

Happy Birthday Mike!!

Last night our group of friends hit the town to celebrate the arrival some 33 years ago of the greatest boyfriend in the world…at least in my eyes.

After managing another horrendous commute over to the City (a 20 minute trip that turned into 1 hour and 20 minutes due to traffic) we met up with the gang at the Matterhorn restaurant. Very good choice, especially for a group of close friends. Although you certainly need to be comfortable with ‘family style’ dining since you will be sharing, not to mention the occasional request to ’skewer that for me’ or ‘put this in that pot, please’.

After getting our fill of fondue we made our way down to one of the newer hotspots along Polk Street, Vertigo. We ended up faced with what is getting to be the norm around the Bay Area…the endless series of ‘is he gay or just metrosexual?’ questions. The high level of acceptance out here is great, but sometimes it tends to blur the lines a bit. I’d hate to watch one of my friends drool over some straight boy all night.

We eventually did make our way into the Cinch…where we had no problems telling what was up. Keith and I did, however, have to put up with a few annoying folks that were highly interested in our kilts. and what may or may not have been under them.

All in all, it turned out to be a good celebration.

1. Dore Alley was fun, as always. Although it was a bit warm, at least considering I was in black rubber pants and shirt. Despite the heat, it was well worth it. I even managed to find myself something to wear to Folsom: a brand new Utilikilt.

2. Seems I have made it into the ‘hip’ crowd. At least according to my boss. Not sure if it is a good or bad thing that she classifies me this way now…she can be a bit out of touch with all the ins-and-outs of American culture at times.

3. Outward appearance does really change the way folks react to you. Since getting my hair trimmed ultra-short, I find that I am the last person on the BART traincar I am on to have a seat mate. Before the new do, I must have appeared friendlier since I was one of the first.

Things at work yesteday were obviously more on the slow side. I could tell since the major topic of discussion for the day was my hair…or lack thereof.

You see, in preparation for this weekend’s visit to Dore Alley I went and had my hair cut. Short. Think #2 clipper guard. all over. Much shorter than I have had since I actually grew hair.

The verdict? Well, from the comments I recieved (such as ‘hot’, ’sexy’, ‘cool’) I am assuming that it was a good choice.

Besides, the amount of money I can now save on styling products…

So, this past weekend I did something a little outside my normal comfort zone:

It all started a couple of months back when my friend Derrik noticed that the Eagle was due to have their annual mud wrestling event, and more or less jokingly asked me if I was going to wrestle him this year. For some reason, I said yes.

On the surface, this seems like a non-issue. For those that actually know me, well stripping down to just my boxers is not something that you are likely to see me do. I have struggled with self-image issues for as long as I can remember. I am not as bad as I used to be, but I still have a hard time feeling positive about my body. The idea of being the center of attention for a group of gay guys does not help with there feelings.

In then end, however, I managed to swallow my insecurity (yes, with the help of some grain and hops). I walked up on stage, stripped to my boxers and climbed on into the wrestling ring. From that point on, all I could think about was how totally disgusting the ‘mud’ felt, not to mention the taste.

If you happen too be in San Francisco next year on the 9th of July stop on by the Eagle. I’ll be the one covered in mud.