Random Musings

Earlier this week I went to bed relatively early. Carlos was back on the computer and as I do, I asked that he not stay up late because he gets up early, and then I went to bed.

I awoke at about 12:15 AM and he was not in the room, and, as my mind always goes to morbid places, I wondered if maybe he was dead in the house somewhere. I was about to get up to check but, well, I was tired and, yeah, I kinda fell back asleep.

But, just before drifting completely away, I heard him come into the bedroom, so I knew he wasn’t dead, and knew I wouldn’t find his body slumped over the office desk in the morning and then wonder who was going to make coffee, so it was all good.

Except … I dreamt that Carlos got into bed and began torturing me, poking, pinching, tickling, and I got so angry that I said I was sleeping in the guest room.

The next morning I was so angry at the way Dream Carlos treated me that I didn’t speak to Real Carlos.

I call that Rational Irrationality, and luckily I explained it to him so he could see my point of view … as he called the local psychiatric hospital and tried to have me placed on a 5150 hold.

Earlier this week Hawaii Governor Neil Abercrombie announced that he would call a special session of the state Legislature next month to consider marriage-equality legislation: 

"This is now the 20th year of discussion that has taken place on the issue and associated issues with it. I feel very, very strongly that the votes are there to pass this because it is time for marriage equity to take place."

The special session would likely last four to five days and Abercrombie said the bill, which includes a religious exemption, would pass both houses of the Legislature. Hawaii Attorney General David Louie said, if approved, the bill as proposed would allow for same-sex nuptials to begin as soon as November 18.

Do it Hawaii.

So, after we came back from vacation, I noticed that there was a small puddle of water underneath the sink in the master bathroom. I looked around for a leak, ran water in the sink, felt up the pipe — not nearly as fun as it might sounds … feeling up pipes — and found no drips. I cleaned up the water, cleaned up under the sink, and left it at that.

The next day, no water; same for the next day after that. But on Sunday, naturally, the leak was back and Carlos, who fancies himself a plumber without the butt crack, found that the leak was in the supply line from the hot water line; he felt it was beyond his area of expertise … I giggle ... expertise … and he began calling plumbers.

One wanted $115 for an emergency call plus $75 drive time, plus whatever the repair cost, so I figured this guy would get us for $300 or more. Another guy said $85 plus repair costs and labor, which I figured might be $200.

But it got me thinking … what if I advertised myself as a plumber, charged $115 emergency call fee, plus $75 drive? I could come out, say I couldn’t fix it, and pocket an easy $190 for nothing. A few calls like that per week and I’d be rolling in it.

I may have found a new career ….

PS We called a guy who’s done work on the house in the past to ask if he could recommend a plumber and he came out instantly, found the leak, bought the new parts, fixed the leak, and charged $80.

PPS That's not the actual plumber who came out to the house. I mean, if that was the guy, I'd gladly shell out the $300-plus!

This one just makes me smile.

The American Family Association [AFA] has been boycotting Home Depot for over three years because of the company’s support for LGBT groups and Pride celebrations, and this week the group announced that it would be ending the boycott, because according to Randy Sharp, the AFA director of special bigot projects, Home Depot has changed its behavior:

“We’re glad to report that we are suspending the boycott of The Home Depot. After monitoring the company for several months, we’re satisfied that the company has withdrawn its major financial contributions to gay activist groups and to their activities. … We certainly do expect The Home Depot to deny that they have turned back their contributions to gay activist groups, but AFA has monitored the company – and actions speak louder than words.”

Sharp has no specifics about how they “monitored” the Home Depot and offered no proof that they changed their evil ways, but I guess if he says it’s true then it’s …

Huh? What? Home Depot spokesman Stephen Holmes offered a response to Sharps statement and it goes something like this:

“We haven’t made any changes to our policies for inclusion and respect of all people, regardless of their sexual orientation. We have not directed our associates to discontinue participation in Pride or other community events, and have no intention of doing so.”

The AFA caught in another lie.

This one makes me giggle.

When formerly closeted, now openly gay tennis legend Billie Jean King was interviewed by Stephen Colbert, he asked all sorts of questions about her career, and her game, but the question, well, actually, the question and answer that I loved best was when Colbert asked her if, since she was in the closet while she played professionally, if she ever got upset when the line judge, yelled "Out!"

"Yes," she said.

Love.It.

The AFL-CIO [American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations] has added transgender employment protections to its constitution.

The decision to ban transgender discrimination at its 2013 convention followed the decision of several unions within the federation who have already adopted those changes.

And here's the new language: 

“To encourage all workers without regard to race, creed, color, sex, national origin, religion, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression to share equally in the full benefits of union organization.”

Bravo, AFL-CIO.

The march goes on.

I caught the new season of The View this week and I am officially over the show unless they have a truly watch-worthy guest on.

Sherri Shepard is as dumb as a box of rocks, and Jenny McCarthy has just a few more active brain cells than that. Barbara Walters showed up on Monday with a new face that was pulled tighter than Star Jones in an Herve Leger bandage dress, which only leaves Whoopi as the rational one.

But, no matter how much I loves me some Whoopi, I cannot wade through the idiocy for her any longer.

Well, Sir Patrick Stewart is officially a taken man. The 73-year-old got married last weekend to his 35-year-old girlfriend, Sunny Ozell, and then took to Twitter to make the announcement with the most adorable wedding photo ever:

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Random Musings

Boston, our hearts are with you, but after seeing this video, I get the feeling that you're gonna be just fine. See, at last night's Bruins game--the first since Monday--Rene Rancourt, who has been singing the National Anthem there for more than 40 years, began to sing, but stopped as the crowd took over.
Excuse me while I wipe away a tear.

On the down-side of that, one Erik Rush, obvious wack-nut and FauxNews contributor, decided this was the Tweet he wanted to send out.

After many folks called him on his idiocy, Rush said he was being sarcastic.

Yes, in America, asking to 'kill them all' is considered sarcasm.

You always hear people talk about America! land of the Free! Home of the Brave! The Good Old US of A! We're Number One!

And yet, on the face of it, at least in terms of marriage equality, we are so far behind the rest of the world. We usually lead the way, but on this issue we're sitting on our hands.

This week New Zealand became the 13th country in the world to legalize same-sex marriage when a bill to amend the current marriage law was approved by the country’s Parliament in its third and final reading.

Now, same-sex and transgender couples will be allowed to marriage in the NZ beginning in August, and same-sex couples who married overseas will also be able to have their marriage officially recognized in New Zealand. People watching from the public gallery immediately broke into singing a New Zealand anthem in the indigenous Maori language.

New Zealand becomes the first Asia-Pacific country to legalize marriage equality for same-sex couples and the effect on the transgender community is enormous; used to be, married transsexual people were forced to divorce when they change their gender, but they will no longer be required to do so.

New Zealand follows in the footsteps of Uruguay. who also voted to legalize same-sex marriage, making the South American country the third in the Americas to do so and the United States is still sitting on its hands.

I am not a baseball nut, though I kinda follow it, a little, occasionally, some of the time. I like attending a game, though it's been a while--the last time was when we lived in Miami and went to a Marlins game.

But, there is something about hearing a baseball game on the radio that takes me back. I was driving along the other day, minding my own business, flipping through stations, when i came upon a game, and suddenly I was transported back to the Oakland Coliseum, watching a game with my family. I could smell the stadium, and the fans,m and feel the excitement in the air.

TV games don't do that for me, but somehow, hearing a game on the radio always takes me home. Plus, I was hungry for a Coliseum Colossus, a giant hot dog on a sour dough roll with mustard and sauerkraut.

Y-U-M.

I heard a story this week about a police officer, Ron King of Port Canaveral Police Department  in Florida, who was fired after it was learned that he was using a Trayvon Martin cut-out in target practice.

Yes, he decided to shoot at the photo of a murdered boy.

Only in America, but, hey, that's his right, I guess.

Just ask the cowards in the US Senate.

King has apologized to Trayvon's family for his asshattedness which he explains away as using the Trayvon target as a 'no-shoot' example.

How about not using the image of murdered people as targets Ron? That thought ever crossed your mind? 

'Memba when the GOP had their asses handed to them in November? they were all Mittsy's gonna win! Obama's finished!

And then they woke up. And they they talked about rebranding the party, changing their image, becoming more inclusive.

And, to that end, the Republican National Committee has unanimously voted to approve 12 resolutions, including one reaffirming the party's opposition to same-sex marriage.

The GOP. Some things never change, no matter how much they promise.

So, we have this faucet in the kitchen that is probably original to the house. And it's an odd little number. It has the actual tap right there where it should be, but the lever which one would use to turn the water on and off is situated on the far right corner of the sink[ separate from the actual faucet. Yes, the lever is not actually part of the faucet, but, hey, it worked, and we learned to live with it. Until ... one morning this past week Carlos muttered the phrase, We have a problem! The tap on the kitchen sink broke!

I said, We'll have to get it fixed. 

I'm smart as a whip like that.

But Carlos said, We can just use these pliers to turn it on and off with, though.

And suddenly I'm in an episode of Green Acres, and my name is Lisa Douglas, and I'm wearing a marabou-trimmed negligee and climbing a telephone poll top make a phone call.

Not gonna happen.

Carlos, though, then suggest we call a handyman to install a new faucet, and I suggest that maybe we do it ourselves.

Carlos: Not unless you want a divorce!

Bob: What does that mean?

Carlos: I have two word for you: dining room lamp.

Bob: Um, that's three words, but I get your meaning.

I nearly killed Carlos when we put in the lamp over the dining table because the man never saw a book of instructions he wanted to read.

End of story, though: we bought a new faucet, and we installed it ourselves and no one was hurt during the process.

You can teach old gay dogs a new trick.

We watched Total Recall with Colin Farrell the other night. Colin Farrell. Shirt off. Adorable. Shirt. Off.

Plus, it was more sci-fi and less stupid cartoon than the Schwarzenegger version.,

Plus, Colin Farrell, shirt off.

Also back on is The Borgias, though after Jeremy irons idiotic comments about incestuous father-son relationships if marriage equality becomes law, I almost didn't watch.

But then I remembered ..... Francois Arnaud plays Cesare.

And I'm back in.

Brittney Griner, the  three-time All-America center at Baylor, and will soon be playing for the Phoenix Mercury, has come out as a lesbian:

"It really wasn't too difficult, I wouldn't say I was hiding or anything like that. I've always been open about who I am and my sexuality. So, it wasn't hard at all. If I can show that I'm out and I'm fine and everything's OK, then hopefully the younger generation will definitely feel the same way."

And she said this, about why there's a difference between acceptance of gays in men's versus women's sports:

"I really couldn't give an answer on why that's so different. Being one that's out, it's just being who you are. Again, like I said, just be who you are. Don't worry about what other people are going to say, because they're always going to say something, but, if you're just true to yourself, let that shine through. Don't hide who you really are."

Welcome out, Brittney, and please accept as our Coming Out gift, a copy of The Gay Agenda and the Official HOMO HQ Coming Out Toaster Oven.

Welcome out!

TWEET OF THE WEEK:

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