Lez Keep It Real

Last Friday I was seething. I had my panties all in a bunch. It started off as a pretty good day, nice and low key. And then I read this.

DAYTONA BEACH — A former Daytona Beach city commissioner and a local high school teacher arrested Thursday during a sex sting at a [SEARS] Volusia mall bathroom were released from the Volusia County Brach Jail today, authorities said.

Former commissioner and mayoral candidate Mike Shallow and David Behringer, an athletic trainer and teacher at Seabreeze High School, posted $1,000 bail today after midnight, a jail spokesman said.

Behringer resigned today, according to officials with the Volusia County School District.

Shallow and Behringer were among nine men charged with lewd and lascivious conduct and exposure of a sexual organ, both misdemeanors, police said. READ MORE

I was so extremely ticked off, for a variety of reasons that I couldn’t even attempt to address the story. So, I let it ride. I sat with it. I let it marinate. And then I saw it again this morning.

So this time, I’m going to say something. I’m going to break down my frustration one point at a time.

Here we go.

(more…)

This time next year, the 2008 election will be in full swing and we’ll all be weighing the final pros and cons of the candidates in order to make our selection for the next President of the United States.

Considering the past eight years, you’d think I’d be excited about the prospect of change. You’d think I’d feel encouraged and optimistic about the next administration to take control of the White House and guide us out of the mess our country has become. You’d think I’d be happy to have anyone but Bush addressing the country via satellite, knowing embarrassing verbal blunders will be a thing of the past.

You’d think … but I’m not. I’m not at all encouraged. I’m not at all optimistic. And I’m not at all reassured. What I am is apathetic. And here’s why.

(more…)

Today’s Come Out & Play post spotlights telling your parents.

Of everything that I have learned about the world of coming out, there is one thing that is the most consistent. The anticipation of a parent’s reaction. Whether it’s Mom, Dad or both - it’s always the same. We expect the worst. We fear the worst. And sometimes, it’s so much better than we could have ever expected.

Other times, it is far worse.

I was lucky. My experience in telling my parents was far better than I could have ever imagined. When I had the conversation with my mother and father, I expected my mother to freak and my father to be OK. Well, that’s the way it went - at first. Then my mother was more than OK and my father had his turn to freak out. All in all, it was a positive experience because they continue to love and appreciate me to this day. I was never disowned or kicked out of the house. I was never told that I was going to go to hell. I was never told that they couldn’t accept it.

All I was told was that they needed time. And I understood that. Just as I needed time to come to terms with it myself, my parents needed time to adjust and come to terms with it themselves.

Time passed.

And now, my being gay is a non-issue.

I truly believe that telling your parents is the hardest thing in the world to do. To this day, it is by far the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do in my life. I know that I am blessed to have their love and support, as I have found that there are countless others who do not have the same.

I found a video on YouTube from SoGayTV, which was a Canadian gay-themed talk show. Though the show is off the air, I thought this clip was worth resurrecting. Host Jason Ruta scours the streets to ask unsuspecting participants, “How did your parents react when you told them you were gay.”

Some of the stories are funny, and some are down right appalling. But, they are all true.

How did your parents react when you told them you were gay? Feel free to share your experience below.

Don’t forget about the Lez Keep it Real Contest!

Tune in every Friday for the Come Out & Play series, featuring coming out stories of celebrities, every day people, personal reflections, advice, tid bits and everything else concerning the complicated world of coming out!

Got an interesting coming out story to tell? Contact me and I will feature it in an upcoming post of Come Out & Play.

telling your parents, telling your parents you are gay, coming out, come out and play, coming out stories, youtube, sogaytv, jason ruta

This week’s Notable Lesbian is:
Kate Clinton
Born in Syracuse, NY in 1947

Kate Clinton is a self-described “fumerist,” or feminist humorist, who has set out to prove that being lesbian can be, and often is, funny. She was raised in a large Catholic family. In young adulthood she was a “pre-Michael J. Fox conservative” who attended Le Moyne College, a small Jesuit liberal arts college, and went on to teach high school English and coach. In addition to comedy appearances and one-woman-shows such as Correct Me If I’m Right, All Het Up and Kate’s Out Is In, she has written two books, Don’t Get Me Started and What the L. Clinton has also written monthly columns for The Progressive and The Advocate, and blog regularly on OurChart. She has made numerous appearances on television, and has served as grand marshal of gay pride parades. Clinton currently lives in New York City and Provincetown with her partner, Urvashi Vaid.

Interesting tid bit:
Kate has performed nationally since 1981 from Joe’s Pub in New York City to the Park West in Chicago to the Herbst Theater in San Francisco, and back to New York for several off-Broadway runs. Her two decades plus of material are on record in her seven comedy collections, including Comedy You Can Dance To , Read These Lips and The Marrying Kind .

Read more about Kate

Don’t forget about the Lez Keep it Real Contest!

More Notable Lesbians

If you have a suggestion for a Notable Lesbian, e-maill me at lyndsey.darcangelo@451press.net or use the contact form above and I’ll highlight her in an upcoming post.

Kate Clinton, Le Moyne College, Urvashi Vaid, Comedy You Can Dance To, The Marrying Kind, Our Chart, The Advocate, Correct Me If I’m Right, What the L, Don’t Get Me Started, The Progressive