Stuff That Makes A Gay Heart Weep

Secret Lesbrarians

 

 

N.J. Bridal Shop Refused to Sell Wedding Dress to Lesbian Bride

From ABC News:

Popular reality wedding shows such as "Say Yes to the Dress" depict how emotionally trying the purchase of a wedding dress can be, but Alix Genter found that out for herself when she was refused her dream dress from a New Jersey bridal boutique.

Genter, a graduate student at Rutgers University, was refused the sale of wedding dress at Here Comes the Bride, in Somers Point, N.J., after she says its manager found out she was a lesbian and insulted her about her pending "illegal action."

Donna Saber, who owns and manages the small bridal boutique, had initially called Genter to follow up on the availability of a special light-weight version of the dress Genter had coveted from her shop.

Saber told ABCNews.com that when she prepared to call Genter about her order, she noticed that she had crossed out the word "groom" and put in the word "partner" instead.

"When I mentioned it to her, 'Oh, I see you crossed out groom and put in partner,' I got a barrage," Saber said. "I literally got a barrage of 'bigot' and other really cruel words...I might be the kind of person that when you get at me, I might continue the fight, and maybe I shouldn't say this, but I have my beliefs. I did say that I, to the best of my knowledge in the state of New Jersey, that we do operate in New Jersey. If she had remained calm, I would have been able to tell her, that it's illegal, it's an illegal action, that her marriage was illegal in NJ. "

Even so, her store's Yelp profile has received well over 300 reviews, most of them of them negative, in the last 24 hours alone from individuals all over the country, which proves that the topic of gay marriage remains a sensitive issue.

The boutique's Facebook page administrator had removed similar comments from its public wall.

Saber says that she does regret her words towards Genter and said that on Friday afternoon she left Genter a voicemail expressing apology for her behavior.

Genter didn't respond to the apology, telling ABCNews.com, "I can't have this in my life and I've decided not to talk to any more press. I've said what I've needed to."

Kathryn Hamm, president and co-founder of gay-friendly wedding vendor directory GayWeddings.com, said "It's not surprising that this happened, but the good news is that it's happening with less frequency among wedding vendors in the industry. For what it's worth, I can understand how vendors who haven't considered this issue may not be in favor of it [gay marriage] – it feels scary and intimidating."

Hamm added, "Alix Genter's wedding will forever now will be associated with that very difficult and disrespectful experience. My heart goes out to her and her family. It's a day of celebration that they are preparing and planning for, and Alix has the same right to experience that joy as any other bride."

In June 2011, New York joined Washington, D.C., Iowa, Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Vermont with its legalization of same-sex marriage.

Same-sex unions in New York State are not differentiated from traditional unions statistically, but more than 5,000 couples in New York City have applied for marriage licenses within the last two months, compared with 4,191 over the same time period last year, Mark Botnik of the New York City Mayor's office told ABCNews.com

The jump in marriage license applications and ceremonies has kept the New York City Clerk's office has been busy.

"The atmosphere has been very positive since the law took effect on July 24th, and we have seen a pretty decent increase in volume of people here," said Michael McSweeny, City Clerk of the City of New York.

"Every day I've seen same sex couples coming in for licenses and ceremonies, and the atmosphere is very upbeat – it's been a summer that none of us will ever forget."

via abcnews.go.com

 

Gay Marriage In California Left In The Hands of Religious Voters - Thank You New York Legislature For Doing the Right Thing

 
Every time I hear the phrase: "The California Voters have spoken on gay marriage," I want to weep and scream at the same time. These religions that don't believe in gay marriage have a right to their opinion, BUT THEY DON'T HAVE THE RIGHT TO INFLICT IT THROUGH GOVERNMENT LAWS ON TO OTHERS THAT DON'T SHARE THE SAME BELIEF. End of story. There's no argument, unless these religious voters would like to see other laws passed based on views of other religions they don't agree with. Gay marriage cannot be left in the hands of voters. What would have happened if the rights of women and black people had been left up to voters during those times in history? In 1948 California passed a ban on interracial marriage.... AT THE HANDS OF CALIFORNIA VOTERS! Yep, blacks and whites could not marry, and the polls in favor of it during that time were WAY higher than the polls against gay marriage today. It took the California Supreme court to strike down the ridiculous law.....sound familiar? Stay out of gay marriage California voters.

 

Keith Olbermann Leaves MSNBC

By Michelle Quevedo

Not just the Gays but much of America Weeps over Keith Olbermann’s exit from MSNBC.

When the airwaves are bombarded with violent speech, censored coverage and fabricated news, Keith Olbermann has always been on the side of what was fair and what was true. This of course has made him very unpopular among his journalist colleagues and the executives of MSNBC along with their new owner Comcast.

When other journalist shied away from trying to explain the validity of Gay Rights, Keith Olbermann was putting a spotlight on the subject and challenged anyone to dialogue and articulate why Gays should not have the rights they seek. Not surprisingly, none would accept his challenge. When we would see other media figures belittle the importance of Gay Rights, Keith Olbermann was right there to call each and every one of them out on it. On MSNBC Keith Olbermann was never on the side of the Liberals, the Democrats, the Republicans, the Conservatives, the Religious Radicals, or even Corporate America. Keith Olbermann always sided with the truth, and for that he made his network owners uncomfortable.

Keith Olbermann was often times the dissenting voice of the media, when hateful and untrue rhetoric plagued the airwaves. He often clearly and effectively stated things that many of us felt, but did not have the courage or the ability to articulate what needed to be said. Even though MSNBC still has contracts with fantastic journalists like Rachel Maddow, Chris Mathews and a few other great media talents, time will tell if it can distinguish itself from other news networks now that Keith Olbermann is gone from its roster. Without Keith Olbermann one wonders whether MSNBC will keep its audience in his old time slots. So for all those at Comcast and MSNBC, best wishes on the rocky course you’re setting, and in the words of Keith Olbermann “Good Night and Good Luck!”

-M-

 

 

Bait-and-Switch 3-D Movies

By Michelle Quevedo

I’m SO weepy tired of films shot in 2 Dimensional(2-D) and then digitally adapted for 3-D!

The old bait-and-switch techniques are alive and well in the 3-D genre and all the major film studios are guilty of using it to pad their pockets while viewers are left unsatisfied.

Lately the movie industry has been working at a frenzied pace to produce their films in 3 Dimensional format. That’s 3-D for the rest of us who really don’t care what it’s called but do want the movie experience enhanced while watching Action and Animation films. Opinions have been across the board as to whether or not the public loves, likes or hates 3-D films. Why? Because some studios actually deliver up to the 3-D experience, while in some back building they take 2-D films already in postproduction and digitally adapt them to 3-D format. This is why some LOVE the 3-D experience in theatres and others vehemently HATE the experience. It’s very much like buying a Coke and being served up Diet Coke instead! Blech! >.<

What are the results from this 3-D adaptation process? Well ask anyone who has watched movies like Clash of the Titans in 3-D or Disney’s Alice in Wonderland. Double Blech! >.< (Although Truth be told, Clash of the Titans was awesome in 2-D) 

Movies actually filmed in 3-D format absolutely ROCK!

Films such as Avatar and Legend of the Guardian’s really take 3-D to its current limit and pull viewers even deeper into their story telling.

3-D movie technology has really taken huge leaps in its progression right down to the glasses. No more square cardboard framed bi-colored cellophane lenses, now we wear “Wayfarer” style plastic frames with smokey colored lenses. So now we can look really cool in the dark with our black-framed 3-D glasses. Okay so maybe I’m lying about the cool part, but they do make us look Geeky which can lead to being cool Right?

Hmm…okay maybe not. -.-

 -M-

Mac vs PC

Can't We Just Get Along...

PC and Mac get a SouthPark-esque treatment.

Hahaha...So weeping with laughter!

 

A Message From Santa Clause

Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha....

MARIE CLAIRE AND MAURA KELLY

 

By Benjamin Kissell

Few things make a gay heart weep into hysterics (then kick off the shoes to get into fightin' mode) quite like bullying. In the wake of the bullying-induced suicides in October [yeah, yeah, I know, 2 months later I get around to writing this] the nation focused and gay (and non-gay) hearts stood up and said 'enough bullying'.

Unfortunately, Marie Claire didn't get that memo. Despite having a huge gay heart market, sponsoring Project Runway [Oh Heidi, I'm so disappointed - auf wiedersehen] for example, Marie Claire turned on gay hearts and their staunchest supporters ... "fat chicks".

Oct 25th, MarieClaire.com posted its lovely [note sarcasm] article, "Should Fat People Get a Room, Even on TV?" by Maura Kelly. The article, a review of the show Mike and Molly, was assigned by the editors to Ms Kelly, who had never actually seen the show. [At last check, she still hadn't.]

A lovely (and pertinent) fact is that Ms Kelly is a recovering anorexic. In the article, go ahead, read it, she complains about how disgusting it is to see two overweight people on tv making out. What's the next step, saying how disgusting it is to see two gay heart men? Two women? A slippery slope. Just days after its release, two of my favourite authors - both self-described "fat chicks" (and gay heart supporters) - helped lead the charge against this idiocy. Jen Lancaster's blog I've Got Your Counterpoint Right Here, Marie Claire and Stacey Ballis' Marie Claire You Are So Dead to Me made me proud to be both a gay heart AND an honorary "fat chick" [go #TeamFatChick].

 

 
*me with Jen in 2007, we're so prom*

In an attempt to bring this to a national/international audience, Jen appeared on BBC RadioTalk with a 'certified fittness expert' [translation: complete tool] to discuss the article and its reprecussions. 45 minutes later, cut to the audience wondering if the expert was secretly Ms Kelly's bf, due to his fanaticism-like responses defending her. More than one listener asked if he got blow-by-blows from her [tacky, but funny] to keep him on her side.

In the gay heart community we embrace all kinds and sizes - from twinks to bears, lipstick to lumberjack - and it takes every one of us acting together to change this closed-mindset.

Despite her "apology" (the italicized paragraphs under the main body of her article) it doesn't feel like Maura Kelly or Marie Claire is truly sorry for insulting, bullying and alienating so many gay hearts (and honorary gay hearts). For that, they both made this gay heart weep [and tear up that adorable Emma Watson/Hermione cover issue]. Who's with me?

 

[You can follow Jen Lancaster and Stacey Ballis on twitter, there may even be archived tweets from our #MarieClaire gayheart attack. Bad, shameless, self-promoting gay heart.]

DADT: Gays And Lesbians Weep Over President Obama’s Pace

“It takes a little time to turn the Titanic back around.”

These are lyrics from a song*  that should be played every time someone complains that President Obama hasn’t worked fast enough to fix 8 years of economic damage under G.W. Bush’s presidency. Although the Titanic I speak of is not our current economic system, rather it is the discrimination of Gays and Lesbians who have and/or still are serving in the United States Military.

Ever heard of the expression “I’m a friend of Dorothy’s?”  Well that used to be a code for Gay men in the military to be able to identify others in the service. They were able to look after each other whenever possible from situations that would make them vulnerable to being court-martialed or from being murdered for their homosexuality.

SOURCE: Advocate.com

President Obama has only been in office for 2 years and unfortunately has underwent public scrutiny from the Gay and Lesbian community for not getting Don’t Ask Don’t Tell (DADT) reversed starting from the first few months of his presidency up to this present day.  Sadly some extremely valuable homosexual military personal “outed” themselves to military superiors before DADT could be addressed by the President, Senate and Congress. Perhaps they had expected President Obama to swoop in and intervene with a regulation that The House and Senate must agree to repeal. It is sad to see these beautiful men and women with exemplary records being discharged based on their homosexuality, and our gay and lesbian hearts weep for our country’s loss.

SOURCE: AP/Michael Dwyer

According to a newly released study by the Pentagon, the results made it surprisingly clear that the majority of our present day US military do not feel that sexual orientation affects a soldier’s performance. Now is the time for The Senate to act on repealing a clearly discriminative and pointless military regulation. We can only hope that the Pentagon results will allow for the brave and patriotic Homosexual soldiers serving in our armed forces to no longer need to live in fear of being discovered and torn away from serving our country and protecting our national security.  Our hearts go out to those who were victims of military homosexual ‘witch hunts.’  As well as much empathy goes out to those who may have been too hasty by declaring their sexual orientations when this complicated and delicate issue needed to be brought up and addressed through all the proper channels in order for it to be permanently repealed. We must all remember that DADT is a Titanic of an issue and perhaps this just may be the time when it can be turned around. Therefore the belief that President Obama’s pace is slow on this issue must be halted. We must remember that he has been on our side all along, and unfortunately this isn’t the only complicated issue he must facilitate action. If John McCain were president, repealing DADT would have never had a chance to get as far as it has now.

The existence of DADT makes our Gay and Lesbian hearts weep.

However impatient and unrealistic Gays and Lesbians who bash President Obama regarding this issue, definitely make hearts weep with sadness….

-M-

* Amy Grant – “Takes a Little Time”

   

National Opt Out Day: Holiday Travel Strip Day

 

Today is National Opt-Out Day for holiday Air travelers. Travelers are wearing bikinis and speedos in protest! Already starting in airports where body scans exist, travelers are opting out for the Airport Body Scans and instead stripping down for the TSA in their speedos and other bathing suits. I just hope that those who choose to observe opt-out day will have nice bodies for the rest of us to look at while we wait in the security line.

Non-violent protests of holiday travel that involve partial nudity makes me weep with laughter!!!

-M-

 

Inflatable Bike Helmet: No More Helmet Hair!

Swedish inventors Anna Haupt and Terese Alstin have created a bike helmet that will appeal to the fashionably conscious. It’s called the Hovding and it has become one of my favorite names!  For all of us who would love to ride our bicycles to work but hate the “helmet hair” this new invention will make it possible enjoy the freedom of peddling around town without the hard foam in plastic bike helmets ruining our ‘dos.

Finally someone has invented a helmet that makes Style meet Safety!

I love the fierce “runway look” of these models sportin’ their bike helmets!

The price for these inflatable helmets are a bit…inflated. (yes, pun intended)

They will range between $450-$550, but this helmet may last just as long as your old bike helmet, After all, once you bump your head on any type of bike helmet, it’s recommended by manufacturers to replace them, so maybe the price isn’t that high. Okay maybe it is, but you have to admit that they are pretty cool alternative. This helmet may be a sleek and chic alternative for those who want to ride their bikes to work or to important meetings.  Although unless you’re incredibly clumsy and fall off your bicycle often, then perhaps and old fashioned bicycle helmet is perfect for you; that way you can replace them without having to take a loan out every time.

  As the video shows, the possibilities for this technology are endless.(I would love to see the Inflatable Butt Pad for when I fall on my ass snowboarding)

  No more "Helmet Hair" definitely makes Lesbian and Gay hearts weep for Joy…

-M-

 

Students Wear “Straight Pride” Shirts

Last week a handful of students wore shirts with the phrase “Straight Pride” printed on the front of them.  Now at first glance this news would seem amusing for most homosexuals because those shirts are clearly imitating the much beloved phrase “Gay Pride.”

Isn’t imitation the highest form of complement? Well yes, but not in this case.

These students showed up wearing shirts reading “Straight Pride” in the front and “If a man lay with a male as those who lay with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination and shall surely be put to DEATH” printed on the back. The text on the back of the shirts originate from a translation of scripture found in the book of Leviticus 20:13 in the Bible.  As you can see, the scripture actually refers to the act as an abomination. Yes, this is also the same book in the bible that says that the eating of shellfish is an abomination. (That’s in Leviticus 11:9-12 just in case you were wondering)

The students showed up at St. Charles North High School sporting their Tee shirts on the Monday, which coincided with Ally Week. Ally Week is a weeklong awareness that works to honor the efforts of organizing protection from the name-calling, harassment and bullying of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered in schools grades K-12. To the credit of the St. Charles North High School, they did respond to the outcry from the students that the shirts incited violence towards LGBT individuals and made the students who wore the offending shirts black-out the Bible translation quote on the back of them. Did the anti-homosexual activism end there? Well not by a long shot. This week a St. Charles North High School administrator contacted police about anti-gay graffiti spray-painted on the school.

St Charles Illinois happens to be a community with very little cultural diversity and the average household annual income is well above the poverty level.  Such actions by youth are often inspired by strong religious indoctrination that stresses the violence in the Bible rather than the message of love and compassion that Christ taught later in the scripture cannon.

Using religious scripture to incite violence against any group of people makes not only lesbian and gay the hearts weep, but it makes many hearts in our nation weep in embarrassment that we have not yet evolved as a people …

-M-

Thanksgiving Dinner In A Box

 
Ever had a home cooked meal which you swore that you could actually “taste the love” in the food? What about that inviting blend of smells as you enter the house of all the dishes that have been prepared in it? There are so many dinner traditions that have developed over the years, and the variety of Thanksgiving Dinner feasts have evolved as our society has gained access to foods from all parts of the country, along with other parts of the world. The possibilities for the Thanksgiving menu are endless.

How about Lobsters from Maine? Don’t mind if I do!

Prime Rib Roast? Awesome, would love some!

Fabricated vegetable matter in the form of Turkey? Uh…maybe I’ll pass thank you!

It’s a beautiful thing to witness how our culture in the US has diversified so much with countless traditions for celebrating Thanksgiving. Although instead of preparing these meals from fresh ingredients, many are starting to purchase prepackaged side dishes, like heat-and-serve scalloped potatoes, heat-and-serve sausage stuffing, Heat-and-serve au gratin Brussels sprouts, chemically processed “smoked” turkey. Is nothing left sacred from the heat-and-serve Thanksgiving Dinner In-a-box culture? Yes, that was a rhetorical question because we are all too aware of the answer.

When had heat-and-serve meals become so chic for Thanksgiving? This holiday only comes around once a year. Why not make it less heat-and-serve and make it more hot-and-fresh? Just an open wish for all this year…

Heat-and-serve Thanksgiving Day meals make many of our lesbian and gay hearts weep with indegestion…

-M-

Finding Out The Laptop Bag Of Your Dreams Has An Ugly Price Tag

 
Ever had a vision in your mind of a piece of clothing or an object that you wanted to purchase? I’m talking about something that you weren’t even sure that it existed, but you were bound and determined to find it? This is often how I start my shopping quests. The object of my recent desire is a Laptop bag. I envisioned the color White, with very small width and made of leather. I wanted something sleek, yet functional. Did my quest lead me to the object? It did indeed, however there was one glitch. The laptop bag of my dreams is $449.95 and it’s sold exclusively at Apple stores, which means that there is no chance for me to shop around to look at a competitor’s price. To make matters worse, this beautiful Laptop Bag is a Kate Spade. I LOVE Kate Spade!

Clean lines, functionality and great color are what Kate Spade is about, so naturally she should design a Laptop bag that looks so simple but is full of wonderful surprises inside. :::Heavy Sigh::: Kate, do you realize that this bag is almost half the price of the iPad I was planning to purchase?  No decision at this point as to what I’ll do, although I visit the Apple Store online often just to get a glimpse of the most recent object of my desire…

Yes, this Kate Spade Lovin' Lesbian heart is weeping right now…

 -M-

Gay Couple: Pioneer the First Electronic Wedding

Ever heard of that old joke:

“Marriage is one of the oldest institutions. Yeah, but who wants to live in an institution!”

Gay couple Mark Reed and Dante Walkup have decided that the institution of marriage needs a little bit of virtual remodeling. Texas does not yet acknowledge same-sex marriage, so Reed and Walkup had devised a way to exchange vows of devotion on Texas soil while the ceremony is officiated in Washington DC. All this was done over the Internet using Skype. At first glance, this idea may seem a bit…hokey but these handsome gentlemen pulled this concept off with the style and dignity of which their loving union deserves.  This is groundbreaking territory for Same-Sex marriages in the US. These electronically officiated weddings make it possible for couples to have their family and other loved ones attend their weddings, all the while trying to legally wed each other in states who do not yet acknowledge Same-Sex marraiges.

Mark and Dante, thank for sharing the beauty of your love and marriage union with us! Much Like Edith Windsor, you too are this week’s Homo Champions!

The privilege of witnessing another Same-Sex couple bravely declare their love and devotion publicly, makes our lesbian and gay hearts weep for joy…

 -M-