Fighting the Good Fight

Gays STILL want to be treated equally, can you believe it????
they can't just let it go? the nerve...


It seems so incredibly simple to me. Two people love each other and want to make a commitment to each other, so they get married.


But it's not truly that easy, is it? Not when there are crazy, angry, hateful people like this!
(Is that a "Yes on 8" smock???)


If I were those people protesting, I'd be ashamed to show my face in public! Whatever happened to it not being socially acceptable to be so outwardly bigoted? Even the KKK wears masks!


Well, now that I've got that out of my system, lets get to the heart of the matter. So, the California Supreme Court heard arguments for and against the already passed Proposition 8, which reversed the decision that allowed ALL couples to marry legally in the state. Arguing in favor of upholding Prop 8 was Attorney Kenneth Starr, who seeks to forcibly divorce the 18,000 same sex couples who married in the six short months marriage was legal for all couples in California. Starr offered this profound statement during his argument: "Under our theory, the people are sovereign and can do even very unwise things that tug at the equality principle... rights are ultimately defined by the people."
So basically, despite the fact that the constitution guarantees equality and protection for minority groups, the people have the higher power to override those rights. Wonderful. I sincerely hope the California Supreme Court Justices decide differently (and ultimately overturn Prop. 8).


What really kills me is that the "majority" voters are not affected by Prop. 8 in ANY WAY! No matter what the court decides, they still get to go home to their spouse, marriage and family in tact, and resume their lives just as they were before they cast their hateful vote. Loving gay couples, on the other hand, are forced to have their relationships denied the dignity and respect they deserve (along with 1138 federal rights and responsibilities!)


The reality is, same sex couples live in every single state and many of them are raising children, despite the fact that their marriages aren't legally recognized. The truth is that gays have been marrying for years and years, regardless of legal recognition. Love can never be taken away from them, not even with a majority vote. Its only a matter of time before the majority agrees that all couples deserve to be legally committed to one another.

The days of acceptable discrimination toward gays are ending. Gordon Brown (UK's prime minister) has already condemned Prop. 8, saying that its "attempt to undo good that has been done is unacceptable... This shows why we have always got to be vigilant, always got to fight homophobic behavior and any form of discrimination." (We're waiting Obama...)


In my lifetime, I expect people to become ashamed of themselves (or their parents or grandparents) for voting against gay rights, back when it was acceptable to do so. check out these Crazies, donning the most absurd t-shirts and signs I'VE ever seen!




Right, because the only way to discriminate against a person or group of people is on the basis of race! STOP! Do not validate! Don't be ignorant! Protect the Children! Yes! Divorce the parents who are raising the children! That's the ONLY way to protect the children!




Beautiful, isn't it? I honestly cannot see how the love obsessed queer underdogs won't eventually win this war! All they want to do is love each other! Love has to win! It just has to! Here are a few more quality photos from the "Overturn Prop. 8 Vigils" held in San Francisco (what a difference in tone from the negativity, hate and condemnation spewing from the Prop. 8 supporters).
















Along those happier lines, Connecticut held their legislative hearing today to officially put marriage equality on the law books. Anne Stanback from Love Makes a Family gave a compelling testimony, with this as her closing statement, "What could possibly be wrong with making it easier for me to take care of and be responsible for the person I have made a lifelong commitment to? What could possibly be wrong with allowing the same thing for the other couples here today? Marriage is about building stronger families. Building stronger families builds stronger communities, and that is a good thing for all of us."


I couldn't agree more. And I'm so proud of my state for leading this great civil rights movement. Also on more positive notes, GLAD has filed a federal lawsuit against DOMA ("Defense of Marriage Act"), a new marriage equality bill has just been introduced in Minnesota, and lawmakers in Vermont (the pioneer state of the "civil union") have promised to make marriage equality a top priority.


I fully understand that this will be a long and bumpy road, but look at all the progress that has been made in the past decade alone! There is a lot of fighting to do and since gays and lesbians are the minority, their straight allies are more important than ever. And once the people who support only "traditional marriage" realize how much better a world it will be when we embrace diversity and respect all relationships, that's when real change will come. Love will win out.


So, fight the good fight, pledge to support full equality, sign the petition at EndtheLies.com.

Busy Busy Busy

So it seems my prediction to be minimally committed to this blog has proved thus far to be at least somewhat accurate. I can only offer the following excuse: life has been fricken busy as hell! I realized though that what I've been busy with is worth talking about, so here goes nothing:


1) "The Love Handles" enter as competitors in the CT Fitness Challenge.

As part of an ongoing battle with my body trying to undo the damage architecture school did to it in just five short years, I've decided to participate in a Biggest Loser style competition for New Haven county residents and have lovingly dragged two of my dear friends, Jeremy and Chauna, into it with me. It is a 12 week challenge in which the team who loses the highest percentage of weight wins $3000! Honestly, its not the money that motivates me! Those of you who know me know that I gained a good amount of weight during thesis, and then lost most of it, and have now gained about half of it back. I strongly believe in living a healthy lifestyle and I made the decision after architecture school that everything I did from then on would be healthier, whether it be physically or mentally, so now I'm attempting to keep that promise I made to myself. Eating healthily is not too hard for me (unless I'm attending a family gathering and there's baked brie or something just as deadly), but on a day to day basis, I'd say I'm really good at making healthy food taste fantastic, and I'm starting to master my portion control (thank you, Leah). Committing myself to exercising daily IS difficult though! Mostly because I have a million other things going on and I tend to put it low on the list of priorities, but that has started to change. I actually really enjoy exercising, the hardest part is making the decision to start doing it!

So, why am I writing about this? Well, partially as a way to "journal" my accomplishments and challenges, but more so to hold myself accountable!!! If I let it be known that I'm doing this, I feel obligated to succeed! I can't possibly let all my 3 or 4 readers down by quitting. So I'll hold myself accountable by reporting to this blog to record my success.


2) Vintage, reclaimed and broken objects have inspired Erin and I to start a hand made jewelry and housewares business, tentatively named "Attractive Reuse."

If you aren't involved in the architecture world, you may not get the pun, which is why the name is tentative. We're looking for a name that is consistent with our theme of reclaiming items and manipulating them to become wearable and/or usable. Our boss feels strongly that we should be named "Really Good Shit." I'm not convinced... any ideas???? We welcome suggestions!

So this was spurred by our addiction to Etsy. At first I was having serious problems with wanting to buy everything I liked on Etsy, now I've transformed that problem into inspiration for ideas of things to make. Much holiday gift shopping was done on Etsy, and credit must be given to Galina for introducing me to the wonderful site, and Holly Hawk, who I don't actually know but Erin and I check her Etsy store daily to see if there is anything new; we're slightly obsessed. Also, my incredibly talented mother has made (and sold) lots of gorgeous jewelry, so she too has been an inspiration (and once I recruit her, she'll be our mentor!) Oh, and I highly recommend browsing through Etsy, there's a lot of fantastic stuff, plus you're supporting artists and buying really unique stuff!


3) Watching, reading and conversing as history unfolds in front of us and we transition to President Obama.

This topic is meant to have is own separate post, which I feel like I've been drafting forever. (There's just so much to say!!!) But I think I will still devote a separate post to this, since its been brewing for so long in my mind. I have to hash it out and whittle it down and all that other good stuff.


The rest of the things I've been busy with are NOT worth talking about, so I'll spare you, but a few of them are worth mentioning.

4) Finally devoting time to my artwork. (crucial for my sanity!)

5) Cleaning out my house and changing my pack-rat habits.

6) The Dog Park, and spending time with my family.

7) Stonewall Speakers: Attempting to be an activist, but more importantly educating people.

8) Working... A LOT!

Support, comments, suggestions, opinions, ideas, criticism, help and pretty much anything else that can be offered is more than welcome for any of the aforementioned things that have been keeping me busy, particularly in regards to the name of our business and any contributions to being successful in this fitness challenge!! I need all the help I can get!!!