I met David in 2008. We just seemed to hit it off right at first.
We fell in love very quickly. David was like no other guy I have ever met. We both believed that it was love at first sight. David if fount to be my soul mate. I love him deeply like I have never known it could be like this.
David suffered from Bi-polar disorder. He also was manic depressive.
And very promiscuous.

In the three years we were together David was like a drug for me. When he was away from I hurt and felt so incomplete. I yearned to be by his side at all times. He felt the same way about me.
I would pull out the mattress and put it in front of the fireplace and he would make love to me all night long. I never felt like this in my life.

David took his life last year in September. He made love to me on Friday night and shot himself on Saturday night.
My world ended that night. I never felt so much pain as I did that day and through the following weeks and months.
I never cried so much in my life as I did for the next 6 months.
I had no one to go to, no one to help me out with support.
My life was David and now it seemed to be over.

I still love David so very much it still hurts. But what he did was his choice, not mine/ He lied to me about his actions and his constantly being with other men. But I still loved David and did not want to leave him. He left me.
I do go see him at his grave site. At least I don’t cry when I go see him anymore.

Now I am so afraid to meet anyone. I’m so afraid that this might happen again to me. I could not bare to handle this amount of anguish and pain.
But I need to move on and get my life back in order and find another mate. But I am afraid to do so. I just have become a hermit in my own home now.
Will my life ever get back to a slight resemblance of normalcy?
I just wonder.

It helps to type this. its so hard not to cry while I am typing this.
I still love David and I miss him so bad. I miss him touching me, kissing me, making love to me. I miss his great sense of humour. His silly ways of dealing with time.

Good bye David. I will always love you babe.

Mike

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Los Angeles, CA, April 14, 2012- The National Board of Directors of GLAAD announced that they have named Herndon Graddick as GLAAD’s new President. Herndon is currently serving as the organization’s Vice President of Programs and Communications.

Sheri Fults, National Co-Chair of the Board of Directors, said: “Herndon is already a well-respected leader within the LGBT movement, and we believe will be a visionary and strategic leader for GLAAD’s culture-changing work.”

Herndon said: “Right now GLAAD and our partners in the LGBT movement are making a significant difference at a time when a difference needs to be made. I look forward to working with our dedicated staff to create a culture where there is a welcoming and respected space for LGBT Americans. GLAAD’s work with the media to inspire Americans to speak out against anti-LGBT actions and support equality is needed today more than ever.”

David Hedley, Search Committee Co-Chair, commented on behalf of GLAAD’s National Board of Directors: “We want to first thank the volunteer Search Committee for their selfless service, and all the prospective presidential candidates for their interest and the investment each made in considering being of service to GLAAD.” Executive Search Recruiter Scott Miller volunteered his firm’s services pro bono to GLAAD to facilitate the search process.

Herndon is the current Vice President of Programs and Communications at GLAAD, a position he assumed in 2010. In his role, he has lead GLAAD’s media initiatives and oversees the organization’s National & Local News; Entertainment; People of Color; Religion, Faith & Values; Advertising; and Spanish-Language Media programs. Under his leadership, GLAAD has engaged in numerous highly visible and impactful campaigns including ‘Stand Up For Ellen,’ which prompted the group One Million Moms – a project of the American Family Association – to end their call for J.C. Penney to fire Ellen DeGeneres as its new spokesperson because she is gay. Herndon also oversaw GLAAD’s work on the Commentator Accountability Project – an initiative launched in March to highlight the extreme rhetoric of anti-LGBT activists who currently appear in national news outlets. He is leading efforts with the Massachusetts Transgender Political Coalition (MTPC) on the “I AM: Trans People Speak” video series as well as with film director Brett Ratner to develop a series of videos with GLAAD featuring high-profile celebrities and public figures speaking out for LGBT equality. Herndon has also put resources behind GLAAD’s work to share stories of LGBT people of color and allies with African American media, sports media, and Spanish-language news outlets, among others.

Prior to his work at GLAAD, Herndon served as the Executive Producer of the Global Observatory, a media and communications effort which aimed to bring public awareness to the climate change crisis. He also served as Supervising Producer at E! Networks and the day-of-air news division director at CURRENT TV, the youth-oriented news and entertainment network created by former Vice President Al Gore. As a producer at CNN, Herndon also contributed to the creation of daily primetime programming such as “Paula Zahn Now,” “Anderson Cooper 360,” and “Live from the Headlines.”

Herndon will be speaking onstage at the 23^rd Annual GLAAD Media Awards in Los Angeles on April 21, 2012.

I remember giving them a few days to think about what I’d just told them and kind of hoped that the information would spread a little bit around school so that I wasn’t stepping on egg shells, being careful of what I said all the time.

However, I got a lot of abuse from it then and especially when I got into a relationship one year later. I had a couple situations which I ended up taking up with the police who did nothing about it even though they had assured me that at least something small would come out at the end of it.

It’s been 4 years since I came out and, although I got a lot of vocal and physical abuse from it, I’m glad I did at that point because it gave the bullies time to let it all out of their system and at this moment in time I very rarely get any abuse in the street that 3 years ago I would have been getting every day.

- Kirsty.

He tweeted:

I just got married!!!!!

On the 5th anniversary of our wedding in London grant and I tied the knot again in NYC!!! #eatmericksantorum

How awesome his he!

I like to think of myself as a type of activist. Yes, I don’t get out there and march in the streets like some do, but I do believe that we can all do our part to make equality a reality as well as fight the food fight and while I do most of it from home, I am still doing something and that is all that matters.

A lot of people would say, what is the big deal about gay jewelry, but those people are crazy. And just plain wrong. Buying real and true gaypride jewelry, designed by some of the most creative gay and lesbian minds around, with a message of hope and peace as well as hefty donations to organizations like the Matthew Shepard Foundation, can make a big difference.

When you wear these pieces of gay and lesbian jewelry, you are promoting the cause and donating to such good causes, that you can feel good about each and every purchase. Take a look at the Matthew Shepard Foundation and see for yourself what they are doing for the greater good. Lambda Legal is another powerhouse that is on our side and your money goes to supporting the gay causes they fight for each and every day.

Here are just a few of the hottest lines of gay and lesbian jewelry with a message of hope for the LGBTQ community, all of them can be found at Love and Pride:

The Fly Naked with Reichen has been offering designer titanium jewelry at affordable prices for several years now and the collection has expanded to include not just rings, necklaces and bracelets but other great gift ideas like money clips and key chains. This line of gay mens jewelry has become a true customer favorite.

This is a brand new line of gay and lesbian jewelry and I can honestly say that I LOVE IT! It is one of their best concepts yet. We all have duality to our personalities, whether you realize it or not and this jewelry collection for men and women allows you to explore that and play with it.

In this line you will find double sided pendants, spinning rings with different sides of color and texture. It’s a creative and exciting collection that has taken the concept behind Jeff Lindsay’s novel “Darkly Dreaming Dexter” to a whole new level. Even if you aren’t a fan of the television show or the books, you will love these pieces.

Revolution of Love marries two unique technologies to create wedding rings for both gays and lesbians that will last a lifetime and a half.

You get all natural Clarity Enhanced Diamonds put into setting made from 585 Platinum, which by the way is an innovative platinum-hybrid with coloration and durability characteristics superior to those of traditional 950 Platinum.

The best part of these platinum and diamond wedding and commitment rings and necklaces is that they cost a fraction of what you would expect them to.

What is a collection of gay jewelry without one of the most meaningful pieces of jewelry ever designed: Matthew Shepard Pendants.

We all know the name, and we all know the horrors that were perpetrated against this charming, loving and innocent young man. But instead of turning to hate and anger his family and the Matthew Shepard foundation has chosen to reach out and help the community through the following three words: Understanding. Compassion. Acceptance. Truly words to live by. T

These beautiful circular pendants, designed by Udi Behr exclusively for the Matthew Shepard Foundation – are a fantastic way for you to help spread a very important message: Erase Hate.

You can be assured that 100% of the net proceeds from each and every sale of any lesbian or gaypride jewelry in this collection will go straight to the Matthew Shepard Foundation. This way you will be able to directly support diversity programs in education as well as help youth organizations establish environments where young people can feel safe to be themselves. See how easy it is to help the LGBT community through the simple purchase of jewelry?

Love and Pride brings you an exclusive collection of gay and lesbian jewelry in 18k gold, silver, leather, diamonds and semi-precious stones, all in celebration of rock legend Freddie Mercury from Queen.

All of these rings and necklaces are limited edition pieces of the LOVE Made in Heaven collection and each of them is emblazoned with the collection’s signature, patented double trillion – a personal tribute to Freddie – and a way for all touched by his talent to continue the love affair. You will also find the exclusive “Made in Heaven” signature – which was inspired by Freddie’s final album with Queen.

This gay jewelry is worn by celebrities all around the world, people like Ringo Starr are big fans.

He took to his blog to say the following (the wording is unedited but I did add some paragraph spaces because single blocks of text just drive me nuts lol):

when i found out that jamey rodemeyer killed himself – i felt deeply troubled. but when i found out that jamey rodemeyer had made an it gets better video only months before taking his own life – i felt indescribable despair. i also made an it gets better video last year – in the wake of the senseless and tragic gay teen suicides that were sweeping the nation at the time. but in light of jamey’s death – it became clear to me in an instant that living a gay life without publicly acknowledging it – is simply not enough to make any significant contribution to the immense work that lies ahead on the road to complete equality.

our society needs to recognize the unstoppable momentum toward unequivocal civil equality for every gay lesbian bisexual and transgendered citizen of this country. gay kids need to stop killing themselves because they are made to feel worthless by cruel and relentless bullying.

parents need to teach their children principles of respect and acceptance. we are witnessing an enormous shift of collective consciousness throughout the world. we are at the precipice of great transformation within our culture and government. i believe in the power of intention to change the landscape of our society – and it is my intention to live an authentic life of compassion and integrity and action.

jamey rodemeyer’s life changed mine. and while his death only makes me wish that i had done this sooner – i am eternally grateful to him for being the catalyst for change within me. now i can only hope to serve as the same catalyst for even one other person in this world. that – i believe – is all that we can ask of ourselves and of each other.

zq.

I knew I liked this guy for a reason.

In a video swiftly released by the White House yesterday morning, President Obama said, “We are not a nation that says ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’. We are a nation that says, ‘out of many, we are one’.” To a non-US citizen, this makes obvious sense. What kind of good can a policy do, if that policy’s point is to discriminate by virtue of silence and ignorance?

DADT was put in place during the Clinton administration, replacing far harsher legislation that allowed the military to ask, and then allowed them to refuse a gay person a job in the Armed Forces based on their answer. The DADT legislation was seen as a “good compromise” between liberal LGBT rights activists and conservative Christians. As with any good political compromise, both sides ended up angry. Now that it’s been repealed, here’s the obligatory knee-jerk:

Of course, the Christian Right is putting on its best Barbara Walsh pearls and saying into the camera, “We are very concerned.”  And when the Christian Right says, “We are very concerned”, what they actually mean is:

"Run! It's the GayRoller!"

The woman who speaks at around 1:40 (and coincidentally looks like she needs to get laid pretty badly) more or less sums up the entire Right’s argument, and what’s wrong with it.

Yes, the military is probably made up of a higher-than-normal percentage of bigoted rednecks who don’t like gays, Blacks, Mexicans, A-rabs or Chinese people (say it in your head with a thick Southern accent). Yes, those people might get their skirts in a twist because the dude in the next bunk likes other dudes.  And yes, a lot of those people have probably watched enough gay soldier porn when they thought nobody was home to know what happens next, but that doesn’t mean it’s going to affect morale, combat readiness or their own manliness.

What’s even worse is that, when conservative governor Rick Santorum (Google his last name.  He’s pretty pissed about that) addressed Fox News and The Horde at a debate this week, the entire crowd booed a gay soldier for coming out on video.  Santorum then went on to lay down a poorly constructed argument for why we shouldn’t have any talk of sexytime at all in the military, and so that clearly means no gays.

You know what I really think?

To those who say that having gay people openly serving in the military would hurt morale, there is only one worth-while response: harden the fuck up.  If you’re narrow-minded and bigoted, that’s your problem. If you don’t like who you’re serving next to and trusting with your life because of their legitimate life choice, then you should have no place in the military, not them. To boo a soldier is pretty low, especially one who is fighting the war these people campaigned for.

Now, I normally don’t bother reading YouTube comments in case I catch the stupid, but a few of them really struck a chord, and were actually written with some insight. On the Santorum video:

They’re booing because they feel their “manhood” threatened. First by the fact that they’re afraid this soldier might “like” them (he wouldn’t), and secondly, because this soldier is putting his money where his mouth is. In short, he’s proving that a gay soldier can be more of a man than an aging, loudmouthed, bigoted armchair general. Tip o’ the hat to this man, and all like him. “

And on the angry Christians video:

If God didn’t want gay men in the military, He wouldn’t have made us look so hot in uniform.”

Case closed.

I wish the people who watched Fox News also read the same newspapers that we do.  If they did, they would see this cartoon by editorial cartoonist Chan Lowe, and maybe it would make them think a little:

As the hit country-music band Sugarland was about to perform at the Indiana State Fair, a huge gust of wind blew in unexpectedly and brought an elaborate stage setup crashing down into the crowd, injuring dozens of fair-goers and claiming the lives of five.

While we most certainly count every life as precious and significant, one death touched our hearts a little more, the death of Christina Santiago.

Christina, a 29-year-old Illinois resident, will always be remembered as more than a victim of a horrific accident. Santiago was a proud and fierce advocate in the LBGT community and described by those who knew her as a beautiful, wonderful, fair individual whose happiness exuded from her ever pore.

Along with her partner Alisha Marie Brennon, Christina made it a personal goal to advocate for the rights of the LBGT community and for the rights of all to receive equal health care.

Christina was a big supporter and member of the NOH8 Campaign, even posing for a photo shoot for the Campaign in October 2010, and she worked as a program manager at the Howard Brown Health Center’s Lesbian Community Care Project.

President and CEO of Howard Brown, Jamal Edwards, claimed that Santiago was “a fierce advocate…as brilliant as she was beautiful.” According to Edwards, Christiana had been a driving force in the expansion of women’s health services in Chicago, stating that she was a “powerful advocate for all LGBT women.”

Christina dedicated a large portion of her life to ensuring that members of the LGBT community were treated fairly. A member of the community herself, Christina and Alisha were among the first couples to receive a civil union in Cook County, Illinois, when civil unions became legal in the state earlier in the year.

To date, Alisha remains in critical condition, one of the dozens injured when the stage collapsed.

We’re all saddened by the death of Christina and that her and Alisha’s union was so short-lived, but our thoughts and prayers go out and remain with Alisha, all other victims of this tragic accident, and their loved ones.

First off I want to say that this video isn’t just with Ryan Kwanten (Jason Stackhouse in True Blood) it also has Chris Bauer (Andy Bellefleur also on True Blood) and I would have added that in the title as well but then it would have been the longest in the history of the internet.

Back to the most important thing at hand though. Gay bullying is still rampant in our schools, playgrounds and even our own homes. It must stop and I, along with probably millions of others want those suffering to know that it does get better.

It should also be noted that the It Get’s Better campaign isn’t there only for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people. There are endless reasons for people to feel that they don’t fit in, that they are alone and no one understands or cares. This is simply not true.

Watch the video and see that there is light at the end of the tunnel. You aren’t alone and this phase in your life will pass, no matter how bad a situation is there is always hope and if you reach out and ask for help you can get the helping hand you need to get back to the light.

That was a really long sentence but I want you all to know that I love each and everyone one of you, not for your “normal” traits but for the neat quirky bits that make you, well, you.

And just because I came across it:

You’re very welcome.