Well, we didn't make it to the sex toy party.  And what's up with the comments about marriage in relation to that?  Who needs marriage to enjoy a good dildo?  Hmmm ...

We ate Chinese food and grabbed some ice cream at Klavons in the Strip.  I was still a little rattled by my experience of being trapped in my car in the middle of the Waterworks parking lot during Part Deux of the storms on Thursday.  While we are fortunate to have no damage to our property, it was the most terrifying 20 minutes of my life and I was surprised to find that I couldn't just shake it off.  Of course, Friday I had to staff a table out in the middle of Schenley Park in the rain.  We packed up and ran for the cars, but I was trembling at the thunder roaring in my imagination.  So needless to say, a quiet evening minus any thumping bass seemed restorative.  I am somewhat bummed that Klavon's is temporarily out of chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream which cures all sorts of ailments and nervous conditions.  And I am happy to report that those yuppies who brought their children into the establishment were in full parental mode resulting in several charming moments and much pleasurable ice-cream consumption time. 

Anyway, there's some other good stuff coming up you should know about ...

The Singles Supper Club is coming up on Wednesday August 15 at 5801 in Shadyside.  It is $12.00 per person and reportedly has some women in attendance.  For more information

The Renaissance City Choirs (men and women) are holding auditions at the end of the month.  Check out www.rccpittsburgh.org for more details. 

The Pittsburgh Lesbian and Gay Film Society is seeking submissions from folks with local connections.  Check out www.plgfs.org for more information.   I'm going kayaking with the plgfs president on Sunday.  But, alas, I have nothing to submit. 

Operation Sappho has moved to Cattivo in Lawrenceville (all the lesbians are buzzing about Cattivo) on Saturday, August 18 from 10 PM - 2 AM.  Apparently, it is a juvenile delinquent theme -- Ehrrin and I tried to decipher that and its the best we could come up with!). 

Erie Pride is August 25, 2007

Here's something you should bookmark ... the Pgh Queer Events Calendar  Ehrrin does a super-duper job keeping us homos informed on what's going down in Pittsburgh's Queer and Queer-Friendly scene.  And she does it out of the goodness of her heart.  Visit early and often.  I've gotta come up with a street name for Ehrrin since she's a recurring character in this blog.  Suggestions? 

So that's it for me.  Other icky stuff is happening across the homosphere.  Fred Phelps says the bridge collapsed to punish Minnesota for being so gay tolerance (huh?).   The Phillies have lost five years in a row on "Gay Night" and Repent America thinks they know why.  Good grief.  No links provided. 

I'm off to put up flyers, hit the library and then, apparently, do housework to appease Ledcat.  Tomorrow, we are going kayaking with some friends.  I'm very excited.  As long as there are no river snakes ...

I didn't see it.  We don't have cable here at Lesbian Central, so we miss out on all sorts of things like The L Word, Queer as Folk and, well, the entire lineupon LOGO.  I've never seen The Sopranos or pretty much any of its peers.  (Don't cry for us -- we trade a cable payment for internet access, dozens of cool magazines and plenty of nice evenings sitting on the porch with popsicles, observing real life on the Northside.)

So, I have a choice. I have been pouring through reports from various blogs and online homosites.  I could share my thoughts from that second-hand perspective.  But I'm not going to do that.  Instead, I'll share my thoughts on the meaning of the event and give you a few links to chew on the content. 

First, I'm absolutely pleased this event took place.  It is historic and a recognition that our community is a significant voting block.  Our responsibility is to use that power effectively.  As all politics are local, think back to the ACDC forum in May 2007 (aka "The Big Gay Chat")  We learned quite a bit about the stances of our local politicians on "gay issues" and voted accordingly (i hope you voted!).  Now we'll see what happens.  County Council Prez Rich Fitzgerald promised a meeting with LGBTQ human services leaders, of which yours truly was included, but so far -- no meeting.  Dan Onorato is calling for progress on City-County mergers, but not a single line of coverage on what this means for those of us who rely on domestic partner benefits provided to city employees (Hey, Mike Lamb!).   Is our community moving on these issues?  Has Steel-City Stonewall or Gertrude Stein been talking with County Council members? Who is taking the lead on the meeting with Rich Fitzgerald?  And, did anyone ask Beth Pittinger what happened to putting a queer person on the CPRB?

My point is that having an opportunity to hear what candidates for public office have to say about our issues does matter.  But what comes next is what matters more.  I personally haven't seen any "next" yet from the ACDC event.  Even the moderator, Hugh McGough, left public service for the private sector!   

As for our Presidential candidates, the general consensus seems to be that they are pretty good across the board on most issues ... Don't Ask, Don't Tell; hate crimes protections, non-discrimination.  So they want us to be free to be productive members of society without fear of being bashed or denied the right to die in Iraq.  Great.  And I only mean that to drip with a little sarcasm.  It really is great how far we've come on basic issues.

Then there's the marriage issue.  More importantly, the states' rights issue.  Hillary et al seem comfortable leaving a civil rights decision to the individual voters within each state.  It is not a credible position given our state-by-state track record on legislating discrimination, especially around marriage (hello to my friends in marriages of mixed racial heritages).  And it is a political cop out.

Anyway, here are a few links for more information on what went down.

Huffington Live Blog

Pam's House Blend (including a nice follow up on New Mexico's Bill Richardson saying homosexuality is a choice, perplexing given his good record on LGBT issues)

365gay.com has a nice overview

The Bilerico project has an overview and an analysis of what went wrong.

And you can catch all sorts of snippets from the event at YouTube.

My call after reviewing the materials   - Edwards is best on our issues and did a good job tying OUR rights into universal HUMAN rights ... like healthcare and he nailed it on homeless LGBTQ youth.  I've said all along it will be Edwards with Obama or Clinton as the VP candidate.  I've thought that because I know America isn't ready to elect a black man or a woman.  I'm starting to think he's our best candidate.  I truly believe Edwards has a better grasp of what life is like for those without privilege, especially those enmeshed in poverty. We'll see what happens ...

A gentle chastisement for my fellow bloggers here in the Burghosphere ... where is your coverage on this historic political event?  I have received numerous email messages asking me for my response.  Did anyone email dayvoe, the admiral, ms.monongahela or bram?  How about Johnny Mac?  Might Chris Potter write a column comparing the ACDC event to the LOGO/HRC event?  Will Dr. Goddess take a stab at what's happening on LGBTQ issues in the African-American community  - would Obama lose or gain local support if he was more openly supportive?  There's a lot of chatter among openly gay African-American bloggers about these issues.  What does it mean for Pittsburgh?

Some of them might even have cable ....