Moving, Milk, Music and More!

I am feeling much better mentally today than I have all week.  I guess that making progress in getting things done in preparation for the big move has helped lift my spirits.  We got the unit we wanted in the complex we wanted and everything is set for us to move in on Friday the 31st.  I made all the arrangements for the transfer of electric and cable/internet so there will be as little disruption in our access to the outside world as is possible.  The cable guy is coming out Friday afternoon, and I will probably pre-schedule a post for Friday morning before I take the computer down and pack it up Thursday evening before I go to work.  I have scheduled the truck pickup for Thursday evening so we can get started as soon as I get off on Friday morning.  So by Friday evening we should be up and running again if all goes as planned.  I have built some lee way into the schedule of events so that  we can be flexible if we hit a snag somewhere.  Now all I have to do is go through my stuff and get rid of the unnecessary stuff and pack it all up so that we just have to load on Friday morning.  Of course some things like the perishables can't be packed until Friday morning, but a great deal of the things we have can be packed beforehand.  In the meantime we have the rest of this week to get through and the Memorial Day holiday is this weekend with Monday being both Memorial Day and my official entry into senior citizenry as I celebrate my 62nd birthday.  

Speaking of birthdays, today is the 83rd birthday of Harvey Milk, one of my personal heroes.  It is a State holiday in California today and a day for all of us to pause and celebrate all that Harvey did in paving the way for the progress we are seeing so much of now.  I believe Harvey would be pleased at our progress, but would urge us to keep on pressing on towards the goal  of total equality.  He would probably be dismayed at some of the antics of the opponents of our freedom and equality, and I am sure he would be appalled at the violence still simmering so near the surface that any one of us could be touched by it at any time.  No matter how far we have come, the fight is not over, but we are winning more than we are losing, and our opponents know it as well as we do.  This is no time to become complacent but time to press onward and upward to victory.  These are exiting times in which we live, we just have to remember to pass on the Hope that Harvey gave to us on to the next generation.   Hope and Hard Work will clear the pathway so we may all walk free.  Happy Birthday, Harvey,  I hope you are smiling down on us as we continue the good fight for all of  us.  

Your Musical Moment for this Hump Day features music from several Italian baroque composers written for several instruments.  All the selections in the play list have been transposed from their original instrumentation and arrangements so that they may be performed by Solo Trumpet and Ensemble.  Included in the play list are Vivaldi Concerto in A minor RV356, Marcello Concerto in C minor, Albinoni Concerto in B flat major Op.7 No.3, Cimarosa Concerto in C minor (freely arr. by Arthur Benjamin), Vivaldi Concerto in G major RV310, Tartini Trumpet concerto in D major D53 (originally for Violin) and Albinoni Concerto after Sonata da Chiesa in D minor.  Today's performance is by the Scottish Ensemble and features Alison Balsom on Solo Trumpet from this CD. 

When I went to select photographs to share today, I was in a rather lascivious mood.  Therefore we have this collection of lively Lickable Lads that should make you all want to practice the fine art of tongue bathing on any one (or more!) of the gentlemen on display below the play list.  Thanks for spending part of your day here at Nichevo, see you again soon.  Until next time as always, Enjoy!  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Importance of Coming Out

There has been a lot of words being bandied about in both the main stream and LGBT media regarding the evolution in support for Marriage Equality by GOP Senator Rob Portman, some good and some bad and some totally evil.  Senator Portman's evolution started the day his son Will came out to him as Gay two years ago.  Like a lot of parents whose kids come out to them, the journey from knowledge of the fact to acceptance and support of their children takes some time.  Most people don't come out until after their own journey to self acceptance, some journeys being much longer than others.  Why should their parents be any different?  I agree the ideal situation is complete and total acceptance and support from the get go, but that is almost always not the case.  Some families never take the trip, while others like my family gets stuck somewhere along the line.  The important thing to remember here is not the length or difficulty of the journey, it is the fact that the journey arrived at the desired destination of acceptance and support.  That Senator Portman arrived at his journey's destination of acceptance and support, even though it took two years, is a fact to be celebrated.  I congratulate Senator Portman on his evolution and welcome him into the ranks of straight allies where he is indeed in good company.  

This is another case that proves the inestimable importance and the worth of the act of coming out, for it is far harder to hate someone if you know them.  Fear and Prejudice are overcome with knowledge, give your parents, your friends, acquaintances and coworkers that knowledge, empower them so that they too can make their own journey to acceptance and support.  It is like Harvey Milk said all those years ago:

"Gay brothers and sisters, ... You must come out. Come out ... to your parents.... I know that it is hard and will hurt them but think about how they will hurt you in the voting booth! Come out to your relatives, come out to your friends, if indeed they are your friends. Come out to your neighbors, to your fellow workers, to the people who work where you eat and shop, come out only to the people you know, and who know you. Not to anyone else. But once and for all, break down the myths, destroy the lies and distortions. For your sake. For their sake. For the sake of the youngsters who are becoming scared by the votes from Dade to Eugene."
    Harvey Milk - "That's What America Is" speech, San Franciso Gay Freedom Day (25 June 1978)

While we are on the subject of coming out, one Dad saved his son the trouble of coming out with the letter pictured below:

I wish every Gay kid could have a Dad as cool as this one, Nate is a truly luck fellow. 

Your Musical Moment for Monday is Volume 2 of the Violin Concerti by Jean-Marie Leclair, along with a Concerto for Flute.  Today's performance is by Collegium Musicum 90 featuring Simon Standage on Solo Violin/Conducting and Rachel Brown on Solo Flute from their CD.  The play list includes Violin Concerto in F Major, Opus 7 Number 4; Violin Concerto in A Major, Opus 10 Number 2; Flute Concerto in C Major, Opus 7 Number 3 and Violin Concerto in A Major, Opus 7 Number.  

Then concluding today's post is this week's collection of marvelously muscly men and a couple of muscular twunks as well, all lounging about the page in their not so modest Monday's Undies for your visual appreciation.  Thanks for spending part of your Monday with me here at Nichevo, see you again tomorrow.  Until next time as always, Enjoy!

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