Archives › 2006 › September
Lesbians Do Laundry
Appliance maker Whirlpool is launching a promotion with dating site Perfectmatch.com, in which they invite singles to join them at special “Spin Cycle” singles parties in cities around the country. “Besides potentially meeting your perfect match,” they say, “you’ll get to check out some new, premier laundry products perfect for your lifestyle.” Not my lifestyle, [...]
Indigo Girls Release New CD Tuesday
The Indigo Girls new CD, Despite Our Differences, comes out next Tuesday, September 19. You can preorder it now, if you want to get it as fast as humanly possible. Of course, if you’re the type of person to do that, you may prefer the special Collector’s Edition, with bonus live and acoustic tracks. I’m [...]
Preschool Craft Ideas
As the weather turns cooler for many of us, it’s always nice to have a line up of indoor activities for the little ones. Here are a few simple ones. (Of course, if you can get outside to enjoy the last few weeks of summer, by all means do so.) From Martha Stewart Kids comes [...]
Martina Wins 59th Career Title
Martina Navratilova retired in style this past weekend with her 59th career title and induction into the U. S. Open Court of Champions. She and tennis partner Bob Bryan won the mixed-doubles title, making her the oldest U. S. Open champion in that event. (She turns 50 in October.) Billie Jean King was honored at [...]
Article on Same-Sex Couples and Adoption
Reuters today has a feature titled “U. S. Gay Couples Struggle to Adopt.” There’s probably nothing there that would surprise most readers of this blog, but it’s notable that this is getting mainstream coverage. There are some good quotes from same-sex parents as well as a reminder that only ten states in the U. S. [...]
Board Games for Kids
I’m reporting to you live from the site of the Candy Land World Championships, where our resident Grandmaster is napping before he takes on his next challenger. My son finally gained the patience to play a board game a few weeks ago. My partner and I are avid (though not obsessive) gamers, and already our [...]
Serving in Silence
Yesterday, I spoke of the LGBT heroes of 9/11, and the LGBT men and women who continue to serve in our armed forces. Coincidentally (or not), today sees the DVD release of Serving in Silence, the story of Colonel Margarethe Cammermeyer, the highest- ranking U. S. officer to have been dismissed for her sexual orientation. [...]
The Lesbian Lifestyle, II
I went to our local warehouse store today and bought toilet paper, diapers, tampons, and cat litter. I spend entirely too much time taking care of my family’s nether regions.
LGBT Heroes of 9/11
The events of September 11 did not spare any group in the U.S., including the LGBT community. Among the openly LGBT heroes of September 11 were Mychal Judge, chaplain of the New York Fire Department and the first official casualty of the World Trade Center, and Mark Bingham, a passenger on United Airlines Flight 83, [...]
9/11, and Hope
I will always remember, as will many of us, where I was the morning of 9/11. A lucky change in job kept me away from Ground Zero at the time of the attack. For a year, I had been commuting on the PATH train to the World Trade Center, arriving around 8:45 a.m. every day. [...]
Blog Redecorating
Doing a little redecorating of the blog over the weekend. Things may look a little strange now and again for the next 24 hours. Please bear with me as I work out any remaining bugs. Thanks!
Happy Grandparents’ Day
Today is Grandparents’ Day here in the U. S. One might have guessed that such a commemoration would be subsumed, by definition, under Mother’s Day and Father’s Day, or that the holiday was a pure contrivance by Hallmark. Not so. According to the National Grandparents’ Day Council: The impetus for a National Grandparents Day originated [...]
The Lesbian Lifestyle
My partner and I are sitting here on the sofa watching the women’s U. S. Open finals. Never missing an opportunity to multitask, we both have our laptops open on the coffee table in front of us. I’m catching up on newsfeeds and she’s logged in to the office, doing actual salaried work. The baby [...]
Weekly Political Roundup
Posting late today. “Nap” has become a four-letter word around our house, and it’s hard to blog with a three-year-old running around wanting to play forest ranger. Karl Rove’s stepdad, with whom he had a “close relationship” is gay, a new book claims. Yes, that Karl Rove, who used same-sex marriage to mobilize the conservative [...]
Rainbow Card Now Available in Canada
I was reading an article on Martina Navratilova’s final appearance at the U. S. Open, and discovered that the credit card she started, the Rainbow Card, launched in Canada a few weeks ago. I thought this might be of interest to my Canadian readers. A portion of each purchase with the card goes to Martina’s [...]
Potential Breakthrough in Preeclampsia Treatment
Preeclampsia is a sudden complication of pregnancy that can be deadly for both mother and baby. Researchers at the U. S. National Institutes of Health have announced new findings that offer hope for earlier detection and possibly a cure. They say women with preeclampsia have high levels of two blood proteins several months before they [...]
Book Review: Single by Chance, Mothers by Choice
The American family is changing. That should come as no surprise to readers of this blog. The changes go beyond just the increasing numbers of same-sex families, however. Rosanna Hertz’s new book, Single by Chance, Mothers by Choice: How Women are Choosing Parenthood Without Marriage and Creating the New American Family offers a view from [...]
Entertainment, Tomboys, and Fast Lube
Kim Ficera writes on AfterEllen.com about the demise of fictional tomboyish role models on TV. Although it’s easy now to turn on the TV and find a lesbian, “she looks more like a centerfold than a centerfielder,” Ficera says. “I watched [1970's characters] Buddy and Jo because they were strong, independent and boyish, just like [...]
Terrorism, Disasters, and Children
Since today marks the midway point between the commemorations of Hurricane Katrina and 9/11, it seemed appropriate to highlight this page of resources (from the LGBT-supportive American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP)) to help families prepare for and cope with terrorism and natural disasters. While the information on biological, chemical, and radiological agents could drive anyone [...]
Press-Bot for Coffee or Tea on the Go
One for the gadget file: If you love camping, but your sweetie can’t survive a morning without her French roast (or if you’re the java fiend), try the Press-Bot Coffee Press. It’s designed to fit a wide-mouth Nalgene water bottle, seals completely, and includes an integrated pour spout. Works for loose tea, too. Yes, fall [...]
Postpartum Day
It’s the day after Labor Day, which makes it Postpartum Day, I figure. That’s perhaps apt, since this time of year has always meant new beginnings for me. Being a recovering academic, I think my biorhythms are still tied to the academic calendar, even though my son hasn’t started school yet. September always makes me [...]
Weekly Political Roundup
The student body of Uniformed Services University (USU), the Department of Defense health sciences university, this week voted for an openly gay student council president. Patrick M. High will represent graduate students at the school, who include uniformed armed services’ personnel. (Thanks, Nico.) As reported here earlier, the Alabama Democratic Party reinstated out lesbian Patricia [...]
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