Archives › 2008 › January
Blog for Choice Day
Today is the 35th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, and also Blog for Choice Day. The organizers of the blogging event have asked us to explain why we believe it’s important to vote pro-choice. I tackle this topic with the acknowledgment that some readers may not, in fact, be pro-choice—though I think it’s safe to [...]
Words from Mrs. King
I posted this quote from Coretta Scott King, wife of Martin Luther King, Jr., last year at this time, but I think it bears repeating. Mrs. King was speaking at Lambda Legal’s 25th Anniversary Luncheon in 1998: As Martin once said, ‘We are all tied together in a single garment of destiny… an inescapable network [...]
No Name-Calling Week
Today marks the start of No Name-Calling Week, “an annual week of educational activities aimed at ending name-calling of all kinds and providing schools with the tools and inspiration to launch an on-going dialogue about ways to eliminate bullying in their communities.” The event was created four years ago by GLSEN (Gay, Lesbian, and Straight [...]
A Martin Luther King Day Conversation
My son’s preschool class has been talking about the Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday. “Martin Luther King was a peacemaker,” my son informed me last week. “And a bad man shotted him.” All things considered, I’m glad he doesn’t say the word “shot” enough to know its proper grammatical usage. I agreed with his assessment [...]
Weekly Political Roundup
The U.S. Congress will reconvene next week. 365gay.com summarizes the status of three LGBT-rights bills: the Matthew Shepard Hate Crime Act, the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA), and the repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell. Deb Price also looks ahead to what 2008 could hold for LGBT rights around the country. Price also discusses why the [...]
Lesbian Moms Run Amuck on Nip/Tuck
Always on the lookout for lesbian moms on TV, I’ve been disappointed that Portia De Rossi’s character on Nip/Tuck seems to have vanished now that her love interest has gone back to dating one of the main male characters. Still, previews indicate the character’s daughter Eden will be in future episodes, so maybe we’ll see [...]
“She Got Me Pregnant”: Episode 11
Helen and I cover an assortment of parenting items this week, including Mary Cheney’s new job and the advantages of being a working mom with a Secret Service escort. We also caution viewers against repeating Tina’s big faux pas on The L Word if dating as a single mom, and attack the foolishness of the [...]
Book Review: Happy Baby, Healthy Mom
A publicist sent me a copy of the Happy Baby, Healthy Mom Pregnancy Journal by Robert A. Greene, M.D. and Laurie Tarkan. I was looking forward to reviewing it, and glad that a general pregnancy publication from a mainstream press (Clarkson Potter, part of Random House) was reaching out to lesbian moms. The combination book [...]
The Daddy Machine
No, it’s not a turkey baster hooked up to a cryo tank. It’s the name of a new musical celebrating lesbian and gay families, running January 18-27 at San Diego’s Diversionary Theatre. Based on the book by Johnny Valentine, the show tells the tale of a boy with two moms who becomes disgruntled over not [...]
Dottie DVD Giveaway
20th Lambda Literary Award Nominees: Mombian Reviews
The Lambda Literary Foundation has announced nominees for the 20th Annual Lambda Literary Awards. I’ve reviewed a few of them on Mombian; here they are again, with links to the reviews: The Brides of March, Beren de Motier (iUniverse): A funny, touching memoir of the brief period of legal same-sex marriage in Multnomah County, Oregon. [...]
Canadian School Investigates Gay Teacher Who Displayed Photo of Spouse
First, the Evesham School District in New Jersey said third graders (usually eight years old) are too young to hear children’s books featuring same-sex couples. Now, one family in Winnipeg, Canada, wants to transfer their twelve-year-old seventh grader to another school because the boy’s teacher has placed a photo of his same-sex spouse on his [...]
Mary Heads Back to Work
Mary Cheney is ending her seven months of maternity leave and going back to work Monday. She’s taking a new job as a VP of strategic communications for Navigators LLC, “a full-service issue management, governmental relations and strategic communications firm” that has worked for that has worked for Arnold Schwarzenegger and John McCain, among others. [...]
Weekend Sports Edition
A couple of sporty lesbian moms in the news: Sports writer Kaki Flynn profiles lesbian mom Jenny Fulle, who in 1974 became “the first girl to officially play Little League baseball since the rule disallowing girls was added in 1951.” Fulle is now executive vice-president and executive producer of Sony Pictures Imageworks, whose film credits [...]
Weekly Political Roundup
A high school in Indiana banned a gay student from his prom when he arrived wearing a dress. Classmates came to his defense, and now, so has Lambda Legal. In Maine, the Bangor Daily News profiles the first same-sex couple in Penobscot County to do a second-parent adoption since they became legal in the state [...]
“She Got Me Pregnant”: Episode Ten
In this edition of our weekly video blog, brought to you in partnership with After Ellen, Helen and I offer parental insights into the first episode of The L Word, Season Five, tackling elitist preschools, competitive parenting, and the impact of breakups on children. We also take issue with a matter of timing in Angelica’s [...]
Children Ask, Children Tell
(Originally published in Bay Windows, January 10, 2008) Family Under Fire Iraq War vet tells of struggles to raise two sons while closeted Five-year-old William and three-year-old Ryan are the children of decorated U.S. Army officer Cheryl Parker. Like other children of service members, they have dealt with cross-country moves and months without their mother [...]
Taxing Our Patience
Tax-preparation software TurboTax has a number of Web pages devoted to helping people determine the tax implications of various life changes, such as changing jobs, getting married, or having children. To the right is the image they use under the title “Your Child.” They also use it in one of their television ads. Not exactly [...]
Another DVD Giveaway: BuddyG: My Two Moms and Me
Win a copy of BuddyG: My Two Moms and Me, the first fully animated show featuring a child of LGBT parents! Margaux Towne-Colley and Donna Colley, the women behind BuddyG, have offered a free copy to a Mombian reader. Let’s keep things interesting, though: The DVD will go to the first person who leaves a [...]
Product Review: New Games from Cranium
The prolific Cranium game company has launched a new line of games for preschoolers, Cranium Bloom. I recently had the opportunity to review two of them: Count and Cook and the Seek and Find Let’s Go to the Zoo puzzle. (Helen and I covered them in our latest vlog, but if you prefer text, read [...]
Songs of Resolution from Erin Lee and Marci
Children’s musicians Erin Lee and Marci bring us the next of their regular posts with thematic recommendations for kid-friendly music, plus activities to make the songs an interactive experience for the whole family. Look for Erin Lee and Marci here on the first Monday of each month, or visit their homepage, www.gottaplay.org. I’ve created links [...]
Do People Take Women with Short Hair More Seriously?
Strollerderby asks this provoking question in reference to Hillary Clinton. Heh. If it was true, of course, there would have been a lesbian president long ago, and Martina Navratilova’s birthday would be a national holiday. (Yeah, yeah. It’s a stereotype. Laugh with me here.)
The L Word Season Five, Episode One: The Parenting Perspective
Helen and I are going to tackle the season opener in our vlog this week, so stay tuned till Thursday for a full analysis of all the parenting scenes, storylines, and suggestions. The fifth season in fact kicks off with a big ol’ parenting scene. After a fantasy introduction in which Jenny imagines her thinly [...]
LGBT Family Link Roundup
A few miscellaneous items for your reading pleasure, collected over the holidays: Abigail Garner points out an article from the Connecticut Journal Inquirer, profiling 13-year-old Rebecca Lazarus, the daughter of two gay dads and an active advocate for LGBT families. Also in Connecticut, the Hartford Courant featured Elizabeth Kerrigan and Joanne Mock, lead plaintiffs in [...]
Ilene Chaiken: Channeling Shakespeare?
It came to my attention that January 6, when The L Word, Season Five premieres, is the date traditionally celebrated as “Twelfth Night” (though modern observances may place it on the 5th). Shakespeare, in his gender-mix-up comedy Twelfth Night, has Viola, in male drag, comment upon the Countess Olivia: She made good view of me; [...]
