Category Archives: A Gay Old World

Civil Partnership: What’s It All About?

Countdown to civil partnership: The Civil Partnership Act 2004 received Royal Assent on 18 November 2004. The Government announced on 21 February that the Act would come into force on 5 December this year. This will allow the first civil partnerships under the standard procedure to be formed on 21 December. 10 days to go and you can read all about it at the Women and Equality Unit.

On this day…

2005: Boxes Everywhere
2004: links for 2004-11-25
2004: Celebrity T-Shirt Auction
2003: Coolest of 2003
2002: Stuck On Me

Modern Life Is Rubbish

Modern Life Is Rubbish, at least that’s what Blur thought back in 1993. I can tell you some Modern Life things still aren’t what they should be.

The Modern Life Expo at London’s Business Design Centre was supposed to be an event

‘Combining entertainment and an exhibition we aim to provide suppliers for everything you need in your life from gay wedding planning, health, fashion, home, travel right through to the law & finance’ [site]

but it was such a mixture of things (mainly property overseas and wedding invitations) that it didn’t have any focus. Sadly, there weren’t that many people there when we first arrived and we were directed, immediately, to the coffee place rather than the event.

Events like this are kind of weird anyway. They invite people to take stands so that companies can promote their wares. The people attending want to look round without constantly being pounced on by salespeople. And the two do not go together well. Still, maybe next year …

On this day…

2006: Children In Need Is Britain’s version of Thanksgiving
2004: Another Grid Lock
2003: Movable Type Pro, Soon?
2002: I Want A Career (And I Want It Now)

Gay Life Is More Fun: Official

After posting a couple of days worth of Flick pictures from Oslo I came across the excellent Flickr Tag Fight via the Flock vs Firefox fight. Well, there was an obvious fight that I couldn’t find so I went and tried gay vs straight and lo, look how much more exciting gay life looks! You can go and see for yourself at gay vs straight flickr tag fight.

On this day…

2004: A Funny Thing Happened On the Way To The Forum
2003: Side Bar Dermot
2003: Queer Eye?
2002: The World May Not Revolve Around Me

Keep On Rolling

Great news from Spain. According to BBC News yesterday, Spain’s lower house of parliament has voted in favour of allowing gay couples to marry and adopt children, overruling last week’s rejection of the bill by the upper house, the Senate. The bill will become law in a month’s time, making Spain Europe’s third nation after the Netherlands and Belgium to allow same sex marriages. The BBC also has a handy review of the state of gay marriage around the world.

On this day…

2003: He Know Where They Are
2002: Last Weekend in June

A World Of Hate

I’m with The Tin Man: ‘I am, by nature, a conciliator. I donÂ’t like conflict.‘ which may be because I am, in some way, frightened by conflict. It’s my nature although I wonder if I could change it. Would, somehow, confronting my fears work for me? Would I be able to fight my demons and then stand up for what I believe in?

Surely, if ever, this is the time to start standing up and saying what I believe. In Spain this week, Fr. Jose Ramon Velasco compared the proposed bill to legalise gay marriage to the beginnings of Nazi Germany:

“Back then the majority of people also backed Hitler just like the majority back this law,” he said. “I’m serious, give it time and it will destroy the moral fiber of Spain and the West.” [source]

I sit back and wonder how we got here. How can love be turned into hate so easily? When a man of the church says, “I would rather you commit suicide than have you leave Love In Action wanting to return to the gay lifestyle” [see Zach’s story] it makes you wonder about people. Not about religion or about the church just about people and how that can be inhumane to each other.

I guess Rev. John Smid (who said the above words) and The Archbishop of York, John Sentamu, will never be friends. The Archbishop wants people to stop using “ghastly” language that implied people were “not human beings” because of their sexual orientation:

‘And when you use language which implies they were not human beings who are you to do that because you did not create them?’ [source]

I wonder if I am being too hopeful that his words will have any impact at all.

On this day…

2003: Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat
2003: My First PHP
2002: Joy and pain
2002: Not Great

Being Gay each Day

A year ago I noted that Armistead Maupin, author of the Tales of the City series, “helped me understand a bigger world where gay people live and have fun but are, deep down, just like their straight counterparts”. There’s an interesting debate over at plasticbag.org about when you should – or should not – declare you sexuality. It all started when Tom drew up a “Tongue-in-cheek-ish slightly-bored early-evening version of what I would kind of like my business card to be like” which spawned other conversations relating sexuality. It appears, kids, that when it comes to understanding the impact of sexual preference on our daily lives we are – unsurprisingly – not like our straight counterparts at all.

On this day…

2005: links for 2005-12-22
2002: Wedding

Mayor Of London

The race to be the Mayor of London is on again and it appears that some big names are trying to run the Capital for next few years. Ken Livingstone is, of course, the current Mayor and – I think – stands a good chance of getting in again. For the first few years people wondered what he had actually done (apart from give us bendy busses) but it all seems to have come good for him recently. The Liberal Democrats are fielding Simon Hughes and Steve Norris is standing as Conservative. The Green’s candidate (Darren Johnson) is gay and my financial advisor – Iavn Massow – is standing for some reason. The UK Independence Party cops up every now and then and their candidate is Frank Maloney who, according to this story at The Gay Vote, won’t campaign to areas where there are too many gays. Maybe London isn’t the city for him then.

Honestly I am a torn between a couple of the candidates. Of the three main players, I think they all represent the best bits of their respective parties which is interesting. Still some time to go until I have to make up my mind. Vote for the London Mayor on 10th June.

On this day…

2004: What Version Control?
2003: Music Industry Hysteria?

Gay Life in Britain

Also today, no time to comment on G2’s look at being gay in Britain today:

[I]s the mainstreaming of homosexuality only successful when done with a knowing wink? There’s a vast gulf between the cute campery of the likes of Brian Dowling and an actively sexual gay man

[Source]

Still, Tom does a much better job.

On this day…

2004: Kew Garden’s Winter Wonderland
2003: Worthy of Comment

Gay Dads

I don’t often re-read books that I have read before but for some reason I decided to re-read Dan Savage’s story of the adoption he undertook with his boyfriend, Terry. The second time round it’s just as great at the first time I read it.

I enjoy Dan Savage’s writing and ‘The Kid: What Happened After My Boyfriend and I Decided To Go Get Pregnant‘ did not disappoint.

It’s the true story of Dan and his boyfriend’s quest to adopt a baby. In Portland they are able to take part in an Open Adoption where the birth mother selects the parents for her child. This book covers the decision making process, the initial seminars, the selection and the birth in detail with a warmth and humour that make it an engaging tale. Dan takes a look at his life and his relationship to explain the process that got them to the point of adoption.

As gay adopters there is a different view of the process but I think it will be relevant to anybody considering adoption; the worries and the pitfalls are mainly the same. While Dan’s style is humorous and engaging it does not detract from the seriousness of the process and the depth of care all involved show for the baby.

A thoroughly warm and entertaining read that is also informative and insightful.

On this day…

2005: Flickr Christmas: Jamie Enjoys Herself
2005: Civil Partnership: Locally In Wandsworth
2005: Tribute To Atlantic 252
2002: Invisible Maps