the beauty is in the honest life

NPR: Writer Says Being Gay Is About Being Honest: "A popular rejoinder to homophobes today is to assert that being gay is not a choice — that we are born this way, as Lady Gaga tells us. I disagree. The most important part about being gay is precisely the part we choose — to stand up and own who we are, proudly."

I saw a great concert last week: Brandi Carlisle opened and Ray La Montagne was the headliner. Going in, I didn't know Brandi but she totally stole she show - incredible! Ray was great too, but not as dynamic a performer and, well, all his songs are sort of downers....Anyways, overall it was just a wonderful concert, and the first night out at Britt always marks the real beginning of the summer for me!

Image: source.

From NPR: The End of Gender?

More on Jose Antonio Vargas, and the "undocumented" v. "illegal" debate. I'm thrilled to see his excellent article and brave stand are getting so much attention.

Good news - I'm back to running! This week I'm in Boston for a friend's wedding and for general socializing and vacation. Yesterday I decided to try a run for the first time - and made it a whole mile without pain! I think I could've gone longer but I didn't want to force it. Today, with no pain, I ran a slow 3 miles with a friend! While neither of those runs got to the "running high" place, they did make me feel like I could get there again eventually...which feels great.

"You don’t want to start setting up another rule book, like: 'This is how you’re a feminist. And this is the way you dress. And this is the way you act. And this is the way you protest.' It’s like, some people protest carrying signs. Some people protest by making activist radical music. Sometimes people try to just make it through a day and not kill themselves, and that’s their activism for right then, because that’s all they have."- Kathleen Hanna