In response part duex....

Ok....

Here's the deal. There were a LOT of thing said on this site both could be looked at as mean, hurtful and possibly bitter. All not true.

Anyone who knows me or who may or may not read this blog knows I am HIGHLY verbal and opinionated. BUT those of you who may not have seen or talked to me in a long time might take what I say as offensive and hurtful.

For that I'm truly and deeply sorry.

Honestly ... I just feel deeply and passionately for some things just like you might about others. I did have a strong reaction to the last comment on my blog about gay bashing....I decided in everyones best interest, it's really not worth posting.

Why you ask?

Because it then gets into this he said/she said of opinions.

That's what it all comes down to. Me trying to express my view, you with yours....

When it comes down to it, it's everything I've ever respected in a CONVERSATION!!!! You listening to my opinion without disrespecting it. Granted I could take a lot what is said as disrespect, but I don't ... and I won't.

That would be like me asking you to choose between me and a friend, or family member, or life partner..... I would never say that....

"Choose me or....."

"I'm better because...."

"You KNOW I'm right because...."

All totally irrelevant!

One thing I pride myself on is having a HUGE diverse group of friends. Best thing about my friends, they all don't agree on everything....but we all respect what we believe.

Josh, to you especially. I RESPECT everything that you believe. Doesn't mean I don't think some of it is unfounded, but I think you are entitled to your beliefs and opinion! Thank you so much for making my blog very interesting for the 1st time in years! :) I've never thought of you as anything other than an intelligent amazing human being ... and I would hope you felt the same...

and by the way....the email I sent to get other to review it...said nothing other than this is what a FRIEND though of what I posted....I just what you 'first' reaction. The only reason, is to make my anger and frustration subside....trust me it worked. I do understand, I don't agree, but understand.

Turning 30...

Or 29 repeated as I like to say!

What have I done today besides thank everyone for the best wishes ever?

Worked! Get Excited!

This is what 30 looks like after a full day in a packed dentists office! A little tired, I admit, but not bad for the big 30! Good genetics I assume ;)

And honsetly who ELSE has a 30 rack like this :) Thanks to Alex for THAT reminder! HA!

In response....

I’ve decided to take this one step at a time with my response to this comment. I’m not going to lie when I first read it, I was infuriated by it. I wasn’t even going to publish it as a comment on my blog, then I thought, that would just make me look ignorant, so I calmed down for a day or so and here’s what I did.

I sent it so as many diverse people as I could think of, asking for their opinions. From the UBER religious, to the moderate, to the non believer. From gay to straight, male to female, black, white, Hispanic, "mutt" if you will…to see what their initial reaction to it was. Specifically I told people humor was ok, but ignorance was out of the question. Honestly I got a lot of "I will not dignify this nonsense with a response." Which is funny to me cause I’m always all about saying something…but I digress.

I also wasn’t sure how I was going to keep my thoughts straight when attempting to reply since when you’re upset, you tend to go in several directions and not keep your thoughts straight. So I’m going for more of an editorial style. From here on out everything Josh said will be in italics, everything I'm responding will be in bold...hopefully it'll all be clear.

Here goes nothing:

Actually, Dawn, if people kept their mouths shut and actually DID keep it in their bedrooms, you wouldn't hear speeches like this. Seriously? You want to talk about people keeping it in their bedrooms? Just as many hetero people are guilty of PDA as homosexuals. I've never seen two gay people having sex in public and trust me I've been to a LOT of gay bars, I'm sure people have, but I'm not one of them. I have on numerous occasions seen heterosexual couples having sex in public from every where from Cubs game to a night club. Not to mention the oversexed TV, billboards, magazines, etc.....really...you want to talk about keeping it in the bedroom? Don't you get it that that is what the whole speech was about? Homosexuals shoving their agenda and what they do in their bedrooms down OUR throats? Do you see heterosexual parades? Agenda (def): A list or program of things to be done or considered. Is consideration really such a bad thing? I wish more people were a little considerate. Those parades you speak of, are to promote tolerance and equality, YES there is some flamboyance and promiscuous, I don't fully agree with all if the blatentness of it, but then again ... there are extremes with everything! ... Jewish people don't protest the Christmas parade, I'm not going to burn down the neighbors’ house for his excessive Christmas decorations or sue the store for playing Christmas music. I don't knock the Polish parade, or start comparing Mexicans to Islam when its Cinco de Mayo...it's all the same difference. People dressed trashy, walking down the street, holding hands, making out, etc? Are you talking about Taste of Chicago or Boy's town here? Really it describes both. Hell, that sentance describes the high school down the street, or the mall! Or how bout the "gay games", modeled after the Olympics? Ever looked into that? It's disgusting! Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, personally I think pierced lips or facial hair is disgusting, but I'm not going to make government policy against it. Very distasteful (again in the eye of), orgies open public sexual behavior, etc. WHERE?! Did I miss it!!! I didn't see a single orgie! We're you there to see it happen, or just assuming a stereotype? It's like someone took the Olympics, as wonderful and amazing as it is, and turned it into this horrible disgusting thing! It's like they turned a Ruth's Chris filet mignon into a McDonald's cheeseburger Why not just compete in the regular Olympics?! Do they have a "no homosexuals" rule? Or was it the "no men in speedos making out on the track field" rule that did it. Hmm, yeah, that's probably what it was. I'm very sympathetic to that. I can never wait to get back into my bedroom either. Just gotta show the world how much I love being a hetero! This is actually my favorite line of this response to me. I mean REALLY have you seen a gay man run? Do we honestly want to see the humiliation of a lesbian beating the pants off the Russians in the javelin throw? And isn't bob sledding just kinda gay anyway? OF COURSE they don't have a "no homosexuals rule", I'm sure there ARE gay people in the Olympics, you just don't hear about it cause they keep it to themselves. Don't ask don't tell .. blah blah blah. They do have a no athletic ability rule of sorts you do have to qualify. That's like saying get rid the Special Olympics too cause they don't have a 'no cripple' rule. Do you know how many 'events' are modeled after the Olympics? I just competed in the 'beer Olympics' last year, and the 'bar Olympics' is one of my favorite Fridays competitions. Honestly.....it's just a word, meaning international multi-sport subdivided into summer and winter sporting events. And if you want to look at what's disgracing it, much like the MLB, it full of steroid and performance inhancer users , the athletes IN the Olympics are hurting the Olympics not the gay games.

The point is, nobody cares, or wants to hear what these people do in their bedroom, just like they don't want to hear what I do in mine! You are correct, but you do and get to talk/post about who YOU love and hold her hand in public you even posted you two kissing on the internet. Why isn't that considered inappropriate or disgusting? If you love someone you should be able to freely express it. APPROPRIATELY of course! If you don't want to see it, stop looking it up on 'Flicker'. And for anyone to say that it IS a healthy lifestyle, is obviously living under a rock. What lifestyle do you think is spreading and has spread aids faster than any other in this country?? HOLY CRAP!! Josh, you really need to get out from underneath that 1980 religious rock your under. This is actually the most uneducated mis-informed sentence I've ever seen! I will quote a friend here he wrote me in response to this: "There is a difference between sexuality and lifestyle. Sexuality is who you prefer to see naked. Lifestyle is the company you keep, music you listen to, clothes you wear, food you eat, etc. There is a difference between not liking something and thinking it is wrong. It’s okay not to like something. I don’t like watermelon jolly ranchers and country western music, but I don’t dare say something is wrong (which is the same as saying “I don’t agree with it”) I find it hard to believe that people intelligent enough to compose an email message on a computer are still ignorant enough to think they have the world figured out and can declare for all humanity what is wrong and right. Who gave them this right? A fairy tale god? A false sense of infallibility? Or are they just so smart they unlocked the mysteries of the universe before anybody else managed to?" - Jeff P. I agree with Jeff. You don't have to AGREE with homosexuality, but to say it as a whole is unhealthy? That's just ignorant and one sided.

There's a big difference in gay bashing, and not agreeing with the gay lifestyle. I obviously don't agree with it, and yes, it IS a lifestyle. Your opinion, but really why would someone CHOOSE to be killed, bashed, looked down upon, segregated against for their life time so they can have a 'life style'...that doesn't even make sense! Can you tell me why some men prefer blondes? Or really thin girls? Or why some women get turned on by rock hard abs? If I got to CHOOSE who I was attracted to I wouldn't have fallen in love with a loser who put my head through a car window. IF this is the case, I choose to be black and attracted to hippie men with beer guts and don't shower...get me to a tanning booth STAT! But just because I don't agree with it, doesn't mean that I don't love them just like I love anyone else. I have friends who are gay, and I love them and cherish their friendship the same as I do anyone else. Can you really say you love someone if you can't be tolerant and accepting of who they are? I think that's an oxymoron.

It's so unfair of you to throw someone who disagrees with something into a "hate group" of people who "gay bash". They are SOO different. I completely agree. Bash by def: to criticize another harshly accusatorially and threateningly. That speech was criticizing HARSHLY and ACCUSATORIALLY of the gay community. And to make a policy against gays is THREANING so by definition that is bashing. Ok, another quote: It is irreprehensible for her to make a speech about the "Dangers of Gays" and to try to push public POLICY against them!!!! (Remember Hitler and the Jews???) - Erich R. To tell someone they are wrong because they don't believe in what you do, or try and make public policy about is not a positive thing, for ANYONE gay or straight. I have my own opinions and reasons why I don't agree with it and why I believe it IS a lifestyle and a choice. But that is something we can discuss if you like. But I just had to stick up and speak up for the OTHER side of this argument. Aren't we excited that we live in a country where we can have opinions? But let’s remember opinions are NOT based on any kind of scientific fact. I don't think this is a very fair video, and it's as one-sided and offensive (it was a recording, of what she said, that's not really one sided, it more of her straight out opinon) to us non-gay bashers as it is to the gays who MADE the video! If you ARE gay, you better get out there and do your research and find out what lifestyle you're getting into! It's scary, and it's 10X as dangerous as a heterosexual lifestyle! Aids is growing faster than ever before! Here's where I HAVE done research. Of the 40 million people on Earth with AIDS most cases were contracted through heterosexual sex on the African Continent. Most of the new AIDS cases in the US are heterosexual women of color, most prostitutes and IV drug users. Now, I do not choose to live my life in a promiscuous way, but it doesn't mean that I'm one to judge someone who does. I'm also a recovering drug addict and know I put myself into danger A LOT when I choose to do them, is anyone telling me I'm worse than a terrorist? Hetero and Homo has nothing to do with the spread of AIDS. It's not possible for AIDS to spread faster because two women went to bed, or because a man ejaculated into another man. That's just stupidity! In the gay community sure it might be more possible to contract something, lets face it, their having more sex. Another quote, just cause I liked it: "Having sexual contact with a carrier (same sex or not) of the HIV virus is what gives you AIDS. It is true that many homosexuals are promiscuous, but that is an aspect of the lifestyle they lead, not their sexual orientation. If there was a minority community of heterosexuals that lived a similar lifestyle, I guarantee AIDS would spread just as quickly. It’s astonishing that people in 2008 actually think a virus can jump farther off a penis that it can a vagina." Jeff P. Honestly, that's probably why every gay person I know are such happy people, they're getting some more than the rest of us :) But I also know plenty of gay men and women that don't sleep around that choose to be in loving committed relationships with their partners and are hard working contributors to society. My little sister Becky (who I LOVE) works with disabled children and the deaf, she has the biggest heart of anyone I know, she also sports a mohawk and is a lesbian. My brother Rich (whom I LOVE as well), works for a charitable group helping to fund individuals and organization that will carry out projects and programs which better humanity, he went to Desert Strom with the Air Force, he's also a out and proud gay man. If that is a 'lifestyle' is something that we should shy away from, I'm afraid to find out where our society is going.


Don't go criticizing what I'm saying until you go out there and do your own research, because I have. For instance, google "why aids is spreading" or something along those lines. You'll find a few facts in almost every article. "aids is most common among gays and spreads fastest throughout the homosexual community" "drug use helps with the spread" and "unprotected sex helps spread it." But first and most critical, they always stress the homosexual lifestyle. I want you to know by FAR I am not trying to be critical but informative. You can find anything you want to support your opinion on the internet. I can find a site that will support a claim that molesting children is ok, or raping women, or even bulimia. It doesn't mean it's an informative educated or right for that matter. I understand your religious standings as well....remember we once went to the same church. But I also left that church when they wanted me to denounce my family because of who they were instead of embracing and loving them for who they were. If Christianity is supposed to be tolerant and loving, it shouldn't be so critical and guilt driven. I decided to live my life with faith. I do, say, and live my life making decisions and doing things that I won't regret. If I do hurt someone or myself, I forgive or ask for forgiveness and move on, but I don't regret...I LEARN. I believe in a higher power, but I believe it lives in my heart not in a book that has been interpreted a million times over the years. I don't believe in taking only certain 'excerpts' from a book and applying it and not living by others. Golden Rule really....do onto others as you would have them do onto you. Would you want someone to make a video that you’re terrorist and recruiting children because you’re a vegetarian? I highly doubt it. SO to the makers and the posters of that video...

I'M LISTENING TOO! (us individual lovers). Believe it or not, you can love a person even if you disagree with their lifestyle! At least some of us can.

In conclusion, I really just want to express that opinions are JUST THAT, opinions. I'm not right or wrong, neither are you. I had a lot of people, gay straight married religious (even a priest.) tell me that you sounded fearful of the gay community, I don't want to make the assumption you are based on one post. I also don't want to include the intolerance of the people who told me to tell you to go to hell....it's not right and it's just as pig headed of an argument as that video was making. I want you to understand and respect my opinion as much as I understand as respect yours. I don't like all gay people, nor do I like all straight people. But I also don't like all Jews, or Christians. Or black, whites, or Hispanics... or all men or all women....I like the people I meet for the people they are.

Words like this politicians just spread hatred and intolerance of people. Saying 'GAYS' as a group did this is like saying all black men are rap artists or gang bangers, or all Jews are rich and cheap....stereotyping is bashing. Our forefathers came to this country to get away from religion and politics. Please keep your religious beliefs out of my politics, think of what's productive for the country, not looking at what's wrong and finding a scapegoat. I could go on and on about that, but I'd be here all night.

I want you to know, it was about 50/50 with the people I showed the post to. Some of them embraced the lifestyle, some are very against it, but all of them agree in tolerance of people. I’m never going to agree with everything another person is saying…EVER, nor am I going to agree with how everyone lives their lives. I will agree to disagree, but I won’t agree to spread hated of any group. That's all I'm trying to promote...with a little humor and sarcasm of course.

Gay Bashing...

There's nothing that infuriates me more than gay bashing. When some random IDOIT on the street does it I just roll my eyes at his stupidity. But when views like THIS somehow make it into our legislature, it ANGERS me. Homosexuality is not a disease to be cured! Why don't you spend your time thinking about these countries REAL problems instead of what they do in their bedrooms that doesn’t hurt anyone? Peoples sexuality doesn't destroy nations, this kind of thinking does.

Moments with the fam....

Today is my niece Kayleen's SWEET 16. Yes, this makes me feel old, but I love her more everyday because she thinks I'm crazy...

....it's cause I am :)

This is my nephew Logan, I don't know what makes me happier. The cowboy hat, the pants around his ankles, or the fact he doesn't seem to have a care about either and continues putting letters on the fridge.

This is my pops. There are not many men in my life that totally get me....this one does, completely and still loves me for it :) He makes me smile....cause he's just as 'special' as I am.

Why do I love my friends?

In the last 2 days I've gotten the following text messages that just make me SO happy people think of me in these moments enough to share.

I'm in love with the voice in the elevator and the way it says lobby.

Choices Choices Hmmmm....regular gasoline or premium gasoline? Tsk Tsk thats it I quit...Too hard for me

I was u on stage last night basically having sex to a justin timberlake song! HA! (In my defense this has never happened)

What's up love New Orleans is UBER dangerous to my liver! My co-worker got sick last night and still continued to walk down Bourbon.

I just saw an Amish midget! I love this hospital.

(and my personal favorite) OR you could just have a quickie sex change in Mexico

Babysitting the last 72 hours has made me decide to come home and get my tubes tied.

Roomservice ok or would you like me to cater in?

I demand Zima and I demand it now

I think it's pretty clear...my friends are twisted and messed up. Then again, so am I so I like them that way.

I'll never forget....

I wrote this a while ago, and thought I'd post it to share with Facebook, since I got a jolt of emotion with this photo. And since Facebook doesn't have a blog, I'll direct your attention here :)

It's a wonderful Valentine I got from Randy Pratt forever ago.

July 22, 2006 - Saturday

Lost.....but found I found the most amazing, heart wrenching, tear jerking, wonderful gift today.

Something I got a LONG time ago from someone very special to me and has always held a place in my heart.

Years ago, I lost contact with this friend, but he never left my heart. About a year ago I got the worst email I've ever gotten in my life. This man that made such an impact on my life at one point in time, had taken his own life.

I never did find out why, hell I never even found out where the funeral was. I just know I cried more than I had cried in a long time and even though this friend and I hadn't talked in years, I had a void in my soul now that he was gone.

Randy was an amazing soul, for those of us who were fortunate enough to meet and let Randy in our lives, we are better more amazing people because of it.

The gift I found today.....a wonderful Valentine's Day card he hand made for me with this note inside.....

Dawn,I've written this card about four times and still can't get it right. Everything I try to express my love with words, they sound empty. It's hard to verbalize pure emotion. Instead, I've decided to put my promise to you in writing.

I will always love you. If you need or want anything, a friend, protection, a shoulder to cry on, a hug, money, food, shelter, an escape, or just someone to talk to, I will be here to give that to you. No matter what, you will always have my heart.You are the nicest, most beautiful, and caring friend a person could ask for and I am honored that you let me into your life, even though I don't deserve someone as good as you.

Dawn, I love you.

Happy February 14th

Randy.

.....all I have to say to that is, if all of this was true Randy .... I would be describing you, not the other way around.I hope your soul is free now, and your at peace. Someday I'll be there to join you to tell you what I should have told you over and over since I got this card, how much I love you too.