ExWayDaryl

Hi all! He's BAAAAAAACK!!!! Hey Paw & Bob, thanks a bunch! I've been away for too long! Daryl

Not looking at your behind. But if I was wearing fuschia left, I might be. Fuschia Left Pocket in the Gay Hankie Code equals Spanker.

I am ExWayDaryl and I approve of this post. And do you REALLY want to know what the color fuschia is in the Hankie Code?

One observation, then I will shut up for a while… (but not for too long) One pivotal event in the gay rights movement took place in June, 1969. Judy Garland had just died, and a respectable segment of the gay community was in mourning. As was the habit of the New York City police department at the time, they decided to raid some of the gay bars during this time. They didn’t need any reasons to do so. It was a gay bar, which made it a target. That’s just the way things happened then. One of them was called the Stonewall Inn. And a strange thing happened. The usually passive, limp-wristed “queers” fought back. All of them. The leather bear types, the transvestites, and everyone in between. And it lasted for days. It made headlines around the world. At the time I was an Airman First Class based at Clark Air Base in the Philippines, and this story was published in “The Stars & Stripes,” a military newspaper that was free. I sat there eating my breakfast, reading this. My face was pointed at a different article on the page, but my eyes were drilling holes in this article. Inside, I was screaming, jumping, shouting, “Go, baby, go!!!!” Outside, I was stone-faced, apparently looking at a piece on runway improvements on the island of Guam, or some such thing while I ate my bacon and eggs. That is when the Gay Pride Movement began. It is now called “The Stonewall Revolution,” or, more simply, “Stonewall.” The police don’t raid gay bars any more, unless there is a very good reason to do so. The Chicago Police Department actively recruits gays and lesbians. One friend of mine, a guy who is straight, and a Chicago cop, has an on-the-job partner who is a lesbian. These two depend on each other on a daily basis, trusting their lives to one another. (Chicago, if you haven’t heard, isn’t the healthiest place to live if you’re a uniformed cop.) Neither one of them has a problem with the other’s sexual orientation. While we’re getting into professions, I know gay people who also don’t wash windows. I know at least 2 school teachers, one of whom taught at Lake Forest College prior to retiring. The other teaches music for the Chicago Public School system and is a concert organist. (I did the calligraphy for his two CDs, both of which were released in order to raise funds for AIDS research and treatment.) I know an Emergency Room nurse. A mainframe programmer. Another mainframe programmer who is blind and has a seeing-eye dog. Two people who work at Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory, “Fermilab,” one of whom is a physicist. Shall we talk about famous gay people? Socrates. Walt Whitman. Oscar Wilde. Congressmen Gerry Studds and Barney Frank. Cole Porter. Leonard Bernstein. T.E. Lawrence (Lawrence of Arabia). James Baldwin. Truman Capote. The late Congresswoman Barbara Jordan. Economist Milton Friedman, also a Nobel Laureate. There are many more, but I think you get the point. At one point, I said that we are the same in all the ways that really count. That statement stands. ExWayDaryl Armed, but only dangerous if shot at

Quote, posted Dec 27, 8:24 PM “Except for the fact that you play with other mens' penis's...Twisted!” With all due respect, Jonny, bite me. Who are you to judge me? Who are you to say that what I do or do not do, with whomever I choose, in a consenting adult environment, is “twisted?” In terms of biblical context, isn’t it just as much of an abomination to touch the skin of a dead pig? Have you ever played football, or watched the NFL on television? Are you married? If so, does your wife have periods? If so, do YOU bring two turtledoves or pigeons to the temple during that time? Why not? You people, every last one of you who says the Bible is the be-all and end-all of mankind’s existence are living in the Neo-Dark Ages. And you have managed to .... me off. If your oh, so holy deity condemns homosexuality in the way that you folks say he-she-it-they does, then why is it that I am a homosexual, undeniably, unchangeably, now and forever? If this is such a huge sin, why did El What’s His Name “permit” me to become this way, without any input or approval from me ahead of time? And once done, why didn’t aforesaid Cosmic Muffin give me a way out of it that ACTUALLY F*CKING WORKS? Don't give me your “Way” crap. (Sorry, did I mention I’m ....ed?) You say that God says that we do things which are “against nature.” Then why is it that homosexuality also exists in nature, something which is thoroughly documented? (Look it up for yourself.) That’s also your god. Don’t include me in your narrow minded, black and white, discriminatory view of the universe. Don’t bother to quote me your verses from someone (Paul) who had his own sexual issues. Since we’re talking about your holy bible, how about the woman who was caught “in the act” as it were? They were going to stone her to death until Jesus came by and said “He who is without sin, let him cast the first stone.” I see NOTHING there about the guy. From my perspective, “it takes two to tango.” He can get laid, maybe even forcibly rape the poor woman, then go home and have a smoke, take a nap, but she gets horribly and painfully executed in the process. So where’s your holy, pure, biblical justice there? I don’t see it. If you see justice there, (and hey, it’s in YOUR bible,) then YOU are the one who’s twisted! As far as being gay, there are some things you should know. First, I never chose it. Given that opportunity, who would, given the fact that there are folks like you around, as well as those who brutally murdered Matthew Shepard and Alan Schindler? If it sounds like I’m including you with them, well, then OK, I am. Because it’s not that far of a stretch from hating homos to justifying the murdering of them. Or me. Second: TWI caught up with me when I was at a vulnerable period. I was “in the closet,” and I wanted to be “out”, or “straight.” I tried to “become” straight. Nothing worked. Let me say that again: NOTHING WORKED. So when these folks came along, I took the bait, hook, line and sinker. I thought, “OK, then maybe this is my ticket!” NOT!!! Almost a decade and a half of trying to become a breeder, and guess what? I’m still gay. According to your bible, your way of looking at things, I’m an abomination. And I’ve done nothing wrong. You can’t tell me why, (you don’t have clue number one) and your holy book is no bargain either. Again, I have done nothing wrong. Yet, your deity condemns me for what I am, for what he caused me to be, or, for what he “permitted” me to become. So please don’t wonder why it is that I totally reject Christianity in any form. ExWayDaryl Armed and dangerous Somewhere in Illinois

This is an excellent topic. Thank you for starting it. Now I will proceed to add my own can of worms. Or should I say, Pandora’s box? In general, it’s hazardous to generalize. That said, there are certain stereotypes that tend to have their basis in what most folks perceive. Among those is the difference between gay males and females. Here is a joke to make this point: What does a lesbian bring on a second date? A U-Haul. What does a gay man bring on a second date? WHAT second date? The common belief, based largely in truth, is that lesbian relationships are more stable than gay male relationships. Why this is I can only surmise. I am guessing that it is the male’s proclivity to mate with anything that moves, while the female’s task is to preserve a stable home, keep the “family” together, maintain the camp while the male goes out hunting and gathering, and maybe mating with another should the opportunity arise. Again, this is just a guess on my part. An anthropologist I ain’t. Stereotypes, of course, don’t fit across the board. In general, however, there is evidence to support my supposition. In Chicago and the surrounding area, there are numerous gay bars. The vast majority of these cater to males. Precious few are lesbian bars. There are 3 gay bathhouses in Chicago. There are no similar places for women that I’m aware of. In my experience, lesbians are welcome in bars populated by guys. The red carpet isn’t necessarily laid out, but they are not turned away or in any manner meant to feel unwanted. This is particularly true during Gay Pride Week. Gay Pride Week culminates in the Gay Pride Parade, which always occurs on the last Sunday in June. (That is the subject of another topic.) The Gay Pride Parade of 2004 in Chicago had an estimated official attendance of 400,000 people. Official estimates have always been conservative. Much like straight folks, we gay people also have issues that we have to deal with. And being gay sometimes tends to make things a bit more difficult. Not always, just sometimes. We’re human too. We have the same likes, dislikes, wants, desires, fears, and everything else that you do. We bleed red, just like you do. We get hangovers. We clean our homes. We pick up the dry cleaning. We clean out the cat’s litter box. We wash the dishes. Some of us have served our country, like I did. (USAF, active duty 1968-1972, honorably discharged in 1974.) We’re your brothers, your sisters, your nieces & nephews, aunts, uncles, and sometimes even your parents. We’re just like you are, in all the ways that really count. ExWayDaryl Franklin Park, Illinois Serves as the staff for Alex T. Cat

Dear Red, Thank you for your response, and thank you very much for your sentiments concerning my sister. As for having a lot of guts to “come out,” it wasn’t guts, really, I was just tired of living a lie. That said, I salute you for coming out as well. Coming out can be unnerving, and just downright scary. When I came out to my 2 brothers, they accepted me for who I am, and our relationship, if it has changed at all, is now for the better. I understand your misgivings about coming out to coworkers. I will admit that I am out to some but not all where I work. However I’m at a point in life where, if a coworker asks me if I’m gay, I would not deny it. What would be the point of that? Perpetuation of the lie from which I have finally managed to escape? You wrote: “Thank you for coming out!” I say the same to you! I have learned to love who I am. I am human, and therefore imperfect, but hey, aren’t we all? You are now, as I am, (to paraphrase you & Rev. Martin Luther King,) “Free at last, free at last, thank God Almighty we’re free at last!” Be well, be prosperous, be at peace! Daryl Lamkey Lives in Franklin Park, Illinois Serves as the Staff for Alex T. Cat

Just a quick note, then I'm gonna drop it. The war in Iraq was a mistake from the git-go. Saddam Hussein was a threat, perhaps, but never the threat that Dubya made him out to be. Dubya wanted this war from the minute he assumed the office of Commander-in-Chief. If you're going to fight a war on terrorism, go after the terrorists. Of the 19 people who commandeered the planes on 9-11, not ONE of them was Iraqi. Not ONE of them was Palestinian. 17 were Yemeni, and the other two were from Saudi Arabia. So much for our allies... In order to get to the heart of the war on terror, an understanding of the conflict between Israel and Palestine is not optional. It is required. We, the U. S., support Israel to the tune of around 3 billion dollars a year. Now, look at what happens when there is a terrorist attack somewhere in Israel by a terrorist who blows him or herself up, taking out all those in the immediate area. Israel responds with fighter-bombers, helicopter gunships, armored personnel carriers, tanks, and state of the art weaponry for its ground troops. What do the Palestinians have? Nothing. Palestinans are treated as sub-human by the Israeli government. Are now, have always been. Frankly, you might be better off as a former slave in the period immediately following the American "Civil" war. Palestinians have nothing left to lose. Nothing. That's why some of them wrap themselves in dynamite. And the entire Arab community has focused on the plight of the Palestinians. This is one complaint echoed, perhaps more by implication than statement, by no other than Osama bin Laden. If we want to keep ....ing off the terrorist elements in the Arabic world, then the current course of action is fine. However, in order to start to bring these elements into check, and eventually overcome them, then the administration has to take an entirely different, and even radical, approach, to our stance with the state if Israel. There can be no more "Israel, right or wrong." Dubya has to yank hard on Ariel Sharon's collar and tell him, "Look, dip****, this is the way it's gonna be. And you will like it." With the threat of losing 3 billion dollars a year, Sharon will listen to this thread of logic. Ordilarily, I'm optimistic. On this subject, however, I'm not. And I know I will get a lot of crap for saying what I've said. By the way, I served during Vietnam. (1968-1974) I have a DD-214 and an Honorable Discharge to prove it, in the event anyone has the balls to question my patriotism.

The second Full Moon in a single calendar month is called a Blue Moon. The second New Moon in a single calendar month is called Secret Moon, Finder's Moon, Spinner Moon or Black Moon. 56 years ago Tuesday I was born under just such a second New Moon. I was born at St. Francis Hospital in Evanston, Illinois. However, it was so long ago, that it was then known as Mr. Francis Hospital. I mean, I remember when the Dead Sea was just sick. I remember Elvis before he was a stamp. I gave some guy directions once, and now he blames me for the 40 years wandering in the desert. (Not my fault, he shoulda called AAA.) I remember installing Windows 2000 BC. (The Service Packs were in Cunieform.) My first drivers license was in heiroglyphics. If someone told me to act my age, I'd drop dead. I've been giving serious thought about the traditional Birthday Spanking. So, does anyone know where I can get my hands on a foam rubber paddle?!?!? Many thanks to everyone for your wishes & messages!!!! Now, has anyone seen my cane...?

Rascal, I am so sorry about Lady. I remember you talking with us in Chat, and I recall seeing your love and compassion for your dear friend. Please accept my sincere condolences! And please, please, please, do not blame yourself - You had no way of knowing what would happen or when. You did your best to help her, to save her. Please rest in the knowledge of that. Many hugs, my friend! EWD Franklin Park, Illinois

These are some damn nice pictures! But I have to ask, who is who? Can we get names to go with the pictures?

I, for one, love it! Cindy, it is so YOU!!!!!!!! Hugs to you and yours!

I sat through piffle WAY too many times in Chicago, (where I first got into der vord,) Oakland Ca, (where we could never get a class together,) Philly (where I was a wow for 3/4 of a year,) then Long Island, as a wow, (did the whole stupid year, yeah,) where I got sent with a couple of "good ole boys" who only wanted to drink, fight & f**k. The corpse leadership in LI was no real help either, more like breasts on a bull... During my very intense "startup" period, living in Evanston Illinois, I hosted a CS&F class taught at my house, with Donnie Fugit teaching live. After the first night, some neighbors complained about the singing late into the night, after 10. I understood this, and brought it up to the corpse dude who was supposed to be my liaison to Fugit. The next night, I saw that my request was to be totally ignored. The singing went on again late into the night. No help from the corpse person. (Please refer to "breasts on a bull," above.) Had I an active brain cell in my head at the time, I'd have kicked these stupid f**ks out of my house at gunpoint. I know the guy (Fugit) is dead now. That said, there is not a lot of love lost between me & him and/or his memory. He totally ignored me, disregarded anything I asked for. He treated me with contempt, after I -welcomed- him into my home.

Thank you Steve!! I too sometimes suffer from CRS, and enjoy it too, if only I could remember the reason why... Peace!