HAYYYYY!! OK ........ Two points of irony that I would like to share with you today, gentle readers:

1. As some of you are experiencing, it has been rain, rain and more rain throughout most of middle and north Georgia. Homes have been flooded, bridges are falling apart, and many businesses and schools have closed or let people leave early. In addition to the potential property damage, most of my neighbors and co-workers are extremely tired of the rain. Rain, rain go away ........

PEOPLE!! [House of Dereon: Where the catwalk meets the sidewalk! Tina Knowles]

Are you not the same group that went on and on and on the last few summers about the lack of rain? Lake Lanier was supposedly drying up, Six Flags was recycling water, and as I learned from Oprah last week, Whitney actually left Bobby and Atlanta in 2006! This is rain you wanted, the rain you begged for and most importantly, THE RAIN THAT SONNY PRAYED FOR!!

Don't you remember, Sonny out there at the state capital praying for rain? You asked GOD for rain, now don't complain! Always remember to really think about your requests to GOD.

2. I have a friend who works for one of Atlanta's local magazines. She stated that the "living" section is constantly updating their restaurant listing guide, due to the number of establishments that have closed in the past few years. Either due to funds, lack of interest or even bad timing, many restaurants are having trouble keeping their doors open 6 months to a year.

RESTAURANT OWNERS AND WAIT STAFF!! [House of Dereon: Where the catwalk meets the sidewalk! Tina Knowles]

When possible customers have limited funds, but also several choices, it is not a good idea to provide poor service. I went to a restaurant last night, where I have never experienced "great service." In the past, I have had to ask if my table even had a waiter. However, my dining companions enjoy the establishment and the food is quite good. Until last night ....... cold soup that was returned to the kitchen twice; several requests for drink refills before anything happened; two of the three people received their meals while the third order was not even given to the kitchen; our original waiter approached the table once to say, "one minute," while his replacement took our order and disappeared, and finally a third waiter came to the table [maybe we were supposed to meet the entire staff] ........

When we finally asked for a manager, he came out with this whole, "I'm soooooooo sorry" number. Sorry does not cut it [although he excused the entire bill]. The restaurant was half full, with wait staff standing around.

In this economy ........ a little too ironic, yeah I really do think!

Meanwhile, back at the Hall of Justice ........

HAYYYYY!! OK ........ As you may or may not have heard, former Republican House Majority Leader, Tom DeLay, has been chosen as a contestant for the next round of DANCING WITH THE STARS! I actually did not believe this was true the first time I read the internet headline. BUT, sure enough, Tom will be going up against Aaron Carter, Donny Osmond, and Kelly Osborne.

I have to offer my congratulations to both ABC on their way of mixing strange company, and DeLay's PR staff for being inventive. BUT PEOPLE!! Tom Delay??

This the same man who was expelled from Baylor University, fought hard to obtain the number of needed votes in order to impeach Clinton, AND STILL BECAME the first congressional leader ever to be indicted. At one time, DeLay was one of the most powerful men in Washington.

And now he is on Dancing With The Stars! I think this is HILL-ARIOUS!! What ABC ?? Sarah was too busy? There is always Levi!

Sooooooo, since I was incredibly amused by this entertainment tidbit, you know I had to share it with the world. Most friends and neighbors had no idea who Tom DeLay was! PEOPLE!! He only stepped down in 2006! No wonder the poor man is desperate for some attention!

Meanwhile, back at the Hall of Justice ........

HAYYYYY!! OK ........ When I'm not surfing the web for the latest on Michael's will, I usually end reading my favorite political / social commentary blogs [Joe.My.God; AmericaBlog, and The Bilerico Project]. In the past few weeks, all three blogs have touched upon three growing concerns within the LGBT community:

1. The continuing disappointment that many gay men and women [especially white] have toward President Obama, and what they perceive as his lack of commitment to gay causes such as the Defense of Marriage Act [DOMA], Don't Ask Don't Tell [DADT], and Marriage Equality. For these disappointed and angry individuals, Obama appears to have fallen behind on his campaign promises.

2. There was a recent cover article in the Advocate, which stated that "Gay Is The New Black." Needless to say, such a proclamation incensed and upset many within the African American community, who see no association between their struggle and the gay civil rights movement. From what I've read, a large number within the African American community, still do not fully accept gay men and women, and view "gay rights" as a wealthy white concern. One writer stated that the community is very protective of Obama, and hold a low opinion of gay individuals or groups that attack a man whot has been in office for less than a year.

3. Although, I do not know all the details, plans have been put into effect for a gay march on Washington in October. Why?? I'm not exactly sure. You have one part of the gay community that states "now" is the time, when issues such as DOMA and DADT are in the forefront. Then you have others who do not think enough planning and thought have gone into the event, and that there needs to be more grassroots / local action.

All three concerns that I mentioned are valid, and have human faces and feelings behind them. BUT PEOPLE, WAKE UP!!!!!!!

Do you not notice that there is a growing tide of anger from the conservative / religious right? It first begins with mouthpieces like Rep. Sally Kern, which leads to the career comeback of Ralph Reed. Are you not noticing the growing hate crimes and political strength that is coming from the fundamental slavic / croatian groups which currently live up and down the west coast? These are immigrants who are slowly achieving political power through sheer numbers. And although I hope that Obama is able to make some changes, if he loses in 2012, we could be experiencing Reagan Part Two [and remember his track record on gay rights and the AIDS epidemic].

I write all this with a sense of frustration. As if I could yell, "LGBT community! Focus! While you are worrying about what kind of fundraiser to hold on Marriage Equality, those that would like to erase your existence, are creating real harm, right under your nose."

We need to go back to the communities, we need to find and elect local and state officials who are answerable to our concerns. I believe that DOMA and DADT need to be addressed in the current year. But I also believe that laws protecting employment and gay adoption should also be at the forefront. These are local and state issues that need immediate attention. And for all the disappointed Obama fans .. remember that he can only do so much.

One last thing .. I will never know what life is like as an African American man [as Miss Ross maybe, but that is a different post]. Why do I need to attach my cause and concerns onto his? LGBT Community! Be proud of your own identity.

I recently heard an incredible interview [on Jonny McGovern's podcast] with Richard Berkowitz, one of the original creators of Safe Sex. In the interview he made a statement that I am now trying to follow:

"Be Yourself! Happiness comes from being who you are. And if you are an outcast, learn to love yourself. And **** what everybody else says! You've got to celebrate your own uniqueness."

Meanwhile, back at the Hall of Justice ........

HAYYYYY!! OK ........ You may or may not have seen the video on You Tube, where a man is walking home from the Twin Cities Pride Parade / Celebration in Minneapolis. While the man is on his journey, a group of pre-teen and teenage Somalian boys ask the man if he is gay, and then begin to follow and verbally harass the guy. For some reason, a passerby or the man's friend was able to tape this interaction.

The boys state that they "hate gay people" or "*F* gay people." At one point during the verbal comments, two police officers walk past the man and boys without any reaction! Since this video has begun to circle the internet, the Minneapolis Police Department has issued a statement that these "officers" are not part of their department, and that the MPD does not tolerate such behavior.

Watching this video brought forth so many emotions .. anger, fear, dread, complacency, and overall distrust [and the re-occurring thought, "why don't you back to Somalia?"]. However, I was amazed at the reactions from the guy who was simply walking home from a Pride event. He laughed at the boys and kept moving.

Therefore, in order to end today's blog entry on as more positive note, I have posted the video of Diana and Micheal performing "Upside Down." This is taken from Diana's 1980 tv special "diana," when she was at the ultimate peak of her popularity [3 top 10 singles in one year, including "Upside Down," which stayed at #1 for four weeks], and Michael had put out OFF THE WALL and was heading for super stardom. Diana just looks so happy in this video!

And once again, the man walking home from Pride laughed at the boys.

Meanwhile, back at the Hall of Justice ........

HAYYYYY!! OK ........ Time for some soap box words of wisdom.

In the past month, I have seen or heard three Atlanta theatres make pleas, either through curtain speeches or e-mail blasts, for immediate assistance to their budgets. The plea may be presented differently, but the message is the same .. we understand the economy is lousy for everyone, but we need money now, and please keep theatre alive in Atlanta.

These dramatic requests for money are made with as much emotion as the Olsen twins walking into Lane Bryant with a gift card. I felt like the theatre staff suddenly realized, "oh crap, if we want to receive a paycheck that will not bounce next week, we need some immediate cash flow!"

However, my question has always been WHY? I have served as stage manager [and production manager] for theatres small and large, for profit and non profit, well organized and fly by the seat of your pants. But I still have questions when it comes to how theatres manage their money:

1. For the non profit institutions, why do you need a staff of three that only tries to go after a decreasing amount of grant money? Why not use those same people to market shows, to locate your target audience, or to actually determine shows that an audience member will pay to see?

I have never understood this "need" to rely on charitable organizations for hand outs. HELLO! News flash from the planet of Duh .. why not grow and expand at the rate of your audience? If your whole budget comes from ticket sales, then you will know what works and what does not.

2. I understand the need for new works, and the opportunity to expose up and coming playwrights. But PEOPLE! Let's get the audiences in the door with what they want to see. I do not care if it is the 150th version of STEEL MAGNOLIAS or THE ODD COUPLE, get them in the door. Then expose your audiences to newer works on off nights or limited matinees. Your work may have the best actors and an incredible director, but what good does it do with no audience?

Remember, the time to experiment without the fear of failure [or no audiences] is during college.

3. Do any of these theatre companies actually understand the word budget? I was told about one company in Atlanta that had a $100,000 budget for a show, but ended up spending $130,000! How do you do that? An overspend of $30,000 is not just a simple. "oh we bought too many cans of paint at Home Depot." I always think it is funny how theatres will go on and on about their need for money, but are very reluctant to provide a yearly budget for public view. A small or medium sized business that went $30,000 over budget would face some serious problems. Why should these theatres be exempt? HELLO! You are not AIG or GM!

4. When the AJC ran an article about one of the theatres needing $10,000 immediately to meet their expenditures for the month, one of the readers responded with, "and what about next month, and the month after that?" For some reason, the company never responded to that question.

To quote the very astute businesswoman Dolly Parton, "there is a reason it is called SHOW BUSINESS!" Yes, the SHOW part comes from the heart and the need to create and entertain. However, you need butts [ie .. BUSINESS] in those seats or you might as well stay home and perform in front of the bathroom mirror.

Meanwhile, back at the Hall of Justice ........

HAYYYYY!! Ok ........ I know that I am about a week too late on the latest Miss USA brew-ha-ha, but I thought I would throw in a few last comments:

1. I feel sorry for the winner, Miss North Carolina, whatever her name is. This poor girl has probably worked and dreamed her whole life of becoming Miss USA, then she wins .. but who is on all the talk shows?? The first runner up. No one cares about whats-her-name North Carolina! And you know there will be some people [like myself] who will wonder, "if Miss California had answered THAT QUESTION a different way, would she have won?"

2. Hats off to Miss California! She may be homophobic bitch, but she has got some smart PR people around her. They had that blonde bimbo on every talk show .. from Today to "I hate him, but damn he is sooooo good looking" Sean Hannity! You know if Miss CA plays her cards right, she could end up being the new Anita Bryant!

Sean Hannity dream break! I know, I know he is an awful, awful man, but DA-MAMMMMMMMM-UMMMMM!! He is so good looking!

3. But most of all, I feel sorry for the 40 women who had to attend the two week training sessions, learn dance routines, and then find out within the first ten minutes that they do not have a chance of making the top 10. If I had been someone like Miss South Dakota, I would said, "oh nay, nay." stomped off that stage, ripped off that gown and headed for the nearest Dairy Queen! And both myself and Miss West Virginia would not be back for the big dance celebration .. smile though you ain't won crap song!

Meanwhile, back at the Hall of Justice ........