Adam Lambert on 20/20

Yep, another personnality is out of the closet (keep them coming! ) I’m not a huge AI fan, but I admire celebrities who decide to tell the truth about their sexuality since there are so much people who need role models, especially gay, lesbian, asexuals and transgenders.

Gimme Sugar on Logo

I am so excited about this show! I hope MuchMore will air the all new second season: Gimme Sugar:Miami soon. I still think it is strange to air a lesbian reality show on a music channel, but as long as I can watch it, I won’t complain! Especially since my TV provider does not have Logo (but we do have OutTV which is very nice).

Anyway. Catch it on Logo mondays at 10pm eastern. Premieres TONIGHT, that is. Aaaah, sometimes I just wished I was in the states.

summer update

Hey girls (and guys ),

just a quick update to let you know where I’m at those days. I don’t have much time to update this blog any more frequently (partly because my internet is just so slow, it is ridiculous), but I’ll try to write a couple of articles in the next few days.

Now. You might have noticed that I do keep on updating my links list on this blog. There are a lot of lesbian sites out there, but the good ones are somewhat more rare, so I am trying to filter all this out for you. The list is growing so check it out. The very last add is : The lesbian postcast (very, very good website, I recommend it. Politics, gossip, culture, chat, blogs, and more).

Anyhow, there a couple of gay, asexual, transgenders and their friends websites on the list, but I really focus more on lesbian-related websites (and women of colour, but not exclusively). If you speak french, there are a few french websites as well. Since there are also some adult websites, make sure not to click on whatever link you see. The names are tricky sometimes.

Yep, yep, I’m still in the closet (I know, I really do need a shot of courage right now), but I’m still in the process of getting out. Thanks to all of you who wrote to me!

Mom, dad… I’m left-handed

Original text here.

Dear Mom, 

This letter will doubtless find you in a good mood, at least I hope for it. It is a painful secret which I carried for years. I was not able, so far, to share it. And to say it face-to-face is for me too difficult. That is why this small letter will bring you the truth, my truth, the truth about me.

Here is: I am left-handed. I know that it is not easy to admit, but it is so. You are not responsible for that. It is the way it is. You certainly noticed that I often spoke about left-handed persons. Of course, I laughed at them, showing you how much I was proud to be right-handed. I event voted for somebody who defended the right-handed people against the left-handed persons in the society, somebody who opposed to the union of two left-handed persons; however, this person was not a right-extremist. It took me a long time to accept myself as left-handed, although I was that way since I was young. I had to bury it in me, to hide it to myself and to others. I built a fortress around me, so that the others would think I am a good right-hander. But I liked my left-hand better and could go anything about it.

I was right-handed with the right-handers, continuing to laugh at left-handed persons… We often saw our left-handed neighbour receiving other left-handed persons. One day, you said that you preferred that to a drunkard. Feel reassured, I am not a drunkard. Just a left-handed person. It took me time before I talk to you about it because being right-handed is considered as the standard in our society. Nevertheless, how would it without left-handed persons? Léonard de Vinci was left-handed, and nevertheless, his hand did not prevent him from being a genius. I see you asking you ” but why is my son left-handed? “.

It’s not your fault. Since I know how to use my hands, I feel more comfortable with my left hand. My right hand”s purpose is only to make me look a certain way. My left hand’s purpose is to unable me to be myself. I decided to apply Rochefoucauld’s quote: ” we would more win to be allowed to see ourselves such as we are, rather than to try to look what we are not “. (You see, the left-handed persons are cultivated all the same).

If you still have questions on “this”, I could answer you, or you can talk to associations that help left-handed persons’ families to accept the left-hander as he is.

Kisses,

 Mattew

Close-minded parents of gay teens

My dad is very close-minded. And I don’t think that he actually realises that he his. He’s very self-righteous too. He believes that some things are normal and that others aren’t, and that everybody ought to be as “normal” as he is. And at times, it’s really hard to talk to him because he just says: “I don’t want to know anything about this” and walks away.

The other day, though, I had this amazing opportunity to actually have a conversation with him. I asked him how was his sister doing. It is no secret that those two don’t get along very well. They don’t see each other and they don’t talk. I had previously talked about my dad about denial, I said in a very general way that I was scared that he would deny me if ever I do something he doesn’t approve. My dad is very protective. He’s the cliché dad that doesn’t want his daughter to go out with bad boys, you know ? We used to joke about this, but recently, I started to use that cliché to slowly come out to him and my mom. I would say : “Seriously, Dad, if ever I fell in love with a gangster or a guy with tattoos and piercings and stuff, would you deny me ?” (Add to that a cute pity face, it works ) Of course, what was really in my head was: “If ever I present you to my new girlfriend, would you deny me ?” And of course, he says he doesn’t deny anybody. That’s my dad.

But anyway, it worked for me to use the “bad boy” cliché to push him to realise that yes, I am (or should be) free to fall in love with anybody. That is my step one in my coming out process. Yay. Not much, I know. But better than nothing.

So we talked (in a very general way, not about homosexuality at all) and I managed to make him realise that he doesn’t do any compromises when it comes to relationships and things that he doesn’t necessarily approve. I added that he judges people before he gets to know them (he would often say that if ever one of his friends announced him that he / she was gay / lesbian, he would stop their relationships with no hesitation at all no matter how many decades they have been friends. He would also say that if he knows that somebody is gay, he wouldn’t even talk to that person even if he has too). At the end of that lovely father-daughter conversation, he said: “Yeah. You are right, I might think about it.” Isn’t cool ? There is hope in that family ! Yay !  

I also used the “fat person” version (because – and I’m not proud to say this – my dad would also judge fat people in the exact same way as he would do with gay people, and it just depresses me). I would say: “You will deny me if I get fat.” And he would honestly say no.

So I highly recommend this technique to anybody that wants to come out of the closet to his / her parents. Just to prepare them to the big announcement. Of course, I’m no expert. It’s just an advice. Take it or leave it. So far, my dad really watched what he would say about people he would used to judge. And that is why we love our dads too.

Step 2 of my coming out process coming up soon.

Think Before You Speak

Nearly 9 out of 10 of LGBT students (86.3%) experienced harassment at school because of their sexual orientation in the past year, according to GLSEN’s 2007 National School Climate Survey.

The Ad Council’s first LGBT-themed campaign, unveiled last month, targets anti-LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) language among teenagers. It features humorous TV public service announcements that star Hilary Duff and Wanda Sykes interrupting teenagers who use the term “that’s so gay.”

Lesbian Couple give birth to quadruplets separately

Karen Wesolowski and Martha Padgett spent three years and £35,000 undergoing IVF treatment, but could not believe it when they heard four heartbeats at a check-up. Astonishingly each of the women gave birth to twins on the same day – but the four children born are actually quadruplets, created from Martha’s eggs and donor sperm. Miss Wesolowski, who has been with her… (read more)

Karen, 42, and Martha, 38, tried 5 times to get pregnant (at 15,000$ per try, a three years process that exhausted them) before they finally decided that they should both have eggs implanted. They took medication to make sure they were on the same cycle. Even though they knew that 2 embryos had been implanted, they didn’t believe that they would end up with 4 babies. And, happy end, they gave birth on the same date, only 22 hours apart at different hospitals. Now the pair, of Riverside, California, are happily cradling twins – one boy and one girl each – who are all quadruplet brothers and sisters. That is a real love story, eh ? And Martha, who have a 3-years-old daugther named Julia from a previous marriage, says she dated a couple of other men and never expected to fall in love with another women, until she met Karen. Couple of years later: lots of babies.

Ethnic beauty… the white way

Italian Vogue, Black models, the Tyra show. I guess you all saw that episode (it aired today). Now, I am not one of those people who think that the models in today’s show were not Black, that they looked white and blahblahblah. Yes, some of them had a lighter skin tone, others had a mixed heritage. That’s just normal. People are never 100% Black or White or Asian, you know. What bothers me is the use of categories such as “Black” and “White”. It is convenient on a day-to-day basis, if you have to describe yourself for some reason, ect. But let’s face it: That blond girl with blue eyes is still considered as the only beauty, isn’t she ? She’s like the foundation for all other types of beauty, it seems. And it is depressing. If you are Black, or Asian, or Indian or whatever, it seems like because you don’t have the blond-with-blue-eyes features, you at least have to straighten your hair, put some colour eye contacts, put your make-up in such a way so that your nose looks thinner, have some pink color on your lips and cheeks… ( I mean… How many Black stars have blue or green eyes ? Too many. Just because it is not their real eye color. It is ridiculous). Instead of putting emphasis on specific and unique features of all cultures, the fashion industry seems to smoother everything that does not fit into “the foundation”. That is why Photoshop exists, eh ?

Also, I think that saying that someone is “Black” is less pejorative than saying “colored people” (a term that was used in segregation) or “African-American” (because it is too patriotic and like I said, no one is 100% African or European or Asian, ect AND so far, researches tend to say that we all come from Africa, so to me, saying “African-American” is meaningless. Besides, in Canada, we don’t use that term, obviously). Now, why is it that as soon as you slightly look Black, if you come from a mixed union or if you great-great-grandmother was not white, than you automatically fall into the “Black” category. To me, this is supporting the theory that to be “White” (or to be considered as “White” and not “Black”) is something pure, something somewhat superior and/or better. It’s like: oh, my white t-shirt has a stain, so it is not white anymore. This is like sorting, this is like mini-carrots in a factory: any carrots that is not that weight and that specific length and shape is not good enough to be put on the market and thus not good enough for us consumers to buy and eat. You know ?

I mean, we may say that beauty is in every face, ect. The fashion industry doesn’t care. For them, there is only one way to present beauty: perfection. What kind of message does that tell us ? Perfection doesn’t exist, but it is (thanks to photo edition programs) everywhere: on tv, on the metro, on the streets, on buses even in the radio (they always have perfect timing (;). But I guess this is just how we decided our society to be. We buy things and the economy is in good position. We wouldn’t buy something that is presented in an ugly manner, eh ? But just think about it: there wouldn’t have “ugly” vs “beautiful” if we would have decided to see things has “different” instead. You might not like that t-shirt. But because someone else likes it, it is only “different” not “ugly” (generally speaking. Because to you, of course it is ugly. lol. My point is: you thinkg it is ugly, get over it. you know ?)

Day-dreaming is good for the soul. I put some Black models photos up here for you girls (and guys) to enjoy. ^^ That last one is my favorite. She is absolutely gorgeous. I like that style.

Gay high school and marginalised minorities

A newly expanded gay-themed high school began the school year Monday with about 100 students attending classes, about 200 supporters rallying outside and a small band of protesters demonstrating against it. Since 1985, Harvey Milk High School has served students who are gay or believed to be gay, but its recent… (read more)

In Toronto they have one, too. As well as a school for Black students. Here in Montreal, we have a school for Italian Kids and for Jewish kids. I’m not sure this is such a good idea, though. I understand that the point of schools like those is to create an environment safe for its student (in the case of homosexuality), or to create a sense of belonging and pride, or to prevent student to drop out of school, or to preserve a cultural heritage that tends to get lost in the larger Canadian society. But could you imagine if everyone starts to go to schools like this? There would be not unity, no understanding of the “others”. Quebeckers have experienced a lot situations like this I guess I could say. Not going into the details, but to be a minority in your own country contributed to the climate of “Us” and “Them”. At a large scale level, it is exactly why I am against the separation of Quebec. I think it is ridiculous. Why not focusing on zero tolerance for discrimination, fighting ignorance, and promoting curiosity of different cultures instead ?

In the last few years, a new program was installed in Quebec (at least in the French system, I’m not sure about the english system) called “Éthique et Culture Religieuse” which means Ethics and religious culture. It’s basically a program that focuses on discovering and learning more about different religions. In high school, a little bit of philosophy is added to it. I took this course for the two last years of high school and I absolutely liked it. Partly because of the teachers, they were so funny and so good. Anyway, my point is : this should be the solution. To stop sticking to the traditional way of education, you know ? Add new things as society evolves, courses about cultural diversity, for example.

In the past, people fought so that Blacks and Whites could go to school together. Why separating them again ? To me, it is the same thing as saying “Oh, well, on second thought, that was a bad idea. Let’s segregate again.” It’s a shame.

So far, I’ve always went to private schools. My parents wanted the best for me so I went in one of the best high school in Montreal. It’s just now that I’m in CEGEP that I stopped wearing a uniform to go to school (can you believe this ? 11 years of light-colored shirts and dark skirts!). I decided to go in the public system for college. I had enough of snobish rich people and I am happier now, I think. What I like the most about public schools is the diversity. There is always something happening, so much different clubs (Black Unions, Muslim Associations, Gay-Straight alliances and so on)… This is how school should be. In my snob, rich, perfectionist high school, most people were white, nothing happened, everybody was dressed the same way to create this illusion of equality. It was just boring.  

I don’t think I would enjoy going in a gay high school. I like diversity too much. We should celebrate this diversity instead of marginalising it. Don’t you think ?

Gay scientists Isolate the Christian gene

DNA research is fascinating, I think. At least when it deals with proving that we all come from a same source (to prove this is also needed in our society. I wish it was not so). But now that it has been proved, gosh, them scientists do some unnecessary research. A example ? To try to find a gay gene, of course. Talk about wasted research money. So, hum, when will they be able to tell if I put a red bra today ? I can’t wait. -_-’

Isn’t trying to find a cause to homosexuality assuming that homosexuality has to be explained because it is not right ? I don’t know. I guess we could say so. Here’s a funny video I found surfing on the internet. Gay scientists isolate the Christian gene. Hilarious.