And baby makes three... FINALLY

We've been waiting for it for 503 days. That's how long it's been since we met Koby.

Now he's ours, forever and ever.

God save the great Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

Estate of panic

Well, let's hope not, anyway. This is where we're aiming to hold the ceremony and reception--the Henderson House in oh-so-posh Weston, Massachusetts. God bless the Bay State and its lovely English manors.

Two boys tying the knot--and not for a merit badge

Now that Dennis has his green card, we can FINALLY plan our wedding. We've been together for 10 1/2 years, so it's not like I have the jittery thrill of a woman who's been thumbing through Bride magazine since she was 7 years old. But I do want the legal recognition, that's for sure. And the fact that I get to do it with a big party in front of my family and friends is a big bonus.

Within 48 hours I was able to scout a potential location--I think that's the hard part. We're going in for interviews with the catering staff, etc., next week. Why some people spend 10 months (or more!) planning these things is still a puzzle to me. We've got 10 weeks, and between now and then I'll be traveling to London, Athens, Las Vegas, Mexico City, Guadalajara, and the Brazilian Amazon, but strangely I don't feel stressed--YET.

Since marriage became legal in Massachusetts in May 2004, over 8000 couples have wed. Yet strangely, we never got invited to any of those, so we're having to wing it. There are officiants you can hire (we're doing this without a wedding planner, though I suppose I could rent that film), who can help you design a ceremony that fits your lifestyle and works in various bits from your own cultural background. I wonder if I can find someone to put together a Filipino-Mennonite-Gay-Catholic-Buddhist wedding service. I'm open to suggestions...

What we HAVE decided is that we're going to wear our traditional Filipino barongs. My next quest--a cake topper that features two men--one white, one Asian--dressed in barong tagalog. I love a challenge.

No rabbit's foot required

It's been quite a week. What can I say? On Aug 7:

1. We found out that we can adopt Koby officially Aug 24.

2. Dennis got his green card (he's only been in process since 1994).

3. I got a raise at work.

I'm going to start buying lottery tickets every Aug 7 from now on.

Peaches are not the only fruit

Perry McGuire. Related to the "show-me-the-money" guy from that Tom Cruise movie? No. He's a Georgia Republican running for Attorney General. Now, Georgia is many miles away from me, and why should I care? My fondest memory of Georgia was a night at Blake's (in Atlanta) in 1992, where I got to watch a bunch of draq queens SING (and not lipsynch) gospel music during their Sunday evening "service." Mixing those sounds with the image of huge sweaty singers, and 200 queers waving cocktail napkins back and forth in unison was as close to organized religion as I wanted to get in the 90s.

Now enter Perry. According to his bio, number one on his mission statement is to "Hunt down and prosecute sexual predators to better protect Georgia’s children and families." I guess that's what he had in mind when he recently stated that he was disappointed with a Georgia state court ruling that a GSA (gay-straight alliance) could continue to meet in a high school in Cleveland, Georgia.

Agape Press, the journalist arm of the AFA, reports:

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McGuire, a former corporate attorney and one-time state senator, feels the court's ruling in this case has turned the Equal Access Act on its head. "I think the problem here, and I think where the court substantially erred, is that the intent of the Act was never to allow organizations that advocate illegal activity [to have campus access]," he says. "And in Georgia, sex between minors is illegal; statutory rape laws apply."

GSAs and their ilk should be denied access to school campuses, the AG candidate says, because they promote activities that are against the law. Allowing such groups is "much like allowing a pedophile club or a gambling club to meet at school," he contends.
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Oh, I can feel the love, Perry. Now if you're REALLY serious about this, you should try to ban Future Farmers of America (they might grow some illegal herbs), the Debate team (treasonous arguments could erupt), the Foreign Language Club (they erode the legitimacy of English as a superior and required language for all Americans), and all sports teams which feature a cheerleading squad at their games (for obvious reasons) or which require same-sex showers after practice (I'll refrain from giving you a visual).

People For the American Way Deputy Legal Director Judith E. Schaeffer condemned McGuire’s comments.

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“Gay-straight alliances exist to create safe, supportive environments for gay and lesbian students who all too often are victims of bullying and discrimination, to combat harassment and discrimination, and to provide information. To suggest that they exist to advocate illegal activity is just plain wrong. It’s an attempt to appeal to bigotry and exploit Georgia teens for political gain,” Schaeffer said.
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So if you live in Georgia, or know someone who does, please drop a note, and tell them to use their vote.

10 reasons why gay marriage should be illegal

I found this on a UK-based blog, but it comes to us via a craigslist user in Portland, OR...

01) Being gay is not natural. Real Americans always reject unnatural things like eyeglasses, polyester, and air conditioning.

02) Gay marriage will encourage people to be gay, in the same way that hanging around tall people will make you tall.

03) Legalizing gay marriage will open the door to all kinds of crazy behavior. People may even wish to marry their pets because a dog has legal standing and can sign a marriage contract.

04) Straight marriage has been around a long time and hasn't changed at all; women are still property, blacks still can't marry whites, and divorce is still illegal.

05) Straight marriage will be less meaningful if gay marriage were allowed; the sanctity of Britany Spears' 55-hour just-for-fun marriage would be destroyed.

06) Straight marriages are valid because they produce children. Gay couples, infertile couples, and old people shouldn't be allowed to marry because our orphanages aren't full yet, and the world needs more children.

07) Obviously gay parents will raise gay children, since straight parents only raise straight children.

08) Gay marriage is not supported by religion. In a theocracy like ours, the values of one religion are imposed on the entire country. That's why we have only one religion in America.

09) Children can never succeed without a male and a female role model at home. That's why we as a society expressly forbid single parents to raise children.

10) Gay marriage will change the foundation of society; we could never adapt to new social norms. Just like we haven't adapted to cars, the service-sector economy, or longer life spans.

Re-post this if you believe love makes a marriage.