Add GENDER to the protections for students. Show your community support tonight


Important Meeting TONIGHT:
Tuesday September 27, 2011
Time: 6:15 pm - 8:30 pm
Location: 2411 W 14th Street, Tempe, AZ

Edit:
the board voted 3 to 2 FOR Gender protections :)

I tried typing this up this morning and for some reason (low brain power or internet glitch) it didn't post. So here I am again 10 hours later because frankly, it still is grating on my nerves.

I had a hyper realistic dream last night about living through months and months of zombie apocalypse. We were just to the point of thinking perhaps we'd gotten through things, and the internet was sort of up and running, so I was going to go online and see if anyone had posted any useful information lately, but I was tired and so was Carlie so we decided to go to bed and check the next day. (yes all in my dream)

Meanwhile, in the real world I woke up and realized I was alone in my room. I did not however realize that it was a different one than I'd just "gone to sleep" in...at least not for a minute and then I realized I'd been dreaming but I checked the time, realized it was only 5:30 am so I rolled over and went back to sleep.

Back in dreamland, I "woke up" with it in my mind that I should check the computer and then realized I'd woken to the soft sounds of groaning. I "woke" in a panic alone in my room and then realized Carlie (and my sister Amy) were sleeping in the other rooms of the house (which was not our current house and was not in Arizona) I looked out the window to see if it was the wind (hopeful) but it was zombies slowly making their way stumbling around down in the streets below. I say below because the house was up on a hill with grass and bushes and steps between us and the zombies. It did not however have all the windows boarded up, so I began to panic and ran out into the living room to find Carlie and Patch asleep on the couch as if they had fallen asleep watching TV or a movie. I knew however that they were not watching TV, because there were no longer any working television stations. Just as I got in there, my sister came in from the other room and I whispered to all of them that "They" were back and to move quietly. We were trying to figure out how to board up the house without attracting attention, or should we hide in and inner closet. Or should we put on protective gear and go kill zombies. I would be at a distinct disadvantage with my health problems, so we were opting for the hunker down and hide option when I actually woke up.

I woke up to the real world and decided to get up since obviously falling back asleep would just plop me back into the middle of a buncha zombies or some such horror. So I went out into the living room and discovered Patch and Carlie actually on the couch watching TV. Strangely, the people on the TV were going down into some sort of bunker in an area that looked like it was rather desolate. I said "What are you watching, how to survive a zombie apocalypse?" Which would have just been perfect right? but no they were watching something about WWII bunkers.

Anyway, all day I had this underlying stress hanging on from last night's dream. It went away for the most part when we were watching some movie or other (we watched 4 of them today) and hanging out with a friend. But I thought it might help to write it all down since it was still rolling around in my head. Usually once I wake up the nightmares vanish, but occasionally they hold on like this one did. I really hope there's no major health crisis or apocalypse type situation in my lifetime, because I'm not so sure I'd be up to the challenge. Patch and Carlie would be good survivors tho, and it's good to know that in my dream apocalypse we banded together with my sister somewhere to keep each other safe. Yup, that's how much I love my sister, I'd travel through a zombie apocalypse to make sure she was OK.

I've started a photo project called Faces of Diversity. Everyday people around phoenix of all sorts of backgrounds, just their face. It's inspired by insideoutproject.net and today i printed the first of many. It felt good to get the project started.

Sm

Posted via LjBeetle

March 31st is the 3rd annual International Transgender Day of Visibility. Which is an opportunity to come out come out wherever you are ;)

Events take place all over the world the last week of march. Largely grassroots and facebook activated, this event provides an opportunity for people who want a transgender positive day to do what they will and come out if/when/where and with whom one is able.

Here in phoenix there will be multiple events including a transgender history seminar at This is HOW on march 26th and a native american event tba. Allies welcome.

I'm working on an art project with some friends. We will distibute our artwork throughout town to be discovered by others along with descriptive tags with info about transgender visibility day reminding people they are loved just for being themselves and encouraging education and awareness.

How will you celebrate?

Posted via LjBeetle

A lot of paintings and photography projects running round in my head lately,. Woke from a dream and thought i should put them down beforei forget.

Slept for a while then woke. Random artsy thoughts:

Had some ideas for paintings running round in my head tonight. A yellow piece called complexities of minimalism and a few abstract pieces inspired by some past abstract pinhole photos i took, and some pinhole camera projects.

If I feel better tomorrow maybe I'll put them to canvas. I really need to get more supplies. I want to get several large canvases to work on. I was thinking 3 rectangles about 2 by 5 or so, and a few square canvases.

Work dealing with water, rocks, and the koi pond at the buddhist temple down the street.

Pieces done completely in pebbles, others in sand.

I would also like to build some pinhole cameras and do some photography, and i'd like to do some portraits of various people.

Last but not least i really want to do a photo i've had in mind for a while so i can print it on canvas and then paint on the canvas as well. Had it in mind for some time. I want to take a photo of myself in a dark color, maybe black. Against a white background, laying on a table covered in a white sheet. Then print that on canvas, also print it in reverse on paper, and then cut that up and using a technique i've used before, transfer the pieces to the canvas above. It will also include aspects of color, light, and dripping paint.

And several other portraits painted and done with photography

Oh and labyrinths seem to be popping back into my art. I would like to do a walkable labyrinth on a tarp, and i have several carving and painting on wood pieces in mind as well as labyrinths made on chain link fences by weaving branches, and labyrinths on dyed cloth. Last but not least, i have wanted to do clay and cement labyrinths for some time

Also i have had some thoughts about picking up reclaimed doors, tile, glass, etc and painting on that.

Also i keep thinking it would be fun to work in clay. I would like to make tiny figures and annonymously leave them around places for people to find with tags explaining the piece and offering them to be taken home or left where they are.

So thems my thoughts.


Posted via LjBeetle

If I had already paid off my surgeries, I would buy a used car and get wood floors for the house, or I'd like to buy 2 or 3 solar panels for the sunny side of the house and build overhangs to put them on so they would be both passive cooling and block sun from coming in those side windows and also soak in the energy from the every so plentiful rays of the sun. (or both wood floors AND solar panels and save the car buying till I actually have my licence back)

**News The headquarters group (based in So Cal) of the Gender ID Coalition is
participating in a sizable educational rally and demonstration combined with
"Take Back The Night" at CSULB April 29th this Thursday at 6:30 PM. This is
regarding the April 15th brutal attack against a transgender male student. CBS
(Los Angeles), KTLA, ABC News and CNN among other media entities will cover the
press conference

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2010/04/attacker-repeatedly-slashes-transg\
ender-student-in-cal-state-lb-restroom.html
Attacker repeatedly slashes transgender student in Cal State Long Beach restroom | L.A. NOW | Los An

latimesblogs.latimes.com
Cal State Long Beach police are looking for a man who attacked a transgender student on campus. The attack occurred April 15 when the student went into a restroom on campus. According to authorities, a man followed the student in,...

First Class Petty Officer Lonnie Allen Howard-Stidham and four members of H.E.R.O.(Meg Sneed, Luisa Valdez, Jimmy Gruender and Lee Walters) have just been arrested for asking to speak with Sen. John McCain about the Don't Ask Don't Tell policy at the Senator's office. This was a peaceful action about DADT.

Phoenix Rally to Support them, Dan Choi and James Pietrangelo, 5353 North 16th Street (16th st and Misssouri) 5:00PM Today.

On a more personal note, these are my friends and I'd like to go to the rally to support them, anyone available to give me a ride?

Hi all,

2 different yet somewhat connected issues. First off, I recently found out that Nic Love is willing to do a training for people who want to learn to facilitate gender variant oriented meetings! This facilitation training was originally thought up because of a project I'm working on, but would benefit any person of any gender who wishes to help facilitate support groups, meetings, etc. at any time in the future. Nicolas has professional training in this area and is willing to share it with us.

It would improve the skills of people who have little official training and just jumped in on pure willingness to serve our community, and it would be grrrrrrrrrrrreat for anyone who has been
saying they'd like to "but I don't know HOW to facilitate!"

So who's game?!?! Once we get a list of volunteers, we will set a date and location, and we'll do our best to set it at a time the most volunteers can attend. For now, I just need your name and contact info to put on the list of people interested in learning to facilitate meetings.

Secondly, and not any less important but slightly further down the line... We are working on developing a program inspired by one which helped me on my path. We are thinking of calling this one Coming out Gender Variant and having it open to people all over the gender spectrum because a lot of the younger or newly coming out trans identify as gender queer, gender questioning, but not MtF or FtM and they may or may not find that those labels fit them. In Los Angeles, CA I once attended a 12 week support group called FtM Coming Out Support Group which took place at the LA Gay and Lesbian center. Ours will be slightly different than theirs in that it is a grass roots effort, but we will have 2 trained facilitators who co-facilitate. Only people who have been through some form of facilitator training will be eligible to volunteer to help run or facilitate this 12 week rotating program, so if you wish to volunteer for this program in the future... or if you're even thinking of it, please do sign up for facilitator training now.

I hope this meets a need in the community, please let me know if you're interested and where to contact you with further details!

Peace,
Sean-Michael