The old transportation blues...

Having a car is a big part of living in the big city. Unless the city you live in is big enough to have a subway system, you pretty much need a car to get anywhere you want to get to quickly. Don't get me wrong, I know plenty of people who have bikes and I do think Austin's bus system is pretty reliable, but ever since I lost my car getting from point A to point B has been a struggle for me.

I lost my car, Coco the Corolla, nearly three years ago. It was a cold and rainy November day and Pisha and I were driving down one of Austin's busiest streets. We were slowing down to a stop at a red light when Coco decided it was a good time for it to hydroplane. This made my car crash to a car in front of us, and even though the car in front of us was fine, Coco wasn't. My hood bent in two and pieces that should have been inside my car flew out of my car making my car useless. After about a week, I took a mechanic to the car lot where my car was being held hostage and he told me that the car would cost more to fix than it was worth so that meant I no longer had a car.

Having no car for this long truly sucks. Not only do I have to depend on other people to get around Austin, but I have to make sure I have a ride from one place to another AND back before I even think of going out. Because of the car issue I've had to cancel plans to go downtown, to go to parties, and even worse, plans to do something meaningful like volunteer work simply because I didn't have a way to get there or back home. Some people I've met have truly been generous by giving me a ride, but I always feel like a nuisance when I ask for a ride.

I could take the bus, but a lot of times a bus route won't take me close to where I need to go. Also, if I'm out volunteering, some of the events I do happen at night and end after the bus stops running for the day. I once went downtown and was left down there by one of my friends after he saw his ex and freaked out so much he forgot about me. Having no other way to get home I decided to walk over 30 blocks to get to a bus stop, and then had to wait in 40 - 50 degree weather for a bus to pick me up shortly before 6 AM to only get a walkable distance from home.

If you live up north 40 - 50 degrees isn't that cold, but to someone who lives in Austin, TX where it's over 90 degrees 6 months out of the year, 40 - 50 degrees is cold. Also, it didn't help that I got followed by what most likely was an insane person who - by what he said - could and has probably read my blog. The walk home wasn't good either since when you walk from where I did you have walk downhill and uphill so much that it wears you out. Basically, what I'm saying is that night sucked, and all because I didn't have a car.

The blunt of not having a car not only hurts me but also my family. My dad ends up being my ride to a lot of places and because he feels responsible to me he can't do a lot of things he probably wants to do and has to put me into consideration before doing anything. Because of my terrible driving skills (might I add I've actually never been driving my car when I actually lost them) there is a 0% chance he'll let me borrow his car if he ever does decide to go do something where his car won't be needed.

This has led to some of my other family members (older siblings) saying that I'm using my parents. Bitches, you guys have cars and I don't. If I need to get to school because the closest bus stop to my campus is an hour away on foot, and I don't know the people in my class well enough yet to ask them for rides, I don't have a choice but to ask my mom and dad. It's not using them if it's necessary. It's either that or miss school entirely.

There are not only these factors but others as well. For example, if I'm going to be going to a week-long event like aGLIFF I need to set up a carpool system to see if I can get a ride to and back home from aGLIFF. If I can't get a ride there I could use the bus to get down there, but if I don't have a ride home I have to go home at the end of my shift rather than getting to stay to see a movie because the movie finishes after the buses stop running.

If I'm going to a day-long event I have to make sure I can get to the first point before I do the other points. I also have to ask someone if I can get a ride home if I'm unfamiliar with the place I'm going to. This, of course, makes me feel like an annoyance and makes me think that I shouldn't have bothered to volunteer in the first place, even if my work was excellent and the small detour they made wasn't a big deal at all.

All these factors, and more make having no car majorly suck. I can only hope that the patron gods of transportation bless me with a car soon, because I guarantee, you never really know how much you appreciate a car until you actually lose it...

SEXDUCTXY!

Breaking News: The gaydar actually exists!

OK, so probably it’s not really breaking news, but even I have to sometimes think, “Gaydar, are you really real?” Of course, it’s real, but other people have always told me that the gaydar is just a myth and that a gay man’s luck with finding other gay men is just a coincidence. But why would a man lie about having a water-downed version of grindr imbedded into their brains? When you think about it, it’s actually pretty ingenious. We can tell who is gay or straight after sitting down and talking to them for a bit, or just by looking at them. It’s without a doubt, an awesome tool to have.

However, even after countless demonstrations people continue to doubt my gaydar’s accuracy. Have I ever been fooled by a straight man and have been led to believe that said man is gay? Yes, I have… But in my defense, it’s not my fault straight men wised up and learned that straight women go to gay clubs. It’s also not my fault that straight men actually realized that they have a better time at the gay clubs than they do the straight ones. Most straight people seem to learn this after venturing there. Gay clubs are the shit.Well, people can stop contemplating whether the gaydar is real or not.

Last May the NY Daily News released an article proving that gaydars may actually exist. In the article scientists discovered that “gays are much more detailed oriented.” Well, no offense to the NY Daily News but I could have told them that. Just look at the stereotypical gay man: Good with fashion, good with boys, good with girls, good in bed, and good at so much more. Only someone who pays attention to detail could learn of past fails and turn them into win.

But, seriously, has it really taken this long to learn that gay people are naturally more detailed-orientated? I always joke with my friends that on my gaydar gay people show up as pyramids, straight people show up as cubes, and bisexual people show up as spheres. But that’s just what it is – a joke. But here’s some breaking news to all the straight people out there. Gay men may or may not agree with me but here it is: A gay person’s gaydar only works if they observe and/or have a conversation with someone.

There have been times when I will watch someone and think, “Wow, I think that person is gay,” The gaydar at work there is just the small things I pick up on while watching said person. It’s not just the metrosexuality or the attention to fashion, but other subtle differences. The way the person carries themselves, the way the person sits, the things that I unconsciously seem to pick up on that other people for some reason can’t. Those things usually lead to me to believe if a person is gay or not.

However, sometimes looking a person is just not enough. Sometimes, I have to talk to them. One time, one of my sisters took me to the Apple store and we were helped by a really cute twink there. While, we left my sister asked me if I thought he was gay and I had deduced by talking to him for a bit that he was. My sister never really asked why I thought he was gay (and I turned out to be right. I saw him later on the in weekend at the gay clubs with his boyfriend), but I’m sure she thought it was because of his voice.

Yes, usually gay people have the gay accent but I have met several straight men who have gay accents and I’ve met many gay men who have very “straight” sounding voices. The reason I thought our Apple twink was gay was because I picked up on some of the things he did when he spoke to us. I deduced how easy it was to get along with him, I deduced the small things he did when he spoke, and I deduced his confidence level which for a cute twink like him, was very, very high.

That’s all a gaydar is straight people. It’s like detective work. You have to observe, research, and come to a hypothesis. It’s not really a secret, but the next time you think the gaydar is a myth, remember this: The gaydar is actually a scientific process, and well, science doesn’t lie…

SEXDUCTXY!

((NOTE: To read the article go here – http://www.nydailynews.com/lifestyle/2010/05/28/2010-05-28_gaydar_may_actually_exist_study_shows_gay_people_to_be_more_detailoriented_disce.html ))

First Day

Today was the first day of school for me. After a rather uneventful summer it's strange to be back in school. I mean, it great to see the faces of people that I haven't seen since last May, but they all ask me what I did during the Summer. Unfortunately, my summer turned out to be quite uneventful. I didn't really go anywhere and I really didn't do much. I did go to Gay Pride, and I did volunteer work at Bloom, which I'm sure is going to make aGLIFF 23 a big success, but I didn't go to Ocean City with the rest of my family and I could have done more, but just didn't feel inspired.

As I didn't do much during the Summer, I'm being held in suspense of the workload that will hit me, but as I've always operated better when I'm busy, I think I'll actually welcome it rather than dread it. Also, I'm actually excited to take Human Sexuality, which is my only class until late September. My professor, Dr. Steve Rison, is the adviser for Equality Now, a GLBTQA (Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, Questioning, and Allies) club I'm part of so I already met him a few times.

In Human Sexuality Dr. Rison told us that he wanted us to start a journal which we should write in a few days a week. It was actually kind of funny, because I have been meaning to blog more lately, so it was like the Universe was telling me that it was not only OK, but somewhat required. Another thing that Dr. Rison told us is that we should start a large project, which we have to present to the class at the end of the semester. I'm not really sure what my project will be at the moment, but I do know that I want to take it with some new friends in class. These two new friends, which shall remain nameless for now, are also part of the GLBT community, so I think more than likely my project will fall under that spectrum.

Another thing which I'm planning on doing much of this semester is getting involved in Student Life. During the last semester of the school year I spent a lot of time in the Student Life office since I became in officer in Equality Now. Spending time there, I realized that a lot of what Student Life did is a lot of what I want to do, so I've decided to help them out by being a volunteer. I want to completely immerse myself in the system, and possibly help out Equality Now have more a voice in ACC in the process. I also want to meet more of the students in my school, and being part of Student Life will ensure I do that.

Well, anyways, that's what I wanted to blog about this evening. I'll post another WIT (What I Think) blog pretty soon and keep you all updated on what's happening this semester in school!

Until next time,

SEXDUCTXY!