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Pride Day Meh
Jun. 13th, 2016 01:07 pmThis was Pride Weekend in DC, but for the first time in years, I skipped it entirely.
For starters, there was a lot of family visiting so they were the higher priority. The youngest grandkid, Elodie, was celebrating her first birthday with a small party at our place Saturday afternoon and we had our hands full hosting the bash, preparing the food & drinks, and generally amusing the very young children. I think the entire event was a success.
Sunday was the official day of the pride festival in the downtown but it was also hot & humid, and frankly, I don't get as much out of these events as I once did when I was a young gay. Maybe I'm an old fart sitting on the front porch, yelling at the kids to get off my lawn. Maybe the modern pride festival speaks to this current generation of young gays in a way which doesn't appeal to my own generation. Maybe I just don't need the public reinforcement happy times like I once did. In any case, I just felt no desire to attend.
And then I heard about the mass killings in Orlando: 50 deaths, 26+ injuries. That completely took the wind out of my sails: a party & festival just didn't feel appropriate. I tried to ignore it all so I didn't cause any commotion with the kids here, but it was hard to look at any news outlet as the body count mounted.
Saturday night, friends Josh & Skip in Manassas, VA, lost their apartment to fire. The fire burned out two apartments on the top floor (3rd floor), but the water damage destroyed the apartments below them, including theirs in the ground level. In all 7 units were destroyed but more than 20 families are displaced because the neighbouring units had to be evacuated as well. Good new: there were no injuries beyond minor smoke inhalation. Josh & Skip are safe, as are their dog & cat. Bad news: Josh is the property manager so not only does he have to deal with his household problems, but he has to help sort out this mess and help the displaced families as much as possible.
They are now staying with a friend of theirs nearby the property. Today, they're working on getting replacement medical prescriptions, eye glasses, minor personal items, and replacement documents & credit cards, not to mention contacting their renter's insurance agency for assistance. I'm planning to visit tomorrow to take them out clothes shopping to help rebuild their wardrobes so they can at least attempt to go back to work asap.
There is an IndieGoGo fundraising campaign to help them with the costs of replacing, well, everything. Insurance will cover a significant amount of the replacements but not all, and probably not swiftly. If you can spare a few dollars, here's the link: https://www.gofundme.com/292u5jf8
For starters, there was a lot of family visiting so they were the higher priority. The youngest grandkid, Elodie, was celebrating her first birthday with a small party at our place Saturday afternoon and we had our hands full hosting the bash, preparing the food & drinks, and generally amusing the very young children. I think the entire event was a success.
Sunday was the official day of the pride festival in the downtown but it was also hot & humid, and frankly, I don't get as much out of these events as I once did when I was a young gay. Maybe I'm an old fart sitting on the front porch, yelling at the kids to get off my lawn. Maybe the modern pride festival speaks to this current generation of young gays in a way which doesn't appeal to my own generation. Maybe I just don't need the public reinforcement happy times like I once did. In any case, I just felt no desire to attend.
And then I heard about the mass killings in Orlando: 50 deaths, 26+ injuries. That completely took the wind out of my sails: a party & festival just didn't feel appropriate. I tried to ignore it all so I didn't cause any commotion with the kids here, but it was hard to look at any news outlet as the body count mounted.
Saturday night, friends Josh & Skip in Manassas, VA, lost their apartment to fire. The fire burned out two apartments on the top floor (3rd floor), but the water damage destroyed the apartments below them, including theirs in the ground level. In all 7 units were destroyed but more than 20 families are displaced because the neighbouring units had to be evacuated as well. Good new: there were no injuries beyond minor smoke inhalation. Josh & Skip are safe, as are their dog & cat. Bad news: Josh is the property manager so not only does he have to deal with his household problems, but he has to help sort out this mess and help the displaced families as much as possible.
They are now staying with a friend of theirs nearby the property. Today, they're working on getting replacement medical prescriptions, eye glasses, minor personal items, and replacement documents & credit cards, not to mention contacting their renter's insurance agency for assistance. I'm planning to visit tomorrow to take them out clothes shopping to help rebuild their wardrobes so they can at least attempt to go back to work asap.
There is an IndieGoGo fundraising campaign to help them with the costs of replacing, well, everything. Insurance will cover a significant amount of the replacements but not all, and probably not swiftly. If you can spare a few dollars, here's the link: https://www.gofundme.com/292u5jf8
