Half penny post: At year's end

And so the year has come to an end. I am back home in Chi to bring in the new year. I am going to try to avoid making New Year's resolutions based on stuff that I'm not already doing.

I have travelled a great deal (photo is of me sleeping on a heating vent in DCA) and have one last story to add from yesterday's trip. People see only that which they wish to see. I was on my way through security and had taken off the requisite layers of clothing (shoes, belt, jacket, sweatsheat, hat etc). I was about to go through the detector and security tells me to go back and take off my light sweater. I almost threw a fit. The white bloke in front of me had just gone through wearing his. What The Fuck? I know I had my boi swagger going (I caught 3 different women eyeing me) but that was uncalled for. Black folks aren't trying to start somn on a plane, we've got other shit to worry about. Also if the white lady can go through the screener with her head scarf on, my black ass can sure as hell go through with my skull cap on as well. I just had to get that off my chest.

Back to the gist of this post... where was I ... o yes travel. I have gone to a good many places and enjooyed myself. I took my trips alone which enabled me to go wherever I pleased at the drop of a dime. In the last six months I've been to DC, NY, Philly, Miami, Berkely, San Fran, Vegas, Phoenix, New Orleans and a few other cities that are not coming to mind immediately. I've made acquaintances on planes, at airports even at coffee shops. All of whom have helped to make me feel that much less lonely.

Side note: Nicole Pina hot damn, if you are on Downelink look her up under nicki*****. She put up a new photo and Lord have mercy. I have the worst crush on this woman. How do you know you're not quite straight? Look at the photo and tell me you did not forget your next planned activity.

This year has also helped me to further define where I wish to be careerwise and socially. I am that much surer of myself and that much more comfortable with my sexuality. I have cut down on how much I take other people's opinions into account. This means I don't hide / dance around my sexuality as much. Still not sure how my mama will deal with meeting a girlfriend - should be fun. She is currently smitten with my sister's beau though. My sexuality has turned into the litmus test for people in my sister's life. If you can't deal with it get a stepping. I do love jr dearly. She's even out with me when I'm hitting on women.

I have lost people that I love and a few others have given birth. I discovered how much of a temper I have when I was crossed. I recently found out that someone who is practically family to me is expecting her first child ... yay!

To be continued ... I need sustenance.

Travel: Home again ... or not

I made it back to Chi yesterday after the lil snafu at the Columbus airport. That is one airport that you do not want to get stuck in. I had to catch the Megabus. Got home at 7am and checked out. I woke up later in the afternoon, ate and went right back to sleep. Woke up this morning feeling rather perky and have decided to do one more round of travel. All things equal, I should be heading out of here at 6 for one last jaunt before the New Year. Proposed airport tally ORD - PHL - DCA - IAD - CLT - ORD.

Update: I come to you from the humble seats at Washington Dulles airport. My abs of late have been getting one hell of a workout. They positively hurt. Its from sleeping on the floor / (on top of the heating vents if I'm going to be honest) at the airports. The heat serves a dual purpose, my ass is heated up and it provides relief for muscle fatigue.

Travel: 3 cities 1 day

Greetings from the floor at the humble Port Columbus OH airport. Yesterday I pulled a 3 city whirlwind tour. I had breakfast in New Orleans, lunch in Washington DC and dinner in Columbus OH. This is a meal in the downtown area of the cities mind you not the airports.

As luck would have it, due to weather and other lil things, I can't fly out of OH. I've been rolled over on standby from 2 flights and I'm about to call it a day and catch the bus back to Chi.

I made it to my home town last night and my favourite ice cream spot was open ... yay! I got a hot apple dumpling with home made pumpkin spice ice cream and caramel (pictured). Sinfully delightful ... I was in heaven.

I have an hour to kill before I've got to catch the bus into town. Airport tally for this trip ORD - PHL - DCA - IAD - MSY - CMH.

Travel: Big Easy

72F Amen! Hossana! Hallelujah! A sun tan ... double Amen! Yes I made it to the Big Easy. I spent one glorious afternoon in the sun taking in the scenery. Well evening as well if I'm going to be honest... Bourbon Street anyone?

We got here on a wing and a prayer BTW. It took 3 tries to find a plane for us this morning. 1st plane needed maintenance. 2nd plane was flown in from Philly but first needed maintenance in Philly. It arrived and broke down at the gate. Jesus must've been in on that one as we would not have fared so well if it had broken down mid flight. Anyway 3rd plane was finally brought in and we were out of there, an hour and a half late.

I hope you all enjoyed a hearty holiday feast. I ended up fasting instead of feasting. Not that I was on a religious bent or anything .... I simply could not find a place to eat in New Orleans. 99% of all eating spots were closed :(. Even Emeril's was closed and I was soooo looking forward to his gumbo. I finally found a spot on some side road that sold Po' Boys and I got a spicy sausage one. Not the best tasting sandwich but it sure as hell was filling :D.

I made it out to Algiers Point where we did some work after Katrina stopped by. The neighborhood looked quite different. The houses were repainted and all looked vibrant. Families were on the porches and it just brought a smile to my face.

Back to the cold weather ... Happy Boxing Day!

Half penny post: On the runway again

Happy holidays to everybody! I hope you all get some quality time with your families.

I blog today from my humble seat in the Reagan National Airport in DC (Sheena, you know me too well). I have been out here since Monday well more of Tuesday. I detoured and stopped by Philly in the name of an original Philly Cheese Steak :). When I can get off standby I shall be on my merry way to New Orleans. I have not been back to see the city since we went to help with the clean up a few years back so it shall be nice to see the changes that have taken place.

This is going to be the first Christmas that I've spent alone. I am usually with my sister or friends. It struck me this afternoon and I almost burst into tears in the middle of the mall. I had gone in search of a travel bag as my current bag is on its last shoulder straps. Mall visit: Can you say ants in an anthill. It was simultaneously exciting and downright scary. Hopefully N.O. will be just what the doctor ordered.

As I will be on the road, I can't have the traditional Christmas feast. In lieu, I am having the famous Nandos Peri Peri Chicken. I picked some up on my way to the airport. The host at Nandos and I are now well acquainted so shoutout to Toni. I walked in with my bag and the first thing he said to me was "You're flying out and leaving me again aren't you?" I had to laugh. He really is a sweetheart.

Half penny post: Curled up with some cider

Sheena I love your pizza idea. I plan to try it out as soon as my ass can leave the house. It's hella cold, wind chill of -27F right now and that's up some 5 degrees from about 4 hours ago. Winds are gusting at about 34mph.

It being heartily warm inside I'm curled up with some spiced cider and watching holiday movies. I watched PS I Love You in its entirety today for the first time. I cried through a good chunk of it... yes I did. It was quite touching. I've thus far watched The Note and One Fine Day as well.

Oy too much snow

Chicago specializes in 2 things, deep dish pizza and hella cold weather. We just got dumped on and I'm talking a good many inches of snow. The fellas in my building built a snow man that is note worthy. I'll have to go get a photo of him and post it.

The weekly round-up sponsored by "When the hell is spring coming?"

• Snow snow snow ... the weather is beginning to depress me.
• It's colder than Zeus' nuts - The bloke rides around in the heavens with a toga on.
• A friend graduated and gave the rest of us hope.
• Zimbabwe is a hot mess but there are some bright spots. Betty Makoni of the Girl Child Network is the 2008 Recipient of Amnesty International USA's Ginetta Sagan Award for Women's and Children's Rights. We salute her and the work that she has done in the advocacy for female children in our country.
• South of Nowhere took it's final bow. Spashley is no more. Jenn and Dee gave it the send off it deserved. Check out their vlog here. I can't wait for them to recap the last season of the L Word.

Have a good weekend!

Ty

Half Penny post: Travels, family, music

First up shoutout to musicisamust and sokari of BlackLooks. Thanks for your words of encouragement.

I did manage to get out of here for the weekend. I visited my sister in DC and made it home to OH for a friend's graduation. Like many other African students it was a struggle for her to make it to graduation so you know we had to go and dance up and down the aisles in celebration. Well we didn't want to embarass her parents so we stuck to just cheering enthusiastically.

I also got a chance to watch the Soweto Gospel Choir perform in DC .... YAY!!!!!! The show was sold out well over a week ago, but I went to the theater on the faith that I would get a ticket and I did score a $10 prime ticket. These are usually seats that are so far back you are going for the music not to see the choir dance. As luck would have it my $10 ticket was for the choral tier which means I was right above the choir and could see all the action... awesome. I swear I had a better seat than those with the $50 tickets. I got to chat with some of the choir members after the show ... nothing like using the mother tongue. I thoroughly enjoyed myself. I knew most of the songs that they sang and happily sang along. Were I in an aisle, I'd have broken out in dance too.

Every time that I fly through Philly I discover something new in the airport. There is so much art in there it's amazing. A few pieces are at the end of the post. They are by Florence Putterman.

While we are on the subject of airports allow me to recount a take or two from this weekend. First up is the tale of the plane cockpit light that mulfunctioned and had us grounded for 2 hours. We had a small sneeze-horsepower plane which means that I had to duck getting in. The plane was practically empty so we got to pick our own seats and I sat in 3 different places. Now I fell asleep after getting in and assumed I'd be woken up after we'd landed. 2 hours later I wake up, look outside the window and think the sun is mighty high and we've landed. Upon further inspection I discover we haven't left the parking spot. Yup 2 hours in the tin can by the runway. We did eventually take off and the pilot hauled ass all the way to OH.

Tale 2. We are on the plane in Philly heading back to the Chi and we get parked next to the runway for an hour. Then when we are finally cleared to leave, a plane coming in for landing has a landing gear problem so Emergency crews lined the runway and we are forced to sit again for another 15 or so mins. At this point I was certain we were entilted to free drinks or somn. Anyway take off we did at some point and the pilot hauled ass to Chi and then we spent an hour circling the city because there was too much air traffic. We finally land and get parked next to the runway again because there is too much ground traffic. We must have arrived during airport rush hour.

All the flight problems did nothing to dampen the joy of a weekend spent with friends and family. Hope you all had equally blessed weekend.

Voices of Witness: Christian LGBT in Africa

An excerpt from an email by Reconciling Ministries of which I am an active member is below. This is a cause that is near and dear to my heart. I believe that we should all be allowed to worship and serve our Deity of choice and in my case I would like to do it as a United Methodist. Reconciling Ministries Network is a national grassroots organization that exists to enable full participation of people of all sexual orientations and gender identities in the life of the United Methodist Church, both in policy and practice.

Voices of Witness
Integrity USA's Voices of Witness, stories of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender Christians in Africa, premiered at the Lambeth Conference on July 23, 2008. Times Online introduced the video in an article titled, Lambeth Diary: Gay Africans tell their stories.

Behind the Mask
Behind the Mask, through journalistic activism, strives to mainstream lesbian, gay,
bisexual, transgendered, and intersex (LGBTI) interests and to change negative attitudes towards homosexuality and same-sex traditions in Africa.

Below is a preview of Voices of Witness: Africa which is currently in production. Please consider making a donation towards its completion at VOW: Africa.

Chicago and other random thoughts.

Whining below ... you have been warned!

Our weather is a hot mess and so is our governor's situation ... it's the only thing in the news these days. Bailout ... another thing I'm hearing a lot off.

Another Chicago hot mess is the damn CTA. I was outside vying to catch a case of pneumonia today because the train signals up north stopped working and therefore the trains stopped running. Our train station faces the lake. Any moron will tell you that is a recipe for disaster. Ofcourse our glorious train station got expressed by the first train that came by so we had another 10 minutes wait for the next one. So I'm suffering through another round of sniffles, sneezes and rudolph moments. My nose is so thoroughly exfoliated it will give a baby's bottom a run for it's money.

I've got a case of insomnia that recently kicked in and that is really messing with me. Had to use a backup method in order to fall asleep last night.

My phone has chosen to give up its digital ghost and whining about that is a waste of energy soo next!

I'm beginning to hate being single ... and I'm going to blame that on the holidays.

On Friday, the good Lord willing I'm out of here for a few days. Canned air anyone?

Snow, Ice, Slush

It's a cold mess out there. That about summarizes Chicago's awesome weather. I think I got a facial walking between buildings this afternoon.

My cold is on it's way out and I'm a grateful bugger.

An interesting tale that was relayed to me by my sister

M: Why isn't your sister married? She's running a little behind schedule.

S: O she's not going to any time soon either.

M: Does she have a boyfriend?

S: She has a girlfriend.

M: Huh .... (a minute or so later) ... O .... O .... O

Anyway it's slow out here. I work. I sleep. I repair my roommate's laptops. I should start a business.

Time permitting check out this article on Homosexuality in Africa(African taboos surrounding gays hamper access to HIV/AIDS programs).

I continue to appreciate being able to be open about my sexuality in my every day life.

Aaaaaachoooooo

+ + + = Bad Idea. I am a programmer and that equation makes sense. Aaacchhhhoooo! sniffle sniffle....

Friday roundup

Tis Friday ... Yay!

Lovers and Friends has a new episode ... Tori anyone? And the Sasha storyline .... I'm jus saying it's up so watch it here.

Weather is a pain in the rear end. We're doing a snow man walk and the ice waddle, what is up with that?

My phone is on it's last rings ... thank goodness for my back-up phone. My phone is the most temperemental woman that I know. It will hog my text messages and deliver them at like midnight ... big problem.

Christmas soirees are in full swing. Ugly sweater competition anyone?

I encourage people to tune into U-People's live stream on Thursday nights at 9PM ET.

I recently had an interesting facebook exchange with some folks, an excerpt is below ( the names have been ommitted to protect the innocent)

• Elegant bosoms and Delightful derrières...Derrières are just as fancy!
• Teach me more. So you think it would fly if I complimented someone saying.."why, i could not help but notice your delightful derrieres.." , with appropriate pronunciation of course.
• It's not plural, it's Derrière...It's pronounced "der-ee-air"...And so the proper usage would be, "What a lovely Derrière, Madame...Can I buy thee a drink?" Then when you get really gutsy, you can then offer the Elegant bosom line...Things should go smashingly well after this...Not that I've had any experience with such things...
• Thanks for the grammar lesson. I'll be sure to let you know how many black eyes I rack up with the line combo :)
• OK. So, you can be my wing-woMAN next rime we hang. Ty, i guarantee you, if you don't get lucky with that line, it's probably because your accent/pronunciation was off.
• It's all in the "delivery", you need to exude sincerity and awe when you notice them, and more importantly, when you compliment her. Good luck dude.
• That and you didn't liquor her up as well as you should have...Again, not that I've had ANY experience with such things....
• Gotcha, deep wallet for the liquor, and fake it like you mean it ... well more of over enthuse
• Well Ty, dude..i only say it when i truly mean it..see..that's the secret. No faking bro. But Deep wallet for yourself, cause after a few drinks, you'll mean it numerous times in one night at the right bar.

I have too much fun at times
Ty

Half penny post: Travel epilogue

The last time we caught up I was in Charlotte recovering from my partying ways. I was supposed to fly to San Francisco, but due to some flight cancellations and being # 25 on the standby list I decided to go on to my next stop which was Washington DC to see my sister. It was a pleasant evening. I had dinner at Nando's Chicken. Every southern African worth their salt know's some good peri-peri chicken when they eat it and this is IT! The only city in the US with Nando's is DC and the place is usually packed. I had to wait 15 mins to get a table but the wait was worth it. The quarter chicken and chips with spicy rice was heavenly. Pity the chicken portion looks like a damn cornish hen quarter. We had breakfast at the airport because I was late for my flight and had to catch a later flight. Breakfast came complete with a lovely waitress who I will admit to flirting with briefly. My sister was gracious enough to tell the waitress that I thought she was cute ... yea I love you too junior.

Now I'm back in snowy Chicago and missing Miami. Can't wait for my next trip out of here. I have been thinking about why I enjoy travelling so much. I love seeing new places, meeting new people, trying new cuisines and all that's in between. If I could get a job that lets me travel this much I would take it as long as it's not in sales / marketing. I am my father's daughter in that respect. I love traveling.

I decided to give it more thought and I think the other reason why I travel is that I don't feel as lonely. I am surrounded by people and interact with a good many on a regular basis but am lonely at the core of it. When I travel I am meeting people, and doing things that help me to fill the void. Some people drink, some jump out of perfectly good planes, I travel. When I travel it's one of the few times that I feel completely in my element.

Most of my travelling is spontaneous, eg this trip. I decided in which city I wanted to be when. The only thing in this trip set in stone was the Macy's day parade, everything else was dependent on how I felt. I left Chicago on Wednesday instead of Thurs morning coz I had nothing to do that night and thought dinner in Philly would be fun (Philly cheese steak anyone?). I caught an earlier flight to Miami coz I wanted to eat lunch on the beach on Friday. My plane on Sunday had a 4 hour delay so I chose to go into Philly to see the city again. The lack of structure in travelling would drive a lot of people crazy, but for me it's exhilarating.

This trip also reminded how much it sucks to be single. You see soo much that you'd love to share with someone. At the end of a day before you sleep you want to call someone to just touch base or share your day or simply say I love you and miss you. Aaaaargh I'm beginning to depress myself so I'll quit while I'm ahead. BTW congratulations to a friend of mine who got engaged this past weekend.

SoBe White Party

Lo and behold I went to the party and it deserves it's own post. Fun fun fun! Women all over decked out in their intepretations of 'white attire'.

Where to begin??? Party was at Nikki Beach club which I'm told is one of the spots to see and seen. It was an indoor outdoor setting so people were flowing in and out yada yada. The best part was when I walked in and saw Nicole Pina ... ooo honey I almost keeled over in a faint. The woman is FINE! For those who do not know who she is I present a visual sample and her myspace profile. I have mentioned her previously in relation to her role as Tori in The Lovers and Friends Show. K I'll quit talking about her but suffice it to say, I loved seeing her in person several times over the course of the evening

Also in the house was Dee who won Shear Genius, love her hair. At one point in time I was on the dance floor right next to her and had to check myself ... no asking for photo ops when someone is there relaxing.

Hmm what else transpired ... a lot of dancing some imbibing of adult beverages, some tipping of dancers and an incident that involved a swag bag, some ice, some glo-sticks, quite possibly 2 other people and uh we'll leave it at that. Unfortunately for you to understand why we're leaving it at that I need to present exhibit A and B.

The glo-sticks somehow ended up attached to my shirt front. I just took the tat photo a second ago with my phone. Its on my neck and rather hard to hide.

Tat is a temp but it is waterproof so I'm about to start a research project on how to get it off before Monday. If I don't I'll be hard pressed to explain it in the office.

We partied until 4 am and I had to leave for the airport at 8. Needless to say I got up at 8 and thank goodness I had enough common sense to pack my stuff after I got home from the party. I missed my airport bus & had to improv my way there. I must say living on the edge is not all that as I almost had a heart attack a time or two. I literarily ran to the gate. As an aside, the lady sitting across the aisle from me was giving one hell of a presentation on why people should not have tats. And mine was on prominent display. Anyway I write to you from Charlotte, NC as a sign that I did indeed catch my flight.

Half penny post: Thanksgiving travels part deux

11/27

MIA -SoBe

Yup I'm whooping it up in South Beach Miami. Beautiful weather I must say, esp considering that I was freezing my ass off in NY yesterday. I found time to hit up a gayborhood and the Lincoln Mall. I also took a stroll + dunk in the Atlantic for good measure. There is a white party in SoBe tonight for the lesbians and I'm told some 1500 women show up annually for it, so I'm seriously considering going even though I'm tired as hell. I do have a white outfit though I forgot to bring my white pimp shoes... o well win some lose some. They have a toga party tomorrow which I'm sad about missing but hopefully I can catch one in Chicago next summer (no way in hell I'm going to one in winter)

So here's to all sorts of dykery...

Half penny post: Thanksgiving travels.

Okay we are on the road again, or more or less doing the airport hop. I'm going to do the whole trip in one multiple entry post by day / airport code so here goes:

11/27

NYC - New York

Another day another City. Happy Thanksgiving to all. I hope the cranberry sauce is fresh, the mashed potatoes are from scratch, the turkey is juicy and the pies are flaky crusted and cooked to perfection. Also hope you get a moment to think about what you are thanksful for.

My Thanksgiving feast consists of a Subway footlong and a bottle of water ... quite a hearty feast I must say.

Being that I found myself in NYC I decided to check out the Macy's Thanksgiving parade. Not a bad experience. I went North of town along 66th and the crowds were sparser over there so I got to see most of the floats and baloons ... my favorite was Sesame Street. I know I'm a grown woman, but I really enjoyed seeing Grover, Elmo and Big Bird. Incidentally Big Bird isn't that big in real life. Anyway off to watch 'I Can't Think Straight'. Lord knows how long I've wanted to see it.

Update:

Having seen ICTS, I have mixed emotions. For one having watched the youtube clips I'd already seen half the movie. Also I had the play by play down. Throw in a few lesbian / gay cliches eg KD Lang cds and it's kind of a let down. I think as far as Shamin's movies go, 'The World Unseen' rules. Now having said that I did enjoy the movie. It was a nice change of pace to see Lisa Ray being the more assertive party. Of the 2 love scenes (yes I'm going to go there) I think the second one had better chemistry and more believable, just my humble opinion. I wanted to give Thala's sister a good shake everytime she came on screen. There were one or two laugh out loud moments and a few snicker worthy ones. All in all worth a see if you have time though I'd say find The World Unseen first.

11/26

ORD - Chicago O'Hare

Bored as hell, I even had time for a nap. Then had the honor of confusing the hell out of a lady who was sitting across from me in the terminal. That almost made up for the boredom.

PHL - Philadelphia

Not bad, had to wait for eternity for the train but otherwise was good. Since I was in town early enough, I took myself on a late night tough of downtown. Can someone tell me why the city has a giant clothes peg opposite City Hall? Ridiculous I tell you. And how in all holiness is someone to survive if all the stores are closed. Not even the 24 hours CVS was open. I forgot to buy batteries for my camera so I"m relying on my phone until I find an open store.

All in all Philly is a beautiful historical city.

Half penny post: Finals

For the past week I've been battling final projects and finals. We are on the quarter system so we are sprung before Thanksgiving. Great I have 6 weeks off, not so great the stress before Thanksgiving. By the time you get to Turkey day all you want to do is sleep not hang around with the family. One more day and I'll be done and I can't wait.

I have to salute Sheena of the site sheenasays for eating those sea slugs. For a description of taste she says "for the curious: sea slugs are super slippery and slimy. the texture is “bouncy”. uhh, yea. kind of like jelly meets oyster meets octopus. (meets your mouth!)" Again hats off to the woman...

Now it being exam week I needed something to take my mind off the books and I watched the movie Rome & Juliet which is Filipino. I watch a lot of foreign language films in my spare time, mostly Bollywood, but I've never been known to turn down an international film. Yes I specialize in subtitles. Anyway Rome & Juliet took me a minute to get into but once I got invested in the story I couldn't stop watching it. Best way I can summarize it is Imagine Me & You story line with more that you can get behind. Some of the acting is questionable but I still think it is worth a watch if you can read fast and fill in the blanks. See below for a sampler of the movie

Rome and Juliet, is about two lovers, all right, but the main characters in the film are two women. It tells of the romantic journey of Juliet (Andrea del Rosario), a conservative pre-school teacher who hires Rome, a liberated wedding planner, to take charge of the preparations for her upcoming wedding. Thrown together by circumstance, the two women become close and develop a romance that becomes a huge scandal after the groom and their respective families discover their affair.

Angered and humiliated, the groom (played by Rafael Rosell), calls off the wedding. Not long after, Juliet is driven away from home by her own mother, is fired from work and is injured in a vehicular accident that renders her comatose. But in the end, and despite all the trials, Rome and Juliet’s unconventional love for each other remains strong and intense. -- Extracted from http://sheklabee.multiply.com/journal/item/54/ROME_AND_JULIET

Prop 8 rallies

Over the weekend there were rallies all over the country and I go a chance to attend the Chicago rally. Very cold weather I must say. A few photos are below. I have read several blogs on the Chicago rally and one of my top write ups is by eternally_evolving on OurChart. If you have an account hop on over and read it for yourself. I'm not linking to the post directly as I don't have her permission to do so.
Wanda Sykes also came out during the weekend... yay! Congratulations to her and her wife.
These are my favorite clips of her on youtube right now.

The World Unseen

From the ladies who are bringing us I Can't Think Straight, comes the movie The World Unseen. I had the honor of going to the Reeling Film Festival here in Chicago on Saturday to watch it. Lisa Ray and Sheetal Sheth have amazing chemistry and I am counting down to watching I Can't Think Straight. The World Unseen is quite a compelling story, to quote a few:

‘[Lisa] Ray is particularly remarkable as a woman who is truly torn between familiar oppression and a freedom so unthinkable that it frightens her. The film’s happy ending is graceful, absent of grandiosity or too much finality. It offers genuine reassurance, convincingly suggesting that one small individual action, while not a panacea, can be the difference between hope and despair.’ Justout.com

"The World Unseen contains not one but two of this year's steamiest screen kisses."
Cameron Bailey / Film Programmer / Toronto International Film Festival

‘The World Unseen is a touching love story… In her directorial debut, Sarif makes the transition from novel to big screen utterly seamless, depicting romantic love that
transcends its racist, sexist and homophobic surroundings.’ IndieExpress.com

Trailer:


A synopsis of the movie:
Free-spirited Amina has broken all the rules of her own conventional Indian
community, and the new apartheid-led government, by running a café with
Jacob her 'coloured' business partner. When she meets Miriam, a young
traditional wife and mother, their unexpected attraction pushes Miriam to
question the rules that bind her. When Amina helps Miriam's sister-in-law to
hide from the police, a chain of events is set in motion that changes both
women forever.
In a system that divides white from black and women from men, what chance
is there for an unexpected love to survive?
From overcoming oppression to finding personal freedom, from the hardships
of a loveless marriage to the hesitant joy of an unexpected love affair, The
World Unseen transports the viewer to a vibrant, colourful world that is
universal in its themes.

Half Penny post: 100 and counting

100Posts! Thanks to all who stop by often and to those who keep discovering this blog. I honestly never thought I'd be writing my 100th post.

I started this blog as self prescribed therapy. I needed to put my thoughts down somewhere. I also wanted to put down my life experiences because when I was coming out, it was hard to find blogs by other glbt Africans. Granted my experiences are a lil out of the ordinary, but I hope that the gist of the posts will help someone. I am still working things out and do appreciate the feedback that I get from the readers. You have given me comfort and strength and a sense of community.

In response to a question that I was asked a while back but never came around to responding to, my name Ty is derived from my first name (Taie - If you are Southern African you can guess what the full name is).

As a side note (more of a tale really), I had to take my profile down a month or 2 ago because we were required to create a project blog for one of my classes. Along with the personal project blog, we had to contribute to the common class blog as well. Now being the genius that I am, I never thought to create an extra email account so that I could keep the worlds separate. I was merely thinking convinience, I can follow all blogs in one place:). After my first post I realized that my classmates could click on my name and see my other blogs ... not cool. So up until Thanksgiving, my profile will continue to be hidden, after which I will put it back up.

Any questions that you might have for me can be dropped in the comment section.

Love & Peace

The Queer African Ty

Travel Post: DC Again

To start off I'd like to address a question posed by readyornot on whether or not I'd adopt a child if I didn't have a partner. Short answer yes. I have given it some thought and concluded that as long as I have a good support network around me I would go ahead and do it. I would also need to be on the up and up financially as having no backup finances has the potential to not only screw me up, but to also screw up the life of the innocent child.

Well I'm in DC and have been for a hot minute. I should be heading home tomorrow as I have work in the afternoon. I had a day off of class and decided to travel up here to visit my sister and close friend who is in town from Japan. It's been nice seeing him and catching up with my sister. Weather is infinitely better too.

I flew in through Philly and must say that I have fallen in love with their airport. There is so much to see and do. Below are a few images of an exhibit by Lisa Murch. Also note the bell is made using lego pieces only.

history in the making

obama won! i am still in shock. i was in Grant park when the announcement was made. The crowds energy went up tenfold at the time & i do mean it was amped up.
His speech was ... can't even find words right now. had to use my phone for this blog entry while i was still amped.

YES HE DID! OBAMA PRIDE ALL THE WAY!

Half Penny Post: Life, family et al

I must say the warm weather has been a nice change. I've been trying to spend as much time outdoors as possible. Yesterday (Sunday) I decided to walk instead of catching the bus while running errands. I figured walking along the lakeshore would not only be relaxing but also a good round of exercise. The time outdoors cleared away a headache that had been brewing which I am eternally grateful for because I knew that if it hit I'd be out for the count.

Anyway while I was walking along the shore there were parents with their kids playing. I remember a couple that was playing catch with their little boy and teaching him to bat as well. He was a little sweetheart. There were other parents out with kids of all ages either playing games or just walking.

That got me thinking, when I have a kid of my own (I've finally decided that I do want children eventually, but I'm adopting) will I be there for them in the way that they need me to be. I am still working out my issues with my folks and I do sometimes worry that when I do have kids, the issues will come up again when it comes to my parenting. But I figure the kid will be ahead by a mile as their other mother will probably be better adjusted.

I had a discussion with a friend of mine a few days ago about the adoption & raising of kids. I would like to give my child several names and 2 last names. Names will be in English, Zimba & ethnicity of other mother. Kid will also have both last names. I would like to have it that way because I am fully aware that I will not be able to put my partner's name on the adoption certificate if I'm the one adopting.

I would love for the child to learn about their heritages, eg if they are Zimba I would like them to learn both the history and language. It is something that I think is crucial in their understanding of themselves. My grandparents insisted on teaching me about my heritage (I've got the ancestry down a number of generations) and the languages. I was not interested in it at the time but I learnt to get them off my back. Now I'm glad that they insisted that I learn. As all my grandparents have passed on, I will always have that part of them with me. Speaking of grandparents that have passed on, I was saddened to hear that Obama's grandma had passed on. Prayers go out to him and his family.

On a lighter note, Lewis Hamilton won the Formula 1 world championship ... YAY! Now I was suprised to learn that he is dating Nicole Scherzinger of PCD... anyway he beat Massa by a point :). Drinks all around(non alcoholic)!

Today is the dawn of a new era ... Obama Pride all the way.

Ty

Happy Halloween indeed

This is a shallow blog post, my alter ego insisted on writing it.

I would like to take a moment to thank the Lord for a very warm Halloween. Having said that I know that's a one way ticket to hell.

I walked through Boystown earlier this evening and it was entertaining to say the least. I met Marlon and his partner and we walked down Halsted critiquing the costumes (they were on their way to Circuit). Minibar had the best selection of costumes ... I think I saw Paula Deeen complete with a dish towel and spatula. The ladies ... amen. Again thank you for the warm weather. Gotta find a photo of me in my fire chief attire.

:D

I Can't Think Straight Pt. 3

Seems there's a new trailer out for the movie as well as a new poster for it. I promised I'd post something new about the movie every week and here is this week's installment. Unfortunately, because I write some of my blog entries in advance by the time you read this the trailer will be over a week old. The new trailer seems to give away a great deal of information, which might make watching the film a let down of sorts. I, however, am still looking forward to watching the story in it's entirety. Please support the movie when it comes out Nov. 21 as queer women of color are hard to come by at the theaters.

Half Penny post: Visiting folks and QOC support group

I went home to OH this past weekend and can say with relative certainty that I had fun. It was nice to hang out with my bro and sis as well as see old friends.
Now I do need to mention that home is in rural OH and the photo on the left demonstrates what I had to dodge as I was driving to and from. It's harvest season so we share the roads with combine harvesters which require both lanes of the road.

I stopped by my alma mater to see a few old friends. One of the folks that I saw was very suprised to see me on campus. I haven't been to campus on a weekday since I left OH eons ago. The way I looked threw her off. She thought I was new student and was about to tell me that I looked like a past student when I greeted her and she figured out who I was.

What threw her off you might wonder ... Well I've been gone for a year and a half and in that time my hair's grown out quite a bit. I now have locs which further threw her off. I used to be notorius for wearing jeans and sweaters, even when I was in grad school. This time around I'm more into khakhis (courtesy of having a job). She kept going on about how different I looked and the how the prep look was really in agreement with me. Now said lady was one of the many moms that I had out there. As I was looking around her office I saw a button that made me smile. It was for Christian LGBT youth.

One of the ladies' that I visited asked me if I had a boyfriend. Did she not see the rainbow bracelet on my hand? Everyone else was astute enough to ask if I was seeing someone special.

Recently I attended a support group for queers of color in Chicago. Most of the queer student groups that I know of in town are geared towards our caucasian brethren and it was a change of pace to attend one with more darkies than not. I connected with another staff member from our university and hopefully something can be put together on our campus for queers of color, with an invitation extended to students from the campus which hosted the last support group.

Teach Tolerance!

Ty

I Can't Think Straight Pt. 2

Video 2 based on the movie I can't think straight. It's a condensed 'Making Of' video. Please go out and support the movie when it comes out in November.

I Can't Think Straight - Making Of(Condensed Version)

I can't think straight pt 1

A while back I heard about the movie I Can't Think Straight and have been dying to see it since. The soundtrack is to die for as well. I have been waiting rather impatiently for the song Little Feeling by Leonie Casanova to show up on iTunes so that I can get it. The video below is the first in a series of videos that I'm going to post about the movie.

Leonie Casanova for I Can't Think Straight

Half penny post: This and that

First off thanks to all the kindly folks who frequent this blog. You have given me a sense of community and family. I have also been blessed to learn from those who have blogs of their own. So thank you to all.

To the kindly folks who have also taken time out of their days to let me know that gays are going to hell, thank you as well. This clip is for you... Rowan Atkinson does one hell of a monologue. Please note it is in jest and is not meant to offend anyone.


I have been reading on queers of color with a particular interest in Africans or immigrants. If you have any resources that you think might be of use, please put them into comments section.

On a different note, welcome to fall in Chicago. 80 degrees one day 50 the next. Today I began layering clothing in earnest. Layering included a waterproof jacket as it's raining as well. The leaves have turned and that has prompted me to take a trip back to OH to see the Fall foliage, so this weekend I'll be blogging from one airport or another.

Ty

Happy Coming Out Day!

Happy coming out day to you all.

May the people we come out to be receptive and supportive.

If they aren't right now ...

may they process the information and eventually become supportive.

My name is Ty and I'm coming out as a queer/ lesbian Zimbabwean.

Thanks to Queers United for highlighting the video below.

Beyoncé - If I Were A Boy

Something about this song ....

Home again

To be home again.... quite nice. I've been travelling some over the last 2 weeks and am finally back in Chi hopefully for the next 2 weeks. I've covered both coasts and seen a good many people. 

Today I flew back from the west coast. I'd gone to see my best mate. It was without question the most fun that I've had in a very long time. I laughed more than I have in a long time, annoyed her to no end and loved just being me. Beauty of where we were was that my gender bending ways were not a cause for stares and glares. I was my flaming self and noone looked twice. Contrast that with the day when I flew out of here and got a pat down till the guy figured out I was female and was like "O you can go". 

Today's return trip was no different. Yes I had on a jacket so maybe my swagger was more masculine than feminine but seriously, I'm standing in front of you getting a tkt and you keep referring to me as sir ... WTF! Throw in the lady at the airport burritto spot in Phoenix who was staring daggers across the counter at me. I was about to say something to her because it was getting a tad uncomfortable. I merely wanted lunch. There's always the possibility that she has not met androgynous queers before and I threw her for a loop, but openly staring is not cool. Sneak a glance or somn. I did have the pleasure of someone eyeing me up and down and smiling so that kinda made up for things.

On a different note the flight back was the bumpiest flight ever. Talk about make a milkshake while flying. The take off was shaky to say the least ... u r on the runway and can feel the plane being pushed by the cross winds.  The pilot deserves a hand cause about 100ft or so into the air, before the wheels were even in, the plane was swaying. Pilot kept us on track though. I was in the last row and literarily holding up the john walls. That in and of itself was not cool, but at least I had an aisle seat. Everything is amplified in the rear and the turbulence were no exception. It's a miracle that I fell asleep and was out for more than half the flight.

Anyway back to regular life now. Should be back blogging regularly on this, that and everything in between.

Blogs from the road: San Fran

And we've arrived in San Fran. Now my original trip was Chi - Phoenix - Oakland Cali. Ended up being Chi - Vegas - San Fran. In the grand scheme of things I ended up in the general vicinity of where I wanted to go. I must say they weren't kidding when they said the hills in this area will kill you. I went up one in Berkeley and can u say out of breath. Got to the top and had to lay myself down for a minute. The view from up here is worth it though. Photo is of SFO airport.

Blogs from the road: Vegas

And we're in Vegas ... where else in the world do you get off a plane and get accosted by slot machines ... tis much warmer than Chi and the bloke on the seat next to me kept referring to me as young man. Tried my hand and made off with all of 75c. Now note this is off of a $1 investment... so compared to the stock market right now I made a killing.

Blogs from the road: Chi

and we're off on another adventure. I'm off of work for a couple of days, more like a week really and am going to take in a few airports and cities. Chi is starting point and things are already interesting. My original flight from Chi to Phoenix was cancelled due to maintenance so all people on that flight were rolled over to the 9am flight. Lo and behold they cancelled that one to due yet again to maintenance. Now being the shrewd traveller that I am I calculated the odds of my making it off standby on the next flight and asked them to take me off that flight and put me on the one going thru Vegas. So I'm off to Vegas in a few. I'm actually leaving on the 8.30 flight so my travel plans are only off by an hr...

Zimbabwean Bloggers article in LA Times

I recently read an article 'Zimbabwe bloggers shine a light on their troubled country' by Robyn Dixon, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer posted on September 10, 2008. Bloggers gives news from the ground sometimes recounting their tales through humor at times in anger and at times with wild hope.

What drew me to the article was the quoting of Bev Clark of Kubatanablogs.net:

Kubatanablogs.net, founded by Clark and her partner, Brenda Burrell, organizes protests and sends out newsletters and text messages to reach people in a country where only a few use the Internet.
Clark cut her teeth as a white gay activist in the 1980s and '90s, at a time when Mugabe called homosexuality "sub- animal behavior" and said gays and lesbians had no rights and should be arrested.
She writes: "In no particular order, I'm fed up with: a) vendors selling me overpriced trays of eggs whilst I'm crossing the road; b) dead of night tsotsis (criminals) stealing telephone cables rendering all phones kaput; c) my hunting dog waking me up at 4am, 3 nights in a row; d) civil society fear merchants who say Don't Do A Damned Thing, or we'll provoke a state of emergency in Zimbabwe; e) Mugabe; f) waiting."

I personally enjoy reading Clark's posts and have written about them in the past. Time permitting read the whole LA Times article and check out Kubatana.net.
Peace to you all,

Ty

Half Penny Post : 1st day of Fall

Tis the first day of fall, something that I find hard to believe. Have we gone through three quarters of the year already? Now I sit back and ask myself, 'Self! what have you done in the last 3 quarters?' and I don't have a concise answer. Yes I went to class, yes i went to work, but what of note have I done. Answer is depressingly a resounding nothing! I have not contributed towards the fight for equality, I have not contributed towards the political process in my country, nothing. Nothing contributed towards the greater good.

I have contributed towards personal development. I have been to hear motivational speakers who've spoken about attitude, motivation and having clear goals. I've got my e-commerce venture off the ground and have tried to surround myself with people who are going places. I'm talking about people who are tired of the status quo and are trying to ensure that their future kids will have better lives. The funny thing about my spending time with these folks is that they are mostly guys. The women that I meet are married to these guys. I'm the only single woman in the group and there are probably 8 bachelors. The guys treat me as an equal which I appreciate because culturally they would be justified if they chose not to. Did I mention that 90% of the people in the group are either in Comp Sci or Engineering and 50% hold Masters degrees.

I have been following the political process in this country and I have to admit I am a tad worried. The 'kindly lady' who likes to shoot rifles has me realllllyyyy worried. A friend of mine forwarded me an email that I thought was funny in relation with the 'kindly lady'. I quote:

Make a donation to Planned Parenthood. In 'kindly lady's' name. A Planned Parenthood donation is tax deductible, while a political donation isn't. And here's the good part: when you make a donation to PP in her name, they'll send her a card telling her that the donation has been made in her honor.

There is also an address given to make sure that it gets delivered to the right place. :)

Love & Peace.

Ty

Half Penny Post : AAAArgh ... too much pt 2

Last post I was overwhelmed. Now I am straight up jump off a cliff stressed. My time off can not come soon enough. I am literally counting the days.
How many people are allowed to yell at you in a given day before you are justified when you snap? I have a relatively long fuse and it takes a lot to set me off but I feel as if people have been steadily trimming the ends .... maybe a long walk will help me to calm down.

Half Penny Post : AAAArgh ... too much

I am feeling overwhelmed right now ... there I've come out and said it. I am a hard headed nut at times and will never willingly admit that I am feeling overwhelmed. Too much to do not enough time. School has started up but for the most part I'm still clocking crazy work hours. There is so much to do that I am finding myself paralyzed by the sheer number of things to do. Today I started a list and will hopefully feel less stressed / panicked once I prioritize the tasks and put them on a time line.

In a previous post I blogged from the airport and I never finished the tale of the Charlotte airport. I have spent so much QT in that airport I now know where the power sockets are in a number of gates / terminals. I finally got out of there at 6:00AM the next morning in a sneeze horsepower plane that probably sat 40 or so. We walked our luggage to the plane and picked it up at buggage claim aka the left wing. I love going to DC. It's so different from Chicago and since I spend too many evenings in DuPont I am now a house music lover... the boys are onto something with that music. I should go to sleep since I'm due at the airport in the wee hours of the day.

Ty

Staceyann Chin live at Southpaw

All I can say is DAMN! This woman is talented. I have seen her perform live and met her in person and all I can say is DAMN! See for yourself...

Airport Blogging: Charlotte, NC

Can we say ouch ... every time we fly into Charlotte there's always something to say about the landing. Today's was a rather hard landing. It's usually a very bumpy ride in. Today we had a smooth approach, but I guess the pilot did not see the ground coming. We hit the ground and the people in the back let out a collective moan, I honestly expected us to bounce up at least once and touch down again.

I love the Charlotte airport as we get free WiFi ... the AC is arctic cold though.

Side note: Who in all holiness decided to make the aisles in the planes a foot wide? If you have an aisle seat you will have the crap beaten out of you by passengers and their bags.

Airport Blogging: Chicago

I've spent a hell of a lot of time at the Chicago O'Hare airport in the last month. I enjoy traveling though it is draining. I get off work and dash to the 'El' to get to the airport to catch a plane to Charlotte, connect to DC and double back on Sunday or Monday.

Check in is done so now we wait. I hate it when gates don't have power supplies as I can't charge my laptop or phone.

... ever watched a plane come in to see what they attach to it before you are allowed to alight. It's one hell of a syncronized dance. Will write on it at some point on this trip.

half penny post: travelling and students

hey all, i hope that you are doing well. I'm doing great actually. I ended summer quarter last week and took a trip out to the east coast (DC) to visit my sister. It was both a restful and tiring trip.

Flying standby is always a challenge as far as I am concerned. I was bumped off the Phoenix leg of my flight but was able to get a direct flight to Chicago which worked out really well for me. The last time I flew, I had to spend the night at the Charlotte airport after getting bumped off of 5 flights... can you say find a creative heating solution. Ended up sleeping with my laptop between my undershirt and shirt in order to stay warm ... I knew there was a reason why laptops tend to overheat. The heat from the fan helped to circulate the warm air between the layers.

I did hit up the club scene both on Friday and Saturday (and still made it to the airport at 7AM on Sunday). Friday I visited an African club as it was 'Mzansi night. All southern Africans know about that one. I spent the first hour in the club watching the soccer match between Nigeria and Argentina. 99% of the blokes who were standing in front of the TV were Nigerian and that left me as the only Arg supporter... and we won. Did I mention that I was the only female watching. Danced the rest of the night away to some good house, kwaito, soukous etc. BTW, what kind of bar tender are you if you've never heard of a Red Stripe?
Sat night I hit up DuPont Circle ... fun! Nothing like being in a gay crowd to liven things up. 2 completely different crowds.

I work with students during the school year and it's interesting seeing their reactions to me. I tend to blur gender lines and at first glance most students think that I'm masculine. Halfway through the conversation they switch to ma'am. It's got it's pros and cons. Students tend to give me less flack when compared to the other females in the office. Mostly it's a cultural thing where they are concerned. Women are lower down the totem pole and in some instances their opinions do not count. Try teaching a bloke whose followed that all his life that if he wants anything, he's going to have to work with me. It takes some doing. I love my job and wouldn't trade it for anything right now...

Anyway enough of my rambling ... gotta work on a web project before I go to bed.
Teach Tolerance!

Ty

Blessed are those who break a leg for they shall receive a casserole

I belong to a group (Reconciling Ministries Network) within the Methodist church that advocates for full inclusion of GLBT folks in the church. I came across this speech by Bishop Chamberlain that was great and hilarious. Quotes from the speech:

Blessed are those who break a leg for they shall receive a casserole.
I don't have a lesbian daughter, my daughter happens to be a lesbian.

Bishop Ray Chamberlain from Reconciling Ministries Network on Vimeo.

Cherry Bomb: "Taboos"

And the last bit of retro viewing... it's funny how in this age of Youtube retro viewing can actually be anything that is a week or so old as content is being generated so fast and what's in at breakfast will be out by morning tea. Forget 15 minutes of fame, it's down to 30 seconds of Youtube fame. Anyway enjoy the discussion on taboos.

Lesbian video from AfterEllen.com

Cherry Bomb: "Gender Roles – Part Deux"

Retro viewing continued.

Cherry Bomb: "The Urge to Merge"

Cherry Bomb Retro viewing ... I'm going to be posting past episodes of Cherry Bomb since I took my mini break and didn't get a chance to. Last week's episode tackled the urge to merge. Highlight of the episode was the conversation on sleeping naked. It makes a lot of sense actually when you consider that it makes you feel less like friends sharing a bed and more like lovers sharing a bed.

My latest obsession: Natasha Kai

My latest obsession is 24 year old US forward Natasha Kai. I am a HUGE soccer fan and with the Olympics in full swing, there are some world class matches to behold. AfterEllen ran a piece on the out women at the olympics and Tasha was one of them. I have been enamored with her since. Athletic... check, inked... check (19 in case u were wondering how many), educated... check, can dance ... check, hot... double check. I'm still wondering how she did not show up on my radar earlier.

Some facts on her courtesy of USsoccer.com

Full name is Natasha Kanani Janine Kai … Nickname is "Tasha" or “TK”... Majoring in sociology ... Likes to surf, especially her home beach at the North Shore … Likes to hang out with her friends, go dancing and spend time with her family … Loves to travel and meet new people … Has three younger brothers and two younger sisters ... Has 19 tattoos, by far the most ever for a WNT player … Younger sister Krisha played soccer at Hawaii ... Is a great aunt to her pride and joys, nephews Kaizen and Zylaher … Likes to sing and takes after her father Benny Kai, who is a professional singer at the Polynesian Cultural Center in Laie, Oahu.

My favorite tattoo that she has reads:
Appreciate the moment
The most precious treasure on
earth is MY heart... When I
share it with you, protect it
as if it was YOUR own.

Enjoy some QT with Ms Kai below. She is very much a goofball too...