Sorry it's been so long since I posted . . . grad school gets intense. And invitations went out not too long ago. So now it's a waiting game, mostly.
Also, a friend posted this and I had to share:
Thursday, March 1, 2012
Friday, February 17, 2012
MI Gay Friday
It's time for another one of these . . .
11 am - I woke up late this gay morning because I am still very gay sad about my brother's passing and also about the passing of our dear gay friend Sue, one of our most ardent supporters, a valiant crusader for serving the medically underserved, and the coolest grandma I know. (She is not gay, just us.) It may be surprising that gay people can have straight friends, or old friends, or that we would feel sad about things just the way that "normal" people do, but there it is. Sue was so excited to come to our commitment ceremony, and we were so excited to have her there, because she is one of our chosen family members. Someday we will name our gay clinic after her (the clinic will be for gay people and normal people, but we are gay, so it will be a gay clinic).
11:10 am - I start work on gay wiki tasks for the gay module in the gay course I'm working on. As previously discussed, these things are not gay, just me.
11:30 am - My gay, lesbian, homosexual, female partner kisses me goodbye to go to a gay meeting. The meeting is not gay - it is about the medical honors society she's in - just her.
11:45 - I have a gay breakfast of a gay cupcake. This cupcake is gay in the old sense of the word, in that it was confetti with sprinkles (and almond cream cheese frosty, to give it some class). I realize this is not the breakfast of gay champions, but it's what I had in the house that sounded good, and some morning are just sad enough that a cupcake for breakfast is warranted. This is one of those gay days.
12:00 - I return to work on my gay module.
12:50 - My gay, lesbian, homosexual, female partner returns home with a gay surprise - gay Munchkins and gay coffee from Dunkin Donuts. A new DD just opened close to our gay home, which makes us very happy.
1:00 - I return to work on my gay module.
3:00 - I prepare materials for my gay thesis data collection. The thesis is not gay - it's about medical communication between medical students and speakers of English as an additional language - just me. My gay, lesbian, homosexual, female partner has been the medical side of this.
3:20 - We go down to gay campus to meet our gay participants. (The campus is not gay, although East Lansing was the first city in the country to add anti-discrimination policies for sexual orientation and gender expression. The participants are not gay either.) Data collection goes very well.
6:20 - We return home, filling up our gay car with gas on the way. (As previously discussed, the car might be a little gay, given that it is a Jeep and we are lesbians.)
6:45 - I return to my gay work.
7:30 - I eat a gay dinner of leftover black bean tacos and watch Parenthood, a delightfully wholesome show about normal people and their normal lives.
7:45 - I reheat some gay chicken soup for my gay, lesbian, homosexual, female partner so that she can eat while she studies for her gay cardiology examination.
9:00 - I write this gay blog post while contemplating a return to my gay work. I will go to bed in a couple hours and fall into a deep, gay, sad sleep.
11 am - I woke up late this gay morning because I am still very gay sad about my brother's passing and also about the passing of our dear gay friend Sue, one of our most ardent supporters, a valiant crusader for serving the medically underserved, and the coolest grandma I know. (She is not gay, just us.) It may be surprising that gay people can have straight friends, or old friends, or that we would feel sad about things just the way that "normal" people do, but there it is. Sue was so excited to come to our commitment ceremony, and we were so excited to have her there, because she is one of our chosen family members. Someday we will name our gay clinic after her (the clinic will be for gay people and normal people, but we are gay, so it will be a gay clinic).
11:10 am - I start work on gay wiki tasks for the gay module in the gay course I'm working on. As previously discussed, these things are not gay, just me.
11:30 am - My gay, lesbian, homosexual, female partner kisses me goodbye to go to a gay meeting. The meeting is not gay - it is about the medical honors society she's in - just her.
11:45 - I have a gay breakfast of a gay cupcake. This cupcake is gay in the old sense of the word, in that it was confetti with sprinkles (and almond cream cheese frosty, to give it some class). I realize this is not the breakfast of gay champions, but it's what I had in the house that sounded good, and some morning are just sad enough that a cupcake for breakfast is warranted. This is one of those gay days.
12:00 - I return to work on my gay module.
12:50 - My gay, lesbian, homosexual, female partner returns home with a gay surprise - gay Munchkins and gay coffee from Dunkin Donuts. A new DD just opened close to our gay home, which makes us very happy.
1:00 - I return to work on my gay module.
3:00 - I prepare materials for my gay thesis data collection. The thesis is not gay - it's about medical communication between medical students and speakers of English as an additional language - just me. My gay, lesbian, homosexual, female partner has been the medical side of this.
3:20 - We go down to gay campus to meet our gay participants. (The campus is not gay, although East Lansing was the first city in the country to add anti-discrimination policies for sexual orientation and gender expression. The participants are not gay either.) Data collection goes very well.
6:20 - We return home, filling up our gay car with gas on the way. (As previously discussed, the car might be a little gay, given that it is a Jeep and we are lesbians.)
6:45 - I return to my gay work.
7:30 - I eat a gay dinner of leftover black bean tacos and watch Parenthood, a delightfully wholesome show about normal people and their normal lives.
7:45 - I reheat some gay chicken soup for my gay, lesbian, homosexual, female partner so that she can eat while she studies for her gay cardiology examination.
9:00 - I write this gay blog post while contemplating a return to my gay work. I will go to bed in a couple hours and fall into a deep, gay, sad sleep.
Thursday, February 9, 2012
Invitations
So you may remember my post about amate, in which I confessed that we had spent more than we intended and created extra work for ourselves.
That consequence has arrived. Tuesday we went to Staples and found an invitation kit for about $35. This doesn't sound too bad until I remind you that we already spent $50 on the paintings.
Now not only do we need to print up the invitations and RSVP cards, we also have to glue in the paintings and tie an accent ribbon. And then of course all of the other things that normally come along with sending invitations.
Fortunately, Rebecca's sister has volunteered to help with assembly, an offer for which we will ever be grateful. We're hoping to get a good start on that this weekend.
I'm hopeful, though, that the invites will be pretty enough to justify all of this work.
That consequence has arrived. Tuesday we went to Staples and found an invitation kit for about $35. This doesn't sound too bad until I remind you that we already spent $50 on the paintings.
Now not only do we need to print up the invitations and RSVP cards, we also have to glue in the paintings and tie an accent ribbon. And then of course all of the other things that normally come along with sending invitations.
Fortunately, Rebecca's sister has volunteered to help with assembly, an offer for which we will ever be grateful. We're hoping to get a good start on that this weekend.
I'm hopeful, though, that the invites will be pretty enough to justify all of this work.
MI Love: Bacon
I've come to a realization.
I love bacon.
I used to think that I only love the scent of bacon (and it is perhaps true that I love the smell even more than the taste), but in the past year, I have come to understand that I do in fact like bacon.
My most recent bacon purchase was from Horrock's - we found Kowalski thick cut, which is a meat company out of Hamtramck.
How do we use bacon? One favorite is corn chowder. Apparently, a soup cannot be called a chowder unless it contains bacon, and so we usually do buy bacon for it.
Given that corn chowder doesn't use a whole package of bacon, what else do we do? Another recent use is a facsimile of the Tim Horton's BELT, which is a BLT with egg on a bagel.
Yum!
I love bacon.
I used to think that I only love the scent of bacon (and it is perhaps true that I love the smell even more than the taste), but in the past year, I have come to understand that I do in fact like bacon.
My most recent bacon purchase was from Horrock's - we found Kowalski thick cut, which is a meat company out of Hamtramck.
How do we use bacon? One favorite is corn chowder. Apparently, a soup cannot be called a chowder unless it contains bacon, and so we usually do buy bacon for it.
Given that corn chowder doesn't use a whole package of bacon, what else do we do? Another recent use is a facsimile of the Tim Horton's BELT, which is a BLT with egg on a bagel.
Yum!
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
MI Love: Milk
I grew up on milk three times a day. I don't drink it quite that much anymore, but it's still an important part of my diet.
One milk-based recipe I've been making a lot lately is batido, which is kind of like the Ecuadorian version of a milk shake (batido means beaten). My host mom used to make them for breakfast. Here's the recipe:
Batido de Banana
1 banana
Glass of milk (preferably Bareman's or another MI brand)
3-4 Strawberries, optional
Toss the banana (and strawberries, if you're using them) in the blender and add a few tablespoons of milk. Puree. Add the rest of the milk and hit whip (or frappe, or whatever button on your blender will beat air into your beverage). Allow to beat until frothy. Serve in a tall glass (tiny umbrella optional).
I've tried this with almond milk with good results, if you're lactose intolerant (like Rebecca) or vegan. I'm not sure all milk alternatives would work equally well, since different products will accept different amounts of air beaten into them.
One milk-based recipe I've been making a lot lately is batido, which is kind of like the Ecuadorian version of a milk shake (batido means beaten). My host mom used to make them for breakfast. Here's the recipe:
Batido de Banana
1 banana
Glass of milk (preferably Bareman's or another MI brand)
3-4 Strawberries, optional
Toss the banana (and strawberries, if you're using them) in the blender and add a few tablespoons of milk. Puree. Add the rest of the milk and hit whip (or frappe, or whatever button on your blender will beat air into your beverage). Allow to beat until frothy. Serve in a tall glass (tiny umbrella optional).
I've tried this with almond milk with good results, if you're lactose intolerant (like Rebecca) or vegan. I'm not sure all milk alternatives would work equally well, since different products will accept different amounts of air beaten into them.
Sunday, January 29, 2012
Productive Meeting
Yesterday, Rebecca and I met with our contact at Gone Wired, Colleen, to talk about details related to our commitment ceremony. Our primary goal was to get the schedule worked out so that we can get started on our invitations. Gone Wired has very graciously offered to close for the day so that we can get everything set up in the morning, do pictures in the afternoon, and have the ceremony and reception in the evening. We also decided to have a rehearsal dinner, more because we want to spend extra time with some of the guests than because we actually need to plan who will stand where.
We talked a little bit about the food and the fact that we want to source as much of it locally as possible (there's no way it will all be MI love because of the time of year and our budget, but we're going to make an effort). Our contact suggested that we talk to some of the community gardens in the area to see what they'll be planting this spring that might be ready in time - brilliant, especially because we have friends that work with the South Lansing Community Development Association and Fork in the Road Diner who would probably know such things.
I also discussed the possibility of having the bundt cakes be . . . not homemade. After all, I only have one bundt pan and so much time in the day, not to mention the fact that the last couple bundt cakes I made cracked while coming out of the pan. Our contact is going to give me the information for their bakery so that I can get a quote.
Overall, it was a productive meeting. Colleen has emphasized over and over that they want to be flexible for us and make the day run as smoothly as possible.
We talked a little bit about the food and the fact that we want to source as much of it locally as possible (there's no way it will all be MI love because of the time of year and our budget, but we're going to make an effort). Our contact suggested that we talk to some of the community gardens in the area to see what they'll be planting this spring that might be ready in time - brilliant, especially because we have friends that work with the South Lansing Community Development Association and Fork in the Road Diner who would probably know such things.
I also discussed the possibility of having the bundt cakes be . . . not homemade. After all, I only have one bundt pan and so much time in the day, not to mention the fact that the last couple bundt cakes I made cracked while coming out of the pan. Our contact is going to give me the information for their bakery so that I can get a quote.
Overall, it was a productive meeting. Colleen has emphasized over and over that they want to be flexible for us and make the day run as smoothly as possible.
Monday, January 23, 2012
Death and Taxes
The two certainties in life are death and taxes. Death entered my life very unexpectedly last month. This month it was time to face taxes.
Tax time is particularly frustrating for LGBT families in states without legal recognition. Not only are there all the regular headaches that come with tax forms, there is no option to file jointly or have a dependent spouse. Decisions about who pays how much rent and who earns interest off of joint bank accounts aren't even questions in the real world - we pay and earn them together. In the tax world, though, we divide them up dutifully, attempting to be accurate. (If you would like to experience the difficulty of dividing such things, make yourself a bowl of soft-set pudding. Then try to divide it into two equal parts by drawing a line down the middle with a spoon and scooping as fast as you can.)
The Respect for Marriage Act would make federal filing easier at least for LGBT families living in states with legal recognition (although it wouldn't change anything for us).
And because Rebecca doesn't really earn money, our taxes were much simpler than they will be in the future. We're at a time in our lives where the lack of legal recognition isn't a huge problem. As we grow older, start earning real money, buy a house, and have children, we're going to encounter more difficulties.
We're committing in the mitten, but sometimes that's a hard commitment to make.
Tax time is particularly frustrating for LGBT families in states without legal recognition. Not only are there all the regular headaches that come with tax forms, there is no option to file jointly or have a dependent spouse. Decisions about who pays how much rent and who earns interest off of joint bank accounts aren't even questions in the real world - we pay and earn them together. In the tax world, though, we divide them up dutifully, attempting to be accurate. (If you would like to experience the difficulty of dividing such things, make yourself a bowl of soft-set pudding. Then try to divide it into two equal parts by drawing a line down the middle with a spoon and scooping as fast as you can.)
The Respect for Marriage Act would make federal filing easier at least for LGBT families living in states with legal recognition (although it wouldn't change anything for us).
And because Rebecca doesn't really earn money, our taxes were much simpler than they will be in the future. We're at a time in our lives where the lack of legal recognition isn't a huge problem. As we grow older, start earning real money, buy a house, and have children, we're going to encounter more difficulties.
We're committing in the mitten, but sometimes that's a hard commitment to make.
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