Summer 3rd Quarter Journal 2017 July-September

 

JULY

1 July 2017 Saturday

I finally got a good night’s sleep after I decided I have to shut the doggy door when I go to bed to keep Harleigh from going out and barking in the middle of the night. Besides the fireworks and crackers have started already and want to keep everyone safe inside during the explosions. None of them seem to be panicky but they all want to be near me or in bed with me. I guess keeping the doggy door shut at night is going to be the new life style. Got my Pie shell baking and mowing the backyard done this morning before the day heats up...I made fresh sugar free strawberry pies...one for a Charles Bigo whose birthday is tomorrow and one for Bill Poore. It's gonna be a hot firecracker weekend they say....So around noon I drove over to Sugarhouse to deliver the pie to Charles and we visited a while. He’s on the top floor of a condo off of Wilmington. He was going to go with Richard Harmston for a drive so I was back home by 1:30. Bill Poore didn’t feel like going out today so he’ll come over to the house tomorrow. Derrick my tree trimmer guy said he’s be out with his crew this coming Thursday at 9:30 am

·         Charles Bigo My address is 1235 E. Wilmington Ave. #702 . In Sugarhouse. I live in the 2nd building just east of Bed, Bath, &Beyond, across the parking lot from Whole Foods. You can park in that lot or you can park in the free parking levels of the building just across the street from my apt bldg.  You will also either have to use the call box and follow the prompt so I can ring you in, or call me on your cell and I will meet you at the door. The bldg. I live in has a big orange "TRAEGER" sign on the top of the building. If all of this is too confusing I could come by your home and pick your treat up and visit you. Either way is fine. Love you, C. 

·         Charles Thank you, Ben - for you, your pie, and your visit. You are a genuine friend and a wonderful person!

·         Bill Poore- I just woke up, was up till 530 am......cant find my phone, must be in the van. I will get up shortly and go check for it. It is a do nothing day for your am really tired, need to get some coffee in me. Why don't I come over tomorrow and visit if you don't have anything else planned? I am in no hurry to go to my van.. really dragging my ass today. This heat keeps me inside. I went to the store yesterday and came home almost at once. My apartment is really cool.

 

2 July 2017 Sunday

I really can’t think of anything I did today but lounge around and in the evening watch Big Brother 19 and listen to recaps on Rob has a Podcast. Today is Charles Bigo’s birthday as we are heading into a hot time of year.  Several of my friends are on vacations. Jake Dolce and Darby are in Ireland, Deb Rosenberg and Jamie are in Alaska, and Jay Vallar and Greg are in Toronto Canada. Me I am content to be home with my pups. Trump besides tweeting sexist and vile things about the Morning Joe hosts on MSNBC he also posted a picture of him slap dumping a man with the words CNN on them. He’s inciting his unhinged followers to violence against the news media which he has called fake news because he’s a traitor to the values of this nation.

 

3 July 2017 Monday

Spent the morning writing up my 10 page report on Utah Gay History for the years 1972 through 1974 for my lecture series this coming Wednesday. Then I changed sheets on the bed, did some laundry, cooked pork chops for the pups, (they were tired of chicken). I watched some Channel 13 news which I hadn’t in months and  Wow Max Roth was thin and I thought perhaps his health was bad but when I googled him it said  he had bariatric surgery like I did for his diabetes... It's gonna be hot hot hot over 100 degrees for the next 7 days or more... yikes!

 

4 July 2017 Tuesday

I picked up Jay Vallar and Greg Allen at the airport this evening about 7:30. That place is becoming more and more of a zoo. By the Way if you want me to me to pick you up, I only drive in the pickup lane not uber or any of weird unmarked spot. I am too old to learn new tricks. Both Jay and Rich Butler were giving me crazy directions like we're in the middle pick up! That is crazy talk. There is only one sign telling you where to pick people up and I am sticking to it... It's gonna be a hot time in the old town for at least a week during this heat wave. Tomorrow I will be at the deli loading up with cold cuts, cheeses, and pickles. Will make my own potato salad because can't stand Utah's store brands... Hmmm maybe I will make pimento cheese spread ... Ice tea and crackers... That's the ticket. Probably will crock pot the dogs’ chicken rather than heat up the house  A FB Carl Jung Archetype survey said I was a Sage:  You're the sage! According to Carl Jung, the sage represents wisdom and the search for truth. You are wise beyond your years, patient and a deep thinker. You're driven by a thirst for knowledge. One of your greatest fears is being ignorant, misled, or duped. You're incredibly intelligent but you risk over analyzing until you're incapable of actually making a decision. You're an old soul and wise beyond your years, but Jung would tell you don't get lost in the clouds!.

·         Borscht Soup Ingredients: 2 tablespoons olive oil 1 small yellow onion, chopped 1 large green bell pepper, small chopped 2 small beets, peeled and shredded 4 medium carrots, peeled and shredded 1 8-ounce can tomato sauce 1 small head green cabbage, shredded 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/4 teaspoon pepper 3 medium potatoes, peeled and halved 2 cups parsley, chopped (about 1 small bunch) 4 bay leaves 3 garlic cloves, crushed 6 tablespoons sour cream, optional, for serving

 

5 July 2017 Wednesday

The bombs bursting in air went on well after midnight and glad to see my house was still there this morning. The 4th is less about patriotism as it is for child like men to have an excuse to blow things up...I know much of what was set off were illegal. At least no one was shooting guns up in the air like they do or at least did in California. All ready for my once a month Utah Stonewall Historical Society's lecture series. I went down to Fed Ex and made 15 copies of the time line for the presentation I did and baked some chocolate chip cookies for the event... I went to the store and bought deli meats and cheeses, another watermelon, and a cantaloupe... Keeping it cool... It  was a scorcher today 103 degrees... If there is anyone more ignorant than Trump voters I can't imagine who it is. NPR had people read the Declaration of Independence yesterday and Trump supporters thought it was an attack on Trump! I taught all my students in 5th grade the Declaration of Independence Life Liberty and the Pursuit of happiness and all people are equal and endowed with rights that cannot be taken away even by Trump idiots

·         Michael Aaron wrote One thing I love about our community is that we have people willing to step up and make things happen. It's why we once declared QSaltLake's "Person of the Year" as volunteer leaders. Without them, we'd have no QUAC Aquatic Club, no Utah Bears, Inc., no Royal Court of the Golden Spike Empire and so much more. Thank you, Edgar Ben Williams, for taking the time to put together Utah Gay History presentations monthly at the Salt Lake City Public Library Marmalade Branch - and making cookies for everyone, to boot.

·         Edgar Ben Williams What is a meeting without cookies? we can do anything if we have a mind to... Besides who's going to take care of us if we don't take care of each other... History is just a way to honor our heroes who didn't know they were...people who rolled up their sleeves and said lets get it done.

·         Richard P. Butler we had a decent 4th. Went to the Magna Park at 9:15 and set up for the fireworks at 10:00. Got home (believe it or not) nobody was shooting off fireworks on our street. None, zilch, nada. Usually I wake up in the morning and my front lawn is riddled with shrapnel from the pyrotechnics. Nothing on our lawn or in the street. I felt like I entered the Twilight Zone.

·         Terrie Williams I was going to get out to watch the fireworks display but was just too tired. The damn things were going off in rapid fire for well over 2 hours then turned to slower fire till midnight. Was a bit annoying.

·         Troy Hunter Someone in my neighborhood went on until 2:30 this morning.

 

6 July 2017 Thursday

Amazing what professional tree removers can do...my fifty foot dead branches of poplar is history. They came over a little after 9 am with a crew of 4 men. They first took down the dead poplar behind my hot tub and then trimmed back the Globe willows.  They had to drop the poplar into the Hall’s back yard and it was amazing to watch them take it down without any damage. They were hard working men and I plied them with lots of bottle water because it was so hot out probably over 100.  When we settled up Derrick set the cost at a $1000 but I paid him $1100 and gave another $100 for a tip to his men. He said that one of my Globe Willows has a bug infestation and that it may eventually kill the tree. I said may be next year I will just have the tree removed all together. Two major yard projects checked off my list today. I had my sprinkler system repaired by Troy Hunter last spring and I had my dead poplar removed and my two globe willows trimmed back by Derrick’s business Trees Etc. My last project I want to have done is some concrete poured but I can wait until the end of summer. Hot day to be outside but I have lots of shade trees.

 

7 July 2017 Friday

Rich Butler came over this morning after repairing my Buddha that was decapitated from falling down the steps. He also fixed my flag post that pulled loose out of the siding by my front door. After he left I then went off to American Credit Union in Bountiful to make sure I had enough money to cover the check I wrote yesterday. Hot Hot Hot... I made mock crab salad and pimento cheese salad to eat with crackers. Yesterday I made sliced cucumbers in sweeten Japanese Vinegar and a potato salad... So bring on Summer... I am ready for you! I think taking an afternoon Siesta sounds more exotic than an ordinary nap. Hot town, summer in the city Back of my neck getting dirty and gritty Been down, isn't it a pity Doesn't seem to be a shadow in the city All around, people looking half dead Walking on the sidewalk, hotter than a match head. I am sick to death seeing posts of that Jazz Basketball player what's his name... Like its the end of the world...People get a life... There are more important things in the world... Honestly.

·         TJ Otaka wrote: Sadly, we had to put Fritz to sleep today. He had been coping with his diabetes bravely in the last 3 plus years but he could not keep on fighting against other health issues related to his age. He was 3 months shy of 19 years old. Fritz was 8 weeks old when we adopted him back in NJ. We would like to believe that he had a good, long life. Certainly we did have a very fulfilling life with him and his brother Max who passed in 2015 at almost 16 years old. Jim and I truly appreciate our friends asking about Fritz whenever they saw us. Especially a recent visit by Edgar Ben Williams, Charles Bigo, and Richard Harmston meant a lot to both of us as well as Fritz. Right now the house feels empty and we can't imagine our life without Fritz. Hopefully time will ease our pain. R.I.P. Fritz (Oct 1, 1998 - July 7, 2017)

 

8 July 2017 Saturday

I wanted to get out of the city heat so asked Bill Poore if he wanted to go on a day trip and he said sure. He came over about noon and I had planned on taking I-80 up Parley’s Canyon but got stuck in a traffic jam because of road construction. I guess I should have watched the news. Anyway so got off the Freeway and backtracked to Sunnyside Avenue and went up Emigration Canyon to detour around the mess. We drove up to Kamas and then headed up to Mirror Lake. The temperature immediately began to drop as we hit a cooling mountain storm on the way up. At Mirror Lake it was 53 degrees and still a bit of snow on the ground...Mirror lake was super crowded like every Ward was up there having picnics. So we didn’t really stop and get out. Instead we took the back road through the Uintah’s into Evanston Wyoming where we stopped to eat at a JB about 2:30 ...there it was 85.  Bill ordered a huge Ranch hand Breakfast and could hardly eat any of it and I just ordered some sweet potato fries and couldn’t finish them either.  It was a beautiful day for a drive and when we came back home to SLC it was 101.  In Utah today it went from 90 degrees at 10 am in SLC to 53 degrees at Mirror Lake at noon then 85 degrees in Evanston at 2 pm. I heard it reached 104 degrees in SLC... But it was a Fun day just to get up in the mountains. Bill Poore said his favorite part was driving in the rain before we got to Mirror Lake. Supper was a big hit with the pups tonight...didn't have time to thaw and cook chicken so I cooked up ground beef, with macaroni noodles and sweet potato fries I had left over from lunch...it's the only thing I ordered in Evanston and ate only a few of them so brought the rest home...even Buddy who doesn't like veggies ate them... About 9 pm a storm blew through…a summer storm...lightning and thunder...gusty winds but no rain yet. I read that Kim Burningham died today about age 80. He and his wife regularly came to my classroom to listen to my students read to them one on one. He was a gentle soul and a good man...did all that he could to make education better in an anti public education climate.

·         Me-Are you going to be home tomorrow? I'd like to come out to see you both if you are up to company

·         T.J. Yes, we will be home. Actually we were thinking of stopping by to see you and your pups. I miss them.

·         Edgar If you feel the need to come by to get out of the house either way... I have an Apple sauce cake I want to bake in the morning for you guys... So come over or I can go out there... Let me know

·         T.J. We will come over. What time is convenient for you to have us?

·         Edgar How about noon? I have cold cuts, cheeses, crackers, crab salad, pimento salad, potato salad and water melons that needs to be eaten up ... I make way too much for my little stomach lol

·         T.J. That sounds great. We will see you at noon. Thank you, Ben.

·         Me Charles did you get my message about film festival tickets?

·         Charles Bigo-Oh, I did. I thought that they were for anyone who claimed them. Several months ago, I purchased two sets of tickets for Richard and I. Sorry, I won't need them but I would love to have you join me if you'd like.

·         Edgar I am glad you have tickets so I think I will see if TJ and Jim can use them... Hope you are staying cool...

·         Charles Yes I'm cool in the AC here by myself.  Hope you and your canine family are keeping cool too. Giving those tickets to the guys is a wonderful idea. Tell them to contact me about the movies we've selected and maybe we could attend together. Thanks for all you do for everyone. You are SUPER!

 

9 July 2017 Sunday

I spent a nice afternoon with T.J. Otaka and Jim McMullin who came over about noon and stayed until 4.TJ wanted to see the pups and I suspect just get out of the house with Fritz gone. I know how empty a house can feel when a beloved presence is gone. I went to the store this morning and bought a condolence card as well as a tropical flowering plant for them. I baked an applesauce cake this morning and used up all my flour and powder sugar that I had in the house. So we had a light lunch of chilled asparagus, coleslaw, potato salad, pimento cheese spread, crab salad, deviled eggs, deli ham and salami and 3 kinds of cheeses. Just a cold lunch for a warm day. We ate off of my old school lunch trays. The applesauce raisin walnut cake had a cream cheese icing... When people lose a family member you feed them... After eating we went to the front room and visited and TJ petted Maxx and Lulu Belle all afternoon.  We talked about loss as well as other things. I gave them the Damn These Heels Tickets for the LGBT film festival. Richard and Charles bought a season pass so Jim and TJ can contact them and go with them to one of the shows.  I am not interested at all in going out.  It was not as blazing hot as it was yesterday. Only in the high 90’s.  After cleaning up I went to bed and watched Big Brother 19. I can’t believe that I have watched 19 seasons of this show. My summer guilty pleasure.

·         T.J. Otaka Thank you, Ben. We WERE fed. We really appreciate your friendship and thoughtfulness. You knew exactly what we wanted. This afternoon visit was a nice destruction for us in a good way. Thank you for everything.

·         Kent Scadlock Hi Ben! How are you feeling these days? I've had a crazy ten days. Sorry I didn't make the meeting last week.

·         Edgar I hope things settle down for you... The meeting was fine...Connell showed up...  I am doing fine... Not as productive as I'd like to be... But at 66 everyday day is good... Had a nice day trip with Bill Poore to beat the heat and TJ and Jim came over today...bought them a condolence card and a plant and fixed some lunch... I think they just needed to get away...

·         Kent I'm sure the road trip was a nice distraction for you and, like you said, TJ and Jim needed one as well I was getting my son ready Wednesday to go in to a residential treatment program. He left Thursday and will be gone 45 to 90 days. That was a little rough those last couple of days.

 

10 July 2017 Monday

I went looking for topsoil at Sunderland’s in bags for my new garden spots in the front yard but surprised that they didn’t carry anything but mulch and manure. I went to DI also at Welfare Square and was surprised by the lack of men’s shorts in stock. I was also looking for an iron. I cannot find the one I had… Some my shirts need ironing. I bought a pair of shorts at DI that were a 40 waist and thought I’d buy them and then perhaps get into them later but was pleasantly surprised that they fit.  Didn’t do much else today. Hmmm I need to get an article in for the Q for my column... but what to write about? I need a muse. May be Utah connection to the Gay and Lesbian colony in old Hollywood during the Roaring Twenties. One advantage of having a Japanese friend like TJ among others is that he can tell you when your inscribed rock is upside down... Now if I could only remember what T.J. Otaka said it meant lol. In the news Donald Trump Junior tweeted a string of emails showing that he met with Russians last year in an attempt to influence the 2016 election. He met a Russian lawyer who said she had dirt on Hillary Clinton. Jared Kushner and Paul Manafort  was at the meeting in Trump Tower. A Bush lawyer suggested that Junior Trump should be arrested for treason.

·         TJ Otaka When we visited Ben yesterday, he gave us a sympathy card and this beautiful Bromeliad plant in addition to a yummy applesauce cake he had baked for us. Of course, he also let us take the leftover from our lunch. We feel fortunate to have such a caring friend like Ben. We are very grateful...We will take good care of the plant.  The character is pronounced "Ki" in Japanese. It means air, breath, energy flow, life force and something that you can't see but exists.

 

11 July 2017 Tuesday

I had an 8:30 appointment up at the U of U with the nutritionist and Dr. Volckmann’s assistant as a follow up. I weighed in at 215 pounds which is down from 250 last May.  Everything seems to be fine and I am allowed now to eat what I want which I kind of have been doing anyway. I have to do a bunch of labs before I meet with Dr. Stoneburner August 1^st. Not as hot today just in the mid 90’s . I made an appointment for Friday to have the dogs groomed. They are getting shaggy again. Finished my lambda lore column on Natacha Rambova, June Mathis, and Alla Nazimova's, three lesbians who shaped and created the image of Gay Rudolph Valentino as a straight Latin Lover in the 1920's... The Utah connection is that both Natacha and June were from Salt Lake City... I wonder how trump voters feel now having voted for a crime syndicate  Heard on the news TV Reporter Rod Decker is retiring. He’s legendary. Junior Trump’s admission of meeting with a Russian operative. It's pretty bad when even Krauthammer slams Fox's blonde bubble head hosts attempt to spin juniors collusion with our adversary... Orrin Hatch should pay attention rather saying it's no big deal...

·         Charles Krauthammer: "It's a helluva defense to say that your collusion was incompetent, and that it didn't work out."

·         "Let's cut through the baloney here... We know that what the Russians have been doing. When the Russians call or someone calls on behalf of the Russians and offers derogatory information about a former Secretary of State who is a Presidential candidate, the first person you call is the FBI. I don't care whether you're a Republican as I am or a Democrat, you call the FBI. The last thing you do is go meet with the Russians to try and get the derogatory information. They're only trying to do that in order to use you to accomplish some purpose, and we know what that is. it is undermining our system of representative democracy." Richard Painter, Chief White House Ethics Lawyer (2005-2007)

 

12 July 2017 Wednesday

I had some coffee this morning first time in weeks and for breakfast I fixed six small pancakes. I ate two and was full. The rest I shared with the pups.  Productive morning... went to the gym and walked a mile and a half and did some on the exercise machine and then came home and cleaned out my garage...I have so much hardware and electrical junk. It was a chore just gathering up all my loose tools and putting them all in one place. Took my leaf blower and got rid of most of the leaves, dirt, and spider webs but then hosed it all down. That's it for the year. LOL I had my cracked wind shield replaced this afternoon by Salt City Auto Glass. That was $181 which isn’t bad since the guy did a great job and came to the house to do it... I expected to hear from Kyle tonight but didn’t so that was a disappointment. People on FB have been making fun of a fake report of a hacker named Jayden Smith so I posted this on my page: “Facebook hack alert! Do not accept friend requests from Edgar Ben Williams! You will be inundated with anti-trump posts, profanity directed at the GOP, inappropriate comments against anti Gay postings, pics of his dogs and what he is eating, politically incorrect statements and possible nudity! You have been warned. Tell a friend. Save yourselves”

 

13 July 2017 Thursday

Went for a pleasant drive up Big Cottonwood Canyon with T.J. Otaka and Jim McMullen. We met at noon on 72^nd and State Street and parked in the Saver’s parking lot. Then as we went in my cruiser I noticed that the air conditioning was not working! Ugh!. We went up anyway because we knew it would be cooler up there. It was beautiful and we walked around Silver Lake and saw lots of wildflowers, ground squirrels, chipmunks and a blue jay ... on the way home we stopped at El Taquiro which was just okay although some people really rave about it. I ordered a taco but they gave me a fish taco and I could barley finish it. After dropping TJ and Jim off I drove to lancers to have them check out the problem. I was hoping it just needed Freon but the bad news is that my air conditioner stopped blowing cold air because of a compression switch that went out. So it was a faulty compression switch that caused the air conditioning to not work... They got it working enough so I can take the dogs to be groomed tomorrow at 8 am... Not worried about the morning but getting them home in the afternoon when it heats up...the groomer is across town on 15th and 15th... Ugh...Monday I will take it back into the shop to have the switch put in after they order it...Bought a rotisserie chicken for supper tonight because didn't have time to roast chicken thighs and Sophie is a house guest for a few days... She's grown so much since last time I puppy sat her... Hair cuts tomorrow for Harliegh, Buddy, Coco, and Lulu Belle...they are getting a bit shaggy... Heard Charles Bigo was in the VA hospital for an infection. 30 Republicans put party before country and blocked attempts to take away Jared Kushner's security clearance even though he lied about meeting with the Russians... Notice Chris Stewart of Utah is one of these cretins. Selling out America for money and power... the Trump Legacy ...

·         TJ Otaka Ben took us out for a drive through Big Cottonwood Canyon to Brighton. That's what we retirees do during weekdays. Jim and I were so impressed with the proximity of the great nature here in Utah. Something we could not do in NJ. We had a wonderful day thanks to our friend Ben.

 

14 July 2017 Friday

Hustled 4 dogs into the cruiser while three other dogs cried and whined that they didn't get to go then drove across town in morning downtown traffic... but I am fine now...

Chevy called about 12:30 that the pups were ready. I took TJ and Maxx with me to get their nails trimmed. Home from wrangling the pooches...There was absolutely no parking on 15th and 15th during lunch... I parked in a no parking zone in the shade to bring six dogs back to the car... Chevy charged $148 put I paid $168. I was expecting close to $200. Stephen Bolinder did a great job. Pups were so happy to be at the House of the Barking Dogs...I left Sophie at the house so she was excited for all her pals to be back. Poor old Harliegh .... This is how he comes up the steps .... Except at night he barks and barks until I wake up and call him up... If I am really sleepy I just carry him up... I had Michael come pick Coco up and I sent half a ham home with him that I bought at Food Savers earlier in the week for $3.00 that was reduced from $16.00. Can’t pass a bargain up like that even if I can’t eat it my self much. The Boston Globe printed an article on how hip and Gay Salt Lake City is. May be this will explain why I live in SLC and I like to think my 30 years of building community helped...

So why do the Republican Controlled congress believe they deserve better health care than the American people? Why do they exempt themselves and their families from Trumpcare if it is so much better than the Affordable Care Act... If this doesn't show the disdain members of the GOP has for their constituents nothing well... And Americans who do not rise up against them deserve what they get... So sick of hearing people about people who voted for Trump whine about losing Medicaid or having their loved ones deported...Fox News’ Chris Wallace, Smith reacted to breaking news that there was an eighth person in the room. “Jared Kushner filled out his form … very important stuff,” Smith said. “You can go to prison for messing it up intentionally. He went back and added 100 names and places. None of these people made it. Still not, we’re still not clean on this, Chris. If there’s nothing there and that’s what they tell us, they tell us there’s nothing to this and nothing came of it, a nothing burger, it wasn’t memorable. Didn’t tell you about it because it wasn’t anything, so I didn’t even remember it with a Russian interpreter in the room at Trump Tower. If all of that, why all of these lies? Why is it lie after lie after lie?” “The deception, Chris, is mind-boggling,” he continued. “There’s still people out there that believe we’re making it up. One day they’re going to realize we’re not. Look around and go: where are we? Why are we getting told all these lies?”

 

15 July 2017  Saturday

Spent 2 hours in the front yard using a weed whacker and raking .... It can get away from you when it's so hot... Middle of July already and it's the dog days of Summer... So I asked Bill Poore over for lunch because he mentioned he wanted to see the pups...but then he says let me take you to lunch which I thought was odd because he wanted to see the pups... So I said sure and suggested Village Inn on 9th east thinking it wouldn't be far for him to drive and we could split a patty melt since he gave that poor student waitress in Orem such a hard time about not knowing what a patty melt was...so when we get there he says he doesn't want a patty melt and that he was going to have a breakfast...then he tells me that actually he wanted to come over to see the dogs and then go to Bountiful for Chinese Food! Nothing like actually communicating... So I had a half a Reuben and he had eggs ham, pancakes, and strawberries while telling the cute waiter why I was ordering so little! Well there were a bunch of cute soldiers in uniform sitting near us and the waiters were all cute guys so I think Village Inn was a good choice... He paid for lunch but I had to remind him to get our 10 percent senior discount... I wanted pie but was stuffed to my eye balls... Living in the Trumpian Dystopia is best described as Future Shock...a book that came out in 1970 and we all read back then when people use to read. It's even more relevant today I fear.

·         Bill Poore Why do you always make me look crazy? I did communicate with you. I said I wanted to come to your house, now I have come over tomorrow to see the pups.

·          Edgar Ben Williams Because ya are Blanche cause ya are...

·         I don't know if you noticed but I worked it out that your back was to the soldiers and I was facing them, it is the little touches that make a day great.

16 July 2017 Sunday

TJ tired of Sophie terrorizing him this morning... Don't let her cuteness fool you... She's an Amazon. Fixed Bill Poore Sunday dinner because he didn't get to see the pups yesterday... Fixed him a roasted chicken thigh, I always have chicken thighs on hand, an English Pea salad, macaroni salad, potato salad, and marinated cucumbers. I baked two loaves of banana nut bread for dessert so I sent one home with him with the left overs.... After Bill left it was nap time Nap time and Sophie was curled up with TJ ...I guess TJ's butt makes a pretty good pillow

·         Roland Ron Holmgren Food fit for a king. King Bill?

·         Edgar Ben Williams That old Queen? 😇

·         Bill Poore Ben is the Queen of photographing the food he gives people.....

·         Like · Reply ·

·         Edgar Ben Williams A picture lasts longer than the meal

·         Like · Reply ·

·         Bill Poore it was really good, some of my favorites on that plate.

 

17 July 2017 Monday

Took the cruiser down to have a new compressor switch put in for the air conditioning... Mike met me there and took me home where I spent 2 hours pulling weeds along the fence between it and the sidewalk... Looks a lot better but now I am inside for the rest of the day cooling off... Sophie went home this afternoon when Rich and Brenda came and picked her up. Mike is on his way to pick up Coco so I will be down to 5 dogs... House feels empty lol. I wish the summer storm that blew in around 9 pm would have dropped some rain but not a drop. Actor Martin Landau died today at the age of 89.

·         Bill Poore Had a great dinner tonight from the left overs......down home cooking like I had in Carbon County Utah...Thanks, now I need to wash the containers and bring them back

 

18 July 2017 Tuesday

Picked up the old Cruiser today...the pups have air conditioning again... It was only $88. While out doing errands felt like my blood sugars were dropping...I went to a nearby Burger King and ordered a 79 cent grilled hot dog....I felt like a cheapskate but knew that was all I could eat... The bun was cold and hot dog barely warm but ate the hot thing which made me less shaky.. Home now having a cold Pace Popsicle

·         Bill Poore So my friend asked me about the food you gave me for dinner......I told him it was exactly the same thing you feed your dogs, chicken thighs.....he laughed really hard, he said you are kidding, I told him it was totally the truth.....that you feed me the same thing you do your dogs.

·         Edgar No I feed my dogs the same thing I feed you

 

19 July 2017 Wednesday

Lightning and thunder show last night about 1 am frightened the pups...everyone wanted on the bed... Thought the storm would have cooled things off a bit but it's 85 degrees at 6:30 am ... It sprinkled a little this morning and with the cloud cover it was an opportune time to work tidying up the front yard...I cut back all my irises, salvias, hollyhocks, peony, Wild Rose, and yarrow...work for 2 1/2 hours and filled a yard waste container and a trash can... Still more to do but it can wait for another day... Went to my dental clinic in Centerville to have my teeth cleaned... Only the teeth that needed a deep cleaning were done with Novocain they rest had a regular cleaning... Only cost $285 compared to $700 I was quoted at another place... I did buy their insurance plan which did save me some money...Medicare insurance for dental is worthless... Disappointed that Kyle Foote didn’t call again tonight. Oh Well.

 

20 July 2017  Thursday

I went to the Redwood Clinic early this morning having a bunch of blood drawn for labs... on the way over this texting driver almost hit me head on crossing the line until I blared my horn. .. its crazy out there...I've lived through some interesting times.. Some no more interesting than 1969...home this day watching the moon landing with my family on Television... 48 years ago today. I was 18years old a month out of high school and foot loose and fancy free in Orange County, California just beginning my adult life... Saying goodbye to childhood. Someone from my old high school posted a football program from November 1968, my Senior year... I knew all these guys and John Cunningham’s picture was in the program, my secret unrequited love... RIP John Have I really lived a life time without you?  In the program was an Ad for Taco Bell that was off of Beach Blvd and Katella...one of the first... I know we were eating there by 1966... When I went to work at Taco Bell in 1970 all menu items were still 25 cents... 3 items and a 20 cent drink with 5cent tax came to a buck...we only had an old fashion cash register where you put in the total before the cash drawer opened... Back then you had to know how to make change in your head lol. There was an interesting read for dog lovers on FB... A gene mutation probably made some wolves into sociable dogs... similar to the Williams Syndrome where some humans have a missing series of genes.

 

21 July 2017 Friday

Bill Poore took me out to lunch at China Star in Bountiful. We both ordered Lo Mein but I absolutely could not finish it. I had sweet and sour soup, a couple forks of noodles, and some fried noodles and I was completely filled up... I was even uncomfortably as if I ate everything at Chuck ARama... It was a lesson that eating out is wasted on me now... Took most of it home and guess what the dogs are having for supper with their chicken? After Bill left I went out shopping and went to a nursery to buy flowers to replace the ones on the front porch which have mostly burnt up by the sun. Then I headed over to Costco because I wanted to buy some ribs and hot dogs for Monday’s party. I am so mad at Kent right now I could spit... Last year Kent put me on his Costco Card as a second person... well it was crazy down there of course being the holiday weekend but I get behind these Chinese people who looked like they only had a few things but they kept bringing more and more...then her Visa card had expired and she had to pay with cash...finally it was my turn thinking I would be in and out when they informed me my card was deactivated! Kent had taken me off without telling me! I was so humiliated but they said I could get a new membership which I did so as not to hold up the line any further...that was an extra 60 dollars so my original $40 purchase for the party cost me over $100! Then I had to take my temporary card over to the membership counter and fill out a new form and have a new card made which was another half an hour... If I'd known that Kent had taken me off his membership I would never have gone to Costco... I think it's shitty of him to take me off without telling me... If he would have said he wanted to put someone else on I would have understood... But now I am mad and paid for a membership I rarely will use... Grrr... I am venting here and not on Facebook but I am reevaluating my friendship with Kent... I wrote Bill and he replied “Do you want me to kill him? I am sure we can get some of Kyle's friends in Gunnison to do it.....I can see why you are upset, I would be as well....I do think you need to tell Kent you are upset however, maybe he can clear up the mess on what happened.” I wrote back “Too mad right now... And really don't want to hear his excuse for putting me through this... Thoughtless... And still pissed that he and Dennis go to all these events with their “good chum” Charles Frost and nary an invite to me... Kent was good to me going with me to my surgery but I think I am done with Gay Men Aloud  too... So after that fiasco I fed the dogs, did a dip in the hot tub, and rested. I posted on Facebook that I wanted to play dominos and I learned you don't post that you want to play dominos at 9 pm unless you want company at 10 pm. Jesse Dolce, Darby Hinton, and David Omer came over after doing the concessions at Gay Bingo and we played a little dominos but then switch over to Hearts... It was a very fun evening even if it started at 10 pm and I hadn’t enjoyed myself that much in a long time. Dave stage the pups like they were all playing cards and posted it. So cute.  Everyone was running out of steam about midnight so we called it a night, Next time I'll have Bridge Mix.  From July 3 to Aug. 11, the star Sirius, the brightest star in the sky, the dog star, the brightest star in the constellation Canis Major, the greater dog, moved into the direction of the sun. Hence the dog days of summer... Good riddance Sean Spicer who resigned today…thanks for reviving Saturday Night Live...too bad your scum boss didn't take you to see the pope...lol dance with a snake and you get bit...

 

22 July 2017 Saturday

Stepping out of the shower  this morning I see Buddy, TJ, Lulu Belle, and Maxx all lined up in a row waiting for their breakfast. They were so cute. John Heard the dad from Home Alone died at the age of 71. Can't believe that its been 25 years since David Sharpton has been gone. A whole generation had been born and grew up since this giant passed away and who's left to remember him? 23 July 1992 Some awful and depressing news today. When I came home from an evening at the genealogical library Jeff Workman said that Gary Boren had called. Gary heard that David Sharpton had died yesterday. I was so stunned I burst into tears. I cried and cried. Dave Ball was here and the dear fellow was so sympathetic. He didn't really know who David was but he tried to comfort me. David Sharpton gone! I almost have to pinch myself to really believe how many people are gone. David seemed so invincible and if anyone was going to beat this thing it was going to be him. The last few times we were together he'd always say that he was dying and that he was going to die but I just could never accept it. Not if you knew David at all. He died in Texas at home. As soon as I calmed down I began the weary task of informing people. I tried calling people but no one was home. I left a message for Gary to call me back and he finally called back after midnight. Gary said he only heard about David's death because he happened to be at the Stonewall Center and heard Michael Angotti, David's lover, make an announcement at the Youth Group. David Sharpton really represents for me the old days when we were so full of piss and vinegar. God could it only have been five years ago that I met David? So many changes in the community these last five years. So many deaths. Nothing changes yet everything changes. I am so upset right now I'm not able to even write what I feel. David "Sharp Tongue "gone! Darryl Webber gone! David Reed gone! I know its hard for Jeff to understand my loss. I asked him to try to imagine that within the next five years many of your dearest friends now so full of life and fun will be gone. That is the face of AIDS for me. [Journal of Ben Williams]

·         Alan Anderson David was a firecracker

·         Andrea Lindseth Boone Gsc He was a pistol.

·         Richard P. Butler Sounds like he was and still is one heck of a guy. To keep his memory alive is saying a lot.

·         Jon Michael He was gorgeous if memory serves me correctly. Never knew him, just admired him from afar.

·         Edgar Ben Williams I was his listening ear when he needed to vent and Ben Barrs listening ear when he needed to vent about David...lol he always called me Sister Williams

·         Jon Michael I wonder what happened to Stephanie, that woman who was so in love with him.

·         Edgar Ben Williams I don't know

·         Ruadhan O'Sheridan I am left to remember him, among others.

·         Andrea Lindseth Boone Gsc I was working in the medical clinic downtown and got to know quite a few of the guys. David was one of my favorite dudes.

·         Richard Harmston I did not know David, but his story is similar to that of many friends in the arts. It is hard to convey what it was like to lose so many fine people so quickly.

·         Teinamarrie Scuderi Wow I can't believe it's been 25 years.

·         Greg Tracie Aviary Hardin Such a Sweet, Kind and Generous Man!

·         Edgar Ben Williams Are we talking about the same person lol after. He threw Eugene Giditus into a glass wall ... Oh David ...

·         Greg Tracie Aviary Hardin David was always nice to me and started PWACU!

·         Edgar Ben Williams I miss him

·         Jon Michael OMG! There's a name I have not thought of in a coons age Eugene! What a character.

·         Jon Michael Whatever happened to Eugene's boyfriend. The waiter at the New Yorker?

 

23 July 2017 Sunday

Getting my baking done early....fresh peach pie for Pie and Beer Day tomorrow...Utah's state holiday... My 20 year old stove still can crank out the goods even if I can no longer eat them... Blueberry lemon cream cheese pie done so can turn off the oven now...made with fresh blueberries...once chilled and set I can spread the topping more evenly... Pie and Beer Day here I come ...Had a fun evening at Jesse Dolce who hosted a Game Night at his beautiful home in Bountiful... He taught us how to play Mexican Train Dominos... I hope that is PC lol... There was about 7 of us and Jesse made a pulled BBQ pork dish... I ate about a table spoon of it and some potato salad...in pic are Darby & Dingo, Jesse, David Omer, Paul Jennens and me .... We were joined by Mark N Angus and his friend Philip ... Good bunch... Lots of laughs

·         David Omer After a great day at the Jetty, time to relax with a little discussion about Utah Gay History. Thanks Edgar Ben Williams for helping us remember the good old days! Love this guy so much. He was personally responsible for creating many of the early gay organizations and support systems in Utah during the 1980's

 

24 July 2017 Monday

Weird the power went off in the bedroom this morning and I thought the power was out but lights were on in the front room so went and looked at my power outlet out side the switch for the bedroom pop out... Turned it back on and power came back on in the bedroom... Last year I had to replace one of the switches for downstairs... I wonder if another is going out? My house is about 21 years old now. Well Pie and Beer dinner is over and had a good turn out for celebrating our Utah heritage...well not mine actual... I didn't come in a hand cart to Utah but rather in a Continental Trailway bus but I have lived in Utah longer than Brigham Young did...we had plenty of food because I had prepped ahead of time, BBQ ribs, BBQ shredded beef, hot dogs, two kinds of potato salad, baked beans, 3 bean salad, potato chips, tomatoes from my garden, a peach pie, a blueberry cream cheese pie, a Japanese strawberry cheesecake, root beer floats, donuts, and great conversations... I mowed the front and back yards, cleaned off the deck and spent much of the day cleaning house, sweeping, mopping, and vacuuming before people started coming over at 5 pm.  Bill Poore was first to arrive with his coleslaw, then Jim and TJ with a cheesecake. The others drifted in with Charles Bigo and Richard bringing ice cream, Greg and Jay bringing more potato salad, Kevin Scott and Jose brought some beer, and Mark Angus and his friend Phil brought donuts. After the party started breaking up I sent home with people who wanted it lots of food that was left over... I wasn’t hungry at all and just had ice tea and a small slice of blueberry cheese cake and called it good... I think everyone enjoyed themselves. We had at least 12 people here... The dogs were all good as could be. So went to bed about 10 pm with all the dogs piled on the bed. The last of the bombs bursting in air ended about 12:30 waking me from my slumber... I am hemmed in by Buddy on my left, Lulu Belle at the top of my head, Maxx at my feet, and TJ on my right glued to me so I can't turn over...Harleigh is in the hall crying and muffled barking poor baby... Now that it's stopped perhaps the pups will calm down... It's illegal by the way to do fireworks after 11 pm and prohibited west of Redwood Road but who's going to enforce it?

·         Richard Harmston Hope your whole household is sleeping in today. You released lots of energy by entertaining a whole bunch of friends. Your generosity is endearing. Great event, Ben! You are the Host with the Most.

·         Dennis J. Lee Thank you for your hospitality, Ben!

·         Roland Ron Holmgren You set a table like my family does on holidays. Shame you can't eat more, but I suppose that is the price you pay to have a good health and a skinny bod.

·          Bill Poore Great Food, talented and very intelligent guest, loved being part of them. Best part me taking home containers of food and yummy cheese cakes from Texas and Japan.

·          Greg Allen You are one of my favorite Utahns. Thanks Ben!

 

25 July 2017 Tuesday

The last of the bombs bursting in air ended about 12:30 this morning waking me from my slumber... I was hemmed in by Buddy on my left, Lulu Belle at the top of my head, Maxx at my feet, and TJ on my right glued to me so I can't turn over...Harleigh is in the hall crying and muffled barking poor baby... Now that it's stopped perhaps the pups will calm down... It's illegal by the way to do fireworks after 11 pm and prohibited west of Redwood Road but who's going to enforce it?. Didn’t do anything today except clean up from yesterday’s party and lounge around watching TV. I was Laying in bed watching The Emperors New Groove when I heard the doorbell ring...I answered the door to see Richard Harmston standing there with a bouquet of flowers and returning some of my faux Tupperware... That was a pleasant surprise that he would stop by my neck of the woods...we had a nice long visit and when he left I sent him off with tomatoes from my garden and the rest of the peach pie from yesterday... He mentioned that Charles Bigo is in the VA hospital for a check up... I wish him well. I am having coffee tomorrow with Carol Gnade downtown so if Charles is still at VA will drop by. So the honorable John McCain voted to repeal the ACA even though he has access to the greatest health care in the world. Well the only consolation is that most Kentucky Medicaid recipients will die and won't be voting for McConnell or Rand ... Sad day for the working poor a triumph for the uber Rich...Well the Morlocks won in the Senate vote and here come the GOP Eloi like sheep to the slaughter... At least you can rail against Hillary's emails while you file for medical bankruptcy or watch your loved ones die because can't afford medicine or watch grandma starve to death because no meal on wheels and grandpa dumped out of the convalescent care homes...

·         Bill Poore beautiful flowers indeed. of course I started all this flower business you know.....those are beautiful flowers, he for sure spent more on them that I did , I am going to start bring hustlers as guest, you know like in Boys In The Band.......they are better than flowers anyway.

·         Kevin Scott Thanks for your hospitality the other night, we had a great time! :-)

 

26 July 2017 Wednesday

Supposedly there's a flash flood warning for Salt Lake City this morning from heavy rains... I didn't hear any last night and in the morning light the deck looked dry from my bed but when I went out to feed the squirrels there was over an inch of water in their dish... It must have really poured and I slept through it... Sure cooled things off until the heat brings up the humidity... I guess the Sugar House Library’s basement was flooded. I got my property assessment today... I don't know how people are going to afford to buy a house anymore. For nearly a decade my house was valued at $147,000 then last year it jumped to $179,000 and this year it’s valued at $200,000. I bought it 21 years ago for $114,000 so it’s taken all these years to increase in value. Actually it’s probably worth more because its listed as a 3 bedroom one bathroom when its actually has 2 bathrooms and three big bedroom rather than 2 small ones and a master. Plus I have a deck that goes the length of the house. My house payment is probably half of what a new two bedroom apartment is going for downtown. I went to a health fair this morning sponsored by my insurance. I am down to 211 lbs. from 249 when I went into surgery 2 months ago and my A1c is 6.6 down from 10.9 last February and 7.9 in May before my surgery. It’s still difficult eating anything because I feel so full after a few bites of anything. Well mission accomplished for putting my diabetes in remission. Busy but pleasant afternoon. I met up with Carol Gnade, director of the Pride Center  at the “Cafe on 1^st” in the avenues because she was seeking advice on the Pride Center’s library...the cafe was right behind my 1st apartment in SLC in 1976 so it brought back memories of being a lonely boy listening to Queen sing on the radio Find Me Somebody to Love...anyway the center made an offer on a new building, the Mexican Consulate on 13^th South and Main Street and Daniel Cureton, the centers librarian and archivist, has accepted a position in China...so what was to be a simple meeting turned into a 3 hour gab session... Carol is such a great person and it just seemed natural to talk... Similar peas in a pod I think... I also met the widow of Bill Orton who is running for state rep from the Federal Heights area...I'd vote for her if I could. Finally went up the VA hospital which I never had been to before to see Charles Bigo but he had already been released...that place is a maze and next time I am bringing bread crumbs... I was so lost and turned around.... I was 20 minutes just trying to find my way back to my car lol...at least the day was beautiful and not so hot. June Foray, voice of Rocky the Flying Squirrel, dead at 99. Foray died in Los Angeles of cardiac arrest. RIP A voice from my childhood. McCain along with six other Republicans redeemed himself by voting with all the Democrats to not repeal Obamacare without a replacement...

·         Teinamarrie Scuderi Jacquelyn Orton and Carol Gnade are two of the most amazing women in Utah!

·         Carol Gnade Ben, what a delightful morning/afternoon. Thanks so much for your splendid story telling about the history of the UPC. I hope we can connect again soon. What a gift you are to our community. ❤️❤️

·         Bill Poore Just for your info they have a cart that will transport you from building to building in the underground tunnels....If you want I will take you to lunch up there and give you a tour of the complex, we can ride in the cart....it is interesting complex. I did stop by and say hi to Charles, between my two things I needed to do.

·         Edgar Ben Williams That sounds like a plan ...maybe next week?

·         Bill Poore yeah you really don't need to walk that much if you understand the buildings and the carts....I don't walk those long halls, I always take the carts. Well it looks like Trump reversed Obama's decision on allowing trans to serve opening in the military.  The top brass was against it, it is a big cost factor, just to deal with the hormone therapy cost a few million each year.  I totally get that and I agree.  I know the trans at the VA cost the VA tons of money on hormone treatment, that is the only reason the trans are there because they get the treatment free.

·         Edgar I am conflicted because I hate what ever Trump does because its always for the wrong reason.

·         Bill Poore The trans have abused the VA system with their hormone treatment, it is not a service connected disability, I don't think it should be covered being an old vet myself. I stopped in and saw Charles at the VA hospital. He was getting ready to be discharged. I think he was surprised to see me.

·         Edgar I am sure he was.. I went up to the hospital at 2:30 got lost in the maze and finally the nurse station said he had been released...you are so mean to those poor creatures who just want to be pretty girls

 

27 July 2017 Thursday

The deluge people are posting about last night on FB must have been a localized experience because my squirrel feeder is as dry as a bone...Went into the city to be interviewed by Bill Allred of Radio From Hell X96 for a Sunday Podcast...his son Dylan, who is the producer, asked me earlier this week if I would come do the Come Eat With Me show. He wanted to talk to me about being a historian of Gay Salt Lake City...Nicole Brown who was probably murdered by OJ Simpson went to my old high school Rancho Alamitos in 1972 through 1974 after I had already graduated....she lived on the same street that John Cunningham did before her family moved to Newport Beach... OJ just was paroled in Nevada. The GOP and their Evangelical thug supporters are proving without a doubt America is not a Christian Nation

·         Greg Allen I think it was worse 2 nights ago. Sprague Library and FBC and many homes got flooded.

·         Kevin Scott We sure got hit on 9th North. Branches all over the yard this morning. We'll be sure to send it down to 20th North next time.

·         Roland Ron Holmgren Heavy rain here. Lightening.

·         Andrea Lindseth Boone Gsc Lots of rain in Kearns and quite a light show.

·         Ruadhan O'Sheridan We were severely deluged at my house.

 

28 July 2017 Friday

 A productive day I suppose... I was at the marmalade library this morning having a cup of coffee for a meeting with Daniel Cureton...it's such a pretty day... I met up with Daniel Cureton to discuss the fate of the center’s archives and library after he leaves for Shanghai next month... people should be grateful for all he has done to preserve our history and our culture... It's in storage and in September it will be housed in the main SLC library in a designated GLBT section on loan for 5 years...if the center doesn't want it back then it will be permanently housed at the Library... The SL Library is absolutely thrilled to have the books of which there are approximately 3500 which Daniel has categorized and repaired and replaced as needed... I met Mike Romero down at Costco about noon to put him on my account so he will have his own card.  Gas there is only $2.17. I ate a half a hot dog and was stuffed...Then I then went and paid to have the Cruiser registered for another year. From there I went to Discount Tires in Bountiful for an hour and half waiting for them to check a nail in my tire then came out with a little bent nail saying it hadn't punctured the tire and my air pressure was good... I guess better safe than sorry but what a waste of an afternoon like I had anything better to do...went to Food Savers to get the hounds their supper and they had pints of blueberries for 50 cents each...so I bought 4 of them... So what to do with them? I guess make blueberry lemon bread I suppose and freeze them... Waste not want not... Bought two big Cantaloupes for $5 too... The frugal foodie... After six months with no legislative accomplishments, daily controversy, multiple investigations, and record low poll numbers, Donald Trump just fired his Chief of Staff Reince Priebus. LOL. There is no civility in the Trumpian dystopia... The White House's new communications director Anthony Scaramucci just vowed to "kill all" government leakers in a profanity-laden interview with The New Yorker.

·         Daniel Cureton The books will have signage and be advertised as "Utah pride center library". It will greatly increase awareness and access to the items. I'm very happy it will be safe And all archive materials from the center have been Donated to Marriott library archives. Nothing left there, all done.

 

29 July 2017 Saturday

I watched a riveting series on Netflix last night called Five Came Back about Hollywood directors John Ford, John Huston, Wylie Wilder, George Stevens, and Frank Capra. They all served in WWII making documentaries for the War Department...John Ford filmed D Day and the Battle of Midway... George Stevens filmed the liberation of Dachau... Frank Capra made a series of films Why We Fight and wilder and Huston were in the North Africa campaigns and in Italy... It made me think was the sacrifices of our fathers and mothers worth it if Americans are so quick to throw away liberty and embrace fascism today? Bill Poore came over about noon to go out to lunch and as we drove around we decided we both weren't hungry so just came back home ...that's what old folks do. So just visited some and he paid me $100 of the money I lent him. I sent home with him a cucumber from my garden and some tomatoes...also a blueberry lemon pound cake I whipped up this morning... It's a beautiful end of July day... Time for a nap

·         Bill Poore I am going to have fresh garden tomatoes for dinner, I am not sure what else but I know those will taste great.

 

30 July 2017 Sunday

I left the house about 10 am to drive down to Gunnison to see Kyle Foote. Bill Poore wasn’t up for the trip which was okay by me because I kind of wanted to go alone. The weather was beautiful and I made good time in fact I was there at 11:40 but at the guard station I was turned away until noon. That must be a new policy under their new warden.  Anyway after I came back it was about 12:30 before I got to see Kyle and he was all smiles to see me. It’s been nearly a year since I had been down to see him. He looked good. Running agrees with him because he’s down to the weight he was when I knew him at the house. We chit chatted for about 2 hours. I bought him a Dr. Pepper and a Twix candy bar to enjoy while we visited. He told me about plans he had to go back to school when he gets out, and we visited about CBS’ Big Brother show which is our guilty pleasure. So at 2:30 our time was up and I stopped at Subways for a 6 inch sandwich because I felt my blood sugars dropping. On the way home something weird happened when the tip of my penis began aching and was really sore. I pulled over at a Flying J to pee to see if that would help but I was just dribbling which concerned me. I was rather sore all the way home. I was back at the house by 5 pm and I fed the dogs when my lower back began to hurt and I felt like I had the dry heaves. I was just miserable and knew something was not wrong like I had a urinary infection. So rather than be miserable all night I drove myself up to the U of U’s urgent care on campus...I was going to go to the ER but since urgent care was open i went there... I had a urine test done and I was sent over to the ER anyway to be tested for kidney stones and or prostate as I had have some blood in my urine. I checked in at 6:45 pm and was sent to the ER about 7:15 and I was there until nearly 11:30. I had an MRI done and an IV drip because they thought I wasn’t hydrated enough. The doctor came back around 11 pm and said that the MRI showed I had 2 kidney stones. Oh joy! I have a 2cm kidney stone in my right kidney that is dropping and a 6 cm in the left that is stationary. .. They sent me home after being here 4 hours to pee in a strainer... I was home at the stroke of midnight....happy pups... What a long day.  It was Good to have so many caring people in my life... Feeling better and will until I pass the damn grit... 28 years ago today in 1989 I was a keynote speaker at Gay Pride Day in Sunnyside Park when we use to have keynote speakers. This is an excerpt from a SL Tribune article on Pride Day from back then. "Ben Williams, a member of the Gay and Lesbian Community Council told the crowd that Salt Lake Gays and Lesbians are “true modern pioneers…worthy of the legacy left by Stonewall.” He was referring to the Stonewall Inn, a Greenwich Village Gay bar that became a rallying symbol for Gay and Lesbian rights after it was raided by New York City police on 27 June 1969. Gays fought back forcing police to blockade themselves inside. “Twenty Years ago we dared to be queer among even queerer people,” Mr. Williams said. After Stonewall, “even Salt Lake began to feel the rippling pride’, even if it was later than progress was made on the coast, he said. Utah’s Gay and Lesbian organizations have experienced high and low points in the last two decades. But in the last 3 years these groups have exhibited “a new energy and purpose.” This determination was necessary, Mr. Williams said because “freedom and justice must be struggled for…they’re never a finality. Gay and Lesbians understand this. We are extenders of freedom. We are the bravest, strongest, most courageous people I know.” “With compassion and wisdom,” he added Salt Lake’s Gay and Lesbian community “can be “healers and nurturers, dancing in an endless circle of love and liberation.”

·         Bill Poore Do you need anything....glad I didn't go today, just not feeling that great, it would have wiped me out.  except possibly seeing those boys in tight pants would have made me feel better. You can just rest now, drink something cold get on your bed surrounded by doggies and it will be fine. How is he doing?  Did you at least get something to eat?  Did you miss my company?

·         Edgar I made good time and got there about 11:40 but they must of changed the rules because they wouldn't let me in the gate until 12... So by the time I was process edit was 1230 before I got to see him... He looked good ...been running so lost weight...I hadn't seen him in almost a year...I just put on music and the radio and time went fast... Only congestion was coming home not sure why... I stopped at Subway and got a 6 inch sandwich to go home so that my blood sugar wouldn't drop... Took me the entire drive home to eat it lol Now I am feeling nauseous and my lower back is hurting...it's always something. I wonder if I got food poisoning...trying to heave but nothing is coming up... Or a urinary infection because when I drove home my urethra began to sting and been dribbling as well as my kidney hurting

·         Bill let me know if there is anything I can do for you.....I am totally available to help if needed.

 

31 July 2017 Monday

I had an appointment with my financial advisor Tyler Ferguson up in Kaysville at 11 am. We are trying to resolve an issue with VALIC that is holding on to $9,000 which was my last stipend from the school district. Hopefully we resolved it. I like Tyler and we just shot the breeze for most of the time. He’s off to Hawaii for 2 weeks with his family so I needed to get this done today. I learned that my beneficiaries will need to contact him that I had died before they can collect any money. What a difference a year can make. Last year I made a huge pot roast Sunday dinner for Bill.. The days of eating such big meals are gone with the wind... I could still fix them but neither Bill Poore nor I could eat them....feeling okay after my adventure up at the ER yesterday evening...had an extremely good looking young man looking after me but failed twice getting a catheter into my arm for the IV...found the veins but couldn't get them to work...did my right and then my left and finally another male nurse came in and did it down by my wrists...the cute guy felt so bad but I just grimaced... That was more painful than anything but if you are going to get poked with needles the consolation is its done by a cute man... Anthony Scaramucci was fired as communication director after only being on the job less than 11 days! In the last 2 weeks, Sean Spicer, Reince Priebus, and Scaramucchi have left their jobs at the White House.

·         Bill Poore Happy you are home, woke up and checked my FB messages.....I wonder if you are drinking enough water because of your diet you get full real fast so are probably not taking in enough water...water should be your number one intake......let me know if you want me to come over tomorrow after I go to the pool.....I would be happy to help with any of your chores ....

·         Edgar I am good but thanks... I am not in any discomfort yet not until it finally decides to pass....otherwise I am okay...going up to Kaysville at 11 am to meet with my financial guy, tomorrow I see my regular doctor, Wednesday I meet with my insurance guy and that night is my history series at the library...

·         Bill If they give you meds to dissolve the stone?  Do you want me to come over and hang out later? Listen if you are not feeling well you should maybe cancel your history series for a week or so.  Let me know.  I am going to the pool at about 930 and will be home after 1200.

·         Edgar I am feeling okay... I drove up to Kaysville. To meet with my financial adviser.. I have to pass the stone but I am not in any pain right now... I still have a whole bottle of OxyContin if I need it... I will be fine but thanks for worrying about me...just going to rest today after getting home at midnight last night...

·         Bill yeah get some rest, let the puppies spoil you.  Let me know if you want me to come over and help you, I am home now so can there if needed.

·         Edgar TJ, Maxx, Lulu Belle, and Coco are all on the bedroom with me...

·         Bill good babies I forgot to tell you the blueberry cake was so yummy

 

AUGUST

1 August 2017 Tuesday

So it’s August already!. They said July was the hottest since records had been taken. I believe it.  The average temperature was above 85 degrees and that the mean between the highest and lowest for each day. I had my appointment with Dr. Stoneburner this morning at 9 am which meant I couldn’t get in to see him until 9:45 a.m. but he’s worth the wait. Dr. Stoneburner is my primary physician which I have had for over 20 years. After seeing my test results and how much weight I lost, he gave me an A++ on my report. LOL. He said my blood pressure was like a teenager and the sugar in my blood is almost non existence. My A1c is 6.6 and before my surgery my sugar in my blood was 1000 parts and now it's only 9... He said the kidney stones may be from rapid weight loss as that I am 204 lbs. down from 249 before surgery... What ever issues I had Sunday at the ER seem to be abated for now even though I haven't pass the stone but at least for now I feel just fine... He was super impressed that my diabetes is basically in remission and I am done with sleep apnea... So if as long as I don't get hit by a bus I am good to go for a while...I had lots of company today. Richard P. Butler came over at 1 pm to get some wood for his camping trip, then about 2 pm J Seth Anderson and Michael Adam Ferguson dropped by to see me before they head back to Boston. It was good visiting with the boys. They were out to speak at the Sunstone Conference up at the U of U. I gave Seth one of my copies of “When We Rise” because he hadn’t read it yet. They only stayed about a half an hour because I know there are tons of people who’d like to see them before they leave Utah. Then about 4 pm Charles Bigo and Richard Harmston came over to see how I was doing. I knew they were coming so I baked them some banana bread. After everyone left  I was able to finish my report for tomorrow's lecture series about 8:30. I am exhausted.

 

2 August 2017 Wednesday

Lammas or the first harvest is a forgotten folk holiday......enjoy your squashes, tomatoes, cucumbers, beans, melons... This cross quarter day marks halfway between the summer solstice and the autumn equinox...enjoy the sunshine it's getting shorter with each passing day... I love Lammas I think because I come from a long line of people who worked the land...it's in my blood...love to see things grow... I went into the city this morning at 10 am to meet with Dallas Hamblin my Horace Mann insurance agent. I wanted to make sure all my insurance is up to date on my vehicles and the house.  The house is insured for $278,000 if they had to rebuild it and I have $300,000 for any property claims. After that came home and reread my report on 1975 and after doing the chronology I ran down to Fed Ex and had them make 15 copies of it. After baking chocolate chip cookies for the lecture series I was good to go so took an afternoon nap. TJ and Jim won’t make it tonight because they are going to see the Broadway Show the Book of Mormon at the Eccles theater. We had a wonderful turn out tonight at the Utah Stonewall Lecture Series even with old faithful’s unable to attend. I arrived at 6:30 thinking I'd have time to relax and prepare when I saw our room full of people. To my surprise nearly 7 people were waiting for the meeting! If Courtney Moser had not been there I would have thought it was a different group meeting because nearly everyone was new... By 7:00 we had about 18 people in the small room. One couple was up from Louisiana even and wanted to learn our Gay history. There were even some young people under 30 LOL. I posted what we discussed in the notes section for those who want to remain current. Our next meeting in September Connell O'Donovan will be our guest historian and we will pick up 1976 again in October. Thanks everyone who came and hoped you liked the cookies as well as the lecture.

 

3 August 2017 Thursday

I created an event for September 6^th Utah Stonewall Lecture where Connell O’Donovan said he wanted to share some research he’s done on Lesbians from the 1920’s. Spent some time catching up on my journal before it gets away from me. I had a one egg omelets this morning with a slice of ham, cheese, and green peppers and one slice of butter toast and apricot jam. Gave most of the toast to the pups. I have nothing I have to do today...no trips to Gunnison, no seeing financial advisor in Kaysville, no seeing my primary physician, no seeing my insurance man, no writing a history report and presenting it...just a day to lounge around with my pups...suppose I should mow my lawn but nah... Nothing to do until Saturday's trip to Ogden Pride and Game Night at the house... I guess I should clean house but nah... I fixed a Kosher beef hot dog on a bun with mustard, relish, and onions for lunch and ate about ¾ of it before giving the rest to Harleigh. This week on the trump shit show... Mueller calls for a grand jury, trump calls New Hampshire a drug den and the White House a dump, the Boy Scouts called him a liar, and phone transcripts show him begging the Mexican President to stop saying Mexico is not paying for the wall... Even with kidney stones I am having a better week than trump...

 

4 August 2017 Friday

My scale which seems to be 10 lbs. off the doctor's digital scale says I am 190 lbs. so I suppose 200 lb... I haven't been at this weight since the 1980's... So I cleaned out my closet and chest of drawers and filled two huge bags with pants, shirts and sweaters that are just droopy on me and took them to DI... I should be pleased but I am too hungry ...but when I do eat I feel too full... But my diabetes is in remission and that is what counts and I can cook and bake for others I suppose... I started cleaning house for company tomorrow. I went and got snacks for tomorrow game night... M&M peanuts, mini candy bars, potato chips and onion dip, baby carrots, sliced up watermelon and cantaloupe, and Coke Zero, Sprite, A&W root beer, and diet Dr. Pepper... That should get us through battle fatigue... I am really excited about playing Diplomacy tomorrow and been restudying the game even though I played it for years with my students in elementary school...hopefully we can get 7 people coming besides me so I can just be the game master to interpret moves and people can check with me if their game moves are legal... Trust me this game is fun and not all that complicated... You will get to lie and break promises or keep them like in the real world...

 

5 August 2017 Saturday

I went to Ogden Pride Day this morning with Chuck Whyte because said I would take him... besides I Need to support these home grown festivals.  Chuck jabbered the whole time up there not once asking about my health or what is going on with me. Well that’s Chuck.  We got up there about 11 a.m. when they said it began but having been there for an hour the booths were still being set up... We walked around seeing what was set up and  after about an hour I was already tired. I told Chuck I had about a half hour’s worth of energy left and then I was heading back to SLC. I listened a bit to a fellow practicing while I rested at the amphitheater. I didn’t see a soul that I knew there although Chuck was chatting it up with friends and strangers alike... I think the main events occurred later in the afternoon but by that time we headed. We stopped in Bountiful on the way home to get a bite as our blood sugars were dropping... I ordered a Happy Meal which was way too much for me to eat...I finished the plain hamburger but could not eat the fries or "go-gurt" lol... even a Happy Meal is too much. I should have simply ordered a plain burger lol...I was home by 2 p.m. to rest before having folks over for  game night to play Diplomacy... If I didn't have company over once in a while I doubt whether I'd clean my house but for once in a while and with 5 pooches running in and out with toys, Chewies, and scattered food bowls and doggie treats the mess seems to accumulate faster than I can keep up...oh well who cares... Love me love my dogs... One of the fellows coming bailed out at the last minute but Game night was fun even if we were all exhausted by the time it was over... But war is hell... Those playing were TJ and Jim, Alan and Kyle, and Charles Bigo. Terry Gillman came an hour late so he was at a real disadvantage. We were just one person short but took out Italy so I could be the referee...when I said Game Master...some took it the wrong way lol... TJ and Kyle tied for 1st place... Alan Anderson and Kyle G. Daniels have offered to host the 1st Saturday in September Game Night... They want to teach us to play Cards Against a Humanity.  

·         Charles Bigo Had lots of fun, great host and good friends. Thanks Ben!

·         T.J. Otaka My brain was almost fried but I had a great time with great friends as well. Thank you for hosting, Ben.

·         Edgar Ben Williams Well we stimulated the old gray matter last night didn't we LOL

 

6 August 2017 Sunday

Finally got around to seeing Dunkirk this afternoon... I needed to get out of the house so I went to the Gateway Megaplex.  It was a beautiful day and not too hot. I walked around the Gateway mall a bit and saw some of the landscaping improvements they have done and I really didn’t see any panhandlers so they must be keeping them south of 2^nd South. Dunkirk was very powerful and riveting and disturbing as so many young men died trying to go back home to England... Sad to see the ugly fascists rearing their heads again in our own country.

 

7 August 2017 Monday

Well had enough ambition to mow today as it was cooler this morning but as I finished the front and the south parking strip the poor mower died on me. Its an electric one so the motor probably gave out. So before I can mow the backyard I will be buying a new one. I will stick with an electric because I don't like a combustible engine. So I went on line and ordered a new one from Amazon.com for $130 which will be delivered Wednesday. Then I think the power circuit breaker that Rich Butler install went out again... because it won’t reset. Always something it seems... So I went out and checked the circuit breaker and it had just tripped and the power came back on. That circuit is for the garage plug and the upstairs bathroom. Weird wiring. But I did get a bunch of weeding done in my flower beds... I need to buy some bags of top soil for two beds I am putting in but it seems all the garden stores I’ve been to just have soil prep... Other than that kind of a lazy day. I spent the last three hours of my day condensing 4000 words to a 1200 word article for my Lambda Lore article for the QSL and this time I am days early ....I wrote about the old Stockade that housed the Red Light District back in 1908.

 

8 August 2017 Tuesday

I Went for an eye check up this morning at the Moran Eye Clinic...My right eye is still 20/20 but my left eye is 20/25 but no sign of diabetes damage... Yay...Sometimes I think I am on autopilot when I go grocery shopping because I get stuff I know I will never eat or finish off except for what I buy for the pups...I buy bananas and they are over ripe, I buy bread and it gets stale... Fresh vegetables wilt before I can finish them... Eating for 1 is hard enough but cut that in half and its nearly impossible... Ugh... Did something I usually don't do and that is go downtown in the evening. I went to see a free showing of The Times Of Harvey Milk – SLC Free Film Screening Utah Film Center at the downtown library...I met up with T.J. Otaka and Jim and sat with them... While waiting for them Connell O’Donovan spots me and asked if that room at the Marmalade has a power point hook up. I said I didn’t think so because he said he had some great photos he wanted to share. I was already pissed at him because I saw that he posted the event on his FB page asking people to come to it and I had specifically asked him not to promote it as our room is so small.  I reminded him that the room has a conference table and isn’t conducive to an audience type presentation. He asked whether we could move it to another room and I said no that it was too late to schedule another room or not. I didn’t know that for a fact that I wasn’t going to help him turn it into the Rocky History Picture Show. As usual he wants someone else to do the work while he gets the praise. During the film a cute young kid sat next to me and I have to say he drew my attention as much as the film which I had seen several times already. I only saw a handful of people I knew at the showing. Peter Moosman, a former student of mine, sat behind us. Afterwards I met a man named Bob Tuttle who knew Harvey Milk and we visited some about Dan White... • It was fun meeting Bob Tuttle after the showing...after living through all of it seeing the documentary I kept thinking that probably 5 years after Milks death many of those young men were dead from AIDS... I've lived through interesting times...TJ and Jim hadn't eaten and asked if I wanted to go with them so I went to Chilis with them where they had supper and I had ice tea...it was a pleasant warm evening in SLC under a full moon...It made me nostalgic for my time when I lived in a basement apartment on 6th East and 4th South... I read an article that the west side is booming but where are the people in these 500 plus units suppose to shop for groceries? Food Savers is on 700 north and Redwood, Smiths is on 600 North and 1300 west, and Rancho is on north Temple and 900 west... Where are these kids going to go to school? West High? At least you can buy blue jeans at Sunderland’s... How about if SLC invest in the west side? Glen Campbell has passed away age 81... Love all of his songs especially the theme from True Grit. The decades-long war of words between the United States and North Korea appeared one step closer to going nuclear when Trump threatened North Korea with “fire and fury” if the rogue state continued its bellicose missile and nuclear tests. Hours later, Pyongyang warned of a strike that would create “an enveloping fire” around Guam, the Pacific island on which the United States has a critical Air Force base.

·         Clyde Peck Trujillo's I was with my friend Bob Tuttle. He was a friend of Harvey and he gives me personal insights when we see these shows. Dan White had supposedly committed suicide a year after his release from prison. Bob thinks it was a setup and he went into hiding. The officer that arrested White was the same officer that 'found' White in his garage. They were good friends. This is speculation of course.

·         Peter Moosman You know, I can't even begin to express my gratitude for all the queer pioneers that fought so that I could live as comfortably as I do. Knowing the pain, struggle, and overwhelming opposition that people (like all of you) faced is both heartbreaking and empowering - knowing that if you were able to endure and fight in the face of such ugly bigotry, then so can I. I can try to carry the torch through the darkness that remains - both to honor the giants on whose shoulders I stand, as well as to give light and hope to those still in the closet and those yet to come. Thank you for your courage to come out and fight for equity. Thank you for the hope you've given to the rising generations. And thank you for risking everything you have to create a positive, monumental change in the world.

·         David Andreason Thanks, Peter--and know that I admire you tremendously. You are a natural leader--kind, smart, fair, and courageous. Your generation is lucky to have you.

·         Michael Aaron opened a can of worms with a FB post… “LGBTQQIAAP+, while ridiculous, still excludes people in our community rather than its intended "inclusion" goal.”

·         Michael Pierce "Gay" works for me.

·         Michael Aaron Well of course it does, you're a gay male. Hehe

·         Edgar Ben Williams Gay was all inclusive until the Lesbian separatist movement of the late 1970's. Even within the women's community many did not like the word Lesbian... I know Kathy Worthington didn't. I prefer Gay and Trans as they are two separate issues, sexual orientation and gender identity... Bisexual was not even added until the early 90's and the T in the early 2000's and then all hell broke loose LOL an alphabetical orgy of which most people don't know or cant agree on what they stand for... Remember when it was GLBT? How did that get switched? Ladies first? I don't think so... I remember when the word lady was offensive to Lesbians... it was women or if you were truly PC Womyn. Don't even get me started on queer..

·         April Van Orman I always just preferred "gay"..

·         Nathan Whittaker Edgar Ben Williams, I would actually like to hear different perspectives on the word "queer"—I know that it's objectionable for some, and I'd like to understand that point of view better...

·         Edgar Ben Williams Queer was an epitaph hurled at homosexuals to demean them and place them outside the norm... It's akin to being called Faggot... It has the same painful connotation as does Nigger to African Americans... Usually queer was said as one was having the shit beaten out of them... It was a word that was meant to intimidate and terrorize... Younger folks who have had the benefit of the civil rights struggle of their Gay Elders are often very dismissive of this aversion to the word Queer... I am okay with the word queer but am very sensitive to those who are not... There are so many other positive words to describe Gay and trans organizations...like Stonewall, Lambda, Rainbow, Lavender, that Queer doesn't have to be the default term...

·         Nathan Whittaker Thanks!

·         Julian Sagers I definitely agree with Edgar's comment but I think it's also important to realize that language evolves and changes over time. For the younger generation queer is definitely more of an umbrella term than a pejorative. At least in my experience. I also know a lot of people, myself included, who like to use it because it lacks specificity. Like if I don't feel like outing myself as trans (or don't feel safe doing so) I can use the term queer instead. I identity as a man and am attracted to men so I often refer to myself as gay because I am. But for a lesbian or someone who was genderqueer or pan or whatever queer is a nice simple umbrella word.

·         Sophia Jean Hawes-Tingey And don't forget the F for fluid :) The real issue is that there are so many axes (as in dimensions) of identity that have been identified as well as those that have yet to be identified, not to mention the variant levels of fluidity on practically eve...See More

·         John Harris Quit trying to shove your agenda down my throat... ;-)

·         Edgar Ben Williams As long as F isn't for Faggot or Fruit or are reclaiming those words too? Hard to keep up...I am still trying to get Michael Aaron to capitalize Gay as a proper noun and adverb ... The struggle is real

·         Michael Aaron I prefer pansy

·         Edgar Ben Williams That's because you are one... I prefer Sodomites United

·         Sophia Jean Hawes-Tingey And how is gay inclusive of the trans community, except for those people who happen to have same-gender attractions?

·         Matthew Landis I would like to point out that the people who seem to have the biggest issue with the alphabet are the G's. I'm with Angie. Let's call people what they want to be called and recognize them as they want to be seen and heard. It's not that difficult. I realize it comes from all sides but how about we stop being offended, stop ridiculing, and move forward? It will always be changing. I'm fine to be called gay or queer. I'm fine with most pronouns. Those are my choices. I respect anyone who wants something else.

·          Edgar Ben Williams Why is it always the Gay men's fault? It use to be that straights were the enemy... Now it's easier to turn on each other I suppose... I don't care what others choose to call themselves but don't choose for me...the first rule of liberation is defining yourself and not letting others define you... Speaking as an old Gay Liberationist the movement that started the whole damn thing...

·         Matthew Landis I hear you. It's nobody's "fault". And I agree that sometimes I think we are mistakenly targeted but sometimes we need to look in the mirror as well and make room for other ideas.

·          Toni Palmer Kane I have often heard ppl say "let's just pick one! Why can't we all just call ourselves Gay? " My question back is; if one word or title is okay, inclusive and enough, then why don't we all go by "Lesbian"?

·         Josh Heuman I think the one word would be "queer" ... but it's considered offensive to those of an older generation, and it's applied to nearly everyone and everything by those of a younger generation.

·          Edgar Ben Williams Because Gay was all inclusive while lesbian isn't.. You hear Gay women and men but never Lesbian women and men...

·         Toni Palmer Kane Edgar Ben Williams This has been an argument for 30+ years. Things evolve. Many Lesbians feel excluded and invisible with the term Gay. In my opinion using "gay" to mean men AND women is equivalent to using old terms that are also male-centric; MailMAN, MANkind etc., instead of evolving to use more inclusionary language, where women are not merely an afterthought, if a consideration at all, but are also reflected. Part of my point is that Lesbians and Trans ppl are no more included and represented in the word "Gay", than gay men are in the word "lesbian".  AND if we had to choose only one term (we don't), why is that choice never the female-centric word? That's seen as ridiculous, but the male-centric terms (used to reflect all ppl) are seen as "normal and just how it is". It's way past time to shake that shit up.

·         Sophia Jean Hawes-Tingey Part of the difficulty in my opinion, is that what we have in common is primarily an opposition to a heteronormative patriarchal monogamous agenda that in itself is exclusionary to anyone that does not subscribe to the pre-established pattern. What is a single word that we can all claim that asserts our rights against the heteronormative agenda, something that doesn't define us by what we are not, but instead what we are in a positive light? I have to admit to myself that probably none of the alphabet letters we have identified to date really truly fit the bill, and so each term, each reclamation adds in its value, its strength, its solidarity. Yet, it is ever changing. I can't say that I can honestly think of any one term that is all inclusive of every community member.

·         Edgar Ben Williams Sexual orientation and gender identity are separate issues doubt if one word is going to cover it as they have different objectives... One is to be able to love who you love and the other be who you are... I never felt Gay covered Tran issues that is why I sometimes use Gay and Tran ... Why must there be a single word? Toni has an opinion and I have mine... Gay means homosexual which historically deals with an orientation not a gender... I am not worried about what people choose to call themselves... In 10 years it will all change again...Historically it was women in the 1940s that first began using the word Gay especially in the military as a code word as in she's such a Gay girl... Gay men have historically used female identity words as in Queen, Mary etc...

 

9 August 2017 Wednesday

So glad I have pups that are more than willing to help me finish a grilled cheese and corned beef sandwich for lunch...although they didn't care for the deli mustard potato salad...good thing I only had a 1/4 cup of it... This morning I counted out 10 frosted shredded wheat squares for breakfast with a cup of milk... I filled up on the frosted shredded wheat so Buddy was happy to finish off the milk... Well my new electric lawn mower just arrived on my front porch... The box said to lift with "team effort"... Well since I am a one man team I cartwheeled it down the porch into the garage where it can sit until I assemble it... Now I need to decide whether to mow my lawn or wait and see if WWIII makes it unnecessary ... I wonder if Trump will start WWIII just to avoid going to prison. Remember when the biggest American threat to North Korea was that Seth Rogan/James Franco movie? Good times.

 

10 August 2017 Thursday

Using up food in the frig before they go bad so made an apple sauce oatmeal coffee cake with coconut- walnut icing... Made two and gave one to Richard P. Butler for putting my new law mower together and will pawn the other off on Coco's daddy Mike... I was bored

 

11 August 2017 Friday

Finally got a project done I had been intending to do for three weeks, to buy bags of top soil to fill in my latest planted box in the front yard to cover some dead grass... Too late to grow anything but lugged home 6 bags... Of 1 cubic foot each ...Still got some strength left... Now to relax and have a Pace Popsicle. Had fun at Trivia at the Leonardo with guys from Men Who Move. Jesse Dolce said our team name was Men Who Move Slowly... Six rounds of 10 questions each with total points being 120... We came in at 97 points with the winner at 106 so we did okay...good team effort with Darby S Hinton, Mark N Angus , Paul Jennens, and this guy named Michael... surprised how much we did know... I managed to pull the title of a book called the Phantom Tollbooth out of my brain cells lol. Tonight in Charlottesville, VA, hundreds of torch-wielding white nationalists marched through town, intending to attack and disrupt a meeting of faith leaders at St Paul's Memorial Church, where Dr. Cornel West was speaking.  They were stopped within blocks of the church, and folks within the church were safely evacuated.

Who remembers the tornado of 1999 which ripped through the heart of the Gay clubs, the Delta Center, Temple Square, and Memory Grove on this date?

·         Craig Hunter I watched it from the state office building on 100 S. and 500 E. as it traveled past the capital building and through the avenues.

·         Tom Folks I remember. I was working that day at the police dept. Still couldn't believe the first few callers when they said they wanted to report a tornado. We were like, ya, right! Chuck Whyte and I later went and got a brick from the Sun.

·         Alan Anderson It didn't hit Temple Square enough

·         Craig Hunter My coworker said that's because God made it bypass Temple Square.

·         Edgar Ben Williams It blew out the picture glass in from of the Christus and made newly weds scramble in front of the temple

·         Alan Anderson Like I said, not enough

·         Jon Michael Oh Alan Anderson! Lol

·         Richard Harmston I watched the tornado from my office window on the 14th floor (actually 13, but that would be unlucky). I was amazed to see people watching from outside balconies on what was then the Holiday Inn. Not safe!

·         Kevin Scott I was working on the corner of 3rd West and 5th South, my son was in school at West High, and my fiancé was living at the base of the North Temple overpass. We all got a front row seat to that!

·         Mark N Angus I was at work at DSW Advertising when it ripped past my office.

·         Dan Fahndrich I was 30 minutes out from landing into SLC and heard of the tornado when I got off the plane.....

·         James Connelley Of all places, I was in in Kansas wen it touched down. No one should know of Chanute, Kansas.

12 August 2017 Saturday

Off to the Murray Farmers Market this morning...I was looking for apricots but none were to be found...I guess the season is over for them...lots and lots of corn, tomatoes, peaches, melons, peppers, and squash however... So I bought some nectarines and Vosen German Rye bread... From there went to the DI on 45th South to look for some clothes as I am getting smaller...don't want to pay full price for stuff I might not be able to wear next month... I bought some pants, shorts and a shirt... Then went and bought groceries for the pups and me... Gonna make tuna boats for something light...Do not know why I put so much food on my small plate... Won't be able to eat more than half of my tuna boat, coleslaw, and nectarines...this is small salad plate too... Tuna Boats remind me of fun times on Captain Hooks's pirate ship at Disneyland...the tuna boats were delicious and cheap for hungry teens... My boyhood friend Jerry Smith would sword fight with the sword shape tooth picks and he stabbed me good once in the hand... Dumb kids... Home from a fun evening thanks to Alan Anderson who got me a ticket to see Saturday Voyeur's Shit Show...lots of fun watching the musical parody of the Russians manipulating the trump election and getting Jason Chaffetz to resign... The actor who played Chaffetz was brilliant.  At Washington Elementary across the street from SLAC they hired a bunch of goats to eat weeds up behind the school. It was cool to watch the critters go to town on the good eatings.  At the protest in Charlottesville, a Neo Nazi plowed into a crowd of anti – fascist protestors killing a young woman. Senseless violence today in Charlottesville. We are better than this America or should be.

·         Craig Hunter Sounds really good

·         Dan Fahndrich I have wondered whether it is a good show this year or not. Anybody who may want to go, let me know and maybe we can go together...

·         Edgar Ben Williams It has three parts...the 1st has its moments... The middle is hilarious... And the 3rd is very good too

·         Like · Reply ·

·         Bill Poore Well I can for sure see you have ditched some of your most loyal friends to been see with super starts like Alan and Kyle.

·         Edgar Ben Williams Are you on Ambien again?

·         Richard P. Butler Capt. Hooks boat was wonderful. You could get a great tuna sandwich and watch the sky tram and tea cup saucer ride while eating on deck.

 

13 August 2017 Sunday

Well for an old man I had a packed weekend...Friday night played Trivia at the Leonardo Museum with Men Who Move, Saturday went to see Saturday Voyeur and now just came home from a pleasant Japanese dinner cooked by T.J. Otaka hosted by TJ and Jim... Dennis J. Lee, Alan Anderson, and Kyle G. Daniels were also guests... I brought them some banana bread and they sent me home with a bed for the doggies, several pair of shorts, watermelon, and an empty saki bottle that I collect. I think I had the better deal... Lol TJ made a cheesecake that was so good as is everything he makes...I had to try a spoonful or two... Good company, good conversation what better way to end a beautiful summer weekend.

 

14 August 2017 Monday

It's a productive day when I can get out of the house to go buy bags of top soil and manure...lol...that and buying treats for the pups has been my sole ambition for the day... I need some pep... Or a maid and gardener. “It doesn’t get much easier than disavowing Nazis. It’s almost as much as a presidential gimme as pardoning a f**king turkey. It is almost impossible to screw it up, but that’s exactly what happened. So there is clearly no point in waiting for leadership from our president in moments like this because it is just not coming, which means we will have to look to one another because incredibly, in a country where previous presidents have actually had to defeat Nazis, we now have one who cannot even be bothered to f**king condemn them.”- John Oliver

·         Chris Johnson Nailed it! It seems a little strange that all these White Supremacists really seem to like Trump so much, which is weird because Neo-Nazis are a lot like cats: If they like you, it's probably because you're feeding them. Wow, you're up early this morning...

·         Edgar Ben Williams Woke up hungry...posted and went back to bed lol

·         Randy Olson The "man" is not a leader, just an immature narcissistic bully who wants the limelight even if it means putting a shadow on the nation.

·         Kevin Scott Trump's father was arrested in 1927 at a KKK rally (I just verified on Snopes). While there is some debate about his racial record, the lows speak louder than the highs.

 

15 August 2017 Tuesday

It's taken me 5 hours to change sheets, make the bed, doing some dusting and I haven't even vacuum my bed room yet... And I am pooped... Time to join the pups in a nap... I think Buddy loves his new bed that T.J. Otaka and Jim gave him. My get up and go has done gone and went...I cleaned the bedroom thoroughly, dusting, scrubbing the carpet (bless Lulu Belle and Sophie's little hearts), put things away where the should be and changed the sheets and did a load of wash! Made some quick and easy enchiladas without making a ton of them... I will get 4 servings out of this while normally would be two... Corn chip strips, pour on can of enchiladas sauce, layer chopped onions, green chilis, sliced black olives and shredded cheese. Add another layer of chips, sauce, cheese and olives and bake for 25 minutes... Easier then rolling up corn tortillas... LOL  I ordered some new carpet runners from Amazon today. They should be delivered by Thursday. Trump is defending the Alt Right ... Is this our President? Trump has lost his damn mind at his press conference this afternoon. He's actually condemning the “Alt-Left” a term he made up. In 1969 I was on the west coast, 18 years old and getting ready to go to college when Woodstock was going on...we were still dealing with the Manson murders to know much about what was going on in upstate New York until afterwards... Lol besides I was just happy being with John Cunningham on our own little excursions to San Diego, the missions, and of course the beaches as summer was winding down before going back to school.

 

16 August 2017 Wednesday

Yay I spent 1 1/2 hours mowing my front, side, and back yard. The back yard was the worse as I had let it get too over grown. But now TJ won't get lost in the high grass... Its like I am getting things done before going back to school but I don't have to hahaha. Been retired for 2 years now and I can tell it's back to school week because for days all I dream about is being in the classroom teaching lessons however I am always being supervised lol. Prejudice has always existed in America but society generally kept it in check with public shaming... In trumps new Amerika these fascist people no longer hide behind masks... They have no shame nor can they be shamed... They must be resisted... Trump will not because they are his base, although they will turn on him as he keeps promoting his Jewish son in law and daughter.

 

17 August 2017 Thursday

I was up in Bountiful this morning to get Charline’s forms for Mom’s probate notarized at my credit union when I stopped by Washington Elementary on the way home to see some of the teachers I worked with as they prepared for back to school... I went in and asked the secretary if Camille Meriwether was in and to my surprise she said Camille had transferred to another school.  The secretary recognized as I had taught her son Sebastian who was now going into 10^th grade. So truly you can't go home again... The place seemed alien to me...after 10 years working there. Richard P. Butler brought back a dish filled with beef and macaroni with some corn bread... This is my supper... Hope I can eat it all...if not I know 5 critters who'd love to lick the plate... "The nation’s Joint Chiefs of Staff issued public statements condemning racial bigotry and extremism, a rare foray into domestic politics that indicated deep unease in the Pentagon with Trump's views on race and underscored his growing isolation." So much controversy over the removal of Confederate Statues in the news. Tear down monuments to Confederate generals and put up statues of slaves instead to show what they were fighting to keep... A monument to Jefferson Davis President of the Confederate States of America in Kentucky is the tallest unreinforced concrete structure in the world. No steel was used to reinforce the concrete walls below its pyramidal top. As one pour was completed, large chunks of limestone were left projecting up to connect it to the next pour above. It is also the tallest concrete obelisk in the world. It is the second tallest obelisk in the world after The Washington Monument in Washington DC... So you think the South was Reconstructed? Educate those who believe the Civil War was fought for any other reason than the South's attempt to keep 4 million human beings as slave...

·         Bill Poore Are you going to watch the eclipse or will we be the only two without glasses? When is it? What time? I know it is a big event that happens only so many years but just cant get excited.  You should have some sort of Eclipse lunch, something clever that looks like an eclipse.

·         Edgar Ben Williams Rich Butler says he has an extra pair... If he remembers to drop them off before he heads up to Idaho...we can share...

·         Terrie Williams Watch the carbs, you've made great progress

·         Richard P. Butler He won't eat enough to matter.

·         Edgar Ben Williams True... I cut the corn bread in half... Ate half of that and shared the rest with Maxx and TJ... Ate what I could on my plate and Maxx was happy to clean my plate peas and all... It was delicious. BTW that is a salad plate not a dinner plate... I could get rid of all my dinner plates for as much as I use them

·         Richard P. Butler You need them for guests silly.

·         Terrie Williams My moms dog really liked cornbread and butter. The more butter on the cornbread the better!

 

18 August 2017 Friday

Only thing I did today is finish up posting on My Southern Roots Blog the Bio of Wilson Williams my 4^th great grandfather, a planter and slave owner (1769-1835) of Swallow Savannah, now in Allendale County, South Carolina. I had been working on completing it all this week. Baked some chicken for the pups for supper and I made some burrito filling but could only eat 1 burrito out of it. Steve Bannon the fucking right wing fascist has left the White House. He says he resigned, Trump says he fired him. Who cares. Glad the bastard is gone. I did not vote for Mitt Romney but the amount Alt Right hatred towards him is appalling for coming out and saying Trump should apologize for saying that some of the people of the Alt Right at the Charlotteville protest were fine people... He has more decency than Orrin Hatch for writing this... And what do we make our school children recite every morning " "And Justice For All" not for some Mr Trump. During the Jim Crow days about 25 years after the Civil War laws in the south were put in place called Separate but Equal... It was the South's apartheid...this also meant it was important to classify who was white and who was colored...this was not just a drinking fountain problem but determined who you could marry, where you could live, and whether you could vote or not...the one drop of Negro Blood rule was thus enforced to determine racial purity... A whole group of folks in Southern Virginia and Eastern Tennessee who told people they were mixed with Indian or even Portuguese ancestors were actually mostly whites of mixed marriages from colonial times... Their white status was now in jeopardy... Virginia actually sent a letter to every county clerk office with a list of family names who were now no longer allowed to marry whites as they had colored blood in them... It was also at this time the monuments to the heroes of the Confederacy were erected in public squares to show who was in charge. Few people know that the status of a slave was by the mother. If the mother was a slave, her children were slaves even if the father was white. Also if a free white woman had children by a person of color her children were free... The picture below is taken of a group of slaves liberated from a plantation during the Civil War... Prior to the civil war a relative of mine had children by his slave housekeeper...as he was aging and could not free them by law, he escaped with their mother and them to Ohio where they were freed. Otherwise his children would have become property of his brother and sisters... My own grandmothers great uncle was a millionaire in Memphis who lived 30 years with his housekeeper, had a child by her but by law could not marry her because she was "colored" after making provisions for brothers and sisters, he left his estate to his "housekeeper"... He was buried in a white cemetery and she in a colored cemetery... And this was a well hidden dark family secret... This is why these monuments to racial inequality must be removed...

 

19 August 2017 Saturday

I tried on some shorts that Jim McMullen had given me that were a size 38 and to my surprise and delight they were comfortable on me. Then I went out to lunch with Bill Poore because he paid. I am a cheaper lunch guest than I use to be...I met him in the Smith’s parking lot downtown and we went to Charlie Chows where I just had a cup of soup and some spring rolls...lol... He ordered a bowl of soup and dumplings. He could finish the bowl and should have had just a cup like me. From there we went to the Gay community picnic held at Fairmont Park where we saw the Mayor... It's fun having a Gay Mayor of SLC...I visited a little with Mark N Angus who was there with his moth but didn't see too many other people I knew. Since we had already eaten we just milled around and made a presence for support... I drove by the Rio Grande on 5th West coming home from downtown...it was like a ghost town ... The tents and trash all gone...only on the corner of 2nd South and 5th were there a small gathering of maybe 25 people... The police’s presence was very evident... A dramatic change... I saw some homeless spread out on 8th West near North Temple but made me wonder where did the hundreds and hundreds go?  Like pigeons they will scatter and then regroup until underlying issues are resolved. I barely came home when Richard Butler dropped by with a pair of official eclipse sunglasses. He was suppose to come over this morning but he got delayed. Bill and I will share them Monday during the partial eclipse here in SLC.  Rich and his step son Austin are heading to Idaho to see totality.  Michael Romero left yesterday to go to Rawlins to meet his John and see about the property there. I guess they will have a good view too. I told Rich I will wait until 2045 when a total eclipse can be seen in Salt Lake City LOL ..Rich and I the went off to Deseret Industries just to look around and we bought some well made American Flags at DI that were made in America for $2 bucks each...we are making America Great Again... In Boston there was a Nazi Rally of about 40 people on the commons while nearly 20,000 marched against fascism. Seth Anderson and Michael Ferguson participated while there.  I got a gift card to a Beer Restaurant from Michael Aaron. I am giving it to Richard Harmston and Charles Bigo because they have been so kind to me.

·         Just had Chinese with Ben Williams then went over to Fairmont Park where the Pride Center and Equality Utah was having a BBQ. We ran into our cute mayor Jackie. We must have the cutest mayor in the country....nice day. My only regret is I did not take a picture and Ben and Jackie together.

 

20 August 2017 Sunday

Absolutely did nothing today even leaving the house. I worked most of the morning catching up on my journaling but that was about it.  Watched some Big Brother in the evening as well as two movies on Hulu. I watched Mars Attacks and MIB II… light hearted and fun to see again. Do you really have to make your bed if you are going right back to bed? A retired persons dilemma. Jerry Lewis died today at the age of 91. Strange for some reason I thought he had already passed as you never heard of him anymore.  Comedian and Civil Rights Activist Dick Gregory died on Saturday at the age of 84.  On August 20, 1980, a white supremacist, serial killer by the name of Joseph Paul Franklin came to Utah at the suggestion of a fellow LDS member to “do something about the race mixing in Liberty Park.”

·         Bill Poore I met Jerry Lewis twice, both times he standing out in front of Sardis the famous restaurant in NYC and me next door standing outside the Helen Hayes Theatre. We were both smoking a cigarette. He was making a film in Sardis and I worked at the Helen Hayes. .We were less that 10 feet away from each other, nothing really said just that smokers bond, he smiled at me and I smiled at him. He was a heavy smoker but he lasted till 91, His hair was really greased back ...they shot that part of the film in two days, never saw him again but we will always have those two mins smoking outside Sardis and the Helen Hayes in NYC. RIP ICON of the What I remember most is how greased back his hair was...he seemed friendly to his crew he was working with.

·         Richard Harmston  Thanks, Ben.  Do you want to exchange this card for some thing you can use.  I'd be glad to do that.  You had to write for the Q to get this, probably.  I would love to use this card.  Richard

·         Me No ... I don't need anything but friends like you and Charles... He gave one to any of the writers that got their articles in early and I just happened to this time ... Besides I want to keep my amateur status...  when I get perks I like to give them to friends when I can...

·         Richard

·         Thanks, Ben.  You know, I am enriched by your participation in my life.  Gift cards aside, you are an exceptional man.  All the friends in your circle know this.

 

21 August 2017 Monday

I encourage all science deniers to stand their ground and look at the eclipse as long as you can with the naked eye to show God with protect you if you have faith... Just like climate deniers believe God will do with the weather. So it begins the eclipse apocalypse... I stood on my front porch with my solar shades...I am so cool but kept going inside every few minutes. The moon and I are so over the eclipse...I was expecting birds to drop from the sky...tried to take a few pics even with the sun at a sliver but was still too bright for the camera ... The leaves gave a dapple crescent shadow effect ... Dark inside the house though like in the evening... I guess I will have to wait until 2045 for a better show... After the eclipse I went to barber's and had a 90 percent eclipse of my hair and beard...LOL trump’s administration took a moment in the afternoon to observe the first total solar eclipse to pass over the United States from one coast to the other since 1918.....The idiot looks into the eclipse while his protective glasses are in his tiny hand... You know, Nazis and Klansmen, that looking at the eclipse with protected eye gear is really kind of Gay... makes you look like a sissy... Real Americans don't need no stinking eye glasses. Show the commie liberals who the real he men are... The white women will love it if you do.

 

22 August 2017 Tuesday

Having a sweet potato for a late lunch.... Yummy ... You can take the boy out of the South but you can't take the South out of the boy when it comes to good country cooking ... I haven't been tending my back yard very well but there was a little bounty of tomatoes, squash and cucumbers for me even if I've been neglectful. When Charles Bigo and Richard Harmston came over to pick up the gift card I gave them I also gave him what came out of my garden because I knew I wouldn’t be eating them. Michael came home today from Wyoming where he and his brother John and his kids have been cleaning up Bill and Fay’s property to get rid of. I guess they went  to Casper where he saw the eclipse in its totality. He said Coco fell a sleep when it got dark lol.

 

23 August 2017 Wednesday

I had a dentist appointment up in Centerville at noon where I had two cavities filled. The numbing shots are the worse. This evening Kyle Foote finally called me and I told him about my kidney stones and caught up with things. He said he had been approved to work at some job in Draper and is just waiting to hear whether he will get transferred there or not.

·         Terrie Williams Just had some dental work done. I didn't use to mind but not so much anymore. Seems like my neck gets out of line and the smell. Good luck. Hope all goes

·         Stephanie Williams I just got another crown. The drill noise freaks me out.

·         Richard P. Butler Be true to your teeth and they won't be false to you.

·         Matthew Wilson You have the best hobbies.

 

24 August 2017 Thursday

My biological clock is way off... Been waking up about 3:30 hunger gnawing at me so I get up fix a bowl of malt o meal and FB surf until 5:30 when try to go back to sleep. Then Coco comes bouncing in at 6:30 and we are up again...have a cup of coffee...work for several hours on posting about Wyle Green Williams, an ancestor of mine who lived during the Civil War... Then went to the grocery store where Smiths has thighs on sale... Tried to eat a BLT sandwich...couldn't finish it all...watched the Last Days of Pompeii on the big screen...made a meat loaf which I hardly ate. Made the meatloaf with lots and lots of ground up veggies, celery, carrots and onions... The trouble with meatloaf you just can't make a small amount so made two and gave one to Coco's daddy... I cut a small piece with some yellow rice and peas and carrots...couldn't eat but a few bites but TJ and Lulubelle were kind enough to help me... and now it's 7 pm and I am ready for bed... Ugh. Sounds like a 1st World problem of a privileged white old dude...... Today in 79 AD Pompeii was destroyed. One of the film adaptations that fascinated me as boy was the 1935 Last Days of Pompeii. I think the scene where the Christians and slaves enter the Gladiator area between the legs of the enormous naked gladiator statue had something to do with me turning Gay LOL. I have a copy of the film that I watch each year on this day.

 

25 August 2017 Friday

Well I was culturalized tonight with fine art and jazz music at the grand re opening of the art museum at the University of Utah. Charles Bigo picked me up at 6 pm and we stopped at Wendy’s on 4^th South as we entered the city to get a bite to eat. I just ordered a cheese burger and a small frosty that was only 50 cents. Couldn’t finish it but it was good. We were up at the U by 7 pm and I couldn’t believe how much the U has grown in the area just south of the HYPER building. In the Fine Arts Museum Richard Harmston was like a kid in a candy store taking people on tours. I saw Kevin Scott and Jose there too. It was fun to be out but my gosh all the construction that is going on up there... Hardly recognized the U... Trump pardoned the racist sheriff Joe Arpaio who was convicted of the crime of contempt of court. Sen John McCain denounced the action in no uncertain terms. So this is the America that trump would have us return to again? I remember going back to Texas and in the city of Lubbock having a picnic at McKenzie Park that was segregated... And driving through a section that was called " Niggertown" and my cousins in Texas going to segregated schools and the turmoil of the Sixties. My sister and I coming home on the train went through Watts during the riots and I remember standing on the platform between the train cars with a black Porter where at a street crossing some white people got out their car and was yelling nigger at the conductor... My first experience with racial hatred...now 50 years later it's out in the open again...

 

26 August 2017 Saturday

I hope family and friends in Texas are riding out the storm in safety... Colossal hurricanes are the future due to warming oceans... Hurricane Harvey is going to be a Class 4 storm. Is hurricane Harvey Gods judgment on Texas for voting for trump... Worst disaster to hit Texas ever and trump wants $25 billion to build a wall between Mexico and Texas...maybe just maybe the money would be better spent building a wall between Texas and the Gulf of Mexico.

·         Kay Campbell Love you but that is low.

·         Edgar Ben Williams I am sorry for anyone who experience lost but the nuts running the state has really ruined Texas reputation else where. Calling for secession and other craziness.. Where are the Ann Richards who made me proud to be a Texan? I am sure it will just be a matter of time that the scam evangelicals will be blaming Gays like always...

·         Kay Campbell Loved Ann Richards for sure. 😄

·         Marlin G Criddle Maybe Hurricane Harvey is god's judgment on Texas for passing laws against transgender using bathrooms?

·         Like · Reply · August 27 at 8:01pm

·         Bill Davis Texas still has Austin. So there's still a glimmer of hope

 

27 August 2017 Sunday

I want some Chop Suey but Utah is a waste land... You can only get Chow Mein... I love this song Chop Suey from the Flower Drum Musical which talks of American diversity but then I am an old Broadway musical queen. I bought my lifetime Senior Pass to National Parks for $10 today. The last day before it goes up tomorrow. I doubt whether I will ever use it but its a bargain LOL. You got to be 62 or older. I did it on line so it actually cost me $20 but I consider it a donation to the National Parks and Monuments that the GOP want to destroy. Trump repealed Obamas flood readiness order, 2 weeks before the Texas floods...'Among other things, Trump rolled back an Obama-era order that infrastructure projects, like roads and bridges, be designed to survive rising sea levels and other consequences of climate change. The executive order was meant to protect taxpayer dollars spent on projects in areas prone to flooding and to improve "climate resilience" across the U.S. — that is, communities' ability to cope with the consequences of global warming.' Robert E. Lee’s Virginia estate, named Arlington House, was confiscated by the Union and turned into a cemetery during the war. The idea—supported by Lincoln–was that if Lee should ever return, he would “have to look at these graves and see the carnage that he had created.” In 1877, George Washington Custis Lee sued the federal government for confiscating Arlington illegally, and the Supreme Court awarded the estate back to him. What did Robert’s son do with an estate littered with dead bodies? He sold it back to the federal government for $150,000.

 

28 August 2017 Monday

If I lived in Texas I'd have an emergency life raft in my garage at all time just for all my critters... I can’t imagine how to keep 5 dogs safe in that disaster.  Unlike Katrina people are refusing to leave their pets behind in the Texas floods on the most part. People are going through flooded neighborhoods to rescue pets stranded. Climate change is making rainstorms everywhere worse, but particularly on the Gulf Coast. Since the 1950s, Houston has seen a 167 percent increase in the frequency of the most intense downpours. Climate scientist Kevin Trenberth thinks that as much as 30 percent of the rainfall from Harvey is attributable to human-caused global warming. That means Harvey is a storm decades in the making..... When hurricane Sandy hit New York and New Jersey 23 out of 24 good Christian Texas Congressional Republicans voted against the relief bill. Senators Ted Cruz and John Cornyn demanded equivalent cuts in federal spending and said they weren't sure they could support the bill without those cuts. Cruz lied and claimed 2/3rds of the $50 billion was for pork and unrelated to the Hurricane. Both Christian Senators voted against the bill. How many of those Texas Congressional Republicans will demand spending cuts to balance the new spending in wake of Hurricane Harvey? How many will threaten to vote against a bill that will fund disaster services in their home state? I'm betting none. Do unto others as you would have done to you evidently does not apply to GOP Christians. The Golden Rule only means to them that if you have the gold you get to rule... Texans and Utahns need to do some serious house cleaning.

 

 

29 August 2017 Tuesday

At the U of U Hospital at 1 pm to meet with Dr. Volckmann, the nutritionist, and the physical exercise specialist.  Dr. Volckmann said that the MRI I had when I had my kidney stones showed I had a small hernia but he said unless it gets worse I should be okay. He said that I needed to exercise more because I should be losing 2 pounds a week even though I have lost 45 pounds since May. All my blood work looked good and said that the discomfort I am having in my stomach may be a small infection and he gave me a new prescription for it. Trump and fashionista trash 3^rd wife went to Houston to make an appearance. He boasted what a great turn out! What a loser. He never did go down to see people who lost everything. People are risking their lives to save their neighbors and animals from the floods of Hurricane Harvey yet Trump could only talk about himself. Americans elected a sociopath who is incapable of empathy so he cannot give comfort or solace to the people of Texas... You get what you vote for... As Trump would say...Sad.  I read how SLC gave approval to a Low Income Senior housing project last night that will be developed in two phases. The Centro Civico’s plan to redevelop their campus on the 100 South block of 600 West across from the Sun Trapp. The first phase will consist of a six-story, 61-unit apartment building on a vacant 0.38-acre parcel. The second phase will the redevelopment of the organization’s campus building and will include retail space, classrooms, a black-box theater, museum, art gallery, a plaza, office space and an athletic facility.

 

30 August 2017 Wednesday

I went to Smith’s pharmacy early this morning but my new prescription had not been ordered so I went back to the Gym this morning...the bane of my existence...a medieval torture chamber... A bitter pill to swallow but I went... It was really hot again today 99 degrees. Spent much of the day rewriting the history of Rev. George Kearse and Shelomith Rushton Williams my 2^nd great grandparents. Finally finished it and posted it to my Southern Roots Blog.  I donated $200 today to different Charities. I gave $50 to Carla Gourdain because she is fundraising for a new wheel chair. I gave $50 to help with the surgery of little pup rescued by Hearts 4 Paws, and I gave $100 to the animal rescue fund of Houston. If it wasn’t bad enough that Gulf Coast of Texas is flooded more bad news There’s a fire in Yosemite National Park.. Yosemite is a such a gem. Right on cue the radical right is blaming Gay people for Hurricane Harvey.   Home teachers came by at 8 pm. LOL  I wondered who could be knocking at my door this late... but it was Jim and this other older fellow. Jim is the guy who Mike and I always called the Bishop although he never was. I asked about his wife who was nearly blind when I last saw her and he said she had died two years ago. I told him I was really sorry to hear that. Anyway They said their records showed a Warren Kyle Foote which they pronounced Footie lived at this address lol... I laughed and said you need to update your records. He hadn't lived here since 2011... They asked if I knew where he was now and I said he lives in Gunnison...they asked if I had an address for him I said yes he's in the state prison there... Their mouths dropped ... I said if you want to contact him there I have an address but they politely declined... I thought Mormons were better record keepers than that Louise Hay who founded Hay House died today at the age of 90. She was a big deal during the AIDS crisis in the 80s as I recall... A lot of workshops by AIDS activists here in SLC promoted her philosophies.

·         Bill Poore She was a great lady, helped the LBGT a great deal during the AIDS Crisis with her Spiritual Positive work on healing...I was lucky to have met her several times in California and NYC. I used her tapes all the time, starting the day and ending them with her positive message.

 

31 August 2017 Thursday

So a long hot August ends although this morning its over cast with the tease of a few sprinkles. I was not too active today. My stomach has been upset with diarrhea. The Bariatric clinic still hasn’t sent me a prescription for my stomach. Its been the hottest summer on record here in Utah. The People's Princess died 20 years ago today. She was one of the earliest supporters of Gay Rights and a champion during the AIDS Crisis. She brought attention to the amount of left over land mines. RIP. Craig Crawford who murdered John Williams of Gastronomy restaurants was sentenced to life in prison today.

 

SEPTEMBER

1 September 2017 Friday

My poor stomach has been in turmoil for 2 days... I’ve had diarrhea for almost 2 days now. I tried going to the gym and soon as I got on the tread mill I got the trots as my mom use to say and thought this isn't going to happen... I had to go to the toilet so I just went to the store after that and bought some Imodium and some Pepto bismol hopefully to make it go away. But hasn't helped yet as I go to bed. Needless to say today has not been very productive and it’s hot again up in the mid 90’s.  I still can't get the bariatric clinic to send the prescription Dr Volckmann ordered for me last Tuesday .... That's frustrating... They just play phone tag.... Oh well at least I am not in Houston ...Doggy sitting Coco for the Labor Day weekend as Michael goes to Rawlins to have an estate sale for his folks place there... No one is eating tonight... Maybe too hot out or weirded out that Coco is here for supper... Oh well guess they aren't hungry but then neither am I. This is the very thing that drives me crazy about my home state. Quebec offers to send help and the Texas Secretary of State just said no thanks just send prayers...Ugh why do Texans elect these monsters? Well they elected Trump... Salt Lake City made the national news again when a gung-ho police officer arrested a nurse at the U of U who refused to follow an illegal command. He wanted her to draw blood from an unconscious man which is illegal with out consent or a warrant. It was video taped and Mayor Biskupski and the Police Chief held a press conference for damage control. This afternoon the swat team went after a guy with a gun on 5^th South and about 5^th East and shut the whole area down. I hope Bill Poore and Chuck Whyte have their doors locked.

·         Chuck Whyte Oh yes , we can not even do hallway

·         Ruadhan O'Sheridan I just read that the guy was taken into custody. Your lockdown should be over.

·         Chuck Whyte YES it is over

·         Petunia Pap Smear - While delivering for GRUBHUB today, I was sent to a block close to downtown, which was surrounded by at least 10 to 15 police cars with lights flashing, but no police officers in sight. I circled the block then parked and took the delivery into the address which I had been given. It was a store, and they were on lock down. They let me in. I asked what was going on, and they said a Meth Head waving a gun around was terrorizing the neighborhood for the last hour. But, they still ordered lunch. NEITHER RAIN, NOR DARK OF NIGHT, NOR GUN WEILDING METH HEAD SHALL INTERUPT THE DELLIVERY OF YOUR LUNCH!

·         Michael Aaron The problems of the arrest by SLCPD detective Jeff Payne run much deeper than a rogue officer getting angry. Payne was sent by superiors who told him to arrest anyone getting in their way. The policy stated was ended TEN YEARS ago. The fact that action was taken only after video of the incident went viral A MONTH LATER makes me wonder how many other equally offensive incidents happen daily and are swept under the rug. The fact that Payne was merely removed from one segment of his job but still on duty, while clearly unable to contain his temper in a simple dispute, shows that SLCPD did not take the situation seriously. This is larger than the mayor and chief of police standing at a podium making an apology. This looks systemic to me and must be addressed granularly at all levels.

 

2 September 2017 Saturday

My digestive tract on the mends...it's the simple things... I Had a banana and oatmeal for breakfast and that seemed to help the most... Felt good enough to mow the front yard this morning and used a sprayer nozzle to cut down some of the spider webs that keep springing up on my front porch... I met Bill Poore downtown for lunch. He wanted to give me $100 for the loan I gave him last March. We went to Charlie Chows for soup... Surprisingly I had no problem eating my hot and spicy soup and a little of the chow Mein we ordered. Had green tea which was light on the old stomach...Bill had a large bowl of Won Ton Soup and took home the rest of the chow Mein for his supper... Before going home I dropped off two boxes full of mixing bowls, glasses, dishes and pots and pans and some clothes at DI...down sizing.  Home from a fun game night hosted by Alan Anderson. We played Cards against Humanity which I learned for the first time... Lots of food and snacks and good company. What I couldn't eat Corky was glad to help me out... When the BYU game came on some of us who are not athletic supporters went out to the backyard to keep it Gay... Thanks to Alan and Kyle for hosting Game Night this month. We had at least 12 people at the event. Alan, Kyle, and their friend Scott, Mark Angus and his friend Phil, Dan Fahndrich and his friend Lewis, TJ and Jim, Charles and Richard and me...lots of food, 2 kinds of brownies, donuts, banana bread, deviled eggs, wieners in BBQ, queso and chips, spinach dip and chips, a variety pack of chips, m & ms, mini nestle candies, wine, beer, juices, and Coke Zero... We know how to have fun.... cards against humanity was nasty and fun. I think Charles won but we broke into 2 groups when BYU football came on...the athletic supporters stayed inside to visit and the faerie folk gravitated to the backyard where a shiny moon was peaking through the trees...

·         Charles Bigo-Thank you Alan and Kyle for a great evening. The best part was not the good food nor the enjoyable game which, incidentally, I won (lol) but the good friends we have had the joy of meeting and drawn close to because of these events. And, Thank you Ben for being the glue that has bound us together in common efforts and friendship through these social activities you organize for us!

·         Dear Kyle,       I hope you are well. I know it’s been a while since writing you.  One of things I’ve noticed about having had my surgery is that I don’t have the energy or even the mental stamina I use to have.  Things just seem to take more effort. It’s been really hot this year so that is one of the reason I have not been keeping up with the yard as much and its getting a bit shabby. It’s about all I can do to keep the front yard mowed.  The house gets kept up but could use some deep cleaning. I guess it comes from living alone also.  Usually I clean pretty good if I know company is coming over but it’s been pretty quiet here for much of the month of August. Well its September now so hopefully when things cool down I will have more energy; Although we are having another heat wave until the middle of the month in the mid 90’s.  Just glad for central air and getting the car’s air conditioning fixed.  Last Tuesday went in for my 3 months update with my bariatric team and they said all my blood work looked good but might have a little infection in my stomach lining which is what making my stomach hurt when I eat.  The doctor prescribed some medicine but its never been sent to my pharmacy so I am going around and around trying to get them to send it.  In the mean time for the past two days I have had constant diarrhea that has about wore me out.  Its just settling down now but its kept me home bound as you can well imagine.  I’ve lost 50 pounds since May and that may also have something to do with being tired.             So other than that how was the play Mrs. Lincoln. Last week I was in bed about 8 pm when I hear some knocking on the door. I couldn’t imagine who would be coming this late in the evening. When I opened the door there were two older Home Teachers!  They asked if a Warren Kyle “Footie” lived here because their ward records showed you at this address. I laughed and said they needed to up date their records as you hadn’t lived here since 2011. They asked if I knew your current address and I said Gunnison. When they asked if I knew where I said the state pen… that gave them a surprise. I said I could give them your address and they declined.  Well that kind of made my evening.  I always thought Mormons were better record keepers than that. Jim Dabakis asked about you a while ago too because he was upset that someone who said he was a Mormon leader bilked people out of money in a pyramid scheme and got no jail time.  He wrote me “Utah County Commission impersonates a Mormon leader, cons $162,606 and gets no jail time with 5 years probation. Salt Lake 28-year-old gay kid cons 3 investors out of $180,000. Now he finally has a release date of 2019, after serving 6 years at the Utah State Prison.”  He was ranting about the injustice of it and wanted some more info about you and I said you were more than 28 years old now.  The tribune carried the story “A former Utah County commissioner has been sentenced to five years probation, including paying $162,606 in restitution, for his role in a scam that involved him and another businessman posing as Mormon officials to fool companies into investing in an industrial park and rail line. Gary Jay Anderson, 70, pleaded guilty in May to one count of communications fraud, a second-degree felony punishable by up to 15 years in prison. Three other charges — all second-degree felonies — were dismissed as part of the deal.  “I appreciate the court’s consideration in this matter, and I want to say I’m so sorry,” Anderson said through tears during his Friday sentencing hearing. “I’m so ashamed.”       Craig Crawford who murdered John Williams by setting their mansion on fire was sentenced to life in prison without parole at the end of August. If you see him in Gunnison don’t become friends with him.  He set fire to the stairs the only way John could have escaped from the upper floor.  Tragic end all around.          The biggest scandal making national news is of course the police officer roughing up and arresting a nurse at the U of U medical center for refusing to draw blood without the patients consent or a warrant. The police officer was frustrated he couldn’t bully her into breaking the law and the video has gone viral. Criminal charges are being looked into for the police’s actions.  Some people are so full of themselves and should never be given policing powers.  My dad was a cop when I was a baby in Lubbock.  My mom made him resign when his partner was shot and after that we moved to Southern California. Salt Lake is really changing with all the development. You will not recognize 4th South. You will be like Rip Van Winkle. I read how SLC also gave approval for a Low Income Senior housing project that will be developed in two phases. The Centro Civico plans to develop on the 100 South block of 600 West across from the Sun Trapp a six-story, 61-unit apartment building on a vacant parcel. The second phase of the redevelopment will include retail space, classrooms, a black-box theater, museum, art gallery, a plaza, office space and an athletic facility.  The old Gay section of Salt Lake has become completely gentrified.   Where I use to dance at Backstreet to Madonna’ tunes is a four story apartment complex. The Rio Grande Area is like a ghost town after 600 homeless people were arrested for various offenses and outstanding warrants. 5th West use to look like a refugee encampment but now it has a police presence. They are even shutting down a section of the Rio Grande Street in front of the homeless shelter, blocking it to traffic.  Not sure whether it will be a permanent street closure or not.  They said it’s because of all the drug dealing. The Secretary of State of Texas, after Quebec offered to send help and specialists in hydro-technology to Houston, declined their offer and just said to send their “prayers”. This is the very thing that drives me crazy about my home state. When hurricane Sandy hit New York and New Jersey 23, out of 24 good Christian Texas Congressional Republicans, voted against the relief bill. Senators Ted Cruz and John Cornyn demanded equivalent cuts in federal spending and said they weren't sure they could support the bill without those cuts. Cruz lied and claimed 2/3rds of the $50 billion was for pork and unrelated to the Hurricane. Both Christian Texas Senators voted against the bill. How many of those Texas Congressional Republicans will demand spending cuts to balance the new spending in wake of Hurricane Harvey? How many will threaten to vote against a bill that will fund disaster services in their home state? I'm betting none. Do unto others as you would have done to you evidently does not apply to GOP Christians. The Golden Rule only means to them that if you have the gold you get to rule... Texans and Utahns need to do some serious house cleaning of slimy Republicans.             Well I better get off my soap box and finish this letter  and don’t get me started about BB19…ugh As I was or ever shall be Your Friend Ben

 

3 September 2017 Sunday

Lazy hot day today. I wrote a letter to Kathy Jaspersen my old classroom aide at Washington. She sent me a letter last week so I owed her a response.  Other than that not much is going on. Had fun last night but just relaxing today.  I went to Food Savers on Redwood and 7^th North and was surprised they rearrange the whole store taking down walls and making the space flow easier.  They discounts on a lot of items they were closing out. I keep buying like I am still eating but I think I am on auto pilot or I have a syndrome. I ordered a doggy harness for Harleigh. He has such a hard time coming up the stairs that I am going to make him wear it so this winter I can just pick him up and help him climb the stairs poor guy.  I created an event for movie night that I am starting back up after a hiatus of three months. Plan on showing Mommy Dearest on the 16^th of June. Walter Becker of Steely Dan Band died. That band provide the soundtrack for me in the 1970’s.

·         Dear Kathy, [Jasperson] I hope you are well. It was good to get your letter about some of my former students. It is nice to hear how some of them are turning into fine young men. Nu’u was a very popular boy at Washington even if his home life wasn’t the greatest. I remember him crying really hard one day after learning his father had lost his job and he was scared there wouldn’t be enough food to eat. I had to comfort him and let him know that his father was an adult he will make sure that his family was taken care of. I hoped that was true but so many of those Pacific Islander families were packed in with cousins and aunts and uncles and extended families that I know it was a hardship for them. I was always so grateful to Liz Beck that she always wanted the kids to eat when other teachers complained about feeding the students breakfast. The lunch lady once complained about kids pocketing food to take out of the cafeteria and Liz adamantly said let them because she knew that some of these kids were feeding kids at home or it was the only supper they were going to get. Same with Ed I don’t think his mom expected much out of him as she had all those kids and no education of her own.  He was so unmotivated when I had him so good to know he’s grown up some. This fall it’s been two school years since I retired and I do not miss it at all. I was more than ready to leave the education system that seemed more interested in testing results than educating the whole child.  So many of these kids had no enrichment at home and the only experience they had with music, art, theater, dance, and public speaking was in the classroom and the legislature was doing all it could to make it impossible to find time to teach anything but Math, Science, and Language Arts. Gone were the days when we were required to teach civics, history, and health.  I was grateful that I was able to squeeze in what I could under Liz but I knew a new Principal would have only been concerned with test scores and would have looked down on the plays I did in class.

I went up to Washington in August to see how Camille Meriwether was doing and as surprised when the secretary said she had transferred to another school. I knew that Jeny Petersen had left the year before. The new Secretary was the mother of a former student of mine Sebastian, I don’t know if you remember him, smart and good looking boy kind of shy. So she remembered me and said that Sebastian was now in 10th grade. They keep on growing up.  With Camille gone there wasn’t anybody still at Washington that I was closed to although I heard Mrs. Gray is back as a reading tutor.   I am glad I went back because it made me realize that chapter of my life is closed and no need to look back anymore. I wonder how Dorothy Pratt is doing.  She was in her mid 80’s before I even retired and I knew she was getting dementia. She will always be special to me but I know she annoyed a lot of those who never knew her when she was a teacher there.  I never wanted to be like Dorothy, a ghost wandering the halls. I hear from my financial adviser once in a while about Liz Beck and she’s a grandma so you know she is happy as can be.  But as for the rest, I have kind of just gone my own way with my new life. I finally had my bariatric surgery. I was suppose to have had it in March but it was put off because my diabetes A1c number was too high and they wanted me to  get it down first so it wasn’t until the end of May that I went into surgery.  The operation went well without a hitch but its been a major life changing experience on how I live my life.  I’ve lost 50 pounds since then but I didn’t do it for the weight loss but rather to put my diabetes into remission which it has.  I no longer take insulin shots, take diabetes medicine, nor test my blood ever day.  That was the real reason I agreed to have the surgery at my age. I was lucky that I hadn’t developed neuropathy or any other damaging symptoms of diabetes so hopefully I now won’t have to worry about any of that as I enter my “golden years.”  Retirement agrees with me completely and I am busier now it seems than when I was teaching. A year ago I lost three of my dogs to diabetes and I began to foster some other shelter dogs that I ended up adopting. I have 5 small dogs now, Buddy, Harley Maxx, TJ, and Lulu Belle. Two are schnauzers and the others are Chihuahua mixes. My friends say if I get another dog they will hold an intervention LOL.  But they are good company for me, gives me a responsibility, and they make me laugh with their silly antics.  I haven’t become a recluse either though, as I have lots of friends that I go out to the theater with, have card game nights, and still have people over for dinner even if I can’t eat it. It’s not that I am restricted from eating anything, it’s just that with the by-pass my stomach is about the size of a large egg so I fill up fast and feel bloated if I eat too fast or a little too much.  About 1 egg and half a piece of toast is all I can comfortably eat for breakfast. It has really cramped my style of going out to eat because as I can only eat so little,  it’s a waste of money and food. If I do go out with friends I generally just order something to drink and my friends feel so guilty they always buy me my drink! LOL. I am busy as ever researching history, writing about it, and doing genealogy. It keeps my brain active I suppose.  I rarely go to the Family History Library much anymore as there is so much on line these days. A neighbor of mine who is LDS retired and his wife passed away so he accepted a position as a helper in the library on the 3rd Floor the US Collection. His name is Jim but I am sure he goes by Brother so and so and I don’t know his last name or I’d let Carma know ha!. Grew a garden patch this hot summer but didn’t do well with all the heat. I am just now really getting the tomatoes. Not sure why I bothered because I can’t eat any of them as they hurt my stomach. So I give them all away to friends who aren’t as lucky as I to have a plot of ground to grow them on. I hope you are enjoying your retirement and are keeping up with your poetry. We all need a creative outlet to keep us stimulated. I hope you enjoy your trips. I am such a homebody now that unless it’s a day trip I rarely go anywhere.  One of my students, from years ago, Morgan Fultz has an uncle that is down in Gunnison state prison and Gunnison is about as far as I go these days to visit Morgan’s uncle to help with his rehabilitation. I hope.  I know of at least 3 former students who have ended up in Prison.  That is sad.  One of my former students from Orchard named Emily actually assisted with some of my procedures for my surgery. Small world.  Another works at the Salt Lake Community College so its nice to see them all grow into useful adults but it sure makes me feel old because in my mind they will always be 10 and 11 year olds. Well I will close for now. Tell Carma hi and I appreciated all you both did to make my job easier and keep me from killing some of the stinkers that pushed my buttons. LOL Best  Regards Edd Williams

 

4 September 2017 Monday Labor Day

Bill Poore messaged me wanting to know if he was suppose to come over for lunch and I said yes so I fixed some baked chicken thighs, mashed potatoes, chicken gravy and peas and carrots. He never showed so I messengered him back and he had left a text message on my phone which I never got because I couldn’t find my phone anywhere. He said his eyes were too bad to drive over because of all the smoke in the air. Well that was a wasted effort ... I will see what I can eat and then the pups can have the rest... at least my house got cleaned. I also made a peach crisp for lunch but only now feel hungry to enjoy some... End of summer beginning of fall food. Well I've searched high and low for my phone...the last time I remember having it was Saturday night... Fortunately I have another phone that I can take down tomorrow and activate... When I do I am sure the other will show up lol. I hate it when I lose my phone.

 

5 September 2017 Tuesday

Mike Romero came over to go with me up to the Verizon Store in Bountiful to change my service over to the Samsung 7 since I can’t find my phone anywhere. It was easy to switch over and it saved all my contacts and pictures. Mike had taken off today have coming home yesterday from Rawlins.

 

6 September 2017 Wednesday

There’s a fire at the mouth of Weber Canyon which the winds are whipping near homes. Grab your kids, pets, and horses and get out now. I had a 1 pm appointment up in Centerville where I had my last cavity drilled and filled this afternoon...yay...The air is so smokey from all the fires around us....we are a basin and it all filters down to the valley.... Going to the Utah State Fair tomorrow morning to see the butter cow sculpture, the blue ribbon winners, and the baby goats and calves , and piggies... Can't wait... There was a good turnout for Connell O'Donovan's presentation on early Lesbian history in Salt Lake City at the Utah Stonewall Historical Society’s Lecture series with many of his groupies as well as Utah historian Will Bagley...we met in the larger room as it was available to my surprise. Rocky and I got into a little tiff when I wanted to start the meeting and he wanted to wait for more of his friends to show up. I said no. I always believed the people on time are not less important than the people showing up late. But I learned some fascinating history of a tragic love affair that ended in a suicide pact in 1926. I thanked Connell for all his hard work and research even if he tried to turn it into the Rocky show... Chad Anderson had some exciting news that his film crew is going to Missoula Montana to interview Lance Woods girl friend at the time of the murder for his documentary he's doing on Gordon Church.... Our next meeting in October will be on the year 1976... Chad posted a picture on FB saying “Stonewall historical society meeting. Eat your heart out, J Seth.” That made me laugh. I can tell that summer is over by how dark it gets now at night and in the mornings. Coming home from my meeting last night at 8:30 it was already nighttime where it would have been just sunset a few weeks ago and here at 7 am the sun has yet to peak over the Wasatch and it's very twilight out...Lammas is quickly fading and soon Mabon will be here with the Autumnal Equinox...now if the heat would also go away.

 

7 September 2017 Thursday

I picked up Chuck about 9:45 to go to the State Fair this morning. A group of us planned on going the opening day as it was only $6 admission although I paid $10 for parking. Chuck said an infection in his foot is getting worse and is being treated with major anti-biotics and he may have to go in again for surgery on it.  So we got his a motorized wheel chair scooter to get around on to stay off that foot. Well we met up with Richard Harmston, Charles Bigo, TJ Otaka, and Jim McMullin about 10:30.  We walked all over the fairground looking at the exhibits and animals. We started out in the Promontory Building which no longer featured the counties displays and the prize winning horticulture items although it still had the butter cow sculpture that I enjoy. From there we went to the Fine Arts exhibit which was next to the Marine Recruitment station. It was more fun looking at the Marines. Talk about Fine Arts. After that we made the rounds eventually seeing the lambs, the goats, the cattle, the dairy cows, the pigs, and the chickens. I think TJ liked the animals as much I do. We also finally found the horticulture exhibit which was in a weird place. I love looking at the harvest. The Midway opened at 1 pm and it started getting more crowded then. I pooped out about 1:30 and said fare well to the Fair and my fairy friends. Chuck was more than ready to go himself. We stopped at Arctic Circle before taking him home. There is so much construction going on in the city that many of the streets are reduced to 1 lane. It was a pain. It took me nearly a half hour to get over to 9^th West just from 4^th East.

·         T.J. Otaka Jim and I finally had a funnel cake and Charles and Richard had soft ice cream cones before we left. It was a fun day. Thanks again.

·         Chuck Whyte Thank You to Edgar Ben Williams and the 4 very handsome gentleman from the Men's Group that made my visit to The Utah State Fair today a visual appealing activity Cowboys, Marines, and Policemen.......oh my.....it was also a lot of fun, looking at the ribbons people have received so far for their excellent entries and acource all the animals......

 

8 September 2017 Friday

About midnight Southern Mexico was hit by a 8.2 earthquake at the same time a Hurricane is hitting its east coast. There are 3 major Hurricanes brewing in the Caribbean and the Gulf of Mexico.  I didn’t do a thing today except work on genealogy and lounging around. Tired from the fair yesterday. I ordered a harness with a handle on it for Harleigh from Amazon and it came today. He is having trouble coming up the steps and it will be worse in the when snow and ice gets here. I will have a handle to lift him up. He’s Pretty in pink. I got a letter from Kyle Foote today that he posted on Labor Day so it came really fast. Country western singer Don Williams died one of mom’s favorites. He was 78.

·         T.J. Otaka You are such a good dad. All your pups are (were) very lucky. They love you right back, too.

 

9 September 2017 Saturday

Putting on my coveralls to do some yard work since Joel Jay Vallar wants to come over to help... I am more motivated to clean when folks come over... It's the middle class bourgeois in me I suppose since I am one degree away from being white trash... Saint Joel Jay Vallar came over this morning to mow my backyard, rake, and pull weeds... Such a good man. He’s is going through a break up with Greg Allen and needed someone to be with and some place to go. He said he’s been sleeping in his car. I told him to stop that and come stay in the spare bedroom but he is stubborn. Bill Poore also came over bearing treats for the pups...they love the chew sticks...well they love to steal each other's...I fix everyone a tuna sandwich on a dinner roll, macaroni & cheese, tomatoes from the garden and angel food cake with frosting because my friends are angels in disguise...it briefly sprinkled today enough to clean the air and make everything smell fresh... Well eating is still trial and error this evening... Had a bowl of corn flakes for dinner and did not sit well in what little stomach I have left... Belly ache and nauseous galore... So much for cereal for dinner... Ugh. Hurricane Irma is barreling through the Caribbean and is expected to hit Florida tomorrow. Of course Christian Fanatics are blaming us. I suppose people are silly enough to believe God is willing to destroy billions of dollars of property, thousands of species of wild life and kill hundreds of people by a hurricane because Gay people can marry... Keep sending checks into your scam evangelicals who are growing rich off your stupidity, bigotry, and fear. Really sad news before going to bed... It's being reported the Bruce M. Barton has passed away today.... He was a hero of mine. Bruce Barton had just posted a meme yesterday saying Life is Short - be with people who make you laugh, and now he is gone... For those too young to know him he was pastor of the Resurrection MCC church here in SLC and a major player and activist...he sewed single handedly the first rainbow flag that was carried in SLC Gay Pride Parade... His partner Bruce Harmon died in 2011 and he is survived by his son Troy Barton... He died in Oroville CA where he moved to raise his son... I wrote this tribute for Social Media. “Rev. Bruce M Barton former pastor of the Resurrection Metropolitan Community Church of Salt Lake City died yesterday 9 September 2017 in Oroville California after declining heath. He was born 1 August 1946 and died at the age of 71 years. His husband Bruce Harmon, Emperor 15 of the Royal Court of the Golden Spike Empire preceded him in death. He is survived by his son Troy Barton named for Rev. Troy Perry. The "Bruces" were a power couple in Salt Lake City building and shaping our Gay Community for two decades. Few people had the impact in other people's lives as much as Bruce Barton. They made the decision to leave SLC to raise their son concerned about the backlash he might receive in Utah's schools having two dads. I've known Bruce for 31 years and worked with him in community organizing back when there weren't much help for people to come out. One of my fondest memories is staying with the "Bruces" during the 1987 March on Washington. They let me stay in their hotel when I had no place to stay. His Sunday sermons were always lively, very much the hanky waving, praise the Lord, and leaving you feeling you were accepted as you are. A part of Utah's living history is gone now but his memory will endure.”

·         Bill Poore totally enjoyed spending time with you Jay and the pups. Thanks for brunch.

·         Joel Jay Vallar Not even close to being a saint, but thank you for helping me become one! Long process I know. Love doing yard work and besides I could use more tan.... feel like I am blending with you guys.

·         Doug Murri Oh, dear. So sad. Bruce was the Pastor at the Church where Michael and I met 32 years ago. He's always held a special spot in our hearts and in our lives. My heart goes out to Troy.

·         James Dabakis Sad day for Utah. And America. Bruce was an LGBTQ pioneer who always took the high road. A life well lived.

 

10 September 2017 Sunday

Been curled up with pups all day watching news accounts of Hurricane Irma... What a monster storm...reporting they might have to rebuild the electric grid when it's all over so millions will be without electricity for weeks. As millions of Americans are displaced tonight I am grateful to have shelter for myself and my critters, a warm bed, clean water, electricity, toilet facilities, and food in the house. How fortunate and bless am I... Time to open the wallet again and send aid this time to the Americans and their critters in Florida. When it's all over material things become worthless.... Doing good is all that matters. One of my favorite sermons by Rev. Bruce Barton was based on the Book of Esther King James Bible 4:16 "Go, gather together all the Jews that are present in Shushan, and fast ye for me, and neither eat nor drink three days, night or day: I also and my maidens will fast likewise; and so will I go in unto the king, which is not according to the law: and if I perish, I perish." Afterwards he had us all sing the gospel song If I Perish I Perish... It gave us great inspiration to face the onslaught of AIDS and carry on with winning our rights as human being.

 

11 September 2017 Monday

Today is the 16^th Anniversary of the Terror attacks on New York City and the Pentagon. When out and about saw that the flags were at half mast.  I wrote Kyle Foote a letter this morning and then Rich Butler came over for me to give him a bunch of tomatoes from the garden. His wife Brenda loves homegrown tomatoes. He wanted to go with me to get Charline’s papers notarized to put Mom’s house in her name. So Donna and I are giving up all claim to the house in Arizona. While in Bountiful Rich wanted to stop at Costco. It was nice to know that I could walk around that place and there was nothing there I really needed or could use.

·         Dear Kyle,       I got your letter dated the 4^th on Friday so it came really quick which is surprising. I mailed out a letter on the 5^th and hopefully you will have received it before you get this one. Hard to believe it’s been 16 years since the attacks on the World Trade Towers and the Pentagon. Trump looks so constipated at the ceremony in New York. He always looks constipated at these official events as it’s so hard for him to emote that he cares. The “First Tramp” Malaria Trump looks likes she’s always being held hostage which she probably is. The pups and I are fine even though last week it was so smoky in the valley with the fire that was at the mouth of Weber Canyon. It burned a few homes and shut down I 84 for a while. But the fire is out now and the winds have shifted so most of the smoke is gone now. But for a while you couldn’t see the capitol from my house.   Still I guess much of Montana is on fire as well as Oregon which isn’t getting much attention what with the Gulf State’s hurricanes.  The heat wave we have had is suppose to break up this weekend. I didn’t do much Sunday except watch the news as Hurricane Irma went up the west coast of Florida. It was pretty dramatic seeing pictures of the sea beds after Irma had sucked up so much water. It sounds, as hard hit as Florida was, it could have been worse and the state had few casualties due to the mass evacuation. They are reporting that they might have to rebuild the entire western Florida electric grid when it's all over so millions there will be without electricity for weeks in that muck and humidity. I am grateful for sure to have shelter for myself and my critters, a warm bed, clean water, electricity, toilet facilities, and food in the house. How fortunate and bless am I... When it's all over material things become pretty worthless.... As the old song said We are all dust in the wind… “All we do crumbles to the ground though we refuse to see.”  So “don't hang on, nothing lasts forever but the earth and sky. It slips away, and all your money won't another minute buy.”  I know you are too young to remember my friend Bruce Barton but he passed away on Saturday.... He was a hero of mine.  He had just posted a meme on Friday saying Life is Short so be with people who make you laugh and now he is gone... He was pastor of the Resurrection MCC church here in SLC when I first came out so I’ve known him for 31 years. He and his partner Bruce Harmon were major players and activists here... Harmon created the SLC Gay Pride Parade as it is known today and Bruce Barton sewed single handedly the first 100 yard rainbow flag that was carried in SLC Gay Pride Parade for many years. Bruce Harmon died in 2011 of a heart attack.  In 1987 I stayed with Bruce and Bruce in Washington DC for the March on Washington. I had gone back there thinking I’d be sleeping on a park bench but they invited me to crash in their hotel room. When Utah Title folded in 1988, Bruce Harmon got me a job with his genealogy company before I was hired to teach. He, Ben Barr, and I formed the Utah AIDS Quilt Project. In 1990 Bruce Harmon was Emperor 15 of the Royal Court. Bruce Barton when he was about 54 years old decided to have a son he named Troy Barton after Rev. Troy Perry. He’s about 17 years old now. When Troy was about 5 years old Bruce Barton and Harmon left Utah because they feared how their son would be treated in Utah schools with him having two dad. Also Utah had passed Proposition 4 outlawing Gay marriage and the LDS Church was trying to defeat marriage equality elsewhere. Both Bruces died in Oroville CA.  I wrote this tribute for Social Media which had several shares. “Rev. Bruce M Barton former pastor of the Resurrection Metropolitan Community Church of Salt Lake City died yesterday 9 September 2017 in Oroville California after declining heath. He was born 1 August 1946 and died at the age of 71 years. His husband Bruce Harmon, Emperor 15 of the Royal Court of the Golden Spike Empire preceded him in death. He is survived by his son Troy Barton named for Rev. Troy Perry. The "Bruces" were a power couple in Salt Lake City building and shaping our Gay Community for two decades. Few people had the impact in other people's lives as much as Bruce Barton. They made the decision to leave SLC to raise their son concerned about the backlash he might receive in Utah's schools having two dads. I've known Bruce for 31 years and worked with him in community organizing back when there weren't much help for people to come out. One of my fondest memories is staying with the "Bruces" during the 1987 March on Washington. They let me stay in their hotel when I had no place to stay. His Sunday sermons were always lively, very much the hanky waving, praise the Lord, and leaving you feeling you were accepted as you are. A part of Utah's living history is gone now but his memory will endure.” I also posted a picture of me at the March on Washington taken by Bruce Barton with Bob McIntier and Bruce Harmon. I am the only one still alive from that photo.  So we old warriors are passing. My hope is that the Stonewall Generation will carry on our legacy. Last week was kind of busy for me. On Labor Day I thought I lost my phone because I couldn’t find it anywhere searching high and low but I didn’t worry much as that I had another phone a Samsung 7 that I thought I also had lost but didn’t so I had a back up. Mike and I went to the Bountiful Verizon and had my number switched over to that phone and then of course a couple of days later I found my old phone in a pants pocket I forgot I had worn. LOL So now I have a back up for my back up phone.  On Wednesday went and had a cavity filled at my dentist in Centerville. I had bought insurance through them because Medicare is worthless for any dental work. It only cost $140 which I suppose isn’t bad but gone are the days of my school insurance where I only had a $40 co pay. But my teeth are good now and just need a cleaning come November. That evening was my Utah Stonewall Historical Society’s Lecture Series. Its always the 1^st Wednesday of the month at the Marmalade Library. This time I had Connell O’Donovan give a presentation. It was not what I wanted but he does what he wants to do to always turn it into the “Connell O’Donovan” Show. I’ve known him since 1988 when he went by Rocky and was a tall skinny 27 year old red head. Now he looks like a bald very large Santa Claus. We started the Gay and Lesbian Historical Society of Utah on Halloween 1988 but he had his breakdown and decided wandering in the nude in the Southern Utah desert was his bag and later moved to San Jose, CA. At that point  I took over the organization and renamed it the Utah Stonewall Historical Society and Archives.  Even in our Sacred Faerie days he and I would clash because he was so narcissistic. He moved away for nearly 20 years until coming back about 4 years ago. At the meeting which he presented on Lesbians in the 1920’s and 30’s, he and I had a small tiff when he wanted to wait for more people to come and I wanted to start the meeting on time which I always do.  It bugs the hell out of me when people say lets wait for the late comers; like those who are on time aren’t as important.  Screw that. Anyway I let him know I was in charge and he was my guest speaker.  Many of my regular attendees didn’t come because they were not interested in the subject matter.  But Connell had his groupies there when I had even asked him not to promote it because we had some a small space. Oh well. I really don’t like Connell but I respect his research. On Thursday it was the opening day of the Utah State Fair and I had gathered a group of retired friends to go with me. The first day was sponsored by Pepsi and the tickets were only $6 to get in which didn’t include the Midway Carnival that none of us wanted to do. It was $10 to park. I took Chuck Whyte because he wanted to go and he rented a motorize chair to ride around to stay off his foot. He has an infection again in that bad leg and may have to be hospitalized again. I wouldn’t be surprised if they will have to amputate part of his foot some day. About four other guys who have become kind of my posse from Gay Men Aloud days went with me and we had a lot of fun seeing the horticulture exhibits, the butter cow, the crafts, and all the livestock. Seeing the livestock is my favorite especially the goats and pigs. Because we went in the morning the fair wasn’t as crowded as it would be once the Midway opened at 1 pm. By then I was really pooped myself walking the fairgrounds so Chuck and I left the rest to go get a bite to eat at Arctic Circle. There was nothing at the Fair that I could eat and didn’t want to pay $5 for something I could only take a bite or two out of.  So just had a small hamburger and drink and felt like I had gone back for seconds at Chuck A Rama. Traffic in the city is ridiculous right now with all the construction going on. Parts of 2^nd South and 4^th South are down to 1 lane with construction trucks. Most of the building is all apartments.  It took me a half an hour just to get from Chuck’s on 4^th East and 5^th South back across town. As I think I said in the last letter you will not recognize downtown or Sugar House. I wouldn’t live in Sugar House for anything. Its all built up with no improvement with roads and traffic. Well I couldn’t afford Sugar House anyways with its $500,000 for an old two bedroom brick bungalow price tag now. Shacks in the Marmalade District are being sold for $400,000.  My 21 year old house is now being taxed as a $200,000 house which I suppose is cheap. Friday I didn’t do a thing being tired from walking the state fair. Felt good to be home with just the pups. Harleigh my Schnauzer I adopted after Lucky died, is having a hard time coming up the back steps as he had a broken leg that never was healed properly before I got him. He will stand on the hot tub deck and bark and bark until I help him up. He does this at night which wakes me up to bring him in because I don’t want his barking to disturb the neighbors. So I bought him a padded body harness that has a handle on it so I can carry him up the steps like luggage LOL. Poor old boy. Tough getting old. Buddy is still hanging in there and doing fine except for the goose egg size bump on his rump. It doesn’t hurt him and the vet said it would do more harm removing it than leaving it.  The others, Lulu Belle and the Chi Chi boys TJ and Maxx are all healthy and well.  I am still baby sitting Coco too although she is turning into an old girl as well. I am doing fine and my kidney stones haven’t bothered me since. Health wise I am still figuring out what I can eat and what I can’t. The other day I had a bowl of corn flakes for supper and I got so sick.  Some food cause a dumping syndrome when food metabolizes too quickly into sugars and dumps into my intestine and I get very nauseous and sick to my stomach. I just have to lay down and let the feeling pass. I can’t even finish a small McDonald hamburger without feeling stuffed. It’s so hard to cook anything because even the smallest portions are too much and I end up giving most of it away to Michael or feeding the pups.  I even bought a 1 quart crock pot and that makes more than I can eat over several days. I went through my cupboards and took several boxes, of plates, bowls, dishes, pots and pans down to DI because I know I won’t use them anymore. I eat off of small dessert plates only. If I have company they will have to eat off paper plates LOL. I still like to bake for my friends so I will keep some of my loaf pans and mixing bowls but time to let most of it go. It’s strange that while I am cutting back on cooking and eating ware I am still buying groceries like a hoarder. I still buy can goods on sale and stuff but have no idea when I will ever use them.  It’s like psychologically I am buying like what I would like to eat but in reality can’t.  A loaf of bread is ridiculous because I might eat 4 slices in a week and how do you buy a small loaf. I’ve got a dozen eggs that I might eat 4 in a week and I can only buy milk by the quart otherwise it will go bad. Fresh produce is just a waste of money. A head of lettuce wilts before I can eat even a fourth of it. I buy bananas and eat maybe one or two before they turn brown and I have to make banana bread out of them. Onions and Yams are about all I can buy without them going bad. I am having people over this Saturday for dinner and a movie. I am going to fix spaghetti with meat sauce, a salad, and garlic bread and probably turn the bananas into bread.  Oh well sounds like a “first world” problem having too much food.  We are going to watch Mommy Dearest, a Gay cult classic. I am glad your mattress finally came so you can enjoy it as long as you can. Will they just throw it out or can you give it to someone else if they transfer you to Draper?  It would be a shame if someone couldn’t use it. Well Big Brother is almost over and except for Kevin I hate everyone who is left in the house. They are all pretty despicable people except for Kevin. Are you going to watch Celebrity Big Brother this winter? I know I probably will LOL.  There are some shows this fall that look kind of fun like Seth McFarland’s Orville and Ghosted on Fox.  I have never liked The Big Bang Theory but the spin off Sheldon looks like it has potential. We will see. Well I can’t think of much more to write about. We all still hate Trump and pray for his imminent massive heart attack on the golf course. People say Pence will be worse but if you look at the evidence he’s already running the show. Hopefully Trump will croak before him and North Korea get into a pissing contest. Both Lee and Stewart voted against disaster relief for Texas. God I hate Republicans or at least the right wing asshats who have corrupted them. Hatch while supporting the Dreamers refused to condemn Trump for repealing DACA. What a tool. The Provo Mayor Curtis will probably replace Jason Chaffetz. I don’t know much about him. How could he be worse? As Always Your friend Ben

·         Edith Windsor, the gay-rights activist whose landmark case led the Supreme Court to grant same-sex married couples federal recognition for the first time and rights to a host of federal benefits that until then only married heterosexuals had enjoyed, died on Tuesday in Manhattan. She was 88.

 

12 September 2017 Tuesday

Been lazy this morning after TJ's shenanigans last night. Woke up at 2 pm hearing barking. I thought at first it was Harleigh but no it was TJ the little shit barking outside and refusing to come in when I called him... Finally rounded him up and shut the doggy door to keep him inside... Even then in bed he'd bark periodically just enough to wake me up until 3... He had done lost his damn mind...I wonder what was up with the little guy... Never a dull moment. My lambda lore column is due today... Procrastination is my middle name... Forced myself to sit down and crank out a very lengthy column on an adventure I had 30 years ago with Bruce Barton and Bruce Harmon on the March on Washington for Gay and Lesbian Rights... It's way longer than what my column is allocated so Michael Aaron gets to cut away... I've known some really fine people in my life working for social justice. I just don’t get some of my Gay friend’s obsession with football. I was born without a sports gene I suppose... Although I once was a water boy for my Jr Varsity Football high school team... My junior history teacher, Mr. Osborne, forced me to do it... It's the only "letter" I earned so technically I was a letterman in high school... So I had to go to all the games and bring water out to the pigskin heroes... Actually they appreciated me and the extra attention I gave them... I also handed out towels in the towel cage so that was kind of a perk... I was 16 years old.

 

13 September 2017 Wednesday

Finally a good soaking rain here in Westpointe... We haven't had any substantial rain since May...dogs are not happy because they want to go outside but at least our heat wave of being in the 90’s his over. So it was a good day just to stay inside and work on posting the history of my grandparents Williams on line. I need to get as much of this genealogy on line so it doesn’t all disappear when I am gone. I have created a blog called http://mywilliamssouthernroots.blogspot.com/ The Southern Roots of My Williams Family. I have been updating information on it through my account on Ancestry.Com and Facebook. I spend at least 4 hours a day on it. That and watching Big Brother 19 and binge watching The Goldbergs is about all I do.

 

14 September 2017 Thursday

Cooler today and I know I should go to the gym but I don’t. U spend most of my time on the computer working on my family histories. I also have been posting on my Utah Stonewall Historical Society site everyday from my This Day In Gay Utah History. Other than soaking in the hot tub and watching television I do very little but I am entertained by all my pups. Finally got around to doing some laundry…So exciting. The Mormon Church and Utah's Mormon legislators have signed on to the Colorado bakers suit not to make a wedding cake for Gay people based on their perverted views of religious liberties. Replace the word Gay with any other minority and this suit can be seen for what it is...bigotry...what is really Sad is that a symbol used to celebrate the love of two people is being turned into a weapon of hate by so called Christians.

 

15 September 2017 Friday

Yay here comes the rain...pitter-patter on the roof and deck... The sound woke me up but it's a good sound. We need every drop of rain here. Its been such a long dry hot summer. My tomatoes are finally really popping. I see that I have a couple of pumpkins on the vine but my cucumbers and squash produced very little this year. If I am up to it I’d like to plant a bigger garden next year but I will have to rent a tiller. The thunder last night scared Harleigh so much last night that I had to help him on to the bed and snuggle with him all night to calm him...so I had surround hounds all night... The rest slept pretty soundly just wanting to be near me...so Coco comes bounding in at 6:45 but hopefully we can get a few more winks in before the sun comes up over the mountains.  Its getting darker and darker again in the morning but this time next week it will be fall. I saw a really easy and tasty peach cobbler recipe but when I brought some store peaches from the Rancho Market they were all dark and juiceless when I started to cut them up. I gave up and just through them away. Hillary Clinton gave a eulogy at Edith Windsor’s memorial service.

Peach Cobbler Ingredients 6-8 fresh peaches, peeled and sliced, 1 stick unsalted butter, melted, 1 cup flour, 1 cup sugar, 1 cup brown sugar, 1 tablespoon baking powder, ⅛ teaspoon salt, 1 cup milk, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, Juice from ½ lemon Preheat oven to 375°F. Pour melted butter into center of 9x13-inch baking dish, do not spread butter around pan. In a separate bowl, combine flour, 1 cup sugar, salt, and baking powder. Slowly pour in milk and vanilla extract, and stir to combine. Pour batter over butter, but do not stir. Add brown sugar, peach slices, and lemon juice to a saucepan on high heat. Stir frequently until sugar is completely melted and peaches have released their juices. Pour peaches over top of batter. Do not stir. Bake for 40-45 minutes or until top of cobbler is a golden in color.

 

16 September 2017 Saturday

I don't know what is wrong with fresh peaches sold in the stores but they are useless. I had intended on making a fresh peach Cobbler for Movie Night for some friends tonight but I would not serve them at all. I bought about 3 lbs. yesterday and when I cut them open they were all brown and juiceless so ended throwing them out...so I just got back from buying peaches at Food Savers and they were the same! Tasteless...so threw them out too! So no peach cobbler tonight... I have banana bread that I made Thursday from over ripe bananas. I guess that will have to do but I am thoroughly disappointed.  I spent much of the rest of the day cleaning, vacuuming, and mopping as well as cooking. Saturday Menu for movie night was Spaghetti noodles with Italian sausage & mushroom red sauce, Tomato and romaine & iceberg lettuce salad, Garlic bread, Yellow and zucchini squash, banana nut bread.  I had Jay Vallar come over at 5 pm because he wanted to help but think he just needed to be away from Greg’s place. I also knew that he needed to be able to talk about the break up. People started showing up at 6 pm as usual for dinner. Because I had posted about my ill fated attempt at making cobbler lots of people brought snacks for dessert. Richard Harmston even brought me some flowers. People who came were Jay, Richard and Charles Bigo, TJ Otaka and Jim McMullin, Dennis Lee, Greg Allen, and Mark Angus. Just about the right amount of people for the movie room. We watched Mommy Dearest which several had never seen. So it was a fun evening with lots of good food and good company and good hound dogs... There was so much going on today! Provo Pride Day, Utah AIDS Foundation’s walk a thon, Italian festival days at the Gateway, Pride Day in St. George, the 9th and 9th neighborhood fair, U of U football and my movie night...

·         Bill Poore Ben I don't think I can make it tomorrow night, have not been out for two days....am just not feeling that great....have a good time. I can say I was working with Fay on the play Curse of the Aching Heart when the nominations for best actress came out and she did not get nominated for Mommy Dearest, it was not a good day and she closed our show the next day....sweet lady.

 

17 September 2017 Sunday

It’s much cooler at night now and it feels like I need to throw another blanket on the bed. I use Sundays to generally catch up on my journaling so nothing really special to report. Fixed some coffee for breakfast as usual, ate a small bowl of bran flakes with strawberries for breakfast. For lunch I had a small bowl of left over spaghetti but ended up giving much of that to the pups. Cooked some chicken thighs for their supper and had later in the afternoon some Campbell chicken noodle but couldn’t finish that either. I sat in the hot tub to warm up a bit. Such an exciting life.  A couple of weeks ago I bought this cute bear fellow at Deseret Industries for a buck...I thought it must be a flower pot holder because it was sitting upright  with paws stretched out but at movie night Jim McMullin says “why do you have a toilet paper holder on the dining room table?” I started laughing. I was clueless but yep that is what it is... Jim said I should buy Charmine paper for it... Lol

 

18 September 2017 Monday

Saw on Facebook that Kent Scadlock and Dennis Lee both got Volunteers of the year from the Utah Pride Festival. Good for them. I swear I am going to wear a single pair of shorts for an entire week...I keep thinking I am losing stuff when they are just hidden in pockets of a pair of pants I had forgotten I wore...two weeks ago it was my phone and this morning it was my car keys...I needed to go to the store before Bill Poore came over and I couldn’t find my set of keys so I tore the house up looking for them and yup they were in the laundry basket... Keeping them clipped to my wallet from now on because the hounds won't help me look for them...  I went out to lunch with Bill Poore to East Seas on North Temple and 9th West... I thought we 'd come to blows with the Chinese waitress when we ordered Chinese dumplings...grant you they weren't listed on the lunch menu but there was a picture of them displayed on the outside window...she acted like she had never heard of dumplings and kept telling us something in Chinese... We finally compromised and she brought out something that was fried and was not dumplings... I had a small bowl of hot and sour soup and a bit of the Lo Mein even though we wanted Chow Mein... What we had here was a failure to communicate ... Lol... And Grumpy old men. It was all good though...and Bill picked up the check... I wrote Kyle Foote today after I received another letter from him. I guess they are sending him to the Point of the Mountain after all for a work detail. Just don’t know when. I also ordered another tree for the parking strip from the Urban Forestry folks. I paid my medical bills today $105. My labs for August 10 were billed at $1,631.00,

·         Richard P. Butler Charlie Chows was rude a while back to me. East Seas can be a bit unruly at times.

·         Ruadhan O'Sheridan If you ever get tired of your usual haunts, try the Dragon Diner on 1331 East 3900 South. I love their soups and Chow Mein. If you want good dumplings, try Red Maple Chinese Restaurant. They have lots if different kinds of dumplings on their Dim Sum menu. If you can eat shrimp, I love their Pan-fried garlic chive dumplings.

·         Like

·         T.J. Otaka I love those chive dumplings at Red Maple. A good suggestion!

·         Curtis Jensen The description next to the restaurant rating does say Vietnamese not Chinese

·         Bill Poore What, you mean Ben took me to a Vietnamese place and not Chinese.....no wonder...well she looked Chinese to me. Bill Poore No wonder she was so rude to us, we kept ordering Chinese food and it was a Vietnamese restaurant....Ben insulted her, we did not bother looking at the menu. She never really came back to our table, she sent the cleaning staff....you cant take Ben anywhere.

·         Edgar Ben Williams They have been a Chinese Restaurant for 25 years ... They only became Vietnamese to cash in on the Pho fad... Every entree is Chinese.

·         Bill Poore you have to admit it is always an adventure whenever you and I go anywhere.....We should just sit at home and drink tea and give treats to the pups

·         Dear Kyle, Hope you are well. I was surprised to get two letters from you so soon. One dated the 11th that had your 5 K certificate in it and today I got your letter from the 14th about your impending transfer to Draper. Hopefully you will get this before you move or at least they will forward it to you. Well I guess running the half marathon is on hold unless they have a running program at Draper. I will look up what is entails to visit you at the point of the mountain. Hopefully once you have permission for one place you have permission for the other place too.  Nothing new here since I last wrote you. By the time you get this letter you will know who has won Big Brother 19… hopefully the jury will be bitter and vote against Paul. So besides watching Big Brother 19 I am binge watching “The Goldbergs” before going to bed. When it first came out I didn’t care for the few episodes I saw but now I am hooked on it because of all the stuff about the 80’s LOL. The heat wave has broken here and it feels more like fall now but by the time you get this,  summer 2017 will be over.  Last week we finally got a good soaking rain here in Westpointe... We haven't had any substantial rain since May.  I guess the snow in Montana finally put out all the fire up there thank goodness for early snow. The pitter-patter of rain on the roof and deck is a sound I hadn’t heard all summer... The sound woke me up but it's a good sound. We need every drop of rain here. It’s been such a long dry hot summer. However the thunder scared Harleigh so much that I had to help him on to the bed and snuggle with him all night to calm him down...so I had surround hounds all night, Harleigh, Buddy, TJ, Maxx, and Lulu Belle... The rest slept pretty soundly, just wanting to be near me... It’s getting darker and darker again in the morning but this time next week it will be fall. My dogs have been waking me up at night with their shenanigans. Harleigh can’t come up the steps without help so I bought him a harness that has a handle on it to help him up and now Buddy thinks he has to have help. I think it’s just jealousy. TJ woke me up last week at 2 pm barking. I thought at first it was Harleigh but no it was TJ the little shit barking outside and refusing to come in when I called him... I finally rounded him up and shut the doggy door to keep him inside... Even then in bed he'd bark periodically just enough to wake me up until 3... He had done lost his damn mind... It’s a good thing I love him. My tomatoes are finally really popping now and I’m giving almost all away. I see that I have a couple of pumpkins on the vine but my cucumbers and squash produced very little this year. If I am up to it, I’d like to plant a bigger garden next year but I will have to rent a tiller. I saw a really easy and tasty peach cobbler recipe I wanted to try.  I had intended on making a fresh peach Cobbler for Movie Night for some friends but when I brought some store peaches from the Rancho Market they were all dark and juiceless when I started to cut them up. I gave up and just threw them away. I don't know what is wrong with fresh peaches sold in the stores this year but they are useless. I then bought about 3 lbs. at Food Savers and they were the same! Tasteless...so threw them out too! So no peach cobbler... Instead I made banana nut bread. For my monthly Saturday Night dinner and a movie I made Spaghetti with Italian sausage & mushroom red sauce, Tomato and romaine & iceberg lettuce salad, Garlic bread, Yellow and zucchini squash. Because I had posted about my ill fated attempt at making cobbler lots of the people brought snacks for dessert. We watched Mommy Dearest which several had never seen. So it was a fun evening with lots of good food and good company and good hound dogs... There was so much going on last Saturday -Provo Gay Pride Day, the Utah AIDS Foundation’s walk a thon, Italian festival days at the Gateway, Gay Pride Day in St. George, the 9th and 9th Neighborhood Fair, and the U of U had football. I just stayed home however and cleaned and cooked for my company. I just don’t get some of my Gay friend’s obsession with football. Ugh. You can’t plan anything because they have to go to some tailgate thing.  I was born without a sports gene I suppose... Although I once was a water boy for my Jr Varsity Football team in high school team. My junior year history teacher, Mr. Osborne, forced me to do it... It's the only "letter" I earned so technically I was a letterman in high school. LOL.. So I had to go to all the games and bring water out to the pigskin heroes... Actually they appreciated me and the extra attention I gave them... I also handed out towels in the towel cage so that was kind of a perk... I was 16 years old. The Mormon Church and Utah's Mormon legislators have signed on to the Colorado baker’s suit not to make a wedding cake for Gay people based on their perverted views of religious liberties. Replace the word Gay with any other minority and this suit can be seen for what it is...bigotry...what is really sad is that a symbol used to celebrate the love of two people is being turned into a weapon of hate by so called Christians.  There’s a bake sale across from the LDS church office business today to raise funds for the Pride Center’s youth suicide prevention programs. A lot of the bakeries are donating goods to sell. I want to go but there’s not a thing I’d be able to eat there. I wrote my Lambda Lore column last week on the day it was due... Procrastination is my middle name... So I forced myself to sit down and crank out a very lengthy column on an adventure I had 30 years ago with Bruce Barton and Bruce Harmon on the March on Washington for Gay and Lesbian Rights... It's way longer than what my column is allocated so Michael Aaron gets to cut away... I've known some really fine people in my life working for social justice.  I will print it off for you since you don’t get the Q anymore. “On September 9 this past month, we lost a giant from our community. Rev. Bruce M Barton, Pastor of the Resurrection Metropolitan Community Church for over a decade died at the age of 71 years. I could memorialize him through all his awards like being a recipient of a Dr. Kristen Ries Community Service Award in 1988 among many other accolades but I’d rather share a special time I had with him and his late husband Bruce Harmon former Emperor 15 of the Royal Court of the Golden Spike Empire.  This is taken from my journal October 10, 1987 during the March on Washington which took place 30 years ago this month.           Bruce Barton and I got dressed to attend the worship service for the Metropolitan Community Church District Conference. Many of the people who spoke were people who had trekked on foot from Philadelphia to Washington DC carrying Gay flags and banners through communities along the way in Pennsylvania and Maryland.  After the service I bought a button with the words "Gay Christian" on it from the woman who wrote "For these Tears I died". It was exciting to meet Marsha Stevens, the young woman who actually wrote it.     After connecting back up with my traveling companion, Mark Lamar, who had gone off with a bagpipe blowing friend, we all took the hotel shuttle to the Pentagon station to catch the Metro Rail into the city. Everywhere you looked there were Gay people wearing various "March on Washington" buttons.  There was a heighten sense of solidarity, brotherhood and sisterhood.  We were on a mission and while it seemed like a gigantic national Gay Pride Day event, it was much, much more than this.            On the shuttle bus, I met some guys from South Florida and we visited along the way. No one, absolutely almost no one, was having "attitude" issues. People were friendly, joyful, excited and everyone was asking each other "Where are you from?"  It was fantastic. Our Florida friends said they tried driving into DC but there is absolutely no parking anywhere so they had to come back out to Arlington and take public transit back in.          One of them also told me that a man and his wife looked at my Gay Christian button and were muttering under their breath about it. The man was mad and the wife was afraid. What makes them so mad and what do they fear from me?  Perhaps our sheer numbers here in DC is what frightens them. We are not invisible today. Gay couples are openly holding hands and everyone is showing their pride by proclaiming to the world their sexual orientation with slogans on tee shirts and buttons galore.           When we reached DC our little contingency got off at the Smithsonian.  I heard 350,000 Gays are already here in DC to tell the world we are never going back again. Everywhere you looked there were thousands and thousands of Gay people. It was impressive to this Salt Lake City man where we are lucking if we can get a couple hundred people to attend Gay Pride Day. I am sure that straight people must be feeling overwhelmed; kind of how we Gay people feel like every day of our lives.  At 2:00 p.m. there was scheduled a mass wedding of Gay couples on Constitution Avenue and Tenth in front of the IRS building. We weren't sure if we were going to go but when we saw the wave of humanity surging in that direction we  were swept up and realized how important it was to be there and witness and support it.               Along the way, on the steps of the IRS building, there was a gathering of Neo-Nazis and Born Again Christians, holding large signs and placards which proclaimed us all sinners going to straight to hell. They screamed at us saying that Jesus hated us. There Bruce Barton spotted Rev. Troy Perry, founder of the MCC fellowship, who was facing the Nazis and showing no fear to them.  Bruce Barton and I decked out with our Gay buttons scurried up the steps behind the Nazis to get a better picture snap shot of Troy Perry talking to reporters. Most of the crowd totally ignored the Nazis and continued down to Tenth Avenue where a large platform was staged with sound equipment. Over the stage was a huge arch of white, black, and silver balloons filled with helium and the loud speakers were blaring "We Are What We Are" from the musical La Cage Aux Follies.        There had to be at least 10,000 people huddled in the street, others hanging from trees and lamp posts, on the steps, and everywhere people were holding hundreds of silver balloons.  The couples getting married where in the middle of this throng, many in tuxedos,  wedding dresses, all beautiful people holding roses and were there to celebrate their love. It was exhilarating to watch. The clear blue autumn sky made the day even more spectacular as over 2000 Gay couples were there to be wed.          The speakers said that one of the purposes of this March which was to legalize our relationships and to proclaim to the world we don't have to pattern our marriages after the Patriarchal system where one partner is dominated by another in an unequal relationship sanctioned by the church and state.  We are here to proclaim that love is what makes a family.              Anyway when the time came for the ceremony to begin, the spectators were asked to hold hands and form a circle around those getting married which everyone did. The ceremony asked the couples to forgive each of the past and everyone was asked to take a deep breath and let it out symbolic and letting go. Then we were asked to take one step into the future which we all did, 10,000 people, collectively in unison. I was standing by John Bennett, Bruce Barton and Bruce Harmon while participating in the ceremony. Salt Laker Val Mansfield was one married on this occasion to his two lovers from Kansas City.    At the end of the ceremony hundreds of balloons were released into the blue sky and then unexpectedly a shower of rice was being thrown up in the air. We were showered by rice and it was thrilling. I wanted to keep some of the rice as a memento of this historic occasion but thought perhaps that was just silly but the love that poured forth from this place at Tenth and Constitution was awesome.        After the ceremony Bruce Harmon introduced me to Nancy Wilson and Jean White who are on the Board of Directors of the MCC Fellowship. Elder White came all the way from Manchester, England for the occasion and Bruce Harmon gave her his March on Washington Button, which are getting scarcer to find.       I then left but not before I told the Bruces that I'd meet up with them at 4 pm in front of the Bookstore Lambda Rising and from there we would go off to hear Rev Troy Perry speak at the First Congregational Church. That was my plan but it didn't work out that way.              I walked a mile back to the Metro and took it to DuPont Circle. It was after five before I surfaced from the subterranean transit and rode a long escalator up from the bowels of the earth to truly an enchanted fairy land. Thousands and thousands of Gay people were everywhere, holding hands with lavender flowers tucked behind ears and hunky guys sitting on the concrete benches with their shirts off.       There were slender New York Lesbians, wearing black berets, capping long stringy hair, dark glasses and black leather jackets and slacks. Else where, short and plump lesbians, in love, who wore matching tee shirts. Older dykes, with short cropped silver gray hair, were plentiful, some sweet and smiling at me in my BYU sweat shirt, while others threw baleful glances in my direction.  Of the Gay men there, almost everyone seemed to be traveling with a companion or in groups. Almost all were dressed in young preppy east coast style. Lots and lots of stone washed jeans and padded Levi jackets and flight jackets and while there were some leather men present in the throng, I really didn't see much drag if any at all.         Everyone and I mean everyone had on at least one button and most had several saying anything from "March on Washington for Gay and Lesbian Rights" to simple pink triangles on a black backgrounds. Hundreds of people were working the crowd handing out leaflets by the hundreds regarding everything from AIDS Awareness to "Join the Socialist Workers Party".             The overall feeling of the place was of love, support, commitment, pride and dedication to never going back. It reminded me very much of the hippie love-in festivals of the late sixties except that we are so much better dressed.            I managed to find Lambda Rising by the size of the crowd out front and also with the help of this cute man from Texas. He said he didn't know anything was going on in DC and was just in the city on his way to Boston. He was awe struck because he and his lover were closeted in Texas.              Anyway outside the bookstore there was a line of hundreds trying to get in and I was so late getting here that I figured that Bruce and Bruce must have left because they needed to be at the Congregational Church at 6 pm. I waited anyway, just in case they were in with the mob inside the bookstore.       DuPont Circle I hear is kind of the Castro District of Washington DC. It’s chic' and filled with rows of specialty shops up and down the streets. As I was waiting a camera crew began to film the crowd in front of Lambda Rising asking people "Where are you from?" When she stuck the microphone in my face “I shouted Salt Lake City  as enthusiastically  as I could. She perked up and motioned the camera man to point the camera at me and said could you repeat that? I smiled brightly and said "Salt Lake City" with my chest puffed up so my Brigham Young University sweat shirt was very prominent in the shot. I don't know if I made the local news but I think I probably did. That was fun.      Then riding the escalator back down to the Metro I passed my Salt Lake City comrades, Chris Brown and Steve Oldroyd, going up. I hollered, "Chris wait for me” as I raced down the escalator, bags flying and then back up. The escalator had to be at least four stories long. Connecting back up with Chris I said “If you see Bruce Barton tell him I'm fine and I will get a way back to Arlington”.    Trying to find my way back into the city I was lost on the Metro several times and was worried about catching the last free shuttle bus back to the Best Western in Arlington. I caught the Metro out to the National Airport where I waited an hour to catch the last shuttle at 9:30 p.m. There I saw a family of Asian tourists with their teenage son who was wearing a March on Washington tee shirt and sporting a huge Pink Triangle button. I had to laugh because I am sure they didn't know what it said but only that it was a colorful souvenir of their visit to Washington. Fortunately at Pentagon City I reconnected with Bruce Harmon and Bruce Barton and they were happy and surprised to see me. They said Rev. Perry was in fiery form and his talk was absolutely wonderful. I am sorry I missed it. I haven't heard Rev. Troy Perry preached since November 1971 when I went to the MCC in Los Angeles with some Gay friends back then.    It was fine to be back at the hotel safe and sound. I really kind of wanted to stay in and rest up for tomorrow main March but Bruce Harmon suggested we go back into Washington for dinner. So we called a taxi and while waiting in the lobby I overheard the desk clerk tell this heterosexual couple that there wasn’t a vacancy. She said in fact there wasn't a vacancy in the Greater Washington area. She suggested that they try further south. What an impact we must be making on this city. I am glad I have been writing Gay $ on all the money I spend.  We all piled into a taxi and we went to this place called the General Male which was exotic to this Salt Lake Gay. We were looking for souvenirs to take back to Utah. From there we went to a McDonalds and realized we were in the hooker district of D.C. Pimps and prostitutes  were everywhere, eating their Big Macs and slurping up their Coca Colas. I just thought how exciting  this all is with neon signs flashing “Live Girls” outside.         At McDonalds we were about the only whites there and definitely were the only "colorful" people. It was a tough audience to play. Two black pimps stared at us like we were disgusting because we weren't interested in buying their female merchandise. As we were eating four young menacing white guys came in and started watching us. So we left and while standing on a darken corner waiting for the light to change, this one dude leans right into us and says "Can you tell us where we can see some naked girls?"        Bruce Barton said “use your imagination” and I piped up cheerfully and said “Yeah, down the street there’s a theater with live girls!" I was just trying to be friendly. Bruce Harmon looks at me like have I had lost my damn mind and when they walked ahead of us and turned down an ally, Bruce Barton said to me "Don't you know they were queer baiting us?"  I really didn't. I just thought they were horny straight guys. “ Well I will close for now and be watching for news from VINE As I ever was or ever will be Your Friend Ben

 

19 September 2017 Tuesday

Cool rainy morning. It feels refreshing but then I don't need to be out in it. Autumn is truly here now. Summer's heat is now a memory. I fixed two small pancakes for breakfast and some coffee. Glad to have the pups here to help me finish them. Then for rude, a tiny spider dropped down, on a single thread, right into my coffee while I was at my computer desk this morning... Put me right off my coffee so went back to bed with the sleepy pups this wet morning. I just watched some TV until it cleared up and I felt like I needed to do something active so I Spent two hours working this afternoon weed whacking and pruning my Russian Sage back and other things in the front yard that got away from me over the hot summer...I even transplanted the cactus I brought back from my Grandpa Johnson's farm 20 years ago... Today is his birthday. He was born in 1901 in Commerce, Texas. I wore my coveralls and a good thing because the weed whacker attacked me again but unlike last time when I wore shorts it just scraped me up good... Weed whackers and I are not compatible... I fixed the dogs giblets and I had half of a Michelina’s frozen spaghetti dinner with some garlic bread for dinner. Then watched TV for the rest of the evening. I watched Apocalypse Now Redux on Hulu because PBS is showing a Ken Burn’s series on the Viet Nam War and Apocalypse Now is the quintessential Viet Nam movie. The Horror. Mexico City was jolted with a 7.1 earthquake. We had a 3.3-magnitude earthquake with its epicenter in the mountains surrounding Lamb's Canyon. .Big Ed a hang out joint across from the U of U closed abruptly.  It had been an institution there since 1968. “I have left messages on their phones and I’ve had no response,” Peterson said. “I got a call from a waitress Thursday and they said the door was locked.

 

20 September 2017 Wednesday

Who needs an alarm clock when you have rowdy dogs? No sleeping in for me. Maxx, Coco, TJ, and Lulu Belle are just tearing up the bed. Last day of summer and it is cold this morning 42 degrees. Last week it was over 90 degrees and 75 at night. This morning it was 42 degrees. The high mountains even got snow from what I hear. I fixed two biscuits, a scrambled egg, a small slice of ham with coffee for breakfast. The dogs ate one of my biscuits, half my ham and scrambled egg. This cooler weather got me wanting crock pot food so made some beef stew and a pot of pinto beans... By Friday suppose to be in the 60's. It’s becoming soup weather. Trying something new...grounded up the chicken thighs with added rice to the mixture... The pups have been turning their noses up at just roasted chicken thighs... Buddy is the only one who eats whatever I put in front of him... I am setting it out for 15 minutes and then putting it up... If they don't eat they don't each...tough love. I am attempting now to write an objective biography of my father which is nearly impossible...so much easier writing about great grandparents, on back, that I never knew. Hundreds of people have been killed in the Mexican earthquake. So sad that a school collapsed killing so many children. The GOP Bastards in the Senate, Lindsey Graham and Bill Cassidy, two despicable Southerners, introduced a new bill to repeal the ACA. They want it passed by September 30^th when the deadline to pass any bill by a simple majority ends.  I watched the season finale of Big Brother 19 tonight and surprise, surprise, a bitter house jury did not give the half million dollars to Paul again.

·         Joel Jay Vallar BB... love the back dooring. Have seen few of the HOH competitions.

·         Todd Markham Addy is sooooo addicted to BB so it is a regular at our place!

·         Laurie Epperson I watched it. Loved it glad Paul did not win.

·         Edgar Ben Williams Me too! Absolutely... The best part of the season...why he thought he could manipulate and gloat ant have it not come back to bite him... BB a guilty pleasure lol

·         Laurie Epperson Yep he lost two times. He was very manipulative and controlled everything that went on in that house the minute he entered in it anybody's HOH wasn't their own he hijacked everything. And some would say that that was good gameplay, but I think ultimately Josh who hitched his wagon to them played for real. He didn't hide anything he was truthful to their face where Paul lied to everybody.

·         Tom Folks I have watched that show every year since season one. It's my favorite show to watch.

·         James Connelley Sometimes I watch the foreign versions on Pornhub. Does that count?

 

21 September 2017 Thursday

Merry Mabon everyone, the Second Harvest. The Autumnal Equinox begins the darkening of our days. Gather your Sunflowers, Bake Bread, make Apple dishes, clean out your gardens. Its raining hard and good here in Westpointe this morning. I am either going to have to turn on the heat or put more clothes on... It's turning chilly in the house. Summer heat is a memory now... Break out the sweaters and sweat shirts... This cooler weather is having the roses bloom again. I have 2 rose bushes that are 21 years old that I planted when I landscaped this place when I first moved in here in October 1996.  After Daisy, Lucky, and Farley died last year I planted a rose bush for each of them... Then realized I needed to plant a rose bush for Oscar, Saffy, Priscilla, and Smokey who all called Fernleaf home. I also have a rose bush for Billy the Kat who also lived here before he died at 18 years... It's happening. It’s the end of the world as we know it. Officials at Brigham Young University have announced that caffeinated soft drinks will be available for sale on the campus in Provo.  Well the rapture is tomorrow according to Neo-Christianuts so the poor Mormon kids should at least get a taste of real Coke.  I ordered a new collar for Harleigh as the one I bought him is just too big. I will put it in Buddy. I also ordered the movie The Women for movie night. I will probably show it in November.  Jim Dabakis asked me to go with him to the theater this Saturday.

 

22 September 2017 Friday

Well, well, well.. A new ache and pain...this damp cold weather has made my bursitis flare up in my right arm... It is so sore if I try to lift my arm up ... I can't use any pain medication but Tylenol but can't find any in the house... Oh well old people problems... Pity the poor people of Mexico recovering from an earthquake and Puerto Rico and the other Caribbean Islands from hurricanes.  Hurricane Maria slammed into Puerto Rico knocking out their entire electrical grid. 3 Million Americans without electricity or running water. And what is Trump’s response?  Nothing.  This afternoon I went to my Credit Union in Bountiful and had a cashier check made out for my sister Donna for $5,000. A cashier check is better than a money order especially if you only want a specific person to receive it like her asshole husband.  I won’t mail it off until Donna lets me know where to send it, to her home in Yucaipa or her work. When I came home I found what looked like a crime scene. Sometimes I forget that my dogs are dogs until I come home to finding they had trapped a poor dove in the house. I came home just in time to rescue the poor thing and placed him outside where the dogs could not reach him...I know it was not Harleigh or Buddy who were outside barking...Maxx, TJ, and Lulu Belle are the guilty ones.. There was feathers from one end of the front room to underneath the dinning room table. The little bird was in shock but still alive so I wanted him safe from anymore mauling. Then as I was cleaning up the mess I found another dove beneath the arm chair in the bay window hiding. He was still alive and in much better shape just missing some tail feathers. I picked him up and placed him outside with the other dove.  Eventually the most damaged dove died but the one beneath the chair was gone and must have gotten its strength back enough to fly away.  I felt bad for the little birds and upset with my pups but they aren’t to blame ... their instincts are to chase and capture.  But a sad day at Fernleaf.

 

23 September 2917 Saturday

It's damp and cold here in Westpointe but I am going out with Jim Dabakis tonight to see The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time at Pioneer Memorial Theater at the U of U... So I have been lazy all day just writing up stories of exploits of my mom and dad during WWII... My bursitis is still giving me fits when I raise my right arm...oh well at least I have an arm to be sore... Dogs have all been feed, macaroni, rice, ground chicken and beef. Buddy is the only one who will eat Kibbles... It feels so much a fall day today... Yesterday I put my jack-o-lanterns up over the outside lights... Bring it on Halloween. I ate some of my stew for lunch and beans and chili verde for dinner but I wasn’t very hungry at all.  I drove over to B street in the Avenues to pick up Jim who had the tickets and it was drizzling when we got to the U and raining when the show was over at 10:30. The play was 2 hours long about an autistic boy and while the acting was superb a lot of it was uncomfortable for me to watch as a former teacher who had autistic kids in the classroom...the cast was tremendous especially Harrison Bryan who played the main role. Sarah Shippobotham, a colleague of Bill Poore was in it as well as was the dialect coach as the scene takes place in England... Talking to Jim found out that his home in Mexico received a lot of damage with a chimney collapse and a stone arch had fallen. He down played it after all the damage Mexico City had received. I always thought his home was in Northern Mexico but I guess its about 30 miles south of Mexico City.  Jim has caretakers living in the property year round and six dogs, 4 dachshunds and 2 Chihuahuas.  It was very dark with lights glaring off the wet pavement driving home. I was almost there when turning on to Redwood Road at 10^th North about 100 feet a head the road was closed off in both directions just north of 10th North so had to back track to about 8^th North and drove through side streets to get home...It must have been a nasty accident to have closed down Redwood with fire trucks and police cars with their lights flashing in the darken rain. I haven’t seen any news about what happened. Well the Rapture is going to be fabulous because no Republican or Radical Fundamentalist will be there... If I am not here tomorrow lock up the house and eat up my food... All my dogs and I are all going together or we ain't going...

 

24 September 2017 Sunday

Well I survived another rapture predicted by the Neo-Christianuts. Woke up still not raptured and earth still spinning on its merry way around the sun... Hmmm could there be a lot of false prophets in right wing Christianuts? But my stomach is upset this morning when ever I put anything in it. So just having a cup of coffee. I tried some hot oatmeal but that was a no go. It rained most of the night and everything is damp and gloomy. I shut off the sprinklers before going to bed last night. We have had a lot of rain in the past few days; A good soaking rain. Up in the mountains there’s a winter storm warning coldest weather in 5 months.   Rich Butler said he heard on the news that a person had been killed crossing the street on Redwood last night. It's been raining steady all day here in Westpointe and the pups are cuddled up with me as we marathon watch the Goldbergs on Hulu after catching up with Ken Burns Vietnam up to the Tet Offensive... What else to do but to be chillaxin on a gloomy rainy day...they are so rare here in Utah the 2nd driest state in the Union. TJ under the covers, Maxx, and Lulu Belle by my feet... So grateful to have a warm home when so many are suffering in the world...  Not that I care a thing about football but the NFL is condemning Trumps speech in Alabama calling players who protest during the National Anthem “Sons of Bitches” while he called the Nazis in Charlotteville “fine people.”  North Korea is threatening to strike the United States for Trump’s insults calling their derange leader “Rocket Man” while Un called Trump “Dotard”… It’s like we are in a Dr. Strangelove movie.  Chuck Whyte-After spending over eight hours in the SL Regional ER , I was informed by the doctor that I have/had ecstasy in my system , the only place this could of happened is at Closet Ball at Club Jam .........i am not blaming The RCGSE pageant committee or Club Jam ........if the person who did it is reading this I simply want to tell them ........do not ever do it again , you are the scum of the earth.

 

25 September 2017 Monday

I fixed coffee and a single biscuit for breakfast and had some pinto beans and corn bread for lunch.  I had tomato slices, mac and cheese, and garlic toast for dinner. So I am done.  The rain has stopped and the sun came out so it was a pretty day even if I didn’t do much.  I only went out to mail Donna’s letter with the $5000 cashier check in it after talking to her last night to get the address she wanted it sent to.  I sent it to her work because she said sending to her house address in Yucaipa would just agitate her asshole husband.  Accounting Department C/O Donna Jones Hartwell Corp. 900 South Richfield Road, Placentia, CA 92870.  I also went to DI and bought a couple of shirts and sweaters since what I have is too big for me. After getting some gas for the car came home and didn’t go out again until taking Coco home. Michael said he watched Newsies on Netflix and I knew the musical was coming to the Pioneer Memorial Theater so when I was done eating dinner I bought tickets for December 2 Matinee for $136. I suppose it will be his Christmas gift. If he can’t go I am sure someone will be glad to go.  We will be sitting in Aisle E on the end.  The latest crap from trump is his attacking NFL players for not standing for the National Anthem. So let me get this straight. Trump holds a rally in the heart of the old Confederacy, calls the mothers of black football players "bitches", the white folks cheer, and he has the gall to say not standing for the National Anthem is disrespectful? Has America gone insane? I dream of an America where people cared as much for universal health care as they do about football. North Korea's foreign minister said today that U.S. President Donald Trump had declared war on North Korea and that Pyongyang reserves the right to take countermeasures, including shooting down U.S. strategic bombers even if they are not in the country's air space. "The whole world should clearly remember it was the U.S. who first declared war on our country," Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho told reporters in New York. I hope Trump supporters are delighted.

 

26 September 2017 Tuesday

Watch two episodes of Ken Burns Vietnam, the Tet Offensive and Nixon's election...I started keeping a small journal in 1968 when I was a junior in high school. In it I mostly recorded little events about how much I hated school, and family life living at home in Garden Grove. However in it I wrote about the Tet offensive, my sister's friends in the navy, LBJ's speech about not running for president, both Martin Luther King and Bobby Kennedy being assassinated, the Chicago Convention police riots...I was against the War in Vietnam and for Eugene McCarthy the peace candidate and hated Richard Nixon...1968 was the year I became politicized even if I would not be able to vote until 1970 when the Constitution was changed to allow 18 year olds to vote. My diary from 1968 is almost 50 years old and a time capsule for me being a 16 and 17 year old school boy... From the are doodling pictures on inside covers... Who could have guess that I was a little bit queer? LOL I was hanging on to every bit of my Southern heritage to explain why I was so different from other Southern California kids... I thought I was Scarlett O'Hara by temperament lol... I have since done penitence and yes I was a bit of a religious fanatic trying to be the best little boy in the world. I always hated Nixon but learned tonight that Nixon committed treason by conspiring with the South Vietnamese government to win the election...he lied bold face to LBJ even though the CIA had him on tape and LBJ knew he was lying... Sounds like trump and the Russians today some 50 years later. My parents never had to worry about me being shot driving by the police because I was white... I never worried when pulled over by the police about anything but getting a ticket. My parents never had to have the "talk" about being white in America. I never suffered any persecution or bigotry until I came out as a Gay man... And even then I was assumed by many to be a white heterosexual male... Until I opened my mouth...When I was in college I marched, protested, and attended rallies to protest America's involvement in Vietnam... I know how it feels to be called un American and unpatriotic for standing up for my convictions... I also know I was protected from consequences by being deferred from the draft which the poor and poorly educated were not...Most of the protestors of kneeling at NFL games have no problem with waving the Confederate Flag...trump knows this... That is why he chose to say his divisive words in Alabama the heart of the Old Confederacy to the descendants of slave masters. The GOP finally gave up on trying to repeal Obamacare this time around because they just didn’t have the votes but it doesn’t mean that trump won’t try to use all means to sabotage it. Trump called NFL players protesting police brutality “Sons of Bitches and thinks they should be fired. To me anyone who wants to stifle free speech or expression is the one who is unpatriotic and does not respect the Constitution for which the flag represents...other wise it's a pretty piece of cloth. For 5 days trump has been tweeting criticism of NFL players. Health care repeal, Russian collusion, escalating tensions in Korea, three national disasters in Texas, Florida, and Puerto Rico, and trump tweeting about football! America is descending into madness.... How long can we hold the center until it all falls apart? This fuss over the National Anthem is just another attempt of the far right to divide us. We didn't even have a national anthem until Congress in 1931 chose Star Spangle Banner which is nearly impossible to sing over the more popular America the Beautiful and Columbia Gem of the Ocean which school children all sang during the 19th Century. The U.S. Flag Code, passed in 1942, during WWII states that all civilians present during the playing of the anthem while the U.S. flag is displayed “should stand at attention facing the flag with the right hand over the heart. “If the anthem is played without the flag displayed, those present “should face toward the music and act in the same manner they would if the flag were displayed there. “This is federal law but how many beer guzzling sports fans do it or care unless a black sports figure doesn't do it...And why the hell is the national anthem even played at a sporting event? To me that's a mockery in the first place. "The real measure of patriotism is not how you treat a flag but how you treat your countrymen." -Sandra Kendzior. Richard P. Butler It was something they did at baseball games during WWII to show patriotism. They only did it for a short time. Then sound systems came along and made it cheap to play at ball games. It seems the main reason now is to calm the audience for a few minutes before the game starts. That's why they play it at all different types of games. It shuts people up. LOL

·         Bob Waldrop I always have  nearly irresistible urge to shout "play ball " at the end of the bat anthem whatever the venue lol

·         Don Penrose Quite a treasure there, Ben!

·         Roland Ron Holmgren Have you kept journals consecutive since then. If so when are we going to read "The Life and Times of Ben Williams."

·         Edgar Ben Williams I didn't keep a journal for 1969 and 1970 but have since 1971 though some are more complete than others... I posted my annotated journal for 1986 as Memoirs of a Gay Activist on line. Most of what I wrote should only be published after I am dead lol

·         Richard Harmston Reading these words from the past must seem like seeing another person before you who is oddly very much like you. Sort of an out of the body experience.

·         Edgar Ben Williams Very much so...but it's a great measure on how I evolved into me...

·         Richard P. Butler The earliest blog I've seen so far

 

27 September 2017 Wednesday

Everyone was sound asleep when Coco came over at 7:00 ...must be that it's so dark out now...but Harleigh soon roused me out of bed for barking for breakfast...they want their bologna slices and cheese squares. Coco only likes cheese so I cut two slices of cheese into bite size for her and TJ...so I have to hand feed them so they all get an equal share...by then I am wide awake...lol that's my morning routine ... Now I am ready for coffee...there's a lavender cast to the dawn...for my friends who don't live in Utah we don't see the sun for about an hour as it has to get up over our mountains... I Went up to Salt Lake Regional Hospital, the old Holy Cross, around noon to see Chuck Whyte. He had an operation to cut away an infected bone in his foot. We visited for an hour and left when he was ordering lunch. The last time I was in Holy Cross was in 1991 to see David Sharpton on his birthday... He would later die of AIDS in Texas... Chuck said the first time he visited Holy Cross was in 1982... I told him I beat him because I came to the hospital in July 1974 when John Waggoner my Gay roommate at BYU became really sick...I drove him up from Provo in my Pinto and while being wheeled in he asked what hospital it was...when the nurse said Holy Cross he exclaimed with a smile Holy Cow! I will always remember him saying that. He was so gorgeous and we were so young. When I came home worked in my Rose garden this afternoon digging up the chives that have spread through out...one chive at a time... My wildflower garden has come back to life with all the rain and cool weather... Mowed the front yard then put my jack-o-lanterns up over the porch and garage lights. That's enough for one day. My parent's old house in Garden Grove was sold in May for $525,000. It’s on the market again for $565,000. Mom and Dad had it built in1954 and lived in it until they sold out in 1989 35 years later. It’s the home I grew up in and attended all the neighborhood schools. They bought it for $8,000 and made $125 a month payments LOL. My dad built the pink cinderblock fence that surrounds the back yard and it still looks good after 63 years. The last picture I saw of the house the yard was completely dead from the drought. I guess the drought is over. I was once a Southern California boy living the dream in the 1960's, Huntington Beach, Knotts Berry Farm, Disneyland, strawberry fields forever.  Hugh Hefner the founder of Playboy died today.

 

28 September 2017 Thursday

Billy Bikowski turned 56 today. Happy Birthday wherever you are. I asked Bill Poore if he wanted to go for a drive today to see the changing leaves which he did so I et him in the Smith’s parking lot. I have him a jar of homemade split pea soup too. We drove up  Emigration Canyon and from there we headed into East Canyon which was so beautiful. We also saw a moose cow crossing the road in front of us. Coming down East Canyon into East Henefer we got stuck in the middle of a cattle that were being taken down from higher pastures to lower. There must have been 300 head of steer, cows, and calves so we slowly drove through them as the cowboy had said to pass. We had the cattle trotting right by us as I was going 10 miles an hour... it was exciting and amazing... rawhide! When we came out in Henefer we drove to Morgan where we ate at the Chicken Inn a country cafe housed in Morgan’s old Opera House... I had a cup of bean and ham soup and a chicken sandwich which as delicious but took half home...Bill ordered what I had except he got a pile of fries and ordered a full chicken dinner to take home! A whole chicken, baked potato, roll, and a salad enough food for days plus the split pea soup i gave him... so we had quite the outing. At home Harvested Two pumpkins out of my Halloween pumpkin patch ... There's at least three more not quite ready

·         Denise Wachs At one of the airfields I used to work at, there was probably a couple dozen head that used to hang out by the access road in the spring. We used to have stare downs.... me on my motorcycle and them with the horns...

·         Jon Michael Larry's Spring Chicken Inn is FABULOUS!!! Best clucking fried chicken EVER!!

·         Bill Poore So when we pull up to the Chicken Inn it is surrounded by big pickup trucks, I look at Ben and ask him not to act to gay, he says to me do I look gay? He is wearing a little blue baseball cap, a Hawaiian and blue shorts. I think holy shit we are dead.

·         Robert Whyte So, I was sitting here reading about your drive and stopping for food and thinking, "Yes, that was... quiet an outing." Then I thought, "Fuck I'm old."

 

29 September 2017 Friday Michaelmas

Well it's Conference Weekend when hoards of Utah Valley Mormons invade Salt Lake City... During Conference Weekend the Gay Bars use to be packed... I wonder if that still holds true.  You know you are in Utah when you can watch Conference in the lobby of a car dealership. LOL

 

30 September 2017 Saturday

Saturday morning and when the Saints meet the heavens weep...it's a gloomy misty morning and TJ and Lulu Belle are fussing over who has the better chewy... Today the more I clean the messier the house gets... But it's good to go through stuff and see what you have and what you can toss. I want to get rid of some furniture but no way can I move it by myself... Oh well. My split pea soup with ham tasted good today while watching the boob tube between bursts of energy to clean. RIP Monty Hall of Let’s Make a Deal died at the age of 96