Category Archives: Activism

Landing a Joke Well

It could happen! Once in a while, I can proudly land a perfect one. I row with the Solano Rowing Club on a whaleboat most weekends. Maybe you had to be there, but while we were putting the boat away for storage today our coxswain Alison said, “next time we’ll work on ab holds”

I retorted, “What did you call me!?”

Coxswain Alison with Becky & Karen as strokes. We often see sea lions swimming by!

An original quote from yours truly is that “laughter is the best revenge against death,” by which I mean we can laugh and that alone makes life worth living. On another macabre note, I always wished I could sleep less when one thinks that a 75-year-old person has slept away 25 years of his or her life. I’ll never forget the chill I get when I heard the antagonist in 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea claim “sleep is just a slice of death.”


Now for a segue.

We recently lost the goddess of candy pants, Judy Tenuta, to fucking ovarian cancer at the age of 73 (the same age my mother was when she died of fucking ovarian cancer in 2016). I saw Judy live in New York City years ago to my glee. Riding the subway home I had to hold on to my companion because I thought I’d fall on the subway tracks I was such jelly from recalling her jokes. I’ve always gravitated toward funny women, which partly explains my Streisand fandom, but Judy’s wit will be so uniquely missed. I went out and ordered her books and whatever else I could find on her but I always searched for her online to see what she was up to. I recently read her first book on the plane to Hawaii and quickly started using her quips with my husband on vacation. I still believe Judy was very underrated.

Fortunately, Judy was sometimes on the Stephanie Miller Show to talk about not just politics in her special way, but also her attempt to KICK CANCER’S ASS. I do listen to Stephanie Miller every morning on FreeSpeechTV and encourage everyone to join in. Stephanie spoke at Judy’s celebration of life recently. Through the last several years of SCOTUS packing and general mayhem in American federal politics, comedy like Stephanie’s and Judy’s has kept me sane.

“Is anybody hearing this? I feel like I’m taking CRAZY pills!” — Will Farrell

Kawai Field Trip from Kauai Humane Society

The first time Shando and I were in Kauai in 2018 we promised ourselves that we would participate in this when we returned since that trip was full of activities and we didn’t have the time.

This shelter has amazing grounds and a great program to allow tourists on Kauai to take a shelter animal on a field trip. Kawai was a wonderful older female who we enjoyed bringing to an arboretum up a mountain and then to a dog-friendly beach.

GVRD Pup-kin Patch Dog Festival

I tabled for the Humane Society of the North Bay again at the Greater Vallejo Recreational District‘s first Pup-kin Patch Dog Festival. Shando came later with our most ambulatory dogs and he caught the eye of a photojournalist.

This photo of Shando and the dogs appeared in the Vallejo Times Herald the next day!

This picture was Shando’s debut in the local newspaper (with Montague, Capulet, Peaches and Polar)!

Activism on National Coming Out Day

As a result of my tabling for LGBTQ Minus Tobacco at the Fiestas Patrias event in Vallejo recently, the organization was asked by James Hogan Middle-High School to table in their quad for National Coming Out Day (October 11). Interestingly I attended James LOGAN High School in Union City.

As a proud Vallejo citizen, I was glad to meet the principal and other staff members who appreciated the information and hand-outs we had for the students who we were glad to see swarm our table when we were there.

We seemed to be well-received, not only by staff, but many of the kids, even if a few of them may have been surprised that we were a queer-focused organization. Staff member Judith Lerner had the kids sign this beautiful banner at the table next to us: