Then I realized that I had no idea when I started thinking of myself as a New Yorker and started to think of this place a bit as home. Probably sometime after I moved into my current place in Harlem. But the subways no longer intimidate me, I’m mispronouncing fewer place names, I feel relatively comfortable giving tourists directions… yesterday I was told that I’m losing my Nevada/Utah accent.

Anyway, I wouldn’t go so far as to claim I’m a “true New Yorker” yet – I think one has to spend a little more time outside Manhattan than I have – but I’m certainly starting to settle in.

The upper west side skyline near Fordham Law School during the spring.

So, I’ve got one week left at Lambda. I’ve really enjoyed working there this summer and hope I get to work with them again in the future. I’m definitely planning to stay in touch with the staff I’ve worked with.

I got offered a fall semester internship working with the EEOC in Newark. I accepted the position and look forward to figuring out how to make all the pieces of my fall semester schedule work together. That’s four classes, a journal, a competition team, an internship, a board position for a networking group, and a handful of volunteer commitments. I’m already looking forward to the winter holiday. I’d been talking about putting some volunteer time in on one of the political campaigns this season (you may have heard that my congressman has been in the news this week, guy by the name of Charlie Rangel), but I think that’s not going to happen now.

Yesterday’s pool party and the house of Puntabulous was a lot of fun. I got to meet some people in the flesh for the first time, catch up with other friends, and generally spend a relaxing day out on Long Island. I took exactly 0 pictures because everyone else had their cameras going all the time, so I imagine the documentation will arrive soon.

Today I’m on my way back to school for training in how the Journal will function this year.

I feel like I’ve been on a bit of an emotional roller coaster this week. Had some very fun nights out with friends, had some very down moments of stress and frustration. Wednesday is my last final of the semester (Torts) and then we dive into the unified writing competition for journal & law review participation. Then I start my summer internship. Instead of getting a break at the end of the semester, I’m getting a month of long weekends punctuated with high-stress events.

Anyway, tomorrow I’ll be walking in the New York AIDS Walk. Thanks to Chris D and VUBOQ for making donations. If you want to donate, there’s still time, just click on over to my fundraising page.

(Aside to spell-check software writers: fundraise, fundraising, and fundraiser are all correct. They do not need to be two separate words. They do not need a hyphen. While both forms are acceptable, it is also correct to write them as single, unhyphenated words. See Chicago Manual of Style, AP Stylebook, most dictionaries, etc.)

Anyway, with the end of the semester very soon, I’ll try and be a better blogger again soon.

p.s. if you’re wondering what happened to the daily mugshot thing, I moved it to the “about me” page because I was annoyed at how often it was slowing down the loading of the page with its relatively frequent down time.

I thought this video that is going around the internet today was really cute (even though I’m still not a fan of Taylor Swift):

1.

Test driving my new Motorola Droid today. Technically, this photo was taken on the 11th, but I’m sure you’ll forgive me.

2.

Today is an interview day, so I got to put on my pretty suit.

3.

Slicing green and red peppers for my morning omelet. Also included, 2 egg whites, 3 green olives, 1/4 cup cheese. 156 calories.

4.

While cooking, I try to get some Civil Procedure reading done.

5.

Suit… check. Backpack with 3 binders, 2 textbooks, laptop and assorted study essentials… check. Still reading… check. I think I’m ready to get going.

6.

I didn’t get any pictures in class (the professors don’t tend to pose and smile), so here I am at New York Penn Station heading to my summer job interview.

7.

Here’s the Newark building where my interview took place. I feel that it went well, although I always hate when they want me to ask them questions. I wouldn’t have applied if I wasn’t interested enough to do advance research on your organization. Anyway… should know something by the end of the month.

8.

At this point, it was well into the afternoon and the last thing I’d had to eat was that omelet, so I stopped at McDonald’s and had two Filet-O-Fish sandwiches (840 calories).

9.

Now I’m at Newark Penn Station getting ready to head home to Manhattan.

10.

According to the Big Brother-y google maps with GPS tracker app on my new phone, I made it back to Hackensack (River). No one was there for me (feat. sad lonely Valentine’s Day for Jere #6,238).

11.

At the gym working off the McDonald’s “food.” If you enlarge, you can see the last two dry spots on my sleeves representing the color of this shirt when not dripping in sweat after a 4 mile run.

12.

After doing laundry, buying groceries, making a fake chicken ceasar salad for dinner (650 calories), and grabbing my mail… I’ve still got to clean off my bed before I can think about sleep.

13.

Because #1 was a cheat. Look, I’m actually wearing my Giftmas pajamas! Bedtime.

And a special bonus, another nephew born today (from the branch of the family I no longer have a relationship with). Since they went ahead and gave the kid the same middle name as me (also my recently deceased Grandpa’s name), I feel even less obligated to keep using it. His first name is Paul and I’m told he’s healthy.

Last week’s interviews for summer positions went well, I think. No offers, yet, but most of them said they may take as long as March 1 to make decisions. I still have a few more resumes out there and another interview tomorrow. I’m a little all-over-the-place right now with potential offers coming from California, Las Vegas, Newark, Trenton and in New York City. I’m hoping an offer comes soon so I can start making a specific summer plan if I have to move and/or find an apartment.

Fordham Follies is going to be so much fun. We had 4(ish) hour dance rehearsals both Saturday and Sunday of last week. Again, almost 10 years since I last had to learn choreographed dance routines well enough to sing and dance in unison with other people. If you want an idea, here are some clips from three years ago. And a few more from 2008.

I’ve been able to spend time with a lot of familiar faces lately. One of my cousins was in town recently and I got to meet his wife and their newborn baby. Jesse was in town for a weekend. I’ve hung out (read: got drunk with) a friend from undergrad twice. And then there was a crazy party with some of my classmates last weekend. The point is that I definitely seem to have more time for socializing this semester than I did this time last term. Also, I may be drinking too much.

News from home sounds somewhat encouraging. Dad is doing okay and seems to be taking his doctor’s orders seriously. Jeanne comes home really soon, too. Dad’s emergency took something of an emotional toll on my siblings, so they could use some cheering up.

I’ve been eligible for an upgrade on my cell phone plan since the beginning of the year and I’ve been stalling because I was hoping the iPhone/AT&T thing would come to an end. I finally decided to stop waiting this week and go with my second choice phone, a DROID. According to FedEx shipping it arrived in our mail room yesterday, but whoever signed for it also decided not to open the package room to students because of the snow. Lame city. I can’t wait to pick it up today and start playing video games and tweeting in class learning what the smart phone/application craze is all about. My last phone was a big step up for me simply because it had basic web capability and a keyboard. Also, maybe I can be the second entry at Guys with Droids! But I’d have to appear after that guy—> (woof!) I hear that they will be releasing a Grindr app for the android platform this year, so hello random sexy time!

My gym routine is starting to pay off again. I won’t lie, I really fell behind in the latter part of last semester and over the break to the point where I almost destroyed all the work I did last year. But the weight is starting to come off again. Largely because I’m counting calories again. It wasn’t so much the lack of exercise giving me problems, it was the stress eating.

Finally, can I just say how glad I am that the New York Senate booted Hiram Monserrate from his position? I don’t think I’m exaggerating to say the New York Senate is among the most corrupt, dysfunctional and out-of-control legislative bodies in the country (and I lived in Utah). While there is still a lot of housecleaning to do in Albany, this is a good step forward, even if he wins his Constitutional challenge. I don’t know how you recover, politically, from a) beating and assaulting your girlfriend, b) pissing off the gays in New York, and c) being kicked out of the New York Senate. That last one is a bit like being getting tossed out of the insane asylum because the inmates think you’re too crazy.

So here’s what I’ve been up to in the last week or so:

Me, VUBOQ and Yuval on Halloween. Photo by goblinbox
• Had an awesome time at Halloween, first hanging out with VUBOQ and goblinbox and Yuval. We tried to go to the Halloween parade, but it started raining and I try to save my melting trick for the end of the evening, so instead we got some Mexican food. We did catch the tail end of the parade, then we wandered around Chelsea/the Village for a while, taking in the crowds.

Me and Josh on Halloween.
• After it got late-ish and our merry little gang parted ways, it became possible for me to identify the whereabouts of Josh. I found him holding court in the back of a straight bar in the village. Eventually, David finished scrubbing the Brigadoon off his bum and met up with us despite having a matinee performance to get to the next day. I got a bit too intoxicated and when we ended up at a super-douchey straight bar where I waited 15 minutes for a drink while every skanky slut in ho-town with boobs and a vajayjay was served promptly, I decided it was time to call it a night. I guess I looked like a mean drunk because David thought I was yelling at Josh, but I was just tired and ready to go home. And by “go home” I mean getting confused by the Subway for 20 minutes before walking from Christopher Street to my dorm on 60th street (it’s about 3 miles) at 3-4am. In a jumpsuit and melted zombie makeup. Yay, Halloween!
• Like most of the LGBT activists I know, I was disappointed with results of the Maine election. Lots of positive polling around things like high-density cities, young voters, et cetera, but it sucks in the meantime. The fight goes on.
• I got my first law school grade last Monday. I knew there was going to be a killer grade curve in law school, but I want to do better. Luckily, this grade only accounts for 15% of a 2 credit writing course. Still, I think its the first ever not-an-A+ from a writing class in my life.

I hate this picture of me, but the rest of the boys look hot. Me, Enrico, David, Josh.
• I got to hang out with Josh again when he and Enrico came into the city midweek. They were staying at David’s place because they had things to do in Nueva the following morning (that’s the story, anyway). We ate, we shopped at Old Navy, Joshrico insulted my taste in music as often as possible and sneered at me like I was dumb when I stopped to look at CDs from artists whose names I knew in Best Buy. I saved Joshrico from certain death and/or buttsecks when a pervy guy on the street started asking them to do some conceptual art and they were being akwardly polite to him then pervy guy asked me what I do and I said, “I’m a lawyer*” and pervy guy got apologetic and ran away. (* I am not a lawyer and I may not represent myself as one for some time, if ever, but I think I was working for the greater good in that moment) They tried to get me to come to David’s place in Brooklyn with them, but I decided it would be time better spent studying for classes. I’m quite certain I was wrong.
• Mom had another knee surgery this week. Like the bad son overwhelmed law student that I am, I forgot this was happening until I got a text from Jasmine letting me know it was over and she was fine. Someone in our family is always in the hospital around November, so I’m hoping this satisfies the curse.
• I had a long overdue personal revelation yesterday about what it sounds like when I argue with people who are trying to compliment me. That’s all.
• Beyond all that, law school is kicking my ass. My professors are speeding up the pace to try and cover what’s left of their syllabus before December 1, the much more difficult long memo assignment in legal writing is due in about 10 days, the Career Planning Center is trying to get us up to speed before the job hunt season begins on December 1, and everyone is starting to become acutely aware of how little we know about finals. I’m also juggling my extracurricular commitments and trying to find time to enjoy it all along the way. As a public interest path law student, it’s important that I do more than just obsess over grades, but finding the right balance isn’t easy because in this market, there’s more competition out there for even low-paying nonprofit careers, so grades will matter. Or not. If I’ve learned anything about law school career advice so far, it’s that everyone has a different take on what is important, how to go about it, and what to expect.
• It occurred to me recently to take stock of how or if law school has changed me in 2.5 months. I think it has. I think I’ve already adopted new ways of thinking about things and seeing issues. I’m certainly more tolerant of rational arguments that I disagree with (“rational” meaning logical and artfully constructed) than I used to be. And I’m becoming a little more confident and assertive in general, although it’s hard to tell since I’ve been mostly isolated from people who have known me since pre-law school times. Ah, but navel-gazing is a trap that is keeping me from learning about title insurance and conspiracy laws!

Is anyone interested in going to the Thanksgiving Day Parade this year? I’ll be in New York and studying for finals most of that weekend, but I think watching the parade live might be worth it, just to say “been there, done that” in future years. Otherwise, I’ll probably just sleep in and be lonely and depressed if nobody wants to come play with me. C’mon, it’s big balloons and not-lonely Jere!

LDS leader Elder Dallin Oaks compared backlash against Mormon anti-queer politicking in California to the intimidation Blacks faced from anti-integration forces in the civil rights era. Ironically, he said this 11 years and one day after a young gay man died from being beaten, robbed, pistol-whipped and left exposed and tied to a fence to die by two young men, one of whom was Mormon. Two points: it is illegal under federal law to discriminate against someone on the basis of their religion, while it remains, to this day, perfectly legal under federal law to discriminate against people because of their sexual orientation or gender identity; also, for comparing Mormons to those who fought against racism in the civil rights era, fuck off you muthafucking fucker.

Because you’re not going to click on that second link, it’s a Time article from 1959. Many attitudes (and public statements) have changed, sure, but I heard these same ideas when I was still in the Church some twenty-ish years ago:

Whatever they may do or leave undone about their Negro brethren, most U.S. churches hold that all men are equal before God. One notable exception: the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The Book of Mormon teaches that the colored races are descendants of the evil children of Laman and Lemuel, who impiously warred against the good children of Nephi and received their pigmented skin as punishment. …. “The Mormon interpretation of the curse of Canaan … together with unauthorized, but widely accepted statements by [Mormon] leaders in years past, has led to the view among many Mormon adherents that birth into any race other than white is a result of inferior performance in pre-earth life, and that by righteous living dark-skinned races may again become ‘white and delightsome.’”

The video of the brutal gay bashing in Queens is heartbreaking. I feel like people (read: Elder Oaks) should watch it even if it’s uncomfortable.

Yes, Joe Solmonese should resign. Not just because of his criticized “give Obama a pass until 2017″ email, nor because of his offensive depiction of HRC donors as “more politically aware” (than, say, the numerous conscientious objectors to HRC fundraising galas who actually run grassroots efforts?), nor because he had the audacity to claim the HRC speaks for LGBT people after he specifically broke at least one promise to the transgender community regarding ENDA. No, he should resign because after 4 1/2 years in his position the closest thing to a real federal accomplishment from the HRC is maybe, maybe a watered-down, long overdue piece of hate crime legislation smuggled into a “must pass” spending measure.

There are those who think the intra-community divide (or at least the attention being paid to it) is damaging the movement. I disagree. But I’ve made my boring argument before about how a noncohesive and diverse community movement is better politics for both internal and external reasons. It boils down to my fundamental belief that until the sissy boy prancing fairy genderqueer teenager in a tutu is fully protected, accepted and celebrated by society, we haven’t achieved lasting and reliable equality. And we don’t get there with field-tested, heteronormative, corporate-backed, risk-averse, middle-class white male issue focus or message crafting.

Switching gears…

I heard from my mom that two people I grew up with passed away. Pete (above, waving) was one of my earliest friends, although we didn’t always get along. Denise was a long-time neighbor. I haven’t even thought of either of them in ages. Weird.

Got my ticket home for the Holiday today. I’m very much looking forward to seeing the kids again. Craig and Callie are getting so big in their photos and Owen Ace looks adorable these days. Coming soon: Halloween costumes!

But if you can say something nice, please to enjoy this YouTube karaoke video I was dared to record:

I guess this is one advantage to not having roommates (according to my RA, I won’t be getting any). Nobody will complain if I come back from the gym all sweaty and smelly and decide to sing instead of jump in the shower.

I wish they had a setting between underwear model and fatso in body type, but I guess this is close enough.

My throat feels raw today. I hope it’s just a byproduct of adjusting to the air in the city and not an actual illness.

Speaking of illness, talked to Mom tonight. I hear that things aren’t going well for my Aunt Julie with her cancer. We already knew it would be terminal, but now they’re concerned about the rate at which it’s spreading. For entirely selfish reasons, I hope that she sticks around at least as long as Christmas this year so I have a chance to see her again, but I don’t want her miserable and suffering on my account.

Why is this my favorite bag? No, not because it’s a great gym bag (though it is). No, not because it has a trendy Nike logo. No, not because it has comfortable shoulder strap.

It’s my favorite bag because it’s one that I haven’t actually unpacked since moving to Cincinnati.

And you’ll never guess what’s inside it.

More bags! 14 to be exact. Reusable market bags, messenger bags, backpacks, smaller gym totes, a camera bag, and conference bags from attending 6 conferences in two years at former job.

When you consider the 7 other bags I have which are not stuffed inside this tote, I feel as though I should maybe cut down the number of bags in my life, but I’ll wait until I get settled in to New York life and figure out the best method of transporting law books, laptop, groceries, etc., in the city.