Nostalgia with Karen Carpenter

I was driving yesterday and listening to Fresh Air with Terry Gross.  I don’t get a chance to hear her interviews often, so when my timing is right, its a good thing.  Richard Carpenter was the guest, and I was mildly interested.  He is releasing a box set of the Carpenter’s songs 40 years after they signed their recording contract.

I remembered the Carpenters being pretty big when I was a kid.  As the interview went on, I was surprised as they played each song, how much a part of the AM radio dial they were when I was growing up.  It seems like they always had a hit on the radio, and since Karen Carpenter had such a deep voice, they were really easy to sing along with.  I remember my mom cranking up the radio and the whole car singing along at the top of our lungs.  Also, I don’t think there were many weddings in the 70’s and 80’s that didn’t have “Close to You” on the song list.

I hope you give this song a listen and it brings up some fond memories for you.  And those bangs are definitely coming back!

httpv://youtu.be/SJmmaIGiGBg

Watch: Gay Soldier Booed at GOP Debate and His Husband

The brave soldier who asked a question during a GOP debate and was viciously booed by the crowd, has joined Freedom to Marry.  Stephen Hill and his husband, Josh Snyder, discuss what marriage means to them and what rights DOMA denies them.

httpv://youtu.be/WZDzOLeCWfQ

Great Pride Photo!

 

I love this photo!   Go to the IDF Facebook page and share!  Looking forward to the day when two men holding hands turns not one single head.  I’m getting optimistic!

 

Joshua Dixon Makes Olympic Trials

 

I wrote yesterday about out gymnast, Joshua Dixon was a strong contender to make the Olympic trials later this month.  Well, he made it!  According to Outsports, he finished 13th overall this weekend at the Visa Championships.  The trials will be in San Jose, CA June 28-July 1.  Dixon told the magazine:

 I’ve always dreamed of being one of the top gymnasts in the country. Now that I’m in that group, it’s a tremendous honor.

Best of luck!

 

Openly Gay Gymnast Joshua Dixon Looking Toward Olympic Trails

I have always enjoyed individual sports over team sports.  Maybe its because I like the more personal focus it allows, or maybe because my ADHD doesn’t let me focus on too many people at once.  Whatever the reason, swimming, track and field, MMA, gymnastics… those are some of my favorites to watch.

That’s why I look forward to to the Olympics.  For a few weeks, I get to watch the best athletes in the world competing in sports I don’t usually get to see on a regular basis.  One of my favorite sports to watch is gymnastics.  I think I am drawn to watch things that are out of my reach, and gymnastics embodies that perfectly.  I am not all that strong, I am not very fast, I am clumsy, and I am deathly afraid of heights.  Watching a gymnast fly through the air or perform some amazing feat of strength and balance fills me with awe.

I read an article a few weeks ago about Joshua Dixon.  He is a Stanford grad with hopes of making the Olympic team this year.  What was striking was the universal positive reception he got from his teammates as well as the gymnastics community when he came out.  The world is certainly changing.  Joshua Dixon is not a gay athlete, he’s an athlete that is gay.   If he does make the team, it would make him the first openly gay Olympic gymnast for the US.

Check out these clips of his skills at the 2012 Visa Championships happening this weekend.  Dixon finished fifth in the vault and high bars, and he tied for seventh in the floor exercise after the first day.  He’s an amazing athlete – I hope he makes the team and shows the world what an out athlete can do!

httpv://youtu.be/tB9phKg6WB0

httpv://youtu.be/fz09BgqBFTA

httpv://youtu.be/3VCmCSk0WZg

httpv://youtu.be/xrbaR3I_N9w