Pride, for those who aren't in the know, is a sinful celebration of equality and love where people gather to show support for each other's basic human rights. There's a parade, a festival, and a lot of rainbows. This Pride was particularly memorable as the Supreme Court legalized gay marriage nationwide on June 26th. Also, we also got rain of biblical proportions.
Incidentally, Noah was cool with gay lions, apparently.
There are a lot of possible explanations for the freak rain. One is Tropical Storm Dolores, if you're into science and logic. If you're not, you could also chalk it up to God's wrath. (Although, as Matthew points out in 5:45, "He maketh His sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.," so it looks like God sends rain entirely randomly and isn't casting judgement when He does so.) A third option is that there was a lot of dancing, and it stands to reason that at least one of the people dancing might have been doing some sort of rain dance without realizing it.
Dammit, Glenn Dances-With-Bears, stop gyrating!
By Saturday evening, San Diego has recorded over an inch of rain, which is more precipitation than the city had received during the entire month of July dating back to 1902. San Diego normally averages only 0.02 inch of precipitation in July.
It was raining men.
So yeah, lots of rain. I had not expected it and showed up without a coat or umbrella because, you know, southern California. I expected it to be 80 degrees and sunny. I'd even brought sunscreen like a chump. Then it rained and after two hours, I looked like I'd been dunked into a swimming pool. Everything was soaked through; days later, my wallet is still slightly damp. Andy and I had our legs cramp with shivering, and our fingers prune up as if we'd been soaking in a bath.
Against all odds, we did have fun, though it's not an experience we'd like to repeat.
One thing I think people don't understand about Pride is that it's not really just a "gay thing." The parades tend to be overwhelmingly composed of various businesses and organizations and groups that are there to show support for LBGT rights.
Like these guys!
So it's not just gays. There's everything from the local ASPCA to the George R.R. Martin Fan Club, and all that's in between.
A Lannister always spays his pets.
The thing about equality is, it affects everyone, and everyone can get behind it. So it's not like the ASPCA is out of place there.
Quite the contrary.
And speaking of dogs and raining on parades, I have another bit of news. I sent a secret into PostSecret, which is an art project where basically people send in postcards with secrets on them and then the secrets are displayed for others to see. The project is all about empowerment, facing one's demons, getting support, and demystifies issues like depression, suicide, eating disorders, rape, abuse, et cetera. So I sent one in and it was put on display this week.
Woo!
Except not woo, because the comments were honestly not very supportive. In fact they were downright critical, including such gems as "For Christ’s sake, it’s supposed to be one of the most happiest days of your life, for both you and your family. Why are trying to make it one of the worst?"
Inexplicably, it never occurred to me that people would be able to draw the wrong conclusions about two lines on a postcard that lacks any other context. People thought of it as shameful, vengeful, petty, and insulting. They also seemed to think my immediate family members are entitled to participate in my wedding, which they are not, unless they pay for it, which they are not.
For clarification for anyone reading, I don't hate my dad. I just love my dog. Besides, the whole "dad giving away the bride" thing is a rather outdated symbol of sexism. I don't need anyone to give me away because I'm my own person to give. If I didn't have a dog, I would opt to walk down the aisle alone. But I think it seems pretty scary to walk down the aisle, so I'd just as soon have Seamus by my side. Also, this is a good excuse to put him into a little bowtie, which is adorable.
Honestly, people's reactions bothered me more than they should have.
Of course none of this matters because I'm not actively getting married right now. I'm not even engaged.
Which isn't to say that Andy and I aren't pretty serious. But what's the harm in taking it slow and letting my ovaries shrivel up and slowly turning into a crazy dog lady?
A literal crazy dog lady!
Let the record show that I'm kidding and that was a joke, by the way. I am honestly in no rush. I'm just starting to recalibrate from my depressive episode, and part of that means getting my interpersonal relationships back in order. Overall, though, this has been a great week for me, rain and all.
They should have used a semicolon. That's okay, though. I'm semi-inspired anyway.
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