Am I going to have a job next year?

It's a bureacratic piece of silliness. I work with a non-profit television station... Public Access. Been doing it for close to 9 years now. All these years, public access stations across the nation were set up as a resource for local residents to produce their own television shows. The conditions, programing is non-commercial. So basically a lot of people get to make originial, innovative, and yes - amateur television shows. For the most part, production value was low, but conceptually, it's cutting edge and heavy on self-discipline and learning by your own mistakes.

It's a real, tangible place where individuals can be creative, expressive, vent, complain, inspire motivate and share their take on the world. It's so affordable and abundant with potential that the poor, marginalized, invisible, and outcast can publicly display and exercise their free speech through an incredibly powerful platform... television. It's one of the aspects of American culture that defines us. It's not as wide-reaching as the internet, but it pioneered activists, artists, journalists, civic leaders, community personalities, and local icons found nowhere else. It's a cheap representation of the people around us, but it's a representation and a community center, nonetheless.

Recently, the authority controlling the future of television has shifted. Now; local government (city government) has lost the control of how operational money is distributed to local access channels. This means government channels that show how your city government works, the channel that airs programming through schools, the public access channel that lets neighbors, seniors, non-profits, vain performers, socially conscious activists, seniors, students, children, and congregations of faith-bound spiritualists are going to loose that platform.

I'm worried about my job. It pays the bills, it feeds me, it's the place where I meet my peers and learn to deal with clinically maladjusted, conspiracy theorists, kinky exhibitionists, and forward thinkers that make my home worth looking at. I work in a place where mediocrity is not a norm. I work in a place where I know every person by name. I invest my talent and spend my patience in an environment which so often feels like a thankless bombardment of criticism and sub-standard gratitude. I believe in a forum where a person with no practical experience with multi-media technology can learn how to use a television station, staff, and peers, to make something that major networks can't begin to duplicate.

It's honest. It's not perfect. Shows may not be completely polished. Programing may not be the same caliber of entertainment worth $10 and a bucket of popcorn, but it's made by my neighbors. It's a close proximity to our unique imaginations. It's a grab bag of challenges, success, frustration, fame, and the potential of finding controversy and dismissal will always be there. But we can all say this... we did it.

You may not like what you see on tv, but for the next few months, there is a place in San Francisco where you can make your own. In a matter of weeks, that option my not be there.

Adventures of Superpup Summer 2008

picasaweb.google.com/superpu...upIssue4

Partners for Life

I went to a launch party for a new website tonight. It was a great mixer for a gay MATCHING service for men looking for a long-term partner. Firstly, big thanks to David Perry & Associates for including me with this launch. Great teamwork guys, wonderful PR.

Now... Partners for Life. Imaging a mix of eHarmony, Vehix, Best Buy and and a well-organized HMO put into one single website for a man who wants a solid relationship with another man. That's about it. It's not a hook-up site. They're very clear with that goal. It's a premium match making site with incredibly complex software programming, demographics and very detailed and flexible matching criteria. Answers aren't yes/no but on a scaled variable, your answers are valued at fine increments to better match who you are and what is is appropriate for you. Sure, it's probably nothing new. Here is the ingenuity. I liked that potential matches can be viewed in a "side by side" comparison, much like shopping online for a car with Vehix, or a camcorder through Best Buy.

The fine engineering? That comes in with the actual matches. Believe me, I was talking to Stuart McFaul from Product Development for a good deal of time. It's not just a site with a search engine for similar matches from most occurring to least occurring key words. This is engineering that's been fine tuned with psychologists, sexologists, statisticians, and an enormous team of gay men who are no strangers to the dating scene. I wanted to know how focused demographics were to relevant regional service. Guys in San Francisco have a different dynamic from guys in Waikiki. It's a different "norm". How will the engineering of the site permit a reliable service (matching based on similarity vs compatibility or "ideals").

The development team has incorporated variables from age preference, race, economics, career, family development, health, and monogamy. It's a brilliant site that has really accepted the complexities of dating and finding a PARTNER. Again, I give them a thumbs up for the brilliance of really establishing a site for searching for long-term relationships, rather than a commercial orgy space on the internet. The site launched today and will expand to Southern California later this year. Projected launch for the major metropolitan cities on the East Coast will be under two years.

Ah, San Francisco, merging high-tech geeks with romance and sustainability...

Are we really so pressured to purchase a service to assist us with finding a mate? Have we been burned beyond repair that a bionic matchmaker is just far easier than healing or learning from our relationships? It's a question that we each have to answer and most likely a process no CPU can fathom, but it's what makes us human.

Marvelous Sunday

I just had a glorious day today. The string of storms seemed to have given the Bay Area a break this weekend. It was great yesterday and the sun was shining bright and the wind was mild. Yet another day of t-shirts, jeans, and a lot of people walking around town. Starbucks was crowded and the park was beautiful. That's the routine for a great, clear Sunday in San Francisco.

I had plans to meet a friend for lunch. What's so terrific is this was a playmate of mine a few years back. Incredibly sexy and a great lover. We always had fun and a shared a few smiles along the way but out of the blue, I decided to just have lunch. We met up and just chatted away about the things that were important and things that merely punctuated our lives around us.

San Francisco has been stuck in a stale cycle of "business as usual". We aren't the cutting-edge, creative mecca we once were. Arts are struggling, rent is high, our character has been bleached out by corporate mechanics and diminished by the routine of surviving paycheck to paycheck. There hasn't been a devastating disaster to pull us together as a community. There is no unifying threat such as powerful earthquake, or a monstrous fire, city-wide power failure, the concentrated impact of an out-of-control pandemic. We survived so many tragic events that might be considered cataclysmic in our small town. Many people who are the life-blood of the multiple communities are either dead or have moved away for various reasons. We're exhausted or just conserving our emotional energies, but we still care deep down.

It was refreshing for me to reach out and actually connect with someone on something far above any sexual motivation. It wasn't out of loneliness, but it occurs to me that there are people in my life that I really do think of fondly and want to keep in my life. It's a blessing to have a friend to call just to share a meal with and know that the smiles exchanged are genuine and not a gesture.

New Year, new starts

OK the first week of 2008 has been interesting.

I got dumped. Well, not really "dumped" in the bad sense. I got the "let's be friends" speech which was actually a remarkably kind and sweet and very sincere request. We're really going to be friends.

In the mean time, I'm back to a strong work routine. Finally got a good hold of the bills now and even though I'm not dating anyone, I can still manage a good degree of sexiness. Honestly, most of my time is not what people expect me to do. I don't go out to clubs, I probably only go into a bar once every month and usually just have two or no more than three drinks. I'm usually in bed before midnight since I like to just sit in bed and fiddle around with my photos, or just read postings from my friends. Otherwise, I'm just sitting in a coffee shop with my face in a comic book.

I honestly really do want to get into a regular schedule at the gym which will happen. One of my colleagues at work is leaving so the workload has been increased. Once we train new personnel, I'll get to the gym. I'm really pushing to get positions filled within two weeks. That's best case scenario.

Lately, I've been stuck in a Justice League Unlimited marathon! OK for dorks that think watching cartoons for hours upon hours is silly, just watch two episodes from either season one or season two. This isn't Tom & Jerry, Anime, or the old Super Friends cartoons. This series is really adult, clever, intelligent, intricate and full of some pretty damn good pounding action. Any comic book fan will get sucked into the series very easily (might even get a little choked up in a few episodes). If you know who Oliver Queen, Dina Lance, Carter Hall, Amanda Waller, General Eiling, or John Stewart are you better just pick up either Season One or Season two. If you like bitch brawls, then definitely pick up season two of Justice League Unlimited and just watch Grudge Match! HOLY SHIT!

In any case, I feel good. Still need to work on chatting up with new people, but I think 2008 is going to be a good year.

It's a new year

Just fought off a cold this weekend and I had several options to celebrate New Year's Eve. Unfortunately, my back was killing me early in the day and I was debating going out or going home. Well, I figured some alcohol would dull the pain and thankfully it did!

Went into the Castro District mostly to find something to eat, but everything closed far earlier than I expected. OK, off to find some booze! After the first drink (New Year's Eve cocktails are potent) the pain was GONE! Continued to sip my medicine and make my rounds to greet friends and smile the night away.

Fun evening, and I even timed everything out that I didn't have to leave my car behind and take a bus back the next morning. I was sober enough to drive back home. Good thing I planned on a spontaneous evening.

Countdown to the New Year

OK, it's cleaning time! 2008 is coming and I'll be cleaning out my profile to make room for new adventures in 2008.

I'm back in San Francisco, got good work. Getting my stuff together, and feeling really good.

Time to share the tracks I lay down, so keep watching for life in San Francisco...

Shopping with a few causes

OK, so I know my money is tight this year which explains why I haven't done any real present searching. HOWEVER, with my limited budget, I thought it would help my Kharma balance by limiting my gift shopping to places that donate portions of their proceeds (as much as possible) to charitable organizations.

I've picked up a few things from Under One Roof, Human Rights Campaign and then got directed to this online resource. www.maatiam.com actually is in partnership with some pretty big names (including Sony, Macy's, Hertz). If you shop through www.maatiam.com and then hand pick just about ANY non-profit organization, you'll see what percentage of your purchase goes towards your selected charity.

WAY COOL!

If you need to get to some quick online shopping and need to get things shipped before the last minute really passes, give them a shot. Best thing is they refer specials and sales to you online and it's a handy thing to use for birthdays, anniversaries, CAR RENTALS, TRAVEL, HOTELS and stuff.

I've already bookmarked Family Link, Irwin Memorial Blood Bank, and Coming Home Hospice as a few charities already. Next, I'm working on a few animal rights groups and environmental groups as well as educational providers.

Just wanted to spread the word.

Did I just Shivah?

Just had another death. My heart sank when the news came. Brings back a lot of memories.

She was a lovely woman, a wife and a mother. I know her son is in anguish and my heart goes out to him and the rest of the family. I just did a little bit of research on the traditional Jewish grieving custom. I vaguely remembered something about tearing at your clothes. It makes sense now.

I just put a tear on the right side of my shirt. It represents the tear of your heart when a loved one passes on. Those closest to her should have a tear on the left side, while people who weren't as close tear the right side. I think I just did a little bit of a Shiva.

Yes, I feel for everyone in my life. I miss my mother, too.