Let us Call Upon Ourselves and Each Other

An invocation will be delivered on January 20th in Washington, D.C. Having spent two years in 9:00 a.m. Greek and Latin class, I know that "invocation" derives from the Latin voco, vocare which means to "call, name; to summon; to call upon, invoke (the gods) . . ."

Mainstream LGBT rights groups shared my feeling of a hand moving swiftly across my face as we heard the news of Barack Obama's choice of evangelical mega-church leader Rick Warren to give the inaugural invocation. The Human Rights Campaign circulated a petition which even my parents signed. Pundits decried the announcement and questioned Obama's commitment to equal rights.

I share all of these feelings and concerns. The decision the Obama team made was Wrong. It is not a matter of including differing viewpoints. There must be boundary lines drawn within which we can disagree. We may have different approaches to health care or cleaning up the environment but there must be a shared foundation that all people deserve equal treatment and all love should be honored, respected and nourished.

That much seems relatively undisputed among those who value LGBT Americans and believe that marriage equality is a worthwhile goal.

What hasn't yet received enough attention is the discussion of how we ought to respond. I'm not sure upon whose god Rick Warren will call, but I view the invocation as a chance for our community to ask upon whom we are calling.

Perhaps our first step was to express our disappointment and hurt. But now we must look toward the long future ahead of us. Our future is beyond two terms of a non-hostile presidential administration. Living life without full acceptance and legal protection by our society can be excruciating. And, as much as I wish President Obama would change this, he won't and he can't because presidents don't hand equality to those who need it.

The best thing leaders like Harvey Milk and Barack Obama do for us is call upon the strength, love, and hope that is already within US. To use another latin reference, the word education comes from "e" and "duco" which translates literally to "lead out of". I remember my latin professor using his arms to dramatize how he could pull out the knowledge from my brain rather than stuffing it in. It's the same with Obama. We supported him because he helped us believe in OURSELVES not because we thought he would do a whole lot for us gays.

If we think we can simply call on him to save us, we will be disappointed everyday. If we take-in his message of inspiration (to breathe life in), we can keep our HOPE alive and remember that the power to change others' hearts is in OUR hands. We must stay active, loving, and engaged and not be deflated because by this blow. We have a long journey ahead of us.

Of all the discussion of the Warren invocation, the message that most resonated in my heart was by the illustrious Melissa Etheridge who reminded us that

"we have the capability to create change, awesome change in this world, but before we change minds we must change hearts." Even further, she challenges us to "in our anger, as we consider marches and boycotts, perhaps we can consider stretching out our hands."

As someone who has been on the Warren side of the fence, I believe evangelical christians think they have the market cornered on loving those with whom they disagree. I witness the queer community's ability everyday to maintain relationships with those who fear or misunderstand us and to love one another even at great personal risk.

I'm not sure I believe that intentional outreach to evangelicals is a worthwhile strategy. But perhaps continuing to share, with those already in our lives who don't understand us, our stories and our vision for a community that celebrates loving commitment will help us move forward one step at a time.

Please share any ideas for how we can constructively do this.

(Stir) Crazy about Organizing!

Since we Seattle folk are still stuck, why not take some time to get rid of junk to make room for the new junk you just got. Check out Chez Larrson's Top Ten Organizing Tips. I agree with all of them except the one about buying everything in white. If you can afford to replace all your towels and shelving on an annual basis, go for it. If you are frugal or landfill conscious, go with something else to hide life's daily dirt.

http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/la/organizing/top-10-organizing-tips-from-chez-larsson-050026

Also, when you are getting rid of clothes or housewares in decent condition, consider giving them to a local shelter as an option in addition to thrift stores. New or gently used housewares and linens can go to Plymouth Housing Group's Tenant Supply Closet.

Mon Txori

Spinach has never tasted so good. I love the sesame sauce steamed spinach at sushi bars but tonight's treatment at Txori was over the top. Sauteed with pine nuts and golden raisins in a light oil and possibly white wine, it was deep and sweet and savory. Just my style.

This was my first experience at Txori (pronounced "choree") in Belltown. They serve very small plates which was perfect for snacking. Our server was a delightful guide and provocateur, beginning the evening by pouring wine from several feet above the glass to aerate it.

I started with a spanish potato omelete on crusty bread with a tangy sauce, followed that with a carmelized onion tart with frisee and balsamic reduction, followed by the aforementioned spinach and completed with a chocolate cinnamon flan.

The flavors in each dish surprised me in a good way as I am not familiar with Spanish food. As a chocolate lover, I was nervous about the flan, especially with cinnamon. It came through in a major way, with a very smooth taste in subtle sweet honey sauce.For further study, check out Txori's older sister, The Harvest Vine in Madison Valley.

My favorite part about the experience, aside from the food, was the thrill of being encouraged to use the cute finger napkins in a dispenser on our table, crumple them up and throw them on the floor. Stella, my dining companion, can be seen here demonstrating the proper crumpling. These fit in well with the high school art class style metal stools.

I highly recommend Txori for surprising Spanish snacking adventure. Expect a casual atmosphere, engaging staff and ordering lots of quite small dishes.

Important Announcement

We have a new blogger on the scene.  Life at Versailles is no longer just about Marie Antoinette.  I am turning over a new leaf (gold of course) and have taken pity on a young servant, Elise, the Scullery Maid.  She recently learned to read and is working on writing as well.  To aid her education, I am allowing her periodic posts here on our blog.  I trust that you, my gentle readers, will grant her every forgiveness for she is of small means and stature.

Please join me in bidding bienvenue to Elise.

Bring on the Capitol Hill Gentrification

I said it. I still mourn the loss of Man Ray every time I walk home past Dennis Saxman's parking lot and scowl at Kurrent but I must also remark that if Capitol Hill's changing retail spaces continue on their trend toward high quality innovative eateries, I am willing to sell-out.

The latest news is that Ethan Stowell, son of artistic genius Kent Stowell, formerly of the Pacific Northwest Ballet, and creator of Union, Tavolata and How to Cook a Wolf will be opening Olives and Anchovies in Barrientos' new building the Pearl on 15th between Madison and Pine.

This follows the opening of Poppy (see previous post), La Spiga, Boom (barely worthy of this list) 2 Stumptowns, Quinn's, Presse, Lark and Licorous. My beloved hill may finally make it onto Seattle's culinary map. We did recently lose Crave and I'm not sure if rising commercial rents had anything to do with it. I certainly hope we do not take too many steps backward in our march toward being true Seattle yuppies. Thus far, Hill faves B&O and Vivace have found new homes in the wake of displacement.

As my previous post about Tavolata indicates, I think Stowell is a genius and I can't wait to try Olives and Anchovies. Word is, it will focus on Italian seafood so this vegetarian queen may be out of luck but she can always hope.

Save shoes, save money

This is not a post about saving the world. It is a post about being practical.

Since we are all worried about the economy and whether we will have jobs next year, it is a good time to find ways to make things last longer. After a few recent encounters with cobblers and shoe shines, I realized I had been living life throwing away shoes when I could have saved them.

I had previously taken in a few pairs of shoes in good condition for a nice shine by the fine gentlemen in the basement of Nordstrom. I was thinking of tossing out a pair of black oxfords that are not that great quality to begin with and

isn't that weird when you have a random flashback all of sudden? I just remembered the country drive from Walla Walla to the state park across the Oregon border. wtf?

were quite scuffed. I decided to ask the Nordstrom shoe shine guys if they were salvageable. "As long as there aren't holes all the way through the sole, it's worth it" the shoe pro instructed me. Needless to say, they look good as new for a measly $5, saving me the cost of a new pair of black shoes.

Equally important is having rubber soles put on good shoes with leather soles. You can tell you your new shoes have leather soles because you will have spent more than you usually do, the soles will be very smooth and they will have this leather symbol on the bottom. Leather soles are very comfortable because they wear in well but they will disintegrate in our swampy Seattle climate without having a proper sole put on them. So spend the twenty bucks and get to know your local cobbler. Most neighborhoods have one.

I had a good experience at Emerald City Shoe Repair which happens to be in my office building. I have also heard great reviews of the family owned longtime Capitol Hill cobbler, Angel's Shoe Repair near 15th.

Change Will Keep Coming

We all saw the headline and probably cried when President Elect Obama declared that "Change has come to America". For many of us, after the champagne's fizz settled, we realized that some of the change we had hoped for did not come.

The jubilation of electing the most inspiring leader in my lifetime was brought down to varying degrees by the passage of Proposition 8 in California which prohibits the state from legally recognizing the loving and committed relationships of lesbians and gay men.

It is particularly hurtful that in the same election, voters determined that teenage girls have the right to an abortion without notifying their parents and that chickens and livestock have the right to not be squished in tiny cages. Somehow though, loving and dedicated adults and their families don't have the right to equal treatment under the law.

Even more, the very black and latino voters who delivered the election to Obama in Cali voted to bar my community from legitimacy. Are we really at a point where marginalized communities feel that each must pay their dues and suffer an equally long time before they are free? Is our equality really still viewed as a choice by privileged white people about what they do in bed?

It hurts deeply but I also recognize that freedom takes time and it is not free. We must keep fighting not only through campaigns, fund raising and legal might but most importantly as Harvey Milk always told us, by telling our stories. I am always amazed that even my high minded liberal friends in Seattle, while they support my equal rights, really don't seem to understand the significance of marriage recognition or the impact to queer people of our lack of rights. They don't seem to understand that it might make me uncomfortable when they casually speak of marriage like it is something everyone does or they assume that coming out is no big deal or that finding a doctor who understands what to do with me is easy.

They don't understand, perhaps because we have not told them, that we do suffer. We lose primary relationships with family or have enduring gaps in our trust with our parents. Those of us who do not conform to gender roles face misunderstanding, fear or, at worst, violence. Those of us whose appearance does fit gender stereotypes face assumptions and questioning.

Perhaps in our efforts to be "just like everyone else" we have convinced ourselves that everything is fine, particularly those with economic, racial or class advantage. But until we share our stories not just about how great our kids are but also about how our kids are not entitled to as much of our social security as the children of straight people are, our fellow voters will continue to think that equality for gay people is not important.

It takes time to spread a message. I believe the messaging from groups like the Human Rights Campaign that focuses on loving relationships and families is critical in re-framing the issue in progressive terms. As California demonstrates though, there are many people who still hate us, like the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, and will pour millions of dollars into campaigns that propagate immoral lies about us and continue to frame the issue as one of personal morality and safety for children. The Mormons gave $25 million to the Yes on Proposition 8 campaign and they should be held accountable for that.

At the same time, there are many people who do not hate us but just don't understand. When gays and lesbians make up only 10% or so of the population and many are not out, we simply are not sharing our message enough. A lot of people who voted for Prop 8 may not know that they know any gay people.

We can and should take hope in the future generation though. The up and coming Millennial Generation is civic minded and more interested in fairness and global equity than formerly divisive personal issues such as abortion, gender roles or gay rights. Fully 61% of Millennials support marriage equality. While I believe we will continue to see discriminatory laws passed in states, I believe that over time, we will slowly peel them back while making small but significant gains at all levels including expanding domestic partnership, repealing "Don't Ask Don't Tell" and barring discrimination against gays in the workplace.

So for today, I will put my wedding cake recipes away, but I remain hopeful that someday, I will bake a tiered chocolate cake with raspberry filling and lavender frosting to go along with a marriage license.