gay marriage and debates with grandpa

This afternoon, the 17th Annual Savannah Film Festival screened "Limited Partnership"...and I found myself flashing back to me as a 17-year-old, debating gay rights with my grandfather.
I was in tears for most of the documentary.
I remembered reading about two men who had gotten married to each other, right here in the USA. The year was 1975. That summer, on one of our trips to Waycross to "vacation" with my mother's folks, Grandpa and I started having our debates.
On what topics?
The differences between religions.
Women's rights, in and out of the workplace.
Flat tax versus the pro rata type still in use.
Gay rights... and gay marriage.

I had not realized, until I was watching the film, that THESE men, the couple in THIS true story, were the ones which had instigated some of our debates.
Tony Sullivan and Richard Adams.
An Australian and a Filipino-American.
The two men were successful in obtaining a marriage certificate in Boulder, Colorado, on April 21, 1975. It wasn't because gay marriage was legal there...but it wasn't illegal, either.
Unfortunately, the federal government refused to recognize the marriage as bona fide. Tony was to be deported anyway. And so the story unfolded.
All I could think about was how much I missed Grandpa.
I remembered Mama and Grandma talking in the kitchen, aghast and amazed that he and I were having such discussions.
I was raised Southern, in the 1960's and 1970's, and James Robert Lee, my grandfather, was a former traveling Baptist minister.
Take a moment and try to consider that.
It truly was a momentous thing for a teen-aged girl to be holding such debates with her almost 60-year-old elder in a small town in Georgia.
And now I was in the presence of one of the men who had been the subject of some of our discussions.
Tony Sullivan was there for a post-screening Q & A session.
I think I cried through most of that, too. He was looking at me, as you can see in the photo above, no doubt curious about why his story had such an effect on me.
I have so many friends, through the decades, who have had to deal with this kind of strife.
How sad to think there is still so much bias in the world.
Yes, it's getting better... but so slowly.
It's been almost forty years since these two men wed. Richard died last year, leaving Tony alone to continue the fight for all people, everywhere, to marry the one they love, to make that commitment for life.
I hope that fight will soon be over.
Love is such a precious blessing. Two in love should be able to lawfully become one.

quadruple header

Yesterday, I had a quadruple header! Yes, I did! My very own film festival!
Seriously, four movies in a row should certainly qualify as a film festival, right? Perhaps especially if those films are not even at the same cinema? I don't know if there is some hard and fast rule that disallows personal film festivals, but I don't know of any such. And so I proclaim: If four films are seen in quick succession, whether on a single day or over the course of four days, that is hereby decreed an instance of Faustina's Film Festival.
I rather like the sound of that!
So, this episode of Faustina's Film Festival began at 1:05 PM yesterday. The first movie on the agenda was "Guilt Trip", featuring - gasp! - Barbara Stresand. Really! As the mother of a grown chemist son who thinks he has created a better, greener, cleanser. This film has one of the most realistic depictions of the relationship of an only son to a single mother. Having been married to a man who falls into that category, and having had such man recommend this film to me over the holidays whilst he was in town visiting his children, I can definitely recommend it. Anyone who wants to better understand the dynamics of two such people, this film does so without getting all psychoanalytical on you. I presents its case, and moves on. If I may add: do stay to watch the credits. The airport full of mothers and sons of all ages interacting together will tug at your heart!
Then, off across town to meet two friends for a three-dimensional treat! You see, part of the allure of my first film was this: it had a start time which assured me I could reach my pre-arranged assignation on time. Really! My idea for a film festival began with my desire to try for a double- or triple-header on the southside of town, and, with that goal, I took in that first movie to try to seal the deal for me.
So, there I was at my designation, with my former bird and my schoolmarm friend, donning special glasses for "Cirque Du Soleil 3D: Worlds Away", expecting a lavish and elaborate feast for the senses - and getting every bit of that!!! Combining segments from several of their established shows in Las Vegas and Orlando, the talented dancing acrobats had woven together a tale of romance under the bigtop. There were two short lines of dialogue at the beginning of the film, then the tale unfolded via song, instrumental interludes, and dance. My!!! I do hope I will be able to sit in at that feast again!
Afterward, we all talked for a bit, but then went our separate ways. Or, rather, they went to their homes and I hung out at the nearby mall for a bit of dinner before the continuation of my film festival. After all, I had two discount passes burning a hole in my pocket, so why not see a couple of Oscar-nominated films, at a special price, while I still could?
And at 7:25 PM, I bopped across from the southside mall to view "Silver Linings Playbook", one of the sold-out-before-I-could-get-a-ticket evening offerings at this year's Savannah Film Festival. Featuring the primary actress from "Hunger Games", this film has her portray a young widow, less than a year after the death of her beloved husband. She interacts with a bipolar man, recently released from anger management rehabituation, a man trying to find the new set of rules for living his life. The film does a great job of showing the fine line between those diagnosed with a mental illness and those who have not yet, but are clearly "not quite right". The film also shows grief and guilt through the eyes of a young adult, and does so realistically.
I then had about thirty minutes to let that one settle before my 10:10 PM screening of "Flight." That had also been shown at the SFF, on the opening night of that festival. Again, it had been sold out, so I had intended to see the movie when it hit the mainstream cinemas... and it had been out for some time, yet I had not inked it into my schedule. Now, it was time. And how better to conclude my Film festival than with two from THAT film festival?
I was quite impressed. The film managed to surprise me at the end! As well as providing an accurate look at addiction, it tried to blend the view of bystanders with the story through the eyes of the addict. I highly recommend it.
In fact, I highly recommend ALL of the films I saw at Faustina's Film Festival. Whether you seek to be entertained or educated, these four will satisfy both needs.
Enjoy!

dingbat

Yep, that's me. The problem with burning one's candle from both ends is you eventually run out of wax and the flame goes out. I've been trying to shovel as much as I can into each and every day and my body has let me know in NO uncertain terms that said nonsense MUST stop, at least for a little while. Between the insomnia (driven mostly by my desire to catch up on my email and facebook before getting to bed) and the stuffed-full social calendar I've had for too many weeks, not including my work responsibilities... well, you get the picture.
Since Tuesday, I've had the sniffles and stuffy nose and cough from getting too cold too often and due, in large part sad to say, to my beloved Savannah Film Festival. The Trustees Theatre is SO cold (how cold is it?), it's so cold that Eskimos feel right at home. Seriously. I took two vacation days this year, Tuesday and Friday, so I could partake of the rich banquet only available at this festival. By Tuesday evening, even though I had my scarf and heavy jacket with me, I had the stuffy nose starting. Wednesday, I got up and sprayed the bed with Lysol, and have done the same for the past few days. Wednesday evening, I gave the students a "paper" lab ( gave them the data rather than have them collect it) and we were all out of there by 8pm. I took my tired self home, had chicken soup and called it an early night. Thursday, I woke up feeling more rested, but sounding awful. Progress! More chicken soup, more earlier nights.
Friday, I awoke a new woman, then spent the day at the Festival, in the Trustees and the Lucas, bouncing out every two hours to check the car or get lunch or pick up my Geekend materials. So, cold and hot and cold and hot... And of course I insisted on going to the keynote speaker address at Geekend, a last minute change/addendum to the program. Aaron Drapsin, former snowboarder of Michigan, current logo designer extraordinaire, was able to take over when the originally-scheduled speaker was delayed until Sunday. This guy happens to have worked on some incredible projects, including the logos for two ARRAS-related items: the website recovery.gov and the DOT's Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery program. Pretty interesting talk, sprinkled with lots of fun stories of lessons learned along the way.
Still, by the time the talk was done, so was I. I was cold and thirsty and worn OUT. So, I got home by 10:30pm or so, turned on my bed, then had some heated lemon water for about an hour. I crashed out, not even bothering to set an alarm. I would simpley get up when I got up. Yeah. I finally got up about 1:30pm today and here in the house I remain. I had several talks I had looked forward to at Geekend, but my body told me to STAY HOME AND REST. Sounds like resonable advice to me! Time for some chicken soup, maybe with rice this time instead of pasta...