Hum Hallelujah

About two weeks ago, Toby and I went to the Moxie Theater in Springfield for our date night.  As committed Star Trek fans, we were excited to see they were showing the movie "To Be Takei."  The movie is about George Takei, the actor who played Sulu.

What we didn't realize was that the Moxie was showing "To Be Takei" as part of Springfield's Pride Week.  The movie was free, and we had just eaten supper, so we didn't buy any drinks or popcorn...(sorry, Moxie, we'll make it up to you next time!)  There was a donation table in the lobby for clothing and supplies for a halfway house in Springfield that supports LGBT+ youth who are homeless.

Other times we've been to the Moxie, the theater might have contained somewhere between three and ten other people.  We generally go on dates in the middle of the week because I hate crowds and we both need a break midweek instead of trying to fit another activity into the weekends.  That night, the theater was packed full.

I had a few moments of discomfort.  Did we belong here?  I mean, I support the rights of people to live however they choose, so long as they are not harming others.  We were just a middle-aged straight couple in a sea of "the gays."  I wasn't hurting them, they weren't hurting me, and we all had a wonderful time watching the movie together.  It was a very animated crowd.

George Takei's story is funny and sad and interesting and eye-opening, all at the same time.  I love when I don't know where a movie will take me next.  He was one of thousands of Japanese-Americans incarcerated during World War II, for crappy reasons.  He struggled with being Asian in Hollywood and only being offered stereotype roles.   For years, he pretended to be straight because he knew coming out would end his career.

Takei is an interesting guy.  He is funny and also a bit mean.  His relationship with William Shatner can only be described as adversarial.  I got a lump in my throat at the appearance of the late, lamented Leonard Nimoy, talking about how happy he was for Takei being able to live his life openly.

In the past, I have been taught to "feel the spirit" to know I am doing the right thing.  I would probably offend so many people to know I felt the spirit in a movie theater full of proud sinners, watching a movie about a sinner.  But you know what?   I did.  I felt warm and happy and right to support the rights of people who are not like me.

I was not waiting on edge for the Supreme Court's decision this week.  Honestly, I didn't know it was coming.  But I am happy about it.  I am happy knowing that religion can't dictate the lives of people who don't believe in it.  I tear up at every picture of 85 year old couples getting married, after being together 50 years. 

And All I Can Think Of Is...

Sorry for the blurry picture.  I took it while he was asleep, and I was enjoying the picture-ninja role.  Toby decided to shave his beard the other day.  I wasn't sure how I would like it, but it's his face, you know?  I accept his input, but my hair decisions are ultimately my own.  I accord him the same bodily autonomy.

So anyway, my husband has had a beard or a mustache for most of the last several years.  I like his facial hair.  Beards separate the men from the boys.  I like that in spite of cultural pressure to be clean-shaven, he was bearded.

But...Toby has a dead-sexy mouth.

I'm a dedicated mouth girl.  If I think a man is attractive, there's a 97 percent chance he is seriously appealing in the lip area.  (That may be the dirtiest-sounding thing I've ever written here.)  And while I have kissed Toby daily for twenty years, I haven't gotten a good view of his lips, unencumbered by bristly red pelt, for ten years or so. 

All in all, the situation is quite distracting.  Seriously, I feel like I'm cheating on my husband with my husband.  It's actually kinda fun.  Maybe we can work out a three months on, one month off schedule or something.

Adventures in Ladydrumming

Added to my growing list of "JILL DOING THINGS SHE WANTS TO DO?"  I bought this.  When I thought about things I enjoyed doing most in the past, playing music in band was near the top of the list.  It was really difficult spending that much money on something besides the house or the kids or something "useful."  It was difficult spending money on myself, basically.

So anyway, I've had the drum set for a few days, and my cymbals just arrived yesterday.  I've already learned a few things, though.

1.  All children love drums.  Some love them louder than others.
2.  Pencil skirts and playing drums don't mix. 
3.  I still remember a few things, but I have lots of practicing to do.
4.  I enjoy practicing.  It's a great mix of physical activity, aggression-venting, precision, and relaxation.
5.  Drumsticks are like bank suckers.  They give you a pair with each transaction.  I have three sets of drumsticks now, plus an oddball one stick because the kids lost half of my high school set.
5.  If you give a mom a drumset, she will try to convince her family to play with her. 

The last one is going to be fun.  I think we're working on a multi-generational three-piece Fall Out Boy and Panic! at the Disco cover band.  Five-piece, if you add piano and trombone.