An Historical Day!

Wow.

What a day!

This morning while watching Good Morning America with my fiance, it was obvious that GMA host Robin Roberts was boot scooting out of there to jump on a plane to DC for her interview with Obama.  I told my lady "mark my words, the gay marriage issue is going to come up, and whatever happens is going to be perfectly orchestrated political theater".  Several hours later, while out running some errands, I heard on the radio that President Obama came out in favor of gay marriage.  Bam!  There you go!  Perfectly orchestrated political theater.

Some will say that the President has done the politically expedient thing.  Maybe so.  It's also the right thing to do.  I don't just feel this way because I am gay, or because I want to get married.  I feel this way because I believe in equal rights.  For everybody.  Period.  Watch this video.  Then tell me all people don't deserve to be protected equally.  If you can do that, you are on the wrong side of history.  I can't understand how anyone can look back at the last 100 years of civil rights struggles and feel comfortable being on the wrong side of history.  You know what I am talking about, and if you don't, well, I'm not sure what to say. 

"I have to tell you that over the course of several years as I have talked to friends and family and neighbors, when I think about members of my own staff who are in incredibly committed monogamous relationships, same-sex relationships, who are raising kids together; when I think about those soldiers or airmen or marines or sailors who are out there fighting on my behalf and yet feel constrained, even now that 'don't ask, don't tell' is gone, because they are not able to commit themselves in a marriage, at a certain point I've just concluded that for me personally it is important for me to go ahead and affirm that I think same sex couples should be able to get married."
-President Barack Obama

Well played Mr. President.  Way to make history.  Again. 

I, for one, intend to work even harder to make sure he gets re-elected. 

What do you plan to do?

XXX


L.A.K.

We Lost A Real Peach.

Yesterday I received some sincerely sad news.  Beth Darr, beloved Lezzbook.com Founder and Publisher, passed away due to complications from injuries following a car accident. She had struggled long and hard since the fateful collision and the health problems that had resulted from the accident. She was a bright light, a visionary, an enthusiastic fan/friend, and her smile was always large and in charge. 

Just last week Beth and I were texting.  It's hard to believe that the phone meeting we had planned will never happen.  Though the plans we were discussing, which she was very excited about, will continue.  Beth has a passionate group who wants her vision with Lezzbook (essentially a facebook for Lesbians) to continue and evolve to a point that Beth would have done herself, had she not been so ill, and fighting so hard.   

I remember my last conversation with Beth.  She had booked me for a Lezzbook party at The Baltic Room last July.  She was adorable in her fashionable outfit with the matching fierce shoes.  She had, with the help of her team, done up The Baltic Room and made that puppy feel like a special event.  It was packed and the vibe was good.  She even had a boy go go dancer, which is rare with women's parties, and which I thought was RAD.  We had some brief moments outside where I thanked her for including me and complimented her on a successful event.  She was very humble and appreciative of what I had to say.  Then she came back at me and heaped praise upon me, referencing parts of my career that even I sometimes forget happened.  I am glad that my last in-person interaction with her was one of mutual admiration.

My heart, thoughts, and well wishes go out to her close friends, family, and partner.  She was a class act.

RIP Beth.

XXX

L.A.K.

There's No Place Like Home....

Ain't that the truth! First day back from Palm Springs and despite the grey skies and the slow trickle of rain coming down, I am happy to be in my own space. Even if I have a big pile of work to tend to! Missin' my buddy D$, but happy about all the things he is making happen in Palm Springs. I'm telling you friends, you should mark your calendars for that first weekend of November. Plan ahead now, and come for Gay Pride. No doubt we'll have a fun schedule of events and surprises happening for PS Pride. You can bank on it. Save the date, save your coins, do it. You won't regret it!

If you wanna peep what I was down in Palm Springs helping my Qulture Qreative compadre, David Richey with, click on any of the links below...

Cheeky's

Birba

Alcazar

Jiao

From production on pool parties and Coachella after parties to running errands all over the desert to purchase uniform pieces or get signage printed, there was plenty to do and I was more than happy to participate. It's always get to be a part of such exciting and dynamic projects, with such amazing and magical people. The last link above, for Jiao, is the latest restaurant opening from the people that brought you Cheeky's, Birba, and Alcazar. All I have to say from sampling a bit of the menu is: when you go, order the Ban Mi sandwhich with the pate. You won't ever want to eat another Ban Mi in your life. Cross my heart. So today ends my constant traveling (for now) and begins my reacclimation to the familial unit. I think the ginger's are happy to have me back. It also marks the beginning of the lead up to the next massive impending project, Gay Pride. Lots in store that I'll be writing plenty about here, so I won't bore you with the details right now. But I had better get to work!

Many happy returns,

XXX

Hot Topics!

Speaking of hot topics, I am in sunny Palm Springs right now and man, it's a scorcher. Within my first 24 hours here my pale ass already had a sunburn! It's all good though. I feel my skin beginning to acclimate, I'm remembering to hydrate, and I scored a little sunscreen this morning, so it's all gravy baby!

In between work, because that's the purpose of the trip, several hot topics have piqued my interest and I thought I would share....

Tupac At Coachella? Like Whoa!

Amazing, astounding, inspiring, tear jerking, all of that, and so much more. This is awesome. Coachella once again makes history. Everyone is happy, right? Well, maybe not. As great as this is, it does give one pause. Pretty soon Elvis will be performing in Vegas again, Michael Jackson will be going on a world tour, Whitney Houston will be restored back to her prime, singing the national anthem at the Super Bowl. Hell, like my good friend David Richey said this morning, there won't even be a need for humans. We can just create celebrities to worship and spend scads of money on. The record labels would love that! Just a little food for thought. It's totally cool, but a little scary at the same time....


Prostitute's $50 Fee Causes Secret Service Scandal
Link to the story from MSNBC here
Dude, wtf? I don't even know what to say about this. Shameful. If this had happened during W's tenure, I wonder what the fallout would be.


Lickable Wallpaper?
Link to the full story here
Umm, no. Just, well, no. Period. It's like a breeding ground for illness. Keep that elevator away from me. Please.


Seattle's Mama Tits On RuPaul's Drag Race?
Not yet, but her video is up on the RPDR site and open for voting! GO VOTE FOR HER! You know you wanna see this larger than life Seattle Queen all up in that mix...
Vote & watch the vid here!


There ya go. That's it for me right now. It's hella hot and I need to find a pool to jump in right quick!

XXX


L.A.K.

Why You Should Get Your Tickets To The Camp Ten Trees Dinner And Auction Benefit!

For the past two years, and the year to come, every summer we've sent our kid off to Camp Ten Trees. It's an amazing resource for LGBTQ families. It's been a great experience for the gingerboy, and I think it's opened his eyes to the fact that he's not the only kid with queer parents. He always comes home exhausted from fun with stories to tell and camp songs to teach us.

Well, Camp Ten Trees needs YOUR support! They do a lot of fundraising to make the camp possible. They offer scholarships, which they refer to as "camperships", for families that couldn't otherwise afford to send their kid to an overnight camp for a week. They have top notch staff and activities. All of this costs cash. How can you help?


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Camp Ten Trees Dinner & Auction 2012
Event Date: Saturday, April 21st
Get your tickets ASAP before they sell out!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Never before have I been to a camp where, at the end of the week, I could honestly say that I don't want to go home. Most important to me was the amazing mental health support team. They were open and available to talk about anything, and even helped me with my picky eating habits and anxiety surrounding food. I feel safe here, and I feel loved.

~ a 2011 Camp Ten Trees camper



This year's Camp Ten Trees dinner and auction event, SHINE, is less than two weeks away! Ticket are almost sold out! Get yours ASAP! Buy tickets here!


Camp Ten Trees was very, very, very, very fun and I am really glad that I came this year. It gave me the courage to come out at school, and made me feel more supported than I have felt in a long, long time.

~ a 2011 Camp Ten Trees camper


Camp is kind of an example of what the world should be like. People shouldn't have to worry so much about where they can feel safe at, where they can be accepted. Youth and staff alike have immense courage to go to our camp and to be that safety, that acceptance, for each other.

~ a longtime Camp Ten Trees volunteer


[My son] was so delighted to be part of the session for kids of queer families. As a kid of divorced lesbian moms, he often has a lot of explaining to do out in the world. The acceptance that he soaks in during his week of camp is no small deal. He came back from camp this year with a palpable joy. To be taken care of and attended to on all the levels the counselors manage for the campers is a delight to me as a parent. Thanks!!

~ parent of a Camp Ten Trees camper


Camp Ten Trees Contact Information
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
phone: 206-288-9568
e-mail: info@camptentrees.org
mail: Camp Ten Trees, 1122 E Pike ST, #1488, Seattle, WA 98122
www.camptentrees.org


SUPPORT!

XXX


L.A.K.

Back To Life, Back To Reality

Wow. This is my first week back working solo after 3 months of looming deadlines, impending event dates, and tons of traveling. It feels great and somewhat disconcerting all at the same time. I find myself in the middle of a fervor of "To-Do" lists and a massive reconnection to the family unit. I'm also on information overload with all that's been happening in the news. Don't worry, it's not enough to drive me to the dolls.

It's finally time to dig in on this year's PrideFest. I had my first face to face meeting with Egan Orion, the festival's director, last week and I feel really excited about this year's line up. Last year was pretty amazing for me and the entire Qulture Qreative team. It's time to ramp things up and make sure we can top it. Oh, and we have plans for days. Like the PrideFest page or check www.seattlepridefest.org on the regular for updates and announcements.

This week is Spring Break and we wisely booked the gingerboy into a sports camp for the week. Best investment we ever made. Instead of being home all day making messes, being bored, and interrupting work calls (despite being told a million times not to), our boy comes home all tuckered out. Ready for a good nights sleep. Having had a blast doing "boy" things. Makes me happy for him when I pick him up and see his exhausted little red face. With us being in this new locale, it's also a prime opportunity for him to make more friends. It's my secret hope that he finds some "friends" that we can exchange babysitting moments with. Everybody reading this manifest that for us, will ya? Having the boy in Camp during the day meant that me and the gingergirl had a little much needed date time as well. Errands and Dim Sum. It was a great day.

Many "Bombshells" in the news lately. George Zimmerman's attorney's resigned because, shock of all shocks, they haven't been in contact with him since Sunday. Dude. I smell the distinct odor of B.S. I think his father, a retired judge, is the puppeteer for this major dodge of the legal system. It's a shame that there hasn't been a solid investigation done. Only time will tell what the outcome of this will be. But a young boy is dead and it's not good enough for the man who shot him to just walk away. It's just not. However, now he has a new lawyer, has been arrested, and IS going to be prosecuted for 2nd Degree Murder. Only time will tell what happens here. The other "bombshell" was that Rick Santorum suspended his campaign. Which means that Romney will be the guy who goes up against Obama. I'd love to be smug and say there's no way he could win, but there's always the October surprise, and, well, once upon a time I thought there was no way Al Gore would lose. We ended up with 8 years of George W. Not sure we could handle another round of Republican rule. Either way, it's 'game on'. I can't wait to consume the conventions. I love the theater of it all!

Back to life, back to reality. For reals. Whatever that means in the life of a DJ/suburban housewife/party producer/step ma/talent booker/etc, etc, etc.

If you find yourself out and about Tonite or tomorrow night, come see me!

Tonite: ElektroPOP! - British Invasion w/ L.A. Kendall & Tony Burns

Tomorrow: Lezbro w/ The Blind Photographers (DJ Set)


XXX


L.A.K.

What's Good This Week! ElektroPop + Lezbro = Good, Queer, Fun!

The sun is shining, the birds are chirping, and I'm taking a break right now from the search for some new tracks for both ElektroPop and Lezbro this weekend. Well, Thursday and Friday. Close enough. Who doesn't start their weekend on Thursday these days? Hey - we gotta take 'em where we can get 'em!

Anyway, so this week brings two fun events that I would love to see your smiling faces at!

Thursday April 12, 2012
ElektroPOP! - British Invasion w/ L.A. Kendall & Tony Burns
Seattle's HOTTEST Thursday Night Invites You to PARTY YOUR ARSE OFF!

This week ElektroPOP! takes a trip across the pond as we welcome you to our "BRITISH INVASION!" Featuring AMAZING performances from ADELE (Victoria Love), AMY WINEHOUSE (Mark Finley), and a LIVE vocal appearance from JESSIE J (Kitty Kitty Bang Bang.)

Also this week take a stab at making our "Royal Guard" laugh and win one of many prizes including DRINKS!

So be you a king, a queen, or just a little princess...come join your Skyscraper Hostess the one and only MAMA TITS (www.facebook.com/​TheMamaTits) for another INCREDIBLE night of dancing, drinking, performances, gogo dancers, and more with ALL your friends!

*** ElektroPOP! $1 SHOT SPECIAL! 10pm-11pm ONLY!!!***

Rhythmic Audio Stimulation Provided By:

> DJ SKIDDLE (www.facebook.com/​deejayskiddle)
> DJ TONY BURNS (Lezbro, The Lobby Bar)
> L.A. KENDALL (hitgirl!,Hard Times, Qulture Qreative, Lezbro)

POP-arazzi Photographs by the INCREDIBLY talented:
>ER3 Photography - (www.facebook.com/pages/​ER3-Photography/​140898429259782)

Delicious DOUBLE drinks pouring ALL NIGHT LONG by our GORGEOUS bar staff!

Glitter, bubbles, confetti, and OH SO MUCH MORE!

YOUR Place for the best music, drinks, and entertainment on Thursday nights!

NEVER A COVER, 21+ w/ valid ID - OPEN TIL 2AM!

♫♫♫♫♫♫♫♫♫♫♫♫♫ SOUND CHECK HAPPY HOUR ♫♫♫♫♫♫♫♫♫♫♫♫♫
If you just can't wait to get out and start the party...come down early and join us for the ElektroPOP "Sound Check" happy hour! Come enjoy incredible drink specials while we are setting up for the amazing night ahead! Every week from 8pm to 10pm! One of Capitol Hill's BEST happy hours...featuring:

$3 Absolut Cocktails
$3 Micro Drafts
$3 Glasses of House Wine

**************************​**************************​***
ElektroPOP is Presented By:
Sinfinite Productions - www.facebook.com/sinfinite
(aka Arden Turnbull & Jimmy Scarpello)

In conjunction with:
The Baltic Room - www.facebook.com/pages/​The-Baltic-Room/25663234187


Friday April 13, 2012
Lezbro w/ The Blind Photographers (DJ Set)
We're back bitches! Last month Lezbro took a vacation. A much needed vacation. A mental break with which to come back more inspired, more excited, and well, refreshed! But April 13th, it’s on, and we’re back bitches!

This month, Lezbro welcomes a special DJ set by The Blind Photographers! Operating solely by the mid-90’s definition of cool, The Blind Photographers mix and match original sounds reminiscent of the 80’s darker times, early hip-hop's lighter times and 8-bit cell phone ringtones. The resulting outcome? A musical juggling act of computer-generated loops and live sound all converging under the shaky hands of "Cool" Avery Friday (DJ Avery Turnstyle) and RC Brown (DJGeneralMeow). These genre bending gender blenders bring the funk when it comes to DJ sets -- creating an audio hipster trap of dance music hot off the presses, including handmade remixes and mashups, also paying tribute to popular (and should-be-popular) indie dance tracks, underground hip hop and queer classics. This dreamy duo of dandies can make true believers out of wallflowers and still defeat evil at 129bpm. Oh my!

….and of course, LEZBRO would be nothing without our effervescent host, ArtStar! This month ArtStar performs alone, as part of Charlatan Twins, and bring the lovely Amber Marie, who has a few tricks of her own! These two are likely to get us all arrested. Which means DO NOT MISS!

The Wildrose also offers super economical (and by that, we mean CHEAP) cover charge – a mere $5, as well as some incredibly unbelievable drink specials (varies from night to night). This makes Lezbro hard to pass up! So come early for your pre-funk, stumble in late for your wrap-up, or stay all night and don’t miss a thing – but GET THERE! Lezbro….LET’S GO!

LEZBRO is the evolving lovechild of DJ’s LA Kendall and Tony Burns that has become a fun and fabulous Friday night stopover for the queers on the hill. This night for fag hags (ladies that love themselves some gay boys), dyke tykes (guys that pal around with ladies who love ladies) & fruit-flies (straight people that like to hang with the queers) is quite a happening and the antithesis of what you normally see at The Wildrose! COME AS YOU ARE! As always, the dance floor will be flooded with all kinds of party jams! …and in 2012, we have some fabulous things in store for you!

@ The Wildrose (1021 E. Pike St, Seattle, WA, 98122)
9PM – 2AM $5 Cover
CHEAP ASS DRINK SPECIALS!
21 + W/ID


Hope to see you there!

XXX


L.A.K.