On my birthday bike trip, I spent my birthday itself in Boston and its suburbs.  I decided to give myself a break from the bike seat for the day, so I got around on foot and by public transit.  After breakfasting at my hotel, I walked a few blocks through a residential neighborhood to pick … Read more

In May I participated in the Northampton LGBT Pride parade with a group from work for the third year in a row.  This year the parade route went a different direction than it had previously.  Instead of progressing into downtown, with the rally in a parking lot there, the parade started downtown and went out … Read more

Today I got an e-mail from MoveOn.org, whose mailing list I’ve been on for years. The group often sends out alerts to readers about political issues that require some action, or online petitions needing signatures.  Much of the time, the items mentioned in the message are already known to me from other news sources, or … Read more

You’ve probably read and heard a lot of news about high profile elections that occurred yesterday.  I’m quite happy with a number of referendum outcomes in other states, but I think the neatest electoral result from the day is one that wouldn’t be known much outside of Massachusetts. That would be the victory of Alex … Read more

This year, my workplace, Holyoke Health Center, registered a contingent in the Northampton LGBT Pride parade, and I was one of the people who marched.  Despite living in the Pioneer Valley for 5 years, I had not before ever seen this parade, mainly because it isn’t held at the same time as in other parts … Read more

Even though the news is a bit old now, I wanted to post in commemoration of 2 more U.S. states gaining same-sex marriage.  For those who haven’t heard the news: On April 3, the Iowa Supreme Court declared unconstitutional a state law limiting marriage to a union between a man and a woman.  The ruling … Read more

(Note: After being busy with house buying and moving for a few months, I’m finally getting back to the blog.  This is the first of a few posts I meant to put up much earlier.) On the way home from my Michigan trip in early July, I made a stop in upstate New York.  Many … Read more

I discovered this quiz via Amyable’s blog. According to the result I should be supporting Dennis for president. Fortunately, I already am! I’ll be voting for him on Super-duper-mega Tuesday here in Massachusetts (known simply as February 5 for the half of the country that doesn’t vote that day). 93% Dennis Kucinich 92% Mike Gravel … Read more

I totally didn’t see or hear this reported in news outlets that I usually monitor, but a judge in Iowa has ruled that same-sex couples cannot be denied marriage licenses.  Fortunately, I got the news from my friend Stasa’s blog.  The story can be found at the Des Moines Register’s site. This ruling, if it … Read more

If you’ve seen any beer advertising (and who can escape it?), you’ve probably noticed that it’s often something other than beer they’re selling in the ads. A billboard for Budweiser recently popped up in our neck of the woods – it’s on Route 9 as you head East over the river from Northampton into Hadley, … Read more