InterstateQ.com

Hello Charlotte!

Today is the day I finally leave my mother’s home to make it own my own. After 21 years and some odd months, I’m off to “the big city” (like the only one we really have in North Carolina) to a new job, a new home (although home will always be Mom’s house) and a new beginning.

And another new beginning you’ve obviously already noticed: InterstateQ.com has a new re-design celebrating my move and my new life experience. Hope you like it; if you experience any problems, let me know.

I’ve been a bit secretive over why I’m moving and what job I’ll be taking although I’ve told plenty of close friends and family. I’ll leave everyone else to wait ’till the big announcement.

I’ve got everything packed up and almost loaded on to my uncle’s truck and my car. We head out of Winston-Salem at about 9:00am and will pick up my keys to my new apartment at 11:00am. After about an hour or so of un-packing there, Mom will drive off and maybe then the reality of this whole new life experience will set in.

When I went on the Soulforce Equality Ride in March and April 2007, I think it took a week or two for that reality to set in and really take a hold on me. I wonder how long it will take this time? Maybe it will hit me when I realize tonight as I get ready to go to bed that I don’t have Mom to say goodnight to as I head off to my bedroom.

I’m excited… so excited to be entering this chapter of my life. I’ll be having a stable, fun, exciting job that I’m absolutely stoked over and passionate about, but yet a job that continues to allow me to serve daily the LGBT community and in working to ensure that more people have a chance of seeing those principles and ideals forever enshrined in our founding documents and in the spirit that is America.

I’ll be putting together a little video blog/movie of my move. It’ll be up by this weekend.

And while you are waiting for me to get over my personal life and get back to my blogging… Take in some brief news from around the blogosphere:

MediaMatters: North Carolina’s daily newspapers dominated by conservatives, leaving progressive voices behind - Media Matters for America has released a report on the presence of conservative vs. centrist vs. progressive columnists in America’s daily newspaper Op-Ed sections. They’ve released some state-by-state data including North Carolina. Although Media Matters says that my beloved state is dominated by conservatives, I counted that the conservatives and progressives weren’t all that far apart. According to Media Matters, NC papers had a presence of 43 conservative columnists, 12 centrist columnists and 36 progressive columnists. While there are certainly more conservative columnists (don’t be shocked, this is North Carolina after all), there really isn’t that big of a difference between 43 and 36. I’d like to know if their Op-Ed study included a good survey and review of the politics of each of the newspaper’s editorial boards?

Soulforce members sit-in for marriage - On September 24, 2007, two Soulforce members sat-in at a local magistrate’s office demanding the right to marry. According to Queerty.com, Kate Burns and Sheila Schroeder sat-in at a Denver, CO, municipal building and were eventually arrested. The official Soulforce press release is here.

PS - I’ve still got a few tiny things to fix on the new design, but for the most part it is finished. It is best viewable on newer Microsoft Internet Explorers and alternative viewers like Mozilla’s Firefox. Someone with a Mac and Safari needs to fill me in.