Blog Posts + Articles + Happenings
It’s Your Call: Will Reform Happen?
Yesterday in DC, opponents of health care reform gathered to wave signs and chant their claims that they are more patriotic than those who want to provide decent, affordable and ethical health care to their countrymen.As Tool Academy standout and Matthew Shepard...
“V” Is For Virginia
When I was a kid, I loved the sci-fi series, V. So I was optimistically excited about the premiere of the new take on the story of aliens who descend on Earth and gain our trust before revealing... a darker agenda.Remember this? V was awesome. It was like...
Hate Crime Legislation, Ryan White CARE Act, HIV Travel Ban
In the last several days, President Obama has signed anti-hate crimes in law, the Ryan White CARE Act Reauthorization Bill and also lifted the travel ban on people with HIV. Here's video of him explaining who Ryan White was, and why lifting the ban is important. The...
Hemo2Homo on the End of Geocities
On Monday, October 26, 2009, Geocities, one of the first internet communities, closed it's cyberdoors. I didn't even know it was happening until word started to spread around Facebook today. You could call Geocities the original Facebook. If there was something before...
Poz Coverboy Takes On Oprah
Apparently I missed Oprah's recent show on HIV/AIDS; sounds like I saved myself a bunch of grief. Instead of having positive examples on prevention and awareness, it sounded like yet another "positoid-as-monster" story. Jack Mackenroth is a proud positoid, Poz...
Ryan White: A Reason to Smile
With all the concerns over health insurance reform and how that would help out people living with HIV, positoids managed to score a major victory on the Hill this week when the Ryan White CARE Act was extended for four more years.Check out the Poz.com article here....
Band of Blood Brothers: COTT Turns 20
One of the biggest thrills I've had lately was being invited as a "hemophilia humorist" to the 20th anniversary of the Committee of Ten Thousand (COTT) on October 2nd in Washington, DC. COTT was formed by people with hemophilia who were infected with HIV to...
Last Weekend’s Rally, Interview and Video
Check out this page on Poz.com, which has video of last weekend's HIV/AIDS rally. You can see a clip of me and Marshall kicking things off with a Synthetic Division jam. Sean Strub introduced us in his "Tainted Bloods" jacket with the big red skull; he informed the...
Rocking For Equality in DC
Went for a third consecutive weekend in DC, this time playing some music with my bandmate, Marshall Camden. Here's a picture of us looking all rockstar-like on the Ellipse in front of the White House, where the rally took place. The Ellipse itself is a huge,...
Equality to End AIDS Rally/Vigil in DC on Saturday
This Saturday my band, Synthetic Division, will be kicking off the Equality to End AIDS Rally/Vigil in Washington DC. All the pertinent information is below- but basically this is a call to action that is coordinated with the Equality March on Sunday. The hope is to...
Accepting the Courage Award and Dedication to Ethan
I was somewhat concerned going into the district with the highest infection rate in the United States dressed as a lemon. But when I took the stage after Don from Whitman-Walker introduced me as someone living with AIDS, I posed for a moment to give everyone a...
The Reveal of Me as “LemonAIDS”
This past weekend in DC was incredible. I had the privilege to do a My Pet Virus reading at the Committee of Ten Thousand's 20 Year Survivors on Friday evening, then got to walk with Team Supersnack in the AIDS Walk in DC, raising over $34,000 with our group. And I...
Our Dear/Deer Friends at Berry College
Gwenn and I ended September with a long overdue trip to Berry College last Wednesday. It all started a couple of years ago, when a peer educator named Michelle saw us speak at a conference. Since then, she has been working to have us at her campus. It's always an...
An Evening Without Politics
I've been a little political as of late; if you call thinking that health care reform and health care in general shouldn't be motivated solely by profit margins. So it was quite refreshing when I was invited to last Friday's "An Evening Without Politics", which was...
AIDS Walk Goal Met… Walking As a Lemon
Check out the thermometer below- Gwenn and I met our goal of raising $2000! Thanks to everyone who donated to the AIDS Walk DC, which is this Saturday. Of course, the fundraising isn't over yet- Team Supersnack never stops, and is currently #2, trailing only behind...
I’m In The Washington Post Today
I disappeared from the blog for a few days for a much-needed writing excursion, spending four days away from home and focusing on fixing the project I shall never blog about because I care about having readers of the blog. (Hint- the project is the second book that,...
Remember It Now Beta Trials
I was recently contacted by Alex, who has become my most faithful blog commenter (thanks, Alex!), about passing along an offer to join their beta trial for a service that is intended to make life for positoids a lot easier. If you are interested in participating in...
Ethan Zohn, A Better Man
Friend and HIV/AIDS advocate Ethan Zohn was diagnosed with cancer earlier this year, and just got some bad news that the cancer has returned. He'll be starting on a new round of intensive stem cell treatment...I'd blogged about him recently, he's such an ally to...
Team Supersnack Cracks the Top 5!
I may have fallen out of the Top 5 individual fundraisers (for now!), but my Team, Supersnack, has shot into the Top 5 with a bullet. Currently, we are at Number 3! Very cool news... So, I'm inspired to put some fundraising incentives out there. The next person to...
The Story of the Dragon*Condom
The primary mission was always clear at Dragon*Con- get as many people to Bella Morte's show and merch table as possible! Gwenn and I helped organize a Bella Morte "Zombie March" on the *Con before the show, with signs and tons of cool folks who volunteered to chant...
The Wrath of *Con Crud
Two years ago after Dragon*Con there was a steady stream of internet messages about "Con Crud". Basically, Con*Crud was series of colds that were passed around, merely because of the fact that over 15,000 people were in close quarters for three days. This...
Down, But Not Out
So the trip to Dragon*Con -which I'll be blogging about more tomorrow- cost me my Top 5 spot in the AIDS Walk Washington DC standings. Since I wasn't out there hustling for donations, some other guy came in and knocked me out of the top five by about $300... I'm...
Ranked #5 in AIDS (Non)Apathy Walk!
In the last few days Gwenn and I have become the #5 fundraiser for the entire AIDS Walk DC. For reals! I am beyond humbled by the response to the last blog entry, which I was hoping would get at least a hundred dollars in donations: instead, we got close...
AIDS Apathy Walk 2009
I'm tired of AIDS. I'm tired of telling people I have AIDS. It's not that it's a downer- it's just that after 22 years of living with HIV and 12 years of educating it's starting to get... well, old hat. Of course, I love surviving AIDS and raising...
Speaking at Stuarts Draft High School
On Wednesday morning, I drove over the mountain... My destination? Stuarts Draft High School, which is just four miles down the road from the last house I lived in during my Waynesboro Days. (Ages 5 to 23, respectively) An old friend, Allison Jones Sprouse, teaches...
The Lion Sleeps Tonight: Ted Kennedy 1932-2009
People with disabilities have lost a hero in the Senate with the passing of Ted Kennedy. On Twitter, this tribute was displayed by (and presumably created by) someone who goes by Antivellum Zero. I couldn't agree more. Thanks for looking out for the little- and sick-...
The Cost of Blood
At a town hall meeting in Colorado last week, Nathan Wilkes introduced President Obama. Nathan, the father of a 6-year old with hemophilia, explained the ridiculous costs that many families with hemophilia know all too well. Here's a YouTube clip of Nathan...
Almost Toasted at Lowe’s
I've been a lame blogger for the last week, in part because I've just felt a little lame overall. Not sure if it's the summer heat, but my energy levels and motivation have been quite low. Speaking of feeling low, I somehow ended up in one of my least favorite places...
Health Care: A Call For Positoids to Share Stories
Health care can be tough for people living with HIV, and it's important that we pool our experiences and be a part of the healthcare debate that has erupted all over the country. If you want to be heard, there's a survey where you can share you experiences here. Some...
On Blog Talk Radio
Today at 2 PM (EST), Gwenn and I will be guests on the POZIAM Radio Show on Blog Talk Radio, hosted by fellow positoids Robert Breining and Jack Mackenroth. Tune in here.I met Robert online a few years ago but we've never spoken, so I'm really looking forward to...