Author: Randy Slovacek

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Jaymes Vaughan in QVegas Magazine

Jaymes Vaughan of the Chippendales and CBS' The Amazing Race
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Very proud to have written the cover story for this month’s issue of QVegas Magazine featuring The Chippendales’ Jaymes Vaughan and his coming out story.

Here’s an excerpt of the article:

Vaughan recently released his first single – “Vampire” – as a solo recording artist. Out of several songs he’s written, he chose this song to be his first for a few reasons. “First, deep down inside, I’m like a five year old boy and I want to play a vampire. I’ve always loved vampire movies and vampire TV shows. So I’m thinking there would be a music video and I’ll get to play a vampire. And I did. For three days I was on the set of my upcoming music video with 72 people running around being a vampire.”

“Second, the song is about being in a situation where you can’t be yourself; where you can’t live a part of your life in the daylight; being in a relationship that I can’t share with my family.“

“Living in the light” is a concept that has recently played itself out in Vaughan’s real life the past few months. He recently came out to his family, and their acceptance coupled with the experience of hosting Las Vegas Pride this year, led him to make the decision to live his life in a more open manner, both personally and professionally.

“Hosting Gay Pride in Las Vegas this year, it was the first time I ‘got it.’ I got up on stage and finally understood what “pride” was about. It’s about being proud of your self and encouraging other people to be proud of themselves. The best, most reassuring thing that happened to me at Pride this year: when I came off stage, a little 12 year old boy came up to me and said ‘I want to do what you do.’ And I was like, that was all I wanted when I was a kid. I wanted someone to look up to.”

“I’m really excited about the possibilities of inspiring someone; the possibilities of changing perceptions. I hope to be able to take advantage of a platform so that my fourteen-year-old self that was sitting in Chesterfield County, Virginia, might find some hope. The fourteen year old that had no one to look up to; whose mama told him he better not be gay; whose church told him he was going to hell; whose best friend killed himself because he didn’t “fit in.” Because he didn’t have any hope. I thought for so long you had to cover up who you were to be successful. I’ve realized you can be more successful by being yourself.”

To read the rest, go to QVegas Magazine – THE source for LGBT news and information in Nevada.

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GLEE: Do They Know It’s Christmas?

So, the song itself isn’t as good as the original in my opinion, but the spirit of the scene is great.

Throughout the years, I’ve gone caroling with cast mates of different shows I was in to children’s hospitals, senior citizens homes, and other places that would have us.

Christmas 1991 in Anchorage, I remember caroling at the local children’s hospital with one of our crew guys dressed as Santa. Going from room to room was an uplifting experience seeing the kids perk up at the sight and sounds of Christmas coming to them. Most moving though, was a little boy who hadn’t been able to get out of bed since he came to the hospital. But after leaving his room where Santa gave him a present, he ran down the hall to hug Santa and say ‘thank you.’ That leaves a permanent imprint on your heart.

The experience is usually amazing; you really get back more than you give in those situations. And to be reminded how fortunate you are in life is a good life lesson every now and then.

🙂

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Sarah Palin criticizes the White House Christmas card

SRSLY? She crawls out of the shadows for this?

Former half-term Alaska Governor Sarah Palin attacked the White House holiday card in an article on Fox News Radio.

The front of the card shows the Obamas’ dog, Bo, sitting in a very Christmas-like setting, with a fireplace decorated with wreaths and red ribbons, and a table with a poinsettia plant and presents. “From our family to yours, may your holidays shine with the light of the season,” reads the inside of the card, which is signed by the Obamas (including Bo).

Palin characterized the card as “odd”:

“It’s odd,” she said, wondering why the president’s Christmas card highlights his dog instead of traditions like ‘family, faith and freedom.'”

Palin said a majority of Americans prefer “American foundational values illustrated and displayed on Christmas cards and on a Christmas tree.” With regard to the card, she added, “It’s just a different way of thinking coming out of the White House.”

I personally think the card is very nice and tasteful. Very traditional Americana-esque.

I’m not sure how Ms. Palin comes to her assessment of what “a majority of Americans” want on their Christmas cards. Hard to imagine she’s done some research on the subject – especially when we know she doesn’t like to read much.

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Newt Gingrich to gay man: Vote for Obama

Scott Arnold

Newt Gingrich told a gay Iowan that he should vote for President Barack Obama when the man asked him about gay rights, the Des Moines Register reported.

Gingrich reportedly made the comment during an event Tuesday at Smokey Row coffee house in Oskaloosa.

“I asked him if he’s elected, how does he plan to engage gay Americans. How are we to support him? And he told me to support Obama,” said Scott Arnold, an adjunct professor of writing at William Penn University.”

Arnold, a Democrat, said he came to the event at Smokey Row coffee house with an open mind. But he wanted to ask Gingrich about how he would represent him as president after reading past comments the former U.S. House Speaker has made about gay and lesbians.

“When you ask somebody a question and you expect them to support all Americans and have everyone’s general interest. It’s a little bit frustrating and disheartening when you’re told to support the other side. That he doesn’t need your support.”

Gingrich recently pledged to two conservative groups that as president he would work against marriage equality by supporting a federal constitutional amendment banning gay marriage and offering a vigorous defense of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA).

At an October campaign stop in Iowa, Gingrich said that gay marriage “is a temporary aberration that will dissipate.”

“It doesn’t inspire hope at all,” Arnold added. “And if that’s what he’s trying to do and that’s what he’s trying to say, that this is a collective effort if he’s elected president, yet he tells me to support the other side?”

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Sensitive Santas help autistic children share in holiday memories

From the AP: For many children with autism, visiting the mall to share Christmas wishes with Santa has never been part of their childhood, a sad but necessary concession to the autism that would make the noise, lights and crowds an unbearable torment.

Now, though, a growing number of “sensitive” Santas in shopping centers, at community parties and elsewhere are giving some of those children a chance to meet the big guy in autism-friendly settings – and providing families a chance to capture elusive Christmas photos and memories that families of typical children may take for granted.

For many families, those small moments captured in pictures and memories are a holiday gift of their own: a chance to go beyond the constraints of autism and experience a Christmas tradition with their children that might not otherwise be possible.

Below are some suggestions from the University of Washington Autism Center for creating a more positive and friendly Santa experience for your child:

  • Make a picture book or visual schedule to prepare your child for the event.
  • Familiarize your child with the location and setting in advance by taking photos or bringing your child to watch Santa from afar.
  • Give your child practice going through the steps of visiting Santa (e.g., waiting in line, walking up the steps to Santa’s chair, etc.) at times when the store or mall is quiet and Santa is not present.
  • Bring a toy (such as a squeeze ball) that your child can hold and play with while waiting in line.
  • Provide a “First-Then” schedule that illustrates the reward your child will get after the Santa visit.
  • Role play with your child how he or she can respond to questions that Santa might ask. Better yet, tell Santa what questions to ask your child.

Consider asking the store or mall management to designate a special time for children with autism to visit Santa. Examples of specific accommodations that might be helpful are:

  • Lower or turn off the music.
  • Dim the lights.
  • Schedule Santa at a time when the mall or store is typically closed to shoppers.
  • Provide training to Santa and his helpers about how the social, language, and behavioral features of autism might affect children’s ability to interact with Santa.
  • Use masking tape to mark the floor with arrows (to indicate the route that children will take to get to Santa) and “X”s (to indicate where children should stand or sit).
  • Create a “quiet area” where children can go if they begin to feel overwhelmed or distressed.
  • Create a “play area” where children can go to entertain themselves while waiting for their turn with Santa.
  • Use a numbering system so children do not need to stand in line while waiting for their turn.
  • Move all delicate or breakable items away from the Santa area.
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Hospital denies lesbian visit with partner

The chief executive officer of Rolling Hills Hospital in Franklin, TN, plans to apologize to a lesbian woman who was denied visitation rights with her partner.

Val Burke was not allowed to see her partner who is in the psychiatric hospital’s residential unit — a violation of new federal anti-discrimination guidelines.

Under recent federal regulations, patients at most hospitals across the country are allowed to choose who has visitation rights. These rules apply to all hospitals that participate in Medicare and Medicaid.

“It was human error,” said Richard “Rick” Bangert, chief executive officer of Rolling Hills. “They made a mistake. When I learned of it, I immediately met with my staff on Monday. We immediately made the change in terms of making sure that our policy was very clear.”

The Human Rights Campaign, the nation’s largest civil rights organization for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people, called on hospitals to review their visitation policies to prevent similar incidents from occurring.

“Discrimination in a personal medical setting may be one of the worst forms of discrimination LGBT people face,” said HRC President Joe Solmonese. “Federal regulations were put in place for precisely this reason, to stamp discrimination out of the healthcare process and allow all people to be by their loved ones during their most vulnerable moments.”

Read more at the Tennessean