I know I just posted like ten minutes ago or something, but a news story that definitely would have been in my Bottom Five is the cyber bullying of Tyler Clementi by Dharun Ravi, his roommate, and Molly Wei at Rutgers University. The actions of Ravi and Wei led to Clementi's suicide.

Tim Gunn, one of my favorite people in the world, is speaking out about suicide for the Trevor Project.

If you read my blog frequently you know that gay rights is a big issue for me. It baffles me that people use religion and bigotry as righteousness to mask their fear of a segment of the population that is just as human as the rest of us. What's worse is that most of these people don't even know any gays or lesbians, although it's my guess that they do and don't know it. How we continue to force people to live in the shadows because of baseless hatred is a real tragedy of "civilized" society. However, I do think there is hope on the horizon. I hate to say it but I do believe that when the older generation dies out there will be a sea change. I think I'll see the repeal of Don't Ask, Don't Tell and the freedom for gays to marry across the country in my lifetime.

I was surprised and saddened to hear that Gunn attempted suicide as a teenager but applaud his candor in this video. I totally wish we were besties.

With No Alarms And No Surprises

It's hard for me to blog when I'm not feeling particularly interesting. Most days when I'm home go by in a hazy blur of ITL. See, those Jersey Shore kids have gym-tan-laundry and I have internet-tv-laundry. Not quite as exciting, I admit, but I'm definitely not getting punched in the face as much so there's that.

I've had a real love/hate relationship with Kentucky ever since I moved here in 2004. Things I love: all this green, my neighborhood, the fact that two of my closest friends here are cool republicans (shocking, right?), and a life that is simple. Things I don't love: how insular it is, being judged for living in Oldham County, being judged based on what high school I went to (one you've never heard of, I'm sure), and a life that is simple. See, at the heart of it I don't think I'm cut out for a life this easy. It sounded great when I moved here and I was tour managing bands. How wonderful to come home after a long grueling tour to a place where I could just veg out and do nothing. But now I'm basically a housewife languishing at the East End Target with the rest of the other housewives, and while I used to pray I would never have the sort of weary desperate look on my face that I see so many of them wearing, now I'm pretty sure I do.

So I'm planning my exit strategy. I'm not sure if 2012 will be the year I take flight or the year the world ends. Maybe it will be both. In that case, I'll have a front row ticket, I'm sure, ensconced once again in my beloved Los Angeles. A place that when all is said and done is home for me.

I'm not knocking Kentucky - and there's a chance I won't be going anywhere if we can't save enough moolah. Kentucky is a lovely place... I'm just not sure we were meant to be. And it's not a conundrum that can be solved by going to a different Target.

Well, that was a bummer! Here's something to rectify this post: