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Tag Archives: Glee

2012: A Year in Review

Tonight is the last Friday night of 2012, exactly one week after the world was supposed to end. A lot has happened in 2012, and I decided to highlight everything significant that happened to me this year, month by month.

gs2012

It’s been one heck of a year at GingerSass.

January

Not much happened in January. I turned 22, which was actually a better birthday than my 21st. My friend convinced the bartender at a local bar that I should be given a free bottle of champagne because my 21st coincided with a blizzard and I didn’t get to celebrate. I received a stuffed unicorn and zebra print seat covers from my parents. I, once again, pleaded to Ellen as to why we should celebrate our birthday together and she ignored me. Ya know, the usual.

February

I made it onto PostSecret for the first time. Whitney Houston died and I was devastated so I wrote a poem. Ryan Murphy pissed me off so I wrote him an angry tumblr post turned into a letter, which he never responded to.

March

March was a very important month for me– I STARTED GINGERSASS! (All of the posts posted before March 25th were transferred from my tumblr site.) Fun fact– GingerSass was started because I was pretending to be an investigative reporter at the Sex, Love, and Dating Conference. Also, Adrienne Rich died, which devastated me. A lot.

April

April freaking rocked. Highlights of the month include:

-volunteering with NOH8 and later being featured on their website
-meeting Frank Warren at my first PostSecret event
- saw an opera and a concert in one week
-my Poefy (poetry-wifey) was fantabulous in The Vagina Monologues and I wrote about it

May

May was a good month for me. Obama came out in support of gay marriage. I won an award. I graduated college. Life was pretty awesome to me in May.

June

June was an interesting month. I started it out writing about suicide after finding out that the partner of my friend who had committed suicide also committed suicide. I wrote a bunch of 10 Minute Musings for a grad class and reconnected with myself. I came out to my family as a blogger, with the support of Cady McClain, aka Dixie from All My Children. I even inspired her alter-ego, Suzy F*cking Homemaker, to create an internet meme. Suzy also encouraged me to write a post on why I want to be a celesbian…so I did. I also  booked and performed my first paid poetry gig, which was pretty darn awesome.

July

July started off with a roadtrip to Massachusetts with Poefy to the wedding of Taylor and Mike. I basked in the glory of cheeseball goodness. (This post is still one of my most-visited posts, btw.) I fell in love with my job over the summer. I also figured out What Obama Taught Me. I indulged in Restaurant Week. Then I got serious about my blog, invested in an actually site host, got free magnets, and was overwhelmed by the idea of going to BlogHer. I also posted about teacher dress codes, which is also one of my most-visited posts of all time.

August

August started off with me going to BlogHer’12 and MY LIFE CHANGING FOREVER. I made so many blogging friends through BlogHer, and I’m going to (eventually) categorize them on her so you can so who I’m reading. I also won a happy hour party in August and celebrated with wings and food at a local bar with my friends. Woohoo! To top August off, I started my new job, got an apartment to go along with it, and ruminated on why Res Life will always be a part of me.

September

September was an emotional, crazy month. I had an awesome first week of September. I was a national runner up to be the next Verizon Ultimate Insider, mentioned on AfterEllen, and yogurt was on sale. I made it through the one year deathaversary of my friend’s suicide, and I participated in yet another walk for dead people. September was emotional, tough, and trying, but I got through it.

October

October started off with me reflecting on how much I love my car. I also met Jack Hanna, which was a childhood dream come true. I had a kickass lesson on bullying on National Coming Out Day and fell even more in love with teaching. I went to the Dodge Poetry Festival for the first time as an educator, and I helped my students fall in love with poetry. I met Geena Davis and she told me, “You’re changing the world to be a place I want to be in. Keep up the good work.” I saw Melissa Etheridge in concert. I survived Hurricane Sandy, was really upset that Sandy canceled Halloween, and was upset by the whole Sandy experience.

November

November feels like such a long time ago. I participated in NaBloPoMo for the first time and wrote about how I’m a Jersey girl, how Sandy domesticated me, and what Obama’s win meant to me. I also talked about bacon, ghosts, and just how important it was that I found my voice again by going to poetry open mics. I cut my hair, took silly webcam pics, and thought about my future. I ended my first NaBloPoMo experience by being grateful for stickers, and really having peace in knowing that I’m on the right track for what I want to do with my life.

December

December flew by. I think the biggest thing that happened to me this month, right before my student teaching internship ended, was that I realized why I want to teach. I arranged for an assembly for my Creative Writing students, and  it really changed my relationship with them forever. It taught one student to not be afraid to be who she is, and this, in return, encouraged me to come out to her. She then wrote me a note and made me cry. Then the Newtown, Connecticut shooting happened and it hit really close to home, as it was the first school shooting that has happened since I began student teaching. My students asked me if I would take a bullet for them, and I was able to respond honestly and say yes. Student teaching ended, and I managed to make it to the parking lot after school before crying. I got creeped out by the whole Elf on a Shelf phenomenon, but secretly loved my creepy little elf.

2012 was a year of growth. I rediscovered my writing identity, and GingerSass became a very large part of who I am. I’m grateful for the opportunities blogging has given me this past year, and I cannot wait to see what 2013 holds.

Happy New Year, folks! What are you looking forward to in 2013?

PS I’m not sure if I’ll be able to attend or not, but if you’ll be at home this NYE, consider joining in on #Tweetin13. There are prizes, fun people, and it’s hosted by two of my favorite ladies. Get on it!

Glee goes to Nationals!

Holllllly crap.

Tina had lines!

This really must be a sign the apocalypse is near.

Okay, seriously, the first 20 mins of this week’s Glee episode was INSANE and not in a good way. It was insane in the Grey’s Anatomy-as-a-musical sort of way. It was a complete WASTE of Jenna Ushkowitz’s talents (except for the fact that she actually got lines.)

There was sooo much going on in the two-episode bit on Tuesday. Let’s list what went down:

  • Tina was at the mall fabric shopping (they have a fabric store in the mall?!) and she was bitching about Rachel Berry…well, being Rachel Berry. She was texting Mike and she tripped and fell into a fountain, where she blacked out. during her blackout, everyone switched bodies. This only lasted 20 minutes of the first hour so obviously Ryan Murphy was just trying to pacify Tina fans with 20 mins of Tina-centric tidbits (that were actually Rachel Berry centric).

Sue as Will actually made me squeal lesbian squeals of delight. That’s the only switcheroo that made me happy.

  • Tina comes back to reality and is all Team Rachel now. Whichhhhh brings us to them going on a roadtrip to stalk Madame Tibideaux and beg her to come watch Rachel at Nationals. Whoopi’s character is all “Oh not this stupid bitch again!” until Tina says what we all know: Rachel is a pain in the ass, but she always gets what she wants. Blahblahblah.
  • Puck gets into a fight with Rick the Stick and is thrown in a dumpster. Our dearly beloved Puck’s reign appears to be over…until he jumps out of the dumspter with a knife. What the fuck, Puck?! Beiste jumps in and drags his sorry ass to the locker room, where they share (what was) my favorite scene in Glee. Puck breaks down and explains why he’s a failure and then starts crying in Beiste’s arms. Beiste starts crying to and the two have this amazing embrace where she says, “You and me, we’re badasses. Nobody thinks anything hurts us, but it does.” *swoons*
  • Beiste, who has an abusive husband, gets the courage to leave him. Then we see Puck on stage and my NEW favorite scene in Glee happens. Puck & Beiste sing Taylor Swift’s “Mean” together and it makes my heart melt. Best. Bromance. EVER.[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=enAUQ8IkZ-o&feature=related]
    This is the moment I fell in love with the Bromance known as Puck & Beiste <3

  • Now it’s the second episode. Mercedes has food poisoning and Sue is nursing her back to health. She may not be better for Nationals so everyone is freaking the hell out. Blahblahblah peptalk blah. The Glee kids can do anything! You know the drill.
  • NATIONALS TIME! Mercedes is better. New Directions is up first. They beast it with the Troubletones singing “Edge of Glory.” Rachel freaks out because Madame Tibideaux isn’t there yet, and Finn is all “you can do it!” The music starts, and Rachel is Rachel with Celine Dion’s “It’s All Coming Back to Me Now.” Surprise! Madame Tibideaux shows up as Rachel starts singing. That wasn’t at all predictable. Then the New Directions sing Meatloaf’s “Paradise by the Dashboard Light” which, in all honesty, just reminded me of family Sweet 16s.
  • Lindsay Lohan, Perez Hilton, and Alderman Fong are the Nationals judges. They sit in the middle of the audience, not front row center, which makes no sense to me. Everyone sings, and the judges bicker in some room about Perez blogging about Lindsay, who is qualified to be a Nationals judge, and, oh yea, who should win.

  • NEW DIRECTIONS WINS! I honestly think it’s because the old people in walkers weren’t competing against them.
  • In a longggg montage, we find out that the Glee kids weren’t slusheed, but confetti’d, they’re popular, Mr. Schue and Emma finally have sex, Sue is back to being head coach of the Cheerios, and, in my favorite part of the episode, that Brittany and Santana actually kiss and have some lady lovin’. (But what about Kurt and Blaine? Wah.)


    The only part of winning Nationals that matters– Brittana smoochin’! For real!

  • As per the request of Principal Figgins, Rachel & Finn present Mr. Schue with Teacher of the Year. Because, you know, lying about knowing Spanish as a Spanish teacher really qualifies you for this prestigious award. (I’m so glad I’m going into the teaching profession.)

Now that I’m done recapping…

What the fuck was with all the transphobia/ stereotypes in the first episode leading up to Nationals?

I had major beef with Ryan Murphy after the Glee Winter Finale, and now I have beef with the stupid remarks that made it to the final cut. I get that most of them were from Sue, but really? Sue calls Kurt “Porcelina Hummel.” She keeps pushing for him to perform in drag. It goes on… and on… and on.

Seriously, cut it with the drag jokes, Ryan Murphy. You’re not funny. They’re not funny, even coming from the beloved Jane Lynch. Weget it. Haha. Gay man. Drag. Let’s fulfill as many gay stereotypes as possible so we can pretend to be THE MOST ACCEPTING SHOW ON TV!

Ryan Murphy really pisses me off sometimes, ugh.

Anyway. The two hour special wasn’t that exciting. It was disappointing. I’m really happy  with the moments Beiste had in the first half, and I’m really happy with the fact that New Directions finally won Nationals, even if they probably didn’t deserve it.

I googled the Glee Graduation, and I found this preview of next week’s Graduation episode. Enjoy. It made me get teary eyed. (Okay, cry. Whatever.)

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PuJOYbM50eo]

Obama on Same-Sex Marriage

Okay, I have a lot of topics to catch up on (emotions! graduating college! etc!) but I find it basically obligatory for me to write about President Obama’s coming out as a supporter of gay marriage.

http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/president-obama-cites-winds-change-sex-marriage-shift/story?id=16315420#.T7G8Bp9Ys98

For those of you who didn’t know, I’m gay. For those of you who live under a rock, President Obama recently sat down with Robin Roberts and declared his support for same-sex marriage.

“At a certain point, I’ve just concluded that, for me personally, it is important for me to go ahead and affirm that I think same-sex couples should be able to get married,” he said.

I am proud of our President. I am proud that he is (finally) standing up for what is right, but like many other skeptics of his announcement, I believe his stance on same-sex marriage means absolutely nothing unless there is actual change. People have been fighting for the right to same-sex marriage for YEARS. In 2008, the fight for same-sex marriage was really picking up. Thousands upon thousands of people across the country united in the fight against Prop 8. The NOH8 campaign was launched to show the unity and support for equality, and how nobody would be silenced by others. Rallies have spread across the country like wildfire to support gay rights, and same-sex marriage.

Me at a rally following the passing of Prop 8 in November 2008. I had mixed feelings– our country finally had a biracial President, but humans were stripped of their rights on the same night. My poster reads, “Farm animals gained more CIVIL RIGHTS on Nov. 4th than PEOPLE.”

Bottomline, the fight for gay rights (and I say gay, not lgbt, because trans individuals are really lacking in rights… don’t get me started on that!) is nothing new. What’s new is the fact that a President has the courage to say what is right, and to stand up for those who are marginalized and deprived of simple human rights on a daily basis. Unfortunately, just saying same-sex couples should be able to get married isn’t enough. Doing something about it will change the world, no doubt, but it won’t be enough until ALL individuals who fall under the LGBTQQIA spectrum have equal rights.

Now, I need to point out a few things that I’ve been thinking about regarding the President’s coming out as a supporter.

  1. “The First Gay President”


    Okay, let’s clear something up: Obama is not “The First Gay President.” He is the first open supporter of marriage equality who happens to be a president. As far as we all know, there has not been a gay president yet. (Or at least an out one!) Save that title for someone in the future… It’s inaccurate.You can read an article on it here. I really don’t feel like writing much about it. (I’ve been writing this blog while watching Glee. Expect a Glee blog in a few days!)

    http://www.thedailybeast.com/newsweek/2012/05/13/andrew-sullivan-on-barack-obama-s-gay-marriage-evolution.html

  2. Obama on The View

    I hate The View. They annoy me 9 times out of 10. Elisabeth Hasselbeck is a stupid bitch. I just don’t like the show… I prefer The Talk. however, today’s episode was funny, serious, and showed the human side of Obama. Which I loved… in particular, I liked when the ladies quizzed him on his pop culture knowledge. He’ll probably receive a lot of flack for it, but I liked it. It showed the human side of Obama.

    [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=uWGzlrNDGTU]

     

  3. Robin Roberts is a sexy closet lesbian. What a perfect plug!

    Does anyone else find it *PERFECT* that Obama came out as a supporter in an interview with Robin Roberts? She’s my favorite closet lesbian, ever. It seems perfect that Robin asked Obama the question all the gays have been waiting for an answer to…Now if only she’d (finally) come out! 

I’m proud to live in a country that is (slowly) moving in the right direction of equal rights. I just hope that, with all the hoopla with gay marriage, the other letters in the lgbtqqia spectrum won’t be forgotten. After all, EVERYBODY deserves equal rights.

Oh, and for more on my thoughts on Same-Sex Marriage, check out my blog from last month on my volunteer experiences with the NOH8 Campaign.