The Sweetest of Holidays

I walk around with a smile plastered on my silly face these days. I am drunk with hope and joy.  Anger and hurt feelings I use to nurse religiously have melted away.

Why?

I have a job.

Miracle of miracles – a job.

The answer to a million prayers – a job.

If you are unemployed you know the sheer depth of  that word.

The simple joy of going to work will be mine.

This past year has been the most challenging of my life. For months I barely moved, frozen in fear of losing everything.  Every noise frightened me – were they taking my car, turning off my utilities or serving legal papers?  I cried myself to sleep more nights than I can count; many days I thought I couldn’t go on.  I felt a failure, a terrible, awful failure.

But I did go on, sometimes in tears and more often than not a mess of tangled emotions.  How I made it through is a miracle. I always had food. I kept my car. I managed to keep looking for work and be positive for interviews.

How?

Through the grace and love of friends.

Friends who called me to let me know they knew what I was going through. Friends who fed me, paid a bill, or two, or more.  And my mom who never stopped listening and caring for me – even though she is a little forgetful at times.

I am so lucky, so blessed.

From the bottom of my heart – thank you.

The Eyes of the Buddha Holiday Shopping Guide – UPDATED

Buddha’s eyes are shown to remind us to have compassion towards all living creatures. Hither and Yon

Look around, these are hard times.  People who never in a million years thought they would be out of a job, are looking for work. Those lucky enough to have a job are still reeling after a year of gas prices that can best be described as obscene.  Now winter is upon us making it even harder for families to make ends meet.  To top it off, it is the holidays.

How can we celebrate this season, however we celebrate it, in the midst of all this suffering?

The answer is – we celebrate mindfully – with open eyes and an open heart.

First we look, without turning away, at what our neighbors and communities are experiencing – then we do something within our celebrations, however small, to make a difference.

How to share your celebration

Shop mindfully – support those merchants and artists who give back to the local and global community.

Give your shopping dollar twice the impact – buy from merchants who share the wealth and resources this holiday season. Closest to my heart is Cleveland Heights merchant City Buddha (the first presents my youngest son gave me were from City Buddha’s Ohio City Store – one particularly lean year he gave me a Buddha Sticker with an offer of a free meal on the reverse side – I never redeemed it) who is sponsoring a month long food drive. Bring a nonperishable food item and not only will you get a 5% discount on your purchase, City Buddha will deliver the food and match that 5% with a cash donation to the Cleveland Foodbank.  Get the details here – City Buddha’s Buddha’s Bowl Food Drive

Think outside the gift box with certificate for services. You may not realize how big an impact you can make with a certificate for a hair cut, beauty services or massage and healing to someone in need.   More importantly, you probably don’t realize how much the service providers give, sometimes anonymously, to the community. You know they are top on your list when you need a donation for your silent auctions and raffles.  You can thank them, and make sure they will be there the next time you need them, by buying gift certificates.   It’s time to give back.

My recommendations:

Lorna Richman, craniosacral therapist, licensed massage therapist and Reiki master.  Lorna is a gifted healer, craniosacral therapist and teacher. You can make an appointment with Lorna by calling 216 371 2321. Be sure to check out her free classes this January at the Coventry library.

Neal Szpatura, Tarot Reader, Shamanic Practitioner and  writer.  Neal is more than a psychic, he is an intuitive life coach, a law of attraction teacher and all round mensch. You can contact Neal at 216 371 3433 or by email to nealdragon @ aol.com. Check out his website – Shamanspath (Internet Explorer only) and his Shamanspath’s blog (be sure to sign up for his daily inspirational email). For a special holiday treat listen to Neal’s original radio play “Alexandra, the Christmas Imp” on WKSU.

Sarva Natural Soaps are exquisite works of practical art created by local artisan Michelle Gilbert.  Made in small quantities with the highest quality ingredients  everyone on your holiday list will feel blessed by these treasures – I know I do.

Cut Hair Studio – a friendly and hip neighborhood shop offering quality service with kindness.  An hour spent at Cut will make you look good and feel good.

For the readers on your list, choose local writer and activist Christopher Barzak’s new novel – The Love We Share Without Knowing. Double your local impact by buying it (and his first novel – One For Sorrow) at Jospeh Beth Booksellers.

Thanks to Web 2.0 sometimes the community that sustains us is global. I have been blessed with kindness from Ophelia Chong over this past very difficult year. She is an artist whose visual and written work is stunning and a reflection of her magnificent heart.  You can see more of Ophelia’s work on Flickr.

Additional suggestions:

Bazaar Bizarre – Indie crafts from local artisans

Buy DIY for the holidays and support local artists! Bazaar Bizarre, Cleveland’s fabulous original indie craft show takes place Saturday December 13th from noon to 9:00 p.m., and Sunday December 14th from noon to 6:00 p.m. You may remember the building complex (former home of 1300 Gallery) from the first Cleveland BazBiz shows, but the entrance is in a different location this year: 78th Street Studios: 1300 W. 78th St to 1305 W. 80th St., North parking lot, North entrance — accessible from W. 78th OR W 80th St.

Cool Cleveland publishes a northeast Ohio holiday shopping guide  – check it out here before you head to the big box stores.

Thank you to Jill Finlayson from Social Edge, a program of  the Skoll Foundation, for dropping by and sharing another unique gift guide – the Holiday Gift Guide for Social Entrepreneurs 2008.  From the gift of Transparency to the gift of Social Return on Investment, Jill offers the perfect wish list for all social entrepreurs. Whether you are in the nonprofit arena or engaged in change through advocacy in the for profit world, Social Edge should be in your RSS feed.

Feel the love, Embrace our Families Blog Action Day

November 4th was both a great day and a sad day when Americans voted for hope, but left the rights of GLBT people everywhere in danger. With the passage of Prop 8 and other state initiatives we are depriving millions of our fellow Americans of their right to be a family.

I for one will not stay silent.

Please join me in the first “Feel the love, embrace our families”  blog action day on Sunday, December 21st.  Why December 21st  – it is the wedding anniversary of Elton John and  David Furnish. I know it is a civil partnership, but by whatever name you call it, they are family and no one can take that away from them.

I witnessed first hand the hard reality of not being family when AIDS started its relentless death march in the 70’s and 80’s. Men who had been together and built homes and lives and families were torn apart by family members who didn’t condone their relationships. They were throw out of hospital rooms, thrown out of their homes and left to deal with the loss of their beloved partners alone and homeless.

It is easy to forget these things happened. GLBT people adapt, accommodate and move on – they have to. But these recent events are too chilling to stay silent. None of us can afford to stay silent.

Please email me at fivehusbands@gmail the you will participate and I will link all blog posts to a special page on Five Husbands.

Thank you.

Also if anyone is willing to make a badge I would be most grateful.

First Annual Cleveland to Youngstown “How the Drag Queen Stole Christmas” Road Trip

Oh you know you know you want to go!

SPECIAL MIDNIGHT SHOW ADDED SATURDAY DECEMBER 13th

From Brooke Slanina:

the Oakland has added a midnight show to this Saturday, Decem,ber 13, due to extreme demand for tickets. We sold out all three shows last Thursday, which is unprecendented in recent Oakland history. Due to such high demand, we’ve extended our run for one more very special midnight show.

Call for reservations for the new show – and if you are lucky enough to get them arrive on time. Here is the low down on the up and up.

Start you holiday season off with a well appointed bang at the Youngstown’s Oakland Center for the Arts.

How the Drag Queen Stole Christmas

Youngstown, OH – The Oakland Center for the Arts, 220 W. Boardman Street, will host their 3rd Annual Holiday Fundraiser, How the Drag Queen Stole Christmas, on December 5, 6, and 13. All performances begin at 8 pm with a wine and cheese reception preceding each show at 7 pm.

A twisted retelling of a mixture of many beloved holiday stories, How The Drag Queen Stole Christmas follows Starrlet O’Hara as she discovers the true meaning of Christmas. Robert Dennick Joki writes, directs, and stars in the production. Cast includes Christopher Barzak, Kage Coven, Heidi Davis, Maxine Factor, Beth Farrow, Joyce Jones, Nikita Jones, Jennifer Kuczek, Rick Morrow, Ric Panning, Kerri Rickard, Murad G. Shorrab, Suzanne Shorrab, Brooke Slanina and BJ Wilkes.

The traditional Fabulous Chinese Auction will return with tickets available for purchase every night up to December 13, when the final drawing will be held after the show. Persons interested in making a donation to the Chinese Auction should contact Brooke Slanina at 330.718.5515

Patrons may also drop off gently used coats, which will be cleaned courtesy of LaFrance Cleaners and distributed to families in need throughout the Valley courtesy of Help Hotline’s Button Up Program. This is the second year How the Drag Queen Stole Christmas and the Oakland will be participating in the event.

Patrick Hyland will be the featured Star Gallery artist. A Youngstown-based photographer, Hyland is renowned for his Giclee prints of local nature scenes, which will be available for purchase.

Tickets are $15.00 with all proceeds benefiting the Oakland Center for the Arts. No discounts or complimentary tickets will be honored for this event as it is a fundraiser. Reservations are strongly encouraged and may be placed by leaving a message at the Oakland Reservation line, 330.746.0404. Any reserved tickets not claimed by 8:00 showtime will be released to the public. For more information, go to www.oaklandcenter.com or myspace.com/oaklandcenter.