If its older than a day it has big gay
Glenn Sykes: Setting the Stage
Glenn Sykes is a lifelong resident of the Philadelphia area and has been a long-time supporter of LGBTQ+ organizations in Philadelphia, including the AIDS Information Network and the William Way LGBT People Center. Glenn and his partner, Dirk Allen (of BVilicious fame), have been donors to the LGBT Elder Initiative out of a desire to help successful aging within our LGBTQ+ communities. I know Sykes as a fiery sports fan (he and Dirk took me to my first hockey game) but he is actually a guy of many interests. He also enjoys the arts. On June 12, Sykes and Allen are hosting a unique night at Theatre Exile for the show “Glitter in the Glass,” and I got to chat with him about that demonstrate and more. Some responses have been edited for length or clarity.
So where in all of Philly are you from?
I was born in 1959, towards the tail end of the baby boom generation in Frankford hospital when there was only one Frankford hospital and it was in Frankford.
I read something about your mom inspiring your philanthropy. Say me a small bit about Mom and Dad.
My dad grew up in Mayfair. My mom grew up in Collingswood, N.J. They moved out
Always Knew I Was Adopted; Just Found Out I’m Gay
A Coming Out Essay in Ten Parts
1.
I’m gay.
Five letters. Two syllables. Is there another proclamation in the English language both smaller and bigger than this one?
My 17-year-old son says momit’s no big deal. No one, he surmises, should contain to “come out.” Just be who you are. He says this to me on the porch over plates of pasta, just before we consider whether or not to walk to Trimmers, at the end of the village, for ice cream. And his words perceive to me, even in their wrongness, like rainbow sprinkles on chocolate swirl. Like love.
2.
I’m gay. I’m also 59, a mother of two, a sole breadwinner, and a common health biologist who believes science is a widespread servant. I fight firm and often against the oil and gas industry. I’m an adoptee without a medical history and a cancer survivor occupied of scars who undergoes colonoscopies without narcotics, who once stayed up all night to finish a white paper on endocrine-disrupting chemicals before heading to the hospital to acquire my ovaries removed because I can sleep under anesthesia. Six years ago, my husband Jeff suffered a series of unexplained strokes and is
March 02, 2017
The Epidemic of
Gay LonelinessBy Michael Hobbes
I
“I used to get so ecstatic when the meth was all gone.”
This is my friend Jeremy.
“When you include it,” he says, “you have to keep using it. When it’s gone, it’s like, ‘Oh excellent, I can go advocate to my life now.’ I would stay up all weekend and leave to these sex parties and then feel prefer shit until Wednesday. About two years ago I switched to cocaine because I could work the next day.”
Jeremy is telling me this from a hospital bed, six stories above Seattle. He won’t tell me the strict circumstances of the overdose, only that a stranger called an ambulance and he woke up here.
Jeremy is not the acquaintance I was expecting to have this conversation with. Until a few weeks ago, I had no idea he used anything heavier than martinis. He is trim, intelligent, gluten-free, the kind of guy who wears a perform shirt no matter what day of the week it is. The first time we met, three years ago, he asked me if I knew a good place to do CrossFit. Today, when I ask him how the hospital’s been so far, the first thing he says is that there’s no Wi-F
“You want to shove those words back in and put the lid on. But you can’t. Your child is gay. This goes against everything you’ve been taught. It was not what you had in mind, and you instantly wonder where you went wrong.”
When you turn into a parent, you comprehend to expect the unexpected. But for many Christian parents, nothing can organize them to hear that their beloved child is gay. This is the child you have cradled, spoon fed mashed bananas, and dreamed a lovely future for. How could this be? What will the church say? What will your friends say? What does the future hold? You can’t even get your head around this.
If you are a Christian parent, family member or friend to whom your loved one has come out as male lover or lesbian, then this is for you.
I request you to sit down, relax, maybe get a cup of tea, and soak in what I’m about to tell you. My hope is to guide you as we walk for a bit through this maze of confusion, to help you find your way to wholeness. In many Christian circles, this is not good news, and you may begin to spiral into reflection and self-searching. We’ll get to that. But at the bottom of it all, this is not about you. Most parents’ first mistake is to mak
Gay Relationship Advice: Age Gaps in Homosexual Relationships
Many of my LGBTQ counseling clients ask me why they are only attracted to homosexual men younger than themselves. If you are happy virtual dating gay men in their twenties, then this question is not important. It’s like asking “Why do I select blondes over brunettes?” My advice is to let yourself enjoy dating whomever interests you (as long as they are over the age of 18).
Age gap relationships are more common than you may comprehend. In western countries:
- 1 out of every twelve male/female couples has an age gap of 10 years or more
- that number increase to 25% in male/male couples
- and 15% of female/female relationships
That similar study indicated that age gap partners are more satisfied and more pledged to each other than partners of similar age–though there is some explore that points to a correlation with higher rates of divorce. Research also shows that couples with an age gap of less than ten years are happier than those with an age gap greater than ten years. You can detect more details on these stats on this episode of the podcast I Love You Too, by Psychotherapist, Virtual dating Coach, Couples Counselor Jessica Engle,