Tuesday, May 01, 2007

Painters and Mormons and Gays - Oh, my!

The painters are here. Thus I am holed up, house bound. It's OK - I've gotten a surprising amount done. It feels a little strange to sit and read while they work. But after I folded the laundry, there wasn't much else to do. Tidying up seems a little pointless in the midst of the disarray.

And the color on the walls in the foyer/family room/hallways/stairwell ... it's more pink than brown. I tend to lean toward the pinks, I know, but I really thought it was brown. It is meant to match a color in the rug. I'll live with it - this isn't our forever home, anyway. Still ...

Caught Dina McGreevey, ex-wife of the New Jersey governor who came out to a scandal a couple years ago. She is angry. I have a friend who found out, after 15 years, that her husband was gay. And she, too, was pissed. Maybe I'm wrong, but don't these guys deserve a little empathy? How hard is it to live in a society where you are expected to be a certain way - ie, grow up to fall in love with a woman - and you have to deny who you are every day of your life? Must be tough. And I know these women were hurt, but weren't their husbands in some pain, too? I know she is angry, but writing a book and going on Oprah? That's a way to heal - but that's just me.

And I watched part one of The Mormons on PBS. A dear friend from Germany (another American couple we knew) is Mormon, so I watched partly in deference to Claudia - she was so good to me. Plus I find scholarly looks at religion fascinating (why do you think I'm a good UU?). And, as I think I've mentioned before, I am big fan of PBS, in particular, American Experience. This one is good - though I had a tough time with the woman who clenched her jaw as she spoke (!) Having lived in both Missouri and Illinois, I was familiar with the persecution Mormons suffered there, as well as the corresponding violence they perpetrated in the West. Interesting stuff - it's all part of who we are. Being a big believer in religious freedom, I firmly support that people are free - or should be - to worship as they choose. At the same time, I should be allowed to do as I please. (Someone should enlighten my sister-in-law ... I doubt she's watching about the Mormons, whom she considers heathens. But she doesn't know Claudia, does she?)

The painters come back tomorrow ... which means another productive day for me. Yay for that, anyway.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Well, as someone who found out her ex-husband was gay, I do have to sympathize with these women. I was angry too when I found out Kevin was gay. More angry when he refused to admit it to me. I was also relieved. It explained so many things in our marriage. In my case, we didn't have children so the split was easy. And we were in the middle of the divorce when I found out so his sexual preference wasn't the issue. So I don't really feel sorry for these men. Confused or not, they hurt many people by not being honest about themselves. That's just my side. I'm now very happily married and wouldn't change my past. Being with Kevin really taught me a lot about myself and I'm no longer angry with him. To this day, he's never admitted to me he's gay even though he's out of the closet and has a live-in boyfriend. Oh well, at least he's living an honest life.