Friday, April 30, 2010

on our way to see Peter Pan!

Wednesday, April 21, 2010

rewatching glee and realizing it's time to get me some younger arm candy ala madonna

Sunday, April 11, 2010

From the Streets, Hope Takes Action

Several years ago, while meandering through the Castro neighborhood of San Francisco, I was approached by an attractive young guy with a clipboard. I’ve previously been in his shoes canvassing for votes or public information or to promote a cause, or sometimes just randomly carrying around clipboards to meet guys, so I thought I’d hear what he had to say. He asked me if I’d consider being part of an HIV vaccine trial and went over a few basic questions. I kept waiting for a phone number. And eventually I got one, to the health department, with a plan of action to take me from the streets, to the clinics, to the trials and complicated yet simple tribulations, of being a part of it all. Eventually, over time, beyond my participation in this trial of mine, I was asked to join an advisory board for the HIV Research Section of the Health Department. Maybe I was asked to join because I kept asking a ton of questions about ethics and efficacy and protocols while being a patient in the study. Maybe I was asked because of my connections in the city. Maybe I was asked because they needed new people. Maybe somebody thought I was cute. Who knows, but the reality is that I quickly joined the Community Advisory Group (CAG) and started attending meetings.

Now let me tell you, the first thing I noticed about the monthly meetings was the food. Damn, there’s lots of good food at these meetings. I mean, it ain’t the ritz and all, but there’s food, and I always like to eat. So here we are, eating food, and talking community stuff. Now, I am not a scientist; I may have a Masters degree and may have once many, many years ago been a high school valedictorian, but I am definitely not a scientist. Oh, I know a little bit here and there about science and I do really love to watch a good Nature show, especially anything dealing with insects or amphibians and lots and lots of frogs. But my knowledge of the intricacies of medical research is extremely limited. Extremely.

So the second thing I noticed about the meeting of my CAG was that there was a lot of science. And I thought, oh, I’m not in the right room. I shouldn’t be here. Cuz I was thinking, well, I’m surrounded by some real knowledgeable scientists and AIDS activists who have studied this stuff for years and it’s just not my area of expertise. We all have our own respective areas of expertise in the world, and medical research just ain’t mines. So I thought, oh hell no, and I probably need to resign.

But then, thereafter, with promises of warm food and assurances that I didn’t need to understand everything, I slowly got into the mix. And I am one to give an opinion. When I know, or at least I think I know, what I’m talking about. So the meetings began to get more interesting once we got into some dialogue about stuff I could handle mentally and drew from my own personal and political perspective. I know what it’s like to be me, and what it’s like to live in my community, and I have a great deal of insight into my community. I don’t know everything, but I don’t have to. I know some things and I have opinions. And that got me started.

So sometimes when we have these extra-sciency parts of the meetings, I kinda glaze over a bit, but for the most part I know I’m there to help represent my local community as best I can in this setting and give feedback as I can.

Now, lo and behold, one day my local CAG peoples tell me they want me to go to Seattle for some regional meeting of other CAG’s (or, as I realized, everywhere else in the world they are called “CAB’s” for Boards instead of Groups). I didn’t even realize there were other groups like this one. I just thought maybe it was a San Francisco thing based on the history of the AIDS movement here locally. Well, I didn’t think I’d be going, cuz like I said, I’m not really all that knowledgeable about this stuff. But then, they said they’d be giving us some trainings on basic science stuff and basic representation stuff for the betterment of our work on the CAG/CAB. Us being one representative from each of the local CABS in the United States (San Francisco, Los Angeles, Seattle, Nashville, Birmingham, Chicago, Washington DC, New York City, Rochester, Boston, and Philadelphia), and even a CAB from Switzerland to join into the mix. Well that all sounded interesting and so I thought I’d give that a try too.

Ok, so I get to the meeting, and the first thing I notice is, perhaps, I’m in the wrong room again. So much high-falutin’ science that’s way beyond my rudimentary knowledge of liking frogs and bugs. Whew! I’m gonna have to go and apologize for not being what they were hoping I’d be. But then, there it was again, assurances that I wasn’t in the wrong room. I was wanted for my background, my individual representative perspective from the community, and not to be overwhelmed by the sciencey PhD type stuff that was way over my head. So again, with assurances of interest in me and promises of more warm food throughout the retreat, I soldiered on. We soldiered on. My fellow retreat members and I all joined together and learned a great deal from each other and from the trainers who oversee this international network of local voices in order to give the PhD sciencey people some help. We non-sciencey people are helping science by just being ourselves and giving our thoughts on how to make the science work the best in the community so that the science comes out good for everyone. Well, now, I can do that. And by the end of the weekend retreat, I had actually signed up to be part of a new national collection of representatives who would help review study protocols. And I even knew what a study protocol was by then and felt confident and ready to assist as I could, by just giving my own perspective and being myself.

The local CABs really do have a valuable role in the multi-layered system of HIV/AIDS research. And I recognize that my role, as small as it may seem to me, is rather part of a larger piece of slowly and dedicatedly changing the world for the better. And with another bite of some warm food and assurances from wonderful people from throughout the world, I’m planning to stick around and do some good work with some other people doing the same. From my first day of being recruited on the streets of San Francisco to years later finding new ways to advance science, I and my fellow international CAB members, are really allowing Hope Taking Action.

back in sf! now to get home to kitty

flight leaving on time now? possible dreams come true?

Seattle work retreat is done! now waiting to fly home...

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photo.jpg, originally uploaded by Reeses World.

Seattle view out my hotel window

Saturday, April 10, 2010

dinner with corby! on his way to pick me up from hotel

day 2, god I hope it's easier today

Friday, April 09, 2010

what an incredibly long day with major wayovermyhead sciency stuff that has just worn me out. time to chill

sciency stuff


sciency stuff, originally uploaded by Reeses World.

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photo.jpg, originally uploaded by Reeses World.

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photo.jpg, originally uploaded by Reeses World.

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photo.jpg, originally uploaded by Reeses World.

on a driving tour of Seattle

feel like I'm in science class college masters level and I haven't graduated middle school yet, help!

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photo.jpg, originally uploaded by Reeses World.

omg my Seattle hotel has an all you can eat waffle maker, I am in so much trouble

Thursday, April 08, 2010

landed in Seattle, groggy from the wonderful anti-anxiety pills which I totally love. missing the kitty...

anybody else nervous about getting on a plane? it will be ok it will be ok it will be ok... where're my pills? it will be ok

Sunday, April 04, 2010

I LOVE Pedro Almodovar! he is simply amazing

my cat and I are off to the crime lab to meet her feral friends and to find some clues to solve a mystery

Amaya wants to know where to find her feral friends in the crime lab

Saturday, April 03, 2010

yay new erykah badu album! and it's so sahhhhweeeeet! love it

Thursday, April 01, 2010

Alice is famous! and yes it did take 12 hours