GaySeniors.Info BLOG

by Bigred42 in the profiles  

When I was 42 years old I bought my first computer from inheritance my father left me. That was 13 years ago. I being on Social Security didn’t have a lot of extra money. I decided to write about my life having cerebral palsy and being gay.

Coming from a large Catholic FAMILY, HIS, HERS AND OURS. We had 10 children living together in 1957. I was the only one disabled and gay also in the Family. I was born in 1953, and by 1958 I knew I was gay. As far back as i can remember i knew I was gay. My Father worked for corporate America and intuitively I knew to keep being gay to myself.

In about 1960 we lived in Long Beach, CA. I remember watching wrestling on TV. I loved watching the wrestlers and guys in speedos. I was about 7 years old at the time. If any Family members walked in I would say something like: “this is fake and stupid and change the channel. I loved to watch the muscular guys or the chubby guys and it was always the older guys. The young guys never really excited me.

I remember thinking when I get older people would understand and accept people like myself. You know as a young child I felt that Jesus told US: “Too love one another.” I figured God created me disabled and (back then homosexual) for a reason. I also figured at that age that God didn’t make any mistake. Reality would set in as i would grow older through religious teaching and society, and not wanting to hurt my Family I would keep my sexuality to myself, and never talk about it. I was a great actor. (Through my musings now I realize my parents were probably aware of it at an early age.) I am not feminine, but I am sure they knew.

I used to look at muscle magazine pictures. I have always been a chest and face man, and then my eyes would drift down to the check out the package. When I got older in my early 20’s I used to buy Playgirl. That magazine always had young guys and it really didn’t do it for ,me.

At about 40 years old I discovered the magazine Chiron rising. I thought I had discovered “Heaven.” Being able to see older men who felt good about showing themselves totally naked -it was great. At 42 years old was when I got my first computer. I don’t drive at night since birth I was legally blind in my right eye; so i don’t go to bars and quit drinking in my early 20’s. I found gay older Internet sites, and was I ever HAPPY!!!!! I had tried gay sites where I lived and sent a few pictures out but was nervous and had to make sure I wasn’t sending them to some underage kid.

Many people put down adult sites. If your an adult and especially if you are gay they are a great support system. Gay people are a minority, and there is a lot of hatred and non-acceptance towards gays all over the world. It is a great way to have some fun without fear of someone kicking the crap out of you.

I have met many different type of men on these sights, some gay, bi or even married. Some straight people would say many people are cheating, but there are many types of relationships in this world. I have met many married men who are bisexual, and love their wife’s and enjoy having fun with other men. I look at it as as their business and i do not judge their situation. Our society is the one that has screwed up our sexuality not these men or women. People should not play God, BUT should let adults who respect one another enjoy themselves. I am pretty open to sexuality as long as it doesn’t affect any children. consenting adults I am pretty open to what ever they want to do as long as the couple agree upon and are not hurting anybody else.

These gay sites are great and sometimes i do enjoy playing with other friends on them. Self gratification in a wheelchair can also help one physically in many ways. My disability causes my body to almost always be tight. when i discovered these sites I know longer felt so alone and isolated as a gay man. It is not always easy being gay with cerebral palsy. To be honest at times it is a real pain in the ass. I know some guys would like that hehhe.

I am pretty quiet and shy on certain levels until i started writing and speaking publicly about my disability and being gay. I felt so alone as a child, and as an adult I have had a few relationships that have been great, but I am trying to break through as a writer. I didn’t have any role models as a kid to follow so I am trying to help out other people who might be in a similar situation.

Rob and many thanks for giving me a voice, and thanks for believing in me as a person.
Peace and Love. Enjoy ourselves in a world that is not always accepting and loving towards US. If they were they would not make such a big deal out of US loving and marrying one another. They wouldn’t be trying to play God and judging US for who we are.!

So enjoy yourselves and enjoy this site.

Rob with a cock between his leg

I had to take this picture, it proves Rob knows how it feels to have a big  COCK  between the legs. How this all came about was just a part of the wonderful day we spent walking around Schoenbrunn a castle in Vienna. It was a wonderful day. We were like a couple of Kinder ( kids ) looking at all the wonderful sights. We found a real buy at the world’s oldest zoo located on the castles grounds. We got our yearly pass ( 365 days ) for only 29 Euros and then spent the better part of the day looking at all the different and unique kinds of animals from all over the world in there frozen Vienna habitat. The thing that amazed me the most was how close the animals could get to us. They had Lions and Tigers and Bears Oh My and so much more.
As you can see luxury abounds in Vienna and we almost spent the night in one of the Tyrolean luxury rooms of the castles zoo areas but decided to have a bite to eat ( Lamb sausage on Brot mit Kaese ) and then go back home instead of staying the night. The accommodations were simple but elegant. Kinda like everything in Austria. Perfect but understated. We walked  but before we left the area we also wanted to check out the hotel next to Schoenbrunn were in a few days the Regenbogen Ball the Major Gay Ball in Vienna would be held. Check out the web site. This is one of the must go to events of the year in the gay community. Of course you know why Gay Austrians have bigger balls than Americans….. They sell more tickets.. HAHAHAH? Sorry about that bad American joke.
Walking around for over 5 hours and both were getting a little tired. On our way back home we stopped for a few minutes at the Rathausplatz ( city hall ) fabulous ice rink to take a few photos of all the hot looking senior guys from Vienna to put in our Gallery of growing photos. The photos showed what hot looking Senior men look like in the winter time in Vienna. Old with young, teenagers with grandparents, all ages laughing and spending some wonderful quality time together skating, drinking Punch and hot wine. Tasting all the countries culinary specialties and checking out the hot guys. I also was interviewed for the T.V. show Hello Austria, Hello Vienna. Look for it on the web site or on your Television on the end of the January or early February.
Well then we were finally on our way home. Tired but more than satisfied. Hot men, cold weather, wonderful sights and sounds all filled another day to remember in this magical city of Vienna. Please send us some articles and photos of the wonderful sights and sounds of the city where you live or where you visited. We would love to add them to our BLOG site. This we feel brings all of us just a little closer to each other and connects us in a very special way with each other. After all you are the reason we’re here, and remember most of all this is your site so have fun with it and become a part of the interaction.
We will look forward to hearing from you soon and thanks for passing the word about the site to everyone. We really do appreciate it so much. Hugs and warm wishes go out to you and yours from both of us. The 2 old guys working hard to keep you hard.

By G. Youngman, Consultant, Nanaimo, BC

Appended below are my thoughts on the annual World Economic gathering in Davos, Switzerland. This year the meetings took on a very sombre tone as the world faces the worst economic meltdown in many years. People like those suffering from AIDS, other diseases in the developing world as well the poor and homeless in the developed countries have become the innocent victims of the greed of the western capitalists.

Exploring philanthropy, non-profits and socially motivated business, from the Gates Foundation to your donation. A fresh look at the economy of good intentions.

From Davos: U.S. funds executive bonuses but breaks health promises

While U.S. bailout funds will help pay $18 billion in holiday bonuses for Wall Street executives, the U.S. has broken its promise to fund a global health program that saves millions of lives.
That was the scathing assessment of Jeffrey Sachs, director of the Earth Institute at Columbia University and special adviser to the U.N. Secretary General, speaking on a conference call this morning.
The economic crisis has resulted in a $5 billion funding gap for the Global Fund because countries, led by the U.S., are falling short on their pledges, Sachs and others said.

The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB & Malaria is the main source of finance for programs to prevent and treat the three diseases. The fund gathers money from donor countries and provides a quarter of all international financing for AIDS, two-thirds for tuberculosis and three quarters for malaria.

“I would suggest the U.S. reclaim those bonuses, which are absolutely unjustified and completely unconscionable, and put the money in the Global Fund immediately,” Sachs said.

The $5 billion shortfall is less than one-half of one percent of what G8 countries have approved to bail out failing banks in the last three months, he added. The Merrill Lynch bonuses alone would be enough to close the gap in U.S. contributions, Sachs said.

The Fund projects it will need $8 billion to continue its work in 2009 and 2010, yet current pledges total only $3 billion. The U.S. and other donor countries pledged to support all valid Global Fund programs by committing about 0.7 of 1% of GNP in aid.

Despite a 2002 pledge made by the Bush Administration to honor that commitment, “the United States is not only not on track; it’s fallen back to become the donor with the smallest donation as a share of income of all the rich countries,” said Sachs. “We’re at 0.16 of 1% of our income for development assistance. It’s the lowest level of all 22 donor countries.”

As a result, the Fund is delaying programs and cutting costs, and using this week’s World Economic Forum to call attention to the issue.

The world shouldn’t squander progress on major diseases for short term gains, said Peter Chernin, president of News Corp. and chairman of Malaria No More.
Goals include guaranteeing global access to antiretroviral drugs for HIV by 2010 and reducing malaria deaths to near zero by 2012.

Malaria control is an example of a good return on investment, Chernin said.

Programs are showing real results such as a 66 percent drop in malaria-related deaths in Rwanda in one year following increased use of bednets to prevent bites and treatment with effective medicine.

“In today’s uncertain marketplace,” Chernin said, the Global Fund “delivers proven results in both economic and humanitarian terms.” Malaria alone costs Africa $12 billion a year in lost productivity, he noted.
Chernin said he’s working to boost donations to the fund from the private sector.

Chevron was the first private company to step up, with a $30 million donation, said Rajat Gupta, a McKinsey senior partner who chairs the Global Fund. The (Product) Red project has raised about $150 million.
Tomorrow, Chernin will join with Exxon Mobil and Standard Charter Bank to launch a campaign to raise $100 million from private companies, primarily for malaria programs funded through the Global Fund. The campaign will also ask companies to provide technical and business assistance, such as logistics for bed net delivery and marketing efforts to increase the use of bed nets.

Kenya: Healthcare Threatened By Political Crisis
________________________________________
Health officials are concerned about the long-term impact of Kenya’s political crisis on healthcare, especially in areas hardest hit by violence since the end of December 2007.
“The most worrying issue is that of drug resistance among patients of chronic diseases,” Ian van Engelgem, the medical coordinator of Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), stated.
He said HIV and Tuberculosis (TB) patients who had missed out on their regular medication for up to a month due to displacement and violence could develop resistance to the drugs.
“Right now a lot of HIV patients are on first-line drugs; they could require second-line drugs, which are more expensive, if they develop resistance as a result of skipping their ARV [anti-retroviral] medication for a period of time,” Van Engelgem said.
The fact that internally displaced persons (IDPs) have better access to healthcare compared with the host community where the camps are located is another concern.
“If IDPs have access to free healthcare, the same should also apply to them [host communities] as they are equally affected by the unrest,” Van Engelgem said.
Displaced health workers
Joanne Greenfield, malaria adviser for the UN World Health Organization (WHO) in Nairobi, said displacement and ongoing violence in parts of the country could lead to a crisis in the provision of healthcare in the affected regions.
“The security situation, especially in the Rift Valley [Province], is affecting the provision of health services to the general public as a significant number of health workers are either displaced and/or cannot report to their duty stations,” Greenfield said.
WHO, the lead agency for the health cluster of humanitarian actors – comprising UN agencies, NGOs and government organisations – has also expressed concern over the health of thousands of IDPs, mostly women and children, in the Rift Valley.
On 1 February, newspaper reports indicated that chicken pox and diarrhoea had broken out in two IDP camps in Naivasha, a town in Rift Valley Province, which has been severely affected by the violence.
“The number of sites hosting IDPs appears to increase by the day,” the agency said in a statement. “Initial WHO assessment has found that these sites are very crowded, with poor shelter, water supply, sanitation (in some camps, toilet to person ratio is 1 for 500), food shortages, no cooking fuel, precarious access to healthcare and shortages of antibiotics, children’s medicines, malaria medicines and life-saving drugs for chronic illness. Nearby hospitals are also facing similar shortages of drugs and supplies.”
Sexual violence
In a worrying development, WHO said, hospitals in the region had reported dramatic increases in cases of sexual violence. The agency said counselling services in most IDP sites were not available, including for reproductive health, sexual violence or HIV/AIDS.
“In many settings, survivors have no access to even the minimum health and psychological support, leaving them vulnerable to a range of potential negative health problems, including HIV/AIDS,” WHO stated.
George Mugenya, the medical superintendent of health at the Rift Valley General Provincial Hospital in Nakuru, said services were slowly returning to normal but the displacement remained a key concern.
“When the violence was intense, we put elective cases on hold to handle only emergency cases; now that it is calmer, we are noticing that some services are still affected because of the displacement of some of the medical staff,” he said. “Some workers have not reported to duty while others come irregularly and this has affected services such as those offered in the maternity section but, overall, things are returning to normal.”
He said the challenge was in re-stocking the hospital’s medical supplies and reviving clinic services for patients of chronic diseases.
Teams led by WHO officials visited the towns of Eldoret and Nakuru to coordinate the health cluster activities. The teams visited IDP camps and hospitals to monitor disease outbreaks as well as the availability of medical supplies and health workers.
According to WHO, the biggest worry at all sites was diarrhoea in children as well as acute respiratory infections. It was also concerned about irregular access to malaria, HIV/AIDS and TB medicines, while patients with asthma, hypertension and diabetes also lacked access.
Kenya’s Ministry of Health, together with WHO, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the Kenya Red Cross Society and other health NGOs, undertook a joint health assessment on 30 January of Uasin Gishu district in the Rift Valley, which is hosting 150,000 IDPs in 11 camps.
As a result, the medical officer reported that a mass immunisation against measles and polio, as well as the de-worming of children and provision of Vitamin A supplements, would begin in February.
The health officials also discussed the possibility of introducing mobile services for areas where normal services had been disrupted.

Global health gains at risk from economic crisis

Worried that the worldwide economic crisis may roll back gains made in battling diseases in the world’s poorest countries, global health advocates are calling on the richest countries not to renege on their funding pledges to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.
One well-known advocate even called on the U.S. government to take back the $18 billion in bonuses that Wall Street bankers paid themselves while receiving taxpayer bailout money, and use the money instead on HIV drugs and mosquito nets.
Calling the bonuses “unbelievably egregious,” Jeffrey Sachs, director of Columbia University’s Earth Institute said:
“Those bonuses are being paid out of our bailout funds… I suggest the U.S. government reclaim that funding and put the money into the Global Fund immediately.”
The public-private Global Fund was created in 2002 to collect and disburse money from governments and foundations to fight the three diseases. It prides itself on squeezing the most out of every dollar and pushes countries submitting requests for funds to develop innovative and cost-effective proposals.
Programs it has funded have resulted in a 66% drop in malaria deaths in Rwanda in a single year, and an 80% drop in malaria deaths in Eritrea over five years.
Now, the group said, it has more good proposals than it can fund, and faces a $5 billion shortfall over the next two years if rich countries don’t pony up.
In a teleconference call from Davos, Switzerland, where world economic leaders are meeting to discuss the money mess, Global Fund Chairman Rajat Gupta said:
“All is not doom and gloom. We have tremendous successes to celebrate in global health, although we have a long way to go.”
Also at Davos, another global health group — the Global Network for Neglected Tropical Diseases announced a stepped-up effort to combat a baker’s dozen of parasitic and bacterial diseases that affect the poorest of the world’s poor.
The diseases include Chagas disease, leishmaniasis and leprosy. Some are found even in the United States.
The campaign received a $34 million grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, but it is also calling on regular folks to pitch in, pointing out that many of these neglected diseases can be treated for as little as 50 cents a day a year.
More than 1 billion people are infected with neglected tropical diseases. The Wall Street bonuses alone would have paid for 36 days a year of treatment for every single one of them, with $17.5 billion to spare.

by ROB 

An Americans view of the winter season in Vienna.
Well here is an Americans eye view of Vienna during the  holidays.
4 words can describe Austria
COLD COLD COLD and BEAUTIFUL.

  It all started when I left Miami and its 76 degree temperature to fly off to meet my partner in Vienna. I left Florida on my Birthday Dec. 10th. It was a nice warm 78 degrees. When I landed in Vienna it was a nice cool of 38 degrees No snow but I could see my Breath. Something I hadn’t done in many years.

  I have been coming to Vienna during the summer for a number of years but never have been there for the Christmas Holidays.  I met Manfred at the airport and we started our journey of around 3 months in this wonderful, magical city.

  One of the main things I heard about but had never seen where the Christmas Markets. I could not believe the spirit of Christmas all over the city but especially in the many Christmas Markets. In the rain, snow, and freezing cold the markets were always full of warm hearted, warm clothed, and smiling and friendly people. All of them were filled with wonderful and beautiful treasures and one guaranteed that all the things in their market were handmade and one of a kind. All the markets were loaded with so many goodies like chocolates, ornaments, toys, clothes and nativity scenes to name a few. They also had hats ear muffs and gloves and wallets and so much more. Food and drink like HOT punch and HOT wine of all kinds pleased the pallet and wonderful treats included everything from sweets, hot sausage, breads, cheese and meats to chestnuts and potatoes roasting on an open fire. This was the first time in over 35 years I really felt the spirit of the holidays. The hospitality and laid back attitude along with the warm glow in this one in a million cities brought back pleasant and fond memories of Holidays of long ago. Vienna is a city of romance and beauty that can’t be defined but has to be felt. The summer with its beautiful gardens and sidewalk cafés and charm turns in the fall to a area of colors and majesty that rings true with the winter wonderland topping off the year with it’s truly breathtaking splendor of snowy white and lights laughter and fun.

  Then we ended the year with a freezing evening of seeing out the old and bringing in the New Year with a slow but wonderfully fun filled 5 mile walk around the city. The streets are filled with party goers with lucky pig hats and flashing glasses etc.  Stages filled with music and bands abound all along this wonderful walk. Everyone from the youngest to the oldest alike were in the most wonderful party mood. It all starts out about a week before New Year’s right after Christmas when the Christmas markets make way for the New Years markets that are filled with all sorts of goodies for that special night. Vienna has on every corner stands selling all sorts of trinkets for luck in the coming year. The pig, shamrock and leprechaun are the most popular gifts and keep sakes of good luck. They also sell little lead objects that look a lot like monopoly pieces that are melted down on a special spoon and when they lose their former shape and become liquid lead they are dropped in cold water and form different shapes that will tell of the future year. The final hour was we spent in Prater where the music on a giant portable stage heightened the anticipation of the coming year and fireworks set off by the kids and adults were going off every few minutes all around us while we waited for a new year to come in with a BIG BLAST. At Midnight the Riesenrad (Giant Ferris wheel in Prater which is one of the landmarks in Vienna) became a glow with a nonstop barrage of one more beautiful than the other fireworks.  With a kiss we ushered in a new year.

  We can only hope that your New Year starts out as wonderful as ours did. No matter where you live or how you celebrate the coming in of a new year we can only hope it is the best year yet. Now as the cycle of a new year starts with new dreams , wishes and hopes we can only say thanks for being with us on GaySeniors.info and both of us at GS.I  hope that 2009 makes all your dreams come true for you and yours. May your love, laughter, hope and dreams all come true. We at GS.I will be here to help fill your life with all we can. Happy New Years and a wonderful winter season to you and yours from our house to yours.
  Rob and Manny

G. Youngman, Nanaimo, BC

Before leaving office, President George W. Bush will pardon himself from the verdict of history.
Sources say History is pissed. “We had an open-and-shut case on this guy,” one historical judge reportedly fumed. “We had him nailed.”
Insiders confirm that the outgoing president will grant himself a full and formal reprieve from the court of public opinion. Such a pardon has the full force of law, and would apply to any judgments now pending or yet to be made by future judges of history.
Article II, Section 2 of the U.S. Constitution grants presidents the right to issue full pardons to anyone, regardless of crime. Controversial benefactors of presidential largesse have included Marc Rich, the fugitive financier pardoned by President Clinton on his final day in office; and Defense Secretary Caspar Weinberger, pardoned by President Herbert Walker Bush in 1992 for his role on the Iran-Contra scandal.
Constitutional scholars say that President Gerald Ford’s 1974 pardon of ex-president Richard Nixon comes closest to setting a precedent for the action about to be taken by the current president. Still, no previous president has ever pardoned himself. As well, previous pardons pertained only to potential or existing criminal cases. President Bush’s self-pardon would apply to the murkier realm commonly referred to as the “Judgment of Time.”
Blanket protection
Experts believe that Bush’s pardon would extend to opinion shapers in both the journalistic and academic realms. Retrospectives of the Bush presidency, already well underway in preparation for his January departure, will now likely be severely curtailed. Assessments of the Iraq war, torture scandals, constitutional crimes, the economic crisis and even political missteps like the “bring ‘em on” and “mission accomplished” fiascos will now be replaced by simpler observations, such as: “He was the 43rd president of the United States,” “He enjoyed an occasional hot dog and a ball game” and “He was right handed.”
“We’re not happy, of course,” another historian offered. “The evidence was pretty clear, and the verdict was going to be a slam dunk. But we’re pretty much hamstrung here.”
Some indirect criticisms might still be available, such as, “The president’s brother, Jeb, has a funny name,” or “Between 1989 and 1998, Bush was part-owner of the Texas Rangers baseball team, which continued to suck the hind tit during this period.” Still, fear of protracted legal action may put a chill on even these veiled attacks.
One hope remains, however. “There are a lot of amateur historians out there,” one academic offered. “Does this pardon apply to them as well? We’re in uncharted territory here. A constitutional pardon can shut me up. But it can’t stop Joe Six-Pack from making a few choice remarks to his drinking buddies.”
Others disagree. “I think that’s covered too,” said one expert.

 by Bigred42 in the profiles  

I haven’t had a lot of deep conversations with people.  I like to analyze the world and look at it in many different ways.  Lately since I have gotten more into writing it seems it alienates people at times.  so music and my writing are what keeps me busy.
 
Ever since I got my first radio at 8 years old I have been channel hoping to radio stations.  Now with the web there are so many stations –especially classic rock.  Tonight I skied  for about 3 hours.  One can’t do this all the time one would loose touch with everyday reality if they did,  We live in  days of double talk and fear everybody seems more uptight than we used to be years ago.  When I write or go on a musical journey, and music from the 50’s to present day many of the lyrics just come to me when the song starts to play.  It is freaky, and it is also freaky to me the connection I have always had with my soul and music.  I can come to total peace after a good music session, but then tomorrow reality will come to me and I will encounter many people who are unhappy.I guess this works for me.  everybody has their way of finding peace and happiness in this world.  I have always done this because of my disability, and aware of my sexuality since I was quite young.  It was away, and still is a way of me dealing with society and how they react to me.
 
Sometimes it can be kind of frustrating when people can’t see us for who we are.  It is the highest high when people love and accept us for being ourselves.  It is something we all want and desire.  In a perfect world where people truly believed in love this would happen.
 
I live and come in contact with a lot of poor people who have given up on themselves.  I live in a good neighborhood, but many of the people are on subsidized income and do not have the drive I have.
 
Since I have always been emotionally old all my life music helps me keep sane–not everybody is as reflective as I am–that is one reason why I have a need to write.
 
Doing it my way.
John