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posted by JeromeCleary @ 9:39 PM
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Friday, March 01, 2019
Monday, May 09, 2016
Saturday, March 11, 2006
THE AWAKE FACELIFT
Safer Facelift With Virtually No Anesthesia
By Jerome Cleary
LOS ANGELES, CA - In a town where time is money, the down time of the common facelift is changing its face once again. A new medical procedure called "The Awake Facelift" offers patients the opportunity to save both time and money without compromising safety or aesthetic result. Oculofacial plastic surgeon Dr. Jonathan Hoenig recently introduced his latest surgical innovation, "The Awake Facelift," combining the concept of tumescent anesthesia with his advanced skills in face lifting. With this revolutionary method, facial surgery can now be safely performed in the office operating room, eliminating the costs for an outside surgery center and anesthesiologist, and saving thousands of dollars. And with less bleeding and swelling, the patient is back to his or her daily routine with a new and improved look in less time than ever before.
Traditional facelifts are customarily performed under general anesthesia or deep sedation, requiring an anesthesiologist or nurse anesthetist to administer medication during surgery through an intravenous (IV) line. These are acceptable methods for some patients with significant medical problems, but the majority of patients do not require this heavy anesthesia. "We are slowly coming to realize that procedures like The Tumescent Facelift using virtually no anesthesia yield less bleeding and swelling, provide an overall faster recovery, and are much safer for the patients. With this technique, I use a fraction of the medicine that would normally be used with traditional anesthesia," remarks Dr. Hoenig. Dr. Hoenig specializes in the face and is known as the “face expert.”
Dr Hoenig is changing the way facial surgery is done by applying the technique of tumescent anesthesia (initially developed for liposuction) to procedures that were until now, only performed with stronger, riskier anesthesia. "Instead of sending heavy medication into the IV line to keep you asleep or sedated throughout the procedure, tumescent anesthesia uses only local anesthesia injected into the face to control pain, and Valium pills to comfortably relax you," says Dr. Hoenig. The term tumescent (meaning swollen or puffy) comes from the appearance of the area immediately after injection, before the medicine is absorbed into the surrounding tissues. The medicine that is injected is a solution of saline (salt-water), epinephrine, and Lidocaine. Saline helps to separate the tissues, making the dissection less traumatic for the face. Epinephrine causes the tiny blood vessels in the area to constrict, minimizing bleeding and bruising. Lidocaine numbs the area to provide pain control, similar to what the dentist uses before filling a cavity in a tooth."
By applying the concept of tumescent anesthesia to facial surgery, the patient can have the procedure in our office suite which is an accredited AAAASF operating room," remarks Dr. Hoenig. The procedure is performed without heavy medication and without a long post-operative recovery. Most patients are comfortably and safely on their way home about an hour after surgery. Since most of the medication used with the Tumescent Facelift is eliminated from the body within a few hours, there is no "hangover" effect such as is often experienced after general anesthesia.
The Awake Facelift is the ultimate in facial plastic surgery where safety is the number one concern. Having the patient conscious throughout the procedure enables the surgeon to maximize the aesthetic result with the least risk of complications. Nerve function can be continually assessed during surgery by having the patient raise the eyebrows, smile, or perform other facial expressions. Checking nerve function is critical to avoiding the rare complication of facial nerve damage, but this important precaution is impossible using general anesthesia or heavy sedation.
Considered an expert in facial cosmetic and reconstructive surgery, Dr Hoenig has performed close to ten thousand procedures over the past ten years on the face alone. He has completed three separate fellowships to ensure that he is qualified to offer the most advanced techniques in facial surgery: cosmetic and dermatologic surgery, oculo-facial cosmetic surgery, and oculoplastic surgery. Dr Hoenig is one of the few cosmetic surgeons who is a diplomat of the American Society of Ophthalmic Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery (ASOPRS) and the American Board of Cosmetic Surgery, as well as board certified by the American Board of Ophthalmology.
For before & after photos & more info, go to: www.faceexpert.com
By Jerome Cleary
LOS ANGELES, CA - In a town where time is money, the down time of the common facelift is changing its face once again. A new medical procedure called "The Awake Facelift" offers patients the opportunity to save both time and money without compromising safety or aesthetic result. Oculofacial plastic surgeon Dr. Jonathan Hoenig recently introduced his latest surgical innovation, "The Awake Facelift," combining the concept of tumescent anesthesia with his advanced skills in face lifting. With this revolutionary method, facial surgery can now be safely performed in the office operating room, eliminating the costs for an outside surgery center and anesthesiologist, and saving thousands of dollars. And with less bleeding and swelling, the patient is back to his or her daily routine with a new and improved look in less time than ever before.
Traditional facelifts are customarily performed under general anesthesia or deep sedation, requiring an anesthesiologist or nurse anesthetist to administer medication during surgery through an intravenous (IV) line. These are acceptable methods for some patients with significant medical problems, but the majority of patients do not require this heavy anesthesia. "We are slowly coming to realize that procedures like The Tumescent Facelift using virtually no anesthesia yield less bleeding and swelling, provide an overall faster recovery, and are much safer for the patients. With this technique, I use a fraction of the medicine that would normally be used with traditional anesthesia," remarks Dr. Hoenig. Dr. Hoenig specializes in the face and is known as the “face expert.”
Dr Hoenig is changing the way facial surgery is done by applying the technique of tumescent anesthesia (initially developed for liposuction) to procedures that were until now, only performed with stronger, riskier anesthesia. "Instead of sending heavy medication into the IV line to keep you asleep or sedated throughout the procedure, tumescent anesthesia uses only local anesthesia injected into the face to control pain, and Valium pills to comfortably relax you," says Dr. Hoenig. The term tumescent (meaning swollen or puffy) comes from the appearance of the area immediately after injection, before the medicine is absorbed into the surrounding tissues. The medicine that is injected is a solution of saline (salt-water), epinephrine, and Lidocaine. Saline helps to separate the tissues, making the dissection less traumatic for the face. Epinephrine causes the tiny blood vessels in the area to constrict, minimizing bleeding and bruising. Lidocaine numbs the area to provide pain control, similar to what the dentist uses before filling a cavity in a tooth."
By applying the concept of tumescent anesthesia to facial surgery, the patient can have the procedure in our office suite which is an accredited AAAASF operating room," remarks Dr. Hoenig. The procedure is performed without heavy medication and without a long post-operative recovery. Most patients are comfortably and safely on their way home about an hour after surgery. Since most of the medication used with the Tumescent Facelift is eliminated from the body within a few hours, there is no "hangover" effect such as is often experienced after general anesthesia.
The Awake Facelift is the ultimate in facial plastic surgery where safety is the number one concern. Having the patient conscious throughout the procedure enables the surgeon to maximize the aesthetic result with the least risk of complications. Nerve function can be continually assessed during surgery by having the patient raise the eyebrows, smile, or perform other facial expressions. Checking nerve function is critical to avoiding the rare complication of facial nerve damage, but this important precaution is impossible using general anesthesia or heavy sedation.
Considered an expert in facial cosmetic and reconstructive surgery, Dr Hoenig has performed close to ten thousand procedures over the past ten years on the face alone. He has completed three separate fellowships to ensure that he is qualified to offer the most advanced techniques in facial surgery: cosmetic and dermatologic surgery, oculo-facial cosmetic surgery, and oculoplastic surgery. Dr Hoenig is one of the few cosmetic surgeons who is a diplomat of the American Society of Ophthalmic Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery (ASOPRS) and the American Board of Cosmetic Surgery, as well as board certified by the American Board of Ophthalmology.
For before & after photos & more info, go to: www.faceexpert.com
posted by JeromeCleary @ 3:10 AM
0 comments
THE ULTIMATE EYE JOB
Announcing A New Technique For Safer Under Eye Rejuvenation
By Jerome Cleary
LOS ANGELES, CA - From the plastic surgery capital of the world comes the latest technique to safely correct under eye hollowness and darkness, taking years off of your appearance. "TDL" or (Transconjunctival Deep Lipotransfer), developed by renowned Oculofacial Plastic Surgeon Dr. Jonathan Hoenig, is "raising eyebrows" in elite Hollywood circles as this year's hottest plastic surgery procedure.
Two main developments make Dr. Hoenig's TDL procedure unique and especially attractive to patients: 1) fat is added to the lower eyelid area rather than removed, thereby avoiding a skeletonized appearance as is common with traditional eyelid surgery and, 2) the transferred fat is placed deep beneath the eyelid muscle, ensuring a smooth, natural appearance.
"While many patients are concerned with 'bags' under their eyes, careful examination will usually reveal an actual absence or loss of fullness, not a bulging of fat, that creates this illusion. It used to be standard practice to remove any fat pockets, but this left the patient with even more hollowness, darkness, and a skeletonized appearance. If you add fat in the right areas, the so-called bags disappear," explains Dr. Hoenig. The surgery is performed by injecting the patient's prepared fat through the inside of the lower eyelid to the to the area where the cheek meets the lower eyelid and into the tear trough (where the tears fall beside the nose). Whether the hollowness is inherited or is a result of aging or previous traditional eyelid surgery, the TDL technique will effectively re-contour the lower eyelid.
With the revolutionary TDL technique, the eyelid surgery is safely performed in the office operating room with local anesthesia, thereby eliminating the cost of an outside surgery center and anesthesiologist and saving hundreds or thousands of dollars. "With TDL, I use a fraction of the medicine that would normally be used with traditional anesthesia," says Dr. Hoenig. His perfected technique does not allow the fat to get displaced and lumpy. It uses the patient's own tissue to prevent the chance of allergy or rejection, and the fat is not visible through the skin yielding dramatic, natural-looking results.
The technique of fat grafting or fat transfer surgery to add volume and contour to the face has been around for at least the last decade. Historically, many surgeons shied away from transferring fat to the eye area because of problems with fat reabsorption, shifting, and lumpiness. "After years of doing fat grafting surgery, I've discovered using the TDL technique that if I create a pocket for the fat and place it beneath the eyelid muscle, there is little chance of the fat shifting out of place or appearing uneven. Since there is relatively little muscle contraction in this area, the fat tends to last quite well," says Dr. Hoenig.
The TDL Procedure: Fat transfer surgery involves a mini-liposuction of the patient's own fat, usually taken from the abdomen or hips, careful preparation of the fat by spinning it in a centrifuge to separate the fat cells from the fluid, and then injection of the fat with a blunt needle and syringe into the desired locations. The procedure can be performed in the office operating room with local anesthesia and patients can usually return to work within a few days to a week, although swelling may take longer to subside. Since the fat, unlike other fillers, comes from the patient's own body, there is no chance of an allergic reaction. And by injecting through the inside of the eyelid, there are no external incisions and therefore, no scars to conceal.
Considered an expert in facial cosmetic and reconstructive surgery, Dr Hoenig has completed three separate fellowships to ensure that he is qualified to offer the most advanced techniques in facial surgery: cosmetic and dermatologic surgery, oculo-facial cosmetic surgery, and oculoplastic surgery. He is one of the few cosmetic surgeons who is a diplomat of the American Society of Ophthalmic Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery (ASOPRS) and the American Board of Cosmetic Surgery, as well as board certified by the American Board of Ophthalmology.
Since Dr. Hoenig specializes in the face, he has become known as the “face expert” in the local medical and Hollywood circles.
For more information and "before & after photos," go to: faceexpert.com
By Jerome Cleary
LOS ANGELES, CA - From the plastic surgery capital of the world comes the latest technique to safely correct under eye hollowness and darkness, taking years off of your appearance. "TDL" or (Transconjunctival Deep Lipotransfer), developed by renowned Oculofacial Plastic Surgeon Dr. Jonathan Hoenig, is "raising eyebrows" in elite Hollywood circles as this year's hottest plastic surgery procedure.
Two main developments make Dr. Hoenig's TDL procedure unique and especially attractive to patients: 1) fat is added to the lower eyelid area rather than removed, thereby avoiding a skeletonized appearance as is common with traditional eyelid surgery and, 2) the transferred fat is placed deep beneath the eyelid muscle, ensuring a smooth, natural appearance.
"While many patients are concerned with 'bags' under their eyes, careful examination will usually reveal an actual absence or loss of fullness, not a bulging of fat, that creates this illusion. It used to be standard practice to remove any fat pockets, but this left the patient with even more hollowness, darkness, and a skeletonized appearance. If you add fat in the right areas, the so-called bags disappear," explains Dr. Hoenig. The surgery is performed by injecting the patient's prepared fat through the inside of the lower eyelid to the to the area where the cheek meets the lower eyelid and into the tear trough (where the tears fall beside the nose). Whether the hollowness is inherited or is a result of aging or previous traditional eyelid surgery, the TDL technique will effectively re-contour the lower eyelid.
With the revolutionary TDL technique, the eyelid surgery is safely performed in the office operating room with local anesthesia, thereby eliminating the cost of an outside surgery center and anesthesiologist and saving hundreds or thousands of dollars. "With TDL, I use a fraction of the medicine that would normally be used with traditional anesthesia," says Dr. Hoenig. His perfected technique does not allow the fat to get displaced and lumpy. It uses the patient's own tissue to prevent the chance of allergy or rejection, and the fat is not visible through the skin yielding dramatic, natural-looking results.
The technique of fat grafting or fat transfer surgery to add volume and contour to the face has been around for at least the last decade. Historically, many surgeons shied away from transferring fat to the eye area because of problems with fat reabsorption, shifting, and lumpiness. "After years of doing fat grafting surgery, I've discovered using the TDL technique that if I create a pocket for the fat and place it beneath the eyelid muscle, there is little chance of the fat shifting out of place or appearing uneven. Since there is relatively little muscle contraction in this area, the fat tends to last quite well," says Dr. Hoenig.
The TDL Procedure: Fat transfer surgery involves a mini-liposuction of the patient's own fat, usually taken from the abdomen or hips, careful preparation of the fat by spinning it in a centrifuge to separate the fat cells from the fluid, and then injection of the fat with a blunt needle and syringe into the desired locations. The procedure can be performed in the office operating room with local anesthesia and patients can usually return to work within a few days to a week, although swelling may take longer to subside. Since the fat, unlike other fillers, comes from the patient's own body, there is no chance of an allergic reaction. And by injecting through the inside of the eyelid, there are no external incisions and therefore, no scars to conceal.
Considered an expert in facial cosmetic and reconstructive surgery, Dr Hoenig has completed three separate fellowships to ensure that he is qualified to offer the most advanced techniques in facial surgery: cosmetic and dermatologic surgery, oculo-facial cosmetic surgery, and oculoplastic surgery. He is one of the few cosmetic surgeons who is a diplomat of the American Society of Ophthalmic Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery (ASOPRS) and the American Board of Cosmetic Surgery, as well as board certified by the American Board of Ophthalmology.
Since Dr. Hoenig specializes in the face, he has become known as the “face expert” in the local medical and Hollywood circles.
For more information and "before & after photos," go to: faceexpert.com
posted by JeromeCleary @ 3:08 AM
0 comments
ENDOSCOPIC BACK SURGERY GIVES PATIENTS SAME DAY RECOVERY
New Surgical Technique Breaks Medical Ground
As It Decompresses & Repairs Damaged Disks Without Open Surgery
By Jerome Cleary
BEVERLY HILLS, CA - Marking a major development in back surgery procedures, Neurosurgeon, David Ditsworth, M.D., has created a revolutionary small endoscopic discectomy that decompresses and repairs damaged discs in the back without exposing the spine. Dr. Ditsworth spent the last ten years perfecting his new technique and designing the pioneering medical equipment necessary to perform this virtually closed spine surgery."
It is effective, low risk, and allows for a faster return to work and to daily activities. Patients are discharged the same day with just a band-aid," remarks Ditsworth. This procedure that is done on an outpatient basis, is now available to patients at Beverly Hills Doctors Surgery Center on Spalding Drive in Beverly Hills.
Whereas endoscopic techniques used in other areas of the body have become commonplace, spinal endoscopic techniques have developed slowly. This is because of the complex anatomy inherent in the spine and because of the lack of equipment designed specifically for spinal endoscopy. Working space within the spine is confined deep within the body, with access to pathology hampered by the bony structures and the presence of soft tissue, epidural vessels, nerve roots, and dura. All of these obstacles are overcome by Ditsworth's specialized medical equipment and targeted technique.
"Ditsworth's superb technological approach effectively dispels most of my previous criticism of the numerous so-called minimally invasive procedures," remarks Dr. Charles Fager, professor of Neurosurgery, Harvard Medical School and author of Atlas of Spinal Surgery. "This is the back surgery of the future," says Dr. Stewart Dunsker, Professor and Director of Spine Surgery, University of Cincinnati and the President of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons. "This is the treatment neurosurgeons use for disc disease," says, Dr. James I. Ausman, M.D., Ph.D., and Editor of Surgical Neurology.
The endoscopic discectomy procedure takes an hour on average. Patients normally will feel little discomfort. There are no stitches. Upon completion, a small adhesive bandage is placed over the opening which is usually no larger than the size of a freckle. The amount of nucleus tissue removed varies, but the supporting structure of the disc is not affected by Ditsworth's technique.
"Many people with chronic back pain are suffering too much for too long and need more advanced treatment," says Dr. Ditsworth. Despite treatment,back pain, and related sciatic pain is at an all time high. Research from The Orthopedic Clinic of North America reveals these alarming statistics for many traditional back surgeries in the United States: 25,000-50,000 failed back surgery syndrome cases are reported each year; overall failure rate 30 percent (fusion), 37.3 (non-fusion), re-operation rate 6.9 percent overall at two-year follow-up; 11.9 percent (fusion), 10.2 percent (non-fusion) at four-year follow-up; re-hospitalization 22.4 percent (fusion), 18.3 percent (non-fusion).
"Low back pain is the most prevalent cause of disability in people under age 45, and of the $27 billion spent on all musculoskeletal trauma $16 billion is spent in the management of low back pain, more than half of that $16 billion being spent on surgical treatment. Low back pain is one of the most frequent problems treated by orthopaedic surgeons. Four out of five adults will experience significant low back pain sometime during their life. After the common cold, problems caused by the lower back are the most frequent cause of lost work days in adults under the age of 45," according to Amy Hendel, Health Expert, R-PAC and host of TV's Doctors On Call.
An extra industry has sprung up to help back pain patients cope with their spinal issues, stores such as Relax Your Back and websites such as americanspine.com, spineonline.com, and Holland-spine.com that account for the $27 billion national medical expense annually. Back pain is the price human beings pay for poor posture, prolonged sitting, repeated bending, and other stresses placed on the lower back. The nucleus tissue can be placed under so much pressure that it can cause the annulus to herniate or rupture. In most cases, simple treatments such as bed rest, physical therapy, exercise, and pain medication bring relief. However, many are not so fortunate.
The Procedure: Using local anesthesia with the help of x-ray fluoroscopy and magnified video for guidance, Ditsworth's small, specially designed endoscope is inserted through the skin of the back, between the vertebrae and into the herniated disc space. Tiny surgical instruments are then sent down the hollow center of the endoscope probe to remove a portion of the offending disc. The microsurgical instruments can also sometimes be used to push the bulging disc back into place and be used for the removal of disc fragments and small bony spurs.
Endoscopic Discectomy is different from open lumbar disc surgery because there is no traumatic back muscle dissection, no bone removal, or large skin incision. The risk of complications from scarring, blood loss, infection, and anesthesia that may occur with conventional surgery is drastically reduced or eliminated with this procedure. According to Dr. Ditsworth, this is the safest procedure to treat a ruptured disc without a spinal block (anesthesing your body from the waist down). General anesthesia has many risks, which include, using a ventilator to help the patient breath not on their own, therefore putting the patient on total dependence on the anestheologist. According to Ditsworth, there are many risks of open spine surgery. "It is a certainty with open operations that you will have a substantial scar, not only visible on the skin's surface, but everywhere the operation is done. When you are talking about working near nerve roots where the herniated discs are, you do not want extensive dissection, cutting and exploring, which is done, in every open operation. While some patients who have open surgery tolerate it, many patients are going to suffer permanent ill effects from the open surgery. When open surgery is done it traumatizes the patient. Patients who are in poor health and with medical conditions such as: obesity, hypertension, heart problems, HIV, immune disorders, and old age are actually the prime candidates," remarks,Dr. Ditsworth.
The advantages of Endoscopic Discectomy are many: it is effective and very low risk; there is no scarring in or around the nerves or on the surface. Because the Endoscopic Discectomy procedure is performed on an outpatient basis, you may be allowed to return home the day of the procedure. Many patients worldwide fly in for the procedure and fly out the next day.
Background of spinal problems: Lumbar Discs are the structures, which serve as shock absorbers between the vertebrae of the spinal column. The center of the disc, called the nucleus, is soft and springy and accepts the shock of standing, walking, running, etc. The outer part, called the annulus is comprised of a series of interwoven layers of fibrous tissues, which hold the nucleus in place. Back Pain, and related sciatic pain is the price human beings pay for poor posture, prolonged sitting, repeated bending, and other stresses placed on the lower back. The nucleus tissue can be placed under so much pressure that it can cause the annulus to herniate or rupture. In most cases, simple treatments such as bed rest, physical therapy, exercise, and pain medication bring relief. However, many sufferers are not so fortunate. When a disc is herniated, it may create pressure against one or more of the spinal nerves, which may cause severe pain, numbness, or weakness in the low back, legs and/or feet.
Ditsworth's Research: There are many causes of low back pain, some of these typically are: degenerative joint disease, disk disease, spinal stenosis, spondylolisthesis, and osteoporosis with compression fracture. Over a two and a half year period, Ditsworth performed endoscopic discectomies on 25 patients with L5-S1 free fragments. They underwent outpatient using a small soft, malleable scope technique, which is not traumatic to the spinal canal contents. The 25 patients ranged in age from 29 to 61, 15 males and 10 females. All had free fragments in the spinal canal at L5-S1 (the lowest disc level) ruptured lateral to the dura. Open microdiscectomy had already been recommended in all cases. All had radicular pain, numbness and/or weakness for at least six weeks consistent with the herniation.
Ditsworth's Results: (Macnab1 criteria): 22 excellent (no symptoms, no restriction of activity) 2 good (occasional symptoms), 1 poor (no improvement, required further surgery); for an overall success rate of 96%. Ditsworth's technique provides the ultimate advantage because the actual endoscope itself can be placed directly into the free fragment for optimal visualization and removal, in the most direct, least traumatic approach for reaching and removing free fragments at L5-S1.
Recent patient surgeries: Ex-professional hockey star Brian Hayward recently had the Ditsworth surgery in July 2002 and made a full recovery. This was after years of other orthopedic surgeons telling him that he would have to live with the pain, since any back surgery was too risky. Today Hayward is well known as the on-air correspondent for ESPN, Fox Sports and the Canadian Broadcast corp. Heather Schwartz, a 26-year old patient had the surgery this past May 2002, before the surgery she was unable to walk and was in severe pain. Today she walks only with a slight limp and has made a full recovery.
Dr. David Ditsworth had been published in Surgical Neurology:Endoscopic Transforaminal Lumbar Discectomy and Reconfiguration :A Posterolateral Approach into the Spinal Canal Surgical Neurology [An International Journal : 1998 Jun; 49(6):588-97;]
1 According to Dr. MacNab, who developed the evaluation MacNab criteria to give results of back surgery.
As It Decompresses & Repairs Damaged Disks Without Open Surgery
By Jerome Cleary
BEVERLY HILLS, CA - Marking a major development in back surgery procedures, Neurosurgeon, David Ditsworth, M.D., has created a revolutionary small endoscopic discectomy that decompresses and repairs damaged discs in the back without exposing the spine. Dr. Ditsworth spent the last ten years perfecting his new technique and designing the pioneering medical equipment necessary to perform this virtually closed spine surgery."
It is effective, low risk, and allows for a faster return to work and to daily activities. Patients are discharged the same day with just a band-aid," remarks Ditsworth. This procedure that is done on an outpatient basis, is now available to patients at Beverly Hills Doctors Surgery Center on Spalding Drive in Beverly Hills.
Whereas endoscopic techniques used in other areas of the body have become commonplace, spinal endoscopic techniques have developed slowly. This is because of the complex anatomy inherent in the spine and because of the lack of equipment designed specifically for spinal endoscopy. Working space within the spine is confined deep within the body, with access to pathology hampered by the bony structures and the presence of soft tissue, epidural vessels, nerve roots, and dura. All of these obstacles are overcome by Ditsworth's specialized medical equipment and targeted technique.
"Ditsworth's superb technological approach effectively dispels most of my previous criticism of the numerous so-called minimally invasive procedures," remarks Dr. Charles Fager, professor of Neurosurgery, Harvard Medical School and author of Atlas of Spinal Surgery. "This is the back surgery of the future," says Dr. Stewart Dunsker, Professor and Director of Spine Surgery, University of Cincinnati and the President of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons. "This is the treatment neurosurgeons use for disc disease," says, Dr. James I. Ausman, M.D., Ph.D., and Editor of Surgical Neurology.
The endoscopic discectomy procedure takes an hour on average. Patients normally will feel little discomfort. There are no stitches. Upon completion, a small adhesive bandage is placed over the opening which is usually no larger than the size of a freckle. The amount of nucleus tissue removed varies, but the supporting structure of the disc is not affected by Ditsworth's technique.
"Many people with chronic back pain are suffering too much for too long and need more advanced treatment," says Dr. Ditsworth. Despite treatment,back pain, and related sciatic pain is at an all time high. Research from The Orthopedic Clinic of North America reveals these alarming statistics for many traditional back surgeries in the United States: 25,000-50,000 failed back surgery syndrome cases are reported each year; overall failure rate 30 percent (fusion), 37.3 (non-fusion), re-operation rate 6.9 percent overall at two-year follow-up; 11.9 percent (fusion), 10.2 percent (non-fusion) at four-year follow-up; re-hospitalization 22.4 percent (fusion), 18.3 percent (non-fusion).
"Low back pain is the most prevalent cause of disability in people under age 45, and of the $27 billion spent on all musculoskeletal trauma $16 billion is spent in the management of low back pain, more than half of that $16 billion being spent on surgical treatment. Low back pain is one of the most frequent problems treated by orthopaedic surgeons. Four out of five adults will experience significant low back pain sometime during their life. After the common cold, problems caused by the lower back are the most frequent cause of lost work days in adults under the age of 45," according to Amy Hendel, Health Expert, R-PAC and host of TV's Doctors On Call.
An extra industry has sprung up to help back pain patients cope with their spinal issues, stores such as Relax Your Back and websites such as americanspine.com, spineonline.com, and Holland-spine.com that account for the $27 billion national medical expense annually. Back pain is the price human beings pay for poor posture, prolonged sitting, repeated bending, and other stresses placed on the lower back. The nucleus tissue can be placed under so much pressure that it can cause the annulus to herniate or rupture. In most cases, simple treatments such as bed rest, physical therapy, exercise, and pain medication bring relief. However, many are not so fortunate.
The Procedure: Using local anesthesia with the help of x-ray fluoroscopy and magnified video for guidance, Ditsworth's small, specially designed endoscope is inserted through the skin of the back, between the vertebrae and into the herniated disc space. Tiny surgical instruments are then sent down the hollow center of the endoscope probe to remove a portion of the offending disc. The microsurgical instruments can also sometimes be used to push the bulging disc back into place and be used for the removal of disc fragments and small bony spurs.
Endoscopic Discectomy is different from open lumbar disc surgery because there is no traumatic back muscle dissection, no bone removal, or large skin incision. The risk of complications from scarring, blood loss, infection, and anesthesia that may occur with conventional surgery is drastically reduced or eliminated with this procedure. According to Dr. Ditsworth, this is the safest procedure to treat a ruptured disc without a spinal block (anesthesing your body from the waist down). General anesthesia has many risks, which include, using a ventilator to help the patient breath not on their own, therefore putting the patient on total dependence on the anestheologist. According to Ditsworth, there are many risks of open spine surgery. "It is a certainty with open operations that you will have a substantial scar, not only visible on the skin's surface, but everywhere the operation is done. When you are talking about working near nerve roots where the herniated discs are, you do not want extensive dissection, cutting and exploring, which is done, in every open operation. While some patients who have open surgery tolerate it, many patients are going to suffer permanent ill effects from the open surgery. When open surgery is done it traumatizes the patient. Patients who are in poor health and with medical conditions such as: obesity, hypertension, heart problems, HIV, immune disorders, and old age are actually the prime candidates," remarks,Dr. Ditsworth.
The advantages of Endoscopic Discectomy are many: it is effective and very low risk; there is no scarring in or around the nerves or on the surface. Because the Endoscopic Discectomy procedure is performed on an outpatient basis, you may be allowed to return home the day of the procedure. Many patients worldwide fly in for the procedure and fly out the next day.
Background of spinal problems: Lumbar Discs are the structures, which serve as shock absorbers between the vertebrae of the spinal column. The center of the disc, called the nucleus, is soft and springy and accepts the shock of standing, walking, running, etc. The outer part, called the annulus is comprised of a series of interwoven layers of fibrous tissues, which hold the nucleus in place. Back Pain, and related sciatic pain is the price human beings pay for poor posture, prolonged sitting, repeated bending, and other stresses placed on the lower back. The nucleus tissue can be placed under so much pressure that it can cause the annulus to herniate or rupture. In most cases, simple treatments such as bed rest, physical therapy, exercise, and pain medication bring relief. However, many sufferers are not so fortunate. When a disc is herniated, it may create pressure against one or more of the spinal nerves, which may cause severe pain, numbness, or weakness in the low back, legs and/or feet.
Ditsworth's Research: There are many causes of low back pain, some of these typically are: degenerative joint disease, disk disease, spinal stenosis, spondylolisthesis, and osteoporosis with compression fracture. Over a two and a half year period, Ditsworth performed endoscopic discectomies on 25 patients with L5-S1 free fragments. They underwent outpatient using a small soft, malleable scope technique, which is not traumatic to the spinal canal contents. The 25 patients ranged in age from 29 to 61, 15 males and 10 females. All had free fragments in the spinal canal at L5-S1 (the lowest disc level) ruptured lateral to the dura. Open microdiscectomy had already been recommended in all cases. All had radicular pain, numbness and/or weakness for at least six weeks consistent with the herniation.
Ditsworth's Results: (Macnab1 criteria): 22 excellent (no symptoms, no restriction of activity) 2 good (occasional symptoms), 1 poor (no improvement, required further surgery); for an overall success rate of 96%. Ditsworth's technique provides the ultimate advantage because the actual endoscope itself can be placed directly into the free fragment for optimal visualization and removal, in the most direct, least traumatic approach for reaching and removing free fragments at L5-S1.
Recent patient surgeries: Ex-professional hockey star Brian Hayward recently had the Ditsworth surgery in July 2002 and made a full recovery. This was after years of other orthopedic surgeons telling him that he would have to live with the pain, since any back surgery was too risky. Today Hayward is well known as the on-air correspondent for ESPN, Fox Sports and the Canadian Broadcast corp. Heather Schwartz, a 26-year old patient had the surgery this past May 2002, before the surgery she was unable to walk and was in severe pain. Today she walks only with a slight limp and has made a full recovery.
Dr. David Ditsworth had been published in Surgical Neurology:Endoscopic Transforaminal Lumbar Discectomy and Reconfiguration :A Posterolateral Approach into the Spinal Canal Surgical Neurology [An International Journal : 1998 Jun; 49(6):588-97;]
1 According to Dr. MacNab, who developed the evaluation MacNab criteria to give results of back surgery.
posted by JeromeCleary @ 3:02 AM
4 comments
Friday, March 10, 2006
FAUX FINISH: BROTHER, CAN YOU SPARE A DIME?
By Jerome Cleary
How many of us walk or drive down the street and see homeless people sleeping on the sidewalks, parks and elsewhere or begging for change? We know there are shelters for the homeless and government agencies to help these people get the proper help and get them back on their feet. Though we also know through the media and in life that some do not want help for rehabilitation and want to live on the street.Then there are the typical scams you can encounter living in Southern California of people who tell you that they are out of gas money, do not have enough money for their bus ticket, plane ticket to go back home to the midwest, etc. These are what I will refer to as the faux-homeless.Years ago, I came upon a paperback book called “The Panhandler’s Notebook,” and it revealed how much you could take in a week, month or year just begging for money. It showed how you could come up with your character and your back story in case you ran into the same people every day who had already donated to your fake plight. Several years ago there was this riveting story in The New York Times about a real homeless guy who was in his late 50s who panhandled on the upper East Side of New York City. He was grossing $8,000 a month in cash and tax-free. This guy though had a bad addiction to crack so he was not spending it wisely. Somehow he got reunited with his real daughter and a grandson he never met. It was a real happy ending.Then there is this guy who in the last 20 years of my life in West Hollywood has his routine down pat. He is Caucasian, around 5-feet, 11-inches tall, brown hair, and I think brown or blue eyes, in his late 40s and he wears a light blue jumpsuit that is a bit greasy and dirty and carries a motorcycle helmet. He will approach you and say that his motorcycle just broke down, and he needs to get gas or get it fixed. You will never really see his motorcycle since I believe he just invested enough money in to his scam to let you see him cradling a motorcycle helmet. One night at a City Council meeting, I saw that someone directed him into the auditorium on San Vicente Boulevard. There were some residents trying to be helpful directing him to a city staff member, then on to a city council deputy, then to a sheriff’s deputy. I watched in amazement since the auditorium was packed at this particular city council meeting. This man grew a bit annoyed because his ruse was now being challenged in having to interact with too many helpful people who were not readily digging in to their pockets to help him out in his false plight. Plus, the last thing this scam artist wanted help with was speaking with the police. Fake panhandlers probably only like to perform their one-man show to one innocent person walking by on the sidewalk as their prey.About a month later, I ran into him on San Vicente Boulevard next to the West Hollywood Park. Just as he was coming towards me to pass, I said, “That scam’s tired.” Without missing a beat, he yelled angrily — and with apparent joy — “It f---ing works.”That is the real American spirit — to be so proud at the job one does they want to celebrate and announce it too.Jerome Cleary is a writer, TV talk show host and comic at The World Famous Comedy Store-www.freecomedytickets.com and can be reached at: jeromeclearytalk@aol.com
How many of us walk or drive down the street and see homeless people sleeping on the sidewalks, parks and elsewhere or begging for change? We know there are shelters for the homeless and government agencies to help these people get the proper help and get them back on their feet. Though we also know through the media and in life that some do not want help for rehabilitation and want to live on the street.Then there are the typical scams you can encounter living in Southern California of people who tell you that they are out of gas money, do not have enough money for their bus ticket, plane ticket to go back home to the midwest, etc. These are what I will refer to as the faux-homeless.Years ago, I came upon a paperback book called “The Panhandler’s Notebook,” and it revealed how much you could take in a week, month or year just begging for money. It showed how you could come up with your character and your back story in case you ran into the same people every day who had already donated to your fake plight. Several years ago there was this riveting story in The New York Times about a real homeless guy who was in his late 50s who panhandled on the upper East Side of New York City. He was grossing $8,000 a month in cash and tax-free. This guy though had a bad addiction to crack so he was not spending it wisely. Somehow he got reunited with his real daughter and a grandson he never met. It was a real happy ending.Then there is this guy who in the last 20 years of my life in West Hollywood has his routine down pat. He is Caucasian, around 5-feet, 11-inches tall, brown hair, and I think brown or blue eyes, in his late 40s and he wears a light blue jumpsuit that is a bit greasy and dirty and carries a motorcycle helmet. He will approach you and say that his motorcycle just broke down, and he needs to get gas or get it fixed. You will never really see his motorcycle since I believe he just invested enough money in to his scam to let you see him cradling a motorcycle helmet. One night at a City Council meeting, I saw that someone directed him into the auditorium on San Vicente Boulevard. There were some residents trying to be helpful directing him to a city staff member, then on to a city council deputy, then to a sheriff’s deputy. I watched in amazement since the auditorium was packed at this particular city council meeting. This man grew a bit annoyed because his ruse was now being challenged in having to interact with too many helpful people who were not readily digging in to their pockets to help him out in his false plight. Plus, the last thing this scam artist wanted help with was speaking with the police. Fake panhandlers probably only like to perform their one-man show to one innocent person walking by on the sidewalk as their prey.About a month later, I ran into him on San Vicente Boulevard next to the West Hollywood Park. Just as he was coming towards me to pass, I said, “That scam’s tired.” Without missing a beat, he yelled angrily — and with apparent joy — “It f---ing works.”That is the real American spirit — to be so proud at the job one does they want to celebrate and announce it too.Jerome Cleary is a writer, TV talk show host and comic at The World Famous Comedy Store-www.freecomedytickets.com and can be reached at: jeromeclearytalk@aol.com
posted by JeromeCleary @ 4:33 PM
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WILL CRIME REWARDS LEAD TO THE NEXT REALITY TV SHOW?
By Jerome Cleary
In most films and TV shows, Southern California and Hollywood are usually depicted with the icons of our fantastic palm trees and brilliant green foliage. Especially the famous white lettered-Hollywood sign against the rich green Hollywood hills. Unfortunately, here in West Hollywood, the dark side of having great trees in our city has produced criminals who intentionally cut trees down because they block storefront signage and billboards. This year West Hollywood had to come to terms with two important issues: protecting our trees and offering a high-end reward of $25,000 as a deterrent for further damage to our fine tree specimens. What does this all mean? Well, actually, a lot to our sanity and preservation of our trees.In most film westerns, when a bounty was offered as a reward we were shown posters nailed to a tree or building stating “Wanted: Dead or Alive.” The rewards were thousands of dollars for the capture of a thief or murderer. In West Hollywood, we have lost 43 trees since 1999 to these tree bandits. Trees have been cut down to the stump or trimmed in a severe way, not only on Sunset Boulevard but also along Santa Monica and La Cienega boulevards. West Hollywood has leapt into action with our city attorney recommending a $25,000 reward. Most fines and rewards are set up in hopes that they will be a strong deterrent to future similar crimes. But there is always somebody ready to risk committing the crime in hopes of not getting caught.This new tree bandit ordinance encourages residents to participate with cameras or video cams in hand to document the evidence that may capture the suspects. One part of the new reward ordinance states “reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of people responsible for illegal tree cutting.” Now keep in mind that “conviction” is the operative word in this new tree bandit ordinance. The ordinance further states “rewards as provided herein shall not be paid until a criminal case is closed by sentencing of the defendant. The City of West Hollywood shall make reward payments as promptly as possible, but in no event shall payment be made before all direct appeals of the conviction have been exhausted.” There is also a 7-day deadline for residents to fill out an application for this $25,000 reward. So to be in the running as this new type of bounty hunter, you have to be fast and fill out an application within a mere week.As we move further into the future, will West Hollywood become like many cities and states where video cameras are on street corners recording our every move? Will we mind the presence of Big Brother always watching us in order to deter crime? Or like in the proliferation of reality TV today, everybody can be some sort of video star whether you are the witness, the victim or the suspect. Jerome Cleary is a writer, TV talk show host and comic at The World Famous Comedy Store-www.freecomedy-tickets.com and can be reached at: jeromeclearytalk@aol.com
In most films and TV shows, Southern California and Hollywood are usually depicted with the icons of our fantastic palm trees and brilliant green foliage. Especially the famous white lettered-Hollywood sign against the rich green Hollywood hills. Unfortunately, here in West Hollywood, the dark side of having great trees in our city has produced criminals who intentionally cut trees down because they block storefront signage and billboards. This year West Hollywood had to come to terms with two important issues: protecting our trees and offering a high-end reward of $25,000 as a deterrent for further damage to our fine tree specimens. What does this all mean? Well, actually, a lot to our sanity and preservation of our trees.In most film westerns, when a bounty was offered as a reward we were shown posters nailed to a tree or building stating “Wanted: Dead or Alive.” The rewards were thousands of dollars for the capture of a thief or murderer. In West Hollywood, we have lost 43 trees since 1999 to these tree bandits. Trees have been cut down to the stump or trimmed in a severe way, not only on Sunset Boulevard but also along Santa Monica and La Cienega boulevards. West Hollywood has leapt into action with our city attorney recommending a $25,000 reward. Most fines and rewards are set up in hopes that they will be a strong deterrent to future similar crimes. But there is always somebody ready to risk committing the crime in hopes of not getting caught.This new tree bandit ordinance encourages residents to participate with cameras or video cams in hand to document the evidence that may capture the suspects. One part of the new reward ordinance states “reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of people responsible for illegal tree cutting.” Now keep in mind that “conviction” is the operative word in this new tree bandit ordinance. The ordinance further states “rewards as provided herein shall not be paid until a criminal case is closed by sentencing of the defendant. The City of West Hollywood shall make reward payments as promptly as possible, but in no event shall payment be made before all direct appeals of the conviction have been exhausted.” There is also a 7-day deadline for residents to fill out an application for this $25,000 reward. So to be in the running as this new type of bounty hunter, you have to be fast and fill out an application within a mere week.As we move further into the future, will West Hollywood become like many cities and states where video cameras are on street corners recording our every move? Will we mind the presence of Big Brother always watching us in order to deter crime? Or like in the proliferation of reality TV today, everybody can be some sort of video star whether you are the witness, the victim or the suspect. Jerome Cleary is a writer, TV talk show host and comic at The World Famous Comedy Store-www.freecomedy-tickets.com and can be reached at: jeromeclearytalk@aol.com
posted by JeromeCleary @ 4:31 PM
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THE CONTINUING GREATNESS OF 'PARIS IS BURNING'
By Jerome Cleary
Outfest offered a special screening of the infamous 1990 documentary “Paris Is Burning” by director Jennie Livingston who also screened her new 22-minute lesbian short “Who’s The Top.”Like any good classic “Paris Is Burning?” not only held up for its wear 15 years later, but also has continued to deliver a poignant tale of the struggles of the upper Harlem drag queen, transsexual and lower class New York City African American and Latino gays against the white-white world of privilege, society and money."Paris Is Burning" consistently delivers today like any great documentary peeling back layer upon layer and showing us a world within a world within a world. In the mid 1980s the gay and lesbian world was changing in several ways. Calvin Klein’s humongous billboard ads in Times Square depicted men sexualized in white briefs. AIDS had moved from being a “gay cancer” to a serious disease and Studio 54 had closed. Disco had died, and Madonna was a big pop star. But way uptown during this time, a world was continuing to evolve that only film director Livingston had her finger on — the world of the balls vs. the balls. These low-rent drag balls had voluminous amounts of categories, from “Town and Country” to “Bangee Girl” to “Model” and more. Livingston spent three years from 1986 to 1989 studying and interviewing the subjects of “Paris Is Burning” to gain their trust. So when filming began in the late 1980s, what we now see on the screen today is documentary gold.Livingston has made the subjects: uptown Harlem poverty-stricken gay world more vulnerable, real, tragic and courageous up against the upwardly white gay world. Within the drag queen world, character is built with attitude and flamboyance — and as this documentary continues to reveal, the heart-wrenching desires to be loved, accepted not only by society but by their families and peers. Even today, the transsexuals, transvestites and drag queens are still the last minority that has not gotten the coverage in the media as has the sanitized white “Will & Grace” and “Queer Eye For the Straight Guy” have. This last minority is still considered to be the freaks by society. This is why “Paris Is Burning” is still an extremely important film, as it continueds to say a lot about gay society in America.The documentary starts in NYC where black and Hispanic drag queens hold "balls,” where they dress up in drag, or as men or women or themselves — and walk the cat walk in front of an audience just to be voted on. When this film came out in 1990, it was controversial and won numerous best documentary awards at film festivals. It was never nominated for an Academy Award, but I believe 1990 was still too early for aging Academy voters to embrace Hispanic and African American drag queens’ plight and celebration. As many of the subjects of the documentary have passed on because of AIDS, poor health care, diabetes or have been victims of a tragic crime, they all live on in our hearts and in our minds because they want what we all want in life: love and happiness.Jerome Cleary is a writer, TV talk show host and comic at The World Famous Comedy Store-www.freecomedytickets.com and can be reached at: jeromeclearytalk@aol.com
Outfest offered a special screening of the infamous 1990 documentary “Paris Is Burning” by director Jennie Livingston who also screened her new 22-minute lesbian short “Who’s The Top.”Like any good classic “Paris Is Burning?” not only held up for its wear 15 years later, but also has continued to deliver a poignant tale of the struggles of the upper Harlem drag queen, transsexual and lower class New York City African American and Latino gays against the white-white world of privilege, society and money."Paris Is Burning" consistently delivers today like any great documentary peeling back layer upon layer and showing us a world within a world within a world. In the mid 1980s the gay and lesbian world was changing in several ways. Calvin Klein’s humongous billboard ads in Times Square depicted men sexualized in white briefs. AIDS had moved from being a “gay cancer” to a serious disease and Studio 54 had closed. Disco had died, and Madonna was a big pop star. But way uptown during this time, a world was continuing to evolve that only film director Livingston had her finger on — the world of the balls vs. the balls. These low-rent drag balls had voluminous amounts of categories, from “Town and Country” to “Bangee Girl” to “Model” and more. Livingston spent three years from 1986 to 1989 studying and interviewing the subjects of “Paris Is Burning” to gain their trust. So when filming began in the late 1980s, what we now see on the screen today is documentary gold.Livingston has made the subjects: uptown Harlem poverty-stricken gay world more vulnerable, real, tragic and courageous up against the upwardly white gay world. Within the drag queen world, character is built with attitude and flamboyance — and as this documentary continues to reveal, the heart-wrenching desires to be loved, accepted not only by society but by their families and peers. Even today, the transsexuals, transvestites and drag queens are still the last minority that has not gotten the coverage in the media as has the sanitized white “Will & Grace” and “Queer Eye For the Straight Guy” have. This last minority is still considered to be the freaks by society. This is why “Paris Is Burning” is still an extremely important film, as it continueds to say a lot about gay society in America.The documentary starts in NYC where black and Hispanic drag queens hold "balls,” where they dress up in drag, or as men or women or themselves — and walk the cat walk in front of an audience just to be voted on. When this film came out in 1990, it was controversial and won numerous best documentary awards at film festivals. It was never nominated for an Academy Award, but I believe 1990 was still too early for aging Academy voters to embrace Hispanic and African American drag queens’ plight and celebration. As many of the subjects of the documentary have passed on because of AIDS, poor health care, diabetes or have been victims of a tragic crime, they all live on in our hearts and in our minds because they want what we all want in life: love and happiness.Jerome Cleary is a writer, TV talk show host and comic at The World Famous Comedy Store-www.freecomedytickets.com and can be reached at: jeromeclearytalk@aol.com
posted by JeromeCleary @ 4:30 PM
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ACTIVISM AND POLITICAL BURN OUT IN WEST HOLLYWOOD
By Jerome Cleary
Even though West Hollywood is a mere 20 years old, we are now suffering from what many cities across the U.S. suffer from — burnout, apathy and time.Our city now has many community advocates and activists that are up in years and can no longer attend the city council, planning, public safety and other commission meetings and are not Internet savvy. Others are burned out since in many neighborhoods whatever issue was sticking in their craw has either been resolved in an unsatisfying way or has angered and disillusioned the residents to a point where they now turn their backs on whatever else is happening in their city. Our city has lost many activists who simply got fed up and moved away where they feel they can possibly make a difference.The newer residents who have purchased homes or condos at very high market prices have such a high overhead of mortgage payments and taxes that many are working over 50 to 60 hours a week just to keep up. When you are hardly in your $1.5 million home because you are at the office or at meetings, how can you spend any time addressing what could be bothering you in your neighborhood or city? So the zest that usually drives the activists and advocates dies a slow death in what could now be a non-existent cycle.Some West Hollywood residents have no idea they even live in our city and think they live in Los Angeles. This is discovered at every election when they walk in to our polls to vote and think they can vote for the mayor of Los Angeles or some L.A. ballot issue. One of the biggest problems we have is the apathy of the vast majority of the residents who realize they do live in West Hollywood but cannot be bothered to vote. West Hollywood voter turnout has been as low as six percent.So where does that leave the rest of us? Right where we are.We now have newer residents, some young gays and lesbians who have no idea who Harvey Milk was, what Stonewall was all about and love being free and in an alternative lifestyle in West Hollywood. And why not? West Hollywood is now posh and prettier to look at and be in.Recently the Los Angeles City Council agreed to have a satellite substation in the San Fernando Valley for residents so they do not have to drive down town to testify at city council meetings. All the residents have to do is go to the City Hall branch in the Valley, and they will have a live video-conference. Will the future of our city head in that direction too?Historic preservation takes on a whole new life as the sensible alternative to preserve and protect our city’s architecture and lives.But just like any good mystery novel, the next plot turn in our West Hollywood story could surprise us. We don’t have any idea what the next big fight in West Hollywood will be. But all it needs is a few turn of events, a developer who wants his or her way and a bee that gets in to just the right bonnet of a resident or business owner and voilá — instant re-charge.The Supreme Court’s recent ruling on eminent domain will now be a tool that may or may not be utilized, so it will still be a different kind of fight. How will the political higher ups maintain their popularity when they might use a heavy handed approach? Like any great reality TV show today — to be continued.Jerome Cleary is a writer, TV talk show host and comic at The World Famous Comedy Store-www.freecomedytickets.com and can be reached at: jeromeclearytalk@aol.com
Even though West Hollywood is a mere 20 years old, we are now suffering from what many cities across the U.S. suffer from — burnout, apathy and time.Our city now has many community advocates and activists that are up in years and can no longer attend the city council, planning, public safety and other commission meetings and are not Internet savvy. Others are burned out since in many neighborhoods whatever issue was sticking in their craw has either been resolved in an unsatisfying way or has angered and disillusioned the residents to a point where they now turn their backs on whatever else is happening in their city. Our city has lost many activists who simply got fed up and moved away where they feel they can possibly make a difference.The newer residents who have purchased homes or condos at very high market prices have such a high overhead of mortgage payments and taxes that many are working over 50 to 60 hours a week just to keep up. When you are hardly in your $1.5 million home because you are at the office or at meetings, how can you spend any time addressing what could be bothering you in your neighborhood or city? So the zest that usually drives the activists and advocates dies a slow death in what could now be a non-existent cycle.Some West Hollywood residents have no idea they even live in our city and think they live in Los Angeles. This is discovered at every election when they walk in to our polls to vote and think they can vote for the mayor of Los Angeles or some L.A. ballot issue. One of the biggest problems we have is the apathy of the vast majority of the residents who realize they do live in West Hollywood but cannot be bothered to vote. West Hollywood voter turnout has been as low as six percent.So where does that leave the rest of us? Right where we are.We now have newer residents, some young gays and lesbians who have no idea who Harvey Milk was, what Stonewall was all about and love being free and in an alternative lifestyle in West Hollywood. And why not? West Hollywood is now posh and prettier to look at and be in.Recently the Los Angeles City Council agreed to have a satellite substation in the San Fernando Valley for residents so they do not have to drive down town to testify at city council meetings. All the residents have to do is go to the City Hall branch in the Valley, and they will have a live video-conference. Will the future of our city head in that direction too?Historic preservation takes on a whole new life as the sensible alternative to preserve and protect our city’s architecture and lives.But just like any good mystery novel, the next plot turn in our West Hollywood story could surprise us. We don’t have any idea what the next big fight in West Hollywood will be. But all it needs is a few turn of events, a developer who wants his or her way and a bee that gets in to just the right bonnet of a resident or business owner and voilá — instant re-charge.The Supreme Court’s recent ruling on eminent domain will now be a tool that may or may not be utilized, so it will still be a different kind of fight. How will the political higher ups maintain their popularity when they might use a heavy handed approach? Like any great reality TV show today — to be continued.Jerome Cleary is a writer, TV talk show host and comic at The World Famous Comedy Store-www.freecomedytickets.com and can be reached at: jeromeclearytalk@aol.com
posted by JeromeCleary @ 4:29 PM
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HOT CHILD IN THE CITY
By Jerome Cleary
Summer is already here and that means hot weather. Do you know what is worse than the heat? Children left in cars all day. It's an epidemic especially in Southern California. Last summer, it was again a cause for concern. Last year the LA Times leap published a list of "Tips To Prevent Tragedy" which they had in the Automotive Section, so I am sure you all saw it. But if you did not, below are their first two tips:1. Always put something - cell phone, briefcase, purse - in the back seat that you will need to retrieve when you get out. It will guarantee that you'll open the back door and see your child.2. (My favorite) Keep a large teddy bear in the child's car seat when no one's in it. When the child is placed in the car seat, bring the teddy bear up front as a reminder that your child is in the back seat.That was handy as the heat during the summer can make anywhere in the valley feels like it's a mile from the sun.Do you know who the real victims are? The parents. Parents are really busy and have a lot on their mind as they keep track of their yoga mat, non-fat soy latte and appointment book. Damn that child for nodding off and being so quiet in the back seat.I tried to imagine a new useful PSA (public service announcement) that features just an empty baby bottle. As the voice over says: "A full tummy-equals a silent dummy. Don't feed the child. Don't feed the child."I don't think I've ever heard of a crack baby accidentally left in someone's car. No, cause that crack baby is angry and tired and wants his crack pipe now. I believe I have come up with a better list of "Tips To Prevent Tragedy" and here they are:1. Tie a cowbell around your kid's neck, it's sure to clang on sharp curves on the way to daycare.2. Get some birthday cake sparklers, place them in each of your kid's hands and light them. (You may want to put oven mitts on your kid's hands first for this one.)3. Break out the old Halloween costumes — a bright purple Barney, a bright yellow Sponge Bob on your child will make it easy for you not to miss your child as you run from the parking lot in the dead heat in to the mall.4. Get some colored construction paper: Cut out a "B" for baby and tape the "B" on to your dash board, or cut out a "T" if you have twins, or cut out a number "3" if you have triplets.Some of you are probably thinking: "What if you have quadruplets?" Now that is a trick question, since you would put three of them in the back and put the forth one in the front seat, so you definitely don't need any reminders.Jerome Cleary is a writer, TV talk show host and comic at The World Famous Comedy Store-www.freecomedytickets.com and can be reached at: jeromeclearytalk@aol.com
Summer is already here and that means hot weather. Do you know what is worse than the heat? Children left in cars all day. It's an epidemic especially in Southern California. Last summer, it was again a cause for concern. Last year the LA Times leap published a list of "Tips To Prevent Tragedy" which they had in the Automotive Section, so I am sure you all saw it. But if you did not, below are their first two tips:1. Always put something - cell phone, briefcase, purse - in the back seat that you will need to retrieve when you get out. It will guarantee that you'll open the back door and see your child.2. (My favorite) Keep a large teddy bear in the child's car seat when no one's in it. When the child is placed in the car seat, bring the teddy bear up front as a reminder that your child is in the back seat.That was handy as the heat during the summer can make anywhere in the valley feels like it's a mile from the sun.Do you know who the real victims are? The parents. Parents are really busy and have a lot on their mind as they keep track of their yoga mat, non-fat soy latte and appointment book. Damn that child for nodding off and being so quiet in the back seat.I tried to imagine a new useful PSA (public service announcement) that features just an empty baby bottle. As the voice over says: "A full tummy-equals a silent dummy. Don't feed the child. Don't feed the child."I don't think I've ever heard of a crack baby accidentally left in someone's car. No, cause that crack baby is angry and tired and wants his crack pipe now. I believe I have come up with a better list of "Tips To Prevent Tragedy" and here they are:1. Tie a cowbell around your kid's neck, it's sure to clang on sharp curves on the way to daycare.2. Get some birthday cake sparklers, place them in each of your kid's hands and light them. (You may want to put oven mitts on your kid's hands first for this one.)3. Break out the old Halloween costumes — a bright purple Barney, a bright yellow Sponge Bob on your child will make it easy for you not to miss your child as you run from the parking lot in the dead heat in to the mall.4. Get some colored construction paper: Cut out a "B" for baby and tape the "B" on to your dash board, or cut out a "T" if you have twins, or cut out a number "3" if you have triplets.Some of you are probably thinking: "What if you have quadruplets?" Now that is a trick question, since you would put three of them in the back and put the forth one in the front seat, so you definitely don't need any reminders.Jerome Cleary is a writer, TV talk show host and comic at The World Famous Comedy Store-www.freecomedytickets.com and can be reached at: jeromeclearytalk@aol.com
posted by JeromeCleary @ 4:28 PM
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REFLECTIONS IN RED, WHITE AND BLUE
By Jerome Cleary
The 4th of July has just passed and as a city and a country I began to wonder what makes someone more or less patriotic. Standing along the Sunset Strip recently I ran in to two gentlemen who were visiting from Australia. As we talked, they both expressed how Americans were proud of their country. This was done in a variety of ways as they went on about how we as Americans like to display our flags. The one guy told me that back in Australia when he tried to put up his country's flag, someone said to him, "What are you doing?" As if he were a bit loony.These two men said that they were delighted by how happy and proud we are about being Americans. Many of us can remember as we see small children today at parades running along wearing red, white and blue Uncle Sam hats and holding pinwheels. Famous celebrities seem to want to create a shock and awe in draping their naked or semi-naked bodies in our flag in a photo shoot. Fox or CNN show us repeatedly our country's flag being burned which of course angers us and makes some of us then rationalize the war we are in further.But how does one become patriotic and how does that color and shape our lives? Do years and years of standing, putting our hand over our heart and reciting the pledge of allegiance in grade school, high school and public and city events make us understand exactly who and where we are? Do groups who want the word God taken out of public schools want us to be free to believe or not believe?An act has been created and updated called The Patriot Act and just the name alone would cause one to think that it will be good. But we are left with waiving away many if not all of our rights in situations that may make us wrong or right.It is interesting to see what creates fireworks among our residents and neighbors in West Hollywood. If you have lived in West Hollywood for a few or many years you may know if you are kept awake with illegal construction or noise or had a neighbor or friend who was. Whether it is a loud party, stereo music or any unnecessary noise. Our city has created a new law to enforce loud muffler noise from motorcyclists. In the last decade we got an anti-cruising law to prevent gridlock so emergency vehicles would have access and horn honking would stop at blocked intersections.As residents of West Hollywood we have some or no power to do the right thing. But as our 20-year history has shown us our efforts collectively or solely have produced results in some capacity for improvement. In my neighborhood, my business neighbors are many well-known entities. Tower Records have been my neighbor for the last 20 years and in the recent past have constructed a performance stage illegally at 4:30 a.m. on a weekday 2 days ahead of an event to be heard at noon on a Friday. Over the many years, Tower Records has had many other "live events" where microphone sound checks are done before 9 a.m. even though the performance is not until noon. Tower Records likes to also do construction on unheard of Sundays too in order to erect a jumbo tron.Recently, Coffee Bean moved from Sunset Plaza to my street corner and this past week thought nothing of jack hammering illegally late on a Sunday night until pass 2am in the morning of our workday Monday. Neighbors were unhappy with Coffee Bean and to make matters worse Coffee Bean has been basically indignant and in denial that they had no permit and kept us up.Years ago it was neighborhood kids with illegal firecrackers celebrating our country's birthday. Today it's corporate America celebrating our country's birthday all year long. The sparks and fireworks look and sound different but the impact is the same since it rubs us all the wrong way.Jerome Cleary is a 20-year resident of West Hollywood and standup comic at The World Famous Comedy Store-www.freecomedytickets.com
The 4th of July has just passed and as a city and a country I began to wonder what makes someone more or less patriotic. Standing along the Sunset Strip recently I ran in to two gentlemen who were visiting from Australia. As we talked, they both expressed how Americans were proud of their country. This was done in a variety of ways as they went on about how we as Americans like to display our flags. The one guy told me that back in Australia when he tried to put up his country's flag, someone said to him, "What are you doing?" As if he were a bit loony.These two men said that they were delighted by how happy and proud we are about being Americans. Many of us can remember as we see small children today at parades running along wearing red, white and blue Uncle Sam hats and holding pinwheels. Famous celebrities seem to want to create a shock and awe in draping their naked or semi-naked bodies in our flag in a photo shoot. Fox or CNN show us repeatedly our country's flag being burned which of course angers us and makes some of us then rationalize the war we are in further.But how does one become patriotic and how does that color and shape our lives? Do years and years of standing, putting our hand over our heart and reciting the pledge of allegiance in grade school, high school and public and city events make us understand exactly who and where we are? Do groups who want the word God taken out of public schools want us to be free to believe or not believe?An act has been created and updated called The Patriot Act and just the name alone would cause one to think that it will be good. But we are left with waiving away many if not all of our rights in situations that may make us wrong or right.It is interesting to see what creates fireworks among our residents and neighbors in West Hollywood. If you have lived in West Hollywood for a few or many years you may know if you are kept awake with illegal construction or noise or had a neighbor or friend who was. Whether it is a loud party, stereo music or any unnecessary noise. Our city has created a new law to enforce loud muffler noise from motorcyclists. In the last decade we got an anti-cruising law to prevent gridlock so emergency vehicles would have access and horn honking would stop at blocked intersections.As residents of West Hollywood we have some or no power to do the right thing. But as our 20-year history has shown us our efforts collectively or solely have produced results in some capacity for improvement. In my neighborhood, my business neighbors are many well-known entities. Tower Records have been my neighbor for the last 20 years and in the recent past have constructed a performance stage illegally at 4:30 a.m. on a weekday 2 days ahead of an event to be heard at noon on a Friday. Over the many years, Tower Records has had many other "live events" where microphone sound checks are done before 9 a.m. even though the performance is not until noon. Tower Records likes to also do construction on unheard of Sundays too in order to erect a jumbo tron.Recently, Coffee Bean moved from Sunset Plaza to my street corner and this past week thought nothing of jack hammering illegally late on a Sunday night until pass 2am in the morning of our workday Monday. Neighbors were unhappy with Coffee Bean and to make matters worse Coffee Bean has been basically indignant and in denial that they had no permit and kept us up.Years ago it was neighborhood kids with illegal firecrackers celebrating our country's birthday. Today it's corporate America celebrating our country's birthday all year long. The sparks and fireworks look and sound different but the impact is the same since it rubs us all the wrong way.Jerome Cleary is a 20-year resident of West Hollywood and standup comic at The World Famous Comedy Store-www.freecomedytickets.com
posted by JeromeCleary @ 4:26 PM
0 comments
IF BIG BROTHER WANTS YOUR HOUSE
By Jerome Cleary
Life has just been made much more interesting when the highest U.S. Court has made a final decision that blight does not have to be an option when cities deem your home and neighborhood financially advantageous for their future.Imagine that if you are a home owner or apartment owner and that your property in West Hollywood may be seen as the next viable Gateway Project, new civic center or new housing towers. You open your mail one day and get a notice that informs you that you have a window of time to re-locate. Yes, fees will be paid to buy you out, but what does this all mean?Years ago it was depressed bad neighborhoods, today it can be anywhere. This means that more plans for big-box stores, office complexes, entertainment centers or anything our West Hollywood government sees fit to be our next big thing. Residents will not have to worry about having neighborhood meetings, gathering petitions, getting web sites or storming city hall, city council meetings, planning commission meetings or historic preservation meetings as the highest court has given carte blanche to our West Hollywood officials and the rest of the country.So that lovely $1.5-million home with two bedrooms you have been calling “home” may be appreciating fast in value in the hottest Southern California and West Hollywood market, but don’t plan on retiring in your personally owned home too fast. Your neighborhood may in the next five to 20 years turn out to be the best location for a Costco or a new media center of offices and condos.We have experienced in our recent past: a recession in the early 1990s, post 9/11 economic woes where people stayed glued to their televisions during the fall of 2001 and winter of 2002 watching anthrax reports and top terrorists lists along with high alerts in colors of bright orange and red. Merchants, businesses and restaurants suffered or went under as large masses of people did not venture out to live their daily lives.So now our own city can move forward with greater confidence and no court can stand in their way. High-paying developers now can wield the kind of leverage that is given the support and green light by the courts. How can the average Joe and Jane compete with this? The answer is, we cannot. Today the landscape of West Hollywood and the entire country has changed with one swift final decision. Now when you see individuals taking a walk in your neighborhood with a clip board in hand, they may not be from the Sierra Club or getting signatures for an upcoming proposition to put on our ballots, they may be considering your section of town for financial gain.In life you can count on two things: death and taxes. Now you may have fears about going to your mailbox each day to collect your mail. Maybe the welcome mat you have displayed over the years has taken on a whole new meaning you were not counting on. “Welcome” to take my home whenever you need it. Jerome Cleary is a 20-year West Hollywood resident/renter, community advocate and TV talk show host. He is an apartment renter and hopes to one day buy a condo or house, although now he is not too sure.
Life has just been made much more interesting when the highest U.S. Court has made a final decision that blight does not have to be an option when cities deem your home and neighborhood financially advantageous for their future.Imagine that if you are a home owner or apartment owner and that your property in West Hollywood may be seen as the next viable Gateway Project, new civic center or new housing towers. You open your mail one day and get a notice that informs you that you have a window of time to re-locate. Yes, fees will be paid to buy you out, but what does this all mean?Years ago it was depressed bad neighborhoods, today it can be anywhere. This means that more plans for big-box stores, office complexes, entertainment centers or anything our West Hollywood government sees fit to be our next big thing. Residents will not have to worry about having neighborhood meetings, gathering petitions, getting web sites or storming city hall, city council meetings, planning commission meetings or historic preservation meetings as the highest court has given carte blanche to our West Hollywood officials and the rest of the country.So that lovely $1.5-million home with two bedrooms you have been calling “home” may be appreciating fast in value in the hottest Southern California and West Hollywood market, but don’t plan on retiring in your personally owned home too fast. Your neighborhood may in the next five to 20 years turn out to be the best location for a Costco or a new media center of offices and condos.We have experienced in our recent past: a recession in the early 1990s, post 9/11 economic woes where people stayed glued to their televisions during the fall of 2001 and winter of 2002 watching anthrax reports and top terrorists lists along with high alerts in colors of bright orange and red. Merchants, businesses and restaurants suffered or went under as large masses of people did not venture out to live their daily lives.So now our own city can move forward with greater confidence and no court can stand in their way. High-paying developers now can wield the kind of leverage that is given the support and green light by the courts. How can the average Joe and Jane compete with this? The answer is, we cannot. Today the landscape of West Hollywood and the entire country has changed with one swift final decision. Now when you see individuals taking a walk in your neighborhood with a clip board in hand, they may not be from the Sierra Club or getting signatures for an upcoming proposition to put on our ballots, they may be considering your section of town for financial gain.In life you can count on two things: death and taxes. Now you may have fears about going to your mailbox each day to collect your mail. Maybe the welcome mat you have displayed over the years has taken on a whole new meaning you were not counting on. “Welcome” to take my home whenever you need it. Jerome Cleary is a 20-year West Hollywood resident/renter, community advocate and TV talk show host. He is an apartment renter and hopes to one day buy a condo or house, although now he is not too sure.
posted by JeromeCleary @ 4:19 PM
0 comments
Thursday, March 09, 2006
BISEXUAL IS THE NEW "GAY"
By Jerome Cleary
I tried to pretend it was not happening at all. That being gay was now too gay, and it is now better to be seen as Bisexual. That it now takes the edge off of being well, gay.
In today's cutting edge trend, gay is out but being Bi is really in since it is the dumbed-down softer side version of being just an old boring gay. If you are known as Bi or bisexual, it now means that you are cooler than cool.
Does being Bisexual now seem to be an upgrade from being just gay? When a star, athlete or celebrity can reveal their all-new Lesbian or gay affair and still be seen as sorta straight, does that make it better?
Is Bisexual now like a new improved higher octane gay but with better options and results?
The Anne Heches and Angelina Jolies have basically ruined it for all of us. While they are confessing of bisexual affairs, this engages a dance-around in the media. Just this week The National Enquirer has another issue out with the headline that says: "Who's Gay?" and Who's Not Gay" It make many of us peruse this issue at the grocery store or magazine rack with avid interest.
And just the other day, I listened to a radio talk show where the hosts would name a celebrity and then each of the two male hosts and the one female host who is also admittedly bisexual would say who they thought was gay or not.
On dating websites guys list themselves as straight but somehow reveal that they have some "gay tendencies." On the website craigslist.com, in the "men seeking men section," tons of guys are straight but for today's listing or posting they are drunk or high or their real or imaginary girlfriends at work, or she's out of town or they just "broke up" with their gf (slang for girlfriend).
Or I love the guy's ads that say: "I want to be gay for one night" or "prove to me that I might like to have sex with a guy."
Excuse me? Am I missing something?
Will the future bring us closet heterosexuals who want to try "being straight for one night" or "my male lover is out of town and I would like to try some vagina tonight."
I really do believe that there are some true bisexuals, but these newer versions of dabbling in bisexuality or try-to-make-me-gay tonight ads on the Internet just have me thinking what the hell is happening?
Is the gorilla marketing approach working in the way that now real gays are masquerading around as faux bisexuals to get laid or noticed more?
When a man or woman says, "Yeah, well I am bisexual," does that mean that it's a little bit better or acceptable than the full-on throttle gay or lesbian person?
Will future musicals have songs like: “I'm Gonna Wash That Bi Right Out of My Hair" or "I Enjoy Being A Bi" to finally "There Is Nothing Like A Bi, Nothing In The World."
Will future support groups have members confessing, "I dabbled and experimented with Heterosexuality in college?"
Jerome Cleary is an actor, writer and comic at The World Famous Comedy Store-www.freecomedytickets.com and can be reached at: jeromeclearytalk@aol.com
I tried to pretend it was not happening at all. That being gay was now too gay, and it is now better to be seen as Bisexual. That it now takes the edge off of being well, gay.
In today's cutting edge trend, gay is out but being Bi is really in since it is the dumbed-down softer side version of being just an old boring gay. If you are known as Bi or bisexual, it now means that you are cooler than cool.
Does being Bisexual now seem to be an upgrade from being just gay? When a star, athlete or celebrity can reveal their all-new Lesbian or gay affair and still be seen as sorta straight, does that make it better?
Is Bisexual now like a new improved higher octane gay but with better options and results?
The Anne Heches and Angelina Jolies have basically ruined it for all of us. While they are confessing of bisexual affairs, this engages a dance-around in the media. Just this week The National Enquirer has another issue out with the headline that says: "Who's Gay?" and Who's Not Gay" It make many of us peruse this issue at the grocery store or magazine rack with avid interest.
And just the other day, I listened to a radio talk show where the hosts would name a celebrity and then each of the two male hosts and the one female host who is also admittedly bisexual would say who they thought was gay or not.
On dating websites guys list themselves as straight but somehow reveal that they have some "gay tendencies." On the website craigslist.com, in the "men seeking men section," tons of guys are straight but for today's listing or posting they are drunk or high or their real or imaginary girlfriends at work, or she's out of town or they just "broke up" with their gf (slang for girlfriend).
Or I love the guy's ads that say: "I want to be gay for one night" or "prove to me that I might like to have sex with a guy."
Excuse me? Am I missing something?
Will the future bring us closet heterosexuals who want to try "being straight for one night" or "my male lover is out of town and I would like to try some vagina tonight."
I really do believe that there are some true bisexuals, but these newer versions of dabbling in bisexuality or try-to-make-me-gay tonight ads on the Internet just have me thinking what the hell is happening?
Is the gorilla marketing approach working in the way that now real gays are masquerading around as faux bisexuals to get laid or noticed more?
When a man or woman says, "Yeah, well I am bisexual," does that mean that it's a little bit better or acceptable than the full-on throttle gay or lesbian person?
Will future musicals have songs like: “I'm Gonna Wash That Bi Right Out of My Hair" or "I Enjoy Being A Bi" to finally "There Is Nothing Like A Bi, Nothing In The World."
Will future support groups have members confessing, "I dabbled and experimented with Heterosexuality in college?"
Jerome Cleary is an actor, writer and comic at The World Famous Comedy Store-www.freecomedytickets.com and can be reached at: jeromeclearytalk@aol.com
posted by JeromeCleary @ 7:50 PM
0 comments
THE CHRISTMAS THAT ALMOST WASN'T
By Jerome Cleary
The holidays are a time where people come together and celebrate many things. Some of us who seek to escape the drama of our real families or have no family, have created our own families with our friends to see us through the holidays.
By doing this, you may believe you have escaped the drama and dysfunction of your real family, though your friends may make up for it in their own special way. The week before Christmas I was invited to have dinner with a couple on Christmas Eve. It would be just the three of us. Yeah, I’ve been the third wheel and candleholder before.
At first it seemed like a great idea, now as time was passing it was beginning to look a lot like not Christmas. Then Art invited two friends of mine, a couple —Tim and Kevin — who I had recently introduced to him.
So now the dinner plans had two couples and me. Then Art invited another couple from Northern California. So now it’s three couples and me. I ran into my friend Fred who had Art and me over for Christmas dinner the year before. So I invited him and told Art that I had done so.
So the next day I get a text message from Art that read: ‘Fred can’t come.’ I texted back: ‘Why?’ Art texted back: ‘Not enough room at the table and Mark doesn’t know him.’ I texted back: ‘Now I have a problem as I know I did not ask you if I could bring a guest, but I did not think it was a big deal since I took you last Christmas to Fred’s house for dinner. So it would be rude of me to uninvite him, so now I am going to tell him it’s been cancelled, then he will want to do something with me so now I can’t go.’ I also know that my friend Art's reason is lame because if three couples and I can sit at a table that is seven people and we all know that eight can sit at a rectangular table. Plus it’s the holidays so what if people are squeezed in?
So I do not hear back from Art for several days.
To let you know the history of Art and Mark as a couple: A year ago last Christmas Eve, I told Art to meet me at a bar. Art was at home and was not planning to go out at all that night. I was running five minutes late so as Art was waiting for me on the front sidewalk, Mark was leaving the club and they met. So I basically helped Art meet his boyfriend. After they were dating for about six months, they broke up. I facilitated them getting back together as I was the go-between for telling them what they should do or what the problem was in their breakup. I also offer free therapy as a friend too.
Let’s recap this holiday story. So basically I am the Angel in the story. At least in my version, I am. I helped two people meet by happenstance. I got them back together after they broke up. I get invited to spend Christmas Eve dinner with them. I get told by a text message that a mutual friend cannot come with me. I bail out of the dinner by being loyal to my friend who I invited by not un-inviting him. Plus, my two friends Tim and Kevin are now going to a dinner that I am not going to and are only going because I recently introduced them to Art and Mark. A few days pass and it’s discovered that Fred cannot make it, so I text message Art to inform him Fred is not coming. Art text messages back to me: ‘I substituted Rena in for you and now we are full.’
So because I became a bit evil from this experience and wanted to stir the pot one more time: I texted message my friend Tim who is going to the dinner: ‘Tim, you’ve come full circle from working with Mother Theresa to being at a Christmas Eve dinner where there is not enough room for your friend.’
What a way to spend Christmas!
Jerome Cleary is an actor, writer and comic at The World Famous Comedy Store-www.freecomedytickets.com and can be reached at: jeromeclearytalk@aol.com
The holidays are a time where people come together and celebrate many things. Some of us who seek to escape the drama of our real families or have no family, have created our own families with our friends to see us through the holidays.
By doing this, you may believe you have escaped the drama and dysfunction of your real family, though your friends may make up for it in their own special way. The week before Christmas I was invited to have dinner with a couple on Christmas Eve. It would be just the three of us. Yeah, I’ve been the third wheel and candleholder before.
At first it seemed like a great idea, now as time was passing it was beginning to look a lot like not Christmas. Then Art invited two friends of mine, a couple —Tim and Kevin — who I had recently introduced to him.
So now the dinner plans had two couples and me. Then Art invited another couple from Northern California. So now it’s three couples and me. I ran into my friend Fred who had Art and me over for Christmas dinner the year before. So I invited him and told Art that I had done so.
So the next day I get a text message from Art that read: ‘Fred can’t come.’ I texted back: ‘Why?’ Art texted back: ‘Not enough room at the table and Mark doesn’t know him.’ I texted back: ‘Now I have a problem as I know I did not ask you if I could bring a guest, but I did not think it was a big deal since I took you last Christmas to Fred’s house for dinner. So it would be rude of me to uninvite him, so now I am going to tell him it’s been cancelled, then he will want to do something with me so now I can’t go.’ I also know that my friend Art's reason is lame because if three couples and I can sit at a table that is seven people and we all know that eight can sit at a rectangular table. Plus it’s the holidays so what if people are squeezed in?
So I do not hear back from Art for several days.
To let you know the history of Art and Mark as a couple: A year ago last Christmas Eve, I told Art to meet me at a bar. Art was at home and was not planning to go out at all that night. I was running five minutes late so as Art was waiting for me on the front sidewalk, Mark was leaving the club and they met. So I basically helped Art meet his boyfriend. After they were dating for about six months, they broke up. I facilitated them getting back together as I was the go-between for telling them what they should do or what the problem was in their breakup. I also offer free therapy as a friend too.
Let’s recap this holiday story. So basically I am the Angel in the story. At least in my version, I am. I helped two people meet by happenstance. I got them back together after they broke up. I get invited to spend Christmas Eve dinner with them. I get told by a text message that a mutual friend cannot come with me. I bail out of the dinner by being loyal to my friend who I invited by not un-inviting him. Plus, my two friends Tim and Kevin are now going to a dinner that I am not going to and are only going because I recently introduced them to Art and Mark. A few days pass and it’s discovered that Fred cannot make it, so I text message Art to inform him Fred is not coming. Art text messages back to me: ‘I substituted Rena in for you and now we are full.’
So because I became a bit evil from this experience and wanted to stir the pot one more time: I texted message my friend Tim who is going to the dinner: ‘Tim, you’ve come full circle from working with Mother Theresa to being at a Christmas Eve dinner where there is not enough room for your friend.’
What a way to spend Christmas!
Jerome Cleary is an actor, writer and comic at The World Famous Comedy Store-www.freecomedytickets.com and can be reached at: jeromeclearytalk@aol.com
posted by JeromeCleary @ 7:47 PM
0 comments
WHO'S SORRY NOW? THE AGE OF APOLOGIES
By Jerome Cleary
Let’s start right now and make September 2005 the official month of apologies. We had President Bush accept responsibility and apologize for his slow failed response to the Katrina Hurricane. Then both the mayor of New Orleans and the governor of Louisiana apologized next.
Then Kate Moss, the super-thin model apologized for her cocaine use, and finally Jet Blue apologized for the malfunction of landing gear of a recent TV media frenzied flight. So I want to apologize right now for the rest of this column if you don’t like it.
Apologizing in our society always had a certain display of human emotion that said: I am human, I made a mistake, and I am sorry. But with certain public figures, apologies work well — and well sometimes not.
Even though Kate Moss has apologized, several well-known companies cancelled their contractual relationships with her. Remember back in 1984, when the first African American Miss America, Vanessa Williams, had nude photographs released from a model shoot? She apologized, and the Miss America Pageant Corporation immediately de-throned and replaced her.
Though looking back now at what happened, Vanessa Williams is the most famous crowned Miss America ever. Which, if the Miss America Pageant had been smarter back then, they could have accepted her apology and said: She apologized. We accept her apology. She made a mistake in her youth, and we still support her.
If this had happened to Vanessa Williams right now in 2005, she would be on every TV show, radio show and newspaper — and probably have an even more super successful career today.
But how does corporate America really work? Today, Paris Hilton can have a private video of herself having sex released on the internet and become a big media darling whose fame and success keeps growing. She has a TV series, movie roles, a fashion-wear line and a handbag business — and let’s not forget her titillating, car-washing TV commercial for Carl’s Jr.
Who cannot forget Pamela Anderson and Tommy Lee’s private home videos that were accidentally released too? Today they both have TV shows, and their popularity continues to grow. In addition to these recent new video stars, remember the Rob Lowe sex video of the early nineties? Today Mr. Lowe has been cast in TV series after TV series. Lastly, several years ago, we all saw the infamous costume malfunction of Janet Jackson in the Super Bowl halftime show that coincidentally happened to come on the eve of the release of her new album. She looked really contrite and apologetic in all her subsequent television interviews.
It used to be that your mother would tell you to always wear clean underwear in case you were in an accident. But today, our actors take this advice a step further with a couple of twists. Your accident today has to be video-taped, and you must have your underwear off. But it must be later referred to as your private sex video. That somehow accidentally gets in the wrong hands.
Fortunately, the wrong hands just happen to know how to get it loaded on the internet correctly and get it blasted out to every one and their mother. These victims then spend months acting outraged at the horrible violation and humiliation. But with it, these celeb victims have their career launched in to the stratosphere.
Who’s really sorry now?
Jerome Cleary is an actor, writer and comic at The World Famous Comedy Store-www.freecomedytickets.com-and can be contacted at: jeromeclearytalk@aol.com
Let’s start right now and make September 2005 the official month of apologies. We had President Bush accept responsibility and apologize for his slow failed response to the Katrina Hurricane. Then both the mayor of New Orleans and the governor of Louisiana apologized next.
Then Kate Moss, the super-thin model apologized for her cocaine use, and finally Jet Blue apologized for the malfunction of landing gear of a recent TV media frenzied flight. So I want to apologize right now for the rest of this column if you don’t like it.
Apologizing in our society always had a certain display of human emotion that said: I am human, I made a mistake, and I am sorry. But with certain public figures, apologies work well — and well sometimes not.
Even though Kate Moss has apologized, several well-known companies cancelled their contractual relationships with her. Remember back in 1984, when the first African American Miss America, Vanessa Williams, had nude photographs released from a model shoot? She apologized, and the Miss America Pageant Corporation immediately de-throned and replaced her.
Though looking back now at what happened, Vanessa Williams is the most famous crowned Miss America ever. Which, if the Miss America Pageant had been smarter back then, they could have accepted her apology and said: She apologized. We accept her apology. She made a mistake in her youth, and we still support her.
If this had happened to Vanessa Williams right now in 2005, she would be on every TV show, radio show and newspaper — and probably have an even more super successful career today.
But how does corporate America really work? Today, Paris Hilton can have a private video of herself having sex released on the internet and become a big media darling whose fame and success keeps growing. She has a TV series, movie roles, a fashion-wear line and a handbag business — and let’s not forget her titillating, car-washing TV commercial for Carl’s Jr.
Who cannot forget Pamela Anderson and Tommy Lee’s private home videos that were accidentally released too? Today they both have TV shows, and their popularity continues to grow. In addition to these recent new video stars, remember the Rob Lowe sex video of the early nineties? Today Mr. Lowe has been cast in TV series after TV series. Lastly, several years ago, we all saw the infamous costume malfunction of Janet Jackson in the Super Bowl halftime show that coincidentally happened to come on the eve of the release of her new album. She looked really contrite and apologetic in all her subsequent television interviews.
It used to be that your mother would tell you to always wear clean underwear in case you were in an accident. But today, our actors take this advice a step further with a couple of twists. Your accident today has to be video-taped, and you must have your underwear off. But it must be later referred to as your private sex video. That somehow accidentally gets in the wrong hands.
Fortunately, the wrong hands just happen to know how to get it loaded on the internet correctly and get it blasted out to every one and their mother. These victims then spend months acting outraged at the horrible violation and humiliation. But with it, these celeb victims have their career launched in to the stratosphere.
Who’s really sorry now?
Jerome Cleary is an actor, writer and comic at The World Famous Comedy Store-www.freecomedytickets.com-and can be contacted at: jeromeclearytalk@aol.com
posted by JeromeCleary @ 7:43 PM
0 comments
ALL GOOD DOGS GO TO HEAVEN
By Jerome Cleary
Last week I had to come to terms with two things: My dog’s declining health, and making a final decision as whether or not to put my dog to sleep. I never really was a dog person, but I loved my mom’s dog so much that I ended up getting the same breed as the one she once owned: a Shih Tzu.
I named my dog Jack. He was black and white and had the most expressive devilish eyes.
I had my cat Norma Jean since my college days at NYU, and it was right after the riots in May that I decided to add the new edition of a dog to my household. I did much of the things new owners often do. I bought a book called: “There Are No Bad Dogs”, and spent my days and nights training him. My female cat Norma Jean was not happy at the new permanent guest, however, but she eventually grew to like him.
Nine years passed, and in the fall of 2000 I had to put my cat to sleep at almost 18 years of age. As soon as she was gone, Jack, now nine years old, seemed not bothered by her absence, which was uncharacteristically strange for him as he always used to be highly observant. Strange, that is, until I discovered just why he had barely noticed.
In the recent years, Jack had eye sight and kidney problems, which made it difficult to be aware of his surroundings. With his blindness getting worse in the past two years, I spent time anticipating even more of what he would need in the future. I even would keep my bathroom light on all night so that it would illuminate my hall way and bedroom so Jack wouldn’t lose his way. I could see him if he needed my help.
I remember how smart my dog was when I first got him. And I named a bunch of new toys for him — “bone,” or “the doll,” or even his favorite squeaky toy “the elephant,” and he would go in to the other room and return with the specific toy I had asked for.
But his sharp wit didn’t last forever. As the week of Thanksgiving passed, Jack seemed to have a cold that got worse and worse. I just assumed it being flu season and all, Jack just needed a bit of a rest, so I took him to the vet for a check-up.
The next thing I knew, he was being hospitalized for four days straight. After nearly a week of force feeding, fluids for his kidneys, and lots of antibiotics, my vet told me just what I did not want to hear.
“I’ve seen Jack be a real trouper,” he said. “But I don’t feel that he’s going to pull through this time.”
I finally went in to the vet to sit in a room with Jack. He was wrapped up in towel, and they laid him on the table in front of me. At first I thought he looked really bad. But after almost an hour of talking to him, crying and petting him, he started to look sort of better to me. As I lifted his head to scratch him under his chin and kiss his head, his eyes — once clouded over with blindness — had a certain look of calm and peace. Then he just laid there and curled up and slept.
The last 22 years, I’ve always had my pets with me during the holiday —something that I will be without this Christmas season. But one thing I’ll always have, and treasure, are the fond memories.
I’ll miss you, Jack.
Jerome Cleary is an actor, writer and comic at The World Famous Comedy Store-www.freecomedytickets.com and can be reached at: jeromeclearytalk@aol.com
Last week I had to come to terms with two things: My dog’s declining health, and making a final decision as whether or not to put my dog to sleep. I never really was a dog person, but I loved my mom’s dog so much that I ended up getting the same breed as the one she once owned: a Shih Tzu.
I named my dog Jack. He was black and white and had the most expressive devilish eyes.
I had my cat Norma Jean since my college days at NYU, and it was right after the riots in May that I decided to add the new edition of a dog to my household. I did much of the things new owners often do. I bought a book called: “There Are No Bad Dogs”, and spent my days and nights training him. My female cat Norma Jean was not happy at the new permanent guest, however, but she eventually grew to like him.
Nine years passed, and in the fall of 2000 I had to put my cat to sleep at almost 18 years of age. As soon as she was gone, Jack, now nine years old, seemed not bothered by her absence, which was uncharacteristically strange for him as he always used to be highly observant. Strange, that is, until I discovered just why he had barely noticed.
In the recent years, Jack had eye sight and kidney problems, which made it difficult to be aware of his surroundings. With his blindness getting worse in the past two years, I spent time anticipating even more of what he would need in the future. I even would keep my bathroom light on all night so that it would illuminate my hall way and bedroom so Jack wouldn’t lose his way. I could see him if he needed my help.
I remember how smart my dog was when I first got him. And I named a bunch of new toys for him — “bone,” or “the doll,” or even his favorite squeaky toy “the elephant,” and he would go in to the other room and return with the specific toy I had asked for.
But his sharp wit didn’t last forever. As the week of Thanksgiving passed, Jack seemed to have a cold that got worse and worse. I just assumed it being flu season and all, Jack just needed a bit of a rest, so I took him to the vet for a check-up.
The next thing I knew, he was being hospitalized for four days straight. After nearly a week of force feeding, fluids for his kidneys, and lots of antibiotics, my vet told me just what I did not want to hear.
“I’ve seen Jack be a real trouper,” he said. “But I don’t feel that he’s going to pull through this time.”
I finally went in to the vet to sit in a room with Jack. He was wrapped up in towel, and they laid him on the table in front of me. At first I thought he looked really bad. But after almost an hour of talking to him, crying and petting him, he started to look sort of better to me. As I lifted his head to scratch him under his chin and kiss his head, his eyes — once clouded over with blindness — had a certain look of calm and peace. Then he just laid there and curled up and slept.
The last 22 years, I’ve always had my pets with me during the holiday —something that I will be without this Christmas season. But one thing I’ll always have, and treasure, are the fond memories.
I’ll miss you, Jack.
Jerome Cleary is an actor, writer and comic at The World Famous Comedy Store-www.freecomedytickets.com and can be reached at: jeromeclearytalk@aol.com
posted by JeromeCleary @ 7:39 PM
0 comments
FEMALE PRO BASKETBALL STAR COMES OUT: SHE SHOOTS AND SCORES
By Jerome Cleary
When a professional athlete comes out in 2005, it is still big news. So when professional basketball star Sheryl Swoopes came out last week, she fortunately was also a three-time most valuable player of the WNB. Two things that spurred Ms. Swoopes coming out were an endorsement she received from a lesbian cruise line and being tired of having to pretend to be straight.
Though in today’s world coming out with a six-figure Nike endorsement deal, having your supportive lesbian partner by your side and having a multi-million-dollar work contract makes it a bit easier. It’s the average-paid lesbian Jane or gay Joe who may not have a great paying job and not a supportive partner by their side who have it the hardest to come out and be out.
Ms. Swoopes was also one of the original marquee players in the Women's National Basketball Association and is the first woman to have a Nike shoe named after her. She is a forward for the Houston Comets and is the first high-profile African-American basketball player ever to come out.
But what is the real impact of her coming out going to have on other professional athletes, the ones who still live in fear as closeted gays and lesbians? It’s no secret that professional male athletes have to face a slightly different standard. We all know that closeted gay men in professional sports have to live in a macho aggressive homophobic world. These gay athletes have had to pretend to be straight and laugh along at the same derogatory demeaning anti-gay jokes in the locker room to blend in.
It has long been society’s standard that two women sexually together are much more acceptable and palatable than for heterosexual men and society to imagine two gay men making love or having sex.
Many of us have seen the repeated TV sketches, jokes and film comedies that make light of men being gay or homos that outweigh the lesbian directed humor. When have we not heard someone say, “That is so gay”? Or, “So if I do this, I’ll be gay?” Or even, “I’ll end up being a homo”? The payoff is usually guaranteed since it brings giggles and laughs. It makes the mass majority think and remember that being gay is weird, wrong or strange.
The real turning point in society will be when these words do not carry any connotation, though at this point that may be many more years away since racial epitaphs are still used today and end up inducing violence.
How many parents still storm PTAs, elementary schools and colleges denouncing any material or groups or club meetings that do not have heterosexuals and straight families in mind?
Even the Bush Administration was able in the last election to turn possible gay marriage in to an anti-family demonic plague and mix in enough Christian religion for the religious right to galvanize voters to vote straight pro-family values.
I am still amazed as I watch the news, TV shows, listen to the radio or read in the newspaper just how far we have come and how far we still need to go.
Just the other day a friend related to me another parent’s dilemma that their son may be gay. It was not that their son may be a bank robber, a rapist, a drug dealer or heroin user — but that he may be gay. Of course, it is natural for any parent to want their son or daughter to have the best chance for a successful life that is not burdened with difficulties.
But many of us already know that it does not matter whether you are heterosexual or homosexual since one’s lifestyle or love choices do not guarantee a completely blissful and trouble-free life.
Jerome Cleary is an actor, writer and comic at The World Famous Comedy Store-www.freecomedytickets.com and can be reached at: jeromeclearytalk@aol.com
When a professional athlete comes out in 2005, it is still big news. So when professional basketball star Sheryl Swoopes came out last week, she fortunately was also a three-time most valuable player of the WNB. Two things that spurred Ms. Swoopes coming out were an endorsement she received from a lesbian cruise line and being tired of having to pretend to be straight.
Though in today’s world coming out with a six-figure Nike endorsement deal, having your supportive lesbian partner by your side and having a multi-million-dollar work contract makes it a bit easier. It’s the average-paid lesbian Jane or gay Joe who may not have a great paying job and not a supportive partner by their side who have it the hardest to come out and be out.
Ms. Swoopes was also one of the original marquee players in the Women's National Basketball Association and is the first woman to have a Nike shoe named after her. She is a forward for the Houston Comets and is the first high-profile African-American basketball player ever to come out.
But what is the real impact of her coming out going to have on other professional athletes, the ones who still live in fear as closeted gays and lesbians? It’s no secret that professional male athletes have to face a slightly different standard. We all know that closeted gay men in professional sports have to live in a macho aggressive homophobic world. These gay athletes have had to pretend to be straight and laugh along at the same derogatory demeaning anti-gay jokes in the locker room to blend in.
It has long been society’s standard that two women sexually together are much more acceptable and palatable than for heterosexual men and society to imagine two gay men making love or having sex.
Many of us have seen the repeated TV sketches, jokes and film comedies that make light of men being gay or homos that outweigh the lesbian directed humor. When have we not heard someone say, “That is so gay”? Or, “So if I do this, I’ll be gay?” Or even, “I’ll end up being a homo”? The payoff is usually guaranteed since it brings giggles and laughs. It makes the mass majority think and remember that being gay is weird, wrong or strange.
The real turning point in society will be when these words do not carry any connotation, though at this point that may be many more years away since racial epitaphs are still used today and end up inducing violence.
How many parents still storm PTAs, elementary schools and colleges denouncing any material or groups or club meetings that do not have heterosexuals and straight families in mind?
Even the Bush Administration was able in the last election to turn possible gay marriage in to an anti-family demonic plague and mix in enough Christian religion for the religious right to galvanize voters to vote straight pro-family values.
I am still amazed as I watch the news, TV shows, listen to the radio or read in the newspaper just how far we have come and how far we still need to go.
Just the other day a friend related to me another parent’s dilemma that their son may be gay. It was not that their son may be a bank robber, a rapist, a drug dealer or heroin user — but that he may be gay. Of course, it is natural for any parent to want their son or daughter to have the best chance for a successful life that is not burdened with difficulties.
But many of us already know that it does not matter whether you are heterosexual or homosexual since one’s lifestyle or love choices do not guarantee a completely blissful and trouble-free life.
Jerome Cleary is an actor, writer and comic at The World Famous Comedy Store-www.freecomedytickets.com and can be reached at: jeromeclearytalk@aol.com
posted by JeromeCleary @ 7:35 PM
0 comments
NATIONAL COMING OUT DAY AND MATTHEW SHEPARD
By Jerome Cleary
Two important dates came to pass recently: Tuesday, Oct. 11, National Coming Out Day and Wednesday, Oct. 12, was the seventh year anniversary of Matthew Shepard's death from gay bashing. In West Hollywood, these two dates seem to pass without any real notice or concern.
While the city had already made the month of October, Women's Breast Cancer and Disabilities month, these two other dates were not really acknowledged or recognized.
When I spoke to several people about National Coming Out Day being last week Oct. 11 and that I noticed that nothing was really done in West Hollywood, some of the responses were: well that means there is progress and oh do we need to do that anymore?
I wonder when people make comments like that, doe it really mean progress when something important is overlooked or not given acknowledgement?
Only two years ago, West Hollywood had a candlelight vigil at the Matthew Shepard memorial at Santa Monica Boulevard and Crescent Heights. But this year nothing was being done to commemorate that day.
Several people told me that since that had been originally former City Councilmember Steve Martin's idea, that the present city council did not want to continue it. Now that Steve Martin is not in office anymore, does this mean that Matthew Shepard's former candlelight vigil has now become politicized? Does this mean our city does not want to re-visit, support or continue this idea based on general good riddance to Steve Martin?
Every day lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgenders are still discriminated against, so I still believe National Coming Out Day should be respectively honored. I know that other cities and states were celebrating and recognizing National Coming Out Day last week. Some cities are celebrating it the whole week and month.
To really comprehend the magnitude of National Coming Out Day and know it's full history of how it came about, here it is: the first National Coming Out Day was held on Oct. 11,1988. This date was chosen for the annual event to commemorate the 1987-March on Washington for Gay and Lesbian Rights.
It also marked the first anniversary of the visit of the AIDS Memorial Quilt to Washington, D.C. Over 500,000 people participated in the March and this was the second such demonstration in our nation's capital and the first display of the NAMES Project Quilt, remembering those who have died from AIDS. Since the march was so successful, many organizations were founded. Some of these were the National Latino/a Gay & Lesbian Organization (LLEGÓ) and AT&T's GLBT employee group, LEAGUE.
Four months after this historic event, over 100 lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender activists met outside of Washington, D.C. These activists focused their efforts on the idea of a national day to celebrate and recognize coming out.
From this idea of a national day, they chose the anniversary of that second march on Washington. The creators and pioneers of this idea were Rob Eichberg, a founder of the personal growth workshop, The Experience, and Jean O'Leary, then head of National Gay Rights Advocates. National Coming Out Day was about to be launched. O'Leary expanded the West Hollywood office of NGRA to give National Coming Out Day its first headquarters. Activist Sean Strub got Keith Haring to donate his now-famous image of a person dancing out of a closet.
The first National Coming Out Day was celebrated with events in 18 states, and some of the national media attention included: CNN, USA Today, National Public Radio and Oprah.
Coming Out and staying out is a lifetime process so National Coming Out Day is not really just for one day and date. It can be celebrated, explored and recognized this year during the whole month of October and the rest of our lives. So with that being said, there's still time for us to recognize and support this important historic event.
Jerome Cleary is an actor, writer and comic at The World Famous Comedy Store-www.freecomedytickets.com and can be reached at: jeromeclearytalk@aol.com
Two important dates came to pass recently: Tuesday, Oct. 11, National Coming Out Day and Wednesday, Oct. 12, was the seventh year anniversary of Matthew Shepard's death from gay bashing. In West Hollywood, these two dates seem to pass without any real notice or concern.
While the city had already made the month of October, Women's Breast Cancer and Disabilities month, these two other dates were not really acknowledged or recognized.
When I spoke to several people about National Coming Out Day being last week Oct. 11 and that I noticed that nothing was really done in West Hollywood, some of the responses were: well that means there is progress and oh do we need to do that anymore?
I wonder when people make comments like that, doe it really mean progress when something important is overlooked or not given acknowledgement?
Only two years ago, West Hollywood had a candlelight vigil at the Matthew Shepard memorial at Santa Monica Boulevard and Crescent Heights. But this year nothing was being done to commemorate that day.
Several people told me that since that had been originally former City Councilmember Steve Martin's idea, that the present city council did not want to continue it. Now that Steve Martin is not in office anymore, does this mean that Matthew Shepard's former candlelight vigil has now become politicized? Does this mean our city does not want to re-visit, support or continue this idea based on general good riddance to Steve Martin?
Every day lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgenders are still discriminated against, so I still believe National Coming Out Day should be respectively honored. I know that other cities and states were celebrating and recognizing National Coming Out Day last week. Some cities are celebrating it the whole week and month.
To really comprehend the magnitude of National Coming Out Day and know it's full history of how it came about, here it is: the first National Coming Out Day was held on Oct. 11,1988. This date was chosen for the annual event to commemorate the 1987-March on Washington for Gay and Lesbian Rights.
It also marked the first anniversary of the visit of the AIDS Memorial Quilt to Washington, D.C. Over 500,000 people participated in the March and this was the second such demonstration in our nation's capital and the first display of the NAMES Project Quilt, remembering those who have died from AIDS. Since the march was so successful, many organizations were founded. Some of these were the National Latino/a Gay & Lesbian Organization (LLEGÓ) and AT&T's GLBT employee group, LEAGUE.
Four months after this historic event, over 100 lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender activists met outside of Washington, D.C. These activists focused their efforts on the idea of a national day to celebrate and recognize coming out.
From this idea of a national day, they chose the anniversary of that second march on Washington. The creators and pioneers of this idea were Rob Eichberg, a founder of the personal growth workshop, The Experience, and Jean O'Leary, then head of National Gay Rights Advocates. National Coming Out Day was about to be launched. O'Leary expanded the West Hollywood office of NGRA to give National Coming Out Day its first headquarters. Activist Sean Strub got Keith Haring to donate his now-famous image of a person dancing out of a closet.
The first National Coming Out Day was celebrated with events in 18 states, and some of the national media attention included: CNN, USA Today, National Public Radio and Oprah.
Coming Out and staying out is a lifetime process so National Coming Out Day is not really just for one day and date. It can be celebrated, explored and recognized this year during the whole month of October and the rest of our lives. So with that being said, there's still time for us to recognize and support this important historic event.
Jerome Cleary is an actor, writer and comic at The World Famous Comedy Store-www.freecomedytickets.com and can be reached at: jeromeclearytalk@aol.com
posted by JeromeCleary @ 7:31 PM
0 comments
WAITING TO EXHALE: AN OPEN LETTER TO THE GOVERNOR
By Jerome Cleary
Dear Gov. Schwarzenegger:
As you may know, many of us in the gay and lesbian community along with our straight friends are all holding our breath as to whether you are going sign or veto the gay marriage bill. While you had expressed support of gay unions in the past, it seems now that you are bowing to the pressure of the extreme right.
If any of your four lovely children realized one day that they were gay or lesbian, would you not as a loving father want complete happiness for your children, no matter who they love?
With recent events of Hurricane Katrina and the 9/11 tragedy four years ago, we recognize even more how precious life is. As our governor and leader of the great state of California, you have to take a stand. You were willing to admit your weaknesses and faults during your campaign for governor and that makes you more like every one else — human. What could be more human than to want to commit to another individual in a relationship?
In today’s world, the definition of family can be a single mother, a widowed father and, of course, lesbians and gays as parents. There is no way to second-guess where you will stand with the radical religious right if you do sign and support the gay marriage bill. But I can guess what will happen on some levels. You will be right in line with the recent California Supreme Court decision of child custody for lesbian partners. You will be seen as a man who has empathy and compassion and who believes in fair play for everyone.
It’s hard to imagine and believe that only a few days ago, I was walking down Sunset Boulevard and people yelled “faggots” from their cars at me and some unknown man walking ahead of me.
I want to believe that you want to be beyond what a typical politician does and be more of a true leader. At least that’s what I gathered from the spirit of your speeches. Great inspirational leaders have one thing in common — true individuality and foresight.
Please do not let your compassion for mankind be swayed by religious fanatics wanting to use the word marriage to mean religion and church. Just like any other bill that comes before a governor, the wording is not always exact and that leaves it open to be torn apart by the detractors. Supporting unions of two people to form a legal bonding relationship instills the presence of equality.
Lastly, being well-liked and admired is a difficult position to maintain as governor. There will always be people who want to tear you down for each decision you make. That is why making a powerful life-changing decision for our state makes sense both for equality and economically.
Imagine the attention and commerce that our state will attract as it goes from being America’s No. 1 playground to being America’s No. 1 ceremonial and honeymoon destination — and a state of compassion, humanity, love and equality for everyone.
Good luck in your decision.
Jerome Cleary is an actor, writer, and comic at The World Famous Comedy Store-www.freecomedytickets.com and can be contacted at: jeromeclearytalk@aol.com
Dear Gov. Schwarzenegger:
As you may know, many of us in the gay and lesbian community along with our straight friends are all holding our breath as to whether you are going sign or veto the gay marriage bill. While you had expressed support of gay unions in the past, it seems now that you are bowing to the pressure of the extreme right.
If any of your four lovely children realized one day that they were gay or lesbian, would you not as a loving father want complete happiness for your children, no matter who they love?
With recent events of Hurricane Katrina and the 9/11 tragedy four years ago, we recognize even more how precious life is. As our governor and leader of the great state of California, you have to take a stand. You were willing to admit your weaknesses and faults during your campaign for governor and that makes you more like every one else — human. What could be more human than to want to commit to another individual in a relationship?
In today’s world, the definition of family can be a single mother, a widowed father and, of course, lesbians and gays as parents. There is no way to second-guess where you will stand with the radical religious right if you do sign and support the gay marriage bill. But I can guess what will happen on some levels. You will be right in line with the recent California Supreme Court decision of child custody for lesbian partners. You will be seen as a man who has empathy and compassion and who believes in fair play for everyone.
It’s hard to imagine and believe that only a few days ago, I was walking down Sunset Boulevard and people yelled “faggots” from their cars at me and some unknown man walking ahead of me.
I want to believe that you want to be beyond what a typical politician does and be more of a true leader. At least that’s what I gathered from the spirit of your speeches. Great inspirational leaders have one thing in common — true individuality and foresight.
Please do not let your compassion for mankind be swayed by religious fanatics wanting to use the word marriage to mean religion and church. Just like any other bill that comes before a governor, the wording is not always exact and that leaves it open to be torn apart by the detractors. Supporting unions of two people to form a legal bonding relationship instills the presence of equality.
Lastly, being well-liked and admired is a difficult position to maintain as governor. There will always be people who want to tear you down for each decision you make. That is why making a powerful life-changing decision for our state makes sense both for equality and economically.
Imagine the attention and commerce that our state will attract as it goes from being America’s No. 1 playground to being America’s No. 1 ceremonial and honeymoon destination — and a state of compassion, humanity, love and equality for everyone.
Good luck in your decision.
Jerome Cleary is an actor, writer, and comic at The World Famous Comedy Store-www.freecomedytickets.com and can be contacted at: jeromeclearytalk@aol.com
posted by JeromeCleary @ 7:27 PM
0 comments
PAPA, CAN YOU HEAR ME? PAPA, ARE YOU ALLOWED TO SEE ME?
By Jerome Cleary
Last week the California Supreme Court ruled that both members of a lesbian couple who plan for and raise a child born to either of them should be considered the child's mothers even after their relationship ends. The court stepped largely into uncharted legal territory concerning same-sex couples and parenting, and issued decisions in three cases.
The Supreme Court ended up ruling that women whose partners gave birth had parental rights/obligations in all three cases.
The three cases involved petition to establish parental rights, request for child support and an attack on a lower court ruling issued before a child's birth that the child should have two women listed as parents on her birth certificate. The Supreme Court ruled: "We perceive no reason why both parents of a child cannot be women."
The woman who sued to establish her parental rights celebrated the court’s decision, and we should be celebrating the common sense in keeping the faith, in wanting to continue to raise a child even after a relationship ends.
With this ruling, lesbians and gays are finally getting, piece by piece, the same rights as everyone else. While the religious right and the Christian Coalition continue to mount their attack against people who they consider not to be the right kinds of people who should marry or have children, common sense continues now to prevail.
Fortunately, it's 2005 and there are enough civil rights attorneys always ready to file a case and go to bat for the lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender who have had their civil rights violated. I begin to wonder if hundreds of years from now members of society will shake their heads in disbelief that there was such an on-going battle of man-against-man/wo-man-against-woman for the common rights to just live the life someone desires.
Last week’s decision considered the separate question of whether the law could require former members of such couples to assume parental rights and obligations just like heterosexuals have enjoyed for what now seems like forever. The cases all involved unorthodox conceptions, and the Supreme Court struggled to apply sometimes inapt state laws to them. Unfortunately, as these new Supreme Court decisions now finally break new ground, advocates on both sides agreed that the rulings will rile attorneys further for groups defending what they call traditional values.
So what could be more traditional than honoring a pact you make with a child as a parent, no matter who the parents are and how the parental relationships end or transform to continue being a parent.
It's amazing that we have come so far in civilization and strayed always a bit farther from our ultimate path: peace, freedom and equal rights. Yet religious zealots will continue to condemn, demand, hate and alienate all in the name of religion. Religious fanatics continue to see gays and lesbians as separate beings and believe that we are continuing to destroy and undermine the traditional family.
Ultimately, however, those attacks from the right may only serve to help all families see everyone as equal. With hope and desire, maybe the fortitude of optimism and the American spirit will continue to tell us: Yes,we can.
Jerome Cleary is a writer, TV talk show host and comic at The World Famous Comedy Store-www.freecomedytickets.com and can be reached at: jeromeclearytalk@aol.com
Last week the California Supreme Court ruled that both members of a lesbian couple who plan for and raise a child born to either of them should be considered the child's mothers even after their relationship ends. The court stepped largely into uncharted legal territory concerning same-sex couples and parenting, and issued decisions in three cases.
The Supreme Court ended up ruling that women whose partners gave birth had parental rights/obligations in all three cases.
The three cases involved petition to establish parental rights, request for child support and an attack on a lower court ruling issued before a child's birth that the child should have two women listed as parents on her birth certificate. The Supreme Court ruled: "We perceive no reason why both parents of a child cannot be women."
The woman who sued to establish her parental rights celebrated the court’s decision, and we should be celebrating the common sense in keeping the faith, in wanting to continue to raise a child even after a relationship ends.
With this ruling, lesbians and gays are finally getting, piece by piece, the same rights as everyone else. While the religious right and the Christian Coalition continue to mount their attack against people who they consider not to be the right kinds of people who should marry or have children, common sense continues now to prevail.
Fortunately, it's 2005 and there are enough civil rights attorneys always ready to file a case and go to bat for the lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender who have had their civil rights violated. I begin to wonder if hundreds of years from now members of society will shake their heads in disbelief that there was such an on-going battle of man-against-man/wo-man-against-woman for the common rights to just live the life someone desires.
Last week’s decision considered the separate question of whether the law could require former members of such couples to assume parental rights and obligations just like heterosexuals have enjoyed for what now seems like forever. The cases all involved unorthodox conceptions, and the Supreme Court struggled to apply sometimes inapt state laws to them. Unfortunately, as these new Supreme Court decisions now finally break new ground, advocates on both sides agreed that the rulings will rile attorneys further for groups defending what they call traditional values.
So what could be more traditional than honoring a pact you make with a child as a parent, no matter who the parents are and how the parental relationships end or transform to continue being a parent.
It's amazing that we have come so far in civilization and strayed always a bit farther from our ultimate path: peace, freedom and equal rights. Yet religious zealots will continue to condemn, demand, hate and alienate all in the name of religion. Religious fanatics continue to see gays and lesbians as separate beings and believe that we are continuing to destroy and undermine the traditional family.
Ultimately, however, those attacks from the right may only serve to help all families see everyone as equal. With hope and desire, maybe the fortitude of optimism and the American spirit will continue to tell us: Yes,we can.
Jerome Cleary is a writer, TV talk show host and comic at The World Famous Comedy Store-www.freecomedytickets.com and can be reached at: jeromeclearytalk@aol.com
posted by JeromeCleary @ 7:16 PM
0 comments
OUR PRESIDENT: AN AMERICAN SHAME AND FAILURE
By Jerome Cleary
Who does not remember the old adage: An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure? Most relationships, whether they be business, friendship or romantic, are truly tested during an emergency or crisis.
It is during that time you see exactly how your counterpart reacts and rises to the occasion. In our president's case, we see that when we counted on him the most last week, he failed miserably over and over again. As a country we have been standing behind our president the past several years as he took us in to a war in Iraq that many in our country did not approve of. But when common sense was needed to get citizens in our country out of a dangerous area in a timely manner, our president was not there.
Where do we go from here when we depended on our country's leader to save us from the shame and humiliation of his failure? Thousands of lives are lost because of President Bush's cowardice, inaction and ineptness.
When Hurricane Katrina was upgraded to a category level 5 and was going to hit New Orleans, there was supposed to be a massive evacuation but where was President Bush? He was on vacation, and then at a photo-op in San Diego, and political fundraisers nearby.
Now it is estimated that approximately 10,000 people may be dead or missing from this horrific hurricane. His acts demonstrate a total abandonment of the American people.
When a crisis or catastrophic event happens in our country, we are supposed to be a world power. We have now had to come to grips with the fact that President Bush is the worst president in the entire history of our nation. Sending food, buses and rescuing people is not rocket science.
President Bush is the kind of president that waits until he confers over and over again with his cronies hoping to make the right and perfect decision. No one would have blamed him for any kind of attempts of rescue immediately after the hurricane hit.
And when President Bush finally arrived on the scene four days later, he told the overpaid FEMA executives, "You're doing a heck of a job," while thousands unnecessarily continued to die. I would like to ask the families of the victims if they would agree with that statement.
President Bush did zero the first four days after the hurricane hit. When all these victims needed were simple things to survive — food, water, rafts, medical kits and flashlights. Nothing Bush does now can make up for the total abandonment of people struggling to stay alive during that time. And we are stuck with his blundering leadership for three more painful years.
Jerome Cleary is n actor, writer and a comic at The World Famous Comedy Store-www.freecomedytickets.com and can be reached at: jeromeclearytalk@aol.com
Who does not remember the old adage: An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure? Most relationships, whether they be business, friendship or romantic, are truly tested during an emergency or crisis.
It is during that time you see exactly how your counterpart reacts and rises to the occasion. In our president's case, we see that when we counted on him the most last week, he failed miserably over and over again. As a country we have been standing behind our president the past several years as he took us in to a war in Iraq that many in our country did not approve of. But when common sense was needed to get citizens in our country out of a dangerous area in a timely manner, our president was not there.
Where do we go from here when we depended on our country's leader to save us from the shame and humiliation of his failure? Thousands of lives are lost because of President Bush's cowardice, inaction and ineptness.
When Hurricane Katrina was upgraded to a category level 5 and was going to hit New Orleans, there was supposed to be a massive evacuation but where was President Bush? He was on vacation, and then at a photo-op in San Diego, and political fundraisers nearby.
Now it is estimated that approximately 10,000 people may be dead or missing from this horrific hurricane. His acts demonstrate a total abandonment of the American people.
When a crisis or catastrophic event happens in our country, we are supposed to be a world power. We have now had to come to grips with the fact that President Bush is the worst president in the entire history of our nation. Sending food, buses and rescuing people is not rocket science.
President Bush is the kind of president that waits until he confers over and over again with his cronies hoping to make the right and perfect decision. No one would have blamed him for any kind of attempts of rescue immediately after the hurricane hit.
And when President Bush finally arrived on the scene four days later, he told the overpaid FEMA executives, "You're doing a heck of a job," while thousands unnecessarily continued to die. I would like to ask the families of the victims if they would agree with that statement.
President Bush did zero the first four days after the hurricane hit. When all these victims needed were simple things to survive — food, water, rafts, medical kits and flashlights. Nothing Bush does now can make up for the total abandonment of people struggling to stay alive during that time. And we are stuck with his blundering leadership for three more painful years.
Jerome Cleary is n actor, writer and a comic at The World Famous Comedy Store-www.freecomedytickets.com and can be reached at: jeromeclearytalk@aol.com
posted by JeromeCleary @ 7:07 PM
0 comments
HOW MIXED USE WILL CHANGE WEST HOLLYWOOD FOREVER
By Jerome Cleary
Do we really need West Hollywood to become like many other larger cities by having enormous buildings alongside second story apartment buildings and single story homes?
Mixed use is a term used in zoning, which refers to a mixture of residential along with commercial on the same plot of land. Many cities in the U.S. and Europe have done this kind of use to facilitate a more accessible urban environment that is more pedestrian friendly.
In the past, our city has had so-called 20/20 visioning projects for community input. But through all those meetings for those projects, residents were never informed of exactly just how tall and massive these potential mixed-use projects were gong to be — some as tall as seven to 10 stories high. If this had ever been mentioned, the news of these specifics would have spread like wildfire. And most likely residents would have expressed great concern.
For any major construction projects, residents have to endure the neighborhood meetings, the planning commission meetings, the city council meetings. Many times the item on the agenda for the various meetings is not heard, re-scheduled and even continued. So residents are worn down further especially if the final decision by the city council at their meetings goes late in to the night.
I have personally experienced projects in my neighborhood being heard at 1:30 in the morning. By that time most of the residents who sat for many hours to speak with their input on a project have given up and gone home.
Then there is the final completion of the project in your neighborhood that now must stand the test of the real impact in the neighborhood. Noise, traffic, public safety issues are at stake once the project is completed and the residents now have a brand new job of having to voice their complaints to the city.
City staff created a proposed mixed used overlay zone that was approved by the Planning Commission on Dec. 1. While it may appear on the surface that it will create more housing for West Hollywood, the plan falls short of the true goals of creating affordable housing and impacts our parking and traffic circulation.
It also conveniently gives developers much more in the terms of providing less and paying less than developers ever have had to before in our city’s requirements. In our city like many other cities, our developers are great contributors to the city council campaigns for re-election.
But there is still time to voice your concerns by appearing at the planning commission meeting tonight, Thursday, Jan. 5, at 6:30 p.m. at the auditorium at 647 North San Vicente Blvd. If you cannot appear tonight, then email the city’s officials.
Jerome Cleary is an actor, writer and comic at The World Famous Comedy Store-www.freecomedytickets.com and can be reached at: jeromeclearytalk@aol.com
Do we really need West Hollywood to become like many other larger cities by having enormous buildings alongside second story apartment buildings and single story homes?
Mixed use is a term used in zoning, which refers to a mixture of residential along with commercial on the same plot of land. Many cities in the U.S. and Europe have done this kind of use to facilitate a more accessible urban environment that is more pedestrian friendly.
In the past, our city has had so-called 20/20 visioning projects for community input. But through all those meetings for those projects, residents were never informed of exactly just how tall and massive these potential mixed-use projects were gong to be — some as tall as seven to 10 stories high. If this had ever been mentioned, the news of these specifics would have spread like wildfire. And most likely residents would have expressed great concern.
For any major construction projects, residents have to endure the neighborhood meetings, the planning commission meetings, the city council meetings. Many times the item on the agenda for the various meetings is not heard, re-scheduled and even continued. So residents are worn down further especially if the final decision by the city council at their meetings goes late in to the night.
I have personally experienced projects in my neighborhood being heard at 1:30 in the morning. By that time most of the residents who sat for many hours to speak with their input on a project have given up and gone home.
Then there is the final completion of the project in your neighborhood that now must stand the test of the real impact in the neighborhood. Noise, traffic, public safety issues are at stake once the project is completed and the residents now have a brand new job of having to voice their complaints to the city.
City staff created a proposed mixed used overlay zone that was approved by the Planning Commission on Dec. 1. While it may appear on the surface that it will create more housing for West Hollywood, the plan falls short of the true goals of creating affordable housing and impacts our parking and traffic circulation.
It also conveniently gives developers much more in the terms of providing less and paying less than developers ever have had to before in our city’s requirements. In our city like many other cities, our developers are great contributors to the city council campaigns for re-election.
But there is still time to voice your concerns by appearing at the planning commission meeting tonight, Thursday, Jan. 5, at 6:30 p.m. at the auditorium at 647 North San Vicente Blvd. If you cannot appear tonight, then email the city’s officials.
Jerome Cleary is an actor, writer and comic at The World Famous Comedy Store-www.freecomedytickets.com and can be reached at: jeromeclearytalk@aol.com
posted by JeromeCleary @ 7:03 PM
0 comments
JANUARY: THE SADDEST MONTH OF THE YEAR
By Jerome Cleary
In life are we given circumstance, and we make choices —or does fate somehow lead us there anyway.
On Jan. 3, 1962, my genetic blood father who created me died of cancer at the age of 28, almost three months before I was born. My mother, then five or six months pregnant, could not remember from all the stress of his illness and death when I was really due.
So her doctor recommended that my mom be induced into labor to have me. My mother chose March 14, two days before my brother’s birthday. At 5:56 p.m., on a Wednesday, I made my debut in a small town just outside of Philadelphia.
My mother was now a widow with three small children. My sister was four at the time, my brother was two, and I was few days old. It was not until almost two years later that I was to meet my stepfather, who became my real father and who raised me.
When I was almost three years old, my mother, a widow, wed my stepfather, a widower. My new dad taught me how to ride my bike and cast away my training wheels. Even today this image is as clear as if it happened yesterday. I am either blessed or cursed with an incredible memory since it’s as if as soon as my eyes and ears were working, everything began being recorded in to my memory.
January is now a very sad month for me since this past Jan. 3 marked the 44th year anniversary of my genetic father’s death and Jan. 22 marks the 18th anniversary of my stepfather’s death. I was 25 when my stepfather passed away.
As years have passed, I have thought about many things. But one thing stands out in my mind, which makes me think some things are predestined like a blue print. During the 1990s, when I was taking care of my mother with her diabetes, I found a Vietnamese acupressurist that someone recommended in Silver Lake. One day as he gave my mother her treatment — and I got a treatment as well — he asked me if I wanted him to do my astrology chart, and I said sure.
Several weeks later when we went back to him for another treatment, he gave me a packet of papers he had handwritten that had a reference to Chinese Astrology and Astrology. There on the front page at the bottom was a reference to me being a Tiger sign in Chinese Astrology but under this was the wording: “Fatherless, Solitary.”
As I stared at the word “Fatherless,” I kept thinking it was true, I was born into this world without a father, then got another one and lost the second one in my mid-twenties. And the other word: Solitary. How does this work? Even today as I write this column, I have somehow ended up still single.
How did it come to pass that this Vietnamese man’s gesture to do an astrology chart would bear those two words?
How did he know? Or how did it happen this way? Was it just predestined that I would end up fatherless twice?
Years ago, in the mid-1990s, a friend put me on a list with her other friends to have a private reading with the medium James Van Praagh who talks to your dead relatives. This was before James Van Praagh hit it big as a television medium, an author and now an executive producer of his TV show, “The Ghost Whisperer” with Jennifer Love Hewitt.
So as the six of us sat there, Mr. Van Praagh finally got to me and he said: “I’ve got both your fathers here. Your genetic blood father is on my right, and your father who raised you is on my left.”
And the reading continued, and and I was thinking: This is how it was supposed to be … I guess.
Jerome Cleary is an actor, writer and comic at The World Famous Comedy Store-www.freecomedytickets.com and can be reached at: jeromeclearytalk@aol.com
In life are we given circumstance, and we make choices —or does fate somehow lead us there anyway.
On Jan. 3, 1962, my genetic blood father who created me died of cancer at the age of 28, almost three months before I was born. My mother, then five or six months pregnant, could not remember from all the stress of his illness and death when I was really due.
So her doctor recommended that my mom be induced into labor to have me. My mother chose March 14, two days before my brother’s birthday. At 5:56 p.m., on a Wednesday, I made my debut in a small town just outside of Philadelphia.
My mother was now a widow with three small children. My sister was four at the time, my brother was two, and I was few days old. It was not until almost two years later that I was to meet my stepfather, who became my real father and who raised me.
When I was almost three years old, my mother, a widow, wed my stepfather, a widower. My new dad taught me how to ride my bike and cast away my training wheels. Even today this image is as clear as if it happened yesterday. I am either blessed or cursed with an incredible memory since it’s as if as soon as my eyes and ears were working, everything began being recorded in to my memory.
January is now a very sad month for me since this past Jan. 3 marked the 44th year anniversary of my genetic father’s death and Jan. 22 marks the 18th anniversary of my stepfather’s death. I was 25 when my stepfather passed away.
As years have passed, I have thought about many things. But one thing stands out in my mind, which makes me think some things are predestined like a blue print. During the 1990s, when I was taking care of my mother with her diabetes, I found a Vietnamese acupressurist that someone recommended in Silver Lake. One day as he gave my mother her treatment — and I got a treatment as well — he asked me if I wanted him to do my astrology chart, and I said sure.
Several weeks later when we went back to him for another treatment, he gave me a packet of papers he had handwritten that had a reference to Chinese Astrology and Astrology. There on the front page at the bottom was a reference to me being a Tiger sign in Chinese Astrology but under this was the wording: “Fatherless, Solitary.”
As I stared at the word “Fatherless,” I kept thinking it was true, I was born into this world without a father, then got another one and lost the second one in my mid-twenties. And the other word: Solitary. How does this work? Even today as I write this column, I have somehow ended up still single.
How did it come to pass that this Vietnamese man’s gesture to do an astrology chart would bear those two words?
How did he know? Or how did it happen this way? Was it just predestined that I would end up fatherless twice?
Years ago, in the mid-1990s, a friend put me on a list with her other friends to have a private reading with the medium James Van Praagh who talks to your dead relatives. This was before James Van Praagh hit it big as a television medium, an author and now an executive producer of his TV show, “The Ghost Whisperer” with Jennifer Love Hewitt.
So as the six of us sat there, Mr. Van Praagh finally got to me and he said: “I’ve got both your fathers here. Your genetic blood father is on my right, and your father who raised you is on my left.”
And the reading continued, and and I was thinking: This is how it was supposed to be … I guess.
Jerome Cleary is an actor, writer and comic at The World Famous Comedy Store-www.freecomedytickets.com and can be reached at: jeromeclearytalk@aol.com
posted by JeromeCleary @ 6:59 PM
0 comments
LEWDNESS IS EVERYWHERE: SO WHY TARGET GAYS?
By Jerome Cleary
On any given night in Southern California, lewd conduct is happening. So why are gays still targeted? In the past two years, I have had to spend a lot of time along the Sunset Strip since many of the comedy venues are also there.
This is what I have seen in the same week this past December 2005:
In the parking lot of Miyagi’s, in a parked car — a woman climbed onto a guy as he sat in the driver’s seat and she pulled down her top exposing her breasts. The man under the woman began to fondle her breasts. This was just after 11 p.m. along the Sunset Strip in West Hollywood.
Further west on the Strip a few nights later after midnight, I see a woman performing fellatio on a guy in a car that is parked next to a parking meter on Sunset Boulevard.
Finally, at the end of this fascinating week, I see a guy exposing his genitals as he urinates along the sidewalk and wall. He tells the parking valets: “Don’t look, don’t look.”
All three of these lewd conduct incidents happened in everyone’s plain view. Since it was right on the Sunset Strip under streetlights, it would be really hard not to see it.
I saw no police activity patrolling this area or cracking down on any of this, though the LAPD has found the time to target lewd conduct on La Jolla Avenue. Yes, we all know it’s a heavily cruised area that got its name of Vaseline Alley for the parking lot behind the Gold Coast Bar on Santa Monica Boulevard.
But I have seen the same activity in heterosexual areas, and it’s not looked upon as being offensive or a problem.
When a man and a woman are caught making out and getting hot and heavy in their car, it doesn’t seem to generate much interest in society. I am guessing even if it were two women, it would still not stir people as much.
But when it’s two men, well, that is a whole different story, and it must be cracked down on.
The street in question for the police decoys for entrapment is La Jolla just south of Santa Monica Boulevard that runs south from the West Hollywood border into the Los Angeles city area.
Of course, we all know that it would be better if people did not try to have sex in public, and yet sex in public still goes on in every city and every town.
The real question is why the police department is not also using decoy police officers up on Sunset Boulevard and other areas to entrap heterosexuals?
It’s because in society, gay sex is considered offensive even in 2006, and the police department would not even consider entrapping heterosexuals up on Sunset Boulevard.
I do not condone public sex, but public sex will always be there on some street, in some car, on some beach and in some park.
Using attractive male police officers in tight clothing as decoys makes me think of some bad TV episode of “Charlie’s Angels” or “Three’s Company.”
When we see it in a TV show or film, we think it’s funny. When we hear about it in our own city, it is still hard to believe this situation could not be dealt with in a much better way.
Jerome Cleary is an actor, writer and comic at The World Famous Comedy Store-www.freecomedytickets.com and can be reached at: jeromeclearytalk@aol.com.
On any given night in Southern California, lewd conduct is happening. So why are gays still targeted? In the past two years, I have had to spend a lot of time along the Sunset Strip since many of the comedy venues are also there.
This is what I have seen in the same week this past December 2005:
In the parking lot of Miyagi’s, in a parked car — a woman climbed onto a guy as he sat in the driver’s seat and she pulled down her top exposing her breasts. The man under the woman began to fondle her breasts. This was just after 11 p.m. along the Sunset Strip in West Hollywood.
Further west on the Strip a few nights later after midnight, I see a woman performing fellatio on a guy in a car that is parked next to a parking meter on Sunset Boulevard.
Finally, at the end of this fascinating week, I see a guy exposing his genitals as he urinates along the sidewalk and wall. He tells the parking valets: “Don’t look, don’t look.”
All three of these lewd conduct incidents happened in everyone’s plain view. Since it was right on the Sunset Strip under streetlights, it would be really hard not to see it.
I saw no police activity patrolling this area or cracking down on any of this, though the LAPD has found the time to target lewd conduct on La Jolla Avenue. Yes, we all know it’s a heavily cruised area that got its name of Vaseline Alley for the parking lot behind the Gold Coast Bar on Santa Monica Boulevard.
But I have seen the same activity in heterosexual areas, and it’s not looked upon as being offensive or a problem.
When a man and a woman are caught making out and getting hot and heavy in their car, it doesn’t seem to generate much interest in society. I am guessing even if it were two women, it would still not stir people as much.
But when it’s two men, well, that is a whole different story, and it must be cracked down on.
The street in question for the police decoys for entrapment is La Jolla just south of Santa Monica Boulevard that runs south from the West Hollywood border into the Los Angeles city area.
Of course, we all know that it would be better if people did not try to have sex in public, and yet sex in public still goes on in every city and every town.
The real question is why the police department is not also using decoy police officers up on Sunset Boulevard and other areas to entrap heterosexuals?
It’s because in society, gay sex is considered offensive even in 2006, and the police department would not even consider entrapping heterosexuals up on Sunset Boulevard.
I do not condone public sex, but public sex will always be there on some street, in some car, on some beach and in some park.
Using attractive male police officers in tight clothing as decoys makes me think of some bad TV episode of “Charlie’s Angels” or “Three’s Company.”
When we see it in a TV show or film, we think it’s funny. When we hear about it in our own city, it is still hard to believe this situation could not be dealt with in a much better way.
Jerome Cleary is an actor, writer and comic at The World Famous Comedy Store-www.freecomedytickets.com and can be reached at: jeromeclearytalk@aol.com.
posted by JeromeCleary @ 6:54 PM
0 comments
WHY I WORRY ABOUT WEST HOLLYWOOD
By Jerome Cleary
West Hollywood is almost 22 years old and as it is evolving and growing there are many things that I worry about for its future.
I worry because when the Gateway project was completed, I still could not understand why the housing element was not there. I know that it’s been mentioned before by city officials that they were going to get that concession from the developer but, as of today, there is still no housing element.
I worry because when West Hollywood preserved a unique historical parcel of land and architecture in the early 1990s, known today as Tara, the property was deeded to the city. But now the city plans to destroy the green space and the magnificent house that is there, thus not giving the property the proper usage and letting the residents decide how to use it.
I worry about how little by little West Hollywood is becoming home to the luxury condo, whereas, years ago it was known for its unique village type atmosphere.
And about how the spirited voices of the residents were once actually a mainstay and focus of how the city responded but now that voice has been replaced by apathy and futile outrage.
I worry about how mixed used development will push mom and pop small businesses out with higher rents that can only attract brand name chains and conglomerates.
And how tall walls and billboard companies reign supreme in our city and small businesses with sandwich board signs, banner signs and signage somehow appear to be in code violation in our city.
I worry that West Hollywood is now known for its aggressive towing and parking fines and parking still seems to be a problem for visitors and residents.
And where our crime blotter based on police reports still reveal the same type of crimes in our city in some of the same streets and neighborhoods, and we still cannot get rid of these common type crimes.
I worry about how we are being told that pending new development is really to attract the gay and lesbian community whereupon I do not believe we have trouble attracting that community because we are attracting everyone to our city.
I worry about how developers have made their mark on our city for the positive and many times for the negative where neighbors and neighborhoods will never be the same anymore.
And where residents and neighbors were once such good friends but now, because of political campaigns, business deals and developments, these friendships fell apart and now they either do not speak or are enemies today.
I worry that if you come once to a city council meeting or commission meeting to speak, you are considered passionate and active, but if you come more than three times you are considered a problem or loony.
I worry that when you have a problem and you e-mail or call city hall, either you get a receptive response or follow up, or at other times you somehow disappear into the system or get attacked or berated or don’t hear back about what happened.
I worry that you may take the time to go to many community and residents input meetings like the 20/20 Visioning, and you discuss mixed use. But we never heard during these meetings that the city was considering 7- to 10- story structures.
I worry because if that idea had been presented back then, the residents would have spoken up with their strong opposition to such large heights and it would have not been a surprise to us all today.
Jerome Cleary is an actor, writer and comic at The World Famous Comedy Store-www.freecomedytickets.com and can be reached at: jeromeclearytalk@aol.com
West Hollywood is almost 22 years old and as it is evolving and growing there are many things that I worry about for its future.
I worry because when the Gateway project was completed, I still could not understand why the housing element was not there. I know that it’s been mentioned before by city officials that they were going to get that concession from the developer but, as of today, there is still no housing element.
I worry because when West Hollywood preserved a unique historical parcel of land and architecture in the early 1990s, known today as Tara, the property was deeded to the city. But now the city plans to destroy the green space and the magnificent house that is there, thus not giving the property the proper usage and letting the residents decide how to use it.
I worry about how little by little West Hollywood is becoming home to the luxury condo, whereas, years ago it was known for its unique village type atmosphere.
And about how the spirited voices of the residents were once actually a mainstay and focus of how the city responded but now that voice has been replaced by apathy and futile outrage.
I worry about how mixed used development will push mom and pop small businesses out with higher rents that can only attract brand name chains and conglomerates.
And how tall walls and billboard companies reign supreme in our city and small businesses with sandwich board signs, banner signs and signage somehow appear to be in code violation in our city.
I worry that West Hollywood is now known for its aggressive towing and parking fines and parking still seems to be a problem for visitors and residents.
And where our crime blotter based on police reports still reveal the same type of crimes in our city in some of the same streets and neighborhoods, and we still cannot get rid of these common type crimes.
I worry about how we are being told that pending new development is really to attract the gay and lesbian community whereupon I do not believe we have trouble attracting that community because we are attracting everyone to our city.
I worry about how developers have made their mark on our city for the positive and many times for the negative where neighbors and neighborhoods will never be the same anymore.
And where residents and neighbors were once such good friends but now, because of political campaigns, business deals and developments, these friendships fell apart and now they either do not speak or are enemies today.
I worry that if you come once to a city council meeting or commission meeting to speak, you are considered passionate and active, but if you come more than three times you are considered a problem or loony.
I worry that when you have a problem and you e-mail or call city hall, either you get a receptive response or follow up, or at other times you somehow disappear into the system or get attacked or berated or don’t hear back about what happened.
I worry that you may take the time to go to many community and residents input meetings like the 20/20 Visioning, and you discuss mixed use. But we never heard during these meetings that the city was considering 7- to 10- story structures.
I worry because if that idea had been presented back then, the residents would have spoken up with their strong opposition to such large heights and it would have not been a surprise to us all today.
Jerome Cleary is an actor, writer and comic at The World Famous Comedy Store-www.freecomedytickets.com and can be reached at: jeromeclearytalk@aol.com
posted by JeromeCleary @ 6:41 PM
0 comments
NEW SERIES OF EDUCATIONAL CHILDREN'S BOOKS RELEASED
Author, Pauline Guy, Well Known Celeb-Nanny AgentBrings Wealth Of Childcare Experience To Learning
By Jerome Cleary
BEVERLY HILLS CA - First time author Pauline Guy has created a new line of educational children's books launching: "Let's Count" and "The Alphabet Dance" as her first in a series of over 40 books. The first two books are making their debut this Spring. While most new children's book writers have some experience in actual child rearing or love children, Ms. Guy has gleaned her experience in a quite extraordinary way.
As the CEO of Celebrities Staffing Services, a domestic staffing agency that specializes in placement of professional governesses, baby nurses, nannies, mannies (male nannies), personal assistants, chefs, and house/estate managers, Pauline Guy got first hand experience over the past two decades on what needs are utmost in child rearing, learning and care.
As the current wave of children's books has heated up the market, the growing demand for innovative children's books grows. "With countless books being published and released each year, educators along with parents need to make choices that count for their children, Pauline Guy's "The Alphabet Dance" and "Let's Count" are the books to choose for a young child's mind. The first years of learning are the most important and Ms. Guy has created two wonderful books that are most impressive for a pre-schooler's mind," says, Amy Hendel, Health Expert, TV Health Correspondent and CEO of www.healthgal.com
In determining what to include in the first two books, Guy carefully considered each facet of what makes most children's books fun and memorable. Her two new books are thoughtful choices that, by their merit, motivate children to read and learn. They include colorful illustrations, captivating images along with compelling characters. These books appeal to a wide and diverse pre-school audience and parents.
Guy is eminently qualified to make create these children's books as she has worked in the field of child development for over 20 years, including 13 years as the director of infant and pre-school care for her own Celebrities Staffing Services employment agency. During that time she had first hand experience in directly placing qualified nannies in thousands of homes on both the East and West coast.
While her direct interaction over these years expanded her knowledge with what makes a good nanny and what makes a readable fun pre-school book for kids. "My true learning curve came as I was constantly pre-screening, interviewing both sides of the placements of nannies, the usual and unusual feedback on what likes and dislikes of children's books that mattered to my clients' pre-schoolers. It was simple to weed out what was considered drab and uninteresting since young kids will tell you right away. Two and Three year olds pull no punches when they are unhappy and disinterested," remarks Guy.
While most first time authors hope to be published and successful, Guy decided to insure her passionate message for educational children's books by creating her own publishing company: Golden Bear Publishing. This is a rare feat where a children's book author has actually put her money where her mouth is as Guy's debut as a new children's author and launch of her first two books out of her 40 titles is as simple as A-B-C.
A parent's role can be daunting, but a parent can literary change the lives of their young ones by reading something every day. "Who does not remember their first books that you wanted your parents to read to you? My own literary heritage that my parents passed on to me from my bedtime readings from my favorite books have created a lasting memory that shaped my youth," quips Guy.
"Children need books at a young age that entertain, amuse and hopefully for parents create an environment for a pre-school child to learn. Pauline Guy has accomplished that successfully with "The Alphabet Dance" and "Let's Count," remarks, Dennis Palumbo, Psychotherapist and author of "Writing From The Inside Out."
Where media tie-in to books saturate the market such as Barney or Sponge Bob, Guy has developed new ideas with colorful and memorable characters. She is not Madonna or some other celebrity hawking a children's book but a woman who desires to truly enrich and expand the young minds of tomorrow.
Jerome Cleary is an actor, writer and a comic at The World Famous Comedy Store-www.freecomedytickets.com and can be reached at: jeromeclearytalk@aol.com
By Jerome Cleary
BEVERLY HILLS CA - First time author Pauline Guy has created a new line of educational children's books launching: "Let's Count" and "The Alphabet Dance" as her first in a series of over 40 books. The first two books are making their debut this Spring. While most new children's book writers have some experience in actual child rearing or love children, Ms. Guy has gleaned her experience in a quite extraordinary way.
As the CEO of Celebrities Staffing Services, a domestic staffing agency that specializes in placement of professional governesses, baby nurses, nannies, mannies (male nannies), personal assistants, chefs, and house/estate managers, Pauline Guy got first hand experience over the past two decades on what needs are utmost in child rearing, learning and care.
As the current wave of children's books has heated up the market, the growing demand for innovative children's books grows. "With countless books being published and released each year, educators along with parents need to make choices that count for their children, Pauline Guy's "The Alphabet Dance" and "Let's Count" are the books to choose for a young child's mind. The first years of learning are the most important and Ms. Guy has created two wonderful books that are most impressive for a pre-schooler's mind," says, Amy Hendel, Health Expert, TV Health Correspondent and CEO of www.healthgal.com
In determining what to include in the first two books, Guy carefully considered each facet of what makes most children's books fun and memorable. Her two new books are thoughtful choices that, by their merit, motivate children to read and learn. They include colorful illustrations, captivating images along with compelling characters. These books appeal to a wide and diverse pre-school audience and parents.
Guy is eminently qualified to make create these children's books as she has worked in the field of child development for over 20 years, including 13 years as the director of infant and pre-school care for her own Celebrities Staffing Services employment agency. During that time she had first hand experience in directly placing qualified nannies in thousands of homes on both the East and West coast.
While her direct interaction over these years expanded her knowledge with what makes a good nanny and what makes a readable fun pre-school book for kids. "My true learning curve came as I was constantly pre-screening, interviewing both sides of the placements of nannies, the usual and unusual feedback on what likes and dislikes of children's books that mattered to my clients' pre-schoolers. It was simple to weed out what was considered drab and uninteresting since young kids will tell you right away. Two and Three year olds pull no punches when they are unhappy and disinterested," remarks Guy.
While most first time authors hope to be published and successful, Guy decided to insure her passionate message for educational children's books by creating her own publishing company: Golden Bear Publishing. This is a rare feat where a children's book author has actually put her money where her mouth is as Guy's debut as a new children's author and launch of her first two books out of her 40 titles is as simple as A-B-C.
A parent's role can be daunting, but a parent can literary change the lives of their young ones by reading something every day. "Who does not remember their first books that you wanted your parents to read to you? My own literary heritage that my parents passed on to me from my bedtime readings from my favorite books have created a lasting memory that shaped my youth," quips Guy.
"Children need books at a young age that entertain, amuse and hopefully for parents create an environment for a pre-school child to learn. Pauline Guy has accomplished that successfully with "The Alphabet Dance" and "Let's Count," remarks, Dennis Palumbo, Psychotherapist and author of "Writing From The Inside Out."
Where media tie-in to books saturate the market such as Barney or Sponge Bob, Guy has developed new ideas with colorful and memorable characters. She is not Madonna or some other celebrity hawking a children's book but a woman who desires to truly enrich and expand the young minds of tomorrow.
Jerome Cleary is an actor, writer and a comic at The World Famous Comedy Store-www.freecomedytickets.com and can be reached at: jeromeclearytalk@aol.com
posted by JeromeCleary @ 6:19 PM
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CRYSTAL CRASH: THE CRYSTAL PARTY IS OVER
By Jerome Cleary
More addictive and destructive than alcohol or marijuana, crystal meth has become the drug of choice for gays. We need to do more than just acknowledge this is true. We need to take action
Newsweek magazine last August gave national cover exposure to the deadly horrors of America’s most dangerous drug, and we now cannot escape the reality of crystal meth.
The most horrifying part of the article was the map of the United States showing areas with the most rampant use and how badly the crystal meth epidemic is hitting us.
Years ago our common battles were booze, cigarettes, and pot. Today we are faced with prescription painkiller abuse, heroin addiction, and now methamphetamine abuse.
But we are not just talking simple abuse. In the Gay Community., we have an epidemic of crystal-meth users. Let’s not kid ourselves. Ask anyone who has ever been online in the middle of the night: The Internet is filled with gay men who have been tweaking all night long who go to online chat rooms looking for PNP, which is shorthand for 'party and play.' This goes hand in hand with gay men who want to have bareback sex.
How has this happened? Even in a tony town like West Hollywood, where we have had town hall meetings to talk about combating crystal-meth use, we do not have a handle on this epidemic. Just like the rest of the country.
About five years ago the L.A. Weekly newspaper had an article about the Internet, reporting that the number of people who shopped online was highest between 1 a.m. and 7 a.m. These numbers had quadrupled in a four-year span, from 1996 to 2000. What the article’s author did not cover—or probably even consider—was the all-night tweaking people, high on crystal meth, who had gone online to solicit partners.
One of the most striking characteristics of this epidemic of drug abuse is that the demographic includes all ages, which is even more horrifying.
When I attended New York University, crack, or rock cocaine, was just beginning to peak. I would come home from work to my third-floor walk-up apartment in Hell’s Kitchen and find young adults about my age smoking crack at the front door.
I would say to them, 'You can’t do that here.' One time a young woman responded, 'We’re almost finished.'
Crack vials littered my apartment building’s front steps, and I would call the crack hot line listed in the New York Post to have the police clear the street.
But today young and middle-age people are doing crystal meth throughout the country. There is no universal hot line to call to clear the nation’s streets. So how do we address a problem that is everyone’s dirty secret? When I say 'everyone,' I really mean that somehow we are all responsible. Don’t we all have a responsibility to tell someone, to confront someone online about their lives, their health, and their addiction? Do any of us have the need to help anyone when the user is a meth-head?
I have watched acquaintances bottom out on booze and pot. But booze and pot seem so tame compared with crystal meth today. Usually a sane person gets away from a crystal-meth user as fast as he can, since trying to help can turn violent.
Five years ago on my cable TV show I interviewed Kathy Watts, the executive director of the Van Ness Recovery House in Los Angeles. She told me that crystal meth is an attractive drug because it can suddenly charge you up to go all night after working all week. The drug gives you the energy to party all night long.
After all, we are bombarded through television, advertising, and pop culture to want the 'maximum,' what's 'new and improved,' what’s 'stronger,'what’s 'double strength,' the 'ultimate,' the 'extreme.'
That is exactly why the drug of choice today is one that can lift you higher, faster, and deliver quick results. But the cost for this ultimate high is a catastrophic and tragic crash.
We’re all in this together. It’s time for each of us to take action, get involved, confront users, educate would-be users, and get a grip. The party is over.
Jerome Cleary is an actor, writer and comic at The World Famous Comedy Store-www.freecomedytickets.com and can be reached at: jeromeclearytalk@aol.com
More addictive and destructive than alcohol or marijuana, crystal meth has become the drug of choice for gays. We need to do more than just acknowledge this is true. We need to take action
Newsweek magazine last August gave national cover exposure to the deadly horrors of America’s most dangerous drug, and we now cannot escape the reality of crystal meth.
The most horrifying part of the article was the map of the United States showing areas with the most rampant use and how badly the crystal meth epidemic is hitting us.
Years ago our common battles were booze, cigarettes, and pot. Today we are faced with prescription painkiller abuse, heroin addiction, and now methamphetamine abuse.
But we are not just talking simple abuse. In the Gay Community., we have an epidemic of crystal-meth users. Let’s not kid ourselves. Ask anyone who has ever been online in the middle of the night: The Internet is filled with gay men who have been tweaking all night long who go to online chat rooms looking for PNP, which is shorthand for 'party and play.' This goes hand in hand with gay men who want to have bareback sex.
How has this happened? Even in a tony town like West Hollywood, where we have had town hall meetings to talk about combating crystal-meth use, we do not have a handle on this epidemic. Just like the rest of the country.
About five years ago the L.A. Weekly newspaper had an article about the Internet, reporting that the number of people who shopped online was highest between 1 a.m. and 7 a.m. These numbers had quadrupled in a four-year span, from 1996 to 2000. What the article’s author did not cover—or probably even consider—was the all-night tweaking people, high on crystal meth, who had gone online to solicit partners.
One of the most striking characteristics of this epidemic of drug abuse is that the demographic includes all ages, which is even more horrifying.
When I attended New York University, crack, or rock cocaine, was just beginning to peak. I would come home from work to my third-floor walk-up apartment in Hell’s Kitchen and find young adults about my age smoking crack at the front door.
I would say to them, 'You can’t do that here.' One time a young woman responded, 'We’re almost finished.'
Crack vials littered my apartment building’s front steps, and I would call the crack hot line listed in the New York Post to have the police clear the street.
But today young and middle-age people are doing crystal meth throughout the country. There is no universal hot line to call to clear the nation’s streets. So how do we address a problem that is everyone’s dirty secret? When I say 'everyone,' I really mean that somehow we are all responsible. Don’t we all have a responsibility to tell someone, to confront someone online about their lives, their health, and their addiction? Do any of us have the need to help anyone when the user is a meth-head?
I have watched acquaintances bottom out on booze and pot. But booze and pot seem so tame compared with crystal meth today. Usually a sane person gets away from a crystal-meth user as fast as he can, since trying to help can turn violent.
Five years ago on my cable TV show I interviewed Kathy Watts, the executive director of the Van Ness Recovery House in Los Angeles. She told me that crystal meth is an attractive drug because it can suddenly charge you up to go all night after working all week. The drug gives you the energy to party all night long.
After all, we are bombarded through television, advertising, and pop culture to want the 'maximum,' what's 'new and improved,' what’s 'stronger,'what’s 'double strength,' the 'ultimate,' the 'extreme.'
That is exactly why the drug of choice today is one that can lift you higher, faster, and deliver quick results. But the cost for this ultimate high is a catastrophic and tragic crash.
We’re all in this together. It’s time for each of us to take action, get involved, confront users, educate would-be users, and get a grip. The party is over.
Jerome Cleary is an actor, writer and comic at The World Famous Comedy Store-www.freecomedytickets.com and can be reached at: jeromeclearytalk@aol.com
posted by JeromeCleary @ 1:56 AM
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