buggery.org

I quit my job a while back – after five years of writing about AIDS, thinking about AIDS, talking about AIDS, eating, drinking and shitting AIDS, it’s time to pull back a bit. Today’s my last day so I feel a bit sad, a bit frustrated at the work that has been left undone, and more than a bit relieved that it’s over. Working in “the sector” is renowned for it’s capacity to make bitter old queens of what were once brightly optimistic you things, so I think it’s best to get out before that happens to me. New challenges await.

There are a bunch of other things happening in our life – we are about to head off on holiday to Europe (I’ll try to keep the blog updated as we go) and we’re in the process of buying a house, or trying to buy it. With the clock ticking down to our departure on Sunday, the odds that we’ll get to the contract stage before we depart are slimming rapidly. Most likely we’ll go away not knowing whether the sale will go to us or not – that’s not ideal, but we’re only gone for three weeks so presumably we can pick up where we left off on our return.

The holiday, much needed and well-deserved, will lighten my (currently heavy) spirit I’m sure, once we step on the plane and leave behind all that is dull and quotidian I suppose I’ll be less bothered by my inability to juggle 18 balls simultaneously, but between now and then I guess I just have to keep putting one foot in front of the other.

Off to Sydney tonight to say farewell to my workmates.

Subject: Re:
From: Weirong Guidry <samessafekeeping@motorcarshonda.com>

Hello my friend!

I am ready to kill myself and eat my dog, if medicine prices here (http://spam.url) are bad.

Look, the site and call me 1-800 if its wrong..

My dog and I are still alive

• The Blairs’ Witch Project (Bad Science)
  The tale of Tony and Cherie Blair and their crystal healer.
  (tags: badscience blair,tony blair,cherie crystal-dowsing new-age mmr crackpots alternative-medicine)

1. The Prime Minister says he will not meet the Dalai Lama when he visits next month. Australian Greens leader Bob Brown calls the PM ‘pathetic’ and accuses the government of hypocrisy for criticising Zimbabwe while turning a blind eye to human rights abuses by our biggest trading partner.
2. The Opposition leader says he won’t meet the Dalai Lama either. Brown accuses Rudd of hypocrisy too: “the more powerful the political leader in Australia, the weaker they become before the dictates of Beijing,” he says.
3. The Prime Minister, who has refused to meet with the Dalai Lama on several occasions, accuses the Opposition leader of hypocrisy – for refusing to meet the Dalai Lama.
4. The Prime Minister says he will “check his diary” to see if, after all, he does have time to meet with the Dalai Lama.
5. The Opposition leader announces he will (probably) meet with the Dalai Lama.
6. The Dalai Lama says he doesn’t give a flying fuck about the Australian election and doesn’t want to meet either of them, because they’re a pair of useless populist morons who wouldn’t know the moral high ground if they tripped over it.
7. [go to #1]

File under: why I’m still voting for the Greens.

Just when you thought things couldn’t get any more stupid:

HIV-POSITIVE visitors to the country could have their movements monitored or be prevented from coming altogether, under policy options being considered by the Government.

Prime Minister John Howard has written to his immigration and health ministers asking them for advice on whether HIV/AIDS poses a public health risk and on the public health implications of letting HIV-positive people into the country.

When Mr Howard said last month that he would consider stopping HIV-positive people coming to the country unless there were humanitarian reasons to let them in, his comments were dismissed by some as populist.

But this latest move suggests there is a possibility those infected could find it harder to come to Australia, or, if they can come, to move about the country without having to report their movements.

Read the full story in The Age.

Happy birthday to Jasper, who is seven years old today. That’s 50 in dog years – he is officially middle-aged.

In recognition of this important occasion, may I refer you to this post, from 6 July 2000, when eight-week-old Jasper first came into our lives. (WARNING: cute puppy pictures)

Special Offer: leave a “happy birthday Jasper” message in the comments before midnight tonight and I’ll give him a dog biscuit for you. (Or maybe a carrot or just a pat on the head if there are more than a couple of comments – don’t want him to turn into a weighty boy.)

Today is also Brent and my anniversary – we have been together eight years now. That’s 56 gay years, apparently.

Not sure I agree with the conversion factor but regardless, eight years is a pretty good effort. And I still love the pants off him, just like I always have.

I wish I could write as well as the guy who writes the Anatrim spam.
(more…)

Those Frenchies sure know how to scare you into having safe sex:

The tagline reads Sans préservatif, c’est avec le sida qui vous faites l’amour. Protêgez-vous. (Without a condom, you’re making love with AIDS. Protect yourself.)

Here’s the girly version:

Autumn is here, there’s been a bit of rain, and there are mushrooms popping their little heads up. This very pretty (but deadly) Fly Agaric (Amanita muscaria) arrived this morning, along with a few others.