Marriage (and Other LGBT) Rights in Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas
I’m probably not telling you anything, but Texas is one big state. It took us three long days of driving to get through it.
We spent last night in Deming, New Mexico, after driving through El Paso alongside the blazing Mexican sunset. We passed through a Border Patrol checkpoint somewhere near Las Cruces, which was something of a shock. It stood, as imposing and impervious as the international border between Washington and Canada, but it was well into New Mexico–we never even entered Juarez. They waved us through, and we drove past their something-sniffing dogs. Were they hoping to catch people with those dogs, or what?
Catching up on some states we missed–there are a lot we didn’t document. Here are three.
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Marriage (and Other LGBT) Equality in Vermont
I know it makes people in New England cringe, but there’s a dream popular among New Yorkers of moving to the country and buying a farm in Vermont. I think Vermont is chosen as a setting for that dream because it’s rural, beautiful, and the people have a reputation for being liberal. Even though I am from the Northeast originally, before this trip, Vermont was one of the six states I’d never been to. (I’m down to three: Wisconsin, Nebraska, and Alaska.)
I was sad the weather didn’t accommodate a longer visit to Vermont. I really wanted to get to Burlington. I just knew I’d love it. It wasn’t to be, however. As we mentioned in a previous post, the RV parks in northern Vermont had their water shut off during the time of our visit. It was also threatening to snow. So we headed south to Massachusetts–where it actually did snow.
Read moreTrailer Life, Volume IV
Boondocking. Also known as dry camping. That means you’re not hooked up to water and/or electric. You’re using your batteries to run your lights and you’re drinking the water stored in your tank. Some people, like the ones who frequent freecampgrounds.com, spend a great deal of their RV lives boondocking.
[Aside: Etymologically, boondocks is one of the few English words I know of to come from Tagalog: bundok, or mountain. (If you're curious, some others are yo-yo and cooties.) American soldiers occupying the Philippines misused it to mean a remote, wild place. If you were in one of those places, I guess you would have to boondock your RV.]
Read moreMarriage (and Other LGBT) Equality in Maine
We’re not at all sorry we passed through to lend our support to the No on One campaign. We met amazing, dedicated people who stopped their lives to devote everything they had to ensuring equality for all Mainers–whether they lived in the state or not.
And I still don’t believe that’s how a majority of Mainers feel–it’s just the majority of voters in the 2009 election who feel that way. Who want to deny their neighbors the rights they have. Who believe them to be not worthy of the rights and protections they enjoy simply because of who they love. Who want to make the children of same-sex couples suffer. These are the children most directly affected by marriage equality, make no mistake about it.
Read moreMeeting with Rep. Inslee on the Respect for Marriage Act – Act III: Not Just the Poor Man’s Lawyer
Looking back on it now, I can see the strategy Inslee was using when he began the real conversation with us. Start with a point of agreement. “What do you think of Referendum 71?” he asked.
“Well, we wish it had never happened in the first place, but we think it will pass,” I said. Everyone was still in the room, and I feel a little bad that with Inslee there, his legislative assistant, David, kind of faded into the background.
“My wife and I made a donation to the campaign,” he said. “And I sent out an e-mail in support of it–or at least I think I did–if not, I will.”
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