Wednesday, October 10, 2018

Ummbrella

As a gay man, I am very impressed at the apparent ease with which Ms. Sheree Honeyflower is handling the umbrella stuck up her bum on a windy day by the seaside.

Ummbrella
"Ummbrella" by Sheree Honeyflower

I love the picture, it's both humorous and beautiful, but I cannot help wondering if the handle that is stuck up her bum also has a hook-handle like the one she is holding in her hands. If that should be the case I am full of awe and wonderment over Sheree's feat!

Tuesday, October 9, 2018

Present Mood (Updated)

"The Scream" by Edvard Munch (1863)
P.S. 10/10/18
So sorry for this weird post. I am doing great, my pain and anguish aren't even a quarter of what Munch depicts in his classic painting. At the moment I posted, I just felt everything was becoming too much with the demands I placed on myself and felt came from others. I needed room to go to scream it all off without disturbing my neighbors. 

Monday, October 8, 2018

A Message From The Chairman of SP

This message has been posted on the Second Pride website (url) today.
"Dear Second Pride Members,
You may or may not have heard about a very upsetting Board meeting today [October 6, 2018]. As everyone is aware there was a snafu with the original voting process. This, as I have stated already publicly, was my fault. I owned my mistake and the Board took measures to correct that error. Which I supported 100%. It was Bock McMillan that pointed out to me that the IT Director was to be the Election Chairman, according to the Bylaws in place. He was again 100% correct. The system that was originally used was not vetted by the Election Chair, Lee McKay. Therefore, it could not be used in the state it was in. Additionally, the security was just not there. That was a serious concern to all the Board and should have been with the candidates and members-at-large. 
A new voting system was created specifically for Second Pride Elections. It took longer to create then initially anticipated. Anyone who has looked at an SL script knows how complex they can be. We all wanted a secure way for everyone to vote. That way there could be no questions as to the legitimacy of the vote. 
That’s the background. So what happened? 
Today during the Second Pride new Board Member seating the newly elected Marketing Director called into question the integrity of the Election Chair and myself. Also called into question was the legitimacy of the voting process. Mind you he WON, by a large margin.
After some back and forth with others on the Board, the Marketing Director began making derogatory statements and accusations against the Second Pride Board. Pointing out how unfair the election process had been and how it was suspicious how everything happened and how it was handled. Stating that he was not pointing fingers, but calling out the positions of the Board that he had issue with. Well, since there is only one person in any given Board position, it was easy to see how he was actually accusing that positions, inherent occupier. He went on further to degrade the members-at-large, stating “I know that during the second process, the overall feeling was very subdued, people felt angry, disgusted and resigned.” As Chairman, I did not get that sense. During the process, Jimmy was constantly asking for updates on the number of votes being cast. He was told no that was inappropriate. It only incensed him. He stated that in real life you could see how the vote was going and how many people voted. So, I am going out on a limb here, but we in the USA don’t know how many votes were cast until after they are all counted. I am not sure about Jimmy’s country. Perhaps it is different? However, we ran the election process and will continue doing so, according to the rules in the USA.
Jimmy went on to infer that the only reason the original election was deemed null and void, was to get Mr. McKay’s “friend” more votes. Let me assure you of one thing, I am not the smartest guy on the block, but I DO know Lee McKay is not the type of person to do something like that. Nor would he have anyone else do it for him. That is slander and a baseless allegation. Jimmy Augustus-Gracemount needs to apologize to Lee McKay for that. 
As Chairman of the Board, I lost my temper and yelled at Jimmy during the meeting. I apologize for letting my emotions get the better of myself at that moment. Lee and I both motioned to have Jimmy removed from the Board. It was seconded and passed 5-2 in favor of removing him. 
Personally, I like Jimmy. He really is a fine fellow. I am not sure why, after winning the vote, he couldn’t just be happy with that and let it go. The outcome was the same.
I am truly sorry that it had to come down to this. I was ready to resign since it was *MY* fault the original vote was canceled. Bock was correct to point out the problem to me. Lee McKay was ready to resign. For the betterment of Second Pride as an organization, Jimmy had to go. The Marketing Directors position will be absorbed, as the Bylaws are written, by the Events and Community Relations Directors to split the duties as they see fit. 
It is with great hope that the future of Second Pride be as bright as it has been in the past. As we move forward into the future, let’s try not to forget why we are here. It’s not fame and glory. It’s not for recognition. It is to do good work and to reach out to our fellow LGBTQ community and bring it together in a spirit that uplifts us all! That is why I ran for Chairman in the first place. It’s why I will continue to the very best of my ability. 
Sincerely,
ReZ Vale-Starfall
Chairman of the Board"

Sunday, October 7, 2018

Chez Nathanael & Ophiel

The Much Honored Bock McMillan, laird of Southern Charm, prince of Cascade Falls, Sovereign Ruler of the Commonwealth of the Southern Enchantment Realm and Outer Territories and finally UN-appointed Protector of the Mount Whitney sim in SecondLife (that's me), yesterday made an official visit with mes chers cousins Nathanael Sommerfeld and Ophiel Er'el, Marquis of Montfort l'Amaury.

The official reason for the visit was that Monfort l'Amaury has recently received a complete redecoration into an 18th-century roleplay sim and is now going to open its doors to the general public, or the hoi polloi as we entitled people prefer to say.
Official photography of the meeting by JJ Goodman.
From left to right, my consort Tomais Ashdene, the Duke of Erat and a prince of the realm,
my brother JJ Goodman, a prince of the realm, the Laird (i.e. me), Ophiel Er'el, Marquis of
Monfort l'Amaury, and his consort Graf Simon Hieronymus Casimir zu Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg
(Nathanael Sommerfeld) and finally Holter Rez., a prince of the realm. 

Missing from the picture is Wayne Allen, a prince of the realm.
The real reason, however, was to bring the diplomatic negotiations concerning the incorporation of Monfort l'Amaury (as a self-governing region) into the Commonwealth of the Southern Enchantment Realm to a successful close.

Welcome to my world dear cousins. You are hereby both granted the title of "Prince of the Realm". May our friendship last and may our cooperation be successful.

Saturday, October 6, 2018

Installation of SP New Board Today

In a notice in the Second Pride Festival Group, the chairperson Rez Vale-Starfall announced, that the new board members will be installed on the board on Saturday, October 6th, 2018 at 12 PM (noon) SLT.

At the event, Rez will also be announcing the candidates for Community Relations Director.

The event will take place at the Second Pride HQ (SLurl), hope to see you all there!
---

After the installation, the Second Pride board will consist of the following people.

Chairman - Rez Vale-Starfall (DJRez Cyberstar)

Secretary/Treasurer
--- Secretary - Mikey Vale (MikeAdam)
--- Treasurer - Bock McMillan

Infrastructure Director
--- Security Director - Tootsie Nootan
--- Building Director - Starter Evenstarr (starter232)

Outreach Director
--- Events Director - Nicky Windstorm (DunceMidwest)
--- Community Relations Director - vacant
--- Marketing Director - Jimmy Augustus-Gracemount (jimmmmmy)

Technology Director - Lee MacKay

(In bold and underlined I give you the board positions directed by the newly adopted bylaws, under them in cursive are the positions according to the previous bylaws under which the recently ended election were run. According to the new bylaws, those positions are to be maintained until any of them become vacant when the responsibilities will be transferred to the remaining director. As of 2020 the only positions available will be the ones decided by the new bylaws.) 

Thursday, October 4, 2018

SP Election Results Announced

Today we received a notice in the Second Pride Festival Group with the long-awaited announcement:

"On September 27th, 2018, the Election Committee hereby certifies the following results for the Election completed on September 26th, 2018.

For the Marketing Director seat
60 votes - Jimmy Augustus-Gracemount (jimmmmmy) - Winner
9 votes - Kaiden Brandt (Kalculate)

For the Building Director seat
44 votes - 
Sтαятєя Ɛνєηѕтαяя (starter232) - Winner
23 votes - Dҽʋιɳ Kɳιɠԋƚ Dɾαƙσɳ (devindevin1111)

Congratulations!!

ReZ, SP Chairman"

---

I would like to join the chairperson in congratulating the winning candidates.

I would also like to thank the other candidates and wish them better luck next time. I hope we can convince them to work with Second Pride, even without the Directorship.

Monday, October 1, 2018

A Major Clusterfuck

It's both frightening and tragicomical to follow the total and complete disaster that the selection of a new associate justice to the Supreme Court of the United States has become.

Despite the fact that this is one of the most important positions in the U.S.A and a lifetime appointment, it seems not to have been properly prepared as one would expect of such a longterm and crucial engagement.
Brett Kavanaugh
Photo by Michael Reynolds-Pool/Getty Images
If I was hiring (and I have been in that position several times), I wouldn't give the man a temporary job cleaning restrooms or flipping burgers, let alone a lifetime position as a judge.

That decision would be based solely on the man's performance during the "job interview" and have nothing to do with his alleged sexual assaults or lies. I simply wouldn't want the hassle of working together with - and wouldn't trust a person - who displayed such unhinged anger and rudeness and on top of that spouted weird conspiracy theories.

I am amazed that the nomination hasn't been recalled already or the man convinced to withdraw his candidacy, for the country's sake and the man's. I cannot believe there aren't several equally qualified conservative judges with a more judicial temperament to select from.