In the beginning of March I'm planning on taking a trip to Austin for a gay rights rally. I'm really looking forward to it! I've been dying to go to Austin anyway. My friends Claire (who still lives in Louisiana but is planning on moving to Austin), Mandi (Baton Rouge), and Jenn (Ohio, but visiting Mandi) are going to go with me. That ought to be a lot of fun, they'd all come to visit for New Year's and we had a ball! So the rally is on Monday and right now the tentative plan is for them to come in on Saturday night and we can hang out or do whatever, then Sunday morning we'll leave for Austin and spend the day/night there, then have the rally on Monday.

I think it's so funny, but cool how we still get to hang out together periodically even though all four of us live in completely different cities

I'm hoping to talk Scott into coming with us too. He's still sorta on the fence and not sure if he wants to take off work. Brian can't make it because he has a class he can't miss, but his parents are probably going to go. Which is really cool because his parents are great! Luke will possibly be going as well.

Anyway, obviously I needed to ask off for work on that Monday. So I was planning to do it today after I got back lunch, well right before lunch my boss comes in and says, "you know you've been doing a really good job, and we'd really like to give you a day off with pay. So just let me know when."

So yeah, that was pretty cool! Imagine being offered a day off only a couple of hours before you were going to ask for one! Pretty nifty.

I am crazy about my job. It's so perfect for me! I love the work, the pay's nice, they're are a ton of perks, it's really close by, really laid back, ideal hours, good benefits, and I'm crazy about my boss and his wife! All around it's just very good.

I also had a really good chat with my boss today about gay issues, which he initiated. He's a really nifty person. He's a straight, white guy, but he's like really sensitive to minority issues and really open-minded. Which is why I was sure getting off in the first place wouldn't be a big deal if I mentioned it was for a gay rights rally.

He was asking if the phrase "that's so gay" is offensive or not. I told him it really depended on the GLBT person he said it around. I have several friends and acquaintances who are themselves gay or lesbian and say it all the time, and don't care if anyone says it. Then I have several other friends and acquaintances who find it really offensive and get thoroughly pissed.

Personally, my stance is that the original construction of the phrase has offensive roots, and that the meaning and use is offensive if analyzed, but I'm not offended by it at all when I hear it. By now it's just more or less slipped into the common vernacular, especially in some circles, so I really don't think that in most instances it is uttered with an offensive intention, and I think in order for something to be offensive it can't be said innocently. It's like if a five year old says f**k in a completely innocent way. It's vulgar, it's not what you necessarily want the kid to be saying, but it's pointless, IMO, to be offended by it. The kid didn't mean any harm. Same deal here as far as I'm concerned. So I don't say it myself, don't think I ever have, and probably won't start, but I don't really care if other people say it, especially if it's obvious they don't have malicious intents.

Anyone have any thoughts on that?