Archive for March, 2009

On this day, eight years ago, the weather was perfect. Birds were singing, the sky was blue, and there was a nice/gentle breeze. With the windows of our church open, the smell of bluebonnets in the air, and enveloped in the love of our friends and family, we said, “I do”.

Love. Together. Forever.

Lori & Emil Luza
March 31, 2001

Happy us day!!!

Today, we announced the closing of Brazos Valley QueSt, the 501(c)(3) charitable non-profit that we started back in the fall of 2003. We’ve been hosting the “big gay fundraiser”, GAYla, each spring and a Homecoming-themed scholarship event each fall. It’s been a great way to give back to an often-hated part of our community.

There is one big reason and a particular catalyst for the closing. A lack of volunteers was, of course, the group’s biggest challenge. Because of this and the catalyst, we had considered closing twice last October and decided to give it one more try for the 2009 GAYla. We scaled the event way back and had a great time at a relaxed party where we were entertained by the area’s only (and award-winning) improvisational comedy troupe, Freudian Slip. As committee members, we had a great time…and it was for a good cause.

In writing our “goodbye” letter today, I reviewed our donations over the years. Wow. I didn’t realize how much we had done. And, I only had rough/big numbers handy; I didn’t take the time to chase down all the little things we did in between. You can’t really ask for a happier ending to a good thing. GAYla didn’t start with us; we just picked it up when it ran out of volunteers. We then expanded on that with other events. Hopefully, someone else will take the next chapter in working with this part of our community.

To all of you who have traveled in, attended, donated money/services/product, volunteered, sent your love and support from afar, etc: Thank You! Your support of humanity means more to me, personally, than you’ll ever know.

I <3 Friday the 13th….and since one fell in February of a non-leap-year, we get two in a row!

I’m anxious. I don’t really get nervous, but this is close.

Tomorrow morning, I leave for South by Southwest, the Interactive, Music, and Film festival/conference. I’m volunteering at a booth (setup and take down) in exchange for an access badge to the trade show.

I’m not even officially attending. I’m not attending any of the official programs or presentations (that’s a different access badge). I won’t be in the room when Twitter blows up with people angry that the speaker isn’t prepared (yeah, that happened last year).

I’ve heard over and over again, “SXSW is really about what happens in the hallways between sessions.” I’m going to milk that (and the trade show) for all I can. I’m going to have my photographer look about me (camera, nametag, giant stack of business cards, etc.). I hope to make a lot of contacts with people in Austin as well as those who might need a photographer in Texas.

Still, even with my “in the wings” style for attending, I’m freaking out a little bit.

There will be 8,000+ people attending this event. That’s 8x (EIGHT!) the size of Texas Photography School. Most universities aren’t this big! The University of Miami was only 12,000 when I attended (it’s ~15,000 now). Can you imagine 8,000 trying to get into the same speaker/panel/party when the cap on some is 100?

I have two main concerns/fears:

1. It will be so crowded that my personal bubble (which, as you all know, is quite large!) will be violated constantly. I’ll feel like the country kid in the big ol’ city bar and won’t be able to find the air I need to just breathe normally. (no, I’m not really claustrophobic, I’m just not a big fan of strangers touching me as they push past. I much prefer the gentle hand on the shoulder or back that says “It’s loud in here, so I can’t shout ‘EXCUSE ME!’ but I need to excuse myself past you to work through the crowd.”
2. I’ll be so overwhelmed that I’ll retreat and then be the quiet person in the corner that no one talks to.

Now, in reality, I know that I’ll fall somewhere in the middle. I’ll be fine.

I understand these rules of this event:

• Go with the flow (your individual schedule will likely change a great deal every day).
• approach people. Don’t ask what they do, ask them how they are enjoying SXSW.
• Listen more than you talk.

I’m also completely—over, in fact—prepared with non-perishable food items that can be my meals and snacks. So, if the chance for free food or a meal out presents itself, I’ve left room in my budget for that. But, if I’m buried/involved and don’t want to leave, I have sustenance.

Except for parking and the unknown, I’m as prepared as I can get.

Wish me luck.

Our annual GAYla this past Saturday was a huge success! I have really been honored to work with this event since 2004.

We have a couple of surprises for this year’s recipients. We plan to unveil total funds raised in just a few days! yippie!