Peterson Toscano's A Musing

I'm sitting on my front porch at my house. It's suddenly crazy humid and I'm living AC free this summer. I live on a one-way street and someone just zipped along driving in the wrong direction. Wait, she's getting out. She's walking towards me. Hold on... Okay, that was weird. She comes right up to me and introduces herself and starts chatting. I'm like, okay. She tells me all kinds of personal info about her child and the child's husband and then asks, "So are you going to give me a tour of the place?" I'm like, "Wait, What?" Turns out she is here to see the downstairs apartment (I live in an old Victorian house and the first floor is for rent). By the way, my landlord loves me because I am never home which saves him a ton of money since utilities are included in my rent. So yeah, feeling very much at home these days never wanting to leave again, well at least until next week. The fall schedule has really come together nicely with p...

On October 3, I will be a happy clam. The Connecticut Forum will host a forum event called The Tech Revolution which will feature a live conversation with Craig Newmark, the founder of Craigslist , Jimmy Wales, the founder of Wikipedia , and danah boyd , an expert on online social media. Not only will I attend this event, but I will be backstage as a valet to one of these amazing guests. Since I spend half my life on Craigslist, Wikipedia or one of several sites like myspace (no facebook yet gang), I will be very very pleased to be in the company of greatness. The Forum is looking for questions that you can submit in the form of a video. See the advert below. And if you live in the Hartford area, get your tickets and I will see you there.

How rare that I am resting in my own bed after a matinee performance as I prepare for tonight's show. So nice to show my friends and the members of my community what I do as I present my ex-gay comedy in the city where I live. In my play I compare coming out to Lazarus' resurrection then the act of his friends unwrapping him from out of his grave clothes. I moved to Hartford in 2001 knowing only some family here and in a short time I have found community. After living in darkness for nearly 2 decades, I sensed I had to be wide open about myself including my sexuality. Telling my story to fellow faculty at Watkinson School proved to be healing. They then cheered me on as I worked on and then began performing my play. So healing to find community, but it takes work and persistence. It takes time and it takes giving at least as much of what I hope to get back. For me it included attending Quaker meeting, staying after to chat and get to know people. It took volunteering to help o...