Overheard At Work

"What are you working on, mam?...TPS reports?"

A Job Application Gone Awry

Some of my readers may or may not know that I recently interviewed for and was given the opportunity to be the Stranger's next News Intern. Everyone has asked me "what exactly does a news intern do?" Well, here is the job advertisement that was posted a few weeks ago:

"Do you spend your days dreaming of digging through court records to find out terrible things about secret Republican politicians? Or following the often mind-numbing actions of the city and county councils? Or perhaps fighting grizzly bears?

How about doing two of those three things for free? (You have to pay to see the bears.) If so, we have the opportunity of a lifetime. The Stranger is looking for a news intern.

Just think—the Slog posts you will post! The arcane information you will look up! The Morning News-es you will post on weekends still slightly drunk with a screaming headache at 8 a.m.! I have lived through all of those experiences, and emerged stronger.

Interested? Send an e-mail telling us why you should be the chosen one (with two or three clips or other writing samples, if you've got 'em)..."

Today was my first day, and it went well. My assignment was to head over to the SPD East Precinct and obtain hundreds of electronic police report copies. After that, I spent a few hours skimming through them all trying to find something worthwhile. There were hardly any interesting ones. However, I picked one, and did a short write-up of the incident. It's a rough copy, but we all have to start somewhere. And I present it as such:

In these troubled economic times, dropping off a job application can get you mugged on the side of the road. A Seattle Police report obtained from the East Precinct indicates that on November 19th at approximately 2:20 p.m. the victim in this case was driving from Renton to North Seattle in order to deliver an application for employment. "He was then driving south on 3 Ave NW from Holman Rd NW and hit a pothole, flattening his right front tire." After pulling off to the side of the road, he went to his trunk to obtain a can of flat repair spray. Soon thereafter he noticed a "large sidewall hole" on the flat tire. The victim reported feeling a blow to the back of the head, but initially thought it was the side-view mirror. The victim turned to notice an unidentified suspect standing over him with a kitchen knife--"possible black handled steak knife, stainless blade, with a copper colored cap where the blade joins handle"--pointed, at close range, at the victim's neck. The suspect took the victim's cash and fled the scene on foot. "Victim thought about driving after the suspect but then recalled that his tire was flat," the report concludes.

Thoughts? Comments? Criticisms? This is all a work in progress, and I hope to get the most out of this internship before it ends in three months time.

[Update] - Here is the actual post.

When Toothbrushes Turn Gay

Were You Aware That...

Okay, I have been off the radar for quite some time now.  That's called life, get over it.  But now I've discovered some new topics about which to blog.

Patty Murray is the senior U.S. Senator from Washington, and she is up for re-election next November.  I thought it rather appropriate to dig into her legislative record and find what exactly she has done for us as a representative of our state.  Thus, I'll be posting information regarding bills (and resolutions) that she has sponsored or co-sponsored, in the hopes that we can all be a little more educated for the upcoming midterm elections.  This will (hopefully) be a running series of "Were You Aware That..." posts.  I may or may not confine the information to just Patty Murray, but to other members of Congress as well.

To begin with, let's look at some of Senator Murray's Sponsored Resolutions: 

S.Res.288 - A resolution designating September 26, 2009, as "National Mesothelioma Awareness Day".

S.Res.181 - A resolution designating June 10, 2009, as "National Pipeline Safety Day".

S.Res.168 - A resolution commending the University of Washington women's softball team for winning the 2009 NCAA Women's College World Series.

S.Res.150 - A resolution commemorating and celebrating the lives of Officer Kristine Marie Fairbanks, Deputy Anne Marie Jackson, and Sergeant Nelson Kai Ng who gave their lives in the service of the people of Washington State in 2008.

S.Res.16 - A resolution designating the week of February 2 through February 6, 2009, as "National School Counseling Week".

More information to come soon (I hope).

Yesterday Was A Victory, Tomorrow Is A Battle Of Preservation

As of November 4th, 6:24pm, the election results for Referendum 71 are as follows:

593,956 (51.65%) Approved | 556,090 (48.35%) Rejected

That's a positive lead of 37,866 votes in support of the 'everything-but-marriage' law in Washington State.  Equality is, in fact, winning right now.  However, I sense this is far from being over.  Of the 39 counties in Washington, only nine of them [Clallam, Jefferson, San Juan, Kitsap, Thurston, King, Whatcom, Skagit, and Snohomish] consisted of a majority to approve the referendum.

I am aware of the fact that the voter population in several of those counties totals less than 20, 15, 10, and even 5 thousand people.

A Time And Feeling Reminiscent Of November 5, 2008

Right now I feel like I did on November 5, 2008.  The candidates and measures that I voted (and lobbied) for all won their respective offices, but in another state, gay marriage was voted down.  Last year, Californians went to the polls to strip away marriage--equal protection--rights from gay couples.  In 2009, in Maine, voters went to the polls, driven by the same fear tactics used in California, to do the same.  While we may be 'losing' at present, rest assured that this is not the end.  We're not going to just go away and accept your own insecurities and bigotry as the law of the land.

Update: 12:59pm (Eastern) - With 589 of 605 (97%) of Maine's precincts reporting, the totals are now: 298,002 voting 'Yes' (reject the same-sex marriage law) and 266,599 voting 'No' (uphold the same-sex marriage law).  That's 52.78% to 47.22%, and a difference of 31,403 votes.

While the ballots are still being counted here in Washington state, it looks as though Referendum 71--on whether or not to allow a legislative bill expanding the rights and responsibilities of domestic partners to pass--is going to be approved by the electorate.  We could not have done this without your support, outreach, and most importantly, your vote.  This is a big win for us today, and I couldn't be happier.

On that note, I would like to take this time to thank each and every one of my friends, family members, and coworkers for putting up with my incessant heckling to get their voter registration up-to-date and voting.  Your support means the world to me (and to everyone in the gay community).  Again, thank you.  Now, let's roll up our sleeves and get to work!