Blog Updates

So today I get an invitation from City Councillor Pat Fallon to attend a fundraising event at his home for Texas GOP Chair Steve Munisteri. For $250 (minimum donation required), I’d get to listen to Mr Munisteri tell me how – among other things – the GLBT community should never be a part of the Texas landscape (remnants of Gov. Perry comments encouraging gay veterans returning from duty to live somewhere else1). I’d also learn the reasons (I assume) why the Texas GOP wants to ban oral sex, re-criminalize sodomy, and provide government housing (i.e. jail) to anyone who issues a marriage license to a same-sex couple or marries them.

So I declined.

from: James Nunn
to: pat@fallonforfrisco.com
date: Thu, Jul 8, 2010 at 12:40 PM
subject: Re: Dinner with Texas Republican Chairman Steve Munisteri

Pat, I’m going to decline. I’d thank you for the invite, but it was quite offensive given the recent actions by the Texas GOP in relation to the GLBT community, so excuse my lack of appreciation for your gesture. If you were the “friend of the community” as you told many earlier this year (and last year), then you wouldn’t be doing this, or you certainly wouldn’t have offended me (and countless others) by not culling your list before sending this out.

James

Note 1: “Texans have made a decision about marriage, and if there is some other state that has a more lenient view than Texas, then maybe that’s a better place for them to live.” – Gov. Rick Perry, in response to a question about returning gay veterans who might want the right to marry in Texas.

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June gives many of us all two reasons to celebrate. It’s GLBT Pride month and it’s my birthday (yes, another Gemini)!

As you may know, I serve on the board of Youth First Texas. This year, I want to ask that if you were planning on celebrating my birthday with me that you take a moment to consider making a donation to Youth First Texas in lieu of any gifts. Of course, if you weren’t planning on buying me anything, perhaps you would still consider making a small contribution regardless.

Like many other nonprofits in the community, Youth First Texas has experienced a greater need for services over the last few years, and a decrease in level of financial resources that has been available to it. The YFT board has made, and continues to make, decisions to keep our expenditures low, including reducing the hours of operation of the Dallas Youth Center’s hours, one of the only safe spaces for youth in the metroplex.

Even with these decisions, the financial situation for YFT is not good. During these next few months, we are continuing to carefully navigate through this financial squeeze, however Youth First Texas needs your help.  Please consider making a donation today. Any amount will help YFT continue to provide safe space for our LGBTQA youth.

You can support Youth First Texas financially by writing a check (payable to “Youth First Texas”), or making an online credit card payment https://giving.youthfirsttexas.org. Either way, any amount is appreciated and welcome.

Warm regards,
James Nunn

P.S. Your contribution is tax deductible, so your birthday gift will help you out next year

About Youth First Texas
Youth First Texas is the only non-profit organization in Dallas exclusively committed to providing social services, education opportunities, recreational activities and leadership development to Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgendered, and Questioning (LGBTQ) Youth through age 22.

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As a neighbor, friend or work colleague, I am invading your inbox for a short moment to remind you that voting for the Frisco City Council Place 4 runoff election started today. Early voting runs through June 8 (no voting on June 6), with the runoff election being held on June 12, 2010. Details on voting locations and hours can be found here.

Another reason for this note is to answer a question that I’ve been asked by some of you: who would I like to see as the new council member for Place 4?

The answer to that question – for me – is simple: Jim Joyner.

I base this on two main factors. The first is based on his experience and secondly, Jim’s vision for Frisco as a vibrant and livable city. Both of these are extremely important to me for the following reasons.

Experience: Jim has previously served on city council, the CDC and other commissions and boards within the city. While I have not applauded every decision that Jim has made in his previous tenure on city council, Jim has always been open to discuss the issues with any citizen of Frisco to hear the different sides of the story. Much of the time, his judgment has been solid and his intentions always true.

Future Direction of the City: For years we had a very strong city council that had a clear vision on where Frisco should be in the future. Through these council members a city was created that became the jewel in Texas as one of the best places to live, work, play and grow (to borrow our city’s old motto). In that vision, Frisco has been a partner with other cities to build a strong regional response to the growing needs of our community and those around us. Jim has proven experience to understand the needs of our community and had the vision to support major initiatives like the Arts of Collin County project. Just as importantly, Jim is a fiscal conservative and also knows when to exercise restraint. A council member is one voice amongst 6 (7 in the case of a tie), and right now we need Jim’s voice on council to maintain a balance amongst those that support the vision that made Frisco what it is today.

Your vote is important, and I hope that you will stand with the many voices that know that a vote for Jim Joyner is a vote for a voice for all the citizens of Frisco.

If you have any questions or comments on my email, please reply to my email or call me at 469-287-8488.

Regards,
James Nunn

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The second day in Cancun was very relaxing. We managed to get a decent breakfast (buffett) that only cost $250 pesos each (still having some issues with conversion). After breakfast, we headed down to the beach for about an hour (maybe a little longer) to work on the tan, and then got insided just as the clouds opened up. It was a heavy downpour that lasted all of 10-15 minutes, and then the sun was shining again. It reminded us of Hawaii.

We reluctantly packed up and put our bags in storage for the day while we waiting for our friends to join us. We enjoyed a good amount of time at the pool bar sipping on some cervezas (the local Negro Modelo) and snacking on a small lunch. The Hilton is very nice, but there is not really a lot to do in the resort, which was actually – at the end of the day – very relaxing. We sat and snoozed a little, and then we waited … and waited … and waited.

It seems that the trip for Bobby, Ian, Jonas and Corey as not as quick as ours, and they were in line for customs and immigration for over two hours. Finally, they arrived and we headed down to Akumal (near Tulum) to the Grand Pallidium. Another good driver from Entertainment-Plus was our chauffer, and we were really happy that they were able to accomodate our airport pick-up to Akumal via the Hilton.

The Grand Palladium is big. When we tried to check in, we were advised that we had been upgraded to a different room, which also meant a different section of the hotel, which mean a different check in. So our journey continued for a short time, and were greeted by a welcome drink and a very friendly front desk agent. They banded us, and we were free to find food, drinks and other fun activities.

Our room is really nice. It’s in the Riviera section and very spacious. Thankfully the others are close by – up one floor, and in the next door building. Communication has been an interesting challenge as we are foregoing our cell phones while staying here, but we seem to find a way. We walked around and found a buffett for a late dinner, and then wandered around the resort for some sightseeing and exploration. We found the salt water pool, which is a part of the sea, and found the place where people get married. The night ended soon after that, and we looked forward to what the new day was going to have in store for us.

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I’m sitting here relaxing on the balcony overlooking the Gulf of Mexico listening to the waterfall beneath me, and the waves crashing on the beach. For the most part we have been disconnected from the world and forcing ourselves to have a relaxing time without all the gadgets that keep us connected (even the laptop doesn’t have Internet and won’t for a few days … so this is actually being a few days ago).

Our trip to Cancun has been very uneventful, which has made it all that more enjoyable. We had a pleasant flight (thankfully Chris was able to use some of his upgrade credits to bump us up the front of the plane). Our process through Mexican Immigration and Customs was – at first sight – overwhelming, but both of us were impressed with the speed in which agents worked their desks.

Our transfer to our hotel was fantastic! Thanks to the advice on Trip Advisor we decided to pre-book our transfers and after some research went with Entertainment-Plus (USA Transfers). The team were very easy to deal with, and were available to answer questions (before hand), and when we landed, there was the man in a cap waiting for us. Raymonda was just what we wanted to see after pushing through the swarm of taxi and shuttle drivers. He escorted us away, requested our transport and we were safe in the hands of Hilario (our driver) who was moving us closer to our hotel in no time.

The Hilton Cancun Golf and Spa Resort is a a typical resort hotel. You may take that statement anyway you wish. After a quick room change, we transformed out of travel attire, and toned it down a little with shorts, flip flops and tee and hit the beach. We walked a good distance along the shoreline looking at the other hotels, the crashing waves and the people who were doing the same thing as us.

We swam some, got cleaned up, then ate dinner at the resorts Mexican restaurant (when in Rome). The first thing that is a little overwhelming (for uneducated types like me) is seeing the prices before you realize they are listed in pesos. The food was actually very good. The mango margarita I had was excellent! Chris’s margarita on the rocks was one of the best he has ever had. I ordered a pork dish that was cooked in citrus inside a banana leaf, which was unbelievably good. Chris went with the fajitas (which I was thinking about), and they were okay. The total cost was $660 (pesos), or about $52 (USD).

After dinner, we walked around the hotel some, along the beachwalk a little more, and then … well we are back to where I started. I’m sitting here relaxing on the balcony overlooking the Gulf of Mexico …

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