It is moving and also practical and well worth your time:

Dear Little Andrew,

By now you probably have concluded that you aren’t like the other kids. You’re different. You’re gay and it’s okay. First of all, you were born gay. There is nothing you can say or do to be straight you can act straight and spend lots of time and effort to convince others you are straight but you are just lying to yourself and others. The greatest good you can do is be yourself, because all the people that don’t like who you are don’t matter. Fuck the haters. You don’t have to come out right away but you can stop convincing yourself that conforming to everyone else in middle/high school will help you survive it. Being different is a great gift it makes you interesting and stand out from people.

Stop fearing the gay community and your future in it. The parades, “flamers”, and all that pride are not bad things. You will find that the gay community has some of the nicest people you will know be it LGBT people or those who support us. They are friends who will like you for you, embrace it. Also stop hating on the “flamers” although you may not feel and act the way you do and you don’t appreciate the stereotypes they bring, they are human too, respect that.

Focus on what is really important. I know people have been “dating” from 5th grade to now, but being gay is different. For one, you can’t expect to get a boyfriend without being out, plus even if you are out not many others are. Gay relationships are rare at young ages and if you do happen to get one appreciate it. However, relationships aren’t the most important thing to worry about and get hung up on. You have talents, hobbies, sports, school, and friends to focus on. They are dependable and useful and ultimately your safest bet to succeed in life.

Surround yourself with the right friends who will support you. There’s not much of a point in befriending that really homophobic kid that trash talks gays all the time. Find the good ones that support gay rights and ultimately the true you. Also, you’ll be surprised how many of the kids these days really do support LGBT. Change is happening!

Lastly, I can’t stress this enough. Love yourself. You are perfect the way you are, hold on to your uniqueness and appreciate it. Any obstacle you face can be overcome, there will always be tomorrow so keep calm and carry on.

Sincerely,
Older Andrew

On a more humorous note, check out Andrew’s Gay Ten Commandments.

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Updated at 2:43pmPT with comments from Charissa Thompson.

Today’s episode of ESPN’s First Take tackled the issue of the New England Patriots’ post-game party. While Skip Bayless didn’t find much fault with the players dancing (possibly intoxicated) at a previously planed event, Rob Parker was most concerned about the fact that there didn’t seem to be many women at the event. Clearly uncomfortable with so many men, some of them shirtless, dancing together, he begged, “where are the females?” Good heavens, we must have females!!

Host Charissa Thompson soon chimed in that at least one woman was spotted near the dance floor, adding, “so that’s good news.”

Thompson said in an email to me that she didn’t mean anything by it:

I was merely making a casual/innocent reference in the context of a response to something Rob said about the lack of women in the party video.  When the video then showed a woman, I was simply responding to him.  I didn’t mean anything by the comment.  I hope this makes sense to you.

It does make sense. I imagine with all the foolish banter between Parker and Bayless, there’s lots of time to be filled and it’s not easy.

Still, this incident is an example of the underlying root of homophobia in many people. It looks weird to some people to see so many men having fun and dancing together without a woman present. These are bigger-than-life men, heroes of today, and they must have women present, damn it! Otherwise it’s just…well…plain wrong. Weird. Queer, if you will.

Why is Parker so afraid of a room of men dancing together? Why does there have to be a woman to de-homofy the environment? Why can’t a bunch of guys who just went through a grueling 19-game season simply dance around together and have fun with friends? It’s sad to see this paid ESPN employee so desperate to declare the scene “no-homo,” and I must say I was disappointed to hear Thompson chime in upon seeing a women with, “that’s good news.” Though her thoughtful response goes a long way!

For his part, Parker is little more than a Bayless-type attention-seeking clown. He’s gotten into trouble in the past for saying Kevin Love would suck in the NBA because he’s white (Parker is black). He had to leave The Detroit News in shame for his pitiful columns.

This is no slam against ESPN. We have praised ESPN repeatedly for the company’s inclusive policies and actions. It’s just sad to see the locker room uber-macho posturing that’s allowed to get on the air. Unfortunately they haven’t posted the clip online so we can’t share it.

A Tweet to Parker was not returned.

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Your colleagues in the France team were aware that you’re gay?
In fact, everyone knows about me. My family has always accepted. In the middle, people know I’m gay and it’s not because I’m gay that clubs do not want me. In the France team, there has never been any barriers between us.

Do you feel now to have a job to do?
No, but if talking about it can change attitudes, it is. I think it’s a matter of education. Anyway, everything starts from there. My family has always accepted. My nephews, for example, know that I’m gay, it’s never been a problem. We are not aliens, we are human beings.

She also told Yagg.com that she came out in Hand Action magazine simply because the reporter asked her a question about how she spends her time, and she couldn’t answer honestly without mentioning her girlfriend. It says a lot: Sometimes  you just have to ask the question to get the answer.

According to Yagg.com editor Judith Silberfeld, Lacrabère is one of the top players on the national team that finished second to Norway in the World Championships.

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The 62-year-old businessman and film producer allowed his children to paint his nails as a joke five weeks ago, and was too superstitious to remove the polish as the Giants began to power their way through the playoffs.

“If this is how it is going to work out then maybe I should wear it all the time,” Tisch joked. “I was going to get rid of it but my daughters thought it was funny and then we just kept winning.

If only Robert Kraft had done the same…

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A commercial for the “reinvented” Toyota Camry reinvented Super Bowl advertising with what may be the first gay-friendly moment in a game spot. One character, an awkward guy, seems as accepting of finding seven hunks in his living room as he is of finding seven babes.

It also can be seen as the first bisexual-friendly Super Bowl ad.

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“Lisa Howe knows first-hand how it is to come out in the work place and suffer discrimination because of sexual orientation,” said Nashville GLBT Chamber of Commerce President Michael Fluck. “After a national search we are pleased to announce that she is the first ever full time executive director for the Nashville GLBT Chamber of Commerce. She has a passion for workplace equality that can’t be matched and is the perfect fit as our new executive director.”

Since being fired, Howe has not been shy with her efforts to shed light on homophobia in sports and in the work place. This does seem like a potential great fit for both parties. Good luck, Lisa!

Hat tip to Helen Carroll.

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Gronkowski, who played with a high ankle sprain, danced at the Patriots postgame party, along with a shirtless Matt Light. Gronk has a rocking body, as does the guy on the right who danced shirtless on stage with him (it might be his brother Gordie):

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GLAAD jumped on him immediately, demanding that CNN fire Martin for his tweet and Facebook post that made a crack about a New England Patriot wearing pink.

I’d be curious what went through Martin’s head in the seconds after he posted that Tweet, because he quickly covered his tracks moments later:

He knew he had to cover his tracks, but we don’t know whether it was because he initially meant it as homophobic, or because he realized he inadvertently could be seen as homophobic.

This morning he explained his tweet (though did not apologize); Condensed and re-ordered for ease of reading:

Fam, let me address the issue that some in the LGBT community have raised regarding some of my Super Bowl tweets yesterday. I made several cracks about soccer as I do all the time. I was not referring to sexuality directly or indirectly regarding the David Beckham ad, and I’m sorry folks took it otherwise. It was meant to be a deliberately over the top and sarcastic crack about soccer; I do not advocate violence of any kind against anyone gay, or not. As anyone who follows me on Twitter knows, anytime soccer comes up during football season it’s another chance for me to take a playful shot at soccer, nothing more

Was Martin’s tweet homophobic? Was he truly dissing on soccer fans? Only one man knows.

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“You (have) to catch the ball when you’re supposed to catch the ball. My husband cannot (bleeping) throw the ball and catch the ball at the same time. I can’t believe they dropped the ball so many times.”

I can understand Mrs. Brady being pissed and there were some big drops, but this has not gone over well. It’s not like her husband was blameless. He gave the Giants two points when he panicked and threw the ball away in the end zone, giving the Giants a safety. He also threw an ill-advised long pass that was intercepted in the fourth quarter and finished the game 7 for 18. Brady failed to lead his team to any points in the game’s final 25 minutes.

The most critical drop was that of Wes Welker, a play that turned the game. But even then, Brady’s pass was somewhat off, turning an easy catch into one more difficult (though one Welker should have made). I know Brady will not be criticizing his teammates since he knows they have bailed him out many times in the past and this stuff evens out; plus, he’s a great teammate. His wife should have just kept her thoughts to herself.

This is how this is being seen in Boston, as evidenced by this comment:

3 Super Bowl wins pre-Gisele.
0 Super Bowl wins (2 SB losses) with Gisele.
Already had one “Yoko” comment to me on twitter.

Yoko? That’s awesome.

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How I saw Super Bowl XLVI, including my hot players of the game:

They did it again. The Giants are the Patriots’  Kryptonite, their daddy, their master, their tops, choose your word. For the second time in five seasons, the Giants have beaten the Patriots in the Super Bowl. Sunday it was 21-17 on a last-minute touchdown drive. In the 2007 season it was 17-14 on a last-minute touchdown drive. Once again, it was a game either team could have won and the Giants made a couple of more plays that made the difference.

This was not a great Super Bowl, though the last-play Hail Mary by New England was dramatic.  I watched at a party of about 75 (an awesome affair hosted by Cyd and his partner Dan) and there were very few moments where people got loud and really no play that had people leaping from their seats. It had an exciting fourth quarter and ending, but it was not overall very memorable. It kind of summed up the 2011 season, which was kind of flat despite some thrilling moments.

–The highlight of the game, obviously, was Mario Manningham’s 38-yard catch along the sideline on a pass from Eli Manning on the game-winning drive. It was a terrific catch but Manning’s throw was even better, placing it right between the cornerback and safety. It was the game’s longest play and caused Pats coach Bill Belichick to burn a timeout on an unsuccessful challenge. He had to challenge since the play was so close, but losing a timeout really hurt at the end.

–Patriots quarterback Tom Brady was good, but not great and he was anything but clutch down the stretch. He completed a Super Bowl record 16 straight passes and gave the Pats a 17-9 lead with 11 minutes to go in the third quarter. Then he seemed to lose it, going 7 for 18 the rest of the way, with an interception and getting no points. The Giants’ rush seemed to pressure him and he just looked off.

–Brady is now 2-4 in his last six playoff games. It’s a weird stat since he’s a better QB now than he was back in 2001-2004 when he won three Super Bowls. Just goes to show that football is a team game, despite what many in the media think.

–No, Eli is not better than Peyton or Brady. He’s just not. He is clearly an elite QB and  the best fourth-quarter player in his position right now, but before this season he had gone three seasons with zero playoff wins, missing the postseason the previous two seasons. He needs to be consistent every year. And this season, his team went 9-7 (the worst record ever for a Super Bowl winner) and simply got hot when it counted. One more Cowboys first down in Week 14 and the Giants don’t even make the playoffs. He deserves all the credit for winning two Super Bowls, but stop the nonsense about him being better than his brother or Brady, two guys who have done it at a higher level longer.

–Wes Welker is being fitted with goat horns after his drop at the Giants’ 20 with four minutes left on a drive where the Patriots wound up punting. It was the key play in the game from a Pats standpoint, since they almost certainly win if he hangs on. He beat himself up after the game pretty bad, with tears in his eyes, saying he should have caught the ball. Probably so, but it also was a tough catch since Brady did not make a good throw even though Welker was wide open. How ironic that Mr. Dependable Welker (122 regular season catches) dropped the one he had to have the most.

–So much for anyone hoping Rob Gronkowski would be a factor with a high ankle sprain. In the past three seasons, we have had four key players (three in Super Bowls) with that injury and none were effective.

–So much for all the theorizing that the game was set up perfectly for the Patriots since the Giants shot their mouths off all week and most people were picking them. Sometimes, talk is backed up and the consensus is correct. I forecast a close Giants win based on them matching up better. I went 9-2 picking the playoffs this season, not a bad ever.

–Madonna’s halftime show certainly was a spectacle, though I did somehow miss M.I.A. popping the finger and apparently say “f***. At my party, the game had 60% of the attendees watching. The halftime show had a 100% viewing rate. That’s when you know you’re at a gay Super Bowl party.

–Hot players of the game: Madonna’s dancers, especially the guys who escorted her in (right). She did (somewhat) bring the gay to the Super Bowl. Our friend Sam, a gay high school swimmer, posted this on Facebook: “Why was there a football game during a Madonna concert?”

–For all of you that read my recaps each week, thanks so much and see you next season. For a Colts fan, I’ll forget 2011 pretty quickly.

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