Julie's blog

Nearly a week has passed since the Haiti 7.0 earthquake on Tuesday 12th January 2010 at 04:53:09. Although aid and help are now arriving on the scene it is chaos amongst the devastation and the Haitians are desperate for food, water, medical treatment and shelter.

Local help has been sent from two different Canary Islands:

Cruz Roja España has been able to send aid from their new logistics centre in Las Palmas which was inaugurated in September 2009 and holds emergency supplies such as blankets, tents, water purification tablets. The package for Haiti which is being dispatched via airplane from the military base Aérea de Gando today also includes a water treatment plant, two all terrain vehicles and a huge base tent.

Lanzarote has a flotilla of 24 boats leaving from Playa Blanca today to sail across the Atlantic to Haiti. The island’s Rotary club together with Cámara (chamber of commerce), Marina Rubicón and local businesses / residents have donated medicine kits, light sheets or blankets, candles and lanterns, small generator sets, first-aid kits and rescue materials.

In the States the owners of the LGBT cruise ships Atlantis, Olivia and RSVP have joined forces with the gay community to raise disaster relief funds. Rich Campbell the CEO of Atlantis events explained that their cruise departed from Miami yesterday with a scheduled stop on the northern coast of Haiti he said  "our guests have been watching with horror and concern as the painful images of suffering in the Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince come spilling forth on our televisions."  Claire Lucas worked with the American Red Cross to set up a dedicated donation site http://american.redcross.org/LGBT-pub. American Red Cross Senior Vice President and Chief Diversity Officer Floyd W. Pitts stated "We are thrilled with this partnership with the LGBT community and we are delighted to be working with organizations which take such a strong interest in humanitarian response". Rich Cambell emphasized  that "now is the time for us to lend our gay dollars to a compelling human tragedy that knows no gender or sexual orientation,"  Atlantis & RSVP have pledged  $15,000 in matching contributions and Olivia has pledged an additional $7,500 raising a total of $22,500 towards the fund.

Event: Exposición Artistas por SARA

Date: 14 January 2010

Time: 20:00

Entry: Free

Venue: Salón César Manrique, Casino Club Náutico de Arrecife, Lanzarote

Details:  Artists from the island have produced an exhibition of work to raise funds for SARA (Asociación Protectora de Animales de Lanzarote) the animal shelter based in Tahiche, Lanzarote. The inauguration is 14 January 2010 and the exhibition is open to the public until the 14 February 2010. The collection includes work from:

Painters: Cindy Bastleer, Paco Chika, Angeles García, José Antonio Manchado, Eduardo Manrique, Oscar Marín Repoller, Atchen Pounapal, Guacimara Vela Calderón, Alfredo García Escribano, Diana Nicolás.

Photographers: Rubén Acosta, Pepe Vera, Ana Belén Dominguez, José María Del Corral, Estrella Nicolás, Pepe Vera, José Farray, Kepa Herrero, Marcelo Daniel Marcos.

Sculptor: Ayatima Cabrera Quintano

Binter have launched a special price campaign - Bintazo.

Purchase an inter island flight ticket for €15 up to the 17 January and fly between the 1 February - 31 March 2010.

The price includes residente Canario discount. For details or to book your flight visit El Bintazo.

After reading the negative comments regarding same sex couples being allowed to adopt children, that made me question - where does our sexuality come from? Are people afraid that “straight” children will grow up gay, lesbian, bisexual or transsexual because of their upbringing? Can your surroundings influence your sexuality or is it all determined genetically?

Genes?

A fetus is female by default and becomes male if the gene SRY is present. The dominant gene of the Y chromosome then develops the reproductive tissue into testes and the hormone testosterone moulds the body into a male.

Gay men have a fifth of the amount of children as straight men which could see the gene that favours homosexuality disappear from the population in the future. Following a study, Dr. Bailey believes that the gay gene enhances fertility in other family members, typically gay men have more relatives than straight men, particularly on their mother’s side of the family.

A study by Ray Blanchard and Anthony Bogaert showed that having older brothers increases the likelihood that a male would be gay but it made no difference if they were brought up together, this result suggests that male homosexuality is formed by some event in the womb.

Discover Magazine published an article in 2007, The Real Story on Gay Genes which included the findings on a report by geneticist Dean Hamer who studied 76 pairs of gay brothers and their families, the result found that homosexuality seemed to be inherited through the maternal line.

Brain?

We know that men and women think differently, it seems that men's brains prompt them to seek out a partner for sex whilst a woman's brain is programmed to find the best partner for them and subsequent children, they look for longer term relationships.

In puberty the brain triggers the reproductive systems by releasing gonadotropin which in turn triggers other hormones. More recent studies have led to the belief that the brain is a fully functional sexual organ although different for male and female. Women use the left side of the armydala to organise their memories whilst men use the right.

The male brain is sexually orientated to desire women despite any cultural influence – there are extreme examples of this where baby boy’s have lost their penises during circumcision and then raised as a girl, they still desire a woman partner. “If you can’t make a male attracted to other males by cutting off his penis, how strong could any psychosocial effect be?” Quote from Dr. Bailey, an expert on sexual orientation at Northwestern University.

Men are more straightforward, in experiments with male and female images a man is aroused by a woman if he’s straight and a man if he’s gay, whereas a woman is aroused by both male and female images. Dr. Bailey said following the tests “I’m not even sure females have a sexual orientation. But they have sexual preferences. Women are very picky, and most choose to have sex with men.”

Gay and straight men have the same level of testosterone.

Summary

Our genes have a significant effect on the sexual differentiation of the brain.

Our brain controls the body’s hormone levels of testosterone and estrogen.

Both of the above are formed before birth and therefore suggests that you are born with your sexuality, for men it seems straightforward you either desire women or men and for women we can choose either – neither of these are influenced by our upbringing, environment or culture.

Event: Lanzarote Nocturna 2010

Venue: Ococo, Arrecife

Date: 8 January 2010

Time: 00:00 – 06:00

Entry: €3

Website: www.premioslanzarotenocturna2010.es & www.ococo.es

Details: Lanzarote Nocturna are hosting the finals to find the best singers, dancers, batucada, DJ and rap artist in Lanzarote. Buy tickets in advance at Paniko StreetWear, C/ Rio de Oro nº3, Arrecife.

Official firework displays at midnight in La Villa de Teguise & 2am at Playa Grande in Puerto del Carmen

Feliz Año Nuevo from the team at Gay Lanzarote

Event: New Year’s Party

Date: 1 January 2010

Venue: Lanzarote a Caballo

Time: 06;00 – 19:00

Entry: €20 including two drinks

Details: DJ Nau, Javi Sanchez, DJ Pedro Diaz, Carl V, Johnny Deep, Coco go Loko & DJ Chrisyian taking you from New Year’s Eve through to New Year’s Day.

Alan Dolan graduated from Aston University in the UK after which he worked overseas in a number of roles, the common theme being communications. He lived in Africa and Asia followed by a 10 year period in the Middle East where his last position was as a PR manager in the Aerospace industry. After taking a sabbatical in order to pursue his passion for things metaphysical Alan was introduced to the wonders of Breathwork and immediately knew that this would form the foundation of the next stage of his journey. A series of happy coincidences led him to Lanzarote at which point he realised that he was ‘home’. Five years on Alan has gained a wealth of experience in working with the Breath and continues to live in Lanzarote or as he prefers to call it, ‘The Magic Island’.

Alan offers the chance to come to his Lanzarote retreat and learn how to breathe again. We all take breathing for granted, rarely giving it a passing thought but breathing correctly infuses our bodies with oxygen and energy which in turn brings physical, emotional and psychological well being. Enjoy optimum health, mental and emotional clarity in addition to experiencing an ever-deepening relationship with the very essence of your Being.

Some of the key benefits are:

• Be the healthiest you’ve ever been
• Feel completely energized
• Experience deeply nourishing peace and relaxation
• Let go of emotional baggage permanently and easily
• Release anxiety and alleviate depression

The Breath is powerful in any situation, however, when you choose to experience daily sessions, having removed yourself from the demands of everyday life and then add to that the experience of discovering Lanzarote’s awe-inspiring landscapes the results multiply exponentially. Walking on pristine sandy beaches or swimming in the crystal clear ocean is the ideal way to integrate changes brought about by your daily breath sessions and infinitely preferable to having to take a crowded tube or deal with traffic jams post-session. Alan says “I think of Lanzarote as the ‘other therapist’ in the equation and have begun to refer to it as ‘the Magic Island’. Not so much rabbits and hats but peak experiences and life-changing result.” 

The Breathing Space Retreat includes accommodation and daily breath sessions, prices start from €295 up to €800 for a week and partners who do not wish to “breathe” are welcome too.

Breathe deeply, breathe freely & love Life

For more information please contact Alan Dolan direct via his website Breath Guru, email info@breathguru.com or mobile (0034) 690 162 426.

When you mention the actor’s name Colin Firth it brings films such as Bridget Jones’s Diary and Love Actually to mind, where he plays a stereotypical Englishman, his latest film sees him cast in a different role. Firth remains a proper Englishman but a closeted homosexual living in America, years before the Stonewall riots of 1969 and the start of the gay rights movement in the States.

Firth was cast as George, a British professor grieving over the loss of his gay lover in the 1960’s the film is based on the emotions George suffers when learns that his long time partner Jim has died suddenly in a car crash. George is not invited to his funeral because it's “family” only, despite them being together as a couple for 16 years. The reaction from Jim’s family which include taking the couple’s dog from George lead to him contemplating suicide.

A Single Man is directed by Tom Ford and based on the novel written in 1964 with the same name by Christopher Isherwood. Ford said that he chose Firth because of "his ability to telegraph what he's thinking through his eyes, almost without moving his face, and certainly without saying a line." When asked if he’d had any concerns about playing a gay man Firth said "No second thoughts at all. I never consciously played gay and George's homosexuality isn't his issue. It just happens to be one more thing one could say about a very complex man".

The film has received favourable reviews with nominations for a Golden Globe, Colin Firth has already been awarded best male actor for the role of George at the Venice Film Festival earlier in the year.

Watch the trailer for A Single Man.

Mexico has become the first Latin American city to allow same sex couples to marry and have the same rights as heterosexual couples, the final vote was 39 for and 20 against. An additional ruling confirmed that same sex couples would also be able to adopt children. The decision has seen an increase in pressure in other parts of the continent such as Chile and Argentina as gay and lesbian couples demand when it will be legal for them to marry.

It’s not all positive news, this decision has ignited a furious backlash from the church who condemned the law as immoral and abhorrent and it seems whilst some were open to the legality of same sex marriage, adopting a child is another matter. The Mexican newspaper El Universal posted a discussion bulletin on the subject and received over 1,000 comments mainly opposed to the idea.

Personally I think the world is ready for same sex couples to have the opportunity to adopt a child or children, there are very stringent checks and a long process before custody is granted as there are with heterosexual couples. Is it that living with a same sex couple would be worse for a child than living in a children’s home, how many of these children have been abused, neglected and psychologically damaged over the years?

It’s interesting talking with gay friends, they too have a mixed opinion about whether its right for same sex couples to be able to adopt, its not that they feel the child wouldn’t have a loving home but concern if society is ready to accept same sex couples with children. They were particularly worried with how the child would be perceived at school – children can be cruel at the best of times, would they get an adverse reaction from pupils and their parents?

What do you think? Are you a same sex couple that has adopted – what kind of issues have you faced?