September 11th has always been an important day for me. Despite what transpired in 2001, the day has always been close to my heart because it's my Dad's birthday. I was named after my father and I look up to him with all my heart. My Dad still lives in Virginia with my Mom. He's a devoted husband, a fantastic father to his two sons and now a proud grandfather to my brother's two beautiful girls. My Dad has always been the person in my family to bring a bit of humor to every moment. Even when times were at their toughest, he always found a way to make us laugh. My Dad accepted me unconditionally when I came out. This was not something I was expecting. I feared the moment that he would find out I was gay more than anything. I didn't want him to change the way he felt about me and I'm grateful everyday that he didn't. My Dad also has shown kindness and love to my boyfriend since the moment he met him. He knew that I loved him and that is all that mattered. My family has always been in a better place because of him and I hope he truly knows that he is appreciated. Hear is to you, Pops. I love you so so much.
This day is also quite unique due to the obvious events that took place on the morning of September 11th 2001. I was on my way to work that September morning and I remember all of it so vividly. I won't go in to the details of the day but unless you were here in New York, you will never understand fully the fear that all of us felt that day. The roar of the emergency sirens, the screams of my fellow New Yorkers and the absolute panic of a day that felt like it was closing in on you from all sides has not fully been realized in my head. I have a few friends that lost loved ones on that day. What many folks outside of the city don't realize is that New Yorkers are reminded of September 11th 2001 every single day. It's the absence in our skyline that brings us that thought. It's the military forces placed at our busy transits hubs. It's the backfire of a car that sends us twisting our necks to make sure we are safe. It's the absence of a loved one in bed. The attack on New York was brutal and long lasting. I know the impact was just as far reaching elsewhere. I'm just speaking from the heart of NYC - please take no disrespect. The towers each had 110 stories. A New Yorker on that day has far more. We all do - wherever we are. Each day we heal a bit more. One day at a time.
The final big milestone for me today is that today is the birthday of this site. Dashusland is ONE YEAR OLD. I have loved every minute of creating this blog. I started last year on this with THIS POST. The look and feel has changed from Day 1 and so has the content. I wasn't quite sure where to begin when I started this site. I had blogs that I loved like Towleroad, Josh and Josh are Rich and Famous, Pink is the New Blog, dlisted and many others that I was truly inspired by. I loved what they were doing but wondered how I could create something that I felt was just as fun and fresh. I decided to just follow my heart and post the things I really love and are interested in. There are my I Love NY posts which have a NY focus, my weekly Madonna Monday posts where I highlight another rad thing that Madonna has done in the past that I liked, there are the Midweek Libation posts that my boyfriend is responsible for and creates each Wednesday that has been such a truly awesome addition (and also another bonding moment for us) and there are also little shout outs to my friends that I love. It could be musing on my cat, Alice, or sending some love to a friend having a birthday and so on. I'm just having fun with it. I made a commitment on January 1st after working on this blog for a few months. I told myself that I would not miss one day writing on this site. So far so good. Today is September 11th and since January 1st of this year I haven't missed a day. 254 days in a row and still going strong. I love it! I hope you'll join me for all the rest. xoxoxox.
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