My mom the rockstar

Conventional has never been the tone of my household. That's just not how we operated.

And a lot of that stems from my mom being a loving hippie who enjoys some excellent rock 'n' roll music and  cheesy horror films. I want to share with everyone a little background about my mom so you can get a feel for who I am and where my love of music came from.

My mom has always been a bigger rockstar than me. She still has a scar on her hand from when a guy was crowd surfing during a mosh pit at Danzig and slammed her hand into a rail when she was doing the Danzig "forbidden action" and trying to take a picture of him. But that's not all.

My favorite rockstar story about my mom is when Marilyn Manson came to the House of Blues during the Rape of the World Tour. The crowd was insane! They were even moshing in between bands when there was no music playing. Of course as soon as Marilyn Manson came on the crowd exploded and me and all of my friends, including my mom got separated from each other not even 20 seconds into the show. It was just me and my girlfriend for the next 80 or 85 minutes. We had agreed beforehand if we got split up to just meet each other back at the merchandise booth after the show.

So sure enough, Manson played his encore and everyone exited the venue. One by one I got all my friends back and I finally ran into my mom. I should mention she had just turned 60 years old just a couple months prior to this show.

I saw her and she looked a bit abused. She was missing an earring, her watch was broken, her hair and makeup were all messed up. I panicked a bit and said "are you okay?" And with much enthusiasm she screamed "I CAUGHT A DRUMSTICK!"

So there I was the whole night trying to avoid mosh pits for me and my girlfriend and my mom caught a Ginger Fish drum stick. So yea, she is a bigger rockstar than I'll ever be and I absolutely love her for it.

She's given me great gifts over the years such as shelter, food on the table and an unwavering love. However, there were so many subtle things that made me who I am today. She had me listen to her 45 records of doo-wop which made me appreciate what real music sounds like. I love doo-wop to this day, especially the Platters. She taught me that hurting others was never the correct action and that everyone should be treated equally. Without her guidance I would not be the person I am today.

There were many days that the only reason I woke up during my darkest times, was because I didn't want to abandon her after all she had done for me.

Lastly, she gave me a really kickass name. I like the name Grant and she gave me my middle name, Vincent, after Vincent Price. So yea, I was named after a vampire! How did you think I would turn out?

It's all these things and more that mean the world to me and make me who I am. It doesn't take mother's day to make me realize that as I see a little bit of her ways in me everyday. Thank you so much for that, mom.

I love you,
Your Son Grant

In Need of a Faith Lift

My college newspaper opted not to run this for fear of backlash. Here is the editorial I wrote about the future pope.

As Pope Benedict XVI’s tenure comes to an end, his legacy will be marred with controversy. Although exonerated, his status as a member of the Hitler youth has tainted his reputation and had his actions questioned by sects from all over the globe. Aside from his ties to the Reich, he has also been implicated on covering up various child abuse scandals within the Catholic Church.

            Before he was Pope Benedict, he was Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger and before his papacy he spent 24 years as the Head of the Congregation of the Faith, which was once known as the Holy Office of the Inquisition. This is the same inquisition that accounted for thousands of deaths and murders over the centuries due to religious differences and accusations of witchcraft. In other words, Pope Benedict has been involved with organizations with extremely poor images.

            With a new face about to emerge as the next poster child of Catholicism it’s time the Catholic Church joined the 21^st century. 

            First of all, next guy (because the Catholic Church will never allow a female pope) can’t be a former Nazi. If you were a manager in charge of hiring and former employers included Adolph Hitler or any other murderous dictator, one would be inclined to think you wouldn’t hire them. So why should the highest religious position in the world get a pass?

            Secondly, the next top dog for the church has to report any and all reports of abuse of any kind to authorities. During Ratzinger’s role as Cardinal, all the cases of the child abuse reported throughout the Catholic Church came to his desk. One particularly sickening incident was Wisconsin Reverend Lawrence C. Murphy who worked at deaf school for 24 years. During his tenure, he allegedly molested nearly 200 deaf boys.

            Despite various letters from local and national church figures urging the Vatican to intervene, Pope Jean Paul II and Cardinal Ratzinger did nothing and Father Murphy died of old age before being punished. This was even after Murphy wrote a letter to Ratzinger asking to not be tried for his crimes so he can die with the “integrity” of the priesthood. Shorthand, the next pope cannot be a Nazi who may have covered up child molestation.

            A solution: let priests get married. If the bible teaches that we are here to repopulate and spread the word of god, why prevent god’s most devout from spreading their seed? Most pedophiles are not homosexual and are opportunist abusers. They abuse whomever they can get away with. Rather than forcing old men to be with young boys for years on end, let them marry someone and have their “needs” satisfied.

            Finally, the church needs to get with reality. The doctrine needs to change. Stop condemning Africans to hell for using condoms when the population is burdened by the world’s largest AIDS epidemic.  Stop telling women what they can or can’t do with their body.  Leave the gays alone. Marriage should be a human right not a heterosexual privilege. Everyone should be allowed to get married, that includes priests. The next pope is scheduled to be announced around Easter.