I just got in from Pride in the Desert, formerly OUToberFest, Tucson's version of a queer pride festival. I guess they decided to change the name this year because of all the other *-toberfests that seem to happen this month.

The major sponsor of pride this year, as it is in many other places, was a beer company. That's really problematic, as I think I mentioned in the last post. There were a lot of drunks at pride. I made a conscious decision not to drink just to feel moral superiority. That, and to avoid looking like an idiot. I did that last night. Also, Bud Light tastes like dirty ass. You don't want to know how I know that.

Seriously though, it was a decent-sized crowd and most everyone seemed to be having a good time. One of the featured performers, Kevin Aviance, is a recent hate crime survivor and he talked about his experience. I really appreciated that he talked about it and made the crowd think about hate violence against the LGBT community. It was refreshing after spending the last few years hearing about nothing but gay marriage. Marriage is not an issue that effects every member of the LGBT community; vulnerability to violence is. Some drunk lesbian tried to ambush Aviance for some reason, and he ended up having to stop his performance and address the disruption. It would be interesting to hear what her beef was.

Ultimately, I had to leave in part because it was getting too cold and in part because as I looked out over the crowd, I couldn't help myself from wondering how many sexual assaults were in store for the merry masses tonight. It's sick that that's all I couldn't shake that thought process.

I will have been in my field for six years in March. I think it's fair to say I'm ready for a change. Besides being burnt out, I've used the field as a crutch for avoiding personal growth for far too long.

So...know anybody who's hiring? (I've actually been applying at a fairly regular pace, but it doesn't hurt to put it out there)