International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia

The International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia (IDAHO) is celebrated every year on May 17. According to Wikipedia, "the day aims to coordinate international events that raise awareness of LGBT rights violations and stimulate interest in LGBT rights work worldwide."

The date of May 17 was chosen to commemorate the decision to remove homosexuality from the International Classification of Diseases of the World Health Organization (WHO) in 1990.

Coincidentally, Massachusetts became the first state in the U.S. to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples on May 17, 2004. Since then, more states have followed suit, and public awareness and support has increased. Nationwide, same-sex marriage is now legal in 17 states and the District of Columbia. Bans have been struck down in Michigan, Oklahoma, Texas, Utah, Virginia, and most recently, Arkansas and Idaho, pending appeals.

Locally, the Las Vegas steering committee of the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) is celebrating its Ninth Annual Gala Dinner with Golden-Globe and Emmy Award-Winning actor John Lithgow at Wynn on May 17, 2014. Celebrity appearances by screenwriter of the HBO “Big Love,” Dustin Lance Black; the cast members of Le Rêve, Melody Sweets of Absinthe, TV personality Chris Saldaña are expected with red carpet at 4:30 p.m. and the gala at 6 p.m.

Meanwhile, businesses are taking notes and have been increasingly embracing LGBT friendly approaches. The advertising card from the Tropicana Las Vegas promotes the hotel as a transformed LGBT friendly destination and boasts a score 90 out of 100 on the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) 2013 Corporate Equality Index on their website. The Tropicana has also been hosting Xposed!, a new weekly LGBTQ beach party at at Tropicana Beach Club, on Saturdays since March 29, 2014.

Fenway Park, Boston

Postcard US-2752817 from Oxford, MA shows the Fenway Park in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the oldest Major League Baseball (MLB) ballpark, and has been the home of the Boston Red Sox MLB team since it opened on April 20, 1912. Due to the age and constrained location, it is the fourth smallest by seating capacity, second smallest by total capacity, and one of seven that cannot accommodate at least 40,000 spectators among the all MLB baseball parks.

Fenway has hosted ten World Series, as early as in its 1912 inaugural season and as recent as in 2013 World Series. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places on March 7, 2012.

Sustainable Style: Fashion and Photography

It is the Museums on Us by Bank of America weekend again on October 5 and 6 in 2013. You can get a free admission to one of more than 150 participating museums, science centers, or botanic gardens by presenting your Bank of America or Merrill Lynch debit/credit card. The traveling postcard US-2437271 to Massachusetts shows a photo of the exhibition: "Sustainable Style: Fashion and Photography" at the Springs Preserve from an early Museum on Us event on June 2, 2013.

"Sustainable Style" highlights fashion items made out of sustainable or environment-friendly materials. The collection on the card was designed by Elizabeth Calderon, an Mexican designer based in Las Vegas since 1996, using renewable fiber, recycled polyester and organic cotton.

According to the event web site: "Sustainable fashion is part of the growing design trend of sustainability, the goal being to create a system that can be supported indefinitely. Fashion designers are now re-introducing eco-conscious methods at the source through the use of environmentally friendly materials and socially responsible methods of production."

Organized in association with Fashion for a Cause, the exhibition ran from March 22 to June 16, 2013.

Highland Light, Cape Cod

Postcard US-1829598 to Canada shows the Highland Light, the oldest and tallest lighthouse on Cape Cod, on the Cape Cod National Seashore in North Truro, Massachusetts. The photo was from my JetBlue AYCJ trip on September 24, 2010. 

The first primary lighthouse at this site was established in 1797. However, the latest lighthouse was moved 140 m or 450 ft to the west, away from the beach, to the present location in 1996, as it was in danger of falling off the cliff due to beach erosion. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1987.

Annisquam Lighthouse in Gloucester, Massachusetts

Annisquam Lighthouse in Gloucester, MA

I received a postcard PL-732364 from Poland a few days ago. Interestingly, it features the historic Annisquam Lighthouse on Wigwam Point in Gloucester, Massachusetts, USA.

The original lighthouse was a 12 m or 40 ft  wooden tower built in 1801. It was replaced by an octagonal wooden tower of the same height in 1851. The current cylindrical brick lighthouse was built in 1897.

The lighthouse was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1987. It is still an active aid to navigation. However, there is no public access. Visitors may view the lighthouse across the Annisquam River from Wingaersheek Beach in Gloucester; or from a commercial cruise.