I Hope You Dance (+ Get Vaxxed)

Dancing With The Side Effects

Big thanks to DougT for sharing a laundry list of inspiring videos yesterday, including the one above. It’s so sensual and sexy—it makes me wanna dance with somebody. Somebody who loves me.

I hope it makes you wanna dance (with or without somebody) too!

Yesterday morning, I got my first shingles vaccine. And wow, did it knock me on my ass. Not permanently, thank goodness, but enough to turn my “desk remodel” day into a full-on day of bed rest. (Guess what I’ll be catching up on today?)

I spent most of the day napping, hydrating, and resting. Rinse and repeat. I think I had a mild fever at one point, but everything feels back to normal this morning.

I really don’t mind the side effects. In fact, I find them oddly reassuring. They’re signs my body is doing what it’s meant to do. The chills, the fatigue, the sore arm are proof that my immune system is hard at work keeping me safe from whatever pesky germs might try to crash the party.

Side effects are a small price to pay for peace of mind…and a healthier tomorrow.

The older I get, the more I appreciate modern medicine and the miracles of science that keep me spinning through the years with all parts (mostly) functional.

This year alone, I’ve had what feels like a pu pu platter of boosters and vaccines: COVID, influenza, pneumonia, shingles, tetanus, and more.

And each shot comes with some shared side effects: relief and rebellion.

• Relief that I’m doing what I can to stay healthy, protect others, and buy more time for the good stuff—like laughing with friends, finishing creative projects, and yes, dancing whenever the mood strikes. Like no one’s watching.

• Rebellion because I’m doing exactly what RFK Jr. doesn’t want me to do. (For the record, fuck him and the rest of Chump’s Chimps.)

So while my desk looks like a disaster area, my immune system is currently throwing itself a big party. And honestly? I’ll take that trade any day.

Here’s to remaining upright, hydrated, and vaccinated.

If you’re due for any of your own boosters or vaccines, please consider this your friendly reminder to go get them.

Because I hope you dance. And I hope you remain happy and healthy.

Keep calm and get vaxxed!
Clint 🌈✌️

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FYC = FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION

• A Year Of Lessons From The Emotions Diary (Karl Dunn)

• How to Lose a Teacher in 5 Years: Part 3 (Matt Fitzpatrick)
  Related Reading = Part 1 + Part 2

• Reflections on My First Gay Men’s Retreat (Coach Kevin Martin)

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ON THIS DAY = OCTOBER 9

BIRTHDAYS

• 1830 = Harriet Hosmer = American sculptor 🌈

• 1840 = Simeon Solomon = British painter 🌈

• 1854 = R.G. Harper Pennington = American artist 🌈

• 1911 = Joe Rosenthal = American photographer

• 1920 = Jason Wingreen = American actor and screenwriter

• 1930 = Irving Rosenthal = American writer, editor, and activist 🌈

• 1940 = John Lennon = English singer-songwriter

• 1941 = Brian Lamb = American broadcaster and C-SPAN founder

• 1948 = Jackson Browne = American singer-songwriter

• 1951 = Robert Wuhl = American actor, comedian, and writer

• 1952 = Sharon Osbourne = English television host and talent manager

• 1953 = Tony Shalhoub = American actor and producer

• 1954 = John O’Hurley = American actor and game show host

• 1954 = Scott Bakula = American actor

• 1955 = Linwood Boomer = Canadian actor, producer, and screenwriter

• 1955 = Peter Saville = English graphic designer and art director

• 1958 = Michael Paré = American actor

• 1964 = Guillermo del Toro = Mexican-American filmmaker

• 1969 = PJ Harvey = English singer-songwriter

• 1969 = Steve McQueen = English filmmaker

• 1973 = Steve Burns = American actor, television host and musician

• 1975 = Sean Lennon = American singer-songwriter and actor

• 1976 = Nick Swardson = American actor and comedian

• 1979 = Brandon Routh = American model and actor

• 1981 = Zachery Ty Bryan = American actor

• 1992 = Tyler James Williams = American actor

• 1979 = Chris O’Dowd = Irish actor, producer, and screenwriter

EVENTS

• 1000 = Leif Erikson reaches “Vinland” (possibly L’Anse aux Meadows, Canada), reputedly becoming the first European to reach North America.

• 1936 = Boulder Dam (later Hoover Dam) begins to generate electricity and transmit it to Los Angeles.

• 1984 = Thomas The Tank Engine & Friends, based on The Railway Series by the Reverend Wilbert Awdry, premieres on ITV.

• 1986 = Fox Broadcasting Company launches as the 4th US television network.

• 1986 = The Phantom of the Opera, eventually the second longest running musical in London, opens at Her Majesty’s Theatre.

• 1992 = A River Runs Through It is released in theaters.

HOLIDAYS + OBSERVANCES

• Leif Erikson Day

• LGBTQ History Month (October 1-31) 🌈🧐📚

• National Hispanic Heritage Month (September 15-October 15)

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PORTRAIT + QUOTE OF THE DAY

JOHN LENNON

“My role in society, or any artist’s or poet’s role, is to try and express what we all feel. Not to tell people how to feel. Not as a preacher, not as a leader, but as a reflection of us all.”
John Lennon

“Yeah we all shine on, like the moon, and the stars, and the sun.”
John Lennon