Drugs

Laramie is such a small town that everyone’s business is pretty much known.  There are many young people who drink and do some drugs.  Most of my friends and I avoid that scene normally.  Every once and a while we will try some things out but none of us are consistent users.  People always say that kids in small towns are more likely to try recreational drugs because they have nothing better to do, but I don’t think that is how Laramie is.  There are no more drug users here then there are back home, which was a much bigger city.

I mostly stick to drinking which is all okay since I am of age.  I know a few guys from around town, Aaron and Russell who seem to be pretty big into drugs.  I have been around them a little when hanging out at fireside and just being in such a small town.  They seem to do more hard core drugs than many of the young people around Laramie.  They have never seemed to be violent or act too weird when they are high, so they have never presented themselves as a risk to me.  But the drugs are letting them take themselves too far in life, they are kind of held back at low pay jobs.  They are capable of so much more and I wish they would try harder to avoid the drug addict life.  I only hope that as they grow up they will realize the harm they are causing themselves and their families, Aaron had a child and a wife.  But, they are only twenty- one so they have so time seeing that they aren’t causing too much harm around Laramie.

Mom and Dad

I have always been very close with my mother and father.  Since I was a child they have been a bit overprotective and sheltered me from a lot.  But I never resented them for it, I guess I was just a laid back child.  When I opened up to them about being gay they were initially shocked and confused.  They didn’t really understand and to this day I’m not sure they fully do, but I’m certain it hasn’t affected how they feel about me, we all still love each other very much. 

I came to Wyoming to go to school because I felt like I could make a big difference here.  This was hard for me because it meant leaving my family and that took some real getting used to.  I think it hurt my parents even more.  They kept presenting me with opportunities of schools in our area until the day I left for Laramie.  They couldn’t understand why I chose Laramie. 

Once I adapted to being in such a small town and began to make new friends I told my parents all about it.  They soon understood why I chose Laramie and weren’t as upset about me leaving.  I still go back a visit on every break and holiday.  And on some special occasions I will take a week off.  My mother’s birthday happens to be towards the end of second semester so I took a few days off to go see her.  It meant the world to her and me, allowing myself to go back and visit so frequently is the only way I can manage living here without them.

Natural Beauty of Wyoming

Romaine and me like to go out and do all sorts of exciting things.  When we hang out we often have some of our other friends with us, many that we know from the coffee shop.  One thing we really enjoy doing is going hiking.  Wyoming is one of the most beautiful places in the United States and we love to take advantage of our setting.  And if we both wanted to get out, sometimes we would just go and watch the sunrise. 

In Wyoming you are nearly never too far away from a national forest and where there even where there isn’t a national forest you can usually find some beautiful scenery.  Romaine is the one that initially got me interested in hiking and now I am the one who keeps us going.  I like it because it provides a break from reality, a time where you can just let everything go.  We have tried to introduce some of our friends to it, but hiking was a little much for them.

Watching the sunrise or sunset was something we could all get into.  We could watch from just about anywhere but the best views were always from somewhere outside of town.  When me and Romaine want the perfect experience we hike up somewhere to watch the sunrise.  But when we want to bring all of our friends or we have work or class we settle for the outskirts of town.  My favorite place on the outskirts is just outside town where there is a fence that has the perfect view of a mountain range that is topped with snow most of the year, it has a eerie feeling to it but the scenic view beyond is worth it.

Fort Collins

As you all may have assumed from my past entries, I am gay.  I am open about it even though there aren’t many open homosexuals in Laramie, Wyoming.  With that there comes a very slight amount of prejudice but most of all loneliness.

Most people in Laramie live by the saying “live and let live” but there are those who think that I am only interested in dating every man I talk to.  I am not, I don’t think me being gay should affect my friendship with anyone, male or female.  I have only experienced this a few times since arriving here and it hasn’t stopped me from conversing with anyone. 

I more commonly feel lonely, not because I don’t have friends but because I don’t have a significant other.  Being one of the few gays in Laramie I usually have to travel to a bigger city to get any action.  The first time I went to a gay bar I called up Doc O’Connor, who nearly everyone knows, to take me to Fort Collins to go to a gay bar.  I was at first worried he wouldn’t be comfortable taking me so I gave him a disclaimer before we headed off.  He was alright with it and that night was a great break where I got to see other men.  Many people I met at the bar found it odd that I was alright living in Laramie, since it was such a small town with firm beliefs. I love it there and so I enjoyed my night out having fun, but didn’t think twice about moving away from Laramie.

Mr. Peacock

Today I just met with my counselor Mr. Peacock for the first time.  He was very welcoming and I could tell that he noticed how nervous I was.  I am new to town and I don’t know many people or how this school works.  I was worried to talk to my counselor and have him tell me my ideas didn’t fit in with this school or community.  But as soon as we started to speak I realized he wouldn’t judge me, he was going to encourage me towards my dreams until the day I graduated from the university. 

I told him about my interest in politics and social sciences and he gave me some much needed direction.  He helped me to focus in on where I wanted to take my degree and what I wanted to accomplish while I was at the university.  As soon as I got done I went over to the coffee shop where Romaine works.  We are still getting to know each other but I didn’t have anyone else to talk about my great new motivation with.  Luckily the shop was empty so she came over and talked with me.  She didn’t share my same passion for politics or social science that I did but she understood my points and had an educated opinion about everything we discussed.  I feel like with her I am completely comfortable and I hope that we can become closer.  And I am going to try to get her hooked on politics as long as we are friends.

Gay Rights Movement

Gay rights have gone back and forth in many states and are just recently becoming legalized in many.  Some states have still yet to even broach the topic of gay rights.  I strongly believe in the people’s right to make their own decisions without having them affected by outside parties.  While at the university here in Laramie I have learned a lot about how I want to change this world, I have learned that everyone can make a difference and this is one thing that I can begin a fight for.  Here in Laramie not many people openly speak out against homosexuality many people here believe live and let live.  There is no way to force someone to have your beliefs but people must be able to accept others for who they are. 

Wyoming does not recognize any same sex marriages.  What gives the government the right to decide who should be together.  I can accept that some people don’t believe or understand homosexual relationship, but I can’t understand how they think they have the right to dictate how people live.  Gay and lesbian couples don’t speak out about heterosexual relationships, so why do heterosexuals speak out against the gay and lesbian relationships.  We are now in a day and age where we have achieved so much and overcome so many judgments yet so many people refuse to overcome their prejudice against homosexuality.  I hope that in my lifetime I can make a difference and help the gays and lesbians gain rights.

Fireside

There is a bar here is Laramie called Fireside.  Its owner has the dream of adding a pool hall, restaurant and a gift shop on someday.  The owner, Matt, has always been welcoming to everyone as long as they are nice folk with good intentions.  The atmosphere is nice and the customers generally keep to themselves.  I tend to go there because there aren’t many bars in Laramie and Fireside is the nicest one near me.  I usually go to the bar with a group of friends from the university but I always feel comfortable to go alone just to grab a beer. 

Being from a bigger city I am used to there being more options when it comes to the night life, but in Laramie the selection is limited.  But, Fireside is a perfectly good place to grab a drink and I can always head to a bigger city for the evening if I am interested in a different scene.

I have to admit that sometimes a few of the younger patrons of Fireside seem a bit judgmental but it has never worried me too much.  I am pretty open when it comes to talking to people and if I start a conversation with someone that feel too uncomfortable I will just let it end and mind my own business.  Nothing ever seem to get our of hand and if it did the workers at Fireside are very responsible and generally pretty alert.  Overall, Fireside is a great hang out in Laramie and hopefully can stay alive long enough to become everything the owner dreams of.