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This is just satire, but I really really really wish it was real:

Last weekend I went to the Mount St. Helens Ape Cave Lava Tube with some friends. It’s a popular attraction in the Mount St. Helens National Monument and the longest lava tube in the continental United States at over two miles in length. Here’s my spelunker buddies Shawn and Trevor ready to ascend at the main entrance:

A headlamp and/or good flashlight with fresh batteries is recommended. Warm clothes, pants and a raincoat too (it’s drippy inside). From the main entrance to the caves, I recommend doing the Lower Cave first which is an easier hike and gives you an idea of whether you can handle more. You turn around and go back to the main entrance, and from there can choose to do the Upper Cave. It’s 1.5 miles underground, but a lot of scrambling over rock falls and a little climbing too. It was quite a workout but the inside of a lava flow was cool. Then you hike back to the parking area above ground. This was the exit from the Upper Cave area:

The ladder out can be seen in the lower left of the image. Then it’s the same distance hike overland on the way back. A lot of the geography around the cave reminded me of Iceland, albeit with a lot more trees.

NBA player Jason Collins came out a few weeks ago with much applause and a few dissenters as expected. But it’s probably the start of a small flood of athletes in the “big three” American sports to come out as openly gay. Of course we are proud of Martina Navratilova for coming out when she did, but the sports media has been drooling for an active player in the NBA, NFL and MLB to do the same.

Blogs and media sites were abuzz with the news for a few days, but a line from this article about Collins in the SFGate caught my eye:

“Soon, the NFL, NHL and MLB and (yawn) pro golf and even, maybe, a gay NASCAR driver, a guy who surely already exists and who is right now completely terrified of getting shot if he even dares to look in the direction of Jason Collins. Poor kid.”

When I read that I was like “Hey, I know an out NASCAR driver and he isn’t terrified.” In fact he’s been out for a while and is building an impressive record at a track near my hometown and elsewhere.

Driver Justin Mullikin. ©2012 Mary Schill/Forte Design

I met Justin Mullikin of JM Racing in September when I was visiting my family in Wisconsin. He went to the same high school I did, albeit a lot later. I was amazed to learn that he was out in high school, something I never would have considered in the late 80s. But times have changed even in the flyover states and they’re coming out a lot earlier.

Justin was recently interviewed at Queers4Gears, a site for queer NASCAR and motorsport fans. You can find them on Facebook and Twitter at @queers4gears. I asked Justin a few more questions because I wanted you and the SFGate to know that yep, there is an out NASCAR driver. And if you make it to the end of the interview you will read Justin’s correct prediction on who won RuPaul’s Drag Race this year.

Mullikin’s interest in cars started at an early age, but he didn’t get serious about it until about 2005 on a whim. Eight seasons and a handful of cars later the 27 year-old Cheesehead is still on track:

- I see your racing season is underway. How long does the season last?

Our season began on April 20th and will continue through the first weekend in October with a 4 week break from the first weekend in September until October’s final event.

- While you’re in the Sportsmen division (sort of like NASCAR “minor leagues” if I understand correctly) do your results count towards NASCAR national title standings?

We are a points based series, meaning that every night we earn a certain amount of points. The amount of points that we earn are dependent on where we finish in the events. Points accumulated go to a standing that determines the champion for our local track at the end of our season. Along with earning points at our local track we also earn points on a national level. We are ranked nationally and compete for a national level championship in what is called the “NASCAR Whelen All American Series division II asphalt program.”

- You’re not just the driver of your vehicle – you’ve also rebuilt it yourself it for racing. Are there other people are on your racing team helping you do this?

I do have help at the track from a number of people, but for the most part I build my car, motor, paint and do everything related to the assembly of the car myself. My best Friend Bill also races and we have formed a team so to speak at the track so we share equipment and information with each other and help each other at the track and during the off season constructing the cars.

- What sort of background in automotive engineering do you have that helps you get a car ready to race?

Follow JM Racing on Facebook!

I actually have no formal training or schooling in automotive engineering. I was always interested in cars growing up and by the time I got my license and first car I just started teaching myself and learning as much as I could by doing things on my own. Throughout the years or vowing to only fixing my own car and learning as much as I could about them I have learned pretty much everything there is to know about the mechanics and assembly of a car.

- So you’re good with machines and can drive. Are you still an “athlete”?

This is a question that regularly comes up when talking about a person who races cars for a living or for a hobby. There is far more to driving in a competitive manner than just going fast and turning in circles. The thing that people don’t understand about racing cars is they do not drive like your normal everyday street cars. Driving a car at very high speeds with manual brakes, manual steering and a suspension that is designed for maximum turning ability takes a toll on your body. Along with the physical strength required to drive the cars comes the mental strength. It takes a high level of mental focus and nerves to be able to drive a car that is in a near constant slide at extremely high speeds. Not only do you focus on yourself when in the car but what your fellow competitors are doing. It is in no way like driving down the highway to the mall. We are driving around a track at 100+ mph inches from other cars (sometimes touching) and controlling a car that is sliding, moving around and just on the ragged edge of crashing at all times.

- You mentioned in the Queers4Gears.com interview that for the most part you haven’t had any issues with other drivers for being gay. How did you handle it when they did?

Only one direct threat of action has made its way to me that I am aware of. The particular instance was never said directly to me, rather to a friend of mine who also raced. Fortunately for him he realized that at the end of the day that a.) I was a better driver and b.) I was not afraid to retaliate on track if he decided to take it there. Retaliating on track is rarely something that you as a driver want to do because of the potential for danger to yourself and everyone else.

- When did you come out?

I came out when I was 16 as a result of a friend of mine sharing our personal conversations with other people at school. I made the decision that I was going to take ownership of the situation and make of it what I chose to.

- What do you think about professional athletes coming out? Should we expect someone in other NASCAR series to come out soon?

Anytime that a person who is gay can be portrayed in a positive and uplifting manner is definitely a good thing. From a role model point of view I can see no better thing than the young people of this country viewing successful athletes they can relate to. It’s not a question of if it happens, more of when. I think that it will certainly happen but only time will tell.

- Who do you think is going to win RuPaul’s Drag Race this year?

Its Monsoon season…clearly! [Jinkx Monsoon] is by far the most talented competitor to have ever been on the show.

- Another thing you mentioned in the previous interview was “I typically don’t care if someone who has no meaning to me has anything to say,” regarding your sexual orientation on the track. That sounds like a good approach to dealing with homophobic comments. “Water off a duck’s back” as Jinkx Monsoon would say. What would you say to other athletes considering being out in their sport on dealing with homophobia?

At the end of the day it’s your life, and you should live it exactly how you see fit without letting anyone else get in your way. Being gay is nothing that will stop you from achieving your dreams or having a positive impact on someone else. Be the best you can be!

I have a great blog interview in the works with an out gay NASCAR driver from my hometown, but am waiting for him to get back to me with the final draft. Thought it would be relevant with the whole Jason Collins coming out thing. Stay tuned for that…

In the meantime, we’ve been enjoying spectacular weather in Portland with nothing but clear blue skies for weeks. Apparently last spring was so cold and wet for so long they speak of it in hushed tones and refer to those dark months as “Juneuary” and “Julyember.”

The recent weather reminded me of when I arrived in September, when it was about as warm and sunny as it’s been lately. And that reminds me of how long I’ve been here. I’m going on nine months here now and still no job. This is starting to get ridiculous. Granted, I have had four interviews with four different companies or agencies since I got here but don’t know how close I was to be considered for each job. But news coming out about the “New Unemployables” over 50 scares the crap out of me. Fortunately I’m still young and hip at 42 and hopefully still employable.

So I’ve expanded my search northward to Seattle, south to San Francisco and Los Angeles, and even back east to DC. At least in DC there are jobs and a robust network I’m familiar with. And good friends and a city I’ve gained a better appreciation for since I’ve been away. If by summer’s end I don’t find a job, it’s time to head back to more familiar territory.

Portland is a marketing town, with companies to work for like Columbia Sportswear, Nike, Intel and Adidas. I’ve done some marketing in the past, but my strengths lie with public affairs jobs, but those kinds of jobs are few and far between in Portland. I’ve seen and applied to many of those kind of positions in Seattle, where the economy is better, but Federal public affairs jobs with public lands and forests have all but dried up with the government cutbacks. And getting a foot in the door with Federal jobs is daunting these days as I suspect most agencies have internal candidates and a huge number of applicants with veteran status. Hindsight is 20/20, and looking back my timing may not have been the wisest to quit my cushy federal job and go follow my heart.

But I’ve looked at my experiences and thought about what skills are applicable to marketing and have rearranged my resumes and applications to adapt to this region and what jobs I apply to. I can no longer afford to be so picky. I’m also exploring contract-to-hire and headhunter options as well.

It’s funny how fast time flies when your savings are trickling away. The past nine months have gone by like lightning. Granted, my current debt is miniscule compared to recent college graduates, but I sure do like having little to no debt and want to keep it that way.

There is some good news lately. My oldest brother lives up the Columbia Gorge near Hood River. After nine months he suddenly comes up with an idea to contact a company there that does PR for Portland firms. He knows the CEO and even washed up on his shore after a kiteboarder rescue, and told me to mention that in an introductory email. So I did that and dropped my new skillset buzzwords and will have a meeting with them on Tuesday. It sounds more like an informational interview so who knows how it might go. But it’s something and the company does interesting work. This is the view of that area from the Washington state side of the Columbia River, so it would be a very scenic place to live and work:

So keep yer fingers crossed. Otherwise keep your eyes and ears open for jobs in public affairs where you know a person there who can put my resume on someone’s desk, ya hear? Thanks.

Here’s a recent video about my former rugby team in DC:

I miss the Cardozo practice field!

I just applied for a scholarship to the Netroots Nation progressive blogger gathering in San Jose, California. There is an LGBT portion of the summit frequented by the likes of Joe.My.God, and I’ve always wanted to go. And I umm…have a lot of free time lately so it would be a good use of my time, and keep me up on my blogging and social media skillz. And for the record, in addition to Crazy Cat Lady posts I do have a political section on this here blog. And how many of you readers were inspired to check out LGBT inclusive sports after reading about my gay rugby adventures? This is stuff I want to continue to do – often for you – and will also help me in whatever career I end up with if I ever get a job again.

So here’s an opportunity for you to help out. Vote for me here. I’m one of 110 or so other applicants for a scholarship that will cover registration costs and lodging. I can foot the airfare. While I doubt I’ll get 900+ votes to get into the top 5 before the May 7 deadline, it would be nice to see my ballot get bumped up from the bottom of the pack.

Otherwise, 30 of the applicants will get chosen for a scholarship after the voting contest. I think I wrote a good application so we’ll see what happens. Although if you all spent your slow Friday and Monday at work voting for me and I got over 900 votes, my head (and heart) will explode.

Thanks!

I used to pick on Homer and TJ for being Crazy Cat Ladies. One year I even sent Homer a Crazy Cat Lady action figure. But now the tables have turned and I am a Crazy Cat Lady. I’m going to blog about cats now.

The owners of the house I’m staying at are in France for a couple of weeks, so I’m taking care of them while their people are gone. They got the cats when we had critters in the attic in December. I think the varmints were squirrels who had moved in for the winter. The roommates wanted cats anyway but the presence of critters in the house expedited the acquisition. So they got three rescue cats from the shelter. The attic critters have since departed.

Mssr. Theodore Shithead was very young when he arrived. He’s very cute but still behaves like a kitten much of the time and is an overall pain in the ass. He gets into everything and knocks shit over all the time. You can’t see it easily in the photo but he has a white kitty mustache, which is why I call him Monsieur Theodore.

Miss Pepper Crazytail is our personal bathroom attendant. If you plan on taking a dump Pepper will be there to assist, so it’s important to keep the bathroom closed if you plan on doing anything private in there. She’s the most affectionate though and wants to be petted all the time. She is very sweet and sticks up her big fluffy tail when she’s happy, thus the name Crazytail.

Miss Isabella (Izzy) Scaredkitty has come a long way. We think she was abused in her previous home as she was scared of everything when she arrived. She particularly didn’t like me, we think because I have a beard. We’ve theorized the previous owner had a beard too. But she’s come around and likes to be petted a lot and doesn’t give me that freaked out feral look anymore. She was called Izzy as the previous owners thought she was male, but she’s female.

Being a Crazy Cat Lady is sad but it’s certainly better than being an unhygenic dog person.

Heeey! Sorry for the long absence, I was in a K~hole all last week. The national news was not pretty as you all know and personal news fit with that theme as well. I finally did get a notification about the one job I was waiting to hear about (negative) and there was a 2nd phone interview that I was looking forward to with another organization that was cancelled. Back to square one. This is getting ridiculous.

Anyhow, on a good note Prince was in Portland tonight. Of course I had to go. He had his 3rdEyeGirl backup band, a bare-bones affair with just a bass, guitar and drummer. The venue was smaller and the band was an intimate fit for the setting. But if you’re a longtime Prince fan you know his music comes with a lot of keyboards and background vocals, which were mostly absent with this setup. Still, the song lineup fit well, which I think went like this:

Let’s Go Crazy
Endorphinmachine
Screwdriver
She’s Always In My Hair
Dolphin
I Could Never Take The Place Of Your Man
Guitar
Plectrum Electrum
Fixurlifeup
Colonized Mind
Bambi w/ Joshua Welton (cowbell)
2Y2D w/ Joshua Welton (cowbell, vox)
Cause And Effect
Sign O’ The Times
Forever In My Life
Purple Rain

Some dude with a cowbell. OK. And “Dolphin”? That was weird but I’ve never heard it live so it was fun. Anyway, he did offer a some old tunes, but the most alarming thing to me was the flat response from the audience. Flat as a pancake. Portland, I think you smoke too much weed. For a minute there I actually felt sorry for Prince. I mean, how do you not know the words to “She’s Always In My Hair,” “I Could Never Take The Place of Your Man,” and “Bambi”? They were rocking out to his new tracks but I counted maybe two people up by the stage who were going nuts to his old stuff. The audience was not really familiar with Prince but were there anyway for some unknown reason. Maybe it was the 8pm Gresham/Beaverton crowd and the 11pm show will rock out more, but it’s clear that while Portland does indie well, it does not know the funk.

Earlier this week Darth Jersey alerted me to my actor doppelgänger, woofy Canadian actor Geoff Gustafson. He was on a recent episode of Cult (which I’ve never watched) and was in Hot Tub Time Machine, a film with a ridiculous premise but was oddly endearing. I am flattered by Darth Jersey’s comparison but that doesn’t forgive the fact that he routinely kicks my butt at Words With Friends. I hear tell there are apps that will maximize your word strategy with the game and I often wonder…

In other doppelgänger news, I may go on a date soon with a guy who looks disturbingly like Durban Bud. I mean, he even purses his lips in all his profile photos. But of course I would never go on a date with a BrettCajun doppelgänger. Eeew…

I had a busy week starting my volunteer job. It’s only two afternoons a week but after six months of casually going out for coffee after waking up at 11am it’s a bit of an adjustment. We already had a violent “incident” there while I was working. Nobody was hurt but it was disturbing. I have encountered bouts of rage during rugby matches but when that happens during play you’re all kind of riled up at the same level of aggression so it doesn’t seem so bad during play. But when you’re sitting there answering phone calls and somebody flips out it’s another thing. I’ve already taken bloodborne pathogen training, and will soon get training in “de-escalation” for similar incidents, and training in identifying potential overdose patients. It is certainly unlike anything I’ve done before.

And I had a phone interview with a recruiter from a major outdoor clothing line in Portland. It seemed to go well and the recruiter and I chatted for a long time. By now I have a lot of interview questions down pat and did a lot of studying in advance. It’s a job I’d really be well suited for and am eager to hear back from them.

I had applied for that job independent of any contacts or leads, but later corresponded with two people who helped get my application on somebody’s desk at that company. Thank you loyal blog readers and you know who you are. Contacts are key, especially in a market where recruiters are getting hundreds of applicants. Earlier this spring I was chatting with a friend who was also looking for work who had been seeing a career coach. His coach confirmed the importance of leads and contacts over cold applications. He said something like 80% of jobs are found through networking so spend 80% of your time doing that and only 20% of your time responding to ads. And aggressively expand your contact list. It is essential to keep assembling your comprehensive list of acquaintances from all current and past associations. Do not leave anybody out. Through the graces of another blog reader I’ve also got some good leads from the Seattle area as well, and have been following up on those too.

But after three weeks I still haven’t heard a peep from the city job where I interviewed in person. This is the second instance in this region where an organization has invited me in their offices for an in-person interview where I never hear from them again, even after following up with brief messages of continued interest. I understand and am getting used to non-responses from initial online or email applications, but when you invite me into your house for a chat I expect a little more interaction later on. I don’t think it’s that I’m awful and abhorrent in the interviews either. I will remember this when I am on an interview committee and in charge of follow-up. Even if it’s disappointing news, it’s good to hear back from an interview committee. And it doesn’t take that long to get back to the eight people you spoke with for an hour each, no matter how busy you are.

I wonder if this behavior is part of what is interpreted as passive-aggressive in the Pacific Northwest. Rather than potentially disappoint someone, people here simply cease communication. That’s interpreted as Pacific Northwest Passive-Aggressive, but I call it conflict avoidance. People here don’t seem to know how to negotiate conflict, and/or are afraid to disappoint anyone. Sometimes people get disappointed, and that’s a part of life. It’s called communication.

Kiri and I went on a short overnight test hike to the Siouxon Trail in the Gifford Pinchot National Forest in Washington state. It was the first hike I did when I arrived to the Portland area, and is a lovely hike with two waterfalls and nice scenery. The photo on the left is from the trip in October, and the one on the right from last week. You can see the difference in spring stream flow. Click to embiggen:

This national forest includes the Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument, which also has tons of trails and interesting volcanic features.

I normally don’t try to start campfires, as I’ve seen wilderness campsites denuded of vegetation from too much wood gathering. But it was cold and clammy out so I gave it a try. Oregon wood is pretty much soaked through and it took an hour and a whole box of matches to light. So I think I will go back to my no campfire rule because it’s also too much effort. I have a camp stove for cooking and boiling water.

I also found out Grampaw Jimbo needs a new comfy camping mattress. My Ridgerest/Thermarest combo doesn’t do the trick anymore – I was sore all over from trying to sleep on it. Plus it takes too much space in my pack. Kiri had a large inflatable setup that takes 1/4 of the space that I want to buy. It’ll be worth it to get one of those instead.

Oh hi! The sun came out last week in Portland and everyone – including myself – went absolutely bonkers. The temperatures went beyond 70 and the sky was absolutely clear. When that happens you go outside no matter what and absorb as much sunlight as possible, because the next day is likely to be grey and dreary. But I think we actually had three solid days of wonderful sunlight. I hear tell it’s been a merciful winter and spring in terms of cloud cover and precipitation. I haven’t found it to be that much worse than winters in DC, which were almost as gloomy and certainly more grey. But then again I have the time to go outside every day even on cloudy days, which still helps with winter blues.

Before the bike ride on the sunny day where the above photo of Mt. Hood was taken, I went out snowboarding again with Kiri, on the slopes of the same mountain. Since it was the second trip of the season my body was in better shape and I had fun, but I still board on the safe side as an accident would be catastrophic. I suppose I could cloister myself in my room to be absolutely safe, but that wouldn’t be good in terms of mental health either. So I recreate. Lord knows I have the time for it. I don’t think I’ve been in this good shape in a while.

And I went hiking with some pals up the Columbia Gorge at Starvation Creek State Park, which had a lot of purdy views. Here’s me being bossy or making a point or something:

I had a chat with my friend who owns the house I’m living in about housing. They’re friends from DC and I’ve been able to crash at their place in a small room rent-free, although I do help out with the utilities. But it’s going on seven months and I was wondering “at what point am I imposing?” So I asked. They want to move forward with renovations by June, and will need the space I’m taking at the moment. So I gotta move on, job or not. I have some options. I’ve been avoiding temping in lieu of keeping up a focused job search for something that I really want to do and get paid well for, but little has come up.

I haven’t heard from the place where I interviewed last week, but it’s only been a week. I followed up with a nice thank-you note and continued interest in the position (and I really am interested in the position). So we’ll see. But it was three months between job interviews, which isn’t a promising rate.

“Give it a year,” someone said to me recently. I’d rather not have the second half of that year doing a job I don’t like, but it may become a necessity. I’ve been looking back to DC for Federal jobs like the one I left, but even those aren’t opening up due to government cutbacks. And I’d rather not move back, but if there’s work I might have to. I worked hard to forge a career path that I enjoy and pays well, and I don’t want to sully my resume with job experience at Dairy Queen or Kinko’s Copies.

I start my volunteer job next week at a homeless LGBT shelter in Portland that provides services and training to get the kids off the street. I will be working the front desk answering the phone and directing the clients to services available at the center and elsewhere in Portland. It took a couple months for them to put me in a position to fill. To give you an idea of the job market in Portland for just volunteer positions, here’s how it went: I went to an orientation session with 20 other people, mostly college-age kids looking to get some experience in social services to boost their resumes. All of them were attentive and eager to work. But all they could tell us in the orientation that all current volunteer positions had waiting lists. I filled out an extensive application with a background check, and went through two interviews, followed by a two-hour long training session, and another to follow. It was a more extensive process than a lot of positions I’ve filled for pay. So in other words, the job market is so bad in Portland the competition is stiff even for jobs without pay.