And now for something completely different…
As much as I delight in providing Canada’s daily dose of Big Gay News ‘n’ Snark^TM, it’s time for a vacation.

It seems my zany mom is off to Europe for two weeks and insisted I come along. How could I say no to that? Easily, some friends of mine have said — how much fun can you have travelling with your mom? Good question, but not an easy one to answer: my mom and I have had an odd, sometimes rocky relationship. I always joke that it was disturbingly well-captured by a little show we like to call Ab Fab:

Let’s hope this trip runs a little smoother. In reality, of course, my mother is not that crazy and I am not that boring (We hope!) but, as she drags me all over the UK on family business, the issue won’t be “will my mom find something to do while I go to Heaven?” but rather “how can I keep my mom out of Heaven?”

All I know is that, regardless of where I’ll be these next two weeks, I’d hate to abandon you, my tens of faithful readers. I can’t promise I’ll update this blog every day, nor for very long, but I’ll give it my best shot, putting the internet cafes of Europe to the test. I’ve got a bunch mapped out, along with the museums, nightclubs, tourist attractions, cruising parks (did I say cruising parks? I meant art galleries! Hey mom, better check out that jewellery store way over there!) — I’ll do my best to keep you posted on all of it!

The whole trip’s a risk but nothing like that of this group of gay protesters in Beirut. This is believed to be the first gay protest in the Arab world so take a good look — these are some of the bravest people on the planet:

Compare that to Ellen Degeneres welcoming Neil Patrick Harris to her show and you’ll never wonder why such protests are necessary again. We’ve come a long way here in the west and we’re not done yet.

So I’ll be back hopefully tomorrow but, if not, here’s something that’ll keep you busy in the meantime:

Greg Rutter’s
Definitive List of The 99 Things You Should Have Already Experienced On
The Internet Unless You’re a Loser or Old or Something

Now wish me luck — I’ve got a flight to catch!