About Adam

This is the About Adam page posted 26 November 2007. Five years later, there’s a new version.

Hi!

If you’re reading this page, you’re obviously interested in learning more about me, That Queer Expatriate.

I was born and raised in Denver, Colorado, USA, attending, Park Hill Elementary School (it was less strange when I went there), Smiley Middle School, and George Washington High School. I’d say more about my time growing up but, quite frankly, I was miserable at all three schools.

After graduating I headed to the University of Wyoming in Laramie, Wyoming, USA, where I got my BA in Political Science with a concentration in Environment and Natural Resources, followed shortly thereafter with an MA in Political Science and a minor in Environment and Natural Resources. In the process I became an expert on Project Plowshare, which was supposed to take nuclear bombs and use them for peaceful purposes–like extracting natural gas from the ground. I moved to Bloomington, Indiana, USA, where I made a connection with an awesome professor ultimately finding myself living in Weimar, Germany, whilst working in Jena, Germany.

However that’s as close as you’re going to get on the work front: I keep my personal life separate from my work life (I’ve seen too many people suffer mightily because they blurred the line).

Personally I came out as gay to myself when I was 22—the summer after earning my BA. I kept the fact that I was gay under wraps until after I left the University of Wyoming because I wasn’t ready for my friends to see me that different—a fresh start in a new city would let me establish being gay as a part of who I am from the start. Clearly, although I thought it was a private secret, a number of people already knew that I was gay before I came out, even to myself. Despite this, in the narrative I typically tell, there’s the “before I realized I was gay” time and the “after I realized I was gay” time: others already knew, but this was, and still is, a critical demarcation line for me.

The most pivotal event in my life was the beating of Matthew Shepard at the University of Wyoming. Although I was not at UW when it happened (I’d left the previous spring with my MA in hand), it had a profound effect on me—and I crawled into my closet crying, scared, and hopeless. His death was a transformational moment for me—and it accelerated my coming out process—although I did not tell my parents for several more years.

A year after Matthew Shepard’s death, I got my passport and started traveling: first to The Netherlands, then the United Kingdom, and later Germany. In 2004 my travels turned into moving and I landed in Germany. Since moving to Weimar I’ve been able to explore more—and I know it makes me sound like a right prat when I start sentences, “When I was in X,” with X being any one of 26 countries ranging from Armenia to Swaziland and the United Kingdom. I’m fortunate that much of what I do is not location dependent.

If you’re looking for my favorite posts from this blog, here are a few for you to read:

• #1: A short entry where I learned the meaning of a German word, schwerbehinderte.
• #2: Despite the fact that I’m not a great fan of bananas, they seem to come up with distrubing frequency on my blog. Here I compare the German “Mach’s Mit” safe sex campaign with a banana air bag.
• #3: The first time I visited Armenia, I discovered that I could be a tourist attraction, as everybody stared at me.
• #4: Celebrating New Year’s Eve in Kyiv was an incredible experience, as I was treated like a member of the family: albeit the weakest link.
• #5: I travel. Frequently. So while spending an extended period of time in Bloomington, Indiana, USA, I decided to go on an adventure trip to some place far away and dangerous: The Westside.
• #6:Sometimes I like to go places where I do not belong-or actually I do. I headed to the Garden of Eden at the Creation Musuem where I noshed on an apple.
• #7: After living in Germany for over three years, I am still puzzled by some things–like butter. Germans love butter, so I pondered what to do with all my butter–and a week or two later, remembered to take a photo.

Before I sign out, I must say thanks—I really am grateful that people take the time to read what I write. There’s no one steady theme to my blog; I cover lots of random topics, depending upon what I am doing, where I am, and what’s in the news. Surely my inconsistency can be a bit aggravating, but it reflects my mind: I’m never on any one topic for too long.

Adam

Learn More:

Favorite Music (iTunes stats): Amber/Love One Another; Danzel/Pump It Up!; Kylie Minogue/Can’t Get You out of My Head; Shania Twain/That Don’t Impress Me; Michael Gray/The Weekend; Pet Shop Boys/Home and Dry; Robbie Williams/Rock DJ; Bruce Springsteen/Born in the USA; Wildlife/All Things; and Kai Tracid/Life Is Too Short.

Favorite Books: Richard Bradford/Red Sky at Morning; David Levithan/Boy Meets Boy;

Favorite Movies: Back to the Future; Latter Days;

Favorite Podcasts: This American Life; Radio Clash; Twinkleboi

Favorite Television: The Amazing Race; Weeds

Last Updated: 26 November 2007

impressum: Although the author of this blog is residing in Germany, this website is based and maintained in the United States of America; accordingly there is no legal requirement for an impressum to be posted. The author can be reached at gmail.com, username “elmadaeu”