Joshua Cactus

The visit of the Iranian mongrel president to New York is not over yet. Using the podium at Columbia university he declared to the world that there are no gays in Iran. Having met some flamboyant ex-Persians in the raunchier bars of this fair city I went looking for some counter-evidence. Well CBC Canada has done it already and here is the brave piece they put together. Eye opener indeed. Watch and learn Mr President because this is what happens to gay men and women in your country. Like these two young men in the photo (no, it's not a BDSM flick, it's the real horror) who were whipped 100 lashes when caught snuggling at home. See below the YouTube version or click here for better quality video on CBC.CA site . There are gays in Iran and some of them are real heroes . Would I have the guts to stand up in public and face such danger for the potential to be happy? Would you? Video Part 2 Video Part 3

Traffic jams everywhere. Police and dogs and hunky guys in shades talking to tiny mikes embedded in their ears. The UN general assembly is in town! And among those 160 world leaders stands apart the evil baron of Iran. Only 20 blocks from my apartment he is spewing his garbage. Yuck. A short counter-video attached.

Been many many years since I had a Yom Kippur outside Israel. Although New York is a very Jewish city in many ways it was a very different experience. My Jewish friends, all great admirers of a handsome guy in a tight shirt, have suddenly become pious almost orthodox saints. All the talk was about fasting techniques and fabulous post Kippur dinners. The non-Jewish ones were mostly oblivious with the occasional "mention me if you get to speak to God this weekend". Friday afternoon as I was heading home (earlier then usual, there are some benefits to holidays) the shuttle bus was stopped by crowds gathering on Lex Ave and looking very excited. As we slowly crept forward in the backed-up traffic I got a glimpse of the famous Sex-and-the-City trio: Carrie , Miranda and Charlotte posing in front of a glamorous store for the filming of the upcoming movie . Before moving to NY I watched this show carefully trying to learn the ways of the locals. Turns out life here are crazier ...

Everyone needs a mentor. I got one. He is smart, seasoned (that how you say old these days I think), worldly, beyond plain rich and has an open door for me even with a global hectic schedule (his not mine...). Today we met again in his towering New York office. It's a once-twice a year event that takes place in all corners of the world depending on our current locations. Told him about my life in this mad city, about the challenges of work, the roller-coaster days and nights. Told him of my new carrier ideas, of thinking of taking a new route in life. As always he didn't make judgment, didn't say what is right or wrong, just gave me a piercing look and asked me to take my time. Answers will come and many opportunities will knock. Just take your time. We have met many years ago when as a college student I received a scholarship given by him to an Israeli that will attend that specific program. Ever since he was a presence and a gentle guide in this cactus' stormy journ...

She was born a boy. Well, a very feminine one but still a dong-holding-XY genotype short skinny boy from a small hood where life is not milk and honey. Then she was a hooker, then a dim dark clubs freak show and then she blew the glass ceiling and became the first transgender to sing in the Eurovision. Sticking to her filthy-mouth-best-intentions trademark she became a mega star. Performed at all the great venues of Israel and Europe, sold CD's to the Arab world and brought pride to many closeted boyz and galz across the world. The tranny that became a queen. Then there was silence, a few years of eclipse, and now she is back and it's a titanic comeback. To you Hebrew readers here is a link to her latest interview . To the more gentile audience here is another fab clip by the one and only Dana International (the Wikipedia page!!) . The man turned sexy woman who united homos and hardcore football fans at the city square one unforgettable night in Tel Aviv 1998 .

Tout L'or Des Hommes J'ai depose mes armes a l'entree de ton coeur sans combat et j'ai suivi les charmes lentement en douceur quelque part la-bas au milieu de tes reves au creux de ton sommeil dans tes nuits un jour nouveau se leve a nul autre pareil mais tu sais depuis. Tout l'or des hommes ne vaut plus rien... si tu es loin de moi Tout l'amour du monde ne me fait rien alors surtout ne change pas. C'est un nouveau voyage le destin le hazard peu m'importe qui m'a montre le passage qui allait jusqu'a toi mais tu sais depuis. Sometime it takes a Diva like Celine Dion to express oneself.

After many nights cooped up in the apartment, frantically trying to catch up with an insane amount of work I finally went out for a good old bar hoppin' night at the big apple. Hells' kitchen, a.k.a the new Chelsea, is crowded and over stylish for this thorny cactus. A few hours in a hip mid-town bar were more then enough and with a few good buddies I headed to my natural habitat, the East Village. The little streets and allies are the closest you get to Tel Aviv here. All sorts of types and a multi sexual crowd prowling the hood. We ended up at Eastern Bloc , a funky mix of old soviet memorabilia, hot sexy bartenders and stoned pole dancers. The crowed was great, the music a strange mix of 90's disco with newer house thumpa-thumpa. Drinks aren't too expensive and eager looks everywhere. Declined a few tempting offers (just wasn't in the mood) and had a blast fuzzy night. Highly recommended.

One thing is sure about New York, you never know what's around the corner. The last few days were a live demonstration. At work, got an amazing offer from a private company that is willing to double my salary and sponsor an H1 visa if I will join. It's a new company, full of promise, but not a shaky start-up but already holding a very impressive client base. It's also focused on cutting-edge almost futuristic technology that is para-medical yet flexible. Tempting. Next week I'll meet the CEO for dinner and we'll see how things develop. On the personal level met a sexy cute and smart guy who although knowing I have a partner has given himself completely to a steamy affair that rocked the sheets. Ooof. The roller coaster is moving so fast. Also made a few new very promising friends not far from my home mates. Starting to feel more and more at home here. This train is moving so fast I got to hold on tight and hope things are steering at the right direction. It's i...

The big talk with my boss finally arrived. He called me to his office to "catch-up", a term he uses often for those times when he is about to probe into the time usage habits of his loyal subjects. Are we serving the greater good in every wake moment? We started of with some routine work chit-chat, how's that project going and what did you think of this interesting patient. The casual clinic talk. After a while when I got up to leave he asked me to shut the door and stay a few more minutes. With sweaty palms and slight arrhythmia I sat down expecting the worse. Will he kick me out? Will this be the end of my American dream? He started by giving me a glaring look and then went into a short lecture about the Israeli "Cowboy" culture and how he essentially like the free innovative spirit of a free-lancer but this time it went way too far. With frequent use of Western movie terms and the phrase "leaping to the unknown" he basically called me a trigger happ...

The last few days were absolutely horrible at work. I overlooked something while analysing a critical clinical database and that resulted in a major mess that required the work of many people deep into the nights and the weekend to correct. A stupid mistake of a trigger-happy newbie . The extra work and tense atmosphere brought about some ugly confrontations with some colleagues and from a shiny fresh face I was instantly turned to the departmental boxing bag. My boss which went well beyond the expected in smoothing the transition to NY and had an open door for me whenever needed suddenly defers to short commanding emails and brief frowns. I am doing my best to amend things, the first in the office and the last to leave every day. I worked on the weekend and cut my breaks to the minimal needed (still got to have a cig here and then). Lucky enough the IT people found a back up and were able to repair the damage, but man how much shit am I eating now. All for a stupid mistake, an o...

A new year is starting soon and I thought a post is in place. Two months passed in NYC, some days were crazy some were calm, some nights peaceful some over exciting. For the first time in my life I find myself dealing on a daily base with intellectual and emotional challenges that can not be over passed with a smile or a a shrug but take all my resources, all the time. The city is amazing, a giant bee hive of constant activity and sometimes I need a quiet corner while other times its a full throttle race. Work is very challenging but I am trying to keep up. There were some highlights and some harder spots but I try to learn from it all. Moving here gave me the opportunity to strengthen old friendships, to make some new great friends and to meet a lot of interesting people and I am starting to feel at home in this strange and wondrous place. In a few weeks my partner from Israel will be joining my little nest on the 20 th floor overlooking the hive downtown. That will make the Gotham e...

The last official weekend of summer. My friend A invited me ( finally !) to join him for a weekend at Fire Island. A little stretch of sand off the shore of Long Island. An hour on the train, then a fab ferry ride and I reached paradise. Large houses on the beach, hot tubs for a late nite soak, a long and clean sandy stretch. And the village where I was staying has all gay population. Cute boys in minimal wear roam the wooden trails winding among the bushes. The housemates were great, the atmosphere relaxed, the waves cool and the wind breezy. It is a sort of Chelsea on the water but much less attitude and a whole lot more drugs. The energy and the vibe cleansed a tough week in the city. Try it for yourself.

Writing is a sort of an addiction, and I am an easy fool for addictions. I am addicted to the wonders of men, to the soft smooth touch of a cool beer, to a breezy cigarette. I tried not blogging and the bug of writing kept nagging at me. Readers emails and comments helped too. Its a real ego soother to know you have some fans. Even if they are scattered in all corners of the globe and have little in common. Even if they don't know who you really are. So two months in the big apple have passed by. Maybe a better term would be flew by. All these cliches about time are so true when one new experience follows the other. Work, work was a breeze at first and now became a major player in my daily life. The casual and carefree Israeli attitude that assumes everything will fall into place and a charming smile will get you out of any trouble does not seem to work in the disciplined and very bureaucratic institute that opened its doors to me. Those great ivory doors that seemed all shiny at f...