Hey Kids! I’m back from the beginning of my whirlwind tour promoting my new HIV education initiative supported by Merck, Living Positive by Design and it was an amazing success! I’m trying to start blogging on a semi-regular basis so fingers crossed. I heart sleep deprivation! The campaign launched at the U.S. Conference on AIDS [link] and I couldn’t be more excited about how it went!! After catching a red-eye -not cute- I arrived at the conference which was in Ft. Lauderdale, so obviously I was in a thong and sarong (so-wrong) for most of the event. Actually I walked in the opening fashion show and they wanted me to wear a gold thong and angel wings which was quickly nixed. As if.
My first speech was to launch Living Positive by Design, which is a program to combat stigma associated with with HIV and inspire my poz comrades to think positively (pun intended?) and forge on while still keeping their health in check. It’s really important to keep people abreast of what it’s like to live with HIV TODAY and how treatment can help poz individuals live a long healthy life by reducing their viral load. So get out there and get tested if you haven’t already so you can be safe and start living healthy! GO!! Anyhoo, after being positive for almost 20 years I have a good handle on the issues surrounding living with HIV and it feels nice to be doing something to help others like me and be part of a solution in a bigger way. And it was an honor of course to join the other amazing speakers, like Dázon Dixon Diallo from Sister Love [link] and Care Resource [link].
I met a ton of peeps and had a chance to get out some great interviews, like with Dan Renzi, from the Real World Miami, check out his blog here [link], he’s a peach and we had a blast! I’m sure a bunch of these interviews will be hitting the net soon so be on the lookout!
On the closing day I spoke at a lunch put on by the National Minority AIDS council (NMAC) [link] and it was truly a moving day. I brought in some slides from my past and present and shared about my experiences being poz and being a role model. The audience feedback was great and hopefully I inspired some people because they definitely inspired me.
The conference was exhausting but totes worth it, next time all you readers should come, I’ll put you in my carry-on!
The Living Positive by Design tour continues in Hot’lanta, GA Oct 16th-19th. Be there.
Then wednesday night Kevin Christiana and I went to the spectacular Pose For a Cure [link] show in midtown hosted by none other than the fabulous Melanie B. Spice up your life? Yes please! She is gorger than gorge! The event was a fashion show to raise money and awareness for breast cancer, put on by The Susan G. Komen Organization [link]. I chatted with ProRun season 2 winner, Chloe Dao who looked fabulous, of course! She is busy with her store and various projects, including working with QVC so check that out. The hilarious Robert Verdi was also in attendance and I even got some one on one time with the gracious Mel B who pretended that she knew who I was. So gracious!
Everything at Pose for the Cure was pink pink pink: the dresses, the drinks, the desserts, the rosy cheeks of New York’s tipsy fashionistas! Elle Woods would have given it major snaps. Chloe donated 2 scrumptious dresses and ProRun season 1 winner, Jay McCarroll, donated two totally cute bags to the event to be auctioned. You yourself can even bid on them and other items from the show or buy an adorable tee like Mel B is wearing at PoseFortheCure.org [link].
Now I’m off to design a Wonder Woman costume out of chocolate and a wedding gown out of 4000 Condoms. Choco-condom-couture is the new must-have for fall!!
Kisses.
