From a New Hampshire state of marriage to blogging in Cuban

I am wrapping-up a busy hump day with last minute e-mails (and of course this blog entry) before I head to bed, but a couple of things continue to resonate in my mind at this relatively late hour.

The New Hampshire House voted 210-109 earlier today to defeat a bill that would have repealed the state's law that has allowed gays and lesbians to marry since Jan. 1.

"How has my marriage impacted upon your marriage or how has it diminished the value of your marriage?" openly gay state Rep. Robert Thompson [D-Manchester,] who married his partner Michael Jacobsen in the Queen City on Jan. 2, asked his colleagues.

Paul and I had the distinct honor of attending Robert and Michael's wedding, but I once again echo the talking point I have shared with several people who have followed this issue in New Hampshire in recent weeks. The majority of Granite Staters are far more concerned about the state's apparent and continued failure to plow the highways than who can get married; Just a hunch from someone who was born and raised in New Hampshire...

On a completely separate note, I began to work on a story for the Guide that will highlight the gay bloggers outside the United States. You are probably familiar with my attempts to highlight the growing Cuban blogosphere over the last several months, but I was finally able to reach Pedro Luis Castro of Fotos desde Cuba on his cell phone earlier tonight. We only spoke for a couple of minutes, but he did say it was cold in Havana--it is partly cloudy and 64 degrees in the Cuban capital as I write this blog. Even though the island is less than 100 miles south of Key West, Cuba is a place that remains intangible to the vast majority of Americans, but it is an island I hope to discover some day soon.