"Yes we distribute condoms, but just not to you." (WTF?!?)

This past weekend, I had the opportunity to attend an informative panel discussion on HIV/AIDS awareness and prevention, presented by an evangelist congregation held at their house of worship in Brooklyn. I thought to myself, as I walked in, "How cool is it that this religious institution is offering this kind of information and taking a role in building awareness to their communities!" But boy oh boy did I not have a clue of what I was about to walk into.

On the panel were two incredible plwha (people living with HIV/AIDS); a heterosexual female and a heterosexual male (who was prenatally infected). Their messages were strong and dynamic! Also sitting on the panel was a holistic nutritionist, who was quite boring and didn't make much sense to me about diet and HIV (but that's a whole other blog post); an infectious disease doctor who ran  through current stats and information, and a guy who just pissed me off - the church's Minister /Pastor (not sure what the correct title is so excuse my ignorance hoping I don't offend anyone).

Before I get into my rant, I want to make clear that I respect all religions, all lifestyles and all beliefs. Everyone is entitled to his/her own path in life no matter one's faith or other spiritual beliefs (or maybe none at all).

Moving on, the communities that this church serves, from my first initial glance which was then confirmed by the panelists, are high-risk for HIV infection. So, as the panel discussion continued on the Minister made an announcement that their church will begin to distribute condoms. Now thinking to myself, "Wow, this is pretty cool to hear!" Then I simply gasped . . . STUNNED at what came out of this Minister's mouth next.

"We will be selective to whom we choose to give a condom. If you do not follow our congregation's beliefs or meet our religious criteria we may choose not to give you a condom if you ask us for one."

"WTF?!"

Can someone please help me to understand why this community serving institution would make this kind of policy. Let's say an adolescent, or young adult or even senior walked in off the street, wanting to protect his/her own life knowing this church has condoms, but then is turned away. . . because he/she does not meet the religious criteria for the condom distribution program. Am I missing something here??!!??

I am at a loss for words. . . please share your thoughts on this. .  what is your take on this Minister / Church's condom distribution program?

I am Daniel and I am living pozitively. Thank you for following my blog.

p.s. please consider following me on Twitter or adding me as a friend on Facebook.

The National Healthy Living Summit & "Beyond-Belief": Don't miss out!!!

Dallas, TX here I come!! If there is one conference, anyone living with HIV/AIDS, or anyone wanting to play a greater role in HIV/AIDS advocacy absolutely should attend in 2012, it is the first annual National Healthy Living Summit, presented by the National Association of People with AIDS (NAPWA) to be held at the Award-winning American Airlines Conference Center in Dallas, TX; April 10-14.

I am honored to officially announce that my new off-Broadway, magical spectacular about living with HIV/AIDS, Beyond-Belief, will be presented at this week-long, life changing event before it opens on stage in New York City. 

Do not miss out on this conference! Register today!!! Below, is some information about the conference and information about Beyond-Belief. If you plan on attending, leave a comment here and let me know! Also, be sure to come up and say hello to me during the conference. I am excited to learn, to make friends and to absorb a greater sense of hope in my own life.

I look forward to seeing you there!!

I am Daniel and I am living pozitively! Thank you for following my blog!

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National Healthy Living Summit

NAPWA announces the first annual National Healthy Living Summit, April 10-14, 2012, in Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas. Originally scheduled August 7–10, 2011, the Summit promotes healthy living for people living with HIV. The new National Healthy Living Expo continues the work of NAPWA’s popular Staying Alive national conferences in a new environment of not just surviving with HIV but living productive and fulfilling lives.


For more than 25 years NAPWA has been the oldest, most trusted voice for saving and improving the lives of people impacted by HIV/AIDS and this year’s event looks to build upon that tradition.


The Healthy Living Summit will be held in the award-winning American Airlines Training & Conference Center in the heart of the Dallas/Fort Worth metropolitan area. People living with HIV/AIDS are encouraged to attend the event to learn how to become involved in advocacy work in their respective regions and receive useful information about government subsidized housing and medication.


“The Healthy Living Summit welcomes all who are interested in improving quality of life for and addressing issues that affect people living with HIV/AIDS,” said Stephen Bailous, Senior Vice President for Treatment Advocacy and Community Affairs. “Sponsors, including pharmaceutical companies, government agencies, and supplement manufacturers are offered a unique opportunity for visibility among hundreds of leaders in the HIV/AIDS community.”

REGISTER TODAY!!

Beyond-Belief
In a world where life sometimes is masked with smoke and mirrors for many to hide; and secrets to linger, Daniel Bauer, the successor to the legendary escape artist Harry Houdini brings to life a collection of short stories about living with HIV/AIDS.  There are no big props! There is no smoke! And the only mirror used in this show is in a dressing room! Touch, listen, taste and see!! Your senses will come alive in this suspenseful, humorous and emotional thrill of a production that takes you behind the success, the fall and the rise of Daniel Bauer’s life. Prepare to witness the arts of magic and escape up-close and personal. Prepare to be inspired by stories of triumph. Prepare to be captivated Beyond Belief. Following the performance, Daniel will return to the stage for a Q/A session with audience members allowing for a deeper perspective on the experience and his life.

Double D's go head to head in the fight against HIV/AIDS!

A perfect recipe in the fight against HIV/AIDS you ask?  Two guys named Daniel in a virtual space, East Coast meets West Coast, give them some recording technology and when you Put It Together you now have one hell of a talk show interview that does not sugar coat their quest in the fight against HIV/AIDS.

You already know who I am . . . so let me introduce the other Daniel! Daniel Garza is a 41 year old gay man who was diagnosed with AIDS back in 2000 and who continues to live a life in recovery since June 21, 2007. 


After years of searching for a light at the end of the tunnel Daniel G. is finally making it into the light with the help of a Spiritual Guide. He indulges his creative intuitive gifts through the use of Oracle Cards and the energy in people to help them out of their own tunnels.

Daniel Garza

Daniel Garza is the host of Put It Together from Abnormal Entertainment, an online talk show made out of life experiences, bringing to listeners a powerful variety of discussion through personal sharing of life stories that boldly unveils the many hard lessons, the battle scars, the knowledge, and wisdom of life. And when it's all put together, using all this 'powerful-stuff' to help others become better people.


I had the pleasure and honor of being asked onto Daniel Garza's show and we kicked out one hell of an interview: Magic is in the Air. Take a listen and hopefully there is some 'good-stuff' that might help you to put it all together! Daniel Garza really knows how to draw out and get real about the heavy topics of life. 


Hopefully what we talk about will help you to put some things together in your life!


LISTEN NOW: Put It Together - Magic is in the Air

I am Daniel and I am living pozitively! Thank you for following my blog.

Continue to follow my journey by following me on Twitter or becoming a friend on Facebook.

Setbacks and restarts over and over again: Never give up!

Yesterday was my first day back at the gym since my nasty fall, last month, that resulted in broken ribs. I must admit that grabbing hold of a twenty-pound dumbbell to warm up my biceps felt really really good!

Honestly, though, I never thought I would make it! I mean, five weeks without the gym seemed like an eternity to me. The old wise saying, 'patience is a virtue' was not sitting well with me several weeks into healing. The injury was a pretty unexpected setback not only to getting closer to staying on task to achieving my personal fitness goals, but also a setback which smacked me in the gut professionally, forcing escape practice to be put on hold. I was getting itchy and restless, cursing the world for having put the debris on the sidewalk and cursing myself for tripping over it! Like a broken record in my head, I kept thinking what if, what if, what if. . .

At the gym, I took one look in the mirror and thought to myself, ugh it's going to take forever to get back what I put so much work into! Part of me was like, maybe I should just forget it and leave the gym. Well this 'funky' mindset, and maybe you can relate, enters my mind more often than probably should, especially when I get blind-sided by unexpected detours in life. Not a good place for me to be mentally, because I start believing that maybe the universe doesn't want me to succeed.

Then, reality checks in. . . and I remind myself that, Shit! I have been through a lot in my life! I can't let this setback screw with my focus, determination and passion to live life and fight for my success; achieving my personal and professional goals. I guess what I am trying to say is I have to be careful that I do not start to categorize setbacks as failure.

I really had my hopes set high that I would have achieved my fitness goals by mid-April and have my new show "Beyond-Belief" ready to debut in May. Very likely that both will not happen in time as I planned. It has me in a bit of a funk.

Here's the thing, just because I took a detour, does not mean I failed nor does it mean I won't ever achieve these goals! I am simply delayed. And that's okay, because all I have each day I wake is time (and lots of it!!) to make 'em happen. In the past, I tried using HIV as an excuse to want to hurry and get things accomplished in a jiffy. . . well 10 years later that excuse is pretty lame. . . since I know I am going to live a very long healthy life! So I guess the delay, or being detoured is not such a big deal at all. It's just a disappointment; and definitely by no means have I failed!

What I need to continue to work on is how to deal with the unexpected bumps in the road of life a bit more gracefully (if there is such a thing); learning to jump over the hurdles rather than block my mindset telling myself I will never get there. That kind of thinking will just drown me in depression and then what!?! I don't want to live like that! I don't ever want to think that I will never make it or succeed in life, just because something is not happening when I want it to or isn't on schedule as I perfectly planned out in my head because some unexpected splash-of-wacky interrupted my focus and course of path.  I know that if I stop, take a deep breath and refocus I will be back on track in no-time. I will jump over this hurdle! Actually, now that I think about it, I already have by picking up that twenty-pound dumbbell.  . . a light, but damn good start in the right direction of getting back on track! It's all about how I pick myself up today. . .

Without a doubt there will be more setbacks to come my way and who knows when they will blind-side me; taking me on all sorts of whacked-out detours and windy roads in life. Today, setbacks just make me more determined to stay strong, to think positively and to forge ahead with limitless determination! Setbacks fuel my creativity. Setbacks will shape my success!

I am Daniel and I am living pozitively. Thank you for following my blog.

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