Blood Letting

Today I did one of those things that seem like nothing to a young, gay Angeleno, but would seem freakishly foreign to say, Amy's 60ish dad in Tipton, Iowa. I had an HIV test.

This particular HIV test has me thinking of a few things.

1) The alternate universe of being young and gay and living in a city. When I worked at the LA Gay & Lesbian Center -- an awesome place that offers free rapid HIV testing, I'm just saying -- I would stand in the elevator with a 2 drag queens, a homeless teenager, a gray 60s radical, and a lesbian couple making out and think to myself, "Wow! Is this what mom and dad had in mind for me back in 1978 when I was born?" But it wasn't just the elevator rides. Being young and gay is unique.

My folks will probably go their whole lives without ever having an HIV test. I'm willing to bet neither of my brother's have had one. Millions of Americans probably don't see a need for it. Me, I do it every 6 months. And I don't engage in risky behavior. It's just a reality I grew up with.

2) I got this test because, before quitting my job and having to deal with a change in health insurance, I wanted to make sure I wasn't saddling myself and my new employers with a long term illness. How pathetic that we live in a country where people need to make employment decisions based on their health? How much productivity is lost because disinterested people remain in unsatisfying jobs solely to maintain their health coverage?

Thanks to a great public benefit at the LA Gay & Lesbian Center -- an asset Los Angeles should be proud of -- I am now comfortable making the switch. The test came back, as expected, negative.