HOMETOWN NEWS
Okay, okay, I don't get back to the land of my birth - Rochester, New York - nearly enough. And when I do, I usually dash away a few short days later. (Yes, as a matter of fact I am the Worst Son Ever.)

But credit where credit is due: this small city has a population that is largely accepting of its gay and lesbian population. Rochester was the first locale in New York State to elect an openly gay official - City Councilman Tim Mains, in 1985 - and just added a second gay councilman, Bill Pritchard, to the nine-member body. [Disclosure: although we've fallen out of touch since I moved to Manhattan, I once knew both Tim and Bill well.]

Now 365Gay.com, echoing an earlier story in the Rochester Democrat & Chronicle, reports that Tim Mains and City Clerk Carloee Conklin [know her, too] are looking at ways to issue gay marriage licenses. As Carolee says, “I want to know if I can legally give a marriage license or not. If I could, I certainly would.”

That would certainly save me a trip to Massachusetts or Ontario, and I am all for anything that saves me travel time. Now I just have to see if William Weld will perform the ceremony. (We are both retired politicians and authors after all.)