I was twenty. I was in art school. I was a broke little college kid with no money and naive to the city life and having a blast just scraping by on cheese sandwiches while living a dream I had always thought would be hard to get. A city life.

Then I was outed.

It was an accident. I know this now. Won't go in to too many details. But in the summer of 2001, I had to make a phone call to my mom that to this day will still give me the Willys (you know, a mixture of stomach drop/hair standing on the neck/chills/cold sweats/the shakes) when I think about it. She, um, wasn't too thrilled with the idea and actually either was my Pop. But when I finally came out and confirmed and said: "Yes, mom, I'm gay." It was like getting that burp out that has been stuck and making all your insides compress and gurgle and build pressure. I know, pretty metaphor!

Today is National Coming Out Day. I don't know all of you who read this(Funny story about that. Hey dude that bumped in to me on the street and said: "You're that Check Please guy with a blog... I read it all the time!" Hope your dog's vet bill got fixed! Thanks for reading!), but I know you all come from way way wayyyyy different backgrounds and I know that you are either gay or straight or your both(Which I'm totally jealous of) and for a second I just really want you to just realize it. Whether you're out. Whether you have a best friend that is out. Whether you terrified to come out because you don't want to disappoint the people in your life that really won't be disappointed if they truly loved you because they would be smart enough and patient enough and intelligent enough to know that you deserve to be happy. And if those people aren't in your life right now, then Yo, you need to start looking for them. Seriously. Like NOW. Like, why are you still reading this. Go find someone that will hug you when you tell them. Or GEEZ! Tell me. I'm pretty cool like that. I listen. Well, I'll read it. Just tell someone. Or just know it will be OK when it does happen.

I would hate to see where I would be if I was still in the closet. I would hate to think the things I have had in my life wouldn't even exist because I was too afraid to get what I wanted. Like my past love or even the past opportunities that came from me being exactly who I am. A gay guy with an obsession for his Netflix Que.

Ahem, I'll step off of this soapbox now.