GLOW!!

Hello guys - I thought I should let everyone who's been so sweet to read my blog - know this:

• I love ALL HIV-positive people around the world (that's number 1)
• I love that here in Iceland we savor human rights (the first country in the world to have a female president - to have a gay prime minister and to allow same sex marriage in church, our prime-minister was the first to use that right)
• I love that here in Iceland we have a good healthcare system (although it could be better - for some notes on that see my "although blog")
• I love Icelandic music !! (Everyone should go to airwaves at least once in their lifetime;))

If I ever do not sound thankful - that is a misunderstanding! I am just pointing out that there needs to be done MORE - we need to be STRONG - and that nothing is beyond criticism - and of course that there are faults and advantages to living with HIV in such a small community.

Common people now : GLOW!

Here's a happy song with Retro Stefson:

GLOW

ps. And don't feel shy about leaving comments or questions for me :)

OUT of SIGHT - OUT of MIND

Today I'm thinking: "Is it HIV day?" 

We only have one day a year for HIV awareness - and it is too little! Here in Iceland it is the only day every year people remember HIV. It saddens me even more that the musical scene, which is kinda awesome in Iceland actually, has taken the 1.st of December and made it their day too. Couldn't they have chosen another day?

Here's a proof we have good music - good song right? ;)
(you can listen while you read if you have a mind that multitasks)

And then it is also the REAL independence day - we actually got independence on the 1.st of December - but made it the 17th of June cause then it was our first prime-ministers birthday, and well, not as cold! 

So people are going about thinking of music and independence - not so much HIV. I really think we need to change this - USE this wave of spirit of independence and music in stead of getting lost under it... 

The thought of having to compete for attention saddens me. We never have REAL attention. We don't get much money to do stuff from the government. The HIV-Iceland organisation has been getting the same amount of money for over ten years!! Needless to say it's not worth the same anymore!

And we are few (plwHIV in Iceland). We are afraid to be exposed, it is the hard truth of the situation. One thing is to tell friends and family. Quite another to be exposed in the media, fighting for rights...

But we could, we could USE the fact that we are not many... Of course we do get attention on the 1.st of December, I'm not saying we don't get our awareness-day at all. I just think we could do more, we could do better, and we need to be braver. More like her:

Even if one is brave and tries to do stuff for HIV-awareness, it is amazing how shunned one can get; not getting paid for effort, not getting grants from government ect. THIS IS REALLY A DIFFICULT BATTLE TO TAKE ON! But who will fight it for us?

To me everyday is HIV day, to me it is important to fight for the rights of HIV-positive people all the time. If we fall asleep for a while it can mean there's no money available for the battle, it can mean that people forget and they do not protect themselves... or others. 

We need to keep fighting for attention and for the human rights of PLWHIV - we just have to: 

IT'S THAT SIMPLE!