Alex and Dean

 Hello to all of our listeners! First and foremost, Alex and I are alive and doing well. We will be celebrating our 15 year anniversary this month. We are heading to Lake Tahoe very soon to celebrate. Hopefully the roads stay clear of snow for us.

 I'm writing this to tell you that the Alex and Dean podcast has run its course and has come to an end. We will not be doing anymore shows. I want to sincerely thank each and every one of you who have listened to our show and have supported us over the last three years. We did the show for you of course and not for any egotistical reasons on our parts. When I originally conceived the idea for the show, it was out of a what I felt was a need to show gay people of all ages that we are just as normal as the rest of the "normal" world out there. I wanted to show gays and straights alike that we live normal lives, have jobs, pay taxes, are just as much a part of this country as the religious nut bags are that continue to ban us from society, that we love, have families, are committed to doing good, we argue and disagree at times, have opinions that should count, we spend money, we vote and I could go on and on. I wanted to show other gay people that they are not alone in this world and you don't have to live a life in total isolation, you don't always have to hide who you are.

I hope for the most part, Alex and I lived up to the ideal that I had for the show. I hope that you also understood that Alex and I are not "perfect" people, but are "real" people with real needs, desires and issues just like you and everyone else on this planet. I hope you came away from our show with a feeling that many of the gay stereotypes portrayed by those inside and outside of the gay community are not true. I have always felt that I didn't fit in the straight world and I didn't fit in the gay world either. I have a disdain for those in the community that believe a gay person must act a certain way. For those within the gay community that are frustrated with those that believe you are not gay enough, I hope you saw within Alex and myself that you don't have to be that way to be gay and to be yourself. I hope you understand that it is ok to be yourself and to think for yourself. Don't go along with those that repress us either by trying to keep us in the closet or those that try to make us conform to a certain gay lifestyle. Be your own person, stand on your own two feet and think for yourself!

I'm not sure Alex and I really knew what we were in for when we started the podcast. I don't think we understood the amount of work it would take to produce a good quality show each week. I don't think we knew just how much we would have to expose ourselves and put ourselves out there in front of a public that we would rarely get the chance to know in return. It was a great experience and a great education as well. Alex and I probably have even gotten to know each other a bit more as a result of the show. When one puts himself out there like we had to do, one opens himself up to much praise and criticism. The praise is easy to take and fun to hear. The criticism was expected, but until one actually experiences it, you just don't realize how much it can actually affect you. I think the toughest criticism to hear and of course put aside is the criticism from some in the gay community that chastise you for being who you are, not bowing down to the gay elite, speaking your mind, standing up for yourself and not being gay enough. What was shocking is that this criticism came at times from those closest to us, from those that I thought would support us 100%. But, of course in hindsight I know that is not being realistic. I had fun doing the show and I am very proud of Alex and myself for accomplishing what we did. For a variety of reasons, I have decided that I'm not prepared to continue to put myself out there and without doing that, the show cannot continue to be what it was and so it is time to conclude the show and move on.

We have met some great people over the last three years and I want to thank you for the friendships that resulted. I want to thank each listener that emailed us, whether you agreed with us or not. And, of course, I want to again thank each listener. I would like to wish everyone much luck and success for the future.

Thanks
Dean