Dann's Writing | Juniper Ascending

Your best friend betrays you. Condemns you for who you are. Batters you for being worse than the shit on the sole of someone's shoe.

Then, you lose the man closest to you.

Your soulmate. Your husband.

Now, an opportunity for revenge against Andre.

You have a gun. A lot of motivation.

And Andre’s in town.

There are so many reasons you have to kill him.

Do you have the guts to pull it off?

Jonathan Wren, a gay man from the small town of Juniper, discovers how easily a friend can betray you and how tenuous life and love really are. Jonathan’s journey takes him from South Carolina to Georgia and finally, to Florida, as he singlehandedly seeks to avenge a personal injustice. All the while, he struggles to cope with the death of his husband, Ryan Armstrong.

The closer he gets to the pivotal act of terror that only he can execute, two questions taunt him.

What do I really believe in?

Can I, once so deeply in love, commit the ultimate act of hate?

For Jonathan, his relationship with Ryan is the only thing that ever mattered.

Now, a man with crumbling faith, Jonathan searches for meaning in Ryan’s death.

He tries to shake his grief. And though years have passed since his husband's death, Jonathan finds building a new relationship difficult.

Taunted by a troubled history, Jonathan despairs that Andre has risen as a star in a fundamentalist television empire. When Andre is scheduled to appear in Orlando, Jonathan concocts a scheme to make the ultimate political—and personal—statement.

At first glance, personality appears deceptively easy to define. We frequently make observations about friends, family and even strangers that amount to short commentaries about their distinctive personalities. In "Giving Birth to Ourselves: Reflections on Personality," psychologist and educator Dann Hazel takes a closer look at the complexities of personality. First, he examines the role of internal conflicts in the shaping of personality. Next, the interplay of mind, environment, determination and freedom is shown to play large roles in cultivating personal resiliency. The third chapter of the book focuses on the "trait theory" of personality, the most widely accepted and perhaps most easily understood approach to studying personality. The book concludes with an unbridled look at the personality of hate in an attempt to understand prejudice and racism.

From the legal, social, and spiritual issues to the political, personal, and sexual components of gay separation, a compassionate guide offers a wealth of advice, encouragement, courage, and support to gay men dealing with a painful breakup.

A gruesome murder. An unexpected suicide. A multicultural wedding.

Three events that turned the city of Juniper upside down.

Since her divorce, Ingrid Cloud, a highly respected, recently retired Human Sexuality educator with a passion for “yard-sailing,” wasn’t looking for true love. Then, she met Jerome Prioleau, a widower, member of Juniper City Council and the owner of Vintage Treasures, a local antique shop. She’s not ashamed to admit it. He swept her off her feet—though their feelings for each other were certainly mutual.

As the wedding date approaches, Fritz Zimmerman, her ex—and a man with a mysterious past—reappears. To be honest, Ingrid didn’t know he was still alive.

Didn’t care if he wasn’t. But Fritz is still very much alive and in town with a mission.

A mission triggering persistent prejudices and providing him a rare opportunity for revenge.

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You’ve been happily married for years to a very loving spouse.

Then, during happy hour at a local lounge, the two of you meet a young man, Paul.

He's hot. Both of you think so.

Before you know it, Paul has moved in for the summer.

Into your house. Into your bed.

You have to decide: What do you want most?

Paul? Or the survival of your marriage?

Among the multitude of factors which influence--and often impede--an individual's ability to "age successfully," physiological changes related to sex and sexual functioning, the effects of stress on cognition, and depression are three critical factors capable of eroding life satisfaction of older individuals.

This work examines the psychological ramifications of gender- and sex-related changes in aging populations, with an emphasis on sex drive transformations and sexual satisfaction. An examination of the myriad effects of stress on cognition among older individuals illuminates the desirability of lowering stress levels to avoid their deleterious effects on the aging brain, which is already experiencing significant changes. And since depression manifests itself in quite unique yet subtle ways among older individuals, this work examines the inherent challenges to diagnosis as well as the importance of identifying pathology before older clients resort to lethal means to end their pain.

Finally, a variety of definitions of successful aging are presented, along with the controversies surrounding the concept which implies a competition between those who "succeed" and those who "fail."

Based on interviews with gay and lesbian clergy, Dann Hazel constructs a mosaic depicting the ministry of gays and lesbians across the denominational spectrum. He poignantly describes the personal challenges these clergy face in their efforts to do constructive work in theology in order to build faith communities where gay men and lesbians can flourish spiritually.

Site last updated on August 09, 2021