Meaning of 'gay'and 'nowadays'

[Tan Elaine]

Where I live, 'gay' means 'homosexual' nowadays, but when I was a child many years ago, 'gay' meant 'happy', eg. All of us did well in the exams. We were gay.

1. Do native speakers use 'nowadays' to mean 'these days, currently'?

2. Is 'gay' ever used by native speakers to mean 'happy'?

Thanks.

[SoothingDave]

1. Yes.

2. No.

[Tdol]

I don't hear the old meaning of gay in BrE either- some people held out against the change in meaning for a while, but they seem to have accepted it.