I can’t really put into words the inspiration displayed by this anonymous, gay armed services veteran keeping an online journal. Ultimately, it’s stories like these that put my cushy life into perspective and shed light on the privelage it is to “make art” or “complain.” Here is the description, and some quotes below it. Read RD’s journal entries here.
RD is the pseudonym of a 10-year armed services veteran recently returned from Afghanistan. A psychologist and long-serving veteran, this officer had to deal with both the traumas of the troops in front of him, and the psychic wound of his own situation: the risk that if he spoke frankly about his life to any colleague, he could find himself ejected from the war and the army.
“Moral laws do not force people to lie or pretend to be something they are not (a kind of lie itself). Even worse this law creates barriers between people and mandates a certain level of isolation and loneliness. It will drive me from the military. It is the main reason I am leaving the service when I return from Afghanistan. Despite a severe shortage of psychologists and two wars the military will lose me.”
“…the religious fundamentalists in Afghanistan are strikingly similar to religious fundamentalists in America – who are also trying to force their literal interpretation of Holy Scripture onto everyone else through laws. While I served in Afghanistan the American “cultural war” exploded with California’s Proposition 8 and the pending discharge of an 18-year decorated combat pilot under “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”.
“One soldier stated the only way Command would ever realize how overstretched his men are would be if he started killing people. He then stated he was so angry he would kill his Commander and no one could stop him.”
Amos Mac is a photographer who documents the queer community. He has shown his work internationally, most recently in Australia, and has been published on the pages of McSweeney’s, Maximum Rock N Roll, the annual documentary photo book “Cutter”, and does portraits and interviews for BUTT magazine’s blog. He is the photographer behind Original Plumbing, the quarterly photo and interview-saturated print mag for trans guys. Original Plumbing is now in the sidebar.
10- Lady Gaga on my 30th fucking birthday : I just cringed when typing out the number “30″. When I was in 4th grade my mother made me pick between going to THE New Kids on the Block concert at the Spectrum in Philadelphia, or having a birthday party. I picked “birthday party” yet never forgave her for making me choose. So when Gaga tickets went on sale and I saw the show was on my actual birthday, I of course was triggered yet realized that I hate birthday parties, especially for myself, and bought a pair of tickets for what is sure to be the most amazing show of the year. (www.ladygaga.com)
9 – Leaving America : I left the glorious continent in which I was born and raised in for the first time ever this past fall! I flew all the way to Munich by myself, passed out on an indoor hammock for 4 hours to deal with jet lag, then took 2 subways and a bus to meet up with Michelle Tea on Sister Spit ‘s first ever Eurotrash tour. We traveled through Germany and France in a van, got ditched by our lunatic driver on the outskirts of Paris, flew to London and gallivanted around the English countryside, all while I promoted my transsexual magazine and showed slides of my work. (http://blog.sfmoma.org/2009/09/on-the-road-with-original-plumbing/)
8 – Ascots : So I was just in LA and I stopped at this vintage clothing store called Hubba Hubba in Burbank. The woman behind the counter was a tad on the pushy side.. borderline bully status. As soon as I walked in the door she was all “you know I dress the guys from MAD MEN and boy oh boy I wish they were YOUR size. You have that vintage size that the men had back in the day when these clothes were ORIGINALLY made! I know JUST the shirt for you. And hat! Don’t forget the suit jackets right in the back. Fancy some wingtip shoes?” I left with an ascot. I love ascots. And to read more about the crazy shop owner, check out the link above.
I love teens. And this issue was all about teens, fashion and fame. Amazing photographs and articles on teenagers like Rory Culkin, the Willis sisters, and an expose on the Disney machine.
6- The Day Michael Jackson Died & I Was Laid Off
Oh, June 25, 2009, what a dramatic day! I was killing time at my dead end desk job at a gay porn company when I learned (via 100′s of updated Facebook statuses at once) that my beloved Michael Jackson had passed away. Within seconds, I was called into my bosses office and told that due to the economy, blah blah blah, I was one of the next hand full of employees to get axed. I thanked my boss, still dazed from new the news of sweet Michael’s passing. Enter #5.
It really exists. Thanks to the #6 (getting laid off from my job, not Michael Jackson dying) I was able to concentrate fully on an idea I had been toying with for awhile– putting together a photo-based magazine on trans male culture.
4- Latest Accent Obsession : North Jersey. Specifically, comedian John Roberts. “Go turn on my tree.”
Pinkberry is so “Perez Hilton 2007″. With self-serve toppings from fresh kiwi to Cinnamon toast crunch cereal, I dare you to try and get a cup of Icebee fro-yo for less than $10.
Crazy man who drew cats in the 1920′s. Tattoo inspirations for life!
1 – “Nobody Knows I’m A Transsexual” t-shirts
A few years ago I thought it would be hilarious to make a t-shirt that says NOBODY KNOWS I’M A TRANSSEXUAL and in 2009 I did it, and I actually wear it, and you can too… if you give me $20.
Not sure, but it looks like Sissy Dude is a victim of the random Google homophobia that sometimes bestrickens porny blogs. It sucks, and usually there is no getting it back. For now, I’m sure John Webster is scrambling to retrieve his archives and John, if you are looking for suggestions, I’d try WordPress. All of you thirsty for Webster’s signature art without the furry cracks can check for updates at his art blog the John Webster Book or at his home decor blog, Kitch’n.
Finally getting down to this Bear Tumblr mega-post that I’ve been wanting to do, streaming Pépé Bradock’s slammin’ new house comp and basking in bear country. I’ve overheard some local cuties talking about “just discovering tumblr” and while I’m sure the visual format can be done well, it’s just another kind of blogging. CTRL+W33D is consistently bringing the funny, Three Frames has some mind boggling gifs, and Gif Party is a gay snark fest. I little poking around I found myself at all kinds of (some NSFW, so be careful!) blogs where hairy chubs are devoured and destined for the online pass around.
NY Mag had this nice fashion spread of a runway show by Walter Van Beirendonck, and all the models were sporting salt and pepper, mid-torso roundness and beards.
The Pick Up Bear likes it a little raunchy and geeky, and that’s fine with me.
Unlike its name, there is not too much shame over at Homo Shame.
I’ve blogged about Sean M. Johnson before and his love for the beard. He’s got some youtube vids of “Beard Love” and this t-shirt for sale over at My Soti.
Then of course, there are my default, go-to site for hot images and interesting musings:
Loving the sexualized depictions of bears of all stripes and sizes at Bear Mythology. The “about” section is also intriguing:
A blog dedicated to “bearish men” & authored by a closeted gay individual. Such “bears” presented here does not imply that they’re gay. It also does not imply that they’re human. However, what is actually implied is that these bearish individuals are extremely handsome, gorgeous, & attractive. That’s all.
PHew, flurpg. The sounds of palette cleansing. After this weekend, I can take a small break from queeny half-dressed men. Thank god a friend of mine mentioned Sugarbutch Chronicles, a kinky, sexy blog by Sinclair Sexsmith. Sexsmith is not a misnomer, as this turned out to be a hot site for dykes who like their porn and kink conversations with less cautious giggling and more comfortable assumptions. Film reviews, passionate opinions about sex toys, erotic narratives, real life sex stories and overall intelligence make this a good read, even for a gay guy like me. Considering the many queer girls I know that want more real blogs for them, Sugarbutch should be a nice landing pad.
* Gary Iriza, Mr. Palm Springs Leather 2008, 1st Runner-up: Bob Firth-Tessier, M. Cuir Montreal 2008, 2nd Runner-up: Scott Melton, Mr. Ramrod 2007, and International Mr. Bootblack 2008: Bootdog, of the Alameda County Leather Corps. Photo by BULLmanX.
Honestly, there is no better gay holiday weekend than International Mr. Leather. So open and welcoming to all stripes, leather and not. Yes, it is male-centered, but the few women that are there are having a great time, not at all needing to worry about nasty trolls following them around. I go every year to the market, BUT this year I am official media, and will be live blogging the actual International Mr. Leather contest, as well as any and all happenings while I am there. I’m def gonna get my boots shined and try and interview my shiner, continue to stalk David Mason, and try and take more photos with gay celebs. Be sure to follow me @thinkpinkradio. Here are my tweets from Day 1:
So Friday afternoon is always a little snoozy at the market. People are still arriving from out of town and the vendors have no “schpiel – fatigue” and are giving the hard sell. Luckily, I was with Mistress Crimson, and as you can see above, she’s lots of fun. We had good conversations about hanky codes and the appeal of jock straps, I def got a good look at a hot Anderson Cooper-type with a blue hanky tucked on the right, and WOW is all we could say. First photo was this bizzaro table that I still don’t know what was going on. It was like an all-you-can-kink-garage sale:
After Crimson tried on a satin corset, we turned the corner and both of our jaws dropped:
WTF is that? It’s The Alien Egg. You can be born from it:
Yeah. Never, ever seen that before. I think at this point, we ran into TPR pal S.I.R , who works at the Leather Archives & Museum, he was on his way to perform:
I did make sure to pass by the Slick It Up table about 7 times, but I was determined to not say anything to David Mason. Not Yet. I couldn’t believe it when my friend Joey had tried on one if Slick It Up’s better suits and I wasn’t even there, UGH:
Crimson needed to meet up with her fellow dom Troy, and Troy needed to buy a flogging device. She needed someone to “help” “try” “it out” and while there is no photo (ha, no, sorry) I was flogged for the first time today. It was nice. Thanks for the freebie, Troy! It was then that my girls had to leave and so I showed Joey around the market (he ain’t from ’round these parts). That’s when this happened and I freaked the fuck out:
So, I know Dan Savage’s feminism is lacking, and he is a flawed man. BUT I have been reading Savage Love since I was 14 or 15 and I have never missed a week. NOT ONE, and honestly Dan Savage guided me through my gayness and with his help I am the proud and open gay-rod I am today. ANYWAY, I totally bumbled my way through telling him how much I loved him and he was gracious and kind and wanted to remember the letter I wrote him (which he sent me a personal response to). UGH FUCKING UGH. I was sweaty and giddy after that.
I gotta be Stinky Pinky, playing the best indie, electro and disco you’ve ever heard, tonight at Wang’s, so no more IML tonight. But I’ll be at the official events all weekend with a recap each day. Look here for the entire schedule. I’m going to be a swine flu-sie!
The best part about fuckyeahrachelmaddow.com is that it is both serious and fun. I mean, what isn’t serious about the only out-butch dyke on TV? Say what you will about her scoop necks, Ms. Madd is as real butch as we’ve gotten on national TV, and thank god. What we tend to forget, is how sweet and dorky she can be, and fuckyeahrachelmaddow.com puts it all out with pics, quotes, clips and news. SO FUN.
Oh man, BOUND to be way better than the actual show, The Hater columnist Amelie Gillette will be live blogging the final episode of the L Word.
“How many times will Pam Grier say, “Girl!” because she clearly can’t remember her lines? Will Lucy Lawless have handsex with anyone? Elizabeth Berkley: alien or half-alien? Which characters will completely change personalities one last time just for the hell of it? Will the writers just push the pregnant trans-man down the stairs and be done with it because they clearly hate that character so much, or will he actually have a baby? Did all the characters just take turns drowning Jenny, or was this whole season really some crazy screenplay Jenny was writing and she’s not actually dead (the first theory makes more sense for The L Word, which is to say that it makes no sense in the real world)”
These are the questions Gillette hopes to answer, be sure to get over to the A.V. Club to find out what happens.
*Photo by D. Nicoletta
