Former Member

She's a great singer. I have her in Verdi's Requiem too. Amazing

Funny you should use that particular phrase! A week ago, I watched a documentary with just that title! Quiet Heroes was about a Doctor and Physician’s Assistant who cared for nearly all the HIV/AIDS patients in the entire state of Utah during the ‘80s, the worst years of the pandemic. It was an inditement of the LDS church (the Mormons) and their policies that isolated the most vulnerable in their time of greatest need. These women were the real heroes, I didn’t do much at all. It’s amazing how far we’ve come from those dark days when a diagnosis of AIDS meant an expected lifespan of just days or a few weeks. While LGBTs were out protesting in the major metro areas mostly on the coasts, two medical professionals were quietly working with a group of Catholic nuns in the only metro area between the West Coast and Denver. It was a very different story from the ones we’ve seen out of SF, LA, NYC, and other big cities. Some may feel AIDS-fatigue, but there are still important stories that haven’t been told yet. There’s still no cure, folks. Get tested (it’s painless and only takes 20 minutes to get the results), protect yourself and your partner(s), and support those who have been diagnosed with HIV.

Never say never? ;–) I think it’s really a really sad situation when people are ‘too good a person’ to go into politics. Those are exactly the sort of people we should be electing! If all the good people avoid politics, only the bad ones will be elected. Things would get much worse than they already are. Too delicate or too sensitive are valid reasons for not becoming a politician, though. ;–)

He or she showed up just after the epilogue concluded… ;–)

For me, the standout movie of Frameline42 was the Centerpiece Documentary, When the Beat Drops! Anyone who enjoys dancing the way Buddy & Andre do would be captivated by this documentary. People like me who don’t think they have much in common with the subjects will be shocked to find themselves excited and energized by the movements and action on the screen! I still cannot believe that people can contort and bounce around the way the dancers do while Bucking. It’s also the story of chosen families. The origins of Bucking is the cheerleading routines from the Historically Black Colleges in the South. Instead of performing during a football game, these dancers perform their routines in contests. We get to witness some of their best work and a five-hour contest is edited down to the climax of the documentary. I’m sorry I just don’t have to vocabulary to describe the dancing better. I wish I could take a whole theater of young Buddys and Andres to see the movie! I can guaranty that they wouldn’t be just sitting passively in their seats. I’m certain they’d be moving along with the dancers – some might even jump up to dance in the aisles! The stories of the dedication and hard work would be inspirational and might motivate some to work harder to achieve their dreams, as far fetched as their families and friends might think they are. ;–)

@Ronyx likes to torture us by leaving us wanting more! He’s only done one sequel (already posted on GA) and doesn’t even do cameos of characters from previous stories. It’s not even clear the stories are set in the same town. ;–)

Leontyne Price singing Dvorak's "Song To The Moon" from Rusalka.

And I spent the last week-and-a-half watching LGBTQ movies, including several promoted as being very sexy but didn’t fulfill their promises visually! One was about a country bumpkin moving to London and getting trained as a high-class hustler, but somehow managing to keep the visuals PG, looking like a stage play that was recorded to be broadcast on TV. The new Mappletrhorpe movie with Matt Smith included Robert's very explicit photos in the background as well as recreations of some of his erotic work on screen, but while there were scenes with Matt naked from behind, we never saw the family jewels! Another one was visually very explicit with generous shots of everything, but the plot seemed to run out halfway through the movie and just sort of fizzled out. I walked out on a black-and-white movie about a grouping of three who were shown having sex, but we only got glimpses of the goodies and the editing was abrupt and annoying with sound stopping and restarting suddenly with scene changes as if we were flipping back and forth between two channels on TV – although the director is very experienced, it felt amateurish as if it were edited by a junior high school student who waited to the last minute to finish the project using found footage. ;–) Some of the other movies were much sexier and visually more interesting! ;–) I think I’ll quote myself when I get around to posting my thoughts on the movie I walked out on in The Pit.

I thought you were into those macho biker dude-types! Your little twink probably thinks mopeds are too scary to ride. But I’m sure he’d love for you to wrap your arms protectively around him as you cuddle – oh, and I’m sure he has helium heels too! ;–)

I kind of think Artie and Dizzy would have taken the 71 bus or trolley (aka electric buses) to the zoo, not a Muni Metro LRV or a streetcar. I’m not aware of Muni using streetcars anywhere other than the E Embarcadero and F Market & Wharves Lines (E runs along the Embarcadero and F runs from the Castro down Market St to the Embarcadero), both completely on the surface using heritage streetcars. Muni Metro LRVs run in a subway under Market Street with another subway line opening in the future (2019?) to cross the current subway along 4th St, under Union Square, and ending up in Chinatown. Apparently the Powell Street Station will be the transfer station between the existing subway lines (plus BART) and the new line. All of the lines emerge from the subway tunnels and run on surface streets at some point. Transit information is available on 511.org. You can find predictions for transit arrivals at specific stops. You can also use the site to plan trips, including destinations that use multiple transit agencies in the Bay Area. (It always tries to tell me to use Amtrak to VTA to get to relatives for holidays in the San José/Silicon Valley area, but I prefer using BART to Caltrain which gives me the possibility of riding in Canadian-designed ‘Bombardier’ BiLevel Coaches.) Interestingly (or not), BART owns the existing subway stations that they share with Muni Metro (I’m not sure who owns the Van Ness, Church, and Castro Stations which are not shared with BART). 511.org is a website operated by the Metropolitan Transportation Commission, a nine-county regional transportation planning agency.

I’m not from the South! But even I’ve heard the expression somewhere, probably in a book or story. It’s funny because I usually avoid things set in the South. ;–) I’m guessing Adam walked Artie down the block past the Castro Theatre to Cliff’s Variety Store to buy the flag! There are so many restaurants in the Castro. Two of the ones that have been there the longest are Orphan Andy’s (a diner) and the Sausage Factory (which reopened after being closed for years, managers seem to hire only the cutest waitstaff)! Harvey’s doesn’t have anywhere near as long as history, but it a fun place to get a bite to eat too. ;–)

Sounds kind of like the original Japanese version of Iron Chef in the ‘90s. My parents used to watch the show on Fuji TV when it was broadcast on a small, Bay Area UHF station along with Japanese language historical dramas and game shows. There were six or eight hours of primetime weekend programming, all in Japanese with only some of it subtitled and none of it dubbed in English. I think one evening was Fuji TV and the other was Tokyo TV. My mother learned how to record the programs on a Betamax VCR in the ‘80s because she was so desperate to have them recorded. I was glad I had my own TV by that point! ;–)

I think most people were right when they said Dizzy isn't the best choice as Artie’s boyfriend. I think he’d make a much better fun best friend. But I’m not sure Ky would be any better as boyfriend. Much as I hate to admit it, Charlotte might be the best choice of the three! They seem to have an emotional connection that Artie doesn’t have with either of the boys. All three of the boys need to grow up!

Except for Annie on My Mind, everything on that list was published long after I’d moved on from a bookstore job in the early-‘90s. As much as I appreciate and enjoy GA, there is a huge gap between the publishing industry and online fiction sites. A wide variety of fiction is available if you know where to find it, but just like cable and streaming services with video, not everyone has access to what many people take for granted. It wouldn’t surprise me if I found out that GA was blocked by some parental filtering software and some countries – or even some schools and libraries! On the other hand, I stopped into a used bookstore on Castro Street (a store with a relatively short history on the two-block core section of the district that once supported at least three or four bookstores even as recently as the ‘90s). The very young salesperson was experiencing his first day on the job less than a week before the SF Pride Parade. I was looking to find out if there was a hardcover compilation version of Armistead Maupin’s most recent three books in the Tales of the City series. He had never heard of Tales of the City or Armistead Maupin. It turns out that they’ve never published a hardcover version of the final compilation. And that the series is shelved in a completely different part of the store. I told him he needed to read the book(s). ;–)

Are they related to the Gorn? ;–)

Has any major city in the world solved the housing crisis and the related transportation issues? Last night on BART, I told a recent college graduate from Ireland that the US is the first Third World Industrialized Country (in reference to SF’s horrifically visible homelessness population). We don’t allow our homeless to build large shanty Trumptowns outside our big cities the way many less developed countries do. We periodically force tent city residents to move or face the loss of all their possessions. In the US, we don’t provide sufficient mental health services for the majority of those who make up the long-term homeless. We don’t have transitional housing to allow them to shift into permanent housing. We rely on non-profits to provide the required first & last and deposits to rent apartments. We rely on non-profits to help find landlords who are willing to take the chance on renting to someone who might have a sketchy background. In the Bay Area, all cities have been assigned housing goals. But many cities ignore the goals and encourage much more lucrative commercial and retail development instead. There are many special interests that oppose high-density and/or below-market housing in their towns. There is resistance to tiny homes or micro-apartments. These would quickly add desperately needed housing. Increasing the density in existing urban areas would lessen the need to commute long distances. Upgrading existing infrastructure is less costly and less difficult than creating it from scratch. But large housing developments built in the ‘60s were not maintained and kept secure. They created nightmare regions in our largest cities with rampant crime and unsafe living conditions. So the solution was to tear down those housing projects, throwing people out of their homes. Exasperating the existing lack of affordable housing.

I read this soon after you posted it, but was very busy attending Frameline42. Everyone should attend an LGBTQ film festival at least once in their life. And everyone should watch a curated LGBTQ movie that they would not have chosen to buy a ticket for. At Frameline42, I was fortunate enough to have watched When the Beat Drops on the big screen. It was an incredible experience. It showed me a world I would never have otherwise known about. I’ll be adding to my thoughts in The Pit in the coming days. Last night, I saw Ideal Home. It starred Steve Coogan and Paul Rudd as a Gay couple who suddenly find they are parenting a 10-year-old grandchild, the byproduct of Steve’s character’s ‘experimental phase.’ The two men have a cooking show and a series of cookbooks. The young boy demands Taco Bell. The three go through a much more drastic culture shock than Connor, Leon, and Joel. The movie was amusing, but certainly no masterpiece. ;–) Have you noticed Sam’s expression doesn’t change when he promises not to deliberately make you cry. It doesn’t change when he thanks us. It’s almost like it’s printed on! ;–)

I read this chapter soon after you posted it, but I was attending Frameline42, the San Francisco International LGBTQ Film Festival. As always, it was an incredible experience, but I wish it were spread out a little time-wise so not only would it be less draining physically, but so I could possible see more of what they offer – there are often interesting Programs showing simultaneously in different venues, sometimes in different cities and counties. ;–) I’m sorry that the story has concluded. I will miss Finn, Christian, and Sam. I’d like to learn more about Sam’s people. As someone mentioned above, I’d like to know if there are more communities of Salamander People outside Sanctuary. And as mentioned, perhaps Finn and Christian’s family can create additional Sanctuaries. ;–) In addition to the destruction of natural habitats, gentrification destroys communities. In the Bay Area, the rapid increase in housing costs has driven low-income residents out of their long-term homes in communities that have been around for decades or longer. In my city, banks and other financial institutions are exasperating the situation by repossessing homes only to board them up, leaving them abandoned and subject to vandalism. In my part of the county, we haven’t gotten the influx of new jobs that other cities on the opposite end of the Bay Area are being inundated with. We deal with congestion on the freeways (and associated surface street gridlock when there is an accident on those freeways). We deal with the increased air pollution from all those idling or slowly moving vehicles. We don’t have large swaths of undeveloped or under-developed land available for new housing. So we deal with most of the disadvantages, but few of the advantages of a regional booming economy. Please come to visit the beautiful Bay Area. Spend lots of money! And go home when your vacation ends. ;–)

GRRM doesn’t do predictable. What if Daenerys gets killed by the Night King, but Jon inherits the remaining dragon(s). Cersei dies in childbirth. Jaime tries to save his final child with Cersei, but is killed while fleeing King’s Landing. Jon, who isn’t really Eddard’s bastard son, marries Sansa and sits on the Iron Throne. Arya marries Gendry, finally uniting the Starks with the Baratheons. Bran and Theon become advisors to King Jon – Theon replacing Varys because it is apparently mandatory that the King have a eunuch advisor.

Education is the key. That’s why the religious fundamentalists all over the world try to set up their own schools and handicap public schools. Highly educated people are more skeptical of the claims of the most conservative denominations and religions. Religious leaders have always edited and modified their holy books over the centuries. What is now the ‘holy’ bible was edited down from a much more extensive collection of ‘books’ by numerous authors. Words have been ‘corrected’ and reinterpreted over time as well. It’s so ironic the a Gay English king paid for the religious right’s favorite version of their fairytales. Many fools try to emulate the language of those long ago times thinking it makes what they say sound more godlike and important instead of fake and pretentious..

Will Tligg get in trouble for breaking some unspoken rule by using the dust? Or is there some distressing side-effect to its use? Is there a life-time limited supply of the stuff? ;–) Has your spray-on, all-over tan faded yet? Have you chosen headgear commensurate with your status? So many choices and yet you sit there all bare-pegged… ;–)

As for Troy’s surprise, I’m thinking… ;–)

I still vote for the GSA to show up to support Adam! It wouldn’t violate any of the restrictions imposed by the letter. When my mother died, there were several people who either barely knew or didn’t know her but attended the memorial service for me. ;–)

No questions about who’s on top! ;–) With JS/JL, I can see JS on his back with his knees next to his ears… Maybe JL can get a variety of different options from his usual golden hand! Or maybe JS likes the stump… (I think I read too many of Jess Mercer’s stories.) ;–)

You know nothing, Jon Snow! ;–) Do people write Jon Snow/Theon Greyjoy or Jon Snow/Jamie Lannister slash fiction? ;–)