FINALLY He Did Janis!

"Don't compromise yourself. You are all you've got"
-Janis Joplin

I suggested to my ex 2 YEARS AGO that he should do Janis Joplin as his weekly "Queer Music Friday" and he FINALLY did!!! Here are the videos he chose






So ironic that he would choose "Sumertime," becuae it always makes me think of him:

"Summertime, child, the livin's easy...."

I would only add this...




Every heartbreak I SURVIVED, even you-- ESPECIALLY YOU-- it was partly because of Janis (as melodramatic as that may seem).

"her range, her deep, soulful, bluesy rasp, her song interpretation, and her ability to show deep pain in her voice, and set her apart from most of the vocalists of the 20th century."

I told you so....

In her own words:

"I'm gonna call it 'I just made love to 25,000 people, but I'm goin' home alone'

"Being an intellectual creates a lot of questions and no answers."

"...tomorrow never happens, man. It's all the same fucking day."

God bless Janis. May she live forever....

Hump Day Fun

Wanda Sykes at the White House Correspondants Dinneer:

Great Britain's New Poet Laureate

Carol Ann Duffy was named Great Britain's poet laureate-- the first woman and the first openly queer (Tony Blair had concerns about that the first time Duffy was nominated). Winterson posted this in this months column. And of course Kay Ryan is our current poet laureate in the U.S. Maybe we are making progress....

Le Mot Juste

An extended haiku

Head on Pillow

Head on the pillow,
hair black as the sky outside
coming on midnight,

His body was a map
Unfolding, sprawled on the bed
Eyes like autumn leaves

Eyes, penny copper brown,
Piercing as a rusty nail,
Bloodshot from drinking

Calla lily lips,
Wet silk with a dash of lime,
Salt and tequilla,

Lonely, blackhearted—
all that I am or I was—
was gone with a kiss.

He whispered to me
And then the ghosts disappeared
Echo and a dream


Echo and a dream
You lie where he used to lay
blameless as Adam

Blameless as Adam,
unexpected as a storm,
ruin in it’s wake


his fingers played me
just like a virtuoso
skill undisputed

practiced as he was
so jaded so very young
lies like a cheap rug,

He whispered to me,
Flattering words unneeded
with eyes such as his.

my body his terrain
myself a map unfolding
bright revelation

Fuck the pain away
And caution and care be damned
Bull rush of fire

Breathless as he held
Me in the palm of his hand
pleasure’s vexation

Hands circled my hips
He kicked off the tangled sheets
And took me between his lips.

Drink me like water
Turned to wine at your command
Your shining hour

This lump in my throat
Gasping for the summer air
Brings me to my knees.

Bull rush of fire
Sheathed dagger seething release
Lover abandoned.


I’ve been here before
I return time and again
Over and over

Again and again
It goes around, comes around
Circle unbroken

Cat green-eyed sleeping
While the ghosts waited outside
Vigilance be damned.

New Hampshire Legislature Passes Same Sex Marriage

By a very thin margin of 178 to 167 New Hampshire's Legislature has voted in favor of a bill allowing gay marriage. Governor John Lynch, who has not been clear in the past about how he would respond should the bill pass the Legislature (though he has said the word "marriage" should be reserved for heterosexuals), now has 5 days to act on the bill before it automatically becomes law. On Wednesday, the Governor promised,

"I'm going to talk to legislators and I'm going to talk to the people of New Hampshire and ultimately make the best decision I can for the people of New Hampshire."

On the other hand, Gov. Lynch also noted:

“I still believe the fundamental issue is about providing the same rights and protections to same-sex couples as are available to heterosexual couples. This was accomplished through the passage of the civil-unions law two years ago. To achieve further real progress, the federal government would need to take action to recognize New Hampshire civil unions.”

Civil unions were legalized in New Hampshire in 2007. Those "unions" will automatically be recognized as "marriages,"-- no longer making gay citizens of New Hampshire"separate, but equal"-- should Gov. Lynch sign on.

Breaking News: Maine Legalizes Same-Sex Marriage!

CNN has reported that Gov. John Baldacci of Maine has signed a bill legalizing same-sex marriage in the state of Maine less than an hour after the state legislature approved the bill. Said Baldacci:

""I have come to believe that this is a question of fairness and of equal protection under the law and that a civil union is not equal to civil marriage."

On Tuesday, Washington City Council voted to recognize same-sex marriages from other states.

Vermont, Connecticut, Maine, Massachusets, Iowa and next New Hampshire. A similar bill has been introduced in Rhode Island, but is not expected to pass this year.

DWTS-- That Was Just WRONG

Ok. I confess, I love "Dancing with the Stars." This season, I admit has been a bit lackluster. Here are some highlights:













It's a shame Tye was picked over Lil' Kim for the semi-finals. I find it hard to believe. Kim is so much better.

But what do I know?

Monday Shorts

I don't have a new short story of my own for you this week, but Dame Winterson does. This is from Midsummer Nights, a collection of stories commissioned to celebrate the 75th Anniversary of the Glyndebourne Opera.

Here is Winterson's "The Goldrush Girl."

Hardly her best work but still nice to have something new which I think is the order ofr the day.

Check out your horoscope this month too.