Show Me Love!

For the love of all things holy, Robin S. is performing on the beach tonight for FREE in celebration of the 20th anniversary of Warsaw at Twist. Doesn't make a ton of sense, but it's Robin S. so who cares? Warsaw was Miami Beach's first gay club that closed down maybe 10 years back and was replaced by the overpriced Jerry's Deli. I hope Miami shows R. some love.

Get all the details here.

Bin Laden praises Noam Chomsky and talks about the environment

Bin Laden released a tape through al Jazeera blaming the industrialized world for global warming. I suppose one thing we can gather is that he’s evolving as an environmentalist. To make the story even juicier, he even gave good ol’ Chomsky a thumbs up. With bin being a true hater of Israel, and Noam a Jewish dude, the irony is strong with this one.

I think the real story here is that bin Laden has learned this lesson from Obama: you can catch more flies with honey than with vinegar. Sure he praised an attempted bombing over Detroit in a tape released a few days back, but now he’s coming forward and buttering us up with reason. Granted, it’s a no-brainer that the developed nations ruined the earth, and yes, we should have signed the Kyoto Protocol, we’re jerks. But to bin Laden, I will say, 1. nice to know what you think, and 2. you are a bit exaggerated in your blanked hatred of U.S. citizens. Many of us are responsible and intelligent, we recycle and conserve energy and water, we walk when we can, and we have sent hundreds, if not thousands of letters to government officials encouraging them to protect the earth over the years. If you are so committed to the environment, I think one thing to consider is that blowing things up is NOT good for the ozone, nor for air quality or plants or animals, etc. I think there’s a gap in logic there somewhere. A huge gap.

Yet another death: JD Salinger

When I was in 6th grade, I first read The Catcher in the Rye. I thought there could be no book written before or ever after that would completely capture my human experience like this one did. In following years, I devoured those few, great published Salinger stories; I even almost made it through Seymour: An Introduction.

There was no human I wanted to meet more in this world. I remember that I would get anxious just thinking that I would never be able to meet or see this brilliant recluse in person. Over the years, my obsession waned. I grew up and Holden Caulfield wasn't as strong a defining presence in my life anymore. No matter how many times I've reread a Salinger book, I still can feel those initial sensations I had as a kid. I daresay that there has never been a more enduring literary character than Holden, with his hunting cap, taking a step off the curb and not knowing if he'll reach the other side.

I guess I'll never see Salinger in this life. May he rest in peace.

Obscene and Amazing

Holy Lord! Vice Magazine has done something brilliant (for a change).
This somewhat subtle fashion spread reveals a certain other side of men. I think the inspiration came from the site "Awkward Boners." After years of watching women sexualized in the media, it's nice to have the switch flipped for a change. Hooray for chubs!

Call me. I respond.

This was sort of an exciting weekend. I mean, not much happened in my world directly, but something kind of awesome did happen. My old roommate and one of my besties, Nathan (Lam) Vuong, flew to DC from LA to exhibit one of his photographs at an art show, Call and Response, co-curated by his wonderful friend Kira Wisniewski.

Nathan and I had spoken about what he was going to do for the show when I visited him in Tampa at Christmas. Each artist was paired with a written piece, the call, and the art is the response. That day he took a bunch of pictures of me soaring through the air - tongue hanging out and glasses awry. I thought they'd be tossed aside, as ugly as I looked. Anyway, I encouraged (forcefully) my brother Jimmy and Leah, my sister-in-law, who live in DC to attend. It was was a great success, and more importantly and unexpectedly they were surprised to see, firsthand, this rad ass picture above. Apparently, Nate's pic was a crowd favorite and Jimmy was able to tell everyone that yes, that was his sister in the photo (we are true, genuine show-offs).

Congrats to Kira for getting a bunch of great press, which you can link to here and see more here. The show will remain up till Feb. 13 at the Hamiltonian Gallery, so if you're in the District, stop by and admire me, Jimmy's sister, and Nathan, who is clearly just inches away from his dream of being photographed on a jet ski.

Cats, bro, two of them

This is ridiculous(ly awesome). It's from this site. First of all, James St. James posted this image and secondly, it's a cat with a cat mark on its back. Too much for words.

Casiotone, bro

Not sure about this, but I think Casiotone for the Painfully Alone will be at the old PS14 tonight. I hope it's not like last time Casiotone was in Miami playing at the NADA preview and only I and maybe 5 others were his audience. There were too many "painfully alone" jokes to made.

ALSO:

On a very exciting note, Kim, formerly of Real Housewives of Atlanta fame, and now of the "hit" single, "Don't Be Tardy for the Party" popularity will be performing tonight in Ft. Lauderdale at Living Room. I just wish I had heard about this earlier and I wish I had a gay best friend still in Miami to force me to go to this. Did you hear that, gays? I'm available.

If I could date this guy, I would

Because all I do is read Flavorwire, I came upon this guy. Apparently, he's 22 years old, jobless, pees outdoors (right on) and lives entirely off of Craig's List ads, whatever that means. He's blogging his experience, which is what you do when you have nothing else going on (hello!). I'm not familiar enough with his writing, but the article's author accuses him of being half boring, half "hilariously dry-witted," if you're writing everyday, most of what you write is going to suck. It's the nature of the big, boring, bipolar writing beast.

Anyway, Jason, hit me up. I also have 2 first names, love driving the country, have a free couch and a hankering for boys with not much going on but a little ambition.

stuff, stuff, stuff

For when you're bored:

Photo blog
Famous people's passport photos
Art for good stuff
Stuff to buy

Chicken with its head cut off, right here.

This is a great blog to read about what's happening in Haiti: The Livesay Haiti Blog. These lovers of God have been living there for years. Whether or not you love Jesus, it's nice that they do and that they do right by mankind in the name of God. We all know that most people who say they love JC don't follow "the Word."

These are seriously amazing folks, really getting down and dirty, helping out in Hispaniola. I wish them the best.

on a different note:

Here's a site where artists illustrate 69 Love Songs.

Seriously, Massachusetts?

You suck, and shame on you!

He's fighting for your right to overeat.

The Burger Beast posted info on Man v. Food filming in Miami. One of my favorite people (ALFIE) is a producer on the show and asked me a while back to get some sexy Miami ladies to eat chili fries in bikinis. Yeah. I volunteered, but I think my boobs aren't big enough (for anyone). I guess they received a ton of funny pics off of the Craigs List ad for the show, nudies and such. You're jealous you don't work for the Travel Channel now, right? Boobs and fries, mmm.

Anyway, Adam Richman, the simple, hungry man who is possibly one of the grossest eaters of all time, will be filming here in Miami, so keep your eyes peeled for the gorging and future airing of the gorging. I can't wait to see him eat at La Moon! Get the perro colombiano and the mazorca desgranada, bro. They are delicious.

New thing at PS14

PS14 is reopening as something else, or perhaps as the same thing under a different name. Either way, tomorrow promises to be great because there will be an installation by Freegums. Come early because I heard that whatever is going on with him ends at 11, even though the party continues to 5. Alrighty, see you there!

Tito is not fat

For those of you who think Tito is fat, read this. This guy or girl or whatever has a 26 lb. cat. Tito is a mere 16 lbs. Big is beautiful, bitches. I know many of you are wondering, who cares about your cat. Well, fyi, many people, many, many people do.

He did manage to lose some weight, as far as I can tell by looking at him and cuddling him, after first gaining a stunning 4 lbs. in 4 months, while living with Nathan and I.

We like to feed, we like to eat.

I recently bought him some Paul Neuman organic food and he loathed it; thus he didn't eat much. Starvation diet! Just kidding. He ate it, but in a more healthy manner. He's looking trimmer and I'm pretty pleased, even though I loved him at his largest.

This was pointless, but I was inspired by the images in that article.

Jay Reatard is dead, too?

What is this with all these young people croaking? I was so obsessed with the earthquake in Haiti, I totally missed this news yesterday! I could seriously beat myself for not seeing him when I was in DC a few years back. I wanted to go, but it was cold and no one would go with me. Again, when I was in LA recently, I planned to attend his performance, and I couldn't make it and thanks to my brother's wedding I missed Gonerfest (thanks, Jimmy). The fact he was 29 made me think that I'd have another opportunity to attend a concert. I was wrong, I guess.

This is why I hate myself, Eddie! This is why!

Anyway, his death is being investigated as a homicide.

Here's the word on Flavorpill.

Man, oh man. Haiti.

This situation in Haiti is more than heartbreaking. After the initial disaster relief, how do you (re)build infrastructure for 3 million people?
Here's a good quote from Secretary of State Hillary Clinton:

But this is — I don’t want to mislead anybody. This is a devastating catastrophe. And just to figure out what steps to take so we don’t make the situation worse — I mean, it’s like looking at these collapsed buildings, Meredith. You know, you pull out one, you know, piece of wood; you may cause more damage than if you just let it stay there and went in a different way. This is incredibly complex work. We have some of the best people in the world from the United States down there, and we’re just going to do everything we can to be helpful.

Oh, Haiti

Wow, what's happened in Haiti is a genuine catastrophe. You'd be hard pressed to find a city with a poorer infrastructure that Mother Nature could simply wipe out so easily. The tragic result of this 7.0 earthquake seems immeasurable, not just because we have little idea what's going on in Port-au-Prince right now, but because the damage is so extensive.

In an age of extreme communication, with Skype, GPS, Twitter and cell phones, it's always surprising to realize how truly limited we are to the space in which we stand. Destructive world events make us realize how very far we actually are from each other and how much we rely on technology to connect us. Situations like this just point to how absolutely isolated we all are, tied to the present moment and present time.

I think the need to think about the way of life in impoverished countries is apparent, too. Haitians have long struggled with poverty, government corruption, coups, deforestation and so many other extreme conditions. Maybe this will shed a bit of light on the already terrible conditions in Port-au-Prince? The truth is, it's kind of too late, just like in New Orleans. I'm not going to get into a rant on race, Haitian history and the effect it had on the present situation, nor can I speculate on the results. I just want to express my sadness.

For up to date information on humanitarian relief, firsthand accounts and the international reaction to this disaster, check here.

To all of my Haitian friends and my Haitian cousins, I hope your loved ones are alive and well. If you are a Haitian-American looking for your loved ones, contact the State Department at 888-407-4747.

Read more here about those looking for relatives.

The Tragic Death of a Strongman

There is nothing real that is quite as delicious as my romantic ideas of what it was like to witness sideshows and traveling circuses in their heyday. Certainly the reality couldn't have been as fascinating as my fantasies of these spectacles, but I'll never know. Mass media and modern medicine have almost sucked all of the magic from the "unknown," freaks, superhumans and weirdos. (Luckily, TLC has picked up where the circus tents dropped off.)

Today, one of the last heroes of an era of intrigue and fascination was struck down and killed by a minivan. Joe Rollino, former strongman, and what sounds like one hell of a storyteller, died today at 104 years old. His story is amazing for its extreme tales of unbelievable physical strength and also the tragic, yet somewhat darkly comical details of his demise: that it was a minivan, that he was 104 and still going strong, that he could still bend a quarter in his teeth at an age where most have no teeth of their own. This sort of "real" life is more intriguing than literature (except in the case of John Irving). I wish there were more people still like Joe Rollino out there, telling their versions of the truth to make others' jaws drop. Every story encouraging the logical to say, "no way," while secretly, some small part of them, that faithful part, the young child inside, wants to believe, does still believe, that the incredible could possibly be a reality.

Read the NY Times story here.

Help out the bad guys for once. They're cold.

Every morning, when I cross the Julia Tuttle Causeway, I take a peek over at the sex offenders. I don't know enough about them, but since the temperature dropped, I started wondering about their comfort level. I sometimes think, in my shallowest mind, that it's not such a terrible place to live. They have beachfront property and they're not on the streets. It's a bit of a community, so maybe there's some room for interpersonal relationships, bonding and such. It gets hot, sure, but at least it's not cold. Well, now it is cold and that's a problem.

The Miami Herald posted a story about these poor bastards, shivering in the 40 degree weather with little warm themselves. I was impressed by the empathetic and non-judgemental tone of the article. No one likes sex offenders, I don't even think they like themselves, but they are human beings and deserve to be treated with some respect. I think all those "Christians" out there need to leave their heated mini-mansions and drive their SUVs to Julia Tuttle and love thy neighbors. Oh, but seriously, leave your kids at home (bad joke!!!).

Here's some background on the situation. It's crazy that the government encourages/enforces this living situation. I can't even wrap my brain around it to commentate.