Columnists
George Cecil Ives – Boogieman in Lavender
George Cecil Ives was gay before it was cool and openly gay before that was accepted. He was British and founded a secret society for “Homosexuals” called “The Order of Chaeronea” named after a battle where male lovers of the Theban Band had been slaughtered nearly 1500 years before. Ives co-founded what became the British Sexological Society, one of the first groups to take the study of human sexuality seriously. He knew Oscar Wilde personally and knew Lord Alfred Douglas intimately. And he was a writer. He wrote poetry, one novel and plenty of non-fiction. We know all this, because … Read more
U=(N/T)M*G: Shaun
It always surprises me when NASA is about to do something major, and their collective goofiness as people and nerds smacks me right in the face. The Artemis launch is one such example, though there have been many. The Mission Control mohawk guy is probably still one of my favorites. I have no doubt the Artemis mission will be a success, and with it humanity’s ambitious plan to set up the first major part of our path to Mars. It’s a wildly exciting time for space nerds like me and I’m vibrating in my chair with anticipation. A lot of … Read more
U=(N/T)M*G: ISS
I saw this in the news a few weeks ago and only got around to reading what was going on in the last couple of days. I gotta say, I’m pretty damned sad its come to this. Russia has decided it will no longer participate in the ISS after 2024. This ISS is an amazing triumph for humanity, not just the US and Russia. It was a symbol of hope for a lot of people, that no matter what drama was happening on the political stage, those who could actually do good for our world were still working together without … Read more
U=(N/T)M*G: Dreaming
I have a theory about the life on this planet. If there’s a brain, there’s intelligence, no matter how rudimentary. If there’s intelligence, there are dreams. Now, I don’t have clue what, say, a fish is dreaming about as it’s suspended in water, but I have noticed little twitches in my little Mycroft Betta when he’s asleep. The same twitches my zebra finches have when they’re sleeping. Same with the Cat Army. Same with my teenager. So, when I noticed this article about dreaming spiders (CW: SPIDERS), I wasn’t surprised. Terrified because spiders. Not surprised though. It did get me … Read more
Forewarned Is Forearmed—Jeff Baker, Boogieman in Lavender
Forewarned Is Forearmed by Jeff Baker They’re after us. And since I’ve found that a lot of the LGBT community don’t keep tabs on all the right-wing hate groups and I actually do, I decided to post a little information on some of the groups we should watch out for in case you or your friends or family come across a story online or otherwise from one of these groups, a story which may sound convincing and is often presented as “news.” I have been monitoring groups like this since the early 1990s. American Family Association Founded by onetime segregationist … Read more
In Which Christopher Isherwood Signs In Twice. Jeff Baker, Boogieman in Lavender
In Which Christopher Isherwood Signs In Twice! By Jeff Baker I treated myself to a rather pricey early birthday present last month: a signed copy of Christopher Isherwood’s novel Prater Violet. The autograph from Isherwood (1904-1988) was what I paid an extra penny or two for. But I wound up getting more than I paid for. Not one, but two autographs, as well as something of a mystery. First, a little background. Christopher Isherwood was the well-traveled, openly Gay author of (among other works) “Mr. Norris Changes Trains” which inspired “Cabaret” and “A Solitary Man” which inspired the recent movie … Read more
