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Author Topic: The Daily Sheet August 1 - 15, 2009  (Read 26268 times)

Offline Stilllearning

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The Daily Sheet August 1 - 15, 2009
« on: August 01, 2009, 05:26:03 AM »


Saturday, August 1st, 2009




A Reminder to Purge Your Personal Messages

Once again, we need to ask our members to be diligent in keeping their personal messages pruned as the forum is experiencing slowdowns.

Please delete as many messages as you can as it will help with the efficiency of the forum.

If you want to save PMs to your hard drive, refer to the tutorial on the FAQ thread. There's also a tutorial posted with information on pruning your personal messages.

Thank you.




When Your Husband's Other Woman is a Man

"Louise St. James, a thirty-two year old housewife and mother from Pennsylvania who requested her real name not be used, believed she had the perfect life. A caring husband with a great job that enabled her to remain at home full-time, a brand-new four bedroom home, and two wonderful children.

"But shortly after the birth of their second child several years ago, Louise says, "a distance developed in our marriage, and I felt like I couldn't do anything right." She kept asking how she could change things, and finally her husband admitted it had nothing to do with her. "He said, 'I'm afraid to say what I think the problem is, because I'd be unable to take it back,'" she says. Finally, she guessed that he was gay. They separated almost immediately.

'"One day you wake up and your whole world has changed," Louise says. "Where you thought you identified yourself in society has changed, and you have to figure out where you fit in now. You're stripped of your security and you're starting over. You think, 'What's going to happen to me?'"

"Cherie Schwartz of Seattle, still together with her husband Tom, who came out to her eight years ago after twenty-eight years of marriage and three children, agrees. "The total loss of your self-identity puts YOU in the closet. You don't trust your judgment on anything."

"Often, the husbands deny their feelings. They want a traditional life with a wife and children. The majority are not duplicitous. They love their wives, and hope their sexual attraction to men will go away. Being gay and being a family man are, for the most part, mutually exclusive in our society.

'"Yes, I had feelings about men," says Tom of Chicago, age thirty-seven, who came out to his wife ten years ago, and asked that his last name not be used. "But I never thought I'd deal with it. I didn't think I had a choice. I didn't think I'd ever act on it, and I prayed it would go away."

"Tom, who came out shortly after the birth of his child caused him to evaluate his life, says, "I didn't want to be gay. Why would anyone choose a life of ridicule and scorn? I truly loved my wife and cared about her, but I realized it wasn't fair to her to stay together."

"Susan, a thirty-eight year old Chicago mother of two who requested we not use her last name, learned her husband was gay ten months ago. The disclosure came after a period of serious depression and his attempted suicide. "It was almost a relief to me when he came out, because finally I knew what was triggering his depression," she says.

"Many times, both husband and wife have had few other sexual partners before marriage, are religious, and/or young when married. For both Louise and Susan, all three were true.

"These couples often fear the reactions of their community. Whether for religious reasons, fear of the husband's job being in jeopardy, or basic concern for what others will think, the pressure to keep the disclosure a secret is immense. This becomes a double-whammy for the wives, who not only have to absorb the shock that their husband prefers men, but at the same time feel like they can't talk with anyone. This isolation only adds to the trauma.



“Many times, both husband and wife have had few other sexual partners
before marriage, are religious, and/or young when married.”



'"You have this big dark secret, and a real fear of judgment," says Louise. You can't tell anyone anything, you can't tell the truth. Yet people still want to know WHY you are getting divorced. You realize, 'I'm the morning coffee talk now.'"

"Those who do eventually share their secret encounter mixed responses. Louise's priest gave her simple advice. "Your husband can't be gay, and you can't get divorced," she says he told her. She eventually found a good therapist and close friends who offered unconditional love and support. Both families were surprisingly supportive once informed.

"Surprisingly enough, not all marriages where the husband comes out end in divorce. According to Buxton, "One third break up right away. One third stay together for awhile to sort it out, and one third stay to make it work. About half of those succeed. Roughly fifteen percent are still together more than three years after the disclosure."

'"For most of the people who are still together, it's because they love each other very much, and have a history and a family in common. They're best friends," says Cherie, whose marriage has endured eight years beyond her husband's coming out. They've reached an agreement where her husband has a relationship with only one gay man, whom he sees two specific nights a week, which isn't always easy for Cherie. "My jealousy with Jim is there. Sometimes the relationship threatens me."

"All the women who have been through this process have similar recommendations for other women whose husbands have come out. Most agree that it's important to take it slow.

"Give it time," says Susan. "I wanted it to be all solved in the first two weeks. It can't be. It takes time."'

Read more. Source: mindspring.com
Photo from How to Confront A Cheating Husband Source: ehow.com




Best-Selling Author Told of Black Gay Life

"E. Lynn Harris, 54, a best-selling novelist who opened a door on a hidden side of African American life, writing about outwardly heterosexual men leading secret gay lives, died July 23 after collapsing at a Beverly Hills hotel during a book tour.

"His taboo-breaking books about black gay life "on the down-low" made Mr. Harris a star literary figure after an inauspicious beginning to his career. In 1991, he had used the last of his savings to self-publish his first book, Invisible Life, about a married lawyer's double life. He drove all over Atlanta, selling his novel from the trunk of his car to beauty parlors, bookstores and reading groups.

"Mr. Harris, who began his career as a computer salesman, remained somewhat mystified by his success, since his provocative subject matter had long been ignored or driven underground in African American culture.

'"If you were African American and you were gay, you kept your mouth shut and you went on and did what everybody else did," he said last year in an interview with the Associated Press. "You had girlfriends, you lived a life that your parents had dreamed for you."

"Critics sometimes derided Mr. Harris's fiction as formulaic and simplistic, but his readers remained loyal. He believed part of the appeal of his books was their depiction of an underground world, the "down-low," that many African Americans were reluctant to accept.

'"Although I am openly gay," he wrote in Essence magazine in 2004, "I was part of the down-low scene for years, drawn to men who considered themselves neither gay nor bisexual. When I wrote my first novel, 'Invisible Life,' in which a young man is torn between his married male lover and his girlfriend, I was stunned that so many African-American women didn't know that a handsome, masculine-looking Black man might become intimate with another man."'

Read more. Source: washingtonpost.com




Harvey Milk Among Medal of Freedom Honorees

"President Obama said Thursday he will bestow the nation's highest civilian honor on slain San Francisco Supervisor Harvey Milk, making him the first openly gay civil rights leader to receive the award and drawing praise from activists who have criticized Obama for shortchanging their cause.

"The president named Milk and tennis great Billie Jean King - the first openly lesbian athlete of prominence - among 16 recipients of the Presidential Medal of Freedom, including Archbishop Desmond Tutu, actors Sidney Poitier and Chita Rivera, the late Congressman Jack Kemp and U.S. Sen. Ted Kennedy.

"The president's decision to honor Milk and King comes as gay-rights leaders have criticized the president for not pushing to repeal the "don't ask, don't tell" policy for gays in the military and for failing to act aggressively enough to undo the Defense of Marriage Act, a federal law that does not recognize same-sex marriage.

"Milk, whose life was the subject of a Hollywood film last year, was elected to the city's Board of Supervisors in 1977, becoming the first openly gay politician elected in a major U.S. city. He and then-San Francisco Mayor George Moscone were assassinated a year later by former Supervisor Dan White.

"State Sen. Tom Ammiano, a former San Francisco supervisor who is gay, said he was thrilled at Obama's recognition of Milk.

'"In the context of everything that is happening with regard to 'don't ask, don't tell" and (the federal marriage law), this is a good gesture for him politically," Ammiano said.

"But he added: "If Harvey was alive today, he would say, 'Thanks for the honor - now repeal those bills.' "

Read more.  Source: sfgate.com




Support Grows for Mormons Who Embrace Gay Rights

"The Committee for Reconciliation, made up of current and former members of the Mormon Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (LDS), is gathering signatures for a petition that pleads with the church to reconsider its policies and political activism related to gay rights.

"Cheryl Nunn, a spokesperson for the Committee, says it has garnered over 1360 signatures since June, and plans to submit the petition to church leaders in November, on the first anniversary of the passage of Proposition 8.

"Nunn told Silicon Valley Mercury News that the petition is a reaction to the Utah-based church's involvement in the 2008 ballot initiative that banned gay marriage in California.  The petition also seeks an apology for church policies and practices that some believe have marginalized or hurt gay Mormons and their families."

For more information and to sign the petition, visit the ldsapology.org website.

Read more. Source: examiner.com




Next ‘Batman’ Starts Shooting in 2010

"One of the biggest challenges for Warner Bros. in terms of coming up with a sequel to the highly successful and universally acclaimed The Dark Knight, the last installment of Batman, was to find a way to make it bigger and better now that Heath Ledger’s The Joker was gone. Despite rumors to the contrary, Gary Oldman says the film is a go, with a production start date set for next year, HitFix informs.

'"While finishing up a panel promoting his new film The Book of Eli at Comic-Con in San Diego today, Gary Oldman broke some massive news regarding Christopher Nolan’s Batman franchise. When asked by a fan when the next movie would start filming, Oldman stunned the crowd by actually answering the question. 'The next Batman is shooting next year. It’s at least two years away,' Oldman says. Then realizing what he may have caused by answering, Oldman joked, 'But you didn’t hear it from me'." HitFix writes."

Read more. Source: seattletimes.nwsource.com




Heath Ledger's Final Film
Previewed at Comic-Con


"Heath Ledger fans attending the San Diego Comic-Con got a peek at the late actor's final performance, in The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus.

"Gilliam described Ledger a young man beyond his years.

'"Heath was very old. I always thought he was 100 or 200, and there was a wisdom about him," the director said. "He was playful and fearless, and I think he would have been the greatest actor of his [generation], and a few other generations as well."'

Read and see more. Source: seattlepi.com




Ang Lee Partnership Gives Him a Broad Film Focus

"Ang Lee and James Schamus have two of the best jobs on the planet.

"Lee gets to direct films ranging from Academy Award winners (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and Brokeback Mountain) to superhero tales (Hulk) to the sexually explicit thriller Lust, Caution. Schamus, Lee's writing and producing partner, is a Hollywood rarity, a writer who wields power as head of his own production and distribution outfit.

"So when Lee came to Schamus with his latest idea -- Taking Woodstock, a behind-the-scenes look at the 1969 rock music love-in -- they were off and running in an instant.

""I got back to him right away. I was like, 'Let's do this one,' " Schamus said in an interview alongside Lee at this year's Cannes Film Festival.

"The two have been working together since Lee's first film, 1992's Pushing Hands, produced through Good Machine, a production company Schamus co-founded.

Since then, Schamus has had producing or writing credits on most of Lee's films, among them The Wedding Banquet, Sense and Sensibility, Crouching Tiger and The Ice Storm, which earned Schamus the screenplay prize at the 1997 Cannes festival.

"After their frothy first films together, Lee went into a dark patch, beginning with the sober domestic drama The Ice Storm. The tone remained bleak through the next five movies.


Lee directing Taking Woodstock.

'"It feels like I was in a deep abyss, so I had to come out for a breath of fresh air," said Lee, who won the best-director Oscar for Brokeback Mountain. "Ever since the first one, The Ice Storm 13 years ago, I said, 'Someday, I'm going to do a comedy, warm at heart, with no cynicism."'

"Schamus joked that Lee's mid-life crisis was "really going on."

'"It was like the line from Woody Allen. 'I like your early, funny movies,' " Schamus said. "I found myself saying that to Ang for like a decade."'

Read more. Source: thedailynewsonline.com




Annie Proulx at Seattle Arts & Lectures Series

"At the moment it seems like summer will never end, but autumn is just around the corner, and with it comes the 2009-10 season of Seattle Arts & Lectures, the city's signature literary series."

Kicking off the series this year, which includes Lydia Davis, Michael Chabon, Elaine Pagels, and David Byrne, among others, is Annie Proulx:

"Oct. 7: Annie Proulx, the Pulitzer Prize/National Book Award-winning author of The Shipping News and Brokeback Mountain, the story that inspired the movie of the same name.

"For times and ticket prices, go to www.lectures.org or call 206-621-2230. Also check out SAL's upcoming poetry series, its Wednesday University adult-education programs and Writers in the Schools events."

Read more. Source: seattletimes.nwsource.com




Prince of Persia Eye Candy









WikiWhat?

Today's WikiWhat? brings you Edward Albee, the Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning gay American playwright.

"Edward Franklin Albee III (born March 12, 1928) is an American playwright best known for Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, The Zoo Story, The Sandbox and The American Dream. His works are considered well-crafted, often unsympathetic examinations of the modern condition. His early works reflect a mastery and Americanization of the Theatre of the Absurd that found its peak in works by European playwrights such as Jean Genet, Samuel Beckett, and Eugène Ionesco. Younger American playwrights, such as Pulitzer Prize-winner Paula Vogel, credit Albee's daring mix of theatricalism and biting dialogue with helping to reinvent the post-war American theatre in the early 1960s.

"Albee moved into New York's Greenwich Village, where he supported himself with odd jobs while learning to write plays. His first play, The Zoo Story, was first staged in Berlin. The less than diligent student later dedicated much of his time to promoting American university theatre. He frequently spoke at campuses and served as a distinguished professor at the University of Houston from 1989 to 2003.

"A member of the Dramatists Guild Council, Albee has received three Pulitzer Prizes for drama—for A Delicate Balance (1967), Seascape (1975), and Three Tall Women (1994); a Special Tony Award for Lifetime Achievement (2005); the Gold Medal in Drama from the American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters (1980); as well as the Kennedy Center Honors and the National Medal of Arts (both in 1996).

"Albee is the President of the Edward F. Albee Foundation, Inc., which maintains the William Flanagan Creative Persons Center, a writers and artists colony in Montauk, New York. Albee's longtime partner, Jonathan Thomas, a sculptor, died on May 2, 2005, from bladder cancer.

"In 2008, in celebration of Albee's eightieth birthday, a number of his plays were mounted in distinguished Off Broadway venues, including the historic Cherry Lane Theatre. The playwright directed two of his one-acts, The American Dream and The Sandbox there. These were first produced at the theater in 1961 and 1962, respectively."




Brokeback Mountain in London Next Year?

Forum member andy has posted in Ooops - the Little Brits Discussion thread:

"A recent comment on TOTW has sparked interest amongst some Brokies with regard to a screening of [Brokeback Mountain] somewhere in the UK. This idea is nowhere near being off the ground yet but maybe this post will spark further interest and give us an idea as to whether it's worth pursuing. Please direct all comments and thoughts on the Brit thread and we'll see what comes out of it."



Post of the Day

Posted by foreverinawe in the Film vs. Book -- Which was better? thread:

Hi folks,

I'm new to this group, although I've been a member of the BBM yahoo group for years. I just got curious, and decided to look around. Surprise! You've got some wonderful posters, and in the past two days I've read all 50 pages of Film vs Book — Which was better? Like a lot of you, I long ago decided that each is a masterpiece, and while they certainly have differences, they mesh in my mind as a perfect symbiosis.

My handle, if you didn't notice, is foreverinawe. That's meant literally and figuratively.

Most of this thread is from the first year of the movie, and while I love it all, I'm not here to re- plow this rich ground. I was recently inspired to do something unusual, and to be perfectly honest, I'm a bit proud of it. It's a video. I'd like you to see it.
  [...]



Here's the Youtube link (hit Pause, then let the buffer fill completely before hitting Play!).



Quote of the Day


“It does not take much strength to do things, but it
requires a great deal of strength to decide what to do.”


~  Elbert Hubbard  ~



Photocaption of the Day

By trekfan in Photo Captioning Fun 5




Ennis: Sheep? I didn't come up here to herd sheep. I thought this was Vegas. I knew I took a wrong turn in Albuquerque.





Contributors: andy, foreverinawe, Lyle (mooska), trekfan



Calendar of Events

If you have ideas about initiating a gathering, go to Start Your Own Threads
and get the ball rolling to plan a get-together near you.

Mini-Slash Bash
Philadelphia - October 23-25, 2009

Let us know of any events you’d like listed here.




The Daily Sheet is a production of The Ultimate Brokeback Forum at www.davecullen.com/forum.

Editors emeritae: CactusGal, Marge_Innavera, tellyouwhat, Stilllearning, MissYouSoMuch

Researchers: BayCityJohn, BrokenOkie, Killersmom, Kittyhawk, Marge_Innavera, Stilllearning

Today's edition by gnash

Formatters: denim girl, gnash

Today’s edition formatted by gnash

We count on you to send us your news items, questions, and nominations for posts of the day.
If you have items you’d like to see published, send them to tds@davecullen.com.

To subscribe to The Daily Sheet, click the “Notify” button at the top or bottom of the page.
When a new issue of TDS is posted, you will be notified by e-mail.

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Offline Stilllearning

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Re: The Daily Sheet August 1 - 15, 2009
« Reply #1 on: August 04, 2009, 07:37:10 AM »



Tuesday, August 4th, 2009


Ups, and a Few Big Downs



Last week was marked by two reminders that homophobic violence can surface anywhere, and can be lethal.

First, three bombs were thrown at the World Outgames in Copenhagen, injuring runner Dean Koga. Koga had shrapnel removed from his hand but returned to the Games the next day to win a gold medal in the men's 200-meter competition.  The attacker claimed after his arrest that he was only throwing firecrackers; however, the bombs were described as being about nine inches in length. The attacker had six more devices in his backpack.


The Saturday attack on a community center club for young gay people was more deadly. A man wearing black, his face hidden by a ski mask, entered the center quietly and opened fire, wounding about 10 people and killing 26-year-old youth counselor Nir Katz and 16-year-old Liz Trubeshi. Neighbors speculated that the gunman knew the area well, as the location for the club was not made public and many of the young people meeting there were not even out yet to their parents.

Demonstrations and vigils took place over the weekend in cities all over the world, including Tel Aviv. Although it was considered a very gay-friendly city, Tel Aviv has well-organized and very vocal anti-gay groups, particularly the ultra-Orthodox Sephardi religious party, Shas.

Blogger and novelist Patricia Nell Warren is among observers who don't think notes that "all across Europe recently, anti-gay violence is ramping up -- . . . . the anti-gay crime wave is part of a larger surge of European hostility against Jews, Muslims and unwanted immigrants. Europe is having its own problems with illegal aliens, especially those from eastern Europe and African countries who are desperately looking to escape from poverty and political meltdown in their own countries."

On Monday, according to Israel.jpost.com,  Knesset held a plenum debate on Saturday's incident, but only 20 MKs attended. MP Nitzan Horowitz, who is gay, stated that "the Knesset must declare that this was a terror attack against the whole of Israeli society and our right to live freely. . . " I get weekly complaints from people in various sectors, mainly haredi and Arab, of threats, discrimination and attacks. If you just take a look at certain Web sites and talkbacks, hear the public discourse and hear what educators say, you are shocked by the level of incitement."



Other News

  Albania’s governing Democrats have proposed a law allowing same-sex civil weddings. Albania is a predominantly Muslim country and the announcement on the government's Web site acknowledged that the bill “may spark debate.” However, Prime Minister Sali Berisha expected the law to pass. Berisha's Democrat party controls 74 of the Parliament’s 140 seats.

 According to the Chicago Tribune, "Chicago's Commission on Human Relations will honor gay military veterans at an event in downtown Chicago. 'With Liberty and Justice for All' will be held on Aug. 5 at Richard J. Daley Plaza. Organizers say the event is the country's only municipally sponsored military salute to gay veterans.

"U.S. Rep. Mike Quigley is slated as a featured speaker. He has co-sponsored a bill that would repeal 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell,' the US military's ban on openly gay servicemembers. The keynote speaker is a member of the Chief of Naval Operations Executive Panel and the U.S. Navy Diversity Senior Advisory Group.

"The keynote speaker is a member of the Chief of Naval Operations Executive Panel and the U.S. Navy Diversity Senior Advisory Group. Luke Visconti was on active duty as a naval aviator and commissioned officer with the Navy from 1982 to 1990, and in the reserves until 1992."

For more details, see the story at Chicago Pride.  

  "The annual meeting of Quakers in York has decided to hold gay marriages. According to those present, many hugged and burst into tears when the decision was announced.

"This makes Quakers, formally known as The Society of Friends, the first mainstream religious group in Britain to officially sanction gay marriage.

"Although they now plan to ask the government to make marriage legal for gay couples, they will not ask their registrars to break the law.

"A statement from the group read: 'We are being led to treat same sex committed relationships in the same way as opposite sex marriages, reaffirming our central insight that marriage is the Lord’s work and we are but witnesses. The question of legal recognition by the state is secondary.'

"The group will now arrange a draft revision of the relevant sections of the group's prayer book and the next edition of Quaker Faith and Practice will be revised so that gay marriages can be "prepared, celebrated, witnessed, recorded and reported to the state, as opposite sex marriages are".

For the full story, see Pink News.




Brokeback Perspectives

"Somehow, I had missed Brokeback Mountain when the world seemed to be enraptured by it, and so after a conversation with a friend I finally sat down to it."
  
More than three years after the movie premiere Brokeback Mountain, both the short story and movie, continue to inspire thoughtful analysis and insights.  "Somehow," writes India blogger Sayrem, "I had missed Brokeback Mountain when the world seemed to be enraptured by it, and so after a conversation with a friend I finally sat down to it."

She watched it three times before sitting down to write "After the first watch, all that remained of the movie was a collection of images and a realization that never before had I been so utterly moved by a love story, for that is what it is, titles of a gay cowboy movie be damned. It is the story of a shared love, love that is not once called love through a lifetime, because it yet does not know its own name and also perhaps because it is denied by its own preperator.

"The second watch still left me dazed , the sheer power of Lee's imagery is incalculable. Jack and Ennis barely speak, their dialogues, especially Ennis' are at a bare minimum and yet they wash you totally with a deep, gnawing, longing.

"After the third watch to-night, I think I can finally begin to understand the different layers on which this movie is fleshed out."

Sayrem made up for last time with a detailed, thought-provoking essay that focuses on Ennis' character and the images and illustrate and add depth to the love story. "There is something forlorn and broken about Ennis even as we see him in the opening scene," she says, as he "walks with a head bent forward, weight on his sturdy shoulders, all his worldly possessions in a brown paper bag. The brown paper bag would re-surface at the end, when again, he carries all that he has in this world in a brown paper bag- Two shirts, remnant of the only love he had ever experienced;" although Ennis has "enormous capacity for love, coming even from his abandonment."


"Ennis speaks of his bringing up and slow abandonment by his siblings, and though he bears no bitterness, its understandable enough that Jack is the first person he's ever mentioned this to. ('Hell it's the most I've spoken in a year.")  Perhaps there is a consciousness of having spoken too much, for Ennis seems partly ashamed of his now exposed brokenness. There is a ghost of a smile that never does come, inhibited like all other emotions in him. Yet he shall soon learn to open up to Jack, however briefly or rarely."

Sayrem distinguishes between "Ennis' practical plans" and "Jack's longings." At the end of their final confrontation, "Ennis falls down to his knees, both trying to escape from [Jack] and cling to him. Ennis might be in a state of cognitive dissonance , or denial, but sure as hell Jack wasn't to blame -- 'Its because of you that I am like this. I'm nothin, I'm nowhere.'  This is Ennis' fear in seeing a murdered homosexual as an 8 yr old. He has painfully tried to carve out a safe path for himself and Jack and nowhere does his scarred psyche and need for Jack become as vividly apparent as here."

"There is no doubt," Sayrem concludes, "that the movie is a powerful lobby, and because it appeals to our hearts with images, rather than mind with words, we are left just all the more vulnerable."


Read the rest of this essay at Chronicling Lyfe.




In the Cyber-Neighborhood

Somewhere, sometime, most of us have seen those models of the solar system using rubber balls or oranges, just as we've seen countless "views" of outer space in countless special effects movie extravaganzas.   However, the abundants of visual treats offered by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), prove that the reality is far more spectacular than what any science project or popcorn movie could offer.

Some of NASA's "pictures of the day" show Earth scenes from an astronomer's point of view, while others show vistas much further out in the cosmos. Each image incudes a deteailed explanation including numerous links to related subjects, mostly in other parts of NASA's websites. There's a new photo each day, with a complete index.  Click on the titles to find out what pictures with titles like "Asteroid Eros Reconstructed," "The Running Chicken Nebula" and "Strangers On Mars" look like.


   

Devil's Tower, Wyoming, about 40 miles southeast  of Lightning Flat, framed by the Milky Way.

Click on the image for a larger view.
        



"A view near a black hole"

Click on the image for a larger view.


NASA offers other visual treats.  In addition to its photo gallery, videos and images of space scenes, planets, astronauts and equipment can be found at at NASA images, and GRIN (Great Images In NASA) focuses on the history of the space program and offers "images of significant historical interest".  NASA even has an online Images Shop with related books for sale.




BBM Shirts On Display This Month

Three years ago this summer there was a frenzy of bidding on costumes and props from Brokeback after they went up for sale on eBay. While Forum members snagged prizes such as Ennis' truck and Lureen's rodeo outfit, the most coveted artifacts from the film are the two shirts that Ennis enshrines in his trailer after Jack's death.  These were purchased by collector, producer, and sociopolitical commentator Tom Gregory for $100,000.  Last week the Autry National Center of the American West in Los Angeles announced that it will be displaying the shirts in its Imagination Gallery starting Wednesday, August 5th.

In a press release announcing the loan, the Autry Center stated that "the Western genre is an American art form that has played a crucial role in the development of American popular culture. Putting the Western into a larger historical context, the Imagination Gallery shows how the genre has evolved over the last one hundred years in response to social and cultural changes taking place in America. The iconic shirts are at the center of the Contemporary Westerns case in order to highlight Brokeback Mountain’s significance in keeping the Western genre alive and thriving in the new millennium, and also to spotlight the LGBT community’s struggle for safety and inclusion in the rural, Western communities from where many originate yet often feel forced to abandon.

"Noted author Gregory Hinton conceived the idea of displaying the iconic shirts at the Autry while doing research for his fifth novel, Night Rodeo. 'I noticed they were missing,' Hinton told [Tom] Gregory when he tracked him down on his website on New Year’s Day 2009. Mr. Gregory, owner of the iconic shirts, won them in a 2006 charity auction. At their first meeting, Mr. Gregory confessed to Mr. Hinton that after he bought them, he had assumed he would be hearing from museums offering to display the shirts. No one called until Mr. Hinton did, three years later."

The shirts will be displayed along with mannequins of Steve McQueen from Tom Horn (1980) and Jeff Bridges from Wild Bill (1995), as well as gun belts and revolvers worn by Chevy Chase, Steve Martin, and Martin Short in the comedy ¡Three Amigos! (1986). A special section focusing on Clint Eastwood includes mannequins from Pale Rider (1985) and Unforgiven (1992).

See the Autry Center website for more details.






Fun Question of the Week



This week’s Question: What are the top 2 most recognized scents in the world?

Let us know your answer in the response thread.

Last week's question and answer: Tell us your initial, first-read-through answer:

How many "F"'s are in the following text:

FINISHED FILES ARE THE RE
SULT OF YEARS OF SCIENTI
FIC STUDY COMBINED WITH
THE EXPERIENCE OF YEARS...

Did you see 3? Actually there are 6 "F"'s, apparently related to the way our brain processes the word "of"



 

Pruning Time


It's time for summer pruning of personal messages! We have a busy forum, and the number of accumulating personal messages has caused slowdowns.

Don't forget the "Out" box! If you have the option checked, every reply you send is saved in that folder, and these can accumulate quickly.

You needn't lose messages that you really want to keep.  Click on the link for instructions on saving messages to a hard drive, and go here for tips on pruning personal messages.



In the Blogosphere

Bil Browning at Bilerico welcomes its new Indiana correspondent:

"Please join me in welcoming Betty Greene Salwak as the newest Bilerico-Indiana contributor!

"Betty Greene Salwak is a transplanted Floridian living in Indiana with her husband of 30 years and their two children. She began her professional life as a Language Arts teacher, became a sales trainer during her corporate period, and was plucked from the congregation of her church to write a five-year curriculum for the elementary Sunday School. Betty is a long-time Bilerico reader and commented under the username "Birdie." She recently guest posted about her fight against conservative Christianity. Betty will also be blogging on Bilerico Project."

Betty is also known to many Forum friends as neatfreak.



The Forum Image

MaineGirl has shared contrasting views of a lighthouse and many other scenes from coastal Maine.





Starting at in Life Through the Lens 3.


and killersmom caught an unusual red-and-white garden perspective:



starting at in Life Through the Lens 3.



Quote of the Day

“Giving up doesn't always mean you are weak. Sometimes it means that you are strong enough to let go.”

~ Author Unknown ~



Photo Caption Classics

Contributed by gnash in Photo Captioning Fun 5:



for he loved a really little itsy bitsy dog.




Contributors: MaineGirl, killersmom, gnash



Calendar of Events

If you have ideas about initiating a gathering, go to Start Your Own Threads
and get the ball rolling to plan a get-together near you.

Mini-Slash Bash
Philadelphia - October 23-25, 2009

Let us know of any events you’d like listed here.




The Daily Sheet is a production of The Ultimate Brokeback Forum at www.davecullen.com/forum.

Editors emeritae: CactusGal, Marge_Innavera, tellyouwhat, Stilllearning, MissYouSoMuch

Researchers: BayCityJohn, BrokenOkie, Killersmom, Kittyhawk, Marge_Innavera, Stilllearning

Today's edition by Marge_Innavera

Formatters: denim girl, gnash

Today’s edition formatted by denim girl

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« Last Edit: August 05, 2009, 07:37:07 AM by Marge_Innavera »

Offline Stilllearning

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Re: The Daily Sheet August 1 - 15, 2009
« Reply #2 on: August 08, 2009, 05:34:00 AM »


Saturday, August 8th, 2009



Ventura College English Class Publishes Anthology: Writers by the Sea

"You hold in your hand work that we have selected to share with you, the reader, work that we wrote, for the most part, this summer 2009 as part of our productivity for English 1B at Ventura College. You can learn more about who we are by reading our bios at the end of this collection.

"We can’t escape being influenced in our writing and our choices with what we’ve read this summer. We started out the first day of class with a poem by Nanao Sakaki, Break the Mirror ... Break the Mirror set the stage for our journey this summer into Ways of Seeing, including John Berger’s seminal work. What do we see? How do we see it? How does that influence how we read the world—and ourselves?

"Following our sojourn into dramatic literature, we immersed ourselves in the world of Ray Carver as we read his collection, Where I’m Calling From. We also read the short stories Yellow Woman by Leslie Marmon Silko, Red Convertible by Louise Erdrich, and Brokeback Mountain by Annie Proulx.

"We finished the semester with fiction and a research project which we published on another blog. Some of us chose to read and study Ceremony by Leslie Marmon Silko and others did Beloved by Toni Morrison. Two research blogs covered the experiences of individuals who go through war as inspired by Ceremony and gender roles and gay rights as influenced by Brokeback Mountain.

The essay about Brokeback Mountain included in the Writers by the Sea anthology was submitted by Jordan Clegg, and is entitled, A Deeper Look Into Brokeback Mountain.

Read more. Source: whisperdownthewritealley.wordpress.com




Heath Ledger's Modest Mouse Video Released


"There's been much talk and speculation regarding the Heath Ledger-directed video for No One's First, And You're Next's "King Rat." The EP's out ... and so is Ledger's clip.

"In January of 2007, while visiting his homeland of Australia, Heath Ledger presented Isaac Brock of Modest Mouse with an idea to direct a video for their yet-to-be-released song 'King Rat'. Heath's vision, brave and unapologetic in its nature, would marry his love of bold and original music with his impassioned stance against the illegal commercial whale hunts taking place of the coast of Australia each year. Always one to operate from his heart and take a stand for what he cared deeply about, Heath's intention was to raise awareness on modern whaling practices through a potent visual piece without having to say a word. It was his way to let the story, in its candid reversal, speak for itself."

Read more.  Source: stereogum.com




Ang Lee Appears at Frameline Sneak Preview of Taking Woodstock

"Director Ang Lee, along with screenwriter/producer James Schamus and star Demetri Martin appeared [Wednesday night] at a preview of Taking Woodstock at Embarcadero Cinemas. The film is a gorgeously shot and executed ode to the late 60s, and, unlike much of Lee's work of the last decade, it is LOL funny and doesn't end tragically. It's anchored by the story of Elliot Tiber, a young gay man who, while managing his parents' motel in the Catskills, became a central figure in bringing the great hippie tsunami of '69 to Bethel, New York. The movie features a fine and subtle performance by stand-up comedian and first-time actor Martin (pictured, tripping, with Kelli Garner and Paul Dano), a restrained turn by Liev Schrieber as a transsexual, and a killer performance by Imelda Staunton at Elliot's mother that will, mark our words, win her an Oscar.

"The screening was a benefit for Frameline, SF's LGBT film fest organization, and though not really a gay movie by any stretch, there is a sub-plot about the central character's (sort of) coming out. Lee, Schamus and Martin participated in a post-screening Q&A, and when asked about his obsession with iconic American stories (Ice Storm, Brokeback Mountain), Lee talked about his love for his adopted home and about how a lot cowboys were probably gay."

Read more.  Source: sfist.com





Remembering Merce Cunningham




April 16, 1919 – July 26, 2009
"Merce Cunningham’s body no longer fills this space called life. He exited peacefully [on] July 26th, and now leaves an emptiness where his genius once was. And at 90 his genius was enormous. With proof of a career that spanned seven decades, over 200 dance works choreographed, a 56-year-old company and a demanding dance technique that shares his name, a gift for collaborations that changed the look and language of dance, numerous awards and accommodations that included a Kennedy Center honor, and an inspiration, teacher and sage to many who have achieved successful and prolific careers such as Paul Taylor, Mark Morris and Twyla Tharp.

"Cunningham loved pure movement and was compelled with a curiosity about the mechanics and physical process of getting from one position to another. To him dance was stymied by the emotionalism and story telling, even sometimes musical accompaniment. He wanted a "democracy of movement"—no element—neither the dancer, the music, nor choreography should be dominant, but they should feed on one another." It was his chase for the creation of pure movement that led to his collaboration with some of the 20th century’s biggest avant garde names, artist Robert Rauschenberg and long time partner musician John Cage. It was with Cage, that Cunningham began exploring the theory that music and dance should be simultaneous but independent that dance did not have to illustrate music.

"He always stayed true to his voice even when he had "things thrown at him and people leaving." And he never stopped asking the questions "but" and "what if?" Never conventional even in creating, he would sometimes use chance or I Ching to determine steps or choreographic flow. He once wrote, "You have to love dance to stick to it. It gives you nothing back, no manuscripts to store away, no painting to show on walls…no poems to be printed and sold, nothing but that single fleeting moment you feel alive."  I have to disagree with him ... dance does give back—it gave us Merce Cunningham."

Read more.  Source: examiner.com




Grace Jones -- Gloriously Theatrical at Unique Gig

"So many performers are said to be larger than life, but the showbiz cliché has never been truer than it is for Grace Jones. As she proved [Sunday night] at her Hollywood Bowl extravaganza, this Jamaica-born model/singer-actress/Studio 54 icon breathes life into costumes the size of New York City apartments: For her impossibly luxurious rendition of the Edith Piaf classic La Vie En Rose, she donned a fire-engine-red outfit that looked like a cross between a monster mutant rose, a burst of hellfire and a Chinese New Year dragon. Midway through the song, she turned around to reveal that her entire backside was thoroughly naked except for a few strings to hold her facade in place. The well-heeled crowd — seemingly all members of L.A.’s entertainment elite — roared as if they’d seen the second coming.

"Which, of course, they had. Jones is the model for countless female performers from Madonna to Lady Gaga who turn style into substance, and her recent, import-only album, Hurricane, is her first in 19 years. She’s clearly been an inspiration for renegade male performers as well, like supporting act Of Montreal’s leader Kevin Barnes, a man with a kindred flare for ridiculously theatrical surrealism, and even the evening’s emcee, punk rock singer Henry Rollins. He, like every entertainer that night, glowed with the excitement of sharing a stage with a reclusive legend.

"Joined by a seven-piece band and two backup vocalists, Jones mixed reggae, New Wave, disco, funk, and intensely dramatic art-rock. Nearly every song had its own show-stopping costume that brought rapturous applause: Her get-up for Love Is the Drug included massively puffy, green-lit leggings that swelled around her hips like giant glittery edamame. While changing clothes offstage, Jones voiced detailed introductions to each song that lent a sense of unpredictability to her well-plotted set with diction as ornate as her fashion sense."

Read more.  Source: rollingstone.com  Watch the amazing Grace at age 61 as she hula-hoops onstage while singing her famous hit song, Slave to the Rhythm, on YouTube.




Gay Celeb Cards Revoked?

"We are so enamored with stars who play gay or even a gay man's best friend, but for how long? Is there an expiration date on our devotion?

"Take Debra Messing. A lot of my friends couldn't get enough of her when she was on Will & Grace. But once Will & Grace ended, she fell off our gay radar. It's not that we turned on her. It's just that we lost interest.

"Maybe it hurts that she didn't play gay but rather a gay man's best friend.

"Then again, her Will & Grace co-star Megan Mullally, who also played a gay man's best friend on the show, has a free pass for life when it comes to gay adoration. At least according to my circle of friends.

"My informal poll also found that Jake Gyllenhall has earned a lifetime of worship thanks to Brokeback Mountain, and Hilary Swank will be forever beloved because of Boys Don't Cry. Queer As Folk god Gale Harold is also in for eternity.

"...Sean Hayes (pictured) really needs to do something to win us back because we don't think of him much these days, according to my survey. This is ironic given the fact that he is rumored to actually be one of us, although he doesn't discuss his sexual orientation, and he played a gay man on Will & Grace. Maybe there is some resentment on our part?"

Read and see more celebs that made the informal list.  Source: planetout.com




Yearbook Yourself for Fun

Here's a website that's built for fun. It's easy to drop in your photo (or the face of someone you love) to see how things might have looked in the style of the year you pick out. What if you graduated in 1958? Would a beehive coiffure suit your jawline? What if you graduated in 1976? You did? Well, how about picturing yourself with a 1980s hairstyle? "It's never too late to relive the glory days."








WikiWhat?

Today's WikiWhat? highlights both writer Christopher Isherwood and artist Don Bachardy, (pictured) and the long-term relationship between the two gay men:

"On Valentine's Day 1953, at the age of 48, [Isherwood] met teen-aged Don Bachardy among a group of friends on the beach at Santa Monica. Although one can find Bachardy's age at the time variously reported, in the biographical film Chris & Don: A Love Story, Bachardy himself recalls that, "at the time I was, probably, 16." Despite the age difference, this meeting began a partnership that, though interrupted by affairs and separations, continued until the end of Isherwood's life. During the early months of their affair, Isherwood finished (and Bachardy typed) the novel he had been working on for some years, The World in the Evening (1954). Isherwood also taught a creative-writing course at Los Angeles State College (now California State University, Los Angeles) for several years during the 1950s and early '60s.

"The more than 30-year age difference between Isherwood and Bachardy raised eyebrows at the time, with Bachardy (as he recalled) "regarded as a sort of child prostitute", but the two became a well-known and well-established couple in Southern Californian society, with many Hollywood friends.

"Isherwood and Bachardy lived together in Santa Monica for the rest of Isherwood's life. Bachardy became a successful draughtsman with an independent reputation, and his portraits of the dying Isherwood became well-known after Isherwood's death. At the age of 81, Isherwood died in 1986 at Santa Monica, California from prostate cancer. Their lifelong relationship is chronicled in the film Chris & Don: A Love Story."




Brokeback Mountain through a Brokie's Eyes

Posted by CellarDweller115 in Movie Location Photos & Videos




Chuck is back from the Brokie Gathering in Alberta, Canada,
and has been posting location shots to compare and contrast
with the movie. Take a look at what it looks like then and now!





Post of the Day

Posted by donnab in Reactions to Brokeback by Friends, Family & Audiences.

"Coming out" to friends and family as a Brokie can be pretty scary for a straight girl. Although I’m 100% sure it’s not as scary as the other kind of coming out, it is scary nonetheless, and I’m willing to bet that it is fraught with some of the same emotions of hope and fear. As the season has changed to summer, I continually find myself at cookouts, on group camping trips, family outings, and those precious once-per-year gatherings with old friends, former roommates, and the like. The question always comes up- “What’s new?” It has never seemed so daunting before I saw this movie, only a few months ago.  

Well, I’ve been doing a lot of writing.  

About what?

Uh…

Got any travel plans?

Yeah, I’m going to Philly in October.

What are you doing there?

Uh…

Got any new backpacking pictures?

No new ones, but here’s some pics from my 2004 Canadian Rockies trip… uh…

No matter how I try to gauge what a person’s response will be, I’m usually wrong.  I was totally floored when the person from whom I least expected to get the given reaction said, “No way!  I would never watch that GAY movie!” while roaring with laughter.  Like I said, it was the last thing I expected, so not only did it put me off about sharing my experience with other friends, but it also made me rethink the concept of friendship itself.
 [snip]

Read the rest of donnab's post on the Reactions to Brokeback by Friends, Family & Audiences thread.





The Forum Image

Posted by Trigger Hippie in Life Thru The Lens 3.






Quote of the Day


“The lust for comfort murders the passions of the soul.”

~  Kahlil Gibran  ~




Photocaption of the Day

By Paul029 in Photo Captioning Fun 5







Contributors: CellarDweller115, Trigger Hippie, donnab, Lyle (Mooska), Paul029



Calendar of Events

If you have ideas about initiating a gathering, go to Start Your Own Threads
and get the ball rolling to plan a get-together near you.

Mini-Slash Bash
Philadelphia - October 23-25, 2009

Let us know of any events you’d like listed here.




The Daily Sheet is a production of The Ultimate Brokeback Forum at www.davecullen.com/forum.

Editors emeritae: CactusGal, Marge_Innavera, tellyouwhat, Stilllearning, MissYouSoMuch

Researchers: BayCityJohn, BrokenOkie, Killersmom, Kittyhawk, Marge_Innavera, Stilllearning

Today's edition by gnash

Formatters: denim girl, gnash

Today’s edition formatted by gnash

We count on you to send us your news items, questions, and nominations for posts of the day.
If you have items you’d like to see published, send them to tds@davecullen.com.

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When a new issue of TDS is posted, you will be notified by e-mail.

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« Last Edit: August 10, 2009, 05:28:57 AM by gnash »

Offline Stilllearning

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Re: The Daily Sheet August 1 - 15, 2009
« Reply #3 on: August 11, 2009, 05:25:55 AM »



Tuesday, August 11th, 2009


Larry McMurtry: 30’s Enough

In 1961, 44 years before he and Diana Ossana, accepted an Oscar for their screenplay adaptation of Brokeback Mountain, Larry McMurtry published Horseman, Pass By, better known as the movie adaptation Hud. This year, August 11th will mark another milestone: the release date for McMurtry’s 30th novel Rhino Ranch, which might be his last.
 
McMurtry says that "I’m about at the end of it. I can write certain things. I don’t think I can write fiction anymore. I think I’ve used it up over 30 novels. That’s a lot of novels." Rhino Ranch is named for "this project that’s going on around Glen Rose. They’re trying to save the African black rhino by bringing them over here … to save them from being poached into extinction." The book is the conclusion of a five-novel series, preceded by The Last Picture Show, Texasville, Duane’s Depressed and When the Light Goes.

Movie audiences got a good look at McMurtry’s hometown, Archer City, Texas, in 1966 when The Last Picture Show was made into an Oscar-winning film. He says the town hasn’t changed much: it’s still "a mean little oil-patch town, not welcoming to outsiders."

Whether or not McMurtry continues fiction writing, he’ll likely remain a voracious reader. He didn’t start out as one, recalling that the home at the ranch where he grew up didn’t have any books, "not even the Bible." But as sometimes happens, one person and a single event changed his life. A cousin on his way to take part in World War II stopped at the ranch for a visit and gave the 6-year-old McMurtry 19 books. "Somehow I learned to read spontaneously. I picked a book out of the box at random, and I’ve been reading ever since."


The 19 books have grown to a collection of over 10,000, but McMurtry didn’t stop there. He also owns Booked Up, a bookstore that occupies four storefronts and has over 300,000 books. Archer City David Levy says that before a Dollar Store opened in Archer City it was a place where "you could buy a signed first edition of Ulysses but you couldn’t buy a pair of socks."


McMurtry, who still uses a typewriter, believes that the computer age may eventually see the end of stores like Booked Up. He speculates that "there’s going to be a generation who actually like physical books and who will continue to patronize bookstores such as the kind we have now. But I think that will end, by another generation."

His own reading takes him well beyond Texas and the US, with a current favorite being the diaries of James Lee-Milne, an English novelist. The diary covers "almost 60 years of the 20th century."

Read more about Larry McMurtry’s novels and his hometown in the Dallas News.




Two Cities, the Same Challenges

Editor's note: This article is not a comprehensive story about widespread homelessness among LGBT youth, just a few snapshots of people who are trying to do something about it.

Angela Louis, who is transgender, had to leave home three years ago. Her mother "said she couldn’t live with a gay child," Louis recalls. "She said ‘you have to move because I can’t allow this in my house.’ " After drifting between homeless shelters and the streets, surviving by shoplifting and prostitution in both New York City and Atlanta, Louis finally ended up at the Ali Forney center for gay youth in New York, and eventually got a full-time job.

Louis was 18 when she left home, but the homeless girl that Maurice Melchiono of Children’s Hospital Boston recalls meeting in 1983 was only 14. After her family found out she was lesbian, they had told her to leave. When the outreach program contacted the family later, Melchiono recalls, "they told us they didn’t have a daughter anymore."

Unfortunately, neither of these stories is unusual, as sexual minorities represent a disproportionate percentage of homeless young people. A 2007 study of homeless youth in the US done by the Gay and Lesbian Task Force revealed that 20 to 40 percent are gay, lesbian or bisexual.
 
While the Ali Forney Center was able to help Louis, executive director Carl Siciliano is reminded every day that resources for LGBT youth are in chronic short supply: "Just the concept of a gay organization protecting gay youth is new. We need to set standards because some of the [programs for gay youth] that have come around are lacking and grossly substandard."


At the same time, the need for those resources is steadily increasing. Siciliano notes that where older generations usually came out after they were old enough to be out of their parents’ homes and employed, LGBT young people today might come out as young as 12. And those older generations’ experiences as children and teenagers have often left scars and are painful to remember.



Ali Forney, 1975-1997
Melchiono recalls that "like many closeted youth, I lived a life of secrecy, never revealing my true feelings of same-sex attraction. The risks of rejection and ostracism were way too high. I remember what it was like dealing with feeling different and being told – even by family members – that gay and lesbian people were freaks."

Years later, in 2004, Melchiono and his husband became one of the first same-sex couples to legally marry in Massachusetts. He currently works with at-risk youth including gay and lesbian teens and their parents. The attitudes of families are essential, as there is "a clear link between LGBT youth who experience family rejection and negative health outcomes, including substance use and abuse, sexual risk-taking, depression and suicide."
 
Melchiano has been with Children’s Hospital Boston for 30 years. "We’re a national leader in training adolescent providers. We helped develop a street outreach program and we’ve been instrumental in getting condom machines in homeless shelters and in downtown churches. Children’s was recently recognized by the Boston Alliance of Gay, Lesbian Youth for its work."


Melchiono says he is committed to promoting healthful lifestyles, and this has to include people "being happy as the sexual people they are." A quote from psychologist Erick Erickson sums it up for him: "some day, maybe, there will exist a well-informed, well-considered and yet fervent public conviction that the most deadly of all possible sins is the mutilation of a child’s spirit."

"We get a lot of support, but what’s available and what’s needed is a big discrepancy," Siciliano says. "On the larger scale there’s a tremendous lack of resources."

For the complete stories, go to 365Gay and News Online, a publication of Children’s Hospital Boston.

For a list of shelters and educational resources, see the Ali Forney Center website.




In the Cyber-Neighborhood



Recently, the Daily Sheet reported that Ennis' treasured shirts will be displayed at the The Autry National Center of the American West this month. The Center is actually a complex of museums: the Museum of the American West, the Southwest Museum of the American Indian, and the Institute for the Study of the American West.  According to the Center, it "explores the experiences and perceptions of the diverse peoples of the American West, connecting the past with the present to inform our shared future."




According to the Autry Center, the two shirts "represent struggle between heritage and acceptance in gay cowboy culture."




From "Bold Caballeros Y Noble Bandidas."

The Center has a generous schedule of exhibitions, events, educational programs including libraries and research services. Recent exhibitions "Maverick Art," "Cowboys and Presidents" and "Bold Caballeros Y Noble Bandidas."   It also a variety of events including an Intertribal Marketplace, Latin Jazz Fusion Concert Series and Family Fun events.







Alberta 2009

The 2009 Brokiefest in Alberta wound up August 2nd, and there are plenty of stories and pictures to share.  CellarDweller115 summed up a few of the highlights in "How The Forum Get-Togethers Have Affected Me:

"Finding out we couldn't access the forum from the hotel's computer, the "child protector" blocked it due to the use of the word "lesbian."

Brokies running wild through a super market.

Debating if we should ask other hikers if they knew where "You Know I Ain't Queer" meadow is.

The excitement of the "Finding Brokeback" people when they revealed they found a new location just before we arrived.

The cute cowboys at the Rockyford Rodeo.

Henry (NINIsIN2005) finding a prop at Campsite 1. Just by chance, Henry found one of the metal tongs used during the cooking scene. It was just laying on the ground at his feet.

Sonja proudly telling everyone the trip was a present to herself for her birthday, and that by the time she'd be home, she would've spent a month in the company of Brokies.

Goodbye hugs in Paul's bedroom.



Fun Question of the Week



This week’s Question: How is the date for Easter determined?

Let us know your answer in the response thread.

Last week's question and answer: What are the top 2 most recognized scents in the world?

Yes Ennis Del Mark, COFFEE is the most recognized scent in the world, Peanutbutter is the second. Thanks dback, gnash and michaelflanagansf for playing along! Source.



The Forum Image

What better subject this week than the fun and fellowship in Alberta?



Sason (Sonja), DejaVu (Debbie), David




Lil_Darlin' (Annie), Sason (Sonja), PTannen (Pete)




Mouk and CellarDweller (Chuck)




Sonja, Monika and Chuck at Campsite 1 -- weeding it and restacking the wood.




dejavu: "Chuck by the edge of the "I Wish I Knew How To Quit You Lake." There are picnic tables farther back from the shore, where we spread out our lunches."


For more memories, see Forum Meetings and
Events On Other Forums.



Quote of the Day

“My definition of an expert in any field is a person who knows enough about what's really going on to be scared.”

~ P. J. Plauger ~



Photo Caption Classics

Contributed by gnash in Photo Captioning Fun 5

Read carefully to get the message!





sometimes jack would read between the lines.


And Az.bbm offers this idyllic picture of Don Vroe's (a/k/a "Dawn Rose") cabin here:
 







Contributors: CellarDweller115, dejavu, gnash, az.bbm



Calendar of Events

If you have ideas about initiating a gathering, go to Start Your Own Threads
and get the ball rolling to plan a get-together near you.

Mini-Slash Bash
Philadelphia - October 23-25, 2009

Let us know of any events you’d like listed here.




The Daily Sheet is a production of The Ultimate Brokeback Forum at www.davecullen.com/forum.

Editors emeritae: CactusGal, Marge_Innavera, tellyouwhat, Stilllearning, MissYouSoMuch

Researchers: BayCityJohn, BrokenOkie, Killersmom, Kittyhawk, Marge_Innavera, Stilllearning

Today's edition by Marge_Innavera

Formatters: denim girl, gnash

Today’s edition formatted by denim girl

We count on you to send us your news items, questions, and nominations for posts of the day.
If you have items you’d like to see published, send them to tds@davecullen.com.

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Offline KittyHawk

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Re: The Daily Sheet August 1 - 15, 2009
« Reply #4 on: August 15, 2009, 07:42:30 AM »


Saturday, August 15th, 2009




Interview with Lysley Tenorio

"I first read Lysley Tenorio's work in Zoetrope and found his work to be exciting and innovative. I was struck by how sympathetic and raw his characters can be. One of the great things about his work is that he is able to tap into the pathos of the character so that readers feel it in their gut. Even more fascinating about his work is that he looks at the Filipino/Filipino-American Diaspora that is filling a gap in contemporary literature. Lysley took some time out to answer a few of my burning questions about writing--and the the results were very interesting. --Alegria Garcia

Examiner: Is there anything in particular that you focus on when writing? Themes? Images? Plot? Character?

Lysley Tenorio: Like any writer, I’m focused on all those things, but some more than others, depending on where I am in the writing. I’m a fairly plot-driven guy, so in early stages of a story, I need to figure a sequence of events, how to get from beginning to end. Inevitably, this helps develop character which, for me, is one of the most challenging parts of writing—how can I, as the writer, understand this person I’ve created? There’s an emotional life you’ve got to figure out, which is tough to do—I’m not a psychologist or therapist, so I’m left with events, details, images, to try to piece together a psychologically and emoitionally complext character. As for themes, some abstractions are inherent to the work, a kind of filter through which I imagine narrative—issues of identity, dislocation, beauty, ugliness….that stuff tends to come up naturally. However, for each piece, new themes/ideas arise, which is part of the challenge, and the fun.

"Examiner: How do your stories come to you? Do you begin with a character? A line? A word? Is it different each time?

Lysley Tenorio: For the most part, stories come to me from weird bits of news or history, anything that somehow evokes those themes I mentioned above. For example: years ago, I learned that a group of Marcos supporters tried to beat up the Beatles when they were in the Philippines. I’m immediately drawn to an event like that—the weirdness and ridiculousness of it, but also the drama, the thematic significance of east and west. The challenge is to figure out how to make a story from that, with real emotional conflict, humor, sympathy.

Examiner: Who are some authors that you consistently use when teaching a writing class?

Lysley Tenorio: I tend to use specific stories consistently when I teach, a mix of reliable standby’s and pieces by newer writers. Here are some: The Knife Thrower, by Steven Millhauser, Marry the One That Gets There First, by Heidi Julavits, Marie, by Edward P. Jones, Bullet in the Brain, by Tobias Wolff, Isla, by Susan Steinberg, Brokeback Mountain, by Annie Proulx, Why Antichrist? by Chris Adrian, The Flowers, by Alice Walker, Third Class Superhero, by Charles Yu.

Read more.  Source: examiner.com




The Face of Tomorrow

"The Face of Tomorrow is a new series of works by Istanbul based photographer Mike Mike. It deals with notions of race, place, identity and belonging on both an extremely local level as well as on an impossibly ambitious, almost Borgesian, global scale. The project is an exploration of human identity as affected by the forces of globalization and makes full use of all the tools of the modern economy – distributed work across several time zones, outsourcing to take advantages of cost disparities, an open source model that allows input from contributors, and of course the internet itself as a medium of display and exchange.

"Mike travels the world photographing in each city the first one hundred people he can convince to take part in his project. He then combines the faces to create one new male and female individual, which for him is a distilled representation of that place at a future moment in time. On a personal level it is one artist’s search for identity and belonging and the relationship of self to the larger world. On a deeper level it as an exploration of the systems behind globalization and how these systems might influence the future make-up of each individual locus. Having grown up in apartheid-era South Africa, educated on four continents and currently living in Istanbul, itself a “schizophrenic city” sited on two continents looking east and west as well as north and south, it is understandable that these issues arising from globalization would form the central thesis of his work. The project has now taken on a life of its own, like a computer code or virus, and at present there are people in Colombia, Japan, Germany and Holland working on the project independently of Mike."

Australia's Faces of Tomorrow



Read more.  Source: faceoftomorrow.com




Gay-friendly Online School

"Brooklyn Suchy was in sixth grade when she wore her Gay Straight Alliance shirt for all to see: "GSA, like it or not, I am what I am."

It was at a restaurant in Newport where her shirt drew the ire of a group of girls. They called her names. They shoved her. And then they locked her in the restaurant's bathroom.

'"Others don't accept people who want to be who they want to be," said Brooklyn, now a ninth-grader at Crosswinds East Metro Arts & Science School. The 15-year-old Landfall girl considers herself bisexual.

"Those were the kinds of stories that prompted one local educator to begin an online high school catering to students like Brooklyn. Named the GLBTQ Online High School, it is based in Maplewood and believed to be the first of its kind. (GLBTQ represents gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender or questioning.)

"Other online schools exist, as do bricks-and-mortar schools that serve gay students. But the Minnesota program is the first to combine the two features, according to the International Association for K-12 Online Learning.

"It is the brainchild of David Glick, the first online learning coordinator at the Minnesota Department of Education.

"The online nature of the school allows it to each young people wherever they have Internet access — especially in rural areas, whose smaller populations makes a physical version of his school impossible, Glick said. It also removes gay students from potentially hostile school environments and places them in what he touts as a "safe and welcoming educational community." Instead of facing bullies every day, students would be learning with other students who understand their concerns.

"Glick hopes to open the school's virtual doors in January, when it will offer an accredited high school diploma and courses that meet national criteria.

"The curriculum will differ from that of traditional schools, he said, in that it will be more "GLBTQ-friendly." That involves abolishing negative messages and highlighting gay, bisexual and transgender people in history.."

Read more.  Source: twincities.com




Heath Ledger: In His Own Words



“The movie's already exceeded any expectations I had.
I think pleasing Annie Proulx, the writer, and getting her
nod of approval was the biggest success for me, for us. ”





Keeping the Movies Safe for Straight Guys

"Robert Downey Jr. gave what I thought was an amusing summary of his upcoming movie Sherlock Holmes to News of the World: "We’re two men who happen to be roommates, wrestle a lot and share a bed. It’s bad-ass."

"Cute, right? A wry little acknowledgement in the vein of Bert and Ernie jokes that, yes, Holmes and Watson are two dudes who spend an awful lot of time together, made by a guy who is comfortable enough with himself and the world in general to make such a joke.

"Former Post movie critic and current conservative radio host/talking head Michael Medved was at least bright enough to figure out that Downey might be kidding. But his reasoning was based on the “fact” that actual movies about gay men are simply too icktastic for straight people, especially noted straight guys like himself:

'"There’s not a seething, bubbling hunger to see straight stars impersonating homosexuals,” Medved told us. “I think they’re just trying to generate controversy . . . They know that making Holmes and Watson homosexual will take away two-thirds of their box office. Who is going to want to see Downey Jr. and Law make out? I don’t think it would be appealing to women. Straight men don’t want to see it."

"At least he’s consistent. Here’s Medved on Brokeback Mountain, as quoted by ABC News:

'"This is going to be a very tough movie to sell because the main audience for cowboy movies is supposed to be guys but for most American guys who are not gay, there’s a yewwwww factor to the idea of Jake Gyllenhaal and Heath Ledger getting too up close and personal on screen."

"Everybody got it? Medved is so straight that he does not want to have to see guys getting close to each other or think about the possibility of them making out, because ew. Or rather, yewwwww.

"Michael Medved has been a film critic for more than twenty years. Why does he still have a twelve-year-old’s need to let everyone know how straight he is and how well he conforms to what he thinks straight guys shouldn’t like?

"He’s still doing the occasional movie review to let people know what’s “family friendly”. When gay parts come on, do you think he squinches up his eyes, sticks his fingers in his ears, and goes "Lalalalalala," or do you think he just stands up and explains to the rest of the audience that he does not like this part, on account of no straight American would?

"At any rate, I sincerely hope Mr. Medved gets comfortable enough with his straightness to be able to attend the movies in comfort. (I hope to God someone warned him about the swinging blue wang in Watchmen.)"

Read more.  Source: 365gay.com




Prince of Persia Eye Candy








WikiWhat?

This week's WikiWhat? highlights the life and works of Charles Demuth.

"Charles Demuth (November 8, 1883 - October 23, 1935) was an American watercolorist who turned to oils late in his career, developing a style of painting known as Precisionism.

'"Search the history of American art," wrote Ken Johnson in the New York Times, "and you will discover few watercolors more beautiful than those of Charles Demuth. Combining exacting botanical observation and loosely Cubist abstraction, his watercolors of flowers, fruit and vegetables have a magical liveliness and an almost shocking sensuousness."

"Demuth was a lifelong resident of Lancaster, Pennsylvania. The home he shared with his mother is now a museum of his work. He graduated from Franklin & Marshall Academy before studying at Drexel University and at Philadelphia's Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts. While he was a student at PAFA, he met William Carlos Williams at his boarding house. The two were fast friends and remained close for the rest of their lives.

"He later studied at Académie Colarossi and Académie Julian in Paris, where he became a part of the avant garde art scene. The Parisian artistic community was accepting of Demuth's homosexuality.

"While he was in Paris he met Marsden Hartley by walking up to a table of American artists and asking if he could join them. He had a great sense of humor, rich in double entendres, and they asked him to be a regular member of their group. Through Hartley he met Alfred Stieglitz and became a member of the Stieglitz group. In 1926, he had a one-man show at the Anderson Galleries and Intimate Gallery the New York gallery run by his friend Alfred Stieglitz.

"His most famous painting, I Saw the Figure Five in Gold, was inspired by his friend William Carlos Williams's poem The Great Figure. Roberta Smith described the work in the New York Times: "Demuth's famous visionary accounting of Williams, I Saw the Figure Five in Gold, [is] a painting whose title and medallion-like arrangement of angled forms were both inspired by a verse the poet wrote after watching a fire engine streak past him on a rainy Manhattan street while waiting for Marsden Hartley, whose studio he was visiting, to answer his door."


                 

(Click images for larger images and details.)





Celebrating the 3 Year Anniversary
of Auntie's BBM Backyard BBQ!




Three years back on the weekend of August 11, 12, and 13th, 2006, a whole bunch of forum members from around the world descended on San Antonio, Texas, to bask in the joy and fun (and summer heat!) of meeting, in real life, the friends we'd made online. We all shared an intense mutual interest in Brokeback Mountain, and the event was the first of its kind. We laughed and dined, we explored the area around Boerne, TX, and even swatted a few flies. We danced and drank beer (and whisky too) and yes, dammit... we cried.

And we couldn't have done it without Linda (killersmom), who laid out the groundwork for the unique event, and TDS would like to thank her again for her Texas-sized hospitality and foresight ~ Thank you, Auntie!



Watch a quicktime slideshow (12mb) made with various photos
taken by members of DCF ~ or a shorter, smaller one (6mb).

Take a trip down memory lane to revisit the BBM Backyard BBQ thread.




The Forum Image

Posted by Tigs in Pets & Other Animal Friends




"Matilda, a heavily pregnant queen who loved soft cheese!!"




Forum Humor

Posted by gnash in Bring Your Humor Here.






Quote of the Day


“They who give have all things; they who withhold have nothing.”

~  Hindu Proverb  ~




Photocaption of the Day

By RickB in Photo Captioning Fun 5


Is that paper or plastic?



Aguirre:
Alright, for the last time,
which one a you let the cat out of the bag?





Contributors: Lyle (Mooska), RickB



Calendar of Events

If you have ideas about initiating a gathering, go to Start Your Own Threads
and get the ball rolling to plan a get-together near you.

Mini-Slash Bash
Philadelphia - October 23-25, 2009

Let us know of any events you’d like listed here.




The Daily Sheet is a production of The Ultimate Brokeback Forum at www.davecullen.com/forum.

Editors emeritae: CactusGal, Marge_Innavera, tellyouwhat, Stilllearning, MissYouSoMuch

Researchers: BayCityJohn, BrokenOkie, Killersmom, Kittyhawk, Marge_Innavera, Stilllearning

Today's edition by gnash

Formatters: denim girl, gnash

Today’s edition formatted by gnash

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