It appears that the rains have come to an end, and now I have to brace myself for scorching weather.
Here I present this week’s Friday Five: the top five (IMHO) stories of the week of interest to queer people, top five general interest stories, and top five videos (plus a recap of my blog posts).
(click to embiggen)It’s the second weekend of Pride Month. If you don’t celebrate Pride (or at least understand why we do), maybe you should re-read this post from earlier this week.
Anyway, here I am posting the Friday Five on Saturday. I’ve been sick at least Monday, though I didn’t recognize the signs until after waking up with the cover and fever Tuesday morning. I felt much better Thursday morning, thought I was getting over it, and went into the office after sleeping through two sick days. Then Thursday night I was very scattered and the Friday Five assembly (which usually takes about an hour) drug on and I started dozing off at the keyboard so I went to bed. I figured it would only take fifteen minutes or in the morning to finish it and post; since I was going to be working from home anyway, it would be a good thing to do for a break, right?
I got up when the alarm went off, feeling worse than the day before, got my meds, set up the work computer, was logging into the work network… and I fell asleep for two hours. My fever was back and my brain was just sluggish. I had unmovable end of the day deadlines that were already behind because of the two sick days, so I was scrambling the rest of the day.
So this week it’s a Saturday Five: This week you get the top five (IMHO) stories of the week of interest to queer people, top five stories about people who are less-than-wonderful, top five general interest stories, and top five videos (plus notable obituaries and a recap of my blog posts).
The Quiet Rage Of Mazie Hirono.
I have a new hero: Hawaii’s Mazie Hirono is the only U.S. Senator who asks every nominee if they have ever been accused of sexual misconduct and whether they have ever signed a non-disclosure agreement.
(click to embiggen)It’s the first Friday in June, and that means that it is now officially Pride Month! Wooooooo!
If you don’t celebrate Pride (or at least understand why we do), then I have no idea why you are reading my blog. But, it’s that time of year! Today I need to put out my rainbow flags to kick off a month a queer pride and remembrance.
It’s Friday! That means it’s time to present my Friday Five: This week you get the top five (IMHO) stories of the week of interest to queer people, top five stories about people who are less-than-wonderful, top five general interest stories, and top five videos (plus notable obituaries and a recap of my blog posts).
The number of times this week that I and my boss commiserated about how crazy work has been for months and months now is just crazy. I’m looking forward to having this three-day weekend so much.
It’s Friday! That means it’s time to present my Friday Five: This week you get the top five (IMHO) stories of the week, plus the top five stories of interest to queer people, and top five videos (plus notable obituaries and a recap of my blog posts).
Updated: North Bend High School principal removed in ACLU settlement. I wrote about this earlier in the week. Alas, a friend who lives nearby reports that local news sources say this deplorable Principal has been reassigned to another job in the district, not actually fired.
Another in my series of posts recommending web comics that I think more people should read:
Madeline McGrane is a cartoonist and illustrator who is from Wisconsin and lives in Minneapolis. She posts vampire-themed comics and other art on her tumblr blog. My favorites are the vampire comics about three child vampires. They’re just silly. Her black and white comics are minimalist and really work well with her style of humor. Her color work is a bit more complex. If you like her work and want to support her, she has a ko-fi.
Some of the comics I’ve previously recommended: Some of these have stopped publishing new episodes. Some have been on hiatus for a while. I’ve culled from the list those that seem to have gone away entirely.
Check, Please! by Ngozi Ukazu is the story of Eric “Bitty” Bittle, a former junior figure skating champion from a southern state who is attending fictitious Samwell College in Massachusetts, where he plays on the men’s hockey team. Bitty is the smallest guy on the team, and in the early comics is dealing with a phobia of being body-checked in the games. He’s an enthusiastic baker, and a die hard Beyoncé fan.
“Manic Pixie Nightmare Girls” by Jessica Udischas is a hilarious web comic that tells of the adventures of Jesska Nightmare, a trans woman trying to make her way in our transphobic world. The comics are funny, insightful, and adorably drawn. The sheer cuteness of the drawing style is a rather sharp contrast to the sometimes weighty topics the comic covers, and I think makes it a little easier to keep from getting bummed out to contemplate that the strips aren’t exaggerations. If you like the strip, consider supporting the artist through her patreon.
Life of Bria by Sabrina Symington is a transgender themed comic that ranges from commentary to slice of life jokes and everything in between. Even when commenting on very serious stuff it remains funny—sharp, but funny. It’s one of the comics that I would see being reblogged on tumblr and lot and I’d think, “I ought to track down the artist so I can read more of these.” And I finally did. And they’re great! If you like Symington’s work, you can sponsor her on Patreon and she has a graphic novel for sale.
The Junior Science Power Hour by Abby Howard. is frequently autobiographical take on the artist’s journey to creating the crazy strip about science, science nerds, why girls are just as good at being science nerds as boys, and so much more. It will definitely appeal to dinosaur nerds, anyone who has ever been enthusiastic about any science topic, and especially to people who has ever felt like a square peg being forced into round holes by society.
Stereophonic by C.J.P.“Stereophonic” by C.J.P. is a “queer historical drama that follows the lives of two young men living in 1960s London.” It’s a very sweet and slow-build story, with good art and an interesting supporting cast. But I want to warn you that the story comes to a hiatus just as a couple of the subplots are getting very interesting. The artist had a serious health issue which was complicated by family problems, but has since started posting updates to his blog and Patreon page, assuring us that the story will resume soon. If you like the 300+ pages published thus far and would like to support the artist, C.J. has a Patreon page, plus t-shirts and other merchandise available at his store.
The Young Protectors: Engaging the Enemy by Alex Wolfson begins when a young, closeted teen-age superhero who has just snuck into a gay bar for the first time is seen exiting said bar by a not-so-young, very experienced, very powerful, super-villain. Trouble, of course, ensues.
“Deer Me,” by Sheryl Schopfer tells the tales from the lives of three friends (and former roommates) who couldn’t be more dissimilar while being surprisingly compatible. If you enjoy Deer Me, you can support the artist by going to her Patreon Page!
Scurry by Mac Smith is the story of a colony of mice trying to survive a long, strange winter in a world where humans have mysteriously vanished, and food is becoming ever more scarce.
And I love this impish girl thief with a tail and her reluctant undead sorcerer/bodyguard: “Unsounded,” by Ashley Cope.
Fowl Language by Brian Gordon is a fun strip about parenting, tech, science, and other geeky things. The strips are funny, and he also has a bonus panel link to click on under the day’s strip.
The Last Halloween by Abby Howard is the creepy story of 10-year-old Mona who is reluctantly drafted to save the world on Halloween night. This is by the same artist who does the Junior Science Power Hour. She created this strip as her pitch in the final round of Penny Arcade’s Strip Search, which was a reality game show where web cartoonists competed for a cash prize and other assistance to get their strip launched. Though Abby didn’t win, she started writing the strip anyway. If you like the comic, you can support Abby in a couple of ways: she has some cool stuff related to both of her strips in her store, and she also has a Patreon.
Last Kiss® by John Lustig Mr. Lustig bought the publishing rights to a romance comic book series from the 50’s and 60’s, and started rewriting the stories for fun. The redrawn and re-dialogued panels (which take irreverent shots at gender and sexuality issues, among other things) are syndicated, and available on a bunch of merchandise.
“Champion of Katara” by Chuck Melville tells the tale of a the greatest sorcerer of Katara, Flagstaff (Flagstaff’s foster sister may disagree…), and his adventures in a humorous sword & sorcery world. If you enjoy the adventures of Flagstaff, you might also enjoy another awesome fantasy series set in the same universe (and starring the aforementioned foster sister): and Felicia, Sorceress of Katara, or Chuck’s weekly gag strip, Mr. Cow, which was on a hiatus for a while but is now back. If you like Mr. Cow, Felicia, or Flagstaff (the hero of Champions of Katara) you can support the artist by going to his Patreon Page. Also, can I interest you in a Mr. Cow Mug?
If you want to read a nice, long graphic-novel style story which recently published its conclusion, check-out the not quite accurately named, The Less Than Epic Adventures of T.J. and Amal by E.K. Weaver. I say inaccurate because I found their story quite epic (not to mention engaging, moving, surprising, fulfilling… I could go on). Some sections of the tale are Not Safe For Work, as they say, though she marks them clearly. The complete graphic novels are available for sale in both ebook and paper versions, by the way.
Oglaf, by Trudy Cooper and Doug Bayne is a Not Safe For Work web comic about… well, it’s sort a generic “medieval” high fantasy universe, but with adult themes, often sexual. Jokes are based on fantasy story and movie clichés, gaming tropes, and the like. And let me repeat, since I got a startled message from someone in response to a previous posting of this recommendation: Oglaf is Not Safe For Work (NSFW)!
We had a couple days of much warmer than usual weather, then things went back to cooler… mostly. Unfortunately, the snowpack in the mountains is melting faster than usual because of this odd days. So some parts of the state are experiencing flooding, and it’s no longer certain we’re going to have plenty of water through the summer. Yeesh!
It’s Friday! That means it’s time to present my Friday Five: This week you get the top five (IMHO) stories of the week, plus the top five stories of interest to queer people, and top five videos (plus notable obituaries and a recap of my blog posts).
(click to embiggen>It’s Friday! And it’s the second Friday of May!
Most of the plants on the veranda are blooming and growing. I repotted one lavender that got drowned during the monsoon like weather we had in April and still waiting for it to recover. Knock wood. In its former pot I planted a rosemary plant last weekend which in a single week has gone from about three inches tall to ber eight, so that’s good! Alas, while I still love my flowers, my sinuses continue to hate all the pollen, so there’s been a lot of hay fever stuff going on all week.
It’s Friday! That means it’s time to present my Friday Five: This week you get the top five (IMHO) stories of the week, plus the top five stories of interest to geeky people, and top five videos (plus notable obituaries and a recap of my blog posts).
The weather is doing it’s usual May thing already: some days that hint at summer, interspersed with cooling and drizzle. And, oh! That is pollen everywhere! I’m maxing out on my allergy meds and it’s barely helping!
It’s Friday! That means it’s time to present my Friday Five: This week you get the top five (IMHO) stories of the week, plus the top five stories of interest to geeky people, and top five videos (plus notable obituaries and a recap of my blog posts).
Good guy without a gun (click to embiggen)April is nearly over. Wow.
It has been a very weird month, weather-wise. First couple of weeks temperatures were about 10 degrees below normal and we had a whole lot more rain than usual for this time of year. Then it dried out and for most of this week temperatures were at least 10 degrees above normal. The rain is supposed to come back this weekend.
It’s Friday! That means it’s time to present my Friday Five: This week you get the top five (IMHO) stories of the week, plus the top five stories of interest to geeky people, and top five videos (plus notable obituaries and a recap of my blog posts).
(click to embiggen)It’s the third Friday in April.
I believe I have shaken off the virus, but this week has been stressful and sad. There are a couple of serious illnesses in my family. A very dear friend’s mother (who I was more than fond of) passed away. Other friends have similar things happening among their loved ones. It leaves one feeling helpless and dismayed. It took longer than usual to assemble this post, as I had a rather larger number of snarky or depressing links. But I think this is a better mix.
So, itt’s Friday, time to present my Friday Five: This week you get the top five (IMHO) stories of the week, plus the top five stories of interest to queer people, and top five videos (plus notable obituaries and a recap of my blog posts).
Donald Trump Takes Out Paul Ryan, and ‘It’s Going to Be a Civil War’.
“Ryan owns his share of the blame; too often, he behaved as if he was some deferential junior VP at a Trump resort and not the leader of the House of Representatives in a co-equal branch of government. The idea, popular among the House leadership, that a diet of ass-kissing and deference would make Trump into a normal president who didn’t need the political equivalent of Depends was always a strategic mistake.”
It’s the third weekend of Pride Month. 
Font Folly 