Tag Archives: friday

Friday Links (divine figs edition)

One of the counter-protesters from the story below.
One of the counter-protesters from the story below. Nice to find out Thor’s feelings about figs.
It’s already the third Friday of 2015! Have you stopped typing “2014” yet? I’ve been sick most of the week. Almost all of my time has gone to either sleeping or working. So you’ll notice that this week’s list of links is a bit shorter than usual.

Anyway, here is a collection of news and other things that I ran across over the course of the week which struck me as worthy of being shared:

Pastor’s Gay Brother ‘Frustrated That NPR Made This A News Story’.

Supreme Court faced gay rights decision in 1958 over ‘obscene’ magazine. A nice story of another mostly forgotten stepping stone in the gay rights movement.

Why it’s time to pull the plug on the worst awards show in Hollywood. “Broadcasting transphobia under the guise of punching up is still punching down.”

“Excommunicated Any Day”: The Real Reality Of ‘My Husband’s Not Gay’. “In reality, that choice has been dictated by the threat of being ostracized by their families, community and religion.”

Scenes from the Portland Counter-Protest That Drove Off the Westboro Baptist Church.

Dog sometimes hops on bus alone, gets off at Seattle dog park.

God, Gays and the Atlanta Fire Department.

What TLC doesn’t show on TV: Nearly 7 in 10 Mormon marriages between straight women, gay-leaning men end in divorce. Thanks to @seashellseller for the link!

What not to say to authors (and what to say instead).

132-year-old Winchester rifle found propped against desert tree in Nevada.

How secular family values stack up.

The Importance Of LGBT Visibility: Why I Want Everyone To Know I’m Gay. Awesome cartoon!

All The Little Things | Panti | TEDxDublin:

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Nice Guys Finish First:

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Patrick Roche – “21” (CUPSI 2014):

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Bright Light Bright Light – There Are No Miracles (Official Video):

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Friday Links

NLnTgnJE_400x400It’s the second Friday of 2015! And it’s been a weird week, with sad or troubling news on both the personal and worldwide level.

Anyway, here is a collection of news and other things that I ran across over the course of the week which struck me as worthy of being shared:

American Treasure Betty White Won A People’s Choice Award And Was Escorted To The Stage By Captain America.

FL Counties Ending Courthouse Weddings Over The Gay.

Christians Behave Like Prayer Does Not Work.

Siberian, Native American Languages Linked — A First.

Despite lawsuit, Apple’s iOS 8 storage is actually far more efficient than Google’s Android, Samsung’s Galaxy, Microsoft Windows.

Why We Should Ban Conversion Therapy.

7-Year-Old Girl Climbs Out of a Plane Crash That Killed Her Parents, Her Sister, and Her Cousin.

Florida Law Firm Steps In To Marry Gay Couples After County Clerks Refuse: Today In Gay.

Why is television still ignoring gay lives?

No going back to the closet.

Straightwashing at the movies: the Pride DVD shows gay people still make the film industry nervous.

A Dad Dropped His Son Off on a Date and It Restored My Faith in Humanity.

Let’s just let history decide who showed respect and who didn’t.

Want to Help Stop LGBT Teens From Committing Suicide? End Conversion Therapy.

It Gets Boring: NPR Features Same Old Ex-Gay Story.

Researchers Use Cangrande Mummy To Solve 700-Year-Old Murder Mystery.

Mike Huckabee Has Resumed Digging His Grave with a Knife and Fork.

What It’s Like Working for a Funeral Home.

The Blasphemy We Need.

DisneyWorld guest challenges Beauty & the Beast’s Gaston to a push-up contest:

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Eurotix – When You Are In My Dreams (Official Video):

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Frances Carroll & Her Coquettes Featuring Drummer Viola Smith:

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Friday Links

It’s the first Friday of 2015! I am working on a final blog post about my goals for 2014 and how they worked out. I’m also working on finalizing my goals for 2015. I know for many of my friends in wasn’t a great year, but personally, I’m pretty happy about 2014, and looking forward to an even better year going forward.

Anyway, here is a collection of news and other things that I ran across over the course of the week which struck me as worthy of being shared:

Old Fashioned 101: The classic American cocktail. An awesome, single-page web site explaining the proper way to make the world’s oldest cocktail.

Twitter, LiveJournal and navel-gazing. Covers some ground I’ve written about before, but much less rambly.

Thoughts on Fathers.

4 Things That Were Supposed To Happen By 2015 Because Obama Was Reelected.

In Which John C. Wright Completely Loses his Shit over Legend of Korra.

One last buzzing beehive for 2014. A nice answer to the bigoted writer who has proclaimed, “did not call for the extermination of people, but ideas.”

‘Modern Family’ gay criticism misses mark.

INDIANA CONSERVATIVES POISED TO INTRODUCE LICENSE TO DISCRIMINATE BILL.

Op-ed: We Queer Folk Have Always Been Both Black And Blue.

10 great LGBT stories from 2014.

Your biggest online security mistakes (and how to avoid them).

Ancient Trees: Woman Spends 14 Years Photographing World’s Oldest Trees.

How Amazon’s Ebook Subscriptions Are Changing the Writing Industry.

If Protesters Are Responsible For Officers’ Deaths, So Then Are The Tea Party.

Is inclusiveness becoming the new closet?

When a Gay Man Marries a Straight Woman. The stories of people interviewed are worth reading. The author’s conclusions are a bit… well, you’ll see.

AFA’s top spokesman, thinker: Make adultery and homosexuality illegal.

NASA’s Plan For An Off-World Colony: A Floating City Above Venus.

Transgender teenager, 17, leaves heartbreaking suicide note blaming her Christian parents before walking in front of tractor trailer on highway.

DAN SAVAGE: PROSECUTE TRANSGENDER TEEN LEELAH ALCORN’S PARENTS FOR ABUSE.

This Graduate Stripped Down For All The Right Reasons.

Unconditional Love: A Missing Link for Homeless LGBTQ Youth.

Gay Black Men, It’s Time to Do Away With ‘Trade’ and Down-Low Brothers in 2015. While I agree with the idea, for a complex set of sociological and psychological reasons, I think this call will be as successful as the perennial attempts to get gay men of all races to stop having downlow relationships with politicians and the like who have anti-gay public personae/agendas.

The Saddest Thing I Know about the Integers.

Your Husband Is Definitely Gay: TLC’s Painful Portrait of Mormonism – My Husband’s Not Gay isn’t so much an indication that Mormonism is homophobic as it is a sign that Mormon homophobia has taken an even subtler and more pernicious turn.

The Solar System Is Slowly Re-Arranging Itself.

Judge stops short of ordering Florida clerks to issue same-sex marriage licenses when ban ends.

The unexpected math behind Van Gogh’s “Starry Night” – Natalya St. Clair:

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A gif set from this commercial was being shared on Tumblr, and I just had to track down the video:

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LogoTV NewNowNext blog reports: Hozier’s “Take Me to Church” has become something of an LGBT anthem, especially with its video depicting a harrowing gay-bashing and lyrics decrying religious intolerance. At a live show in Paris this month, the Irish singer-songwriter was surprised when a 20-member choir infiltrated the audience and began to sing along during “Take Me to Church.”:

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I included Hozier’s heartwrenching video in Friday links some months ago, but here it is again:

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Mrs. Betty Bowers, America’s Best Christian offers the Best of 2014:

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Abba – Happy New Year:

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Eli Lieb – Lightning In A Bottle:

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Boxing Day Links

It’s Friday! The final Friday in December. It is also, depending on whether you are reading this before or after sundown, the second or the third day of Christmas. Yes, it is still Christmas! (The first day of Christmas begins at sundown on Christmas Eve, which means that the second day begins at sundown on Christmas Day, and so on. The twelfth day of Christmas is not the invention of some song writer, but rather Three Kings Day or Epiphany, in which many churches celebrate the arrival of the Wise Men at the place where Mary and Joseph and the baby were by that time.)

Anyway, on this, the final Friday of 2015, here is a collection of news and other things that I ran across over the course of the week which struck me as worthy of being shared:

My wish for the family with two dads who brought Christmas to a group of homeless LGBT youth. They had to remain anonymous, and not for good reasons…

U.S. Judge Robert Hinkle to Florida officials: Respond by Monday in gay-marriage case. And the judge appears to be losing patience with some state officials.

Florida woman in ‘Catholic Warrior’ t-shirt destroys Satanic Temple’s holiday display.

The Salt Lake Tribune Names Same-sex Marriage Plaintifs the Utahns of the Year.

This Response to Homophobic Bigots Is So On Point It Bleeds. Also, cheers for a comment: “…nobody worries more about the asses of gay men than homophobes do.”

Europa’s geysers play hard-to-see.

Fossil fish eye has 300 million-year-old rods and cones.

Why rape is so intrinsic to religion: Stories like the virgin birth lack freely given female consent. It’s telling how ready we still are to embrace them.

Gay Marriage Ban on Precarious Legal Ground.

Captive Virgins, Polygamy, Sex Slaves: What Marriage Would Look Like if We Actually Followed the Bible.

Airline passenger freaks out over crew’s ‘Merry Christmas’ greeting.

How Many Stars Did It Take To Make Us?.

Jay Thomas’ Lone Ranger Story 2014 – David Letterman, Jay treats the audience to his final telling of the “greatest talk show story of all time”:

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Friday Links (All I Want for Christmas edition)!

Santa explains how to explain gay people to kids.
Why are flying reindeer less confusing than people who belief differently than you?
It’s Friday! The third Friday in December. The third! I’m hosting a big party tomorrow and don’t have all the shopping or baking done, yet! I’m doooooooooomed!

Anyway, here is a collection of news and other things that I ran across over the course of the week which struck me as worthy of being shared:

Christian right’s vile PR sham: Why their bizarre films are backfiring on them. Delving into why the fear and false persecution narrative underlying fundamentalism prevents them from knowing how to tell an interesting story.

HILARIOUS: Model from ‘ex-gay’ twins billboard is ‘out, proud gay man,’ not a twin.

Let’s Say Goodbye To ‘White Collar’ With The Best Shirtless Matt Bomer Moments, In GIFs!

Do Pacific Northwesterners Have An Accent?

Gay W. Virginia high school soccer player comes out by dancing with homecoming king.

“Rape Exceptionalism” and Protecting Law Students from “Triggers”. And this is a problem because… victims of sexual assault actually need lawyers, prosecutors, and judges who are familiar with the relevant law.

“The Messier 67 Mystery” –Is Our Solar System an Orphan from a Distant Star Cluster?

New Family Tree Illuminates ‘Big Bang’ in Bird Evolution After Dinosaur Extinction.

Genes that leap from one species to another are more common than we thought. Does this shake up the tree of life?

Stephen Colbert Is Dead. Long Live Stephen Colbert.

Top 10 Things to Love About Letterman’s Top Ten Lists.

The cute rolling ball droid in the new Star Wars is a real robot not CGI.

News Corpse eBook ‘Fox Nation vs. Reality’ Reviewed By Wonkette.

Seattle’s unbelievable transportation megaproject fustercluck.

INDIANA METHODIST CHURCH TO CLOSE AFTER FIRING GAY CHORAL DIRECTOR – VIDEO.

Eartha Kitt – Nothin’ for Christmas:

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Every year since 1986, David Letterman has invited Darlene Love to perform on the last show of the year before Christmas. Every year, she sings “Christmas (Baby Please Come Home),” her Phil Spector-produced 1963 Christmas classic. Every year, Paul Shaffer and a sprawling cast of musicians backs her up. Next May, Letterman will retire from late-night TV, which means that when Love appears on Friday’s show to sing “Christmas (Baby Please Come Home),” it’ll be the last time singing it on Letterman’s show.

Here is a super-cut Best of Darlene Love Singing “Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)” on David Letterman:

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The Ramones – Merry Christmas (I Don’t Want To Fight Tonight):

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Billy Idol – Jingle Bell Rock:

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Mariah Carey – All I Want For Christmas Is You:

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Wham! – Last Christmas:

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Robbie Williams – So This Is Christmas:

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Andy Williams – The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year (From The Andy Williams Show):

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The Muppets ** It’s The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year ** Xmas@Rockefeller Center:

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The Muppets sing Jingle Bell Rock from “Muppet Family Christmas”:

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The Muppets: Ringing of the Bells:

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Doctor Who in Dominoes:

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All I Want For Christmas Is You – Christmas Charity Single – Oxford A capella group Out of the Blue:

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Friday Links (rest ye merry edition)!

It’s Friday! Already the second Friday in December. Only a few more to go and then there will be no more. Before we reach that point, Christmas day will be upon us, and I feel so unprepared!

Anyway, here is a collection of news and other things that I ran across over the course of the week which struck me as worthy of being shared:

Joyce Brabner’s ‘Second Avenue Caper: When Goodfellas, Divas, And Dealers Plotted Against The Plague’: Book Review.

Let’s Stop Making Jokes About Furries While Discussing That Recent Terrorist Attack on Furries.

“I won’t be a weapon anymore,” says former symbol of ex-gay movement.

Why Evangelical Christians Oppose Obamacare and Civil Rights.

The dangerous myth at the heart of conservative ideology.

FBI Understates Hate-Motivated Attacks on Transgender People.

Marriage equality in N.C. grows LGBT wedding professionals’ businesses.

Michigan House Passes Bill Allowing EMTs To Refuse Gay People.

2 Futures Can Explain Time’s Mysterious Past.

Gigantic Cambrian Shrimplike Creature Unearthed in Greenland.

Begun The Christmas Tree War Has. Fight over artificial vs cut live trees has been raging for over 100 years.

Obama’s Approval Rating Is in the Tank Because Americans Are Being Lied To.

Shonda Rhimes Delivered The Most Inspiring, Badass Speech. “How many women had to hit that glass before the first crack appeared?”

HARPERCOLLINS REFUSES TO PUBLISH BOOK UNTIL AUTHOR RENOUNCES GAY DAUGHTER.

Anti-gay N.C. church members indicted on felony kidnapping, assault of gay man.

Bobby Jindal’s Prayer Rally Materials Blame Gays & Legal Abortion For Hurricane Katrina.

Good riddance, Darrell Issa: A wasteful blowhard’s humiliating history.

After half a century of waiting – this gay couple were finally allowed to tie the knot.

Pastor Donnie Romero Says Gays Are ‘All Pedophiles’ Who Should Be ‘Put To Death’ (VIDEO).

Family Research Council Will Fix Constitutional Flaw That Allows Trans Americans Too Much Freedom.

I’m Still Bitter, Bill.

Becoming Willing to Tell Our (Tragically) Unflattering but Still (Super) Effective Stories of Trans Allyship.

Neil Gaiman recites Jabberwocky:

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Carol of the Bells (for 12 cellos) – ThePianoGuys:

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The Couch Gag Before Christmas | THE SIMPSONS | ANIMATION on FOX:

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President Obama Hijacks The Colbert Report ‘I, Stephen Colbert, Have Never Cared for Our President’ – President Obama literally takes over Stephen’s job for a segment, and it’s awesome:

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Mad Max: Fury Road – Official Theatrical Teaser Trailer [HD]:

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Iron Sky The Coming Race Official Teaser Trailer 1 (2016) – Fantasy Movie HD:

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DANIEL J CARTIER “THIS CHRISTMAS (STAY)”:

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[Official Video] Winter Wonderland/Don’t Worry Be Happy – Pentatonix (ft Tori Kelly):

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Annie Lennox – God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen:

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Friday Links (rum-pum-pum-pum)!

www.freefever.com/wallpaper/
Thinking about the Christmases past.
It’s Friday! It’s December. As the year draws to an end we enter Advent Season as everything leads up to the big day we’ve all been waiting for: when we sacrifice the Holly King so the Sun Child may be born and bring us the Festivus Pole!

(In case you don’t know: I’m a taoist who loves Christmas music, decorating trees, and making everything bright and sparkly; my husband is a pagan who puts up with my yuletide mania and helps amp up the silly on my decorating themes.)

Anyway, here is a collection of news and other things that I ran across over the course of the week which struck me as worthy of being shared:

Is This The Best Trans Character In The History Of Video Games?.

What If We’re Wrong About Depression?.

Why It’s Impossible to Indict a Cop.

The Pain of the Watermelon Joke. Thanks to @geojlc for the link!

Race ya: White people, we have to do better.

In Mississippi Marriage Ruling, Judge Gives History Lesson on Anti-Gay Discrimination. It really is a must-read.

How to Make Your Last Name Plural This Christmas Season.

Teacher Schools Class On Privilege…With A Recycling Bin And Some Paper.

And someone decided that wasn’t a comprehensive lesson: How to really understand white privilege.

No longer true that divorce rate is rising, or that half of all marriages end in divorce–hasn’t been for two decades.

VISIBLE GIRLS: LONDON’S LOST FEMALE SUBCULTURES. In the early 1980s, photographer Anita Corbin documented the “informal uniforms” of young women’s subcultures across London.

‘In 1995 we announced the arrival of Elizabeth. He informs us we were mistaken. Oops!’: Parents’ heartwarming birth notice to acknowledge their daughter becoming a transgender son called Kai.

Speaking of stories that restore a bit of my faith in humanity: Andre Johnson Bought A Buttload Of Toys For Kids Again.

Turkeygate: In Defense of Sasha and Malia.

Stephen Colbert’s Defense Of The New Lightsaber Is Awesomely Nerdy. Thanks to @tdjohnsn for the link!

Arizona pastor predicts ‘AIDS-free Christmas’ if all gays are killed, as God commands. “Predicts” isn’t the right word. He advocates for killing us.

My Great-Great-Aunt Discovered Francium. And It Killed Her.

The typography (and iconography) of Ridley Scott’s Alien. This is awesome!

Cartoon by Steve Stack puts #BlackLivesMatter into clear perspective.

THE GLOWING MALE PHYSIQUES OF DUTCH ARTIST MAURICE HEERDINK. Click through all the pages, the art is worth it.

Has Comet Sliding Spring changed Mars’ atmosphere forever? ‘Meteoric smoke’ from flyby may have altered Martian chemistry.

Eric Radford: Olympic figure skater, medal-winning family man. And gay.

One last gasp: Eric Garner and the failure of racial justice.

Electric Eels Can Remotely Control Their Prey’s Muscles.

Where Are The “Comeback” Columns About Obama? They Were A D.C. Media Staple For Bush.

I wrote about: NaNoWriMo achievement unlocked again!.

And Drop-kick me, Odin, through the goal posts of life*. Catching up on my goals, with a tiny digression about a cheesy country song.

Plus my thoughts On apologizing.

Bing Crosby & David Bowie – The Little Drummer Boy / Peace On Earth:

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American Masters: Bing Crosby Rediscovered | Bowie and Bing | PBS – the story of how Bowie saying he hated the song, led to the creation of a new Christmas classic:

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Star Wars Prank (Rémi Gaillard):

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Kate Pierson – “Mister Sister” (Official Music Video):

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[Official Video] Little Drummer Boy – Pentatonix:

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Queen + Adam Lambert – Somebody To Love (Live on X-Factor 2014):

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Carol of the Bells – David Hicken:

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Friday Links (holiday weekend edition)!

asipf1It’s Friday! The final Friday in November! Where did the year go? Seriously, where did it go!?

Because we’re traveling this week, and my schedule has been disrupted in ways in addition to the traveling, et cetera, this week’s links are a little shorter than usual.

Anyway, here is a collection of news and other things that I ran across over the course of the week which struck me as worthy of being shared:

That Girl Who Dies: Fridging, Feminism, Writerly and Readerly Doublethink, and Spoilers for Unmade (and oddly.. Little Women and Narnia…). And it’t not what you think… well, it’s partly what you think but… oh, it’s so complicated!

First published a couple years ago, but worth a read: No, you’re not entitled to your opinion.

The Secret Life of Passwords: We despise them – yet we imbue them with our hopes and dreams, our dearest memories, our deepest meanings. It is a beautiful article, illustrated with beautiful animated graphics, and definitely worth your time.

Retina OSX on the Original Macintosh. Very cute!

Compassion is painful. That’s how you know it’s working.

Bob McCulloch Is A Lying, Slimy, Arrogant Tool Who Gave A Masterful PR Performance.

2,000-Year-Old Mosaics Uncovered In Turkey Before Being Lost To Flooding.

The National Organization for Marriage (NOM) Loses, Again, In Appeal Trying To Intervene In Oregon’s Marriage Case (where marriage equality has existed for six months).

Philae: The bouncing baby space probe that gave itself another chance.

Good Police vs Bad Police. A friend said this much better than I could.

Why I Want Pope Francis to Write the Requiem for Gabriel Fernandez, the Boy Slaughtered by His Parents for Appearing Gay.

B3eJR2RIgAAsSrCReaders Push Lucie’s Place Fundraiser Past Its Goal. So, because the Duggars donated $10,000 to the campaign to stop a gay rights bill in Arkansas, recorded a nasty robo-call about it, and have been drumming up hysteria at anti-gay rallies, one blogger begged his readers to make a small donation to a homeless youth center that tries to make a safe place for LGBT kids, and other bloggers amplified the signal. In less than 24 hours more than $20,000 was donated to Lucie’s Place. So let me take this moment to urge you, whereever you are, to donate some money to a local youth homeless shelter, such as Lucie’s Place (luciesplace.org), the Ali Forney Center (aliforneycenter.org) or YouthCare (youthcare.org).

How could they? How could we?.

Are you participating in National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo)? Let’s be writing buddies!

Just Dance 2015 – Xmas Tree – Bollywood Santa – 5 Stars (Thanks{?} to Shockwave for the link):

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Pastor Manning Discusses Semen (parody… sort of):

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How to Talk To Your Kids About Gay Country Musicians:

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Frente! – Bizarre Love Triangle:

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Best Snow News Bloopers EVER:

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PUBLIC SERVICE BROADCASTING – GAGARIN (the grooviest music video of the year):

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Friday Links (Velvet Morning Edition)!

BettyBowers.Com (click to embiggen)
BettyBowers.Com (click to embiggen)
It’s Friday! The third Friday in November! The year is running out fast.

This week… I don’t want to talk about this week. You don’t want to read my whining or griping about this week.

Anyway, here is a collection of news and other things that I ran across over the course of the week which struck me as worthy of being shared:

No Offense to Laura Ingalls Wilder.

A Dad Received Messages Of Support From Strangers After Accidentally Discovering His Son Was Gay. And then he explains how things went after…

Does Religion Cause More Harm than Good? Brits Say Yes. Here’s Why They May be Right. You can strike the word “may” from the headline…

Former “reparative therapy” leader John Smid marries same-sex partner.

Amazingly Detailed New Maps of Asteroid Vesta.

NOM CRATERS: Funding for Anti-LGBT National Organization For Marriage Drops by Over 50%. (And this is a big drop from last year’s big drop which was a dig drop from the year before…)

New subatomic particles predicted by Canadians found at CERN.

Photos: Incredible Near-Complete Stegosaurus Skeleton.

Mongoose Lookouts Carefully Weigh Risks (and Sing While They Do It).

Totally Insane! Buffalo Suburbs May Have Set a Record for 24-Hour Snowfall in a Populated Area.

Woman opens professional cuddling shop – gets 10,000 customers in first week.

STUDY FINDS STRAIGHT PEOPLE – AND EVEN MANY GAYS – ARE STILL ALARMINGLY UNCOMFORTABLE WITH SAME-SEX PDA.

This is why the iPhone 6 didn’t get a sapphire screen.

US Supreme Court refuses to block SC gay marriages.

Wingers Go Gandhi. Sort of.

WATCH URSULA K. LE GUIN’S AMAZING NBA ACCEPTANCE SPEECH.

Alas, it wasn’t all good news: Lemony Snicket Makes Series of Racist Jokes at National Book Awards.

13-Year-Old Comes Out To Best “Bro” On Instant Messenger, Melts The Internet’s Heart.

‘Darwin’s Dilemma’ May Finally Have Been Resolved.

For the Public Good: The Shameful History of Forced Sterilization in the U.S.

Why ‘Kidnapped For Christ’ Is The Most Faithful Film Of The Year.

Transgender Women In Ohio Are At The Heart Of A National Crisis.

A Texas Dad Remembers His Daughter on the Transgender Day of Remembrance.

This bizarre drone decomposes upon impact.

New Kirk Cameron Movie, ‘Saving Christmas,’ Finishes In 15th Place During First Weekend Of Release. So don’t believe those headlines at Breitbart or on Fox…

Are you participating in National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo)? Let’s be writing buddies!

Playtime with Pup 681:

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Doctor Who Christmas Special Preview – BBC Children in Need 2014:

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[HOONIGAN] KEN BLOCK’S GYMKHANA SEVEN: WILD IN THE STREETS OF LOS ANGELES (the fact that I enjoyed watching is so much is probably a symptom of testosterone poisoning… just sayin’):

(If embedding doesn’t work, click here. And thanks to Cornwuff for the link!)

WATCH: University of Nottingham hockey team strip off against homophobia:

(If embedding doesn’t work, click here.)

Motown legend Jimmy Ruffin, whose 1980 smash Hold On To My Love helped usher out an era of gay nightlife, has died at the age of 78: Jimmy Ruffin – Hold On To My Love (Studio, Top Of The Pops):

(If embedding doesn’t work, click here. Of course, you need to hear the Robbie Leslie Disconet remix at least once)

Alison Goldfrapp & John Grant ARE the new Nancy Sinatra & Lee Hazelwood! “Some Velvet Morning” 18/11/14:

(If embedding doesn’t work, click here. If you aren’t aware of the bizarre single from 1967, this will make no sense to you.)

Friday Links (comet landing edition)!

xkcd's cartoon livestream of the comet landing as an animation.
xkcd’s cartoon livestream of the comet landing as an animation.
It’s Friday! The second Friday in November (even though tomorrow is the third Saturday, ooooooooooo)! The year is running out fast.

Last week I was worried about rain and flooding. This week, late-December/January type temperatures arrived a little early. One day my Seahawks stocking cap was too warm to keep on during the bus, the next day I was very, very glad that I’d put in the winter lining in the coat that morning, and wishing I had dug the scarf and gloves out of the bottom of the backpack before leaving the house. Weird!

Anyway, here is a collection of news and other things that I ran across over the course of the week which struck me as worthy of being shared:

The Sixth Stage of Grief Is Retro-computing: Networks Without Networks. This is a really beautiful piece that appears, at first glance, to be about computer nostalgia, and at second, to be about a relationship with an old friend who has passed, but while it covers both of those things, they aren’t want it’s about. It’s definitely worth reading the whole thing.

Intersexuality and God Through the Ages: The idea that intersexed bodies are “birth defects” is perpetuated by a lack of familiarity with intersexuality. But it wasn’t always this way. Name checks for both the greek god Hermophroditus and Hedwig and the Angry Inch…

10 Misconceptions Every Trans Ally Needs to Understand.

Breitbart Issues Best Correction Since Forever.

“It’s symbolic annihilation of history, and it’s done for a purpose. It really enforces white supremacy”: Edward Baptist on the lies we tell about slavery.

Comedy doesn’t belong to the a**holes anymore.

My Lesbian Mom Died Terrified of Going to Hell.

Mind-Blowing Fossil Preserves Tiny Horse Carrying Unborn Foal.

View of Comet from Lander During Descent. In case you haven’t already seen…

Mars and the Mind of Man: Carl Sagan, Ray Bradbury and Arthur C. Clarke in Cosmic Conversation, 1971.

Pregnant Snake Prepares For Motherhood By Eating Toxic Toads.

How Animals Hacked The Rainbow And Got Stumped On Blue.

Imported Glass in Japanese Tomb Identified.

He’s Smart Enough to Land a Drone on a Comet, But the Naked-Lady Shirt?

Fascinating comparison of the top 10 causes of death in 1900 and 2010.

The truth about the dungeon master who disappeared in the steam tunnels.

Leonard Matlovich: The Gay Military Hero You’ve Probably Never Heard Of.

Rachel Maddow trolls anti-science Tea Party school board members in the best way possible.

Gay vets reach milestone in Boston, still struggle nationally.

My Last Words to George W. Bush and Dick Cheney. Tomas Young, an Iraq war vet turned anti-war activist, passed away this week in Seattle at the age of 34. Tomas enlisted in the Army just two days after the 9/11 attacks. Following his training at Ft. Hood, Texas he was deployed to Iraq and paralyzed after being shot through his spinal cord just five days into his first tour.

Controversial Texas Restaurant Becoming A ‘Highly Rated’ Gay Bar. This is a story from earlier in the year, but a friend sent me the link, this snippet: “She say she would never broadcast her personal life in public. ‘As one who has been married for 45 years to my husband, I don’t think that it’s my role to stand in the street corner and start talking about the style of private life my husband and I have.'”, and then this translation: “I would never broadcast my heterosexual personal life in public. I would never tell everyone how I have been heterosexually married for 45 heterosexual years to my heterosexual husband heterosexually.” And I had to share.

Carol Ann Susi, ‘Big Bang Theory’s Mrs. Wolowitz, Dead. (I’m old enough to remember her as Miss Marmelstein on the old Kolchak: the Nightstalker series…)

10 Times Mrs. Wolowitz Was The Best Part Of ‘The Big Bang Theory’.

Queer Geeks Unite At Bent-Con 2014: COSPLAY PHOTOS.

Writing, writing, don’t stop!.

Not forgotten.

Are you participating in National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo)? Let’s be writing buddies!

I Am Not – Brett Gleason (Official Video):

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Chicago zoo welcomes adorable rescued otter pup:

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[MUSIC VIDEO] “Darkest Magic” (Lo Pan feat. Jack Burton) by SuperVillains:

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xkdc live streamed the landing in cartoon, then animated it:

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