Welcome to the new and improved Straight Talk.
I'll be making some changes around here, and now that the dust has cleared following my little construction project, I'm pleased to say I think things look better already.
Starting whenever I get my act together, I will be posting in various mediums to express my opinion, included, but not limited to: pictures, text, video, and some combination of all three.
Have a seat! I look forward to seeing all your beautiful faces. And by faces, I mean comments.
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
Sunday, October 31, 2010
Vote!
Not voting is like taking democracy out back to shoot it. I mean, you might as well put it out of its misery.
Seriously though, voting is a privilege, and we do a good job of pretending that it's a right. Well, women have only gotten to vote in the last century in this country, and African American men only about half a century prior.
I'm going to go ahead and quote Joni Mitchell here. 'You don't know what you've got 'til it's gone.' I mean, the turnout is generally so low we might as well take away the option all together.
So yeah, if you don't vote, you're risking the rights of everyone to vote, and sacrificing the democratic process for your inability to actually visit a polling place or register to have your ballot sent to your home. That's right. You could vote while drinking your beer and watching the World Series. (GO GIANTS!)
I think it's pretty self-evident. Vote in the election on Tuesday.
Seriously though, voting is a privilege, and we do a good job of pretending that it's a right. Well, women have only gotten to vote in the last century in this country, and African American men only about half a century prior.
I'm going to go ahead and quote Joni Mitchell here. 'You don't know what you've got 'til it's gone.' I mean, the turnout is generally so low we might as well take away the option all together.
So yeah, if you don't vote, you're risking the rights of everyone to vote, and sacrificing the democratic process for your inability to actually visit a polling place or register to have your ballot sent to your home. That's right. You could vote while drinking your beer and watching the World Series. (GO GIANTS!)
I think it's pretty self-evident. Vote in the election on Tuesday.
Sunday, August 15, 2010
A Piece on my Sexuality
Because it's the elephant on the web-page that everyone's talking about.
I'd like to re-publish a piece I wrote a while back- it was a note on facebook, so I'm just recycling it here.
From August 17th, 2009:
Considering the amount of time I feel I spend answering people's questions about lesbianism and homosexuality, I think I should just write this note and reference it in the future.
Just because I am gay doesn't mean I'm an expert on all people who fall under the umbrella term "queer". Let's get that out of the way immediately. I would not ask someone who's straight how every straight person felt about being straight, or if missionary is really how you have sex, or if it's hard to please your partner because you're of an opposite gender and can't really understand the intricate workings of their bodies.
Transversely, when you ask me "do lesbians really scissor" or "is it really sex, without a penis", I only really know the answers for myself. Which is, by the way, NO, and yes. My definition of sex is when you have an intense connection with someone that is manifested through physical contact, that also involves some sort of vulnerability. Yes, this does mean that I think meaningless sex isn't really sex, and you can't lose your virginity if you don't feel connected to the other person or that you shared something with them, or even lost something to them, like your innocence.
Limit the questions, however, because I don't feel like I've been elected spokesperson for the queer community just because I'm your token gay friend. Obviously I don't mean you can't ask me personal questions, but when you ask general questions, it's kind of hard to answer some of them without feeling like I'm shooting in the dark.
Next, being tolerant includes tolerance of all degrees of sexuality. Being my friend or acquaintance doesn't give you the right to not be accepting of bisexual, transsexual, transgendered, or gay people. Let's put it this way. If you ever find yourself in the situation where you have to say "but I'm friends with a lesbian", you've probably done or said something intolerant. Admit it, fix it, move on. Don't use friends, and especially not me, as an excuse.
Also. I'm not a lesbian. I'm a person who happens to be attracted to people of the same sex. My sexuality no more defines me than your sexuality defines you. When you call me that, I have a feeling I'm being put into a box in which I do not belong. I'm not concerned with what I do in the bedroom. You probably wouldn't introduce me as your friend the Jew (granted, I'm only culturally Jewish, but still), and being a lesbian kind of feels the same to me- something I talk about, have no problem telling other people I am, but certainly is not very important in the equation of who I am. Even if I look gay.
One last thing. I am actually a discreet and fairly conservative person (not politically, but personally). I don't feel the need to constantly tell people what I do in the bedroom. If I do, it's because I elect to. I'm comfortable with who I am, but I understand there are people who aren't, and I don't feel the need to tell them my sexuality or my exploits. I'm a responsible, upright person, so if you're going to tell someone something about me, try not to mention my private life but rather my personal characteristics. It makes me feel better. I don't like the idea that the first thing you decide to tell someone else about me is that I'm a lesbian. I think there are more interesting aspects of my personality for you to talk about.
I don't want to make it seem like anyone in my friend group offends me in any way, because no one really does, and really, as long as you know you're only getting my side of the story, asking questions is fine. But I really am not the expert in all alternative sexualities. It is akin to using wikipedia for a research paper- you may get the gist, the article will be a stub, or the sources won't be checked, so you can't really use it. Or at least take it with a grain of salt. Advice is subjective, but information shouldn't be.
I'd like to re-publish a piece I wrote a while back- it was a note on facebook, so I'm just recycling it here.
From August 17th, 2009:
Considering the amount of time I feel I spend answering people's questions about lesbianism and homosexuality, I think I should just write this note and reference it in the future.
Just because I am gay doesn't mean I'm an expert on all people who fall under the umbrella term "queer". Let's get that out of the way immediately. I would not ask someone who's straight how every straight person felt about being straight, or if missionary is really how you have sex, or if it's hard to please your partner because you're of an opposite gender and can't really understand the intricate workings of their bodies.
Transversely, when you ask me "do lesbians really scissor" or "is it really sex, without a penis", I only really know the answers for myself. Which is, by the way, NO, and yes. My definition of sex is when you have an intense connection with someone that is manifested through physical contact, that also involves some sort of vulnerability. Yes, this does mean that I think meaningless sex isn't really sex, and you can't lose your virginity if you don't feel connected to the other person or that you shared something with them, or even lost something to them, like your innocence.
Limit the questions, however, because I don't feel like I've been elected spokesperson for the queer community just because I'm your token gay friend. Obviously I don't mean you can't ask me personal questions, but when you ask general questions, it's kind of hard to answer some of them without feeling like I'm shooting in the dark.
Next, being tolerant includes tolerance of all degrees of sexuality. Being my friend or acquaintance doesn't give you the right to not be accepting of bisexual, transsexual, transgendered, or gay people. Let's put it this way. If you ever find yourself in the situation where you have to say "but I'm friends with a lesbian", you've probably done or said something intolerant. Admit it, fix it, move on. Don't use friends, and especially not me, as an excuse.
Also. I'm not a lesbian. I'm a person who happens to be attracted to people of the same sex. My sexuality no more defines me than your sexuality defines you. When you call me that, I have a feeling I'm being put into a box in which I do not belong. I'm not concerned with what I do in the bedroom. You probably wouldn't introduce me as your friend the Jew (granted, I'm only culturally Jewish, but still), and being a lesbian kind of feels the same to me- something I talk about, have no problem telling other people I am, but certainly is not very important in the equation of who I am. Even if I look gay.
One last thing. I am actually a discreet and fairly conservative person (not politically, but personally). I don't feel the need to constantly tell people what I do in the bedroom. If I do, it's because I elect to. I'm comfortable with who I am, but I understand there are people who aren't, and I don't feel the need to tell them my sexuality or my exploits. I'm a responsible, upright person, so if you're going to tell someone something about me, try not to mention my private life but rather my personal characteristics. It makes me feel better. I don't like the idea that the first thing you decide to tell someone else about me is that I'm a lesbian. I think there are more interesting aspects of my personality for you to talk about.
I don't want to make it seem like anyone in my friend group offends me in any way, because no one really does, and really, as long as you know you're only getting my side of the story, asking questions is fine. But I really am not the expert in all alternative sexualities. It is akin to using wikipedia for a research paper- you may get the gist, the article will be a stub, or the sources won't be checked, so you can't really use it. Or at least take it with a grain of salt. Advice is subjective, but information shouldn't be.
Indecent Proposal
It seems that a lot of women want to know how they can get their guy to propose to them. I have a foolproof plan guaranteed to get results.
Do you know his favorite sports team? Basketball, football, hockey, baseball, doesn't matter. Find out if you don't already know. Let him watch this team play on the new 56" wide-screen, high-definition television you've bought him as a 'just because' gift. On these days or nights do not attempt to engage him in conversation while the game is showing. After these game watching experiences, sex should be on the docket. Just saying.
The piece de resistance is fairly easy. Purchase the jersey of his favorite player and don't let him know about it. Wear it and nothing else and walk out into the living room while he's watching the game, preferably when the team is winning, and be holding a six-pack of his favorite beer. Offer him a beer and ask him if he likes the new jersey you got him. Give it to him, and say that you'd really like to get married. Then saunter off, saying something seductive.
If that doesn't work, then I guess men aren't the one-layered persona that the media would have us believe. It's interesting how sexism swings both ways. In all honesty, if your boyfriend isn't proposing, he probably either isn't thinking about it, isn't ready, or thinks you'll say no.
I mean, you could still try my plan, but there aren't easy answers to hard questions.
Do you know his favorite sports team? Basketball, football, hockey, baseball, doesn't matter. Find out if you don't already know. Let him watch this team play on the new 56" wide-screen, high-definition television you've bought him as a 'just because' gift. On these days or nights do not attempt to engage him in conversation while the game is showing. After these game watching experiences, sex should be on the docket. Just saying.
The piece de resistance is fairly easy. Purchase the jersey of his favorite player and don't let him know about it. Wear it and nothing else and walk out into the living room while he's watching the game, preferably when the team is winning, and be holding a six-pack of his favorite beer. Offer him a beer and ask him if he likes the new jersey you got him. Give it to him, and say that you'd really like to get married. Then saunter off, saying something seductive.
If that doesn't work, then I guess men aren't the one-layered persona that the media would have us believe. It's interesting how sexism swings both ways. In all honesty, if your boyfriend isn't proposing, he probably either isn't thinking about it, isn't ready, or thinks you'll say no.
I mean, you could still try my plan, but there aren't easy answers to hard questions.
Monday, August 9, 2010
Macs vs. PC's
Apparently I'm using a tricycle. At least, that's what three people have told me in the last few weeks.
I was merely sitting down with my Mac for two of the occasions, and on the other, I commented that I didn't really 'get' PC's, mostly because I've used Macs for the past my-whole-life. I can use PC's, I don't even find them hard to use. What I don't get is why they feel the need to NOT be user-friendly.
Most people agree that PCs are more customizable, but that open-platform doesn't do wonders for the security and stability of the machine. Mac, on the other hand, is frequently criticized for having closed-source development- understandably, as this limits the options available to the user. This platform, however, makes Macs stable and difficult to hack. The US government have begun to use Macs for that reason, which I find interesting, along with the image of a bunch of military honchos riding around on radio-flyer tricycles.
For the majority of computer users, a computer that's customizable is fairly useless, because they aren't going to customize. In fact, I would argue that many computer users are basically technologically illiterate. Take for example, my father, who types with two fingers and yells at his PC whenever he can't figure something out. His most frequent complaints are 'how frustrating it is to use' and how slow everything is. His computer has 3 gigs of RAM. My old Mac laptop had 2 gigs, and my father would comment on how fast it was compared to his whenever he used it. He also wouldn't scream at the computer when he used it.
My dad, however, is kind of a miser and hates spending more money than he needs to. Arguably, buying a Mac is kind of spending more money than you need to, but you can find them used for a reasonable price, and considering he likes using my older laptop, I bequeathed to him after I got my new Mac.
I use Macs mostly because I'm a musician and I don't care about gaming or business. I might be using a tricycle, but it's a tricycle like this.
I was merely sitting down with my Mac for two of the occasions, and on the other, I commented that I didn't really 'get' PC's, mostly because I've used Macs for the past my-whole-life. I can use PC's, I don't even find them hard to use. What I don't get is why they feel the need to NOT be user-friendly.
Most people agree that PCs are more customizable, but that open-platform doesn't do wonders for the security and stability of the machine. Mac, on the other hand, is frequently criticized for having closed-source development- understandably, as this limits the options available to the user. This platform, however, makes Macs stable and difficult to hack. The US government have begun to use Macs for that reason, which I find interesting, along with the image of a bunch of military honchos riding around on radio-flyer tricycles.
For the majority of computer users, a computer that's customizable is fairly useless, because they aren't going to customize. In fact, I would argue that many computer users are basically technologically illiterate. Take for example, my father, who types with two fingers and yells at his PC whenever he can't figure something out. His most frequent complaints are 'how frustrating it is to use' and how slow everything is. His computer has 3 gigs of RAM. My old Mac laptop had 2 gigs, and my father would comment on how fast it was compared to his whenever he used it. He also wouldn't scream at the computer when he used it.
My dad, however, is kind of a miser and hates spending more money than he needs to. Arguably, buying a Mac is kind of spending more money than you need to, but you can find them used for a reasonable price, and considering he likes using my older laptop, I bequeathed to him after I got my new Mac.
I use Macs mostly because I'm a musician and I don't care about gaming or business. I might be using a tricycle, but it's a tricycle like this.
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Updates from the Desk
So, because my inbox isn't tingling with questions, I suppose what I'll have to do is find questions that other people have poised to advice columnists and answer them with my own snark.
I'm thinking I'll start with the basics- Dear Abby, Miss Manners, and of course good ol' Ann Landers. If I feel inclined, I might swing over to Dan Savage as well.
Disclaimer: I don't think I'm anywhere near the level of these people. I just think it will be fun.
I'm thinking I'll start with the basics- Dear Abby, Miss Manners, and of course good ol' Ann Landers. If I feel inclined, I might swing over to Dan Savage as well.
Disclaimer: I don't think I'm anywhere near the level of these people. I just think it will be fun.
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
First Question!
Question: 'How do you change the car battery in a VW Golf without electrocuting yourself?'
Well, for one, you could get a lesbian to do it for you. Or a mechanic- well, that might end up being the same thing- since if you're electrocuting yourself regularly whilst changing your car batteries, you should probably no longer do it on your own. I find turning the car off and not touching the metal parts of the battery are some of the best ways to avoid electrocution. If you're really paranoid about it, you could wear rubber gloves. Frying any more brain cells by electric shock would probably make it hard to remember that, however.
Really, though, the best thing to remember is to remove the negative connection first (that's the black cable), and reattach it first. And to not touch both metal tips at the same time.
Here's a really thorough article for you, if my advice isn't sufficient.
Well, for one, you could get a lesbian to do it for you. Or a mechanic- well, that might end up being the same thing- since if you're electrocuting yourself regularly whilst changing your car batteries, you should probably no longer do it on your own. I find turning the car off and not touching the metal parts of the battery are some of the best ways to avoid electrocution. If you're really paranoid about it, you could wear rubber gloves. Frying any more brain cells by electric shock would probably make it hard to remember that, however.
Really, though, the best thing to remember is to remove the negative connection first (that's the black cable), and reattach it first. And to not touch both metal tips at the same time.
Here's a really thorough article for you, if my advice isn't sufficient.
Monday, July 12, 2010
Information
So, as soon as people email me questions, I will begin to respond via a blog post. I don't care what sort of questions they are. It could be about sex, relationships, friends, money, what car to buy, which breed of elephant would be best suited to your needs as a pet owner... you get the picture. Ask whatever you want.
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