Filed by Trevor at 3:05 am under Gay Agenda, The Media
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You know what’s really bad? I recognized most of the people in this video. I’m not quite sure I should have admitted that to you.

Filed by Trevor at 5:49 pm under The Arts
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Which, of course, stands for Jenny Owen Youngs, my latest hetero crush. Move over, Regina — you had your chance, and you just threw it away.

Below is the new video for Fuck Was I, a must-listen for any of you with at least half a soul.

Filed by Trevor at 1:09 am under General
3 Comments

You know that horrible Nokia ringtone? The one that immediately sets off a Pavlovian reaction of searing hatred? It’s actually based on a composition by Francisco Tarrega entitled Gran Vals. Behold, the true object of your rage!

Filed by Trevor at 2:37 pm under Damn Hippies, Homophobia, Politics, Social Issues
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Quote from Barack Obama yesterday:

“I have clearly stated my belief that gays and lesbians are our brothers and sisters and should be provided the respect, dignity, and rights of all other citizens. I have consistently spoken directly to African-American religious leaders about the need to overcome the homophobia that persists in some parts our community so that we can confront issues like HIV/AIDS and broaden the reach of equal rights in this country.

I strongly believe that African Americans and the LGBT community must stand together in the fight for equal rights. And so I strongly disagree with Reverend McClurkin’s views and will continue to fight for these rights as President of the United States to ensure that America is a country that spreads tolerance instead of division.”

On the surface, it’s refreshing to hear this sort of candor regarding the LGBT community from a top contender for the Presidency — had it come from a Republican I think I would have dropped down dead — but it’s a shame that legalizing gay marriage doesn’t fall under his heading of “broaden[ing] the reach of equal rights.” Just a reminder to all of you out there: ideology always trumps semantics. If you’re in favor of civil unions that offer the same rights and benefits as traditional marriage, then you’re in favor of gay marriage. Why call it anything else?

Can someone please tell me why we’re wasting any time as a country debating this issue? There is no discussion. We have far more pressing things as a nation to be united for. But out of curiosity, any word on the religious right about this?

Filed by Trevor at 5:59 am under Atheism, Religion, UU
2 Comments

I go through these weird cycles where I’ll get up at some ridiculous hour of the morning and, for lack of a better occupation at 2:30 a.m., stare at Homestar Runner and drink green tea for an hour or so before swiffering my floors for the umpteenth time. These are the days I enjoy the most, actually — the ones where I’ll look up from my work and notice it’s only 11:00 when it really feels like 5:00 in the afternoon. As I’m writing this, I still have a kitchen full of dishes left over from my birthday dinner, empty wine glasses on my table, and a disconcerting amount of dirty laundry that’s found its way to my living room; every so often the air fills with the sound of the clanks and thuds of the heaters kicking on all over the building. It may be free, but I doubt I’ll ever get used to the sound of the metal casings surrounding the radiators bowing and flexing as they heat up.
(Keep reading…)

Filed by Bil at 1:31 am under Activism, The Arts
2 Comments

So — having met with our legendary Third Napoleon, Per Diem has made some genuine progress in terms of not just forming the company but putting plans into motion. We have set guidelines and deadlines. We have made solid decisions (accidentally) and kept some of our ambiguities (on purpose). We’re on the road and inching forward.

One particular deadline we have set for ourselves is to decide on our shows for next year by the end of next month. We all agree this is the smart way to do it, because the longer we wait, the harder things will be. So we will plan WELL in advance.

We’re going to be doing a play I wrote just as a little introductory showcase-type play to kick things off, and then the official era of this company will begin. I’ve been spending so much time talking about this introductory play and so much time thinking about future plays (for, like, when we have money to spend on shows) that I hadn’t yet really thought about the first show of the actual season that I want to do.

Suddenly, there’s all this pressure to find a good show that means a lot to me that we can do for little to no budget. That means lots and lots of reading in my immediate future…it’ll be just like college all over again, except this time I really do have to read everything. Because the consequences matter.

In addition to Per Diem, I have also been cooking up a project with Trevor that should go live sometime this season…and oh, don’t worry, dear reader(s), you’ll hear all about it. It’s going to be SUPER-fun. It might also be therapeutic.

Oh — speaking of SUPER-fun and theatre…if you live in or near Chicago, go see “Crucible the Musible!” You won’t regret it. But you will regret it if you don’t see it, ’cause it’s pretty much the best show in the history of theatre.

Filed by Trevor at 4:17 am under Fightin' Words
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must be revised:
I’ve done to others
for years,
and all I have to show for it
is a broken heart
and a shattered credit rating.

I can’t compete with him,
not his body,
not his money,
only his devotion.

It’s what I’ve got to work with.

Filed by Trevor at 5:30 am under Shameless Plugs
2 Comments

I’ve finally redesigned my website — take a peek. Tons of new stuff, particularly sound bites of my past work. Spread the word!

Filed by Bil at 10:57 pm under Fightin' Words, Politics, Shameless Plugs, The Arts
3 Comments

I am preparing to write my first real high-stakes proposal. By high-stakes I mean there’s a chance of rejection. I wrote grant proposals in college but that was pretty much like asking for pennies that fell through someone’s pants-pocket and into their shoe.

I’m not sure why I made that analogy, because there isn’t any money on the line. What I mean is this: I have a shot at getting an actual theatre space to have a staged reading of a play I wrote. Our bad-ass new theatre company, Per Diem, will be producing it in the spring and I want as much publicity for our ice-breaker show as we can get. And staged readings are key. I want to have several of them, in fact, at various venues around the city. I’m thinking small stages at bars and cafés may be the way to go, but if I can get a space that is known for doing staged readings, that would help take it a lot further. So in that sense, the stakes are rather high. At least, they are in my mind.
(Keep reading…)

Filed by Bil at 12:43 am under General, The Arts
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It takes a very unique news article to really unsettle me. I would say it takes something really big or really awful, but obviously really big and awful things happen all the time, so big and awful is kind of routine now. At least when reading the news.

But then today I read this:

Scorching Chicago Marathon leaves 1 dead

And that freaked me out.
(Keep reading…)