So I'm going to volunteer to Cruise for Dean during gay pride.  But I've been asked if I want to be a "street captain." Especially at night.

I have no idea what that is. Images of wearing an eye patch with a parrot screaming "Howard Dean! Howard Dean!" on my shoulder. And something will have to get pierced.

Will it help my chances with the blokes?

I've actually seen an increasing number of guys walking around the Castro with parrots on their shoulders. Piercings, no eye patch. No idea if they've trained them to scream "Howard Dean" yet.

Get "Lost In The 50's" At Poppy's Great American Grill in New Orleans, owned and operated by All Day Permanent Red's real life uncle, the eponymous Poppy, lord of 1000 forgotten lyrics. Now they have "Scratch and Sniff Menus"!  

The diner is right across Pat O'Brians, which serves more alcohol than several states and U.S. protectorates put together. Face it: you need scratch and sniff menus to get through to them.  People there keep forgetting if it's Mardi Gras or not and are always exposing themselves out of season. We only have beads part of the year, you know.

And, no, that's not Varla Merman taking orders in the picture.  Though Poppy is a huge fan. (Aside: Imagine what it's like to say "Uncle Poppy!")

Tell Poppy All Day Permanent Red sent you and my uncle will have no idea what you're talking about, but he's southern and will smile and say hello anyway, and probably give you extra cheese on whatever it is you ordered.  

The place is decorated with magazine covers from magazines hoarded from generations of magazine-hoarding people in my family. They were given up at great emotional cost, involving no small amount of subterfuge with people claiming Elvis sightings to distract people from their magazine hoards.

Email them to let them know what you think of the new technology of scratch and sniff menus, if you are so inclined and have the gastronomic credentials.

Open the Poppy's Grill link. Go ahead. You have to see that place, Poppy.

"Poppy's...It's worth the drive to New Orleans." Even from San Francisco.

(Note to self: I've been linking to Varla so often that I really should be getting a kickback, or at least have her appear at a party for my friends at my apartment.)

Author JK Rowling has said the enormous wealth the Harry Potter books have brought her made her feel guilty...

But Professor Snape can make potions to bewitch the senses, put a stopper in death, and utterly drain the bank account.

I suppose it's far too late to think of changing the name of the blog by now...it was a working title, but I've certainly grown to like it.

I suppose the least I can do is put up a navigator link to the fantastic transliteration of the Iliad that Christopher Logue has been doing for so long now. (I never seem to run into anyone who knows of his work; I have no idea what that means.)

Besides, he got it from a Revlon lipstick commercial. And what's more: Frogs and Ravens said I should keep it. So there!

Update: Anyone want to help me think of a better description for this cite? Come on, poeple, comment!

Passing this along. Click the post topic to find the link to donate.

The Bay Area Angel Adventure for the National Brain Tumor Foundation takes place on 21 June, 2003. What is the Angel Adventure? It is a 5k walk along the San Francisco waterfront to raise funds to support brain tumor research.

Your humble webmistress is participating in this walk, to support her dear friend Joe, who has developed a brain tumor at the age of 26. I am grateful for anyone out there in the blogiverse that would like to support me in this walk.

Hey, you might be interested to know that I heard from a blogger who said he got his first-ever gay erotic film from you...and has never forgotten it, or you. (I know how he feels).

Imagine the effect you've had on untold number of people. Outreach, I knew you could do it.

[some links to adult content]

Wow. Probably self-aggrandizing of me to post this, but I just came across a recent blog entry of -- hmmm -- an old flame, Timo,  now VidkidTimo, award-winning directory and actor in gay erotic films. ("Anyone serious about porn should add Vidkid Timo to your collection" is a rather typical review. I concur! Wonder if Vidkid has been in touch with the gay porn blog.)

He writes about life way back in Louisiana, with our buddy Rod Dreher, who has now, perplexingly, written "some of the more bloodcurdling anti-gay bile," according to Michelangelo Signorile.

VidkidTimo writes in his journal (in very flattering terms that I may not deserve, but, god, is it nice to hear)

Talk about a blast from the past... I got an email from an old flame who I haven't seen since my early twenties (my ultra-neurotic period). Harrison B. [er, that's me, All Day Permanent Red] somehow came across my website and emailed to congratulate me on my porny success. It was SO wonderful to hear from him.

I first saw Harrison when I was in 10th grade at West Feliciana High. He and Rod Dreher (now a bearded, right-wing writer for THE NATIONAL REVIEW, but then a moussed-haired student at the Louisiana School for Arts and Sciences) came to say hello to my English teacher, Nora. Rod introduced Harrison to all the "kids" in the class. I was immediately attracted to Harrison's warm smile and homo-giddiness. Harrison returned for another brief hello when I was in 11th grade. My attraction to him was solidified. He had NO idea who I was!

Several years later we ran into each other when we were both living in New Orleans. I was dating Dwayne K. then... so my relationship with Harrison didn't go much further than lots of great sex and me irritating him with my intense immaturity and lack of social refinement. But I will always think of my time with Harrison as a dream come true... a wish granted... Harrison is one of those people who is as intelligent as he is handsome. I was so pleased to hear from him. The internet is a very useful tool in that respect. Three cheers for the internet! Now we'll be able to stay in touch.

God, Tim, so great to hear from you again. At least I have, ah, memories augmented by lots of recent detailed reminders of what you're like though your many films. I suppose I'd be a bit more effusive if I hadn't seen all those pictures of your very sweet-seeming, and -- talented boyfriend. Aren't you ever single? (Nah, really, I'm happy for you!)

Now what the hell has happened to Rod? One of the first people I came out to and a close friend to some of the wildest gay people out there? And now all this crap. Such as: An open reply to Rod Dreher and the New York Post written about his various anti-gay activities at the Post. And his newfound prudery here. His desire to stop gay people from marrying, his ideas that gays are fine as long as they stock having sex with each other. That politicians can make any homophobic statement they like as long as they hide it behind some religious belief. They could never get away with racists statements with the same justification. Or at least I hope they can't

And after all those wild trips we took the French Quarter.

VidkidTimo relates some other interesting stories about Rod, Varla Merman, and him back in Baton Rouge here in Tim's online diary. Rod helped to launch the career of the fantastic Varla Merman, one of the greatest drag performers of our time.

What an odd post this is.

The thrill of hearing from Timo, plus the shock it brought by reminding me, once again, off an old friend's newly acquired homophobia.

Update: Vidkidtimo, who really was doing amazing projects with Varla Merman back before they were both expelled from the Cafe du Mode for the fobidden and perplexing use of beignets, considers himself a "sexual anthropologist" as much as a replacement for Viagra.

Any suggestions for someone who spent some time living in Brazil, loves Caetano Veloso, Bossa Nova, and Tropicalismo, doesn't know anymore what people are listening to today? At least when I was living there around Carnival, they would teach us the words to all the sambas every night on television.

I wish something like that would happen where but then again it would be horrifying and probably involve praising Bush and the latest Buns of Steel routine he's doing at the white house gym.  

Perhaps some local Brazilian guy has some ideas for me.

Bookslut on Bookslut. She deserves it.

Bookslut is mentioned on Time.com's Best of the Web, along with personal favorites Saute Wednesday and Gawker.
posted by Jessa Crispin      link

The Invisible Adjunct writes:

Ph.D. as Preparation for Nonacademic Careers?

Call me bitter and disillusioned and downright cranky (no, really; go ahead: you won't be telling me anything that I don't already tell myself), but I am really tired of hearing the following platitude:

"A Ph.D. in the humanities can serve as preparation for a wide variety of careers outside the academy."

To which I always want to reply: Uh, no, you've got the whole thing ass-backwards.

Perhaps you meant to say something like, "If you are capable of completing a Ph.D. in the humanities, then you are also capable of preparing for a wide variety of fields outside the academy." True enough. I won't argue with you there.

That's pretty much how it works, though you'd be surprised how far a Ph.D. can get you some places, such as Silicon Valley. Er, provided that you've already broken into it somehow... Which, come to think of it, doesn't really mean that it got you there.

No Invisible Adjunct prize for me I guess.

Some may like a soft Brazilian singer

But I've given up all attempts at perfection...

GOSTO MUITO DE TE VER LEÃOZINHO
CAMINHANDO SOB O SOL
GOSTO MUITO DE VOCÊ LEÃOZINHO
PARA DESENTRISTECER LEÃOZINHO
O MEU CORAÇÃO TÃO SÓ
BASTA EU ENCONTRAR VOCÊ NO CAMINHO

UM FILHOTE DE LEÃO RAIO DA MANHÃ
ARRASTANDO O MEU OLHAR COMO UM ÍMÃ
O MEU CORAÇÃO É O SOL PAI DE TODA COR
QUANDO ELE LHE DOURA A PELE AO LÉU

GOSTO DE TE VER AO SOL LEÃOZINHO
DE TE VER ENTRAR NO MAR
TUA PELE TUA LUZ TUA JUBA
GOSTO DE FICAR AO SOL LEÃOZINHO
DE MOLHAR MINHA JUBA
DE ESTAR PERTO DE VOCÊ E ENTRAR NUMA

(Anyone recognize the artist and song? I'll give you a prize if guess correctly.)