Bright Eyes

A free beer to the first one who tells me this song's origin. Leave your answer in the comments!

Joseph McManners (Bright Eyes)
Uploaded by MIC42720

Blood on Lips

Sing we praises.
To all that is humble
and yet whole, and all that is.
En scriptorium magnificat
We send our own, simple glow
unto the light of Truth,
"Let us play..."
Renaissance.
Out of heart,
thru thine eyes,
upon the void,
...applied.
With mine own two hands.
Laughter, love, beauty.
Made manifest on our patch
In the garden,
The roses bloom in their full
magnificence.
I wander arm in arm
with mine own true love.
Green and lush our love,
on its virgin flowering.
Can you be here with me,
can life be not what it seems?
Wind stirs the reeds,
flute toned Bachian fugues
speak an answer to me.
Unsubstantiated amour,
amidst resplendent perfumery,
I bend to kiss the thorned weed.

Being gay is as easy as 1-2-3!

A quick checklist for straights looking for the gay way to the top:

You don’t have to be gay to be gay on the inside. Anyone can do it! It just requires three things: (1) consider that you might be different from the way people think you are; (2) consider that you might be different from the way you think you are supposed to be; (3) be willing to accept that other people may disapprove of your choices, and realize that their approval doesn’t matter all that much anyway.

That’s right. Just remember, everyone, there’s no one as important or as smart or as absolutely fabulous as you. No one…

Bombs

"I wouldn't mind gay people if they would just blend in with the rest of the population."

I will blend in when... I can walk down the street holding hands with my partner without being called a dyke.

I will blend in when... I don't live in fear of being fired from my job for being gay

I will blend in when... I never have to introduce my partner as a "friend" again

I will blend in when... people accept that homosexuality is not a choice

I will blend in when... people stop using religion as a weapon against me

I will blend in when... when gender is about the person and not about their chromosomes

I will blend in when... I can be at my partner's side in the hospital during an emergency

I will blend in when... I can get married in ANY state

I will blend in when... I can adopt from ANY agency

I will blend in when... the words homo- and heterosexual become taboo

I will blend in when... everyone works together to fight against AIDS

I will blend in when... I can serve freely in the military

I will blend in when... I can dress and act how I wish, without judgement

I will blend in when... my family can be seen as any other family

I will blend in when... I send my children to school without fear of ridicule, on their behalf

I will blend in when... I recieve equal rights in the workplace for myself and my partner

I will blend in when... everyone can come together and focus on important issues like war, the environment, health care and global poverty

I will blend in when... my relationship is seen as normal and not immoral

I will blend in when... there's no such thing as a closet

I will blend in when... pride parades become an all-encompassing celebration of diversity

I will blend in when... you truly look at me as your equal

When will you blend in?

She Want's Revenge

no room for argument...

...very little for vermouth

The Perfect Vodka Martini
_________________________




First a note about substituting ingredients or tools. Don't. This method has been exhaustively tested and retested for excellence and the smallest variation can result in catastrophic and unintended consequences. See the "butterfly flaps its wings and causes hurricane" metaphor from Chaos Theory. There is room for personal preference and improvisation in many things. This is not one of them.

"Oh, I love Bach's Fourth Brandenburg Concerto, but perhaps it should be just a touch slower."

"I cropped Caravaggio's Crucifixion of Saint Peter along the top a bit to get rid of some of that icky dark area."

Begin by assembling the following materials and a clean, white towel at your work space. Turn off the television and eliminate other distractions. John Coltranes's First Meditations is appropriate music to work by. I cannot vouch for anything else.

A pair (2) of large, crystal martini glasses with a capacity of at least 7 ounce each. Only the classic sillhouette will do. No swirly or rose-colored stems or any other ornamentation is acceptable.

A sturdy, stainless-steel Martini shaker of the familiar shape and a generous size.

Four (4) large fresh Cerignola, California or other brine-cured green olives.

A small piece of aged Danish Blue Cheese of the dry, crumbly variety.

A large quantity of clear, hard ice, frozen from distilled water.

A hammer.

A kitchen knife.

A small spoon.

Two (2) extra-long toothpicks or simple swizzle sticks.

Schweppes Club Soda.

Noilly Pratt Dry Vermouth.

Belvedere Vodka, from Poland, stored in freezer overnight.

Now we begin the sacrament. The motions and steps are all ordered to bring everything together at the holiest moment. There are many ways to describe the final product. Clean, precise and transcendent come to mind. But none of it is possible without cold. Cold in all its meanings. Unfeeling. Stoic. Mathematical.

1. Wrap some ice cubes in your towel and bash them with your hammer until they're all cracked into thirds or quarters.

2. Fill each glass to the rim with the cracked ice.

3. Pour the Club Soda over the cracked ice, filling the glasses. Set aside.

4. Pour a couple ounces of Dry Vermouth into the shaker. Cover and swirl it around a bit. Pour out the Vermouth leaving a coating around the inside of the shaker.

5. Hammer some more cubes lightly. Just a few whacks ought to do it this time.

6. Fill the shaker with the ice, about 3/4 of the way.

7. Pour in the ice-cold Belvedere Vodka, covering the ice. Cap the shaker. Set aside. Other vodkas may be better for other things, but not for this.

8. Take the flat of a kitchen knife and press down on an olive until you feel the pit. Carefully squeeze one end of the olive with your fingers. The pit should pop out. Using a small spoon, fill the cavity with Blue Cheese. Put two olives each on a swizzle stick. Set aside.

9. Vigorously shake the shaker in a violent up and down motion. When you feel you've done it enough, do it some more. It's important that the shaking sliver the ice. In classic Gin Martini preparation it is frequently said that a violent shaking will "bruise" the Gin. That may well be, but Vodka is a hearty liquid that blooms in its return to the near-frozen state from whence it came.

10. Pour the ice and Club Soda out of the glasses. The Soda enables the trace amount of Vermouth in the drink to cling to the side of the glass surounding the pure slurry of Vodka and imparting a hint of taste with each sip. Trust me.

11. Uncap the shaker and pour the drinks. An occasional back and forth rotation of the shaker will facilitate the process. The final product will be thickish, with a slightly slushy quality.

12. Drop in the olives.

13. Enjoy slowly. Chat about the issues of the day. Smoke.

14. Repeat as necessary.

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