Pride Photos 2015

I know, it was months ago. I'm way behind. Lost SD card, busy summer, it all adds up.

What have I been up to all summer? Well, I'm editing and helping with social media management for BGP Publishing. They are a joy to work with, and I'm having a blast! Also, I'm offering an editing deal in the month of September, so check that out on their website.

My short story Degenerate Island was published in the Arlington Literary Journal this summer. I have mixed feelings about this story, so I'd love to hear your opinions!

Also, I'm going to start trying to blog more regularly now that summer is officially over. I want to start doing a kind of advice column for writers. Any suggestions on starting topics? What do you want to know?

So, here's my photos from Pride 2015:

Vacationland Photos

These are older photos, but I figured they were a good way to get us ready for summertime. These were taken in Monhegan Bay, Maine, in 2009.

 

Create.

I write. I paint. I take photos. I collage. I bead. I knit. I bake. I draw. I Create. 

In the last few days I’ve had some pretty emotional conversations with a very close friend who is going through some stuff. This friend and I have known each other a long time and we have often used art in a sort of group therapy way, trading poetry prompts, endless bottles of Elmer’s glue and piles of magazine clippings. We both feel better when we Create. And, at least for me, if I don’t Create I feel trapped. I feel this itch inside my skin that makes me want to Create.

Creating is therapy. Creating has always been what keeps me sane. It is the way I process the world. 

I fought through social anxiety for years by carrying a camera with me. I healed from abuse by writing binders full of angst-filled poetry. I processed some of the strongest anger I’ve ever felt by throwing paint on a canvas, and it was an “Aha! Moment” for me when I realized how much that helped. 

I recently received one of the biggest compliments of my life when someone I barely know who follows my Facebook feed told me I “inspire people” and I make him “want to art.” (I love that he used “art” as a verb, by the way. Because truly, it is.) I realized immediately that this is what I’ve always wanted. I have no interest in judging artwork or grading artwork. I don’t want to subscribe strictly to what is called “good art” by the people who believe themselves able to make that call. I want to connect to art. Connect to other people through their art. I want to share it and I want to inspire and be inspired.

Most of all I want to inspire others to Create. To Create in ways they don't think they can. To draw even though they think they are horrible at it, or to sing even if they're off tune. 

The ability to Create is powerful. It is important. It is everything. And I think the world is a better place when those in it are using their energy to Create.

Painting My Guitar With Light

These photos are a few years old, but the technique is so much fun and I'm hoping to play around with it again soon. It's easily one of the most fascinating things I've ever done with digital imagery.

Put your camera on a tripod, focus it, then set it to a long shutter speed. Turn off the lights. Click the picture. While the shutter is open shine a small flashlight or pen light over the subject. Stop when you think it's bright enough. There is no way to instruct how to do this part, it really is experimental. 

If you try this technique tell me in the comments. I'd love to see what other people do with it.

Little Bit of Springtime

When I Came Out

The year I was born Berkley, CA was the first location in the US to offer domestic partner benefits to city employees.

When I was in the first grade Hong Kong, Ukraine and the Bahamas decriminalized homosexuality.

The year I first admitted to myself I might be gay Ellen Degeneres came out, her career tanked and her show was pulled from the air.

The year I came out to my closest friends Matthew Shepard was killed and I heard people applaud his death as "one less queer."

The year I graduated high school Canada passed a law to allow civil unions.

The first year I could legally drink The Simpson's became the first television show to dedicate an entire episode to the topic of legal gay marriage.

I am thirty years old. In my lifetime nineteen states have legalized same-sex marriage. There are same-sex couples dancing on So You Think You Can Dance. There are so many homosexual people in public office I can't keep track. Ellen has one of the top rated talk shows of all time. Headlines this morning informed me that "gay neighborhoods" are no longer necessary and are becoming a thing of the past. A transgendered woman walked the red carpet at the Emmy's last weekend and the only thing they asked her was "what are you wearing?" And I can say "my wife" with little more than an extra blink from most people I meet.

If you consider the recent video of Daniel Pierce it can feel like we aren't getting anywhere, and we really do have a long way to go. There are too many children terrified to come out. There are too many people still being discriminated against. We are far from done.

But sometimes I just have to sit back and think... Wow. Look what has happened. Look how we've grown. How incredible is it that I've gotten to witness such amazing things first hand?

Drama and Dancing

"Thug" opens this week
at the St. Lawrence Arts Center in Portland, Maine.

I know I have written before about my love of theatre, but since I've just completed the first draft of my first one act play, and because I want to plug an upcoming production I'm really excited about, I thought it a pertinent subject today.

At some point I think every theatre lover attempts to describe the experience of going to a live action production. Eventually we all return to Shakespeare. "All the world's a stage and all the men and women merely players." 

Theatre is life. It is the strongest parts of life. It is the moments we cry, the moments we laugh. Heartbreak and hilarity. It is the antithesis of zoning out blankly at a television program. It is the polar opposite of reading the headlines and skipping the articles. Theater is truly living. It's being aware of every moment, every breath, every visual and audible detail. It is strong and it is visceral.

Theatre is a group of people working toward one goal. The goal of creating a living piece of artwork. Theatre is a beautiful combination of every art form and medium. 

Charlotte's Web. Probably my first stage experience.
(That's me in the skirt on the end.)

This week my best friend and theatre/spiritual sister, Venus Murphy will be performing alongside some of my favorite Maine dancers in what might be her thousandth production (I've lost count) with Vivid Motion Dance. But I'm not just plugging it because of her. I've attended numerous Vivid Motion productions, including a few productions of their Nutcracker Burlesque, which is a highlight of my holiday season. Vivid Motion never disappoints. They are unique, entertaining, and a theatrical thrill.

This week's performance was written by Shea Murphy. It is described as an "intense story told through dance." According to Veni the show "deals with issues that sometimes make people uncomfortable. Alcoholism, domestic abuse, profiling. It's a story about real people, dealing with real things." She went on to say, "We don't feel like it's a show that will leave people feeling depressed, or hopeless. Personally, I hope people will be able to reflect on how they see some people, and maybe rethink their opinions. You never really know what someone has been through, just by looking at them." 

My wife and I did promotional photos for "Thug" a few weeks ago and this cast had us laughing out loud throughout, even as they were pulling from dark places to express this dramatic and compelling show. In the magic only possible with a live production, this show promises to connect strangers in a room who will laugh & cry together, and walk away changed.

Eugene can't wait to see you there opening night!

Thug Tickets!