The Fortunate Homosexual

Despite all the speculation and everything that has been said about Ricky Martin over the years, he chose to come out on his own time and in his own way. Congratulations, Ricky!! The best part is, though, that he could not have been more gracious or humble in the way he chose to express his feelings about coming out. He didn’t choose to be on the cover of People Magazine or anything like that. No, he simply announced it online, through Twitter and his blog. Dlisted posted the whole piece, and it is so beautiful.

If someone asked me today, “Ricky, what are you afraid of?” I would answer “the blood that runs through the streets of countries at war…child slavery, terrorism…the cynicism of some people in positions of power, the misinterpretation of faith.” But fear of my truth? Not at all! On the contrary, It fills me with strength and courage. This is just what I need especially now that I am the father of two beautiful boys that are so full of light and who with their outlook teach me new things every day. To keep living as I did up until today would be to indirectly diminish the glow that my kids where born with. Enough is enough. This has to change. This was not supposed to happen 5 or 10 years ago, it is supposed to happen now. Today is my day, this is my time, and this is my moment.

These years in silence and reflection made me stronger and reminded me that acceptance has to come from within and that this kind of truth gives me the power to conquer emotions I didn’t even know existed…I am proud to say that I am a fortunate homosexual man. I am very blessed to be who I am.

Coming out may seem like a simple step these days to some, but for many others it is still a difficult process. Ricky Martin’s decision will help not only himself but many others to come to the same conclusion that it is far better to be yourself than to hide. I love the new phrase he came up with: fortunate homosexual. There is absolutely nothing unfortunate about being true to yourself and your identity and letting the whole world know, and those who still harbor closed minds towards homosexuality need to stop and consider the gravity of those words.

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Snow leopards and Siberian tigers

I was just reading in TIME Magazine about the recent death of a captured snow lion in Afganistan and the deaths of 11 Siberian tigers at a zoo in China. Both types of cats are very rare, and it saddens me a great deal to read about each case. It is easy to forget about the importance of animal welfare considering everything else that goes on in the world, but it shouldn’t be taken lightly.

In the case of the snow leopard, I think it’s interesting that the man who was called to rescue him is quoted as saying, “My guess–and it is just that–is that it died from shock.” Now this man, Richard Fite, is a veterinarian from New Hampshire who serves as an adviser for the US Department of Agriculture in Afghanistan and was called in to help rescue and care for the snow leopard. But the article also mentions that Fite was more accustomed to treating farm animals and noticed the snow leopard seemed sick. Now, I’m sure he did everything he could, but why, if he was not used to treating exotic animals, did he not call someone else in to properly treat the snow leopard? So, no, it probably didn’t die of shock; it probably died because it was already sick when it ended up in the hunter’s trap in the first place and just did not get treated properly. This saddens me even more because it most likely could have been saved had it been appropriately treated in time. And the fact they decided to release it back into the wild when it was obviously not well enough…? I just cannot understand their thought process here. I’m sure the animal was in a state of shock at being captured and held and not understanding what was happening to it, but it just seems to me that a better course of action could have been taken on all counts.

While all zoos keep animals in captivity, many in the US do a good job of providing the animals with nice living conditions and proper food. So it can be easy to forget that other countries may not hold the same standards for their animals. Most zoos here also try to educate visitors about the plight of endangered animals and other protection issues. It seems this particular zoo in China does not. The picture of the tiger in its extremely small cage is so sad. The fact that it has to live in a cage at all in this day and age is cruel, inhumane, and enraging. And 11 of them from just one zoo are now dead due to forced malnutrition and horrid living conditions? That is unconscionable.

Please consider donating to one or more of the following organizations if you are able to. I wouldn’t normally solicit readers or anyone for that matter for a specific cause but, in this case, donating to wildlife organizations is often the only way that animals can get help when they are in desperate need the world over.

Wildlife Conservation Society
World Wildlife Fund
American Humane

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Telephone, explained

Ok, so here I am writing about Lady Gaga. Again. Sorry! For those of you who haven’t seen Gaga’s (and Beyonce’s!) newest video for Telephone, well, you need to get with it and watch it. I don’t see how anybody can’t like it, unless they just don’t get it, which is totally understandable. Enter this fascinating article from The Vigilant Citizen website. I’ve read a similar breakdown of a JayZ video that talks about Illuminati symbolism, and I find it really interesting since it explains everything that most people often complain to not understand, or “get,” about Gaga’s imagery. The Paparazzi video (aka my favorite of hers and the one that really started my “obsession”) was the first of hers to fully explore these themes. Her early videos are much simpler, although some of the imagery discussed in the Citizen article is present in them, too. I can’t say that I understood the Telephone video on the level that the Citizen explains it at, but the major themes made sense to me. A friend of mine once asked me to explain Gaga to her and, I have to say, I was at a loss. I just had to say that if you don’t get it then I can’t really explain it to you–there’s too much to say that requires a background understanding of other things! But the Citizen article says it all. Personally, I understand Gaga as an extension of Warhol and The Factory so what she’s doing makes perfect sense to me. And thanks to the Citizen, I now have a whole new understanding.

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An Open Letter to Giant Robot

Dear Giant Robot,

First I want to say that I have been a big fan of yours almost since the beginning. I love the mag, the stores, and everything they represent and promote. I’m saddened to hear that you guys have fallen on hard times due to the economy and the increased costs of postage and the publishing industry. But I have to say–when I opened the newest issue of GR and saw that you guys are taking donations to keep things afloat, I was a bit more dismayed. Now, I’m not trying to be a Debby Downer, so please hear me out. I understand that you have a small and already overworked staff who probably do more than anybody will ever realize to keep new issues of GR coming to our bookstores and mailboxes. It’s not that I think they need to do even more to increase readership and things like that; no, I just think maybe you guys should think about doing some things a little differently.

Your donation page says that you will improve the content of your magazine and website as well as explore other printing options and continue to evolve with technology. I see from your current website that you’re already doing the latter. You have bloggers, pod casts, and Twitter which are all great (although, I think your website could use a little work, but I understand that takes time and money as well). But I think this is the direction you need to keep looking towards–technology. Maybe it’s because I’m a library sciences student and my program is really pushing technology that I see the need for GR to go that route also, but it can’t be avoided. I’ve also been a zinester myself in the past, so I understand the need to keep one foot in the indie world. It’s part of the overall point of GR. I know you guys would rather sink the ship that betray that, but wouldn’t you also rather be a part of creating something even greater than where you’re at now instead of the “death” of print? You’ve got to keep evolving and growing. You can’t keep doing things the same way you’ve been doing them for the past 10 years and expect to stick around. I’m a pre-school teacher by day, and there are 4-year-olds in my class who already play their Nintendo DS’s and listen to iPods in their spare time. If you want to continue to stay relevant, you need to pay attention to the things you can do to capture younger audiences who will continue to be a part of what GR is all about in the future.

Now back to this concept of donations. It might be an quick fix solution on the surface: ask your loyal readers to donate so you can continue to deliver issues. I see you have a goal of $60,000 to keep things going for the next year, but I also see that the Robot Meter is not yet at the half-way point. Your readers are feeling the same crunches from our weakened economy that you are. So what happens in another year, even if you reach the $60k goal? You can’t keep asking your readers to donate. It might buy GR a little more time, but what if it doesn’t? Also, I see that your donation page mentions the rising costs of postage. I also see that you are offering donation gifts for the most generous of pledges, a format that has worked well for public television. But doesn’t it cost a portion of those pledges to send out the donation gifts? Maybe you can write it off, but it still kind of doesn’t make sense in the long run. And if, as you guys also mention, your “middle class of supporters has dropped,” why then would you offer a pay-for-play system that only rewards the most elite of your supporters? You have to get those middle class supporters (like me!) more involved in the mission of GR! I don’t have all the answers, but maybe you could do something like offer free, downloadable stickers and fliers that readers could use to their hearts content to promote GR? I know a good portion of GR readers are graffiti fans, so I also know they know that tagging can work–especially if it’s connected to the internet in some way. If social networking is where it’s at, then keep at it! It’s those kinds of initiatives that GR has got to start exploring more now and not when the donations are finished coming in.

So how exciting would be for GR to be at the forefront of finding new ways to integrate the good old print that we know and love with new technology? That’s all I’m saying. You can’t use donations and the next year to keep exploring new ways of making it work–you have to do it NOW. Maybe start a round table of artists, readers, writers, and others who have been a part of GR over the years and brainstorm ways to keep things alive. Postage costs may be rising, but the Internet is still free (for the most part), so you guys should take advantage before the big guys figure out more ways to charge for that, too. All I’m saying is don’t go down without a fight. GR has always been on the forefront of what’s new, interesting and exciting, and I would love to see you guys keep doing that for a long time. So, in closing, what else can I do to help?

With sincere Robot love,

Claire

–ATTN Wordgazer readers: Perhaps you could take the robot image at the top to your own blogs, websites, twitters, etc and help spread the good word that Giant Robot needs help? Or print it out and post it around to remind people and get them interested to at least find out what Giant Robot is all about. That’s a great, FREE way to help increase readership and maybe get some subscriptions in the process.

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The Big Picture

Just something quick here before I venture out into the snow of Utah for some boarding. Thanks to BoingBoing, I found The Big Picture which is a photo blog on boston.com. They collect a stunning variety of photos from different sources, and present them in a series about a specific subject. Recently, there were photos of Chile after the earthquake, the Vancouver Olympics, and Fashion Week in NYC. Each photo also has a caption, which is nice. I really enjoyed looking at a series from 2008 on North Korea that was posted today on BoingBoing as well. I will definitely be checking The Big Picture on a regular basis. Fascinating stuff.

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As Time Goes By

Perhaps W Magazine could sense my impending subscription cancellation because–despite the fact that Megan Fox is on the cover, pretending to seem as though there is some thought of intelligent merit rolling around somewhere in her head–they actually included several great pieces of interest.

First, there is a wonderful profile of Christophe de Menil, daughter of the great John and Dominique de Menil, who founded the Menil museum here in Houston. I love when the Menil or anyone connected with it gets any sort of mention in a national publication because it draws positive attention to the city of Houston, which sometimes gets a bad rap for various reasons. We are actually one of the most forward cities in the US in terms of art, and Houston is lucky to be the beneficiary of some very wealthy families who just happened to love and collect art as well as possess a philanthropic spirit. At 77-years old, Christophe is still going strong. There is not much information about her on the web, but you can see her beautiful jewelry and other creations at her beautifully modern website. If you keep up with art, you might be aware of her late grandson, Dash Snow. Dash was the son of Christophe’s daughter, Taya, from her first marriage to Robert Thurman, also known as Uma Thurman’s father. Anyway, Christophe seems like an interesting and friendly person, and I hope she visits Houston again sometime.

Also in the art vein was an article on Karel Funk, who is a young artist that paints, well…raincoats and hoodies. His work caught my eye because of its hyper-realistic, photographic style. In fact, he uses photographs that he takes himself as references, but the paintings are all acrylic on panel. Funk’s style is fascinating to me because I remember just how hard it was to paint fabric and drapery when I took a painting class in college. Something about his style and the choice he makes to present his subjects against a white background also suggests the sometimes solitary nature of modern society.

And last, there is a grand article on China Machado, who was the first non-Caucasian woman to be featured on the cover of a fashion magazine, Harper’s Bazaar, in 1959. The article is accompanied by many photos, some of Machado in her youth when she was photographed often by her friend, a one Mr. Richard Avedon, and several others of her presently, laughing and prancing around and seeming to have the time of her life with her family. She’s led a fascinating life which will be detailed in her upcoming memoir, beautifully entitled I Was Always Running After the Laughter. If only W Magazine could have chosen her for the cover.

I just love reading stories of these women who have led storied lives with friends like Judy Garland, Truman Capote, and others who are no longer with us. Houston is also lucky enough to have one of our own of just this type of lady in Lynn Wyatt. You can read more about her and get a taste of Houston history in this piece from National Geographic. Some of these ladies with their great memories won’t be around for all that much longer, and the more they tell their stories the longer we will have the reminder of eras gone by.

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Is Your Wig on Too Tight, Honey??

I’ve loved Lady Bunny for a long time, and it’s obvious her wig’s not on too tight! And why would it be? As one of the world’s most foremost drag performers, she can of course speak from the heart when it comes to gay rights. You know, those beauty queens sure do end up huffing a lot of hair spray because they just keep on coming out of the woodwork spouting their crazy vitriol all over creation. Just like Lady Bunny points out in her excellent article, do they forget who does their hair and makeup and sews all their costumes? I sure hope they ask every single person that works for them for some kind of proof that they are most definitely NOT gay because otherwise they really should just shut it. Thank you, Lady Bunny, for saying it better than most of us! If only the “beauty” queens would learn a little something more besides full-coverage foundation application from the drag queens…

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