My Favorite Products for Cleaning the Bathroom
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So you can make that never-ending chore a little easier.
1 day ago
HBO - True Blood - totally obvious - the vampires are the momos...
Labels:
gay,
stereotype,
television,
video
partial review from Proceed at Your own Risk (NSFW - Not Safe for Work - username = payor password = password):
"Part of me loves this controversial and risky story. I love the premise and I mostly love the show, but the simple-minded and constant tongue-in-cheek sophomoric references to gay rights and gay issues potentially borders on distasteful and possibly does us some harm.
Vampires are fighting stereotypes and coming out of the coffin. We even have a vampire bar and vampire hags. Vampires are under attack by right wing Evangelicals. Vampires are fighting for equality.
I get it... "
the only reason this isn't listed as NSFW is that it was on the history channel.... "a punishment usually reserved for a slave"
the reality of ancient athletics - "the penalty for a false start is a shameful whipping by the judges. a punishment usually reserved for a slave."
Submitted for opinions: "Stop Seeking: Paradoxes of the Spiritual Path"
Labels:
spirit
"1. Stopping Seeking Takes Seeking
The point of the spiritual search is to stop seeking. But not in the way it seems.."
http://www.realitysandwich.com/stop_seeking_paradoxes_spiritual_path
Two-Spirit people - a completely different view of the role of gay and lesbian men and women - or - if it's genetic then how did we survive evolution?
From Wikipedia:
Two-Spirit (also two spirit or twospirit) people are Native Americans who fulfill one of many mixed gender roles found traditionally among many Native Americans and Canadian First Nations indigenous groups. Traditionally the roles included wearing the clothing and performing the work of both male and female genders. The term usually implies a masculine spirit and a feminine spirit living in the same body and was coined by contemporary gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender Native Americans to describe themselves and the traditional roles they are reclaiming. There are many indigenous terms for these individuals in the various Native American languages as "what scholars generically refer to as 'Native American gender diversity' was a fundamental institution among most tribal peoples"[1].
It is a calque of the Ojibwa phrase niizh manidoowag (two spirits). It was chosen to distance Native/First Nations people from non-natives as well as from the words "berdache" and "gay."
As of 1991, male and female bodied Two-Spirit people have been "documented in over 130 North American tribes, in every region of the continent, among every type of native culture"[2].
Some examples of two-spirited people in history include accounts by Spanish conquistadors who spotted a two-spirited individual(s) in almost every village they entered in Central America. There are descriptions of two-spirited individuals having strong mystical powers. In one account, raiding soldiers of a rival tribe began to attack a group of foraging women. When they perceived that one of the women, the one that did not run away, was a two-spirit, they halted their attack and retreated after the two-spirit countered them with a stick, determining that the two-spirit would have great power which they would not be able to overcome.
he term "Two-Spirit" is most comfortably applied to contemporary individuals and groups who identify as such, and Two-Spirit men may distinguish between spiritual and cultural practitioners, or "Two-Spirits", and "gay Indians". Modern Two-Spirit activities include:
- Knowledge in ritual, ceremonial, religious, and culture
- Knowledge and skill in crafts, especially women's
- Teaching
- Child-care for family and community
Two-Spirit and gay Indian men often report accepting female relatives and communities willing to enforce the closet. Native cultures may be considered to have "indiscriminately" adopted European values including sexism and homophobia and it is commonly argued that being "gay" or "cross-dressing" is not "traditional" or not "Indian". The re-adoption of Two-Spirit roles may be seen then as a healing for both Two-Spirit individuals and Native cultures, and modern Two-Spirit i
dentity is fundamentally concerned with tradition.
Historical "Two-Spirits"
---------------------- end of wikipedia info
more info here if you are interested:
http://www.androphile.org/preview/Culture/NativeAmerica/amerindian.htm
http://www.planetout.com/news/history/archive/indian.html
http://www.advocate.com/exclusive_detail_ektid22625.asp
Gay marriage in Oregon? Tribe says yeshttp://www.2spirits.com/2Spiritflyer.pdf
Some Early Church Fathers on Reincarnation both pro and con
Labels:
church,
history,
reincarnation,
spirit
"The church of Rome in declaring Origen and his teachings heresy declared: "If anyone assert the fabulous pre-existence of souls, and shall assert the monstrous restoration which follows from it: let him be anathema."
"The transmigrations (reincarnation) of souls was taught for a long time among the early Christians as an esoteric and traditional doctrine which was to be divulged to only a small number of the elect." (Jerome, Letter to Demetrias) "The Gnosis itself is that which has descended by transmission to a few, having been imparted unwritten by the apostles." (Miscell. Book VI, Chapter 7) "It is absolutely necessary that the soul should be healed and "The resurrection is no other thing than 'the re-constitution of our nature in its original form'", and states that there will come a time "…when the complete whole of our race shall have been perfected from the first man to the last." (On the Soul and Resurrection) "And what do those suffer who are judged to be unworthy of this spectacle? said he. They are imprisoned in the bodies of certain wild beasts, and this is their punishment" (Dialogue with Trypho)
(Anathema I, 5th Ecumenical Council)
However other prominent figures in the Church affirmed that reincarnation was a part of early Christian doctrine:
Rufinus assured Anastasius in a letter that belief in repeated lives was a matter of common knowledge among the church fathers and had always been imparted to the initiated as an ancient tradition. (Reincarnation and Karma, Pfullingen 1962, p. 41)
According to Jerome (340 - 420 AD):
According to Origen's predecessor, Clement of Alexandra (150 - 211 AD):
St, Gregory (257 - 337 AD) wrote:
purified, and that if it does not take place during its life on earth, it must be accomplishe
d in future lives." (Trinick 1950: 38) Gregory of Nyssa (330 - 400 AD) wrote:
Justin Martyr (100 - 165 AD) wrote the following to Trypho the Jew:
Jerome wrote in a letter to Demetrius that among the early Christians, the doctrine of reincarnation had been passed on to the elect, as an occult tradition. (Reincarnation and Karma, Pfullingen 1962, p. 41)
According to Origen, Basilides (117 - 138 AD) held a doctrine of reincarnation that was identical to the Pythagorean belief that human souls may take on the bodies of animals in future lives (i.e. transmigration). (Basilides, "Fragment F," in Layton, Gnostic Scriptures, p. 439.)"
My trailer is lonely!
Since I have been h
ere for a few months now i have had only a handful of visitors (4!) and i really want to have some folks over to just hang and check out the place.
I'm tired of watching my Project Runwa y
re-runs (my fav is eliminated already) and redecorating the place without anyone to say "what a good boy - it looks great!" and do the equivalent of hanging my drawing on the fridge.
South jersey folks - i'm a minute from Under wood Hospital. Philly folks I'm about 8 minutes by car from the Walt Whitman bridge and a bus comes dang close to me. So if anyone wants to come over - don't feel shy - let's set something up ok?
I'm tired of watching my Project Runwa y
re-runs (my fav is eliminated already) and redecorating the place without anyone to say "what a good boy - it looks great!" and do the equivalent of hanging my drawing on the fridge.South jersey folks - i'm a minute from Under wood Hospital. Philly folks I'm about 8 minutes by car from the Walt Whitman bridge and a bus comes dang close to me. So if anyone wants to come over - don't feel shy - let's set something up ok?
the "bike ramp at night story"
Labels:
matt,
personal stories
I was asked to tell a couple more personal stories after i posted "for those who do not know me".
One was "the flipflop story" and the other was the "bike ramp at night story".
i will share the bike ramp story first because i sort of feel guilty about it and i would rather get that out of the way first.
this was back in the day when i lived on 9th avenue in Pitman in the Grove. Those in the loop will 
know that 9th avenue is the one hill in the Grove. The Grove is the original section of town that was formed as a Methodist religious retreat in the 1800s. It is set up with sidewalks as the "avenues" and cars park in back of the houses. Apparently Methodist summer camp "Groves" were all the rage at that time in New jersey - others include Ocean Grove, Mantua Grove and National Park, NJ.
Anyhow - one evening colleen and dennis and christina and i were all hanging out, sort of bored.
c and d had created this sort of thingy for their vehicle that they didn't want anymore. we were dragging it around and at one point stuck it in the middle of 9th Ave. We kind of forgot about it until later - when we were sitting on the front porch we heard a bicycle go by and then suddenly 
a scream and a crash! Some random person had headed down the hill on their bike at full speed and - well, they were suddenly surprised by the fact that they were airborne and no longer in control of their situation.
I think it might be one of those stories where you had to be there?
Are there details I have gotten wrong or forgotten? pleeze remind if so.
Type rest of the post here
Tommy by the Who - worst musical of the last century?
I rented Tommy thru netflix.
Ummm, this is the third time i have had to pause it and come back to it later because i was either painfully bored or terribly embarrassed for those in it.
The only semblance
of order i can create out of this travesty is: don't be a young misfit who decides to be a cult guru because it won't turn out so great and some of the folks who flock to you will eventually betray you and the whole thing will turn into a mockery of itself.... We could have known that by asking Jesus, Mr Manson or The reverend Jim Jones... The music is horrible (except for Tina Turner and elton John's brief performances).
Otherwise i'm just baffled. The whole thing could have been edited down to about 1/3 of the length and actually had more impact.
I'd say The Rocky Horror Picture Show had a deeper and more spiritual message!
yuck.
tina turner and elton below:
Where The Presidential Candidates Stand On 22 Specific Issues
Worst police sketch EVER!
"Police Release Sketch of Man Who Allegedly Kidnapped Teen"
"The composite sketch of the alleged kidnapper"
"The composite sketch of the alleged kidnapper""Sheilas wanted! Australia tries to lure single women with promises of sun, sand and Mr Right"
Labels:
outside the states,
sexy
"Admiring the view: Australia is offering sun, sand and plenty of fit men in an effort to try to lure... single women.
'So we asked our men, who are bronzed, sportier, and who are enjoying a booming economy, to step up to the plate and entice British women to a better way of life.'
The state points out that 50.4 per cent of its male population is single, compared to 34.7 per cent in Britain.
"Reporter calls a bunch of escorts and asks them on real dates like bowling and mini golf."
"Reporter calls a bunch of escorts and asks them on real dates like bowling and mini golf."
"It began with an awkward phone call: "Would you like to, um, go bowling with me?"
"Go what?"
"Go... uh... bowling. Would you like to bowl with me? I'll pay for everything, of course."
"You just want to go bowling?" She was incredulous."
http://www.browardpalmbeach.com/2008-09-18/news/the-real-girlfriend-experience/1
"Lawyer suspended for having his client pay off her legal bills with nude dances in his office. Apparently, that was wrong"
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chicago/chi-lap-dance-lawyer-both-19-sep19,0,6962009.story
"Stripper's private dancing lands DeKalb lawyer in hot water
State commission suspends him 15 months for accepting nude dances as partial payment for her legal fees, report says..."
Sperm Warfare
Labels:
birth control,
men,
sexy
"Scientists have invented the first remote-controlled key fob that allows men to control a valve that can switch their sperm flow on and off. Cross-marketing with the clapper abandoned as vigorous sex creates russian roulette sperm shots"
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/health/article4788191.ece
Video: Drunk New York Mets fan stars in Shea Stadium cup stack
"If you haven't seen this by now, then you're definitely missing out. A drunk fan passes out at Shea Stadium and fans play a cup stacking game of Jenga on his head. Thankfully a video camera was on hand for the fun."
the amazing thing is it's almost ten minutes long!
You'd hit Mistress Sade if she didn't hit you first - well if your one of the hetero menz out there
Labels:
funny,
interesting,
psychology,
sexy
http://www.nypost.com/seven/09182008/news/regionalnews/slap_happy_sex_129634.htm
dominatrix setup in trouble even though they (claim) to have a no sex policy.
Craigslist Sex Troll Gets Sued
Labels:
funny,
psychology,
sad,
scary,
sexy
"Girl wants to meet boy. Girl posts on Craigslist for a "casual encounter." Hundreds of boys respond.
This normally wouldn't be an unanticipated outcome, but what if the girl wasn't really a girl? And what if the imposter then took all the names, e-mail addresses and phone numbers sent by the men who responded and posted them all on the Web?"
after this "experiment" - DO NOT CLICK IF YOU ARE UPSET BY SEXUALLY EXPLICIT MATERIAL - http://www.encyclopediadramatica.com/index.php/RFJason_CL_Experiment - a not safe for work NSF history of the case. I trhinks it's sort of fascinating from a sociological view but not so hot from a "being-a-good-person" point of view.
Craigslist Sex Troll Gets Sued
Milk - the Harvey kind: "can two men reproduce? no, but G_d knows we keep trying..."
A trailer for the much-anticipated film. The Times of Harvey Milk, a documentary about the San Francisco city supervisor who was the first openly gay man to hold public office, won an Academy Award in 1984 — this NEW film with Sean Penn as Milk seems primed for awards season, too?
trailer doesn't show the tragic end :(
Finally a decent ad from the obama campaign
Labels:
advertising,
obama,
politics,
video
detailed and informative, hitting all my hot button issues at least Barack speaks frankly on the economy. For a fun exercise, compare this to some of John McCain’s ads.
here is Sarah palin's house and her obama supporting neighbors
Labels:
funny,
mcain,
obama,
politics,
sarah palin
from - Wonkett e "fancy houses operative “Lesley” sends us this photo of an Obama-supporting meth-mouth’s lab shack, right next to the Alaska governor’s mansion: “I recently took a trip to Juneau, Alaska and was able to visit the governor’s mansion ie: Sarah Palin’s pad. It was pretty funny because all of her neighbors have Obama signs,” Lesley writes, and she has more pictures here. What shantytown of a neighborhood is this white trash pal ace of hell in"
Bavarian Leader Under Fire For Beer Remark
Labels:
freedom,
funny,
outside the states,
politics
"Günther Beckstein, the conservative governor of Bavaria, has caused controversy in the run-up to Oktoberfest by declaring that people who drink two liters of beer over a period of hours are fit to drive. Germany's drugs commissioner says he must have had one too many."
"Bavarian Governor Günther Beckstein enjoys a liter Mass of beer. "
as can be seen - a liter is quite a bit.
“King of Voiceovers” Dies
Really this just gives me a reason to post one of my favorite clips from the past on you-tube. see the first clip below.
"Movie Buzz Don LaFontaine, the voice of a thousand dramatic movie trailers, died Monday at age 68. His voice is instantly recognizable, and apparently he also coined the phrase “In a world…” himself. Movie trailers will sound so weird without him around."
the good old voiceover men skit...
a bio/interview with him...
from the buzz
OMG Anne Lamott was on Colbert and no one told me!
Anne Lamott and Stephen Colbert, two Sunday school teachers, talk about faith.
"Her writings on faith — three books so far — are peppered merrily with profanity, doubt and occasionally a bit of wickedness. Sentences like "I was f—ed unto the Lord," descriptions of emotions and things as "Jesusy," plus a political stance that favors abortions, gay rights and euthanasia tend to resonate with those who have a more liberal outlook on religion, while annoying the hell out of more conservative Christians."
here is a print interview http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/g/a/2008/03/10/findrelig.DTL that actually might give a better idea of her - or just read her books - "bird by bird" is about writing and "operating instructions" is about being unwed and pregnant and what in the world do you do with this baby!
"Anne Lamott writes and speaks about subjects that begin with capital letters: Alcoholism, Motherhood, Jesus. But armed with self-effacing humor – she is laugh out-loud funny – and ruthless honesty, Lamott converts her subjects into enchantment. Actually, she writes about what most of us don’t like to think about. She wrote her first novel for her father, the writer Kenneth Lamott, when he was diagnosed with brain cancer. She has said that the book was “a present to someone I loved who was going to die.” In all her novels, Anne Lamott writes about loss – loss of loved ones and loss of personal control. She doesn’t try to sugar-coat the sadness, frustration and disappointment, but tells her stories with honesty, compassion and a pureness of voice." i forgot where i go that quote.
Coming to America: Comedy duo Little Britain is bringing English culture stateside
Labels:
funny,
outside the states,
psychology,
video
"bringing class culture and dignity to america" : here is the intro clip for their new foray out of britain and into america" what's most important to know is that ALL of the MAIN characters no matter who they may be are played by one of two guys. I think the accents and the chameleon-like personality changes are great - others find it boring to tears... oh well, u may decide:
1- Vicky is one of Little Britain's most famous and notorious characters. An aggressive, rambling, sexed-up teen mom in a pink track suit, she always goes off on tangents when confronted by authorities for her criminal behavior.The Little Britain USA buzz is that Vicky is sent to Brat Camp after burning down Disneyland. In this clip, Vicky starts work as a sex line operator and finds a familiar voice on the other end of the line.
2 - Marjorie is the counselor for a weight-loss support group. She is known to insult her students and to be hypocritical about her own weight problems. In one sketch she asks the support group members to identify the fat content of dust. Of course, Marjorie would be an easy character to transport into an American setting, where the weight-loss industry is huge. One of her skits is rumored to guest star Rosie O'Donnell, who isn't spared Marjorie's harsh criticism.
3 - Daffyd (pronounced kind of like David) resents any other gay man that comes
into his village to challenge his self-proclaimed role as The Only Gay in the Village. His outfits are the best! He lacks any sort of gaydar and is shocked when he finds out that men who fit the gay stereotype are, in fact, gay. Although no one he encounters in the town is prejudiced toward him, he automatically assumes that they are.
4- Meet Carol Beer. She's an unhelpful, unemotional service worker.
5 - In the second season Emily takes aspiring transvestite Florence Rose under her wing, and together they work toward becoming elegant gentlewomen. Still, Emily's efforts are mostly for naught.
I give you 5 past clips. most verbage above thanks to radar magazine
for those who have arrived without a previous knowledge of uncle matt
9/15/2008
Labels:
matt,
personal stories
well hmmm... this a bit complicated. as any human life is wouldnt you say? i could take two tragectories here. a simple chronology or a more complex meta-data approach. i think i will opt for the more simplistic approach this evening. meta-data can come later i suppose.
how did i come to the here and now:
in 1972 i was born. i was an unexpected 5th child who arrived after my mother had her tubes cut. they replaced themselves to their original positions and i was born when she was 40 years old. twenty years after my oldest brother. i
was born in south philly but about 6 months after i was born my parents moved to snj. i grew up in williamstown. my older siblings thought i was a bit of a freek because i was way into dirt and animals and the woods, and they grew up in the middle of the catholic concrete of south philly. when i was a little boy i realized i wasnt normal. for a number of reasons. i was too sensitive for my own good. i saw God and beauty everywhere. to my own distraction. to the point that i was overwhelmed. on the flip side of this sensitivity coin i also experienced pain and suffering more intensely. a fair deal in the end i suppose? one thing that struck me quite early was that i was a boy and yet i liked men and i knew this didnt fit in. i did my best to deny it, and accomplished that feat until i was 21. when i was 21 i was in a russian orthodox seminary/monastery.
ironically - of all things- what is usually described as the super-traditional outlook of the eastern orthodox atmosphere allowed me to come out to myself. i was finally able to accept myself as a sexual being and to understand that God rarely - jesus never - talked about my sexual perdicament but constantly talked about compassion and mercy and not judging and forgiving. so i decided to try as much as possible to put into practice what he actually talked about and not worry so much what everyone else talked about instead.
i have been all over the place: california (santa cruz for an extended period of time) europe; luxemburg, germany, czechoslovakia (when it was still a single country) austria, italy, the netherlands, england, iceland and spain. each of those places has contributed to
the soul that now types these words. i finally moved back into my fathers house (my mother died unexpectedly when i was 17 - but thats a whole other email) and he eventually became ill, as age is wont to do to a person. i took care of him for some time, several years, until he became to ill and suffered too much dementia too be left alone during the day, then we (me and my siblings) arranged for him to go into constant care at the VA nursing home in vineland. he died six months later. after that i stayed on at the old house for a while then sold it. moved from pitman, where i lived with my dad, to williamstown, where i had previously grown up until i was 18.
i bought a trailer and moved onto the back 3 acres of my brothers property. where i am still located today. i enjoy the quiet country atmosphere we have here on the very edge of the pine barrens and my semi-subsitance lifestyle. however, in the winter of 05 spring of 06 i suffered a sort of nervous breakdown. i had previously had some rather intense experiences with panic attacks and anxiety and they finally came to a head around this time. at the worst point i was unable to leave the house (trailer and surrounding yard) at all. i was about to go to the emergency room because i was convinced i was dying. but instead i called the mental health hotline in the phone book. interestingly enough they directed me properly and i have received appropriate attention and have been recovering from this sensory overload since around march of 06. happily, i a
m back to reality but still have some difficulties with too much social/sensory stimulation. i believe that 3000 years ago i might have been a respected shaman for having gone through this experience and resurfaced from the other side. instead in 2007 i am considered a semi-recovered mentally ill person. hows that for progress? in fact - i do not nescessarily know what the words mentally ii mean. i think some people are just more or less sensitive to their surroundings and experiences, feel them and experience them more or less fully - more or less filtered. without any filters whatsoever everyone would be completely insane. we are constantly filtering out things, sounds, sights, all sorts of sensations and experiences. some people's filters are more or less strict. in this day and age of disjointed techno solitude people who have less of a filter between themselves and the fullness of reality are considered disabled in some way. in the distant past they would have been considered super-able, at least i believe so.
at any rate, that is not how i would describe myself. if i needed to make an incomplete label for myself i would say i am a gen-x-semi-heretical-christian (needs to be defined)-of-the-eastern persuasion-homo-american-who-experiences-the-world- primarily-as-an-act-of-artistic-expression-and- wonderment-and-waits-and-prays-for-the-day-that-the- beast-of-consumerism-that-whore-of-babylon-passes- and-the-eternal-kingdom-finds-its-place-in-my-heart. i wonder if that makes any sense to you? i think it might. thats why i answered your message.
oh, wait, im not all goody two shoes mystico shaman. i worked a corporate cubicle jockey job fo
r a couple years. i was involved in the adult industry (since child labor laws what industry isn't adult - but - that's beside the point) for a bit. i was an angry hedonist who hated God for a few years. i've inebriated myself with several different psycho-pharmo-active-substances. i dunno what else? have i scared you away yet? in addition to all of this my main hobbies are reading and researching various esoteric/spiritual/conspiritorial theories/facts, gardening and raising chickens from eggs in an incubator. what do you think? where and what are you right now? most sincerely, matty
---------------------
post script - this was written some time ago - since then i no longer live in a place that is conducive to raising baby chicks, and my panic and agoraphobia has eased off a bit - sort of plateaued last year some time. other than that most is still accurate :)
Philadelphia English — spoken here like nowhere else
Labels:
history,
language,
new jersey,
philadelphia,
psychology
Some of my "art" :)
Labels:
matt,
personal stories,
philadelphia
i took the photos on location and then modified as i saw fit
amsterdam train station with hundreds and hundreds of bicycles parked outside
even in the cozy lanes and canals of amsterdam cartman still stares down at me!
And here we have philadelphia's city hall looking somewhat phallic i suppose - i could have picked another color than pink i guess :)
and here is Rainbow Mountain
Labels:
gay,
matt,
personal stories,
photos,
travel
Main lodge and restaurant.
the pool - photo from early march when it wasnt full yet
and again the pool which was lovely in midsummer last time i was there
and this is the bar downstairs and the dance club upstairs - yes - somehow it all works - there is a fully functional nightclub in that barn ::
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