The Column of Life

Today's full moon was of the nature cardinal earth and cardinal water and it's polarity, therefore, is Cancer-Capricon. The Moon in Capricorn is a moon in exile with its ordinarily expressive emotions kept in check. Within a birth chart this position runs the gamut of unexpressed emotional life unless accompanied by modifying aspects. There are quite quite a few accompanying aspects, most notably: with Venus, the capacity for amorous expression in the zodiac, in Leo, the sign of the ego and closely connected to the theater and acting, and, therefore, emotional expression; with Mars, the capacity for assertive physical expression in the fixed fertile earth sign of Taurus--imbuing it with strong oral expression; The Sun, the capacity of self-motivation, the other part of the polarity, in emotionally expressive Cancer--in a birth chart this would be a personality guided and protected by feelings. This is an astrological combination full of creative tension. All these elements comb...

If you want to see Kamar de los Reyes at his best, go to Prohibition, 503 Columbus Ave at 84th in New York City when he hosts a fundraiser for an extremely worthy cause. What: Benefit for the Gabriel Project When: Saturday, June 30, 2007, 5-8 p.m. How: Tickets are $25. email: Leang319@aol.com or visit: www.thegabrielproject.com From their web site: The Gabriel Project is named after three-year-old Gabriel Inyunye of Tanzania, East Africa, who died of intractable heart failure before funds could be raised to bring him to the United States for surgery. Gabriel was a patient at the Muhimbili Medical Centre in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. Upon Gabriel's death, doctors at the hospital identified two year old William "Willie" Mushi as the patient in need of immediate surgery. With four holes in his heart and a bad aorta, Willie had successful surgery on July 11, 1994, becoming The Gabriel Project's first success story! Gabriel Inyunye will always be watching over us as The Gabr...

"I don't know why somebody else's marriage has anything to do with me. I'm completely comfortable with gay marriage.'' --Elizabeth R Certainly there are many who would much rather vote for Elizabeth Edwards than her husband. Perhaps if she were to live long enough she would be the third political wife of a major candidate to run for President. Be that as it may, Mrs. Edwards is currently living her political life with panache and style. This web log has stated in the past that all marriage should be banned and that everyone who wants to couple should have the right to civil unions with equal benefits. Let the Churches sanctify 'marriage.' Still if the right to government sanctioned marriage exists it should be extended to everyone. What Mrs. Edwards has done in recent days is to take the opportunity to speak her mind and it is paying off--literally--for her husband's campaign. Calculated or not, these maneuvers come down on the right side as oppose...

Travolta's Edna Turnblad is not the stern, commanding camp presence that Divine offered up, but at first a sort of strangely meek recluse who speaks in muted tones in an affected Baltimore accent. With Divine, the breasts and the fat jiggling from the arms and the gaudy make-up was really in your face and with Travolta it's as if a fat suit has swallowed the Scientologist and all that remains of the actor himself are those familiar beady eyes staring out from a sea of plump, white seamless dough. Travolta grows on you however, and his character really comes into her own when Edna dances, putting all that fake flesh into motion. It's then that the audience erupts into laughter, and the moment didn't happen nearly often enough. Edna Turnblad's voice is also strangely inconsistent, veering from the affected Baltimore accent back to Travolta's voice, in and out of character, again and again. I never forgot that it was John Travolta inside that fat suit, but his port...

From POZ: National HIV Testing Day June 27, 2007 An estimated 250,000 people in the United States are HIV/AIDS positive and don't even know it. An opportunity for people nationwide to learn their HIV status, and to gain the knowledge they need to take control of their health and their lives. National HIV Testing Day also provides an invaluable opportunity to dispel the myths and stigma associated with HIV testing, and to reach those who have never been tested or who have engaged in high-risk behavior since their last test. HIV testing can reduce new infections when HIV-positive persons become aware of their status and take the necessary precautions to stop spreading the disease. HIV testing is easier, more accessible, and less invasive than ever. Gabriel Rotello on Andrew Sullivan declaring the End of AIDS: It has always been incumbent on any responsible gay opinion leader to repeatedly stress that 1996 did NOT mean the 'end of AIDS' or the 'end of a plague,...

Of course, Mr. Miller would be our candidate for de-briefing. Yesterday, many gay web loggers including favourite Justin Van de Kamp of Televisionista were buzzing about not only Wentworth being gay but his serious relationship with Luke MacFarlane. This clip is interesting if for nothing else but the final sentence: “Wentworth and Luke have been secretly dating for almost six months now,” says a source close to the pair. “They’ve been very quiet about their relationship, obviously, as Wentworth is not out of the closet.” Things between the pair are so serious that the couple is talking about moving in together, causing this to be even juicier than a possible Kate Middleton /Prince William make up. “They spend a lot of time at each other’s houses,” says the insider. “Wentworth has been pretty reclusive since he’s become famous and he’s been even more of a shut-in since he started dating Luke.” Awww, that’s sort of sweet. We wish these two nothing but the best if they are, in fact, an i...

It's been quite a gay Monday with Wentworth and Luke and Andrew Sullivan making an idiot out of himself once again regarding HIV/AIDS. It is, therefore, imperative to make evident someone like Jon Robin Baits who concluded his essay on Hillary Clinton on The Huffington Post with this: Anyway, long story short - For the first part of my creative life, twenty years, I was a playwright in New York, and now for a while at least, I make TV in LA. I worry about stuff out here in the moneyed, sun-drenched, smog-burned capitol of infotainment; I worry about glibness and one-issue voters with bucks and platforms, and the disconnect between here and the rest of the country, and I worry about how complicit I am. I was rude. But I was looking for the authentic, the real, and the righteous. And all I saw was the peeved. I gave as much money as I could to the thing. I suppose if this election plays out the way I think it may, she could get my vote. But I don't think she'll ever make my h...

This Dusty Springfield single was released on June 25, 1990 in the United Kingdom one day prior to the 21st anniversary of Stonewall. It was during her Pet Shop Boys phase and about four years before she was to have another rebirth via Quentin Tarantino's Pulp Fiction 's use of "Son of A Preacher Man." By this time, it was well known that the British pop star and perennial blue eyed soul favourite was a daughter of Sappho. She has been featured often in the posts of this web log . Dusty is one of those gay personalities that has entered the movement's martyrology not because she was by any means an activist, but because she struggled with her sexuality for most of her adult life. Still she made no attempt to have a merkin and was not once remotely publicly connected to a man. She was also well known for her gay male following and because of their presence at her Royal Albert Hall concert in 1979, she declared, "Glad to see that the royalty wasn't confined...

Last year on this weekend the photo for this feature came from late gay photographer Bill Costa who lived in New York City and whose photographic art used the black and white format often using young men who were not professional models. On New York's Gay Pride Weekend here again is published last year's post but with more photography from the very good and very kind Bill Costa. There is usually much activity in the CoL offices on Saturday, most of it has to do with the image that is to be stolen from the internet. Today the discussion around that was minimal because a stock image from the late photographer, Bill Costa's files was used. It was the choice of a recipe that caused most problems. Ms. Bernice kept going on about pulled pork and we weren't sure if she was speaking about a recipe. Anyway, Bernice would not sit still because she's getting ready to go a Gay Pride barbecue in Manhattan thinking that Charles Busch & Jason Priestly were going to be there. W...

Mark de Solla Price on Pride, Diversity and Assimilation Community Church of New York Unitarian Universalist 40 E 35 th Street [between Park & Madison] New York, NY 10016 Sunday June 24, 2007 11:00 am www.ccny.org This Sunday, June 24, 2007, in celebration of Gay Pride Sunday in New York, Mark de Solla Price will be speaking on "Pride, Diversity and Assimilation" looking at the importance of celebrating our differences and embracing our similarity as one community. As those of you who have been following along Mark's medical treatments will understand, this is his one and only live personal speaking appearance in 2007 (my year on Pegasys/Ribavirin) but Mark's speech will be simultaneously published on Mark's HIV Blog Blog at blogs.poz.com/mark But if you're not there live, you miss all the fun and terrific performances (by Jonathan Long with Gerald Brown, musical director) “I Am What I Am” from “La Cage aux Folles” Music & Lyrics: Jerry Herman (1933-) ...

An event in a manner of speaking

Ordinarily this spot would belong to a newsworthy event. Jeff Jenest, on the other hand, is what Gay Liberation is all about in the United States' version of liberation: you want a rugged individual who takes his life in his own hands? Here you go: Jeff Jenest How Jeffrey Jenest, HIV positive for more than 20 years and openly gay, found his niche amid the relentlessly straight, sometimes triple-X world of Playboy’s entertainment division Go here

This is a magical time of year. This is the time of year to manifest divine gracious gifts, most of which are the great people in our lives. It is magical because it is that time to shed the light on who we are. It is when we enthrone the Sun God, the symbol and the manifestation of self, in Latin, ego which also means "I". The longest hours of daylight accentuate the virtue of loving one's self. Here comes the Sun King.

Some things simply can not be helped. Fund raising is addictive and it is one of those addictions that is ultimately satisfying, especially when awareness is involved. It is an addiction that is happily shared with a goodly number of people. AIDS Walk New York and the fundraising event at New York City's Prohibition was satisfying to the tune of $8790.00. When good things like that happen for the second year in a row here on the East Coast, it's only logical that the good results be attempted on the West Coast. First things first: The initial auctions for this drive are now listed on EBay: Chris Isaak Memorabilia and a DVD autographed by the cast of OZ donated from a personal collection Also, look forward to an event hosted by The Abbey of West Hollywood to take place on October 18, 2007 starring good friend to this site and Log: Ilene Kristen of One Life to Live among other noteworthy personalities. Of course, here's the donor page

From his website: A native of Toledo, Ohio, Jason is an outdoorsman and sportsman. He attended Northern Michigan University, and worked as a carpenter part-time during school. He also is certified as a personal trainer, specializing in strength and conditioning. Jason moved to New York to pursue acting in 1999, and shortly returned to carpentry and general contracting to make ends meet and utilize his skills. He also worked as a fitness model and spokesman for Men's Health Magazine . He has appeared on the pages of Maxim, GQ and Muscle Media, and on the small screen with Sex and the City , Guiding Light and All My Children . In his spare time, Jason enjoys working out at the gym, playing volleyball and basketball, and of course, doing carpentry projects for his apartment. Visit his website The ever vigilant folks over at Datalounge were asking about this young man and--why not? He is a man for many seasons if not all of them. He's almost enough to get a body to watch reality T...

To begin with, it was a dark day when 'gay' became a noun, as in "a gay" or "the gays" and now one has to see it with a misleading headline from The New York Post 's Page Six proclaiming "Gays Want Axed Isaiah Back." Jasmyne Cannick and 1200 signatures from who knows where are not tantamount to a ground swell of gay people clamouring for Washington to be reinstated. The cry of racism is foul. Had Patrick Dempsey used a racial slur against Washington or Rimes he would have been kicked to the curb. Cannick is wrong. Page Six is making something from nothing. And "gay" is not a noun. Three times wrong.

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Enjoying a dip.

Well the world just loves two lonely people The world just loves two broken hearts The odds were against it but baby here we are In our own little place in our own little corner This old cold world just got a little warmer For the rest of my life I'm gonna hold you in my arms Chorus: And when they carve my stone all they'll need to write on it Is once lived a man who got all he ever wanted Tell me something who could ask for more Then to be living in a moment you would die for If I never get rich on what money can buy It don't matter to me and I'll tell you why I've got it all when I'm holding you this way I'll live to love you I'd die to keep you Safe inside these arms that need you I'll be loving you with the very last breath I take Chorus Bridge: Ashes to ashes dust into dust I'll lay beside you forever in love Last Chorus: And when they carve my stone all they'll need to write on it Is once lived a man who got all he ever wanted Tell me s...