Picking Olives Picking olives feels likePopping bubblewrapSatisfying thwap!Fingers pressSlight give Serotonin rush Or maybe it’s the other way around MaybeJust maybeMy need to runItching and burningAt my legsIs just my great222GrandparentsRunning all dayAgainst the windAgainst the elk and deerAgainst the wilting of the grains The chewing on pencilsIs my DNA longingFor my perfect WhiteTeeth to…
Tag: lgbtq+
Yentl, Tragedy, and the Unanswerable Question
“Yentl” is my favorite short story. Sort of. Let me explain. There’s a joke that the question a reader/writer hates most is also the most frequently asked: “what’s your favorite book.” Or “what’s your favorite short story?” It’s such a personal question. The answer has everything to do with who I am deep down; who…
Trans Day of Rememberance
This post about Trans Day of Remembrance comes to us from Kieryn J. McCann. You can read Kieryn’s amazing poem “Kayla Marie” here.–ed. Today, November 20th, is internationally acknowledged as Transgender Day of Remembrance (TDoR). It is a day of collective mourning for the trans community. The first TDoR vigil was held in 1999 by…
Bi+ Visibility 2023
Note: A lot of language surrounding gender is new. These words/ideas have been around for years but it’s only in the last decade or so that the singular “they” and the idea of gender as a spectrum have entered the public consciousness. You’ll see a lot of the outdated style of language in this piece,…
Kayla Marie
I remember you thinking about what to do when we’re gone. There are so many options now, “Bury me gently in the cold dark earth” “Bury me in satin… Lay me down in a bed of roses… Send me away with the words of a love song… … oh oh” I could be a tree!…
Coming out versus Letting In
It’s the end of Pride Month. Usually I’m overflowing with words about queer topics, especially in June. I had a year of queer rage in 2022. And 2023 has me filled with even more rage. And yet this month, when I should have been able to say something I’ve had trouble saying anything. Every time I…
Pride is for… ?
I began June not with celebration, but with tears. “Happy” Pride, right? Who the fuck thought I would be watching a TV show with a character who was wearing overalls and I would absolutely breakdown in tears? And now, I’m alternating between writing and ugly crying. And the makeup I put on earlier today is a mess…
Anti-LGBTQ Legislation Reaching Critical Mass
Another Year of Queer Rage, Thanks to Anti-LGBTQ Legislation Recently, I was chatting on Facebook with someone, and I called 2022 as my “year of queer rage.” Not surprising when 2022 was an epic year for anti-lgbtq legislation with 315 bills filed attacking the queer community. Thankfully, ninety one percent of these bills failed to…
HB 991 and SB 1316 Spell the End of Free Speech in Florida
*Note On March 6, 2023, SB 1220 , the companion bill to HB 991 was filed in the Florida Senate by Senator Keith Perry, who represents an area near Gainesville where the University of Florida is located. As of that date, no companion bill for SB 1316 has been filed in the Florida House. HB…
Observations of a Jew on Christmas
Let’s talk about Christmas. Sure, I’m Jewish and I talk a lot about being Jewish. But when you consider how many of your favorite Christmas songs (and the best Christmas songs) were written by Jews, it’s clear that Jews have plenty to say about Christmas. I certainly do. Christmas, Whether you Like it or Not…