Taylor Dayne
Satisfied
The one-time diva returns to the studio for the first time in a decade with 13 new tracks on her new label. Poppy and peppy, “Beautiful” is currently in radio rotation. Her choice to cover Red Hot Chili Peppers’ “Under the Bridge” is curiously pleasing. Available February 5 from Intention Music (www.taylordayne.com). Review: Nancy Ford
As you know, OutSmart magazine begins its 15th year of publishing this month. I well remember the first issue and the excitement it generated in me personally as well as within the Houston gay community. Finally, we Houston homos had a gay publication we could be proud of that offered news, features, and humor without dozens of pages of ads for phone sex services and full-release massage! Thank you, OutSmart! At the time of that first issue, Bill Clinton had recently been inaugurated, Melissa Etheridge had publicly come out, and freedom rings were a fashionable symbol of gay pride. Ah, those were the days.
The primaries and caucuses for the 2008 presidential race loom, so what’s a gay Republican to do? For many, the answer has been Ron Paul. He’s not going to win any primaries, but a vote for him could be thought a protest against the theocratic tendencies of the party. It could also be a vote for libertarian principle, which appeals to some. Yet while some of Paul’s views are superficially appealing, he’s a very bad choice.
I loathe Mitt Romney. His candidacy petrifies me. He’s telegenic, rich, and has the backing of the Republican establishment (corporate Republicans, not the religious right). He’s handsome, with perfect teeth and perfect hair. He has a handsome family, a beautiful wife, and legions of gorgeous children. And he has a handsome résumé that reflects his turns as a successful businessman, a savior of the 2002 Olympics in Salt Lake City, and the Republican governor of a liberal blue state, Massachusetts. On TV and on paper, Mitt’s just plain pretty.
My third and final term as city controller got off to a shivering start in January as I sat with the mayor and City Council at inauguration.
The cold air bristled with politics. Speaking about “Change” has become clichéd, but we get a healthy dose of it every two years in Houston with a third of council turning over and, of course, every four years with presidential elections. This year has already roared off to a roller-coaster start and promises to be full of surprising political twists and turns.
We were so close. We planned. We organized. We chose our outfits.
The first day of Oregon’s domestic partner registry was all set to be festive and meaningful. Fruit pies were donated to celebrate the fact that, even though we can’t get the same rights as legally married heterosexuals, in 2008 we would finally get a piece of the pie. Nyuk-nyuk.
It’s amazing how often my own life parallels the lesbic comings and goings of Showtime’s hit television series, The L Word.
When the tennis-playing character of Dana was diagnosed with breast cancer, a dear, real-life, tennis-playing friend of mine was also diagnosed with breast cancer. Lucky for me, and unlike Dana, Laura survived.
On January 2, immediately following her inauguration to her second-term as City Council Member At-Large Position 2, Sue Lovell was named vice mayor pro-tem. Her fellow council members nominated her and unanimously selected her for the post.
In our January issue, OutSmart published a column by Wayne Besen that was critical of the Mankind Project (“Nude Warrior Adventure: ‘Ex-gay’ conversion therapy looks pretty gay to us”), and in particular alleged the organization had ex-gay affiliations. As a matter of fact, the Mankind Project is wonderfully affirming of all men, gay and straight, as we know through many members of the OutSmart circle who have participated in and even led the Mankind Project’s New Warrior trainings through the years.
Excruciatingly conservative, Camille is a professor at a small Christian university, dutifully engaged to equally conservative college colleague Martin. Wildly bohemian, Petra is a performance magician for the Sirkus of Sorts, a poor man’s Cirque du Soleil. After the two women meet at a Laundromat, it becomes apparent to Camille that—duty be damned—her engagement must be broken.
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