This is a tipping point for sure. The Catholic country taking the high road regarding same-sex marriage. It seems like Pope Francis is having a liberal influence all over the world.
As expected, Costa Rica became the first Central American country to recognize marriage equality beginning today. A few happy couples couldn’t wait to say their vows and at midnight, in a televised event, Alexandra Quiros and Dunia Araya became two of the first same-sex couples to marry after the ruling went into effect.
Quiros and Araya, who were married in Heredia, Costa Rica are likely not the only couple to take advantage of the new laws; due to the ongoing pandemic, many likely did so privately in quarantine ceremonies.
“In a few hours, same-sex couples and their families will have the same rights as any other couple or family in this country,” President Carlos Alvaro Quesada tweeted ahead of the deadline according to a translation. “Together, under the same flag, let’s build a better nation.” Only hours after that tweet, he reaffirmed his support with another.
“Costa Rica officially recognizes equal marriage,” he wrote. “Today we celebrate freedom, equality, and democratic institutions. may empathy and love be the compass that allows us to get ahead and build a country where all people fit.”
Costa Rica is now the sixth Latin American country to recognize marriage equality. Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Uruguay and most recently Ecuador, already allow same-sex marriage, as do parts of Mexico. Elsewhere in the Americas, Canada and the United States recognize the right to marry.
“With their experience, their struggles… they have helped build a society where there are no second-class families or second-rate people,” Enrique Sánchez, Costa Rica’s first openly gay member of parliament, told Reuters news agency of the advocates.
Charlene is a computer programmer and has taken a job in Manhattan. She has always wanted to work there and decides soon after starting her job to take a sightseeing tour of Lower Manhattan.
She checks out all the unique and interesting shops. The one that catches her eye is the mysterious-looking one called Lollipop. Going through the entrance she is surprised to see that it is a sex shop filled with everything anyone would want for their sexual needs.
While shopping she is given a tour of the premises by the owner, Lolli, she is taken to a private room for a demonstration on one of the items she is interested in. Once there, Lolli tells Charly the item she wants is for rough use only. Something Charly is surprised to learn. But she hardly shies away and engages in Lolli’s suggested contest.
Several orgasms later, both women are, sore, bruised, sweaty, and sexually satisfied. The demonstration is a success, and Charly proudly takes her new toy home with dreams of further demonstration in the future.
Isobell St. James is a vampire hunter. Her family has followed that calling for centuries. On a normal muggy night in a cemetery, Isobell comes face to face with a vampire, Stephanie, that defies all her understanding of vampires.
The chance of meeting awakens strange dreams and terrible nightmares in the young Isobell. These nightmares set off a series of events that forces young Isobell to seek help from her grandmother to sort out the puzzling meaning.
What Isobell learns, goes against all she has learned about vampires and the interaction that vampires and vampire hunters have. It seems it’s all due to a curse from centuries before. She learns that she may even be the reincarnation of some long-deceased ancestor who perished as a result of a lesbian relationship with the sister of the boy she was to marry. But what role does Stephanie play in all this
Meanwhile, in the background, both Stephanie and Isobell’s families are plotting to thwart any contact between the two girls. Forcing both into fighting their families and the ancient curse to come to grips with why one is drawn to the other.
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This article makes me want to go there, regardless of my sexual lifestyle. This is from several months ago, but since the quarantine, I thought it was great to look back at some more pleasurable times… I hope all my blog followers enjoy it!
Nestled between the Pacific Ocean and Canada’s coastal mountains, Vancouver, B.C. is the latest location I’ve had the pleasure to explore and enjoy. I spent a long, delightful weekend there perched on nature’s edge, basking in the hospitality the stunning city is known for. To my added delight, I was fortunate enough to visit—via the generosity of the exquisite Fairmont Hotels, specifically the Fairmont Hotel Vancouver, Fairmont Pacific Rim and Fairmont Waterfront known as great LGBTQ supporters—during the city’s Pride Festival and Parade.
My weekend was filled at their behest with excursions to the various Pride events and community hotspots. If the kindness and care I received is any indication of Fairmont’s amity towards the LGBTQ community, well, let’s just say the experience of it will stay with me for a long time.
I stayed at the Fairmont Hotel Vancouver, known locally as “The Castle In The Sky,” a chateau-style landmark with green, copper-clad roof and stony-eyed gargoyles surveying their surroundings. The hotel just completed a $75M renovation and my stunning Fairmont Gold suite offered a contemporary vibe, yet remained nicely tied to the building’s historic sensibility. Calm, cool and serene, very much like the concierge team who made my stay so blissfully easy.
Both made me feel coddled in comfort the entire weekend. They chose “Love and Luxury For All” as their Pride theme/logo and they were serious. Fairmont Gold includes: Lux concierge services, daily breakfasts, Indulgence in the Castle—a mid-day treat, evening hors d’oeuvres, late night snacks and refreshments throughout the day. Superb.
My first sojourn took me just down the street to Fairmont Pacific Rim’s Willow Stream Spa, to indulge in a much-needed Body Quench treatment. 15,000 square feet of luxury facilities offer over 50 spa experiences ranging from body exfoliations, facials, massages and body treatments… pure heaven.
Blissful as can be, this pampered tourist wandered down to the hotel’s urbane Lobby Lounge for a quench of a different kind: cocktails with my fellow travelers. A sumptuous dinner followed after another short walk to ARC, the restaurant inside their third signature property, the Fairmont Waterfront. I can’t say enough about the stunning food and exceptional hospitality. Well I could, but there isn’t enough space on the page.
I will definitely rave about our last stop at Botanist, their “lab cocktail” bar. Nothing could have prepared us for the bevy of steaming, bubbling, levitating, fantastical concoctions that literally left us in awe. Each was an encounter, carefully created not only for flavor, but as a dazzling visual experience. Needless to say, we all went to bed that night completely relaxed, superbly sated and much like one of their cocktails, floating on cloud nine!
Breakfast at my hotel’s Gold Lounge was gorgeous, as it was every morning: Fresh eggs and meats, fruits, yogurts, pastries galore, juices, espresso and Champagne! After that quick repast, we all met up with Glenn Tkach, our very knowledgeable and very funny, pink-clad host for his “Really Gay History Tour.”
Tkach shared fascinating city stories about “the unsung heroes of Vancouver’s LGBTQ2+ community who forever changed the social fabric of Canada.” Wear comfy shoes and drink plenty of water during the lengthy, informative walk!
Cocktails and dinner followed at Fairmont Hotel Vancouver’s signature eatery, Notch8 Restaurant & Bar: beautiful nouvelle cuisine featuring regional fare, inventive new flavor combinations and prized classics. Chef de Cuisine Dennis Peckham graciously came to our table for questions, illuminating us on the restaurant’s food, which was as delicious as it was beautiful… truly a wonder to indulge in.
We were quickly whisked away to Vancouver’s English Bay for the city’s Celebration of Light fireworks display, the longest-running offshore fireworks festival in the world. After competing with 400,000 people for access, you’ll understand when I say, “Get there early!” Even with VIP treatment and special seating, it’s a challenge… But again, so worth the effort. I’ve not been so excited by a fireworks display since I was a little boy!
It had been a while since I’d been on the marching side of a Pride Parade and Vancouver’s— one of the largest LGBTQIA2+ parades in North America—reminded me of how vital they are to establishing LGBTQ identity, connecting us as a community and for being one of the rare moments we are in the majority, not the minority.
Marching was a blast, surrounded by hundreds of Fairmont employees, flanking a bright yellow float emblazoned with Fairmont’s Pride logo “Come Sleep With Us,” sporting local drag queen superstar, Kendall Gender on a bed with a bevy of beauties to accompany her. Honestly, I’ve never felt better about participating in a gay parade!
Make sure to take in “Davie Village” while you’re there, the “gayborhood” on Davie Street between Burrard and Jervis streets. It’s a strong, vital part of queer Vancouver with LGBTQ-friendly bookstores, boutiques and plenty of places to refuel, as well as a diverse nightlife scene! Seriously, I haven’t felt as much “community love” as I did during this trip, gay or otherwise.
So, if you’re looking for a quick getaway to a place where kindness and courtesy rule, you can’t beat Vancouver and the surrounding Canadian landscape. If living in the lap of luxury is to your liking as well, then definitely choose one of Vancouver’s Fairmont Hotels, they do themselves proud and are serious when they say, “Love and Luxury For All!”
Olivia, Dominating Mistress extraordinaire was once submissive and how she got into the lifestyle, to begin with. The story begins while Olivia is reminiscing about her move to Cincinnati her home town, and her first taste of the lesbian submissive life with Jacqueline, the Head of the School where she works.
Olivia’s father had gotten her a job with Jacqueline since she used to work with him. She is introduced to her strict supervisor, Elizabeth on her first day of work. The next surprise for Olivia comes after Jacqueline’s intimate revelation on her first day of work. That the longtime friend of her family is a lesbian.
Intrigued, Olivia finds a way to convince her benefactor Jacqueline into introducing her to lesbianism and enters into an affair eye’s wide open. What she didn’t realize was the rough style of lesbian love Jacqueline was into. The innocent young Olivia is given a crash course in submissiveness and then taken to a party of Jacqueline’s like-minded friends.
She is blindfolded and runs through her paces by the hostess of the party. She is used and abused by the mystery hostess while the other guests video and photograph the action that takes place. The nagging idea of being outed at work goes through Olivia’s mind briefly and then forgotten. Until she is given the shock of her life during a conversation with Elizabeth at work the following morning.
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I found this humorous article in Out. It’s a bit dated since it’s from early last year but the idea is fascinating on several levels and Halsey shows huge potential as a comedic writer. The perfect fit for my blog. Hope you enjoy it.
I’m coming out for the third time in my life, and it’s as a Twilight stan. One summer in college when I was very bored (Grindr hadn’t been invented yet) I read Stephenie Meyer’s low-key Mormon supernatural romance saga, but I wasn’t truly hooked until Twilight hit theaters later that year.
The film franchise stepped up to the enormous task of making Meyer’s books cool (over the span of all four books, Bella makes several references to wearing khakis, and this way long before Sza made them cool), and The Twilight Saga is something I love to revisit once a year or so. The movies get steadily more batshit insane as they progress: the penultimate film, Breaking Dawn, Part 1 is straight up body horror and the terror of Part 2’s CGI baby cannot be understated. Plus, they had cool soundtracks! “Decode” by Paramore slaps hard.
Four films, one cheating scandal and so many longing stares later, Twilight has all but faded to the periphery of pop culture, but it’s only a matter of time until it’s rebooted. Sexy vampires mania is like herpes, it always comes back. And bisexual pop star Halsey thinks it’s about time for a Twilight reboot — a gay one.
“I miss when vampires were cool can we make vampires cool again,” the singer tweeted on Monday, to which a follower suggested “Twilight 4 ft halsey and kristen stewart now that i would watch.”
Halsey’s response? “Twilight but make it Gay.” Imagine it: Edward and Jacob finally hook up and kick Bella to the curb, so she buzzes off her hair and turns her attention to a sexy high femme vampire played by Halsey. Also, the film takes place in the same universe as A Star Is Born and Robert Pattinson pisses himself.
Roxanne Anderson and Anna Meyer are involved with Creative CityMaking, a project to engage underrepresented communities through a partnership between the city of Minneapolis and local artists. Photo by Ryan Stopera
Creative CityMaking, a partnership between Intermedia Arts and the City of Minneapolis, forms connections between local artists and city planners to address transportation, land use, economic, environmental, and social issues.
A city is nothing if not its people. This is why a fair and accurate census is so important. If an area’s demographics are measured incorrectly, the effects are most felt by the ones who are left out: minorities. According to St. Paul’s Neighborhood House, in the 2010 Census, North Minneapolis was undercounted by more than 7,000 people, which resulted in a loss of two city council members and nearly $200 million in federal funding over ten years.
By undercounting such a significant portion of the population, residents lost political power and representation, as well as funding for schools, hospitals, roads, Medicaid, and other necessary programs. Areas that are overcounted receive more federal funding, while areas that are underfunded—such as North Minneapolis in 2010—receive less funding. Because undercounting typically takes place in minority communities, it leads to even greater disparities.
Creative CityMaking, a project to engage underrepresented communities and encourage a more responsive government through a partnership between local artists and the City of Minneapolis, addresses racial inequities by cultivating meaningful intersections between City staff and the community.
Two of the artists involved in Creative CityMaking, Anna Meyer and Roxanne Anderson, were selected from a panel to work alongside the City’s Neighborhood and Community Relations Department on the WeCount Minneapolis Census 2020 project to ensure a more fair and accurate census than the last one in 2010.
“The census has long been a tool used by the government to organize and provide resources to communities, but it has undercounted the same communities that are underrepresented in decision making,” Meyer and Anderson say. “Taking the lead from the community, the City has decided to take a different approach to the 2020 Census by investing early in undercounted communities in partnership with Creative CityMaking, and work with community-based artists to ensure everyone feels empowered to be part of the census. The City’s interest in collaborating with artists on this project is to ensure the voices and experiences of historically undercounted communities are reflected in our work to ensure a complete and accurate count.”
Creative CityMaking creates partnerships with City departments that are interested in working with communities that have not historically participated in the City’s decision making processes. Often, the engagement systems that have traditionally been used by these departments work for some people and not others, and they tend to prefer those in the community with the resources and time to engage
Part-time store clerk and full-time college student, Dottie Garland gets invited to the grand opening of a new exclusive lesbian dance club by the beautiful owner herself.
It was another day at the Ruby Slipper Boutique, Dottie was stocking shelves from a ladder when a tall beautiful woman entered the shop. She was promoting a new club she was opening and want to put the announcement in the shop window.
As a favor for the permission to place the announcement, she gives Dottie tickets to the grand opening, much to Dottie’s delight and surprise. The gift has the effect of rising the young co-ed’s anticipation for the opening night. All the while thinking only of the beautiful owner, Jacqui.
Dottie arrives, looking for the beautiful owner who is nowhere to be found. This, however, gives her a chance to grab a drink from the bar. While drinking her beer, she is amazed at the diverse group among the patrons. This compels her to go out to the dance floor and meet and dance with some of the patrons.
Several partners later, Dottie’s dancing is interrupted by none other than Jacqui the beautiful club owner. She cuts in and begins dancing with Dottie. The physical attraction between the two causes them to leave the club and continue their newfound carnal enjoyment back at Jacqui’s apartment.
Once there, both women confess their attraction to one another and the two retire to Jacqui’s bedroom to begin yet another kind of dance. The intense attraction builds into a frenzied lust and the young girl has a transcendental experience from the body shaking orgasm Jacqui gives her. Leaving Dottie confused by happy.
***
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Valerie and Robyn haven’t seen each other in several years. A lot has changed for both of them in that time, and when they see each other at their class reunion there is much to talk about.
Both have a secret they are anxious to tell each other but the setting offers too little privacy and they decide to go to the out of town girl, Valerie’s place. It’s a rustic cabin situated on a state park lodge area.
The weather turns nasty right after the women get to the cabin and it seems the atmosphere in the cabin is charged with the electricity of the storm and things begin to heat up. First one then the other begins to reveal some of the intimate details of things that have happened in the time since they last saw each other.
One is going through a divorce, the other ‘outs’ herself as a lesbian to her friend. Like a fiery catalyst, the tension builds as the shock to each is jarring. Each is afraid they will cause a rift in their friendship.
Like a dam bursting, more secrets come out, and along with the amount of wine they are drinking both realize they are facing an explosive situation. Their problem and how to solve it comes to a head and they let the electrically charged, cabin fever run its course.
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The Advocate has always profiled some of the best ‘current’ LGBTQ-identified people, in entertainment media. The article below about: Good Trouble; is one such article from earlier this past week. The show is aired on Starz Network.
Good Trouble’s Women Are Bringing So Much Amazing Queer Visibility to TV
These queer actors on Good Trouble are on our Women of the Year list for their groundbreaking representation.
By Tracy E. Gilchrist
May 14 2020 2:51 PM EDT
Pictured: Zuri Adele and Sherry Cola.
Now heading into its third season, Good Trouble, The Fosters’ spin-off that introduced rarely depicted characters including an Asian-American lesbian and a bisexual Latinx man as part of its lead ensemble when it premiered, continues to boldly portray the lives of LGBTQ-identified people and people of color.
What’s more is that several women in the core ensemble identify as part of the LGBTQ community, including Zuri Adele (Malika) and Sherry Cola (Alice), who are both bisexual, and Emma Hunton (Davia), who is pansexual. Pose’s Hailie Sahar (who is trans) plays Jazmin, a recurring character.
Like its parent show before, the Freeform series, about 20-somethings navigating love and career in a hip downtown Los Angeles communal living space, balances humor and heart with the social issues it amplifies. Now nearing the close of its second season, Good Trouble has tackled social issues including gender equality in the workplace, trans workers’ rights, body positivity, and fat-shaming, the shooting of an unarmed young Black man by white police officers, and Los Angeles’s severe housing shortage for lower-income people.
And that’s just the beginning! For all of the ground it covers, Good Trouble excavates the intersections of identities authentically in ways that resonate out in the world, and that’s in large part due to the diversity of its cast and characters.
“[Alice], a first-generation Asian-American lesbian who is not out to her parents and who is going to bizarre lengths to hide who she — it is a struggle, a roller coaster,” Cola tells The Advocate about her character. “It is such a tender and specific story that I never saw growing up. To be able to portray this character means the world to me.”
In its second season, Good Trouble introduced a love story between Alice and Joey (Daisy Eagan, a Tony winner for The Secret Garden), who came out as nonbinary. The storyline dovetailed with Eagan’s journey of coming out as nonbinary.
Meanwhile, Hunton — who’s appeared on Broadway in Spring Awakening, as Elphaba in the first national tour of Wicked, and as Natalie in the first national tour of Next to Normal — plays Davia, a teacher, and a body-positive influencer. While Davia has not articulated an identity under the LGBTQ umbrella, Hunton is expressing her identity out in the world through her work. Over the past year, she’s directed musical parodies of A League of Their Own and Never Been Kissed at Los Angeles’s Rockwell Table and Stage, in which she reclaims the narrative a little for queer people who never saw themselves in those films.
Sahar’s Jazmin, whose brother Gael (Tommy Martinez) was groundbreaking as a bisexual Latinx character, has appeared in a handful of episodes. One storyline of Jazmin’s took on workplace discrimination that trans people face. Another storyline involved Gael throwing a “Doble Quinceañera” for his sister, whose family shunned her and who wasn’t afforded a quinceañera as a teen. Adele’s character Malika, a Black Lives Matter activist, has thus far dated only men on the series, but Adele has spoken to The Advocate about why it’s important to amplify her queer identity.
“I’m so proud to be a part of the LGBTQ-plus community and I know that with this platform that I have, it’s really important to make sure that all of my intersectionality is represented because that’s the one part. You can see that I’m a woman, you can see that I’m Black, but you can’t necessarily see that I’m queer.”
Romantic Lesbian Erotica 