If I see one more fitness influencer share an image of a donut alongside how many squats it’ll take to erase it, I just might pack all my things and fly to Mars. Let’s be real: Your fitness journey is just that—your fitness journey.…
Barrett White
Houston Cinema Arts Festival Perseveres in the Pandemic with “Urbana”
Posted on November 10, 2020With cinemas the world over closed for the foreseeable future, I wasn’t sure we would get a Houston Cinema Arts Festival (HCAF) in 2020. Thankfully for us, the staff of the longstanding Houston arts institution have proven themselves flexible, offering 2020 solutions to 2020 problems. This year’s festival, which runs November 12–22, will take place virtually and in a drive-in format at the Moonstruck, Show Boat, and Houston Ballet drive-in theatres, creating a pandemic-friendly cinema experience.…
The ‘I Like to Move It Movement’: Move Your Body to Support LGBTQ Youth
Posted on October 12, 2020Nate Herrington is creating a fitness movement—one that’s inclusive, gets people on their feet, and gives people something to walk away with (a badge of honor on their hearts, and maybe a little sweat on their yoga mats). Herrington is the founder of the I Like to Move It Movement, a 21-day fundraiser that anyone can do from home. The fundraiser—benefitting Houston LGBTQ-focused non-profits Tony’s Place and Out for Education—has a lofty, but achievable, goal of $30,000.…
Dear Well-Meaning Liberals, Listen to the Voices of the South
Posted on October 6, 2020“F*ck Texas.” “F*ck the South.” “Let’s just divide the country at the Mason-Dixon and let the South fend for itself.” “Texas is a lost cause.” These are just a few of the tone-deaf tweets I have seen from well-meaning liberals over the last few months, years, and so on. It’s exhausting. Let’s be clear: If you perpetuate that narrative every time you want to express displeasure at a southern Republican or conservative legislator’s gaffe—you’re part of the problem, you’re tone deaf, and you’re showing your…
Together We Serve: Houston to Be Home to First LGBTQ+ Lions Club in Texas
Posted on September 4, 2020On my dresser sits a small, gold and purple felt hat. I have no idea how old it is. It was a prized possession of my partner’s grandfather. Pinned to it are various accolades from the Lions Club of Barcelona, Venezuela—where my partner and his family are from. A perfect attendance pin from 1962, another from 1964, and so on.…
Mulholland to Marfa: How a Couple Destined for Hollywood Found Home in West Texas
Posted on August 21, 2020Marfa is a liminal space. It’s undeniable—the dusty roads, the streets that are somehow simultaneously vibrant and silent, and of course the infamous Marfa Mystery Lights. The small West Texas town exists on a plane that isn’t quite here nor there; a spot in the nether between Central Texas and the adobe settlements of New Mexico. If a film were to be made of the Welcome to Night Vale podcast and Marfa were chosen as the filming location, no one…
Texas Pride Online: The Solution to a Pride Month at Home
Posted on June 24, 2020With COVID-19 cases surging in Texas following Governor Abbott’s bungling of the economic reopening and his overreach into local mask-order enforcement, many Prides are trying to figure out the safest way to celebrate. Some are rescheduling to later in the year, while others are going virtual. When Houston’s own Space Kiddettes (Trent Lira and Devin Will) learned of a virtual Pride being planned in Austin, the musical duo—already planning a similar event in Houston—offered to join forces and help to…
The Gay Nineties: The Sapphic Love of Adele & Ruth
Posted on May 20, 2020The article describes two women, Adele Densmore, 21, and Ruth Latham, 18, the former of whom presented masculine (in her brother’s clothing). The two of them lived in nearby St. Joseph, Missouri and, per the article, were a romantic couple for all intents and purposes. There is some confusion, though. For example, the piece describes Densmore as the one who preferred to dress in men’s clothing, while the accompanying sketches label Latham as the one wearing a top hat with…
Stay Active, Even If Only For Your Mental Health
Posted on April 8, 2020I must disclaim that I am in no way a health and fitness professional, I am a city boy who likes to be out in the city and a gym bunny who enjoys the rush of a good workout. What ever am I doing during the lockdown, then? Let me lay out some workarounds that have been good to me, physically and mentally. Perhaps, if you’re looking to get your own endorphins flowing (whether you’re a gym regular or not),…
The Alley Theatre’s ‘1984’ is Ghastly. It’s Also Necessary Viewing.
Posted on March 17, 2020There is no doubt that the events of George Orwell’s magnum opus 1984 speak volumes in today’s political climate. The trouble is that both sides of the aisle will claim that the other is Big Brother and that they, the people on either side, are poor Winston. It is for this reason that out actor Todd Waite, who plays one of the party members in the Alley Theatre’s stage adaptation, offers a coy societal explanation. “For the LGBTQ community, there…