Traveling as a queer individual is always stressful, but when you and your partner decide to travel to one of the most traditionally Catholic countries in the world, nerves are on edge—especially when you don’t speak the native language! But with South America calling our name, my partner and I traveled to Colombia earlier this month to experience culture in every sense of the word.…
Welcome to the first installment of Asking for a Friend—a new sex education series where a queer certified sexologist (that’s me!) will answer all the sex-related questions our readers Google late at night (or on lunch break—no judgies). So send us your questions—from inverted nipples to anal paps to the age-old question of how much lube is too much lube, there’s nothing we can't answer together.…
Arguably the most prolific gay novelist in Appalachia, Silas House was born and raised in nearby Laurel County. Educated at Eastern Kentucky University and then Spalding University for a Master of Fine Arts in creative writing, he now teaches at Berea College, the first desegregated and coeducational college in the South.…
“Hey, Toto! We are in Kansas!” I shouted out the open car window as we crossed the state line. Yeah, I had been saving that cornball comment ever since I signed up for the Tex-Kan Artist Retreat—a yearly retreat that sends Texas artists to Kansas to experience local grassroots art, explore family farming, and work with rural artists.…
A huge part of me grew up closeted in Kentucky, and I know that—in a state of roughly four million folks—lots of other boys did, too. And while the cities of Louisville and Lexington brim with gay bars and rainbow crosswalks, there are plenty of guys living out and proud in smaller towns, too. I wanted to meet and connect with fellow gay men across Kentucky, so I rebooted Tinder and Grindr.…
The history of my family (and an outrageously cheap Expedia deal) is why I ventured to Mexico City in May, to finally look upon the sites that compose a whole third of my ancestors. And though Montezuma’s Revenge confined me to an entire day of gulping peach Pedialite and binging 'Master of None,' I still paid pilgrimage to everything I wanted to see. From the Catholic cathedrals to the Teotihuacan pyramids to Frida Kahlo’s studio, my three friends and I…
Inspired by a friendly yet fiery conversation with my friend about which states constitute “the South,” I decided to curate a more formal dialogue between Dr. Rachel Afi Quinn, Dr. Trevor Boffone, and myself—all queer people based in Houston with roots spread throughout the region—where we could hash out our ideas on what the South truly is. The following is an edited version of our conversation……
Walking into TOMO Mags on West Alabama Street in Houston’s Montrose district, you encounter the city’s only magazine shop that is both an artistic incubator and community sanctuary at once. Co-founded by husbands Vico Tadeo and Keiwing Chong, TOMO Mags offers a range of niche magazines—including local publications on architecture, photography, and design—that you cannot typically find in corporate hubs like Barnes & Noble.…
For many queer parents, Pride is something we look forward to sharing with our children and the next generation. After all, we pick out first birthday, Christmas, and Thanksgiving outfits for our kiddos, excited to share our favorite holidays with the little humans we love the most. So why would Pride season be any different?…
