-
“ad perficiendum”
“Everything breaks down. During a season of harms, / every disaster looks premeditated. You imagine things.”
-
“Pangaea Proxima,” “Panthalassa,” & “Juniper Tree, Boy and Bird”
“My mother is a superocean. She bore us. Bears us. Bears / our accusations in rain and rivulet to river. A wave, she / surrounds us.”
-
“Bird Chooses to Make a Habitat of Heart”
“Give me back / my heart, beautiful bird. Mistake me for an open window.”
-
“In Which I Invent a Man”
“I must / still look for / him. My constant / resentment.”
-
RBG Memorial Challenge
To participate in the fight against fascism and bigotry and for social justice, as well as to manage despair, I’m going to need assigned tasks between now and the election. It looks like the RGB Memorial Challenge will provide some of that guidance and discipline.
-
Condemning J.K. Rowling and Her Transphobic Views
I condemn J.K. Rowling and her continuing transphobic views, including her recent social media posts and response to the backlash.
-
Painbow
Richard Leis created Painbow after he witnessed and experienced two incidents of discrimination. His idea was to briefly describe each situation, include the hurtful statement itself, and provide a short response.
-
“Passage”
“I drove Pacific Northwest November numb / through trees like tall green drifts to the ocean / seething with chaos.”
-
“The Yogurt Swimmer”
“A snout breaks the surface of Greek yogurt in the 32-ounce container I have freshly opened and set on the counter. It sniffs cautiously, then sneezes and sprays yogurt everywhere. I yell. It pokes its entire head out and chirps. Mel is at daycare, Bill at his office. I’m between jobs and spend my days…
-
“November in Portland”
“High school like autumn: / rain, mud, dark, / snow seems a day away.”
-
“Forever Baby” by Dana Diehl in Cartridge Lit
Dana Diehl’s latest flash fiction piece titled “Forever Baby” and inspired by the game Stardew Valley is available on Cartridge Lit in the new “The Double Click Temple Issue.” Her story is awesome, sad, allegorical for so much, and you don’t need to know anything about Stardew Valley to appreciate it.
-
“Distraction”
“I watch light flicker under the bathroom door. / I watch the clock. / I watch one foot with a sock on jealous of the other.”
-
Supreme Court Reinstates Transgender Military Personnel Ban
I condemn reinstatement of this bigoted ban by the conservative majority of the Supreme Court.
-
“My Unbelievable Man”
“His shoulder next to my shoulder / is warm pressure communication”
-
“Nervous Bambi”
“He blinks and I’m not sure if he’s trying / to embarrass me or if he’s confused by me, too. / He has to be lying.”
-
Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda
Simon and the other characters are the highlight of Simon vs the Homo sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli, about a high school student on the verge of coming out as gay dealing with doubt, first love, and blackmail.
-
Happy National Coming Out Day!
I came out to my mom twenty years ago, the day after Ellen Degeneres came out on national television. I was so inspired but I was so terrified. I could only make the attempt over the telephone and I couldn’t even say the words; I made my mom guess until I finally said “Yes” when…
-
“Roadside Freak Show”
“The thing crafted from fabric and plaster, / more pile of dirt and wet cardboard / than realistic human skeleton, lies / under glass in a white cinderblock / coffin elevated over the concrete floor / in the last of three corrugated steel sheds / at the roadside attraction.”
-
The Art of Being Normal by Lisa Williamson
Lisa Williamson’s wonderful The Art of Being Normal explores the complicated and emotional coming-of-age of two English teenagers.
-
The Gilded Razor: A Memoir by Sam Lansky
Lansky’s account of his drug use is riveting but also very upsetting.
Richard Leis
You must be logged in to post a comment.