July 18, 2008 by p00ky.

the announced closure of a number of starbuck’s “stores” prompted one portland channel to do a news brief on the event, from the perspective of an elderly woman recently moved to portland from west virginia.  in the piece the oft cited starbucks-corporate-wish was dredged up:  that the plastic place exists as the third world - the place between work and home.

she lamented near tears that the place was like family to her… that it was like Cheers, where everybody knew her name.

A little historical perspective, though sadly, as testimony to a fleeting memory, devoid of footnotes:  a nice essay exists somewhere out there by a source forgotten naming the pub as a kind of third world, precisely the reference mentioned in the news article and the mantra of starbuck’s corporate.  a place extant between the worlds of home and work.  a place, particularly in the british pubs, where people of all classes meet on a randomly regular basis to rub elbows and exchange stories and laughter and sometimes tears…. with tongues loosened a bit by a few pints served dutifully by the employees (who may also on occasion remind Bob that he might mind  his Ps and Qs lest the troubleandstrife put him in the dog house again).  the pub, in short, is truly a land unto itself, cultivated by the regulars and kept from the dangers of inbreeding by frequent visitors who are embraced and encouraged to share.

compare this dynamic and creative Other to the plastic isolating homogeneity offered thru the endless replication of starbucks where your day is fucking “made” by the recognition that the hired help remembers your name and how much cinnamon you like in your latte.  where you sit alone at a table sufficient to hold a laptop and a newspaper, and safely emerge grasping a corporate brand in a paper cup having bared your pathetic soul to absolutely nobody, and ready to face the world.

i contend that some independent coffee houses afford their patrons the experience of the “Other,” and recognize that the experience, whether pub or coffee house is largely dependent on the clientele.  I would sadly go so far as to admit that the very concept of the “Other” is relegated largely to memory, and further to drinking establishments distant from our shores.  that being said, at least the Potential exists for something more than a company mantra and logo.  if a clerk at starbucks calls me by name it holds as much meaning to me as the “have a nice day” at the bottom of a super-market receipt…. barring some deeper relationship:)  and the very fact that starbucks exists as portable pods littering the landscape, as examples of anti-humanity structures that serve the most superficial need of interaction, denies them any goddam right to proclaim themselves as the “other”…. and relegates those who find fulfillment there to the realm of the lemures (and lemurs) - the realm of the walking dead clutching a cup of severely over-priced joe to their starving breast.

Posted in ArtsNlife, Gay Life: rants to raves, Uncategorized | Print | No Comments »

October 13, 2006 by p00ky.

just a quicky in response to recent outings of republican-affiliated “gay” men that are gaining considerable popularity in the blog0sphere, to give a *nod* to the practice, to which, were it not for the blatant hypocrisy and damage done to the “community” by the closeted queers, i would not nod, nor even wink.  Check out http://www.blogactive.com/ and lemme know your thoughts. 

Posted in Gay Life: rants to raves, Political | Print | 1 Comment »

July 26, 2006 by MercuryPDX.

Lance Bass is gay. When I read the article online I thought to myself ‘Wow. How cool is that? Someone who based their career on being a pop-music heartthrob to millions of teenage girls had the courage to come out of the closet.’ Career (or what’s left of it) be damned. I was awed, although not really surprised at his revelation.

Then I read a little bit further down… “He is in a “very stable” relationship with model-actor-Amazing Race winner Reichen Lehmkuhl, 32, [sidenote: total freaking hottie!] and is developing an Odd Couple-inspired sitcom pilot with [Nsync bandmate Joey] Fatone in which his character will be gay.” Thankfully for Lance, the acting won’t be too much of a stretch… unless of course, he’s a playing a top.

Read the rest of this entry »

Posted in Gay Life: rants to raves | Print | 4 Comments »

July 15, 2006 by Prototype_Leo1983.

so i’m going to participate in this a little more often soon as things kind of get squared away here. i returned from months of hiatus from salem oregon to come back to my “birth cradle” and now that i’m working on getting a place to live, i’ll participate when possible here.

so for starters, i enjoy portland because portland is the shit, no doubt about it. some day our fair city will be the excellent city and we’ll have people migrating from across the globe who want to live here, and they’ll contribute to our economy in the most proper of ways. this is opinion and this is fact… but which seems more logical to you?

you, the readers get to ponder this. now that i just joined up on this, you will get to see some insights from not only myself but the other people who post here too. tag teaming posts will be fun! haha!

by the way, i gotta go to the bars a little more often and tease men who hit on me. it’s fun because you know you’re not going home with them when you’re stubborn. all it takes is purchasing a beer, sitting down in one place and not moving from it. don’t dance or do nothing. be eye candy, and if you get hit on a lot or get sexual favors offered, politely turn them down and remember you are eye candy, not an in-house service! this is why i enjoy going to bars if i feel like it. more fun facts. enjoy. thank you for the one who drew me to this, you know who you are!

Posted in Gay Life: rants to raves, Uncategorized | Print | 4 Comments »

July 10, 2006 by p00ky.

A German inventor says he’s found a way to make cheap diesel fuel out of dead cats…http://www.ananova.com/news/story/sm_1534821.html

NO… not that cat …

This is just an introductory post to a new category called, for now: “gay life… from rants to raves”. I have taken the liberty of pasting (in comments) some comments on a gay pride topic that were entered on a former blog. Of course everyone is welcome to comment on this post, but it is really meant to launch a new category with the real message being to encourage YOU to REGISTER with the blog so that you can be given “author” status to publish your OWN posts… on which others can comment. Nor do your posts have to be associated with any current category (the defult is UNcat)… the categories are merely for house-keeping, and to help satisfy sambach’s penchant for organization:). Registration takes only a second, and is totally non-compromising.

More people posting will encourage even more to comment and to post!… like organisims feeding and breeding on/with one another… well, edit that but you know what i mean…. and greater participation will contribute to a more relaxed environment where stuff posted does not stand out like blood in the snow… like a turd in the fog:)

Soooo… Register now… and happy posting/commenting!

Posted in Blog Info, Gay Life: rants to raves | Print | 2 Comments »