Real Zombie Apocalypse

Daily Cat

Hot Man of the Day

Daily Cat

Halloween Pumpkins

Some great Halloween pumpkins:

Halloween

Yaoi and Bara Manga

Example of Yaoi

Manga is Japanese word for comics, usually adult in nature. Yaoi and Bara refer to genres of Manga that are homoerotic in nature. Japan, though a generally sexually repressed culture which has a strong taboo against homosexuality, has a flourishing and wide-spread culture of porn, both 3-D (i.e., real men) and 2-D (graphic or drawn). And the kinds of manga that exist are amazingly varied, from straight to lesbian, to kiddie, to furry, and beyond. It's seems that the more sexuality is repressed, the more it flourishes in underground and not-so-underground forms. Limiting myself to gay manga for the moment, and the two genres listed above, I find Bara to be the most congenial: it is created for gay men, by gay men, in a variety of styles for a variety of tastes. Yaoi is weirdly interesting: it is mostly created by women for women. Yes, in Japan, women like to read manga and novels where men court and have sex with other men! It's forms are similar to "romance novels" here in America, with a stronger man pursuing and seducing a weaker. As I said, weird.

Bara, on the other hand, is made by and for gay men. It generally features men more to the various tastes of gays: muscle, hairy, s&m, older-younger, chubs, etc. It can take many forms, from full-on illustrated novels, to short stories, to serialized stories, to single frames (one fascinating sub-genre is bara depicting anime characters), and are usually graphic (though the Japanese law against depicting male genitalia sometimes results in "masking"). Though the men are usually Japanese, they can (and often do) include western men in their imagery. Although, we in the west also produce such illustrations, we are slackers compared to the Japanese. As part of this blog, I will occasionally post some bara along with other forms of manga for my viewers' pleasure and edification. Later I will blog about another of my favorite manga genres, furry. So, enjoy!

The Election

It's just less than one week until the election (whew!), and I am glad about that. It still looks good for Obama and the Democrats despite the inevitable tightening of the race. Nate Silver's informative blog, FiveThirtyEight, has an excellent on-going analysis of the daily polling situation, and gives the projected Electoral College, popular vote, and "chance of winning" percentages. He looks at many factors, especially the state-by-state polling, to reach his conclusions. He also provides mini-essays concerning the state of the election, updated daily. Today, his estimate of the race gives Obama a 74.6% chance of winning, up 7 since Oct. 21. Obama seems to be on an upward trend since his disastrous first debate, slowly regaining ground. Although it isn't a sure thing, I'm optimistic that the Republicans will be denied the White House, as well as the Senate. (btw: Silver's blog is highly rated as he has successfully forecasted elections for over a decade.) Know hope.

More Steve Walker

Continuing the theme of  "alone together," I noticed these paintings by Walker:

They dramatize the time after the ecstatic moments of sexual joining, when the men return to their individual selves. In each, one man faces away from the viewer while the other is either asleep or turned inward. They seem caught in their own world, isolated from each other and from us, and yet they remain in the most intimate of circumstances: naked or almost so, in bed. They have returned to their isolation...and yet, they remain together. This painting, entitled "Parallel Dreams" illustrates this well:

The two men, in a post-coital slumber, sleep. And yet, their dreams, like their bodies, are parallel: separate but together, and thus one. **
Our inability to see the faces of these men and the clues they provide to their mood, keeps us at bay, keeps us guessing about their true feelings, while their obvious physical beauty draws us in: we are intrigued by their circumstances and invited to participate imaginatively. Thus, we, too, participate in the meditative mood of the pictures: separate but together.

Hot Man of the Day

Mormon Missionary Positions

Now this is a Mormonism I can get into (probably NSFW):

Daily Cat

The Power of Quiet

A fascinating video discussing the extrovert/introvert divide and their need for each other.

Hot Man of the Day

Steve Walker Art

I'm a big fan of Steve Walker's art (as I've mentioned elsewhere). Besides being gay-oriented, it has a certainly quality of stillness, of contemplation, of quiet beauty which appeals to me. Of course, the men in it are hot, but beyond that, Walker conveys a deep humanity in them, both alone and in pairs. he's not afraid to depict such moods as sadness and loneliness, as well as friendship, joy, and love. He brings to mind such American artists as Edward Hopper:

and Andrew Wyeth:

There's a quality of light in these works that recalls Vermeer:

Hopper once said that he only wanted to "paint light on a wall." Of course, he did more than that, but he points to the importance of light in paintings such as these: it is almost another character in the "story"of the work. It creates a mood and a space that the human characters inhabit and seems to define us as singular and alone, while still being a part of a greater whole. Sometimes this "whole" is another human being, or the world around us, or, even, a small cat. There is a shining and quiet beauty here, a vision which transcends the ordinary, which is Zen-like in its intensity. I suppose this is the spiritual quality they convey: we are alone, but alone together, and thus one.

 

Hot Man of the Day

Grief

I came across this quote on Andrew Sullivan's blog, which I find interesting:

"The interesting thing about grief, I think, is that it is its own size. It is not the size of you. It is its own size. And grief comes to you. You know what I mean? I’ve always liked that phrase He was visited by grief, because that’s really what it is. Grief is its own thing. It’s not like it’s in me and I’m going to deal with it. It’s a thing, and you have to be okay with its presence. If you try to ignore it, it will be like a wolf at your door," - Stephen Colbert, who lost his father at a young age, in a wide-ranging interview with Playboy.

We've all been visited by grief at one time or another, sometimes mild and other times devastating. But I can relate to what Colbert relates here, that sense that grief is something outside ourselves that comes upon us as something we have to deal with. It's certainly not something I want to experience, but it demands an audience and a response. I think it provides us an opportunity to deepen our experience of life and gain wisdom in detaching from things. It provides an opportunity to cultivate compassion, both for oneself and for others. It's a reminder of the consequences of grasping that which cannot be held because all things are impermanent and pass away. As the Buddha found, it is the grasping and craving that creates suffering (including grief). True wisdom teaches us to hold onto life lightly.

Hot Man of the Day

Daily Cat

DOMA Doomed?

A federal appeals court in Manhattan today struck down the Defense of Marriage Act as unconstitutional, becoming the second such court to do so and making it that much more likely that the issue will be decided by the Supreme Court sooner than later. 

I think it's just a matter of time before the so-called Defense of Marriage Act is invalidated. It is obviously unconstitutional, singling out a certain group to be discriminated against. It seems to be the same problem as the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" law that voted down. I just can't understand the logic wherein one group of unpopular people can be singled out for discriminatory treatment just because the majority disapprove of them. BTW: this makes it even more urgent to keep the Republicans out of the presidency as Romney could appoint more Scalia-like justices to vote against the constitutional rights of gay people.

Hot Man of the Day

FDR is Still Relevant

Obama should run this clip throughout the U.S. The more things change, the more they remain the same.

Daily Cat

Magnifying the Universe

Check this out, it's really cool:



Copyright 2012. Magnifying the Universe by Number Sleuth.

Orthodoxy vs. Orthopraxy

Yes, those are somewhat daunting, technical terms, but I came across them while reading "One Breath at a Time: Buddhism and the Twelve Steps" by Kevin Griffin, a great discussion and guide to the 12-step program from the Buddhist perspective. Here's the money quote:

What's appealing about Buddhism is the fact that, as Reverend Heng Sure, a Buddhist monk says, while most religions are orthodoxies - that is, they adhere to a system of ideas, of rules, of words - Buddhism is an orthopraxy: it adheres to a set of practices, through which you can come to your own understanding, not one imposed from the outside.

This is from the chapter on the eleventh step (p. 226). When I came across it it immediately struck a sympathetic chord within me, resonating with my deepest needs and views. Yes, this is why I respond to Buddhism and why it works so well for me. I have spent years learning the orthodoxies of the various religions and have come to find them wanting in various degrees. And yet, I feel something on a much deeper level that apprehends a reality and meaning deeper than words and rules and theologies and dogmas. This, I guess, is also an existentialist view: direct experience without the comforts of received dogmas, the individual discovering meaning for himself. In fact, these dogmas must be smashed, ideation avoided, for this direct experience to occur. Zen Buddhism, as I understand it, teaches us that we must strips away such ideas and preconceived notions to get at direct experience of...well, of what, exactly? The goal is left open, or hidden behind paradoxes and odd stories and actions. The goal is to create this experience within the seeker. Orthodoxy, on the other hand, tries to impress certain dogmas and ideas through a system the seeker must accept - not as authentic or genuine in my experience. Griffin relates this to the 12-step program through its goal of a "desire to stop" in a practical way - the steps and other principles were discovered to work; they were/are practical. Thus, it doesn't matter what kind of Higher Power you have, or meditation program you practice; what matters is that you have the experience of staying sober through them.

Cool.

Hot Man of the Day

Jason Sokody (website): is he the perfect man?

Daily Cat

Yes, I'm a cat lover, hopelessly in the thrall of the furry balls of loving indifference. I propose to include on this blog a daily dose of cat, in whatever form. Sorry, dog-lovers...

The Debate

I don't usually watch the debates in election years, but this time around things seem to be heating up, so I sat through last night's vice-presidential debate with a couple of friends. Of course, I'm a supporter of President Obama, so I was dismayed at his poor performance last week against the glib, sales job of the Rombot, and hoped that Biden would show some backbone in defending his administration's accomplishments and taking down the lies and evasions of the Republican ticket. Well, I wasn't disappointed: Biden more than came through. Yes, there are those who are complaining about his demeanor, his interruptions, etc., but I say it's about time we had a genuine response to the republican ticket's false campaign and Big Lie tactics. I especially liked how Biden called out Ryan's dishonesty (about taxes and foreign policy, for instance) and finally dinged him on the 47% quote, going up to the line without actually calling him a liar. Ryan seemed programmed and out of his depth, although he didn't let Biden's antics rattle him (how do you rattle a robot?).

The only moment I thought he was being genuine was when he was asked to respond to abortion as a Roman Catholic. He admitted that he believes that life begins at the moment of conception. How, then, can he reconcile that with his stated position that the Romney-Ryan ticket believes in exceptions? He claims a "principle" and yet is willing to abandon it to get elected. In the past he has articulated a "no exceptions" policy. I guess this shows that he (and Romney) will do anything to get elected, and that things will probably change once they get into office (i.e., a no abortion under any circumstances policy - too bad rape victims!).

 I don't know what effect this will have on the election, but I do know it will stop the bleeding among Democrats. Now, if only Obama will come through next week...

James Bond 50th Anniversary

I've been watching James Bond films since I was a kid. I can remember the shock and glee I felt when I saw my first one ("Goldfinger"): the action, sex, and violence, as well as intriguing plots just mesmerized me. I've even read all Ian Fleming's novels. I've seen every one, enjoyed some, disliked others, but always felt a sense of anticipation for the new one in line. I am looking forward to "Skyfall" with the best 007 since Sean Connery created the role, Daniel Craig.

Hot Man of the Day

Hugh Jackman, looking hot in the upcoming "Les Miserables." The film looks really good - can't wait!

Cool Ad of the Day

October and Horror Movies

It is now October, the month where cooler weather finally sets in here in southern California. Another phenomenon which sets arises is the (now) month-wide celebration of Halloween, and its primary sign for me is the horror movie. What brought this to my attention was a survey a friend took part in on Facebook which asks for our favorite horror movie. I noticed a fair variety of responses, but the thing which I noticed about them was that, of those I've seen, most didn't seem very scary to me. I guess I've become jaded, but I do think the bar has been raised quite a bit over the years. Few, if any, films seem genuinely scary any more. They can be entertaining, and atmospheric, and disgusting, and jolting, but not really, gut-wrenchingly frightening. I am, of course, measuring modern-day films against those I saw many years ago, in my youth. It seems that what then was so frightening has become rather tame, but at the time they just hit home-runs of true horror.

I remember the first really scary film I ever saw (outside of childhood), "The Night of the Living Dead." I saw it when I was in high school with a friend at a drive-in. I remember sitting in the car, scared to death, especially when people walked by on their way to the snack bar. It stopped being a movie and became the real thing! I finally had to get out of the car and go to the snack bar myself. But my all-time scary experience was seeing "The Exorcist" three days after it opened with some people from the dorm at college. I had no idea what I was getting into, and I was so freaked out that I "watched" most of the film from behind closed eyes. Of course, this didn't help a lot, as the sounds made it worse in my imagination. Plus, the audience was freaking out as well - a communal freak-out, something you don't get very often - people actually fled the theater. (I understand this happened with "Psycho" and "Alien" as well.) In my experience, this is a rare experience in the theater nowadays: we are more "sophisticated" or, perhaps, jaded; our threshold for such experiences much lower. Those two films seem almost quaint now: what's the big deal? We get cheap jolts, or gross-outs, or thrillers, but not deep, gut-wrenching terror where we want to flee and the catharsis is completely satisfiying. Maybe it's just me and the effects of age and experience, but such films which are societal events are rare to non-existent. We seem to be overwhelmed with stimulation - film, tv, internet, news, etc., that what comes through has little chance of really hitting hard.

Hot Men of the Day

I don't think this needs an introduction.

Starbucks

I came across this fascinating analysis of the ubiquity of Starbucks in the United States. As a frequent Starbucks customer (I've been going since the first store opened in the San Gabriel Valley - Pasadena - for years), I've noticed how they have proliferated like toadstools. Not that I'm complaining, mind you; I enjoy the familiarity within difference of the manifold Starbucks experience, and love to while away the hours reading or internet browsing while sipping my Grande bold drip. But I didn't realize just how much they have become part of the American scene: There are ~311 million people living in the USA, with 82% living in urbanized areas. One might define urbanization in the modern era as the distance to the nearest Starbucks. An "urban" environment would therefore be anyplace within a 20 mile radius. Yes, more than 80% of the USA (that's 250,000,000 people) live within 20 miles of a Starbucks. Here's a great graph which lays out the % population to distance from a store:

Now, that's convenience!

Polls

The polls are indicating that Romney is surging in the wake of his glib sales job during last week's debate. However, for a more sober and realistic view I recommend Nate Silver's blog on the New York Time's website here. He has an excellent record at predicting the presidential, as well as congressional, races. Presently, he is predicting Obama will win with a 74.8% chance and 302 electoral votes. Of course, this is down some 17% since Oct. 1, so Romney's debate performance, no matter how pernicious it was. Stay tuned...

Hot Man of the Day

Hey, here's another hot guy. As you may figure out, I like 'em big!