It’s been a hard week in Pittsburgh to be a survivor of childhood sexual violence

Content Note: abuse, sexual assault, isolation It’s been a hard week in Pittsburgh to be a survivor of childhood sexual violence. Pittsburgh Pirate pitched Felipe Vasquez has been charged with multiple accounts related to a three year span of sexual violence targeting a girl from ages 13-15. PA State Senator Mike Folmer resigned after authorities […]

Queering the PA Wilds, Day One

This is my travelogue, written to help me remember. You are welcome to read. We kicked off our tour of Northern Pennsylvania in Erie. We drove up in the afternoon, had dinner at a place called the Skunk & Goat, and then caught a lovely sunset over Lake Erie. We are staying at a little […]

Vacation. I Wish I’d Stayed (Not Really.)

Vacation Anxiety

It has been ten years since we took a vacation that is purely recreational. We’ve traveled, but it has always been tied to a conference or a work trip or so forth. That’s been fun and interesting, but not always restful or relaxing. Now that I’m away I wish I’d stayed This year, we made […]

Q&A with Michele Harris, a bisexual poet from Western PA about her newest book and her decision to change venues in response to allegations of sexual misconduct by a coffeehouse owner

Michele Harris Poet

A local, queer female-owned bookstore Rickert & Beagle is hosting an upcoming reading on August 16 featuring Western PA native poet, Michele Harris. Harris was originally scheduled to read at Biddle’s Escape in Regent Square, but after learning about allegations of sexual misconduct by the owner, she cancelled in solidarity with the survivors. Rickert & […]

Thank You for Voting Us ‘Best Local Blog’ in Best of Pittsburgh Reader’s Poll 2019

Best of Pittsburgh Best Local Blog

We are in our 14th year of blogging and it has been an amazing year indeed, for good and for not so good sometimes. Being named the OUTstanding LGBTQ Blog in the nation by GLAAD during their 30th annual media awards was pretty damn exciting. It was also one of those moments where you are […]

‘Nowhere to breathe easy’ – That Time When Anxiety Spoiled My Chance to See Heart and Joan Jett Perform. Here’s How It Happened.

Heart Joan Jett Anxiety

We may still have time, we might still get by Every time I think about it, I want to cry With bombs and the devil and the kids keep coming Nowhere to breathe easy, no time to be young But I tell myself that I was doing alright There’s nothing left to do tonight But […]

One Year After His Death, I Have Unfinished Business with Kerry S. Kennedy

Kerry S. Kennedy Florist Collage

I use my Google calendar to track a lot things, but memorial dates are perhaps the most important to me. Because I don’t want to forget them, even if its sad to think about their deaths. I want to remember that they lived (birthdays) and acknowledge that their deaths were too soon and too sad. […]

Flip the Script: a Q&A for Sue Created by Tereneh Idia

Flip the Script

This is the second installment of our new blogging Q&A project: Flip the Script. I have invited a group of friends and acquaintances to design a Q&A for me to answer. As we near #AMPLIFY 300, I thought it would be a good opportunity to ‘flip the script’ and put myself on the opposite side of the question, to walk […]

So About My #GLAADaward and Queer Erasure in the Pittsburgh Media Market

GLAAD award outstanding blog

My latest column for The Pittsburgh Current is out today. I decided to explore how the lack of mainstream media coverage of this blog winning a national media award reflects the larger issue of queer erasure in media in this market. Colleagues working in local media markets told me that the story was ignored because […]

Q&A with Gisele Barreto Fetterman, Second Lady of Pennsylvania

Gisele Fetterman

“I want Pennsylvania to be a safe, just, and more welcoming place for everyone.  I want everyone to have an opportunity to thrive in our state.” Gisele and I have been social media friends for several years, most typically coming together when there is a need that taps into our mutual social justice skills and […]