Christmas Eve as Seen by Richard Haines

My friend Richard Haines came over for Christmas Eve dinner and drew it, check out his blog "What I saw Today" here.....

Ian's Best of 2010

My friend Ian MacMillan put together his favorites from 2010 you can download it here

JOHN BOY Brad Mehldau

WE WANT WAR These New Puritans

BUILDING IN L.O.V.E. The Hundred In the Hands

ODE TO BEAR Mount Kimbie

LET’S WRITE A BOOK Field Music

RETURNAL Oneohtrix Point Never

GAY ANGELS Perfume Genius

LOVESICK TEENAGERS Bear In Heaven

FOR THE RABBITS Caitlin Rose

CREDIT CARD BABIE$ - M.E.N.

THE WAVE Wildbirds + Peacedrums

SICK Salem

THE WIND + THE LEAVES Dan Berglund’s Tonbrucket

MONTH OF MAY Arcade Fire

MEXICO WAX SOLVENT The Fall

WHERE DREAMS GO TO DIE John Grant

OH MY GOD Cults

I’LL TAKE CARE OF YOU Gil Scott-Heron

ONE Yeasayer

READY FOR THE WORLD How To Dress Well

PIECES Villagers

REST OF OUR LIVES Dum Dum Girls

Let It Snow

This is my subway station yesterday morning

Marshmallow World

OK I admit I love Dean Martin! The Blizzard of 2010 was the perfect capper to a perfect holiday weekend. I had a small relaxed, stress free dinner party on Friday with new and old friends, then went to my friend Vince's annual Christmas day party on Saturday and Sunday just walked around enjoying the good feelings in the air. Today I walked around in the snow drifts and it was amazing how friendly and chatty people were and I saw some sights that are pretty rare in NYC...namely, traffic free streets and a snow man in Chinatown. One really cool effect the snow had was it got people talking and brought strangers together, I love when that happens.

Subway Ride From The Past

This weekend I went into my subway station and there was a world war 2 era subway train there waiting for me

Top Ten New York Photography Shows in 2010

Top Ten New York Photography Shows in 2010

My Friend Vince came up with his top ten photography shows from 2010, check it out!

Jerry Saltz Takes Us on a Tour of Some of His favorite Paintings In NYC

This guy is one of a kind, I love his enthusiasm! Catch what he says about Pollock at the end, genius!

Senate Ends Military Ban on Gays Serving Openly

Another issue which I didn't think really mattered much was the "Don't ask, don't tell" policy in the military. Encouraging people to lie about who they are can have some pretty bad consequences. I wonder now if my friend who received a dishonorable discharge from the military will have that changed. Government sanctioned policies that treat gay people like second class citizens just leads to more homophobia from within and without. Hopefully lifting this ban will lead to a more tolerant society where gay people can be themselves without fear of being shunned by their friends & families and people like Carl Paladino will be shunned for saying gay people should be ashamed of themselves.

I look forward to the day when we can love who we want without fear.

At The Wojarnowicz Protest

I used to think these kinds of things didn't matter or they wern't for me so I never really participated in events where I voiced an opinion. But I've realized that if you act like your feelings don't matter, people won't pay much attention to them.

Protest The Smithsoian's Removal of David Wojnarpwizc' Video Today! Met Museum 1:00 PM

Holiday Conditions

Holiday Conditions

Its nice to here in NYC this time of year and just enjoying the awesome weather. The visitors, the lights, skating and the good feelings in the air and avoiding some of of the frenzied holiday scenarios I've gotten caught up in in the past.

I'm lucky to have friends inviting me to parties and friends to have over to cook for. I'm not keeping my life on hold for people who might be able to squeeze me in somewhere when they can get away from their other commitments. I've bought and made gifts for a few friends who always show up for me. Basically I'm prioritizing the people who prioritize me and avoiding those situations where I'm kind of kept around as an option.

It seems like from the time when I was a little kid Christmas was the time when hopes were built up to gargantuan expectations and plans where constantly changing. The holiday season seemed to be more about fulfilling obligations rather then spending quality time with the people you really cared about. Tempers flared and small irritations turned into major blow-ups. Doors slammed, tears were cried and I didn't dare think of myself. It was mostly a big drama to be endured with the hopes that I would get out of it unscathed.

My favorite memory of Christmas was when I was when I was a little kid and my parents gave me a big box of art supplies. Colored paper, pencils, glue, crayons, scissors, glitter...just great stuff that I could do anything that I wanted to with. I know it was my Mom's idea and it was probably the best present I've ever received. It was simple and it was perfect for me. It implied that my mom knew who I was, she had given some thought to what my abilities were, how to encourage them and what made me happy. There was so much of everything in that box that I could take chances and try out new ideas with no fear that I was wasting things or that the supply was gonna run out. It was a perfect example of a really thoughtful gift.

At this point most of the non-committal carrot danglers have drifted out of my life and I'm surrounded by others who are not afraid to commit and express their unconditional love, just by following through and showing up and giving more of themselves then they promised. That's the best gift of all and I hope you all have bucket loads of unconditional love in your life too!


That's me and Ernie at a holiday party in Brooklyn 12-18-10. if you are looking for a great gift for the gay who has everything check out the Butt Magazine/American Apparel beach towel featuring a full size naked Ernie on it here

Nature Noir One Day Exhibition

I have a few pieces in a one day exhibition at a friend's studio in Chelsea this saturday, if you are around, check it out! It's a great group of artists and Im really excited to be a part of it there will be a performance by Black Lake among others....cool!

David Wojnarowicz Video Pulled from National Portrait Gallery Exhibition

Having just watched this video for the first time, I gotta say, it's a pretty powerful work of art and as a christian, I don't feel offended at all by the image of ants crawling over a crucifix. It was part of a show at the smithsonian called “Hide/Seek: Difference and Desire in American Portraiture", and pulled because of opposition from some representatives and the director of the Catholic League. "Bill Donohue, the president of the Catholic League, an advocacy group, said A Fire in My Belly was “hate speech.” Representative Eric Cantor of Virginia said it was an “outrageous use of taxpayer money and an obvious attempt to offend Christians during the Christmas season”.

Seeing an image of ants crawling over a crucifix is gonna ruin your christmas season? Take a look for yourself, my Christmas season wasn't hurt in the least..