Category: Blog

Blog, Books, guardians, LGBT, LGBTQIA, News, Teacher Life, Writing

Take me home, country…plane

Greetings, friends. As usual, it’s been a while, so I’ll attempt to bring you up to speed on recent developments as quickly and painlessly as possible.

Having (a) just wrapped up a 12-week 5th/6th grade after-school teaching gig, and (b) gotten myself fully vaxxed (woot), I now finally feel comfortable making good on the Secret Plans I’ve had for quite some time: namely, moving back to Chicago after two long years away. There are many things to love about Virginia, but sadly it just doesn’t seem to be a place I “vibe” with, and thus I’m returning to a locale that feels much more like home (and trying to ignore the nine-month-long freezing cold winters for the time being).

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Blog, gender, LGBT, LGBTQIA, queer stuff, Random Queer Storytime, Trans stuff

Random Queer Storytime: The Suit

Welcome, friends, and thank you for joining me for yet another thrilling edition of Random Queer Storytime, that all-too-frequent occasion when I launch into a random tale of my past that exemplifies both my queer/trans-ness and the fact that I was impressively oblivious as a young person.

In today’s episode, we learn about a dance, an ex, and an ill-fitting suit that finally cracked the closet door open — before I slammed it shut again and shoved myself in deep enough to get a glimpse of Narnia. But that’s another story for another day.

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Blog, gender, Important Stuff, LGBT, LGBTQIA, queer stuff, Serious stuff, Trans stuff

Transgender Diaries: Entry 1

Transgender blocks, photo by Sharon McCutcheon
Sharon McCutcheon

So, I’d like to start off by saying that it is 100% possible to be trans without spending your childhood despising all that comes with your assigned gender, and not everyone who identifies as transgender has the same “I always knew I was *insert gender here*” narrative. There’s no such thing as being “trans enough,” and you can identify as trans without ticking a single box on the What People Usually Expect Of Trans People list.

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T.J. Baer3 Comments
Blog, Feminism, Important Stuff, LGBTQIA, Trans stuff

Why are people so mad at J.K. Rowling?

Greetings, friends. So, you may have noticed that a lot of people are not so pleased with J.K. Rowling as of late, and if you haven’t delved too deeply into the issue, you may be wondering why emotions are running so high. I thought I would offer some clarity on this matter, as it might be helpful for someone innocently wondering what JK possibly could’ve said to alienate and anger so many people.

So, with that said, let’s get to it.

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T.J. Baer2 Comments
Asexuality, Blog, LGBT, LGBTQIA, queer stuff

Aces Are Wild (Let’s Talk About Asexuality)

Image: In today's edition of "I was wrong about something"... What exactly is asexuality?

As a long-time member of the queer community, I naturally thought that I had a pretty good handle on the many different and wonderful flavors of queerness. As it turns out, however, there is one particular orientation about which I was grossly misinformed, and maybe you are, too.

Asexuality.

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T.J. Baer1 Comment
Blog, Feminism, gender, Important Stuff, LGBT, queer stuff

Girls just aren’t interested in that sort of thing

I occasionally find myself wide awake at 3 AM because my body thinks it’s funny to be a jerk sometimes, and as I lie there pretending to be asleep so my cats won’t decide it’s breakfast time, I often end up thinking Deep Thoughts. My thoughts this morning ventured back to childhood and some of my youthful interests, and I got to thinking yet again about the bizarre gender divide we’ve set up around certain activities.

There’s a continuing narrative, even in these “woke” modern days, that those born of the male and female persuasions are naturally and perhaps even biologically interested in different things. Girls like this and boys like that, and that’s just the way it is. And while we’re now beginning to encourage girl-type-children to enjoy pursuits outside of the stereotypical “feminine” realm (while stubbornly insisting the boy-type-children stay firmly in their place), we still have this idea that being born male or female automatically inclines a person toward certain endeavors.

But if we’re not biologically programmed to like certain things, then why do so many girls act this way while boys act that way?

Well, let’s talk about that via my own example.

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T.J. Baer2 Comments
Blog, Books, LGBT, Short Stories, Works In Progress, Writing

Site revamp, shiny new covers, and cats

So, if you’ve stopped by the site lately, you may have noticed that everything is completely different. Yes. Hi. I did that. :D It was time for a change, so I revamped the site entirely, making it easier to access my books, check out my blog, read the bad sci-fi of my youth, and (of course) learn more about my cats. (Because come on, we … Continue reading Site revamp, shiny new covers, and cats

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Blog, LGBT, Reviews

The CW’s Nancy Drew: Queer Ladies and Considerate Ghosts

So, full disclosure about me: I have been a Nancy Drew fan for a very, very long time. It was a big part of my formative years, and I’ve reread the books multiple times in my adult life and continue to enjoy them very much. So, naturally, when I heard that the network that brought us the insanity that is Riverdale was coming out with a dark Nancy Drew reboot, I was pretty sure it was going to be… Well. “Hot garbage” was the first term that came to mind, quite honestly.

This past Friday, however, I actually checked out said series, and I discovered to my great surprise that it is not garbage of any temperature. It is, in fact, a rather awesome and compelling show that I am now low-key obsessed with, because I binge-watched the entire series over on the CW site and endured endless prescription drug commercials in order to see how it all panned out.

And hoo boy, did it not disappoint. It’s a CW show, so you do of course have a few standards that had to be included: (a) characters making out while sexy and/or angsty pop songs play loudly in the background, (b) everyone in the cast being excessively and illogically attractive, and (c) teen heartthrobs from the ’90s now being cast as parents to these excessively and illogically attractive young folk.

But those things aside, the CW’s Nancy Drew is a freaking delight. The mystery is fascinating and multifaceted and actually turned out in a way I did not at all suspect (always a good thing), and what’s more, it actually made sense. The show does have its more Riverdale-esque bananas moments, but for the most part, it’s pretty grounded in the world it inhabits. What happens might be weird, but it fits the weirdness they’ve established for this world, and I’m down with that.

I also have to say that there is a queer element to the show that I was not expecting and was very much delighted by.

Anyway, I took some notes while watching the show, and I would now like to share those notes on the off chance that someone aside from myself may find them entertaining. I also must say that these notes of course include spoilers, so proceed with caution if you don’t wish to be spoiled.

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Blog, Chosen, General Weirdness, LGBT, Teacher Life, Works In Progress, Writing

How could I sneak with this fine physique?

Greetings, friends. Greetings and hello and hello and also greetings.

I find myself with a bit of time to spare this evening, so I thought it was about time I posted an update. So to all those readers who have been weeping bitter tears into their pillows at night wondering when I would return, you may now rest easy. Your prayers have been answered.

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Amurica, Blog, General Weirdness, Important Stuff

A scenario entirely unconnected to current events

Firefighters: So, we’ve been making some progress on putting out the fire, but as you can see, there’s still a lot of work left to do. People: Oh, yeah, it looks so much better! Okay, you can stop now. Firefighters: But…there’s…still fire? People: Nah, I think we’re heading in the right direction. Just stop what you’re doing and we’re sure it’ll be fine. We’re going … Continue reading A scenario entirely unconnected to current events

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Blog, Vegan and Vegetarian

SO YOU WANT TO BE A VEGAN… (Part 2: Calcium)

Hello, friends. You may remember me from such posts as SO YOU WANT TO BE A VEGAN… (Part 1) and Nutritiony Things I Have Learned # 1 (Protein). Or perhaps this is your first visit to my weird little blog, in which I case, welcome.

In today’s installment of SO YOU WANT TO BE A VEGAN, we’ll be looking at some common myths about veganism, because there are about 735,000 of them, and we should probably make a start on that. Today’s myth concerns calcium, and why these wacky vegans refuse to get it from cow’s milk like everybody else.

So whether you’re vegan, vegetarian, or frowning at your screen with a piece of bacon hanging out of your mouth, venture below for more information on those wild plant-loving scamps, The Vegans. *cue ’80s-sitcom-style theme song* Continue reading “SO YOU WANT TO BE A VEGAN… (Part 2: Calcium)”

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