03/20/2007
News: Orlando Bloom, Big Gay Church, Syphilis, Duane Michals
At least 200 couples have applied for civil unions in New Jersey in the first month since the law took effect, according to a report from the state's Health and Senior Services Department.
Texas gay church claims to be the world's largest: "Last year it became part of the United Church of Christ, which claims 1.3 million members in 5,725 U.S. congregations and traditions of diversity and pioneering action on social justice. On a recent Sunday during Lent -- a period of prayer and penance in the run-up to Easter -- mostly gay couples, men and women, streamed in for morning services. The big pickup trucks and sports utility vehicles gave the parking lot a Texan flavor and most were on the expensive side -- highlighting the fact that being openly gay remains a mostly white-collar phenomenon in America."
A few pearls of wisdom from photographer Duane Michals.
The price for a co-op or condo in Manhattan has increased over 200% in the last ten years: "The average price in 1997 was $430,927, and, in 2006, it was $1,295,445, according to the report from appraisal firm Miller Samuel and brokerage Prudential Douglas Elliman."
Tomorrow, Larry Gierer will become Oakland Park, Florida's first openly gay mayor and the first HIV-positive mayor in Broward County. Gierer: "Some people thought that intimidating me would keep me from running for office. But I've never thought a person's health status should keep them from doing what they wanted to do. I never hid my sexuality. I would be remiss if I did not become the person that could display that you can live with AIDS and lead a productive life. I feel it's my responsibility."
Justin Timberlake does Details, Orlando Bloom does Vman, and here's a preview of the new Vman.
Gay porn stars Erik Rhodes and Ben Andrews model for Loehmans. (site NSFW)
Syphilis on the march among gay men in Arizona.
Ex-Bush official says he fixed facts from scientists to fit the White House's global warming policy.
Posted 3:00 PM EST by Andy in Arizona, Florida, Gay Marriage, Global Warming, Justin Timberlake, New Jersey, New York, News, Orlando Bloom, Real Estate, Religion | Permalink
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NYC is only for rich folks now. All of it. Even the Bronx is starting to get pretty expensive and forget Brooklyn.
NYC will lose a lot of the diversity and culture that made it so special because of this. I'm an artist that left the city because I just couldn't make rent and many other artists I know are on thier way out of NYC as well.
Super sad. I loved NYC but I hate what its becoming, a giant sanitized gated community/shopping center for the super rich.
Philly is looking a lot more exciting to me nowadays. At least artists can afford to live there.
Posted by: Adam | Mar 20, 2007 3:21:46 PM
If only my income rose 200% in the past ten years...
Posted by: Gary | Mar 20, 2007 3:38:30 PM
Kudos to that Grierer guy. That's awesome.
Posted by: RP | Mar 20, 2007 3:40:41 PM
I think the 200 number is seriously low-balling it for the civil union applications. Of course I have no proof but the day I walked into city hall in Jersey City to get info there were five gay couples applying. Then when I went in with my partner to file, there were three gay couples filing, then when I went back 72 hours later (required by law to wait 72)to get the license there were four gay couples. The day of our ceremony there were another three. Considering I probably spent a total of an hour in all my visits, I saw 15 gay couples applying. And that was just one city hall. I imagine it is a higher number. HSSD should probably take another look at their numbers
Posted by: Jon-Marc | Mar 20, 2007 3:44:44 PM
I attend the Cathedral of Hope each week and it's phenomenal! A true tolerant inspiration in the heart of the Bible-Belt. And yes, the church itself is FABULOUS! Huge and beautiful and, as the article says, mostly white and affluent. I have to say that this place has saved my life on several occassions...Good on ya!
Posted by: Wayne | Mar 20, 2007 3:44:46 PM
OMG, Yes! All those Rich White Gays truly are FABULOUS!
GAG
Posted by: forreal | Mar 20, 2007 3:59:45 PM
200% increase in Manhattan yet Detroit is seeing homes with yards go for $29,000 at foreclosure auctions.
America is becoming two different nations divided by class (not religion not race)
Posted by: jimmyboyo | Mar 20, 2007 4:04:41 PM
Adam: You're so right. It's crazy. The very thing these young rich MFs move to Manhattan for, they're chasing away: the actors, the dancers, the artists, the flavor, the ambiance, the drag queens. The same thing is happening in Philly, but on a smaller scale. The people that are moving into these expensive condos have the personalities of Anne Coulter--they're horrifying surburban-bred creatures who...who...let me stop. I don't want to be accused of being a black, leftist, sour-grapes racist. Oh, who cares! Save the divine decadence of our cities!
Actually, I'm too old to go out on the town anymore anyway.
Posted by: Derrick from Philly | Mar 20, 2007 4:22:58 PM
The inner city is being yuppified everywhere...in fact, the influx has of late even been sub-yuppie. There are condos going up EVERYWHERE in Minneaplis, even in semi-sketch neighborhoods. Thankfully, demand seems to be fizzling lately and it's look like there'll be a lot of extra rentals floating around in a few years.
Posted by: scientitian | Mar 20, 2007 4:46:34 PM
DC is also experiencing condo-glut but the new price levels are sticking. There are now million dollar condos in scary-ville and the traditionally gay neighborhoods (Dupont/AdamsMorgan) have been priced out of sight for all but yuppie couples.
The old dance/bar/strip club district has been razed to build the new baseball staduim. Even the most dismal apartment is called "luxury" and priced accordingly.
Working people must compete with trustfund babies and Eurotrash (pull in your claws, I use the term semi-affectionately) whose parents buy them condos while they "attend (supposedly) university".
One upside, however, has been an influx of decent moderately priced restaurants. The people on the street also seem unafraid to exhibit a little style (breaking the DC I-am-too-important-to-care-about-fashion mentality).
I miss my old late 70s-early 80s upper West side neighborhood in NY but most of the residents who gave it a special character have either died or moved elsewhere. The stroller brigade have moved in and Gapified the old haunts. Nevertheless, I still place a wreath of flowers at the door of the old Wildwood bar (where my partner and I met almost three decades ago) on our anniversary.
Ay, nostalgia. A dancer studying at Julliard could never afford to live there now. Oh well, we'll always have frozen mochas with chocolate ice cubes at Cafe Fortuna. But that was thirty years and fifty pounds ago.
Posted by: rudy | Mar 20, 2007 5:30:30 PM
People like forreal want to create disunion between gay people. Ignore them.
Wow, another gay porn star duo make it in the mainstream. Benjamin Bradley and Ethan Reynolds are in ads for Ginch Gouch. Porn stars are in ads for Andrew Christian too.
Congrats to Larry Gierer.
Posted by: Jack! | Mar 20, 2007 5:52:30 PM
"People like forreal want to create disunion between gay people. Ignore them."
Actually, I would LOVE to be invited into your "union" of united colors, races, ethnicities, classes, religions, et al. as you head out on the town this weekend....what's that? it doesn't exist?
didn't think so phoney
Posted by: forreal | Mar 20, 2007 6:14:48 PM
200%....damn. I live in Manhattan and I found out the other day my my bldg is going condo...my 619 sqft. studio apt. was valued at $595,000....crazy 1 bedrooms in my bldg are at /near a 1000000 bucks.
Posted by: matt | Mar 20, 2007 7:43:11 PM
I won't name names, but why do some people always try to turn everything positive into a negative arguement about?
No one likes a bitter queen. Okay... well maybe some do, but I would like to believe the majority doesn't.
By-the-way, to the nay-sayer, if you had read the article you would have seen this:
"We give over $1 million each year in aid and services to the poorest of the poor and we have adopted elementary schools in low-income areas and helped them with tutoring and other things," [Coy James] said after the service.
Posted by: RP | Mar 20, 2007 8:14:22 PM
Oops... Scratch "about" from that first sentence.
Posted by: RP | Mar 20, 2007 8:16:02 PM
Derrick,
Ann Coulteresque folks moving into Philly? Sheesh. I have heard from Philly friends that the new condo people were pretty lame. I thought that was mostly in Center City and around the Museum and not so much in Fishtown or West Philly. Or are they putting condos up there too?
"Save the divine decadence of our cities!"
A-fucking-men!
I moved to NYC hoping to stay there and grow old and wierd. But now all us wierdos can't afford to live there anymore! Where the hell are we suppose to go if all our cities are just suburbs with bigger buildings?
Posted by: Adam | Mar 20, 2007 11:56:42 PM
That is one nice set of tits on Bloom. Which, coming from a female perspective, isn't very appealing.
Posted by: Lady Heather | Mar 21, 2007 1:41:52 AM
"The big pickup trucks and sports utility vehicles gave the parking lot a Texan flavor and most were on the expensive side -- highlighting the fact that being openly gay remains a mostly white-collar phenomenon in America."
Obviously written by a non-texan. SUV's and gigantic pickups are a Texas thing; you see them dominating every parking lot. And they're driven by all races, genders, and classes, regardless whether they can afford them. I know some pretty broke ass folk who are still rollin' aroung in Navigators. But instead of doing a little research into the automotive buying habits of Texans, this lazy fuck decided to write his own racial agenda into the mix. How's this for a quippy retort: FUCK OFF you ignorant cunt.
Posted by: Cullan | Mar 21, 2007 8:16:09 AM
Jeez Cullan, calm down! What the writer said is true. The sentence says the trucks were expensive, not that they were completely paid for...and there's nothing racial about anything he said...that all seems to be in your own head, along with some bitterness and a whole lot of rage. See a doctor, fast!
Posted by: Wayne | Mar 21, 2007 8:23:57 AM
Its still christian, its still dumb. Don't care if its gay or straight or Calathumpian.
Posted by: Paulbe | Mar 21, 2007 9:03:26 AM
Ah Cullan, Reading comprehension 101: Your statements confirm what the writer stated. He opined that the trucks and SUVs gave the parking lot a "Texan flavor"; you wrote-- similarly if less articulately--that they are a "Texas thing". He commented that
"[M]ost were on the expensive side." You confirmed his statement by personal example, i.e., "broke ass folk...rollin' aroung [sic] in Navigators."
Despite your epithet laden protestations to the contrary, everything you wrote agrees with, and confirms from your experience, the opinions of the author. Perhaps you do not agree with his ultimate conclusion that
"[B]eing openly gay remains a mostly white- collar phenominon in America." But you do not address that conclusion, you merely hurl insults after explicitly agreeing with the author's presuppositions.
You demonstrate a great deal of misplaced anger. Indeed, the author could have cited you as a source for the quoted material that you so woefully mischaracterize.
Baby, grab a long one and cool out. Be proud of your big one and do not look for insults where none exist.
Posted by: rudy | Mar 21, 2007 9:19:39 AM
Yep, being Out is a "luxury" enjoyed only by the self employed white collar folk or those labouring in the ghetto blue collar world of stereotypical "gay" jobs.
Posted by: zabadak | Mar 21, 2007 9:53:05 AM
Forreal, stop bitching about a gulf that you continually contribute to.
Who's the phoney again?
Posted by: mark m | Mar 21, 2007 11:25:06 AM