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Credit: Kap2sure Photography<\/span><\/p><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n Regular readers will be aware that I am unabashedly a fan of R. Eric Thomas, that rare writer who is somehow great in every idiom and constantly walks the line of evolving while not losing the existing qualities that are so compelling in his work (I told you, big fan). His new book, Congratulations, The Best Is Over<\/em><\/a>!<\/em>, is in every way an R. Eric Thomas book\u2014funny and wry and well-observed. You will laugh and probably cry and certainly interrupt people by phone or across the breakfast table to say, \u201cWait, I need to read this to you,\u201d and end up reading a page and a half because the good part yields graciously to \u2026 another good part. I also appreciate Thomas a great deal for his sentimentality and willingness to just dive into the contradictions that brings. Sometimes I am a little cranky, in non-fiction, when things all just fit nicely together\u2014that is simply not my experience of life\u2014and Thomas is, if not king, at least a crown prince of working through the tangle of love, comfort, familiarity, alienation and obligation that make being a person who knows, and sometimes likes, other people so complex and rewarding. You will of course wish to buy this and read it immediately<\/a>, and it is not too late to join him for a book event<\/a> in D.C., Philadelphia, Portland and five other cities so far on the tour (say hello for me, please?). Also, rare among writers, his website is rigorously updated<\/a> so whenever you come to this column you can hop there and see what that brilliant rascal is up to next. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Credit: kaichengthom.com<\/span><\/p><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n I am sure, as she\u2019s an Xtra<\/em> columnist<\/a>, that there will be plenty of enthusiasm here for Kai Cheng Thom\u2019s new book Falling Back In Love With Being Human<\/em><\/a> <\/em>(at least there should be), but I find I cannot help but add my feelings to the mix. Thom is perhaps the most interesting and most loving interventionist in queer cultural spaces, and every time she brings out a new book\u2014typically something inventive and untried\u2014I am grateful all over again for her, leading by example that not knowing what the fuck you\u2019re doing is absolutely not a good reason to stand by and do nothing, but also that \u201cdoing something\u201d can look a lot of different ways. It\u2019s tough to describe the interplay of rigour and yielding in Thom\u2019s work, the sense that she expects everyone will (or must) do something<\/em> held side by side with a real and unfeigned openness about how each person gets there (and indeed, where \u201cthere\u201d even is). As always, Thom brings a signature lyricism to her poems and reflections, one that always feels more like a spell of attraction than a lapidary effort\u2014as with all her work, I am excited that this book is in the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Credit: Ash Naylor<\/span><\/p><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n Canadians Darcy Michael<\/a>, comedian and living testament to the power of shenanigans and tomfoolery, and his husband Jeremy Baer, the gayest straight man in comedy, have packed up their sequins and are taking them on tour, with dates across the U.S. and Canada into 2024. The delightful husbands, a perfect Whiteface and Auguste clown duo<\/a>, gained their fame (and\/or notoriety) through Darcy\u2019s TikTok account, with an ongoing humour that sends up many of the things that make up marriage and family life: who buys too many plants<\/a>, who always has to be coaxed into fun, who is ready for adventure and who would like to go with the flow if someone will please tell him when the flow starts and roughly where<\/em> it flows, if possible. It seems like their give-and-go comedy style translates to the stage<\/a>, based on reviews of early shows on the tour, and for sure the outfits look like a great time as well as the burgeoning collabs like those with JVN<\/a>. I\u2019m excited to don my caftan and go check them out in Saskatchewan this winter<\/a> (it\u2019s a wool caftan), but other parts of the country will get them soon!<\/p>\n\n\n\n Have your cake and eat it, too. Nicholas Galitzine and Taylor Zakhar Perez \u201cRed, White & Royal Blue.\u201d<\/span> Credit: Amazon Prime<\/span><\/p><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n My eldest child, the one who loves reality TV and espresso, introduced me to Red, White & Royal Blue<\/em><\/a> the book, as well as Casey McQuiston<\/a> in general, and I have been delighted since by both. That of course meant that I was a little afraid of the movie, since many books I have loved have been turned into movies that have irked the crap out of me. I am, however, pleased to report that the movie of Red, White, & Royal Blue<\/em><\/a>,<\/em> premiering Friday, Aug. 11 on Amazon Prime, is actually delightful. Director Matthew Lopez clearly understands that he is making a classic rom-com and does not try to weigh it down with an Important Political Agenda. He just gives us the happy gay fluff with pretty boys we richly deserve. I find this even more amazing considering that Lopez also wrote The Inheritance,<\/em> a seven-hour epic play about the AIDS epidemic that starts somewhere around Longtime Companion<\/em><\/a> and ends on Samuel R. Delaney<\/a>\u2019s front step. Red, White, & Royal Blue<\/em> also gives us Uma Thurman playing a U.S. president who I would, frankly, elect tomorrow, and a mother who is considerably more concerned that her only son might wish to date a Republican than that he\u2019s gay. And if that\u2019s not the comment of the moment, I frankly could not tell you what it might be. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Classes are starting up soon over at Queer ASL<\/a>, a Deaf queer organization offering online ASL classes, taught by Deaf LGBTQ2S+ instructors<\/a>, and I think it\u2019s a perfect time to dig in and take a 101 class. Half a million people in the U.S. and Canada sign as their primary language, and at least 10 percent of them are gay and cute, so with Queer ASL offering classes that are online, <\/a>with multiple times, and including QTBIPOC and disabled classes (with scholarships available) you\u2019re in luck. Classes are sliding scale, and if you\u2019re figuring out how to do more about access and equity, or you\u2019re working in education or the arts and would like to begin growing your proficiency, or even if you just want to chat up a Deaf hottie you\u2019ve noticed around town, here\u2019s your chance. There are four levels of classes and, if nothing else, you will spare yourself from accidentally greeting an extremely accomplished Deaf writer and educator for the very first time by saying \u201cI\u2019m so happy to fuck you,\u201d instead of \u201cI\u2019m so happy to meet<\/em> you,\u201d as I did some years ago (this isn\u2019t that unusual and she was very gracious \u2026 but also oy<\/em>.) Late August always gives me back-to-school vibes anyhow, and whether or not you have a fresh new Trapper Keeper yourself for school, it\u2019s Learning Season\u2014no reason not to sharpen a fresh pencil and build more queer ASL competency. <\/p>\n\n\n\n And that, beloveds, is the news of the column. I hope it finds you okay, or better than okay, or even great. Whether you\u2019re newly in love with a person or a project or a version of yourself or pulling yourself out of the slough of despondence, our watchword of the week is possibility<\/em>\u2014seeing what might be gained or tried or open to you now, no matter what you\u2019ve lost (which may not have served you all that well anyhow). I am trying very hard to be brave and I welcome any and all company (especially if you bring ice cream). As always, if you\u2019re making something new and queer, email me or drop me a DM\u2014I love to hear your news.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Plus Darcy & Jer, Kai Cheng Thom and queer ASL<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":835,"featured_media":255594,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"editorial_slug":"1903","_editorial_slug":"1903","exclude_from_latest_block":true,"footnotes":""},"categories":[6,7,10],"contributors":[224],"topic":[82,87],"clients":[],"series":[1903],"timeliness":[63],"editorial_format":[],"type-of-work":[2533],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/xtramagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/255608"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/xtramagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/xtramagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xtramagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/835"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xtramagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=255608"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/xtramagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/255608\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":255894,"href":"https:\/\/xtramagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/255608\/revisions\/255894"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xtramagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/255594"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/xtramagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=255608"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xtramagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=255608"},{"taxonomy":"contributors","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xtramagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/contributors?post=255608"},{"taxonomy":"topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xtramagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/topic?post=255608"},{"taxonomy":"clients","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xtramagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/clients?post=255608"},{"taxonomy":"series","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xtramagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/series?post=255608"},{"taxonomy":"timeliness","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xtramagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/timeliness?post=255608"},{"taxonomy":"editorial_format","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xtramagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/editorial_format?post=255608"},{"taxonomy":"type-of-work","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xtramagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/type-of-work?post=255608"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Falling Back In Love With Being Human<\/em><\/strong>, by Kai Cheng Thom<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n
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No Refunds Tour, Darcy & Jer<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n
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Red, White & Royal Blue<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n
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Queer ASL<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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