Month December 2012
December 28, 2012 February 25, 2015 thegaygasp	Leave a comment
Person(s) of the Year: Voters. I had a tough time with my year end wrap up for 2012 because I usually tend to gravitate toward entertainment news over serious topics. However the biggest story of the year was undoubtedly the politics. I chose voters as my Person(s) of the Year because in the end it was our choices that made history. President Obama won re-election because voters chose him. Voters also passed bills in favor of gay marriage and marijuana usage. Voters got out to the polls to make their voices heard and hopefully it will be the start of some real change.
Best Book (audio): Girl Walks Into a Bar by Rachel Dratch– I bought this audio book to listen to as I drove from Connecticut to Texas. It's a great book that is both funny and touching. Since my first listen, I have gone back and 'read' it about 10 more times. No joke. I've listened to it at work and on planes and it continues to entertain me. Side note: I hate to read, so all my books are always audio.
Best Album: Ceremonial by Florance and the Machine. There were not a lot of memorable moments in music this year. It occurred to me that Ceremonials was by far the album that I listened to the most. Seeing Florance and the Machine live in concert elevated it to another level. If you get a chance, they are a must see.
Best bear run adds: Orlando Bear Bash via Tumblr. They know their market and have pumped out cock and cum filled adds. LOVE IT!
Best Reality Show Winner: Sharon Needles. Chad Michaels may have won All Stars but she was already beaten by Sharon Needles. Hands down my favorite Rupaul winner.
Best TV Show: I couldn't narrow it down to just one or two. I had a three way tie for my favorite tv show. The Wend Williams Show, Rupaul's Drag Race and Fashion Police.
Funniest Movie: For a Good Time Call. This film was missed by a lot of movie go-ers even though it was hilarious. Catch it on video if you get the chance.
Person who I hated and ended up liking: Taylor Swift Ok I'll admit it… she won me over with her song We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together. I love it, especially the part in the middle where she talks.
Best TV moment: Rupaul's All Stars Drag Race: (Episode 5) The 'Lip Sync for Your Life' competition between JuJubee and Raven to Robyn's Dancing On My Own. IT. WAS. EVERYTHING. Easily the best moment of the season. Sorry Chad Michaels, you were upstaged again.
Best One Hit Wonder: Call Me Maybe. Is Carly Rae Jepsen going to have another hit? That is big far NO! Sorry Carly. Call Me Maybe is a really good song though.
Best Sneakers: Brenden. I had to give Brenden a special mention because he invited me to parties and introduced me to all his friends when I first moved here. I will always be grateful for that. It really made a huge difference. He's a good friend. He also has the best sneakers. His current pair is orange.
Best Picture (that I can't publish): Andy S. I can't/won't show it because it's not mine to share. However it's such an awesome picture on so many levels. He manages cute and sexy amongst a gold gilded living room. It was so amazing that both me and by boyfriend created our own versions of it. (No I can't show those either)
Shout Outs: The men of Dallas– Nick, Stephen, Mark Ami and Jared, Jay and Stephan, Kevin, Scott and Greg, Mikel, Mario, Javier, Wylie, Darren, Ricky, Howard and Mike, Doug, Brad, Jeff K, John, Keith and Katrina, Levin, Travis, and any of the other Dallas bears that I may have forgotten. You've been warm and welcoming. Thanks for making my move that much easier.
Best of the Best: Russell. I can't give a 2012 wrap up without mentioning the man who has made me the happiest this year. From our first date we had an instant connection and I knew he was someone special. He's kind and funny, not to mention he's the best looking man I've ever seen. I can't wait to see what the future has in store. You're the best Bubba.
Was anyone else kind of hoping the world would end so we could avoid paying bills? Apparently the Mayans were wrong because 12/21/12 came and went without incident. With Christmas coming and and all those apocalypse parties, you may have to busy to catch up on this week's news. Here a chance for you to catch up:
The major news story has been the grief and anger in the aftermath of the tragic shootings at Sandy Hook School. Not surprisingly, a lot of the anger has been directed toward the NRA and gun control laws. The whole thing is such a sad affair. Hopefully this will start a real conversation in Washington on stricter gun laws. Unfortunately even with the strictest laws, events like this are an anomaly and impossible to prevent.
We're headed over the fiscal cliff and the public doesn't seem to care.
Ms. USA won Ms. Universe dressed like a modern day Mrs. Clause.
Ke$ha's song "Die Young" has been pulled from many radio stations in the wake of the Newtown tragedy. On a side note, my boyfriend is obsessed with her new album and says the whole thing is incredibly good.
Tom Cruise bought a $13.5 million house in upstate New York for his daughter Suri. Supposedly he wanted her to have a picturesque Christmas and needed a place to house her new pony. I wonder what Cruise's other two children get in their stocking? Yes, remember his other two kids.
I love this time of year because it means Peppermint Bark is back. My personal favorite is from Harry & David.
Prince William and Kate Middleton are expecting their first child. Ideas for baby names, Girl: Buffy Boy: Mumford.
The Myth of the Free Internet
My personal Instagram ad.
Instagram has been making headlines this week after updating their Terms of Service contract. Users across the globe got their panties in a twist after finding out that their images could be used for advertising purposes. You had a right to be angry knowing that there was the possibility of having your images bought and sold without your consent. Sensing a public relations nightmare, Instagram co-founder Kevin Systrom quickly released a statement on his blog to clarify the changes. Although it was all generalized, it sounds like IG's goal is not to sell your photo's but allow companies to use the site as for advertising.
All this digital drama fascinated me for a couple reasons. Let's say IG was in fact planning on using your photos in their ads or ads for other companies. I'm not sure why that is such a bad thing? Are people offended by the intrusion on their privacy or is it a copyright type of issue where they think their pictures are their property? If your sense of privacy was offended then you need to get a search committee together to find your common sense. The whole point is to share pictures with other people! There is nothing private about Instagram. By definition, it is the exact opposite of private. That leaves the ownership/copyright issue. I can understand that a little more and its especially true if you're a professional photographer. (which I am not) However, if the case were ever to be heard in court, IG's defense could be that the pictures where taken using their application and filters and due to that they in fact own the images. It's not a bullet proof defense, but one to consider. Does a director own his movie or is it the studio who funded it? One last point on this topic: If Instagram was going to sell images, I guarantee mine (and yours) would not be one of them. Advertising is still the shallow generalized mass media beast it always was. The only people who need worry are skinny blond girls and hypster boys with Justin Bieber haircuts. Hairy gay belly lovers need not worry.
The other point I found intriguing was that a lot of people still believe the myth of the free internet. Quoting a Gawker.com article on the subject, "Metafilter user Blue_beetle famously put it in 2010: If you're not paying for it, you're not the customer; you're the product being sold." That's the real lesson of this story. Your mom was right, you can't get something for nothing. Instagram is now owned by Facebook who wrote the book on shady misuse of user date. Do you really think your images are really that private on Facebook? Even with their (laughable) privacy settings, FB is data mining every aspect of your life. They are not the only ones either. One election night many experts cited President Obama's data driven campaign as a key factor in his victory. I won't bore you with the details here, but visit MIT Technology Review who did a very in depth article on the subject. The point is that your likes, dislikes, habits, and feelings are very valuable to big business. Free websites and applications still need to make money and most do that by selling advertising and/or date. The most common example of this is stores sharing your email address with other like retailers. I shop at Bath and Body Works and there for get the occasional mailing from Victoria's Secret. It's also no accident that I see ads for Gay dating sites and fashion retailers on my Facebook page. FB tracks what you like and tries to aim the ads accordingly. [Side note: It's always funny when this goes wrong. Does anyone else get adds for women's shoes on Growlr. Hilarious!]
In the end, you need to make a choice. Opt out by trying to stay off the 'grid' as much as possible or dive in knowing that the whole world is watching. If you can't live without social media just remember your common sense. Don't share anything you would not be willing to defend in court or to your mother.
In case you're wondering, I would defend every word and dirty image I've every posted. Gasp!
Lessons from Xtube
December 16, 2012 thegaygasp	Leave a comment
http://cdn1.static.xtube.com/swf/videoPlayer_embed.swf?xv=13580
Here's a tip… if you're making an Xtube video DON'T KEEP LOOKING AT THE CAMERA. This would be a totally hot video except the cherubian chubby boy has locked eye contact with camera through out the whole clip. It's distracting. The random beer drinking is a little strange too. Next time if you focus on the thick cock in your ass and not the camera in front of you we'll all enjoy it better.
Joe's Spank Me Time
The Grammys Suck (Still)
The Grammy nominations were announced last week there was one key takeaway: It was a very weak year for good music. Let me start by saying that I've always lacked a certain amount of respect for the Grammys. They lack consistency and with so many categories almost anyone can get a trophy. My left testicle was even nominated for Best Historical Album and Best Pop Instrumental Performance. (yes those are real categories) The Grammys have evolved over the years and today's awards have the taste level of a sexually confused 17 year old. While they try and look grungy and hypster chic on the outside deep down they still like cheesy mass market pop music. These two sides provide a bizarre mix. To satisfy it's hypster taste this year we have Goyte, The Black Keys, and Frank Ocean. *A side note: this is going to make me sound like a grumpy old man but I don't why people like Frank Ocean's music. It's fucking terrible.* While you were lamenting Goyte's nomination for Record of the Year the Grammys snuck in some Taylor Swift and an ass load of Kelly Clarkson to satisfy the boring pop side. Yes that's right, KC got a nod for Song and Records of the Year for Stronger (What doesn't kill you) That song was mildly entertaining at best. In no universe does it or she deserve 4 nominations.
Album of the year doesn't get much better. It's a heaping pile of who cares. Album of the Year includes: Jack White, Frank Ocean, Mumford and Sons, the Black Keys and Fun. I want to create and angry cat meme just for this category. It was also pointed out by E! Online that the entire category is all male. That's interesting when you consider that for the past couple years female artists have been leading the way and driving sales. The biggest names in music right now are Lady Gaga, Katy Perry, Taylor Swift, Adele, Rihanna, Beyonce amongst others. I think Justin Bieber can also be lumped in with the girls on this one. Not all of ladies had deserving or eligible albums but there's got to be at least one vagina that made a worthy album contender. My vote for that spot is Florence and the Machine. SO GOOD!
Other noted Grammy news:
-Ms. Carly Rae Jepsen got a couple nods for Call Me Maybe
-Pink was almost except for a Pop Album nod.
-Nicki Minaj was totally ignored. (They may have gotten this one right)
-As I said Florence and the Machine should've got an Album of the Year nomination for Ceremonials. At least they got a couple nod's in other categories.
-Where is David Guetta? I loved Titanium so much that I still think it deserves a Song of the Year spot.
-What happened to the Dance category? Dance is paired with Electronic and later dominated the category. Props to Skrillex and Avicii… but no Rihanna? Where Have You Been is a solid dance song.
-SWV got nominated for Best Traditional R&B Performance. Who knew they had a new album out? Good for you ladies!
For a complete list of nominations visit the official Grammy website
December 8, 2012 thegaygasp	Leave a comment
This week's new music breakdown:
Will.i.am (having to type his name like that makes me dislike him more) has a new video for his song Scream and Shout featuring Britney Spears. The song sounds like something I've heard before… Nothing specific but it's as if he took a bunch of Black Eyed Peas' songs, put them in a blender, and added a dash of Britney. Also is Britney singing with a faux British accent? Who does that? Either way she looks AMAZING! I'm also ashamed to admit that I may be obsessed with this song. I heard it on the radio and liked it a lot more without the video.
Poor Nicki Minaj. Her new album isn't selling well. Maybe it's because people don't realize she has a new one out. She needs a new idea. Here's the break down: Her first (and most successful) album was Pink Friday. Since then she keeps trying to recapture that magic. Her second album was titled Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded. Ok, not the most original title but I can deal with it. Lady Gaga did it once so I'll give you a free pass. (Let it be said that Lady Gaga did it much better with The Fame and The Fame Monster respectively) Now her third album is titled Pink Friday Roman Reloaded: The Re-Up. Seriously? I mean really? I think it's time to scrap the whole Pink Friday thing and start fresh.
I have a love hate relationship with Pink and currently I'm on the side of hate. I won't go into the whole thing now, but I've always thought she was a bit of a hypocrite for her song/video Stupid Girls and more recently I cringed at the line "Too school for cool" from her song Raise Your Glass. Regardless of my opinion, Pink has been turning out hit songs for years. Her new video for Try is very well done and should win an award for choreography if such a category exists. Unfortunately, unlike Scream and Shout, this song needs the video. When I heard Try on the radio it felt like something was missing.