Welcome to Queer IRL, a monthly Autostraddle community photo series that gathers little clips of lesbian, bisexual, queer and otherwise-identified women, trans and non-binary folks, just living our lives in 2017.
I recognize that the guidelines for this gallery might have felt like a little too much for some readers, and I get that. Like what if you spend your Friday night in your kitchen or your bedroom?? Because you already sent those pictures, sooooo. Or maybe you’d have to announce to a whole group of people that you needed to take a quick pic for this community gallery on this website (and then define ‘community gallery’ and also answer “why is it called Autostraddle??”), and that just seemed like a lot. I get it! So just fair warning, this gallery is smaller than the last two were, but! It’s still everything good on this planet: us just being us, right now.
I hope you enjoy this journey through what we were all doing on a Friday night in the world! If you look through this today and wish you’d submitted, I’ll accept late submissions through Sunday night and update the gallery on Monday. (See details on the last page.)
Kells (and Melissa) / 38 / Librarian-ISH / Fermentation Lounge in Tallahassee, FL
“I’m hanging out with my best friend, my Person, the human I love most in this world – Melissa – and my pup MC Sprout, on my last Friday night before I move six hours away. This night would be fantastic even if we were just hanging out at home.”
Amy / 44 / Super Sculptor / An art gallery in Indianapolis, IN
“Spent my Friday night with my wifey and best friend, greeting and meeting people at my first ever art gallery show, where I was lucky to display some of my creations!! It was just a small local art center, but it is a small step towards my dreams!”
Rachel / 21 / My bedroom in London, Ontario
“Treat Yo’ Self night: I exfoliated, moisturized, changed my sheets, lit a candle, journaled, and called my girlfriend for a long-distance date night. I am the dark blob in the corner of the FaceTime screen, trying to get a good angle and hide my nudity.”
Nico SanFilippo / 30 / General Manager-Natural Alternative Food Co-op / My house in Luck, WI
“A typical Friday night with my dog Akila watching Netflix/catching up on emails. This was our first Friday night together after I spent a month backpacking and working on an organic farm in Europe.”
Katherine (right) / 25 / Computer engineer / Meow Wolf in Santa Fe, NM
“My girlfriend (left) and I spent our Friday night at Meow Wolf, a huge, intricate art installation in a former bowling alley in Santa Fe. We admired the art, and found several clandestine make-out spots inside.”
Chandra / 40 / English Instructor / My living room
“I teach a group fitness class at my gym on Friday nights, so this is me prepping for it with the help of my cat-friend Zuzu. I had to coerce him this time but normally he winds around my legs and yells at me or flops down right where I’m trying to step, so I figured he owed me one.”
Kris / 34 / Wedding and Event planner / My room in North Louisiana
“I took this picture on my way out the door to see The Pretenders and Stevie Nicks. Chrissie Hynde sang the Tom Petty part of “Stop Dragging My Heart Around” with Stevie, and I never knew I had wanted anything so badly.”
Alexx St. Jame / 40 / Recovering Academic / My living room
“My best friend and I having one of those perfect nights with lots of laughter and love, enjoying the pleasures of being with someone who’s known you through so much.”
P. / 21 / History student / Toulouse, France
“Still living with my parents, so Friday night is… quiet. It’s the only night where I have the time to really practice my trumpet. Then I read a feminist book with my Totoro cushion, which is the recipe for happiness.”
