Letter From Your Editors

Hello friendly ghosts,

This past month we celebrated Valentine’s Day, an inspirational event which often involves special treats! Here are the ones we brought to the table:

Speaking of love, our birthday month starts tomorrow and there will be all kinds of cool shit coming your way! We’re also trying to suss out a new plan for the future as the one we were hoping for is looking a lot less likely. After talking to one of our donors for a few hours we decided to put together a survey just to understand how our audience does money — it’s interesting information that’ll make for some compelling posts, but a lot of it is also just good for us to know when we think about how best to structure our funding efforts going forward. We’ll post it on the main site on Monday, so please keep an eye out! I know talking about money is awkward, but if I’ve learned anything from my dear friend Gaby Dunn it is also that we’re not doing ourselves any favors when we avoid it! So I hope when that goes live that y’all will tell us everything, but you know… anonymously. Anyhow, because of the way things go around here we are of course releasing this Insider into the world at the absolute last minute SO!!!!

We hope you enjoyed our A+ content this month because we sure did! Like we answered advice questions for you and also did a very fun little roundtable.

Stay tuned for a special A+ event on March 8th!!!

Love,

Riese / Laneia / Rachel / Heather / Carmen

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Top 10 Most Popular Posts From January 2019

These posts were hella popular last month.

1. Here’s What the Gillian Anderson Character You’re Most Attracted to Says About You, by Rachel Kincaid
2. The Might-Have-Been, by Kristin Russo
3. Queer Horoscopes for January 2019: Being Each Other’s Calm Through the Chaos, by Corinna
4. Your Homework For 2019 Is To Assume Everyone Thinks You’re Hot, I’m Serious, by Vanessa Friedman
5. 31 Iconic “L Word” Outfits, Ranked By Incandescence, by Riese
6. #10YearChallenge: 2009 vs. 2019 LGBTQ TV, by Heather
7.  “Letterkenny” Is the Surprisingly Queer Canadian Comedy You’ve Been Sleeping On, by Valerie
8. EXCLUSIVE: Meet the New Gay in “The Fosters” Spin-Off, “Good Trouble,” by Natalie
9. A Brief History of Lesbian Sex on TV: From Late Night Hair-Brushing to Primetime Scissoring, by the TV Team
10. Winter 2019 TV Preview: All The Lesbian, Queer and Bisexual TV Coming Your Way, by Riese

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Nine Important Excerpts From Editorial and/or A-Camp Conversations

Marni: Sidenote everyone I am flying to Costa Rica tonight storm willing so Kristin is in charge and is my power of attorney
Kristin: OOOOoooooooOoOoOOoOOOOOO
Marni: In the event of my death please have Karen play a somber trumpet solo on opening night of A-Camp
Robin: can we make a montage video for you
Kristin: just Marni in bear suits
last clip is her clicking her fanny pack shut
Robin: yes
Marni: Yeah have it just be screenshots of errors I made on mass emails
Kristin: hahahahaha
big letters over the bottom of the email that say
2018: FORGOT TO COPY KRISTIN
2017: DIDNT ASK ROBIN TO APPLY
Marni: and also the subsequent slacks like “um did you mean to send cc instead of bcc”
Kristin: oh no marni dont die
its too sad
Robin: lol
i wasn’t asked to apply in 2017 OR 2019
Marni: FORGOT TO COPY ROBIN/KRISTIN 2012-2018

---

Laneia: i wish this wasn’t true about me but i can’t actually find a title in the nike ad that hh linked !!!
it’s like i’m allergic to SEO
Rachel: hm i’m sorry!
would you like help brainstorming
Laneia: my first stab is Kickstart Your Week with CRAZY LESBIAN ATHLETES
but that feels
crazy
Rachel: hm but I see what you’re getting at
Carmen: Is it too much to just name them?
Rachel: It’s Monday and These Lesbian Athletes Will Show You WHAT CRAZY CAN DO
Carmen: Like “LESBIAN ATHLETE 1, 2, and 3 Want to Kickstart Your Week and/or Will Show You What Crazy Can Do”
Heather: Megan Rapinoe and Sue Bird Will Show You What Crazy Can Do
Laneia: HEATHER HOGAN THIS IS YOUR DAY OFF
HEATHER HOGAN GET OUTTA HERE
thank you i will use this one
I PURPOSELY USED YOUR INITIALS SO I WOULDN’T CALL YOU FORTH LIKE BLOODY MARY
Heather: i actually have hh as an alert! i’ll take it out!
Laneia: well fuck
Rachel: Heather! omg!
Heather: don’t you even worry!
Rachel: I was trying to guess what you had set as an alert in that convo
my guesses were sue bird or kiersey clemons
I should have known better
Heather: lololol
very good guesses!
stacy cut some of the rest of the nike “show you what crazy can do” spots! i’m excited for the world to see them! k, love you all, happy monday!
Rachel: ily enjoy your day off! so proud of stacy!
Carmen: ily2, very proud of stacy, DO NOT SHOW YOUR FACE IN HERE AGAIN UNTIL TUESDAY!! xx

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Sarah: cee already made the roundtable template!!!!!
i’m going to test it today but… this is going to be a gamechanger I think.
Laneia: i can’t believe this went from pipe dream to reality in under a week
Sarah: 2 days
TWO
Laneia: this is probably what it feels like to be a white man

---

Stef: i just want to tell everyone i legitimately tried to dj kit porter’s menopause song to a bar last night and it did not go well
Sarah: Lol what happened
People weren’t inspired?
The themes are so universal
Stef: i tried to tell everyone that mother nature rules us all but people started leaving so i switched to something else very hastily (that song is LONG)
does this earn me a klub deer residency or what

---

Riese: Queer Eye has ruined my fucking link roundup life
RUINED IT
Laneia: omg
yes
Riese: it is MADDENING
Laneia: i muted the phrase in feedly
so if there’s ever a story about queer people with eye problems i will not see it
yes
Rachel: i’m a queer person w eye problems
Riese: i see you, Rachel
Rachel: thank you Riese
Laneia: i am unable to see you i’m sorry
in some ways you could say that I too am a queer person with eye problems

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Heather: i have learned so much from doing this panel at nyu with kristin. y’all, she tells people exactly what she wants and what money she needs and everyone’s like “no problem!”
Laneia: !
do you think it’s the energy with which she delivers this news to them
Heather: i’m like “wow thank you and don’t worry i’ll bring my own water” and Kristin’s like “i am a professional who requires payment” and they’re like “awesome!”
she’s just so confident when she says it
i’m like charlie bucket
“wow a golden ticket!”
Laneia: i’ll bring my own water HEATHHHHER !
Riese: Charlie bucket !!!!

---

Heather: nbd, lena waithe casually just called Carmen by her first name again like they’re old pals and is calling her an amazing writer on twitter
JK V. BIG DEAL
Carmen: haha yes that is a thing that happened last night! And within literally a half hour of the article posting.
Natalie: also now she knows that everyone here thinks of her as our imaginary girlfriend
Heather: she probably already knew that tbh
Carmen: Listen my mom who is to the best of my knowledge straight has a crush on Lena Waithe. Everyone loves her.
Heather:  i love your mom
Carmen: During the golden globes all she kept saying was, “wow she looks so beautiful tonight. wow she looks so beautiful tonight.”
Natalie: see.
my mom does those kind of things with shemar moore and i’m like, “mom, nope. we are not doing this.”
Heather: ahahahaha!
you cannot blame either of them!
Natalie: we are not allowed to have the same thirst objects.
not out loud.

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Heather: this really is the job, Carmen! the fact that you are still here [dealing with a frustrating situation] and have not given yourself to whatever great lake is closest to you — i’m sorry, wisconsin native stacy peterson judges me so harshly about my great lakes geography — means you are well above average in your editorial skillset.
Laneia: “whatever great lake is closest to you” dot tumblr dot com
Carmen: Michigan is surrounded by every great like not named eerie! so I have many to choose from!
Heather: i guessed lake michigan was closest to detroit just now and stacy was like

Carmen: HAHAHAHAHAHA
Laneia: i can’t sing this kate bush song through the laughter
Heather: woof, kate bush on a tuesday!
Laneia: WE ARE IN A PLACE, HOGAN
Heather: do you want to borrow the moon lamp starz sent me?
Laneia: the only logical response to this is yes

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Riese: you guys i have some news for you about the year 2011
guess how many posts i wrote in 2011
Laneia: 300
Riese: 461
Laneia: !
Riese: Rachel wrote 258 posts
like
WHAT
461 posts??!!! 258 posts?!!!??!!!
that means i averaged like, more than one post per day
Rachel: you did yes
Riese: this is bananas
Rachel: what was happening in 2011 that we were even writing about
I think that was the year with the youth suicide epidemic but I can’t remember much else
Riese: that was 2010
Rachel: maybe katy perry did something
Slackbot: katy perry killed a nun.
Rachel: jesus fucking christ SB
Riese: you did write top 10 chapsticks for chapstick lesbians that year
Rachel: i really peaked with that

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Meet A New Contributor!

Get to know some of our newest faces.

Drew Gregory, Contributor

Twitter: 
Instagram: @draw_gregory

What would be your superpower and why?

When I was in high school I wrote a movie about a girl who could absorb other people’s trauma and pain. I was really obsessed with this as a superpower and I aspired to embody this concept in my daily life. Since then, I’ve confronted my tendency to help others at my own expense and have tried to find a healthier balance between altruism and self-care. Superhero-ing doesn’t really have room for that balance.

I’d want my power to be flying? That would be really fucking fun.

If you could invite four famous people (dead or alive) to dinner, who would you choose and why?

Okay so I immediately go into host mode and think, “How can I balance this dinner party so everyone feels welcome and included and we all have a really great time?” I’ve decided on: Desiree Akhavan, Cheryl Dunye, Jen Richards, and Tanya Saracho. Yes, my dream dinner party is just a panel on the state of queer film and tv. This is my truth.

Who was your first woman celebrity crush?

I spent my childhood crushing on actresses I desperately wanted to be (*cough* Natalie Portman *cough*), but my first crush that was completely sexual was Kate Winslet in Holy Smoke! She spends this utterly bizarre Jane Campion movie in a white crop top while sexually controlling and destroying Harvey Keitel. It ends with him wearing makeup and a dress groveling at her feet. You can unpack this with my therapist if you’d like.

What’s something you’ve been really proud of lately?

I very recently moved across the country and ended a three+ year relationship. I’m definitely still figuring things out, but I’m proud of myself for listening to and following my desires and ambitions. I’ve internalized a lot of messaging as a trans woman that I should be happy just to be out, have any job, be loved by any one, and I’m proud that I’ve fought against that messaging. I have really big goals. I have really big wants. I’m chronically dissatisfied. And that’s okay.

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File Under: I’ve Always Wanted To Flip a Table Over

Riese: hello
sarah sarwar
this is Riese and also Kristin Russo
we would like to engage you in conversation or plans related to our logo and etc for The L Word podcast
Kristin: i concur
i am Kristin Russo
that is Riese
Riese: yeah that’s Kristin
Kristin: and i also have podcast logo interest

[…two minutes later…]

Riese: sarah’s participation in this convo has been pretty sub-par thus far
just my objective opinion
Kristin: yeah not very committed
i am putting that down in her permanent file
i am workshopping a tweet about my yoga instructor telling me to imagine her pulling my hair though
so i have other important business matters at hand
Riese: understandable
Sarah: wow hello
so much has happened in 7 minutes
including the irreparable damage done to my reputation
Riese: yeah, i mean
it has been filed
Sarah: i deeply apologize
i was working on autostraddle.com graphics
have u heard of that website?
Riese: no
Kristin: never
Sarah: it’s a website for queer women and nonbinaries
oh well it’s really cool
i think u guys are lesbians right?
you should check it out
Riese: i’m a lesbian yeah
Sarah: anyway, i digress
The L Word
hello
i am sarah sarwar
you are Riese and Kristin
Kristin: yes
Sarah: oh Kristin
Kristin: Riese said you like making MOOD BOARDS
Sarah: before i forget
Kristin: yes sarah
Sarah: i was listening to buffering and
i think its funny when you make onomatopoeia noises
like an ocean wave
Kristin: HAHAHA
wow that was a curveball
Sarah: there was one that was like
… i wanna say a yoink sound?
something having to do with riley
Kristin: so you’re telling me you like when i yoink
Sarah: love it
Kristin this is
Sarah: favorite thing about you
Kristin: what a great day to be me
Riese: sarah what if it’s like shane and jenny in the opening credits but instead it’s me and kristin
Kristin: show me
Riese: i’m just kidding don’t put our faces in the logo
Kristin: yeah im less inclined to have faces of any kind
but i still want this made as a joke assignment
Riese: sarah knows what i’m talking about though
Sarah: that would be hilarious
honestly i would be so excited
Riese:

Kristin: OH MY GOD
Sarah: obviously jenny is kristin
Kristin: WE HAVE TO
Sarah: and you are shane
Kristin: MAKE THAT
Riese: i just got turned on looking at this picture which is a good story about where i’m at today
Kristin: IMMEDIATELY
Sarah: i’m turned on
Riese: can i have my face slightly turned towards the camera though b/c straight profile isn’t a good look for me
Kristin: riese this isn’t about vanity
its about COMEDY
Riese: um i’m a libra
everything is about vanity
Sarah: yes so i think that could be one option, like we could come up with a shot list and have robin shoot you
in various iconic l word positions. for a potential cover but just because yes??? you know
like also can i dress like tina and flip a table in a restaurant
i’ve always wanted to flip a table over
like a gif maybe?
Riese: i think for the logo to start with though we don’t want faces
Kristin: but right for the logo i think mostly all text and
a motorcycle
Sarah: lol okay
fire??
Kristin: apparently i need a motorcycle
Sarah: omg
Riese: oh yeah fire b/c of hell
Sarah: what if it’s a picture of zombie jenny
Kristin: RIGHT
Sarah: like an illustration
yeah like… hell
you know
Riese: do we want to have… that L Word pink?
Sarah: i love the l word pink
iconic
recognizable
Riese: something has to visually cue people that this is an l word podcast right
Sarah: yeah
maybe a big L
Kristin: Yes big L for sure
down with pink
and MOTORCYCLE
and CUT AND PASTEY
maybe
Sarah: kristin explain the motorcycle
just like
alice and dana on the motorcycle?
please add that to the shot list
thank you
also i will do the overhead birds eye shot of carmen straddling a pool chair
Riese: that’s hot
Kristin: well just like the image of that motorcycle is in my brain, partly bc of the motorcycle itself but mostly bc i feel like its the most CUT AND PASTEY
Sarah: i love this dedication to pastey
like the way the credits are all like jumpy and cut out weird right??
Riese: yes
Sarah: a pool is where it all ended
and water is resurrection
Kristin: i haven’t watched them in a bit but in my mind its like the way the old school photo editors would be like “turn this to a comic”
Sarah: something with like a motorcycle erupting out of a pool covered in flames
i see i see
Riese: there weren’t enough actual motorcycles on the l word i will say
that’s my production note
Kristin: mmmmm true
also yes to the pool eruption
Riese: but yeah i think the vibe is like “we delight in the flames of our own misery”
Kristin: yes yes yes
precisely
perfect
A+
Sarah: wow
upon searching on itunes for podcast art for queer women it’s bad
but also i like something like [link]
like type as illustration
an L enveloped in flames
Kristin: i like that BUT i feel like in my mind it is going to be more busy
less clean
Sarah: dirty
you mean
Kristin: yes
Sarah: like a filthy, dirty podcast
Kristin: dirty please
Sarah: more dirty pls
hmm okay
this is my jam v excited
who are the characters coming back
Riese: well i mean our podcast is about the original show for the first million weeks but
the characters coming back are bette, alice and shane
and maybe carmen
HOPEFULLY jenny
maybe kit
i think laurel is like… painting
Sarah: lol laurel busy
Kristin: god bless let her paint

[…]

Sarah: this is what i have so far:
l word pink
big L
flames
motorcycle
cut and paste
lol
Kristin: right
Riese: this is going to be great
we have great vision

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What We’ve Been Reading

Natalie: An Unlikely Journey: Waking Up from My American Dream by Julián Castro

Al(aina): I Miss You: A First Look at Death by Pat Thomas and Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller

Mika: This Young Monster by Charlie Fox

Heather: A Winter’s Promise by Christelle Dabos

Rachel: Get in Trouble by Kelly Link

Laneia: A Field Guide to Getting Lost by Rebecca Solnit

Vanessa: Heavy: An American Memoir by Kiese Laymon

Riese: Animals Eat Each Other, by Elle Nash

Stef: Plight of the Living Dead: What Real-Life Zombies Reveal About Our World – and Ourselves by Matt Simon

Alexis: A God in the House: Poets Talk About Faith (The Tupelo Press Lineage Series) by Ilya Kaminsky and Katherine Towler

Carmen: The World According to Fannie Davis: My Mother’s Life in the Detroit Numbers by Bridgett Davis

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MEET AN EDITOR’S PET!

Get to know some of our staff’s pets. Today we’ll get to know more about Heather’s cat, Quasar Peterson-Hogan!

View this post on Instagram

🐈

A post shared by Heather Hogan (@heatherannehogan) on Mar 12, 2017 at 7:24pm PDT

What’s your favorite food (includes human food)?

I don’t want to brag — just kidding, yes I do — but I’m one of the three percent of cats who can smell sugar and who have sweet taste buds. Also, 95% of cats with my color and markings are boys, but I am not. I am a girl. This makes me very rare and special, which my Stacy-Mom knew. That’s why she named me after a luminous active galactic nucleus. She sings a song for me called, “You were there at the beginning of the universe; you contain the universe.” It’s my favorite song!

My Stacy-Mom also is my favorite because she lets me have licks of my favorite sugary treats, which are: anything key lime or coconut, especially ice cream, and two quick laps of the milk from after the Fruit Loops are gone from the bowl.

What’s your most perfect sleeping scenario?

I assume you’ve met my house companions: the giant grey moron cat who spends half his life staring open-mouthed at the ceiling; the nervous panther cat who paces around constantly and whose scent I have detected more than once near my food storage bin; and the small teddy bear-looking one named Beth with whom I can find no fault except the company she keeps. My perfect sleeping scenario, firstly, involves none of them anywhere near me. The grey moron finds great pleasure in the juvenile behavior known as “butt booping.” It’s undignified and I will not abide it. Secondly, my very best sleep always is when my Stacy-Mom is home on the weekends. She stays in bed and reads or watches TV on her iPad or plays the Nintendo Switch. I lay on top of her, pressed up against her in the spoon style, or in a little nest behind her knees. Siiigh. My favorite days.

If you could have a home on the beach, near mountains, or in a lush forest, which would you pick and why?

What a delightful question!

Well, I came from some bushes in the Georgia woods. My previous “owners” dropped me off there and I was quite lonely and cold and scared. When I sensed my Heather-Mom coming near the bushes where I was hiding, I started — to be very honest with you — screaming my head off. She scooped me up and took me to her home. She fed me, petted me, gave me water and took me to the doctor. I don’t have fond memories of the forest, but if there are a lot of Heather-Moms who live in there, I bet it’s a nice place.

Would you say you’ve seen a ghost?

One time the idiot grey cat got caught in a white pillow case and ran around the house like a maniac for half an hour. That’s about as close as I’ve gotten.

Which fictional cat do you look up to and why?

Crookshanks. My Stacy-Mom is a genius like Hermione and I am a genius like Crookshanks and we make a great and inseparable team!

(I’m very glad my Stacy-Mom found my Heather-Mom. If she’d ended up courting someone like Ron Weasley, I would have had to murder him.)

What do you wish you could say to your mom?

To my Stacy-Mom I would say, “Thank you for loving me best and most.”

To my Heather-Mom I would say, “I suppose it’s admirable that you love everyone equally, but who among us contains the universe, mother? (I do.)”

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MERRY CHRISTMAS!!! 🎄🎅🏻🎁☃️

A post shared by Heather Hogan (@heatherannehogan) on Dec 22, 2016 at 5:52pm PST

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SLACKERS

Happy Valentine’s Day Month!

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Top Five Retro-Reading

March is our tenth birthday which reminds me of another time in our lives — our fifth birthday! For this auspicious occasion we did a bunch of super-cute Top Fives. Here are some of my faves!

Top Five Tools In My Baby Dyke Survival Kit, by Helen – I found this quite simply ADORABLE.

Top Five Things I’ve Panic-Ordered At Restaurants, by Hansen – I think about this chicken pot pie a lot.

My Own Personal Top Five Trans Roots, by Mey – Back then YE OLDE FIVE YEARS AGO there was a lot out there about what made people realize they were gay but not a lot about the realization experience for trans women and so this was so intriguing

Top Five Ways To Consensually Hit Your Sex Partner (NSFW), by Carolyn – Just in case this is a thing you’re into, go for it! I consider myself a fan.

Five Girls You Will Bring Home In Your Twenties, by Kate Severance – “She’s ahead of her scheduled student loan payments. Ahead of them. At first you thought this was sexy and alluring, the sheer foreignness of someone who had their life totally together, but now she gives you a panic attack every time she asks you how your internship is going. You still don’t completely know what she sees in you, besides an escape from corporate culture.”

Top Five Best Bagels I’ve Ever Eaten, by Crystal – One of these bagels is my favorite bagel too.

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EXCERPTS FROM A-CAMP REGISTRATION DAY

Sarah: GUYS
203 people already signed up for camp
Kristin: Lol
Robin: knew it
Riese: sarah wants us to open up the platform tents
Kristin: Main issue there is entertainment
Can’t fit em all in the theater
Riese: it’s actually 238 now
Kristin: Hoooooboy
Robin: omg
that’s insane
Kristin: This is like
Robin: its been like 20 minutes
haha
Kristin: Great but horrible, IT IS TOO FAST
Riese: like… people are probably innocently enjoying their lunches right now
Kristin: I know
Riese: this has… never happened
Kristin: This is, on a small scale, how I felt with buffy prom
I cried
Riese: i’m just like… stunned
i think it’s the email list
Kristin: I mean Riese it’s also like
Riese: last year it took like 2-3 days to fill up
Kristin: The new site and Roxane gay
But also the new site
And all the buzz!
SO MUCH BUZZ
Sarah: 244 registrants
Riese: like, it would make sense that we’d go from filling up in three days to filling up in one day
but three days to THIRTY MINUTES?
Kristin: I don’t know if you’ve been paying attention but
AS has arrived this year in a way it has never before
Riese: all the blood has drained out of my body
Sarah: lol
Riese: i think literally ONCE we filled up by nightfall
Marni: Is this like bikini kill

[….]

Riese: did u guys know though that RegFox has a check-in app
Marni: ooo
Kristin: Riese did you put the LEGAL FORM in there
DID YOU
DID IT HAPPEN
Riese: yes
Kristin: HOLEEEESHITTT
Riese: they even can fake-sign it with their cursor
Marni: VICTORY IN OUR TIME
Kristin: what a fucking day
what a GOD.DAMN. DAY
Marni: BYE RETIRING
Kristin: Carmen is in the new l word
legal forms are in registration
wow
Robin: i knew that bc I registered for my friend and it was so fun to register for camp! and easy!
Marni: is that a bot
Robin: hahha
Marni: Is Robin an ad
Kristin: lolol
Robin: sorry guys sometimes i just black out
and i’m not sure what happens after that
#spon
Marni: Can I chat you with my questions Robin
Robin: yes
Marni: I wonder how many people in the buildings around me are on their computers about a-camp
Robin: guys i’m 100% not Russian malware
Marni: even less convinced now
That’s exactly what Russian malware would say

[…]

Riese: we’re going to be full in like 10 minutes
Sarah: wow we have jingle jangle emoji?!
Robin: (yes I made that one)
Kristin: JINGLE. JANGLE.
sorry just catching up
Robin: i’m buying Trader Joes Jingle Jangle in bulk and selling it at camp
in little baggies
Riese: i bet elizabeth berkley would come to camp
Robin: YES
Riese: for one day
as a surprise
she’s gotta have literally nothing going on

[….]

Sarah: i think we need to seriously consider opening up those tents
i never went in one are they bad?
Riese: i didn’t either
i’m jewish
we left that lifestyle behind in egypt

[….]

Marni: What if we used risers to create seating at the back of sea star (placeholder title) and then standing room in front
Kristin: standing is such a THING
Marni: I know but people do it at shows
Robin: but like to watch comedy?
Marni: You don’t go to a show expecting a nice personal folding chair
Robin: or the staff reading
Marni: I’m just trying to think of ways we could fit more
I wonder about the fire limit of that room though
Robin: i just am imagining listening to the staff reading while standing
Kristin: stop imagining it Robin
it sounds uncomfortable
Robin: its bad, i feel very upset
Kristin: my hips already hurt

[…]

Kristin: i think…. i think my personal vote is: let it sell out
let it be amazing, the same as last year
and let this inform us for next
the absolute worst thing we could do is push the limits, fuck it up, and lose the brilliant momentum we have going
Riese: true
Sarah: Kristin you wise
Kristin: it only comes from having cried on my floor in california with prom
and having been told these things
and listening
and then people being like I WILL PAY FOUR THOUSAND DOLLARS FOR PROM NEXT YEAR
Riese: right! this is intense
like an hour i think has a mental impact that two days does not
i just am sad that people who want to come can’t
Kristin: it’s HORRIBLE, Riese i feel your pain
Riese: thank u
Kristin: like you should probably go outside, do a shot, and smoke a cigarette
then a nap
thats my prescription
Riese: i have to write three posts for tomorrow
for the launch of our quarterly issue
Kristin: nah, you should just retire now
Riese: actually two sorry i need to stop
exaggerating everything by one
Kristin: hahahahaha

[…]

Riese: hi this is a heads-up that sarah and i haven’t breathed real oxygen in three days so we’re going to go on a walk with our friend carol
and will bb in an hour
Marni: k don’t get lost
since you probably won’t remember your neighbourhood anymore
maybe leave a trail of cashews
Kristin: Wow I was also just thinking this
Sarah: Walk with us!!
We’ll send u videos on Instagram
Kristin: I’m eating a candy cane and drinking wine and am like WOW I GUESS I NEVER LEAVE NOW
I have a computer in each room and phone in my hand

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Five Posts Rachel Can’t Believe You Motherf*ckers Didn’t Read Last Month

The (First) Birthday Party, by Tiff

You would think that an essay about a grown woman having the first actual birthday celebration of her life at her girlfriend’s urging would be sweet, but you truly are not prepared how earnestly tender and moving this is!

Birthing Disruption Between the Ferns and the Moss, by Annelise

This is so quiet and beautiful, and opens up understandings of birth and marking time that are different than what the rest of this special issue has done so far — it would be really lovely to read with a cup of tea and thinking about your favorite green place.

Proudly Black, Fat, Queer and Making a Home for Myself in Cosplay, by Briana

I know next to nothing about cosplay and I loved this piece so much and everything it says about cosplay as a creative form of self-expression and pride! Also the author and her partner are so cute you’re going to need to lie down on the floor immediately!

Russian Doll’s Rebecca Henderson on Lizzy, Love and Working With Her Wife, by Heather Hogan

Laneia said that this interview made her want to be best friends with Rebecca Henderson and you know what she is, as per usual, more right than you can imagine. You don’t need to have seen Russian Doll to enjoy this and Rebecca and Heather so much!

“Long Live The Tribe of Fatherless Girls” Is a Gritty, Glittering Debut Memoir of Family, Grief, and Boca Raton, by Vanessa

This book sounds/is incredible and so is T Kira as a person; Vanessa didn’t just review her book, but hung out with her for a day and interviewed her about it and the real stories of family and queerness behind it and I just think you will fucking love this!

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Happy Black History Month, Love Autostraddle XOXO ✊🏾

It’s the last day of Black History Month and I’m so proud (hi! It’s Carmen here!) of the month long mini-series we curated! Through the process we not only got to interface with new freelancers and continue to bring an even deeper roster to our team, we also had the the opportunity to really highlight the voices and perspectives of some our black team members.

The series was at times serious; it also made more than few turns into funny. It was imaginative and more than anything, it felt reflective of our staff and our voices, which makes me incredibly proud.

In case you missed any of the series, here they are again. Happy Last Day of Black History month, I hope you take the time this evening to do a little reading!

Black Queer Resiliency Will Guide Us Through Black History Month

The Rumors Were Enough: Josephine Baker, Frida Kahlo, Their Romance and Me

23 Black Queer and Trans Femmes to Follow on Instagram This Black History Month

Young, Gifted, Black, and Closeted: Barbara Jordan’s Political Rise in a Country Not Yet Ready For Her

The Black Lesbian Movie Project

Proudly Black, Fat, Queer and Making a Home for Myself in Cosplay

A Playlist to End The Longest Black History Month EVER. Let’s Party.

And this last post wasn’t specific to our Black History Month series, but what as a real project of vulnerability and community brought to you by myself, Natalie, Reneice, and Alexis. I hope you get a chance to read it:

Four Black Queer Writers in Conversation About Jussie Smollett and Holding Up Space for Each Other

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Social Media Spotlight

Well, I’ll be honest with you: this month our Twitter and Facebook mentions have been an absolute nightmare! It has been nothing but TERFs and Trump apologists. Not a delight. But! Today Sarah let us know we’re only 4,000 followers away from 200,000 total followers across our social media platforms, and that’s a BIG DEAL.

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A Free Business Idea For Any Of You To Take Up

Rachel: you know what would be even better than a meal delivery service
is a service that somehow makes change for laundry without you leaving your apartment
my kingdom for like $10 in quarters
Riese: I have talked about this so much!!!
I forget who I pitched this idea to recently
There has to be a better way!
Rachel: i’ve burned so many relationships with so many baristas and corner store owners in my neighborhood
because they see me coming and know i’m going to beg for change in quarters
i’m like a jehovah’s witness
it’s terrible
Laneia: are there not coin machines in the laundry places??
Rachel: the laundry is in my building!
but no coin machine
just machines that require coins
Laneia: THEY CHARGE YOU TO USE THE LAUNDRY IN YOUR BUILDING
Rachel: they do
Riese: This industry is ripe for disruption
Yes
Laneia: HOW IS THIS OK
Riese: I’ve never had a building where it was free
Laneia: IT’S BASICALLY IN YOUR APARTMENT IT’S JUST DOWNSTAIRS
Rachel: so every time I leave the house for another reason, there’s like a side quest to try to come home with some quarters
so that I can do laundry at the end of the week
Laneia: this is appalling
Riese: My house in Ypsilanti and the house I lived in senior year of college were the only times in my life I’ve had free laundry
Laneia: i’m appalled
Riese: So that’s like 15 apartments where I paid for laundry and none of them NOT ONE had a change machine
Also the machines are always bad
Like they barely wash anything really
And are never repaired or cleaned
Laneia: is there not an affordable side-hustle-type situation like an uber for your laundry
Rachel: I think there are laundry services you could pay to pick the whole thing up and bring it back
what I need is like, a street urchin where I can venmo them $12 and they bring me $10 in quarters to my home
Laneia: this seems like a perfect plan why can this not happen
Riese: Yeah Sarah and I gave our laundry to rinse one time and it took four days and cost like $50
Heather: FIFTY DOLLARS
i guess for two people though
not that outrageous
i’m sorry, stacy keeps talking to me about stop acting like a street urchin
Riese: Honestly though for that price I think it should be next day!
Heather: i agree!
Laneia: i just
Rachel: for that price they should return it with a $20 bill in the pocket
Riese: I think it’s outrageous for it to be that much if it’s not fast
Laneia: i’ve never felt so suburban and simple in my life, not even that one time i went to nyc and tried not to leave
Heather: i spent almost all of my life with a laundry room like twenty steps from my bedroom, and now i’ve been in nyc for seven years and that feels like a fever dream.
Laneia: :sob:
Heather: a world where you don’t have to plan for cash and quarters and haul your laundry out in a cart in the snow and rain? impossible!
Rachel: when I started apartment hunting after leaving milwaukee I was like ‘well it would be really nice to find someplace with free laundry and a dishwasher’
and now i’m like ‘well, it’s nice not having to sleep outside’
this must be how straight women feel dating
‘he remembers my name most of the time’

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XOXO

Team Autostraddle