You know, this video is really gonna turn people off to your ideas. You know, the way you are dressing is really gonna confuse cisgender folks. You know, the words you use… the tone you use… the way you speak is going to alienate folks. It happens every day from trans folks expressing their gender in the way they want to, to Brian and I doing new types of theology, to every time I respond angrily. Behind all of these…

It’s hard to fathom, sometimes, the depth of hate in the hearts of people who claim to be so loving. And then you realize that really their faith is centered not on the love of God, but the hatred of God. It’s like the religion of Fred Phelps. Except they dress it up with hip hoodies and jeans, some sweet pop worship music, and lovely graphic design. They hide their unaffirming policies deep deep down in their websites (if they…

It can start out subtle; a gentle interruption every time you speak. Someone following up your sentence with a “yeah but when I…” It can be less subtle; rejection after rejection for grants (even though cis led companies get grants for telling your community’s stories), rejection after rejection for support of all kinds. You share your story over coffee or from a stage and it gets ignored. You tell about what it’s like to be trans and you hear that…

It’s kind of a cliche but it’s true: In the theatre (and frankly in life) you are always auditioning. From the moment you walk in the door on the very first day of auditions, through the end of strike on the last day of the show, you are auditioning. The way that you treat the Stage Manager who is running the door for auditions, the way that you behave throughout the rehearsal process, the way you treat the crew, all…

My new writing haunt is Dave and Busters. Think of it like a giant, adult Chuck E Cheese. The bar and restaurant has fairly standard beers and pub food and a variety of fun cocktails including some grown up snow cones (with booze). But the rest of the place is a giant arcade. There are the standards: skee-ball, a softball toss, air hockey, etc. Then there are the newer games like Mario Kart, Terminator, Ghostbusters, and more. Then there’s stuff…

I’m rewatching “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” from the beginning because A has never seen it. I notice new things every time I watch. 
There’s a lot that doesn’t hold up, especially in the first couple of seasons. The fashion looks woefully out of date. The technology is laughably old. Dialogue about technology is stilted (and hysterical. “If the apocalypse comes, beep me.”) The special effects are silly and sometimes take you out of the action. There are also a lot…

The story of Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead is a well known story. It’s been used to illustrate all sorts of things: Jesus’ emotions and ability to form friendships, Jesus’ power, the lack of faith of the people who followed Jesus; the list could go on and on. And occasionally the story is also used in queer circles as a narrative of coming out, mostly because, in the pivotal scene of the story, Jesus calls to Lazarus in a…

Today is Transgender Day of Remembrance, a day observed by the Trans community to mourn all of those who were murdered in the last year because of their gender identity and/or expression. As it has been the past several years, this years is the deadliest year on record. By some counts over 350 trans folks around the world were murdered. In the United States the number of people was 28. As it is almost every year, the majority of people…

When you are in the midst of evangelicalism it all makes sense. We believe this. And if we believe this and do these things we are guaranteed this. Both here in this life and in the life to come. On the other hand if we don’t believe this or we don’t do these things, then bad things will happen both here and now and in the life to come. When there are occasional anomalies (a kid gets sick, someone really…

The intersection of evangelicalism and queer issues continues to take up a lot of real estate in my mind. Not only because it shapes the context of my life but also because it still has such an impact on the world around me and the work that I do. I spend a lot of my time fielding messages from people who are trying to make sense of their own identities in the light of the teachings of their families/church. I’ve…