Wednesday's Question Of The Day: Most Expensive Purchase

Wednesday's Question Of The Day: 

Most Expensive Purchase

Hump day? Well, I'll give you something to ponder.

Yes, it's time for Wednesday's Question Of The Day.

Each Wednesday, a new question to give you the opportunity to do a bit of self-examination.  Think of it as a way of getting to know all about you and a chance to learn a little more about me. 

That's right. You know me; spill that tea! For I am the king of over-sharing!

Oh, and please leave your responses in the comments section. 

Why, think of this as a little blogging kiki!

Okay! Ready, set... 

Here's today's question:

Aside from real estate or a vehicle, 

what’s the most expensive thing you’ve ever purchased?

So, I am not one of those people who consider animals property.

But the health of two of them? 

The most expensive thing I've ever purchased.

In a way, it was purchasing life - for them. They were brought into mine and I felt I owed it to them to be the best owner I could possibly be. So, when the chips were down and it was make or break time... my commitment didn't waver because of the price tag attached.

Did I do the right thing?

Yes.

One is still with me. Mama Rose. Her vet bills, when all was said and done, exceeded $4,000. 

She's the tiny mama cat who came walking down a tree branch as we were rescuing her kittens. They were all so skinny. And you could tell by the way she sauntered over to the kennel where two of her kittens were waiting that she was ready to surrender. I believe Mama was a feral kitten who got pregnant way too young. Providing nourishment for her four kittens took a toll on her health.  

Shortly after the kittens had been adopted, in December, she became quite ill and required hospitalization. It became very expensive, very quickly, but I felt I couldn't deny her a chance at a good life. Fortunately, it all turned out well and she got to come home with us once her kidney levels returned to normal. She only has one good kidney which is running at 10% - just enough to ensure a good life. Because of the expense involved - and the possibility that there may come a time when we have to do it all again - we felt we couldn't adopt her out. It was a possible financial burden that I didn't entrust to anyone else. 

She's a love. And I wouldn't trade her for all the money in the world. 

And then there was Beau, my first pup, a little Chihuahua who gave my life purpose when such a focus was needed. I spotted him in front of a Menards - cutest thing I'd ever seen. I told them I was going to go into the store, make a couple of purchases and would be back. However, when I got back, an older woman who'd recently lost her dog, wanted him. I gave her my phone number in case things didn't work out. They didn't. I got the call and went and picked him up. When I climbed into my Bronco, I set him on my lap and told him that he never had to worry about anything, that I would always take care of him. 

We began vet care. During the deworming process, something odd began to occur; he would walk backwards. He couldn't control it. He'd have such a look of panic on his face. Then he would have a seizure. It was heartbreaking. The second time it happened, I called my Mom, who was living 45 minutes away, and asked her to help me get him to a vet. The original vet said there was nothing they could do and suggested we go to the U of M. $5,000 later, we still had no idea what was wrong with my little guy. He had one more episode. And then... grew out of it. 

I adored him. Took him everywhere I could. He was a love. He had issues with his legs and, at the age of sixteen, eventually twisted his back so badly that we had no choice but to put him down. It broke my heart. But we did have sixteen good years. 

And... I would do it all again.

Will, I guess. 

Money doesn't mean much to me. I mean, yes, you need to cover the basics, but the rest? I never want. And I have no needs. And, yes, there are those who would say there are probably better ways that money could be spent. 

But not in my eyes. 

People do it for their children all the time. 

And I take pet ownership that seriously. 

I understand that not everybody can... but, at the very least, they should want to.

--- ---

Cats And Dogs - The Head and The Heart

Tuesday Titillation: Locker Room - Part IV

Tuesday Titillation: 

Locker Room - Part IV

What can I say? Practice makes perfect.

Yes... you have to get in there and get physical every single day.

That's the only way you get really good at something, right?

So, yes... mix it up. Cardio. Lifting. Endurance Training.

Push yourself out of your comfort zone. Try something new.

And don't forget to have a down day, once in awhile.

You know... maybe that's the day when you just hit the sauna, or the steam room, or...

Maybe just the locker room!

Keep up the good work, boys.

It pays big dividends in the end.

Or on your face or in your mouth. Your call.

- uptonking from Wonderland Burlesque

Something New - Girls Aloud

Something New - Nikki Yanofsky

Acquired Tastes XLIII: Gay Pulp Fiction, Part 204 - Award Books

Acquired Tastes XLIII:

Gay Pulp Fiction, Part 204

Award Books

Award Books published hundreds of fiction and non-fiction paperbacks. They dealt with whatever popular interests dictated: detective (the Nick Carter series, in particular), science fiction (the Planet of The Apes series, in particular), romance, biographies, etc. This included a number of gay-oriented titles, some of which I display below. I'm not sure if this is a comprehensive list of what they had to offer gay folk, but I did my best. 

The imprint was published by Universal Publishing and Distributing Companies, a Macaulay Company which operated from an office at 235 East  45th Street, New York, NY. 

Here are seven gay-oriented titles they published. If you know of any additional ones, please share via the comments section. 

--- ---

The Ugly Club

Author: Tom Lockwood

Award Books

1966

A-174X

Description: "Where drifters from the city's lowest depths mixed with strays from its best families. Mona's Place A cluttered apartment in the Philadelphia Block that became an oasis of Bohemia in the midst of a shining city of glass and chrome and conformity. Where Dirk, the pusher, discovered he was prey to a strangely compelling love. Where Julian, who drifted aimlessly into The Ugly Club, found himself trapped in the vague corridors of a shadowy life. All the desperate ones went to Mona's - when society had pulled the welcome mats everywhere else."

Found copies of this one on-line for $25-35.

Available as a downloadable PDF or 

--- ---

Butterfly Man

Author: Lew Levison

Award Books

1967

A241S

--- ---

A Sand Fortress

Author: John Coriolan

Award Books

1968

A363M

--- ---

Seventh Summer

Author: Hadrian Keene

Award Books

1969

A474S

Found a copy on-line for $225.

--- ---

Hours

Author: Lon Albert

Award Books

1969

A507S

About Lon Albert:

Lon Albert was a psuedonym for Leo Joshua Skir, author of Boychick and other gay novels. He was also a contributor to The Ladder as Leo Ebreo (Leo the Jew). He was a Zionist in his youth and was also a friend of Allen Ginsberg. This is likely his first novel though Boychick was his first under his true name published in 1971.

--- ---

Gard

Author: James Colton

Award Books

1969

A541S

1969

About James Colton:

James Colton was a pseudonym used by Joseph Hansen who was an American crime writer and poet, best known for a series of novels featuring private eye Dave Brandstetter. Hansen had begun writing at the age of nine; his first published work, a poem, appeared in The New Yorker, in 1952. In 1970, Hansen published Fadeout, the first of thirteen such novels to be published under his own name. The novel introduced his groundbreaking character Dave Brandstetter, an openly gay insurance investigator who still embodied the tough, no-nonsense personality of the classic hardboiled private investigator protagonist. In addition to crime novels, Hansen wrote the more mainstream novel A Smile In His Lifetime (1981), a non-genre novel about a married gay man who achieves fame, divorces his wife, and heads into a string of homosexual relationships both good and bad. Another mainstream novel Job's Year, was published in 1983. He also wrote two suspense novels in the early 1980s, and two gothic novels in the 1970s under the pseudonym Rose Brock. As James Colton, he wrote homo-erotic literature, with his first, Strange Marriage, appearing in 1965.

Hansen was married to artist Jane Bancroft, a lesbian, from 1943 to her death in 1994. He said their relationship was that of "a gay man and a woman who happened to love each other." They were married for 51 years. Bancroft was an artist, scholar and teacher. She was an animal lover and rescued and sheltered strays. She died on September 9, 1994, following a stroke. Following her death, Joseph Hansen wrote the poem The Dark/The Diary (In memoriam: J.B.H., 1917-1994). The couple had one daughter, Barbara, who later transitioned and changed her name to Daniel James Hansen. According to a friend quoted in an obituary, Hansen also had two long-term male lovers. Hansen disliked the term "gay" and always described himself as "homosexual".

He died from heart failure in 2004 at his home in Laguna Beach, California.

--- ---

Noon And Night

Author: Hadrian Keene

Award Books

1969

A554X

--- ---

And that's all for now.

Next week: another vintage gay pulp fiction imprint.

Until then...

Thanks for reading!

Morning, Noon and Night - Suzi Lane

Sunday Diva/Three From The Hip: The Supremes

Sunday Diva/Three From The Hip: 

The Supremes

In my own personal big gay church, there is a wing dedicated to what can only be described as... The Sisterhood. No matter their musical genre of choice, these ladies came together as a unit, joined arms and mesmerized the world. Their harmonies inspired unity while creating an energy which was absolutely infectious. Hit after hit, they earned their place in music history, sharing their unique vocal stylings. 

One such group?

I don't think there's another girl group to match the way The Supremes changed the cultural landscape in the USA. 

Their look, their style, their sound? It was embraced by in the USA across all lines of society

Why? Because it was infectious. It was joyous. It made people dance. The women were beautiful, elegant, stylish.

Though, the music alone is enough to guarantee their place in history. Such great songs! So many hits!

Diana Ross, Mary Wilson, and Florence Ballard (and, later, Cindy Birdsong) created so many iconic musical moments. Honed and refined by the Motown factory, they brought style and grace to the masses, dominating radio and television. 

And while there have been many to come as far, none can really compare to these divas, for they remain the premiere girl group of all-time.

The gospel according to them?

Well, here are three from the hip, dropping from their lips.

The topic? The Break-Up

"Don't be surprised if you don't see me around here much longer, honey. They're trying to push me out, they're trying to make me quit. But I ain't going - they'll have to throw me out!"  - Florence Ballard

"I never said I'd get in the way of Diane climbing to the top. I'm just not gonna let her climb all over me!" - Florence Ballard (to Barry Gordy)

"You know. there were times when Diane would pick up the phone and say, 'Im calling Berry!' That line, right there, would cause a whole heap of problems." - Mary Wilson

"She grew up as Diane, and Florence grew up as Flo. We’re friends but we don’t call each other constantly. We’ve grown apart, but it’s not because we don’t like each other. My love for Flo and Diane is pretty much almost the same as for my sisters – we had so much together, we grew up together." - Mary Wilson

"She has done many things to hurt, humiliate, and upset me, but, strangely enough, I still love her and am proud of her." - Mary Wilson

"I'll never forget, one time, while we were performing in Boston, Diane's mike went out, so without any warning at all she walked over and snatched Mary's microphone out of her hand. Mary snatched it back. Here they are snatching the microphone back and forth and I'm still standing there, still singing and looking at them." - Cindy Birdsong

"It was all acting; the smiles, the tears - all of it. Just acting. Afterwards, there was a big scene backstage; an argument over something I don't remember.." - Cindy Birdsong (on the group's final performance with Diana)

Where Did Our Love Go? - The Supremes

Love Is Here And Now You're Gone - The Supremes

Someday We'll Be Together - Diana Ross & The Supremes

And the parting shot...

"The girls had treated me very badly. They had gone against me with a vengeance... talked about behind my back when my back wasn't even turned." - Diana Ross

"Here's what I did, I called Mary and Cindy. I said 'Have you been hearing the rumors?' A lot of other stuff happened in the conversation - I don't want to get into - the first thing out of her mouth was 'What took you so long to call?'" - Diana Ross

"Now the people will get a chance to see how much talent Mary has. She’s a very talented girl. In fact, if it wasn’t for Mary, I wouldn’t push as hard as I have. You know how a runner has somebody to pace him? Well, Mary and I have been pacing each other for years." - Diana Ross 

"Instead of looking at the past, I put myself ahead twenty years and try to look at what I need to do now in order to get there then". - Diana Ross

"You can't just sit there and wait for people to give you that golden dream. You've got to get out there and make it happen for yourself." - Diana Ross