by Lexine

40 Of My Favorite Things: #36

Christina Aguilera!

Out of all the modern pop music icons, I feel like Christina is one of the most underappreciated pop icons out there. She gives you voice but can’t crack the Top 100 of a supposed list of Greatest Singers of All-Time. She gives you fashion yet the press labels her “Worst Dressed”. She gives you iconic performance but is snubbed for an act far lesser than hers. She gives you music videos but gets overlooked in favor of others with a videography that is also far lesser than hers. She kissed Madonna but some of you still forget that part. But don’t forget this: Christina remains relevant 25+ years after her start, selling out shows, scoring magazine covers, starting a successful sexual wellness line, doing political PSAs, influencing a new generation of pop girls, and, of course, giving you voice and fashion. (And face!)

Now go listen to her live album on Spotify! The vocals, the emotions…everything is served!

by Lexine

Just…No Words

I lied. I got words.

What had just happened in Missouri yesterday should NOT have happened. It was a modern-day lynching, straight up. All those who allowed it to happen must not be forgotten when it’s time to serve justice up their callous, racist asses. (I’m being “clean” here, by the way.)

Also, to those blindly blaming Harris or Biden, I shall leave this and this here. There are also some free Civics classes you can take online.

And all my condolences to the family and friends of Marcellus. May they find justice and peace. 🕯️🌹

by Lexine

Got My Shots!

20240924_154333~26620283394490893213.

The latest Covid booster and the flu shot, to be exact. Antivaxxers can never stop me! 😆

And if you wanna stay safe this winter and beyond, get your shots, too! 💪💉

**ETA: I posted this here and on my socials, unaware of what had just happened in Missouri at the same time. My apologies, as I just wanted to share some good news. 

by Lexine

40 Of My Favorite Things: #37

1980s/90s R&B and Rap!

What a time to have been alive for this golden era of R&B and rap. If you remember watching MTV Jams, Yo MTV Raps, or/and BET’s Video Vibrations, you know! The beats were beating, the vocals were vocaling, and the remixes remixed (especially Mariah’s remixes). Almost every hot artist then had either a gold single or platinum album (what streams?), bridges were present, and the top hits were over three minutes, TikTok be damned.

(By the way, I’m very aware that the era also had its problematic figures. *cough*RKelly*cough*Diddy*cough* I’ll replace any of the vids above if I find any bad tea on the artists featured.)

by Lexine

40 Of My Favorite Things: #38

The next week of faves will all be music-themed. In what would’ve been John Coltrane’s birthday, today’s musical fave is: Classic Jazz! 

I enjoy jazz music from past to present, but Classic Jazz just DOES it for me. Coltrane, Davis, Holliday, Fitzgerald, Vaughn, Armstrong, Parker, Getz…And if you don’t know the legends like Coltrane or Holliday, then we can’t hang, not sorry! I know metal heads that know who they are, so there’s no excuse! The voice and lyrics of Holliday’s music hits you in the feels, and Miles’ trumpet carries you to another world.

by Lexine

40 Of My Favorite Things: #39

When My Work Gets Published! 

Poetry Anthology 1998 edition

Speaking of writing, there’s a joy I get when I see my work get accepted for publication. It’s one thing to self-publish my work, but when my work has impressed editors to where they want to publish my work, the thrill is more grand. I’ve been published in my hometown newspaper, poetry anthologies (like the one you see above), short story anthologies, and, most recently, in newsletters. (All those pieces were written under my real name or a pen name, by the way.)

**Note: there was another favorite I originally posted for #39, but I’m choosing to save it for later in this list.

by Lexine

40 Of My Favorite Things

Forty days from now, I’ll be turning 200 21 40, and rather than bemoan about it a la Edie Monsoon, I’d like to do a list on 40 of my favorite things! This daily countdown will be exclusive to my blog here, and the list won’t be in any order. I’ll kick it off with the first fave: writing! 

Who didn’t see that coming. Writing is my therapy, my art, my creative outlet, and it’s also made me a little money. Just don’t ask me to write my work by hand these days; my penmanship has gone downhill over the past 10-ish years.

by Lexine

Yes I Wrote That

Just published: my essay in the latest issue of Bi Women’s Quarterly! The theme for the current issue is “Childfree” (the theme was given back in the spring this year, and it means a lot more now), so if you’re not JD Vance or a crazy breeder, please give my piece a read! (Click on header pic) I actually submitted two pieces to the newsletter, and maybe I’ll share the other piece here another day.

Also, something I noticed: many of the other submissions in the current newsletter have the author’s profile pics as the header image. Kudos for BWQ for not doing that with my piece 😆 although it would’ve been hilarious and fitting if they caught me on a really bad day😆

by Lexine

When September Had Style

I used to enjoy fashion magazines and September was THAT month for titles like Vogue, Elle, Bazaar, etc. If you’re an old like me, you remember seeing the Fall Fashion Issues that were thick as an old school phone book (because of all the ads 😆). And their covers were 🔥🔥🔥

WTF happened???

I got my theories over why fashion mags (not just for September but for all the months) have been slipping in quality for the past decade or so, and I’m not holding my breath over wanting to see top-tier imagery featuring subjects with personality and life in their eyes again on and in the glossies these days. Like legacy media and their handling of political facts, it’s a damn shame to see the once-prestigious fashion titles phoning it in like a spoiled rich nepo baby, from cover to editorial. And if you think I’m full of it, here’s a thread dedicated to vintage issues of Bazaar from the 90s. Compare the imagery from then to what you see from Bazaar nowadays and you’ll know what I’m talking about.