Today on Alphabet City: Jon Paul takes on Continental Airline over a matter of fairness. An issue of fairness raised itself on our recent trip to Mexico. It had nothing to do with gay marriage—Mexico City allows it, most of the US does not. And it didn’t come courtesy of Mexican Customs’ seemingly inefficient requirement [...]
Entries Tagged as ‘Uncategorized’
July 13, 2010
Cherry Popped
Today on Alphabet City: Jon Paul’s pops his (book tour) cherry on Fire Island. As a young gay in Texas, my first brush with Fire Island was the 1989 Oscar-nominated movie Longtime Companion about the early days of the AIDS epidemic. The movie’s powerful last scene of three surviving friends walking on a deserted Fire [...]
July 9, 2010
I Can Hear the Bells
Today on Alphabet City: After a recent trip to Mexico City, Jon Paul’s ears are ringing—with wedding bells! My trip down the wedding aisle has been a long time coming. But after a recent trip to Mexico City, and a groundbreaking decision by a Massachusetts federal judge, I suddenly hear the bells drawing nigh. Nearly [...]
July 6, 2010
Dog Daze
Today on Alphabet City: Jon Paul finds something missing on his return from Mexico—Frida! Ay caramba! Several things were seriously out of whack last night when Chef and I returned from his 40th birthday celebration in Mexico. You know something’s wrong when a plane full of South of the Border citizens gasps upon hearing the [...]
July 2, 2010
Oh Susannah
Today on Alphabet City: After a rocky start, Jon Paul’s relationship with his Mexican mother-in-law improves. Barely two minutes after my arrival at Chef’s home in Mexico City and already I had lost a bet thanks to his mother. In the taxi on the way from the airport, Chef and I laid down our wagers. [...]
June 29, 2010
Brokeback Books
Today on Alphabet City: Jon Paul suffers real reading glitches when Kindle goes on fritz. A few weeks ago, maybe closer to a month now, my Kindle broke. My lackadaisical memory of the exact date of Kindle’s passing should be a telling clue that I’m not all that torn up about the loss. The Kindle [...]
June 26, 2010
Pride Cup Runneth Over
Today on Alphabet City: Jon Paul’s book tour makes the New York Times. This just in: Kimpton Hotel‘s sponsorship of the Alphabet City Book Tour landed us in the Gray Lady’s Media Decoder column written by influential journalist (and die hard Mets fan) Stuart Elliott. In addition to efforts by the Las Vegas Convention and [...]
June 25, 2010
Reading Rainbow
Today on Alphabet City: Jon Paul and Chef battle a tough crowd of gay boys to sell some books; women save the day. Not to get all hot pants about it—but I’m starting to get concerned about literacy in Gay Boy America. Appearing at a recent men-centric networking event where I was billed as a [...]
June 24, 2010
Seven Year Itch
Today on Alphabet City: Jon Paul realizes Frida has reached middle age, and that Chef may have got bitten by the seven-year itch. Our little goose turns 7 today, which effectively means that our incurably cute Bichon Frise Frida has reached middle age. Chef and I have begun noticing the telltale signs of aging (early [...]
June 21, 2010
Tex and the City: Father’s Day Three Ways
Today on Alphabet City: Jon Paul reluctantly views Father’s Day three different cultural ways in Tex and the City. For many years after I moved to New York, I stopped even noticing Father’s Day. But thanks to generic Facebook shout outs it’s now hard to be anything but painfully aware of the “holiday,” which some [...]






