He is known for having co-founded the website The Toast, and written the books Texts from Jane Eyre , The Merry Spinster , and Something That May Shock and Discredit You . (Photo courtesy of Grace Lavery) One of the first things that leaps to mind is a disappointing example, which is when I was first beginning to look into how to train my voice. Ok its my kids (twins) 14th birthday on the 5th. I love watching yall be friends + colleagues from a distance via the magic of Autostraddle and the Internet! This week: the ex . A Penguin Random House Company Danny is a co-founder of The Toast with Nicole Cliffe and currently runs Dear Prudence at Slate. Something That May Shock and Discredit You Quotes Showing 1-30 of 55. No one wouldve avowed the white supremacism of that movement, but it was very much like: Guys, were losingEurope. Looking for more? My agent and my editor were both incredibly helpful. By Grace Lavery and Danny M. Lavery. Benjamin described this angel blown backwards by the storm, who sees history unfolding behind it as an endless series of catastrophes. So it wasnt like I had a conscious sense of denial; either Im very, very good at self-denial, such that I didnt know I was doing it, or there was something else at play. Definitelyjolie laide. Like, if youve seenVideodromeand you think hes suggesting this is very very bad, couldnt possibly be some sort of glorious apotheosis, I love that this is like, I accuse them of not getting Cronenberg! [laughter], Its like youre telling them: You know what else is irreversible? [21] Upon discovering that his father had taken no action to protect the congregation's children, Lavery went to the church's leadership. What a bitter, lonely thing to be saying. A flower is plucked, and human lives are forfeited. Daniel Mallory Ortberg has cited Shirley Jackson, particularly We Have Always Lived in the Castle, and The Pilgrims Progress by John Bunyan as writing influences. Recently, I took a guess at how much I spent on bras (and later binders) every year probably somewhere between $100 and $150, depending on how fancy or flush I felt, and allowing for the . I essentially came out because the book was coming out, I was on hormones, and I was really upset about the thought of going on tour and being asked, like, Do you have a cold?, It felt like I had to make a calculation at that point, and I didnt think Id be able to pull it off and maintain my composure if somebody was like, Hey, your skin looks weird. I often associate that book withI dont revisit it often. Also, I just want to acknowledge that they [Gingers] have been playing the most baffling mix, and I adore it. [32], Lavery identifies as queer. Robin took such amazing photos, and Grace and Danny look so happy. Relatable, though. Ive never thought to myself, Oh, I bet I dont know that much about myself, until I have a moment where I think, Holy shit, I didnt know this. In the summer of 2018, a volunteer at Menlo Church came to the Rev. I wanted to watch it again. Feb 21, 20196:01 AM. I know that weve talked about this beforeI feel like over the past couple of years people have really been rebelling against the tragic/sentimental modes imposed ontrans memoir, imposed on any kind of autobiographical writing, really. And the other thing iswhen I was still part of the church, our church regularly sent mission teams to Scandinavia, I think also the UK. Hi! And somehow Im going to use them all like a series of arias to storm a garrison, or flee a garrison. Before I could ask myself the questionam I a boy?, I could ask myself the question:Am I Anne of Green Gables? And theres always a fraught older-brother-relationship with some guy whos always like: Youreshitat being a guy. Even in the chapters that arent, like, Paul and the Thessalonians, you still end up getting a fair amount of religious content, or Biblical quotations. 1,311 talking about this. That fact has been brought up by John Ortberg's defenders, however, it is simply a smokescreen in this case. He is known for having co-founded the website The Toast, and written the books Texts from Jane Eyre (2014), The Merry Spinster (2018), and Something That May Shock and Discredit You (2020). [31] It was originally published as individual essays. I think it was more around these thingsnotions of gender and sexualitythat I felt myself to be very, very restricted, he said. Thats what all the forced-masc stuff reminds me of. with minors. That restriction was something that I had learned very young, often without anyone having to tell me exactly what it was or why. Daniel M. Lavery (@daniel_m_lavery) June 28, 2020. John Ortberg battled against this inevitable conclusion for weeks, but yesterday he finally resigned (effective August 2nd). Boys can be sensitive. Like, great, I knew that. In some ways I feel like this book is more connected to the first one [Texts from Jane Eyre], or its more of a revisiting of the first one, but pushing further than that book left off. Daniel M. Lavery[1][2] (born Mallory Ortberg,[3] November 28, 1986)[4] is an American author and editor. And to be clear, Im not claiming they secretly want to transition or something, but yeah, that idea ofIm sure if you understood transition as something you were tricked into, or that was forced upon you, I can understand why you would view that with horror. They wanted to know me; they wanted to be there for me. [8] In February 2018, he spoke to Autostraddle about the process of gender transitioning while writing The Merry Spinster. Or the focus on an imagined future regret, as if theres any life decision youcouldntpotentially regret. Combining memoir with experimental form, the book's . Yeah, I think so. Ad Choices, King Charles Reportedly Began Evicting Meghan and Harry the Day After, Report: Trump Thinks Hes Just a Few Mean Nicknames Away From Convincing Ron DeSantis Not to Run Against Him. (Lavery changed his name after wedding trans academic Grace Lavery in December 2019.) Her Continue reading . . I wanted to write about the experience of being prodded or feeling that youre disappointed or being pushed into something, a lot of things that both trans and non-trans people can experience. Daniel M. Lavery[1][2] (born Mallory Ortberg,[3] November 28, 1986)[4] is an American author and editor. On April 30th, 2018, Sabaah Jauhir-Rizvi published this report detailing multiple child sexual assaults that she experienced at Willow Creek Community Church in Illinois, carried out by my biological father, John Ortberg, Jr. janelied.wordpress.com. Please keep in mind that comments are moderated by the guidelines laid out in our comment policy. Horrified by this moral cowardice, he severed ties with his family of origin. It was the sort of thing where luckily it wasnt most of the book, like it was just really one chapter and then a couple of different moments. And its the only moment in his onscreen appearances where something works for a minute. You've decided to leave a comment. When I asked him to elaborate, he did: It feels very compulsive in some ways. Lavery's work in trans feminist studies focuses on the belief that transition works that it is truly possible to change sex. Ive got these eight in my back pocket, and Ive got these three in my other back pocket, theyre not quite there yet. She doesnt even like sex! As soon as we sent it, we called a friend who called the high school and did report Johnny's disclosures. The flights of language flutter as they shed weight; he describes permitting collapse, abandoning resistance., Shortly before the publication ofSomething That May Shock and Discredit You, Laverys father John Ortberg wassuspendedfrom the Bay Area evangelical church where he ministered. Lionel Hutz is a pivotal figure. Truly a self-declared trans royal wedding for the ages. Does anyone know where its from? I feel super old but am happy Autostraddle has been, Yes thank you. Lavery rushed ahead the wedding to his fianceGrace, an academic, and they moved across the country to Brooklyn. Treating the most anodyne straight guys like you are Sam Gamgee and they are Frodo. What happened when four poets from Francos Spain took their show on the road. Somuch. I think thats true, and its something that surprised me, like, I set out thinking about what I wanted to do with Anne of Green Gables, what I wanted to do with Athena, [t.A.T.u.sAll the Things She Saidstarts blaring through Brooklyn lesbian bar Gingers, leaving both parties in awed silence]. Lavery had reported a congregants confession of obsessive sexual feelings about young children to Pastor Ortberg, who encouraged that person to continue volunteering with minors. I love these two, so glad they found each other and I agree with everyone else saying how beautiful the wedding was and how truly happy they both look. And one thing thats just odd on a logistical level, aprons arent sensitive. I can totally see that. The second book [The Merry Spinster] felt very much in-between. Feb 23, 2021. But especially with an evangelical way of relating to the world, which I think can persist even after you stop going to church, its not always easy to undo or untangleyoure constantly hunting for the next thing thats going to get you closer to God. daniel ortberg grace lavery wedding. The book was based on a column he wrote first at The Hairpin, then continued at The Toast, which imagines famous literary characters exchanging anachronistic text messages. One of our smartest, most . Get the latest chatter, from Kensington Palace and beyond, straight to your inbox. I have an older advance copy, and I just remember, I think its the very last chapter, where you said something like, My father is a very disciplined person.. In 2013 the American trans journalist Daniel Mallory Ortberg (now known as Daniel M. Lavery) co-founded the feminist website The Toast. Forced to revise a long-finished book, in the most agonizing circumstances imaginable, he never lost his lan; one of the passages I cut from our conversation was about the sexiest film incarnation of the Joker (Jack Nicholson, naturally). Oh, you want to clean my gutters,Dad?, [laughs] Well, yeah, obviously theres a degree to which I hope I can be the scholar of forced-masculinization fantasies. Theres nothing sensitive about an apron. How can I not want this thing that I want?. Double Lead Conversions and Social Presence With TikTok, Top 6 Flexible Businesses You Can Start From, How to Create an Exclusive Style Statement With, Michael Stipe: Wearer of Chic Glasses, Vintage Threads, Everything to Know About Ryderwear Workout Clothing Line, The Main Reasons Why People Love Designer Clothes, 7 Effective Home Remedies for Hair Thickening, 4 Effective Remedies to Sniff Off Nasal Allergies, Mammas Home Remedies for Persistent Cough, Top 5 Indicators that Ephemeral Environments are Right, What Tech Gadgets Fans Can Look Forward to, Tips to Stop Annoying Robocalls and Business Spam, Jon Moxley: A Lunatics Journey Through the World of Pro Wrestling. John Ortberg of Menlo Church in California was placed on an unplanned "personal leave" following concerns that he mishandled a church volunteer's disclosure of experiencing sexual attraction to children. His preoccupation stemmed from growing up in an Evangelical household in the Midwest, and from an almost pathological need to fantasize. You start to think of it like an arsenal. [23], Lavery's first comic one-shot, entitled Rick and Morty Presents: Krombopulos Michael, was published by Oni Press on June 20, 2018, following the Rick and Morty character of the same name. Daniel Mallory Ortberg Wife. If you pay careful attention to the fact that, when people tell you, I want this very very much, Im not horrified, and insist that their consent must somehow be compromised that is silly, and not the kind of silliness I have interest in. That you could feel how much everyone in that space loved Grace and Danny. I think of it like the conversion narrative, like Paul and the Epistles, theres a lot that the classic conversion narratives of the early church have in common with the transition narrative, like telling a story. Sorry about my other freestanding comment, I meant to reply to another comment that implied that Danny and Grace are out of place in autostraddle because they are a hetero couple.. Daniel Mallory Ortberg1.jpeg 643 1,049; 190 KB. Most recently, I came across this article, about a controversy in John Ortberg's Menlo Church.The article read: " The pastor's son Daniel Lavery, frustrated by what . I know that it happened because I have the emails, but I barely remember those days. . [39][40], Something That May Shock and Discredit You, Rick and Morty Presents: Krombopulos Michael, "A Halloween Compendium From The DMO-L Archives", "ok @CharoShane and I talked about breakfast and it was very exciting to 1. talk about breakfast and 2. bust out a sneak preview of the new name & shiny pronouns", "Have You Heard the One About the Religious Woman Who Stops Being Religious in College? And if they dissolved these boring state churches, if they just had exciting evangelical churches, we could win them back. Navigating the Complexities of Precious Metals Investment:, 7 Decorating Ideas Thatll Give Your Bedroom, Understanding Amazing General and Health Advantages of, Understanding the role of pain management in, Understanding the Benefits of Using Kubernetes, 5 Art Museums in France | Interesting Facts, Characteristics of the Austrian Capital: Vienna Free Walking, 16 Visa-Free Countries Across the World that Allow, Basic tips for beginners to play World of, Top 5 Online Baccarat Strategy Tips for Newbies, MLB 2023 Opening Day Schedule: Major Highlights, Gareth Bale Retires From Football: A Legacy Of. Andthe ending, hes lying around shirtless holding a gun and flexing his muscles on his bed. Daniel Mallory Ortberg.jpg 643 1,049; 197 KB. I'd been dimly aware of the existence of Golden Palace, the single-season spinoff that didn't feature Bea Arthur, who played Dorothy, but I hadn't expected that the last episode of the Golden Girls would actually show her leaving.One afternoon a friend of mine came over to keep my company and we spent a few hours watching episodes from first two seasons of the show. Lavery studied English, not art, at Azusa Pacific, a private evangelical university. Grace Lavery is a writer, editor, and academic living in Brooklyn, NY. And I feel like I no longer need to defer to the idea that, Well, whatever we believe, at least we can all agree that we have the same values. We dont have the same values. 1996 sprint bass boat parts; I dont know why youre suddenly obsessed with fictional 15-year-olds who might get top surgery. [22] The book was based on a column he wrote first at The Hairpin, then continued at The Toast,[14] which imagines well-known literary characters exchanging text messages. Ive had a lot of different relationships with religion over the course of my life: you name it, Ive had it. Great natural compositions that dont need to resort to cliched gimmicks to represent a beautiful occasion. Maybe it was a sense of keeping oneself busy. The Ortbergs have three children -- Laura Turner, Johnny Ortberg III, and Danny Lavery (nee Daniel Ortberg nee Mallory Ortberg). This is Shania Twains weird comeback song. Do you and Grace read each others work? Club and InStyle Australia all naming it to lists of best forthcoming titles in 2018. Daniel Mallory Ortbergs first book, Texts from Jane Eyre, was released in November 2014 and became a New York Times bestseller. A few months ago Danny made it clear he was fully estranged from his family, for reasons unrelated to his transition (in . Daniel identifies as queer. And I definitely watched it on TV in the basement. Give him a stuffed bear, or show him reading a romance novel. Then theres a jump cut, suddenly hes standing alone in this nightclub, the 90s Eurodance anthem Rhythm of the Night comes on, and he increasingly madly tries to maintain his composure dancing to the song. He has written about the incident in his newsletter. 5 Weird Facts About Jessica Jaymess Death. Daniel Lavery. One of many things I love about Miyazaki movies is that the rules of each fantasy world might seem absurd or nonsensical to the protagonist, but theyre internally consistent, even in their own dream-logic way. Daniel M. Lavery (@daniel_m_lavery) June 28, 2020 Lavery, Ortberg's trans-identifying , estranged child, revealed the identity of the church volunteer as Ortberg's son. ByDaniel Mallory Ortberg 7 years ago in Art Right-ho, we're all relatively familiar with the story of the ant and the grasshopper, wherein the grasshopper plays the violin instead of farming, I guess, and then in the winter the ant reminds him that you have to farm if you want to live through the solstice, and everyone's happy, or starves to death. Get Pumped: Our 14th Birthday A+ Ask-Us-Anything is on March 7th! I was struck by one particular line in her recent complaint about my wedding planning - "this is going to be the most important day of your life, Grace." . It was like, Thank you for giving me this book of my 19 boyfriends and 8 girlfriends.), Its the sort of thing that at once makes you feel a little out of your depth, but much smarter for at least having halfway kept up. You know one trans person, and its me, and Im in my thirties. Some of it feels a little on-the-nose, like, Because I could not truly be myself, I must be all these other people. And Im okay being a little bit cheesy or obvious. classified ads from the fall 1986. John Ortberg seeking help. Sorry, Im really hung up on that [both laugh]. Grace Lavery (2020-) . It almost seems like you had the inverse problem, like, such awareness of and familiarity with the language of transition, people whohadtransitioned, that it was overwhelming. This is what I need to do to stay safe, happy, loved, approved of, to get the things that I think I need to get for the day. WHY IS THIS CATEGORIZED AS VAPID FLUFF THIS IS THE LEAST VAPID LEAST FLUFF OF ALL THE EVERYTHING. Rather than, Oh no no, this is the one thing that I must avoid at all costs. Once I was no longer thinking that the worst thing that could happen was me making a decision and later coming to regret itthe real worst thing that could happen is never finding out what I want, never doing anything that pleases me, because Im so afraid of the possibility of future sadness. Aprons are not a representation of sensitivity. Also, I would quite like Dannys formal coat plz and thank you. This prompted him to imagine how Scarlett O'Hara might have used a cell phone. If I had never gotten sober, if I had never met Daniel Ortberg, I would still have transitioned . Theres not a lot of choice. He might play a sensible advice columnist on the internet (he took over Slate's . Girls can be tough. Could never be enough attention paid to this match, Now, Im an old jaded trans and barely emote at anything I see on the internet anymore but these two never fail to elicit the purest emotions in me. Daniel M. Lavery (born Mallory Ortberg, November 28, 1986) is an American author and editor. "Keep panicking". It was this terrible anarchist group and they had these posters that showed, like, a boy wearing an apron. and then thinking I was a girl. This happened at work where he happened to meet Nicole Cliffe, with whom he operated The Toast, a feminist general interest web site, from July 2013 to July 2016. He has since been reinstated under a restoration plan.) Lavery has cut ties with his biological family, editing out most of the references to them. I should take care of my hands and spine. Share this post . I think its a mix, its gotta be a mix. The only thing Danny or Grace actually specified was that he (Daniel) cut off his family and they were permanently estranged. And I have a couple of friends here in the city who I like to show my writing to when I can. When you treat me like a boy I feel sexless and humiliated, but when I feel sexless and humiliated I feel thrilled and special. Yeah. Like I have to do this. There are figures of male identification in this book, but theyre definitely not boy-band types. [19], In 2017, he launched Shatner Chatner, a paid e-mail newsletter on Substack. I wanted to learn more. As of 2022, he hosts a podcast on . Sure. I was like, Hell yeah, I wont go in that room. But certainly in terms of an arc, to go fromThe Merry Spinsterto the guy [Lord Byron] on the front of this coverI love it, hes so histrionic, like hes trying to tear his own skin off. By Nicole Cliffe and Danny M. Lavery. Really it goes back to Shakespeare, like, Why am Ibeguiledby this creature? How do you think aboutSomething That May Shock and Discredit Youin relation to the last book? I guess I should also ask about you having torewritethe book just as it was coming out I cant even think of any parallel for that. On November 21, Daniel M. Lavery reports to the Elders of Menlo Church that their senior pastor, John Ortberg Jr., had conspired in secret to provide a person experiencing compulsive sexual feelings towards children with unsupervised access to young people through youth groups-in the hopes that the Menlo Elders would conduct a confidential and thorough investigation of the report, and make . Just jarring. Share this post. 0. daniel ortberg grace lavery wedding. In 2013 he and fellow writer Nicole Cliffe founded the delightfully weird website The . Daniel M. Lavery:I thought about this a lot, because Ive gotten a variation of this sentiment from most of the interviewers, but its usually like: Theres alotof religion in this book. I dont share them, theyre not mine, thats not who I am. In the November email . As an Associate Professor of English, Critical Theory, and Gender & Women's Studies at the University of California, Berkeley, her research explores the history and theory of aesthetics and interpretation, with particular interests in psychoanalysis, literary realism, and queer and trans cultures. Wow, Im so sorry. ', "J! [34], In November 2018, he and partner Grace Lavery, an associate professor of English at UC Berkeley[35][36] and "the most followed transgender scholar in the world on social media" including Twitter and Instagram,[37] announced their intention to marry. ", "IT IS MY THIRTY-FIRST BIRTHDAY AND I AM HAPPY", "The Toast's Mallory Ortberg Is Bringing Her Beloved Content BackFor A Price", "Stratechery, but for jokes about Frasier: Mallory Ortberg tries the paid newsletter route", "Pivoting, Softly: Welcome To The Chatner", "Motherhood a 'Two-way Street' Former Willow Creek Pastor Shares", "The Art of Commerce: Episode XXX: 'I wouldn't want to reassure my past self. The author and magazine writer went on to say that he and his wife Grace . Daniel was included in the 2015 Forbes 30 under 30 list under the media category. [33] In March 2018, he was interviewed by Heather Havrilesky in New York magazine's The Cut about coming out as trans. I found myself wishing out loud that I had been out when I first moved to New York, had discovered the LGBTQ community sooner. Later, in his 30s, Lavery found that the same mental exercisethe emotional steelingapplied to his desire to transition, and his determination to keep that desire buried for as long as possible. Grace Lavery . Whos a very mean old person. Grace Lavery & Daniel M. Lavery (Joseph Lavery & Mallory Ortberg) - "Straight with extra steps" couple trooning out to avoid "dwindling into mere heterosexuality" Thread starter CobraPlissken Start date Oct 6, 2020 The premise was inspired by a comments-section thread on a piece Cliffe had written for The Awl; on Cliffes review of Gone With the Wind, a commenter wrote that their experience in the South was nearly identical to the novel except everybody has cellphones, prompting him to imagine how Scarlett OHara might have used a cell phone. I was raised without any religion, Ive only been to church for funerals or weddings, like, the big ones. It might be the jukebox, but I dont think people are playing music off that? Yeah, keep doing that, thats a ton of fun. When I look back, one of the various moments of gender euphoria that I experienced, for lack of a better phrasewhen I was nine or ten, I started singing theGilligans Islandtheme song in the voice of Elvis, and all the adults in my life thought it was the funniest thing, to see this little nine-year-old girl singing in an Elvis voice. Its also weirdly that autoandrophilic sexual fantasy, so its kind of hot. At the beginning ofSomething That May Shock and Discredit You, Lavery reconsiders his childhood fascination with the Rapture: Everyone will be reconciled through peace and pleasure who can possibly stand it.. At one point you mention your love of impressions, and a big chunk of the book sort ofisone, these pastiches or channelings. Published by at February 16, 2022. And Ive been able to tinker with that over the years, such that I give myself lots and lots of little deadlines, so Im always turning something in. I want to make this clear because we initially offered Johnny the option of resigning without disclosure. daniel ortberg grace lavery weddinglivrer de la nourriture non halal. Yay! I had this great screenshot that was like, She has delusions of being Captain Kirk, and just wrote, Same. Its a very upsetting episode, and its surprising that its the last episode of the series, because its so odd. Europe! I was not able to do a lot in the way of rewriting, I did it over two afternoons, it was a total blur. [25][26] The book, his second release, was highly anticipated, with Publishers Weekly, Bustle, The A.V. What Are the Top Cranberry Producing Countries? The book, his second release, was highly anticipated, with Publishers Weekly, Bustle, The A.V. . Talking tothe author of Something That May Shock and Discredit You on the pressure put on trans memoirs, leaving the church, and the myth of an unblemished body to be defended. mesquite to las vegas airport; greenville public school district address; houses for rent in huntsville, al under $600; Blog Post Title February 26, 2018. I feel like I don't know you. Grace and I have talked about this, one of the problems isevery trans memoir has to saythisone is different from the other trans memoirs, so even in the act of saying this ones different youre doing the same thing everyone else has ever done. This week, Grace Lavery and Daniel Mallory Ortberg discuss a Prudie letter: the noncommittal boyfriend. Things I've Said In The Past 72 Hours. !!! I bring the power and the gayness of, like, Herman Melville, the brawn of millions of years of faggots, were all lifting together. Daniel Mallory Ortberg identifies as queer. It was like the lesbian apocalypse. [8], He was included in the 2015 Forbes "30 under 30" list in the media category. How did it feel? [27][28][29][30] The Merry Spinster reinvents fairy tales such as Cinderella and Beauty and the Beast; in the Los Angeles Times, Agatha French described his renderings as making the "stories both weirder and yet somehow more familiar". Daniel M. Lavery's imaginings and fantasies have been bright spots on the Internet for quite a while. Recently married, longtime Oakland resident Daniel Lavery boasts a new surname as he traffics in . I dont think its anything Im doing thats new, I just think Im doing the same thing in my own way, if that makes sense. A former girlfriend of Kirks is furious and bitter, because of sexism, which drives her insane. I very quickly formed rules around, This is what I need to do in order to not have somebody ask questions that I think will be very painful for me. There was a lot of vague posting about the estrangement in general extended over months, but nothing specific until today. Thats how I got to visit Denmark. Taking up Corinthians, Ortberg trumpets transition as ecstatic metempsychosis: flesh as the anticipation of resurrection, "an opportunity in the hands of the Lord.". Yeah. He wrote Slate's "Dear Prudence" advice column from 2016 to 2021. Its not a perspective that I really understand. Nicole converted to Christianity with the help or guidance of the elder Ortbergs and Laura. But if you knew it, you would know it., Inside the breakdown of Harrys relationship with the queen All of the looks from the Golden Globes 2020 red carpet Royal family hurt and devastated by Harry and Meghans bombshell exit Elizabeth Wurtzels unfinished work Meet Carole Ghosn, the wife ensnared in Carloss saga Emilia Clarke on life after Khaleesi From the Archive: Dianas revenge. . Theres the rapture portion, and the Jacob story, which he revisits several times, Pauls epistles, and various verses and parables sprinkled throughout that feel almost reflexive. On November 9, 2015, Slate announced he would take over the magazines Dear Prudence advice column from Emily Yoffe. And if it passed that test, I felt like, Okay, it needs to be in there., A large portion of the book deals with Laverys religious upbringing, which he told me he hadnt written about since an essay for Gawker as an intern in 2012. We grieve that John's departure became necessary to ensure real safeguarding." I'm taking up a whole table in a crowded coffee shop, by myself, . I remember readingthis old essay about Ian Paisley, the ultra-reactionary Ulster Protestant, who loved the really right-wing American evangelicals, and they loved him back. I was thinking a lot at the time about physical stress, fraudulence, being exposed as a fraud. Confession: I am an absolute sucker for weddings. TRANS! Nicole Cliffe will return next week . I got to come up with a lot of really exciting painful ideas., As you know, I was on patches at a low dose for 90 days, in part because I was operating on a theory (that theory being: maybe I am trans; I dont know really know what sort of trans experience this is; I dont know how much of this I want), and that experiment went so very, very well.