#//it's a giant melting pot of cultures and i really need to sit down and write it all down some time

[mechahero]

@pzfr asked- [ Culture ] [ Specialization ] [[ what's da culture like in motor city!!! ambassador questions (accepting!)

[ Culture ]

"Well, uh, it's kinda hard to explain?" A lock of hair twirls absentmindedly around a metal finger. His eyes locked to the side and away from whoever asked him the question. "It's very... condensed? Everyone brings a little bit of somethin' when they choose to live here and I guess over time it kinda turned into its own thing?"

"We've got like a lot parties and stuff? Mostly for morale, a lot of the time its for people that were dead and stuff." Lambda taps at his head, racking his brain for any more information that seems to have suddenly slipped his mind. Right when he needs it too. Man. "Oh right! We kinda just exist? But, like, we try and be good people obviously. That's kinda at the forefront of this whole thing. Uh... we kinda scrapped the idea of using cash for food and stuff? And people don't have to work to survive! I mean, people can work if they wanna?" He chews at his lip. It's hard to get the words out the way he was thinking about. "It's um, kinda hard to explain. You'd just hafta see it for yourself."

[ Specialization ]

"Like, as a cyborg? Or?" Realization dawns on him. Or something akin to that, anyway. "Ohhh. Did you mean the city?" He taps at his fingers. Or taps them together, rather. "Honestly? I don't really know? I guess it's sort of part of my goal to have a peaceful world? I mean, ya gotta start somewhere I guess." It sounds odd coming out of his mouth. Maybe even bad. Well, it sounds bad to him.

"We don't really specialize in anything? Except for being, I guess? Existing? I don't know how to explain it. I just don't know."

[imaginethatneathuh]

Brother P2: Shadow Moon - American Gods

Platonic relationship, male!reader, gn!reader, TB being himself.

CW: Smoking and swearing. Mentions of death, spirits, and betrayal.

Word count:  2,719

I’m still learning how to do this, please be patient.

“Masterlist”

•

“Well, hello there,” the person said. “Who the fuck are you?”

You looked at him, blankly, and groaned, regretting everything.

Losing your voice, you pulled out your pen and paper and wrote. “An idiot. And you’re a god. What about it?”

The boy scoffed and his tongue ran across his top teeth.

“Okay, motherfucker, first off, how do you know that?” He asked. “And second, you aren’t supposed to be here.”

Pressing his mouth around the tip of his weird looking vape, the boy took a drag.

You wrote your response as quickly as you could.

“First, it’s not that hard to figure, and, second, I’m not even supposed to be alive.” You mocked the way he asked his question. He didn’t seem to notice.

He choked on the smoke in his throat and coughed. Because of his pale skin, he turned slightly red. The boy coughs, beating his chest slightly.

You didn’t know why people did that. It’s not like it would help. Would it?

Clearing his throat, he said, “What I meant was, Shadow Moon was supposed to be here not, whoever the fuck you are.” He gestured with his, what you assumed to be, vape.

“Y/N = name,” you wrote.

He nodded, keeping his gaze fixated on the ground. “Pretty.”

“Yours?”

You watched him deliberate before he spoke.

“Technical Boy,” he said. “But you can call me Tech.” Pausing, he thought about what he said. “Or TB, if it’s easier to write.”

You nodded, thankful you didn’t have to write all that out.

“Who are you, exactly?” He asked.

You twisted the pen in your fingers, trying to figure out what would be most concise and would reveal the least.

“Friend of Shadow’s.”

Technical Boy read the paper and leant back in his seat. He looked thoughtful, as if he was analyzing the situation. Maybe he was. Maybe that’s how he worked. You didn’t know enough about this god to say for sure.

You had your own thoughts to contend with anyway.

Whoever this god was, he was dangerous. Maybe not like Wednesday, but he there was this underlying intimidation to him. Like all gods really. But this was different. He was different. Thinking is dangerous and Technical Boy was sure as hell taking his fucking time thinking about something.

Even if it wasn’t that, he still gave you the ‘don’t fuck with me’ kinda vibes. They weren’t Wednesday’s ‘don’t fuck with me vibes’. No, they were different. More in your face; just like everything else about this guy.

Which was nice. You knew where he was; his intentions practically seeped from his pores.

Unlike with Wednesday, who had too much mystery about him for you to trust with even a penny of your money.

“Your friend, does he know what he’s gotten himself into?”

You shook your head.

“He doesn’t even know who Wednesday is,” you wrote.

Technical Boy slowly nodded, thinking. He took another drag from his vape.

You could swear the thing in the sphere-like pod blinked at you.

The god followed your gaze to his vape.

“Synthetic toad skins,” he said. “Wanna hit?”

You shook your head. You didn’t need your mind fogged up by anything right now.

He shrugged, taking another hit and blowing out O’s.

You coughed as the smoke hit you. Now, that’s a dick move.

Guess you didn’t have a choice. Either take a hit directly, or get one from second-hand smoke.

Shadow probably would have snapped at him by now.

“How do you know about us?” He asked. “Gods, I mean.”

You raised an eyebrow, silently questioning his question.

“How does anyone know anything?” You asked him, writing it down on your pad.

He quietly chuckled and pointed at you.

“I like you,” he said. “Confident. Smart. Good qualities to have.”

“Point?”

“Straight-forward is also a good quality and a rare one. Wonder how you got it.”

Ouch. 

Technical Boy leant forward, studying you. “My, I suppose you could call him, boss, wants to know what Wednesday is up to.”

“A spy?”

Technical Boy nodded. “If you want to call it that, sure,” he said. “You can be our inside man.”

He was offering you a job.

Made sense.

The weather had been strange as of late. Then Wednesday shows up, offering Shadow one in a weird fucking way. When you had consulted the future (which is always vague) and the spirits (which are even more vague), they gave interesting answers. Everything seemed to be pointing toward something big happening and soon by the looks of it.

“Do I have a choice?”

Technical Boy nodded and said, “Sure. Death is always another option.” He quickly noticed your uneasy movements. “That was a joke, I swear. I didn’t actually mean that. I was just trying to be a dick.”

You leant back, breathing a little easier.

“Why should I?” You wrote. “Work for you instead of Wednesday. What are the benefits, cause the downside is that I’ll be hurting a friend and likely have to sneak around behind their backs.”

“Is money a good incentive? How about a steady job? You ever had either of those? Or maybe, all expenses paid for?” Technical Boy took another drag and blew out the smoke. “Also, the best tech you could ask for and whatever you need to get the job done.”

“I don’t give a shit about that.” The god seemed shocked by that, narrowing his eyes at you and leaning back like he was trying to see the big picture of you. Never gonna happen. “What I want to know is, why should I hurt my friend for someone I don’t know and for a cause I know nothing about?”

Technical Boy nodded, understanding the question. Barely, but he got there.

“Wednesday is in the past; we are the future. The Old Gods are fading, crumbling in America. They are nothing. Especially compared to us,” he said. “Don’t you want to be part of the winning side for once?”

His arrogance was definitely his worst trait.

“The Old Gods will always be there. They are a part of our culture,” you wrote. “Try as you might, the US will always be the melting pot of the world. There are too many cultures here to make it any different.”

Technical Boy smirked.

“Like I said, smart.” The god thought for a moment before countering. “That may be true, but those cultures are melting together and can’t stay apart for long. They will become one giant culture and that will be of the good ole U.S. of A. You can’t stop that. No one can.”

“Maybe. Why are you trying to convince me to work for you?”

Technical Boy shrugged.

“My mission was to find out what Wednesday has planned. You are, currently, the best way of doing that. Besides, maybe you can convince Shadow to join us too. He seems to be important to the old man, so why not?” The god gestured with his vape before taking a drag. “Just to fuck with him, ya know?” He blew out the smoke through his nose.

“Can I think about it?”

He nodded.

“Sure, take your time. Just not too long. We don’t have forever.”

“How would I get in contact with you?”

A smartphone materialized in your lap. It’s black, sleek case and the screen shined.

“Call me,” he said before cringing. “Text me, I mean. My number’s already in there.”

You nodded.

Technical Boy reached for a strangely shaped thing on his left. It looked like one of those plumbob things from The Sims but cut in half and with some sort of box sticking out of it. That's what it looked like from your perspective anyway. His hand hovered over the middle of the box before he pressed down on whatever it was. You could have sworn it turned red, but you couldn’t tell; it was too far away now.

“See ya on the flip side,” he said.

A piece of the roof gave way, opening like a box lid.

You were pulled from your seat and, in a way, floated out. It was strange. You didn’t feel like you left the whatever it was but you could see you had. It was like you were going upward while everything else was going down. It made your stomach hurt. You knew what direction you were going and what way was up just by looking, but none of it felt real. Nothing from the last few minutes felt real. Not the god, not the phone that burned in your pocket, not the offer the god had made, and certainly not the room, or whatever it was, you had been in.

What did feel real was Shadow holding you and calling your name.

By the gods, you did hate the gods.

“Y/N?” Shadow said. “Y/N, are you okay? What happened? Y/N?”

He kept calling your name, shaking you slightly, but you couldn’t respond. Not with your pad and pen and definitely not verbally.

Your mind was racing to catch up with everything as your body had.

Finally, you managed to sit up, Shadow holding you to help stabilize you. You weren’t built for this. Not in any way, shape, or form. Someone like Shadow? Probably. But you? No, not in the slightest. Maybe you shouldn’t have gotten in the way, but it was too late for that.

Everything hit you like a train as you watched the face-hugger-like contraption fold in on itself and disappear. Like it just blinked out of existence.

But that was the gods for you; always covering up their tracks. Some even pretending like they had nothing to do with how humans acted or what happened to humans. It’s sickening really, the way they act. But what can you do?

Some could hold their own under the gods’ onslaught; but you were too much like your parents, not strong enough to handle it.

Shadow kept his arms around you as you leant into his chest.

Technical Boy likely had no idea how that would have affected you so you couldn’t blame him; he was, afterall, looking for Shadow, not you. The two of you had entirely different genetic makeup.

You looked at Shadow as he looked fearfully at you.

“Y/N, are you okay?” He asked.

You nodded and breathed heavily.

“We have to get away,” you said. “Whatever is going on is dangerous.”

Every word hurt to say.

Though you wanted to tell him everything, you knew he wouldn’t believe you. He was that sort of guy.

“I made a deal with Wednesday,” he said.

You sighed, your gaze falling to the now muddy ground.

“I can’t break that. But you can leave, if you want.” Shadow let you go and stood up, offering his hand. “It’s okay if you do. I’d understand.”

You scoffed and took his hand. “And what? Let you get yourself killed? Not happening.”

Shadow smiled, pulling you up.

You were brothers; you couldn’t just walk away from each other like that.

•

You know that feeling that people get when they think they’re being watched? Well, that was the feeling you got as you and Shadow climbed back to the street. It felt like someone was spying on you from the bushes or something, but you pushed the feeling aside.

The both of you would need a shower after this. That and clean clothes.

•

You both found your separate rooms at the motel. They were right next to each other, like your cells had been the first time you met.

Collapsing on your bed, mud caking your shoes and clothes, you stared at the ceiling and considered your options: join these New Gods and betray your friend, deny their offer and side with the Old Gods, or skip town and never interact again.

The third choice was your favourite.

Joining the New Gods was a no-brainer really. They, as Technical Boy said, were the future. But is that a future you really want to be a part of? One where minorities were attacked, locked up, and killed for no reason. One where the planet was being poisoned by large corporations. A future where people’s entire future’s and live’s depended on one election. Is that something you really wanted? There was also the whole moral thing of betraying someone you trusted whole-heartedly. You couldn’t give less of a shit about Wednesday and whatever he was doing. But you did care about Shadow and, like he said, he did make a deal. He always keeps his deals.

On the other hand, there were the Old Gods. They were obviously going to lose. They weren’t powerful enough. It’d be great for whoever they fight in the name of (Wednesday) but they’d still lose. The only plus side was Shadow. Keeping him safe was all that enticed you to consider this course.

But you could still keep him safe with the New Gods.

The last option was taking Shadow and getting out. But you knew he wouldn’t go with you. He needed the money and had already sealed the deal.

You sat up and stared at the carpet before flopping back down on the bed.

You knew what you had to do, what the smartest choice was and would all but guarantee Shadow’ safety.

You had to play all sides.

It was obvious when you thought about it.

You would agree to spy for the New Gods, so long as Technical Boy would be your “handler”, help Wednesday with whatever (while supplying that information to Technical Boy), but your main goal would be convincing Shadow to leave with you. You knew a small town in Wisconsin that would be perfect to hide away in. Your family had hid there before. It may not have done you any good back then, but things change.

Yes, this would require a level of deception that you hadn’t used in years, but it wasn’t the hardest plan you’d ever come up with. Plus, people always had a habit of underestimating the quiet one. That was often their fatal mistake.

With that plan in mind, you pulled out the phone Technical Boy had given you and turned it on.

Technical Boy must have known you did because a text came through.

‘Decided?’ It read.

‘Yes,’ you texted back. ‘I’ll work for you, but only you.’

‘Good.’ A new line of text appeared. ‘Text if Wednesday reveals anything or you find out anything useful.’ Another line popped up. ‘I’ll set up meeting places. Don’t text unless you need me or have information.’

‘Got it.’

You tossed the phone onto the bed and covered your face with your hands.

What had you just done?

Something stupid, that’s what.

If he found out what you were really doing, you’d end up dead for sure. Or worse yet, Shadow would.

You pushed the thought away. You couldn’t afford to think like that, not now. Not when you had to focus on manipulating and lying to people, one of which you would do anything for.

•

Wednesday walked over to you as Shadow helped the moving men load stuff into the truck.

You leant against Betty, as he called her. Pulling a package of gum out of your pocket, you plucked one out and took off the wrapper. Quickly stuffing the piece in your mouth, you put the package away and crumpled the wrapper up, putting it in your pocket.

“So,” the older man said. “Shadow and I talked last night.” You said nothing, just nodding along. “He said that you pushed him out of the way of some sort of device. That the thing was stuck on your face for a while. That you were shaken when you came out.” You just nodded. “What did he say to you?” Wednesday asked. “What did he promise you if you helped him?”

You looked over at him and rolled your eyes before pulling out your pad of paper and your red crayon.

“Don’t worry, I told him to take a hike,” you wrote. “Odin.”

Wednesday stepped away from you, surprised.

“I weighed the risks. Shadow is more likely to get hurt with them than you.”

The Old God nodded and realized where your loyalties lie; with Shadow and Shadow alone.

[writtenbyhappynerds]

Fanfic 102: Unit 3, Diversity

          Hello! Welcome back. This week we’re going to talk about Diversity. Beyond how to insert diversity into your writing, the nuances, and the ways you can create a believable character. The Editor and I understand how sensitive of a subject this is, and wanted to take the time to make sure the information we are doling out is inclusive and well-written and quality. There is often a lack of diversity in media and books, and often when it is included it’s shoe-horned in for brownie points. We understand that, and we want the up-and-coming writers to be better than those before them. The two most important things to remember are the following: no diversity beats terribly-done diversity, and, the way that the character is diverse is not and should never be their whole personality. We will be discussing LGBT, ableism, and race.

          The LGBT community is a vibrant community with members of all shapes and sizes. The most important part when writing a character who is gay or trans is that this aspect is part of their identity but it is not their whole identity. When we discussed characterization in Fanfiction 101, we talked about not reducing side characters or members of the cast to one-note aspects of their personality. The same applies here, and a character’s sexuality or gender expression should not be at the forefront of every conversation. You shouldn’t create these characters with their sexual or gender identity being at the forefront of your mind, because you wouldn’t do that for a straight or cis character. You wouldn’t sit down to make a character with your first thought being ‘ok but they have to be cis,’ so it’s silly to do the same to a gay or trans or nonbinary character. Make them like you would any other character. What changes would be aspects of their identity, or values they hold near and dear to their heart or motivations. Those may be different than a straight character or a cis-gender character.

          If you’re straight or cis and writing a gay or trans character, you need to do your research to accurately portray the character in a realistic and believable way. An example we love is Todd Chavez in Bojack Horseman, who portrayed an asexual character, and Todd’s journey as he came into his own. Bojack Horseman also portrayed polyamory with Hollyhock, who was the adopted daughter of 8 dads. What we enjoyed was that Todd’s sexuality added dimension to his character. It didn’t reduce him to being the token LGBT representative, and it didn’t force him into a box where he could only focus on LGBT issues. Todd was and is so much more than that, and his sexuality is a part of his story, but it’s not the sole story.

Rick Riordan is a master of writing experiences that are not his own, and he cheated the system by basing his characters off of people he knew. This is a method that you can use. You can base your characters off of friends, public figures, etc. If you decide to not do that, googling what transgender men and women have to experience or what top surgery is isn’t enough. I would suggest looking to Youtube, where many transgender and LGBT  influencers have talked about their experiences. I would suggest looking to forums, Reddit being one of them. Yahoo Answers is also a really good source. What you want is as many experiences as you can get: ones that are similar, and ones that contrast. The goal is to combine them and make your own character in a melting pot of other experiences. You owe it to not only those who read your story but yourself to do the research. You want your characters to represent the communities you do, and the ones you don’t as best you can.

          Let’s move on to people of color (POC). The same rules we’ve discussed prior apply: A poorly written POC is worse than no POC (Looking at you Baljeet). In addition, that POC’s ethnicity should not be their entire personality, and if you are creating a character just to say that you have made a POC, then you have already failed. There are many issues we see when we find people of color in fanfiction. Among them are language barriers, naming, and a misinterpretation of cultural values and experiences.

          Putting words in a foreign language in the middle of fanfic is very, very common. You see it everywhere. In Avengers fanfic it’s Russian or Norse. In Batman fanfic, it’s any of the languages that the Batkids speak. The writers put in these conversations that sometimes go on for pages in another language, and then add an author’s note at the bottom with the translation. This is awkward, and when you read books, this is something you never see. If you want your character to speak another language, you don’t need to actually write the other language. Putting a few sentences through Google translate doesn’t make you a better or more dedicated writer than someone who adds the tag: “she was screaming now, all her words coming out in rapid French.” Tags can be used to dictate a change in language, and I encourage you to use them. Now, there are of course exceptions to this rule, and those exceptions usually lie in food, names, and things. Calling someone a name that is in another language is fine. Describing food in another language is fine, and things are generally ok. But that’s just for you. Your characters also have to speak the language.

          No one worth their salt or heritage is going to go through a moment where they start out speaking in their fluent tongue and then “forget” to switch back and forth between English and their native language. It is so incredibly unrealistic and awful and it lets the reader know someone who is not actually bilingual wrote this piece of work. When you learn two languages, here’s what really happens: you forget words. You have to stumble through words in your own language before you get to the one you need. You call things, “that thing.” You point. You sometimes say “what’s that called?” you find aspects of the second language, or even your own language stupid and you don’t want to do it. You get words mixed up and you make mistakes. That’s all okay, and that all happens, and should be written as such. One of my teachers never forgot the French word for spider because she got the shit scared out of her by one and didn’t know what to call it when she needed someone to kill it. My aunt took 3 years to learn Turkish by immersion and now can speak it fluently. You don’t even need to be fluent in every language, and many people only know a handful of words in one or a few sentences in another. That’s totally okay! If anything that’s more realistic because it’s super hard to learn a new language and speak it fluently. Don’t force your characters into a box like that. Let them make mistakes.

          Culture is a huge thing when writing POC. You have to keep in mind that culture shifts, and what may have been culturally huge for one set of characters won’t be as significant for others. You want your characters to interact with their culture in a way that is realistic, and not reductive. Kelly from the Office is a great example, as she invites the office to celebrate Diwali with her. Lara Jean from To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before is another example. We see her eat Korean food at home, and in the books, she still celebrates Korean holidays. Where the shift comes into play can be seen in Never Have I Ever where Devi is not as Indian as her parents, and we see her struggle with the culture. She still goes to Hindu association things, Ganesh puja, and she wears Indian clothes. However, she’s still a normal teenager out chasing boys and worrying about colleges. In Superstore the Muslim character prays 5 times a day, and still works at the grocery giant. The big takeaway is that these people have lives that include, but aren’t limited to their cultures. They aren’t reduced to stereotypes.

          Naming characters is already rough. However, naming characters from a different background than you are even tougher. The Editor has a lot of anger towards Panju Weasley, from Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. Her exact words, as they were texted to me:

**

>Like Cursed Child where Ron and Padma has a kid named Panju.

>What the fuck is a Panju?

>That’s literally the dumbest name in the world

>All she had to google was Indian names.

>There are so many fucking lists.

>I dont even think it’s an actual name. Like it might be a nickname for some people but I dont think people have actually named their child panju.

**

          As usual, the Editor is very correct. There is a simple solution to getting around what we’ll call the Panju Dilemma- a phrase which we’ll use to describe terrible naming choices of POC. In Fanfiction 101 we had an entire unit centered around naming. Nameberry.com exists, and if they don’t have it all you need to do is Google the country of origin and the sex of the OC. Sometimes you can add in the year the OC was born, to really get a feel for the time period, but that doesn’t always work. For example, in one of our stories we have a cluster of kids from Syria. When it came time to name said kids, we Googled: popular Syrian names 2003. That’s how we got our OCs: Reem, Nour, Nizar, Jano, and Stella. Naming is very important, and you owe it to your readers and your characters to do them justice, and not saddle them with a terrible name.

          The final note of diversity we want to talk about is actual ability. Ableism is often overlooked in movies, shows, or books. It is something that is shoehorned in as an extra adversary for the OC or the cast, only *gasp* This time the biggest adversary is themselves. I hate that. I want to eliminate that because as someone with a disability and someone who has worked with kids with disabilities, you can absolutely write and code characters like that in so long as, and say it with me now, it is not their entire personality.

          You can totes write a character with anxiety and/or depression, so long as you don’t snub these very real mental disorders that millions face on a daily basis. You also have a duty, especially with anxiety and depression, to not glorify, glamorize, or romanticize either. Do not romanticize self-harm. Do not romanticize anxiety. Do not romanticize depression. They are not cruel tricks of life that befall beautiful intelligent women. It is not “tragically beautiful.” Depression and anxiety and self-harm are not a paragraph for you to lament on while the OC gazes longingly out the window at her lover. Anxiety keeps some people from talking on the phone they’re so nervous. It gives girls panic attacks in mall food courts because they don’t know what’s going on anymore. Depression isn’t your OC watching the rain in a hoodie and sweats, it’s not showering for days on end because you can’t find the motivation to. It’s having insomnia because you can’t sleep. Self-harm is not an OC’s love interest holding their wrists and telling them to stop. It is deep pain and numbness and hurting yourself to try and feel something. It is rubbing Neosporin on your cuts and hoping they go away. It is forcing your friends to keep it a secret because you don’t want anyone to know because what if they take it away from you. These mental disorders are not yours to romanticize. They are yours to show the growth and power and strength of your characters. They are yours to use to show how trauma has affected your character and can represent normality behind mental health and emotion and talking about things like this. Even more so than girls, writing a male OC with anxiety or depression is more empowering because you are allowing a character to talk about their feelings when that isn’t seen as acceptable by their sex. If you feel you are able to take that plunge, and you can do the adequate research to represent the disorder well, go for it.

          In addition to mental health, physical disabilities are often overlooked. I have a chronic illness. I have never seen in a book, movie, TV show, or fanfiction anyone with a chronic illness, let alone my chronic illness. That in of itself is a broad term, and I’ll let chronic illness mean anything from lupus and POTS to asthma and anemia. These disabilities make a character have to work harder, but hey, look at Captain America. The boy had every disability under the sun and he got out alright. No one is going to make changes for you. You have to be the change you want to see. If I want OCs with chronic illnesses, I have to write them and do them justice by not only my community but the communities that I don’t represent. Jeremy Scott’s The Ables is a great example of writing disability and using it as part of, but not a character’s entire identity. The main characters all have superpowers but are put in a class that doesn’t allow them to use said powers. This is because they are all disabled. The main character is blind and telekinetic, another can read minds but is in a wheelchair, another is a genius but has cerebral palsy. Their disabilities are a minor obstacle, but not the big bad, and that is a great way to write disability. People who live with physical disabilities or chronic illnesses have to deal with said limitations every day. To us, as time goes on it becomes less of the monster at the end of the story and more of an everyday beast. It becomes normal, and there are bigger things for us to worry about than just our disease. This speaks for every aspect of diversity we have covered in this chapter: The people with said note have to live with it every day. It is a common enemy, not the final boss. To treat it as such is to say that it is our biggest concern in life. I wish my chronic illness was my biggest concern, but I have other fish to fry.

          What we have done here is not an all-inclusive list of diversity. This chapter took 2 weeks to write because the Editor and I wanted to do right by our community. Not just the communities we proudly represent but the communities we don’t. There are many more nuances and aspects to diversity that are out there, and what we have presented is our best. Yet it is still incomplete. If there is something important that you feel we have left out, we sincerely apologize. We acknowledge that what we have written here is not all-encompassing for diversity. We wanted to talk about issues that are common occurrences. However, what we have covered is not the end-all of what’s out there. We apologize for the delay, and to make up for it, our next unit Writing Children will be published at the same time as this one. We sincerely apologize for the delay.

Xoxo, Gossip Girl

[thecourtneychronicles]

“Courtney Act says she’s enjoying an endless “hot girl summer”. Which, for those not initiated into American rap memes, basically means she’s having a damn good time.

“I’m kind of lubed up and ready for Mardi Gras, so to speak,” she says. As Australia’s most famous drag queen, active since the turn of the century, Courtney helped lead the mainstreaming of queer culture in this country along with figures such as Carlotta and Bob Downe.

But being a leader or pioneer doesn’t guarantee being comfortable in your own skin. Courtney says that until recently her understanding of sexuality and gender was actually quite limited. When she was performing, she was a woman, but when she stripped off her make-up, she went back to being Shane Jenek, a man.

“Although I did drag, my masculinity and femininity were compartmentalised in the binary,” Courtney says.

But over the past few years, as public discussion of gender, sexuality and identity has grown, she has discovered things are more complex than your genitals, clothes and hair.

“I think sometimes people think identity has something to do with the wrapping, but really it’s the gift underneath,” she says. “It’s about how you feel. For me, I definitely feel like I occupy masculine and feminine qualities.”

Courtney explores this journey in her pop-cabaret show, Fluid, showing this week at the Eternity Playhouse in Darlinghurst as part of the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras festival. It’s a change of pace for her after focusing on television in recent years; first by winning Britain’s Celebrity Big Brother in 2018, then as the runner-up (with Joshua Keefe) on last year’s Australian Dancing with the Stars.

It’s also a far cry from her humble beginnings in the DIY world of drag, which has never been regarded as high art but remains a staple of gay bars and culture worldwide.

“There’s a lot less hot glue and sticky tape in this show, which makes it feel a lot more professional,” Courtney says of Fluid. “I don’t know if that will hold until opening night.”

Set to original music, Fluid was written by Shane and American comedian Brad Loekle. For the most part it’s a one-woman show, with some help from a ballroom dancer in the second half. (“It’d be weird doing a ballroom dance by yourself,” she says.)

The show acknowledges that, more than ever, people are being flooded with “ever-changing and flowing ideas of who we are, what we are and what we might become”.

This is something we should embrace, says Courtney. “We change our clothes every day – we change  our hairstyles, we change our jobs. Everything is constantly in motion and constantly fluid. But we have this idea that our identities are fixed. When we look at our lives they’re actually a lot more fluid than we think.”

Courtney, or Shane, doesn’t identify as trans but has said that seeing more transgender people represented in the media was liberating and allowed her to explore her own doubts about gender. She’s previously been described as “gender fluid, pansexual and polyamorous”, although she no longer embraces those labels as she once did.

“They all work,” says Courtney, who prefers to identify as “just generally queer” these days. “It’s funny … so many of our groups identify so strongly with labels and they’re so important to us. I kind of feel less attached to those labels.”

She also understands why some people might feel confused, or even confronted, by the politics of queer identification. The acronym LGBTQIA+, which stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, asexual and others, has expanded over the years to the point that some critics deride it as “alphabet soup”. Even those who are part of the community can be intolerant.

“I get that LGBTIQA+ is a little cumbersome from a marketing standpoint,” says Courtney. “But if you find yourself with the time to complain and be confused by a few extra letters, then you’re one of the lucky ones. If there are people that get to understand themselves more because of a letter in an acronym, I’m all for it.”

“I definitely feel like I occupy masculine and feminine qualities.”

Courtney casts a sceptical eye over everything, including the rise of cancel culture, a predominantly left-wing phenomenon which argues that anyone who says or does something deemed to be racist, sexist, homophobic or in any way offensive should be called out, shamed and, preferably, silenced.

Lamenting the state of political discourse while appearing on the ABC’s Matter of Fact program last year, she said: “The volume’s too loud now and everybody’s yelling.” While history showed that people sometimes need to raise their voices, “when you actually sit down opposite someone and have a conversation with them, you get so much further”.

How, then, does Courtney view the debate over religious freedom that has raged ever since Australians voted to legalise same-sex marriage in 2017? She says it’s clear that sometimes people, especially older white males, perceive other people gaining rights as a threat to their own. She says religion can be a lost cause because it is, by definition, about faith rather than rational argument. Still, queer people have to make the effort to engage.

“The way to do that is to get people to picture themselves in other people’s experiences. That’s the only way you can foster that empathy.

“Rather than yelling aggressively back at the people trying to oppress us, I think the most important thing to do is to share our stories.”

Another thing you can do, of course, is march. This weekend, Mardi Gras culminates in the annual parade up Oxford Street, which will feature more than 200 floats and 10,000 marchers. For the first time, Courtney will co-host the coverage on SBS with comedians Joel Creasey and Zoe Coombs Marr, and Studio 10 presenter Narelda Jacobs.

She had something of a practice run hosting the coverage on Foxtel some years ago. “I saw a clip of it the other day,” she says. “And I’m definitely hoping to redeem myself.”

As a character, Courtney has been on the gay scene for about 20 years. The person behind the facade, Shane, turned 38 last week. He grew up in Brisbane and remembers watching the parade on television as a teenager in the 1990s, huddled up close to the TV so he could quickly switch it off if his parents came downstairs.

Shane came to Sydney when he was 18 and attended his first Mardi Gras. “I just remember it was such a melting pot of people,” he says. “It was the first time I really understood what a community was: that there were all these different parts, and we all faced different challenges and struggles.”

But even then, Shane says he failed to really comprehend about what Mardi Gras was all about. Just like many heterosexual critics over the years, as a young man he gawked at the giant dancing penises, fetish-wear and nudity and wondered: why?

“I remember thinking: why can’t they just be normal?” Shane says. “Have your parade, but why does it have to be about sex and penises? Because I had shame about all of those things. I realise now that the parade’s brash display of sexuality liberates the shame … it’s a really radical way to shake people and say there’s nothing wrong with sexuality – not just homosexuality but sexuality in general.”

The queer community has given Shane a lot: acceptance, identity, a career and fame. It has taken him to Los Angeles, where he was based for some years until 2018, and now to his new home in London.

Love, on the other hand, remains elusive. He is “on the rebound” at the moment, though eternally optimistic. “It’s Mardi Gras time, it’s summer in Sydney, I think this is the perfect time to be single. Maybe I’ll find love under a disco ball at the after-party.”

Incredibly, at 38, Shane is about to attend his first ever wedding, straight or gay – his friend Tim is marrying his partner Ben. It is set to be a baptism of fire. “They have asked my ex-boyfriend and me to give the best man’s speech together, which could be slightly sadistic,” he says.

Shane is still adjusting to the relatively new world of same-sex marriage. It’s not for everyone – many queers still think of it as a conservative and unnecessary institution – but it’s growing on him. “Weirdly, seeing all these people get married, I feel like my cold heart has melted a bit,” he says. “I think there’s something really beautiful about marriage.”

It’s a reminder of why events like the Mardi Gras are still so important – a celebration of diversity at the same time as the old divisions between straight and gay are knocked down. As well as marriage, this can manifest in small shifts, like the politics of Bondi Beach.

“I was at North Bondi on Saturday [and] it was surprisingly unlike North Bondi,” Shane says. “It was all families and those banana umbrella things. I was like, ‘Oh, I remember when this used to be [gay nightclub] ARQ, but with more light.’"

“I guess that’s the progress we fought for – the families are happy occupying the gay beaches now.”

Fashion director Penny McCarthy. Photographer Steven Chee. Hair Benjamin Moir at Wigs By Vanity.

SBS’s Mardi Gras broadcast airs live from 7.30pm on February 29. Fluid will return for a tour of Australia and NZ in spring.

This article appears in Sunday Life magazine within the Sun-Herald and the Sunday Age on sale February 23.”

Courtney’s interview for The Sydney Morning Herald - February 21, 2020

[tsgnorthwestarkansas]

Event planner + designer Bartus Taylor, owner of Buzz Event Planning & Design, talks “a day in the life” with Nikki Spurlock, local blog writer for The Scout Guide Northwest Arkansas.

What’s All the BUZZ: 24 Hours with Bartus Taylor

As I approach the double doors of Buzz Event Planning & Design (21 West Mountain Street, Suite 120, Fayetteville, AR), I hear the beep of a car alarm and turn around to see Bartus Taylor, founder and owner of the biz. Wearing a long caftan, sunglasses, fabulous fringed sandals and a larger than life smile, we hug like old friends. As Bartus unlocks the door to his office he flips the lights on to an event planning haven. Mouth open, eyes wide, I am mesmerized by the layers of fancy that I see…and smell, for that matter. Flowers, statues, columns, greenery, glassware and stringed lights everywhere. Bartus says with a swipe of his arm, “Let’s get outta here! It is a mess!” Apparently, a late weekend event made their typical “clean up” impossible, although I thought I was in a party wonderland! 

So, from Bartus’ office/studio we head back out the door. I was positive we would hit it off, but little did I know how I would walk away from our time together truly inspired by Bartus, his dedication to his business and clients, and his positive outlook on life.

We walk to a nearby local coffee shop and find a spot nestled off to the side. What better way to find out about someone than a fun and invasive round of rapid fire questioning? […which proved to not be rapid at all for the mere fact that between Bartus and myself, there is no lack of conversation.] Without hesitation, Bartus was ready:

Hidden Talent: In his gorgeous African accent, “There is nothing hidden in here! What do I have to hide? If I can’t be myself then I just can’t be at all!” Bartus references his childhood in Africa and then move into the United States at 18. “I’ve been through too much to be ashamed of anything!” His confidence is palpable and moving.  

Biggest Fear: “Letting people down,” which is ironic considering Bartus’ level of assurance. His face melts from this giant smile [eyes and all] to this defeated almost childlike disposition. We dive a little deeper into this topic. This fear is more relevant today in context to his work at Buzz. “I created this business from nothing! I owe it to myself and those that got me where I am today to be the very best I can be.” Event planning changes as quickly as the day. The styles, the cultures, the political influences all effect the way clients place their decisions. For Bartus, he has to stay ahead of these persuasions to ensure he gives the best service possible.

[I am so captivated by this conversation. We are literally finishing each other’s sentences and then laughing hysterically, which I can imagine is the comfort Bartus finds with his clients.]

Fave Day of the Week: “Every day is my favorite. Waking up and knowing that I’m alive is enough for the day. Sometimes when I’m being a brat…giggle…and complaining I realize, it’s really not that bad!” He giggles again.

First Celeb Crush: “What’s his name? ...he’s not a really popular actor…kind of under the radar” …he agrees to let me know the second his name pops into his head. Seven hours later I receive a text…Josh Lucas! Ahhhhh…yep, I get it!

What’s for Dinner Tonight?: “Probably Popeyes”…we laugh! He’s all “I LOVE me some Popeye’s chicken!”

Favorite Word: “Gratitude. I'm just grateful for the people that support me and surround me. My clients, mentors — anyone that has ever trusted and believed in me — I have all the gratitude for them." 

Least Favorite Word: “Curated” with a way dramatic eye roll, literally throwing his head back, he explains how the word is so overused these days, with “experience” being his second least favorite…especially when used together. “oh please [his hand shews it away],” he says. …and I was right there with him.

Guilty Pleasure: With really no guilt at all…” Netflix!” Yes!!! And before I could get the words out…what’s the most binge worthy series? And with both hands on his face he laughs and loudly whispers “Sex in the City!” He giggles in this high pitch tone that makes everyone look and smile. It’s contagious. I giggle. We start the hysterical laughing and he says through his laughter, “right?!” My cheeks are sore and I have tears. Good tears.

When Bartus speaks he lingers on every word, as if each is as significant as the next. He often closes his eyes to find the best way to appropriately communicate his thoughts. His smooth voice accentuates his passion for life. I ask him, “if your hands were tied down, would you be able to talk?” He says YES…because the movement of his whole body and facial gestures would take over. With this we delve into what 24 hours of Bartus Taylor looks like.

24 Hours With Bartus Taylor

4:30 a.m.: Wake up! “I head to a quiet place to set structure to my day.” Bartus looks over his schedule, posts on social media, and plans his execution for the day.  I’m getting the feeling that serenity is a must for this businessman who hits the ground running the second he steps out the door.

Around 6:30 a.m.: Laundry time is imperative. “I iron my sheets every day. I love to have ironed sheets that are crisp and fit perfectly on the bed.” Wait. What? I ask, “you iron your bed sheets?!” I can’t even get the words out and he’s already shaking his head up and down as if to say “absolutely!” Order is of utmost importance, as a career in event planning doesn’t always lend to predictability or outcome.

These 4 hours from when Bartus wakes up until he leaves his home to head to the office set the tone for his day. Solitude and self-reflection are essential. Bartus says, “I dress how I feel that day. If I feel like wearing hot pink pants, then I wear hot pink pants.” He admits to going through a black and gray phase for a while, but decided that adding color to his wardrobe made him express more accurately how he is feeling. We then get off on a tangent about his over the top obsession with shoes and fabulous shoe collection. “Shoes are everything!” He admits to at least 150 shoes in his closet. I can picture the perfectly aligned rows of shoes, all colors and styles.

8:30 a.m.: Bartus leaves the house to head to his business of 15 years, Buzz Event Planning & Design. This is his last moment alone before he shifts into full Buzz mode!

9:00 a.m.: After about a 30-minute drive from his home in Springdale to his office that sits right on the Fayetteville square, Bartus meets his coworkers, Brandi and Alyssa, who he lovingly refers to (with a giant grin) as his “team” and “family.” With a pot of coffee brewing, they have their morning ritual “kitchen table time,” where they discuss what’s going on in their own lives, what’s on the agenda for the day and the week, what clients they will be serving and what their specific needs and wants may be, what appointments they have for the afternoon, and everything else that puts them on the same page as one another. Bartus speaks so highly of these ladies. “They can learn from me but it’s more important that they know how much I learn from them. I always want to know their thoughts and opinions before a decision is made.”

Around 11:00 a.m.: The Buzz team concludes their “kitchen talk” and spend about an hour scheduling appointment with clients and confirming their afternoon for that day.

Noon – 1:00 p.m.: Away for lunch

After lunch until 5:00 p.m.: This is the time where Bartus meets with clients.”Your job is to give people what they don’t know they want.” I had to repeat this out loud a few times to fully understand. There is an element of mind reading that Bartus has to achieve to fully understand what his client wants. “Many times, they know what they want, but they don’t know how to [he pauses…waves his hands in front of him] …they don’t know how to let me know.” There’s a whole process of listening and offering ideas back and forth until Bartus’ clients are completely satisfied. He won’t settle for less than perfection. Ever.

5:00 p.m.: Hungry from a long day, Bartus leaves the office and stops at either Popeye’s Chicken, Penguin Ed’s barbecue, or the Fresh Market for a rotisserie chicken take-out dinner. I laugh. He laughs. “People are always surprised when they hear I eat at Popeye’s!” He shrugs his shoulders and giggles…loud… “I don’t know why,” with his hands in the air as if to surrender to the judgement.

6:00ish – 11:00ish p.m.: Home. Eat. Tennis. “I have a court in the back yard, so I love to go out and play tennis by myself.” This is the time for Bartus to relax. After getting a little physical activity in, it’s time to chill out in front of the TV, listen to music, decompress the brain…until he succumbs to the sleep gods.

Bartus enjoys the vibrancy and community spirit represented by the Experience Fayetteville art mural during his walk from his office located on the Fayetteville Downtown Square to his favorite local coffee spot Arsaga’s Church & Center. Art mural by local artist Olivia Trimble. 

Bartus Taylor might be one of the most passionate individuals I’ve ever met. His joy is infectious, and his generosity is undoubted. He’s funny. He’s adorable. He loves big. Bartus speaks with intent. During our time together no less than five people come up to say hello to him and give a quick hug. He introduces me to each one and expresses right there how they have influenced his life. It’s clear why he’s so good at what he does. With tears in his eyes, Bartus quotes his grandmother, “You have to stand for something, or you will fall for anything.” I pictured him extending his arm and dropping the mic…and shouting “BAM!”

The Scout Guide Northwest Arkansas blog writer, Nikki Spurlock (left), and Bartus Taylor enjoying a selfie moment on the Fayetteville Downtown Square & Gardens.

Plan your wedding of a lifetime or unforgettable special event by connecting with Bartus Taylor of Buzz Event Planning & Design (21 West Mountain Street, Suite 120, Fayetteville, AR) at (479) 287-4131 or email Bartus at info@buzzevents.biz.

About Nikki Spurlock, local blog writer for The Scout Guide Northwest Arkansas: Born and raised in Dallas, TX, Nikki’s creative expression began from the time she could hold a paint brush. "When I was 10 years old, my mom had my bathroom painted white and allowed me to hand paint the entire room as if I were standing in an aquarium." There were no parameters to Nikki's imagination. Extending the artistic thread through her adulthood, Nikki painted, created, sculpted, and eventually took to writing as a form of expression. Her bold and colorful paintings mimic that of her writing style. “When blogging I love to use humor and brutal honesty to relay a message. I typically just say the things everyone else is thinking! Nikki currently resides in Cave Springs, AR. “Blogging for The Scout Guide has allowed me to extend my writing roots out into our local NWA community that I naturally love to brag on!”

[travelinglifeshighways]

Key West, Florida

Key West, Florida

Thursday, May 3 through May 9, 2018

Clear, 89° most days

“What you’ve done becomes the judge of what you’re going to do – especially in other people’s minds.  When you’re traveling, you are what you are right there and then.  People don’t have your past to hold against you.  No yesterdays on the road.”   — William Least Heat Moon

Key West is one of those cities that have different personalities as you meander the streets within Old Town.  It is a beautiful small town that still has a laid back mentality even with “all of the tourists covered in oil” wandering around.  Cruise ships dock and the town fills up with people who are scurrying about trying to take in as much as they can while their ship is docked at Mallory Square.  When the cruise ships are not in port and there are no festivals going on in Key West, it has that charm of a Southern town complete with a few more than the normal strange characters found in most small communities.  There are the fishermen, the shop owners, the artists, and the writers along with a few former modern day pirates who come here to fulfill that need for the uncommon things in life.  Does time ever pass in the Florida Keys?  Everyone and everything in Key West seems to go at its own pace, right down to the ice melting slooooowly in your margarita glass.  Of course, it’s not all limes and leisure as shopping, walking, and taking in the sights are high on everyone’s list of things to do.  There are the Jet Ski rentals, deep sea fishing charters, even the sunset dinner cruises to do on any given day.  Everyone is on island time and for good reason, it is easy to slow down here from your normal pace in life outside this island atmosphere.  We came here for three days but extended the stay to a week as the sunrises and sunsets make you want to linger to see one more before leaving town.  The night life is always a main attraction with all the small music venues, bars, and offbeat places one may find on any backstreet in Key West.  Duvall Street is a main gathering place but there are so many other interesting places just off this main drag, pun intended.

There are always people gathering close to “The Southernmost Point in the Southernmost City of Key West” each afternoon in Mallory Square to watch the sun slowly sink into the ocean.  It is amazing how many people take time out of their day to stop what they were doing, come to this gathering place with other people and enjoy the ritual of the sun slowly sinking below the horizon each day.  It really puts things into perspective with your busy life.  We can often times be so busy and miss out on the small things going on around us each day.  Seeing the sun rise or set is a lesson that has stayed with me all my life since first visiting the island in my teens.

"See you at Sunset" has a special significance in Key West, Florida.  It's an invitation to partake in a spontaneous celebration as jugglers, tourists, clowns, fishermen, psychics, island musicians, artists, food vendors, and friends gather each night to celebrate the close of another day in Paradise.

Many noted figures have enjoyed the sunsets from Mallory Square over the years.  Audubon wrote glowingly of the glorious Key West sunsets while visiting in the early 1800's, and legend has it that Tennessee Williams initiated the ritual of applauding the sunset at Mallory Square, gin and tonic firmly in hand.  His museum just off Duvall Street on US1 is a great stop to learn about his time living here and the people that were part of his life.  Key West has inspired many writers and artist who completed much of their successful work from little studios in their homes on the island.

The contemporary incarnation of Sunset Celebration really took off in the late 1960's as groups of carefree hippies descended upon Key West and Mallory Pier in search of paradise.  The way that the sunset ceremony got started is that all the "freaks" as drug users were called in the sixties, used to go down every evening high on LSD to watch Atlantis rising mythically out of the cloud formations at sunset.  There were about 30-40 regulars, many of whom lived in Fogarty house.

The Key West Cultural Preservation Society, Inc. (a not for profit corporation) in 1984 drafted guidelines for participation and negotiated a lease with the City of Key West with the understanding that CPS would manage Sunset and ensure its artistic integrity.  The rest is history, as they say.

Sunset Celebration continues to be an internationally known attraction that supports a cottage industry in Key West.  It has become an incubator for the arts, and a launching point for many visual and performing artists. Sunset can be credited with attracting and inspiring the development of a generation of talent known throughout the world.

We did the typical tourist things; rode the Conch train giving the history of the island and visited Ernest Hemingway’s house on Whitehead Street just around the block from Sloppy Joe’s, the bar, where Hemingway hung out with his close friends (“the mob”) whose adventures in around Key West are well known.  They drank, sport fished for giant marlin, and several were the basis of characters in his books.  Hemingway’s boat “Pilar” code named after one of his future wives (He was still married to the current one at the time) was captained by Gregorio Fuentes.  Fuentes served as the basis for the character Santiago, in The Old Man and The Sea.  He passed away in 2002 at the age of 104.  Hemingway’s house sits on one acre, the largest plot of land for a single family home in Key West.  It is right next to the Lighthouse said to have been the beacon to find his way home after a night of drinking at Sloppy Joe’s bar.

The Hemingway home was built in 1851 in the Spanish Colonial style, and was constructed of native rock hewn from the grounds.  The home was in great disrepair when it the Hemingway’s took ownership, but both Ernest and Pauline could see beyond the rubble and ruin, and appreciated the grand architecture and stateliness of the home.  The massive restoration and remodeling they undertook in the early 1930’s turned the home into the National Historical Landmark that thousands of tourists visit and enjoy today.

 A unique and extraordinary feature of the grounds is the pool, built in 1937-38, at the staggering cost of $20,000.  It was the first in-ground pool in Key West, and the only pool within 100 miles.  The exorbitant construction costs once prompted Hemingway to take a penny from his pocket, press it into the wet cement of the surrounding patio, and announce jokingly, “Here, you may as well take the last penny I’ve got!” Tourists are invited to look for the penny, still embedded between flagstones at the north end of the pool.

 The Hemingway’s personal touches still abound throughout the house. Many of the unique furnishings are European antiques collected during their stay on the continent.  The trophy mounts and skins were souvenirs of the Hemingway’s African safaris and numerous hunting expeditions in the American west.  Ernest’s presence can still be felt in his studio where he produced some of his most well-known works. In addition, very visible and living links to the past are the descendants of Hemingway’s cats.  The story goes that Hemingway made the acquaintance of a sea captain who owned an unusual six-toed tomcat, which captured Ernest’s fancy.  Upon his departure from Key West, the captain presented the cat to Hemingway. Today many of the numerous cats that inhabit the grounds still possess the unusual six toes.

 Ernest’s friends Charles Thompson, Joe Russell (also known as Sloppy Joe), and Capt. Eddie “Bra” Saunders, together with his old Paris friends became known in Key West as “The Mob.”  The Mob would go fishing in the Dry Tortugas, Bimini, and Cuba for days and weeks at a time in pursuit of giant tuna and marlin.  Everyone in The Mob had a nickname, and Hemingway was often referred to by his friends and family during this time was “Papa”—it was a moniker that eventually stuck with him throughout his life.  Hemingway’s Key West was a town unlike any place he ever experienced.  It was filled with interesting people, ranging from well-to-do businessmen and lawyers, to down-on-their-luck fishermen, to shipwreck salvagers.

 Throughout his career, Hemingway freely used the people and places he encountered in his literary works, and many Key Westers appear as characters in his novel “To Have and Have Not,” a novel about Key West during the Great Depression.  (Information gathered from The Ernest Hemingway Home & Museum)

The houses are very close together due to the limited space on the island and now all are required to have metal roofs on them.  The fire of 1886 destroyed almost sixty percent of the homes and businesses. 18 major cigar factories, 614 homes, government buildings and warehouses were destroyed. (*”Voices of History”)  It was thought that the fire was started by the Spanish who were fighting against the Cuban revolutionaries; Key West and the cigar industry were funding the Cuban cause.

I cannot finish this post without mentioning the great food found in the many mom and pop type restaurants here.  There is a wide variety of food to be had on this island as this city is a cultural melting pot from many lands.  I noticed more Asian and Thai food places this trip. The many Cuban or island influenced “dives” on the backstreets throughout Old Town have the wonderful smells and music emanating from their doors.

Many of the places have fresh seafood and everything eaten on this trip has been wonderful.  I have kind of felt like Bubba Gump since I love shrimp and have eaten it so many different ways; fried, boiled, scampi, shrimp po-boy, and blacken shrimp and grits to name a few.  There has also been Mahi Mahi, fried & grilled fish tacos, fish and chips, conch fritters several times, and grouper.  With all this fresh seafood around it is hard to justify eating a steak or some other meal.

Leaving tomorrow to start the trek back north will be a bittersweet time as the sunsets each day remind you that life is not to be missed and the warm sea breezes bring with it a soft music, if one chooses to listen.  As advertised, Key West is truly the island paradise - inspiring everyone to enjoy, have a great time and leave with wonderful memories of a slower time.

*Additional photos will be posted on the Facebook page – Traveling Life’s Highways