New Horizons For Fifty - A Different View of Things

       I first met Eli Vega (aka Moose) at a hiking event I organized toward the end of 2019. He came along with his partner, Geo, and we became fast friends. I enjoyed getting to know him as he came out to my events and he is easy to have intimate moments around. He is both a long-hauler as well as someone who got re-infected by Covid, and I am honored to include his thoughts and perspective to Language Of Love.      What was your initial reaction to Covid, especially when Gov. Newsom ordered the first shut down? Had you heard about Covid before the shut down?      I had caught COVID a week before the shutdown. When the order was given, I was already self-quarantined. I was working at a hospital, doing IT work. We had been keeping an eye on it with the limited info at the time, just waiting for our first confirmed cases to come in. My initial reaction was the feeling of “damn, shit just got real and I am unprepared.” I wasn’t feeling great before, so I didn’t get out to restock necess

Black Cat Strategy & Design by Jennifer Lloyd (Serafine Sawyer) Ms. San Diego Leather 2019      So how did San Diego’s 2019 Leather titleholders decide to start an advertising agency? And, how does an ad agency ultimately help out the LGBTQ+ community?  It’s been a journey, and we’re both grateful the other has been there through all of it.        When Jody and I became Mr. and Ms. San Diego Leather 2019, we were asked to represent our Leather community to the best of our abilities. It wasn’t long before we both felt lucky that we had each other throughout our title year. We ran up and down the state of California, attending parades and festivals – it was a ton of fun! We were just 48 hours shy of stepping down from our official duties, looking forward to continuing our work within the community and having fun as part of the community.  Then, last March, covid-19 derailed those plans, and Jody and I found ourselves on a whole new adventure.      Shortly into the pandemic, t

 

  Next to be featured from Language of Love Issue #1 is Bri Burning, International Person of Leather 2020. 

  Belonging: What Does It Really Mean?   by Aric Wilson, Mr. SoCal Leather 2019      It’s a thought many of us never think about or even realize until its profoundness appears, and then we question it all. I recall the days of going to the local gayborhood in whatever city I was living in and trying to keep up and fit in and getting a seat at the table, only to be brushed off if not ignored altogether. I remember the repeated trips to the bar (since drinking was doing something instead of nothing) to order another drink, and I would eventually round out the night unless the occasional night cap presented itself.     The desire to go out faded, and then I became a homebody and a nobody. Then one day, it all changed, seemingly at once. I walked into the Eagle LA and those feelings of being alone in the bar changed. People were friendly to me and my time became filled with laughter, learning and story-telling, and I realized I was taking fewer trips to the bar. I still drank, but I did so

Up next for your perusal is an article about a special kind of bond. Kylar is Mr. Connecticut Bear 2020 and has a story to share. February 14, 2013: it was the day of my release from a week stay at a psychiatric ward during my Junior year in high school.   February 14, 2019: it was the first full day of recovering after my Total Laparoscopic Hysterectomy, to complete another part of my transition.  This year, my love and I were waiting in the cold winter morning at 8 am, for our addition to the family to arrive: a (roughly) three-month old kitten named Papacito, formerly named Freeway.  A few days prior, I got approval from a therapist to get an emotional support animal. My life was on repeat:  work the same minimum wage job same hours every week, cook another form of chicken, repeat. My time as Mr. Connecticut Bear 2020 had come to a sudden halt due to Covid-19. Being a 23 year old queer that loved to travel with his boyfriend to kink and drag nights all over the east coast was a

About the Artist: Dan the Bear is a 45-year-old Graphic Designer, Cartoonist and Anthro artist who lives in Mexico. He loves comics, Sci-Fi and creating characters and stories to share with people. (This image @2020 Daniel Gunther)