Ryan Rockford

I knew I had to leave.  I had to get out.  I couldn't explain it, and I didn't tell anyone else. I was only 16; I didn't have a plan. I didn’t know when, or how, but I knew that at some point, an opportunity would present itself, and I would take it – I would leave my hometown and my family behind. I love my family and New Orleans, but as I hit puberty and began to … [Read more...] about Born to Run: The Gay Migration Away from Home

“Through the Looking Glass” This year, COVID-19 has proven to be a big wet beach blanket tossed over the summer of 2020; as a result, the flames of New York’s scorching Fire Island are little more than embers. In the winter of 2019, I eagerly made my reservations on Fire Island for Pines Party, which was scheduled to be the weekend of July 24-26, 2020. The theme of this … [Read more...] about Fire Island 2020: Pines Party Weekend

Can we expect life, as we knew it, to resume after the pandemic? I don’t think so.  Will things return to the way they were? No. Things will never get back to ‘normal’. The best we can hope for is something next to ‘normal’.  But what does that look like? As a nation, we’ve spent the better part of the last four months doing our very best just to get through … [Read more...] about Next to Normal

And just like that the gauntlet had been tossed, without cause, provocation, or ceremony. In the blink of an eye, I had been challenged. In less than an instant, I declined.  I reflexively steer clear of the mass-produced trend du jour.  A policy that has served me well, as I see videos of those poor bastards roped into the ice water challenge, cinnamon challenge, or … [Read more...] about 12 Inches That Changed My Life

As a contributing writer to a contemporary publication, I would feel a bit amoral if I didn’t take this opportunity and use this platform to speak on what has become the largest civil rights movement in history. A movement inspired and enraged by the killing of George Floyd, an unarmed black man in Minneapolis, killed by police while in their custody. As the COVID-19 … [Read more...] about Beyond the Barricades

As with any relationship, there are so many questions that two men have to answer and negotiate in a romance’s fledgling stage; it can make for a rocky start for anyone who isn’t prepared for the doors of communication to be blown open. Considering the times we live in, one of the questions that many find uncomfortable (including myself) is: Will your new relationship be “open” … [Read more...] about Filthy Whore SEEKS Hopeless Romantic

I never much cared for homework when I was a kid. I’m pretty sure I wasn’t the only one. There were so many other things I would have rather been doing. And you might be surprised to find out just how much you can accomplish when you should be doing something else. There are few to choose from, but one of my most memorable homework assignments came from Mrs. Green’s English … [Read more...] about It’s good to be King

Picture it: 7:30 on a Saturday morning. I’ve been up all night trolling Grindr and Scruff and Jack’d without much luck. And I’m doing what most guys who’ve been up all night partying, but not having sex, are doing: watching porn, a little arts & crafts, and cleaning our apartments. This is not an unfamiliar scenario to me, and on this Saturday morning I was prepared to … [Read more...] about Father Figure

It’s estimated that 1 in 6 men have experienced sexual abuse at some point in their lives, and often are unable to talk about it. I believe that we have to talk about it. Despite what society has groomed us to believe, boys are not immune to sexual abuse just because we’re boys. I should know. The first time it happened is one of my clearest memories from childhood. I was … [Read more...] about #Me(n) Too

(Before you invest three minutes of your life reading this article, you should know that it has nothing to do with Elton John, his movie biopic or his music. This article is about appreciating America’s space program. What?? Yep. Read on.) I should start with a public apology to anyone who was a member of a high school computer or science club between the years of 1984 and … [Read more...] about Thank you, Rocketman!