Artis I Like: Asia Argento

I'd heard the name Asia Argento for years, but I assumed she was just one of those hip "it" girls who probably didn't have much to say and would kind of disappear after a while. All I really knew of her was that her father was Dario Argento (director of horror films like Creepers and Suspiria), she had a tendency to pose nude for photographers, and she'd directed a Marilyn Manson video.Then, I started hearing about a film she directed called The Heart Is Deceitful Above All Things. Honestly, the initial reason for me wanting to see it was because Manson apparently had a cameo, and I thought it'd be interesting to see him as an actor. But, for whatever reason, I never got around to seeing it until a few nights ago. And I must say, it's the best film I've seen in a really long time - so if you haven't seen it, I'd definitely recommend it.

The film was released in 2004, so this is really old news to most people, but I don't care. Apparently, it's based on the JT Leroy book, so of course it's on the kooky/weird side. But I was really interested in the relationship between the mother (played by Asia) and her son, because they have somewhat of the same relationship I had with my own mother. I wasn't exposed to as much violence and drugs - and I wasn't a 10-year-old crossdresser - but the intense closeness between those two characters was something I was definitely familiar with; sort of an 'Us-against-the-world' bond that, even when tested by various outside influences, was the strongest connection I'd known at that point.

Visually, it reminded me of a music video from the 90's (think Jonas Åkerlund meets Floria Sigismondi with a tad of LaChapelle), which I'm sure was on purpose, considering Asia's obvious love/knowledge of music. Asia, as an actress, was amazing. The character is emotionally broken and flawed to the point of brutal, almost unbearable honesty - and, in parts, quite hilarious - and seeing someone do that in a film immediately made me a fan. Her performance reminded me of seeing Angelina Jolie in Gia for the first time; that feeling of being inspired and having your mind fucked at the same time.

I'm definitely going to start hunting down Asia's work, which you can find more information about on her website. Besides directing and acting in films, she's a photographer, writer, and an all-around badass motherfucker. xH

Today's Crush: Dave Salmoni

One of the very few things I watch on TV is animal documentaries - especially ones on lions and other big cats. I'm a Leo, so I find them endlessly fascinating (I've been drawn to them since I was a little kid). Add a hot host like Dave Salmoni to the mix and it's a VERY nice bonus!

Ever since seeing Into the Lion's Den a few years ago, I've made it a point to catch everything he does. It's honestly not just for the eye candy (although his tendency to lose his shirt while shooting these shows is far from a problem) - but you can only imagine my intense joy when I stumbled upon this photo from the new issue of Flaunt magazine:

The entire shoot is very artistic/edgy, so if you like this photo, you should check out more of them here. You gotta give the guy major credit for rocking the fuck out of a corset back brace and still bringing the sexy. And it's always fun when a "mainstream'' guy feels comfortable enough to showcase some pubes action!

x

Artist I Like: Lydia Lunch

Here are two videos featuring interviews with Lydia Lunch, who I've been a fan of since I can even remember. The reason I'm posting these is I think her views/opinions (especially the ones expressed here) are extremely important for people to be exposed to in this day and age.

The first contains two snippets of interviews with her from the mid-80's.

And this one is more recent, shot within the last year.

As intense or harsh as she may come across, her honesty is what I think should be the focus. Not alot of entertainers/artists are willing to voice their personal beliefs in the way that she does. True artists are here to provoke thought, push boundaries, and add something unique to the world -- and this lady has been doing exactly that for over 30 years. So, I'm posting these videos in hopes that someone who may read this and is unfamiliar with her work will see an example of someone who does not compromise their art or opinions for the sake of fame/notoriety. Also, I think it's important to remind people that there are still people out there who are creating with the intent to affect people, as opposed to being a household name or having their face on the covers of magazines.
If you don't know of her work, you should absolutely look it up and discover her for yourself. In my opinion, she is one of the most relevant artists of our time.

For further reading/listening, go over to lydia-lunch.org

Enjoy! xh

Surgery Update #1

Exactly one week ago, I finally had the surgery that I'd been putting off for about 2 years, which was to remove a pilonidal cyst. So, now I'm basically living life from the POV of my bedroom (with the occasional visit to the store for cigs or Vitamin Water or something). I had the same surgery back in July 2003, but it came back, which this type of cyst is known to do -- but the process this time is a little different.

For those of you who don't know, a pilonidal cyst is located around the top of the bootycrack, near the tailbone and usually forms "pockets" of fluid that expand to your lower back. The "pockets" need to drain in order to heal. If you catch it early enough, I guess a simple lancing would be the end of your problem. But if you're like me (and have to put it off for various reasons, so it gets worse and worse over time), surgery is unavoidable. The procedure is pretty simple; they just remove it and you spend most of your recovery time on your stomach.

Ok, this is where the gross part comes in, so I'll try to explain without getting too graphic. For the last surgery, they stitched it up. This time, though, they left it open. Yes, that's right, there's an open wound just above my ass at the moment. Apparently, according to the research I've done and the surgeon, there's a 40% chance of it coming back if it's closed (& if you're looking at having surgery every few years, 40% might as well be 99%). Because of this, I have to clean it and pack it (with gauze and strips of silver nitrate) daily, which is probably more uncomfortable than it sounds. This way, it heals from the inside out (the significance of which, honestly, I'm still not completely clear on).

Recovery time is about 8 weeks, which isn't so bad. It's really not as painful as it seems, and I'm generally not precious about these types of things -- but the thought of having an exposed wound somewhere on my body freaks me the fuck out! I haven't seen it yet (according to people who have, I wouldn't want to right now), because honestly, if I did, I'd probably freak out more. It's just that actually seeing it makes it real, and at least this way, all I have to deal with is the discomfort. I don't know if that even makes sense.
Anyway, I'm hoping the healing process flies by and it doesn't leave a horrible scar, because I have some xxx gigs on hold, which I'm really excited about (yes, I realize that sounds extremely shallow, and NO, I'm generally not that way).

In other news, I got a package of stuff from the Cybersocket Awards that Kris Anthony picked up for me (it arrived when I got home from surgery, funnily enough), so I want to thank him for that!!Also, THANK YOU to everybody who sent me all the well wishes and such! I'll be fine, just have to get past the healing period. Then, I'll be back and naked all the time again and everything will be back to normal.

[If you want to read/learn more about pilonidal cysts, go to Pilonidal.org]

x

Today's Crush: Rusty Stevens

I don't even really need words for this one, do I?

No, I don't.

Just enjoy that photo and look up his work for yourself. Trust me, you'll be glad you did!
x

Today's Crush: Aiden Lane

I found out about this guy the same way I find out about a lot of guys: Browsing thru JustUsBoys. Apparently, he did a couple scenes for BrokeStraightBoys, left, and -- according to what I've read -- is now back into porn.
Anyway, I'd say he's pretty damn close to perfection. & no, I do not know if he's gay or straight (when you look like this, for me, that shit really doesn't matter)....



Oh yeah, and here is a video of him fucking:

By the way, hooray for kissing in gay porn! More of that please.

xxx

NEW photos. Aghhhh!

HEY. It's been a crazy week, for sure. Found out I'll be having surgery sometime within the next month, which I'm soooo beyond anxious for; I just want to get it over with, basically, and not have to worry about it. Plus, it's going to be about a 3-4 week recovery period afterward. Ugh, surgery...

bleh!

Here are some photos taken yesterday. They're probably the last I'll be doing for a while, so I hope you like them!







xH