This past week has been filled with phone calls—very long phone calls.
Not the quick check-ins or “just wanted to say hi” variety, but the kind of calls that stretch across an hour, two hours, often more. Phone calls that leave my ear hot, my throat dry, my stomach empty—and my heart happy and whole.
I don’t think I’ve had a single call under 60 minutes in the last 7 days.
Every time I thought a call was winding down, another memory surfaced, another rabbit hole opened, or another laugh was simply too good not to share.
These weren’t calls of obligation—they were gifts from the gods.
Some of these conversations were decades in the making. One was with a former colleague I hadn’t spoken to in 30 years. Another had been 20. Others had simply been far, far too long.
But time seemed to melt away, and we picked up right where we left off.
And calls with my dears, nears, and/or queers have been equally heart-warming (and long). My motley crew of boos keep me honest and in stitches. I can’t imagine my life without them.
Correct me if I’m wrong, Drewski, but I think I’ve been living in a phone booth all week.
Keep calm and call your loved ones!
Clint 🌈✌️
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P.S. I had the pleasure of Zoom’ing with Ricky last night. Bless him for listening to me yap for so long. A recording of our conversation is coming soon to his blog…
ON THIS DAY = AUGUST 26
BIRTHDAYS
1898 = Peggy Guggenheim, American-Italian art collector and philanthropist
1904 = Christopher Isherwood = English novelist 🌈
1906 = Albert Sabin, Polish-American physician, virologist, and polio vaccine developer
1908 = Aubrey Schenck, American screenwriter and producer
1910 = Mother Teresa, Albanian-Indian nun, missionary, and Nobel Prize laureate
1911 = Otto Binder, American author and screenwriter
1918 = Katherine Johnson, American physicist and mathematician
1923 = Mel Roberts = American photographer and filmmaker 🌈
1929 = Chuck Renslow = American businessman, photographer, and co-founder of Kris Studios, Leather Archives & Museum and the International Mr. Leather 🌈
1935 = Geraldine Ferraro, American lawyer and politician
1940 = Don LaFontaine, American voice actor, producer, and screenwriter
1941 = Barbet Schroeder, French-Swiss director and producer
1944 = Maureen Tucker, American singer-songwriter and drummer
1946 = Mark Snow, American composer for film and television
1946 = Valerie Simpson, American singer-songwriter
1952 = Michael Jeter = American actor 🌈
1956 = Brett Cullen, American actor
1960 = Branford Marsalis, American saxophonist, composer, and bandleader
1963 = Stephen J. Dubner, American journalist and author
1965 = Chris Burke, American actor
1970 = Melissa McCarthy, American actor, comedian, producer, and screenwriter
1971 = Thalía, Mexican-American singer-songwriter and actor
1976 = Mike Colter, American actor
1980 = Chris Pine, American actor
1980 = Macaulay Culkin, American actor
1982 = John Mulaney, American comedian, actor, writer, and producer
1991 = Dylan O'Brien, American actor
1993 = Keke Palmer, American actor and singer
EVENTS
1920 = The 19th Amendment to United States Constitution, giving women the right to vote, is certified.
1954 = William S. Burroughs writes friend Allen Ginsberg that he has fallen in love with his new boyfriend.
1959 = British Motor Corporation introduces the Morris Mini-Minor, designed by Sir Alec Issigonis; it is only 10 feet long yet seats four passengers
1968 = The Beatles release “Hey Jude” as a single.
1970 = The fiftieth anniversary of American women being able to vote is marked by a nationwide Women's Strike for Equality.
1994 = Natural Born Killers is released in theaters.
HOLIDAYS + OBSERVANCES
PORTRAIT + QUOTES OF THE DAY
“I am a camera with its shutter open, quite passive, recording, not thinking.”
Christopher Isherwood
You're such a beacon of joy, Clint. I'm extremely grateful that our paths have intertwined and that the Universe has brought us together. Thank you for the work you do and for the goodness you put out into the world!
Ya have been, Blanche. 😊