A Queer Thanks

#TC115

Nov 23, 2021

Welcome to Third Cultured, a newsletter covering all things cannabis, queer, and world politics from Kyle Borland. My goal is to highlight all the ways today is different (and not so) from yesterday.

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This edition:

Essay/Opinion
Links, Quotes & Things

Essay/Opinion

What am I thankful for in 2021?

A whole hell of a lot to say the least. A year ago, I was chronically unemployed and about to give an impulsive 30-days notice to my landlord to tuck and run back to Alabama. Short of an 11th-hour change of heart (literally), who knows where I’d be living or what I’d be doing professionally.

Thankfully, that’s not my timeline.

In this universe, I trusted my gut, even though it terrified me and nearly broke me several times over. However, on the other side, I find myself in the best job of my life with a team that’s invested in my growth and respects my expertise. I’m working on exciting projects that challenge me creatively in everything from cannabis to energy to infrastructure to going toe-to-toe with Amazon.

I’ve found that I thrive with a fully remote workplace, even though I’m starting to adjust my wellness routine to acknowledge my lack of mobility now that I don’t walk to-and-from work every single day. When I first got to SF, a one-mile walk commute each way helped me shed pounds without even thinking about it.

Speaking of weight, I started working with a personal trainer this month with the goal of losing 30-40 lbs and generally getting my health on track. I told Lawanda I want to be in the best shape of my life by the time I turn 30 in December 2022. She said that it should take six months at the most and that where she could get me in 12 months isn’t even on my radar. I started this program at a weird time (birthday, holidays, traveling), but I’m glad to be training my brain in moderation going into festival season, so I can enjoy the best parts of the season without tossing all progress to the wind.

I’ve needed those moderation skills here in the City, too. My partner and I have been on a tear lately when it comes to taking advantage of what the City has to offer. Last Friday we saw Matteo Lane at Cobb’s Comedy Club and in the middle of the day on Thursday, we played 18-holes of mini-golf. (We tied.)

Last month, we attended multiple drag shows and even went to the Chase Center for the first time. The Warriors were throwing “LGBTQ+ Night” and I happily jumped at the rainbow capitalism of it all. We were surrounded by older, basketball-loving lesbians at the game and that’s how all sporting events should be. Although, that was Golden State’s first loss of the season which felt a little homophobic. I gotta say.

I’ll forgive them if they keep winning and keep providing free stuff. Like a true fan.

As for the rest of the year, I’ve got lots of travel coming up, starting with Thanksgiving in San Diego this Wednesday and a two-week trip to Alabama/Georgia for the holidays. We picked up the rental car today from SFO and I cannot recommend registering for Budget Fastbreak enough (or any rental service’s “member program”) because we skipped at least 2-3 hours in a Thanksgiving week travel line by signing up for free.

We rented an Airbnb right on the beach with some Alabama friends, and I cannot wait for four days of food, friends, and fun. Although I’ve been upgrading our home to be the escape we deserve – a king-sized bed, a Lovesac couch, a quality office chair, a standing desk, new bookshelves since we filled up all the others, and more as my online shopping addiction grows – we are in dire need of a vacation. It’ll be our first leisure trip since we went to the Russian River Towns in May. I don’t intend for us to wait that long between vacations ever again, but sometimes, life gets in the way.

All that is to say – I’m grateful I got my shit together, and I love that you’ve been along for the ride.

Happy Thanksgiving, beautiful people.

Thanks for reading, and Roll Tide.

Kyle (@kgborland)

Links, Quotes & Things

8 U.S. cities failed an LGBTQ equality evaluation (NBC News)

Florence, Alabama; Jonesboro, Arkansas; Southaven, Mississippi; Broken Arrow, Oklahoma; Moore, Oklahoma; Clemson, South Carolina; Pierre, South Dakota,; and Rocks Springs, Wyoming.

12 LGBTQ+ Organizations to Donate to This Holiday Season (them.)

2,900+ miles in the West and Midwest have been added to the U.S. Bicycle Route System’s national network (Washington Post)

“The national corridor plan is to have 50,000 miles of routes across the United States that will be suitable for long-distance bike travel in a mix of environments,” said Jennifer Hamelman, USBRS program manager with the Adventure Cycling Association, a partner in the project. “It will be like the interstate highway system,” but for human-powered two-wheelers.
The USBRS is not constructing new infrastructure; it knits together preexisting tracks, such as urban bike lanes, park pathways, rails-to-trails conversions, rural roads and highway shoulders. The patchwork of roads mirrors the country’s kaleidoscope of landscapes. The scenery can change as dramatically as the conditions under your wheels — from city to country, farmland to forest, coastline to desert.
Only a quarter of the USBRS has signage, so bikers follow local or state markers wherever they are available. You can download the maps through the Adventure Cycling Association’s website or find them on Ride With GPS.

A Tender Mural Graces San Francisco’s Tenderloin District (Hyperallergic)

A White Woman Literally Called the Cops on a Book About Black Queerness (them.)

Africa’s Rising Cities: How Africa will become the center of the world’s urban future (Washington Post)

As states pursue a wave of anti-LGBTQ laws, cities move in the opposite direction (NBC News)

Biden's economic agenda is half the cost of projected military budgets (Speaking Security)

Book details fight to repeal ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ (LA Blade)

CCM industry stays silent on LGBTQ inclusion as queer artists carve inroads (Washington Post)

Company Man: The Data Behind Glenn Greenwald's Twitter Loyalty to Fox News (The Flashpoint)

Formula One racing star wears LGBTQ Pride helmet at Qatar Grand Prix (NBC News)

How concentrated corporate power makes inflation worse (Popular Information)

I can’t remember a time when I wasn’t obsessed with sex (Sex and the State)

'Impossible to ban': Conversion therapy for LGBTQ Americans continues despite legislative efforts (USA Today)

Instead of treating Mars and the Moon as sites of conquest and settlement, we need a radical new ethics of space exploration (Aeon)

Justice Is for The Bad Guys (Discontents)

Librarians are resisting censorship of children’s books by LGBTQ+, Black authors (19th)

“Living in America Is Like Living in an In-Law’s House.” Nawaaz Ahmed on Writing a Queer, Immigrant Story (LitHub)

Look at the investments California and the Bay Area can look forward to from the BIF that Biden just signed (Speaker Pelosi)

$25.3 billion for California highways and $4.2 billion for bridge repairs and replacements.
$9.45 billion over five years to help improve Muni, BART and other California transit agencies providing essential transit services public transportation options – the single largest investment in public transit in history. We can also compete for $8 billion nationally in transit expansion grants that can help projects like Caltrain electrification and the Downtown Extension to bring trains into the Salesforce Transit Center.
More than $8 billion for water needs in the Western United States, during a time of critical drought.
$5 billion nationally for Safe Streets for All.
$5 billion nationally to protect power grid from wildfire and extreme weather, like burying power lines, to reduce risk of fire and reduce disturbances caused by power shut offs.
$3.5 billion over five years to improve California drinking and wastewater infrastructure.
$3.3 billion nationally to prevent wildfires with wildfire mitigation, hazardous fuels reduction and prescribed burns on federal lands, as well as better pay for federal firefighters and more permanent firefighting positions.
$1.5 billion for infrastructure development at California airports over five years.
$24 million to clean up the San Francisco Bay estuary.