TQE | That Queer Expatriate

Expatriate, not ex-patriot: I'm a progressive liberal and queer American in Berlin, Germany. My roots in include 18 years in Denver, 6 in Laramie, Wyoming, 6 in Bloomington, Indiana, and 6 in Weimar, Germany. Sense a pattern? Don't want to leave a comment on this blog? Email scintillatingme at gmail.com, username "elmadaeu"

He wears 98: Jason Collins and why Matthew Shepard still matters.

Yesterday evening, while I was busy working on a project, two friends let me know that an NBA player had come out as gay.

Jason Collins, a 34-year-old, free agent, basketball player took the leap out of the closet in the pages of Sports Illustrated.

It’s cool and I would have let it float past [...]

Girl on Girl Action: The Berlin Bombshells

The Safety Check, prior to the second period.

A few years ago I saw Whip It, and I enjoyed it – ever since then I’ve been interested in seeing an actual Roller Derby contest.

Unfortunately it can be challenging to see a match as the games are somewhat irregularly and infrequently scheduled. Furthermore the [...]

Munich Cowboys: Playing with the what again?!

This advertising campaign wouldn’t fly in the United States, but this advertisement is for the Munich Cowboys, an American Football team, and it’s made me want to go to an American football game.

Munich Cowboys / via Cowboy Altitude

[...]

Paw Sox Grand Slam, September 3, 2011

One swing, four runs, grand slam.

This is Indiana

One thing that I do now, more than I did in the past, is think about the messages that what t-shirts I wear, say. Consequently, I’m buying fewer random t-shirts and wishing I had more of some messages.

For example, at the gym I wear duds for the Wyoming Cowboys (I wish I had more) [...]

Commentary on the Women’s World Cup, Part 1 of

At the office Friday afternoon, as I was leaving, I stuck my head in to say good-bye for the weekend to one of my football (as in soccer) loving colleagues. I know he’s a football fan because last summer he watched all of the football matches, live from South Africa.

This year the Women’s World [...]

Since I last blogged…

I’m sad to report that MT has left the house, country, and continent.

Her visit was busy—for both of us. I’ve managed to get a lot of work done, yet have time to hang with her. Last time I had nine items in my work queue. I now have eight items in the queue, with [...]

Denver’s Cowtown Moment: Going to the Rodeo

I went to see a rodeo at the National Western Stock Show with a friend my first day in Denver.

At its heart, Denver has a longstanding struggle over what best represents the city. On the one hand there are the gleaming skyscrapers and its reliance on the telecommunications and cable industry, and, on the [...]

Things I’ve learned this weekend at the real Berlin Marathon

1) Skaters go really fast and make for great photography. Except when it’s cloudy and rain is falling.

2) Racers go at a much more reasonable pace but they smell bad, even when it’s cloudy and raining. I hesitate to imagine how bad it could smell if it were sunny out.

3) There are a [...]

Seen in Berlin: Brave or Stupid?