Charles Alexander
Parting Glances: Fundies! Go Fly Ben Franklin's Kite!
If one person single-handedly pushed this country into a War of Independence from England, it is patriot and pamphleteer Thomas Paine (1737 – 1809). His book "Common Sense" is a clarion call to open rebellion. Today's religious right hates and [...]
Parting Glances: A magic moment recalled!
About a dozen days ago tomorrow, or the day after tomorrow — at my age how can I be sure? — I was gifted with a pair of John Lennon enchantment glasses. Gold-rimmed. Sunset orange. Autumn-tinted. Pre-Donald Trump, to be sure. No Mike Pence tri-focal [...]
Parting Glances: A stroke in time
It was a year ago this Memorial Day 2020 that I had a stroke and spent two weeks in Detroit Receiving Hospital and a month in physical rehab in the Senior Care Center in Henry Ford Village, where I am now living in its Berkshire Gardens units. My [...]
Parting Glances: Hugs 6 Feet Away
When's the last time I was hugged? I can't remember. It's been so long it seems. A month ago? Two months ago? Social distancing has all but rendered the time-honored practice obsolete. I do remember that I always found hugging to be pleasurable, [...]
Parting Glances: OZ goes Drag Queen Bingo!
"It's been 80 years this year since we debuted in the movies," said Scarecrow on ZOOM to Tin Man, Cowardly Lion, Aunty Em, Glenda the Good Witch, and starlet Dorothy. "The weathers horrid, wild and persistently wicked. So gloomy! Time to do [...]
Parting Glances: An Ex-Gay fairy tale
This is the story of Dorian Lavender who has vanished from the party scene of music, stimulants and sex, and is now ironically beyond the saving grace of suddenly discarded friends of which there are many. (Perhaps you knew him too.) While no [...]
Parting Glances: A CT Black History Remembrance
As an emerging gay teenager, I attended Cass Technical High School where I was fortunate to soon discover there were others like myself in the process of coming out. Although back then there was no such thing as coming out, there was, however [...]
Parting Glances: Dopplegangers, Big 10 and Me
As a recent resident of the Henry Ford Senior Retirement Village Community, consisting of some 800 units — I live in Berkshire Gardens — I have had some interesting, shall we say, metaphysical, perhaps psychic experiences. At separate dinner times, [...]
Parting Glances: Repeat the joyful sound
this column first appeared in BTL 12/20/17 Contrary to rumors circulating for years in Story Bookland Weekly Tabloid there never was any real friction between Dorothy, Cowardly Lion, Tin Woodsman and Scarecrow.(And those horrid pictures of an aging [...]
Parting Glances: The Age of Treason? Perhaps
First published in 2013 and again Dec. 2016, one month after the election Donald J. Trump President of the United States If one person can be truly said to have single-handedly pushed this country into a War of Independence from England, it was [...]
Parting Glances: Were You Ever 'Known' or 'Alleged'?
Editor's Note: This article was originally published in October 2016. Just a few generations ago, the term homosexual was often qualified by adjectives. Alleged. Avowed. Rumored. Known! The descriptions were used by cautious media, police [...]
Parting Glances: Bases loaded for Prophet Jones
On several sporty occasions I've dined at Angelina's Restaurant in Downtown Detroit with BTL co-publishers Jan and Susan, loyal Tiger baseball fans. From our window side table, the Comerica Park pre-game fireworks are spectacular to watch (as are [...]