The Gay Introvert Takes Center Stage in James Sweeney’s ‘Straight Up’

The director, writer, and actor talks bringing up a new brand of queer representation to media.

www.advocate.com/film/2020/3/01/gay-introvert-takes-center-stage-james-sweeneys-straight

Must-See LGBTQ TV: Premieres of ‘Dispatches from Elsewhere’ and ‘Twenties’

www.glaad.org/blog/must-see-lgbtq-tv-premieres-dispatches-elsewhere-and-twenties

Phoenix nurse Noah Ashner on how going vegetarian increases sex drive

This post is part of a series of Queerty conversations with models, trainers, dancers, and, well, people who inspire us to stay in shape–or just sit on the couch ogling them instead.

Name: Noah Ashner, 29

City:  Phoenix. AZ

Occupation: Nurse, fitness instructor & lifestyle coach

Favorite Gym: EoS.

Do you have a favorite exercise playlist? I’m a big fan of anything remixed. Any nightclub mixes, usually I lean toward circuit mixes of pop and house.

What’s the best food to eat prior to a workout? For me, I like to keep it lite. I do a small amount of egg whites and some oats in the morning since I like to go first thing.

What’s the best outfit for working out? It depends on when I’m working out, but my standard is short shorts and a tank top. I like to keep it simple.

How do you balance staying in shape and having fun? I always say “work hard play hard.” I like being active socially and at the gym. Develop your own reward system: if you spend time at the gym, give yourself time for a social life.

What’s a basic, if useful, work out tip you can offer? I always look at how I feel afterward. The feeling of accomplishment is the best feeling. Can’t beat that.

You’re a big advocate of a plant-based diet. When did you discover as much? It’s funny, it’s only been in the past year that I made the switch. My partner and I meal prep all the time, and he mentioned how he was getting sick of it. We got to the point where we couldn’t eat any more chicken. So we did our research and decided to try going plant-based. Once we started experimenting, it’s actually more affordable than buying meat. Cooking and preparing it is much quicker. We noticed a difference in our mood, our energy level, our quality of sleep within the first week.

For a lot of men, they eat diets heavy in meat to get their protein to gain weight. Is it possible to do this with a plant diet? You can. It really comes down to math. You have to do a basic math calculation to meet the same calorie count as you would on a meat-based diet. If you want to get bigger you raise the number you are consuming: how much fat, how much protein and how many carbs.

Related: Yogi and body positivity advocate Jessamyn Stanley on the virtues of topless workouts

How does increasing the amount of plants in your diet affect sex drive and vitality? The biggest difference—and this is so weird, because we didn’t catch on until like week two or three—I would wake up with very noticeable morning wood. That, and having extra energy throughout the day. You feel healthier. I’ve also gotten a lot more toned and defined in my muscles.

So what are some plant foods to include in the diet for increased energy? Sex drive? There are lists of high-testosterone foods out there. We’ve kept it simple to quinoa, tofu and tempeh. You can also do beans and greens as well.

You’re also a bottom advocate, which is great since gay men tend to get very little instruction or education about gay sex. How does switching to a plant-based diet affect the ability to bottom? I agree completely. Growing up in the midwest, you wish there was a how-to guide. Changing diet hasn’t really affected my ability to bottom at all. As far as regularity, I’ve always been healthy. I can still regulate when I eat and be the judge of my body. I don’t think it’s made much of a difference.

You mention on your website that a stroke was part of what prompted you to take interest in fitness in a new way. How does living through something like that change your outlook on life and your priorities? Gosh, it makes you appreciate everything. I got a second chance at life. I want to do things I was putting off, or things I was nervous to try. When you nearly die, you tend not to care about others judging you. I just want to do as much as I can, because I almost wasn’t able to. I write on my website that this was almost a blessing in disguise. Had it not happened, I wouldn’t have gone into health and fitness and taken my life in a different direction.

What do you keep on your nightstand? My phone, my charger and lube.

Bonus pics:

www.queerty.com/phoenix-nurse-noah-ashner-going-vegetarian-increases-sex-drive-20200301?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+queerty2+%28Queerty%29

Human Rights Campaign President Alphonso David Kicks Off National Faith Tour in Philadelphia, Pa.

Post submitted by: Elizabeth Bibi and Madeleine Roberts

HRC Foundation announced that HRC President Alphonso David will kick off a cross-country interfaith religion and faith tour, “Coming Home to Faith: A Search for Common Ground,” to explore and strengthen the relationship between LGBTQ and faith communities across the United States. The tour officially launched today with a visit to the Historic African Episcopal Church of St. Thomas in Philadelphia, Pa. 

“The cornerstones of religion and faith and the LGBTQ movement are the same: inclusion and justice. LGBTQ people are in every faith tradition, and LGBTQ people and people of faith have more similarities than they do differences,” said HRC President Alphonso David. “I am excited to visit diverse houses of worship to strengthen HRC’s relationships with faith communities. Today’s visit to the Historic African Episcopal Church of St. Thomas in Philadelphia, the first African Episcopal church in the United States with a strong legacy of humanitarianism and community outreach, is the perfect way to begin this series of conversations to advance dialogue and initiatives around LGBTQ equality.” 

David joined the Very Reverend Canon Martini Shaw at the pulpit for St. Thomas’s Sunday morning service this morning, March 1. View video of his remarks here. The visit to St. Thomas comes after David attended services at Mother Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, South Carolina on February 23 and met with the Senior Pastor of Mother Emanuel, Rev. Eric Manning. 

“We were thrilled to welcome Alphonso David and representatives from HRC at the Historic African Episcopal Church of St. Thomas this morning,” said the Very Reverend Canon Martini Shaw. “St. Thomas has a history of engaging in outreach to the community around us and ensuring that the welcoming love we see in the Gospels is felt by everyone we serve — including LGBTQ people. As we begin the season of Lent, we encourage everyone to reflect on the ways in which people of faith can begin finding common ground with LGBTQ people in their communities.” 

At St. Thomas this morning, as part of HRC’s Get Out The Vote (GOTV) efforts, HRC volunteers were on hand to help members of the congregation update their voter registration information, and asked members to pledge to increase participation in upcoming elections by bringing their friends and family with them to exercise their right to vote. 

There is a persistent myth that a person cannot be LGBTQ and also a person of faith, or vice versa — whether because there is a perception that being religious is in conflict with being LGBTQ, or because the loudest narratives in media are those of anti-LGBTQ religious people. In fact, LGBTQ people of faith live in every state and country around the world, and many people of faith support the LGBTQ community. 

Data released last year by PRRI show that solid majorities in all major religious groups support laws protecting LGBTQ people from discrimination.

“We were honored to kick off the HRC Foundation’s ‘Coming Home to Faith: A Search for Common Ground’ tour at the Historic African Episcopal Church of St. Thomas this morning,” said HRC Foundation Religion & Faith Program Director Michael Vazquez. “In the course of the tour, HRC President Alphonso David will visit houses of worship across the country, including Historic Black Churches, evangelical churches, synagogues, mosques and other religious and faithful spaces. As the tour progresses, we will work towards the goal of finding common ground between the LGBTQ community, LGBTQ people of faith and communities of faith, while we work to advance justice and equity for the whole LGBTQ community.”

The purpose of “Coming Home to Faith: A Search for Common Ground” is to work to establish common ground with prominent houses of worship and faith traditions across the country. Ensuring equity and justice for all people, while giving all individuals the space and freedom to be fully themselves, is a message inherent in all major religions and faith traditions and is the cornerstone of the LGBTQ movement. If LGBTQ people and people of faith can speak together, our voices and impact will carry that message that much farther. Making sure that that message is heard loud and clear in the 2020 elections has never been more important.

www.hrc.org/blog/human-rights-campaign-president-alphonso-david-kicks-off-national-faith-tou?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss-feed