The Rainbow Detective Agency: Rancho Mirage
This book almost didn’t get published. In fact, it almost didn’t get written. I was about 30,000 words into the 60,000 word novel when I did something stupid and lost the entire file. I hadn’t backed it up anywhere, which I usually do. I still don’t even know what happened or how the file got lost. I worked for days trying to recover the lost file, and nothing worked. And when I was finally ready to give up and shelve the book completely so I could start something new, I found a youtube video that helped me figure out a way to find it in the most remote part of my hard drive.
It’s also the last book, for now, in The Rainbow Detective series. It’s book number nine on Amazon, but it’s really number eight because Amazon includes the four book box set.
You can find Rancho Mirage here as an e-book, and in all the other places e-books are sold, like Smashwords, iTunes, and Allromanceebooks. And, this one will also be available in print eventually. I’ve posted a short excerpt from the novel, below.
Gay Night With New York Mets
I think this shows how far things have come in the world of pro sports. And, I think it’s helping to remove the stigma and shame that has always been associated with being LGBT. I don’t want to make it any more complicated than that. It’s a simple gesture with a strong message.
The New York Mets have announced that they will be hosting a Pride Night this summer in recognition of their LGBTI fans.
The announcement, which was made yesterday at a press conference in Queens, New York, yesterday, makes the Mets the first New York pro team in the city to host a Pride Night.
The Chicago Cubs have been running a Pride Night since 2001 and the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Francisco Giants organized similar events last season.
You can read the rest here. I understand the intentions are good and it seems to be getting a great deal of support.
Elton John Would Rather See A Drag Queen
This time Elton John is speaking up about how he would rather see a drag queen perform than see Janet Jackson lip sync. I’m not totally sure, but I think there’s a slur against drag queens somewhere hidden in this.
Don’t expect to see Elton John anywhere near Janet Jackson once the ailing pop diva resumes her Unbreakable concert tour in May.
‘You know, fucking music magazines writing a review of Janet Jackson saying, “This is the greatest show – four and a half stars.” It’s fucking lip-synced! Hello! That’s not a show!’ John tells
Rolling Stone in a new profile.
‘I’d rather go and see a drag queen,’ he adds. ‘Fuck off.’
This is where I really don’t understand these celebrities sometimes. Elton John goes after another singer and the other singer goes silent. If I were Janet Jackson I’d probably respond with something like, “Interesting. I always thought Elton John was a fucking drag queen.” I don’t think I’d just sit back and smile. And I think Elton John would get my point.
In any event, Elton John never called me any names so I have nothing against him. I just thought I would point out how I might respond if I were Janet Jackson. It’s only normal.
You can read the rest here, where they also talk about Elton John’s feud with his 90 year old mum. Mum called his husband, “that fucking asshole David Furnish.” That’s a direct quote.
Excerpt From Rancho Mirage
There are no serious spoilers in this one. I made sure of that.
Chapter Six
With no time left to shower, Blair cleaned up in the bathroom first and then Proctor and Bob cleaned up at the same time. Although Bob was well spoken and he sounded fairly well educated he often said unexpected things that made Proctor smile. They were in the bathroom sharing the sink and Bob said, “Do you need a separate wash cloth to sink wash your nuts, man?”
Proctor laughed and said, “No thanks. I’ll just use yours when you’re finished with it.” The guy had just finished doing the most intimate things imaginable. He saw no point in avoiding sharing the same wash cloth. Even though the apartment was messy, it was clean and nothing in the bathroom was repulsive. The white tiled floor had been mopped, the toilet sparkled, and white pedestal sink didn’t have one single stain. In fact, the towels, unlike the rest of the place, smelled as if he’d used mountain fresh scent in the laundry.
When they joined Blair in the main section of the apartment he was already dressed and ready to leave. Bob mentioned he worked as a bartender part time somewhere in West Hollywood, and he put on a crisp white shirt and tight black pants. While they dressed Bob also mentioned he had a degree in fine arts with a theater concentration from a college in New York and he’d moved out to the west coast to pursue a career in acting. Blair rarely offered anything personal about his life to anyone and he stood near the door smiling and nodding. Proctor didn’t want to get to know Bob better so he just listened and smiled without offering any detailed information about himself.
Proctor found his pants and underwear on the floor next to his socks and shoes but he couldn’t find his shirt. There were so many articles of clothing on the floor it must have gotten mixed in with them and Proctor didn’t have time to waste looking for it.
“I can’t find my shirt anywhere,” Proctor said.
Blair laughed. “That’s a novelty. Usually you can’t find your underpants.”
Proctor sent him a look and didn’t reply. Blair often found it amusing to make cheesy bottom jokes about Proctor because Proctor didn’t have sex with strange men that often. If it had been up to Blair they would have had non-stop sex with strangers but Proctor never had the urge to be that promiscuous.
Bob went to the closet and pulled out a plain black V-neck shirt that went with everything. He handed it to Proctor and said, “Wear this. We’re the same size shirt and I kind of like knowing that you’re wearing my shirt.”
Blair rolled his eyes. “Isn’t that sweet and tender. It gives me the feels.”
Proctor knew Blair’s sarcasm and he didn’t want to encourage it. He took the shirt from Bob and said, “Let me buy it from you. I have cash.”
As he reached for his wallet in his back pocket, Bob stepped back and shook his head. “No way. When I find your shirt I’ll have it cleaned and then when I drop it off you can give me back this one. Even trade.”
Proctor hated to owe anyone anything. He’d never been the type to borrow clothes, cars, books, or even money from friends. He didn’t even like it when people paid for him at restaurants. He preferred to pay his own way and not owe anything to anyone. However, he didn’t have time to argue the point and he could see Bob was not going to take his money.
“Okay,” Proctor said. “But don’t worry about my shirt. Whenever you find it that’s okay with me.” He slipped the silky black shirt over his head and detected a light scent of the body spray Bob had used in the bathroom a few minutes earlier. It wasn’t an offensive aroma. It was some kind of watered down masculine body spray that could be purchased in any drugstore.
A few minutes later, they exchanged contact information with their phones and Bob walked them down to the car. As he turned to get into his own car, he grabbed Proctor by the waist and kissed him on the sidewalk in front of all the cars moving up and down Fairfax. And when he let go and stepped back, he patted Proctor on the ass and said, “I’ll call you later.”
Blair laughed and said, “That’s a smart move, dude. He doesn’t like texting.”
Proctor glared at Blair, and then he smiled at Bob and said, “I’ll see you later.” He just said that to be polite; he didn’t intend to see him again for a while, if ever.
When they were finally on the road headed back to the office, Blair looked up from his phone and said, “He’s a nice guy. I like him.”
Proctor slowed down for traffic at the intersection and said, “He’s a very nice guy but when he calls I’m going to let him know this afternoon was a onetime deal. It’s not going to happen again.”
Blair shrugged and looked down at his phone again. He seemed to be having trouble tweeting something and it looked as if he were diffusing a bomb. “It’s up to you. But I like him and I wouldn’t mind hooking up with him again.”
