Since posting “Turning My Light Back On” three weeks ago, I’ve been doing a lot of figurative and literal “spring cleaning.”
I’m in the process of cleaning up some messes and rebuilding both my personal and professional lives. It’s been a journey of introspection and recalibration, filled with moments of clarity and uncertainty.
While I’m doing my best to approach this phase with intention and thoughtfulness as I reenter society, some days… well, I just want to rush to the finish line.
I’ve always loved coloring outside the lines, but there’s something about the in-between moments—the ones where I’m still figuring things out—that can feel unsettling. The messy middle, the clumsy dance between who I’ve been and who I’m becoming, can be overwhelming.
I guess that’s the paradox of transformation: I love the version of me that’s emerging—from the ashes like a phoenix—but the process of getting there can be painful and surreal, often making it hard to feel “mighty real” in the moment.
Long story short, I’m slowly and surely finding my way back to the real-life people, places, and things that have given me life…for so much of my life.
In this process of rediscovery, I’ve come to realize that some of those who joined me in previous chapters of my life won’t be accompanying me into the next ones. As difficult as this truth can be, I’m learning that it’s simply part of the journey.
Growth, evolution, and change all require letting go—sometimes of people, places, and things I thought would always be with me. Luckily, most of my nears, dears, and/or queers I’ve reconnected with so far are on board to give me another shot.
I consider myself a very lucky guy to be welcomed back with so many open arms, hearts, and minds after being missing in action for so long. So far anyway. 🤞🌈✌️
One thing remains true amidst the noise and soul-searching: real life—with its beauty, heartache, and joy—will always be my foundation. Deeply rooted in real-life people, places, and things, I’m able to build healthier online connections and create safer virtual spaces. My online, real, and virtual worlds work together, helping me reflect and remember who I am, especially when I feel overwhelmed and start to forget.
The world is more than a bit wacky right now, largely due to the most arrogant and assinine group of self-serving “billionaires” the world has ever known.
I have a hard time believing Idiocracy came true so fast. And Office Space became even truer. Who knew Mike Judge was our modern-day Nostradamus?
Yet, despite the chaos monsters’ best efforts to make us all nuts, I’m doing my best to carve out my “new” (ab)normal amidst all their fucking madness.
Here’s to navigating the strange and sometimes uncomfortable process of getting back to me. But it’s all worth it. Ain’t nothing like real life, baby.
Thank you for being a friend!
Clint 🌈✌️
P.S. Unless I have technical difficulties, my plan is to post a new montage on YouTube later today and a new montage on Substack tomorrow. Thank you for your patience and understanding.
ON THIS DAY = MARCH 1
BIRTHDAYS
1810 = Frédéric Chopin = Polish composer 🌈
1860 = William Dorsey Swann = American "queen of drag" 🌈
1880 = Lytton Strachey = British writer and critic 🌈
1893 = Mercedes de Acosta = American writer 🌈
1904 = Glenn Miller = American trombonist, composer, and bandleader
1927 = Harry Belafonte = American singer-songwriter and actor
1935 = Robert Conrad = American actor, radio host and stuntman
1944 = Roger Daltrey = English singer-songwriter, producer, and actor
1945 = Dirk Benedict = American actor and director
1947 = Alan Thicke = Canadian-American actor and composer
1954 = Catherine Bach = American actor
1954 = Ron Howard = American actor and filmmaker
1956 = Tim Daly = American actor, director, and producer
1966 = Paul Hollywood = English celebrity chef and tv personality
1966 = Zack Snyder = American filmmaker
1969 = Javier Bardem = Spanish actor and producer
1971 = Brad Falchuk = American filmmaker
1974 = Mark-Paul Gosselaar = American actor
1978 = Jensen Ackles = American actor
1983 = Lupita Nyong'o = Kenyan-Mexican actor
1987 = Kesha = American singer-songwriter
1994 = Justin Bieber = Canadian singer-songwriter
EVENTS
1692 = Sarah Good, Sarah Osborne, and Tituba are brought before local magistrates in Salem Village, MA, beginning what would become known as the Salem witch trials.
1869 = The Russian chemist Dmitri Mendeleev finished his design of the first periodic table.
1872 = Yellowstone National Park is established as the world's first national park.
1893 = Electrical engineer Nikola Tesla gives the first public demonstration of radio in St. Louis, MO.
1932 = Aviator Charles Lindbergh's 20-month-old son Charles Jr is kidnapped from his home in East Amwell, NJ.
1936 = Hoover Dam, straddling the Arizona–Nevada border on the Colorado River, is completed.
1946 = The Bank of England is nationalized.
1954 = Castle Bravo, a 15-megaton hydrogen bomb, is detonated on Bikini Atoll in the Pacific Ocean, resulting in the worst radioactive contamination ever caused by the United States.
1975 = Color tv transmission begins in Australia
1986 = Valerie (aka Valerie's Family: The Hogans and The Hogan Family) premieres on NBC.
1998 = Titanic became the first film to gross over $1 billion worldwide.
2003 = Management of the United States Customs Service and the United States Secret Service move to the United States Department of Homeland Security.
2006 = English-language Wikipedia reaches its one millionth article…on the Jordanhill railway station.
HOLIDAYS + OBSERVANCES
PORTRAIT + QUOTE OF THE DAY
“It is dreadful when something weighs on your mind, not to have a soul to unburden yourself to. You know what I mean. I tell my piano the things I used to tell you.”
Frédéric Chopin
NEW + FEATURED
New = To The Front Of The Line #2 (NSFW)
Featured = Man Crushes In Color (NSFW)
Featured = Men In Motion #1 (NSFW)
Substack = NSFW + Pioneers + Pride + SFW
LINKS
Bluesky + Ko-Fi + Linktree + YouTube
SHOP
Art Prints + Merch + Pride
On Amazon + On Threadless
Chopin has a good, but overpriced vodka named after him.
Spenking of Wikipedia and Poland. Polish is (or was until recently) one of the top ten languages for total Wikipedia articles. Not bad for a language with just 40 million native speakers and another ten or so as a second/heritage language.
I did my one card reading before seeing this post. Yes, you were already changing and evolving but this post is so Page of Pentacles, dear. Embody him and let him support you.