Space Is Gay, and it Has an Important Lesson for Us

• [Space Is Gay, and it Has an Important Lesson for Us](#toc_item_0) • [Read More](#toc_item_1) • [The Northern Lights Are Spectacular. The Southern Lights Are Even Wilder.](#toc_item_2) • [Read More](#toc_item_3) • [Everything You Need to Pull off a Proper Indoor BBQ, According to Grillmasters](#toc_item_4) • [Buy Here](#toc_item_5) • [Marlon Makes Lamb Chops With Rice and Mushrooms in His Microwave](#toc_item_6) • [Watch Here](#toc_item_7) *Header 728x90 [photo of the week]( [] [Space Is Gay, and it Has an Important Lesson for Us]( [By Ruby Anderson]( When my gay friends and I talk about a time “before we were gay,” we’re referring to the years before some beautiful queer disturbance fundamentally changed what we believed was, for us, written in the stars. It was a time when so much of our growth felt predetermined, when it seemed like the parts of life most unknown and worth exploring were mysteries like outer space, not our own sexualities. The irony behind the phrase “written in the stars” is that we’re using our largely ambiguous and ever-expanding universe to describe a predetermined path in life -- to describe fate -- which, for queer youth in the majority of American communities, is presumed to be heterosexuality. I remember a time in my early teens when, after a long day of grappling with my unidentifiable discomforts, I looked up and felt a kinship with the vast, equivocal darkness. Fate wasn’t what felt written in the stars -- it was something more like permission. In May of this year, queer online advice columnist [John Paul Brammer](answered the [question]( “What is the unspoken bond that LGBTQ people have with space?” with “we queers tend to know a lot about the ordeal of being perceived and then being negotiated into rigid taxonomies that weren’t built with us in mind.” Inspired by his answer and my personal experiences, I set out to find queer people who had an intense love for space and ask them if they thought space was gay, and from everyone I spoke to, I received a resounding YES. But the follow-up answers informed not only how how queer people have learned to relate to the the world at large, but these folks are working to bring more cosmo-like diversity and harmony into their communities and relationships. Space is inherently counterculture. [] [Read More]( [( [( travel [] [The Northern Lights Are Spectacular. The Southern Lights Are Even Wilder.]( [By Brad Japhe]( Seeing the [Northern Lights]( is often at or near the top of travelers' bucket lists, right along with "duck-face selfie next to South Asian waterfall." The electromagnetic phenomenon is downright spellbinding, but also elusive and unpredictable by nature. Still, an intimate rendezvous with the Aurora Borealis is as easy as catching a west-coast sunset compared to the relative rarity of its southern counterpart -- Aurora Australis. [] [Read More]( [( *720x300 Ad Banner [( shopping [] [Everything You Need to Pull off a Proper Indoor BBQ, According to Grillmasters]( Summer is looking a lot different this year, and that’s especially true if you live in a city. Chances are your cramped apartment building doesn’t have an outdoor patio or grill. Or maybe you do have a sliver of outdoor space via your fire escape, but don’t you dare make a fire on the thing you’re supposed to use to get out if your food goes up in flames. There’s no need. [] [Buy Here]( [( *Sponsored Ads List [( Nuke with me [] [Marlon Makes Lamb Chops With Rice and Mushrooms in His Microwave]( In this episode of “[Nuke With Me](,” host Marlon Webb gives us the rundown of how to cook lamb chop with rice and mushrooms using only his microwave. Everything starts off normal until Marlon realizes he has the wrong kind of mushrooms. It soon becomes clear that Marlon won’t be able to continue the recipe and he has to rely on his usually disruptive crew to take over and complete the meal. [] [Watch Here]( [( *Footer 728x90 Thrillist Editorial - Favorable reviews cannot be bought. Read our [Terms & Conditions](, [Privacy Policy]( Delivered by Thrillist.com, 568 Broadway, Suite 507, New York, NY 10012 [212.966.2263]( Sent to {EMAIL}. Add themove@newsletter.thrillist.com to your safe-sender list so our emails get to your inbox. [View On The Web]( [Content Settings]( [Unsubscribe](