DDFL Waives Cat Adoption Fees Thru Sunday

Through Sunday October 21, the Denver Dumb Friends League is waiving adoption fees on all cats 1-year-old or older, making it the purr-fect time to adopt a feline friend!

Adoption fees for adult cats range from $50-$75, so it's a great way to keep a little extra money in your pocket so you can properly spoil your new kitty companion! All cats, even those with waived adoption fees, are spayed or neutered and vaccinated prior to adoption. They are also implanted with a microchip ID and eligible to receive a free wellness visit at a participating veterinarian.

Click to see all cats waiting to find new homes!

Laverne Cox Opens Up on the Work of Self Love, Survivors Guilt, Dating and more in SELF

SELF just released a new (digital) cover featuring Laverne Cox, who opened up in a powerful new interview (video and feature story) about her experiences as the most prominent trans woman and the survivors-guilt she's subsequently felt, what self care means to her, and about her experiences dating including how she's previously been objectified, and not allowing that anymore.


On how her view of herself changed: "When I started transitioning 20 years ago, the goal of transitioning was not to be openly trans,” she says. “The goal of transitioning as presented to me by all the trans women that I admired was that you transition and you go and disappear and don't tell anyone your business.” ... There were a lot of times over many years I went through the world not leading with being trans, but someone always knew,” Cox says. “I had to really get to a place in my life where I was able to be good with being trans or I was going to have to kill myself.”

On the importance of "cheesy" self care affirmations: “There's a bit of cynicism that I, too, have had about doing affirmations, but it's really a wonderful thing,” she says. “Sometimes you say it until you believe it. I can't say I haven't looked in the mirror and said, “‘Work, bitch.’”.... “Loving myself is a practice,” she says. “It is something that I must cultivate and it is something that I must consciously do or it will go away.”

On dating: “I wanted a man to validate my womanhood or validate that I'm attractive,” “I'm not buying it anymore,” she says. “I'm not buying into that, I'm not having it. I'm sexy and I'm going to own that because I think trans women…are sexy. A lot of us are sexy not despite our transness, but because of our transness. That's just the truth.”

On the panic attacks she she says she experienced when she recently bought a condo in Los Angeles: “I think in part it was because of not being used to abundance, because I've had two eviction notices in my life, and I hadn't fully dealt with that trauma,” she says.

On her "survivors-guilt" over her success, while so many other trans women of color suffer: “I understand that I'm very lucky,” she says. “I understand that I've been chosen. It makes me sad…it’s very intense.”

Hit LGBT Series "West 40s" Breaks 165K Views, Announces New Episodes

West 40s, the summer’s surprise-hit, indie comedy series about five gay men stumbling through their 40s in Hell’s Kitchen NYC, debuted on July 12th and, in just 3 months, has blown past 165K views on YouTube for its first episode.

Co-created by Comedy Central writer/producer and actor Mark Sam Rosenthal and by indie filmmaker Brian Sloan, this “Midtown, midlife comedy” following five characters in their 40s has struck a chord for LGBT audiences of all ages starved for true-to-life, relatable content online - and maybe even in general. With no advertising or promotional budget at all, West 40s’ great critical notices and even greater word-of-mouth have garnered the show nearly 13K subscribers on YouTube, and the pilot has been viewed in over 200 countries around the world.

The show’s unprecedented success out of the gate has led its thousands of fans to ask one question repeatedly in over 500 comments online: when is the next episode? Today, the West 40s team is announcing that they are starting work on Episodes 102 and 103. And, to fund the next round of production, they are launching a 67K Kickstarter for those two episodes, which will be shot together in January 2019 for release in March 2019.

“We have been thrilled and almost overwhelmed by the response to the show,” says Sloan in their Kickstarter video. “We even had to change our plan a bit due to the response and will now be shooting the next two episodes together in the new year.”

The pilot episode was produced independently after a successful Kickstarter campaign raised more than 23K, 190% above the original goal. So now to accommodate paying all the crew and making double the amount of content, they aim to raise 3x that amount to produce the next two episodes together.

“Originally, we were going to do one episode at a time but we decided to change our plan a bit due to the incredible response of the show’s fans,” said series co-star and co-creator Mark Sam Rosenthal. “They wanted more, and kept asking us online and in the YouTube LIVE videos that we were doing this fall. So we decided to give the people what they want!”

In the Navy ... Penny Glover's Wife and Daughter Promote Her to Commander

GARDEN CITY, New York (Oct. 1, 2018) The wife and daughter of Cmdr. Penny Glover, a native of Uniontown, Pennsylvania and graduate of Northeast Senior High School in Pasadena, Maryland, change out her shoulder boards to commander during a promotion ceremony at Navy Recruiting District New York headquarters. Glover is the prospective executive officer of the recruiting district and a graduate of Cedar Crest College, the Naval War College and Capella University. (U.S. Navy photo by Chief Mass Communication Specialist Travis Simmons/Released)

"Revelation" By Troye Sivan and Jonsi Released Today

Focus Features and Back Lot Music announce the release of “Revelation”, the new original song by Troye Sivan & Jónsi written for the feature film Boy Erased. Fans can stream the song on all DSP’s or get the song instantly with soundtrack pre-order here. The soundtrack to the film – featuring an additional original song by Jónsi and score by Danny Bensi & Saunder Jurriaans – will release digitally on 10/26 and physically on 11/2 with the film’s theatrical release in select theaters nationwide. A vinyl component will be issued later this year with Music on Vinyl.

Boy Erased tells the courageous story of Jared (played by Lucas Hedges), the son of a Baptist pastor in a small American town, who is outed to his parents (Nicole Kidman and Russell Crowe) at age 19. Jared is faced with an ultimatum: attend a conversion therapy program, or be permanently exiled and shunned by his family, friends and faith. Boy Erased is the true story of one young man’s struggle to find himself while being forced to question every aspect of his identity. Sivan also acts alongside Hedges as Gary, a fellow conversion therapy student.

Sivan talked about writing the song for the film during a recent tour stop in New York City, where he performed it live for the first time. “I got together with Jónsi of Sigur Rós and Leland. Joel [Edgerton, writer/director] showed us a scene from the movie, and I don’t want to spoil anything, but it’s this one moment of relief in the film. It’s this one really sweet, tender moment where Jared does something that I would consider pure and beautiful and normal and romantic. He has that experience and the sky doesn’t fall down on him. The world doesn’t come crashing down, and it’s a ‘revelation’ to him. That person that he was with is a revolution to him, and it was just so inspiring. So, we started with these lyrics of ‘you’re a revelation, you’re a revolution’.”

Sivan, who was born in South Africa and raised in Australia, came out to his family at age 14. Unlike the character of Jared, Sivan says “the only thing that saddened my parents was that I hadn’t told them sooner; that I was dealing with this alone.” He has since become one of the world’s most influential online superstars with the biggest social media footprint in Australia, and the fastest growing YouTube channel in the Australia/Asian market to date. He began his career as an actor staring opposite John Cleese in the South African franchise Spud. Sivan was recently hailed as “the Perfect Pop Star for 2018” by TIME, which pronounced his new album, Bloom (Capitol Records), as “a major artistic achievement.” Bloom was awarded four stars by Rolling Stone and has already racked up more than 700 million cumulative streams. Sivan’s numerous awards include a Billboard Music Award, three MTV EMA’s and two GLAAD Media Awards. His 2015 debut album, Blue Neighbourhood, topped the iTunes charts in 66 countries and has sold more than 2.5 million adjusted albums worldwide.

Jón þor (Jónsi) Birgisson is an Icelandic musician, best known as singer of Sigur Rós, a band he co-founded as a teenager 24 years ago. With Sigur Rós he has released seven studio albums, which have taken the band on a journey from willful obscurity to a position as one of the biggest 'underground' bands on the planet, building a large and ardent live fanbase all over the world. Sigur Rós' beautifully atmospheric and often darkly dramatic work continues to defy categorization, attracting a truly broad spectrum of admirers, among them the many filmmakers. For film, Jónsi has previously written end title songs for How To Train Your Dragon 1 & 2, an award-winning score for Cameron Crowe's We Bought A Zoo, and TV drama Manhattan.

For First Time, LGBTQ Candidates Ran for Office in Every U.S. State in 2018

For the first time in U.S. history, openly LGBTQ candidates ran for elected office in all 50 states and the District of Columbia this election cycle, powering a Rainbow Wave of LGBTQ candidates running at every level of government. At least 618 LGBTQ candidates ran for office and at least 399 will appear on ballots in November. In three states, however –Delaware, Mississippi and New Mexico – there were no out LGBTQ candidates that advanced to the general election and none will appear on the November ballot. Findings and a breakdown by state is below.

Among the findings:

• Mississippi and South Dakota had the lowest number of out candidates running in 2018, with just one each. Both currently have zero openly LGBTQ elected officials serving anywhere in the state.
• California, Texas and Florida had the largest number of LGBTQ candidates run in 2018 – with 81, 61 and 28 respectively. While California and Florida are among the states with the highest number of openly LGBTQ elected officials currently serving, Texas is an outlier. Despite having relatively few openly LGBTQ elected officials serving given the state’s population, it saw a surge in openly LGBTQ candidates running this year.
• Alabama, Arkansas, Connecticut, Texas, West Virginia and Guam can at least double the number of out LGBTQ elected officials with big wins in November. Alabama, Arkansas, Texas and West Virginia are all low-equality states for LGBTQ people, according to the Movement Advancement Project.

“LGBTQ candidates are running for office in unprecedented numbers and in every state in the nation – and it is already inspiring more LGBTQ people to run in the near future,” said Mayor Annise Parker, President & CEO of LGBTQ Victory Fund. “This rainbow wave of candidates is certainly concentrated in blue states and districts, but LGBTQ leaders in conservative parts of the nation are standing up and determined to become public servants while remaining true to who they are. The struggles and experiences of LGBTQ candidates provide a unique perspective that makes them authentic, values-driven leaders, and it is increasingly resonating with voters.”

The complete list of openly LGBTQ candidate numbers by state, in addition to the current number of serving LGBTQ elected officials in each state, is below.

State	Number of LGBTQ Candidates Who Ran in 2018	Number of LGBTQ Candidates on Nov 2018 Ballot	Number of Current LGBTQ Elected Officials
Alabama	4	2	1
Alaska	5	1	4
Arizona	18	12	10
Arkansas	6	4	2
California	81	57	105
Colorado	15	12	13
Connecticut	13	11	5
Delaware	3	0	3
District of Columbia	7	5	6
Florida	28	17	28
Georgia	13	9	12
Guam	3	3	1
Hawaii	5	1	0
Idaho	2	1	2
Illinois	22	14	26
Indiana	4	1	4
Iowa	7	3	7
Kansas	5	3	6
Kentucky	7	4	7
Louisiana	3	3	0
Maine	6	4	11
Maryland	25	10	16
Massachusetts	20	8	17
Michigan	19	11	17
Minnesota	8	6	11
Mississippi	1	0	0
Missouri	9	7	5
Montana	7	6	6
Nebraska	4	4	4
Nevada	8	3	4
New Hampshire	10	9	8
New Jersey	20	16	16
New Mexico	2	0	8
New York	26	14	27
North Carolina	21	17	13
North Dakota	3	3	3
Ohio	16	10	19
Oklahoma	6	2	2
Oregon	13	12	12
Pennsylvania	15	10	30
Puerto Rico	0	0	1
Rhode Island	10	7	5
South Carolina	3	1	1
South Dakota	1	1	0
Tennessee	5	2	5
Texas	61	37	16
Utah	3	2	8
Vermont	7	6	4
Virgin Islands	0	0	1
Virginia	5	2	11
Washington	13	13	33
West Virginia	3	2	1
Wisconsin	15	9	18
Wyoming	2	2	2
Total	618	399	577

Also available are previous reports on the number of openly LGBTQ candidates running for Congress and governor, and the number of openly LGBTQ candidates who ran by position level.

A note on the candidate numbers above: Louisiana, Mississippi, New Jersey, and Virginia do not hold state legislative elections this year, affecting the number of candidates running in their states this cycle.

Victory Fund endorsed 272 openly LGBTQ candidates in 2018 – the most in its 27-year history – and 226 of those endorsees will be on the ballot in November. Seventeen openly LGBTQ candidates have already been elected this year. View all Victory Fund endorsed candidates at victoryfund.org/ourcandidates.

A Spirit Day Message from the Cast of 'Boy Erased'

 
In celebration of Spirit Day, the cast of Boy Erased is sharing a special message encouraging people to stand up against bullying and support the LGBTQ youth.

Are You Gay With Something To Say? Bloggers Wanted For Denver's Best Gay Blog!

Are you a new or experienced writer or blogger? Do you want to be? Or maybe you're just some gay guy with something to say? Well, what better forum for you than MileHighGayGuy?

MileHighGayGuy is looking for regular and guest bloggers to write about local news and events, do music and movie reviews, or write opinion or feature pieces from a gay perspective.

These are unpaid positions but offer the opportunity to be published in Colorado's Best Gay Blog (2010, 2011, 2012 OUTstanding Awards, Denver 2012 #WebAwards), expand your audience and gain valuable experience. There's also swag available in the form of free movie and concert tickets, music, books and other cool stuff.

If interested, shoot an email over to Drew Wilson at drew@milehighgayguy.com. And if you've got column or story ideas to pitch, this is the place to do it.

Total Giovanni Debut 'Euphoria'

Melbourne's Total Giovanni released their debut album Euphoria today. A blend of  Balearic hedonism, classic punk funk and psychedelic washes, Euphoria feels like a sweaty dancefloor and tastes like the first burst of summer. Glistening singles 'Your Light', 'Comes In Waves', 'Awake' & 'I See' each draw on the diverse inspirations that have influenced the making of Euphoria, where the Paradise Garage meets Madchester on the shores of the Mediterranean. 

Total Giovanni are a band that emerged out of the creative experimentation of five old friends Vachel Spirason, Julian Rawendra, Joe Charles, Dave Reidy and Matthew Hadley. The band's following has built quickly on the reputation for their unpredictable and incendiary live shows. In addition to displaying a unique musical rapport, these live shows involved visual experimentation and explosive physical performances that combined to set off a word-of-mouth phenomenon.

BIRD – Comfort Food with a Creative Twist

Farm to plate from local suppliers and using the freshest possible ingredients, BIRD is refined American comfort food with a creative, upscale twist.

Denver Limo, Inc.: The Hottest Limos at the Lowest Prices!

Denver Limo, Inc. is the leader in ground transportation in Denver, Colorado. Providing limousine service in Colorado for over 17 years, Denver Limo, Inc. has the hottest limousines, SUV limos, and Party Buses in the state - and they're currently available at the lowest prices of the year! 

Do You Want To Reach Denver's Gay Community? Advertise With Denver's Best Gay Blog!

Do you want to advertise to Denver’s gay community? Of course you do, it’s the 7th largest in the United States! And the best way to reach them is with MileHighGayGuy – Colorado’s Best Gay Blog.
 
Just click the Advertising page or email sales@milehighgayguy.com to get started today.

Wally's Wiconsin Tavern - a Taste of Sheboygan in Downtown Denver!

The menu at Wally's Wisconsin Tavern is 100% inspired by owner James Weimann's Sheboygan upbringing. The white cheddar cheese curds are sourced straight from Wisconsin and the fish fry is walleye! 

Have a request for a favorite Wisconsin beer or dish? Let 'em know! The menu continues to evolve and grow. 

Are You Gay With Something To Say? Bloggers Wanted For Denver's Best Gay Blog!

Are you a new or experienced writer or blogger? Do you want to be? Or maybe you're just some gay guy with something to say? Well, what better forum for you than MileHighGayGuy?

MileHighGayGuy is looking for regular and guest bloggers to write about local news and events, do music and movie reviews, or write opinion or feature pieces from a gay perspective.

These are unpaid positions but offer the opportunity to be published in Colorado's Best Gay Blog (2010, 2011, 2012 OUTstanding Awards, Denver 2012 #WebAwards), expand your audience and gain valuable experience. There's also swag available in the form of free movie and concert tickets, music, books and other cool stuff.

If interested, shoot an email over to Drew Wilson at drew@milehighgayguy.com. And if you've got column or story ideas to pitch, this is the place to do it.

Koelbel Urban Homes: The New Modern in Denver

Koelbel Urban Homes (KUH) has quickly emerged as a leader in creating urban neighborhoods that promote community and synergy by integrating life, work and play.

As the newest division of legendary developer Koelbel and Company, KUH is focused on in-fill properties, designing and building innovative homes tailored to each unique site.

Offered homes run the gamut of detached single-family homes to svelte modern attached designs featuring today's popular spaces, such as rooftop decks and open-plan concepts. All KUH homes, of course, are designed for optimum living and with respect for the surroundings.