Author Archives: Alan Ilagan

The Winter Olympics are in full-figure-skating swing, and every year I promise not to get so obsessed with the thing. I failed miserably, and I am once again enthralled with the quads and the triples and the spins and the falls. This site is a bit obsessed with the Olympics, as you will see in this recap. If you’re not, there’s still some fun posts in between the athletes. Watch and see. 

We began with a little Hanky Panky – cause there’s nothing like a good spanky. 

A cleaning frenzy brought about a bout of nostalgia. 

The list of Winter Olympic Hunks was long, and it included a naked Matteo Guarise, a naked Apolo Ohno, a shirtless Chris Mazdzer, a shirtless Andrew Kurka, and a spandexed Tucker West.

A drag queen named Milk. 

My nostalgia kick continued in earnest with this post and that post. 

Mesmerizing.

Transfixing.

Magnificent. 

Words pale in comparison to the enchanting way light passes through the stained glass windows of Washington National Cathedral. It must be seen to be believed and appreciated. 

Stained glass time lapse, Washington National Cathedral from Colin Winterbottom on Vimeo.

Here’s the write-up that explains some of the beauty:

This time lapse video — part of the exhibition “Scaling Washington” at the National Building Museum — highlights the movement of stained glass light at the Washington National Cathedral. Photographer Colin Winterbottom was making fine art and documentary photographs of earthquake repairs at the Cathedral when he noticed the beautiful spray of colored light moving through scaffolded work spaces. He had little experience making time lapse, but thought the phenomenon had to be captured, especially as it moved over surfaces across time.

The final video shows movement of light through areas of the Cathedral familiar to visitors as well as through temporary work spaces with limited access. Most of these vantages could only be accessed while scaffold was in place. The opening and closing images, for example — with the west rose window centered straight ahead within the nave — cannot be recreated now that scaffold is down.

So open up your morning light
And say a little prayer for I
You know that if we are to stay alive
Then see the peace in every eye…

The class of ‘Dawson’s Creek‘ was a year or two younger than us, if I recall correctly, but we’ll use this winsome theme song nonetheless. (We were actually the same age as the fictional class of the original ‘Beverly Hills 90210‘ and practically went through the exact same things. (I almost cut a chunk out of my eyebrows to be more like Dylan. NOT.)

By 1995, I had grown into myself a little bit more. It was pretty much the year I finally began to acknowledge that I was possibly, shock of shocks, the slightest bit gay. (A couple of dicks in my mouth would soon confirm it, as would these lace sleeves.)

I don’t want to wait for our lives to be over,
I want to know right now, what will it be?
I don’t want to wait for our lives to be over,
Will it be yes or will it be…sorry?

Not quite twenty years of age, Suzie and I didn’t do much in the way of drinking or drugging, choosing to get our kicks off Route 66 and in a matching pair of velvet shirts from Bonwit Teller. I distinctly remember this day – it was a sad gray one in March, the kind that personify Ithaca and its litany of suicides over the years. Suzie and I had gone to visit one of the bridges from which students occasionally jumped, and it set a pall over the already-depressive proceedings. March is always a difficult month for some of us, and this day in particular was trying, so we did what we often do: found a shopping excursion, bought a stupid clothing item, and laughed our way away from the crying ledge. Only Suzie could do that (with a little help from Bonwit Teller).

You look at me from across the room
You’re wearing your anguish again
Believe me I know the feeling
It sucks you into the jaws of anger(oooooooh)
So breathe a little more deeply my love
All we have is this very moment
And I don’t want to do what his father,
And his father, and his father did,
I want to be here now.

Sometimes I marvel at how we made it through that time in our lives. Everyone marvels at the past at some point, and all that they’ve been through. We all go through patches where it feels too forlorn and hopeless for there to be much sense in life. Somehow, if we’re strong enough, if we’ve found enough love in the world, we keep going. 

I was lucky enough to have the right friends and family to see me through the dark stretches. 

So open up your morning light,
And say a little prayer for I
You know that if we are to stay alive,
And see the peace in every eye…

Olympic champion and current commentator for the Winter Olympics, this is Apolo Ohno, and it looks like he skated so fast all his clothes fell off. (Not an easy feat, given those extra-meaty thighs.) Naked Olympians are nothing new in these parts, as witnessed by the clothing-free shenanigans of Gus Kenworthy, Matteo Guarise, Greg Louganis, Evan Lysacek and Michael Phelps.

[POSSIBLE DRAG RACE SPOILER!]

Polarizing Drag Race contestant Milk was eliminated last night from RuPaul’s Drag Race, and though the general consensus was one of relief, many didn’t believe he as the weakest queen. (Personally, I thought he was fabulous, nervy, dramatic and fun.) This post is not about to engage in that divisive convo, however, but rather to celebrate the kind of body that Milk results in. (Well, his history of figure skating doesn’t hurt either.) Best of all, this post sets up Dan Donigan as a future Hunk of the Day – all it will take is a sexy photoshoot or two. Big & Milky indeed.

We don’t yet know, as of this writing, who the hell is going to win this year’s Super Bowl, but as my friend Skip put it, who cares? I’m right there. I stayed with the nonsense to see what, if anything, Justin Timberlake was going to do to challenge Madonna for an epic halftime performance. Again, this was written before it all went down, so who knows, and who really cares? Nobody beats the Queen. On with the recap of the last week before a brief break.

We began with the beginning of February. 

Silver and shine.

Satin robe, feathers so fine. 

A gratuitous Tom Brady Super Bowl post. 

A naked Justin Timberlake post. 

Super Bowl spotlight on Rex Burkhead. 

A super cocktail. 

Hunks of the Day included Jordan Bruno, Kem Cetinay, Oliver Cheshire, Malcolm Butler, and Allan Kayser, a.k.a. Bubba.