windy city queer windy city queer LGBTQ Dispatches from the Third Coast Edited by Kathie Bergquist The University of Wisconsin Press The University of Wisconsin Press 1930 Monroe Street, 3rd Floor Madison, Wisconsin 53711-2059 uwpress.wisc.edu 3 Henrietta Street London WCE 8LU, England eurospanbookstore.com Copyright © 2011 The Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any format or by any means, digital, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, or conveyed via the Internet or a website without written permission of the University of Wisconsin Press, except in the case of brief quotations embedded in critical articles and reviews. Printed in the United States of America “orientation” by Carol Anshaw is excerpted from Lucky in the Corner: A Novelby Carol Anshaw, copyright © 2002 by Carol Anshaw, reprinted by permission of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company, all rights reserved; “con flama” by Sharon Bridgforth is created from an excerpt of a performance text of the same name, and was written with support from the National Endowment for the Arts/Theatre Communications Group Residency Program for Playwrights during a residency at Frontera @ Hyde Park Theatre, Vicky Boone, artistic director, Austin, TX; “Elevated Postcard” by Robert McDonald appeared online in an earlier version as “Dear Uncle North,” at Prick of the Spindle, reprinted by permission of the author; “Juango Forever” by Achy Obejas first appeared in Triquarterly Online, reprinted by permission of the author; “Tiny Moon Notebook” by David Trinidad was first published as a chapbook by Big Game Books in 2007, reprinted by permission of the author; “Record Time” by Edmund White first appeared in POZmagazine in 1998 and later in Chaos: A Novella and Storiesby Edmund White, copyright © 2007 by Edmund White, published by Carroll & Graf, an imprint of Perseus books, reprinted by permission of the publisher and the author. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Windy City queer: LGBTQ dispatches from the Third Coast / edited by Kathie Bergquist. p. cm. ISBN 978-0-299-28404-6 (pbk.: alk. paper) ISBN 978-0-299-28403-9 (e-book) 1. Gays’ writings, American—Illinois—Chicago. 2. Lesbians’ writings, American—Illinois— Chicago. 3. Bisexuals’ writings, American—Illinois—Chicago. 4. Transgender people’s writings, American—Illinois—Chicago. 5. Gays—Illinois—Chicago—Literary collections. 6. Lesbians— Illinois—Chicago—Literary collections. 7. Bisexuals—Illinois—Chicago—Literary collections. 8. Transgender people—Illinois—Chicago—Literary collections. 9. Chicago (Ill.)—Literary collections. I. Bergquist, Kathie. PS508.G39W56 2011 810.8´092066—dc22 2011011632 Contents Acknowledgments ix Introduction 1 Part 1: Emergence con flama: A Performance Text 7 Sharon Bridgforth Record Time 12 Edmund White ’78 21 Gregg Shapiro Marriage and Commitment 23 Owen Keehnen Nights at Dugan’s Bistro: Dancing with Angels Dancing with Ghosts 31 Gerard Wozek rhythm is a dancer 36 kay ulanday barrett Part 2: In Transit Elevated Postcard 43 Robert McDonald the wife and the bride 44 Carina Gia Farrero v Contents Cold Cab 46 Byron Flitsch Darla Speeding 51 Deb R. Lewis Survivor 56 Karen Lee Osborne Cheese, Gifts, Fireworks! (A Wisconsin Sonnet) 60 cin salach Part 3: Intersections The Incorrect Tattoo 63 David Kodeski Juanga Forever 68 Achy Obejas Zoo Mountain 74 Allison Gruber The Anarchist Potluck 84 Aldo Alvarez Yearners 94 Barrie Cole Part 4: The Grind New. Great. Revolutionary. 103 D. Travers Scott orientation 112 Carol Anshaw Travels with Charley 118 Brian Bouldrey vi Contents Forgiv: A Queer Call for Survival in the City 127 Yasmin Nair Duped in Grit 133 Mark Zubro Part 5: Family Matters The Mudroom 149 Nadine C. Warner I Am My Daughter’s Dad 154 Coya Paz Waiting 157 Emma Vosicky Part 6: Hooking Up The True Story of S/Him and Femme 175 C.C. Carter Lesbian Movie Night 182 April Newman spilling over 187 Jeanne Theresa Newman The Liar 188 Sheree L. Greer Itch 197 J. Adams Oaks Whales 202 Rose Tully tattoo 210 avery r. young vii Contents Part 7: Winter At the Rosehill Cemetery, Chicago, 2001 215 Richard Fox Everything You Always Wanted to Know 220 Goldie Goldbloom Tiny Moon Notebook 229 David Trinidad January 236 cin salach Afterword 237 E. Patrick Johnson Contributors 239 viii Acknowledgments The editor would like to thank the following for their help and support during the assembling of this anthology: Raphael Kadushin and the acquisi- tions, editorial, and rights staff at the University of Wisconsin Press for all their hand-holding and encouragement through the entire process; Nikki Rinkus, Paige Kelly, and Liz Mordarski for their patience, positive attitudes, discriminating taste, and helpful input; all the terrific writers who submitted work, only a small fraction of which is represented here; and the writers who generously agreed to have their work appear in this collection. ix