Mint-scented urinal cakes?
Not sure how I feel about that.
Better than bubblegum I suppose.
Author Archives: Alan Ilagan
24
June
2025
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June
2025
In Stillness, Coolness
Romanticizing this heat is an indulgence as it’s still rather new. Should it persist into August, we won’t have such a kind view of it. With rain due later in the week, let’s embrace the sun, and find ways to find coolness, such as in the hues of these blue and violet flowers.
The simplest way to combat the heat – or at least to attempt tolerating it – is to slow down. This is not the time to exert yourself with activity or frenzied motion. The common trio of ‘calm, cool and collected’ hasn’t lasted for its inaccuracy – each feeds into the other.
I will bring that energy into the office for the next few days, because with intention comes reaction.
So much of summer wants to shout and scream and jump up and down.
The quiet parts are what keep us cool.
24
June
2025
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June
2025
Island Sea Song
Summer slams onto the scene with an oppressive wall of heat and humidity. After a disappointingly rainy spring, this sun and heat is not entirely unwelcome. It’s all a bit much, but with rain set to return for the last half of the week we’ll take it, and embrace the hot and humid island weather. It ties into our summer theme divinely, and that’s worthy of an exclamation point!
So slow your roll, pause your day, and dip into what already feels like a deep summer day. Let the sweat roll off the brow, let the heat batter you down, and let the summer have its way.
23
June
2025
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June
2025
23
June
2025
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June
2025
A Bright Poppy Recap
Hello Summer! We wished and you delivered and now it’s going to be 97 degrees for the next two days, followed by another week of rain, so I’ll be crashing out and taking a hostage before the weekend arrives again. Here are a couple of poppy pics to ease the whiplash of our seasonal rollercoaster. And here’s the weekly recap…
Crying Cynthia and her about-to-be-deported husband won the first FAFO Award of the week.
A spring in limbo comes to a close.
Mars enters Virgo, and I’m feeling every inch.
A whisper through the palm fronds.
Summer 2025 begins in a quiet way.
Our summer 2025 theme is ISLAND!
Janet Correa won this tearful FAFO award.
The second night of summer came and went.
Black jockstrap: back entry ~ and the Divine Diva Tour returns.
Dazzlers of the Day included Ainsley Melham and Suzanne Lambert.
22
June
2025
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June
2025
Perched, Poised & Primed
Some people can be bound and gagged, spanked and humiliated, punished and degraded until their skin is red and raw and glistening with the sweat of pain – and still hold all the power in the room. It’s an unusual sort of sway, to get people to treat you that way, to trick them into thinking they have any sort of power over you. It’s madness and magnificence, mess and muck – the prettiest and most awful sort of fuck.
I never promised you a rose garden this summer.
I only promised you an island.
And every person is their own island.
Especially in the summer.
This section of The Divine Diva Tour: A Fairy’s Tale comes to its saucy close as our first full week of summer begins. Brace yourself for rollercoaster whiplash…
~ The Divine Diva Tour: A Fairy’s Tale ~
- Pink Frilly Fairy: Part One, Part Two, and Part Three
- Homage to Herb: Part One, Part Two and Part Three
- A Purple-Hued Interlude
- Style & Panache: Part One, Part Two, Part Three and Part Four.
- Purple Puff Confection: Part One, Part Two, Part Three and Part Four.
- A Blue-Hued Interlude
- Fuchsia Fabulousness: Part One. Part Two and Part Three.
- Bad Boy Bangs: Part One, Part Two. and Part Three.
- Vanity Under Where: Part One, Part Two. and Part Three.
- Sugar Plum Ballerina: Part One, Part Two, and Part Three.
- A Pool Frolic: Part One, Part Two. and Part Three.
- A Cemetery Interlude: Part One and Part Two.
- Powder Blue Fur Doll: Part One, Part Two, and Part Three.
- A Milky Interlude
- Rock Out, Cock Out/ Hang Out, Wang Out: Part One, Part Two, and Part Three.
- Cocktail Cocktale: Part One and Part Two.
- A Fairy’s Interlude: Part One and Part Two.
- Willy Wonkers: Part One, Part Two, and Part Three.
- A Peacock In Everything But Beauty: Part One, Part Two, and Part Three.
- Swan Lake Fantasia: Part One, Part Two, Part Three, and Part Four.
- Black & White in Briefs: Part One, Part Two. and Part Three.
- Weave of Basket, Weave of Rope: Part One, Part Two, Part Three, Part Four, and Part Five.
- Chains of Gray to Color: Part One, Part Two, Part Three and Part Four.
- Black Jockstrap: Back Entry: Part One and Part Two.
22
June
2025
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June
2025
Strapped and Chained
Most of The Divine Diva Tour: A Fairy’s Tale was a pose.
A bit of play.
A donning of guises and disguises.
The mask almost always reveals more than it obscures.
Playing with a persona is the safest way to try on a new look, and I promise it won’t get stuck like that.
If you give the merest whisper of an identity, people will often just fill in the rest. Like when you put forth a pixelated or distorted picture – people will bend it and will it into what their minds want it to be.
I’ve always been lazy that way: providing the basic pose and letting others fill in my blanks.
What would you do with these?
~ The Divine Diva Tour: A Fairy’s Tale ~
- Pink Frilly Fairy: Part One, Part Two, and Part Three
- Homage to Herb: Part One, Part Two and Part Three
- A Purple-Hued Interlude
- Style & Panache: Part One, Part Two, Part Three and Part Four.
- Purple Puff Confection: Part One, Part Two, Part Three and Part Four.
- A Blue-Hued Interlude
- Fuchsia Fabulousness: Part One. Part Two and Part Three.
- Bad Boy Bangs: Part One, Part Two. and Part Three.
- Vanity Under Where: Part One, Part Two. and Part Three.
- Sugar Plum Ballerina: Part One, Part Two, and Part Three.
- A Pool Frolic: Part One, Part Two. and Part Three.
- A Cemetery Interlude: Part One and Part Two.
- Powder Blue Fur Doll: Part One, Part Two, and Part Three.
- A Milky Interlude
- Rock Out, Cock Out/ Hang Out, Wang Out: Part One, Part Two, and Part Three.
- Cocktail Cocktale: Part One and Part Two.
- A Fairy’s Interlude: Part One and Part Two.
- Willy Wonkers: Part One, Part Two, and Part Three.
- A Peacock In Everything But Beauty: Part One, Part Two, and Part Three.
- Swan Lake Fantasia: Part One, Part Two, Part Three, and Part Four.
- Black & White in Briefs: Part One, Part Two. and Part Three.
- Weave of Basket, Weave of Rope: Part One, Part Two, Part Three, Part Four, and Part Five.
- Chains of Gray to Color: Part One, Part Two, Part Three and Part Four.
- Black Jockstrap: Back Entry: Part One.
22
June
2025
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June
2025
Black Jockstrap: Back Entry
The Divine Diva Tour: A Fairy’s Tale resumes its online posting schedule, twenty years after appearing in three-ring-binder form, fronted by lavender lace, backed by a rainbow tapestry of ribbons, and accented by a poof of ostrich feathers. Yes, I am using poof as a noun, because when you know the rules you can break them.
This entry begins as a black and white study in gay eroticism, with hints of sadomasochism and an underlying tension of possible bondage – the classic hallmarks of divinity. The photos will speak for themselves – previous divine links further below, in case you get cold-feet scrolling…
~ The Divine Diva Tour: A Fairy’s Tale ~
- Pink Frilly Fairy: Part One, Part Two, and Part Three
- Homage to Herb: Part One, Part Two and Part Three
- A Purple-Hued Interlude
- Style & Panache: Part One, Part Two, Part Three and Part Four.
- Purple Puff Confection: Part One, Part Two, Part Three and Part Four.
- A Blue-Hued Interlude
- Fuchsia Fabulousness: Part One. Part Two and Part Three.
- Bad Boy Bangs: Part One, Part Two. and Part Three.
- Vanity Under Where: Part One, Part Two. and Part Three.
- Sugar Plum Ballerina: Part One, Part Two, and Part Three.
- A Pool Frolic: Part One, Part Two. and Part Three.
- A Cemetery Interlude: Part One and Part Two.
- Powder Blue Fur Doll: Part One, Part Two, and Part Three.
- A Milky Interlude
- Rock Out, Cock Out/ Hang Out, Wang Out: Part One, Part Two, and Part Three.
- Cocktail Cocktale: Part One and Part Two.
- A Fairy’s Interlude: Part One and Part Two.
- Willy Wonkers: Part One, Part Two, and Part Three.
- A Peacock In Everything But Beauty: Part One, Part Two, and Part Three.
- Swan Lake Fantasia: Part One, Part Two, Part Three, and Part Four.
- Black & White in Briefs: Part One, Part Two. and Part Three.
- Weave of Basket, Weave of Rope: Part One, Part Two, Part Three, Part Four, and Part Five.
- Chains of Gray to Color: Part One, Part Two, Part Three and Part Four.
21
June
2025
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June
2025
The Second Night of Summer Again
Our annual posting of this song comes courtesy of its apt title. All glory usually goes to the first day of summer, and its immediately-following first night. The second night usually gets forgotten, and that’s why I have a soft spot for it.
We’ve played this song before, and after almost 50 summers here on earth I realize there are more repeats than new treads at this point. Still, like a good Christmas song that only gets brought out once a year, I love a song that is as timely as it is fleeting. Like summer.
21
June
2025
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June
2025
A Creamy Island Cocktail
This is a simple Summer Island Mocktail recipe, which can be made into an adult beverage with some coconut rum if you are so inclined. Personally, I prefer the N/A version here, as it’s just as refreshing and doesn’t come with the dehydrating properties of liquor.
Colombian Coconut Limeade
(Limonada de Coco)
Ingredients:
1/2 cup fresh lime juice (about 4 limes)
1 can coconut milk
1 can sweetened condensed milk
2 cups ice
1/2 cup cold water
Blend well together and serve with lime slice and/or mint sprig.
21
June
2025
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June
2025
The Next FAFO Award: Janet Correa
Janet Correa sang a ridiculous ‘Vote Trump’ anthem that went viral and actively campaigned for the current FOTUS, enthusiastically encouraging the Latino community to vote for him, which many of them did. She must have been so proud when he won!
Janet is also married to an undocumented immigrant, one of the people Trump specifically promised to deport. Promises made = Promises kept!
Guess what? Her husband is now slated for expedited deportation. And as a human being, my heart goes out to her, like it did to all the people a Trump presidency might affect back when we were telling you not to vote for him. As a Virgo with Mars inside me for the next few months, I will merely shrug and advise that at this point she should begin cleaning up her own mess.
For someone who was so involved in campaigning for such an evil man, I do not believe she wasn’t somewhat aware of the main platform of her candidate. I mean, there were literal signs.
And as sad as the situation is – the exact sort of sad situation those of us who voted for Hillary and Kamala wanted to prevent – people like Janet are getting precisely what they voted for, and that sort of karmic retribution is out of our hands now. Let go and let God, Janet. Thoughts and prayers. Perhaps you should sing a new anthem (or at least put the pro-Trump singing on ICE for now) and stop voting for Republicans. Do the work that some of us were doing back then, when all this could have been prevented.
FAFO – The Medicaid Recipients
FAFO – Trump Voter Cynthia & Her Family
20
June
2025
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June
2025
Slumber Beneath the Sea
The first night of summer always seems surreal, like that moment you’ve waited for for so long that when it arrives you can’t actually feel it. To counteract that mischief of the mind, I ask that we take a moment to inhabit the moment. Pause whatever you are doing and make a memory with me. Walk to the nearest door and step outside into the evening air. Breathe it in deeply, slowly, intentionally. Focus on everything you are feeling, everything you are observing, everything you are experiencing.
Now let your eyes close, and imagine you are on some beautiful secluded island, safe and protected, perhaps in a doorway looking out toward the ocean. You hear the distant waves, you feel the gentle breeze, you can almost smell the salty seaspray. Once, your feet slipped into the ocean, once you became one with the sea, once you felt the sand between the toes and the sun on your face and the water lapping at your ankles.
If it happened in the past, somewhere it’s still happening there – a loop of time that you can bring to mind whenever you want it. A temporal trick of the brain that humans have to transport and transform as desired, and a key component to imagination and escapism. Never underestimate the power of both.
On this first night of summer, let it wash over you: the season, the start, the sultry promise of more. There is peace here if you let yourself find it. Calm and tranquility too, along with the gentle pull of the proverbial sea, coaxing us to restful unforced slumber.
Welcome summer…
20
June
2025
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June
2025
Summer Theme: ISLAND
Tropical the island breeze,
All of nature wild and free,
This is where I long to be…
~ La Isla Bonita ~
From the House that brought you Coquette, this summer aims to transport you to a whole new realm: ISLAND. While our Coquette theme was practically Victorian in its formalized fashion parameters and rigidly-defined construct, ISLAND is all about freedom and fun and escapism. No underlying melancholy, no shifting moodiness, no darker undertones – it’s summer and the living is about to be easy.
Coquette was an aesthetic; ISLAND is a state of mind. It is mood and atmosphere and vibe – the very best bit of escapism and fantasy, imperative in today’s darkening world, designed to be accessible no matter how landlocked you might be. ISLAND frees the mind, its music frees the soul, and its attitude frees the heart. No matter how far you might be from an actual island, no matter how distant a body of water may be, the idea of a metaphorical island allows you to escape to a summer of carefree ease and languor.
In some ways, that’s how I’ve always thought of my home with Andy: our own little island for two, where we’ve created a cozy environment all the year round, with summer expanding into the backyard with its gardens and pool, and friends stopping by for dinner grilling or pampered attic loft sleepovers. This summer we have a trio of official Island Gatherings scheduled, with an open invitation to all friends and family to stop by, stay for a spell, lounge by the pool, set up camp in the attic loft, or simply say hello.
The Island of Ilagan is open for the summer – join us… you’ll like it here.
20
June
2025
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June
2025
A Quiet Summer Start
Most summers begin with a celebratory bang – an explosion of color and sound, vibrant and brash, bold and brilliant – heralding the season of fun in the sun. Last summer’s Coquette theme was an instant classic, one that could never be duplicated. It was perfectly of the moment, and like all perfect moments, it wasn’t destined to last. Summer is like that.
This summer is decidedly quieter, with a much more loose and laid-back theme: Island. It begins with a delicate piano version of Bob Marley’s ‘No Woman, No Cry’ which concludes with a Bach Prelude, signaling an end and a beginning at once – the way summer sometimes demands two things at the same time, tugging at the heart while wreaking havoc with the head.
It sets the tone and the atmosphere for our Island theme – which is fluid, languid, and free. It is relief and release, the way you once felt after the last day of school, when you could throw your binders and pencils away and pretend summer was going to last forever, because it felt like it could. There’s also an adventurous aspect to it, with the mysteries that often accompany a summer’s duration. When I was in school, and summer finally arrived, I’d select one classic to read – something like ‘Treasure Island’ to take me out of the doldrums of Amsterdam, NY. When your mind is your passport, you can go absolutely anywhere. Won’t you come along for our island adventures?
“Before us, over the tree tops, we behold a great field of open sea to the East. Sheer above us rose single pines, black with precipices. There was no sound but that of the distant breakers, mounting from all around, and the chirp of countless insects in the brush. Not a man, not a sail upon the sea; the very largeness of the view increased the sense of solitude.” ~ Robert Louis Stevenson, ‘Treasure Island’
19
June
2025
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June
2025
A Whisper Through the Palms
Spring ends, summer begins, and Mars is in Virgo.
As the dearest lady once proclaimed to a room filled with men: “Don’t fuck with me fellas – this ain’t my first time at the rodeo!”
Just a little attitude I’m keeping in my back-pocket for a rainy day, as our slide into summer will be a quiet and soft one. This post gradually transitions us into the summer theme – a sepia, tropical tone, something simple and easy for the relaxed season. Shades of cream and white and beige – once decried as dull and lifeless, now embraced as classic and elegant and cool. Ideal for the hot season, when things get sticky and sweaty and we’re all looking for relief.
At the end of spring, a song for the moment:
Drama and portent, setting the stage for some sort of summer, with hopes it will be a contented one. Hope and possibility – the key tenets to the start of the season. Come back in a few hours to see the first summer post…
