May 28

It’s nearing the end of Fleet Week in NYC, so fans of men in uniform who are spending the Memorial Day weekend in the Big Apple are lucky beyond belief. Thousands of military men are on the prowl along the shores of the Hudson. As for myself, I’m looking forward to a fly-over by the Blue Angels in Annapolis tomorrow morning, the day our Secretary of Defense addresses the graduating class* of the U.S. Naval Academy. Thanks to the efforts of our President, this is the first year graduates can celebrate as openly gay military men and women.

*Those entering the Navy wear dress whites; those entering the Marines wear dress blues. You're welcome.

Speaking of the Naval Academy, remember last week’s news photos of the shirtless plebes mounting that greased pole? No? Well, let your blogger refresh your memory. The assembled crowd got to witness two hours of shirtless, straining, sweating cadets (no rush, fellas) grabbing hold of each other in an intimate human pyramid to remove 200 pounds of lube (the Navy thinks of everything) from the decidedly phallic Herndon monument. Cadets traditionally end their first year by removing a freshman’s “Dixie-cup” cap and replacing it with an upperclassman’s hat on top of the monument. It doesn’t get any more homoerotic than this. Some rites of passage are to be savored.

Before you view the next photo, make special note of the controversial "palm to abs" technique being demonstrated above. Sneaky! 

Well, there you have it. The crude jokes just seem to write themselves, but I'll spare you my lame attempts. Still, it seems to me all this is excellent training for Turkish oil wrestling. Kirkpinar, anyone?



For those of you still with me, let’s have some tan lines on a black & white Monday holiday.