(Originally Published in the November 2012 Issue of Just Out Magazine)

“In the Trenches: The Closet Trip”

My partner and I took a trip to South Dakota this past summer to celebrate my grandfather’s 100th birthday. Before the trip began, we talked about how my extended family on my mother’s side had always been very accepting of me (and my gayness) in theory, but that I had never taken a man “home” and been around all of them while in relationship to test it out. Somewhere in me I knew that everything would be fine with all of them, just as it has been with my immediate family for years, so I didn’t think much more of it.

Almost immediately upon our plane landing in Rapid City, it was clear that we were not in Portland anymore. The woman at the rental car place made some snide comment about how only I could drive the car unless we were “married or domestic partners” which then made her laugh out loud. Imagine – two men married to each other? Ha!

By the time we arrived at the hotel we were exhausted and it was late. We chatted with my parents for a bit and then went to sleep. The next morning we woke up early and traveled to the Badlands, where we spent most of the day. The land was magical and our interaction with people was sparse. We hung out, took photos, and tried not to touch the very cute prairie dogs (which carry plague, come to find out).

We spent the weekend hanging out with all the people who have ever loved me in the world. It was really great for me to get to share them with the man I love, and him with them. My family all celebrated our relationship and welcomed him into the fold without batting an eyelash. It was extraordinary.

Family aside, I could tell some of the hotel staff and patrons were either afraid of my floral bike cap or the anal sex it implied, but Read the rest of this entry »

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Note: My monthly column for Just Out Magazine “In The Trenches” was published today in the October issue. The piece is called “The Curse of Being Old Fashioned” and is about accepting all types of relationships. Unfortunately, the last 2 (very important) paragraphs were accidentally left out of the print version (something that has been making me CRAZY for days, and I’m sure will continue to all month) but the online version is complete. You can check out the original by clicking the cover image below, or just keep reading below.

In The Trenches: “The Curse of Being Old-Fashioned”

Let me start by saying I believe everyone should have the right to love whoever they please, however they please. My choice to love monogamously, and my sharing my thoughts around said loving with you all, is not meant to diminish your thoughts and choices, but rather to offer up yet another queer voice on the matter. I am not making a case for monogamy with this article, but rather a case for acceptance.

In recent days I’ve been reading a lot of articles about love, commitment, and the “M” word, followed by discussions with my fellow queers about said articles, and it’s left me feeling frustrated. I can’t help but wonder, at what point in our queer cultural development did it become acceptable to imply (or say outright) that a person or couple who chooses to be in a monogamous relationship is somehow less evolved than those who do not? I have encountered this view before in my previous dating misadventures, friendships, and relationships … as though my wanting to be with only one man for the rest of my life is buying into a “heteronormative” idea about love and, in so doing, is somehow oppressing you in yours.

It has been my experience that being what some would consider “old fashioned” feels, at times, a bit like a curse for an out, gay man. I have never had anonymous sex. I have never hooked up with anyone off of Craigslist. I have an iPhone but I am not on Grindr or Scruff or Manhunt or whatever other sites people use these days to populate their casual sex lives. In fact, I have never had a very casual sex life. It has always been tied to relationship or a longing for deep connection. My being this way has made it difficult for me to relate to the experience of many of my queer peers, and almost impossible for them to relate to me.

I don’t believe being monogamously in love is the Read the rest of this entry »

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This past week Accidental Bear asked me to participate in a video they were commissioned to make for Manhunt Daily‘s “Real Man Project” and it premiered today. Check it out over on Accidental Bear HERE, on Manhunt Daily HERE, on Towleroad HERE, on Buzzfeed HERE, on Boy Culture HERE, or just watch the video below.

My interview starts at 9:22.

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(Originally Published on The Huffington Post, 8/7/2012)

Logan Lynn Discusses His Return To Music, His New Single ‘Turn Me Out’ And More
By: Noah Michelson, HuffPost Gay Voices Editor

Gay singer-songwriter Logan Lynn began professionally making music nearly 15 years ago. Since then he has released a slew of albums, has seen his videos featured on LOGO and MTV, and performed around the world.

Now he’s back with a new single, “Turn Me Out”, and an upcoming album. We caught up with Lynn to find out what he’s been up to since he left the music industry, why he’s coming back, what to expect from the new album and more.

The Huffington Post: You’re just coming off a two-year hiatus from the music industry. Why did you take the break and what have you been up to?

Logan Lynn: In 2010, after five straight years of nonstop working and touring, I just needed some time to step back and not feel so consumed by the industry. At the time I was really lonely and tired and felt overexposed in ways that I wasn’t really able to deal with, so I canceled the second leg of my tour, severed ties with The Dandy Warhols and my label, fired my publicist, fired my manager, freaked out publicly in the press and gave the record I had been working on for over a year away as a fundraiser for Q Center, Portland’s queer community center. I pissed a lot of people off during the process of breaking free and in retrospect I would probably be a little less public about the whole thing… but back then it felt like the only way to take some time off and get rid of the toxic people I had surrounding me was to completely blow everything up, so that’s what I did. Once the career suicide dust settled I started giving all of my time to the queer community and have been helping to build the infrastructure of Q Center ever since. I needed real people in my life again and that’s ultimately what I found in my work with the community. Working with people in need really puts your own need in perspective.

You’ ve landed in a bit of hot water and controversy around some of the activism work you have been doing. What exactly went down between Portland’s queer community and the Mars Hill evangelical church?

At the end of 2011 the Mars Hill church bought a building in Portland and announced they were opening their doors in our community. Its founder has publicly equated homosexuality to cancer on society, amongst other very charming hate speech about the gay community. Part of my mission as an activist and an out queer man is to encourage a dialogue with those who oppose us or would do us harm, so I reached out to their pastor and we began meeting together. From there, we decided to assemble nine people from Portland’s LGBT community and nine members of the traditional Evangelical community and we have been meeting once a month with a conflict resolution expert ever since. Read the rest of this entry »

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