Truvada should sponsor pride month! 🤪

It’s Pride month so you know that that means– All the LGBTQIAs are flaunting their skirts in public. If that’s you, slay queen! It’s not Mabeline, you were born with it. Just shave those legs, mmmk? My first kiss was with a lesbian (I was such a good kisser, she swore off all men a few years later 😎😚). Hope Tracy’s doing well.

Let’s put aside the science that theorizes that if everyone were gay, mankind would cease to exist in about 100 years because, like Joni Ernst said a few days ago, we’re all going to die. Eventually. But if you’re a gay man, there’s a new reason to have hope you’ll die later, not sooner. Just take some pills!

Truvada is one of a handful of pharmaceutical companies trying to eradicate a virus that affects gay men more than any other group– HIV/AIDS. Admirable sure, but their commercials are just… sooooo…. gaaaaaay. In Truvada’s defense, commercials from Cabenuva and ads from Biktarvy are quite gay, too.

I found a video from 2012 with an expert giving his advice on how Truvada works and who it’s for (spoiler alert: men who have sex with men, primarily). The expert interviewed is Dr. Fauci so knowing what we know now about his COVID involvement, take what he says with a grain of salt. Some might think he’s trying to spread HIV just so he can be the one to save everyone from it (allegedly). 🥴

People in the homosexual community are usually some of the nicest people I meet. I have nothing but love and respect for them as people created by God to do good things, the same for everyone. What I find funny is how businesses and institutions treat homosexuality. Like this ironic “Love is healthy” post from the World Health Organization…

Love is healthy. Contracting AIDS from a male homosexual encounter is not. You’d think WHO would know that. Whether you’re gay or straight or bisexual or wondering about it all, do your thing. I’m not sure there needs to be a month celebrating who we love. There’s already a day for that and we all know Valentine’s Day is a manufactured holiday. But Truvada should really think about sponsoring June. Then they’d have more money to make more (less gay?) commercials.

-Out of the Wilderness

Who’s singing with Ed Sheeran in Sapphire video and what does “cham cham chamke sitare wargi” mean? Answers here!

Ed Sheeran clearly had a lot of fun making his latest music video (and here’s the behind-the-scenes rundown of the shoot). It’s for the song “Sapphire” and it’s shot in a handheld camera type fashion throughout India. The director was Liam Pethick and the director of photography was Nic Minns. Honestly, I wasn’t fully prepared for all the happiness. Check it out then scroll down for more…

Co-starring with Ed is an Indian musician/singer named Arijit Singh (@ArijitSingh). He’s only following 3 people on Instagram, maybe you can be the fourth so be sure to follow him so he can find you! While you’re at it, follow me, too… @TheBenWilder. Arijit isn’t the only Indian star in the video either. This article from the Times of India gets more specific including an appearance from a Bollywood actor.

According to a statement from Ed, there’s another version of this song coming out soon and it’ll have much more of a Punjabi influence and more of Arijit, too. So what’s with the title of the song? I think Ed must’ve done his research because a traditional Hindu belief holds that the sapphire stone causes the planet Saturn (a heavenly entity named Shani) to be favorable to the wearer. Sapphire is also the gemstone of those born in September. And for anyone wondering, Ed was born in February which connects to amethyst as its birthstone.

Did you catch Ed singing in Hindi in the chorus? I didn’t catch it at first and then I figured it was English and Ed was doing some kind of lyrical riff that singers sometimes do. Once again, I was wrong! The lyrics are “Cham cham chamke sitare wargi” which, translated from Hindi, means “the stars shine brightly.”

-Out of the Wilderness

Five-Photo Friday #7… Favorite Birds!

I don’t know why I put this on myself. It’s so hard to narrow down my favorite bird photos from my “Only Birds” Portfolio. Check out all the images in that link and let me know if there are any you like better than the following…

Woody. This is a woodpecker (not the same kind as Woody but let’s just move on…) as you can tell by the red head. But I wanted something more pastel-like, so with a little editing, this is the final presentation.

Briefly. Pelicans are special to me because of a moment that happened on a boat a long time ago. My grandfather had just passed and there were these two pelicans flying side by side and I watched them for a long time, even while the boat was motoring on towards land. There’s more to that story but for now, here’s one of my favorite pelican pics.

New. Eggs in my favorite color and a newborn bird hungry for its next meal. This was a little nest in the bushes right at the front of my house in Nashville when I used to live there. I monitored this nest for weeks and it was a pretty cool moment when the hatching started.

Wing-Span. I was still pretty new to having a professional camera so I sort of messed up the settings of this shot but thankfully the juvenile eagle flew around enough for me to get a few pictures worth hanging on to. This one will always be a favorite because of the colors, the wings as the eagle made a turn, and just the overall composition, which isn’t much with the blueish sky in the background. I guess that helps keep attention on the features of this big bird.

Simplicity. This one has a bit more going on than the others. Isn’t it a great reminder from kids that life’s simple things can bring so much happiness? Chasing birds and watching as they scatter in all directions. It’s the beach. It’s the sun. It’s the little things that become what we cherish most, I think.

I’m curious to know which other pictures you enjoy too, so check out “Only Birds” and let me know in the comments!

-Out of the Wilderness

The Jourdan Blue Audition Intro Song, Performance, and More

We all know singers are the most common audition on America’s Got Talent (which annoys me because of the vast amount of other talents out there that could/should be showcased). Actually, I don’t even watch the show but when I do, it’s because of talent like this. A guy named Jourdan Blue, who has at least 3 qualities I wish I did– beautiful hair, a girlfriend, and a singing voice that I had to hear to believe– and he got a golden buzzer for his performance. Check it out.

For anyone asking, the song on the intro of Jourdan’s piece is “Ordinary” by Alex Warren. But irony is on full display because Jourdan’s talent is not ordinary at all. That distinct voice is pretty rare. Which is what no-one has ever said about my singing even though, not to brag, but I was once in a church choir in Nashville. 😎

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-Out of the Wilderness

Motorola Razr Flip Phone or Samsung Galaxy Flip 6?

If you’re following along with my blogs, you’re aware that my current phone is running on fumes. The battery drains rather quickly but the two biggest issues are the screen wearing and not being able to fold the phone closed without it powering off completely. That last one is not super fun because now I just have a normal phone like everyone else. Folding it was everything!

Verizon offered a great deal for the phone so I’m trying to wait until November 2025 when it’s completely paid off before trading it in. Every day it’s getting more difficult, though. I think I’ll be lucky to make it to the end of June, to be honest. I’ve been scoping out new phones for the scenario where my phone decides it just doesn’t want to turn back on ever again. The two stand-outs at the moment are the Galaxy Flip 6 and the Motorola Razr, which is a flip phone, too.

I think I’ll get more of the same with the Flip 6, albeit with a much bigger outer screen. Most people probably like a bigger screen but remember when the Flip first came out? They said flipping the phone closed was to disconnect (metaphorically) and be “present”. Yes. I love that. In other words, When the phone is closed I’m cutoff from apps and gaming and all that distracting stuff. But as the new versions came out, the outside screen got bigger and bigger. So then what was all that chatter about being in the moment? The large outer screen allows the user (me, in this case) to be as connected as I’d be with the phone open. Lame.

The Motorola is a lot like the Flip but with more negative reviews than I care to admit. Also, what makes either of these phones immune to what’s going on now with my Flip 4? Will the screen wear away? Will the phone shut off when I close the phone? No one wants those kinds of headaches. Which leads us to the secret third option.

Nothing. That’s right. Nothing brand phones are actually at the top of my list. The only drawback I can think of at this very moment is having to switch carriers. Kind of like when you have to move out of your house. It’s a big chore packing everything up, isn’t it? I don’t know if I have the will and/or patience to close my Verizon account and go through the entire process of signing up for Google Fi (which allegedly works with the Nothing phones), waiting for the phone to arrive, transferring whatever I can from my old phone, etc, etc, etc.

But seriously, the Nothing phones look pretty great. Innovation that’s refreshing when most phones look identical. I guess it’s just a matter of time before I have to close down the Flip 4 for the last time. The questions are when and what will replace it? Your guess is as good as mine right now.

-Out of the Wilderness