fans self
hoo – that uncle walt, he knew how to expound at length about manly chests. is it hot in here, or just the two of us?
My father never taught me how to be a man, so I had to read about it in magazines. I guess it was the same in the 19c.
self-help column [regarding] sex
There’s nothing wrong with a little “self-help” now and again.
I help myself as often as possible.
Came for sex tips. Am disappoint.
15 minutes? And it thought it takes seven days!
Good thing we now realize that the “paleo diet” is bullshit.
Look! Something we agree upon 100%!
Really? Well, it burns well when dry, so must contain plenty of stored energy, but I wouldn’t have thought it was digestible by humans.
I’ve never had enough curiosity to look up the constituents of the paleo diet when it was mentioned here on BB. Thank you for saving me the work.
Huh, I would have thought he’d have taken the opposite approach with all that “Leaves of Grass” stuff.
juicy snippet
I got a good chuckle at of that one.
Somewhat related: Walt Whitman and Oscar Wilde almost certainly had sex in 1882.
Mmm, tastes just like lawnmower clippings!
Funny stuff! But as for the claim, meh. Both Walt and Oscar clearly had a thing for manflesh, but western men in general also had different ideas about physical closeness back then. That Oscar laid a hand on Walt’s knee means little more about actual sexy time than does the fact that straight men of that era commonly held hands and walked together down the street that way.
Yeah, but what a lost opportunity for product endorsement! The Walt Whitman grass juicer could have been for health nuts what the George Foreman grill became for people with charcoal allergies.
“Feeling dyspeptic? Or bilious? Maybe a touch splenetic? Uncle Walt’s Green Tonic will perk you right up. It’s one mighty healthful glass, and it’s 100% pure leaves of grass!”
Well, there is the “let’s know each other on ‘thee and thou’ terms in Walt’s bedroom” part of their visit, as well as Oscar saying that he could still taste Uncle Walt’s kiss on his lips. So at least he was winking at what might’ve happened.
Granted! Wilde never seemed to pass up a chance to fling a mischievous wink. And I guess Mallory Ortberg does grudgingly acknowledge that the evidence she presents isn’t exactly rock solid. (wink)
