Ronnie Lucero and I work together at Nelson’s Meats, a small, independently owned meat market in Albuquerque’s South Valley. He is what used to be called a ‘butcher.’ Nowadays they call them ‘meat cutters.’ I sell his handiwork to the public, as well as a few other mammal-flesh goodies. We’ve worked together for eight years. This interview was conducted in a store that sits adjacent to the market. We talked next to a pizza oven that was recently converted into a giant roaster for green chile. It was hot. …more

I am not a pervert. Well, I don’t think I am. At least not all the time–you know, it’s not like I’m consumed by depravity or anything. I guess all I’m trying to say is that perverts are people, too. Good people. Healthy people. Productive people. Even famous ones. In other words, you don’t need to be accurate to throw a rock into a crowd and hit a pervert. We’re everywhere.

Look at our enduring legacy: Marquis de Sade, Marv Albert, Marvin–the alien from Looney Tunes. And that’s just a few folks whose names happen to begin with M-A-R. Face it, we’re here to stay. Our culture wants us around, even as they ostracize us, make us feel dirty. They read our books. They listen to us wax about basketball, baseball, tennis, and golf. They laugh heartily at our animated brethren.

So, the last book I loved is called Perv–A Love Story. Jerry Stahl wrote it. …more