In which The Gay Recluse updates his informal but rather telling quantitative analysis of Modern Love, the weekly Style Section (of The Times) column in which openly gay writers almost never appear, and even less frequently describe a romantic relationship.

This week’s piece: A Signal in the Sky Said: Marry Her

Subject: A goofball straight guy goes on an Outward Bound trip to find himself and in the process realizes he wants to marry his on-again-off-again girlfriend. Given the slim pickings in NYC for SMs, she obviously accepts. For our suggested alternative, click here.

Filed under: Straight Man on “Looking for Love.”
The updated tally (or why we feel like animals in the zoo): 6 out of 169 columns by openly gay writers; 1 out of 169 on female gay relationships; 0 out of 169 on male gay relationships. In what is arguably the “gayest” section of The Times, more women have written about gay men than gay men have.

Outstanding question to Daniel Jones, editor of Modern Love: wtf?

Straight Woman on Relationships iiiii iiiii iiiii iiiii iiiii iiiii iiiii iiii (39)
Straight Woman on Family iiiii iiiii iiiii iiiii iiiii iiiii iiiii (35)
Straight Woman on “Looking for Love” iiiii iiiii iiiii iiiii iiiii iiiii ii (32)
Straight Woman on Breaking Up iiiii iiiii iiiii iiiii iii (23)
Straight Man on Relationships iiiii iiiii i (11)
Straight Man on Breakup iiiiii (6)
Straight Woman on Gay Men iiiii i (6)
Straight Man on Family iiiii (5)
Straight Man on “Looking for Love” iiiii (5)
Gay Man on Family ii (2)
Gay Woman on Relationship i (1)
Gay Woman on Family i (1)
Gay Man on Self-Hatred i (1)
Gay Man on Prom Date i (1)
Ambiguous/Nurse on Drugs i (1)