Okay, I admit it

Several weeks ago, TunaGirl mentioned her fear of buttons. At the time, my reaction was, "why be afraid of something that can't hurt you?" So I have an admission.

Bugs. I can't stand bugs. If they're at a safe distance, that's fine, but I don't want to be in contact with them, not even the harmless ones.

We have a lush little piece of land here, and various animals--and insects--exist happily on our suburban plot of land. Not being fans of chemicals to "control" the insects, they generally have little to fear from us--but we do prefer that they remain outside the house. On occasion, one or more will wander into our home.

This morning, some ants decided that they found the dogs' water bowl (which is inside the house) attractive. I don't even know how they found it in the first place. These weren't even the teeny little ants. No, these were the larger ones. Hard to say their exact size, but they were HUGE. Okay, maybe not. Maybe I just don't like them.

So, being the do-no-harm humanitarian animal lover that I am, I made careful observations of the ants clinging to the water bowl. Then I took action, after briefly explaining to the ants that it was "nothing personal, just business."

Little did I know that others would avenge their fallen comrades. Yes, before I knew it, I found one crawling up my arm!!! Eek!!! Eek!!! Eek!!!

I defended myself, of course, but now I'll be feeling little tickles/twitchings all day. You see, the invisible ants are the worst kind!

Laying cable

Well, I can't say that I had a hot plumber visit, like some people I know, but I still had a fun visit yesterday.

Our cable modem has been acting up lately, so I made an appointment with the cable company for a service call. They were kind enough to send a nice looking young man with bright eyes and a handsome face.

Oh yeah, he knew how to diagnose and fix cable modem problems, too, which I suppose is helpful. Marc was here for the visit, and he agreed that this young man wasn't hard on the eyes.

Actually, our visitor reminded us of a blonder version of a friend we knew in the first year we were together. We're one of those boring monogamous couples, but back then we did have a bit of fun with our friend Joe. That this handsome young man reminded us of Joe didn't hurt things.

No, we didn't do anything. I didn't so much as leer at our lovely cable technician, but I did follow him closely every time he climbed the stairs. Hey, I was just appreciating the view! ;)

That's the news from here. Pretty boring, I know. Now I have to get back to preparing things for tomorrow's big barbecue!

Ryan Seacrest is an ass

Tonight, we watched the latest results on American Idol. For once, I thought that the two contestants who received the lowest number of votes were the right ones, based on the performances. I was glad to see arrogant pinhead Scott Savol voted off, but he's not the person who really irritates me.

The person I really can't stand is vapid, vacuous Ryan Seacrest. It's a rare show when I don't want to throttle him. Tonight--and on other occasions this season--I heard him refer to Scott Savol as "Scotty the Body". So that's supposed to be cute or funny? Fat jokes? Obviously, Scott Savol is obese, and the message the moronic Mr. Seacrest is giving to all of the teenagers who really drive this show is that making fun of people based upon their appearance is a good thing to do. Time was, I was thin, but I didn't make fat jokes. I never stooped to such a level, and someone on national TV should be above that. Of course, I would hope someone on national TV also would have more talent than Seacrest.

If Mr. Seacrest were to get his balls torn off in a freak accident, I don't think I would feel bad. Rather, I could then make fun of him for having been emasculated, because this moronic closet queen has showed me that that's the right thing to do to someone who is different from what I'm used to or would prefer to see.

Excuse me, Mr. Knight, may I polish your sword?

As I already mentioned, we went to see Spamalot this weekend. One of the actors was of particular interest. When I saw him, playing Sir Galahad, I wondered, "who is that strapping young man?" They had his hair rather long for the part--not really in a style that did much for me--but I could overlook that, as he appeared to be a tall, handsome, nicely built hunk of man.

I didn't know his name at the time (looking in the Playbill might have helped, I suppose), but I decided to look into him when I had a moment. In doing such research, I like to see if there's any evidence that he might be on the team, so to speak. ;) It doesn't matter if I could ever have a shot at him (especially since Marc would be pretty miffed if I tried)--it's just a nice thought when someone like this likes boys, too.

Well, before I got a chance to do a little research on him, I sat down with my new issue of The Advocate. And what should I see, under the title "Knight Moves"? Yes, the very same strapping young man. His name is Christopher Sieber, and he is most definitely a member of the team. The article mentions that he met his partner of five years when he was in a previous show. (Another interview--and photo--of him can be found here.)

I know it shouldn't matter, but somehow it just makes life a little nicer when someone yummy likes to play with boys. :)

Sympathy

I just learned that Aaron's beloved Caliban was put to sleep yesterday. I know the pain he is feeling, having lost loved ones, both human and canine, over the years. I knew, as did the other readers of his blog, that Caliban was facing surgery and that this might possibly follow. I was hoping that things would turn out well. Now, having learned the news, there are tears in my eyes.

My heart goes out to you, Aaron. I know it's crushing and very hard to deal with now, but remember that Caliban isn't suffering now. Also, remember that Caliban always wanted to see you happy. So go on and do what you can to be happy and live your life well... for Caliban!

Preparations are under way

Soon, they'll be here. In just a few days, GB:NY2 begins. The out-of-town bloggers will arrive and be joined by the local folks. On Saturday, we’ll open the doors of our home to as many of the gang as want to attend our barbecue.

As I type this, Marc is out shopping for food. Hopefully, he'll be back by the time I post this, since I can't go online now (thanks to Cablevision's service outages--but that’s another story). We've already begun pulling together some of what we need for Saturday.

Here, we see one of the two briskets that will be prepared...



Yes, that’s one of two, a total of 17 pounds of brisket. Marc's cooked on this scale before. The funny thing is, there's never any left--it’s that tasty!

There will also be things like hot dogs and hamburgers, but those aren't here yet. In the case of the hamburger meat in particular, waiting to buy it seemed wise. Four day old ground beef just doesn't sound too appealing! Fresh should work better. :)

Oh yeah, we'll also have some vegetarian fare for folks like Homer who prefer that their food be derived from things that never moved under their own power.

I also made a contribution, going to "Beverage Barn" earlier today and buying all of this...



We also have other bottles of soda on hand, and we'll be offering filtered water for certain people who seem to think purer fluids will aid their health--very Dr. Strangelove of you, young man. :)

Of course, we’ll also have what Marc referred to as drinks "with alcohol." I asked him, "as opposed to beer?" That garnered a "yes." Neither of us is into beer, but Marc will certainly be offering other drinks with alcohol. We already had one request for margaritas, and Marc said that would be no problem.

It should be a fun time! I can't wait!

Dance, Monkeyboy, dance!

What a waste of time. Since I had no choice, however, I went and danced for the NYS Department of Labor.

They sent me a notice that said, in essence, if I wanted to see unemployment insurance benefits, I would have to show up for a "Re-Employment Workshop". Granted, I'm unemployed, and it's not like I can snap my fingers and get a new job. Still, I really didn't think there was much they were going to be able to tell me about hunting for a new job.

I had no choice in the matter, so I went. Once there, I saw why people think so little of civil servants--because of guys like the one running this "workshop". I once was a civil servant, and I never cared for people making jokes, since the people I worked with were, for the most part, bright and hard working.

So what did he teach us? Nothing! He collected forms from us, ridiculed one woman who didn't fill out her forms in advance, and then he went into the navigation section of the class.

Navigation? Why, yes. One guy had a question--"I'm going to be working a temp position in Somelittletownin, Pennsylvania, so how should I handle that?" This got a half-assed answer, followed by the guy running the workshop asking, "Is that near Someotherlittletownin, Pennsylvania, because I have to go there on Friday? How would I get there?"

We then learned that if he goes over the Outerbridge Crossing, he'd find himself further south on the New Jersey Turnpike, thereby saving time, after which he could go to Exit 6 and head west into Pennsylvania.

Why, thank you, State of New York, now I know everything will be fine and I'll soon have a new, good job!

Anything else I need to tolerate before I get my checks?

Nice to see my tax dollars being so well spent!

Sunday at Owen's

I spent much of today taking stuff out of the old house. I also shampooed the carpet in the master bedroom of the old house. It was a productive day, but the highlight didn't come until late afternoon.

Around 4pm, I headed over to join a celebration in honor of the 2nd birthday of my nephew Owen. His birthday's actually a couple of days away, but he seemed to feel it was best to celebrate on Sunday, so that he could relax and just enjoy the day. He's a wise boy.

Being unemployed, I couldn't be too extravagant about the present, but my brother had advised me on prior occasions that Owen was most enamored of Matchbox cars. So that's what I got him--well, actually, it was a 5-pack of Hot Wheels, but it works out the same.

Amazingly, despite his being showered with many gifts, including some rather expensive ones, my little gift was a BIG hit. By the way, I know I'm biased, but he really seems to be a very bright young man. Sometimes this just gets him into mischief, but most of the time it's just impressive. He can speak in full sentences, he asks bright questions, and he seems much more advanced than other two-year old kids (well, at least the ones we know, but I guess that's hardly a scientific sampling).

I took some pictures, but I'll limit the ones here to the stars of today's show. Here's the birthday boy himself...



Also present was his one-month old brother, Quinn, who really didn't seem too impressed with the whole thing...



And, of course, the party wouldn't be complete without their older sister, Rudy...



If you're wondering, yes, Rudy is as crazy as she looks, but she's sweet. No biting or anything. Also, she's good with the kids. So her antics are okay--even when she sometimes gets too excited while climbing into my lap and pees on me, I manage, because it's pee that's offered with love. :)

Spamalot

That was a blast! Marc and I went to see Spamalot today, in the company of Nancy, Byrne, Hugo, Wayne, John and Jose.

Broadway shows are very expensive, and I often find myself feeling like the shows aren't worth what they cost. In this case, we had a great time.

Granted, I knew much of the material from having seen various Monty Python productions. There was a lot taken from Holy Grail, as well as bits from other films and some new stuff, too.

I won't share too much here, partly so I don't spoil it for people who will be going but more because I just couldn't do it justice. We had a wonderful time, and that's what matters.

Well, isn't that comforting?

Wrap Protecting Vital Equipment From Fire in Atom Plants Is Unsafe, U.S. Agency Says

"A material being used at 4 nuclear reactors in New York and 10 others around the country to prevent fire damage to vital equipment would shrink during a fire and expose the equipment to unacceptable amounts of heat, according to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission."

Lovely. It gets better. This material was used to replace another material that was judged inadequate after problems were discovered 13 years ago.

"'If we were smarter we would have not allowed this stuff to be used in the first place,' Brian W. Sheron, associate director of the project licensing and technical analysis office of the commission, said in an interview on Tuesday."

So, clearly, this issue was not an easy problem to find or it would have been noticed sooner. And what special testing found the problem?

"The commission was prompted to study Hemyc, Mr. Sheron said, when an inspector noticed that it did not look much different from other material being replaced. Hemyc is made of a silicon and a ceramic."

When an inspector noticed that it did not look much different???

People, please. What happened to common sense? If that's all it took, why did this take so long?

Next, we'll be going to war with countries that did nothing to us to provoke it.

Oh yeah. Never mind.

That makes for a fun train ride

I went into the city for another interview today. As I stepped on the train at Merrick, I looked to the right. Several seats were open. Then I looked to the left. Not so many seats open on the left. So I went to the left.

Why? Well, when I looked to the left, I saw that six of the seats were taken up by NYC Police Academy Recruits. There was the cute one sleeping across from where I found a seat. Then there was another cute boy who was wide awake--he and I exchanged smiles several times, but I'd guess he was thinking something like "that guy's impressed by my cadet uniform and glad we're all here to keep him safe," as opposed to "that guy would like to suck me until my head caves in." ;)

There were a couple of older, rougher looking guys. Then another regular looking guy. Finally, there was the guy who looked like a cross between Tom Cruise from his All the Right Moves days and Matt Damon. He wasn't gorgeous--not like he got all the best of those two--but he had a strong, handsome face that definitely made me want to play with his nightstick!

All in all, if our train car had crashed on a remote desert island, I wouldn't have minded a bit keeping these young men satisfied. :)

(Note to Bokey: The above paragraph was hyperbole, meant for literary effect. Of course I'd mind terribly! I'd spend all my time fighting to keep them from making me service them. I'd be screaming, "No! Keep your hot young bodies away from me! I only want my Bokey!")

Yay!

Hurray for us! As of this afternoon, it's official. We're (again) homeowners! We got the financing all squared away, the closing was at 1pm today, and the new house is now officially in our names. The downside is that, for the time being, this means we'll be paying two mortgages.

Eh, there's no real downside, I guess. I'm hoping I'll soon be employed again, and I also hope the "old" house will sell quickly. In the end, it'll all work out--assuming my optimism is well-placed. For now, it's nice to have this house really be ours. So it's a night for celebration!

Ancient writings

As part of the ongoing effort to clean out the old house, I've been spending a lot of time there, cleaning things up, throwing things out and otherwise making the place look good, so we can sell it. In the course of doing this, I've been shredding old credit card receipts, statements and such.

Some of these things are from the days when Marc and I were dating but not yet living together. Others are from when we were living together in a rented apartment.

In other words, items from these two periods reflect a time when we didn't have a house or dogs to worry about. Granted, personal tragedies put a crimp in our style recently, but the real change is quite clear from the records. When we started taking on more responsibilities, our lives changed.

Before the days of home and dog ownership, we traveled more. We went to Newport, we went to Philly (oh, what we did on that trip!), we went to little B&Bs to just unwind. We went lots of places!

As I went through and shredded these receipts (probably about time I did that, all these years later), I was lamenting the lack of such exciting travel and fun diversions in recent times.

Then I got home. I was greeted by my pups, and I quickly forgot those other feelings. Life changes, and the best thing is to latch onto the good stuff. Don't get me wrong--once I'm working again and things settle down around here, I want to pick up the pace of travel again. We'll get a friend to watch the pups (Jeff, among others, has helped us out with that before), and off we'll go. But as I sit here typing this and look around me, I'm remembering to be thankful for what I have.

I like this photo

Jase took this photo of me and Marc at dinner nine days ago. I wish Marc hadn't blinked, but it's still a joyful shot, and I love it.

What makes you think anyone cares?

Let me start by saying that I absolutely believe in free speech, and I know that no one can force me to listen to things that don't interest me.

With that said, what's the deal with people doing their own private podcasts? For the record, this post is not inspired by a podcast of anyone I know or read regularly. So if you think I'm talking about you, I'm probably not (although this may be applicable, so pay attention)! ;)

I just listened to a podcast by someone who felt compelled to talk about the little details of their day-to-day life. Now, I reserve the right to be as mind-numbingly dull as the next guy, but some of these people make me feel downright sophisticated.

Let's be clear, all of you podcasters who think the world is waiting to hear your pearls of wisdom. I don't need to hear your grating voice blathering on about the hairball your cat coughed up. I don't need to hear a podcast about the auto mechanic and how he screwed up the repair on your '73 Nova. I don't need to hear about the cute origami your boyfriend made to celebrate 3 months together. If your life is boring and ordinary, making a podcast of it doesn't change that fact.

No, I don't need to listen. I know this. The problem is that I went into some of this with the (obviously misguided) thought that anyone taking the trouble to make a podcast must have something worthwhile to share. Wow, was I wrong!

So, to the podcasters of the world, I say, if you're not the type of person whom people flock to in order to hear you speak, then you might want to ask whether putting your ramblings online is the thing to do. If, on the other hand, you're the life of the party, the one who keeps everyone in stitches, then fire away. Oh, and let me know where to find your podcast, because what I've found so far can cure insomnia!

Pride of America

Interesting. I was just reading the latest issue of National Geographic Traveler and noticed an ad by Norwegian Cruise Lines. It was hyping their newest ship, the Pride of America.

I was immediately skeptical of the name (particularly with an ad placed by "NCL"), but then I saw something shocking: "Ship's Registry: United States of America"

Not The Bahamas? Or Liberia? Or some other foreign country?

Amazing. I guess someone at Norwegian Cruise Lines decided the good publicity of a new cruise liner flying the U.S. flag was worth the cost of American taxes and whatever other headaches go with registering the ship here. Maybe this is especially so since it apparently will be doing inter-island cruising in Hawaii.

I have no history of cruising. You know, on a cruise ship. We're not talking about the other kind right now. :) Even so, for a variety of reasons, I think I'd prefer to be on a ship flying our flag. According to the ad, this is "the first brand-new cruise ship to sail under the U.S. flag in nearly 50 years."

There's no real point to this post. I just thought this was an interesting development.

Such a good boy

Today, we ran some errands and then spent a number of hours cleaning up the old house. The best part is that we had help. This handsome young man came out here to help us.

He helped me get the living room cleared out, so I could vacuum and shampoo the carpet. He broke up the cardboard boxes we had accumulated on the back deck. He helped Marc move a chair down from upstairs. He loaded boxes into the Explorer, and he picked up the Belgian blocks we had near the garage and loaded those into the truck, too (and those are heavy).

We all did lots of work, but Marc and I have to do it. Jase doesn't. He's just being a good friend.

We took Jase to dinner, and then Marc had a homemade dessert (a Key Lime Pie) made when we got home. Right now, Jase and Marc are comparing notes on the website for Marc's company. Jase is very knowledgeable, and this is just another bonus to having him here. Not that we wouldn't love to have him here just to hang out with us, but he's being so helpful--it's just very nice of him.

Maybe I can give him a nice shoulder rub as added thanks for all his help. ;) He's just a good guy. If I had a gay brother to set him up with, that would be perfect!

Well, at least they're trying to get it fixed

The sound from our Bose sound system is fabulous! Well, at least in the two rooms where it isn't malfunctioning. *sigh*

They think one of the amplifiers is defective, and it's going to take a little time to get it replaced. At least the front room--where the TV is located--is working perfectly. That's the surround sound part of the system.

The other rooms have issues. I said it isn't malfunctioning in two rooms (out of four that are hooked into the system). Actually, that's not quite true.

In the sunroom, it's working, but there's a slight noise when nothing's playing (the boss from the installation company calls it "motorboating" and that's a good description--that's the pattern the sound has, an idling boat motor--thankfully, a very quiet one). Actually, the noise is there when there is music playing, but it's too slight to be a bother.

In the other two rooms, the motorboating noise is there, too, but the real problem is that when I turn it on, it plays for a few seconds and then shuts down.

"Frustrating" doesn't really describe this. This is a very expensive system, and I was glad to hear the installation company boss say that very thing when he heard my frustration. "You paid a lot of money for this system. It should work right."

I know they'll get it fixed, and it sounds fabulous when it works. I just wish it all worked right. They're trying to rush the new equipment and get it installed. In the meantime, my irritation is mounting.

Hey, at least it's a distraction from being unemployed. ;)

Emotions and energy

Emotions have a profound impact on the rest of one's being. I know this, but it doesn't stop it from having this same effect on me. I can't seem to will it away. As I've mentioned, ad nauseum, I'm looking for a new job.

Two days ago, I had a second interview for a job I'd really, really like to have. By that evening, I was second-guessing one or two of my answers and otherwise agonizing over my chances to get the job--a job for which I can be sure hundreds of people applied.

By this morning, I was once again just a bit depressed, not so much due to worry over this particular job but, rather, due to my overall situation. Frankly, being unemployed is frightening (unless you're one of the fortunate few for whom money isn't a concern).

Then I spoke to a colleague. This is a colleague to whom I knew the person who interviewed me on Tuesday would be speaking. This morning, I was told that I not only remained in the running but was actually liked by the prospective boss.

Before I start jumping for joy, I have to bear a couple of things in mind. First, I was told in this same chat this morning that there are several other candidates being considered. Second, even if I pass this stage, I'd still be interviewed by some other senior people before I might hear a job offer--or not, if any of them don't like me.

Despite all of these potential roadblocks, it was wonderful to hear that I made a good impression. So now we get back to the impact emotions can have.

I had to be out early this morning, taking the Explorer to the Ford dealer for some service around 7am. By the time 9am rolled around, I was thinking that I might go take a nap, since I didn't get a lot of sleep last night and was feeling tired.

Now that I've heard this good news, I feel energized. I'm going to go get Marc's car gassed up and then washed (he was saying this morning that he wants to have it washed, so I'll go have that done for him). Then I'm going up to Great Neck to get a final sign-off from the superintendent of what was my grandmother's building, so I can get the escrow money back (held in case we damaged anything in the move out), and then I think I'll swing past the library for some books.

I was worried and feeling tired. Then I got some good news, and now I'm going to head out and enjoy the sunshine. Funny how that works!

Vatican demands return of Sudetenland

This morning, acting on orders of the new Pope, Benedict XVI, the Vatican demanded the return of the Sudetenland, promising to free the people from Czech oppression. Meanwhile, in Paris, the wholesale price of white fabric spiked this morning, in anticipation of a need for flags.

More to follow as developments warrant.