So I went to the doctor today for my final hepatitis vaccine shot and to have the blood drawn to test my diabetes 2 levels to see if I have to go on medication (which I am hoping I'm not going to have to do but you never know). I've done well with my diet but I could definitely be doing better with it. I'm more conscious of what I am eating which makes a big difference and of course all of the exercise I am doing as well helps too...

But of course I am still nervous about all of it. There are no guarantees that anything I have done in the past few months has really made a major dent in my sugar levels but I'm hoping for the best. But here's the worst part...the doctor, after complimenting me for looking skinny (which trust me I know I'm slimmed down but skinny still would not be a word I would use to describe myself) had me hop on the scale to see how much weight I had lost since first going to see him back in February.

The answer -- two pounds.

TWO FREAKIN' POUNDS. Of course, there is the rationale that the weight I have lost has been supplemented by muscle whcih as we all know weighs more than fat.

But still...TWO POUNDS??? I would have been happy with five or six. I said that the scale at my gym had me 10 pound less and they said, "Well that's the scale at your gym." Bastards.

So last night at practice I had to be very diplomatic in an answer that the head coach posed to me. He asked me what my goal for the night was and I was in the middle of stretching and had to resist the urge to say, "Whatever it takes for me to get back on the blue squad." I started out with a pretty lame answer in regards to passing and receiving and was going to expound on other areas but he pretty much hashed out what I started off with and went on to the next person. Oh well. On the plus side, I did show major improvement in terms of my running and stamina -- at least in my opinion. During our killer sprints at the end of the practice, I was hauling butt as fast as I could. I think it comes from experience of knowing what to expect as some of these guys were huffing and puffing big time.

Finally...let's talk about Madonna, Britney Spears, Christina Hag-uilera....I mean Aguilara and their open mouth kiss (which if you look at the pic on MSNBC.com, you can see tongue when Britney and Madonna kiss. So are all of the fundies going to make their kids throw away their Britney CDs because of it. First she admits she's no longer a virgin and then she has a lesbian kiss on national TV. What kind of icon is this? Of course, me not being the big Britney fan that I am finds it all hysterically funny.

Oh well....what can you do...I gave up doing the MTV show because it was more important to be at rugby practice and prove that I can be on the blue side than to do a show that would take up a very long day. Although can someone tell me who the guy who came running out on the stage at the end to talk about B.B. King was...was he drunk, stoned, or who knows what?

Because now I am addicted to this....here are a few more

Super-HeroBlasterMale*Character Name*
Skin:1,50,0,13,25,30,100,50,0,13,25,30,100;
Eyebrows:4,0,100,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Eyes:4,75,0,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Nose:3,75,0,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Mouth:5,75,0,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Beard:7,0,100,0,0,0,100,0,40,0,0,100,100;
Hair:14,0,40,0,0,100,100,0,40,0,0,100,100;
Mask:4,0,40,0,0,100,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Helmet:1,75,0,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Undershirt:4,0,40,70,90,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Overshirt:12,0,40,0,0,100,100,0,40,0,0,100,100;
Gloves:5,0,40,0,0,100,100,0,40,70,90,0,100;
Insignia:1,75,0,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Belt:3,0,40,70,90,0,100,0,40,0,0,100,100;
Leggings:5,0,40,70,90,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Overleggings:1,0,40,70,90,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Pants:10,0,40,0,0,100,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Footwear:23,0,40,70,90,0,100,0,40,70,90,0,100;
Coat:1,75,0,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Weapon-rt:1,75,0,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Weapon-lft:27,0,40,70,90,0,100,0,40,0,0,100,100;
Back:1,75,0,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;#

And another

Super-HeroBrickMale*Character Name*
Skin:1,50,0,13,25,30,100,10,0,13,25,30,100;
Eyes:2,0,40,70,90,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Nose:2,75,0,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Mouth:2,75,0,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Eyebrows:4,0,100,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Undershirt:6,0,50,0,80,80,100,0,50,0,80,80,100;
Hair:18,0,50,0,80,80,100,0,50,0,80,80,100;
Mask:1,75,0,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Back:1,75,0,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Insignia:6,75,0,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Leggings:4,0,100,0,0,0,100,0,100,0,0,0,100;
Belt:1,75,0,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Overshirt:5,0,100,0,0,0,100,0,100,0,0,0,100;
Beard:1,75,0,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Helmet:1,75,0,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Pants:1,0,100,0,0,0,100,0,100,0,0,0,100;
Foot-left:5,0,50,0,80,80,100,0,50,0,80,80,100;
Foot-right:5,0,50,0,80,80,100,0,50,0,80,80,100;
Weapon-lft:33,0,50,0,0,0,100,0,50,0,80,80,100;
Weapon-rt:8,0,50,0,0,0,100,0,50,0,0,0,100;
Glove-lft:6,0,50,0,80,80,100,0,50,0,80,80,100;
Glove-rt:3,0,50,0,80,80,100,0,50,0,80,80,100;
Coat:1,75,0,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Background:1,75,0,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;#

And yet another

Super-HeroBlasterMale*Character Name*
Skin:1,0,35,0,10,25,100,0,60,0,0,100,100;
Eyebrows:2,0,100,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Eyes:2,0,100,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Nose:3,75,0,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Mouth:5,75,0,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Beard:1,75,0,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Hair:7,0,40,70,90,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Mask:8,0,40,70,90,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Helmet:1,75,0,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Undershirt:3,0,10,70,90,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Overshirt:16,0,30,0,50,80,100,0,40,30,72,0,100;
Gloves:1,75,0,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Insignia:1,75,0,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Belt:2,0,30,0,50,80,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Leggings:1,75,0,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Overleggings:1,75,0,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Pants:12,0,10,70,90,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Footwear:14,0,10,70,90,0,100,0,30,0,50,80,100;
Coat:1,75,0,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Weapon-rt:15,0,30,0,50,80,100,0,10,70,90,0,100;
Weapon-lft:29,0,20,0,0,0,100,0,20,0,0,0,100;
Back:1,75,0,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;#

Quote of the Day

The Son'a wish to negotiate a cease-fire. It may have to do with the fact that we only have three minutes of air left. -- Michael Dorn as Lieutenant Commander Worf in Star Trek: Insurrection.

Because apparently I am really bored....more Hero Machine action

Super-HeroBrickMale*646 Guy Part 2*
Skin:1,50,0,13,25,30,100,50,0,13,25,30,100;
Eyes:6,0,30,60,0,90,100,0,30,60,0,90,100;
Nose:7,75,0,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Mouth:2,75,0,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Eyebrows:5,0,30,60,0,90,100,0,30,60,0,90,100;
Undershirt:1,75,0,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Hair:1,0,30,60,0,90,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Mask:10,0,10,70,90,0,100,0,10,70,90,0,100;
Back:1,75,0,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Insignia:11,0,0,0,0,75,100,0,100,0,0,0,100;
Leggings:5,0,40,70,90,0,100,0,10,70,90,0,100;
Belt:7,0,0,0,0,75,100,0,10,70,90,0,100;
Overshirt:1,75,0,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Beard:1,75,0,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Helmet:1,75,0,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Pants:1,75,0,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Foot-left:8,0,10,70,90,0,100,0,10,70,90,0,100;
Foot-right:8,0,10,70,90,0,100,0,10,70,90,0,100;
Weapon-lft:25,0,10,70,90,0,100,0,0,0,0,75,100;
Weapon-rt:7,0,0,0,0,75,100,0,10,70,90,0,100;
Glove-lft:17,0,10,70,90,0,100,0,0,0,0,75,100;
Glove-rt:7,0,0,0,0,75,100,0,10,70,90,0,100;
Coat:1,75,0,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Background:6,0,50,0,0,0,100,0,100,0,0,0,100;#

Does anyone know how many times the name Carol Ann was spoken during Poltergeist...can't explain why I need to know but I can't find the answer anywhere....

Oh I wish I had seen this one before I did today's quote of the day....either way read carefully....

Quote of the Day -- New and Improved

I think that gay marriage is something that should be between a man and a woman. -- Arnold Schwarzeneggar on Sean Hannity's radio show.

(special thanks to Aaron for catching my error)

I could play with this all day long but I would get fired from my job....

Here's my first effort....so do the following....

Click on the link above
Then click on the "Load" button (the third button on the left)
The copy the following info in....

FantasyHumanoidMale*646 Guy*
Skin:2,10,0,13,25,30,100,10,0,13,25,30,100;
Eyebrows:4,75,0,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Eyes:7,75,0,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Nose:12,75,0,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Mouth:5,75,0,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Mask:14,0,0,0,0,75,100,0,0,0,0,75,100;
Beard:1,75,0,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Hair:7,0,30,60,0,90,100,0,30,60,0,90,100;
Headgear:1,75,0,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Undershirt:1,75,0,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Overshirt:2,0,0,0,77,99,100,0,0,0,77,99,100;
Gloves-lft:1,75,0,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Gloves-rt:1,0,30,60,0,90,100,0,30,60,0,90,100;
Coat:22,0,10,70,90,0,100,0,10,70,90,0,100;
Belt:4,0,0,0,0,75,100,0,0,0,0,75,100;
Leggings:1,75,0,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Foot-lft:14,0,0,0,77,99,0,0,0,0,77,99,100;
Foot-rt:14,0,0,0,77,99,100,0,0,0,77,99,100;
Pants:12,0,10,70,90,0,100,0,10,70,90,0,100;
Weapon-lft:16,0,30,60,0,90,100,0,30,60,0,90,100;
Weapon-rt:6,0,30,60,0,90,100,0,30,60,0,90,100;
Back:1,75,0,0,0,0,100,75,0,0,0,0,100;
Background:7,0,20,0,0,0,100,0,20,0,0,0,100;
Companion:2,0,50,0,0,0,100,0,20,0,0,0,100;#

And hit load....not great but it's a start....

Quote of the Day

Spammers. Can't live with them, can't flay them and throw them into a bath of coarse sea salt. -- John Burnham

It's about damn time....

Quote of the Day

I hereby declare myself Supreme Ruler of the Universe. To show your subservience, continue treating me as though I am nobody special. -- Karen Jewell

For the time being I have been placed on the gold squad of the rugby team. This is the team that plays the second match at each rugby date. The main reason is due to my injury (most likely shin splints) and the fact that I really can't take a tackle well right now and that it pretty much fucking hurts to run on it. For that reason, I wasn't placed on the blue side (the side that plays the first match that counts towards standings etc). I did ask the coach what I would need to do in order to make it back on blue squad and he brought up exactly what I just mentioned -- it has nothing to do with drive or determination but the fact that I am not at 100% and need to work my way back up to full fighting condition. When I see my doctor this week, I'm going to bring this up to him and ask for his recommendation. As long as it's not, "You have to stop playing for the season," I think I'm going to be fine. But it's one of those situations where I need to prove not only to the coaches but also to myself that I know what I'm doing and I'm in there doing it, doing it right, and not setting back on my injury.

So it's not like I'm down and out. Am I surprised -- not really. I pretty much figured this would happen anyway and the most I can hope for is to be an alternate or a substitute during the matches. Am I disappointed -- in myself a little. I never give less than 100% and perhaps that may be why I'm injured and struggling right now. Regardless of which match I play in, I'm going to have to tackle and be tackled. I can't slack off on a b-side match at all. It's strength. It's perseverance. It's getting my act together and working hard to make it back on the a-side.

I've got three weeks to do it....let's see what happens...

People amaze me.

I got home last night and got a phone call from a friend saying that he wanted to set me up with someone to see if we hit it off. Now before you get your panties in a twist and starting whining, "What about Kik'e?", let me remind you that he and I are not at a serious stage in our dating where we are exclusive so the door is open for me to date others. Anyway....this friend...we'll call him Ned....he says that if things do hit off with this guy then...get this...I have to share him with Ned. As in open relationship.

I said no way in hell. If I'm in a relationship it's going to be monogamous and I explained this to Ned. Several times. If it was just a fuck buddy relationship then fine, no problem there, but if it's serious and we're setting up house, then hell no. Finally, Ned says that I was being greedy and selfish about it and I said what was greedy and selfish about monogamy? Ned, mind you, is the man who told me repeatedly that he loved his boyfriend and was going to bet true to him even if his boyfriend's medication gave him the sex drive of...well....no sex drive but that's beside the point...Ned refused to acknowledge that my point was valid or that even my reasoning was valid even if he didn't agree with it and said that he wasn't going to put me in contact with this guy after all.

Basically....I have to wonder about people who say they are going to do something nice for someone but it has to be on their terms....it makes no sense whatsoever....

Quote of the Day

If time waits for no man, how do you explain Dick Clark? -- Richard Palmero

This is wrong on so many different levels I'm not even going to contemplate it...

I so empathize with the Star Wars Kid and it's shocking that kids today can still be so malicious -- even more so with the advanced technological capabilities that we currently have...but how must these kids feel to know that a kid, who already suffered from major self esteem issues, had to finish out his school in a psych ward thanks to their antics.

On the plus side though...it's nice to know that there are people out there who don't know the kid but are totally supporting him...if you can't see a little of yourself in this kid's story then you have to be inhuman...considering they raised over $3000 (44 people asked for money returned after the lawsuit hit) and are buying him a 30GB Apple iPod plus other gifts with the cash, it's nice to know that people still have a heart.

I got this from Faustus and I'm not so sure I like the results...and as for the free sex Faustus, darling...I can wait....I've been waiting this long haven't I...bwahahahahahahahaha


Your medieval name is: Elizabeth. This name may not
be exotic or out of this world, but you are
powerful and demand respect. You're in charge
and productive and a control freak. Don't feel
bad - you've got the clout.


What is your Medieval name?
brought to you by Quizilla

So let's talk about this weekend shall we...

1) Crash can be hysterical at the movies when he's drunk. We saw Freaky Friday (I totally recommend it) after our Boot Camp drink up and giggled like school girls all the way through it. Jamie Lee Curtis was totally amazing in this movie and at least deserves a Golden Globe nomination for her performance.

2) Boot Camp -- about 30 new guys showed up to extol the virtues of rugby. My only complaint was that we, the veterans, didn't get to participate more like we did earlier this year (of course that was a snow covered field). Ultimately I did get involved and help some with the tackling drills as they were a little spread out in terms of coaches. Afterwards, I served as prosecution for our kangaroo court at the post practice party charging people with heinous crimes such as electronic insensitivity (sending four emails during a blackout), conduct unbecoming of a teacher (misspelling the word "teacher" on his application although it was his friend [or perhaps boyfriend] that did it), copyright infringments (one of our coaches bears an eerie resemblance to Shoney's Big Boy), endangering the lives of London pensioners (one guy had sex with a London Underground conductor who was supposed to be conducting the moving train), and finally for being a scumbag husband and possibly a heterosexual (our Director of Rugby has a very well used Hooters passport). In response to defense counsel's claim that he was just there for the wings, I responded with, "HA! But what about the breasts!"

3) Kik'e and I talked online Saturday night...we're going to get together this weekend and are looking for something fun and possibly creative to do....any suggestions....

4) Finally...the fact that I'm blogging this means that not only am I bothered by it still but I feel the need to get some input on this....this weekend....argh....my roommate's boyfriend kissed me. Now, I know the difference between a friend kiss and a romantic kiss and a kiss that says, "Hey stud let's get it on." This kiss was the latter of the three. Okay let me start from the beginning....

About 1 in the morning, I'm talking online with Kik'e and there's a knock at my bedroom door and it's roomie's boyfriend. Now the relationship with my roommates is that we are friends and we check in on each other every now and then but don't get too involved in each other's lives. If we have problems we know we can go to each other but we don't really get way too involved if you know what I mean. So there's the knock at the door and it's roommate's boyfriend and he sits and talks for a while and I'm going between talking to him and IMing Kik'e until one point roommate's boyfriend inquired as to the symbol on Kik'e IM box. I explained it was a symbol that meant he liked to dive and ultimately, roommate's boyfriend (oh well for the sake of this entry we'll call him Steve)....ultimately Steve was standing by me at my computer desk.

Mind you at this point, I'm totally cool with all of it until Steve starts to massage my back a little and has his face about a foot away from mine and is standing really close to where I am sitting and gradually gets closer and closer. Mind you, I am no moron here, I know what is going on and am trying to figure a way out of it without making a big scene (because after all Steve lives in the apartment too and I'm going to have to deal with him) so I opt to go to the bathroom (because I actually did have to go to the bathroom). As I'm leaving the bathroom he's heading out and we do the macho handshake/chest bump thing and I accidentally hit him on the chin with my shoulder so we wound up hugging.

Then he kissed me. Eyes closed. Soft lips. Kissed me.

Twice.

And I knew that if I wasn't one of those stand up, upright kinda roommates and wanted to take advantage of the situation, I probably could have...

The first time was total shock on my part and I couldn't really react and finally found my voice after the second one where I finally said, "You have a boyfriend." Now, when I told this to one friend on Sunday he said that I should have said something else because I made it sound like something more could have happened between us. Anyway, Steve looked at me and said, "I know. I'm just messing with ya," and went to his bedroom.

The next day he acted as if nothing happened and so did I. Part of me wondered if I should have said something to my roommate about this or just keep it to myself. Well I'm keeping it to myself for now, but I'm going to make damn sure that nothing like that ever happens again. If he tries for it, I will stop it immediately. Part of me is going to say he was drunk, stoned, or both...and part of me is going to say he knew what he was doing the moment he knocked on my door...

Quote of the Day

We're not going to some white collar resort prison. No, no, no! We're going to federal POUND ME IN THE ASS prison! -- David Herman as Michael Boltman in the film Office Space.

I know I don't ask for much, but send this guy a few cyber hugs...

Since the fortieth anniversary of this speech is this weekend, it's quite appropriate that it serves as today's Quote Speech of the Day...

Quote Speech of the Day

Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand signed the Emancipation Proclamation. This momentous decree came as a great beacon light of hope to millions of Negro slaves who had been seared in the flames of withering injustice. It came as a joyous daybreak to end the long night of captivity. But one hundred years later, we must face the tragic fact that the Negro is still not free.

One hundred years later, the life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination. One hundred years later, the Negro lives on a lonely island of poverty in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity. One hundred years later, the Negro is still languishing in the corners of American society and finds himself an exile in his own land.

So we have come here today to dramatize an appalling condition. In a sense we have come to our nation's capital to cash a check. When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir.

This note was a promise that all men would be guaranteed the inalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. It is obvious today that America has defaulted on this promissory note insofar as her citizens of color are concerned. Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has given the Negro people a bad check which has come back marked "insufficient funds." But we refuse to believe that the bank of justice is bankrupt. We refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds in the great vaults of opportunity of this nation.

So we have come to cash this check -- a check that will give us upon demand the riches of freedom and the security of justice. We have also come to this hallowed spot to remind America of the fierce urgency of now. This is no time to engage in the luxury of cooling off or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism. Now is the time to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice. Now is the time to open the doors of opportunity to all of God's children. Now is the time to lift our nation from the quicksands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood.

It would be fatal for the nation to overlook the urgency of the moment and to underestimate the determination of the Negro. This sweltering summer of the Negro's legitimate discontent will not pass until there is an invigorating autumn of freedom and equality. Nineteen sixty-three is not an end, but a beginning. Those who hope that the Negro needed to blow off steam and will now be content will have a rude awakening if the nation returns to business as usual. There will be neither rest nor tranquility in America until the Negro is granted his citizenship rights.

The whirlwinds of revolt will continue to shake the foundations of our nation until the bright day of justice emerges. But there is something that I must say to my people who stand on the warm threshold which leads into the palace of justice. In the process of gaining our rightful place we must not be guilty of wrongful deeds. Let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom by drinking from the cup of bitterness and hatred.

We must forever conduct our struggle on the high plane of dignity and discipline. we must not allow our creative protest to degenerate into physical violence. Again and again we must rise to the majestic heights of meeting physical force with soul force.

The marvelous new militancy which has engulfed the Negro community must not lead us to distrust of all white people, for many of our white brothers, as evidenced by their presence here today, have come to realize that their destiny is tied up with our destiny and their freedom is inextricably bound to our freedom.

We cannot walk alone. And as we walk, we must make the pledge that we shall march ahead. We cannot turn back. There are those who are asking the devotees of civil rights, "When will you be satisfied?" we can never be satisfied as long as our bodies, heavy with the fatigue of travel, cannot gain lodging in the motels of the highways and the hotels of the cities. We cannot be satisfied as long as the Negro's basic mobility is from a smaller ghetto to a larger one. We can never be satisfied as long as a Negro in Mississippi cannot vote and a Negro in New York believes he has nothing for which to vote. No, no, we are not satisfied, and we will not be satisfied until justice rolls down like waters and righteousness like a mighty stream.

I am not unmindful that some of you have come here out of great trials and tribulations. Some of you have come fresh from narrow cells. Some of you have come from areas where your quest for freedom left you battered by the storms of persecution and staggered by the winds of police brutality. You have been the veterans of creative suffering. Continue to work with the faith that unearned suffering is redemptive.

Go back to Mississippi, go back to Alabama, go back to Georgia, go back to Louisiana, go back to the slums and ghettos of our northern cities, knowing that somehow this situation can and will be changed. Let us not wallow in the valley of despair. I say to you today, my friends, that in spite of the difficulties and frustrations of the moment, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.

I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal." I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slaveowners will be able to sit down together at a table of brotherhood. I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a desert state, sweltering with the heat of injustice and oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice. I have a dream that my four children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character. I have a dream today.

I have a dream that one day the state of Alabama, whose governor's lips are presently dripping with the words of interposition and nullification, will be transformed into a situation where little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls and walk together as sisters and brothers. I have a dream today. I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight, and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together. This is our hope. This is the faith with which I return to the South. With this faith we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. With this faith we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day.

This will be the day when all of God's children will be able to sing with a new meaning, "My country, 'tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing. Land where my fathers died, land of the pilgrim's pride, from every mountainside, let freedom ring." And if America is to be a great nation, this must become true. So let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of New Hampshire. Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New York. Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of Pennsylvania! Let freedom ring from the snowcapped Rockies of Colorado! Let freedom ring from the curvaceous peaks of California! But not only that; let freedom ring from Stone Mountain of Georgia! Let freedom ring from Lookout Mountain of Tennessee! Let freedom ring from every hill and every molehill of Mississippi. From every mountainside, let freedom ring.

When we let freedom ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual, "Free at last! free at last! thank God Almighty, we are free at last!

-- Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

You lost.

Get over it.

I guess this is one the main reasons why I don't believe in major organized religions. I believe in the separation of church and state and this, in my opinion, is not separating the two. Yes, our laws were based upon numerous things including the Ten Commandments (Hammurabi's law, the Justinian Code, amongst others) but to purposely violate federal law and three court orders is ridiculous and makes you look like a fool. His own associate justices said that even if we don't agree with the verdict, we must uphold the decision. That's a brave stance for them to take, but it's also the right stance. Just because you don't believe in what was decided by the Supreme Court doesn't mean that it's not a decision that you can simply ignore because you don't like it.

But I guess what really gets me the most is that he says that he has a constitutional right to acknowledge God and I disagree. He has a constitutional right to worship in whatever religion he chooses whether or not God is the supreme deity of that religion. To foist one religion (in this case Christianity of which there are many offshoots) over the others is showing preference for one religion over others and is constitutionally wrong. Judge Moore is free to do his job in whatever capacity he chooses, however, he's making an ass of himself on a national scale.

Fundies (as Crash has come to call them) have complained that the court system is attacking religion. That is not the case and I don't believe it to be the case. The court is ensuring that the constitutional provision involving the separation of church and state is upheld. They want prayer back in school...well I say no. Who is leading the prayer? What if someone doesn't prefer that religion? What if someone is atheist? We aren't living in the 1940s and 1950s again where such acts were commonplace and our schools still predominately segregated. This is 2003 where we have multiple religions to take into account and a diverse population to consider.

Remove the monument. You've been ordered to do so whether you want to or not. I do not think that the state should be fined. Judge Moore should be fine with the fine increasing until he abides by the ruling and the law that he was elected to uphold. If he says he can't do his job without the monument in place, then maybe he should look for another job. As Crash said, if you can't follow the law, then you shouldn't be a judge.

Sadly, in a state like Alabama, he'll either be elected governor or to Congress next.

Okay I've heard some good and bad pick up lines in my day but this one from Nerve.com's contest really takes the case as the worst of the worst....

Were both your parents retarded? Because you seem like a special girl to me.

Now who in their right mind would find that attractive or appealing? I mean insulting the person's parents before you've even met them???

Of course the best story is this one and I can't wait to try it out one night...

Upon being introduced to an attractive guy in a bar one night when I was sort of down, I said, in my best forlorn-wallflower voice: "Can you kiss me on the cheek so I can say a cute guy kissed me tonight?" Needless to say, more than just a kiss on the cheek ensued, and friends have since employed this method with 100% success.

Hmmmm something to try....

This weekend, the rugby team will be partaking in our third boot camp to show all of the newbies the wonderful world of rugby. There will be drills, tackling, footwork, etc. We're going to show them how fun it can be to be butch. :)

Afterwards though...that's where the fun really begins -- Kangaroo Court will be in session! Presiding over the bench will be our esteemed president and I will either be prosecuting our offenders or begging the court for their mercy. To give you an example of what a Kangaroo Court is like...one of our coaches (who was a player at the time) was convicted of letting a guy who weighed less than half of him (the kid was maybe 120 pounds if that much) tackle him into the ground. He was convicted and his punishment was to have his bare ass spanked by the guy that tackled him.

Prosecution or defense....it's a tough call....if I did the prosecution I would have to do something that's a bit more over the top than our previous prosecutor, Ms. Amanda von Ruckenstein. It truly was a moment you wouldn't want to miss....

So here's your moment to make a decision -- 646 Guy for the Prosecution? Or for the defense?

Quote of the Day

Be careful what you vote for. You may get it. -- Unknown

What's the big deal about this?

With the exception of it being a glass box and being suspended over the Thames River, people in NYC have been doing this for years.

If you want to participate, leave a comment saying "interview me" or send me an e-mail.
I will respond by asking you five questions - each person's will be different.
You will update your journal with the answers to the questions.
You will include this explanation and an offer to interview others in the same post.
When others comment asking to be interviewed, you will ask them five questions.

Incidentally, these questions come from Crash.....

1. If you could take anyone currently living as your lover, who would it be?

Hmmm see this really isn't as easy as you would think. I would take Ben Affleck but the hooker/stripper thing would really get to me after a while. I would take Colin Farrell but the man is just a walking venereal disease and apparently his personal hygiene leaves a lot to be desired. I guess that leave me and Mr. Vin Diesel to do the deed together.

2. What is/was your favorite pet?

Hmm good question. I guess it would be my cat, now passed away, named Boo. He was just this big lovable lump of a cat that we had for about ten years before we had to put him down. When we first got him, he would love to climb up your chest and lick your earlobes.

3. What would be your last meal if you were being executed tomorrow?

McHales Bacon Cheeseburger and steak fries with mayo on the side. I would have their nacho appetizer as well with a few pints of cider to go with it. For dinner, I would have me an entire Junior's Cheesecake....maybe chocolate...maybe cherry....but definitely cheesecake...

4. What was your best sexual experience?

Hmmm now this is a little personal but I will share. It was in Florida and it was about three hours of foreplay and sex. The only bad part about the entire thing came the next day when I realized that him biting my nipples had pretty much left them raw and bruised. On the plus side, every time my shirt grazed my chest, it would remind me of the fun that was head. He and I only hooked up one other time and it was still pretty hot but not the same.

5. What is the silliest thing you've done in the last year?

Aside from auctioning myself off, starting to play rugby, or telling one of P. Diddy's thugs to get his fat ass out of the way...hmmm.....it would be getting drunk off mega shots of tequila and then dancing to the cast recording of Chicago.

Bwahahahahahahaha.....I just got invited to participate in Mob #7. Too bad it's on the same night as rugby practice....oh well........

You'll have to excuse me for a moment because this quote really cracked me up and I can't explain why....

Quote of the Day

Burn her like a rat! Burn her like a rat! -- Chop Top from The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2

Last night at the gym I read the article about the Flash Mob that invaded the Toys R Us in Times Square and bowed before the giant dinosaur...man I wish I had known about it...I so would have done it...or led the charge...or something...

I have a headache and I discovered that I had left my mouthpiece in the rugby shorts I sent to the gym...melted mouthpiece....ugh....

Since it's coming out on DVD and ranks as one of my all time favorite movies....it's a perfect quote conversation of the day as it's also one of my favorite scenes....

Quote Conversation of the Day

Victoria: Well, you're right. I'm terrible. I know I'm terrible. I look at the mirror and I'm ashamed. Maybe I should quit. I just can't seem to do anything right.

Joe Gideon: Listen. I can't make you a great dancer. I don't even know if I can make you a good dancer. But, if you keep trying and don't quit, I know I can make you a better dancer. I'd like very much to do that. Stay?

Victoria: Are you going to keep yelling at me?

Joe Gideon: Probably.

-- Roy Scheider and Deborah Geffner as Joe Gideon and Victoria Porter in Bob Fosse's semi-autobiographical movie, All That Jazz.

Hmmmm....isn't it nice to know exercise has many wonderful impacts on our life as we get older besides just keeping us fit....not saying that I'm old or anything....just really, really, really have something to look forward to I guess....

And on the Kik'e front...he and I went to a party this weekend -- together. Mind you, this is just our second date, if you can really call that a date. However, I had told a friend that he might be coming to the party and I would introduce him. Well, aforementioned friend came into the party, saw Kik'e, and was like, "Who is that hot thing?" Then I had to break the news to him that the man in question was, in fact, Kik'e. He then relayed that news to my rugby team president who happened to be at the party as well. After Kik'e left to drive home to central New Jersey, all the team president would say regarding him was, "I wholly approve."

So how do I feel about him? Well, I will admit that I do like him very much. He's a total sweetheart of a guy and pretty damn cute too. However, I am a long ways away from picking out a china pattern. Hell, some people are surprised to learn he and I haven't had sex yet. I'm just an old fashioned romantic I guess....

Okay....for some reason last night I started writing down all of the stories I have heard from the blackout and putting them to paper at first it started out for just posterity's sake but in talking with a friend about it all, she suggested I turn it into a one man show and try to get it mounted at next year's fringe festival. No it wouldn't be that simple or that easy...but it could be pretty funny or interesting....so if you have an interesting story to tell drop me a line on my email and let me know...I'll probably be scouring the web for more fun stories so you may be hearing from me soon....

Because I saw this quote and couldn't resist (even if someone has already laid claim to this TV series on his blog)...

Quote of the Day

Now listen here, Jo-LENE! I have an army to raise and I must get to Managua at once! I require a window seat and an in-flight Happy Meal. BUT NO PICKLES! OH, GOD HELP YOU IF I FIND PICKLES! -- Stewie Griffin, The Family Guy

Okay it's not the real one since it only involves NBC actors, however, coming tonight is a new Battle of the Network Stars....now if it was CBS, ABC, WB, UPN, and Fox all against each other it would be a real battle but since it's just NBC people competing against each other....but I'm still taping it....

And nothing beats Joyce DeWitt in the obstacle course!

From the AP and all I gotta say is wow....

The blackout washed across a huge slice of North America, knocking out service in parts of eight states and Canada in just nine seconds.

Nine seconds? Wow....

So let's talk about yesterday shall we....

I was at work when the blackout hit. The lights did the super flicker thing and we were plunged into darkness with the emergency lights being our only other source of electricity in the house. A few phone calls confirmed that the power was out across the city and even beyond. I called my dad in Florida and he turned on Fox News to report that it was also in Detroit, Ottawa, and Toronto. Well, I pretty much had planned on sitting it out for as long as I could at the office before pretty much being forced out of the office by management who weren't letting anyone stick around.

Now, I pretty much figured that rugby practice was cancelled so I tried going to the gym if, for anything, just for company since I had 110 blocks to go and I had no idea on where to catch an M4 or M5 bus to get me home. Also, I called my massotherapist guy and cancelled my appointment with him (since it was supposed to be after rugby practice) but he told me to come on down anyway since he was going on vacation for a while and it would be my last chance to get a massage from him for quite some time. Now, Phil was about forty blocks away and I thought that, at the very least, two hours would be more than enough time to get people off the street and maybe get a cab to take me home as well.

I got to Phil's building and I had to climb ten stories to get to his apartment aided only by the light of a candle being held by two really nice Asian women who were also heading up to the same floor. Well, Phil was a totally gracious host as he let me shower when I arrived because I was pretty damn icky and even gave me water and ice cream (since it was going to melt anyway) and talked for quite some time before he began what turned out to be a two and a half hour massage which totally relaxed me. When we got done with the massage it was about ten in the evening and we decided to venture out to see if we could find the bus to get me home and maybe some dinner as well. Since he pretty much treated me like a king, I offered to treat him to dinner should we find a place that was open (and there were several restaurants that were open although no longer accepting new diners when we arrived). Ultimately we found a deli that was not gouging on prices and stocked up on some supplies (okay junk food really) and headed back to his place for another ten floor climb back up. Along the way we found a lot of people on their stoops pretty much sitting down, relaxing, and having some fun with their neighbors.

As the night wore on and no lights were apparently coming on, Phil offered to let me stay at his place for the night and to see what happens overnight and take it from there. I woke up at 7 in the morning and looked out the window on Seventh Avenue and was sad to learn that there was still no power at all. I went to Phil's bedroom and woke him up to let him know I was heading out so he wouldn't be spooked out should he wake up and I was gone. Now, I started to head back down the stairs but I wound up swiping one of the candle that was still flickering in the hallway and carried it down ten stories so I could see where I was going and I left it at the doorman's desk in the event that someone needed it to go back up.

I tried getting a cab on Seventh Avenue and that was a total bust. I was lucky to grab a New York Times (all newspapers were pretty much flying off the newstands) and headed over to Eighth Avenue to see if I could get an uptown cab. I got VERY lucky around 27th Street when this one cab pulled up and the woman asked me where I was going (even though she already had a passenger in her minivan cab) and I told her my address and said something about going home to see my son (and yes that is a lie but I was desperate and not really looking to walk home). Well, she said get in and I did and sure enough we dropped the other guy off in a few blocks and picked up a few more people there as well. I did notice that the official taxi driver's license was missing from the cab which led me to believe that she wasn't a real cab driver (also since she didn't hit the button to start the meter EVER) but was basically just driving around in an official yellow cab making some money.

So about eight o'clock or so this morning I got home and a few minutes later the power came on. Just recently the cable modem came back on and all that's left is the official cable itself to come back online and everything will be back to normal. My thanks to everyone for their kind emails and concern. It's been rough, but hey...I'll be here tomorrow...alive and well and thriving....

Quote of the Day

It's only 110 blocks. It'll be a nice walk -- Yours truly to a coworker upon leaving the office.

I have my US Open tix...that makes me happy. I try to go every year (usually on Labor Day) to watch some of the matches. My favorite part is to go out to some of the far outside courts to watch doubles play because you pretty much get right down to the court level or just a few rows away and can just watch for hours. Last time I went I got to see Mats Wilander and Michael Stich play in a masters (35+) match as well as some great action in singles play as well. There's something so intimate about watching matches on the outside courts that it's just a joy to sit there and lap it all up.

This year, though, I bought evening session tix way up high in Arthur Ashe Stadium. Yeah, it's the cheap seats but for $22 you really can't beat it now can you? It's on a Wednesday night and I'm going to see if Kik'e would like to go with me. I know he says he's not a big tennis buff but if he's in town it would make for a nice date, no? Night session though does mean that I will get to see one of the marquee players compete but the chance for an upset is usually very small...but it's still the US Open...

Quotes of the Day

At the midway point of Gigli week we have the following memorable review quotes...

Such an utter wreck of a movie you expect to see it lying on its side somewhere in rural Pennsylvania, with a small gang of engineers circling and a wisp of smoke rising from the caboose. -- Stephen Whitty, NEWARK STAR-LEDGER

ilm that begins badly and gets worse and worse, like someone who has been knocked unconscious in an accident and then bleeds to death because he gets no attention.
-- Terry Lawson, DETROIT FREE PRESS

Ach. Oy. Woe and poo, bleccch and uck! ZZZZZ-zzz. -- Stephen Hunter, WASHINGTON POST

And because we have to have the one obligatory good review....

All things considered, and in spite of nearly every potential cinematic pitfall you can think of, the film delivers a satisfying, endearing romance and is one of the better of La Lopez’s oeuvre.
-- David Noh, FILM JOURNAL INTERNATIONAL

Pain, pain, pain. This morning I am in pain (and no, Lee, it's not from your hard tackles either...my head recovered from hitting the ground...)....

My left leg around my ankle has been killing me for the past week or so to the point where this morning it was rough moving around because I couldn't really walk on it. I had it propped up last night before I went to bed and it was throbbing and sending waves of pain up my leg to the point where one little "burst" of pain totally caught me by surprise and I had to grab onto the arms of the chair I was sitting in.....something is not right there and although the original diagnosis might have been tendonitis, I'm more apt to think it might be something else....

On the other foot, I had a blister on the bottom of my right foot that I popped open and drained last night. This morning, incredibly painful to walk on...why does something you love so much have to cause so much pain?

:)

Quote of the Day

More Gigli fun....

It's worth knowing how to pronounce Gigli because it will enter the vocabulary as a word meaning 'massive box-office flop; an embarrassment caused by Hollywood's inability to say no to powerful creative types. See also: Ishtar. -- Jeffrey Westhoff, NORTHWEST HERALD (CRYSTAL LAKE, IL)

Affleck and Lopez arelike a couple of well-groomed pets, two reasonably talented superstars from modest roots who enjoy the limelight so much, they've wagged their tails into a sea of overexposure. -- Christopher Smith, BANGOR DAILY NEWS (MAINE)

An inert, toneless clunker... with the stars generating almost as much heat as Michael Jackson and Lisa Marie Presley did in their public makeout sessions. -- James Sanford, KALAMAZOO GAZETTE

In a brief cameo, Christopher Walken sums up Affleck's screen presence when he tells Gigli: 'I know -- you don't know nothin'. I can tell just by lookin' at you. -- John Beifuss, COMMERCIAL APPEAL (MEMPHIS, TN)

And because we want to hear the opinion of those few that actually like it...here's a positive review....although we may never trust them with a review again....

I loved Gigli! Julia Roberts and Richard Gere probably WISH they had this type of chemistry. -- Chuck the Movieguy, COMINGSOON.NET

I'm reading this story on CNN and I come across this line which gave me a moment to pause:

"Fleiss also said she became upset when she learned that Sizemore was employing prostitutes during a movie shoot."

And I thought to myself, "Was she upset because he had outsourced this to another agency and she wasn't getting her normal cut or what?"

I've decided to put in a few Gigli review quotes in each day instead of just one because there are so many that are just so good....

Quotes of the Day

It is an exquisitely bad movie: One to be savoured, marvelled over, shared with friends and generally appreciated in a state of awestruck wonder. Gourmet fromage. -- Geoff Pevere, Toronto Star

Imagine a movie made up entirely of Deleted Scenes...Not since Travolta and Tomlin in 1978’s Moment By Moment has a love scene been this embarrassing or uncomfortable. -- Collin Souter, EFILMCRITIC.COM

A rigli, rigli bad movie. -- Bruce Newman, SAN JOSE MERCURY NEWS

Apparently my episode of MTV's Big Urban Myth Show aired tonight and I didn't see it because...well....no one called to tell me that it was going to be on....so if you saw it....you saw me...and from what I was told at times I was so gay on camera that if they ever needed a replaced on Queer Eye for the Straight Guy I would be a shoo-in.....

70,000 freakin' hits....you guys rock!

Okay...I have a laptop that is, for the most part....dead....it would cost more to repair it than it would to buy a new one...pretty much I can't even get the laptop to boot up...however, there are data files (music, docs, spreadsheets) on there that I would like to retrieve somehow...now I know there companies/services that know how to pull this stuff off....my only question is....does anyone know someone who does this at a decent price?

Apparently the Comedy Central Roast of Dennis Leary was last night. This was that dreadful roast that I worked on that was more like a frat party than anything else as it pretty much was nothing more than penis jokes, gay jokes (and not nice ones mind you), and any other rude type of joke you can imagine. Of course there was a reason why Comedy Central had to air it at 10pm because anything earlier would have sent any kids watching (of course their parents should be noting what they are watching anyway) into sex heaven. How many bleeps were there on this show anyway? I didn't watch as I was too caught up in a vicious game of cribbage....

The only reason I know that it aired was because I have way too many people looking up a combination of Renee Russo, dildo, cock, pics and everything else in between due to one scene where Ms Russo wore a strap on to salute Mr. Leary. It was baseless humor at its best. I'm surprised...no really I am...that this man has had a career...

If you saw it...please let me know what you thought of it....all I gotta say is that I love my cigarette box girls...they were so great to work with!

Starting of Gigli week....

Quote of the Day

I had a brief thought that the mundane inanity might be some Samuel Beckett-style commentary on the existential void. Then I realized that watching the movie put me closer to the existential void than they ever were. -- Nell Minow, Movie Mom

Lie of the Day

12:12 -- "Brian, I'll only be 30 minuts for lunch and then you can go off to the gym and do your workout..."

And let's look at the clock shall we....guess where I still am.....

If a woman says she loves you "like a new purse" is that a good thing?

And while I am at it....this (courtesy of Gawker) is perhaps the best review of Gigli that you will ever read. In fact....next week's Quote of the Day will be the best of the Gigli review quotes thanks to Rotten Tomatoes. I love being inspired.

First things first...the cute French intern that sits across from me is driving me nuts today....probably because he has what looks like really soft kissable lips. Sigh...anyway....

The first real rugby practice of the season was last night and I'm paying for it this morning. Actually I paid for it last night as well but not as much as I am not.

Actually it all goes back to my lunch hour gym workouts were I felt this lovely twinge of pain around my left ankle after I got off of the treadmill. I pretty much ignored it (because that's what ruggers do with pain even if we fall on a flight of stairs on our way to the bathroom) and went on with the rest of the day and even to practice where much running was involved. What I can say though is that one guy on the team who shall remain nameless came back to practice for the fall season in far less cardio shape than before to the point where I was surprised....

One of my least favorite parts of practice is our warmup where we pretty much prance in a line doing odd things like skipping at odd angles, squats, lunges, etc. Well normally we go down the length of the cones facing forward and then we do it backwards (yes you can actually skip backwards). This time when we got to the middle cone, we had to change direction from forward to backwards and wait at the end of the line for the next exercise. I got really good about changing direction in midair when we were doing some of the skipping exercises which caused one of the new guys to ask me how I did it and was able to keep going with the drill. I responded that I had received the figure skating gene upon birth and this was probably as close as I was going to get to be Michelle Kwan.

Following the warm up, we did a series of passing drills -- first for skill and then for speed. The first was the chest high pass where...well...you pass it at chest high level. The second is the pendulum pass which resembles a bit of a golf swing. When it came time for the speed drill portion, the team that made it down and back with the ball the fastest was exempt from doing five "burpees" (at least I think that's how it's spelled). Basically, a burpee involves you dropping to the ground in sort of a squat, extending your legs back as if your doing a push up, bringing your legs back in, and standing back up. Well, as I was the person on the end, I got really good at passing the ball back to the number three guy who just shot it back down the line. What no one really realized until the very last drill, I was barely even holding on to the ball when I received it. As soon as it hit my hands, it was flying back out. We only had to do burpees twice out of about six or eight drills which I have to admit was pretty damn good of us.

Following that we had to do some tackling drills which involved locking the arms and making sure you were at the right level to prevent injury. This is pretty much where my pains from earlier in the day reared the ugly head. As we got to the part where we had to bring them the ground, I was landing on my hips and butt which were sore from running so much (those lovely hip flexor muscles ya know) and my ankle which was also sore from that day of running wasn't enjoying being wrenched around. It got to the point where I was progressively getting up from the ground slower and slower because it hurt so much. But being the stubborn Irish mick that I am, I persisted even when people wanted me to slow up or even sit out to the point where I started snapping at people that I was fine and could continue (even though I shouldn't have). Ultimately, I went to tackle someone and came up limping worse than before and finally had to go out since I couldn't continue. I did, however, lumber my way through the final sprints and I'm paying for that this morning as well.

At the end of practice, I spoke with the coach about an email I had sent him earlier in the week about possibly learning a new position outside of prop since there are so many guys on the team who play prop (some in addition to another position). I think I counted about five guys on the team who play strictly prop so I wanted to increase my chances of getting playing time by learning a new position. Coach gave me the blunt answer I have come to expect from him when he said that I first have to gain more speed before I can break out into another position. That position, he said, would be flanker, which was really no surprise to me since I'm not really tall enough to be a lock and not really powerful enough to be an eight man so flanker is, logically, the only other position I could go to at the time. And no, we're saving a special position in the backs for Crash when he gets back up to sprinter level so there's no chance of me heading back there anytime soon.

And, since I'm talking about rugby, let me also remind you that I'm still taking donations for Ruggerthon 2003 and you can just click that nice Amazon.com honor system box and make a donation. :)

So that was last night. I'm in a shitload of soreness this morning (not pain, just soreness) and I think I'm spending the weekend in bed....sleeping.

Alone.

And to the person who just looked up "Susan Sarandon's butt" -- why?

But it's all for the good since I'm a horny porn star who likes to hump dragons.

Quote of the Day

If I'm in a restaurant and I'm eating, and someone says, `Hey, mind if I smoke?', I say, `Uh, no. Do you mind if I fart? -- Steve Martin

So....Who Are You?

I found out that my father got laid off from his job yesterday. The economy apparently hasn't been good to the business there but hopefully he's made enough contacts in his world travels that will allow him to set up in his own business to keep doing what he apparently enjoys doing. What sucks is that now because he's in his middle 50s (and even with a lot of experience behind him) some companies may be hesitant to hire him because of his age. So...for those of you that pray to whatever higher being you pray to or believe...well if you could throw my father into the mix of all of that it would be appreciated.

Okay....FIVE PEOPLE found my website sometime in the wee hours of the morning by looking up the phrase Steve Bartlestein's (or is i t Bartelstein's) penis. That was the search phrase used....STEVE (HOWEVER YOU SPELL HIS NAME)'s PENIS...

Do you people have NOTHING else to look up? LOL

Quote of the Day

Everybody likes and respects self-made men. It is a great deal better to be made in that way than not to be made at all. -- Oliver Wendell Holmes

How do you list this job on your resume....

So you should see to the left (unless I have screwed up the HTML), an Amazon.com Honor Pay box. My team will be conducting what we like to call Ruggerthon 2003 on September 6. This year, it's more of a team Olympic style competition (someone has already commented on it being far too close to Battle of the Network Stars so I'm not touching that) with some fun social and team building exercises thrown in.

The premise is like a walkathon or other "marathon" style fundraisers except ours is rugby related and it does last for a full 24 hours. The first part of the day is the Rugger-lympics followed by a Manhattan roadrace finishing up with a bar night where we hope to raise money doing the coat check at a local bar. The proceeds not only go to benefit the team but also go to help out other charities. We have selected our rugby union's charity dedicated to exposing inner city youth to the joys of rugby and a yet-to-be named 9/11 charity. Last year's event raised money for the local rugger union's memorial fund for the twelve rugby players who passed away during the 9/11 attacks as well as the Mark Kendall Bingham Leadership Fund. You can read more about this on the team's website.

My (somewhat overly ambitious) goal is to try to raise $500 for my team and you can help out by clicking the Amazon.com honor pay system. I'm not asking for much but every bit does help! If you have any questions feel free to ask and I'll gladly answer them....and of course, I hope you donate...

Quote of the Day

I'm simply a businessman who has seen his share of failures and successes. My personal life is my own and I make no excuses for my actions. -- Powerball winner Jack Whittaker after losing then recovering $545,000 outside a strip club. Mind you, he's given away over three million dollars of his winnings -- to churches.

Oh and Crash....the only reason I won't Tonya Harding you is because if you remember Tonya finished eighth while Nancy won the silver....so there....

I've thrown in a new link and moved a few people around on the template.....

New fun link....for all of you not in NYC.....you can see streaming video of what goes on in Times Square here.....there's something kinda cool about it....

Why are so many people looking up Steve Bartlestein/Bartelstein today? Did something happen with that studly man that no one has told me about...(Addendum...my thanks to Mr. Paul Frankenstein for alerting me to the news that somehow passed me by....)

Okay....temporary template change until we get the new one up and running.....enjoy....

Also please note the links at the right...if I have misplaced you in the wrong category please let me know so I can fix it....also if you are in the "other points of interest" category and wish to have your location revealed to the world let me know as well and I can make arrangements...

Quote of the Day

A heretic... is a fellow who disagrees with you regarding something neither of you knows anything about. -- William Cowper Brann

So my Gangsta Bitch/Manchesterian Wench and I were discussing possible Blogger Bash ideas since we are hoping to host the next one. Based upon my experience on my scavenger hunt with Watson Adventures, we were wondering if people would be interested in doing one of the hunts (either indoors or outdoors and please state your preference as to which) after work one day and have it conclude at a bar where prizes and awards are handed out. For outdoor treks figure $20-25 per person and for indoor $20 plus admission to the museum we select (although some of us with corporate IDs can bring a few people in for free). Also this will help me in gauging interest as my rugby team is also looking at possibly doing something like this as a fundraiser.

Pretty much just leave me a note down below and say "nay" or "yea" or "fuck off you perv"....after all it's all for fun and love...

So I guess I should blog about my date now, huh? Please note I said "date" because I never got together with Javier and Wrestler Guy (which I am not considering a date but a get together between two friends) for multiple reasons but I will tell you about my date with Kik'e.

First and foremost, I learned that he is Cuban, not Hawaiian, which really messes me up so I will have to ask him about how a Cuban guy got a Hawaiian name on our next date (and yes, apparently I didn't scare him off enough so there will be a second date). Anyway, we opted for something interactive and we did a 'scavenger hunt" through Watson Adventures at the Museum of Natural History. Now, I have never done one of these before but I was thankful that it was indoors because if it was outside in the humidity from this weekend I probably would have killed someone and been sweating like a pig while I was doing it.

We got to start a little early since we were there early enjoying the nice, lovely air conditioning of the Museum of Natural History and their very cold marble-ish/stone-ish benches. We paid our way, got the clue sheet with the instructions to start at number thirty-three which was on the fourth floor of the museum. Now, on our way up, I took a moment to look at the progression of the hunt to see where would begin and end. Well, we were going to wind up going back up to the fourth floor to complete the hunt and then have to go back downstairs. I was having none of that and we opted to complete everything on the fourth floor first before going on to the rest of the hunt.

Now, let me say this -- it was a lot of fun but damn were we tired afterwards. We barely finished within the time limit (namely because I jumped up on top of the dinosaur exhibit in the main lobby to get to the Watson Adventures representatives in time) but we had a lot of fun while doing it. We really had to work together and, ultimately, had a lot of fun with it hunt. Kik'e was really excited about it as he had done a similar thing as a team building exercise a few weeks earlier and we pretty much kicked butt all through the course. In the end, though, we came in fourth place in terms of points (although we are still disputing some of the answers) but I did win the $20 raffle prize at the end which basically meant that we got to do the hunt for free. The winning team got Watson Adventures baseball hats and Kik'e turned to me and said, "Yeah, I would have rather had the twenty bucks."

After the hunt, we went and had dinner at McHales because 1) Kik'e had never had a McHales burger before and 2) it's the best place in NYC to go for a burger. Frankly, to be honest, he loved the burger and we spent a great deal of time talking and getting to know each other during this time. It was, really and truly, one of the first chances we had to really sit down and talk with each other outside of the start of the hunt which was really nice and, frankly, gives you the chance to determien whether or not the person you are going out with that evening is a complete moron. Thankfully, Kik'e is not a moron and that was quite evident based on how we worked together on the hunt.

After dinner we tried to make it down to see a movie that was playing in only two places in NYC -- Dirty Pretty Things playing up in Lincoln Center and down on the Lower East Side. We opted for the Lower East Side since we knew we would miss the 7:30 showing and were going to try for the 8:15. We hopped on the F train and sadly learned that it was routed onto the A line which meant we had to go into Brooklyn and then take a train back on the normal F line to our desired stop. When all was said and done, we got there too late and the movie was already sold out. Actually both the 7:30 and the 8:15 were sold out. All of that running really and truly for nothing you would think but we went to the small deli next door and got some drinks (water for me, seltzer for him) and sat in the park watching people play basketball as the sun set. After all of that rushing we just needed the time to rest a little before we opted to trek across town to the 1 train to take us back up to where Kik'e had parked his car.

We had our first kiss on the subway platform waiting for the 1 train to arrive and it was very nice and very sweet and our second one was as I walked him to his car so he could drive back home to New Jersey. I got home about 11:00 or so and answered some voicemails that were left behind and returned a few calls before ultimately collapsing in bed with a blister on my left foot from walking so much and my legs throbbing from exhaustion. On the bad part, I missed out on a birthday party for a teammate but something tells me I wouldn't have been too much fun considering the fact that I was drop dead tired from the date and I had fallen asleep within three seconds of my head hitting the pillow. I slept until about noon the next day if that tells you how zonked out I was...so more news on the Kik'e front as it comes forth...

Wrestler Guy, for the record, did call and say he was stuck in traffic coming back from a kayakin weekend which pretty much put the kabosh on any plans we had of getting together which was fine since I really hadn't moved much that day outside of doing some minor apartment cleaning. I did go down to support one of our ruggers in his quest to help make his documentary. Had some beers with the gang and then off for another McHales burger (this time a black bean burger -- no meat) and then home to answer some emails....

Long weekend but a good weekend....

In honor of the answer to one of music's mysteries being answered tonight (at least for one person), this one goes out to what has to be one of the best revenge songs of all time...

Quote Song of the Day

You walked into the party
Like you were walking onto a yacht
Your hat strategically dipped below one eye
Your scarf it was apricot
You had one eye in the mirror
As you watched yourself gavotte
And all the girls dreamed that they'd be your partner
They'd be your partner, and

You're so vain
You probably think this song is about you
You're so vain
I'll bet you think this song is about you
Don't you? Don't you?

You had me several years ago
When I was still quite naive
Well, you said that we made such a pretty pair
And that you would never leave
But you gave away the things you loved
And one of them was me
I had some dreams they were clouds in my coffee
Clouds in my coffee, and

You're so vain
You probably think this song is about you
You're so vain
I'll bet you think this song is about you
Don't you? Don't you?

I had some dreams they were clouds in my coffee
Clouds in my coffee, and

You're so vain
You probably think this song is about you
You're so vain
I'll bet you think this song is about you
Don't you? Don't you?

Well, I hear you went up to Saratoga
And your horse naturally won
Then you flew your Lear jet up to Nova Scotia
To see the total eclipse of the sun
Well, you're where you should be all the time
And when you're not, you're with
Some underworld spy or the wife of a close friend
Wife of a close friend, and

You're so vain
You probably think this song is about you
You're so vain
I'll bet you think this song is about you
Don't you? Don't you?

-- Carly Simon

The new official drink of this blog: The 646 Guy....

Basically, it's a Long Island Iced Tea but you replace the splash of Coke with a splash of Midori....delicious....of course if there is a real name for this drink I'm officially changing it to The 646 Guy...

Oh and my plans for tonight....hopefully drinks with my Manchesterian Wench and watching my tape of Battle of the Network Stars that I saw on Trio that I didn't get fully watch since I was so freakin' tired....

Okay....something weird has to be happening because I have three get-togethers planned for this weekend that fall under the categories of "date", "pre-date," and "I don't know what the fuck you would call this."

Date -- His name is Kik'e and actually it's spelled without the apostrophe/accent mark but he chooses it put it in there otherwise it spells Kike and well...we all know that's not the greatest thing in the world to say out loud. He was insistent about doing something interactive so we would be talking and actually doing something together other than going into a movie theatre and sitting there in the darkness for two hours. We're going to do a scavenger hunt at the Museum of Natural History. Basically you run around the museum solving riddles and collecting information and the winning team gets a prize. I floated it out there since I know he wanted to do something interactive and this is about as interactive as it gets. Besides he'll get to see my bad, evil side when I get really competitive. It should be rather interesting and fun. He and I have talked on the phone a few times and, at least on the phone, he seems like a cool guy although I'm wondering if he's a little shy.

Pre-Date -- His name is Javier and what makes this so funny is that YEARS AND YEARS AND YEARS (okay maybe not that long but at least one year) ago I put an ad out on a personals site and got no responses (as far as I remember). So sure enough, here I am checking email and I see this message that says I have a response to my profile. I'm like, "What profile?" Sure enough there's my ugly mug staring back at me from this very dated ad. So I respond to the guy and send him a new pic and he's still on for getting together for coffee which is a total shock to me. His name is Javier and we're probably going to do coffee or something and talk to see if there is any interest in person.

I don't know what the fuck you would call this -- So I get this call on my voicemail at home (I've been checking it maniacally for sometime for reasons I will explain to you one day nice and cozy by the fire) and I have one message. Thinking that it may be the message I have been waiting for (although seriously telling myself it's not and I swear I will tell all of you about it one day soon) but it was from a most unexpected quarter -- Wrestler Guy. I had shot him off an email the day before asking if he would be at practice to take my place in the scrimmage because I was going to be stuck at work and it turns out he is in the same predicament that I am in workwise. In his message, he asked what I had planned for Saturday and suggested if I was available that we could do a drink or a movie (or both) and he brought up the kickboxing thing again since he and I have yet to get together to do it. Anyway, he wants me to call him on Sunday and see what is happening and maybe we can get together after his grappling class that afternoon.

Monday...well Monday brings up something else altogether...but I won't go there...

And closing out the Miranda Hobbes edition of Quote of the Day we have the following...

Quote of the Day

Women don't care. We care about nice arms, great eyes, a big dick...I've never once heard a woman say: "He had such a big full scrotum. -- Miranda Hobbes, Sex and the City