A Card On Your Birthday (Scroll Down for the latest Post)

I've decided that 2006 is going to be a creative year!

Would you like a birthday card on your special day? I mean who wouldn't!

Send me your birthdate (year optional I know how some of you girlz can be) and mailing address and you will get a card on your birthday from me!

Just drop an email to:
bdaycardfrommichael-blog@yahoo.com

***NOTE*** Please feel free to share this link on your blog, I'll take it anyway I can!

***Further Note*** I'm serious about this. I'd like to thank Rob for sending some traffic this way, go check him out! And if you came by way of Rob.....send me your address and birthdate, I promise you'll get a card!

Im so gay

I went to Costco with my friend Travis today….can I say what a madhouse.  People were running around like there was a blizzard coming into town and they had to stock up provisions for the next six months!  UGH!

Well I broke down and bought a few movies, one of my New Years Resolutions is to cut down on the number of movies I buy.  I’m not a renter, I prefer to own so I can watch when I want.  I have 375 DVD’s and about 175 VHS, I’ve been collecting movies for ages.

Today I bought three movies but two were strictly because I was gay:

Once Upon A Mattress – When I was in High School we did this musical and I was the lead……the MALE lead in case you were wondering.  So I have always enjoyed this show.  Plus it’s Carol Burnett and Tracey Ullman, OUAM was Carol Burnett’s Broadway Debut and now she’s playing the queen…ah how it must be to get old.

The other movie I got was Sky High strictly because Lynda Carter is in it and she was Wonder Woman – that’s more than enough reason isn’t it?  Wonder Woman!

I’ll try to be less gay in 20-06, I promise.

That Boyfriend is gonna be the end of me

New Years Eve Costume
Originally uploaded by mlehet.

The other day The Boyfriend came over and he was carrying this big "suit" bag from Neiman Marcus or something like that....he proceeds to pull out a beautiful velvet jacket - an amazing dark red/burgundy.

Bastard, now I've got nothing to wear!

We had a girls day out today to find an outfit for me for New Year's Eve.

I told The Boyfriend, find me something and I'll buy it.....so after a pizza buffet lunch (which was quite yummy) we tackled Marshall Field's on State Street with all of the suburbanites who were in "to get the sale." Lots of things on sale, but not great sales if you know what I mean.

The Boyfriend found this great velvet pinstriped jacket and got mad at me when I told him I didn't want to wear a plain "color" shirt, I've gotta have some jazz if you know what I mean. So we found this ensemble (minus the pants and shoes) and it only cost me $160, not bad for a frock eh?

I hope that you have a wonderful and exciting New Year's Eve and that you get to spend it with people you want to. If you're spending it with people you don't like, then it's your big excuse to get drunk!

Whatever you do, be safe, be sane and don't drink and drive, we need you around for 20-06!

Why Charity Sucks, Part Tres

Ok, this isn't Charity per se, but it's still money that should have gone to those that needed it.

Link

Apparently the Small Business Administration (SBA) did an audit on Government Backed Loans that were to go to those business affected by the 9/11 tragedy. Of the 59 cases they sampled, they found that only 9, or 15%, appeared to be qualified for the disaster loans. That' means 85% of the money that was set aside as loans for those affected by the disaster never made it there.

Is it just me, or do we seem to be in a world where everyone is just in it for themselves and it doesn't matter how dishonest, wrong or disrespectful you are, just get it.

I'm gonna stop surfing the internet today because I'm tired of looking at all of this.

Life Imitates Art

Did you see Fargo?

If you didn't then stop reading this.

Remember how they got rid of the body in the end?

Apparently some guy in Colorado met the same fate recently LINK

Poor guy, that has got to be the worst way to exit this world.

On another note, here's my 12 minutes of fame, Frances McDormand's parents live in the same little town where I grew up. Her father is now a retired Pastor but was active when I was living there, if I had only known then what I know now! My Mom met Frances one evening when they were out to dinner at the only "fancy" restaurant in town. (When I say Fancy it's because all the Silverware Matches and they have those nice heavy 'clothlike' napkins there, not Fancy like Four Seasons fancy.)

Why Now?

achildrensign
Originally uploaded by Jeanne8.

They never had this kind of stuff when I was a kid....I feel so gyped!

Complications

Complications

Thank goodness last week I was able to fly downtown and have a nice quiet lunch with The Boyfriend at Corner Bakery, because that’s not gonna happen this week.

The way the Holidays are falling this year, we’re having two 4-day weekends, I had last Friday off and The Boyfriend had to work so I went downtown to meet him for lunch. It’s a treat I always enjoy because I get to do something special with him (I hope he feels the same way). So this week we were going to go shopping for a New Year’s Eve frock for me and it’s turned into this huge hullabaloo that’s gonna stress me out all day.

A very good friend of mine wanted to get together for lunch because he has the day off as well, so I said sure, we can both meet The Boyfriend for lunch and do some shopping, have a girls+plus afternoon. A friend of mine invited me to do something on Friday and I said, “I’m sorry, but I’ve got this other commitment…blah…blah…blah…and he says, “Oh that would be great, I’d love to do that with you.”

I think I need to set up a schedule and a list of talking points for the afternoon, I’m gonna have my handsful!

Why Charity Sucks, Part Deux

If you may recall, I posted this article about how crappy people can be with money that was given to them so they could provide charity to someone in need.

Check out this latest nugget of information about Call Center employees who helped their friends and family submit false claims against money that was donated for Hurricance Katrina.

How low can people get?

Public Service Announcement

sober 4
Originally uploaded by sneakerman.

We have these little PSA posters at work, the one this month says "Don't let alcohol ruin your holidays."

A Holiday Wish

My heartfelt appreciation goes out to all of you who have taken the time and trouble to send me "forwards" over the past 12 months.

Thank you for making me feel safe, secure, blessed, and wealthy.

Extra thanks to whoever sent me the one about rat crap in the glue on envelopes, because I now have to go get a wet towel every time I need to seal an envelope.

Also, I have to scrub the top of every can I open for the same reason.

Because of your concern I no longer drink Coca Cola because it can remove toilet stains.

I no longer use Saran wrap in the microwave because it causes cancer.

I no longer check the coin return on pay phones because I could be pricked with a needle infected with HIV.

I no longer use cancer-causing deodorants, even though I smell like a water buffalo on a hot day.

I no longer go to shopping malls because someone might drug me with a cologne sample and rob me.

I no longer receive packages from, nor send packages by, UPS or FedEx since they are actually Al Qaeda in disguise.

I no longer answer the phone, because someone will ask me to dial a number for which I will get a phone bill with calls to Jamaica, Uganda, Singapore and Uzbekistan.

I no longer eat KFC because their chickens are actually horrible mutant freaks with no eyes or feathers.

I no longer have any sneakers -- but that will change once I receive my free replacement pair from Nike.

I no longer have to buy expensive cookies from Neiman Marcus since I now have their recipe.

I no longer worry about my soul because at last count I have 363,214 angels looking out for me.

Thanks to you, I have learned that God only answers my prayers if I forward an e-mail to seven of my friends and make a wish within five minutes.

I no longer have any money because I gave it to a sick girl who is about to die in the hospital (for the 258th time) but that will change once I receive the $15,000 that Microsoft and AOL are sending me for participating in their special email program.

Yes, I want to thank you so much for looking out for me that I will now return the favor!

E-MAILS ARE WONDERFUL AND HAVE IMPROVED MY LIFE STYLE!!!!

If you don't send this e-mail to at least 144,000 people in the next 7 minutes, a large pigeon with a wicked case of diarrhea will land on your head at 5:00 p.m. (EST) this afternoon. I know this will occur because it actually happened to a friend of my next door neighbor's ex-mother-in-law's second husband's cousin's beautician.

Thank all ya'll!

I'm Addicted to Sudoku

Addiction
Originally uploaded by mlehet.

Have you played Sudoku? I'm always on the tail end of these fads, but I'm hooked.

I was at my local Walgreens on Wednesday night and saw this little electronic contraption for $14.95, I knew I had 5 days of vacation ahead, so I'm now officially addicted to Sodoku.

I was a little reluctant to start in on this apparent fad game because I didn't want to appear stupid or dim witted if it took me 45 minutes to complete a 5 minute puzzle.

But the "game" is very easy to understand and easy to pick up. I'm still learning the strategy but I'm getting better.

It's a fun game.

Merry Christmas

I hope that everyone had a pleasant Christmas Holiday and you got everything you wished for.

We had a very lazy Christmas Day, sleeping in and going to The Boyfriends Mom's for Christmas.

It was very exciting to watch his 6 year old son (who still believes in Santa) open presents that Santa had dropped off at 4 different locations! Can you believe that, he was having a ball.

We had a wonderful dinner (although I am have totally eaten my Ham quotient this year).

I'm not a ham fan at all, I usually only eat it at Easter which was the only time my Mom really made it. Well we had it last night for Christmas Eve Dinner and for Christmas Dinner, no more ham for Mikey.

Christmas Eve was a blast, I have a very good friend who got a job of a lifetime, but it means that he and his partner have to move to Rhode Island, they leave next week. So they hosted a dinner party at their home thta was spectacular! There were 10 of us there, 2 of which were parents to a guest. We enjoyed copious amounts of wine and told many many jokes over dinner. We had smart, witty dinner conversation, like I imagine adults would do on a regular basis if we weren't always driving through Wendy's for dinner.

The Parents were quite fun and very open to all of the gayity around them, Mom in fact got many many zingers out during dinner, we loved her!

As we were leaving and I was giving my hosts a hug goodbye (because I know it will be a long time before I see them again) I whispered in his ear "I'm so lucky, I get to say 'I knew him when,' I've never been able to do that before."

I had so much fun I had to stop and get my car this morning becuase I couldn't drive it home last night.

The Boyfriend got me some amazing stationery (which he said he got by reading here, So Shout Out's to him). He also got me the gift that keeps on giving........season tickets to the Broadway In Chicago theater series, check out the things we're going to see this year. I got some other wonderful presents as well.

I hope you got everything you wished for and more than you could ever need!

Here's a funny parody video of the Madonna's - Hung Up, check it out, it'll make you giggle.

Happy Holidays!

Relations

Bubba and Homer were sitting in back of their trailers, shooting the breeze.

Bubba asked Homer, "If I snuck ovah to yore house while you wuz out fishin' an' I made love to yore wife, an' she got pregnant, would that make us kin?"

Homer scratched his head for a bit then said,"I don't think so, but it shore would make us even!"

One of these things is not like the other - Diesel Ad

Check out these two versions of the same ad
Originally uploaded by mlehet.

Funny thing, I'm flipping through this big glossy fashion magazine at The Boyfriend's house the other night and I show him the advertisment on the right.

I flash it at him and then ask him what was for sale. Boots he said.

Then I asked, what colors, well he got one color right the red ones!

Later he was looking at the New York Times Style section and what was on the back page but THE SAME AD but something's a little different about it.

What a hot ad!

New Hat

New Hat
Originally uploaded by mlehet.

I bought a hat while we were in Columbus.

I'm not a hat person, but I guess that can change (or maybe not).

I'll let you know after I wear it out for the first time!

Check out this cool game

Guess The Google

Just go do it.

Why Charity Sucks (or why you should be cautious when donating money)

Check out this article

When you donate money to a charity, do you know how much of it actually makes it to the people that really need it?

Basically, this guy is the President of the Goodwill in Portland (you know the non-profit org) and his salary last year was $830,000. Yes you read that right, $830K for running a non-profit organization.

I agree that just because he is working for a non-profit organization that is supposed to help people he shouldn't be allowed to make money, but he is the president of the Portland Goodwill, not President of the entire Goodwill Organization, just one little tiny part of it all. In fact they said that he made the most out of all the other executives at the other 172 Goodwill locations in North America.

Is it just me or is this wrong?

I guess I'm a bit biased because my sister runs her own non-profit organization where she helps people get housing and I see how little she "gets" out of it, she does well enough to have a house/food/etc, but she's not going galavanting around the country spending other people's money.

If he took a 50% cut in salary, imagine how many more people could be helped by his organization.

Ok, I'm done Ranting!

Happy Winter Solstice

The winter solstice is one of the two times each year that the Sun is at its farthest point from the equator and appears to stand still. It occurs today at 1:35 P.M. EST.

The word solstice is derived from the Latin sol, or "Sun," and stitium, or "stoppage."

The Halcyon Days also occur around this time - According to ancient legend, a grieving wife named Alcyone, or Halcyon, threw herself into the sea upon discovering the drowned body of her beloved husband, Ceyx. The gods took pity on the pair, transforming them into kingfishers with the power to still the stormy seas for 14 days around the time of the winter solstice while they built their nest and hatched their young.

Today marks the shortest day of the year and the longest night of the year, it's all downhill from here as the days will progressively get longer and longer.

The sun appears at it's lowest point on the horizon today and if you look at it around noon over the next several days it will appear to be in the same point in the sky.

Don't you just love astronomy? It truly is one thing that remains constant throughout time.

Billy & Carlos

The FIRST
Originally uploaded by mlehet.

Billy and Carlos were so excited the other day, we got a card from the amazing Captain Howdy Girl herself!

To show their excitement they wanted to have their picture taken with the card. It started putting some thoughts in their heads.

They figure they're a couple of good looking guys, they should be able to use this Internet Thing to their advantage and have a little fun at the same time.

So if you'd like to have your postcard featured with Billy and/or Carlos just let me know I'll send you the address.

Who knows Flo may even show up now and again!

Thank you CHG for the lovely card!

**Click on the picture to see all of the Carlos & Billy Pictures

Farting

Ok someone is going to have to step through the Internet and slap me for the statement I’m about to make.

Remember 30 years ago when we were kids and how we thought our parents were such dorks and had no idea what was going on in “our” world?

I used to have bad thoughts about my parents, I mean hell I may have been growing up in the middle of nowhere without any natural “peers” but I guess some things just come naturally.  Looking back, I know that all of those bad thoughts were wasted energy (If I only knew then what I know now [slap me again]), and that eventually we’ll realize that.  But it got me to thinking, do you think the reason we distrust people is because our parents are the first to betray us, the first to lie to us?

Think about it, our parents lied to us about Santa Claus, The Easter Bunny all of these little white lies.  If our parents are going to lie to us then who can we ever really trust?  Instead, we perpetuate the situation, we continue (even though we know it’s wrong) the little white lies….why?  Why is it that we know it’s wrong, we were pissed off when we found out about it….but we continue to do it.  Is it some sort of cosmic first practical joke that adults get to play?

It went on for years didn’t it, at least 10 years at my house (my sister is 4 years older and I believed in Santa until I was 6 or so).  Parents making up these little white lies, to a point where they almost become legends and then myths.  My mother has this recording of me on Christmas morning, I must have been 4 or 5 and was really really tongue tied.  My Mother asked me if I heard Santa and I reply (in this most horrible voice):  “I hearded footsteps last night, I hearded them”  Oh my god what a Dork!  So obviously I thought he was real because I could have sworn I heard that fucker on the roof!

But once the first myth began to fade the rest were easy to get rid of.  I think the most difficult one to let go of is Santa Claus because he seems like a real person.  Others were easy to let go of and pretend “Oh I knew all the time” like Easter….The Easter Bunny …hello he’s a rabbit and he delivers fucking eggs, where in the hell did he get those god damned eggs, that’s what I want to know.

One thing I remember about my dad was he was ability to pass wind on command, not just spontaneously but literally on command.  At the most inopportune time you’d be sitting there and all of a sudden things just turned rotten.  Once the first one was out my Dad was like “Well what the hell, it’s gonna happen so lets have fun with it.”  We would scream and yell and make all sorts of obscene gestures to display how terrible it was to be affected by these gaseous odors.  We would make a nasty little game about it, that’s sorta sick.

Once Dad figured out that we were grossed out about it, it suddenly became a torture device.  He would always use the lame excuse, “Oh I can’t help it.”  

This is also the man who loves to put mayonnaise on his mashed potatoes, I swear once he figures out that it freaks you out, he gets some little freaky pleasure from it (Oh my god, That’s where my sister gets it from).  

As I was thinking about this I realized that I am now around the age my Dad was when we were going through all this, and I realized:  I can pass wind on command now too, I guess it’s inherited.

***NOTE*** If you are reading this note, then good for you!  I apologize this post was starting out as one thing and ended up in a totally different way.  I was going to edit it down, but then I figured what the hell it’s Christmas!

The Boyfriend and I are going out of town this weekend, Flo is going (She is so excited) I’ll take lots of pictures.  Have a great weekend.

March of the Penguins

Have you seen March of the Penguins?

If you haven't seen it yet, I suggest you add it to your NetFlix queue or run down to Target and buy a copy for Christmas.

I seem to enjoy documentaries more so lately, I guess because I want to get something out of a movie other than 2 hours of wasted time.

March is an amazing tale and when you finish you'll just shake your head and want to hit the play button again. The things that these penguins go through to survive is totally amazing.

I saw this article today and right away based on my new found knowledge, I was able to answer why those penguins were getting fat....you'll be able to figure it out after you've seen the movie too and you won't need to be a zoologist either.

Check out the movie, if your animal lover you'll truly enjoy it (except for the sad parts). But keep this in the back of your mind while you're watching it.....someone (a human) was there to film this - that's an amazing feat unto itself!

Dreams

I have been having the most bizarre dreams as of late (due to the medication I'm taking - in fact my Doctor told me that the only reason he has taken anyone off of this drug is becuase some people just can't handle the dreams).

Now I dream all the time, or at least I think I do, but typcially I don't remember them. Or I remember them when I first wake up but shortly after if I don't try to 'recall' the dream I'll quickly forget about it. But lately I have been dreaming up a storm, like all night long.

It really is bizarre and I can understand why some people would be freaked out by this but it's sort of interesting. In fact the other morning I had a dream in those 9 minutes of the snooze on the alarm clock, typically I'm half awake during that time period anyway and don't dream but recently I have been - freaky!

Have you ever had recurring dreams? I have had those for quite some time, I wouldn't say so much recurring as a continuation of the last dream, not like I had the same dream over and over again (falling off a cliff) but perhaps I'll be in the same building or same car as I've been before and it seems to pick up where I left off before.

I seem to have two recurring "theme" dreams - one is about a house/apartment buildings and the other is about vehicles, specifically school busses.

Now I've not had the School Bus dream in a few years, but lately I've been having a lot of apartment/house dreams...

I think I should start recording my thoughts first thing when I wake up, perhaps there might be a movie in there.

In fact last night I remember part of my dream I was with two people I didn't know - or don't know yet - and I told them I had a movie idea but I was going to share it with them later.....damn why would I do that?

I hope I can finish that dream later!

Overheard in The Office

It took me a few minutes to figure out what was going on, but then I realized that someone was showing off some vacation photos, here are a few descriptions that were given:

- This is something
- We were coming or going
- I’m right here but I’m not in the picture
- I don’t know what that is
- What in the hell is that?

Looking for a Date

Hey, all of you single women out there, a friend of mine (well he's really not a friend of mine per se) is looking for a date.

Check him out

What a Stinker

PC150013
Originally uploaded by mlehet.

The Boyfriend is such a stinker, look what he surprised me with today.

He is so cheeky!

And He's mine.

Be Careful What You Wish For

How many times a day do you say: "Oh I wish.....?"

Be careful what you wish for, those dreams may just come true, but not the way you want them to.

You know what I'm talking about "Oh I wish I were famous" and then boom your struck by a bus right outside the TV station and they happen to catch it on film, well you are famous then aren't you?

Or how about "Oh I wish I could meet so-and-so (insert famous person name here)?" Well you do and then guess what you end up doing this:


Who wants to bet that this brunette grew up "wanting to be famous" well she's famous now...she's Mariah Carey's Straw Holder. In my eyes you can't get much more famous than that can you? You're around Mariah all day (can you just imagine) and your only job is to constantly put that straw right in Mariah's mouth. Look how she's holding that straw, it's obvious she's a professional. I wonder if when she gets totally fed up with this job if she'll purposely shove that straw straight up Mariah's nose, now wouldn't that be funny?

**NOTE - This is not going to become a celebrity blog, but I just find it so funny the "people" that we consider celebrities nowadays. Just because they have music/fashion/photos someone can be a celebrity. Do you think Mariah would have been a celebrity 100 years ago like the legendary Fanny Brice or Sarah Vaughn? I don't think so. It's the media's fault too you know.

Could you just imagine?

This was on msnbc.com:

Donatella Versace says that Elton John helped her kick a cocaine habit and go to the same Arizona rehab clinic that Kate Moss recently checked herself into, according to Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera. “On June 30 [2004] he was in my house in Milan, along with a few friends,” she said. “I went to the bathroom to powder my nose and they blocked me. They told me there was a plane about to depart for Arizona. I was shocked but I understood the time had come. I slipped into a tracksuit and ... alone and with no make up, caught the plane.”

Poor Donatella, can you just imagine her with no make up! S-C-A-R-Y

Christmas Parties

Tis the season for Christmas Parties isn't it? Everybody's got to have one, but then who can blame them, all we're doing is setting ourselves up for a long long winter.

I on the other hand like to have a party in February when all the crap is over and done with and we are all realizing that it's gonna be another 5 months until it gets warm again!

Have you used EVite? It's a clever tool, I'll never hand out invitations again for a big party. The one thing I like is that you can leave comments on whether you're coming, or not coming or just don't want to be bothered. I was looking through a few of the party invites I've gotten this year and reading the responses, this was the best decline I've seen in quite a while:

Thanks for the invite, but as this time of year always offers more parties than a human can get to! I am attending a friend's gathering. Enjoy!

Oops, don't you hate it when you miss a word? Really what he's saying is, your party isn't good enough I'm going to a real friend's party.....hmmm remind me not to send him an eVite in the February.

Video Google

Have you seen the new Video Google site?

I posted a few of my movies there and I have been getting a ton of traffic from there, you should go check it out.

Today I saw this video Oh my god this is honestly the funniest thing I have seen in years.

You know we always get those little funny videos and animations and emails, but this really made me laugh out loud.

I guess it's from a VH-1 program called Scare Tactics (I don't have cable so I've never seen it) but this short video (about 2 minutes) is the funniest thing I have seen in ages....go check it out.

What's in your drawers

My messy drawer
Originally uploaded by mlehet.

Do you have a digital camera? Do you have a Flickr account? Do you have messy kitchen drawers?

I bet the answer to all of those questions is a resounding

YES

I created a Flickr Group called Kitchen Drawer where we can all showcase our amazingly organized (or dis-organized) kitchen drawers.

If you'd like to join the group, you can do that on the Flickr page, if you don't want to join perhaps you could just post on your own blog and share a link back here?

We've all got our dirty little secrets, just like those "Desperate Housewives" show us your messy drawers, come on, I dare you!

Cops! Bad Boy Bad Boy What You Gonna Do

Why I love the program “Cops” on Fox TV

• Lady calls 911 because a “snake” got in her house


• Officer comes and proceeds to rip up baseboard in closet where the snake is supposedly hiding.


• Woman says (while on the phone with her mama) “Do you think it could have come in through that door?  Oh god, I’ve got to get some snake away or something”


• Officer continues to rip out about 12 inches of drywall looking for said snake.


• Officer checks basement for said snake finds nothing.


• Office leaves, woman finds snake while officer still in drive.


• Officer returns to pull out 12” garter snake with a nice pattern on him.


• Woman says (off the phone now) “Oh he’s black and white, I got 2 out of three colors wrong.”


• Officer takes said snake to yard and drops him in the bushes.

How much you want to bet that fucking snake got back in her house?

Naked Skydiving

I was inspired by this photo from Andi

I've had this video for years, I just came across it and I wanted to share it with you.

I have no idea what the guy is saying (but as you'll see it really doesn't matter).

Next time you think about skydiving naked, watch this.

If you'd like to share this video with your friends via email or on your blog here's the link:

http://www.youtube.com/?v=mJ8DdtL6yzw

But here's the video:

What can six inches hurt?

I know we've all asked ourselves that question before....it's only six inches, how much can that hurt?

Well we got six inches of snow last night therefore I took the train/bus to work today. I knew that I was not going to be in the mood to dig out my car at 6:45 am, no sirre bob.

But I did make a movie about my commute.

Lifesaver

Lifesaver
Originally uploaded by mlehet.

Everythings a life saver.

Birds of a Feather

Birds of a Feather
Originally uploaded by mlehet.

Must stick together.

Flo was very sad to see this posting on MSNBC.

LINK

Chicago Video Tour

This was one of my first movies.

I grabbed the camera one afternoon and walked from Millennium Park in Downtown Chicago to Water Tower Place Mall.

My favorite part is all the way at the end (I'm sorry) but watch it through I think you'll be happy with it as well.

2004 Chicago Marathon

Last year I decided to chase the Chicago Marathon through the city using the CTA.

I began my morning on the El platform leading to the marathon and followed it through 4 different stops within the city. Including: Downtown, Gold Coast, China Town and Grant Park.

The first snow

I love the first snow, you know the one I’m talking about the first REAL snow of the year the one that’s really gonna leave it’s mark.

Not that piddly little quarter of an inch that was melted 20 minutes after it landed, the first big snow that’s dropping several inches of the white stuff.

Well we’re having our “first snow” of the year right now. It’s been snowing since about 2:30 PM CST and now 3 hours later we have about 3.5 inches of it. The roads are totally covered, the snow plows haven’t been out yet, people are trying to shovel the walkways but it is just snowing.

I always like the first snow, I don’t know what it is….I think it’s the calming of it.

Walk outside after the first snow or while it’s snowing and it’s just quiet. The snow is muffling everything, the car horns, the stereos, the kids walking down the street, everything is just quiet, well to a point.

I remember growing up in rural PA and when it snowed it was so quiet you could hear the snow landing. Have you ever heard that?

It’s the most amazing thing, here you are in a vast open space, snow is falling everywhere and it’s loud! You can almost hear each snowflake land on the one before it and start to build that big layer that you’re going to end up shoveling in a few hours. At first you don’t realize it, you try and figure out what it is, you’re taking in the beauty that is just the snow and then it hits you it’s the snow. It’s the snow that is making all of that noise.

Something light and fluffy and appears to be so delicate and fragile is loud. So loud that it makes you wonder what quiet really is? Like after you’ve been to a concert and you are lying in bed that evening and your ears are ringing, it’s that quiet but with snow!

I love the city when it snows. Well when you get that first snow, because as soon as the snow plows and salt trucks are out and the snow is black, it sort of ruins it. But when it’s just starting, like it is now, that’s when I like it the best. The only people out are the ones that REALLY need to be out, that’s my favorite time to go walking, because it’s just you and the snow, and you’d better wear boots that’s for sure.

I hope that we have a gentle winter as I don’t think I’m up for a lot since I lost my parking space last month! Now I’ve got to worry about winter in Chicago and I’m sure you’ve heard how crazy it gets here with parking spots. Oh don’t worry, I’ll post all about them this winter, I promise.

I hope you get your first snow of the year soon (If you’re in the Northern Hemisphere and above the Equator).

Getting Ready for the Holidays

Here's a little funny for you, I think you'll enjoy (especially Ms. Mac since she loves The BK)

Link

What makes you gay

Yesterday we had another off-site party at the bowling alley.

We play three games, two regular and one "crazy bowl"

Crazy Bowl is where you hop on one foot, bowl with your opposite hand, etc. One of the frames is you hold the hand of the person that bowled before you.

Following is a conversation I was involved in:

Team Member: (to coordinator) I am informing you that I will not be holding hands with another guy. That's what makes you gay.
Me: Uhm, that's not what makes you gay.

I thought this was quite funny as did one of my team-mates who is "in on" my secret!

***NOTE to further expound:
- this is a grown man
- this is a grown man that stops by my desk every day to read my joke of the day calendar
- this is a grown man who is a computer geek
- this is a grown man who has no idea I am gay (he MUST be headless is all I can say)

What's Flo been up to?

Reddi to go
Originally uploaded by mlehet.

You should check out Flo and see what she's been up to.

All I can say is that she called me and told me to pick up a few more cans of Reddi Wip if I wanted any with my pie!

She is such a ho!

Another Video

Here's a video I made for work. We had a Team Building - Bowling outing a few weeks ago. I took my video camera with us and put this together. It was shown today at our "End of the Yeare Kick-off Meeting" Everyone enjoyed it.

It's work stuff, but still thought I'd share:

Thank You

I just wanted to say Thank You to everyone that has left me a comment or has sent me an email, I am truly grateful.

Things are going well, in fact I think that I may post about it later this week, I'm still trying to put all the words together in my mind.

Please know that I am doing well and I hope that you are doing well too!

Flo and the Sushi Man

Flo had a great evening last night having Sushi for the first time.

She confided in me that she's had tons of raw fish in her day but never something like this.

She felt all refined and stuff eating with those prongs they gave her.

If you haven't checked on Flo in a while click on her picture to see what she's been up to!

Sushi Sushi Sushi

Let's just say I'm not a big fan of sushi, well that's not a fair statement. I like sushi, but I don't seek it out would be a better statement.

Last evening a friend of mine called and asked what I was doing for dinner. The Boyfriend (he told me I should refer to him by name but I figure that's more confusing for you) had his son so I was on my own. My friend wanted to go for sushi, so I said 'moshi moshi let's go for sushi' (I'm sure that's offensive to someone, sorry.

The place was a BYOB so we stopped at the store and got a couple cans of Sapporo beer and headed for the best seats at the Sushi Bar.

They gave me a menu but it was all greek to me because I had no idea what to order so I told my friend you order and I'll eat what I eat, I'm open to new things.

Mike - The Sushi Chef was celebrating his one year anniversary of working there so the place had a festive mood about it. Sake was pouring down the aisles....warm sake at that....I think that since the place is a BYOB they can't "sell" alcohol but they can give it away (gotta love that).

Chef Mike celebrating 1 year

My friend ordered several things, I tried all of them except the Maki Tuna and the Sushi Scallop, I'm not a big raw fish fan, he said they were delicious.

I did eat some Rainbown Roll and a roll that had tempura shrimp that was yummy. Then Chef Mike asked if we wanted something special, we said sure.

Well it took about 30 minutes but this is what came out:

How can I describe this? The rolls on bottom had been deep fried so they were crispy, they had vegetables and other things in it, on top was a spicy soft shell crab mixture. To call it a mixture is probably the worst word to describe it, but I really can't describe what it tasted like. When you first started eating it, it was crispy and solid in your mouth but then you could taste the soft shell crab in this delectable creamy dressing after you swallowed you could feel this very warm sensation creep over your tongue from the peppers. That then took over your mouth as you realize what you've just eaten. The only thing that would quench that burn was a cup of warm sake!

I think it was a good evening, the Sushi was cold and the beer and sake were warm!

A New Chapter

We all have chapters in our lives, some are short some are long. Some are well defined and you know when they're over and some just sort of fade from one to the next.

Last night was the definitive end of a chapter, my Doctor has put me on a medication regimen that's gonna last a lifetime, and last night was the first night I took it......

I sort of had to psych myself up for it (I don't know why, it's good for me) but I was sort of sad that I was alone. The Boyfriend had his son and I had to start treatment to stay on schedule.

One Chapter ends and a whole new Chapter begins, I hope this one is a bit more exciting.

A New Chapter Has Started

At 9:53 a new chapter was started.

And I was alone.

More News From Back Home

Yesterday was the first day of Deer Season in NE PA yesterday. I always love the day after because they've got some priceless pictures in the paper.

The only thing that could be better for this picture is if the hunter had his tongue sticking out like the deer.

Now here's a proud family, you just know that Mom cooked a huge breakfast before they went out yesterday morning.

Fat Asses not good for Vaccines

Check out this article

Apparently a study was done to determine if people who had fat asses and received shots in the ass received an effective dosage of the medication.

My favorite line:

"We are the first to report that the majority of intramuscular injections into the buttocks are not effective in the Western adult population," said Victoria O. Chan.

Way to go North America! We should all be proud.

Reading the Hometown Paper

You've got to love the Internet. With it, I can read my "hometown" paper and see what's going on at all the way over in Pennsylvania. See how the people are arguing for/against Intelligent Design (ID) how they're pissed off at the Senators for voting themselves a raise outside of the normal timeframe for doing so, and seeing what kind of Buckwheat Cake suppers are going on in time for Hunting Season.

In today's paper, on the front page, was an article about a couple who had a baby 2.5 months early and that their hospital bill was $450,000.

The following passage is how they described the size of the baby when it was born:

"Jessica and Robert have photographs of Julia lying in the NICU next to a stuffed animal. She's the same size as the toy, which is the size of a squirrel, minus the tail."

Now I could just see that same article in the Chicago Times.....what would they refer that baby to to give a fair comparison? A pack of cigaretts, a bottle of Colt Malt Liquor....only in PA can you refer to the size of a Squirrel (without the tail) and everyone knows how big it is.....

I love the country!

My Butchness has been Extended

Since I had to change the tire on my car last week, I gave myself 6 months worth of Butch Points. I mean it wasn’t an easy task, it involved multiple pieces of equipment (jack, tire iron) and a heavy piece of metal covered by rubber, it’s worth at least 6 months.

Well today my account has been credited with 3 more months of Butch Points!

Got back from lunch and one of the girls on my team comes over and asks….do you have jumper cables? J just called me and her car won’t start so she wants me to come jump her car but I don’t have cables and I don’t know how to do it.

Of course I know how to jump a car I tell her, but alas I don’t have jumper cables….so we ask around the office and our Boss has, so we grab those and go jump the car.

Too bad, but the car wouldn’t start, I think it was her starter because it was turning over (so it had juice) but it wasn’t catching it was just doing that whirring sound. So I called her a Tow Truck and arranged for her to get to Sears.

So in the matter of less than a week I have:

- removed a flat tire and put the spare on
- attempted a jump start of a car in trouble

I’m Butch for the next 9 months! I’m so excited because I’m going to get something cool with the stamps they give you.

Overheard in Chicago

Overheard today while in line at the Walgreens:

Man on Cell Phone: Ok, you know what? At this point in our relationship you should be giving me crabs not Baccarat crystal.

Thanksgiving in London

Last year Dave (formerly known as The Boyfriend) and I went to London over the Thanksgiving Holiday.

It was my first time so he was very gentle with me.

Check out the movie if you'd like

A New Video

I promise that I won't make this a video blog but at least if you don't want to watch it you don't have to.

Check out this little movie I put together, I hope you enjoy it.

A Terrible Disaster has been Averted

You won't see this often
Originally uploaded by mlehet.

Yesterday morning I took my usual walk to my car to drive to work when what did I spy but a flat tire on my adorable little Ford Focus.

That's right a Flat Tire. Well let me tell you this, at 7:00 am I was not dealing with that shit, so I just grabbed the bus and went to work, fuck that shit!

During the day I stopped at Sears and grabbed one of those portable air compressors thinking I could just pump some air back into that fat little tire. Well that didn't work.

So the next step was Fix-A-Flat which is basically expandable insulation in a can that you're supposed to put in your tire. That didn't work either!

Fortunately since we're celebrating Thanksgiving tomorrow work was really slow and we were allowed to leave at 2:00 pm (gotta love that). I jumped back on that bus and came home and immediately tackeled that flat tire.

And this is what I got....dirty hands!

I hate having dirty hands that's why I work in an office where I'm not forced to work with dirty implements.

So it is offical, I'm butch for the next six months, I don't wanna hear anything from you!

**Note: I've changed a lot of tires in my life (I grew up on a farm) so I'm this is just a dramatic portrayl for your enjoyment. It only took me 20 minutes to change, but I just wanted to bitch about it.

How they keep babies fresh

How they keep babies fresh
Originally uploaded by mlehet.

A big secret was revealed today.

I never knew how they kept babies fresh, I guess they just wrap them in Saran Wrap!

The First Thanksgiving

Since the Holiday Season is now upon us, I thought I’d tell you a little story about The First Thanksgiving. ‘ No not “The” first Thanksgiving and not “My” first Thanksgiving but the First Thanksgiving I ever made.

Picture it, Columbus, OH – November 1990. I had just moved from my parents house in PA 8 short months before and my family (sister included) agreed to drive to Columbus to have Thanksgiving at my “college apartment”

I was all excited about having my first Thanksgiving in my new home with my family, for weeks in advance I prepared. I made the menu I made the shopping list, I pined over what dishes should I use (plastic or paper) and what wine to serve (box or MD 20/20) finally the time arrived. I knew that it was going to be a chore cooking on my apartment sized stove (it was half the size of a regular stove), but I was ready for the challenge.

My parents and sister arrived on Wednesday night and spent the night at a Knight’s Inn (are they still around) about 5 miles from home.

Thanksgiving morning I got up early and prepared my bird and got it in the oven. About 2 hours after the bird had been in the oven, the unimaginable happened…..the electric went out….and I had an electric stove.

A call to the electric company made me aware that a motorist had hit a pole and that approximately 1000 people in my area were without electricity.

What’s a boy to do?

Well I met my family and we had a fun shopping experience at Meijers and a great breakfast at The Waffle House.

By the time we got done shopping the power was back on the turkey was cooking and we had a wonderful Thanksgiving.

I hope that your Thanksgiving (if you’re celebrating one) is wonderful and exciting and that your electricity doesn’t go off a few hours after you put your turkey in the oven!

Have a great holiday (and for those of you outside the US – Have a Great Thursday)

A new movie

But this one is not mine, I found it today while I was surfing the web....I emailed myself the link so I could look at it at home, but I can't for the life of me remember WHERE I found this link. But I was just reminded where I found it:

Check out my friend Rob7534 where I've just found out that he's been posting ALL OF HIS SECRETS, it's some good reading!

This movie is amazing, quite spectaular actually and it really does deserve credit, I would like to thank the person who first made it.

So check it out:

Shopping for the Holidaze!

There’s a few of us that are going to be in town this year for Thanksgiving, so we decided that we would get together and have our own little dinner.

Yesterday we went shopping to prepare for the big day……we went to Whole Foods or perhaps you know it by it’s more well known name – Whole Paychecks.

Typically I like to shop at the big box stores, you know the ones that have pesticides and germicides on it’s vegetables and has more than one type of cracker to choose from…but the guy who is hosting wanted to go there, so I took him (since I’ve got a car, but that’s a whole other post)

Now I’ve been to Whole Paychecks before but Sunday morning there is crazy! First off it’s a small store and the aisles are close together but there were people bouncing off of each other everywhere you went. I said “excuse me” so many times I was hoarse.

There were a few things I discovered:

- The Granola crowd needs preservatives. I think that eating non-preservative foods has some how caused people to become irate, irrational and just plain rude. People were pushing and shoving trying to get at those grapes and oranges from South Africa. It was terrible. Dave accidentally backed into a woman’s cart and she about bit his head off, come on lady it was an accident and he couldn’t really help it because we were all crowded in there like cattle on the way to slaughter.

- When we were checking out it was difficult to tell which buttons to push on the debit card reader because the NO button was almost completely worn off, I guess people don’t usually get cash back after they spend $10 for a few pounds of grapes. Yes that’s right Dave bought some beautiful grapes but they cost $9.92. Hell, I bought a few oranges, some ginger, a zester tool and my bill was almost $20. I just stuffed the receipt in the pocket and threw it out as soon as I got home I really didn’t care to know exactly how that bill broke down.

- The people that shop there really need some hair conditioner. I think eating organic food has caused something to happen to people’s hair. I have never seen sooooooo many people with bad hair as I did yesterday when we were shopping. It was quite interesting because I can’t believe that people would actually go out of the house looking like that….or if the did leave the house looking like that, what in the hell were they thinking?

Hope that you and yours (family, friends, whatever you want to call them) have a great Thanksgiving.

See What Flo Is Up To

Flo Bowling
Originally uploaded by mlehet.

That crazy Flo...you know Flo Mingo has been up to some wild stuff lately.

You should stop by and check out her adventures.

Click on the photo to be magically transported to Flo's World.

I think I just came up with the name for her serie's "Flo's World"

Friday Funny

I got this in an email so I can't give credit where it's due.

Why do we press harder on a remote control when we know the batteries are getting weak?

Why do banks charge a fee on "insufficient funds" when they know there is not enough?

Why does someone believe you when you say there are four billion stars, but check when you say the paint is wet?

Why doesn't glue stick to the bottle?

Why do they use sterilized needles for death by lethal injection?

Why doesn't Tarzan have a beard?

Why does Superman stop bullets with his chest, but ducks when you throw a revolver at him?

Why do Kamikaze pilots wear helmets?

Whose idea was it to put an "S" in the word "lisp"?

If people evolved from apes, why are there still apes?

Why is it that no matter what color bubble bath you use the bubbles are always white?

Is there ever a day that mattresses are not on sale?

Why do people constantly return to the refrigerator with hopes that something new to eat will have materialized?

Why do people keep running over a string a dozen times with their vacuum cleaner, then reach down, pick it up, examine it, then put it down to give the vacuum one more chance?

Why is it that no plastic bag will open from the end on your first try?

How do those dead bugs get into those enclosed light fixtures?

When we are in the supermarket and someone rams our ankle with a shopping cart then apologizes for doing so, why do we say, "It's all right?" Well, it isn't all right, so why don't we say, "That hurt, you stupid idiot?"

Why is it that whenever you attempt to catch something that's falling off the table you always manage to knock something else over?

In winter why do we try to keep the house as warm as it was in summer when we complained about the heat?

How come you never hear father-in-law jokes?

The statistics on sanity are that one out of every four persons is suffering from some sort of mental illness. Think of your three best friends -- if they're okay, then it's you.

Just Because

You're in your car with your windows rolled up doesn't mean I can't see you picking your nose......and eating it! YUCK!

I've been found out

So last week or so I was going through my site meter log and I see "someone" going through the archives, which triggers an express interest in wondering who would want to read that.

Well come to find out, it was The Boyfriend. I had told him that I had a blog, but I didn't give him the address.....directly.

I have enough other places that link to this blog that I figured if he wanted to, he would be able to find it....well he found it.

He was a little surprised when I asked him about it, at first he said no but quickly changed his answer. Then he looked at me with a surprised look in his eyes and said "how did you know" I have my secrets.

The one thing he did mention was "So, I'm 'THE Boyfriend'" I told him I was protecting his identity, but then what the hell.

From this point forward, the character formerly known as The Boyfriend will be known as Dave (The Boyfriend).

I may post some stories about him.....in hopes that he doesn't come back here and read them (and correct my timeline and grammar).

The Boyfriend - Up Close

The Boyfriend
Originally uploaded by mlehet.

This is how close we were to the stage, it was amazing!

The Boyfriend - A Review

No not MY Boyfriend, The Boyfriend - the musical.

We went to see this show last night at the beautiful Chicago Theater on State Street, this theater is so beautiful inside I always enjoy going there. I’ve actually seen several shows there – Alicia Keys, The Shaolin Monks, Slava’s Snowshow and now The Boyfriend.

I should start by saying that I’m on the Chicago Theater’s email list and I constantly get emails about new programs coming…well back in June, yes June, I got one about this show and that it was directed by Julie Andrews, it was also the show that was her Broadway Debut way back when…so I went out quickly and got tickets. When I got the tickets the seats were AA but they have a funky way of doing their seats theres AAA-EEE and then AA-PP and then C-R, all on the floor?!? So if you think you’re in the front your probably not.

Well, let’s just say this, we had a great view of the orchestra pit we saw the sweat flying off the boys as they were dancing and it was very apparent to us that it was several degrees colder on stage than it was in the Theater (i.e. nippliage).

The show was written in 1953 but is actually set in Nice France, 1926 at a Finishing School for girls. Polly Brown is the most popular girl and the daughter of a millionaire, she’s so popular that she thinks the only reason boys want to be with her is because of her money, so she makes up boyfriends (The Boyfriend).

There’s a big Carnival coming up and all the girls have their costumes and their boyfriends have their matching outfits as well, except for Polly who’s waiting for her Boyfriend to motor in from Paris.

Sub-Plot – Polly’s father comes to town to visit, finds out that the Head Mistress (Ms. Dubonnet) is actually an old love interest, apparently they hung out in Paris at some time, but I couldn’t figure out when (they were both in their 60’s) so it had to have been in the 1890’s or so.

So Polly ends up meeting a boy, he’s a Messenger (he delivered her costume) they instantly fall in love musical style and start singing about how they could be happy together (what if he’s a junkie and she’s addicted to TV? I thought it was a little quick for me, but the show must go on). She tells the messenger boy that she’s a secretary so that he won’t be after her money.

Sub-Sub Plot – These two people are looking for their son who ran away from Oxford – well come to find out, it’s The Messenger Boy, but Polly thinks he’s a thief and loses her heart of him and is sad for the rest of the show.

Like all good musicals there was a happy ending, all the girls married their beau’s, Polly’s Father got it on with the Head Mistress in the Beach Cabana, The parents found their son, and Polly is sure to get some now from The Messenger Boy.

This was a great show, sitting in the front row it really felt as though they were putting on the show just for me, I would highly recommend front row seating for all future productions if you can afford it. The songs were really cheesy (think 1950’s) the dancing was really great, very energetic and upbeat and the set was very interesting (think cartoonish but stylish).

We never did see Julie Andrews the bitch must have been hiding backstage the whole time!

Reviews Reviews Reviews

We’ve been to a lot of movies over the last 2 weeks so I thought I’d tell you about them.

The first we saw was Capote starring that lovely chameleon Philip Seymour Hoffman. He truly became Truman Capote during this film with his affected voice and his personal “stylings”

PSH I think is really one of those actors who takes on the character he is playing and you have no idea who he really is as an individual, sort of like Johnny Depp. When you see a PSH or Depp movie you don’t say “Oh that PSH looks just like Capote” you say “Was that an actor playing Capote or was it really him.”

I’ve seen several of PSH movies, and he always comes across as the character instead of an actor playing a character.

Back to the Movie. The storyline of Capote is based around Truman’s last book – In Cold Blood (which if you haven’t read you should put on your list). Truman is sort of at an impasse and doesn’t know what to do when he runs across a clipping of the murders in Kansas.

So he gets the New Yorker magazine to pay for an article and he goes out there to investigate. The movie centers around his relationships with the murderers and how he was able to get into their minds and fish out the whole story.

Overall, PSH was GREAT, but I was able to take two little naps during the duration and was happy to find out that when I woke up I really didn’t miss much. Overall the movie was a little slow, but it was perfect for a Sunday afternoon. If you don’t catch it at the theaters you should catch it when it comes out on Video.

The next two movies we saw last week during the Chicago Reeling Gay & Lesbian Film Festival. The festival was going on for more than 10 days and they had multiple movies playing every day, but we only got to see two of them.

The first was TransAmerica starring Felicity Huffman from Desperate Housewives. The only way that I can sum up this movie is to say that I really want to sit down and write a letter to Ms. Huffman and tell her what a remarkable job she did in this movie, she was absolutely amazing!

First, to give you an idea of the clientele who was watching this movie. A) it’s a Gay/Lesbian Film Festival b) It’s about Transexuals So not only were there boys and girls there, but sitting in front of us were 5 boys who were girls and 1 girl who was a boy. Good for them!

Bree (who used to be Stanley) lives in LA and is one week away from having her final surgery to become a woman. One evening she receives a phone call looking for Stanley who no longer lives there, saying that his son is in jail in NYC. But the thing is, Stanley never had sex so how could he have a child…well there was this one time in college.

Bree’s Therapist won’t sign the document letting her get the surgery because she doesn’t want her to have anything left over from that life, but there’s a 1 year waiting list for surgery and if Bree misses it, she’s got to wait another year.

Bree goes off to NYC and picks up her “son” who asks who this “lady” is and she tells him she’s from The Church of Potential Father. She ends up getting a station wagon and the two of them drive across the country. They camp out a few nights, the stop in Arkansas at a Transexual’s house where several of them are planning a trip, they have their car stolen and meet a Native American gentleman who ends up giving his number to Bree so she can call him if she ever makes it back to town.

During this time, the son figures out that Bree is actually a man (I’m not gonna tell you how). They finally make it to Phoenix where Stanley/Bree’s parents live, an old Jewish couple who accept/don’t accept Stanley for what he has done.

More stuff happens but I’m not gonna tell you about that because it will ruin it for you, but this was a FIVE STAR movie, it was totally amazing. I’m so glad that we had the opportunity to see it before it is released later this year (In December, you really do need to go see this movie).

Did you know that Felicity Huffman is married to William H. Macy? I didn’t know that either.

The last movie we saw was “Exposed: The Making of Legend” a documentary based on the making of the gay porn flick “Buckelroos” which was supposed to be an old time cowboy/country/western boy on boy love story.

To give you an idea of the surroundings a) It was at a Gay/Lesbian Film Festival b) the topic was porn. The theater was filled with a smattering of younger guys, but primarily it was older guys (not a lot of women – we saw 3). It was a sell out show, so there was no personal space left in this theater, so it was no surprise when The Boyfriend turned to me and said “If this guy next to me touches me I’m gonna scream like a girl”

All I can say is UGH! I took about 15 naps during this 90 minute movie, it was seriously about 89 minutes too long. This movie was terrible for a documentary, everyone figured since it was about the making of a porn movie that there would be porn involved in the docu ----- wrong. Now don’t get me wrong we saw our share of willy’s and wankers but whenever anything “happened” they went to black or to a different scene, hey they want you to buy the movie they’re not gonna give it away for free.

Well I had no interest in the “characters” I use that term loosely because there wasn’t much acting being done, and the guys in the movie are not guys I’m typically attracted to….so…this movie sucked!

Quick Recap:

Capote – if you don’t get a chance to see it in the Theaters it is a good rental

TransAmerica – you really should go see this when it comes out in December you won’t be disappointed.

Exposed – I’m not even gonna go there

400

Wow, I didn't realize until I went up to my blogger admin page today that this is my 401st post.

How could I have missed the great opportunity to throw a party to celebrate 400!

Well I did, so I'll just have to party when 500 runs around.

I'm sorry I haven't posted much, work has been busy and the time change is really screwing with me this year. We left work today and it was already dark...ugh!

But I do have a few things that I promise I'll do in the next few days.

A review of the movie TransAmerica with Felicity Huffman (3 thumbs up) We saw this last week during the Chicago Gay & Lesbian Film Festival.

A review of the movie Capote with Philip Seymour Hoffman (1.5 thumbs up) We saw this last weekend after it opened.

A review of the movie Exposed: The Making of a Legend (there is no Haffman in this if that's what you were thinking). This was also part of the G&LFF, but there's a bigger story here.

A review of the Musical/Play The Boyfriend which we're going to see tomorrow evening. I bought the tickets back in June if you can believe that.....but we are sitting in row AA seats 411 & 413 which are majorly in the "front of the house" I've never sat that close for a production before, so I guess it will be a totally new experience.

I hope that you are well.

New Movie

Check out my latest movie from Halloween. My friends Greg & Scott have an annual Pumpkin Carving Party, but lately it's been less carving and more drinking. Check out the madness. Oh, Audrey and Miss Swan do not make appearances in this film.

Here's more of those urinal things

WJT 2005 - 16
Originally uploaded by psychOsaka.

I'd have Uromisotisis if this is where I had to pee all the time.

**Bonus Points-for those "in the know"

The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald

I bet you thought that it was only a song didn’t you?  Well it is a song, but it’s a song with a purpose, sort of like that Boney M song Rasputin that Ms. Mac told us all about a while ago.

Today is the 30th anniversary of the sinking of The Edmund Fitzgerald.  Wow, I always thought it was much longer than that, because I always knew the song by Gordon Lightfoot

I can tell you all about it, but Gordon does a great job of explaining it in his song, so here are the lyrics:

The legend lives on from the Chippewa on downOf the big lake they call Gitche GumeeThe lake, it is said, never gives up her deadWhen the skies of November turn gloomy.With a load of iron ore - 26,000 tons moreThan the Edmund Fitzgerald weighed emptyThat good ship and true was a bone to be chewedWhen the gales of November came earlyThe ship was the pride of the American sideComing back from some mill in WisconsonAs the big freighters go it was bigger than mostWith a crew and the Captain well seasoned.Concluding some terms with a couple of steel firmsWhen they left fully loaded for ClevelandAnd later that night when the ships bell rangCould it be the North Wind they'd been feeling.The wind in the wires made a tattletale soundAnd a wave broke over the railingAnd every man knew, as the Captain did, too,T'was the witch of November come stealing.The dawn came late and the breakfast had to waitWhen the gales of November came slashingWhen afternoon came it was freezing rainIn the face of a hurricane West WindWhen supper time came the old cook came on deckSaying fellows it's too rough to feed yaAt 7PM a main hatchway caved inHe said fellas it's been good to know ya.The Captain wired in he had water coming inAnd the good ship and crew was in perilAnd later that night when his lights went out of sightCame the wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald.Does anyone know where the love of God goesWhen the words turn the minutes to hoursThe searchers all say they'd have made Whitefish BayIf they'd fifteen more miles behind her.They might have split up or they might have capsizedThey may have broke deep and took waterAnd all that remains is the faces and the namesOf the wives and the sons and the daughters.Lake Huron rolls, Superior singsIn the ruins of her ice water mansionOld Michigan steams like a young man's dreams,The islands and bays are for sportsmen.And farther below Lake OntarioTakes in what Lake Erie can send herAnd the iron boats go as the mariners all knowWith the gales of November remembered.In a musty old hall in Detroit they prayedIn the Maritime Sailors' CathedralThe church bell chimed, 'til it rang 29 timesFor each man on the Edmund Fitzgerald.The legend lives on from the Chippewa on downOf the big lake they call Gitche GumeeSuperior, they say, never gives up her deadWhen the gales of November come early.

Poor Flo

Poor Flo
Originally uploaded by mlehet.

She hasn't been feeling well, she's on her way to the doctor.

Audio Blogger is working again!

Fetish

Card Shopping
Originally uploaded by mlehet.

If I were to admit to having a fetish, I would have to admit that it is office and stationary supplies.

I don't know what it is about a mechanical pencil or colored markers, but I can sit and look through a Staples Catalog with the same vigor that a 5 year old looks through the Sears Christmas Wishbook.

In fact, I used to work with this girl and every Sunday morning (we were waiters) we would drool over the Office Depot circular that was in the weekly paper.

My other big like is stationary and cards. I love finding unique and interesting cards, there are millions of them out there. There's nothing like finding the perfect card for the perfect situation, even if you haven't come up to that situation yet.

I also enjoy stationary, there are so many colors, designs, textures that it's overwhelming. In this day of email the interweb cell phones and blackberry's I think there's nothing nicer than opening up your mailbox and finding a card or a handwritten letter. Granted my handwriting sucks, but I do like to sit down and just "drop a line" to someone.

I used to do this with my Grandmother, several times throughout the year I would send a card, a package, a letter and she would send a letter in return.

I found a few of those letters the other day. At the time they seemed so usual, so normal, but now looking back over them, I see how precious they are.

She would have been 88 years old this past week.

I'll miss you Grammy.

Introducing...

Introducing...
Originally uploaded by mlehet.

Our newest Blog Correspondant:

Miss Flo. Mingo

Please take a moment to welcome Flo to our family I know that she'll soon become a vital part of the organization.

Flo will be our "on the street" reporter, she'll give us her reviews on restaurants, movies and just things in general.

The girl in the picture is the shop girl that was keeping Flo company until we came along. She was sad to see Flo go as she said she was always making a lot of noise and getting the rest of the animals into trouble.

Keep an eye out for Flo's first report, her review on the movie Capote starring that lovely young man Philip Seymour Hoffman.

Another Reason Why AOL Sucks

I used to have AOL, to give you an idea of how long ago that was, it was way back when you had to pay for usage by the hour. I think it was like $6.00 which was like $0.10 a minute which doesn't sound like much...but like Andi I got that one bill that totally freaked me out and made me realize how much time I was spending on there.

My first bill for AOL service was like $150 (and this was more than 10 years ago) when I was poor and didn't have an extra $150 sitting around to give to AOL.

But I digress......I actually got rid of AOL about 2 years ago. I got DSL and didn't need to use AOL for dialup any longer, but I lowered my service plan and kept it on, and then eventually decided to cancel.

They really make you go through hoops to cancel their service, I guess they figure if you get frustrated enough you'll just keep paying the $14.95 a month and say WTF. I think when I canceled I talked to at least 4 people, the first person tried to offer me something, she said let me let you talk to this guy to cancel, etc. etc.

Finally after they were offering me the world, and I was totally pissed off, I said, "do you really want to know why I'm canceling AOL?" The guy said, "Why yes, we always want to know why customers choose to leave."

"Well," I started, "I met this girl (lie #1) in one of your chat rooms, we chatted for a while and eventually met up, she was really hot, we had coffee and got it on, it was REALLY HOT, if you know what I mean. Well after about a week of seeing her almost everyday it started to burn when I peed, so I went to my doctor and I found out I had gonorrhea." I could hear the guy audibly gasp, "So I got that taken care of and then I found out the bitch gave me herpes. But the real reason I'm canceling my AOL service, she was only 15 and I'm going to jail so I'm really not gonna need AOL there because I'm gonna be making a whole lot of other friends. So can you just cancel my account?"

Wouldn't you know it, the guy canceled my account and actually gave me a 3 month credit because he felt so bad.

But the real reason AOL sucks, they keep sending me those CD's to re-join (can't blame them) but on the last CD they sent me there was a little piece of paper that said "10 Free Games on this CD" so I decided to see what games were on there.

The bastards didn't put any games on the CD, they just gave me the paper to make me think that there were games on the disc. The directory location they provided on their paper didn't even exist.

So I think I'm gonna sue, anyone want to join me? They offered me something but didn't follow through on their side of it, that sucks!

How stuff works

For as long as I can remember I've always been interested in how things work.

Whether it's a toy, a VCR or a magic trick, I've always been fascinated to figure out "how'd they do that."

Growing up the first thing I did when I got a new toy was tear it apart, see how it worked and then put it back together. Most of the time I was able to get it back together and it could still actually work, but there were cases where I figured out how it worked but then it never worked after that, oh well there have to be sacrafices don't there?

I've always been intrigued by magic, because it's obvious that there is some kind of gimmick, something that makes it work because let's face it, no one (even David Copperfield) has magical powers, if one person has them then everyone should have them right?

Unfortunately once I discover "the magic" behind something, I'm not as intrigued as I was before I found out, but then isn't that how it normally goes?

Most "tricks" I can sort of figure out, others I have to do some research on the web, books, etc. But there is one trick that I can't figure out how it's done.

Several years ago (at least 8 years now) I saw David Copperfield perform, his "trick" that year was his ability to fly across the stage. It really was the most amazing "trick" that I've ever seen (and I've seen David Copperfield more times than I can count on two hands), to this day I've not been able to figure it out.

But that's not what this post is about.

I found this really cool website today called Cool Stuff Being Made that showcases how they make things.

The one thing I found very interesting was a 12 minute movie on how they make Aluminum Cans it was very educational and really made me think about all of the effort that goes into making a single can. Check it out see what you think?

There's also this other site called How Stuff Works

Ask The Fruitcake Lady

I apologize that my recent posts have been crap! But I'll be back to posting regular crap very soon, it's just been a busy week. Halloween really took it out of me.

It's hard being a girl, so kudo's to all of you out there.

A friend shared this video with me and it's hilarious, check it out.

I don't typically watch Jay Leno, I'm more of a David Letterman fan (I guess Jay's chin sorta scares me a little bit, plus he's in California and Dave is in NYC), apparently this is a bit from the Tonight Show with Jay, not sure how often she is on but I think you'll love her.

Just in time for Turkey Day

Just in time for Thanksgiving.

Check out this e-card that a friend sent me this morning

Michael work picture

Michael work picture
Originally uploaded by mlehet.

Our Team had photos taken for a brochure we're going to distribute to our customers.

This was the best out of my glamour shots campaign.

Both Videos at 6

Both Videos at 6
Originally uploaded by mlehet.

How Creepy.....

I went to my You Tube account today to see how my movies are doing.

I have two up there, one is me dancing like a fool and the other is one I made of NYC.

In the 1930's a photographer took all these photographs of NYC. Then in the 90's another guy went through and re-created all of the photographs to compare the Change of NYC over time.

So, my NY Movie was at 66 views, and my dancing movie was at 666.

How creepy is that, on Halloween it was all 6's.......oooohhhhhh

Halloween 2005

Halloween 2005
Originally uploaded by mlehet.

Ok, this is what you've all been waiting for.

Last night was The Big Night in every gay boys life, The First Halloween Party.

The Boyfriend came over early, we got all of our costumes together, had our makeup laid out and jumped right into it.

We had a bit of a problem with the fake eyelashes and the tights were really tight, but we finally pulled it all together.

We ended up not going to the Work Party but instead going to a "Bear Party."

What's a Bear Party? Well imagine a whole bunch of big hairy guys running around in little to nothing and the whole party being one shirt away from an orgy, that's a Bear Party.

When we walked in, they ACTUALLY knew who I was supposed to be, which was hilarious. I thought people would have no idea.....they didn't get The Boyfriend, they thought that he was Carrie Donovan (that lady from the Old Navy commercials).

I think we looked tragic, but that was half of the fun.

We were the only boys in dresses, which made us pretty popular in fact!

So after weeks of preparation and shopping it is now all over, why do good things need to come to an end?

Oh wait, this doesn't really need to end, that's the great thing about being a Gay Boy, it can be Halloween EVERY WEEKEND!

Check out all of the pictures on Flickr

Is he making a grilled cheese?

Is he making a grilled cheese?
Originally uploaded by mlehet.

I don't typically look at the spam email I get every day, but for some reason I clicked on the link to one.

This was one of the pictures in his "collection" Which got me to thinking, he's really not that smart.

He's naked and making a grilled cheese?!?

HELLO, that is almost the stupidest thing to do when your naked, bacon is the totally wrong thing to cook when you're naked.

But seriously, oh wait, he's enticing people with pictures of himself naked making a grilled cheese, he's not serious.

I thought I would share, and I hope to god that poor thing ate that sammich, that or else he just pushed it around the plate and made fun of it. Poor sammich.

Peeing in the Street

Going on the Street
Originally uploaded by mlehet.

Someone sent me this picture in an email today of "strange toilets from around the world."

Does anyone know where this could be?

I want to know so that I don't mistakenly go there.

I have a hard enough time peeing in the urinal at Wrigley Field, there would be NO WAY in the world that I would be able to stand in the middle of the street and pee.

I'm shrinking just thinking about it!

I wonder what the girls get?

Happy Anniversary

Happy Anniversary
Originally uploaded by mlehet.

Today is the Anniversary of the Dedication of the Statue of Liberty.

She is located on Liberty Island in the Harbor. The Statue of Liberty was a gift from the people of France to the people of the United States. The Statue of Liberty was dedicated on this date in 1886 and was designated a National Monument on October 15, 1924. The Statue was extensively restored in time for her centennial on July 4, 1986.