I seriously considered writing a post about the recent re-designation of the 7 Wonders of the World. But as intregued as I am by that, I really can't add anything noteworthy, equalling to more than just a big, enthusiastic "COOL". Although, I happen to think Angel Falls is more "wonderous" than the Eiffel Tower, but there are many different categories. Mind you, in the "man-made" category, I happen to think the CN Tower is more wonderous than it's French cousin as well. But let's not get too fixated on the wonderous-ness-isms of the world's bigger phallic symbols, shall we?
Today is a hot day. Like a noteworthy, 40-m'er-f'ing degrees with the humidity, hot. Much like yesterday. A day when road crews were dispatched to remedy the 401, that was buckling in places from the heat. I do not like this type of heat. I do not like this type of heat one bit. Y'know when you go on vacation to a hot destination and you're lazing about in as little clothing is possible, watching the residents of said hot destination go about their normal lives 'cause they actually live there... ...and you think to yourself "this is a beautiful place, but God, I'd hate to have to work here under these conditions, unless I was like a dolphin trainer or a stripper... or both. Well, yeah... I'm neither. I'm fully clothed. My commute is burdened by the stench of hygenically-challenged people, and up until this morning (garbage day - thank God) every walk through our building's parking lot was met with the salutation of super-heated garbage on the verge of an evolutionary step towards sentience. It's just another reason for me to fight global warming in any way I can. 'Cause if Canada becomes a tropical paradise... I might just have to become a cave dweller.
Speaking of fighting global warming though. I've become a special kind of nuisance at work. hee hee... I'm constantly wandering about, turning off light switches in rooms that people aren't using. I don't really know "why" this agitates people so, but it does. In my own defense, I don't turn off lights when someone steps out for a second or anything, but nonetheless, people bitch at the fact that I've turned off the lights in the kitchen, and news room. (the latter room is only in use 4 hours a day!!) I also strike the voicing booths, the announcer lounge, the board rooms and engineering. There are no environmentally friendly bulbs in this joint and evidently it's too expensive for us to convert right now. I asked. But in the meantime, you do what you can. Let me also clerify that this isn't a bandwagon I've suddenly jumped on per say. I've always been a "light switch flicker-offer". You could say, the time to "step it up" has come. One of the producers and I have almost gone paperless too, in the way that we interact. It's cut back on a lot of paper I'm sure. E-mail and file-sharing folders are king. The moral of the story: turn the lights off be-otch... and wear deodorant. (I know, it's unrelated but anytime I can fit that in, I most certainly will.)
Summer song of the day: "Summertime" (the UFO mix) by Sarah Vaughan as found on Verve Remixed Volume One. (The original recording is some sweet classic jazz too.)
It's summertime
And livin' is easy
fish are jumpin'
And the cotton is high,
oh Your daddy's rich
And your mama's good lookin'
So hush, hush little baby
Don't, don't you cry
One of these mornings
Oh, you're gonna rise up singin'
You gonna spread your wings
And you'll take to the sky
But til that morning, yeah
Ain't nothing gonna harm you
So hush, so hush little baby
Now don't, don't you cry,
One of these mornings
One of these mornings
You're gonna rise up singin'
You're gonna spread your wings
And you'll take to the sky
Oh, but til that morning,
Ain't nothing can gon' harm you
With your daddy and mammy
Daddy and mammy, daddy and mammy standing by
Tuesday, July 10, 2007
Monday, July 09, 2007
Sleep Whore, Movie Whore, Attention Whore, James Franco's Whore
Talk about a good weekend. Not a productive one mind you, but still. The word for the weekend was "SLEEEEEEEEP" my friends. I got about 30 hours of it this weekend, and I feel recharged after weeks of going to bed way too late and then getting up early (normal). We've been so busy for so many weekends in a row, that I wasn't making up for my deprivation of slumber at all. I've always been a sleep whore. It makes me envied by many and a bit of a mystic anomaly to just about everybody else.
***note worthy tales of rest (and then some): I remember one summer in my teens going to this week-long photography course in Kitchener/Waterloo and losing a lot of sleep because of making friends and having fun... then getting home and sleeping for 3 days straight with apparent bathroom breaks that I don't remember. My dad finally woke me up on the 3rd day, telling me he thought I was dead and I'd better get up and move. hee It used to bug the crap out of him that I'd sleep for 13 hours on a regular basis. He felt I wasted the days away. But at the time I was working evenings and I'd stay up til 2am after my shift, go to bed and sleep til 3pm, get up and go to work for 4pm.
One more note-worthy tale of slumber: when I first moved to Timmins in November of 2004, the second place I found to live was renting a room in this ladie's finished basement. The room had no windows. It was winter in Timmins. Being new there, I had no friends yet. I would routinely go to bed on Friday night and wake up sometime Sunday morning/afternoon. Hungry as a mo-fo of course... but yeah... Johnny like to sleep. Still do.
Anyhoo... I didn't sleep the WHOLE weekend away. We went over to Mel (Ted's sister) and Mark's place on Saturday to spend the afternoon in their backyard. They've got a pretty nice set-up with an above ground pool and nice patio furniture with a canopy and bug netting. (Loves me some bug-netting) Ted bought himself a new little stereo system with his birthday money and work bonus. It's a Harmon Kardon
i-Pod boombox. Beautiful. We call it the "Karmon Hard-on Rude-Box" or Rudy for short. ;) Robbie Williams fans unite! Anyhow, we brought Rudy with us and enjoyed an afternoon of music in the sun with the dogs, some heavy-duty dubes, and bbq.
Then, Saturday night, Ted, Tammy and I went to the 5 Drive-in, to see "Shrek 3" and "Transformers". (I know, I know Kitty. Skip a paragraph darling. xo) What fun! Seriously. Shrek the Third was way better than what I was expecting, although it totally jumped-the-shark with the little baby ogres n'all. It was cute. Not incredibly memorable, but enjoyable. As always, Puss in Boots and Donkey stole the show. And Transformers... OMG... it was a total cgi-orgy of wicked effects. I think I had a thousand tiny orgasms throughout. As a childhood fan of the cartoon and the toys (which were always too expensive sadly) I was completely and totally geekin' out on this movie. I swear, my mouth was gaping wide for most of what I was watching. No... not an Oscar contender, but a complete homage to what the Transformers were all about. The story was fast but coherent and it was everything it was supposed to be. I haven't had that much fun at a movie in a long time. I totally want to see it again. Tammy missed the entire thing. We had agreed that she'd sit in the front for Shrek and I'd sit in the front for Transformers but the moment she got in the back she fell asleep. Ahh well... she had little to no interest in it. Said "it's a boy movie".
We were a little apprehensive about how the car was going to fare at a drive-in, running off the battery for so long (being a hybrid for anyone who hasn't read previous entries). But it was fine. It would have been better had we not needed to close the windows because of the mosquitoes eating me alive. Once you close the windows, you've got to run the A/C for a while, and the car won't just sit and idle, so it runs off the battery. By the end of the movie the battery had depleted quite a bit, but it had fully charged itself again by the time we made it home. All good.
Oh, I also wanted to add, (since I forgot to mention it at all last week) that we finally saw Spiderman 3 (in IMAX)
and I was disappointed overall, but it was OK I guess. The whole concept was just to cram as much marketable Spiderman lore into one movie, shake... and sell action figures. Definitely not as good as the first or even the second. BUT... James Franco... hubba hubba. You beautiful, beautiful man. You were the only saving grace of an otherwise mediocre movie. Thank you to yo mama. Thank you to yo daddy. You gots good genes!
Last night, we (Ted, Tammy and I again) went to this fancy, shcmancy restaurant called "Ruth's Chris Steakhouse", because Tammy got a 300-dollar gift certificate from work. So the 3 of us got dressed-up and went for 80-dollar steak n' lobster and 14-dollar martinis. Dee-lish... but not worth the money in my opinion. But then, I'm cheap like that. I did appreciate how steaming/piping hot the food was served; that's rare at a restaurant. Whether or not we loved it, we'd never be able to afford to eat there anyhow so it was a nice time, and our server "Lisa" was just adorable. Loved her.
Before I call it a day blog-wise... I have to toot my own horn a bit.
Remember this guy??
Well, I got an e-mail last week, asking me to reprise my voice role, so Kit will ride again. I don't have a voice session date yet, but I should know soon. Cool huh?
Anyhow... for a while I'm going to shift my songs towards stuff you can really appreciate in the hot, n' sticky summer time. :D It makes me melty-bitchy-sweaty, but you have to appreciate every season while it lasts, for what it is.
India.Arie "There's Hope"
Back when I had a little
I thought that I needed a lot
A little was over rated,
but a lot was a little too complicated
You see-Zero didn't satisfy me
A million didn't make me happy
That's when I learned a lesson
That it's all about your perception
Hey-are you a papa or a superstar
So you act, so you feel, so you are
It ain't about the size of your car
It's about the size of the faith in your heart
[Chorus:]
There's hope
It doesn't cost a thing to smile
You don't have to pay to laugh
You better thank God for that
[repeat]
There's hope
Off in the back country of Brazil
A met a young brotha that made me feel
That I could accomplish anything.
You see just like me he wanted to sing
He had no windows and no doors
He lived a simple life and was extremely poor
On top of all of that he had no eye sight,
but that didn't keep him from seein' the light
He said, what's it like in the USA,
and all I did was complain
He said-livin' here is paridise
He taught me paridise is in your mind
You know that
[Chorus]
[Bridge:]
Every time I turn on the T.V. (There's Hope)
Somebody's acting crazy (There's Hope)
If you let it, it will drive you crazy (There's Hope)
but I'm takin' back my power today (There's Hope)
Gas prices they just keep on rising (There's Hope)
The government they keep on lying
but we gotta keep on surviving
Keep living our truth and do the best we can do
Stand up for your rights [echo]
Keep shining your light [echo]
And show the world your smile [echo]
***note worthy tales of rest (and then some): I remember one summer in my teens going to this week-long photography course in Kitchener/Waterloo and losing a lot of sleep because of making friends and having fun... then getting home and sleeping for 3 days straight with apparent bathroom breaks that I don't remember. My dad finally woke me up on the 3rd day, telling me he thought I was dead and I'd better get up and move. hee It used to bug the crap out of him that I'd sleep for 13 hours on a regular basis. He felt I wasted the days away. But at the time I was working evenings and I'd stay up til 2am after my shift, go to bed and sleep til 3pm, get up and go to work for 4pm.
One more note-worthy tale of slumber: when I first moved to Timmins in November of 2004, the second place I found to live was renting a room in this ladie's finished basement. The room had no windows. It was winter in Timmins. Being new there, I had no friends yet. I would routinely go to bed on Friday night and wake up sometime Sunday morning/afternoon. Hungry as a mo-fo of course... but yeah... Johnny like to sleep. Still do.
Anyhoo... I didn't sleep the WHOLE weekend away. We went over to Mel (Ted's sister) and Mark's place on Saturday to spend the afternoon in their backyard. They've got a pretty nice set-up with an above ground pool and nice patio furniture with a canopy and bug netting. (Loves me some bug-netting) Ted bought himself a new little stereo system with his birthday money and work bonus. It's a Harmon Kardon
i-Pod boombox. Beautiful. We call it the "Karmon Hard-on Rude-Box" or Rudy for short. ;) Robbie Williams fans unite! Anyhow, we brought Rudy with us and enjoyed an afternoon of music in the sun with the dogs, some heavy-duty dubes, and bbq.
Then, Saturday night, Ted, Tammy and I went to the 5 Drive-in, to see "Shrek 3" and "Transformers". (I know, I know Kitty. Skip a paragraph darling. xo) What fun! Seriously. Shrek the Third was way better than what I was expecting, although it totally jumped-the-shark with the little baby ogres n'all. It was cute. Not incredibly memorable, but enjoyable. As always, Puss in Boots and Donkey stole the show. And Transformers... OMG... it was a total cgi-orgy of wicked effects. I think I had a thousand tiny orgasms throughout. As a childhood fan of the cartoon and the toys (which were always too expensive sadly) I was completely and totally geekin' out on this movie. I swear, my mouth was gaping wide for most of what I was watching. No... not an Oscar contender, but a complete homage to what the Transformers were all about. The story was fast but coherent and it was everything it was supposed to be. I haven't had that much fun at a movie in a long time. I totally want to see it again. Tammy missed the entire thing. We had agreed that she'd sit in the front for Shrek and I'd sit in the front for Transformers but the moment she got in the back she fell asleep. Ahh well... she had little to no interest in it. Said "it's a boy movie".
We were a little apprehensive about how the car was going to fare at a drive-in, running off the battery for so long (being a hybrid for anyone who hasn't read previous entries). But it was fine. It would have been better had we not needed to close the windows because of the mosquitoes eating me alive. Once you close the windows, you've got to run the A/C for a while, and the car won't just sit and idle, so it runs off the battery. By the end of the movie the battery had depleted quite a bit, but it had fully charged itself again by the time we made it home. All good.
Oh, I also wanted to add, (since I forgot to mention it at all last week) that we finally saw Spiderman 3 (in IMAX)
and I was disappointed overall, but it was OK I guess. The whole concept was just to cram as much marketable Spiderman lore into one movie, shake... and sell action figures. Definitely not as good as the first or even the second. BUT... James Franco... hubba hubba. You beautiful, beautiful man. You were the only saving grace of an otherwise mediocre movie. Thank you to yo mama. Thank you to yo daddy. You gots good genes!Last night, we (Ted, Tammy and I again) went to this fancy, shcmancy restaurant called "Ruth's Chris Steakhouse", because Tammy got a 300-dollar gift certificate from work. So the 3 of us got dressed-up and went for 80-dollar steak n' lobster and 14-dollar martinis. Dee-lish... but not worth the money in my opinion. But then, I'm cheap like that. I did appreciate how steaming/piping hot the food was served; that's rare at a restaurant. Whether or not we loved it, we'd never be able to afford to eat there anyhow so it was a nice time, and our server "Lisa" was just adorable. Loved her.
Before I call it a day blog-wise... I have to toot my own horn a bit.
Remember this guy?? Well, I got an e-mail last week, asking me to reprise my voice role, so Kit will ride again. I don't have a voice session date yet, but I should know soon. Cool huh?
Anyhow... for a while I'm going to shift my songs towards stuff you can really appreciate in the hot, n' sticky summer time. :D It makes me melty-bitchy-sweaty, but you have to appreciate every season while it lasts, for what it is.
India.Arie "There's Hope"
Back when I had a little
I thought that I needed a lot
A little was over rated,
but a lot was a little too complicated
You see-Zero didn't satisfy me
A million didn't make me happy
That's when I learned a lesson
That it's all about your perception
Hey-are you a papa or a superstar
So you act, so you feel, so you are
It ain't about the size of your car
It's about the size of the faith in your heart
[Chorus:]
There's hope
It doesn't cost a thing to smile
You don't have to pay to laugh
You better thank God for that
[repeat]
There's hope
Off in the back country of Brazil
A met a young brotha that made me feel
That I could accomplish anything.
You see just like me he wanted to sing
He had no windows and no doors
He lived a simple life and was extremely poor
On top of all of that he had no eye sight,
but that didn't keep him from seein' the light
He said, what's it like in the USA,
and all I did was complain
He said-livin' here is paridise
He taught me paridise is in your mind
You know that
[Chorus]
[Bridge:]
Every time I turn on the T.V. (There's Hope)
Somebody's acting crazy (There's Hope)
If you let it, it will drive you crazy (There's Hope)
but I'm takin' back my power today (There's Hope)
Gas prices they just keep on rising (There's Hope)
The government they keep on lying
but we gotta keep on surviving
Keep living our truth and do the best we can do
Stand up for your rights [echo]
Keep shining your light [echo]
And show the world your smile [echo]
Friday, July 06, 2007
Further on the Path
Lately I'm finding that I'm really troubled by philosophical, and existential trains of thought. And I guess a fair bit of it ties in with the fact that I haven't spoken to my mom (the root of all spirituality in my life you could say) since March. Sometimes when I'm out walking the dogs, I have entire conversations with myself about religion and my spiritual beliefs (or lack thereof) just because I truly can't believe that her bible-based convictions are more important to her than a relationship with her own child (or children, since my sisters are affected also by my mom's one-mindedness in other arenas). I'd like to say I'm at peace with where my family ties lay, but I guess I'm not, since it rears it's head every once in a while.
Trust me, I'm not looking for spiritual advice when I say this, but I feel like I have to talk about it anyhow.... It bothers me that I don't really believe in God anymore. That's not to say I don't entertain the notion that God might exist, but I think that's just an oppressive, fearful upbringing talking. To have faith, one must believe. And I simply cannot. There are too many inconsistencies when it comes to religion... imperfect rules written by imperfect beings. All of it conflicting with other faiths. Much of it leading to oppression, strife, wars, and segregation. To me it seems that religion was engineered to keep human beings from coexisting peacefully, and to keep commerce at the forefront of all societies.. the weak and the powerful based on status... when truly we are all the same. I was saying to Ted last night that we (gay people in general) are living proof that something is wrong with the bible. I'm not saying the entire thing is wrong, but I assure you it isn't a "chosen" lifestyle, as many god-fearing Christians put it. So where does that leave homosexuals in the scheme of all things biblical? It's rubbish. If the bible had declared on multiple occasions that people with red hair and freckles (or something equally genetic) were evil it would be just as wrong. But because varying sexual preferences are in the minority, you get a majority calling the shots when they don't understand (nor do they try, since they have some revered book to back them up) the very existence of that minority. How in the world is that balanced, and how could it ever be? I personally have never had a heterosexual thought. Not even the slightest desire for the opposite sex. I don't know how it feels to be heterosexual, and nor do I feel the slightest curiosity about it. But I obviously acknowledge that heterosexuality is the backbone of human existence and evolution. I can recognize and accept the difference without begrudging anyone their biology even without being straight myself. Why is it so hard to wrap one's head around the notion that human beings would have diverse sexuality to accompany all the other diversities that are so blatant??? I think about these things, when I think of my relationship with my mom. A lady who's lived her life the best way she knows how, according to the word of God. And on and on she's plodded, emotionally-crippled... judgemental... and incapable of independent thought... so much so that her own children's "sin" is more than she can cope with. I just shake my head and sigh. And then I stop and feel gratitude that my parents raised me with strong morals and the desire to "do right" and to be kind, and charitable. I'm also incredibly grateful that I am gay, because in retrospect I'd hate to have been straight and blindly following what I was taught to believe without ever stopping to think for myself. There's a lot of humility to be gained from existing as one of the very things you've been raised to believe was evil and wrong. And I do think I'm a better person for it.
Yeah, I could go on. But I won't. I know my blog has become very "gay" as of late, but "Hey"... you write what you know right?
Here's a great quote instead of a song today... Talk to you soon!
I have learned silence from the talkative, toleration from the intolerant, and kindness from the unkind; yet strange, I am ungrateful to these teachers.
-Kahlil Gibran
Trust me, I'm not looking for spiritual advice when I say this, but I feel like I have to talk about it anyhow.... It bothers me that I don't really believe in God anymore. That's not to say I don't entertain the notion that God might exist, but I think that's just an oppressive, fearful upbringing talking. To have faith, one must believe. And I simply cannot. There are too many inconsistencies when it comes to religion... imperfect rules written by imperfect beings. All of it conflicting with other faiths. Much of it leading to oppression, strife, wars, and segregation. To me it seems that religion was engineered to keep human beings from coexisting peacefully, and to keep commerce at the forefront of all societies.. the weak and the powerful based on status... when truly we are all the same. I was saying to Ted last night that we (gay people in general) are living proof that something is wrong with the bible. I'm not saying the entire thing is wrong, but I assure you it isn't a "chosen" lifestyle, as many god-fearing Christians put it. So where does that leave homosexuals in the scheme of all things biblical? It's rubbish. If the bible had declared on multiple occasions that people with red hair and freckles (or something equally genetic) were evil it would be just as wrong. But because varying sexual preferences are in the minority, you get a majority calling the shots when they don't understand (nor do they try, since they have some revered book to back them up) the very existence of that minority. How in the world is that balanced, and how could it ever be? I personally have never had a heterosexual thought. Not even the slightest desire for the opposite sex. I don't know how it feels to be heterosexual, and nor do I feel the slightest curiosity about it. But I obviously acknowledge that heterosexuality is the backbone of human existence and evolution. I can recognize and accept the difference without begrudging anyone their biology even without being straight myself. Why is it so hard to wrap one's head around the notion that human beings would have diverse sexuality to accompany all the other diversities that are so blatant??? I think about these things, when I think of my relationship with my mom. A lady who's lived her life the best way she knows how, according to the word of God. And on and on she's plodded, emotionally-crippled... judgemental... and incapable of independent thought... so much so that her own children's "sin" is more than she can cope with. I just shake my head and sigh. And then I stop and feel gratitude that my parents raised me with strong morals and the desire to "do right" and to be kind, and charitable. I'm also incredibly grateful that I am gay, because in retrospect I'd hate to have been straight and blindly following what I was taught to believe without ever stopping to think for myself. There's a lot of humility to be gained from existing as one of the very things you've been raised to believe was evil and wrong. And I do think I'm a better person for it.
Yeah, I could go on. But I won't. I know my blog has become very "gay" as of late, but "Hey"... you write what you know right?
Here's a great quote instead of a song today... Talk to you soon!
I have learned silence from the talkative, toleration from the intolerant, and kindness from the unkind; yet strange, I am ungrateful to these teachers.
-Kahlil Gibran
Wednesday, July 04, 2007
Year of the Eak
Happy Birthday to Eak,
Happy Birthday to Eak,
Happy Birthday dear Eak,
Happy Birthday to you!
37 and you still look younger than me. Enjoy your day! Filled with friends, family, gifts and favourite foods... Everything that makes a birthday special, then when all is quiet and you're all partied-out... practice being young with your Johnny! ;)
I love you.
me
Faith Hill "It Will Be Me"
When you start falling
Who's gonna catch ya
I'm willing to bet ya
It will be me
Who's gonna love ya
Like there's no other
Search and discover
It will be me
When all the others
Have gone and hurt you
Who won't desert you
It will be me
Weighing the options
So much to think of
But when you think love
It will be me
You may not see it now
Love is strange that way
Someday somewhere baby somehow
When you've been broken
And dreams don't oblige ya
Who's that beside ya
Oh, it will be me
You may not see it now
Love is strange that way
Someday somewhere baby somehow
Who'll be your only
True romancer
You know the answer
It will be me
What will it take to
Bring you to your senses
And finally convince you
It will be me
Tuesday, July 03, 2007
Canada Day Shtuff
If you ever have the opportunity to accompany a 5 year old and 4 year old, to their first major fireworks display, I highly recommend it.
Sadly, I have no pictures because our camera batteries died. : ( But we made a whirlwind trip to Smith's Falls/Ottawa this weekend, to visit with Ted's dad and family. That was a nice/uneventful time... other than a stop at the local park in Smith's Falls for the red-neck Canada Day Celebration of the century. Yikes... nary a full mouth of teeth in the whole bunch. But that's not what I wanted to tell you about. ;)
Ted's sister Ali, her husband Mark and their 2 boys decided to tag-along to Ottawa with us to catch the fireworks on Parliament Hill. Zach and Nathan (5 & 4) had never seen a full-fledged fireworks display, so they were ecstatic to watch it all go down from atop uncle Ted and uncle John's shoulders. (Surprisingly heavy little farts. Considering how seemingly light they look.) Yeah, I know I shout it from the rooftops that I don't like kids, but there's something to be said for wonderment and enthusiasm that only a child can muster for things that grown-ups are too dignified and reserved to express. Those 2 little guys might very well forget that night, but I don't think I will. From being convinced that the fireworks were going to burn down the surrounding buildings to asking to stay up on our shoulders for the long walk back to the car (even though we were ready to drop). I do love those little guys.
To Jeff and Summer, thanks so much for the short but sweet visit. We promise the next visit will be long enough to include some quality time instead of the "run, run, run tone" this trip took-on. Jeff, I think we talked about how beautiful your house is for a good half-hour in the car. Thanks again for letting us stay. Cole and Porthos appreciate it too. ; )
Sadly, I have no pictures because our camera batteries died. : ( But we made a whirlwind trip to Smith's Falls/Ottawa this weekend, to visit with Ted's dad and family. That was a nice/uneventful time... other than a stop at the local park in Smith's Falls for the red-neck Canada Day Celebration of the century. Yikes... nary a full mouth of teeth in the whole bunch. But that's not what I wanted to tell you about. ;)
Ted's sister Ali, her husband Mark and their 2 boys decided to tag-along to Ottawa with us to catch the fireworks on Parliament Hill. Zach and Nathan (5 & 4) had never seen a full-fledged fireworks display, so they were ecstatic to watch it all go down from atop uncle Ted and uncle John's shoulders. (Surprisingly heavy little farts. Considering how seemingly light they look.) Yeah, I know I shout it from the rooftops that I don't like kids, but there's something to be said for wonderment and enthusiasm that only a child can muster for things that grown-ups are too dignified and reserved to express. Those 2 little guys might very well forget that night, but I don't think I will. From being convinced that the fireworks were going to burn down the surrounding buildings to asking to stay up on our shoulders for the long walk back to the car (even though we were ready to drop). I do love those little guys.
To Jeff and Summer, thanks so much for the short but sweet visit. We promise the next visit will be long enough to include some quality time instead of the "run, run, run tone" this trip took-on. Jeff, I think we talked about how beautiful your house is for a good half-hour in the car. Thanks again for letting us stay. Cole and Porthos appreciate it too. ; )
Friday, June 29, 2007
June 29th: the Day I Blogged About Nothing
It would figure y'know. It's Friday. The day before the long weekend. Our office is closing at 4pm. I have nothing terribly pressing to work on. But can't think of much to blog about either.
I could talk about Eak's birthday coming up on the 4th, and the really cool present I got for him, but I can't say what it is y'know. We are going for some DELICIOUS Thai food to celebrate. It's difficult to get attendees for his birthday gatherings though, being so close to the first significant long-weekend of the summer n'all. So far we've got 6 friends coming, which is less than half of who was invited, but oh well. I'm sure it will be a good time regardless of numbers... everybody loves Eak. Seriously. I know I wouldn't ordinarily know if anyone didn't, but Eak's one of those people that others can't help but like instantly. (and not just because I'm biased) Poor guy's sick right now though. :( Nothing worse than a cold in the summer.
Well, until inspiration hits me... I think I'll just go Facebook for a while to bide my time. Did you know that "Facebook" is a verb now?? Yeah, just as of this moment. God I hate Facebook. I'm thinking of closing my account now that I've reconnected with a bunch of people. It's good for that if nothing else.
Anyhoo... happy Canada Day to you n'yours. Take a moment to appreciate being a Canadian eh?
Chicane "Don't Give Up"
Don't worry if the sun don't shine
You've seen it before, you don't need to worry
Everyday's an uphill climb - nothing has changed
Believe me when i tell ya
Don't give it up - Don't give it up...
Don't give up - ya know it's true
Gotta do what you wanna do
Don't give up - you don't have to
Gotta do what you wanna do
don't give up - ya know it's true
gotta do what you wanna do
I could talk about Eak's birthday coming up on the 4th, and the really cool present I got for him, but I can't say what it is y'know. We are going for some DELICIOUS Thai food to celebrate. It's difficult to get attendees for his birthday gatherings though, being so close to the first significant long-weekend of the summer n'all. So far we've got 6 friends coming, which is less than half of who was invited, but oh well. I'm sure it will be a good time regardless of numbers... everybody loves Eak. Seriously. I know I wouldn't ordinarily know if anyone didn't, but Eak's one of those people that others can't help but like instantly. (and not just because I'm biased) Poor guy's sick right now though. :( Nothing worse than a cold in the summer.
Well, until inspiration hits me... I think I'll just go Facebook for a while to bide my time. Did you know that "Facebook" is a verb now?? Yeah, just as of this moment. God I hate Facebook. I'm thinking of closing my account now that I've reconnected with a bunch of people. It's good for that if nothing else.
Anyhoo... happy Canada Day to you n'yours. Take a moment to appreciate being a Canadian eh?
Chicane "Don't Give Up"
Don't worry if the sun don't shine
You've seen it before, you don't need to worry
Everyday's an uphill climb - nothing has changed
Believe me when i tell ya
Don't give it up - Don't give it up...
Don't give up - ya know it's true
Gotta do what you wanna do
Don't give up - you don't have to
Gotta do what you wanna do
don't give up - ya know it's true
gotta do what you wanna do
Monday, June 25, 2007
Big Gay Weekend
This past weekend was officially my 3rd time experiencing Gay Pride in Toronto. And by far... this year was the best yet.
There once was a time when I would have told you that I didn't understand the point of "Gay Pride". At that time, I also I would have told you that the Pride parade and all of it's trappings was merely a spectacle that reinforced negative stereotypes and justified the opinions of people who wrongly assumed that all gay people were men in drag, and dressed-up like the Village People, and all lesbians were axe-toting lumberjacks who ride motor cycles and bare their breasts.
It kind of shames me to admit that. Because not only have I missed out on years of celebrations, but I also spent way too much time spouting off that rhetoric to people who would casually ask me if I was going to Pride. God knows, I had my own reasons for not wanting to go. The whole experience can be intimidating when you're insecure about the way you look and if you're not comfortable with your own identity. Hell... people can talk themselves out of anything with fear or insecurities. But the older I've gotten, and the more comfortable I am in my own skin, the more I've realized the reasons behind Pride.
Yeah, it is a spectacle, and it's political, and yeah, for many it's an excuse to drink your face off and party til you're physically unable to continue. But beyond that, it's also a demonstration of one of the most basic human needs: to feel loved, and accepted. And when you live your life being made to feel like you're an anomaly, or an evil pariah by birthright... finding an event like Pride, where hundreds of thousands of people are just like you, can be a very uplifting, spiritually edifying occasion. And when I say "just like you"... I'm generalizing of course, but there's something to be said for mingling/fraternizing/being among people who you might not identify with outwardly and celebrating their diversity right along with your own. 'Cause chances are, they've got some similarly painful experiences of being ostracized or discriminated against for just being who they are - just like you. That... is humbling... and endearing. And you'd be surprised just how many freaks, like-minded freak-loving people, and individuals of every colour of the rainbow (obvious tie-in there) can convene peacefully and celebrate, and abide without violence or incident. That in itself makes a great statement of solidarity and enlightenment - to me anyway.
At any rate, we had a really great time. Friday night, Ted, Rob, and Steve had their official "Girls Nite Out". It's a Pride Friday tradition for like 8 years running now. And every year I drop Ted off and pick him up at some ungodly hour like 3 or 4am. This year I almost tagged along, but I had other stuff to do. But needless to say, I waited up and brought the boys with me to pick up Ted at 3am. There was an accident on the Gardiner Expressway sooo... it took us well over an hour to get home. blah!
Saturday was supposed to be a cleaning/laundry day, but since we didn't get up til close to 11:30, we did S.F.A. 'cause we also had plans to go to the Dyke March with our friend Summer and her friends from Ottawa, then drive to Waterloo to meet up with Ted's sister Ali who was in town for a seminar for work. Time just got away from us so we didn't end-up going to the march. We just went to Waterloo, and had a really nice visit. Then booted-it back to Toronto to meet up with Summer and her friends, and our friends Rob & Jay, for the Indigo Girls concert. -'Turns out, Summer's friend Dawn reads my blog. That was a cool surprise! (Hi Dawn!)- Ted and I knew nothing about the Indigo Girls music before the concert and we were just blown away by the whole experience. It was truly beautiful. Their lyrics are soooo poetic and poignant to being gay in today's society. I think it's only the second time I've ever been moved to tears at a live concert. Once again, I was given the opportunity to just be with my Ted, and be myself, in an atmosphere that was so warm and accepting. The energy of that concert was so heartfelt and deep... you could just feel that everyone there was hanging off their every word at times. I also have to mention, that we really enjoyed the sign-language interpreter that performed the entire concert in the corner of the stage... He emoted every lyric with such passionate movement, it was just beautiful. Also... at the risk of sounding trite... there was this inflatable, flailing-armed tube-man attached to the roof of a building beside the stage that moved in the breeze, adding his own joyful little dance to the festivities. It was cute and celebratory without being a distraction. So, two new Indigo Girls fans walked out of that concert on Saturday. I've made two attempts to find some of their CD's to no avail, but I will. Mark my words.
Before I forget; let me also state that this is the most expensive-looking Pride event I've ever been to. They must've had one helluva budget considering all the stages, security, lighting, free concerts, decorations, and graphic projections on buildings etc. Pretty amazing. Not to mention, it could just be my perception, but I've never seen so many people EVERYWHERE. Who knows? I haven't seen an official count yet. (and upon a quick Google search it would seem they don't take a count, so there you go - I'll just say there were a BILLION-TRILLION people there and you have to take my word for it.)
Anyhoo... after the concert we waited in line on Church street to get into this little restaurant. Everybody was a little tired, and the place was LOUD so the conversations were a little difficult. But towards the time we were getting ready to leave, doesn't this 19 year old cutie named Eric show up at our table with a pitcher of beer and a stack of glasses. Yeah, he was just looking for a perch to drink, but he was very intelligent and funny. In a very short span of time, we learned that he lives near the African Lion Safari, and has his very own pet Llama named Chop Chop. He even had a picture of himself with Chop Chop on his cell phone. He entertained us with a couple of stories and then we bailed on him. At which point, he literally took off out the window with his pitcher of beer. (not one of us took him up on his offer to have some.) He was so adorable though, he probably would've had an audience for a great deal longer had it been just the four drooling men at the table. Anyhow. Good times that night. (didn't get to bed til 3am incidentally)
Sunday morning we were up at 9:30am to make it downtown to hook-up with our friend Arran at the home of one of his friends. There was a rather large group of us there for a hung-over, hazed brunch of sorts. We had Mimosa's (or as I like to call them: Homo-sas) and quiche, and pizza, and all sorts of oven-heated treats. We'd stopped at a bakery beforehand so we brought fresh danish, and Cinnamon bagels, and an apple strudel. Mmmm... food. It was a good group of people too. We just kind of hung-out and then wandered down to Yonge Street to watch the parade. The weather was great, but y'see, I'm a pasty ol' Irish boy. Direct sunlight makes us melt. Luckily SPF 30 does the trick for me and even though I spent 2+ hours in the broiling solar flare conditions, I suffered nay any burns. It was enjoyable. I like being able to see the names of the organizations as they pass by. Groups like PFLAG really warm my heart, so I make sure to cheer extra loud when those proud parents walk by. They deserve it.
I know I'm skipping a lot of detail about the parade right now, but as with any event like that, you really do kinda hafta be there to experience it... the wall of people... throngs of beautiful and freaky people, normal people, families, kids, the elderly... the smiles... the polite and respectful nature of the whole thing... it is something to be proud of.
...AFTER the parade, we hit a shitty little pub called the Village Green. Shitty little pub... no further description required, trust me. But then we made our way over to the Wellesley Stage (same place we saw Indigo Girls) to see Lady Ms Keir (formerly of Deee Lite). That was a fonky, fonky, fonky good time. Ted was like a kid in a candy store, because Deee Lite has always been one of his favourite bands.
That inflatable, flailing-armed tube-man was still there, and you should've seen him boogie to Lady Kier man! Psychedelica! Arran and all of his friends accompanied us, but during the concert we kinda got separated, so it was just me, Ted, Arran and Alex (Arran's room mate). Arran was smashed, wrecked, and plastered. "We" were simply high. Yeah... it was a fun time.
Sadly, just as Rob and Jay found us (with much inaudible cell-phone communication - ie: yelling without knowing whether I was being heard) we had to go to pick up the dogs from Ted's sister Mel's place. They stayed there for a doggie sleepover Saturday afternoon til Sunday evening.
Phew... I know I'm leaving a whole lot out... but I've just gotta post this now, before it's too late to be relevant. If you get the chance though... I really do recommend Pride... whether you're gay, bi, straight, or whatever. It's really not about your sexuality... it's about being who you are and accepting others for who they are. And like I said before. That is something to be proud of.
There once was a time when I would have told you that I didn't understand the point of "Gay Pride". At that time, I also I would have told you that the Pride parade and all of it's trappings was merely a spectacle that reinforced negative stereotypes and justified the opinions of people who wrongly assumed that all gay people were men in drag, and dressed-up like the Village People, and all lesbians were axe-toting lumberjacks who ride motor cycles and bare their breasts.
It kind of shames me to admit that. Because not only have I missed out on years of celebrations, but I also spent way too much time spouting off that rhetoric to people who would casually ask me if I was going to Pride. God knows, I had my own reasons for not wanting to go. The whole experience can be intimidating when you're insecure about the way you look and if you're not comfortable with your own identity. Hell... people can talk themselves out of anything with fear or insecurities. But the older I've gotten, and the more comfortable I am in my own skin, the more I've realized the reasons behind Pride.
Yeah, it is a spectacle, and it's political, and yeah, for many it's an excuse to drink your face off and party til you're physically unable to continue. But beyond that, it's also a demonstration of one of the most basic human needs: to feel loved, and accepted. And when you live your life being made to feel like you're an anomaly, or an evil pariah by birthright... finding an event like Pride, where hundreds of thousands of people are just like you, can be a very uplifting, spiritually edifying occasion. And when I say "just like you"... I'm generalizing of course, but there's something to be said for mingling/fraternizing/being among people who you might not identify with outwardly and celebrating their diversity right along with your own. 'Cause chances are, they've got some similarly painful experiences of being ostracized or discriminated against for just being who they are - just like you. That... is humbling... and endearing. And you'd be surprised just how many freaks, like-minded freak-loving people, and individuals of every colour of the rainbow (obvious tie-in there) can convene peacefully and celebrate, and abide without violence or incident. That in itself makes a great statement of solidarity and enlightenment - to me anyway.
At any rate, we had a really great time. Friday night, Ted, Rob, and Steve had their official "Girls Nite Out". It's a Pride Friday tradition for like 8 years running now. And every year I drop Ted off and pick him up at some ungodly hour like 3 or 4am. This year I almost tagged along, but I had other stuff to do. But needless to say, I waited up and brought the boys with me to pick up Ted at 3am. There was an accident on the Gardiner Expressway sooo... it took us well over an hour to get home. blah!
Saturday was supposed to be a cleaning/laundry day, but since we didn't get up til close to 11:30, we did S.F.A. 'cause we also had plans to go to the Dyke March with our friend Summer and her friends from Ottawa, then drive to Waterloo to meet up with Ted's sister Ali who was in town for a seminar for work. Time just got away from us so we didn't end-up going to the march. We just went to Waterloo, and had a really nice visit. Then booted-it back to Toronto to meet up with Summer and her friends, and our friends Rob & Jay, for the Indigo Girls concert. -'Turns out, Summer's friend Dawn reads my blog. That was a cool surprise! (Hi Dawn!)- Ted and I knew nothing about the Indigo Girls music before the concert and we were just blown away by the whole experience. It was truly beautiful. Their lyrics are soooo poetic and poignant to being gay in today's society. I think it's only the second time I've ever been moved to tears at a live concert. Once again, I was given the opportunity to just be with my Ted, and be myself, in an atmosphere that was so warm and accepting. The energy of that concert was so heartfelt and deep... you could just feel that everyone there was hanging off their every word at times. I also have to mention, that we really enjoyed the sign-language interpreter that performed the entire concert in the corner of the stage... He emoted every lyric with such passionate movement, it was just beautiful. Also... at the risk of sounding trite... there was this inflatable, flailing-armed tube-man attached to the roof of a building beside the stage that moved in the breeze, adding his own joyful little dance to the festivities. It was cute and celebratory without being a distraction. So, two new Indigo Girls fans walked out of that concert on Saturday. I've made two attempts to find some of their CD's to no avail, but I will. Mark my words.
Before I forget; let me also state that this is the most expensive-looking Pride event I've ever been to. They must've had one helluva budget considering all the stages, security, lighting, free concerts, decorations, and graphic projections on buildings etc. Pretty amazing. Not to mention, it could just be my perception, but I've never seen so many people EVERYWHERE. Who knows? I haven't seen an official count yet. (and upon a quick Google search it would seem they don't take a count, so there you go - I'll just say there were a BILLION-TRILLION people there and you have to take my word for it.)
Anyhoo... after the concert we waited in line on Church street to get into this little restaurant. Everybody was a little tired, and the place was LOUD so the conversations were a little difficult. But towards the time we were getting ready to leave, doesn't this 19 year old cutie named Eric show up at our table with a pitcher of beer and a stack of glasses. Yeah, he was just looking for a perch to drink, but he was very intelligent and funny. In a very short span of time, we learned that he lives near the African Lion Safari, and has his very own pet Llama named Chop Chop. He even had a picture of himself with Chop Chop on his cell phone. He entertained us with a couple of stories and then we bailed on him. At which point, he literally took off out the window with his pitcher of beer. (not one of us took him up on his offer to have some.) He was so adorable though, he probably would've had an audience for a great deal longer had it been just the four drooling men at the table. Anyhow. Good times that night. (didn't get to bed til 3am incidentally)
Sunday morning we were up at 9:30am to make it downtown to hook-up with our friend Arran at the home of one of his friends. There was a rather large group of us there for a hung-over, hazed brunch of sorts. We had Mimosa's (or as I like to call them: Homo-sas) and quiche, and pizza, and all sorts of oven-heated treats. We'd stopped at a bakery beforehand so we brought fresh danish, and Cinnamon bagels, and an apple strudel. Mmmm... food. It was a good group of people too. We just kind of hung-out and then wandered down to Yonge Street to watch the parade. The weather was great, but y'see, I'm a pasty ol' Irish boy. Direct sunlight makes us melt. Luckily SPF 30 does the trick for me and even though I spent 2+ hours in the broiling solar flare conditions, I suffered nay any burns. It was enjoyable. I like being able to see the names of the organizations as they pass by. Groups like PFLAG really warm my heart, so I make sure to cheer extra loud when those proud parents walk by. They deserve it.
I know I'm skipping a lot of detail about the parade right now, but as with any event like that, you really do kinda hafta be there to experience it... the wall of people... throngs of beautiful and freaky people, normal people, families, kids, the elderly... the smiles... the polite and respectful nature of the whole thing... it is something to be proud of.
...AFTER the parade, we hit a shitty little pub called the Village Green. Shitty little pub... no further description required, trust me. But then we made our way over to the Wellesley Stage (same place we saw Indigo Girls) to see Lady Ms Keir (formerly of Deee Lite). That was a fonky, fonky, fonky good time. Ted was like a kid in a candy store, because Deee Lite has always been one of his favourite bands.
That inflatable, flailing-armed tube-man was still there, and you should've seen him boogie to Lady Kier man! Psychedelica! Arran and all of his friends accompanied us, but during the concert we kinda got separated, so it was just me, Ted, Arran and Alex (Arran's room mate). Arran was smashed, wrecked, and plastered. "We" were simply high. Yeah... it was a fun time.
Sadly, just as Rob and Jay found us (with much inaudible cell-phone communication - ie: yelling without knowing whether I was being heard) we had to go to pick up the dogs from Ted's sister Mel's place. They stayed there for a doggie sleepover Saturday afternoon til Sunday evening.
Phew... I know I'm leaving a whole lot out... but I've just gotta post this now, before it's too late to be relevant. If you get the chance though... I really do recommend Pride... whether you're gay, bi, straight, or whatever. It's really not about your sexuality... it's about being who you are and accepting others for who they are. And like I said before. That is something to be proud of.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)