Happy Thanksgiving

Today is Thanksgiving, and it seemed like the right time to sit down and share my thoughts about today as well as a bit about all that's been going on since I last posted.


Thanksgiving one year ago was much different. My mind was in a different place. Things change, life goes on and you learn from experiences. I learned just how much of a support system I have in my friends and family.


Obviously my core group of friends mean the world to me and I'm thankful that they're always around. Never have I had such a group where I could just let myself go and be myself. They love me and my quirks.


Another friend who has always been there but only in the past year really gained more of a presence is my friend Steve, whom I often refer to as "my dear friend Steve." In the past year, we began getting together more often. Whether it was a planned day of shopping or just running into one another on the street and spending time together, it's been a great pleasure getting to know him better. I'm thankful to have him as a friend.

Last weekend, he and his partner had a bad experience at their home. It left them shaken but thankfully not seriously hurt. I, being the friend who wants to help and protect all of his friends, felt completely helpless and angry over the whole incident, even though there's not a thing I can do except wish them well and hope for justice. I'm thankful that they are both alright.

My mom has been on the road to recovery for about 4 weeks now. She's getting around with the help of a walker. Home health professionals have been visiting her. The one issue that she's had to deal with is a bedsore which developed in the hospital. It was healing when she was discharged but since she sits a lot (it's not like she can be on her feet for a long time), it opened back up. The home health nurse has been treating it. Mom's got a donut cushion which keeps pressure off of her tailbone, and again, it's healing. I'm thankful for that.

I'm also thankful that my mom, my sister and I had a nice day, we finished having dinner together a couple hours ago and everything turned out great. My sister and I cooked and my mom ate just about everything on her plate. It's nice to see her eat such a big meal.

I'm off from work tomorrow, and I've got plans to run to Target for the 5 am madness. I'm hoping to get some deals, including the GPS unit that is on sale for $97 bucks.

So back to Dancing With the Stars, I was pleased with the way the season ended. The semi-finals came down to Joanna, Kelly, Mya and Donny. Surprisingly Joanna was eliminated, I thought for sure it would have been Kelly. Joanna was a better dancer, but Kelly has a big fan base. It was hard to see Joanna go, I found myself really liking her. But I liked all of them. I was not surprised to see Kelly finish 3rd, however, similar to last season, the best dancer did not win the trophy. Mya proved she could dance all of the dances with grace and artistry, but Donny won due to his overwhelming popularity. He has a better on-camera presence and the fans are drawn to it. He wasn't a bad dancer at all, just not the best. But he sure was a gracious winner and that alone makes it OK in my book.

I think I'm back to blogging now, I'm going to try to post a few times a week. This is a busy season, but it's also one of my favorite seasons. The fun and excitement of it all offers much to discuss. And speaking of thankful, I'm so thankful to have this forum to air my thoughts, and I'm thankful for all of you who have read my blog, left comments and been supportive of me.

I hope you and yours had a very Happy Thanksgiving, and here's to a magical holiday season!!

xoxo

Millennium Park and Buckingham Fountain - August 16 2009

On Sunday August 16, I went down to Millennium Park in the evening to walk around and look at two new temporary pavillions that have been installed to celebrate the 100 year anniversary of Daniel Burnham's Plan of Chicago.


This is Cloud Gate, aka "The Bean." It's a 33 foot tall sculpture, weighing in at 110 tons. It's made of stainless steel, pristinely polished, causing it to be completely seamless.


This is the view through the roof of one of the temporary Burnham pavillions. This one is designed by Zaha Hadid, of London. It's constructed of a metal frame and covered in a perfectly sewn fabric cover with clear vinyl panels on top thru which you can see part of the city skyline.



The pavillion, designed by Zaha Hadid. Is it a cocoon, or a maggot, or a shell?



Portion of the Chicago skyline as seen through some of the greenery growing in the garden at the park.

The Frank Gehry designed Pritzker pavillion. The metal webbing holds speakers. Guests on the lawn can enjoy the music just as well as those in the front row.

A dinosaur overlooking the skyline.

Buckingham Fountain. You may recall this as the fountain seen in the opening credits of "Married With Children." The water spout shoots 150 feet in the air.

The second of the temporary Burnham Pavillions, this one was designed by Ben van Berkel of Amsterdam

The Bean, at night, wearing the reflection of the Chicago skyline.

I love my city!

Pride Parade 2009

File Under: Out and Proud

Sunday June 28 was the Pride Parade and it could not have been a more perfect day in Chicago. Some changes to the parade route had been made, and as a result, we decided that we would start out early, seek out a spot and enjoy our day. Luis sent a message to all of us early Sunday morning, it read “if you want breakfast, come early.” Well, you don’t have to ask me twice.

I arrived at the house at about 9:30. Luis had been a busy man in the kitchen. Before long, we were all feasting on delicious egg dishes and a French toast type dish made with Hawaiian bread. As Luis put it, it was just something he threw together. He’s a good man.

The group for this outing included Dan and Luis, Polo, David, Tina and Denise. Dan so thoughtfully kept us hydrated, providing us with cold beverages, made up of lemonade, raspberry liquor and vodka. He too, is a good man.

We arrived at our post, settled in and waited. It was about 78 degrees, breezy and not a cloud in the sky. We had about a 45 minute wait before the festivities began.

The new rules put into place prohibited attendees from crossing the street during the parade. To keep order, metal barricades had been placed along the entire route. While in the beginning we were not pleased with this idea, it turned out to be a good thing. It kept the parade path at a consistent width, allowing it to move in an orderly fashion and without interruption.

With that said, the parade was still over 2 hours long. Over 200 floats and participants marched past, many very colorful and flamboyant. It really was a fun to watch everybody expressing themselves freely and openly and celebrating the day.

After the parade, we went back to Dan and Luis’ home. We were invited back for a cookout. Dan took over grilling duties for the afternoon. The rest of us were invited to just relax. I don’t have to be told twice.

The food was delicious as were the festive Jell-O shots that Tina made for us and the brownies baked for us by Denise. Ozzie provided entertainment as he defended us against the evil hula hoop. By the time he was done with it, there was no hula remaining in the hoop.

All of the fun takes its toll on even the heartiest of party people. We were all worn out from all of the fun and the party wrapped up at about 8.

Please enjoy these photos from the day.

Thanks to Dan and Luis for being such wonderful hosts on a very fun-filled day.

Waiting patiently, staying hydrated. David, Luis, Polo.

Nettlehorst School. A grammar school in the middle of Lakeview. They marched in the parade for the first time. The kids had a blast and the spectators loved seeing them in it.

Hockey...just not tonsil hockey

Yay Sheriff!

Our State Treasurer and probably candidate for Governor.

Rugby team

Suburbs, represented

Illinois State Lottery float. No we didn't get to see his Lotto balls.

Denise doesn't like to have her picture taken, says she's not photogenic. I think otherwise. Don't you agree?

Broadway in Chicago.

A popsicle?

A friend on a float! Hi Patrick!

FESTIVE!

The crowd

Leather daddies

Plushies!

David, waiting to spank someone happy!

Back at the house...a festive Jell-O shot, complements of Tina.

Ozzie, about to finish off the hula hoop

Neighborly

File Under: In the Neighborhood

I like my neighborhood. I like most of my neighbors. I like to think that I'm pretty neighborly, most of the time.

Saturday afternoon, I was driving home from the gym. I had a couple hours to kill before I had to be at a birthday party, so I decided I would stroll to Starbucks, get a cool drink and relax. A couple blocks from home, I glanced down a street and there was, what appeared to be an attractive guy doing yard work on one of the newer homes. I decided to have a closer look, to see if this was the new owner or just the help. I parked my car at home and decided to walk over there. I was going on a walk anyway. I was wearing a pair of leather flip flops. I haven't worn them since last year, figured I would break them out since it was sunny and 82 degrees. I got about a block from home and realized why I don't wear them, they hurt my feet. They rub in different spots on the top of my feet. But, I was on a mission so I soldiered on.

I got to the street, and he was still there. I envisioned him being relieved to find a friendly neighbor, he would invite me in, I'd tell him that my shoes were bothering me and he would bring me adhesive bandages and a cool drink. Okay, no...not so much. He turned his leaf blower (which he was using to blow tree branches from his sidewalk, in an effort to clean up from the severe storms we had 24-hours prior) away so that he wouldn't blow debris on me, I said "Hi" and "thanks." He barely grunted and went about his business. Oh well, he wasn't very attractive anyway. Onward I limped. I took my shoe off to see what was happening to my foot and it wasn't pretty. I managed to hobble home, but at that point the damage was done, my foot was a mess and I was a sweaty pig. I cleaned up my foot, bandaged it, put on different shoes and went to Starbucks.

So much for getting to know the neighbors.

IML Weekend in Chicago

File Under: IML Festivities

IML stands for International Mr. Leather and it's a gathering of the leather community from around the world. In past years, Dan and Luis volunteered for the events at the host hotel and I spent time wandering around, taking in the sights. This year, both were very busy and couldn't commit to the long hours spent at the hotel. So, they took things in as spectators and we all went to the market together on Sunday afternoon.

I walked to their house. Just down the block from my home, this was written on the sidewalk. NO, I did NOT write it, but it made me giggle. Kids write funny things. :)



Dan, Luis, Polo, Steve and I piled into Luis' car and made our way to the Hilton Towers, this year's host hotel. As is typical of the event, the host hotel is closed to outside guests, those not there for the event. The sights one might see could offend. It's not uncommon to see men walking around in leather jockstraps, chaps, rubber outfits, or not much at all. It's really quite a sight to see the lobby of the hotel filled with leather men from around the world.

Below are some pictures from the market, where all sorts of fun things can be purchased.

The funny part about the afternoon was our arrival. We had already walked past assorted leather men in garb and by far we were the most out of place looking men in the lobby, dressed in jeans and t-shirts. Apparently I did my part in offending the stray couple that had wandered into the hotel. Perhaps they misunderstood and thought IML was some sort of International Mormon Lodge. The woman took a look at my shirt and was obviously offended. Do you find my shirt offensive?

I didn't think so. We all found the incident amusing, as did Doug, the owner of The Big Gay Ice Cream Truck.

After spending a couple of hours at the event, we left for another important task. Early dinner and Margaritas! YUM!

Cheers!

Memorial Day Weekend

File Under: Holiday

It's the first "official" weekend of Summer. It's supposed to be just a bit cool in Chicago, which is fine because it's also supposed to be pretty clear. The cool breeze will feel nice as the warm sun shines down.

Tonight I'm headed to a party at Dan and Luis'. Our friend Khan is moving and we're sending him off the way that only we know how. I've got my camera to record the event. I baked cupcakes for the party and I have to say they look quite lovely. They're lemon and very bright.

Tomorrow I have nothing definite planned. I have a faint desire to go to the outlet mall since Banana Republic is having a big sale. I do love the Banana.

Sunday I will trek down to the IML Market. It's always fun to see the celebration of the leather community, wander the booths and take in the sights. Adult film start are all too willing to sign autographs, though when one wanted to sign something for me last year and asked how to spell "Jim," I decided it was easier to just take a picture with them and move on.

No plans for Monday, it will probably be a good day to just catch up on housework.

Of course, all that could change. Stay tuned.

Brr...

File Under: Baby it's cold outside

Current temperature is -4. The sun is shining. Looks sometimes deceive. ;)

Apparently the boilers at work went down for a while yesterday and while the vital areas were kept warm, some parts of the building got pretty cold. Either we're still down one boiler or one has failed again because my office is bordering on cold. While I don't have a thermometer in here, I would estimate that it's about 67 degrees in my office. I'll let you know when it's so cold in here that I could cut glass with my nipples.

Time Release Boots

File Under: Wardrobe Malfunction

Last night I met my friends Robert and Maria, along with their sweethearts out for dinner. Robert, Maria and I used to work together, they left, I stayed and we've kept in touch. Our other friend Priscilla was not able to join us last night.

I knew I would be consuming alcoholic beverages so I did not drive. We had snow that day, so I put on my boots and left the house. Mind you, these are the same boots that I walked to and from work in that same day.

I got about half-way to the train station and my left boot felt funny, like something was stuck to the bottom of it and it was flopping. A few more steps and I suddenly stepped down father than usual. I looked back to see what had dislodged from my boot. Turns out it was the sole.

My boots were a pair of Timberlands that I bought about 8 years ago. I don't wear boots all the time, just when the snow is deep enough to warrant the wearing of said boots. I don't like the feeling of having something around my ankles. The remaining boot was completely sealed, there were no tears that exposed my foot, inside. I picked up the sole and kept walking. But then I had to decide if I should go back home and be late, or go to dinner with my modified boot. I decided to go on to dinner.

A few steps later, I decided I would stop at DSW on my way to dinner, buy a new pair of boots and then continue on. It definitely on my route to dinner, it just required a detour. I had about 20 minutes to make a purchase.

I got to the train, got on the train and then looked at my right boot. It was doing the same thing!!

I got off the train, with the sole from my left boot in hand and now with a floppy right sole. I got downstairs, reached down, tore off the second sole and kept walking.

I arrived at DSW at 7:05 pm, purchased a new pair of boots by 7:15, and was at the restaurant by 7:25. I was the last to arrive but given that our reservation was for 7:30, I was still early.

Am I the only one that something like that happens to? Have you had any articles of clothing self-destruct?

Meeting Rocco Dispirito

File Under: Book Signing With The Stars!

I learned that on Saturday October 18, Rocco Dispirito would be doing a book signing at Borders Books on Michigan Avenue. On a whim, I decided to attend. I arrived at 12:40 to a crowd of about 15 people. I was worried. By the time he appeared, the crowd had grown and was still growing.

Rocco came out, and said "I guess everybody didn't have anything better to do. So welcome, and thanks. I appreciate it!"

The line moved slowly because Rocco chatted with each guest while signing their books. It was really nice to see him spend so much time with people. He seems to really get that he's a "star" because of the fans and he appreciates them. I've met other celebrities and sometimes I get the feeling that they take it all for granted.

Being that I'm a huge fan of "Dancing With The Stars," I knew that my time would be spent discussing the show. I got up to him, greeted him, and we did chat about DWTS. He said "oh, come on, I knew I was leaving. It would have been anarchy if Cloris had been sent home." I replied "not to mention she would have punched Samantha Harris!" He laughed and agreed. He said everybody was great, the experience was amazing and he really did learn some dance moves and would not have traded the experience for anything. Another bit of interaction that made me chuckle was, when I approached, he said "Hey, I really like your vest!"

Pictures were taken by Borders staff. He also had a pro photographer there either for his website or publishing...not sure. Anyway, I was the guest with whom they said "Hey, Rocco, please hold up the book so we can get some pictures of you with it." I stood there and was photographed for about a minute. The Borders person who had my camera smiled and snapped an extra picture of me with him. Unfortunately with all of the cameras snapping, neither of us knew which way to look so it kind of appears that Rocco is staring at my crotch. : )

Joy, as well as the rest of my readers, please enjoy these pictures. :)

After the signing, I walked around for a while and snapped some pictures of Michigan Avenue. These are a couple of my favorites.

The John Hancock Center, with Water Tower Place in the foreground.

The old Water Tower.


It was a lovely day!

Ladies, Please!

File Under: Fashion Don't

I'm a gay man. I'm not the most stylish gay man but I can hold my own. I know what looks good on me, and I know to ask if I'm unsure about something. I also own a full-length mirror.

It's July in Chicago. It's hot, it's humid, I understand. I'm a bit jealous of the women who can wear these little skirts and dresses only because I think it would be nice to feel the breeze blow up my skirt. Heck, I enjoy feeling the occasional draft up my shorts. I guess guys have an advantage in that we can wear shorts without underwear and not have too much fear that our junk is going to be seen. Oh sure, some guys like having their junk on display (see Dan's blog for prime examples). Yes, some women like having their bits on display too (right, Britney Spears?).

Tonight I saw a prime example of a fashion DON'T. I was out doing laundry, I do my laundry in Lakeview (aka Boystown). Besides seeing all the cute boys coming home from work or going for their evening run (SHIRTLESS!), the women feel like they've got to step it up a bit to be noticed (or they're just puss-teases for the lezzies). Tonight, I saw a few women in their cute little summer dresses. Some did it just right - not too short, good footwear, good support on top (lift and separate those girls!). What I did see that disturbed me were two separate occurrances of the same faux pas. Women wearing their little swingy clingy dresses that moved great when they walked but clung enough to their asses that I could see their baggy granny panties bunched around their asses. LADIES - if you're going to work those cute little dresses, invest in some better fitting drawers! Please!!

Thank you.

It's Gay Pride Month

File Under: Show Your Pride

I am very fortunate to live in a city with a large gay presence. Chicago is a very welcoming city, and the Lakeview neighborhood is the center of it all. A few years ago, rainbow spires were installed throughout the neighborhod, permanent markers that say "you are welcome here, you are respected."

Last evening I was out. The sky was clear, it was twilight and the spires were glowing. They looked beautiful. I was inspired to take this photograph.

Yes, that's Gnome up there. He's proud too.

Happy Gay Pride Month, everybody!

Gas and Gas

File under: Pain in the ass!

I brought my lunch to work today. I had some leftover pasta from last night's dinner. I thought I would supplement the meal with a small salad and the salad bar at work looked nice today. My eyes were drawn to the shrimp salad.

Big mistake.

An hour later, it was not sitting well with me. As of the writing of this post, my stomach still is not right.

I managed to finish my work day with only one detour. I even made it home without incident. Good thing, because I had to stop for gas since the needle was dancing around empty.

It cost me $52.70 to fill my car with gas.

Luckily, after tomorrow I don't believe I'll be doing much driving this weekend. I'll walk to work on Friday. This weekend I plan on spending a lot of time downtown and I'll commute via train.

Wow I'm Gay!

File Under: Observations

Okay, looking at my previous few posts, there's no question about my gayness. Not that there was, prior to that series of posts. Dan could vouch for me just in case some of you are doubters.

This is Ernie

File Under: Friends

Meet Ernie.

Ernie Manouse is a newer friend to my cast of characters. He lives in Houston, Texas where he is the host of the highly successful Public Television interview program InnerVIEWS with Ernie Manouse. He lived in Chicago for a number of years prior to his move to TX but feels so at home in Chicago that he visits at least once a year. Ernie is one of those people who, had we met when he first lived here, we'd have become friends right away.

I met him at the start of his visit in 2006. He is a friend of my friend Brian. Brian, Dan and I were out together at Crew, celebrating nothing in particular except perhaps Friday. Ernie arrived with his friend Richard. After the requisite introductions, the pair chatted with Brian and because I'm nosey, I listened to their conversation. Occasional smiles were exchanged (knowing I had been caught evesdropping, I figured I'd smile and try to distract from the fact that I was listening in) and eventually I worked my way into the chat.

A while later, Dan and I left to go back to headquarters (Jackhammer) and soon, Brian, Ernie and Richard followed. At that point, it was non-stop giggles. As the night drew to a close, we decided we'd visit more during his visit.

Here's a little fact about Ernie. He misses Chicago food. He likes to bring some of his favorite things back to Texas when he visits. By the end of his first week, he had devised a list that included pizza (Gino's East, Art of Pizza, Calo), Italian Beef (Scala beef), and candy (Ferrara Pan). This was followed by a trip to Target for a giant duffle bag in which one could shuttle 3 pizzas, 5 pounds of Italian beef, 5 pounds of Italian sausage (spicy!), a gallon size jar of au jus (for the beef), a jar of hot peppers, and assorted boxed candies.

Last Christmas there was an interesting exchange of food. I sent him pizzas packed in dry ice, he sent me a 2-foot tall, 7-pound gourmet chocolate Santa. Yummy x 2!

Ernie came back to Chicago this past summer. The laughs picked up where they left off last year. The theme of this visit was ice cream. I'm told that because it was summer, ice cream has no calories because it melts.

He's a good guy, full of life and laughs and he's talented at his profession. To learn more about Ernie, check out his website http://www.ernieontv.com/.