Whine & Cheese

New Lens Fun

We're getting down to our final hours/day(s) before our trip, I think beside the packing (or more accurately deciding what needs to be packed), we're in pretty decent shape.  It's time to start letting go of the pre-vacation frenzy and start just letting it happen... it's not like we're going away from civilization (in fact, just the opposite), so if there's anything we need (other than being conversation in French!) we should be okay.

One of my impulsive decisions last week was to get a new lens for my camera.  The one that came with it is fine, but having researched and learned more about the "bells and whistles" of my camera, I made a quick decision to get a better lens.   These video workshops have been extremely helpful to me (and it was also very nice that the camera used in these tutorials was mine... or close enough).

I won't embarrass myself about why this new lens is better ... still working my way around all the lingo... but it's an EF 50mm f/1.4 USM lens... the key being the f/1.4.  I get all giddy about depth of field shots, and the f/1.4 will allow me to do that... and should also be quite helpful with night photography (though since I'm not lugging a tripod, I'm hoping for conveniently placed walls, ledges, stationary objects that will allow me these shots that won't work being handheld due to camera shake... and believe me, I can shake even on a good day).

I played around with the DOF a bit over the weekend and here are some shots w/ the new lens.

In the above picture, I focused in on the clay cat... and purposely left some "clutter" behind it so that I could test blurring it out.  With the f/1.4 the focus is so much on the cat's face that even it's back lets and tale are slightly out of focus... pretty nifty.

The next shot, I did the opposite...

Focusing on the green "thumbs up" button on the TiVo remote... this time, I had to learn how to change which of the 9 focal points thru the lens I wanted to be used.... and got a pretty dramatic DOF both in the background and the foreground.  I impressed myself!

The challenge will be to remember how to do all this stuff while I am out and about... and also not screw up shots by keeping some of these settings on when it comes to subsequent shots!  These shots are sort of semi-automatic... with me making some decisions and the camera doing the rest. 

Getting Ready, Kinda

Had a nice weekend, but with the clock starting to really tick ahead of our Europe trip starting to really try and figure out what still needs to be done/purchased/etc, so probably time to start making lists.

Last weekend (not this past) one, there were a few big purchases... of course, there was the camera and also some clothing and footwear purchases.  Didn't have any good non-jeans casual pants, so picked up a pair of cargo-ish khaki pants and also some "dressier" sneakers.  Todd being international travel expert tells me that nothing screams "American" like white sneakers... so picked up two pairs of Skechers... a tan/brown pair that have sort of a European flair to them (or at least what I think is as much) and a black slip-on pair for a more slightly dressier look. 

I am trying not to get my hopes up too much, but the weather is improving in all of our destinations cities this week.  In the past few weeks, I would look and there seemed as if there was nothing but clouds, rain, and cool conditions.  This week, it's all sun and 70s... so I hope that is a where things are trending weather-wise.  I am not naive enough to think that we won't encounter any precipitation (after all it isn't Phoenix), but I just am praying for at least a handful of good weather days along the way.

This past weekend, it was more stuff for the camera -- a camera bag and another memory card, which should allow me to take an insane amount of pictures... though of course, I am still wondering if it's enough.  I also picked up some more novels (not that I didn't have plenty on hand), but figured I'd need something more on the light/drop-able side as I am guessing the only time I will be reading is when we're in transit... though not sure that will even happen on our train trips.  I am pretty sure this year's reading goal, which is already flagging, will hit "unattainable" status by the time our trip is over.  But as they say in France (or not), c'est la vie... I'll take travel over reading any day!

Yesterday, we wrapped up a week long visit with Rocky's "Aunt" Lucy.  It was fun having another dog around... though a bit sad initially since Lucy and Toby were such good buddies, but I think the tenuous relationship between Rocky and Lucy improved this past week.  He is certainly a bit "much" at times, but they worked it out.  I am glad we found this "pet resort" that provides all-day play sessions.  It would have been tough leaving (though we would!) knowing that Rocky would be cooped up all alone while we were away -- but here we know he will be cage/kennel-free and doing what he does best -- play, play, play -- all day long.

So next weekend, it'll be the last preps... with a break to celebrate Mom's day... and then it'll just be a couple of days and we're off.  I still can't quite believe we're going... and I am sure it won't hit until we start the serious packing (the night before, of course!) and head off to the airport.

Picture This

Our upcoming international trips had me thinking it was definitely time to get a new camera.  While I have no complaints with my current one, it was starting to get embarrassing that it was (gasp!) a mere 4 megapixels.

I wasn't opposed to get another "point and shoot" type camera.  While my last "film" camera was one of those pretty nice ones that I could swap in a big-ass lens, I felt I never took advantage of all of its features.  Additionally, I remember it not being terribly fun lugging that one around... so these "fit in a pocket" (and getting smaller all the time!) digital cameras fit the bill.

Still I was conflicted, I would certainly be fine with upgrading to a new "point and shoot"... and they're pretty affordable... as with most technology, it seems like every 3 years or so you can get something infinitely better in basically the same price range... but those fancier (and more expensive!) SLR cameras were pretty distracting.

If you are a regular W&C reader, it's not terribly difficult to predict the outcome... so I'll just cut to the chase, here's my new camera:

Canon EOS Rebel XTi 10.1 Megapixel with EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 Lens...

Of course, the above picture was taken with my Canon PowerShot A520 4 Megapixel camera.  So quite exciting... though granted after I tacked on an extra battery and memory card (and tax!) the final $$$ was a bit gulp-inducing. 

But having already thought I spent my "stimulus" check on my the iTouch purchase (another long overdue, woefully out-of-date gadget upgrade) at the beginning of March... I guess I still had that patriotic fervor running through my veins... and with the iTouch already paid off, why not stimulate the economy a bit more with that $$$ arriving in the next week or so?!?!

I did successfully fend off the Best Buy salespersons attempts to get the extended warranty and a bigger and better lens.  I understand they're "sales"-people, but I hate how they make you instantaneously feel like whatever you are buying is inadequate without additional item B, C, and D.  As you may have read in my Twitter sidebar updates, it took two BB trips to get it done.  After lunch on Saturday, I camped out in front of the camera for about 10 minutes without anyone asking if I needed assistance (or even a "be right with you")... so I left that store in a huff... but conveniently (or not!) we ended up by another/different BB store at dinner time... and got sales help in a more timely manner and just had to work my way through the expected and above-mentioned annoyances.

While I was pretty much "there" in getting an SLR, thanks to Jen for helping me out with my lingering questions and concerns.  I often swoon at Jen's photography and I am sure it will inspire me to explore the "bells and whistles" of this new camera and take some great (and more interesting!) photos.

Until then, I got a pretty pricey "point and shoot"... and certainly come as no surprise who was the very first subject of my first pictures with the new camera.

Let's just say it's quite a challenge to get any watering done in the backyard with a Boston around!

Or maybe it's just Rocky, who has the fascination with the garden hose and, in general, water.  This pic was taken a good 20 feet away, and I was quite impressed with the increased quality... guess that's what happens when you more than double your megapixels and have a decent lens.

Old

This past week or so I've been a bit befuddled about some of the things that are going on with me physically.  No worries... there is nothing graphic to tell you here.  But Todd provided one easy explanation... and I was remiss in coming up with angle to disagree... he said "you're getting old."

Exhibit 1:  I have been falling asleep at around 8pm... on Saturday night! 

We'll be watching TV and pretty consistently I have been nodding off.   For a couple of those weeks, Todd blamed it on my alleged disinterest in the HBO mini-series John Adams.  While I am not the history buff in our house, I do think the mini-series is incredibly well-done and interesting... but alas I have faded away each time... and so consistently that Todd is threatening to watch the remaining episodes without me.  This past Saturday night, we ended up watching one of the myriad of Prophet of Doom (copyright to JD) shows that have recently been airing on the National Geographic (excuse me, "NatGeo"... they're trying to sound hip these days) Channel... but even the total disappearance of humans via Aftermath: Population Zero didn't keep my eyes open.  Though I did wake up in time to see the Eiffel Tower and Statue of Liberty tumble just mere centuries after everyone left the planet.

I think part of the blame lies in "sleeping in" on the weekend.  Any sleep "expert," will tell you should go to sleep and wake up at the same time every day regardless of whether one has to go to work in the morning.  Even our high-energy dog is agreeable to a couple of extra hours on the weekend... so I'm guessing getting more sleep is just making my body crave more sleep... and thus the early "lights out" on what used to be the big night on the town a decade or so ago!

Exhibit 2:   Muscle and body aches.

After the relative early night on Saturday, I woke up to an incredibly stiff neck on Sunday morning.  I have been known to throw out my back on occasion, but this is the first time in a long while that it seemed so centered on the neck region.  At least I was able to move it around a bit, but occasionally I would get a shooting pain or spasm... fun!  And my trapezius muscles (don't think I didn't just have to look that up) -- the ones that go from your neck towards your shoulder -- were so tight/tense you could bounce the proverbial quarter off of them.  I applied heat to the area and it seemed to help a bit, but only time seems to be the cure for these back/neck muscle ails.  Things are a bit better this morning, and hopefully in the next day or so things will get back to normal.

Exhibit 3:  You can eat whatever you want for dinner

Now, this getting old stuff isn't all bad!   Occasionally, we'll have a late big lunch/brunch on the weekend or was the case yesterday when we went to the Diamondbacks game munch or way (at semi-great expense) through the afternoon.   So when it gets to dinnertime, one is not terribly hungry... but still there is the desire to eat something.  The solution: ice cream for dinner!   Okay, my medium Birthday Cake Remix concoction from Cold Stone will not rank high on healthy dinner options... but it sure was satisfying and filled me up... and was no authority figure to tell me I couldn't do it!

"Out" To Lunch

If you caught one of my latest tweets, you know that I headed out to lunch with another of my former co-workers yesterday.  This is the second such meet-up this year, both having been a year+ since the last lunch.  I am so glad I did and vow to make these lunches more frequent.  While the advantages of working from home are many, anyone who does it will tell you the lack of social interaction is the toughest part.

When I did work in an office I was never "out."  There is always that uncertainty of acceptance and while there was certainly speculation and the fact that it did become a bit of gossip and whispers only made me more defiant in not confirming (or denying, for matter) it.  I did ultimately confide in my very best (female) friend in the office and we are still friends to this day (and my first friend re-meet-up last month).

I also made good friends with another female co-worker towards the end of my tenure with the company and for a time we even carpooled together since we lived close to each other and good half-hour away from the office.  My exit was somewhat rocky, but I eventually re-connected with this person about a year later after she left the company and returned to a home-based consulting business.

She always struck me as quite progressive and politically "blue," so I as pretty darn certain it would be a non-issue...  when I moved out of my apartment she knew I had a male "roommate,"  but given we would meet up a couple of times a year, our discussions generally stuck to our work, travel plans, pets, etc. 

Given our upcoming travel plans I figured it was time... it just seemed silly that if one was awarded a trip to the Olympics that they would take their "roommate."   

When we got around to that subject, I said something about "we" and than said "my... well, I should just tell you" and before I could get it out she said "Your partner?"  Ha!  Always amusing when a person outs you just before getting around to it yourself!  And let's just say this isn't the first time it's happened to me. She went on to talk about her other gay couple acquaintances as well as one of her uncles who has had a male "roommate" for 40+ years.  So while I really had no worries going into it, it was still quite nice to finally be open about it. 

I think we're headed to the point where one day being gay will be greeted with a shoulder shrug (of course, there are exceptions and always will be)... but perhaps sooner rather than later, since that's pretty much the reaction I got yesterday.

Back To Business

It was a typical Monday morning here at Casa de W&C... though none of us (including Rocky) was too thrilled when that alarm clock went off at 5:20-something this morning.  If jet lag is contagious, we all caught it... so it was a sluggish morning. 

Overall, it was a nice/calm weekend as we slept in (thus the quite literal rude awakening today) and adjusted to our new household dynamics.  But as the saying goes "time heals..." and while it was all a bit strange, we know the right decision was made and this is our new reality. 

And in that looking forward spirit, it's hard to believe that Todd will be heading back to Europe a month from today, but fortunately it'll be for pleasure and I'll be tagging along too (hopefully those two things aren't mutually exclusive)!   Well, technically we'll be headed to Houston at this very moment... but we'll eventually be on that flight to Heathrow (and to Terminal 4, thus avoiding what we're hearing of the nightmares of the new Terminal 5).

We started hitting the travel books again and, as "tweeted" over the weekend, we've had TiVo recording oodles of stuff, thanks to Wishlists, for each of our major destinations... so we've seen a lot of TV travel gurus Rudy Maxa, Rick Steves, and Samantha Brown (she's a hoot!).   It has been a bit overwhelming figuring out what's going to make it on to the "to do" list or not... and we'll just keep making offerings up to the weather gods for sun and moderate temps (though I'm sure it'll still be a shock to our system as we're gearing up for mid/upper-90s today and average May temps in Europe look to be in the 60s... for highs!).

It was a slow news day here, as our local paper was talking about the current high cost of traveling... starting with gas prices for summer road trips, but going on to mention the weak dollar abroad.  Todd already had a taste of that with his business trip to France ($US12+ for a very modest hotel breakfast), so we're determined to avoid mentally "doing the math" while we're away.

We took another look at our hotels and how to get to them from the airport or train station.  Fortunately, our Kensington hotel is right on the Piccadilly from Heathrow... and  our Amsterdam hotel is in walking distance from the train station... but Paris is going to be fun! 

After arriving at Gare de Nord (train station) via the Eurostar, we'll have to find our way to nearby Metro line 2... and then be a big 'ole "Welcome to Paris" as we emerge at the Arc de Triomphe (arguably - or not! - one of the world's busiest roundabouts!) and then have to find our way to our hotel (the green circle).

Hmmm.... maybe this would (or should) justify a cab ride... but what fun would that be?!

The Return

Today is the day!   As I write, Todd is somewhere over the Atlantic and in a couple of hours will be landing on U.S. soil and returns home later tonight.  Thankfully, he's not flying American Airlines or else I think he would have truly went ballistic, though I imagine it can't be fun flying at all domestically given that situation. 

Needless to say, it's been a very long two weeks.  I want to thank my friends, near and far, for all the kind words and in general, just putting up with me.  I tend to go a little bonkers on these longer trips... but this time around, all the messages, emails, posts have truly kept me sane (well kinda).    And I am thankful for this blog as an outlet as well.   Yesterday, I mentioned to Jen that one quote that resonated with me this week was from my current read (I am behind in book posts big time!), The Diary of Young Girl, where Anne Frank wrote "Paper is more patient than people"... and while my "people" have been quite patient, I am glad to have this outlet to write however much, however long I need to.

Continuing on this philosophical babble/rant, one thing I intended on writing about earlier this week was a fun little blogger gathering I went to last weekend.  I was a little hesitant, I didn't really know anyone I was meeting or even their blogs... it was a degree of separation between my friend Scott and the visiting Bossy... and yet another degree of separation between everyone else attending... but given the lack of human interaction on the homefront, that little Liza Minelli angel that sits on many a gay guy's shoulder was whispering "What good is sitting alone in your room?"... so I figured, what the heck (but stop calling me chum, please!).

It ended up being quite a wonderful night.  I am continually amazed how quickly people click in real-life based solely on previously cyber-only (at at least non-face-to-face) interaction... and heck, for the most part, I didn't even have that much with the rest of the group, which just happened to be 5 other women ... all that could easily play "Grace" to myself, Scott, and Buckaroo's "Will."  (Bossy's base is pretty much women and the gays... though that's pretty much my base). 

It was kinda fun meeting up with some new people and sharing our stories.  I think everyone had a moment that was greeted with an "oh, wow" from the rest of the group... whether it was where we grew up, our relationships, or even how we started blogging.  Good stuff.

One common thread was that when most of us started blogging we never thought it would blossom into something beyond a personal pet project... and now here we were, most of us having already made some new real-life friends out of it... and a bunch more that we certainly hope to meet down the road.

Endnote:  You should really read about Bossy's Excellent Road trip... Scott wrote about it, there was an article here... it is a true testament to all I was saying above with Bossy meeting "260 bloggers across 207 cities in 43 states" (yep, she's pretty much a blogging rock star!)... traveling cross-country (and back!) at 25 blogger gatherings... you can read her continuing adventures at her blog (i am bossy) and here's a direct link to the Scottsdale meet-up. 

Hangin In There

Hey folks... didn't want to go without writing a little something since if you didn't see anything today you probably would have thought something bad had happened... but alas work has suddenly (and quite mentally inconveniently) picked up... so I am a bit awash with that.

A big thank-you for all those who did respond publicly and privately to yesterday's post about Toby.  He actually seems a tad better this past day or so... it is probably due to the cortisone shot... despite the doctor telling us that it would give him a boost, but would just be masking the symptoms... it is hard not to be encouraged about it.  I just had a conversation with Todd and we are heavily considering going in and talking to Toby's usual vet next week for a second/another opinion... through all this, he has been going to his usual animal hospital, but we've just seen another vet during this stretch.   While not being foolishly optimistic/Pollyanna about it, I guess you can say we have the audacity to hope...

I had a very nice lunch yesterday with an old friend (while my Cooper was getting its annual service)... I had not seen her in several years... and without too much guilt, I will admit it was nice to get away from the house and shift the troubles to the back-burner for a couple of hours.

I told her I should probably give her my blog URL... quite funny... very few people I know me "real" world-wise read my blog.  I guess there is a safety or freedom in opening up with total strangers... though I am sure many of my fellow bloggers would agree that one feels that true friendships have developed with folks they have never met face to face.   I told her it would probably be overwhelming (and a TMI factor), since it is pretty much a daily version of the my annual holiday letter -- where I pretty much condense a year's worth of blog entries down to one page!

I guess that's it... again many thanks and I will keep you posted about Toby... but otherwise, expect the usual W&C subject matter... as always, it provides (mostly me) a good distraction.

Coughy Tawk

First off, Happy Leap Day!

Well, those American Idol recaps certainly take up a good part of the week huh?  It certainly takes the pressure off figuring out what I am going to blog about... and I do still enjoy blogging about Idol... which hasn't been the case with some other reality shows.  Even though it's one of my faves, I started to struggle with coming up with stuff to say about The Amazing Race... and I have made nary a mention of the first non-summer edition of Big Brother... we are watching it... but boy, what a bunch of losers... and that's saying something if that's my impression of this crew compared with previous casts.  I guess the difference with Idol is that you get to play armchair critic... and that some of the contestants do get a career out of it.

Anyhow, while W&C obsessed over Idol... since I last left you on Monday, I now have three FOUR Scrabulous games underway on Facebook.  It has been quite enjoyable and my opponents are certainly challenging me.  Though I had to shake off some Scrabble rust and (re)-learn the power of those very odd two-letter words (including the particularly important, QI and ZA).   

Until Scrabulous, I have to admit I wasn't into Facebook.  This may surprise you, but one's enjoyment of a social networking site kinda sorta relies on one having a social network.  But, suddenly I have 7 friends (no laughing!)... so I am paying it all a bit more attention and even having some fun with that "twitter"-ish / "what I'm doing/thinking right now" thing.  I suspect one day we'll have sensors that will track our every move and thought and automatically post it to the Internet... and people will think this is progress/a good thing... ha!

So quite circuitously, we arrive at the title of the post... which, earlier this week, was one of those Facebook "exclusives."  And while I am quite proud of my punny title, I gladly would have preferred not having had to come up with it as Toby has been not feeling well for about a week now. 

Toby was supposed to have a dental treatment this past Tuesday, but last Friday he started coughing and it hung around for the entire weekend.   I took him to the vet on Monday... no real diagnosis other than a doggie cough "going around" (so much for feeling good about going to the dog park!)... so he is on antibiotics and an alleged cough suppressant... and needless to say, we canceled the dental.  Likewise, we are keeping our fingers crossed/knocking on wood that Rocky doesn't get it since it's (of course!) contagious... so far, so good (probably thanks to his super-duper metabolism).

We were hoping he was getting better.  Todd correctly noted that he hadn't heard him cough at all after getting home last night... but in the middle of the night, poor Toby had 2 or 3 extended coughing fits... so it is/was kind of discouraging... though just to have to keep thinking that, even us humans, it takes awhile for a cough to go away. 

It just brings back bad memories as our Mindy hacked so badly near the end and all that is coupled with Toby eating/not eating and certainly more lethargic than normal... so it's hard to be patient... no breakfast today, just a lot of sleeping... but not much (any) coughing in the last few hours.  I'm sure he'll be fine... but he can't start getting better soon enough!   

Have a great weekend... and Happy March!  (Where is this year going already?!?)

Various & Sundry

As often is the case, the weekend left quite a bit of things floating around my mind...

On Friday night, we saw 12 Angry Men as part of our touring Broadway season tickets.  It's rare that a play is part of the package, so it's always a nice change up.  The "star" of the show was Richard Thomas.  While I am certainly aware of "John Boy" from a pop-culture stance, believe it or not I never watched The Waltons growing up.  So, it's a good thing that, even though he didn't get star billing, that Kevin Dobson, Mac from Knots Landing, was also a jury member as well.

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On Saturday, we visited Todd's parents in Tucson.  At lunch, we had something happen to us for the very first time... the waitress looked at Todd and myself and asked "Are you brothers?"  Very funny, but very strange too.

And it's probably a good thing that I wasn't leaving the tip, as the waitress told me later of my ordered dish "I've never seen anyone eat that much of it!"  Ummm... thanks (not).

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If that didn't get me crabby, Facebook also ticked me off.  Recently I added a Virtual Book Case to my profile, and I get an email this weekend titled "You've been reading 'Pride and Prejudice' for more than a week. Still true?" and the body of the email continued to nag me "We wanted to give you a reminder so that you can keep your profile fresh if things have changed".... Y

Yes, I'm still friggin' reading the book and doing my best to get through it... and I don't need anybody or anything giving me crap about it... especially when I am very much well aware that it's killing all the surplus/progress I had made in my reading challenge up to this point!  Geez, Louise!

Speaking of Facebook, I am finally playing Scrabulous... and now really hoping that it doesn't go away as the makers of Scrabble ain't too happy about it (and I can certainly understand why).  My very best friend from college (as I often say... the Grace to my Will) and I were big time Scrabble players in college and beyond... so when she recently joined Facebook I knew we had to play... though I am not too happy that she got a "bingo" and used the word "feu" in our very first game!   If anyone wants to play (and I know there are a couple of you out there!), I am open ... though I don't know how good/bad I am right now as I don't have a "rating" yet.

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A couple of Hillary notes.   I was surprised how pro-Hillary the first Saturday Night Live was... in the opening sketch, the mocked the googly-eyes the media has for Obama (or perhaps, just the disdain for Hillary) and "Obama Girl" even made an appearance.

But that was nothing to guest host Tina Fey and her most excellent return to the Weekend Update desk. I would post the video, but SNL ones tend to go away very quickly... if you haven't seen it already -- it seems to be the big rage this morning -- if not,  this YouTube search page that might get you to it).  Anyhow, she ended the segment turning the oft-thought "she's a bitch" criticism on its heels... some entrepreneurial folks have already (wisely) jumped on it... gigglechick offers products with the follow Fey-isms:

And on McLaughlin Group, even I can get get a kick out of what some of the conservative panelists say... when asked "What Hillary Clinton needs to do to defeat Obama?" ... new regular on the "right wing" side, Monica Crowley noted that basically "Hillary has to club the baby seal" ... and that certainly (and humorously) sums up what I've been thinking about the Dem Race of late... I just wish I'd come up with that line! 

Presidents Day, Beer & Pretzels, DWTS

Some randomness to start off the week:

Don't really have President's Day "off" here.  Todd is "officially" at work and I am putting some time in despite many of my clients taking the holiday.  Things have been a bit "dribs and drabs" for the start of this year, so I work when there's work to be done... but nothing terribly urgent today, so I am sure there will be time later today to sit down and contemplate Washington and Lincoln and others.

Speaking of presidents, it's hard to avoid whoever is going to be the next president.  On the democratic side, I am still trying to figure out why Obama appeals to those with a higher education and income, while Clinton's base seems to be the other end of the socio-economic spectrum.  I wondered aloud to Todd if its because blue collar folk are more racist than sexist?!   I know quite politically incorrect, but I just don't get it... maybe its just this group is more cynical and not buying the "hope" and "change" stuff... that would certainly explain part of my appeal for Clinton.

In boxing up these groups, I have head that Obama gets the "wine" crowd, while Clinton gets the "beer" vote.  This weekend, one pundit went a step further and called Obama's base "wine and cheese" ... which of course sent up my copyright, copyright!!! radar... and referred to Clinton's bloc as "beer and pretzels."  So I contemplated temporarily changing the name of my blog to "beer and pretzels" or at least coming up with a snazzy Hillary-centric banner... but felt a bit too lazy today or lest I admit that reality has set in regarding my candidate's chances.

Finally, even if you have not watched Dance War... you might want to check in with it tonight... or at least TiVo it and skip through it... the couples for the next edition of Dancing With The Stars are going to be announced.  While I have heard rumors, there hasn't been as many leaks as previous seasons.   Though one bit of not unexpected news on the pro dancer front... Maks won't be on this coming season.  I'm sure I'll have something to say on all this tomorrow. 

There's one more bit of big news from the weekend, but I'll obnoxiously give it its own post... come back in a bit.

Super Bowl Sunday

While many of us gay folk don't celebrate Super Bowl Sunday until Oscar night, we still watch the commercials game just like the rest of the world.

It was kind of funny this year.. the game just took place about 40 minutes from our house (the Giants' hotel was a mere 10 minutes away), but oddly enough it didn't even feel like the game was "in town."  Sure there was a bit more coverage than normal, but lately we haven't been watching all that much local coverage... so in the end it didn't really feel all that different from a game that was played in Miami or New Orleans.

We decided to go with "football" food for dinner.  While not the healthiest meal I've ever whipped up, ultimately I don't think it was that bad.   Fearing a trip to the crowded supermarket, we decided to just go with the ingredients that we had on hand.  Though a bit comically, we did have to make a run for tortilla chips (we had some, but they were a bit crushed up).  Ultimately the nachos, didn't contains some key, but devilish ingredients, you'd find at at a restaurant...  like sour cream and guacamole or an insane amount of cheese... but it was still very tasty with lean ground beef that I seasoned up myself (none of those sodium-heavy ready-to-go seasoning packets), pinto beans with jalapeños, diced tomatoes... and fresh chopped onion, garlic, and cilantro.

To wash e'm down... we made up some "coochie coochies"... or how to get loopy from just one bottle of beer?  We may be light-weights, but one of these is usually enough.... two shots of tequila, a few splashes of Sprite/Fresca, and a bottle of beer.

There is no good segue... other than to say, the evening ended on a very sad note.  On my last check of the blog-world for the evening, we were shocked to learn that our friends, Scott and Buckaroo, quite unexpectedly lost their dog Bailey yesterday.  I've been through it here and it always makes my stomach sink to read of a pet's illness or passing from my fellow bloggers.  They are very special members of our families and the stories shared about them on our blogs make these posts all the more painful to read. 

As our friendship with Scott and Buckaroo entered the "real world," we've also got to know the very sweet and well-behaved Bailey over the past several years... so we were particularly taken aback.  Try as we might (and coming from a rambler, I try)... but there are no words, other than to offer up our sympathies to our friends and this very tough time. 

Forced Vacation

I thought I may have jumped the gun yesterday.  Our probable vacation plans were in jeopardy just mere moments after I posted it to the blog.

I am pretty sure I have blogged about this before, but it is frustrating each and every time it happens... and the majority of the time potentially screwing with our plans, which given my inability to make up my mind is a pretty big deal... so the blog is a good method of venting. 

Ever so often (but with increasing frequency), Todd's company forces him to take vacation time.  Now, this is not done in the benevolent "aww, you need a break and deserve a rest" spirit.  It is all about profits and usually short-term/quarterly profits.

If I understand it correctly, vacation time is a pre-paid expense at the start of the year... so when vacation time is taken, it is not a new output of cash.  It's the equivalent of taking money out of the "Christmas Club" vs. the checking account... and all Wall Street cares about is the checking account.

Yesterday's directive was that all employees must take 40 hours of vacation prior to then end of first quarter.  The end of first quarter is March 28th... and yesterday was January 21st... meaning that by the end of this week, first quarter will be more than 25% over!   

Ok, I can understand company's controlling it a bit... say not allowing or limiting "rollover" vacation time on an annual basis... but in general, I think it is crappy to play around with people's (earned!!) vacation time at all...  and mondo craptastic to force it over such a short time period... particularly for those with kids in school.

Before we went into full panic, Todd figured out he had enough time built up and will accrue enough in the interim to not put our anticipated late springtime vacation into the dumper.  I guess one of the "advantages" of what has become a typical 60+ hour work week for Todd is feeling he can't take vacation time... thus the nice surplus... though he "joked" that this "vacation" will likely end up being telecommuting vs. going into the office.   

Weekend Mash

Some random stuff from the weekend:

• The holiday season was officially over.  Everything came down over the weekend... some stuff going quicker (picking up outdoor lights) and other stuff taking longer (finding, then re-boxing ornaments).   Some of the bigger house displays in the neighborhood dismantled shortly after Christmas, but I didn't think it was that odd to stay up through New Year's Day.  Though, even I will admit, that it dragged on a few extra days since the holiday was early in the week and it seemed to take awhile to get to the weekend.


• Though we didn't plan on it, we ended up watching a good portion of the NH debates on Saturday night (about half the Republican, all the Democratic)... and so you don't think we're total losers... it was over a very large cocktail.  As I have mentioned before, it is with metaphysical certitude that I am voting for the Democratic nominee and while I do have a preference, I am "fine" with whoever that may be... at this point, it appears pretty certain that that will be -- in alphabetical order -- Clinton, Edwards, or Obama.  That said, I am bit weary of the attempts to distinguish themselves as "change" or "experience."  By merely being a Democrat, they are all "change" candidates... and on the opposite end of the spectrum I don't think any of them are particularly "experienced" (again the top 3, arguably you can say those candidates out of the Race, or even low-polling Richardson, are more experienced).  And, amongst ourselves, we agreed that this time-condensed primary season is not good.  While it is somewhat of a relief to think that most of this jockeying/in-fighting will be over come February 5th, it's not allowing enough time for momentum shifts and re-shifts (and re-shifts!) that I think are pretty important part of the selection process.


• Having blogged for several years now, I have learned that misery loves company.  Whether anyone wants to admit it or not, posts about your wonderful relationship or fabulous vacation are not very popular.  So (!!!), as we tend to do once the calendar rolls over to a new year, we have begun to ponder where to go on vacation this year.  We think we have narrowed it down to 3... again, I am fully unaware of how un-endearing this is... so in that spirit and in no particular order, which of the following destinations would most piss you off to read all about here on W&C:
  

1. Canadian Rockies - This has been a "finalist" destination for several years now.  We likely would have done it last year if we hadn't decided on the Colorado road trip/MINIs in the Mountains last year.  To get slightly more specific, we're talking Calgary, Banff, Lake Louise, Jasper...
   


2. Hawaii - Our destination of two years ago (Honolulu and Maui)... this/next time, we're definitely interested in going to the Big Island... and probably one other island (a return to Maui?).  While we had a good time there and certainly have pleasant memories (Todd still ribs me over one particular drunken moment), I feel like I need/want to give Hawaii another chance.  Last time, it was in the aftermath of the car accident (not fun to be calling the body shop/insurance companies from your tropical vacation), so I wasn't terribly relaxed or as "present" as I would have liked to have been (and, in retrospect, it took a very long time to get over all that).


3. Europe - Since getting my passport, this has obviously been another destination that has come up over and over again.  Here I can't give specifics.  I have never been "across the pond."  If you are a W&C regular, you know Todd travels to France on business pretty regularly (and is going there in March), but I am just overwhelmed by where to go!  Of course, the "biggies"... London, Paris, or Rome... are immediate considerations... but part of me wants to go a non-obvious route... say Barcelona, Amsterdam, Berlin, or Switzerland (I know that's a country, not a city, but not exactly sure where to start there either... just want Alps!).

If you have an opinion on any of the above... chime on in!

Vote 2008: My Reading Challenge

For the weekend before the last weekend before Christmas, it ended up being pretty low-key.  Well, at least for me.  For me, all my gifts for others have been shipped (mostly by their originating companies) or have arrived here and just need to be wrapped.  I voluntarily discharged myself from Todd's Christmas shopping expedition after the first stop... without the dead weight (or "helping"... haha), he was able to get through all that he had left (which was quite a bit). 

Todd's parents will be joining us for Christmas Eve and Day, before they all head over to NM to see the rest of the family the day after the big day.  Food-wise, we're keeping it simple... and what's becoming our tradition of offerings of Mexican cuisine... which I guess is not all that strange... after all, it is called "Christmas" when you want both red & green chile sauce on the same plate.

But now, onto the subject of this post... and it is not so much a vote, but a request for a brainstorming session for what should be my reading challenge for next year.  The 10k page challenge was a good (and quite successful) one.  Given I am on pace to finish up with a smidgen over 12k, a repeat of the 10K challenge doesn't seem... well... challenging.

In the past few weeks, I have considered not having a reading challenge next year.  I feel that I am back in the habit enough that I don't need a goal line for motivation.  And while I know this blog is for "me"... and I have no plans at all to stop doing book-related blogs posts... with the exception of a few folks, me thinks the whole thermometer graphic tracking device was viewed as pretty hokey.

While I will (yet again) attempt to employ reverse psychology don't expect much feedback, here are the options I am considering:

a) No Reading Challenge - just read and blog about the books I read (though, of course, I will secretly maintain my anal-rific ... ooh, that sounds dirty... reading/book spreadsheet)

b) 1-2-3-4-5 Challenge -- upping last year's goal of 10,000 to the numerically pleasing 12,345 pages (and just a bit over what I will end up with this year).

c) More Than Last Year -- kinda generic, but simply topping whatever ends up being this year's final page tally... and in the spirit of "being green" -- it's recyclable each and every year!

d) Something Else -- this is where you come in

Although I would love/welcome new ideas, option "d" comes with a whole bunch of restrictions... basically boiling down not putting a limit the books I can read... i.e. "read this # of books" challenge would discourage me to read "big" books... "read only the classics" is a noble idea (and something I considered), but I want the ability/flexibility to read the "hot" book or an author I that I may be in the mood for.

And speaking of voting... and for the last time...  today is the last day for the 2007 GLBT Verve Awards. While the percentages have changed,  for the past week or so, I haven't budged much from being 2.5-3% out of the winner's circle.  I don't imagine things will change... but if you haven't done so... my fragile ego would appreciate a vote for Best Entertainment / Gossip Blog... of course, ignoring the fact that this post does not qualify as either "entertainment" or "gossip."

Tonight's Horoscope

The end portion of my horoscope (Libra) in today's paper:

Tonight:  Kick up your heels.  Let your hair down.  Girl, put your records on!!

Ok, I admit I added the last line.

But give me some credit... I totally ad-libbed it to Todd before 6 a.m. this morning.

(If you don't have a clue what I'm talking about, go here... or nevermind.)

Snarky Monday

Kind of a low-energy, unmotivated Monday morning here.  It has been cloudy, damp and rainy here in Phoenix since Friday... and given that we are usually (and aptly dubbed) the Valley of the Sun... it doesn't take too many craptastic days in a row to feel a bit "under the weather"... mentally, that is.

Other than an extra set of four-legs (we're dogsitting Todd's "sister" bitch doggie), the weekend ended up being fairly low key.  I tagged along while Todd while did some shopping. I attained my goal of finishing the holiday cards/letter, though they are not yet in the mail... and got those last gift cards that also need to be sent off to my family.  Thankfully no packages requiring prolonged visit to a post office or shipping store.  Otherwise, it was some TiVo catch-up, though things are really starting to dry up between the writers' strike and the usual holiday new programming hiatus.

My Internet/shipping success continues.  Another package ordered earlier in the week arrived on Saturday... though it was something for me!   Now, I know one shouldn't go buying presents for oneself just a couple of weeks ahead of Christmas... but I had seen this t-shirt around and kept meaning to order it, so when I bought something out of the catalog for someone else, I just figured what the heck... here it is:

If you haven't figured it out by now, I am a t-shirt addict!   While I know this will not endear me to many, for a good part of the year (except, of course, right now and for the next 2 months or so), t-shirts are "work" clothes for me... so my collection just keeps on growing. 

Though the begging campaigning continues... one place I DO need your support is over at QueerVerve... vote Whine & Cheese as Best Entertainment / Gossip Blog.... voting ends Dec. 17th!

UPDATE:  Since this post is getting a bit more attention than normal (thanks to Kenneth!)... I should give you the scoop that this t-shirt (or sweatshirt version) is available through the Signals catalog (which btw contains a lot more fun items!)... but here's a direct link: National Sarcasm Society Shirts.

Holiday Free For All Friday

No surprise... various holiday related items dancing in my head this Friday...

After my recent holiday "there's not enough time left" freak-out, I've made progress... did quite a bit of online shopping this week and with the exception of getting some gift cards, I think I may be done-ish.  While I am not totally and completely satisfied with the results, it's to the point where it's "okay"... which, if you take away all the media pressure and retail hullabaloo, likely translates to "totally and completely satisfied."

Some impressive shipping -- I have already received two item that I ordered earlier this week... and with standard shipping no less.  I don't know where all these "free shipping" offers are... even for "regular" shipping it seems as if I am paying through the nose... and it's particularly sad/funny when you pay more for shipping than the item you purchased!

Among other things, I decided to send my parents and brother's family gift baskets (they don't read/know of this blog to the best of my knowledge).  Though I just about spit when the two baskets of cookies and other assorted baked goodies (+ shipping!) totaled over $150.   I should go back to see if the cookies contain gold chips or spun with some other precious metal.

Hope to start writing out the Christmas cards later today or this weekend.  Put the final touches on the Christmas letter this morning... but, thanks to my relatively new "work" laser duplex printer, I had to figure out how to position the holiday stationery in the paper tray so it would print correctly.  Flipped over with the top of the paper closest to me.  Only took three attempts.

With the display up for almost a week now, and despite my the mental duress... I am quite pleased with how the front yard turned out... though I just wish it was a tad further away from two insanely lit houses... it's like we're Knot's Berry Farm right next door to frickin' DisneyLand... I know, I know... I need to just let that go!

We are planning to get together for some pre-holiday festivities with Scott & Buckaroo this weekend... so if any of Scott's competition for the 2007 QueerVerve Awards is interested in sabotage outsourcing, I am currently entertaining monetary offers. 

Currently, in my own race, I am hanging on to the #2 spot for Best Entertainment/Gossip Blog... though that's pretty tentative... from what I can tell, I am the only one who is even begging for votes promoting their nomination.  Need another reason to vote for me?!   I'm the only one of the bunch that is free of advertising!  (No offense, to those of you who do... I am just trying to differentiate myself from the competition and distract from the fact that this isn't a full-time entertaintment/gossip blog as proven by this very entry).

Mental Jumper Cables... Anyone?

After the long Thanksgiving weekend, it's always difficult getting started again... but considering my deficiency in the momentum department even before the holiday, you can imagine what I am feeling like today!

As I run-down the weekend activities, that certainly doesn't appear to be the case... but just because I'm physically moving doesn't mean the head/mind is necessarily following.

Todd's sister arrived without travel incident on Wednesday night... well, if you don't count traveling from NM to  AZ, via TX and OK... but that's pretty common on Southwest Airlines, particularly when originating out of a small(er) airport/market. 

Of course, Thursday was the big Thanksgiving gathering in Tucson ... a total of 10 of us.  As always, thankful to be "adopted" into the family and comfortable enough to enjoy watching everyone interact... and with pretty much no effort on my part other than showing up and eating (and drinking)... it doesn't get much better than that.

Friday, we met up with Todd's family for lunch at the kinda/sorta halfway point between Tucson and Phoenix... the quickly burgeoning town of Casa Grande (I am convinced that in my lifetime there will be little undeveloped land on I-10 between Phx-Tuc).   And while we certainly weren't planning on it, we couldn't avoid being a Black Friday participant, though it wasn't for holiday shopping.  I won't name names (hint: it rhymes with Glocky), but someone destroyed Todd's wireless adapter while being left without his humans on Thanksgiving day... but thankfully at 5pm Best Buy wasn't too bad... and no damage was done to the brand-spanking new computer.

Todd's sister headed out early Saturday morning... so a pretty typical weekend otherwise... and while there is more, to speed things along I will merely mention we headed to the car show at the Phoenix Convention Center on Saturday... and to the dog park on Sunday.

Winter (well, at least Phoenix's version) seems to have arrived.  While Thanksgiving was beautiful weather-wise... by the weekend, I found myself donning socks, sweatpants, and long sleeves.... with morning temps dipping into the 40s.  But alas, with Thanksgiving behind us and the sudden onset of cooler weather... that oomph is not quite there to get going on the next holiday. 

Todd was a bit shocked when he overheard me talking to my Mom on the phone that I had absolutely no desire/motivation to get started on the holiday decorations.  In the past, I am usually rarin' to go.  While I am not as bad as my Mom with regards to the holidays ("I wish there was a pill you could take, that you would just wake up when it was all over"), I might be headed in that direction.  Beyond the decorating, I haven't even started any shopping and likewise have little idea of what to get anyone (though, thankfully, that list of people is short)... and then there's the card (a self-inflicted "great idea" that will require considerably more effort than usual), the holiday letter, etc.

It will have to kick in next weekend.  The impetus for the front yard will be neighborhood peer pressure, while the inside (i.e. the tree) gets done thanks to Todd's parents stopping by the following week on their way to/from a weekend getaway (and perhaps their only holiday time visit this year).  Ultimately, all these things do make me very happy... I really do love all the lights... but increasingly it seems harder and harder getting to that point.

The Post That No One Will Read

It's Thanksgiving Eve and I am guessing that folks are either busy with preparations and/or family or already in long weekend mode... it's a little of both here, but I am already feeling a lack of motivation/inertia and it's not even noon... dreams of L-tryptophan dancing in my head.

We will be spending Thanksgiving with Todd's family.  The whole immediate family is descending on Tucson again this year... and Todd's sis is flying into Phoenix tonight... hmm, does anyone think the airport will be crowded at 6pm?!  Ha!  Todd is picking her up on the way home from work, so I won't experience that frenzy first hand... yet another item to tack onto my "thankful" list!

Puppy update.  You may remember last week's post where I mentioned that Rocky had a bit of a tummy issue and that I ran a "sample" to the vet and didn't really expect anything to come of it.  Well, so much for that assumption.

Got a call late yesterday from the vet (4 business days + a weekend after the drop!)... and it ends up that Rocky has an intestinal parasite... coccidiosis, to be exact.  Nothing to be worried about, easily treatable ... just one small pill, once a day, for 10 days.  The cause is apparently "environmental," so likely something he ate... and he eats everything... my guess is that it was likely due to his decidedly non-adorable penchant for "recycling"... and we'll just leave it at that!

While the diagnosis was not great/happy news, I am sort of relieved that there was a reason that caused his not-so-nice "issues"... while he never lost his happy-go-lucky temperament, something just wasn't right and I am fan of those mystery illnesses.

I guess that's all... so Happy Thanksgiving and I'll likely see you on the flip-side of the long weekend!

Mom-A-Props

Moms says the darnedest thing!

I was talking to my Mom earlier today... and given that both my and Todd's set of parents are of a certain age, the conversation regularly gravitates towards health issues.

I know I should correct my Mom, but sometimes she comes up with the cutest things... malaprops, I think is the technical/official term for them... for instance...

I have heard about prostate prostrate cancer so much I am surprised I haven't started adding the additional "r" onto it...

Today there was a new one.  I believe I heard it correctly... if not apologies to Mom and kudos for me for coming up with it!

Macular Immaculate Degeneration...

... which I can only assume is an eye disease with no known medical cause?

Looks Like I Made It

As I write, Todd is on his 17.5+ hour journey home... likely somewhere over the Pacific... now that's really going out on a limb!

After over a week of quiet and low energy, things are suddenly kicking into gear.  I've been a little slow work-wise this week... but, of course, a rush job comes in today... so I'm scrambling a bit with that... plus I have an already scheduled dental cleaning this afternoon... and I certainly need to tidy things up, do a load of laundry, etc.... though I didn't let things get to out of control for the past week and a half.

Rocky seems to have mostly recovered from whatever was ailing him.  Still have not heard back from the vet's office.  But he ate his dinner last night and most of his breakfast this morning... no odd behavior, though still tootin' a bit more than normal up a storm.  Remind me to just chill out if this happens again with him!

There's plenty for Todd to watch on TiVo... some of which I have already seen (can't avoid the results reality stuff like TAR and DWTS) and other things that I have saved up (Brothers & Sisters, The Office). 

Although I read only one book while Todd was away, I can only imagine how long it would have taken otherwise.  I read a lot more hours and at very abnormal times, like after dinner and waiting for the TV I did watch to "time-shift" or [gasp!] not watching TV at all!   Funny enough, I started a new novel last night and one of the major characters is named Todd.  I had no idea, having not even read the back cover.

While I think time away from each other is a good thing to experience every so often and I think it is important that one feels comfortable spending time alone with oneself... time away still seems like it is a pretty good relationship litmus test.  I'm guessing it's a good sign if I'm am still speaking of "surviving" and "making it" through the week... especially after a dozen or so years together-ness.

I won't get as sappy/eye-rolling to say that Todd "completes me" (besides that being overly co-dependent), but things certainly didn't feel "right" for most of this past week+... out of balance, out of whack, an equilibrium shift... so I'll just say... you had me at "Hello" "I don't know, what do you want to do."

Todd's Not So Amazing Race

Todd left for his big business trip to Asia yesterday morning... and safely arrived this morning.

Here's how he spent the last 24 hours or so:

Phoenix to Minneapolis - 1,276 miles (3 hours, 2 minutes) - yes, a head-scratcher of a connection to Asia!

Minneapolis to Manila (via Tokyo) - 7,818 miles (17 hours, 30 minutes) - pretty sure that's flight time, not including the 2.5 hour layover in Tokyo... where Todd had to get off the plane and go thru security all over again!!

For the weekend he is off to Singapore - 1,474 miles (3 hours, 30 minutes) then..
Singapore to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia - 208 miles (55 minutes) -- a puddle jump!

The the big return home:
Kuala Lumpur to Los Angeles - 8,805 miles (16 hours, 5 minutes)
LA to Phoenix - 370 miles (1 hour, 22 minutes)

That comes in just under 20,000 miles and approximately 42.5 hours of flight time over 12 days... egads!

What did I just say about wanting to travel internationally some time again?!   

Anyhow, this is going to be a long trip for both of us.  While Todd's trip sounds exotic, it's not... first off, it's work and a large majority of his time will likely be folks yelling at him (in English and other native languages) and then there was the whole fact that his cab was searched for bombs prior to pulling up to his hotel and he had to go through a metal detector and a luggage search prior to entering the hotel... though he tells me that otherwise the hotel is very nice.  And while he enjoyed spending some time in Kuala Lumpur during a past trip, his work is outside the city so he just flies in and out of KL.

Working from home I go through phases... sometimes it's a compelling urge to "have to get out of the house" (aka "cabin fever") and other times it's just the opposite, a mild case of agoraphobia where I am quite content not to leave. 

Lately, I've have been experiencing a bit of that inward turn of late... so I'll have to make an effort to get out.  My work communications is largely e-mail based (totally fine with me)... so I rarely talk to clients and since my business partner moved out of state, I hardly ever chat with her (think it's been twice in the past 6 months!)... so I have to exercise those vocal chords every now and then... ven it's just a drive-thru order... note to self: eat something than frozen pizza!

More Birthday Fun

Not too much to report this Monday... or, more accurately, probably just not in the mood... some work stuff is making me mildly crabby.

Although Todd's birthday is this coming Friday, the celebrating and gift-giving ended up happening this weekend... surprise!   We had lunch with Todd's parents over the weekend which served to both honor Todd and his mom's birthday (last week)... and heck, I guess a little of mine too since it wasn't that long ago.

I had a dilemma with Todd's gift.  I wanted to get him a new computer, but it seems that if the person you are giving it to has any computer literacy they should be involved with decision.  Todd's current computer was several years old... so pretty much anything would be an improvement... so we ended going with pretty much with a mid-range priced item.  I won't bother telling you the brand/model... like I said, nothing terribly schmancy... just the pretty typical 3-4 year upgrade... for Scott's sanity sake... of course, it's an Apple with the new Leopard OS.

Best Buy proved (once again!) that they will be out of stock with the item you first pick out... which worked okay, since we ended up a slightly less expensive model.  Granted we got stuck with another printer... in yet another "always at Best Buy" scenario... it is cheaper to get the computer, monitor, printer package than to just by the computer and monitor.  Conveniently enough, Todd's parents were having troubles with their printer... so Mom went home with a surprise birthday gift of her own. 

I also bought Todd a "lap desk" since he has been regularly searing his lap when trying to work from home and keep up with our TiVo backload. 

Now I am pretty much screwed for not saving anything for his actual birthday... but shortly thereafter he is headed off on a multi-country business trip to Asia (and hopefully he'll recover as he got walloped with a head cold yesterday)... so I figured it would be less fun to give him presents with no  time to enjoy them.

40 Love

If everything is on schedule, by the time this is posted we should well be on our way to Vegas.  We're taking the Cooper... and to prevent a repeat from last year... I should have had some breakfast before we left and will likely stop for a stretch and a bite to eat in Kingman... and I have packed (and likely ingested) some over-the-counter motion sickness medication.

Today is the Big Day... while that is usually just a tennis score, alas the first half of the title of this post is also my age as of 1:15am EST this morning.  Woo hoo!  [sigh!]

The second half is our entertainment for the evening... we're heading over to the Mirage (and into the former theater of Siegfried & Roy) to see Cirque du Soleil's... 

It's been a few years since our last one and our third Vegas Cirque production overall after Mystere and Zumanity (though Celine Dion's A New Day kinda counts since it was by Franco Dragone who directed Mystere and O).   The shows are always a feast for the senses (well, at least eyes and ears), so I am sure we'll enjoy this one as well.

Since better seats available, we're ended up getting tickets to second/later show of the night.  We're not night owls here... so it should be interesting.  Not that we haven't had late nights in Vegas, but it's usually spent in "zombie" mode in front of a video poker machine!

And since we're there, we made dinner reservations (online!) at Samba, a Brazilian steakhouse at The Mirage.  Believe it or not, we do have a Brazilian steakhouse just five minutes from our house.  We've been meaning to check it out for years now (loooooong-ish story better saved for another post)... so we'll see what we think of the whole all-you-can eat of various meats on a stick brought around and carved at your table... sounds very decadent, but that's Vegas!

Tomorrow is another show... it's a headliner and definitely something corny and kitsch-ier... though for some folks, I'm guessing Cirque du Soleil would qualify as corny and kitschy... stay tuned!

Thank Goodness For Comp Rates

I am in the middle of a pre-long weekend work crunch.  Clients are pretty much coming out of the proverbial woodwork and the world may just end if I am not sitting at my desk this coming Thursday and Friday and working on their market research studies.  The "panic" that ensues when I go away is pretty funny and would be funnier if I didn't have to deal with it... and Todd only has it 72 times worse!   

So my point is, you ain't getting much out of me today and tomorrow... and my planned pre-posted entries will just fill you in on this year's Vegas entertainment choices, I know you have been just breathless in anticipation.

As mentioned yesterday, Vegas ain't cheap no more.  Oh sure, there are still $2.99 steak dinners to be had if you really look around... and a midweek visit may land you a decent room rate...  but Vegas these days is more about the gourmet dining and if you're going on the weekend and staying on/near the Strip you'll be lucky to land a room rate of under $200/night.

As I have mentioned before, I have a Harrahs comp card and boy does that come in handy!   A few years back I had "platinum" status... but a combination of them re-defining (raising!) the number of points to reach that level and not playing as often as I did in the past... I dropped the one level to their lowest level of "gold."   I feared that would be the end of my good comp offers.  But alas, and thankfully, that was not the case.

When we were booking the trip, I put in the dates without any of my comp card information.  I nearly choked at the a$280/average night rate I was given for our usual haunt, the off-strip Rio Hotel & Casino.   I put in my comp card account and the rate dropped by 25%... nice, but still a tad nose-scrunching.  Finally, I put in a "month of your birthday" room offer sent to me in the mail... and BINGO... 49% off of that original non-comp card rate (basically, giving me Thursday night for "free").

Now, the tricky part is keeping it a good deal... as the sayings go... "Vegas wasn't built on winners" and "You don't get something for nothing!"

Weekend Round-Up

Random stuff from the weekend:

• Ate at two of our favorite restaurants ... and both of them hot and spicy! New Mexican on Friday night and Thai on Saturday night.  You know you go some place a wee bit too often when the wait staff starts to recognize you.  We're pretty that's now happened at this Thai place as our waiter didn't question whether we really wanted "Thai Hot" (aka hotter than "hot") for one of our dishes.


• My back is better... well kinda.  I attributed a microwaveable heating gel pack on my lower back for my speedy recovery.  But after a shower on Saturday, I felt something funny back there.  A look in the mirror... I had burns on my back... and it was blistering!  Ouch!  Now I didn't think I put the gel pack, even with its cloth wrapper, directly on my skin... but obviously I was an idiot and did something wrong.  So while preferable to seizing and spasms, it's still a bit uncomfortable back there. 


• As promised, we took the dogs back to the bark park on Sunday.  There were not nearly the amount of dogs that were there last weekend (it was a tad later and a bit hotter), but still some fun to be had... kinda.  We try to give our dogs a bit of space, let them have their fun without us looking over their shoulder ... but this other little dog got into a minor growl/scuffle with Rocky.  Before we got over there, another lady (not the owner of the dog who started it) doused Rocky with the contents of her water bottle.  It was no biggie and the lady of the testy dog did apologize... but have to admit to being a tad peeved about the water throwing.  Not that Rocky cared...


• ... since we have two very different dogs.  How so?  If the dogs go out in the yard and the sprinkler is on, Toby will pretty much want to turn around and come right back inside...while Rocky's eyes immediately light up and, if left unsupervised, will grab the sprinkler and run around the yard with it.  Likewise, when the wheels of the vacuum cleaner start rolling Toby will slink away and go to farthest room away from where it is... Rocky will attack it when it's on!


• Needing to take a break from last night's NLCS game where our Dbacks are now down 3 games to the Rockies (I think someone should have quit while he was ahead!), started researching where we might like to eat while we're in Vegas.  We have narrowed it down to three places to have a "special" dinner... Italian, Southwestern, and a Brazilian steakhouse.  I'm leaning toward the steakhouse, but the penny-pincher in me still thinks its crazy to spend $150+ on dinner (which is what we're likely looking at for any of them) ... now don't ask me about my gambling budget, but for food??

Poor Samaritan

Scott wrote something today (and earlier this week) that got me thinking... but first, for the 1.43376 of you who read W&C and not S-o-Rama, let me give you the very quick run-down...

The scenario is likely something most of us have been through at one time or another. Scott's car broke down at a local convenience store with a suspected (and ultimately proven) dead battery and, even with his own set of jumper cables, he was unable to get any assistance from at least 15 different people.  (Wow, that's as succinct as I have been in about 12 years!)

So... had I been the hypothetical 16th person, would I have done anything different? 

In all honesty, likely not.

Of course, the assumption here is that Scott is a stranger.  While this certainly is going to sound horrible to say aloud (or put down in writing), I am guessing I would have only helped if I wasn't going to be inconvenienced and/or be made late to work, an appointment, etc.... or if I didn't feel it was "safe," but that can of worms will remain unopened.

Onto self-image repair!  On a trip to Vegas we stopped at a fairly "middle of nowhere" restaurant/gas station (Wikieup, for those familiar with the drive) and were met by a woman with a wire hanger in hand asking us to help her get her car open (needless to say, keys were sitting on passenger seat).  I would like to say we agreed to help without a second of hesitation... but it was a semi-grumpy "oh, okay" and a half-hour or so of fiddling with the hanger/lock before we were on our way.  Ok, maybe not so much "image repair" there.

Likewise, I recall last year when we were stuck in the middle of nowhere for 7+ hours in 105 degree weather.  It was not very well-traveled road, but since it was on the way to a lake there was a fairly steady stream of cars.   I'd guess we had maybe a 30% hit rate of people stopping... which over 7+ hours translated to a number of cars (even folks going and coming back from their day at the lake).  While there was no assistance to be accepted (the car had overheated and was not driveable), I was still grateful to the people who stopped to ask ... and especially those who offered food and drink.  I think that 30% was only so high since we were not in "civilization" (so far out, there was no cell phone coverage)... and similar to our en-route to Vegas scenario, it was folks likely not needing to be at some place by some time.

At the time (and perhaps out of heat exhaustion, hunger, thirst, and frustration of being abandoned by two tow companies), I vowed to be different... to change my ways!  But over the past 16 months have I stopped, even once, on say one of the many trips on I-10 between Phoenix and Tucson when I see a car pulled off to the side?  Ummmm, no.

Is this unwillingness to help if it poses any kind of personal inconvenience a sign in the decline of the mankind?  Maybe just man-"kindness."  But was it ever really there?

My memory isn't serving up any warm and fuzzy stories from my youth in the 1970s (or even 80s), so I am not sure if anything was different "back in the day."  Likewise, I don't it's geographic either... perhaps with the exception of living in a town where "everyone knows your name."  I doubt many of us would hesitate to help an acquaintance or even just a familiar face even that we may have never even spoken to (think supermarket shelf-stocker).   

That said... and I may be vastly overgeneralize here, I do think we/society are increasingly growing more uncomfortable with personal interaction... it's email, it's texting, it's IM-ing, it's iPods On/World Off.

Or it could be that I'm just an ass!   

I Think We're I'm Alone Now

Todd is off in France on a business trip this week. From what he tells me it's not anything to get too excited over, believe me if he gave me the slightest indication it was I would be tagging along at some point. 

We've reached another (new?!) stage in our relationship.  I dropped him off on the airport terminal curb.  I think this may have been the first time.  But he was pretty much just checking in and then disappearing beyond the security gate, so after doing this several times, my presence doesn't seem to add much value to the experience... and besides it was 6:30 in the morning... on Saturday.

He's back next Saturday night, so not too long.  Since I spend about 80% of my weekday waking hours alone (at home, no less), it seemed that getting through this past weekend was half the proverbial battle.  I did a pretty good job of keeping myself occupied... which I will now bore entertain you with.

Needless to say, caught up on a lot of TiVo.  I've determined we watch a lot of political shows.  I still have Chris Matthews weekend show to watch... but got through Real Time with Bill Maher, McLaughlin Group, and This Week with George Snuffleupagus (our predictable nickname for the diminutive former Clinton communications director turned show host).  Otherwise, it was watching hour-long Deal or No Deal episodes in about 25 minutes... and catching up on Showtime's Californication... we decided to take that off Todd's TiVo "to do" list since we were five episodes behind (still behind on Weeds, but we've been watching that since the beginning).

Went to Petsmart and bought collars and leashes for the dogs.  I had been using slip-on leashes when transporting or walking the dogs, but ever since being traumatized by the "Sophie's Choice" decision of which dog chase after they both slipped off their collars and ran in opposite directions... I needed to do something so we didn't repeat that episode since we're boarding them again in a couple of weeks.

Yes, we have a long weekend getaway to look forward to... no surprise, it's yet another Vegas weekend.  You can pretty much set your watch calendar that we'll be headed to Sin City at some point since both of our birthdays fall around this time.  We'll be leaving on my birthday... and just in case you [gasp!] don't remember this year it's the "big one".. if you still can't figure it out, you can go find last year's "the one before the big one" post here.

I did a video poker warm-up yesterday.  My Harrahs comp points expire if I don't use my card every 6 months. While I was pretty sure I could make it to the Vegas trip (the card says the last time I used my card was March 31st), I didn't want to take the chance.  There are a lot more ways to cash-in comps in Vegas, so I like/prefer to use them there.

After a quick cup of coffee and a bite of breakfast, I headed to our local Harrahs casino for a bit of Sunday morning video poker.  It was a great time to go.  Hardly anyone there... since our Indian casinos are about 10% the size of a Vegas one, you often have to grab any empty machine you can get.  To make a long story short, I put in $60 + $15 free play comp coupon... and cashed out with $200 in about two hours.  I was up about $30 more, so I was impressed with my will-power.  But it was easier to quit, knowing Vegas is ahead.

Since I've rambled on a bit (as usual!), I save further details about the Vegas trip for another post.  We have our entertainment booked...two shows, one part "cool" and one part "corny/kitschy"... in other words, pretty typical Vegas show options.  Stay tuned...

Break-Up Bingo!!

Decided to take Nyquil last night and it certainly accomplished its task, getting a good night's sleep.  Even as I type this, I am still not sure if I am really awake.  Granted I sound worse (Todd compared me to Marge Simpson this morning) and still feel pretty blocked up, but I think it may be headed in the right direction.

However, since I am still under the weather (except when flying, when is one not?!)... Hollywood gossip gave me a nice and easy entry. 

Usually, I save this as my cynical Valentine's Day post... but folks...

Heath Ledger and Michelle Williams Split

Which gives me...Celebrity Break-Up...  BINGO!!

It was a nail-biter for sure!   There were rumors of an Eva & Tony break-up, but those were effectively squashed with a walk down the aisle (ditto for Latin super-duo, JLo & MAnth)... and Nicole seemed to be on the verge of being unlucky in love (again), until this:  Keith Urban: Rehab Saved My Marriage... so, ultimately it was the Brokeback Break-Up that supplied the top-line Bingo. 

So let us pause and reflect on the dissolution of Lance & Sheryl, Nick & Jessica, Britney & Kevin, Brad & Jen... and now, Heath & Michelle... as well as the other 9 couples who showed us that it's not so easy to find (and maintain) love in the limelight.  May the paparazzi leave you alone until you find someone new.

However, hearty congratulations to the 10 couples who survived my "started as a joke" game board from February 2006... may you have at least 18 more months of love ahead!

Friday Free For All

As occasionally happens, seems like there are a lot of little (and unrelated to each other) thoughts... so we'll just go with it.

Labor Day - Which in Arizona is kind of like Groundhog Day... only 6 more weeks of summer!  It usually takes to around mid-October for it not to feel like what most folks think of summertime... and it's been an extra hot one this year, Phoenix broke the record for most days over 110 degrees... 29 days (and counting).  The average is 10 days per year.

Plans - Not a whole lot planned for the holiday weekend, beyond sitting in front of the TV and watching hours (and hours) of tennis.  Let's hope there are more thrills like last night's Blake-Santoro match and less of Sharapova winning matches 6-0, 6-1.  On Monday, we get Lucy the Pug for a few weeks as Todd's parents are headed out for a big road trip of their own. 

Big Brother - Ah, the show will not be as fun without Amber.  Though even I was starting to feeling a tad uncomfortable that the folks behind the scenes were encouraging her (What do mean by "encourage"?)  to do things that would make us laugh at her (and not in a good way).  This also means no more prayers where she God blesses God.   My favorite line about that line was on Fox Reality's Reality Remix...  Kennedy pondering, "Well, what do you say to the Almighty when he sneezes?"   Easily the line of the night was the ChenBot's questioning aloud Eric's romance or "show-mance" with Jessica... "Is America's Player really America's Playa?"  Ah, Jules!

Blogs - It seems like there is a " back to basics" renovation trend on many blogs lately.  I have to admit to not being immune to it.  I am kind of tired of the look of my blog.  However, it took quite a bit to get this "design" to work... so not really wanting to go 100% back to a ready-to-go template, I am sticking with this one.  In the spirit of "simplifying," I have tried to de-clutter the sidebar.  Likewise, I am heavily considering deleting my Kiva blog.  I am thinking I bit off more than I wanted to chew with it.  Now this is pretty typical for me... a big initial burst of activity and interest about something (in this case... the blog, not the organization!) that trickles away.  Which only makes that fact that I will start my 5th year of blogging in a couple of weeks a truly amazing accomplishment.

Tags/Categories - In an act of blog un-simplification, I'm going to use categories more like "tags"... so you'll see things get a lot more specific, though I will try to make sure they have (or will) have more than a handful of mentions.  For example, some of my first new additions are things like:  Dancing With the Stars, Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal.   Again, I'm not sure if it matters... but something a little new and different. Apologies in advance to Bloglines and other feed readers if these category changes make my older entries show up new/updated.  On a few posts I changed yesterday, some of them showed up while others did not... so who knows!

Hope everyone has a non-laborious Labor Day weekend!

Weekend Update: Dos & Tres

Saturday unintentionally turned into Arizona cliche night....

... we had dinner at Dos Gringos and afterwards wen over to Tres Amigos, a mostly Arizona-based furniture/home accessory store.  I'm guessing that our Arizona Native status (you get that after living here over 10 years) may now be in jeopardy.   Not wanting to further this Spanish counting lesson, we headed home to our cuatro animales.

The trip to Tres Amigos was made in hopes of replacing a small table in our TV room.  Last week, the dogs knocked over this metal table with a glass top for the second time... and final time.  The glass broke... and a glass top table ain't much use without the glass top.   

This had to one of the cheapest, ugliest, and out-of-place pieces of furniture that made the move into this house (ala Frasier's dad's chair).  We've been "looking" for a replacement for most of the 5 years we have lived here... but it's just never happened.  So while yet another little piece of household destruction was frustrating, forcing the issue was the proverbial blessing in disguise.

We replaced it with a fairly inexpensive set of two nested wood tables... inexpensive since one of Rocky's favorite "wrong" things to chew on is wood... as in our wood dining room table, our wood dining room chairs, our wood living room table, the wood handles on our recliners... ok, you get the point.   We're probably asking for trouble... but at least that other table finally got carted off by the garbage truck this morning.

Speaking of Rocky, we also happened into a pet store this weekend.  We saw a 3-month old Boston in the window, and it looks like Rocky will be on the smaller side.  The breeder told us both of Rocky's parents were under 20 pounds (non-overweight Bostons can get up to the mid 20s)... this pup for sale (at 4x what we paid for Rocky!) app