Labor Day weekend update

We had a fab weekend with Bugs & Roger.  Sat evening we walked to a waterfront restaurant and had cocktails and terrific seafood for dinner.  The weather was perfect for dining al fresco, and we had a sassy waitress that made our experience even more fun.

L to R:  Me, Spouse, Bugsy, and Roger

My delicious cosmo

Sun we had enchilada casserole for dinner and birthday cake (Spouse made both) on the screened porch for Thad's birthday.  I didn't take any photos.

Bugsy & Roger left before lunch, so Spouse & I grabbed sandwiches from Subway and went to the beach.

Holiday weekend

Its the Fri before a holiday weekend.  We're tidying up and preparing for a visit from our good friends Bugsy & Roger who arrive tomorrow.  The weather forecast is great so I anticipate lots of morning coffee and afternoon cocktails on the screened porch along with great conversations and laughter.

We'll also be hosting a small birthday dinner for our friend Thad on Sun.

It should be a fun weekend! 

What are YOU doing this holiday weekend?

Friday night reward

This evening we had dinner with our buddies Steven & Thad at El Azteca.  I've heard it said that its important in life to acknowledge and celebrate life's little victories, so to reward ourselves for making it through another work week a few of us had delicious frozen margaritas.  YUM!!!

iPhone 8 Plus 'Portrait' mode

Friday refreshment

This evening Spouse & I went to dinner with our buddies Steven & Thad at a waterfront restaurant and ate outdoors since the temperature cooled off.  The scenery was beautiful, but to be honest on a Fri evening after a long week, I was more interested in this scenery:

4th of July

Today is Independence Day, also called 4th of July, a day we celebrate our nation's independence from Europe with patriotic parades and cook-outs.

Last year we had several friends over for drinks and appetizers, went to watch the Doo Dah parade, came back for a cook-out, then went to see the fireworks.  It was great fun but also a lot of planning and work.

So this year we kept it simple.  Our buddies Steven & Thad came over for a snack, we watched the Doo Dah parade, we had a cook-in, and skipped the local fireworks.  Instead, we watched them on TV from the comfort of our home.

Spouse & me waiting for the Doo Dah parade to start

Clearing out

Our friends Steven & Thad live in a community that has an annual yard sale that's very well attended.  Last year they unloaded a bunch of stuff so I decided I'd participate this year too.

Not that I have anything to sell that's particularly valuable.  The point is not to retire off my yard sale proceeds, but rather to get rid of unneeded items.  Clear out cabinets, clear off shelves, thin out closets.  You get the drift.

Knowing that Spouse the "collector" would likely be adverse to me attempting to sell everything that I think we don't need, I convinced him to help me go through the items in our kitchen cabinets, in the garage, and in the closets to approve or deny my suggestions of what to sell.  It worked, and he was surprisingly open to getting rid of most of the stuff I wanted to get rid off.

Of course, the yard sale is at Steven & Thad's, not at our house, so that means I'll need to haul it there. Although the yard sale is not until next Sat, I decided to load up as much as I could fit into the back of my SUV yesterday, while I had the time to do so.

Unfortunately, this is less than 1/2 of the stuff and the rear of my car was already full!

Because I use my car for driving real estate clients around I couldn't fold the back seats down to put any more stuff inside.  The rest of it had to sit in the garage and next to the side door which leads out to where my car is parked.

I actually enjoy selling stuff at yard sales.  Spouse & I used to buy lots of stuff at yard sales so I know what people are expecting to pay for someone else's used stuff:  not very much.  So I am quite realistic with my expectations of what someone will give me for my used stuff.  

I don't bother putting price tags on anything.  Its a waste of time, and if sales are slow and you wish to be negotiable you have to reduce all the tags.

No... 

I don't price anything.  When people ask how much stuff is, I ask them "How much do you want to pay for it?"  At least 50% of the time they're willing to pay as much OR MORE than what I would have asked.  I think people really like it when they suggest a price and I say "Works for me!"  And if they offer me less than what I want, I simply say "Hmm, I was thinking more like ___" and see how they react.  I certainly don't want them to walk away empty-handed over a couple bucks.

For sure my goal is to clear out unneeded items, and whatever money I make in the process is a bonus.  Look for a follow-up post with my results.

Social weekend

I convinced Spouse and Steven & Thad to go to FURst Friday, a monthly happy hour sponsored by our local (gay male) bear social group. 

We had a fun time!  I chatted with several current friends whom I see more on Facebook than in person, and also met several new people.  Its a very casual, relaxed environment and I'm sure we'll go to future FURst Fridays.

Afterward the 4 of us went to dinner at Summer House.  The food was fine but not terrific.  At least the portion size was good.  I had enough to take home and eat for lunch the next day.

On Sat I worked (as usual) and then Spouse & I went to dinner at Mama Maria's, which was new to us.  The food was very good so I'm sure we'll go back.  Later that evening I didn't feel like staying in so I went to see the Legends show.  Yes, the same Legends show that I perform in.  I'm typically not there when I don't perform so I never actually see the show as a spectator, so it was fun to do that.  My friend Rick was there so we hung out a bit before and after the show.  

Then I walked over to the Pond for their Studio 54 disco party.  

I love disco music, and I'd seen online that they were encouraging disco-era costumes (I didn't dress up) so I thought it would be fun, and it was.  The music was great - I knew all the words to all the songs - and some people really went all out on their disco attire.  It was fun!

On Sun Spouse & I did a few things around the house, ran some errands, and then met up with Steven & Thad for dinner at Ruby Tuesday.  I was craving a good salad bar.  While there I ran into some clients to whom I'd sold a home several years ago, so I chatted with them a bit to see how they were doing.

It was a fun, social weekend.

Yumminess

Over the weekend Steven & Thad and Spouse & I had dinner at Iron Hill Brewery, which has become one of my favorite places.  The crowd is our age or younger, the staff is a mix of hipsters and regular folks, and the food is really good.  They have a 'scratch kitchen' which means they make all the food, rather than getting food from huge suppliers that is microwaved or dressed with a sauce or something.

Iron Hill brews their own beers so I decided to have a couple (free) samples that sounded good, then selected one to have with dinner.

I started with their soup of the day which was roasted poblano soup.  It was creamy and delicious!

For my entree I ordered what is actually an appetizer, but was the perfect accompaniment to the soup, the Thai chicken lettuce wraps.  The chicken was nicely seasoned with hints of lemongrass, and the spicy peanut sauce had a really nice after burn.  It was really good!

I'm eager to go back and do it again!

Holiday highlights, the finale

Spouse & I remarked to each other that this was probably 1 of the best holiday seasons we can remember.  We never felt stressed, and everything just seemed to fall into place.

We got our tree up, our interior decorating done, and our exterior lighting all done before our tree trimming party.  (That has not always been the case.)  Our tree trimming party was fun, as always.  We attended the town Christmas parade which wasn't rained out as it has been in some recent years.  While our holiday shopping got off to a slow start, all ordered items arrived on time so I could wrap them without feeling rushed.  I got to attend the town's Christmas home tour for the 1st time ever.  I spent the good part of a day baking cakes, brownies, and breakfast casseroles to take with us.  We enjoyed our annual pizza and hippie roll luncheon with our dear friends Kerry, Hugh, Kelly, Carl, Lisa, Alex, Kim, and Danny.  We had dinner at our favorite Mexican restaurant followed by cookies at the home of our old buddies Ron & James, along with Mike & Clark.  We had a lovely visit/lunch with my cousin Nez and her husband Steve.  We saw most of the family on Christmas eve and/or Christmas day.  Once we returned home we debriefed with our friends Steven & Thad over dinner.  We went to a lovely post-Christmas party at Marty & John's home. We did a lot, saw a lot, and ate a lot; pretty much the perfect holiday season!

Here are a few photos of some of our special/unusual tree ornaments:

Purchased in Palm Springs Oct 2018

1 of 2 clear snowflakes purchased at the Dollar store several years ago, and a Paris ornament from 2003

Large, silver snowflake from Joey & Glenn

Lenox sleigh from my friend Dawn

Eiffel Tower purchased in Paris Dec 2003

Translucent chicken from our friend Megan 15+ years ago, Lenox bear from Dawn, and clear rainbow swirl ball from Calvin

Another clear rainbow swirl ball from Calvin, and Chihuahua from Dawn

Blue glass ball with white swirl from Calvin

 Here are some of our interior holiday decorations:

Although not visible in this photo, the snow-covered trees have glitter on them and were found inside our very 1st home together in 1996.  I adore them and suspect they're pretty old.

The reindeer were from my cousin Nez, the snowman was from our friend Clara.  The old school ceramic tree is actually not old; we bought it at the QVC clearance store about 5 years ago.

Red truck pillows purchased about 3 years ago

Red truck floor mat purchased this fall

Red truck wall hanging purchased 2 years ago

Without any knowledge of our red truck decor Spouse's sister gave us this red truck cookie jar which coordinates perfectly

 And last but not least...

Marvin & Walter in their Christmas bow ties on Daddy's lap on Christmas day

I hope all of you had a great holiday season.

Whirlwind weekend

I had a whirlwind weekend for sure!

In anticipation of everything happening this past weekend, I took Sat off work.  Sat morning Spouse & I met Steven for breakfast, then went to the grocery store to buy the ingredients for the food we'll serve at our tree trimming party.  Once we'd put away the food, I finished decorating the inside of the house.  I'd started the decorating last weekend but finished it on Sat. 

As Spouse began making the party food, I went on a Christmas home tour.  There were 9 local homes on the tour, including a couple homes I'd toured when they were for sale.  The tour was very well attended and several of the homes were quite lovely, all decked out in their Christmas regalia.

After the tour I helped Spouse clean up the kitchen a bit, and then we met Steven for dinner.  (Thad was out of town.)  After dinner I performed as Elton John in the Blue Moon's holiday Legends show.

Whew!

Sun morning we met Steven & Thad for breakfast, then returned home where Spouse began warming the food he'd made the day before and I began setting the tables and getting the platters, bowls, and serving pieces out. Shortly before our friends began to arrive we plated the food and put the drinks out on the beverage table.  

Thanks to Spouse's cooking the day before and my planning an organization, we got everything set up with a little time to spare (let's take a selfie!) and with no yelling.  I consider this a definite "win".

Our friends arrived and we had drinks and conversation for a little while, then had dinner.  Spouse made meatballs in Italian gravy (tomato sauce), Italian sausage with peppers and onions, rolls, and a roasted vegetable pasta salad.

Then we migrated to the living room and began trimming the Christmas tree.  

Occasionally folks paused from the decorating to enjoy some sweets (brownies, chocolate chip cookies, anis pizzelles, and chocolate covered pretzels).

The tree went from this:

to this:

Yes, the tree isn't straight, and neither are we.  :-)

Everyone kept joking that we surely HAD to be nearing the end of the ornaments as the tree became colorful, but I assured them there were plenty MORE ornaments to fill in.  "I like just a little bit of green to show through" I told them.

I really love this tradition of having friends help decorate the tree.  Its a fun way to get together during the holiday season and it makes the tree look different every year.

Thanksgiving highlights

We had a great Thanksgiving meal and visit with the family.  Spouse made his famous dressing (with Granny Smith apples, Craisins, pecans, celery and onion) which was off the chain delicious.  We've somehow lost the origin of this much-loved recipe.  I believe I suggested the ingredients to Spouse for our 1st Thanksgiving together, but he says he'd been making this dressing before he met me.  I don't think either of us would bet our paychecks on it, but our ongoing claims make for a funny conversation every year.

Corn casserole in the oven

This year he also made a cannoli cheesecake which was also very good.  I made corn casserole which is also a family favorite.  I've taken it to work for our office Thanksgiving meal several times and everyone loves it so I'm not allowed to bring anything else.

When we arrived at Spouse's sister's house she explained that we'd be having an unexpected visitor for Thanksgiving this year; the cashier from CVS.  Spouse's sister frequents this store because its close to her home so she's familiar with many of the employees.  As she was checking out she'd engaged in a little casual small talk and asked the young woman if she was having Thanksgiving with family or friends.  She explained that her family is from Bangladesh and her parents have not adopted American holidays like Thanksgiving.  She further shared that her older sister (a physician) had a baby recently so their parents were fully consumed with their 1st grandchild.  She said she'd just go home when her shift ended at 6:00.  She's in college but her roommates were all away, spending Thanksgiving with their families.

Spouse's sister suggested that she stop over after her shift and pick up a plate to go, since we would have already finished our meal by 6pm.  The young woman was very appreciative and they exchanged phone numbers.  A few hours later the young woman called to say there'd been a schedule mix-up and her shift was ending at 2pm, not 6pm, and asked if she could come over then.  So, the invitation for a plate to go turned into another seat at the table!  

My plate

But it worked out fine.  The young woman was very nice.  She loved all of the food, but needed explanations as to the ingredients since she'd never eaten some of these dishes/combinations.  

I could see the wheels turning in her head as she struggled to figure out how these diverse people were related, so Spouse's sister introduced us all and explained the connections.  "This is my brother and this is his husband Mark, and this is Mark's aunt Mary, and this is my daughter Anna and this is her husband Randy and their daughter Gabby..."  Anna is white/Italian, Randy is African American, and their daughter is biracial.  Honestly I felt a little proud of our diverse family and everyone's willingness to have a stranger join us for Thanksgiving dinner.  

Later, after we'd all had desert and were relaxing and talking, our nephew Eric was talked into playing his guitar and singing.  Baby Gabby quickly joined in by blowing on a recorder, creating a clash of chords and chaos.  It was a very nice day!

We left on Fri around noon and got home about 2:30.  I put away the pots/pans we'd taken with us, ran the dishwasher, and then began decorating for Christmas.  First the wreaths were placed on the doors, then I removed all the photos from the mantel and put up the candles, garland, dried flowers and fruit.

Later that evening Spouse & I joined Steven & Thad for carol singing and the lighting of the Rehoboth Beach Christmas tree.  

Thad opted not to be in the selfie

It was really cold that night but the turn-out was big and we had fun.  Despite having lived here for nearly 12 years and having visited here prior, we'd never attended this tree lighting and carol singing event.  Then we had dinner at a nearby spot. 

What happened on Sunday

So yesterday was the end of daylight savings time so we turned our clocks back an hour.  Of course my body woke up at the normal time so I struggled to go back to sleep a few more times before finally getting up to go to the bathroom.

Later we met up with Steven & Thad for breakfast at the Crystal. 

Although I was scheduled off, I had agreed to meet a new client and show her 3 homes close to where we live.  Spouse picked up some items at the store while I was showing the homes.

Then we met Steven & Thad at the movie theater to see Bohemian Rhapsody.  I've long said that the song Bohemian Rhapsody is a piece of musical genius, somehow weaving together music from several different genres and several different keys, and instead of sounding like a hot mess, it works.  Perfectly.  This film is about the band Queen, not just about this song.

I'd heard good things from several of my friends on Facebook who'd seen it on Fri or Sat so I figured it would be good.

It was fantastic!  Rami Malek did an amazing job portraying Freddie Mercury.  The mannerisms, the body language, the dancing on stage, it was all there.  I expect him to be nominated for an Academy Award for this performance.  I heard that Malek sang/recorded all the music for the film and then both his and Feddie's were mixed together to make the soundtrack.  Very clever.  The pacing was very good too, never getting hung up for too long on any particular scene.  I was shocked the film was over 2 hours long.

Do yourself a favor and see Bohemian Rhapsody!

Bugsy & Roger's visit

Bugsy & Roger arrived Fri around 10pm, and kindly brought us some goodies from Trader Joe's: traditional Jo-Jo's, maple leaf cookies, mixed nuts, and a beautiful mum.  So thoughtful of them!  We visited for about an hour then went to bed.

Sat morning we had bagels and coffee for breakfast and enjoyed some nice conversations on the porch.  We had lunch at a local diner, then Spouse went to get his hair cut while Roger and I checked out an arts & crafts show.  Bugsy's stomach was bothering him so he stayed home and took a nap. Later that afternoon we had cocktails on the porch before heading to dinner with Steven & Thad at Michy's. Then I headed to the Blue Moon to paint my face for my Legends performance as Boy George.  Since Bugsy's stomach still wasn't quite right they stayed home and watched TV with Spouse.  Too bad they missed the debut of a new Legend: Elvis!

Sun morning the 4 of us met Steven & Thad at the Crystal for a late breakfast, then went for a little drive.  There was more talking, catching up, playing with dogs, and listening to music on the porch.

That evening the 6 of us went to dinner at Iron Hill Brewery before Bugs & Roger headed home.

As always, we had a great time with Bugs & Roger and look forward to seeing them again.

Friday fragments

On Tues evening Spouse & I met Steven & Thad for flu shots.  The local LGBT community center hosts a free flue shot clinic in conjunction with the local hospital, so we go there together for flu shots and then have dinner afterward.  For many years I didn't get flu shots.  Then about 8 years ago my doctor told me that thousands of people die every year from the flu, so why not get the flu shot and reduce the chances that I'd be 1 of them.  Since then I've gotten a flu shot every year, and thanks to the hospital/LGBT community center its free.

Bugs & Roger are coming this weekend!  Well, technically they're coming tonight, and will be spending the weekend with us. They usually come at least once each year but last year they didn't, so it will be about 2 years since they're last visit.  Fortunately I was able to take off work Sat & Sun to be with them.  We'll probably visit the local arts and crafts festival tomorrow, go out to dinner with Steven & Thad, and then see the Legends show at the Blue Moon.  I'll be performing as Boy George. The weather forecast for the weekend lots great so we'll likely spend a fair amount of time talking and sitting on the screened porch.

We're going back to Palm Springs!  Yes, we were just there in Feb but we had such a good time we decided to go back Oct 13-20.  In Feb it was about 80 degrees during the daytime, a bit cooler than we expected, so this time it should be closer to 90 degrees during the daytime.  We've rented a chic mid-century modern home with a pool and hot tub.  We should get more use out of the pool this time.  Also, our friend Carl is coming with us.  I went to school with him but we lost touch after graduation.  Then we reconnected about 5 years ago, thanks to Facebook.  He's never been to Palm Springs.

Weekend update

On Sat I was due to work, and although I had no appointments for the day, I was expected in the office to help with phone coverage.  Fortunately it was slow and we had more than enough people to handle the office so I ducked out for about 1.5 hours so Spouse & I could go to the gay car club's annual car show.  The weather was perfect for it. 

Many of the vehicles we'd seen before at past car shows, but I did note 3 beautiful additions to share:

This is a gorgeous 1955 (I think) Chevrolet Bel Air station wagon, in sea foam green with an ivory roof.  Such a beautiful car!

This is a mid-to-late 50s DeSoto Firedome convertible.  Love the powder pink and ivory color combo!  Its difficult to read in this photo but the license plate reads BEBUTCH.

This is a 1959 Pontiac Bonneville.  Notice how the up-sweeping rear fins are similar to those on my 1959 Cadillac.  Same goes for the wrap around windshield.

That evening we met Steven & Thad, Bob, and Joe P for dinner at 1776 Steakhouse, a high-end steak restaurant, to celebrate Steven's birthday and Steven & Thad's anniversary.  I had the same thing I've had several other times, the filet mignon trio. I absolutely love it! After dinner we had celebratory cake.

Then I went to the Blue Moon to perform in the Legends shows.  I was Neil Diamond and sang "Cracklin' Rosie", "I Am I Said", "Sweet Caroline", and "Brother Love's Travelin' Salvation Show". Our part-time neighbors Mark & Norman were there for the show, and Steven & Thad and Spouse showed up just before the finale song.  After I changed into my civilian clothes we walked over to Cooter Brown's where a big group of guys from the Bear Weekend had congregated.  We had a drink, chatted with friends and met some new friends.  The weather was dreamy outside so it was a great night to be "out on the town".

Sun was the complete opposite of Sat.  The weather was rainy/stormy and Spouse didn't feel like going to breakfast, which we do nearly every Sun.  So we stayed home, had coffee and left over cake, and watched several episodes of "Shameless".  We literally didn't do a single constructive thing all day.  Then about 5:30 we met Steven & Thad at a diner for an easy/cheap dinner, then back home for more "Shameless".

Weekend recap

On Sat I worked (as usual) but didn't have any showings scheduled so I volunteered to drive the company bus for a couple hours, providing shuttle transportation to/from a local arts festival.  People were very nice and appreciative of the free shuttle service and it gave me a little something different to do since I had no appointments.

That evening we had a simple/easy dinner out with Steven & Thad, then came home and relaxed a little before heading into town to perform in the Legends show as Boy George.  I love doing that Legend because the songs are so good and his presence is unmistakable. The place was really full and the crowd was really 'into' the show!  Immediately afterward we go out into the audience for 'meet and greet' time, and I got several requests for photos and had several conversations with folks who complimented me on my performance.  My buddies Jason & Kevin were there too so I spent a little time chatting with them as well. It was a really fun night!

When I got home about 11:45 Spouse was watching 'Justice League' so I grabbed a big glass of water and watched it with him.  I can never come home from a show and go right to bed; I need some time to settle down.  

Since we went to bed so late we didn't get up until 9:30 Sun morning.  We picked up wraps and chips and headed to the beach, arriving just before noon.  Believe it or not this was our 1st beach day this season!  May was very rainy and cool, and then in June it seemed like every Sun it was overcast, so this was our 1st opportunity to go.  It was glorious!!  The oppressive humidity we've had for the last 2 weeks broke and there was a lovely breeze blowing.  

The.  Perfect.  Beach.  Day.

I didn't get the laundry done or the dogs bathed as I'd planned, but it was worth it to take advantage of such a pretty day.  That evening we had dinner with Steven & Thad and then stopped at the grocery store on the way home.

A pretty decent weekend.