Easter weekend

We were on the road by 8am Sat and arrived at Spouse's brother's house at 10:30.  We visited with him and his wife for about an hour, then went to meet friends for lunch.

Our original plans were to meet Jeff & Shaun whom we met on a cruise a few years back, and their friends Brandon & David.  However a family emergency called Jeff & Shaun out of town, so we just met up with Brandon & David whom we'd not met before.  We had a wonderful lunch at Taco House (its actual name is Cantina Mexicana) and easily understood why Jeff & Shaun thought we should meet.  

It was a lot of fun and the 2 hours passed quickly.

We returned to check on the dogs and get settled in, then went to Spouse's sister's house to visit.  We normally stay there but she was expecting a full house.  We had fun catching up on the family happenings, then returned to our home base to wash up before dinner.

We met up with our friend Carl who took us to Bar Louie, one of his favorite haunts, for cocktails and dinner.  Carl and I both had delicious cosmos.  Spouse had a Corona.

Its a lively place so there was plenty to see while we chatted and laughed with Carl.

And speaking of things to see, we noticed several men wearing onesies, so when one of the guys walked past our table in a cow print onesie I said "Nice udders!"  He laughed and thanked me, which opened the door to my question about why he and his friends were wearing the onesies.  He explained that they were members of the local rugby team and once a month they have a themed pub crawl.  This month's theme was onesies. 

This led to a broader conversation after he left about why we weren't hip enough to participate in themed pub crawls, and what possible themes we'd suggest.  After dinner we strolled the promenade and had some frozen yogurt.

Sun morning we helped Spouse's brother get ready to host the family for Easter, then made a quick run to Trader Joe's to stock up on pantry staples.  

Back at the house I put on my Easter shirt (worn only on Easter day) and took the dogs out to play in the back yard where I took this selfie.  Then Spouse & I went to pick up Aunt Mary.  The rest of the family started arriving around noon and we had a great time visiting with everyone.  The weather was sunny and in the mid 60s so it was fantastic.  

I got to hold our niece's son Alonzo who was born 2 days after Christmas.  He's such a good baby, never fussing or squirming, and he stayed awake for more than 5 hours.

We took Aunt Mary home and then headed back to DE.  It was a whirlwind weekend but an enjoyable one.

Holiday highlights part 1

Sun the 23rd we loaded up the car with our luggage, gifts, food, and dogs and got on the road by 8:30, right on schedule.  After unloading everything at Spouse's sister's house, our 2 nephews joined us as we met up with our friends for our annual hippie roll and pizza luncheon.  We had a wonderful lunch with Lisa, Carl, Kerry & Hugh, Kelly, Alex, and Kim & Danny and I laughed so hard I had tears in my eyes more than once.  As is our custom, we took a group photo:

One of the things that had me laughing so hard were the 'mini hands'.  Or as I called them, 'Trump hands'.  Kim brought these little plastic hands that fit on the end of your finger, which were simultaneously hilarious and creepy.  We kept finding different ways to position them for comedic effect.

I've lost count of how many years we've been doing this, but its certainly a highlight of the Christmas season for me.  And the owners of the restaurant couldn't be nicer to our wacky group.

Afterward we hung out at the house with the family for a couple hours, then met up with our old friends Ron & James and Mike & Clark at our favorite Mexican restaurant Cantina Mexicana, also known as The Taco House.  Unfortunately I neglected to take any photos of our gathering. We've known them for over 20 years and we're all very happy we've maintained our friendship despite Spouse & me moving away 12 years ago.  The 4 of them have visited us many times at home, and we were happy we all had an opportunity to meet up for dinner.  We were also overjoyed to see the Taco House owners Juan & Gloria too!  As we were looking at the margarita menu we noticed a small typo.  One of the choices was a "Caddillac" margarita. We speculated about what it was made of. Someone suggested it was made with top shelf tequila, so I joked that the top shelf liquor made it special and was responsible for the extra "d" in "Caddilac".  Then I said "Who doesn't like some extra D???" and we all had a good laugh!

Meeting Armistead

Wed I left DE early enough to miss most of the DC rush hour traffic.  I decided to stop at the Trader Joe's for some goodies.  That place was like pumpkin overload!!  I've never seen so many products made from or flavored with pumpkin.  But since I love 'seasonal' merchandise I picked up a box of pumpkin Joe-Joes, some pumpkin biscotti, and some pumpkin spice coffee, as well as several other non-pumpkin goodies.

Then I drove through the old neighborhood where Spouse & I 1st lived together.  The house is still there, but is cuter now that they painted the siding a soft lilac and the shutters and front door a medium lilac.  Its not everyone's taste but I thought it was adorable.  Great memories.

Then I met up with our friend Roger (of Bugsy & Roger) for an early dinner at Taco House!  The owners changed the name to Cantina Mexicana years ago but it will always be Taco House to us.  The weather was sheer perfection so I chose a patio in the shade on the patio.  We had a delicious dinner then walked to the metro.

We arrived at the Smithsonian's Museum of the American Indian a bit early so we sat outside and enjoy the stellar weather and the beautiful facade of the building, meant to look like a pueblo.  

 Eventually we went inside and took our seats, eagerly awaiting the lecture.

Armistead Maupin was introduced and then received a standing ovation before uttering a word.  He began by stating that this book is a memoir, but that as readers learned about the people close to him throughout his life, they'd likely see characteristics of many of the "Tales of the City" characters.  He did a short reading (probably 5-6 minutes), then spoke a bit more.  Several of his extended family were there so he introduced his 2nd reading by saying to them that they will enjoy hearing his words of appreciation about his grandmother.  The 2nd reading was probably 20 minutes in length, and then he opened up the lecture for questions from the audience.

I can't accurately describe what it was like, except to say that his calm and gentle demeanor were exactly what I expected, and that I felt so connected to him that it was as if I was listening to an old friend I hadn't seen in a while but knew well.  It was kind of magical.

He thanked everyone for coming and received a 2nd standing ovation.

We filed out of the auditorium and were directed over to where Armistead was sitting at a table for the book signing.  Roger & I waited in line for 45 minutes but it was totally worth it.  They didn't take our books from us to be signed and then wisk us away quickly.  Oh no... each person was allowed to talk with Armistead while he signed their book. Maybe because we'd paid $30 for the lecture and book signing?

I said "At the risk of sounding like a 13 year old girl, I have to tell you that I'm a huge fan.  Honestly I don't read a lot but I've read every one of your books and just love them.  Hearing you speak and meeting you now is a bucket list item for me."  He was very gracious and thanked me for my kind words.  

Then as we shook hands I said "Oh, and please don't stop writing!!"

While I absolutely love all my Armistead Maupin novels, this memoir is extra special to me because he signed it and because of the extraordinary experience of meeting him.

Christmas recap, part 2

On Fri Spouse & I met up with friends for our annual pizza and hippie roll luncheon.  Typically there are just 8 of us, but unbeknownst to each other, Kerry and Spouse both invited their families to join us so our group nearly doubled to 15.  Spouse's family is Catholic, Spouse & I and our friend Alex are gay, Alex is also Latino, my mother-in-law and Kim's mother-in-law are both in their 80s, Kim's mother-in-law is also Japanese, Lisa is an atheist, and our nephews are 19 & 21 year old college students.  We were quite the diverse group.

What's a hippie roll?  Its probably 1 of the most delicious items you can eat that doesn't contain chocolate!  Take Italian sausage and slice it length-wise.  Lay it on pizza dough and add sauteed peppers and onions.  Roll up and bake until golden brown.  Absolutely delcious!!

For our group of 15 we ordered 30 hippie rolls, 3 large pizzas, 1 salad, 1 pasta dish, and 15 drinks.  This info will be important in a minute.

We had lots of great conversations and laughs as we caught up with each other and really just enjoyed being together. 

My friend Lisa and me.  We've known each other for 40 years.

A woman we didn't know walked into the restaurant, saw us eating/talking/laughing and said "Oh good, I'm not too late for the party!"  We all laughed and someone said "Pull up a chair!"  Then Kelly said "You know the last 1 to arrive has to pay the bill!" and we all laughed even more.  The woman sat in a nearby booth and was joined by 2 men and a woman a few minutes later.  After finishing their meal, the 4 strangers said that it was so nice to see people who truly loved and cared for each other and got along so well.  They admitted to eavesdropping on some of our conversations.  Then they handed each of us a small religious pamphlet and invited us to join them at their church.  We politely thanked them and wished them a Merry Christmas.  After they left we snickered a bit about the invitation and someone said something about hell freezing over before they'd be caught in a church, but it was all very light-hearted. 

Once we'd finished our meal and asked for the check, the waitress informed us that the folks who'd given us the pamphlets had paid our bill.  We were all in shock, and immediately regretted our snarky comments about the pamphlets.  We estimated the bill was over $200 without the tip.  So we left the waitress a generous tip and vowed to send a thank you note to the address on the pamphlet.

After saying our goodbyes we took Spouse's mom back to her place and relaxed at his sister's house for a few hours.  Then for dinner we met up with our friends Liz & Justine.  Spouse & Justine worked together 20+ years ago and were roommates for several years too.  Liz & Justine lived with us for 18 months while they saved to buy a house.  We met at Cantina Mexicana (also known as the Taco House) at 7:30 and left at 11:15.  The time just flew by!  It had been a few years since we'd we seen them so we had a lot of catching up to do.  We also got great hugs from Juan & Gloria, the owners of Cantina Mexicana, whom we've known for 20 years.

We had a fabulous day reconnecting with friends!

Christmas plans

Spouse & l packed up the car with gifts, food, and our dogs and left last night to spend the holidays in northern VA.  Since Spouse's mom sold her house earlier this year, we're staying at Spouse's sister's house nearby.

Today we will have our annual pizza and hippie roll luncheon with Kerry & Hugh, Kelly, Lisa, and Spouse's mom.  While this is a super fun time, we will miss George who passed away in Sept.  Tonight we have plans to meet up with our dear friends Justine & Liz, whom we haven't seen in several years.  They actually lived with us for a year and a 1/2 when Spouse & I 1st moved in together.  We're having dinner at our favorite Mexican restaurant Cantina Mexicana (aka: Taco House) so we'll also get to see the owners who've been our friends for 20 years, Juan & Gloria.  It will be a wonderful evening!

Sat (Christmas eve) Spouse & I will drive out to "the country" to visit and have lunch with my cousin Nez and her family, then back to Spouse's sister's house for his mom's 87th birthday party.  Sun (Christmas day) my aunt Mary will join us and we'll spend the day relaxing, eating, opening gifts, and enjoying some quality family time.  Christmas dinner will be something Italian; details to follow.  Mon we'll pack up and head back to DE.  I return to work on Tues but Spouse is off the entire week.

Wishing you all safe travels and much joy in your celebrations!

Wonderful weekend recap

Me & Spouse at cocktail hour

Sat evening Spouse & I went to the wedding and reception of Tim & Randy, 2 of the owners of the
Blue Moon where I perform in the Legends show.  After 36 years together they got married, and it was top shelf the whole way.

The ceremony was presided over by the Bishop Gene Robinson, the 1st openly gay bishop in the Episcopal Church.  Tim & Randy's longtime friend and recording artist Pamala Stanley sang during the ceremony, and Tim's brother shared a poem. After the ceremony the couple received their guests and everyone enjoyed an open bar, passed hors d'ouerves, and a fruit and cheese table while a jazz trio played.  

Huge floral arrangements abound!

An hour or so later everyone was asked to enter the dining room and find their seats.  Spouse & I were seated at a table with several of my fellow Legends and Rehoboth Idol performers and a few others. Again there was an open bar, and servers offered everyone red or white wine at the table.  A longtime friend of the couple spoke, followed by Miss Richfield 1981 who left everyone in stitches!  Then came the spinach salads, followed by the entre: surf and turf with risoto.  Amazing!  The balance of the night was filled with conversations, laughter, wedding cake, and dancing to the 10-piece band.  It was quite a lovely and fun event.

The wedding cake

Me with my good friends Rick & Lisa

My handsome Spouse

The next morning we showered, filled travel mugs with coffee, grabbed the dogs, and headed to VA to spend Mothers Day with Spouse's mom.  We arrived shortly before noon and since it was a nice day, the 3 of us sat outside in her back yard while the dogs ran around off-leash.  

Spouse's sister and her margarita

Then at 2:30 we met up with Spouse's brothers and sister and their spouses and children for an early dinner at Cantina Mexicana (aka: The Taco House).  It was wonderful to see the owners (and our friends) Juan & Gloria again, and they treated our group of 12 like royalty.  From appetizers to entres to drinks and dessert, we were there for 3 hours!  But the time seemed to fly by.

Back and Spouse's mom's house we gave her a gift:  a neckless, earlings, and matching bracelet.  She loves costume jewelry and wears it every time she leaves the house, so we knew she'd enjoy it.  We left at 6:45 and got home at 9:15.  It was a long but fun day.

Visit with the Newlyweds

After spending Tues-Thurs with our blood-related family, yesterday we drove back to the DC area to spend a few hours with some of our chosen family:  Michael & Jamie, also known as the Newlyweds.  (I refer to them as the Newlyweds because we attended their wedding in Sept of 2005 in MA, the 1st state to enact marriage equality, and called them the Newlyweds on my blog.  It just stuck.)

They live in Portland, OR but were on the east coast visiting family for the holidays and yesterday was pretty much the only day we could see them.  Since they were flying home immediately after our visit, we chose to meet them in Arlington, near the airport.  What better place to linger over a wonderful meal than Cantina Mexicana (also known as The Taco House)?!?!

The drive back to DC was terrible.  It rained the entire way, sometimes rather hard, and visibility wasn't very good.  In some places where the highway wasn't graded properly there were puddles of water on the road.  Some drivers acted as if it were a bright, sunny day and zoomed down the highway.  We saw 4 multi-vehicle accidents in the span of about 25 miles.

But the tense drive was worth it because we got to spend time with our very close friends.  They are like the brothers we always wanted, in sharp contrast to the brothers Spouse actually has.  Although the Newlyweds are 14 years younger than us, they are mature and settled, so we have always gotten along extremely well.  When both couples lived in Arlington we hung out a lot.  We spent a week with them in Puerto Vallarta in Feb 2013 and had a blast.

We talked about changes with their work/jobs, recent travels, upcoming travels, and the possibility of meeting them in Vancouver BC in July.  We talked about all 4 of us having recently spent time with family, family drama, real estate investments, pets, and future hopes and dreams.  I was amazed how quickly the time passed when I saw that we'd been eating and talking for 3 hours already.

After reluctantly saying goodbye, we both headed home; them via a 6 hour plane ride and us via a 2 1/2 hour car ride.  It was a wonderful visit.

Mother's Day weekend

Since I make up the schedule at work, I scheduled myself off this past weekend so Spouse & I could spend the weekend in VA with our family.

We arrived at Spouse's mom's house shortly after noon on Sat to find Spouse's sister and 2 of her kids there.  We sat and visited for a little while before heading out to have lunch together.  We spent the rest of the afternoon visiting with them and even took Marvin for a nice long walk.

That evening Spouse, his mother, and I picked up my Aunt Mary and the 4 of us went to dinner.  Since Sun was Mother's Day we mistakenly thought the restaurants that are normally crowded on a Sat night might not be so crowded, as folks would be taking their moms out on Sun instead.  Boy were we WRONG.  There was a 75 minute wait to get a table, and since the parking had been so tricky we decided not to leave and look for another place with a possibly shorter wait.  But we had a wonderful dinner at Coastal Flats, and our waiter was really cute too.  He was slightly flirty but then mentioned his girlfriend later on.  But we had a great meal and plenty of time to visit with my aunt and my mother-in-law.

Cantina Mexicana owners Gloria & Juan

Sun morning Spouse & I had coffee and toast with his mom and relaxed while she got ready and went to church.  While she was gone we showered, got dressed, and walked Marvin.  After church Spouse's sister and her family came over for a quick visit, and then we all went for an early Mother's Day dinner at Cantina Mexicana (aka Taco House).  This has been a Mother's Day tradition for us for many years.  We had terrific food in a fun, lively atmosphere.  Just as we were about to leave, our good friend and part owner Gloria walked in and we received sincere hugs and kisses from her.  We were afraid we were going to miss seeing her.

Afterward we packed up our gear and put Marvin in the car and headed back to DE.  It was a great weekend that passed all too quickly.

Friday fragments

Welcome to Friday fragments, my weekly recap of topics too big to forget yet too small to be their own post.

The blogs and facebook were ablaze with reports that VP Biden commented that GLBT people should have full equality in America including marriage.  Then, apparently unplanned, Obama said in an interview with Robin Roberts that he believes GLBT people should have marriage equality!  I am encouraged by this.  It has been my suspicion that Obama has felt this way all along but did not feel it prudent to make such a proclamation earlier, what with the conservative republicans at his throat every minute.  Fortunately he has now put it in the record and I can only hope it will help to smooth out the way for equality in the years to come.

I saw this on facebook and had to laugh.  Just look at his eyes!

I'm starting to really get excited about the upcoming Legends shows, which will start Memorial Day weekend.  I will be performing every other Sat, as I did last year.  I am retaining 1 of my Legends from last year, Neil Sedaka, and adding a new Legend: Elton John.  I had to go for a special costume fitting where they measured practically everything on my body!  Apparently my EJ costume is the most expensive of all the costumes for this year's show and can not be altered, so it has to be custom made to my measurements.  Guess I'd better lay off the Dunkin Donuts so I don't gain any weight!

This sums up my feelings on so many 'controversial' political topics:

Spouse & I will travel to VA this weekend to see his mom (and family) for Mother's Day.  I'm looking forward to having a delicious dinner with them at the Taco House!

Tonight I am singing 1 song in the Blue Moon Divas Show, a drag show that runs every Fri night.  The Rehoboth Idol contest will be starting in a few weeks and they want to promote the competition by talking it up and having me sing during the Divas show sing I won the contest last year.  I'm singing 1 of the songs I sang in last year's competition: Laughter in the Rain.

Have a great weekend!

Weekend highlights

After my client appointments on Sat I left the office early so Spouse & I could drive back to VA for the Easter weekend.

We arrived at 5:30 and visited with Spouse's mom and sister and her kids for awhile.  His sister and the kids went to church that evening and Spouse's mom went with us to dinner at Taco House (aka Cantina Mexicana).  

OMG, the food was SOOOO good!  Its a good thing we can't eat there regularly or I would be huge.  It was a mild evening so some people were eating on the patio, but since we had Spouse's mom with us and she's always chilly we ate indoors.  Gloria & Juan (the proprietors and our friends) greeted us like family and it was truly good to see them.  It occurred to me while we were there so I said it outloud to Spouse and his mother that I loved Taco House not just for the wonderful food, but also for the wonderful energy there.  The restaurant is bright and colorful but still cozy.  I always feel happy and positive there.  Once we returned home we watched a little TV and went to bed.

Sun morning while Spouse's mom was at church, Spouse & I went to Trader Joe's, World Market, and Panera.  We joked that the owners of TJMax and World Market were "good Christians" because they weren't open on Easter Sunday, while the owners of Trader Joe's, World Market, and Panera must be Muslims.  Later on I picked up my aunt Mary and brought her back to Joe's mom's house and we visited for a while before going over to Spouse's brother's house for Easter.  Most of the extended family was there with a few exceptions and we had a great time.  The weather was mild so we were able to sit out on the new screened porch and on the patio below.  The kids played badminton and volleyball in the yard.  We had fantastic food (as usual) and enjoyed a nice family holiday with no drama.  We took my aunt Mary home and then headed back to DE.

(Holiday) Weekend highlights

Fri am we headed back to VA, arriving just after 11am. We visited with Spouse's mom for an hour, then met up with Kerry & Hugh, Kelly, George, and Lisa for our 3rd annual Christmas lunch at Joe's Place. We had pizza and hippy rolls and shared a great time together. Then back at Spouse's mom's we visited with her and Spouse's sister, niece and nephews. That evening Spouse & I took his mom to dinner at my favorite Mexican restaurant: Cantina Mexicana (aka: Taco House).
We had a wonderful dinner and got to see the proprietor and our friend Juan. Unfortunately Gloria wasn't there.

Sat I drove out west almost an hour to visit my cousin Nez and her family. It had been about 18 months since I'd seen her. Just after I saw her last she had breast cancer surgery followed by months of chemo. I wasn't able to be with her then, but really really enjoyed spending the day with her on Sat. We sat around and talked, laughed, drank coffee, snacked, and just reconnected. It was really wonderful. That night Spouse's whole family came together at his sister's house to celebrate his mom's 82nd birthday, on Christmas Eve. My dear friend Kathryn came to the party as well, and we had a bunch of good laughs. She is the heterosexual, African American, female version of me!

Christmas morning was quiet, with Spouse & me having coffee and a slice of pumpkin roll with his mom. Later, his sister, niece and nephews came over and we had breakfast together. Later I showered, dressed, and picked up my aunt Mary and brought her back to Spouse's mom's house where we had our little gift exchange. Then we all went over to Spouse's sister's house for Christmas dinner. We had rigatoni, gnocchi, meatballs, sausage and 'gravy' (tomato sauce) and salad. My aunt Mary brought my absolute favorite cake for dessert: hummingbird cake. It was a very nice Christmas evening.

It seems the last few Christmases I've tried to schedule visits with friends and family like this, but they were interrupted by illness or inclement weather. Fortunately this year all my plans worked out! It was a great holiday, filled with friends, family, food, festivities and fun.

Weekend highlights

I worked until 5pm on Sat, then Spouse & I drove to VA. We had a late dinner and visited with the family.

On Sun Spouse & I picked up our friend Michael of the Newlyweds at his hotel in DC. We hadn't seen him in nearly 2 years. We drove to the Dupont Circle neighborhood (a favorite amongst the gays) and had breakfast at Trios, a place Spouse and his friend/former roommate Justine used to frequent. We all had ommelettes. Then we walked around the neighborhood and remembered the exciting days of our singleness when we would hang out there to see and be seen. Not much had changed there despite the fact that we hadn't been to that area in several years. Next we drove around the neighborhoods in VA where Spouse & I had lived, where our investment condos are, and where Michael had lived. More change and gentrification there, as we had expected. Next we took advantage of being 'in the neighborhood' and had lunch at the beloved Taco House. Its current name is Cantina Mexicana but it will always be Taco House to us. As always the food was delicious and it was very nice to see our friends and restaurant owners Juan & Gloria.

We had a great time visiting and catching up with Michael. He seemed well; happy and content. After returning to Spouse's mom's house to pick up our overnight bag and Jordan the dog, we headed for home at 4:30.

Weekend highlights

Fri night's buffet for charity at Hobos was great! It was also the restaurant's 2 year anniversary. The buffet was vegetarian and delicious. Unbeknownst to me, my friends Colin & Don from DC were there when I arrived so I joined them at their table. We ate and drank and talked and laughed and had a ball! The owner and chef Gretchen asked us to move from our small table to a large 1 so she could bring some folks over to join us. Although I wasn't crazy about this at 1st (since we were already having so much fun), it turned out to be great. The folks she brought over to join us were young and fun and we continued to have a great time. We closed the place down, then walked across the street to Blue Moon to catch the end of the Divas Show. Once that ended I bid my buddies a good night and headed home. After all, it was a school night for me.

Sat I worked and Spouse went to the gym. That evening we met up with Steven & Thad, 1 of the Bobs and Joe P for dinner at Conch Island. The food was good and quite reasonably priced compared to most of the restaurants nearby. After dinner, our group walked over to Blue Moon (even Spouse!!!) and hung out for a while, listening to music and talking. I was surprised to not run into anyone I knew but it was likely because it was still rather early for a Sat night. Spouse & I headed home and watched a little TV before going to bed.

Sun morning we got up early and drove to VA for Mother's day. We visited with Spouse's mom, she opened her gift (jewelry) from us, then we made a quick visit to Macy's with my gift card left over from Christmas. I got a red and white gingham shirt. We made a reservation for a late lunch/early dinner at Taco House, and met Spouse's sister and her husband and kids there, as well as Spouse's brother and his wife. We had an excellent meal with the added bonus of getting a short visit with the owners (and our friends) Juan and Gloria. Afterward we all returned to Spouse's mom's house and visited some more before heading back to DE.

Today I am off work, since I'll be working next Sun. I started the day by pulling the weeds from the beds surrounding the house, tossed some laundry in the washer, took a shower, then met a realtor friend for lunch. After lunch I went to Blue Moon for a sound/key check for the songs I'm singing in the upcoming series of shows, then ran a few errands. Once back home I did a little housecleaning and then relaxed a bit before Spouse got home. Of course when he got home he found me watching TV and assumed I'd done nothing but loaf all day! I quickly cleared up that misconception.

Weekend highlights

Wow, what a weekend!

We arrived at Spouse's mom's house in VA about 9:00 Fri night. Shortly thereafter 2 of Spouse's (deadbeat) brothers arrived and stirred up a bunch of family drama. There was plenty I wanted to say but decided to keep my mouth shut since none of the drama directly involved me or Spouse. Sat morning Spouse & I took his mom with us to our favorite store Home Goods, and then we had lunch. Spouse's sister and daughter came over for a brief visit, and then Spouse & I got ready for my cousin's daughter Sarah's wedding.

It was close to 90 degrees and the wedding was outdoor (in my cousin's beautiful back yard) so we were thankful that the ceremony was very short. The reception was in a community center that used to be an old schoolhouse. It was simple but elegant and beautiful. Spouse & I really had a wonderful time, and enjoyed meeting some new people like Eric & Suzanna:

who are friends of my cousin Inez, the mother of the bride, and Steve her husband. What a surprise to find that Eric was raised in a small town in DE! Here is me and my cousin Inez:

Spouse thinks she and I look a lot alike but I don't see it. It was especially nice for me to be able to reconnect with several of my family I haven't seen in many years. Here's me and my cousin April, Inez's sister:

and me with April's daughters Micah and Chelsea:

The last time I saw these young women was 14 years ago when Micah (left) was 9 and Chelsea (right) was 11. And below are my cousin Inez (mother of bride), my aunt Rosie (grandmother of the bride), me & Spouse.

Scattered around the reception room were many framed photos of the bride and groom, which I thought was a nice touch. Also, on the wall near the entrance/exit there were bulletin boards with several copies of a dozen or so photos of the couple, with a sign indicating guests were to take home which ever photos they wanted. And speaking of photos, in the foyer there was a treasure chest full of funky hats, leis, sun glasses and props. A photographer encouraged everyone to put on something crazy and pose for a wacky photo. Spouse put on a shiny red patent leather floppy brim hat and I put on a bright pink fur hat, we posed with our backs to each, giving the photographer our best 'pimp' look! The photographer will place all the photos into a special album for the couple. I loved this idea!!

Here are Sarah and Bryan being toasted, just before cutting the wedding cake:

Since the wedding colors were black and white, I wore off-white pants with a black shirt with white polka dots and Spouse wore the opposite: black pants and a white shirt with black polka dots. It sounds super-gay, I know, but I think we looked really nice. Click to enlarge this photo to get a better look at our polka dots.

Sarah's new husband Bryan got 'welcomed' into the family with a hilarious skit performed by Sarah's parents and siblings to the song "Welcome to the Family".

The lyrics are almost as funny as the skit!

Sun after breakfast we took Spouse's mom to Target and then relaxed for a while. At 3:00 we met up with Spouse's sister and her family, Spouse's brother (not a deadbeat) and his wife, and 1 of Spouse's deadbeat brothers at Taco House for an early Mother's Day dinner. (We will not be with his mom on Mother's Day.) Our food was wonderful as always, but it was very warm and humid on Sun and the a/c at Taco House was broken! They had the door open to allow a breeze to come in and set up a fan while someone worked on the a/c unit. We had a nice time despite the heat. We all returned to Spouse's mother's house and visited for a while, then Spouse & I left at 6:00, arriving home at 8:30.

Crush du Jour: Burack Ozcivit

Friday fragments

Welcome to Friday fragments, my weekly recap of topics too big to forget, yet too small to be their own post.

We went to see yet another condo on Wed. I was kinda feeling like I needed a day off anyway, so when this condo came available we decided to take the day off and meet our realtor to see it. Its in a great bldg with garage parking, controlled access, pool, and lots of other amenities. However, it is a short sale with a crazy-low asking price so we know there will be multiple offers and that it will take 3-4 months before the seller's lender will approve the short sale. We've been avoiding short sales until now, but because this bldg is very desirable (ie: will be easy to rent) and the unit is so large, we submitted an offer.

I really couldn't care less about American Idol anymore. I haven't watched this season at all. This seems odd to me because I am a singer and I used to be into AI big time. But the show has soured for me for a couple reasons. There's entirely too much talking from judges. This was true even when there were just 3 judges, but now with 4 its even worse. In an hour show there appears to be about 11 minutes worth of singing. Most people I know who still watch the show record it with their DVR so they can fast forward through everything but the singing, which is a good idea. Maybe next season.

Spouse & I are heading back to VA tonight. On Sat we are going to my cousin's daughter's wedding, which will be held outdoors. After a week of unseasonably cool temps, its supposed to be almost 90 degrees on Sat!! But it will be wonderful to see Sarah get married and to reconnect with my aunt and uncle (the bride's grandparents), my 2 cousins (the bride's mother and aunt), and my 2 cousin's children whom I haven't seen in years. I have no idea if any of my immediate family will be there.

We'll be celebrating Mothers Day this Sun, a week early. Since we'll be in town for the wedding, I suggested we celebrate Mother's Day with Spouse's mom and family a week early so we wouldn't have to make the trip back to VA 3 weekends in a row. (We're going back the weekend of the 15th for Spouse's brother's 50th birthday party.) To avoid last year's Mother's Day disaster, Spouse & I made reservations for Mother's Day dinner at the Taco House! This guarantees we'll have delicious food and wonderful service.

My friend Don sent me this video and story about a soldier and his buddies in Afghanistan who have made their own music video to the Lady Gaga/Beyounce song "Telephone". Its great!

Crush du Jour: Daniel Ross

Weekend highlights

WOW - what a weekend! The weather was amazing (bright, sunny, warm) and we had a wonderful time with friends and family.

We arrived in DC just before noon on Sat and met our realtor Betsy at yet another (foreclosure) condo. We liked the floor plan and the space a lot, but it will needs a substantial renovation. There are no kitchen appliances and the cabinets/countertops must be torn out. The kitchen is a total gut job, much like the bathroom. We're not sure yet if the purchase price, renovation price, and our budget will work on this one. Next it was on to Capital City Brewing Company to meet our good friends Kerry & Hugh for a late lunch. The weather was delightful so we sat outside and ate and talked. They surprised us with a handmade crochet blanket for one of our guest rooms! We had a terrific time with them.

With the top down we headed to Spouse's mom's house and arrived just minutes before my old high school friend Patrick arrived. Patrick figures prominently in my coming out story. We lost touch after he moved to FL more than 15 years ago, but thanks to Facebook he found me! We talked over lunch at a nearby diner, then sat outside on Spouse's mom's patio and talked some more since it was such a beautiful day. Spouse's sister and her family came over so our visit with Patrick kind of took on a 'family' vibe but it was still great to see him. That evening Spouse's mom joined us at our favorite Mexican place Cantina Mexicana (formerly the Taco House). It was busy and vibrant! Our dear friends and owners Gloria and Juan were there, as were their kids who really aren't kids anymore. We had a delicious meal and a wonderful time. I was very happy and felt 'at home'.

Sun morning I went back to the old church where Spouse & I used to be members. (He slept in.) It was great to see how the bldg had been improved and wonderful to see old friends again. I was really happy to be back there for a visit. Then I picked up my aunt Mary and brought her back to Spouse's mom's house where we talked for a little while before heading over to Spouse's brother Louis and sister-in-law Karen's house for Easter dinner. Everything was so tasty we couldn't help but over-eat. And don't even get me started with all the Easter candy Karen bought! Again it was a beautiful day and I ate outside on the deck. That evening I took aunt Mary back home, Spouse & I packed up and said goodbye, deposited some checks at a local bank, and then headed back home to DE.


Between the weather, the food, the friends, and the family, it was an exceptional weekend!

Crush du Jour: Andrew Levitas

Weekend update

Fri evening we had a fun time at Liz & Justine's Halloween costume party/wedding reception.
There really weren't any physical references to the 'wedding reception' as I'd imagined. No white wedding bells or doves; just people in Halloween costumes. We didn't take our camera so I don't have any photos, but there were some clever costumes.

Since the theme was 'couples' many people were creative. One couple had added 'fins' to one of their outfits and bags of potato chips to the other. They were 'fish and chips'. There were two couples who came as an electric socket and plug. Apparently they shopped at the same costume store. Another couple came as Austin Powers and a shagalicious lady. As stated before, Spouse & I were Fred Flintstone and Barney Rubble. Our hostesses were black-eyed peas. Hmmm, sounds familiar.

One woman came as Nancy Pilosi and she looked exactly like her! When she walked in I was like "What is Nancy Pilosi doing here?" She had a color photo of Nancy Pilosi pinned to her lapel, carried a gavel and a small American flag, and encouraged everyone to vote Democratic on Tues. She was quite funny.

Sat we met up with our friends Robert & Liz, saw their house, and caught up on each others' news over lunch at a great Indian restaurant. We hadn't seen them since Dec so we had a good time. Then we returned to Spouse's mom's house and visited with her and his sister and kids. Then our friend Wendy came over and we went to dinner at my favorite Mexican restaurant The Taco House. It was absolutely delicious, and we enjoyed seeing Juan, Gloria, Sandy, and Neville.

Sun morning we met up with Kerry & Hugh, George, Kelly, Ana, Emily and Javier for breakfast. It was great to see them all, as it had been quite a while. We really didn't do much catching up, as the US Presidential election continued to overpower the conversation. I will be so happy on Nov 5th when that is over. Afterward we hung out at Spouse's mom's house again talking to her and Wendy until Spouse's sister and kids came over again. When they left around 2pm we were right behind them.

This will be a short work week for both of us. Spouse worked today, but has tomorrow off for the election (since he's a state employee). He works Wed but is off 1/2 day on Thurs for the election parade. Then he works on Fri. I work today, tomorrow, and Wed and then will be off Thurs and Fri for the Rehoboth Beach Independent Film Festival. I'm so excited! As I did in past years, I will recap the films I see each day so you can add those you like to your Netflix queue.

Crush du Jour: Jon LaJoie

Long day

Wow, today was a long day.

Yesterday we finally received the lien release letter I requested 2 weeks ago and which was supposed to take just 3-5 days. I had to call again about it, and when I got off the phone and checked the mail, it had arrived. Rather than mail the letters and the duplicate title forms to the VA DMV, we decided to take the next day off and drive to the VA DMV and handle it in person. Who knows how long it would take for the forms to arrive, get processed, and for the titles to be mailed back to us.

So Spouse & I called our offices to let them know we were taking the day off and then hit the road at 7:45 this morning. It was a chilly and foggy morning, but the sun finally burned through the fog and it turned out to be a beautiful day. We arrived at the DMV at 10:30, waited an hour and 15 minutes for our number to be called, and shortly thereafter walked out of the DMV with all 3 titles in hand. Success!

Since it was almost lunch time we decided to stop in at our fave Mexican restaurant Cantina Mexicana (aka: The Taco House). We arrived just before the noon lunch rush. On Spouse's way to the restroom he saw Gloria who came out of the kitchen to say hello and give him a hug. Then she came to our table and gave me the same greeting. She thanked me sincerely for the article that appeared in the Del Ray Sun newspaper (see blog entry on ) and said she'd received several calls and in-person patrons who were happy to learn from my article that Cantina Mexicana was actually The Taco House. We had a delicious lunch consisting of their awesome chicken quesadilla appetizer followed by Tres Colores (3 different colored enchiladas with 3 different fillings) and a California burrito. YUM!!! When it was time for the check we were told our meal was "on the house". We thanked them profusely and told them we'd see them in 3 weeks, since we have plans to meet friends there on our next weekend back in DC.

We left at about 1:30 and headed back to DE. We decided we would go directly to the car dealership to sign and drop off the 2 titles for the cars we traded in, and pick up the license plate for our CRV. They had been 'holding' the plate until we gave them the titles. Unfortunately that meant we had to drive around for 2 weeks with expired temporary tags until the whole title mess was finally resolved.

Prior to our deciding to take the day off, Spouse & I had decided we'd go to Dover on Tues evening to use a store coupon that expired on Fri. So after an hour back at home, we got back in the car and drove to Dover to do our shopping. We had a coupon for 15% off our entire purchase, and we a gift card (housewarming gift) for $100. We only spent a little over $50. this time, which is fine. The gift card can be used anywhere so we'll just hang onto it. We got 2 sets of chocolate brown towels for our bathroom, a set of 500 thread count queen sheets for our bed (or a guest bed), a 5-piece set of bathroom accessories (soap dish, liquid soap dispenser, toothbrush holder, drinking cup) in ivory with a brown starfish on them, and 3 one pound bags of flavored coffee. I think we did really well!

When we left the store it was almost 8:00 so we headed toward home and thought about what to do about dinner. We decided to eat at the Milford Diner. Spouse had heard from colleagues that the food was good and very reasonably priced, which rings not 1 but 2 bells in our heads. Neither of us was starving, but knew we'd need to eat something so the diner seemed right on point. Since I learned from the waitress that they had coconut cream pie, I decided on a fried egg sandwich (with mayo & cheese) so I'd have room left for the pie. I was surprised to see fried egg sandwiches on the menu - that's such a 'diner' thing. I hadn't had one in a bazillion years but as I ate mine I was pleasantly reminded of my childhood when my family would sometimes have fried egg sandwiches for lunch on a Sat or Sun. It really took me back. And the pie was no disappointment either. We enjoyed our dinner at the diner, and got home just before 10:00, a few minutes ago. Its been a long day, but a good one.


Work out update - session 3: I did pretty well with my breathing so I wasn't yawning like a bored temp, but I got a little nauseous at the very end of my work out. I'd finished my ab work and felt really hot and flushed. I was sweating like a whore in church, and just laid on the floor for a few minutes, waiting to feel normal again. Rick says my blood pressure may have spiked from all the exercises. Not sure if there's anything I can do to prevent this from happening again, or if it will stop happening by itself as I continue to exercise regularly.


Drag Queen name of the day: Ima Freeloader

This 'n that

Quick trip to HQ
Tues morning I drove to my company's headquarters in Richmond, VA. I set some meetings and a training session in the afternoon, stayed overnight, and had more meetings and more training Wed morning. I left at 1:00 and drove home. It was a lot of time on the road (9 hours) in 2 days, but I accomplished a lot in a short time.

Gays marry in IA
Did you hear that Iowa is now permitting gay marriage? According to a story at http://www.gfn.com/channelArticle.cfm?channelDesRecordID=492:
Gay College Students Legally Wed in Des Moines
One day after an Iowa judge ruled that a state law stipulating the only legal marriages in Iowa were between a man and a woman was unconstitutional, two male college students were married in the front yard of a Des Moines residence.

The couple — Tim McQuillan and Sean Fritz, both 24 and Iowa State University students — were married this morning, after they obtained a marriage license at the Polk County recorder’s office and got a judge to sign a waiver allowing them to marry today rather than wait three days, as is required by law, according to a report in the Des Moines Register.

They were married by the Rev. Mark Stringer of First Unitarian Church in Des Moines at 10:32 a.m.

Fritz proposed to McQuillan last night when he heard Polk County Judge Robert Hanson had ruled Iowa's law forbidding gay marriage was unconstitutional. As reported by RadioIowa, Fritz went to the store and bought wedding rings last night, then got on the Internet to find the paperwork for a Polk County marriage license.

"There was a lot of double-checking everything on the Internet to make sure that we got all the paperwork filled out correctly the first time," Fritz said. "We didn't want to get refused because we messed up a 't' somewhere."

Fritz says he called McQuillan's mother in California to ask permission to marry her son. McQuillan says Fritz then got in touch with him. "He instant messaged me over the Internet that this was going on," McQuillan said. "When he picked me up around nine o'clock he proposed to me on the spot. Besides the obvious shock, I still haven't recovered. Maybe it'll set in later this week."

Iowa Family Policy Center president Chuck Hurley called the state of affairs this morning in Iowa "devastating" and "outrageous."

Blog excerpt to be printed
Last Fri I received an email request from the editor of the DelRay Sun newspaper to print one of my blog entries. It seems that my favorite Mexican restaurant Cantina Mexicana (aka: The Taco House) has resumed advertising in that paper, and the editor wants to help steer more business there. He said he found a blog entry where I wrote about the restaurant and staff and thought it would be helpful to print it in his paper.

So if you're in the Alexandria/Arlington area be on the look-out for my excerpt in the Sept 12 edition of the DelRay Sun.

Drag Queen name of the day: Maureen Core