I am an artist

I will freely admit that I know little to nothing about art. You could put a Rembrandt, Picasso, and a Renoir in front of me and I'd have no clue which was which. But that doesn't mean I don't like art. I just know what I like.

I like color, and I like defined shapes.

Many years ago Spouse & I saw this framed print by Kandinsky in IKEA and I fell in love with it. Spouse liked it too, and since it was inexpensive we bought it. It remains one of my favorite pieces.
While watching a decorating show on HGTV some years ago, I heard a designer refer to a piece of art she called "Mondrian-inspired". I liked the piece so much I looked up Mondrian and found lots of stuff I liked, such as this:

We don't have any Mondrian pieces nor any "Mondrian-inspired" pieces, but it is a style of art I am attracted to.

Just a few months ago when Steven & Thad were here Thad saw a painting in our house and said it looked "very Mark Rothko". "Very what?" I asked. I'd never heard of Mark Rothko, but when I looked him up I understood what Thad meant. Here are 6 separate paintings by Rothko:

I love them.

The paintings in our house that reminded Thad of Mark Rothko are these: (click to enlarge)

I painted them about 5 years ago to decorate my very dull office. They were my 1st ever attempt at 'making art'. I bought canvases at a craft store and used left-over latex wall paints. The green was in our kitchen, the purple was on a single wall in our bedroom, and the red/burgundy was on our fireplace mantel in our previous house.

When we moved to our current house I hung them in a bedroom that serves double duty as my office.

Interestingly, I hung them in a different order than before without being aware of it until now. I love that my art is flexible!

My 2nd attempt at 'making art' were landscapes. Each painting is done with just one color plus white. These are the same left-over wall paints I used for the "Rothko-inspired" paintings above, but with a very different effect. These hung in our library/den in our previous house.

Now they hang in a hallway at our current house.

Once again, I hung them in a different order than before without being aware of it until now.

Last weekend I felt 'inspired' by the long blank wall in our new master bathroom, so I picked up some more canvases at the craft store, along with some acrylic paints. (When we moved from our previous house we threw away all the left-over wall paints.) I wasn't sure what I wanted exactly, but I knew I wanted it to have a somewhat bold and reckless feel, to juxtapose the soothing, earthy tone of the space. This is what I came up with:

Without trying to copy Kandinsky, I think I created something "Kandinsky-inspired".

I was a little unsure of them at 1st, since they are not as controlled as my other pieces, but when Spouse said he like them, I banished my doubts and silently told myself "I am an artist. I AM an artist!"

Hmmm, sounds familiar. I hope I'm not taking this 'empowerment' thing too far.

Crush du Jour: Geoff Begnaud

I am a writer

A few months ago I was contacted by Hadley, a straight woman who said she "loved" my blog. I'm guessing she searched Blogger for blogs in our small town and found mine.

Hadley said she was going to launch a website designed for 'Locals Only'. See, we live in a small seaside resort area that has a rather small year-round population (called 'locals'), but a large influx of out-of-state visitors during the summer months (called 'weekenders'). Being approximately 2 hours from Washington DC, Baltimore, Philadelphia, and Wilmington, there are a lot of people for whom our little seaside area provides a very attractive 'beach weekend'.

To encourage 'locals' to patronize the many restaurants during the non-summer months, many restaurants feature off-season specials. Hadley used to compile a list of the restaurants and their nightly specials, which used to get copied and passed around. Last fall she decided it would be better to put the list on a website/blog, and include reviews and comments from patrons. Thus, the 'Locals Only' blog was born. In an email she asked if I'd like to write for the blog.

Initially I was flattered that she liked my blog enough to invite me to participate, so I told her 'Sure'. We emailed back and forth a few times, trying to figure out when we were both available to talk on the phone. We both have busy schedules so it was harder than you'd think. The holidays came and went and since I didn't hear from her for a while, I wondered if perhaps I seemed too 'high maintenance' or something. You never know, right?

But today, out of the blue, with no prior coordination, I got a call from Hadley. She asked if I had a minute to talk and although I was working, I took a break to talk to her. I was glad she was still interested in me.

From our 10-15 minute chat I could tell we could become friends easily. I liked her right away. She loves to eat out, she loves to drink cocktails, she loves meeting friends for happy hour, and she loves men... all the things I love, too! And if that wasn't enough, she loves my blog, thinks I'm funny, and referred to me as a writer.

"I'm not a good writer at all. I just write like I talk" she said with a giggle. "But you're a great writer! You're funny, and your blog is always interesting. I just love it."

After all of that I probably would have agreed to almost anything she asked.

Hadley: "You're a great writer, now paint my house."

Mark: "OK. What color?"

She also explained that she wants the blog to be about more than just off-season restaurant specials and reviews, so we discussed some of the other types of content that would be appropriate. She was open to my ideas and was very easy to work with, so I agreed to become a contributor. A writer.

When our conversation was over I thought to myself "I am a writer. I AM a writer!"

I've always hesitated to call myself a writer because I don't have much formal training for it. I've written some training materials in a few previous jobs and I've been writing this blog for 5 years now, but its not like I've written a novel or anything like that. But I do have experience, if you consider a 5-year old blog to be experience.

And then I remembered that 2 1/2 years ago a small newspaper found my blog and requested to reprint an entry in the newspaper where I described a favorite restaurant. They actually published the blog entry, word for word, and listed me as the article's author. There was no mention in the newspaper of finding the article on my blog. No, they simply printed it and listed me as the author.

Yes, I am a writer.

So in the next few weeks I'll be putting together some short articles for publication on Hadley's 'Locals Only' blog. I'll provide you with the link when the 1st article is published, in case you want to check it out.

Crush du Jour: John Dore

Pact with the Devil

By now everyone's heard about Pat Robertson's vile claim that Haiti's devastating earthquake is the result of it's pact with the Devil. Honestly, I can't understand how he could have ANY followers left after such a terribly insensitive (not to mention utterly ridiculous) comment.

Apparently the Devil is a reader of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, and decided to use that newspaper to send a letter to Robertson. The letter read:

"Dear Pat Robertson,

I know that you know that all press is good press, so I appreciate the shout-out. And you make God look like a big mean bully who kicks people when they are down, so I'm all over that action.

But when you say that Haiti has made a pact with me, it is totally humiliating. I may be evil incarnate, but I'm no welcher. The way you put it, making a deal with me leaves folks desperate and impoverished.

Sure, in the afterlife, but when I strike bargains with people, they first get something here on earth -- glamour, beauty, talent, wealth, fame, glory, a golden fiddle. Those Haitians have nothing, and I mean nothing. And that was before the earthquake. Haven't you seen "Crossroads"? Or "Damn Yankees"?

If I had a thing going with Haiti, there'd be lots of banks, skyscrapers, SUVs, exclusive night clubs, Botox -- that kind of thing. An 80 percent poverty rate is so not my style. Nothing against it -- I'm just saying: Not how I roll.

You're doing great work, Pat, and I don't want to clip your wings -- just, come on, you're making me look bad. And not the good kind of bad. Keep blaming God. That's working. But leave me out of it, please. Or we may need to renegotiate your own contract.

Best, Satan"

Crush du Jour: Alessandro Nivola

Long weekend highlights

Sat morning Spouse went to his personal trainer appointment, and Steven and I went to an estate sale nearby. Like most 'estate sales' around here, everything was overpriced. Steve found 3 boxes of vintage Christmas balls for his silver Christmas tree, but didn't buy them because they were way too expensive. They wanted $75 for all 3 boxes! Afterward we went to breakfast and I did well on my diet by not eating the home fries or toast. Steven dropped me off at home and I drove Big Ella over to the staging area so she could be in the Martin Luther King Jr parade. It was fun and I received a plaque for our participation.

Spouse and I did some shopping and I picked up some canvases and paints at Michael's Village Crafts. When we returned home Spouse watched TV while I worked on my art. I suggested we have a 'date night' where we'd have a nice dinner out followed by a movie. Spouse wasn't so much interested in seeing a movie so we just had dinner. It was sort of 1/2 of a date I guess. We decided to eat at Fish On! because we knew we would have a nice meal without blowing our diets, and because we had a gift card. Its an upscale restaurant that sort of looks like it belongs in Manhattan. We both started with salads of mixed greens with bleu cheese crumbles, then Spouse had salmon with roasted brussel sprouts and acorn squash. I had scallops with baby spinach in a lemon caper broth. Both were delicious and we successfully resisted their decadent Big Fat Chocolate Cake. When we returned home we watched Project Runway on the DVR and then went to bed.

Sun it rained all day. We decided to have a lazy day of TV watching, computing, and napping. I trimmed my goatee because it was looking too shaggy. It still hasn't filled in the way I wish it would, but at least it looks neater than before. We didn't leave the house until 4:30 when we went to Steven & Thad's for dinner. They were having tortilla-free taco salad and invited us to join them. We were impressed by their fancy presentation! All the taco salad ingredients were neatly chopped and pleasingly arranged in a large round divided container. I teased them about being fancier fellows than I had given them credit. We had a really nice evening hanging out with them and watching the Golden Globes. Usually I find awards shows tend to get kind of boring, but I have discovered the secret is to watch them with other gays. The 4 of us critiqued the stars' gowns, hair, and make-up during the red carpet show. It was fun! We also had a pretty wild thunder and lightning storm. Thank god the electric and cable didn't go out!

Spouse & I were both off on Mon for MLK Jr day. We tidied up the kitchen a bit, ran a few errands, went for a short walk on the beach, and then met our buddies Kozet & Jim for lunch. We met them at the gay car club awards banquet last Sept and discovered they live in the neighborhood where Spouse & I first lived together. They are nice guys and we had a very enjoyable time. Again I stayed on my diet by having a Greek chicken wrap and NOT eating the delicious french fries that came with it.

After lunch Spouse & I did our weekly grocery shopping, and then I went to my personal trainer appt early since I was off and Rick had an opening. Instead of getting home at 7:30, I was hope at 5:30, which was nice. I made bison burgers and baked beans for dinner. They taste similar to hamburgers but have virtually no fat and are a great source of protein. We watched TV and went to bed early.

Crush du Jour: Cory Bond

Friday fragments

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

I've mentioned a few times that Spouse & I play team trivia with Steven & Thad and The Bobs on Thurs nights. Last night we won 1st place again, for the 3rd week in a row!! The prize for winning 1st place is a $25. gift card for the restaurant/bar where the game is played. Often we eat dinner there before the game and have our fave waitress Liz deduct the $25. from our bill.

Since Project Runway Season 7 started last night, and I knew we wouldn't get home in time to watch it from the beginning, I acquiesced and swapped our cable box for one with a DVR. Spouse has been wanting a DVR for a while but I have resisted, citing an addition $12.95 to our already high cable bill. But when I called the cable company this week about it, I found it was only $2.50 extra for the first 12 months. I figured that was a good test for us. Last night I recorded Project Runway so we could watch it from the beginning when we got home, but it was pretty late so we decided to wait and watch it tonight, after dinner with 'the usual suspects'.

Rue McClanahan had a stroke yesterday. Best known as Blanche on "The Golden Girls" and more recently as Peggy in "Sordid Lives: The Series", is 75 years old and is expected to be released from the hospital following surgery. Best wishes, Blanche!!

The Onion, my favorite and most trusted new source, has done it again. This time they've tickled my fancy with this (fictitious) story about a gay teen who is worried he might be a conservative Christian! I dare you to read it and not laugh. Then there's this report of a Colorado ban on same-sex friendships!

This will be a 3-day weekend for us, as Spouse & I both have Mon off for Martin Luther King Jr. day. We don't have any 'big plans' but who doesn't love a long weekend?

I've mentioned before that our friend Steven forced us to watch an episode of that train wreck known as "Jersey Shore". It is SOOO bad. But today my friend Matt posted this hilarious spoof on Facebook, featuring kids as the "Jersey Shore" characters. OMG - so funny!!

One of my friends posted this video on Facebook and I loved it! The vintage photography AND the crazy background music made me laugh out loud. I'm sure several of you can think of some ideas on "what to do with a drunken sailor"...

Have a great weekend!

Crush du Jour: Ben Kieren

Enough time

Tonight is the premier of season 7 of Project Runway, and I know that David Dust is so excited he's already peed his pants a few times.

I have been watching Project Runway since day 1, or season 1, I guess I should say. I happened to see a commercial for it while watching something on Bravo and made a mental note to watch it. I did, and I really liked it. It seemed new and fresh. Maybe part of it had to do with the fact that I do not sew or design clothing. But the show just seemed different, and I liked that the characters were "characters". That was season 1, the season Jay McCarroll won, the season that got everyone talking about Project Runway.

Since then there have been 5 additional seasons of Project Runway, and many other similar design/reality shows, including Design Star, The Fashion Show, Sheer Genius, Top Design, and Launch My Line. None of them even approach the greatness of Project Runway, but that's just me.

And although Design Star and Top Design are about interior design and Sheer Genius is about hair design rather than fashion design, the format is the same: a pool of contestants performs in themed challenges that result in weekly eliminations. Another uniting factor about all these shows is my frustration with the amount of time we, the TV audience, has to view the final products.

It seems that more than enough time is devoted to explaining the object of the challenge, shopping for supplies, and watching the construction of the item, be it a garment, hairstyle, or room.

There is always plenty of time for 'confessional' interviews where the contestants talk about how they feel about the challenge and the other contestants.

There always seems to be a crier on every season who is emotionally overcome at least once in every episode.

And every frickin' week we are introduced to the same judges, as if we'd forgotten who they were from last week.

But the the part of the show devoted to actually showing us the finished project is, like, 3 seconds.

Seriously!! In a 60-minute episode of Project Runway with up to 12 contestants/models we are treated to about 18 seconds of the models wearing the finished garments on the runway, COLLECTIVELY! That means 12 'looks' in 18 seconds.

Now, I don't know about you, but I would really appreciate a little more time to view the finished garments/hairstyles/rooms before hearing the judges' comments.

Sometimes you hear a judge mention something about 'poor construction' or the lack of a finished hem. These are things we literally do not have time to see!

With an hour long show you'd think they could give a little more time to showing the results. Maybe shave off a few seconds by NOT showing the crybaby in every episode. Shave off a few more seconds by NOT introducing us to the same judges week after week. Shave off yet a few more seconds by NOT showing the contestants brushing their teeth in the morning!

Yes, with a little bit of shaving here and there, I think we could manage to piece together perhaps (gasp!) 5 whole minutes to view the 12 'looks' on the runway.

What do you think?

Crush du Jour: Tober Brandt

Flight security

Last month's attempted underwear bombing of an airplane on Christmas day resulted in some new "security" standards being implemented immediately.

Since high-tech full body scanners will take a while to be installed in all US airports, the airlines are now implementing 'low-tech' body scanning on the tarmac.
It may be somewhat inconvenient (not to mention chilly in the winter), but you can rest assured that NOBODY will be able to board a plane in the US carrying a gun, knife, box cutter, shoe bomb, underwear bomb, or even Chapstick.

Of course, these measures are ONLY being taken on flights that originate in the US. Flights originating outside the US will still be a crap shoot.

Don't you feel 'safe' now?

Crush du Jour: Ethan Reynolds

As they appear

Sometimes things aren't as they appear.

Example 1: Former President Bush appears to be talking on the telephone. But notice that he has the handset backwards, with the earpiece next to his mouth (where his foot normally is) and the mouthpiece next to his ear.
Example 2: This TV news anchor appears to be showing a sketch of himself.

Example 3: This soccor player appears to be really enjoying a BJ from a team mate.

Example 4: This weather map appears to have a large penis on it.
Example 5: The soldier to the left of the Queen appears to have forgotten his underwear.
Example 6: This gymnast appears to be so excited with her performance that she could just pee!

Example 7: This football player appears to be humping his opponent.

Example 8: This photo appears to be about children posing for an innocuous, off-season beach photo.

Example 9: This camel appears to enjoy being mounted by this soldier. (Kinda gives new meaning to the term 'camel hump'.)

Example 10: This child appears to be re-enacting a scene from the Alfred Hitchcock thriller "The Birds".

Crush du Jour: Adrian Paul

Weekend highlights

I had a relaxing Sat morning drinking coffee and watching HGTV while Spouse was at his personal trainer appointment. When he came home we had brunch (steak and cheese omelettes) and then went to a store to try to use a Christmas gift card. Only, I didn't see anything I really wanted, so I decided to hold onto the gift card for another time.

Then we went to the stained glass studio to check in with the artist about the back-ordered glass we've been waiting on for months. It still hadn't arrived so Spouse & I picked a different (in-stock) piece so they could finally get started on the big diamond-shaped window we commission 6 months ago. While there, we worked with the artist to design the 3 rectangle window inserts for the windows over the tub. We are very happy with the way the design came out, and they had all the glass we need in stock. So, hopefully it won't be too much longer before we can take down those temporary paper shades and install our stained glass window inserts.

For my birthday last month Spouse gave me an mp3 player. So Sat afternoon I read the directions and loaded it up with music I already had on the computer from the 1st mp3 player. I had one before that was very inexpensive and broke a month or two later. Despite it being cheap, I returned it and got my money back. My new mp3 player has more sorting/playback options and is much nicer.

Sat evening we met Steven & Thad at Ruby Tuesday for dinner. They are dieting too, so it was a good place for us to have dinner. The salad bar is the best!! Steven also had coupons for buy-one-get-one-free, so that was a nice bonus. Then went to their house to watch "500 Days of Summer". It was pretty good, but one thing really bothered me about the film. The male lead's young sister (probably 12 years old) was completely ridiculous providing her adult brother with sage relationship advice. There was absolutely no need for that character, and giving her wisdom far, far beyond her age was just unbelievable. However, at one point the screen split in 2 and on 1 side the story continued with the word 'Expectation' under it, while on the other side the story continued with the word 'Reality' under it. I found this clever and a very effective way to communicate what sometimes happens in people's heads early on in dating. After the movie we watched an episode of "Jersey Shore", which was incredibly bad on an unprecedentedly monumental scale. But we had fun hanging out with our friends.

Sun morning after breakfast I went to the gym (my 3rd work out this week). Spouse & I went to get his car washed since it was coated in road salt from Friday's snow, but their was a HUGE line at the car wash so we gave up. We did our grocery shopping for the week, and then came home and roasted chicken, steak, and veggies. We really like doing this 'cook on Sunday, heat up on weekdays' kind of thing! We have meals for every day this week, and then some. Despite the temperature just hovering around freezing, we decided to take Jordan for a walk around the neighborhood. The sun was out and we bundled up warmly so it wasn't too bad. Later we went to Bob's for chili and game night. However, our conversations were so interesting that we never played any games! We just talked until after 9:00. We had a good time.

I was looking forward to my weigh-in this morning. Typically when someone starts a diet they have a dramatic 1st week weigh-in. Steven's was 9 lbs and Spouse's was 10 lbs. Mine was very disappointing though. Despite depriving myself of all kinds of goodies this week, sticking to my healthy eating all week, AND working out 3 times, I only lost 2 lbs. Naturally it made we want to immediately order a large meatlovers pizza and eat the entire thing. By myself. But I didn't. Instead I tried to remind myself that my goal was to reduce my portion sizes, eat less processed foods, eat more fruits and veggies, and work out at least twice. So, looking at that, I was very successful. But my expectation was that by doing the above, I would also drop 6-8 lbs, which I did not. Although initially discouraged, I remain committed to my goal.

Crush du Jour: Danny Dyer

Friday fragments

Welcome to Friday fragments, my weekly recap of topics too big to forget, yet too small to be their own post. Let's get started, shall we?

I've mentioned before that Spouse & I started playing team trivia in the fall with Steven & Thad and The Bobs at a local watering hole. Last night we won 1st place again ($25. gift card)! What's funny to me is that we have so much fun doing this. If someone would have asked me "Do you think you'd have fun playing a group trivia game?" I would have smirked. But Steven & Thad and The Bobs got us into it and being with them is a big part of why we like it so much. And its not just about knowing the answers; its also about having a good wagering strategy. In last night's game we couldn't come to a consensus on the answer to a bonus question where you lose the points you wager if you're wrong. So we decided not to answer and lost no points. The other 9 teams all answered, got the answer wrong, and lost the points they wagered.

It snowed overnight. We seem to have gotten about 2-3 inches of the light, fluffy kind of snow. I can see it blowing off the rooftops. We don't get snow here often because of being so close to the ocean. Warmer air off the ocean is pulled up into the storms so we often get rain here when our friends 12 miles inland get several inches of snow. Its very pretty because the sun is shining brightly today.

I saw this over at the notorious j*o*e and just had to swipe it!

It made me laugh out loud!

Today is day 5 of my healthy eating/weight loss effort. So far so good. Lord knows I've done this enough times that I should be used to it by now. I think the biggest adjustment for me is eating breakfast. You should not skip meals when trying to loose weight, but I've been in the habit of simply drinking coffee for breakfast for years. But I've found a few small, nutritional things to eat for breakfast that are fitting in well, like Special K protein breakfast bars and oatmeal. I forgot how much I liked oatmeal! The instant kind (add water and microwave for 90 seconds) is so convenient and comes in many flavor options. Yesterday: banana nut; today: Maple. Warm oatmeal is especially nice on chilly winter mornings. Anyone have other nutritional, tasty, convenient breakfast food ideas?

I decided to watch this week's episode of "Launch My Line" because I heard that Lady GaGa was appearing in it. Unfortunately she wasn't a guest judge nor did she even introduce the challenge. It was more of a 'cameo' for her. You'd think I'd watch this show regardless, since I love Project Runway so much. But I have to confess that I HATE those creepy twins that host the show. I'm not sure what it is; maybe its their mouths or the fact that they dress identically, but they creep me out. I couldn't watch the whole episode.

Speaking of Project Runway, the new season (7) starts next Thurs the 14th! Its back in NYC (thank god) and they promise Michael Kors and Nina Garcia will be in every episode. Let's just hope and pray the 'talent' is there this season.

Part of my New Year's resolution to re-invent my appearance involves experimenting with my facial hair and finding a new hairstyle. Now, experimenting with my facial hair is somewhat tricky for me because my 'beard' is very light in color and does not grow in evenly. I didn't shave for 2 full weeks and was hoping for a cool, scruffy face look, but it just wasn't working. (Hey, I can dream, right?) So yesterday I shaved my cheeks and neck, leaving a 'stache/goatee combo. (Click to enlarge, if you dare.)

See what I mean about the color being light? I'm not sure if I will keep it or not. But since not shaving at all doesn't look good on me, and completely shaving is what I've been doing, this seems to be my only alternative for 'something different'.

(Man, I look tired...)

I'm also letting my hair grow out of the fauxhawk style. I really liked the fauxhawk but I'm tired of it for me. 5 years is long enough. I want something new and different. I'm letting my hair grow out to give me more options. Here is my current hair experiment, minus the fauxhawk.

Considering I've not cut my hair, I don't think this looks bad. I mean, I don't think it looks like I'm trying to grow out an old hairstyle. RIP, dear Fauxhawk.

My friend Jared who often supplies me with gems to share with you on Friday fragments sent me this amazing walrus video. To me, what's even funnier than the walrus is the people's reactions!! Enjoy.

Happy weekend!

Crush du Jour: Ronan Keating

Roadside assistance

As a kid I remember seeing AAA commercials on TV. People paid monthly subscription fees for AAA's "driver assistance", "trip/driving directions", and "hotel discounts".

You youngsters will probably have difficulty believing this, but back in the olden days AAA offered drivers the peace of mind of knowing that if their car broke down, they could walk to the nearest phone booth, call AAA and a tow truck would be dispatched. Its true!

But with the advent of cell phones, GPS, OnStar, Mapquest, and websites like hotels.com, does anyone belong to AAA anymore?

Even roadside assistance is no longer exclusive to AAA. Nearly all auto insurance companies offer it for a nominal fee, and I love it.

Several years ago when Spouse & I had just purchased our mobile-'home away from home' at the beach, our Ford Explorer broke down. It was the Sat night before Easter Sun and we had brought some furniture and stuff to our vintage beach place. We were heading back home to VA late that night so we could spend Easter Sun with our family. We stopped to fill up at a gas station kind of in the middle of nowhere. When we were ready to get back on the road, the truck wouldn't start. I used my cell phone to call for roadside assistance. The tow truck driver was unable to get our truck started, so he towed it to a local garage. We paid nothing. A cab took us back to the beach. We did have to pay for the cab.

On my worst birthday ever when Big Ella would not start, I called roadside assistance. Again, my car was towed on a flatbed to the mechanic's garage and I paid $0. (It turned out to be the generator.)

Just last week, Spouse's Honda CRV would not start due to the extreme cold and a weak battery. He drove my BMW to work and after it warmed up a bit I called roadside assistance. A mechanic started Spouse's car using jumper cables, which technically we could have done ourselves. But since I knew we had roadside assistance, we didn't have to get our hands greasy or dirty trying to jump start the car ourselves, in the cold. (Once started, I drove it to a garage and the 7 year old battery was replaced.)

In all 3 cases, for just $36. a year or $3. a month, for the roadside assistance perk offered by our insurance company, we were never without help AND we paid $0. for the attempts to restart our vehicles and for the towing. The people we spoke to and the tow truck drivers they sent couldn't have been nicer or more helpful, and we didn't need a subscription to a separate service provider like AAA.

And as for the "trip/driving directions" and "hotel discounts" that used to be such an added value to AAA's membership? We didn't need them either.

I heart roadside assistance!

Crush du Jour: Eric Leven

Politicizing National Security

Interesting food for thought. The bold and italics are mine.

Politicizing National Security
by: John Morgan Wed Dec 30, 2009

While the Christmas Day attempted bombing of a Delta airliner was unsuccessful Republicans are attempting to make political hay of the incident. We know we have massive holes in our national security defense, we know this because George W. Bush refused to finance our homeland defense. Instead he insisted on an "offense only" approach. Ports, chemical plants and borders were ignored in favor of "taking it to the enemy." Now the GOP is trying to blame Barack Obama for Bush's strategy. Not only that but they are holding up TSA for political purposes.

I suppose this all goes back to Rush's strategy of making Obama fail so Republicans can blame Democrats for their own failures. By having someone like Sen. Jim DeMint block the appointment of someone to run TSA because he thinks allowing workers to stand up for themselves is worse than leaving the country vulnerable to attack they can then blame President Obama for not having someone at the helm. It's the classic "have your cake and eat it too" mentality. Republicans can vote against funding and installation of chemical scanning machines (108 of them voted against it) then blame Obama for not having enough of them. Of course they had eight years to fund and install these but invading a country which posed no strategic national security threat to us was more important.

Let us remember this flight originated in Amsterdam. Barack Obama has no control over what the Dutch do, what security measures they use, or what any other country does at their airports. These are all sovereign nations which resent us trying to tell them what to do. We can only control what we do and we failed miserably in this area. I've written repeatedly of the negligence given to our homeland security since 9/11. We simply haven't spent the money to upgrade in critical areas and what was spent was spent badly. Much of it went for pork. Much went where it wasn't needed.

Making political hay because of one's own negligence is worse than being disingenuous, it is outright fraud. I'm past the point where I think Republicans have no shame, they have no sense of anyone but themselves. As such they have no one but themselves to blame.

Sam Stein reports that eight GOP Senators voted against funding for airport screening and explosive detection equipment:
The Improving America's Security Act of 2007 was a relatively non-controversial measure that effectively implemented several un-acted-upon recommendations from the 9/11 Commission. Eighty-five Senators voted in favor of the bill's passage. Seven missed the vote (several of whom were on the campaign trail, including Barack Obama, John McCain and Chris Dodd).
Eight Republican Senators, however, voted against passage, including Sens. John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), Mike Enzi (R-Wyo.), Tom Coburn (R-Okl.) Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) Elizabeth Dole (R-N.C.), Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), James Inhofe (R-Okl.) and Jon Kyl (R-Ari.).

DeMint, of course, is the same Senator who chose to oppose unions more than terrorists.

Crush du Jour: Jason Whipple

Weight loss

Now that the 6-week food orgy know as "the holidays" (Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years) is over, it seems everyone I know is on a diet. Including me.

Now, I don't believe in diets in a general sense. I've said/written it before and I'll say/write it again: Diets are temporary measures that yield temporary results. Most people who go on a diet lose weight, but gain it all back (and sometimes more) when they go back to their regular eating habits.

That is why I'm not really on a diet, per se. I am trying to change my eating habits so I can become more healthy and lose weight. Loosing weight is hard, but actually changing your eating habits is almost impossible!

I'm not a doctor or a weight loss expert, but I'm going to share some tips if you are interested in becoming more healthy, loosing weight, and changing your eating habits for good:

• Reduce your portion sizes. This is probably the easiest to do because it doesn't involve eating or not eating anything, it involves the amount. Serve yourself a typical portion, then put 1/3 of it back into the pot. Only eat 2/3 of what you typically would. Its and it works.
• Reduce your consumption of processed foods. Although the convenience of boxed, processed foods is alluring, they usually contain more sodium, chemicals, and calories than fresh foods. The convenience of boxed and microwavable (processed) foods isn't worth it.
• Increase your consumption of fresh vegetables and fruit. By nature these are generally lower in fat and calories than most foods, and contains lots of vitamins, nutrients, and antioxidants your body needs. They also require less digestion so you don't feel tired like you do when your body spends hours digesting complex foods.
• Don't skip meals. Skipping meals causes your metabolism to switch into 'famine' mode and store fat. Eat at least 3 meals a day, and preferably 5 smaller meals a day. Going too long between meals increases your potential to gorge when you finally eat.
• Drink lots of water. Water is good for you regardless of whether or not you're trying to lose weight. It keeps you hydrated and helps flush wastes from your body.
• Don't eat after 8pm. Its best to be active after you eat to promote calorie burning. If you eat late at night your body doesn't have time to burn the calories you've eaten before you go to sleep.
• Stop eating as soon as you feel satisfied. Even if you only have 3 bites left on your plate, listening when your body says its satisfied prevent you from 'filling up' and will allow your stomach to shrink.
• Reduce or eliminate alcohol and soda consumption. Alcohol contains lots of (empty) calories and sodas contain lots of sugar and chemicals. Even diet soda contains artificial sweeteners and chemicals your body doesn't need. Consume less or eliminate completely.
• Exercise regularly. Whether you work out at a gym, in your home, or simply walk a few miles around your neighborhood, exercising regularly burns calories and helps suppress your appetite. It can also ease light depression.
• Stock your kitchen with the right foods. Don't self-sabotage by having ice cream, baked goods and chips in your kitchen. Shop with a purpose and fill your fridge and cupboards with fresh, natural, whole foods. Buy and enjoy healthy 'snacks' like nuts, dried fruit, and fat free pretzels as treats.
• Moderation. Its unreasonable to think you're never going to have ice cream or birthday cake ever again. Its okay to treat yourself once in a while, just do so in moderation. One scoop of ice cream or a 1/2 piece of cake will likely satisfy your sweet tooth without wrecking your diet.
• Replace good items with better ones. Pasta is fine in moderation, but whole wheat pasta is better for you. Peanut butter is a good source of protein, but low fat peanut butter is better for you.
• Make smarter choices. You will likely still want to eat out at restaurants occasionally so make smarter choices. This doesn't automatically mean salads, since salad dressings are often loaded with fat and calories. Look for baked, broiled, or grilled fish and chicken entrees, and substitute the fries with a vegetable.
• Don't give up. If you 'fall off the wagon' by over-indulging, don't think the day (or week) is ruined. Forgive yourself and get right back on the wagon! Sometimes an over-indulgence will not prevent you from losing weight.

These tips have all worked for me. I lost weight and felt more energetic and healthy. My biggest struggle is sticking to them for an extended period, or, changing my eating habits. But knowing I have shared my challenge with you all will help me be strong!

Here's to your health!

Crush du Jour: Alberto Umana

New Year's weekend highlights

We had a terrific New Year's weekend! Although we hadn't planned a lot of activities in advance, our 3-day weekend was full of fun stuff!

For New Year's Eve we went to a potluck dinner at Chris & Jason's house. Many of our friends were there, including Steven & Thad, the Bobs, Rusty, Joe, and Art. I had simmered a crockpot full of meatballs all day long and took them to the party. We had a ham, potato salad, spinach balls, chicken balls, chips and dips, hot wings, my saucy meatballs, and everything was delicious. I had a mimosa and a glass of Prosecco at the party. Then around 10:00 the group went to a local watering hole where we hung out until the final countdown to the new year. We raised our clear plastic champagne glasses and at midnight we toasted and wished each other a happy new year. Earlier in the day I got a text message from my old friend David, indicating he was on his way into town so we arranged to meet up at the watering hole. The last time we'd seen each other was at my grandparents' funeral in Jan 1990, 20 years ago! I introduced him to Spouse and we had fun chatting and reminiscing.

On New Year's day most of the guys from the potluck reconvened for brunch at The Buttery, a beautiful restaurant in an old Victorian house. The food and mimosas were good, the homemade baked goods were great, but the company was the best. We ate, drank, and laughed for 2 1/2 hours. A great start to the new year in my opinion. Spouse & I stopped at a few stores to do some comparison shopping, then walked over to Jared & Merle's house. They'd invited us to come over for a little new year's nosh (we didn't tell them we'd just finished brunch an hour earlier) and we had a great time. Jared made a homemade cheese cake and homemade eggnog with spiced rum, both of which were out of this world. We visited with them in their parlor and I sat in the chair closest to the fireplace which added that extra umph to a warm and cozy afternoon. Jared sent us home with 2 huge slices of cheese cake, too!

Once home, Spouse took a nap and I watched some TV until it was time for our regular Fri Night Dinner with 'the usual suspects'. 12 of us ate at Miltonian Pizzeria and Wing House, and Spouse & I shared our favorite: Bodacious buffalo chicken pizza. (Its hard to believe we could possibly eat again after all we'd eaten earlier that day.) Afterward, several of the guys came back to our house for a little while before we all headed out to the MANDance, a monthly dance party at a local watering hole. Since Spouse doesn't really like going to bars, it was a real surprise to me that he agreed to go out 2 nights in a row! I only had 1 cocktail because the MANDance quickly got very crowded and hot. Simply getting to the bar was an ordeal, so we just danced and had a great time. We saw lots of friends there, including our old friend Kevin who moved to FL several years ago, then moved to MD last year, then moved back home to DC a few months ago. What a nice surprise to catch up with him again!

Sat Spouse & I had breakfast out, then did a little more comparison shopping. (He was looking for 1/2 sheet cake size pans and we are looking for a small chest freezer.) Once home again Spouse took a nap and I watched TV and played around on Facebook. We had dinner at Irish Eyes Pub with Steven & Thad. I had a tasty sandwich of turkey, cole slaw, and thousand island dressing on pumpernickel bread, with fries. Spouse had cajun chicken pasta. The 4 of us returned to our house and watched "Bruno". Like everyone else, we found it to be funny in parts but not as good as "Borat". Afterward we split the 2 huge pieces of Jared's cheese cake between the 4 of us.

Sun we had brunch with our friends Koset & Jim. I had french toast with a side of scrapple. Mmmm, good! We met them at the car club dinner and awards banquet last Sept, and learned that they live 1 block from where Spouse & I 1st lived together in VA. They also have a house in Rehoboth Beach and spent the New Year's weekend there. We had a great time getting to know them better and the time just flew by. Later Spouse (finally) found is 1/2 sheet cake pans at a good price, and then picked up some groceries for our new healthy eating plan. He roasted yellow, zucchini, and acorn squash, eggplant, mushrooms, and grape tomatoes with a little olive oil, salt, pepper, and balsamic vinegar. He also roasted 6 boneless chicken breasts and a steak. Now that the cooking has mostly been done, for dinner this week we'll just need to heat up the meat and vegetables and season (if necessary).

We capped off our long weekend by indulging in some soon-to-be forbidden flavors, as our diet begins on Mon. We met Steven & Thad at Purple Parrot where I had an absurdly large platter of nachos and beer. And as if that pig-out wasn't enough, we stopped at Cold Stone Creamery for ice cream on the way home! I was so full from dinner that I barely managed to eat my delicious combination of dark chocolate and peanut butter flavored ice cream. I felt as if I were going to explode.

Now, I will go ahead and say what I know you're all thinking: "It sounds like you ate the entire weekend!" I don't blame you; its basically true. We over-indulged the entire weekend because we felt like it was our last chance (for a while, at least) to enjoy these decadent foods and treats. See, Steven & Thad and Spouse & I all 4 started new eating plans today. Although using somewhat different methods, our shared goal is to reduce our portion sizes, reduce our consumption of processed foods, and increase our consumption of fresh, natural veggies and fruit. Along with increased exercise, we anticipate our healthy eating plans will result in weight loss and a better overall feeling about ourselves. So this past weekend - a holiday weekend - was our last chance to indulge our love for tasty, fatty, sweet, fried foods.

I'd say we took full advantage of that opportunity.

Crush du Jour: Ian Somerhalder

Happy New Year!!!

Wishing everyone a new year full of happiness!

Crush du Jour: Mateus Verdelho