A new frock

Yup, a new look, ashley fans.

Almost a new year, so time for a new fashion. Seems like the photos pop better against these colors.

Also, the blog is 3 years old now!

Happy BGN!

I am not a marsupial!!

remember that famous Justin quote? (Not Justincredible, the other Justin).

Me thinks he doth protest too much. That tlacuache invasion last year visited upon Dave & Paul & Al & Justin and company? Well, them tlacuache are marsupials, ya know. And it is not too much of a leap to suggest that JustinOne had something to do with it.

Isn't it possible that he called upon his marsupial brethern to invade the PV vacationers?

Doesn't this look like JustinOne?



I'm just saying ...

wtf?

did anyone else get that last Boyer post?

me neither.

ok, onward ...

Government Classified Gays. . . .don't you love the USA?

. . . novemeber 8th . . .

Oh I Love the Left Coast Newspapers . . .

.... until Ted pointed it out, by his actions and words, i did not realize that it is more of a sin and embarrassment to be found out that you are "a gay" than it is to be found out as a "speed / crystal / tina / poison sniffing” freaky evangelist?? - now there them is proper values that are being taught to the mindless cows in the evangelical herd ! ! !

how's the frost out on the pumpkin?

Chicago's earliest snow ... ever

for those of you who have left the Midwest (and that would be all of you but Chris, Pamela and me, right?), be happy.

above picture is just a camera fone shot I did on way to work, but this is borrowed from a newspaper site ...



so it didn't stick around for long, but it was there and it was cold and it was the earliest measurable snow ever in Chicago.

So much for the fall flowers and fresh herbs growing on the deck and ...

what a bitch slap after 4 days in Laguna!

Thanks for having me, guys!

Hi, Evan!

Dinner at Bridges

after a long and diffulcult day of avoiding the media and it's over-hyped and tacky September 11th (or as they like to call it 9-11) tributes and propaganda I decided Paulie and I should escape and pay true respect ( remember "silent tribute" - wish the media would!!) to all of those effected and lost by the tragedy. So I packed up a few jackets and picked up paul . . . some food and headed off to our favorite resturant in all of SF, "Benchs". (it is our own little secret spot in a secluded area with 3 old old old wooden picnic benchs - ala "Benchs" - some take out food and an amazing view of the GG Bridge and the bay) . . .

while sitting there i thought about many things (ADD style of course) . . . how many years have passed since that frightful day . . . how many underserving souls passed and how many other's lives were affected by thier passing . . . how the tanks and armed military have disappeared from protecting the Bridge . . . sadly how we still have an asshole/poor excuse for a leader/ ignorant / frat boy type jerk running this country further into the ground as the majority of "Walmart of America citizens" silently stand by while only a few protest and fight to change the course. . . all in all it reminds me of the 5th year into the AIDS crisis ( but of course many many more had died) . . . . HOPELESS and without leadership . . . .

After the sun set and we finished dinner a slight chill came into the air - as we got up to leave i had a few final thoughts . . . . how fortunate i was to still have the one person in my life for 15+ years who understands me (or at least tolerates me) and who i truly love . . . how sad Anna Nichole Smith's September 11ths will now be . . . (ok that ending was a little of GDD - gay deficit disorder)

street cred (borrowed)

so, my buddy Futterman told me about this music fest back in July. said her buddy Bob, who I had just met, was in it, that Bob was one of the legends of punk and that the fest would be cool. I said, hey, can I go? I never go to anything like that anymore and owuld be cool.

so forgot about it, kinda, and definitely the Bob connection. then, boom, here it was, fest weekend. 3 days of bands. I was like, what have I got into? didn't even know/remember what kind of music it was. well, turns out it is total indie chicago scene and music is all punk, post-punk, some funk. and this year was tied into a local indie label, Touch n Go, which was celebrating 25 years. so all these bands from the label came to town, or were from town and just showed to play. and several bands got back together just to play in tribute, including one that was a big legend and only played, like, 3 songs, and everyone was nuts.

so I went and it was cool. left early today coz we were kinda worn out after 3 days, or 2 1/2 days; we skipped the last half of today.

totally a great scene, and though I didn't know any of the bands or any of the songs, it took me back to all the 80s punk/new wave music. and all you guys woulda loved it. lots of people. all outside. beer tents; some food. all kinds of freaky people to look at. some bands were great. some I wasn't that into, so just hung out (oh, we got VIP'd, so we had a place to hang and drink free beer) and listened from afar.

and I kept calling Dave from the fest to make him jealous with just the music playing on my cel.

so felt totally part of that whole scene again, but it was borrowed street cred coz my buddy Futterman is the one who got me there. and the best bands were her 2 favorites (she's got good music taste), Shellac (which her Bob friend plays in) and Arcwelder (which had 2 real cute brothers fronting it on bass and guitar).

and Scratch Acid was just wild (below; but not my photo)





... oh, and there were tons of cute guys, including lots o' squirrel boys. and there were 2 real tall dudes dancing together like a couple of great dane puppies, jumping, grabbing each other, smacking into each other, hugging ... culminating with one jumping on the other, wrapping his legs around him and hanging on. Boyer & Paulie, ya woulda loved it.

My Favorite Uncle is . . . . .

DAVID -

Why you may ask? Well it is quite simple - since he posted my first apperance on this blog with a photo from my "Welcome To the Family" Party that was thrown in my Daddies' honor in San Francisco during Pride 2006 - just a few weeks after my birth!

That is me in the shoulder pack my Daddy Alan is wearing - we were on our way to the Pride Parade. I knwo you cannot see my cute face - but trust me I was not yet in the mood for my close up - maybe my 2nd Favorte Uncle (or my Favorite Aunt - hint hint Moneka!!!!) will be the one who actually posts my face on here - ok that is my challenge to all of you!

So all you other uncles don't bother - Uncle David is MY favorite ! ! ! !

Recent moments

Grabbing a post-theater (an excellent "Pinocchio" with puppets) dinner at Chicago's latest gay hangout, Hamburger Mary's, we were reminded of Bumbles by one of the waiters.

He was tall and oh-so-girlie, and apparently clumsy, too, as he kept hitting his head again and again on the ribs of the market umbrellas on the patio, saying each time "I'm too big for this place."

Clearly, he was, physically anyway, although one got the impression that he felt too big, too grand, spiritually as well, since his personality and girlyness were out-sized and kept banging figuratively into the confines of the space.

Couldn't help but think of him as Bumbles' sister, but Bumbles would have learned to duck.

---

Market Days are long over, but two moments stick out ....

Market Days 1: When Chris & I stopped by one of the many, many gay bar stands for a quick pre-dinner beer, I was denied service when I couldn't produce an ID. And I had left it behind thinking, it's Market Days, who needs an ID? Well, I was wrong, but Chris & I shrugged our shoulders and said there are other places.

As we turned away (from the apologetic bartender), a cute 20-ish woman hanging with her gay boy friends (who had all just bought their beers) said, "They carded you?" (Emphasis was hers, not mine.)

At first, I thought, oh, friendly empathy, then it dawned on me and I was like, hey! What the fuck?

Market Days 2: Our entrepreneurial neighbors who already own several nail businesses are launching a new venture called Trim, a spa for ridding oneself of excess hair. They asked us to wear their T-shirts at Market Days to promote the place, which we were glad to do since they said this on front in all caps and were stylishly designed: "YOUR BUSH SHOULD BE MAKING LOVE NOT WAR."

So, I was wearing mine around (Chris & I didn't want to look too matchy, but now that I think of it, that might have been a better attention getter), catching the eye of a few marketgoers here and there. But few were getting it, so I was trying to turn around quickly to show the back (where the business name, explanation and address were) once I figured a reader was done with the front. Still not much reaction, though a few people here and there caught it.

Then, heading home and walking past a young, 25-or-so woman volunteering/working at one of the booths, someone you'd think would be pretty progressive, etc., we got the biggest reaction. She read the front, I turned to show the back, she read that quickly, mild shock and motherly disapproval spread over her young face and then she smacked me in the ass!

Bad boy, I guess.

Dr. Daddy

Just returned from a bye-bye trip to send Daddy off to the capital, where he'll be teaching grad school for a year at George Washington University.

Congrats, Dr. Daddy!

Because he's been really busy with getting his dissertation in the mail and getting ready for the move, this was a day trip. And because we're surrounded by Market Days (stranding our car), we took the train out to meet him. South Shore Line to South Bend. Was a pretty fun excursion; I like train travel because you get to see a lot of countryside you'd never notice or see otherwise. Like this: In the truly godforsaken town of Michigan City, we noticed all of a sudden that our train was going down the middle of a street. It was a two-lane street, not that wide, with houses lining either side. And the tracks were not on some elevated bed: They were right at street level. And then we noticed the very large prison off in the distance, not that far at all from the backyards of the houses on one side. "All they need is a nuke plant," I said. And yup, turned around a minute later and there was the nuke plant on the other side.

But in South Bend (home of Notre Dame), we had a good time getting caught up with David and hearing about the teaching gig. He also told us a little about Simone and her new plans. The latest? Well, there will probably be a big announcement going out on this so don't want to spill too much, but let's just say that Simone has something big big big in the works and she got the idea from Dolly Parton.

Paulie and Moneka were Right...

Rose declared the "it" drink of summer...

http://nytimes.com

Joe's coming to SF

hey, everyone!

in a short window of opportunity between visiting my new nephews (one in Sacramento and one in Laguna), I'll be in SF! I think I'm staying at Dave & Paul's.

Um ... right? Paul? Dave?

Anywho, would love to see everyone!!

Oct. 3.

(Chris will be teaching and not traveling with, but may fly out to SoCal to see Evan)

It Must Have Been That Thai Food I Ate...

Last night I had a dream in which Moneka was dating a co-worker. It was a man!!!!!

(boozy) quote of the day

"... there are many ways to the recognition of truth,
and Burgundy is one of them."

--Isak Dinesen

Sea algae or party at Alan & Justin's? You decide

Four pelicans were being detained in an animal drunk tank Friday on suspicion of public intoxication, authorities said.

One of the birds was in guarded condition after allegedly flying under the influence Thursday and crashing through the windshield of a car on Coast Highway in Laguna Beach.(!)


More details here ... don't miss the Hitchcockian angle!





(just some random pelicans; not the drunk ones)

the only other thing I have to say ...

before signing off, is that we would love to see/read posts from Moneka and Paulie and Alan!

Please enter the 21st Century! Boyer can help, really he can!

And Boyer, if you have Timmy's e-mail, I'll send an invite/shout-out his way, too!

Timmy, Moneka, Alan, Justin, Paulie ... love ya all! Mean it!

Al & Justin, can we post Evan pictures? Or are you trying to protect him from the fame, and all the anguish that comes with it, once someone appears on the Notebook? ... Just look at what happened to ... um ... who?

proud to be ...

OK, fucking Safari having just fucking quit on me, restarting now in Firefox. Fucking programers cannot fucking figure out how to make a fucking blog work after fucking 10 years or whatever of the web revo. Jeez. It ain't rocket science, folks! Fucking retards. This is why we give you gourmet meals at lunch and amazing pay and a fucking boatload of stock options? The new media, yea, fucking right. What a crock of shit.

OK.

Sorry.

Let's return to our regularly scheduled (or not so regularly) blog:

Happy, fucking pride!

I forget what witty shit I wrote before about SF vs. Chicago pride parade, since it's like 11 p.m., which is really late for a middle-aged guy, and I've had most of the bottle of California barbera (why do californians think they can grow just any fucking grape they want, without regard for climate or soil? jeez. well, actually, this one was pretty good. of course, don't know if ya can even buy it around here since it was a taster from work. Preston of Dry Creek; look for it) since Chris doesn't drink that much. So instead ...

Here are a couple fotos; lame, yes, but I only had my camera fone, Chris having said I didn't need to go get the camera and having refused to tell me where it is. Harumph! Alan, you were right 15 years ago!!!!!

Anywho ...



Trannies on wheels ... and who is that spikey do with too much product?




Better. A street scene. People watching. But what is the random float with trannies? Who knows. It's random! (my niece's favorite word).

Pride is about watching a parade go by in the rain (insert "don't let it rain on" cliche; somehow the Trib metro copy editors held themselves back from that. I applaud them; don't know if I could have restrained myself) and realizing later how normal it all is.

When Pride is normal, this is good.

Admit it, You Like Her Too

Ok, I had admit it to myself this week, I love watching her. The way she calmly chides Tim Russert for his probing and conveys a sense of complete control. I may not like the people she works for, but I have to admit, I'm curious if she might not just cut them loose were she to become President.

Lesbians Selling Hill House

Here's a story from the local Potrero Hill blog about the home owned by the nice ladies that joined the 05 Thanksgiving drag games and cocktails. The blog is replete with bitchy comments for the realty company selling their mint green jewel.

http://www.potrerohillsf.com/2006/03/hill-co-potrero-hill-poseurs/

oops! ... again

sorry, quiz and Boyer and Boyer Quiz fans! But I goofed on the link. It is now fixed.

Try again, Gregorio!

Writers with Drinks

Last night, Dean, Barry and I ventured down to the Make-Out Room to check out Writers with Drinks, the Guardian's best literary night two years running (writerswithdrinks.com) . The evening is hosted by Charlie Anders, a transgendered woman full of spit and vinegar. Charlie was the author of one of my alltime favorite Guardian articles, Cross Dress for Less, and was a lot of fun:

http://www.sfbg.com/SFLife/34/31/lead.html

We stayed for an hour before rushing off to our reservations at the fine Blue Plate. The couple of storytellers we heard were wonderful and charming. This type of salon is exactly why we live here. I can't wait to go back so watch the website for future dates and join me soon!

the Boyer you thought you knew ...

here it is, finally! The Boyer Quiz!

Test your knowlege!

Learn the truth!

Laugh your ass off!

It just takes moments ... go here

oops!

ok, about that quiz, "All about Joe": I'm embarrassed to say that I got one of my own answers wrong when I set up the test. So people that have taken it might be surprised to find they got No. 7 wrong. Sorry!







I don't seem to be able to access the original file to fix the quiz either.

Oh, well ... and I know that this leaves me completely open to abuse from Boyer!!

BrokeBack Gala . . the "SuperBowl" of the Gays and Gals

enough about you ...

I am shamelessly copying an idea from Chris Br1xt0n's blog, the quiz. And more shamelessly, I'm making the quiz about me just so I can talk (write) about myself!

Take my quiz and learn more about me! ME ME ME


thanks for the idea, Chris!


of course, I think Boyer should be next. If not, I will write one about him that is funnier (read that as "bitchier") than anything he could come up with.

what I've been reading lately ...

from Simon Doonan's "Nasty":

"Don't judge me too harshly: if you're not going to be a trendy, superficial poseur in your twenties, when are you going to do it?"

although our friend Missy says the book only has 2 funny lines, I beg to differ. It's loaded with 'em. If the quote here isn't enough to make you read it, I don't know what will.

Perhaps pick up some lovely Republican screed instead.

Hope for the Chronically Late

The Sundays Styles section of the New York Times says that 10 minutes late is the new on time. Love it.

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/01/29/fashion/thursdaystyles/29age.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

Design news

Left work early-ish on a mission: We were out of chile powder. Chris needed it right away. So, no problem; walk to Whole Foods @ Huron & State, then hop on the Redline @ Chicago & State, just one stop farther up the line than usual. Be home in plenty o' time.

So, making good time, even hopped a bus to zip me along. Going up Huron, though, what emerges from out of the cold Midwest winter darkness but a shining beacon of a new shop on the corner where nothing was there before: The new Jonathon Adler store!

Now, I knew it was coming, but hadn't really paid attention exactly where. And Paulie & Pamela forgive me, but I had to run in. And as I approach the door, taking in the blues and whites and vivid oranges pouring out in beckoning light, who do I see but Pamela's former main man, Dwight. I knew he had left Stitch, but didn't really know/remember where he landed.

So we chatted and I checked out the store, and Paulie & Pamela forgive me, again, but the shop is hot! But everyone has already seen it but me since you have one out there in SF too.

Bought a little something for Daddy/Simone, but cannot say what it is in case by some off chance he actually monitors the BGN site. Just say that it was a small, ceramic vessel that made me scream like a queen at a Gucci sale and then grab it up right away. Perfect for D/S.

And me? I want a pony.

that's why they call it a milk cafe

from Slate:

Starbucks Economics

Solving the mystery of the elusive "short" cappuccino

By Tim Harford

Here's a little secret that Starbucks doesn't want you to know: They will serve you a better, stronger cappuccino if you want one, and they will charge you less for it. Ask for it in any Starbucks and the barista will comply without batting an eye. The puzzle is to work out why.

The drink in question is the elusive "short cappuccino"—at 8 ounces, a third smaller than the smallest size on the official menu, the "tall."

The short cappuccino has the same amount of espresso as the 12-ounce tall, meaning a bolder coffee taste, and also a better one. The World Barista Championship rules, for example, define a traditional cappuccino as a "five- to six-ounce beverage." This is also the size of cappuccino served by many continental cafés. Within reason, the shorter the cappuccino, the better.

More here, but what Mr. Harford doesn't point out explicitly is that Starbucks is basically making a boatload of money by selling people oceans of milk.

Never give a gun to a duck

thoughts for the new year?

happy happy

since most of y'all (or maybe even all y'all?) are down with Alan & Justin in Laguna, we're sending great big New Years kisses your way.

Chris & I ended the year with a 5k so-called resolution run in Lincoln Park. Jacob, who talked us into it, ran as well. At 6 p.m. start time, the temp hovered at about 40, a mild night for a run by Chicago standards and maybe a portent of the rest of winter? If there's going to be global warming anyway, we may as well get a warmer winter.

Then it was off to Jacob & Chip's for cocktails (vodka-saketinis, which I very un-pc-ly christened a Nagasaki for its devasting effect), sushi and games.

Sorry to miss the bash! Resolution in 2006: Have more fun.