I'm going away...

on vacation for ten days. Actually, it's nine but I need an extra day to recover when we return. I've realized that as I have gotten older, no matter how un-strenuous my vacations are, I still need an extra day to recover from the travel and what not. Luckily, Mike feels the same way, so we always build it into our vacation time.

We're hiking in South Dakota for the first five. Let me rephrase: we are going on some short hikes in South Dakota while visiting Mike's family in Rapid City. I've never been to South Dakota, so I am looking forward to it. Plus, I have come to appreciate hiking in the wilderness.

Then, the five days after that, we are headed to Santa Barbara, California to meet up with some old friends. And drink our way "sideways". I couldn't help myself. I am looking forward to getting to see Sean and Heather. I love vacationing with them because all we do is eat and drink. And laugh, and laugh, and laugh. Which is why I am looking forward to it all. Later.  ¶ 11:27 PM 0 comments

  So, I won't be watching the new show Bionic Woman. Normally, I would be all nutso about catching a show like this. Not because it's a remake but more because I like stuff girl action. Not girl-on-girl action, bitches. But there are several reasons I won't be tuning in. First, I won't watch it because of their casting of a known hateful actor. I often don't do political rants but this one sticks in my craw, so I won't be giving my Nielsen ratings to it.

Secondly, as I get older, I get tired of the whole people-waking-up-and-trying-to-get- used-to-their-new-found-powers. Whatever, we know it takes time for people to get used to new found powers, blah blah blahbity blah.... let's move on. Let's get them kicking some ass. Let's get them fighting. Who gives a shit if they are not coping with their fake leg in the first few months. I didn't tune in to see your angst. I tuned in to see you kick some ass. Later.  ¶ 6:10 PM 1 comments

  Last night, I spent a lovely time with him and his man in not-so-colonial Williamsburg. And, because of his influence, I am going to be bringing my man to that 'hood to check out some places to live. I can't even believe that I am thinking of Billyburg as a place to live. But hanging out there last night felt frighteningly comfortable.

Anyway, here are some fun places to check out: Black Betty for some moroccan-style eats (scrumptious and affordable), Oulu (a friend tends bar there), and Sugarland (fun gay bar to have cheap drinks and dance). I am actually looking forward to exploring more before the bitter cold hits. Or even if it does.

Oulu is a beautiful space that is very pristine. They had the garage-door front open which lent to a very welcoming vibe. Him, his man, and I decided that we were going to start a rumor that there was this "new gay bar on 4th called Oulu". It isn't gay per se but we kinda want to take over this fabulous space and claim it as our own. We'll see what happens. If you do visit, ask my friend g8s to make you an Im-Pear-Ative. Or try the Victorian. Sometimes I think I am a bad influence because people who hang out with me tend to have at least six drinks before the night ends. Then again, I'm not exactly forcing them to drink that much. ;) Later.  ¶ 10:39 AM 1 comments

  For the past 5 years of so, I have wondered about something that happened very, very early in my life. If you ever meet my family, one of the first things you realize is that I am very different from them. I only have an older sister (9 years). Physically and mentally, we are different. My entire body is about twice the size of hers. She definitely exhibits quieter (more demure) personality traits than I do. I'm definitely more the aggressor when it comes to life's tasks.

As for my parents, I am practically double their size. I look a lot like my father. There are moments when Mike says that I look exactly like him. When I used to visit their Filipino hometown, people I did not know would walk up to me to ask if he was in town. They always said that I was the "carbon copy" of my dad - except that I was double his size. Compared to my parents, my demeanor is definitely more "robust" than theirs. It's not that they are these exceptionally quiet and introverted beings. It's just that I am neither quiet nor introverted. Which makes me wonder about that thing that happened very, very early in my life.

When I was born, the doctor that delivered me diagnosed me with jaundice. Back in those days, they treated jaundice in newborns by doing a complete blood transfusion. I was treated thusly. The person who donated the blood was a German Caucasian male. As you can assume, this has not escaped my attention.

As I have gotten older, I have noticed the extreme difference in body types when it comes to me and the rest of my family. I'm just different. I'm different physically, mentally, psychologically, and sociologically. I'm just different from them. I wonder if it's because of the infusion of German Caucasian male blood into my system? I wonder if that fact has affected more than my physical being. I wonder who that donor is... or was. I wonder if any of my traits are similar to his. I wonder about that a lot lately. Later.  ¶ 11:35 PM 1 comments

  Can I just say that echinacea and lysine do wonders for my body? At least, I am not coughing like mad; which is the usual follow up to any type of cold, for me. I recommend them highly and suggest you shop at my store for them. :) Just a suggestion.

Since I took the weekend off from doing anything to strenuous, I spent some time playing with my XBox360. Unfortunately, the only game I have is Virtua Tennis 3. So, I need something new. I think Marvel Ultimate Alliance might just be the next game. Plus Top Spin 3 is coming out next Spring; not that I need another tennis game. Though, I will get it. Any suggestions?

With the change in weather, I ventured out to Old Navy to help the husband buy some socks. Don't ask. I ended up getting four long-sleeved tees to wear during our power walks in the park. I wore one today. I am so glad I got them. It was a tad too cold for anything less. All I need now is some sort of sweats or tights. Any suggestions?

I may need to get some other warm exercise wear because I am headed to South Dakota in two weeks to visit family. Supposedly, there is this great hiking area that my "in-laws" want me to see. Something about 4-hour hike up and down with beautiful vistas and all. I'll do it but I need to stop by the store to get some snacks and water. None of this macho crap for me. What does one wear during hikes in the cold? Any suggestions?

I'm also headed to Santa Barbara for a few days after South Dakota. We are getting together with some old friends to do the Sideways wine tour. Not my first choice but then again I am not planning it. But I know it will be fun since I love this other couple we are going to meet up with. We've vacationed a few times together and they are just so much fun. They love to drink, they love to laugh, and most of all, they love to eat in good restaurants. Any suggestions?

When I get back from that vacation, I am going on a semi-diet and hitting the gym hard to get into the best shape I can. My friend just asked me to be his date to a wedding. I know the bride and she is a ton of fun. I am glad that I am going but I need to feel fabulous. Consider it a goal. I'll probably try to lift about 3 times a week and do cardio about four. Plus I will probably go vegan for two weeks. It tends to work for me. Plus I need a goal for this fall. Unless you have any other suggestions. Later.  ¶ 10:37 PM 3 comments

  When you work for a "healthy" grocery chain and you happen to be sick as a dog, you have all kinds of natural/homeopathic/eastern philosophy cures to choose from. Sometimes you end up choosing about three and taking all of them at the same time.

But, I think I know why they work. It's because they taste so awful that you forget that you are as sick as a dog. Blech. At least, I cancelled all my plans for the weekend. I'm sleeping in. Later.  ¶ 9:36 PM 0 comments

  Sometimes, you need to remind yourself of good moments in your life.

During my first few years of living in New York, I was a full-time fitness instructor. I had auditioned at one club because a friend granted me a favor. I got a job teaching classes but only during certain times of the day (basically, the ones nobody wanted). It was a time when fitness classes were just beginning to explode and fitness instructors were becoming rock stars; at least within their field.

About a year into teaching and with a lot more confidence & classes, I got word that one of the most popular and most difficult places to get a teaching gig was holding open auditions. It was well known that the group fitness director was more than fine with not hiring anyone during an audition. She was quite the star instructor herself and expected a lot from the instructors who worked for her. I decided to give it a shot.

If you are an actor, you probably are used to walking into an open call filled with people. Well, I am not an actor. So, when I got to the audition and there were about 30 people, I was slightly intimidated. Nonetheless, I stayed.

Like clockwork, in walked the Fitness Director. She says hello to nobody in particular, strides over to the stereo, holds up a tape (yes, that long ago), and says, "You will audition whatever discipline you think you are good in to this tape and this tape only. You are not allowed to change the tempo. I am not just looking for instructors. I am looking for stars. So, if you aren't a star, you should just leave now." Did I mention I was intimidated to begin with?

Someone in the crowds meekly asks, "Can we participate during the audition?" The director answered, "It would be nice." So, about five of us went up to participate. One brave soul, a young lady, volunteered to start. I can't remember what she did. I do remember that after a couple of minutes, she was thanked by the director, and the next person was asked to start their audition. I went up and began teaching a low impact aerobics routine. I don't remember much except that afterwards, the first young lady up told me that I was a great instructor. Of course, one never feels positive about their performance. But hey, I gave it my best shot.

I participated in about 90% of the auditions. When the last one ended, the Director turned off the music, pulled out the tape, walked to the middle of the room, and looked around. All the instructors had moved to the back wall of the studio at this point. I was sitting next to a couple of exercise balls, behind two instructors. I know that I was probably slinking away and preparing myself for the rejection.

The Director looked around and said, "Where are you?" She looked around one more time and finally said, "Ah, there you are. You can stay. The rest of you, thanks for coming." It was at that moment that I noticed that she was pointing at me. I can't remember how I felt but it probably was something good. One of the instructors then asked, "What about the rest of the us?" In full seriousness, the Director replied, "I am looking for stars."

Later.  ¶ 9:18 PM 1 comments

  My saint-ly husband has been in Illinois helping out his brother's family with a few issues. So, I have been alone since Thursday. He won't be back until Tuesday night. So, what does a happily married man like me do when the husband is away? You cook everything that the husband doesn't really eat and shove it all down faster than you can imagine.

Just so you all know, New York strip steaks are on sale at Whole Foods Market for $9.99/lb!!!!! Can you even believe it?!?! You've been informed. You have until the close of business on Tuesday to go buy some. For those of you who don't understand, that would be like saying this season's Prada coats AND shoes are on sale for $100/item. It's that good.

I got a steak tonight and cooked it to rare perfection; which is how you should really eat a steak of this quality. A little freshly ground pepper, some salt, a very hot pan greased with pork lard is all you need to cook a steak like this. Be warned that your place will need to be ventilated properly. I made sure every single fan was on and all the windows were open and the bedroom door closed before I even started heating up the pork lard. You can use canola oil if you want. Don't use olive oil. You need something with an amazing smoke point. Butter is not suggested because it burns too quickly. I happen to have roasted some pork belly, so I had some pork lard to play with. Scary but true.

I also happen to make my own secret herb meat sauce. It has cilantro, parsley, garlic, shallots, and jalapeno. Three different vinegars and some exta virgin olive oil. Not quite chimichurri; I like to call it timmy-churri. Rare steak and herb sauce. Heavenly.

The husband in on a low-sodium diet and is to avoid red meat until further notice. My meal tonight was neither low-sodium or red-meat-free. It was good. To help balance it out, I had a gigantic salad of red leaf lettuce, tomatoes, and red bell peppers. I also happen to have made some tumeric-roasted cauliflower. I had a small helping.

I am craving something something sweet. But I'm too lazy to leave the house. The steak is weighing me down. :) Later.  ¶ 8:48 PM 2 comments

  When I was in college, receiving my Electrical Engineering degree, I was utterly obsessed with Days of Our Lives. Truly, I was just obsessed with the Jack and Jennifer story line. Alright, I was obsessed with Matthew Ashford, the actor who played Jack Deveraux. I was in love. I was so obsessed with the show that I actually missed the first hour of a major exam to watch one of the major episodes. Crazy, huh.

Well, as I have said, things rarely change. I am currently obsessed with As The World Turns story line about Luke and Noah. Gay teens. One out, one closeted. But both in love with each other. It's just so god damned delicious, juicy, and entertaining. In a daytime-soap kind of way. I don't really catch the show. I just watch the postings of this story line on YouTube. Below is a picture of Noah (played by Jake Silbermann), Maddie (played by Alexandra Chando), and Luke (played by Van Hansis- who I am in lust with). Noah and Luke have kissed. Noah is dating Maddie. She doesn't know about the kiss. There is so much tension between the three of them. I can't wait for more. Hee hee hee. Giggle giggle giggle. Later.

  ¶ 10:36 PM 0 comments

  As a child, I had a very hard time saying goodbye to anyone. My parents always had friends over for dinner or drinks. Our guests ranged from only adults to kids and their parents. I always had a good time with anyone over. I loved it. I loved it so much that I remember having a very difficult time saying goodbye when they were leaving. It good so bad that at one point, I would run into the bedroom crying. In my mind, I just wanted to avoid the farewell. I could not take it. My mother actually had to sit me down one day to explain that it was okay to see them go. That they would be back soon.

Turns out, things really have not changed. When my best coworker buddy moved to a different region, I could barely say goodbye. On his last day, our schedules did not match. I was leaving earlier in the day than he was. I practically ran out of there. There was a going away party for him that most of my team attended. I could not get myself to.

Today, my teammates had a going away party for our Store Team Leader. I said that I would show up. I didn't. This one is particularly hard for me. She hired me into the company. She also gave me the current position I hold. She has been nothing but supportive and encouraging. She is just not a coworker. She is a friend and loved one. She really isn't going that far. Just to another store. But I can't get myself to say bye. I won't. I refuse to. When it came time to sign a goodbye card for her, I wrote a protest rant about her leaving. I meant it. I don't dread going into work tomorrow but I just feel that there is something missing. And it isn't very motivating.

I wish I had my mom here to tell me everything will be okay. Later.  ¶ 11:41 PM 1 comments