GKReview: "Four Christmases"

Very good! Will it become a holiday classic? Eh, probably not, but it is filled with lots of laughs nonetheless. The heart of the movie is actually the relationship between the couple played nicely by Reese Witherspoon and Vince Vaughn, so really it's a romantic comedy that just happens to take place during Christmas rather than being a full fledged family holiday comedy. National Lampoon's "Christmas Vacation" this is not, and that was a little disappointing to me. As a date movie, it's pretty decent, but I might think twice about bringing the whole family along. That said, I give the writers kudos for showing us that even divorced families, while not always living up to our expectations, are still family, especially at the holidays. Even the white-trash ones!

Posted with LifeCast

GKR revealed...in 100 Questions (61-80)

Did you miss any part of the series? Catch up here with this link.

We're more than halfway through. Hey, why are you cheering?!

61. Cheated on a test? YES


62. Forgotten someone's name? YES


63. Slept naked? YES


64. Gone skinny dipping? NO


65. Blacked out from drinking? YES


66. Played a prank on someone? YES


67. Gone to a movie at midnight or later? YES


68. Admired your reflection as you walked past a window? NO


69. Failed a class? YES


70. Choked on something you're not supposed to eat? YES


71. Camped out overnight to buy tickets? NO


72. Cheated on a girl/boyfriend? NO


73. Thrown strange objects? NO


74. Felt like killing someone? YES


75. Felt like running away? YES


76. Have you ever ran away? YES


77. Made a parent cry? YES


78. Cried over someone? YES


79. Had sex more than 3 times in one day? NO


80. Dated someone more than once? NO


81. Had/Have a dog? YES

There are only two simple rules to follow if you care to follow along at home:

1. You can only answer "yes" or "no"

2. You aren't allowed to explain anything in your answer. Just "yes" or "no." Of course, if someone asks for more details about an answer, all bets are off.

Food coma. The lethargy continues.

After eating so much tasty, high calorie, high starch, high fat food last night, and the copious amounts of unbelievably delicious artisan breads today, I'm afraid I'm simply too lazy drowsy to post anything of value, interest, or deep thought tonight. Some of you might chime in saying, "You haven't posted anything like that before, why start now?" Yeah, yeah, yeah. More tomorrow, smartasses.

Overheard at Thanksgiving Dinner

Yet again, taken out of context, the following could raise an eyebrow or two.

4-year old nephew: "Do you want to be a bad girl?"

4-year old niece-in-law: "Well, yeah!"

***

bro-in-law: "He usually does OK if he gets the head into his mouth and not just on his lips."

***

And it's this last one that has reenforced my faith and confidence in the suburban undercover white trash family unit.

4-year old nephew: "Ow! Uncle Kenny, she hurted my dick."

Uncle Kenny: "Well, that's what bad girls do. Just be glad it was only her hands."

Now I'm not sure how my nephew managed to pick up that adultish slang word, but it's better, if only marginally, than my own family's slang word of "mister" when referring to the penis. (My mother was a registered nurse for heaven sakes, you would think she'd be able to use the clinical terms comfortably with us.) The last time I visited my nephew he left me stunned with his reaction to my seemingly innocent request to stop doing Ninja-style kicks near my groin. Upon one of a little-too-close-for-comfort attempts I snapped, "Hey, watch it, mister!" To which he replied, "I'm not mister…! THIS is mister!" and he proceeded to flash me. YIKES! As a gay man, I'm living under enough misconceptions and irrational stereotypes already, the last thing I need is a preschooler doing that and someone walking in not having been there for for the first half. So yes, I'm glad he's moved on in his slang vocabulary because the chances of me calling him a dick and getting a repeat performance are far, far less likely.

Listen to this!

A few years ago I had a special opportunity to visit New York City for a weekend. So totally not long enough to take in all that is the thriving, full of life, a story around every corner, metropolis. The group I was part of were given a private sightseeing tour of Manhattan and one of the places we stopped was the site formally known as the World Trade Center. It was a powerful and reflective experience. It was at the site that I first learned about StoryCorps. This fascinating project's mission is to honor and celebrate one another’s lives through listening. I dig that. So when I learned of the National Day of Listening taking place on Friday, November 28, I jumped right in head first.

Now if that date sounds vaguely familiar, you might recognize it better as Black Friday…the day of the humongous day-after-Thanksgiving Day sales where people camp out waiting for stores to open where they can then proceed to elbow, push, and trample their way to the limited-quantity half-off old-fashioned kettle corn popper they never knew they needed or will ever use more than once. Needless to say, there's going to be some competition for time that day.

Well, I don't know about you, but this year I've learned to embrace the simple truth that "the only thing you take with you when you're gone is what you leave behind." —John Allston. So maybe this year is the year to start thinking more about the quality of our actions rather than acquiring more possessions. Heaven forbid the economy gets any worse because people stop buying things altogether, so please feel free to get out there and spend some money. All I'm suggesting is that maybe society would be a little happier, the world a bit nicer, if we made positive actions as much of a priority. Actions like listening, truly listening, to someone.

I've used StoryCorps' online tool to build my list of questions to ask the various important people in my life. My family will be easy to interview, but my friends and I will be separated by many many miles, making for a bit of a challenge. We'll just have to wait and see if technology can come to the rescue. (I'm not worried at all.)

So if you're at all interested, even just a little bit, in participating in the National Day of Listening, click on over to the website and get ready to make a new personal connection, or deepen an existing one, and start building a positive legacy that will out live the two dozen tube socks you scored for a dollar.

Worky worky? Not so much...

So I tried to post an entry using LifeCast, but, well…



…as you can see by the little spinner in the lower right corner of the screenshot, posting has been taking a little longer than normal. 3 hours longer than normal. In fact, the posting is still stuck in LifeCast. I pray for the day that MarsEdit comes to iPhone…because even thought LifeCast is free and all, it leaves a lot to be desired. Such as successfully posting my lame entry. *Sigh*

It's been a long day. I'm going to bed.

GKR revealed...in 100 Questions (41-60)

Did you miss any part of the series? Catch up here with this link.

There are only two simple rules to follow if you care to follow along at home:

1. You can only answer "yes" or "no"

2. You aren't allowed to explain anything in your answer. Just "yes" or "no." Of course, if someone asks for more details about an answer, all bets are off.

Ready for more? Well, let's just pretend you are…

41. Felt like dying? YES


42. Done something you told yourself you wouldn’t? YES


43. Laughed until something you were drinking came out your nose? YES


44. Caught a snowflake on your tongue? YES


45. Sang in the shower? YES


46. Made out in a park? NO


47. Had a dream that you married someone? NO


48. Glued your hand to something? YES


49. Got your tongue stuck to a pole? NO


50. Ever gone to school partially naked? NO


51. Been a cheerleader? NO


52. Sat on a roof top? YES


53. Didn’t take a shower for a week? NO


54. Too scared to watch scary movies alone? YES


55. Played chicken? NO


56. Been pushed into a pool/lake with all your clothes on? YES


57. Been told you’re hot by a complete stranger? NO


58. Been easily amused? YES


59. Mooned/flashed someone? NO


60. Cheated on a test? YES

Stay tuned…

Please don't give any "Milk" money to Cinemark, Century, and CinéArts theaters

Some of you out there on the interwebs may have read recently that Cinemark CEO Alan Stock made a nearly $10,000 contribution to the Yes on Prop 8 campaign. You remember that campaign, don't you? The one designed to, if passed, to take away the rights of same-sex couples to marry. Well it passed. I still can't believe that it did. I honestly thought that my fellow Californian would care at least equally for the happiness and rights of humans beings as they do motherclucking poultry. I was wrong.

Well, in just a few days, "Milk", the film about California's first openly gay elected official, Harvey Milk, a San Francisco supervisor who was assassinated along with Mayor George Moscone will open in theaters. [trailer: HD | iPhone] And guess what chain is ready to reap the financial rewards for showing this much anticipated film? That's right, Cinemark. It can't be denied that "Milk" will draw a large audience from the portion of the population that is gay. But hell if I'm going to let any of my money ultimately end up in the pockets of a person who doesn't believe I should have the same rights that he does.

So I ask you, the moviegoing people of the world, regardless of your orientation, if you go to see "Milk", please do not see it in a Cinemark theater, or any of its subsidiaries. The third-largest theater chain in the U.S. also operates theaters under the name Century Theatres, CinéArts, and Tinseltown. Please avoid these theaters if at all possible.

"But Kenny, how can I easily find a theater near me that isn't part of the Cinemark brand and putting money into the pocket of Mr. Stock?" Good question! Please check out the NoMilkForCinemark.com and BoycottCinemark.com websites for tips and alternate viewing locations. In the San Francisco Bay Area I highly recommend AMC Theaters (their projection and presentation quality tends to be far superior to that of Century and CinéMark anyway), Landmark Theaters (the best place to see the best in independent film), and, of course, the world-famous Castro Theater (which you might just spot me and Hooters standing in front of as extras during the filming of "Milk").

Entertainingly unfortunate line breaks

A friend of mine and I were chatting the other day about how we both enjoy TV Land and classic sitcom from the 60s, 70s, and 80s. After I mentioned the delight I take in watching I Love Lucy on Sunday mornings enjoying breakfast, he shared with me his relief learning something unexpected about a certain president-elect. Unfortunately — or fortunately, depending how you look at it — the chat window was just wide enough to cause me to do a total double-take.

This is what I saw:

Can you figure out what he was talking about? Here's a hint… think 1960s sitcom, New Rochelle, and an ottoman/tripping hazard.

GKR's word of the day

soulstraight (sōl•strāt)

n.

Similar to a soulmate, used to express the deep friendship, emotionally intimate, but fully platonic relationship a gay person has with a straight person either of the same or opposite gender.

Origin:

2008; GKR

If you were gay, you'd be my soulmate. But it's cool having you for a soulstraight.

***

I'm so lucky to have both a guy and girl for soulstraights. Right now, where I am in life, I wouldn't trade them for my actual soulmate.

NaBloPoMo 2008: FAIL

So just barely a little more than half way through the month and NaBloPoMo and I missed posting last night. I have failed NaBloPoMo 2009. And I have absolutely no regrets because I missed it for a very good reason.

Life is all about the choices we make, the actions we take. If I had it to do all over again, I wouldn't change a thing about Sunday.

GKReview: Bolt Disney Digital 3D Preview

Since I'm still at the movies, I'll keep this short since typing on my mobile device takes longer. Ultimately you win. :)

There are many people who will assume that because it's computer animated and released btmy Disney that this was created by Pixar. This is NOT a Pixar film. But, that isn't to say it isn't any good. It's quite good as a matter of fact, just not Pixar quality.

Kudos to the animators for not stuping to the cheap visual gags that so many 3D movies tend to employ. Rather they let the extra dimension enhance the world that the story takes place in. The look of the movie made for a delightful and enjoyable experience. But what about the story?

It didn't such either! It was particularly deep, and didn't break any new ground, but it was fully engaging and entertaining. I have a feeling that with Pixar's John Lassiter serving as executive producer, and other Pixar alums along in various other roles, all help keep this movie from turning out like other studios animated fare. This is Disney's best non-Pixar animated film in years.

It opens on Friday in 35mm film and Disney Digital 3D. Skip the film version and treat your eyes to the rich feast you'll find in digital 3D.

Phew! Just in time, my next movie is about to begin...time to silence my mobile device.

Posted with LifeCast

GKR revealed...in 100 Questions (21-40)

Did you miss any part of the series? Catch up here with this link.

There are only two simple rules to follow if you care to follow along at home:

1. You can only answer "yes" or "no"

2. You aren't allowed to explain anything in your answer. Just "yes" or "no." Of course, if someone asks for more details about an answer, all bets are off.

Let's continue…

21. Kissed a picture? YES


22. Slept in until 3 pm? YES


23. Love someone or miss someone right now? NO


24. Laid on your back and watched cloud shapes go by? NO


25. Made a snow angel? YES


26. Played dress up? YES


27. Cheated while playing a game? YES


28. Fallen asleep at work/school? YES


29. Yelled at a friend? YES


30. Felt an earthquake? YES


31. Touched a snake? YES


32. Ran a red light? YES


33. Been suspended from school? NO


34. Had detention? NO


35. Been in a car accident? YES


36. Hated the way you look? YES


37. Witnessed a crime? YES


38. Pole danced? NO


39. Been lost? YES


40. Been to the opposite side of the country? YES

Stay tuned…

Home. Alone.

It's been two weeks since Angel got his wings and he flew off to be reunited with his mommy and daddy. I really thought that I would miss his furry presence more than I do. But as it turns out I am really enjoying coming home and not having to immediately turn my attention to his special brand of "pay attention to me, and only me, you live to serve me" thinking.

Every day at work, countless times during the day, I'm called on by my peers to help answer their questions, troubleshoot their issues, and make their work a little bit easier. The trade off is that it tends to make my own work day a little more challenging. So after providing personal attention to everyone but myself during the day, it's nice to come home and not have to worry about anyone, or anything else, and finally be able to take care of myself.

I've noticed that I'm getting more and more aware about how much time I have for myself. Kenny-time. I've lived with more than a dozen roommates in the past 10 years and while it can be nice to have someone around the house — especially to be there when I'm changing a lightbulb just in case I fall off the ladder — I'm willing to take my chances for the relief and relaxation that comes with knowing that my homelife is on my terms.

While I've contemplated getting a pet of my own after Angel took flight, a beagle perhaps, I'm really not sure I'm ready for that, at least not until I'm able to reclaim my own time at work. Or get married. Oh, wait…scratch that last one.

One week later...

It's been a week now, and I've had some time to reflect and come to terms with the decisions that were made by family, friends, colleagues, neighbors, fellow Californians. I'm referring to California Prop 2 and Prop 8. And there's an undeniable truth that's come to light. My fellow Californians care more about farm animals than their fellow human beings. Don't believe me? How else do you explain this…



(click for full size iamge)

Animals were given more freedom (well, technically, that "freedom" is the ability to move around more comfortably) and a section of the population had their equality revoked and civil liberties taken away. Does that make any sense to you?



Historic indeed. But not the good kind. I can't help but feel that while our country took a step forward, we also took a step back. That's hardly progress.

We live in a world where America will finally have a non-Anglo president, but in a country that still seems content with denying equality and liberty based on differences.

To all the people out there who voted in favor of Prop 8, the ones who voted in favor of discrimination and bigotry, thinking that by doing so they would some how be protecting marriage, family, and children (and I really don't understand the "protecting children" argument) I would like you to answer the following questions:

1. How does divorce factor into your ideals of protect marriage, family, and children?

2. Why haven't you outlaw divorce?

3. Can I get a refund on all the wedding presents I've purchased for straight couples who got divorced?

No, I'm serious! If you really want to protect marriage, you need to outlaw divorce. It's done more to destroy your so called "holy matrimony" than anything two men (or two women) in a committed relationship have done or will ever do.

And, lastly, for those of you who continue to argue that Prop 8 needed to pass to "[prevent] other consequences to Californians who will be forced to not just be tolerant of gay lifestyles, but face mandatory compliance regardless of their personal beliefs" please consider this…

The Bible says "Do to others as you would have them do to you." — Luke 6:31 (New International Version) but if you choose not to be tolerant of me I hope you won't mind if I choose not to tolerate you. I guess I don't really have a choice, they're your rules.

GKR revealed...in 100 Questions (1-20)

I normally destain receiving email questionnaires, you know the kind, asking you about your favorite things and then requiring that you forward it to 20 of your closest friends or something bad will happen to you. These lost their novelty immediately after the first one I received.

But while perusing the gay blogs of the interwebs, you know, for "reasearch" I stumbled across Slow Lane Dan and his blog containing an interesting questionnaire. But Dan didn't ask anyone to fill it out, instead he simply posted his own answers. And that, I can totally get behind. I don't even mind if he "stole" the idea from Janek.

For today's post, I've decided to expand on Dan and Janek's idea and post my own answers. I've made a few tweaks and also added a few more that I would like to know about other people if given the opportunity to ask.

There are only two simple rules to follow if you care to follow along at home:

1. You can only answer "yes" or "no"

2. You aren't allowed to explain anything in your answer. Just "yes" or "no." Of course, if someone asks for more details about an answer, all bets are off.

Here we go…

1. Taken a picture fully naked? NO


2. Painted your room? YES


3. Made out with a member of the same sex? YES


4. Driven a car? YES


5. Danced in front of your mirror? YES


6. Have a crush? YES


7. Been dumped? YES


8. Stolen someone's heart? NO


9. Gotten in a car with people you just met? YES


10. Been in a fist fight? NO


11. Snuck out of your house? YES


12. Had feelings for someone who didn’t have them back? YES


13. Been arrested? NO


14. Made out with a stranger? YES


15. Left your house without telling your parents? YES


16. Had a crush on your neighbour? YES


17. Ditched school to do something more fun? NO


18. Slept in a bed with a member of the opposite sex? YES


19. Seen someone die? NO


20. Been on a plane? YES

More to come…

Does this blog make me look gay?

This summary is not available. Please click here to view the post.

Thank you, Red Sweater Software!

Thank heavens for the guys and gals at Red Sweater Software for developing MarsEdit. The majority of my posts in the past several months (this review has been a long time in coming) have been written and posted in using MarsEdit and I can't begin to tell you how much more enjoyable it's made the blogging experience for me. Is it perfect? No. But it is the best solution I've found that's actually made it a pleasure to blog.

That screen shot to the right, that's an actual view of my desktop while working in MarsEdit. I love, love, LOVE that I can customize the preview window so that it accurately represents what my post will look like when it's actually published to Blogger. That's a big time saver!

My wish list of improvements is quite short and by no means should be a reason to prevent you from buying this application:

1. Support for syncing of local drafts between multiple computers. For those of us who have both a desktop and laptop, this would be a dream and would allow us added flexibility in our writing practices.

2. A version for the iPhone/iPod touch. Now that's definitely easier said than done, but for anyone who's tried using Blogger's web interface for creating a post on one of these devices already know that an iPhone app would be a dream come true.

3. The ability to set a publication date/time using Blogger's new-ish future posting feature.

Like I said, MarsEdit's current features far out-weight my wish list. $30 might seem like a lot to spend on an app that helps you write blog posts, but if you use Blogger, I'm pretty sure that after 30-days (coincidently, exactly how long the free trial period lasts) you'll be sold on it. I can't imagine blogging using anything else!

---

On a side note, this application can't fix stupid…like when I changed the post status default to draft early last week and forgot to change it back. The last several days of posts have been stuck in draft on Blogger because I forgot change my setting and because the preview in MarsEdit is so awesome I rarely actually visit my own blog. Oops! Sorry for what seems like a flood of posts today!

Phinally...photos...

Single Rider Tour 2008 — part ten in a series

It took nearly a week, but I've finally sorted through the several hundred photos I snapped on my trip, made my selects, color corrected, and finally posted to flickr.

Check them out here: Single Rider Tour 2008 collection

I live for comments so please let me know what you like, or what needs improvement, in the comments here or on flickr.

Where the boys are...

Single Rider Tour 2008 — part nine in a series

Yesterday I rated the three theme parks I visited, but there was an interesting difference between them that I didn't mention, namely, which park had the hotter guys. Totally not important — which is why this didn't impact the park's scores — but it's at least a little interesting.

While the concept of "hot" is relative when it comes to appearance, there are certain aspects that tend to remain consistent over a wide audience; how fit a person is.

I'll be the first to admit that I tend to be attracted to guys that many other's wouldn't be, especially when it comes to facial features, but since this is my blog, this bias is totally acceptable. I didn't take any photos to backup my findings, as that seemed a little too creepy.

What I find the most interesting is that the male guests were most attractive at Magic Mountain and least eye-catching at Disneyland. I have no idea why that would be the case. I would have thought that Disney, having the highest ticket price, might have an advantage — though they did let me in — but that was clearly not the case.

Maybe the hot guys are attracted to the park with the highest number of thrill rides? No clue, as most of the hot guys at Magic Mountain were obviously straight and the mind of the straight guy is as mysterious to me as the mind of women is to straight guys. I did see a few gay couples at Magic Mountain, which was kind of cool, so maybe I should have asked them.

Not sure if my findings are consistent with others, I don't believe there's been a lot of research done on this. What about you? Have you noticed a trend in where attractive guys (or girls) tend to flock to? Any theories on why?

Finding Disappointment

Single Rider Tour 2008 — part seven in a series

Now that my vacation is officially over, I can go back and review a few key things from my trip in a bit more detail. First up, the long awaited, much anticipated Finding Nemo-based ride at Disneyland.

It's easy to say that Pixar became Disney's saviour for animated films. Unfortunately it seems that scaled-back budgets will continue to make for flat ride experiences in the US parks. For proof of this, compare the Winnie the Pooh ride in Tokyo's Disneyland versus any of the US parks. I can't help but wonder how the Finding Nemo ride at Disneyland in Anaheim would have benefited if the Tokyo Land Management company (the actual owners of the Toyko park) running the project.

Starting off my list of disappointments, the wait. The wait for this ride was the longest I would find in the entire park on my visit. Part of this could be that they were only running two subs, which apparently can only travel in tandem, and with the show running as long as it does, the limited number of seats, and the slow load/unload process, it's easy to see why my wait was 40 minutes even though the line itself looked short.

Next up, the subs. Now I'm all for recycling, but here was a chance to make improvements to the original subs rather than just sprucing them up with a new paint job. Other than the difficult and slow load/unload process, the biggest issue with the subs is the size of the viewing portholes. The experience becomes completely compartmentalized, and one you experience by yourself rather than as a family or group. I found this to be very unsatisfying, and a little un-Disney when looking at Disney's modern thoughts on the ride experience. The portholes are so small that if you blink, you've probably missed something in the rich detail in the ride. I'm sure it came down to budget when they were refurbishing the subs. The subs would have benefited by having the tiny portholes replaced by larger viewing windows. Such windows allow the experience to be shared by several people at once, and make it that much more meaningful to them.

My other complaint was that the scenes had so many set breaks that again, if you blinked, you missed part of the story being told. Again, larger portholes would have made for a better storying telling experience.

The animatronics and animation were, more or less, successfully integrated into the ride, though the animatronics seemed a little under animated when compared to the animated elements of the ride and that created a noticeable separation between storytelling elements, and that took me out of the story. This again is a situation where Disney used to be top dog; their animatronics were second to none. Some of these animatronics looked like the belonged in Knotts Berry Farm or any other generic theme park.

I'm hoping that John Lassiter can help the penny-pinchers in the Anaheim park realize that their cost-cutting ways detract from the guest experience and hamper the story telling process&helli;and that's why Pixar has been so successful; to them, story is king.

I could have driven home faster

Single Rider Tour 2008 — part six in a series

So you may recall that when I ended my last post, I was waiting to board my flight home. My flight was scheduled to originally depart LAX at 6:00 p.m. but Air Traffic Control up in San Francisco had issued a ground stop, or something like that (I'm not up on all that fancy-schmancy flying lingo). Well they ended up getting us on the plane by about 6:45 p.m. and within minutes of sealing the door and pulling away from the gate we were informed that SFO was re-issuing the halt for all inbound flights. How long were we going to have to wait? SFO wasn't saying.

There we sat, on the tarmac, watching our satellite TV (when it was working), and waiting for the green light to get home. I should mention that this was my first time flying Virgin America and I just so happened to be one of the first people to be seated in their brand new "Main Cabin Select" class of seats. How was it? I'll post a review of it in a few days. But overall I really have to say that Virgin America has the nicest planes; they don't smell like stale coffee and vomit yet.

Around 8:30 the captain gets on the PA system to let us know that SFO isn't giving them a clear answer as to whether or not the ground halt has been lifted, but even if it is, there are a bunch of other flights that waiting to land so they have plenty of other flights that are due in before we can even think of taking off. The waiting continues. While many other travelers are starting to freak out about the delay, I remain calm. It makes no sense in a situation like that to get all worked up. ATC doesn't feel it's safe for planes to land, and I appreciate that decision because I know they're doing it to keep me alive.

An hour later we finally get confirmation that we are cleared for departure and being taxiing to the runway for takeoff. And then, in a twisted moment of deja-vu we get word that we're being ask to hold. Again. At this point, even I'm getting restless. And I'm getting worried that my car, parked at the San Bruno BART station might be towed as my long term parking permit will expire at midnight.

We finally take to the sky around 10:30. We land smoothly about an hour later. By midnight I've claimed my luggage and wearily head to the SFO AirTrain to take me to the transfer station to catch the BART train back to my car. I arrive at the station to find that the BART station gates are closed and the station is closed. Crap. I'm totally confused as the BART website indicated that the train I needed would be running into the early morning. My only option is to take a taxi to my car. But getting back to the terminal would prove to me trickier as the AirTrain that would normally do that was taken offline for the night and the SFO facilities people gave me bad instructions on how to get back to the terminal. An hour after I've landed and I'm still no closer to getting to my car than when I first landed.

A $20 cab ride later I'm finally at my car. It's 1:30 a.m. and I've still got an hour long drive home ahead of me. And laundry after that. But, I'm alive. Though I'm not sure I'll be mentally alive at work in a couple of hours.

Redefining an "extreme" vacation

Single Rider Tour 2008 — part five in a series

Well, maybe calling it a "vacation of extremes" would be more accurate. For the past three days I've been surrounded, more or less, by crowds of theme park-goers, riding thrill ride after thrill ride, and generally looking for mass marketed entertainment. While I did find a couple opportunities to flex my artistic side by way of photography, I wouldn't fully embrace the arts until today, and with that take a complete departure from the entire vacation so far.

The day started on a good note. And while I missed hanging out with The Writer before he left for work, Betty's breakfast recommendation made up for it. The place: Patrick's Roadhouse. The vibe: beyond eclectic. The food: deliciously comforting. The service: refreshingly personal and friendly. I'll eventually have some photos to post, once I'm back home (I'm writing this at LAX sans internet). I'm not really a big breakfast guy — unless it's breakfast for dinner — but I went to town on my food. Thanks for the recommendation, Betty! You've created another fan for this friendly and funky place.

I finished eating sooner than I had thought I would and with my admission time to the Getty Villa still more than an hour away I elected to take a drive north up the Pacific Coast Highway and threw on the soundtrack to the movie Grove to provide the score to my mini-roadtrip within my vacation.

It was a beautiful drive. Fortunately the speed limit was slow enough that I wasn't just blasting by the views without being able to appreciate what I saw. The ocean looked stunning as the clouds danced on the horizon and the waves entertained the surfers. I made it all the way through Malibu to Zuma Beach where a film crew was setting up. I looked at the time and realized it was time to make a u-turn and head toward my original destination. Oh how I wish I could have spent a little more time at the beach. The beach has always been a grounding force for me. Something about walking barefoot on the cold, damp sand helps me feel more connected to the world I live in and reset perspectives. Not to mention all the hot surfer boys changing into and out of their wetsuits in the parking lot. That 300mm zoom lens would have been quite handy for stalking six-packs. But alas, the boys of L.A. is a topic for a future post.

Pulling up to the main gate of the Getty Villa was breathtaking. The landscaping was amazing. Little did I know that I hadn't seen anything yet. The use of stone, tile, and cement was stunning throughout the pathway leading to the museum entrance. Not really sure where to start, I hopped into an orientation tour that was about to head out. That proved to be a wise decision because while the grounds aren't overwhelming expansive, within 30 minutes I knew where everything was and had mapped out in my mind what might be photo worthy.

There were a lot of wonderful sights to behold, and aromas to delight in. Yes, I said aromas. The herb garden, while not in full bloom, provided subtle yet soothing aroma therapy as I sat on a bench soaking in the sun, feeling the tension from the previous day's strenuous activities slowly start to ease. The collection of Roman artifacts and statues were impressive and I was thrilled to learn that non-flash photography was allowed (for personal use only, of course). Keep watching as I'll have a flickr album posted soon highlighting my visit to the Villa.

Before I knew it, it was time to head back toward LAX, with a quick side trip to The Writer's office to drop off something he had forgotten to take with him that morning. Personally I think it was just an excuse to see me before I headed back to San Francisco, but either way it was just nice to be able to see him again. It had been too long since our last face-to-face visit. Hopefully our next in-person visit won't be too far away. Before I climbed back in my car he extended his hand for a farewell shake. Upon clasping hands, he went in for a hug too. That was nice. I'm a big hugger. But for some reason most of my close friends aren't. Never have been, now that I think about it. Not to bring up the past, but Carlos hated hugging. Well, mostly I think he just hated hugging me, because he seemed to have no problem hanging off people he had just met. Anyway, my point…hold on a sec, they're making an announcement about my flight.

DELAYED! By at least an hour and a half due to weather issues at SFO. Lovely.

Now where was I? Oh yes. Hugs. So I was little surprised that he offered a hug. I never thought of our relationship of being one that would include a hug. But maybe after a certain number of years, six for us so far, one reaches hug eligibility status. My point is, and I do have one, that the hug was nice and a great way to end my visit to L.A. and my visit with a distance-separated friend.

Well, without photos to post, and not wanting to go off on another odd tangent (admit it, that hug part was a bit weird, right?) I think I'm going to save this to my local drafts folder in MarsEdit — thank heavens for MarsEdit! — and go in search of some hydration. I'm parched and not capable of surviving an hour-plus long flight with all that dry, recirculated air.

Always Remember...

Single Rider Tour 2008 -- part four in a series

...to make sure you unplug and take your laptop's power adapter you before you check out of your hotel. Otherwise you'll end up like me and typing this on your iPhone. Thank goodness for the App Store, I was able to find a lightweight app to help me keep on posting. Unfortunately now all my pics are stuck on my powerless laptop and I won't be able to upload them until I get home.

Today was a good day. Slept in (bed was too comfy, and I was exhausted) so I didn't get up to Magic Mountain until noonish. Which was fine because the park was pretty empty. Being a single rider didn't matter much as the lines were so short that the longest wait was only 20 minutes, and that was for the mind-blending X2, which left me questioning if my brain and body could withstand much more coaster riding. A quick trip on an old favorite put away any concerns and I wound up riding 7 coasters in 3 1/2 hours. By the end, I was really starting to feel the effects of all the g forces.

Ah, yes...but now my single rider tour is coming to a close. After 3 days packed with theme parks, people, and thrills, tomorrow I swing to the opposite side and chill out with a little quiet culture at the Getty Villa.

Well, it's nearly time for bed. Not sure what time I'll need to roll outta here, but my guess is it'll be the same time The Writer has to head out for work. Betty told me about a great breakfast place on the way up to Malibu I might be able to check out if I get on the road in time.

See you tomorrow.

Posted with LifeCast

Like a nun spinning around on a mountain top...

Single Rider Tour 2008 — part three in a series

That's how I'm feeling right now. Dizzy. Clearly I've overdone the thrill rides in such a short amount of time. Maybe the rain that moved in over Knotts Berry Farm early in the afternoon was a sign for me to call it a day so I could recover enough to be fresh and ready for X2 on Sunday. The two coasters I did squeeze in were decent, but nothing to write home (or here) about. I'm curious to see how they stack up against the other rides from this trip. Rest assured that I'll be churning out comparison charts as soon as I'm home.

Today did hold a couple treats. First, I had lunch at the famous Mrs. Knotts Chicken Dinner Restaurant. It was a lot of food for a very reasonable amount of money. And the chicken...so moist and juicy. It wasn't very crispy but it was certainly delicious.

My second treat was reconnecting with a friend from the good ol' days back in SF. The Writer was generous in his offer to let me crash at his place while I'm down here. We went out for dinner tonight and it was so fun to catch up as well as reminisce about the past. It's been a couple years since we've hung out, but we picked up where we left off as if no time had passed at all. I'm very fortunate that I have people like that in my life.

Alright, it's late and I'm exhausted. Relaxing vacation is an oxymoron for this trip. Time for bed. Pray for Sunday sunshine!

10,000

Wow. I just noticed that I finally hit the 10,000 visitor mark. Neat! I'm sure if this blog was more interesting it wouldn't have taken a year and a half to reach such a milestone. Oh well. I write what I know. (The rest I make up.)