Overheard on the Bus

"Living outside is one of the best things that can happen to you."

Gotta love MUNI.

Jury Duty!

Here is the Hall of Justice in San Francisco where I had to report this morning for jury duty. With a name like Hall of Justice, I expected to see Superman or something.

I'm getting ready now for the selection process for a criminal case. It will last about a week if I'm chosen. Wish me luck that it's a gay bashing case so I can be excused.

The Great Pacific Northwest Tour in Pictures

Flash Slideshow

What a long strange trip! I hated to leave and come back to real life, but all good things must come to an end.

In case you're shopping for my Xmas gift. . .

Check out Damien Hirst's work. I have just the spot for either the zebra or the golden calf.

Post Cannon Beach Stress Disorder

I totally know how Madonna feels in this photo. I got to bed around 4am this morning then got up around 10:30. Luckily, I had some Top Pot doughnuts to ease the pain. Now, though, there's laundry to be done and plants to be watered. And it's a grey foggy day in SF. What a welcome home.

Home Sweet Home

We arrived in SF at about 3:30 AM. Now it's time for some well-deserved sleep. Goodnight!

Lunch in Portland

Okay, I had some fish and chips, too. The Deschutes brew was good, but it wasn't enough to keep us in Portland for long. The road beckons.

Goodbye Seattle

After having a good dinner at Coastal Kitchen last night and sleeping in this morning, it was time to hit the road and head back to San Fran. We met Shannon and Jason at Top Pot on Capitol Hill for doughnuts and farewells. It was a delicious and relaxing end to our visit. Wish us luck on the drive. Just 14 hours to that city by the bay. Ugh. :)

Sitting in Gasworks Park

It's a partly sunny day in the 70s here in Seattle. Perfect really.
Wish you could enjoy the view with me.

Did I mention the doughnut eating contest?

I didn't win despite the colonic and my weekend binge training at Happy Donuts.

Seriously the best doughnuts EVAR

Shannon says "Lunch or Voodoo"

I chose lunch at the Blue Water Cafe. :)

Hello Seattle

Downtown Seattle. I was waiting for my friend Shannon to leave work so we could grab some lunch.

Lake Washington

Taken in Seward Park

Courtney at Machiavelli's

I "heart" martinis. This is my favorite little Italian place on Capitol Hill. The chicken Milanese was de-lish.

Thank all that is holy for Top Pot Doughnuts

Doughnuts are a priority, so I stopped here first of course. I call it my church. It's good to be back, Seattle.

Last night in Cannon Beach

We went to Beth and Egan's place to grill out and play some games while trying to finish off some wedding wine. We had salmon, halibut, sausages, veggies and corn on the cob. It was a great way to end our time in CB, even though we never got in the hot tub--despite Beth's "Ice Storm" references to a key party.

The bridge NOT to Terebithia

Nope. Just a bridge from Oregon to Washington.

Where we ats?!

Thank god and Steve Jobs for the map feature on the iPhone. How did people take road trips before this phone?

Leaving tsunami hazard zone

Goodbye Cannon Beach! We're on the road again and heading to Seattle. Only $47.16 to fill up the gas tank. A bargain.

I can hear the banjos

I'm a tad alarmed that my next door tourist neighbors who seem to spend their days sitting on their little porch smoking and reading are, in fact, reading "Deliverance"! I mean seriously. Should I be concerned?

On the food front I had some yummy salmon "fish and chips" at the Ecola Seafood Company today. We sat outside to get away from the hordes of children and their zoo keepers that came on after us. I think the little beasts should be curbed while the adults eat.

Food at the reception

We had a nice selection of beef or cod. Plus some veggies, cheese plate and a caprese salad. Add to this the wine and the signature cocktails--a manhattan and an aviator--and we all had a good meal. After dinner came dancing and I was responsible for the dance music. As far as I can tell, everyone had a good time.

Renee and Yasu's dance

Courtney gets frisky

My god! They're married!

The wedding locale

Ecola State Park. Not too shabby.

Getting ready for the ceremony

Got dress?

Get on the bus!

The wedding is at 4pm today and this is the bus taking us to Ecola State Park. Or the SATs. I hope I have a signal in the park.

Haystack Rock

After brunch Rand and I went down to the beach to look at Haystack Rock. It's pretty cool--even though this photo isn't great. The
weather today is a little grey. Perfect for a wedding, huh?

Pig 'n Pancake Success!

I did it! Sourdough pancakes for all.

Meet my date for the wedding

Don't tell Rand, though. He'll be jealous.

Live from Cannon Beach

Kevin and his band of children play for Renee and Yasu at the BBQ.

The Happy Couple

Renee and Yasu at the BBQ.

Cannon Beach

This is the view from the wedding BBQ. That is Haystack Rock in the distance. Oh and the food was good at the BBQ.

Our little home away from home

Well, here's where I'll be for the next few days. Send sunshine if you can.

Voilà Butterfinger Blizzard

So cold and delicious.

Day 2: Heading to Cannon Beach

It's beautiful in Portland today, but we need to get to the coast for the BBQ tonight. On our way we passed this Dairy Queen. And I've been craving a Blizzard. What luck!

Marionberry Cosmo

And Rand's Dirty Martini at Olive or Twist.

Quality of life in Portland

This is a little water park in the Pearl District. Kids and their
parents, but no homeless. What's wrong with this town?!

I "heart" iced tea in Portland

I got this at Powell's for $1.50. Not too shabby.

We have arrived in Portland!

After 10+ hours, we finally made it. Time to relax and enjoy the sun.

Sent from my iPhone

We made it to Mt. Shasta

Only 300 miles to go or so.

On the road to Cannon Beach

Instant Opinion Poll

Women who date men with long (and I mean LONG) hair have mental or emotional issues.

Discuss.

Viagra vs. the Pill: John McCain Confronts This Pressing Issue

This man wants to be President, yet he cannot form a coherent opinion off the top of his head. Even if he cannot recall his past votes, can't he still formulate an opinion about a fairly obviously sexist policy held by many insurance companies? And, if he cannot do so, are you really going to vote for him?

I personally love it when he widens/rolls his eyes at the reporter's ongoing questions. "Oh hell," he must be thinking, "how can I hem and haw my way out of this one?"

Brought to You by the Number 4

This makes me like Feist even more.

But where's the Count?!

He's Just a Brief Guy. It's What He Wears.

Garrett Neff is my latest obsession. Now, as Calvin Klein's newest underwear model, he can be yours, too.

Push me to the Golden Gate

Idris Leppla of San Francisco pushes Tyler MacNiven down Market Street on Wednesday. Starting at his Mission District home at 9 a.m., MacNiven asked strangers to help him obtain his goal of reaching the Golden Gate Bridge by 5 p.m. by pushing him in his chair. He made it, according to his blog.

I "heart" SF. :)



From the SF Gate

What Would iJesus Do? A Tale of the iPhone

It only took eight hours and trips to one AT&T store and two Apple stores. Oh, and did I mention standing in line for EIGHT hours. GD AT&T and their stupid in-store authorization process! Alas. Eventually, the process sped up as the day wore on, and Rand and I eventually got our hands on our phones around 3 PM or so. We started our day around 7:30 AM.

Actually, I got my hands on two iPhones. The first one didn't seem to work. Even the guy helping me seemed perplexed, but his supervisors were telling him and me that I just needed to take it home and charge it up and it would be fine. My response: I've waited too long and paid too much money not to be assured that the phone will work. So, get me another phone. They had to return that one and sell me a new one. Guess what? When they plugged in the new phone, it worked perfectly. Matt, who was helping me today at the Stonestown Apple Store (and he was great btw), said something like, "Now that's more like it." I agree, Matt.

What does this new phone mean for the future? I imagine world peace, better haircuts, six-pack abs, and a spring in my step. Or, at the very least, I'll always know what movies are playing and what the weather is like in Barcelona.

Thanks for the memories, Steve J.

Waiting in line for the iPhone

I want an iPhone, but all I have gotten so far is this bottle of water.

Nuts to you, Barack

I am growing to truly despise the American television media. Behold the never-ending quest to undereducate and distract the citizens of the United States.

Matt's Going Away Party Today

Beer pong at Chronicle. It was the perfect way to celebrate the farewell of the editor who brought us all "Stuff On My Cat."

Grace Jones, "Corporate Cannibal"

Like Lazarus, she has risen. And this video is one of the weirder things I've seen today (and, remember, I live in San Francisco, so that's saying something).

One Man's Trash. . .

This makes me smile.

Mea Culpa: Bush Apologizes For Everything

Congrats! You Just Had A Bouncing Baby. . .

That's it, just a bouncing baby:

Sex Ed and the Religious Right

Where traditional sex ed programs attempted to give teenagers the knowledge to protect themselves in sexual encounters, Dagmar Herzog writes in her new book Sex in Crisis, "new abstinence advocates use the fear of disease to frighten kids away from sex entirely."

Consider this classroom exercise: "Boys and girls are invited to chew cheese-flavored snacks and then sip some water, after which they are to spit the resulting 'bodily fluids' into a cup. After a game in which the fluids are combined with those of other students, ultimately all cups are poured into a pitcher labeled 'multiple partners' sitting adjacent to a pitcher of fresh water labeled 'pure fluids.' In the final segment, each boy and girl is asked to fill a cup labeled either 'future husband' or 'future wife' with the contents from one of the pitchers."

The Georgia-based program behind all this expectoration received more than half a million dollars in taxpayer dollars, and it is by no means the only such program to benefit. At every turn, the abstinence-only movement has been abetted and advanced by the Bush administration. As recently as 2006, the Department of Health and Human Services was offering grants for programs that teach "the potential psychological side effects (e.g., depression and suicide) associated with adolescent sexual activity" and that instruct students that "non-marital sex in teen years may reduce the probability of a stable, happy marriage as an adult."

Doesn't it give you warm fuzzy feelings to know your tax dollars are being spent this way?

Rafa Wins Wimbledon

Thanks to a rain delay and the longest Men's Championship in Wimbledon history, I got to see the end of the 4th set and the 5th set of the Men's Final today. It was phenomenal. Both Federer and Nadal played amazing tennis. John McEnroe called the best match he had ever seen. No small praise.

In the end, Nadal won when Federer committed an unforced error during the final championship point. At that point, I didn't care who won. They both served up a great game today.

As If You Needed Another Reason to Go to Brazil

I mean, seriously. What are they feeding these people?

Brent Corrigan and Porn Lite, Or a "Gayer" Gossip Girl Video Montage

Every once in a while, I need to remind my casual readers that this blog is written by a gay homosexual. So, when I find a cute little video like this, I feel the need to share. It's porn scrubbed clean of all the dirty bits with a nice little soundtrack added. Basically, it's ready to be shown on the WB network now.

I just think Brent's a little cutie, so enjoy him in his sanitized form:

Fire in Western Addition!

Flash Slideshow

Rand and I were walking around and through Buena Vista park after having lunch at the Bean Bag Cafe today (I had an artichoke, mushroom and chicken crepe with a sundried tomato sauce and Rand had blueberry pancakes). It's a beautiful day here in SF, but we noticed something odd when we looked north: smoke. As we watched and got closer the smoke thickened and billowed out of a Western Addition neighborhood. Within about two minutes or so, the sirens began to sound. I snapped a few shots and this little video, but we didn't get too close. As we walked back, we passed a woman on her cellphone, screaming to the person on the other end that her home was on fire. She continued to wail as we walked away. The city is rarely quiet.

Pringles: 42% Pure Potato

Britain's High Court has ruled that Pringles are not a potato snack, and thus are not subject to value-added tax.

This ruling by Justice Nicholas Warren will potentially save millions of dollars for Procter & Gamble, the maker of Pringles.

Warren overruled a VAT Tribunal decision that Pringles should be subject to the 17.5-percent tax because it met the definition of "potato crisps, potato sticks, potato puffs and similar products made from the potato, or from potato flour, or from potato starch."

The judge found that Pringles were only 42 percent potato, and thus exempt.

This leads me to the obvious question: what's in the other 58%?!

My guess:

22% Sawdust (for that crunchy goodness)
5% Hair (consider it a filler)
1% Pringles worker (OSHA alert!)
11% Polysorbate 80 (it's in everything, right?)
9% Corn (ditto)
10% Honey bees (and you wondered where they had disappeared to. . . )

A Typical Day at Work

Well, metaphorically speaking, work can be like this from time to time.So, why don't I get an award? :)