Monday, January 31, 2011

Songs In My Head

After seeing Jeanie and her friends at the 145 Club, a couple of songs they sang--two of my favorites--have been playing a loop in my head.
Thanks Jeanie for singing these two tunes!
First up: Shawn Colvin and "Don't You Think I Feel It, Too"

And then Eva Cassidy's rendition of "Over The Rainbow".

Happy 90th Miss Channing!

Broadway diva Carol Channing is ninety years old today!

SAG Musings

I watched the SAG awards last night...well, okay, I DVR'd the SAG awards last night and watched them this morning, speeding through the winners I didn't like, didn't know, didn't care about, and therefore cutting a two hour show down to about forty minutes.

What did I learn?

Well, actors don't know any other comedic TV actors other than Alec Baldwin. Seriously, why does he win this award almost every year?

Julianna Margulis and Keith Lieberthal
 Julianna Margulies husband is very, very cute, and was giving a little gay vibe on my set. I paused, rewound, played it again. Same vibe. Now maybe he is, and maybe he isn't, but he sure is cute and shiny. 

Did someone finally tell Anette Benning that there are clothes designed after 1963, and that there is nothing wrong with combing her hair?

Why did Ed O'Neil accept the award for Modern Family's cast win? Ty Burrell would have been funnier. Hell, Annette Benning would have been funnier.


I kinda wish Jeff Bridges would lose the facial hair. he's hot with it, he's hotter without it. And that goes for Christian Bale, too.

Is anyone else getting a little tired of the Betty White sex jokes? I know that may sound blasphemous, but.....


When exactly did Jon Hamm become Kevin Kline?

Did Natalie Portman say asshole on TV? And, if she did, was it really necessary to bleep it out? I mean, she was talking about herself, you know.

Michael C. Hall was robbed. He's brilliant in Dexter. And Steve Buscemi still looks like Don Knotts. That isn't why he shouldn't have won, though. It's all about Dexter.

I have a suggestion for next year's SAG awards, and all awards shows in general. Have Taye Diggs host. Have Taye Diggs present every award. Make all the nominees stay at home so Taye Digs can accept the awards for them. In other words, make it all Taye, all the time.

Did you watch? And, if you did, wouldn't you want it All Taye, All The Time, too?

Weekend Update

So, Saturday Carlos had made dinner plans to celebrate my birthday, and he was pretty mum on the whole idea, which I [a] rather enjoyed because usually I'm the one who makes the plans, or [b] rather terrified me because usually I'm the one who makes the plans.

When I asked where we were going to dinner, he'd say, "The Restaurant."

When I asked where was The Restaurant, he'd say, "Restaurant place."

I was [a] amused, or [b] annoyed, or [c] an odd combination of both.

Now, earlier in the week, on Thursday night, my Tia Gloria, Tia by 'marriage' as she is Carlos' aunt who lives in Mexico City, called to wish me a Happy Birthday, and then she asked to speak to him--or as she calls him, The Other One. I could hear her on the phone asking him what he was doing to celebrate my birthday, and then he said it, "He's getting a party."

A party? I was [a] terrified or [b] horrified. A party? Carlos doesn't do parties, or at least not in the last almost-eleven years that I've known him has he done parties. So, I began to think. Dinner? Okay. Restaurant? Yes, that would happen. Party? He probably meant that he invited Round-the-Way Gays, Neal and David, to join us.

Of course, I kept this to myself.

On Saturday night, as we were leaving for The Restaurant at Restaurant Place, I kept asking, Who and Where and Where and Who, and he was playing sly dog. But that didn't last long, as I soon realized we were leaving Smallville--which has just three restaurants, so i erased those from my list of choices.

And then rather than get on the highway, he opts to take US 1. The highway heads into Columbia and since we weren't taking that route, I wiped Columbia from my mental list of possibilities.

I suddenly knew. We were headed to Sandhill, a mega-shopping area just northeast of Columbia where there are all sorts of shops and restaurants. Restaurant Place!

Restaurant Place. Now, I also knew which The Restaurant, and as we neared Sandhill, I began telling Carlos where to go. Turn here, I said, and he gave me a look that said [a] You think you're so smart, or [b] You're so smart.

We ended up at a Mediterranean restaurant called al-Amir that we have been dying to try. and it was just the place I wanted to go. And, of course, upon entering the restaurant, I saw Neal and David, who, well, let's just say that, if they were actors, they'd be the kind of actors who never win awards for acting; they said, "What are y'all doing here?"

Anyway, we had a lovely dinner, with good friends, and a happy birthday. There were Stuffed Grape Leaves, and Feta Salad, and Lamb and Chicken Kabobs, Almond Torte and Arabic Coffee. I ordered Chicken Curry, with the option of mild or spicy; every time I go to a place with that option, the spicy is really mild and the mild is, well, just sad. But al-Amir came through with the spicy. It was verging on too spicy, but so so good.

David and Neal presented me with a bottle of fine Chilean Carmenere, one of my favorite reds, and a pair of gorgeous wine glasses, along with these chocolate-y bath fizzer things. It was all I could do not to speed home, pop the cork, fizz my bath, and jump in the tub with Carlos!

That was Saturday. Sunday, I went to church. I know!

But I went with Carlos, who was giving a presentation for the health care company with whom he works, to the Hispanic congregation at a local Presbyterian Church. And I was very impressed seeing Carlos in this work element, speaking before the group, and then talking with people individually. So may of the Hispanic population in South Carolina--and it's quite a sizable group--don't have health care, and, with the language barrier, don't have a way to get affordable health care. Carlos has opened up this new client base to his company, because he's bilingual, and is helping the Hispanic community at the same time.
I was quite impressed.

I also, however, impressed myself, with myself, because an older Spanish gentleman came up and asked if I spoke Spanish--and I don't, really. I mean, I could curse you in Spanish; I can taunt you in Cuban Spanish. But I get a little tongue tied trying to speak it perfectly. I told the gentlemen No, but then I asked him, in perfect Spanish, if he had a question for Carlos. He looked stunned, and then he smiled and said, 'Si!'

As I said, impressed myself. But then I hoped no one else would ask me anything, because all I could say was, Tienes una pregunta para Carlos?

Or, El burro sabe mas que tu. Which isn't very nice.

After, ahem, church, where we also ate some really good tamales, we drove up to Winnsboro to hear our friend Jeanie play in a band. The band calls themselves The Halfway There Band, and mostly, as they say, play in each other's living rooms. But they went onstage at the 145 Club--a funky little bar--and really entertained the crowd. it was a little folk, and a little country, and really quite fun. They played songs I'd never heard of, some they'd written themselves, and some I knew and just loved.

All in all, a fun day, even with church.
All in all, a fun birthday weekend.

How was yours?

Saturday, January 29, 2011

I Ain't One To Gossip, But......

Last week, Regis Philbin, host of 'Live With Regis and Kelly' announced that he would be retiring from morning television after 40 years of being in the business. He plans on leaving the show sometime this summer, saying of his retirement: "There is a time that everything must come to an end for certain people on camera -- especially certain old people!"
But it isn't all retirement and golf and trips with wife Joy that have Regis leaving. It's ALLEGEDLY  about money, or the lack of money being lain at Regis' feet.
It seems that Regis Philbin's agent, Jim Griffin, was in negotiations with ABC executives for a new contract since his current deal expired and the execs made it clear they wanted Regis to take a pay cut. The executives say the reason for the pay cut is that the show is no longer performing as well as it has, and that, well, Regis takes too much time off. 
Sources--and by sources I mean Gelman--say Philbin earns between $18 and $20 million a year.
Well, Regis turned all diva at the mere suggestion that he take less than twenty million, and his anger sparked the retirement announcement, and the sudden firing of his agent for mismanaging the negotiations.
Moral of the story: don't piss on a TV diva's paycheck.

And speaking of Diva Philbin, while he isn't ready to say who he thinks should take his seat, there is a name of a possible replacement floating around.
Lisa Rinna.
A source--and by source, I mean Lisa Rinna--says, "Lisa has proved she can do the job. She has co-hosted the show with Regis, filled in for Joy Behar on her show and was even better than Billy Bush when she stepped into his shoes on Access Hollywood's new daytime show."
Yeah, but taking Regis and Kelly to Kelly and Lisa? I'm not sure that's a good fit. And plus, would Lisa go to all the trouble of moving her husband and children, not to mention her ginormous lips, from California to New York?
That would be some moving truck.
Lisa, probably knowing she should keep her mouth shut [if possible] will only say, "Regis taught me everything that I know. He is the King!"
But, desperate for a job, any job, since, well, no one hires her as an actress any longer, Rinna is quick to pint out that she almost had the job co-hosting the show ten years ago: "You know, back 10 years ago I filled in many times with Regis when Kathie Lee left. I've been so fortunate enough to co-host with him at least 10 times or more and was up for the job to replace Kathie Lee, but of course Kelly was the perfect choice for it."
Well, she might have been a good fit for Regis, but, again, Kelly and Lisa? I don't see it.

Rather than Top Chef, they should call this one Top Custody.
Earlier this week, Adam Dell, the father of Top Chef host Padma Lakshmi's baby, filed a lawsuit seeking full custody of their 11-month-old daughter Krishna. Dell decided to take this drastic step because he claims that Lakshmi told him she had hoped he has nothing to do with the pregnancy.
According to the 16-page lawsuit, Dell says that when he and Lakshmi were dating in 2009, she was also dating 70-year-old IMG boss Ted Forstmann, with whom she is currently in a relationship.
Dell claims that Lakshmi had hoped Forstmann was Krishna's father, and not Dell, and said Lakshmi even refused to put his name on the birth certificate. He claims she was trying "to minimize, if not eliminate [Dell's] role in Krishna's life and to install Forstmann as Krishna's father."
And, according to Dell, Padma ALLEGEDLY launched a cruel attack on him during a phone call in September 2009, calling him an 'unambitious' man with an 'uninteresting' career and 'unmemorable' friends.He also claims, in his lawsuit, that "Forstmann declared that Lakshmi, Krishna and he are a 'family' and they wished [Dell] would f*****g disappear."
Ouch.
Padma's lawyer, Jay Silverstein, calls Dell's suit "inaccurate and misleading" and adds, "We were in the process of negotiating permanent visitation rights when Dell terminated negotiations and this suit was filed. He remains more interested in garnering media attention than focusing on the welfare of his daughter....[Lakshmi is saddened and gravely disappointed that Mr. Dell has chosen a very public means of filing his petition with the court rather than doing so in a confidential or sealed manner which is customary in cases involving a very young child."
Hmmm, this could get ugly, like Marcel getting his hair cut ugly.

One thing one doesn't do, apparently, is bore Oprah Winfrey; though, it is quite accepted to be bored by Oprah Winfrey.
It seems that Sarah Ferguson, star of an upcoming reality show on Winfrey's new OWN network, is ALLEGEDLY being asked to go back and shoot more compelling footage before the show,  'Finding Sarah' debuts this spring.
A source--and by source I mean Oprah's husband Gayle--says, "Oprah isn't happy with the show...She found it boring...and has ordered reshoots to make it harder hitting, and more revealing."
Um, Oprah, you gasbag? If you reshoot scenes for a reality show, then how is that reality?
:::crickets::::
Yeah, further proof that Oprah has lost her grasp on reality, but not on that case of Ding Dongs under her bed.

I loves me some 'Housewives'. The New York bitches, and the Beverly Hills ho's. And now, there is another set of 'Housewives' being brought to Bravo to stir the pot.
And these  divas are from Miami.
I'm in.
And one of the reasons I'm in is that one of The Real Housewives of Miami is none other than blonde bombshell Elaine Lancaster, whose also goes by his non-drag name, James Davis.
That's right. One of the housewives is  a man....and a woman! This has fabulous written all over it.
Elaine will appear as both James and Elaine in the series, which is expected to debut this year. It is a reboot of an old, tired, Bravo show called Miami Social Club but it has been upgraded to Housewives!
It will also feature Scottie Pippen's wife, Larsa, and magazine editor Alexia Echeverria.
In Miami.
Miami? Drag queens? I'm so there!


And now, back to Oprah:
Everyone, well, not me, was stunned this week when Oprah Winfrey broke the news that she recently discovered she had a half-eaten sister, I mean, a half-sister she never knew about.
But, and this is the part of the story that makes me giggle, it seems people are so impressed that Oprah's newest semi-sibling, Patricia, cared so much about Oprah's privacy and reputation that she turned down million dollar offers from tabloid magazines to tell her story.
A source--and by source, I mean the man who keeps Oprah fed--says, "All Patricia wanted was the truth. She wasn't interested in selling her story even for a million dollars. She just wanted to know who she was, where she came from and if she had any brothers or sisters. She had no idea when she started this search she would end up being Oprah Winfrey's half-sister."
And people are just falling all over themselves, praising Patricia for not selling out, but, call me skeptical, would you sell your story to the tabloids for a million bucks, or would you keep that story to yourself, and find your sister who is worth 100-times that much money.
Yeah, Patricia didn't sell her story because she's a half-sister to the goose with the golden eggs.

And, well, this is becoming All-Oprah, All The Time:
While her audience may have been stunned with Oprah Winfrey's news of half-sister Patricia, they weren't the only ones.
Vernon Winfrey, O's father, had no idea at all about the half-sister until he tuned it to the show himself.
Upon hearing the good news, Vernon said, "I'm pleased for Oprah that she discovered that she has a new half-sister and I would like to meet her too. I intend to call Oprah later this evening actually to try and catch-up with her about the exciting news."
And, no doubt, to find out where she fits in the inheritance line.
And then we have Gayle's reaction to the news that her husband has a long lost half-sister.
Gayle told ABC News: "I can't wait to meet Patricia."
Gayle-speak for, "Let me size this bitch up."
A source--and by source I mean Steadman, Oprah's beard--says "Gayle must have mixed feelings about the arrival of Patricia. Of course she wants nothing but the best for Oprah, but there has to be just a little tiny part of Gayle that is asking, 'What now?'"
As in, "Does this cut my share of the fortune?"
We all know that Gayle is very protective of Oprah, and her bank accounts, and is not used to sharing her with anyone. Sources--and by sources I mean the team that hoists Oprah in and out of the tub each day--say, "This new addition to the family could be a bigger adjustment for Gayle than for Oprah."
But Gayle is trying to take the high road to Oprah's vault, by saying, "This is extraordinary that somebody would have this information about Oprah, who as you know has been sold out on many occasions by friends, by co-workers, in some cases family. Patricia wasn't trying to get Oprah, she was trying to find her mother ... having Oprah as a sister, a half-sister, was a bonus."
Yeah, the kind of bonus one gets from their boss every year; or used to, until the boss found out she has a sister.

Okay, enough O stories.
Onto Camille Grammer, who is set to receive some $50 million dollars in her divorce settlement from Kelsey Grammer.
Now, it seems, Camille wants just a teeny bit more. 
Camille is requesting the divorce court grant her additional $10 million just in case Kelsey suddenly, um, dies shortly after his marriage.
Camille's lawyer, Neal Hersh, says Camille is concerned that Kelsey's impending marriage to Kayte Walsh would affect her as Walsh would presumably receive some legal rights to property that is still subject to divorce proceedings between Kelsey and Camille.
Oh, Kayte might get some stuff Camille wants.
Camille's objection is that, should Kelsey remarry and then suddenly pass away, she would have to pay out of her own pocket for any litigation regarding his estate. And she'll only have $50 million, and a house in Malibu. Why, she might have to downsize to just three nannies, and just four friends on the payroll if Kelsey dies.
Oh.The.Humanity.

Friday, January 28, 2011

Tidbits

This causes me such joy.
Sharron Angle is hinting that she might run for President.
I know!
Now, while that is hysterical in and of itself, can you imagine a Republican debate featuring Angle, Palin and Bachmann?
I mean, Tweedledum, Tweedledummer, and Bachmann.

Geri Jewell, best known for her role as Cousin Geri on that popular 1950s TV show, The Fats Of Life, er, The Facts of Life, is releasing her memoir, "I'm Walking As Straight As I Can: Transcending Disability in Hollywood and beyond."
Jewell was one of the first, if not the first, actor with a disability--she has cerebral palsy--to appear as a regular on on a TV show. She talks about the difficulty of breaking into Hollywood with cerebral palsy, and her pride in opening the doors for future generations of disabled actors.
But, she also comes out as gay in the book.
Cousin Geri is gay?
Who knew?
I mean, Jo, well, sure, but Cousin Geri?

Charlie Sheen is in trouble again.
The usual stuff, sex and drugs, and probably weapons, too.
I've made my share of jokes about Sheen, but this is not only getting old, it's getting scary.
If he was just plain Charlie Sheen, working at a Vons in Southern California, and was arrested for ALLEGEDLY holding a knife to his wife's throat, or terrorizing a prostitute--oops, i mean porn star--being arrested time and again for domestic abuse, and drugs, would he still have a job?
WTF is wrong with CBS that they let him continue to pull these stunts and then keep giving him millions of dollars a year. Seriously, are money and ratings more important?
And what about his family? Take some freakin' leadership, and have a court declare Sheen incompetent and get his ass into a state sanctioned rehab where he can deal with his addictions to drugs, alcohol, sex, and weapons.
Seriously. This isn't funny any more.

I'm back into the Drag Race, and this time Carlos is coming along for the ride.
My favorites so far are Mimi Imfurst--I loved her Madonna and Child get-up, and No, it wasn't that Madonna. I also love Delta Work, because she looks like the woman who used to play Sally on The Bold and The Beautiful. Raja needs some lip work, because those are some seriois man lips, and she can't pull that look off, even though she won this week. Hmm, maybe I'm wrong.
I'm also a fan of Shangela, back for her second try, though she almost got dragged off. And I like Mariah, who seemed to be the diva bitch, until she helped another queen out....Mimi.
Who do you like?

Would that i could make this stuff up:
Carolee Bildsten ate dinner at a restaurant in Gurnee Illinois, but had no money to pay the bill.
Police were called, and an officer drove Bildsten home so she could get the cash.
The officer accompanied her into her home, where she said the money was in her sock drawer. She reached in for the cash, and instead came out with a......
Wait for it.
Knife?
No.
Gun?
She pulled out a clear plastic dildo and held it above her head in a "threatening manner."
Bildstein is now saying the officer scared her because she didn't know he'd followed her into her bedroom; she says she reached for the, um, weapon, because she'd recently read an article about a Gurnee police officer who was convicted of sexual assault.
And what? She wanted to be ready?
Or maybe she's a wackjob because, um, well, i forgot to mention that the officer found her lying on the ground outside of the restaurant to begin with.

Kool-Aid.
It's not just for drinking anymore.
And while some people say you can add some temporary color to your hair using Kool-And, now we come to find out that you can also clean your bathroom bowl with it.
Apparently the citric acid in the orange Kool-Aid works well enough to clean the toilet.
And, because I like to offer household tips to my readers, here's how:
“Sprinkle the contents of the package in before you head to bed, swirl it around with a toilet bowl brush, and let it sit over night. The acid in the drink mix will go to work cleaning away tough stains and build up if you don't have the best water conditions.”
Now, to Kool-Aids credit, it is kind of a green product, but if it's strong enough to clean a toilet do you really wanna be drinking it?
 
And let's finish with The View.
Or let's just finish The View.
Now, don't get me wrong, I loves me some Whoopi and Joy, and some whoopee and joy, but Sherri is such a morn she makes Hasselbeck look like a Mensa member.
But today, let's talk about the doddering Grandma on the show, Babs Walters.
She is so out of touch, and rambles on so incoherently that it's almost sad. And why she feels the need to treat her audience like morons is beyond me. She always has to explain the story before she comments, like she knows the audience has no idea what's happening.
When, in fact, it's Babs who's lost.
Seriously, Babs, you've been a trailblazer. we wouldn't have Diane Sawyer without you; or Katie Couric, though I won't hold that against you. You've had an epic run,m having been on TV since the day TV was invented. And I'm sure you have enough money, so.....
Retire already.
Head down to Boca Raton and wander the streets, waiting for 5PM so you can get an Early Bird Special at Applebee's.
Seriously.
We'll be fine.
Go............................................................go.

Iowa Democrats Say No To Gay Marriage Ban

Well, Iowa keeps on rolling merrily, er, gaily, along.

Kent Sorenson
There was a strong homophobic, bigoted, discriminatory push by sate Senator Kent Sorenson--a Republican, dontcha know--to suspend Senate rules to allow a vote on a constitutional ban on same-sex marriage; but it was defeated yesterday pretty much right along party lines.

Which teaches us what?

Republicans are against equality, Democrats are not.

Sorenson had asked all 50 senators to call up Senate Joint Resolution 8--a bill to amend Iowa's Constitution to specify that marriage is only between one man and one woman--but Democratic Senate President Jack Kibbie said “No.”

Now, he did agree to allow a vote on whether to suspend the rules and override his objection, but the 26 Democrats voted No, and the 24 Republicans vote Yes, so it was....No..

Kent Sorenson, like the bitch he is, is planning to “file numerous amendments and use any other tactic at his disposal” in order to force a vote on same-sex marriage because, you know, fags shouldn't be treated equally under the law. And once Kent makes the fags Constitutional Second Class citizens, maybe he'll take on the Mexicans or the Blacks, even women. I mean, women have the right to vote?

Mike Gronstal
Luckily for equality, Senate Majority Leader Mike Gronstal--a Democrat naturally--has vowed to never allow such an amendment to come up for debate.

Sorenson called the debate over same-sex marriage “my generation’s defining moment.” Wow, so he wants his generation's defining moment to be one where he tells people that the Constitution doesn't apply to them?

Let me say this again: if your personal beliefs are that homosexuality is wrong, and that gay people don't deserve equal rights, that's okay. See, this is America, and you get to believe and say whatever you want. And if your religion teaches you that homosexuality is wrong and that marriage has traditionally been a one man/one woman concept--which it hasn't--then that's all right, too.

But what isn't all right is for you to use your personal beliefs, or your religion, to deny rights to people in this country. It says "All men are created equal" for a reason.

Stay strong Iowa.


source

I Didn't Say It.....

Sir Elton John, on being "fed up" with being a treated like a second-class citizen in the US:
"In this country, we need more dialogue. We don't need any more stone throwing. We don't need any more vitriol. We need people to say, 'OK. I'm straight. You're gay. Let's get along. I'm Republican. You're Democratic. Let's work together.' I'm sick and tired of people being hateful to each other in this country Everyone is entitled to have their own beliefs and their own spirituality. The big difference is that the dogma of the church can be so hateful and divisive. It's stuck in the stone age. We don't live in the stone age anymore. The church is losing people left, right and center because people are fed up with the rhetoric that they're giving them."

I guess becoming a father has pushed Elton out into the pro-marriage, pro-equality spotlight. I remember when he said he didn't want to get married, and now, well, I think he's realizing that separate--i.e. civil unions--is not equal.

Megachurch pastor Joel Osteen, on the sin that is homosexuality:
"The scriptures shows that it's a sin. But you know, I'm not one of those that are out there to bash homosexuals and tell them that they're terrible people and all of that. I mean, there are other sins in the Bible too...I don't believe homosexuality is God's best for a person's life...."Well, it's strictly back to what the scripture says. I mean, I can't grab one part and say God wants you to be blessed and live an abundant life, and not grab the other part that says, you know what? You know, live that kind of life. So it comes back to the scripture. I'm not the judge. You know, God didn't tell me to go around judging everybody."

No, God didn't tell you to go around judging people.
You do that all on your own.

Tiffany, former pop star and one-hit wonder, on dating, and apparently outing, New Kids On The Block member Jonathan Knight:
"He turned gay later. I didn't do it, but he's fabulous, though. I had issues with that. I was thinking that I did. But, no....Now looking back while we were dating," she says. "He was so much fun. We used to do facials together. He was so easy to talk to."

Oh, Tiffany, honey, no one blames you for making anyone gay, because, well, you can't do that.
I will however hold you responsible for mall singers, Debbie Gibson, really bad pop music.
And Justin Bieber.

Jason Mraz, on not getting married until everyone has that right: 
"We both feel that in our engagement, we have a union that's really special and cant be broken. It's a sacred bond. The wedding would be nice for our family, our friends, our community -- our moms especially -- and so it puts us in the fight. We can't get married until [gay] marriage is legal and equal...I think giving people the right to marry will be a huge movement in civil rights."

It's nice to have such an ally for the LGBT community, and one who stands by his convictions, and keeps verbalizing them.
I love you, Jason. And when you can get married, I'll come to your wedding, and you can come to mine. Or, howsabout a nice double wedding?

Michael Musto, on what he sees as the hypocrisy of Calvin Klein:
"Calvin, darling, you're embarrassing yourself. What's worse, you're embarrassing the whole community. You were never really that much of a gay hero in the first place. Remember when you suddenly had a wife because, as AIDS made it uncool to be gay, you took the wussy way out and closeted yourself so you could sell more T shirts and perfume? That was a hideous approach and I screamed my lungs out about it--but it was better than now! Now you've hooked up with that almost-21-year-old ex-porn star, Nick Gruber, and you're fawning over him as if this were real love and not a massive late-life crisis being acted out for the horrified masses. It's not going to work!"

You know, I'm kinda with Musto on this.
I remember when Calvin Klein got "married" to Kelly, and I kept thinking, Kelly's a man, right?
Not cool, Calvin.

David Gandy, supermodel, on his tough life:
"People still just think Zoolander, and to come out with your pride and dignity intact is probably quite hard in this business. Now there are younger guys coming in who want to be models. I'm actually proud to say I'm a model now. You pay your dues of not being listened to, but now people are starting to say, 'Maybe this guy's onto something.'...Trust me to end up working in the only industry in the world where women get paid more than men, and treated loads better. We're trying to change that. In the hierarchy of a shoot, you have the photographer, the female model, the stylists, the assistants, then the male model. You are the lowest of the low."

I love me some David Gandy, but, come on, I imagine there are a lot tougher ways to earn a buck, or several million.

Tea Party supported, Senator Mike Lee, a Utah Repugnant--and I mean repugnant--on the violent rhetoric of the Teabaggers:
"The shooter wins if we, who’ve been elected, change what we do just because of what he did."

The shooter wins if people like Lee stop using violent words and images in their speeches and campaign ads?
No, you moronic fucktard, we win, because we become less about violence and more about civility, which is obviously something the Tea Party and its idiotic minions know nothing about.
They want to quell the speech of anyone who disagrees with them, but retain the right to inflict violence through words on the country.
That is unAmerican.

Porn star Reese Rideout, on being gay for pay:
"I can have sex at work without thinking about the other person because I'm genuinely straight. But gay sex is tough if you're straight. The first time I shot a scene with another man, it was oral sex, and I couldn't keep it up because I wasn't turned on."

But I'll bet you sprang a woody when you got that first paycheck, didn't you?
And I bet you keep springin' 'em just thinking about the money.
i love that he is genuinely straight but he takes it and gives it from both ends, probably, at times, simultaneously.
Yeah, straight, as in straight to the gay bar.


Christopher Ciccone, on his sister, Madonna, and her, um habit, of dating much younger men:
"I guess if she continues to date all these much younger guys, it could start to look creepy. But I think that a lot of Madonna's emotional needs are met by taking care of her children; these boyfriends must really be like a kind of distraction for her. She certainly isn't following societal values, but then again my sister never has and probably never will either."

Sounds to me like a little green-eyed monster.
Maybe Chris is a little jealous of Madonna's boy toys.

Thursday, January 27, 2011

This Is The Pits

Y'all have no doubt heard about the woman who was walking and texting in a mall, and fell into a fountain, right?
Well, did you know she is suing the mall because no one came to her aid and, as she pulled herself from the water, no doubt still texting, the security guards were laughing at her. And that's a lawsuit. And it's apparently, in her mind, a payday.
I sometimes wonder how people can, with a straight face, file these frivolous lawsuits, and then it hits me.
We are given the right to do so by our elected officials.
Case in point: Dennis Kucinich.
Congressman Dennis Kucinich is suing a U.S. House of Representatives cafeteria for $150,000 because, he claims, they sold him a veggie wrap that contained an unpitted olive, and it caused him dental damage.
The lawsuit was filed January 3rd, 2011, although, for some unexplainable reason, that's almost three years after the offending pit entered Kucinich's mouth. He says that he purchased the dangerous wrap in the House cafeteria "on or about" April 17, 2008 and that it "contained dangerous substances, namely an olive pit, that a consumer would not reasonably expect to find in the final product served."
Kucinich is suing for he dental work he had to endure as a result of the pit, as well as money for any future dental and medical expenses, for pain and suffering, and something called 'loss of enjoyment'.
Now, don't get me wrong. Biting into a sandwich and breaking a tooth, or teeth, on an olive pit is awful. And if it happened to me, I'd ask the company that made the sandwich to pay for my dental work. And, if they refused, I'd sue them, to pay for my dental work.
But Kucinich is going too far.
Loss of enjoyment? What's that mean? Is he now suddenly fearful of olives? Can he no longer have foods stir-fried in olive oil? Will it be impossible for him to watch a Popeye cartoon ever again, in fear of Olive Oyl popping up on screen? Will he run from a party if a Kalamata Tapenade is served?
Seriously. We're a nation of litigants who think anything and everything that happens to us, that hurts us or embarrasses us, is a lawsuit.
Grow up Texting Lady Of the Fountain.
And, you, too, Olive Eating Congressman.
Or, perhaps I'll sue for having to read about you two fools.

source

Happy Anniversary Jack and George

Jack Evans and George Harris met one anther at a friend's Bon Voyage party on January 19th, 1961. And they just celebrated their Fiftieth Unwedding Anniversary. Fifty years without any recognition of their commitment, except from friends and family and loved ones. Fifty years of having to work harder than their heterosexual counterparts when it comes to running a business, owning a home, caring for one another.

And yet they did it; I wonder why?

Perhaps, and I know this notion is strange to many straight people, but, perhaps they love each other, and wanted to stay together, regardless of the hardships, and the discrimination, and all that extra legal paperwork to simply live as a couple in love.

George says, “We work together and live together, which creates its own challenges. Relationships are difficult because we’re all different people, but it’s what you want and what you want out of life. It takes commitment and you have to care.”

Commitment and struggle, and all that extra work.

Jack says that when they bought their first home, they couldn’t get a mortgage under both names: “The first two houses we bought had to be in my name alone because mortgage companies would not allow two people who were not married to borrow money to buy a house.” And George says he is working on a book about his ordeal with the military in the ’50s; he was kicked out for being gay.


Times have changed, but there is still struggle.

But George and Jack set the example; live your life....damn the torpedoes. They're still here; they're still queer. Get used to it.

Gay people aren't going anywhere.

We'll still be here, fighting for our rights, and struggling to be recognized, and demanding equality. Get used to it.

If Jack and George can do it, anybody can.

source

I Didn't Say It, Michele Bachmann Did

And here's yet another birthday gift I received today: Michele Bachmann quotes!
Lordy, I loves me some stupid:

''(Gay marriage) is probably the biggest issue that will impact our state and our nation in the last, at least, thirty years. I am not understating that."

''I want people in Minnesota armed and dangerous on this issue of the energy tax because we need to fight back.”

''Carbon dioxide is portrayed as harmful. But there isn't even one study that can be produced that shows that carbon dioxide is a harmful gas.''

“But we also know that the very founders that wrote those documents worked tirelessly until slavery was no more in the United States.”

''Not all cultures are equal.''

''[Pelosi] is committed to her global warming fanaticism to the point where she has said she has even said she is trying to save the planet. We all know that someone did that 2,000 years ago.''

''A woman (Terri Schiavo) was healthy. There was brain damage, there was no question. But from a health point of view, she was not terminally ill.''

''I think there is a point where you say enough is enough to government intrusion. …Does the federal government really need to know our phone numbers?''

“Unelected bureaucracies will decide what we can and cant get in future health insurance policy. Thats why theyre called death panels.'"

''This cannot pass. What we have to do today is make a covenant, to slit our wrists, be blood brothers on this thing. This will not pass. We will do whatever it takes to make sure this doesn't pass.''

''Unfortunately, the Census data has become very intricate, very personal, a lot of the questions that are asked. I know for my family, the only question we will be answering is how many people are in our home. We won't be answering any information beyond that, because the Constitution doesn't require any information beyond that.''

''And what a bizarre time we're in, when a judge will say to little children that you can't say the pledge of allegiance, but you must learn that homosexuality is normal and you should try it.''

"Michael Steele! You be da man! You be da man!''

''If we took away the minimum wage — if conceivably it was gone — we could potentially virtually wipe out unemployment completely because we would be able to offer jobs at whatever level.''

''Normalization (of gayness) through desensitization. Very effective way to do this with a bunch of second graders, is take a picture of 'The Lion King' for instance, and a teacher might say, 'Do you know that the music for this movie was written by a gay man?' The message is: I'm better at what I do, because I'm gay.''

''I don't know where they're going to get all this money because we're running out of rich people in this country.''

''This is an earthquake issue. This will change our state forever. Because the immediate consequence, if gay marriage goes through, is that K-12 little children will be forced to learn that homosexuality is normal, natural and perhaps they should try it.''

''I find it interesting that it was back in the 1970s that the swine flu broke out under another, then under another Democrat president, Jimmy Carter. I'm not blaming this on President Obama, I just think it's an interesting coincidence.''

“If we look at American history, between 1942 and 1947, the data that was collected by the Census Bureau was handed over to the FBI and other organizations at the request of President Roosevelt, and that's how the Japanese were rounded up and put into the internment camps. I'm not saying that that's what the Administration is planning to do, but I am saying that private personal information that was given to the Census Bureau in the 1940s was used against Americans to round them up, in a violation of their constitutional rights, and put the Japanese in internment camps.''

“Lady Liberty and Sarah Palin are lit by the same torch.”

“The big thing we are working on now is the global warming hoax. Its all voodoo, nonsense, hokum, a hoax.”

“The President of the United States will be taking a trip over to India that is expected to cost the taxpayers $200 million a day.”

“I just take the Bible for what it is, I guess, and recognize that I am not a scientist, not trained to be a scientist. I'm not a deep thinker on all of this. I wish I was. I wish I was more knowledgeable, but I'm not a scientist.”



source: BuzzFeed

Give Me Joy!

Today is my birthday, and, as Vera Charles said to Mame Dennis, "I am somewhere between forty......and death!":
So, imagine my pleasure at finding this gift from Joy Behar. I love to laugh, and I love to poke idiots like Bachmann with a verbal stick, so this is the perfect gift!

Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Architecture Wednesday: Manhattan Cliff Dwelling

Anything but your ordinary house listing, this multi-million-dollar mansion may be one of the most unique properties in New York City. The so-called Pumpkin House features a face-like facade (hence the name), but also looks like it is being squeezed out over a cliff by its tightly-packed neighbors.
Being perched atop a hill and pressed out beyond adjacent buildings, it has some of the most impressive terraces and views one could wish for in Washington Heights – windows in three directions rather than just looking out over the water.

Originally, the structure was free-standing and towered above its surroundings – now, if it weren’t for the overhang, one would hardly notice it against the building heights in the area.
What may be more amazing than the 3000-square-foot property itself is the fact that it used to just be the guest house for a larger estate – hard to imagine such a remarkable residence being a secondary consideration, but surely great for the guests.
For all its broad exterior flare, the interior is nice, elegant but ultimately somewhat disappointing. Mahogany and marble are wonderful, to be sure, and the fine wood accents are nice, but somehow they fail to live up to the precedent set but the house as a whole. Still, for someone who can afford the four-million-dollar price tag, perhaps a bit of redecorating would be a relatively inexpensive addition to the budget.

source: Dornob