Author Archives: Alan Ilagan

Very rarely does one of those impossibly-hyped life-changing hacks you see online ever pan out into something that actually improves, or even changes, one’s life. This time, it’s different. And if you’ve ever been in the situation where you have received one of those all-purpose gift cards from Mastercard or Visa, but don’t know how to use it in tandem with your regular credit card online, this may help you out.

These general cards differ from the gift cards to specific stores in that they function more like credit cards, with strict limits. As such, they have to be used as the main credit card for online purchases, and most sites don’t allow you to split credit cards for a purchase as you would usually be able to do in person by asking the cashier to type in a specific dollar amount. If your purchase happens to go over the value of the gift card, it will be declined, even if you were planning to pay the difference with another card. That makes things difficult, particularly if you want to use the average gift card towards the purchase of something grander (which is often my case, because Tom Ford Private Blends require that little extra something to make their exorbitant cost more reasonable).

For that reason, I’ve always had problems with making the most out of these general gift cards. Often I would end up giving Andy the card and asking him to buy me something in exchange because it got to be too complicated to use them. This semi-quick fix allows you to use a general gift card in addition to whatever other online payment you wish to supplement your purchase.

The first step is to go to whatever site you want to buy from. If they offer gift cards for purchase, buy one in the exact amount of your general gift card, and then use that to pay for it. If it’s going right to you, you should receive an e-mail with the new card info in it. After that, simply add to your cart and when you’re ready to purchase, enter the store’s gift card in, and whatever supplemental method of payment you want to use. Normally there is no limit to however many store gift cards you can use. It’s a neat way to combine those general credit cards when you’re shopping online.

We are definitely living in a toxic internet land. Once upon a time one could make an innocuous shirtless post about Adam Levine and have a few of his fans write something fun and nice and everyone would call it a day. Those who didn’t find Mr. Levine their cup of tea moved on without comment, because why would they even bother with something that didn’t interest them? Not so anymore. This post about Adam Levine performing at the Super Bowl, and this subsequent post about his shirtless appearance at said bowl, garnered some of the most polarizing views on any of my posts. (Let it be said that these were superficial shirtless posts – that’s sort of the point of the ‘Shirtless Male Celebrities‘ category. It’s not that deep.)

It did, however, bring up a more serious consideration in light of Mr. Levine baring both his nipples in his shirtless portion of the program.

A number of years ago, Janet Jackson was basically stoned for baring one half-second of a single nipple at the Super Bowl halftime show with Justin Timberlake. I posted the comment that it was a bit of a double standard, hashtagging the whole #FreeTheNipple movement. (Look it up – I’m not here to educate or enlighten – I’m here to entertain myself. Emphasis on myself.) Again, just my commentary on the fact that Ms. Jackson, or any female for that matter, would not be able to get away with showing their nipples during the Super Bowl. Rather than acknowledging this or engaging in a civil conversation, people immediately went into whether they loved it or hated it, whether they adored Adam or abhorred Adam, and suddenly a post on a shirtless Adam Levine was as divisive as political commentary. What the actual fuck?

Now, I’m not saying there isn’t time or space for serious discussion and contemplation here. But on a shirtless Super Bowl shot? If that riles you up so much, and if you have so much anger and annoyance that you simply must comment and piss other people off, then this really isn’t the place for you. Please, stop reading, unfollow and unfriend, block and push off, because I’m not here for that. Calm the fuck down and channel your energy into something better.

Like a mood-killer-filler blog post such as this.

People never fail to disappoint me.

Take this asshole for example.

They took up two parking spaces for no reason other than, presumably, to be a complete and utter asshole.

This was the busy parking lot of the Honest Weight Coop, close to the entrance, where every space counts, but this person felt they were important enough to merit two.

Shame.

The rollercoaster that is Northeast weather took a few ups and downs this past week, and quite frankly my mind is not quite equipped to make sense of it all. On a meteorologically stable day I can be prone to moodiness – throw in temperature shifts of 60 degrees from day to day and you’re looking at the makings of a mental/emotional vortex beyond the imaginings of your mind. Forewarned is fairwarned, especially when fair weather is not on the horizon. On with the Monday recap…

A simple but beautiful bouquet.

More beauty, honest beauty. 

A naked James McAvoy in motion. 

Virtual Sunday brunch.

February arrived without fanfare, but with a freeze.

Follow these Tiny Threads and keep warm. 

Shirtless malaise.

A One-Act Text Play.

Super Jock Post!

A shirtless Adam Levine took it off for his Super Bowl climax. 

Hunks of the Day included Bradley Cooper, Kyle Dean Massey, Ty Mitchell, Tyler Curry-McGrath, Aaron Tveit, Wilson Lai, Sean McVay, and Ted Rath.

Discontent.

Ennui.

Rawness.

That pretty much sums up the last few days. Winter has settled in, the polar vortex has sent a magenta chill through the heart of the country, and despite a relatively healthy start to the year, the excitement and thrill of such a change of pace has dulled to a drudge-like burden. Still, we press onward…

Maybe such a malaise is the product not only of the winter season, but of getting older in general. Forty-three years of anything, especially living, can wear away at the wonder of the world. I’m trying to forge inspiration and interest with a new project, yet even that is proving challenging. It’s all about getting in the right mindset and being open to what the universe is whispering. Winter winds simply make it more difficult to listen.

I do my best to center myself. Yoga. Meditation. Burning incense.

I seek quiet and peace in a long, indulgently-hot shower scented with rosewater and accompanied by a candle. Andy delivers a bouquet of flowers – tulips and iris – while a hyacinth bulb in a vase of water is finally coming into fragrant bloom. It’s the closest thing we have to a garden right now.

The White Flower Farm spring catalog arrived a few days ago. I’ve been earmarking pages with ideas and plans, and when I’m done I’ll pass it along to Suzie to see if it sparks her perpetually-put-off dream garden. They’ve got the land and space to do it, but they’ve also got an enormous black walnut that makes things tricky. A raised bed might do the trick; otherwise a bit of research on what plants won’t be bothered by the walnut’s expansive spread will be needed.

That’s how to get through these days: living largely in the mind.

Daydreaming of sunnier scenes.

Plotting out garden plants.

Working on a new project.

Winding along the days of winter…