Category Archives: General

Ryan Reynolds, Supposedly Naked

Ryan Reynolds, shooting the special effects part of  scene in which he appears naked? Whatever, I’m disappointed in almost all of this – from the ridiculous pair of flesh-hued briefs, to the tropical bath mat beneath him.

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The Evolution of David Beckham’s Bulge

Despite our in-flux status, or perhaps because of it, this seems as good a time as any to examine the evolution of David Beckham and his briefs-encapsulated bulge. God knows we could use the hits… The featured image above is the first time many of us got a glimpse of Becks and his balls, and it remains iconic. Compare that to the one below, in which he appeared with his wife, Victoria (who will always be known as Posh in my book). As much as I love her, I’ve cropped much of her out.

A few years pass before his latest venture, his own line of underwear for H&M. As disappointing as their first offering was (fabric and fit was all wrong), I may have to give it another go, even with the unfortunate mustache that accompanies the new promo images. The Power of Beckham in Briefs. It’s very real.

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Bare Bones Scaffolding

Figuring out the new control panels of this website reminds me of my first brush with ‘The Legend of Zelda’. It’s a matter of finding the right doors and secret passage-ways, knowing how many times to click or omit, and dying a little before starting all over again. It can be frustrating and infuriating when something doesn’t quite work, and incredibly gratifying when something does. (I figured out that slider intro on my own, thank you very much.) For now, we’re configuring the major structure and bones of the site. The scaffolding won’t be down for a while, but it should happen sooner than that crane came down in Albany. Give us some credit for that…

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Chris Evans, Shamelessly Shirtless

Before David Beckham (who’s up tomorrow), a throwback to one of this site’s former, and likely future, favorites – Mr. Chris Evans. For a brief bit, there were rumors that his publicist no longer wanted him to do shirtless shots. I’m guessing the gay mafia took that person out, because he has since been seen sans shirt again.

Not that there is such a thing as the gay mafia. I have neither heard nor see anything. I know even less.

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Web Master of the Universe

To the left is the man responsible for all the great things that this website was, and will be ~ our Webmaster Skip. I don’t have a lot of straight guy friends, but the ones I do have I cherish. There’s something different, more relaxing, in the company of them.

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Evaporating the Past

As I sat in Skip’s basement, watching the files fly by as they were deleted, I had a brief realization of the passage of time. Thousands of photos and files drifted up the screen, hundreds of pages of posts, years of my life, so quickly and easily erased. For one quick moment, a sliver of hesitation, and then it was gone. I’d archived all the important posts, so I wasn’t really losing anything. There was a thrill of setting it free, and it was exhilarating.

When I did my first website update, about a year or two after I started, I simply erased everything I had written up to that point, starting from scratch, with no archives, and nothing of the previous year or so on record. It’s simpler to move forward with nothing of the past to hold onto. Too many of us get pulled back by nostalgia, and it’s always tempting to revisit the past. Sometimes it’s easier to look back and return to where we’ve already been – there’s safety there, it’s a known entity.

But to become better, you have to let the past go, and find new ways to inspire. That’s what we’re doing here. That’s what we’re doing now.  There will be a certain bit of repopulation as far as previous posts being archived goes, and the major projects and written work will remain intact, but much of it must go. We’ll be better for it. Watch and see…

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Hard Hat Zone

In case you haven’t noticed (and if you haven’t you need to get that checked), we are still knee-deep in the construction project that this website has become. I spent a good part of yesterday playing around with the back-end – not something to which I’m unaccustomed unless we’re talking HTML, themes, portals, plug-ins, and tools. Hopefully Webmaster Skip will step in and take over before I do too much damage. In the meantime, don’t take off that hard hat just yet…

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Paul Ryan, Shirtless for Real

From the heroes (Ben Cohen) to the villains, this is Paul Ryan, the man who wants to end Medicare. (Not entirely sure of the absolute accuracy of that last part, but neither is the GOP.)

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A Ben Cohen Bone, Shirtless

While we’re under construction, a bit of a shirtless (and surprisingly tan) Ben Cohen to tide you over…

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When In Doubt, Do Madonna

A quick note of congratulations to my friends Wally and Carolyn, who welcomed their baby boy Brandon Wallace into the world, on Madonna’s birthday of all dates. With a blessing like that, this child is destined for greatness.

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A New Dawn, But We’re Not Quite There…

Despite the brilliance of the day, I’m feeling a bit like the current state of this website – slightly tattered, and Miss Havisham-like in a faded marabou robe. I’m writing this on an Airbook while sitting on the backyard patio – or, as Dorothy would have it, the lanai. It cannot be denied that the day is gorgeous, and a welcome relief from the stultifying days we’ve had of late, but it must also be acknowledged as one of the first turns toward Autumn.

The ferns have already begun to brown, and the garden – so early and ahead this year – is teasing with its Helenium, and a magnificent showing of the Seven Sons’ Flower. I expected the latter to have bloomed already – they have been in bud for weeks – but they have held off. Like the summer, they’re not quite ready to give up the ghost. That’s good – there’s too much of it left. And much to be done here. If you’ll excuse me, I’m going to see what I can do on the back end of this thing. Don’t tell Skip – I’m probably not the one to be monkeying around without his guidance, but that’s how we learn…
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Wal*Mart After Midnight

It is 1:25 AM. I’ve just returned from an expectedly-lengthy website redesign session with Skip. As you may have noticed, we’re still in the planning/remodeling stage, so bear with us a bit longer. A little after midnight we figured we better stop, so I joined Skip for a quick jaunt to Wal*Mart to pick up ‘The Hunger Games’ on DVD. Don’t ever let it be said that I don’t suffer for my art, and right now my art is this website redesign. And my suffering was waiting betwixt pre-and-post teens in a fifteen minute line of, well, I don’t want to say losers, but no one was winning any prizes either. Thankfully, the lady at Hess Express more than made up for it with her kindly offer of a ten-minute hot dog. This revamping may turn out to be more entertaining than anyone expected. Stay with us… who knows what mischief tomorrow may bring…

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Still Under Construction… Stand By

As it is 11:11 PM, and we are nowhere near getting the website to where it eventually will be, we’re calling it a night, as I still need to drive home. Much progress has been made, and I owe a debt of gratitude greater than a dinner of mac-and-cheese to our Webmaster Skip, for seeing us through the treacherous waters immediately behind and ahead of us. I thank you for checking in, and promise that we will have this as pretty as it ever was as soon as humanly possible.

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Soon To Be Under Construction

IMPORTANT NOTICE:

Tonight I am planning on revamping this website with the indispensable aid of Webmaster Skip. Actually, he’ll likely be the one at the helm, with me dangling precariously off the back end trying frantically to keep up. It’s an update that’s long over-due, as this website is operating on an antiquated platform, with a WordPress theme that went hopelessly out of date several years ago. That means it’s a big change, and one that will probably knock it out of commission for a day or two. I invite you to come back in a few to check the progress.

This will be a giant learning curve for me, but rather than try to perfect it behind the scenes first, I’m going to do it all out in the open, bringing you along for the ride. That means you get to see all the mess-ups and mistakes, and I get to act like a less-than-perfect human being for once. Everybody wins. Stay tuned… and wish us luck. Lots of it…

 

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Amber Waves of Vain

 

With a birthday coming up (hint, hint) I’ve narrowed gift selections down to the last Private Blend of Tom Ford’s that I’m exceptionally keen on ~ Amber Absolute. This may be in the nick of time, as there have been rumblings that Amber Absolute may be discontinued any day now. It’s a very special scent, designed for mid to late Fall, and it brings back happy memories. I last wore it on the evening I received my Volunteer of the Year Award from the Capital Pride Center last Fall. That small sample vial is all but fading now.

Cue the birthday violins.

Strangely enough, Amber Absolute was one of the first Tom Ford Private Blends that I instantly adored. For some reason, flashier or trendier ones usurped its choice (Santal Blush, Lavender Palm) or a good find on a discontinued classic took its place (Japon Noir) and most recently the spring-summer season was wrong for anything other than Neroli Portofino. Now, at long last, it may be Amber’s time.

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