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12 of 12: April 2009

Sunday, April 12th, 2009

Yes, indeedy, it’s time once again for 12 of 12!

9:30 am: Putting it all back together

Friday and Saturday were spent watching someone else put down hardwood laminate in our house. Although it doesn’t carry over the photos, it’s a fairly thick (12 mm) laminate that has a hand scraped look to it. The living room, dining room, and kitchen are all joined together, and we had three different types of flooring down, so we decided to bite the bullet and replace it all in one fell swoop. I like the look, but it’s going to take some getting used to.

We’re also going to be spending months putting everything back the way it was … and we need an area rug or three.

For the insane among you, there are “before” shots here, here, and here; and more “after” shots here, here, and here.

10:27 am: Bougainvillea Break

I recently … once again … acquired a bougainvillea. I think they’re gorgeous, and I would love to live in a climate where they can grow outside year round. Unfortunately, we’re on the wrong side of one of those USDA “hardiness” lines. All I know is that they grow fine in San Antonio (60 mi/100 km south), but here they’re really delicate. It’s been really windy lately, and the flowers keep blowing off. Last night there was a torrential downpour. So … I’m taking photos so that when I invariably kill it, I’ll remember what it looked like. Sigh.

11:27 am: Fixing the FloorMate

We own one of those Hoover FloorMate things that scrub hard surfaces. Now that we have significantly more hard surface to clean, I imagine that we’ll be using it much more often, however, the cleaning solution wasn’t dispensing properly. So, Ray decided to fix it, which he can do …

12:18 pm: 10 Pounds of Love

My folks invited us over for lunch.

Barney lives next door to my parents. He’s such a cute little dog, very sweet. He always runs right over to the fence whenever anyone is in the backyard to say hello.

My parents are starting to look for another dog, and mom says she wants something a little larger than Barney because, well … there’s something alarming about a dog that you could accidentally punt over the fence.

12:44 pm: Mocha

Mocha, as usual, is completely immune to Barney’s charms.

12:45 pm: Backyard chat

It was pouring first thing this morning–just in time to drown out all those sunrise services–but by early afternoon it was beautiful, sunny, 80 degrees. Just perfect!

1:13 pm: Hope Springs Eternal

Mocha knows I won’t feed her from the table. My mother, on the other hand, is an easy mark …

2:08 pm: He is Risen!

I’ve pointed out before that my parents live in a community that’s a little reminiscent of Stepford. A good number of the houses had these plastic crosses in front, given out by the non-denominational church that serves the senior community. Apparently, you’re supposed to put them up on Good Friday, blank side out, and then turn them around on Easter Sunday to reveal that “He is Risen!”

We went by one house where the cross hadn’t been turned around. “They didn’t turn their cross around,” my mother observed.
“Maybe Jesus saw his shadow and decide to sleep for six more weeks,” I suggested.

Yes, I’m going to Hell. No, that’s not why…

6:15 pm: Using the FloorMate

Making a rare appearance in my own 12 of 12, I decide I’ve had enough of the remaining sawdust on the floor and use the FloorMate, since my previous broom-and-dustpan, dustmop, and vacuuming hasn’t quite done the trick.

7:11 pm: Burgers on the grill

Quick-and-simple meal. Because it’s such a lovely day, I decide to grill something in order to spend a little more time outside.

7:34 pm: Making Mocha Miserable

Mocha hates to be picked up and/or held.

7:50 pm: Entourage

A little crap tele to wind down the weekend.

And how was YOUR day?

Tags: 12 of 12, art, bla, blog, cat, dog, easter, flowers, Friday, ice, khowaga, love, me, Mocha, parents, Photos, Ray, san antonio, SHE, weekend
Posted in 12 of 12 | 19 Comments »

12 of 12: February 2009

Thursday, February 12th, 2009

Time again for 12 of 12!

6:28 AM: Charlie

Charlie is a plastic cockroach (he has a theme song, to the tune of “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” — “Charlie, the Plastic Cockroach”). You can wind him up and he’ll scuttle along the floor. Ray got him from his friend Robin around Christmas, and for the past few weeks Ray and I have been leaving him around the house trying to startle each other. At first, we (OK, I) jumped a little bit when we saw him sitting, for example, in the bathroom sink. Nowadays, we’re kind of immune to Charlie. But that doesn’t stop me from trying

6:30 AM: Lunch

Here’s breakfast and lunch for the day. My iPod goes into the outer pocket of my lunchbox. I’ve gotten pretty good at remembering to take it out before I put my lunchbox in the refrigerator at work … although, sometimes I do forget.

6:40 AM: Workward bound

7:44 AM: Flickr

For me, Flickr is even worse than Facebook…

8:38 AM: On the Phone

Talking to Natalie. I think this is how I spend at least two thirds of my day.

My day looks like every other day I spend at work. Fast forward to …

6:27 PM: Left Behind

Mocha does hate it when we leave her behind. This sort of harkens back to my “The dog thinks she’s a cat” theory … “

6:37 PM: Flowers

We’re off to visit Joanna, Ray’s friend and coworker, who had a baby last night. The grocery store is full of flowers and candy. It’s like there’s some sort of holiday coming up …

7:40 PM: Me and Baby Madi

She’s not even 24 hours old and she’s already stealing hearts. There was a huge line of people waiting to hold her after me!

7:57 PM: Mom and Baby

I wouldn’t call Joanna vain, but she … she did refuse to go to the hospital until she put on makeup.

Last glimpse of baby Madison…

8:03 PM: Late dinner:

Ray suggests running out to pick something up. I suggest making our own chili dogs.

Because at our house, they come with pomegranate martinis

And that’s the 12th for February. And how was YOUR day?

Tags: 12 of 12, art, bla, blog, cat, christmas, dinner, dog, flowers, HBO, ipod, khowaga, me, Mocha, Natalie, Photos, Ray, SHE, tea, work
Posted in 12 of 12 | 12 Comments »

Contradicting myself

Thursday, January 29th, 2009

I found this meme on Matt‘s blog. I am feeling uninspired today, so I have stolen it. Bwa ha! And yes, that kind of contradicts my post yesterday. My blog. Shut up.

The rules are these: bold the items you’ve done; don’t bold items you haven’t done. Sticking to my principles, I shall not tag anyone for the meme, but let me know if you do it!

1.Started your own blog. Um … hello?

2. Slept under the stars. If tents count, yeah.

3. Played in a band. I was a band geek in middle school.

4. Visited Hawaii. Yes! I want to go back.

5. Watched a meteor shower . Saw one fall over the pyramids. That was cool.

6. Given more than you can afford to charity. I give to charity, but never that much. I’m too nervous about money.

7. Been to Disney World / Land. Been to Disney World a couple of times. Never as an adult, though.

8. Climbed a mountain. I climbed Mt. Sinai in the dark. Won’t do it again.

9. Held a praying mantis.

10. Sang a solo. I was in musical theater in high school. Interestingly enough, this was before I knew I was gay.

11. Bungee jumped.

12. Visited Paris. Unless Charles deGaulle Airport counts, no.

13. Watched a lightning storm at sea. I don’t think so? I know there have been storms while we’ve been at sea, but can’t recall watching the lightning.

14. Taught yourself an art from scratch.

15. Adopted a child. Does Mocha count?

16. Had food poisoning.

17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty. Every time I’ve been there, it’s been closed.

18. Grown your own vegetables. Yep. Sometimes I even remember to harvest them before they rot, too.

19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France.

20. Slept on an overnight train. I slept on the train from Aswan to Cairo. On the way from Cairo to Luxor I was awake most of the night because I had never traveled through Middle Egypt and wanted to see all the places I hadn’t ever been. Considering it was an overnight train, this was perhaps not the easiest thing to do.

21. Had a pillow fight. In college. Broke my little finger.

22. Hitch hiked.

23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill. “Wow, Chris must be sick. I heard him getting on a plane.”

24. Built a snow fort. Um, yeah.

25. Held a lamb.

26. Gone skinny dipping. Interestingly, I don’t think I have.

27. Run a Marathon.

28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice.

29. Seen a total eclipse. Not a total one, but near total.

30. Watched a sunrise or sunset. Yep.

31. Hit a home run. Not officially–I had a friend who was into softball as a kid, and we played a lot, but always in the vacant lot. Who can say if they were homers?

32. Been on a cruise. With Ray to the Yucatan twice, and on the Nile.

33. Seen Niagara Falls in person. Once you’ve seen it, there’s no real reason to go back.

34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors. I’ve been to Greece and met the extended family but have not yet made it to the place where either grandparent was born.

35. Been to Amish community. Northeast Ohio.

36. Taught yourself a new language. I taught myself Swedish. Everything else I had to take a class for.

37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied. Is that even possible?

38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person.

39. Gone rock climbing. I did one of those walls in a gym once. Does that count?

40. Seen Michelangelo’s David.

41. Sung karaoke.

42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt. When I was a kid. I’d love to go back to Yellowstone.

43. Bought a stranger a meal in a restaurant. I’ve bought strange people meals before …

44. Visited Africa. Egypt, Morocco, Tanzania. And I’ve changed planes in Nairobi.

45. Walked on a beach by moonlight.

46. Been transported in an ambulance.

47. Had your portrait painted.

48. Gone deep sea fishing.

49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person.

50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris. I saw it when landing in Paris once – does that count? Probably not.

51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling. Snorkeling, in the Red Sea, very briefly. I’m not coordinated enough.

52. Kissed in the rain. Have I … ? I … oh, sweetie? Next time it rains, we need to cross this off the list.

53. Played in the mud. Aren’t four year olds genetically designed to be attracted to mud?

54. Gone to a drive-in theater.

55. Been in a movie.

56. Visited the Great Wall of China.

57. Started a business.

58. Taken a martial arts class.

59. Visited Russia.

60. Served at a soup kitchen.

61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies.

62. Gone whale watching.

63. Gotten flowers for no reason.

64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma. Not allowed to (5 year ban after malaria medication. Well, that and the other thing.)

65. Gone sky diving. Um, no.

66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp.

67. Bounced a check. Fortunately, the bank has always been good enough to cover it for me, usually for a massive fee.

68. Flown in a helicopter.

69. Saved a favorite childhood toy.

70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial. I’ve taken a nap there, too, waiting for the Fourth of July fireworks.

71. Eaten Caviar. Tastes like cold fish jelly.

72. Pieced a quilt.

73. Stood in Times Square. Years ago. I’d like to go back to New York City … when I can afford it.

74. Toured the Everglades. It gets old after a while.

75. Been fired from a job.

76. Seen the Changing of the Guard in London. Been many times, but I’ve never actually been there to see the Changing of the Guard.

77. Broken a bone. See #21.

78. Been on a speeding motorcycle.

79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person.

80. Published a book.

81. Visited the Vatican.

82. Bought a brand new car. Two, in fact.

83. Walked in Jerusalem. Got heatstroke in Jerusalem, too.

84. Had your picture in the newspaper.

85. Read the entire Bible. At this point, I probably have. Not all the way through in one sitting, tho.

86. Visited the White House.

87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating.

88. Had chickenpox. I was in kindergarten. I think I still have a scar on my right leg from it.

89. Saved someone’s life.

90. Sat on a jury.

91. Met someone famous.

92. Joined a book club. Ran a book club for a little while, in fact.

93. Lost a loved one.

94. Had a baby. I’ve had a cow.

95. Seen the Alamo in person. Not that impressive.

96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake. Seems like it would sting.

97. Been involved in a lawsuit.

98. Owned a cell phone.

99. Been stung by a bee. I have a completely unnatural fear of stinging insects.

Tags: art, aswan, Bible, bla, blog, blogs, cairo, cat, china, class, college, cookies, eating, eclipse, egypt, family, flowers, food, gay, girl scout cookies, greece, hawaii, heat, Home, ice, insects, law, laws, life, lisa, lost, love, luxor, me, Mocha, money, moon, morocco, Music, news, nile, press, pyramids, rain, Ray, russia, SHE, Travel, work
Posted in Home | 3 Comments »

Friday

Friday, November 7th, 2008

It’s Friday, praise Bob.

I’ve been a ball of stress for too long, and even though the stress part kind of had a denouement (note the usage of a $45 word) on Monday and then with the election on Tuesday night, I think I’ve forgotten how to relax. I’ve just been on edge for too many weeks.

So, thanks to those of you who offered advice on which photos to send off to my iStockPhoto audition. Turns out it was all for naught, as this was their response to me, sent barely a couple of hours later:

At this time we regret to inform you that we did not feel the overall composition of your photography or subject matter is at the minimum level of standard for iStockphoto. Please take some time to review training materials, resources and articles provided through iStockphoto. The photographs provided in your application should be your best work. Try and impress us, we want to see how you stand out from the crowd.

In other words, they think I suck.

I question whether or not my stuff is suitable as stock photography anyway. It’s a bit particular, and I think their restrictions are annoying. I happen to like my photos of pets, flowers, sunsets, and people. So there.

Anyway.

I’m being swamped in a deluge of e-mails from California-based friends who are unhappy about the passage of Prop 8. I, too, am unhappy about it, but I do kind of wonder whether going after the Mormons is really a good strategy. I mean, look how well that worked for the Islamic world during the whole Danish cartoons thing. At the end of the day, it was the Californians who actually voted for the law which means that maybe the left coast isn’t as liberal as everyone thought.

More frightening to me is the Arkansas law that passed banning unmarried couples from adopting. They try that shit here in Texas every legislative cycle (because we’re weird, legislative cycles are every two years), but the last time apparently there was so much laughter during the hearing that it never even made it to committee vote, let alone to the full house of delegates or onto the ballot.

So, it’s a mixed bag of emotions as we end the week here. We have a new president-elect, and the Imperial reign of the Bushes is at an end, and the nation spoke loud and clear about how they felt about the last eight years. That’s a big thumbs up.

On the other hand, homos always lose. I feel for California. We’ve had marriage banned here in Texas already. In fact, we’ve had it banned twice. We’ve gotten kind of used to being the failsafe punching bag.

And so, on that note. It’s almost the weekend, and I plan to laze around and do as little as possible. How ’bout you?

Tags: art, blog, bush, california, cartoons, cat, class, emotions, flowers, Friday, friends, ice, islam, khowaga, law, marriage, me, men, photography, Photos, press, rain, SHE, stress, stuff, texas, weekend, weird, words, work
Posted in Home | 4 Comments »

Decisions, Decisions

Sunday, November 2nd, 2008

OK, for once, I’m not talking about the election. (For god’s sake, who are all of these people who haven’t decided yet? We’ve only had TWO YEARS to make up our minds!?!)

Early last week, I applied to iStockPhoto.com to sell some of my photos through them. It’s not terribly glamorous, but I’m still an amateur and I don’t particularly mind selling my stuff in the bargain bin if it gets it out there.

As part of the process, you’re supposed to upload three sample photos that meet their guidelines so that they can decide if you’re worthy. The guidelines are what are tripping me up: among them, they don’t like flowers, sunsets, pets, and you have to have signed release forms on file from anyone who appears in any of photos (including crowds).

Since I happen to think that one of my strengths as a photographer is that I take photos of designs so that I can use them for my own nefarious purposes, I uploaded the following three images:

Image 1: Gilded Door
Guilded Door

Image 2: Shadow and Light

Image 3: Brass Knocker

As it turns out, they didn’t like my submissions because they thought they looked too similar to one another–which I suppose they did, but that was kind of the point. However, I’m now on shakier ground.

So, guys and gals, help me decide–I need three new sample photos. I can still use one or two of the images above, but not all three, plus the nominees below. Help me out? Tell me which ones you like best!

Image 4: Annatto Seeds