I have become, to my amazement, a somewhat decent painter. Not in the portrait kind of painter way, but in the paint-stained guy on a ladder kind of way. I've been drawing near-straight lines all over the place: the ceiling, above the baseboard, etc. I've even started holding the brush like a pro, kinda nestled between thumb and forefinger like a pencil, the handle used solely for balance. And now...now, my hand hurts. But I have near-straight lines all over the place, and it's all worth it. Hopefully tomorrow is the last day of painting this year. Upstairs can wait till next year.

I actually emailed some friends today, which is amazingly rare. I have a communication problem. Basically, if I don't see you in person, I don't talk to you much. I just can't seem to get myself to actually do it. I put it off and off and off... My mother called on my birthday and I still haven't called her. She'll probably read this too (and if you do, thanks and I love ya) and think I have time for blogging but not for calling. Which, in a way, is true. Phones are my kryptonite. Especially cell phones. I didn't like phones when I could hear people fine, and now that they cut out and the battery runs low and you lose the damn things everywhere, I positively hate them. In fact, my phone was stolen about two months ago and I just haven't got a new one yet. Yup, that's right, I'm an American without a phone <gasp>. So anyways my friends will hopefully be happy to receive my semi-longish email, and I will be off the hook for another year or two <phew>.

Now it is time to nestle back with my 40, proper!

sidenote: I always have the urge to end with some time of salutation (is that correct here or is that just hello and not goodbye?). Like, cya fellas, or ciao, or till next time... are you a real person, audience? Do I need to say goodbye to you?

Im thrice thrice thrice. It's on Monday, but maybe there could be some sort of gathering beforehand. On Triplethrice eve, so to say. I know there're a couple other near B-days. Maybe a (e:strip) b-day gala. I'm oh-so-fond of galas!!! Come on down.

Theme: Go-Go Gadget Gospel

I am going out now to the free drink hour at La Luna's. Yeah I said FREE drinks for one hour only. Wed. 11-12, Be there or be not a hipster wannabe like me.

Tonight I will wear the striped shirt, which is becoming so very tight on my ripped-ass bod. HA! It accentuates my burgeoning gut nicely I think.
The paint-splattered brown shorts will accompany, topped-off or more realistically bottomed-out by my real hip JC Penny #19.99 wannabe berks. Oh yeah, I'm hippin' it superstyle flyass.

CHEEEYOOOOWWW!!! muthafuckas.

well thanks (e:dcoffee) for making me spend an hour on youtube. But this is seriously funny, take a gander

Taste of Buffalo makes fer some mighty sticky fingers. And heck, just about any activity that leaves you with sticky fingers is fun in my book.

It was a pretty perfect day for it. Partly cloudy with a cool harbor breeze. And plenty of parky space to sit under trees with wine slushies. I like beer cheese soup...try some. (e:Paul) had a bunch of little crawldads again this year, I hate how they stared at me, but paul says they're just the tastiest.

Lance Diamond is neat. He was wearing a pink suit vest thing with (of course) sequins (which (e:matthew) has a story about if you wanna ask him someday).

Whadamigonnadonow?

I dunno. I'm trying to finagle someone to take me swimming. (e:imk2) has a pool but it is closed for the evening, maybe I will try there tomorrow. Could always go to Hoyt Lake...

Anyone doing anything fun tonight? Any crazy parties like last weekend at the (e:LC)'s?

sidenote: Space Ghost Coast to Coast rocks.

Better watch out! According to weather.com tomorrow brings PMT-showers. Bring your umbrella (and some beer for me).

Today I cleaned the couch. And I mean really cleaned it. Like got my hands all in it and dug up what has probably been there for years. I found a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle samurai sword, which would belong to Leonardo if I recall. Found over three bucks in loose change. Kowabunga! But mostly I found lots of really disgusting stuff covered in fuzz and hair. I found about 6 thumb tacks and was stabbed by two of them and also by some broken piece of crockery. I found a set of never used earbuds still wrapped up nicely, a couple of Bible study flash cards, two screws, two rubberbands (one for the hair and one regular), and lastly a joint. Yeah, an alomst whole joint. Now a joint is not that common a thing to lose, I mean usually they're pretty treasured, and I know this sucker has to be like multiple years old. It's squished and flattened and a liitle bent, pretty gross in general. And yet...and yet...I'm probably gonna smoke it. Any takers for a nasty-schwag couch-hidden broken-down piece-of-joint party?

So I kinda have this obsession with Frisbee. This doesn't mean that I ever play, in fact, maybe twice in the last 5 years or so. This has mostly to do with lack of anyone else who thinks throwing things back and forth is a good time. But this one night in Germany we went to a spontansous-type party by following these random signs to the top of a hill. We ended up playing frisbee and getting drunk while listening to DJs for hours and hours, a total blast. I think my obsession began there. Anyways, in Artvoice, they had these road trip stories and one of them mentioned Frisbee Golf at Evangola State Park (GOOGLE - Farnham, NY) (it's right to the left of Farnham on the googel:local map). I know there's a course at Chestnut Ridge which is a little closer (GOOGLE - orchard park, NY) (it's a bit to the south of Orchard Park along the 219).

• wish Google could find state park names* and *i tried to use the {map} feature and it keeps taking me to Brooklyn, wtf!*

Frisbee Golf consists of these metal basket things and I guess you try to get the Frisbee in it with as few throws as possible. Here's a Wiki link (WIKIPEDIA - frisbee golf) that goes into maybe much more detail than us casual players would want, though I think I like the term "frolf". And it seems like there's some sort of special frisbee needed, but I'm sure we can find 'em.

So, who's up for it? (e:Mike) said he'd play already...a couple more and it's a party, er frolf party.

K, so it's the coolest shit. I randomly heard this song on the radio and downloaded it, and man, i'm so hooked. It's been stuck in my head for like three weeks.

At wor: .that make me crazy...that make m crazy

driving around: i remember i remember i remember..

sitting here typing: and then you're out there...without a care...

caution: listen at your own risk...you may become addicted

Apparently my friend Nolong has been trying to contact me for a month or two now. I finally talked to her on Monday, the first time in about 10 years. She was pretty much my best friend for most of high school (along with Melissa, who usually manages to track me down semi-annually or so). It was weird, surreal almost. It was after Memorial feast-day at Maria's so I was stuffed and content. Paul's phone rang and he thrust it at me with a "for you" shrug. So I pick up and say hello and am treated to a hi and some giggles. I ask who it is and she says guess. I'm on a cell phone and her voice has definately altered somewhat, but the giggles give it away. Nolong...more giggles...I can't believe it...

Nolong has a strange story (well who doesn't right?, but just wait...you'll think it's strange). She is the offspring of parents who met while doing missionary work in Africa. She was actually born there and lived there a short time too. Her parents moved back and had some more kids from there..she has 5 or 6 (maybe more at this point) siblings, most of which (except Harry Jr.) also bear striking names of African origin. We met in high school, at the Las Vegas Academy for Performing and Visual Arts and International Study (heretofore referred to as LVA). It was a magnet school and so I started out only knowing a couple random kids from my own junior high who had also chosen to attend.

LVA was a strange school. No sports, and no mascot to speak of (though we did have these strange stickmen on our yearbook covers), we were to a certain extent all outcasts of one sort or another (though most would say voluntary outcasts). Nolong sang and so did I, we had choir together, which meant 2-4 periods together a day. Choir at our school was the replacement sports team for us (or Band/Dance/Musical Theater...). It sucked up our lives. I rarely ever took the early bus home (which left at a normal 3 or 4), almost always the late bus for those of us in rehearsals or doing projects or shows. Wow this is rambling...it's just Nolong was such an integral part of my high school life that it all needs explanation.

Well anyways, so let's get back to her. Her parents converted to Mormonism when she was young and all the kids were raised as Mormons. This is a little weird, there just really aren't that many black Mormons...in fact she's probably one of the first I ever met, and there's a whole lot of Mormons where I'm from. At the time we met I was also Mormon which meant we had all the more bonding time (especially since Mormon high-schoolers are expected to spend their lunches in Seminary learning the Gospels and stuff). So we talked a lot about that and our spirituality and our problems and dillemas. She, a black mormon, me a gay mormon (though at first not "out" to anybody at all), we were just meant to connect.

Well, she was a year older and graduated, leaving me to my fate. My senior year was a bit dramatic. I managed to get kicked out of HS (though I still oficially graduated). I finally "became" gay, left the church, had my first drink/smoke. Yeah, I started late but tried to hit every base. Somewhere around this time Nolong and I had a falling out. It wasn't anything overly-dramatic, but a couple comments which weren't appreciated, some others that were misunderstood, the normal stuff that 17 year olds say I spose looking back. But we just never got back to that level of friendship. And then we went to college, Nolong moved off to Utah, and that was it.

She has three kids now! Wow! Her daughter's name is Abele (a-bell-eh) I think, which is a beautiful name. She is divorced now, which came as kind of a surprise to me, with the whole Mormon thing, which she still is. She, like me, has a job that has nothing to do with her passion. What does she look like? The same? Who cares really.

She was the same old Nolong. It was weird how everything kinda snapped into place. Even though I can't remember half of what happened in high school, I still remmeber the essential her. Her weird little giggles, her directness, her ability to sense when something is unsaid. Honestly it kinda freaked me out. I mean I'm such a different person now, or at least like to think so, and it was strange how vulnerable she made me feel. Somehow I kinda feel that she can rip me up and tear me to shreds. Not that she wants to do that or has any intention too. Maybe it's just how it made me think of that time and look back at all the intervening life-decisions that I've made. I don't know...

So she says she's coming to visit me. Which is so like her. There's no, okay...ummm...maybe we'll see each other, or well, I come to visit a lot, or all the other platitudes that you could say. It was alright well I'm gonna look at flights and call you back. I was like whoa! But happy and excited and apprehensive. It's one thing to have an hour long chat and another to have a weekend. But I think it's a good thing. I truly miss her, and she played such a big role in making me, well, me.

What'dya think, is she coming?