Archerr

I know I didn't write much over the weekend but I've been busy.

I had a photo shoot on Saturday. I might use some of the pictures for artwork but not sure I'll post any of them in my photo libraries.

Saturday night W. and I went to see Sideways. We both enjoyed the movie but we weren't sure it was Oscar worthy. Then on Sunday we went shopping and gave each other pedicures. That was fun and relaxing. We watched the Oscars which were okay. I don't care for Chris Rock though. W. and I made our predictions before the show and actually predicted 15 of the awards correctly. Sideways was the only Oscar movie either one of us had seen so we thought we did well considering our lack of movie going. This morning after some breakfast I showed W. iTunes and my iPods. He's very curious about how they work. Since I'm giving my iPod Shuffle a workout now, I lent my iPod Mini to W. to try out. I think he'll enjoy it. After playing on the computer we decided to be responsible and get some things done. He left and I got to work. I had a great weekend with him. We are really enjoying spending time together. We have plans for next weekend already.

The whole weekend they were predicting snow, snow, and more snow. This morning it wasn't snowing like they said but we both had the day off. It did eventually snow but not nearly what they were predicting. So I've had a 5 day weekend. I'm sure we'll go back to work tomorrow but maybe with a late opening. Although, it would be nice to have ONE more day. Then only 3 weeks until Spring Break!

Note to self: W. likes half & half in his coffee in the morning. Get half & half.

This morning I had a photo shoot. It went well. I'll try to post some of the photos when I have some time to work on them.

My artist friend Bob stopped by this afternoon and we were able to sit and chat about art. He gave me some good ideas for my work and took a look at what I've already completed. He's such a great source of inspiration and knowledge.

Tonight I'm getting together with W. We are going to enjoy some wine, nibbles, and then off to see the Oscar nominated movie, "Sideways." I downloaded the trailer and heard a bit about it so I think we'll both enjoy it. It's the ONLY Oscar nominated movie I will have seen before the Oscars tomorrow night. Since I haven't seen any other movies I can't make any predictions. I don't even have any favorites. But I will watch the show until the end.

Of course I'll report on my evening tomorrow sometime. Maybe it'll be another 24 hours. Sorry, no time for links tonight. W. will be here in a few minutes.

I had another day off of work today. I took better advantage of the time today then I did yesterday. I ran errands, cleaned my house, and did laundry. I also had time to work on my photo galleries. At the same time I had time to work on my art gallery. I have created an art gallery to show my artwork. This artwork is what I've created with the photos I've taken of naked men and other things. I happen to love the look of the art but everyone might not agree. In any case, I have a new link on the sidebar for my artwork. And you can click on the image to go directly to the art gallery. The art gallery is set up the way I'd like my photo galleries to be set up but that will take a lot more time and will have to come in the future when I have time to change them all over to this format. I like the format because it has a black back ground with very little else on the pages. It's clean and the artwork looks great against the black back ground. I hope you enjoy the art gallery!

Update: Since this post the gallery has been removed. I'm still working on the artwork though. The gallery may return at some point.

It's been snowing all day here in the DC area. It started about 4:30 AM and it's still snowing at this time. You'd think we'd have a foot of snow but we don't. It's been this slow spitting snow. And it didn't stick to the streets all day. But when it got dark things started to freeze and now the streets are covered. I'm hoping for another day off tomorrow but as of this minute they haven't announced it yet. This is way past my bed time but I'm kind of counting on a day off again tomorrow. I hope I'm not scrambling to get my ass up and moving in the morning.

Today I was very lazy. I watched a lot of TV, talked on the phone (they called me, I didn't make any calls), played on the computer, and did several nice pieces of artwork. I hope to create a gallery of my artwork online to show you what I've been working on. Before I can do that though I've been looking for some software that will create the galleries for me. I want to redo all my photo galleries with black backgrounds. I think my photos look better against black then they do with white. I also think I want them centered and the software I use now doesn't provide that option. I've been spending way too much time looking for some online. I think I found one that I'm going to play with and work on to create new photo libraries. They won't match the rest of my site but that's fine. I'll work on it awhile before uploading it to my site.

Anyway, the day was a waste. I should have cleaned my house. I should have done some things for work. I didn't do any of those. I watched the Ovation Channel (so few people know about this channel) for like 3 hours today. It's an arts channel and has some nice documentaries on musicians and artists. I enjoyed it.

I'd like to thank all my readers for all the comments you've left on my posts lately. I appreciate them all.

Comments are tricky. If you get a nice one you keep it and appreciate it. If you get a bad one you want to delete it and ban the commenter. But is that censorship? It's hard to say. I've deleted a few comments in the past and I've only had to ban one IP address from commenting in the future. Luckily, for the most part I get very positive comments. So censoring my comments isn't a big problem for me.

I've had a few questions about comments floating around in my head lately. When someone leaves a comment and asks a question in the comment, should I write them an e-mail answering the comment? And along the same lines, should I be e-mailing everyone and thanking them for the comments? I don't know what the right etiquette is. I wonder if readers who don't get an answer to their question or a thank you e-mail will get upset if I don't send them an e-mail.

I worry about these things too much I think. But since I've been thinking about friendships lately, I wonder if I'm burning bridges with possible friends by not e-mailing them a thank you or the answer to a question they posted. I don't want to make anyone upset or have them feel I don't care, because I do care and I appreciate all the comments and questions.

Any comments on this subject would be greatly appreciated. I guess I need some guidance.

As you can see from the picture, my iPod Shuffle arrived today! I have to say this might be the coolest little device that Apple has produced. It is extremely simple to use and it's so light. It's SO light I forgot that I had it in my pocket while doing things around the house. When I opened the package I didn't even read the book. I plugged it into my iMac and iTunes recognized it instantly. I selected lots of different songs and dragged them to the iPod Shuffle and BAM! It was ready. It took about an hour to charge up and then I started listening to the music. It sounds very good for such a small device. I might even say it sounds better than my iPod Mini. The only thing I can think of to complain about is the little slider on the back side that turns it on. It doesn't have a grip or anything and I find it a little hard to slide it in just the right position. I'm sure the more I use it, the more I'll get used to the slider. Overall I think it's a great little device and I'm sure I'll listen to tunes with it everyday. I've been giving my iPod Mini a workout lately so having the Shuffle to play with will be fun.

I met W. a few months ago. We've gotten together a few times and have enjoyed getting to know each other. The last time we got together I told him that I might just have the nerve to ask him out on a date sometime. I didn't though. Instead, he asked me on a date. That date lasted the for 24 hours from Sunday into Monday. Simply wonderful.

I met W. at his place in DC. We began the date with me trying on a few pairs of boots he has. We are planning on riding horses and attending a barrel wine tasting in March. I don't have riding boots but W. does and said I could possibly fit and borrow his for the ride. I couldn't even get one pair on but another pair fit a little snug but will work for the ride. Then we were off to The National Gallery of Art to see a few exhibits we were interested in seeing.

We took the subway and then walked the length of the mall to The National Gallery of Art. We went to see two exhibits. The first was a collection of fauve paintings in their permanent collection (read all about the exhibit by clicking on the link). The paintings had vibrant colors and interesting subjects. I like to look at them closely but I found out that's a no no. But I like to see the brush strokes and see the detail. At one of the last paintings we were viewing, the security guard came up to me and asked me to move back....that you had to have (holding up his hands to show) 2 feet between you and the paintings. I quickly moved back. We then moved on to see Rembrandt's Late Religious Portraits. I really enjoyed these paintings. They were very large, very dark, and had very interesting lighting effects. They were all portraits. There were a few that I really liked and would have loved to find print of them in the gift shop. Unfortunately when W. and I went to the shop we found out they did not have any prints available. I plan to do some searching online to find some prints. After the exhibits we went to the museum cafe for some gelato ice cream and pound cake for a quick snack.



We took the subway back to W's place where we then enjoyed a bottle of Gray Ghost Victorian White. It's a chablis style white that was sweet and rolled over my tongue easily leaving it's berry flavor behind. I enjoyed it. W. is so good at picking wines that he knows I'll like. We enjoyed the bottle while chatting about this and that and simply enjoying each other's company. At the same time W. prepared a wonderful platter of tasty nibbles that go well with the wine. We had 3 different cheeses (I tasted bri for the first time!), ham and smoked turkey, gala apples, grapes, and almonds. Of course I tried everything. I even ate a grape. I'm not one for fruits and vegetables but W. is getting me to try new things. I don't know how he did it but he got me to try the bri and the grapes with little effort. And we listened to various jazz recordings while enjoying he wine and nibbles. It was really nice. Then for dessert W. opened a bottle of Bear's Liar California Merlot. I had not tried Merlot before so yet again I was trying something new. With the wine we had some dark chocolates and milk chocolates. They certainly made the flavor of the wine sparkle. After having a dark chocolate drink some Merlot and it tastes like you are having a berry flavored chocolate. It was really good.

This morning W. made scrambled eggs, bacon, and toast for breakfast. Then we were off to The Shops at Georgetown Park in Georgetown to do a little shopping. W. picked up a few things and I did a lot of window shopping and taking photos...some inside the mall and some outside the mall in Georgetown and along the canal right next to the mall. After some lunch I decided I should probably become a responsible adult and head home to get some work done. W. did his best to convince me to procrastinate and have some more fun with him. It was so tempting. While driving back to his place, we passed a cool looking cemetery. I thought I could get some decent photos to use in my artwork so I told him I could procrastinate a little longer by stopping there for some photos. I didn't think of looking at the name while there but after a little research online I found out it's called The Holy Road Cemetery. It has some really old grave stones and if you look closely you will notice that many of them died in 1896. W. mentioned that it seemed that there might have been some kind of plague or something at that time in the area since so many people died in 1896. It was interesting and I took some great photos to use in my artwork. After the photos we decided to really become responsible adults and get some work done.

Almost 24 hours from the time I arrived at W's, I took him home and dropped him off in front of his place. I gave him a kiss goodbye and told him what a wonderful time I'd had. He agreed. I then officially asked him on a date for next weekend. I told him I would take care of the plans. He said yes to the date and said he looks forward to it. It was a nice 24 hours.

I've got a busy day ahead of me. I'm shooting a drag queen this morning. I hope this one doesn't take over my house like the others did. After that, a quick shower and change and I'm off to spend the afternoon/evening with W. We have plans to go to the National Gallery of Art to see a few exhibits and then back to his place for some wine tasting and conversation. If I can get past the drag queen shoot this morning, I know it will be a great day. I'm looking forward to the museum and wine tasting. Should be a fun and relaxing evening.

Today I had the opportunity to meet and work with another fellow blogger. Thom of TMB came over for a photo shoot. He found my blog awhile ago and introduced me to his. We e-mailed a few times and he volunteered to pose for me. He doesn't live too far away and was able to come to my condo for a shoot. He said I am the first blogger he's ever met even though he's been blogging since 2001.

He had printed out some of my photos and wanted to have some taken in the same poses. I was happy to do that. I was also flattered that he had printed my pictures as examples of photos he'd like to have. He also brought me too books. He follows my blog and remembered that I like to read gay novels. He selected two he thought I'd enjoy and gave them to me. How thoughtful is that? I added them to my stack of books on my night stand and will read them sometime in the future. Thanks Thom!

He was very willing to have me pose him for different shots. He was very easy to work with. We took all the shots he had in mind and then I had him pose in several different ways for me to take some other photos. I plan to use some of his photos in the artwork I've been creating lately. I specifically had him pose in ways I thought would look good in my art. I appreciate that he was so willing to do that for me.

Besides being a good model, he's also a really nice guy. We had some great conversation about our jobs, men, my being a terrible friend, books and music. He's an all around nice guy and I enjoyed getting to know him and working with him. When I get around to creating some art with his photos, I'll be sure to post about them here. Be sure to check out his blog sometime. Thanks again, Thom!

For the past few days I've been thinking about friendship. With a little help, or some would say push, I've come to realize that I'm a terrible friend. It's true. I am. I'll admit it. I'm a terrible friend.

I know why I have so few friends. I never stay in touch with people. When I think about my two closest friends and even my relatively new blogger friend, Homer, I never call them. They always call me. I've talked with both Homer and one of my closest friends and they say they don't have a problem being the one to call but it still bothers me that I never initiate phone conversations with friends. Both Homer and my friend David call me on their way home from work. They pretty much know when I'm free to talk and call during those times. But I never pick up the phone and just call them. I know I'm shy and worry about if I'd be bothering them or catching them at a bad time to talk. Or I feel I should only call them when I actually have something to tell or ask them.

I don't know. I just know that it's been brought to my attention that I'm a bad friend and I realize it and admit it, I am. Maybe I don't need many friends. Maybe I'm content to just do my thing and keep a very close, small group of friends. I'm not really sure. I don't go out with friends much and of course I never initiate going out. It's always the other people. I don't know why I'm so bad at that or why I'm a bad friend.

When I think about it, the friends I do have don't really have the same interests as I do. I mean, we have a connection some way. Like with Homer we're both gay and bloggers. We always have lots of things to talk about. And with David, well, he and I talk about EVERYTHING and I've known him since 1992. I'm not sure why David keeps me as a friend. I hardly ever call him. I'm lucky that he keeps me as a friend I guess. I do consider Bob, my artist friend, a friend. He and I have something in common and talk about it all the time. See, I guess if I had something in common with people I'd be a better friend..maybe. I don't know.

I don't know where I'm going with this. I'm in a weird mood tonight. I'm rambling and much of it doesn't make sense I'm sure. I guess it boils down to the fact that I'm not a very good friend and that I don't need a lot of friends in my life. How sad is that?

Last night I finally finished Shameless by Paul Burston. I've been reading this book since January 5th. I'm not a slow reader, I just don't have time to sit down and read big chunks of a book at a time. I usually only read about 20-30 pages a night before bed. This book held my interest consistently. I didn't go long periods without reading it.

The story was interesting enough. Basically you follow the life of 3 people, with a few other people sprinkled in from time to time. Two gay guys, and a straight women. Martin, who I consider the main character, is a likable guy. I think I got into following his life more then the others. I guess it takes place over about a year's time. Not sure though, it wasn't really clear. In any case, we follow Martin, John and Caroline through boyfriends, family, parties, and basic life. Martin was more interesting because you got more into his feelings, downfalls, and experiences more then the others. It was a decent read. However, one thing I have to point out is that drugs play a major role in this book. All three characters get into all kinds of drugs...cocaine, K, ecstasy, crystal meth...WAY too many drugs. I could not relate to the drugs at all. I've never done any drugs and just couldn't picture myself in their shoes. I read over all the drug use and related more to Martin's boy troubles. I felt sorry for him often in the book. I kept wanting him to find the right guy and stop doing drugs at the bars to find that guy. Oh, and the whole story takes place in London. A few of the British pop culture references were lost on me but there were also just as many American pop culture references. I enjoyed the book. I don't know that I'd rank it high on my recommendation list but simply because it had the gay characters and struggles with boyfriends, I would recommend it.

Next up: Trust Fund Boys by Famous author Rob Byrnes. I don't know him personally but I've followed his blog for about a year now. I discovered his blog before reading his first book The Night We Met. After following his blog for awhile I decided to read it. I enjoyed it and soon after ordered Trust Fund Boys. It's been sitting on my night stand for awhile. When I finished Shameless last night, I looked at the stack of books on my night stand and decided it was time to start Trust Fund Boys. I'm sure I'll enjoy it as much as I enjoyed his first book. Of course I'll write something about it when I finish it.

I think I need a hair cut. My hair isn't that long but it's starting to stick out on the side and I don't like the way it looks. I usually don't let it get very long. I try to get it cut about every 5 weeks. I think it's only been 4 weeks since my last hair cut but it just feels like I need one. It's not unruly or anything. It just feels like it's time.

So yesterday I stopped by the place where I get my hair cut after work. Usually I can just walk in and get a haircut. When I opened the door to the place there was only one lady working, two guys waiting for hair cuts, and one already in the chair. I didn't want to spend all my time waiting for my turn so I decided to forget it and go home.

I stopped by the place on the way home from work again today. Again, I opened the door and there was only one lady working (not the same one as yesterday). There was one guy in her chair and one guy waiting. I didn't want to wait again so I left. I decided I'd try one more time tomorrow on my way home from work.

The place I go to used to be a barber shop but now is owned by an asian lady who will cut hair for anyone who comes through the door. You can't call and make an appointment or anything. It's just a whole in the wall kind of place with two chairs. There's only one lady working there at any time. I could always pay more, get an appointment and go to a salon but I'd get the same haircut. I'm not fussy about my hair. I never get upset if they cut too much or not enough. I know it will grow back or I can get another haircut in a few weeks. And it's so cheap I can't pass it up. I guess I get what I pay for but I think it looks okay. I'll keep trying to get my hair cut this week. I have a date on Sunday so I'd like to get it cut before then.

Happy Valentine's Day!

I don't have a husband, significant other, lover, or even a boyfriend. But I do have an interest. The interest is enough for me to enjoy this day.

I did get lots of kiddie valentines at school today. All my students gave me tons of candy and cards. Most of the candy I love but some I don't care for. I don't care for it because it's crummy or anything. I don't care for it because it's too rich and high class. I got a box of truffles and a bag of specialty dark chocolates. Most people would probably love these but not me. I'm white trash when it comes to chocolates. I like the plain old everyday chocolates. Hershey's is a safe bet. You can't beat a Hershey's Mr. Goodbar. But I also like the cheap chocolates that you get at CVS. I don't know why but I got several of those cheap chocolates today. They come in those little heart shaped boxes. There are 4 pieces in the box. They are usually filled with those sugary, creamy fillings. I love the orange cream, raspberry creams, or even the marshmallow creams. Yum! They are from no name candy producers but let me tell you, they are delicious. I wouldn't think of giving these chocolates to anyone as a gift because they are just too cheap. But I love them! Actually, it's not a matter of being cheap, I just think they taste better then the more expensive, more exclusive chocolates. I'm weird like that.

All through high school I took art classes. I took drawing, painting, commercial art, and photography. Photography became my medium of choice. I was the photography editor of my high school news paper and once I got to college and made a name for myself in the journalism community on campus, I became the photography editor of the college newspaper. I've always felt artistic but have never made the time to create art beyond photography.

Then I met my artist friend Bob and he introduced me to the art he creates with the photographs he takes. I think they are amazing and wanted to learn the process so that I could create my own art. Last weekend when we had a shoot together, he told me all about the process and what steps were involved in creating this type of art. It sounded simple to me. At least the first part sounded simple. There are several steps involved and it takes time for each step. There is artistic freedom in each step.

Yesterday I got all the supplies I needed to begin creating art. I hadn't do anything with art supplies since high school. I was very eager to attempt art again. I followed Bob's directions. After 3 or 4 failed attempts I got the effect I was going for. I had actually created art! It may not appeal to everyone but I think it's beautiful. The piece is 4 x 6. I scanned the final piece. If you click on the image you will get the full size. I have to admit though, it looks so much better in person. The scanner didn't capture the variations in tone and the impressions the process creates on the paper. You just have to trust me that it looks so much better in person.

This is just the beginning. I plan to use many of my photos to create more artwork. The beginning of a new hobby. I'm excited about the possibilities!

My tax refund was directly deposited on Friday so today I went shopping! I was smart though, I put 1/3 in savings, I spent 1/3 today, and I'm planning on putting the other 1/3 towards the credit card. The older I get, the more responsible I become.

I went to Ritz Camera and bought a second battery for my camera, a backpack for my photo equipment, and a new lens! I got the Canon EF 75-300 IS zoom lens. The IS stands for Image Stabilizer. That's why it was so expensive. It's actually an amazing lens. I can zoom in and with the IS on it compensates for the shake at that range and creates a still photo. It's got this motor built into the lens that senses motion and creates the opposite shake to make the photo still. It works! I tested it several times and love the way it holds the image still to shoot. I'm going to love using this lens. It's going to be great for nature photos where you can't actually get up close.

After my major purchases at Ritz, I went to Aaron Brothers Framing and picked up the supplies I need to begin to create actual art with my photos. I've been shooting male nudes since last fall and now it's time to create some art with the photos. I had planned to work on it today but I spent the day cleaning my house after my brother left yesterday. I didn't have time to do it last night after work.

W came over last night and we spent the evening together enjoying some wine and great conversation. I'm really enjoying his company. We have plans to see an art exhibit next weekend. Last night he taught me a bit more about wine tasting. We enjoyed 3/4 of a bottle of Pinot Bianco. As I type this I'm finishing off the bottle. It's a nice wine. Thanks to W, I'm learning more and more.

My brother left today. His visit wasn't as bad as I thought it might be. Yes, he is a slob and he had more stuff all over my condo then anyone I've ever had stay here. Yes, he is very messy and doesn't clean up after himself. Yes, he snores like a train. But he IS my brother and I love him. It's always good to catch up with him when he's in town. When I got home from work he was gone but he left me an iTunes gift card for letting him stay with me. I'm sure I'll find out how his class went the next time I chat with him on AOL.

Last night I went to bed at my regular time but was woken up by a noise I hadn't heard before. I listened for a minute and thought it must be the guy upstairs blowing his nose or something. I rolled over and went back to sleep. An hour and 20 minutes later the noise woke me up again. I couldn't figure out what it was. It sounded like someone tearing or ripping drywall. Again, I rolled over and went to sleep. Another hour or so later, I woke up again. This noise was really getting on my nerves. I hadn't heard this all week and wasn't sure what it was. I slept another 30 minutes or so and then decided I couldn't sleep anymore. I went about my regular routine. I walked into my computer room (which is right next to my bedroom) and found my brother sleeping on the floor snoring like a cow with a sinus condition. THAT is what kept me up all night. At first I was mad and woke him up by turning on the light and turning on my computer. He said he couldn't sleep in the living room because the wind was rattling the sliding glass door too much for him to sleep. I said his snoring was too loud for me to sleep. He apologized but I wasn't happy so I let it go. I'm not a morning person at all. I don't like to talk or anything. I just like to do my thing and be left alone. My brother tried to talk to me but I gave him very little in return. After my shower and breakfast I had gotten over it and was able to talk to him. We ended up laughing about it in the end. I helped him pack his car so he wouldn't have to carry everything down later in the day when he was leaving. He said thanks for letting him stay and then I was off to work.

I just spent the last hour and a half picking up and cleaning up from his stay. It wasn't that bad. I'm just too particular I guess. I like things just so. I could write pages about how we are different but at the same time I could write about how we are the same. But I won't. He's my brother, he's my twin. We'll always be connected. He was born first and I like to say that I kicked him out because I needed more womb.

North Korea has nuclear weapons.

Prince Charles is going to marry Camilla Parker Bowles in April.

The Pope is leaving the hospital today.

And my brother is STILL here.

It's official, it's the end of the world as we know it.

I've had Photoshop Elements 3.0 (PSE3) for about a week now and I've used a little but I'm finding it more difficult to find the things I was used to in PSE2. PSE3 isn't as intuitive as the older version was. It's got some nice new features and it does more than the last version but it's not easy to learn. I wanted to edit some photos just to play around with the features and I was getting very frustrated finding the tools I was used to. After clicking around a bit I was able to find them. I decided to play with one of the photos I took of myself. I wanted to tweak the photo's contrast and add a blue tint to it. I think I did a pretty good job. Again, it wasn't all that easy but I was eventually able to find what I was looking for. I liked the effect so much that I decided to change the photos on my home page to this photo. And I added it to my side bar. Working with these effects has given me some ideas to add to some of my other photos. Of course when I have the time and decide to post them, I'll let you know.

Obviously by now the photos have been removed and replaced with others.

Mother nature is teasing us with a touch of spring in the DC area. It was in the 60's today. The sun was out most of the day and it was simple beautiful. I was able to do most of my walking outside today. Of course there are puddles of melting snow still around but I've learned to step over them. Unfortunately when you have huge piles of snow sitting around they are bound to melt eventually and create mud. Not pretty but with the sun out and the temperature so nice, I just ignored the ugly mud. I had the iPod Mini blasting some 80's songs reminding me of high school the whole time I was walking. Tuesdays are an easy day at work for me. My students are out of the room for two blocks of time. Since I am so organized and always ready for the next day, I had plenty of time to walk today. I ended up walking 5.43 miles today. That's higher then my average so I felt good.

Tomorrow it's back to lower temperatures and rain by the afternoon. I'm glad I was able to get out and enjoy the nice weather today.

My brother George arrived last night. After taking two trips to bring all of his luggage up to my condo, we settled in for some TV and conversation. Then I was off to bed. We didn't get in each other's way this morning before I was off to work and he was off to his class.

We're both home now. He is sitting on the floor in my computer room sharing my wireless internet connection. I won't say what he is doing on the internet or who he is chatting with. That's his business.

But I was chatting with him trying to think of what I could write about tonight and he disagreed with my idea. I wanted to write about the fact that even though we are twins (fraternal), we are very different people. I wanted to write all about our differences but he decided that would be too much.

Instead I realized I hadn't checked my mail yet because the mailman was STILL putting the mail in the boxes when I got home. So I gave up on the conversation with George to ride the elevator down to check my mail.

When I walked into the mail room there was a guy checking his mail while talking on his cell phone. It reminded me of a blog entry I just read about an hour ago on a blog. So I get my mail and this guy gets his and we go to the elevator. I wasn't really paying attention to him because I was annoyed that he was talking on his cell phone. The elevator door closes and he loses his connection. With the annoyance gone, I got to check him out a little closer. He was a little hottie! He was about an inch shorter then me, he had a goatee, strawberry blond hair, and a decent build. I also checked out his hands...no ring! I got off on my floor and he continued riding up to his floor. Of course I noted what floor button he pressed. He's probably not gay but very nice eye candy. As I got off the elevator I realized I'd have to write about that.

I told my brother about the hottie in the elevator and he asked if I talked to him. I said no of course. I told him I'm shy and don't know what to say. It's true. Then I told my brother I was going to write about this and that I needed a picture of him sitting on the floor with his laptop. He got all mad and started saying I couldn't use his picture because I didn't have permission. I told him to complain to the hotel management. He just laughed.

I had a photo shoot with my artist friend, Bob today. We worked with a model we've worked with before. I think I got some really nice shots today. I decided to add another element to some of the photos. In a few of them I placed a pear in the picture to give it some vivid color. I think it looks cool. This model is really good at taking direction and especially at just posing on his own. Several times he was just relaxing and it created the best pose.

Bob taught me some of the details about how he creates his artwork. I learned a good portion of the process involved. I think I will be able to try my hand at creating the same type of art that he works on so often. He uses his photos to create this amazing effect. Soon you might see some artwork that I create with my photos. I'm going to play with the process next weekend. I don't have any shoots planned so I should have time to create some art. Bob offers several of his pieces for sale on eBay. His artwork is amazing. I recommend you check out his artwork on eBay.

I have no plans to watch the Super Bowl tonight. I will probably have it on in the background while I do some computer work. I may look up during the commercials to check them out. I don't think they are supposed to be as good as years past but I always get a kick out of seeing them.

My brother is coming tonight. He's here from Columbus, Ohio to take a class in the area. I love my brother and we get along pretty well. But I'm sure we'll get on each other's nerves at some point over the next 5 days. Plus, I'm a clean, neat person and he isn't. Nuff said.

Guess what I did for almost 2 hours this afternoon and Homer didn't interrupt this time.

So knowing that I have a good chunk of money coming in a few weeks I broke down and ordered a few things from Apple. I've been looking at a few new software titles and checked them out at the Apple Store online. They sounded good so I went ahead and ordered Photoshop Elements 3.0 and I ordered a little known program called Notebook.

Photoshop Elements arrived yesterday and it looks good so far. I've used 2.0 for awhile and have gotten used to the controls, etc. I hope 3.0 is just as easy to use. I've checked it out a little but haven't done any editing with it yet. I use iPhoto basically for cataloging my photos but have learned not to use the editing features. The the 5.0 version sounded stronger on the editing features but I've worked with it and prefer to export my photos and work with them in elements.

Notebook will be a great program for me to organize and keep all those little bits of information in one place. I've got all my addresses and phone numbers in the address book. I've got all my web links in Safari. I've got all my saved e-mails in the e-mail program. It's like I've got bits of information all over the place. It looks like this notebook program will allow me to clip and save all these bits of information in one place. I can have a page for each model I work with with their contact info, sample photo, e-mail exchanges, etc. I'm really looking forward to being able to click on a page and have all the information on one page. I know it will take awhile to set up but I'm an organization nut like that. I'll enjoy doing it.

Finally, I ordered the iPod Shuffle. I just decided to go with the 512mb version. I like the flexibility and the small size. I also like how light it is. It'll be easier to carry around on my walks then the iPod Mini. Yes, I know the mini isn't that heavy but it's just heavy enough to get in the way when I go on my walks. Plus, if you know me, I have to have all the latest stuff from Apple so I'll just add it to my collection. I'll probably get the iPod Shuffle about the same time my refund is directly deposited into my checking account.

I did NOT watch one minute of the propaganda last night. I made sure I was in bed reading by 9:00 so that I wouldn't be tempted to watch the asshole talk about the state of the union. I just knew that if I started watching it, I'd end up watching all of it and get mad while watching it. Instead I read some of the book I am currently reading, rolled over, and went to sleep by 9:30.

This morning all of my liberal friends at work were talking about it and asked if I had seen it. I told them no. But they filled me in on all the nonsense he spoke. One colleague suggested I read The Washington Post for a re-cap....Tom Shales specifically. I went to look for our copy of the paper but couldn't find it anywhere. So I had to read it online. Tom Shales wrote what I would consider a mixed review of the drivel. I'm sure if I had seen the speech I would have agreed with Tom on several points. One point:

"Bush soon divided the hall again when he said he supported a constitutional amendment "to protect the institution of marriage," which was a euphemism for banning same-sex marriages, though Bush didn't mention them. The man who likes to speak, as he did in this speech, of America's great "compassion" and who has been holding forth loudly of late on the sanctity of freedom apparently believes both compassion and freedom should have their limits."

This man won't stop until he gets what he wants. Last week I had a great conversation with W about how all this rhetoric from Bush and christian conservatives sounds much like pre-war Berlin in 1932. Except this time it's not the Jews, it's the gays. Bush may use different words but it's clear he is out to redefine gays in America as second class citizens. I truly dislike this man and his discriminatory policies.

I would say socially, the union is in a sad state.

There's nothing like a long, hot shower to drain away your worries, fears, and anxieties. This morning I stood in the shower thinking about my day ahead. The hot water felt so good on my body. I stopped thinking about everything and just enjoyed the feel of the water hitting my skin and taking away all my concerns. It would be nice to have someone in the shower with me to rub my shoulders as I let things go.