Category: random thoughts

Weekend “Stuff”

This past weekend was rather fun.  I went for a 150 mile ride two days in a row.  The first day I went solo and the 2nd day I rode with a friend from the sports bike group.  The 2nd day was the most fun as we drove down to Big Basin park.  The views were awesome and the windy roads even better!  There was a moment when we were taking a break where this very friendly guy came over to chat with us.  I first pegged him as gay…well until his wife sauntered over.  He was very friendly.  One might say too friendly for your average straight guy.  My friend and I both thought there might have been a ‘story’ there. lol  Anyway, the rides were awesome.  I’m loving the new bike more and more every day. I am kicking myself for waiting so long to upgrade.  As for the shoulder, it is healed up nicely.  I still have some numbness around the wound from nerve damage but it is better every week. 

Friday night I also had dinner with Adam & Brad.  I hadn’t seen them in ages and it was nice to catch up.  They seem very acclimated to life in the big city now. heehee  Brad is looking rather hot as he has been hitting the gym pretty hard.

*

I finished Gears of War on the first 2 difficulty settings. The hardcore mode is proving rather difficult.  I can only imagine what “insane” mode is going to be like. lol  The online mode for this one is way ahead of the previous version.  I have to admit the game has consumed a lot of my free time as of late. 

*

TFA was in town this past week as well.  We had an awesome time, as usual.  He gave me the nicest compliment w/o even realizing it.  While I was undressing (get your mind out of my gutter), he casually mentioned, “someone’s been working out“.  It was so unrehearsed and off-the-cuff I knew he meant it vs just trying to flatter me. hehehe  So…he got it extra hard just for that, twice! 

Ho-hum

I haven’t really been inspired to blog much lately.  Even my twittering has waned.  After getting yet another round of emails asking “are you ok?”  I figured I should at least post an update.

Nothing is really wrong, [1]well other than being a 2nd class citizen in the eyes of the law again. I’ve just been busy.  Work has been crazy.  My union duties are extremely busy right now.  The other day I had so much union related stuff going on, I only sat on channel for about 45mins the whole day.  I’m not complaining as I usually get results.  Plus, I am actively working to make my place of employment better. 

I’ve also been heavily involved in playing Gears of War 2.  I freaking love that game.  I beat the campaign level once already and am really enjoying the online play.  If you have an 360, you should try it even if you don’t normally go for FPS (first person shooter) games. 

*

The Prop 8 scandal still smarts.  I will admit to being rather sad lately over the whole ordeal.  I’ve attended several rallies and sit-ins.  And while it feels good, I just feel like rallies don’t accomplish much after the fact.  Where were all these people when our rights got taken away?  I’ve also donated all I can at this point.  I’ve pushed my finances as far as I’m willing.  I’ve already forgone riding gear, my holiday overtime pay and money for personal holiday gifts this year.  I can’t afford to give anymore right now.  I know I sound pissy but I’ve done my part.  I’m certainly not giving up but we all have limits. 

I’m curious about the whole “amendment process”.  I’d love to start an amendment to ban divorce in California.  Or maybe we could ban marriage all-together.  Or how about we ban Mormons?  How very “christian” of you to force your beliefs on others. Don’t like the idea of marrying a gay person?  Well then don’t do it you ignorant hate-mongering fuckers!  That’s ok, you’ll get yours in the end.  I have no doubts in that. 

*

I’ve been hitting the gym consistently.  I’m back up to a full routine.  Still haven’t hit my original limits but slow and steady.  I’ve been good at incorporating cardio into my routines and I’m getting used to it now. 

*

I had a date last week.  It was a medic who was doing his Medic cert back when I was doing my EMT cert.  We used to run into each other at the hospitals and chatted often.  Anyway, long boring story short, it did not go well.  One, he was clearly husband shopping.  Two, he had some internalized homophobia.  Neither of which I am inclined to put up with.  The final straw was when he indicated the whole Prop 8 scandal had very little to do with him.

I think he was more disappointed than I was. heehee  His face fell several times in the course of our conversations.  It was clear he expected me to be of a similar mind-set since we worked in related fields.  I almost felt sorry for him.  Almost. 

*

I’ve taken my daily journals private again as they aren’t very nice right now. 

References

References
↑1 well other than being a 2nd class citizen in the eyes of the law again.

Still Kicking

Had a bit of a busy weekend. My friend Trev was in town from Houston. We don’t get to see each other as much as we used to so it was good to see him. He is going on a cruise tomorrow and promptly dragged me all over the city shopping for last minute “items”. [1]And ya know I was just kicking and screaming. lol Unfortunately, this led to some muscle spasms in my back and neck. Fast forward to my Chiro visit and I discovered I have whiplash from the accident. Not severe but still enough to cause problems when I stand or walk a lot. It is truly amazing how good you can feel from a good chiro adjustment. OY!

We also went to see “Burn After Reading”. It’s a dark comedy with Brad Pitt & George Clooney. There were some definite funny scenes and Brad Pitt’s character was hysterical. However, overall this is more of a DVD movie, IMHO. The build up was great and the acting was decent however, the ending was too quick and too convenient. It sort of spoils the mood the plot spends a lot of time building.

*

TFA is in town for a layover tonight so I get to see him too! I haven’t seen him since the accident so naturally I’m very “excited” about that. hehehe

*
The gym has been good. Ironically, the whiplash hasn’t affected me there at all. I think mostly because I haven’t incorporated any heavy back workouts into my routine yet. Today was supposed to be my back however, I switched to arms. I have no desire to re-injure myself in any capacity. That said, I am so happy to be working out again. The arm workout was great and the endorphins were even better. I also ran into “pubis boy” while I was there. It was all I could do not to pounce on him. lol

*
Overall, it seems I am, in fact, my old self again. The violent mood swings and paranoia have definitely subsided. I’m still scheduled to see my doc tomorrow. I had my blood work done last week so he should have some answers for me one way or another.

References

References
↑1 And ya know I was just kicking and screaming. lol

Weekend

Sorry for not updating much recently. I’m on vacation and have been extremely busy loafing on the sofa.

Because of the serious outlay of cash lately [1]And work screwing up my last paycheck, I’ve had to drastically scale back my vacation plans. Oh yes, yours truly has been forking over a butt-load of cash as of late. The most obvious reason is the accident. Unexpected expenses have definitely added up. Then there is the new bike and with that comes new gear. The latter was a necessity as my helmet and jacket were toast from the accident. The not so obvious, I finished paying off the lien my brothers had against our land. THAT little payout cut into my savings significantly. We still have to come up with money to get the land surveyed. This is the final hurdle before it gets separated into our individual names. So feeling the pinch right now, taking a frivolous vacation seems a bit selfish. Everyone keeps telling me to just put it on credit because I will be getting paid eventually. I don’t believe in doing that. I try to live within my means and don’t believe in using soft money [2]money that is not actually mine yet unless I have to. One has to only look at the current state of our stock market to discover the folly of that. I digress, if something were to happen or go wrong, I’d end up with even more debt. And, considering my shoulder isn’t 100% yet, it is probably better I’m not treking across the country.

Instead, TFA dropped in to see me which was a very welcome distraction. He knew I was a bit down and swung a last minute trip here. He only had a 24 hour layover but we made the best of it. Oh yes we did!

There will be other opportunities for vacation. I am hoping I’ll get some of the payment(s) within the next week. If I do, I’ll still try to make a long weekend in Fort Lauderdale before my vacation is over. If not, I’ll survive. Besides, I’ve had enough down time as of late. Of course, Gay High Holy Day #3 [3]Folsom St Fair is coming up this weekend. My buddy Frank is gonna be in town for the festivities. I’m sure I’ll run into Adam and Brad as well at some point. It promises to be a good weekend.

So now, I’m off to the gym to do dreaded cardio.

References

References
↑1 And work screwing up my last paycheck
↑2 money that is not actually mine yet
↑3 Folsom St Fair

Offline

It took some effort to write this out.

I will be offline for a bit. I was either sideswiped or cut off by a car [1]I don’t really remember for sure today and crashed my bike. I have a fractured collar bone, multiple contusions, abrasions, etc.

I’m banged up but home from the hospital and enjoying the bliss of modern pharmacology. I expect to make a full recovery with time.

I managed to upload a quick photo via twitter today and the support has been overwhelming.

Adam was kind enough to come over and nurse-maid me tonight.

I’ll try to write more when I can.

References

References
↑1 I don’t really remember for sure

Drip, Drip

I had originally planned to post this sooner but the whole MH scandal pushed it back.  Tsk, tsk.  This post is not to be considered medical advice but more as basic info.  I hope you’ll take the time read it all the way thru. 

Many of you read about my unfortunate trip to the free clinic.  I also had the glorious task of notifying my play buddies of exposure.  Well, they were more than grateful.  And let’s face it, I get around. I know color you shocked right? lol  That said, I take my sexual health

I still get surprised by the number of gay men who do not know about STD’s and HIV. [1]For the record, HIV is an STD but for the purpose of this post I will discuss it as a solo item.  While I’ve beat this horse before I feel it bears repeating after getting a slew of questions via email and twitter.

I hate to sound like I’m scolding but I am.  As sexually active men, you should at least know the basics.  With the ability to play around comes responsibility.  Besides, hiding behind fear and ignorance is so 80’s.  Take it upon yourself to get educated.  It is your responsibility.  Besides the plethora of free info available on the web, you can also get printed documentation thru your doctor or neighborhood City clinic.  Unless you are in a closed monogamous relationship this applies to you. 

If you have sex (with another person) more than once a month you should probably get screened for STD’s once every 3-4 months.  Not everyone will develop symptoms of having an STD so it is very easy to spread without regular checkups.  STD’s, if left unchecked, can cause serious health problems later on in life.

Gonorrhea/Chlamydia/Syphilis are much easier to catch than HIV.  They are also easily treatable in most instances with prescription antibiotics.  No you can’t use the same antibiotic to treat all three.  Most Cities offer some sort of free or low cost alterative for STD/HIV testing so there no excuse other than irresponsibility not to.  Most clinics also offer programs for anonymously notifying your sexual partners of exposure as well.  This means you don’t have to necessarily be the bearer of bad news. [2]I kind of see that as a cop-out but as long as they get notified, who cares. 

As for HIV, things are different.  HIV is much harder to catch but there is also no cure.  And while the number of HIV related deaths has decreased with the advent of better meds, people are still dying. Fortunately, HIV is a rather fragile bug.  Unless you are using injectable drugs (read dirty needles) the primary infection route for gay men is unprotected anal sex. 

And this line, "well he said he was negative" is a bunch of bullshit.  NO ONE is responsible for your health but you. [3]Don’t get me wrong, people should be held accountable for their behavior however, that doesn’t do you any good health-wise if you sero-convert.  And frankly, you should get away from worrying about other people’s honesty and focus more on finding a sexual pattern that works for you.  Regardless of whether a person is poz or neg, stick to the same practices.  This avoids the temptation to engage in high risk behavior in situations where you don’t know or think you know a person’s status.  If you stick to the same behaviors you also tend to worry less. 

It really is simple folks, if you are sexually active get tested on a routine basis.  Pleading poverty or ignorance is not an excuse.  Know the facts about transmission and protection and act accordingly. 

/rant

References

References
↑1 For the record, HIV is an STD but for the purpose of this post I will discuss it as a solo item.
↑2 I kind of see that as a cop-out but as long as they get notified, who cares.
↑3 Don’t get me wrong, people should be held accountable for their behavior however, that doesn’t do you any good health-wise if you sero-convert.

Self Portrait

Rooster + Pork?

Recently, not one but two of my blog buddies sent me T-shirts in the mail.  This pic was sent by Large Tony.  I absolutely love it!  He was worried if I would wear it.  Hell, I’ve already worn it 3 times. lol  *Thanks T, I greatly appreciate it!*

Oddly enough, the 2nd shirt is also black and was sent by an anonymous source.  When I get time to wear it, I’ll snap off a pic. 

My weekend is fast coming to a close.  Friday, I spent about 3 hours doing continuing education for my Fire training.  I’ve mentioned before I’m a training Officer for the Fire civilianization project.  I previously went down to SFO to see Fire operations at the airport.  This time I got to drive all over the bay in one of the 2 fireboats owned by the Fire department.  It was awesome of course! 

The Phoenix - Full Shot

This trip is normally reserved for Supervisors and Managers.  There were a couple of snarky comments made in the background questioning whether I should be there.  I was happy to hear the Fire training manager silence them with a curt explanation. [1]Forgetting for a moment, I have more fire/medical training than most of them combined.  I don’t understand petty power trips at all . Anyway, you can click over to flickr for a full rundown on the pics.  I tried to take a few more this time even though some are pretty much the same picture. 

*

Saturday was pretty low key.  The Latin came into town and we spent a good chunk of the day just hanging out.  I hadn’t seem him lately, we had fun.  We also decided to go see the Batman flick.  I’d been wanting to see it and he hadn’t seen it either so it worked out great.  The movie was exceptional!  Much better than I ever expected and way better than part I.  Keith Ledger turned in one of the best performances of his career.  Not to mention, the plot was very complex and constantly evolving. 

Latin & Moby

He took off to go bar hopping with some coworkers and I met up with Adam for Sushi for dinner.  Brad is at a conference so it was just the two of us.  We were caddy as usual.  Afterwards, we hung out at 440 Castro (aka the old Daddies bar) with Dan.  Ironically, we spent a good chunk of time watching the Olympics while there. lol  We watched this one chick slaughter the entire competition in a long distance run.  Even if we kept laughing at how emaciated and hungry she looked. 

I didn’t stay more than a couple hours. [2]I get bored in bars easily these days w/o some sort of carnal distraction.  hehehe.  I left the boys and came on home.   

So now, I’m just finished uploading pics to flickr, made myself a yummy egg/bacon bagle, caught up on Tivo, and replaying thru Gears of War.  GoW 2 is due out in November and I can’t wait! 

Not a bad weekend.  Not too terribly busy but still managed to be preoccupied. 

References

References
↑1 Forgetting for a moment, I have more fire/medical training than most of them combined.
↑2 I get bored in bars easily these days w/o some sort of carnal distraction.  hehehe.