Know Thyself

People really crack me up sometimes. They say perception is 9/10’s reality but there are also times when you need to use your head for something besides a hat rack. I just had a rather odd email conversation with a distant Facebook friend who was pissed at me for not knowing what was going on with him. Apparently, he’s been going thru some drama and updating FB with it. It was somehow my fault for not knowing. I saw him online, sent a polite message, and proceeded to get attitude because I was being jovial. Excuse the hell out of me!

On a similar rant, a while back I had another FB friend (who found me thru twitter) get pissy with me because I didn’t want to have cyber sex with him over cam. I first politely explained it wasn’t my thing even if I thought he was attractive. Sex over cam is so 90’s and boring to me. I realize it may be fun for some but that doesn’t mean everyone is into it. Finally after like the 4th or 5th push to show my junk, I got rather direct and let him know it was never going to happen. He has since unfriended me, to my delight.

So yes, all these sites can be wonderful mechanisms for communication. But lets face it, none of us only friend people we actually know in real life. Hell some folks have thousands, even hundreds of thousands, of friends on these sites. It is unrealistic to think every one of your “friends” keeps up with your every update. Frankly, it borders on impossible for anyone who has a life offline. For myself, I’m not so foolish to think everyone on my list knows everything I post. Most of what I post on FB and such is absolute drivel anyway. lol That’s when I’m even on. Most of my updates on FB come from my Google+ account (or twitter).

Yes, I have some nice friends online whom I’ve never met. I have some I’d love to meet someday as well. That still doesn’t mean I’m all up in their grill 24/7. If I’m a real friend to you or vice versa, then I’ll take the time to talk, text, email, or see you. in person. In person isn’t always possible but a friendship is only as good as the effort you put into it, not what you get out of it. And posting online is not what I would call effort.

The sex thing is funny. But again, don’t get all twisted because not everyone is into the same thing. I clearly have no problem with sex and/or hookups. That doesn’t mean every profile I have online is filled with a insatiable desire to get laid. Even still, if I politely decline 2 even 3 times, take the hint.

At the end of the day, just use your brain people. Don’t get pissy because some random stranger doesn’t know you’re having a bad day/week. Be happy someone actually took the time to reach out to you in the first place.

/ rant

Theme

I loaded a new theme on the ole blog site this week. I like the fact that is has tons of custom options, many of which I haven’t even begun to tinker with yet. The theme itself is clean, easy to read, as well as being easy on the eyes. [1]Or at least I think so. 🙂

The design also suits my mobile theme plugin. They are completely separate items but I like the symmetry of the look. The header can be set to slide to different images or load a new header on each page load. I’ll probably swap out headers at some point. Right now the one provided is nice and clean. I was gonna use one based on the new Google+ layout but it was too simplistic. I didn’t like it.

Anyway, the right column looks soooo much nicer now. It’s very easy to browse, read, and find info. I’m planning on deleting some of the Dandy ID links. Many of them I don’t use that often, if at all. Having them clutter up my blog is pointless. Sometimes less is better. I’ve already removed the “recent comments” box. It really didn’t add much. I’ll probably add a different one at some point but for now its gone.

I’m thinking of adding a photo slide/viewer in the right column. Ideas? Feedback? Suggestions? Hate it/Love it?

References

References
↑1 Or at least I think so. 🙂

Stay

Well I’m back at work after being on a stay-cation last week. Money is tight and couldn’t really afford to do a whole lot. Regardless, I enjoyed the down time. I’ve been staggering my vacations evenly throughout the year and its really helping. Of course, it didn’t help that I strained my back on Tuesday. I was pretty much confined to the house for a couple days. I laid around and dozed courtesy of modern pharmacology. heehee

Speaking of work, I applied to be a supervisor a couple weeks ago. I figured it was time considering I’m often a go-to resource for others already. On the up side, it would be more money. On the down side, I’d probably lose my weekends off for awhile. All the supervisor shifts are 4-10’s as well. I’m not excited about that but it is what it is. However, there are enough slots turning over I’d probably have at least a partial weekend off within the year. If I get really lucky I could have a full weekend slot in less than 2 years.

I have up to a year to revert back to my current position without losing any seniority. The department starts testing and interviews soon. I’ll let ya know how it goes.

Dirty

I got called a dirty sodomite on Facebook today. I somehow got attached to a fan page for SF Pride and one of the folks that replied to a mass email was spewing hatred and nonsense. Said person didn’t like my reply pointing out his sins via his own bible verses and went on a rampage about evil homo-fascists, Obama, Jews, and I forget the rest.

Its fun beating the idjits at their own game. They are soooo quick to spew a few well rehearsed verses about gays but when you throw it back in their face with some verses of your own, they lose it. Seriously, this person was beside themselves that a filthy homo could dare question his/her holier-than-thou righteous protected speech. Forget that no one asked for your two cents, [1]or that said person couldn’t spell even simple words properly if all you do is hide behind your ignorance then don’t expect any mercy from me. For every verse you give me about those devious homos, I can give you 10 more about the sinning hetero’s. 🙂

I’ve lost all tolerance for these wackos. If you come at me with bile and drivel, I’ll give it right back to you.

/ rant

References

References
↑1 or that said person couldn’t spell even simple words properly

Feedback

Some random comments (and my replies) that I have received about my blog. . .

This blog is gay. Really?

How did you get the mobile widget to work? Its not a widget or a theme but a plugin that detects mobile browsers. You can find it here.

Like your blog, found you thru Scruff. Scruff? What’s that? 😀

I can’t find your blog. How did you get here then?

Do you have any pictures of you naked? Yes

When did you start blogging? I kept journals off/on as far back as my early 20’s. I started blogging in 2004.

What’s so special that you feel the need to blog? Uh, I ride the short bus?

Over

MeI’ve been hitting the gym pretty hard lately even with my crazy work schedule. I think I overdid it this last week though. Thursday, I started feeling achy and run down at work. I was afraid I was getting sick. That night I tossed and turned all night from achiness so ended up not getting much sleep. [1]Apple guy neglected to mention he’d taken the last of the Ambien. *ahem*

Friday rolls around, I’m feeling less achy but exhausted from lack of sleep and developed a lovely migraine. Joygasm! I got some stomach problems as well so maybe it was a combination of both. I called off from work and literally laid on the couch all day relaxing. I napped off/on until about dinner when I finally dragged my carcass out of the house for some dinner. Feeling a tiny bit better but still achy my stomach was demanding food. lol I ended up having sushi with my buddy Nikitas. Probably not the best choice considering but it hit the spot.

Saturday, I’m feeling almost like my old self again. The stomach is returning to normal and the achiness had abated. I didn’t have a sore throat or fever so I figure maybe I was just worn down.

Ironically, I feel totally guilty for not being in the gym. lol Lately, I’ve been trying to hit the smaller non-primary muscles that I often neglect. I think they decided to fight back. Anyway, if you’ve been following me on Google+, you’ve already seen my latest pics. I included one to show off my had work. How do ya think I’m doing?

 

References

References
↑1 Apple guy neglected to mention he’d taken the last of the Ambien. *ahem*

Scurr’ed

It’s no secret I rarely rant about politics. Of course, there are times where I feel compelled to speak up. The current political climate would be hysterical if it wasn’t so incredibly scary.

The attack on Prez Obama continues simply because is he is black. I doubt anyone can now deny that racism is alive and well in this country today. Oh it has learned to cover its head w/pretty catch phrases but a skunk is still a skunk. And while I’ll be the first to admit Prez Obama has let me down, he has also shown a remarkable willingness to promote many gay Americans to positions of authority and power. And for all the folks out there threatening NOT to vote for him next year or not vote at all, I’ll remind you that the choices on the GOP are far far worse than any let-downs President Obama may have inflicted on us. Tread carefully in your self-righteous anger. We need to continue to support Obama while continuing to demand he take more action to help us toward true equality. If not, we have no one to blame but ourselves for letting those who would see us 2nd-class citizens (or worse, dead) win the battle.
I must admit I am somewhat surprised by the views of several of the “christian” organizations out there, NOM (NO on Marriage) and the dual freaks Eugene Delgaudio & Bryan Fischer to just name a few. These folks hide behind their religious dogma and preach hatred and lies in the name of what is “right.” They talk about the moral majority with a fervor that is unparalleled. I think it’s because deep in their tiny cruel insecure hearts they know the majority is changing. People care less and less about being told what they should do and more about what they need to do to survive. More and more every day people are waking up to the simple truth that gays [1]and the LGBT umbrella that includes are just normal folks who just happen to have a same-sex attraction. To combat that eventual ideology change, these hate-mongers spew their vitriol and venom at every opportunity to continually scare their listeners into fearing the gays.
I have no problem with someone who honestly disagrees with me or my life. I disagree with many folks myself. And while I think the above mentioned folks are horribly misguided, I could at least respect them if they held to the “values” they claim to espouse. But these folks have no convictions, morals, or values. They are simply afraid of the unknown and they will stop at nothing to keep that fear alive. Their flimsy morals are discarded as they push for their way of life to be the only way of life.
I’ve always said I think the biggest way to change people’s perceptions of us is to live openly/honestly. The more of us that live our lives in the open w/no shame, the more ordinary folks will realize we are different but only in very subtle ways…ways that in the grand scheme of things matter very little.

 

References

References
↑1 and the LGBT umbrella that includes

Why

Well, after 30 some odd texts, emails, comments, etc from my last post, everyone seems to be curious as to why. Why I listed with Amazon. Lawd, you’d think I announced my blog was ending! lol There are several reasons actually. What? You think its an easy one-liner? Pssshaw! When am I ever that one-sided? lol

One, I feel a little bit guilty for dropping off for so long in my regular blogging. I know I probably shouldn’t but I do. In the last few months I’ve had quite a few folks [1]mostly unknown to me at that stop me in person or comment online to tell me how much they really missed my blogging. It was very flattering and humbling after all this time to still have complete strangers stop and share their love of my blog. It gave me a warm fuzzy feeling deep inside. [2]No, not there, get your mind out of my gutter! 🙂 I had one guy stop me in Starbucks, he was visiting from out-of-state, and share how much he enjoyed my blog. Two different guys came up to me at Folsom (and I was only there about 2 hours) to tell me how happy they were I was blogging again. I even had a a couple guys on Scruff message me to introduce themselves and tell me they liked my blog. There have been others but the point is I started feeling guilty. Primarily because I know exactly how they feel. I’ve been very disappointed at times over the last 10 years when some of my favorite blogs ended. Whether I knew them in person or not didn’t matter, I had spent a chunk of my life getting to know them thru their blogs and it was disappointing to lose that contact. So to realize I’d sort of done the same thing made me feel a bit guilty.

The irony here is I don’t really follow that many personal blogs anymore. Primarily because so many of them have ended. I have a very small dedicated group that I still read. Most of the blogs I follow these days are news/tech sites. I still keep up with some folks via FB, twitter, Plus, etc but even that is losing it’s appeal for me.

I am truly flattered and humbled that people care and listen to what I have to say. It makes me feel honored and proud that you take the time to follow me when there is so much content (in so many places) out there these days. I’ll admit the desire had sort of left me for awhile but I’m finding that I really missed it. I get such a sense of well-being when I settle into blogging mode and being back in the saddle has really made me see how much I missed it.

My free-time is always a factor but I’m finding ways around that as well now. I can’t promise I won’t have lapses again but that’s life. Life first, blog second has always been and continues to be my approach.

Another reason is flat out geekiness. I love the idea of having my blog content being so readily available in such a cool format as the Kindle. For someone like me, its a bit awe-inspiring seeing my blog on an Amazon page. Never in a million years would I have ever dreamed I’d grow up to actually have people pay attention to what I say. For you long time readers, you get it I know.

Three follows closely behind reason two. Its not so much adulation as appreciation. One person asked if I wanted fame. I’m sure there is a small facet of that mixed in but honestly, I don’t feel its a driving force. It isn’t so much that I want people talking about me as much as I like knowing that people care enough to follow me. I guess that’s sort of the definition of fame but in a different context. I’ve never been a popularity blog. [3]Unlike another blog I shan’t mention. heehee And frankly, I prefer my attention up close and personal. lol Aaaaanyway…I don’t see that changing anytime soon.

Of course, I write knowing people are reading but my content is usually for me and I’m simply sharing with you. I don’t think I’ve ever sat around and just tried to think up ideas to blog about. Often times, I forget many of my ideas because I don’t take the time to jot them down when they pop up. Lawd knows I’m rarely w/o something to say.

On a funny note, one lurker called me a sell-out. I’m a bit surprised by that because my blog is still completely free on the web. And $0.99 a month is hardly big business for the convenience of getting my madness on your Kindle device. lol Hell, who knows if it will even go anywhere.

Lastly, since my blog readership has dropped off somewhat, I’m hoping to revive it with a new avenue of distribution. Hopefully, over time people who have drifted away will realize I’m back at it and tune in for their weekly dose of my nonsense. Looking forward, you can definitely expect some discussions about Spike, work, my life in general, and probably some stuff dealing with my most recent break-up. No, not dirty details but definitely about things I learned and am still learning from it. Of course, my random and unexpected nonsense will be ever present.

Thanks again for those loyal folks who have stuck with me. I hope to not let you down.

Moby

 

References

References
↑1 mostly unknown to me at that
↑2 No, not there, get your mind out of my gutter! 🙂
↑3 Unlike another blog I shan’t mention. heehee

Miss

It’s nights like tonight I really miss my Spike. Its warm, the moon is full and it would have been a perfect night to go for a nice walk. I don’t think I ever realized what a wonderful and much needed companion he was. He couldn’t go far but he could go and was always happy to do it.

After a long day like today (and yesterday) he was always a welcome soul when I got home. He didn’t care how my day went, he was just happy to see me. Often times I’d come home and see him waddling around excited and begging for attention, a treat, or to go out and I would forget the troubles of my day.

Shane and I have discussed the idea of getting a new dog down the road but I’m still not on board with it. I don’t want another dog, I want Spike. I know I can’t have him because he is gone now but even almost 2 months later I find moments where I tear up thinking of him. I’m still not ready to contemplate getting another animal.

We’ve discussed the idea of getting a Frenchie (French Bulldog) because they’re a bit smaller and it would be more ideal for the apt. I realize its a better idea than another English Bullie but I’m still not sure. I didn’t mind taking care of him or cleaning up his messes from time to time. And while the apt was a tad small for Spike, he never really minded. He got plenty of walks and outings to ever feel cramped or cooped up.

I know I’m not betraying his memory by getting another dog but I do feel that way. Spike was unique and original and I couldn’t think of “replacing” him. While I am a little more open to the idea of another animal, I’m still not ready.

Amazon

Well, I’ve gone and done it! My blog is now officially available thru Amazon.com for download to your Kindle device of choice. For the amazingly bargain basement price of $0.99 per month you can now get my madness automatically downloaded every time I post an update. Yes you read it right, per month. [1]It is only available on actual Kindle devices vs. the Kindle reader app than can be installed on many mobile OS’s.

First, I didn’t choose the price, Amazon did. While you can still (and will always) get my blog perfectly free on the web, you can now fork over a measly dollar a month for the convenience of having it updated automatically for you if you wish.

Second, this was not about money but exposure. For such a small fee I’m clearly not looking for profit. It is my hope to increase my user base. I’ve only been back at it steadily a short time now, yet I’ve already had several people reach out to me and tell me how much my blog has meant to them. It’s been a humbling experience to say the least.

Depending on how well it goes, I may at some point decide to disable my internal subscription service. It’s become very laborious to manage and keep up with. For now, nothing has changed. My RSS feed is still available directly from my blog for free. The Kindle route is about convenience and hopefully, more exposure.

Last but not least, my content will still be my normal ramblings, opinions, ideas, pet-peeves, etc. From what I’ve seen, nothing I post or write about comes anywhere close to violating any of Amazon’s TOS. I don’t foresee any need to censor myself. If it does, it is easy to manipulate what enters my RSS feed. [2]Amazon loads my blog via the RSS feed.  I am not sure how pictures translate to Kindle devices so I will still need to work that out.

As for content, from what I’ve seen on some of the listings so far, most of my content is perfectly acceptable. The only real difference you might notice is reposting content from my old blog. Since my old blog isn’t tied to the new one, I may from time to time repost some of my older more significant posts.

That’s it. A big welcome to any new readers and a big thank you to anyone else subscribing thru!

References

References
↑1 It is only available on actual Kindle devices vs. the Kindle reader app than can be installed on many mobile OS’s.
↑2 Amazon loads my blog via the RSS feed.