Chocolate: The Evil of The Season

Let's face it, American chocolate generally pretty nasty. There are exceptions of course (See's and Godiva spring to mind), but your average bar of Hershey's or box of Russell Stover tastes like waxy ass.

When I first moved to the States some 12+ years ago, I all but gave up chocolate after taste testing most of your basic store bought candy bars (even British brand Cadbury's here is licensed by Hershey's). With quite a sweet tooth, and an innate love of chocolate (my dad is a chocoholic), giving up the sweet was quite an ordeal. But I did it! I transformed from Picture A to B:

OK, so that's a bit of an exaggeration, but it did help me keep the weight off. But most importantly my skin cleared up (chocolate causes zits, no matter what your doctors says)! That is, until now!

See's Candies are the official chocolates of the Spago offices, or so it seemed this holiday season, as we were deluged with box upon box of these truly heavenly chocolate wrapped candies.

And out I broke!

And I mean all over! Some of the nastiest spots ever! Yeah, it's pretty gross. While there may be other contributing factors right now, it's mainly the chocolate I'm sure! How can something that tastes so good, make me break out so terribly? Luckily I'm done again for another year... no more chocolate for me and hopefully the skin will clear up soon!

Boxing Day

December 26th. The day after Christmas. A national holiday in England, Australia, New Zealand and Canada... yet not here in the States!

But what exactly is Boxing Day?

I've always assumed that it was the servants day off, since they would have had to have worked on Christmas. Their employers would give them gift boxes, and so the name "Boxing Day" came about.

Another explanation goes back to medieval times, when alms boxes were placed at the back of churches to collect money for the poor. It was on "Boxing Day" day that the boxes were opened and the contents distributed to the poor.

A third reason dates back to the late 18th century, when Lords of the manor would "box up" leftover food (and the occassional gift) and hand them out to their tenants. This tradition continues today, as it is customary for householders to give tips or gifts to regular trades people (such as the milkman, dustman, coalman, or paper boy) who come by the house.

With the recent bans and waning popular support, fox hunting, another "Boxing Day" tradition is also rapidly falling by the wayside. The days of riders dressed in red and white, following their hounds out after the vermin fox, are surely numbered.

As in the States, the big "After Christmas" holiday sales start, but other than that why do we Brits still celebrate "Boxing Day"? Who the hell knows... just another reason for a paid day off I suppose, and no, it has nothing to do with boxing!!!

'Tis The Season... III

Let It Snow!

The Grove is a "Lifestyle Center," not just another mall, and to prove so throughout the holiday season, twice a night at 7pm and 9pm, it finally snows in LA - well, at The Grove anyway.

Following the show stopping performances, and highkicking excesses of The Top Hats (Caruso's own answer to the Rockettes), to a roushing redition of Sammy Cahn and Jule Styne's 1945 holiday classic, Let it Snow, down comes the ecologically (and koi) friendly white stuff. The crowd Oohs! and Aahs! People dining outside complain about suds in their drinks! And the fountain performs an even more enchating spectacle as a backdrop to all those Kodak moments! People, it's just a bloody fountain!!!!

Here Comes Santa Claus!

As previosuly seen on WeHo Mark (but I think it's worth repeating), the Beverly Center, one of the worst malls arounds, surprisingly manages to give us one of the best Xmas gifts around, the Hunky Santa contest and fsahion show (the winner is pictured here). Not my normal cup of tea (i.e. "the orange, veiny guys that [I normally] lust after" - Tos' words, not mine ), but I suppose I really wouldn't say no to sitting on this chap's lap!

It's Beginning To Feel A Lot Like Christmas!

And finally... What else would this time of year be without a day at the beach. OK, so maybe it's not warm enough to soak up some rays (though it was mid-November, I even got a little burnt), but it's certainly nice enough for a holiday stroll along the Venice shore.

And yes, finally a pic of me - my Christmas gift to all those who like to put a name with a face (OK, so its not the best pic, I'm the one on the right, and to again 'borrow' from WeHo Mark, or is it Bridget Jones: Weight in pic - 192.4 lbs - an all time high!).

'Tis The Season... II

Can you really get into the holiday spirit when it's 75° F out, you're dressed in shorts and a tank, and there's not a cloud in the sky? Isn't is supposed to be cold and snowy, so you can get all bundled up in woolly hats and scarves, and drink hot chocolate in front of a roaring fire?

It's all a little weird!

Anyway, we picked up this year's Christmas Tree (dressed in gym clothes). Got it home. Let is settle. Tried to make Bentley understand that it wasn't a new plaything. And then trimmed the bugger!

My theme is cartoon characters, with purple and silver accent colors... very cutesy, I know!

Having trimmed the tree however, it still feels somewhat incomplete and unfinished. One problem is that most of my (primarily Hallmark) ornaments are small, so it takes an awful lot of them to fill up a 7 foot tree. I've been collecting for years, and it still feels like I don't have enough!

I've just bought a bucket full of "sparkly" silver pinecones and some silver and purple ribbon (which I always swore I'd never buy - but it was part of the K-Mart's Martha Stewart Everyday Collection, so how could I resist?) to add those finishing touches. When finally combined with my homemade tree-topping Miss Piggy fairy I'm hoping for a truly magnificantly decorated tree!!!

"The Apprentice" or "The Prick"

And for once no ones talking about The Donald!

Randal finally shows his true Wharton colors! When given the opportunity to do the decent thing and support long-time teammate Rebecca in a bid to become a second apprentice, Randal turns his back on her:

"I firmly believe it's The Apprentice, that there is one and only one apprentice...it's not The Apprentici."

WHAT A DICK!!!

OK, so it was his minute to shine, but in a second he lost all my respect.

Rebecca deserved a place in the Trump Organization as much as Randal. Although she didn't directly raise any money at her event (shame on you Yahoo!), throughout the entire interview process, broken leg and all, she has proved her loyalty, shown her intelligence and generally kicked business-ass.

Ultimately, not hiring both candidates, and especially the way in which it was handled, was a piss-poor way to end the season! And after the Season 2 debacle of a finale with the unnecessary and horrendously mean way they treated Jen, I'm now done with The Apprentice.

The Donald and NBC, you're both fired!!!

"I Wish I Could Quit You!"

So, Brokeback Mountain... The gay cowboy movie to end all gay cowboy movies? Or just another Ang Lee sleeper that can't live up to our expectations and the hype (à la Hulk)?

WARNING: There may be spoilers ahead!

Brokeback is a slow, methodical, character driven piece... not an awful lot happens over the span of 20-odd years. Don't expect any big set pieces or explosions, nor even a lot of drama, there's angst and pondering, maybe some supposition, and that's about it. Mind you it's all beautifully photographed, and the two stars are, as one would expect, just stunning (though Heath's Godfather impression leaves you wondering just when he's going to take the cotton buds out).

It's definitely Ennis' (Heath's) picture, as it is primarily told from his perspective. However, in the same way Ennis represses his sexuality, so to does the movie shy away from it’s role as a truly groundbreaking mainstream gay-themed movie. The director focuses on the unsatisfying lives these characters have settled for, rather than embracing the beauty of the “fishing trips” they spend together. This being a movie about unrequited gay love, I suppose this is the point, but as a gay man I wanted to see more of the pleasure of this relationship juxtaposed with to their chosen painfully dreary realities.

Ultimately my breaking point was Lee’s artistic choice not to fully show us Jack’s (Jake’s) death, but rather have us momentarily glimpse it in flashback, undermines Jack’s significance for the audience, if not as Ennis’ true love, and takes away from the true horror of his murder.

I left the movie feeling cheated. I wanted to have bawled my eyes out; instead I shed only a few tears!

(And by the way, I love Jake Gyllenhaal more than ever!!!)

CELEBFLASH: The Scooby Gang

Although I've never mentioned it, Sarah Michelle was not the first of the Scoobies I'd run into. Way back last summer, on a trip out here to see what LA had to offer, while perusing Nordstrom at The Grove... there, on the opposite side of a clothes rack, looking back at me with two good eyes was none other than Buffy's bud Xander Harris. So there I am, starring down Nicholas Brendon, pretending to check out the latest Ben Sherman, while he picks out a new pair of jeans.

Cut to a year later, Nick is again at The Grove, this time stopping into The Farm for a coffee. Only now it occurs to me, is this actually Nick? Or is it infact his identical twin brother, Kelly? Was I really stalking Nolita's pastry chef, or was I simply ogling a Replacement?

Back during Outfest, we went to see Race You To The Bottom, a sort of Sideways with a bisexual bent (the movie was actually in production first, but couldn't get a distributer). The flick itself wasn't at all bad, save for the lead actor, who you just wanted to slap.... real hard! Amber Benson, Willow's lesbian love Tara, was the other lead, and it's easy to see why Joss Wheadon loved this actress so much. She was radiant on screen, and just as effervescent at the Q&A afterwards. If only I'd known she was going to be there, I'd have had my Hush figure for her to sign!!!

And I thought Sarah Michelle was little!!! But Jonathan, the guy who awarded Buffy the Class Protector at the prom, became one of Season 6's Big Bads, and then died at the hand's of his best friend to unleash the Uber Vamp... now he's SHORT! And by short I mean TINY! His feet barely even touched the ground when he was sitting. And when he stood up, well, I felt like a giant, and I'm only 5'5" (and a half).

'Tis The Season...

I know that watching the football games on Thanksgiving afternoon is a traditional part of the day's festivities, but after 13 years of being here I still don't get the obsession with this particular sport. I've even spent Thanksgiving Day at Texas Stadium watching the Dallas Cowboys woop the Washington Redskins ass (and yes I had a phenominal time, lots of beer, foam hand et al.).

I've come to the conclusion that the reasons I, and the rest of the world, haven't embraced "American" Football is because: a) it's just way too complicated; b) how possibly can a game scheduled to last an hour, actually take three hours to play out; and c) although there are hunks like the Jets' Wayne Chrebet, the Giant's Jason Sehorn and USC's Brandon Hancock, let's face it we seldom see these boys in the states of undress that we can really appreciate (I had to hunt high and low for the accompanying pics).

Next season "Monday Night Football" moves to cable, and ratings have been steadily slipping for the regular season Sunday afternoon games. Maybe even Americans are getting bored with their national sport. Maybe they should just show more skin!

Three White Hairs!!!

I know I've been really slacking on the posts of late... The new job is taking it's toll!

Now that I can't lift during the 10am-2pm "Actors, Models & Escorts" hour, my workout schedule is all messed up. I've lifted only 5 times in the past week or so: sometimes in the morning (the cutest crowd yet); sometimes in the evening (more of the big hardcore guys). I've got to get on a steady routine and keep it, otherwise I'll be wasting away to nothing, and having finally hit the seemingly illusive 190 lbs (192.4 lbs actually with keys, shoes and gym towel), well, I just can't let that happen!

Bentley's walk schedule has also become rather iffy. Since I don't leave work until after 6pm, it's already pitch black and no one's at the puppy park at that time. We end up going a similar route to our morning walk, which itself is sometimes hampered by to the gym first thing. The boy needs to let off steam playing with other puppies... only then does he can really sleep like a baby!

But the most outrageous outcome so far... I found three white hairs!!! Only three? Isn't three way more than enough at my (still) tender young age of 32? Surely it's three more than I should have? It's certainly three more than I want! Luckily all three were in my goatee, so it was easy to get out my trusty tweezers and pluck out came those damn white (yes, they definitely not blonde) hairs!