No more funny business

We're back from our fabulous trip. All went well, except I got a little cold on day 8, which lasted until day 16, and Brian got crazy non-stop diarrhea as soon as we got to Hong Kong on Day 16. It lasted through the flight home on day 18 and didn't stop until about 2 days after we got home.

Remember our HIV primary care doctor? Well, he was nice enough to squeeze Brian in for an appointment the day before Thanksgiving. It turns out Brian had a parasite. Specifically, giardia. All is well now, but the doctor's visit is worth mentioning.

Brian asked if it was contagious. The doctor said, "No, not unless someone's licking your rectum. That may not be a concern for you, but you'd be surprised how common it is in the gay community." Em. Awesome. So yeah. Our doctor is pretty colorful. The HIV Primary Care rocks.

I think we're going to stick with him as our doctor. This is the second time he's impressed us with his super-smarts, and someone at work told me he's very highly regarded as a medical expert in the legal community. Plus, I get a funny story out of it every time either of us goes in. What's not to love?

China for your 'gina!

We made it to China! (BARELY!) Anyway, just wanted to say hello. Many, many pictures to follow. See you on Monday!

Chicago Ideas

We're going to be in Chicago for a wedding the weekend of Sep. 5-7. Anyone have any good ideas for fun stuff to do while we're there? We've already been to most of the museums, so we probably can skip those. We're thinking of going to Second City. Any other ideas?

Smell ya later

I forgot to mention I'm in Tahoe until Friday, then in Reno until Sunday. I'll moblog if anything fun pops up,

I ate my weight in Chicago-style pizza!

We got back from Chicago Sunday night. Jesse's play was fantastic. He was fantastic. All the other 12 and 13-year-olds were all shy and quiet and scared, but Jesse was all charisma. Nice and loud and funny the whole time. The crowd laughed every time he came out. He was really committed to the role. Playing it up and everything. Great job, honey!

The rest of the trip was cool. I'm super gay for Frank Lloyd Wright, so we went by his original house and studio in Oak Park. He also designed like 10 of the houses in that neighborhood, which were absolutely beautiful. Because it was his very first house that he built when he was young and poor, it was not that impressive. Not nearly as cool as the house he died in 70 years later - Taliesin West in Scottsdale, AZ, which I saw back in December. That house was amazing. But it was still pretty cool. I can happily cross it off my "100 things to do before I die" list.

Sunday we went to the Art Institute and then home. We stayed the weekend with our friends Yasmien and Chris, who were phenomenal hosts. We're planning on going back in the early fall for their wedding. All in all, a very nice weekend.

I'm out

We're leaving super early tomorrow morning for Chicago to see Jesse's stage debut. He's got a lead role (Nathan Detroit) in Guys and Dolls. I can't wait to see it. I am such a ridiculous stage auntie already. The weather is supposed to be sh*t, but I'm still excited.

I'm Home!

And it's never felt so sweet. I got back from Arizona Thursday night, only to drive to L.A. Saturday morning for the Tori Amos concert, which, by the way, was fricking awesome. We just got home a few minutes ago.

That's not what I wanted to blog about though. I had another celebrity sighting on this trip. This time it was Lawrence Fishburn at a restaurant next to the music center in L.A. I totally walked up to him and was all, "I choose the red pill," and he was all, "Dude, you're hilarious, no one's ever said that to me before," and Brian was all, "I'm not talking to you for the rest of the day."

Ok, not really. I mean, we really did see Lawrence Fishburn at the restaurant, I just didn't say anything to him. But wouldn't that have been funny?

Try not to die on the way home!

I've been doing a lot of traveling lately, so I've been saying a lot of hellos and goodbyes lately. One thing that I've noticed is that it totally freaks me out when, just before I head to the airport, people say, "Have a safe trip home!"

It's like, "Really? You really think my plane is going to crash on that one-hour commercial flight? I would never have thought so, until you raised the issue of safety right before I was about to board my plane." I also get paranoid that they've jinxed me. And that I totally would have had a safe trip home had they not said, essentially, "Try not to get burned alive on the way home!"

I mean, if one had driven there, and were about to take a very long road trip home, then, yes, it would be appropriate to raise the issue of safety and wish someone a safe drive. People die in car accidents all the time, and they totally die on road trips all the time. But on a one-hour Southwest flight? I think the odds are comparable to winning the lotto. It's like telling your friend, "Have a safe trip to the checkout stand!" or "Have a safe trip to the bathroom in your own home!" It's like, yeah, you COULD theoretically die doing one of those things, but it's not like there's this huge chance. It's just a ridiculous thing to say. And it causes undue stress. For me, anyway.

I'm taking an early morning flight out to Phoenix tomorrow for a five-day work seminar. Wish me a comfortable flight there!

Reno 411

I'm back from visiting my college bitchez! We had such an awesome time together. Let's see, we had drunken mani-pedis, sushi, shopping, movies, and a cuddle party. It was awesome to pick right back up where we left off. It's hard to believe we've known each other for 12 years now. (Actually, I've known Leslie for 21 years, but she's the exception - everyone else is 12.)

I think the secret to our long-lasting bond is the fact that we all revert back to acting like vulgar little boys when we're together. Which brings me to my favorite part of the weekend. You see, each time I see my bitchez, I learn new, horrible, vulgar things I never knew before. Just when I think I've heard it all, they manage to shock and appall. We all contribute something. Here's what I learned this weekend:

Prairie Doggin' - Reference definitions 1, 2 and 4.

Gunt

And, last but not least: FUPA

I, too, contributed by imparting my knowledge of "Superman" and "Robocop." I also got to teach the girls about merkins!

Friendships that run this deep don't come around too often, so I'm grateful for my girls. Here's a bonus one for today - in honor of my bitchez:

Tony Danza

You can check out photos of our weekend shenanigans here.

Long Tall Weekend

Man, this weekend was nice. Thursday I was a fatty and ate everything in sight. Who knew I could reach 63 points in one day (my daily max is usually 26)? Oh well. I've been pretty good every day since. And I've figured out how to keep tamales, pizza, french fries, and steak in my diet, so bonus there. If I lose weight this week, I will feel pretty good. My weigh-ins are Wednesdays, so I'll keep you posted.

The rest of the weekend was super chill. I saw a couple of faces from the past - my best friend Allison and her wife Kelly, and my college roommate Molly. That was cool. All the ladies were looking pretty fly.

I meant to go get my hair done Saturday, but got a flat tire on the way there, so I didn't get to do that. Damn construction on the 215. But I did get to feel all independent calling AAA and then putting on my neon green safety vest from my CERT backpack that I keep in my trunk. I didn't have to put it on, I suppose. I was just stoked I got to use something out of my safety pack, ok? Zoot, don't rain on my parade!

Sunday we went and saw a movie highly recommended by the illustrious movie reviewer Catlad - No Country for Old Men. The movie was really really really well-written and well-acted and well-made. It was clearly made by exceptional moviemakers. The only thing was that the story was just kinda weird. They don't tell you everything. Which makes it more intriguing, but also more frustrating. Anyway, overall good movie. Just don't expect the usual formula.

This weekend I'm going to see my college bitchez in Reno. Should be fun.

Rex & Annie's Wedding

I didn't blog the last 3 days. I know. Sorry. I was out of town! It was Rex and Annie's wedding. This was the wedding I was going to officiate way back when. I chickened out in the end, which was super great for the couple, because the lady that did their wedding was really good.

For those of you who don't know, Rex is a friend of mine from high school. Or, rather, from graduation night forward. Someone at the wedding said they heard I was Rex's first girlfriend. I didn't think that was altogether accurate, so I corrected him. I was more like Rex's first love triangle. I liked Rex. Rex liked Allison. And Allison liked girls. We had great times together though, and it obviously all worked out for the best. Anyway, here are pictures from their wedding in Moss Beach, CA.

Brush with Britney (Bitch)

Today, while we were in L.A. having lunch with a friend, we got mobbed by paparazzi chasing down Britney Spears. How random is that? Here's how it went down...

We met our friend at this cute little place in Sherman Oaks, on the corner of Ventura and Van Nuys. There was this chandelier store next door. When we first saw it, Brian actually asked how a store like that could stay in business. "Is there really that much of a demand for chandeliers?," he asked. "Maybe in L.A.," I said.

So we have lunch and then walk around a bit. Afterwards, we went back to the intersection where the chandelier store was to cross the street to our car. All of a sudden, a bunch of guys with cameras come running toward us and jump into cars and motorcycles and SUV's that are illegally parked on the sidewalk and all over the place. We asked them who they were chasing, and they yelled out, "Britney!"

I thought they were messing with me, until we saw Britney's white Mercedes convertible zoom out of the driveway next to the chandelier shop. She had the top up and dark window tint on all her windows, so we couldn't see who was in the car, but I definitely recognized the car from my gossip magazines. She immediately pulled out and ran a red light. As did all of the cars chasing her. It was crazy. Like a tornado had just passed us.

Anyway, here's the store and intersection where we were almost run down by Britney and her paparazzi.


And here's the story of Britney chandelier-shopping already on PerezHilton.com. And another on I'mNotObsessed.com. I guess Jayden and Sean Preston were in the car with her. I'm bummed we didn't actually get to see them, but it was still pretty neat to nearly run into Britney during our trip to L.A.

That was Wicked

Only three days in, and I've already broken my vow to blog every day in November. Oh well, you'll just get two instead of one today. So anyway...
Saturday we went to L.A. to see the musical Wicked. It was my birthday present from Brian. The show was amazing. It was pure visual and auditory candy. I think it's my favorite musical now. Definitely see it if you get the chance.

Being the fangirl that I am, I stayed after with all the other little kids to catch the cast on their way out. I ended up meeting Eden Espinoza, who played Elphiba, and Megan Hilty, who played Glinda. Here's Eden Espinoza as Elphiba:
And here's Eden Espinoza without her green make-up, with me, the fan girl:And here's Megan Hilty as Glinda:

And here's Megan Hilty out of costume with me, the fan girl:
As you can see, I really enjoyed myself.

The rest of the trip was really fun too. We stayed at a really nice hotel downtown with a view of the Hollywood sign. And we had dinner at this trendy sushi place on Wilshire Blvd. (It actually wasn't as good as the sushi places we go to at home, which kinda impressed us about Vegas, but it was nice nonetheless.) And we met up with my old friend Negar from law school at this fun little breakfast place in Sherman Oaks (where we had a brush with Britney - see bonus blogpost above). And we went shopping on Melrose. All in all, a very nice birthday/two-year-anniversary weekend.

Quickest girl in the frying pan

We're back from Atlanta! Bet you didn't even notice we were away. We went the weekend before last for our friends Greg and Allison's wedding. Atlanta was fun and fatty, although a bit too humid for my taste. I gained even more weight after this little trip. Anyway, here's the mister and the missus on their big day:

And here's Brian enjoying some fine southern cuisine.

And here's the way we all felt after our respective fatty southern meals.





Good times...

No sea lice for me, thank you.

We're back from Alaska. It was amazing. We had an awesome time. I'm sad to report, however, that I am unable to produce for you the picture of me with a live salmon in my mouth.

Yes, we went fishing. Yes, we caught salmon (10 in total between three of us). However, at the time I set the goal, I was unaware of one very material fact: salmon have sea lice. They're nasty litte crab-like parasites that stick to their sides and feed on their scales. They're revolting, and there was no way I was going to put them in my mouth. Sorry guys.

We took literally hundreds of pictures on the trip. Knowing my history of processing photos, odds are you won't see them for a while. But they will be up on here eventually. Then you can see my huge ass fish that I caught and video and pictures of us sled-dogging, bicycling and canoeing. So fun.

The other reason I'm posting is because I had a very thrilling celebrity sighting experience in Seattle over the weekend. First, the backstory.

When I was a kid, I watched General Hospital every day after school. I LOVED Frisco and Felicia and Duke and Anna. Duke was super hot and my sister and I had huge crushes on him.

Well, I'm standing in a small bookstore, in a trendy, gay part of Seattle, and I hear this guy with a Scottish accent standing next to me looking at books on the same table as me. I look over and, from the side, it totally looked like Duke!

I stared at his face for a second, then he looked up, saw me staring and smiled. Then I knew for sure it was Duke! I smiled back. It was this weird I-know-you-know-I-know-who-you-are smile.

On the one hand, Ian Buchanan (that's his real name) is such a small celebrity, there's no reason to get excited. On the other hand, the fact that I was one of the few people that knew who he was made it all the more special! I immediately called the two people I thought might know who he was. Only one of them actually knew; my sister, who freaked out when I told her. I'm telling you, he was dreamy back in the day. Anyway, that's all. Just wanted to share in case any of you know who he is. He's also famous for being on Twin Peaks.

It's Britney, Bitch

Not really. It's just me. I'm just about packed for our trip to Alaska. We're leaving early tomorrow morning. On the one hand, I'm super-excited, and I can't wait to get a picture of me with an Alaskan salmon in my mouth. On the other hand, it's going to be rainy, and cold as fu%k, so I'm not really looking forward to that part of it.

I think I'm still a little down in the dumps about the whole Britney thing. By the way, Sarah Silverman's act was almost word-for-word the one she did for us in Vegas the week before. We must've been her test audience or something. I do have to give her props on her foresight. It was so appropriate to declare that Britney had already accomplished all she ever would after that horrendous performance. Way to call it ahead of time, Sarah.

I, on the other hand, was one of those suckers that thought Britney was going to do something amazing. I was super-jazzed to see her perform. I just knew she could somehow bring back the old Britney. That's why I took it so hard when she didn't care enough to put any effort into it. I felt betrayed. It's like, by keeping an open mind about her, and rooting for her, despite all of her horrific life choices, I feel like I was loyal. That she would be so careless with that faith just makes me mad. I feel dumb for believing in her. I also think she's an ingrate for squandering such a huge opportunity. That Chris Brown guy - oh, you could tell he was grateful for his fame. He put on a show! Jumped 3 feet in the air with all that energy, practically! Britney just acted like a baby and then put out less than the bare minimum. Just go home, Britney. You're done now.

:-(

Children of Marfan

July was a really good month for us. So good, I didn't have time to blog apparently. The big things were: two trips, one stay-at-home-mini-vacation, Brian's birthday, getting iPhones, and a job change.

Our first trip was to Palo Alto for the National Marfan Convention. We had a really good time. I got to re-connect with my heart doctor and heart surgeon from Stanford and we got to meet a lot of other people with Marfan Syndrome. We got some good information too.

Here's Brian just after we arrived:

One of the biggest surprises was that my heart surgeon, who was a speaker at the event, actually used echocardiogram video of my heart in his presentation - only he forgot to take my name off of it or ask my permission! Probably not such a good idea to use the marfanoid lawyer's medical records to violate HIPPA laws. Oh well. Good thing he's in my Top 5 Favorite Human Beings list or else he'd really be in trouble. Here's me and the guys that probably saved my life:

Like I said, I also met other marfanoids while we were there. (During our stay, we determined that the following were also acceptable terms for persons with Marfan Syndrome: children of Marfan, Marfanite, Marfanaut, Marfanid, one who has been marfed, and one who has been given the gift of Marfan.) Not all marfanoids are as tall as me, but there were some who were. Even taller actually. Here's me again with my surgeon and two other women he's operated on; one is 6'6" and the other is 6'8", I believe.

Oops, it's time for bed now! Gotta finish this blogpost later. Damn, I'm a slacker.

Leaving on a jet plane

I cannot wait for Friday night. We're taking a red-eye to New York City to see my BFF Allison, then we're taking a train down to New Haven, Connecticut for Brian's sister Erin's graduation. We'll be back late in the evening Tuesday. See ya after the long weekend!!