Vacation Details

For those of you who are not familiar with Germany, here's a little geography lesson. I will be staying in the Southeastern part of Germany in the State of Baveria (or Bayern in German).


More specifically, I'll be staying in a little town called Ruhstorf. As you can see, it is just a hop, skip, and a jump away from the Austrian (Österreich in German) border. You actually see people riding their bikes over.


I will be staying in the same house that my mom grew up in, so that will be interesting. Granted my uncle has made some major renovations over the years (indoor plumbing being the most important in my opinion), but it's still the same house.

I leave tomorrow evening and arrive in Germany in the morning on July 21st. It’s a 9-hour flight there and 8 hours back (something to do with the direction of the wind). Germany is 7 hours ahead. From what I’ve heard, it has been pretty cool there recently (in the 60’s). Which is better than having it in the 90’s since no one has air conditioning there. Sure you can get it in the cars and stores, but good luck finding it in a house. Of course I was there 2 summers ago when that big heat wave hit Europe. That was fun! But since I’ve left, the summers have been pretty mild. But I’ll try to keep everyone updated on the weather (just for you Sublime) and my adventures.

Current Temperatures, According to My Yahoo
Ruhstorf 57...73 F Light Rain Shower
Chicago, IL 66...89 F Partly Cloudy

My parents and our former next-door neighbors are joining me on August 3rd. Our neighbors have since moved to Phoenix, Arizona (retirement must be nice), but every time one of our relative’s from Germany would come and visit, they would invite them over for a traditional Mexican meal. So it will be great to show them around Germany.

Then we are all flying back together on August 17th. We have a layover in London so I’m going to volunteer to get pumped if the flight is full, that way I can spend a day in London and hopefully get some free stuff from the airline. I really do love London and I’m going to ride the Tube just out of spite to say I will not be afraid.

To mark the occasion, I’m changing the song of the day to Madonna’s Holiday. Since it takes a while to upload a song and since I’m saying goodbye to my DSL for a month, don’t expect the song to change anytime soon.

ENJOY!

Shopping

Well I just got back from shopping and I think I have everything now that I need. I ended up buying 4 new shirts and 2 new shorts for myself, but I got gifts for the family as well. It never fails that when I am looking for myself, I don't find anything, but when I am looking for other people, I always see things that I like.

So tomorrow will be packing day and then the stress will be over and the vacation begins. I'm starting to get really excited. I can't wait to see everyone again. I swear it was much easier when I only saw them for 6 weeks at a time every 4 or 5 years (and essentially didn't really KNOW them). But after living there for a year, and now being back home for a year, I really miss them.

Now I just have to figure out and find all of my electronics that I want to bring with me. I don't even know why I end up bringing so much stuff, but with a wedding taking place, I'll need my video camera and tripod, and I take more pictures that video, so I'll need the digital camera, and then I'll need my laptop so I can transfer the pictures from the camera to the laptop when I run out of space, and then there's my external modem so I can get online when I'm in Germany.

Well I guess I can take comfort in knowing that if I forget anything, my parents can bring it with when they join me in Germany in about 2 weeks.

Movies I've Recently Discovered

Thanks to Direct TV, I've had the pleasure of viewing these movies. Some are old, some are new, but they were all new to me.

Exotica
Mia Kirshner from the L Word is in this movie. I think she only takes on wierd characters. I heard about this movie from the INDIE SEX TABOOS documentary that I saw on IFC.


Sex, Lies, and Videotape
Another movie from the documentary. I’m sure I’m the last person on Earth to see it. Did you know this was the first movie to talk about impotence? I guess that was cutting edge in the days before Viagra commercials.

Same Sex America
A Showtime documentary that

chronicles the battle over gay marriage in Massachusetts, the first U.S. state to sanction same-sex civil unions, by charting the journey of seven gay and lesbian couples navigating the treacherous political landscape in an effort to win what many consider a basic human right, while others see the struggle as an erosion of morality.

We Are Dad
Another Showtime documentary about

two gay men in Florida who are foster parents to children with HIV/AIDS and other life-threatening illnesses, detailing their day-to-day struggles raising these special-needs children, as well as the issues they face in dealing with Florida's adoption laws and anti-gay bias.

These are the same 2 men who Rosie O'Donnell officially came out of the closet for so she could show America what a gay parent looks like.

Bush's Brain
At first I thought this was suppose to be a comedy. Bush has a brain? But it turned out to be a great documentary about Karl Rove. I think it especially poignant in light of the recent events surrounding Mr. Rove. Burn baby, burn!

Storytelling
This is a movie by the same director who made Happiness, a movie I heard about from the INDIE SEX TABOOS documentary. This was an interesting and disturbing movie. Yet I still enjoyed it.

The Big Chill
A movie I'd heard of, but never saw. Once again, I'm sure I'm the last person on Earth who hasn't seen it, but I really liked it. It made me want to get in contact with all my old college buddies. I really want to go out and get the soundtrack to it now. There are alot of great songs on it.

So if you find yourself with nothing to do, check out some or all of these. And no I didn't watch them all in one day, these flicks have kept me entertained for the past week or so.

Jessica Hahn - Is Larry King THAT Desperate?

I just watched Jessica Hahn on Larry King Live tonight. Why would Larry King have her on his show? Isn't there anything else newsworthy going on today?

For those of you who don't know who Jessica Hahn is, she is the woman who brought down tele-evangelist Jim Bakker. She claims that he raped her ... over 20 years ago.

So why the hell do we care what she is doing now. I'm telling you, this woman is on something. She kept on repeating herself. She reminds me a bit of Anna Nicole Smith in that she takes herself seriously, but no one else does.

To Recap:

These are the people that Jessica says she admires or wants to be like:

• Howard Stern
• Hugh Hefner
• Billy Graham
• Tammy Faye
  

OH yeah, I see the connection.?!

These are the things that Jessica wants to do:

• Pose for Playboy again
• Have her own radio show
• Play piano professionally
• Act
• Start her own church
  

Need I say more? Why are we giving this woman publicity? If you want to read the transcript of her interview on Larry King Live, go here.

Nip/Tuck

My latest obsession is Nip/Tuck. Although I think I watched all of season 2 already, I decided to catch up by watching season 1, and then with all that history in mind, rewatching season 2. (I have this obsession with watching TV shows in the order in which they were intended, I think it might be slight case of OCD, but I'll leave that to my future therapist to uncover.) I really do love this show although I normally have to turn away for the beginning of each of the surgeries, but after that first initial cut, I'm usually okay. Then again, I wouldn't try to eat while watching the show.

I love it because it is more than just about plastic surgery; it really delves into the characters and deals with a lot of issues. Whether it is multiple personality disorder, human smuggling, transgender issues, female mutilation, anything you can think of, they have probably covered. So in honor of my latest obsession, the song of the day is the theme song from Nip/Tuck, a perfect lie.

I especially enjoy the snip/snip sound at the beginning and end.

Slacker

What a slacker I've been lately. For the past 2 weeks I've been saying how I need to get my act together and prepare for my trip to Germany. But have I done anything? NO!

So today I'm going to hit the malls to get some gifts for the kiddies. Then tomorrow I HAVE to go to the AAA so I can get an international driver's license and pick up some tour books. I've been saying for the past month that I would do some research of things that I want to see, but then what do I end up doing ... nothing.

Then comes the hard part ... picking out what I'm going to wear to my cousin's wedding. I might come up with a poll later on today to have you help me pick out what to wear.

I joke and say that I need a vacation from my unemployment, but with all the stress of preparing for this trip, I might just need to take some time off when I get back. LOL Just kidding, I know once I get there, everything will be wonderful. There are always new family members to see (I've got 2 new 2nd cousins that have arrived since I left a year ago) and lots of catching up to do.

Well I'm off to the mall to buy gifts. Well let's just face it with Kohl's advertising their biggest sales of the summer, I'll probably pick up some things for myself too.

The Ice Cream Man

What is it about one little song or just the beginning of it that opens up the floodgates of memories of the past? The song of the day, or at least the first 10 seconds of it, is what our ice cream man plays. Hearing him today brought back the memories of summer days past.

In the old neighborhood, where everybody knew your name and your business. Where I would ride my bike, play on the swing set in the backyard, play hopscotch on the sidewalk, leap frog in the front yard. Ahhh those were the days.

I was reminiscing about all this today as I heard the ice cream man drive down the block. Then my dad said, wouldn't it just drive you nuts to have to listen to the same song all day every day at work?

So it was a quick trip down memory lane, but it was fun while it lasted.

Great Quote Inger

Inger left this quote in the comments of my Larry King Live - Updated post. I thought it was so poignant that it deserved it's own post. Thanks Inger.

As nightfall does not come all at once, neither does oppression. In both instances, there is a twilight when everything remains seemingly unchanged. And it is in such twilight that we all must be aware of change in the air however slight, lest we become unwitting victims of the darkness. --Justice William O. Douglas

P.S. I can't begin to express how excited I am that the last couple of posts have ignited such great discussions. It’s when we all put our heads together and discuss the issues, that we get the best results. It’s too bad our elected officials confuse politics with policies.

W?

No offense, but what the hell does this mean? I swear sometimes the man speaks in a language that I just don't understand. Granted most of the time he can't speak English, but I think that is what this is. I guess resolve is the new steadfast or axis of evil.

"The war on terror goes on," Bush said. "I was most impressed by the resolve of all the leaders in the room. Their resolve is as strong as my resolve."

For more on our Our Fearless Leader, you have to check this out.

Lost and Found

I bought Will Smith's latest CD, Lost and Found, today. I just got back from the tanning salon and I listened to this song and it gave me the chills (which is hard to do in a hot tanning bed). I thought it was fitting for today so I changed the song of the day to Tell Me Why by Will Smith.

Interview Me

I borrowed this from Sublime who borrowed it from someone else.

Here's how it works:

1. If you want to participate, leave a comment below saying "interview me."
2. I will respond by asking you five questions -- each person's will be different.
3. You will update your journal/blog with the answers to the questions.
4. You will include this explanation and an offer to interview others in the same post.
5. When others comment asking to be interviewed, you will ask them five questions.

So here are Sublime's questions to me:

1. Explain one thing in your life that started out bad, but ended up good.

After my uncle in Germany unexpected passed away in May 2003, I decided to quit my job and move to Germany for a year to help my aunt out with her kids and their family business. This horrible tragedy led to one of the most rewarding years of my life.

2. What is that last thing you thought about before falling asleep last night?

I honestly can’t remember so it couldn’t have been that important. It was probably something along the lines of
man am I tired, I wish I could get comfortable and fall asleep already
since it was around 3am.

3. Have you ever seen a ghost or had something unexplainable happen to you?

No, I haven’t ever seen a ghost or had something unexplainable happen TO me, but after my grandfather died and my grandma moved out of their old house, I remember hearing that the new homeowners called my grandma to come over because they heard some strange laughing. When my grandma went, she said it was my grandpa’s voice.

I always thought he was haunting the place because the one thing he was always against was painting his wooden cabinets. My grandma even asked the new owners if they would and they said they wouldn’t, but then they did. However a couple of weeks ago, the family got together and I think the consensus was that if he was haunting the place, it was because he was pissed that my grandma left. So although I have never seen a ghost, I’m open to the possibility.

4. If you could take back one thing that you’ve said or done in your life, what would it be and why?

I remember after graduating from college when I was about to move to Atlanta to embark on my first job, I was under a lot of stress dealing with the move. The day I picked up the U-Haul and trailer (to drag my car to Atlanta), I needed my dad to help me with something and I was probably nagging him (since that seems to be the only way to get things done at times) and he said that I just needed to relax. I ended up throwing something back in his face and I felt horrible afterwards especially when my mom came up to me and said that that really hurt my dad’s feelings. I wish I could take those words back even though I know we are both over it now. I feel bad that I hurt his feelings and I wonder if he still has that mean-spirited comment in the back of his head sometimes.

5. What is the last thing that made you laugh out loud?

Last night, I had a girl’s night out with some friends, one of who has an 8-month-old baby. As usual throughout the night, we were passing the baby around and just playing peak-a-boo with her and seeing her expression and hearing her laughter, made me laugh out loud.

Anyone else up to being interviewed?

Mr. and Mrs. Smith

To get away from the news this afternoon, I went to the movies and saw Mr. and Mrs. Smith. What a great movie! I highly recommend it. It had all my favorite elements: comedy, action, adventure, and throw in a little romance.



And to top it off, don't they make a great couple? Can you imagine what their kids would look like? Just gorgeous if you ask me. I don't know about you, but I'd much rather have Brad Pitt than Tom Cruise.

London

To a city that I've visited twice and truly love, I send you my deepest condolences. It is a sad day for humanity.

I do not watch FOX News because … well let’s face it, that’s not news. I know CNN isn’t the best, but I suppose it is better. But when did the news turn into such a media circus.

How long does it take them to come up with a logo, catchy phrase, and dramatic music?

CNN LONDON TERROR

COME ON, just report what is going on and don’t make a show out of it. I don’t want to be entertained; I want to be informed. I don't need you to play on my emotions, that's what the terrorists do.

News of attacks like these already scares the public, do we really need to raise the terror level of the citizens of the world with this show. If I wanted the dramatic music, I’d go see War of the Worlds.

Don’t speculate on what happened; report what actually did happen. How many times are we going to mention Islamic Extremists on the news when we don’t even know who is responsible for these attacks? Don’t report or insinuate that Al Qaeda is responsible when we don’t know yet. Whenever any tragedy happens post 9/11, that’s the first thing that pops into everybody’s mind anyway. If I wanted to hear rumors and innuendos, I’d listen to W speak, I want the facts and that’s why I turn to the news.

I don’t even know why I turn on the TV nowadays; I should just my news from the websites. That’s why I went to the movies this afternoon. I had to get out of the house because I knew if I stayed here, I’d be glued to the TV screen all day and just get depressed and scared shitless.

Al Franken Show

The Al Franken Show is my new favorite show. It's on the Sundance Channel and you can catch it online. It inspired my previous post today and will inspire another one in about an hour.

You Sexy Thing

Stephen, this ones for your. I believe in miracles, ...

The miracle would be if I could find a straight man this smart, sensitive, and sexy. Ahh, why are all the good ones either taken or gay?

I smell a conspiracy theory!

Sunday at Summerfest

Sunday I drove up to Milwaukee with a friend to go to Summerfest. This was my first time there and we all had a great time. My friend (who shall remain nameless and descriptionless since she already said that she didn't like being referred to in a previous post so the entire world knows her business. I tried to explain to her that this blog was about my daily excursions, but she seems to think it is all about her so I will not give out any of her pertinent information) and I ended meeting up with some of our other friends from college. To my surprise, my buddy Chris (he doesn't have the same stipulations as the above mentioned friend) got free tickets from work so he hooked us all up.

Then we were off to Summerfest. We ended up switching cars and all 5 of us drove in a Volkswagen convertible. I do love convertibles, but next time I need to remember to tie my hair back before we get on the expressway, as my hair really was a site to see by the time we got there. It’s always a good sign when you can’t run your fingers or a brush through it. I should have just left it that way and I could have tried out dreads for the summer. After walking around and seeing the sites for a little while, we discovered the most amazing machine, the Footsie Wootsie.



To be honest, I think we spend the most money on these little babies throughout the day. At only 25 cents a pop, it was well worth it. Some people (and I'm not saying who) decided to sit on the part where your feet go, but I was content just letting it massage my feet.

Then we enjoyed Milwaukee's 4th of July Fireworks display before Moby took to the stage. We ended up working our way pretty close to the stage, but we were to the right of it so we really didn't get to see Moby, but we were surrounded by a great group of people and we all had a fun time singing and dancing.

After the concert, we went to a club that was advertising a Moby aftershow party. It was a surprising small place, but it was free, the music was great, and we closed the place down. So at around 2:30am we started our voyage back home.

It was then that I realized how low my liquor tolerance has become. Granted we had last eaten at around 7pm and I was probably dehydrated from dancing with everyone at the concert, but all it took was 1 screwdriver in a tall glass and I was feeling it. Luckily, I had another hour and a half before we reached Chicago and I had to drive the rest of the way home. The fun part was trying to find some food at 3am. We finally found a McDonald's and life was good again.

Have no fear, by the time we got to Chicago, I got my second wind again and was ready for my drive home to the south suburbs. With a Pepsi in one hand and the music blaring, I finally made it home at 5am. It was actually fun to see it go from dark to light on the drive home, but I was dead tired when I walked in the door. But then off course, my heart was pounding from the Pepsi that I just guzzled.

Needless to say, yesterday was a pretty relaxing, nap filled day; hence the lack of blogging.

Friends in High Places

Well unlike Garth, I've got friends in high places and they hooked me up with some tickets for the Taste of Chicago. So I took my brother and my mom and we all ate like kings. We still have tickets left over so I think my mom, dad, and brother will probably go back tomorrow. I'm heading up to Milwaukee tomorrow for their annual Summerfest. I'm going up with some friends to see Moby.

Right now I'm watching the Live 8 Concert on ABC. They are airing 2 hours of it and I think its great that they are also broadcasting this great concert and cause on network TV. If you haven't already, please sign the ONE declaration and the letter to the President.

I watched the movie Beyond Borders the other night with Angelina Jolie and it just further reminded me how lucky I am to be living in this country and if we can do anything to make life a little easier for our fellow human beings in Africa, it's a disgrace if we don't. I know there are a lot of causes that we need to support in this country, but we can’t forget about people who are citizens of the world. We’d want them to help us, if we were in the same situation.

When I got home from the Taste today, I received my free copy of the Qur’an in the mail. My brother laughed and said “You do realize that you are now on the FBI’s watch list and if anything goes down in Illinois, they are going to drag your ass in for questioning.” I said I know and the first people I’m calling are the ACLU. If you are interested in learning more about the Muslim religion, you too can get a free copy of the Qur’an by going here.

http://www.islamtomorrow.com/freequran.asp

They advertise:
Free Quran for Non-Muslims living in the West