Birthdays

Todays LGBT birthdays:
Rainer Werner Fassbinder - German movie director - Born 1945, Died 1982
Louise Frevert - Danish politician - 55
Lissy Groner - German politician -54

The "No Date" Night

I met up with Tim last night in our usual starting place of Barcode at about 19:00 and we had a good chat and a laugh. We moved on to the Duke of Wellington where Tim's other half, Richard met us for one drink and left just as a friend of Tim's, Chris turned up. We went had a few more drinks before going home (I can't remember what time it was by then).
I got a bus home and then decided, stupidly to go to Chariots! I had a bit of fun there but didn't get home until 05:00 this morning! How stupid? I really am not in the mood to go out again tonight, I don't like drinking on 2 consecutive nights at the best of times. I'm not hungover, thanks to lots of water an a few snacks when I got in, but still hesitant about going out tonight. I'm almost tempted to put it off, but I chicken out of "dates" far too often. If nothing else comes of it I still need to expand my circle of friends, so I should go.

Typical

Okay, after sending a message on ManDate, to the guy I was meant to meet tonight saying that I couldn't make it, and getting a reply saying that he couldn't reschedule any time soon (due to work issues) I sent a text to Alfredo to see if he was still on for tonight to find out that he wasn't. We have rescheduled for tomorrow night, but it's still disappointing as ManDate man sounded pissed off, so there probably won't be any rescheduling there!
Luckily I can rely on my good matey Tim who is available tonight and so we are meeting at the old faithful, Barcode, at our usual time. Can I handle going out tonight and tomorrow night? Who knows? but I will surely let you know tomorrow and / or Sunday morning (or early afternoon more likely!!).
My attire is prepared (for tonight and tomorrow), and I am just having a quite bite to eat before showering and getting ready for the off.
Do I go on the tube and sweat or on the bus and potentially sweat and take longer? Can you believe when I came back from buying comics earlier today (yes I treated myself) that the bus had its heaters on? Madness! I'd been sitting in Soho Square having some lunch without a coat or jumper and then I get onto a bus with the heating on full blast!

Birthdays

Todas LGBT birthdays:
Allison Adler - US producer and screenwriter - 41
Micah Barnes - Canadian singer / songwriter - 48
Joan Chalmers - Canadian philanthropist - 80
Bertrand Delanoe - French politician - 58
Christine Jorgesen - US , first widely known transexual - Born 1926, Died 1989
Luis - US musician - 34
Inge Meysel - German actress - Born 1910, Died 2004
Oscar van den Boogaard - Dutch author - 44

Birthdays

Todays LGBT birthdays:
Helmut Berger - Austrian actor - 64
David Burtka - US actor - 33
Melissa Etheridge - US singer / songwriter and musician - 47
Rupert Everett - UK actor - 49
Gene Robinson - US bishop - 61

So .......... Slow ............ Today.........At........Work

Today really dragged at work. I'll tell you how bad it was, I couldn't believe how long my own lunch break was taking it never seemed to end. I was so bored. It was probably because it was my 8th day shift and I am off for 3 days from tomorrow, so I was probably just yearning for my time off.
Late in the afternoon we had our first chance to talk to our potential new employers and it seems that the existing rota may not change, so we shouldn't lose any hours. Therefore there is nothing holding us back from transferring over to this company. It even seems that we may be getting a pay rise too, which will be a nice bonus (especially as we have just got a pay rise anyway, good timing!).
Tomorrow is payday, hooray, and I have an opticians appointment in the late morning and then I have the rest of the day to prepare for my drinks with Alfredo. I forgot to mention that he sent me a text on Monday asking if I was free for drinks. I wasn't but we arranged to meet Friday night. We had a good chat and a laugh when we met by accident the other week so hopefully we will still get on tomorrow. And, typically, I had to cancel another drinks request from someone I've been chatting to on Mandate! Just like bloody buses, wait for bloody ages and then two turn up at once!!

Birthdays

Todays LGBT birthdays:
Mike Branson - US porn star - Year of birth unknown
Richard Cawley - UK chef and presenter - 61
Youri Egorov - Russian pianist - Born 1954, Died 1988
Mark Feehily - Irish singer with Westlife - 28
Alex LeMonde - Canadian porn star - Year of birth unknown
Steve Strange - UK singer [Visage] - 49
Manuel Torres - US porn star - 31
Lieven Vandenhaute - Belgian presenter - 42
Patrick White - Australian author - Born 1912, Died 1990

40,000 - WOW

At some point today I exceeded the 40,000 viewers mark on my Clicker! WOW! Not bad for my lil' ol' blog is it? I am quite chuffed (although always looking for more readers and more interaction!). Cheers for visiting and I hope you come on back now!

Sexei Alexei

Today is the 32nd birthday of amazing Russian gymnast Alexei Nemov. Alexei is one of the best male gymnasts ever and has a huge fan base. I was already a fan when, at the 2004 Athens Olympics he performed an incredible routine on the high bars and was scored badly by the judges (only 9.725 over all) placing him third with other athletes to compete. The crowd went mad and created such noise that the judges had to re-evaluate their score, eventually upping it to 9.762, which still meant he was out of medal contention. The crowd continued booing for another 15 minutes until Nemov himself had to get on the stage and ask the audience to quieten down so the other gymnasts could continue competing. I think this shows how much he was admired and what a great sportsman he is. He is a star in my opinion, and I just wish he was still competing to watch his consummate skills.

Happy Birthday Alexei

Birthdays

Todays LGBT birthdays:
Anita Blond - Hungarian model and porn star - 32
Isadora Duncan - US dancer - Born 1877, Died 1927
Karen-Christine Friele - Norwegian activist - 73
Nicole Stephane - French actress, produder and director - Born 1923, Died 2007

Supervisor Robins

I was covering the site supervisor position today, as Dan is off for a couple of days (I'll be doing it tomorrow) and nothing happened to stretch my skills. Boring! I suppose I should be grateful that I am on a higher wage for a couple of days (though I have yet to remember to ask what that rate is!). I am also being considered for a permanent supervisory position after the switch to the new company, so if this is all that is involved (though I know it will change when the building becomes occupied) then I think I may go for it. It will certainly help to make up for the loss of hours when we transfer to the new shift pattern. We will have to see what is going to happen when the new company comes in. They are bringing in our T.U.P.E. packs on Thursday so we should know a lot more then. I hope it is mainly good news! (Yeah Right!)

Birthdays

Todays LGBT birthdays:
Monique Alexander - US porn actress and model - 26
Karolien de Becker - Belgian tv and radio presenter - 29
Regina Fong [Reg Bundy] - UK drag queen and entertainer - Born 1941, Died 2003
Sakia Gunn - US teenager killed in a hate crime in Newark, New Jersey - Born 1987, Died 2003
Caitlin R Kiernan - Irish sci-fi and fantasy author - 44
Ulrike Lunacek - Austrian politician - 51

Birthdays

Todays LGBT birthdays:
Julian Clary - UK comedian and actor - 49
Anne Heche - American actress, director and screenwriter - 39
Andrew [Alexis] Jackson - UK housewife / superstar and occasional drag queen when she thinks no one is looking! - Age to be determined [we are still counting the rings on her trunk!]
Sir Ian McKellan - UK actor (Gandalf [Lord of the Rings] and Magneto [X-Men]) - 69
Robbie Ross - Canadian journalist and art critic - Born 1869, Died 1918
Anette Trettebergstuen - Norwegian politician - 27

Sporty Birthday Boys

Today celebrating their birthdays we have two hot guys who play, or have played for their country at their respective sports:

Firstly, and most importantly, we have my number 2 man of the moment, Mr Jonny Wilkinson. Jonny is a mere 29 today and I really wish I was helping him celebrate! Jonny plays rugby for the Newcastle Falcons at the moment and has been playing for the England squad for 10 years now. He has been instrumental in England performing well on many occasions and blamed for them not on others, despite not being captain. Being the most recognisable face on the pitch is not always a good thing, especially when you are expected to score all the points. I personally think he has done a magnificent job for England (I don't follow team rugby at the moment, but would like to in the right company!), so good luck to him and I look forward to him coming back into the spotlight with England in the near future, we all know it will happen (especially if Danny Cipriani keeps injuring himself). Happy Birthday Jonny, and keep up the good work.

Secondly we have a footballer (soccer for the Americans out there) who I have heard of many times, but never bothered to look at his picture. I did today and I wish I had earlier he is one handsome fella! Carlos Bocanegra is American, and plays for Fulham here in the UK and for his national team. I will certainly have to pay more attention to this guy! He is also 29 today.

Ooh, just imagine being the filling in a Jonny / Carlos sandwich!!

Marriage is Fun

Check out this blog entry by Donnie on Famous Like Me, it just proves that some people should not have hyphenated names when they get married. I'm undecided on which is my favourite between Looney-Warde and Hardy-Harr!

Birthday Battler

Today is the 28th birthday of a very handsome UFC fighter by the name of Frank Mir. Frank is from Las Vegas, Nevada, USA and has a great body and a good fighting record. Unfortunately, for us, he is married with three kids, but still worth taking a look at I think!

A Great-Uncle AGAIN!!

I got a text from my sister Maxine this morning while I was at work to tell me that my niece, Mikala, had given birth to her second daughter. I had totally forgotten that the baby was due (I thought it was in a couple of weeks) so I was surprised. She gave birth at 01:10 this morning and the baby weighed in at 8lbs 6oz. Both mother and baby are doing well. As yet they haven't named her and I have no pictures but when I know I will let you know!

Birthdays

Todays LGBT birthdays:
Greg Berlanti - US television writer and producer - 36
Kelli Carpenter-O'Donnell - US television marketing executive and partner of Rosie O'Donnell - 41
Elsa Maxwell - US author, songwriter and gossip columnist - Born 1883, Died 1963

Birthdays

Todays LGBT birthdays:
Lea de Laria - US comedian, actress and jazz musician - 50
Libby Holman - US singer and actress - Born 1906, Died 1971
Leo Lerman - US writer and editor - Born 1914, Died 1994
Annemarie Schwarzenbach - Swiss author, journalist, photographer and traveller - Born 1908, Died 1942
Guinevere Turner - US actress, author and director - 39

(Un)Natural Disaster

I saw this on The Daily Slab and I had to pinch it:

A Call To Arms

Can Anyone Say TUPE?

The building manager at work has finally had enough and sacked my employers from the contract. In one months time, another company will take over and I and my colleagues will have the opprtunity to TUPE over to the new security company. Not a hard decision to make, the only reason I came back after briefly quitting earlier this year was to come back to THIS site, not the company who had the contract.
The new company intend to swap us from our current shift pattern (7-on, 3-off, 7-on, 4-off) to 4-on, 4-off, which works out less hours per month, but will require a fourth shift and so there will be more holidays to cover on overtime, so, hopefully we should be able to make up the lost hours. I would also hope that a small pay rise would be on the cards too, though, to make up slightly for any shortfall.
Apparently, the new company provide a full uniform, inculding 2 jackets (we only get one at the moment) and even provide work shoes. I've been told they also give us dry cleaning tokens which will probably be "sold" to us as equivalent to a pay rise, but it all helps.
I don't know anyone who works for this new company, or has done in the past, so I don't know if they have a good or bad reputation, but, in my experience most security companies seem to be as bad as each other!
We are lucky, on the site I work at, as the building manager looks out for the guard force (well, the competant ones anyway), so whatever the new company is like we should all be okay, fingers crossed!

Birthdays

Todays LGBT birthdays are:
Mark Bingham - US, one of the heroes of 9/11 who helped bring ground United Airlines Flight 93 before it could be used for its intended purpose - Born 1970, Died 2001
Harvey Milk - US politician, activist and murder victim - Born 1930, Died 1978
Alla Nazimova - Russian actress, scriptwriter and producer - Born 1879, Died 1945
Dirk Tanghe - Belgian actor and director - 52
Paul Winfield - US actor - Born 1939, Died 2004
Dale Winton - UK tv and radio presenter - 53

It had to happen I guess...

BBC News is reporting today that Russell T Davies is stepping down as the executive producer of Dr Who. I was actually thinking just a couple of months ago that someone like Russell would never be happy to stay in the same job for years, despite his passion for Dr Who, and I was worried about what would happen if and when he left the show.
Over the last few years Dr Who has once again become an international phenomenon and rightly so because the passion with which many of those working on the show feel about the project shows through in the final product. With such popularity it even spawned 2 spin-off shows (Torchwood and The Sarah Jane Adventures), not to mention its own behind-the-scenes shows Dr Who Confidential, Torchwood DeClassified and Totally Dr Who, thus bringing the brand was brought to a whole new generation of fans.
Steven Moffat is a skillful writer and I pray that he is able to keep up the high standards set by Russell when he takes over the job in 2010, which is when we will have to wait to see the next series after the current one finishes. Apparently next year there will be some Dr Who specials, but no actual series, I think that this may be a business strategy getting the viewing public clamouring for more Dr Who, but who knows. Hopefully the short break will also allow for Steven to set his own mark and style on the series early on and the greatness can continue in a slightly modified (regenerated?) form, as all shows need from time to time. Keep it fresh.
Good luck to Russell with whatever his next project is to be (I'm sure he needs no luck) and good luck also to Steven, he has big shoes to fill.

Birthdays

Todays LGBT birthdays:
Raymond Burr - Canadian actor (Perry Mason / Ironside) - Born 1917, Died 1993
Adriano Cintra - Brazilian musician and record producer - 36
Nicky Crane - UK neo-Nazi skinhead - Born 1958, Died 1993
Jeffrey Dahmer - US serial killer - Born 1960, Died 1994
Mario Mieli - Italian activist - Born 1952, Died 1983
Anika Moa - New Zealand singer / songwriter - 28

The Unicorn & the Wasp

********Spoiler Warning********

An unusual title and an unusual story-form for Dr Who to take. A 1920's farcical, murder-mystery, period-piece with an giant alien wasp! Nothing you haven't seen before, but maybe not all at once!
I can honestly say that this wasn't my favourite episode of the series, but it had its moments. I love the idea of the Doctor meeting Agatha Christie, the "explanation" of her famed disappearance and her acting as the Miss Marple / Hercule Poirot of this tale was great, but I do feel that it could have been a lot better. Fenella Woolgar was superbly cast as Mrs Christie, credit for which goes to David Tennant who immodestly claims full responsibility for suggesting she be cast in the role as they had worked together on a few occasions before.
The story almost lost my interest early on when the characters were all having flashback moments, as is a must in a murder / mystery, but I then saw the humour when Colonel Hugh had a flashback in his flashback. I was a bit miffed that there was no explanation for why the thief in the story was nicknamed "The Unicorn."Most names have some relevance so I was left wondering how this name had originated. And a giant wasp? Not the best "villain," but what can you do?
Poor Mrs Chandrakala really deserved to die if she is stupid enough to stand in the same spot creaming while a giant wasp pushes a gargoyle (sorry chimera) on her!
Donna, once again proved her worth when she is initially attacked by the Vermiform, after screaming for the Doctor she dispatches the giant creature with the magnifying glass. And comedy ensues later when the Doctor is looking for certain ingredients to cure him from cyanide poisoning. He has a mouth full of walnuts and tries miming the next ingredient he needs, resulting in a nice game of charades. Remind me never to pick Donna Noble for my team when playing!
As usual there many references to old Dr Who stories with Donna asking what the likelihood of meeting Agatha Christie during a murder / mystery. She says it's like "meeting Charles Dickens at Christmas surrounded by ghosts!" which refers, unintentionally by Donna, to "The Unquiet Dead."
References were also made to many of Mrs Christie's novels but, apart from the obvious ones like when Donna mentioned "Murder on the Orient Express," the only one I really picked up on was "Sparkling Cyanide." And the Cluedo references were many and varied, again with the most obvious being the murder of Professor Peach (Plum) in the library with the lead piping!
And, taking its cue from Torchwood maybe, there was also a gay couple in the story (yes, apparently we were around even back in the 1920's! How frightfully scandal!), with both characters being played by handsome actors Adam Rayner and Daniel King.
It was also wonderful to see the fabulous Felicity Kendal in the show, to mirror Richard Briers in Torchwood's "A Day in the Death," not to mention his previous Who appearance in "Paradise Towers" back in the 80's. All we need now is to have the fantastic Penelope Keith appear and that will be all the surviving Good Life cast.
Hopefully, next week's episode, "Silence in the Library" (another library!?!), will be better than the preview we were shown indicates. I wasn't hooked by anything in the sneak-peek, but only time will tell.


As for this weeks Confidential, Tim Barter appears again! YAY for Tim!! He was interviewed, briefly, about the shot of the Vermiform flying into the lake and seemed a lot more confident (and a lot less babbling, sorry Tim but you were) than his previous interview for "Partners in Crime."

A Great Night Out

I needed to get out yesterday as I was in need of some affirmation and luckily Tim was available for drinks so we met up in Barcode at 19:00. On my way there I spotted my first celebrity for absolutely ages. Dan Gillespie Sells, lead linger of the Feeling was sitting outside a restaurant opposite the Prince Edward Theatre in Old Comptons Street.
I had a good night. Initially we were talking to a friend of Tim's who was quite nice, though I don't think he was interested in me. After a couple of drinks there we went to join Richard and some others at Comptons and then moved on to G.A.Y. bar for one. Tim went home early as he had work the next day but the rest of us went back to Barcode where I got talking to Alfredo, a friend of Lee's who we had met together ages ago in Rupert Street and who Lee had gone to meet when we were out last week. He looked different as he has had his hair cut and dyed and it was gelled quite a bit but he looked hot. We got talking and really got on well. Really well. We exchanged numbers, but not bodily fluids, and then I went with the boys to 79CXR, which I had said I would never go to again but they wanted to go there. While there I got chatting to the DJ who seemed interested also.
So, all in all, it was a great night and I got the affirmation that I needed. I was still on a high from it all today, though I did have a hangover. I got up and blogged and checked my emails before going back to bed and didn't rise again until close to 15:00 when I went into town and treated myself to some comics and a sandwich in Soho Square only leaving when it began to get a bit chilly! I was meant to go back to the opticians this morning but couldn't face it so I called and rescheduled it for tomorrow.
When I was getting changed before going into town I looked at myself in the mirror and felt confident about myself and happy with how I looked, which rarely happens lately and so that helped to put a big smile on my face, which is a great start to the day (even if it was the middle of the afternoon!)

"Happy" Birthday AIDS

I have just read on Edge New York that AIDS is 25 today! This anniversary is taken from the fact that on this day in 1983, the US journal Science published a paper from France's Pasteur Institute describing a virus found in a patient who had died. That virus was HIV.

In 25 years this virus has gone from pockets of infection, to a "gay plague" and on to become a global pandemic.

The Terrence Higgins Trust state that since then around 89,000 cases of HIV have been reported in the UK alone. Nearly 18,000 people have died in the UK from HIV and AIDS related illness in that time. Worldwide it is estimated that, in 2007, 32.2 million people are living with AIDS! 4.3 million new HIV infections and 2.9 million AIDS related deaths were reported in 2006.

It is estimated that 30% of those infected with HIV in the UK do not even know that they have the virus. Scary, huh? I was tested about 6 years ago and luckily was HIV-. Luck had a lot to do with it too because I used to be apathetic when it came to safe sex. I have been unsafe in the past, even since my test, because I had such low self esteem that I thought, "I don't care if I catch the virus!" I now have more self respect, not to mention more respect for those I have sex with. If you have unsafe sex, there is more than just yourself to think about.

I have at least 3 friends who are HIV+, and knew 1 person who died from AIDS. Thankfully quite a low number, but still too many. Survival rates are higher, life expectance longer and treatments better, but a cure is still to be found. So to "celebrate" this milestone anniversary make sure you are safe and that you promote safety and awareness among others.

Birthdays

Todays LGBT birthdays:
Ted Allen - Food & Wine expert on the US's Queer Eye For the Straight Guy - 43
Andreas Lundstedt - Swedish singer with Alcazar - 36
Walterina Markova - Filipino sex slave during World War II - Born 1922, Died 2005
Drew Pritt - US politician - 33
Tiger Tyson - US porn star, actor and model - 29
Joop Wijn - Dutch politician - 39
Bret Wolfe - US porn star - 33

They Fight For YOUR Freedom

My brother sent me this on Facebook and, call me a sentimental old queen, but I cried. These guys fight and die so that we can live our cushy lives, yet they often get slammed and abused by the "common man." Please give them the respect they deserve, they may not get to come home to see it but maybe they can feel it.

AdSense more like NoSense

I bet you haven't even noticed that I have now removed my 5 AdSense ads from the blog have you? I didn't think so.
I put them on the blog initially about 2 years ago to provide some income, and in all of that time they have earned approximately $20. AdSense only send out funds when the total reaches above $100, meaning that so far I have received ZILCH for the privilege of them advertising on my space.
I received an email today saying that I breached the terms of our "contract" because I post adult material on the site and they are suspending my account! "Fine by me matey, just send the money I've earned so far and we'll call it quits!" is the reply I sent and have promptly removed all the AdSense ads from the blog.
What really got my goat was the article (this one) they stated breached the "contract." Yes, it had nudity, but come on they were hardly pornographic, or even "adult" if you ask me! They could have at least stated a decent posting as the reason! And what's more baffling is that the post is from August of last year, that is 9 months ago!

AdSense - Have NoSense - Talk NonSense

Birthday Hunks

Today is the birthday of a couple of sporting hunks.
Andrew Johns is an Australian rugby star who is celebrating his 34th birthday today.
Georges St Pierre is a Canadian mixed martial artist with the UFC and is pretty darn horny. He is 27 today.