I try not to do YouTube embeds often in my journal, but this one is just plain pure liquid awesome. In particular I think that emoburd and smackjackal are going to enjoy this one.

Mostly I'm just a sucker for fun animation styles telling neat little stories.




The TV Show

(yoinked from cargoweasel, who got it from eselgeist...)

http://www.webmd.com/heart/metabolic-syndrome/news/20091203/breastfeeding-may-reduce-diabetes-risk

Seeing as that I have PCOS and a high risk of diabetes, I guess this means we don't wean at 6 months.. :>

Note: I haven't tried making this myself yet. I just found a recipe book called Slow Cooking for Yourself and I know that at least a few people have asked for recipes for small crock pots, so I thought I'd share a couple of the recipes in it.

Salmon Risotto

1 1/2 teaspoons (3/4 ounces or 20 grams) butter

Four scallions (spring onions), finely sliced

1/4 cup (two ounces or 50 grams) Italian Risotto rice

Two tablespoons (30 ml) white wine or stock

3/4 cups (six ounces or 175 ml) vegetable stock

Five ounces (150 grams) salmon fillet, cut into bite-size pieces

Salt and pepper to taste

One tablespoon (15 grams) dill weed

Grated Parmesan cheese

Put butter into crock pot and turn pot to high setting. When butter has melted, stir in the onions (scallions) cover, and cook for 30 minutes.

Add the rice and stir to coat with butter, then add the wine (if you're using it.) Add the vegetable stock, stir, then re-cover and cook for 40 minutes, stirring once halfway through cooking time.

Season the salmon pieces with salt and pepper and stir into the rice mixture. Cook for another 20 minutes or until salmon is opaque and rice is tender. Stir in the dill, then switch off the crock pot and let it stand for a minute.

Stir, then spoon onto a warm plate or bowl and sprinkle Parmesan cheese over it. Serve at once with a slice of French bread.

I invented this recipe yesterday, and it turned out quite tasty. There a few things I'd do differently next time, and I'll put that at the end after the original concoction.

Ingredients:

1 15 oz. can whole kernel corn
1 15 oz. can cream style corn
1 18 oz. can Campbell's creamy potato soup with roasted garlic
1 12 oz can evaporated milk
About a cup of chicken broth
a couple of good sized handfuls of frozen shredded hashbrowns
about 1.5 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cubed
6 slices bacon, cooked and broken into pieces
a pinch of cayenne pepper
salt and black pepper to taste

Just plop everything into the crock pot and set on low for 8 hours. I have a six qt crock, and it was more than half full, so you'll definitely want to use a larger crock for this recipe. My fiance and I both had seconds last night, and then leftovers today, and there's still some left.

Okay, on to the modifications. Next time I'll use two cans of the potato soup and completely ditch the chicken broth and hashbrowns. I'll also add in some chopped onion, bell pepper, maybe some celery, but I didn't have any on hand this time. The cayenne pepper adds just a teeny bit of kick, and makes it a little more interesting. Enjoy.

... get gets his pussy hurt because the ever-Christian "Peanuts Christmas Special" was pre-empted.

Oh no. You missed the first showing of how many?

Basically, the guy posts this on a blocked entry on his Facebook - 1600 people saw it. Someone said, "Hey, I'm gonna share this with the world."

Hence why your Uncle Randy is VERY CAREFUL about what he says on Facebook or MySpace.

Other gems from Mayor Russell Wiseman - "...you know, our forefathers had it written in the original Constitution that ONLY property owners could vote, if that has stayed in there, things would be different........"

A lot of it seems to be typical angry white male jingoist bullshit. You know, a lotta, "Why them thar muslims gotta leave THEIR country and come to our godfearin' AMERICA?!" Let's ignore the fact that quite a few of the founding fathers had contempt for organized religion and general and suspicion and disdain for the Bible. This is America. Melting pot. All welcome. We have a statue in a harbor up north that says this. We also have a piece of paper we supposedly says all are created equal, you fucking bigot. If you don't like it, work to make things better or go somewhere else - but you don't get to decide who does and doesn't deserve America.

Yes, what a shame that every citizen who pays taxes has a say in how our government were run. I love when people say shit like this. They long for some alternate reality where the "unwashed masses" knew their place and weren't screwin' shit up by voting or taking interest in the government they have to put up with. These people always forget that somewhere down the road their ancestors were part of those unwashed masses and if things had been just a little different, they might still be.

The hilariously Mayor Wiseman is, needless to say, miffed that at least one of his closest 1,600 friends leaked this but let's be honest - if you want something like this kept private, posting it ANYWHERE on the web, especially to almost 2,000, is guaranteeing it's gonna be said.

I'm shocked he didn't drop a couple of, "uppity negro" comments in for flavor.

Now, the man has the right to say whatever he pleases as long as he's not breaking laws on threatening others or committing libel - but part of having freedom of speech isn't freedom from responsibility for what you've said.

Have a great holiday, Wiseman - keep giving the gift of hilarity.

And, oh, hay - I got to use one of my Dynagirl avatars!

-=2009 METAL GEAR SOLID FANBOOK NOW ON SALE=-
84 page, color cover and rich black & white interior
28 contributing authors and artists from around the world!
Limited print edition!

only $11.76 per copy*
*ninja not included

Yes, this is probably on your flist 12 times, but karose pretty much summoned this thing into existence with some .pdfs and sheer willpower, so I shall pimp with all my might.

I apologize in advance...I didn't cut this on purpose.

So let me start off by saying that I don't know everything about bears. I haven't lived everyone's life, and I haven't walked a mile in everyone's shoes. What I will tell you is that I've been aware of bears and considered myself a "cub" when I was 19 and a half years old. It's been 17 years. I've been to bear runs, I've performed at bear runs, I've been on a board of a bear club, I've owned the teddy bears, I had the bear shirts, the list goes on and on. I've seen the bear community from far away and up close.

Recently, I've noticed a lot of grumblings on LJ and Facebook about bear identity, bear issues and mainly bitching about the bear community in general. All valid points from those people's perspectives. But that's what it's really about right? Perspective.

In my history with bears, I have seen the worst of the worst, and the highest of the highs. The first example of ugliness I saw within an organized bear club was in Milwaukee. I was a young, energetic cub who was with his first "husbear" if you will. I played the part. I had the boots, I had the white shirt with the word "CUB" on the front, freedom jewels rings, and I was full tilt boogie into it. I was living in Milwaukee, and there was a group of dudes from Madison and parts of a Chicago who were part of The Brew City Bears and we were having a meeting. My hubby debriefed me about the tensions in the group. "Well, the Madison guys think they are in charge, and they are trying to run everything..they shoot down a lot of ideas...it's very political for them." Obviously, paraphrased, but the gist was that something political in nature was going on. When I got to the meeting, my only goal was to become a member. At the time, it was very strict and Robert's Rules Of Order for anyone to become a member of the Brew City Bears. It wasn't a simple application and $20 a year. They made me sit through the most tense and awkward bear group meeting I had ever seen. Arguing, raising of voices, even a break from the meeting because things were way too tense. So, after watching that shit storm, it was my turn. Come to find out, they didn't have a majority of actual members or board members to vote me in. They were playing it by the book. I stood up and simply said, "I love that I sat through all of that, and I have my $25 in hand ready to become a member of this club, and now I can't because you guys can't get it together and you are playing everything by some political system. During this meeting you were concerned about membership, and here you have someone in line waiting to become one of your member, and you can't look past some bullshit in order to vote me in. I think you need to re-evaluate your system."

And thus it began. My first taste to come of years of infighting, bitchiness, power hungry queens, and the same shit you get with -any- organized group, whether it be social, political or for just plain 'ol fun. Bowling leagues, No On Prop 8, bears, gay softball...you name it. There's always one or two or more people who can't look past themselves for two seconds and need to control or own everything and ruin it for the rest of them.

In 1991, I saw Bear Magazine for the first time, and while most of the dudes on that magazine early on didn't excite me, the possibilities did. The possibility that I was not alone in this world as a stocky, thicker gay person...and while I didn't know what self-identity really meant, I knew I had allies in the world. The first porn mag I ever bought was Bulk Male, and dare I say it in this crowd? Tony from St. Louis was on the cover. Oh yeah, I jacked it HARD over that dude. It was 1992? 1993?. I didn't know! It was exciting to know that the type of guy I was sorta into back then even EXISTED. When I came out to myself, I had no idea what was out there. I didn't necessarily know about gays, and I only based my knowledge of gays from stereotypic assumptions. Needless to say, I was in heaven. Between Bulk Male, Bear, American Bear and American Grizzly, I had a plethora of people to identify with. Some of it I was right on board with, some of it didn't matter to me. The important factor was that there were others like me, and that's what hope those magazines gave me as a young gay man. They also gave the Lubriderm bottle in my bedroom a run for its money, but that goes without saying.

It's been a long time around, and we've seen all sorts of magazines and bear organizations come and go. Magazines like Bulk Male, Bear, and American Bear/Grizzly have all fell by the wayside because of various reasons, but the stories I hear around the sewing circle are based on the same principle. Someone got control hungry, something went wrong and shit went down. There wasn't a wide protest of these magazines, and in fact, to some, I'm sure it was a sad day when the magazines packed it in.

So now we have the internet. Well, we've had it for a long time, but you know what I mean. Once the Internet gave me the opportunity to reach out into the world of bears, I had no need for any magazines. AOL IM chat, IRC, Email, and websites provided me a connection that I never thought possible. The first time I ever emailed and connected with some dude I used to spank it to in one of those mags, I thought I was meeting a celebrity. Flash forward to now, ha! Hardly. The internet killed the bear porn star. Or did it? Anyway, it was still a magical world. Dare I call myself an early adapter of hooking up online? I met sultmhoor 15 years ago via IRC and we had a long distance hookup. Before that, I went to a "motss.con" (Members Of The Same Sex) in Boston where I met atldaddybear for the first time, amongst a number of other characters in the bear world. Steve Dyer, Bob Donahue, Brian Gollum...and more. It was an exciting time.

Let's flash forward to the last 7-8 years. In my experiences with bear clubs hiring me, and meeting the folks who organize and try to put on a good show for the bears coming in and spending their hard earned money in their city, not much has really changed. There are a few select groups out there that I love to work with consistently, and have been nothing but pleasant and kind, and then there are other people in bear groups that are the worst of the worst. Still bitching about everything, unorganized, political, and power hungry. I've been through some bear events and I kinda never want to go to again because the run or the people were awful.

In the last few years, there's been a growing dissention among the ranks. Maybe it's generational, maybe it's just a normal growth moment in the world of "bear", but it's there. I mean, the roots of it go to the Bears Mailing List perennial argument about "What Is A Bear?" , but that argument still thrives and is alive and well today. There's KUMA, which turned it into a young, fresh cub filled movement. I heard early talk about KUMA clubs out here from (of all people), John McMullen...who boasted to me about how "they have their shit together" and they really embody the spirit of a fun Bear club. Then, I have a get together with a couple of dudes who were involved in KUMA in Los Angeles, and it all smelt the same. Gossip, bitchiness, hate. Someone is a bitch, someone is in charge, someone hates it. It was all the same bear club rhetoric I had heard before, so nothing really changed.

Let's address "A Bear's Life" magazine. Now, I wasn't there in Tuscon for the now infamous photo scandal and the stolen banner incident, but I didn't have to be. That shitstorm spread throughout the bear community that I know like a California wildfire. The biggest mistake Stevo probably made was not realizing how small the general populous of the bears is. How do I know this? I did an -awful- show in Dallas for TBRU the last year I was there. Long story short, word got out. It was two years later, and I was booking another bear run. Word got back to me..."I heard you were booed in Dallas..." Honey, I wasn't booed, but that show was death. But see how that shit gets around? If bitches don't talk in person, they spread that shit online, and it's poison.

As far as Stevo is concerned, I have no ill will towards the dude. He's always been pleasant as punch to me, and never has done anything to me to draw my ire. However, I will go on record as to say that A Bear's Life is ridiculous to me. Why is it ridiculous? One, it's playing to an audience that's not me. No, I don't need tips on hair grooming, and no, I don't need advice about pets, and no I don't need to learn how to dress a table or organize a slum-bear (ack!) party.

But then again, some people do. When it comes to A Bear's Life, what some people may fail to realize is that there actually is an audience for that magazine. That audience is me, eighteen years ago. There are young cub-lettes in the world who have no idea what to do or think and are struggling in their own identity, and magazines like ABL are providing that link to a world they may not know about. Stevo felt the need to create a lifestyle around "Bear", and what draws the ire of people is that they read the magazine and say "Ugh! I don't need this shit! I don't take chocolate mudbaths, and have a perfect beard, and I certainly don't own a house in the Hamptons that looks like a Pier One catalog!" And that's what seems to be the mistake. I'm no math whiz, but the basic equation is {ALL BEARS DO NOT PLAY TOGETHER}. I know a lot of bears. A -lot- of them. We all don't get along. This bear loves Sci-Fi, and this bear loves reading, and this bear loves to dance, and this bear loves to get high, and so on and so forth. We, as bears, don't have a single thing in common with -every- other bear. The only thing you could possibly assume amongst bears as a collective that we all share is that we all like to have sex with men. But even then, it's a completely wrong assumption, because I know self-identified bears who swing it with the ladies. I know FTM's that look like more of a bear than I do. It's a full circle. The one piece of credit I can give Stevo is that he turned "bear" into something wasn't just sex. I never took any of the "articles" in any of the other magazines seriously, because the only reason I bought those magazines is for the fapping. I didn't want to hear about health and the latest bears in movies or anything. I wanted naked dudes.

The concept of "bear" has been so fragmented nowadays, that I believe that there is no right or wrong answers. Well, there are some wrong ones, but that's besides the point. The point is that nowadays, anyone can be a bear. Anyone! Doesn't matter. Gay, straight, bi, trans, even women have popped up on the bear meter. If you want to be a bear? Fine! Do it. Woof it up. Now it goes without saying that you will be rejected. Someone will be on their high horse, and call you "not a bear". It will happen! I had it happen when I was young, fairly hairless and barely had a beard. "You aren't a bear...you're a cub!" Other people projecting their beliefs onto me. It happens every day, all the time. -koff-religion-koff-. Oh yeah, Asians. You know this story all too well. You know, one of my sticking points about the Asian chaser/cub community is that the collective Caucasian bears will beat their chests about how open and inclusive that the bear community is. Oh yeah! We aren't like those bitchy twinks! Fucking twinks man, they hate everyone! Thank god, I'm a BEAR!!! WOOOF!" Then you go to a bear run, and there's that woofy white bear, and that woofy redhead bear...and man...hotness abounds! Oh, let's go to the hospitality suite...I heard people are making out up there and woof! Holy crap, a play room! Oh, there's that Asian chaser. Buzzkill. Watch some of the bears in the room react when the skinny hairless Asian walks into a play area. People act like someone took a dump in the middle of the room. I've seen it in action. The Asian shunning, not the dumping.

I'm fairly certain that African-Americans and Asians have felt the struggle of fitting in to the bears. There's the whole Bear411 thing, and I'm sure, numbers of incidents where they have been shunned out of the fun that all the bears are having. I'm sure everyone has their horror stories. So what does that all mean? What it means is that the "bears" have not been as inclusive as they boasted to be early on. The motto or the pledge that I remember about bears as a "community" was that it was all inclusive. We love all! That's what sets us so apart from all those other gheys! Not so. Not at all. If there is definitely one thing I have learned about being involved with bears as a whole is that we can act just as mean, bitchy, exclusionary and mean-spirited as any other faggot. Bears are not above it, and we definitely are not against it. The gossip sewing circles I have been either privy to or part of have definitely opened my eyes to that.

So here we go again. The new and improved Bear magazine prints some editorial about Chubs vs. Bears. I haven't read the editorial, and unless someone has a printed or scanned copy of it online they can email to me, I doubt that I will ever read it. I caught wind of it through aadroma's LJ, and I understand what the article was about. What's interesting to me is that I look at the Bear magazine website and it talks about what's in the issue. Here's the blurb that makes me wonder: "A MATTER OF SIZE Defining bears by gut girth has led to mixed perception and weighty results." My first question is, who is defining bears yet again? Am I wrong in thinking that it's completely ridiculous to define bears in the first place? That like trying to identify what gay is or isn't. This is what a gay is! Look! It's not fat or ugly, it's pretty and muscular! Wrong-o.

So this whole brew-haha about "what is a bear?" and fat vs. muscle bear is ridiculous. I learned long ago that bear is what you make of it. It's the same cycle of Cosmo telling girls what's hot and what's not. No one can tell you what you are and what you aren't. I mean, I get that I can't walk around and tell people I'm Hawaiian and straight. I'm a gay fat dude. Whatevs. Do I wish I could live a glitter-filled existence at the bars in West Hollywood dancing to the latest tracks by Lady Gaga and work out six times a week and drink my Muscle Milk and do a little coke on the weekends while shopping with my hag at Fred Segal? Hell to the no. Do I wish I lived a woofier existence by becoming a BearFilms model and going to bear runs and being the hottest bear in the woofiest universe OMG woof!? No. I create my world around me and I choose who I want to be around and how I identify myself and what direction I want to go in life. I don't wear labels, and I definitely don't care or need a magazine to tell me what I am and what I am not. I cringe when I get called the "Bear comedian". No, I'm just a comedian. Yeah, I happen to be a big dude with a beard, but I don't wear that as a badge any more.

No, I'm not post bear. The only real post bear life that one can really live is one that is free of all things "bear". You can't call yourself "post bear", yet work that beard, go to "Furr Trade" at the local bar, and have sex with nothing but bears. If you really want to be post bear, you should really look like this after your post-bear transformation:



Even then, you look like you have a little chest hair, so that'll have to go as well.

Which brings up a different point. What would bears be without the sex? I mean, really. Even something as PG as A Bear's Life is, they still tease and titillate with shirtless dudes, and pictures from woofy bear events! How did all these musclebears get shirtless? OMG WTF BBQ!

Anyway, the point is, live your own existence. If you really want to be a joiner and you need to have that label in your life, that's fine! But walk into that room knowing that what you are gonna get is a variance of opinions, tastes and attitude that you can get everywhere else. Don't expect all bears to love your bear existence. If you want a dozen bear paw tattoos, go to every bear night at the bar, run the local bear club, wear your bear hat-shirt-utilikilt combo, own 50 stuffed teddy bears (each of them named, of course), and woof it up for the rest of your life? That's okay. If you want to wear bra-like tank tops and show off your woofy muscles and tell me about how your workout went today and man that sling party was amazing last night and smoke that cigar and be all butch-all-the time (but you secretly love LIZA With A Z!), that's fine too.

The minute someone steps over that line though, and tells you or me or someone else what "bear" should be, is the minute toes get stepped on and pussies set on fire. No magazine or someone with blinders on is going to tell me who I am or am not.

Now, 17 years in the "bear community" (and I use that term loosely), I feel like I have a deeply grounded sense of self. While I am always learning, growing, changing and taking on new challenges in my life, I always will stay true to myself, no matter who tries to break me down or crack my surface with their negative energy. As they say, it takes just as much energy to be negative as it does to be positive. So whether you call me a "bear" or a "chub" or "bearchub"...you can call me an antelope. I don't care. As long as you call me. Didn't Jerry Herman write "I Am What I Am" from La Cage Aux Folles for a reason?

Keep your perspective.

Back when radio became big, a lot of comic strips and books were quickly adapted as ongoing series. Superman had a long-running show. Popeye's was a big more brief. Blondie and Gasoline Alley both became successful radio sitcom series.

What webcomics do you think could make good podcast series a la "old time radio"?

It's a six part playlist, and here's part one.

O hai, I'm new! My flock consists of two parakeets and two cockatiels, very silly birds, the lot of 'em. Aaaand, I have a problem. Methinks my a/c unit is busted, which means no heat for people or birdies. It's 45 degrees outside, and thanks to having a secondary unit in another part of the house, it's 60 in the main part of the house. The cages are in the room adjacent to the room with the secondary a/c unit, so it's slightly warmer than the rest of the house but man, I know those little guys can't be comfortable. I'm about to go out and buy a space heater to put near their cage to get them through the weekend until we can get a repair guy out here, but I wanted to see if you guys had any suggestions about what kind would be best for them, where I should place it, things to avoid, etc.

Thanks a bunch!!!

ETA: I got a small ceramic heater from Target, and I placed it near the cages so that about half their cages are having warm (not hot) air blown in, and they look much happier now! Thanks again, everyone!

P!nk blows me away.

That lady has put so much talent on stage. Her band, her backup singers, her dancers, her. They all give a top performance, and the stage act is just exciting. And pretty. (And at times really damn erotic.)

epilady it may hold no interest for you, but it'd make my day to see you get a job costuming the wild P!nk cabaret on tour (lady has skimped a bit though, I noticed she repeated some costumes from the last show).

At the same time I don't know which version of Bohemian Rhapsody I prefer--the muppet's or P!nk's liver funhouse performance.

Only problem is, now I've fallen in love with Lady Gaga, a P!nk concert feels a little like sex with the ex. The one who knew just how to touch you, but you dumped anyway.

I made some amazing slow-cooker Minestrone soup a couple times recently, and I have to share!

Slow Cooker Minestrone

(ideal size slow cooker is the 6 quart size)

1 large onion, chopped
4 carrots, sliced
3 ribs celery, sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 TBSP olive oil
6 oz can tomato paste
14.5 oz can chicken, beef, or vegetable broth
2 15 oz cans kidney beans, undrained
10-12 oz pkg frozen green beans
2-3 cups chopped cabbage (i used shredded cole slaw mix for convenience)
1 medium zucchini, sliced
8 cups water
2 TBSP parsley
2 TBSP italian spices
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 cup small pasta (i used barilla mini bowties)
grated parmesan

1. saute onion, carrots, celery, and garlic in oil until tender.
2. combine all ingredients except pasta and cheese in slow cooker
3. cover, cook 4-5 hours on high, or 8-9 hours on low, adding pasta
1 hour before cooking is complete.
4. top individual servings with parmesan.

Note: This makes a good 8-10 servings. I ended up putting the rest of the soup into plastic containers and freezing them for lunches!

First time I made it, I used frozen green beans, second time I used a bag of frozen mixed veggies (green beans, corn, carrots, peas.. I liked the mixed veggies better!)

Also: I used 1 tsp of salt, and it wasn't seasoned enough, so i salted again before serving and it was perfect!

I found out today that birds are put under a short course of anesthesia for the microchipping procedure. As I understand it, this is not without some serious risks. I'm not sure if it's local or full anesthesia, as the receptionists seem to have only basic information. The vet I see is calling tomorrow to discuss it; she practices at Angell Medical and she's fabulous, so I trust her.

I'm trying to weigh the cost and the risks against the security of microchipping. For those of you who have your birds microchipped, is the peace of mind worth the danger and the price? The price isn't so much an issue, but I don't know what I'd do if something happened during the anesthesia. Bowser is fully flighted, so I do like the idea of him carrying my contact information with him wherever he may go.

This morning before my husband went to work (I don't work on Fridays), I woke up and noticed that the door to Beau's cage was open. I thought that was really strange, and I mentioned it to him. He said he's noticed that a couple of times in the past week or two, as well. He was certain he'd closed her cage door - totally positive - and he'd go back in there later and find that her cage door was open.

I'm wondering if we have a little escape artist parrot on our hands. XD I've heard cockatoos (among others) can be known escape artists, and I know 'tiels are related, but I guess I'd never seen much on 'tiels doing that, too.

So far, she hasn't gone anywhere - just seems to have opened her cage door (probably sometime last night before we turned out their lights - they always go to sleep when its dark). I'm wondering if perhaps I need to find one of those little bird cage locks they make specifically for that purpose, since I don't want her ending up in trouble sometime when we're not home. She's not a troublemaker for the most part, and generally stays put but still, it's a possibility. Silly bird.

Anyways, I was just wondering if anyone here has 'tiels who are escape artists, or if it's just Beau?

~RedFeather~

Illinois Entertainer review of Balloons!

Tonight we open our Christmas play "Dr. Frankinsence and the Christmas Monster." The skit was written by Sean Abley who I've known now for almost 20 years. It's very funny, very silly and I play Mrs. Noel, who's very important. I'm a bit over extended which is why my blogging has been fairly light lately. It's one of those months where I said yes to absolutely everything.

"Wanna do a play?"

"Yes."

"Wanna create a new work?"

"Yes."

"Can you take over my class for me?"

"Yeppers."

"Would you like to dress up like Biggie Smalls and do the polka at a Bar mitzvah?"

"Sure."

Along with all these "yes's" came The Cold From Hell and 55 trips to the dentist. Apparently, my teeth have something against me. They seem to be leaping out of head at an alarming rate. I'm not sure what's going on. Perhaps it has something to do with the Coca Pebbles, the PB and J's, and the bags of sugar I pour down my throat. I'm blaming in on my mother actually.

In the next week I'm also opening for Leslie Jordan's new one man show. This is hapening at the same time the Christmas play is happeneing, which means...I'll open for Leslie, jump in the car, race to the other side of town, leap into my costume and hop on stage for the play. Leslie's show starts at 8, and curtain is at 9.

Everyone cross your fingers.

Everyone.

And if you need anything from me this month, don't ask. The answer is no.

...I think.

Although towards the end of her life Garland wasn’t at her best vocally, there’s still something miraculous in her survival that fascinates me. The song is quiet and haunting and you can see by the tiny gestures, the small internal Tempo she’s taking, that it sits true for her.

It’s hard watching her at this stage, but I can’t help but feel there was a sense of hope left in her, no matter how small.