How to Use the F Word

I have an affinity for tee shirts, especially when I travel. I don't feel complete unless I come back with something to wear back in Gooberville. A good example would be the Blackhawks shirt I bought in Chicago last October. Am I a hockey fan? Nope but damn if I didn't love the mascot on the tee shirt.


Of course the more offensive the shirt the better. In my last adventure to New York I got a cheesy shirt in Chinatown, in fact one of only two items I brought back with me from the trip (the other was a Super Mario 1UP Mushroom beanie from Mecca, aka The Nintendo World Store at Rockefeller Plaza, which is quite the schnizzle). The shirt was labeled "How to Use the F Word" and listed the following:

1. Dismay - Oh! Fuck it.
2. Aggression - Fuck you.
3. Passive - Fuck me.
4. Command - Go fuck yourself.
5. Incompetence - He's a fuck-up.
6. Laziness - He's a fuck-off.
7. Ignorance - He's a fucking jerk.
8. Trouble - I guess I'm fucked now.
9. Confusion - What the fuck?
10. Despair - Fucked again.
11. Philosophical - Who gives a fuck?
12. Denial - You ain't fucking me.
13. Rebellion - Fuck the world.
14. Annoyance - Don't fuck with me.
15. Encouragement - Keep on fucking.
16. Etiquette - Pass the fucking salt.
17. Fraud - I got fucked by my insurance agent.
18. Difficulty - I can't understand this fucking business.
19. Identification - Who the fuck are you?
20. Ugliness - You're a dumb looking fuck.
21. Agreement - You're fucking right.
22. Benevolence - Don't do me any fucking favors.

I wore the shirt this morning at the butt crack of dawn to meet my dad for coffee at Starbucks. Unfortunately it was covered by my hoodie due to the cooler weather Zeus has bestowed upon us lately. Thus I was unable to offend anyone.

Of course the coolest tee shirt of all time can be found here.

The Great State Fair of Oklahoma 2011

Just some random thoughts on one of the biggest events to grace Oklahoma City on a yearly basis, the great State Fair of Oklahoma:

I noticed yet again that there was a Confederate flag flying over the Fair. Why?

I went for a more traditional food choice this year to fill my belly, a hot dog on a stick, or more commonly known as a corn dog (I couldn't find the giant ones that Rick Perry and Michelle "bat shit" Bachmann have been seen eating lately). Good stuff though I'm not sure why mom had to have a bite after she had already visited three other food vendors! I don't like to share. I finished off with a fried Snickers later. It was decent but a little too heavily breaded in my opinion and it wasn't even on a stick.

Of course it was raining. I posted on Facespace that I hadn't seen this much rain since the Festival of the Arts, the other big outdoor event in Oklahoma City which seems to usher in biblical deluges. While having a rainy afternoon kept the attendance down and made parking easier, it also meant that I was freezing my ass off running from building to building.

I was on mullet alert red when I entered the Fair but I have to say I don't recall even seeing one. Lame. I did notice that a lot of the "cowboys" roaming around the grounds had their pants tucked inside their boots. As the old joke goes this is normally a sign of a sheep fucker but I think this actually had more to do with the rivers of rain water running down the streets. Can someone more versed in the cowboy arts give me a clarification on this?

I always look forward to seeing the Oklahoma Democratic Party kiosk every year for the morbid pleasure to see what my pathetic excuse for a political party is up to. I found through talking to one of the volunteers that they were no longer allowed to hand out bumper stickers of a political nature as people had apparently used them as a form of graffiti on cars parked at the Fair in years past. Weird. On a more positive note, they did have a bean poll which I found pretty cool. They had a list of political issues in tubes where you could add up to ten beans to any of the issues you care about most. I split my beans evenly to environment, protecting Social Security, and other topics of a liberal nature. I omitted adding a bean to increasing military spending and deficit reduction.

Finally, apparently, what could jokingly be called the Space Needle, is now closed. I was looking forward to an unobstructed view of downtown. Alas it's become extinct much like the monorail only to be left unused as a reminder of what used to be really cool about the Fair experience.

So readers, what's your favorite things about your state fairs? Is it something you take part in yearly?

New Animal Crossing 3DS Trailer!

Yes I'm a lunatic when it comes to this series of games. Think the SIMS meet Nintendo. I'm patiently waiting to obtain a Nintendo 3DS for this game alone. Looks like there's some interesting additions to the gameplay. Enjoy. Or don't.

You Know You're From Oklahoma If...

I'm sitting here hoping the rain will subside so I can make a trip to the State Fair and eat something, anything, fried on a stick! You know the State Fair is going on in Oklahoma City because it's fucking raining.

Speaking of "you know" phases, here's another list I found online this morning on how you know you're from Oklahoma. It's a little longer than the other list I posted on this blog as my first post ever.

Though many of the items on this list are indicative of life in Oklahoma, a lot of them could be swapped with another state in the south or Bible Belt.

You know you're from Oklahoma if...

You say ya'll... many times a day.
Bedlam is a BIG deal.
You can tell when it's tornado weather.
When you drive through a neighborhood anyone out walking will smile and wave at you. You've worn flip flops in the winter.
You have stopped to let a family of deer cross the road.
You thought the twister ride at Universal Studios wasn't windy enough.
You know who your neighbors are, how many children they have, and when one of them gets married or graduates.
There are at least 2 to 3 Sonics, McDonald's, and Little Caesar's in your town. You've been off roading - many times.
You or someone you know was born, raised and still lives in the same town.
You know that Miami, Oklahoma and Miami, Florida are pronounced two different ways. You plan events around football games.
You are a Cowboy or Sooner fan.
You learned how to do country and western dances at school.
A tornado warning siren is your signal to go out in the yard and look for a funnel. You can properly pronounce Eufaula, Gotebo, Okemah and Chickasha.
You can remember the name of the last state legislator to introduce a bill involving castration, and he didn't mean farm animals.
You know exactly what calf fries are, and eat them anyway.
You think that people who complain about the wind in other states are sissies.
It doesn't bother you to use an airport named for a man who died in an airplane crash.
You have owned at least one belt buckle bigger than your fist.
A bad traffic jam involves two cars staring each other down at a four-way stop, each determined to be the most polite and let the other go first.
It doesn't seem odd to see the term "chicken fried chicken" on a menu.
You save all your life for your dream vacation, and use it to go to the OU/Texas game.
It doesn't seem peculiar if your sweetie says "I'm going in to town for something" even though you live in town.
You don't turn on the news until 20 minutes past the hour, because that's the only thing you care about anyway.
Your quarterback is hurt and it is the top story on the six o'clock news.
You keep track of the grain and hog futures on the radio.
You don't buy all your vegetables at the grocery store.
You go to the State Fair for your only vacation.
You get up at 5:30 A.M. and go to the coffee shop, where the waitress never asks what you would like. She already knows.
You are on a first name basis with the county sheriff.
You think that using the elevator involves a corn truck.
You can drive 80 mph on a two-lane dirt road with one hand, but driving 45 mph on a four-lane expressway in a city scares you to death.
You use manure on your grass instead of Weed and Feed.
Your nearest neighbor is in the next zip code.
You know the difference between feed corn and sweet corn... while it's still on the stalk.
You wear cowboy boots to church.
You know that everything goes better with Ranch.
You learned how to shoot a gun before you learned how to multiply.
"You wanna Coke?" "Yeah." "What kind?" "Dr. Pepper."
You know what "Orange Power" and "Crimson & Cream" means.
You actually get these jokes and are fixin' to send them on to other friends from Oklahoma.

Anyone out there from another state want to share a similar list?

Bonjour, Girl!

Orginally saw this the other day at David Dust. Check it out, I laughed so hard I shed a solitary tear...

Oklahoma City National Memorial and Museum

I made a quick trip to the Oklahoma City National Memorial and Museum this morning on a whim. Maybe it was because of all the coverage yesterday of the tenth anniversary of 9/11. It's a nice place to visit for somber reflection. I just thought I would share.


The Reflecting Pool that used to be fifth street.


The Field of Empty Chairs. The nine rows of chairs represent the nine stories of the building with each chair in position relative to what floor someone lost their life. The five westernmost chairs honor those who died outside the Murrah Building.


The Survivor Tree. An elm that survived the blast across the street from the Murrah Building.

Sally Kern Needs to Shut the Fuck Up!!

Lunatic Oklahoma State Representative Sally Kern is at it again:

"You know if you just look at it in practical terms, which has destroyed and ended the life of more people? Terrorism attack here in America or HIV/AIDS? In the last twenty years, fifteen to twenty years, we’ve had maybe three terrorist attacks on our soil with a little over 5,000 people regrettably losing their lives. In the same time frame, there have been hundreds of thousands who have died because of having AIDS. So which one’s the biggest threat? And you know, every day our young people, adults too, but especially our young people, are bombarded at school, in movies, in music, on TV, in the mall, in magazines, they’re bombarded with ‘homosexuality is normal and natural.’ It’s something they have to deal with every day. Fortunately we don’t have to deal with a terrorist attack every day, and that’s what I mean."

Link.

Absolutely disgusting. Her hate speech not only besmirches those who live with or have died from HIV/AIDS but also those who have fallen due to terrorist attacks here and abroad. This on the eve of the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. She should be ashamed. Yet the good folks of western Oklahoma City and Bethany continue to re-elect this nutbag. Thank Jeebus we have term limits in Oklahoma.

A friend on Facespace commented on this story saying that Kern was a pathetic embarrassment to Oklahoma. She was wrong. She's a pathetic embarrassment to humanity.

Thursday Night Football

I'm not really a fan of Thursday night college football but I have no choice to watch Oklahoma State take on the Arizona Mildcats. It's actually a pretty nice game and a rematch of last year's bowl game between the two teams. We won the last meeting by the way...

I predict the Pokes win tonight by at least 14.

Any football fans out there?



Pictures from last weeks game in Stillwater. If you look really hard you can see me, I'm the one in orange...

Running Blind

My next novel from the bookstore of mom is "Running Blind" (486 pages) by Lee Child, an author I've never read before. From Goodreads:

"People say that knowledge is power. The more knowledge, the more power. Suppose you knew the winning numbers in the lottery? What would you do? You would run to the store. You would mark the numbers on the play card. And you would win. Same for the stock market. Same for basketball or the horses or anything. Same for killing people.

Women are dying. Women who have nothing in common except the fact that they once worked for the military. And they knew Jack Reacher. How and why these women are in danger completely baffles the elite FBI team working the case. There is no trace evidence. There are no links between victims. Their bodies have no fatal wounds. And the killer entered their homes and exited again like a summer breeze. Are these perfect crimes? There is only one certainty: there is a new kind of killer out there, one so calm, cautious, and careful that even the brilliant Reacher is left running blind."

An interesting mystery/thriller in spite of it being the fourth in a series of books featuring hero Jack Reacher (my mother always gives me books that are in the middle of some series). This fact didn't deter from me liking the novel though it would have been nice to start at the beginning and know a little more about Reacher's background story. Well written by Child, especially when it comes to dialogue. Mysteries or thrillers are so common place in the market it's hard to find a writer or story that really stands out. Having said that I was very impressed by the conclusion of this novel and how the killer is found. It had me guessing right up to the end. Recommended for fans of the genre and Lee Child.

Fried Bubblegum

Leave it to the Texas State Fair to come up with the most bizarre food you can fry, again. Justin Martinez, a 30 year-old Arlington, Texas baker, took home the State Fair of Texas's Seventh Annual Big Tex Choice prize for "Most Creative" for fried bubblegum.

Link.

Interestingly, there's no actual gum in the recipe. Martinez created the familiar taste with bubblegum flavored marshmallows that were deep fried, covered in icing and then dusted with powdered sugar.

Disgusting. And I thought last year's fried beer entry was bad enough!

So once again as fair season rears its ugly head, I ask all you foodies out there: what's the weirdest fried food you've ever had on a stick (or not on a stick)?

I'm still waiting for fried weasel...

The 20 Questions of Doom Meme

As always, courtesy of Sunday Stealing.

Cheers to all of us thieves!

1. Do you believe in Heaven?
I do not. As I've said many times on this blog I don't suffer from that particular mental illness.

2. Have you ever come close to dying?
Not that I'm aware of, though I did have an interesting experience with a freight elevator once.

3. What jewelery do you wear 24/7?
None. I wear a watch but not 24/7.

4. Would you ever consider having plastic surgery?
Maybe. Botox or something along those lines.

5. What do you wear to bed?
It varies. Usually I fall asleep in my clothes on the sofa. If I actually drag myself to bed I go with a tee and underwear.

6. Have you ever done anything illegal?
Sure. Hasn't everyone?

7. Who was the last person that you touched?
Dann.

8. Where did you eat last?
Mexico Joes yesterday in Stillwater.

9. Besides your own blog, are there any that you routinely read but never comment on?
Yes, often. I lurk around many blogs.

10. Ever been involved with the police?
I've never dated a policeman. Was that the question?

11. Do you talk in your sleep?
I've been told that I do on occasion.

12. Now a celebrity fantasy. Who would you take on a ménage à trois for a dirty weekend?
This is an oddly placed question.

13. Do you feel that you’ve had a truly successful life?
Not really but I'm working on it.

14. Where do you wish you were?
Chicago or New York City.

15. Have you ever ridden in an ambulance?
Never.

16. Is there any type of dancing that you love to do?
I like to two-step and waltz but I don't know if I would characterize it as love.

17. Last gift you received?
I can't remember. Books from my mother maybe.

18. Last sport you played?
Beer pong.

19. Last place you went on holiday?
New York City last month.

20. Current Song?
"Pumped Up Kicks" by Foster the People.

City on Fire!

Happy September everyone! Cooler weather, football, and conflagrations.


The drought is certainly taking its toll on Oklahoma as fires rage around the city. The other night I could see big plumes of smoke to the north and the east from my front porch! Luckily living in the ghetto pretty much shelters me from out of control fires.

My friend Timmy made a good point on Facespace the other day about the fires. Why aren't conservatives blaming god's wrath on this latest round of natural disasters in Oklahoma? You know, like they did the earthquakes and hurricane back east. Maybe because Oklahoma bleeds red more than most states and is kooky Christian country. There are more churches in Oklahoma than in all of California. Wrap your head around that.

Besides burning up, here's what's on tap for me this month:

9/3 - Football!!! I'm so starved for sports I just about can't stand it. Sure there's the WNBA and Tennis. I may be gay but I'm still a man! I'm looking forward to good things from Oklahoma State and the Dallas Cowboys this season. (And death to the Sooners!)

9/4 - Arctic Cold Front! Supposedly the hottest summer on record in Oklahoma will come to an end early Sunday morning with a cold front moving through the state. The forecast for the week following the cold front has our highs only in the '80's! Break out the fur coats.

9/5 - Labor Day. Just an excuse to have two Sunday Fundays in a row.

9/9 - Visit Oklahoma City Weekend (TM). My friend Jason from Chicago is visiting me here in the city for the second year in a row. What could possess him to want to come here again is beyond me but I'm excited to see my friend. He'll also have a boyfriend in tow that I believe has never been to Oklahoma. Commence with culture shock.

9/15 - The Great State Fair of Oklahoma opens. Ten days of bad food, scary rides, and people watching like you wouldn't believe! Look for me in line at the fried turd on a stick vendor.

9/25 - OKC AIDS Walk and 5K Run. A great charity and event but why did they move it to September from October? I hope it's not too hot.

So what's everyone else doing of interest this month?

A Clash of Kings

Someday fall may actually arrive, or at least below 100 degree weather, and I'll be able to leave the house. In the meantime, as always, I've been reading. I took a trip to Barnes and Noble to pick up "A Clash of Kings" (761 pages). It's the follow up to George R. R. Martin's "A Game of Thrones." From Goodreads:

"A Clash of Kings is the follow-up to A Game of Thrones, George R. R. Martin's fabulous introduction to a multilayered epic fantasy adventure that marked one of the most auspicious kickoffs in years. For those who enjoy their fantasy big, thick, and complex -- Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire series is for you. Fans of Jordan, Brooks, Goodkind, Feist, and high fantasy escapism in general are recommended -- no, commanded -- to flock to this breathtaking series. You'll be doing yourself an immense favor."

I don't know who Jordan, Brooks, Goodkind, and Feist are since I don't really read anything in the fantasy genre but I'm now hooked on Martin's series in spite of the complexity and mammoth lengths of each book.

There's really not a lot I can say since this book is a sequel in a series. The writing is engaging with many characters and plots all working together. I'm definitely going to snag "A Storm of Swords" the next time I hit the book store.

Sizzling Sixteen

I can't believe Janet Evanovich has written 16 books about Stephanie Plum. I can't believe I've read them all, including the latest entry yesterday, "Sizzling Sixteen" (326 pages). From the back of the book:

"Trenton, New Jersey, bounty hunter Stephanie Plum has inherited a 'lucky' bottle from her Uncle Pip. Problem is, Uncle Pip didn’t specify if the bottle brought good luck or bad luck....

BAD LUCK:
Vinnie, of Vincent Plum Bail Bonds, has run up a gambling debt of $786,000 with mobster Bobby Sunflower and is being held until the cash can be produced. Nobody else will pay to get Vinnie back, leaving it up to Stephanie, office manager Connie, and file clerk Lula to raise the money if they want to save their jobs.

GOOD LUCK:
Being in the business of tracking down people, Stephanie, Lula, and Connie have an advantage in finding Vinnie. If they can rescue him, it will buy them some time to raise the cash.

BAD LUCK:
Finding a safe place to hide Vinnie turns out to be harder than raising $786,000. Vinnie’s messing up local stoner Walter 'Moon Man' Dunphy's vibe, running up pay-per-view porn charges in security expert Ranger’s apartment, and making Stephanie question genetics.

GOOD LUCK:
Between a bonds office yard sale that has the entire Burg turning out, Mooner’s Hobbit-Con charity event, and Uncle Pip’s mysterious bottle, they just might raise enough money to save Vinnie and the business from ruin.

BAD LUCK:
Saving Vincent Plum Bail Bonds means Stephanie can keep being a bounty hunter. In Trenton, this involves hunting down a man wanted for polygamy, a Turnpike toilet paper bandit, and a drug dealer with a pet alligator named Mr. Jingles.

GOOD LUCK:
The job of bounty hunter comes with perks in the guise of Trenton’s hottest cop, Joe Morelli, and the dark and dangerous, Ranger. With any luck at all, Uncle Pip’s lucky bottle will have Stephanie getting lucky---the only question is . . . with whom?

Sizzling Sixteen . . . so hot, the pages might spontaneously combust!"

One word review of the latest books in the Stephanie Plum series: meh. "Sizzling Sixteen" was better than "Finger Lickin' Fifteen" but that isn't saying much. I really enjoy the characters of this series and the overall premise of the books but unfortunately after sixteen installments there has been zero growth. Stephanie gets a new case or two and bumbles her way around while flirting with Joe or Ranger. Exchange plot lines every novel and that's pretty much all you have. The first few novels in the series were really fantastic but unfortunately the formula has grown stale over the course of many, many books.

I'll continue to read each new entry yearly, at least they're always good for a chuckle. Recommended for fans of Janet Evanovich and the Stephanie Plum series.

Orange Power!!

10. More. Days.

I know the video is a little cheesey but I'm so pumped about the 2011 college football season. I just found out I have tickets to the first game of the season! Commence foaming at the mouth...

Go Pokes!!

Thunderstruck

With the conclusion of "Thunderstruck" (463 pages) I have read everything Erik Larson has written, so far. From the book's cover:

"A true story of love, murder, and the end of the world’s 'great hush.'

In Thunderstruck, Erik Larson tells the interwoven stories of two men — Hawley Crippen, a very unlikely murderer, and Guglielmo Marconi, the obsessive creator of a seemingly supernatural means of communication — whose lives intersect during one of the greatest criminal chases of all time.

Set in Edwardian London and on the stormy coasts of Cornwall, Cape Cod, and Nova Scotia, Thunderstruck evokes the dynamism of those years when great shipping companies competed to build the biggest, fastest ocean liners, scientific advances dazzled the public with visions of a world transformed, and the rich outdid one another with ostentatious displays of wealth. Against this background, Marconi races against incredible odds and relentless skepticism to perfect his invention: the wireless, a prime catalyst for the emergence of the world we know today. Meanwhile, Crippen, 'the kindest of men,' nearly commits the perfect crime.

With his superb narrative skills, Erik Larson guides these parallel narratives toward a relentlessly suspenseful meeting on the waters of the North Atlantic. Along the way, he tells of a sad and tragic love affair that was described on the front pages of newspapers around the world, a chief inspector who found himself strangely sympathetic to the killer and his lover, and a driven and compelling inventor who transformed the way we communicate. Thunderstruck presents a vibrant portrait of an era of séances, science, and fog, inhabited by inventors, magicians, and Scotland Yard detectives, all presided over by the amiable and fun-loving Edward VII as the world slid inevitably toward the first great war of the twentieth century. Gripping from the first page, and rich with fascinating detail about the time, the people, and the new inventions that connect and divide us, Thunderstruck is splendid narrative history from a master of the form."

Another great read by Larson, though my least favorite of in a collection of great stories. Like "The Devil in the White City" Larson takes two seemingly different stories and shows how they intersect in history. Brilliant and a pleasure to read as always. I don't think there's another author in the world that could coax me in to reading anything about Guglielmo Marconi, despite the visionary he might have been.

The work of non-fiction is fast paced and full of Larson's wonderful ability to retell historic events as though it was a work of fiction. Highly recommended as with all his other books. Not to be missed.

The Heaven Eleven Meme

It's been a while since I participated in Sunday Stealing so I thought I would get an early start and post my answers today. I know my blog is slowly dieing but I'm just not feeling it lately. It seems that Facespace has been a better venue lately to be snarly. That and I'm still shell shocked to be back in the south...

Cheers to all of us thieves!

1. If you could live in any other time period, which would you pick?
Between the two great wars, the 1920's, either in America or Europe. I'm fascinated by this time in history.

2. What is your favorite topic to write on your blog other than a meme?
Nothing really, I just write about what interests me at any particular time. If I had a theme it would be more empty than it already is around here.

3. What are some traits that you admire in a lover?
I like eyes and smiles and also someone who is clean.

4. Could you adjust to life in another country?
Absolutely, especially in Europe. I'd totally settle in Berlin if I had the money to move there.

5. If you could study anything, what would it be?
Quantum physics.

6. What is your favorite possession that cost less than $15?
I'm quite fond of my Oklahoma State iPhone protector that has Pistol Pete on it.

7. Which color do you wear most often?
Off the top of my head I would have to say blue.

8. What has been your “theme song”, or favorite song this summer?
"Hello," "Just Can't Get Enough," or "Take Over Control." All these songs remind me of time in Chicago or Louisiana this summer.

9. What's the most romantic thing that's ever been said to you?
Nothing. A close second would be "who is this?"

10. What would be your dream birthday cake?
I'm not a big fan of cake especially from bakeries, usually they're shitty. My mom makes a pretty decent strawberry cake though.

11. What is the coolest thing you’ve ever done?
That's a tough question. Traveling is the coolest thing I can think of off the top of my head. I was an exchange student in German when I was 17, that probably counts as travel.

A Game of Thrones

I finally had to see what all the hype was involving George R. R. Martin's "A Game of Thrones" (694 pages). From the cover of the book:

"Long ago, in a time forgotten, a preternatural event threw the seasons out of balance. In a land where summers can last decades and winters a lifetime, trouble is brewing. The cold is returning and in the frozen wastes to the north of Winterfell, sinister and supernatural forces are massing beyond the kingdom's protective Wall. At the center of the conflict lie the Starks of Winterfell, a family as harsh and unyielding as the land they were born to. Sweeping from a land of brutal cold to a distant summertime kingdom of epicurean plenty, here is a tale of lords and ladies, soldiers and sorcerers, assassins and bastards, who come together in a time of grim omens.

Here an enigmatic band of warriors bear swords of no human metal; a tribe of fierce wildlings carry men off into madness; a cruel young dragon prince barters his sister to win back his throne; and a determined woman undertakes the most treacherous of journeys. Amid plots and counterplots, tragedy and betrayal, victory and terror, the fate of the Starks, their allies, and their enemies hangs perilously in the balance, as each endeavors to win that deadliest of conflicts: the game of thrones."

I really wanted to like this novel more than what was given me. I plugged through a bunch of different chapters centered around a multitude of characters. So many characters in fact it was hard to keep everyone straight initially. Finally after about 500 pages into this tome everything started to click and the action began to pick up speed. By the end of the first part of this series I was thirsty for the story to continue and naturally it ended on a cliff hanger. Now that I'm somewhat sucked in I guess I'll need to buy the next novel.

A friend of mine described "A Game of Thrones" as "Lord of the Rings" with tits. I'm not sure I would go that far. There is some gratuitous sex sprinkled throughout the novel but nothing too extreme. I enjoyed Martin's writing style for the most part and give him credit for creating an engrossing world with a ton of characters and cultures. As a book to set up a series I think "A Game of Thrones" mostly succeeds but damn if it doesn't take its time getting on with it! Recommended especially for fans of fantasy which admittedly I'm not.

After reading the "A Game of Thrones" I watched the first season of the HBO series of the same name online. It's a great treatment to the novel, following it very closely. Violence, sex, and nudity abounds. All good stuff...

Fancy a Ride to Coober Pedy?

Well I'm back in in Oklahoma, boo. I guess I should post some of my adventures in New York City. I was lucky enough to see Priscilla Queen of the Desert, The Musical on Saturday night. It was fantastic, probably my favorite now just edging out Wicked.

For those of you unaware, the musical is based on the movie of the same name starring Hugo Weaving, Guy Pearce, and Terence Stamp. The plot chronicles the three drag queens on their journey through the Australian Outback from Sydney to Alice Springs in their bus named Priscilla. It's a fun and often touching movie that should not be missed.

The musical followed the plot of the movie very well incorporating 80's songs into the mix. The performances were all very strong and the set design very well done especially the bus which moved all over the stage and even opened up for an interior view. On a slightly disappointing note the role of Felicia normally portrayed by Nick Adams was replaced by his understudy Bryan West. West was still outstanding in the show and my favorite member, not to mention cute with an unbelievable butt!

If you're in New York City in the near future see this musical!




"I hereby christen this budget Barbie camper van, Priscilla Queen of the desert!"

Check!

Laundry done and bags packed. Check.

Book and iPod for the plane. Check.

Bath house membership in my wallet. Check.

I'm ready to go to New York City!!


I'm totally kidding, I'm not taking a book on the plane...

I have no clue what to expect from the Big Apple as I've never been to New York City before. The only firm plans I have are to see my friend Lindsey, to see "Wicked" and "Priscilla Queen of the Desert," and to eat at "Craft." Other than that the sky's the limit!

Everyone have a wonderful week, see you on the flip side...