Monday night

Sick today. Stayed home and slept. Then had dinner at Flanigan's. B. was there, sitting down the bar by the washrooms, facing the other way. (I always eat at the bar and took a seat by the door.) I guess he was with the BF, but I didn't really recognize him. Their car wasn't parked in the handicapped space -- unless they got a new car. (I often see it there on Monday nights, which is B.'s usual night off.)

I went to the restroom to wash my hands after dinner and smiled at B. and gave him the peace sign on my way back to my seat. It's now been two years since he left. I wonder how he looks back on our time together. Does he think about his cat (who's here)? It was strange to see him. I don't know whether I would have gone to eat there if I'd seen the "pimpmobile" parked outside in the handicapped space.

Went to the store afterwards to pick up an additional package of stew beef (on sale this week). Going to make a pot of vegetable beef soup but didn't think I'd bought enough beef.

I've had serious misgivings about updating my Firefox, but tonight I found an add-on to manage the tabs so it acts more like the previous version, even better maybe.

Tonight I discovered water accumulating in the bathroom ceiling above the tub. Apparently someone has a leak above me. Upstairs neighbor had a leak a couple of years ago and fixed it. I'll have to notify the management office tomorrow. The leak is in the exact same place it was before.

Anthony Bourdain was good tonight. He was up the Hudson River.

Not looking forward to tomorrow when the plumber comes. Gotta face the music.

Sunday night

Back from gym and store. Don't feel like making anything to eat. I'm a little nervous over the plumber coming on Tuesday (at 9:00 a.m.), but the leak in the toilet tank is getting faster and faster. I'm nervous about the cost, since I want the plumber to do a couple of other things around here that have to be done in addition to the toilet (which the maintenance people here tell me needs a new valve). Recently a battery went down one of the bathroom sinks as I was changing the batteries in my toothbrush. That needs to be removed from the trap. Also, the handle for regulating the water in the bathtub is broken. It's probably the original handle from the '70s.

Was over at Starbucks earlier and had a turkey & Swiss, then drank 8 oz. protein drink before gym.

Finally got hold of my friend in Canada today. He's been going out of town on the weekends to visit someone. (I knew that.)

Tried to get on a video chat today but it's not communicating with my QuickCam. Notified the chat's technical support. Should hear back from them within 48 hours.

[Later] Been watching a "What Not To Wear" marathon on TV. (Not a football fan.) Was glad New Orleans won, however, and they were the underdogs.

Getting used to the new version of Firefox. I liked the old one, where I had my row of favorite sites, which I could then open onto another row if I wanted. Now I have one row of open sites. No big deal, I guess. Last night I also downloaded Google Chrome (again). I want to try it out (again).

Saturday night

With Super Bowl happening here, didn't venture out to dinner tonight. Had two lemon herb SeaSations frozen fish fillets and some Stouffer's spinach souffle. Had two cups of coffee at Starbucks earlier, as the temperature dropped into the 60s.

[Later] Tried calling my friend in Canada and left a message. He said he'd be around this weekend. Hmmm.

[Later still] Decided to go back to video chat. Will probably go with ICU2, which I used to like. Was on a whole odyssey tonight researching, downloading and removing video chat software. Which also entailed removing Firefox, since it became contaminated with a Yahoo toolbar after I installed the Yahoo Messenger, then re-installing Firefox, after checking out Google Chrome (again). I'm comfortable with Firefox. I've begun redoing my tabs.

Saturday afternoon

It's nice outside today, so I'll get cleaned up and walk over to Starbucks with a magazine. I'm going to discontinue the online "matchmaking" service that had the questionable questionnaire. They found this match for me: "I am a pre operative transgender gal looking for Mr right! Are you him!!!" I have nothing against transgender people, but I'm a gay man seeking a gay man, and stated as much during the questionnaire process. How this service could possibly match me up with a woman (in the making) only shows how terribly flawed it is.

I saw this on another site: " I had a penectomy by choice. What is a penectomy you ask? I had a man cut my cock off and no there is no visible stub . . . ." Yikes!

TGIF!

Rachel is in New Orleans tonight. As Keith Olbermann asked her at the top of the show, does she know the Super Bowl is in Miami?

I like Rachel's outfits when she's not broadcasting from New York. Check out this number. Very butch, but stylish.

Note in the top shot that they're using a French spelling for the English long O. Next I'll watch "20/20," where Barbara Walters will interview SC Gov. Sanders' estranged wife, Jenny.

A few days ago I bought a container of "no sugar added" orange sherbet at Publix. It turns out it contains sorbitol (and maltitol, also). On the label, there's an asterisk by sorbitol and the footnote reads: "SENSITIVE INDIVIDUALS MAY EXPERIENCE A LAXATIVE EFFECT FROM EXCESS CONSUMPTION OF THIS INGREDIENT." It turns out, I'm one of those individuals. (I only ate a cup of sherbet.) According to Wikipedia, maltitol can also have that effect. Maltitol and sorbitol are, respectively, the third and fourth most-prevalent ingredients.

Here, they're making (and drinking) a special New Orleans cocktail.

[Later] I knew nothing about Jenny Sanford. From Chicago originally, she was an investment banker on Wall St. before she married that jerk.

Next, "What Not To Wear." A 26-year-old Episcopal priest from St. Louis. Very pretty. (She'll still have to wear the collar at work.) Next, "The Haunted" on Animal Planet. Spooky. Then another "What Not To Wear" -- from 2008, not HDTV. What a difference. I'm spoiled.

Had a busy week. Did the long walk home. Tired. Next Tuesday I have a plumber coming. The maintenance crew here can't fix my toilet.

Thursday night II

Did my walk after work. Beautiful weather.

Fried up some lean, ground sirloin for lunch tomorrow. I'll have that with some collard greens (canned, but I'll butter them up).

Watching MSNBC. Next, chill with Project Runway.

[Later] I'm not a fashion maven, but I didn't find the losing garment all that objectionable -- and the client liked it. But somebody had to lose tonight. I did think the winning garment should have won. It flowed beautifully and flattered the client.

So the Republicans are bringing back privatizing Social Security and now Medicare? In the wake of the meltdown on Wall Street? Good luck with that. I'll bet some of the teabaggers like their Social Security and Medicare and don't want those going into the toilet. (I seriously doubt the Medicare people would trust the health insurance companies to look after them.) As Rachel Maddow said tonight, the Republicans have tossed a nice curve ball across the Democrats' plate, and we'd better take a good whack at it.

Thursday night

Was the poll skewed? If so, how badly? See here.

Here are the demographics used in the sample versus a more accurate picture of the composition of the GOP as compiled from various sources.

Demographic		Sample Size	Sample Pct.	Actual
Men		1125	56.16%	52%
Women		878	43.83%	48%
White		1787	89.21%	89%
Other		216	10.78%	11%
18-29		178	8.88%	15%
30-44		418	20.86%	26%
45-59		664	33.15%	37%
60+		743	37.09%	22%
Northeast		217	10.83%	18.60%
South		846	42.24%	36.32%
Midwest		437	21.82%	25.45%
West		503	25.11%	19.63%
Source: Daily Kos/Research 2000,
Gallup, Pew Research Trust, CNN

In short, the Daily Kos poll has a bias that oversamples Southerners who are more extreme in their views (the poll also drastically undersamples the generally more moderate Republicans in the Northeast by over eight percentage points) and thus paints the GOP as more extreme than they really are. The Daily Kos poll is an inaccurate reflection of the national GOP but likely an accurate picture of the views of its Southern base which nonetheless does account for over one third of its electoral strength nationally. And that Southern base plagues the national GOP to a degree that cannot be overstated.

Wednesday night

Back at gym tonight. Hadn't been on a Wednesday in two weeks. Had some of my least favorite exercises to do (including leg curls), but did them and feel good about it. (Don't have to do them again for a while.) Stopped off briefly at the store afterward.

Checking out a couple of those gay sites. I think I'm going to discontinue one of them (the one with the questionable questionnaire--not really a gay site but advertises to gays). Gays have special issues, such as HIV status, for example. And in some states, including Florida, gays aren't allowed to adopt children, so questions about whether you want to have children become more complicated than the questionnaire allows for.

Bootsy is starting to get clingy with me again and attack Lucky in my presence. I'm putting a stop to that. Lucky's my baby. Took a nap after work, before going to the gym, and Lucky napped beside me with his tail draped across my shoulder the whole time. (Actually, that helps me fall asleep.)

Chris Hayes from The Nation on Rachel now. He's probably my favorite commentator. Highly articulate and insightful.

So Gen. Colin Powell is saying it's time to end "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." Good for him. Now McCain is against it, even though he originally said he'd defer to Colin Powell on that issue. The Party of No.

You know canned corned beef has to be bad for you when the label says there are six servings in a 12-oz. can (at 150 calories each, with gobs of fat and cholesterol). But it's very high in protein. I don't eat a lot of it.

Once I was in a small town just north of Richmond, Virginia and ordered a corned beef sandwich from the menu at a drug store lunch counter, and they made it with canned corned beef (on white toast, if I recall correctly). (Actually, I lived in that town for about two years, attending college.) Truth be told, I liked the sandwich, but it certainly wasn't what I'd expected. I ended up transferring back to Miami, where the corned beef sandwiches were better. (But nowadays it seems the delis are pushing leaner corned beef - blah.)

Lucky seems happier tonight. I'm glad I picked up on the problem that apparently had been festering for a few days. I'd sensed something was wrong in the way Lucky as acting (depressed). Bootsy wants it to be only he and I together, against the interloper (Lucky). I won't put up with that. This morning I scolded Bootsy when he attacked Lucky at feeding time. Plus I've made sure Lucky can eat on his own, away from Bootsy.

Tuesday night

Home from work, after walk. Couldn't walk last night since it was rainy and muddy.

Did some more research on the gay "matchmaking" sites. Testing another one out that has more members than the one I signed up for last night. Don't know whether I like it, but we'll see. It had a long questionnaire that didn't seem to be tailored to gay people (and it's a gay site).

Got a kick out of this article ("Kos/R2K Poll: Republican Voters Are Extremists"). See details here.

Do you believe Sarah Palin is more qualified to be President than Barack Obama?

Yes 53
No 14
Not Sure 33

Sigh...

Do you believe Barack Obama is a racist who hates White people?

Yes 31
No 36
Not Sure 33

I bet more people think Obama is racist, but were too afraid to tell a live operator the truth.

Do you believe your state should secede from the United States?

Yes 23
No 58
Not Sure 19

42 percent of Republicans aren't really patriotic. They pretend to love America only when they approve of the president. These traitors don't believe in democracy, in our nation's founding ideals, or in our flag. . . .

GAYS

Should openly gay men and women be allowed to serve in the military?

Yes 26
No 55
Not Sure 19

Should same sex couples be allowed to marry?

Yes 7
No 77
Not Sure 16

Should gay couples receive any state or federal benefits?

Yes 11
No 68
Not Sure 21

Should openly gay men and women be allowed to teach in public schools?

Yes 8
No 73
Not Sure 19

Oof. That's some serious neanderthal action going on. Gays can't serve their country, teach children, get married, or even have civil unions. That's the GOP agenda for gays, which makes the existence of the Log Cabin Republicans that much more of a mystery. . . .

Signed up for one more gay site and will check that one out, too. (Haven't made any financial commitments yet.) Cooked some turkey Italian sausage for lunch tomorrow. Will have that with canned 4-bean salad (really good).

I'm glad I've started exploring the gay sites. It's time. Need to exit the crazy straight world occasionally (for reasons, see above). Facebook can be horrible -- the hate/ignorance is out there and is offensive. I don't even want to deal with it when I'm sitting here at home, in my own space, my sanctuary, if you will. And the local gay bar closed down in 2005. Then B. returned to the druggie world exactly two years ago (with help from his clueless, self-absorbed family and druggie-friendly doctor), so I was alone again but for the cats.