FYI

Just in case anyone out there reads this blog but doesn't know me personally or follow me on twitter, I just realized I posted about being in a car crash and then went silent for two days.

I'm still okay, I just haven't had the time or mind to blog.
Just some bruising and PTSD, luckily.

The blog nobody saw coming

I was sitting around my room before waiting for the rain to stop, saying how I would blog but I didn't have anything to write about since I was planning on today's post being about my first experience driving a jet ski. I never got to do it, the thunder storms started up again when we got to the rental office. So yeah, nothing to blog about. Then came the drive home.



Car smashed into two and spun around with us inside.



Weren't expecting that, huh? Neither were we. I'm still shaking.


My father, who by the way is 61 years old and makes his living as a driver, has never had anything more than a fender bender before today. He was driving down the block leading to our hotel and crossing a four way intersection (that has no lights because, you know, that is safe.) We stopped at the STOP sign and he didn't see anything. I, for the record, have this horrible habit of thinking like a driver from the passengers side seat and also didn't see anything close. All of a sudden this mini-van comes speeding down the road while we were mid-street. I yelled "WATCH OUT," in that way that everyone does, out of reflex I suppose, but it never really does any good. Next thing I knew, I was spinning around and that noise that had left my memory (and will probably fade away again in an hour or so) from my December 04 crash, came flying back through my head. Luckily nobody was hurt, just a few bruises for me and a few on Lauren (who can now say she's survived a car accident) with a side of scared to a ghostly white color. My mother, who wasn't actually in the car but rather several blocks away, was and still is, a nervous wreck but none the worse for wear.


My father was also alright, though emotionally he's shot. The sign was on our side so, at least according to New York laws, he will probably be at fault legally. Furthermore, it was a teenage driver he hit, so there is a guilt factor, though i personally think speeding her pack car into that big of a collision should get the little twit's license revoked. Then there is our car. His car, which he's had for a year (in which it was cursed-hit while park several times) is now completely demolished. It's okay, though, because we are alive and car are replaceable. Is it upsetting, yes but replaceable. We are luck, in a way, or to better word it, it could always be worse.


I thanked God that he was there to protect us, that he is always there protecting us because no matter how much it burns, the only thing that really matters is that we are alive. Everything else is replaceable.

Beach Reading: Back Where He Started From

If you want a twist on your typical, Guy leaves wife for secretary story read BACK WHERE HE STARTED.

Editorial Review From Amazon.com

Product Description

They say true freedom arrives when all the kids are gone and the dog dies. With his family grown and his husband Zack having decided to become a middle-aged cliché and marry his secretary, Chris Thayer is about to discover that starting life over at 48 is just as complicated, frustrating and thrilling as the first time around. After relocating to the North Carolina beach community of Emerald Isle, Chris finds a new appreciation of his role as the heart of the home to his grown children and becomes involved in the patchwork lives of his neighbors. To his unending surprise, he also finds himself the object of a new man's affections, a rowdy jack-of-all-trades with an unnervingly direct stare.

Now, I know what you are thinking, in the words of my best friend's Grandma Billie "they're queers!"


Dirty little secret, straight girls love gay men. Why is this a dirty little secret? They only share it with their closest friends and guys are completely clueless. So, after ordering a book based on the Critically Acclaimed TV Series QUEER AS FOLK, this book was recommended for me and since I have no problem reading such a story, and I was in the middle of the cold winter, I immediately ran to my local library and picked up this story that allowed me to escape to the warmth of the beach.


As far as I can remember, though it has been a few years, there were no gratuitous sex scenes that would gross out anyone who can't picture a love scene with two men. There is some kissing and maybe heavy petting but, as the lead character's name is Chris, I suppose you can pretend he's a she if need be. The point is, it is a really sweet story that teaches that family is more than just blood and, with just a bit of imagination, is visually stunning.


I recommend it for sitting on a beach as the waves crash around you or for anyone longing to feel like they are, while sitting anywhere else.

Tune in Tuesday: Ryan Star's 11:59

I interrupt Beach Week for an important announcement about a "shore"fire hit! that was stupid

This could be the best time of our lives, tonight
Don't let the moment pass by
Put the windows down and drive away.

This is the chorus of 11:59's title track and it is also the mantra I've lived since graduation. basically what 11:59 is all about is living life to the fullest because you never know what the future holds which is something, as first unemployed and now still not a journalist, I have connected to even before I'd heard the song, or for that matter Star.

So with my PLAY NOW BECAUSE YOU WILL ALWAYS HAVE TIME TO WORK OR PAY LATER attitude I have, as you know, gone to a great deal of concerts which led me to see Ryan Star for the first time in March of 2009 as he opened for David Cook. I've already gone into how great a performer he is, and how he should never be missed in Music Monday: Ryan Star (and again in 2 Girls From New York Go Into a Bar ) so I won't do it again but basically from that first encounter, I have been aching for his album and now, almost a year and a half later, it will finally be available in one week.

That is a long time to wait for music and, as a very impatient person, I didn't. I went to see him live Easter, Earth Day, that night in Virgina, and most recently celebrated my birthday a day early at a radio gig of his and during that time I realized that he has improved ten fold over that opening act that matched up with the incomparable David Cook. Even more important, however, I have had the chance to get to know Ryan and I can tell you, as great of a performer as he is, that is nothing compared to how great of a person he is. He makes his fans feels like family, and if there was ever a nice guy who deserved to finish first, it's him.

Now that part is up to you. I've already ordered my copy of 11:59 and i suggest you do the same. You want more proof, go listen to it here. When you're done doing that, head over to Amazon or Itunes, RSTAR.net, or wherever it is you like to buy music (are record stores still around?) and preorder your copy today.

Thank You

Now back to the beach...

Water Baby

In my post Recession Proof, I promised to get into the strange phenomenon of my having great ideas in the bath tub. Well in truth, it all boils down to me having great ideas while being in close proximity to water sources of any kind. While taking baths or lounging on the beach I tend to come up with great stories or solve issues that seemed unsolvable almost effortlessly. After much discussions about this with my closest friends and relatives, the conclusion we’ve come to is that it is a direct result of my being born under the Astrological Water Sign Cancer:

water elements: Torrents of passion well within water signs and they feel things deeply. However, water signs are always emotionally reserved, no matter what impression they might give on the surface. Still water, it has been said, runs deep, and the mystery about water pertains to this group (especially Scorpio). A water sign will always become quiet or withdrawn when they are trying to sort things out. It will take some time to get to know them well, for they reveal themselves slowly. They realize their intense emotions hold tremendous power, and they tend to handle their feelings carefully.

Cancer is a Cardinal sign, Scorpio is a Fixed sign, and Pisces is a Mutable sign. In basic terms, Cancer leads and initiates, Scorpio goes deep with a fixed focus and Pisces is changeable, hard to pin down.

Look carefully at the bold parts and it seems to make sense that i would be at my best mentally (and in all fascists) when i am alone with only the water. However my natural oneness with water doesn't stop with my thoughts, ever since I can remember, I have always felt at home in the water.

When I was less than two years old, I was riding waves in my father’s arms in the night seas of Virginia Beach. Some babies are scared to put a toe in the ocean midday but, according to my parents, I was fearlessly laughing and bursting with joy as I splashed around under the moon with my daddy singing Mother Goose songs. I always love that image because I think it lays out the whole blue print of who I am, loving the water and not able to keep my mouth shut lol.

In all seriousness, there is just something so magical about the ocean. It has the power to kill you within seconds but still manages to be the most calming presence we have in all of nature. It has been around longer than humans, it existed before Dinosaurs and everything else, it gives life to everything that has ever lived and ever will live, it has seen empires rise and dynasties fall, it will never be exactly the same twice, and will endure long after we are gone.

A different view...

As you are reading this, yours truly is probably laying poolside or baking on the sand, or splashing around in cool but not too cold waves of the Jersey Shore. So for the next, however many posts, I'll be writing away from home and I figured I'd give you a look around at where i will be positing from.

My Room

Love the Beach theme

Downstairs

And now the best part, the view (feel free to be jealous)

The Blog in which you discover I’m probably not as smart as I seem

This is being written under the assumption that I come across smart.

I have a bit of an aversion to horror. I don’t do Haunted Houses, haunted hey rides, horror movies, anything like that. I can do thrillers but not Slashers. I watch TRUE BLOOD, which isn’t really considered all that scary and still usually have to keep myself from all out screaming once an episode. It’s not about blood, it’s just about nightmares.

JAWS is billed as a horror movie. For this reason I Managed to go 22 years with out seeing it. I might be the only person to accomplish this, I heard for at least 12 of those years, “How have you never seen JAWS? Everyone has seen it.” The reaction was always as if I had said that I lacked some vital internal organ, but I’d seemed so normal. Two years ago (as you can probably guess by my age) I finally saw the film. It wasn’t that the peer pressure had gotten to me, I simply realized that, if I made it through JAWS 2, I should see the original.

I don’t normally watch sequels first. It was late at night two summers ago while I was staying at the Jersey Shore when I came across movie where a cute little boy was playing on a beach. It seemed like something that would sooth me or bore me to sleep, so I let it on. A few minutes in I saw Roy Schneider talking about how shutting down the beach because there was someone found dead.

“Oh my God, this is JAWS,” I yelled. “JAWS is going to eat the little boy!”

I then proceeded to watch the entire movie to make sure the little boy didn’t get eaten, as if I was his personal defender and I could save him. SPOILER: he doesn’t.

So let’s review, I watched a movie about a shark attacking people while I was in a bedroom literally a few yards away from the beach! And, furthermore, it was the middle of the night which, as anyone can tell you, is a great time to watch a movie that might scare you. I actually didn’t have any nightmares or fear at all really. In fact, I quite liked the movie and wanted to see the original as soon as I went home, but that really isn’t the point. And for the record, that movies isn’t a Horror movie at all, it’s more a suspense film with strawberry juice in the water, but again, I didn’t know that at the time.

There really isn’t a moral to this story, just a bit of insight into the (insane) way my mind works.

I don't want to Blog I want to watch David Cook

I had this blog planned out but instead decided to watch videos. However, since i am a good sharer, here is THE BEST OF THE DECLARATION TOUR as decided by members of DavidCookOfficial.com

It is, I believe, the best version, in their opinions, of every song he performed on his February-December 2009 Tour.

French Onion Soup down under style

You may remember, I mentioned here, that I rarely try new food and on the odd occasion that I do, it has either been a sample or from tasting someone else’s. Well last year I spend Halloween week on vacation on Orlando and during a dinner with family at a certain Australian themed chain, I noticed that my Uncle Paul ordered French Onion Soup and it smelled amazing.

“What’s that?” I inquired even though I knew full well and when he explained I followed it up with the subtle hint, “Oh yeah? I’ve never tried that since I don’t eat onion.”

He didn’t get the hint and told me how it was a funny story. He also doesn’t like onions, “can’t have them in anything,” but how, during a stay in Montreal all of his friends loved the stuff, and that on the very last day there, he tried it and has loved it ever since.

“Wow,” I replied, “maybe I should try it at some point then.” I know this sounds rather bunt but my uncle replied, obliviously, “You really should, your missing out,” then proceeded not to offer me any. I would’ve used my own spoon!

Anyway, so not long ago, I had a lunch that offered French Onion Soup as a side option so I tried it and it was pretty good. Then my parents took me to that same Aussie chain for a birthday dinner and I had there version, which is phenomenal.

Now here’s the best part, you don’t have to go to said chain to experience the delicious treat because I found the recipe online and I’m sharing it with all of you.

8 cups water
8 beef bouillon cubes
3 medium white onions
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup heavy cream
1 1/4 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1/4 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese
- Heat the water to boiling in a large pan. Add the bouillon cubes and dissolve. Cut the onion into thin slices, then quarter the slices. Add to the broth. Add salt and pepper.
- Bring the mixture back to boiling, then turn the heat down and simmer, uncovered, for 1 hour. While stirring, sift the flour into the soup.
- Continue to stir if any large lumps of flour develop. Be careful when you stir; aggressive agitation or using a whisk may tear the onions apart. As the soup continues to cook, any lumps should dissolve.
- After 30 minutes of additional simmering, add the cream and 1 cup cheddar cheese. Continue to simmer for another 5 to 10 minutes.
- Serve the soup hot after sprinkling 1/4 cup each of shredded Monterey Jack and cheddar on top.

Music Monday: Dalin Applebaum

This is Dallin, she may look familiar as she is the keyboard (and beautiful background vocals) behind Ryan Star. She is also a member of the band Emanuel and the Fear. When not doing all that, she has recorded two EPs (that I know of): Fortune Cookie and King's Highway and on occation plays shows in New York City, most often at Rockwell Hall. I have seen three such shows in the last year and was exteamly pissed and will be again if i miss another one wish i had seen more.

This is what Dallin sounds like:
Feeding Ghosts by dallin


And looks like in action:







Now for the best part, this is where you go to download Dallin's music (the one above is free and now that your hooked you will have no problem paying a small fee to support a worthy artist.)

http://www.myspace.com/dallinapplebaum You see Myspace still is ther and it misses you

And, now that you'll know the word to her songs, go see her live:

Wed Aug 04 10 06:00 PM | NYC, NY US
Venue: Rockwood Music Hall
Address: 196 Allen St, NYC, NY, 10002, US
Details: Dallin Applebaum at Stage 1, FREE SHOW! 21+
> (FREE!!!!)

Aging Out of Pinstripes

As I mentioned in March’s Goodbye Old Friend, I was a completely obsessed to the point of driving my family and friends rather avid Yankees fan. Even though I no longer wear my large collection of Yankees Memorabilia or watch every inning of every single game of the pre-season , regular season, and playoffs as many games as I used to, Old Timers Day remains something I never miss and this season was no different and as always it was great watching the players of yesteryear going out and being the boys of summer once again.They still bleed Yankee Blue and if you cut deep enough, so do I.

The roster was as follows:

(*Denotes First-Time Old-Timer)
Luis Arroyo
Mike Easler
Reggie Jackson
Joe Pepitone
Jesse Barfield
Dave Eiland
Don Johnson*
Duane Pillette*
Yogi Berra
Cecil Fielder*
Pat Kelly
Mickey Rivers
Ron Blomberg
Whitey Ford
Don Larsen
Charlie Silvera
Homer Bush
Oscar Gamble
Hector Lopez
Bill “Moose” Skowron
Rick Cerone
Joe Girardi
Lee Mazzilli
Aaron Small
Chris Chambliss
Rich “Goose” Gossage
Gene Michael
Mel Stottlemyre
Horace Clarke
Ron Guidry
Diana Munson
Ralph Terry
Jerry Coleman
Charlie Hayes
Kay Murcer
Mike Torrez
David Cone
Rickey Henderson
Jerry Narron
Bob Turley
Bucky Dent
Arlene Howard
Jeff Nelson
Roy White
Al Downing
Helen Hunter
Graig Nettles
Hank Workman*
Brian Doyle
Don Mattingly

Do you see the six names in Blue? They, along with Darryl Strawberry, Doc Gooden, Tino Martinez, Paul O’Neil, and Mike Mussina (among other) who appear in last year’s game, are the ones that are the game changers. I used to watch Old Timers’ Day and see players my dad grew up watching, but these guys are the ones who made my memories. But it gets worse, phenomenal boy wonders like Derek Jeter, Andy Pettitte, and Alex Rodriguez are now the ones that the new players seek out for advices. The “Next Generation of Yankees” are now the grizzled veterans and the veterans are now managers, coaches, and Old Timers, not to mention the new new Yankees are now my age and younger.

And get this; it’s not just the Yankees! Last week, while watching the Celebrity vs. Legends All Star Softball Game, I repeatedly crapped all over Mike Piazza HE KNOWS WHAT HE DID sat in aww as the “legends” were the really great players from the teams that the Yankees were playing (you know the players I’d love to hate.)

So what does all this mean? Well, I guess it means that I am getting older (even if my wisdom teeth have decided I’m still young enough to teeth.) But I am okay with my age (see Twenty Four) I think my problem is that they age. I know that is illogical, and maybe I need mental help Probably Mike Piazza fault as he is the root of all problems but having the men I adored graying and wrinkled really hurts my inner child, but hey there’s nothing I can do about it.

Time passes, life goes on, people get older. One day I will be older than any player on the field (shuddering) but it could be worse, Coney and crew (or worse me) could have ended up like Thurman Munson who died before he ever aged out of Pinstripes.