Frontal Fridays

I have been debating if I should continue this Friday feature.

The only good thing I see in keeping this up and running is that it gives me more of an incentive to keep hitting the gym in attempts to get back to the 160 pound frame that was pictured inthe last Frontal Friday.

So here goes.

This photo is the 1st up to date pic I have taken in awhile, and I definitly have a while before I hit my mark.

Check back in two weeks to get the full run down on the progress.

Hump Day Hottie: Taylor Lautner

I don't usually go for the teenagers, but this one has been plastered all over the airwave for the past few weeks, I just could not resist.

Is anyone else planning on seeing New Moon?

And Then There Were 100

Out.com announces its 100 most influencial people in the past year.

Some people I have heard of, and some I would not know if I had slept with them.

Either way, its a grat read...check it out when you get a chance.

Another Week, Another $7

Another day back in the saddle and another week of pressing mental issues.

Just a bit of a recap, I finally was able to hang out with Mac last Thursday night. I have not let you guys in on the details until today for two reasons…1.) There was not too much to tell, and 2.) We were supposed to hang out again last night and I thought there would be more to tell.

Well, last night Mac cancelled on me and we are not planning on hanging out again until Friday, so until then, I think I will hold on to my opinions of this 6’0 150lb blonde hottie until the 2nd “date”.

The good news is that I am slowly but surely getting over the fact that my roommate (and former ex) Red, just wants to be friends. During our trip to California, he flaunted his availability by making out and “shagging” more than a few guys only to be coupled with chatting very opening in front of me with guys on the internet and on the phone. No biggie though. Since I don’t have the balls to let him know the way that I truly feel about him, I have to move on with my own life, and keep our relationship the way it is, just as friends.

I am actually having more fun after realizing this. I am finally meeting more people and stepping out of my cocoon that I have been withering in for the past few years.

Fun days are ahead, I foresee.

This week’s Agenda

Monday- Hang out with Trey, a hot Italian that I met a few weeks ago

Tuesday- Netflix movie night

Wednesday- Drinks with Mac (tentative)

Thursday- no plans

Friday- Big Date with Mac
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Is it Thursday Already?

The week has gone by surprisingly fast.

Mostly because my emotions have seen more ups and downs than a roller coaster. It tends to make the seven days stream by.

Most of the plans which I have made for the week have already fallen through. And after all I have complained about being un-wanted by others, it was I who flaked out and dropped the ball.

The only date which I was able to keep so far this week was with Byron on Monday night. I was even planning on "dissing" my cousin on his birthday, but I do not feel so bad about that one. Not only was it NOT his birthday on Wednesday, I don't ever remembering him doing anything for my special day.

Byron and I met in a public place downtown and chatted about our commonalities over cocktails. Because I had just left work, I scarfed down a cheese quesadilla while we chatted, probably not the best choice.

I found out about the death of his former lover (tragic) and some of the reasons why he choose The Queen City as home. In addition, he spilled the beans about his career and education goals and other past life experiences.

All in all it was a great date...sans sex.

I was soo nervous throughout the entire meeting that when we hugged good-bye outside of the restaraunt, not only did I step on Byron's foot, but our fore heads bumped during the embrace.

Smooth move Exlax!

Despite the fact that I was a complete doofus during the few hours that we chatted, Bryon sent me a post-date email thanking me for hanging out and expressed his desire to meet up again. And yes, he too noticed how nervous I was.

It all reverts back to Red, my current roomie and ex lover. Now we say we are on friends status, in the back of my mind, I guess that I think that one day we will get back together, but this wish/want is hindering me from experiencing life.

If anyone else has been in this situation, please hit me up and give me some pointers as to how to get out of this mind set. Trying to do it alone is wearing me down.

On a lighter note, I rescheduled hanging out with Mac for tonight, pushing movie night to the weekend (?). And the run in the park with Antonio will have to be sometime next week. Both guys made the effort to contact me and make sure that everything was OK.

I will not make the same mistake twice.

Hump Day Hottie

When paroozing Out.com, I came across this Latin heart-throbe. Supposedly, Tamar Novas is the new "It-Guy" in Spain. Check out more info and more photos on Out.com.

Cincinnati Finally Becomes Pret-a-Porter

I have long since given up on attempting to find hip, gay friendly clothiers here in the Queen City that won't put too much of a dent in my pocketbook.

To combat the lack of stylish choices, since I moved back to the are in 2001 I have been rummaging through the local Goodwill Stores trying to find retro items that were popular on the coasts, but had not make it back to the Mid West.

Even with Macy's being head-quartered in the heart of the city, it made little impact in upgrading the quality of clothes offered.

In addition spending too much money on www.mensunderwear.com, I would save up the little money I made and travel to Los Angelos, Chicago and Philly to phat-ten my wardrobe.

You could imagine my delight when Nordstrom and H&M announced that they were laying groung on the banks of the Ohio.

This past weekend was the 1st time I have stepped foot in a local mall in almost year and was amazed the way that the presence of the aforementioned behemoths have changed the landscape of clothes shopping in the area.

Needless to say I spent way too much money, but the the glasses and the undies pictured in this post are two of the better find of the day!

Dustin' Off The Boots and Steppin' Out Again

Another Monday is here, but this “1st Day of the Work Week” does not seem as bland and uneventful as those in the past.

Maybe it’s due to the unexpected calls from former and potential suitors that I have been chatting with over the weekend, all of whom I have planned to meet this week.

To some this may not seem too much of a big deal, but for me, I can honestly say that never once felt more ‘wanted’ in my life than I have felt in the past few weeks.

Byron and I met at the end of the summer of 2009 and we hit if off pretty well, even though we had spent more than 30mins together. He is 31yrs old, light mocco-latte skin and educated (which is a plus). In the two weeks that we texted and emailed, we found out that we had many of the same thing in common such as eating out and staying in shape (though he does a way better job at doing it than I have.

Despite the fact that we seemed to be “digging” one another, I dropped the ball and cut off conversations with him, too afraid to show reveal interest in another guy to my ex-boyfriend (who I am currently still roommates with…another long story). Over the past few weeks, I have sparked up conversation with Byron and we have plans to hang out later tonight.

Though Byron was is an awesome find, Mac found me on the dance floor of a local night clubs this past last Friday evening. Now I am not the greatest dancer by any means, and was not looking particularly hot that evening.

In fact, I think I was being a wall flower for most of the evening. By the end of the night we were creating our own dances on the dance floor and at the end of the night, we exchanged phone numbers and I went our separate ways, fully expecting never to hear from him again. We are planning on hanging gout Tuesday night.

Both are intelligent and fun to hang out with, but I can’t help but feel the nerves. I have a history of falling deep and hard for a person very quickly (hence me still living with my former flame).

I was raised in a not so attractive family. For those of you who grew up the same way, you know what I mean by this. I was the guy that was last to be asked in “KY Steel”, a roller rick game where during a song, guys would line the roller rick floor and wait until a girl came up and grabbed his hand to skate with; a ghetto version of a Sadie Hawkins Dance. So there is a pattern in my love life for “taking what I can get”.

For some reason I don’t think I should follow the same adage now moving forward.

Not to mention that I never really had a girlfriend until several years after I had entered the Army and even then stayed a virgin until I finally had sex with a guy (and no I did not think that I was gay, until several years later).

Though I have had two relationships in the past 8 years, I am currently working on a 2 year drought period and am kind of nervous about all of this wanted attention.


This Week’s Agenda

Monday – Hang out with Byron

Tuesday – Hang out with Mac

Wednesday – Run in the Park with Antonio
Birthday Dinner out with Cousin Ray

Thursday – Movie Night @ my apartment

Friday – No plans (Kinda sad when you think about it)

Saturday – No plans (ditto)

Sunday – Watching the Cincinnati Bengals play Pittsburgh Steelers

Frontal Friday

Just starting the weekend on a positive note!

This is a picture taken of me a few years ago. I had just ended a relationship (not by choice) and just moved out on my own. Then, I was a sleek 165lbs, 31in waist-er.

Since then, I have gained about 20 or so pounds, all of it in the form of fat; collecting around my waist and thighs.

I want this body back!

I am currently reading "The Gabriel Method" by Jon Gabriel, and it s giving me great ideas to holistically reach my goal.

Also, if any of you guy have some hints to success, my mind is a sponge.

I will keep you posted on the progress.

The "Beloved" Margaret Garner is Back In Action

“Beloved”, written by Toni Morrison and published in 1987, won the Pulitzer Prize and loosely follows the story of escaped slave Margaret Garner. Garner’s Medea-like heroics when she was captured in her attempt to escape from slavery threw the city of Cincinnati, OH to the forefront of the Nation’s attention.

Garner made the ultimate sacrifice and instead of seeing her child be taken back into slavery, decided to take the child’s life with her own two hands.

Morrison’s fictional reproduction of this real life drama was so popular; Oprah Winfrey redeveloped it into a screen play in addition to a Michigan Opera house creating a theatrical stage production of the novel in the form of an opera.

I became interested in the story for two reasons; (1) it was a true story and (2) the story occurred in the part of the country where I was from. In my infatuation with the story, I spent years researching all the nuances of the story to even traveling to the farm where Margaret Garner lived (yes it is still there). I even gave seminars on this topic, going over the similarities and differences in the real life story and fictional adaptations.

I have decided to reprise the seminar this upcoming Black History Month. There are few new developments that I have found, and I feel that it would be cool to remind people in this area of Southern Ohio that the Nobel Prize winning “Beloved” came from a story from this area.

View of San Francisco from atop the de Young Museum in Golden Gate Park

The Power of 7-4-0

While I was in San Francisco a few weeks ago, the style and vice of the city took hold of me in a way that only Rembrandt could describe in one of his paintings. OK….that may be a little dramatic, but I feel safe that you get what I am trying to describe.

During this time, ancient mantras and centuries old though processes exposed them selves to me and I began to take a novice interests, especially of the teaching of Buddha. This passing interest (which has not totally left my mind) opened my mind to the significance of “happenings” such as dreams and numbers.

Just after this realization and on the way back to the dumpy Mid-west, the numbers 7-4-0 kept appearing to me, and not in combination with other numbers and in this particular sequence. For example, 740 was the number of the cab that I took home from the airport. $7.40 was the exact amount that I paid for lunch and 740 was the number that I pulled with I was in line at the deli.

Before I make in predisposed sayings about what this sequence of numbers means and before I let you know how I have incorporated this into my life, I am going to do a little bit of research before I speak out of my ass…as I have done time and time again in the past.
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Stop and smell the flowers

Taken in Golden Gate Park, San Francisco Oct 2009

"Hello" by Sam Francis (1923-1994)