Oh. My. God. Part 2

Okay, so we've had date two. He cooked me dinner. We watched a rerun of Pretty Woman on tbs (a good thing... all those commercial breaks, doncha know). We cuddled. We smooched. We talked. We dreamed. His dogs seem to like to me. His real name is Michael Joseph, but because there are so many Michaels where he works, he chose to go by Joseph, and everyone now just calls him Joey. But he wanted me to be different. He asked me to call him Michael. That will take some getting used to. I mean, I already programmed "Joey" into my cell phone. But Michael will do just fine.

More about him... he is a clinical psychologist. His mother is Cuban-Italian and his father was from Spain. He is 5'6, 145 pounds, with short dark hair and a perpetual three-day facial hair scruffy stubble that is irresistable. He wears cute little glasses most of the time. And dimples like you wouldn't believe.

We both seem to be on the same page. That is, enamored of one another. Seriously, is it too soon to think I'm in love? Is it just infatuation? He's all I think about. I can hardly sleep. Or eat. Or concentrate. It just feels like the "ONE." And we've talked about it, and he feels the same way.

Mmmmmmmm.....

Carol Channing... or Is It?

It's the Carol Channing Doll! Available through the JC Penney catalog, of all places! For more info and hilarious commentary, see Stephen's comments on his blog.


I got to see the doll in person at Davenport's on Friday night, where Ms. Channing made an appearance with Daryl Nitz and George Howe. (They perform there every weekend, and all you Chicagoans should go see them-- they are brilliant! At 7 years, they are the longest running cabaret show in Chicago.)



I kept staring at the doll, as she sat on a chair looking menacingly around the room, reminding me of that creepy movie Magic with Anthony Hopkins. Something was bothering me... she kind of looked like Carol Channing, but her hair was a little wild, her lipstick a little too overdone.


Then it hit me... it's not a Carol Channing Doll, but a doppleganger, if you will.




All you ABC 7 Chicago Eyewitness News viewers... It's a Theresa Gutierrez Doll!

Huh-larious.

I absolutely LOVE The Comics Curmudgeon, a blog that rips apart all the daily comic strips in the paper. For example:

“Mothers are supposed to beat their children when they disobey. You’re weak, Mommy, just like Daddy says, just like your crying little daughter over there. Weak.”

This guy is brilliant. He says what we're all thinking. And his writing is snappy, witty and sarcastic-- just the way I likes it! He makes it fun to follow Mary Worth, Apartment 3-G, and Gil Thorp.

Check out his site when you need a laugh.

Oh. My. God.

Okay, I'm a helpless romantic at heart. And since my relationship of 16+ years ended nearly three years ago (it was kinda over before that, but that's when the breakup became official), I've been dating. A lot. And it ain't pretty. I've done Match.com, Yahoo Personals, Gay.com (for those "I'll never see you again so let's get fuckin'" sort of dates), and finally, Chemistry.com. Now my friend Elizabeth met her boyfriend (and now husband) Arturo through Match.com, so I have seen it can work. But, Lord, the dates I had... many scary ones, lots of no-personality types, scads of guys who didn't resemble their picture in the least.

I'm not a bar person-- never have been-- and the bars seem to be overpopulated with twinks who work out 5x a week and say they're versatile when they're not. I also think alcohol can have such a strong effect on many things-- our perceptions, our self-image, our lack of control-- I just try to avoid it. Having a (recovered) alcoholic father has colored my opinion, too.

So, cut to last night. His name is Joey. We met via Chemistry.com. He had no photo posted, but I really liked everything else in his profile, so I asked for a picture. He emailed me one. A-dorable! We talked on the phone... for hours-- which is something since I absolutely hate talking on the phone. It became clear to both of us that we had to meet.

And meet we did. Last night. He invited me to come to his place for a late dinner and more conversation. We've established sensible boundaries for sex-- meaning that we both want to wait until we know each other and are comfortable with it. So I was only too happy to drive into the city (Logan Square neighborhood) and go to his place.

I think it was love at first sight for both of us. It was a magical night. Could it be? I haven't felt like this in many a year... my tummy is doing flip-flops, I can't stop thinking about him, I can't wait to see him (which I'm doing tonight, by the way).

I think I need to go take a cold shower. To be continued, I guarantee....

It's All in the Eye of the Beholder, Part 2

My new friend and fellow-blogger Mark suggested I might counter my last post with a list of some famous men who DO turn me on. Forthwith...

Jonathan Schaech

Paul Walker

Chris Evans

Peter Sarsgaard

Joseph Fiennes

Maksim Chmerkovskiy

Eddie Cibrian

And, of course, anyone whose picture I feature in a 'Nuff Said posting.

It's All in the Eye of the Beholder

When I heard that People Magazine announced its Sexiest Man Alive for this year was Matt Damon, I kind of shrugged. It seems like it was awarded because it was "his turn." He does absolutely nothing for me... never has. I mean, I guess I wouldn't kick him out of bed, but his boyish looks and goofy smile just don't turn me on.

Which started me thinking of other celebrities that many find hot, but I do not. So here they are, in no particular order:

Pierce Brosnan: suave, debonair, but absolutely not my type

Mel Gibson: even before the drunken, anti-semitic arrest, I was not all into him like so many others

Joaquin Phoenix: it has nothing to do with that upper lip. Really. It's not that at all. Nope.

Matthew McConaughey: he always looks like he doesn't smell very good

Josh Hartnett: I think it's the fact that he can't act that sort of cancels everything else out for me

Patrick Dempsey: McBoring

These are just a few. There's a whole lot of others. And definitely a whole lot more who do get me going. But sometimes, I just don't get it.

Sexiest Man Alive? Matt Damon? Talk about hyperbole.

One Week and Counting!

Hey, everybody, only one week until the Season of Concern Disco Ball!

I'm going to be there with my dear friend and personal Grace, Karen Bronson, a.k.a. AnnieGrace. And the amazingly fun and hilarious Stephen Rader is the host with the most!

It's at Hydrate. A $10 donation is your entry to disco, dancing, DJ Jeannette, and.... OPEN BAR from 8-10 p.m. Yes, you heard me, girl!

My AnnieGrace and I are going to have lots of fun. So join us! Put away the leftover turkey, postpone the Christmas ornaments for one more day, and haul your ass down to Hydrate! Look for us! I'll be the big dork with a vodka drink of some kind in hand. AnnieGrace will be the lovely doll on my arm, laughing loudly at most everything Stephen or I might say. Stephen will be the one who's... well, Stephen.

Fun! And for a good cause! And did I mention the two hours of OPEN BAR???

You MUST be there.

'Nuff Said Thursday

Sakis Rouvas

The Four-Word Film Review

I love this website! The whole idea of the Four-Word Film Review is to describe or review a film in four words or less. The best ones are those that include some sort of play on words. For example, someone reviewed the film Basic Instinct with the four words: "Crossed, Uncrossed, HELLO!, Crossed." (Referring, of course, to the famous Sharon Stone interrogation scene.) Another great one is a review of Titanic : "Icy dead people." (A play on words from Haley Joel Osment's famous line from The Sixth Sense.)

One of my own is for the film Witness: "Crimes and Amish Demeanors."

It's great fun. To see more of my reviews, go the website, then click on the word "Search" to get an advanced search. Then click on the "Users" button and type in dovaj in the general "nickname includes" field. This will link you to all my reviews.

You can also play the guessing game by reading a review in the upper-right-hand corner of the screen (in a talk bubble) and then click the review to find out what film itis describing. It's fun!

This Is Kind of Sad

I was on the phone with my mom yesterday... I try to talk to her about once a week or so. Now, the thing about my mom is that she and I both were "born again" back in the early 80's; we belonged to a very fundamentalist church. As I was coming to terms with my sexual orientation, I was also learning the Bible and all about sin and redemption and heaven and hell. Imagine the paradox of trying to accept my gayness while simultaneously discovering that the very same gayness would secure my hell-bound fate. It made for a very traumatic adolescence.

Over time, I learned that homosexuality is not a choice, but fundamentalist Christianity is. When I embraced my gayness as a part of my being, it meant I had to re-think my concept of God and religion. This has all taken many years, but I've reached a point where I'm comfortable believing in a higher power while knowing that if that higher power loves us, I am included-- gay or not.

Mom chose to embrace the Christianity, right-wing, Republican way of life. This means that, in her eyes, I am going to hell. She was telling me yesterday about last Sunday's sermon by their pastor, who referenced the story of the prodigal son. "You're like the prodigal son," she said, "Well, maybe not. You haven't made your change yet. Maybe someday." As if to say, "You haven't denounced your homosexuality, so you're not worthy."

She feels a sense of disappointment in me because I don't subscribe to her beliefs, rather than feeling joy for me that I am at peace with who I am. She is only proud of small parts of me, rather than the whole.

That's sad.

My Famous Drink Recipe

The holidays are coming, and people are always looking for a good specialty drink for parties. This is one I made up, called the Dougsicle. It tastes just like a Dreamsicle... all orange-y and vanilla-ish. Yum!

2 parts Sunny Delight (NOT orange juice!)

2 parts Swiss Cream Soda (clear is best, but A&W's, though dark brown, works)

1 part vanilla vodka

Chill all ingredients. Serve over ice.

This one is always a hit with my guests.

I Love Christmas, But....

Okay, I'm all about the holidays. Really. Love the decorating, the merriment, the good cheer, the ho ho ho, and all that.

But I'm more than a little concerned that WLIT 93.9 (the Lite here in Chicago, currently called the Christmas Lite or the Holiday Lite) started playing Christmas music around November 1. I'm concerned because I'm already getting tired of the stuff. Granted, I get out my Christmas CD's pretty early-- I have so many that I need to start playing them now so I can get to them all-- but it seems that WLIT has a limited amount of music. I have tuned in a couple of times and, regardless of the day or time, I have heard a lot of the same songs.

This reminded me to blog about my least favorite holiday songs. WLIT, if any of you are reading this, please stop playing these! In no particular order:

1. The Christmas Shoes : treacly, country crap

2. Holly Jolly Christmas : it's a folk-rockabilly version, with Burl Ives singing the song that was much more tolerable in the Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer tv special. This version grates.

3. Feliz Navidad : with all due respect to Mr. Feliciano, how about a verse or two with some actual lyrics? The repitition and manic loudness of this song make it unbearable.

4. I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas : whether it's a hippo or your two front teeth that you want, no one cares, child. Shut up.

5. Wonderful Christmas Time : Sir Paul McCartney, you owe the world a big apology for this one.

Yet Another Person I Admire

The amazing Antonio Sacre came to the library where I work tonight to deliver a delightful hour of stories, jokes and personal memories of growing up in a Cuban-Irish household in Boston. He seamlessly switched back and forth between English and Spanish, and the audience of some 150 people was thoroughly entertained. The children, ranging in age from 4 to about 13, sat on the floor at his feet, mesmerized and captivated. The adults were smiling, laughing, and nodding in understanding at the wonderful, rich stories Mr. Sacre shared from his childhood, particularly about his Abuela and her stern but loving ways.

It is experiences like this that I love, that make me proud of what I do for a living. I wish I could speak Spanish.

Time for Christmas Memories!

How about this for warm and fuzzy?

That's More Like It... Sort Of

Okay, so I tried this celebrity picture thing again. Most results were better...




Joshua Jackson.... not bad.

Where Have I Been?

I have spent my entire life in Chicagoland. I grew up in the suburbs, even attended college here. My only time away was the year I spent at grad school in Urbana.

So why is it, at the age of 42, that just today I heard of Garrett's Popcorn? I was told that it is a Chicago institution, that people line up out the door for this "incredible" popcorn.

Now, I'm not a huge popcorn or caramel corn fan. I can take it or leave it... except in a movie theatre, of course. Then I must have a large popcorn with tons of imitation butter-flavored topping and salt. So I guess I don't understand this phenomenon of Garrett's, and I'm not feeling like I've missed out for never having tried the stuff. But I'm more bothered by the fact that I've never even heard of it.

What other amazing offerings does Chicago have that I don't know about?

Yikes! Say it ain't so, y'all!

http://www.myheritage.com/collage

'Nuff said Monday

Raoul Bova.

Sixteen months later, I'm back

So, my dear friend, the inimitable Stephen Rader, encouraged me to get blogging. So I'm back. Unfortunately, I don't have a lot to say right now...

Except that I'm a tad exhausted after completing the run of Showtune: Celebrating the Words & Music of Jerry Herman for the Village Theatre Guild of Glen Ellyn. It was a great production with a delightful cast. Fun and hilarity all around.

I may have to have my gall bladder out. I'm going for a HIDA scan on the 26th. Hopefully they will find the cause of my abdominal / back pain and take that thing outta there!

My trip to NYC is all set, and I am scared to death it will be a bust. The stage hands strike threatens a lot of the shows I want to see (and one I have a ticket for, August: Osage County). Thankfully, Young Frankenstein (another ticket I pre-purchased) is not affected... except it got panned by Chris Jones in the Chicago Tribune, so... I guess I'm going to be looking for a nice bar to hang out in. Hell, I may pick up some hot NY fella and spend most of my time in my room.

Not sure about these...

***American Cities That Best Fit You:***
60% Austin
55% Atlanta
55% Las Vegas
55% Seattle
55% Washington, DC
Which American Cities Best Fit You?http://www.blogthings.com/whichamericancitiesbestfityouquiz/