Filed under: Glitter & Sparkles, Graphic Design, My Weekend Pillows, Photography | Tags: emperor, empress, gay, gay bingo, Graphic Design, Japan, Photography, Smile Cafe, Vancouver
Weeks have been going by fast. Aside from my measly paid job at “Segments,” I’ve been busying myself with some graphic design side projects. The FFL non-profit group wanted me to design a postcard and pamphlet for their fundraising, as well as their summer newsletter.
I’ve done 2 out of the 3.
To be honest, they haven’t been the most exciting projects, but I am excited about having my designs printed.
Postcard:
Newsletters:
Generally I hate placing body text on a full colour photograph, but since the newsletter only has its front and back covers printed in colour, I’ve had to just make it work.
Sometimes I wonder if anyone even reads the newsletter other than the editor and myself.
Playtime
For some strange reason, I felt my weekend was drastically cut short after agreeing to stay half an hour longer at work. Despite that, I managed to enjoy a little bit of sun on Saturday.
Pillz took me out on a stroll around the DTES. Bums and crazies are really less scary than one might think. Most they do is stare.
Sunday Afternoon Delights
We had a lovely brunch at one of my favorite restaurants, Smile Cafe on Pender Street, which by the way, is no longer run by eccentric Shanghainese people. I used to love going there just to listen in on their conversations. It seems like it is now owned by 2 older gentlemen who, according to Pillz, is a gay couple. Pillz thinks everyone is gay, so that has yet to be confirmed.
And continuing my strange love addiction to all things Japanese, the emperor and empress of Japan came to visit. I was hoping they’d take me home with them.
They didn’t.
Filed under: Books, Glitter & Sparkles, School Life | Tags: Boys in the Trees, gay, gym, James Purefoy, Kevin McKidd, Mary Swan, Rome
So apparently people come to my blog to see Kevin McKidd and James Purefoy naked alone/together. I’m sorry to disappoint, but I have no access to such pictures. I have only caught glimpses of James Purefoy’s dink in some episodes of Rome.
It was a marvelous… show. It was.
Anyhow, life has been pretty good without the stress of school. I’m still just getting used to going about my days without momentary bouts of anxiety attacks.
I have started going back to the gym in hopes of getting some man-cleavage for my Bali trip in a couple weeks. It has been about an 8-month lapse, and I’ve become a frail child.
On an unrelated note, I’ve been mistaken for a girl twice in 2 days. Awkward.
I have started a new book, Boys in the Trees by Mary Swan. It was a little bit abstract in the beginning, and a little bit too 19th century for my liking, but it’s starting to grow on me.
I missed reading.
Filed under: Doses of Cynicism, Glitter & Sparkles | Tags: Britney Spears, dancing, douche bags, gay, Odyssey Vancouver, top 40's
Tonight was probably the first time that I was let down by good ol’ Odyssey. Where were all the top 40’s that people love about the Odyssey go? And when they did have a good song, the DJ ruins it by slowing it down. I mean how can anyone do Womanizer wrong? I’ve always had to battle a bunch of fags and fag hags during a Britney tune. Tonight the stage was unoccupied, and I had no burning desire to grind up against the pole.
At first I thought I didn’t have enough drinks in me. But by the 4th drink and 3rd cigarette, I just knew something was not right when I didn’t dance with absolute abandonment.
Now my throat hurts.
I never get people who wear sunglasses in clubs. It’s like, how can you even see anything? They are either completely deluded or they are closet cases.
Filed under: Books, Glitter & Sparkles, Triumphs & Heartbreaks | Tags: Brian Francis, Fruit, gay, gay fiction, high school
All I wanted to do when I got home from work was masturbate into a tissue and call it a night, even though the plan was to finish my radio brochure thing. So much for plans.
Needless to say, accomplishments were few tonight. However, I did finish Fruit by Brian Francis. It was such a fun book. And towards the end, it had just the right amount of sentiments. It made me a little bit sad.
I was a chubby gay kid once. It did not feel good to be called “fat,” even though it was probably for that reason I decided to skip lunch at school in grade 8. As a result, I got skinny and had extra lunch money, but I was also going through puberty and it could have been the hormones that made me thin, who knows.
All I know is, my fat friends called me “anorexic.” And that’s only because they were jealous. And I was not anorexic.
It’s kind of funny how perceptive kids can be. I had been called “gay” since even before I knew I was gay. I’m sure proclaiming that I was Sailor Mercury did not help things.
I always say that if I were to do over high school, I would do everything differently. But I don’t know. Maybe I did try my best to be myself. Maybe I did what I had to do to survive. And I survived. And sometimes I think that’s quite an accomplishment for a chubby gay kid.
Filed under: Books, Glitter & Sparkles | Tags: Brian Francis, Christian Bale, Fruit, gay
Dear Christian Bale,
You will no longer be making appearances in my bedtime movies¹.
¹Sexual fantasies that Peter Paddington, from Fruit, frequently has before he descends into his wet dreams.
Filed under: Glitter & Sparkles, My Weekend Pillows | Tags: gay, love, nostalgia, online dating
Every once in a while, Pillows and I have a conversation where we trade in our usual sarcasm and witty banter for something more revealing, something more vulnerable. Tonight was one of those times.
For no particular reason other than random nostalgia, I was going through my past e-mails tonight. I remember the reason for creating this e-mail account, which I’m currently still using, for one reason: to meet guys.
And did I ever.
Pages among pages of e-mails detailing where to meet for coffee, what movie to watch, where each other lived, and how long it would take for me to drive over. I was 19 and confused and excited at the same time, even though I tried my hardest not to let on.
Then there were the intermittent e-mails from Steven, whose alliance I’ve had the utmost pleasure of having since elementary school. They were e-mails of forwarded dating profiles, pictures, and messages of guys that he was talking to, lusting after, or laughing at. But I digress.
All those e-mails, the earliest ones dating back to 2004, seemed like a lifetime ago. It was amusing reading some of the e-mails I wrote, to see how hard I tried to relate, and how desperately I wanted to belong.
It probably took about 6 months and 20 guys before I had myself convinced that I would have to settle for a lifetime of superficial guys and mediocre sexual activities.
And then, bear with me as I say this, Pillows came along. And to be honest, I didn’t peg him to be the love of my life. We had several e-mail exchanges before we met. I didn’t detect much other than a connection that felt a little bit more natural and a little bit more genuine than the others.
We finally met for the first time, and I was surprised, and a little bit offended, when he didn’t ask me to go home with him.
About 3 months in, when I had developed strange and wonderful feelings I had never felt before, I dropped the “L” word on him. And even then, at 20 and less cynical, I felt unnatural uttering that word. And ever since, I’ve only used that word sparingly, because when I say “I love you,” I don’t mean “see ya.” I don’t mean “do you love me too?”
When I say “I love you,” what I’m really saying is, “sorry, I failed to find better words to describe my tremendous affection, respect, admiration, care, and borderline unhealthy passion for you.”
Filed under: Family Ties, Glitter & Sparkles, Graphic Design, Television | Tags: anti-babies, babies, Chinese, Chinese New Year, family, family dinners, HBO, Rome, Six Feet Under
Perhaps my disdain for Christmas is only rivaled by Chinese New Year, which is only rivaled by babies, which is only rivaled by babies’ whose parents are incompetent at raising babies.
Or something like that.
2 Chinese Birds with 1 Stone
Today was Chinese New Year’s Eve, which is also my mom’s birthday. I don’t mind this annual coincidence because it means that I would only have to have dinner with my family once, for both occasions.
The dinner itself meant having to endure a capacity-at-its-max restaurant, rude waiters, slow food, babies/toddlers running about, and painfully boring conversations with relatives I see a couple times a year. All of which I expected, except for the slow food.
Normally, restaurants want you in and out of there as quickly as possible. Not this one, not tonight. The last dish came 2-hours after we put in our orders.
Anyhow, I survived. And I really should bask in the satisfaction of not having to do that again for another 365 days.
HBO Series: Rome and Six Feet Under
I’ve completed the HBO series Rome. God, was it ever a good series. I’m now feeling the way I felt when I finished Six Feet Under – sad and lost. I’ve grown attached to the characters, flaws and all. I also enjoyed Rome because I’ve always been fascinated with ancient history, with their spectacular folklore and silly ways. I think Rome captured a lot of that.
Whatever series I watch now will never compare to Rome. I remember when I watched 2 seasons of Weeds after watching Six Feet Under. All it did was remind me of my lack of well, weeds. Six Feet Under did that, and provided me with thought-provoking insights.
Whatever will I do now?
Filed under: Books, Glitter & Sparkles, Graphic Design, School Life, Work Life | Tags: Brian Francis, brunch, fiction, Fruit, Gastown, gay, gay fiction, Graphic Design, radio
This Sunday, my sleeping-in session was cut short due to a brunch appointment at Two Chefs and a Table with Pillows’ friends. It’s a charming little place that feels surprisingly roomy when you’re inside. Food was alright. I mostly enjoyed its open kitchen format, floor to ceiling windows, and large tables.
It’s sometimes strange and perhaps a little bit awkward to hang out with Pillows’ friends. Even though I’ve known them now for three years, I’ve never had a real conversation with any of them. Their topics of conversation (real estate and bad movies) never seem to pique my interest.
I first met Pillows’ friends, herein after referred to as the 3 musketeers, about 3 years ago when they used to go to bars to watch hockey games. Suffice to say, there was little or no proper introduction. And after a couple of games, I think we sort of just accepted each other’s presence. Before we knew it, it’s been 3 years, and we know nothing about each other.
It’s too bad because at least 2 out of the 3 of them seem like people whose company I would enjoy. But I will never know.
My fictional radio station
I got home in the afternoon yesterday to find out that the creative brief and signature for my fictional radio were due the next day. It was a nasty little surprise.
Fortunately I was able to whip something up without too much difficulty. I love the conceptual part of any design process. One of the reasons is the amount of possibility and freedom to exercise my imagination.
For my first iteration, I’ve decided to call my radio station that plays an eclectic mix of music Rare FM. Initially it was going to be Radio Mosaic, but I felt that it lacked in personality and edge.
So I settled on Rare FM for now. And no, I’m not in love with the colour red. It was just appropriate.
Yet another moment of weakness
Over the weekend, I was unable to resist buying yet another book largely for its aesthetically pleasing cover.
Fruit, by Brian Francis, is about a 13 year-old gay boy who is going through puberty and thinks his nipples are talking to him. It’s by a Canadian author, and it was one of the selections for Canada Reads 2009.
Sold.
