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November 30, 2002
It's definitely been a busy
It's definitely been a busy week. I finished my paper for class, was officially observed by my assistant principal, went to Thanksgiving with Dan, Texas Chris is in town for the weekend, blogmeet on Saturday night, Michael Lopez dinner tonight. I also have a roaring sinus headache.
Everyone should know that I'm doing much better in school. I'm not miserable, merely resigned. There are still moments where I just want to walk out, maybe kill a few students on the way out the door. Then there are the emerging "teacher moments" that I'm supposed to treasure or something. Actually, I did have a really sweet moment at the beginning of my observation. One of my really troubled students leaned over to me with a smile, told me that she had never liked math, but that she really liked learning in my class. I flushed with a bit of pride, as I've really been encouraging her. When I first met her, she was frequently violent, roaring from rage to tears faster than a Ferrari. Our relationship was quite antagonistic at first, I was at my wits' end. I had a talk with her, told her we had to start from scratch. I'm not her friend, but I make sure and jump out in the hallway to say hello to her. Her parents don't speak English, so when I called one evening to tell her parents how proud I was of her improvements, she had to translate for me. She started to cry on the phone, and even I got a bit verklempt.
All of this is extra funny as four minutes after this touching comment in my class, she was in a death struggle with another girl. Apparently the other girl was making rude gestures at her from across the room. Desks are thrust aside in the struggle, my assistant principal and I have to separate the hellcats, and the obscenities make every virgin ear positively whorish. I'll know on Monday how this affected the review. Maybe my AP will just describe it as 'lively.'
Posted by G at 03:52 PM
My latest joke- Who is
My latest joke- Who is the biggest bottom in the McDonald's pantheon? Grimace.
Posted by G at 12:20 PM
November 24, 2002
More procrastination, courtesy of Michael.
More procrastination, courtesy of Michael.
you have an ominosity quotient ofseven.you are as ominous as the creators of this quiz. which terrifies us. |
Posted by G at 08:52 PM
I also need a flying
I also need a flying monkey in the WORST way.
Posted by G at 08:47 PM
I'm such a multi-tasking procrastinator.
I'm such a multi-tasking procrastinator. I'm making copies of some class sheets for tomorrow, writing a research paper, writing instruction sheets for the seventh graders, doing laundry, AND watching the Wizard of Oz. I am not completing any of these projects, just floating between them. On top of it all, I suddenly felt the urgent need to blog...
I forgot how much I enjoy this movie. I haven't watched it in years, so I'm just enjoying looking at the sets, noticing all the reasons why it is one of those super gay films. If I could rewrite it, I would include a carnivorous dinosaur loose in the munchkin village, Toto would be stepped on more often, and the wicked witch would bitch-slap Glenda because of her voice. I'm certain Glenda was an early tester for cocktails of alcohol, anti-depressants and muscle relaxants. The munchkins are quite frightening, but at least there are no clowns. I find it funny that a field of 'poppies' knocks them out, and the first view of the Emerald City reminds me of my first view of Manhattan. I'm going to have to think about which of my friends are my Scarecrow, Tin Man, and the Lion. Some days I'm Dorothy, especially with the whiny tone of my blog lately. I'm probably a blend of the whole group. If only I had red shoes, or a brain, or a heart, or courage, or a big balloon!
I went with Michael out to the new art space where Chad did the architectural stuff. Cool art, two kegs of beer, unsealed concrete. Afterward I was quite suitably impressed by Chad's discourse on the furniture in Barracuda. I love hanging out with people of different fields of expertise, and he just rekindled my desire to really stretch my abilities on building furniture. The music was a perfect retro mix, the conversation was fun, the guys at my table were all sexy smart. I have one particularly annoying habit while drinking - I do my little thing for cancer prevention. Whenever a friend tries to light their cigarette, I blow out the lighter. Even though they curse and hiss at me, I know that deep down they're grateful. I also had one of those educational moments where I was corrected. A cock ring is not the same thing as a cock strap. Who knew?
Posted by G at 08:44 PM
November 23, 2002
Anyone know of a good
Anyone know of a good gay travel agent?
Posted by G at 01:08 PM
I can't think of anything
I can't think of anything more fun than eating breakfast while watching the Matrix. Nothing says 'quality movie' like mind-warping explosions. I have watched it a million times, and I still find it fun. There is no spoon, you know. The fact that I ate half a box of ginger snaps doesn't affect my need for superduperhyperexciting imagery.
Posted by G at 01:07 PM | Comments (1)
November 21, 2002
I am so disappointed and
I am so disappointed and pissed off. When I joined the gay community, did I pick the 'really unreliable commitment' group accidentally? My Christmas foursome to Cancun shrank to three, dwindled to two, and now is just me. Part of my move here to NYC was to establish my own family, the same way those crazy straight members do. Having a gay family is more fun, the food is better, and everyone can go clubbing after unwrapping presents.
Last Christmas definitely wasn't the most fun of my life, and I really need a sun-filled vacation of at least one week between the 21st and 30 of December. I love my family, but it's time I start doing some holidays on my own. I'm not blaming my friends, they have families they need to see or not enough money to go. Lesson learned- when I make plans important to me, don't count on anyone but myself. I will go by myself and spend my Christmas alone on the beach if I have to do it, but I'd much rather have some friends. I know I can easily make some there also. If there are still any humans who read this who want to travel and get some sun, contact me. I'm serious.
Posted by G at 10:41 PM
I'm feeling a bit under
I'm feeling a bit under the weather. I called in sick to work today. When I phoned this morning, the nice lady in the program office (I still can't remember her name) simply responded with an 'okey-dokey'. I knew I liked her, but now I know because we share the bond of goofy comments. Today was not the smartest day to miss, but I'm really not up to screaming kids. That big uvula thingie is hanging like Tarzan in the back of my throat, it hurts to talk, and I'm going to take it easy.
I just finished some hot tea with honey, lightly topped with two huge greasy eggs and FOUR Krispy Kreme donuts. On my way home last night I purchased six, now I have one. I know that I constantly complain about my cholesterol, but I haven't purchased any donuts since August. As long as I don't buy any for the rest of the month, I can reason mathematically that I average two per month. I love math.
I'm going to sit quietly here in the loft, write lesson plans, maybe bubble wrap my windows. Very exciting stuff.
Posted by G at 09:58 AM
November 19, 2002
Came home last night to
Came home last night to Sparky watching popular tv. Watching Boston Commons proves that nothing on television is real. On this drama about a public school, teachers have perfect bodies, amazing lessons involving falling cars, listen to classical music, and solve problems over free coffee in the teachers' lounge.
For those who like to watch those magicians reveal their secrets, here's a behind-the-scenes look at a public school: THERE IS NO FREE COFFEE. If there was free coffee, it wouldn't be drinkable. Even those people in the Fellows who started with nice bodies have flabbed out or scrawnied out. Eventually I would love to do spectacular experiments, but I'm currently having to buy my own chalk. Classical music is shuttled to the background when teachers write comments like "Your a good student!" on English papers.
Daphne said it perfectly tonight as we were leaving our university class. Only three more days this week, then three days next week. I can make it. I can make it. I can make it.
Posted by G at 10:29 PM
November 18, 2002
This weekend I'm looking forward
This weekend I'm looking forward to going somewhere with some friends for a practice I haven't done since Uzbekistan...
Posted by G at 10:13 PM
I really must cut back
I really must cut back on the weekend spending. I keep forgetting that I'm living on a teacher's salary. It would be okay except that I've also set a goal of being free of all credit card debt by March, so I am trying to really prioritize spending.
But alcohol with friends is so much fun! I had a great time with the other bloggers at this grotty little bar with a catchy name and truly awful tunes. Since I usually go to hipster bars or gay bars, it is funny to see how badly straight people dress and act in normal situations. Living in New York makes it so easy to ignore the rest of the world, it can be a bit jarring when other people get offended over boys kissing.
I also went to the Museum of the Moving Image with friend Scott and friend Sam. We had fun editing scenes from popular movies, although I found it very un-kosher (sp?) of Scott to be editing Babe the pig. I was getting excited about some gifts in the museum shop for my niece's upcoming bday until Scott made the snarky comments about 'gifts from the geeky uncle.' I guess I'll do the safe thing, email her an Amazon certificate. Since I teach some kids in her age group, you'd think I'd know what she wants. Probably wants blingbling.
Posted by G at 10:10 PM
November 16, 2002
Blessed are the neurotic bloggers
Blessed are the neurotic bloggers who publish links to great wastes of time. They shall inherit the donuts.
Posted by G at 01:50 PM
November 11, 2002
I never knew how magical
I never knew how magical the phrase 'three day weekend' was until I became a teacher. Not only do I get an extra day of recharging, but I also only have to teach four days. Now that lesson plans are being integrated into my psyche like some kind of organizational succubus, I already had a mental game plan for the weekend.
Life Lesson Plan, Veteran's Day Weekend
Aim: How do we recharge our batteries?
Objective: TTWBAT (Tired Teacher Will Be Able To) drink alcohol, eat sugary confections, read comics, sleep, build new counter for kitchen, buy new all-in-one HP printer, hike in mountains, bond with new friends, have bondage with old friends, eat Chinese food.
Vocab: Bear Mountain, Lexar media card inclusion, toluene/naptha/cyclohexane
Motivate: Describe to class amusing anecdotes, incl. comic book frustrations, frosted boob, Hudson River time.
Yuck. Enough of the lesson plan format.
The audit on Thursday went without a hitch. I was almost disappointed, as I really wanted an external reason to just quit. Friday afternoon I almost danced my way out of school I was so excited to be done. I did the usual H-squared with the other teachers, which translates to Happy Hour at Life Cafe. We all go to that great little bar down the street, commiserating over the week, laughing over gossip. I had plans to go with roommate Dan, Stephen, and Trick to see Scissor Sisters at Fez, but first Dan and Stephen canceled, then I got sleepy. I canceled, stayed home, read comics, went to bed early. I have to say that having a roommate who buys comics is so much fun. Back in Lubbock, Evan bought those amazing Harry Potter books. I would never have bought them myself, so reading them was a guilty pleasure. Dan does the same thing for me here. He buys comics, I mosey over to his side of the loft, furtively grab a comic, mosey back over to my side to obsessively read the crazy antics of Green Lantern, Planetary, and the X-men. Dan helps bring out the inner comic geek in me. I've gone to Forbidden Planet, the massive comic book store at Union Square, on the pretense of buying Dan the latest comic book series that he likes.
Next morning I dredge out my router and other hardware ilk to finish the counters on the stainless steel island. Dan and I opted for a standard formica, specific green color chosen by roommate who can match things. I love working with my router, tracing the path around the counter, methodically changing the contour of the surface, nicely beveling the edges. Then we bring out the serious chemicals used for bonding laminates. If the Russians had pumped this into the auditorium, everyone would have been dead and very sticky. I have a fan in the window, but the fumes still give me a headache. California even has their own warning on the back of the can for pregnant women who like to bond formica. I mindlessly played video games while the worst of the fumes made Bear act silly, then headed over to Scott's for an evening of weirdness.
I always have weird times at Scott's apartment in Manhattan. Last time I was there, we sang the Hava Nagila (I'm sure that's a bad spelling, but I can only phoneticize it) while Scott lit up wearing his spiffy yarmulka. Saturday night I walk into a sick scene of Scott and Christina drinking wine and watching Pretty Woman on tv. I resisted briefly but was quickly sucked into having a glass while really wishing I could find a hooker with a heart of gold, a drunken gaffer, and a body double for all of my sex scenes.
Christina is so much fun. She's not in the Teaching Fellows program, but she is a new teacher. We build on each other's wackiness, escalating into a frenzy of bad innuendos and mockeries of education. Plus we both like sweets, which is why we didn't go drinking, we went to Veniro's, the same place I found the marzipan lambs months ago. We sit down in the packed rear area and gorge ourselves on desserts. We each have TWO desserts. My first one was a chocolate mousse torte, the second was this marzipan thing shaped just like a marble breast. When asked what it is called, the waitress called it the boob. I'm guessing that is italian for marzipan mound filled with cannoli and amaretto, and that we degraded the word to its current use. Christina caught a cab, Scott and I caught an urge to go to Urge for drinks. Scott goes there often, it was my first time. I like it a lot. Nice crowd, nice bartenders, good music. I leave early, as I am going hiking on Sunday morning.
I've been getting a serious itch to go outside of the city, experience the fall, see some mountains. My friend Simon and I talked about this a few weeks back, and we invited some other people to go with us. Just try to get any gay men in NYC to wake up early on a Sunday and leave for a place with few paved roads and no brunch. I went with the conversationally and physically agile Simon and Michael Y to Bear Mountain. My travel karma was at full strength, as the trip went smoothly. I've never been on a bus winding its way through mountains, so we all got a wee bit queasy, but we survived.
The weather was perfect. It was slightly overcast, but the temperatures were mild. By the top of the mountain, I had shed my coat, my sweater, and any worries about school. From the top of the mountain you could see miles of golds, reds, and greens flowing across the Hudson River valley. I have photos of Michael hugging trees and kissing stones, other photos of Simon licking hot red bush. All of us are directionally challenged, so we went the exact opposite direction from what we needed to go. It was one of the best mistakes, as our trail led us to this midas valley of golden leaves raining from the blue sky into an ocean of rustling loam. I couldn't have picked a better trio for the trip. Simon reinforced my introspective need to just feel the incredibly rare sense of solitude/companionship, while Michael encouraged my need to play in the leaves.
It was jarring to sweat my way up this arduous trail, only to reach the pinnacle that is easily accessible by minivan and lost-youth harley. The monument tower at the peak was packed with corpulent men in complete leather Harley gear, rampaging children, and large women eating tubs of mayonnaise. You could almost feeling the mountain and those poor motorcycles groaning under the weight of that much metropolis. We fled down the next trail away from the giant parking lot, the sounds of the throng fading, replaced by the wind shaking leaves loose from the limbs. The conversation drifted randomly like the trail, sometimes strident, sometimes solemn. It was just what I needed. Now I'm off to get some coffee, write some lesson plans.
Posted by G at 11:06 AM
November 07, 2002
This whole NYC wind thing
This whole NYC wind thing is genuinely awful. I've never understood the need for scarves until now. Until now, I thought they looked silly. Now I know I need a superscarf. Now I realize that tornadoes are merciful because they're quick. This wind here lasts for months. They have these Great Lakes here that apparently suck the good weather into the depths, switching it with FREEZING PIERCING wind. Between that and the garbage on the street, it seems every moment is an awful American Beauty moment. I keep getting assaulted by plastic bags that are floating around in eddies of this wind trapped between the buildings.
And poor Bear's flared dog ass. The only time that the wind is at my back is when I'm walking Bear. This is a comfort to me, and an embarassment to Bear. As she gets older, her hind end is getting a lot of long white hair, kind of like old man nose hairs. As I was walking her last night, it was flared out like the vapor trail behind a supersonic jet.
Voting was a disaster last night. I was at school from 7:30 to 5:00, then went to what was supposed to be my polling place. I used Dan's link for precinct locator to be a 21st century guy. After waiting in line for about fifteen minutes, they tell me that I am not on their lists. Apparently I'm in a different area and have to go to a different location. Unfortunately, I'm out of time, as I have to leave to get to my university classes. I get home that night with fifteen minutes to spare, but chicken out, as I would have to go through the projects. Voting is important, but so is not getting mugged. I'm feeling really guilty. I missed the last presidential because of Peace Corps inefficiency (late absentee ballots, idiot country director who denied us the opportunity to go to the embassy, etc.) I just feel like a non-voter.
Posted by G at 08:08 PM | Comments (1)
November 06, 2002
Damn, damn, DAMN! I wrote
Damn, damn, DAMN! I wrote a good blog, posted it, and lost it. Now I can't remember what it was! Pissy monkeys!
Posted by G at 09:49 PM
November 04, 2002
I spent some time this
I spent some time this weekend looking at friends' websites. First, I had a good laugh at David C's blog, the blog of a guy who was at the last Swanktuary party. He gave me this great link. Take some text from something like a letter, send it through the blender, and laugh your ass off.
Minty fresh and unemployed Jim S from DC sent me the link to his photography. Sexy, original, and fun. I want him to do photos of me. Tasty.
Posted by G at 08:44 PM | Comments (1)
November 03, 2002
The batteries aren't charged up
The batteries aren't charged up to full levels, but I'm doing much better after a weekend working on the house. I installed the washer/dryer, repaired bunches of things, cleaned up the house, graded tons of homework, and even made soap. Yes, I'm also a soap-making god now. Exciting, huh? It's not exciting enough to make this week bearable, but at least I can wash the blood off with my new soap bar after going on a killing spree.
My friend Jennifer H spotted some supermodel a few weeks back at Union Square. She was tall, shopping for something that goes well with cigarettes and heroin. I was simply intrigued by the fact that she had terrible skin. We all look in the mirror and see all of our flaws, she's just lucky enough to have a professional digital retoucher.
The other notable thing about this event is that I've become so accustomed to mildly famous people, I don't even feel the need to comment about them. Now that I've been here for six months, I see a supermodel, a frumpy Chad Lowe, or the blond Baldwin, and I don't even blink. I am ready to be a gawking fool for the big stars. Bring 'em on.
Posted by G at 08:38 PM