SA-TUR-DAY Night! Well, it is. And I’m tired. Spent the day inside the apartment, cleaning up and throwing things out. There’s still a lot of crap, but we’ve made inroads. It was cool to be cleaning the apartment with Bill. Something we can do together, and we both benefit from it. I know, ‘Awwww’ but the price to pay is exhaustion. A zombie tonight that’s for sure. Also last night’s blog and photos page took a long time. Just writing Sa-tur-day was exhausting. That required enthusiasm and that is in limited supply. Either that or we threw it out with the other trash.

Here’s a sampling of what we listening to today.

Boz Scaggs, What Can I Say? From Silk Degrees.
I can do a pretty good Boz Scaggs impersonation I think. I should do Low Down or Lido Shuffle at a karaoke bar one of these days. I’ve never been to a karaoke bar before, have you? Let’s go, one of these days.

Ghost Walk, The Budos Band.
Got this from a download via Jockohomo, who is really good with the music tips. I find him to be an entertaining blogger and worth checking out, if only for the downloads. And he has pictures of sexy humpy men on occasion.

Maybe This Time, Natasha Richardson from The Cabaret Broadway soundtrack.
Great show stopping song, I would have loved to have seen Natasha Richardson on Broadway as Sally Bowles. I saw Jennifer Jason Leigh and she was good, but all the ushers and building staff hated her guts. I saw it for free through the Roundabout Theater Usher program, just have to wear black trousers and a white shirt.

Philadelphia Freedom, the Elton John Band
Yes I’m a friggin stickler! The original 45 was credited to the Elton John Band, the late Dee Murray, Nigel Olsson, Davey Johnstone and Ray Cooper. Elton’s best band. Stupidly got rid of Dee and Nigel soon after Captain Fantastic was released. My sister saw this line up. Great pop song from my past, 1975, seventh and eighth grade. One of my desert island songs. (That’s something I’ll do someday, make a desert island disc list, he threatened). I met Davey Johnstone on a NYC street about two years ago. That was a thrill, for I was once a HUGE Elton John fan. That’s another story for another time. (he threatened)

Every Time We Say Goodbye, Betty Carter from Night & Day A Cole Porter Selection.
Recorded live at the late Bottom Line and conducted by Dave Amram, this dreamy slice of class is a perfect Sunday morning song. Annie Lennox covered it the first time I heard it so there’s a soft spot in my ear for her version, but this is sublime. And I met Dave Amram once at WFMU when he was on brother Frank’s radio program back in the day.

Love Me or Hate Me, Lady Sovereign.
This is right now the favorite song in the apartment, since I played it for Bill this afternoon. Bill loves the line, “If you love me/then thank you/if you hate me/then fuck you” That’s about it for tonight. Love me or hate me.

No Pictures! No!

Finally Friday is here. As I wrote that a commercial said, ‘It’s finally here!’ I hate it when they cop my style. Madison Avenue Bastards! Last night it was a chore to write, but I got some feedback from some of you who enjoyed my captions which made me take 91 pictures today, thinking “I’ve got to top yesterdays captions.’ This is why it’s generally a good thing not to tell me what a good job I’m doing, because I try to duplicate whatever it is the good job I am doing. Mostly it’s an unconscious thing, then when it becomes conscious I get into trouble. So where does that leave me? Craving for attention and praise and then freaking out when I finally get it.

Yesterday I had an errand to run at the end of the day, had to go to Chelsea, or was it the Flatiron district? Either way I was walking down west 21st Street, past where Danceteria used to be, past where Tramps used to be when I saw someone who looked like the girl who plays David Duchovny’s daughter Becca on Californication. I had my headphones on listening to LCD Soundsystem and the camera wasn’t ready, plus she’s just a kid. I figured it out when someone in a passing car yelled a compliment at her and she smiled while lugging her guitar. About a hundred feet after Madeline Martin came Michelle Hurd who was the black female detective on Law and Order Special Victims Unit. Once again camera wasn’t handy so you’ll have to take my word for it. I don’t think they even made it to Gawker Stalker.

Last night after struggling with the blog last night I watched the Daily Show and Colbert Report which were both quite good. The duet between Stephen Colbert and Tony Bennett was charming. Then I watched the Office which was very good. Great one hour season premiere. Everyone got some good lines in, and it promises to be an interesting season down the line. No more Rashida Jones though. That’s too bad, but Dwight and Angela were hilarious.

The I watched My Name is Earl and that was brilliant. Once again, top notch writing made sure there were a lot of funny lines for everyone. Ben Foster was on, he played Russell on Six Feet Under and from what I heard steals the movie, 3:10 to Yuma, out from under Russell Crowe and Christian Bale. He was good and borderline psychotic. Almost unrecognizable. The scenes with Joy and Earl’s brother Randy were priceless. Dummy!

I didn’t record Ugly Betty but watched it online and that was very good and funny but ultimately sad. Betty’s father is still stuck in Mexico, Amanda and Mark were brilliant with Amanda putting on the pounds after finding out that she is actually Fay Summers daughter, and possibly the daughter of Bradford Meade, Betty and her boss Daniel Meade was bittersweet and Hilda and Santos, well that’s the sad part. So much for hope.

This morning on my way to work, I made a point of swinging through Rockefeller Center where the Boss, err…Bruce Springsteen was playing live backed by the E Street Band. It was crazy crowded and I didn’t linger like I had a couple of years ago, seeing Ringo Starr playing in Bryant Park. I did have the camera ready as Bruce and company started sound checking to The Promised Land. I knew I’d have a chance to see it on TV when I got to the office and of course, he was excellent and had the crowd in the palm of his hand. There was one guy in the audience who they focused on, a black dude who knew every word to the Promised Land it seemed and the camera went to his face as he sang along with Bruce, ‘Mister I ain’t a boy, no I’m a man/and I believe in the Promised Land’. The dude was very emotional and in the moment. If you recorded it like I should have you’ll see him.

Well this was a lot easier than yesterday. Turtle Bay has quieted down somewhat, not the heavy police presence as earlier in the week and the bodyguards have slimmed down and taken to wearing off the rack suits from an ersatz Men’s Wearhouse. There was a demonstration by the United Nations for Burma (formerly Myanmar, formerly Burma), that’s a mess over there. Led by a brutal military regime, the government has shut down access to the Internet as well as text messaging and sending pictures from cellphones. Black Water killed more civilians in Iraq, and the report is backed up by the Iraqi police. Black Water had no comment. Cheney and Bush should pick up big dividends once they get out of the Whore House.

I was approached by a representatives from the Human Rights Coalition, a group that I occasionally give money to. As the guy started his pitch, I told him I knew about the HRC and my support and I was gay. He thanked me and told me that he was gay too. I said, ‘Yeah, I thought you looked familiar’. They laughed and I walked away.

And now, pics. Somehow I took 91 of them.
♫You’ll only see a portion or a slice, slightly warm, but very very nice. ♪

Max and Bruce’s forehead

‘It’s not a tie, it’s an albatross’

“No, down here…”

Bootay on a bike

“…and it’s Grey Suit in the front…followed by Euro Tourist with Richard Griffiths bringing up the rear….”

“..What’s he wearing? Ball cap, olive tshirt, carpenters pants, work boots….he’s 29, versatile…”

I figured if I stood in front of this window looking forlorn, someone would buy me this suit.

There’s a few more pics. I’ll be posting others in the Photos page. Please check them out.