General
About that river trip…
Remember how I said we should go to the Yuba on July 7? I actually meant we should go on Sunday, July 8. Sunday, as you know, was originally named for the Norse god Sunne, the god of rivers. So it is the only possible day of the week on which to visit a river. … Continue reading
Gli accenti
In Italian there is no silent e: all vowels are pronounced. Think about what kind of a culture produces such an upfront language, where no letter hides itself behind another. Then again, there are the accents. Sometimes an accent will indicate that a vowel is open or closed; sometimes there is no accent, and then … Continue reading
Books versus birds
Yesterday I spent a long time sitting on the floor of Green Apple and considering whether Deirde Bair’s biography of Simone de Beauvoir was worth $6 to me. I really liked her biography of Anais Nin. And having this on my shelf might make me look smarter. But in the end, $6 just seemed like … Continue reading
On returning from the Castro Safeway
ME: They had this whole display at Safeway of “Films for Guys” DVDs. GENE: You didn’t… ME: No, I didn’t buy anything. But I was curious to see what constitutes a guy film. GENE: And? ME: Taming of the Shrew, starring Elizabeth Taylor. GENE: Huh. ME: Our neighborhood is…different.
Because at midnight we consider the Pope
ME: Are you awake? GENE: Mmph! Nyguh…yes. ME: Why did we call the last Pope ‘John Paul’? He was Italian, so wasn’t his name really Giovanni Paolo? So why do we Anglicize his name? We don’t refer to Mikhail Gorbachev as ‘Michael,’ after all. GENE: … ME: You weren’t really awake, were you. GENE: No. … Continue reading
The lions and the Christians
Found this in an old letter that I never got around to sending and thought I would recycle it. This is from 2004: Gene recently decided he wanted to make his own cologne so that he didn’t smell like anyone else. He had heard that the Body Shop had ingredients for making one’s own scent, … Continue reading
Who-ba? Yuba!
Michele and I are planning a trip to the Yuba River on July 7 and you are all invited. Natural rapids, a riverside picnic and a lot of naked gay guys just upriver — who’s with us? Photos of previous years are here, here and here. All those interested, post a comment or just email … Continue reading
Late
MUNI put a rock to my scissors again last night on my way to my first Italian class. Even with extra time padded into the lining of my transit schedule, still the late bus made me late for lecture. And then I was all sweaty from rushing. I’m always a little surprised to find I … Continue reading
I win
From The Art and Craft of Feature Writing: My own selective list of what readers like, in descending order of preference: 1. Dogs Score!
Travelers beware
My friend recently had a miserable experience at the WooGo Central Park Tempo Apartments in New York City. I offered to use my modest little soapbox here to warn other travelers about this place. Here’s her review of the WooGo Apartments: “Appalling customer service. The advantage of clean, comfortable (though small) rooms and convenient location … Continue reading