Despite temperatures that are indicative of mid-summer it is indeed the first day of Autumn. I am welcoming Autumn from Chicago, IL as I wake up to greet the day that I will meet my author-idol, Neil Gaiman. Neil’s new book Anansi Boys came out on the 20th and the temptation to purchase it and dive right in was almost overwhelming.

I already have a reserved copy waiting at Anderson’s Bookshop who is hosting the event today. Jeff and I drove up to Chicago yesterday and Scott is flying in to meet us today.

So, if I’m not on this or other sites for the next few days I’m not being antisocial, I’m just away from the PC. Withdrawals will no doubt be painful! I’ll be back with a full report on Monday including pix and will catch up with all my blog reading and commenting as well.

Have a wonderful first day and first weekend of Autumn 2005 everyone! Get out and see Tim Burton’s Corpse Bride!

(Scott, far left, pictured with various friends in Las Vegas and Luke Skywalker himself, Mark Hamill)

September 3rd was the birthday of one of my best friends, Scott. I had waited to post mostly because I didn’t have a recent picture and knew I was going to meet him in Tulsa a week and a half ago and might get a picture then. Little did I know that I would get such a great picture!

Scott, a NYC resident, was in Las Vegas in the days prior to our Tulsa trip with his friends for the opening of their Broadway hit Avenue Q in Las Vegas. I got a call Thursday September 8th asking me to guess who he was hanging out with. It turned out to be Mark Hamill and his wife. They were staying at the same hotel and they ended up spending part of the evening together. Being less than a year younger than me Scott also grew up a Star Wars fan. While I have always been partial to Han Solo, his childhood hero was Luke Skywalker. That being the case this chance meeting was a special geek moment for Scott, eventhough I imagine he managed to present himself with great decorum and didn’t regale Mark Hamill with bad “Luke, I am your father!” impressions.

I met Scott in 1987 during my freshman year of college in Tulsa, OK. I had moved there from a small town in Nebraska and was quite miserable being away from friends and family. I had called home saying that I was not going to come back after Christmas break but was instead going to go to a college in Nebraska. This was sometime prior to Thanksgiving. My mom said that this was ‘okay’ but said she would pray that I would find a good friend before that so I would stay. Soon after I ‘met’ Scott. We had actually had a class together all semester, Oral Communications, but I hadn’t noticed him. He can correct me if I’m wrong but I believe he came to my attention when he was giving a speech and mentioned in his speech that Madonna was a slut. It was an unexpected and quite hilarious moment and we became fast friends after this. So Scott was either an answer to prayer, or a great curse, I don’t know which. Just kidding! Scott likes to remind me and others that he believes he is solely responsible for me finding my wife. Since I had found a good friend I returned after Christmas break and soon after met Mary who had been home the previous semester caring for her ill mother. A year and a half later we were married. Thank you, Scott! 😉

Scott has been a terrific best friend with whom I’ve had some of my most memorable moments. Scott is a director in NYC and as such sees a great deal of theatre. I have been able to see two of my favorite Broadway shows with Scott, Phantom of the Opera and Les Miserables in addition to many others. I have met Tori Amos twice, in Tulsa and Seattle, thanks to Scott. On our first trip to NYC to visit Scott my wife and I were able to go up in one of the towers of the World Trade Center, a very special memory now considering the 2001 tragedy. I could go on and on about cool things Scott and I have done together but more important than those things he has been a very special friend who encourages me to get outside of my comfort zone and do things that I might not do otherwise. In addition Mary and I have fallen in love with his family members in South Carolina and Tulsa and have adopted them as our own. And of course there’s that little thing about meeting my wife.

For those who’ve managed to read this far I would be remiss in not sharing another memory. Scott and I were in a Health class in college and we were taking timed tests to see how many push ups, etc. we could do in a minute. Scott was holding my feet and counting while I was doing sit ups. As he counted “25, 26, 27…” I unexpectedly let out a very loud fart which halted the class as everyone burst forth with laughter. It was an embarrassing but extremely entertaining moment.

Please join me in wishing Scott a belated but very Happy Birthday! I love you dearly and our friendship is a very integral part of my life. Thank you for all the memories and for your honesty and encouragement. You are the best.

On a related note, on September 3rd, 1937 Orson Welles produced, directed, and starred in Les Miserables, the first radio play to be produced by the fledgling Mercury Theater group.

‘Tis international Talk Like a Pirate Day! I expect the lot of ye to go to your places of employment garbed in all your pirate finery, prepared to pepper your conversations with the salty dialogue of the pirate! Spend the day lootin and pillaging. Answer every other question with the phrase “Arggh!”. Do not hesitate to tell your co-workers to “swab the poopdeck” and make sure that you threaten at least three peers that you’re going to make them “walk the plank” before days end. If your boss annoys you then you may want to intimate that you’ll soon be sending him to “Davy Jones’ locker”. If you’re feeling reckless refer to your significant other as a “saucy wench”. Feel free to take a peek at the Pirate Glossary if you need help filling your day with pirate lingo.

Really want to get into the Talk Like a Pirate Day festivities? Go and get yourself a pirate name and you’ll be the envy of all!
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Tonight’s entertainment should be a reviewing of Pirates of the Caribbean, one of the best pirate movies of recent date. Late last week I sat down to watch Peter Pan with my daughter.

I hadn’t seen it and was quite impressed. The actor and actress who played Peter Pan and Wendy were both wonderful and Jason Isaacs was entertaining as Mr. Darling/Captain Hook. The special effects were first rate! If you haven’t seen it I highly recommend it, especially on this piratical day!
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For the literary pirate I recommend:

I purchased The Pirates! In An Adventure with Scientists: A Novel for Mary for Christmas last year and it was hilarious fun. A Monty Python on the high seas…with scientists, of course.

For those buccaneers who prefer their books with less words and more pictures I point you to Scurvy Dogs. This five issue comic series is one of the funniest comics I’ve ever read. Chock full of good pirate and monkey fun!
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Don’t be a bilge-sucking blaggard…go forth a speak like only a true pirate can! And tell ’em Sealegs Bonney sent ye!

Yes I Am!!!

In true championship fashion the two-time defending Superbowl Champion New England Patriots defeated Randy “Look at me, look at me” Moss and the Oakland Raiders 30-20 to open the 2005-2006 NFL season. And it couldn’t come soon enough!

This summer has been one of personal struggle for co-workers and extended family members which have profoundly effected us and made the summer seem longer and much more taxing than previous summers. While some of the situations continue I personally find it comforting that fall is on its way and we as a family will be able to spend more time enjoying the outdoors and allowing the beauty of God’s creation to assist with some much needed healing.

And football is a part of that process. I like no sport as much as professional football and I’m so thankful it is finally here! The love of this sport goes back to the 3rd grade when I picked up my copy of Boy’s Life magazine with Roger Staubach on the cover and immediately became a fan of the Dallas Cowboys.

Living in Kansas City I have of course become a Chiefs fan but I still have a soft spot for the Cowboys and actually like a number of other teams as well. I’ve taken a break from fantasy football this year and am planning on just watching for the fun of the game this year and recharging for a possible return next year.

I’m off to Tulsa to visit a few friends and will return late Monday night. If you don’t hear from me before then, that is why. Have a great NFL opening weekend everyone and my condolences to the football widows.

Men do not like to shop. At least that is a popular truism that people like to perpetuate. Despite rumors to the contrary there are men (and not just those on Queer Eye) that actually like to shop. Jeff and I are living proof of that very fact as we spent the better part of Sunday doing just that! In fact we started shopping at 10 a.m. and, except for lunch at Gates BBQ, continued on until around 6:30 that evening! “What could two men possibly spend that much time shopping for?”, you may ask. The answer is: Books!

Jeff’s wife and children were out of town this weekend and he was left to his own devices so we decided to spend the day shopping at bookstores. Most of our day was spent visiting two of the local Half Price Books stores here in Kansas City. Half Price Books are great incarnations of the stereotypical used bookstore. They are clean, well-organized, roomy and have a nice selection of books, music, and movies…all for half price or less. Prospero’s Bookstore is a funky, fun little bookshop that neither of us had ever visited and it was fun to check it out (click link for pictures) . We ended up our day at Borders mainly due to the fact that we had 30% off one item coupons that expired on Labor Day. Jeff was my kind of shopper. I know few people who could match my ability to spend hours in one bookstore and Jeff equals or eclipses my ability.

And, like true shoppers, the joy was in the looking. I managed to spend all that time in the various bookstores and only bought one book! It was a first edition hardback of Neil Gaiman’s short story collection Smoke and Mirrors.

(this is a picture of the paperback…the hardback has gold lettering that doesn’t seem to be scanner friendly)

It is in great condition and is one of the few books of Gaiman’s that I did not have in hardcover so I was really excited to find it. I plan on taking this as one of my two items to be signed at the book signing in Chicago in a few weeks. Jeff managed to find a few books as well including a gift for Mr. I Don’t Read himself, James! Jimmy admitted that he has read Peter David Star Trek books in the past and Jeff is hoping to lure him back into reading with the first book in the Peter David’s New Frontier series. It is a very small book, hence its appeal, and will be coming your way soon James. Wipe your glasses clean and be prepared.
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Mary and I have several television shows that we never watched in their original run and are now enjoying via DVD. We have watched and loved Wonderfalls and Firefly and are now making our way through Season One of Farscape. We did not have the Sci Fi channel when this originally aired so its great to be able to go back and experience this fun show.

We are also watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer. My friend Scott got me the first season DVD set last year for my birthday and we devoured that. Time, life, and other shows took up some of our time and now we are back to watching Buffy and just finished Season Two. We are currently using Jeff and Keri as our own personal Netflix until we exhaust what they own and will have to actually use Netflix. Thanks guys! Buffy is such an entertaining show that Whedon managed to keep just to the right of being too campy. Mary and I recommend both shows highly.
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And because I know you were all waiting with baited breath…yes, I did manage to get my first turkey leg of the season! We went to Santa-Cali-Gon Days and Tori and I each had a massive turkey leg. We also made sure to leave with a week’s worth of kettle corn. I hope everyone had a wonderful Labor Day weekend!