kybearfuzz: (Default)
I don't have a set date for the anniversary of my coming out. As I have posted before, I came out to myself when I turned 30 years old and started the process of coming out to others very soon after. I have never regretted it for a moment.

Mark 2020 Homoversary sm
Yes, I have this many colors of these shirts...


A couple of weeks ago, I was having a conversation with a co-worker about visiting family for the holidays. I don't recall exactly how, but the discussion came around to him asking me if my parents ever tried to "correct" any obvious gay traits (OGTs) that they may have seen in me.

Being non-athletic and a tad histrionic, I was often labeled as a sissy by other kids, including cousins and even siblings. I know my dad often shut me down whenever things got a bit over the top. I remember that he bought me and my siblings glossy tee-shirts, the kind you saw in the 1970s where a thick, photographic transfer was on the front. My sister had something girly, with a horse on it or a kitten (I think). My brother had the "General Lee" car from "The Dukes of Hazzard." Mine was "Daisy Duke" from the same show, played by Barbara Bach, sitting seductively on her jeep. I tried to find a photo of it online and I couldn't. While I would enjoy the shirt for its kitschy nature now, at the time I was unimpressed with it. Looking back, I see it for what it was, something with a hot girl on the front that I could be seen in by others.

When we would watch the show, there was a scene in the opening credits with Barbara Bach in a red bikini. If I hooted and hollered at it, my dad would laugh proudly. It was all for his benefit and in a house full of kids, I got dad's attention for a few seconds, so it became a weekly event.

My dad signed me and the twin up for football in 3rd grade without asking, that I recall. If he did, it was probably phrased "Do you guys want to go play football? It'll be fun!" without telling us exactly what was involved. I just remember being taken to a locker room one day and fitted with ill-fitting pads and pants, saddled with a helmet too small, and then dragged to a field for my first practice. It wasn't fun. I hated it. When I quit after two weeks, my dad was disappointed in me, giving me dirty stares and not speaking to me for a month after. At 8 years old, that was rough. Again, I'm sure it was done to try to butch me up, but luckily my mom said I didn't have to do it if I didn't want to.

On a side note, my sister took this same approach with her kid that Mom did. If my nephew didn't enjoy sports, he didn't have to play them. I often wonder if she doesn't remember my horrible foray into football as part of her decision-making process.

My folks always said I was the quiet child of their brood. The reason for that was that after being shut down so much for any dramatic behavior, I found being quiet got me less correction. Once my siblings and I hit our teen years, Mom and Dad had to give a lot more attention to my more rebellious twin and sis than me, so I was often left to do whatever I wanted.

Today, there is the movement for gender neutrality, no pushing boys toward boy-things or girls toward girl-things. Some (mostly conservative) folks hate it because it fights the comfortable norm they grew up with, while others love their kids no matter what and don't believe it's necessary to push them toward things they may not want.

So did my folks try to correct my behavior, yeah, but mostly my dad. I've heard and read horror stories of others' experience, so mine pale in comparison.

Mark at 47

Jan. 5th, 2020 07:35 pm
kybearfuzz: (Bill the Cat)
So today marked my personal 47th revolution around the sun. I'm glad you all got to come along for the ride :D

Mark at 47


I can't say I did a lot today. I got up and worked out, deciding afterward to blow off my diet and enjoy myself. I went to lunch and had a steak dinner, courtesy of my Christmas present (gift card) from my oldest nephew. Then stopped by the bookstore for cheesecake, frappachino, and comics.

While working on my comic book, I got a birthday Facetime from Burly Bear Steve ([profile] brownbearon.

A quick to the library to print out pages to work on led to my discussion with a very cute daddy-otter type. He looked at me with a familiar glance, then apologized, as he thought I was someone else. I laughed and told him that it happens to me often with all of my apparent dopplegangers running around Cincinnati. He told me I should run for office since I was so popular.

Dinner and more desert and I am finally home. All day I have been reading birthday messages, texts, and emails from folks, which makes me feel warm and fuzzy.

Turning 47 is good. So much better than the alternative really :D

Mark at 44

Jan. 5th, 2017 09:16 pm
kybearfuzz: (Default)
The first real snowfall of the season fell today. I do love the snow (provided I don't have to drive in it), as it makes the world look very clean and tidy. Snow covers so much up, the stray leaves and twigs in the yard, the imperfections in the driveway, etc. Everything becomes very smooth and uniform, however briefly.

Mark at 44
Me at 44


I woke up to it this morning. The fact I didn't have to face the work traffic and I got to sleep in felt wonderful. Boo the Kitten and Milo the Cat were in my face wanting to be fed. I was relaxing as I did a lot of my big errands yesterday.

Facebook was lovingly blowing up with birthday messages and my phone was buzzing with text messages, so I took my time this morning getting stuff going. I did my bicep workout and grabbed lunch. As you may know, calories and carbs don't count on birthdays, so I ate badly. I splurged on some comic books and crashed at home, inking comic book pages and watching Netflix.

I've crossed into my mid-40s with no mortgage, good friends and family, and a worthwhile career. It's not a bad place to be!
kybearfuzz: (Screaming Bride)
Last night was the annual costume party I attend. It was a fun bash as usual. The hosts were dressed up as the creepy nun from "The Conjuring 2" and looked amazing. What really made me happy was the photo booth, which was set up like a parlor room with a mirror that reflected others from the side.

My costume was a mime outfit. I felt it was a cop-out, but the "KY Jelly" tube costume was just too hard to assemble at such a short notice. I spent the last two weeks getting the pieces together for the mime outfit(the beret, the suspenders, etc.), but it was the make-up that did me in. Not really being well-versed in applying make-up, it was a mess on the first try. The cream make-up dried and cracked and looked more "zombie" than "mime." Since I couldn't find the right make-up, I had to resort to an old trick from when I was a kid -- shoe polish. I'm sure it's not good for the skin, but ... it worked.

Mime Time

Mime Time

After a few hours of enjoying the party, I came home and spent the better part of a half-hour scrubbing my face. Today has been a recovery day. I was beat from the party, but didn't drink, so I'm not sure what wore me out so much. Tomorrow is the costume contest at the office, but I don't think I can handle putting the get-up on again for an entire day.
kybearfuzz: (Karaoke Kitty)
I haven't posted a kitty cat update for a bit. Milo the Cat (TM) and Boo the Kitten appear to be getting along pretty well, as he's licking her. Boo has been in the house for about six weeks now and I'm surprised how much she's grown. She's no where near Milo's size, but she's definitely growing up faster.

Milo Licks BooI'd forgotten what it was like to have a kitten in the house. The last kitten I had was back when I was a teenager. They certainly do take a lot more work than the average housecat, but we (Milo and I) are adapting. It's the little surprises that Boo does that catches me off-guard.

For example, when I clean the litter boxes, she watches. Not from a distance, but right into the mix of it. She will literally sit just outside the box while I clean it. When I move from one box to the next (there are three of them), she moves along with me. When I am done, she just leaves. She wasn't waiting for me to clean it so she could use it, she just wanted to make sure I did it right, I guess.

The other night, I was in the shower and she jumped onto the tub rim between the transparent shower liner and the curtain. I took the shower sprayer and blasted the liner, making her jump. She leaped back up a second later and I blasted the liner again. She jumped down again. Thinking she was done, I went back to scrubbing my naughty bits when the shower liner attacked me. I saw a black blur fall from the liner, scratching my big toe, and then back out. Boo drew blood. Another joy of having a kitten in the house.

I'm sure there will be more stories as little Boo grows up.
kybearfuzz: (Movie Buff)
I've posted before about how my home movie collection is full of horror movies from various decades. My favorites seem to spring from the 1970's. I ordered "Countess Dracula" from Amazon and it showed up in time for me to watch it while doing some work on my comic book last night.

After the death of her husband, aged Countess Elisabeth (Ingrid Pitt) rules her lands with the help of Captain Dobi (Nigel Green). When she accidentally learns that virgin blood renews her youth and beauty, she enlists Captain Dobi to help her find suitable girls to slaughter to maintain her new appearance, while wooing a young Lieutenant who is unaware of her true nature.

This Hammer film is loosely based on the true story of Countess Elisabeth Bathory. The movie has a PG rating, but is full of female nudity strangely. Such is the world of the early 1970s. The acting is actually pretty good and the story is entertaining, if nothing else.

It was Captain Dobi who caught my eye. Tall and bearded, he was played by British actor Nigel Green. He looked familiar and I realized that he played (an older) Hercules in "Jason and The Argonauts". While he wasn't a body builder, he was tall, broad-shouldered, and very furry and definitely pulled off the role... and burned himself into my memory. GRRRRR!

Nigel Green as Hercules
Nigel Green as Hercules in "Jason and the Argonauts" (1963)
kybearfuzz: (Guiding)
I spent the entire last week in Chicago. I was there teaching part of a computer class at our Chicago office. It was a new venue for us, but logistically it worked out well. So well, we might do it again soon. It was different for me as I drove up there and didn't have to fly.

I drove up on Saturday and got to hang out with LJ'er Mikiedoggie and his sweet feller John. Mike is a wonderful host and took me around gay Chicago. Saturday night, Mike and I went out and met my buddy Jerry, a newly naturalized US Citizen from Canada that I got to hang out with on my second foreign work trip in 2004 when he lived in Toronto. I had not seen him in person since that trip, so this was a thrill.

Jerry and Me, July 2016
Jerry and Me, July 2016

Jerry and Me - 2004
Jerry and Me, June 2004

As you can see, Jerry hasn't changed hardly at all. Thankfully I have! It was good to catch up with him after all this time.

Sunday, I moved into the hotel. The class went well, despite having one student who constantly proclaimed herself as an "expert" on everything and couldn't do anything on a computer. Here are some highlights of the week:

  • I took several of my fellow instructors to a gay bar on Sunday. We went to Showtunes Sunday at Sidetrack, which is an amazing place. I didn't think they'd go for it, but they surprised me with their willingness to expand their horizons. Mike and Jerry showed up there as well, so it was a big meeting for everyone. I also go to meet Jerry's handsome husband Doug, who is a wonderfully warm, very muscular bear of a guy! Such a lucky feller. Everyone seemed to have a good time and it was a great story for the other instructors who were sorry they missed it.


  • I managed to get to the gym every morning while I was at the hotel, which was impressive considering how sleepy I am in the morning.


  • Cute guys in the hotel. Everywhere. Seriously.


  • The hotel had a contingent of UFC fighters in town for an event. The lobby was full of muscled, tattooed men every evening. Some hotter than others, obviously, but there was one bearded one I was very attracted to. I wanted a photo, but it wasn't a good idea in that environment. Getting onto an elevator full of them was both intimidating and erotic for me (and happened twice).


I'm home now, and it was nice to sleep in my own bed again. Still, Chicago is ONLY five hours away, so I need to do this again sometime soon.
kybearfuzz: (2011 Pride Shirt)
Besides photographs, I don't have a lot in my house from my days as a kid. One of the things I have managed to keep is a small white, dingy teddy bear known in my childhood as "Littl'un," a hillbilly truncation of the name "Little One."

Mom and BrotherThe teddy bear has a history. In late December 1973 or very early January 1974, the twin decided to get into the stuff under the sink and drank bleach (or Brasso, the story has been told both ways) and was taken to the hospital. The twin was in the hospital for several days, spending our first birthday there. This pic is Mom and the twin at the hospital. The little bear in the photo was a gift to him while he was there.

After he came home from the hospital, he seemed to have no interest in the bear. So Mom and Dad gave him to me, starting my life-long interest in bears, starting with the teddy variety then seguing into the more human version as an adult. Every year until I was 16, my mom got me a teddy bear for Christmas. I had quite a collection for the longest time, including a giant blue and white one called "76," named after a gas station where my dad bought him. It was about this time, the little white bear garnered his name "Little One."

After I left for college, my teddy bear collection was put away. After I graduated, I moved to Cincinnati then Kansas City. Mom and Dad moved out of our old house because of Dad's health and the house fell into a horrible state. On one of my trips home from Kansas City, I collected a few things of mine from the house, including Littl'un to make sure nothing happened to him and he's been in my custody ever since.

When I had that nasty bout with blood clots a few years back, my sister and twin came up to see me at the hospital. They stayed at my house overnight and noticed Littl'un resting on the bed in the spare bedroom. They couldn't believe that I still had him. I can't imagine why they'd think I'd NOT have him.

He's more off-white, than white. His paws are worn. He is missing an eye, most of the nose, etc., but it's how I remember him from my childhood. He's been drooled on, peed on, dragged outside and back. In reality, he's probably a toxic wasteland of baby germs. I'd throw him in the wash, but I don't think his body would hold up to the agitation. I've given him a thorough dousing with Lysol though.

He's a huge part of my history. It's strange how we imbue inanimate objects with so much of our lives. Like a kid, I worry about his comfort, which is why is sleeps on the spare bed and not on a shelf. I'm happy he's still here with me.

Little One
Littlun in His Natural Habitat
kybearfuzz: (Ride Me)
Friday, I got a text message from handsome salesperson Jeff from Carmax that my shipped car had arrived and asked when I could come and test drive it. I had paid a fee to have it transferred. I thought it would take a while to get here, but arrived in a couple of days, which surprised me. I wasn't ready to go buy it, having no plan whatsoever to get my other car home, as the Carmax is about 30+ miles away from my house.

I left work on Friday to test the car. I fell in love with it, the color, the way it handles, the amenities, etc. It is a 2015, has about 12K miles, and has a brief history as a rental car. So, thanks to my buddy Rob who agreed to drive me back to pick it up and my local bank who cut me a cashier's check for the car, I have a new ride.

My New Wheels
My 2015 Kia Soul

A buddy asked me if I have named the car yet, which isn't something I've ever done and will require some thought if I chose to do it. I'll drive it to work tomorrow for the first time.

It's a nerd car, according to one of my friends, but what could be more appropriate for me.

Mark at 43

Jan. 5th, 2016 08:56 pm
kybearfuzz: (Mark at 43)
I won't lie. Today started out pretty crappy.

Last night, my foot started hurting and I suspected a gout flare up. So in the middle of the night, I got up and took the meds. I was so beat this morning that I slept in. The twin called and woke me to wish me a happy birthday. I'm sure I sounded terrible. I wished him one back and got up. I didn't get into the office until late. I have tons of vacation time, so this isn't really an issue. However, the foot didn't feel better all day, so I spent most of it hobbling around.

Mark at 43
Me at 43


My phone vibrated all day with birthday wishes from friends and family, mostly through Facebook notifications. It was definitely a pick-me-up as I enjoyed reading the messages, the funny pictures, the flirting from handsome bears, etc.

I was invited to go to a bear dinner tonight, but I was so beat that I didn't want to drive across town this evening, I begged off. I got home and took a nap. Thankfully, my foot started feeling better this evening. Instead of sitting at home, I took myself out for dinner, followed by cheesecake (oh, my waistline). I went to Friday's just down the road from the house and enjoyed it.

My waiter was a cute, short otter named Steven with big blue eyes and a longish brown beard. I admire anyone who waits table for a living, as it is overall a very difficult job, having done it myself during my freshman year in college. Being polite to everyone, even on your worst day, is a skill. I'm sure Steven was have a decent night and he took good care of me. If only I could have reciprocated (okay, that was a tad pervy). I did the next best thing and left him a 40% cash tip. After he took the check up, he stopped by a second time and thanked me again for coming in. So, I made someone feel a bit better tonight. It's a good self-gift I think.

The night is nearly done and I'm looking forward to getting a good night's sleep tonight.
kybearfuzz: (Canada)
So I finally managed to pull the Ottawa photos from my camera. I really enjoyed that trip and I now have an itch to do it again. Here are a few highlights from the trip:

  • From my poor geography skills, I didn't realize that Ottawa was right across the Ottawa River from Quebec. It was fun to jump from province to province. This time of year was especially fun because of the changing of the seasons. Autumn was definitely booming.

  • I love how all street and traffic signs have both English and French. It was fun to see the French be secondary on the Ontario side of the river, and the primary just across the way on the Quebec side.

  • Mer Bleue Bog was beautiful, despite a name that conjures up images of swamp land. It's not a swamp. Bogs are actually spongy vegetation masses where plants and trees can grow, but they are relatively free-floating. Because of the acidity of the water, the bog doesn't degrade due to bacteria or bugs, so there is no degradation smell.

  • The National Gallery of Canada is a beautiful museum. We didn't walk to see paintings, but my buddy Steve ([livejournal.com profile] brownbearon) wanted to show me the architecture, which is impressive. And there is a giant spider statue outside. Now that was a tad creepy.

  • I love seeing the city statuary and building design. The Canadian Parliament building has a very cool design and it's beautifully situated on the Ottawa River.


Photos from my trip are now posted on my Flickr. You can see the set by clicking the photo below:

Me and Little Trees
Me and a Small Evergreen at Mer Bleue Bog
kybearfuzz: (Me_2ndGrade)
One of the things that came up during my 25th high school reunion is how the twin and I ended up in separate grades. It made some people automatically assume I was older (more than the three minutes I actually am). If folks knew about me and my twin brother, they appeared to assume that the twin flunked a grade. One of my classmates admitted that she thought he had failed and fell behind. Ironically, her grandmother was my first grade teacher, the grade I skipped, and was one of the people responsible for sending me forward.

TBT - 2nd Grade
The Devious Smile of a 1st/2nd Grader



The twin and I started together in Mrs. Breeding's first grade class in the Fall of 1979. If I recall correctly, the school day consisted of the typical "A is for apple" criteria, to teach students the alphabet. We'd print the letter and then draw the corresponding object that started with that letter. Our math work was done through a large workbook with tear-away sheets that you would turn into the teacher. We'd read aloud from the "Dick and Jane" series. The best part of first grade was the naps.

Thanks to my watching too much television, a large chunk of it consisting of "Sesame Street" and "The Electric Company," I already knew how to read, drawing was fun, spelling was a competition, and basic addition/subtraction was easy. When we had time to do math work, I would do the sheet assigned and move on to the next, then the next, and so on, until I had the whole book finished the first month I was there. I would tear out the sheet to turn in, have nothing else to do, and become a complete nuisance to Mrs. Breeding. I don't recall specifically what the twin was doing during all of this, but it probably consisted of playing and being a smart@$$.

About six weeks into the year, Mrs. Breeding told me that I was going to be going to Mrs. Moore's class in the afternoon. Mrs. Moore taught second grade. So for a couple of weeks, I spent mornings in first grade and afternoons in second. I was learning handwriting in second, which I didn't particularly care for, but everything else seemed to fall into place. At the end of two weeks, Mrs. Breeding told me that I was supposed to go to Mrs. Moore's class all day from that point forward. I didn't really question this. I wasn't asked, I was told to do it. I just thought it was normal. What I didn't know was that the teachers had been talking to my parents and they had all agreed to push me to the next grade.

So, now in second grade, we were still reading, still doing the spelling words, still doing math in those tear-away books, doing the practicing of writing (also in booklets), and odds and ends. Then the same thing started happening. I finished all the math in the tear away books, began turning the long-completed sheets in when asked, and started bugging the crap out of Mrs. Moore while everyone else was working. From what I remember, I also started working ahead in the writing book too.

Mrs. Moore sent me to the "special" reading class in the afternoons. I was the youngest kid in there. The rest of the kids in there were in the next couple of grades ahead of me. I knew a couple of them were not the brightest kids in those classes, so I think it was a mix. I now get it -- I was reading ahead of my class, they were reading below theirs, but at the time we were reading at the same level collectively. We read comic books, worked on writing assignments, etc. It was strange to be pulled out of class like that, but again, I never questioned it.

From that point forward, my siblings were staggered one class apart -- my sis a year ahead of me, my twin a year behind. A few years ago, my mom told me that the school had actually come to her and Dad to discuss pushing me from second grade to third that same year. Because I had repeated the behavior of working ahead in my class work, the teacher had wanted to move me on. I guess she could also have gotten tired of my being bored and being a pain in her butt. Because of my age and concerns about my maturity, Mom and Dad decided that a move to third was not a good idea. I'm also guessing that they didn't like the idea of my sis and me being in the same class.

... And I still love reruns of "The Electric Company." It served me well.
kybearfuzz: (Pride June 2015)
As most people know by now, the Supreme Court voted yesterday that same-sex marriage was a constitutional right. It was an amazing day. I had trouble working as there was this constant flow of good news, wonderful tributes, and moving stories online. It's been a long time since I've felt such positivity and hope in the air. I'm happy to have seen this wonderful part of history finally unfold. I was looking forward to the Cincinnati Pride festival for a while, but the announcement made the promise that festival was going to go from fun to pure awesome.

This morning, I donned my Pride shirt this year. I put together the final touches on the design a few nights back and put my shirt together on Thursday night.

Pride Shirt 2015
Pride Shirt 2015

I had a great time. It was fun to see [livejournal.com profile] cincycub, [livejournal.com profile] _decibel_, [livejournal.com profile] kybigstew, [livejournal.com profile] thrd_uncle, among a host of other non-LJ buddies.

I was constantly on the move. Pride festival, beer and lunch, festival, movie theater, festival.... it was a lot of walking and a lot of sights to see.

Midway through the festival, I took a break and went to see "Ted 2," which was cute and surprisingly applicable to the gay marriage fight, getting mentioned more than once in film. It's a crude movie, but that's part of the charm.

The headliner for the festival was Steve Grand. I'd never heard of him before, but I admit he puts on a good show. I spent the last hour of the festival standing, hugging, and chatting.

I stopped by Graeter's Ice Cream on the way home, a little treat to cap off a fantastic day. I had bourbon pecan chocolate chip, which was a seasonal flavor that was so popular they made it a permanent addition. Oh, soooo goooood.

Happy Pride everyone!
kybearfuzz: (Halo)
I admit that I wondered about her condition for the last few days. At the age of 81, I figured that her health was good, but fragile. Still, I was a bit surprised to hear on the radio on my car drive home that Joan Rivers had passed away. She just seemed like she'd be around forever.

The Life and (Hard) Time of Heidi Abromowitz

I've been a fan of Joan's since I was little and first saw her do a monologue on "The Tonight Show." Her delivery was so rapid, her wit was so sharp, and her humor was biting. I was enthralled. My mom didn't want me watching it and sent me to bed. Instead, I turned on my small TV in my room and covered my mouth to muffle my laughing.

Later, at a "book sale" for some school thing, I found a paperback of her book, "The Life and (Hard) Times of Heidi Abromowitz." It was 50 cents and missing it's cover. It was bawdy, even "dirty," and had these fantastic cartoons drawn by James Sherman, all describing the life of a slut named Heidi. I loved that book and read it many times. At some point, that book vanished. I'm guessing that Mom might have snatched it from my room and disposed of it.

A few years ago, I bought a used hardcopy of the book online. I laughed just as much as I did the first time and I'm happy I still have it.

I've followed Joan's career for decades and enjoyed it. I loved her stand-up specials, the documentaries, and recently her "In Bed with Joan" web series. She recently had drag queen comedian Bianca Del Rio in bed with her and you can tell they were kindred spirits (the language is very NSFW!).



Thanks for the laughs, Joan, you'll be missed ...
kybearfuzz: (Armed)
One of my FB friends is in town, revisiting some of his old haunts when he lived and worked here in Cincinnati some 25 years ago. He's a photographer and asked if I would do a shoot with him. It was "pro bono" as he put it. So while I was at work, he scouted some cool locations in downtown Cincy. When I got off work, I grabbed a selection of different clothes, picked him up at his hotel, and headed to his first location.

The first stop was in "Over the Rhine" which was one of the city's more run down areas, but it in the midst of revitalization. There are colorful storefronts with some very neat architecture. So we picked out shirts and started in an alley. It took a while for me to relax, I admit, especially when he asked me to remove my shirt.

Now, I'm not shy about taking my shirt off really, but to mix that with an unfamiliar setting, a photographer, and people walking down the sidewalk, it gets a bit odd. Some people just walked past gawking, some asked questions, and others just told to themselves. One kid asked if I was a model.

I laughed, saying "yes, I'm the 'before' model, you should see the 'after.'"

With three different set of shirts and driving to three settings, my buddy Dave took about 250+ pics. I'll post what Dave sends me. I previewed some of them and I have to admit, he's REALLY good. :)

So after my "Tyra Banks" afternoon, we went to the Incline House, a restaurant in the Price Hill part of town that overlooks the city. Dinner was good and it was a stunning view, of both Dave and of the city. His BF is a lucky feller to have such a nice and handsome guy.
kybearfuzz: (Purple Tie 2014)
I'd meant to post about this some time back, but thanks to my office blocking LJ posting, I'd set it aside and had forgotten.

Glasgow School of Art


A fire broke out at the Glasgow School of Art earlier this month. While it's a school, the building itself was very cool in itself as it was designed by Charles Rennie Mackintosh. The news article has a few interior photos of the building.

http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-glasgow-west-27541883

When I was in Glasgow, Scotland in December 2012, I was lucky enough to have time to go on a tour of the school. The building has multiple floors and several pieces of work in progress by the student body. Sadly, because of the artwork in progress, no interior photography was allowed, so the picture above is one of the few photos of the school I could take.

I'm glad I had a chance to see the school. I know they are trying to salvage as much of the school as they can, but I'm sure a lot of important Mackintosh pieces were lost.

Mark at 41

Jan. 5th, 2014 01:01 pm
kybearfuzz: (Disco Kitty)
Hmmmm... what can I say about turning 41?

Redesigning

I actually would like to say that I'm redesigning my life, going to become more outgoing, travel for fun, etc., but the reality of it is that life is fairly good right now. 2013 was not my best year by any stretch, so I've had to learn a little something about maintenance of myself, especially in relation to the number of doctor visits I've had.

In 2014, I plan on doing some of those aforementioned changes, but I know a lot of things are unforeseen that can derail such planning. I had a chance to pursue a job change in Louisville, but I let that one go by as things just didn't feel right. Not that there was anything wrong with the job, but it felt like I hadn't really finished things as they needed to be here yet, that my current job and life here still had enough challenges to keep me interested and occupied. Most of all, I am very curious what this year holds for me.

I've had tons of birthday messages, which started filtering in after midnight last night and haven't stopped yet. It's good to feel loved by many. It also feels go to have a cellphone that vibrates with each message when the phone is in your pants pocket, but I digress.

I hope everyone had a great weekend! Big warm hugs to every body :)
kybearfuzz: (Disco Kitty)
Last night, I went to an annual NYE party thrown by one of my softball buddies. As always, the food is amazing (sweet/sour meatballs, 3 types of chili, dips, and desserts -- including candied orange peels, which sound odd but were delicious), the company is great (bears, including straight bears), and the festivities were fantastic. These guys do know how to throw a good bash that doesn't get out of control.

Me on NYE 2013I debated it, but decided to pull out the kilt again this year. It always seems to be a draw for some people, including the ones who remember me wearing one last year. I wore underwear beneath it, even though some people say it's a skirt that way. There are kids at the party and there were a couple of hands up the kilt during the party. It's a rated PG party (mostly).

At the end of the evening, we all gathered outside to launch paper lanterns, something I've never done before. It was pretty cool turning them loose, but I have to admit, I wondered where they ended up. If there were any forest fires last night, I was no where nearby.

One of my buddies snapped the pic here. Despite the lack of light, it turned out to be my favorite photo of me from the evening. I got home late, slept in, and tried to work out (it wasn't in the cards).

Happy 2014! It has to be better than the crapfest of 2013!
kybearfuzz: (Orange Crush Shirt)
Last night, I handed out candy for about a half-hour. One of my local, non-LJ buddies was having an impromptu birthday bash at a nearby restaurant. So I shut down early, giving away candy to about a dozen kids. As I was pulling out of my drive, it started to rain hard. I guessed that shut down most treaters, which was a shame as there seemed to be more kids out this year.

Dinner was great as was the company. The man who owned the restaurant kept trying to pair up the birthday boy with a beautiful young hostess, unaware that he had just gotten back from Maine this week where he married his longtime partner. I broke off my diet in order to have some birthday cake which was delicious.

Autumn Leaves
... so... many... leaves...

I took the day off and tackled the yard. The rain and cooler temps had finally caused the large maple in my front yard to shed its leaves... in droves. Luckily, the gutter guards seem to be doing their job pretty well. I raked the wet leaves and hauled them into the woods behind my house for about two hours. It's pretty exhausting.

Raking Leaves
Me, Rake, Leaves...

So naturally, I had to take a break. Thankfully, I don't feel the urge to workout now as I'm beat. Not sure what I'll do with the rest of my day, but I'm sure I'll figure something out.

Happy Friday!
kybearfuzz: (Bag Hag)
While I fully admit that it felt good to sleep in this morning, the whole day has felt a bit off with this being my first official "furlough" day. I liken it to feeling like I'm playing hooky from school, even though I have no choice in this matter.

So after a workout and lunch, I did some grocery shopping and came home, wondering what I should do with myself. [livejournal.com profile] mort_83 suggested that I do some things that I usually haven't the time for. So I decided to clean the car out. I've been bitching to myself for months that the glove box is full of junk, the windows needed serious cleaning, and there were two distinct blobs of bird crap on the hood for a couple of days. The timing seemed right.

Clean Car
A Clean Car -- Look at the Good I Do...

People have seen the pic and are commenting on my arms. Despite my bicep workout, it's an illusion people, seriously. :)

In not knowing how long this government shutdown will last, I'm worried I'm going to get a lot done.

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