Whine and Cheese

I originally had two separate entries to post about work, but both of them seem so negative that I didn't feel like spraying that around. So instead, here's some bits and pieces of the week:

• Now that Issue #20 of my comic book is out, I am feeling a bit of the post-issue malaise that comes with it. Working on the comic book engulfs a lot of my free time when I'm working on an issue, so the sudden flood of free time throws me. I tried to draw some cartoons, but the ideas just don't seem to come. The well feels somewhat dry.



• I am enjoying the 2nd "season" of "RuPaul's Drag Race All-Stars," but I swear I think there must have been a sale on lip injections. A lot of the queens have been visiting their plastic surgeon to get those lips plumped up and it seems to throw off their faces when they are out of drag. Seriously, Alaska and Adore Delano are fish-lipping it. I'm thankful my full lips are natural :D



• Got my full 5K run into today without taking a break. I'm going to pay for that tomorrow, but I'm feeling accomplished today.



• The Midwest Invitational Softball Tournament (MIST) is this weekend! I am playing for the team I may be switching to next year. I've got the jersey already. I'm looking forward to it and I'm looking forward to meeting the visiting teams. We are playing in the lowest level, recreational bracket, so I expect lots of campy fun.



• I took all next week off. I have four weeks of vacation time I need to burn before the end of the year, but I've been too busy to take it. I will be off a lot in the next four months. Definitely a first world problem, but a great one to have.



• Pride Night at King's Island is next Friday! Six hours of no lines for rides, beautiful bears everywhere, great friends visiting to go, and Lady Bunny will be performing!

Happy Green Shirt Thursday! We're nearly there, y'all, just one more day!!!

Last night I was chatting a bit online before bed and I found the flyer card for the Cincinnati Comic Expo from last weekend. On this one was an image of Wonder Woman, Batman and Batgirl fighting in the Cheetah on a roller coaster with a bat theme. It struck me as very familiar when I first saw it and remembered it's The Bat from King's Island. It made me think of other roller coasters I'd always heard about but never ridden, like the Screamin' Demon. So I did a bit of online research on them before bed.

King's Island was a three hour drive from my childhood home in Kentucky. My parents took the whole family there when I was four (1977) and I didn't go again until I was probably a senior in high school (1990). The 1977 trip was a miserable, hot "are-we-there-yet" debacle that my parents refused to repeat. So I missed out on the 'Demon because I was too little to ride it, as it was operational from 1977 to 1987. I missed The Bat completely because it was only open from 1981 to 1984. However, I remember my cousins and friends telling me how fun they were, so in my mind I recall thinking how cool it would have been to ride them. I was happy to see the Bat has not been forgotten and it made a cool backdrop for the Expo ad.

For the folks who have been recently via Pride Night and other occasions and don't remember these rides, The Bat was situated where the Vortex is now. The Screamin' Demon was somewhere around the Son of Beast area. In the list of defunct KI roller coasters, I suspect the "Son of Beast" will probably join these two in the future as it seems like one of those rides with inherent safety problems. At least that one I can brag about having ridden. :)

The weekend was a busy, but fun one.

I picked up mikiedoggie from a downtown Cincinnati street corner Thursday night (after his bus ride). I drove up and solicited him, getting no reaction from the lady standing next to him. Heh!

Friday was *Pride Night* at King's Island. I look forward to this night all year long. It really is the best night to go. For six hours, there are relatively no lines for the rides. You are surrounded by friends you've met, friends you've only chatted online with but finally get to meet, and new friends you get to discover. I hate to wax philosophical, but it really does feel that way.

I took only a few photos and some of those didn't turn out right because my camera was on the wrong setting for evening shots. You can click the frightened Mikie for the set. Check out his set as they are MUCH better.

On Saturday, Mikie, Derek (_decibel_), and I went out for a great burger, Graeter's ice-cream, and a visit to the downtown beer fest. Calories galore! Saturday night, Mike and I went to the Levee to hang out with Derek's handsome hubby Chris (kybigstew) for appetizers, drinks, and abusing our trainee server named Will. With the help of his trainer Ashley, we called him every name but Will (including "Wont"). He gave as well as he got and ended up being tipped separately for the onslaught.

Sunday I dropped Mikie off at the bus stop and crashed. Laundry, nap, run, TV, lazy afterward.

I took today off to clean out the closets for Goodwill. Yay :)

The Eiffel Tower changes colors at PKI for Pride Night
Click the picture above for the quick gallery of photos.

Last night was a lot of fun. I'm sorry for the local guys (and not local guys.. hugs ericdabear, we missed ya) who missed it for various reasons. In attendence was Brian (cincycub), Derek (_decibel_) and hubby Chris, Erik (need_2_chat), Mike (mikiedoggie), Dan (stripedtiger), Bo (demcub), and non-LJ folks Jay and Rich.

I was very happy to finally meet Bob (digibob) and his partner Jeb (arthole). I have had a big crush on Bob for years and it was great to finally hug that burly bear!

Also in the crowd was lougarou and shimbexprovides, the latter of whom I didn't recognize with the full beard. I had actually cruised him a bit while standing in line before the park opened. That beard looks good on you :)

Ride tally was The Beast (2), Face/Off (1), Delirium (3), Vortex (2 -- and we didn't have to get off and on), Drop Zone (1 -- ugh.. I really hate this ride, but I do it every year), Adventure Express (1), Racers (1), Top Gun (1), The Former Outer Limits (1).. and I think that was it.

.. and there was skipping down the midway... tee hee...