Friday, September 08, 2006

Sad

So I was out walking the dog today and as ever she decide that she only wanted to pee on the postage sized triangle of grass between the highway, the basketball courts and the main road. Then having peed she set about sniffing and came across what looked like two discarded CDs. Interesting. Closer inspection howvere showed that they weren't CDs but DVDs. And interesting DVDs. The first featured a claimed four hours of hot transsexual sex whilst the second proclaimed itself a 'bisexual bonanzo' that promised '8 hrs of non-stop action.'

And I have to say that finding them made me sad. The disposal of both DVDs in such a desolate spot just seemed like such a furtive act. It seems to reek of shame, of guilt, of self-loathing. I can imagine the walk to the spot, the glance around and the quick flick of both over the fence and to anonymity. There's a determination not to be traced - it didn't go in the trash, to be recycled or any place that might lead back to the owner.

Yet this person, this man, obviously bought the DVDs. How horrifying an act must that have been for him? To have to stand, in line, trannies and bisexuals in hand, money at the ready (you can bet he didn't use a credit card) and wait as the guy on the till rang up his order, slipped it into a brown paper bag, determinedly avoided eye contact.

I wonder whether our furtive buyer surrounded his purchases with other - less specialized - titles? Titty Slickers or Black Booty in a bid to look less 'perverted'. I was once told by a newsagent friend that men who buy porn usually also buy chewing gum. It makes the porn purchase look more casual they think. More of an afterthought. She said taht it just gave her a mental image of them furiously masticating as they were furiously masturbating. All spunk and saliva. But I digress.

I wonder whether he actually watched the movies - or whether he was consumed by a self loathing that had him throw them away before he even got them home.

And I wonder whether the titles were evidence of a genuine kink or a half-way house toward homosexuality? It's a very hispanic area and I think that it might be more acceptable to have a thing for trannies than a desire for dick. But then, what do I know? For all I know the guy has watched and watched and watched. Surrounded by partying trannies and off their tits bisexuals, his mother in the corner making more rum punch and his gay lover, Jorge, laughing as they casually throw in another DVD and throw the other out of the window to a baying crowd.

Still it was an interesting find - and it did make me sad. Just like the showers in the old Virgin business lounge at Heathrow that carried the heavy air of a thousand business men's grubby self pleasure - it had the grubbiness of shame attached.

Maybe Jeopardy will make me less melancholy. I hope so.

I love the chrysler building


chrysler
Originally uploaded by stevenjude.
it's lovely...

... and deserves to be more famous; perhaps it needs a lovelorn monkey of its own... or an observation deck for diabetes sweet celeb' couples to finally admit their love against a backdrop of New York night... but it's magestic

Of course when you go inside it's a different story - too many security people, tiny elevators, cramped office space but then it was always meant as something to view from the outside rather than from the inside.

Got my scans back and it seems I'm both clear and boring.

Jude arrived in Stockholm - where her friend Hannah has just become Dr. Hannah and is being gently roasted as I write.

The burning skin is today much better - should be back to normal by Monday and ready to jump back into work proper. Looking forward to it.

Wednesday, September 06, 2006

The problem with an open plan office


office space
Originally uploaded by neffin1.
is that you get to see all of the pettiness, mindlessness and passive aggressiveness of the nasty little girls who make up your colleagues.

We moved to open plan today

I had my first 'you're too noisy' complaint within 82 seconds

And left within 4 mins

Tuesday, September 05, 2006

A quick shot to the spine


high key insanity
Originally uploaded by elTwitcho.
Went to see my doctor about my 'burning skin' sensations and was rewarded with a flouroscope, a shot to the spine and a very cool picture of my inflamed vertebrae (count down seven discs and ouch marks the spot)

Marvellous.

Had a conference call at 7am this morning - so needless to say I slept like a baby (woke up every 2 hours crying) and am now knackered. Hardly ideal as I have to go and be impressive in front of an audience of cynical Brits this afternoon.

To spite them I shall use only Amrican spelling in my presentation and pronounce the 't' in 'Water' as a flat 'd'

I shall also claim to be 'dehydrated' rather than 'thirsty' - that should be the clincher.

Here's hoping that I don't fall asleep before they do

Monday, September 04, 2006

Scary Food


skully pannacotta 2
Originally uploaded by chotda.
I was supposed to be in London today.

Which would have been good for the airmiles (I need all I can get);

Good for me personally (I wanted to be in Sweden on Saturday for my birthday and a friend of Jude's graduation - London to sweden costs $1.50 return on RyanAir)

And good for work (everyone is there)

Instead I have this strange burning skin sensation, a doctor's appointment, a week alone with the dog and a 7am conference call.

The work thing is pretty cool at the moment. 'cause I'm looking at how and why our relationship with food is messed up

- we're afraid of what's in it
- we're afraid of what it will do to us
- we're afraid of how to prepare it
- we're afraid of our feelings towards it

We're at a stage where good food is signified not by what's in it - but by what's missing from it (no transfats, no hydrogenated oils, no sugar, no fat, no taste, no interest)

And we're quick to make food the enemy.

We have 20% of girls 12-15 willing to take laxatives as a diet methodology. We have 7% of people willing to trade a lifetime of breakfasts for a lifetime's supply of morning cigarettes. We have kids with microwave ovens in their rooms.

I'm trying to find out how and why we got this disfunctional. To find out when bi-polar behavior (I'll suck on icecubes all day tomorrow so that I can have tiramisu tonight) came to be seen as balanced eating.

To find out when gastric bypasses became heroic.

To find out how, where, when and why we f***ed up on food.

And I have somebody else's money, address book and clout to help me do it.

It's gonna be fun. Just as soon as the pain stops, the doctor's clear me and I'm good to get on a plane again.

Sunday, September 03, 2006

Liberty


mamaliberty
Originally uploaded by stevenjude.
i seem to have nothing but Dutch people on the blog today. And that's good by me but I have to wonder 'where are they all coming from?' Has somebody told them that's there's free bread, cheese and cold cuts to be had here? Have they mistaken it for a sight that sells fabulous lighting? Or perhaps for a site that fights against the evils of curtains.

I love the Dutch. My wife is Dutch. Her mom is even more Dutch. They wear clogs (klompen?) out to the garden, claiming that it's safe. They sprinkle chocolate (flokke?) on their bread in the morning. Then eat more bread for lunch. They invite people over in the evening not realizing that in the US a 7.30pm invitation is usually an invitation to dinner. And they laugh like well tickled drains at people falling down, stepping in dog shit and generally being idiots on any of those Home Movie Clip Shows.

Still, if you are Dutch and you are here - perhaps you could comment and let me know where you found the address. It will solve a little mystery for me