20 years ago, Elton John “came out” as being gay. I was 23 and wrote a long, personal letter, thanking him for providing a positive role model and explaining my struggle to make it in the music business while living in a small town. I had heard he had a home in Buckhead, which is a section of Atlanta. So, I addressed the letter to him with only Buckhead as the street address. Somehow the letter got to him and he actually wrote back.
In the letter, he responds to my questions and comments that he has no regrets other than hurting people while abusing substances. He gives me some advice -get out of the small town- and wishes me love and luck.
Well, the time has come for me to pare down my belongings. I expect this handwritten letter to fetch six figures. Therefore,I took it to a autograph dealer and had them verify the authenticity and provide a certificate.
It was written on Elton John AIDS Foundation stationery and comes with the hand-written addressed envelope.
Serious inquiries only, please. You can barely find autographs from Elton on ebay, let alone a full handwritten letter!
Use the contact form on the contact page.
American Horror Story:Coven
I was going to wait until the end of the season to write about American Horror Story:Coven, but I decided to split this up, since there’s a break in the story due to Thanksgiving.
After they wrote last season targeted directly at me, I couldn’t imagine how they could top it. I had seen some of the previews and read about the storyline and was torn. Was this going to be a cheesy Halloween witch story? Then to have it set in New Orleans. Ugh. Well,
I am in love with Jessica’s acting skills, so I gave it a shot. Then when the first episode came on and Angela Bassett was there, I wasn’t sure how I was going to get past the Tina Turner character that I have associated with her.
I like period pieces, so when Kathy Bates showed up on screen in that dress, I started to have a change of heart about the new series
This season seems to have two types of episodes. One that is exciting and riveting and one that moves the story along.
Jessica Lange as Fiona Goode is just like the previous season. You hate her in one episode and then love her the next! Even her skills as a witch does not help the ravages of time. You see her brilliant acting skills over and over.
I will preface my next comment with my take on art again… if art makes you love it or hate it, then it has invoked some type of emotion. Therefore, it is a success. If art is forgettable, then it is not art. With that being said, Lily Rabe, whose character I hated in the last season (because I was supposed to), plays a soft hearted (so far) wood nymph-esque innocent witch from the swamps. Every time she comes on screen, Stevie Nicks sings. Beautiful story with her!
I will have to say that I was rolling my eyes when the zombie things started happening, but it actually moved the storyline.
I will wait until the end of the series to give it an overall judgement but for now I am on the edge of my seat waiting for the next Jessica Langue snappy remark!
WordPress blog posting on android… ugh
I have attempted to post my last couple of blog posts with my phone and I just have to say that typing a long post on android is very difficult. I pride myself on punctuation and sprlling (lol). Phones make this a task. So I apologize and will probably try to correct some things in my last few posts.
One of the last couple of posts, I attempted to use speech to text and I read it the other day and cringed. I can’t blame that one on fat thumbs. Maybe fat lips? See?
3DZ Pizza Wilton Manors Oakland Park -Review
Due to my excellent culinary palate (lol), I was invited to a tasting of the new 3DZ Pizza in Wilton Manors. This was a private event, so I got to sample a large portion of the menu. 3DZ is where Island City Pizza was-next door to the “Corner Pub’. 1913 N. Andrews, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33311.
The actual opening date is scheduled for December 9, 2013. But while we were there, several potential customers arrived, wanted pizza, so they may want to go ahead and start serving!
Let me just start by saying that the owner, David, was an excellent host, seemed like a really nice guy and was able to juggle several courses like a pro! Welcome to the neighborhood!
He started us off with garlic knots with dough that was melt-in-your-mouth. The pizza was LOADED with pepperoni and cheese. He did not skimp at all. I asked him if that was going to be the quantity of pepperoni and cheese on his final product or if this was just for the tasting and he said, “I believe that the toppings should be to the edge”. It was decadence at $16 for a large (price may change but it would have been great at $20).
The sauce is a little on the sweet side. The cheese was so good that when you lifted a slice out, it produced continuous strings… fun!
The meat lasagne was good. I liked this because the pasta was cooked like I like it-floppy!
Then we got to my favorite dish and what I will probably go to this place for more than anything else-the apple dessert pizza. Omg! Extreme decadence! Edge-to-edge apple, cinnamon and sugar!!! This was the bomb! I usually don’t like “pizzert”, but this changed that.
David mentioned some type of breakfast pizza he is planning… hope it’s not a secret!
All in all, this was a great experience. Warm atmosphere. Friendly staff. I look forward to the opening!
Internet Transparency – Bullying
Would they allow you in a bank fully covered from head to toe?
Would any business allow you inside while wearing a mask?
I don’t think so. Maybe if it was Halloween.
Internet transparency has allowed people for quite a number of years to commit fraud and bully and dupe people with no repercussions. I think you should not be allowed to use the internet without signing on, verifying your identity (maybe even a fingerprint) or some other way of taking responsibility for what you say or do online.
Defending Pop Stars
Even though I was very into pop stars as a teen, I don’t think I ever got offended when someone said something disparaging about them. I certainly didn’t try to defend them. I find it funny to see people in their 20’s, 30’s and even 40’s defending pop stars like they have a vested interest in them.
I read a simple story about how xtina is going back to the voice (don’t watch any shows like that), and in the midst of scrolling down the page, I saw all these comments about how shakira was better, the better singer, etc. The images of the people making these comments looked like they were in their 20’s. Come on.
Years ago, my favorite artist pissed me off when I was at one of their concerts. I vowed not to buy anything else of theirs. It was kind of easy to do, since the music had gone downhill quite a bit. Before that, I was happy being the only person (or so I thought) who listened to their music.
David Sedaris’ C.O.G. 4 out of 5 stars
There are three types of entertainment. Things you like, things you hate and things you are indifferent about. The worst one of the three is the indifference. As an artist, if you’ve created something that invokes some type of emotion-either love or hate, then you have succeeded. If someone has forgotten they’ve seen your work, then you have failed at creating art.
I actually didn’t even know this movie existed until yesterday. I’m a big fan of David Sedaris’ work and just like most of his fans have been waiting for a movie version of his stories. I tried not reading any reviews while I was attempting to find this available online for watching. I ended up watching it through Amazon’s on demand video and actually paid for it. I figured some of the cash would go into David Sedaris’ pocket.
I didn’t know which story this was based on, so I was watching this movie with fresh eyes. Once he got to the guys trailer, I immediately remembered the story.
The movie is slow moving and without David’s narration all of the comedy is gone, so this was not a feel good movie. If someone who had not read David Sedaris’ stories watched this, I believe they would be very confused by the main character’s actions and reactions.
Growing up in Southern Baptist America, this kind of stuff hits too close to home. What you see in this movie is reality.
After watching the movie, I read a few of the reviews from other people who obviously did not read the stories. They were confused because there was no plot. So they gave this is a very low rating. I can see why.
I am giving this 4 out of 5 stars because it’s nice to see a visualization of one of his stories. The acting was okay. They show some beautiful landscapes of Oregon and the movie left me with some horrible feelings. Which means in the grand scheme of things that it touched me somehow. And in my definition of entertainment, the movie has succeeded.
Another Of My Product Designs – Berene Bedding
Let’s start with the name. Serene + Bedding = BERENE. I envisioned bedding with themes. A day at the beach… Circus… Racing… But here’s my idea:
Photo printed sheets, comforters and pillows that all match up to the theme.
The original design is a day at the beach… The sheets would be printed with sand and small shells. The comforter that would lay on top would be printed with ocean water with foam at the top. The pillows would be conch shells, beach balls, striped towels and starfish.
The next design I did was for a racing/car fan’s room… The sheets are printed grass, the comforter is a road/asphalt and the pillows are cones, tires and streetsigns.
I submitted this one to kickstarter and they declined it because it wasn’t someone making another indie album. Actually, they said that I had to “show my work”, which meant I had to submit drawings instead of a nice mockup with photoshop. They think their audience is so stupid that they would think it was a finished product. Even with the words “mock up” smeared across them. I am trying to show that it would be printed with photorealistic scenes, so a pencil drawing is not going to show what I want to show. So, back to the drawing board… literally.
Here’s the mockup I did:
UPDATE: I have been trying to learn CAD to start having a nice visualization of my inventions/products. Here is my first attempt at creating the bed in Blender:
Quirky and Inventions/Product Designs
I recently submitted a product design of mine to Quirky.com and have realized that it’s not quite the end-all service that it claims to be. Here’s what I have gathered:
No matter how good or bad your product, it has to be a power strip or a container. Has it been done before? Doesn’t matter… unless they don’t understand your product’s value, then they will use that excuse as to why they can’t produce it.
Does it matter that your design would sell a billion units? No. What matters is that you get granny to vote for it… then it matters that you may be up against another power strip.
Speaking of power strips, my design was actually something akin to a power strip. I figured I had a chance with them right out of the gate. Well…. I found that their site doesn’t work well on the stock android browser (at least for Gingerbread), so no one who had a slightly older phone was able to vote with their phones. (Who uses a big computer anymore? Me. LOL) So, there went half the votes. Android is now the biggest operating system out there, so… who is in charge of their web design? It isn’t like it takes much code to straighten it out, either. So, my opinion of their technical savvy went out the window.
I luckily got the required number of votes. Thought I was in the door! But wait… then they called me. The person with whom I talked to didn’t understand it. What?? They were in NYC… ahhh… a sliding glass (pet door-esque) insert isn’t something most NYC’ers would know exists. They don’t have a lot of balconies there… or backyards for that matter.
So, after I spoke with this person, I still thought I had a foot in the door. Nope. In three days, they had discussed it and decided to go with a box to put pencils in. Whaaaa? Actually, I don’t know what they went for that week, but they said to me that “there are quite a few items on the market that deal with outdoor power supplies. WHATTTTT?? A company that keeps making different versions of the same “new products” thinks the market is saturated with something????
So, here’s what I do think is good about their “service”… You at least have a major place to show your design and claim it as yours.
Here is the mock-up I put on Quirky:
http://www.quirky.com/invent/618308
I got some really good feedback and lots of people stating they would buy one… especially here in South Florida!
So I am going to try to make one myself soon. I will update when (and if) I do.
Android Upgrade Galaxy Note N7000 Jellybean
I tried to upgrade my Note N7000 to Jellybean last night and it worked perfectly! I followed the instructions here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nlbtstmLKp8