We always have the movies...

to escape to when every thing else appears gloomy. This year seems particularly bad... yes, I had a wonderful Christmas and was blessed with an embarrassment of gifts and met lots of new and interesting people, but that was in between a close friend's mother dying, another friend being hit and run and fighting for his life in the ECU, my film school (where I spent the first six months of this year) being robbed of all its computers and cameras -- one of which I was going to use to do a documentary of San Francisco... No wonder I haven't felt like writing this blog, but, thanks to all the rain, I have been watching movies!

I saw Harry Potter at the iMax -- it was fun to be a teenager for a couple of hours. Aeon Flux was a disappointment; should have waited for DVD. On DVD, I watched the 40 year old Virgin -- not my cup of tea, but it was more charming and less sophomoric than I expected. Alexander was confusing and badly cast, but entertaining nonetheless. On the other hand, Colin did a great job in Phonebooth.

In retrospect, given the choice of being a magician, a clone, a virgin(!), world conqueror, publicisist, or me, I'll take just being me.

You still got it

Top 5 reasons I love Craig Ferguson (besides his good looks and disarming smile):

1) He has authors on his show.
2) He features up and coming Scottish, Irish and English talent.
3) He's honest to the core.
4) He "over shares."
5) He's Scottish (which explains 3 and 4) -- gotta' love that accent!

On another note, did you see Jaimie Foxx on Letterman last night? OMG, he's amazing. Not only is he multi-talented and hot, he's smart, funny, and every woman has to love this... he wrote a song called "You still got it," or something to that effect... for all women who've had babies or put on a few extra pounds, you're still gorgeous. Gotta' love the man for that alone. His new album is titled 'Unpredictable'.

There's always Bollywood...

I don't know if it's the weather or the holidays, but I'm not feeling terribly inspired. While all my married friends are frantically being Santa Claus, all my single friends are drowning their sorrows... yet another Christmas with no man in sight... and it doesn't matter if you're gay, straight, 20s, 30s, or 40s, San Francisco sucks for dating.

So here is the top 10 Bollywood movies I've seen over the past year. You might notice that most of them feature Shah Ruhk Kahn... he's my flavor of eye candy for a lonely Saturday night...

Devdas
Dil Chata Hai
Dil Se
Dilwale Dulhania le Jayenge
Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam
Kuch Kuch Hota Hai
Swades
Asoka
Veer-Zaara
Virasat

Craig, Ewan and Sean...

After watching ‘The Island’, I was getting ready for my nightly chill with Letterman when an unholy ruckus erupted interrupted with yells of “help me.”

Though it took less than a minute to grab a robe and dial 911, the culprit had escaped and my downstairs neighbor lay sprawled in the hallway, pasty and corpulent in green plaid boxers. (Is this my week for unsightly viewings of aged men?) Despite the ongoing war between us (he complains at every little sound I make; the neighbors below him complain at every sound he makes), I felt sorry for him and handed him my phone so that he could explain to the police what had transpired. Not a pretty story as it turns out… a drunken vagrant who he’d befriended had taken the opportunity to rob and then assault him. Not the first time this has happened, which may be the explanation for so few of my neighbors responding to his cries for help. Still, I hate to think what would happen if someone needed serious help… I’m happy to report that at least San Francisco’s finest responded promptly with a cop car.

Back to the TV and Letterman, who is really only a prelude to Craig Ferguson, my one TV addiction. If there had been more men like him in Scotland, I might never have left… but then again, in order to meet Craig I would have had to have left since he's here. Coincidentally, he talked about ‘The Island’, and what a failure it was at the box office… a $122 million dollar flick that grossed only $137 million. So I went to sleep wondering whether it would have made a difference to the box office if Tom Cruise had played the lead instead of Ewan McGregor… but then we would have missed the Scot's accent, which actually played a part in the plot.

So I guess we have three famous Scot's actors in all... thank god we make up for it be being brilliant in other things... like being the first to perfect cloning, which was actually the plot of the movie, which by the way is well worth seeing on DVD... gotta run... I mean tiptoe across the floor lest I disturb my downstair's neighbor.

Stormy Weather

It had to be only die-hard party people out on Saturday night. I mean, who in their right mind would bother to step foot, never mind 5” party heels, outside on a night when it was debatable as to whether one should really be working on plans for an arc? But, clearly not of sane minds, my cohorts and I braved the morass and went hither and thither until we’d met all our obligations to land up way down off 3^rd Street in a surprising warehouse cum loft where tuxes and gowns were the attire for the night (until the 3:00 am costume change), with the exception of one naked man (sock, shoes and cockring, not withstanding) who ran around playing a clarinet until the sun came up.

I'm not sure whether the rest of us were having so much fun or were merely loathe to step into the rain that had abated none, but revel on we did well past sunrise... Never mind mad dogs and English men out in the midday sun, we were fab fags and Scots woman out in the torrential morn... or something like that. My brain's still recovering...

Sassy Japanese Women

Saw Memoirs of a Geisha last night… it’s beautifully filmed, with an amazing cast of women… boy, are they sassy!!

If I’d been the director, I would have made the film longer… but maybe that’s because I was so recently spoilt by three hours of Kong. Let's hope there's a director's cut, in both cases.

It'll be interesting to see how the Academy votes...

Why can’t a man be more like a woman?

Maybe that’s why I enjoy drag queens so much, except in this case I’m talking about the esteemed and talented Veronica Klaus, who I saw perform a ‘naughty and nice seasonal mix’ at Jazz at Pearl’s last night. She’s a wonderfully witty and seductive performer. Add her to your list of must sees next time she’s performing, especially if it’s her one-woman show ‘Family Jewels’. For info check out www.veronicaklaus.com

Jazz at Pearl’s has a cozy ambience, but be prepared to pay cash for mediocre food and expensive cocktails, not to mention your admission tickets, for which you thought you’d already purchased online plus sales tax… enough said.

An Ape to Love...

I have such trepidation about starting this blog. What do I have to say that’s so interesting? Who’ll read this anyway? Blah, blah, blah…

Ugh, the need to be perfect, to be no less than 110% brilliant.

Well, I may not be perfect, or brilliant, but I can aim for consistency in at least one area of my life and maintain – because the Internet is there and I can hear it calling (oh, mistake, I think that’s one of the other voices speaking) – a journal online, which I’ve failed to do the old fashioned way except in brief spurts, and since a writer, which I proclaim to be, is supposed to write every day… well, then… here I am.

So, no promises other than a regular contribution of my thoughts on life, single in San Francisco…which pretty much leaves the playing field wide open with regard to subject matter… be warned!

But, let’s start gently… go see King Kong.

Never mind what the critics say about the first 70 minutes build-up to seeing the ‘monster’… every minute is worth it. Naomi Watts has never looked more stunning; Adrien Brody is darling; Jack Black hits the right tone. There are a couple of back stories that don’t go anywhere, but they’re not enough to spoil the movie, and besides… who could fail to fall in love with a hero who saves you from the jaws of death, whisks you away to his mountain top retreat to cradle you in his arms and watch the setting sun?

Okay, so he’s a big ape, but then so are most of the men, metaphorically speaking, who ask me out and they’re never nearly as interesting.

On that note…