1st Lady in Alexander McQueen

Here's a pic of Michelle Obama looking Fly-as-Hell, in an Alexander McQueen dress, at last night's state dinner for the People's Republic of China, at the White House.

Such a handsome couple!

San Bruno Fire

Here are some amazing photos that I grabbed from the L.A. Times website, from the San Bruno, California fire that started last night. Scary stuff....

Here's the story from the L.A. Times:

At least four people were killed and 52 injured in the gas pipeline explosion and fire that rocked a San Bruno neighborhood as investigators Friday tried to determine what caused the devastating blast that left a crater in the ground and homes smoldering.

Lt. Gov. Abel Maldonado, serving as acting governor while Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is in Asia, declared a state of emergency in the Crestmoor neighborhood and said the blaze was 75% contained after destroying 15 acres. "We don't know what caused [the rupture]," Maldonado said in a news conference near the scene. "We will find out soon."

A total of 52 people have been hospitalized, including three with third-degree burns. Four firefighters who suffered smoke inhalation were treated and released. Maldonado said a natural gas line ruptured about 6:24 p.m. Thursday, ripping a crater in the neighborhood and causing the blaze, which consumed 38 structures and damaged seven more. Some 67 pieces of firefighting apparatuses were brought in to fight the blaze, including four air tankers that proved the most important in attacking the ferocious blaze most of the night, when firefighters were unable to do much from the street. Twelve trained dogs were also at the scene Friday to help in the search for bodies. "The sun is shining over there, but there is still a dark cloud over the city of San Bruno," Mayor Jim Ruane said.

Pacific Gas & Electric officials said Friday they were investigating reports that customers complained of a natural gas odor before the deadly explosion. They also said the damaged section of the 30-inch steel gas pipeline has been isolated and the gas flow turned off, and crews planned to walk the neighborhood Friday to survey the damage and check the gas transmission system.

Company officials said they would cooperate fully with federal, state and local agencies to identify the cause of Thursday's explosion. They did not say, however, whether the pipeline caused the explosion. “That will be part of the ongoing investigation. [The National Transportation Safety Board] will be conducting a comprehensive investigation and we will be cooperating fully,” said Jeff Smith, a spokesman for the utility. PG&E officials in a statement said crews are working to make the area safe, assess damage and restore service where possible.

Coolness

I'm not a fan of Christian Aguilera (I think I can only name 1 or 2 of her songs), but I love this album cover.

Merry Christmas!

Christmas 2009

Miss Pokeno

Alannah Currie, one third of one of my all time favorite bands, The Thompson Twins, has long left the pop music world behind and reinvented herself . Under the moniker "Miss Pokeno", Alannah, dubbed an "armchair destructivist", now re-creates furniture by combining upholstery and taxidermy. Her collection of furniture is, in a word: surreal. Here's a red velvet armchair that she designed, with the back cut away to reveal two entwined foxes. All of the animals in her work are either road kill or died naturally. Click here to check out some of her other pieces of work. P.S. I'm still holding out for a Twins Reunion Tour!

Creepy Charlie

Not sure where I got this pic from, but it gives me the willies!

O Tannenbaum

...

As per my usual procrastinator style, I FINALLY bought our Christmas tree over the weekend. It's very fresh and was still a little wet in the middle.

Here are a few pics of the tree:

Bare Naked Tree !

All Dressed Up!

This pic above & the one below get bigger when you click on them, the others don't. What's going on Blogger?!

Merry Christmas, Murr Chrimuh, and Happy Crimbo to all my Friends (real, imaginary, and/or of the blogosphere persuasion) !!

...

East Meets West

On Sunday night, I met up with 2 of my favorite NYC bloggers (whom I also consider friends), Billy and Rey....who were both in L.A. for work reasons. Their arrival could not have come at a better time, since this week was the week I was supposed to be making my annual Fall trip to NYC, but due to financial reasons, I'm not going [painful sigh!]. We met up at East-West Lounge in WeHo and after a couple drinks, walked on over to The Abbey for more drinks and laughs. Sadly, the night flew by WAY too fast, but it was great getting to see them both. Below is a pic of us at The Abbey... Thanks for such a fun time guys!!

Me, Billy, & Rey

Depeche Mode Tour the Universe in 2009

Currently D Mode is working on their 12th studio album (Oh, I think I just wet myself) & will tour the world in 2009...April 2009 is the scheduled date that the new album will drop.

Here's the official word from their official website:

The band is currently working on their as yet untitled 12th studio album release. Over the next coming weeks, we will be featuring updates and developments on the progress of the recording sessions, which will include exclusive videos and pictures documenting the making of their anticipated album. News and updates will be made available as they come in, so stay tuned for more great new features on depeche mode dot com!

Tour Of The Universe
The dates for the European leg of Depeche Mode's upcoming tour, "Tour of The Universe 2009," are now available! Tune in to the LiveNation web site to view the Depeche Mode press conference On Demand (for free), recorded in Berlin on October 6th! We are announcing some exciting news for the upcoming year.

...

Creepy

My love for Homer J Simpson is real and it's deep, but this Photoshop'd pic is scaring the love right out of me.

...

The Voice & The Machine

Friday morning I called in sick to work, due to an "upset tummy"....[ahem]...It was a very good thing that I did, cuz there were all kinds of prep work that needed to get done before the Yaz(oo) concert later that evening.

I ate dinner at the Blue Dahlia, which serves panini sandwiches, salads, antipasto, and a short rib burger that was so good [short rib meat stuffed with ground beef, topped with Gouda cheese...yes please!]....oh, and the Lychee Martini is highly recommended! 

Many thanks to the heads up from my blogger buddy, Jim (who saw the band play on Thursday night), who warned me that the band doesn't go on for at least an hour after the stated start time of 8:00 pm...a DJ "spun" 80's music until 9:00 pm, and then Alison Moyet & Vince Clarke took to the stage.

Vince Clarke was in his standard "stand & play" mode (as expected), and Alison Moyet's soulful voice never sounded better. I was blown away by how good they sounded. The staging was minimal, but worked perfectly with the size/scale of the Orpheum Theater, which is just gorgeous!

From the moment Alison Moyet began singing Nobody's Diary, I was transported back to a very happy time in my life, and I stayed there for the next hour and a half.

Here's some pics:

European Vacation

I'm off to the airport in about 15 minutes. I'll be vacationing in London/Paris for the next 9 days...I'm so excited, yet so nervous...I always get that I'm forgetting something feeling.

Posting for the next week or so will be minimal, but I'ma do my best and try to post something everyday.

Friday Confessions

• I forgot to put on deodorant this morning, and now I'm afraid to lift my arms.
• When no one's looking, I like to drink milk/soda/juice straight from the carton.
• I love to watch really bad Kung-Fu movies....the kind with poorly dubbed English voice overs.
• I like to pee sitting down.

...

Spring Awakening !

Today is the first day of spring....I feel like going out and buying myself something!....or maybe I'll just wash my sheets when I get home tonight.

Celebrating Groundhog Day

Will & Me...and Scot (in the background, fixing me a drink)

Saturday night, I attended the only party in town worth checking out....The Groundhog Day party hosted by Scot, of Scot Not Scott fame. Scot's the perfect host (I took a few furtive pics for some design ideas...we have very similar tastes).  

Thanks again Scot, I had a great time! Also attending the party was fellow blogger, Will, from WAT Central....Will (or is it Wil?) does a killer Carol Channing impersonation and has some seriously cool friends! After the party, I headed over to Oil Can Harry's, to meet up with some friends for even more drinking & some disco dancing. I've been to OCH's before, but it was a long time ago and on Halloween. The folks there take Disco VERY seriously! 

Merry Christmas

Random pics of mi casa.

Murr Chrimuh!

At Last...

I finally got to meet one of my favorite bloggers, Paul, this weekend. He was going to be in L.A. for part of the weekend, so I invited him to stop by my place, so I could show him around Long Beach. 

Our time together flew by way too fast, but we said that we'd meet up again soon, and I'm definitely holding him to that promise. Thanks for a great time, Paulie.

Flashback Friday

Senior Prom - 1986

I know it...that hairdo is the bomb, right? AquaNet was my friend (as was a crimping iron)...This pic brings back so many good memories....of that Swatch Watch...it was also the bomb...but then I had to go & lose it on a beach!

My NYC Visit

Here's a breakdown of what I did during my (way too short) NYC visit...this is gonna be a long post. Wednesday

• Arrived in NYC around 4:00 pm....got to the hotel around 5:00 pm (stayed in Chelsea).
• Saw Spring Awakening at the Eugene O'Neill Theatre @ 8:00 pm.
• Ate dinner at Pigalle @ 10:30 pm...crazy fast service & excellent food (I had the skirt steak).

Pigalle

Thursday

• Walking tour of SoHo, Nolita, & Tribeca @ 10:00 am...this was great, as it was just my friend Les, the guide & me.
• Lunch at Ideya in SoHo for some Cuban/Caribbean food (grilled salmon, salad & plantains for me). For real: their batidos (cold drink made with your choice of fruit puree, milk, coconut cream, nutmeg & rum) are a must....slurp!
• Shopping in SoHo...bought some Dunnys & a mousepad at KidRobot.
• Disco napped due to the sudden rain.
• Happy Hour at Honey in Chelsea ($5 martinis!!)...this place just opened last August, so they're still working on building up its clientele...this place is the epitome of NY cool...I'll definitely be back.
• Dinner at Birdland (a jazz supper club) @ 7:00 pm & the performance @ 8:30 pm.
• Drinks in Hell's kitchen were had first at Posh Bar and then some more boozing at Therapy.

Ideya

KidRobot Store

Honey Bar - Chelsea

Friday

• Breakfast at Room Service Restaurant in Chelsea...really affordable, tasty food (for two breakfasts & 2 mimosas, the bill was under $24)...what a great find!
• Walked around Central Park to work off breakfast, and to make room for lunch (hot dogs, warm peanuts & a diet Pepsi)...I loves me some warm nuts!
• I wanted to feel like a big shit shot so we tried to get our afternoon drink on at the bar in the Park Plaza, but dammit, it's still closed due to renovations....so we sashayed on over to the Ritz-Carlton instead, for some white wine & some satay...this hotel is gorgeous...I want to stay here just for a night, but I'll have to steal someone's credit card first....I tried to snap a few pics in the restroom (which was bigger than our hotel room) but kept getting interrupted.
• I wanted to check out the Hudson Hotel...we walked right past the front door, as you don't really notice it & there isn't any signage...I vote for having the next BBHH at their outdoor rooftop patio/bar...this hotel is uber chic/cool 
• Boy Blogger Happy Hour at XES @ 5:00 pm.....the highlight of my trip!
• The BBHH after party (Rey, Billy, Daryl, & me) moved onto Barracuda and didn't end til around 2:00 am.
• Grabbed dinner at some pizza joint around 2:15 am....not good, I know, but the pizza was damn tasty.

Room Service

Central Park - The Mall

Park Plaza

The Star Lounge @ the Ritz Carlton

The Star Lounge @ the Ritz Carlton

The Hudson Hotel - Registration area

The Hudson Hotel - Outdoor Bar

Saturday

• Overslept and was running late for our trip to the Cloisters...was supposed to meet up with Eric for lunch, but blew him off (sorry Eric!)...it's amazing how secluded you feel from the city up on that hill...beautiful....since time was an issue, we didn't get to spend as much time here as I'd like.
• Saw Hairspray at 2:00 pm....no time for lunch, so I literally shoved a corn dog in my mouth while waiting in line....and I can hear you all giggling!....I loved Hairspray...the best part was when Jim J Bullock lost it, during a song with the mother (played by Paul Vogt) and couldn't stop laughing...the audience went nuts! Lance Bass played Corny Collins and was actually pretty good
• Spent some time window shopping 5th Ave...I can't believe that Mexx (one of my favorite clothing stores in NY) has closed up shop in the U.S. (boo!)...for shits-n-giggles, we went into Bergdorf Goodman to giggle at the price tags...then I used their loo to take a dump...told you, shits-n-giggles!
• Walked right past Missy Elliot on 5th Ave, with her entourage carrying all of her bags from Fendi & Gucci....she was sporting jeans and a turquoise blue sequined hoody with a lollipop in mouth.
• Checked out the Top of the Rock at dusk...we were there at the best time with perfect weather.
• Dinner at Colas in Chelsea...great Italian food at very reasonable prices.
• Disco napped before heading out to the East Village to go bar hopping with Rey where we checked out: Urge, Boysroom (saw Cazwell), Phoenix, and then Nowhere Bar (loved the 80's music they were playing)...then we grabbed a bite to eat (cheeseburger) and got back to the hotel just before 5:00 am!!!

The Cloisters

The Cloisters Taken from Top of The Rock

Sunday

• Overslept again & almost missed checkout.
• Packed like a madman & had a car drive me to the airport to take me back to reality...boo!

NYC Souvenirs!