This got me mad enough to donate another $25, even though cash is tight right now:

A recent letter to businesses that oppose Prop 8 threatens:

"You would leave us no other reasonable assumption. The names of any companies that choose not to donate to ProtectMarriage.com will be published.

We will contact you shortly to discuss your contribution.

It is signed by members of the Yes on 8 campaign executive committee:

:: Ron Prentice, campaign chairman
:: Edward Dolejsi, executive director of the California Catholic Conference (the Official Voice of the Catholic Community in California)
:: Mark Jansson, a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
:: Andrew Pugno, lawyer for ProtectMarriage.com.

Please, got to http://www.noonprop8.com/ and do whatever you can to help!

7 months later...

Got married. In just over two weeks the "kind" voters of California will decide if my marriage is valid or not.

I'm kinda pissed about that, actually, cuz out of state interests (THE MORMONS) have been spending huge amounts of money on ads that are just downright lies. Like if gay marriage is allowed, a man will be allowed to marry a dog.

So here's MY ad in response:

I am not a dog.

I shouldn't be treated like one.

Equality is for everyone.
_____________________

Stay turned for Election results and my resulting rant.

Brown Sugar Update

Well, what can I say? The food remains spectacular, and new menu items have appeared. I sat down last weekend all set to get the cornmeal waffle (think corn meal and butter spun into air like cotton candy, and then made crispy) with her fried chicken (at great personal risk I peered over the counter and discovered what fry oil she uses. You'll NEVER guess. I'll never tell. But rest assured it's very healthy and so far I haven't been able to buy any!).

But then I saw something new... Pecan-crusted challah French toast. Now, I'm getting kind of stubborn in my old age (relative to when I was, oh, TWENTY), normally I would have made my original order and then saved the new one for next time. But, she got me, and I wasn't one bit sorry about it!

Tanya (the owner/chef) brought us a small plate of beinets and brought my partner a small glass of some obscure wine that he recognized on the menu (he's a food AND wine snob), and said "This is the ONLY way to start the day!" So I guess we're in with the in crowd now :-)

Anyway.. the place is PACKED now, the poor staff is rushing around trying to keep up, and the wait for a table around noon is at least an hour. Although, Mandella Parkway really is beautiful and when it's sunny, seeing everyone sitting, talking, laughing, and enjoying the space makes me really happy. Up till now we've only thought of Mandella Parkway as a pretty drive to Home Depot, but it's GREAT to see it being used as a human space.

I do wish they were open Sundays, and I hope they start serving dinner soon, but they are doing great business now. And of course, WE get to say things like "Oh yes, Brown Sugar is wonderful, but I remember them before they got BIG!"

I think I need to fly somewhere soon...

Hot towel?

Back in the Groove

Well, it's finally Spring and both of us are in GREAT moods! Yesterday I got up at 6 and made lemon poppyseed muffins for the first time.

In a totally unrelated development, I have been banned from doing morning baking for the time being.

The muffins turned out great, but the kitchen looked like a bomb had gone off in it. It's HARD to "clean as you go" when you're trying a new recipe and are on a tight schedule!

So, this morning it was back to oatmeal for us, which is a good thing considering we both need to drop some winter insulation.

We're back to working out 3 days a week, and it's really making a noticeable difference in our moods and pain levels. As in, everything hurts, but we feel good anyway!

I'm back at work, which is good for BOTH of us, and we're doing our best with the limited free time we have. Unfortunately, we're both able to think of a MILLION things we'd rather do than go to work... but we're behaving. So far.

It's good to be back in a "long-term-sustainable" routine.

We can't wait for Memorial Day Weekend, we're heading up to our secret getaway in Napa.

I'm back

Let's see, I had a birthday, I got back to work, lots of stuff has gone on.

How're YOU doing?

craigslist

craigslist
Originally uploaded by Powerhaus

Fun, huh?

A day of REST

Saturday felt like an entire weekend, and Sunday we pretty much slept, dozed, ate, and napped. It was nice, though for once I made a "to do" list and got nothing on it done.

I did shine my right boot, finally. I am thinking I should keep my left one unshined, then everyone can see what a good bootblack I am. That or they'll think I'm insane, which isn't far off the mark.

Happy Birthday to Daddy!

Yesterday was my partner's birthday. As his boy, I took it as my duty to make sure it was as fantastic as it could be. It took some planning, and some luck, but it turned out GREAT!

We had breakfast at a new restaurant he read about online that opened up just a few blocks from our house, Brown Sugar Kitchen. One problem with West Oakland is there aren't many businesses nearby, and it sounded promising, so we wanted to go check it out.

It was amazing. I don't think I've ever had better breakfast food in my LIFE. Up until now my favorite place for weekend brunch was Zazie in Cole Valley in the City, but Brown Sugar has them beat. We sat at the counter because it offered a great view of the kitchen area, and the place is brand new and very clean.
He loved the coffee, and I think that's a first for him and coffee at a restaurant. Everything was perfectly cooked, from the chicken and waffle to the mushroom scramble with delicate threads of caramelized onion. We're telling everyone we can about it. I just hope lunch and dinner are as good, because I am dying for some really good catfish!

After that, we went home and relaxed for a while, then I dropped him off at Kabuki Spa for a good steam and soak. I couldn't join him because of my cast, but I ran some errands in the City. After a about 3 hours I picked him up and we went to Mr. S for some quick birthday impulse shopping. Sadly my favorite sales professional wasn't working yesterday, which is probably just as well because I'll buy pretty much anything he shows me.

Then an early supper at Cote Sud, a fantastic French restaurant in the Castro. It's been around for years, and their prix fixe menu consistently wonderful and reasonably priced. I was telling him how I'd been going there for years, through three of my four husbands. Lots of memories there for me. Last night was the best meal I've ever had there, and that is SAYING something. I had the Sea bass, Mark had the cassoulet he'd been dreaming of for months, and we split an excellent bottle of champagne.

Then home to rest a bit and get ready for the last event of the day, MACK/Folsom Prison in South of Market.

A very busy day, but it went off smoothly and my partner had a wonderful birthday. I'm just glad he only has one per year or I'd have to take a second job!

Welcome Craigslist buddies

I hope I can keep in touch with my Craigslist buddies on here, I'll be offering naked photos and other goodies you're grown to know and love from me as soon as I get some technical issues worked out. Until then, send me a note and I'll be happy to email you some smut.

Apparently Flikr took offense to me not "managing my own content", in other words, I forgot to mark all photos of my wanger as "private". I'm trying to get that sorted out so I can offer a more personalized sideshow than the one I have now. Not sure if there's a way to do a porno slide show, but maybe that should be by invitation only, anyway.

- PH

He's baaaack!

Alright, I can't be back if I was never here before, but I've been flitting about the Internet for over ten years, and by now "Powerhaus" has taken on a life of his own. So now this is going to be his home. Well, one of his homes.

But, we all have different names for different reasons. "Dargadin" also took on a life of HIS own, and gained a decent reputation for dispensing free advice during my EverQuest addiction (EQA sober 4 years).

The bottom line is I like to hear myself type so I've managed to stumble into several online communities and make a nuisance of myself, and occasionally provide some useful perspective or bit of advice to someone. So now I can be a nuisance to mostly myself.

So, the question is, how much would YOU pay to get in my head for 15 mins? John Malkovitch was worth $200, after all.

-PH