I'm baaaack!

No, I'm not dead. Or finished with my glob. I was just traveling. I went to Belgium, and then Las Vegas for the Burlesque Hall of Fame festival. Now I'm back in New York, and I will resume normal blogging.

A fringe benefit of a burlesque show

I got Minx Arcana's lollipop during her Lolita burlesque number--from her mouth to mine. I licked it the rest of the evening.

I'm back

I was in such a rush leaving I didn't get a chance to post a vacation (part 2) notice. I was in Las Vegas for the Burlesque Hall of Fame Weekender, and stayed a few more days for some more relaxed fun.

Semi-random thoughts

• I'm always a little angry when someone writes "Here, here!" It's "Hear, hear!"
• When burlesque performers have moving sales they post things like, "I will mostly have clothes, shoes, costumes, a few tables, wired shelves and a 6 ft tall carrot." UPDATE: I realize I have actually sat on that carrot (it's like a pillow). She had it at one of her shows.
• I could never be a plumber. For one thing, my arms aren't long enough.

Today's news round-up

Good News

• Hollywood-style sting nabs alleged pirate kingpin
• Louboutin women's shoes banned in anti-Islam advert
• A High School Is Actually Not Manhattan's Saddest Spot, a Researcher Says It's good that he admitted his mistake.

Bad News

• Vegas nightclub closes after battle over sex shows A couple of my burlesque performer friends worked there occasionally. I saw them perform there last summer, and one of their acts certainly ran afoul of these rules. 

Today's news round-up--It's all bad

Bad News

• RI Senate Dems formally segregate straight and gay marriages
• Russia's Putin signs law limiting adoption by gays
• Wis. gov signs abortion bill requiring ultrasound
• Burlesque 'demeans women', says council as it bans show
• Afghan Court Reverses Convictions in Torture of Girl

Out-of-the-office notice

Tomorrow I'm leaving for a week in Las Vegas (I'm taking a break from packing right now). I'm going for the Burlesque Hall of Fame Weekend, so don't plan on seeing any new posts here until I get back.

Semi-random thoughts

• I've added Alan Cumming's blog to my blog roll. I don't follow very many big celebrities on Twitter, Facebook or via blog, but I've been reading his tweets for a while and they're quite good. His blog is also--he's an excellent writer.
• My prescriptions for 2011 cost nearly $5,000. Fortunately, I have insurance, and I only paid $210. Unfortunately, my insurance cost me a lot more.
• It's not a good sign when the producer of a burlesque show sends out a tweet at 7:30 asking if anyone can perform in a 9:00 o'clock show.
• My glob passed 95,000 visitors yesterday.

Semi-random thoughts

• Calamity Chang is ending?/suspending? her monthly Beatles Burlesque show at Public Assembly. This is one of my favorite shows, with a live band fronted by singer Broadway Brassy doing Beatles (and occasional other Brit) songs. The burlesquers strip to their music. It's one of my favorite shows, and I'll really miss it.
• After the top-10 ranked Wisconsin men's basketball team lost its second game in row (sound familiar?), I thought it might turn out to be a completely disastrous week sports-wise. But the football team came through and (just barely) beat Michigan State for the Big Ten championship. Now I'm looking forward to the Rose Bowl.
• Soap.com wants me to review my purchase. Well, OK. The toilet paper is soft on my ass.

She asked for it

Burlesque performer Calamity Chang

I'm back

For those who haven't been following my doings on facebook or twitter, I've been in Las Vegas for the Burlesque Hall of Fame Weekend. Now I'm back home. Posting will recommence in its normal, randomly intermittant way.

I've been sketched again

Artist Luma Rouge has sketched me before. Now she's done it again:

Here she portrayed me tucking a dollar into go-go dancer Charlie Gunn's panties at Beatles Burlesque.

I'm sure glad I shaved my back that day (which I always do when wearing a dress like this, of course).

Many of Luma's burlesque drawings are currently being shown in The Nudie Artist: Burlesque Revived exhibition at NYC's Museum of Sex. I was fortunate to have been invited to the opening a couple of weeks ago. Luma told me they wouldn't let her include her earlier sketch of me because they only wanted performers' images.

When the cat's away...

My wife has gone on vacation for a couple of weeks. We're doing separate ones this year--I'm going to the Burlesque Hall of Fame weekend in Las Vegas in June.

So if I'm posting less than usual for a bit, it's because I'm going out more.

My performer friends sometimes ask the weirdest questions

Any advice on how 2 make a cake splatter more & further when you hit it with a mallet? It needs 2 fly EVERYWHERE!

Stormy Leather asked this on Twitter. She got three serious replies.

EDIT: She got a lot more responses on Facebook.

Semi-random thoughts

• The first thing one should do after getting a new laptop nowadays is to take a piece of opaque tape and cover the webcam. (Just about all laptops seem to have them built in now.) If you accidentally turn on the camera at the wrong time, or a hacker gets in, your actions could be viewed and recorded anywhere in the world. Don't trust an indicator light to tell you when it is in operation. If a hacker can get in, I'm sure they can turn off the light almost as easily as they can turn on the camera.
• The cost of my health insurance is going up 15% for the coming year. :(
• Burlesquer Nasty Canasta gave me a CD of Bhangra music, which contains the music she used for her Christmas number. I liked one of the other songs even more, Big Drum Small World by the Dhol Foundation. I started up a Pandora station with it, and it's really great. It's basically just instrumental, kind of Indian New Age.
• Not that I've really done a study of it, but it's my impression that the "anti-incumbent wave" people keep talking about is much more prevalent among Republicans than Democrats--which stands to reason, as the Democrats control the federal government right now. Thus we've seen a number of Tea Party candidates eliminating Republican incumbents in the primaries. But I'm predicting that except in districts where there's a strong Republican majority, the Democrats will beat the Tea Partiers in November, keeping Congress in good hands.

I've been sketched!

Luma Rouge drew this highly flattering sketch of me accepting my raffle winnings from Anita Cookie at the Dangerous Curves Ahead Kickoff Show.

Semi-random thoughts

• Google Maps' public transit directions are very useful, except they don't take into account the multiple entrances many subway stations have. I'd love directions that did, and tell you which part of the train to ride in. That would be extremely useful. Hopstop does seem to know about multiple exits, so I'll try using that.
• Maybe the funniest thing I've ever seen on Facebook: "Juliet Jeske became a fan of Pinchbottom Burlesque and Torah."
• I got one of those new Cisco Valet wireless routers after my old router died. It's as easy to install as they claim. It even has a nice feature that lets guests use it to access the internet, while still keeping them out of the rest of the network.
• Tickets went on sale for the Radio City Music Hall Christmas show this week. It's still April.

I'm a Beautiful Blogger

I have been given a "Beautiful Blogger" award by Helen Boyd. I'm not so sure about the beautiful part. In fact, considering how little I have posted of late, I'm not even sure about the blogger part. But what the hell, an award is an award. So I accept.

I do have various responsibilities that come with this honor:

1. Thank the person who chose me. Thanks, Helen.
2. Link to her site. I did that when I started this blog, but I'll do it again. en|Gender
3. Put the award on my blog. OK, it's over in the right-hand column.
   
4. Enumerate seven interesting things about myself. See below. (caveat: "interesting" is in the eye of the beholder.)
   
5. Choose seven other people to be Beautiful Bloggers. See below.
   

Seven interesting things about me:

1. I have been listed in the acknowledgements sections of three books on trans-related subjects, written by three different authors.  
2. In my 61+ years of life I have never had a stitch in my body.
3. I have been seen transforming from man to woman on television in at least five countries on three continents.
4. I started programming computers in 1968. (I'm pretty sure my cellphone has more computing power than the mainframe I learned on.)
5. I had the same kindergarten teacher as my mother.
6. I started warning about Y2K problems in 1982. Nobody cared.
7. I have been a subscriber to the New York Philharmonic for 36 years.

My seven choices for the Beautiful Blogger Award:

• Sandyshoes, author of Noted and blogged
• CL Minou, author of The Second Awakening
• Baby Power Dyke, author of Journal of a Power Dyke in Training
• Erica CD, author of her eponymous blog

The last three are women who haven't posted anything in quite a while. I wish they would start again. They're certainly all beautiful.

• Joann Prinzivalli, author of Trans-Cendence
• Juliet Jeske, author of Little Miss Angry Girl's Blog  
• Jo Weldon, author of Burlesque Daily (and owner of Candy Pitch)

Semi-random thoughts

● I ♥ superglue.

● I was headlined in a post by Burlesque Magazine on FB. They probably misread the article from last fall that they linked to, thinking I perform. Still, it's an honor to be mentioned in the same sentence with Murray Hill, Angie Pontani, and Peekaboo Pointe.

● Is anything ever monged besides fish?

● I got my new DVR hooked up (the hard drive in the old one died Sunday). It's a new model, and I gained some new functions, but lost some old ones. It's nice getting black (not gray) bars on the sides of 4X3 programs automatically, but I miss being able to buffer two shows at once--though I think if I record both of them I will be able to switch back and forth, fast-forwarding through the commercials. The new remote that came with it can actually power on the TV and the A/V receiver, and control the audio volume via the receiver as well.

● What exactly do they do at the dress rehearsal of a burlesque show?

Semi-random thoughts

● Facebook keeps suggesting people for me to be friends with because we "both live in New York." Yeah, and 8,000,000 other people as well. We all have so much in common.

● Two-and-a-half years ago I switched from using Discover to American Express Blue Cash as my main credit card. I see in the fine print at the end of my latest bill that Amex will be lowering its rebate on spending above $6500/year from 1.5% to 1.25%. It's still a little better than Discover, but it sure doesn't make me happy.

● Gosh, the Hubble space telescope is 19 years old? Time sure flies.

● Latest tweet from the world of burlesque:

Just took a stiletto in the head from @helenburkett in group dance number!

Who would think burlesque was such a hazardous occupation?