Mid-Year Reflections

I don't think that I ever wrote about this but early in the year I decided upon a few "Third Decade Of Life" resolutions. Things like aiming to brush up on my German, take up watercolours, participate more in my financial planning and learn the rules of the apostrophe.
So far I've done a whole lot of nothing.

Today one of my favorite blogs Copyblogger wrote a really good post on common mistakes that people make when they write. I was proud that I was occasionally able to shake my head and wonder aloud "people are seriously that dumb?". I will however hide my head in shame when it comes to the apostrophe. That little bitch has always been my grammatical downfall.
So thank you Copyblogger, today I embark head-high into my TDOL resolutions. Watch out apostrophe, 'cause I'm gonna use the piss out of you.

Pride Run Redux

It's taken me a few days to collect my thoughts from the weekend and write about what went down at the Pride Run. I attribute that mostly to the fact that I'm clearly experiencing some type of postpartum depression. As soon as the event was done I crashed. Emotionally and physically.
I felt like I needed to sleep for a week.
Saturday night a few of us got together to drink and review the events of the day - it was a great way to get some closure and pat each other on the back for a job well done.

I have several highlights that have kept me smiling all week. And here are a few, in no particular order.

The Atmosphere

Pride Run-03.jpg, originally uploaded by ali kamran.

I have to say that none of the newbies on the Pride board were prepared for the scene that went down on Run Day. It was absolute madness - and it felt amazing. Everything was moving so quickly and the crowds were having such a great time, it probably felt as close to a cocaine high as I'll ever feel. I feel like I ran between the start line and the 519 approximately 30 times and every time I did I was either on my cell or yelling after someone.
I live for this shit.

The Costumes

there's no place like homo, originally uploaded by suisham.

I absolutely love this shot. Not only do I love that so many people dressed up in costume - including the "There's no place like homo" team here - but also that so many fantastic photographers were able to volunteer their services. We got some fantastic shots - I made a flickr group if you're interested in seeing more.

The Underwear Fashion Show

DSC_0114, originally uploaded by m42stanle.

The afterparty show was fantastic. I have to admit that I didn't see half of it but the crowd was going crazy and everyone backstage went ballistic when this little scene went down. Pun intended.

Backstage Access

Backstage view, originally uploaded by Librarian In The City.

I mean GOOD. GOD.
No, he was not the gold medal prize.
What a fabulous way to end the morning.

My boyfriend's back and you're clearly in trouble

That's right, my little Andrew has flown across the pond to get hisself some Wimbledon love.
It's my third most favorite time of the year - after OLA and Pride respectively. I usually like to take this week off of work so that I can concentrate solely on sending Andrew my positive vibes - but this year I'll have to settle for refreshing my browser during game times and cruising for action shots.

Hot Weather = Movie Night

Given that it's hotter than a witches tit outside (who knew witches had such a reputation?) everyone seems to be escaping to the movie theatre for solace and buttery fingers.
Therefore this list is somewhat apropos. Word on Internet Street is that if you've seen more than 60 out of AFI's Top 100 American Movies list you need to get a life.
At 31/100 I think I need to take more sick days.

It's memes like this that make me wish Derek was still writing his blog...maybe one day. *sigh...although I already know that he'd be at least 98/100.

*I've bolded what I've seen.

1. "Citizen Kane," 1941. ugh. whatever, obviously I'm not arty enough for this film.

2. "The Godfather," 1972.

3. "Casablanca," 1942.

4. "Raging Bull," 1980.

5. "Singin' in the Rain," 1952. "I caaaan't staaand 'em".

6. "Gone With the Wind," 1939. Helluh Rhett.

7. "Lawrence of Arabia," 1962.

8. "Schindler's List," 1993. Debbie Downer.

9. "Vertigo," 1958.

10. "The Wizard of Oz," 1939. natch.

11. "City Lights," 1931.

12. "The Searchers," 1956.

13. "Star Wars," 1977. Helluh Harrison.

14. "Psycho," 1960. A heartwarming film. And a fabulous Halloween costume.

15. "2001: A Space Odyssey," 1968.

16. "Sunset Blvd.", 1950.

17. "The Graduate," 1967. Love the music, love lil' Dustin.

18. "The General," 1927.

19. "On the Waterfront," 1954.

20. "It's a Wonderful Life," 1946.

21. "Chinatown," 1974.

22. "Some Like It Hot," 1959.

23. "The Grapes of Wrath," 1940. (I've seen parts)

24. "E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial," 1982. Don't even get me started.

25. "To Kill a Mockingbird," 1962. Helluh Atticus.

26. "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington," 1939.

27. "High Noon," 1952.

28. "All About Eve," 1950.

29. "Double Indemnity," 1944.

30. "Apocalypse Now," 1979.

31. "The Maltese Falcon," 1941.

32. "The Godfather Part II," 1974. Two hours of white knuckles.

33. "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest," 1975.

34. "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs," 1937.

35. "Annie Hall," 1977.

36. "The Bridge on the River Kwai," 1957.

37. "The Best Years of Our Lives," 1946.

38. "The Treasure of the Sierra Madre," 1948.

39. "Dr. Strangelove," 1964.

40. "The Sound of Music," 1965. Again, don't start.

41. "King Kong," 1933.

42. "Bonnie and Clyde," 1967.

43. "Midnight Cowboy," 1969.

44. "The Philadelphia Story," 1940.

45. "Shane," 1953.

46. "It Happened One Night," 1934.

47. "A Streetcar Named Desire," 1951.

48. "Rear Window," 1954.

49. "Intolerance," 1916.

50. "The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring," 2001. Still have my ticket stub.

51. "West Side Story," 1961. Love, love, love.

52. "Taxi Driver," 1976. Ugh, someone needs to take a shower. Stat.

53. "The Deer Hunter," 1978.

54. "M-A-S-H," 1970.

55. "North by Northwest," 1959.

56. "Jaws," 1975. Peed my pants.

57. "Rocky," 1976.

58. "The Gold Rush," 1925.

59. "Nashville," 1975.

60. "Duck Soup," 1933.

61. "Sullivan's Travels," 1941.

62. "American Graffiti," 1973.

63. "Cabaret," 1972.

64. "Network," 1976.

65. "The African Queen," 1951.

66. "Raiders of the Lost Ark," 1981. Harrison only gets better with age.

67. "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?", 1966. Got boring real quick. If I wanted to see arguing I'd pour my Mom another glass of Chablis.

68. "Unforgiven," 1992.

69. "Tootsie," 1982. My first but certainly not my last encounter with drag queens.

70. "A Clockwork Orange," 1971. Was dumbfounded through most of it.

71. "Saving Private Ryan," 1998. Left the theatre too dehydrated to move.

72. "The Shawshank Redemption," 1994. Still amazing. When the librarian kicks it a part of my dies (sorry for that spoiler, but really you have no excuse if you haven't seen this movie yet!)

73. "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid," 1969.

74. "The Silence of the Lambs," 1991. "It puts the lotion in the basket".

75. "In the Heat of the Night," 1967. (I've seen parts.)

76. "Forrest Gump," 1994. I love the handicapped. Especially when they wear bow-ties.

77. "All the President's Men," 1976.

78. "Modern Times," 1936.

79. "The Wild Bunch," 1969.

80. "The Apartment, 1960.

81. "Spartacus," 1960.

82. "Sunrise," 1927.

83. "Titanic," 1997. Again with the crying.

84. "Easy Rider," 1969.

85. "A Night at the Opera," 1935.

86. "Platoon," 1986.

87. "12 Angry Men," 1957.

88. "Bringing Up Baby," 1938.

89. "The Sixth Sense," 1999. Appearances by Donny Wahlberg + Mischa Barton = Greatness.

90. "Swing Time," 1936.

91. "Sophie's Choice," 1982.

92. "Goodfellas," 1990. My love with Ray Liotta continues, even though he's a fatty now.

93. "The French Connection," 1971.

94. "Pulp Fiction," 1994. The dance contest will always be my fave. I can't talk about the gimp.

95. "The Last Picture Show," 1971.

96. "Do the Right Thing," 1989.

97. "Blade Runner," 1982.

98. "Yankee Doodle Dandy," 1942.

99. "Toy Story," 1995. Adorable.

100. "Ben-Hur," 1959.

Geek Jokes - Linux User At Best Buy

I only get them because the bf is one of those snobby geeks.
Although I have to admit laughing out loud (LOLing as it were) at some of these comics.

Mother Nature is a Bitch

What a coincidence that my Toronto Half-Marathon training is supposed to start today and the mercury is topping off at 32 degrees with a lovely dollop of humidity, bringing us up to 39 degrees in the downtown concrete jungle.
But, a gals gotta do what a gals gotta do.
The countdown clock doesn't stop.

My Pride Gear

I'm pretty impressed with my new "Richard Rhyme Original" Pride Run t-shirt this year and I have to say that so was everyone that I saw on my lunch break today. I ran over to Pita Pan at lunch and had at least five people tell me that they liked me shirt.

I thanked them and then asked politely that they stop staring at my tits.

If you want your own shirt come down to the run this Saturday where they'll be for sale exclusively from 9-12. Here's the 411:

For a limited time only, the PRIDE AND REMEMBRANCE RUN has made available special Road Ribbon Shirts to help raise funds for this year's beneficiaries.
The Road Ribbon logo is hand-screened on American Apparel cotton shirts (the 2001 series of shirts, to be exact).
The Road Ribbon Shirts are $25, with $5 from the sale of every shirt going to support the Toronto People With AIDS Foundation and the Triangle Program.

Contact us if you would like one: richard@priderun.org

Dear Steve Jobs, you're starting to piss me off

I'm used to waiting around for things Steve, so don't think for one second that I'm backing down...but there's only so much one woman can take.
Let's pull the lead out, hey? Don't make me give my love to Prada.

Geektastic

I once went out on a date with a guy who had just purchased a book on the art of editing film , the date was a hot mess and our relationship went up in smoke but the one good thing to come out of it was my introduction to the magic of cinematography. I've always been fascinated by the geeky details that went into certain shots and the planning and research that went into building deeper meaning into apparently simple and innocuous scenes.

I remember being fond of the Twin Peaks movies for this exact reason - I loved hearing my friends (the ones that watched the actual series) come up with random theories on Lil's blue dress and the arrival of the log lady.

This came up again last week with the finale of The Sopranos. I was never a huge fan of the series myself but I can appreciate all of the critique and analysis that has gone into the hotly debated final scene. TorontoMike commented a few times on the evolution of his feelings for those last 40 seconds and today I read a more detailed and researched play-by-play of that scene.
It was amazing. The religious and art references are juxtaposed with those of earlier seasons of the show as well as those from Godfather films. There are even theories about the use of Journey's "Don't Stop Believing" - which in my opinion can only make a good scene gooder. Damn that's a good song.

I may not have any strong feelings about the show but I give two hearts up to these full-on geektastic interpretations.

It's about to get a little hot up in here

Pride Week has begun....., originally uploaded by Torontogal Photos.

Let the pride-ing begin :)

For all the baby daddies in the house

Touch me, just like that

Yah, I know that I'm pretty slow on the uptake sometimes.
But ever since I got the Spring Awakening cast recording I haven't been able to stop singing this goddamn song.
And now you won't be able to either.

[for those of you reading this on facebook, you're missing out on the embedded video.]

Sam the Record Man Auction

So apparently everything in the Sam's store is going up for sale on June 27th and some of the stuff looks amazing! I would totally kill for the chandeliers.



... and maybe I could replace the library circulation desk with a nice tea cup countertop.


I know more than a few people that would fight to the death for these chairs.

True Love

Kisses at the animal rescue, originally uploaded by Librarian In The City.

Spoiled and loving it...

Spoiled and loving it..., originally uploaded by Librarian In The City.

I spend Sunday assaulting dogs and their owners at Woofstock.
It's where all the non-breeding couples hang out nowadays.

In related news, Ding Dong the Witch is Dead...or at least in prison.

This photo makes me laugh like a little girl with a bucket of kittens.
I gain an ill amount of pleasure from it, I admit.

The wind began to switch - the house to pitch and suddenly the hinges started to unhitch.

Yes, I felt just like Dorothy running for the cellar door this afternoon - luckily a Royal Taxi came to my rescue. I sat smugly inside and laughed at all the wet, running people out on the street.

My Hag Idol: Ms. Mary Jo Eustace

I'm not exactly sure when I began befriending the gay men of the world, but putting makeup on my childhood neighbor little Bobby Burns, may have been an early sign of my proclivity for the more effeminate man. This has only been cemented by my geographic location (Church & Wellesley), my career in the arts and my position on the board of the Pride Run

Some may find a straight girls presence in the gay community odd (I'm lookin' at you Mom) and some may think that I myself am gay (I'm lookin' at you lesbian bookstore clerk) but I have to acknowledge that a gay man is a city girls best friend. They enjoy a good pink cocktail, they compliment you on your shoes, ravenously consume pop culture news and usually aren't afraid of a good karaoke singalong. All excellent qualities in my opinion.

The term Fag Hag has always sounded a bit crass to me - but it's a title that I certainly wear proudly. While I was writing this post a friend of mine sent me the book "Girls who like boys who like boys". I haven't had a chance to crack the spine yet but I was amazed and ecstatic that this topic has been broached.

With all that in mind my Pride Month Fag Hag award must go to Ms. Mary Jo Eustace.

I've loved her since her cooking show days and despite my belief that she is better off I will continue to hex Tori Spelling and her wretch of a husband until the day they die.

Mary Jo, I love you. And look at how cute you are in this picture!
If you ever need a straight girl to join you for cocktails I am totally available.

Yah, I just pissed my pants.

Um, I'm not gonna mince any words here...this is the biggest fucking event of the summer for me. And apparently it's only 26 days away for those lucky bastards in the US, which means that it's that much closer to sitting in the adorable little cell phone perch in my LV knockoff.

Get here safely iphone, may flights of angels see thee to they perch.

Condoms, Lube & Twizzlers, Oh My!

I'm getting very excited about the race kit (or "fuel kit" as we're calling it) that we're pulling together for this months Pride Run. I don't want to give away too many of our secrets but I can definitely say that this kit will not contain any baby rice crackers or samples of organic jam.

My apologies to those of you that enjoy those things.

I for one am very happy that this kit may squeeze a few squeals from our runners. It has been pretty hellish trying to pull together some of these items and it was quite an eye-opener to see how many corporations are now dealing with donation requests. That is to say...they aren't.

But we've made it through the dark days, the kit will be fabulous, the race will be fabulous, the water station full of underwear models...I've said too much.

Only 22 days left until the Spectacular Spectacle!!

Happy Pride Month Everyone!

Beefcakes, originally uploaded by Librarian In The City.

Ahhh it's a lovely, vibrant, heartbreaking month for straight gals.