Okay. No it didn’t. Well it kinda did.

You see, our good friend Fred was going to skip pride and drive down to LA for an event. After much debate and confusion Richard and I ended up tagging along. The itinerary was this: Leave San Diego by noon, drive to LA, check into hotel, go eat, go back to hotel to get pretty, go to Outfest movie premier, and hit after party at a club. After that there was no set plan other than an eventual return to SD on Saturday no later than 5:00 PM.

Well kids, it was exactly as planned. The drive to LA is about 2.5 hours. Thankfully Richard and I had our iPhones. More thankfully than that, Fred’s car has multiple power outlets. Heh. So the drive up passed pretty quick. We checked into a surprisingly nicer than expected Days Inn. It wasn’t great, but not horrible either. It was right next to an In-N-Out Burger, which became the immediate solution to our second task upon getting to town. I refused. I was trying to be as flexible and non-bitchy as possible. I know I don’t travel well, so I tried to be nice about it. It was a fine choice for them, but I’d still need to eat soon too, and I won’t eat burger. Luckily, after I carefully got that out on the table, Fred’s innate Cruise Director Instincts took over. He suggested a trip to The Grove. Brilliant. Many food choices for everyone. We hit the road. Of course as soon as he pointed it out, we had decided on The Whisper Lounge. It is pure glamour. An open-air establishment with drapery and pretty people and.. I can’t describe it really. It’s just fabulous. So we went in and proceeded to order up snacks and cocktails. I don’t remember when he noticed, but Fred made us aware that Tori Spelling and Dean McDermott were behind us with their family (we assume). OMGOMGOMG!!! As soon as he said it I could HEAR HER. I mean, she has a distinctive voice. OMG. We tried not to make a scene. I *really* wanted to get a photo, or talk to her… Something. Fred wisely reminded me that I need to “act normal” and treat her like anyone else. “We don’t want to ruin her time, right?” He’s good like that since he knows people. I took his advice and refrained. Richard staged a bathroom trip so he could ogle them. I sat and listened in. We stayed a long time… Tori and crew had several bottles of champagne. Well, at least 2. LOL. Finally our time was up and we had to go get pretty. Richard insists that Tori smiled at him as we left… OMG!

So getting ready for the Premier was pretty stressful since I had forgotten a belt. My outfit NEEDED a belt. I tried to con my man out of his, but he was having none of it. So we went out on the town with me already feeling kinda insecure. I mean really. LA? Without a belt? As soon as we arrived at the Ford Amphitheater I forgot all about it. Not only is the venue gorgeous, but there were soooo many pretty people. Pretty boys… I mean it *was* Outfest, right? So anyway, the theater is backed up to a hill, and the natural landscape is the main feature of the place. It’s really awesome, actually. We headed up to the top, where they was a concession stand, as well as the entrance for the celebs… Red carpet people! Wich in this case was a red mat taped to the sidewalk with an “Outfest” logo’d backdrop. Hrm. Fanceh. But whatever. We hung out, sipping our drinks. Fred found a photographer friend of his that chatted with us a bit and snapped our picture. Woo!

So the movie was Mulligans. It was actually really good. I liked it, tho the story was painful. But a movie that makes you feel anything has done it’s job. Plus the actors were a pretty bunch. Heh.

After the movie we headed over to Eleven for the VIP after party. Fred was on The List. Richard and I hadn’t been to a nightclub like that in years. It was a big time. Especially the part were we got to go upstairs to the VIP area and hang out with the cast of the film. Again, Fred was on The List. It was awesome… I got to meet Reichen Lehmkuhl who was also at the after party. Let me just pause a moment to let that sink in…

OMG!OMG!OMG! REICHEN!!! OMG!OMG!OMG!

Okay. So after we got tired of the madness of the club we headed to some sidewalk bar/restaurant for a bit. That was a great time as we got to watch the crazies of WeHo pass by as we ate and enjoyed a few more cocktails. We made it back to the hotel by like 2:30ish. LOL

The next day (Saturday) we didn’t want to rush right out. Obviously a bit of sleeping in and hydrating were in order, plus the traffic going down to San Diego (Pride morning) could be icky… So we left the hotel at checkout time and had an amazing brunch-ish meal at Hugo’s followed by a trip to the old Xanadu site and another trip to The Grove, for shopping. A perfect morning. My friend Fred really is an excellent Cruise Director. Plus he knows his way around. AND he drove. Really, really awesome. As we cruised slowly to the freeway Fred spotted a familiar face. As he pointed out Ms. Doris Roberts, she bent over right on the side of the road to pick up… A COUPON! LOL! Classic! Once on the freeway, on the way home, we sang songs from the Xanadu soundtrack with the windows down in traffic. Just in case people weren’t already aware that the car was full of ‘mos. LOL

Fred pulled up to our house to drop us off at like 4:57 PM. Three minutes to spare. Talk about sticking to the itinerary! 

tagged: richard shopping people party omg photo house boys pretty fabulous

daniel · early evening · 2 comments · ping it

We went to SeaWorld! Wooo!

Okay, no. I am calm now. Really. I just feel I have to make a big deal out of it since so many local San Diegans are opposed to it. I have heard everything from “too commercial” to “waste of time”. And then there’s this. I mean, dudes. Relax. It’s an amusement park. They are all commercial! Have you not been to Disneyland? It’s one big commercial! Just because SeaWorld is brought to us by the Anheuser Busch Company doesn’t make it worse. In fact I find it hilarious! What better place to bring the brats than an Amusement Park that encourages you to get tanked? In fact, I Yelped about the whole thing… No need to type it all out again here, right?

So the thing I need to get across is my experience at ANY amusement park with my Richard. He loves them more than I do, especially if there are any type of animals involved. (Look at that GRIN!) When we arrived we were barely through the gates when he started. “We have to see the Polar Bears!” “Which way?” “Come on!! This way!!” We were apparently spending the day in high gear instead of relaxing. But I followed along, camera and map in tow as he rushed me from attraction to attraction. And that was the easy part. The hard part for me is the length of time he will spend staring at each thing. After like 5 minutes of penguins I am pretty much ready to move on. Not my Richard. Bless his heart. He has to “observe” the penguins for a while… From different vantage points even. Oh. My. Gawd. My iPhone sure came in handy! Don’t get me wrong, I know what I am getting into with these outings. The Zoo is much worse… We both managed to have fun.

Then aside from the park, there is the people watching. Seriously. The added element of all the Budweiser products kinda changes things. People are louder. Like that family behind us at Shamu “Believe”. First of all only Gramma was in a wheel chair, so I don’t think all 12 of them should have been taking up disabled seats. Aside from that, the drunken domestic going on was unreal. At least once the beer spilt, no one was industrious enough to go buy more. And dude, can we discuss the fashion choices that were witnessed? My eyes! Yes I realize there are water rides, but your swimsuit does not match everything. Sheesh!

Speaking of shows, we hung out after Cirque De La Mer to meet the performers. That was a pretty sophisticated show for SeaWorld, and we wanted to give them props. Turns out we got a photo with the boys too! Actually it was funny. One of the Mer Girls was available too, but no one wanted a photo with her. The guys on the other hand had a pretty big line-up of fans!

Anyhoo. It was fun.

tagged: richard iphone photo pretty water animals seaworld

daniel · lunch time · 1 comment · ping it

So I just have to tell you about this… I think it is so amazingly cool! One of my humble photos from my Flickr has been selected, and made it to the final selection phase of being included in the Schmap!

Schmap’s series of digital travel guides integrates dynamic maps with useful background reading, suggested tours, photos from the traveling public and reviews by local correspondents (for sights and attractions, hotels, restaurants, bars, parks, theaters, galleries, museums and more) to profile 200 destinations throughout the United States, Europe, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.

Now keep in mind, I am no photographer. In fact I hesitate to mention what I used to even capture the selected photo. I don’t want them to see this post and decide I am unworthy. I mean really. Heh. Anyway. I have no high hopes of being selected over the real photographers and serious hobbyists of Flickr. Tis an honor to even be considered. I am thrilled beyond belief!

Oh, find my photo here. 

tagged: photo flickr cabrillo monument final phase schmap

daniel · late at night · 1 comment · ping it

Twink Who May or May Not Be Zac Efron ‘Busted” in Gay Kiss Photo

tagged: links gay photo kiss zac efron

daniel · early afternoon · say it · ping it

Sometimes I forget how much I miss San Francisco and the people I left behind… Thanks for sending this my way Patrick!

tagged: christmas photo phone san francisco patrick the embarcadero   nostalgic

daniel · mid-afternoon · 1 comment · ping it

Brunch today was at The Top of the Market. It is a fancier version of The Fish Market. In fact it is right upstairs of the Tuna Harbor location. I love a champagne brunch on Sunday! Especially with our crazy group. Notorious (to borrow a phrase), all of them. Just like Tori. Heh.

But the reason I post this is because we were near this very famous statue…

Unconditional Surrender, a 25-foot, 6,000 pound statue by world-renowned artist J. Seward Johnson commemorating a famous World War II photo was unveiled Feb. 10 at Mole Park in San Diego. Unconditional Surrender is a three-dimensional interpretation of a photo taken by Alfred Eisenstaedt of a Sailor kissing a nurse in Times Square, New York City on Aug. 14, 1945, following the announcement of V-J Day.... Unconditional Surrender was previously displayed in New York City in 2005 and Sarasota, Fla. in 2006. The statue made its way here, and will stand at the G Street Mole Park for duration of 2007 before traveling to its next home. The statue is owned by the Sculpture Foundation of Santa Monica, Calif., and is on loan to the Port of San Diego.

Apparently it is the place to get your photo taken. Lot’s of couples were mimicking the pose, all romantic. There are a bunch of shots on Flickr by various people. You get the idea…

Then there is our version:

We are sooo pervy. Look at that girl passing in the foreground. I could tell she was thinking we were total perverts. 

tagged: photo flickr brunch famous statue unconditional surrender

daniel · early evening · 4 comments · ping it

Self Portrait Arm via Towleroad. 

tagged: links photo long arm self portrait arm

daniel · late at night · say it · ping it

This has to be my favorite Flickr set of the week!!

Retro Sexy via everlasting blort. 

tagged: links sex photo flickr retro sexy

daniel · at some point · say it · ping it

...while on vacation. I took pictures! I put a few in the gallery. Take a look! Here’s a favorite. 

tagged: pictures photo vacation florida miami naples gallery south beach

daniel · early afternoon · say it · ping it