BSR

Great advice, except that I have to wonder if @Gar1eth is actually quiet and reserved. As much as he initiates and weighs in on threads in this forum, I have to think he’s a chatterbox, or at least someone who wants to be chatty but has yet to figure out how to go about it. My first thought after reading the original post is if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. If both of you are OK with long and frequent silences, then keep doing what you’re doing. But I get the sense that Gar1eth isn’t OK with it, or at least is somewhat uncomfortable with it. Then my advice would be to get into whatever sport is your new guy friend’s favorite. Every single sports fan on the planet loves to talk about his favorite sport/team/player. Before you protest that you’re simply not a sports fan, give it a try. Find the cutest/handsomest/hottest player on his favorite team and just follow that player. If I can watch a hot guy read the phone book, I can certainly watch him play a sport I don’t understand. Listen to the commentators & analysts because good ones really help you understand the sport. And once you’ve figured a few things out, ask your guy friend some questions. Since every sports fan is full of opinions, I’m pretty sure your friend will gladly share his despite how quiet he is otherwise. As a tiny tyke, I became a die-hard tennis fan only because a young Bjorn Borg was sex on a stick. Even though Borg retired decades ago, I grew to love tennis for the sport itself, hotties aside. Lest you think you’re too old to get into it, I was well into adulthood when I became a die-hard baseball and football fan. Two of my best gay friendships sprung from mutual love of a sport. While we can talk sports for hours, conversation always strays into other topics as well. Yuppers, not just straight guys bond over jock talk.

Theatre actors would make more if they put out.

Look at him. I’m sure plenty of guys are happy to pay $500/hr.

Crap! sorry, but I can’t find the tweet in my feed. Too bad, it was a lean, cut boxer at a weigh-in, clueless about the wet spot on his briefs. Hopefully this sexy boxer shows up … https://x.com/caughtnaked100/status/1955213158219464900?s=46

I love how he seems utterly clueless about the wet spot in his undies … https://x.com/the_daily_goon/status/2035040295788728660?s=61

In general, when entertainers stop entertaining and start ranting about politics, I lose all interest. Even if I agreed with everything Kathy Griffin said, I’d be bored stiff because I paid my hard-earned money to laugh, not to listen to politics.

I love Palermo Soho! I stayed in Montserrat for 3 months because it was close to my language school, but I spent most of my free time in Palermo Soho. Super gay-friendly, chic yet unpretentious (my take), it’s a fantastic neighborhood. If you’re a coffee-lover, ask a local to recommend a good café because most coffee in Buenos Aires ranges from mediocre to downright awful. On weekends I went to Vive Cafe, “next door” in Palermo Hollywood, a Colombian coffee shop where they do coffee right. Most tourists do a tour of La Boca, but I didn’t like it at all: it has an interesting history but way too touristy for me. I would recommend a tour of the Plaza de Mayo that covers the history of the widows and mothers of los desaparecidos, a profoundly sad period of Argentina’s history but critical to understanding the country. If the weather’s nice, I would definitely visit the beautiful Japanese Garden. I would also walk around Palermo Chico, the fanciest BA neighborhood where all the embassies are. If you haven’t already picked your hotel, I would stay at the St. George in Puerto Iguazú, 20-25 minutes from the Falls: modern rooms, great pool, terrific breakfast buffet included. If you want to stay inside the national parks (plural because both the Brazilian and Argentine sides are national parks for their respective country), be prepared to pay megabucks. The Melia on the Argentine side was sorely in need of a renovation yet was literally 10x the price of the St. George. The Belmond on the Brazilian side is more like 12x the St. George, but at least it’s beautifully maintained. I preferred the Brazilian side (a panoramic view of the entire Falls) over the Argentine side (walkways that are almost right on top of the Falls), but you gotta do both. I highly recommend the boat ride along and under the Falls. Just bring a change of dry clothes because you’ll get soaked. I wish I could remember the place in Puerto Iguazú that serves 1-kilo ribeyes for just $50 (at the exchange rate then) because it lived up to all expectations for Argentine beef. Since steakhouses were a lot more expensive in BA, I did an asado Airbnb experience. Besides being less expensive, you learned about all the customs and traditions of an Argentine asado. This might seem like a silly tip to Southern Hemisphereans like @mike carey and @José Soplanucas, but remember that the sun passes through the north sky, not the south. My first day walking around, I checked Google Maps for the route to my destination, checked where the sun was, and started walking. 10 minutes later, I was baffled that I was walking in the wrong, opposite direction. Duh! the sun does the opposite in the Southern Hemisphere.

Chaz Bono’s mother is richer than the Sultan of Brunei (OK, slight exaggeration), yet he passes the hat to pay for his wedding?? Sorry, but that is so damn tacky. in the NYC area, it is apparently standard operating procedure to throw an engagement party, even several, where the expectation is that the guests give money to help pay for the wedding. Then at the wedding, the gift the couple wants more than anything else, unless bride or groom needs a kidney, is more $$. I didn’t know getting married was so lucrative.

Not nights really, more afternoons (“la tarde” in Spain is 2pm to 8pm, not noon to 6pm like on this side of the Atlantic). The chaperos (escorts) start coming in at 3pm and start leaving at 8pm. Wednesday is a great day to go because the admission fee is slightly lower, 20.50€ instead of 23€. Because both clients and chaperos take advantage of the discount (yes, chaperos have to pay the entry fee), the Sauna is usually hopping.

Times change — remember when lawyers didn’t advertise at all? I have no problem with the YT advertising, but I think he should have dressed a little better and filmed in a more professional-looking setting.

I lived in the West Village from 1984-87, when it had already become very much a gayborhood. At that time it was safe to walk around in the far west (Greenwich St. onward) part, but I don’t know if I would’ve felt safe doing so in the wee hours. My uncle, also gay and whose apartment I was subletting, told me how much safer the area was vs. 10 years prior. That’s what I meant by “almost” old enough.

Ever since the Lindbergh baby, kidnapping has captured Americans’ interest in a way you just don’t see in other countries. In Mexico and parts of Latin America, kidnappings are so common they barely make the news unless the hostage is a notable figure. In Europe, a case might make headlines, but with far less intensity and duration, like Madeleine McCann. American heightened concern with kidnapping started long before reality TV and crime serials — think John Paul Getty III and Patty Hearst in the 1970s. Much of the firestorm stems from the hostages’ status as heirs of ultra-wealthy families, plus gory details like Getty’s ear being cut off and sent to the family. In the Hearst case, America was riveted to the drama: her being Stockholm’d (so claimed her defense team) into joining her captors in a bank robbery. My theory is that the sensationalism of those two truth-is-crazier-than-fiction kidnappings sparked a fascination in the US that persists to this day.

No idea what Musetti’s doing on the right, but I like it! https://x.com/atphotness/status/2029313323481612556?s=46

Café sidewalk sign: “Come in and try the worst coffee one woman on Trip Advisor ever had in her life”

Me too, Single A *sadtrombone*

Team USA won the men’s hockey gold exactly 46 years to the day after winning gold in Lake Placid. I don’t follow hockey at all, don’t really have a dog in this fight, but I’m happy that the Americans were able to honor their late teammate Johnny Gaudreau and include his children in their celebration. It meant the world to his family.

Greg's mom sent him a link to a Christian dating site for Christmas. Tyler wrapped it in a frame and hung it in their bedroom. The one they share. Because there's only one bedroom. https://www.facebook.com/share/17zNHEMyjK/?mibextid=wwXIfr

Johnny Gaudreau, who played for Team USA in a number of international competitions, was killed by a drunk driver in August 2024. His teammates honored him by bringing his two kids on the ice for the team photo, a beautiful but heartbreaking moment …

The Spanish restaurants here serve Vietnamese coffee, espresso with condensed milk, but call it a Spanish latte (a marketing gimmick because Vietnamese coffee isn’t really a thing in Spain). Vietnamese coffee can be served hot or iced, delicious either way. Of course, I always have it iced, sticking with the theme of cold liquid desserts replacing my morning brew. Sheesh, I really need to kick this addiction!

Wow, the Team USA beat Canada for the men’s hockey gold medal! First the US women beat Canada, then the men, a disheartening 1-2 punch for our northern neighbor. Interesting coincidence, both games were decided 2-1 in overtime.