LaffingBear

Lately, Ive been taking advantage of a deal in SF... the local broadway subscription series sells single seats up to 2 days before performance for great prices. I've seen two shows in recent months. Les Miserables is here. I've seen it... but not since the 80s. It was my first visit to the Kennedy Center in DC... so never saw it on B'way. Been planning on seeing it soon. Then, today, one of those "here's what's going on locally " tv shows interviewed the visiting Jean Valjean. Nick Cartell. He's so young looking... younger than portrayed on the Les Mis website. Les Mis is one of my all time favorites. Nothing is ever as good as a first time . Now I'm actually wondering if I should even go see this touring version. Have any of the Forum theatre-fans seen this troupe/version?

I mostly buy retail. Im trying to support retail, because its so challenged by online services. I feel like we're going to look around one day, and all the retail centers will be ghost-towns, and unemployment will have skyrocketed . I get it, its a changing economy, I'm not anti-tech.... but there arent enough jobs at Amazon to accommodate all the people displaced as retail centers close. I get angry with friends who go into retail stores, try things on, waste store employees' time, then go home and order online to save a few bucks. I have a buddy who took hours of a local appliance-stores time, then outfitted a new kitchen online. Retailers will tell you that "shop here then buy online" is very common. It's gonna kill the sector. That said, if I cant find what I want in a local retail store, I buy some clothes online. Amazon, Costco online, etc....ebay only new with tags. Mostly only sellers who take returns with free shipping. I'd caution, however, that online services are getting savvy about excessive returns ... I had a particularly unique experience trying to return an Amazon item I didnt like.... they were going to deduct return shipping. I used the customer service they-call-me feature, and the rep was able to give me specifics of the policy, and was immediately aware of my purchase activity, volume, how often I returned, etc. Even told me about the 2 pairs of same pants in same order, different waists... they can tell Im "trying on for size." They have a whole profile of me, my Amazon Prime activity, etc. They KNOW my net revenue generated. As of now, returns are free if something is wrong, but not if you just dont like or decide you dont need... then you pay for return shipping. Its situational by merchandise-type. (I've had some tech and kitchen-item returns assessed return shipping if I didnt put the return-reason as broken or defective.) And generous in definition... e,g. Doesnt fit means something is wrong. I suspect that may become less generous.

I do not want to be glued to the guy, but its somewhat situational. And tempered by my expectations of behavior. E.g. I've proposed having a regular join me in las vegas. I know he likes to play poker, I dont. Ive told him we'd likely spend time separately. If he wants to work out when I dont, or I want a swim, or to go grab a coffee.... no problem. Rentguy, friend or relative - if I bought tickets to an art exhibition, general seating event, or DisneyWorld, I'd expect them to attend with me.... ok with a little solo-exploration, but Id be pissed if after event entry, I found myself alone for a substantial amount of time. If I wanted to go on vacation with someone who is entirely indifferent to my presence, I'd rent a teenager and give them a new cellphone.

Its been 6yrs since I arranged a weekend. Have done a few weekends, a couple of longer. On anything beyond an hour, my approach is to tell him what I want, let him set a rate. I try to be clear about expectations. We all know we're paying for time. Nonetheless, I imagine a rentguy might want a different rate if we're touring, sightseeing, boating etc. vs. a desire for marathon bedroom sessions. I will respond to his proposed rate based on my perception of value. I won't haggle - call it my hangup: I don't mind paying, hate haggling. Leaves me feeling like I'm getting a markdown. There're several examples above of good extended visits. I'll share an example of what not to try to, or some of my mistaken expectations. Responding to being glued to a guy... Good example of what NOT do... I attribute it to my inexperience as a client. 20+ yrs ago, one of my earliest encounters was 8 days with a young Chicago guy who wanted to visit San Francisco. I paid airfare. I covered all expenses for a few nights in an SF hotel followed by a few nights in wine country, ending at my home and hitting Folsom Street Fair. He didnt request a rate for the week. I wasnt savvy enough to clarify expectations. We agreed on a rate for X "session" hours on the clock throughout the week - mostly I felt I was sponsoring his trip and we were just hanging out. I was relatively new to hiring. I learned things about myself... I felt resentful of some of his off-the-clock behavior. Like the night I got bored in a bar, but he was center of attention - I returned to hotel, he showed up hours later at 4am. We went hiking at the coast, where he said he wanted to explore a feature alone for a few minutes; more than 90 minutes later I was sitting alone steaming and tempted to abandon him in the middle of nowhere. (Pre cellphone era) Time to drive home, he climbed in the backseat to sleep, leaving me to play chauffer for 100+ mile drive. I got pissy, opined maybe we should end earlier than planned. Arrived at my place, within an hour, he'd made other arrangements to leave. Next day, I dropped him off in the Castro; it was a total of 6, not 8, days. I didn't make the arrangements to get a bargain on a week... I naively thought I was arranging expense-sponsored travel he desired, companionship, packaged with several paid hour-sessions. Never occurred to me to clarify that at minimum, he accompany me as I was paying for meals, lodging, etc. Some of his actions were just inconsiderate, and irritated me as the host/sponsor. Best way to summarize - I'll never again attempt a halfway measure and unclear expectations. I've had much better experiences over the years by just getting and paying a rate for extended session, and clarifying desires. And once I know what to expect, I'm very open to and encourage private time, gym, etc.

Fascinating. Thanks for posting.

http://thenobhilltheatre.com/wp-content/uploads/MemorabiliaSale_Facebook_Vrtcl.jpg

No, not effectively. In all likelihood, if you're going to encounter them, they're already in the bed at the hotel. Unlike lice, they dont live on you... just suck your blood when you're available . And use you to migrate. If its a moderately or heavily infested hotel room, theyll not only bite you in bed, but get into your clothes, luggage, etc. and travel with you to your next destination. High heat kills them. Hotels and exterminator-experts use very-high heat directional blowers. Best thing an average consumer can try is a clothes dryer at its highest heat.

No to bed bugs. No to any critters from rentguys. But wont go to hotels in SF I evauate as sketchy. Not sure what/where those are these days. I remember a few around the edges of Union Square, like the Allyson. But thats from decades back. Last fringe hotel I went to was The Good Hotel in SOMA. It was ok... I was more concerned about my car. And that was 6-7 years ago. We should probably acknowledge that bed bugs occur at nice hotels too, not just fleabags. Any hotel that may be cutting back on expenses, not super-thorough with housekeeping and maintenance, can have bedbugs.

http://www.marioscubancigars.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/shutterstock_314602367-1024x683.jpg I Love 'Em! Particularly with

Yes. Very small supporting part one episode only. Im happy to learn Pose will have a second season.

My hotel. I had to think about it. When I've been traveling, in my hotel, they always came to me. I cannot remember ever having a hotel room yet meeting at his. I've gone to their hotel when they're visiting SF, alot. Because I almost always avoided having to my home - plus they often wouldn't travel to my suburban community. So, its not a conscious preference, but must be a preference nonetheless, as its always my room.

https://m4m-forum.org/threads/nob-hill-theatre-to-close-in-august.138965/

In the spirit of market observations, trends, etc., I'd advise against opening such a club. Anywhere in the US . I think its a business model whose time is fading. Gaiety's long gone. NobHill is closing in SF. Campus closed so long ago, most cant remember it. Adonis didn't succeed in Vegas. And the other Adonis' are more of a roaming event, or perhaps semi-permanent, as compared to a club. Younger gay guys dont seek venues for titillation. Gay bars are also struggling. In an odd contradiction, the US is becoming more conservative and puritanical, and yet gays are more mainstream. Gays and straights socialize together. Apps and streaming video are the mechanisms for hookups. Unless theres something new and unique, I dont believe theres an ongoing market demand for live dancers.

There's something about the bevy of recently-listed vanilla muscle guys in SF that rings my caution bells. Lotsa good eye candy. Any one of them might get me to respond, or seek further info. I can't really explain it, not suggesting how others' should react - but something about all showing up in the same timeframe - I'll stay on the sidelines.

I'm catching up on Pose, watching OnDemand. Enjoying it. Last night, I watched an episode that included Billy Porter singing "For All We Know." And, then, Mj Rodriguez starting the song "Home" from The Wiz, joined by Porter to finish the number. I see that there's a Pose audio album... I need to check it out.

Plan Bs for me: Plan B1: if I'm at home - do nothing. Don't hire. Resist the temptation, because this situation is when I've let crotch-think and frustration drive bad decisions. Plan B2: if traveling - have a backup rentguy identified, researched. Don't waste his time with alot of communications; it's not fair to waste his time on a maybe. And, remember that Plan B1 might actually be the prudent thing, even when traveling. The older I get, the more likely I am to do something else (not someone else,) entirely if rentguy plans dissolve.

Sunday morning. Reading, watching news. The many CA fires seem to dominate the stories. I find myself wondering: are the stories getting more attention? Or, is my gut-feeling accurate, is this a particularly bad fire season? Well, there is no season anymore... its year-round. After moving to CA in the 90s, fires became expected. Sometime around September, we'd start hoping for seasonal rains to begin in October. In dry autumns, there'd be fires up in the wooded Sierra and foothills. Rarely were residential neighborhoods affected. I can recall other, more recent news graphics showing dozens of fires on a California map. But I don't remember a time that there were so many out of control. I dont remember homes - entire neighborhoods - burning with such frequency. And at present, containment doesn't seem hopefully near for many. Several new fires broke out around Napa in the past 36 hours. The fires near Redding are blowing up. They just reported that 10,000 fire fighters are working the fires; more are needed. And its still July.

I loved that book. I remember liking Stuart Little at a young age. Charlotte's Web. Some book about Fog, or a foggy day at the beach. The Borrowers series was a favorite. Enright's Melendy Family series. Had The Companion Library, a set of books, each with two novels bound together. Read one... turn the book over, read the other. Thats how I read the Twain books, Alcott, etc. Another favorite was Swiss Family Robinson. Movies often led me to books. One favorite in very early teens: The Egg and I. Wizard of Oz. As I hit teen years, Gone With The Wind. Airport.

Just saw it. Its fun. Nothing phenomenal, but entertaining, worth seeing.

Ive dealt with the same issue. Been the recipient of unsolicited advice. I became very defensive about it. Even avoided the conversation when people were probing apparent weight loss beyond a simple compliment. Eventually, I arrived at a response - some variation of "You know, I'd prefer not to discuss it. Its my issue, and others' attention frustrates me and usually results in more eating (or 'can derail my diet' if its unwanted attention to a significant loss.) A little aggressive, hostile even. But it often works. And... Its true. I have been so frustrated by others unwanted attention, and eaten more. My issue, my responsibility - don't be a trigger.

I made a list once, but just to get a tally. I had a friend who was pretty slutty. In the early days of tech, kept a database on his palm pilot-like device. Names, attributes, other little-black-book details. Called it his "trick-tracker", even joked about marketing it.

Yosemite Ordered Closed https://www.ecowatch.com/wildfire-closes-yosemite-valley-2589788781.html

I know that guy. And his cousins. The only good thing I can say... while he's voracious, he usually doesnt arrive with many many friends. Picking him off plants, along with a few of his cousins usually works. And throwing him into a neighbor's yard can be satisfying - depending upon your relationship with that neighbor.

I wouldnt tell someone I ignore them. Mostly because I feel it's a waste of time. Internet comunications and social media seem to bring out the argumentive tendency of many - the need to have the last word. Enhanced by the communications challenges of absence of facial expression and voice inflection. Online pissing contests are a waste of time. Besides, if I tell them, and they're ignored, I wouldn't see a response - pointless .