bostonman

I grew up with the ballet terminology of "en pointe" (very often Americanized as "on point"), and understood the other meaning of "on point" to mean "to stay on the subject." It was when I started hearing it in the context of hookups to mean being "good looking/in shape" that I thought was strange. If a guy asked me if I was "on point" I would tend to tell him that I wasn't a ballet dancer - which would confuse the hell out of them lol.

Since I was the one that objected to "going viral," I will say this: No matter the literal meaning of the phrase, which I understand, I also tend to feel that that meaning has changed - does it really at this point literally refer to the sharing/duplication of something on the web, or more simply that it's become immensely popular? I don't think most people, when using the phrase, really have statistics on how much it's been shared, simply that it's something that has become the latest sensation. (i.e. one can view a "viral" video without literally sharing it). That may be a misuse of the phrase's original intention, but as we know, that happens all the time with idioms. My main objection is the resonance of the phrase as we are going through a horrible pandemic that is causing an incredible amount of suffering and death. There must be a better phrase we can use that doesn't have to constantly remind us of this devastating time - especially when "going viral" in the internet sense is a celebratory thing. To me, it trivializes the world we currently live in. I tend to think that one would have better taste and decorum than to talk about how your phone "went dead" in idle chat during a wake, no matter how accurate a description that may be. Or in using the very common expletive "Jesus Christ!!" in a church, even if you're a Christian and still say it in other places. Etc. It's how and when a phrase is used in a specific environment, not its derivation. I just think it's currently in bad taste. That's all. To use another overused phrase, "so sue me." (Which is probably not something I'd say idly while in a courtroom, lol.)

Can we please get rid of the phrase "going viral?" Especially in our current era?

@RuffLeatherPig - do you ever make your way to Boston? Do you have an ad somewhere?

Yup. I’ve tried, but sucking on metal makes me gag.

Agreed. I also don’t like a guy with messages all over him - I wouldn’t mind a small design somewhere on his cock perhaps, but “suck me” isn’t necessary - and it’s kinda ugly to look at.

In this context, wouldn't that be War and...Piece?

At that point, I would have been so turned off that I would have just given up. If you can't go into a session feeling "in the mood," especially if the escort is actually the one killing the mood, what's the point?

There was actually talk in the last few years of a Broadway revival but in a much smaller production. I don't know if Covid has killed the chances for that. And although I know the show has been done in more "chamber" settings I do think it benefits from a large scale production. But I'd welcome any well-thought out version, frankly. Our production accomplished a lot with projections, and with only one other deck above the stage floor. But still in a rather large theatre. One of the other very cool things about the original production. When one walked into the box office area of the Lunt-Fontanne, the walls were covered in small golden plaques with the names of the passengers on them. It set the mood for the history of the show right away. A really great touch, and a sobering one. At least that original cast recording is almost complete in terms of the songs - the only major number missing is the Act II opening ("Wake Up, Wake Up"), along with some short reprises, incidentals, etc. There's a good deal of dialogue in the show, and of course most of that isn't recorded. It's a shame they didn't include the closing dialogue (which goes over the incidental music heard at the end of the CD before the reprise of "In Every Age") which is quite affecting, as the survivors recount the last moments on the ship, and the legacy of the lives lost. But the CD still gives one a good idea of how the story unfolds. Another great visual that of course one doesn't get on the CD. If you listen to "Dressed In Your Pyjamas In The Grand Salon," there's a moment where everything stops, after a huge moment of choral panic. In that moment onstage, there was a tea cart set up on the floor of the Grand Salon, and during that silence, everyone watched as it slowly slid offstage by itself, and crashed offstage. The first inkling to the passengers that something really WAS wrong...and then the music starts up again, slowly, as everyone tries to deal with (or pehaps deny) what they saw... One more, because I can't resist, lol. In the scene preceding "Still" (the duet for Mr. and Mrs. Strauss, who have pledged to stay together on the ship instead of taking advantage of the lifeboats), the steward offers them a bottle of champagne in a gesture of appreciation. At the end of the duet, Mr. Strauss wraps one of the champagne flutes in a handkerchief and stomps on it, in a gesture of rekindling their wedding vows. When I first saw the show on Broadway (and had all but memorized the CD, lol), I had no idea that was coming. I was already very involved emotionally at that point in the show, but that sent me over the edge. When we did our production, our Mr. Strauss wasn't initially sure he was going to accept the role. I remember telling him that he would inevitably have one of the most moving moments in the show, lol. I was right...?

I've done the show (as music director/conductor). It was an amazing experience, and I really really want to do it again!! It was a college production, but with a solid cast of musical theatre students that I'd really consider to be young professionals, and who really came up to the challenges of the material, and then some. I had the luxury of an almost complete orchestra (everything present, but with a smaller string section than the show should really have), and they were all first-rate Boston union musicians. (Oh, and the composer, Maury Yeston, came to see the production and did a masterclass with us as well. He seemed genuinely impressed with the production, and what a great guy, btw.) One of those experiences that makes me so fucking proud to do what I do. I saw the original Broadway production during its closing weekend. Loved it. The original set design was, well, titanic, especially with 4 levels onstage as decks of the ship (one below the stage floor that could rise up to become the "smoke room") and hydraulics that tilted the entire stage as part of the sinking effect. The technical elements of "Mr. Andrews' Vision" (the number where the ship actually sinks, with designer Thomas Andrews down in the smoke room in a sort of "mad scene" epiphany, with furniture falling on top of him as the set began to lurch, and a group of passengers on the deck above him, holding onto a rail for dear life and screaming with each of those upward lurches as the set tilted further and further) was a true coup de theatre. Seeing the tour in Boston some time later was a slightly less thrilling experience - the singing and acting were first-rate, but they didn't have the multi-tiered set, and the staging that tried to compensate for that didn't work at all. (I tend to think they should have just tried to re-concept the staging completely instead of just trying to compensate for a less involved set.) They did still have the tilting floor, though, and ironically, one of the few numbers that had the same visual impact as on Broadway was that same "Mr. Andrews' Vision," this time with Andrews among the crowd of passengers, instead of being on the deck below them. Still, one missed the moment on Broadway where the set took its final tilt and there was a blackout as we saw a grand piano coming straight at Andrews down in the smokeroom... I could go on and on about the show, especially the magnificent score, but for now, that's probably enough lol. But yeah, I'm a huge fan...

Ha! I think you've missed the point of my joke, lol. I think it's rather uncommon for a woman to marry her ex-husband, though it does happen (my parents being proof of that lol). But I think Maples only married trump once. And clearly, that was enough. ?

Maples married her ex-husband? ?

I met him a few years back (the fall of 2014 to be exact) - at the time, he seemed very enthusiastic about his job. (I remember talking with him after our session). Though of course that was 6 years ago, and things can change a lot. He was wonderful, BTW.

That sounds like a commercial slogan, a la "the heartbreak of psoriasis" lol. Credit the chruch for making it sound so awful...

Yes - that is a good point. He did offer me a massage that day, which was great and also very calming. We were also able to meet a few months later when I was feeling better, and then we were more intimate, which was very nice. But we've also met twice during the pandemic, just to talk and have dinner at my place, etc - and he only charged me for one of those sessions. I don't doubt, if he travels here again before things are safer, that we might easily have another meetup like that. He's become a great friend.

A little over a year ago, I was dealing with some awful anxiety issues (since diagnosed and very under control, thank god), but when my one "regular" was passing through town around that time, we met - not for sex, but just because I felt I could use some cuddling and a sympathetic ear. He was so incredibly helpful to me that day (I wrote about this out here when it happened), and that day really made an impression on me. So much so that I wound up sharing the story with some close friends and colleagues that had already been unbelievably supportive of my odd sudden struggles. I can't say that anyone was more than maybe a bit surprised/amused by my admission that I was seeing a male escort - but no one moralized or was turned off by it. In fact, one very close colleague/friend went on to tell me that one of his colleagues also escorted - and in sharing my story with a few of my closer college students that I trusted (they were all looking out for me too, which was so unbelievably helpful) one of them actually told me that HE did escort work. (whoa!) So not only did my honest (if daring) need to share all of this not backfire, it did actually make me feel better about hiring - as no one seemed to be judging me about it at all. BTW - most daring of all perhaps, one of the people I told all of this too was my mom. (!!) Now, you have to understand- my parents are very liberal and act much younger than their age - and were accepting and supportive when I came out at 17. But still, to tell one's mom that you've been hiring escorts? But you know what? She just laughed and said something like "well, I wondered how you've been taking care of things lately" lol. I even wonld up sending her a face pic of the escort in question - she approved. ? So, it's not like I proudly wave a "john" flag lol (and to be honest, I'm not a habitual hire-r - I windowshop more than I hire), but revealing this to some people I trusted, and not getting any judgement about it, was really cool. And after all, it's the "oldest profession" for a reason - who knows how many people I know have indeed been either providers or clients? And why not?

Yes, you've posted this several times now it seems. Time to move on. Happy new year. :-)

And here I thought that the escorts were supposed to provide the stimulus...;-)

Sober could refer just to drinking, while PNP to me tends to mean drugs, not drink. It could also mean that he's open to others who want to PNP. But, I'm not trying to excuse him from anything, just theorizing.

Wow.

Well, all that, but add to it all the fact that I just saw a brand new ad for Dean on RM last night. So this must be some tied-in shilling for him. ;-) Timing is everything.... His "new" screenname is Vrsivyleaguehung.

And they tend to all of a sudden make their first appearance to make those rescue posts. Coincidence??

Thank you, IvyLeagueHungVrs.

...and now he's back to being MasonXXX AND he says his name is Mason. I guess Clint Matthew has dematerialized for the moment. This is exhausting...

But even if so, why would he be switching back and forth as he did? Yesterday the heading was ClintMatthew but he said his name was Mason, today the heading is MasonXXX but he says his name is Clint Matthew. That's just weird.