keefer

It depends - but I find something extremely horny/sexy about guys with face tattoos. I grew up at a time when there was a lot of pressure to follow/defer to authority. To me guys with face tattoos indicates creative free thinkers, with complex personalities - and for someone who has always followed the rules there is something extremely attractive about men who rebelled a bit.

Reminds me of SNL... New Shimmer is both a floor wax and a dessert topping!

@nycman - I quoted you to my husband who instantly replied (as only a Brit could) - "... class? nah mate, you're common as muck..." On the other hand @Rudynate's husband has class. His reaction was rare and much to be admired - quite chivalrous.

A few years ago my husband and I were treated to dinner tasting menu at the Fat Duck (Heston's Michelin starred restaurant in Bray near Heathrow)... Between pre-dinner drinks at a nearby pub and a glass of wine with the first few courses, we were feeling no pain when the waiter arrived to refill our wine glasses. While filling my glass she lost her grip on the bottle, it crashed down on my plate and glass - broken plates, wine everywhere - (shocked me from drunk to sober in an instant). Before I could react or even speak all waiters on the floor descended on our table to check we were fine, quickly followed by the manager. He apologized, and asked if we'd like to step away from the table and see the kitchen so the waiters could clear the mess. Given how famous Heston was at the time all of us jumped at the chance; we were away from the table less than five minutes, and returned to a pristine table - fresh linen, cutlery, plates, glasses for everyone - table looked the same as when we sat down at start of the meal. The manager and our waiter again apologized for the mistake - we brushed it aside and said it was simple mistake, absolutely no issues. really good will, extremely gracious. And then I made the fatal mistake: having a very surreal New York sense of humor, I quipped my only injury was losing quite a pleasant wine buzz. The manager smiled and said "... we can fix that..."; they restarted the dinner with fresh course that had been interrupted, replaced the bottle with a new one well out of my price range, a second when that finished, and then the most amazing dessert wine I've ever had. The bill eventually arrived, and we were surprised half the meals and all the alcohol had been comped. The manager refused to let us add a tip, and followed up by given each of the couples (my husband and I, and two others) a special black business card with his number allowing us to queue jump the notorious reservation system... We called the number a few months later for an anniversary dinner, and then periodically through the years whenever there was a special event. The manager and staff always remembered, and welcomed us back as royalty for years.

It's a relief to see others have received requests and how they dealt with them... I was honestly baffled by the first request and ignored it overnight; the second, and then the third - all with identical picture led me to assume fake profile - and then read this thread.

A Friday limerick in honor of @thedanNYC :-)

My closest friend; who I met at summer camp when we were both 7... the first person I came out to... yearly travel buddy to Vegas (shared love of cheap slot machines, martini's, and people watching)... closest confident, the person I talked to about boyfriend problems... the person who knew most about me except for me... and who supported, laughed with me and at me at my adventures, mistakes... the baby sister in a large Italian family with many older brothers (who more than once took me aside to talk about the dowry that would come my way if I would only take her off their hands)... without hesitation, Marie...

❤️

I'm going to suggest abandoning the skiing idea and instead embrace snow-boarding. Snow Boarding explains the laws of gravity in great detail, periodically allows you to get up close and personal with nature (trees), and, well, used to be the most legal thing you could do in Colorado to elicit bouts of uncontrollable laughter... the snow-board instructors are less about ballet and form (skiing) and more about embracing the ruggedness of life... highly recommended... You'll need to ensure you're in a resort where alcohol and hot-tubs are an option - you'll need them.

It's never too late to celebrate your 21st 😉

I lived in Boulder between '83 and '94, I suspect my experiences were unique to me, unique to my age and interests, and unique to the time... over a two year period went from going everywhere by car to living on a mountain bike; from eating like a goat to a vegetarian diet; from sedentary to quite athletic... Pearl Street was just emerging as the destination pedestrian mall... weekends driving through the mountains... learning to snowboard (you have to learn to respect gravity)... truly an amazing place... amazing start-up mentality ... don't like your job? just go to lunch with friends and start somewhere else on Monday... but eventually the magnitude of what I was missing outweighed the lifestyle, and I moved on (to a gritty little flat in London)... the pangs of homesickness for Boulder are sometimes there (especially when Londoners get excited about a centimetre of snow)... but I could never move back - the real world has too much to offer.

First - THANK YOU, I thought just one or two people might respond, but the quality of suggestions tells me I'm about to have many, many, many, years of pleasure... While adding everyone's suggestions to notes section on my phone - I wondered if any old pubs around mayfair/soho had a decent whiskey/whisky/scotch collection... to my delight it turns out this drink is quite on-trend here, Timeout even had a reasonably recent article rating some of the best in London, one of them is 30 seconds walk from my office... I think I know what I'll be doing this summer in preparation for a trip to Scotland... https://www.timeout.com/london/bars-and-pubs/the-best-whisky-bars-in-london

That's actually a really good idea... I was planning a week in Edinburgh and Leith at end of the summer, and driving further north would actually be quite a treat - great idea!

A million years ago, in a previous life, when I was just 18, I wrote some software for a friends dad. To say thank you he bought me a few bottles of Jim Beam; and as 18 year-olds do, we made a considerable dent in the stash the following weekend. That was quickly followed by over 50 years abstaining from anything which even remotely tasted like whiskey, or scotch (or tequila, but that's a different story involving an old beetle, Tijuana, and learning to drive stick)... Fast forward to last December, and after a few weeks' thinking one very cold evening, log fire, watching an old movie, something prompted me to open a dusty old bottle of Nikka. Either I've mellowed with age, or, against the odds, grew up... but it was perfect. And since December I've worked through two of the small bottles of Nikka from the barrel (square bottles), and now working through Nikka Days... and realise I actually like blended whiskeys... Given I've wasted the past 50 years on Vodka tonic, I have little experience other than Nikka; and am wondering if anyone has affordable recommendations that won't accidentally put me off whiskey for another 50 years... I should add that I live in London and visit Edinburgh periodically, so both Irish and Scotch whiskeys are quite available... help?

I am going to go against the grain and meekly agree with @JoeMendoza and say I liked the video. I've been off gay scene at least 10 years, haven't been to a gay pub in at least 5 years... and I vicariously like the presenter -- he reminds me of so many fun bartenders I've interacted with so many years ago, a bit of reliving my misspent youth....

the one on the right, or the one on the left ?

@Axiom2001 do you mean this ? National Museum of African American History and Culture? if yes, it is an amazing space, a number of their exhibits are overwhelming -- Highly recommended

Pivoting to original topic -- because of Covid lockdowns I've not seen my mom or my sister for over two years (except for Facetime and Zoom). My first trip (and in fact first time off from work in over two years) will be to Mesa Arizona to spend a month with mom, and then Virgina for a few weeks with my sister before returning to London.

interesting question -- googled and poked through a few articles; the pattern I'm detecting is there are many variables involved, including type of role, duration of interview process (period between first and last candidate), if the committee truly understands the role/subject they are trying to fill, as well as a host of other biases. I suspect this is why executive recruiters cull a large field of candidates down to three - so the decision makers can see a limited number of candidates on the same day. here's an interesting article on interview order biases: https://www.higheredjobs.com/Articles/articleDisplay.cfm?ID=662

Wait until the Repair Shop makes it across the pond to US TV... very British, very watchable (especially Will) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Repair_Shop... a few episodes are available on youtube - and

Lockdown was quite easy with husband (26 years), we work in separate rooms, but rest of the day we're together. We've just gotten back from Yorkshire after long weekend helping his mom pack up the family home for sale; she came back with us and is moving in till the end of the year... so ask again in six months ?

someone once mentioned they wished they had an aunt like Bette Davis... when I asked why they responded "... because she would have taught me how to sit properly on a bar stool and sip martini's for hours..."

Between us, my husband and I are uncles to a large number of nephews and nieces, and it's been a real joy to be in their lives. One of our nephews is gay, came out to us when he was 16, has visited a number of times with his boyfriend, and chats with me regularly on skype/zoom; one of our nieces is lesbian; we've helped her through various issues through the years; and she is exceptionally close to my partner - talking with him most days... and the other dozen are at various ages, and generally we're seen as the crazy/fun/attentive uncles. I was recently reflecting on my last living uncle; and realized though I was desperate for an uncle or aunt I could really talk to -- I never had one in my life, and wondered if that's why we've put so much effort into the next generation... was wondering if any of you had an uncle/aunt you came out to early in your life, who was very supportive, or even a gay uncle or aunt who provided an exceptional role model... or, if like me, you have nephews or nieces who have come out - and for whom you've been able to be the uncle you never had in your life....

concur. We've stayed at the Ahwahnee twice, two days first visit, five the second -- it's an amazing place to stay; very convenient to collapse in front of one of the massive fireplaces with a drink after a long day hiking. Definitely looking forward to our next visit.

My Dad handed me a copy of "Everything you always wanted to know about sex ...", clearly he hadn't realized I knew where he hid copies of Playboy, Penthouse, and the odd magazine he bought in NYC...