I saw the Norwegian Jewel today (parked next to Pier 86 in NYC, about 42 steps from the street). I did not try to board it, drink on it, sing on it, or dance on it. Jewel made me happy.

The End.

Feeling a-bit-a-livin' life on the edge -- who wouldn't after visiting one of the bigger edges I've seen in awhile (Niagara Falls) -- and noticing that it's been (no, the next words are NOT One Week) 18 months and...One Week...since I last posted my *own* entry on LJ, I thought, what the hell?

Like a whole lot of other people on here, I, too made the pilgrimage northward for my first BNL excursion since the Cruizah. Throwing on my sincere and serious cap for a moment, it was *so* VERY awesome to see you all. I think one of my weekend com-padres said that he had a 'heavy heart' after leaving everyone; I couldn't agree more.

On the lighter side, there are many, many reasons why this was not only a much-needed sojourn/experience/event/vaca/get-away, but Everything to Everyone...

1) Rat-race meets Niagara...need I say more?
2) Ladies who claim to be Barenaked...but really aren't...unless you count twice on a cruise, and, uhhh...nevermind.
3) Do you want to pet my monkey?
4) Thrown under the bus.
5) Re-entry
6) The race from Buffalo
7) 20 Questions at the Border
8) Two Hard-Rocks in Two Countries...in one day
9) Lady Luck Smiles on a one-arm bandit
10) Photographic parking meters...and tow away zones
11) Two Falls views in Two Countries
12) Hershey Hershey Hershey
13) Cherries!!
14) Gambling Kidnappings
15) Re-adjusted Education Schedules
16) Seconds on Biscuits are good for you
17) Do you... want to pet my monkey?
18) Exotic Dance Moves
19) WOW
20) Snacky Foods
21) 42 Steps from the Street
22) Narrow lane-ways
23) Yes Yes Yes
24) Shutter Bugs
25) Unwanted pictures
26) Seat Sneaks
27) Breakfast Pontifications on the Plights of...
28) Snakes & Arrows
29) 27 Jennifers
30) Smoke-Free Casinos
31) Parking Lot Spies
32) Phone Love Coordination (and, yes, we missed yous)
33) Did I mention the monkey already? How about bad monkey?
34) Tweezing at the Falls
35) Orange Lions...I mean...giraffes...I mean gazelles...I mean cobras...I mean condors
36) The Boy
37) The Cruizah
38) *uck it, it's in the Bucket
39) Over the limit Texting
40) 'Punkin bread
41) Were there any people LEFT in Michigan over the weekend? :)
42) He was 45 at his 40th birthday party
43) Google swimming to the UK
44) Stop him!! Stop him!!!
45) Which floor are we on?
46) Pink drinks
47) The Buff-ett
48) Congratulations Denise!! (the assistant principal)
49) I couldn't find corn bread!
50) No calories on BNL trips

Feel free to leave the phone near your mouse. I know the posting of "Entry #5" by yours truly will certainly leave some of you with chest pains, a grueling headache (at least, by the end of reading this), or perhaps even some vertigo (and no, not the U2 version). Because of this, I want you all to have immediate and unhampered access to 9-uno-uno should the need arise. I don't post here, at least, with anything even remotely considered "regularity". Hence, I am warning you: I will not be responsible for anything that comes out of this post, it's reading/perusal/examination/dissection, or even a reply, if any.

It's Thursday here in the Big Apple and I had great plans in mind for the pre-TGIF day. Having just returned from Rome (as in, Italy, and not Rome, NY), I'm feeling a bit jet-lagged. I desperately need to make a deposit at the local, coin laundry. And I might add, by the way, that the concept of a "coin" laundry is grossly outdated. Seriously. Since when can you insert A coin and get A load of wash done? It should be a "Bills" laundry as it invariably takes a few "bills" to get a load of wash done...at least...here in Queens it does. Even better, how about if one could just insert their debit card? It would certainly save me the hassle of carrying around my piggybank of quarters (and don't even think for a minute that I don't do that!). I could avoid all of this if my landlord married up the basement with a few Maytag beauties...

I never buy things at the "Duty Free". Most times, it really isn't cheaper - I know I can get that Bulova watch (if I was inclined) or Armani cologne (I am inclined) cheaper than at the "Duty Free", tax (or duty) included. A thought: Maybe the word "duty" in "duty free" isn't substituted for "tax" but instead, one of the OTHER meanings for the word "Duty"... Yes, live journal readers, I'm talking about the full-term referenced by the initials "B.S.". Instead of "Duty Free", hundreds of stores worldwide, and airline magazines across many-a-runway, would no longer say "Duty Free" but "B.S. Free". It's worth considering. At any rate, my mentioning "Duty Free" wasn't meant to drive for a world push at a name-change; rather, I broke yet another rule of mine and actually did buy a few things at the duty free. What do Italian Wine, Italian Chocolates, and Italian Extra-Virgin Olive Oil all have in common? They all made their debut on U.S. soil (e.g in Brian's abode), yesterday. The Euros flowed...

Have you ever bartered for umbrellas? If you haven't, you should try it. Where, you might ask? Well, let me tell you, in addition to the breath-taking sites, the wonderful food, and, well, some really hot women, Rome offers the possibility to barter for an umbrella! Yes! Would you ever have imagined? You might be saying to yourself, "Self, it's possible to do that in the US too!" Well, that might be the case, but doing it in ROME makes your whole ROMAN experience oh-so-worth-it! I did it. I embraced it. I bargained the crap (duty?) out of it. I got the best deal. A bargain at two (*2*) Euros... one person paid 4! I was proud of myself. It was ironic how the umbrella sales-people appeared when it started raining. I think I saw the same people selling purses (they DID say Prada on them...or was that Praba?) and sunglasses (again, in the streets) earlier!

If you haven't seen the Vatican, been to the Pope's Tomb, seen the Coliseum, or had pizza from a street-side cafe, do it. I highly recommend it.

There was no purpose in posting today. BUT, I do want to point out that there seems to be a lack of holidays - holidays, meaning days we do not have to go to work - between Martin Luther King day and, ohhh, say Memorial Day. I'm saddened by this. To break-up this sad, sad fact, I will forever post on March 22nd, just as a way to show my deep-seated wishes for a holiday in between the other holidays...the middle holiday...the un-holiday holiday. In other words, lets toss in a day for the helluva-it. The un-holiday holiday. No work. No burning of a vacation day. No gifts to buy. No cards to send (postage is due to go up to 41 cents, FYI). That's it. The un-holiday holiday. THAT I might start a world push for...

Fiction and fact from Brian's almanac.

I believe there's a song, circa 1960's, in which one of the lyrics discusses how "One is the loneliest number" and subsequently, "One is the luckiest number". Since this is entry #4 in my world-unknown LJ, neither of the two lyrics have anything to do with the number "four", therefore, they bear no relevance to this post whatsoever. I just thought I'd point that out.

For everyone's information, I'm posting here UNPROMPTED; I don't know why.

Since this is MY LJ, I don't have to pay for any advertising, nor for any proliferation of things "For Sale" either. Having said that, I have two, front-row tickets to BNL for the 11/21 show in Denver. I actually had someone who e-mailed me about the tickets and, upon finding that I still have them "available," said they'd like them, but had to sell their own row 5 tickets. An hour or two later, the hotmail postalperson (who gets that job anyway?) delivers a third e-mail, indicating that her "hubby" (someday, I'm going to invent a "hubby" doll; it will come with a "Wubby" blanket. I will invent accessories that end in "ubby" and I will be a "millionairubby") REALLY wanted the tickets and that she was serious about buying them..."Are they still available", she inquired? Of course they are, oh-hubby-lover! I detail to her (in yet another hotmail e-mail) how to proceed (my resurrected paypal account vs. money order) and that I'm not paying for shipping (call me weird, but I just have a thing about it). She writes back, says that Paypal is the way her "hubby" wants to go, but they are trying to pull together the ca$hola ("as they are often broke"...the quotes are actual...I didn't use them to emphasize or embellish!) so if someone else comes along and wants them, go ahead and unload them. I'm not a betting man, but if I was, I'd bet that the tickets are still available, even as I spew this LJ out!

So, let's recap: First tickets I sold: Manchester. I was shorted $20 by the platform-sporting Steven Page Obsess-er. I did recoup my $20...I may be shy, introverted, and keep-to-myself, but as some of you know, I CAN be persuasive :) Second tickets sold: Boston. The girl wanted to come find me in my seat to get the tickets. Umm, yeah, you need the tickets to get INTO the venue. Three times a charm you say? It'd be easier to call-in sick and go to Denver!!

Have I mentioned that I'm doing the Chicago show tomorrow with Chicago Adam ("Ad-Man" for those who remember e-mail addy's...and it's an AOL thing, not a hotmail type!) ? Show #6. It will be good :)

Fiction and fact from Brian's almanac.

Current Mood: satisfied

Entry #3.

Step-right-up, come one, come all... I have an un-needed (is that even a proper English term?) ticket for Boston, tonight, 6th row, Steve's side, about three in from the left aisle, center section. If anyone is interested, please let me know. Apparently my spiritual connections with nuns, my addiction to fudge, and my overall fascination with the head nurse Halloween phenomena has paid off, blessing me with a *genuine* row 1 ticket tonight!

Fiction and fact from Brian's almanac.

*yawn*

For those of you unlucky folks who are working, I'll just start by saying that I was prompted to "update" my LJ...and I'm NOT working today! For those of you who are reading this, don't know me (or do know me), should know me, or don't really care to know me at all, suffice it to say that this LJ thing is a new concept to me. Part of me thinks, "Hmmm.... journal".... should I be laying on a couch, typing this, and charging myself a $100/hour for it? :) Entry #2.

It's Halloween today. Boo. I was SUPPOSED to be on my way to Boston, but I figured I'd take one extra day at home to finish catching up on things before the BNL sojourn. I'm sorta disappointed, though, because Halloween is on a Tuesday, which really precludes a true/authentic/have-it-on-the-actual-day Halloween party. Specifically, honestly, what I'm going to miss about not going to a Halloween party is the "head nurse" costume. Termed by some as the "naughty nurse," I prefer the "head nurse" variety as often-times, she's really and truly the ONLY nurse at the party. Therefore, she should be in-charge, no? At any rate, the "head nurse" costume is iconic (not just in my mind) to Halloween parties here and abroad. In fact, if one studies Halloween lore, they will rapidly conclude that "head nurse" costumes are actually viewed by many (not just this writer) as symbolic of all that is good in the world. Want to add a little something to the whole ambiance of the costume? Fudge. Yes, it's true. A "head nurse" who's sporting a box of assorted fudge would greatly enhance the curb appeal of the whole affair.

That's fiction and fact from Brian's almanac.

Can you hear me now? :)