Orange Maze: January 2006

Monday, January 30, 2006

Me, A ballroom dancer? I have to confess, I have jumped on the ballroom bandwagon thanks in part of "Dancing with the Stars," ABC's reality TV show that takes 10 well known celebrities and pair them with the best professional dancers that ever courted their moves on the ballroom dance floor. Now that Master P has been finally been kicked out of the show last week, I can really enjoy the show, and the few ballroom hunks that remain for me to enjoy. My favorite professional male dancer in the competition was John Roberts, but he ended up being eliminated, together with his celebrity partner, journalist Giselle Fernandez. Good news is that the other male pro-dancers, Tony and Maxim, are still in the competition which means that I can still admire how they strut and dance the different dance-styles that are yet to be seen this season. My mother has mentioned that every time she watches John dance, she is reminded of how I dance. "You guys have the same dancing style" she muttered last week, after finally asking her what she notices in similarity between us. I have no problem with the comparison, but I have to admit, I am not that great of a dancer either. I dance funny, when I look back at the home movies from the previous years, and I sway my hips too much. I remember when a straight dude told me a few years back that if I swayed my hips more than my female dance partner, then I have a problem. I laughed it off, but I do have that exaggerating habit that I personally refuse to let go. My wise and loving mother also advised me that I should look into taking dance classes to sharpen the basic moves I know and a lose a few pounds I gained from my first year in college. I guess I took the warning from my high school teachers lightly and because of that, I am now a suffering victim of the Freshman-15. -- [[V.J. Civic; 1/30/2006 01:18:00 PM 4 Oranges Left links to this post]]

Apple to offer "iTunes U"

I have always wanted my hair spiked up like that guy's hair

Together with six universities Apple Computer Inc. will pilot the program due to the ever increasing popularity of "podcasts" and the very hip iPods. Apple has invited other universities to join the program that will include downloading college lectures from iTunes, making it hip to listen important but sometimes boring lectures in the iPod portable player. Finally some good news, the people of Apple are ingenious for thinking this up. Now I can say that I have done a great thing on investing on an iPod Nano for Christmas, I can have fun by listening to music and skipping class in favor on getting the lecture through a "podcast." That is with my assumption that University of Florida is one of the six universities partnering with Apple, or that the Gainesville-situated public university will later join in. -- [Photo: Toshiyuki Aizawa/Reuters] [Yahoo News!: Apple Offers College Lectures Via Podcasts] [[V.J. Civic; 1/30/2006 12:50:00 PM 2 Oranges Left links to this post]]

The Dell Mystery

NEW DELHI - Computer maker Dell Inc. said Monday it planned to add 5,000 jobs in India over the next two years, bringing its work force in the country to 15,000 The Round Rock, Texas-based company will hire 700 to 1,000 workers for a new call center in Gurgaon, a satellite town of the capital, New Delhi, Rollins said. The new call center, the company's fourth in India, will open in April, he said. The other new hires will staff call centers in the cities of Bangalore and Hyderabad in southern India and Mohali in the northern state of Punjab. Also this year, the company plans to double the staff at its product testing center in Bangalore, which currently employs 300 engineers, Rollins said.

I have always wodered for the reason behind each call I make to Dell when my laptop goes haywire. Every time I make a call to help services I get an attendant that speaks chewed up English mixed with the Punjab accent that I try very hard to understand. What is worse is that some of them couldn't understand my problem when my laptop decides to go AWOL. I don't want to poke fun at them, but if you can only understand the two-month incident that I had to call Dell in order to get my laptop back in progress after reformatting the hard drive. To write a long story short, I obviously had no way to connect to the internet with my laptop, my neighbor disconnected her online service at the time. So the only way to install the crucial Ethernet driver, so I can get internet back at home, was to travel 15 miles from my house to the UPS store (three different times) until I finally got the right file to restore my laptop to its entirety. All because a few, now apparent Indian native Dell employees, were clueless on what their job was. I have no problem, personally, with Dell's commitment to help Indian citizens get well-needed jobs. All I am asking is to get Indian citizens that are fluent in English and that any American Dell-computer owner can understand. -- P.S. I do, however, prefer for Dell to provide jobs for Americans here. Don't you think so? [Yahoo News!: Dell to Hire 5,000 People in India] [[V.J. Civic; 1/30/2006 12:19:00 PM 0 Oranges Left links to this post]]

Wednesday, January 25, 2006

Everest: unconquerable... For now!

I left Disney's Animal Kingdom without conquering Everest when I had my only opportunity on Sunday. The Expedition: Everest previews for cast members (Disney employees) were from January 20-23 from 9am to 5pm but the best day for me to go was January 22nd. The mistake I made was to assume everything was fine and do "homework" when I think I was online the whole entire time until I left my house around 12:30 pm. It felt awesome to know that only I (and other cast members, of course) were the only special VIPs allowed to go to the Asia section of the theme park and test out the newest thrill ride Disney had to offer. Unfortunately, I never got the opportunity to reach the main entrance of the ride, because of the length of line, when the velocity of the line completely stopped. Apparently there was glitch and they had to stop the ride operations which is understandable because it is a new ride. As consolation, I did get the chance to get my free gift after scanning it through a machine similar to a FASTpass machine, only it makes sure that no other cast member, including myself, don't free-load and grab more than one Disney goodie. There are no worries even though I left the theme park with the urge of finding the Yeti in the forbidden mountain that is Mt. Everest. I will intend to be one of the first to ride Expedition: Everest (the unofficial tallest "mountain" in Florida, standing 199 ft. tall) when it opens later this year, hopefully Spring 2006! -- [Photo: Joe Burbank/Orlando Sentinel] [Sun-Sentinel: Disney's $100 million Gamble] [WESH-TV: Disney Unveils Expedition Everest]

[[V.J. Civic; 1/25/2006 02:04:00 AM 2 Oranges Left links to this post]]

Saturday, January 21, 2006

Miami Heat: Sizzle or Fizzle?

I do not want to say that this Miami Heat team is disappointing, I'll wait until the end of the season to judge the team. The fact is that there were high expectations from the South Florida media and Heat fans alike about the talent of team (Shaq, Wade, Mourning) and the new players that were signed in the preseason (Williams, Payton). I, for one, know the disappointment that can be felt by making sky-high expectations for a team only to be short-changed and let down. The blame can not be made against the fans because the 2005-2006 Miami Heat were hyped to be better than last year's team by everyone. There is no question that the Miami Heat have talent to become contenders, once again, for the NBA Finals. The question I have is if the Miami Heat have what it takes to finish the season, in such a way that will compliment the stellar conclusion of the 2006 Miami Dolphins season with the six-game win streak. By the way, I can not forget to mention my gratitude to Nick Saban for a fantastic job, but that's good for another post. The Miami Heat had a great start, for the 2004-05 season, and had two 13-game win streaks (I believe it's 13, not less then 10) which helped Miami to the best record of the Eastern conference, clinch a playoff berth by winning the division. With all those accomplishments, it was no use to immune the team from the game seven downfall defeat against the Detroit Pistons in the Eastern Conference Finals (Pistons were ranked second last season. Currently first this season). If the Miami Heat learned from the lesson of season's past, they will need to finish strong, with enough drive to compete, for a real chance of glory in season's end. It is proven that finishing the season, not how you started, is what brings a championship. The Heat started great last year, but fizzled in the end. Hopefully Miami will find a way to redeem the average months of basketball and get energized to avoid the misfortunes of last year and bring the long-awaited NBA Trophy to South Beach. -- [Photo: NBA Media] [Link: 05-06 Miami Heat Roster] [Miami Dolphins] [[V.J. Civic; 1/21/2006 08:46:00 PM 3 Oranges Left links to this post]]

He was strutting his stuff It was a delightful surprise Thursday night when I got out of class. On the way to the parking lot, I encountered the most stunning and tantalizing strut by a guy, let's presume he is gay because no straight dude will sway his hips, from side to side, in such a provocative manner as that guy did. He did not have a big ass, actually I would not know because it was covered by a messenger bag. Ohh my, not even his messenger book bag could prevent my eyes to voyeur his behind. All I can say is that I am thankful this was at night because it was obviously dark for me to enjoy with my subtleness and there was no obstruction from annoying pedestrians hustling to go to class. I had all intentions to hasten my pace to my car when I got out of my class at 6:45, but the guy had a swagger show that was enough to slow my pace and keep my heart pumping even after I left the campus. I want another viewing next Thursday. -- P.S. When will my single days be over. [[V.J. Civic; 1/21/2006 07:14:00 PM 0 Oranges Left links to this post]]

Clue from the last post Both, Mike and Ryan guessed very close but I am not necesarily in the city limits of Orlando. I am in a city, all by itself, south of Orlando in Osceola county. Because the city is very small, sometimes to my liking, I do not want my name being specualted around Downtown's Main Street. Lets just say that I live in Osceola county for now in the theme of keeping things mysterious for a little while longer. -- [[V.J. Civic; 1/21/2006 07:04:00 PM 0 Oranges Left links to this post]]

Thursday, January 19, 2006

Torino 2006: 22 more Days! It's that time of my life again that I will rejoice together with the billions of people around the world, cheering for their fellow patriotic athletes competing to be the best of the best and receive a gold medal [perhaps a couple more]. If you guys do not know what I am talking about, then I have to say "you are really missing out." It's the XX Winter Olympic Games, which will be hosted by the wonderful people of Torino, Italy. About a day's worth train ride on top of the fabulous Italian Alps from Milan, in the northwest region of the Italian peninsula. Personally, I am rooting for the Red, White and Blue which is promised by NBC as the best team ever assembled to participate in the Winter Olympics. Not for nothing, but I agree with NBC because this set of U.S. Olympians are more than great in their sport. They are gorgeous to look at as well and I am talking about both, men and women.

Jeremy Bloom for example, the former University of Colorado football player turned Olympian has much more than a pretty face and great talent as a freestyle skier. He has the toned body that will leave anyone salivating and probably turn the straightest of heterosexual men, gay.

The other Olympian male-stud is uniquely named Apolo Anton Ohno. He is the short track skater from Seattle, he is talented in the field and he has a Gold and Silver medal to prove it. I have admired the guy once I saw him achieve his dream of becoming an Olympian in the 19th Winter Games in 2002, when Salt Lake City were hosting it. So much so, I dreamt of being a speed skater but now I think that dream was far-fetched. I'll leave the speed skating to Apolo.

The last guy that I felt I should mention, although I did not know the guy existed until a few minutes ago is Chad Hedrick. He is also a skater specializing is speed skating. He's good looking so I mentioned I had to mention the guy at least. I was going to mention the only lady in my list, but she is not yet eligible to compete in Torino for the USA team. I hope she does get the chance to go so she can redeem her Bronze-medal let down from 2002. The woman I am talking about in none other than figure skater Michelle Kwan. You see there is something for everyone when NBC start televising the Olympics (24.5 hours a day for two weeks) on February 10th. If you are in it for the looks or for the sport, don't you dare miss it! -- [Athlete Photos: NBC Olympics] [Yahoo! News: Article on Torch Relay] [USA Today: NBC to televise Olympics 24.5 a day] *P.S. NBC is ambitious with Olympic coverage, don't you think? [Torino 2006: Opening Ceremonies Preview]

[[V.J. Civic; 1/19/2006 07:59:00 PM 0 Oranges Left links to this post]]

Tuesday, January 17, 2006

Back from Broward

Like I wrote before, I did not stay in Miami but I was very close to the north in the Broward County city of Pembroke Pines. I had a lot of fun because for once I was not locked in my aunt's house doing nothing and desperate to leave. I stayed in my mother's friend's home, which is a very beautiful house by the lake. I got to see some of the damage they got from Hurricanes Katrina and Wilma, which is not all too encouraging, but they survived it OK. The first day left an impression through the weekend because my mom hunched the very slim desire of moving back to Miami once she and eventually my brother and I are out of our respective schools. That got my brother excited and throwing up the victory flag (he loves living in Miami to the end), while I was shocked because Miami is not that great to live in and those were her words. I have to be honest, I love Miami. That is the reason why I end up going back to South Florida, but I consider Central Florida my home now. Miami and its vicinities is too overpopulated and will be better off without me living there. At best, I will probably convince mom to stay but to invest on a condominium so we can visit Miami more frequently. There is a catch though, we are not made of money! We are not wealthy enough to even dreaming of having a second house in overpriced South Florida! Sure enough, once the weekend drew to a close, the elation of the Miami vibe was also humbled and my mother's mind came back down from cloud nine. The reality is that we can not go back to live in South Florida because its too much for our economic standards. I am fine in my "heavenly place" (this quotation is a clue of my exact location, can you guess where I live?).

In other news, I broke my promise I had to the city of Las Vegas. I could not fight the urge and ended up gambling in the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Hollywood (Florida, that is). I even enrolled in the Seminole Hard Rock Players' Card to win free points. I renewed my promise, however, and I will only gamble money on slot machines. I'll leave the table games of chance to Rockin' Las Vegas! -- P.S. Did I win anything? I gambled 20 bucks and saved only 14 cents. It was embarrassing when I redeemed my ticket for the 14 cents. The attendant went from smiling to raising her eyebrows. Obviously thinking I was a cheap bastard for wanting MY 14 cents! P.P.S. My brother, a minor, concluded he had enough of police officers telling him he is not old enough to hang inside a casino, so he won't go to neither a casino nor Las Vegas until he is mature enough in 2010. [[V.J. Civic; 1/17/2006 08:09:00 PM 2 Oranges Left links to this post]]

Monday, January 16, 2006

What I have realized What can I say... I had a great time in my brief break from reality and got to visit some family friends in Broward county. So I basically did not go back home, but it was close enough. I have meant to write about this topic a while ago, but my creative mojo and emotion always felt dull by the time I logged on to type about the difference of having acquaintances and friends. When I was think it through last night, I was too over emotional and irrational in my post so I decided to sleep it through the night to have a better understanding of these simple but complex definitions. A Friend is defined as person who I trust. Trustworthy enough to be a helper, a partner while clubbing, hanging out, or a person that I or you can trust. An acquaintance I believe is a person that I know casually but is not as trusting as a friend, even though it is officially considered by synonymous to the meaning of a friend. There are two people I know and considered my relationship to each one of them as a friendly one. Instead, I have realized each one really exemplify my meaning of a casual friend, an acquaintance at most. M.T.: The Dude The first is a straight guy pseudo named M.T., I have met him personally ever since my elementary school days but I really did not get the chance to talk to the guy, currently 19 I believe, until he transferred to my high school our junior year. We had our differences, like any other average joes, but we always partnered in class projects, attended some after-school activities, and of course the very memorable Florida Marlins baseball games. But ever since the move, we have lost our old ways, he has matured out of the friendship now that he is back with his high-school sweetheart (no problem), smoking and drinking (Big Problems, but I respect his decision). To be honest, he is a "party animal," and I really don't mind the experimenting, really I don't. Because in all sincerity, I drink whenever I have a family gathering. It's just that, in short, he has asked all the favors from me like theme park admission (because I work at a theme park) whenever he comes up to Orlando, but when I go down to Miami I get shunned, ignored. The last straw was a few months ago when he came up and when I was not able to get him (and his buddies) in for free to the theme park I work at, he decided to not return the five or so messages I left for him so I can have fun with the "buddies" just like the old times. Now, I am done with M.T. I have recently decided to stop playing Fantasy Sports, because I think my grades is a lot better than a virtual gold trophy I fail to win for the past two years from every professional Fantasy sport imaginable. He is not my enemy, don't get me wrong, he is just a casual friend, an acquaintance. Mrs. C.: The Activities Director Mrs. C is a very nice lady. She is old enough to be my mother, but she has taught me many things in life. She has told me not to forget about her and to keep in touch, which I have... Been trying to do, that is. The past five times I went back to my high school to visit, I have only been able to see her twice because I guess she is too busy with planning the spectacular activities she has done for the past four years. What ticks me though, which I guess might happen to any of us, is that I have cared to take time to visit her too much. She really does not care enough to stop a day's work to listen to what I have to say and when I ask her about what she has been doing, all I get is the cliche "I am doing good. Same Old Stuff!" Now I am going to give more importance to other teachers that have been there for me when I wanted to have a friendly conversation. Besides, last time I went to see Mrs. C I noticed she gave the same message to the 2005 grads that were worked with her... Please keep in contact, don't "forget about me". Seriously, I had a jealous rage ever since, LOL. I may leave high school, but high school will never leave me. Mrs. C is a very nice lady, but she is just a casual friend. Yes you guessed it, an acquaintance. Now I leave you (very long blog post, I know), with this enlightenment: be careful who you consider as a friend you can trust, talk to, and hang out with. I now know what types of people I am confident will accept me the way I am. In fact I may surprise a few with the delight of a secret you all know... That I am not all that straight. -- [[V.J. Civic; 1/16/2006 11:34:00 PM 0 Oranges Left links to this post]]

Friday, January 13, 2006

I'm leaving for a short trip to South Florida. Not necesarily Miami, but I will be a few miles north in Miramar. Have a nice, Long weekend everyone, remember that we owe it all to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Honor him well. See you! -- [[V.J. Civic; 1/13/2006 08:14:00 AM 1 Oranges Left links to this post]]

Wednesday, January 11, 2006

What's wrong with a Kiss? I understand that its two guys kissing on primetime television, but what's the deal with complaining to ABC about the gay storyline of Desperate Housewives. The show deals with wives or husbands committing adultery, many viewers don't care while some complain. But because there is an innocent kiss between Andrew (Shawn Pyfrom) and Justin (the very sexy fella, Ryan Carnes), there is more commotion about that. Brian Harding from GayRightsWatch.com rants about the issue which I fully agree, so I don't have to reiterate it in this blog post. Geez!! Get over it people. It's not like ABC is forcing you to watch the Adult-oriented show. Also, I don't know why parents will let children watch Desperate Housewives. If someone can not hence a clue from the title that the show is not suitable for children, then know how to block it from the eyes of children. The PSA's are aired extensively about the V-Chips, yet some parents are irresponsible and complain to ABC. If you don't like it, then change the channel people. I have no problem if ABC yanks DH out of the lineup, I have nine more shows that I enjoy watching and books that I have to start reading. As with primetime gay kisses, gay pornography is a good substitution. Even though I really do have to stop, but that good for another blog post for a later time. -- [Desperate Housewives: The Gay Kiss] [[V.J. Civic; 1/11/2006 01:56:00 PM 2 Oranges Left links to this post]]

Monday, January 09, 2006

Learn from the Dutch

Marijuana is legal in the Netherlands, but they are smart. Photo by: NY Times

Apparently some government officials are going to the Netherlands to get a "walk through" of their systems of dams and dikes that prevent the nation, which is 23 feet below sea level compared to the few feet of New Orleans, from flooding from disastrous surges and high tides. I saw a documentary on the Discovery Channel a few years ago about the state-of-the-art dam system that the Dutch have. Considering that we rightfully brag how advanced and powerful our nation is in the world, it really does not surprise me that the Dutch manage to make our country's technology advancements look like messing with Play-Doh. I just hope that they, meaning the government officials, use this insightful trip with the purpose of learning how to keep our cities from flooding from a fellow civilized European country. Its about time we do something to protect our cities from something other then terrorists. I am not saying that mother nature (or God) is a terrorist, but natural disasters should not be taken lightly either. -- [Yahoo! News] [[V.J. Civic; 1/09/2006 07:05:00 PM 0 Oranges Left links to this post]]

V.J. Blurbs: My Favorite TV Shows In wake of the continuance of new episodes of TV shows all across the networks, I decided to list some of my favorite TV shows that I enjoying watching the day of or whenever I feel like now that I have a DVR. If it was not because of the usefulness of the DVR, I would have never discovered the majority of the following shows I consider my favorites. Notice I am not including reality TV shows. 1. Lost (ABC): I regret not getting on the bandwagon sooner, but now I am hooked. Every episode is a must see because of the interesting storyline of stranded survivors and the backstory that each survivor has from their past. This show manages to surprise me every episode. 2. Commander in Chief (ABC): This new show is about a woman running the White House and the country. Sometimes I wonder why make-believe President MacKenzie Allen is not our real President. 3. 24 (FOX): I was hooked from last season ever since I gave this show a shot after watching a NFL playoff game. I thank the NFL for letting me discover this thriller. I can't wait for next Monday. 4. Freddie (ABC): This show I can relate too because I am Hispanic, but besides the one-of-a-kind humorous jokes by rich-guy Chris (Brian Austin Green) and Freddie (Prinze, Jr.), these pair of hunks have substance that make Freddie a top-list favorite of mine. 5. Desperate Housewives (ABC): You have to love the ladies of Wisteria Lane, at least I do. Eva Longoria and Felicity Huffman are great actresses and beautiful women. But the episode from Sunday, January 9th with Andrew (Shawn Pyfrom) and boyfriend Justin (Ryan Carnes) being caught in bed together and the final kissing scene in the closing of the episode is to die for. 6. Will and Grace (NBC): Very Funny. Especially because of Megan Mullaly and Debra Messing. I think every homosexual love to watch the show, and not to forget heterosexuals are also fans of the show. 7. Las Vegas (NBC): Its Vegas, baby! What do you expect? I am still hung over from the captivating trip I had to Las Vegas last October. Plus, Josh Duhamel and some of his female co-stars make this show pleasant to watch. The storyline is also great to watch, its not your average crime-stopping show. Its all about running a Vegas Hotel and Casino. 8. How I Met Your Mother (CBS): This was a surprise hit for CBS and for me because I did not find out about the show until I saw a clip of it when I recorded CSI: Miami (which is also a show that I love because it is set in Miami, but I don't see it often). 9. My Name is Earl (NBC): This was a surprise hit for the network I am most loyal too, NBC. It's funny. 10. Four Kings (NBC): Its about four male friends living in New York. The show premiered last week but its in my provisional list. I have to watch a few more shows to see if its worthy of my time. But it deserves mentioning on my blog. -- [[V.J. Civic; 1/09/2006 06:24:00 PM 0 Oranges Left links to this post]]

Sunday, January 08, 2006

Cell phones versus Family

The round-the-clock availability that cell phones and pagers have brought to people's lives may be taking a toll on family life, a new study suggests. The study, which followed more than 1,300 adults over 2 years, found that those who consistently used a mobile phone or pager throughout the study period were more likely to report negative "spillover" between work and home life -- and, in turn, less satisfaction with their family life. Spillover essentially means that the line between work and home begins to blur.

I have feared this for a long time because of the different times I have seen it in television shows and movies. I fortunately do not and did not have to experience my mother picking up cell phone and home phone calls from her work to "go to work" as much as other American families had to deal with the situation, but I can only imagine the fuss and the change of mood when a cell phone rings in a middle of a family vacation. One of the professors in my college, who is also a student activities advisor explained that he had two cell phones, one for work and another one for family issues. While he was at work he had the one cell phone on and the family phone powered off and when he was at home it was just the opposite. He told us that in order for us to suceed in time management and in life, we would have to prioritize our life. It is only fair that all employers should understand that in order for workers, especially working mothers, to produce efficiently, there should be room for all employees to handle family matters. This reminds me of Lynette Scavo (from Desperate Housewives) when she compromised between her son and her job. She decided to be with her son in his first day of school through a webcam while she was taking breaks from the business meetings at work. -- [Yahoo! News] [[V.J. Civic; 1/08/2006 09:20:00 PM 0 Oranges Left links to this post]]

Will Craigslist help? Last month, while I was browsing through another blog that I frequent, again, I clicked a link to Craigslist which is just a directory for searching anything from jobs to love. I remember about Craigslist from a mother's friend that came from Puerto Rico to search for a job. When I first saw the website when she was showing me through, I thought it was just a junk website, so I ignored it. But when I saw it again in the blogroll I could not help my curiosity, so I clicked to check it out again. I saw that it had a "m4m" personals section, so I went to the one for my area. While I was browsing through the helpless begging from random "straight" guys soliciting sex with other "straight" guys only, I just had to laugh. Some of the personals also had pictures, some were nude which was quite welcomed by me. I decided to send an email to the guy that wrote a message in his personal that goes something like this...

I am a curious MWM looking for a discreet encounter with a guy who's 18-23 and hopefully with very little or no experience, like me. Looking to go slow at first, touching, jo, things like that. I can do all the work and no reciprocation is needed. I prefer boyish looks, white or hispanic. Must be clean, D&D free, like me. Looks are not important, but honesty is. I am just a curious guy looking to satisfy a fantasy. Good looking, good job, height and weight proportionate. Not looking for drama or relationship. If you are curious about having a guy worship you but you have never acted on it, this is your golden opportunity. Don't pass it up. Discretion is a MUST. Like I said, I am married and have no intentions on screwing that up. Limits are respected. As you can understand, this would be my first time and therefore I am not looking for penetration, more of a sensual, touching, kissing? experience. I can host for the right guy...

I was expecting a decent looking guy around his twenties, nothing much to ask for, right? Well, a week after sending my email, I finally received a message from him, with his photo. To be honest, it was a turn-off because the reply looked fabricated, which gave me the impression he was fooling around with a lot more guys than I can think of. Second, because he was too old for my liking and lastly because he was not out of this world in his picture. I guess looking for a relationship or even a one night stand, for that matter, on the internet is not a great idea. I have heard stories on the news on how searching for another person on the internet is as obsolete as having a long distance relationship. I began plans two separate time on AIM chat rooms, but I backed off because I had a feeling that I can't trust guys I haven't seen before. I was attacked by the first guy because I did not want to visit him three hours south of where I live. So why would I still look for a guy on the internet? I guess I am kind of desperate, LOL. I do not want to become a male whore, I just don't know how to discreetly look for an honest guy and hook up personally. But, one thing is for sure, I am not going to look for a guy online, anymore. I may keep that promise now, but I know that I'll try my luck online months from now. -- P.S. This is the most personal blog I have written up to date. Interesting! [[V.J. Civic; 1/08/2006 08:16:00 PM 1 Oranges Left links to this post]]

Back to Class The Spring 2006 semester starts tomorrow morning and I do not know what to expect. It hit me about four hours ago, while I was watching the recorded shows in my DVR from the busy holidays, that I was enjoying my final day of freedom from responsibility. I have mixed feelings about the upcoming semester. I am excited for the challenge and relaxing three-course schedule I have, compared to the four classes I have been taking the past three semesters. I am also mellow and nervous if I am going to improve on the mistakes that I hopefully learned from last semester. I'll keep you posted on my first week back as a student. -- [[V.J. Civic; 1/08/2006 08:07:00 PM 0 Oranges Left links to this post]]

Thursday, January 05, 2006

Mr. Gay 2006

While I was browsing around one of the blogs I frequent, last month, I was surprised to know about a Gay pageant for homosexual males. Mr. Gay International is still a cut below the Ms. Universe pageant but its worthy enough for attention in comparison with other gay pageants that focus only local attention. I have been following the Ms. Universe competitions extensively since 2001, when Ms. Puerto Rico (Denise Quinones August) won. What I like about Ms. Universe is that the competition is more than physical beauty. Dont get me wrong, the stunning women from Ms. Universe are enough to turn any guy questioning his sexuality, straight. It's also about showing pride for representing your country in an international stage. I personally root for the United States and Puerto Rico because I love both equally. I was going to say countries, but Puerto Rico is just a commonwealth to the USA. Both of my parents are from Puerto Rico as well as my brother, so that makes me an Hispanic American, although my family humorously say I am more like the Gringo of the family because of my white skin complexion.

Anyways, back to the subject...

From my first impression, I agree with some of the comments that the Mr. Gay competition is more of a twink competition if you browse around the web site. But I have nothing against the sex appeal that it brings to its audience, I just won't take it seriously. Too bad its not televised yet. [Mr. Gay 2006] P.S. For the sake of mentioning it, the winner of Mr. Gay International 2006, pictured above, is Jesse Bashem, who was also the cover boy of the December 2005 issue of Instinct Magazine. -- [[V.J. Civic; 1/05/2006 05:03:00 PM 2 Oranges Left links to this post]]

Varekai in Miami

I have been bitten by the "Cirque" bug since I saw my first Cirque du Soleil show Alegria in January 2004. Ever since then I have only saw one other show when I went to Las Vegas in October 2005. In Las Vegas, Cirque du Soleil has four resident shows, so I had a variety to pick from. There is Zumanity, but that was an 18 and over performance because of the sexual nature of the show, so I skipped that one for the time being. Next was "O", the performance I consider as the crown jewel of all Cirque du Soleil shows, it was already sold out when I called to reserve the very pricey tickets so the other two choices were Mystere and Ka. Ka looked like a promising spectacle but I decided to go with the more affordable show, Mystere. The tickets might have been cheap but the show was great. I was surprised how much fun I had watching the show, but the topping was that my brother unexpectedly loved it as well. I have seen two shows out of the twelve offered around the world, but some of the shows do not visit the USA let alone this continent. That is no excuse for me because I am going to try to catch the shows whenever possible without sacrificing my time and budget. My next chance to catch a show is Varekai (in Miami) which I later decided it was to watch it because it just concluded the performances in near-by St. Petersburg. I changed my mind when I browsed around the Cirque Du Soleil shop in the resident show the company has at Walt Disney World called La Nouba. When I heard the soundtrack of Varekai I was entranced and I begged my mom to at least consider going to Miami before Varekai's last show on February 19. No new developments yet, but I am really considering to watch Varekai because the next chance I have to watch it in Florida is probably in 2010. Its not the end of the world if I don't get to watch Varekai because I have something Miamians don't, a resident show of Cirque du Soleil. I haven't seen La Nouba, you would think I have, but I am too busy trying to watch the shows that I can not easily enjoy. So La Nouba will always be in the back burner for me. [Cirque du Soleil] [Varekai visits Denver] -- [[V.J. Civic; 1/05/2006 02:17:00 PM 0 Oranges Left links to this post]]

Happy Trails to America West I have known this ever since I went on my maiden voyage to the west coast of the country (Phoenix and Las Vegas) that the merger of US Airways, America West Airlines and two other airline carriers was going to bring visual change to the airline industry. The news article that I

read in Yahoo! News a few days ago confirmed what I thought. The airline responsible for my first trip to the west coast was going to shed away from the "America West" name and rebrand itself as the new US Airways. I did a good thing by saving my boarding pass with the America West logos because that will be my only memory of the connecting flight to Phoenix, Arizona and the final destination of Las Vegas, Nevada. Its not the end of the world, I keep telling myself but it is no use because I have the bad habit, since childhood, to be emotional about things like this. I am the geek that will save napkins from the visit to Walt Disney World and give uber importance to tradition. I welcomed the change when my mother's bank First Union mergered a few years ago with Wachovia and changed its name to the lesser known brand of Wachovia. I guess you can call me a branding-geek, but I will always remember the America West name when I go to Las Vegas, hopefully, later on in the year. Ohh V.J., get your act together, its just a new name. I'll keep on living. [Yahoo! News] [America West/US Airways] -- [[V.J. Civic; 1/05/2006 01:40:00 PM 2 Oranges Left links to this post]]

Texas Hook'd Them

[Photo: AP/Harry Cabluck]

Congratulations to the University of Texas Longhorns and their fans for a great game won over two-time defending champions USC Trojans. The perfect ingredients were present for a Texas upset: Vince Young, USC 34-game win streak and USC defending their title among others. I know first hand the agony all fans of the Trojan nation are feeling the morning after because I felt it when the Ohio State Buckeyes prevented the University of Miami Hurricanes from repeating their championship and winning 35 games in a row. It is probably not a coincidence when ESPN Classic replayed the 2003 Fiesta Bowl (National Championship) game when Miami lost in double overtime to the OSU Buckeyes, which I still have bitter feelings for despite changing my loyalty to Miami's in-state rival University of Florida. It was a reminder that underdogs are known to pull up undetected and defeat the favored team. I personally was rooting for the Trojans even though I respect both teams. But I knew after watching the 2003 National Championship replay, that I should not be surprised if Texas got the win. I told my brother not to be shocked if the Longhorns triumphed over the Trojans, he laughed it off and said that I was crazy. I guess I am crazy no more. Congrats again to Mack Brown, Vince Young and the University of Texas Longhorns. The 'Horns are no longer number two and you showed the country to "Don't Mess with Texas."

[[V.J. Civic; 1/05/2006 12:31:00 PM 1 Oranges Left links to this post]]

Wednesday, January 04, 2006

What's to come in 2006 The year is only four days old, so I have had enough time to think about my goals and plans for 2006. I am not going to make the same new year's resolution because I really don't think that is going to work. My ultimate resolution is to improve my study habits and time management so I do not have to sacrifice my grades for college, writing on my blog, and browsing around the internet. If there are any more goals that I have to make, I will do it along the way because you really should not wait until a new year comes along to make a change for your good. This year I am expecting to travel around, in and outside of Florida. For sure, I am going to New York in May and my mother is planning to revisit Las Vegas with my brother, other family members, and of course me. I had such a great time last October in Sin City that I can't wait until I am legal to go again. Besides, there are many more things to do than gambling life saving accounts in casinos. Cirque du Soleil's "O" is something I have always wanted to spend lots of money to see, so I am going to save up from now. But there is a challenge, Cirque du Soleil's touring show "Varekai" is visiting Miami later on this month and I am also itching to see the performance. Today, 2006 looks promising to be a very fun year but I don't want to be disappointed so I will expect the unexpected. -- [[V.J. Civic; 1/04/2006 03:37:00 PM 0 Oranges Left links to this post]]

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