As a coffee lover, I'm always on the lookout for the perfect "cuppa." I'm not a fancy coffee confection drinker: cappuccinos are too frothy, lattes too weak, iced coffee too sweet. I just like a plain old, well-made, robust and flavorful cup of coffee. That said, if I want to get fancy, I go for…
A Room (or 4) of My Own!
I just realized that my new apartment that I am moving into at the end of the month is the first place in my whole life that is exclusively my own, to furnish and decorate as I wish. This is kind of a big deal. So what kind of environment do I want to live…
Passing the Friend Test as a Known Sperm Donor
I'm in the Schipol airport in the Netherlands waiting for my flight back to the States, successfully completing my mission to help my friends conceive a child. The process so far was relatively painless and smooth, even though this was done at a large public Dutch hospital involving several departments. Pretty much everyone we dealt…
Dreaming of Dutch Living
As I write this, I’m eating brunch in an outdoor café on the corner of Oosterpark in the southeastern part of Amsterdam, imagining (again) what it might be like to live here. Tall blonde girls walk past me every couple of minutes, each one cuter than the last. A waiter serves me a perfect cup…
Donating Sperm at a Dutch Fertility Clinic
I had an interesting day spent mostly at one of the main public hospitals in Amsterdam, fulfilling my role as the "known sperm donor" for a couple of friends of mine. It began, strangely enough, with the actual donation. I met the nice lab tech guy named Cor, who handed me a plastic cup and…
Quaker artist James Turrell’s new hologram show opens September 10
I've been a big fan of the work of Quaker artist James Turrell after seeing him lecture in 2007, and then visiting his "Meeting" installation in 2008. Mr. Turrell has a new show opening on September 10 featuring his large holographic work that looks amazing. From the press release: In this new work James Turrell…
Helping bring a new life into the world
Tomorrow night I'm off to Europe to help some dear friends of mine have a child. To be exact, if all goes as planned, I am going to be the biological father of their child. It's one of the most important things I've ever done in my life. I've been friends with the couple for…
A new addition the family: Dell Mini 10v
After months of lusting for a netbook, I finally bit the bullet and purchased one: the Dell Mini 10v. For the past weeks, I have been polling friends of mine who have various makes and models of netbooks. Several people urged me to get the Dell Mini 9 because of how easily it can be…
Craig Ferguson explains why everything sucks (video)
Here's the Craig Ferguson on the "Late Late Show" explaining why "everything sucks" in modern society. This rant is just so spot-on and funny and true.
Top Notch team routine from ILHC: Swinging to Dave Brubeck’s “Take Five”! (video)
Here's a final video from the 2009 International Lindy Hop Championships that I wanted to share. This is by the Swedish team "Top Notch." Although this only got fifth place, I thought it was artistic, inventive, entertaining and very difficult. They used the space well, had a variety of formations, and showed tremendous musicality….