Walked the woods today.

After the rains, there are several large ruts filled with muddy, stagnant water. One was clearly home to several dozen mosquito larvae, who were all looking eagerly toward to their blood feast, coming right after sunset.

For any souls who have climbed the hill in search of a beautiful sunset view, the thrill of nature’s glory is overcome by the sudden realization that every bit of exposed skin is being swarmed by mosquitoes.

From behind the glass, we can see the mosquitos in silhouette, flapping toward the sunset’s reflection.

Soon the bats wake up, and come hungry for breakfast. They fly past the windows in loops and spirals, happily noshing on sweet young mosquitoes, freshly fattened on the blood of tourists.

Update Needed

I had forgotten all about this blog, until Google reminded me to update my preferences “to continue receiving “ notices whenever anyone comments on the blog.
Although in 12 years there have been zero notifications about zero comments, I feel safe in assuming that their system works.

Late, but with a cute dog story...

For the FIRST TIME EVER I arrived LATE for the THEATER!

The house staff at the Geary were gracious and accommodating. I feel as if they expected I would want to be seated immediately in my normal seat, whether there was a scene on stage or not . I was gracefully eased from Standing Room into a nearby aisle seat, and then once I became comfortable with the length of the scene changes, I slithered into home with no fuss.

The show, "4000 Miles" by Amy Herzog in it's West Coast Premiere at the American Conservatory Theater, under the direction of Mark Rucker, is a delightful inter-generational tragi-comedy. A final, extra performance will be played this Sunday, February 10 at 7pm.

I was taking my usual walk up Powell to California, where I turned left and continued to the top of Nob Hill. I like to take a stroll around Huntington Park after dinner, and then descend Taylor to Geary for an evening at ACT. It was just an hour after sunset, and the light was low and lovely.

Usually there are dogs in the park, and I like to say "hello" to them on my way through.

Tonight there was an adorable Boston Terrier and a Shih Tzu playing "chase me" around and around a mud puddle. The Shih Tzu's mom, an attactive young woman, dressed to the nines, was standing IN the mud puddle. Every time the dogs circled around her and dove into the mud, she stomped her boots and squealed, waving her arms.

I pointed out that she was setting a horrible example for the dogs, who must have thought she was playing in the mud with them.

The Boston Terrier's father, a young gay, laughed and acknowledged that HIS dog would need a quick once-over with a damp paper towel, while the Shih Tzu' s mom was crying because her little girl was going to need a major bath.

Just then a perfectly groomed fluffball of a Bichon Frise came by, wearing a monogrammed sweater, on an Italian leather leash. I don't know if this was the first time he had met the Shih Tzu  but there seemed to be a mutual attraction, and lovemaking ensued.

"Look!" I said to the Shih Tzu's mom. "This nice Bichon Frise is helping! He's scrubbing her back!"

Metal Filings

Work progresses on the apartment renovation, in spite of my well founded concerns that irresponsible behavior with power tools may have not only contaminated the property with toxic dust from pulverized concrete, drywall, and many metal parts that finally yielded to my power tools, but also compromised my health and that of my future tenants by exposing us to these corrosive clouds.

Last night I realized that my sinuses are connected not only to my eye sockets, but to the inside of the rest of my face. Saturate your flesh with anticoagulants, shoot it with microscopic metal shards, and they migrate! Your body is going to have a heck of a time dealing with the resultant irritation.

Today I finally found the fancy goggles at Home Depot. (Middle of the tool corral, in an aisle marked, "Personal Safety.") Too late for some, soon enough for many.

I caught Kathy Griffin giving fabulous guest on Whitney Cumming,  and thought to myself, "Look at Kathy Griffin. She is beautiful and radiant tonight! That dress is perfect! I bet she went through her entire day without exposing herself to metal filings!"

CAUTION: NUDITY

I'm watching my favorite terrorizing program on cable, about a series of horrific people doing dreadful things in a mental asylum. Thirteen minutes in, and we've had serial murders, torture, rape, Catholicism, demonic possession, Nazi medical experiments, Santa Claus, alien carnivores,and lesbianism. In spite if the viewer warning, we have not seen any nudity.

They didn't warn us about the abortion with a wire hanger performed on herself by the lesbian who had been raped by a serial killer, but at least we were prepared to see any nudity that might have come on screen.

magnus cinaedus

Don't we love Latin?

Old Tenants - Dirty Habits

I have a vacant townhouse that I'm cleaning and painting to rent. The neighborhood has had its ups and downs, and it seems that it's been on an upward trajectory since the downturn in the real estate market. There was a note under the doorknob yesterday, addressed to "Management" and seeking an a.s.a.p. move due to foreclosure. Today I received an ALL CAPS email, in RED, expressing surprised delight that the apartment she had lived in 15 years ago was available! While a nice young couple with a boxer were taking applications, a wild woman in her 40's and her too-too tattooed ex-con boyfriend had accepted my invitation to "come in." The wild woman turned out to be the ALL RED CAPS person, as well as the author of the note to "Management" stuck in the door. In cleaning the apartment, and the new vanity, I was reminded of the work involved in replacing it. I remembered a strange item, discovered hidden beneath the old vanity. It was a curious thing, made of condoms stuffed with bottles. My assistants immediately knew what it was, and groaned in unison when I finally figured out that it was a homemade sex toy. (Why does everyone seem to expect that I'm a sex-crazed lunatic? Sometimes sex is the absolute furthest thing from my mind!) So would it have been inappropriate for me to ask this woman whether or not she had lost "something" in the bathroom 17 years ago?

It occurs to me that this woman probably never lived at the property, but simply uses this note-on-the-doorknob scenario to find an apartment to rent without using a rental service. Am I this retarded all the time?

I'm sorry I never heard back from the boxer people. If I had simply eliminated the scary people from the situation. With future rental openings, I need to be more in control.

"Oh, I'm so sorry, scary people, but this very nice couple with a lovely dog are going to take this apartment. I think I saw some vacant apartments over near XYZ Street. Maybe you can find something you like over there?"