Last week I had two scenes, two sets of stills and a photo shoot with Greg Thompson for a French magazine. PREF is an oversize, high gloss, fashion-esque magazine that I was very excited to be a part of. It was going to be a long couple of days in front of the camera doing everything from the gritty to the gorgeous.

My first scene was with Tyler Saint, a blond, blue-eyed newbie from LA and good ol’ Tyler Riggz at a resort here in Palm Springs. As I walked through the gate to the set I noticed that we were not alone. There were guests sprawled all around looking like they were waiting for the fireworks display at a fourth of July picnic. I was not in the mood for an audience. I voiced my concern to Boss Lady who promptly told me that they would remain behind the scenes out of sight or pay the $100 to view the festivities, just kidding. I mean, about the cash, Chi Chi of course said that to me in her classic snap.

Being with Mr. Riggz again (our last romp awarded us with Best Sex Scene at the 2006 GAYVNs) was a very comforting experience; it was like being with your brother - kind of. The newbie Tyler was also cool, calm and collected. We breezed through that scene and were home in what I think was record time. I can’t tell anymore, all I know is that I didn’t have to tap my foot at all during the shoot and that is a good thing.

Getting home before sunset allowed me just enough time to grab a can of tuna from my cupboards before I had to meet Greg at the Century Resort for the first portion of our shoot. I raced over there eating my tuna in the truck; it was better to keep going than to stop and allow the foe of fatigue to find me.

Greg wanted to do something truly representative of PS. A mid-century resort of the appropriate architecture with a mountain backdrop was perfect. Unfortunately we lost our sun by this time and had to settle for the lobby. The good thing about that was it allowed us to work with Greg’s signature lighting talents. This man bought the rights to “Let there be Light.” When Greg began to rub his face in an unnerving wiping motion from head to chin in tiny fits, it was clear. We were done there. The owner was kind enough to give us a room to store our costumes and equipment, allowing us to crawl directly to bed.

Although fresh as cucumber water I remained a bit delirious, and still in full makeup from the night before, as I got into my Andrew Christian skivvies. I think the pictures came out pretty good; I did not stay to find out, I had a call time of 2 PM for a scene and still needed to scrape the bronze make up from my body and get to the gym for a pre-scene pump.

This scene was with our newest edition, Blake Riley from Texas. Adorable with big browns and an ass that makes you thank God and request a copy of the mold. Again it was a record time performance, 2.5 hours from make-up chair to shower. OK?

For every movie we are required to do a set of stills. Since I had two movies - I had two sets of stills. Greg and I have this down to a silent science. I was done in 2hrs; we were on a roll. There. I was finally done. I don’t think that I have ever done so much in the way of posing and performing in such a short period of time. Not only did I have to turn on the Johnny Jam twice, two days in a row, but I had to turn it around and be the high-class glossy fashion model in a matter of seconds. Moments after I came, when all I usually want to do is eat chocolate, I had to get in full bronze body make up and work it Linda style.

Tune in soon for tales of my weekend with Chi Chi in her hometown. Now I sleep.

Soon after San Diego it was time to board a plane to Boston on a 6am flight out of Palm Springs (PS). My dear friend Saya’s sister was turning 40 and her family decided to throw a surprise party for her. I love her family and was touched that they invited me to come out and share the occasion with them.

The party was orchestrated wonderfully. To set the stage her mother mentioned to Saya’s sister that on Saturday they would have a small get together with friends and family at the nearby home of a family friend. This annoyed her as she was expecting a bit more for her 40th. It was a great way to set her up for what would turn out to be a great surprise.

We arrived at the house in New Hampshire after a morning of constructing about 120 spring rolls in Saya’s kitchen in Boston. Saya left me there to fetch Seana, her sister, and was going to text me when they were near so we would know when to hide. We all crammed ourselves in the bedroom and bathroom and waited for the signal from Saya’s mom. As soon as we got the OK we marched out in a single file line to greet the flabber-gasted guest of honor. At the sight of every new person emerging from the back room her “Oh my God’s” grew louder and her level of surprise intensified to the point where I thought she might pass out. There were friends dating back from kindergarten all the way up through her college years. Some of her newest friends were also asked to join the surprise group and share the evening. The food was great, the wine was great and her family was amazing. Thank god they ate those blasted spring rolls; there were so many of them!

I had the best time hanging back and watching the dynamics of somebody else’s family unfold and play out in front of me; it was a front row seat to a family movie with no obligation for interaction required.

Her family unit is certainly one to behold, they are kind, funny and intellectual without being stuffy and they love each other very much. They all live or have lived in this small town of Peterborough and hearing them talk about their family and the locals is so warm and sweet.

The next morning they had a brunch for the birthday girl. This was a great idea since there were so many people at the event the night before it was nearly impossible for Seana to really interact with everybody. That aside, there were many people from out of state so having a second, more intimate, get-together was ideal.

I arrived in Boston on Friday evening and by Sunday morning I was shot from jet lag, a drastic temperature change (can you say three inches of snow?) and an evening of indulgence (mostly cake) I could barely keep my eyes open as she opened her gifts Sunday morning. It wasn’t long before Saya shared in my exhaustion and became time to wrap it up and return to the mad city.

Being here in Boston has been very bitter sweet. This is the first time I have come as a visitor in many years. Walking around the South End made me just a little sad. There was a time not long ago when I lived a quiet life with no responsibility to a mortgage or a car payment and was never required to think about anything further from the day at hand. I woke up, walked two blocks to the gym, came home and walked across the street to work at Aquitaine. Life was simpler then and I that is something I miss.

I also miss the interaction and social buzz that living in a city brings. Nobody walks in PS, and there is certainly no sort of social interaction brought on by trips on the subway and walks around the block to the coffee shop or nearest cafe in a pedestrian city. I am a people person and even though I enjoy solitude very much, having the option of being involved with masses if I so choose is very important to me. That is something I completely miss out on by living in PS.

Having had the opportunity to be around a family tied strongly together with strings of love and bonds so deep that their adoration echoed made me miss mine, very much.

I suppose that is good. I have a family much like Saya’s and I am fortunate to have my dearest friends share with me the blessing of family. While I am actively involved with my family from a distance, I am beginning to think something must be done about my day-to-day life. For some things there are no substitutions.

Saya, Sarah and Seana

For weeks I had been looking forward to visiting beautiful San Diego for an advertising shoot with Rufskin Denim. I have long admired their clothes and was very excited to be a part of the good work they do.

My good friend Mike let me stay with him. It was so nice to see him again. It had been just about a year since he was sharing my tiny space with me in Palm Springs. Now I was sharing his tiny space - it was so small that there was not even enough room for the internet. That’s not true, it was more about money than space, but I was without the web. After the initial shock I was happy to be relieved of it and the responsibility it carries.

The weather was sublime and my shoot/appearance was so much fun. I am so digging these Rufskin guys. Their style is comfort meets sexy meets Rockabilly cowboy from the city. Just my bag. The shoot took place in a backyard that sang with trees, shrubbery and wind chimes. Two cats meandered around the set taking notice of the commotion sometimes with lizards in their mouths. The supplies were simple: a man behind the camera who happened to be one of the owners, a camera on a tripod, a small reflector and the other partner in his business and his life. They were impressed with the ease and flow of my interaction with the camera and I was impressed with their effective styling and kick ass camera. The pix came out sooooo great. The first two are of me in some of my stuff. I know, I know. It’s coming, it’s coming.

Later that night it was time to turn it out at Bacchus House. These things are cool and fun. Mike showed up with Tyler Riggz with his bf Reed, the guys from Rufskin and some local friends made it a fun night of free drinks, laughing and me dancing in a shower on the dance floor. People remarked to me how fun I was and actually used the word “ham” to describe me. They also commented on how different the guy was on stage compared to what they had expected. I can never hear that enough.

In the end I realized that I like San Diego. I like it a lot!

Tyler and Reed

Lumberjack Mike

Hubert, co-owner and creator of Rufskin

In the tub

Having friends down here on my home turf is something I really enjoy; and it doesn’t happen enough - believe me. So I was quite pleased when Boy Wonder said he would be able to come out for a visit this weekend. We had a project to work on and many things to discuss, but that was just the side salad to our main course of relaxation and fun.

A co-worker of mine invited us over for dinner Saturday night. His boyfriend cooked a traditional French dinner, a tarragon turkey breast with country style potatoes. It was delicious and very heavy, it was French after all. After that we all went over to Hunters for a little outing. We were sitting outside and my friend Michael remarked that he loves raffles and always wins; we were about to be asked to participate in the raffle they were having later. The man did not ask Boy Wonder or me to purchase any tickets, but gave Michael and his partner two for free. Michael shouted with glee and proceeded to tell us what he has won in the past. He really has won quite a bit. At about 11:30 they began to announce the winning numbers. Michael got the tickets out of his pocket in a confident stride and asked “So what am I winning?” I had no clue since I was left out of the pool. The first number was drawn. Not his. The second was announced and as cool as a clam Michael said “Ok I’ll be right back, I won” I didn’t believe him as he walked towards the table in the front to claim his prize. He returned moments later with two tickets to “Taste of Palm Springs”, sponsored by Kaluha. It is a dinner event with food and wine donated by local restaurants and wineries; it is a chance for them to showcase their products to the public in the hopes that they will either return for dinner or keep them in mind when choosing a wine for their next party. It should be really cool and since Michael won’t be here I get to go for him!

Sunday it was time to work, but not before a little brunch. I do not eat out here so the choice for brunch was left to an unverified recommendation from someone. “A Bit of Country” is what the place was called, but soon after we were seated I thought it would be best if it were re-named “A Bit of Crap”. Our cutlery was a step above plastic and the chairs were clearly designed for different tables; I almost asked for a booster seat. Our waitress was either completely swamped or completely oblivious, either way I was not happy. I gave her thirty seconds to come back for our order after arriving earlier to take our drink requests. After seeing her race frantically from front to back several times all the while apologizing to the tables around us for just about everything I began to count a little faster. She came back at 26. We gave her our order and she asked if we wanted anything to drink - again. We told her just coffee. She giggled and apologized - again.

Everything came to the table at about 15 min thereafter. Boy Wonder was pleased with his waffle and was happy to see the butter was melted, probably because she forgot about the dish sitting under a heat lamp. My eggs were scrambled with Chorizo and resembled Kibbles and Bits. This was not what I had envisioned and it reminded me just why I cook at home.

After that culinary insult we were off to the Aerial Tramway, a huge rotating cable car, (the largest in the Western Hemisphere) and Palm Springs’ main attraction. It goes right to the top of Southern California’s second highest peak. Going from 75 degrees, flip flops and palm trees to snow, pine cones and boots was something. I had been up there before, but that did not help me remember to wear boots; I had socks with my athletic sandals thinking it would be sufficient. As my feet began to get wet with snow I cursed myself for such a stupid oversight. Still we had a nice hike and the ride is always fun - definitely a “must-do” when you’re here. Just get a load of the view.

Lunch was better, kind of, at least for me. We ate Mexican. Not because we wanted to, but because we couldn’t come up with a better idea when we discovered the vegetarian restaurant we wanted to try is closed on Sundays. I had fish tacos and Boy Wonder was brave and ordered the ceviche. The fish was not so fresh. He craved bread, anything to try and remove the memory of the pasty dish. Right after that near mid day disaster meal it was time to get to work for the next 4 hours. I think it went well, time will tell, but I can’t right now because it’s a secret.

I am happy to report that dinner went very well. We had tapas at “Azul”, a cute little outdoor space that serves till 2, every day. Poor guys. We had deep fried wonton blue crab ravioli over shitakes in a light cream sauce, beef skewers and a cold tomato, eggplant napoleon with Buffalo Mozzarella dressed with Balsamic. We hashed around ideas, talked about what we liked and what we didn’t about our work day and grooved to some really great tunes.

It was a great weekend even if the food wasn’t.