Monday, June 30, 2008 | by nathan

Cucumber Harvest

Last night we picked these six cucumbers. I started these plants from seeds, and there are at least ten live plants out there. So these six cucumbers will be the first among many, many, many. Please expect there to be posts later this summer about how much I hate cucumbers and how tired I am of eating them. Until then - they made a fantastic salad last night, with some dill, sour cream, and rice vinegar.

Saturday, June 28, 2008 | by nathan

The Bombing of Boise City

I’ve become mildly obsessed with this bit of Oklahoma history in advance of our trip to the Panhandle, so here’s this:

Saturday, June 28, 2008 | by nathan

Vignettes 3: In The Face of Imminent Sex

I’ve had a crush on him since the moment we met; now, about to graduate college, we have left our respective boyfriends behind and headed out for a big group trip to the beach, where we’ve been lightly flirting all weekend. We come back from a walk by the ocean all covered in sand and salt. I hear him yelling my name from the bathroom of the beach house, and I drag myself in, exhausted from the sun, to see what he wants. He’s lying in a bubble bath completely naked, the bubbles covering the only part of him I’ve never seen, with a huge, playful grin on his face. I roll my eyes at him, turn and walk out of the bathroom, then go in the room we’ve been sharing, cover my face with a pillow, and scream.

I’ve been pining for him for 3 months, and now, after endless flirtation, he’s informed me that he intends to remain celibate. Still, he’s always up for friendship, and tonight that has entailed us going out to a bar, him getting good and drunk, and then me driving us back to my place, where, he has made it clear, he will be sleeping on the couch. As we pass the lake, however, he insists I pull over, and he leaps out of the car and tears off running across the muddy bank. "Let’s go skinny dipping!" he shouts, beginning to strip off his shirt. "That water is freezing," I tell him. "It’s November." He cajoles me some more, but I flatly refuse, trying to honor his wishes despite how badly I want to follow him into the frigid waves. I tell myself that perhaps it would be fun, the water acting like a cold shower, but when he grabs my arm and tries to lead me, the place where he’s touching me burns hot and, choking back emotions and desires that threaten to overwhelm me, I lead him back to the car, reminding him that, no, you don’t want to go in there - you’ll catch cold.

I’m in the kitchen, mixing him a gin and tonic. I’ve lived in Connecticut for a month and of all the new people I’ve met, he’s the most fascinating. And God - those eyes. I try to shake it off as I carefully measure the ingredients, but when I turn and hand him the glass, he’s only about a foot away. My boyfriend and another friend of ours are in the other room; we thought having new friends over to the apartment would be fun. Now, with this incredibly attractive and intelligent guy standing here in my space, it’s gotten confusing. He pecks me once, on the lips, quickly. I blush and look down, forcing the drink into his hand. Things dry up and get awkward within a second. "Sorry," he says sheepishly. I am unable to speak, so I just shake my head, staring at the floor. "Come on," he says as brightly as possible, then turns to go back into the living room. My boyfriend and our other friend are now seated next to each other on the couch. "Were you guys making out in there?" the friend slurs. "No," he says. My boyfriend won’t look at me. The friend speaks up again. "Well, we figured you were, so we were just out here going at it." I look to my boyfriend, but he still won’t look up. In that moment one thing breaks inside of me, and I know that we’ll be over very, very soon. Inside, defiant, I suddenly wish I’d been less restrained in the kitchen, and am also glad I can now self-righteously hold this over his head. Very, very soon, I think, and furiously suck down my drink.

…and once again I invite you to participate in the comments. When are some times you’ve walked away from sex, or just from another person in general, even against your strongest urges?

Saturday, June 28, 2008 | by nathan

GIANT BOTTLE OF LUBE

Friday, June 27, 2008 | by nathan

The Great Oklahoma Road Trip #2: Black Mesa, Kenton Mercantile and the Oklahoma Panhandle

We’ve officially planned the next leg of the Great Oklahoma Road Trip. Check the map:

This weekend, while sharing dinner and some mojitos on my front porch, Brian, J&L and I all began discussing the next place we’d like to explore in our great state. Jaye’s wanted to take us to the Oklahoma Panhandle for years now, has been talking at great length about how much we’re going to love Black Mesa, the highest point in Oklahoma. The skies, he says, are so clear that you can see all the way to the next galaxy cluster. We’re going up for the July 4 weekend.

Featured destinations in the Oklahoma Panhandle include a non-existent lake, the chance to stand in three states (Oklahoma, New Mexico, and Colorado) all at once, the only town in Oklahoma that was bombed during World War II, a town called Hooker, and the only town in Oklahoma that is located in the Mountain Time Zone. This last, the town of Kenton, is where we will be staying whilst in the Panhandle, in some lovely cabins that have air conditioning and television. This may seem pointless - why drive 6-7 hours to sit inside and watch TV? - but I assure you, over the July 4 weekend is when the weather in Oklahoma starts to get pretty effing harsh. Also, I can barely contain my curiosity as to what media markets the town of Kenton, Oklahoma belongs to - Denver? Oklahoma City? Amarillo? As a former broadcaster I can’t help but wonder.

Still, the part I’m looking forward to, even more than the cool historical things and the beautifully clear night skies and the chance to see a part of America that has gone largely forgotten, is the part where I get to hang out with three of the coolest people I know. I went to the Panhandle a couple times as a kid, but I barely remember it. This photograph, however, by Flickr user stevesheriw, makes me look forward to reacquainting myself with it. The photo is of Black Mesa itself:

Friday, June 27, 2008 | by nathan

Bountiful Harvest

The garden is almost ready to harvest. The past two weeks have seen a dramatic change in the look and personality of what I’ve come to refer to as "The Patch."

That’s a cucumber that is longer than my hand. From my description of them, my dad thinks they might be "pickling cucumbers," meaning that, while I *could* slice them up and put them on sandwiches or in salads, the best use I’ll be able to make of them will be to turn them into pickles. Which is awesome, because not only will I get to learn a new skill, I’ll also be able to stretch them as food into the winter without worrying they’ll spoil. I’ve also got cantaloupes that are growing fast, and which will probably be ready near the end of July:

I’ve got some good friends who’ve promised to water and care for these while I’m away on vacation, and I’ve made them promise to eat anything that comes ripe during that time, as I don’t want it rotting on the ground.

Speaking of things that are rotten, the downside to all of this has been that I am now completely COVERED in mosquito bites, because the little suckers are bad this year:

But, the good news is that it looks like my roma grape tomatoes will be ready to eat this week. So it’s worth every itch:

Of course, these are lagging way behind the cherry tomatoes, which have been ripening for some time, and which have filled a salad almost every night this week, along with a handful of fresh basil:

I despaired for a long time that this basil would ever grow, but here it is, and there are at least 20 other plants almost as big, so it looks like we’ll have basil well through the summer. That, along with the oregano and tomatoes, will make some really fantastic Italian sauces into the autumn. This whole endeavor has been so challenging, but now that we’re seeing a harvest begin, I can tell you without a doubt it’s been worth it.

Friday, June 27, 2008 | by nathan

Sam Fridays: WHO WANTS THIS DOG?

Last weekend, we took Sam to the annual Pride Festival in Oklahoma City:

I thought it would be a photo extravaganza, what with Sam being all Pridey. Instead he spent most of the time running up to people and pulling his leash, and the photos of him were not good. Hence the lack of Sam Fridays last week.

We spent a great deal of our time at the Festival near the tent for the Humane Society, who had brought a bunch of dogs in need of homes. So, with this post, I would like to encourage you to adopt a dog. This one, for example, was named Madonna:

And she was just as sweet as could be, and, as you can see, somewhat camera shy.

They all had their little rainbow bandanas on and were so sweet you could almost die. I wanted to take them all home, but we barely have enough room for Sam and the occasional visit from Hera as it is. Bringing another dog into our house at this point wouldn’t really be fair to the new dog, to Sam, or to us.

But YOU? YOU should adopt one of these guys. Like him:

He was old and not able to be very playful, but he was so nice. There’s a special place in Heaven for whoever took him home. Or this guy:

Or this one:

The best dog photo I took at the Pride Festival, however, wasn’t of a dog waiting on you to adopt her. It was this photo, of Standard Poodles, a breed of dog I’d never dream of owning. But this photo just makes me smile:

Friday, June 27, 2008 | by nathan

That Weird, Weird Guy

Brian took this photo of me at last Friday’s K.C. Clifford show at the Blue Door. I cannot explain this, so I’m not even going to try.

Thursday, June 26, 2008 | by nathan

Relics of Childhood, Part 2 (90’s Edition)

If this doesn’t make you laugh, and maybe pee a little, then I have to seriously wonder what you could possibly be enjoying about any of the rest of this website:

Thursday, June 26, 2008 | by nathan

Cock & Bottle

A few weeks ago we were out on the town with some friends, having drinks on the rooftop at Cafe do Brasil. As we watched, waves of patrons swarmed in and out of a new bar across the street. So we paid our tab at Brasil and walked down there, and we may have found our new "place." The bar is called James McNellie’s Public House, it’s in the traffic circle by St. Anthony’s Hospital, and, while the clientele are a little douchey, you can see how many beers they have on tap, and they served us the best order of fried pickles I’ve ever tasted. Here’s to Midtown Renaissance!