GrayStorm's Xanga

The Next American ...

Thu, 07 Jun 2007 14:32:14 GMT

*originally published in Reflections...*

What's up with these shows that you could be the Next American [insert word]?

Granted, American Idol is not the first of its kind. We already had Star Search and other shows. But American Idol really sparked all kinds of other shows where viewers phone in or text on their favorite contestant(s), hoping they'll make it to the finals.

Here are other shows that have been created since the debut of American Idol:

American Juniors

America's Got Talent

So You Think You Can Dance

America's Next Top Model

Project Runway

Top Chef

Top Designer

Shear Genius

Then, last week, I discovered On the Lot. This is about contestants competing to be the top movie filmmaker.

Then, last night, I discovered American Inventor. Contestants compete to be the top American inventor. It was just very interesting to see what people presented as their inventions. Some of them were...hmm, interesting. Others were like...what the heck?!?!

What's next?

Pride Week

Mon, 04 Jun 2007 16:19:55 GMT

Happy Pride!

This week is Pride Week in DC! Check out the link below for event information for the week. See you at the parade and at the Sunday festival!

www.capitalpride.org

Elite Yelper

Fri, 25 May 2007 20:41:26 GMT

*originally posted in Reflections...*

I'm excited!

I've been offered to join the Elite Team of Yelp.com.

Yelp is a site where real people give real and honest reviews of restaurants, salons, doctors, retail stores and so many other places. People like to read/hear about reviews and whether you recommend them or not.

I started Yelp'ing earlier this month and...I guess...I just became fascinated with it. I just simply submitted reviews of places that I've been to.

So, c'mon over and check out my reviews. Perhaps, you'll Yelp as well.

Meez

Fri, 25 May 2007 14:25:45 GMT

My WeeMee looks more like me than my Meez.

New Addicition

Thu, 03 May 2007 11:58:52 GMT

*originally posted in Reflections...*

Lately, these days, I've been introduced to new sites by my friends. Some sites are ok and others are interesting.

I like Pogo. It's kinda like Yahoo! Games except that you play with tokens. You're given a small amount to start off. You try to build up your tokens. You can use these tokens to enter drawings for real cash. Some games have jackpots, winning realy money.

I do like GoodReads.com. It's like Amazon.com, except you don't buy anything or make a wishlist. Instead, you just make reviews of books that you've read. It's really interesting to see how people love and hate certain books.

I was addicted to GoodReads. Not anymore. You know why? I'm addicted to something else.

For a day or two, I was addicted to 43things.com. Now, I'm addicted to Yelp.com.

Yelp is a wonderful site where you can post reviews of places that you've been to. You can post reviews of restaurants, gyms, retail stores, hair salons, theatres and so many other places.

Check it out!

...and get addicted!

ta ta...

Thursday, April 19, 2007

Thu, 19 Apr 2007 12:42:43 GMT

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, KEKUA!

(can't wait to see ya tomorrow!)

*mwah*

Twitter.com

Wed, 11 Apr 2007 14:36:59 GMT

After my class at Gallaudet, I walked to the Gallaudet Metro to get to my other job at the law firm. I bumped into Toby at the metro. It was good to see him. I hadn't seen him in quite a while. He looked pretty good, especially with his new salt-and-pepper hair.

He was telling me about Twitter.com after I was saying that I haven't blogged much these days. These days I've just been busy with 3 jobs, 3 organizations with different roles and a handful of committees. Of course, I know that this isn't "exciting" news for my readers. So, it's hard to come up with something else when I've been doing nothing but work. So, Toby told me about Twitter.com. It's sort of a mini-blog. Each entry allows up to 140 characters. You can post as many as you want. So, it's ideal for one or two liners. Just a "twitter" of info for your friends. So, I'm gonna try that out but still keep my blogs. I'll let you know how it goes for me. At the same time, check it out!

Here's a sample of my Twitter:

follow graystorm at http://twitter.com

What's cool is that you can go to the site and submit a small post. Or you can submit via IM. Or you can submit via text message. You can read twitters and comment the same way as well. How cool is that?

Chicken or Egg?

Wed, 04 Apr 2007 15:44:31 GMT

A chicken and an egg are lying in bed. The chicken is leaning against the
headboard smoking a cigarette, with a satisfied smile on its face. The egg,
looking a bit pissed off, grabs the sheet, rolls over, and says, "Well, I
guess we finally answered THAT question!!"

*bwahahahaha*

1st Vlog

Thu, 01 Mar 2007 03:29:20 GMT

*originally posted in The Information Booth*

Pah! I've posted my first vlog! I know there are a few things wrong with this vlog. (Hey! It's my first! Gimme a break!) I know there are (wasted) space between the top frame and my head. I'll do better next time. My partner stated that I was not myself. I guess I was concerned with my webcam. I didn't know if it would be blurry or not. So far, it looks ok. Anyways, I'm excited to have finally posted a vlog.

In this vlog, I address the issue some Deaf people making homophobic remarks and insensitive comments against other minorities, particularly against the Latinos. I just thought I'd say something and raise an awareness about our comments.

ta ta...

The Zookeeper

Tue, 06 Feb 2007 18:29:16 GMT

*originally appeared in Reflections...*

I love learning new words, phrases, concepts and the like. I was reading The Zookeeper and came across "openly closeted". I thought it was an interesting play with 2 words that sounded oxymoronic.

The question is what is an openly closeted person. This term seems to be applied to celebrities or well-known public figures. According to postmodernbarney.com, they "are gay, live their lives as gay men or lesbians, but steadfastly refuse to actually go that one step beyond and publicly acknowledge that, yes, they're gay". North Dallas Thirty says that an openly closeted person is one that refuses to answer "that question".

So, who are the openly closeted people? According to Citizen Crain, they are Anderson Cooper, Sean Hayes, Ricky Martin, Clay Aiken and former NYC mayor Ed Koch. According to the Washington Blade, David Dreier, a member of the GOP House leadership, is openly closeted.

Interesting, eh?

Anyways, below is my review for The Zookeeper as appeared in Amazon.com:

*The Zookeeper* was a good read, being light on plots.

Sam Metcalfe is a zookeeper at the National Zoo in DC. He is mainly responsible for black howler monkeys. Sam has some great ideas for projects and renovations for the Zoo. However, his proposals are constantly being shelved or rejected. He's also a "keeper" of other people's lives:

Jack - He's an older guy at the Zoo, who trained Sam when he first came on. He's responsible for the big cats. His wife has been dealing with cancer. Jack deals with it by drinking. At times, he comes to work ineberated.

Laurel - She is Sam's childhood best friend. She's the chef and owner of Terra, a trendy restaurant in Dupont Circle. She has been pressured by her sisters to take care of their mother in Pennsylvania. Their mother has been diagnosed with Alzheimer's.

Jamie - He is Sam's nephew. Sam is a father figure for Jamie. Jamie pretty much has a good relationship with his mother. However, problems arise every now and then. Jamie has expressed going to a particular high school but his mother is set on another school.

After a blind date, Sam has struck gold with Dean. Dean is a closeted meteorologist for the local news channel. Dean is like the perfect gay man...having a wonderful job, toned body, fantastic place and an impressive circle of friends.

Sam is in love with Dean. Dean seems to reciprocate the feeling. However, things start to change especially when Dean aims for an anchorman position in New York City.

From this moment, Sam realizes that he's losing control as a "keeper". The worst is his own life. He starts to question decisions that he has made. But before he can straighten out his life, he feels that he needs to make sure the the people in his lives are alright.

Overall, it was a good read with simple plots. This is something that you could read over the weekend. It's simply boy-meets-boy-and-boy-wonders-if-this-is-the-happy-life-and-if-he-is-content-with-it.