Movie Time

It's fall.  I'm really enjoying the cooler weather.  The cool breeze made me realize that the summer movie season is over, and although we don't go to the movies as much as we used to - I have to say my two favorite movies this summer were Guardians of the Galaxy and Edge of Tomorrow.  Did you see these films?

I didn't think I was a super hero kinda guy, but Guardians is an amazing film.  I laughed.  I might have cried. I was entertained.

Stick with Edge of Tomorrow - I giggled the first ten minutes because it's hard for me to take Tom Cruise seriously nowadays, since he's been sending out the crazy/controlling vibe, but after I got accustomed to seeing Tom Cruise I was all in on this film.  I actually don't know why Edge of Tomorrow didn't do better at the box office. It's interesting.  It's fun.

Pool Boy

The question is: Must you have a POOL in order to have a POOL boy?  I guess without a pool it would be a house boy?  I ask these important questions because our BFF Del spent 48 hours in Dallas and it was greatness.  On his first night he had dinner on the table by the time my husband and I arrived home from work.

He cooked (fake) fried chicken and (fake) fried chicken livers - he uses cornflakes in his fake fried chicken recipe.  The chicken was served with bacon and garlic green beans, crispy Brussels sprouts, and whipped potatoes.  It was a Sunday supper on a week night.

On the second day, Del worked from our home which means he was able to accept a delivery.  I did not have to run home from the office because Del was running the house.

I need Del to be our full time house boy.

Fair Day

We spent a few hours on Sunday with my brother and his crew at the State Fair.  I am always amazed at the 1,200 pound pig on display near the agriculture buildings.  As a child I wanted a pet pig.  My parents never allowed it.  Now I know why.

My husband ate one corny dog.  I ate two.  We looked at the new cars on exhibit.  And when my brother arrived with his wife and my nieces we each paid $8 to make two loops around the giant Texas Ferris Wheel (money grab).  We were making memories (priceless).  We went on to watch our nieces enjoy the midway rides.

Early afternoon we left my brother and his wife and my nieces (and the masses) and went to yoga.  My dress pants are getting tight.  I need to work out more and eat less.  Why did I eat that second corny dog?  I love corny dogs at the State Fair.

Boom Goes the Gay Dynamite

This has been a busy week in the continued fight for equality for all, equality for even the gay Americans!  I'm glad those nice guys at The Slate created an interactive map titled Your Guide to the Gay Marriage Fight to help us keep up with the facts.

As you know, my husband and I had a wedding in Austin, Texas on May 13, 2006 in front of our friends and family, and my husband and I were legally married in Santa Barbara, California on November 2, 2013.  It's been an adventure.

Equality is important - for us and for the future generations.

We have a neighbor who's a few years older than us and he was once (I think in the 1980's) fired from a job because his employer discovered he was gay.  He rallied.  He has a husband and two beautiful daughters - and he is our neighbor, which is a reward in itself!  I have not been fired for being gay; in my professional career to date two of my three employers found my diversity to be an asset; the other employer was indifferent, which is a victory in its own way.

One day it will be hard for us to remember a time when gay people didn't have equal rights.  We're not there yet, but we're getting close.

The fight continues...

Katy Perry Does Dallas, Twice

Katy Perry had two sold out shows in Dallas leading up to the weekend.  One of my husband's best friends has a top position at a firm with a box at the American Airlines Center, which means it's easy for him to secure tickets.  My husband was on the west coast through Saturday, but I pounced at the chance to see Katy Perry live.

A guy I did not know before the Katy Perry concert asked my husband's friend how he knew me, and my husband's friend said that I was the trophy husband of his best friend.  Ha!  (If you knew what I looked like, then you'd laugh too.)

The show was fun.  She can sing, she can dance, she can entertain.  The show had an endless stream of visual delights - at one point she flew around the arena!   Also, at one point she seemed very fragile as she cried through a song - I don't know if that was part of the show or if she's in a vulnerable place; I hope she's alright, because she's a top talent.

My favorite part of the show was when she was shooting fireworks inside the arena.  Very cool.

One Percent Map

Business Insider released a U.S. map with rough estimates of what income a household would need to earn (rounded to the nearest thousand) in order to be in the top 1% of the income distribution in each state.  The results are surprising to read; when I think one percent-ers, I think of Daddy Warbucks.  I think of the idle rich, private planes, beach houses, lunch in Paris and four day weekends.

According to Business Insider in Texas, a household would need to earn $391,000 to be the top 1%.  Now, that's a tremendous amount of money, but if the income is earned from a paycheck, then the 1% still has to get up and go to work every day.  It's a lot less exciting than I thought.

Another data point in the article that is important to note is that in Texas the 2012 median household income is $50,740, which means if your household earns $51,000, then you're in the top half of income earners in Texas.

I keep thinking we cannot afford children, but based on these facts there is a state full of people raising families on a lot less money then we earn each year.  My husband's mother's bestie June told us two years ago: "you will never think you can afford kids, but once you have kids it'll all work out..."  She then encouraged us to trash our financial model.

It's a leap of faith.

Shutters

We first ordered shutters for our bedroom windows in May.  It was a requirement because our bedroom had pink rose curtains circa 1994, which isn't our style. The shutter company sent a team to measure our windows.  The shutters arrived in July, but they did not fit this window.  It's not like I measured our window and called in the order - they sent professionals who measure windows for a living to measure our windows.

At least that's how I see it.

The wooden shutters arrived yesterday, and they look great - worth the four month wait.

I think I found inefficiency in the market place - someone can make millions if they can produce wooden shutters in less than 60 days.

At least that's how I see it.