So Far, So Good Illinois

The Illinois Senate panel voted 6-2 to advance the civil union bill. The House still needs to debate it, but so far it's looking good.

PTT Advent 2010 Begins Tomorrow!

Stalking in Zurich

PTT's Swiss Correspondent noted this morning that Prince William and David Beckham are in Zurich today to lobby support for England's 2018 bid to host the World Cup. Funny, however, was his question, "I have no idea how to find them....other than to sit outside the FIFA headquarters. Should I???? ; )" My reply, "Absolutely."

Chris adorned the house with so many German wood Christmas decorations that it looked as though an 85 year old lady lived here. So, last night, after he went to bed, I de-cluttered the house. Much better now. I'm just sayin'.

Cooper Gets Clearance

I've noted before that the Nate Berkus Show wasn't doing well in the ratings (and I did so because my group of friends have history with the designer). With the news that Anderson Cooper's new syndicated show is now cleared in top markets, including New York, Los Angeles, Chicago and Boston, I'm thinking the end could be near for Oprah's protege. After all, how many gay men can afternoon TV hold?

A Pee Wee Spidey Weekend

We're headed to see Pee Wee on Broadway. And today, we grabbed tickets for Spider-Man. Sure, the comic book adaptation got slammed for its somewhat disastrous preview last night, but that's okay. If we have to wait five minutes for someone dangling above the crowd to be reset, I won't mind. Because if we don't see it now, it probably will never happen.

Spider-Man on Broadway!

I've heard about Spider-Man on Broadway for almost two years. But until today, the show didn't interest me. I can thank 60 Minutes for making me want to go. They did a piece on the comic book adaption that included Bono, the Edge and Julie Taymor and it looks amazing - visually. So I may not appreciate the story, but creatively, it's something I should see.

Unfortunately, however, because of the press, the only tickets we could find were Premium selling for $650! All of which means Pee Wee may be the only show on our agenda when we go to NYC. That is, unless, Dollar, a chorus member in the show, can pull two tickets out of his Spidey suit.

Do UR Part 2 Save Holland, MI from the FRC

Holland, Michigan, just a few miles away from the gay mecca that is Saugatuck/Douglas, is considering an anti-discrimination ordinance that would cover sexual orientation and gender identity. So of course, the Family Research Council decided take out a full page ad in the Holland Sentinel detailing untruths that were originally based on a fraudulent, discredited pamphlet. Once again, the FRC demonstrates its ignorance towards humanity - hiding behind religion and spreading lies about the "choices" those in the LGBT community make.

To contact the City of Holland, go HERE. Let them know how you feel today!

Bridalplasty is a Travesty!

E! just promoted a new show on its network called Bridalplasty. How sad. How wrong. Who's running this network? I'm just sayin'.

Oh Dear Jeesuz!

I was told Jessie Pavelka has a new 2011 calendar for sale. So of course, I jumped on the Mac to hunt down the product. And boy, am I not disappointed. Thanks Bradford Rogne for the great photos. I've included my favorite, but of course, there are many more. Check back soon to see for yourself why he's PTT's "Man of the Moment." Heck, I'd say he's PTT's "Man of the Decade." I mean, seriously, look at that face, that body.

On a side note, why does it look like he's posing in a naughty corridor off Queer as Folk? Maybe that adds to the appeal. I'm just sayin'.

PTT's Favorite Things

Who says Oprah is the only one who can have "favorite things." For the holiday season, I love Bath & Body Works Slatkin & Co. 14.5 oz. Filled Candle in Fresh Balsam. You light the three wicks and within minutes, your house smells like an evergreen tree - perfect for the holiday season. I especially love to leave it burning while I gym it so when I come home it smells like Christmas. Sure, it's not the smartest thing to do, but that's why I try to minimize the danger by placing the candle on the steel island top.

I was very vocal when American Idol aired that I could care less who won as none of the contestants seemed worthy of my attention. Well, apparently the American buying public agrees as Lee DeWyze's first album only sold 40,000 copies in its first week - making him the Idol winner with the worst first-week debut album sales ever. It doesn't help that the first single pulled from the release was bland and boring. I'm just sayin'.

Wrong

I'm sorry, but Kylie Minogue shouldn't have to promote her music on the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade alongside the Rockettes and some random named Eric Hutchinson. I guess that's what happens when radio programmers just don't give you the time of day - in America that is. Check out her short performance below. It just seems sad.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Today is Thanksgiving, though it doesn't feel like it. I'm home alone while Chris visits Kansas. So I do what I normally do - I went to the gym, I did yard work, I logged a few billable hours, and I'll make a salad for dinner. In other words, nothing special. I could have gone with friends to family, but I'd rather not sit with grandma and grandpa, drinking wine, while football plays in the background. Just friends sure. Just friends and family not thanks.

Because many are leaving today and tomorrow for home, to celebrate Thanksgiving, I thought it might be a good idea to wish you well a few days in advance. So, get ready to gobble, gobble, gobble!

Looking Back: The Song of the Weekend

Katy Perry's Firework was the song of the weekend in Austin just a few days ago. We heard it in every bar (well, just one bar really where we spent a lot of time) remixed by Jump Smokers and others. So, I'm sure when we hear it down the road we'll be taken back to a special time with friends at Rain in Austin. And that's a good thing.

Jake G In All His Glory

I'm sure you can guess which one needs to be cropped out of this picture. Surely not the one on the right. I mean, Anne is sweet and all but...

Cleaned Up

Of course, I had to wrangle everyone together for a group shot this past weekend in Austin. And honestly, I'd say we all clean up pretty good.

Because I didn't take my camera this weekend to Austin, I have to rely on others for photos. So once I find the time to screen grab a few, I'll post. It's nice to see that we all clean up pretty well. I'm just sayin'.

Did U Know?

We're in Austin this weekend for a big gay Saturday night wedding. But on Friday, we ventured out for a long lunch and pool at one of the gay bars in town - Rain. While shooting stick, I wondered, "How does the cue ball know where to go? Why don't the others find their way down the shoot?" So, I Googled the answer. Did you know the white ball is smaller than the others so it can slip through the mechanisms? We talked about weight. Nope. It's the size that matters. Always.

New & Noteworthy: Taio and Kylie Higher

Taio Cruz is on a winning streak - one that continues with Kylie Minogue on Higher. Maybe this will open the doors to her release getting airtime in the US. Love them both!

He's Back: Matthew Morrison Shirtless

Because he was such a big draw to PTT before, I couldn't pass up the chance to feature Matthew Morrison shirtless again - this time his cover for the December 2010 Details. All of which explains why my traffic shot up today. People are searching for the Glee star without his clothes on.

Danger Will Robinson

Today German officials said it was likely there would be a terrorist attack in Germany by the month's end - with Christmas markets a target. Great. We are scheduled to be in Munich the middle of December specifically for the Christmas market. Sure, it's a few weeks later but who's to say the terrorists won't delay their plans?

What Chris Thinks Take Two

His favorite restaurant...get this...ever! A Figueira Rubaiyat. I'll have to hear why. Does the big tree in the middle have anything to do with it?

What Chris Thinks

Chris thinks every restaurant (like this one in Brazil) should have one of these: a dental floss dispenser. I agree.

Ryan Reynold's is People's Sexiest Man Alive

He went from Two Guys, A Girl, and a Pizza Place on ABC to the Green Lantern to now People magazine's Sexiest Man Alive. Congratulations Mr. Reynolds. You deserve it. (Though, I'm not a big fan of the magazine cover shot with its his off coloring and poofy hair).

Erika Jayne's One Hot Pleasure

She sang the track on Fire Island over Ascension weekend. Unfortunately, I left because I was over the scene. But I got a full report from the housemates when they returned from the show. They didn't have much to say but their "finger guns" will be forever burned in my mental recall of the weekend.

They did note they couldn't hear much - but the "Bang Bangs" stuck out. So we went to YouTube to watch her perform the song. "Quite good!" I thought. But it wasn't until I heard the remixes that I loved the song even more - especially the Dave Audé remix (who wrote the song as well). Check out all versions, available on iTunes for purchase, HERE.

Sexless Tom Ford

Tom Ford is a handsome man. But in this photo by Steven Meisel for the December 2010 issue of Vogue US, Ford looks feminine and overly gay. Maybe it's his plastic face or perhaps his girly hand on his back. Either way, any and all sex appeal is gone. Time for a reshoot.

Darren Criss Goes Regular

The producers of Glee know when they've struck gold. So, Darren Criss, the teenage dreamboat from the show, joins the cast as a REGULAR. That's a no brainer.

A Funny (and Tragic) Warning

Chris is currently in Brazil - tasting cheeseburgers. He spotted this "warning" outside of an elevator. It reads, in English, "Before getting in, make sure the lift is in this floor." They must have had a problem of people stepping inside and falling down the shaft. Now that's funny (and tragic of course).

Can't Wait

For those of you who don't know about Logo, it's MTV's gay channel. It features little in the way of original content, but what it does have, is trashy good. RuPaul's Drag Race is the number one reason to watch the channel, followed by the current season of The A-List - a show that's downright bad (but so bad, many are watching it because they cant turn away). Think of it as cheap comedy. It's not real, rather fabricated, but fun none-the-less.

Oopsie

I don't like reposting content that is featured on Perez Hilton's site, but in some cases, it's unavoidable (as he not only gets some of the best clips early but content unavailable elsewhere). In this case, I'm just too lazy to edit down the "blip" heard on last week's X Factor - some saying it's Cheryl passing gas. Either way, it's funny to hear (and see) how the sound coordinates nicely with her body language - intentional or not.

What I Find Funny

When I asked Chris why he was flying to Brazil, he answered, "To taste cheeseburgers."

What I MIss

I miss going to the gym and being surrounded by an interesting crowd - sometimes good looking but always fascinating (specifically l'Usine in Paris). Because now, all I usually see are generic gym folk with bad clothes and uninspiring physiques. I told Chris when we go to New York in two weeks that part of me wants to work out at one of the gyms, like David Barton in Chelsea, just to get a taste of what we once had.

The Kanye Douchebag Report

Yep, Kanye continues to Tweet about his appearance on The Today Show. And again, I repeat, there was nothing offensive about the interview with Matt Lauer. Nothing was out-of-the-ordinary. Nothing screamed "set-up." Everything screams "Kanye is a douchebag." Check out Kanye's thoughts below.

"I'm not performing on the 'Today' show for obvious reasons. I'm so happy the world got to see a small piece of 'the set up.' I blatantly said I'm not performing [on the show] on a tweet … and the next day they still announced a performance … Do you guys see what I'm saying now? This is just a small slice of the day-to-day bullshit that goes on that helps to precipitate the idea that I'm such an asshole. Cause when I don't perform 'Oh Nooow I'm the one that's crazy or a jerk."

I don't hate Matt Lauer … we don't promote hate. That's the whole point. I promote love and truth. You know what? We off that! They made a mistake. They thought they could pull it but they couldn't. That was just a small representation of a bigger media play that's been going on since the beginning of time. All positive energy … all smiles. Much love to Matt and the whole 'Today' show. I accept ya'll future apology in advance."

PTT Rant #2

This morning I was walking our new pup Murphy across the street, in a crosswalk, protected by a stop sign. I hear a woman on a bike yell, "Keep it movin' buddy!" I quickly replied with, "Stop sign!" to which the bitter helmet wearing biker answered back, "Piss off!" If only a policeman would have been in sight to write her a ticket as I passed by giggling.

PTT Rant

I just waited in line for a woman, her daughter and grandchild to buy food items with their Illinois Link Card - a card that allows families to spend cash they receive from government assisted programs. What did they buy with taxpayers' money? Your dollars? My dollars? Four small packages of Grandma vanilla cream cookies, a two liter bottle of Cherry Crush, vanilla ice cream, a frozen apple pie and a small bag of onions. I'm sorry, but they only food items anybody on this type of assisted program should be allowed to buy is milk, eggs, bread, meats or any other basic food item - not junk food that sadly they'll blame for making them obese.

A new and quite impressive Dominick's just opened four blocks from our home. It's big and beautiful, but sadly, Chris just informed me it was full of "scaries" at 5:45 p.m. waiting for free cake, samples, and yapping on their pre-purchased cell phones.

We've been guessing how long it would take for the new grocery store to turn "unfortunate." Apparently, not too long. In fact, less than 12 hours. I'm just sayin'.

Kanye's Continued Douchebag Behavior

Kanye appeared on The Today Show with Matt Lauer. During the interview, Kanye repeatedly displayed a "mightier than thou" attitude. You can see for yourself in the clip above. Sure, it's press for the rapper, but in this case, it's more damaging than beneficial.

Making Money

Just as I suspected. Glee's rendition of Teenage Dream shot straight to number one on iTunes. Heck, I even enjoyed it. That show is a money maker fo' schizzle as they also have the number four and number nine tracks as well.

Loving Him More

Ricky Martin was on Access Hollywood yesterday as well as Larry King promoting his book, Me. I appreciate his response when asked about getting married. He states:

"Yes, we could go to Spain and get married. We can go to Argentina and get married. But why do we have to go somewhere else? Why can't I do it in my country where the laws are - you know, protecting me?" Martin said. ""I can go to Spain. I have many friends in Spain. And get married. And make it very beautiful and symbolic. But... I (can't) do it in the backyard of my house. I want to have that option. I don't want to be a second class citizen anymore. I pay my taxes. Why can't I have that right?"

Time 2 Act

With the Pentagon study concluding that the military can lift the ban on gays with minimal "incidents of risk to the current war efforts," let's see how long it takes the Obama administration to support the findings. Time to act, not hide.

Of Course

Chris tells me tonight that he was asked to go to Oprah next week, sit in the audience, and answer questions about the McDonald's food being featured from Australia (for Oprah's big upcoming trip). But of course, he's in Brazil so he can't participate. The one chance we've had to see Oprah live and he's elsewhere. Figures. I said he should ask for two rain checks.

Dorothy Rogers Inspired

The Pleasure Principle cotton long sleeve drape neck t-shirt below was recently featured on sale at Gilt (luxury designers and fashion brands for up to 70% off). Talk about a bad fashion statement. It's a cross between what Dorothy from the Golden Girls would wear and Buck Rogers.

The Murph Has Arrived

The Modern Day Advent Calendar

Apparently, Hallmark creates a "Countdown to Christmas" ornament every year. But for some reason, I haven't seen one until now. In any case, what a great idea for children. It's like the modern day advent calendar. On that note, be sure to check back Dec. 1 for PTT's annual countdown.

A Revelation

I just realized why I love all natural Sour Cream and Onion Pop Chips. They taste like Funyuns. Um um good.

A Bit of Monday Sunshine

Good vocals. Great hair extensions. Perfect uplifting execution. I love the X Factor. Happy Monday!

Here's a question: Do I go to Borders Books on Friday morning to buy Ricky Martin's book, Me, and to collect a band so I can have him sign the autobiography later in the evening? What would I say to him when I approach the table? "Um, hi. Loved the Oprah interview but disapprove of your new song. Why didn't you ask me Ricky? Why?"

Lovin' It: The Ones featuring Nomi Ruiz

I was looking for a closing number for a set I'm creating. I'm on tap for the last hour at a gay wedding in a few weeks. So when I stumbled across The Ones featuring Nomi Ruiz and their trampy disco ditty Let's Celebrate, I had to give the original mix a listen. Unfortunately, it's a bit risque for the nuptials but dead-on for my gym time. Check out the video below.

MTV European Music Awards

A new FB friend was at the MTV European Music Awards in Madrid this weekend. He posted on the social network photos from the event - all of which reminded me of how horrid our time was at the awards show when it was held in Munich. Seriously, that had to be the worst year ever for the show. No big names. No big reason to watch. But this year, there was plenty to relish: Rihanna (whose latest, I hope, is a bit better than last), Ke$ha (sure she's a tramp but Dr. Luke writes catchy music for the over vocalized "artist," and Miley (whose new song remixed by Alias is quite good). I'm just sayin'.

New & Noteworthy: Chris Willis' Louder

I'm usually a bigger fan of female vocals, but there's something about Chris Willis that I enjoy. Check out his newest release.

Meet Murphy