I drove up to Santa Barbara tonight for a Halloween party at Bassam’s.  I wanted to post a few photos before I went to bed.

In case you can’t tell, I’m dressed as Steve Irwin, the crocodile hunter and that’s a stingray stuck to my heart.  Eva is dressed as a pretty messed up mermaid…with shells and seaweed stuck in her hair.   Had she not been drunk, she could have saved me from that stingray!  Hope everyone’s having a great weekend. 

OK, it’s not the best costume, but it was simple and last minute.

• Bassam, if I am a naughty, nasty, bad boy, then I’m in good company with you and Bill Clinton (and now good ole’ Larry Craig):  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0_Vs5570pKw 
• Carolina, if I’m the glue, you are the varnish.  I hope we’re able to spend more time together this year.
• Hugo!  What can I say?  You’re the Keats to my Yeats, the Stones to my Beatles, one of the truest, brightest shining stars on this planet.  Your words as always are overwhelming, and I look forward to the next 15 years.
• Bine, lovely wife.  Even though you’re cheating on me with another man, you remain my first love   It is you, with your selfless passion and your kind soul that reminds me every day how to be a better person.  I love you. (You too, Alan)
• Drizinha – The little sister I never had.  You are an integral part of this family, and you bring so much to our lives.  Though you are thousands of miles away, your light shines brighter than the Brazilian sun.
• Mom & Dad Diversi, I don’t know that you know how much it means to me when you write me notes, in English no less.  I feel as welcome in your home as I do in my own, and that is a true testament to what wonderful loving parents you are.  My fondest memories in life, are in your back yard with good food and good friends.
• Beate & Matthias, since you entered our lives we have learned so much.  We have learned what true love looks like, and I have learned to take better pictures!  For all of that, I thank you.
• Sweet Joelle, I too treasure our friendship.  As fellow Chicagoans we have always been kindred spirits.  I will be here to hold your hand as you slowly enter the 21st century!
• Claudio, you are my oldest friend (not that kind of oldest, but Happy Birthday to YOU too!), and though we seldom see each other, the laughter we share whenever we are together will last a lifetime.  See you in the nursing home.  Practice your cartwheels (and your English).
• Emily, our junior member!  Your poise and grace are the perfect complement to your husband’s samba flare!    I’ve so enjoyed getting to know you and your family, and I’m so glad you’re in our lives.
• Beautiful Eva, you speak from personal experience.  Of the literally thousands of photos I’ve taken of you, I don’t have any without a smile on your face (save for one blurry moment in Seville years ago)   I am honored to share my stage with you and hold your hand always.
• Vonda, Vonda, Vonda – what can I say?  You said it all in your own inimitable style!  Thank you for being the mother of of this far flung flock.  You’re so very good at that.
• Tom & Cathy – How wonderful it was to see you last weekend.  Your son is the testament to a life well lived and a love that makes us all gush.  I look forward to many more visits to your palatial gypsy homes!
• And last, but certainly not least, Marcelo, my brother.  You pulled off the coup of the century.  Who would have thought that the least organized member of our family would be the driving force in a tribute that paled in comparison to anything I’ve ever done.  You have taught me tolerance, kindness and compassion.  Your music and passion are always in fashion.  You were the impetus 10 years ago that merged people from different backgrounds, orientations and views into a cohesive family not bound by blood, but by love.  How do you measure a year in the life of friends?  How about love.

Apparently my birthday messages to all of my far flung friends have not gone unnoticed,  because when I woke up this morning I had been sent this wonderful PowerPoint presentation, that touched me like no other birthday gift I’ve ever received.  Marcelo even recorded himself playing the guitar and singing!  You’ll have to hear it to know how beautiful it is.  Thank you to my fabulous friends and thanks to all of you who sent such nice birthday wishes.  I’m truly touched.  Thanks also to my family for such a nice time tonight and to my parents and everyone who called today.  42 isn’t bad at all!  Thanks again.  –Carey

GLY,  friend!!!

May this day be even kinder to you…

Here is a techno-humble gift from us.  Forgive my incompetence in packaging the power point slide show with the audio file I made to go along with it.  Daringly, I am asking you to download the music file so you can play it in the background as you watch the slide show.

Some of us are tech-challenged.  Some of us aren’t but can’t be bothered with it.  But together we have the warmth of a mother’s hug…

Marcelo

This is Marcelo, playing the guitar and singing “I Will Survive”  Gloria Gaynor’s got nothing on Marcelo!  Sorry girls (and boys),  I know his accent is dreamy, but he’s happily married.

The “gang” in Brazil on New Year’s Eve

And here are a few photos from dinner with my family tonight:

Andy & Tressa

Where’s Andy?

Guess who climbed into the basketball machine??

Tommy’s toothless smile

Cole & Dar

Andy & Lisa

Jenn & Dar

ON THE LIGHTER SIDE
“After a B-52 pilot flew over several U.S. states carrying nuclear warheads, the Air Force said that it would discontinue its use of MapQuest.” — Newsweek satire columnist Andy Borowitz

Bassam flew in from Jordan on Thursday and spent the night at the Hotel Careyfornia.  Friday morning we headed 90 miles north to Santa Barbara to meet up with Eva & eventually Tom & Cathy who were in Portland visiting Marcelo & Emily the first few days.  The heat in California this weekend broke all records.  We mostly hung out at the water and went to a few movies and had many good meals.  (My diet starts….tomorrow, LOL)  We spent Labor Day lounging around.  Tom & Cathy flew in that afternoon with baby Patrick (how he’s grown) and immediately moved into their new, completely furnished house.  We got some sausage and salmon at Trader Joes and had a BBQ topped off with a flourless chocolate birthday cake.  The perfect end to a perfect weekend.  Here are all the pictures, and below the slide show I’ve included some of my favorites from the weekend.

 

I haven’t written here in nearly a week.  I needed a bit of a break, and I’ve been really busy with work.  The holiday weekend started at 5:00 today for me though, when I went to pick up Bassam from the airport.  He’s been in Amman, Jordan, London & New York the past few weeks, and tomorrow I’m taking the day off, and we’re driving to Santa Barbara and spending the weekend with Eva.  I’m looking forward to our mini GLY reunion.

Today was a picture perfect day in L.A.  I snapped this photo at the end of my street while walking home from lunch this afternoon.

On the way home from the airport tonight, we saw this obnoxious Hollywood wombat, driving with her foot out the window, while smoking a cigarette and talking on the phone!  Are you fu**ing kidding me!!??  She barely noticed my flash going off as I took the picture and gave her the most disgusted look I could muster.  This girl symbolizes nearly everything I hate in life!  And yes, I know I’m being sexist, but let’s face it, would you ever see a man doing this?  I thought not.

Tonight, we ate at the Newsroom Cafe.  There was a cute little dog tied up outside the whole time we were there.  Dinner was great, and the conversation even better.  Later, back at home, I played with Bassam’s iPhone a lot.

Paging Al Bundy, Al Bundy to Electronics

Ever hear of the sun Carey? Ugh

I must admit, the interface is really cool.  I love what it can do with pictures.  I’ll be damned if I ever go back to AT&T though.  So I’m just going to have to wait.  The camera on the iPhone isn’t really that great.  I actually think my phone takes better photos.  Here are a few I took with my phone the other day at Amos’ new apartment in Century City:

And you may remember these camera phone pictures from a few weeks ago:

So who needs an iPhone anyway!?  Unless it really does all this:

I will be taking a few days off.  See you guys all next week.

Carey Anthony<careygly@gmail.com>

Carey, my friend!  I sent this same message to yourblog.  I don’t know if I did it right.  So I am sending it again to youthis way…I would like you to post this message on your blog…With thatsame loving hug, marcelo

Sweet Carey!

It’s just past 8 o’clock on Wednesday evening. Emily is in theorange hammock we hung in the front porch, typing away at her laptop.And now you just called! Carey, my good friend, I will never be able toexpress my gratitude to you for the most loving gift a person like mecould receive, at least not to the extent that I would like. Yourtribute, you, managed to capture the most sublime feelings of beinghuman that I have experienced in my blessed 40 years of life. I think Iknow what you would reply to the comment I am about to make :) Butplease take the time to stop and reflect on the many layers I am tryingto express when I say that I am humbled by this tribute. I live well. Isay that in the sense that I am so very content with the life I havelived, for what I have tried to become as a human speck living at theend of the 20th and beginning of the 21st centuries. But I am far fromthe person I would like to be. There is so much I would like to improveabout myself, so much I would like to do to make my little contributionto a future that is more gentle to more people. But I also carry asense of how insignificant my life is in relation to history and thesheer magnitude of humanity. And know that I sense my insignificancewithout a drop of sadness. It is just a feeling of “perspectivizing.”It is within this perspective that this gift has taken an overwhelmingmeaning of a life well-lived. The effort and, above all, thethoughtfulness in the making of this gift has rubbed the core of myself-awareness and unleashed a sudden torrent of delicious emotions.Friendship, oh what a lovely feeling it is! And then there was theavalanche of heat-warming birthday messages that your gift evoked! Ihave felt so much love that I feel like I could burst into a flame ofraw happiness! It was a gift of love that spawned yet more love. Godlove you, my friend! You have brought me closer to my dearest friendsthrough your pictures and now witty blogging. You have been able to usetechnology to remind me of some of my favorite moments in life. Youhave captured the beauty I felt in my wedding, in images that I returnto often and with the utmost delight. You have included my parents andsister in parts of my life they would have never known, were it not foryour now much appreciated click-addiction. We have been together inmany parts of this world, and you have made my memories of our worldlyfriendship so sweet through your photographic attitude. May life treatyou with the kindness you deserve…May I live long enough to returnhalf of the kindness you have demonstrated to me…Forever grateful,forever in awe that I have been worth the trouble, forever yours,

Marcelo

I’m having a nice quiet weekend for once.  I have a couple of friends visiting, but they’re not staying with me, which makes a big difference.  And even if they wanted to, I have a full house right now.  I started dog-sitting for Garbo & Ruby on Thursday.  And today, I’m dog-sitting for my cousin’s two dogs, Buster & Roxy.  So yes, I have 4 dogs here, all under about 5 lbs.  And to think, I’m the guy who likes big dogs.  Imagine the site of me walking down Santa Monica Blvd. with these 4.  I might as well be Liberace.  LOL

Poor one eyed, snaggletoothed Buster, really stands out in a crowd doesn’t he? 

I’ll post some pictures of all 4 of them later if they ever sit still.  It’s been so bloody hot, we haven’t been able to go outside for very long stretches. 

Intelligence and war are games, perhaps the only meaningful games left. If any player becomes too proficient, the game is threatened with termination.  William S. Burroughs

Saw a fantastic movie last night, and it’s one I never would have gone to if Mark hadn’t wanted to go.  It was called “The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters” and it was a hilarious documentary about 2 guys obsessed with scoring the world record for Donkey Kong.  “Billy”, the real guy who set the Donkey Kong world record in 1982 and Steve, a self professed loser nerd out to break the record.  The war between the two is brutal to say the least and the story ends up being an allegory, for the decline of western civilization, including how “anti-ethical” thinking will still cause men to go to war.  It was clever and very funny.  Indeed, it was a metaphor for life itself.

Here a couple of photos Lisa sent of the boys at the museum last week when I wasn’t feeling well.

And last but certainly not least,

HAPPY BIRTHDAY KURT!

Song of the day