Like Soda for Petrol

On Saturday Brad's parents came over for lunch. We make it a habit to see them at least once a month that is when they aren't out of town on a cruise. Brad's dad, Jon, is a man that has a wealth of information when it comes to the free market as he used to be a grocery store manager for many years prior to his retirement.

On this particular occasion we got on the subject of soda and how the quantity and price of the product have gone up significantly over the past twenty years. Jon recounted the days when in stores that he managed a can of Dr. Pepper at a vending machine would cost a mere five cents. Eventually the management decided to bump the price up to eight cents in an effort to turn more profit. Jon explained that many people thought that it would be a disaster and that no one would pay for their instant gratification refreshment. To his surprise, and the pleasure of executives, sales continued to be good at the new price. Apparently people were willing to pay more for their soda and as long as people were willing to pay the price kept going up. In some places these days you are are hard pressed to find a vending machine that charges fifty cents for a can of soda.

Why am I discussing this you ask? Well I believe this anecdote is a bellwether for the gas prices in this country. Even after the devastation of Katrina and Rita the oil companies in this nation have had record years for profit and yet gas prices are on the rise again. On the local news here in Dallas tonight they interviewed several a commuter and asked if they thought the prices were high enough for them to cut down on driving or consider alternate modes of transportation. All of them stated that they didn't like the prices going up but that they wouldn't alter their driving behavior.

I have no grand conclusion to this, I just thought it was an interesting parallel. In fact I want the price of gas to get higher so that hopefully these things will happen:

1. Increased demand for alternative fuels such as biodiesel.
2. The demand and production of SUVs plummets.
3. Suburban sprawl comes to a halt and urban revitalization gains more momentum and forces the market to produce more low to middle income high density living in urban cores in lieu of the current trend that is almost exclusively the high luxury market.

Krebs Cast #22 Thank You!

Thanks to everyone who listened to my previous podcast and for the responses that you gave me. I'm so glad that you listened and reacted.

Talk of public transportation, immigration, and some shoutouts to some people.

Music by the Greenskeepers, Pshyche, and Williamson

Krebs Cast
Krebs Cast #23

Dishin' It

Well I was a guest again on another podcast production. This time I was on the brainchild of Darin and Donnie, The Dirty Dish.

This week's show was dubbed Such This Like-Warm ProgrUM. Go check it out and enjoy and send the boys some love after the show by calling in.

206-666-DISH

My New Favorite Song...

...from my favorite movie of all time!!

Bears and Buds

Last night was a twofold event. FIrst of all it was the 11th annual Texas Bear Round Up. Basically its a bunch of bears coming together in Dallas to meet, rub each other's shaved heads, grab one another's beefy butts, and swap commentary on various and sundry "bear" issues. The theme of this year's event was "Fur University" and so there were seminars earlier in the week on how to be a better bear, cub, otter etc.

Overall though I think the event injected some really hot beefy men to the Dallas gayborhood for the night and I actually find this sect of the gay community to be really fun.

Here is a bear sporting a T-shirt for the event.



Here is the official artwork for the event.



Bear tracks.



So in addition to the hirsute bonanza Brad and I met up with someone that I have been corresponding with via My Space. The lovely and splendid Jeff aka El Gringo Loco.

Here's a picture of me and Jeff after a few drinks. Jeff is a cool cat and certainly proof that you can meet people on My Space that are not just looking to chop you up into a million pieces. He did however express his desire to preform deviant sex acts with me but I think 50% is accpetable. I look like crap in this picture but oh well.



Here's a hot bartender. He was dumb as a brick but again 50% is perfectly acceptable.



Here I am with some Dallasites, I think. They could be Gotti children but I'm not totally certain. If I had my sunglasses on too you wouldn't have noticed my eyes are shut. Hmm note to self.



Two weekends in a row at the bar and both weekends I've met a new Jeff. I think thats enough going out though for a while. I'm not usually so out and about in the community but who knows what next weekend will bring.

Krebs Cast #21

Tenofovir abuse, USE CONDOMS ASSHOLES!!! Twinkie Tiramisu and expand your horizons!

No intro music again oh well.

Krebs Cast Page
Krebs Cast #21

Feeling The Love

A picture of me in Barcelona c.2004 sans beard.



I got this email with enclosed picture from one of the pioneer readers, and listeners, of The Krebs Cycle.

Hey Adam, before I even decided I was going to Spain for spring break, I really liked your photos in Barcelona.  (You're a great photographer.)  Anyway, the one of you against the wall of the Cathedral was one of my favorites, so en lieu of a postcard, I tried to be amusing and took this photo.  Sadly, it was after I shaved so I think I look too boyish, haha.

Ben

Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery not to mention this is far better than any postcard I've ever recieved. When I opened this email I was literally grinning ear to ear. Thank you Ben! Boyish or not I think he looks cute. He's single everybody and soon to be a doctor so let me know if you're interested.

Tenofovir Abuse

This is an email exchange that I thought I should share with all of you. Tony, the great man who has brought us PodcastPSA, sent me the first message yesterday evening. I go so worked up that I wrote him the message below and I think everyone should read it.

Also check out the link that Tony provided and also check out the article in this month's issue of Out magazine on the abuse of Tenofovir. Its a good intro to the problem that is occuring.

Hey Adam,
 
Thanks for your podcast today. I've been doing some research on the Tenofovir/Barebacking phenomenon.
 
http://www.heroichomosex.org/personalstories/read.cgi?seqid=3260
 
is a very interesting article + comments.
 
I was chatting to Brad (willing warrior) about this: we're as incensed as you are.
 
What shall we do about it?
 
tony.

-----------------------------------------

Tony,

Thanks for the article I will definately read it through and give the plight some thought.

Honestly Tony I'm so enraged when I read shit like this it takes me a while to collect my thoughts on the matter. My rage stems from the fact that I lost a brother to HIV. A beautiful man was destroyed by this virus and no one seems to get how horrible it is to see someone decay right before your eyes. It's insulting to hear about people acting so selfishly that I almost want to say "they deserve everything they get."

My rage then mutates into discouragement. The people that work in the field of immunology research, specifically at the CDC, are breaking thier asses day and night trying to keep one step ahead of this shit. When breakthroughs are made the media announces it and everyone thinks its okay to fuck like its 1970 again and I wonder why are we bothering? The same goes for when a drug hits the market and people start abusing it in the way Tenofavir is being abused, it pisses me off. Someone worked to discover that drug to save lives and there are people that are tearing that effort down nigght after night and in effect killing the people that really need it. Those that abuse Tenofavir are no different than Roy Kohn with his secret stash of AZT. People are dedicating and giving their lives, researcher, HIV patient, and laymen alike, to fight this disease I feel like the gay community at large is ungrateful. Sometimes I think there needs to be the level of death that there was in the 80s and early 90s so this generation that is coming into its own now can SEE with their own eyes what HIV does to a person.

My rage comes to me from the fact that people would rather fill their minds with fabricated human drama via the outlets of CBS, NBC, FOX, CNN, ABC etc. so forth and so on. What will it take to communicate to people that HIV is still here and that there is real suffering happening in the world all around them? What will it take to make people care more about a man who has been abandoned by his friends and family that lay dying in a hospice alone than they do about a multi-millionaire white male competeing for the affections of Donald Trump?! What will it take for people to realize that if they have unprotected sex their chances of contracting HIV are higher than the chances that their guess as to who will be eliminated from American Idol will be correct?!

Once my thoughts calm down I realize that we need to keep doing what we've always been doing. Educate educate educate. Test test test. Condoms condoms condoms. That and I think those of us that are the survivors of the ones we have lost have to tell their stories no matter how greusome they may seem to others. History is bound to repeat itself if its not passed on to future generations. The events of the past, their consequences and how they came to be, need to be wholly understood. With that said maybe people need to be encouraged to be more open about the losses they've suffered. Maybe its time that we help the ghosts of those that we've lost rattle their chains a little bit louder.

Cheers,
Adam

The Great Conjunction

Well it was a conjunction. Great? Perhaps? Listen for yourself and find out. Head on over to All Preparation & No H to hear the hottest, sloppiest, wettest podcast ever produced. Its a melange of talent brought to you from myself, the luscious Donnie from Fresh 'N Tasty, the snarky and mischievous Darin, and the magnifcent Wanda Wisdom of Lucky Bitch Radio.

Note to self...

A Picture Share!
Originally uploaded by adpal3180.

...find a new bus stop. I could smell the gas seeping from this...whitchamacallit while I was standing next to it at my stop yesterday afternoon. I'm sure the splitting headache that I had last night was a result of the noxious fumes that I inhaled while waiting for my bus.

Does anybody else think that this gaspipe is relatively exposed? I don't think that three metal pillars are nearly enough protection if someone drove into this thing. I guess Atmos energy spent all their money on Tom Delay other community projects.

There is another bus stop down the street a bit but its near a bodega that is frequented by some unsavory characters. As long as my death isn't documented as an Honorable Mention at the Darwin Awards I'll be happy. For the most part I have no shame but if I read about a guy who died while standing at a bus stop next to an exposed gas line I'd be inclined to say that it was his poor judgement. I don't want to spend my afterlife in therapy.

Debauchery

Here are some photos from Saturday night when Brad and I had the fortunate pleasure of meeting Jeff and his friend Sara.

Here is Jeff speaking the language of love to some of the paintings. Alas his consultations went unanswered.



I had to take a picture of this because it reminds me of those kinds of test questions where you are presented with a group of words and asked which one doesn't go with the rest.



A random cock perched atop the Tequila Shack and The Roundup.



Here's Brad and Jeff discussing something.



Jeff pulled this shamrock off the wall and upon turning it over we found "James." Here's Sara pondering the possibilities of James.



Who took this picture (evil grin)?



The poison.



The poisoned.





The antidote.



Thats it for now. If you want some audio of the evening I suggest you check out the latest episode of The Dirty Dish and hear my drunk dialing from the evening. I rarely get so drunk so its good that its been documented.

Saturated

Rain Rain Rain here in Dallas. I'm floating away. Theater. Kinky Friedman for Governor!! New music from The Kokoon courtesy of Magnatune.

Krebs Cast Page
Krebs Cast #20

Hola!

Its been raining all day here in Dallas. Its actually quite fortuitous that the weather is like this because it has given me an excuse to not leave the house or get out of my pajamas today.

That hasn't stopped us from being somewhat productive. I did do some laundry and make myself breakfast. Brad cleaned downstairs and I cleaned up upstairs. This is horribly exciting news I know but I thought I should post something on here to let ya'll know that I am still alive. I know how the blogosphere is when someone neglects their blog even for a few days. Theories turn into rumors, rumors become fact, and then before you know it I'm reading about my own kidnapping and subsequent torture.

In other news, last night we saw a splendid play that I will be speaking about in my next podcast and tonight I will be meeting Jeff of Well This is Just It!"

Well thats it. Time to continue watching "World's Strongest Man."

Krebs Cast #19

Beware the ides of March! Just me being me, random, again. I discuss feeling a need to volunteer and the science of sexuality and other things.

Krebs Cast Page
Krebs Cast #19

Coffee

IMG_1325
Originally uploaded by adpal3180.

Oh yes, I got my free coffee today. I was kind of bummed that I wouldn't get to have it because officially its from 10am-12pm but my local Starbucks started early and even let me have a venti. The coffee gods must have been smiling down on me today. Thank you.

What’s your portmanteau?

Today I've been chained to a very large very expensive machine at work that sorts cells. The thing with very large and very expensive machines is that they, like very large and very expensive people, need a lot of attention so I've been sitting with it all day whilst it does it's magic.

Luckily for me this machine has a PC connected to it and this PC has internet access. Its always a treat to use Windows. I imagine myself a prince having escaped from his palace in disguise to mingle with the common folk, doing the things that common folk do. Anyway, I digress. So while on the internet I was researching some things. In my boredom I went to the almighty source for all useless information Wikipedia and typed in "Blog."

Naturally there is an entry for "Blog" and I learned that the word blog is a type of word called a portmanteau. A portmanteau, French for suitcase or a valise, is a word that mashes the sounds and meanings of two other words to make a new word.

Some Examples:

web + log = blog

information + commercial = infomercial

smoke + fog = smog

Reagan + economics = Reaganomics

fucking + ugly = fugly

Wikipedia offers a link to a site where you can create your own portmanteau and add it to the collection. Here are some that are on the site.

flux + weight = fluctuweight (to lose and put on weight repeatedly)

apocalypse + lapse = apocolapse (the gap between predictions of when the world will end)

mediocre + democracy = mediocracy (a democracy where mediocrity is allowed to dominate)

You get the idea. I entered a portmanteau that Brad and I commonly use.

procrastinate + masturbate = procrasturbate (to masturbate even when not horny just to avoid doing other pressing tasks)

What’s your portmanteau? Submit Your Portmanteau Here

Monday Monday

For those of you that didn't listen to Krebs Cast #18 Brad and I spent the good part of the weekend gardening. It was some tough work but nonetheless quite rewarding. It's nice when you work really hard on something and you get to see your result almost immediately. The plants are still small but our efforts yielded a great result if I do say so myself and I am eager to watch the garden fill out as the plants grow.

This is the fist time that we've done any kind of gardening since leaving Arizona. What a refreshing change it was to plant things that flower and don't have thorns.

In any case I think that we must have really given ourselves tremendous leg work outs while gardening. Both Brad and myself have incredibly sore hamstrings and I for one am barely able to walk. Its a good sore but still quite inconvenient as it has made sitting down a rather tricky task. I have to essentially position my body above my target and lower myself as much as I can until the pain is unbearable and then just flop down into the chair and hope that the resulting position is one that is comfortable. Getting up requires the full cooperation and use of my arms. In short my legs are jello.

In closing I have to say that Battlestar Galactica is the most amazing show on television and the season finale on Friday was phenomenal. Unfortunately they won't be back until October but last night the Soprano's came back and that is sure to keep my yen for high production TV satisfied for the time being.

Mellow Yellow

Krebs Cast Page
Krebs Cast #18

Just me rambling with some music in the background and being mellow. It was a really nice Saturday.

Click here to subscribe to me in iTunes. Its free! A lot of my friends think it costs money to listen to podcasts in iTunes so I just want to make sure you all know that these and all other podcasts are free.

Kibbles and Bits

What?
Originally uploaded by adpal3180.

Believe it or not these lovely items were with groceries meant for human consumption. Not only that, they were with the "finer" meats and cheeses section in a local grocery store here in Dallas.

I didn't want to get too close nor did I want to touch the packaging. Because of my trepidation I couldn't tell if the pink cubes were meat, cheese, or a mixture of both. I would have liked to investigate the contents further but something deep within me told me not to. It was once of those voices that I suppose people that have won Darwin Awards don't hear.

Assimilation?

Conversation today in the car on the way back to work from lunch.

Adam: I like those 7-Up Lofts.

Kim: Yeah. Its hard to believe that's where they used to make 7-Up, the building is so small.

Adam: Well people didn't used to drink so much coke.


Okay the problem with this is that I used "coke" to refer to all sodas in the same fashion that Texans and most southerners do. I resisted assimilation in Arizona where everyone called soft drinks "pop." I must preserve my original dialect. I've already caved into using "y'all" but thats all you're going to get from me Texas. I must resist. Soda Soda Soda Soda.

Current Favorite

Right now, this is my favorite album.

Its A Start

Here is the letter I wrote to my representative, Eddie Bernice Johnson, today regarding the case for impeachment. I'm sure its not the only thing I can do but it's a start.

Dear Congresswoman Johnson,

I am writing to inform you of my desire, as one of your constituents, for you to support and expedite the impeachment of George Bush. Congressmen Conyers took a brave and giant step in making a stand against this president and his corrupt administration. I urge you to join him in defending our nation from further detriment caused by this president and his administration.

The fact of the matter is that this nation can no longer afford to have this president or his administration. Our liberties are eroding and our resources are being squandered for the benefit of a handful of people who seek nothing but their own personal gain. Damage has already been done, some of it irrevocably, most of which will take years to fix. America has been hijacked and thrown off track by this administration and although impeachment will not propel us forward immediately it is a step in the correct direction. Removal of this president and the dismantling of his regime will not only prevent more damage from being done but it will also send a message to future tyrants and sons of treachery that America is not the plaything of the rich and privileged. Impeachment of this president firmly avows to the current generation of Americans and to future generations that this nation, its resources, its ideals, and its foundations are sacred and not to be twisted and exploited by false patriots; that those who perpetrate the rule of law in this nation pay the price.

Democracy needs to flourish at home in order for us to be an example for developing nations in their own pursuit for liberty. The policy of "Do as I say not as I do" is one of tyrants and dictators and has no place within the parameters of our system of government. The president must be impeached for his crimes against this nation. I hope you will join Congressman Conyers in his fight to hold the president accountable for his actions against our nation.

Sincerely,
Adam
Dallas, TX

If you feel so inclined to write a letter to your representative in Congress please do so. The squeaky wheel gets the grease so lets make some fucking noise!

Its the little things

With the exception of a thunderstorm nothing is more soothing than hearing the violent prairie winds coming from the north, whooshing through the trees and mangling the neighbor's wind chime.

Talk of Hygiene and China

Krebs Cast Page
Krebs Cast #17

Wash your hands people! My response to the video "Ha Ha Ha America" posted on March 2nd on Yeast Radio and other thoughts on China.

Click here to subscribe to me in iTunes. Its free! A lot of my friends think it costs money to listen to podcasts in iTunes so I just want to make sure you all know that these and all other podcasts are free.

Balance

I spent a good part of the day yesterday reading the new issue of Texas Monthly and Harpers. After finishing my reading I felt like there is so much going on around me that I need to be dedicating all of my resources to inciting change. Therefore when I give mental energy to things that are meaningless, like the Oscars, I think that I've wasted myself on something that doesn't matter. I could have used that energy elsewhere. I wind up feeling guilty and superficial.

However, I can rationalize that even in these dark times its OK to be superficial sometimes. We assume, in our day to day lives, different persona oscillating in and out, two and fro, each one a hyperbolic expression of what is at the core. It's important to not stay on the edges too long and come back to center. It's also important to not stay in the center too long and grow stale. In this and in other things I must remind myself that its all about balance.

Oscar Summary

Red ribbons anyone...anyone...anyone? Oh AIDS isn't cool anymore, apparently its been cured. Next popular issue please.

You know you're really gay when they show George Clooney at the oscars and you're more excited to see Meryl Streep, who doesn't age by the way, sitting behind him.

I wish Tom Hanks wasn't taken so seriously and would do more silly stuff.

Dolly Parton is a plastic surgery success story!

You're even more gay than previously thought when you wish you were the armrest between Meryl Streep and Lily Tomlin.

How does one get their hands on all the animated short films? They all looked really interesting.

Lauren Bacall...

What was on Charlize Theron's shoulder?

Its really sad that Sandra Bullock thinks that she's a real actress.

Its really sad Keanu Reeves...whoa!

Mickey Rooney has evolved into a shar pei.

How many times do I have to be told to go to the movies?

Again, Lily Tomlin and Meryl Streep!!!!!!

Merchant is dead!? Its just Ivory now?

Reese Witherspoon on her character: "She's a real woman...she has dignity and honor and she's a real woman!" Not like that dirty tranny character.

When will this show end?

How would you feel if your leitmotif was a song from a movie about a mentally challenged chocolate munching fool?

Crash. The sound of all the beer bottles hitting the floor at gay bars across America.

Oscar Thoughts

Last night while waiting for our dinner to reach our table.

Brad: Tomorrow night is the Oscars.

Adam: I know. Do you realize how many colons are being flushed right now?

Brad: It's astonishing.

A CALL TO ACTION!!!

If you chose only to listen to ONE of my podcasts listen to this one!! This podcast was inspired in two parts by Joe of Joe.My.God. and by the article in the March 2006 issue of Harpers, "The Case for Impeachment." Listen. Learn. ACT!

Krebs Cast #16

The American Civil Liberties Union

Visit FirstGov to find information about how to contact your representatives and senators. They work for you, not for themselves, not for their political parties, for you!

CALL THE WHITE HOUSE AT 202.456.1414 and tell the administration to STOP SPYING ILLEGALLY on AMERICANS!!!

I want to say that I was overwhelmed by all of your comments on my post yesterday. I did not imagine that it would elicit such a response and I am so thankful for all of your words of encouragement and support. Thank you so much.

This podcast is a result of what happens when I take a step back from things and regroup. I regain my passion.

An evolution of sorts.

I have nothing to share today. I think I've reached that point in my blogging where I've recounted all of my best stories and I'm just going to have to go out and get myself into situations for the sake of the survival of this blog.

No. I won't do that. I do, however, need to perhaps cut down on the posting. I find that it takes more and more energy to come up with something to say on a daily basis. I also would like more time to read something other than the internet. Not that I don't love to read y'all's blogs. In fact, I'm more addicted than I would care to admit but I need to make more time to get information from other mediums. My uncle got me a subscription to Harpers last Christmas and I've barely cracked any of the issues. I've had a subscription before and found every issue to be so incredibly rich and enjoyable. Lately I've been feeling guilty and slovenly that I haven't made time to sit down and really read the issues.

I'm a perfectionist at heart and everything that I do I subject to extreme criticism. Most of all though whenever I create something and put it out in the world I ask whether or not it was truly me. If it's not then in my view it wasn't a creation but simply a means of capturing gratuitous attention from passers by. Thats not what I want this to be about. I want this to blog to be spontaneous and I want you to experience my thoughts and experiences as they occur organically. So, in short, posting won't be so daily from here on out and by NO means should this be taken as a farewell. I am certainly not planning on leaving the blogosphere. In July I kind of restarted blogging and I've been really satisfied with the result and proud of what I have written here. I want to maintain that kind of quality for my own and for your enjoyment.