Because you haven't heard enough about my drinking yet....

A Q&A with me over at The Drinking Diaries. Enjoy with a glass of Portuguese white.....

A great day

I have tried to not make political posts of late, because durn but people get riled up... That plus the letters I'm always getting about my foul language are just two things I don't really care about. But I am so proud of us today. The health care reform bill may be, as a friend of mine just said, as watered down as a beer in a Utah bar, but it's something. A start. I am glad that the screaming naysayers don't have all the control all the time. only, say, 95%.....

As Tiny Tim said, God Bless Us, Every One. (Without the God, for me, but you can keep it if you like.)

A little late in the day...

... But last minute announcement: I'll be reading as part of tonight's In the Flesh series at the appropriately named Happy Ending Lounge, at 302 Broome. Its from 8 to 10, but I've been advised people should try to get there by 7:30 if they want a seat. There'll be a bondage rope expert and a feminist porn star reading there, too, among others, so it ought to be a fun night. Come one, come all!

PS To the person in the comments who thought that because I had an affair, ergo, I didn't finish the aspics: I assure you, all of the aspics were made. I'll grant they weren't all consumed in their entirety.... There's only so much poached egg in aspic one can be expected to swallow.

Rachael Ray

I'm going to be on it. Today. Actually, we filmed it last week... The creepy thing is that I sort of actually liked her. Is that weird?

Woodstock Writer's Festival

I'm going to be there this Sunday alongside - gulp! - Ruth Reichl and Susan Orlean. Just in time for Valentine's Day!

Please come, yes?

The tragedy we pet owners all sign onto.

Our beloved Robert - known to readers of "Cleaving" and the Epilogue of "J&J" - died on Sunday. He was 11 or 12 years old, a dear, dear animal that we were lucky enough to share our lives with for 6 years. The very best dog that ever there was. Eric and I are destroyed, of course, and I've only now felt up to posting this.

Of course, losing an animal doesn't rank up there with King Lear on the tragedy scale, empirically speaking, but those of you out there who have gone through this know how excruciating it is. It's what we sign up for, though. He was our heart - and though we know we gave him a good life, and have no regrets on that score - the blank spot he's left is cold and immense.

All love, my big bear.

PS I ask out of respect to his sweetness that people maybe refrain from violent, nasty comments. I'll post again soon and those of you who get off on meanness and name calling can resume your activities. From this post, I will be removing them.

I'm not much one for resolutions

But this year I'm holding on to mine like a life line. I won't go into the specifics other than to say that they include the usual StopDrinkingStopSmokingGetInShape sorts of of things, as well as one or two others more particular to my situation, all of which could be contained under the rubric of "Quit trying to the same things and expecting different results."

What about you guys? How's you thinkin' about this new decade?