2008: Year-In-Review

Lately, because of the whole broken ankle thing, everyone has been saying "Don't worry. 2009 will be better."

The thing is, 2008 didn't suck at all. It all just deteriorated really quickly there near the end.

So on the eve of my return to Los Angeles, I thought I'd take a look back at some of the highlights of 2008:

Kicked off the New Year in Hong Kong...



Went to Thailand...



Went back to Hong Kong...



Felix accidentally crawled into bed with Auntie Alice...



Katie left for an epic journey around the world...



A campaign took shape...




Moved into a sweet new WeHo apartment...



Won Best Costume at the Rock, Paper, Scissors tourney...



Went to New York...



Saw the Spice Girls from ridiculous seats...




Got signed to Ugly Models while rocking a giant nose zit...




Worked on the Kobe Bryant reality show with a bunch of giant asians...



MAO came to visit...



We warmed our house...



Went to Texas...



Watched Laura get married...



Had a visit from Chloe... (also saw Paris Hilton that day)...



Rach got engaged...



Celebrated St. Patty's in San Francisco...



Saw Baby Leo and family in Sactown...



Attended the Joy Luck Club Reunion...



Discovered a great new drinking game...



Was featured in Details Magazine...



Photographed Hal Sparks...



Went to Hong Kong again...



Went to the Rugby Sevens...



Went to India...



Went to the TAJ MAHAL...



Got a new baby nephew...



Went to New York again...




Went back to Brown for Campus Dance...



Went to France...



Went to St. Tropez...



Went to Rome...



Went to Vegas for Dan's bachelor party...




Moved to New York for the summer...



Turned Anne into a supermodel...



Watched Dan and Emily get married...




Went to the Poconos...




Visited L.A...



Got my new favorite Unicorn shirt...



Won the lottery and saw Rent from the front row for $20...



Went to my first Sasian wedding...




Moved back to LA...



Went back to New York.



Went to Fire Island...




Returned to LA...



Went to Matt and Kelli's wedding...




Held a really fun game night...



Went to New York yet again...



Went to a sick Ne-Yo concert...



Went to New Orleans...



Got sweet Halloween costumes...



Campaigned for the first time...



Celebrated Halloween...



Bore witness to a historic moment...



Fought for some rights...



And finally ended my year very abruptly...



Whew.

It was a whirlwind of a year. And I didn't even really count all the fun nights out that all kind of blend together.

Maybe the broken ankle was telling me to chill out a little. Maybe I will.

If 2009 is even half as fun as 2008 was, I will be happy.

Not yay.

So on top of breaking his leg, it turns out KG also completely tore his ACL and is going to need reconstructive surgery that will take 4-6 months to fully recover from.



His new ACL may come from a cadaver. Eeek.

The first thing I did when I heard this was look up "How To Get Rid of Ghosts..."

(After all, the last place you want a ghost is on the INSIDE of your KNEE.)

Here are some really useful suggestions I found:

How To Get Rid of Ghosts:

The simplest solution is usually most reliable: Speak to the ghost, out loud.

Shout, if you feel you must. Explain to your ghost that he/she is doing things that bother you. Explain exactly what those things are. Ask the ghost to stop immediately. If you want the ghost to leave altogether, you need to say that.

This usually works. However, some ghosts won't take you seriously, and you may need to remind it to leave you alone several times before it stays away.

Holy Water is another tried-and-true remedy for ghosts.

Respectfully and quietly enter your nearest Catholic Church, carrying a small jar or bottle from home. Somewhere in the public area, there will be a large container of Holy Water, usually stainless steel with a cross and a spigot on it.

Fill your container with Holy Water. It's nice to leave a small donation for this, too. (A dollar or two is customary.)

Make a broad Sign of the Cross at the site of the wound, allowing the water to fly off your fingers as you gesture. (If you don't know how to make a Sign of the Cross, ask any Catholic.)

It can be helpful to add an out-loud prayer, such as "I bless this [knee] in the name of God," or, "I banish all evil spirits from this [knee], in the name of the Sweet Baby Jesus," or something like that.

(If you feel silly saying this, and can't help laughing as you do it, don't do it. This is not a light or casual ritual.)

Prayer and religion

Your ancestors, deities, and saints are in the spirit world, as your ghost is. It's logical to ask the help of these friendly spirits.

If you have a shrine--formal or informal (such as a display of photos)--to your ancestors, have a chat with your favorite deceased ancestor. Explain the situation to him/her, and ask for help.

If you're very upset about your ghost, we recommend the Irish saint, St. Dymphna, who is the patron saint of mental health. She's great for calming situations. We save St. Jude for extreme situations when all else has failed. He's busy enough with others' urgent requests.

Pagans may want to use a banishing ritual, unless the idea bothers you, obviously.

Garlic

Don't laugh! Garlic is a tried-and-true repellant for unpleasant spirits of all kinds. Minced garlic is easily spreadable. Rub it on the site where you need protection. A clove in your pocket is a good idea, too.

If you believe in folk magic, you can create a small pouch with several protection herbs in it, including five-finger grass, cinnamon, and echinacea. However, don't overdo this. The point is to repel ghosts, not drive everyone else away from you! *grin*

The shoe remedy

This one sounds silly but gets great results: When you go to bed at night, set out the shoes you'll wear in the morning. Place them at the foot of your bed, on the floor, with one shoe pointing one way, and the other shoe pointing the opposite way.

According to folklore, the ghosts get so confused by this, they leave after a few nights.

(If you like this one, scroll down to see the sand remedy.)

Incense and space clearing (mostly for clearing haunted houses)

Light the incense and carry it around, making certain that you get the smoke everywhere, particularly inside closets, room corners (use a sturdy chair or ladder for uppermost corners), attics, basements, and so on.

Or, you can ring a bell in every corner, and in every room. Or clap your hands.

The whole idea is to get the air moving in stale corners where ghosts may be hiding.

If you can't do anything else, vacuum!

Sand, rice, split peas, etc.

Randomly toss rice, split peas, sand, salt (but not sugar as it leaves a sticky residue), coffee beans or grounds, or anything small and granular, on your bedroom floor when you go to bed at night (if that's when the ghost is most bothersome).

According to folklore, the ghosts will pause to count the grains of whatever-it-is. They aren't very good at counting, so they have to start over again, repeatedly, or they forget the numbers.

Clean up the mess in the morning, and do the same routine again at night.

After a few nights of this, the ghost should throw its hands up in frustration, give up, and leave.

............................

Hope that's helpful!

Hang in there KG!

Guys, keep sending him words of encouragements.

Yay!

I'm coming home!

Fly Delta! They hook it up.

Breaking News: KG joins the club

Over this past weekend, Kristofer snowboarded into a tree and breaked his leg.

Might also have done some damage to his ACL.



You can't see the front of his leg but that's supposedly all bruised up from where he broke his fibula.



Luckily the fibula is not weight-bearing and so he shouldn't need a cast and will be able to walk when the swelling goes down.

I'm just glad he didn't break his pretty little face.

He's home resting now so send him some love.

'08 started off pretty great and then went to shit real fast near the end there. Looks like '09 has already started craptastically for most of us, so things can only get better, right?

The Real World: Brooklyn

I just caught the trailer for the new season of the Real World.

(Hate to admit it, but I happened to be watching Bromance when it came on.)

I haven't really watched the show in a long time, but this season actually looks REALLY interesting.

First off, it's the first season ever to feature a transexual. I'm really curious to see how everything goes down.

Secondly, they're no longer mandating that the cast members perform some inane job together, and instead are allowing them to pursue their own interests like in the original Real World seasons.

Hopefully the series is going to return to its roots of showing a diverse group of "real" people dealing with real issues. The series in the past decade has pretty much devolved into an annoying drunken f*ckfest, which at first was fun (Real World: Las Vegas), but became tiring very quickly.

It's probably been overlooked by the general public, but back in the day, I think the Real World was life and world-changing in its ability to break down a lot stereotypes for young people. I know for me, personally, Real World: New Orleans remains one of the most life-changing events of my life.



The New Orleans season aired in 2000, a truly momentous time. Freshman year of college. And Danny (center) was the first Real World cast member who wasn't a huge queeny stereotypical gay, and he was just newly going through the coming-out process, so it was an incredible inspiration to myself and I'm sure to many other little gays all around the country who didn't feel like they identified with the gay community at the time.

I remember my jaw dropping during the first episode when Danny told Melissa he was gay. Here was this totally normal-seeming straight-acting great-looking guy, and no-one saw it coming.

I remember watching that season so intently. I remember going home on breaks, and watching the show, but quickly changing the channel if my parents walked into the room, as if I were watching porn or something and that they would immediately figure it all out.

For me, Danny was the first real gay person I'd ever known. He paved the way for so many of us, and he made it ok.

For better or worse, the Real World revolutionized television. I really hope Real World: Brooklyn does for trannies what Danny did for people my age.

Also I hope someone gets really drunk and accidentally hooks up with the tranny.

Mormon Murder Mystery

I was recommended this book. The 19th Wife.

It's quite good. All about Mormons and their offshoot polygamist sects. And there's a murder mystery involved as well.

Also, it was written by a Brownie. I emailed him. We became friends on Facebook. I ask him annoying questions about the book. It is neat to be able to read a book and then talk with the author about it.

Mormons wear special sacred underpants.



I wonder if David Archuleta wears them too...?

David Archuleta - A Little Too Not Over You

New video by everyone's favorite 18 year old Mormon.

Britney Spears Sighting

I forgot to mention that Danny done saw Brit-brit (sans paparazzi) the other day gettin' her nails did at the asian place across from our 24-hour Fitness.

I miss LA.

I miss Danny!



Cute shirt I made him, yes?

Angelina Jolie's uterus benched.

Angelina Jolie has been advised by doctors to put down the uterus. After her last two pregnancies ended with complications, she'd be facing significant health risks with another baby. OK! Magazine reports:

"Her previous pregnancies ended with emergency caesarian secions," an insider tells OK!. "She's been told that, at the least, she should not get pregnant for a year after her last deliver, and it would be safer if she did not get pregnant, ever."

The health complications this time around could pose a direct danger to the Changeling star, Dr. Larrian Gillespie, who has not treated Angie, tells OK!.

"Angelina is at risk of having a stroke or heart attack, and because she developed gestational diabetes, there is a high risk she'll have it again, with the child being at risk for diabetes."

In related news, Brad Pitt was seen at a local bank sulking while placing his penis in a safe deposit box. In the distance, the cackle of Jennifer Aniston's laughter could be heard in the air. Or a pig got hit with a lawnmower. We're looking into it.

P.S.

Happy Birthday Meredith!

Kathy Griffin makes watching TV on New Years Eve worthwhile...

For the most part she was a bit obnoxious and kind of annoying...but this made up for everything:

(I'm pretty sure it was censored out of the West Coast feed.)



"Oh, honey..."???

Andy Cooper. Everyone loves you. Come out of the closet already. Who do you think you're fooling?

New Years Obesity

Mmmmmm sushi feast.

Phew.

According to my Thai sources, Tee spent New Years in Phuket and did not die a horrible screaming death in a catastrophic fancypants nightclub fire.

Tee as soon as you return to civilization and the internets please say hi and prove that you're alive and safe.

TEEBAGS

Where are you???

Tell me you are safe.