December

Jennifer Daniels put on a good show at Eddie's Attic. Her friend Sanjay opened but wasn't very exciting. Next Drew Holcomb played and did a very god job. His wife Ellie sang duet on many of the songs which was also delightful. I'd heard of him before so I bought his new live CD. Jen did her usual set despite it being billed as a Christmas show to debut her new Holiday CD. She did sing a couple of Christmas songs like Silent Night and her own Norman Rockwell song. I cruised over to Eddie's Attic to see the Don Henry show. He was playing in-the-round with Tim Kimmel and Danny Flowers. The place was all decked out for Christmas and it was quite beautiful. Don put on a great show as always but I could have lived without Mr. Kimmel who was very flat.

November

I decided to attend the big family Thanksgiving dinner this year in New York City. Unfortunately my dysfunctional family decided they didn't want to spend it with me. This spoiled a year's worth of planning and was very disappointing. It was very nice to have dinner with my cousins and walking around the construction site of the WTC with my cousin Sam will be always be a cherished memory. On the way to NYC I stopped in Washington D.C. and had a delightful visit with my college friend Arlan, his wife Nancy, and their to children Emma and Ryan. And on the way back I stopped to see the new wing of the National Air and Space Museum with Rich, Sue, Nicole, Lindsay, and Jeremy. In all I drove 1,890 miles.

I'm happy to say I have not seen the movie Borat. It looked really bad to me and not my kind of humor. Unfortunately many of my friends can't say the same and were horrified by what they saw. They all say they want their money back which is statistically rare. I just wonder how much of it is real. Did they really fool all those people or are they all actors playing a part. I'm confident the truth will come out that they are ALL acting. On the other hand, they could just be stupid like the people on all those day time talk shows.

I've raked more leaves than I'd like to admit.

October

I enjoyed the 34th Annual Scottish Highland Games at Stone Mountain Park again this year. There were several British tribute bands and I really enjoyed the Wholigans covers of The Who songs.

The Taste of Atlanta at Atlantic Station was very disappointing. It was too crowded, the ticketing and everything else was not well organized, the portions were tiny and I couldn't see the music so I gave up and left. I won't be going back to that ever again.

Paul Mercer performed a nice show during the annual Oakland Cemetery festival. I was surprised to see a Victorian costume contest, antique cars and a huge area fir kid's activities. They gave walking tours and history lessens too. It was very interesting

September

The 27th Annual Atlanta chili Cookoff was great fun. We arrived a little behind schedule and many of the booths were already out of chili - but many more were still serving and in short order we were full. So we sat down on the field and listened to a Who tribute band called the Wholigans. There were some very impressive costumes and I was especially amazed by some very sexy pirate women.

The first Buckle Ball at The Jungle with Darenzia, Rubberdoll and Scar13 went very well. Everyone dressed up, the fashion shows were awesome, and the music was fun. I got some great pictures and only a few were taken of me being bad. The girls of Purgatory attended and were very friendly. Thanks to Bill and Gee for throwing a great party!! A special shout out to Scar13 - You were very sweet! (That link is not work safe). I have a lot of pictures to share for anyone that was there.

Once again this year I played extra parent at the North Georgia State Fair. A couple I know have three kids and the fair easier with three adults to play man-to-man. We did the usual rides and shows and had a good time: Turkey Keg, Roasted Corn and Funnel cake. Unfortunately, during the funnel cake, the children took off and we ended the day prematurely with drama and tears.

I went to the Star 94 Cindy and Ray Meet Market at East Andrews in Buckhead. The place was really nice and the free appetizers were pretty good. It was suppose to be a great opportunity to meet single women and see the season premier of Grey's Anatomy. Went we entered we were given a playing card and told to find the others matching cards. I got the nine of spades and went in search of the other nines - men got black cards, women got red. When you found your group you got prizes, I met nice girls named Cheryl and Liz but they were much more interested in winning stuff than talking to me. I got a new card after winning a DVD but pretty much the same reaction. So I sat down to watch the show. The women around me (and there were many) were not interested in making conversation. So I watch the show and left with a T-shirt, a DVD, and lot's of Star 94 key chains but no new friends. If you look hard you can see me here.

I went sailing on Lake Lanier with some friends. It was a beautiful day to be out on the lake.

Barbara Bailey Hutchison finally came to Atlanta and really blew away the audience at Eddie's Attic. She sang beautifully and told good stories that had the crowd cheering for more. Her jokes even went over well, even her “I'm from the South too - Southern Michigan!” Jennifer Daniels then played a great show as well and everyone was very happy.

August

I made it to the The Grant Park Summer Shade Festival and had a nice time. It wasn't as big as some of the other festivals but the food was good and we enjoyed looking at the arts and crafts.

I did another photoshoot for Eva (A.K.A. Martini-Girl). This time we shot in the backyard and down the road in a tunnel. The tunnel was cool because there's a lot of graffiti which made for an interesting backdrop. The pictures came out good and everyone had fun.

July

Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest was very disappointing. It was long and slow and the plot was terrible. Then to add insult to it all it stops cold for the setup for the third movie. That's right, it doesn't end - It just stops - To Be Continued. DON'T WASTE YOUR MONEY!

Saturday July 8th, I was a very naughty dog. If you have pictures of me, there's no need to share them with anyone other than us. Besides, I have pictures of you too! But it was a great party, many people dressed to impress and most were really nice. A special shout out to Kathleen who was a real doll to pose for me and Audra who couldn't have been nicer.

There was a last minute deal to Las Vegas so we hopped a flight and spent July 4th in Sin City. I'm not much of a gambler so I spent my time seeing the sights. I saw many of the Casinos and was most impressed by the Venetian and New York New York. We stayed at the Luxor which is inside a pyramid. We also caught three shows: Cirque Du Soleil's Mystere and Le Reve and the Blue Men Group. I made a point to see the casino outdoor shows too, including the Mirage vulcano, the Belagio fountain and, best of all, the Treasure Island pirate show. We even made it down to Fremont street. I also took the Hoover Dam tour which was too short. And, I splurged the big bucks for a helicopter tour down the Grand Canyon. Overall, a very enjoyable and expensive trip. I lost every cent I had!

We saw the new The Fast and the Furious:Tokyo Drift movie and really enjoyed it. Mostly it was because the car driving was amazing and kept the movie moving but also because it had a good plot and good characters. I highly recommend it if you like action movies.

June

Dwight's annual Croquet tournament had it's usual drama but most everyone had fun. It wasn't too hot and the food and socializing was nice.

Some relatives were in town for a convention so I took the sight-seeing around town. We did the aquarium and history center and ate at Ted's Montana Grill and Ray's on the river. I think we had fun.

Don Henry put on a nice show at Eddie's Attic. The service there continues to just really suck but the music is always nice.

We went to the Virginia Highlands Summerfest and had a good time. I bought a Chinese water color I'd seen earlier in the year and drank some cool rum drinks. Bain Maddox played in the park and we had fun.

The Yard Dogs Road Show was very cool. It's mostly burlesque with a touch of side show. There was a sword swallower and fire eater as well as comedy. It was at the B-Complex which is an empty factory.

May

The Georgia Renaissance Festival was fun as always. We caught the usual shows: Ded Bob, Hack n Slash and shopped and ate.

Jennifer Daniels and Adam Levy put on a great show at Eddie's Attic. Jen told of her dog's latest adventure getting stung by a porcupine in Vermont before a show in Boston.

We went to the Friday showing of Shake at the Lake in Piedmont Park. This year they were doing A Comedy of Errors. They took a lot of liberties with the story but it was tremendous fun. The costumes were very cool, especially Pinch's assistants - Nurses in white PVC, who were very sexy. Just as the show started the sky opened up with a 15 minute rain shower, But nobody left. The staff handed out plastic and covered the stage with a giant tarp. When the rain ended, they toweled up the stage and the show started about 30 minutes late.

April

The Inman Park Festival was very nice. The weather was beautiful and there were lots of arts to see. I enjoyed the food: A roasted corn-on-the-cob and Gyro and even a turkey leg. I skipped the parade and missed Diane Durret. But there's always next year. This year there were a couple of people in body paint doing the human statue performance are. There was a Golden Ballerina and a Silver Queen handing out Hershey's Kisses. They were very cool.

Some friends and I went to see A Midsummer Night's Dream at the Shakespeare Tavern. It took us two tries because the electronic ticketing didn't work the first time so we ended up seeing the last show. It was very funny and we had fun. Drew Reaves as Puck and Jeff McKerley as Bottom the Weaver, were great - The lead actors, Maurice Ralston as Oberon and Amee Vyas as Titania, were not.

I made a solo venture down to the Atlanta Dogwood Festival to see the arts. Storms the night before kept most people away which meant it wasn't crowded. The art was light and there seemed to be more food than usual but it was nice.

March

Ice Age 2 was cute but not as good as the first. I especially didn't like the storyline of a female mammoth that though she was a possum then offended when the male mammoth hit on her.

My artists friend Eva (A.K.A. Martini-Girl) invited me to her photo shoot so I could play with my new toys. It was suppose to be a bridal themed shoot and most of the formal pictures were very romantic. My new camera and laptop worked great, once I figured out how to use them. There were several shoots going on at two of the neighbor's houses and at their house which was both chaotic and exciting. The other photographers were very nice to work with and I had a lot of fun. Lana, the make-up artist let me take some very racy pictures of her. The Bamboo dress shown to the right looked amazing on her. Briana, Jamie, Emily and Aubry were very beautiful and nice to work with too. I can't wait to do it again.

I saw V for Vendetta with a friend and really enjoyed it. I'm sure many people will read into the movie some anti-Bush sentiment but I don't. Several of my coworkers agree with some news commentators that it's wrong to make a movie criticizing the government while we're at war, but I disagree. I think movies should be put on hold just because a few people don't like the timing. It was a very thought provoking movie and I think it had an important lesson to teach. So I recommend it - highly!

We celebrated Saint Patrick's Day in my office with a pot-luck lunch complete with corned beef and cabbage. Most people brought something in and we all had a good time.

Ultraviolet was very disappointing. The story was terrible the visuals fair and the action weak.

February

We did the King Cake thing at work for Mardi Gras. Nothing too exciting but something I like to do.

The Dell Laptop arrived and has become a fun toy. It's wireless ready which meant I had to convert my home to wireless. It's fun to take to the bars and I enjoy having it.

My tax return arrived and I've bought a new camera. It should arrive next week. I'm very excited since it's my first new camera in 8 years. At the end of the month I'll buy a laptop to go with it to download and show the pictures as I take them.

Another night of Team Trivia with the coworkers. We were doing pretty well until the last question. We got the question wrong and got spanked. Still, we had fun.

I met some long lost cousins this week. Stefanie is from my maternal grandfather's side of the family that we never had much contact with. They were nice people and their little baby Blaine was a typical terror in the restaurant. But Howard did his best and we had a really nice visit.

January

I met some friends for Chinese New Year!   Year of the Red Dog at the Atlanta Chinese Cultural Center. Several Asian clubs were performing and there was all kinds of foods to try. We all enjoyed it a lot. The Eros Society Chinese New Year Party was disappointing. Very few people had shown up by the time I left at 1am. Those that were there were part of a very tight knit group of friends that huddled together in one room on a large couch. I didn't feel welcome at their party and there was nothing happening for me to participate in: no dancing, no celebrating, just talking in a back room. The place was well decorated with a Chinese theme and everyone was dressed appropriately, and I met some people, but overall I didn't have much fun.

We did the Team Trivia thing twice this month. Me and a coworker actually managed to beat several teams out and win a third place prize.

Underworld, the movie was very exciting and quite entertaining. The action was plentiful enough to fill the whole two hours. It won't be a classic but it was fun. Kate really looks good in a corset!

Happy New Year!

You can still visit the news archives from: 2005, 2004, 2003, 2002, 2001, 2000, 1999, or 1998.

All pictures are the property of Stefan and are not to be posted on other websites or published in any medium without express written permission. Questions, comments, and corrections are always welcome.

Created Oct. 10, 1995 Updated 16 Dec 2006 © 2006 Stefan Oestreicher. All rights reserved

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