Paris

After an overnight flight into London, a train to Paris, then an all night party (Nuit Blanche) I crashed hard today (Sunday) and slept 18 hours - yikes! I guess all of the travel preceding contributed big. I feel great now and back to bed soon but wanted to post and say hello to everyone.

Live from New York

Sitting in Starbucks on the upper west side a few blocks south of Columbia University. Ricky's working on his Anthropology stuff, I'm working at nothing much at all. It's good.

We didn't make it to the game today though we spent a bit of time on campus yesterday. We're on our way to Ricky's fraternities homecoming party which shall be fun I am sure. Pirates of course, never Ninjas.

The hotel my travel agent hoked us up with is on 54th near Broadway - so not too far from Times Square and all of the touristy stuff - though we've typically stayed clear of that.
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An interesting thing happened Thursday. A recruiter called and pitched me on a position with her client's firm - Director of Professional Services for a major ERP software company. Based in NYC. This is without question what I currently do and I have about double their experience requirements :-) Shall be interesting...
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My divorce settlement is final. I was able to trade Laurie a pile of assets for the alimony so I'm pretty much a free man in those terms. I also set up an educational trust for Kristen so regardless of what happens to me, or where I'll find myself, she is taken care of. So all in all, life is truly starting anew, albeit with some really excellent advantages. A smart-funny-cute boyfriend, my kids, a great relationship with the ex, and nothing holding me back.

I want to Dance

I want to dance. I want to slow dance until the early hours of the morning.

I want to wake. I want to wake on a beach at sunrise, walk hand in hand, and share the cool comfortable sheets of an overstuffed bed for the remains of the day.

I want to walk. I want to walk through a New England wood deep in fall color, the crisp breeze bringing our hands together, our bodies closer as we smile.

I want to sit. I want to sit by a fire on a snowy day, as one, drawn to our books, to each other, to our lives.

I want to live. I want to live by the sea where the sun shines warm and the waves crash among us as we play.

I want to dance.

First Visit

Bouncing along on the train heading home, I realize how lucky I actually am. I mean, I'm not lottery lucky or anything but still, it was a great weekend and the next 11 days can't pass by quick enough for me. Ricky and I really hit it off as we knew we would having begun this weeks and weeks ago while he was in France. And soon I'm to be in France yet I to a small degree wish I were spending that time in Princeton.

Tons of travel on the horizon for me. Back to Atlanta for a software conference tomorrow. Next week I'm in Chicago the 24th-26th for another conference. That Thursday to Sunday (28th-Oct 1st) I'm in NY with Ricky for assorted fun and the Columbia homecoming game. Monday the 2nd I fly from NY to LA to attend yet another software conference, this time in Santa Barbara returning on the red-eye the morning of October 5th. That evening Stacy and I are going to go see the Indigo Girls at the Tabernacle (shall be fun). And then finally on October 6th I leave for Paris for the George Michael concert (and my last merit badge before I become a Gay-scout) by way of London and back again on the 15th. A week at home and then Ricky will be coming to Atlanta the weekend before Halloween. Halloween in Midtown - this too shall be fun.

A pretty intensive month to come :) *note to self: sleeeep*

Pretty much sums it up.

New boy

Well boys there is a new guy in my life.

His name is Lance and he really caught me by surprise. We met at the mall earlier today. He's kind of young but ya'know - I may never learn.

It's been an amazing day. We ended up over at my place and after a pretty intense day took a nap together. He was so cute laying across my chest. Such pretty eyes too.

Not to bore you but here's a picture of Lance.

Our worlds change, our friends fade

One disadvantage of being 40 is the insight into relationships, friendships, acquaintances and how those that we may enjoy at any one moment in our day to day lives will in almost every case inevitably fade; become distant memories and sometimes not even that.

We each go off to school, graduate, get married and start families, get our first jobs in a city far away. Meet other people. Eventually we loose touch. It happens. It will happen.

I look at the current friendships, relationships I’m involved in now and see all the potential for divergent futures, all the events to happen in all of the lives over the next 20 years. Just like the last 20.

These are not bad things; not even sad things. They just are. They will happen.

I’ve connected with so many new people and some from my past in on LJ and MySpace, through email, IM, other communities that I have a hope for the future that some of the connections, the relationships we have now can indeed withstand the tides of time.