Jerry Timms

Friday night Jerry and I finally got Vicky to come out with us. We walked to the Arizona Center where we had dinner and wine at Uno, and then continued walking to Amsterdam afterwards for drinks. It was interesting to walk around downtown again and see the progress on the light rail. It seems like it’s almost done, but I guess there are still power lines lines to build and street and traffic direction infrastructure.

Walking on the light rail tracks down Central Avenue

When we got to Amsterdam, it was a light crowd, and Vicky even asked if it was closed down right before we went in. We found a larger crowd on the patio, and took some seats on the balcony. Jerry got awkwardly hit on by a lesbian. The vibe of Amsterdam has definitely changed since the opening of Burn, and I think it’s also being affected by the restrictive construction all around the building.

Aw, I missed Vicky!

Saturday night was Mark’s birthday dinner at Fate, where everyone had a delicious dinner but consistently disappointing martinis. One tasted like a margharita pizza (with tomato juice and basil) and one tasted like lemon pledge (with fresh ginger juice). The coconut curry is still my favorite dinner there, even if it does look a little like pea soup sometimes. After Fate we went back to Mark and Andrea’s place for a bit before heading back out to Burn, where we all had jello shots and vodka drinks. Rich and Justin stalked some of the waiters and Mark got appropriately birthday-drunk. Afterwards we hung out some more at Mark and Andrea’s before calling it a late night.

Andrea, Mark, Rich and Justin at Burn

Earlier in the week, Daren and I went to Seamus McCaffrey’s for some drinks and discussed the recent developments in our dating lives. Daren is back with Phaedra, but I’m pretty much out of luck with the original Mr. X’s. As I mentioned before…one is moving away and one really doesn’t seem to be interested at all, so that’s that. There are some possibilities out there still, and I probably won’t really go into them until I see where they’re going.

Diet and working out are still going well. I really like the supplements I’m taking - all from German American Technologies, which seems to be a pretty quality brand. Me and a lot of my other friends are taking the XC4 creatine, and I’ve also been taking the Stenandiol 3.0 system. Oh, and EAS 100% whey protein shakes. Overall I think they’ve helped me put on a little more muscle, and I’m happy to report that I don’t look totally hideous in a tank top anymore.

It’s hard to take pictures of yourself!

Last night was our UFC Core party at Vicky’s house where we drank, ate, and watched the homoerotic spectacle known as UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship) on pay-per-view. We also got a chance to see Jason and meet some of the members of Vicky’s secret social group.

Honestly? It seems gay just to watch this UFC stuff. I have no idea what the straight people get out of watching nearly naked guys rolling around in near simulated sex scenes. I asked Jerry about this later in the night, and he tried to explain that it’s not gay if punches are also being thrown. I think all the other guys in the room would have made similar statements if asked. If, like me, your BS meter is getting a suspicious reading from that statement, well…

This is Alessio Sakara from the weigh-in before UFC 70. Weigh-ins are indistinguishable from underwear photo shoots.

Bruce Weber directed this weigh-in of Rich Clementi

This move is actually called The Anaconda

I think this is called frottage

Another example of The Anaconda. That look of pain on his face tells you this isn’t gay.

This is what’s known as a power bottom

Honestly, these captions just write themselves at this point

I’m not going to harp on this too long, because a lot of straight guys don’t like being backed into a corner where they have to admit to themselves that they enjoy a little homoerotic display now and then. Personally I enjoyed the fight. And even though it’s an odd culture I can certainly appreciate it for what it is…soft core porn.

Note how girls are used in the background of the weigh-ins so that all those guys don’t feel completely gay for assembling to watch two UFC fighters strip down to their underwear…

So you see what I’m saying about this thinly veiled homoeroticism. I mean, I almost lost it last night when Joe Rogan started talking about how one fighter was “giving him the Anaconda from behind.” Ok.

Later in the night, some sort of tension developed about what to do after the fight was over. I’m not really sure how that started or what it was really about, but I ended up feeling a little uncomfortable about it.

Deanna and I headed back to the Governor’s Mansion where we decided to get a cab and meet Jerry out at a new bar for us called Bar Smith. It’s an interesting space next door to Burn, and we remarked how the crowd was a similar version of Scottsdale. After Jerry left just a little early due to an early work day he had planned, Deanna and I went next door to Burn where we were really surprised that they wanted us to pay $20 cover for the remaining hour that they would be open. So after nixing that idea, we walked to Seamus McCaffrey’s to have a few drinks with Daren.

So, there you have it. I’m going now to do some more UFC research…

Well last night was the Core event with Jerry, Vicky, and Deanna. We went to La Cage Aux Folles at the Arizona Broadway Theater, to Burn where we met Daren, Rich and Justin for dancing and drinks in our VIP cabana, and then finished the night at the governors mansion. I didn’t acually end up with as many pictures as I thought, but we all had a great time and it was fantastic as usual to see everyone!

Here are some pictures from last weekend…

Friday night I went with Rich and Justin to the Red Magazine anniversary party at Burn. The club actually cleared out pretty early, and it felt like we had the place to ourselves!

Saturday evening I was invited over for a St. Patrick’s Day dinner at Mary Lou’s house (that’s Jerry and Vicky’s mom). Dinner was delicious, and afterwards we played an Ireland trivia game. In this pic you can see Mary Lou reading a question while everyone gets excited to blurt out the answer! Mary Lou always goes all out for holidays, and I’m always amazed at the traditions that their family has for each one!

Saturday night started at Fate for an after dinner drink with Rich, Justin, Mark and Andrea. Then we headed to Burn for dancing and more drinks. Notice how hard I’m working on my tan for the White Party? Oddly, I was the only one wearing green.

Sunday night, Rich and Justin called me up to go to dinner with them since they were in the area “taking a drive.” Well, I knew right away why they were in central Phoenix, and that’s because they were looking at neighborhoods and houses! Even though they recently decided they were going to move to LA sometime soon, I think they are starting to get cold feet because of the prices there. So it seems that a move to central Phoenix might be a good compromise for awhile…they get to be in a more urban setting than they’re in now, without having to commit to a much more dramatic move to Los Angeles.

So anyway we went to dinner at Ticoz, where the food is delicious and the waiters make you blush by remembering really old online conversations. Then we decided to go to Padlock for drinks, where we all took our shirts off so that we could get the drinks for half price. It was actually a really odd and unpredictable day, but fun of course. See Rich and Justin, you can’t do this stuff in Mesa!

Well I’m sunburnt, bruised and sore…but it was all worth it, because a great time was had by all during Vicky’s Core snowboarding weekend in Flagstaff! Jerry and I were talking on the way back home in the car, and agreed that the bar is set pretty high for next time (which is my weekend). Luckily though, we seem to be out of our funk, and laughed and had fun the entire time we were in Flagstaff.

#5 and #6 took this picture of us as soon as we got to snowbowl

Deanna’s getting it

Vicky’s getting it

Jerry finally pulled down that creepy ski mask

Back at the hotel, we took a quick nap and then headed downstairs for some drinks

And then to Sakura, the hotel teppanyaki restaurant for dinner and some more drinks…

…and even more drinks

This restaurant isn’t shy with the fire effects!

Nothing special here, we were just waiting for a cab…

…still waiting for that cab

The cab driver finally showed up and took us to the Hotel Monte Vista, where we met up with my friend Chiara - my friend and her boyfriend Jaron was playing that night with his band Shawn Johnson and the Foundation

The music and energy were fantastic, and we continued to have a great time

Thanks everyone for a great Core in the Pines!

Tonight I’m trying to wind down a little early since I have to be up at the crack of dawn to drive up to Flagstaff with Jerry, Vicky and Deanna for a day of snowboarding, drinking and general mischief. That’s right, it’s time for another Core! I’m really glad we’ve been able to keep up with these special plans, and I’m also impressed that we’ve been able to get more and more creative with what we do together.

February has been a really fantastic month, as I just got back from a trip to San Francisco last weekend with Rich, Justin, Philip and Bernard. Although I thought I might be pushing the limits with 3 parties in one weekend, I never really felt tired at all this week.

In fact I was so excited for the upcoming White Party in Palm Springs that I returned to my workout almost right away, never skipping a beat. Which is good, because I’m getting constant reminders that the White Party is in 6 weeks, and time is running out to prepare. I even got a White Party DVD in the mail yesterday from Jeffrey Sanker. Luckily, my new treadmill was delivered on Tuesday, and I am really enjoying using it. It was a lot bigger than I thought it would be, so I couldn’t put it out in the gym…I had to set it up in the living room for now, either until I can clear out another ajoining room, or someone comes over the house to help me move it. It’s pretty cool because it has a built-in TV and iPod dock. So while I’m running, I can either play that White Party DVD or listen to some music to keep me motivated.

That’s about all for tonight. I will just close by telling ALL of my friends how much I’ve enjoyed spending more time with them lately - whether it’s chatting, dining, working out, bar hopping, clubbing, snowboarding, or any of the other things that we love to do…the months and years keep getting better and better.

Here are some pictures from San Francisco last weekend…

This morning I got an unexpected call from a core member. It seems this member thought I was mad at them, or wished them some sort of ill will, because I mentioned one of their past significant others - and how I had contacted this person to say hi on myspace. This was surprising to me, because I certainly would never be mad at this person, and certainly would not do something like this to make a point with them. I felt terrible! In fact, I thought the conversation last weekend around this was more funny than anything - but I guess that I horribly misjudged how this was going to be perceived. It was seen as mean-spirited, and I’m sorry for that.

I explained that I am online almost all of the time - and if I contact someone, or research someone, it’s not to make a point - it’s just one of the things that I do for fun. I try not to take anything seriously online, but some do (or don’t know exactly what to make of some things), and I should remain conscious of that.

We made amends, and talked about some other things. It seems the core get together on Saturday was a bit odd for everyone - and so I’d like to challenge everyone to blog about it. Not naming names, of course. But something was amiss all around. Was it because we skipped a month? Was it because we’re a bit burned out from the holidays? Was it because some of us quit smoking and don’t know how to relate to each other without cigs in our hands? Or, was it because we have so much empathy for each other that a problem with one or 2 of us becomes a problem for all of us?

One of you told me that I looked uncomfortable/quiet because we were in straight Scottsdale locations…you may be right about that. I certainly prefer to be in a more relaxed environment, and for me that usually means a gay or mixed environment. But you actually got so uncomfortable and quiet during a conversation that we had, that I felt a bit uncomfortable myself. Why is that?

Time to spill, core members.

(For those of you who don’t know, the “core” is me and 3 of my friends. I’m the newest addition to this group, but we have all known each other for at least about 10 years - the other 3 have known each other for longer than that. We get together at least once per month for a planned dinner/activity/boozefest, and we rotate who gets to choose the activity and venue. There are various other rules and traditions that I won’t bore you with, but these are the basics.)

So today I’m recovering a bit from a wild weekend with all my friends. 3 days, 3 groups of friends, and 3 different types of venues.

Friday Jerry and I went to Palazzo for Tranzylvania. After a surpisingly short and cheap cab ride, we got our drink on, listened to some music, and I took part in some traditional tai chi stalking. The crowd was much better than the last time we’d been here, when the whole scene seemed like a bad b-movie remake of the actual Tranzylvania experience.

Saturday was the core event with Jerry, Vicky and Deanna. Although we planned to go to Cafe Blue in Scottsdale, it was surpisingly shut down when we got there. So, we decided to go to Furio instead and walked in at just the right time, when the party before us had cancelled their table. We had a nice dinner and some pitchers of sangria and margaritas. After dinner, and some decadent chocolate fondue, we went to the bar at the valley Ho for fireside drinks and chat.

Vicky, Jerry, Deanna and Me at Furio in Scottsdale

Sunday was DJ Brett Henrichsen at Burn Nightclub, with Rich and Justin. While Phoenix certainly hasn’t become part of the party circuit yet, it was certainly nice to see a real DJ come to our new dance club. There were maybe about 100 people or less in attendance, and I could tell that Brett was a bit disappointed - but hey, we had a great time! After about 4 hours of dancing, I headed out with Justin and new local VIP celebrity Rich Brown.

Me and Rich at Burn Nightclub in downtown Phoenix

DJ Brett Henrichsen. Sorry the picture is so dark, but trust me he is incredibly hot and talented and I hope to meet him at a future event!