glenvox

Long Train Runnin'...

2011-01-11T11:20:00.000-06:00

A good day! My goal to reach a weight-loss of 40 pounds before January 19th - the day I leave to visit my folks in Arizona - happened today! I am so thankful I reached my goal a week early! Todays weigh-in makes 41.5 pounds in 51 days! I have a long way to go still on this weight-loss train, but defenitely happy with my progress. I have a few friends who are also getting healthier and we are doing great! It is so important to have their support. I can't imagine doing it or being nearly as successful with out it!

I am celebrating reaching my goal by ordering some fun shoes! It's important to celebrate successes with non-food rewards.

Polo Ralph Lauren Men's Roberts Lace-Up Fashion Sneaker by Polo Ralph Lauren

Hello Again, Hello

2011-01-02T10:44:00.008-06:00

A new year and a new commitment to blogging. It has been some time since I have written via this medium. Status updates on Facebook have replaced the frequent Blog updates.

43 days ago I began a weight lo ss and healthy eating journey. With the help and support of some amazing friends I have been quite successful in getting some of this excess "me" off of my body. Rather than a daily weigh-in I will be posting major news, challenges, and wins via this Blog.

Recent wins:

Resisting holiday treats in the break room at work which included Pumpkin Pie Cheesecake
Losing my first 10 pounds on Day 7
Adjusting my watchband to another hole-punch because it was spinning on my wrist
Losing 25 pounds on Day 31, four days before my goal date of Christmas Day
Able to button some of my shirts that I couldn't wear before because of my large stomach
Losing 30 pounds two days before my goal of December 31st
Successfully resisting the urge to drink some Bourbon and eat unhealthy hors d'oeuvres during New Years Eve
Starting 2011 off with a weight-loss of 32 pounds

A picture of me after 25 pound weight-loss

and an example of a shirt I couldn't button before.

When the music's over...

2009-03-17T15:10:00.003-05:00

Well, after nearly seven years of working in the travel industry, the journey is over. On Tuesday, 3/3/09 I was laid-off from The Travel Franchise Group. There were several other extremely talented people also let go. I cannot say it was a shock. I could smell change in the air. I think my co-workers were more upset than I was. At one point I said "Hey, I haven't died! I will be fine." I guess I am not in a writing mood as I type this, but wanted to at least update the blog.

65 years old, my mother God rest her soul...

2009-01-06T12:05:00.010-06:00

This weekend marked three years since my mom passed away. Although time has helped ease the pain, this time of year always makes me emotional. Below is a picture of her in the 1970's at Buck's Lake, one of her favorite places...that's how I will always remember her. Also included here is a picture of her ashes on the shores of Buck's Lake.

Heather Arvin 1940-2006

Here is what I wrote to friends and family in January 2006:

Dear friends and family;

On January 4th, at approximately 8:45 p.m. Pacific time, Heather Arlene Arvin, my mom, passed away due to numerous medical complications. My Mom's partner of 19 years, Linda, was with her. Mom's wishes were for no memorial service. She will be cremated.

Her spirit will live on within me. Her humor, love of music and nature are a part of me, and gifts I will always treasure. Her determination to be who she truly was gave me the courage to live my life as I truly am.

She was in so much pain for so many years. Now she is free. I will miss telling her dumb jokes. Miss her stories about the good ol' days. I will miss her laugh. But most of all I will miss telling her "I love you".

that's what friends are for...

2008-12-14T20:42:00.005-06:00

Saturday night we threw a surprise birthday party for our good friend, Chuck.
When I say "we", I mean 62 people, who chipped-in and bought Chuck a new MacBook.
Chuck was overwhelmed and everyone's heart was warmed when he opened his new computer.

There was much love and friendship that night...

Happy Birthday, Chuck!

spill the wine...

2008-12-07T18:40:00.003-06:00

The first ever Bears Uncorked! party was a success!
About 20 guys got together Saturday night and sampled wine and enjoyed some great food!

Jeremy was awesome as our wine instructor.
Taking a bunch of beer drinking Bears and doing an "Wine 101" course wasn't easy!

Chuck did a great job keeping the food supply steady for the Bears!

A good time was had by all...
...and, actually, no wine was spilled...

we are family...

2008-12-04T13:25:00.002-06:00

Kudos to Greg Evans, creator of the Luann comic strip for GLBT inclusion!

reminiscing...

2008-11-28T18:16:00.019-06:00

Wednesday night some of the old gang got together for karaoke at a relatively new bar called Bamboo Betty's. My friend Brenda, who has one of the most beautiful voices, personalities, and faces in the known universe was the hostess.

Chad Dutton, whom I have been friends with for over 10 years and I sang the Muppets "Rainbow Connection".
When I say Muppets I mean we sing in the voices of Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, Gonzo, Animal, Dr. Bunsen Honeydew, Beaker, Sam the Eagle, Janice, and the Swedish Chef.

I also sang Neil Diamond's Sweet Caroline which was a hit; the audience was singing right back to me.

Robin, the host who was at the 90's when I started singing karaoke was also there and he sang with Brenda. Bobby (Spanky) sounded good too! It was good to see some of the folks that I first started doing karaoke with.

until next time...

puttin' on the ritz...

2008-11-17T13:46:00.014-06:00

What an evening! I attended the ICON Awards Sunday with my buddy Joe.

It was nice to get all dressed up in a Calvin Klein "chocolate" tuxedo. It was a little strange to hear my voice all evening and not be the anonymous voice behind the scenes, but "exposed" to the audience. However; I made some great contacts and heard a lot of positive feedback from those in attendance. At one point, there was a technical glitch in the playback, and it cut off the last word of a sentence. I was able to instantly recall the phrase and finished it "live". When it cut off I said in my announcer voice "...theme!", with the audience laughing in surprise.

After the awards, Joe and I stayed for a bit and socialized while listening to the Minnesota Jazz Orchestra belting out Cole Porter and Nat King Cole tunes, among others. The band, especially the female lead vocalist Deb, kept looking over at Joe and I, amazed we knew the words to these American Songbook standards. I guess we are not your typical folks...there's a plethora of lyrics and melody's stored up in our brains; me from radio and Joe from his experience as a musician. Of course Joe and I both love karaoke, where we met in 1999. I would say 80% of my friends are a direct result of meeting at karaoke. What's wonderful about it is that you instantly have something in common; love of music!

until next time...

the freaks come out at night...

2008-11-03T14:43:00.000-06:00

Now the party's jumpin', the place is packed
And when the crowd's like this, I'm ready to rap
But before I could bust a rhyme on the mic
Freaks are all over me like white on rice
Freaks come in all shapes, sizes and colors
But what I like about 'em most is that they're real good lovers
They do it in the park, they do it in the dark
But most freaks are known for breakin' hearts
You could never tell what a freak was thinkin' of
And you may never catch a freak without at least one glove
And they don't walk, when they step, they strut
And nine times out of ten they drive you nuts
But take my advice, you don't stand a chance
Freaks are so bad they got their own dance
So if you wanna live a nice quiet life
Do yourself a favor, don't come out at night, 'cause
The freaks come out at night

Went to Halloween party with Matthew on Friday night. The party was at Jamie and Jeremy's house in Shakopee.

It was a mild night, which was good since Matthew was dressed as a caveman, and several people had revealing costumes. The bonfire was nice and warm, and the backyard was filled with spooky fog. I did not dress in costume. I thought I would be the only one, but there were others who chose not to dress in costume, including my roommate, Kevin. In my "former life" as a full-time radio personality, I had to dress up every Halloween to host parties, contests, etc several times during the week of the holiday, and I just don't find it appealing anymore. Matthew and I only stayed at the party for a couple of hours - we were both tired and just not feeling in a party mood for whatever reason. Saturday I just stayed home, and that evening Kevin and I spent a rare Saturday night in, watching Poltergeist, SNL, and some DVR television shows. Sunday night Kevin and I went to karaoke at Rumours & Innuendo, which was fun. We were home by midnight to start the new week.

until next time...

the boys are back...

2008-10-25T10:56:00.025-05:00

My friend Joe and I went to see HSM3 last night. Yes, two grown men went to see "Senior Year". The audience was primarily teen girls and gay men - not much difference really. We met up at The Saloon for a cocktail and a bite to eat. We played a couple of really stupid video games while waiting for our food, and then had another cocktail. Joe and I were determined to be buzzed for the movie. We walked to Block E theater and sat down amongst the teen girls and gay men. I am not sure the filmmakers thought that the entire theater would laugh throughout the movie, but we all did - the "camp" factor was turned up to "11". The acting was so bad that it appeared the songwriters wrote songs just to move the story along so the "actors" didn't have to memorize dialogue.

Here are some things I learned from High School Musical 3: Senior Year:

It can rain, on queue, without a cloud in the sky!
It takes and entire dance number to celebrate that it took 15 seconds to find a magic radiator cap that fits an old truck!
The songwriters were listening to Michael Jackson's "Bad" and Backstreet Boys' "Everybody (Backstreets Back)" while writing many of the numbers.
The Wildcats have an unlimited budget for both the Sports and Drama department! The stage and seating area is bigger than at most colleges!
You can get from Albuquerque, NM to Stanford University, dance a waltz, and make it back in time to sing in the Senior Musical, all with a truck that has a bad fuel pump!
Don't even get me started on continuity errors!

I really enjoyed High School Musical (1). I thought it was a sweet story. HSM3 wasn't even for the fans, it was for a quick buck. Oh, and to set up HSM4 with Matt Prokop to continue the cash cow franchise.

until next time...

monday monday...

2008-10-20T15:27:00.029-05:00

Sunday was a typical lazy morning. Kevin made some Caribou Obsidian coffee and I enjoyed that along with a crisp autumn morning.

I spent the majority of the day attacking my laundry mound which is actually getting manageable. How does it get out of control so quickly?

Sunday afternoon I put on my new Polo sweatshirt I bought at the MOA the day before with Matthew and headed to the Bolt for beer-bust. I arrived at about 5pm, and man it was a bust! There was hardly anyone there. Matthew said he had already played countless games of pool and was surprised it was so dead. I have to say I was surprised, too. Matthew and I hung out for a while sipping tap beer and discussing life. I ran into my friend Chris, and we talked for a while. Matthew got bored with the Eagle and went to have dinner with a friend.

Even though I hadn't planned on it, I drove over to Innuendo and sang karaoke for a couple of hours. I tried some different stuff I don't normally sing. The rotation was light, so I got to sing quite a few times. Some of the songs I tried for the first time were:

I'd say out of the three the Frank Sinatra song was the best fit for me. I also did "Kentucky Rain" which I hadn't done in years! My friend Vince was there too, so it was nice to visit with him. He has such a nice voice for country.

until next time...

there's a place for fun in your life...

2008-10-18T20:14:00.000-05:00

Since Matthew is new to the Twin Cities I played tour guide Saturday and we went to the Mall of America. I don't think Matthew realized how large it truly was until I showed him the Nickelodeon Universe Theme Park in the center. We walked around looking for somewhere "fun" to eat lunch and decided on Johnny Rockets. We both stimulated the economy a bit and left just as it seemed everyone was arriving. We then spent a lazy afternoon on the couch watching Finding Nemo and napping - tough day! I am giving karaoke a break Sunday and will be heading to the Bolt in Minneapolis for Beer Bust and Show-tunes! I have to sing on a Sunday in some capacity!

until next time...

take the "a" train...

2008-10-16T14:51:00.008-05:00

Had fun Wednesday as we had an off-site team building meeting with work. We all drove to Stillwater, MN for a ride on the Minnesota Zephyr. Good food, good music, and good times had by all!

at last...

2008-10-16T14:11:00.020-05:00

After a couple of months of chatting online, I finally met Matthew, when he stopped by Rumours during karaoke Sunday night. If you can believe it, he's even more handsome in person!

Matthew was nice enough to take a picture of me and Vince who helped me a couple of weeks ago with my lymph nodes issue prior to karaoke. He's got magic hands!

This picture, taken by Matthew, represents "me". This is the space I was occupying at Rumours Sunday night. You have the Neil Diamond hat representing my core karaoke artist, change from Jesse's bar, my cellphone, some water, Vodka/Cran with a lime, and karaoke slips filled out and ready to be handed to Jeremy. It's me at karaoke without the person.

After spending Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights at Rumours & Innuendo, I will not be going to karaoke this weekend.

until next time...

shake your booty...

2008-10-12T15:25:00.002-05:00

The North Country Bears OctoBear Dance was a huge success! My roommate Kevin, President of the NC Bears, worked very hard to make the Silent Auction and Dance a great event for all, raising almost $3,000 for District 202! The entire NC Bears board is to be commended for a job well done!

another one bites the dust...

2008-10-08T15:13:00.015-05:00

Last night was Part One of the Project Runway finale. A few folks came over to the condo to watch on the big TV. We love Heidi Klum and Tim Gunn!

Well it's three women in the Bryant Park Finale next week! Crazy! A fun time was had by all: Jonathan, Joe, Jon and Ryan! A little pizza, a little wine and some friends - a perfect evening!

Joe, Jonathan, Jon, and Ryan enjoying pizza

rumours has it...

2008-10-06T14:34:00.019-05:00

Went to Rumours for karaoke last night. My friend Vince worked on my lymph nodes to get the circulation flowing. It worked very well, and I didn't have any pain while singing last night. The new space at Rumours & Innuendo is nice. The sand-blasted brick and bar reminded me of the old Boom bar in Minneapolis. Jesse looked good behind the new bar (he always looks good), but the new bar has no credit card machine nor beer taps. So it was kind of a pain for the folks who bought the beer bust to have to get the tap beer at the front of the bar (Innuendo). I just got some cash instead of running to the front bar to add to my tab. I would rather have
Jesse taking care of me.

Vince and I sat in the new space before it "officially opened" and read the Always Moore Karaoke book in a relaxed manner and really took time to look at songs and artists I don't usually take time to read. I usually just go for the songs I know and quickly fill out some slips. It sure is nice to be such good friends with the hosts Jamie and Jeremy. We all met through music and it is a special connection.

Vince and I met a very nice guy, Mike G. He was kind of hesitant to sing because of some of the high level of talent that night, but we convinced him (I think) that it's all about having fun and no attitude. He sang three times, so I think he felt more comfortable by the end of the night.

Well, that's about it - a good time had by all. The new space sounded great! Great for the singers too, with a nice clear, loud monitor. I made it home in time to get 8 hours of sleep. This morning I tried the lymph technique Vince taught me and I think it worked pretty well!

until next time...

like a virgin...

2008-10-05T17:23:00.016-05:00

After the big "40" in August I thought I would start doing some of those things I always meant to do. One of those was trying out blogging as self-expression. I am a horrible typist, and thought it might be a way to improve my typing skills, too. Never hurts to multi-task!

My first Blog entry! I am thinking this will be a place for friends, or others who may be interested, to learn a bit more about me. I will, of course, be adding to the about me section, but I guess I'll begin with what went on this weekend - not much!

Friday after work was typical: came home and made some dinner and drank some wine, watched TV. Saturday I actually got up and made some coffee and watched some HGTV in HD! Caught up on some DVR shows and spent much of the day on the computer just surfing. Saturday night I drove to the liquor store to pick up some wine and got a Subway BLT - just didn't feel like cooking anything.

This morning I woke up to my roommate, Kevin, calling me. He wanted to go to Fat Nat's Eggs for breakfast and do some grocery shopping at Trader Joe's. He was driving back from his friends Paul's house after a night on the town. We are so different in that way: He loves to go out and I am content just staying in. Anyway, I got up and took a shower and promptly cut myself shaving and bled all over the damn shower. I guess I had a scrape or something under my left ear. Took about 10 minutes and several pieces of toilet paper before it stopped. Ugh, hate that! I got dressed and then Kevin arrived. We went to Fat Nat's Eggs, which was very good. I have to start bringing my camera a long for pictures of this stuff. Kevin had a Turkey/Avocado omelet with hash browns and I had a scramble with red potatoes, chorizo sausage with tomatoes and cheese. Very good! The owner was making the rounds and we discovered that his name isn't Nat, but Jeff Nat, and that his wife was there working that morning too. It was our first time there and we will be back. It's just down the street from the condo too. Kevin and I first knew of the restaurant from an ad in Lavender Magazine, and were pleasantly surprised to see copies available in a magazine stand in the front entry. We then drove to Lowe's as Kevin had to get some household stuff: Salt pellets, furnace filter, and some light bulbs. I took the opputunity to stay in the car and call my step mom, Margie, as it was her 66th birthday. I can't believe we are all getting up there in age! Crazy! Kevin came back to the car and unloaded his goods and spoke briefly to Margie and said we were "gathering up acorns for the winter" and made Margie laugh. I spoke again to Margie for a minute then to Dad and then we arrived at Trader Joe's. Kevin and I spent 20 min or so at TJ's and then drove on home.

I have been not feeling real great all weekend and last night discovered that my gland under my right jaw was swollen. Usually that means an infection somewhere in your body. It might be related to sinus or to my teeth. I need to take much better dental care.

I am still deciding, at 5:55pm as I write this, if I am up for karaoke tonight at Rumours in St Paul. I am thinking not, as I want to rest and get this stupid swollen gland down. I napped after we got home from the store this afternoon as I was feeling run-down.

UPDATE: After a chat with my friend Vince, who is a master masseur, he convinced me to go to karaoke. He said I could come by his studio before karaoke and he would do some lymph drainage techniques on my swollen gland - it helps your lymph system flow! Cool huh? It's great to have talented friends!

Vince

until next time...