Saw a funny thing!!

I just had to share this ... I went down to Smart & Final yesterday to buy some coffee. Taped onto the entrance door there was a printed notice announcing a Coloring Competion for African American!! I kid you not. Our friend Pete has volunteerd to go down there and either steal it or take picture of it. I mean, what were they thinking!!!!

Oh, I nearly forgot!! Somebody who writes an article each week in the Desert Daily Guide (a gay guide to Palm Springs), wrote an article this week concerning all the things we should be grateful for living in Palm Springs. The list includes Michael Jacksons ranch was in Santa Barbara, no parking meters, roadrunners, a very understanding police force when they pull you over for an alleged Driving Under the Influence, hummingbirds, the tram, Stuart and Ian, WHATSAYWHAt?? So, we have no idea who this person is, I mean, nobody is called Caulden Holfield are they??

100% full on a Sunday!!!

Good heavens!!! 100% full on a Sunday night! Never heard of before and it's February. Why? Chub Fest of course ... they are enjoying themselves so much they won't leave but hey ho it pays the mortgage!!

Raining on Chub Fest weekend .. again!!!

It rained here this time last year! I said I would let you know how the Chub Fest weekend is going. Well, just when you think you've seen the biggest man on earth, a bigger one shows up!!! The boys are in from Canada (Montreal), France, Germany, New Zealand and of course USofA. USA is the gold medal winner hands down right now (no suprises there) with New Zealand coming in a close second. I think they've all checked in now. Imagine flying from New Zealand squeezed into a seat with the silver medal winner in the seat next to you!! Oh Boy .. No photos, sorry! One of our guests went down to the gate to let in his gentleman caller and locked himself out, almost bare assed naked. Well, he was bare assed naked as he was only wearing a very short T-shirt!!! Good job this is a very quiet street and not much traffic but I expect it gave the recoving alcoholics opposite something to stare at and break the monotony.

Did you all catch Pink's performance at the Grammys? If not, do yourself a favour and check it out. It's been pulled from You-Tube but it's available on other sites.

Blogging again!!

Well, here I am finally!!! I know this is supposed to be a blog about Chaps Inn but I am going to digress ... I drove into my job at W.M. Creations in North Hollywood on Monday and back here Wednesday. What a difference with the weather (see previous blog). The journey usually takes 1hr 45mins more or less. Coming home it took 3 hours, the longest time in almost 10 years!! Not a bad record I suppose. An accident on the 10 freeway, of course! I went to Jack in the Box in Calimesa for something because I left without lunch, joined the freeway and was sailing along when suddenly a row of stop lights and all 3 lanes ground to a halt. Stop go stop go. The accident was at the Beaumont exit now 3 lanes down to 2. Police, fire, ambulance, you name it I'm sure the lifeguard was there somewhere! Once we got past the accident it was like a burst boil ... everybody now wanting to make up for lost time ... watch out, coming through, me first get out of my way! Madness!!!

Went for dinner at John and Angela's (J&A) Monday night the first after they returned from their Christmas break in England. Yumoh! Turkey lasagne. Tommy and Scott were there and we had a good laugh as always. Good company, good food, good conversation and a few glasses of wine. Who could ask for more.

OK and very briefly (I know how boring long blogs can be talking about burst boils) and if any of my Swedish friends read this, light switch, light switch! When Stuart and I lived in North Hollywood, 3 doors up the road lived a couple of guys, Gerry and Jerry. Turned out that Gerry was a masseur and Stuart and I would occasionally visit for a well earned massage. Suddenly their house was on the market, they sold it for a song (much to J&A's chagrin), and moved. We never knew where they moved to UNTIL I was browsing through the Frontiers magazine two weeks ago and I saw an add for a masseur in Studio City, called Gerry. Could it possibly be? What are the odds?No way! I called and it is the same Gerry! Wow, so I booked myself an appointment, 6pm Tuesday, $70 for an hour.He gave me 90 minutes! I will spare you all the details but he is as delightful as ever and has not lost his touch. Unfortunatley Jerry died last year from a heart attack. They had been together for 29 years.
So listen up gays!!! If you are ever in the San Fernando Valley and feel in need of a really good massage from a lovely bearded and handsome man, Gerry's the one for you. He is the only masseur I know who gets on the massage table with you!!!!!! I don't know how he does it but suddenly he's there!!Call me for details!!!!

Finally, this is Chub Fest weekend and we are filling up and today is only Thursday. People from French France and Montreal are here. I'll let you know how it goes!!

Finally it stopped raining!!!!

It has poured with rain here in Palm Springs since last Monday. We have had, in one week, more than the average rainfall for an entire year!!!! I know, boo hoo poor us compared to the rest of the country and Europe (not to mention Haiti), this was nothing but ... when it's pouring with rain in Los Angeles and Palm Springs, nobody wants to visit .. not so good for business.

I drove in to LA Monday morning before the rain started. I got as far as Banning when the skies opened. The freeway wasn't bad, just the usual idiots still driving at 80mph without lights. But when I exited onto Lankershim Blvd., all the junctions on the surface streets were flooded and I mean FLOODED. Freaked me out I can tell you. When I finally got to work (after many u-turns and diversions) I arrived a nervous wreck!! Phyllis made me a cup of tea and Jackie offered me one of her tranquilisers!!! Never again!!! Tommy wanted to go for our regular Monday Indian but I wanted to stay home so we had a take-out and watched Taking Woodstock (five *****'s)anyway, he drove to the restaurant (Bollywood!)because I didn't want to drive. It was still bucketing down! Anyhow, today is a lovely clear blue sky day with a dusting of snow on the mountain. Very pictureque.

We had a note from our credit card processor than someone was claiming that he never stayed here when we know he did. Trying to stiff us for $600+. I filled in all the paper work, sent off copies of his registration form and signed credit card receipt and then wrote to him cancelling his reservation for this coming November. Yesterday we got a phone call from a friend of his to tell us he had died!! Excuse me .. he wasn't dead when he stayed with us so why dispure our charge?? How very rude!!! He wasn't a nice man, he was the one who got into a row with another guests for making anti sematic remarks!!! We knew he was going in to hospital for heart surgery and apparently he died whilst under the knife. This is the third person we knew who went into hospital for an operation and never came out. Right .. America has the finest health care in the world!! Give me 'socialized medicine' any day!!

Just another day

Marty & Jordy were here for Sunday night for the 15 party. Well, they're still here and today is Wednesday. Somebody (who will remain nameless), filled their gas tank with diesel ... phutt phutt phutttt... cough cough and it died. Had to be towed to the local garage who did what they do when somebody does that .. apparently it's not that rare. Their misfortune, our gain of an extra 3 nights.

Weather lovely wish you were here. Or .. weather here, wish you were lovely.
I just wanted to add, my dear cousin Barrie would have been 63 on Jan 11th had he still been around. I miss him and Gordon in Toronto and my dear Auntie Peg in London. Wish you were lovely!!!!

A New Year!!

Well, here we are, January 12th almost halfway through the month. Where do I begin? Christmas day ... just the two of us but I was sick and spent most of the day in bed. New Years Eve .... we were both in bed by 11pm!!! We havn't seen the New Year in for about 7 years!!! We were busy for the New Year. Not so for Christmas. A very good goodbye to 2009. Two more of our regular guests have bought a house here so we won't be seeing much of them in the future. We have lost count of the number of people who used to stay with us, moved here or bought property. They move here and we never see them again. We think of them as friends but apparently they think of us as just Inn keepers. I think I'll start a list sometime. I see people at the gym and I don't remember if I know them from seeing them at the gym or if they stayed with us.

Moving on ... I have hesitated telling this story but we had trannies staying here for one night between Christmas and the New Year which does not do our reputation any good at all! It started off with a phone call enquiring about a room for the night. Two guys arrived and were let in by a guest who was leaving the premises(hint to guests .... don't let anyone in unless you KNOW they are staying here). They were in the office when I glanced up and saw a woman walking towards the office. I asked .. ' you do know this is a gay mans hotel'? 'Oh yes, she's a trannie' came the reply. Mmmmm what difference does that make? Most trannies are straight arn't they? Later, Miss thing came in to the office and said to Stuart, 'I've been a naughty girl, will you spank me??? To which Stuart replied ... certainly NOT.
What else, oh a 15 association gathering Sunday afternoon. The propane gas tank for the grill caught fire so there was no barbeque. Quick acting by Stuart extinquished the fire. About 25 men were here for the afternoon.