Joe Biden (Our next VP)

Robert Kennedy (U.S. Senator)

Dierks Bentley and Josh Turner (Country singers)

Cody Linley (Actor, contestant from Dancing with the Stars)

Joel McHale (Comedian, host of The Soup)

Oh and um… someone else…

Me. I’m 27 today.

I requested a stripper but this lady distracted him and he canceled all his appointments…

It’s interesting that everyone seems to have the inside scoop on what God has been thinking lately. I can’t help but wonder how all these churches are talking to God?

Is God on Facebook? Can I call 411 and get God’s home phone number? Can I add God as a friend on MySpace? I’d really like to know.

I thought the only way to interpret the word of God is to read a Bible. I was raised in a Catholic church, I went to Sunday school, and I read the Bible. I don’t know if other people have a magical Bible with more answers, but I thought the copy I read was available to the general public.

The Bible I read spoke of love and compassion. It spoke of treating all human beings fairly and accepting everyone, even if we didn’t understand them. It taught me that even minorities, even gay people, deserved to be treated with the same respect as everyone else… because we are all God’s children.

I’m not sure where religious people get all their anger from. I have to wonder if they have even read the Bible, because I really have. The only way I know to talk to God is to pray. I pray for peace of mind, I pray for love and acceptance. I pray for kindness… that I may be a better person and that others will be better towards me. I pray for the answers to come to me in their own unique way.

Believing in God is a risk we take. Their is no physical evidence that God exists. There is no way to prove it. We have to decide how we want to live and decide what we believe in, and that’s the best any of us can do. We make a choice on our beliefs and we don’t know if we were right until we die.

So I encourage the religious community — stop speaking for God. You’re no better than I am. You don’t have any unique insight into God that I lack. We can’t speak for God, we can only speak for ourselves.

Own up to your prejudices, and accept them as your faults. But don’t blame your hatred and ignorance on God.

I believe in a God that loves me and made me exactly the way I am. If you believe in a God that’s anything less than loving, you obviously haven’t read the same Bible I read.

It’s a question as old as time. Where do missing socks go?

Do they have a runaway sock colony where they all gather at an undisclosed location?

Maybe this is a mystery the Hardy Boys could solve.

Last night was one of the funniest episodes of SNL I’ve seen in a long time! I guess other people felt the same because I’ve seen a lot of blogs posting clips from it.

I’ve always thought Paul Rudd was cute, so that was a big factor in why I liked it. He was also in almost every sketch, which is a lot of work.

One of my favorites was The Kissing Family:

The sketch for Everyone’s A Critic was good too:

But I think Justin Timberlake stole the show in the scene he did with Beyonce. Unfortunately, the video has been removed.

Nevertheless, many people are curious to find out more. Here’s a breakdown:

The man was suffering from cancer, and it was the cancer that was about to kill him (not HIV or AIDS). He was going to receive a bone marrow transplant, which is common in cancer treatment when chemotherapy doesn’t do the job.
One percent of the Caucasian population has a genetic mutation that is immune to HIV. It has been found in zero percent of other races, so let’s establish it is very rare to find.
As they were screening bone marrow donors, they discovered that one of them had this rare mutation. So they got the bright idea to combine the bone marrow treatment PLUS try to manipulate the cancer patient’s cells to get rid of the HIV.
Apparently it worked, as the patient is cured from HIV (or AIDS?) and has no detectable traces of the virus.

There are so many sidenotes to this. First of all, just because we can’t detect the virus does not mean it isn’t there. Since this is something we’ve never dealt with before, how do we know it isn’t a new strain that we don’t have the technology to detect?

Only time and testing is going to give us answers. This is extremely risky. You first have to use chemotherapy to destroy your existing bone marrow, which leaves you extremely vulnerable. The risk of dying is very high. If you are healthy and comfortably living with HIV, trying this kind of treatment could lead to an early demise.

Bone marrow treatments are also very expensive and combine that with the fact that only one percent of the Caucasian population has the mutation to block HIV.

All risks aside, I can’t help but be so excited and happy to hear of this case. I know there is a cure out there. I cannot insist enough that our next President must put more money and research into curing HIV and AIDS.

CNN has a very detailed and well explained article that covers the details. Click here to read it.

1) I feel these protests have angry intentions behind them, and I don’t feel that anger is an effective emotion. There are posters that mention “fighting hate”, and yet gay people are holding up hateful signs in front of churches. You can’t fight hate with hate. A protest might sound good on paper, but I’m concerned about things taking a very ugly turn if crowds get hostile.

2) I’m bothered that all these celebrities and news programs are running hour long specials about gay rights after the votes have been counted. Where were all these people before November 4th and why didn’t they organize protests when it could have really made a difference?

3) I’d like to know why it takes a ban on gay marriage to synchronize people in all 50 states? Why didn’t we ever organize a country wide protest of the Iraq war, where countless men and women have been dying for 5 years? Why didn’t we protest in 2006 when Bush cut federal funding for stem cells? Why don’t we ever have a Pro-Peace rally in all 50 states? Mother Teresa once said she’d never attend an Anti-War event, but would gladly show up to anything that was Pro-Peace. I agree with her outlook.

Gay marriage does matter, and I applaud the people who are protesting. But I have very mixed feelings about events that have anger as the core emotion driving them.

Let the religious groups keep the word marriage for now. Let’s make sure that civil unions with full benefits exist in all 50 states, and then we can work our way up to the “m” word.

I hope nobody takes this the wrong way and thinks I don’t support our community. I’ve been with my partner for almost 8 years, and I’d love it if we were married. But I feel we need to do some creative out of the box thinking. Stop wasting energy on gay marriage bans, which exist in most U.S. states now. Let’s find a way to get civil unions in every state, and start moving forward instead of looking back with bitterness.

Peace and love to all of you.

I used to get the winter blues, which apparently is a real condition that does depress millions of people. But the thing that makes the big difference is we have more sunny days here in Tennessee. I remember growing up in the midwest, where it was dark and cloudy all the way into March, which really took a toll on your moods. But here, we really don’t have that many dark days… at least not in a row. They are spread out and when I think of where we live, I think of sunshine.

Sunny and cold, I can deal with that. It’s also funny to see our dog Petey go outside to use the bathroom when it’s cold. Sometimes the grass is frozen and he tiptoes around on it. So cute. He certainly gets the job done quickly! He’s mid-stream by the time his paws hit the ground.

Bring on the cold!

I was surprised to read some of the names… American Express… Dell… Really?

Dell and American Express both have a 100 point rating with the HRC, and Dell is even a corporate sponsor of HRC. (See the complete list of gay friendly companies here.)

It’s a bit far fetched to believe companies this large actually sent a check to support Prop 8 with the company name on it.

When you make a donation to something, you are usually asked for your employer’s name. I remember being asked that when I contributed to Barack Obama. I strongly suspect that some employees from these companies made personal contributions, and when asked for the name of their employer, they put in Dell or Amex. I would almost guarantee that’s the root of these rumors.

I am in total agreement that we should boycott any company that supported Prop 8. BUT, we need to be smart about circulating internet rumors that claim an entire corporation supported Prop 8. It’s most likely not true.

I AM HAPPY. I AM OPTIMISTIC. I don’t care if the news says 90% of people are pessimistic, because I simply don’t believe it. The people I talk to expect things to get better, not worse. The people in my life know that happiness is something you create for yourself, not something you are just given.

Just because there are problems in the world does not mean we must be reminded of them every waking moment of the day. There are still positive things in the world. There will always be positive things in the world.

No bailout or economical fix can change what’s inside of us. We have to feel love and joy from the inside out. Not even our new great President can fix that. If you are not happy with your life, you can change it.

We have to appreciate the beauty that is life, because if we spend every day focused on the bad news, worried about the worst case scenarios, we’re not really living life to the fullest.

Hey news anchors… take some advice from me. Dedicate maybe 5 minutes to summarize what’s happening in the world with the economy. 5 minutes. That’s all you get. Spend the remainder of your program talking with local heroes in your community. Report stories that make people feel good and inspire them to do good in the world. Wouldn’t it be interesting to see what impact you might have with just one day of programming that focuses on happiness?

We need a National Smile Day.

Halloween was a big event on our street. There was a wreck at the intersection by our house. Don’t worry, nobody died, but it did bring the whole neighborhood outside to gawk. Rather than gawking, I just took photos.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch… Rodney, Petey, and I were dressed in matching orange. Aww…

A few hours later, lots of little ghosts and goblins showed up at our house for candy. Oh, and one woman with a plastic bag. No kidding.

As I’ve mentioned previously, I’m in the process of restoring my foreskin. I started about 6 weeks ago and have made great process with very little effort each day.

Some of you have asked exactly how this works, and I’ll do my best to explain. I’m basically taking the excess skin I have on my penis and pulling it forward (comfortably and without pain). I do it a few times each day. This expands the tissue. When you stretch out the tissue on the penis, it stimulates mitosis, which is the splitting of cells. When the cells split, you generate more cells. Over time, this means you’ll have more skin, until finally you have enough to cover the head of your penis.

It’s going to be awhile before my foreskin is fully restored. But I already have enough skin to pull it up over the head of my penis. I can’t tell you how excited I was the first day I realized I could do this! Once you experience the feeling, you will never be able to understand why anyone would want to be cut.

Some of you have commented and said you have thought about restoring your foreskin, but were afraid you didn’t have the patience.

Here’s my take on that - you’re going to be around every day, regardless. You might as well take a few minutes a few times per day and work on pulling the tissue forward. If it works, you’ll have a great new foreskin to enjoy. And if it doesn’t work… well… any activity with your penis is time well spent.

I found a photo on Google to demonstrate what I’m doing each day to build up the skin. NOTE: This is not me:

This is all speculation, of course, but it does appear that Obama plans to make many things happen all at once, rather than gradually.

The obvious area of focus is the economy, and he has made it very clear that he is going to push for another stimulus package for Americans. He also has stated plans to help the automobile industry get back on its feet, but he also wants much stricter regulations on the fuel efficiency. These vehicle that only get 13MPG should be banned. We can do better than that, and shame on anyone who drives a vehicle like that. I hope you’re at least letting people carpool with you.

Obama also plans to put more money into stem cell research, where Bush actually cut funding. If this can help save people, I think we definitely need to be investing into it.

Affordable healthcare for everyone appears to still be at the forefront, and quite frankly, I’m relieved. I recently had to let my own insurance coverage go. I just couldn’t continue paying the highly inflated fees. As a 26-year-old man in perfect health, it just wasn’t feasible with my budget. Contrary to the rumors spread during the campaign, the new healthcare plan does not harm your existing coverage, so there is nothing to worry about if you have it through your employer.

Here are two topics that I hope to see in his plans in the near future:

1.) Something that gives same sex couples the same benefits as married couples. We can fight over the difference between the words “marriage” vs. “civil union” later, but I want immediate action about benefits. Obama has pledged to make this happen many times on the campaign trail, and I expect him to deliver. I don’t want any public vote for it either. We deserve equal benefits, it’s non-negotiable.

2.) Increased funding and research for HIV/AIDS. Two decades later and we still don’t have a cure! Get on it. I’m tired of HIV taking a back seat in American politics.

I’m so impressed with how quickly Obama has started laying out his plans for 2009. He really has been prepared to take office on Day 1. I hope the people who had doubts will now see just how intelligent he is and what a great President he will be.

What’s on your wishlist for the Obama administration?

About 11 miles from our home, there is a castle overlooking the interstate. Yes, a real castle. I’ve written about it before.

I’m sure many of you are scratching your heads in confusion. A castle in Tennessee? Hey, I don’t know what to tell you. You have to do what makes you happy, and if that means building yourself a castle, I say go for it.

Well the local castle is featured in the new Taylor Swift video for “Love Story”. I’ve never been to the castle, so it’s really great to see what it looks like up close. Quite beautiful actually.

Now I want a castle! I wonder if I can find one on eBay? Surely there’s someone out there who is foreclosing. I’d have to assume the castle industry has been hit hardest…

Well apparently the feeling of nostalgia has hit the internet age. MTV has launched a site called MTV Music (which doesn’t make sense because MTV stands for Music Television so basically it’s called Music Television Music, but I digress…). It’s still really rough around the edges and last night they were having server problems. But it has great potential and I hear they’re going to provide hi-res versions soon.

I was watching this video, for A-Ha “Take On Me”. I love that song.

Stop by MTVMusic.com and browse what they call the “Vintage” collection. You’ll find some gems.

Today I got the new Universal Legacy edition of Alfred Hitchcock’s Rear Window. It’s one of my favorite movies, and I actually have never owned it on DVD. I can only judge by the version I’ve seen on TV and VHS, but I can definitely see an improvement in the sharpness, the colors, and the clarity. The special features were also fascinating, however they were included on earlier editions, so they won’t be anything new if you already have it on DVD.

I’m not an expert in film restoration, so I won’t try to break down the differences compared to other editions. Some people criticize that the new version is too grainy, and I can see what they are saying, but I personally like this better. Here’s a before and after comparison so you can see the difference from older DVD versions of Rear Window:

An interesting fact about the movie is how the stage was built. It was filmed inside, as most movies were back then. The challenge was that Hitchcock wanted a complete set that appears in New York’s Greenwich Village. All of the apartments were actual rooms, and there is even an outside courtyard, alley, and busy street in the background.

Paramount Studios simply didn’t have a way to do this inside. The ceilings were not tall enough to build anything close to what Hitchcock wanted. So to meet his requests, they actually pulled up the floor and assembled a fake courtyard in the basement! What you see on the “ground” level is actually underground, and the main apartments where James Stewart lives are the 1st floor.

The top levels were at the very height of the studio ceilings, so the lighting crew and some of the cast members were absolutely miserable because it was so hot up there. But as always, Hitchcock knew exactly what he wanted and I think it was worth it. The set really does make the movie. Rear Window is on the list of AFI’s Top 100 movies and will always be on of the best in my book.

He’s a 3 year old white male cat, and a very handsome fella. He’s talkative and friendly. His owner lost his job and gave up Rowdy as a result. I personally think that’s a pitiful excuse, as healthy cats don’t cost that much to care for. But that’s a whole different subject.

Rowdy has been there for almost a month now. I feel so bad for him. One day he lived with his owner and then the next day he was living in a cage, with just inches between his feces and his food. He must be so confused about what’s happened to him.

Even worse is the fact that nobody has adopted him. Baby kittens are usually adopted the same day. They are the most popular. Unfortunately adult cats are usually homeless for weeks, even months.

I think the reason nobody has adopted Rowdy is because there is a note on his info card that says he doesn’t like to be scratched on the back. People might interpret that as warning that he’s mean, which he isn’t.

Some cats are just sensitive about where you touch them. We have a cat who doesn’t like to be scratched on the back either. It doesn’t mean she’s a bad cat, it just means she doesn’t want to be touched on her back. No big deal.

Anyway, if you are looking for a good cat, please go check out Rowdy. I go visit him every week to see how he’s doing. I would love to adopt him myself, but we already have two cats and a dog, none of which get along. Adding a fourth animal to the mix would not be wise.

I was drowning in negativity and didn’t even realize it. Sometimes it just happens that way. It starts with a slow drip… drip… drip. Then the water starts to rise until you are in over your head and you think it’s too late for anyone to throw you a life jacket.

I guess it started last January. Rodney and I were both passionate Hillary Clinton supporters. Please understand we never disliked Barack Obama. We simply liked her more than we liked him.

Things were looking pretty good and we were inspired by her… moved by her energy and convinced she was going to win. Then things took an ugly turn. She got ugly, her supporters got ugly, and we all got a little too confident. The bottom fell out and we all know how that ended.

By summer, she had bowed out and thrown her support behind Barack, and we did too. That’s when things got ugly from the Republicans, and the ugliness only intensified as the year went on. We became CNN junkies, watching the news programs every night.

Once autumn rolled around, discussions about Barack Obama were a regular part of our routine. Rodney and I would start the morning examining polls, news reports, and we were both deeply invested in this campaign. By October, we joked to each other that we’d become so wrapped up in politics that we couldn’t remember what life was like before this campaign. What were we going to talk about after November 4th?

Well the day has finally come, and I feel an incredible sense of peace and relief that this hard fought battle is over. I feel renewed, like I’m about to experience a new world that I’ve never seen before. A better place.

CNN interviewed Oprah Winfrey after Barack gave his speech tonight, and I was so moved by her. She always inspires me, and I guess I had forgotten what it’s like to feel good. I’ve been so tense, so bitter and angry about the constant attacks on Obama from the Republicans over the recent months. I guess I was drowning in anger and didn’t even know it.

It’s time to get back to peace now. It’s time to lick our wounds and find common ground with our brothers and sisters. It’s time for me to be a more positive, more inspirational person like I used to be. It’s time for me to get back to the real Nathan.

I’m so happy to have experienced this in my lifetime. No victory comes without some dark times. We’re now moving into the light.

Won’t you help me bring the light into the world? Let’s roll up our sleeves and be the best we can be every day. When I think of Barack Obama, I don’t think about the man I was, I think about the man I want to be.

Tomorrow is the exact same thing on a much grander scale. It does not matter how much you love Barack Obama, how much you support him and want him to be President. If you don’t get out there and vote for him, he will not win this election! Votes are the only way to make him President. Do not listen to the polls that show him with a 7 point national lead.

On the night before the 2000 election, Al Gore had a 7 point lead too. We all know how that one ended, don’t we? 8 years of George W. Bush!

Do not assume that Obama will win. Go vote, wait in line as long as it takes. Cancel your appointments, take the day off work. This election is too important to leave to fate. VOTE. VOTE. VOTE.

And if you’re in California, vote NO on Prop 8. Also, vote YES on Prop 2, which helps stop cruelty to animals.

VOTE!