Thursday Thankfulness; Major Teaser Alert.

This week, two of my favorite gay men and my favorite bi friend decided to take a mini "gaycation" to Chicago, IL to explore the art, food, and of course Boystown. I'd never been and I had the time off from work, so I figured why the hell not? We had an absolute blast, and I promise a travel diary is coming in the next couple of days. I just got back tonight, absolutely exhausted but fairly fulfilled too and still decided to catch up with a friend at one of my favorite Minneapolis hot spots. SO, I apologize for the delay, but here are my "Things I'm Thankful for" this Thursday.

~Public transit. How lucky are we who live in an area with fairly reliable public transit?! Seriously, your car won't start, or you don't have a car and missed your other bus. Never fear! Another one is coming along soon....

~My cat! I try so hard not to stick him in this column every week, but today I came home and he was so excited to see me, and it just feels really affirming to receive the unconditional love that pets give.

~Chicago. And everywhere I went. More on this later.

~The Kitty Cat Klub in Minneapolis. Homey, hip, and hippie-ish all at the same time.

~Temp jobs! I have a new one starting on April 4th doing some administration/marketing for a great theatre company. I know I'm a horrific tease for not telling you more, but I promise that there will be details later.

~Flavored vodka. You can take the girl out of the small town, but...

~Kate Bornstein's Gender Outlaw. I read a lot of books, a lot. If I included them all on my blog, nothing else would ever be talked about. This book really opened my eyes about gender, sexuality, and perception...and I considered myself pretty knowledgeable before.

~Gadfly's new website!

~Compliments. Feel free to lavish.

~The super cute cast of Suburban Redux. Details pending on THIS as well.

~Wasabi-coated green peas. Don't knock it 'til you try it, my lieblings.

~Expanding your circle. I know I talk a lot about cutting people out, keeping things simple...and I still believe that 100%. But once your personal herd is culled, there is nothing more satisfying than letting new (but equally satisfying) things and people in.

~That painful-but-contented soreness in your legs and feet after exploring new territory on foot all day.

~Play by Play Bookstore. There are few things I love more than books. Two of them are coffee and theatre. CEO Kelly Schaub is a genius.

I think that's enough for this week, but as usual, I am quite ecstatic that there are countless other things for me to be grateful for. I love you all reading this, for starters. Hope your lists for the week are plentiful.

Peace, passion, and love.