Farewell to 2005

What a year its been! I can't say its been the greatest year, but I can't say its been the worst either. I made a few good friends down here where I live. I guess after four years of not being able to do that, I am quite grateful. There are small promises of hope in the romance department. I've met a lot of great people from all over the world in my autograph group. "Crash" would be my favorite movie of the year; "Invasion" would be my favorite NEW show; Michael Buble my favorite new singer, now onto 2006, where my resolution to start the year is to get my weight back down, get back to the gym, find joy and prosperity, and get on Survivor dang it! My last autograph of the year comes from Bret Harrison of "Orange County", "Undressed" and "Grounded for Life" ( a term I always felt I was when I was a kid). Here's wishing all a safe and happy New Year and a 2006 full of all the joy, prosperity and love life can bring. See you all in 2006!

A role model to us all

Jack Wetherall did an outstanding job playing Vic Grassi on "Queer as Folk."
He was inspirational and proved that even when life sends you lemons, it is possible to make lemonade and have a positive effect on those around you. Vic is one of those characters I will remember for a long time, and he reenforced the message for me to follow my dreams in his note he added.

Lifetime achievement

Not many actors have an illustrious career as Jimmy Smits whose seen great success in 3 major television shows (LA Law, NYPD Blue, and now The West Wing). I almost got to meet Mr Smits back in 1995 when he was supposed to be in Dallas for the premiere of "Mi Familia" which was a great movie as well. Another fine addition to my collection!

The Divine Ms L

Loretta Devine is one of my favorite actresses. I'm not sure if its that cute as a button voice, or her DIVA status in the roles she plays, or her longstanding role as a scene stealer in movies she plays. I recently loved her in "Crash", one of my all time favorite movies and I was really super thrilled to add this autograph of her to my collection.

It's never too late...

to follow one's dreams. This message I learned from a man who has had a growing list of credits to his name after starting acting at the age of 53 (and I thought I was too old at 39!). Thanks Mr Braun for the advice and the autograph. Hopefully, I get off my lazy a$$ and start pursuing it!

Speaking of John Stamos....

(Funny how things seem to connect so well sometimes)....I received my photo back signed from the beautiful model turned actress Rebecca Romijn (formerly Romijn-Stamos) in less than a month. Yet another wonderful mailbox surprise after a great holiday back home with the family!

Three Down, Three to Go

After a quick turnaround from Bob Saget, I sent my "Full House" photo to Candace Cameron-Bure who in turned signed that as well as this solo shot as well. Now the dilemna, of sending out again to "I don't think she's acting any more" Jodie Sweetin or too popular to sign John Stamos and the Olsen twins. I'll have to keep an eye out for a way to get any of these three! Its great to add Candace to my collection. I was a big fan of the show growing up!

I've got to get busy, busy, busy

Busy is what actress Aisha Tyler has been in the past year. From recurring roles on "ER" and "24" to a support role on the new ABC show "Ghost Whisperer" to features "Never Die Alone" and "Meet Market", there's been plenty of this beautiful, talented actress to go around. She's definitely someone to keep an eye out for in the future!

Long before Madonna....

There was Rose Marie, who went by only her first name as a celebrity and did a wonderful job as Sally on the "Dick Van Dyke Show" and seems to be one of those people who is always happy and glad to be alive. I was glad to add her to my collection. She sent me this photo signed in red.

Hello Marylu...

....goodbye heart....whoops....sidetracked by an old song! I was thrilled to get this success in the mail from Marilu Henner who played Elaine on the awesome show "Taxi." She's a very vibrant character always full of charm and charisma and I was happy to add her autograph to my collection!

Making things personal

Sometimes, its exciting autograph collecting that the people we write to take time out of their day to make things personal. My friend Beth has been helping me make collages of some of the Survivor castaways, and recently I've added my email address to my letterhead. I was surprised that within a month of doing that I got an email from Brook Geraghty of Survivor Vanuatu wanting a copy of the collage that Beth made, that I sent, for Brook to sign (and this is the house that Jack built LOL). I've tried out for Survivor multiple times by sending an application and video and still have somewhat of a dream to get on, so successes like this make it all that more real for me. Brook signed the collage Beth made and included his own photo!

Following in dad's footsteps

Why is it that as a male in our society, we are tied to what our dad's do good or bad. Jason Ritter has proved himself to be a good talent but has to always live up to the name of his father Jason who was a great actor and comedian. Its great to see Jason take his acting career in a different direction and I'm glad to see him have some success. For me, it was living up the negative images my dad left on people, and then dealing with the scorn that came with it. Even as I'm much older now, occassionally that past comes back to haunt me.

Burnt Sienna

I remember loving the 64 crayola box of crayons when I was a kid, and burnt sienna was my favorite color in the box. Such a cool name; so cool that its shared with one of the up and coming young actresses who is very popular in the tabloids due to her on and off again relationship with "Alfie" co-star Jude Law. I was thrilled to have Ms. Miller sign this great photo for me.

Dirty Rotten Scoundrels

There are some people you meet in life that are just "Dirty Rotten Scoundrel"; people you think have no moral fiber, are totally out for themselves and just make you mad, but then at least you know where you stand with them. Its the people that are nice to your face, and then you later have to excuse yourself for hurting their knife with your back that you need to watch out for. I would have loved to go to NYC to see "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels" the play, but I got the next best thing: a signed playbill from John Lithgow. Nice success on the last day before vacation. Be back 12/28!

Get "Closer"

Wow, this blew me away. Clive Owen is like the greatest new actor out there and I was so surprsied that he responded with this great inscribed photo. He's got a lot of works in progress and had already been Oscar nominated. I don't think it will be long until there is one on his mantel!

I hate to iron, but I love Irons

Wow! Another one of my all time favorite actors came as a success in the mail. Jeremy Irons has made tons of movies and I am just fascinated by his versatility and charisma as an actor. This one made me jump for joy!!!

This success Steele's the cake

From Remington Steele to James Bond, Pierce Brosnan has whewed audiences for a long time now. I was so shocked to get this autographed photo back from him. He's one of three British actors I was thrilled to get in the mail today...All were "WOW"s when i saw them!

Fantasy combined with music

Then there's also the escape that includes music. What I find so cool in musicals is picturing people running around all day singing instead of talking. How funny would that be. I absolutely loved "Moulin Rouge" and was surprised everyone I saw it with hated it, and Ewan McGregor did a great job playing Christian. I could see that movie over and over again, especially when I am down.

Fantasy vs Reality

Sometimes my mind drifts off to fantasyland, but I think its healthy. I know way too many people who are so serious about everything that a nice safe escape can be so refreshing for me. "Harry Potter" books and movies are a great escape and a fantastically done movie, and you can't help but love Warwick Davis as Professor Flitwick. I'm glad to have him in my collection now thanks to my friend Beth.

La Camisa Negra

Black shirt in Spanish. This year I have really been struggling with my weight, and we all know that when you feel fat and want to look good, wear black! From the "La Camisa Negra" singer himself, I got this great autographed photo back from Juanes. Truly a remarkable talent!

A pleasant surprise

Collecting autographs in the mail for many years now, I have learned that some celebrities are nearly impossible to get through the normal avenues, so you have to try the less successful route and risky route of movie sets. This can be quite expensive as you have to pretty much always send a photo, have perfect timing, and a bit of luck, and be prepared for a low payback on your investment, but when you hit one, its quite exciting; as is the case with this success I got from Guy Pearce, a tough through the mail signer from the set of his new movie "Factory Girl." I've been a fan of his work for many years now, and have enjoyed everything I've seen him, so I was awestricken to find this autographed photo in my mailbox in a 2 week turnaround time!

Hair today, gone tomorrow

As people that know me would say, I'm always getting frustrated at the way the hair on my head seems to leave its comfortable home there and find its way to the parts of my body not meant for hair. When I was younger, my barbers would always say that I was fortunate to have such a thick head of hair because I'd never go bald. Well, I'm not totally bald, but that once thick mane of locks is now dispursed over the rest of my body. Just like hair, TV shows can come and go at the drop of a hat. For newcomer Rob Benedict, this was the case with the highly acclaimed "Threshold", a show that showed a lot of promise but just didn't make it. Best know for his guest role on "Felicity", Rob has a lot of talent, and hope he finds success in something else in the near future.

Memorable Roles

Some actors and actresses, even though they do a huge array of work, to me, have one role that sticks with me. That's the case with this particular success. I loved Mary McCormack's role in "Murder One." I loved that show in general, and no matter how many TV shows or movies she does I'll always remember her from "Murder One." Of course that may change someday, but I'm very grateful again to my friend Beth for helping me add this talented actress to my collection!

There's always HOPE

Whenever I get down and out and start thinking life sucks, I try to think of situations that are worse than my own, fact or fiction. One such case is that of the character of Hunter on "Queer as Folk" who went from young street prostitute and turned his life around for the good. My good friend Rick is another good example, fighting the demons of addiction and making it on his own. Sometimes I wonder how strong I'd be if I ever got in that type of situation. I hope I don't find out. With the help of my friend Beth, again, I got this signed photo from Hunter's portrayer, Harris Allan, yet another "Queer as Folk" success for my collection.

Opposites Attract

Being 39 and single, I start to wonder sometimes if I'm looking for the wrong kind of person in my life. They always say opposites attract, and I tend to be attracted to personalities similar to mine, and then I think, gosh, do I want to be with myself? A good example of opposites attracting (even though I hear they didn't make it in the long run) are the characters Lindsey and Mel played by Thea Gill and Michelle Clunie on "Queer as Folk". I was excited, with the help of my friend Beth, to get this great, long inscriptioned photo signed by Thea Gill in the mail. I hope Michelle Clunie arrives soon!

Desperate but not serious

Sometimes I think I'm meant to stay single. I would love to have someone to come home too, but then I see all the drama that couples have and am glad I'm single. Catch 22. I've decided to stop looking and maybe love will find me one of these days. On Desperate Housewives, Richard Burgi as Karl, had Susan and lost her, had Edie and lost her. Whose next for this actor who shows that you can stay in great shape post 40. My role model for the 2006 New Year's resolution phase!

Rosy Cheeks and Rosie O'Donnell

Boy, it's gotten quite nippy down here (of course I will refrain from giving the temperature because my cold and most people's cold are too different things), but the flu bug is going around and I seem to have caught a tad of it making my cheeks nice and rosy. With the weight I've been gaining, I'd make a perfect Santa. On the mailfront, Rosie O'Donnell sent me this 8x10 color photo; second success from her via Fiddler on the Roof!

Look what Surfaced in my mail today

This is the year of Sci-Fi on TV. "Invasion", "Threshold", "Surface" and my friend Beth got me a signed magazine from Carter Jenkins but I wanted to try for a signed photo and I scored with this 8x10 color photo from this up and coming young star. Way to start the week! ***Sidenote that a second photo came in from Carter on 3/22/06!

The stereotypical dumb blond

Kudos to Heidi Strobel on Survivor for making a dent in the dumb blond stereotypes. At the reunion show, Jeff Probst remarked that Heidi had near genius IQ, even though people pegged her to be the dumb blond. I do a lot of silly things and have about a 155 IQ, but a lot of people would never believe it. My brain tends to work too fast for the rest of my body leaving me saying dumb things or doing dumb things at times. It was great to get this autographed photo from Heidi for my Survivor collection.

Holiday Greetings

I remember as a kid, we'd get tons and tons of Christmas cards every year, and now less and less come in for everyone. Why did people stop sending them? One of those crazy questions I always ask. I used to send a ton out myself but have also gotten very limited on the ones I send out these days. Too busy? Too lazy? Too cheap? Good questions! It was nice to get a holiday greeting on this 8x10 photo from funny man Paul Rodriguez, and a reminder for me to get mine in the mail!

Jorja on my mind

Georgia on My Mind is one of my favorite songs of all time. Had to find a way to incorporate that into my blog. I could listen to it over and over again, and speaking of Georgia, I received this great 8x10 signed photo from Jorja Fox of CSI. What a way to start December.