New Software; Clothes Shopping; River Rocks

I've been trying to move some of the old entries to a month-by-month archive. For the last couple of months, I've noticed that it seems to take longer and longer for the journal index page to load. It doesn't take much to realize that this will be a problem when it covers six years. (By the way, prior to now, I hand coded using WordPad.)

As I moved files, I noticed huge number of horizontal lines, and there was no way to do a universal replace. So I was looking for some software to make my job easier. There are any number of sites on the web that offer free software, in this case I used Download.com. Next I entered "free text editor." And then filtered the search results by "Windows XP; Free, All File Sizes, Development Tools." Then I stumbled around for four or five pages until I came across a package (in the third page) that looked promising: HTML Kit 1.0 build 292. I downloaded it, and it has mucho features, but is fairly intuitive.

Another site that I really respect is The Free Site. Here I tried "Free Software, Free Text Editing Programs." I tried several of the programs, but they were not what I needed. However, I discovered at the very bottom of the page something called Word Web, which "is a free feature-packed thesaurus/dictionary that can be used from your word processor or as a stand-alone program." Most useful.

This is something that I rarely do - shop for clothes.

For months I've wanted a lightweight jacket for rainy warm days. I have two "Members Only" jackets that are in great condition. But, every time I think about wearing one, I feel like Rosario Salazar of "Will & Grace." In fact one of the ones I have is just like the maroon-colored one she has.

Yesterday it was warm , rainy and blustery. My other jackets would have been too heavy. I wound up wearing an old sweat shirt that got damp whenever I got out of the car. I happen to think there was a Hudson nearby; they had hundreds of sports/suit coats, but no jackets. I then moved on to Gateway Rescue Mission. Same situation, although I did spent $1.34 on three books.

Today was downright cold and very windy. Several weeks ago, I'd picked up an orange hoody at CVS for $6. The perfect item for the day. But now I was thinking in terms of sweats: I only have three pairs of sweat pants, and almost all my sweat shirts are torn, stained or marked by bleach. So again, I hit Hudsons, and the first thing I saw was a rack of satin jackets. I found just what I needed in a size XXXL in bright blue for $4.99. By the way, the large size is required because of arms and shoulders. Not because of girth. Anything I look at must have an arm's length of at least 36. (I have a closet full of dress shirts that started at 36 that are now unwearable because of shrinkage during cleaning.)

I also noticed they had sweat shirts and long-sleeved tees. The tees were 100% cotton ,and there were a number in size 4XL. In fact, I have one on now, and it is very comfortable. (Price was $2.49.) Sweat shirts were limited and in polyester/cotton blend. Alas polyester frequently causes me to break out in a rash, so I passed.

Keith of Broken Whole had make a passing comment about green pebbles. I thought about how nice it would be to have a basket or bowl of river rocks among the potpourri or candles.

Since I'd bought some at WalMart for my parents' grave, I knew just where to look. But they seemed a little too ordinary, I think I was looking for something a wee bit more upscale. But I bought two sacks: one large stones; one, small.

Next I was indecisive what to put them in. I tried a plain wheat-colored basket, but that was not what I wanted. I then thought of two pieces of light bluish-green pottery that a friend had given me. A little better, but still not what I had in mind.

This afternoon, I stopped at Hobby Lobby to look for both rocks and baskets/bowls. I finally found stones on the bottom shelf behind some boxes. Very similar to WalMart's. but much more expensive.(Both they and WalMart had an assortment of what looked liked glass beads. Interesting, but I wanted something with a rougher texture.) Next, I bounced over to Target; and I found a few round plastic containers of rocks, but only a very limited supply. However, I did see a number of bowls that would have looked nice - but too pricy. Next was PierOne, and another set of plastic containers of rocks, no different from Target's. But I did find a medium-sized, flat, black basket that was just what I needed.

I drove next door and visited Borders and glanced at the gay mags of which there seem to be a lot. There was a very enticing erotic publication called "Refresh" of which I knew nothing. Very pricy, though - $10.95. And to be honest I peeked around for a copy of "Vanity Fair," the one with Brad Pitt in nothing but white, wet shorts and socks. The cover is from an art movie of Robert Wilson that Brad did several months ago. Apparently, he has indicated that he never gave permission for images to appear on the cover of "Vanity Fair." And has threatened legal action. When "Playgirl" published the nude paparazzi photos of about ten years ago, the issue did wind up in court, and the magazine was forbidden to sell any more issues. Of course the images have been on the web ever since.

I finally settled on the latest issue of "Out." I used to have a subscription, along with subscriptions to a batch of other gay-related publications. But recently the magazine has been re-designed, so I'm curious to see what it looks like.

The rocks look fine in the basket, but I still want to look for some different types.

PAX!