I had such an amazing night last night...I hate to "cheapen" it by sharing it with the WORLD but, what the hell. My special lady, Cara, cooked a very lovely dinner last night. I left work around 7:45 to head over to her place in the city. A couple of subway stops later and I'm in Queens! Not my proudest moment, ha ha. I did get off at the right stop but it didn't feel right, I got back on and as we were leaving the station, I saw the train I needed to transfer to, what an awful feeling -- by then, of course, it was too late.

I wanted to show up with a bottle of wine and/or flowers but because I was so late, I just wanted to get there. So, when I got to her floor, I just grabbed a flower out of the hallway display (classy). Agh, I hate being late but it all worked out and we had a lovely evening (if I do say so myself).

[L to R]: Bob, Cara

It was getting late and it was a school night, so back on the subway I went. I heard the train come into the station and I ran to catch it, then, across the way, I noticed the other train was the same train line -- I was standing in the wrong train, again! Had its doors closed, I'd be going back to Queens at 1AM. Whew!

I get to the Port Authority, they have everything blocked off because it's after hours and I go through that maze only to realize that the buses stop at 1AM...it's 1:10AM...DAMN! 11 years I've been here and I always thought the cutoff was 1:30AM...live and learn.

I walk out of the bus station a beaten man and I broker a deal with a cab driver to take me back to Hoboken...it wasn't a good deal, ha ha. But after all the traveling screw ups, $40 didn't seem so bad.

Thanks Cara for a wonderful dinner:)

OK, that's all I got! Have a great weekend.

Best,

Bob

Whassup?

For the past ten days, I've had to take 4 pills a day (penicillin) to fight a sore throat. For someone like me, carefree loner, this hasn't been an easy task. But last night at 11:30 PM, I took my last pill!!! Of course, the bobborden.com cameras were there to document the event:


1. Bob with pills
2. Taking the last pill
3. I'm free!

This was a long illness for what it was. A sore throat for 2 1/2 weeks, I wouldn't wish that on my worst enemy, well...ha ha ha!

I got a nice e-mail from bobborden.com reader, Mark Nelson, yesterday. Mark wrote: "Why is your diary posted at 12:01 am every day? Do you stay up until midnight and then just push the button at 12:01 so that the date of the diary will be the next day?"

-- Great question Mark. I do that just out of habit...I can make the time whatever I want but always make it 12:01 so it makes sense as to what day it is tomorrow. (I made the time 12:02 yesterday as a shoutout to Mark and he got the joke, ha ha.)

Mark also sent a GREAT photo of his kids, check out this group:

Mark says, "From left to right, Jacob,
Elijah, and Rivers.
That’s not my dog."

That photo made my day. Thanks Mark.

OK, that's all I know.

Best,

Bob

Man, I WAS NOT in the comfort zone yesterday. First, for the first time since last fall, I wore jeans to work. They fit fine but I felt trapped after a while. Maybe I'm not a "jeans" guy? The smart money is on cargo shorts. I also wore a shirt that just seemed one inch off of what a good shirt should be. It wasn't a good combo.

To make up for my day of uncomfortableness, I decided to treat myself to a night at the spa, or as I call it, Supercuts. I got there around 8 PM, right when the employees are in the grove, ha ha. The guy sitting in the chair before me was a total tool and when he left, man, they talked about him. Whenever I was asked something about my hair I answered very politely. I didn't want to make waves while under the scissors. She finished and asked me, "How's that look?" I said it was great! She said, "Good answer." Ha ha! Not a lot of love at Supercuts last night, ha ha. Anyway, here's my new cut:



I was sitting at my desk yesterday (as usual) and Kim (receptionist) calls me over. She's holding a paper rose. I thought to myself, hey, that's lovely, a nice guy gave Kim this cool rose. But in Kim's words, here's what really happened:

[L to R]: Kim, paper rose

Kim: "The delivery guy came to bring a writer his food, and several minutes later returned with the rose. He placed it on my desk and said this is for you sweetheart, and I said thank you and he left."

Ha ha ha ha! I don't think Kim found "the one" with this particular delivery guy but you do have to admit that he makes a damn fine paper rose, ha ha.

That got me to thinking about how cool, somewhat, it must be to be the "hunted" vs. the "hunter." She was just sitting there and got hit on...there's something to that, as long as the guy doesn't burn his name on her front lawn, ha ha. Thanks for sharing, Kim.

That's it! Have a great day!

Best,

Bob

Three little things:

To the person in my apartment building that cooked, what seems to be, a meal that consists entirely of onions I say this; A pox on you!

"Chicken AND tuna, oh, this is the good stuff...you guys are gonna love this!" I'm quoting myself...I was feeding my cats and heard myself talking to them, ha ha. Hey, it's not the steak it's the sizzle.

The best part of my 12 hour work day yesterday, sad to say, came after work when I walked to the subway and the train was there. Almost as if it were waiting for me and me alone. It's the little things. Sweet living!

Bonus (now it's four things!) -- I think I'm due for a haircut.

That's it! Have a great day.

Best,

Bob

Let's get to the weekend!

Friday night, hmmmmmm...I didn't do anything.

Saturday I woke up around 9:00. First on the agenda - laundry. Next up, the A & P. They're smack dab in the middle of remodeling, it's very confusing...I should shop somewhere else for a while but damn my loyality! After that I cleaned my apartment. After a week of being under the weather, my apartment was in shambles.

Saturday night I had a lovely dinner with Cara...I haven't had that much fun since the last time we had dinner:)

Sunday I checked out the Hoboken Arts & Music festival:

People!

I was at the festival as long as it took to take this photo. Not a fan of crowds or festivals, ha ha.

The rest of my day went a little like this:



Oh, yeah. On paper, kind of dull but it's what's not on the paper that makes this one a great weekend.

Hey, what's up the the NBC pregame show, Football Night in America? Meaning, how LAME is that name? Yuk, it gives me the creeps! Football Night?! What is that?! Ponder.

That's it! Have a great day!

Best,

Bob

I get home last night, put on my slippers, changed into my favorite smoking jacket, turned on my favorite classical radio station, lit my pipe and started to forget about my day. I look up and there are my cats, oh man, I forgot to feed them (cats like food). I walked over, opened the cabinet and there was no wet food! In the ten (i think) years I've had them, I don't think this has ever happened. I fixed up their dry food bowl, gave them some fresh water and hoped they'd be fine with that. They were not. I sat back down to play it off but they were not going to be ignored. I didn't want to go out again (!), but didn't have a choice, I searched my memory for the closest store and while yes, there is a store less than a block away...I'm not really comfortable with that block. I always feel like I have a huge sign hanging over my head that reads, "Please mug me!" Ugh but the cats need to eat! I suck it up, run over, run back without incident, WHEW! Cats.

If you're keeping score at home, OK, that first story had no real ending! They can't all be winners! Ha ha.

Health update; My sore throat is very, very close to being gone. But now, I have a canker sore (too much info?)! I fell asleep on my sofa the last two nights. Why am I being punished?! Ha ha.

I have to give a shoutout to some loyal bobborden.com readers. First to Karoline for sending me some lovely cat toys -- after tonight, they needed them, nice! Second, Shawn was nice enough to hook me up with some Lindsey Buckingham songs. And last, Jim's sending me a GNR CD. The power of the internet? More like the power of good people, can I get a witness?! Thank you!

That's all I know, it's FRIDAY! Let's do this!

Best,

Bob

Health update: My throat feels better, I'm not 100% yet but I'm close. Three cheers for penicillin!

I'm away from my office yesterday, working my ass off for the man, I come back and there's a new addition to my office:


What the heck
is this?

I'll tell you what the heck this is, it's the Planet of the Apes Ultimate DVD Collection with Ape Head Packaging, ha ha ha! Chris M no longer had a use for it and he hooked a brother up -- thanks Chris! How many Planet of the Apes DVDs could there be, try 14, ha ha ha! I love it!

With gas prices going down and with Ford in trouble, I'm thinking about trading my Civic in on the biggest car/truck Ford makes.

Too big?

Just a thought...I feel a little guilty about buying a foreign car when American brands are biting the dust. But on the other hand, my Civic is assembled in Ohio...a lot of the American brands are assembled in Mexico and elsewhere. How does a company like Ford get in trouble? They have great trucks, the Mustang...I don't know.

Time for a popular feature to bobborden.com, the Instant Message of the Day! Yesterday I was IMing with my friend Walter. The conversation seemed to be over then Walter sent this:

"Waltercooldude* (10:35:46 AM): did tom send you the link for the Aldo Nova video?"

Ha ha ha ha ha! It does not get anymore random than that.

That's all I know.

Best,

Bob

*Not Walter's real IM name.

I'm on the bus yesterday morning, listening to my ipod. Lindsey Buckingham's Holiday Road comes on and I'm really enjoying it. I think the guy's great! That got me to thinking, I wonder what he's up to now, working on stuff with Fleetwood Mac, solo stuff? Who knows. I get to the office (before work hours), check out the new releases on itunes and Lindsey Buckingham has a new single!


Lindsey Buckingham

How crazy is that?! It's like I have some sort of weird mind meld with Lindsey (just kidding). I'm going to hold off on the single and buy the album when it drops.

Bus in the morning, subway at night. There I was, standing on the platform, waiting for the train at the end of a long day. This is usually a miserable experience; it's very hot/humid, you can count the rats on the subway tracks, you get the idea. Now, factor in running into someone from work and having to make small talk until one of the trains come -- it's the worst! Don't get me wrong, I love my co-workers but standing there, sweating, talking about the exact same day, ugh. Sadly, this happens more often than I care to admit.

So, I'm waiting and sure enough, Amy (friend/co-worker), walks past and I think, OK, get the small talk ready. BUT, she just says hi, keeps walking across the platform and that's it! No B.S. - nothing. I was speechless. The trains weren't coming and we still didn't talk. What a great experience! For changing the whole social dynamic as we know it and for sticking to her guns, I'm naming Amy, bobborden.com's Person of the Week.

bobborden.com's
Person of the Week

Way to go!

That's all I got.

Best,

Bob

You know what I've been trying to bring back? "Whassup?" People are usually confused at first, then have to ask someone what year this is and then they laugh and laugh. Whassup? Ha ha ha ha ha!

Anybody know where I can buy one of those cool Hank Williams Jr. NFL suit jackets?

They'll see ya
coming in this one!

I had so many pills in my bookbag last night, I felt like a walking pillbox! And I think my body is now 50% water and 50% Luden's Throat Drops. I'm not better yet but I am taking taking pills like a madman.

One good thing about this is ice cream seems to help. I picked up a pint of Ben & Jerry's Neapolitan Dynamite -- I just bought it for the name, I have no idea what's inside.

OK, I'm tired.

Best,

Bob

This was a good one. Talking about the weekend of course.

Friday night I loaded up the car with my things (and with "Sally" and Walter) and we drove out to the Hamptons. That's right, the Hamptons, maybe you've heard of it? Playground to the rich & famous? Anyway...we made it out there in the pouring rain in pretty good time.

Saturday I woke up around 9:00 and decided to take care of my laundry. I headed over to one of the laundry mats close by...a laundry mat in the Hamptons? Hey, even the rich need clean clothes, ha ha. I was not thrilled with this laundry mat; it was very hard to insert quarters into the machines, there were kids everywhere, a dog was barking and a woman parked SO close to my car, I couldn't even get in.

Too close!

She parked where there wasn't a spot. I didn't say anything because I didn't need to get into my car, and I wanted to see if she'd ever realize that her parking skills sucked eggs. She didn't. I had to go back in, find her and ask her to move her car. I don't understand people.

While doing my laundry, I called my Mom and asked her, "If I've had a sore throat all week and just noticed that I may have swollen glands, what's the cure for that?" I was hoping for some home remedy like, "oh, just soak your feet for a few hours and you'll be fine." But my Mom's advice was to see a doctor. Damn, damn, damn. Off to the ER!

In triage the nurse asked me where I worked and then we started talking about show business. We were going on for a while, laughing and talking about bad talk shows. When we walked out, there was a woman waiting to get in, holding her eye in pain. Oops! Oh the quiet laugh we shared, ha ha. I did hate going to the ER for a sore throat but I don't have my own doctor, not a fan -- which isn't so smart I know, that's next on my list. Anyway, the Dr. gave me some penicillin because I may have streep throat.

Saturday Tom joined us and we had a lovely BBQ. I woke up Sunday around 9:00 and just didn't feel like doing anything. I watched football all day but there could have been anything on...I just needed the chill time. I drove home around 6:30, hit some crazy traffic but got back safe and sound.

Time to take my pills!

Best,

Bob

Routine end to global clutter.

What's that mean? I wrote myself a couple of notes about what to write for today's diary and when I looked at it, I thought it said Routine End to Global Clutter. I'm writing about it because I like the sound of that phrase. But I digress.

Hey, what's up with this weather?! I've been wearing a light jacket all week! For the first time in my life, I fell in love with the season of Summer! I want it to keep going and going! Where's your global warming now?! I'm wearing a light jacket in early September! Maybe we should start talking about global COOLING! Ever think of that, AL GORE?! (I have no actual facts to back up this paragraph.)

I discovered a new system to end clutter. At the end of the week, most of my clutter comes from junk mail. Now, when I get home, before I do anything, I take my junk mail and shred it up -- poof! No more clutter - take that, Hollywood!

I watched two interesting things on the tube last night. VH1-C was airing a RUSH concert (R30) - Damn, that was some good stuff! The other thing I saw was a documentary on Discovery called Death Metal Music. They were painting a picture between Death Metal and violent crime. It was interesting but I think a bad seed is a bad seed is a bad seed.

That's all I know today. Have a great weekend!

Best,

Bob

OK, I fell asleep on the sofa again, except much, much earlier this time around. The good news; now I can go to bed at a decent hour. The bad news; I'm a little groggy. I'd hate to write a full diary like this, I could give away my trade secrets without realizing it.

So, relax, let's try this again tomorrow.

Best,

Bob

Fell asleep on sofa stop. No diary today stop. Sorry stop.

Bob stop.

You know what I forgot to mention yesterday? I bought a couple of life-changing items at Pier 1 Imports. Item #1:


A reed diffuser

This thing is great. The reeds suck up the perfume and makes the room smell like a French whorehouse. And, it looks nice too.

Item #2:


A decorative pear

This second item is an impulse buy (duh) ...it's a pear made out of palms! It was only five bucks! It's decorative. Oh, nobody understands me!

Hey, let's take a look at the last 5 songs I purchased from itunes:

1. Peek-A-Boo -- Devo
2. No One Is to Blame -- Howard Jones
3. D's Dilemma -- Art Blakey
4. Wicker Chair -- Kings of Leon
5. Birdhouse in Your Soul -- They Might Be Giants

Now you know.

Must go to sleep now.

Best,

Bob

I just had one of those great weekends you read about in your fancy women's magazines.

And it started off on Friday when, for the first time in 4 years, I went to the dentist. The place where I would have bet the farm that I had a cavity, it simply wasn't there! The Dr. just gave me some Sensodyne toothpaste.


Sensodyne; Good for what ails you

So that was great news...oh, I forgot to mention that he did find 5 other cavities, ha ha! I know that sounds bad but they're in the early stages and really, that's only 5 cavities in 4 years, well, say no more. I did find a great dentist in Hoboken, that's sweet!

I had the rest of Friday off. I think I walked around a little and I went to the A & P. Saturday I cleaned my apartment. It was a mess. I bought some new cleaning stuff and got things in working order. I bought a bottle of Windex Multi Task Sparkle Lime. I like that stuff! Rare for a cleaner to use the power of lime...you usually only find a cleaner in lemon or orange. Excuse me for a second, YAWN! OK, I'm back.

Saturday night I met Cara (*S.L.F.) for a lovely dinner. Before dinner, I was waiting for her at the PATH station for a while...I was standing there so long, people started asking me questions, ha ha! I felt like the Mayor of Hoboken, the good one, not the one that's in jail, ha ha. Saturday night by the PATH station, I can think of a thousand places I'd rather be, ha ha. But it was all worth it:)

Sunday I loaded up the ride and drove to Nutley to get a couple of slices for lunch. Mmmmmmmm, good stuff! I was going to buy a new pair of kicks but couldn't find anything I liked. I know, I did just buy a new pair of shoes but here's the thing; I hate them. They're just SO white!

I returned home after I figured out that there's nothing for me in the outside world, ha ha. As soon as I came in, the sun was gone and stayed that way all day. That led me to believe that I control the sun. Bob Borden; Sun King. I like the sound of that.

Last today, it's 9/11. God bless the people we lost.

OK, that's all I know.

Have a great one!

Best,

Bob

* Special Lady Friend

Time once again for a little virtual scrapbooking:



I just got back from The Illusionist with my lady friend, Cara. We, if I can speak for her, liked it but thought it was just a bit too long. You should check it out. After the movie, dinner. I sent my dinner back (very rare) because it had sour cream on it...after I asked for no sour cream. I hate sending stuff back because, you know, they do stuff to the food. But I knew I wouldn't be happy picking around the sour cream. I'm happy to report that my new meal wasn't tampered with...whew! We had a fun time, as always.

I'm going to the dentist today! I'm very excited because I haven't been to a dentist for about four years. I'm going to sit down in that chair and ask for the works!

I got a nice message from bobborden.com fan, Chris M, yesterday. I liked it so much I asked him to write something so I could post it...kind of like a delayed messageboard. Chris M wrote:

"Sorry to hear certain jerks (you know who you all are) forced Bob to take down his comments section. I’ve found that posting comments intended for bb.com to other people’s blogs has been almost as therapeutic for me, but nowhere near as fun. I mean, how do I know if Bob actually sees any of them?

Anyway, good post yesterday -- I agree about the unnecessary remake thing. But which one did you think was worse 'Charlie and the Chocolate Factory' or 'Planet of the Apes'?

Hope you see this."

-- Thanks Chris M! I didn't see the remake of Planet of the Apes...that was sacrilege.

I kind of like this delayed messageboard...oh who am I kidding, it sucks eggs.

And on that note...have a great weekend!

Best,

Bob

I had Boston Market the other night for the first time in years! I have to say, it hit the spot. But I often wonder what the hell they do to that bird to make it taste SO good! I've never cooked a chicken that turned out so tasty. Such is life.


Bob is talking about this!

I caught Charlie and the Chocolate Factory on TV recently...What the F?! That's one film that didn't need to be remade. There was just a little darker tone than the first...I found it boring and unnecessary. However, I do like a good Tim Burton film. Doesn't get much better than Ed Wood.

I either have a cold right now or the change of season is screwing with me. I'm hot or cold or too cold or too hot...it's crazy!

A lot of people have contacted me about my comments section (thank you), turns out, people miss it. But I'm sorry, I just can't go back to letting any turd write whatever he/she wants. It got really old/boring. Shame that a few have to ruin it for all but that's life my friends. We had 6, somewhat, good years of sharing dumb thoughts, ha ha.

I took out my VCR last night to record something off my Tivo and wow, I forgot how awful that technology was. I felt like I was carrying around a washing machine. Hail, Hail the digital age!!!

That's it...feels like that's the most I've said in a while...blame it on my mystery fever, ha ha!

Best,

Bob

Man, I was off my game yesterday...not sure if that was due to too much sleep, this crazy weather or what. I got home and crashed for an hour.

So you'll understand when I cut it short (very short) today.

Best,

Bob

If you go into today's diary not expecting much, you may be pleasantly surprised, ha ha.

Friday I spent the day with my lady friend, Cara. I rode a New York City bus for the first time! Fun times.

New York City bus
(file photo)

Saturday I chilled out and watched the rain. I also did my laundry and went to the A & P. The A & P is remodeling...it was very confusing. Because of the rain, I canceled my plans to drive to the Hamptons Sunday morning. Of course, I wake up Sunday morning and there were blue skies for as far as the eye could see.

The rest of my weekend falls into the category of; "At The End Of My Life, I'm Really Going To Want Those Days Back."

Live and learn. But I also felt rundown, did a lot of sleeping...so that was good.

Last today; astute bobborden.com readers will notice that I took my "comments" section down. Sorry but it's true. Towards the end, I had an arm's length of people I banned (which was pointless)...there was just one jackass too many. So there you go.

Sad to hear about Steve Irwin (Croc Hunter) -- R.I.P.

Best,

Bob

Summer's over.

See ya on Tuesday.

Best,

Bob