My oldest and bestest friend “Gus” has found my blog. I’m not sure how I feel about this. Here is what I mean. This is part of an email I received from him. *************************************** Well, I’ve read your blog.  Let me say, as you could expect, I have a ton to say.  First of all.  As I mentioned before, where is the Doug I knew? Ha.  Is say that tongue in cheek because as you know the Gus you knew and the Doug I knew were barely a step up from Beavis and Butthead.  Goes to show maybe how people can mature or change.  I find it a bit funny a few things you say in your blog, you are a girly.  I would disagree.  You aren’t, but…Having said that you, as so am I, are comfortable in your own skin.  Back in the day, if things were getting a little to girly, or non-macho, you would be the first to poke fun saying “oh that’s so cute”  Remember?  We couldn’t say things were cute, that wasn’t manly.  And if we heard a guy say that, we mocked him….Edited for family friendly reading.  I am a sucker for movies.  All sorts of movies even “chick flicks”  And girlie books.  Last August I was in Mazatlan with a lawyer friend up here.  We both had our two kids, he his 2 boys and me my 2 girls.  There is a water park north of the condo called Mazagua, and my friend has a great photo of me.  I’m in line, with a straw hat, that at the time I didn’t realize was a ladies hat.  It just need to shade the sun and the place we stay at has communal items, so I wore it.  I also, being the responsible practical father pack lunch, so I bummed a beach bag that was very girly.  That morning we swam in the ocean, so I just had my bathing suit on for bottoms, and for the short bus ride to the park, I wore a huge beach towel around my waist, which looked like a skirt.  To top it all off, I was just finishing the only book that was at the house that looked interesting “Eat, Pray, Love”  He took a picture when I wasn’t noticing, posted it in an email to all our mutual friends and title it “Sister Gus”.  Many of my friends wives were shocked to see that side of me. All they usually see is me as a macho, seemingly man’s man. My wife noticed this early on, as she would often send me to the video store, way back in the olden days when people used to rent movies, in fact VHS so long ago, and I would come back with “Moll Flanders” and other various non-dude shows.  So I guess time has passed, but that which bonded us long ago, maybe was also there when we were young, we were just too macho to admit it.  I remember the day when you thought that Nelly (Name has been changed to protect the innocent) girl in grade 5 was cute.  I thought you were crazy and mocked you for liking a girl.  We were definitely weird and played off each other’s like and dislikes. Back to the blog.  So I will continue with my obligatory mocking.   A dude blogger?  What’s next, a movie “Doug and Douglia” ?  Have you checked your testosterone levels?  Do you even have hair on your chest anymore?  (I won’t put pictures in to prove it) Ok enough mocking. As I mentioned in our phone conversation I think it’s cool what you guys are doing.  A couple thoughts I had while I was reading your blog 1.  Where’s the shout out to your parents attempt at raising young calves?  2. Are you going to reveal the culprit of the demise of Duke? (Someone shot my dog when I was in high school. I cried like a baby. I found his body in front of my future wife. She knew I was girly from the beginning.) 3. I was going to speak for the name of Gus (if your oldest, bestest pal is worthy of a role in the blog) 4. Man, I am highly skeptical of that small house.  Kudos to you guys if you could pull it off.  I am thinking that there have been people that have crossed the ocean in sea containers with more square footage than what you are proposing.  5. As I said on the phone.  Don’t make it, find it.  Kijiji.ca is super awesome.  If you want to come even close to your budget of 10,000 dollars you should find old kitchen cabinets, sinks, toilets, electrical wire, lights, lumber.  There is all sorts of used materials being sold on Kijiji.  I have lots of stuff at my place if interested.  I would be willing to part for a deal or future considerations.  Ha. ************************************ Gus was mostly positive about all our crazy ideas. If I can win him over things may not be so bad.