…is great name for a wine grotto, don’t cha’ think? It translates from Espanol to English as: the grape of life. I told you I had vino on my mind lately. And I’m blaming all my vino consumption combined with my fascination with how to say words related to vino in Espanol on the month of February.  It’s snowing AGAIN this morning…Oh, gracias a Dios el mes de marzo está a la vuelta de la esquina.

Adios para ahora
Neve Black

 It’s quite possible that I’ve become a vino-tinto-holic. Yeah, I know, something new for a change.  I’ll admit it, I do like a fine glass of vino from time to time - okay, okay, so most of the time, unless of course tequila beats vino to the punch. I think my escalated tinto-holic behavior must have something to do with the month of February. February is Cleveland’s coldest month. And I think I’m frozen. Maybe this month is everyone’s coldest month, unless of course you live on other side of the equator, like South America, for example.

Tonight *hiccup* I’m drinking an Argentinian Malbec, Colores del Sol, and might I add, the colors of the sun are warming me up quite nicely.

Thawing out,
Neve Black

An old friend found me on FaceBook about 7-8 months’ ago. And yes, I know this isn’t a phenomenon for you reading this post, because most of us are all aware of the fact that old friends, relatives, and school chums around the globe are searching everyday for their long losts on FaceBook in hopes that their long losts won’t be lost anymore. FaceBook has miraculously interfaced and reintroduced people. And for me, it feels like the past, the present and the future are all meeting colliding in one place in time… (queue science fiction music, please) …and it’s kinda’ quantum physics-tricky.

Stay with me here a minute, I’m getting to my phenomenon point, I swear. I’m Neve Black the erotic writer, but there’s a lot of people from my past that don’t know that –Neve Black is my porn writing pen name, so for someone from my past to find me here in the present, with a different name, living in a different city and oh, that very minor detail that I twirl the pen of porn, well…that’s some fancy foot work on their his part, don’t ya’ think? I do. What’s trickier is this person is interested in merging our past with a future… and, I have to admit, I’ve always been rather fascinated with quantum physics.

What’s your past/present/future collision story?

Neve Black

p.s. the u2 video above has absolutely nothing to do with my post above, but it’s a welcomed favorite and Bono helped calm me down this morning while I navigated through snow piles and sketchy ice patches on my way to school earlier today. Enjoy!

…but who’s counting?

The Academy Awards will be here just after I get through the worst thing about living in Cleveland…February.

While I bundle up to stave off the arctic conditions, I continue my viewing scramble of Oscar nodded films. I’ve listed a few of the nominating categories below, which were just announced yesterday, along with my own predictions of who will win, and who I think should win. Oh and yes, as a matter-of-fact, I’ve found that the Academy rarely ever listens to me when it comes to selecting the winners. Hell, the Academy and I rarely see eye-to-eye on nominations either. I’m often dumbfounded on why gorgeous films that I see at the movie house somehow fall through the cracked sidewalks of Hollywood Blvd. I have what you could safely label as a love/hate relationship with those that embody the esteemed Academy, but I love the Oscars. I participate in an Oscar party each year; step into a ball gown; drink champagne and imagine walking the red carpet:

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY:
Mark Boal, The Hurt Locker
Quentin Tarantino, Inglorious Basterds
Alessandro Camon and Oren Moverman, The Messenger
Coen Brothers, A Serious Man
Bob Peterson, Pete Docter, Tom McCarthy, Up

Neve’s prediction: Alessandro Camon and Oren Moverman, The Messenger will win. Who should win? Alessandro Camon and Oren Moverman, The Messenger. Yes, I meant to write this twice.

DIRECTOR:
James Cameron, Avatar
Kathryn Bigelow, The Hurt Locker
Quentin Tarantino, Inglorious Basterds
Lee Daniels, Precious
Jason Reitman, Up in the Air

Neve’s prediction: Kathryn Bigelow will win. Who should win? Seriously, they all should win in this category.

BEST PICTURE:
Avatar
Blind Side
District 9
An Education
The Hurt Locker
Inglorius Basterds
Precious
A Serious Man
Up
Up In The Air

Neve’s prediction: Avatar will win. What film should win? The Hurt Locker. I don’t think I knew Cameron’s talented ex-wife was his talented ex-wife (he’s had more than a few of these, you know) and yeah, to be honest, other than the first Terminator movie, which was back in 1984, I don’t really care for, nor do I understand Cameron’s vision, but I’m not much of mainstreamer either. But setting all personal issues aside, Avatar compared to the The Hurt Locker? Really?

ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE:
Jeff Bridges, Crazy Heart
George Clooney, Up in the Air
Colin Firth, A Single Man
Morgan Freeman, Invictus
Jeremy Renner, The Hurt Locker

Neve’s prediction: Holy Damn, I really don’t know. I’m stumped here. This is the toughest category for me to choose this year. I want my boyfriend, George to win of course, but damn…the performances of his peers are sensational.

ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE:
Sandra Bullock, The Blind Side
Helen Mirren, The Last Station
Carey Mulligan, An Education
Gabourey Sidibe, Precious
Meryl Streep, Julie & Julia

Neve’s prediction: Sandra Bullock, The Blind Side will win. Who should win: Helen Mirren, The Last Station. No offense to Mrs. Jesse James, but come on, let’s be honest here, NO ONE can compete with show stopping talent of Helen Mirren.

See you at the movies,
Neve Black

…about F-stop, Exposing the Naked I, which is the collaborative project of Donna George Storey, Shanna Germain and moi. The three of us have already started things off by inaugurating this endeavor with our ménage a trois seal of approval. Bada-bada-ring-a- bing!

We’re all lick-ered up and ready for you…to come play with us too. We want you to expose a thing or two…or three. Hey, I hear threesomes are ai-chi-wa-wa, hot. Need more convincing? Just listen to the groovy words of Steven Patrick Morrissey below…and remember, shyness is nice, but shyness can stop you from doing all the things in life you want to:

Neve Black

…and clearly I’ve been interrupting this erotic-related blog by posting film reviews for potential Academy Award nominations…and now…(I’m such a rule breaker) I’m going to interrupt the Academy (sorry, Mr. DeMille) to post news that I’ve recently stimulated (oooh, la, la) the economy by purchasing an old, but new to me, house in my beloved neighborhood of Tremont. It’s been months that I’ve been living in my friend Natalie’s house and si, su casa es mi casa, pero…enough is enough. I’m ready to have my own space again: my couch, my books, my paintings, my wine glasses, my dishes…let’s face it, I miss my stuff, to include all those naughty toys I’ve packed away in a box (no pun intended) somewhere. Heavy sigh.

Mi Casa Es Su Casa - Tequila Para Todos!
Neve Black

As we get closer to the nail biting date when the Academy announces its official Oscar nominated films (first week in February) I’ve become somewhat of a mad woman running around trying to see as many films that I think will receive the Academy’s nod of approval.

This weekend, I rented the WWII, spaghetti Western-like film, Inglorious Basterds, directed by Tarantino. Knowing what I know about Tarantino’s reputation for writing and directing films with raw, graphic smatterings,

I really didn’t think I was going to enjoy the film as much as I did. Inglorious Basterds was very entertaining and very well done. Now, after saying that, if violence, corruption and vengeance aren’t your thang, trust me, I understand, however I’m also a Tarantino fan, so from a cinematic perspective, the film is simply brilliant. It’s got that funky, edgy, pulp fiction verve that appeals to my film snobiness (yes, I’m so insolent, I ought to be spanked) and Tarantino also manages to grab the attention of the mainstream viewer too. This film is Tarantino’s largest money maker yet. If you are faint hearted, take a pass on this one, because I’m warning you, the content is…well, it’s Tarantino-violent, but if you can keep an open mind and view the film for what it is: a group of bad asses that take down the Third Reich during occupied France during WWII; rent it and be sure and let me know your thoughts. Until then, I bid great film viewing to you.

Neve Black

 …um…I beg to differ. Below is CNN footage of the beach town I grew up in, Pacific Beach, located in San Diego, California. I am as stupefied watching this video as I was when I veiwed Clairemont Mesa Blvd going up in flames due to the arson fires a few years ago.

Crazy stuff, eh?

Neve Black

Depending on what astrological chart you’re looking at either today, or tomorrow is the first day of the dually planetary ruled sun sign, Aquarius. And like Roxanne, the heroine, in my novel, Sex through the Zodiac, I was also involved with an Aquarian once…although he was a cusp Aquarius/Pisces blend (if there is such a thing as a blend of air and water) and we had a lot of X-rate fun together.

 *ponders those lusty moments with that air/water combo*

As mentioned above, Aquarians are ruled by two planets: Uranus and Saturn. Uranus type Aquarians are more free-wheeling, visionaries and full of deep thoughts about humanity, whereas the second type of Aquarius, which like Capricorns are ruled by the restricting planet of Saturn tend to have Capricorn characteristics: practical, structured,  and organized. Neither one Aquarian type is better than the other, however the simple fact that you can find such diametrically opposed characteristics in one sign is fascinating to me. It is in my humble opinion, the best type of Aquarian is one that equally shares both planets: the wildness of Uranus and the traditional properties found in Saturn.

So tell me, who out here in blog land is an Aquarius born sun sign? Are you an Aquarius, ruled by practical Saturn? Or are you the Aquarius, ruled by Uranus and found in the song, Age of Aquarius? “…when the moon is in the seventh house…and Jupiter aligns with Mars…”

To get the conversation rolling here, here’s a sexy excerpt from Roxanne’s public shower tryst with her lusty Aquarius, Quinn after a heated Yoga class: 
 

“…It was Quinn. She was standing in the changing room. She was still wearing her Yoga clothes. She looked cold and she had a troubled look on her face.
 
“Roxanne.” (pause). “Roxanne. Please don’t be alarmed, it’s Quinn.”
 
“Quinn? What the hell are you trying to do? Scare me to death?” I was cognizant of where I was, so I whispered loudly, but emphatically. 
 
“I can’t find my keys. I thought I may have left them here.” She answered and her voice was calm, but her body was shaking. She was cold.
 
“In here? In the shower? You think you lost your keys in the shower?” My voice was harsh. I was obviously rattled by the jolt from her surprise visit.
    
Then it dawned on me. The sexy Aquarian that I was ready to pounce on minutes ago in the Yoga class was standing just outside the shower door. The universe was too kind to me. Maybe I should ask her to get naked and join me.
 
“I came back to look for them and I can’t seem to find them anywhere.” She said clutching her arms around her body. She was shivering.
 
“Don’t worry. We’ll find your keys. Look at you, you’re shaking from being so cold.” I lowered my voice, trying to be calm. I could tell she was upset.
    
From where I was standing, I figured I had two options: I could turn the shower water off; step out; towel off and then let Quinn step in after me and warm up her chilly bones. Or, I could open the shower door and invite her to step inside with me. I chose option two. I pushed the shower glass door open; Quinn smiled as she removed her sweat-soaked clothes and then stepped inside with me. The shower door sealed tightly shut behind us….”

Um and yes, I am a very wicked Scorpio that wants you to buy the book in order to read about Roxanne’s happy ending with Quinn -

Neve Black

I stumbled upon the video above and thought it might be a great transition into today’s post. As I type these words the sound and movement of my fingers lightly tapping the keys hurts my head, my body…good God, even my tongue hurts…everything hurts today “shhhh…Neve, please…quieter,” are the words my head repeats to my body. I’m sitting at the kitchen table, the light filters through sliding glass windows behind me and casts a gray and weary mood on the day. I’m sipping from a very large bottle of water and praying for hydration. In the background classical music whispers while the dryer hums my bed sheets dry.

I’m trying to push my hangover aside, because I have much to do today before settling onto someone’s couch and watching the Golden Globes tonight. I’m not sure if everyone will be tuning into the Golden Globes, but for me the Globes are a slice of bliss; a step towards the Oscars and heaven.

Last night…I got loaded… off a bottle of tequila -
Neve Black