This is my friend Skip, looking unrecognizably professional, who apparently wants to be known as AJ when it comes to the follicularly-challenged ramblings of his new blog, the catchily-titled Hair and Back Again – A Hair Loss and Regrowth Blog – My Journey of Hair Loss… and Redemption. He is one of my favorite people in the world. Mostly it’s because his wife is even more favored, and he benefits from proximity, but he’s got some winning attributes of his own.

It’s no secret that I don’t have many straight male friends, so the ones I do have I hold near and dear. It takes an especially confident straight guy to accept the wacky-tacky gayness of my life. Skip’s one of the rare men who likes Lady Gaga and Wicked as much as he enjoys golfing and the Red Sox, and that’s the kind of guy I admire. He manages to mix the long-lost art of chivalry with a modern-day take on acceptance and equality, treating everyone with dignity and respect, defending the honor of his friends and loved ones (even if it means a few ridiculous fight scenes). I’ve seen him escort ladies to the restroom just to be polite, and read a few FaceBook posts where he unabashedly extols the virtues of his wife and daughter.

There are but a few select people in this world whom I would trust when the chips are down. When I think about those friends in my life, I sometimes wonder which ones I would want on my side if I was cornered by goons in a back alley or threatened by the police (fashion or otherwise). Skip is one of those friends.

He’s also been instrumental in the behind-the-scenes set-up and functioning of this website. A jack of many trades, and master of a few, he’s my go-to guy for many computer issues, as well as iPhone advice, and the latest technological advances.

His new blog deals with the drama of going bald, and the preventative steps he’s taken to stop the hair-drop, and while a balding blog is the last thing I would normally want to read, he’s actually made it compelling enough to drop by on a daily basis. Of course there’s a lot of product talk (he does work for the company after all), but it’s surprisingly readable, and there are unexpected moments of wit and humor that shine through the most mind-numbingly dull passages on scalp exploration. You can visit it here to join him on the journey to a well-thatched roof.

“I told you she didn’t have a dick.”

But she certainly has some balls. It’s too soon to say whether Lady Gaga is truly going to take over the mantle of Madonna (the Queen has yet to abdicate the throne), but if her latest video for Telephone is any indication, there’s no one else who comes close. (I must say, it’s impressive how Beyonce holds her own here, rocking the bangs and stepping to the edgiest les-vibe video she’s done.)

It’s been a long time since a video made me smile, and I was beginning to think it might never happen again. This was a nice surprise. It’s a reminder of how a great video can elevate a song to new heights.

The influences here are too numerous to catch in one or two viewings – I found inspiration from Kill Bill, Natural Born Killers, photog David LaChapelle, Madonna’s OG American Life video (and her dreadful Who’s That Girl movie) as well as Thelma and Louise – all of which I loved.

I think it may be the snippets of dialogue that tickled me the most. Where else can you find a choice line like, “Once you kill a cow, you gotta make a burger.”?

And my personal favorite: “I knew you’d take all my honey, you selfish muthafucker.”

Who knew Honey-B had such a potty mouth on her?

I’ve been given the honor of being one of the fashion reviewers for the Grammys on Kristi Gustafson’s On the Edge blog. (I love how she linked to my engagement announcement too!)

This is going to be so much more fun than competing in the Best Dressed Man of the Capital Region contest a few years ago, as this time I get to do the judging.

I’ve often told the story of how I lost out on being voted Best Dressed in High School because I refused to kow-tow to grunge. (The winner, Sean Moron – not his real name, but close enough – wore ripped flannel shirts every day in the year of Pearl Jam and Nirvana.) It was a popularity contest back then, and I’ve never been that popular, but it still stung. (Most of my classmates were as clueless as Nomi when it came to Versace.)

This time around it’s the rich and famous musicians that are getting critiqued, and with the likes of Lady Gaga and Adam Lambert roaming free, it’s going to be a fun, and hopefully bumpy, night.