Five years ago, who among us could have predicted the economic landscape?  Who would have guessed that there would be a 20% unemployment rate in California?  It’s a different world, and to keep up with it, a new kind of job site has emerged.  JobFox.com is equal parts Linked In, Facebook, Monster, and career counseling session.  Given all of its bells and whistles, including a “Dream Job Cloud” and an area to upload work samples, I thought I’d check it out.

The result is an aggregation of your experience and talents, with an animated topography of your expertise at its center.  Pretty impressive, and a damn sight better looking than the usual static work profile page.  Check it out, and happy hunting.

I always thought turning 40 would be the beginning of the end. And for me it was, but not in the way I imagined. I turned 40 and my life spun out of control into a downward spiral.

At the time, I was living the gay dream: a loving partner, a beautiful home, a great dog, a respected career, and supportive family and friends. I had it all but I was miserable. I was lying and cheating on my partner. My “recreational” drug use had become a serious addiction. My fear of aging was paralyzing me and my social anxiety was so bad that I rarely left home. Not surprisingly, I soon hit rock bottom.

When your top priority in life is having the best body at a circuit party to get fleeting attention from strangers, it’s not going to end well. All of that is cute in your 20’s but when you can’t let go of it at 40, you can implode. And I did. I’d been numbing myself for 20 years in order to feel accepted and loved by everyone and I no longer wanted to live that way.

So at 41, I made a choice to live my life differently.

Now at 43 and almost two years sober, I’m living MY dream. I have a supportive family and friends, great dogs, a job I love, a beautiful home, but most importantly– I have myself. I have grown into a man. I live my life honestly and with integrity. I’m still insecure and wish the aging process wasn’t so cruel but I’ve accepted it. I’m no longer using steroids and Botox to make myself feel better because they never did anyway.

Instead I gain my strength and self worth through prayer, friendship, my work, and being of service to others. I’m present in my life now and I’m learning to love myself. I’m proud of who I’ve become. As the days and years go by, I’m no longer dreading getting older but excited for the adventures that lay ahead. 50? Bring it on!!!

- Evan, Los Angeles, CA

Born in 1969 in Hackney, London, the son of a taxi driver, McQueen started making dresses for his three sisters at a young age and announced his intention of becoming a fashion designer. He said that one of his earliest memories was from around the age of 3 when he drew a picture of a dress on a piece of bare wall which had been exposed by peeling wallpaper in the council house where his family lived. McQueen jokingly called it his first design sketch.

McQueen left Rokeby School at 16, landing himself an apprenticeship with Savile Row tailors Anderson & Sheppard, then working for Gieves & Hawkes and the famous theatrical costumiers Angels and Bermans. Whilst on Savile Row, McQueen’s clients included Mikhail Gorbachev and Charles, Prince of Wales; McQueen recounted in an interview that he once wrote the words “I am a cunt” in biro into the sleeve lining of a suit he was working on for Prince Charles. At the age of 20, he spent a period of time working for Koji Tatsuno before traveling to Milan, Italy and working for Romeo Gigli.

McQueen returned to London in 1994 and applied to London’s most prestigious fashion school, Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design to work as a pattern cutter tutor. Due to the strength of his portfolio he was persuaded by the Head of the Masters course to enroll in the course as a student. He received his Masters degree in Fashion design and famously, his graduation collection was bought in its entirety by influential fashion stylist Isabella Blow, who was said to have persuaded McQueen to change his name from Lee to Alexander (his middle name) when he subsequently launched his fashion career.

Icelandic singer Björk sought McQueen’s work for the cover of her album Homogenic in 1997.

Alexander McQueen’s early runway collections developed his reputation for controversy and shock tactics (earning the title “l’enfant terrible” and “the hooligan of English fashion”), with trousers aptly named “bumsters”, and a collection entitled “Highland Rape” to highlight the historic brutalization of Scotland by Ireland. McQueen was known for his lavish, unconventional runway shows, such as a recreation of a shipwreck for his spring 2003 collection, spring 2005’s human chess game and his fall 2006 show, Widows of Culloden, which featured a life-sized hologram of supermodel Kate Moss, dressed in yards of rippling fabric.

McQueen was an accomplished scuba diver and used his passion as a source of inspiration in his designs. An undersea influence was seen in his October 2009 fashion show, ‘Plato’s Atlantis’ (shown below). Much of his diving was done around the Maldives. – from Wikipedia

The details surrounding McQueen’s suicide are still unfolding, however, many report that he had been struggling with the loss of his Mother on February 2, 2010.

Rest in peace, Alexander McQueen. You will be really fucking missed.

Financial Times’ style section recently reported that fewer men are covering their greys – or at least selectively leaving some showing – to maintain a distinguished look. Guys who aren’t so grey are having a talcum powder dusted at their temples for more gravitas at work. It’s nothing that George Clooney – who once said, “Getting older is better than being dead.” – hasn’t been telling us for years. Check it out.