Like, oh my god! Gag me with a spoon!

On Sunday I decided to lay down with Bella as she took her nap and watch Valley Girl. I had it on my Netflix queue and it came so I watched it. If she woke up any earlier, I probably would have never finished this movie and sent it back. But I’ll be honest, I loved this movie when I was a teenager. I wonder if high school kids of today would ‘get it’ – you know, the whole Valley Girl thing. Are there still any Valley Girls around?



Valley Girl (1983)
This is going to be a quick review because I don’t have much to say. I totally identified with this movie in high school. I saw both sides having worked in Hollywood at 16, and also visiting the Valley quite often. I saw the differences and the similarities. Yes, as I stated before, I loved this movie.

Twenty years later I’ve found it to be very thin in story yet tried to be heavy in theme. Love, life, cultures clash, etc.

From the very first dialogue scene you could tell they were trying to FORCE the Valley Girl talk right down your throat with all the quips and sayings. “Gag me with a spoon”, “For sure”, “Like, oh my god” etc. But it wasn’t natural. You and I could play around with this banter right now and make it more natural than what came out from that first scene.

Aside from Nick Cage’s performance there’s really nothing of value in this movie as I watch it today, except for the awesome music. Modern English’s “I Melt with You” will always be one of my all time favorite songs.

Deborah Foreman was touted as an up and coming big star, but really didn’t do much after this movie aside from April Fool’s Day. Unfortunate but true, for sure for sure.

I MELT WITH YOU – MODERN ENGLISH
Moving forward using all my breath
Making love to you was never second best
I saw the world thrashing all around your face
Never really knowing it was always mesh and lace

I'll stop the world and melt with you
You've seen the difference and it's getting better all the time
There's nothing you and I won't do
I'll stop the world and melt with you

(You should know better)
Dream of better lives the kind which never hate
(You should see why)
Dropped in the state of imaginary grace
(You should know better)
I made a pilgrimage to save this humans race
(You should see why)
What I'm comprehending a race that long gone bye

(I'll stop the world) I'll stop the world and melt with you
(I'll stop the world) You've seen the difference and it's getting better all the time
(Let's stop the world) There's nothing you and I won't do
(Let's stop the world) I'll stop the world and melt with you

The future's open wide

(Let's stop the world) I'll stop the world and melt with you
(Let's stop the world) I've seen some changes but it's getting better all the time
(Let's stop the world) There's nothing you and I won't do
(Let's stop the world) I'll stop the world and melt with you

The future's open wide

hmmm hmmm hmmm
hmmm hmmm hmmm hmmm
hmmm hmmm hmmm
hmmm hmmm hmmm hmmm

I'll stop the world and melt with you (Let's stop the world)
You've seen the difference and it's getting better all the time (Let's stop the world)
There's nothing you and I won't do (Let's stop the world)
I'll stop the world and melt with you (Let's stop the world)
I'll stop the world and melt with you (Let's stop the world)
I'll stop the world and melt with you (Let's stop the world)

Long day

The end of the work day was tagged with two hours at home that seemed more like eight. I managed to go to Whole Foods after work to pick up some groceries for dinner. To my utter dismay I forgot to buy eggs which I needed in order to make dinner. So a quick stop at my sister’s house provided two eggs for the recipe.

I picked up Bella at the sitters, then over the mountain to get Jake. Back home by 5:30 and I was ready to cook.

I’ve been craving meat loaf for like a week. There’s nothing better than a really good meat loaf. So I called Donna for the recipe – the yummy Taryn (our ex-neighbor) recipe.

I got the water boiling for three artichokes, threw all the ingredients into a bowl for the meatloaf, mixed it and patted it into a baking pan. About twenty minutes into the artichokes, I got the meatloaf in the oven.

My saving grace for the evening was The Lion King on DVD. When I picked Jacob up, his day care group was watching it and Bella was captured by the song “Hakuna Matata” so when we got home, they wanted to watch it.

This allowed me to get the dishes put away, load the dish washer, wash the pots – which I hate but I was in the kitchen anyway, and set the table.

This is when I realized I had to cook rice. And I went to the rice bin and there was like three cups of rice left. I was kinda perturbed at this, but three cups of rice is better than none. After I turned the rice cooker on I realized we had no mayo! YOU CAN’T EAT ARTICHOKES WITHOUT MAYO!

I waited till the artichokes were cooked, strained them and scooped up the kids to rush down to the cash and carry for some Mayo. Yes, I left the meatloaf baking in the oven which was a big no-no, but the timing was perfect.

By the time we got back, the artichokes were cooled off and we had 9 minutes for the loaf to finish. I put the artichokes on the table and Jake asked, “Is that all you cooked?”

Uh, no…

But it was a good appetizer. I served up the meat loaf and rice and we sat there together to enjoy dinner. It was yum!

Right after dinner I dipped them into the bathtub, got their teeth brushed, got them into bed and 30 minutes past their bedtime, the lights were out and I opened up a beer.

Just in time for the 3rd quarter to start on Monday Night Football.

Whew.

‘nuff said.

-Mr. Mom.



In the life of photography, I am also trying to learn the art of wiping out the background of a picture. Here’s an attempt.



The original:



Not perfect, but getting there. And I love this picture of Donna.

Would you believe…

It's with much sorrow and great regret that I announce the death of Don Adams today, September 25, 2005.

Yes, the lead actor of one of my all time favorite TV shows has died. Don Adams, aka Maxwell Smart, Secret Agent 86.

On those nights I wasn’t supposed to watch TV, I’d turn it on and, if I was lucky enough, I’d get through the fuzzy reception to catch an episode of Get Smart on our tiny black and white television screen. We didn’t have many channels, and sometimes I’d have to watch a whole episode of Get Smart through the snow of bad antennae reception TV. Maxwell Smart is probably one of the very first on screen heroes I had while growing up. I even wanted to be named Maxwell but my parents didn’t have the foresight to name me this when I was born. Thus the name, Glenn.

Max inspired me in many ways. I grew up wanting to be Maxwell Smart, to be a spy, and to have a sexy partner code named Agent 99. I learned a lot from Max from romance and love to karate chops and espionage. I also had a partner in crime, a robot – but much smarter than Hymie. His name was Billy. My shoes were chosen for shoe phone possibilities. Anybody who crossed my path was working for KAOS and of course I devoted my undying loyalty to CONTROL. My fascination of being a spy all came from this show. I even started my own spy agency in grade school with my best friend Willie called, YPSPY. We were the best at what we did and NOBODY knew our cover.

But Maxwell Smart, secret agent 86, was and will always be the Spy who I never became.

Combine Maxwell Smart and Jack Tripper from “Three’s Company” and you’ve got the secret fantasy life of yours truly.

Don Adams, you’ll be missed. And thanks for the memories!

Excuse me, but my shoe is ringing.

Performance evaluation day for Glenn and a “1” means “Does not meet standards”

I hate ‘review day’. It’s the day you get a performance review and are told this that and the other thing and you find out your raise or non-raise.

I’ve been here more than a year, I’ve already gotten an unexpected raise after six months. I’m managing to still do the job I was hired to do plus more, and I guess if I were to give myself a review I’d say… I think I’m hanging in there.

And if you ask if I like alcoholics I’d reply… “I like alcoholics???”

So Friday I get a call into the CFO’s office around 2:30 PM. Of course I’m nervous. And of course I think I’m going to get fired as I always think. I’m quite the paranoid.

I sit down and he asks, “Do you know how I do an eval?”

I shake my head – no.

“I do a summary of the eval, then we go over the points on the evaluation list, then we go over it in summary again.”

I nodded – okay.

“So… in summary…”

Oh shit. I’m thinking the next words are going to hurt. You’re not working 8 hour days. You’re dressed too casually. You stay in your office with your door closed doing who knows what on the internet and computer while drinking coffee. You don’t go out to lunch with people and you eat all my apples.

Well, I have an excuse for each of those arguments. I get here at 7:00 AM and I leave at 4:00 PM. And I work at home when I need to. I dress how he (my CFO) dresses. I like staying in my office with my door closed because I don’t want my radio and iPod to bother others and yeah, as you know I’m on the internet or programming VBA procedures for Excel. I don’t go to lunch with people because I’d rather spend $3.05 in the cafeteria for a well balanced meal than spend $8 to $10 a day on fast food or some serious unhealthy lunches. And you said I can eat your apples!

I expected the worst at the very least if that’s possible. I expected, well, here’s my opportunity to get that job at Barnes & Nobles and Starbucks. I expected if I stayed another year I’d be on egg shells trying to walk the walk without getting the boot. Now that’s stressful and so far, its been pretty UN-stressful.

I mean, this has been the best job and boss I’ve ever had in my life. And I’ve had some great bosses.

But that’s not what came after he said, “So… in summary…”

“So… in summary… you’re doing a great job. Now lets go over the points of the evaluation list.”

HUH?

What did he say?

“…in summary… you’re doing a great job.”

GREAT?

A GREAT JOB?

Heh, I know my analysis kick ass, I know I go beyond the call of duty when I do my job, I know I’m an Excel Expert… I mean you hired me didn’t you? Damn straight I’m doing a great job!!!

So yeah. I got a smile on my face and I’m holding back the tears and trying not to hug my boss for telling me I make his job easier. And he’s the C-F-FRIGGEN-O!

He gives me one of those ‘form statements’ like, “I rarely ever give a person a 5 from the scale of 1-5…”

Yes I’ve heard EVERY ONE of my bosses say this to me. And yes, they’re right. They rarely and never ever do.

“But I gave you a lot of 5s.” He continued.

The sentence hung in the air for a moment.

“But I gave you a lot of 5s.”

A LOT? DUDE, YOU’RE COOLER THAN SHIT!!!

Believe me, there’s a point to this whole thing and I’ll get to that in a few paragraphs. Hang with me.

And yes he did. He gave me a lot of 5s. Six of the thirteen categories he gave me a score of 5. A fiver for this, a fiver for that, a fiver for this, a fiver for that.

Yeah I’m bragging, I JUST GOT MY REVIEW DAMINT!

The definition of a 5 is, “Consistently Exceeds Standards” which means a good score and a great raise. AGAIN!

So yeah, apparently I’m consistently exceeding standards despite my loud music, my casual business attire, my refusal to spend money on expensive food, my addiction to coffee and the Internet. Believe me, the coffee helps me do this job.

Twenty minutes into the evaluation he tells me to go home early. And this isn’t the first time he’s told me to go home early.

I’ve been here more than a year. Do you think I can stand it another year of this, “go home early stuff?”

Uh… YES.

And that’s my point. Remember, I said I’d have a point?

The damn carrot. Its dangling in front of me. Keeping me here in Corporate America which offers a good salary, health benefits, a 401K and discounts at Disneyland. But you know what else this does? It holds me back from that career in writing. I mean I’m good at what I do here as a financial analyst, I’m also a good writer. At least that’s what I’m told.

So more commitment to writing at night or in the mornings has to be done to remind myself who I am and what I want in life. Because getting paid to do something that you don’t want to do, and continually exceeding standards is only going to give me the money… but its not going to make me happy.

Plus, Donna’s bringing home the $$$ now WITH benefits and a 403B and discounts at Disneyland too! And the cost of a bag of coffee is quite high so working at Starbucks would, at the very least, give me free coffee! Couple that with a job at Barnes & Noble and my kids will always have a book to read and inherit our addiction to caffeine like any normal American family! That way I can write and that’s going to make me happy!

And so it goes. Another chapter in the life of the HungryHungryScreenwriter! Not so bad. I can’t really complain. At least I’m not a Hippo.

One more point. Bosses should make their employees feel great. It keeps them in the job and motivates them to consistently exceed standards.

‘nuff said.

Amazing Spiderman #16 (1964)

From my comic book collection... Here is Amazing Spiderman #16. A 12 cent comic book from 1964. This issue is graded at VG- for a value of around $100.



I took this pic for a typography contest. I turned in a cropped portion titled: "Pre-Digital Typography".



Amazing Spiderman #16 (1964)
Cover Price .12 cents
Grade: VG-
Aprox Value $100

I love my comic book collection!!!

What would you tell your kids if you thought you might die in 3 hours?

What would you tell your kids (or family, or loved ones, or best friend) if you thought you might die in 3 hours?

Three hours of torture. Three hours to say what you need to say. Three hours till the end OR START of your life.

“For a few hours, the city watched and waited and watched some more as the JetBlue aircraft seemed to circle endlessly in the sky, preparing to land somehow, somewhere.” By Carla Hall and Kurt Streeter, Times Staff Writers

I saw a picture of woman holding her little girl as her little boy walked out in front of her. They were walking down the stairs coming from the jetBlue plane that just landed after a three hour ordeal in the sky.

If you were on the plane, what do you do? WHAT DO YOU DO?

You have just taken off from Burbank, CA on the way to New York. The next thing you know, you’re flying over the Pacific Ocean, circling LAX and preparing for a crash landing. And you’re watching it all on TV. You are the spectator to your own possible demise.

But what do you do when you have both your kids sitting next to you? What do you tell them? What do you need to tell them that you may never tell them again? What do you need to say to your kids to make this situation easy knowing that this could possibly be your last moments together? In reality, you walk out your door every day not knowing the outcome. And you just get through your day and go on to the next. But when your plane is about to go down in an emergency landing because of a broken landing gear, and you watch with your own eyes the news and see the preparation being made for possible tragedy, how do you keep it together and be strong for your kids?

What do you do?

For a brief moment I thought about the people on the plane. I thought about fathers traveling without their kids. I thought about parents on the plane holding their kids. I thought about a child traveling alone (as Jessica will be in two weeks). I suddenly was put in a mood that I didn’t want to be in. I was angry at life, angry at all the unfortunate events going on in the world, and angry at God. And my mind kept thinking about the slow torture the passengers were going through on the plane.

Donna asked, “Do you think they’re allowed to call their families?” I replied with only a hopeful, “Probably.” But I didn’t know.

What if you did get to call your family and nobody was home? What kind of message would you leave? What would you say to your two year old daughter? Would she understand? What would you say to your five year old son? How long would you talk to them?

I didn’t want to read the story today. I didn’t want to watch the footage last night. I only wanted to know one thing - the outcome. And about an hour after the plane was scheduled to ‘crash land’, I called Dale to get an update. Thank goodness for the good news.

But many did watch. Many said a prayer. Many drank beer doing so as if watching a football game.

People in offices, sports bars, restaurants and health clubs all over the Southland are transfixed as the drama unfolds on television. By Carla Hall and Kurt Streeter, Times Staff Writers

Many watched. I couldn’t.

There’s a lump in my throat as I look at the picture of the mother and two kids. There’s a tear fighting to stay in my eye as I think about what could have been. There’s a hole in my heart when I think about being someone in that plane for three hours. And I’m still mad. But that’s a personal issue I have with a higher being.

It’s probably going to be a life changing event for many on that plane. I know it’s a life changing event for me.

So now what? What do I do?

I’ve said my piece. And now all I could do is try not to think about it. And think about my life a little bit more differently.



‘nuff said.

Who said it didn't rain in Southern California?

I love the rain…

And its raining today.

Although driving on the freeways are bad...

The music is good!

Driving music:

DISHWALLA’S “FARAWAY”
Just the other day, I was looking for myself again
Trying to put back all the pieces, back to the way they were
Sometimes it’s not so easy, when you have so many voices tell you what to do
I think I’ve got it now, but I can’t be too sure

Far Away as you shoot across the sky
Far Away to the corners of my mind
Sooner or later, it will slowly come back to me

If I could build a spaceship would you fly away with me, or would you stay?
A million miles an hour flying circles as we orbit round the Earth
If I stuck my head out the window, do you think it’d clear my head, or would it burst?
I guess it’s all the same, but at least it wouldn’t hurt

Far Away as you shoot across the sky
Far Away to the corners of my mind
And the voices in my head, I think they’ve finally gone away

Far away, far away
Sooner or later, it will slowly come back to me

YUMMY THOUGHTS

There were about 18 people (including kids) at The Yard House in Pasadena for Donna's birthday dinner. Aside from the long wait for the table, the food, beer, and of course the music was good.

Here are a few pictures of Donna from Sunday night's birthday dinner.











Who's that in the background? It's JAKE trying to get into the picture. What a clown.

The fleeting of perfect moments…

Sometimes there’s a perfect moment that comes into your life that you’ll forget as the next moment (perfect or not) works its way into your path.

For a brief moment I experienced it - the perfect moment. It may not seem like anything to anyone else, but for that instant, there was nothing wrong with the world. Consider the rising and falling gas prices, the war in Iraq, the tragedy of Katrina or the bumper to bumper traffic I just experienced on the freeway. This one moment overrode those events and for but a minute or just a few seconds, life found perfection. Sometimes it’s not so easy to find. But sometimes you walk right into it. And its amazing.

Details of this moment can take on a different meaning seconds later. But for once, I thought I’d capture it, and try to dwell on it, and remember it instead of letting it shoot past across the sky.

It was the instant I stepped into my house and closed the door. There was something about how the light in the house made everything look like a walking dream. The natural light through the windows, the smell and comfort of home, the quiet, the relief after a long day, long week and long year at work. It all boils down to the last day of the week, a Friday evening and the long awaited rest from everyday things.

And then it was gone.

At at least I can go back and read an entry for September 16, 2005 and read about the perfect moment while desperately trying to remember how it felt.

Unfortunately, moments later, it’s hard to remember the feeling. As that perfect moment escaped and made room for other moments… perfect and not so perfect.

At least one time in my life I was able to grab a fleeting glimpse and hold on for the short ride. Hopefully, sooner or later, it will come back to me.

Glenn's melancholy moment

FADE IN:

INT. – GLENN’S MIND – DAY
It’s a madhouse of images and sounds.

We delve into Glenn's stream of consciousness and through the brain synapses’ firing we see the following thoughts floating in zig-zag motion inside his head.

I haven’t really had the ‘mind’ to write lately. Mostly because I’ve had a headache since Saturday morning. So as my mind wanders aimlessly, here’s one of those blog entries that has no point other than I’m forcing myself to write.

Sushi is good food. And it makes me happy when Jacob wants to eat my tuna sushi. Its so cool. Now Sushi is good under any circumstance. For a light lunch, for a heavy lunch, for late night dinner, during hot weather, cold weather, with or without beer (although its better with), dining with friends or all alone at a sushi bar. It’s the perfect meal at any time. Except when you have a stomach ache.

Eating a Chocolate & Dark Chocolate Haagen-Dazs bar tends to be one of the best 10 minutes of my day. I only do this like once a month so it’s a serious treat. I mean, read this: It’s an “all natural ice cream bar. Chocolate ice cream dipped in, then drizzled with fine dark chocolate.” It’s the ‘drizzled’ part in that description that makes it work. What a poetic way to describe the coating of the ice cream. How could you not eat something like that? Well, if you’re lactose intolerant, maybe you’ll want to stay away.

If there’s one show that I really look forward to its Big Brother 6. And if it weren’t for Big Brother 6, I wouldn’t have a clue about Rock Star INXS. Both shows are on my TV watching priority. I am going to watch Survivor tonight. Maybe I shouldn’t. But I probably will. Reality TV sucks. Sounds like I’m contradicting myself doesn’t it - since both Big Brother and Rock Star INXS are of the Reality TV variety. But my meaning is not that Reality TV sucks as in its bad TV, its damn good TV because it hooks you. That’s what sucks. And that’s why I hate Reality TV. But you gotta love it! This paragraph is filled with contradictions. Have a lawyer? Sue me.

Did you know if the Dodgers won their game two nights ago and then won again last night they’d only be four games out? And their last three games are with SD in SD?!?!?!?!?!? I HATE THEM! No I don’t. I love them.

The Giants are playing the Padres. Well, they did and took two of three. And I was watching one of the games when Jacob asked who I was rooting for. I said, “The Giants”. And Jake, the true blue Dodger fan I raised him to be said, “How could we root for the giants when we don’t like the Giants?” I tried to explain that we don’t like either the Padres or the Giants but the Giants have to beat the Padres so the Dodgers could get closer to first place. “But we don’t like the Giants.” He replied. “Yes, but they need to win so the Dodgers can get closer to first.” This went on and on in circles and finally it just was about the Dodgers need to be Colorado Rockies. I had no other way to explain that under NO circumstance, would we root for the Giants ever. Never, ever, ever, ever. Except for like, when they are playing the Padres who we would NOT root for either, but its better to root for the Padres than the Giants unless the Dodgers need… never mind. Go BLUE! At least he knows its improper to root for the Yankees under any circumstance… Unless they’re playing the Giants of course.

Now what?

I’ll wrap this up with lyrics from a song. Let’s see… what’s on my iPod that can contribute to the mood I’m in this very moment…

Ahhh…

1979 by The Smashing Pumpkins

Shakedown 1979, cool kids never have the time
On a live wire right up off the street
You and I should meet
Junebug skipping like a stone
With the headlights pointed at the dawn
We were sure we'd never see an end to it all
And I don't even care to shake these zipper blues
And we don't know
Just where our bones will rest
To dust I guess
Forgotten and absorbed into the earth below
Double cross the vacant and the bored
They're not sure just what we have in store
Morphine city slippin dues down to see
That we don't even care as restless as we are
We feel the pull in the land of a thousand guilts
And poured cement, lamented and assured
To the lights and towns below
Faster than the speed of sound
Faster than we thought we'd go, beneath the sound of hope
Justine never knew the rules,
Hung down with the freaks and the ghouls
No apologies ever need be made, I know you better than you fake
it
To see that we don't even care to shake these zipper blues
And we don't know just where our bones will rest
To dust I guess
Forgotten and absorbed into the earth below
The street heats the urgency of sound
As you can see there's no one around

This song reminds of one rainy night in 1997 (not 1979). I was driving Donna to the mall to look for a clock radio. I sang this song, or part of it, to her. She laughed.

It was a Mellon Collie moment.

Get it? Mellon Collie? GET IT?!?!?!?!?!?! 1979 was from the album “Mellon Collie” and although it was a “melancholy moment” I used the words “Mellon Collie” as an adjective to describe… eh… nevermind.

THE END

Dedicated to Donna - Happy Anniversary

Seven years, two kids and aproximately 2,555 cups of coffee later... it's my seven year anniversary. And the marriage, the kids AND THE COFFEE couldn't be any more robust!


Glenn & Donna @ the beach in Santa Barbara - 9/13/1998

Seven years ago friends and family members gathered together in the open courtyard of the Double Tree Inn in Santa Barbara, CA. to witness the marriage of me and my wife.

It was a beautiful Sunday afternoon and my memories of that day and days leading up to it will last forever.

From driving to Santa Barbara almost every month to meet with a wedding coordinator, the flower decorator and cake shop, to listening to Third Eye Blind on the drive and staying at an ant filled hotel room, these memories seem so long ago yet the past seven years just flew on by.

And since then, we've made new memories that will last forever.

Memories...

Jessica and her swim meets. The start of school and the ups and downs of a little girl trying to find herself. She became a teenager too fast and too soon. We were the best buds doing everything together. Karate, Pokemon, video games and just hanging out. I miss those days but will remember them forever.

Then Jakey came.

I remember the long day at the hospital as we waited for the new addition to our family. Holding him for the first time was the most emotional experience I've ever had. Words can't even do it justice. Then all of a sudden it was the very difficult day of Jacob's first day of school. And we can say our son is now a 'veteran'. A 'leader' in his class as his teacher calls him. The example the younger kids can look up to. Then the time for tee-ball finally came where I was more nervous than anyone in the family as I brought him onto the field for tryouts. A tear escaped my eye when we stepped foot onto the infield dirt for the first time. And he shocked us all with his skill, other parents said he was a natural, and the coach awarded him with the Team MVP ball. We were so proud. We are so lucky.

And we thought having kids was easy.

Then came our princess, Bella.

I remember the midnight wakeup when you told me you were in labor. Nine or so hours later, I was able to kiss my 'cush-cush', my 'baby-bella', and rock her to sleep every single night. And now we have to ban ink pens from her access, we have to buy her her own tea set so she won't climb the cabinets to get the real thing, and we have to sleep at the edge of the bed because she likes half to herself. There's no doubt there's more to come from this little girl. I just hope we're prepared.

Thank you for giving me two little treasures. Thanks for allowing me to be Jessica's 'papa'. Thanks for your love, your support, and your desire to be the best you can be.

The past seven years have been better than ever expected. The best years of my life. I can only imagine the next seven, ten, twenty and fifty will be even better. It looks like it definitely will.

I love you, honey. I’ll continue to love you till the day I die. You have been everything to me and hopefully I can continue to do things to make you happy. Happy Anniversary.

Glenn

Advil, Tylenol, Excedrin, a baseball bat - take me away!

Knock me out please.

I told Jake that my head was pounding. He asked what ‘pounding’ meant. I explained, like something banging on it really hard. Later that day when I was trying desperately to close my eyes for a moment Jake sat next to me to watch some TV and told me his knee was pounding. I told him that he has to stop playing and rest his knee if its pounding. He then explained, its really not pounding anymore.

Yes, I had a migraine this weekend. I had the kids all day Saturday as Donna worked. I was able to have a plan of events that I struggled through, our for breakfast, a stop at the toy store, afternoon nap time, etc. I also had to deal with a stigh (or stie or stye) [STIGH info] in my left eyelid that also pounded. All this and I managed to make Trader Joes Orange flavored Chicken and two artichokes for dinner.

Finally, 8:00 PM and Donna came home. I still had a Film Fest to attend and was 50/50 on going. I took a shower and decided that at least it’d be in the dark. And around 9:00 PM, Dale picked me up for the film fest.

Our film was definitely either the best of the program or second best. And I hate watching “Tag”, but it was a relief to hear people remark “That was really good”, or “Beautiful”, and I heard someone say, “Amazing”. Whew. What a relief. And this crowd was really ‘Hollywood’. They let you know how they felt in as much as saying out loud, in the dark, “That sucked!” after one horrible ‘experimental’ film as Dale called it. It wasn’t. It was a film with no goals is what it was. And it showed. The director was as pretentious as you could get. Dasie said he wasn’t trying to be pretentious, he just was. She’s probably right.

Sunday, same migraine, different day. Donna was there at least. And I managed to get a massage, take a nap and rest. I rewarded myself with… and . Both used for $14.95 and 16.95 respectively. I haven’t played Prince of Persia yet but started the Lord of the Rings. I haven’t played an RPG in a while with battle ‘turns’ and HP (hit points). It was slow, but fun and I really got into it.

These past two days have been hard. I can only hope Monday morning life is better.

Here’s something I didn’t get to have this weekend…

An ice cold half yard of:

Bayhawk Honey Blonde

Here’s the feeding frenzy that happens when we order a chocolate soufflet at The Yard House:



And after, Jacob and Bella got wet playing in the fountain. Its rare that we let them do this, but for some reason, we didn’t even bat an eye.



They got soaked.

This was last Monday evening for Labor Day dinner.

One last thing… I’M SO GLAD ITS FOOTBALL SEASON!

To recap my Friday day off, here's what I did...

Yes, my head was at its very worst this weekend. But on Friday I had a productive day off. It started with me dropping off Isabella at the sitters, then Jake and I going for breakfast at Goldstein’s. We took our time and I managed to get him to school fifteen minutes before it started. I was also able to talk to his teacher about Jake’s first week of school and his progress. She whispered to me, “He’s sooo smart.” I discussed reading materials with her and she let me borrow: “And To Think That I Saw It On Mulberry Street” by Dr. Seuss. It’s a little advanced but if I read it a couple of times he’ll pick it up. After that I went home and finished watching “The Odd Couple”. I had Tommy Burger’s for lunch and took the afternoon to clean out my office. Then I finally spent time to get my print server to work. It didn’t. I probably need a new one.

And that was Friday.

Channel Surfing at its best.

This past week I came across a few movies that I totally love. I watch a few scenes, I get caught up in the story and I end up wanting to watch the DVD but before all that happens, another movie is on and I don’t get to finish what I started to watch.

Here’s a few that came across the dial as I surfed.

I’ve always considered Boggie Nights as one of my all time favorite films. I was able to catch the beginning and the introduction of characters. This movie is almost perfect in structure in my book, and its so difficult to maintain a strong structure with such an ensemble cast with B-stories throughout. But this one really represents the hero’s journey. From the ‘call to adventure’ to the acceptance of the call, to the fall and back up again. It has it all. I particularly love this movie because of the music. I was there - you know the 70s and early 80s - and hearing the music alone triggers a sense of emotion that I can attach to the film in a positive way. God, I love this movie.

Saturday Night Fever was on and John Travolta’s innocence and desire to win the dance contest is very easy to identify with. It’s the ultimate ‘super want’ of a character and he didn’t deviate from trying to achieve the goal. And fit into this through line there’s a boy meets girl, boy gets girl and boy loses girl storyline. Again, the music triggers that sense of emotion once again and just like Boggie Nights, its from the days of old. What a fun movie to watch!

This entry should be themed ‘the emotional response that music can illicit in a movie’ because here’s another movie where the music just fits. I know several people who criticized the music in this movie and how it didn’t fit. And one writing teacher at UCLA also admitted he felt the same way until he watched it again and realized how well the music worked. Again a perfect character arch. Superwants, realizations, falling into the worst possible scenario and then finding your way out. Tom Cruise is great in this movie and his relationship with Jeanne Tripplehorn who played his wife was a perfect match. I though this would lead to bigger roles for Jeanne Tripplehorn but she hasn’t been seen too often on the star level.

Okay… I really like this movie! Jack Lemon and Walter Matthau are great together. But the ensemble cast is what makes up this movie. I watched the beginning of this movie. The whole setup for Jack Lemon’s character to want to commit suicide. The scene with his poker buddies freaking out over him was classic! Those younger generation, the 20somethings, should do themselves a favor and watch a 60s classic. Funny, funny movie! And of course, who could forget the opening theme for the movie (and the sitcom)? Brilliant.

And those are just four movies I came across this past week that were a pleasure to watch. Even if it was a few minutes of jumping back between baseball games or another show. Channel surfing at its best.

You know what sucks?

I woke up today thinking it was Saturday morning for some reason and didn't have to go to work.

But it wasn't Saturday morning. It was a Tuesday morning. BLECH!

That's what sucks!


We went to one of my favorite restaurants last night. The Yard House in Pasadena. Although they don't sell beer in yard long glasses anymore due to irresponsible drinking, they still served the half yarder... I wonder if they'll change the name of the restaurant to the Half Yard House. Or what about the Eighteen Inch House (I had to use a calculator to come up with that).

Weird - I can write basic Excel formulas like =IF(ISERROR(W2*AE2),0,W2*AE2) or even a formula as complicated as =IF(VLOOKUP(B2,INDIRECT("'"&Z2&"'!B2:K809"),10,0)=30,0,(VLOOKUP(B2,INDIRECT("'"&Z2&"'!B2:f809"),5,0))) but during a brain fart I couldn't figure out what half of thirty six inches is without my calculator. I am right, right? Thirty six inches equals a yard? Of course I am.

I have a few pictures pending on the Yard House beer I got.

But back to the Yard House itself.

I love it there because they play great music and they have an awesome choice of good beer, and they have several (and 'severa' being an understatement) televisions overhead to catch a sports score or game you don't want to miss. The atmosphere is festive, sporty, classy, family style and comfortable with out door seating for those who love the California weather. They also have their own micro brewery and an assortment of other mainstream beers. You can also order mixed drinks as I hear the apple martinis are superb!

My beer of choice for yesterday was a half yard of Bayhawk Honey Blonde. Next one on my list will be the Kona Brewing Fire Rock Pale Ale. Doesn't that sound like a good drink on a Sunday afternoon with several football games playing overhead?

The fried calamari was awesome but my Pork Chops weren't as tender as I'd like them to be. I'll stick to their assortment of hamburgers next time.

I can't wait to go back. Maybe Sunday?

Labor Day!

For me, it's half labor day! I got out of work after five solid hours of analysis. So not its time to play!

Yesterday I took some photos. The first was for a photo contest. It was hard to get the lighting down but I finally got it.

It's a picture from my Kiddie Car collection. An EIGHT BALL RACER.



Here is another one, A 1938 Lincoln Zephyr.



Yesterday Bella wanted to try on her Halloween Costume. She picked out this Butterfly.



And with a rough PhotoShopping...



Notice the tags are still on just in case.

And what did we have for dinner the other day you may ask? My famous Hilshire Farms smoked susage with onions and fresh tomatoes. A picture for prosperity purposes. And my eventual cook book! :)



Just add a little soy sauce while frying, add onions and slice up some fresh tomatoes from the neighbor's garden!

Serve with steamed rice and you've got yourself a meal!

You can see more pictures in my Photo Gallery which I updated yesterday.

We will be seeing "Valiant" today as we didn't see it yesterday. But at least Donna is here to help me.

Yesterday we had some Pasta-Roni after their nap then I took them to Baskin Robbins. I let them play at the Swain's toy area for a while then we went to VONS to pick up some things for dinner. I made spaghetti. It was yum.

And that's about it. At least I didn't have to do a full day today. I was able to fit some work in on Saturday evening and a little throughout the day yesterday. Just one more analysis and I'm done with month end! :)

Labor day isn't really a holiday is it?

Sunday Morning

I would have loved to play paintball today. Donna is working and my mom could have watched the kids, but I decided to hang out with them today since my Labor Day Holiday isn’t a really a holiday but an actual day of labor. Yes, I have to go in tomorrow so I’m taking today as a holiday.

There’s a couple of movies I can take them to. “Valiant” and or “Tom and Jerry”. Although T&J is, to me, is extremely violent which leaves me with Valiant. The synopsis sounds cool:

During World War II, a misfit pigeon named Valiant (voice of Ewan McGregor) joins the Royal Pigeon Service to do his bit for his country. Valiant's job turns out to be one of the most important of the war -- carrying essential messages from the French to the Allied forces just prior to D-Day. Rob Letterman directs this animated film that also features the voices of Ben Kingsley, Jim Broadbent, John Cleese, Tim Curry, Rupert Everett and John Hurt. (from www.netflix.com)

We were supposed to see it yesterday but Bella got tired. The 12:00 hour for the kids is groggy time. They need to catch a movie at around 11:00 AM or after 2:00 PM in order for them to stay awake. It’s up in the air to what we’ll be doing today.

I have a short window of blogging as I promised Jake to teach him some magic and play Xbox with him today. So as I drink my coffee, I am blogging.

Last night I watched “Finding Neverland”. Johnny Depp is, or should be considered, one of the greatest actors of all time. This guy is rock solid. I was never interested in Peter Pan. I can’t remember the storyline or the movie itself. But after wacthing “Finding Neverland” I’d really like to see the original “Peter Pan”. Is it on DVD?

So cutting this entry short due to some balloon fighting which is not allowed, I have to round up the kids and get the day started.

I updated my photo album with a few pics of James & Jenny's wedding. As I was in the wedding party, I couldn't take that many pictures. See them here: Glenn's Photo Album

I’m KING OF THE WORLD… er… month end process

I’m not depressed today. I'm not. Seriously. I'm not on anti-depressants, I'm not moping around, I had a good night sleep and I'm not depressed. I might be later. But I'll deal with that when it happens.

I’m just a little overwhelmed at the possibility that I could be doing a financial analysis month end process for the rest of my life. But that ain’t gonna happen. Of course, this is what I said three, four, five years ago.

I mean, what if I dedicated my life to what I am completely passionate about? Sure, I would NOT have any money whatsoever, but I’d probably have a great film out there that Dale and I could be proud of. We have proven that we don’t churn out crap projects. When we do work on a project with someone else, we know how far it can get and probably will get. When we do it ‘on our own’ we see the potential for it to go places, to go far, or we wouldn’t do it at all.

So we have several projects on the table. All have the potential to become recognizable, to be accepted in film festivals and to be another compelling film. We just don’t have the money to get it moving so we’re stuck staring at possible stories that nobody will ever hear, see or talk about.

For purposes of getting my writing juices flowing, let me pull some projects out of my bag of scripts (my brain) and throw em at ya.

On the ‘shorts side’ we have this one called, “A Cure for Pain”, where we follow the journey of a potential suicide victim who is on the verge of killing his cheating ex-girlfriend and her lover but is side tracked by bad timing, a seductive offer by a prostitute in a bar, and his cure for pain… alcohol.

Then we have “Blind Love” which has been on hold every time we say, let’s get it up and going. This one is more romantic and is about an architect design student who is still desperately in love with a child hood sweetheart that is too ‘blind’ to see the perfect love right under her nose. He can design complicated structures, but can’t come up with simple blueprints for expressing his love for her until a life-changing event happens and he decides to put all his emotions out on the line.

I know these aren’t “Titanic” but its our “Titanic” until we get a million dollar budget!

Q: Hey what kind of coffee did they serve on the Titanic? Answer coming up.

Then there’s this one short that Dale and I wish we could do. But talk about expensive. It’s a super-hero script where we capture Batman and Superman about thirty years into their retirement. It’s called “Bridge over troubled Waters”. You got $50K? If you do, send it our way. The cult following for these ‘fan films’ is huge and we’re sure to show off our ‘stuff’. But of course there’s no guarantee we can ink a deal from anything we do. But we can guarantee a great story and a solid film.

“Man with a Gun” came upon an inspiration to me while sitting at a bus stop with my headphones on and I came up with a ‘what if’ situation. What if I opened my eyes and saw the barrel of a gun in my face and SAW the gunman mouth, “Give me your money!”. What would happen if I give him all I had which was bus fare and my Walkman? What if I tried to take the gun away? What if I shot him? The short is the telling of this situation by a young man recalling events that happened a year ago and how he’s dealt with it for the last 365 days. Yes, a short film. It’s a dark emotional film, with lots of production, that ends with a twist. Twilight Zone-ish.

Then there’s a silly short, “Cough” , where a High School football player has to get a complete physical before being allowed to play ball and the FEMALE doctor who does the physical is extremely HOT! Use your imagine to figure out what comes UP next. Based on a true story.

And of course the production that has had many pre production dates and has even gone as far as casting… “9mm Tango”. A story about two female cat burglars who, in the middle of robbing a house, deal with their lesbian relationship and end up being caught by two other burglars who have decided to rob the same house on the same night. Guns are raised, threats are made, and true love is put to the test.

And those are just the tip of the iceberg.

Speaking of icebergs…

Q: Hey what kind of coffee did they serve on the Titanic?
A: Sanka!

Parumpa!

Okay, not so funny. But what a segue, huh?

And there we go.

Which one would you like to see? Maybe we can ink a deal.