At Magic Apparel Show in Vegas. Anxious to get back to the craps table.

At Pure Nightclub at Caesar’s Palace.

Cop. Cyndie. Sonia. Elvis.

In Vegas… On Business.  For real.

The hills are on fire again.

One of L.A.’s hottest restaurants at the moment is the roach coach, Kogi Truck. Lines to order the Korean BBQ are sometimes a hundred deep. Luckly we spotted it in Venice before a major line formed. Pretty damn good.

Interesting, but dry.

But it’s dry heat.

Surprised it took me so long to see this.  I really enjoyed it.

#7 not done yet.  Eliminated three credit cards today.  One more and it’s sayonara bad debt.

Took Brittany to see District 9 to keep her distracted from the lingering pain of her morning oral surgery.  I was really looking forward to this one, but overall I was let down.

#11 Complete.  At approximately 12:30p.m. on Sunday, August 23rd 2009, on the corner of Powell and O’Farrell in San Francisco, Sonia, Brittany and I hugged Devin goodbye and wished him luck on the next chapter of his life.  A bittersweet day for all of us.

#85 done. Enjoyed some eggs benedict in bed.

#23 in progress. Met some old high school friends for dinner at this French place in San Francisco’s Mission district. Tres bein.

Moved Devin In.

#94 Finished.  Enjoyed a bowl of calm chowder in a bread bowl at Fisherman’s Wharf where mom used to take Sean and me as kids.

We’ve arrived.

4am at the Donut Shop. Preparing for the drive to San Francisco.

The time has come to shove one of the birdies from the nest. Fly, boy.

Stupid.

Won 3 of 4 to take 2nd place. Brit played great and scored 7 of the 15 goals. Unfortunately we probably lost one of girls to a torn ACL.

Pre game nap.

#24 in progress. Made yet another downtown L.A. restaurant discovery last night.  This time we joined friends at O bar for a tapas style dinner.  Loved it.

Back to soccer weekends. We win 7-0 in game one. Brit scored 4.

I finally saw a real doctor for the first time in ten years.  Nothing has changed since the last time I saw one.  You still have to wait forever to see the guy.  However, when I finally got in I was told that my blood pressure was absolutely normal which was a huge relief as I could not have given up food and cheer if it wasn’t.

#24 in Progress. After living in the Valley for eleven years (not to mention the same apartment) we finally ate at Pinot Bistro. The food and wine was excellent.

#98 in progress.

1. Kiss Sonia at Midnight on January 1st
2. Attend Sundance Film Festival
3. Grow our Business
4. Visit Gustavus, Alaska
5. Write at Least Five Entries on My Grandfather’s Office

I like it.  My managers rep the writer which proves that they can shepherd a small, character driven movie to the big screen.  So maybe I’m the problem.

Thinking about #3.  Mexico and Canada are too easy. Only a few months left.

#24 in progress. Takimi is an impressive place on the 21st floor of a downtown L.A. skyscraper.  Although nothing can touch our Kiwami sushi,  the food at Takimi was very good.

#24 in progress. Had dinner at Chateau Marmont on Sunset. Most famous for being the place John Belushi overdosed and died, the place oozes with Hollywood history. Saw a couple of celebs, had horrible service, above average food and a great date with Sonia.

24 in progress. Tried Le Petite Four on Sunset. Not Great.

#24 in progress. Ate at The Lobster in Santa Monica.  Sonia brought me there to see the sun set in the west, but a hill got in the way. Nevertheless, the food was excellent.

July recap. The list finally took a beating in July when Sonia and I managed to knock eleven goals (#4, #9, #17, #32, #35, #45, #68, #78, #81, #87, #92, #93) off of the list.  After excellent trips to Vegas, New York, San Diego and Chicago, we’re staying put for the next couple of weeks until we take Devin to school in San Francisco.

What’s done…

#4.  Took the Surfliner from Los Angeles to San Diego for a weekend in the Gas Light District.

#9. Stood on the top floor of the Empire State Building.  Hard to understand just how large the concrete jungle is until you’ve seen it from above.

#17. Took a game in at Citi Field between the Mets and Dodgers.

#32. We saw The Phantom of the Opera in Vegas.  It’s the Broadway version on steroids.

#35. Sun rises in the East.

#45. Our first stop in Vegas was the roulette table where we dumped a bunch of money on one spin.  One of the five numbers we bet on hit.  Left Las Vegas in the black.

#68. Spent a couple of night’s in Hollywood at the Roosevelt Hotel where we spent our days lounging by the pool.

#78. Nothing like a dawg from a New York street vendor.

#81. Cubs Win! Cubs Win! Cubs Win!

#87. If our number didn’t hit on the roulette table, these shoes would’ve been from Payless.

#93. Peter Luger’s burger lived up to the hype.

In Progress…

#10. Began a push up routine. Haven’t missed a set in three weeks. Adding a cardio routine soon.

#11 & #12. Down to the wire. Lots to do.

#19. Still going.

#22. Reading the third now (Slaughterhouse Five)

#24. Tried Spago, Penazzi and Tao in Vegas, Oyster Bar, Adrienne’s and Sazon in New York, Matt’s Steakhouse in Greenwich, Connecticut, Dakota in Hollywood, Quarter Kitchen in San Diego and Tavern on Rush in Chicago.

#25. Not happening yet. See above.

That’s it for now. Back to work for me.

Sunday at Dads

We had our first employer/employee evaluation today.  If us being gone half of the month wasn’t an indication to her that we were pleased with her work, our lunch confirmed it.  Still, it’s a bit strange to be on the employer side of the ball, especially since I’m still learning how to properly take Ambien.  Sonia and I have both questioned whether we have what it takes to hold someone else’s well being in our hands, but then I’m reminded of one of my former college roommates, Dave Bezos.  He couldn’t set his alarm or figure out how to pass a class, yet somehow he managed to learn how to fly a plane.  Even more impressive, he was able to convince me to get into the passenger seat of a Cesna two seater so we could buzz the Milwaukee skyline.  Bottom line, we’ve figured out that we can lead and succeed despite our various faults.