Another early morning in San Bernardino for the 2nd round of league cup.  This time the opponents were two Silver Elite teams. Brit’s team crushed the first team 6-1, but lost the second 5-3.  They have a slim chance to continue their improbable run and advance to the round of 32 as a wild card team.

#37 Done. We may not have been in the middle of the woods, but the time spent around the fire was just as nice.

With just two months to go, it’s going to take some work play to knock the rest of this list out.  The big question is do I continue with a 2010 list or put this puppy to bed.  I’m leaning toward the latter.

Saw “This Is It” with Sonia and Brittany.  He was definitely a one of a kind talent.  Brittany thought it was amazing and told me I just didn’t understand how amazing he was.  She thinks Michael is her generation’s star. It’s interesting, both Devin and Brittany continue to leach off of the talent and entertainment of my generation.  I consider myself pretty tuned in to pop and counter culture and I’m not sure the new millennium has produced anything that we’ll still be talking about ten or twenty years from now.

Finally netflixed this Academy Award winner. Per usual I’m always slow to see these period pieces, but always seem to end up liking them.

Finally, a couple of small teams from the Northeast are in the World Series.  All is right with the country again.

Another “football” Sunday.  Two more injuries to top starters left Brit’s team with no subs. Still, the girls are playing amazing soccer and won another one 3-0.

Despite being sick, Brittany refused to sit out and helped her team beat their league rival 3-0.

“Here’s Johnny!” I finally had my Jack Nicholson/The Shining painting framed, and would you believe it, Sonia actually let me hang it in the den.  She thought the colors tied the room together, but I don’t think she knows the movie is about a writer who loses his marbles and tries to kill his wife and kid. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.

Brittany is a huge fan of scary movies, so we were forced to take her to see the indie hit, Paranormal Activity. Made for a paltry $11,000, the film will probably end up grossing over $100,000,000.  With that said, Sonia and I thought it was pretty weak. Brittany loved it.

With halloween fast approaching we have finally decided on going out as Bonnie and Clyde.  While not very bold or timely, Bonnie and Clyde is quintessentially "us".

As I work toward #6, I keep reminding myself that brevity is a virtue.  Hopefully my screenwriting background will benefit me greatly in this regard.  Speaking of brevity, In the 1920s, Ernest Hemingway’s colleagues bet him that he couldn’t write a complete story in just six words. They paid up. Hemingway is said to have considered it his best work…

For sale: baby shoes, never used.

Despite a rash of injuries and a few a-hole parents who don’t know the meaning of commitment, Brit’s team limped into the first round of the League Cup with only eleven players but ended up dominating the competition with 9-2 and 5-0 wins.  Brit played great and scored 7 goals on the day.

#70 Finished. For only the second time this month we ventured outside the abode for a drink and meal.  I’m not sure Wolfgang’s Cut is worth the king’s ransom, but the food was excellent.

Spent the first part of the afternoon watching a classic at Dodger Stadium. Spent the second part in the parking lot.

Took another trip up into the hills to watch a baseball game.  The Dodgers came up short, but the warm October night was right.

#100 done.  Acquired this Italian “On The Waterfront” poster.  One of my favorite movies.

A home cooked meal three nights in a row. This domestic bliss stuff is starting to freak me out a bit.  Time to stir the pot.  Bank robbery or a trek into the Alaskan wilderness with a bag of rice?

The LG gangsta washer and dryer set was delivered today.  Gonna be some major fabric soft’ner goin’ down up in da crib.

Our never-ending moving duties were broken up nicely by two wins for Brittany’s team. Personally, Brittany probably played the best game of her career on Sunday.

Whether it be writing or life, nothing is more satisfying than editing.  Sonia and I spent the day editing out some of our belongings at the old place and banked enough for one half of a needed washer and dryer.

It was Homecoming for Montclair Prep this evening and my little girl was one of three freshmen to be voted school Princess.  I got to tell you, having a daughter in high school with growing popularity is pretty devastating.

A Final Thought on Paris

Hemingway described Paris as a moveable feast.  I think he sums it up perfectly.  The moment I stepped off of the metro at Saint Michel I fell in love.  The convergence of old, and I mean really old, and new was a feast for the senses, for the mind.  It is no wonder that Paris is a magnet for the artists, dreamers and lovers of the world.  It lives and breaths like few cities in the world can.  Having never left the North American continent, Paris was the obvious first trip for a self described writer and his fashionista girlfriend. And although our trip only lasted a few days and nights, I’m feeling Gertrude Stein when she said,  “America is my country and Paris is my hometown.” Perhaps one day I will be so lucky as to say the same.  There are the obvious reasons that I would want this.  The cafe lifestyle.  The food.  The wine. The architecture.  The history.  But what stood out to me more than anything else was the conversation.  The city spoke to me.  I felt the ghosts.  The collision of old and new stories and ideas had my head spinning.  The writer in me craves this conversation.  Sure, it’s not the first time a place has spoken to me.  Gustavus, Alaska always has in a Jack London sort of way.  New York, Boston and New Orleans definitely moves the needle. But SoCal, while certainly thick with positives, has no conversation.  At least not one that I am hearing.  It is all Zen.  Lots of space and silence.  And unfortunately, space and silence inspires few thoughts for this writer.  Paris, on the other hand, quenched a lifetime of thirst… Paris woke me up and I’m getting thirsty again.

#20 Done. It may take another few months to settle in, but we’ve finally made the move, albeit down the block.

#55 in progress.  I’ve been dressing the kids for halloween for so long I’ve run out of ideas for myself.  I haven’t dressed up in a costume since college, but for some reason I thought it would be fun.  Now I’m just stumped as to what to wear.  Ideas are welcome.

Happy Birthday to my beautiful niece, Anna! Hopefully you were spoiled as much as you deserve to be.

Today was the big moving day.  Although I’m not sure why, Sonia and decided we’d move everything ourselves.  Two days later we’re about 80% moved.  However our two hundred pound, extra long headboard nearly broke us up for good.  By this time tomorrow, #20 should be complete.

Another tough loss for Brit and her team.  After beating the team tied for first 3-0, they lost to the co-leaders 0-2.  Now 3-3 on the year it will be a tough climb to Silver.

September Recap

Hell of a month, that September.  Drank a nice Foxen Valley Cabernet at a winery in Santa Ynez, California and an equally tasty French Pinot Noir at a cafe in Paris.  Thank you list.

What’s done…

#72 Took the Sideways winery tour in Santa Ynez.

#12 Watched Brittany take the next big step in her life and enter High School

#3 Best ham and cheese ever

#27 Watched the fifth and final AFI top 100 movie I hadn’t seen.

In Progress…

#21 Read Slaughterhouse 5

#10 Reached the halfway point

#18 Still going

#20 Found our next home. Hope to seal the deal soon.

#23 Thoroughly enjoyed some french cuisine

#31 Already done, but Dave Matthews was a great show.

Pre move in Pizza at the new place.