Enjoying the view.

On Top of the Rock in NYC.

Woke the neighbors up with that finish. Loving this Cup. Bryant Gumble had a good final thought on the latest Real Sports.

“Finally tonight, a few words about this year’s World Cup. I confess that I love everything about it, particularly, those aspects that many Americans are whining about. Where the game is concerned, I love that they have running time and don’t compromise the flow for the sake of TV commercials.

I love that the referees don’t stop the action to let replays warp their beautiful game and I love that their announcers, unlike Americans, don’t feel the need to characterize everything that’s surprising as also unbelievable.

As for the players, I love how they mimic NBA stars and go down dramatically, as if they have been shot whenever they are fouled. I love the single names: Ronaldo, Kaka, Drogba — all of which sound a lot more elegant than Manny, Pudge and Big Baby.

And, I love the national pride that is shown each game. It’s real and it’s genuine, the kind the Olympics tries to force on us every four years.

Off the field, I love how the crowds never stoop to something as silly as ‘the wave.’ I love the purity of their sidelines — no hangers on, no mascots and best of all, no cheerleaders. I even love the vuvuzelas. Yes, they are noisy, but they are preferable to the deafening din of the weekly Billy Bob 500, or the phony piped in efforts at U.S. arenas, where choreographed chants of ‘dee-fense’ pass for originality.

Lastly, I love that at the World Cup, there are sporting people representing cultures from all over the world and befitting grownups, not a one of them seems obsessed with what conference Texas plays in, whether Brett Favre ever comes back, or where LeBron James ultimately goes. At least we’ve one pocket of sanity, if only for two more weeks.”

Happy Birthday, Madre!

Enjoyed a sunset drive along the PCH.

He wasn’t always a dad.  

The Glamorous Fashion World

California Girl

Lakers viewing party. 

Saw Iron Man 2. A worthy sequel. 

Happy 70th birthday to my Aunt Ona. While my friends went to summer school or camp, I got to go to Aunt Ona’s where the motorcycles were always gassed and pyromania was encouraged.  Best summers of my life.

#15 in progress. Finally finished London: The Biography after starting it before our trip.  

Visited Sean at his soda pop and candy store today where my brother George and sister Rosie are now employed.  Brittany was like a kid in a…

#39 done. The only time I really won this weekend was when I tripled my bets on a hot roll.  But then I went back to my nickel and dime ways my stack started dwindling. Nevertheless, when my lungs recover from the cigarette smoke I’ll be back.

Constant USA chants in Vegas. If it weren’t for my bet on USA to win, I’d be jumping up and down for the draw.

Abandoned the strip for the low rent downtown district.

Pre craps meal at Sushi Roku in Vegas.

Working on #20. The iPad makes it even better.

#10 Finished. The list…

1. Ghostwriter
2. Law Abiding Citizen
3. Hot Tub Time Machine
4. Defiance
5. An Education
6. Sherlock Holmes
7. Brothers
8. Crazy Heart
9. Exit Through The Gift Shop
10. Couples Retreat
11. The Road
12. Bad Lieutenant 
13. Get Him to the Greek

Saw Get Him To The Greek. A few laughs, but mostly weak.

School’s out for… SUMMER.

#15 in progress. Read Kitchen Confidential and loved it. The down and dirty guide to the culinary biz.

#55 Done. Saw a great bar band at The Stage on Broadway in Music City, USA.

Southern Comfort.  #61 done. Our clients treated us like we were the clients. Expected nothing less from the South.

Honky Tonk Row, Nashville.

Touched down in Nashville, Tennessee.

May Recap.  In the immortal words of Beyonce, I liked it so I put a ring on it.   

So, let’s start with what’s done…

#7. Spent Mom’s Day with my actual mom. Hadn’t done that in ages.  

#13. Drank with the ghosts of Mark Twain, Charles Dickens and Samuel Johnson at the Cheshire Cheese Pub in London.  It resulted in my all time favorite picture of me.

#34. My DLSR is quickly becoming my favorite toy.  

#58. Made the backyard our favorite room in the house.

#60. Bet you didn’t think England when you saw this one.

#62.  I’m an enabler.

#70. Great game. Great Atmosphere. Great precursor to the World Cup.

#71. The British History Museum is truly a museum filled with the world’s history.

#74. Patience is a virtue.

What I put a dent in…

#1. We’re slowly but surely figuring out the manufacturing game. But running a company by the book is bad business. 

#6. I’ve hit a wall. But, not gaining is still a win.

#18. Little by little.  

#51. One down, three to go.

Onward…

Me and Brit.

Dad with his five kids.

Sonia and Brittany helping with Georgeanne’s awesome dinner.

Me, Dylan and Kaden.

Kennedy with Delilah

Pool time.

King George with his nephews, Dylan and Kaden. 

Dad was able to steal a couple of minutes of sleep during a rare quiet moment.

Brit’s team suffered a heartbreaking 2-1 overtime loss in the finals to the team it beat 3-0 the day before.  

End of the day get together at Dad’s.

Congrats to my little sister who had her Confirmation today. 

Brit’s team beat a silver team one age group above them and secured a spot in the finals.

Mom and daughter.

Had dinner with our friends Pierre and Tomeko at Hudson to celebrate her landing a new print modeling job. She will be the face for a medication touted as Viagra for women. Anyone want a free sample?

Brit and her friend discovered the joys of my camera. 

Popped into the Roosevelt Hotel on Hollywood Blvd to experience some masterful mixology.  Every drink tasted like the farmer’s market.  This particular creation will be featured in Bon Appetite next month. It is a gin based, wild arugula gimlet.  Really good.

Dear Brittany,

For the last 12 years you have played your heart out on the field.  Everyone who watches you is marveled by your motor.  But there is always that moment in the game, particularly after a big run, when you need to stop yourself in order to catch your breath.  And when you did, I was right there on the sideline to tell you to suck it up and run.  Well, turns out you couldn’t suck it up because your doctor just informed us you have asthma.  My bad.  But, at least now you have a treatment.  There’s no telling what you’ll be able to do with a full set of lungs.  And if you forget I’ll be right there on the sidelines to remind you.

Love, Dad

Took a client to actor Ashton Kutcher’s Ketchup in West Hollywood.  Similar to Kutcher’s acting skills, this place was mediocre at best. The real kicker though was the employee we fired was seated right next to us.  Uncomfortable.

Netflixed Bad Lieutenant and I’m surprised to say it was a descent reboot of the original with Harvey Keitel. Nic Cage actually held his own. No actor has more great and awful performances than cage.

The “hit” show LOST is one of the reasons #73 is a goal.  I started watching the mystery show when it debuted six years ago.  I started disliking it by the end of the third season.  Even worse, I kept watching for three more seasons until Sunday’s series finale in hopes of getting answers to the hundreds of questions the show posed.  Unfortunately, the show’s writers were lost years ago and failed to answer the majority of them.  Thankfully it’s all over now.