Message 254

Today is Beech's birthday. He is five years old. I will be picking him up at school today to take him to lunch and then to his gymnastics class.

Last night I watched the Sharks beat Colorado 2-0. It was a good start on the second half of their season. Because the game started at 6 PM instead of 7:30 Pm like their home games I had time to watch a movie after it was over. I watched a DVD of The Holiday. I only give it 2 stars. I did not like the writing. It was like watching a Neil Simon movie. It was supposed to be funny, but I thought it was an uncharitable representation of people, especially of women, but also of men.

Message 253

Yesterday I got a call from my mortgage broker to lock in my refinance rate at 4&7/8 percent interest. Within a month or so I should get the money. I am taking a little extra to get me through the next few years until the economy gets better and my income fund recovers its value.

Last night Joshua came over to watch 24 with me. He worked a double shift yesterday, so today he is driving up to the Sierras and back for some skiing. He borrowed my van so he does not have to put too much of a strain on the car he has borrowed from his boss. As soon as his refinancing is completed, he will buy himself a new car.

It is another beautiful day, so I think I will go for a walk again. It looks like we are going to have a week or more of these beautiful days, so it looks pretty likely we are going to be so short of rain this year that we will have to go back to water rationing.

Message 252

Yesterday I spent all day finishing this weeks Economist. I the evening I watched Part 2 of Wuthering Heights on PBS. What a strange story. It was hard to keep track of whose who and whose mad at whom for what reason.

Today is a bright sunshiny day, with crisp cool air. I think I will go out for a walk. Otherwise, not much is going on.

Message 251

Yesterday afternoon I went to an Obama post-inauguration party ay Mary and Eddie Solomon's. I went early and left early because I had to go to the pot-luck dinner group dinner to which I took cherry pie and ice cream. As always, the cherry pie came from Martha's Pastries in Sharon Heights Plaza, by the Starbucks I go to every Saturday morning.

I got home from the pot luck dinner at about 10 Pm, so I read the new Economist for a couple of hours and went to bed. Because I did not have anything scheduled for today I slept in until about 8:30 AM.

Message 250

I am writing this while I wait for the call from Helen and Jim to join them at Starbucks. Yesterday Julian took the day off work and borrowed my van to take Beech's school on a field trip. Julian drove my van and Vanessa drove their van, so only one other parent had to drive. Afterward I went to Jeffrey's (where Ken's Pancake House used to be) for burgers and milk shakes.

Last night after Washington Week on PBS, I watched a DVD of the movie Conan the Barbarian. I had never seen it and was curious about how Arnold got his start in the big time. I give it three stars. It was a great visual spectacle, and was a good rendering of a comic book to the screen, but of course everything else was pretty simplistic, except the fighting was well staged.

Message 249

Last night I watched a DVD of the movie MAMA MIA!. I give it only two stars. I never heard a record by Abba, but I have heard so much about the musical made from their songs that I thought I would give it a try. I was very impressed by Across the Universe, the movie made out of Beatles songs, but MAMA MIA! did not have Beatles songs, it had Abba songs, and they were not in the same league. I feel bad about having to give a low rating to what is supposed to be a feel good movie, but there you have it.

Vanessa is on her way down to borrow my van so she can drive a bunch of kids from Beech's school on a field trip.

Message 248

I just got back from having breakfast at Heidi's Pies with Vanessa and Annie. I also took Annie to kiddies story time at the library. Yesterday afternoon I took Beech to lunch at Burger King and to his gymnastics class.

Last night I watched a DVD of the movie Children of men. I give it three stars. It is a movie about a future when people are no longer able to reproduce, and as a result civilizations go into decay, socially, economically, culturally, and politically. It was mostly a mood movie, where the characters go through actions in the foreground while the real story is reflected in the shabby and depressing backgrounds.