Weekend semi-Shenanigans

[DowningRules]

Friday start of my holiday.  Freedom for just one week.  Feels good to get away...

 

Oh wait!  That's a lyric from a Queen song.

 

Friday started out on the slow tip.  Usually that's a sign that things will get funky come late night, but alas, that would not happen on this Friday.

 

My new dad drove into town to get his car serviced and we met up for a bit.  He's old and cantankerous, but funny as hell.  I like to push his buttons.  He's one of the most opinionated and well-traveled people I know.  He was stationed in Germany while in the military.  Since he worked in the finance division, he would sometimes handle paychecks.  If you got on his bad side, your paycheck might get 'delayed' for a week or so.  Interestingly, the paychecks were cashed in script, since they didn't want American dollars messing with the crappy German currency, while the crappy German economy was still getting on its feet post-World War II.  There was a fear that American dollars would sell on the local black market and affect the Deutsch Mark.  He said his time in Germany was like being a kid in a candy store.  He purchased two Porsches while there. 

 

After hanging with my new dad, I was feeling a little down so I did what most people do in that situation:  I sat in my house with the tv on and didn't take any calls, not that the phone was going nuts.  My incoming texts were pretty easy to handle too.  A far cry from Friday nights back in the day when I'd get off work, jam home, formulate a plan with friends, blast tunes, and drink a Coors Light while taking a shower. 

 

Since I was receptive to depression, I put on the Angel game and expected the worst.  A friend called about the 5th inning to see if I wanted to grab a bite, and I thought that would be the sign that Friday was going to take a major detour.  It didn't.  I went to the restaurant and it was too damn loud.  Everyone was already hammered so the chicks' laughs were more like daggers being jammed into my ears.  It was almost as bad as the music played at Angel games.  There was a table full of chicks sitting near us...you know the type:  blonde chicks in Newport in town for their friends' bday party.  Big night on the town.  Call the sitter, break out the blow dryer.  The kind that starve themselves all week to fit into skinny white pants but they're not 17 any more so the pants look a little off in the mid-section.  Not bad, just forced.  Like DR in a pair of skinny jeans.

 

One of these gals had a fantastic nose job.  I mean, the doctor took that sucker down.  Looked like Michael Jackson if he were white.  Wait a minute...Nevermind.

 

I had about 100 diet cokes, which wasn't my best move considering I ordered my first goblet at about 9pm.  When I got home I was wired.  Threw on a Miami Vice and started a list of songs I need to put on an ipod.  I really like Nicolette Larson's "Lotta Love."  It's such a smooth production.  The studio musicians make it sound easy.  If you have a pair of noise cancelling headphones, do it now:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=reSa2ipIH8s

 

I finally went to bed at some point, but I was restless so my cat got fed up with me tossing and turning like a bullied child, so the bastard went to sleep on the couch.

 

After getting about four hours sleep, I went to Cappy's for a half-stack of pancakes.  I have a tradition when I go there of asking for a three stack of pancakes and I split them with my friend.  If I went there every weekend I would be the size of your average Angels fan. 

 

Fittingly, I went to the Angel game after biking along the beach with my friends.  We stopped by this really tiny tennis club on our ride back from the Wedge.  The Peninsula Point Tennis Association I think it's called.  Our friend runs it.  They were having a cinco de vato tennis tournament which is really just an excuse for the kept women and dumb trust fund men who feed them to have margaritas while a little Mexican dude mans a taco cart.  Amazingly, I bumped into this one anorexic whose parents are the godparents to my brother.  One of my friends used to date her room mate back in the '90s.  I gave her a hug and we all eventually got back on our bikes.  I had enough time to change into my Angels mumu and head to the Stadium.  We all know the outcome of the game, but jeebus!  Did the Angels really have to go into extras again only to lose?  Again?  There was an odd bunch sitting near us.  This one dude was wearing a fedora and was 'smoking' one of those smokeless cigarettes with a bluetooth thingy in his ear.  It was kind of a cool look.  If you're a villain in The Hangover.

 

His friend was hammered.  And he kept yelling and yelling at the Orioles fans around us.  And the dude a few seats over was a real big latino dude who about every other inning would yell "Let. Go.  An (pause) Jels."  I give him props since he really focused on the "g" in Angels.  He didn't want to say "Anyels" ala Mota.  He wanted to keep it real.  Hence the heavy focus and accompanying pause.  "Let Go An..................jels!"

 

He was wearing one of the giveaway hats.  Pretty brutal color scheme on those...a red, white and blue pattern.  The stadium looked like it was full of One Direction.

 

I walked for forever to get back to my car after the game.  It was my first time parking near that fire department practice building.  How the hell is there still that much traffic that long after an extra-inning game that wasn't sold out?  And how have I never parked there after going to An..........jel games my entire life?  I thought I would have no problem getting out of there.  But it was jammed. 

 

Saturday night I ate like a champion.  I went solo to Miguel's Jr. and, keeping with the Angel fan theme of eating as much as possible, I ordered a chicken burrito with beans, rice and cheese.  And taquitos.  Ate them like I was 24 and had just gotten done with a Friday night of Coors Light. 

 

Today was one of those bittersweet days.  I went down to my mom's to have a birthday lunch (tomorrow's my special day, PM me for where to send gift cards) with my mom, my new dad and my in-laws.  We used to make a big deal of it as my new dad's birthday is May 1 and my wife's was May 18.  With the sheen off a little, we were all subdued.  But it didn't stop my new dad from getting plowed like he usually does at lunch.  He didn't pick on any minorities in particular today which was a let down.  I can typically count on him for a couple Archie Bunker one-liners.  He must have been respecting cinco de mayo.  The in-laws gave me a Starbucks gift card and Starbucks coffee beans(blonde roast...would be happy with just the blonde.  Cue laugh track).  Before going to mom's I stopped off at Cassidy's for literally 10 minutes to see a friend who was getting hammered before hopping on a plane, home to Chicago.  He's a real good friend.  Met him on a Miami Vice message board in the '90s.  Legit.  Looks like Uncle Fester. 

 

I did have one bit of excitement today.  This one girl I know on a friendly basis texted me out of the blue last week.  And texted me again today to see if I wanted to meet her at Sol.  I wasn't into it.  Kind of kicking myself because she is really pretty smoking hot if I do say so myself.  But like I said, I'm not feeling it.  It's not her, it's me.  My fire's gone out a bit and all I can think about is my wife.  Tomorrow will be my first birthday in a long time without her being the first one to wish me happy birthday.  That sucks.  Maybe the texting chick will text again in June...

 

My cat was inside all day so now she's outside chasing bugs.  I think I can hear her now, trying to hurl.  So she must've caught one.  Karma for not sleeping next to me on Friday, clearly.

 

So here I sit.  I just put the Style Council on my turn table.  Gonna put on Bryan Ferry's record "Bete Noir" after.  TV is getting less and less interesting for me.  So is the cell phone.  Still like this board though.

 

[gotbeer]

Does your new dad live on the beach?  

 

Keep them coming.  It's like I'm reading the most interesting guy in the world's diary while watching him drink a dos equis.  

[nate]

Sorry you are down, DR.  Hang in there.  Glad you still like the board, you are entertaining quite a few of us with your stories.

[katie]

Happy birthday DR!

[The Ghost of Bob Starr]

Style Council!

[Tank]

"This one dude was wearing a fedora and was 'smoking' one of those smokeless cigarettes with a bluetooth thingy in his ear."

 

neither your grammar teacher nor english cop would be very happy with you for the structure of this sentence.

 

i'd love to hang out with you sometime. just being an observer would be great fun. you're a good guy, DR. happy bday.

[DowningRules]

Just got back from lunch with mom and my new dad.  Rothschild's.  It was good...pasta with bolognese but started with pate and crackers.  Delicious.  New dad only ordered half a bottle of wine after powering a bloody mary.  He got the Duckhorn.

 

I drove so the old people could get wasted.  My new dad doesn't live on the beach but my mom does. 

 

Now I'm treating myself to Miami Vice.  An episode I've sort of overlooked called "Whatever Works" wherein Crockett gets his Ferrari confiscated by the police department to raise money for an auction.  I am blasting it on stereo right now.  Damn, this show just hits so many good notes.  My friend sent me a book which I just received for my bday.  It's an analysis of Miami Vice based on thematic complexities.  Not surprisingly, it's written by a university professor.  This reminds me of a meeting I was in once with Leonard Goldberg who created "Charlies' Angels" with Aaron Spelling.  Someone was critiquing the series, using all this gobbledee gook that it was a great representation of 'third wave feminism' and an example of this was a particular pool scene where only women were laying pool side in their bikinis.  It was representative in female empowerment because the women were at the pool in bikinis on their own authority, not need the approval of men, and so on, and so forth.

 

Goldberg scratched his head.  The reason there were only women in bikinis at the pool as because the network notes asked for the series to show more women in bikinis.

 

Couple other things...the Style Council rules!  I stayed up late and played two albums by the Three O'Clock last night.  I should do that more often.

 

Katie:  Thank you for the birthday wishes!

 

And Tank, I'll hang out anytime.  But you can tell English Cop to shove it up his ass.  

[Blarg]

I look forward to the installment that includes, "Much to my better judgement, I texted back that hot chick and ended up naked in a hot tub with her. Ok, maybe my judgement was out of order."

 

Happy B-Day DR.

[Lhalo]

Happy birthday DR. I have to agree with new dad's choice of wine. I love me some Duckhorn.

[m0nkey]

These threads are the highlight of the site.

 

Happy birthday DR

[nate]

Happy Birthday!

[Bruce Nye]

I got you one of those wrinkle-free white linen jackets, so when you fall asleep during Vice re-runs, you'll still look suave and ready.

 

Trick is, you have to meet me at the 'rock to get it.

 

Happy birthday DR

[Stradling]

Happy Birthday DR