Summer Entertainment

July 9, 2008 · Filed Under Entertainment, Geek Fun, Movies, Partying, Photography 

Yikes, it’s been a while since I’ve written. It’s summer time and I seem to be taking full advantage. That’s not to say that I’m spending a bunch of time in the sun. Actually, I’ve done a mighty fine job of keeping myself OUT of the sun. Having had skin cancer a couple times has definitely made me more aware of the time I spend outdoors.

Since it’s been almost a month since I’ve written, so much has gone on. I’m not even sure where to begin.

Last I wrote we had just finished our cruise to Alaska. We had an amazing time. I was going to write a follow-up blog post about our trip, but just never really got around to it. Now, I’m not so sure that post will ever get written. Ahh well, I’ll have to save it for returning from our next cruise.

4 days after returning home, my Mom and my Son hopped on a plane and headed to California. This will likely be my Son’s last summer without a job as he will graduate high school next year [I just threw up in my mouth a little bit] so I hope he has a great time. Since being there he’s been to Knott’s Berry Farm, Universal Studios, the water park, the beach and he’s spent a bunch of time with his cousins. That sounds like a pretty great trip if you ask me.

A couple weeks after we got back, my wife and I celebrated our 19th wedding anniversary. My mother-in-law hung out with our daughter and the wife and I went out for a nice dinner. For the life of me, I can not remember where in the hell we went for dinner. Man, I’m getting old.

That same week I took my wife and daughter to see Stomp Out Loud at Planet Hollywood. We got seats in the 5th row but off to the side. These are NOT the best seats. We would have much preferred to sit in the middle even if it meant sitting farther back. We were cut off from too much of the action. Regardless, we all still enjoyed the show.

This summer was also the first time we put our daughter on an airplane by herself. She can’t handle being away from mom and dad for as long as our son can, so we let him visit grandma for a couple weeks before sending her out. Then, we ship her out there and a couple weeks later we go pick them all up. We’ve done it a few years in a row now and it’s always worked out for the best. So far, this year is no exception.

Just this past weekend we celebrated my birthday. I managed to turn it in to a 2 day extravaganza. On Saturday night we played a couple poker tournaments at the house, then went to a casino to watch an ’80s hair metal band play until 3 am, then went to breakfast and made it to bed around 5 am. Woke up around 10 am, saw the movie “Hancock” in the afternoon and then spent the evening with a group of friends having dinner and drinks at the Yard House and the Blue Martini. The Yard House may be one of my new favorite places. Great food, 160+ beers on tap and it was pretty reasonably priced for as much as we consumed. The Blue Martini, on the other hand, I have to say that I’m not a fan. It seems a bit too high-brow for my taste. But, the live blues band sounded great.

Speaking of movies, I’ve seen a few so far this summer. Here’s a quick rundown:

Wall-E - I liked it pretty well. Cute story, amazing animation (it’s Pixar, so what do you expect) and I liked the message they were trying to convey (take care of yourself and your Earth or both are going to end up in really bad shape).
Wanted - Loved it! I enjoyed the story (as unrealistic as it was) and it had some pretty cool fight/chase scenes. I’m pretty easy to please with this type of movie, but still, this one was pretty darn good.
Hancock - Liked it. This really felt like two movies stuck together. The first half is pretty funny and has a pretty good pace. The second half is a little darker and felt pretty rushed. I think they could have added another 20-30 minutes to the movie, fleshed out the story a little better and it would have been a GREAT movie. Still, definitely worth seeing.
The Illusionist - Yeah, I know it’s old. I really liked it. Edward Norton is one of my favorite actors and I thought he did great with the roll. I also really liked Paul Giamatti in his roll.

I’m very much looking forward to seeing Hellboy 2 this weekend and The Dark Knight the following weekend. Everything I’ve heard so far about both movies says they are going to both be awesome.

And finally, my new hobby. Photography. I’ve been carrying my camera with me everywhere I go lately. I am really enjoying the learning processes. I’ve been reading dozens of blogs from other photographers and have been checking out thousands of photos on flickr. A few weeks back I had some friends over and we spent an entire evening setting up shots and just working through different lighting scenarios. I think a big part of my enjoyment with this new hobby is the fact that I’ve got a few friends who are in to it as well. They really help to ratchet up the level of fun and definitely help to keep me motivated to improve. Hell, I have to just to keep up with them.

You can follow the link to check out my photostream on flickr.

I promise to make an effort not to take so long between posts. I know how you miss me when I do. :)

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