Here is what we planned to do today, to celebrate the fact that my old soul is now 35:

• Brunch in Napa at the Boon Fly Café, for the most amazingly fresh & delicious dozen tiny gourmet sugar donuts in the world
  
• Dinner & a movie (Sweeney Todd) at the brand new Sundance Kabuki Cinema in San Francisco, where you can reserve your seats online and eat an upscale meal while viewing the film from the Balcony Bar
  
• Go see SF’s all-female band Making Dinner live at the Bottom of the Hill, featuring my buddy’s sister on drums (hi Zarah!)
  

And thanks to the thunder, lightning, gale force winds, hail and relentless rain (combined with the fact that I shouldn’t be out and about in all of that only three weeks after back surgery), this is what we actually did:

• Brunch at the closest possible dive
  
• Watched Ocean’s Thirteen on DVD
• Dinner at the closest possible restaurant
  
• Border’s; bought a stack of books & a movie (A View to a Kill, my favorite Bond movie ever)

But hey, it turned out to be a great day (and probably a cheaper one at that). No complaints. Had to share.

I know I’m not the only one who geeks out whenever the new LOST promos air on TV. And I also know that there are thousands out there who are also counting down the days until Season 4 premieres on January 31.

Ok then, what are you waiting for?

Just a quick note of exasperation. My favorite baseball team just traded away their best player and the only one left who had an actual personality, to which I say: WTF? Seriously? Boo, hiss, and a huge thumbs down.

Have a nice weekend!

Three weeks ago today, I had back surgery. Today, I can walk and drive without pain, and I returned to work (all without the assistance of medication)!

To sum up, here is how I spent the last 21 days of my life:

• Books: 2
• Episodes of 30 Rock (Season 1) on DVD: 2
• Episodes of Nip/Tuck (Season 4) on DVD: 3
• Episodes of Lost (Season 3) on DVD: 8
• Naps: 13
• Blog entries posted: 15
• Movies (cable/TiVO/theater): 15
• Movie-doku puzzles: 21 (13 successes, 8 failures)
  

In retrospect, I was quite productive for someone recovering from major surgery and under the (prescribed) influence!

I hate that we only make resolutions at the end of each year, as we reflect back on what we didn’t accomplish (again) while looking forward to a new year of possibilities. That being said, I always play along. 

Here is my wish list for 2008:

1. The Writer’s Strike ends on their terms; they receive fair compensation for their work via digital distribution and also earn an additional $.04 more per DVD sold.
   
2. A blue president.
   
3. Normal weather. More rain, fewer fires (at least in CA).
4. A greener effort by all; environmental advances by individuals and companies alike.
   
5. World peace? Peace in the Middle East?
   

And the personal stuff:

1. More reading, more writing (at least 3-4 blog entries per week) & increased readership.
2. Health and healing; full recovery from back surgery and return to an active lifestyle.
   
3. The annual goals: lose weight, use that gym membership, yada yada yada.
   
4. The Oakland A’s contend. That’s all. No expectations of a division championship or beyond.
5. Fabulous family time on both continents with all 11 nieces & nephews, 5 sets of brother & sister in-laws, both pairs of parents and my hero/idol/role model (my 97 year old grandmother).

Happy New Year, friends and readers.