Maybe Next Year

The season for my Seattle Mariners is coming to a close on Sunday, and last night was my last game before Spring.

(Although it does occur to me at the moment that perhaps I should bring my daughter out on Sunday, which is the season closer as well as Kid Appreciation Day at the park.)

My friend Dan and I enjoyed seats behind home plate where we watched Oakland clench the AL West title following a 12-3 win over the Mariners.

Mariners Shut Out White Sox

I spent the week in Chicago and had the privilege of experiencing my first game at US Cellular Field, a state-of-the-art ball park on Chicago's South side and home of the Chicago White Sox.

It was the first time I have taken in a Seattle Mariners game on the road. I attended the game with my colleague Bill, who is a life-long Sox fan. We had a fine time at the game, and Bill enjoyed himself despite the Mariners 9 to 0 victory over the Sox.

The Seahawks visit Soldier Field in a few weeks, but that's one game I don't think I can swing.

Today's Random Thoughts

• I like espresso drinks. I like chai tea. Who knew a chai tea latte could be so scrumptious?

• I thought I saw Tobey Macguire waiting for a bus at the corner of Denny and Dexter this morning.

• Every time I see an episode of Star Trek that features Harry Mudd I become very, very angry.

• I was at Macy's on Tuesday. They are setting up their Christmas section. Is it just me, or does Labor Day week seem a tad early for this sort of thing?

• I found a recipe for a ham bone and bean soup the other day. I happen to have a ham bone handy, so I figured...

• I don't know why the animal rights activists are not up in arms about the expression "easy as shooting monkeys in a barrel." The image is disturbing and I can think of few things more cruel.

• My daughter told me there were two things worse than the kiss of death, a phrase she picked up from the these song to the James Bond film Goldfinder. I asked her what was worse than the kiss of death. She responded:

The two things worse than the kiss of death:

1. The Poke of Death

2. The Slap in the Face of Death

Edward Norton and Paul Giamatti in The Illusionist

See my short review of The Illusionist at Fourth Row Center.

Learning to Draw

A few years ago I had little to complain about as far as my commute to work was concerned. It was a pleasant walk downtown from where we lived in Seattle's Capital Hill neighborhood.

Since moving to the suburbs south of the city, however, I have had to endure the commute into the city with the masses -- fighting traffic, navigating accidents, coping with slick highways during the rainy season and avoiding bad drivers.

And let us not forget those pesky draw bridges.

But as much as I may complain about them, I like living in a place with not just bridges, but draw bridges.

Thinking About Death

Our pastor spoke from Genesis on the death of Sarah today, and in a personal moment told us what he would like carved onto his tombstone. He asked the congregation, "What do you imagine will be carved on your own tombstone? Imagine looking back on your life - how do you want to have lived? How do you want to be remembered?"

Food Critic Corner

A review of my banana-strawberry smoothie.

"It tastes like nothing. It's lumpy."
- Harper, Age 5

Book Talk

I got tagged by my old chum Rick, an avid reader (moreso than me these days), but it has taken me a while to compile this list about books. I could not think of a single book that I wish had not been written. That aside, here are his questions and my responses:

1. One book that changed your life - Treasure Island, by Robert Louis Stevenson (the first "big" book I ever read)

2. One book that you’ve read more than once - God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater, by Kurt Vonnegut

3. One book you’d want on a desert island - The Norton Anthology of English Literature

4. One book that made you laugh - A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole

5. One book that made you cry - The Littlest Duckling

6. One book that you wish had been written - A sixth book in the ever increasingly misnamed Hitchhiker's trilogy

7. One book you wish had never been written - ?

8. One book you’re currently reading - The Devil and Miss Prym by Paul Coelho

9. One book you’ve been meaning to read - The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich by William Shirer