Hmmm. It’s Tuesday… Never to early to start planning for this weekend :-). So what’s up:
- Thursday. In the evening, gf_guruilla will use the last part of her anniversary gift certificate at Burke-Williams Spa to get us both massages.
- Friday. My 45th birthday. I’m taking the day off of work (thanks for the idea, talonvaki), but depending on what’s going on, I may do some work from home. That evening, our family tradition is to let the birthday person pick the restaurant of their choice, so we’re going to In-n-Out. Seriously, we’ll likely go to Alexis Greek Cafe in Northridge. Oh, their food is soooooo good.
- Saturday. A day of gaming at Southern California Games Day at the Burbank Moose Lodge (yes, I will be bringing a copy of There’s A Moose In The House). I’ll be bringing S&F and her cousin N with me, and gf_guruilla will get a day to herself (actually, I think she’s meeting with a prospective client, as she is exploring getting back into technical writing part time). This should be fun: I can play my new game Tigris and Euphrates (rated Nº 2 on BoardGameGeek), and hopefully my copy of Exxtra will have arrived. Of course, I hope to get in games of Power Grid, Ticket to Ride, Metro, and perhaps even Speed Circuit in, as well as learning some new games. This is always a fun day. If you’re a gamer and in the Los Angeles area, come on out. It’s only $5!
- Sunday. In the morning, S&F has religious school. In the evening, we’re going to the Temple Beth Hillel potluck Tu B’Shevat Dinner. This will be our first time at this event, although I’ve previously run Tu B’Shevat seders, so it should be interesting.
A very, very full weekend. Should be lots of fun.
In other news…
CNN is reporting that a woman fell to her death after doing a handstand on a 2nd floor balcony. According to the article, just before she fell, she had called out to a friend, “Watch to see what I can still do”. Sigh. A pointed commentary on modern intellegence.
Richard Hatch, ye olde winner of Survivor 1, is in hot water that even parading around nude won’t solve. It appears he wasn’t so, umm, open with the IRS in his 2000 tax return, failing to report the $1.01 million he was paid by the production company of Survivor. Tsk, tsk. Didn’t they tell him that lying and cheating can’t get you out of taxes (unless, of course, you’re a major corporation or excessively wealthy).
Pearson Educational, who owns the copyright to “Dick and Jane” (although it’s not in their preschool catalog, so they must use it for college texts), is suing Time Warner for violation of copyright in their book Yiddish with Dick and Jane, which according to the Publishers Week review, presents Dick and Jane as all grown up, living in the real world full of tsuris. Jane is married to Bob and has two perfect children. Dick schmoozes with business people over golf: “Schmooze, Dick. Schmooze….” Their sister, Sally, who teaches a course in “Transgressive Feminist Ceramics,” can see that life is not perfect, even though dear Dick and Jane cannot. Their mother has a stroke (“Oy vey, Jane,” says Dick when he learns the news). Bob’s best friend’s wife is having an affair because the best friend himself is gay (“‘Tom is more than gay, Sally,’ says Dick. ‘He is overjoyed.’… ‘Oy Gotenyu oh, God help us,’ sighs Sally.”) And purse dealers take advantage of the gullible. The book contains an equally funny glossary is a great reference to which readers can return any time they need the right Yiddish word-or whenever they need to determine whether the jerk they just saw is a putz, a schmo or a schmuck. Pearson is claiming the book is not a parody, but an unprotected imitation. Whatever it is, that book is going on my Amazon Wishlist. Now, if I can just find a copy of the game Look at the Schmuck on that Camel.
