The L.A. Dime

Feb 28 2009

The Dime Now Tweets

Published by Brad under The Blog

Thanks to Chris Carrier of Carrier Designs, who graciously hosts and maintains this blog because we are code inept, Brad will now be tweeting using Twitter on this site. You can find his updates in the upper left corner.

We’ve also taken to video chatting with friends and family using Skype. I think, now, finally, we’re only five years behind the times.

No responses yet

Feb 26 2009

Road Trip 2: Beer Pong Interview

Published by Brad under The Industry

I have been invited to do a video interview tomorrow at Paramount for the Road Trip 2 DVD, scheduled for release later this year. Last night, incidentally, I bought a new shirt with a gift card from my mom. I’m also going to get a much-needed haircut.

One of the questions will be, “if you were a legendary beer pong player, what would your signature shot be and what would it be called?” Any ideas? Perhaps the best suggestion will make it onto the DVD.

beer_pong_get_your_balls_wet33271328_std

4 responses so far

Feb 24 2009

Up the Coast

Published by Brad under Sophia, The Family

With my parents visiting for the week, we decided to head up to Santa Barbara for a Valentine’s stay weekend before last at The Hotel Mar Monte. The room and view were wonderful, but dinner at Bistro 1111 left a lot to be desired. We enjoyed it all the same, hungry after a trip to the zoo, where Sophie ran wild as the animals she saw that excited her so.

The next day, we drove over the mountains to visit some wineries in Santa Ynez. It was cold and windy, but beautiful. Sophie was so tuckered out by the time we got home, she laid down on the bathroom floor as I was drying her hair.

4 responses so far

Feb 23 2009

Celiac Post Script

Published by Brad under The Miscellany, Uncategorized

It turns out that while at least 1 in 150 Americans have Celiac, it is hard to diagnose due wildly unrelated symptoms, many of which are often mistakenly attributed to other diseases or ailments. Celiac – left untreated – could lead to infertility, osteoporosis, lymphoma, depression & neurological disorders. Celiac disease is more common in individuals with type 1 diabetes, thyroid disease or anemia. Next time you have a check up, have the doctor run a Celiac serology if you feel you are susceptible — unfortunately, if you are related to me, or have any of the above conditions, you’re susceptible.

No responses yet

Feb 20 2009

I’m a Celiac

Published by Brad under The Family, The Miscellany

After giving a lot of blood and enduring a couple of painless, but — invasive — procedures, it’s been determined that I have Celiac Disease. Meaning, essentially, I’m allergic to gluten — a substance found in wheat, rye, barley, malt, and a few other rare grains. Evidently, 1 in 150 people have this genetic disease, but it often goes undetected until it leads to serious gastrointestinal issues such as colon cancer. Luckily, we found it before things got too bad. Sadly, my favorite beers, cereals, breads, and pastas are no longer available to me. Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods carry a lot of wheat-free items, and there is a large online community of stores and advice, so while Lucky Charms and Kraft Mac & Cheese are out of the question now, I certainly won’t starve to death.

One response so far

Feb 20 2009

Oscar Picks

Published by Brad under The Industry

These are my Oscar picks, for what they’re worth. Rather than voting for whom I think will win, as in a gambling pool, I have noted who I would choose were I given a vote (which I wasn’t).

LEAD ACTOR: Tough category and hard to dismiss Rourke or Langhella, both of whom turned in amazing performances, but my vote goes to Sean Penn for Milk.

SUPPORTING ACTOR: Heath Ledger, no doubt.

LEAD ACTRESS: I have little hesitation in giving Kate Winslett the nod for The Reader.

SUPPORTING ACTRESS: This seems to be a weak category this year, I know I won’t get this right, as one of the Doubt actresses will likely win, but I’m going with Penelope Cruz in Vicky Cristina Barcelona. I’d still be happy, though, if Marisa Tomei got a statue for her — revealing — role in The Wrestler.

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY: Dustin Lance Black for Milk.

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY: Simon Beaufoy for Slumdog Millionaire.

BEST DIRECTOR: Danny Boyle for Slumdog Millionaire.

BEST PICTURE: Slumdog Millionaire

I loved Milk and The Reader, but Slumdog is beautiful, smart, funny, inspiring, and heart-warming. It’s a no-brainer must-see, must-win.

2 responses so far

Feb 09 2009

This is Jeopardy!

Published by Brad under Uncategorized

Tonight, Monday, February 9, my good friend Devin is on Jeopardy! Watch and cheer for him to win.

No responses yet

Feb 08 2009

New digs

Published by Brad under Sophia

Sophie got a new house, with adjacent tunnel today….

2 responses so far

Feb 07 2009

25 things

Published by Tina under The Miscellany

All the cool kids on FB are doing it…

1) I hope I don’t freak you out, cause you to think less of me or share too much

2) I am completely obsessed with keeping our kitchen floors clean and the fact that they are a light, tan color that shows absolutely everything drives me crazy
3) I eat a ton of sweets and am saddened to realize that I’ve gotten to “that age” where it’s affecting my weight

4) I still get excited coming home at night knowing Brad is there; his smile makes everything better

5) The best part of my day is walking into Sophie’s room after her nap and hearing her say “Mama?”

6) I get extremely annoyed with people who don’t try

7) I had a great time in High School and still miss my college roommates and the little house on Williams we all lived in together for 2 years

I wonder if Brad is going to do this – he says he’s “thinking about it”

9) The older I get, the more I realize how hard parenting is and appreciate what my parents did for me

10) I am really afraid of future parenting situations Brad and I will be faced with

11) I am extremely emotional – ranging from flying off the handle pretty quickly to crying at seeing complete strangers getting married

12) Are you still reading this post?

13) LA is a great place to explore, learn from and live in for a while but I still very much want to move back to KY one day — however I’d never want to take the opportunities away from Brad that allow him to live his dream and would not be as readily available back home

14) I met my friend Kelly on the first day of Junior High in the US and we’ve been best friends ever since

15) I am ashamed of my country’s history but don’t ever want to give up my citizenship

16) I really love the seasons
17) I love to scrapbook and even though I don’t have any of those fancy tools, I have books going all the way back to high school and enjoy looking at them to remember the details of each time period
18) I am still friends with my all of ex-boyfriends (I only had 3 before Brad)

19) I always feel under-dressed or like I don’t have the right colors, labels or combination of clothes on

20) I am addicted to teeny-booper shows like “One Tree Hill” and wish “the OC” was still on; we’re getting into “Gossip Girl” now and oh yeah, I watch “Days of our Lives” everyday

21) I enjoy Christmas shopping but not trying to figure out what to get people

22) I feel lucky to have married into such a large family – the love, support and laughter that surrounds us is amazing

23) I think of our first baby all the time and truly believe that Sophie has an extra big heart to ensure he/she will never be forgotten

24) I am not very good at home decorating

25) I enjoy having people at our house and am so thankful for our “LA family” of dear friends that make us feel a bit more at home here

One response so far

Feb 07 2009

Good reads

Published by Tina under The Media

After I graduated college, I set a goal to read one of the New York Times’ recommended Bestseller books every month. Especially during those 5 years of consulting and being on the road all week, every week, I started to build quite a nice collection of books. I read mostly fiction but have stretched myself a few times to read include some others. Here’s my list of top favorites or maybe “noteworthy”:

1) Empire Falls (Richard Russo) – Great small town story about a single dad of a teenage daughter and the various characters involved in his life

2) Plainsong (Kent Haruf) – Tom Guthrie is a high school teacher whose wife can’t–or won’t–get out of bed; the McPherons are two bachelor brothers who know little about the world beyond their farm gate; Victoria Roubideaux is a pregnant 17-year-old with no place to turn. Their lives parallel each other in much the same way any small-town lives would–until Maggie Jones makes them intersect

3) Life of Pie (Yann Martel) – After a harrowing shipwreck, the precocious 16-year old son of a zookeeper finds himself adrift in the Pacific Ocean, trapped on a 26-foot lifeboat with a wounded zebra, a spotted hyena, a seasick orangutan, and a 450-pound Bengal tiger named Richard Parker

4) Three Cups of Tea (Greg Mortenson) – One man’s mission to promote peace…one school at a time

5) Eat, Pray, Love (Elizabeth Gilbert) – Plagued with despair after a nasty divorce, the author, in her early 30s, divides a year equally among three dissimilar countries, exploring her competing urges for earthly delights and divine transcendence

6) The Corrections (Jonathan Franzen) - All five members of the Lambert family get their due, as everybody’s lives swirl out of control; including Christmas homecomings gone awry, cruise-ship follies, self-deluded academics, breast-obsessed screenwriters, stodgy old farts and edgy Tribeca bohemians equally at sea in their lives, and the mad, bad, dangerous worlds of the Internet boom and the fissioning post-Soviet East

7) A Million Little Pieces (James Frey) – Wanted by authorities in three states, without ID or any money, his face mangled and missing four front teeth, Frey is on a steep descent from a dark marathon of drug abuse. His stunned family checks him into a famed Minnesota drug treatment center where a doctor promises “he will be dead within a few days” if he starts to use again, and where Frey spends two agonizing months of detox confronting “The Fury” head on

I’m looking for a new book now, what are some of your favorites?

3 responses so far

Archive for February, 2009

The Dime Now Tweets

Road Trip 2: Beer Pong Interview

Up the Coast

Celiac Post Script

I’m a Celiac

Oscar Picks

This is Jeopardy!

New digs

25 things

Good reads

Pages:

Categories:

Blogroll

Meta