Dining Out

Aug 2, 2008 - Zuni Cafe - Always good. The best tables are on the main floor, especially near the wood oven. Luckily our table was in this room near the window. The was our weekend to host Brent and Lexi, we forget that a 16 year old wants simple food, and all Lexi wanted was spaghetti, without a chunky sauce. Brent loved the pork chops, I had fish, and Curt had the meat dish. It was a pleasure seeing a new experience through the eyes of a teenager.

Aug 15, 2008 - Conduit - David/Tim - Opened about nine months ago, the square room is partitioned off with conduit walls. Sitting in the bar section, it took me a minute to connect the conduit connections. The waiter was very informative, taking explicit care to describe the menu, and the chef background. The Halibut that i had was one of the best ever. The Himachi appetizer was also spectacular. Simple food with a depth of flavor. Curt had the snapper, while David the short ribs, and Tim the Pork, all was enjoyed.

Aug 22, 2008 - Una Enoteca - Denise - Dinner with Denise is always a pleasure. This is our time to refuel and get our Denise time... In the Lower Haight, parking can be a bitch, but after I dropped them at the door, and kept visualizing a parking spot, found one, and only five blocks away. Very cool spot, next to Memphis Millie, (BBQ joint). Cool design, with an open shelving charcuterie, and cheese bar. The olives with lemon zest were very good. Our server was very polite and friendly, had a variety of small plates, caponata ,beans, mushrooms, asparagus, not great but good. My dish was the polenta with shrimp, they had a pizza. All very good, I would rate the spot better than the food. Although I enjoyed the simple menu.

Sep 13, 2008 -Serpentine - Todd/Allyson - Great setting in Dog Patch, 3rd and 22nd. Love the warehouse feel, tale cealings, small dining room. The food was very good, I had a cucumber salad, that was very flavorful. Curt's arugula salad was average. My halibut entree was very good, Curt's lamb chops were fatty. I loved the place, and will go back, a great neigborhood find.

Oct 18, 2008 - Indigo - Patti/Rusty - Not as good as the first two times we ate here. We were most inquisative about the resturant downstairs that was completely in the dark.

Nov 1, 2008 - Anchor and Hope - Elise/Peter - Like the setting, food ok.

Nov 22, 2008 - Lure (San Mateo) - Patti - Loved the setting, small, narrow space. Patti and I both had the dungenus crab, this was my first, loved it.

Dec 12, 2008 - Belmont - Birthday Dinner for Patti and Kate, This is Jeff and Kate's hang out, they know the owner, the place was packed. We had a large round table for 8, very noicey. I had halibut, that was very good. Sat next to Phil Rosenburg, and got the Sony connection, which lead to us buying a new flat screen for Curt's man-cave.

Theater

Aug 2, 2008 - Drowsey Chaperon, Took Brent and Lexi. This was a perfect show for two teens, who had never been to the theatre. The show was light, with a cute narrative story, based on the main character living out scenes from audio recordings.

Aug 14, 2008 - Zona, 2boys.tv (NCTC). When we were first told this was going to be a unique production, we were not sure what we were in for, reminded us both back in Dallas, when we went to the day of theater, sitting in the basement of the theater, wondering what the hell was going on... Anyway, this show was not that weird, it was a visual show, that took mid-century scenes and reenacted them. The art to this show, was the production; the way the show was put together via video and staging. The drag actress in one scene is holding a story book, and the video projection is placed on the pages. What brought it all together was staying for the discussion following the performance. They explained Zona and the sheath, and breaking those barriers. The big bad wolf was a Central part, which was my take of "man-eat-man" world. We appreciated that the performance was less than an hours, and any more than that would have been overload.

Aug 23, 2008 - Friends for Ever (NCTC) Hated it. The play was well written, carefully crafted dialogue, however when the message of the story is that it is acceptable for gay couples to be in a "committed" relationship, but still have fuck buddies, is not the story that we see as acceptable in a year that we are celebrating marriage and commitment.

September 26, 2008 - Bronz Tales (GG) Very good production. I knew I was going to love it when we learned it had no intermission... when it starts out with one character telling the story, I thought I would be day dreaming for the next hour and a half, but it kept my interest, the actor did a great job telling his bronz tale of what is moral, and in the end Karma does settle the score.

Oct 10, 2008 - Spring Awakening (Curran) Absolutely loved it. The way they weaved an old charater story into a modern setting. It really reminds you when you were a teen, how everything was absolute, and the meaning of life was sharp.

Oct 18, 2008 - History Boys (NCTC) Excellent production for the NCTC. Wonderfully acted on the whole, saw the show with Patti and Rusty. For me, I am glad that I had seen the movie, and I might have missed some of the subelties.

Dec 13, 2008 - Zanadont (NCTC) Loved it. Well acted musical, cute show for the Holidays, and a nice spin on what it would be like in a world turn around. The lead's vocal were a bit weak, but he was still the star of the show.

Movies

July 27 - Mama Mia,(4/5) Loved it, although cringed a bit when Pierse Brosnon sang, very painful. Merril could not sing, but she acted the singing and that made it work. After see this movie, We need to go to Greece, Skopelos and Skiathos, two islands in the Northern Sporades.

July 29, (6 Hour flight from RI)
When we saw Annette Bening last year at the ACT event, we put in our que
-Mrs. Harris (4/5) Excellent acted film, Mrs Harris being the woman who killed the Diet Doctor in the 70's.

-Being Julia (4/5) Julia is a English actress in London in the 30's, who toys with a younger man, then has the last laugh on a young starlet.

- Dinner Party (2/5) Dont know how this got on my netflix. I probably thought is was going to be a gay movie. This was a french movie where a dinner party was planned each week, and the member had to invite a random person who they thought was stupid, and they could make fun of, but in the end, the "Stupid" invitee was superior to those that got their kicks from making other small.

Aug 24, 2008 - Lives of Others - When the wall was still up in Germany, this story follows the lives of Artists that are interrogated for their views of the west. The true hero is the one who was doing the surveillance. It is a story of what you believe, and how far you will go.

Sep 12, 2008 - Miss Pettigrow lives for a day - Amy Adams and Frances McDormand do a wonderful period piece performance. Follows the day of each, and how each other has an impact into their true destiny. Funny and light hearted.

Sep 20, 2008 - Burn after Reading - 6 out of 10, Expecting more, but great acting. Followings the lives of bumbling idiots who expect something for nothing, the story is a bit predictable.

Nov 28, 2008 - MILK - Superior acting, and a poiniant story. loved how they transformed Castro. It was disheartening that 30 years later prop 8 looses, in 1978 those same issues of save the children was the tactic, but lost in 1978. Penn should ge the best actor award, as he was Harvey Milk.