One Of The Best Weekends Ever

             

I had a good one this weekend. Actually I had a great one. I couldn’t have asked for a better three days. Nothing compares to a great weekend that requires minimal planning. It started on Friday as I exited work early. Normally I am a certified workaholic. It takes a lot to pull me from my desk. I am addicted to getting a commission check and making our clients happy. But Friday was a half day for me because I had some big plans to take care of.

Firstly I had set up some concert tickets to see one of my favorite bands Matt and Kim at The Fox Theater in Oakland. My lady and I had planned to drive down to Oakland on Friday and stay at The Waterfront Hotel at Jack London Square. I know when most people think about Oakland, not too many kind words come to mind. But we were pleasantly surprised at the kindness Oakland showed us while we were visiting. The Waterfront was a beautiful but dated hotel overlooking the Bay and Marina. The service was excellent and our room had a great view. The room had a sea theme, and rightly so, since we literally were perched over the marina.  After resting in the room for a few we went and had dinner at Miss Pearl’s restaurant. It was a southern seafood inspired restaurant.  We met the chef Eddie Blyden and to say he was a nice man was an understatement. The original version of the restaurant was a San Francisco staple thirty years ago and it has since moved on to Oakland. The food was good, the service was great, and the bread pudding was amazing. After dinner we got ready and took a ride downtown to The Fox Theater. The Theater was beautifully decorated. This was my first time at the venue but it will not be my last. I got us some seats in the balcony because I don’t do the standing room only thing at concerts. I want a safety nest to return to if things get wild in the crowd. We had some great seats in the Loge area which was in front on the general balcony seating. Matt and Kim put on a great show and Jamee and I were super impressed by their high energy and crowd engaging act. Matt can sing and play keyboard but Kim can sure play some drums. She was amazing.  After the show we literally walked out of the venue and hopped immediately into a cab and were back in our hotel room within ten minutes and tucked away in bed.

The next morning the sun was blasting through our balcony. Someone was telling us it’s time to get up. I ordered a pretty stunning room service smorgasbord of food and we decided to eat overlooking the water. We are pretty lucky just to be able to enjoy each other’s time with a great view. After breakfast we got ready and said our goodbyes to Oakland. We proceeded back towards Berkeley and made a stop at Golden Gate Fields. Horse racing is my game of choice. You can keep table games, slot machines and all other sports bets. Horse racing is where it’s at. I think in another life I may have been a dogfighting or cockfighting fan but nowadays I will stick to horse racing. My girl is a horse racing fan too and ever since we hit a trifecta on the Kentucky Derby she has been hooked. I reserved us a box and we hung out for about 6 races before we hit the road home. I didn’t win any money but after last week’s trip and winning about 600 buck I didn’t mind breaking even. When we got back to Sacramento on Saturday we sat down to witness the SF Giants take it to the Tigers in game three of the World Series. It was one of the best games I have seen and it was a prelude to witnessing them clinching it the next night.

On Sunday I woke up early and hit the links at Cherry Island. It is a tough course and I was playing against my golfing arch nemesis Steve Lanterman . He usually beats me but today I finally got the up on him during the back nine and I never let off. The course is one of those that play with your ego. You can go for the legendary shot or you can play it safe and set yourself up for the next shot. I can’t hit that far so even when I am going for it all it looks like I am going for the safe play. After golf I went back to home base and proceeded to nap for the remainder of the day until the SF Giants Game was on. We witnessed the Giants winning their 2^nd World Series in 3 years. The game was fun to watch and included the usual torture that a Giants game brings to your stomach. After watching Sergio Romo strike out the greatest hitter over the last 40 years and win the game and the World Series it was officially an end to a magnificent weekend  

I am back for the meantime

Work is a mother . I mean I never have enough time in the day. People want this and employees want that. I want to tell them to "Fuck Off" but I always think one day I might need their help so I should keep my comments light. Or even worse, one day, they might be my boss and remember when I treated them like garbage and dedicate their life to ruining mine.
I like working. I should say I love working but that would be silly. I can't not be employed. If I got fired today i would have a job tomorrow morning by 8am . It's always been that way. I was once unemployed for three months about 7 years ago and I wanted to blow my brains out . Because the only thing worse than getting paid like shit is not getting paid at all .
There isn't really anything I wont do for a good paycheck. Five years ago I would have done a lot more for money but I have come to my senses over the last few years. Back then I would have robbed, stole, and lied for 5k a month. I have come to realize selling your soul isn't worth the cost of one good month. It's about 2013 and not October 2012.

And not to overuse the quote of the almost famous rapper Vitamin P "Get your mind right and get your grind right"

Keep quiet. It's only Tuesday

I know it's only Tuesday, and I'm sick, but this weekend I am making a trip to South Lake Tahoe. It is for my soon to be brother in law Eric "Karl or Carl" Marks. I throw in the "Carl" to reference the children's book author Eric Carle and not the famous philosopher Karl Marx. Strangely enough they are both German . I bet for a minute you thought I was some sort of intellectual but I am merely a fan of books with pictures.
This weekend is his bachelor party. It's a one night event and probably one night is all we are going to need. South Lake Tahoe is almost like a hidden gem only known to Northern California locals. It is mostly a stop off from a weekend of skiing but to me it is a lot more. They have about six casinos that cater to the crowd passing through for a weekend getaway. I learned how to bet horses there and though I will always be grateful my wallet is not so lucky. I have also seen some Raider playoff games up there and was mesmerized by the Raider fans. I remember going up there and staying at THE BLOCK. It used to be a snowboarder motel with themed rooms. I have stayed in the Pac Man Room, The DVS Room, and the Vivid Room.  It was truly a sight. Always remember ,South Lake is cleaner than Reno, bigger than North Lake, and not as hectic or expensive as Vegas.