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| My bride since 1975 |
Movie: "The Social Network" as a mirror of our times -- greed, genius, capitalism, technology, all rolled into one. Honorable mentions: "Winter's Bone" for thrusting me into the Ozarks' meth culture and "Black Swan" for a mesmerizing performance by Natalie Portman.
Book: "The Poisonwood Bible." Yes, I know it's several years old but I didn't read it until this year. Barbara Kingsolver is just a fabulous writer. Honorable mentions: Richard Russo's "Bridge of Sighs" and Rebecca Skloot's "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks." Superb works of fiction and non-fiction, respectively.
Concert: A tie: Patty Griffin at the Crystal Ballroom, doing material from her new CD, "Downtown Church." Camera Obscura, with their wonderful frontwoman Tracyanne Campbell, at Berbati's Pan.
Vacation: Pittsburgh! Of course, any trip to Orcas Island is soothing for the soul but the few days spent last fall in western Pennsylvani's largest city were a revelation. So much to see and do (and eat) and with similarities to Portland and San Francisco.
Family milestones: The satisfaction of seeing Nathan land and excel in a marketing job while also developing a strong relationship with a lovely young woman, Sara. The pride of seeing Simone enroll in graduate school and thrive at Carnegie Mellon while writing a whole new chapter in her life, far from home, with Kyndall. The comfort of having Jordan and Jamie close to home again after transferring from Texas to Washington state for the next couple years of his Army enlistment.
Marital milestone: 35 years of marriage to Lori. We marked the occasion twice -- on the actual date (Sept. 6) and again over a period of days in Pittsburgh, concluding with a fabulous pan-Asian dinner.
Road trip: Six days and five nights on the interstate system in July with Simone, sharing father-and-daughter time with lots of laughs, each other's music and memorable meals, capped off by a visit to Cleveland's Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Museum.
Fun and games: Nothing beats Tuesday nights, when I join my fellow Broken Taco Shells, for a night of bowling...except for Saturday night poker and pizza with my buddies. Call it a tie.
Politics: Repeal of the military's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy. If this barrier can fall, will we see same-sex marriage legalized in several more states -- if not across the country -- in my lifetime? One can hope.
Photograph: Taken by George on the Portland Tram to OHSU Hospital
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