Back to reality...if I like it or not

Well I called it. Got back to work at 8:30am...sat down at my desk...looked around... (sigh)

I then knew it was over and I'm now back to reality.

Slowly but surely I am digging out of emails and actually only 1 voicemail, but from one of my regulars - and to Sharon and any Avid folk following here, I'll give you 3 guesses as to who left me that lone voicemail! ;-)

I was going to wait til later to do this update, but I've got a little downtime right now and honestly I don't know how well I'm going to be functioning later today so I may as well get it done while I can.

There were 2 main purposes of this trip.

1. Ken and his wife Karrieanne are expecting their first baby in less than 2 weeks. And because Ken has been trying to get me to come out west for about 3 years now, I figured now would be a good time to help him relax a little...let loose before Samantha comes along.

And where else better to do it?? VEGAS BABY!

2. There is no mystery to most of you that the past 6 months, year, 2 years have been an interesting stretch for me - personally and professionally. The last 6 or so months specifically have been tough for me. But without getting into details let me just say getting away for a while with 2 out of my 3 best friends is a way to try and forget the past and move forward...and have a kickass time doing so.

So let's look back. During my first post, I had some main objectives:

- Vegas Bingo
- The World's Worst Display of Golfing
- Lots of drinking
- Gambling
- More drinking
- Eating lots of incredible food
- Taking some (hopefully classic) video footage!
- And so much more

...Vegas Bingo? Unfortunately was not accomplished to the extent in which we wanted...however it will be fun to go through the categories/tasks just to see which goals we did reach without really thinking about it.

...Golfing?



Check.

...Lots of drinking?



Check.

...Gambling?



Check.

...More drinking?





Oh yeah...check-check it.

...Eating lots of incredible food? (minus the food poisoning)



Check...ugh.

...Taking some (hopefully classic) video footage?



One Word: GOLD!

....and that was just Vegas!






There are countless amounts of unforgettable experiences I had on this trip...and I'm sure I can speak for Kev, Ken, Scott and Kyle as well.

Good times, good memories, with good friends. Does it get any better?






No, it doesn't.

C'mon down!

It’s now 7:29pm – east coast time. Just landed in Washington, DC at Dulles Airport. After our flight was an hour late leaving Long Beach due to headwinds on the flight coming in, we made up some serious time coming back east…now we’re waiting about an hour and a half until we take off for Boston. It took 3 hours and 45 minutes to fly from Cali to DC…that’s pretty impressive.

But anyway, I figured I’d bang out the last update now before I get home because I really need to try and get to sleep because I have to be in work at 9am tomorrow…what the hell was I thinking?

So after one of the biggest rushes I’ve had in a long time with driving through Mulholland Highway and saw the gorgeous sites of Malibu, we headed back to Ken’s because he had to get ready for work. Around 7, Kev and I drove to Hollywood to meet up with Benson and from there we met Ken at his work, on the CBS Studio set.




We first grabbed dinner at this pretty good BBQ place and from there we headed on over to the studio and immediately headed towards one of most memorable sets of the 80’s (as well as present day) – The Price Is Right gameshow set…



And actually – it was TINY! I had no idea because it looks like this huge auditorium on TV, but I’d say it’s probably only 10-15 seats deep.



So, what do you do on the closed set of The Price Is Right with 3 of your buddies?

You fuck around!






From there we checked out the set of the Late Late Late Late So Late That Hardly Anyone Watches It Show with Craig Ferguson.



And again…it was very small, but that really doesn’t surprise me. Who is Craig Ferguson again??



Next stop…The Tyra Banks Show set.



Ken is one of the lead editors for the Tyra show and he works nights, hence why we were here doing what we were doing. I’ve never seen the show, but apparently it’s doing very well, they actually beat out Oprah and they got signed to a 2nd season.




...Kevin is going to regret doing that.

And because I’m a geek, I thought checking out Ken’s editing bay was pretty cool…



At this point we ate up over 2 hours of Ken’s lunch/dinner break and he had a pretty busy night ahead of him so we started our way out the door. Before leaving, we of course had to check out the set for THE YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS.




Calm down ladies….especially you Sharon!

You see, Sharon is a closet Y&R super fan and she has told me on several occasions that she has fantasized making love on this set here:



Freaky.

All in all, a very cool night…I mean to see the Price Is Right Set alone was just amazing. Who the hell doesn’t like the Price Is Right???



...and Barker's Beauties!

And of course, we got plenty of video. ;-)

As for today, Wednesday Feb 22, we ran into some typical traffic on THE 405, word. But we made our flight on time. As I said earlier, I’m now hanging out at Dulles Airport in DC waiting for the final leg of my way back home.

And as Kev just said to me “now I know why they call it ‘The Dullest’” (ba-dum, ching!)

I will do one last post tomorrow morning as I’m hating my life while sitting at my desk at work, tackling hundreds of emails and a handful of voice mails and god knows what my boss has to toss on my plate. Right now, I just need to decompress and think about the amazing week I just had…

Mulholland Adrenaline Rush and Malibu Beach

What a fucking rush.

So Ken gets this limited Shinka Edition Madza RX-8...a pretty nasty ride. And after today's drive through the hills of Malibu, I am completely sold....not necessarily the speed, but the HANDLING....wow.



Wanna go for a ride?


At first I'm thinking there's just a bunch of straight aways that we'll be screwing by on and maybe some kickass views every now and then. No....there were hardly any straight aways, mainly TIGHT winding and steep turns...on a road with no guard rails and a 90 degree drop - to certain death. And the straight aways that are there, are met by some 180 degree turns at the end. And this RX-8 handled them better than a BMW. WOW...what a goddamn rush!



To be honest...at first I was scared shitless. Mainly because I was not aware of what Ken's care is capable of. I have a fast car, but no one in hell would my car come close to the overall performance of the RX-8....I'd be over that cliff in 2 seconds if I were driving the way we were today.



And again...the views were literally breathtaking...





As beautiful as these photos may be, they really do not do justice compared to being there in person. I'll be able to make up for that with the video footage, though!



Malibu Beach....I miss the summer!




Yeah, Venice was nice, but there was something about Malibu that took the prize here. Maybe it was because it wasn't nearly as crowded as Venice, and I'm sure I was still buzzing from the psychotic car ride, but I think that if I had the money to burn, I'd buy a house somewhere in Malibu in a second.



Well it's closing in on 1am on my last night here before I come home. Hopefully I'll be able to wake up early enough to post my (possible) last update on this blog....a tour of CBS Studio's, home of The Price is Right...and of course the Tyra Banks show (only because Ken is a lead editor on it). We had a lot of laughs tonight...and some great pics (and video!) will follow. But for now, I need some sleep!

Speaking of video...here's a little taste:

Hello LA

So yesterday (Monday, Feb 20) was the first day in LA...what to do, what to do?

TOURISM BABY!

1. HOLLYWOOD!

Benson, Ken, Karrieanne, Me...

Kev's Hero (for real)...


2. VENICE BEACH!

Venice Beach is a pretty cool area....reminds me a lot of Hampton Beach up in NH....minus the white trash.

My first time seeing the Left Coast...what a beautiful site, especially it being late February, where I'm typically used to at least a foot of snow on the ground.




Ugh, what am I doing living in Boston???





3. SANTA MONICA!

From Venice Beach we headed off to Santa Monica, which reminded me a lot of Fenueil Hall in Boston (at least one part of the area). Luckily it was towards the end of the day at this point and we had a chance to see a really nice sunset. But do not be fooled...it was f'ing COLD and windy!


Going...

Going...

Gone...


Again...what am I doing in Boston???

Well, at this point it was time to get some eats and drinks! Where do three boys from Boston go to dinner when they're out in So. Cal?

Sonny Mclean's...a Red Sox bar/restaurant in Santa Monica!




This place definitely reminded me of home...


So after dinner, we decided to play some darts. We had a couple brews, had some laughs, etc. I decided to go over to the jukebox to throw on some tunes, as I was scrolling through the songs I suddenly felt a sting in my hand...and blood started to flow.

Yep...Kev decided it would be FUNNY to throw darts AT me. I had my hand in my pocket and he caught me in one of my fingers....dickhead.

Side story:
A few years back Me, Kev, Maureen, Amy and Joe were at Jillians in Boston playing darts, drinking and whatnot. As the game went on, and the drinks kept on going down, my game was slowly declining. So I was half frustrated, half joking by tossing the darts at the ground by the next shooter's feet - that would be Joe. Now I WAS NEVER TRYING TO AIM AT ANYONE....but I unfortunately caught Joe with a dart in the ankle. So much that it stuck into his ankle, through his jeans and we nearly had a full out brawl. Joe was none too happy with me....still to this day.

So yesterday Kev got revenge on his brother's behalf.

Joe, we're even!!!



Fuckin a, "YOU PLANNED THIS!!!!! I'VE GOT A FUCKING FLESH WOUND YOU MOTHERFUCKER!!!!!!"

Next update: ripping through the hills of Mulholland Drive in Ken's Mazda Shinka Edition RX-8....



...holy shit, I'm still shaking!