41. Beat Eric Paine at Racquetball

Finally!!! I get to cross something off my list. The reason I put this on my list is because I have NEVER beat him before... and we have played more than a couple times. We played many times at UCLA and if I ever got to double digits, I would have called family just to let them know my triumphs. Last night, I played racquetball with Eric, Chris, and Gonzo. It was nice to have Gonzo out with us for the first time. It is easy to see him getting better fast with some of the shots he made last night. He did however almost decapitate his doubles teammate everytime he served. We switched off playing 1 on 1 after the the first game and so I took my first crack at beating Eric. Sadly, I did not. The second game, I finally got him. There was only two other people watching... but I am pretty sure, a capacity crowd would have stormed the court. It was, in a word, AWESOME. 49 more to go!!!!

Work in progress "41. Beat Eric Paine at racquetball"

I had my first attempt at crossing something off my list. I played racquetbal with Alan, Eric, and Sean. While Eric and Sean were on their way, Alan and I played a couple practice games... or so I thought. Alan won the first in a close battle and the second not so much. Alan decided to ask me, "Do I get anything for beating YOU three times in a row?" 13 points later (in a game to 15) Alan finally scored his first point. The game mercifully ended 15-1. We then played doubles. A racquetball court is a room.... a small room... made for only a few competitors. Racquetball doubles pits two teams of two players against each other in a battle royal that can REALLY only be won by avoiding serious injury from rouge racquets and screaming racquet balls moving off Eric's racquet at speeds only Usain Bolt and Superman can relate to. The Smith Brothers started fast to a 10-0 lead. One point away from a "skunk," Eric and Sean came back with an 8-1 run to close it to 11-8. In a clutch performance resembling the days of Jordan and the Tim Donaghy refereed Laker playoff games from the early 2000's, we closed the match late with a furious run to victory. It would have been even sweeter if I could cross off "41. Beat Eric Paine at racquetball" but sadly, the intent was to beat him 1 on 1. Maybe next time...

Italian Night: The Difference 7 Minutes Makes

Once upon a time, I thought pasta with marinara was a little simple (aka boring) for my tastes. Then we went to Italy. Now I can not stop drooling over my memories of steaming hot, perfectly al dente spaghetti tossed in a simply delectable pomodoro.

So tonight, I denied my dependence on food network recipes and improvised, sans recipe and armed with only a handful of tomatoes, a bunch of basil, some garlic, onion, red wine, and e.v.o.o. It was cooking in its most basic form - purely to taste with a little of this and some more of that. Taking a cue from a fantastic plate of pasta I had in Verona, I pulsed each of the ingredients through a food processor, separately to prevent emulsion. Not only did it provide great texture, it made prep a breeze! The end result? Well... the first photo was taken at 7:44PM ... the second photo was snapped at 7:51PM...

Craving a sweet treat after our quick weeknight dinner, we headed out to our favorite gelateria in Laguna: Tutto Amore. This place makes me feel like I'm heading through the streets of Venice all over again, with the two Itals who run the joint and converse in Italian non-stop. I could listen to that beautiful language all day long!! And the gelato? It is no joke - tastes just like the real thing! I am tempted to head out there every night in hopes that this place doesn't go under in this terrible economy. If that's not sacrifice, I don't know what is!

Weekend in Palm Desert

Well, I didn't get to cross anything off of my list. However, Joo and I did get to go to my Mom and Ron's house in Palm Desert, spend time with Crystal Chessher (and watch her nightly news spot on Desert channel 6) and play Indian Wells. It was a gorgeous golf course in great condition with perfect weather. I ended up shooting a 92 which is neither good nor bad. I will definitely need to play better to cross off "6. Beat Alan at golf" I did have a birdie today and some nice pars. All in all, it was just about a perfect weekend. Thanks guys!

Happy 30th Jimmy!!!

Thanks to Erik and help from other friends (namely Bethany, Nicole, Darren and more) who put together a fun night celebrating Jimmy turning 30 in Santa Monica. It was a night full with great friends, many drinks, and kung fu kicks. Happy Birthday Jimmy and it was awesome to see everyone together. Next time, we will have to play a drinking game so I can cross something off my list

THE SMITH CHRONICLES

I initially thought of using the other blog site to track my 50 goals but I have now simply added it to THE SMITH CHRONICLES (http://jooandbobby.blogspot.com/)

In addition to following my 50 things, Joo and I will also be keeping you up to date (whether you like it or not) with our adventures.

Hope you like it

50 in 500

I have identified 50 goals. Some big... most small. They are things that I want to accomplish, have not done in a while, or have been putting off. As I cross things off my list, I will share them with you as well as some random musings I decide to waste your time with.

I initially got this idea from friends of mine (Martin Schatz http://marsense.blogspot.com/ and Will Conkhttp://willconk.blogspot.com/) who decided to set some short-term attainable goals in order to better their lives. This... is my version.

Often times, we aim to spend time with friends and family, take part in activities, or simply complete the tasks of everyday life but we push those things aside. I want to use this site to make sure i look back 500 days from now and have done what would make me most happy (... and yes, beating close friends and family at the sports they love does it for me!!!).

I have left a couple spaces open to add some goals I am sure I left off. I hope you all enjoy these posts and let me know your thoughts.