We caught Potter fever

Sarah and I left Tasha with Baba Lex and Grandpa David last night and went out to see Harry Potter 4 - the goblet of fire.

The big buzz word from cast members to producers to fans is that this film is much "darker" than the three that preceeded it. Indeed it is. In fact, I was watching it and remembering the number of 6,7 and 8 year olds and my school who said they had already seen it. I'm not sure it's appropriate for their age at all. Graphic depictions of death, scary imagery, horror movie-inspired sound tracks.... I'm just not sure this was for small children.

I understand that the CORE audience for Harry Potter is 10-14 years old and is growing up with the books - but the younger ones are also into it. I was trying to decide how old Tasha would have to be before I'd let her watch this, and I'm just not sure.

Anyhow - aside from the parenting issues ... I enjoyed the movie and thought it was really well done. The fact that it has made 200 million so far blows me away though. It's only been in theatres two weeks!

I'm in the wrong line of work.

Tornado on Tansley

So our place looks like a tornado has gone through it! Sarah and I decided the room that has received the least attention in our house deserved a little love this weekend. Our living/dining room was painted up with the very popular and trendy colours of light blue and brown. My father-in-law did the bulk of the painting while my pops came over on Sunday and lent a hand.

I must admit, the final effect is very dramatic and warm. It may not be everyone's cup of tea - but if it's good enough for the last four houses on Extreme Home Makeover - it's good enough for us.

I'll be posting pictures as soon as the curtains and artwork are all in place!

Tasha's Abreu-Debut (hey that rhymes!)

Last night Tasha and her mom and dad went to the Abreu family christmas party. It was a lot of fun. We had the whole big brood gathered in a church hall for some eating, drinking, dancing and gambling. Just the way it should be in a church basement.

For many of my cousins, uncles and aunts - this was their first chance to see Tasha in person. Needless to say they were impressed by her size, strength, stunning good looks and impressive vocabulary. Most seemed taken with her bubbly "a-goo" sound but others also enjoyed her views on a non confidence vote and a winter election.


She was totally spoiled too. In addition to all the attention she received, she also cleaned up taking home gifts from Michelle, Sandy (Steve, Blaze and Riley), Matilde (and Army) and Tia Percella. Honestly, everyone was just way too generous. We are all humbled by your kindness and are very appreciative.

Anyhow - it was a good night. I haven't had a chance to download pics yet. I will, and then I'll post some here and on the photoblog.

Oh ya, Mike won all the dough playin poker - but next time I'm playing.

Happy Birthday Natasha!

Hard to believe. It was three months ago today at exactly the time I am writing this post that my little angel came into our lives. It's amazing how much life has changed in three months. Priorities, visions of the world, and general mood have all made dramatic shifts. Sarah said something 3 minutes after Tash was born that I'll never forget. "She's going to do great things".

I do believe my daughter will change the world. She's already changed mine.

Happy birthday my little bath-loving devil!

Ughhh..... enough already with the snow!

Isabele and Adam had been planning to come up and visit this weekend for quite some time, but unfortunately the first snow fall of this winter made that impossible.

Buffalo and Syracuse got hit hard, cutting of their two main routes to come up. Damn you snow. I'm glad they didn't decide to chance it though.

My drive to work on Thursday was a nightmare. First of all - my standard 20 minute drive took two hours! The roads were a little icy, but really no big deal as long as you slow down a LITTLE and just relax.

Unfortunately, too many people out there go one extreme or the other. They drive like the conditions haven't changed at all - then end up in a ditch as I drive past and laugh .... OR ... they slow down to the point where glaciers and evolution are moving faster. FRUSTRATING.

Yesterday my prof let us all leave class an hour early to avoid the evening down pour. Again, I don't understand these people who JUST PANIC. Where did they grow up, Jamaica?? If you are a Canadian citizen - or live ANYWHERE in the North East U.S. and CAN'T drive with a little white stuff on the ground, you should be immediately imprisoned or executed. I'm not sure which.

Just stay out of my way!

Sleep well Mr. Miyagi

Since his role on Happy Days, Pat Morita has seemed to always play the role of the loveable old guy. I loved the Karate Kid movies during the 80's. Of course, Morita had to act his tiny ass of to carry Hilary Swank through the terrible sequel "The Next Karate Kid", affectionately known as 'Karate Chick'.

Sucks to hear that he passed away - but I was surprised to hear he was only 73. I mean geeez - William Shatner's older!

The following story was written by the Washington Post and the Associated Press.

Noriyuki "Pat" Morita, 73, whose portrayal of the wise and sly master teacher in "The Karate Kid" earned him an Oscar nomination, died Nov. 24 at his home in Las Vegas.

There were conflicting reports about the cause of death. His daughter Aly Morita said he died of heart failure at a Las Vegas hospital. His longtime manager, Arnold Soloway, said the actor died of kidney failure at a hospital while awaiting a transplant.

Pat Morita played the mentor to "Daniel-san" (Ralph Macchio, left) and later to a character played by Hilary Swank in the "Karate Kid" films. (Associated Press)

As Kesuke Miyagi, the mentor to Ralph Macchio's "Daniel-san" in the 1984 movie, Mr. Morita taught karate and such skills as how to catch flies with chopsticks. He lost the Academy Award for best supporting actor to Haing S. Ngor, who appeared in "The Killing Fields." But he won more roles, including three "Karate Kid" sequels, the last one in 1994 with actress Hilary Swank.

An experienced stand-up comic and comic actor, Mr. Morita had previously been best known for his recurring role in the 1970s and 1980s as the excitable malt shop owner Arnold on the popular television series "Happy Days." He also was a regular on "Sanford and Son" as Lamont's buddy Ah Chew. He was the first Japanese American to star in a television series with the leading role in "Mr. T and Tina," which aired in 1976.

He had worked frequently in movies since the 1980s and provided the voice for a character in the Disney movie "Mulan" in 1998. He had a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Mr. Morita's success in Hollywood was a long way from his start as the son of migrant fruit pickers in the fields and groves of Northern California. He contracted spinal tuberculosis at the age of 2, and when he was finally able to walk unassisted, he and his family were forced into the World War II-era internment camp at Manzanar, Calif.

"One day I was an invalid," he recalled in a 1989 interview with the Associated Press. "The next day I was public enemy No. 1 being escorted to an internment camp by an FBI agent wearing a piece."

After being released, the family opened a restaurant in Sacramento, serving Chinese cuisine because of lingering anti-Japanese prejudice. "You get the picture?" he once said to the Los Angeles Times. "A Japanese family running a Chinese restaurant in a black neighborhood with a clientele of blacks, Filipinos and everybody else who didn't fit in any of the other neighborhoods."

He eventually became a data processor with the state Department of Motor Vehicles, then secured a graveyard-shift job at Aerojet-General Corp. At age 30, he made the make-or-break decision to go into comedy full time.

His first appearances were in small clubs, until he was asked to fill in for entertainer Don Ho at a 2,000-seat hall in Hawaii. Mr. Morita unexpectedly found himself facing a huge crowd of World War II veterans, many of them disabled. They were there to observe the 25th anniversary of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.

"If you're a comic, these are the moments when you have to prove you've really got it," he told the San Jose Mercury News in 1998. "So, I began by telling them I wanted to apologize, on behalf of my people, for screwing up their harbor."

The vets roared. He went on to build a two-decade career in nightclubs, but not until he began making movies was he was able to develop a believable Japanese accent. He won the audition for the sensei in "The Karate Kid" even though he had no martial arts experience and the producers wanted a Japanese rather than a Japanese American actor. He agreed to use his given name, Noriyuki, rather than his stage name of Pat, for the credits, to make him sound more ethnic.

He is survived by his wife, Evelyn, and three daughters from a previous marriage.

So what are your intentions towards my daughter young man?

It has begun. Natasha has a boyfriend.

Well, we couldn't hold on to her forever. I had hoped we would at least keep her around until she learned to use the toilet and talk, but apparently her heart now belongs to another. We had to give her up sometime!

On Wednesday, Sarah took Tasha down to see Alexa (the bridesmaid who passed out at our wedding -- ya that's her) and her two boys. Saam is almost 3 and Sasha is four and a half months old. They let the two babies lay down together, and next thing you know he reached out, grabbed her hand and wouldn't let go!

So far his intentions seem honorable but I'm keeping an eye on him! Don't make me get David's axe!

There are more pics of the happy couple available on Tasha's photo site.

What happened over the last 9 days?

Well, i've been a very bad blogger! I was sick with report card fever. I am proud to say however that several late nights have allowed me to hand them in two days early for the first time since I started teaching. Yay!

Let me try to catch you up as to what's been happening - rapid-fire style.

Sarah and I bought a Christmas Tree last week. It's a really nice 7.5' with prelit LED's. We put it up last week, decorated it and it looked gorgeous. Problem now is, one whole section of the lights have gone dark. They won't light at all and I'm not sure if there's a sudden short or a wiring issue or just defective lights. I'm just hoping we don't have to take all the ornaments off and return the damn thing!

Our Christmas lights outside the house are up too. Dad and I put those up on the weekend and I must admit, they look great!

Class has been busy lately. I've had a ton of reading to do, and with all this report card stuff going on it's been a little tricky to stay on top of it.

My former team - the Augustine girls won another York region title this week. My other former team, the Markham boys are struggling. I went and watched their practice last night and was reminded at just how much the team has changed. Everyone's gone except for Adam and two end of the bench guys from last year. I just hope Adam keeps working hard, and has a good year.

Tasha's been babbling a lot this week. Talking on and on. It's hilarious. She was laying on her playmate last week and hit the dangling ball with her hand. She giggled then kept hitting the ball for the next hour or so. It's so much fun seeing little things like that happen.

Tomorrow Is and Adam are coming up to finally see Tash and spend the weekend with us! I can't wait.

Oh, and there are NEW Tasha pics posted on her photo site.

Eddie Guerrero: 1967-2005

I first met Eddie Guerrero in 1998 in Buffalo at a WCW show. Unlike most wrestlers I ever met when I was still doing my wrestling show, I was actually really excited to meet Eddie. I had been a fan of his since his days in Mexico, and had followed his career closely. I was amazed by his charisma and work rate. When Eddie, Benoit, Saturn and Malenko decided to leave WCW and go to the then WWF, I was thrilled to help broker that deal for him. It was an honor to get four talented guys off the Titantic.

I was shocked into stunned silence on today when I learned that Eddie Guerreo died Sunday morning at a Marriot hotel in Minneapolis.

According to WWE.com "The cause of death is unknown at this time. An autopsy will be performed in Minneapolis on Monday, and Eddie's body will then be flown to Phoenix. Funeral arrangements are set for Wednesday in Scottsdale, Arizona."

More recent reports are suggesting that Eddie had an enlarged heart - caused by years of steroids and drug abuse. His problems with cocaine and pain killers has been well documented - but after going through re-hab and nearly dying in a car crash, Eddie cleaned himself up and had been sober for three years.

Unfortunately, he never stopped doing the juice. Just last month, Dan and I were discussing how Eddie's arms were looking bigger than ever. What a shame. His fellow wrestlers found him laying on the floor of the hotel bathroom, with a toothbrush still in his mouth. Hardly an ending suited for such a warrior.

Eddie is survived by his wife Vickie and daughters Shaul, 14, Sherilyn, 9, and Kaylie Marie, 3.

Vaya con el dios Eddie.

Leaf Nation just got a little bigger

The following is a TRUE story. None of the facts have been changed or altered in any way by the author.

For those of you who don't know - Sarah and her family (Joe and Dad) are Habs fan (booo!) while I (and my father) are Leaf fans... YAY. Last night I sat down with Sarah, Tasha and my folks to watch Leafs and Habs go at it once again. The entire first period featured the Toronto Maple Leafs trying desperately to kill of four penalties and struggle to keep the game scoreless. During Coach's Corner, Tasha was dressed in her Leafs gear. Minutes later, the Buds scored their first of the night! YAY. Shortly there after, they scored again. Tasha fell asleep for a while and Montreal managed to tie the game. When she woke up she started crying (obviously having realized the Leafs were no longer leading). Before the end of 2, Toronto scored again and Tasha stopped crying.

Shortly after she fell asleep again the Habs tied the game and went ahead. Then, while holding my baby girl in her bedroom, Toronto won the game in OT!!

The moral of this story is Natasha is a not only a die-hard Leaf fan, but also a Leaf good luck charm. Despite Quinn and Belfour's best efforts to blow it, Tasha pulled out the win! Yay baby!

Oh, and for more pics of Tasha in Leaf gear, click here....

Proud Poppy

Happy Rememberance Day! We're having an assembly today at the school to mark the occassion. Guaranteed I will lose my poppy again this year. It's just a given. Why have the poppy-people not done away with the straight pin system in favor of something with a backing or a clasp?

What happened to the old poppies they used to hand out with a pretty green center? Now they all have black in the middle. I heard once that it was to make them look more realistic - but come on! It's made of felt!!

Anyway... to all the vets, thank you.

Weekend pictures

Well Tia Di went camera crazy again and snapped a few more. These shots were taken after Toni and Brian's wedding at my parents place, and when Sarah and I went to the reception and it took 60 people to babysit!!

I believe this was the first time Natasha had an outfit completely purchased by mom and dad. Her little hat, dress, shirt....... oh no..... sorry, grandparents bought those cute pink shoes. What can I say, she's got stuff coming in from ALL angles.


Since Shutterbook has been so buggy, I've moved Tasha's online gallery over to Shutterfly. The address is http://bigbrew.shutterfly.com This system appears to be much more user friendly, and stable.

I've put up six different albums so far so checking Tasha out online is easier than ever! :) Yay! More Tasha pics!

Atta' girl!

Look at my baby girl!! Holding her head up all big-girl like. I tell ya by next week she'll be running and by December she'll be going for her G licence.

Tasha has now abandoned the "size 2" diapers and moved on to size 3. Size 3?? Are you kidding me?? This kid is definately taking after daddy! Not to mention the fact that last night Sarah and I had her wearing a very cute outfit that was sized as being appropriate for a nine month old. Reality check: Tasha will be 11 weeks old on Thursday. 9 MONTHS?? It's not just that one outfit either. All her 0-3 months stuff has to be folded and boxed up. There are clothes that say 6 months that are tight on her.

Obviously breast feeding works. Not only has she been getting nice and chubb, but she's also getting taller. By March she'll be dunking.

I love you Tasha, my giant lil' girl!

Check your horoscope - Brew style!

Introducing a new feature here on my little blog. A montjly horoscope, cleverly called the Brew-scope. How uncreative is that? Sorry, best I could do. I'll endeavor to keep it updated on a monthly basis. There's a cute little logo on the side bar that you can click to read it anytime.

Click here for November's Brew-scope.

Ultimate finale!

Anyone who knows me, knows that I've been a wrestling fan since the age of 7. What they may not realize is that over the last 9 years I've actually become a huge fan of MMA - Mixed Martial Arts fighting. The UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship) has actually done a lot of good for the world of MMA: taking it from being known as nothing more than underground bloodsport - to mainstram TV.

The reality show "Ultimate Fighter" pits amateur MMA fighters who wish to be trained against each other. Like Big Brother or Survivor, they are put into teams, must face challenges - then have a fight each week. Winner stays, loser goes home. Season two just ended on the weekend with a huge marathon broadcast and the final episode dubbed "Ultimate Finale"

The show had four spectacular fights with really compelling storylines. Unlike the WWE experience, these storylines aren't contrived and soap opera like. They are real life issues, settled in an eight sided steel cage! YESSS! THAT'S entertainment!

They have a big pay per view coming up Saturday November 19th. I SUGGEST checking it out! For more information - go to UFC.tv

Busy weekend

On Friday night, Sarah and I took Natasha out to Anna and Roulof's place for a little Friday night drink and barbeque. It was actually a lot of fun. I got the chance to meet some of Sarah's friends from work as well as their significant others. It's kind of funny hearing a group of teachers from a different school talk about what they are happy / unhappy about. Gives me a different perspective on my own working situation and how fortunate I actually am.

On Saturday we went to a wedding. Sarah's cousin Toni and her new husband Brian had a lovely service and a very nice reception. Everyone was quite taken with Tasha at the church in her little dress and hat (pictures on the way). We took Tasha to my parents house after the wedding, thinking that the reception might just be a little too much for her. So we armed the grandparents with three bottles of milk, the Baby Papasan chair, a diaper bag, and my old crib (which Dad assembled for Tasha).

On Sunday I had a meeting with my group from Trent on good old Doctor Faustus. I can't lie. I actually ENJOYED this play. I'd recommend it to anyone.

Sunday night after what felt like HOURS of grocery shopping, I came home to Khira and Andre. They were dropped off and spending the night with us before flying back to Boston on Monday. It was nice. We just hung out, had some dinner, watched School Of Rock with Jack Black and sent them on their merry way to bed.

Overall, not a bad weekend at all.

Now I just have to find some time for my report cards!!!