Sunday shorts...in reverse

Remember the 2000 movie "Memento," where director Christopher Nolan told the story backwards? Then you'll understand the chronology of this entry.

Sunday matinee: Lori and I went to the Laurelhurst Theater, one of those neighborhood indie places that shows second-run movies on the cheap and serves food, beer and wine you can take to your seat. Saw "Moneyball" with Brad Pitt and Jonah Hill and absolutely loved it. Best performance of Pitt's career as a former major league league ballplayer who's become a driven and resourceful general manager, using unconventional computer-assisted analysis, in a small market trying to compete with richer franchises like the Yankees and Red Sox. Very cool to see real and simulated game action at the Oakland Coliseum, where I attended so many games as an A's fan, including the 1989 World Series that was interrupted by the Loma Prieta earthquake. For just $10 total -- two admission tickets and a large bag of popcorn -- we got our money's worth and then some.

Nathan and girlfriend Sara, Xmas 2011

Sunday brunch: After a morning swim, I met Nathan around 10 a.m. at ¿Por Que No? on Southeast Hawthorne for a father-son brunch at one of the city's best taquerias. Or so we thought. Restaurant doesn't open till 11, so we tried Screen Door, possibly the most popular brunch in Portland, and decided a 45-minute wait was more than we were willing to indulge. Wound up at City-State Diner on Northeast 28th Avenue, coincidentally just a couple blocks from the aforementioned Laurelhurst Theater. I always enjoy one-on-one time with each of my kids. Hadn't had the opportunity to do so with Nathan since before Thanksgiving.

Marjon Rostami

Saturday: Took a break during my regularly scheduled work day to meet a former summer intern for lunch at Nel Centro, a stone's throw from The Oregonian. Marjon Rostami was a reporter for us in the summer of 2007 in our Washington County bureau. She was always a favorite of mine because, as the newspaper's internship coordinator back then, I always looked for students who had demonstrated their drive and adaptability by doing a previous internship in tough circumstances or out-of-the-way places. Bingo! As a young Iranian-American woman who grew up in Dallas and attended the ginormous University of Texas at Austin, I could only try to imagine what it was like for her working in San Angelo, a conservative town in west central Texas, in summer 2006. Marjon is now a city hall reporter at the well-respected Virginian-Pilot in Norfolk, Va., and retains all the charm and ambition that characterized her short time here in Oregon. Hope it won't be long before she pays another visit to Portland.

Chalupas all around

Friday: Guys'  night out began with dinner at Pastini Pastaria, an Italian bistro in our neighborhood. Four poker buddies and I went from there to the Rose Garden to see the Trail Blazers take on the Phoenix Suns, the same team that embarrassed them on national television three weeks earlier. This time, it was the Blazers who laid it on, avenging a 25-point loss in Phoenix with a dominating 109-71 victory that earned every fan a coupon for a free chalupa. (Taco Bell sponsors the giveaway every time the Blazers score 100 or more points.) We had seats in the nosebleed section -- the very top row of the arena -- but it didn't detract at all from the multisensory experience of an NBA game. Was totally fun hanging out with Dave, Brian, Tom and Bob. And in case you wonder if grown men ever lose touch with their junior high selves, well, here's what you would have heard if you were in the car, right after dinner, as we headed to the game:

"Are we there yet?"
"I gotta pee."
"Pee? I gotta fart."

Moneyball image: IMDb.com