…Geoffrie, A Work In Progress

I am man enough to admit it, I originally tracked down Wil’s blog simply because he was somebody I remembered from the days when I used to watch Star Trek all the time. Unlike many, I actually liked his work as an actor, and really enjoyed his character portrayal in the show.

Now, after spending months reading his blog and his other work, I find that I have a hard time remembering that child actor. Instead I have in my mind a picture of a man who is close to my age, who is a father, and who is a very talented writer.  Wil strikes a chord in me on many levels, whether it be music, general geekiness, or now as a father. My children are just barely a year old now, but after reading his latest column in the LA Weekly I find a renewed desire to celebrate each day of my children’s lives for fear that I may miss something important simply because I was distracted by earning a living so that I could put food on the table.

Follow this link and see what I mean: http://blogs.laweekly.com/ladaily/wil-wheaton/los-angeles-winter-on-mute-end/

Last night we got done with our Costco shopping and were feeling a touch peckish. We weren’t really interested in getting anything to eat at Costco, and were trying to figure out where to go for dinner. Pizza came up during the conversation, and we remembered that a new pizza place had opened up over by Coyotes Bar & Grill over on Baseline, and we had been wanting to go check it out.

Not quite sure what to expect, I ran in and got a take-out menu and came back to the car with it. I figured it was easier to do that and review it without taking the kids out and having to put them back in if we decided we didn’t want to eat dinner there.

After consulting the menu we figured that we would give it a try, and I will never regret making that decision. They only had one high chair, but one of the owners offered to run down to Coyotes to borrow one of theirs so that we would have one for each of the kids. Bang! Right off the bat, before we had even ordered, we were getting astounding service. That set the tone for the evening. They had a room in back with some games and a movie playing on the tv. As it had only one entrance it seemed a great place to be able to let the kids run a bit and still keep them cornered without having to really run around much ourselves.

As I entered the room I noticed that a gentleman was just finishing up his dinner, and I announced that we were invading with the twins. Not the best introduction that I have ever made, but this gentleman quipped that he knew what it was like as he was the father of two sets of twins himself! Two sets!!! Yikes! We later learned that this was the other owner, his wife having been the one to go get the other high chair for us.

The service was fantastic. Right off the bat they offered to change the movie, and put on a Disney flick for the kids. Their granddaughter served us our drinks, and was just enamored with the twins, constantly checking back in on us to see how we were doing. As the food came in we learned that they had split the kids food into two bowls (something we had forgotten to ask for) and had let it cool before bringing it in, so that we were able to give it to the kids right away.

So, about the food. The cheesy bread sticks…to die for. I can honestly say that I have NEVER had better. Then the pizza came. OMG!!!! It was terrific! Just enough sauce to give it good flavor and to help bond the toppings, but no so much that it felt like it was swimming in sauce. The toppings…nice thick slices of Canadian Bacon. Yes, I said thick slices for something that is never sliced thick. Sarah actually ate the crust, and she never eats pizza crust. Sarah also ordered a salad and tried the house dressing. Now to set some expectations here, our prior experiences with house dressings have always been bad, but this time around…Sarah was in paradise!

Then there was the service. Did I mention that it was fantastic! Great food, fantastic service, gourmet quality and style pizza without the gourmet prices. It wasn’t the cheapest place in town, probably on par with Round Table, but the pizza blew away Belagios and Pizza Schmizza. Made their dishes seem like Godfathers Pizza in comparison…

So, will we be going back? Oh yeah! The place even does birthday parties and family night! Family owned and operated, quality customer service, fantastic food, even decent changing facilities in the women’s bathroom. So, if you feel like taking the family out for a nice pizza meal and getting top notch food and fantastic service, I heartily recommend La Bella Vita Pizzeria. You can find them on their web site where they have their menu available for perusing, and even the number so that you can call in an order.

Well, once more I have let far too much time go by between postings. Such is life I suppose, and life is what seems to always get in the way of my posting updates. So, without further ado, it is time to get to the updates.

 First up, for those following the continuing saga of my employment issues, I am still employed. The temporary work assignment that was to carry me through to the middle of January has been extended, and now I am looking at early April as my new final date. Of course that is all presuming that things don’t change here at work, and the stage is set for some really nice changes. Back in October I was brought over to a fledgling unit that was created to address problems stemming from the economic environment that we are now dealing with. (more…)