SCRAPS!

September is on the verge of ending. It’s been bittersweet to see one month fade into the next, even if it’s going to be October. I have attempted to get into the spirit of Halloween by watching some old reliables. In this case, I revisited It: Chapter Two for the first time since theaters. What’s interesting is that I’ll always admit that it’s a flawed little beast, but there is something about its ambitions that I can’t fully shake. A large part of it is because the 2017 original was one of the most successful Stephen King adaptations in my lifetime. I want to embrace the self-indulgence to get to the bigger point. I still hope that Andy Muschietti goes through with his plan to edit into a book-appropriate version of the larger narrative. Which is all to say that It: Chapter Two isn’t a great movie, but I think it’s a perfect soft-launch of my next month. I need to get back in the habit of watching horror movies. Maybe this will be the year I watch the Terrifier series, or even dis...

For Sparks fans, the past 72 hours have been especially frantic. By the slimmest of margins, the Los Angeles team managed to miss out on their first playoff appearance in several seasons. It may not seem like a major feat, but given that I was there when Liz Cambage and Chennedy Carter were the bright spots on the roster (to save space, I’ll just say + “controversy” on Google will fill in some gaps) as well as at least three coaches and the trading of star player Nneka Ogwumike to The Storm, you could understand why I suddenly became that person at the racetrack watching the horses run, shaking irrationally with a crushed betting slip in my hand, hoping that *somebody* would go down in the closing stretch. Alas, to have that be The Storm winning against the new kids of California, The Valkyries, by a single point difference is such a heartbreaking way to go… and on a night where The Sparks WON.  There is a hypothetical where one more victory early in the season would’ve given that ...

Apologies to those who have been missing this column. I had envisioned it as a quick weekly check-in, so it’s been odd to be silent for so long. To be completely honest, a small reason is that things just haven’t been eventful. While I’ve done plenty in my personal life to stay busy, I wouldn’t say much of it was worth putting down on paper. That, and I think my efforts on The Memory Tourist to cram everything into my How I Live Now column, means that I often forgo any effort for due diligence here. Which is all to say that the past seven days have been a lot more memorable than those previous. I will have an upcoming column about my time seeing The Sparks play The Aces. I also have now been to TWO CSULB women’s volleyball games, and they each presented a mixed bag of results. I am so happy to have the team back, but pre-season games feel weird because they often have uneven playing fields. Was anyone expecting them to beat Oregon? Probably not. Let’s just say it was a rough night. But...