Discover More from This Category: Movie Diary
And now, the end is near
December 30, 2020
By Dom Cioffi I take great joy in decorating my house for the holidays. It’s a lot of work, but it’s all worth it when the lights are on, the tree is up, and the house is filled with Yuletide imagery. I decorate early (usually the day after Thanksgiving) so I can enjoy the atmosphere…
Seeing is believing
December 23, 2020
By Dom Cioffi I took my son for his annual check-up at the optometrist earlier this week. Prior to the appointment, a woman from the doctor’s office contacted me and asked if I would fill out an online health questionnaire for my son so our waiting time in the lobby would be reduced. I had…
Affecting the outcome
December 16, 2020
By Dom Cioffi Most people can review their life and easily point to two or three individuals who were major influences on the person they became. Hopefully, one of those was a parent, but other likely candidates might include a coach, teacher, or other relative. I was one of those lucky kids who had both…
‘Play it again, Sam’
December 9, 2020
By Dom Cioffi I have a friend who has collected movies for years. He’s amassed a huge array of films on multiple formats that has literally commandeered an entire room of his house. I’m an obvious movie-lover but I’ve never felt the need to collect physical copies. In fact, I’ve never been much of a…
Hello, old friend
December 2, 2020
By Dom Cioffi It was an inexpensive, under-sized, tobacco sunburst acoustic guitar whose brand name is now long lost to memory. In essence, it was an incredibly forgettable conglomeration of wood and wire… but it was the catalyst for a lifelong obsession. The guitar was a hand-me-down from my mother who took a stab at…
The price of fame, popularity and persona
November 25, 2020
By Dom Cioffi A few years ago, my son told me that one of the kids in our extended neighborhood was “internet famous.” When I asked what that meant, he told me that he had thousands of followers on his YouTube channel (which featured him building things and then blowing them up) and was making…
Getting the point across
November 18, 2020
By Dom Cioffi This is an actual group text I received a few days ago from a college friend: “Yo whoz goin 2 the re-union” I scanned those words two or three times, cringing progressively worse upon each reading. Forget the fact that zero punctuation was used or that the grammar was bastardized nearly beyond…
The heart of the matter
November 11, 2020
A little over 30 years ago, I lost my father to a massive heart attack. He was 55 years old, in good shape, and active – definitely not someone you’d expect to die so young. However, he was a smoker and as the coroner report attested, he had considerable plaque build-up in his arteries, which…
Batten down the hatches
November 4, 2020
By Dom Cioffi It’s Monday night as I’m writing this – the eve before one of the most contentious presidential elections in recent history. I voted two weeks ago by mail-in ballot and have spent most of the past 14 days avoiding media. I haven’t watched or read the news and I certainly haven’t engaged…
Different strokes for different folks
October 28, 2020
By Dom Cioffi Like most teenagers these days, my son has an affinity for the popular music that dominates the charts. Thankfully, while I am forced to listen to the occasionally track by Yung Gravy and Juice World, he also appreciates plenty of classic rock staples from bands like the Eagles, Aerosmith, and the Beatles.…
Working for the weekend
October 21, 2020
By Dom Cioffi My son started his first job about six weeks ago. He works at a local grocery store collecting carts from the parking lot, bagging groceries, and emptying trash barrels. He makes just under $10 an hour and couldn’t be happier. He generally works on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays so for the first…
Bending to the will
October 14, 2020
By Dom Cioffi I was flipping through the tv channels this weekend when I caught an image of Kim Jong-un, the maniacal dictator of North Korea. I settled on the station for a moment and watched as an American filmmaker interviewed a family from Pyongyang, the country’s capital. The family being interviewed was obviously on…
Dressing for success, what do you see?
October 7, 2020
By Dom Cioffi Several years ago, in February of 2015, a very plain and unassuming photo went viral around the internet. The photo was of a blue and black dress – or a gold and white dress, depending on who was looking at it. That was the curious thing. Two people could be standing side-by-side…
All that glitters isn’t gold
September 30, 2020
I often listen to podcasts when I run. I find that the conversations help me detach when things get difficult – like when I’m headed up a long hill or struggling through the last mile. I also know that running puts me in a state of mind where I’m able to be truly present as…
Socially unacceptable
September 16, 2020
By Dom Cioffi I joined Facebook early on – within a couple years of its launch. College kids were the early adopters, but after a year or two, savvy adults were starting to connect as well. I was cautiously curious when I first heard about Facebook. I’ve never been an early adopter of any media…