After taking care of some home chores yesterday (18 November), I picked up Julie that afternoon to CITYPARK. St. Louis CITY SC was holding a Holiday event for its season ticket holders, "Cheers to CITY."
After parking by Schlafly Tap Room, Julie and I walked to the southeast gate of CITYPARK. During the walk, we met my neighbors Paul Trelford, his wife Laura, and their daughter Lily. They were also attending this event. I introduced the Trelfords to Julie.
Inside CITYPARK, Julie and I navigated among the large crowd in the concourses. The souvenir stand was open and doing great business. Several Christmas Trees were displayed, decorated by club sponsors and attendees could vote for their favorite tree. Christmas music was played over the public address system.
Julie and I stood in line to get our picture taken on a sleigh parked on the edge of the pitch. It was about a 45-minute wait before we were able to get in the sleigh for the picture. The photographer took a shot of us in one take. It came out great.
After a bit more browsing, Julie and I left CITYPARK to get back to our car. The Trelfords met us as we crossed the street. (Their car was parked behind mine.) After saying our goodbyes, I began to drive Julie home.
Right after dropping Julie off, I headed to Alamo Drafthouse Cinema, located at City Foundry in Midtown St. Louis. I arrived early that night for my first volunteer assignment at this year's St. Louis International Film Festival (SLIFF). (I was supposed to have gotten there in late afternoon, but the Cheers to CITY event and going to Julie's apartment and back pushed back the timetable.) After reporting to the venue captain, I prepared for my role.
I was assigned to a theater where the narrative feature The Shade was being screened. I scanned the attendees' tickets and gave them ballots for rating the film. I also provided demographic surveys for those who had not done so yet at this year's festival. After making sure everyone with a ticket had shown up, I was able to enter the theater to watch the movie. This drama told of a young man dealing with the death of his father and serious mental health issues. It was quite harrowing at times, but very well made by a first-time narrative director. Thus, it was up for SLIFF's New Filmmakers Forum Emerging Director Award.
After the movie and a brief question and answer session with the film's director, Tyler Chipman, I collected fan ballots and demographic surveys filled out by the audience. I brought these items to the venue captain's table, where I helped count the ballots and made sure the tablets used for scanning tickets were delivered to the Alamo Drafthouse's manager for safe keeping. It was my first time both at this venue and at City Foundry, and I really liked what I saw.
Midday today, I was at Brown Hall on the Washington University campus for my other SLIFF volunteer assignment. I welcomed audience members attending the screening of the documentary feature "A Mother, Youngsoon," a South Korean film about a woman who defected from North Korea with her younger son and how the two were trying to make a new life in South Korea. It was quite a fascinating film.
After my shift ended, I drove away from Washington University to get a late lunch. I ended up getting it--a smashburger and fries--at The Post Sports Bar & Grill in Maplewood. Most patrons there were watching NFL games on several TVs in the restaurant. I barely paid attention to the action.
I enjoyed my lunch and then went to a Dairy Queen in Webster Groves to get a Blizzard concrete for dessert. After stopping in a shopping mall parking lot to enjoy my Blizzard, it was time to go home.
Later.
Links to Websites of Entities Mentioned in this Post:
CITYPARK: CITYPARK | St. Louis CITY SC (stlcitysc.com)
St. Louis CITY SC: St. Louis CITY SC (stlcitysc.com)
Alamo Drafthouse Cinema: St. Louis | Alamo Drafthouse Cinema
St. Louis International Film Festival: 32nd Annual SLIFF | Cinema St Louis
City Foundry: Home (cityfoundrystl.com)
Washington University: Washington University in St. Louis (wustl.edu)
The Post Sports Bar & Grill: Restaurant Bar & Grill in Maplewood and Creve Coeur - The Post (thepostsportsbar.com)
Dairy Queen: Dairy Queen®: Burgers, Blizzard® Treats & More. Happy Tastes Good®
