(1) Is anyone else enjoying this season of Archer as much as I am? I about fell off the couch in hysterics when Pam revealed that Lord Byron poem tattoo on her back last night.
(2) I haven't been to the Preakness since '08, when some of the drunken hordes took to lobbing full cans of beer in the air. (One of them clipped BHE in the arm - he still has a scar.)
The city has tried to temper the frat-like scene on the field over the years, but drinking has yet to be banned altogether. In fact, this year's race mascot is the Kegasus. That's not a typo.
(3) BHE and I played hooky yesterday and spent the afternoon at the zoo.
There were a surprising number of animals out given the cold weather. The highlight of the trip had to be number of baby critters running around the place.
The pandas had a cub a while back...
The gorillas had a baby last fall...
The lions recently had a litter of cubs...
(I meant to post video of the frolicking cubs, but can't find my phone cable to upload the cuteness.) Even the cuttle fish had kids. It was an overload of adorable!
Happy post Valentine's, everybody! I hope you had a chance to spend a moment or three with your loved one/partner/BFF/pet goldfish, enjoying each other's company. Or, if you were me and BHE, trying not to vomit during the less-than-steady landing of your Delta flight into BWI.
Today I'm back in the office, slooooooowly trying to recover from a weekend of shenanigans in none other than that beacon of all things decadent: Las Vegas. Home to numerous stage acts, all you can eat buffets, and the occasional C-List MTV reality star.
Keep it classy, Vegas!
During V-day weekend, Las Vegas also hosts the US leg of the International Rugby Sevens. This would be my 5th time at the sevens (my 4th here in the US) and this most recent trip did not disappoint. Well, except for that part where NZ lost to Fiji in the semi-finals, but otherwise it was all good. Sevens Rugby is joining the Olympic lineup in 2016, so this as good a chance as any to see what the fuss is all about. Plus, this is pretty much the only sporting event I've been to where venues encourage interaction between players and fans. Without going into detail about the number of rugby parties attended, let me just say that the English 7s team is an exceptionally
tall bunch.
Seriously, put it on your to-do list for 2012.
Anywho, because most of my time was spent either watching the games, sitting in front of a penny slot, or at a 7s-sponsored party watching girls trying to hit on rugby players, I didn't have a chance to take in much of Vegas' culinary offerings. I did manage to sneak into the Vosges shop at Caesar's Palace.
BHE and his 7s weekend mustache with the Vosges Bacon Caramel Toffee.
Alas, the bacon toffee was bit out of my price range, so I settled for the Balsamico (12-year aged balsamic vinegar mixed with dark chocolate and Sicilian hazelnuts) and Red Fire (Mexican ancho and chipotle chillies with cinnamon and dark chocolate) truffles instead.
We also (finally!) made a side trip for BHE's and my first ever In-N-Out burger! It's no Five Guys, but the burgers held their own. The fries...not so much. My buddy Erin said it best:
"They taste like those potato sticks that come in a can."
Best money I spent that weekend, excluding tickets to see the Lion King (Go. NOW.) and of course my favorite penny slot at the Mandalay Bay:
There's a wild card feature that includes an animated Bruce Lee performing a high side kick. PHENOMENAL!
******************And now, your non-recipe...
Unless you count opening your straw and doing that little knot trick with the wrapper, I was off cooking detail this week. I did, however, come across a new podcast that I think you'll enjoy:
On a side note, I'm making a more serious effort to study French and need a practice buddy with an Internet connection and a good bit of patience. If you know of anybody (or happen to be that somebody), just shoot me an email. I'll cook!
But we did get ice! And let me tell you something about ice: It blends it really, really well with concrete steps. And it just lays there, waiting for you (bonus points if you're wearing heels and it can hear you approach).
Needless to say, I busted my butt (and hip and shoulder and elbow and a little bit of my ankle) on our front porch and have spent most of the day trying not to lean on my arm. Moral of the story: Don't listen to your other half when s/he insists that it looks fine outside; go ahead and salt the crap out of your drive and walkway.
Anywho, I read a post on one of my fav NPR blogs that cheered me up immensely. So now I must share. And also make plans for a drink later with equally bruised friends.
There are a number of As Seen On TV products that make great sandwiches: the George Foreman Grill, say, or The Thighmaster Thigh-Powered Panini Squeezer. But only one was recently re-gifted to one of our staffers: The Micro S'mores Microwave S'more Making Kit. It's a little plastic box you use to make non-messy s'mores in your microwave.
Intern Nic: It takes just ten seconds. That's much faster than a campfire.
Mike: Yeah, I guess we'll need really fast ghost stories.
Ian: Once there was a woman, and she was calling from INSIDE THE HOUSE. The end.
[The verdict: We doubted the contraption was actually doing anything, so we tried making one without it, and it came out crooked and the marshmallow didn't melt as well. Would we buy this? Of course not. Are s'mores delicious? Of course they are.
One snow storm later and I'm still here. (Thankfully.) With a decidedly poor showing of snow in the Baltimore region, I've decided that this winter can't hold a candle to the Snowmageddon of 2010 (*knock on wood*). While I don't look forward to digging out my car/having BHE dig out my car in the mornings, I miss the occasional snow day. It's rare that I get to sleep in, clean house, and bake at random leisurely intervals during the day. Plus, I'm no longer in school, so it's not like I have to make up the class time during the summer.
So imagine my delight when the local meteorologist predicted a 5 - 10 inch snowfall over the course of a few hours. Granted, he skipped over the part where jagged chips of sleet the size and sharpness of thumb tacks would precede the event. Had I known, I might have taken up my boss's offer of a ride home, rather than taking the shuttle and then walking a mile while nature took it's anger out on my face. That shizz hurts!
Snow bully sleet. Not fun.
Anywho, BHE managed to pull into the driveway just as the snow began to fall in earnest and then turned on the tv and hunkered down for the night.
That is, we tried to turn on the tv. We have a satellite dish, which does not hold up well against the elements. So instead of watching normal prime time programming, we surfed the Hi-def channels our tv could pick up. The number of stations was pretty limited, but we did come across something called "Cool TV," which plays music videos and concert clips. Think MTV back when the "M" actually stood for something. That said, I think Cool TV plays a little fast an d loose with its definition of cool. When we first happened on the station, it was playing footage from a Journey concert-- the bassist was a big black dude with a mullet who was wearing tight black leather pants and playing a pink and white polka dotted guitar. The next time we flipped back to the station, we were greeted with this little gem:
Tears came to my eyes we were laughing so hard.
After picking ourselves off the floor, HBE and I bundled up and made our usual snow-storm trek to Fraisers, our fav dive bar in the city. It's not like we had to worry about making it to work the next day, afterall.
And now, your recipes...
The thundersnow (yes, there was thunder) got me thinking about one of my favorite snow time activities: keeping warm via booze. Not to sound like a complete alcoholic, but few things cheer me up on a snow day like a glass of something that warms you up from the inside out. Minus snowball fights and snow angels of course.
I got bored on the walk home from the bar. Apologies to my neighbor.
So imagine my delight when I came across the following during a recent visit to the wine and spirits shop:
WOOT!
Monteith's is brand of beer I used to enjoy when I lived in Wellington. And while I've seen Steinlager sold with growing frequency (usually during the USA Sevens Rugby Festival), this is the first time I've come across a beer that I actually drank while abroad. AND it's the Black brand! I heart the black brand! And it's just in time for the Investec Super Rugby campaign. Preseason games start tonight!! Which is actually tomorrow in NZ but whatevs! GO Canes! (And Highlanders - I love an underdog.)
Try it if you come across a bottle and send a thank you note accordingly. The games you'll have to catch online.
The other adult themed beverage I can rave about comes courtesy of one of my other favorite bars in the city. Bad Decisions is tucked away in the Fell's Point neighborhood. In addition to it's bacon-theme happy hour and prolific collection of in-house board games (seriously - have you ever been to a bar where you can play Axis and Allies should the mood strike?), the staff at BD can custom tailor a drink to fit your mood. I wanted something creamy and Ana (our lovely bartender) came up with this:
Serious yum.
I'm still not sure what the hell's in it, although I do know that the bottom dark half is made up of coffee-flavored tequilla. (Oh yeah.) The above-pictured beverage didn't have a name at the time of service, so I dubbed it the Businessman's Breakfast. I'm hoping it sticks.
I actually have scads of recipes to post. Turns out I should have added"be a more proficient blogger" to my list of New Years resolutions. Is it to late to call for a mulligan?
Newcastle coach Paul Moriarty has been cleared of cheating over an incident in which he appeared to have fabricated an injury to prop Tim Ryan.
In last month's match against Northampton, the Falcons withdrew Kieran Brookes after he took a blow to the ribs.
In a half-time interview, Moriarty seemed suggest this was a temporary replacement and that Brooks would return at some point in the second half after a rest to replace an injured player.
Ryan, who had missed training in the preceding week because of a back injury, was duly withdrawn six minutes into the second period to be replaced by Brookes.
RFU disciplinary officer Jeff Blackett said today: "An inference could be drawn from Moriarty's statement to the media that Newcastle had planned to give Brookes a break and then fabricate an injury to Ryan so that he could return to the game after a rest.
Were that to be the case it would have been cheating.
"However, I am satisfied that there was no intention to cheat.
"Ryan had been injured during the week and although passed fit to play it was clear at half-time that he would not last the rest of the match.
"There is no requirement in the regulations for a medical examination of a player removed for injury, so it is impossible to gainsay Newcastle's evidence that Ryan was injured.
"It is also clear that when Brookes was replaced he understood that he would not return - this is supported by the evidence that he was given a post-match recovery drink and did not warm up with other unused replacements.
"Newcastle only decided that he might have to go back on when it became apparent that Ryan was injured and could not continue."
This past weekend Tony and I (and my sisters and brother-in-law) braved the traffic, the crowds, and the Red Line to take part in the Rally for Sanity on the national Mall. It was pretty epic: epically crowded, epically entertaining, and epically inspiring. There's not much to tell that hasn't been covered by most major media outlets, so instead I'm just posting a few of my favorite shots from the day.
p.s. Favorite overheard quote: "You've got something you want to say to me?? Well, why don't we discuss it over a cup of coffee!!!"
So I'm going to post about the "joys" of house hunting a little later on, but for now, some humor.
This first item came up on my Google Reader for NPR Research News.
Glad to see my fund drive dollars hard at work.
This second item turned up after a late night stop at B.O.P. in Fell's for a quick slice.
Yup, that would be 52 toppings for the low-low price of $179.00. The woman working the counter swore up and down that they sell a surprising number of those pies.
My friend Suzanne sent this to me earlier today. If you haven't been to the Stuff White People Like web site yet, I recommend it highly. It's all in good fun.
The kicker is that the photo they used for this post if from the Baltimore Marathon...f*ckers.
In life, there are certain milestones of physical activity that can define you. A sub 5 second 40 yard dash, a 40 inch vertical leap and so forth. To a white person, the absolute pinnacle of fitness is to run a marathon. Not to win, just to run.
White people will train for months, telling everyone who will listen about how they get up early in the morning, they run when it rains, how it makes them feels so great and gives them energy.
When they finish the marathon, they will generally take a photo of themselves in a pair of New Balance sneakers, running shorts, and their marathon number with both hands over their head in triumph (seriously, look it up, this is universal).
They will then set goals like running in the Boston Marathon or the New York Marathon.
If you find yourself in a situation where a white person is talking about a marathon, you must be impressed or you will lose favor with them immediately. Running for a certain length of time on a specific day is a very important thing to a white person and should not be demeaned.
Also worth nothing, more competitive white people prefer triathlons because Kenyans can’t afford $10,000 specialty bicycles. If the subject ever comes up, just say that triathletes are in better shape than football and basketball players. It’s not true, but it will make the conversation a lot more genial.
I'm not sure why, but this news piece made me laugh. A lot. I think it was a good break from the general tone of the rest of the news of the day...
Owners keep burglar locked in car
Published: March. 9, 2010 at 3:41 PM
LAKE CITY, Fla., March 9 (UPI) -- Authorities in Florida said residents who saw a man attempting to steal their car used the vehicle's remote-controlled locking mechanism to prevent his escape.
The Columbia County Sheriff's Office said the Lake City residents were alerted to a man trying to break into their car by a neighbor at about 5:40 a.m. Friday and they used the remote control on their keychain to keep the alleged attempted thief from exiting the car, The Gainesville Sun reported Tuesday.
"So every time he tried to get out of the car, the owners just kept hitting the lock button on their key fob, and eventually he gave up trying to get out," sheriff's spokesman Sgt. Ed Seifert said.
Travis James Neeley, 19, was arrested and charged with burglary of a vehicle, possession of burglary tools, criminal mischief and trespassing.
Investigators said another man, Peter Anthony Scandizzo, 25, was seen driving by the scene of the incident and is believed to have been involved in the burglary plot. He abandoned his car after a short chase and was arrested at about 8:30 a.m. in a Lake City home believed to belong to his mother.
Scandizzo was charged with fleeing and eluding, possession of marijuana, possession of burglary tools, loitering and prowling, conspiracy to commit burglary and resisting arrest.
A shout-out to one of my favorite 
