In a D.C. Examiner story about "We Are Marshall" today, Matthew Fox is quoted: "Your classic sports movie, a movie like 'Rudy,' I don't imagine women enjoy that movie that much. It's more of a guy's film."
Uh ... WHAT!?
You imagined wrong. Don't finish the surgery, Jack. He's not going to let you go.
So, I go to Bed, Bath and Beyond on my lunch hour.
New rule for myself: Don't go shopping when I have a time crunch because it will make me all that much more annoyed. Check.
I get to the cashier, she can't get my debit card to work and has to call someone over. Finally, it works, but now the pen they have there won't write for me to sign. I tell the woman the pen doesn't work ... three times before she pays attention to me. She says, "OK, I'll get you another one," and grabs THE SAME PEN that I was just using. I say, "No, that is the one I just tried." She sighs, annoyed, and walks off to find another pen. That one doesn't work either. Turns out that ink pens don't seem to like the stainless steel countertop that is installed. Smart move on that decor choice.
At this point, I have been there about 15 minutes longer than I needed to be ... then she can't find my copy of the receipt. She asks the cashier next to her about it, and that woman says, "Yeah, you gave me a receipt I didn't need, and I couldn't figure out why." They fish it out of the trash. I ask about my gift receipt. She says, "Bed, Bath and Beyond does not DO gift receipts." I say, "Seriously? How is that?" because I could swear I have gotten them before. Then I realized that the last several purchases I have made there have been something off a wedding registry, and I didn't need one, so maybe they don't. But, for real ... what kind of store doesn't give gift receipts now? Ugh.
So after work, I go to Macy's. I take my things to the cash register, and the woman rings them up ... slowly, folds them slowly, finds mismatching boxes ... slowly. I just want to go home.
She hands me my receipt, but again, no gift receipt. I say, "Don't you have a gift receipt?" She replies, "Did you tell me at the beginning of the transaction that you needed one?" I'm thinking ... it's Christmas, I'm obviously not buying men's stuff for myself and you gave me gift boxes! But I just say, "Well, no." She says, "Well, you have to tell me ahead of time that you're going to need that. I can't give you one now without doing the whole thing over again." At this point I do say, "It's Christmas! Obviously these are gifts ... I guess you'll have to do it over. I didn't know I had to specify." Then she mutters under her breath, "Yeah, I guess I am supposed to be asking people if they need a gift receipt when I start." Uh, yeah ... I thought so.
Sheesh! Happy holidays everyone ...
I thought about blogging a bit about my new favorite show, "The Class," last night, but then was too tired to think of a good enough hook ... and I couldn't find the clip that I actually wanted to show. Today, however, it gets in because CBS has given me two blogworthy topics.
1) We'll lead off with "The Class" since I already mentioned it. I started watching this show because it was on before my new favorite sitcom from last year, "How I Met Your Mother." I was slightly embarrassed to say that I actually watched it, but continued because I figured it would get cancelled fast. Luckily, it hasn't because now, I think it has made me laugh out loud as much as "The Office" and on a more consistent basis. (A couple of this season's "Office" eps have been slightly lacking ... thank God they've gotten Jim back in the
2) Even though I never really got into the whole "Cops" genre and probably wouldn't have given this show a thought to watch, next year's "Armed & Famous" reality show will now get scheduled on my Tivo because I found out today the celebrity cops have been sworn into the
Basic premise: "Celebrity" cops Erik Estrada, Trish Stratus, Wee Man, La Toya Jackson and Jack Osbourne become reserve Muncie police officers, ride with training officers and arrestees are offered a few hundred dollars or an "I got arrested by a celebrity and all I got is this lousy T-shirt," tee in order to put them on the reality show.
Sorry to all the suckers who take the T-shirt.
Ahhh,
Well, my two-week vacation is over. There were many discoveries:
1. While the entire St. Louis area seems to be under some major construction, the city still has not come to the realization that Lambert-St. Louis International Airport is in desperate need of a facelift. It's the first thing many travelers see, people.
2. Don't let your friend put you up at a Catholic hotel if you want to: A) Talk to friends at conversational voice levels after 10:30 p.m.; B) Have your TV volume loud enough to hear while laying on the bed after 10:30 p.m.; C) Get busy without a crucifix on the wall over your bed.
3. A free-flowing fountain of alcohol is a nice addition to the table at a wedding reception.
4. Springfield has crumbled since I left. Wendy's have shut their doors, Brio started charging for salsa and chips, and of course, La Mex has died. The Saputo's baked rigatoni was still quite lovely, however.
5. Despite Nick and Abby's insistence, Little Saigon is not an acceptable replacement for Magic Kitchen. While I appreciate their loyalty and reasons for not eating at MK anymore, still no one has better crab rangoon or fried rice. I can't comment on the eggrolls, but I can't imagine ever finding those better anywhere else either.
6. "Click" is a horrible movie.
7. Really good friends plan major life events around my presence. Thanks, Kels. :)
8. Driving being required to get everywhere you need to go sucks.
9. Shel, Jen and I need to control our mixed drink consumption the two or so times a year we get to hang out together.
10. I lose things. Lost for a few days, but recovered: a watch, a bracelet and a black sweater; Gone for good: black, long-armed gloves that my mom commented looked like strippers' gloves. Hmm.
11. Everyone I know is quite eager to light food and drink aflame.
12. I was irritated about people on the East Coast trying to be healthier when I couldn't find lard here to cook with, but I changed my mind upon realizing that the level of smoke pollution in D.C.-area bars is NOTHING compared to those in Indiana. I was not prepared.
13. Even with the breakfast burrito on the menu at Indy Qdobas, Chipotle is still better.
14. My stomach no longer appreciates drinking five of seven days a week.
15. Driving sucks.
16. It does, in fact, feel like it's been almost 10 years since I graduated high school.
17. Jen's parents still have great couches at their house.
18. Despite his claims, Bruce Barker is no longer "The Piano Man." He should be called "The Playing the Guitar Too Close to the Microphone and Not Very Well Man." Also, the piano bar at the Neon Cactus was apparently only made fun by pounding seven or so beers in a very short time period prior to arriving.
19. Having two weeks off work to frolic about does not mean you will come back relaxed and refreshed. I could still use a few days at the beach. Oh yeah, it wasn't that kind of vacation.
There you have it, my last two weeks sort of summed up. To everyone I saw, it was a great time ... to all the "BB" fans, sorry that I dropped the ball. :(
Until next time ...
In a long ago blog, I wrote that my number one missed thing about Springfield was the weekly trips to La Mex with Nick. Sad that today, with only four days, 21 hours left on my "Days until lunch at La Mex" countdown, I had to remove it because it was verified that the restaurant is no more. :(
Apparently the business was sold two weeks ago (thank you to Nick for enduring an unacceptable meal at the replacement restaurant to find this out) ... right around the same time I was eating an unacceptable burrito in New York and thinking how I would at least be at La Mex in two and a half weeks. How's that for irony??
So, what will I miss? Here are just a few of the memories:
1. Lupe. He was the server extraordinaire. Yeah, we went every week, and yeah, we got the same thing every time, so maybe we made it easy ... but Lupe was the only one that could serve it up for us before we even had to ask. They let us pick the booth, and out Lupe came with the two Diet Cokes, two red salsas and one green salsa at the same moment. It was glorious. Others tried valiantly, but only Lupe succeeded perfectly.
2. Ernie. He might have made too loud, sort of weird comments to his tables, he might have butted into our "Dream Job" conversations a few too many times, he might have been a Cardinals fan ... but no matter what, he was a damn fine server and made each meal a treat wondering what he might do or say next.
3. Nick's birthday circa 2004. The fun we had is documented in his picture section, but what can't be seen is that we're sure the other side of that sombrero had a Spanish cuss word painted on it. Why I didn't have the forethought to take a picture of THAT side of the hat, I will never know. We tried to verify the next year, but the sombrero was all new. (No, we weren't drinking at the meal in '04 ... please, it was our lunch hour.)
4. The salsa. The red by itself may have been a little too bland, but add some of the green to it, and you had a wonderfully delicious salsa with a good hint of spiciness every time. Oh, and they always gave each person at the table their own bowl. That's key.
5. The chicken monterrey burrito. It was delicious. It had chicken, beans (though I enjoyed mine without), sour cream, lettuce, tomatoes and cheese all on the inside. It was grilled on the outside for that perfectly browned, crisp tortilla texture. There was no need for it to be covered in unnecessary sauce because it was already so damn tasty. Yum.
6. The music. Where else will you hear a Spanish version of the 4 Non Blondes' "What's Up" so soon after hearing about and arguing over Nick's utter disdain for the English version?
7. The last outing. That is when Richard discovered the … interesting wall decor (below right). Yes, that is exactly what it looks like. Not sure how Nick and I missed it those 60 plus other times we ate there.
So, there you have it. I conclude with a heavy heart, but thanks to RobG for confirming that the Joliet location is so far, still in business. I'm sorry to inform whoever might be involved with my next Chicago trip that we will be forced to venture out of the city to Joliet for a monterrey burrito. Trust me, I don't want to go to Joliet either, but I also never wanted to have to go to Decatur for Texas Roadhouse because Springfield didn't have one ... you just do what you have to do.
OK ... so, I spent three hours this evening to get the grand re-opening deal at The Limited in Tysons Corner. What was a deal that is so enticing to make you waste that much time at The Limited you might wonder? Only that you could get 50% off an outfit of your choice. Yes, it was ridiculous, and I thought just how ridiculous it was every minute waiting in the line ...er, correction, lines.
Yeah, when I got to the store, there was a line to wait in that extended out of the store and down the hallway of the mall past three other stores. That one took about 50 minutes to get through and into the store (luckily I had three people to talk to on the phone during this ... even though I usually don't even like talking on the phone). At that point, the store was crammed with people, stuff strewn about everywhere and no place to move. Incredibly annoying. Especially since I don't like to work that hard to shop for anything.
The only reason I stayed in the line, or considered putting myself through the event in the first place, was that I knew that I was going to buy a pair of jeans there at some point ... I just hadn't gotten around to it yet, and with this deal I could get the pants and a shirt for basically the same price I was going to pay for just the pants. Yes, I put myself through hell to get a good bargain on something.
So, I finally struggled through to find the jeans, found a sweater and got in the line to pay. This line was endured for an hour and 20 minutes. Wow ... as I type this, I'm thinking it was even MORE ridiculous. I was growing more angry to stand in that line when it wouldn't move AT ALL for 10 minutes at a time, but when you have taken the time to drive in traffic out of D.C. to Tysons, waited in the line to get into the store, etc., etc. ... I mean, there's a certain point where you've expended so much time on something, you CAN'T back down and leave with nothing, right? And they were walking around with tasty hors d'oeuvres, so that was a small bonus.
But in the end, I was able to get a pair of jeans, a sweater and some new earrings for essentially the same cost as what the jeans would have been by themselves, so I guess that made up for it? Ugh ... I don't know at this point. Oh, and they did "throw in" a free necklace and brown canvas Limited bag that I'm sure I'll never use. Great. What I do know is that I better LOVE this pair of jeans more than any other pair of jeans I have ever owned. That is FOR SURE.
P.S. - The first most ridiculous line waiting experience (for anyone who has suffered through this longer than it should be blog) was when I stood in line for 2.5 hours in a church parking lot at 7 a.m. on a Saturday for a flu shot a couple of years ago. Yes, this time at least I have something I can enjoy.
Sometimes when I'm in the middle of updating a glamorous E. coli chronology such as this ...
... I wonder if the people creating weird graphics like these, courtesy of Japan Tobacco Inc., are having more fun:
OK, OK … I know that I wrote a blog about a month and a half ago where I bashed the skinny jeans. I know that now I sound a bit like a hypocrite (which I can't stand) because I have indeed sort of fallen back into the '80s trend zone, BUT can I just say that I was able to pick up this pair for only $13, they fit pretty good, and I really ONLY bought them to be able to pair them with boots for the winter. You see, a skinny-legged capri style will be able to fit nicely into my knee-high boots without horridly uncomfortable bunching, making me horribly hot all day, making my calves look like tree stumps, or making my jeans poof out at the knee like a parachute. I mean, you CAN'T tuck flared leg pants into boots … it just doesn't work!
Yes, so I only allowed myself to buy them for boots, but then this morning as I look at the bag with new clothes just waiting to get out, I decided it couldn't hurt just to give them a try while it is still warm enough to wear them as capris, right? And so the story ends … it hasn't been so bad.
Anyway, I'm admitting my indiscretion … which does a little to make up for it I hope. The ultimate problem is that having them is going to make me crazy to go out and drop a few hundred dollars on updated, sexy boots to go with them because I'm already sick of the pairs that I have, and it hasn't even gotten to be time to wear them yet! :)
ADD: Per Chuck's request, a pic documenting my hypocrisy ... enjoy.
9.30.06 - 2:13 a.m.
I've been talking with some of my fellow "Big Brother" fans about this for a couple weeks and have a few ideas (thanks Natalie), but the more ideas the better right? Even my Gram has a few suggestions ... the funniest of which being that when we get ready to tape it, it would probably be good to have a beer beforehand. :) I'm thinking more like a beer or four hehe.
No rush ... I have to find someone to let me borrow their video camera, too. Actually, as long as they are still accepting applications at that point, probably the best time to film it would be when I'm back home in November. Who wants to help?? Fun times.
Whenever you come up with something, leave the idea for me, and I'll love you forever for helping me get on the show. I'll even give you a kick-back when I win the $500,000. ;)
The background:
A couple of weeks ago, while out with some friends, one of the people in the group that I hadn't met before asked the "What's your passion?" question.
Him: "There's not something you really like to do?"
Me: "Honestly, I like to sit on my couch and watch TV. Most people would probably say I watch way too much TV. That's not a very good passion."
Him: "OK, so we need to figure out something that lets you just watch TV a lot, but get something out of it ... how about we'll get you hired at Entertainment Weekly as a columnist, and you can watch TV and get paid. Done!"
Huh ... well, not a half bad idea. At least then I wouldn't have to feel bad telling people I sit and watch TV for most of the day because it would be how I make a living. But, I'm not really a writer, so crap.
Then a few days ago, after my weekly Chipotle lunch, I commented to RobG on IM how delicious my burrito was that day. That led to me telling how I felt my burritos from that particular location were ALWAYS the best, and how I have had some from other Chipotle's that just weren't quite as tasty (but still worth eating). RobG said, "Wow. They should pay you to travel around and rate their locations." Ah ha! That might just top the Entertainment Weekly suggestion I thought ... and it's easier to do as well.
And so it begins. As it stands now, I'll only be updating the board with visits from my daily life since the company is, big surprise, not paying me for this. :)
P.S. If you have a "usual" order when you go to Chipotle, find your burrito soulmate here. As of this date, I have seven.
Here's my new favorite YouTube video. Well, maybe it doesn't top "The Hoff" yet. I don't know.
Saw the commercial after the Orioles game on Fox today and thought I should to find it to share. The token white guy on the cell phone is the best haha. Well, no, it's all pretty good.
MARSHALL, Texas (AP) - A truck transporting zoo animals overturned early Tuesday, spilling 24 penguins, an octopus and tropical fish along a highway north of Marshall, authorities said.
"We had a penguin wreck," said Department of Public Safety Trooper Richard Buchanan. "They were thrown out into a ditch and in the roadway."
Three penguins that landed in the highway were killed by oncoming traffic, and one suffered a broken wing.
The driver, Kelly Hodge, 34, and passenger Tammy Root both sustained minor scratches and bruises, police said. Root was taken to a local hospital for treatment and released, authorities said.
Most of the fish lived and the octopus appeared unharmed, officials said. The octopus and fish were traveling in plastic bags, and some fish died when their bags burst, Buchanan said.
The two zoo employees were transporting the animals from the Indianapolis Zoo to one in Galveston. The driver swerved, overcorrected and rolled the truck into a ditch alongside U.S. 59 at about 4:30 a.m., Buchanan said.
The penguins were traveling in heavy tubs which broke open the truck's trailer. While cars hit three penguins in the road, troopers succeeded in corralling the others into the roadside ditch, Buchanan said.
Workers from the Caldwell Zoo in nearby Tyler assisted officers in chasing down penguins and rescuing endangered fish.
Authorities contacted a local chemical company, which brought a refrigerator trailer for the animals, which were taken for care to the Caldwell Zoo, Buchanan said.
The zoo's executive director Hayes Caldwell said the animals were treated and sent on to Galveston by mid-afternoon Tuesday.
"They were doing remarkably well for what they had been through," he said.
R.I.P. to the three four poor little penguins. :(
EDIT: Newer stories report that four penguins died; one in the initial wreck and the three hit by cars. Boo.
8.9.06 - 2:20 p.m.
What I'm referring to are the so-called "skinny jeans."
Funny, though, how even though the jeans themselves are skinny, they don't make anyone LOOK skinny. Well, or maybe they don't make ME look skinny ... I don't know. According to the Cosmo Style magazine I have, "This slenderizing style flatters everyone." WHAT?? I don't know what category I fall into then.
I've read the past couple months in Cosmo that they're coming for fall, and I tried to ignore. I've read that other ridiculous looking styles are coming, i.e. bubble skirts and bell-sleeved blouses, and I've tried to ignore that as well. But after seeing an article about it in the Express on the way to work on Friday, it was too much to handle ... I mean, fall is coming SOON. Pictures of skinny capris with stilettos and flats, skinny jeans with stilettos, flats and sandals: No matter how you paired them, bad, bad, bad. AND I saw a girl wearing them on the metro ... she looked to be about 5' 11" and 120 lbs. and still looked bad. Now if you're tall and skinny and STILL look silly in the skinny jeans ... come on ... I think I have to call Cosmo out for making a false claim.
But, I was bored yesterday, and I decided to just see for myself. I tried on a $20 pair, a $200 pair (please, for comparison sake only) and about four pairs priced in between. I've never thought that I have fat thighs, but I might now. The ONLY way to make these things come close to working is to shell out money for all new tops as well and pair the jeans with another supposed fall staple, the sweater tunic, because wearing a shirt that comes almost down to your knees is the only way to hide how big your hips and thighs look. And well, yeah ... with that ensemble, it would be good if I could just add about seven inches to my stature because the three-inch heels aren't going to cut it.
So, I won't be in the latest style this fall and winter. Oh, and did I forget to mention how uncomfortable they were for the two minutes I had them on? Ew. I can just hear it now, "Did you just see that girl? Her outfit was so early 2000s."
Oh, and speaking of cars. Thanks to the Post's Express for directing me to this video:
UPDATE: Just reading through this again and realized that I should tell everyone that the surprise turned out to be a big, fat lie hehe. As of July 27, I had sat waiting in the ridiculous line of cars on the street to get my safety inspection and went to the DMV for plates. That only took four hours of my life in total ... ugh. So, the car stays, and yay! Everything that connected me to Illinois is gone. :) The Virginia driver's license is quite ugly, though. Ew.
8.12.06 - 1:04 p.m.
As for my snub, tonight was the start of "grand re-opening weekend" at RFK Stadium to highlight the stadium "makeover" since the Lerner family bought the Nationals. What does that mean? Apparently, more concession options and lower ticket prices ... beginning with the series AFTER the Cubs and for the rest of the season. Nice of them to still want to cash in on the fact that they know they will have better attendance this weekend than they will for the entire season (and that's not because of the grand re-opening). It still looked like the same crap stadium to me. Here's to hoping that 2008 gets here fast.
Anyway, I get to the gates and just want to get through the ridiculous amount of people crowding around the entrance. I forgot that the team was going to be greeting fans before the game. I wonder, annoyed ... can the free hats be THAT good? I get my ticket scanned, grab my free hat (I had not yet put on my Cubs jersey as I had hurried to get there from work) and feel a hard tap on my shoulder. I turn around, and jabbing his hand out at me is Frank Robinson who says, "Don't you want to shake my hand? I can't believe you were trying to get by without seeing me." I was so stunned that I backed up and almost took out Ryan Zimmerman posing for pictures haha. That was a weird start to the evening. Sorry, Frank.
Then, in usual form, the Cubs lost. Nice. I guess it was good that Josh didn't bother to round up the money for me to be able to go to all of the games hehe.
That's all I have. Later.
A little background: A couple weeks ago, I finally got around to filing a report on some missing/damaged items to the moving company from my move in March. Today, I get a postcard from the company letting me know that someone would be contact with me about the stuff. The problem? Well, it reads like this:
ANGIE SMITH has been assigned to inspect and/or repair your damaged items.
If you do not hear from them by 08/01/2006, please contact them at (my telephone number here) or us at 1-800-747-4100 ext# 205 or 220 for Customer Service Assistance.
Uh, what?? The other weird thing is that they have my name in their computer as Angela Smith according to my address, so I don't know what would make them put Angie Smith. I wonder if I'm getting paid for this "assignment." Haha.
UPDATE: This week I got a check in the mail from Federal Moving and Storage for the full amount I requested. Damn, I should have "estimated" the damages for more ...
7.29.06 - 7:52 p.m.
I had some requests for pics of what my apartment looks like, so I finally got around to it, and here they are. And for those of you who might be reading that could care less, I made sure I am in a couple of the pics looking silly, so everyone can enjoy. :)
Living room
Here's the living room, where I showcase the fact that, Nick, I do have the widescreen TV in its proper place now. (Some background: I received a slight amount of crap from Nick while I lived in
Bedroom
My bedroom ... the most important aspect of which is that there is a little nook that turned into a perfect home for the Wendy's table. I love my Wendy's table. I don't care what that stupid manager at the Wilson Boulevard Wendy's says.
My view
My apartment looks out onto the complex's courtyard, which is fine, but I would rather not be at ground level if I had my choice. But I guess that is why this larger apartment was priced lower than others based on the location ... and when I say "priced lower," that still means really f***ing expensive when you live alone.
View of D.C.
Here is the view that you can see from one of the two clubrooms that my apartment complex has. This will most likely be the locale that I will watch fireworks from on Tuesday because I have a strong suspicion that I will be too lazy to deal with going into downtown D.C.
All in all, the apartment is great ... as well it better be after I spent days painting the rooms alone ... but there is one problem that I have with the place. And for me, it's a pretty major problem, but I'm trying to overcome my paranoia. The airflow in the bathroom causes the shower curtain to blow in. And I have tried every combination of both doors open, both closed, one closed and one open, fan on, fan off that I can think of ... nothing works. The first shower curtain liner I had was light and flimsy and would pretty much wrap itself all the way around my legs ... it was my own personal horror movie. I spent more time trying to wet the opposite side of the curtain so it might stick to the edges of the tub than I did showering I think. After a couple days of that, I bought one of those thick, heavy-duty types, which is better, but the whole problem is still unacceptable.
But already, my new company, McClatchy, has won bonus points. We were called in to receive t-shirts this afternoon. Upon hearing that we were getting them, I told some people in my department that the true test would be if there are sizes to choose from. Sure enough, walking into the conference room there indeed were boxes for small, medium, large and extra large. Small even! Wow. Yeah, it doesn't take much to impress me. But I have endured years of companies trying to get me to sign up for something to get their free t-shirt ... their extra large, "everyone can get into this" t-shirt that comes down to my knees. Thanks, but I'll pass.
I guess I shouldn't complain though because both ends of my floor are flooding ... down into people's apartments below, too. I'll just be keeping my fingers crossed that it doesn't get to the midsection where I'm at ... And yeah, this is now two blogs in one night. I think I'm going to be up for awhile at this rate.
**Tell us what you're reading, viewing, or listening to: Bleep, bleep ... May I have your attention please, may I have your attention please ... There has been a fire emergency reported in the building, please leave the building by the nearest exit or exit stairway ... Do not use the elevators. Bleep, bleep ...
So, RobG's comment on my page reminded me of the tragic thing that happened to my favorite small-town restaurant June 16. The Spartan Inn in Wingate, Ind., home of the most-wonderful breaded chicken sandwiches*, is no more.
I made sure to stop in at least one time every trip I made back to Indiana to see my family. Actually, I would plan special to be back early or stay a meal longer if it looked like my other plans were going to keep me from being able to have the delicious sandwich. Little did I know that my trip in there in March before I moved to D.C. would be my last. :(
Most recent news says the fire was arson, and the building was not insured. I better work on finding out if I can get the recipe for that breading ...
*When I searched for pics, I happened upon this review on Yahoo. I promise, Nick, that I did not post it: "wonderful food, especially the hand breaded tenderloin and chicken sandwich. wonderful homemade pies." Pat backs up my claim.
UPDATE: I should have updated this much sooner, but the Spartan Inn has reopened!! Yay. I think it opened its doors again May 21 ... just in time for me to be able to have two chicken sandwiches when I was back for my brother's graduation. Thank goodness they weren't lost forever!
6.14.07 - 10:44 p.m.
UPDATE 2: Again, way behind on updating, but it was a sad day in 2008 that the Spartan Inn changed ownership, and I've been told the breaded chicken sandwiches are not the same. I can't bring myself to go in there to find out. :(
6.12.09 - 12:59 a.m.
This blog is to get my friend, Josh, some help on his monumental task. When I talked to him Monday on the way to the Cubs game in
And on a completely different topic: "Big Brother" is starting up. Yay! But please,
OK, we're starting with the people that work at the deli counter of the grocery (the troll isn't the only horrid one, Nick). At the store last week, I wanted some roast beef sliced thin ... like shaved. The roast beef in the case already was not sliced thin. (Some of you know of my aversion to questionable-quality lunch meat, and if my friend, Wally, were on MySpace, he would get a great laugh out of this. Look, I'm not the biggest fan of lunch meat, and if I'm going to eat it, it has to have decent texture and not be Subway slimy.) So, the woman stops, looks at me for a minute, rolls her eyes and goes to find the roast beef to cut. When another person working there points to the precut meat in the case, the woman serving me says in a Fran Drescher-like voice, "No, she wants it cut thiiiiiin." Um, you're not behind a glass wall, ladies. What else do you have to do back there? Make cole slaw? Slicing meat is what you are there for. Sorry that's your job. (As an aside, yes, my need for thinly-trimmed meat means mine is always fresh, not the stuff that has been sitting in there for six hours. It really isn't about that, although that is a bonus.)
I uploaded some photos to the face-recognition Web site that Chuck had mentioned in one of his earlier blogs. I probably tried four or five different photos to see how different the results were. In each one, the top or second best match was Kelly Clarkson. Um ... I think it should be that Kelly Clarkson looks like ME. Haha. On one of my pics, Beyonce was pretty close to the top as one of my look alikes, so I don't know how much I trust it. Actually, I don't even know about the Kelly Clarkson one either ... but your match was good, Chuck.
Hmmm ... OK, some good stuff ... there's a restaurant here named Five Guys. The burgers are pretty good, but what makes the place is how many fries you get. In the bag, you get your sandwich, a 12 oz. cup of fries stuffed full, then they dump a whole additional scoop of fries on top. I usually am full and have had plenty of fries before I even get to the ones in my cup, so it's definitely a waste, but it's good that they're there if you're really hungry. Better to have too many fries than not enough in my opinion.
My favorite baseball park food is not the hot dogs, but the nachos with jalapenos. I've been to both Camden Yards and RFK Stadium, and both places' nachos blow Wrigley and Busch out of the water (especially Busch, where I wouldn't even get the nachos because they pour the cheese on top of the chips instead of letting you dip ... hopefully they have rectified this issue in the new stadium). Both stadiums here have trays with two areas for cheese, so you never run out. Spectacular. Of the two, RFK kind of loses out because the cheese is spooned in from a shallow tray, which hurts consistency, so
And here's a shocker ... there are some things I miss about
At the very least, it will give me an opportunity to vent, and I know that these rants are what some of my friends love about me (the Elaine factor) ... I can give them a good laugh (whether that's good for me remains to be seen). For the others that I might have put up a good front for ... surprise! Hehe ... no, hopefully everyone already knows me. :)
