Finals are finally over.

I finished on Friday and I am under the impression that things went swimmingly. We'll see when my grades come out on Christmas eve. As a reward for studying my brains nearly out, Chels bought me a gift certificate and sent me to lunch today with Fish.

It is uncanny how much our thoughts/tastes/opinions overlap. For Christmas, we exchanged food related gifts, no surprise there. He got us the book which he has previously touted as the "culinary bible". It is as a matter of fact, exactly what he described. The approach to getting the "best" recipe is, by itself, enough to hook me. It appeals to me like Alton Brown, the right proportion of good taste, geek factoids, practicality, and presented by one with an opinionated/uncompromising palate.

I've retreated to my man lair/office for the last three hours due to the extraordinarily high estrogen levels that result from a sorority party. During that time, I have gleefully perused 239 pages, stopping to examine ingredients and read tips for producing perfect cuisine. It's caused me to laugh out loud already, which is a feat to be accomplished.

Referring to the pentultimate pasta aglio e olio, "Resist, by all means, an urge to pour the contents of a little green cylinder on this dish--it will be forever ruined."

Now you know why I like it.

What ever happened to his restaurant?

Don't know. But in the words of the man, "you've got to know when to hold 'em, know when to fold 'em."

Studying is like gambling. You never know whether what you're putting effort towards is going to work. So, after many nights of 2am, I'm folding at 1:23am in favor of not having eyes/mental status of a pothead.

Finals will be over on Friday at noon. Hallelujah.

I'm ready for C and Mr. Brown to come home. Being home alone for more than a few hours sucks.

thanksgiving weekend...and a momentous occasion

I needed a break. It was nice.

Me & C after the turkey day 5k. My whole family did it.

C's new beanie.

The momentous occasion...C's first Hot wheel.

Don't call it a comeback.

I've been here for years. I first heard that song in second grade playing soccer at lunch recess. A bunch of truant teenagers were blazing past my elementary school, and LL was in. If you don't know what I'm talking about, watch it here.

It has been a while. We haven't had the internet since we moved into our new place. But, after a serious exercise in futility and Dante's ninth circle of Comcast customer service, we've rejoined the 21st century.

Here are some recent pictures:
I was being a good sport, and we were attending the AK^2 halloween party. Rockin' scones.

Mr. Brown sporting a fine 'do.

Chels kept telling me that she wanted a vacation, so I took her on a tour de chicken finger. From left to right, Home (just salted, Salt Lake), Italy, China (ginger), New Mexico (chile lime) with a pit stop at Paula Deen's house for some mac n' cheese. I actually can't stand that woman, but I'd eat her mac n' cheese.

Chels started a little boutique www.feltedcrown.etsy.com

Mr. Brown and I at the hospital (11:30pm w/ a 105 F fever. We left at 6:30am. It was positively miserable.)

Cool tree in our front yard. Happy little dude.

My favorite to date. The kid loves being airborne.

School is generally good. Charlie is awesome.

There's only one problem.

There's only one problem with eating at Fish's house. Nothing else measures up.

We had yet another fantastic meeting of the FCC (if you don't know, you're not invited, so don't ask).

The menu (thanks to Cindy for the pictures)

- Duck confit w/cherry gastrique - incredible

- Shaved apple salad, cider vinagrette + bacon - novel tastes and really good.

- Butternut squash soup - smooth, creamy and spot on.

- My rolls - tasty but hopelessly pancaked (a work in progress)

- Crabcakes w/celery slaw - best crabcake I've ever eaten, perfect consistency, superbly balanced flavors.

- Choripan spiced ribs w/maple roasted yams - Pork? Yes please.
- Cranberry granita - put my strawberry watermelon granita to shame.

- Beef Wellington w/porcini duxelle - It doesn't get any better than a perfectly cooked piece of filet encircled in finely
chopped/reduced mushrooms goodness, wrapped in thinly sliced, pleasantly salted pork products, nestled inside of puff
pastry. Yep. Puff pastry. Not to mention killer sauce. Pair it with duck fat roasted fingerlings. Carbs, check. Perfect beef,
check. Butter, check. Giddy full voice, check^2.

- Round it out with pumpkin pie creme brulee and you're well on your way to a blissfull food induced stupor.

So I guess there are two problems. I don't want to eat anything else, and I have to drive home in a food induced stupor. That's dangerous, but I'll take it 11 times out of 10.

All clear.

I finally received word. Everyone in Siumu is okay. I feel much better.

I lived right down the street.

About a year ago, I was in Samoa doing some humanitarian work. I was literally two blocks from where these pictures were taken, in what I consider to be my village. Now, I can't get a hold of anyone, and knowing the layout of homes and the coastline I'm worried. In my mind, I can walk through the village and I've got a pretty good idea of which families made it and didn't. It's sobering. I know these people. I hope I hear something soon.

O lo'o ou tatalo atu i le Alii mo outou, lo'u nu'u e. Ia uliuli lou tino, ae pupula ou mata e pei o fetu i le lagi, ma tafetoto ou ala.

My wife is rad.

Some days it feels like all I do is study. My wife is awesome about it. She works really hard to make sure that when I do have time to spend with her & C, that things are taken care of (i.e. laundry, food, cleaning, etc.). She's also really supportive, regardless of how I do on a test.

For the last two mondays, I've pulled my lunch out of the fridge at 6:58am (the bus leaves at 7:00am) and found a surprise pack of gum with an encouraging note on it. The dollar she spends and the five seconds it takes to write that note mean a lot to me, especially on the days I don't do as well.

She also let's me go climbing to blow off steam, and to celebrate. I love my wife.

White Coat Ceremony

It's been a crazy week and two days. I had orientation last week and school officially started yesterday. Here are the highlights:

1. I made my first incision (in a cadaver)
2. I've spent a ridiculous amount of money on books/supplies (~$1300)
3. I get a fancy microscope
4. The fire hose analogy is appropriate

Here's a picture of the white coat ceremony. It was really cool.

You've got to love KSL's dilligence

I just read an article entitled "Bikers meet with Ogden City after cops crash their ride", and laughed as reporter Andrew Adams referred to "bikers with a group known as Critical Mass". It was apparent from the picture of a motorcycle in the article that Andrew had no idea what Critical Mass was. I'm sure he had visions of Hell's Angels clashing with police in little old Ogden. Not Quite.

Being the kind soul that I am, I sent Andrew an email (to which he didn't reply) informing him that although he had selected a nice picture, Critical Mass is about bicycles, not Harleys. I'm sure he tucked his tail between his legs as he went and asked the IT guy to change the picture in the article.

Why be a sausage just because you know how?

I rode my bike to work this morning and parked it in my cubicle.

The CFO walked by and the following conversation ensued.

CFO: "What's this bike bull crap in the office?"
Me: "(CFO), it's not bike bull crap in the office, it's bike in the office."
CFO: "Who told you that you could bring it in here?"
Me: "(HR director)."

CFO makes a grumpy exit.

I'm riding it again tomorrow.

Why?

Have you ever had a conversation where the person you're talking to just wants you to shut up but they still feign interest?

I just had one of those. I suppose I'm only party to those types of conversation about 50% as often as the average person. I've got a great imagination, but if I don't feel like pretending--this may surprise you--I don't.

If you don't know about health care reform, start here.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32083506/ns/health-health_care/

Fortnight is just better.

Seriously. Who came up with biweekly? Why does the prefix in biweekly mean something different than biannually? That just doesn't make any sense.

Merriam-Webster feels my pain.

Main Entry:
1bi-
Function:
prefix
Etymology:
Middle English, from Latin
1 a: two b: coming or occurring every two c: into two parts 2 a: twice : doubly : on both sides b: coming or occurring two times ? compare semi-


Usage - Many people are puzzled about bimonthly and biweekly, which are often ambiguous because they are formed from both senses 1b and 2b of bi-. This ambiguity has been in existence for nearly a century and a half and cannot be eliminated by the dictionary. The chief difficulty is that many users of these words assume that others know exactly what they mean, and they do not bother to make their context clear. So if you need bimonthly or biweekly, you should leave some clues in your context to the sense of bi- you mean. And if you need the meaning "twice a," you can substitute semi- for bi-. Biannual and biennial are usually differentiated.

If you're ever talking to me, don't say biweekly.

Some cool links

Chels and I planted a little garden. We haven't actually used any of it yet (except the herbs), but I think that will start soonish.

Someday, when I'm rich, Chels, Mr. Brown and I will dine on fresh locally raised, crafted and grown food. I'll have it delivered.

For now, I looked up a few links.
Here's a complete list of the Farmer's Markets in Utah, with the exception of the Thursday market they're going to start at the U.
http://utahsown.utah.gov/FarmersMarkets.htm

Here is a very cool community garden that I'm contemplating joining.
http://sherylsgardengroup.blogspot.com/

This may be a little excessive.

But the logic is interesting.

http://urbanvelo.org/chinese-man-vandalizes-cars-that-run-red-lights/

Mr. Brown

In spite of me, he's a cute kid.

The Sandwich Nazi

You've seen the Seinfeld episode. The Soup Nazi lives in NY. The Sandwich Nazi lives in Salt Lake City. He peddles sandwiches at Musumeci's Italian Deli. I suppose that the "Nazi" part isn't appropriate because we're talking salami rather than schnitzel. Italy did have Mussolini. The Sandwich Socialist. Ha.


Even with this picture, you'll probably never find the joint. It's between 2nd & 3rd south on the east side of state street in downtown SLC. I happened upon it one day as I was walking to the Himalayan Kitchen with Fish. I voted for trying it, but he was feelin' the tikka tikka.

About a month later, in a deep culinary depression having no rooster-esque cuisine this side of the bubble, I decided to try it out. My dad, his buddy Tom and I walked down.

The picture is kind of deceiving. Once you get in the doors, you walk what feels like a city block down a dingy hallway with glass windows on both sides all the way down. It looks like there was a private school there before because I looked in the windows, I had flashbacks of Ms. Goffe telling me that if I was leaving her classroom I would be flying (because she would throw me). Nasty woman.

Once you get down the hall, it opens up into the dining area, which has superb ambiance. The magic of plastic lawn chairs, red and white check plastic tablecloths, and Christmas lights is undeniable. Ladies and gentlemen, this is a high quality eating establishment.

Off to your left is the quirky little kitchen/counter where you order. All kinds of Sicilian memorabilia and Yankees stuff is haphazardly strewn about the walls. The menu is best read if you're dyslexic.

As you approach the counter, you'll notice a stack of half sheets of paper. Grab one and a pen. That's how you order your sandwich. But beware, Phil (the sandwich socialist) and his son (the socialist in training) will not make it your way without giving you crap.

I ordered an italian sausage sandwich and asked for provolone, mayo and mustard. The socialist in training shook his head in disgust and in a thick New York accent announced "we don't do that." Slightly taken back, I politely asked what he recommended, and took his recommendation (just a note, you don't need a large sandwich. Get a small and you'll be full.)

Tom asked for something similar, and it looked like Phil threw up in his mouth. Flustered, Tom changed his order to a hot pastrami. Luckily for him, he didn't ask for cheese, just pickles and mustard. Phil cooled off and approved, "now that's a sandwich I can respect."

My dad took the safe route. He got what I got.

Fish and I went back today and watched several people get the same treatment. I had to chuckle a bit, having once been in the same spot. I ordered on the safe side and got cappocolo, salami and pepperoni, with lettuce, mustard and mayo.

I didn't mind at all. The man knows his sandwiches. After all, as Fish once said "When I go to a restaurant, I want what I order to be the way the chef intended." Wo, wo, wo to the individual who shows up in a Red Sox hat or asks for ranch on his sandwich at Musumeci's.

Now that you've been warned, check it out.

I just had an apostrophe.

Lightning has just struck my brain. That's a reference many of you may not get. Here's a clue.



The lightning that just struck my brain made me decide to abandon the food blog because it's too much of a pain. I'm going to keep it here. Nobody, including me wants to follow another link. I'll review restaurants here and list recipes at the food blog.

That picture also is a very appropriate representation of me last night. Belly hanging out and saluting a culinary captain. I've been married to my lovely wife for four years now. To celebrate, we decided to go out for dinner. Based on a recommendation from Fish I decided on a restaurant in P-town that his friend Andy (of Dew fame) just opened up. It's called Rooster and it's awesome.

image jacked from YHO.

We had the traditional pork and chive dumplings, bulgogi dumplings, thai basil rice, curry chicken noodle soup, molten chocolate lava cake with hazelnut whipped cream, and creme brulee with fresh blueberries. I can't stop gushing.

The dumplings were steamed, and then wonderfully pan-fried to a slightly crisp perfection, served with micro greens and two dipping sauces (C liked Andy's lighter sauce better, and I loved Simy's chili sauce).

The Thai basil rice was other worldly. Typically when I go to a restaurant, I can pick out components of a dish. I'm always thinking when I'm eating. I argue with myself over the ingredients, the quantities, the techniques etc. This dish left me blown away. I had no idea how they cooked that heavenly pork. I loved every bite.

I love a good curry. I'm firmly in the Vietnamese-style camp. Little to no sweet, more heat please. The curry chicken noodle soup was amazing. At first, you get notes of coconut, then some salt & pepper, ginger dances around on your tongue and the heat builds pleasantly. That's just the sauce/broth. The lemongrass barbecued chicken that tops the noodles was perfectly executed. A nice, flavorful char, but not over cooked. It couldn't have been better. I liked the noodles, but the biggest surprise was the pickled greens that accompanied the dish. The crunch, flavor and texture was spot on and totally unexpected. I found myself wanting to tip the bowl up and slurp the broth down. I refrained because it would have mortified my wife. It was that good.

The creme brulee was bruleed table side and was fantastically smooth and creamy. The fresh blueberries were very nice. The molten lava cake was also spot on, and worth the made from scratch as you order, 18 minute wait. The hazelnut whipped cream was divine. More dense than regular whipped cream, it was like the consistency of whipped butter. I told Chels that I could have eaten a whole bowl of it like ice cream. I would have if he put it in front of me.

In short, the flavors were complex but perfectly balanced. We also left there for under $50 with a tip. You just can't beat that. Kudos to Andy and Simy (the owners, who we met and conversed with at length, super friendly and all about the food) for a job well done.

New blog

I've decided to take a page from the Fish book and start a food oriented blog. I'll be posting recipes we like and reviewing restaurants we try out.

It's http://followtherecipe.blogspot.com

That's some smokin' steel.

Well, maybe it's aluminum. In either case, it's rad. Crazy thing is that the guy who built it did 73mph. I've hit 50mph on the road bike, but 73 is excessive. Especially when you're doing it with jet fuel and rim brakes.

Oh Yeah.

Fish and I just hit the taco cart on West Temple and South Temple. $1.50/taco and $4.00/burrito. Cash only.

I had a steak taco, pastor taco, and chicken burrito. The steak taco was good, the pastor - okay for my first pastor experience, and the burrito rocked.

It was way too much food. The tacos are on two corn tortillas, and the burrito comes in a flour tortilla. You get beans, self serve salsa/limes, and a jalapeno with each.

The pico de gallo and tomatillo salsa were as fresh as it gets. I can't believe I've never been there before.

I've got a dilemma.

There's a new addition to the stable.

A fine stationary steed, indeed. I've got some patellar-femoral issues going on in my right leg. Canyons on the skinny tires and rocks on the knobbies are making it worse. I needed something steady to get the muscles back where they're supposed to be. I looked at trainers and just about puked because they cost so much.

I checked out craigslist and picked this baby up for $50. The best part is they retail for $489 and it has barely been used. I happily coughed up the 50 bones.

Now that I'm going to be riding inside, I need a good workout mix. I've already appealed to Fish and got some goods, but I still would like some more input.

What do you listen to when you ride/run/swim/exercise? If you've got a good mix, I'd love a copy.

There are a few important questions.

If I'm going to take your advice on food, there are a few questions I need answers to first. Fish maintains that you can get all the information you need to know in one question. I've adopted Fish's question as the first and most important.

How do you take your steak?

There really is only one correct answer to that question. Although this steak is a little more on the rare rather than medium rare side, medium rare is the only way to go. If you go rare, you are eating the equivalent of beef sushi and that's only good if it's really thin. If you go medium, medium well, or well done, you might as well have have ordered a dry burger. If you order A1 or something else like that, you're probably eating a medium well to well done steak. Shame on you for wasting good beef.

No offense, but if you take your steak at medium, or heaven forbid, more done that that, I will listen to your food advice (recipes, restaurants, etc.) and likely discard it. I'll still give it some consideration, but I'm just saying, I'm not likely to believe it.

The second question, while not as important, is still important.

Do you order pineapple on your pizza?

There is only one correct answer. Ask the boys at Este for pineapple and they'll charge you $75 (although I don't like Este's pizza because it simply wasn't that good, and it was way overpriced, I totally agree with them).

Pineapple on pizza is wrong. I'm open to almost all kinds of pizza. I've had (and enjoyed) pizza with toppings from broccoli to pine nuts to lettuce to peaches. Pineapple just doesn't belong. I suppose my loathing of it stems from the fact that I ate lots of fresh pineapple (like right of the plant fresh) on my mission. All the pineapple I've ever encountered on pizza has been from the can.

If you answer incorrectly to both questions, I'll know you're not a foodie and with few exceptions, your food advice cannot be trusted. We can still be friends, I'll cook the steak, suggest good restaurants, and order all pizza.

The best meal of my life.

Period. If you are reading this, you know that I'm somewhat of a food snob. Okay, somewhat is generous. I'm a food snob. I don't watch football, basketball, baseball or any other sport for that matter. I watch Iron Chef, Good Eats, DDD, Throwdown and Ace of Cakes. I love food. That being said, I don't give out such a lofty seal of approval willy-nilly.

As I've said before, Fish and I are like so similar that it's borderline uncanny. Bikes, food, cars, music, humor, you name it. He knows me well enough to predict what spice combinations I prefer on my food. He's also a freaking genius in the kitchen.

Naturally, when he extended the invitation for Chels and I to dine at chateau de Fish, I giddily accepted. Over the course of the next month and a half, he planned the meal. Every few days I would stop by his office and would reveal a portion of the menu or a revision thereto. My anticipation was building with the revelation of each tantalizing ingredient.

Fish showed up, big time. Here's an outline of the courses:

Appetizer - Tuna Sashimi with Fresh Ponzu, Tuna Tartar with Wasabi Aoli
This was not any sashimi. We're talking $28/lb tuna. It was perfect. The Ponzu was incredible with prominent, but not overpowering umami and citrus notes. It was really good. Easily my favorite sashimi presentation of all time.

Salad - Spinach, Bacon, Walnuts, Feta, Cranberries, and Poppyseed Dressing
How do you make salad really good? Add bacon and cheese.

Bread - Whole Grain Bread, Vanilla Whipped Honey-Butter
This was my weak contribution to the meal. I was holding Mr. Brown while racing to make the rolls and didn't allow them to rise properly. They flattened. If it wasn't for the butter. The honey butter would have been an complete disaster. The honey was crystallized and remained so even after a serious whipping. Not my best performance.

Fish - Garlic Shrimp, Sticky Rice, Fresh Ginger Soda
This is where the personal touches and attention to detail came through. Fish knew that Chels doesn't like heat, so he made hers without the olek sambal. He has this recipe down. The flavors played very nice together and the rice was perfect.
I loveginger. Especially fresh ginger. The soda was not overly sweet, and had a pleasant kick from the ginger. I had four glasses.

Palette Cleanser - Fresh Fruit Smoothie
Simple, light, tasty. Did exactly what it was supposed to do.

White Meat - Apple Cider Baby-Back Ribs, Potato Salad with Homemade Lemon Mayo
This was a multi-stage, serious cooking process. The apple cider reduction was delectable. The ribs were perfectly seasoned, falling off the bone, and had a perfect carmelization on the crust. After much thought, these ribs come in at number 2 for my all time rib favorites (second only to Pat's). The potato salad was a nice compliment to the ribs. Not to egg-y, not to tangy as potato salad can often be. The carrots were a nice variation of flavor and texture. Just right. Rib heaven.


Entree - Filet, Potato Waffle with Fresh Horseradish Cream and Port Pan Sauce, Broccoli
Fish is the proud holder of two slots in my top five steak experiences. Second and third respectively. This was second. A very close second. It almost edged out Fleming's and my dry aged, $50+, bone-in ribeye that was covered in butter. That's saying alot coming from a guy who almost unequivocally takes a ribeye over a filet. It was spot on medium rare with a killer crust. He put extra pepper on mine because he knows that's how I roll. The freshly grated horseradish cream rounded out each bite nicely.
The potato waffles were a carb-lovers dream. Picture the perfect mashed potato, with a buttery hash brown crust. Not too dense, not grainy, and the right amount of buttery goodness. I'm drooling.
No detail was left unaddressed. Even the broccoli was executed flawlessly.

Dessert - Vanilla and Chocolate Creme Brulee
To finish out the night, Cindy displayed some serious skill with the torch. I had never partaken of chocolate creme brulee before. It was smooth, tasty and had a perfect brulee. The vanilla was probably the best creme brulee I think I've ever eaten.

Charlie ate during the sashimi and salad and then slept happily upstairs as we dined with Fish, Cindy, Mohana & Kaylee. From the "congratulations" banner in the front yard, to the red chargers with white plates, to the perfect execution, it was a night to be remembered.

Thanks Fish & Cindy for the best meal of my life and a fun night.

Really?

I had a good laugh just now after noticing that my bag of Berry Colossal Crunch proudly displays that it is "naturally cholesterol free". That would suggest that Berry Colossal Crunch is a naturally occurring substance. Right.

Finals are over.

I've finally gradgeated (pronounced grad-YEE-ated). I didn't walk. It would have been a waste of my time and money. When med school graduation comes around, I'll be there.

Since I'm no longer doing school and work I feel like I have tons of extra time. Yesterday I rode my bike to and from work for the first time since Charlie was born. It was awesome.

Today, Chris and I got up early to go climb this.

You might recognize it, you might not. If you drove up I-80 this morning around 7:00am, you would have seen us just south of the freeway and a hundred feet up scaling route B of the "iron curtain". It was fun.

If this isn't the most insane thing you've ever seen on a bike, you're lying to yourself.

Someday we'll find it, the rainbow connection...

The lovers, the dreamers, and most definitely not me. Do you know what that picture is? I didn't, at least until the other day.

I ride trax to and from work a few days a week. It's a good chance for me to relax a little, listen to my ipod or read a book. About a week ago, I was compelled to pause my ipod and listen to a conversation.

I sat next to a normal looking man who sat across from a man in a Canadian Tuxedo. Very much in fact, like the one you see below.

My tuxedo clad friend was a self proclaimed artist and was discussing artsy matters with his normal looking friend. After a few obtuse art references, they discussed a double date playing pool with a third friend and two other girls (normal man not included) that was a little too formal for the tux, and he was trying to get out of it. Normal looking man agreed to take one for the team and stand in for the tux.

After a brief discussion about not ratting the third friend's recent conviction for possession to his father, the conversation then shifted gears. I had my laptop out, and started transcribing for your enjoyment.

The Tux: That’s the artist’s lifestyle, you know.

Normal: Totally. I don’t want to be putting any negative energy out there.

The Tux: When I put energy out there, I send it.

The Tux: I think I’m going to a rainbow gathering soon, have you ever been?

Normal: Nope. Is it like Burning Man?

The Tux: No way dude. Burning Man is too big now, the government is part of it now.

Normal: Really?

The Tux: Yep, it’s all part of the paradoxy of life.

The Tux: Rainbow gatherings are way better. My manager is going to hook me up with all of the details.

Normal: Let me know when you go. I’m all in for that.

I just about wet my pants. My curiosity was brimming and I had to find out more. When I got home, Chels and I got on Wikipedia. That first picture is of an actual Rainbow Gathering in Costa Rica. It's pretty much just a gathering of anti-establishment hippies establishing themselves. Burning Man is a a similar gathering, where the burn an effigy of "the man". Hippies at their finest, organized anarchy. That's the paradox(y) of life, man.

Honey Bunches of Oats are better than Cheerios

I have a box of both a work. Cheerios are too positively buoyant. For about the same amount of cereal, HBOs settle better in the cup and don't spill over the top whereas Cheerios do. It's annoying.

Besides that, they just taste better. There's my random thought for the day. Oh yeah, financial aid still sucks.

I got in.

I'm in at the U! It's a huge relief. I'm discovering that financial aid is pretty much ridiculous.

Say It Ain't So.

Whoa, whoa. There's just something about the blue album. It never gets old.

Scum.

If you're a serious cyclist, or even someone who rides frequently, it's not a question of if you are going to get hit. It's a question of when.

It happened to me about two years ago in July. It was two days after I bought my first bike, on my first ride to work. I was coming down first south and entered the intersection of first south and second east just as the light turned yellow. A lady (who worked a floor above me) who was headed east on first south turned left in front of me. I broke her windshield with my back, flew over the top of the car and landed on my hip. The force of the impact was so great it sent both of my tightly-tied shoes flying in different directions into the intersection.

Thankfully, I was fine and she was decent. This guy wasn't. Driving along in his BMW with his girlfriend, he hit a guy roughly my dad's age, on a route my dad regularly rides, and left him for dead. I'm glad he got arrested.

I don't know why I bought the french fly.

I was trying to come up with a good rhyme ala I don't know why she swallowed the fly, but I've got things to do.

I'm currently wearing a pair of pants with a french fly. I've got several different pairs of them. They are dangerous pants though. For about the tenth time, I left the house thinking I was fully dressed, and I was wrong.

Shirt, check.
Socks, check.
Shoes, check.
Belt, check.
Pants, check.

Pants done all the way up, no check.

The french fly is supposed to help the front of your pants lay "naturally flat", but they have a serious side effect - they give you a false sense of security. You do up the button on the flap, the hook & loop slide thingy, and the button under the belt. Fastening that many fasteners leads you to think that you're secure. The zipper falls by the wayside, until it's drafty.

I walked all the way to the front of the class and sat down to take the quiz, barn door wide open. I took the quiz, turned it in, and much to my horror realized I was wearing a well ventilated pair of pants. That's awesome.

Two things that public bathrooms need

1. Music. No one wants to hear what's going on in there. It needs to be just loud enough to mask a fart. You're in the bathroom, it's the place where farts are legal.

2. TV or something interesting to read over the top of the urinal so people's eyes don't wander where they ought not.

That's assault brotha.

At least it's olfactory assault. There are unwritten rules in life. One of them relates to lunch at work. More specifically, what you can and can't bring to work for lunch. The absolute, top of the list, number-one, no-no is bringing seafood that needs to be reheated in the communal microwave.

Two days in a row a co-worker has broken this rule. The first day is borderline excusable, but two days in a row? That takes some hutspah. We're not talking tuna either, but orange roughy, a particularly fishy fish. The stench has permeated the entire floor. What's even worse is the kitchen is right around the corner from where I sit, and said offender's desk is across the hall.

If it happens again, I might have to call Michael Scott for a PowerPOINT presentation on office courtesy.

Where's the 7-11?

Maybe it's because I'm an old man that I haven't thought about this before. There's no 7-11 in my neighborhood. That means I had to drive around for about 20min before I found caffeine and sugar to fuel my studying efforts at 3am. There's a hole in the market.

Charlie's Playlist

I read a post by Fatty a while back where he posed the question "if you could pick one trail to ride for the rest of your life, and one trail only, what would it be?" He then answered that such a question was designed by torture experts or really mean people. Such a punishment would be inhumane.

In that spirit, I decided that I couldn't create only one playlist for Mr. Brown. There are rules for this sort of thing though. To quote one of the finest films ever made:

"Now, the making of a good compilation tape is a very subtle art. Many do's and don'ts. First of all you're using someone else's poetry to express how you feel. This is a delicate thing.To me, making a tape is like writing a letter. There's a lot of erasing and rethinking and starting again.

A good compilation tape, like breaking up, is hard to do. You've got to kick off with a corker, to hold the attention (I started with "Got to Get You Off My Mind," but then realized that she might not get any further than track one, side one if I delivered what she wanted straightaway, so I buried it in the middle of side two), and then you've got to up it a notch, or cool it a notch, and you can't have white music and black music together, unless the white music sounds like black music, and you can't have two tracks by the same artist side by side, unless you've done the whole thing in pairs and...oh, there are loads of rules."

Attempting to follow some of those and most of my own rules, we started the Lullaby list and the Awake list. After a preliminary alphabetical run through (I stopped at the Jeff Buckley), here's what we got:

Lullaby-

Happy Ever After In Your Eyes - Ben Harper
Pictures of Jesus - Ben Harper
In the Lord's Arms - Ben Harper
Three Little Birds - Bob Marley
Beyond the Sea - Bobby Darrin (not really a lullaby, but it makes my top 30 songs of all time)
Sparks - Coldplay
Parachutes - Coldplay
Little Man - Count Basie & Sarah Vaughn
O Great Telephone - Cub Country
Disappearing World - David Gray
Return to Me - Dean Martin
Solitude - Ella Fitzgerald
When You Wish Upon A Star - Glenn Miller
Better Together - Jack Johnson (Chels lobbied for this, also not really a lullaby)
Breakdown - Jack Johnson
That's All I Ask - Jeff Buckley (easily top 30)
Hallelujah - Jeff Buckley
Satisfied Mind - Jeff Buckley
God Bless the Child - Billie Holiday

Awake -

Animal's Scat - Muppets (nope, that's not scat like poop, scat like bebop)
On the Sunny Side of the Street - Benny Goodman
Miss Brown to You - Billie Holiday (for the future Miss Brown)
Nice Work If You Can Get It - Billie Holiday
Doop-Doo-De-Doop - Blossom Dearie
Cheer Up - Bob Marley
Blessed - Brett Dennen
When the Red, Red Robin Comes - Carmen McRae
Yakety Yak - The Coasters
Mrs. Potter's Lullaby - Counting Crows
Boys on the Docks - Dropkick Murphy's
I'm Walking - Fats Domino
You Make Me Feel So Young - Frank Sinatra (Chels request)
Fly Me To The Moon - Frank Sinatra
Would You Like To Swing On A Star - Harry Connick Jr.
Bubble Toes - Jack Johnson (Chels request)
Mudfootball - Jack Johnson (Chels request)
I Feel Good - James Brown (gotta represent the Godfather of Soul)
Pappa's Got a Brand New Bag - James Brown
Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On - Jerry Lee Lewis (even though he married his 13 year old cousin)
Waiting On The World To Change - John Mayer (Chels request)

It will likely get a remodel, but I feel like it is a respectable start.

Knock on wood.

I feel like things have been going so well lately. Charlie is an awesome baby. He is hardly ever cranky, he sleeps well, eats well and smiles when he reaches the "giddy full" state, just like me. Chels is doing well and everything else is going just fine.

I was talking to Chels on Saturday morning about how great Charlie is. I joked that he must like us because he hasn't soaked us yet. He peed all over the pediatrician when he was getting circumcised (he let's face it, if you are a guy you would too) and then pooped on the table as a parting shot. I narrowly escaped one blast at the hospital, but since then it has been fine.

The three of us went shopping on Saturday at the Gateway to get out of the house for a while. While we were out and I was standing awkwardly in Anthropologie (truly, that is the only way I can stand in that store. I feel supremely out of place there.) and I picked up this book:
I read a little bit about knocking on wood. Knocking on wood is apparently a pagan tradition based on the belief that gods live in trees and that by knocking on wood (a tree really) you either enlist the help of the gods to scare off the bad spirits, or the bad spirits think that the gods are going to help you so they bug out. Whatever the reason, I should have knocked on the large table before me whilst gloating about not being soaked.

We had just returned from the synchronized swimming/ward party, and I was snuggling a sleepy Mr. Brown. He started to squirm pretty good and let out some serious gastrointestinal pyrotechnics - fourth of July style. We cheered for him as we usually do. Someone ought to. The poor kid has to work so hard to make it happen. I slowly moved my hand up his back, rubbing the left side (the side where his stomach is) to try and help things move along.

Me: "Oh no."
C: "What?" (worried)
Me: "We've got a blowout."
C: "You're changing it."
Me: "Okay."
C: "Just use a wipe."
Me: (after pulling back the onesie for inspection and seeing it between his shoulder blades) "This is definitely not a one wipe operation, it's bath time."
C: "Seriously?"
Me: "Yep."

See for yourself (this is after I washed it out, by hand).
On the way to the tub, he peed all down Chels' new red silk pajamas. In the tub he got about an inch away from peeing in my mouth before I pointed that thing the other way.

I haven't laughed that hard in a long time. It's official. We're parents.

Can you guess what this is?

One of the first times we took Charlie out was on the 24th for my little sister's birthday. Dinner was nice except for the fact that the menu online got my hopes up for something they no longer served. I was totally looking forward to double cut pork chops with a peach glaze. Update your website weenies. Toll House pie was good as always.

After we finished dinner, I was surprised to find that little thing on my shirt with a little trail of goo next to it. Have you guessed what it is yet? Nope. I didn't pick my nose, pull that out and wipe it on my shirt. Nice try though. It was Charlie's umbilical cord. Chels wanted to throw it away, I wanted to find a microscope and open it up. I managed to grab a picture before she made me through it away.

I was going to show my nephew, who's favorite word is currently eyeball, this little gem, but I decided that it might not be the best thing to show him in a crowded restaurant. Whatever his response, at that age, most little boy comments are not restaurant appropriate. My better judgment prevailed.

Synchronized Swimming

The video doesn't quite do it justice. It was pretty hilarious. The dude in the middle choreographed it all from start to finish.

I wouldn't ride in the Tour of California if I were you.

If you do, your one-off bike will get stolen. It happened to Lance and then to Zabriskie, except they really cleaned Zabriskie out. Jerks.

That's cute.

We're facing the biggest deficit in history and there is a $273 million dollar screw up like this. That's cute. You would think that with over a quarter of a billion dollars that they could at least get the thing off the ground okay.

I do think that the mission would have provided revealing data. I was listening to NPR yesterday on my way home from work and they were talking about the satellites purpose: finding were over 60% of the world's CO2 is going. Scientists currently don't know but hypothesize the ocean, which if that is the case, one would think that the eventual build up would cause a shift in the pH because H20 + CO2 <-> H+ + HCO3-. pH shifts = bad.

Lullabies

My mother in law is definitely one of a kind and I love it. She sings to my nieces in Spanish, my nephew in French and Charlie in Weezer. I came in the other night while she was holding him and singing "If you want to destroy my sweater..." I think it's great.

That leads me to my question o' the day. Chels and I are discussing cool lullabies to sing to Charlie, because let's face it, you can only sing "popcorn popping on the apricot tree" and "i'm so glad when daddy comes home" (chels' songs of choice right now) so many times. Got any rad suggestions? I'm looking for something mellow and happy. So far I've only been able to come up with 3 Little Birds by Bob Marley. I'll get a good list going and post them when I'm done.

A few notes about the hospital.

1. The chair/bed sucks. My feet hang off the end.
2. Be nice to the nurses and they'll hook you up. (I got this tip from Levi.)
3. Pudding rules. (The nurses hooked me up)
4. If you don't shower you stink.
5. If you do shower you don't stink.
6. Showering is fantastic, so is brushing your teeth.
7. I love my wife.
8. I love little Mr. Brown. (A story on that later.)

More Charlie pics

Thursday was long and kind of tough for Chels. She felt lousy and Charlie wasn't feeding wonderfully among a few other things. Wednesday night we made a great move and had Charlie go to the nursery for one feeding and bring him back for the next, and I got about 5 hours of sleep in my lovely chair/bed. Then it was off to our house at 6:00am to study for my Biochem test at 10:45am. If I failed it, at least I didn't fail it miserably. We'll see. I was where I was supposed to be.

I got back from taking my test and Charlie was wide awake and thrilled to see his super good looking dad. I took a bunch of pictures and a few videos with the rad HD camcorder Barrett gave us from CES. I don't have the cd for the camcorder though and don't have the right codecs to get the videos on. Maybe later. Here are some good pictures though.


He's so blasted cute you can't help but kiss him.


This one is in the running for my favorite. The flash catches his blond hair really well.


This is a non-flash picture because I felt guilty after watching that Office episode where Jan freaks out telling everyone that "you don't flash around a newborn!"


I tried to capture this with his mouth open several times but this was the best I could get.


I love the furrowed brow.


This was right after he was born. He and I went up to the nursery and I took this there. He's got lots of blond hair in the back.

Ladies and gentlemen, Elvis has entered the building.

He was in here.

Then he was here.

Now he's here and we couldn't be happier. He weighed in at 8lbs 1oz and was 20.5in long. I've still got no idea how he fit in there. Everybody is healthy, happy, and tired.

Not good news.

Definitely not good news.

Hiccups are bad. Definitely bad.

I promise. They are. At least they are after you have eaten so much that you "hiccup(ed) a mouthful" on the way out to the car. This happened to me tonight after some splendid que.

In my last post, I introduced you to Fish. Fish and I love a few things. Our families, our bikes, our food and our gear. Family is definitely first, but it's a close race between bikes and food. The best possible scenario occurs when you can combine them. Since it's a wee bit nippy out, we had to settle for one.

On Wednesday last week, I was visiting the breakroom at work to grab a diet coke, and I lazily scanned the newspaper as I often do to determine whether there is something I want to read. Fortunately, I saw a little piece about my absolute favorite BBQ joint, Pat's BBQ. Pat's made it on to DDD (Diners, Drive-ins & Dives - shame on you if you don't know what this is) and they were hosting a party to celebrate. An all you can eat type party. Tickets were a little pricey at $30, but they proved to be worth their weight in gold.

Fish and I met up at Pat's and the line was already out the door. Everything you would expect was there, chicken, ribs, brisket, smoked sausage, pulled pork, potato salad, slaw, cornbread, etc. The chicken was respectable, but let's face it, the only reason there is chicken on the menu at a BBQ joint is so that there is something for the ladies to eat. Smoked sausage and pulled pork were altogether forgettable. Ribs were on point as usual. They really are the best ribs in Utah. Brisket was good. I was impressed. But it got better.

BBQ meatloaf. It was very surprising, and very good. Even better was the bread pudding. I approached the bread pudding with a little hesitation, but as soon as I saw the caramel sauce I was sold.

I had two big pieces, smothered in sauce. It was one of the best desserts I have ever eaten, and as a dessert guy, that's saying something. The sauce had notes of nutmeg, amaretto, and vanilla to it. The consistency of the bread pudding was flawless, and I was in heaven. If you haven't been to Pat's, go on Thursday night, the only night they make bread pudding.

It wasn't long before my eyelids started to droop and I had to lean back to make myself as comfortable as possible. I directly bypassed what my wife calls the "giddy full voice" and went straight to food coma. It was so worth it.

I love these...

I've just made a huge mistake. My friend Fish and I are like minded individuals. So like minded that it is sometimes uncanny. Food, bikes and gear are vices we share. This piece of gear came highly recommended from him. I tried them out last night and loved them. Swimming for more than five minutes is greatly enhanced by Weezer.