Adventures in Gastronomy

I can’t believe I’ve not blogged since the election. Not much has happened in my life personally since then, but it sure as hell seems like a lot has happened nationally (and internationally) not that the US government is going to be under new leadership.

I normally hate change…but I’d take anything over the past 8 years.

Randy’s 12 day business trip is coming to a close. He returns tomorrow night. Well, technically his flight leaves tonight at 7:20PM (which is 8:20AM on Saturday for him). And he arrives in Boston on Saturday night at 8:20PM. Basically, a 25 hour flight. Better him than me.

It’l be great to see him. WEEEEEEEE – I’m going to have to put my foot down. No trips longer than a week from now on. And if they are going to be longer, he’s required to pay for me to come along.

I think that’s perfectly reasonable. I’ve got my passport, I might as well use it.

November 7th, 2008
Categories: Uncategorized . Author: snarl . Comments: 3 Comments

I heard that over and over this morning as I voted in Somerville. It took 50 minutes from waiting in line, to voting, to sticking the ballot in the machine. For the last 20 minutes of it I had to hear a woman with a shrill voice say repeatedly (to anybody who would listen) that they were having problems with the ballots “because of the cut. The papah is too thick.”

Over and over.

The pitch of her voice was bad enough, the boston accent on the “paper” was worse.

Alas, I did manage to vote…and took TWO “I voted” stickers; one for today, the second one to wear to the election party I’m going to tonight.

This will definitely be an interesting election. I was emailing with a close friend from high school (one of my oldest friends…in terms of friendship duration, not age) and I found it fascinating how different our perceptions of the election were. Here we were…both from the same town, same race, same junior high and high school, same lower-middle class (ish) background…yet we have completely opposing views of the election. In her eyes, there is only one issue in this campaign: national security.

I, on the other hand, barely had that issue in my top 5 (economy, national defecit, supreme court nominations were the top four…not necessarily in that order). National security isn’t something I really worry about since neither candidate wants to decrease airport security or loosen immigration laws. And I’ve always felt safe flying or visiting other countries. Meanwhile, I feel that the four issues I have are the ones that will affect me and my loved ones the most over the next 4 years…or 4 decades (when you take into consideration the impact of new supreme court justice appointees).

Still, my friend and I are both reasonably intelligent, open-minded people. I just love how we can have such vastly different perspective on the election.

November 4th, 2008
Categories: Uncategorized . Author: snarl . Comments: 2 Comments

Randy is now in his 7th day of a 12 day trip to Asia (Taipei, Seoul, Singapore).  I’m ready for him to return. If the airfare wasn’t so obscene (I think Randy’s company paid over $2,000) and if it wouldn’t have eaten up so many vacation days, I’d have tagged along.

Instead, I’m holding down the fort at home…and ready for his return. It’s true absence makes the heart grow fonder. He used to travel a lot for work so I would have to adapt to him not being around. In fact, there was a spell last fall where he traveled every single week in November and December (granted, some of that was personal, like our trip to Argentina, his Thanksgiving in Virginia, and our trip to California).

But over the past year, in his new position at work, he travels much less. In fact, I can’t recall a single trip more than one or two nights in length. So, with our 24/7 togetherness, I guess you take things for granted. But now that he’s gone, it’s easier to realize how much his presence makes a difference in my life. Yeah, it was kinda’ nice the first few nights to have the bed to myself.

But now? He can come home now.

I guess one of the other issues with traveling to Asia is the 14 hour time difference. It makes it difficult to chat/talk since he’s awake while I sleep, or I’m awake while he sleeps. That means we only have the ability to communicate in the morning from around 8AM – 10AM (which is 10PM to midnight for him) and 6PM to 8PM (which is 8AM to 10AM for him). Otherwise, one of us is either sleeping, or working. And even during those two inconvenient hours in the morning and evening, one of us is also busy either prepping for work, eating breakfast or dinner, or prepping for bed.

Fortunately, I managed to keep myself entertained this weekend. On Friday I continued the game night tradition with Chris, Pete, and Zack. On Saturday I went to the Cape to see my parents (and came back Sunday afternoon). I’ve got an electrion party tomorrow night and lunch with my cousin on Saturday. At some point, I’ll also have Scrabble night with Deano. This week should fly by in no time.

November 3rd, 2008
Categories: Uncategorized . Author: snarl . Comments: 1 Comment

You may (or may not) have noticed that I’ve not blogged on Thursdays lately. I should also add that I likely won’t be blogging on Thursdays until mid-December. That’s because I’m taking this management course at Harvard right now and it takes place on, you guessed it, Thursday.

It’s run by the Harvard Center for Workplace Development. Six or seven years ago I took the entry-level version of the course, Leadership Essentials. This time around, I’m taking Foundations of Leadership (at least, I think that’s the name).

I recall learning some helpful tips the first time around so I’m hoping for something similar this time. Prior to starting the course, I had to complete a lengthy survey. In addition, I had to have my co-workers, direct reports (well, only one direct report), and boss fill out the same survey about my performance.

Yesterday we got the results back, and I have to admit I was surprised by a few things. Most significantly, the results indicated that I have a strong sense of self (self confidence, self-esteem, etc…). In fact, on a scale of 0-100, I scored a 99 in my self evaluation, with various scores from my peers in the 40-70 range). Similarly, when it came to “outgoing”, I also scored a 99 in the self evaluation, and similar scores among my peers.

WTF? I’ve always thought that I had the lowest self-esteem of anybody I know (hello, therapy?). I also consider myself quite shy, particularly around strangers or in social situations (parties, meetings, speaking up in class, etc…). Where the hell did these results come from? It always fascinates me how others perceive me. But how could I be so off in my perceptions of my own self? 

October 31st, 2008
Categories: Uncategorized . Author: snarl . Comments: 2 Comments

I’m sure you’ve all read about this an unbelievable number of times since last weekend, but I just feel like I have to put in my two cents.

WTF was that father thinking allowing his 8 year old child to shoot an Uzi? For you non-locals, a Connecticut father brought is son to a shooting range event and allowed him to shoot an automatic rifle. Of course, that in itself is bad enough. What happened next, somewhat predictably, was that the child ended up shooting himself in the head and killing himself.

The judgemental bleeding-heart liberal in me (which is really only about 10% of me, as I’m surprisingly conservative on numerous issues) wants to ban all guns in Massachusetts and hold the father and gun club responsible for the child’s death. The realistic moderate in me (probably about 70% of me) says we shoud enact laws to forbid children from shooting any firearms, and should ban any style of weapon not used for hunting (do people really need to own an Uzi?). The conservative in me (about 20% of me) says leave the laws as they are, it’s a free country, and the father has suffered enough.

Besides, guns may be their hobby. And I’d be just as angry if there were laws forbidding me from participating in my hobbies, like cockfighting or dealing drugs or getting really drunk then driving. Oh wait, there ARE laws against those things. And why is that? To protect others.

Now, I’m all for letting people live and let live. Do what you want to do as long as it doesn’t put OTHER people at risk. What you decide to do to yourself is up to you so if you’re careless and die as a result of your own stupidity, well, at least there’s one less stupid person in the world. But, when your activities CAN affect other people, that’s when I care.

But allowing children barely out of car seats to use an Uzi? That’s just stupid. That’s putting you, your child, and those around you at risk.

*Oh yeah, and that’s me in that photo with a completely inappropriate toy…and I find that image very disturbing.

October 29th, 2008
Categories: Uncategorized . Author: snarl . Comments: 4 Comments

As always, I had a nice weekend overall. Friday night was wings and game night. On Saturday we went to the gym then had a little gathering in the evening (southern style: fried chicken, fried green tomatoes, fried ocra, tater tots)….and two Carvel ice cream cakes! Randy did the cooking and asked that other people bring dessert. For a gathering of only 7 people, we ended up with two Carvel ice cream cakes (yay – leftovers).

But, without trying to insult my friends, the most memorable part of the weekend was, surprisingly, Sunday. You see, my brother invited me to a graduation ceremony for my sister-in-law’s service dog. Yep, a graduation for a dog.

The bitter, cynical ass in me must admit that I went into this thing skeptically…imagining a hokey gathering of dogs walking on stage to pick up doggie treats shaped like diploma scrolls. My assumptions couldn’t have been further from the truth.

The event was coordinated by NEADS, an organization that trains service dogs for disabled people. It began with the audience (hundreds of people, I might add) doing the pledge of allegiance – something I don’t think I’ve done since junior high school.

The first two recipients were two Iraq war veterans. Both had been injured in combat; one was confined to a wheelchair, the other was a double leg amputee. They both came on stage and spoke about their experiences. Already, my eyes were beginning to water.

As the ceremony went on, we heard from various people whose lives have changed as a result of their new service dogs (deaf people, people with muscular distrophy, people with Asperger’s, people recovering from accidents, etc…). It was so inspirational.

One gentleman suffered from weakness in his right side that caused him to be frequently get pushed down even in the smallest of crowds if somebody bumped into him. He started off with a humorous story, but ended up completely breaking down into tears (along with most of the audience who all then erupted in applause).

A 13 year old girl in a wheelchair spoke about finally feeling confident enough to go in public now that people stop staring at her and focus on the dog.

And Heidi (my sister-in-law’s) dog, Mercury, is the most handsome black labrador. He accompanied her on stage (she was in her wheelchair) and she spoke of hoping to re-enter the work force next year, assisting other people suffering from disabilities (her background is as a registered nurse).

What an inspirational event this was. I’m so glad I went (Randy came, and also choked up at times).

Anyway, I don’t normally do this….but here’s a link to the organization.

http://www.neads.org/about_us/client_view.php?id=117

Specifically, it’s a link to my sister-in-law’s page on their website. They are always taking donations (and as a non-profit with no government funding, they can use the help). It costs up to $20,000 to train a dog, so they function completely on volunteerism and donations. To donate specifically to Heidi’s dog, follow the link to the right of the photo.

Thanks!

October 27th, 2008
Categories: Uncategorized . Author: snarl . Comments: 2 Comments

I always knew that my old high school had a good reputation for the plays and musicals they would put on. Well, at least its reputation on Cape Cod was always pretty good. But the WB has been airing webisodes of a show called “High Drama: Against all Oz” which takes place at good ole’ Barnstable High School.

Apparently, my old high school has the largest public school auditorium in all of New England (1,400 seats). Back when I was a student there, that would house the entire high school population. Nowadays it can only accomodate half of the school. YIKES!

It’s interesting to watch this show, though. For one, I never really thought of Cape Codders having a Boston accent – but they really do. Funny, I don’t recall that from when I lived there (20 years ago). I know there has been a huge population increase down there…maybe the new generation are all transplants from the city?

As for the play they’re putting on (The Wizard of Oz) it’s a pretty spectacular production. Mr. Sullivan, the drama teacher, is still there. The sets are amazing. And the elaborate use of props (smoke machines, lifts, trapeze…even a live horse) is pretty impressive. Who funds these things?

Unfortunately, it doesn’t appear that the full play airs on the WB…it’s just a making of documentary about how a high school puts together such a spectacle.

Damn – I’d have watched that.

October 24th, 2008
Categories: Uncategorized . Author: snarl . Comments: 5 Comments

So the Peabody, MA, police union wants the new contract to consider 9/11 (of any year) a holiday. That would mean overtime pay for any officer working that day. WTF?

I can see NYC police (and fire, and paramedics) fighting for such a thing since, you know, since they were the actual people who a) helped at the site and b) lost hundreds of their peers that day. But Peabody?

Still, it brings up a good point about how we should be commemorating that day. I’m torn. Obviously, we should not forget. If it’s going to be a holiday for some, it should be a holiday for all. But that’s only if this day should even be considered a holiday in the first place. I know we have Pearl Harbor Day (the closest thing I can think of to an attack on U.S. soil) but we still work. We just use the date to remember it, the same way we currently remember 9/11.

And we have Memorial Day (an actual national holiday) to remember those who died fighting for our rights, no matter which war or on what dates those wars took place. We just remember them all on that one day. I suppose 9/11 could fall under that umbrella.

If 9/11 were to become it’s own holiday, it would be silly to honor it on the actual day since we’ll have just had Labor Day a few days before…two holidays in one week? Why not spread it out?

How about throwing a holiday someday in March or April? That’s the longest stretch without any major national holidays. Plus, the weather is shit and we could use a long weekend. It wouldn’t have to be a 9/11 holiday. We could make one up. How about the First Day of Spring Day? Or, I’ve always thought April Fool’s Day was underrated.

October 22nd, 2008
Categories: Uncategorized . Author: snarl . Comments: 3 Comments

I didn’t hang out with Glen Frey this past weekend. But Sunday night around 6:30PM was when Randy officially turned the heat on for the winter season. I personally thought we could have gone another 24 hours (since wouldn’t really need it while sleeping last night nor while at work today), but my frail Randy begged to differ.

It was a good weekend overall, though. Friday night was dinner and games with the usual Chris and Pete. On Saturday, Randy and I went leaf peeping in Lincoln, Massachusetts, during the day then hosted a wine-tasting party in the evening. We had about 12 people in attendance and Randy made his sister-in-law’s pulled pork recipe (yum).

We finally made it to the gym on Sunday, dragging our friend, Jeff, along hoping to sign him up in the process. At 4PM we were supposed to go to a house-warming party for our friends, Mark and Kana, but Kana’s water broke and started going into labor (she’s due in two weeks).  Needless to say, the party was canceled.

Instead, the party clan went to a restaurant in Teele Square called Rudy’s and had dinner. Then we all returned to our place to partake in all of the desserts everybody had prepared for the party (blueberry pie, key lime pie, apple tart, chocolate cake).

So much for the gym. Oh, but in between all of this weekend’s events Randy took this photo of me (while playing with his new camera) as I was stretching. I actually look like I have muscles! Maybe the gym is paying off after all?

October 20th, 2008
Categories: Uncategorized . Author: snarl . Comments: 4 Comments

I’ve not been to the gym in two weeks. Two weekends ago I went to a Wedding on Friday, then had a stomach bug on Saturday and Sunday. That stomach bug morphed into a cold that kept me out of commission Monday thru Thursday. Then we went to NYC Friday thru Monday. Then, well, I just got lazy. At that point it had already been a week so why not just delay the inevitable return to the gym even longer.

Randy wants to go tonight. Whoopie.

Of all times, this is probably the best time to go (and to go more frequently). For one thing, Randy has commented (twice, actually) that it looks like my belly has gotten a bit smaller over the past month or so. I’m sure the stomach bug helped, but I’ve also been trying to eat less during the day.

Also, we’re fast approaching the holiday season so my caloric intake is likely to increase in the next few weeks (Costco is already selling…and we’re already eating…their yummy holiday cookies). Better to combat those calories with some physical exertion than with couch time.

But can’t we just put it off one more day?

October 17th, 2008
Categories: Uncategorized . Author: snarl . Comments: Comments Off on It’s Been a While