Cynically Optimistic

I hit the beach in Rehoboth, DE ( "I wanna see a screen door factory!" ) with Tom for the holiday weekend. After dealing with a pesky EZPass malfunction, we made it to the beach without major delay. Our accommodations were just a short walk from the beach, giving us the opportunity to walk off a few calories en route everyday. The other guys in the guest house were great fun, and we always got back together for dinner.

First stop on Friday night was Happy Hour at the Blue Moon. I was a happy boy, because the bar stocked Magic Hat #9. That, and the great company, which included, but was not limited to Tom, Todd, Bob, Craig, Ira, TJ and Rob, Rich and Nick, Jim, and Mr. Mike. Afterwards, we went for margaritas and dinner at Dos Locos. The party train then moved to the Double L Bar. I think we walked the looooooooong way home afterward - in Crocs nonetheless.

I only saw a few other people in Crocs during the weekend, and they were little kids. I rocked my yellow ones, and Tom his blue ones, as much as possible. We heard occasional whispers about them as we walked past. At one point a fourth-floor balcony of belching women asked about them. A hit? Perhaps...

Saturday and Sunday were beach days - "Poodle Beach" and North Beach, respectively. Poodle was very crowded and quite the spectacle. Really, you can only imagine the parading and pageantry on the beach. Contrast that with the chilled and relaxed atmosphere of North Beach. We ran into Rich and Nick there, too. There are two WWII relics (ruins?) on the beach - gunmen watch towers. Sunday afternoon a thick fog rolled in off the Atlantic, adding to the creepiness of the scene, but soon they were completley obscured. We walked two miles on the beach back to Rehoboth and met up with Bob for ice cream, followed by a tea dance at Cafe Zeus.

Speaking of Cafe Zeus, they were thoughtful enough to keep a "lifeguard" on duty for crowd safety. Additionally, he was available for body shots - abs or lower back, your choice. Too pricey and trashy for me - but not for this guy.

Monday we headed out early-ish, skipping another great beach day. We stopped at the Crystal Restaurant for brunch and then stopped for a bit at the outlet malls. Remember kids, Delaware has 0% sales tax. The Russian waitress commented on my t-shirt, "I'm Russian, I like shirt. I'm not communist." Indeed!

Armed with three maps, we were mostly successful in circumnavigating the traffic backups. The Chesapeake Bay Bridge is quite a marvel of modern engineering - and a little vertigo inducing. Back in DC, we took a pleasant walk to Georgetown for BBQ. We were going to hang out and watch the sunset, but the nasty mosquitos drove us away.

It was a great weekend with near-perfect weather and fun in the sun!!! More photos are available here!

Posted by Jeff at 08:12 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

* Premium Fuel in Iowa: $2.57. Premium Fuel in Long Island: $3.41. We joked that it would almost be worth it to get rid of all our suitcases and simply fly home with gasoline in our carry-on bags. Too bad I doubt they'd allow that.

* I was perusing my site stats and noticed I had a visitor from a place called Truth or Consequences, NM. For Real. Population: 7000. Renamed after a TV show from 1950. Classy!

* Speaking of classy, anybody heard Nelly Furtado feat. Timbaland on "Promiscuous Girl" ? Kinda Catchy. I guess the censors wouldn't let them call it "Slut!" or "Whore". Although, there was that Ludacris song, "Ho", off the album Incognegro.

* Last Friday en route to LGA, after losing signal to my local NPR station, I flipped over to KTU and heard the song Buffalo Stance, by Nenah Cherry and I nearly drove off the road laughing with glee.

No moneyman can win my love

We always hang in a Buffalo Stance

I give you love, baby not romance

Posted by Jeff at 10:15 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Whirlwind weekend tours in Iowa are always so much fun, and pass by too quickly. This was my first chance to introduce Tom to some of my friends from Iowa. Josh, Tom, and I had dinner at the Iowa Beef Steakhouse. It seemed like an obvious choice for fresh Iowa Beef. Later on we met up with Lisa, BC, and Freddie at a bar downtown called Blazing Saddles. Giddyup. Bar hopping ensued. The High Life Lounge was decorated like a 70's kitchen and living room, complete with old style beer signs, vinyl furniture, shag carpet, and linoleum tables. Somehow we used plastic shot glasses to play quarters with our Miller High Life. We almost made it to the car when we were drawn into the Hessen Haus for a boot full of beer. The bartender in a baby-T denied us boots, because it was near last call. Boo-urns!

Guess we'll go home and play Bastardized Metten Kings. And eat junk food. mmmm...Twizzlers.....

Saturday, after gorging on bacon and eggs for breakfast, there were errands to run. Us out of town-ers need to replenish Iowa gear periodically. Of course, we had to hit Dairy Queen (for the second time). Other stops were Scheels All Sports and the Apple Store at the Jordan Creek Mall Town Center. Holy Crap that place is HURGE! Then we went to pick up a last-minute Atlas at Wal-Mart. SCARY!

Tom: Wow, we really just walked to and from the car all day today. I'm glad we went to Dairy Queen.
Lisa: Hey! We walked around a LOT inside Wal-Mart!

Back at Josh's, we started pre-partying, got dressed and headed downtown to the Hotel Fort Des Moines for the reception. The Gigantone family was in attendance, Frosty rolled in only a few minutes behind schedule, and the Stretch family was there too. So good to finally see Roadhead and meet Heather, who was really gracious and had a LOT of fun with us, even though we'd just met. Food was eaten. Drinks were Drunk. Most of us danced like crazy fools, sometimes with other people's moms. As per usual.

Post-reception, we hit the bar downstairs with most of the wedding party and many other guests. Luckily, Jack had brought along his stainless-steel shot glass travel set and we got a game of quarters going. With 15 or 16 people, using 3 glasses. The game just kept on going, it was quarters nirvana! Back at the house we played more games and passed out (again).

Sunday was the typical late-wakeup, hurry up and pack, rush to brunch, get to the airport race. I got stuck a bit in ORD due to mechanical problems and wind at LGA. While switching gates, I helped a blind Illinois fan who was traveling without his seeing eye dog. He said the dog's getting too old to make long trips anymore. I know people get close to their pets, but it must be especially hard to lose a friend like that who you depend on to live your life every day. I saw a few terrible displays of New Yorkers being jerks in airports - more on that later.

Eventually I made it back to the east coast and miraculously my car was neither towed away nor broken into. It's now Tuesday and I'm recuperated. Mostly.

Posted by Jeff at 10:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Go and consume. Text coming soon.

Posted by Jeff at 02:15 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

So much to say. So many pictures to post. So sleepy. So hungover. (Yes, still.) So. Much. Fun!!!

More to come.

Posted by Jeff at 12:17 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

For those peeps in the area, I'll be in Des Moines Friday night through Sunday morning for a wedding reception. If you're going to be there and want to hang out, gimme a call, or email, or leave a comment here. Best to call. Or call Josh, as I'm staying at his place.

Of course, there will be photos next week.

Update: I'm hungover already.

Posted by Jeff at 11:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

Posted by Jeff at 10:20 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Southewst Airlines is really treating me right these days. On a Friday during rush hour, I can make it to D.C. in under 4 hours (couple with an Amtrak or MARC train). It's usually the cheaper than driving as well, and much less stressful. Tom picked me up from Union Station, and after making a lap or two around the parking garage, we made it home. Headed over to Titan for a few drinks with Carl, Bob, Malcolm, Chris, and friends. This guy started up conversation with a chest punch or two.

Saturday after a nice drive through Virginia we attended a going away party, followed by dinner at Dukem, an Ethiopian restaurant which was delicious. Then on to Blowoff for a great great night. Thanks Bob and Rich for a great night. All the hotness was in attendance. Jim and Don. Jimbo. Carl. Sean and Mark. Chrisafer. I'm sure there were plenty of other kids out partying that night, come say hi sometime.

Sunday was a rainy yet relaxing day spent at an inside BBQ. I think I consumed at least 5000 calories in one sitting. I still consider it a round meal, since I ate from all of the food groups: Beef. Chicken. Pork. Chocolate. Whipped Cream. Okay, I admit it, I couldn't finish the carrot cake - but I did eat asparagus to balance it all out.

Pictures are posted in the gallery! My favorite quote from the weekend: "Reality is fun. Without it, there'd be nothing to blog about."

Posted by Jeff at 11:07 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Above and beyond anything else I might have learned while spending two summers marching with Cavaliers (and believe me, there was plenty) was that Gold Bond was the best friend you could find on tour. It's not a good idea to be outside sweating up a storm and wearing constricting clothing during the summer. If you're not careful you might end up with some... let's just say "uncomfortable chafing". Gold Bond to the rescue. I recommend it both as relief after a day outside getting hot and sweaty, and as a preventative measure before heading out for a jog, to play tennis, or whatever.

Posted by Jeff at 09:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

*ring ring* "Hi, we're grilling tonight, why don't you come over?" One big London Broil , 4 marinated pork ribs, and 2 filet mignon burgers were soon sizzling away on the grill, and the house was full of people. We decided Coronas were appropriate, since they were still on sale from Cinco de Mayo. Olé! Admittedly, I was nervous that I'd screw up a huge expensive piece of meat, but luck was on my side today and it grilled up beautifully. How could it not after I slathered it in butter, sprinkled lightly with kosher salt, and added a few splashes of Worchestershire Sauce. Oh, how I'm going to miss the grilling when I move to Manhattan.

Later, after many Coronas and several shots of Mango Rum (don't ask), the Trebuchet was brought into action once again. At first we tried using M&M's as projectiles, but they were too light, even the peanut kind. The Pirates of the Carribean flavor were what we were using - gem colored, and gold colored. Get enough folks with Ph.D.'s in a room and it's pretty dangerous, analyzing exactly how to improve the projectile so that Jérôme might try and catch it in his mouth. The solution? Cut a hole in a marshmallow and stuff with one peanut M&M - big enough to stay in the sling, and heavy enough to release properly. Alas, he kept closing his eyes as the projectile flew at his face, so poor Jérôme was unsuccessful at catching the prize. I definitely had a good time watching things bounce off his nose though. I have a few snippets of video, but it'd be cruel to post that....[maybe later...].

Posted by Jeff at 12:26 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Days being as they are, it was tough to decide what to attack first. In the end, I've got nothing but bunnies in the backyard at which to hurl stones. The picnic table gave the best strategic angle to bombard the bunnies. In lieu of actually calculating the physics of the equipment, Wendy and I decided to just test the device empirically. Too many horrible memories of ice skaters on frictionless, massless planes exist between the two of us that we'd end up in a miserable crying heap. I digress.

The bucket was loaded up with rocks from under the deck, and the sling loaded with one small, flat rock (the round ones kept rolling out). Let the flinging begin!

The instructions clearly indicate that we must not stand in front nor in back of the trebuchet while in motion. We only had one misfire, and no one was hurt. In fact, we got about 8 feet of distance out of our small model trebuchet. You can see the projectile in midair in the third photo there.
After a while we got the hang of things, exactly how to load and release the contraption, you get the idea. After a bit, Wendy tried launching half a strawberry and it worked great. Fortunately for the rabbits they had all gone to bed already. There's even a movie (3.4 MB) for those interested. What to do next? Perhaps I should take it to the beach and lay waste to some poor child's sandcastle?

A big thanks to Wendy for a fun gift and for helping in the project.

Posted by Jeff at 10:36 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

One of my birthday presents this year (thanks Wendy) was a Wooden Trebuchet kit from the Sunward Aerospace Group Limited. What's that? It's a medieval siege weapon. We sat down to assemble the kit last Thursday afternoon, mocking the advertised "Skill Level 3" indication. The instructions insisted we wear safety glasses at all times - aaahahahahahahaha!. It goes together with classic peg-in-hole construction, stabilized by white or yellow glue. Nuts to that! We're using Gorilla Glue here people - nothing but the best. The instructions leave a bit to be desired, so we ended up using them like suggestions and interpreting their intended meaning. There was a lot of inuendo if you asked me. "Around the side and through this hole." "Put glue on member." "Adjust the length of the sling."

Instructions are boring, let's get building.

Here we go! Not too many pieces to be intimidating, but not enough to figure out on your own. We ignored the "TAKE YOUR TIME" statements everywhere. Let the gluing begin.

As you see, I had to enlist the best tool of all when building things - beer. Conveniently, it stabilized the pieces while the glue dried. Time for more beer.

Due to Canadian craftsmanship issues, the pieces didn't align correctly. In a pinch, rubberbands work great to hold things together. Note: spangly gold uber-gay rubberband in the background.

Later in the evening, I had to enlist power tools to finish the job. Those wheels didn't spin smoothly. Blame Canada! Blame Canada! Wendy tied on the bucket, and the sling was all set.

Tomorrow - Have fun stormin' the castle.

Posted by Jeff at 12:35 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Did you know April 29th was the International German Beard Championships? Neither did I until I saw these photos on Yahoo News. Perhaps one day when I become a crazy old man I can pick up beard sculpture as a pastime.

But then I might have to become German. kein dank.

Posted by Jeff at 05:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

This long weekend's activities are varied and random. Wendy came to Long Island to visit on Thursday. We spent the afternoon enjoying the warm weather and sunshine with a special project. More on that later... Friday brought us to New York City, and I spent the afternoon at my new grad school, a.k.a. "The Institute". My first rotation is set up, and pretty much I'm set to move in whenever I want. I also got a chance to scope out my new neighborhood.

Meanwhile, back downtown, an Acela train rolled into Penn Station carrying Tom. We made our way downtown to Rosa Mexicana, where George was hanging out. We split after several fancy margaritas to get sweet delicious sushi. En route to Snaxx (and sans password) we were enticed into a bakery by an unpaid cupcake patron who insisted, "These are better than Magnolia's. They have red velvet cupcakes." Intrigued, I had to have one. Mmmmmmm, Red Velvet Cupcake. Delectable!!!

We Snaxxed. We went (to) Nowhere. We drank (free) shots. We ate pizza. We heard far too many car horns at 7 am. Saturday brought us to church The Apple Store in SoHo, followed by a stroll through TriBeCa and a trip to Ground Zero and Battery Park City. We ate a crepe on the street in Chelsea. A Seinfeldian moment occurred as I snapped this photo of the nexus of the universe and almost got hit by several cars.

Let's talk about hand sliced meat for a moment. Ever since our failed attempt on New Year's Eve, I've been jonesing for some pastrami at Katz's Deli - so that's where we dined. Pastrami. Corned Beef. Brisket. Yuuuuuuummmmmy! Moist, tasty, delicious!!! I highly recommend it. Afterward, a venue change to meet up with other folks, listen to live music, and drink more margaritas. More bouncing around the east village ensued, ending up at Lucky Jack's Bar.

On Sunday morning, George put together a delicious bagel breakfast for 7 people. Plus Cauwffee. Can we tawlk? No big whoop. Eventually, it was time to return to Long Island and Tom and I jumped on the next convenient LIRR train. Inconveniently, a brush fire (wtf?) on the tracks prevented us from getting any further than Mineola where we were stranded with 750 of our closest friends. We paced a bit, thwarted by the one-toothed taxi gouger who was attempting to coordinate the hoards of people into the appropriate taxis. Tom and I walk around the corner and have an Amazing Race moment, as a taxi pulls up and we are set. PHEW!!! As our taxi drops us off at Hicksville we hear the announcement that train service will now be resuming. Figures.

Posted by Jeff at 10:13 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)