Showing newest 59 of 60 posts from July 2008. Show older posts
Showing newest 59 of 60 posts from July 2008. Show older posts

Thursday, July 31, 2008

31 Jul 08


30 Jul 08


29 Jul 08


28 Jul 08



She always looks like this- like she's just done something wrong and she's sorry.

Never Mind That..

So. I guess it doesn't matter how much of a total fuckup you are as long as you are working for the government, there's always a place for you!

Sonia Pitt was fired from the Minn. Transit Authority for unprofessional conduct after she didn't bother the respond to last years Bridge Collapse Disaster as a top DOT official.

Then an investigation revealed misallocation of over $11,000 of state money and that she screwed the state for about $14,500 for time that should have been considered personal time.

Sounds like she's got the perfect background and skill set to work for the TSA.

Wednesday, July 30, 2008

Half Rack of Death

I have gotten pretty particular about my food over the years. I don't mind paying for an expensive meal as long as is worth it. When I find something I think is the best of the best, I tend to not bother with the time or money to eat the second best or the mediocre alternative.

As a result, I will travel for the good stuff. I know what I like and I will hunt it down- through traffic or the TSA.. whatever it takes.

This includes BBQ and especially ribs. I love Memphis ribs - wet or dry, doesn't matter as long as it's in Memphis.

Now, one thing to keep in mind here is that I stopped eating meat a few years ago- however, when I do make it to Memphis I do go fully intending to get some ribs. Everybody's got exceptions. It's been a while. I think last time I was there and had ribs I had only been not eating meat for about 3-4 months.

However, this time, it's been a few years.. I didn't think too much about it because I did eat some meat in Germany. My non-carnivorousness is not ethical; it's more about dietary preference.

When we went to Germany, I decided that I wouldn't be getting the true Germany experience if I didn't at least try some of the meats and I did- I had some ham, some bratwurst, some stuffed cabbage.. it was all very good. I was amazed at how different it tasted then it does in the states. My working theory here is that it was all fresh, no chemicals in the animals or for preservation like we typically do here. I don't know if this is true or not, but there was definitely a big difference.

And amazingly, I did not get sick from the meat I ate even after the lenght of time it has been since I last had it. Great at the time, because I actually expected I would since it had been so long..

...hence the false sense of security...

So, Sunday afternoon prior to my fight home, Otto and I roll into The Blues City Cafe for a Half Rack and some Sweet Tea.

Here they are, the actual ribs that almost killed me:



I destroyed these ribs. There was nothing pretty about it. They never had a chance. And they were sooooo goood.

After I ate them... nothing... felt fine. Went to the airport, got on the plane, slept the entire flight, landed in Raleigh, got off the plane headed towards long term parking and then.... it hit me. I spent the next 25 minutes in a restroom at RDU.

But then, I was good. Not bad really, just par for the course.

Got in the car, got home, unpacked, and then I was heading towards bed and my stomach start feeling upset.

About 20 minutes later I was in the bathroom throwing up grease.

Yes, GREASE.

It was the most revolting thing. I had my head in the toilet for the better part of the night. I napped in between on the bathroom floor. It sucked. I thought I was going to die.

It was horrible. Never, never, never again. That was the last plate of ribs I'll ever eat. I couldn't eat Monday and Tuesday was a little iffy. Today's the first day my stomach has felt better and it's still not great.

Poor planning, yes, yes, I know.

It still makes me cringe to just think about it.

Tuesday, July 29, 2008

The Capital City's New Brewpub

Finally.
Ok... Well, maybe.
There's a new brew pub opening in Raleigh on August 25: Boylan's Bridge

At least that's their current posted date of opening.

This has been going on for the better part of a year. It was supposed to be last fall. Then this spring... then mid-summer.. There was a name change in the middle of all of this- it was Sidetrack Brewpub and then apparently they got a cease and desist letter from some bar up in Pennsylvania and now it's Boylan Bridge...

Okay so opening is August 25. Let's hope anyway.

Raleigh is a new beer town. In just the two years since we've moved here we've seen the availability of craft beers skyrocket around the Triangle. I assume it is probably because so many people are moving into the area and bringing their affinity for good beer with them.

There's some fantastic beers brewed in NC. Durham, Chapel Hill, Greensboro, and Winston-Salem each have fantastic breweries. But not here. Raleigh's a total void. We've only got Big Boss Brewery; which is roughly the equivalent of drinking warm semi-carbonated dishwater.

If good beer wasn't so readily available in the local restaurants, bars, and taprooms- we'd have moved already.

I've got high hopes for Boylan Bridge- the location and setup looks great. I just hope they can brew good beer.

Birthplace of the Blues

Shout out to the great city of Memphis. As always, well worth the trip and a good time was had by all.

Got to love a city that's all about Booze, BBQ, and the Blues.

Thanks to Otto we got to check out a lot of places I had never been to before or that were new and put some faces to the names with ATMike & Paul.

It's been a few years since I was in Memphis and I was surprised to see all the worth that's been going in to the downtown area.

We hit some of my old favorites like The Flying Saucer and Silky O'Sullivan's and found some new favorites.

For a great place to relax, play some beer pong, and catch a bird's eye view of the weekend skank parade going to and coming from Beale Street, do check out Hoop's Bar (connected to EP Delta Kitchen and right off Beale).

To take a step back from the Beale Street craziness, there's a new place called Itta Bena's on top of B.B. King's on Beale. Surrounded in with cobalt windows and filled with soulful singing accompanied by the piano, it's most definitely worth a stop. I think I could have blissfully spent the entire evening there.

We did hit The Blue Monkey for Sunday Brunch, the menu was light on options, but $3.00 mimosas and $2.50 Bloody Marys more than made up for that... I hear the Majestic is also a great place for brunch, but I didn't have the chance to make it there.

Drinks at the Peabody in the lounge area - it's like having cocktails inside the wild animal preserve at the zoo. They clearly get the cream of the crazy tourist crop. Like the grandma tantrum- pounding her fist on the desk screaming at the manager. About all I caught was how she was an "educated woman and was got to sue him for a million dollars" blah blah blah.. It was quite impossible to do anything except the dumb white girl stare..

This floor show was preceded about 10 minutes by a chick meltdown in the hallway, who was all up in some poor suckers face screaming about how "...you don't know me!" ... It reawakened my post-traumatic stress and I started having Olivia flashbacks...

At the Peabody, the marching ducks have nothing on the local tourist fauna.

As for the bachelorette part of the weekend, we did some shopping and some serious spa-ing in between the bars and restaurants and remained armed with cocktails for pretty much the duration. It was low key and chill and a hell of a good time.

I had a good time anyway.

Any excuse to go to Memphis is a good one to me.

27 Jul 08


26 Jul 08


25 Jul 08


24 Jul 08


23 Jul 08


22 Jul 08


21 Jul 08


20 Jul 08


19 Jul 08


Sunday, July 27, 2008

This has got to have a good story- this is in the ladies room

Saturday, July 26, 2008

Friday, July 25, 2008

Thursday, July 24, 2008

Adrift

I found out last night my soccer team had to pull out of Outdoor Fall Season registration yesterday due to lack of commitment from the players.

*Whine*

Damn. There were people (including myself) who were in for playing and really looking forward to getting back on the field outdoor- the whole point of us playing indoor this summer was to work on our technical skills. But it seems not enough people responded as fully committed by the deadline, so we are out.

Now, I am going to have to find another team. Damn it. Damn it. Damn it.

I just found this one (what like 6 months ago?) and I liked it. There were some really good players, some real characters, and some people I just plain enjoyed playing with.

I guess it's not as bad as like being the new kid at a new school again, right? But there's that whole process I am going to have to go through again. Plus, it's a team- you get a feel for people's strenghts and weaknesses and we were all just getting to the point of kinda gelling as a team - in retrospect I guess that is because a lot of people just stopped showing up, so the ones who keep showing up got a lot better playing together.

I was looking for a team when I found that one so whatever - I just want to play.

Monday, July 21, 2008

Juggling Act

Four days until Memphis.

Friday afternoon, I am going to suck down a bunch of booze (to self-medicate my air rage), fight my way through security, and fly to Memphis. I plan to be sitting on Beale Street drinking a Diver by 4pm.

It's a celebration- we are celebrating Katie's pending nuptials via beer, booze, spa appointments, food, and of course, lots and lots of Blues. I cannot wait.

I believe I have managed to double-book myself a bit as far as shit to do this week before I go. This is generally unlike me, I tend to juggle a lot of things (if I don't I get bored.. damn short attention span) but I usually don't end up with things getting away from me.

In addition to the Memphis Trip, my online class final is scheduled for either Thurs or Friday. Friday is obviously out, so that leaves me with Thurs.

I jacked around all weekend and didn't do any studying/reviewing to get ready for it, so that leaves me this week. Tonight I did some work but then I had a soccer game. So that leaves me Tues & Wed night after the gym to get all my studying in.

I got an invite to a work Happy Hour down at the Flying Saucer on Wed night. Then I got picked up to play another soccer game Thurs night.

Something has to give, it believe it or not is going to be Happy Hour.

I would rather play soccer than go to Happy Hour.

Seriously. I know I can't believe it. If this was my regular happy hour crew I might be a little more torn, but this isn't. It's the people from work who's continuously punked out on other happy hours.. now all of a sudden we stopped planning them and inviting them and now they want to go to one. If it were convient for me, I might go- but given my current schedule?

Nah. I would rather spend Wed night studying so I can play soccer Thurs night.

I still haven't figured out when to take the final. It's supposed to be 2 hours. I am going to have to take it late Thurs after I get home from the game or get up ass early and take it Friday morning before work.

Oh yeah and somewhere in all of this I am going to need to pack.

Saturday, July 19, 2008

Moms, Mullets, & Beer

What a week.

But I survived it and unless something really catastrophic happens over the weekend, there should be no reason that I have to go back in until Monday morning.

So I am going to suck down some coffee, grab a quick breakfast, and head out to the pool for the day.

Last night we went down to WakeMed Soccer Park to watch the Carolina Railhawks play the Puerto Rico Islanders- beautiful night for a game, I enjoyed it. The Railhawks lost, but the people watching was great. Drunk soccer moms and herds of Mexican mullets.

It was also my first athletic function, with a shitty selection of beer (InBev, InBev-light, Heineken, Heineken Light, and Tecate) and for the first time ever, I drank the Tecate. It was strange.

18 Jul 08


17 Jul 08


Wow...
Excellent job of making yourself completely unfuckable.

16 Jul 08


15 Jul 08


14 Jul 08


13 Jul 08


Thursday, July 17, 2008

Good Ol' Southern Cookin'

Okay, I'll buy that.

CDC Survey: South Leads Nation in Obesity

But in our defense, the food is just better here. It's hard.

Monday, July 14, 2008

Bye Bye Bud

I knew it was coming. I think we all did.

I have to say, I held out hope that someone the company and the stockholders would find a way to stop it. But it's over now. I think when I read the article yesterday my heart broke a little.

A-B's board sells kingdom to InBev for $52 billion

Another St. Louis company sold off to a conglomerate. *Sigh*
...McDonald-Douglas, TWA, Mallinckrodt, and now the soul of St. Louis, Anheiser-Busch. Shit.

Since I was old enough to say my name, it was St. Louis, Cardinals Baseball, and AB.

No more AB.

Please God, don't let them rename the stadium "InBev Stadium" --- I will cry. Throw me a bone here, they renamed my alma mater M.U.S.T for fuck sake- please please give me this one.

Another piece of St. Louis pride just died. For the record, I blame this on the weak dollar (thank you W) and the overpopulation of MBAs in the world. Augie's spinning in his grave.

There is actually some good that will come out of this I suppose.

One: We aren't going to see any more of those stupid, Baby Busch in the blue oxford sitting at a bar pretending to be drinking a Bud and trying to convince the viewer that he can relate to the blue collar Americans. Back to your fucking Dom Perignon and yacht -you worthless asshole.

Two: Whenever I am at a baseball game or sporting event or crappy bar (which typically only has a very limited beer selection) I always drink Bud Light. Not cause it's good, because I am a good St. Louis girl and that's what you do- It's a principle thing, yo.

Now? No fucking way. There went my my last loyalty.*Poof* Now if I can't find a good beer, I'll go to a different bar or watch the freaking game sober.

Life's too short for shitty beer.

Bye Bye Bud.

Saturday, July 12, 2008

12 Jul 08


Friday, July 11, 2008

When Words Fail

It's a rare event when words fail me.

Right now is one of those times.

I had such a bad day at work today, that words cannot adequately describe it or even attempt to.

It took me a pint of Jack & Coke and watching Happy Feet to even get this far.

For my own sanity, I think from now on I am going to make a serious effort to not discuss, refer to, or even reference: my job, the company, any various projects, or any of the people I work.

At work I need to make an effort to discuss nothing except work and that only if absolutely necessary. I need to start eating lunch by myself at my desk or leaving site alone. I need to not talk to anyone about anything that is not essential to the job at hand.

Congrats. I think they finally broke me.

11 Jul 08


10 Jul 08


09 Jul 08


08 Jul 08


07 Jul 08


06 Jul 08


Sunday, July 6, 2008

Good News

I got a text from my friend, Mr. Towel, this afternoon with great news; he & his girlfriend, Gem, are in Hawaii on holiday and he asked her to marry him & she accepted.

Whoo HOO!

Congrats! I am so happy for both of them!

Catch Up

Finally. I am caught up on my pics. I have really gotten behind here lately. Seems like things have been getting away from me.

Works been crazy, we are in shutdown and on top of that my big ugly project is finally getting rolling (like a run away freight train of course).

Last weekend we went out to the Emerald Isle to hang out on the beach and while a good time was had by all, being gone all weekend seemed to throw me off my game and I just couldn't get back on to it.

We had a 4th of July Party on Friday and just getting ready for that added to the chaos, but it went well and all seemed to have a good time. I knew the wheels were coming off when Rob and Robin started digging around the the liquor cabinet trying to new create shots.

I hope everyone had a great holiday. I think we all need more 3 day weekends.

Cheers.

05 Jul 08


04 Jul 08





4th of July Party

03 Jul 08


02 Jul 08


01 Jul 08


29 Jun 08


Unfortunately, this picture did not come out as well as I hoped, you might be able to zoom in. You know that continuous spray no-rub sunscreen? Well, not so much. Rob used it, did a half-assed job and ended up with HUGE white smears all over his chest, a huge white target around one nipple, and a set of finger marks on the right side. You should have seen the looks people we giving him the next day that the beach! It was almost on-par with the nine nipple incident. It's been a week and you can still see it clearly too.

28 Jun 08



Emerald Isle, NC

27 Jun 08



26 Jun 08

25 Jun 08



Happy Birthday Rob!

24 Jun 08

Wednesday, July 2, 2008

23 Jun 08

22 Jun 08