| The Phillys? Are they a baseball team or something? |
[Oct. 21st, 2008|09:27 am] |
So I flew back East to Philadelphia for a super short trip to visit my older Brother [1]. It was his birthday and we spent the time wandering around on bicycles, shopping, picking up presents for him, provisions for a party Friday and generally hanging around.
Highlights:
- Sam's Morning Glory - I'm pretty sure I had an extended foodgasm from the Monkey French Toast. [2]
- Manayunk - To pick up this print as one of his birthday presents.
- Daffy's - Excellent overstock store, think Nordstrom rack. I picked up a nice new Merino wool sweater for $30.
- Chinatown - To pick up a birthday cake.
- Ikea - Things for Macaire's apartment. Since the new building owners repainted, tiled and carpeted his place is looking pretty swank.
- Picture hanging (FAIL) - I think his walls are made of paper-mâché. Sorry about the hole in your wall. :-(
- Party - Rock Band 2 with the really nice drums [3]. Lots of people, lots of socializing, lots of video game playing.
- Happily Ever After - A super nice toy store. Very friendly owners and some incredibly neat things.
- Touscher Chocolates - Veeeery nice Swiss chocolates.
All in all a very successful visit.
[1] I landed Thursday morning and left Saturday afternoon.
[2] Challah French Toast with mango and banana's and caramel sauce.
[3] And a 108" projection screen, and $300 dollars of downloaded songs. |
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| Fun with Fruit |
[Sep. 10th, 2008|03:06 pm] |
 Evidently in Valencia Spain, for a reason that no human can agree on, people throw about 100 tons of overripe tomatoes at one another. The Tomatina Festival lasts a week long with food, parades, paella, and the usual accoutrements.
 It attracts huge numbers of tourists, swelling the towns population three to five times it's normal size.
 The actual throwing of tomatoes lasts one hour and is signaled to start and end with a burst of water from cannons.
It sounds like good filthy fun. |
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| It's my birthday and the cake is on fire^W^W alive |
[May. 7th, 2008|06:15 am] |
While perusing ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) jwz's journal this morning, I came across a link to one of the best birthday cakes ever. I think the organ cake is more impressive granted. But, I think this one comes out ahead for sheer Lovecraftian awesomeness.
Behold the horrible non-euclidean cake geometries below:
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Oh, and in other news, the new refrigerator (bought about two weeks ago) is no longer cold inside. Bugger. |
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| The King of Fruits revisiting |
[Jul. 27th, 2007|07:01 am] |
I hadn't packed a lunch for work today, which nicely coincided with my co-worker wanting to go out to lunch. We ended up at a Malaysian place.
I had a Durian shake at lunch (they were out of avocados). I'm not sure that was so wise.
The five cells are silky-white within, and are filled with a mass of firm, cream-coloured pulp, containing about three seeds each. This pulp is the eatable part, and its consistence and flavour are indescribable. A rich custard highly flavoured with almonds gives the best general idea of it, but there are occasional wafts of flavour that call to mind cream-cheese, onion-sauce, sherry-wine, and other incongruous dishes. Then there is a rich glutinous smoothness in the pulp which nothing else possesses, but which adds to its delicacy. It is neither acid nor sweet nor juicy; yet it wants neither of these qualities, for it is in itself perfect. It produces no nausea or other bad effect, and the more you eat of it the less you feel inclined to stop. In fact, to eat Durians is a new sensation worth a voyage to the East to experience. ... as producing a food of the most exquisite flavour it is unsurpassed.
It was very nice drinking it, but I'm burping now and again and it's now somewhat... vile. |
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| I do love CSPI |
[Jun. 18th, 2007|08:16 am] |
Esesntially New York health regulations will require large chain restaurants to include calorie information on their menus.
The NYSRA claims that the rule violates the restaurant owner's First Amendment rights, and discourages restaurants from providing nutritional information for fear they they will be required to post it on the menu.
First Amendment rights? Right...
Personally, I really like CSPI's response.
The New York City Board of Health was absolutely right to require certain large restaurant chains to put calorie counts on menu boards. When it goes into effect this measure will be of enormous help to New Yorkers who are watching their weight, or trying to make healthy choices for their children. What does the industry have to fear, other than the fact that some people might get medium sodas instead of large, or regular hamburgers instead of Triple Whoppers? Or, heaven forbid, that restaurants actually compete on the basis of nutrition, and begin to offer more items with fewer calories and more whole grains, fruits, and vegetables?
To claim that nutrition labeling is a violation of the First Amendment is to throw the Constitution into a fryolator until it's crispy.
Consumerist article where I caught this.
CSPI full response |
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| I know better |
[Feb. 14th, 2006|04:00 pm] |
When accepting (foil wrapped) chocolate from a colleague: If you put it in your pocket for when you get back to your desk, remember to remove it then. Not two hours later after it's been smooshed into a horrible non-euclidean mass. |
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| Persimmon Pudding |
[Nov. 7th, 2005|03:16 pm] |
Living near so many Asian markets, there are a lot of fruits and vegetables that will appear in abundance seasonally. One of these is persimmons, blazing orange fruit shaped like tomatoes. Many varieties are mouth-puckering astringent before they ripen, but very tasty when they are ready. One of our favorites, the Fuyu persimmon, does not have this problem. We enjoy the persimmons fresh or frozen, but they are also delicious as a basis for a nice cake.
( Recipe inside ) |
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