Bringing the Drama

last Friday night was finally the night of the Greek Fest 5k that I’ve been waiting for since at least April. the closer it got the more i found out about the festival; the gyros, the baklava sundaes, etc. i was STOKED about the food. I’d never had baklava, but I have seen my friend Alton make it on his show Good Eats.

i found my friends before the race, and we waited out the 1 mile run. the 5k was going to be at 7:20 pm. the race starts and the gaggle of people is kind of jog/walking really slow, so i broke out onto the other side of the neutral ground (median). i got back onto the right side of the street once i got some open space. the course was down and back along the bayou, which was nice cause they had recently repaved the road so it was nice and smooth. the race started and i was a little over a mile in when the guy who was in first raced past on the other side. I have no idea if he was Kenyan, but he could have been.

the only thing that bothered me about the race was the end. they had men go on one side and women go on the other. i was sprinting the last part of the race and passed a whole bunch of people. then the problem, they had one person handing out these slips to write your time down on, and the lady doing so in the men’s line was really slow about it. most likely they just didn’t have enough people doing it. so there was about 10 feet to go from the finish line to the stopped people. i was running all out to finish and then had to come to a screeching halt. It was a little dangerous.

After the finish line fiasco, I happened upon my friend Melanie’s husband Chris and we stood to watch people finish. We also talked about commuting and running. Kind of made me wish I lived in NOLA, but it’s too expensive for me. After venturing over to the festival, we made our way to the free beer for runners. By the time I made it to the beer truck, Chris had disappeared. I got my beer though, and remembered Corey (the keeper of my car key) said he’d be over by the place they were selling beer. There were probably 4 of those places, but I walked around and luckily he spotted me on his way back to the spot. I thought the festival was closing at 9 pm (which it did on Sunday), and it was 8:22, so I rushed back to my car (parked 5 blocks away) to get money for the gyros and baklava sundae I had been pining for all week. I got back and stood in a really long gyro line. Why did they only have one place to get gyros? I was in line next to these girls who were taunting people in the calamari line because they were disgusted by it. I hope they were just drunk and not stupid, but I think it may have been a little bit of both. By the time I got to the front of the line I decided I wasn’t just getting one gyro, so I bought two.

I was able to get in the sundae line by 8:55 and the line moved pretty quick so I got my sundae by 8:58. I went back to where my friends were and devoured the first gyro. I was very hungry. Nothing closed at 9 pm though, so I had pretty much been worrying for nothing. The gyro was fantastic, as was the baklava sundae. the sundae was definitely delicious enough to live up to the hype. It was a great night hanging out with friends and eating amazing food. i wish there was stuff like that more often.

(side note: after talking about the baklava sundaes, i have been challenged to make some for the first Saints preseason game in August. i accepted the challenge.)

so the other night after the gym, i stopped off at the store. i perused the seafood section cause i had seen something in the circular about Scottish salmon. i saw the salmon, but they were selling big giant fillets and i didn’t want to buy that much at once. however, before i walked off i saw they had a single fillet of Amberjack wrapped up. intrigued, i picked up the fillet and thought. i had never grilled Amberjack before and i’ve only really had it in restaurants. how would it come out? i’ve made different fish, but nothing really from scratch after an unfortunate incident with cayenne pepper. i didn’t want to make it like i make catfish, but i bought it anyway figuring i’d figure something out.

i googled for recipes but didn’t find anything that interesting. even Mario Batali’s recipe was just kind of “ehh”. i got home last night (Thursday) and tried to search one more time and came across a relatively simple recipe that involved olive oil and seasoning. yeah, okay, i’ll use a version of that. i had read about how soaking fish in milk takes away some of the ‘fishy’ taste, so i put the fillet in a bowl and poured milk over it, flipping it over every few minutes. then i took the fish out and rubbed some olive oil in, and seasoned it with salt and pepper and Zatarain’s. then i decided to get crazy and added some balsamic vinegar dressing. i made sure the fillet was covered and hoped the seasonings would take.

after a difficult time getting the grill lit, i went outside and put the amberjack on. i did about 7.5 minutes on each side. i pretty much hoped though, that the seasonings wouldn’t sink through or off as it grilled. did they have enough time to soak in before grilling? how would the texture be? all worries were set aside when i went out and tested it. flaky and not dry. the end result is shown below.

it tasted fantastic. not fishy, and enough of the seasoning to not over power anything. if i see another single fillet again i won’t be having to think about it, i’ve got a recipe to use.

i had a pretty crappy day at work yesterday. Nothing really bad like having to deal with KCOG or anything, but just having stuff to do, and you need some help with it, but no one has the time to help you. I hate those kind of days. I had been emailed a spreadsheet, but in order to work it, I needed help with it. Being able to use the spreadsheet would solve the issue of putting together a presentation for some analysis I have been working on. It was pretty much the last link for what I was going to do. I couldn’t get any help though, because other people who did know were also working on presentations. ARGH. I did the best I could with what I had and called it a day. I was hoping for a better day today, and it was much better. I was able to get the presentation done, even got a sparsely populated report done that I wasn’t sure about. I got an email about a part I’m trying to design with White Shoes, but the email didn’t really need to go to me. Linked from the email though was a report in the format of something I was doing, and it was already finished. I was able to see what a finished version looked like, and was able to get two reports done today. They looked so much better than before. I was pretty excited about them at the end of today. They’re still pretty green as far as information, but at least now they look presentable.

On my way home I heard on the radio about a truck driver who decided this afternoon during rush hour to jacknife his truck on the Twin Span. There are two other routes to get home, and I was taking the one less traveled. On the radio though, the DJ suggests them to which I told him to shut his mouth. There’s no need to direct more people to the backup route before I take it. Traveling the backup route today though I saw where they are filming The Expendables. So basically there’s a giant blockbuster movie filming near my work. It is very cool.

On my way home today, I stopped by the store to pick up a few things. I loaded everything in the refrigerator and then got changed to go run. I heard the fridge make some noise, but it wasn’t anything that scary. It wasn’t like the clicking sound I heard last time. I still was a little worried because when I opened the doors, it didn’t seem cool enough. I didn’t hear the compressor kick on or anything, and I heard water draining (!!!). I took off the grill part and checked the coils. They were pretty filthy, and the water draining was going into the drain pan. Still though, nothing was happening with the compressor. I grabbed the shop vac and cleaned off the coils as best I could. I googled for some answers in case I was going to have to FIX THE FRIDGE MYSELF AGAIN but didn’t find anything. A few minutes after I had vacuumed the coils, the compressor kicked on and everything went back to normal. I was so relieved. I had just bought all that fresh food, and two of the last sixers of Abita Strawberry. Think of the beer!

Of course, by the time fridge resolved itself, it was 8:30. So I’ll go run tomorrow, which is okay because I’m running in the Greek Fest run on Friday. I’m kind of excited about that btw, and hopeful for some cold beer and a gyro post race.

so lately i’ve been tracking my calorie intake over on Livestrong’s website on this section called The Daily Plate. it’s pretty cool. Chad had told me about it a while back and i started using it last week. it lets you put physical activity on there which subtracts from your calorie total. i’ve been steady around 1600-2000 calories before subtracting physical activity. when i added last night’s run, it subtracted 922 calories. nice.

i’ve been a lot more conscious the past few months about the things that i eat, esp eating out. there’s a Sonic that i pass twice a day and the past couple of weeks they’ve had the following up on their board: “Try our new Chicken Bacon Ranch on Wheat Bread”. back when Subway started offering their Chicken Bacon Ranch sub, i ate it a few times. it was great. it was Subway, so it had to be healthy right? nope. i found the nutritional info on the CBR sub and it had 30 grams of fat per 6 inch. whoa. a Big Mac has 29 grams. (on average your daily fat intake should be ~50-70 grams) i stopped eating the CBR from Subway. which brings me back to the Sonic. lately when i pass the Sonic’s sign, i got “oh, so the wheat bread saves you from the bad other stuff!”

With last Sunday being Easter and all, I must tell you about what made me appreciate celebrating Easter this year. After I got home from the race on Saturday, I was flipping through the channels and came across a movie. It had David Schwimmer and John Krasinski in it, at the same time, during the scene that was playing when I turned to the channel. They almost had a fist fight! I kept watching as the weirdness of Ross and Jim fighting would be too much to miss. Apparently the situation involved Ross’ ex wife now dating Jim, and how that caused drama since there were two daughters from the first marriage. I kept watching though, because it was weird to see these actors I have normally seen in comedies playing out in a drama. True, you don’t really have to go too far to find a depressing Ross because I thought he played a great non Ross character in Band of Brothers, but Jim was kind of a douche. Also, the guy from 30 Rock who wears all the hats was DS’s friend in the movie who played a wannabe comedian at the casino where they worked. I’m telling you, it was like watching multiple fish out of water, and it was fascinating. However, the movie was kind of depressing. DS’ character had just about everything go wrong in his life. He lost his marriage (I think he abused her, but I missed the first part of the movie), he took up drugs and drinking, then he lost his job because of the drugs. It was terrible. His little speech in a courtroom where he was going to have his kids’ visitation rights revoked made me realize how important having God was. It was like watching the story of Job play out without God. He admitted in the courtroom scene that without his daughters, he wouldn’t have a reason to live. Ugh. By the end of the movie somehow he had gotten over some of his problems and learned to appreciate the people that were in his life, in spite of everything going on around him. So I guess the story had a happy ending, but it didn’t feel all that happy. (the movie is called Duane Hopwood if you ever want to check it out)

I love Easter, I really do. It’s exciting. Jesus conquering death, getting dressed up to go to church, pastel M&Ms, etc. I ended up going to mass instead of service at my home church because my dad and i were going to the Hornets game that was supposed to start at 12. The mass didn’t seem any different than a normal mass, which was disappointing. It’s Easter for crying out loud! The one day out of the year that everything in Christianity is based on, and the priest just seemed to be going through the motions. I also sat next to an older lady with dark red hair who was excited when Jesus was projected on the screen.

After church, my dad and I went to the Hornets game, where they dominated the Mavs again. That afternoon, my family and I went out for Easter dinner. I got to try out some things for the first time including grilled oysters and Baked Alaska. Strangely enough, the waiter had BO, which made it a little uncomfortable. Plus we were the only people in the entire restaurant, so it was a little strange because of that too. At one point I was laughing about something and he had a plate for me so he said “take a deep breath” to which I wanted to respond “I’d rather not!” , but I didn’t. The food was great in spite of the extremely odd circumstances surrounding it. The chef even came out and we heard his life story about growing up poor in France then coming to the US by way of Canada. We didn’t hear about how he ended up in the NOLA area, but by the time he got to the part of how he got to the US, we didn’t really care anymore.

I got home in time to watch the sudden death playoff in the Masters, a perfect ending to the day. It felt like multiple days rolled into one with such a wide range of things happening, but it was a fantastic day.

(the post title really only applies to people in the NOLA metro)

even though i’m not Catholic anymore, i still don’t eat meat on Fridays during Lent. so Friday before the Hornets game, i knew i’d have to figure out something seafood downtown. i was thinking something rather quick, and zeroed in on one of my favorites, the shrimp po-boy. i found a couple of places near the Arena, but they closed at 3. i called up a friend who had emailed me about something completely different and asked him if he had any recommendations for a place in the city to get a po-boy. he told me about this place in Mid-City called Parkway, so after my friend Whitney met me at work, we went over to get this supposed super awesome shrimp po-boy.

we found a place to park on the street with ease and walked in. never having been there before i still tried to look like i knew what i was doing. we found the order window without much drama. i got a bottle of Barqs and waited for the food. then they called my name and i was set to eat. OMG, the amount of shrimp was just spilling over onto the paper after i opened it! it was ridiculously delicious. it was the best shrimp po-boy ever that i can remember eating. the giant shrimp had a spice in the batter, the bread was not soft, and the lettuce and tomato were fresh. i had ordered a small order of fries, but didn’t even eat half of them. the small po-boy alone was filling enough. top notch.

the atmosphere was cool too, and if it were not for the game tipping off at 7, we probably would have kicked back and had a couple of brews. later at the Hornets game, it was pointed out that Mario Batali was there. i didn’t get to meet him, but if i had, i would have told him the orange Crocs he had on (he must wear them ALL THE TIME) were awesome and how great Parkway was.

a while back when my friend and i were talking about having a party for the Oscars for the 2nd straight year (NEXT year we’ll have the pick the winners contest), i said i was going to try to make a king cake. i had found a recipe on a local news station’s website, and it didn’t seem too hard. i used to like king cakes without a lot of icing, and ever since Tastee Donuts shut down as a franchise, most of the king cakes i can find have way too much icing. TD’s used to be like a big cinnamon donut, with minimal icing that would hold the sugar on there.

first of all, i got home saturday night with the supplies, and one of the containers of ‘hot roll mix’ busted. i have no idea what happened, i just walked in the kitchen to put stuff away and i found it like that. the mix talked about in the recipe ended up being two rolls of dough that you can buy that already comes in sheets. it’s brilliant really, and says right on the roll that they are used to make all kinds of different things. so the dough roll busts and i stuck the dough in a bowl and put the lid on it, hoping it would work okay. it did, but then when i went to make the king cake i had to roll it out. i don’t have a roller. so i had to figure out something to use that was flat and even…..tall glass! the glass worked out good enough, but not great. better than nothing though. next kitchen supply is going to have to be a rolling pin.

the 2nd dough roll came out in a perfect sheet, so spreading the butter/cinnamon/sugar mixture was easy and fast.

i rolled the cigar shaped rolls together on the cookie sheet, but in the essence of time didn’t really try to make them fit together perfect. i was running late for the Oscar party and had to get this done, plus i still had to make the glaze and the colored sugar.

once i took the cake out of the oven, both sides looked alright, but you could tell which side was glass rolled.

the glaze was really easy to make. the colored sugars took a little more work. when i went to walmart to get food coloring, they didn’t really have traditional food coloring like i was used to. they had ‘icing coloring’, which was like a gel. it was all they had, but then i had to call an audible because they didn’t have purple. they had 9 other colors BUT purple. i ended up calling up knowledge from kindergarten and getting the primary colors so i could make purple, green, and gold.

as you can see the sugars came out pretty well. i probably didn’t need to use a full 1/3 cup of sugar for each color. i probably could have gotten by with 1/4 cup. also, i think i could have made less of the glaze because it ended up running to the middle of the cake.

taking the cake off the cookie sheet was a challenge, but it worked. once it was off the sheet, the icing wasn’t too much, and the sugar was still on there. everything worked out really well. i brought it to the party and people were amazed i had made it. stacked up against a homemade cheesecake and these awesome pecan/chocolate clusters i think it did pretty well.

seeing as how you can buy these ingredients at any store in America, my out of town friends can make their own king cake at home, and it won’t cause you to pay $30 for getting one shipped from NOLA.

- at lunch during the week, i usually go through news articles and keep myself current on the world. the best thing i read yesterday, an article with the backstory on different Muppets. did you know in Puerto Rico Grover is named Archibaldo? did you know in Israel Oscar lives in an old car? i found the article fascinating because i grew up watching Sesame Street.

- i called about my speeding ticket, and was told the procedure for taking the driving class to keep it off my record, etc. the lady at the court (where i called about the ticket) also informed me my license was flagged. she couldn’t tell me why, but that i should get it taken care of. she gave me the number for the DMV. i called this number at least 10 times during the day, and only on the 10th time did not get the “due to our high call volume, please try again later”. when i finally spoke to someone at the DMV, she said my license had no flags.

- did you know Food Network has entire episodes of shows on their website? it was great to finally see the Iron Chef with Bobby Flay, Giada, Rachel Ray, and Mario Batali. i watch a lot of my favorite shows online since i often times am not home to watch stuff, so i had no problem watching on my computer.

- all of the current economy stuff and how the government is handling it reminds me of this IBM commercial.

- yes i am disappointed A-Rod took steroids, and no i don’t believe him when he said it was only for 3 years and that he doesn’t take them anymore. at least he’s admitting it though, unlike only wanting to talk about the future or just flat out denial.

- Clemson scrapped to a great road win last night at BC. i watched the game and it was great to see them claw their way back, then maintain the lead to the end. i knew they’d be better than last year, but they seem to have the makings of a really good team. i mean, i know they crushed Duke and all, but i also look at team’s ability to stay competitive even when their shots aren’t falling and they’re just kind of going through the motions. they didn’t get down on themselves, and they made the big plays when it was most important. i don’t remember Clemson really doing that the past few years, but it sure is good to see now.

on my trip to walmart tonight, i bought a couple of those reusable shopping bags. i’ve had one for a grocery store for a while, and it has saved me from getting plastic bags there ever since. walmart though has been a culprit of the proliferation of plastic bags at my house for years. lately i’ve had cashiers who put one item in a bag. ONE. one pickle jar, one jug of milk, etc. tonight though, i changed things and bought the reusable ones. i got to the checkout line and struck up a conversation with the cashier girl, pretty much about the reusable bags. the cashiers at walmart are kind of hit or miss, sometimes you get nice ones who want to talk and some who just want to make it to their next break. the one tonight was nice, and she said she had even bought bags to use to go to the beach. then this other cashier guy comes up and starts showing how there are loops on the bags to put them on the little wheel of plastic bags to make it easier for the cashiers to hang and put stuff in. pretty handy tips, but then he kind of hung around still talking about the bags, and pretty much ended my conversation with the cashier.

anyway, the conversation with the cashier was kind of talked about in Sunday school this morning. we talked about how our attitude with other people can exude Jesus, and how that can be important. i try to talk to the people scanning my groceries, but i guess it gets awkward when they start sharing too much information. you know the types, you start talking to the girl and she starts telling you how the lady who was in front of you in line was using food stamps because she lost her job, not because of the recent hurricanes, and how she feels sorry for her because she knows what that lady was going through because she got pregnant and then laid off from her job because she couldn’t stand at the register while she was 9 months pregnant. i still like to be nice despite the possibilities of hearing TMI.

after church today, i went over to my parents house to have some soup my dad made. i had sent him a recipe from PW for Cauliflower soup. he loves cauliflower, and he loves soup, so i figured he’d dig the recipe. he wanted me to come over and help him eat it, so i went over this afternoon. it actually came out really good, so i was impressed. i’ve been telling him it’s more fun to eat food you make, because not only do you get to enjoy making something, but you know what is in there! hopefully today won’t be the one and only time he attempts kitchen glory.

Tuesday is my dad’s birthday, so tonight we took him out to dinner. on the way home my parents and i (my sister did not want to go drink coffee and eat beignets) stopped at a Fresh Market. i had never been, but i wanted to go look around. i figured they might have some beers i haven’t seen yet. the produce was nice, but now that i think about it very dimly lit. possibly to accentuate the colors? i did pick up a couple of apples that are as big as a softball. walking through the bakery section i spotted something i have been indirectly on the hunt for since April. uncut bread loaves! i know, i probably should not be as amazed as i am but tonight was the first time i’ve actually seen them in a store. ever since i saw that episode of Good Eats where my friend Alton talks about how much better this kind of bread is for sandwiches (short of making your own), i have been unable to find it. also spotted in this new grocery were banana chips and make your own six pack beer. the beer selection was not nearly as extensive or unique as i thought it would be. i did pick up a few that i have not tried (Stella, Lowenbrau) as well as some old favorites (Dixie, Guinness), but i was a little disappointed with my choices.

earlier today as i was pulling into my driveway, i could see the old lady and her dog out near my backyard. i slowed down and stared at her, and i know she saw me. there was definite eye contact. when i got inside to go throw open the blinds she had already gone inside with her dog. i know she knows i know, and i’m going to keep flinging the poo back in her yard until she keeps her dog in her yard all the time!

i was coming home from the gym, where i had my first encounter with CGG in probably a month or two. he scanned my keychain, but didn’t call me by name. he did say “letting your hair grow out a little bit?” to which i said “it’s been busy lately, i haven’t gotten it cut”, and he finished with “it’s kind of cool.” i’ll take that awkward conversation that only lasts 30 seconds over any of the previous ones.