I Cracked

When the thermostat upstairs read 81º F at 11pm I cracked. All attempts to lure cooler air into the house via window, door, and fans were abandoned and I turned on my house’s inferior air conditioner. I don’t like a cold house, but one that’s too hot is none-to-pleasant either.

The Two-Mexican Tango
I started the post-work evening meeting ITP-Reader Barb and some of her friends at Tin Lizzy’s Cantina across from Oakland Cemetery. The weather was bearable so the ladies sat on the top deck. After a seemingly long wait for my beer I enjoyed their company as my head swung on a swivel taking in the many attractive young ladies who also inhabited the deck.

After two Fat Tires and some chips I headed over to Mi Barrio to have a “real” Mexican meal with ITP-Readers Betsy and Tony. My initial plan was to make the short walk from Tin Lizzy’s to Mi Barrio, but I’ve been burned too many times by Atlanta’s crime element and been beaten into submission to make the ridiculously-short four-block drive instead. At Mi Barrio I had a Negra Modelo and three tacos, along with some more tortilla chips of course.

Farmers Market Season Has Returned!
While I don’t believe that I will make it back in to the neighborhood in time to visit tonight’s East Atlanta Farmers Market I am glad that it has started again. I look forward to frequenting the Thursday-night gathering which has moved even closer to the ITP Estate. Who knows, perhaps some night I’ll be brave again and make the now three-block walk.

RealiTV Update : Top Chef Masters — You’re With The Band? Sorry, I’ve Never Heard Of You
For the QuickFire Challenge in last night’s Top Chef Masters the ghost of Tom Colicchio was brought out to show that if Tommy Boy can produce one plate in 8:43 the Masters should be able to produce two identical plates in seven minutes. Can you say raw food? At least the cheftestants had a cornucopia of fine ingredients and didn’t have to produce an appetizer from ingredients purchased from a vending machine. The real twist for last night’s QuickFire Challenge was that the cheftestants ranked all of the dishes prepared and the winner was the one with the lowest sum of scores (thus having more scores in the higher ranking). The winner of the QuickFire Challenge was rewarded with the ability to pick her own team for the Elimination Challenge.

Last night’s Top Chef Masters also had a Maroon 5 sighting! Wait. Who the fuck is Maroon 5? I am obviously not following the same music as the rest of this country because I couldn’t name a song, album, or person associated with Maroon 5. The two teams assembled had to prepare a meal described by each member of Maroon 5 (yes there were five members, none of which appeared maroon however). It was as if the producers scoured the Earth seeking a band of misfits, Maroon 5 had culinary desires which ran the gamut from vegan to steak. Did anyone bother to tell the cheftestants would have to prepare these meals in standard-issue tour buses with all of its culinary limitations, not to mention its lousy drivers?

At one point we find out that Mary Sue Milliken once cooked for a real band — The Rolling Stones, and that Charlie Watts was the only one who ate. I’m not sure that if it means the rest of the band didn’t like what she made, or if they were too busy getting drugged up or laid, but it’s The Stones so perhaps all of the above are accurate.

Both teams successfully prepare all of the request, each producing very similar entrees. There was one glaring problem though, overcooked pasta. If you ever find yourself on any of the Bravo RealiTV cooking shows make sure of two things:

1. season your meals properly; too much, or too little seasoning means you’re not paying attention
2. cook your meals the way people expect it; pasta should be al dente, meat should not be raw, etc

If you fail at either of these you will most likely be asked to pack your knives and leave.

Stats & Goals
Daily
Current Mood – meh
Current Music – listening to last weekend’s “The Splendid Table” podcast
Website Of The Day – If you are interested in finding out more about the book I am currently reading you can check out its website — Laws of Simplicity.
Mode Of Transportation To Work – my car
Exercise (b)Log – nothing
Morning Weigh-In – keep forgetting to check. Today I was obsessed with trying to cool the house down without resorting to testing the air conditioning

Monthly
Foot Mileage – 0.0 miles
Wheel Mileage – 0.0 miles
Pushups – 0
Situps – 0
Stairs – 0 flights

Consecutive Days Of Bed-Making (Longest Streak) – 0 (0)

Vegetarian Days – 0
Carnivorous Days – 11

Marta Rides To Work – 0
Bike Rides To Work – 0

May Goals
– “Completely” recover from the bike crash
– Not to get sick for the entire month
– Not get fired from my job
– Run at least once
– Eat vegetarian no fewer than five days
– Lose three pounds
– Go out on a date with someone else
– Read an entire book, specifically The Laws Of Simplicity

2011 Goals [will be a little more fluid than in past years]
– Reduce my weight by 25 pounds based on the my weight as measured on February 1st
– Completely read the book Daily Negations which I received as a Christmas gift.
– Run Sharpened Stone as a real business — one which does not get penalized.
– Save $500 for the sole purpose of donating to charitable organizations of my choice
– Attend at least one professional photography workshop
– Enter no fewer than three photographic competitions / gallery showings
– Ride in no fewer than five 50 mile or 50K bike rides
– Run in no fewer than two one half-marathon
– Submit at least one application under the name “Sharpened Stone” to Apple’s iOS store

The Unmeasurable
– Continue backing up all data, including the off-site storage
– Become a proficient programmer in Objective-C
– Do not create a solution for something which is not a problem
– Eat smaller portions

Cheers,
Paulie [eatl/ga]