commute

 

Driving home on a Friday is a happy time. It's even better when this is the view.  Mom/Dad: don't worry, I didn't take my eyes off the road taking this picture with my phone - promise.

Matt's Big Breakfast

Jim and I had always wanted to try this place out, especially after it gained fame on The Travel Channel. It's a literal hole in the wall in downtown Phoenix that's known for fabulous breakfast and endless waits.

"Matt's Big Breakfast on N. First St. is a popular diner that serves heaping plates of Chop and Chick (pork chops and eggs). A local favorite, the small dining room fills up fast causing a line of early birds to pour out onto the street." - the Travel Channel

Everything about this place could be described as, well, cute. The yellow door, tiny juice glasses with roosters on them, vintage art on the walls, even the waitress aprons.

 

Jim ordered the special; a concoction of eggs, hasbrowns and Andouille sausage in a hearty sauce. I opted for the waffle that came with A. the best butter I've ever had and B. some bacon.

 

The service was lightening fast once we were seated and the food was tasty. My waffle was by far the winner of our two entrees.

Would I wait an hour to eat here again? Doubtful. Am I glad I got to experience it? Very.

so this one Monday...

Zoee and Nancy and I decided to go on a hike. At sundown. Not our brightest idea, but still really cool. Afterwards, when prompted what I wanted to eat for diner, I replied, "cobbler." To most this would be a passing joke; to Nancy, a.k.a. gourmet-a-palooza, it was a genuine request. Here are some pictures of the late night feast that ensued. Love these ladies.

 

 

 

Salmon with a citrus marinade, Swiss chard in a balsamic reduction, cous cous, a homemade berry cobbler and homemade vanilla bean ice cream. In the words of my dad, "if it's worth doing, it's worth doing right."

creative holiday energy

Mine's on the left, Jim's is on the right.

beer olympics

This post is a little belated, like four months or so, but better late than never (Jared).

This summer was the first time I attended the annual Beer Olympics hosted by our friends Jared and Katie. What does this consist of? A lot of beer, backyard games and stiff competition.

To start the event, about 25 of us were divided into pairs by drawing names out of a hat. Ironically, I ended up with Jared, and Katie ended up with Jim. We took turns at a variety of events:

                       
Ladder Ball                                                    Beer Pong

Bag Toss

There was also a maddening game where you toss a hook that's hanging off the roof by a string, and try to get it to loop around a nail on a wall. Maddening I tell you. We also had an event where we were throwing a frisbee at a tiki torch, trying to knock a beer off the top of it. We continued through multiple rounds and gradually eliminations brought it down to four teams for finals.

                    

All in all it was a dang good time. Did I mention that the winners would take home the worlds most amazing (and eclectic) trophy?

Champions

That's right. Jared and I were the overall winners! Champions do it right. Looking forward to retaining my title next year!

i like this quote.

"Make up your mind to be happy—even when you don’t have money, even when you don’t have a clear complexion, even when you don’t have the Nobel Prize. Some of the happiest people I know have none of these things the world insists are necessary for satisfaction and joy. Why are they happy? I suppose it is because they don’t listen very well. Or they listen too well—to the things their hearts tell them. They glory in the beauty of the earth. They glory in the rivers and the canyons and the call of the meadowlark. They glory in the love of their families, the stumbling steps of a toddler, the wise and tender smile of the elderly."

book worm

Tonight I was at my neighborhood book club. Let me fend off sounding like a complete nerd by explaining that this is a monthly opportunity to gather with neighborhood women, eat delicious food, have a fair amount of wine, and maybe (just maybe) talk about a book for a few minutes. We all have good intentions to read the books, but sometimes life gets in the way. At any rate, it's fabulous company that I look forward to each month.

There's something about being surrounded by different generations of women that really feeds the soul.

I've always loved reading, and it's interesting to have a generally solitary activity morph into a boisterous social event. We have no theme for the books we choose; it's merely the thread that laces together our gatherings.

In case anyone's looking for some good reads, here are our latest picks:

1. The Book Thief

2. The Wednesday Sisters

3. The Great Gatsby

4. Julie and Julie

5. The Keeper

I enjoyed them all, minus # 2, and haven't started # 5.

Phoenix Greek Festival

tents with delicious food

 

my favorite greek realtor

ouzo shots are a terrible idea

poof!

Everyone’s got their quirks, right? This week we discovered one of Bruno’s that had previously remained dormant. We realized that any time Bruno hears someone make a blowing noise, e.g. blowing out a candle, blowing dust off a surface, etc, he goes completely ballistic.

We’ve started a new game with him where make the noise and he’ll bark and run in circles then come back to us and wait patiently for the noise again. Sometimes he gets carried away with anticipation and bolts out of the house into the backyard.

It’s all fun and games until someone sprains an ankle.

Last night I was sitting on the bed petting Bruno when Jim walked in and made the magical poof sound. Bruno was completely caught off guard. Here’s what happened next, if only we had this on video:

Jim makes noise.
Bruno levitates, kicking me in the face.
I’m sent toppling over the edge of the bed.
My ankle (aka my weakest link) twists.
Jim feels really bad.
Bruno still wants to play the game.
All laugh hysterically.

Anyone who was with me during the horrific dual ankle sprains of 2007 knows that this is bad news, but fortunately, it seems very minor. I’ve been icing and keeping it up, and will take the week off of my run training.

2007 ankle sprain

I guess for now we’ll have to be a little more careful when we roughhouse indoors.

riding the gravitron + being an adult = bad decision

Last weekend Jim and Jared and I decided to brave Oktoberfest at Tempe Town Lake. The only way I can describe it is as a complete and total Gong Show. It was so over crowded and chaotic we weren’t having an especially good time. You had to wait in line for a half hour for food or a drink which wasn’t especially entertaining.

We decided we’d kill some time and blow some of our tickets on a ride. They didn’t have too many choices, just some typical fair attractions like a Ferris Wheel, flying swings and…The GRAVITRON.

I had ridden the Gravitron only once in my life when I was seven years old at the Enka Fair in Winchester, MA. I don’t know why it seemed like it’d be a wise idea to try it again, being 19 years older and far less comfortable being thrown around by a likely malfunctioning machine.

Nevertheless, once I’d suggested we ride it, the boys were on a mission. As soon as we got in line I was nervous. Scratch that, I was seriously frightened. Not so much that I’d hurt myself in the ride, but more so that I’d vomit all over myself and be embarrassed.

The guy operating the ride seemed oblivious to my plight and silently took our tickets. I entered the ride and immediately knew this was a bad choice. Everyone else was either seven years old or in their forties and drunk.

I took my spot on a padded panel and hoped for the best.

Wikipedia describes the ride as follows:


“The ride is completely enclosed, with 45 padded panels lining the inside wall. Riders lean against these panels, which are angled back. As the ride rotates, centrifugal force is exerted against the pads by the rider, removing the rider from the floor, due to the slant. The ride can reach a maximum speed of 24 rpm in less than 20 seconds, due to the 33 kW 3-phase motor. At this speed, the riders are experiencing centripetal force equivalent to three times the force of gravity.


The ride operator is located in the center of the ride. Part of the operator's duty is to control lighting and music in addition to the ride itself. Some variants include closed-circuit television cameras, allowing waiting riders and passersby to observe the ride in action.”


The entire ride racks on a single 50-foot trailer for transport. The ride can be assembled in less than six hours, and packed up in three"

Who knew it was so portable?

Once the ride started, the first thirty seconds of spinning were rough and I continued to envision my vomiting nightmare. However, after a minute or so I relaxed and was laughing hysterically at the absurdity of the situation. What was I doing this for? Why did we pay for this?

Fortunately, we all survived the ride and fared better than the little boy who threw up all over the second he got off.

Moral of the story? Rides are way cooler when you’re a kid and I now understand why my parents never wanted to go on with me when I was younger.

Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday and is only 56 days away. Just thinking about it conjures up all kinds of memories. Most of them deal with food, but others are a mélange of elementary school lessons and Disney movies.

Construction paper handprint turkeys. Pumpkin Pie. Pilgrims and Indians getting together. Columbus misnaming Native Americans Indians. Sweet potatoes with marshmallows. Cornucopias. Cranberry sauce. Macy’s Day Parade. Family. Friends. Perfect AZ weather.

What’s funny about this holiday is that we don’t often reflect on its origins or how so much of the history has been forgotten. I blame Walmart and Hallmark. Nevertheless, recent events inspired me to look into the origins of Turkey Fest once again.

Here’s an excerpt I found on the History channel’s Web site about the first Thanksgiving:

“In 1621, the Plymouth colonists and Wampanoag Indians shared an autumn harvest feast which is acknowledged today as one of the first Thanksgiving celebrations in the colonies. This harvest meal has become a symbol of cooperation and interaction between English colonists and Native Americans.”

Ok, here’s why this is funny. My friends Katie and Ben are getting married the day after Thanksgiving this year. Katie, my cowgirl from Wyoming, is as American as they come. Ben on the other hand, is Navajo and grew up on the reservation in northern Arizona. I take remote credit for these two kids getting together, since I encouraged Ben to get a new job, and he met Miss Katie at that new job, but that’s beside the point. (Yes Katie, I am that vain).

Since their wedding is going to be the day after Thanksgiving, it only makes sense for their rehearsal to be on Turkey Day itself. The first time their two families meet will be on Thanksgiving Day. Yes, the meeting and celebration will be more than a little reminiscent of the first Thanksgiving. Both families will bring their own traditional foods and customs as two unique cultures blend together.

Fortunately, Katie and Ben have a good sense of humor and find this as comical as I do, and even gave me permission to write about it.

The whole purpose in writing about this was not to embarrass them, but to point out that even hundreds of years after the first Thanksgiving, the purpose and message behind the holiday remain. It continues to remind us that despite our differences we can come together to celebrate the most important things in life.