Nothing Tips Like Cows!

I'm at school trying to access my school email account, but its being ridiculous. It keeps making me log in, only to say that I need to log in to access that page. How stupid. Its not the first, nor probably the last, time this has happened, and on top of that, sometimes I don't get emails until waaay later. Like weeks late, sometimes, I  think I don't get all the emails I'm supposed to. I swear, I'm so fed up that I'm about to switch email accounts. I use my school email for all my "serious" stuff--school, work, etc. but I might as well get some use out of that gmail account that I set up and haven't used yet, right? stupid school email.

on another completely random note, a food blog:

- Top Chef: WHAT?!? Fabio went home?? he wa

s one of my favorites! stupid stefan. They should have kicked his obnoxious butt off the show. But, I liked the green shirt he wore, "Nothing Tips Like Cows" haha. Now that Fabio's out, I'm rooting all the way for carla. That girl cracks me up! BA-DAOW!!

-Old Spaghetti Factory, Downtown San Diego: You might remember Old Spaghetti Factory closed down maybe 4-5 years ago, much to my dismay. It was a place that was unpretentious and home-y and just fun bc it was 

in a historic building in the gaslamp. They moved to San Marcos---but how can you be an "old spaghetti factory" in a brand new building? it was a watered down version of what had been. And in the wake of the downtown location was put up "Dussini" that sort of restaurant/bar/lounge place. Well, yesterday I was reading the paper, and apparently Dussini is out and Old Spaghetti Factory is back!! They are slated to open later this month, or sometime in March. I'm so excited!

-Girl Scout Cookies: Get 'em while they're here. Oh, and a new flavor: Dulce de Leche!! 

New for 2009, and inspired by the confections of Latin America, these sweet, indulgent cookies are rich with milk caramel chips and stripes (Taken from www.girlscoutcookies.org/meet_cookies.asp)

-Hash House a Go Go: I know that I've blogged about this place before, but today I went there for lunch instead of breakfast, and everything was so yum! kiwi-watermelon lemonade that looks like a watermelon in a glass? that comes with a hugh slice of watermelon and sugar rimmed glass? mmmm. 

I had the smoked salmon penne pasta and oj had the flank steak sandwich. the sandwich was no joke....literally it was a whole steak inbetween these two big slices of bread with carmelized onions, bleu cheese crumbles--all in all it was something like 6 inches tall! My pasta was extra delish. I think I mentioned this before, but since coming back from Italy I haven't really had pasta, but this penne dish reminded me why I love it so much. Fresh tomatoes, spinach, asparagus, and smoked salmon? yes please!

writing, creatively.

Lately I've really wanted to take a creative writing course. I'm not aspiring to be some professional writer or anything, but I think it could help me broaden my writing spectrum and break up the monotony of academic writing. Because, really, I don't do any sort of casual writing, apart from what I write in this blog, and lets be honest, it doesnt take much to write about amusing (or not?) tid-bits about my day. I sort of feel like my writing style has suffered a bit in the last year or so, and its has become convoluted with latin writing style. anyway, since I can't take a creative writing course at the moment, I ran across some exercises online that I think should be fun and relatively harmless that I can do in my spare time. 

but this gets me into a whole other topic of writing fiction. when was the last time I even wrote anything fictionally? In school, I write paper after paper but its all academically driven--with a main thesis, support theses, evidence and analysis--and occasionally, if I'm lucky, I get to add some artistic flair to the introduction and/or conclusion. This is what I know. This is what I do. But fiction?? That is a foreign element my friend. 

I think the last time I did anything like this was 4 or 5 years ago, when I was taking a lot of literature courses, and I was convinced I was going to be a writer (oh, the aspirations of youth). but the thing is, the thing that I like about writing fiction and what separates it from the writing that I do now, is that while I may be passionate about the subject of my thesis, it doesn't translate into my writing. But thats just how it goes. To do anything else, narrative or otherwise, somehow detracts from the credibility of my argument, making it no better than the kind of history those pop history authors preach from their 5 minute debuts on late night television; the kind those "talking heads"--those experts-- on history specials are so confident is the "truth." so academic writing is just that. all business. 

But I also know the feeling of an idea, small at first, conceived at a random intersection of time, in the most mundane of circumstances-- crossing the street, waiting in line for coffee, listening to your professor lecture in class--and having that idea blossom in your imagination of everything that it could be, and would be, if you penned it on paper. Of that idea, having reached its full potential, consuming all your creative efforts and straining to burst forth from your hand like a wildly erratic heart bursting from the chests of those cartoon characters stricken with the first blush of love. and how relief can only come once its scribbled out upon sheet after sheet, indiscernible to anyone else but yourself. then comes the revision of that raw idea, the editing and perhaps the restraint, that comes with the second, third, fourth draft. the struggle to make it perfection and drawing on everything you know about the English language, about the feelings of humanity, and the course of human events, to make your idea come to life for someone other than yourself. and finally, finally, the finished product sits in your hands like a newborn which you so protectively want to keep from critics and cynics, but also want to share with the world.

I have to say, fiction writers have it rough. 

vday recap & food review

oj and I had really late dinner reservations at georges: 930. yikes, I know because I normally dont like to eat late, but the menu looked so good that I couldnt say no. so before that, we were going to kill some time by going ice skating with some of ojs friends. I was actually really looking forward to it because I havent been in a long time & always like to relive my childhood dreams of being a figure skater lol. but we come to find out that the skating event wouldnt start until 845 or so, which meant we couldnt go:( instead, we headed up to downtown escondido because they were having a chocolate tasting event in some of their stores & even had carriage rides down Grand. we ended up at this super cute wine bar called VINZ and had a flight of 3 wines with these an order of mediterrean nuts and fruit that was super delish! it had dried figs, salts almonds, golden raisins, and these extra tasty candied pecans mmmm!

we got to georges just after 9 and were pleasantly surprised to be seated right away, even thought we were 20 minutes early to our reservation, and there was even a couple ahead of us who had a 930 reservation too and were made to wait. we didn't get seated facing that ocean (which is why I suspect we got seated before the other couple) in a room that only had a view other couples. I wasn't feeling too well--I always think I can read in the car, and I'm always proven wrong--so no alcohol for me.

I ordered the 4 course meal that I mentioned before, while oj got a scallop ceviche, a surf and turf with steak and lobster, and a pear gallete for dessert. They gave us warm bread and this really good 12 spice ginger salt that made the bread taste like gingerbread. yummm.

first course:
+ me: dungeness crab- crab was not messing around. so good with avocado and thin shavings of crispy cold pear. there was a curry oil that didnt bother me, but the salad on top had a ton of cilantro on it--I cant stand cilantro--so I just moved all the greens to the side.
+ oj: ceviche- served cold & citrus-y.... the way its supposed to be! (jeff from top chef)

second course:
+ me: butternut squash ravioli- loved loved loved it! there were chestnuts that I didn't care for (I gave them away) but everything else was absolutely divine. ravioli were perfectly rich with the creamy sauce that wasnt too heavy or overwhelming. and I loved the fried sage that came with it. I tried to eat this slowly to savor all of it, but it was just too good. I would have been happy to have this as my main course, but bigger portion please! haha

third course:
+ me: lamb shank- omg this was to tender --I didnt even need a knife--I just pulled at it with my fork--and it just melted off the bone. and it was HUGE. butternut squash risotto was maybe too mushy for me, but nonethless was yummy. the lamb was topped with like a spinach and feta mixture, and normally I hate feta, but it worked to cut through the richness of the lamb.
+ oj: hanger steak and lobster- I felt kinda bad for oj when our plates came out. mine was like a huge rock on a plate, and his was kinda dinky. I knew that it would taste amazing, but it was just so small compared to my lamb. I knew he was jealous of me haha.

dessert:
+ me: chocolate tart- a warm dark chocolate cake with a googey middle, and peanut ice cream with cocoa nibs. soo rich and just perfect. I didn't want to share.
+ oj: pear gallete- he ate it all but it wasnt what he expected. it was served with candied ginger & I was glad I didnt order it (candied ginger reminds me of fruitcake...gross). I had to share my dessert bc I knew oj was jealous again.

service: excellent. my water and iced tea never fell below half of the glass, the servers cleared the table and brought out food in a timely manner, and always noticed when I didn't have silverware. thats good service worth 20%.

funny story: the only thing I didn't really like was that our tables were really close together, so that I kept getting distracted by the other couples around us (I can't help to eavesdrop!!). toward the mid part of our meal, a new couple was seated next to us with this super irritating guy who couldnt get over himself! first, he was complaining about how georges wasnt "fancy" enough for him...only, that guy was wearing jeans! if he thought that georges was going to be like Mr. As, then him wearing jeans would make him stick out like the low class that he is. secondly, when he ordered the champagne, and the server did the wine presentation, the guy didn't even know how to properly respond...leaving the server hanging. the server, knowing that the guy didnt know the first thing about fine dining, ignored the guys faux pas and finished pouring the champagne. I watched the whole thing and I was even embarrassed for the guy. thirdly, the guy had no idea what he was ordering. I guess he was too used to the bread at outback steak house that he couldnt enjoy the 12 spice ginger salt, and didnt even know what ceviche was! when ceviche came out, he took a bite and hated it. he kept complaining that he thought it was going to be scallops (I'm guessing he was thinking seared scallops) but then went on to say that he didnt even like seafood. the guy wanted high class, well guess what, georges is too high class for you buddy! even his date was embarrassed by him!

overall: I wish I had 4 thumbs...so I could give the whole experience 4 thumbs up!! =)

He's just...not that into you.

 I absolutely loved this movie (and I am not gigi, no matter what you think!!). it reminds me of love actually, the way the various characters as all inter-related. and theres some hard-hitting relationship truths in it that alone make it worth seeing. and while I see the "mac guy" all the time on the tele for apple commercials and never think twice about him, the "mac guy" plays alex, and totally had me rooting for him the entire movie. two thumbs up, now go watch it!

The Music of My Life

I was completely honest with this. Some of it is pretty funny (see # 15) and some of it is random, but overall, I think its a good reflection of my itunes library. Lots of classical, lots of Christmas, oldies but goodies, and of course, Justin <3. You're supposed to tag people, but ehhh..

Rules: 

1. Open your library (iTunes, Winamp, Media Player, iPod, etc)

2. Put it on shuffle

3. Press play

4. For the first question, type the song that's playing

5. When you go to a new question, press the next button TWICE

6. Don't lie and try to pretend you're cool...just type it in man!

IF YOUR LIFE WAS A MOVIE WHAT WOULD THE SOUNDTRACK BE?

1. Opening Credits:

Always Be My Baby- Mariah Carey

2. Waking Up:

Creep- Radiohead

3. First Day at School:

Bach's Cello Suite 01

4. Falling in Love:

Chasing Cars- Snow Patrol

5. Losing Virginity:

You're Still The One- Shania Twain

6. Fight Song:

Excuse Me Miss- Jay Z

7. Breaking Up:

If I- Justin & T.I.

8. Prom:

Anything At All- Tristan Prettyman

9. Life:

Orchestral Suite #3 in D: Air- Bach

10. Mental Breakdown:

(Another Song) All Over Again- Justin

11. Driving:

Officially Missing You- Tamia

12. Flashback:

Can't Believe it (Remix)- T Pain & Justin

13. Getting Back Together:

Let it Snow

14. Wedding:

How to Save a Life- The Fray 

15. Birth of Child:

I Don't Think So- Priscilla Ahn

16. Final Battle:

Fantasia for Piano, Chorus & Orchestra in C Minor, Op. 80- Beethoven

17. Death Scene:

I'll be Home for Christmas- Christina Aguilera

18. Funeral Song:

Mandolin Concerto in C- Vivaldi

19. End Credits:

That Thing- Lauryn Hill

20. Hidden Scene:

Head Turner- Joss Stone

Georges

for val.en.times. day oj & I are going to Georges at the Cove (now, Georges California Modern) & I'm super excited for the menu! 4 courses for 65/person and you get to pick between a couple of options per course= good deal! (not like old venice [still love it there though] which was 85 for 5 courses but you only get to pick your entree= boo).

georges valentines menu: my picks

+ cold course: seared beef carpaccio OR dungeness crab OR date salad

+ hot course: butternut squash ravioli I'm so looking forward to this!

+ entree: braised colorado lamb shank

+ dessert: what else? warm chocolate tart

yum yum yum! I can't wait!