I Really Need to Stop Thinking So Much

Normally on Twitter my 140 character updates come pretty easily.

Today it was different. I had several different things I wanted to say and they all got jumbled so I just said I had several things to say and I figured I post them here because I don't have a character limit.

Being that I have such a rich online life is a blessing. I'm keeping in touch with old friends I dearly love who live far, far away from me. (The fabulous picture was taken by my great friend E.Waters who posted it to Facebook today! How rad to be able to keep in touch with her!) I get to meet new friends from all around the globe. And I get to feel pretty smart being in the know about all the new techy stuff. And Web 2.0 has several important education benefits that have enriched my teaching career.

With that said, the downside is sometimes my online life makes me feel like a huge loser. I thinking about the times I write on a friend's Facebook wall & he/she doesn't respond to me but he/she responds to all these other people & I have to see how much he/she loves his/her other friends on my News Feed. Or when I try to reach out & respond to a Tweet, I get silence in return. Or worst is seeing how awesomely exciting and action-packed everyone else's lives are & all the cool shit I'm missing out on.

I think the reason I felt so jumbled on Twitter is because if I Twitter what I love about the internets, then I come across as a loving, normal person, which is exactly what I want to portray to the online community. However, if I tweet about feeling like a loser, I come across as a whiny, sad, lonely, unhappy hermit. Which is NOT the case. It's just that internets sometimes brings out my self-conscious side, and I want to be able to express that feeling without feeling like even more of a loser.

(But I'm probably looking more like a loser by talking about how I sometimes feel like a loser but I don't want peeps to think I'm a loser.)

For the most part, I don't care what people think. But then again I must if I'm thinking about all the unanswered wall writings, unanswered tweets, unanswered phone calls, unanswered blog posts, etc. etc. etc.

But the other side of the coin is this: we're all freaking crazy busy. How on earth could we respond to every little internet interaction?! If we did we'd go bonkers! And what about all the wall posts, blog comments, tweets, etc. I've left unanswered? Did I cause someone to feel like a loser? Like I don't have time for them? Like I don't care about them?

Now I'm a happy, go-lucky, loser asshole.

In other words, I've been over-thinking the internets and internet friends way too much, and this little psychotic rant is just a taste of a few minutes inside my head. NOT fun.

But let me be clear, I LOVE my online life and my actual life. In fact, I find my actual life quite rich and beyond satisfying. I'm not convinced I'm an all-out loser. I just can see why so many creative-minded people I know avoid having an online life; obviously, they don't want to feel all this rush of crazies every few days (or few minutes).

I wonder how you cope with your online life vs your actual life. Does any one else feel this discord? If you do, how do you avoid it?

It's very possible starting the new semester has awoken by brain a little too much.

In other acutal life news, my students are great, teaching is going well, Bleu is doing well, and I'm seriously considering applying for the reality tv show Big Brother.

♪♪ Because The World Is Round ♪♪

With my morning cranberry juice I enjoy catching up my friends' blogs. It's kinda like my private time in the morning. The quiet before doctor appointments, puppy playdates, errands, cleaning, get-togethers, blah, blah, blah, etc.

After an usually up-and-down-day yesterday I'm been feeling frustrated, unsatisfied, bored, & generally pissed off to the point I restrained myself from physically bitch-slapping quite a few people.

I considered writing a rant-post about my yesterday. But after reading this post I realized I needed to focus on the things I love. Thanks, Lemon.

So I selected The Beatles' Abbey Road, pressed the round play button on my iTunes, and began this lovely blog-rant.

1.) My husband is by far the only person who "gets" me on every level. His love leaves me speechless in the best ways possible. I would have lost my mind long ago if not for his level-headedness that always pulls me back to the core of our lives & myself.

2.) As crazy as that moose-puppy Bleu can be, in the mornings when he snuggles under the bed covers and curls up in the crook of my stacked legs, I feel such tenderness for him, even to the point that I love him even when he's butt-tucking through the house after his bath shaking water all over the walls and furniture.

3.) I love the joy the freshly cut flowers I got at our Farmers Market brings me. In fact I love the Farmers Market period. I'm learning to be more creative with food, and it makes me feel happy and healthy to know I'm part of a food community.

4.) One great thing yesterday was that I got to talk to a couple of women who've I respected and adored from a distance for quite some time. Talking with them helped me realize afterward that I need to focus more creating a local community of friends, and that there are like-minded people nearer than I thought.

5.) Each day is a blessing, and thankfully each day starts new. And today I'm not going to obsess about yesterday. I'm going to move forward today. I'm going to create something new, worthwhile, and use all this new day's freshness to my best ability. No point in wasting it on non-love. Today is full of love.

Cursed

Yes, I'm addicted to a pink whale, my pink pants, and a not-so-pink young adult series of novels about vampires.

Those are things that have been preoccupying me lately. A lot.

Well, those and Alicia's Voice.

And a little black lab puppy who likes to eat the plastic food/water dish in his kennel and poop and puke it out for 3 days straight. Good times.

Seriously, though, Bleu's been awesome lately; I'm really proud of how he's mellowing in his almost-ninth month. Maybe mellowing is too strong of a word, but you get my drift.

Now if only I could stop being addicted to vampire stories and clothes I can't afford. Oh, the joys of consumerism's curse!

Ride On

Cedar Point: The Top 10 List

1.) I look like I'm from NY, according to a lady from MA with a Lily Pulitzer polo shirt. When I told her I was from OH, she frowned. But it's nice to hear on my birthday, "You have way better style than someone from Ohio."

2.) Cedar Point is a tutorial in tattoos: What NOT to get and Where NOT to get it.

3.) At the Point I saw way too many "hot" chicks looking at "old" men who were looking at "hot" chicks.

4.) Translation of #3: If there were a Cedar Point show it would be a special edition of Dateline mixed with What Not To Wear mixed with The Hills.

5.) Park food is disgusting. Barbara Kingsolver would frown. A lot. After lunch at the 50s dinner by Top Thrill Dragster I wanted to die. Or throw up.

6.) Found a beautiful $168 Tommy Bahama bathing suit at the Hotel Breakers clothing store. I showed it to FD. He frowned. Then he shook his head NO.

7.) Best Food on the park campus: Bay Harbor. FD and I smiled a lot during dinner. Though I thought they could use local veggies...

8.) The TGIF bar in Hotel Breakers is very shapely and a great place for a night cap after riding rides for about 12 hours.

9.) My new arch-enemy: Top Thrill Dragster. In the late morning we waited an hour and half only to make it to the gate on the platform while nervously anticipating the thrill that was to be ours next and hear, "TTD will closed indefinitely due to high winds. Enjoy your day at Cedar Point." Then we were only disappointed again to have the crew tell us after the thunderstorms, "There's no way it will reopen tonight." Only to see car after car go on it while we riding the Millennium Force for the 4the time...

10.) If it storms, STAY at the Point. Go have dinner. Take a break. After the storms there's no wait for rides. We walked on the Millennium Force 3 times and the Maverick twice. AWESOME!

~

The Rides Ridden List (in order)

Maverick

Mean Streak

Millennium Force

Waited in line for Top Thrill Dragster for an hour and a half.

(Horrible lunch break. Next year I'm going to bring my lunch or eat at the Sports Grill by Raptor or I'm going out of the park.)

Raptor

Blue Streak

Magnum (2 times)

Gemini

Mine Ride

(Dinner and Storm Break. Good times!)

Last hour park was open. Yes, we rode the following rides in ONE hour:

Millennium Force (3 times)

Maverick (2 times)

Millennium Force (Last train of the night)

RAD!!!

While there was a little frowning here and there FD and I laughed and had a great time! It's just hard to go to such a consumeristic place and not become a little depressed by American culture and behavior. I just had to remember it's a dream come true for me to be at Cedar Point on my bday with my totally RAD hubby!

Absolutely Delightful

Denmark, Kangaroo, Orange by Kevin Griffith

My review

rating: 5 of 5 stars
An absolutely delightful collection of poems.



Smart and accessible.



Fresh and funny.



Lighthearted and thoughtful.



I adore it. Totally.



While reading I kept thinking if there was a band that could put these poems to music it would be Magnetic Fields.



The highlights: "Your Pants Look Disappointed," "The Kite," "Marriage," and "Coffee."



I whole heartedly recommend this book to those serious about poetry and those who want to like poetry but claim they don't "understand it."






View all my reviews.

Locavore Whore

It took me a month to get through Kingsolver's Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life.
Which means I didn't devour it.

Which must mean I savored it.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book with its thoughtful personal essays, well-researched history of food passages, and the fabulous recipes.

Honestly, this book does live up to the hype. I learned a lot about American food culture, how I can be a smarter consumer, and that I'm destined to be become a local foodie (aka locavore). Some of the best parts of the book for me were learning about Slow Food International's Thanksgiving turkey project and Cheesemaking homemade-style, testing the delectable recipes within the book, and reading Chapter 14 about harvesting animals (Yummo!).

With that said sometimes I wanted more from this book. What? I'm not sure. But something I can't quite put my finger on. In the last few chapters, Kingsolver mentions a few items their family still bought at the grocery store, which reassured me that I could trust her as a non-fiction writer. Of course, I trusted her all along, but something about the book seemed off. I told a friend on the phone last night that sometimes I felt like the book was "on par with those new-moms who tell the very-edited birthing story that neglects all the pain, suffering, and grossness." Of course, Kingsolver does fill us in some of the deets regarding animal harvesting, animal cruelty on factory farms, and turkey mating, but sometimes I felt like the book made it sound really easy to be a farmer. What about the crops that didn't go? Or what about getting through the craving of oranges and citrus? I guess I just wanted to see some failure or some loss of hope. The skeptic in me questioned Kingsolver's undying optimism. If she really is that optimistic, then rad; I'd love to meet her and have her rub off on me.

Apart from my skepticism, so much can be gained from this book. It's motivated me to buy local even more than I already was and to rethink the produce or goods I must buy at the store (i.e. flour and sugar) as well as the wanted items I need to learn to not buy (i.e. Reese's cups). I mean just look at this all local food asparagus and feta cheese frittata FD and I made for lunch the other day; it was gorgeous, tasty, and filled me with pride that I knew where our food came from and love for our Ohio farmers and animal harvesters! I honestly could taste the difference in quality, even in the eggs. I'm committed to continue buying from our local farmers markets in BG, Perrysburg, Findlay, Toledo, and other Ohio farms all summer and fall as well as hopefully from certain farms throughout the winter. Also, my new goals are to buy veggies only that are season and not ones shipped from FL or CA that are out of season locally AND to find and buy grass-fed animals.

I think what the book failed to focus on (though, it was mentioned a few times in Hopps contributions) that created a little crook of void for me was do what you can where you are. I'd love to start a veggie patch and garden more, but right now it's not realistically possible. However, there's always community gardens to look into as a start. While one day I know I will garden, today I know for sure I can support local farms, buy canned good from Toledo canneries, and reassess what I buy at the grocery or even rethink which grocery store I choose to buy from. Little steps are sometimes just as important as an all out huge commitment. I'm pretty good with my food practices: we haven't eaten fast food (besides Qdoba, which I can't give up) for almost one year; we've been buying organic for several years; we're thoughtful about how each food comes to our table. We're starting and we're trying. I just feel like it would be too extreme & set us up for failure to swear off all "corporate food" or restaurants that don't serve local ingredients. However, we will start requesting local ingredients on comment cards and supporting more local restaurants that use local ingredients such as Revolver Restaurant.

One day I know we'll really be off and running, and by that I mean I hope (fingers crossed) our green thumbs work and our turkeys hatch babies.

Animal, Vegetable, Miracle earns five farm-conscious Hello Kittys. Just be prepared to become obsessed with food and the rethinking of food while reading this book.

In Need of Some Help

Meet my new button man friend.

Sad thing is he doesn't have a name.

Can you help me think of one for him?










Also, Nameless-As-Of-Yet Mr. Button Man has a request for you too:

If you're an artist or vendor, Alicia's Voice is looking for items for its silent auction on June 18th at our annual benefit golf outing. If you're interested in donating an item, gift card, or service, please leave a comment with contact info and I'll get in touch with you. All proceeds go to Alicia's Voice and The Center.

Together We Can!!!

So Close

My pick to win since the Top 24 was David A.

So close.

David Cook earned it. Seriously, every week he just got better and better. And I really like his music style. I just hope that in winning he can put out an album he wants to do, not some over-produced crap that doesn't showcase his talent.

Sometimes it's better to lose.

Sometimes.

~

It occurred to me today that I've been blogging over a year now. May 1st was the official anniversary.

At this point the only birthday I absolutely remember is my own and the only anniversary I remember is our wedding. That sounds greedy...

Anyways, with its ups and downs, I've realized blogging has actually kept me sane and introduced to an overall supportive community of "writers." Good times.

~

One last thing: After our meal at Revolver Restaurant in Findlay, OH this past weekend all other food just tastes OK.

Ugh.

So FD & I have agreed to dine out even less and save up for a trip to Revolver every month.

Seriously, if we can control ourselves from lushing it up there, it's not that expensive--no more than a couple of pizzas, mexican meals, take-out burritos, and a "nice" meal out combined--and it's WAY MORE worthwhile. Plus, having a goal like eating at Revolver every month will help me see the food we have and use it more creatively. I get lazy sometimes and don't "feel" like eating what's in the fridge. Revolver will only make me hold out longer and see that eating eggs twice in one day is very OK.

The Busier You Are The Better You Sleep

With pulling together the Alicia's Voice Poetry Reading and Yoga Event as well as helping out our families, I totally forgot to pay homage to a little black dog & his 6 month bday!

My bad!

Here's Bleu in his birthday collar from The Black Dog.

I really wanted to get him a super preppy navy collar from Vineyard Vines, one of my new favs, (and I still want it!!! My bday is coming up!!! If you need any ideas: hint, hint!!!) but it only went to 15" & I wanted him to grow into it rather than having to buy him a new collar once he was full grown.

But I keep thinking every dog should have two collars--a fancy one and an every day one; just blame the label whore in me.

Anyways, today we went to the dog park in Bowling Green. It was fun.

I mean the park could use a good mowing and clean up. (Seriously if anyone out there wants to help me clean it up, let me know in the comments section!) However, it was a really neat park in terms of its space and agility equipment.

Of course BooBoo had to run through the tunnel 18 million times. Without treats!

That dog has no fear!

Then he tried new equipment with treats, which he seemed to like really well.

I was really proud of how well behaved he was while exploring and running around like a mad man.

The whole time, though, I was worried about him "getting hurt" or "eating poo" or whatever else moms worry about.

Thankfully, FD told me to relax, that I sounded like a mom on the first day of kindergarten and it wasn't necessary--that Bleu is a dog.

Sometimes I have a hard time remembering he's a dog and not my baby...Weird, I know, but until I have a baby he's my baby...
And he even communicates like a kid. We knew he was ready to go home when he kept laying down after walking a few steps.

My little angel...

He's really growing up and starting to learn how to behave himself...at times that is.




Thinking I need to blog every day now that summer is here. I going to try.

Feeling Blessed

First of all, thank you to all who supported The Why & Later Poetry Reading and Benefit Yoga Classes for Alicia's Voice this past weekend! Even though the turnout was small, everyone's hearts were big. Thank you so much! And thank you to those who were there in spirit too--those that are far away but sent their well-wishes!

I'm excited to continue working with Carly on The Why & Later readings and working as a board member for Alicia's Voice. Both of these causes are very dear to my heart, and it's such an honor for me to be part of them.

Another great part of this weekend was spending time reconnecting with Carly--the sweetheart with a fresh flower in her hair. In two short days, we accomplished a lot: reading poetry together, doing yoga together, and sharing many meals together--literally! The best meal was the one we shared at Revolver Restaurant in Findlay, OH! The Silver Fox (aka Kenny Rogers) played quietly in the background as we ate some of the most delicious food EVER: asparagus soup




shrimp and sweetbreads















walleye brandade












veggie surprise trio for Car









braised short rib meatloaf with asparagus and potato puree



Desserts were delectable too! The pictures say it all!

Thank you, Debi, for your hospitality and for the champagne toast!

And thank you, Megan, for two AWESOME yoga classes that allowed me to feel justified in eating all this great food!

Coming down from a food/activism/friend high is a bit disorienting, hence, my cold. But I'm carrying my happiness with me through this week and beyond.

My only regret is not getting pics of me and Car together, especially at our reading...

Please Join Us This Weekend! Together, We Can!

Join us to support The Why & Later: an anthology of rape and sexual assault poems AND to support The Center, a one-stop location for survivors of domestic violence. All proceeds go to Alicia's Voice and The Center.

Kinda A Little (OK A Lot) "Creepy" with Many Quotation Marks Involved

Meet Prada Eames, my Second Life avatar.

My label whoreness=Prada.

My love of L&O CI=Eames.

I've been flying around Second Life, and I get it. But I don't.

Here's what I get: That, in terms of education, it's the next step. In the picture, you see Prada viewing the BGSU art gallery. How rad, right? And how rad that there are faculty offices where you can "meet up with" and "talk" with your professor bypassing all the awkward BS that comes with face-to-face meetings? And how rad that you can be at class in a "video-game-like" world? I adore all this business. But seriously how many students have the the newest Mac computers (or PCs) that are able to support Second Life? Most college students I know are poor, praying for enough money to get their textbooks.

Which leads me to what I don't "get": the desire to be freak-ish. Yes, in Second Life it's "cooler" to be something you could never be in real life. As you can see in Second Life I'm a brunette with Christian-from-Project-Runway jeans and a killer white jacket. No tats or pink skin or mohawk hair; I'm just me. (I admit if there was a Hello Kitty avatar I'd be her.) Aside from Hello Kitty, I don't want to be anyone else quite honestly. Also, I just don't want to put that much energy into a world that isn't Godly.

Yes, Godly.

Here's where SL gets creepy for me. Didn't God create us to live our lives in the flesh and blood? Aren't we put on this crazy planet to learn about life, love, fashion in real life? So why do so many people live their lives in SL? Seriously? I have a fab marriage, awesome friends, a sweetie puppy I adore, a job I love; why in the world would I need to live a computer-generated life? Aren't things complicated enough, though, with feelings, life lessons, and understanding the world? Why in the world would anyone want to "live" in SL? I mean bad things happen there: you can assault avatars, bomb buildings, terrorize islands. I can't figure out why people do that in real life; how in the world would I ever be able to understand the code for getting a therapist after a SL assault?

I totally understand the merit of online education/distance learning through SL. How rad to "transport" a class to India to learn about Indian poets and food. How rad to have a common meeting space to be able to "see" one another even though we're online and in different corners of the world while in class at the same time? In terms of all things education, I'm all for SL.

What I'm arguing against are those who use SL to live their lives.

That shit scares me. Our lives are so rich and meaningful; why in the world turn to digital media to create a life for yourself? Just walk outside and take a walk. For real.

Maybe a lot of people are afraid to go outside, let alone take that walk. But what does that say about our society? To me it says shouldn't we invest in cleaning up our world rather than creating digital ones (Hello, owner of Amazon who created SL in order to boost online shopping and online sales)?

The sad thing is I'm living in this real world and the Second Life one, and I don't have the hang of either one yet.

Though I see the merit in both, I just prefer the real one much more.

Quick About Things (A Sneek Peek of Sorts)

This past Friday Stokes and I went to The Beachland Ballroom and saw the ever-so-sweet Tim Easton play live.

Because I'm a wimp who was afraid to have her digital camera confiscated, I'm using a photo from imaphotog. Thanks, imaphotog @ Flickr!

Yeah, there were like 100 people there, and tons of crazies with their digital cameras standing right in front of the stage taking awesome pics. I just watched them from my seat, crying a little. We all know my pics would have been awesome. And that I could have gotten Tim Easton to take a photo with me that I could have made my profile pic on Facebook. C'est la vie...

Tim Easton was beyond great--never a let-down yet when I've seen him live, even when he's hopped up on cold meds. The audience was weird, though. There was Random Clapper, Superfan who couldn't shut up between songs (literally, he yelled 5 minute convos with Tim), and the Sleeping Housewives. Guess you had to be there...

Regardless, Stokes and I had a fab time. And I learned how to text faster on my phone. Thanks, dollface.

Saturday, FD and I got some Bangkok Kitchen in Maumee. We're addicted to their curry. It's so good I crave it every meal. (Which reminds me I need to write post on all the local restaurants I love like Bangkok Kitchen, Myles Baker Street, and El Zarape. Another time though. Idol comes on in few minutes.)
After our tasty curry meal, we came home to snuggle up with BleuBerry and watch The Darjeeling Limited--twice! Finally, an idie film worth a damn. Thank you, Wes Anderson. How I love that you love little "stuff" and create sets that I want to live in or eat because I love them so much. Seriously, in my humble opinion Wes Anderson is THE best indie director right now.

Then Spring Break began, and, of course, I've been working the whole time. Why wouldn't I? Tonight through Sunday, though, I'm taking a little break to cuddle with my BleuBoo who was neutered almost 12 hours ago. You wouldn't be able to tell by the running and jumping he's doing that he's not supposed to be doing, but he is a little more tired and whiny than usual.

I'm hoping over the next few days I'll have a few moments to blog more. I have ideas for posts. One on Second Life. Another on how Hello Kitty is a form of escapism. Yet another on Pimp My Kennel. Or the dog that's allowed to eat high-end designer "wife-beaters." And we can't forget the standard here's-who-should-lose-on-Idol-this-week? (Definitely Danny and Luke from the Boys. I'll Twitter my girl predictions tonight.)

So many topics and so little time.

Confessions (Two for Tuesday)

If you've read my Twitter this morning, then you already know.

But Bleu sleeps in his kennel all night--from 11:30-6 or 7 a.m. But the past two days we've put him in bed with us from 6-8 a.m. to get some more sleep.

And we do get more sleep. It's heavenly.

But that little pig is becoming a pillow hog.

Even more honesty, though, I'm worried he'll want to sleep with us all the time and stop liking this kennel. But I know if we make the pattern just for the morning and keep the night pattern the same with his kennel, he'll be fine.

You should see him jump off the bed. It's like he's saying, "I'm done sleeping. NOW, let's eat!" It's priceless.

~

I can't stop thinking about the shootings at NIU.

I want to say something more than "I'm sorry." Or "My heart is with them." But I don't know what to say about something so horrific.

I don't understand why that kind of violence.

My confession: More and more in my role as college instructor I'm becoming paranoid about my safety, my husband's, my students', and my colleagues.

I feel like I need to become a protector in order to be a good teacher. That scares me.

No matter what fear is not going to stop me from being the best teacher I can. If anything, I'm going to use it to empower me and appreciate my students even more.

Right On.

This past year was all about Rehab (think: LL & BS), so it seems fitting that "Rehab" was song of the year...

OMG, How could I miss all this Britney?

I can't tell yet if I'm happy or sad about not having a clue what BS has been up to...

I really miss my Fafa time...Seriously, why must I work?

But soon enough I'll be back, supporting the paparazzi, while Bleu sleeps at my feet.

Pilgrimage

Happy New Year from us to you!

And God bless Revolver Restaurant in Findlay, Ohio.

FD and I made the pilgrimage (a very quick 25 minute drive) down there for a very special New Year's Eve dinner. And I couldn't be happier about it.

Seriously, I'm going through Revolver withdrawal as I write this.

Some of you may remember my review of Revolver and its fantastic bathroom when FD and I went there for our 2nd wedding anniversary.

We loved it so much we HAD TO go back for New Year's Eve. Like I called the week before Thanksgiving to make reservations and they had to call me back because they hadn't figured out the NYE dinner services yet. Now that's LOVE!

The whole experience was heavenly. I recently wrote a Facebook friend, "A Revolver meal is love in food form."

First, it was Beatles night, which meant that we heard the Beatles the entire 3 hours we were dining. If you were raised on the Beatles and heart the Beatles like I do, then you can imagine how rad it was to eat such delicious food while listening to "Here Comes the Sun," "Something," "Two of Us," "I've Got A Feeling," and many, many other rad hits.

FD started the meal with a Barrel House Brewing Co. "Red Legg" Ale, a home-run from a Cincinnati brewing company.

One of the boatload of things I adore about Revolver: They use local products--produce and meats from local farms and beers brewed in Ohio. See what I mean when I say God Bless them?!

I started the night with the tastiest Cosmo ever made. Yum.

We spent quite a few moments talking to Debi, co-owner of Revolver. She knew who I was because she came across my review of Revolver and my post declaring my undying love for Revolver's bathroom. Which, may I mention, Debi and her staff sterilized and wiped down SEVERAL times WHILE we were there on NYE. Seriously, can I get another God Bless?!

The food on New Year's Eve was even better than our summer visit. I trust restaurants where they out-do themselves consistently, not just blow your mind the first time--like, sadly, Cohen and Cooke when they were on Main Street in Bowling Green.

For a complete photo journal of the eight course New Year's Eve Dinner, visit Flickr. But I'll give you a little teaser.

Amuse Bouche: American Sturgeon caviar with banana, avocado, cucumber, and creme fraiche. Imagine a small salty, sweet fruity party in your mouth, then multiply it by a billion of fun. That's this dish.

Course 1: Fois gras with golden raisins, currants, grapes, and toasted brioche. It was my first time tasting fois gras. I was scared. I am no longer scared. Instead I am addicted.

Course 2: Sea scallop with braised oxtail and orange-ginger reduction. OK, I'm totally allergic-will-die-from-shelled-seafood, so Chef Micheal made me special truffle-butter raviolis with braised oxtail. I'm special and very lucky. This was purely winter comfort food. Think pot roast but waywayway tastier.

Course 3: Duck consomme with sage and rutabega noodles. So delectable we used our rolls to help lick our bowls clean. Without our rolls, I think we would have for-real licked our bowls with our tongues. Gorgeous presentation too.

Course 4: Roasted monkfish with veal sweetbreads and celery root-apple puree. Monkfish is my new favorite fish--so moist and mild but completely perfect with the sweetbreads, which tasted like a crispy, juicy chicken wing pumped with crack. I was scared of sweetbreads before too. Right now I'm totally craving them. Most people are really scared of these delicacies like sweetbreads, but I firmly believe that's because they haven't had them served correctly. My philosophy is if I'm going to go big and eat at sweet restaurants like Revolver, I must be willing to try new things. Otherwise, I should be eating at Applebee's or the wretched Reverend Chico's. (Yuck.) (Sidenote: I wasn't really crazy about the puree. It just didn't seem like part of the dish like all the components in the other dishes. It seemed more like an after-thought. But I'm no Gordon Ramsay...)

Course 5: Lamb with homemade merguez sausage, calypso beans and roasted red peppers. This dish was my favorite. The absolute perfect winter comfort food. The lamb was cooked perfectly, and with the sausage, beans, and pepper, it had all the seasoning it needed. (Yes, I loved it so much I forgot to take a picture of it before I started eating. Ooops...)

Course 6: Fiddlehead tomme with pancetta and apple crumble. Imagine a rich salty and sweet almost dessert with the tang of Swiss cheese. Mmmmmm....

Course 7: Angel food bread pudding with tangerine ice cream and eggnog served warm. Exactly what I imagine the food in heaven tasting like. Absolutely perfect.

If after reading the menu, you're still not convinced, then I guess you're just going to have to go to Revolver and taste it for yourself. Seriously, if you live in Northwestern Ohio or anywhere in the vicinity (hell, if you would travel anywhere for food), you MUST go to Revolver. The prices are beyond affordable for the priceless food and the phenomenal customer service. At least experience a meal there once on a really special occasion. I know for sure if you do, you'll go back again and again. And if you go, tell them "the girl who wrote a blog post about the bathroom" sent you.

One last thing I just can't overlook:

Dear Jack-ass-Who-Sat-At-The-4-Top-Next-to-Us, next time you go to a "nice" restaurant act your age, not a fool, and drink some water in-between your one-too-many beers. You were grossly rude to the staff and inconsiderate of the diners around you as well as your obviously-embarrassed girlfriend, who should dump your f'-ing ass ASAP.

Love, Revolver's-#1-Fans.

A Year In Review

I've always loved lists.

Especially lists that involve the word "Top."

Being as inspired as I am by E, VH1, and other "Top 2007" lists, I've decided I need my own.

Welcome to the first annual A Skirt Around The Issues Top 5 Blog Posts of 2007.

#5: "And So The Skeptic Begins Her Work." Seriously, how could my first blog post EVER not make the Top 5 list?!

#4: "So Totally Real It's Unreal." Meeting up with my childhood best friend was such an awesome experience of 2007--maybe the most awesome. The blog post for this reunion doesn't do it justice, but it's the thought that counts.

#3: "Something Nice to Say. (And Some Silence.)" Of all my blog posts of 2007, this one is the most important one to me because it really helped me rethink my writing life and forced me to start writing seriously again--nonetheless in a new genre, creative nonfiction. Bonus: it mentions Paris and her release from jail--one of the every lists "Top" moments of 2007.

#2: "Sea Bands Suck. (aka I Broke Up with Taco Bell (aka When Things Went Terribly Wrong (aka Beware: This Post Contains Gross Accounts of Vomit.)" I'm a sucker for any story that involves vomit, but this one really takes the cake. Fact: I have not eaten Taco Bell or any other fast food since summer. Honestly, I stopped craving it when I stopped eating it.

Drum roll, please.

And #1...Did you guess it?

"In Adulthood You Don't Always Get What You Want, You Get What's Do-able."

All I can say about #1 is that I still think about and want those sunglasses every day.

~

Stay tuned for a post tomorrow regarding our fantastic meal tonight and my 2008 New Year's Resolutions.

Baby, It's Cold Outside.

"Baby, It's Cold Outside" is one of my favorite holiday tunes.

But after listening several times a day for the past 20 days, I can't help but to obsess over the lyrics.

And my obsessing has led me to the belief that the plot of the song is basically a date rape.

Which upsets me. Greatly.

But then I just ignore that blazing fact, and I love the song again.

I have a feeling that my awareness and ignorance in regards to this song is a glaring metaphor for how date rape is viewed by society, even today.

Sorry if I ruined this tune for you. Leave it to me and my ever-thinking mind.

On the Surface

Meet our boy Bleu.

He's 5 weeks.

As SEM says, "1/2 dog, 1/2 angel."

I sooooooo can't wait to bring him home January 2 or 3, depending on the weather.

~

All weekend all I did was imagine meeting our puppy. And I read, reread, & reread again our puppy books.

OK, not really. But you get the idea. He was on my mind.

Really this weekend I watched a boat-load of movies & experienced a fantastic snow storm!

But under the surface, seriously almost every minute, I kept thinking about our puppy.

~

Monday we went to the kennel to pick our puppy.

What's funny is Holly, the breeder, emailed us pictures of the four male black labs, & from those pics FD & I picked Red. In his pictures Red always looked engaged and really active.

Yet again I find out that I cannot base decisions/first impressions on looks alone.

When we finally met Red, he was rambunctious, to put it lightly. He was a showstopper, showing off, continually stretching his little body in the middle of the pen--imagine a dog diva. He whined when me, FD, & FD's bro AJ (who found this litter and had first pick) weren't paying attention to him. At first, his charm worked its magic on me. But then I started thinking, "Dude, Red, chill. I want to see the other pups." At that moment, Dan looked up at me & said, "I don't think we want Red. He's too rambunctious & too needy." I agreed. Totally. I kept imaging whining every time we go to teach or go out to eat. I imagined separation anxiety. I started feeling anxious. That wasn't good.

Then Bleu came over, sat down by my hand that was hanging over the edge of the pen. I started petting him, & it was chill. We were just calmly kicking it--that's the kind of dog I want! Bleu was really active too; he played with his brothers & rolled around & murmured a bit. The best was when he came over to me & rolled over so I could pet his belly. I even got his leg going. That was when my heart melted, & all the "things" that have been on my mind cascaded away.

I think having a dog buddy is going to be so good for me--mentally, emotionally, & physically (how stoked am I to have a walking buddy?! BOSS!)

And I have a feeling I'm going to become one of those doggy moms that talks about her angel all the time. You know I've been annoyed by those people for years. Now I get it.

Sorry, doggy-mamas I've been impatient with!

Now I'm going to be impatient, waiting to brag about my buddy Bleu.

~

Bleu will be FD's fourth black lab. He'll be my first dog--EVA. But I've been reading & studying up. And FD & I have talking about what will be like & what I should expect, realistically, & all the hard work we're going to have to do. I feel confident I understand the challenge & am ready for it.

Seriously, I've been setting my alarm for the middle-of-the-night pee & the early morning pee. And I'm preparing myself for puppy accidents, with lots of stain removers & acceptance that the house might not be the immaculate place it once was. And I'm dedicated to spending lots of time training and playing. And each night before I get ready for bed Bleu & I are going to get him ready for bed too with a little grooming session, a perfect time for us to bond.

Why else would I be busting my ass so much this week to complete next semester's course syllabi & new assignments when I have 3 weeks off? So I can devote more time to Bleu, of course!

I'm prepared for the hard work AND the awesome reward that comes with it.

My little pumpkin!

Maybe a puppy will help me be less selfish & a little more open-minded about the possibility of kids...

& maybe one day I'll be willing to grill in the middle of a blizzard for the love of my family.

Keep in mind I said, "Maybe..."