Dabney and I had an interesting weekend in food. A lot of people grilled out Monday, but Dabney and I grilled out on Saturday. We made all kinds of foods on sticks. We some spam, pineapple and cherries. That was the starter and was very tasty. The main course was beef and chicken shish kabobs. I used a jerk sauce for the beef and made an Asian style citrus and garlic marinade for the chicken. We made up several skewers of the meat plus several skewers was tomatos, onions, peppers, and mushrooms. I also some made andouille sausage to be used later. Obviously that was a ton of food for the two of us and we had a lot of leftovers.
Sunday we had brunch at the Blue Monkey and then crepes and some sushi downtown at the Music fest. Which brings us to Monday leftover day. We had sausage, peppers, onions, and mushrooms. Dabney came up with the idea of sausage and grits. I made the grits with cheddar, Velveeta, butter,and heavy cream. Of course that combo of things could make just about anything taste good. I cooked the sausage, peppers, onions, mushrooms, and some bacon together and then served that on top of the cheese grits. It was incredibly good if I do say so myself.
I really did not try any new recipes this weekend, but I do feel like I was creative this weekend. I tried to do something different than the same ole, same ole. Now I need to figure out what I want to try this week.
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
Monday, September 7, 2009
Labor Day Weekend Part 1 Music
There were two themes in my Labor Day Weekend, music and food. Let's start with the music first. On Friday we went to Swanky's Tacos to see The Papa Top's West Coast Turn Around. It was a bit of weird night, because there was a not a lot of people there. Even though it was the not the usual crowd the Papa Top's were good form. They went through their usual selection of Honky Tonk favorites Dabney and I had a really good time.
The next musical day was the Memphis Music and Heritage Festival on Sunday.
The first band we saw Sunday afternoon was Two Way Radio. I have liked them ever since I saw them in Five Dollar Cover. They have a very unique sound that is a lot of fun. The singer and also keyboard Kate Crowder has a lot of energy and her positive vibe seems to be the driving force behind the bands powerful sound.
The next band we saw was Sonny Burgess & the Pacers. They were original rockabilly band that still tears it up on stage. It looks like they have been doing with this for awhile, but they had a good time playing and had receptive crowd including a few people dancing. They did the most up beat and peppy version of Folsome Prison Blues which I never really considered it a peppy song. Other than than that one slightly odd version of song they played a really good set.
After a sushi and Saki break the next band we saw Fitz's Ultimate Cooking Hookers. They are unique band that combines cooking and music. While the band plays a guy up at the front cooks up some great food that he gives out for tips. The cook maybe an Asian style chicken and rice. This being right in Dabney's wheel house she got some. Food and music combined in a great way.
Next was the second Papa Top's show we saw over the weekend. They opened with the regular non-peppy version Folsome Prison Blues which Chris always does well. This time had Chris Davis' twins dancing in front of the stage while the band played. The dancing was especially fun when the twins enacted the song Tiger by the Tail . It was kind of interesting seeing the Papa Top's in twice in one weekend.
The last act we saw was watching Jason D. Williams tear it up. It was a fairly short set but he scorched his way through an amazing selection of songs. He played with a great amount intensity and passion. The band had to really stay on top of things because they would start a song and would play bits and pieces of other songs and then come back to the original song. I had never seen Jason play before and was really impressed. All in all it was awesome day of music, food, and fun.
Friday, August 28, 2009
Memphis Mayoral Debate
I have read a few things on a few blogs and on the Commercial appeal & Memphis Flyer sites about the debate and there seems to be a general opinion with some variation.
Current mayors Lowery and A C Wharton did the best. Maybe Lowery did better overall because A C played it a little too safe. Both men answered the questions smoothly and tried to make their case for mayor based on experience.
I guess of the people who actually have a legitimate claim to the job Carol Chumney had the worst night. A couple of people noted the sniping at Wharton. In general with these kinds of debates the person that goes out their way to take shots at other people never looks good.
Opinion on Jerry Lawler were kind of all over the place probably the more Republican leaning you are the more you liked him. He kept saying he was not a politician. Most of his answers seemed to come from the Republicans running for office handbook. Answers short on actual substance but a kind of gritty with a positive frame that with his help that better days are ahead for Memphis.
Charles Carpenter did fairly good job of separating himself from his connections to Herenton, but did little else that was of note. Although the funniest comment I saw on Twitter was that Carpenter sounded like Cleveland from the Family Guy.
Rev. Kenneth Whalum Jr. got some good notices but for the most part was unimpressive.
The one thing that many people noted was his refusal to address the incident where two lesbians were asked to leave his church. I guess it is not a good sign when your shiny black suit is more interesting than anything you actually say.
Councilwoman Wanda Halbert was able to answer the questions but the quality of her answers were in great dispute. I saw a few positive things about her but most of them were that she was not polished enough. When she answered her questions she looked into the camera and had this stiff robotic sounding voice. Like she had memorized her answers and was doing her best to get it all in.
Which brings us to Mongo and school board member Sharon Webb.
Mongo is well Mongo and was mostly comic relief. Although for his crazy talk and weird way of answering questions he does make a few points about the nature of the way the city of Memphis is run.
The response Sharon Webb was either the kind pity your "special" cousin gets or out and out mockery. It's really kind of sad that she actually thinks she could become mayor.
In the big picture though the only difference between Halbert and Webb is that Halbert was at least she able to answer most of the questions, but whether or not she actually understood all the words coming out her mouth was debatable. Sharon Webb makes me wonder how hard it is to get on the school board.
Current mayors Lowery and A C Wharton did the best. Maybe Lowery did better overall because A C played it a little too safe. Both men answered the questions smoothly and tried to make their case for mayor based on experience.
I guess of the people who actually have a legitimate claim to the job Carol Chumney had the worst night. A couple of people noted the sniping at Wharton. In general with these kinds of debates the person that goes out their way to take shots at other people never looks good.
Opinion on Jerry Lawler were kind of all over the place probably the more Republican leaning you are the more you liked him. He kept saying he was not a politician. Most of his answers seemed to come from the Republicans running for office handbook. Answers short on actual substance but a kind of gritty with a positive frame that with his help that better days are ahead for Memphis.
Charles Carpenter did fairly good job of separating himself from his connections to Herenton, but did little else that was of note. Although the funniest comment I saw on Twitter was that Carpenter sounded like Cleveland from the Family Guy.
Rev. Kenneth Whalum Jr. got some good notices but for the most part was unimpressive.
The one thing that many people noted was his refusal to address the incident where two lesbians were asked to leave his church. I guess it is not a good sign when your shiny black suit is more interesting than anything you actually say.
Councilwoman Wanda Halbert was able to answer the questions but the quality of her answers were in great dispute. I saw a few positive things about her but most of them were that she was not polished enough. When she answered her questions she looked into the camera and had this stiff robotic sounding voice. Like she had memorized her answers and was doing her best to get it all in.
Which brings us to Mongo and school board member Sharon Webb.
Mongo is well Mongo and was mostly comic relief. Although for his crazy talk and weird way of answering questions he does make a few points about the nature of the way the city of Memphis is run.
The response Sharon Webb was either the kind pity your "special" cousin gets or out and out mockery. It's really kind of sad that she actually thinks she could become mayor.
In the big picture though the only difference between Halbert and Webb is that Halbert was at least she able to answer most of the questions, but whether or not she actually understood all the words coming out her mouth was debatable. Sharon Webb makes me wonder how hard it is to get on the school board.
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Compound Honey Butter
I am going to try and do a weekly column where I try a new recipe each week. The first recipe was something pretty simple but very tasty. I have always been interested in compound butter and decided to try it. I used Alton Brown's recipe on the Food Network web site. His recipe called for a pound of butter cinnamon and vanilla. I did not want to make that much so I only used 1 stick of butter. I combined the butter, vanilla, and cinnamon in the food processor, mixed it up. and wrapped it up it the parchment paper. After that I put it back in the the refrigerator and let it harden up. The question was what did I do with this yummy honey butter. It was Sunday morning and we had decided to stay in and not go to brunch, so I made french toast and bacon. I happy to report that honey butter was a smashing success and made for some very tasty french toast. I am not sure if I am going to be able to try something new the rest of the week, but will try and do something next week.
Monday, August 17, 2009
Dabney's Birthday Weekend
The weekend started on Friday the actual day of her birthday. That morning I gave Dabney her presents, which was a blue ring from Etsy and the game Bejeweled for her computer. She liked them both. We both worked all day, but I left work early and picked up some flowers from her. We had a nice dinner at the Majestic Grille. She did not know it but I had arranged for Noelle's brother Carter to give us a carriage ride. I called him while we were finishing eating and set it up. We ran into Pam and Rebbecca outside and talked with them a few minutes but there was still no Carter. Dabney suggested we go onto a carriage and said no. She then figured Carter was coming to pick us up. Carter showed and gave us a great carriage. Even though the surprise was spoiled a bit, we still had a great ride and night overall.
Saturday Dabney got her hair and nails done. We had some sandwiches from Heavenly Hoagie. We had some friends over burgers and brats. It was an awesome group of people and we had night of food and fun with a ice cream cake from Baskin Robbins. We also shot fireworks off that Syd brought. I must a few too many Coronas Saturday because I felt like ass most of the day Sunday. Dabney got brunch from the Blue Monkey and had an fried peanut butter and banana sandwich. She said it was awesome and was nice enough to get me one when I was feeling more human. Chinese food from Atan's ended the birthday weekend. We still have Bill, her Dad, and Mom to celebrate with. Her Dad will probably be some time this week, and her Mom is coming into town week. So there is still a little more Dabney 2009 Birthday Festival to experience.
Saturday Dabney got her hair and nails done. We had some sandwiches from Heavenly Hoagie. We had some friends over burgers and brats. It was an awesome group of people and we had night of food and fun with a ice cream cake from Baskin Robbins. We also shot fireworks off that Syd brought. I must a few too many Coronas Saturday because I felt like ass most of the day Sunday. Dabney got brunch from the Blue Monkey and had an fried peanut butter and banana sandwich. She said it was awesome and was nice enough to get me one when I was feeling more human. Chinese food from Atan's ended the birthday weekend. We still have Bill, her Dad, and Mom to celebrate with. Her Dad will probably be some time this week, and her Mom is coming into town week. So there is still a little more Dabney 2009 Birthday Festival to experience.
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Oops
One of the struggles that I usually have with my personal blog is that the minute life gets busy, I forget to blog, and then I have to catch everything up.
Glen and I went to Birmingham. I got to meet some people who knew him long before I did. It was fun to hear some of the old stories. It was also really nice to spend some time with his Mom.
I drove to Nashville and back in a day. I had a Junior League meeting, but needed to get back to Memphis for the Blondie / Pat Benatar concert. I am working on an interesting project this year with the League. Part of it has to do with educating people on online predators and bullying to protect our kids. The other part is education and advocacy with the Memphis Junior League Members to let them know what is going on in all levels of government that affect us, while staying non-partisan.
The Blondie / Pat Benatar concert was awesome. Both ladies, along with their bands, rocked the Mud Island Amphitheater. I heard all of the songs that I wanted to hear, and it the rain held off until the very end of the show.
I turned a year older this week. Due to the wonder that is Facebook, I realized that four other people I know have the same birthday that I do. One of those people was born the exact same year I was, the others just share the day with me.
Glen was awesome. He surprised me with the perfect date night on my actual birthday, and then we had a couple of friends come over last night for dinner. I have always been a proponent of celebrating multiple days, and Glen hasn't batted an eye.
We haven't really made any progress on the wedding lately. We aren't at a point where decision need to be a daily thing, except of course the stress of paying for it. It is unbelievable to me how expensive even the smallest thing can be in a wedding. It adds up so quickly, and is, frankly, overwhelming. I know it seems like we should just elope or something, but the idea of not having my friends and family there to celebrate with us is something I can't imagine.
The health care debate is raging around us. I don't understand the people who are going around the country only to disrupt citizens learning from their Representatives. I don't understand the fear of changing something that just doesn't seem to be working. As someone who is worried about my own insurance situation, I hope that we get a good plan, including a public option.
So, now you are caught up with me. I promise I will be back sooner, rather than later.
Glen and I went to Birmingham. I got to meet some people who knew him long before I did. It was fun to hear some of the old stories. It was also really nice to spend some time with his Mom.
I drove to Nashville and back in a day. I had a Junior League meeting, but needed to get back to Memphis for the Blondie / Pat Benatar concert. I am working on an interesting project this year with the League. Part of it has to do with educating people on online predators and bullying to protect our kids. The other part is education and advocacy with the Memphis Junior League Members to let them know what is going on in all levels of government that affect us, while staying non-partisan.
The Blondie / Pat Benatar concert was awesome. Both ladies, along with their bands, rocked the Mud Island Amphitheater. I heard all of the songs that I wanted to hear, and it the rain held off until the very end of the show.
I turned a year older this week. Due to the wonder that is Facebook, I realized that four other people I know have the same birthday that I do. One of those people was born the exact same year I was, the others just share the day with me.
Glen was awesome. He surprised me with the perfect date night on my actual birthday, and then we had a couple of friends come over last night for dinner. I have always been a proponent of celebrating multiple days, and Glen hasn't batted an eye.
We haven't really made any progress on the wedding lately. We aren't at a point where decision need to be a daily thing, except of course the stress of paying for it. It is unbelievable to me how expensive even the smallest thing can be in a wedding. It adds up so quickly, and is, frankly, overwhelming. I know it seems like we should just elope or something, but the idea of not having my friends and family there to celebrate with us is something I can't imagine.
The health care debate is raging around us. I don't understand the people who are going around the country only to disrupt citizens learning from their Representatives. I don't understand the fear of changing something that just doesn't seem to be working. As someone who is worried about my own insurance situation, I hope that we get a good plan, including a public option.
So, now you are caught up with me. I promise I will be back sooner, rather than later.
Friday, July 17, 2009
Crazy Uncle Pat
For some reason MSNBC feels the need to keep Pat Buchanan around as a political analyst. When he is on he is usually the curmudgeony old uncle that the rest of the people have to shake their heads at times but for the most part get along with. However since the rise of Obama and his recent selection of Sotomayor as his Supreme Court nominee we have seen the darker side of Uncle Pat come out more. You know the family member that is fine until they get that third or fourth scotch in them and feel more free to tell you exactly what is on their mind. Buchanan has been on a tirade every since the Sotomayor pick has been announced.
Rachel Maddow got into a fierce discussion with him on her show Thursday night. Pat seemed to wax nostalgically about the good ole days in 1960 when the country was 90% white and 10% black and everything thing was just dandy. Since that time the Uncle Pats of the world have watched in horror as the power base of the country become more diverse, but to him it is not because the various minority groups deserved anything but that they used affirmative action to take things from deserving white people. Like his fellow cable talking heads Lou Dobbs and Sean Hannity Buchanan only seems to see discrimination against the poor oppressed white man. In a piece he wrote for Human Events magazine Buchanan not only says that Sotomayor is a an affirmative action pick and deserves no respect from the Republicans on the committee. Of the thousands of cases Sotomayor has been a part of Uncle Pat and the Republican Senators only noticed the case where the white men lost out. In the same article also takes a broader view on race and says the Republican party on the whole should not worry about the Hispanic vote. That John McCain simply did not win enough of the white vote. This is a stunningly myopic and short sighted view of things, and while he may be right to a degree about the math in 2008 it will become harder and harder for Republicans to win with just white people especially in states like Florida, Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona. Heck even W saw that the GOP needed in the Hispanic vote in the future, but lost out when the hard liners won on immigration.
Buchanan and Maddow have been oddly tied together on MSNBC. According to Rachel it was his fire and brimstone speech at the 1992 Republican Convention that got her interested in politics in the first place. Before she got her own show Pat and Rachel were often put together on panel discussions and had several dust ups during the 2008 primaries. My favorite moment is when on panel with Rachel, Norah O' Donnell and Eugene Robinson of the Washington Post that the various movements and radical actions of the sixties accomplished nothing only to have Maddow point out that he was on a panel with with two women and a black man. Then again unlike somebody Chris Matthews, Maddow has no problem strongly disagreeing with Buchanan. When her show first started Rachel had Pat on several times but has not had him on as much recently. It was largely because of his piece in Human Events magazine that motivated her to have him saying she wanted to hear his side.
I started out with for some reason MSNBC continues to have Buchanan on the various shows. I think most people at MSNBC like Pat on a personal level and for the most part appears to be a nice guy. It is just at time likes this when that nasty racist bully streak comes out you wonder is really worth it to keep him around much longer.
Rachel Maddow got into a fierce discussion with him on her show Thursday night. Pat seemed to wax nostalgically about the good ole days in 1960 when the country was 90% white and 10% black and everything thing was just dandy. Since that time the Uncle Pats of the world have watched in horror as the power base of the country become more diverse, but to him it is not because the various minority groups deserved anything but that they used affirmative action to take things from deserving white people. Like his fellow cable talking heads Lou Dobbs and Sean Hannity Buchanan only seems to see discrimination against the poor oppressed white man. In a piece he wrote for Human Events magazine Buchanan not only says that Sotomayor is a an affirmative action pick and deserves no respect from the Republicans on the committee. Of the thousands of cases Sotomayor has been a part of Uncle Pat and the Republican Senators only noticed the case where the white men lost out. In the same article also takes a broader view on race and says the Republican party on the whole should not worry about the Hispanic vote. That John McCain simply did not win enough of the white vote. This is a stunningly myopic and short sighted view of things, and while he may be right to a degree about the math in 2008 it will become harder and harder for Republicans to win with just white people especially in states like Florida, Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona. Heck even W saw that the GOP needed in the Hispanic vote in the future, but lost out when the hard liners won on immigration.
Buchanan and Maddow have been oddly tied together on MSNBC. According to Rachel it was his fire and brimstone speech at the 1992 Republican Convention that got her interested in politics in the first place. Before she got her own show Pat and Rachel were often put together on panel discussions and had several dust ups during the 2008 primaries. My favorite moment is when on panel with Rachel, Norah O' Donnell and Eugene Robinson of the Washington Post that the various movements and radical actions of the sixties accomplished nothing only to have Maddow point out that he was on a panel with with two women and a black man. Then again unlike somebody Chris Matthews, Maddow has no problem strongly disagreeing with Buchanan. When her show first started Rachel had Pat on several times but has not had him on as much recently. It was largely because of his piece in Human Events magazine that motivated her to have him saying she wanted to hear his side.
I started out with for some reason MSNBC continues to have Buchanan on the various shows. I think most people at MSNBC like Pat on a personal level and for the most part appears to be a nice guy. It is just at time likes this when that nasty racist bully streak comes out you wonder is really worth it to keep him around much longer.
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