Inside The Perimeter

As this is the last day of June I am certain that I’ve been in the south for thirty years. I don’t remember the exact date, but I know for sure that in June of 1978 my family uprooted from New York and moved to Florida. I always wonder what I would have become had we remained in New York. Even in Florida college was an afterthought, in New York it was unheard of for any member of my family.

For any parents in the ITP Readership let me tell you one thing… moving a child a month or so prior to his or her hitting puberty is really a bad idea. I know; it happened to me.

Read Along With Me
Today’s passage from Notes To Myself.

When I say “you should,” I avoid committing myself. I am referring you to some supposedly objective standard and saying the circumstances or decency or what-have-you dictates that you do this, while I pretend to stay out of it.

To all who have helped me — Thanks.

Fifty-Five Miles Is Nothing
Especially since the ride was only fifty-three miles.

On Saturday the weather gods smiled upon those of us who chose to punish their bodies by placing them upon manually-powered, two-wheel vehicles. The ride was fantastic, and the repercussions (read “sore ass or legs”) minimal.

The course, which winds around Cartersville and its neighboring cities, consisted of rolling hills and good country roads. There were three rest stops along the fifty-three mile ride and we (Barb, Martha, Brad, Harold) stopped and relaxed at each. ITP-reader Sal also rode the course, but since she is such a good rider I never saw her on the course so I cannot comment on whether or not she partook in the rest stops.

In one small Georgia town called Kingston I once again noticed The DeSoto Hotel and wondered about its past as well as its availability. Apparently it has been around since Civil War days and was sold in 2007 for $150k with the knowledge that it would require a complete renovation.

With the ride I am left nine miles short of my June goal. Perhaps tonight I’ll go for a ride. Or perhaps not…

The End Of An Amish Lineage
Amish Friendship Bread is no more in my household. I wasn’t trying to kill it off, but accidents and mishaps made it happen. On Saturday I noticed that the containers for one of my starters had failed to contain its contents and that the counter was covered with starter.

I still had one other starter and the desire to continue the lineage through baking. I whipped in ingredients, split the starters, added dry ingredients, and got prepared to bake. I sat down to peruse the instruction for cooking directions only to be horrified to see I added the wrong ingredients to the starter. Therefore, the three generated starters had to be trashed, and the resulting “breads” would be questionable. The baked goods weren’t horrible, but they were nothing that I’d ever serve to anyone else.

I am not too dismayed to know that there is not another started in my house awaiting cooking. If you scroll down to the bottom of today’s post you will see that my weigh-in wasn’t the thing that pleased me most this morning. I’m sure that beer and too much food consumed are as responsible for my weight gain, but if I have to give up something….

ITP Flickr Pic
I finally got around to processing some of the shots I took last Tuesday.

This was one of the models waiting for the photogs to get their shit together.

Make My TV An AppleTV
This weekend I reconfigured by media center so that I could add in my new AppleTV. Afer a little head-banging I got everything up and running. I have to admit, it seems pretty cool even though I think that it will cost me some money in the long run.

Almost immediately I identified two television series that I wanted to purchase — The Henry Rollins Show on the Independent Film Channel, and Start-Up Junkies on Mojo HD. Perhaps I’ll have to look to see if these are also available on that awesome satellite television broadcaster for which I work, or on Netflix.

My Oh My, What A Big Hard Drive You Have!
As part of my “Spend Everything I Have In 2008 Campaign” I purchased two new 750GB hard drives on Friday. These new hard drives will also be part of the “Move All Data In 2008″ plan which gets underway upon their arrival. Yippee!! What could possibly go wrong?

The drives purchased are Samsung SATA drives — don’t tell me anything bad about these and spoil their luster even before they arrive. These will be the first SATA drives in my arsenal which also means that I will have to purchase new enclosures to house them. I would have purchased some Macally USB/FireWire enclosures along with the drives had they been in stock, but they were not; so begins the research phase to find acceptable substitutions.

RealiTV Update: The Next Food Network Star
When it comes to becoming The Next Food Network Star looks aren’t everything. In fact, some may say that confidence is more important than appearance. Someone should have mentioned this to Jen. For weeks we’ve watched the attractive MILF appear too unsure and constantly undermine her own presentations and food. Last night was her last straw.

In the Reward Challenge the cooks where presented with a basket of six items and asked to prepare a dish from the items. They would then have ninety seconds to describe a dish on camera. What they didn’t realize was that they dish they would be describing would not be the one they prepared but rather one prepared by another contestant. It was almost painful to watch Aaron and Jen struggle to identify and describe the dishes placed in front of them. Of the contestants Shane was the clear winner.

In the Elimination Challenge the six contestants were paired up and were told to reinvent a classic, slow-cooked meal, in only forty-five minutes. Shane, who was declared the winner of the Reward Challenge got to select his dish and then assign the others to the other pairs. Shane chose Beef Wellington for himself and Kelsey while assigning Coque Au Vin to Adam and Aaron, and Turducken to Lisa and Jen. By and large the attempts look okay, although Jen did neither herself nor her team any favors by accidentally smashing a bottle of apricot juice all over the hot plate thus forcing her to throw out her entire side dish. Still questioning why Jen was eliminated last night? Shane and Kelsey were declared the winners, and Lisa was given a pass because she was hampered by Jen. Aaron and Adam made it through only because Jen was still around — they will be the next two to depart.

And now for some ideas stolen from LiveJournal…
Current Mood - okay
Current Music - Sirius Satellite Radio, Channel 26 playing My Morning Jacket — “Librarian”
Website Of The Day - There are only three things I dislike about Bacon Freak — 1) the URL is a landing page the must be clicked; 2) There is audio on the home page; 3) I didn’t think of it. “Bacon ‘08!” “Bacon Is The New Black”
Exercise (b)Log - Saturday: cycling, 53 miles
Monthly Foot Mileage - 22.75 miles
Monthly Wheel Mileage - 91 miles
Monday Morning Weigh-In - 198 pounds (ugh!)
Mode Of Transportation To Work - My car

Monthly Marta Rides - 22
Consecutive Days Of Bed-Making (Longest Streak) - 89 (89)
Books To Read To Earn Kindle - 4

June Goals
1) Run no fewer than 75 miles
2) Ride no fewer than 100 road miles
3) Ride Marta no fewer than twenty times (ten round-trips)
4) Read at least one book
5) Make my bed every day
6) Eat out at a bar/restaurant no more than twice in one week

Cheers,
Paulie [eatl/ga]

There is what must be a fairly popular series on Bravo called “The Real Housewives Of …” where “real” in this case is as “real” as the one in RealiTV. This morning I read the following on (one of my favorite RealiTV sites) TVgasm.

Bravo’s latest installment to the “Real Housewives” has expanded to Atlanta. The preview special will air on July 30 at midnight ET/PT on Bravo. Atlanta will be interesting to say the least…the cast will have an NBA wife AND an NFL wife…hope they don’t catch their husbands cheating on them during the season.

The Atlanta housewives are:
-DeShawn Snow, a mother to three boys and wife to the captain of the Cleveland Cavaliers;
-Kim Zolciak, a single mother of two and aspiring country singer;
-Lisa Wu Hartwell, wife to NFL player Ed Hartwell and multi-business owner;
-NeNe Leakes, an outspoken social butterfly and mother of two boys;
-Sheree Whitfield, a single mom and wants her own clothing line

I wonder how many of these women live ITP? I’d guess none — but I could be wrong.

Read Along With Me
Today’s passage from Notes To Myself.

“You ought to” means “I want you to,” so what not say so?

To all who have helped me — Thanks.

Play It Again Paulie
Last night’s dinner and theater went off without hitch, well except for the fact that I wasn’t really alone at the play after all. While waiting in line I ran into Greg and Jude (known to the hash as Wet Dreams and Tastes Great) who were also there for the show. When Jude said “I didn’t know that you were going to be here.” I snarkily retorted “Then I know that you didn’t read the blog today because I said that I’d be here.” Win friends and influence others — I am a master at those skills!

Dinner was a half-dozen smoked chicken wings and a half-Tomminator (Brunswick stew covered with tater tots and cheddar cheese) washed down with a pair of Red Hook ESBs. Ah health food…. While the food was delicious perhaps the best part was that because it was Thursday night before 7pm the wings were $0.50 each and the half-Tomminator was $2.

I was up for the show “The Clean House” because I’ve heard good reviews and was under the impression that it was a comedy. The show was sold out and as I scanned the room I placed myself in the upper-ten-percent in the fitness category and the younger thirty-percent in age category. And I used to think that going to the theater was going to be a great place to meet women…

It’s hard for me to summarize “The Clean House.” The best way I can describe the play is to say that it’s an ensemble cast whose lives we follow. Matilde is a Brazilian maid who doesn’t like to clean houses; she has moved to the United States after the deaths of her comedy-loving parents — her mother died laughing at one of her father’s jokes; her father killed himself over the loss of his, one true love. Matilde aspires to be a humorist and throughout the play attempts to create the “perfect” joke. Lane is an uptight woman doctor whose house is to be cleaned by Matilde. Throughout the play she struggles with Matilde’s inability to clean, as well as the loss of her husband Charles to another woman, Ana, whom he declares to be his soul mate. Virginia is Lane’s sister; she has not become the woman she aspired to be, and has a love of cleaning. Virginia acts as Lane’s comedy foil and often the regress to their childhood through their actions toward one another. Ana has breast cancer and through a series of necessities winds up being cared for, and eventually living with, Lane. As her health declines Ana decides that she’d like to die laughing, and Matilde, who at this time has conjured the “perfect” joke, accepts the responsibility of granting her wish. Charles returns from a journey too late, only to find Ana dead.

The play was performed well by the actors. I have seem most of the cast members in other plays, so while accepting them as these characters was tough at first, I was able to make the transition.

I’d suggest that you go see the play, however its run ends this weekend and I believe that all shows are sold out.

In other bizarre Horizon Theatre news…. Last night I finally remembered that I had ponied up an extra $100 when I purchased my season tickets and that my name was to appear in the playbill. Sure enough I am in there! So if you go to the Horizon Theatre and want to take a guess at which of those name listed is my real name then I suggest you have a go. If I do it again next year perhaps I will see it they will put “InsideThePerimeter” or “Paulie [eatl/ga]” instead.

ITP Flickr Pic
It’s one thing to paint graffiti all around the insides of an abandoned warehouse.

It’s another thing to litter by leaving your empty cans all about.

One Down, Four To Go
While sitting in the parking lot of the Horizon Theatre I finished reading Nick Hornby’s book Slam. While I can’t remember my ITP Rating Scale right now I can say that it would fall somewhere in the “Traffic Isn’t Moving” range. The book did little for me, which is a shame because I’ve really liked a lot of Hornby’s previous works.

For my next book I am choosing Geoff Ryman’s 253. 253 is a character study book about the 253 people (252 passengers and 1 driver) who are occupying the seven train cars during a 7.5 minute journey from London to Elephant and Castle. Each person is described in exactly 253 words. As the ancient business cards I found in the book last night reminded me, I’ve made a few previous attempts at reading 253. This time I will either make it through the book completely or give up on trying to read it forever.

Help Me Fill My Calendar!
I feel like I am starting to put on weight again (that Amish Friendship “Bread” has nothing to do with this, I’m sure). I’ve come to realize that if I am not training for anything, then I am neither running nor riding. Make some suggestions in the comments! For what it’s worth I will tell you that I have no desires to run anything further than a half-marathon nor any desires to ride anything longer than a century.

And now for some ideas stolen from LiveJournal…
Current Mood - woefully behind
Current Music - Sirius Satellite Radio, Channel 26 playing Joy Division — “Transmission”
Website Of The Day - Now that I am one book closer to buying a Kindle I’ve started researching eBooks. One good site for offering them is Feedbooks.
Exercise (b)Log - nothing
Monthly Foot Mileage - 22.75 miles
Monthly Wheel Mileage - 38 miles
Mode Of Transportation To Work - My car
Monthly Marta Rides - 22
Consecutive Days Of Bed-Making (Longest Streak) - 86 (86)
Books To Read To Earn Kindle - 4

June Goals
1) Run no fewer than 75 miles
2) Ride no fewer than 100 road miles
3) Ride Marta no fewer than twenty times (ten round-trips)
4) Read at least one book
5) Make my bed every day
6) Eat out at a bar/restaurant no more than twice in one week

Cheers,
Paulie [eatl/ga]

I stood and looked around last night and realized that I am pretty much the only unattached person that I know. Odd.

Read Along With Me
Today’s passage from Notes To Myself.

If I want to communicate with you I must keep you informed of my feelings. A question often hides my feelings. It is sometimes my attempt to discover your position before I reveal mine, or it sometimes hides a criticism I don’t want to risk stating. If I ask you, “Why do you say that?” or “Is that what you really think?” I show you little of what I am feeling. Instead I put you on the defensive without making clear what it is in me I want you to respond to.

The more abstract the question you ask me (”Are you really happy? Do you love mankind? — Your country? — God?”), the more impossible I find it is for me to get in touch with any feeling at all.

I experience the feelings that make me want to open my mouth and speak, not as questions but as demands. My words spring from my emotions and my emotions are declarative, not interrogative. Even my feeling of curiosity is a statement of what I want.

To all who have helped me — Thanks.

Good News! All Violent Crime In Atlanta Has Been Eliminated
That must be the case, otherwise I wouldn’t have seen three uniformed police officers walking the tough streets of Virginia-Highland at 8:30pm last night issuing parking tickets to illegally parked cars.

Don’t get me wrong, cars parked illegally should be fined however I think that with a short-staffed police department having three officers walking about issuing parking tickets is overkill.

Phillips HDTV Antenna FTW!
After returning home from George’s I put together the four pieces that went into constructing my new Philips HDTV Antenna and plugged it into my Dish811 receiver and in seconds I had digital broadcasting on my television.

1978 called and wanted its technology back. I won’t let them have it!

When my AppleTV finally arrives I doubt its installation will go that smoothly, but I’ll keep my fingers crossed.

ITP Flickr Pic
Last Saturday I took a hand-held panorama of the “secret” location in which we were shooting.

While it’s not a sharp as I’d like it to be, it does look its best viewed larger.

With any luck tonight I will get around to processing the photos I took on Tuesday.

Paulie, Table For One, Seating For One
However, tonight I am doing a singleton-date night. I plan to eat dinner at Fox Bros BBQ and then head over to the Horizon Theatre to see “The Clean House.” Initially this was supposed to be a group outing, but with conflicting schedules and sold-out performances in my way I silently threw up my hands in defeat and decided to (be selfish and) make it convenient for myself and go alone.

And you know what? I am okay with this.

Remember My Big Friday Night BBQ Plan?
It’s been moved to Sunday.

I found out that this is Corndogorama over at Lenny’s this weekend and that my friend Harold will be hosting a corn dog eating / beer swilling gathering on Friday night. What better way to prepare for riding 55 miles on Saturday (weather permitting) than to fill my body with beer and corn dogs the night before?!

And now for some ideas stolen from LiveJournal…
Current Mood - irked
Current Music - nothing, I am reveling in silence this morning
Website Of The Day - Have a couple of coins rattling in your pocket and not sure what to buy? Take a gamble and buy something from The Something Store.
Exercise (b)Log - nothing
Monthly Foot Mileage - 22.75 miles
Monthly Wheel Mileage - 38 miles
Mode Of Transportation To Work - My car (I was on such a good Marta roll there for a while)
Monthly Marta Rides - 22
Consecutive Days Of Bed-Making (Longest Streak) - 85 (85)
Books To Read To Earn Kindle - 5

June Goals
1) Run no fewer than 75 miles
2) Ride no fewer than 100 road miles
3) Ride Marta no fewer than twenty times (ten round-trips)
4) Read at least one book
5) Make my bed every day
6) Eat out at a bar/restaurant no more than twice in one week

Cheers,
Paulie [eatl/ga]

Today’s post I was going to tell you about the things I plan to purchase, and the charities to which I plan to send money. That changed when I opened the mail box last night.

There are certain entities from whom I never want to receive mail. The United States Internal Revenue Service is one of those entities. Yesterday I received a letter from them asking for even more of my money. I am not pleased in the least.

Read Along With Me
Today’s passage from Notes To Myself.

Last night I suddenly realized that each of is was wasting much energy trying to relate what we wanted to say to what the last person had just said. A funny “should”! I see now that I was not always honest when I did this. Often I could not tell what connection had been made inside me that resulted in my wanting to say what I did, so I would manufacture a relationship to the discussion in order to be able to tell everyone a good reason for my wanting to talk. The reason was simply that I want to. “I want to say such-and-such–” not “What you said raises this question–”

To all who have helped me — Thanks.

I’ve Got Gas — And I Know How To Use It
On my commute home I stopped into Lowes and exchanged my $20 and my empty LP gas container for one that was full.

Oh sure, I thought about checking to see if the East Atlanta Ace Hardware store provided this service, you know so that I could continue to support my neighborhood, but when I called them on the phone I was greeted with an annoying menu-based answering system instead of a human. Am I supposed to know what department handles the exchange of LP gas? Am I supposed to hope that I can actually talk to someone after waiting to hear all of the menu options — which have changed, or so they say? No, instead I will shop at the place that I know is both on my way home and am guaranteed provides the service I need. My neighborhood loyalty has its limitations.

Can you say teriyaki pork tenderloin and stir-fry vegetables for dinner on Friday night? I knew you could. Why wait until Friday? I’ve got plans that you will no doubt read about here…

A Night A Elliott Street
Last night I needed to get out of the house for a beer. Luckily for me it was Tuesday night at Elliott Street Pub for the Atlanta Photographers Guild. The turnout for last night’s shoot was incredibly large, so much so that it made getting time with the models difficult — especially for someone like me who doesn’t excel at portrait photography and has no interest in fighting like paparazzi.

I haven’t had the time to scrutinize the shots I took, but I feel my portraits were pedestrian and most likely just like those taken by twenty other photogs. I will probably wind up uploading the abstracts that I shot instead.

ITP Flickr Pic
On Saturday I got an invite into a semi-secret shooting location.

It was a cool location to shoot, I’d like to find more locations like this for the future.

RealiTV Update: Hell’s Kitchen
Oh for fuck’s sake… I have a hard time watching Survivor contestants get all emotional when their loved ones are brought on, but on Hell’s Kitchen it’s just fucking ridiculous!

For the QuickFire Challenge the cooks had to recreate on of Ramsay’s dishes. What they didn’t know was that they’d have to recreate the dish that they ate with their loved ones. Only Christina was able to figure out that they were being tricked and dissected the dish while she was eating. For her victory she was able to eat a fantastic lunch which she shared with Ramsay and her ‘rents.

For the Elimination Challenge each cook had a turn at the pass; they got to order around Ramsay and they got to yell at their fellow contestants. From the way all was edited we were led to believe that Christina was the weakest of the remaining three and had no chance of winning. Christina had the worst night of cooking, and her turn at the pass wasn’t that stellar either. As is always the case you can’t trust the editing, and Corey was sent packing.

Next week we get to see each cook create their own restaurant and cook the meal of their lifetime! Okay, well maybe not lifetime, but that’s what RealiTV is all about now, isn’t it.

Paulie, You Got Some ‘Splainin To Do!
Yesterday my antenna that I will be hooking up to my living room tv arrived. Antenna? Is this the 1970’s? No, but welcome to the retro future! Antennas, combined with digital receivers that will be all the rage next year are great ways to pick up those digital HDTV broadcasts on the tellie — now if I can only find a way to DVR them…….

I am still waiting on the arrival of the refurb AppleTV I purchased this past weekend. While not an option for DVR’ing the programming I mentioned above, it will give me another opportunity to watch web content, this time directly on my tv.

Let no one accuse me of not being experimental, even though I work for a company that sells television and television byproducts.

Ankle Update
I’m not ready to run, but I’m going without the support of a brace today. It’s time to start rebuilding strength.

Even though I have no plans to run I will be at George’s tonight if for no other reason than to complete the sale of my old camera to Willy. Shit, I might as well put the money in an envelope and mail it off to the Government as I am sure they’ll want what they consider to be a “fair share” of that transaction as well.

And now for some ideas stolen from LiveJournal…
Current Mood - frustrated
Current Music - watching last night’s Hell’s Kitchen on Hulu
Website Of The Day - You can watch a lot of things on Hulu, but Mojo HD offers original content. Mojo is not perfect, but it does provide an intriguing option for online entertainment.
Exercise (b)Log - nothing
Monthly Foot Mileage - 22.75 miles
Monthly Wheel Mileage - 38 miles
Mode Of Transportation To Work - My car
Monthly Marta Rides - 22
Consecutive Days Of Bed-Making (Longest Streak) - 84 (84)
Books To Read To Earn Kindle - 5

June Goals
1) Run no fewer than 75 miles
2) Ride no fewer than 100 road miles
3) Ride Marta no fewer than twenty times (ten round-trips)
4) Read at least one book
5) Make my bed every day
6) Eat out at a bar/restaurant no more than twice in one week

Cheers,
Paulie [eatl/ga]

It’s another Tuesday (although for some reason I thought it was Tuesday last night because I waited around watching the tv for Hell’s Kitchen to come on) which means that there is a slew of new music releases today. Per my Media Purchasing Plan (whose proper name I cannot recall, but have been following religiously regardless) the I will not be buying any of these new on plastic. And as has happened in the previous weeks I am dismayed by the amount of money being charged ($9.49 in this case) for digital downloads. Like most Americans (people?) I only have so much disposable income and I am choosing to spend it elsewhere on products from which I expect to get more bang for my bucks. In fact, I’ll tease you by telling you that tomorrow’s blog will be all about my disposable income…

Read Along With Me
Today’s passage from Notes To Myself.

“Talking at” and “talking about” appear to be communication but are not. Gayle and I “talk about” when we go over to another couple’s house and all evening the only thing said is, “Yes, and isn’t it so,” as if the rule were to quickly find something outside ourselves to talk about that we can all agree on is terrible. The only personal comments are made while we are driving home.

Two ways I have talking “at” the other person instead of “with” him are: Taking in order to seduce him into thinking I am right, and talking in order to sound right to myself.

To all who have helped me — Thanks.

The Jackmobile Got A Clean Bill Of Health
One of the benefits of driving to work is that I get to take care of some necessary errands without having to plan ahead well. With my birthday coming again in July (22nd for those planning to lavish me with gifts) it’s that time of year to give the State of Georgia a ridiculous amount of money for the benefit of driving a car on the roads. However, before I can do that I must get the emission checked.

While I think emission checking is a valuable thing for us to do the process is flawed, and the regularity at which it must be done is a political scam. First, cars that are more than twenty-five years old are exempt. Wouldn’t they be the most likely to pollute? Then, a few years ago politicians played a game of Three-Card Monty with us.

• They made it so that you only have your emissions checked every two years
• In doing so they upped the charge of emissions testing from $10 to $25
• Within a few years they returned the process to an annual one and left the price at $25

On my ride home last night I stopped at QT for some gas and money out of their Wachovia ATM. A block further down Briarcliff I pulled into an service station cum emissions checking center where the Jackmobile got its emissions seal of approval. Now it’s time to write my check to the State so I can get that expensive sticker…

ITP Flickr Pic
It’s rare that you walk through Oakland Cemetery and see a freshly-planted body.

Living Without Air Conditioning Doth Suck
It’s not that I don’t want air conditioning in my house again, it’s just that this is another one of those tasks which seem to linger for me.

• It requires me to call someone and follow up with them
• It requires me to schedule a meeting time at my house, which may mean that I have to find time to take off from work
• It will be expensive to complete
• I get just enough cool(ish) nights to help me procrastinate

I really need to outsource my life.

For shits and giggles I might set up my small tent on my deck and do a little urban camping. I want to do more camping, and if the Wizard Of Oz taught me anything, it’s that there is no place like home.

(If I Were To Buy Music This Would Be My) Digital Download Pick Of The Week
There is one release today that would already be mine if not for the $9.49 digital download price at Amazon (fwiw- it’s $9.99 on iTunes); that virtual disc is Alejandro Escovedo’s “Real Animal.” I’ve seen Escovedo in concert a few times, and his concert at Variety Playhouse will be the reason that I will be missing Grammar Girl’s book signing in Decatur on July 16th. As you can tell, I really dig Escovedo’s music.

fwiw- Another disc that intrigues me is Less Than Jake’s “GNV FLA.” If you know me and understand airport codes then you’ll understand why.

And now for some ideas stolen from LiveJournal…
Current Mood - fair — the ankle seems to be coming around
Current Music - Sirius Satellite Radio, Channel 26 playing Morrissey — “First In The Gang To Die”
Website Of The Day - With all the talk of Amish Friendship “bread” I started thinking about measuring units. Luckily at the same time someone pointed me at a neat website called Sensible Units.
Exercise (b)Log - nothing, I was lazy and giving my ankle a break
Monthly Foot Mileage - 22.75 miles
Monthly Wheel Mileage - 38 miles
Mode Of Transportation To Work - My car
Monthly Marta Rides - 22
Consecutive Days Of Bed-Making (Longest Streak) - 83 (83)
Books To Read To Earn Kindle - 5

June Goals
1) Run no fewer than 75 miles
2) Ride no fewer than 100 road miles
3) Ride Marta no fewer than twenty times (ten round-trips)
4) Read at least one book
5) Make my bed every day
6) Eat out at a bar/restaurant no more than twice in one week

Cheers,
Paulie [eatl/ga]

If I could change one thing about my hashing experience it would be the regularity of which I turn/sprain my ankles. Yesterday while cruising along I took one misstep and rolled the living Hell out of my left ankle — popping sound effects were provided at no extra cost. I hobbled my way through the remainder of the trail and returned home to begin the painful recovery process of RICE (Rest. Ice. Compression. Elevation.) With the Cartersville Century ride on my calendar for Saturday I will be out of commission for the remainder of this week in hopes that I’ll be strong enough for the ride.

Read Along With Me
Today’s passage from Notes To Myself.

I must do these things in order to communicate: Become aware of you (discover you). Make you aware of me (uncover myself). Be ready to change during our conversation, and be willing to reveal my changes to you.

For communication to have meaning it must have a life. It must transcend “you and me” and become “us.” If I truly communicate, I see you in a life that is not me and partake of it. And you see and partake in me. In a small way we then grow out of our old selves and become something new. To have this kind of sharing I cannot enter a conversation clutching myself. I must enter it with loose boundaries. I must give myself to the relationship, and be willing to be what grows out of it.

To all who have helped me — Thanks.

Just Call Me Rain Man
On Saturday morning I went to Oakland Cemetery to take photos. It rained.
On Sunday I went hashing. It rained.

Sadly, neither weather event provided a whole lot of rain, nor did they cool temperatures significantly.

“Shit, Piss, Fuck, Cunt, CockSucker, MotherFucker, and Tits”
Words by which to live. These of course are the seven words which cannot be said on broadcast television. George Carlin made them popular. George Carlin died yesterday. There goes another one of the legends with whom I am rather familiar. I’ve just gained one more notch on my “Live For Today” belt.

ITP Flickr Pic
This was not the shot I had intended on using today.

However, with the news of Carlin’s death it just seemed to be the “appropriate” shot for the day.

The Bread Is A Lie
I made the Amish Friendship “bread” with great success this weekend. While I realized that this “bread” was not “bread” but more of a muffin or cake I didn’t realize just how much it would make. I quickly found out that the recipe as stated would make one 9″ round cake pan plus two ramekins worth of “bread.”

I’ve got three batches of “starter” underway, one of which will be turned into another “loaf” of “bread” next weekend. I only hope that this process doesn’t expand my waistline along with my knowledge of Amish “bread” baking.

In other news, one of my coworkers gave me a jar of Apple “butter” on Friday. I think that I will spread some of the “butter” onto the “bread” and call it “breakfast.”

Always Know Rule #1 Of Barbecuing
What is Rule #1? Always check the amount of propane in you tank in order to guarantee a sufficient amount is on hand.

I didn’t follow Rule #1 and nearly paid for it on Saturday night. I started a London Broil along with two potatoes, and had two ears of corn still in their husks awaiting their turn on the heat. After about ten minutes I went to check on the cooking process and saw, to my horror, that the cavity of the barbecue was nowhere near my desired temperature. At that time I also noticed that the flame had gone out. A quick inspection of the tank of propane explained why — I was out of gas.

Against my desire I cranked up the oven (for the second time on Saturday) and cooked indoors. The meal was delicious, but I really need to continue to cook outside until air conditioning has returned to the domicile.

RealiTV Update: The Next Food Network Star
First let me say that from what I see none of these contestants will be Food Network “stars”, but I digress…

On last night’s episode the contestants are introduced to current Food Network start Tyler Florence and Michael Simon.

For the Tyler Florence segment the contestants much produce a minute’s worth of instructional video using an ingredient which is revealed to them prior to making the video. I feel for the contestants because one minute is barely enough time to pull this off, and few even come close. The highlight of the contest (because it was so bad) had to be Nipa and her inability to clean a squid. We learn a lot about Nipa, our mid-western Indian girl, in this contest. First, we see that she is absolutely squeamish about touching seafood (more on this later) and second, she obviously has never eaten squid. The second revelation is apparent when she yanks the head, tentacle, and guts from the squid and proceeds to “clean” the squid by ignoring the body (the most commonly eaten portion) and then trimming a small piece from the remaining portion and presenting that as the finished product. The Tyler Florence segment also shows us why Jennifer won’t win. Jennifer suffers from the same lack of confidence that I do — which is one of the many reasons that I won’t be the next Food Network star.

For the next challenge Michael Simon (who last year became the new Iron Chef through a similar process) greets the contestants. The contestants must take one fish and prepare it two ways — one conventional way, and one Iron Chef way using a bizarre added ingredient. As an added “bonus” the “best” dish will be featured on Red Lobster’s menu and I am reminded why I haven’t eaten at Red Lobster in over twenty years. During the fish selection and preparation we see that Nipa has a hell of a time picking up a dead trout and also has no idea how to fillet a fish! WTF?! This contest produced many “misses” and a couple of “hits” as far as the food was concerned. We also got to witness Lisa slip and fall because her choice of cooking shoes is incredibly impractical.

In the end the selection committee narrows the elimination targets down to two — Nipa and Adam. I fear that Adam and his “over the top” antics are finally going to cost him, but apparently the judges must have watched the tape of Nipa’s inability to do anything with seafood and give her the boot. For some reason this pleased me greatly, after all she did already quit once and got a reprieve.

And now for some ideas stolen from LiveJournal…
Current Mood - bummed
Current Music - Sirius Satellite Radio, Channel 26 playing The Dandy Warhols — “Not If You Were The Last Junkie On Earth”
Website Of The Day - Over the weekend I was introduced to a great little shot for bargain camping gear called The Gear Revival. If you live in Atlanta and do outdoorsy things, then I suggest you find them and do some shopping there.
Exercise (b)Log - walking/running, 4 miles
Monthly Foot Mileage - 22.75 miles
Monthly Wheel Mileage - 38 miles
Mode Of Transportation To Work - My car
Monthly Marta Rides - 22
Consecutive Days Of Bed-Making (Longest Streak) - 82 (82)
Books To Read To Earn Kindle - 5

June Goals
1) Run no fewer than 75 miles
2) Ride no fewer than 100 road miles
3) Ride Marta no fewer than twenty times (ten round-trips)
4) Read at least one book
5) Make my bed every day
6) Eat out at a bar/restaurant no more than twice in one week

Cheers,
Paulie [eatl/ga]

At college career fairs I preach “passion” to the students. I want my passion back. How I get it back is the $64 Question.

Read Along With Me
Today’s passage from Notes To Myself.

My experience indicates that blunt honesty with my feelings gives me greater empathy with other people’s feelings. My feelings appear to be a truer register of another person’s feelings than my intellect. To better get at what is going on in him I sometimes ask myself not, “What is happening in him?” but “What do I feel is happening in him?” In order to see more clearly what he is feeling I at times have to stop listening to what he is saying, and what I am thinking, and look inside myself. Then if I speak from this feeling within, and tell him what I understand him to be saying, he will usually set me straight if I have not got it right.

To all who have helped me — Thanks.

Getting One Book Closer To A Kindle
I’m about two-thirds through reading Nick Hornby’s Slam. So far the book has been engaging, but I couldn’t have less of a connection with the main character if I tried. The story is about a teenager from a broken marriage, who was conceived when his mother was sixteen, and who subsequently knocks up his girlfriend at sixteen. Currently they’ve not had the child yet, nor have they told anyone that she is pregnant, so I’ve not learned what is to become of this.

I think Hornby’s High Fidelity “spoke” to me more…

ITP Flickr Pic
Sometimes getting to your goals seems incredibly obvious. However, as this photo illustrates, you can always be certain.

How are we certain that the edges not included in the frame provide us the direction necessary to make to the center? How’s that for some obtuse thinking for a Friday?

The Numbers Go Up, The Numbers Go Down
Unlike many of the social networks, Twitter has stuck. Even with its numerous outages (and I nearly registered www.TwitterIsAtCapacity.com yesterday) I return daily. As you may read along the right-hand galley of this blog, my Tweets (Twitter postings) rarely relate to anything — they are simply off-the-cuff thoughts which occur in my twisted mind.

What’s really odd about Twitter is watching the number of people “Following” me go up and down like the tide. Are these people judging me? Were these people expecting something greater out of me? It’s rather odd. It’s even odder (juggle that juxtaposition of words for a moment) that I care.

More Than Likely My Weekend Commitments Will Be Non-Existent
With the exception of running Black Sheep on Sunday afternoon I have committed to making no commitments. There are things which may, or may not, occur and I’m okay with that right now.

Many options exist, few will be executed…

Ezekiel, Make Me Some Goddamn Bread!
On Wednesday I received the gift of an Amish Friendship bread started from Martha (aka Laura). Even though I failed to stir it with a wooden spoon as directed (I believe that I understand why I am more passionate for “cooking” as opposed to “baking”), I will be attempting to “Amish the hizzie” by baking the bread tonight.

Here are the ingredients that will go into my bun in the oven…

• 2 cups flour
• 1 cup sugar
• 1-1/2 tsp baking powder
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 - (5.1 oz) box instant vanilla pudding
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 cup nuts

Bun in the oven? Maybe I have more in common with Slam than I realized?

Of course my house contains everything except instant vanilla pudding, so I’ll be making a pit stop on my way home tonight. With any luck neither my lack of direction following nor my lack of baking skill will result in me producing a paperweight.

And now for some ideas stolen from LiveJournal…
Current Mood - somewhat lost
Current Music - Sirius Satellite Radio, Channel 26 playing The National — “Fake Empire”
Website Of The Day - Pet Peeves sells dog chew toys, but also appears to be so much more. Since I am not a dog owner I will leave it up to the reader to determine this site’s worth.
Exercise (b)Log - nothing
Monthly Foot Mileage - 18.75 miles
Monthly Wheel Mileage - 38 miles
Mode Of Transportation To Work - Marta
Monthly Marta Rides - 21
Consecutive Days Of Bed-Making (Longest Streak) - 78 (78)
Books To Read To Earn Kindle - 5

June Goals
1) Run no fewer than 75 miles
2) Ride no fewer than 100 road miles
3) Ride Marta no fewer than twenty times (ten round-trips)
4) Read at least one book
5) Make my bed every day
6) Eat out at a bar/restaurant no more than twice in one week

Cheers,
Paulie [eatl/ga]

Or “The One Where I Prove That I Am No Bob”

I made it into George’s Bar last night early enough to see ITP-reader Bob (I’m sure this is not how he wishes to be referenced, but this is my blog….) get five minutes of his fame on a news piece done by WSB. The sound was down and the closed-captioning off, so I didn’t hear what he had to say, but from the way they cut that piece they made it look like he had to ride and entire leg of the Tour de France in order to get to work. Remember dude, get it on YouTube and I’ll embed the video in a blog post.

Today I was supposed to emulate Bob by doing my own bike commute. Two funny things happened along the way to getting there however. First, I woke up a little run-down and sniffling (not a good way to start a fifteen-mile ride) and unlike for the past three weeks the temperature actually dipped into the “cool” zone last night, so I wimped out.

At least I took Marta today…. I got that going for me.

Read Along With Me
Today’s passage from Notes To Myself.

I am afraid of your silence because of what it could mean. I suspect your silence of meaning you are getting bored or losing interest or making up your own mind about me without my guidance. I believe that as long as I keep you talking I can know what you are thinking.

But silence can also mean confidence, And mutual respect. Silence can mean live and let live: the appreciation that I am I and I you are you. This silence is an affirmation that we are already together — as two people. Words can mean that I want yo make you into a friend and silence can mean that I accept your already being one.

To all who have helped me — Thanks.

These Are The People You See On The Marta Train (Again And Again)
For all of the people who ride Marta you’d think that you’d rarely see the same people more than once. However, I guess it’s that we all seem to get out of the house at the same time, many of us transfer at Five Points, and we tend to get into the same train car (whether it be front, middle, or back) repeatedly. Today I saw the two postal workers that exit the train in Midtown and the really pretty girl (who you’d never pick out of a police lineup because she is totally not my “type”) who gets off at Buckhead on my ride in. However not seen recently is the guy who gets off the train at Medical Center and intrigues me to the point that I want to do a long-term photo project of him. I wonder if they notice me, and if they would describe me?

And then there are the people I’d like to see more often like ITP-reader Romanlily.

ITP Flickr Pic
Slim pickings in the old photostream right now because I haven’t shot in days.

Is it the weekend yet? No? Shit, I’ll have to figure out a way to get some shots in before then I guess.

You Snooze, You Lose, And Sometimes You Save
Yesterday I decided to torture myself by looking at that expensive lens online again so that I could admire it much like a child admires all the candy in a candy store (Do candy stores still exist, or have they gone the way of the full-service gas station?).

My torture didn’t last long, or more specifically it turned to dismay as I saw that in less than a week’s time the lens is no longer in stock. There must be a lot more people more confident in their financial future then me for it to sell out that quickly.

Speaking Of Snoozing, Did Anyone Else Watch The Top Chef “Reunion” Show?
Talk about false pleasantries… I lost forty-two minutes (which would have been sixty if not for my DVR) of my life watching the Top Chef reunion show. Atlanta’s own King Richard Blais was not with the rest of the cast because he remained in Atlanta to be with his wife as they gave birth to their first child, a girl.

The only thing which might have provided amusement was the unveiling of this season’s commemorative t-shirt bearing the infamous Andrew quote “I’ve got a culinary boner.” First, I don’t ever remember hearing about t-shirts from past seasons (was this the first time I’ve watched a Top Chef reunion), and why exactly would I want to wear a shirt that says “I’ve got a culinary boner.” on it?

On the show we learned that Top Chef Stephanie was also voted “Fan Favorite” and won another $10k for her pleasantness. Not a bad season for the Chicago lass.

Did I Really Forget To Pick A Website Yesterday?
And no one called me out on it?! The only reason I know now is that I copied yesterday’s template into today’s post and saw that the “Website Of The Day” was empty.

And now for some ideas stolen from LiveJournal…
Current Mood - meh, but sad
Current Music - Sirius Satellite Radio, Channel 26 playing My Morning Jacket — “Evil Urges”
Website Of The Day - Have you ever tried to use something you own but have no idea where its manual is? If this happens in the future try searching Safe Manuals to see if they have it.
Exercise (b)Log - running, 4.75 miles
Monthly Foot Mileage - 18.75 miles
Monthly Wheel Mileage - 38 miles
Mode Of Transportation To Work - Marta
Monthly Marta Rides - 19
Consecutive Days Of Bed-Making (Longest Streak) - 77 (77)
Books To Read To Earn Kindle - 5

June Goals
1) Run no fewer than 75 miles
2) Ride no fewer than 100 road miles
3) Ride Marta no fewer than twenty times (ten round-trips)
4) Read at least one book
5) Make my bed every day
6) Eat out at a bar/restaurant no more than twice in one week

Cheers,
Paulie [eatl/ga]

It’s not what did I eat last night at Tasty China, it’s what didn’t I eat last night. Today I think that I am suffering a food hangover. About the only dish I passed on last evening was a fried rice dish that someone ordered. And the only reason I passed on it was because it looked completely bland.

From what I remember I consumed, cilantro fish rolls, dan dan noodles, hot and numbing beef, spicy won ton soup, rabbit cubes, pork belly, shrimp, fried fish, beef, chicken, eggplant, millions of hot peppers, and a fortune cookie (whose fortune I’ve misplaced). And I wonder why I am feeling a bit “off” today.

The only bad news from the restaurant is that one of the chefs has burned himself badly so some of the items on the menu have been nixed. Fear not, I think that I’ve proven that there is still plenty of delicious stuff to eat.

Read Along With Me
Today’s passage from Notes To Myself.

I want you to say anything.

Even what you don’t mean.

To all who have helped me — Thanks.

A New Day Has Dawned — Let There Be Lights
While traveling the top end of the perimeter last night, on which I saw to accidents between Roswell Road and I-75, I saw that some of the new “traffic regulating” on-ramp red-lights have been activated. I’ve watched these lights get installed for over a year now, and am rather suspect of their capabilities to solve Atlanta’s traffic woes. Let’s face it, the problem is too many cars on the road at the same time, mostly because there are too many cars in this area. My concern is that these lights will simply move the traffic jams from I-285 onto the surface streets which feed it.

I’m not traffic engineer and I hope that I am proven wrong on this one.

ITP Flickr Pic
Last Friday I went to lunch at Beyond The Bayou. Since I’ve last eaten there they have moved into a small house in Chamblee. If you decide you need a Cajun fix, do yourself a favor and avoid Googling for the address — Google Maps shows the old location. Because I care, I’ve placed my photo on a map so you find the restaurant if you wish.

This is the room in which I ate.

I was kicking myself for not bringing my camera, so what you see was actually taken with the camera on my phone.

This just in…. I’ve not been shooting enough.

A Man Walks Into A Bar To Pick Up An Amish Bread Starter
Tonight I’ll be darkening the door of George’s Bar. With any luck I’ll be running five or so miles and not dying. And with any further luck I’ll be taking home an Amish bread starter so that I can become a master baker. That’s baker, people, baker!

I wonder how successful I can be baking inside my grill? Only time will tell.

RealiTV Update: Hell’s Kitchen
Ack! I missed it! And, unfortunately for me my satellite dish is a little on the wonky side right now so I wasn’t able to record it either.

I’ve seen who was booted, now I am going to see if I can watch it online.

Watching it now, won’t be done before my 7:30am meeting though. How do these cooks have any taste buds left? They smoke up a storm every week!

And now for some ideas stolen from LiveJournal…
Current Mood - meh
Current Music - Sirius Satellite Radio, Channel 26 playing My Morning Jacket — “Librarian”
Website Of The Day - .
Exercise (b)Log - nothing
Monthly Foot Mileage - 14 miles
Monthly Wheel Mileage - 38 miles
Mode Of Transportation To Work - My car (so I can blog before a 7:30am meeting)
Monthly Marta Rides - 18
Consecutive Days Of Bed-Making (Longest Streak) - 76 (76)
Books To Read To Earn Kindle - 5

June Goals
1) Run no fewer than 75 miles
2) Ride no fewer than 100 road miles
3) Ride Marta no fewer than twenty times (ten round-trips)
4) Read at least one book
5) Make my bed every day
6) Eat out at a bar/restaurant no more than twice in one week

Cheers,
Paulie [eatl/ga]

Something that I’ve been itching to buy is back in stock. A Kindle? Nope, not a Kindle (yet). It’s a new Nikon lens and it’s on the expensive side so I’m struggling with the idea of pulling the trigger. On the one hand I have the “Live for today!” mantra bouncing through my head, while one the other I have the “You must fix the house, buy a new air conditioner, save for the future, pay for a long summer vacation, yadda, yadda, yadda…” If I was a professional photographer I’d have no problem making the purchase, but it seems extravagant for what I do. What’s the most extravagant “off the cuff”, luxury purchase that you’ve ever made? Do you regret your purchase?

Read Along With Me
Today’s passage from Notes To Myself.

I won’t hold you to your words. Deep emotions are often expressed in irrational words.

To all who have helped me — Thanks.

Why Does Decluttering Make Me So Goddamn Happy?
Another of the extravagant purchases I’ve made recently was a $170 office cabinet in which I am storing a bunch of shit that’s been sitting on my den/office floor for way too long. “But Paulie, you are supposed to be getting rid of things not hiding them, right?” True that. But, the items stored in this cabinet are not on the “discard” list, so getting them organized and out of sight pleases me.

Next up, actually getting rid of stuff…

I Could Almost Feel The Pounds Melting Away
Running in the 6:30pm heat last night was not the brightest thing that I’ve done. It’s probably a good thing that there wasn’t a whole lot of “run” in either Martha (aka Laura) or me.

However, the slow pace caused Martha and me to hear, and then see the aftermath, of one of the worst residential car accidents I have ever witnessed. From three blocks away we heard the tire swerve noise, followed by a thump, followed by a series of thuds. When the two of us made it to the corner of Glenwood Av and Clifton Rd we saw the front two-thirds of a VW (Jetta/Rabbit/Passat) convertible on a lawn facing the road with its airbag deployed, and a van on its side blocking the right-hand land of Glenwood about twenty yards further down the street.

ITP Flickr Pic
Some random events are pleasurable. A few weeks back while strolling through Piedmont Park I came across this scattered set of cards.

This was exactly how I found the cards. I couldn’t help but play around with a little depth of field trickery.

If You Hear A Loud Explosion From The Marietta Area
Fear not, it’s just the sound of my belly exploding from eating too much Tasty China.

Digital Download Of The Week
Here is a list of the releases today. I can’t pick just one of these…

• The Briggs - “Come All You Madmen”
• Coldplay - “Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends”
• Confide - “Shout The Truth”
• Anthony David - “Acey Deucey”
• Goo Goo Dolls - “Greatest Hits Volume 2″
• Ice Cube - “Raw Footage”
• MIGGS - “Unraveled”
• Judas Priest - “Nostradamus”
• The Notwist - “The Devil, You + Me”
• The Offspring -”Rise and Fall, Rage and Grace”
• Ride The Boogie - “Ride The Boogie”
• Silver Jews - “Lookout Mountain, Lookout Sea”
• Tilly And The Wall - “O”
• Sister Hazel - “Before The Amplifiers, Live Acoustic”
• Wolf Parade - “At Mount Zoomer”

I will say that the ones that tickle my fancy the most are Tilly And The Wall and Wolf Parade, both of whom I will be seeing in concert at Variety Playhouse in July. I think that I’d also like the Silver Jews disc, and I have a longstanding soft spot in my heart for The Offspring.

And now for some ideas stolen from LiveJournal…
Current Mood - not bad
Current Music - Sirius Satellite Radio, Channel 26 playing LCD Soundsystem — “Someone Great”
Website Of The Day - I keep chuckling at this one. Over at Color Wars 2008 they have a blog going called Young Me - Now Me where people recreate photos from their youth.
Exercise (b)Log - walking/running, 4 miles
Monthly Foot Mileage - 14 miles
Monthly Wheel Mileage - 38 miles
Mode Of Transportation To Work - My car
Monthly Marta Rides - 18
Consecutive Days Of Bed-Making (Longest Streak) - 75 (75)
Books To Read To Earn Kindle - 5

June Goals
1) Run no fewer than 75 miles
2) Ride no fewer than 100 road miles
3) Ride Marta no fewer than twenty times (ten round-trips)
4) Read at least one book
5) Make my bed every day
6) Eat out at a bar/restaurant no more than twice in one week

Cheers,
Paulie [eatl/ga]