Mike

Random Charleston

I was searching my archives for an old post when I realized that it's been ages since I've done Random Charleston.

What a great idea for a photo of the Ravenel Bridge.

[Stolen from Reellady's Flickr photostream.]

I can't believe I just did that

I switched the thermostat from AC to Heat.  It's just temporary, but still.

Yes, Heather, I'm bored.

TypePad normally sends me an email whenever any of you leave a comment on my blog.  Lately I've had to check the blog for comments because I'm not getting the emails.  Have any other TypePaders had this problem or is it a problem with Yahoo mail?

Never trust anything you read on the Internet

I was partially fooled.  It happened but not off the Charleston coast.

Nine.

A record?

Seven posts in one day.  OK, now it's eight.

I've never been accused of being a serious blogger but even a dog and cat blogger like me loves shiny objects

Steven Colbert rules the blogosphere.

As if South Carolina needed more bad press

Remember Miss Teen South Carolina? 

South Carolina is tied with Florida for the highest rate of high school dropouts.  When will our state legislators figure out that high quality jobs only happen when you have high quality education?  I probably voted for one of those legislators last November.  Shame on me.

Dear Unknown Number

I have caller ID.  I'm never going to answer.  Quit phoning.

The headline that wasn't. "Giants and Dolphins bore 81,000 to death in London".

Which idiot in NFL HQ thought that this was a good idea?  Couldn't they have waited a week for the Pats-Colts game?

Evidently other people are as disgusted with politicians as I am

Charleston native Steven Colbert is polling in double digits.

Over 1 million people have already voted on Facebook.

The FEC is more concerned about his campaign than he is.

Unfortunately, come next November, I'll have to vote for the lesser of many evils.

Nifty!

A super-thin flip phone that does nothing but make and receive calls.  I didn't know they still made those.

It was free but I had to sell my soul to Sprint for another two years.  Not a problem since I'd already re-upped in June and I'm probably the only customer they have who isn't pissed off at them for one reason or another.

A note to family members (other than Briar and Justine):  Because my old phone died before I could copy the phone book you need to email me your home, cell, and work numbers.  I've never written most of them down.  If you aren't a family member but want to be in my phone book, email me at nicelynotorious@yahoodotcom.  I'll probably never call you but, who knows, I may wander away from home one night and need a place to sleep.

49!

Mostly Cloudy             

49°F

Feels Like
43°F

It hasn't been in the 40s here in Charleston since, like, forever.  At least it seems that long.

[Courtesy of Weather.com]

Ladles is closed on Sunday

I had to make my own soup.

Creamy Asparagus Soup

Not bad for a single guy who didn't know that he owned
a blender and wasn't sure which appliance
was the dishwasher.

Goodbye good friend

The Pig on Ashley River Road closed for the last time last night.

In this era of 24/7 superstores there's evidently no room for small, friendly, neighborhood grocery stores.

Ack!

This is for family members.  My cell phone finally died.  I'll go to the Sprint store and get a new one on Monday.  In the meantime call the house number.

Despite today's loss, Champ remains a loyal member of the Big Blue Nation

He knows that basketball season starts in 4 days!

I don't want to talk about it

Mississippi State 31, Kentucky 14

I said that I may never cook again

Potato leek and egg & bacon salad.

How does a deer wind up in the ocean?

I'm the guy who brings home every stray until I can find the owners.  This beats anything I've ever done.

My neighbor gave me the crabs

Get your minds out of the gutter people!

Hi, I'm Mike and I'm addicted to soup

Today's special was shrimp & corn chowder and a tuna salad pita.

If Ladles works out I may never cook again.

Free Food

Because Jacoby Ellsbury stole 2nd base last night in the World Series game against the Rockies everyone in the US (Yes, all 300+ million of us) can get a free taco from Taco Bell on October 30th between 2 and 5 PM.

I'll be there.  Join me in wrecking Taco Bell's bottom line for the fourth fiscal quarter.

TV

Evidently the networks have rolled out all of their new shows because pickins are getting slim.  The only new show I've watched recently is the Women's Murder Club.  I can think of only two reasons to keep watching it.  1) Because I don't have a date on Friday night, and b) to gaze at Laura Harris because I don't have a date on Friday night.

Football

I haven't been avoiding Kentucky's loss to Florida.  It's just that I was wandering New York's lower east side while the game was on and didn't watch it.  I said after the Cats beat LSU that if you come into our house you need to bring a bigger stick.  Florida did.  His name is Tim Tebow.  Looking over the stats I see that Kentucky had to, yet again, play from behind most of the game.  The last-second thing worked against Louisville, Arkansas, and LSU.  It didn't work against South Carolina and Florida.

On the plus side, Vandy beat South Carolina and 'Bama trashed Tennessee.  That threw the SEC East Division into a tailspin.  All six teams (yes, even Vandy) have a shot at playing for the SEC title.

I could but won't be at the game against Mississippi State on Saturday.  After three trips in the last six weeks I'm burned out.  Plus Champ is tired of staying in the kennel.  We have enough bandannas at the moment.  If the planets fall into alignment, I'll make it to the season finale against Tennessee on Thanksgiving Saturday.

Justine asked me to take this test

I could have told her the result ahead of time.

Your Score: Radical Libertarian

You scored 80% Personal Liberty and 83% Economic Liberty!

      

      

      A radical libertarian believes in little to no government intervention for both personal and economic matters. A radical libertarian generally believes in one out of these two options: (1) A government that is extremely small and limited to the extent of protecting people's liberty - this view is known as Minarchism (2) No government at all, in which the private sector takes up all legitimate functions that a government would have - this view is known as Anarcho-Capitalism. Radical Libertarians tend to be strongly opposed to war, police powers, victimless crimes, foreign intervention and what they consider to be a welfare state. Radical Libertarians tend to be inspired by the Austrian school of economics, classical liberalism and 19th century individualist anarchism. Libertarian thought is individualist in nature. They try to protect both personal and economic liberty. Examples of Radical Libertarianism would be Murray Rothbard, H.L. Mencken, Ludwig Von Mises and Lysander Spooner. For the record, I believe in (1).       

Link: The Politics Test

Local foodie news

Ladles, the soup place in West Ashley, is open.  Actually it opened a few days before I left for New York but this evening was the first time I stopped by.  Normally I like to try a new restaurant twice before passing judgment but it's not necessary this time.  I got today's special to go - a big bowl of creamy crab chowder, a half meatball alfredo pita, two rolls (one white, one marble), and butter for $6.95.  I tried my best to find something to complain about but I couldn't.  I'll definitely be back.  Judging by the crowd in line in front of me, Ladles should be a big hit.

According to the P&C we have our first Moroccan restaurant.

"Le Club Fez is a new Moroccan-themed restaurant and bar on James Island in the Terrace Theater shopping center, 1956 Maybank Highway. Le Club Fez boasts a funky bar, authentic decor and slow-cooked Moroccan stews and French- infused plates.

A sample menu includes Moroccan chickpea soup, grilled skewers of spiced veal, free range chicken braised with onions, Moroccan green olives and preserved lemons, and slow-cooked casserole of white beans, duck confit, garlic sausage and pork shoulder.

Le Club Fez is open 5-11 p.m. Monday-Saturday for dinner only. The bar is open until 2 a.m.

For information, call 406-2767."

Mmm!  Meat-on-sticks.  I don't mind dining alone but if any of you would like to join me, you know the email address.

My not-so-little monkey

Champ came home from the kennel with a new bandanna.

NY, NY. So nice they named it twice.

I returned Tuesday night from another fabulous trip to New York.  The weather all four days was fantastic.  Barely a cloud in the sky until Tuesday morning.  It was warmer than I had expected but cooler than Charleston.  The weather people on the local TV stations talked about the “heat wave”.  Heh!

As promised, the trip was mostly about food.  Charleston is well known for its restaurants but New York is foodie heaven.  Our first stop on Saturday was the Red Hook Ball Fields in Brooklyn.  I lucked out because this was the last weekend the food vendors were at the Ball Fields until next spring.  The vendors operate under blue or white canopies along one corner of the soccer field.  Each canopy flies a flag from the vendors’ home country.  Isaac is Honduran and he was upset that no one was in line to buy food from the Honduran vendor.  That may have been because the line for pupusas from the Salvadorian vendor next door obstructed the view.  It’s a mystery why pupusas were the hot commodity that weekend.  We were at the fields for over an hour and while we were there the line got longer, not shorter.  I noticed that some smart foodies had bought food from other vendors and ate it while standing in the line.  (I stole this photo of the line from Eater because theirs was better than the ones Briar and I took.)

Most of the vendors speak little or no English and I speak little or no Spanish so Isaac translated in both directions.  In the end he, Briar, and I wound up eating Columbian.

That was partly because the line was shorter (I hate to wait to eat) but mostly because they had meat that hadn’t been ground up and stuffed into something (although I like that, too.)  We shared deliciously seasoned beef skewers (Umm!  I love meat-on-a-stick), spicy sausage dotted with chucks of fat, deep-fried plantain, boiled potatoes rolled in course salt, and bread.

Vendors have been serving up Latin American food at the ball fields for over 10 years now but it’s only been in the last two or three years that it’s become “trendy” to eat there.  The large crowd we saw on Saturday was about 10% Hispanic and 90% not.  If the city’s Department of Parks and Department of Health (referred to by local foodies as DOH!) get their way the ball fields will never be the same again.  It’s possible that when I go back to Red Hook next summer I’ll see canopies for Applebee’s, Starbucks, Sabarro, and Subway.  There may even be a Duane Reade selling antacids.  Trust government to fuck up a good thing.

After Red Hook we went to the South Street Seaport.

The Museum there has been on my list of things to do for several years now but whenever we’ve been to the Seaport the Museum was either closed or we didn’t have enough time to enjoy it before it closed.  It was worth the wait.  Maybe it’s because I grew up in landlocked Kentucky but I’ve always been fascinated by ships and the sea.  Ever since I was old enough to move away from home I’ve lived mostly near the ocean or near large bodies of water like the Great Lakes or the Clyde, where big ships sail.  I even joined the Navy (although avoiding the draft and Vietnam played a part in that).  My favorite exhibit was the Monarchs of the Sea about the ocean liners that once sailed from New York.  One of these days I hope to sail on the Queen Mary 2 from New York to Southampton (and maybe back again).  The QM2 isn’t the same as the ocean liners of old, but it’s close.  I’ve penciled it in for 2009 since I’ll be going to Australia in 2008 to see Justine.  (I’ve already warned the kids that I plan on spending it all before I die and sticking them with my funeral expenses.)

Ever since Times Square became a Disneyfied tourist gridlock, tourists have started to discover the Seaport.  Great shopping, reasonably priced (for NYC) not-chain-restaurants, and great views of Brooklyn, the East River, and the Brooklyn Bridge.

If you bother to look up you can see the best remaining contrast between 19th century and 21st century New York.

I had other great meals over the weekend (Eggs Benedict for breakfast twice and both were different from each other and different from what you would expect) but the only other meal that was photoworthy was an early dinner at Ramen Setagaya in the East Village.  Ramen Setagaya is the first US outlet of a Japanese chain.  Don’t let the word “chain” put you off.  Mickey D’s it ain’t.  If you were once a starving college student, like I once was, you associate ramen noodles with 8 for a dollar dried packets that you added boiling water to.  Real ramen is in a different universe.  I’m a foodie, not a food writer or food photograher, so Gothamist said and photographed it best:

“Their signature bowl of shio ramen (they don't make any other types of broth) is topped with soft, fatty slices of simmered pork, chopped bamboo shoots, seaweed, shaved onion and half of a soft-boiled egg oozing with bright yellow-orange yolk. The thin, firm, slightly chewy noodles swim in a light, translucent yellow broth that contains just the right amount of salt so that the rest of the broth's flavors aren't overwhelmed. What are the other flavors? We're not sure of the exact formulation, but it could include pork, chicken, dried anchovy, clams, scallops, seaweed, ginger, and garlic. None of the flavors means to knock you over—they harmoniously meld together.”

In addition to shio ramen Briar and I had veg-filled steamed dumplings as a side that had been briefly grilled before being placed on a plate next to a dipping sauce.

I’m already scanning Eater, New York, and Time Out New York for places and things to eat when Justine and I go back to New York for Christmas.

What classic leading man am I?

I'm William Powell

0% Tough, 42% Roguish, 28%

Friendly, and 28% Charming!

      

      

      You are the classic rogue, a stylish rake with the devil of a wit and a flair for mischief, and you shake your martinis to waltz time. You are suave and debonair, but slightly untrustworthy, and women should be on their guard. If married, you are simply a bit of a flirt, even if it's just with your own wife...but if you're single, watch out. You usually rein yourself in to concentrate on one lovely beauty at a time, but with you, we never know. You're not a bad guy, but there's a playful devil behind your eyes, and those trying to get close to you should know they're playing with fire. You're stylish and fun, but you follow your own course, which may or may not include a steady gal. Co-stars include Myrna Loy and Carole Lombard, classy ladies with an adventurous streak.

Find out what kind of classic dame you'd make by taking the Classic Dames Test.       

Link: The Classic Leading Man Test

Update:  I just noticed that the numbers add up to 98%.  Any suggestions as to what the missing 2% is?

Nickled and dimed to death

While I'm on a tax rant, have you checked your utility bills lately?  I did.

Cable TV:

Analog FCC Regulatory Fee - $0.07
Franchise Fee - $3.20
County Sales Tax - $0.96
State Sales Tax - $3.84

Phone:

911 - $0.30
Federal USF Surcharge - $0.77
Franchise Fee - $0.45
Local Number Portability - $0.35
Residential FCC Network Access Charge - $6.50
State Tele Relay Charge - $0.15
State USF Surcharge - $0.94
County Sales Tax - $0.24
Federal Excise Tax - $0.47
State Sales Tax - $0.95

(My monthly phone bill is $14.95 but the taxes and fees come to $11.12.)

Electric and Gas:

Franchise fee for electric - $3.38
Franchise fee for gas - $0.57

Water and Sewer:

City of Charleston Stormwater Utility - $6.00

(The city has been collecting this fee for decades but downtown still floods whenever there is a full moon.)

My Internet service is the only thing that isn't taxed but that's only because Congress hasn't figured out a way to do it without pissing you and me off.

Never trust politicians. Never.

Like in a lot of states, property tax reform has been a big issue here in South Carolina.  Recently the state legislature responded by reducing a portion of property taxes that go to school operations.  As if our schools didn't suck enough already.  The promise was that property taxes would fall by 50 to 60%.  Sure. Right.  Pull the other one.  Since politicians love to spend taxpayers' money they balanced the books by raising the statewide sales tax 20% from 5% to 6%.  (6.5% to 7.5% here in Charleston County because idiot voters agreed to a 1% local option tax and a 1/2% tax to keep the buses running.)

I got my property tax bill for 2008 last week.  My tax fell by $291 or just 26%.  So much for the 50% promise.  I have no idea how much I spend each year on sales-taxable items but if it's more than $29,100 I'll wind up paying more tax in 2008 and not less.

New York

My trip to New York this weekend will be all about food.  Not that my other trips over the last 6 years haven't been, but this one will be more so.  Briar, Isaac, and I plan to eat our way through the Cheap Eats issues of New York and Time Out New York.  If the weather is nice on Saturday, and it looks like it will be, we'll trek to the Red Hook Ball Fields in Brooklyn, a foodie Mecca, for the greatest Latin American food in the city.  We'll also make a repeat visit to S'MAC, home of the world's greatest comfort food.

My doctor says that because of my high blood pressure and high cholesterol level I should try to lose some weight.  Sure, Doc.  Maybe I'll start on Wednesday when I'm back in Charleston.  That will give me time to slim down before going back to New York for Christmas.

Naughty or Nice?

That's the subject line of a spam email I got this morning.  I didn't bother to read it because it's probably an ad for cheap (and fake) Viagra but it got me thinking.  Is Notoriously Nice wired into my genes or can I break out and be naughty for at least one weekend before I die?  You decide.

Naughty or Nice?
	Naughty?
	Nice?
pollcode.com free polls

If you vote Naughty, give me suggestions in the comments.  If you want to get naughty with me, email me your phone number.

The hype has started and that makes me nervous

CBS is showing the Kentucky-Florida game coast-to-coast.  Even though they aren't televising the game, ESPN's College Gameday crew will be broadcasting live from the parking lot next to the stadium.  Pat Dooley, sports writer for the Gainesville (FL) Sun, is sounding nervous even though he tries to cover it with humor.  All well and good but the last time the hype came close to this level South Carolina snot-knocked Andre Woodson and the Cats while coasting to an easy 15-point win.  At least this game is being played in Commonwealth Stadium and not in the Swamp.  The Energizer Bunny would be hard pressed to come up with more energy than was released by UK fans last Saturday during the UK-LSU game.  For once home field advantage will actually mean something in Lexington.

I've got my season ticket (six rows off the field, behind the Kentucky bench, at the 38-yard line) but, alas, I won't be there.  Months ago I made plans to visit Briar and Isaac in New York that weekend so Jo Ann's best friend, Rosemary, will be standing in for me.  All I ask is that she eat a bag of peanuts for me and wear Kentucky Blue.  More about football superstitions later.  More about the NY trip later, too.  Briar and Isaac have a DVR so they are going to record the game while we are out eating our way through NYC.  We'll watch it if the Cats win.  We'll drown our sorrows with more food if they lose.  Either way it's a win-win situation for me, but I prefer the first win part.

Damn those paparazzi! Britney and I are just friends.

[It's Psycho's fan club's turn to click on it.]

Contact

When Champ comes home from the kennel he never wanders more than a few inches away from me.  If I sit down he makes sure that part of him is touching me.

Champ is in the house

I feel guilty when I have to leave Champ at the kennel while I'm on the road.  To make up for this last trip I gave him a chariot ride home.

[Champ's fan club can click on it.]

The dream is alive again

Kentucky is ranked #7 in the Bowl Championship Series (BCS) standings.  Just saying Kentucky and BCS in the same sentence boggles my mind.

If you're coming into our house you'd better bring a bigger stick

Kentucky 43 - #1 LSU 37 in 3 OTs

It's official.  This season makes no sense.

LSU beat South Carolina.
South Carolina beat Kentucky.
Kentucky beat LSU.

So far this season I've been to two of the biggest wins in Kentucky football history.  (I forgot to bring my camera but then I'd have probably dropped it while screaming my head off and jumping up and down.)

Justine's BIG Adventure

Justine was accepted into the Master's Degree Program in Sports Science at Bond University.  Bond is in Robina, Queensland, Australia.  Robina is on Australia's Gold Coast just south of Brisbane.

Orientation is on January 7th and classes start on the 14th.  Between now and then Justine has a butt-load of things to do to get ready.

Watch this blog as the adventure progresses.

You know, of course, that this will eventually be an adventure for me, too, since you can be sure that I'll visit her at some point next year.

Road Trip

I'm going to miss my second consecutive blogger meetup this weekend.  I'll be in Kentucky watching the #1 LSU Tigers tear my Wildcats into little pieces and feed them to their mascot.  As you can tell, I'm not exactly optimistic about this game.  At least the weather will be sunny and cool.  Football weather!

When you wish upon a star

The 2008 Michelin Guide New York City is out. The good news is that Aureole, where a certain someone works, retained its one-star status.  The bad news is that it didn't get two stars.  Maybe that will change after Aureole moves into its new digs next to Bryant Park. My question, though, is why we should give a shit about what the French think of our restaurants?  Aren't Michelin stars as passé as AAA stars are for hotels.  After all, we have Zagat and the French don't.

Not bad for such a small town

Over the weekend Heather, the Mother Hen of local bloggers, updated the Big Blogroll.  (With two tykes and a newborn in tow I have no idea where she finds the time to do it, let alone run two blogs of her own.)  She included 204 active Lowcountry bloggers and she has leads on several others.

Now if we could just get all 200+ to show up at the meet-ups.

"I have no idea how that slipper got there."

Shiny objects fascinate me, too

I love funny TV commercials but after I've seen them a few times I also see sharks jumping.  I've seen the Riverdancing chimps dozens of times now and I'm still laughing.

As if I needed another reason to go to NYC

The first full retrospective of British artist J.M.W. Turner's work to tour the US opened at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC last week.  It will be there until January 6, 2008.  It will open at the Dallas Museum of Art on Feb. 10, 2008, and at New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art on June 24, 2008.  There are lots of reviews but the most comprehensive was in The Economist.  If you live near any of these cities, or happen to be in town at the time, I urge you make the effort to see it.  (I'll see it in New York unless I get itchy and drive up to DC for a long weekend.)  If you can't make it, you can see the breadth of Turner's work on the Tate Gallery's website.

Turner's genius is that his work, particularly late in his life, presaged a century's worth of future art from impressionism to abstract expressionism.  I'll die believing that Turner, not Monet, was the true father of impressionism and you will never be able to convince me otherwise.  Compare Turner's Sunrise (c. 1830) with Monet's Impression, Sunrise (painted 40 years later) and tell me which artist was the visionary.

The dream isn't dead but it's seriously wounded

#11 South Carolina 38 - #8 Kentucky 23

What can I say?  South Carolina outplayed Kentucky on both sides of the ball.

Unfortunately Kentucky has to get over this and be ready to play LSU next weekend.  LSU is ranked #1 in the AP poll and #2 in the USA Today poll.

Someone has to do it

The new TV season continues to scrape along like fingernails on a chalkboard.

Even without seeing any previews I had a bad feeling about Carpoolers so I taped it.  At 11 I popped the tape into the bedroom VCR, set the TV sleep timer for 30 minutes, turned out the light, got into bed, and hit Play on the remote.  Fortunately I fell asleep before the TV did.

Pushing Daisies may well turn out to be a big hit but it was too, too cute for me.  I did, however, have a good laugh listening to Jim Dale narrate this fractured fairy tale in his best Edward Everett Horton voice.  I have no doubt that it was intentional.  Maybe you have to be almost as old as I am to get it.

A side note.  Bryan Fuller, one of the executive producers of Pushing Daisies, was also an executive producer of Dead Like Me.  (Pushing Daisies is actually a sequel of sorts.)  If you didn’t see Dead Like Me on Showtime do yourself a favor and get the DVDs from Netflix.  (Avoid the heavily edited version that sometimes shows up on the SciFi Channel.)

Two second episode updates:  I lasted 10 minutes into the second episode of Chuck before realizing that I could be spending that hour each week doing something else.  Anything else.  The second episode of Dirty Sexy Money was better than the first.  Even though the Darling kids are still obnoxious I’ll keep watching, at least for a while.  Donald Sutherland looks like he’s having the time of his life, but then he usually does.

*Giggle*

I just got a call from the Fred Thompson campaign.  The young man said, "Fred wants to know what you think is important in South Carolina".  I said, "Tell Fred I'm voting for Rudy".

Actually at this point I have no idea which candidate, if any, I'll vote for but that was more fun than hanging up.  Hey, it's still raining and I'm bored.

I got my flu shot today.

You're going to get one too, right?

@#$%& Rain!

The roofer dropped the shingles off on Tuesday and 10 minutes later it started to rain.  Although it comes in waves, it's still raining and will probably rain into the weekend.  So much for getting my new roof and skylight by tomorrow.  The beginning of next week is looking iffy, too. Normally this wouldn't be a problem but I am (was?) planning on going to Kentucky next week for the LSU game on the 13th.  Theoretically I can leave Charleston as late as 6 AM on game day and get to Allan's house in time to make the walk to the stadium before the 3:30 kick-off.  I don't really want to do that.  I'll call the roofer Monday morning and see what his plans are.  If he brings a large enough crew they can have the job done in one day.  Unfortunately too many roofers here seem to use a two-man crew and it takes them 2 to 3 days to finish a job.

Heh!

Apple doesn't say it in their I'm a MAC, I'm a PC commercials but they bury it on their website.

"Apple encourages the widespread use of multiple antivirus utilities so that virus programmers have more than one program to circumvent, thus making the whole virus writing process more difficult."