Where does she get those wonderful toys?

Holy man-tights, Batman... Where have all the cowboys gone? For that matter, where has all of my time gone???

Once again I find myself making an apology for not posting! Let's see, where to begin...

Jeff and I went to the Beachland Ballroom Prom two weeks ago and had a pretty rockin' time. Since our reservations for L'Albatros fell through (read: were not made), Jeff picked out Light Bistro for dinner.

Light Bistro was one of the best restaurants I've ever been to. We're actually going again tonight because Jeff's parents are visiting Cleveland to celebrate his birthday (which isn't until next week). Here's a rundown of what we ate!

Bonus Appetizer - Bacon wrapped Dates stuffed with almonds and Valdeon cheese

These were fantastic, and I was sad when they were gone. The bacon was perfectly smoked and salty, while the cheese had an amazing texture and I loved it, despite it actually being blue cheese - ew ew ew ew (normally) . The almonds provided texture and the obvious nuttiness - and I can't even begin to say enough nice things about dates. I love them. Put them all together in a warm, crispy little baconified date-mummy and you've got something magical.

~

First Course(s) - PEI Mussels with Lemongrass, Coconut Milk and Lime / Shredded Apple salad with Manchego cheese, walnuts, and citrus vinagrette

I went with a first here, and tried the mussels and I'm very glad that I did. 10-12 PEI mussels came in a little bowl with a lot of coconut milk. There was so much, I wished that I had been given a spoon to drizzle more of it over the mussels - there was a good bit left in the bottom of the bowl at the end. The limes were grilled, and this changed the timbre of the lime's flavor. I enjoyed eating the limes - with and without the mussels!

Jeff had the Apple/Manchego salad, and I wished I had gotten this. The idea however, was to share our courses and that's what we did. This salad was almost fun to eat, and I can't exactly explain why. It was light, crispy and subtle. I told Jeff that I want to buy a shredder so that we can recreate the salad. I don't have my shredder yet, but I did make a similar salad using Geauga County smoked cheddar cheese I bought from Zagara's and walnuts. I made the vinagrette myself, but it was less subtle and not as good.

~

Second Courses - Sweet Potato Ravioli with Rustic Ratatouille and Nutmeg Cream / Grilled Peach Barbequed Quail with Merguez sausage, Cous cous and Peaches

Once again I found myself with entree envy, seeing Jeff's dish. That's why I'm starting with his. At dinner, I described eating the ravioli like "eating a pillow" - sadly enough the mental imagery doesn't transpose well. This entire dish, its texture and flavors almost seemed to ask to be eaten. I think that's a little strange to say, but I'm going to 1-up it here by saying that this dish was like clearing four lines in Tetris - everything just fit and you just score. Celebration ensues, and you just hope you can do it again in the near future.

Sadly this menu item is going away very soon, it's on their Fall/Winter menu and they're about to premiere their Summer menu. Get it while you can, it's completely worth it.

My entree was also very good, but paled in comparison to the ravioli. Perhaps I lack the knowledge of how to properly eat a quail, or maybe it's that I can't grok the price of quail in Cleveland, but I felt the need to eat this dish very slowly because of how small it was. I did feel like I was missing out on parts of my dish because I didn't want to sit there in a gaudy pink taffeta dress and pick at the tiny thigh bones of the quail as if I were dining at LB's Rib Shack. The peach was not noticable in this dish, not really even in the 5-6 little cubes of peach on the plate. I know that subtlety is part of the art in some dishes, but the peach in this entree needs a bigger voice - or the entree needs a new name. I wouldn't get this again, but it still doesn't mean I didn't enjoy every last bite - it was not what had been advertised, though.

~

Third Courses - Strawberry Panna Cotta / Apple and Pear Cobbler with Cinnamon Ice Cream

I'm not going to describe much about the cobbler, only because most cooked fruit really isn't my bag, baby. It was good, but not my thing at all. The panna cotta however, was just about as perfect as any panna cotta could aspire to be, I imagine. Truthfully I'd never had the dish before, and I'm afraid I wouldn't like it as much - having Light Bistro's rendition be my first impression. The strawberries were drizzled with a balsamic reduction and everything sat on butter cookie crumbles. I hope they keep this on their summer menu, it does really seem like a summery and refreshing dessert.

~

And now, PROM! Our favorite band was the Helper T-Cells (like last year). We danced and played with silly toys on the tables... We were prom king and queen! Hooray for the slightly nerdy people! Woo! We still have our little grass hats (it was a luau theme) and we might actually hang them somewhere in the house.

This weekend proves to be a busy one. Jeff and I are riding in the Sunday in June bicycle tour sponsored by the Cleveland Touring Club. Jeff is riding the 62 miler, and I am riding 50. This will be my longest ride yet, so we'll see how that goes.

I have also opted to do the century loop on the first day of Pedal to the Point in August. The loop will be named after my company's late CEO - so a lot of people on the cycling team have committed to doing the loop on at least one day of the tour. If I only do the century on the first day, I will have a total of 175 miles in two days. (several thousand calories)

Jeff and two more kitties joined my Little Italy apartment two weeks ago and we're doing well. My cat doesn't like Eponine (Jeff's youngest cat) but they're basically polar opposites in personality. It'll take time, and possibly fake cat pheromones to fix it all. It's getting better, but I'd be lying if I told you it wasn't a little heartbreaking to stress out my old kitty this way.

I'm still alive

After several weeks with a dead computer and a few days with an infected one (that I fixed... hooray for geek cred) - I am back in the good graces of the internet.

Everything has happened (isn't that what everything does?) in such magnitude that I can't even recall the proper chronological order for said everythings. Does that make sense? Of course it doesn't, you don't gotta lie to kick it.

The Cavs have lost (again) and it's looking a little grim for the playoffs. We spent the evening at La Dolce Vita after having pizza at Pizza Bogo which is actually a very good/interesting pizza place. Their Hawaiian pizza has mango on it, in addition to pineapple. Yummy.

Oh! Here's an everything that should make you want to get all dressed up and have pre-marital sex... It's time for the Beachland Ballroom Prom! Yes, this very Friday will be the time of your life. Put on that taffeta dress and pick at a garden salad, it's prom time! - Music by Living Stereo, Saint Ohio, Helper T Cells, and Good Morning Valentine. Here's hoping for more yo-yo antics as well. I'll be there, dressed as Princess Peach of Super Mario Bros. fame (unintentionally, my dress was 11 dollars at the Unique Thrift Store).

It seems that they're offering dinner this year, but we'll likely be going to L'Albatros (yay!) or somewhere equally tasty. I hope the weather is nice, a seat on the patio could be good!

More updates to come. I've been really busy and promise to post lots more, now that I'll have real internet!

Eating Little Italy, Part II

My hands still faintly smell like iron from the chains on the swings at Brush Park in Little Italy. I took the liberty of ordering some gelato from Presti's before walking down the hill to the park. The sun was still out and the breeze was faint enough to make sitting outside in a tank top tolerable. The gelato wasn't very good this time, so I didn't finish it. The views however, were spectacular. There's something picturesque about pre-dusk, edifices and verdure appear to be over-saturated in color and the sun shines in its brightest of bright effort before retreating beneath the horizon.

Friday night was for eating Little Italy. A friend and I went to Restaurant Etna (a location formerly occupied by Valerio's) on Mayfield. Valerio's moved to Battuto's former location farther east on Mayfield Rd.

Mount Etna is an active volcano on the east coast of Sicily, southern Italy. It is the largest active volcano in Europe and the largest of the active volcanoes in Italy. (via Wikipedia)

We started with the house Cabernet ($5 per glass) which was fairly bland for a cab. The wine list is extensive there, so I'm sure my frugality was my undoing. I was saving my money for further drinks, so I ate light with an antipasti plate - anchovies, soppressata, sun-dried tomato, olives and peccorino cheese, ($8.50) and a house salad ($2.50). Anne had the Ravioli Tre Formaggi ($13.50) which looked good, but she wasn't a sharer (but she ate my tomatoes!).

The menu is currently vast and a little hard to look at - but the server did apologize. To their credit, they'd only been open for a few days at that point. I'm actually very excited to go again. Peppe (the chef) was very excited that I knew him and brought us some Sicilian Tiramisu at the end of the meal - it's not as sweet and was absolutely wonderful (and gratis). Be sure to say hello to him if you go to Restaurant Etna. It is inexpensive, and a nice addition to Little Italy.

Jeff ran the 1st annual Derby Dash 5k in Ohio City, which was one of the most unorganized races I've ever been to. The course was short, and they got Jeff's time wrong. They tried to give him the 3rd place cash prize (he placed in fourth) and didn't initially give him the age group award. He did win a raffle though, and got some stickers, a pint glass, and a shirt (an XL, wtf). We ate lunch at the Great Lakes Brewery, and it was delicious.

Jeff and I got the sweet potato fries to start, and they were freaking amazing. They were shoestring cut sweet potatoes with honey, sage and thyme. We both also got the Old World Burger (smoked cheddar, bacon, fried onion straws and barbecue sauce on a pretzel roll) which has to have been one of the best burgers I've ever had. Jeff received a coupon for a free pint (for running in the race) and since he doesn't imbibe, I went for the Edmund Fitzgerald Porter. I really liked it a lot, and if I had another 30 minutes to finish it, I would have (I'm not an avid beer drinker, honestly - but it was extremely good. I'm just slow).

We went to brunch at the Beachland Ballroom and it was also very good. There are so many things I would like to try (including half of the cocktail menu)! K & J, we thought for a moment that we saw you. I think we were wrong. We have both gotten haircuts since the last pictures were posted.

Speaking of Beachland... The 4th annual Prom is on May 29th! Put on your best formal dress and be there! Only $5!

We have made more progress on the "Garden of Piggy Street". Pictures coming soon.

Until next time...

Bonus video: Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald - Gordon Lightfoot

Triangle Man hates Person Man: Film at 11

Calvin (the RTA bus driver) is one of those people that makes living in Cleveland all the more awesome. Riding the bus can be a pretty banal event, but this man makes it a little more enjoyable. As I walked to the 9th and Euclid station tonight, I hoped that I would get to be on Calvin's bus.

A fun side fact about the creator of Calvin and Hobbes - Bill Watterson lived in Chagrin Falls. I bet you already knew that, though. Just like everyone sees the arrow in the FedEx logo. It's like hearing a five year old internet meme from your own mother, I'd wager.


I can has popcorn?

In the above picture, Calvin is attacking Chagrin Falls. (secret-ninja-jeff-edit)

Anyway, Calvin (the busdriver) likes to ask trivia questions over the loudspeaker. He encourages people to shout out the answers to his questions and it actually makes riding the bus FUN. You can see people who were previously scowling start to smile when they realize they know the answer to the question. For the duration of a few city blocks, you can feel like a genius in front of several strangers.

Jeff and I had lunch at a sushi place that (dare I say) rivals Pacific East. It's called Aoeshi Cafe and it is right next to the Cedar Lee theatre. Don't be put off by the plain decor or the styrofoam cups your water comes in, this sushi is amazing. We had the Mexican Roll (spicy tuna with crunchies) and our ever favorite, the Spider Roll (softshell crab, avocado and either daikon radish or lettuce). It's cheap, too. I was brave and tried a raw quail egg on top of citrus tobiko (usually flying fish roe). I wouldn't eat it again, but it was interesting.

Please check out Aoeshi Cafe. I didn't get the feeling that it was traveled much during the afternoon hours - not so sure about the evening. It's really good and if you're lucky you can sit on the futon (woo!).

Random photo of the day regarding something I probably talked about weeks ago:

Jeff and I at the wedding we attended in Columbus (like, a while ago)

The garden in the back of my house has been completed. I'd still like to do more to the patio, and there's quite a bit of cleanup left to do... But this is basically what it looks like at the moment. We filled (read: Jeff) about 10 yard waste bags full of mulch and debris that had been back there. I don't think there had been a garden in years.

I didn't plant as many herbs as I'd like, we'll see how the Dill and Thai Basil do first. I'm hoping to host a little shindig there this summer! (The patio is basically awesome, but cluttered now)


This used to be a crappy pile of mulch and dead pokeweed!

Kudos to my partner in foliage for thinking of the path formation.


Concord grapes grow on our patio walls!

Seriously, the patio will start to smell like a vineyard before too long. Some of the local gents here actually make very good wine, I'm hoping to get my hands on a Cabernet before long.


Oh god now you kind of know where I live...

I really like my street. There are a lot of nice people that live here, and the Alta House is amazing. If I could raise 200 bucks to get a bocce team together, I totally would for this summer. Yep, my little corner is about to get very busy, and not in a hooker-y way.

Come up and see us sometime. That reminds me, anyone up for a bike ride some weekend in the near future? We can ride the EUCLID CORRIDOR!!! (and wave to Calvin)

Marsey-doats and Doesey-dotes

What's up, blogpies? (See Alexa, it's like groupies but for the BLOG!! Get it? Huh? Huh?)

*listens to the crickets chirp*

I understand that some of you might not get that joke, and that's okay. It's like a secret club that speaks in some sort of crazy moon code like those sillies in the Dr. Scholls commercials.

Are you gellin'?

Instead, it's blogging.

Are you bloggin'? I'm bloggin' while I'm joggin'.
(cuts to an S&M fanatic)
I'm bloggin' and I'm floggin'... *whip cracks*
(cue lumberjacks)
We're bloggin' when we're loggin'!

Had enough? I thought so. You get the idea. No, I did not use a rhyming dictionary. You can't prove that I did. Stop looking up rhyming dictionaries.

There's a question that I really do not like to answer, though I realize that technically you can never be wrong. There is no such thing as stupid questions, people...Just stupid music.

I always cringe when I'm asked "Hey, what do you think this song sounds like?". It gives me the ickies and I don't really know why. I mean, I can pretty much say whatever I want. But it reminds me of some psychological test where you have to point to a picture of a cat, dog or bird when you're asked what fire makes you think of. *

*not a real test

If fire makes you think of cats, you're clearly insane and oh by the way - you should probably run because here come the burly men in white coats to commit your crazy kittycrisp lovin' self.

A slightly worse subquestion is "Who does $BAND sound like?". I stink at that sort of thing, honestly. I will tell you that starting around 4:28 in You Are The Blood covered by Sufjan Stevens sounds like what Enya would sound like if she candy-flipped and DJed at a rave. Starting at 7:40 it kind of sounds like the background music of a Tom and Jerry cartoon. Around 8:01, it starts to sound like Edvard Grieg's Piano Concerto in A minor. (OPUS 16, Y'ALL). 9:17 and on reminds me of something that would be in a Batman movie.

I told you I stink at it, or that I have a VERY odd perception of what things sound like. The next time someone asks me this question, I'm just going to say something random.

Better yet!! I'll use a Chuck Norris fact generator and instead of Chuck Norris, I'll say the name of the artist.

"I don't know, but I heard Colin Meloy once partook in a pissing contest outside of a bar. His opponent drowned."

Yeah. Just like that.

Eating Little Italy

I'll be the first to admit that I am a VERY BAD resident of Little Italy. I've hardly eaten anywhere here. I've been to La Dolce Vita a half dozen times (way more than that for drinking) and I went to Trattoria Roman Gardens once about two years ago. I've had drinks at Maxi's, La Dolce, Valerio's and Guarino's as well.

Well, at some point I hope to change that (gradually). Tonight, I ordered takeout from Guarino's (because it's right across the street and I am admittedly feeling VERY lazy tonight). I got the cheese ravioli and some cheese toast. This was a nice little treat. I wouldn't do it on a regular basis because it is a little expensive ($15 for the ravioli, $3 for the toast) for a solo evening meal and it beats the hell out of Qdoba or Chopstick (a horrendous little Chinese place on Euclid and Mayfield).

I'll have another post about Chopstick someday, just don't go there. Please trust me, the staff is rude and the food might be good if I was 12 years younger and a pothead. In my opinion however, there is no libation that could make this stuff taste even remotely Chinese.

Growing up with San Georgio pasta and a jar of Prego makes me really like the restaurants that very obviously make their own pasta and sauce. The sauce with the ravioli wasn't acidic at all, I felt like I could eat the sauce on little bits of garlic toast for a good while (I kind of did that with the garlic toast).

The inside of Guarino's is really charming, it's essentially a house. The bar has a piano across from it, covered in family photos. The dining rooms look like something out of a really touching Norman Rockwell picture. I would definitely suggest it for a dinner with the folks, or for one of those really sappy romantic dinners. You know the one I mean, where you gaze lovingly into each other's eyes and say;

Girl: I love you.
Guy: I love you more!
Girl: No, I love you more.
Guy: Aw! You're cute.
Girl: No, you're cute.
Guy: No...You!

Not that I uh, know anything about that sort of ordeal. Nope, nothing at all. *whistles*

It was a nice dinner. If I hadn't been in gym clothes I might have actually sat down and had a drink or two.

On another subject...

I don't know how many of you (or if any of you for that matter) ride the HealthLine (aka the #6 bus), but it has gotten crazy lately, what with the fare evaders and all. You have the option to purchase a single pass at any of the stops along the Euclid corridor. You also have the option to buy the pass on the bus, but rumor has it that this is going to disappear soon. If you have a weekly pass, you only need to activate it once. It prints your start date and the expiration date for you.

Keep your pass on you, however. Every single morning and evening the Transit Police appear on the buses at random and ask you to present your farecard. If you can't, you are escorted off the bus and given a ticket for $76.00. You have two weeks to pay it, or you'll get a warrant. When you are ticketed, they check for previous warrants and you can be arrested if you have them.

Every single day, I see at least one person sitting at a stop next to two or three Transit Policemen. Lately, I've seen people in cuffs (this means they tried to run). I talked to one of the officers who told me that people have started to physically fight the officers and will subsequently be arrested. This morning, I saw a lady surrounded by officers (she was cuffed) bawling her eyes out, pleading for them to tear up the ticket.

You'll most often hear people cry "bullshit" about the penalties, but I find it very hard to feel sympathy. The people getting ticketed/arrested are not homeless people trying to get down the way, they're people like you and I - except that they're not paying their fares.

It's two freaking dollars for a one way ticket, people. Pay your fare.

I suppose the sense of entitlement isn't a new fad but it really annoys me. Maybe I'll panhandle one afternoon, raise two dollars and get a one way pass. Then, I'll panhandle at Public Square and get another one way pass and go home - just to prove a point. I guess the point would appear that anyone can (and should) panhandle so they can afford the bus...That's not the point I want to make, so nevermind.

I've even felt so annoyed by this little dance that I witness every day that I'm motivated enough at this point to write a (dun dun dun...) LETTER TO THE EDITOR (god i'm old now). Who knows.

On a musical note (haw), give a listen to this Jeff Buckley song, Je N'en Connais Pas La Fin. (I like it more than I like Hallelujah)

Do you like free stuff? Go here and check out Trumpets in the Snow. (Made of some former members of To Be a High Powered Executive) You can even download their album for free.

When I Grow Up

Sometimes I can't decide between posting daily and having little to say, versus posting less frequently with more to say. I think the latter grants me certain liberties in talking your ear off apoetically - also it means I can make up words like "apoetical".

The weeks and weekends have been far too busy to recall in fantastic detail but I'll do my best. We've started a lot of things at work that keep me busy and push me to the brink of madness. I am realizing that what I currently do is not something I care to do for any great length of time. A couple of years ago, I told Jeff that what I really want to do is "make something with my hands" but I don't really know exactly what that is. It's harder to make a living this way, it's something I've thought about for a long time.

I've had recent thoughts about becoming a personal trainer, though I'd like to be in a little better shape to do this. I'd also like to be a writer, I've thought about writing a children's book for some time now. The most amusing part about writing is that after I work all day, the last thing I often want to do is sit in front of a computer. I think I'd like to sit quietly soon, and read something.

Jeff and I saw Sunshine Cleaning this evening at the Cedar Lee Theatre, it was a great movie - and you really can't beat $5 tickets and free popcorn. I have to say that being able to go on a date on a weekday is really cool, though it may seem pedestrian to most people. We dated for nearly two years while living miles apart and as time went on it became harder (emotionally) to do. Imagine consolidating all heartfelt, face to face conversation and interaction into one or two days on a consistent basis for 22 months!

Jeff ran in a track meet at Baldwin-Wallace on Saturday and placed fifth out of twenty or so runners. He ended with a time of 15:55. The weather was nice, but a little too warm for his liking, I think - for running anyway. We went to Panini's in Coventry and watched the Bluejackets game (boo) and ate hamburgers. Sunday, we made a Turkish stew with lamb, apricot preserves and other yummies. We got the recipe out of this month's Gourmet magazine (I got a free subscription when I registered for the Pedal to the Point). It's a pretty neat magazine and it seems to have some good recipes. I will post the stew recipe and other recipes we find interesting at another time.

I picked up a bottle of the Rose wine suggested by the magnificent partners in crime over at Sensory Overload from Whole Foods - It's really tasty! Someone has to come and help me finish it, though. Any takers?

Oh! We stopped by Music Saves and the new record store on Waterloo and picked up a mystery bag of CDs. Jeff and I have amazing luck buying CDs and falling hard for the newly found artists. Jeff wrote a journal on Last.fm about it, actually - and I take great pleasure in his confession that I "1 upped" him by discovering Woodpigeon at a discount/used record store in Hamilton, Ontario. Woodpigeon is one of his favorite bands now.


Songbook is the CD I found at Cheapies for a few bucks - what a find!!

Regrettably I am not Blogger savvy enough to post mp3s here, but your mission (should you choose to accept it) is to listen to Woodpigeon sometime this week. Bonus points if you buy an album or individual mp3!

Dear readers, I would really like to hear your stories of interesting (and enjoyable) music finds. What did you find, and how did you find it/them? Have you ever bought a CD just because the cover art looked interesting? Dish, dish, dish!