food « Kenny Smith | A remarkable thing happens …

food

Auburn / food / Friday / I do not know what is happening. / photo / swimming — Comments Off
14
Feb 14

Your typical, lovely Friday

The scene earlier this week at Cheaha, Alabama’s highest point. Today, depending on where you were, it was mild and clear or mild and overcast with the occasional shower. Cheaha, which will likely be closed for several days for cleanup, got up to 58 today and had sunny skies, with rain later.

All of this is how you know that spring is about to make her entrance. When nothing makes sense it all clicks into comprehension, meteorologically speaking.

This morning I had a BLT for breakfast. Later I swam 2,850 yards — and some of it wasn’t bad. And I did some other things, too.

We went to the gym meet this evening:

Auburn hosted fifth-ranked Alabama, a team whom they’ve never beaten in the history of gymnastics. But they’re getting really, really close. By the time the number 12 Tigers were on the beam they were only a few hundredths of a point behind with the floor still to go. It was apparent that it would come down to either a Bama stumble on the beam or the last routine on the floor for Auburn.

The fourth rotation came along. Bama held a slim, but sure lead. Auburn was still in striking distance. We were still in an anything-could-happen atmosphere.

And hope springs eternal, for the numbers are good and Auburn’s tiny powerhouse Bri Guy is up to anchor the floor routine and close the meet. And on her first tumbling pass Guy stumbled out of her leap and then fell harsh and hard to the ground. There were a scary few moments:

They put her in an air cast, sat her on a gurney and wheeled her out of the Arena. The crowd chanted “We love Bri! We love Bri!” and she flashed that adorable, big smile she has and waved to everyone as Alabama’s gymnasts and Auburn’s looked on. Later they would pray together, stunned by the scary moment that could have been any of them.

(Update: She reportedly tore both of her Achilles’. One apparently on the way up and perhaps the other on the way down. Despite all of that she narrowly avoided landing on her neck and head. Sadly, her junior season is done.)

Auburn lost, but posted their second highest score in the history of the program. They’re getting closer all the time.

And then, later tonight we laughed with a friend at the local barbecue joint. We made a new friend there, too. And then they kicked us out because they all wanted to go home.

It was a fine day.

food / football / photo / running / Tuesday / video — Comments Off
31
Dec 13

New Year’s Eve

This is Maria. We had dinner at her restaurant, Tutti’s, tonight. Her husband is a master chef. They have a professional soccer playing son and a daughter who is in investment management. Also, the food is delicious. Order anything there.

Got an email this morning from the site where I monitor my exercise. It said I’ve pedaled 1,722.9 miles this year. A very low number. But there’s always next year!

This morning it was cold. Very cold. It was 26 degrees at midday. Before that we went out for a run. So there is the last of the Christmas snow on the ground, ice puddles in small holes and frozen mud, the stuff that doesn’t accept your footprint.

I ran a little over four miles. After we got started it didn’t feel cold. I passed an old couple who were out with their little dog. The guy told me I was doing great and looking good. I also looked like a fool in a windbreaker and shorts. (At least my ears and hands were covered.) As I finished my last big circuit around this park and pronounced it the right time to quit. The chill was starting to get in at the very end. Why not? It was in the twenties.

I’m starting to like running, then. You’d have to, to do something as crazy as that.

So we spent most of the afternoon warming up. Dinner at Tutti’s. We made it back home for football. Johnny Manziel had a New Year’s Eve party on the field:

We’re watching the ball drop in Times Square, relatively warm and in no crowd. The phrase of the night seemed to be “a million people, a million people.” Who needs that?

Anyway, enjoy your arbitrary demarcation of a new solar circuit. As you put the old one behind you — should you find you were fond of it, or simply find that you are fond it is over — I wish you health and abundance and twice the happiness in the next trip around the sun.

food / Friday / iPhone / photo — Comments Off
13
Dec 13

Just a quick question

Saw this at Chipotle, for dinner tonight:

I understand the vegetarian — as I am halfway one these days, it seems. The vegan group, goes without saying, too. But this last group? I can see it if you are somehow allergic or under a strict dietary program or, of course, if this fell under a religious belief. All perfectly valid considerations, all easy to explain.

But who writes bacon-averse? Who would ever want that label?

I mention this in jest, of course.

My burrito had both the pinto beans and the black beans. And it was delicious.

adventures / family / food / memories / Thursday — Comments Off
4
Jul 13

Eight Fourths

Our Fourth of July tradition involves going to Dreamland, which we visited in Montgomery this evening, enjoying some ribs and pudding and then settling in for an evening of fireworks.

Of course it has rained all day, canceling the fireworks. It has also been the coolest Fourth in memory, which has prompted many remarks, but no complaints. The Yankee wore a sweater for a few pictures today.

Anyway, below is a running collage of wonderful summer memories, reading left to right, top to bottom:

Happy Fourth of July. Hope yours is as good as mine.

adventures / food / Ireland / photo / weekend — Comments Off
30
Jun 13

We’re staying in Ireland

Room service for breakfast, and then the last packing of our things, this time for airline inconvenience. Funny how that little detail means everything must change.

We settled up at the hotel — Adam and Jessica had their flowers preserved from their engagement, the local photographer he hired had already produced a DVD with all of their photographs, so they came home with everything. People here are so incredibly accommodating — and went down the hill into Enniskerry for lunch.

We finally settled on eating at the same little pub were we dined before starting our trek across the country. And as a last meal here I had the fish and chips. And it was the best fish I’ve had in all of our adventures in London and Ireland. So light and crispy:

The best mushy peas, though, were back in London.

So we ventured on out to the airport, dropped off our trusty rental car at the lot far removed from any airport activity. They shuttled us over to the terminal, which looks a lot different than I remember from the other day. Because we are in a different place.

We’re standing in line and a lady comes up and asks us if we’d like to catch a later flight. They incentivize that, you know. We bantered some numbers, checked our mental calendars and finally got to a deal that everyone liked. We were demoted to standby. And we might make this flight, or we might be taking a different plane tomorrow.

There was a long period of “will we or won’t we?” Adam and Jessica left because they had a tighter schedule than we did.

We did not make the flight The airline put us up in a business traveler’s hotel, shuttled us there and comped us some hotel meals. The hotel was fine for what it was, high ceilings, weird lights, post modern design. The food was reasonable. There was nothing around except light industry, so we stayed in the room all evening, watched television and calculated our Delta dollars.

So we have one last day in Ireland. In a hotel that offers not much to do. There are worse ways to make travel money.