January 2009
47 posts
New additions to Shaker Square @... →
Very eager to try the food at Darna.
Drana on Shaker Square… wow. The mint tea infused vodka martini is excellent.
Indigo Imp at the Cento →
I did try this beer a month or so ago, both their Winter Solstice and Blonde Bombshell. I’m no beer snob, but my uninformed palate liked both beers and found them at least similar. They’re actually right up my alley, reminding me of a GLBC Holy Moses or similar heffeweisen. Not sure if they actually are wheat bears or not. Stop by Bar Cento and support the locals!
Top 100 Debut Albums @ Amazon →
I was going to complain about REM at 27 but everything above it is pretty damned good, too. So I guess I wonder about the difference between them and U2. And Arcade Fire? We’ll see. Everything else on the list seems to be good with a number of quality follow-ups.
The House acts sanely - CNN.com →
… where the Senate did not. Odd.
Senate OKs delay of digital TV transition @... →
How annoying — saw a piece on this on Lehrer last night. People, Tv is not a necessary utility. I know a lot of people don’t understand what’s happening, but I don’t believe many will be better off in 6 months. Until their Tv goes away and they have to get it fixed most won’t make the effort. It’s lame that the program for $40 coupons for converter boxes is...
Swedish Fishes
I think I figured out why Swedish Fish are so named. Take a look at the recipes for real fish dishes from Sweden and you’ll see they have a tomato sauce — i.e. they’re red. It’s important to know that the candy is made in Canada, and Canadian palates cannot discern “sweet” from “tomato-y”.
I like Swedish Fish and was looking for a recipe. However, I...
OK, Apple, I get it now. The first song is the seed for your “Genius”. That wasn’t nipple-intuitive for me, but I might be a moran.
Uncle Oscar
So the noms are out and I’m going to make a push to see some more films before the big day. So far I know this:
Benjamin Button is HIGHLY over-rated. it wasn’t terrible (definitely too long) but thoroughly underwhelming and predictable. No really touching performances. I was always a critic of Forrest Gump as an easy, maudlin movie that won on popularity over far better movies. Ben...
Another spectacular winter sunrise in the Cleve.
A series of smiles?? Seriously? →
I’m not down with the new Pepsi logo. It seems… lopsided, unbalanced. And I do prefer the Pepsi products.
Webnerd view of the new whitehouse.gov →
Huhn. Blonde chick in Leverage had a baby with Jason Lee. Had apparent difficulty with filling out birth certificate. http://tr.im/b1s9
O great... the neighborhood is going to slide into... →
I never know how "french" to pronounce this →
“Luh Peh-tea Tree-ong”? Seems ludicrously pretentious.
However they do serve some lovely crepes and this sounds like a fun event. And the nugget about them expanding to Kimo’s — maybe they’ll be Le Gros Rhombus soon.
The Baum →
Did we know that Noah Baumbach is married to Jennifer Jason Leigh? He would’ve been around 13 when “Fast Times… ” came out.
Just occurs to me that The Village in The Prisoner may not have been an island… was it bounded by mountains on one side?
Hard Drinkin' on the North Coast →
The top ten brands of liquor sold reads like a shopping list for a frat party. Ick.
NB: Pic is of Bar Cento, where I shared an awesome light dinner last night of braised pork pizza, brussel sprouts, and squash risotto. All superior.
Ctown Hero RT: @CleMuseumOfArt: Our film guy, John Ewing, is one of Cleveland Magazine’s most interesting people in 2009! http://tr.im/7tlm
Cleveland Browns Coordinators →
That’s all well and good but who will be assistant line coach?? Mike Sullivan is a burgeoning talent… plus I couldn’t handle the loss of his wife Carole Chandler… Sullivan.
Ricardo Montalban dead at 88 →
Well geez. Tough day for Tv island dwellers. Be careful, Matthew Fox!
Patrick McGoohan dies at 80 →
Just before the Prisoner remake…
To answer my own question on iománaíocht — 3 steps, and there are 3point goals and one point scores. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hurling
Can you explain why the players don't see it?
Ever wonder how the 1st down line is drawn in football?
Turns out they use people, not computers, for what I thought were the trickiest parts — locating the line and replacing the grass color. However there is a tricky part I didn’t consider — keeping the line in the set location on the field while the camera can swivel and zoom.
does anyone understand the rules to Hurling? how long is too long to hold the ball? why does each team have two scores?
having a beer and a bump while waiting for carryout from the old angle. I could get used to this sick spouse thing…
Greg points out a funny debugging story (http://tr.im/5w7p), leads to term o’ the day: http://tinyurl.com/88hksn
And yet... @ SI.com →
A quick look in the mirror for Cleveland.
There were many refrains of “at least we’re not Detroit” regarding the Browns this year. But how far apart are we, really? At least they have some other sports championships in the last 10 or 15 years while we’re still waiting (all hail LeBron).
This is to say that, as the article points out, we’re all in this together.
I...
2009 NFL opponents @ SI.com →
Not to totally skip the 2008 post-season… but I was curious about who the Brownies play in 0001 ME (Mangini Era).
Looks like we get the standard 6 against our division rivals, 4 games against the AFC West, 4 more against the NFC North, and JAX and BUF.
Buffalo for the third year in a row. That is if they aren’t the Ontario Bills by then.
'08 Dining Balance Sheet @ Cleveland Free Times →
All the changes in dining-out in the area — Chuck’s and Sands diners closed? Those are some Cleveland inner ring classics.
And my hood lost Kimo’s? I didn’t realize, which is disappointing but perhaps telling. Also “Krazy Mac’s” and Dish and La Tortilla Feliz… bummer.
I think we had Luxe and the “Bistroon” as additions. Solid, I...
Watched Top Chef… still waiting for @dcass to get me the behind-the-scenes info from previous ep
Startup Weekend Update #1 @ techbytes →
I think they should host it at Old Arcade. Gorgeous venue, with rooms on the mall, using some empty storefronts, and the mall itself it could a be a wifi mecca — also right across the street from the County Library.
The Pantry
Ruhlman points out a great NY Times article on long term staples we should and should not have in the pantry. I would grade ours at about a C, on this scale. On the curve I bet we’d be an A.
Also interesting is Ruhlman’s response with a “Freezer Pantry”. I have a lot of room for improvement here.
Sidecar
A Sidecar is one of my favorite drinks, made well. It is also an excellent measure of a bar or bartender, since it can be made into an unbalanced, overly sweet cocktail-tini. Ick.
At Light Bistro they had a Sidecar variation made with a splash of pomegranate juice and orange bitters. A classic cocktail is best balancing the punch of alcohol, a sweet, and a sour ingredient — the bitters can...
A little cross-promotion: Looks like there’s some hearty eats offered at the “Bistroon”. http://tr.im/344l
Happy Hours
The new restaurant in the old Sage space in Tremont Bistro On Lincoln Park has debuted their happy hour menu. It looks pretty cool, and I am eager to try all the items. I especially like the late Happy Hour from 930-Close (at least in theory — staying out past 10 these days is rare. Lord I’m old).
While I’m happy to see the cheap after-work eats, I’m still stuck on the...
Two of my coolest holiday gifts? GC’s to Cleveland Independents. Used Amazon’s new Wishlist functionality to list the GC from another site.
Where should I go? http://www.clevelandindependents.com for GCs and restaurant lists. I think Crop for one.
Anyone know why iTunes “Genius” feature refuses to change the first song from “Verdi Cries” by 10k Maniacs?
Stupid @amazonmp3 got me to purchases In My Tribe on a whim, and now I’m reliving Natalie Merchant nightmares from the late 80s.
The genius of Billy Bragg: It’s wrong to wish on space hardware/I wish, I wish, I wish you’d care
shosai @ even*cleveland →
Another (new-to-me) Japanese word, this one a shout-out to KOFNO, he of the kotatsu.
who wants a burrito? idoido!
Cleveland gets startup event →
If embraced, this could be a great opportunity. Embrace, embrace!
Merry Pink-mas
A 13yo nephew received both The Wall (1979) and The Dark Side of the Moon (1973) for Xmas. Doing the math that would be like me, in 1986, receiving a couple albums by Tony Bennett. And I actually did the research here — my first instincts (Chuck Berry, Elvis, Johnnie Ray) were too young by 5-10 years to be apt comparisons. Floyd started around 1965 and hit it big some five years later...
Yes, Asplode →