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January 27, 2004
Totally Random Update of the Month: My Five Favorite Restaurant Foods Ever
So I'm not sure exactly what got me thinking about this. I really like eating out. Don't get me wrong, my parents are both pretty good cooks, but we so rarely ate in restaurants when I was a kid that it was always like a special privilege. It's losing its cachet a bit these days, but it's still pretty neat. Anyway, there are some particular dishes or what have you that I would go out of my way to get. A lot of them seem to involve onions in some way. I like onions, but that may just be coincidence. Anyway.
Honorable Mention: Arby's: Market Fresh Turkey and Swiss
I get mine with no tomatoes and no mayo, so what you have is a nice
rich wheat bread with turkey, swiss, real lettuce, red onions, and a nice spicy mustard.
I feel kind of silly putting a fast food item on the list, but I get this a lot due
to quiz bowl trips and it's always good.
Honorable Mention: Olive Garden: Unlimited Salad and Breadsticks
I like Olive Garden, but I could just go there and eat this all
day. Especially the salad, whose dressing I've always enjoyed.
Honorable Mention: Blind Faith, Clarke's, Wendy's: Salads with
great dressings
The last one reminded me that what really makes a salad for me is
the dressing. The house vinaigrettes at these three establishments - yes, even
Wendy's - make me order a salad every time I go. They're all different, but all
great stuff. Blind Faith also has wizard potstickers, especially the dipping sauce
for them. (And yes, I'm embarrassed that I just used that adjective.)
5. Blue Bell Country Club: Crème brûlée
Oddly enough, this is the only dessert item on the list, despite my
notorious sweet tooth. I guess it's just easier to placate my sweet tooth - and
well, it is. Nonetheless, this is probably the greatest dessert ever, from the
blowtorched sugar top to the smoothness of the cream underneath. I love flan as a
dessert too, and Toro Loco makes a good one, but you can get good flan in plastic cups at
the store.
4. Blue Bell Country Club: Filet Mignon
I say merely "filet mignon" because I've had it several
different ways. My personal favorite was the variety with a pepper crust - I'm
actually salivating just thinking about it. That's some good, spicy stuff. The
rosemary-marinated filet that I had later (regrettably, the pepper crust was only a one or
two-time thing) was also sublime, and came with perfectly done green beans. I always
appreciate a perfectly done vegetable, like the broccoli at Noodles and Company, because
it's so easy to screw them up.
3. Neelam: Panir Pakora and Onion Chutney
There are a lot of things I love at Neelam, like the Alu Chhole and
the Vegetable Jal-Frozi (tasting my dinner for three days afterward is last on the list),
but the prize goes to an appetizer. I'm not sure what it is, because I usually like
sharper cheese - a really sharp cheddar would probably be my favorite - but panir is
really, really good. Meanwhile, I've been known to just eat spoonfuls of onion
chutney - like I said, I like onions - but more importantly, I've never seen it at any
other Indian restaurant (they always have this spicy-sweet red stuff that's like,
tamarind-based or something - and I just know Alma's going to look this up now and post
about it in the forum) and it's SO GOOD. Put it on panir and you've just got
greatness.
2. Millburn Deli: Turkey Sub
With all due respect to the Blimpie I visited after school on
probably half of my high school days, this is the best sandwich I've ever had, and it's so
simple: Turkey - and real turkey, not that thinly-sliced plasticky stuff - provolone
cheese, white onions (I love red onions, but white onions are majorly underrated - my
grandmother always put them in salads I loved), real lettuce, and a healthy dose of red
wine vinegar (with a little oil, the one thing in this sandwich I could conceivably do
without). I've had one or two mediocre ones when some of the less talented staff
made the sandwich, but usually they come out perfect - the first few bites are heaven on a
sub roll, certainly. All that and they give you a pickle slice (and sometimes two).
1. Toro Loco: Chips and Salsa
Well, duh. The last time I was there, the night before coming
back to Chicago, my sister and I went through two bowls of chips, along with one regular
bowl of salsa and then a second bowl that was about triple the size (seriously. She
knows people there). That's how good the stuff is. Not too thick, but not too
watery; no big chunks of tomato to contend with; a plethora of onions (oh baby); just the
right amount of spices (not too hot, not too much cilantro). It's the greatest salsa
in the history of the world, and the chips are pretty darn good themselves. It
distinguishes Toro Loco from any other Mexican restaurant of that type (think the Palmas),
since the main dishes are all pretty much the same... to think that I may never have this
salsa again (certainly not more than once or twice) hurts me, somewhere deep inside.
Las Palmas' salsa is actually pretty good as a replacement, but it's no Toro Loco.
January 27, 2004
Time for your annual look at the Oscar nominees, wherein I get to be really wrong about what happens in a month.
Best Original Screenplay
Nominees: The Barbarian Invasions; Dirty
Pretty Things; Finding Nemo; In America; Lost in Translation.
Should Win: For the second year in a row I have only seen one of the
nominees, but I'd probably go with Lost in Translation anyway.
Will Win: LiT should have as good a shot as any. I expect Nemo
to be a longshot if because of the animation alone. If someone else wins this it
will probably be Sheridan for In America.
Worst Inclusion: None jumps out. I'm tempted to say that a Pixar
film may not belong in this category, but I haven't seen it.
Most Surprising Inclusion: Well, Nemo again. I mean, Beauty
and the Beast got a Best Picture nod but it didn't get any screenplay looks.
Biggest Snub: None leaps to mind, as most of my favorites this year were
adapted.
Best Snub: Sorry, Kill Bill fans, but it was not that good.
Best Adapted Screenplay
Nominees: American Splendor; City of God;
Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King; Mystic River; Seabiscuit.
Should Win: Until I see ROTK, I'm forced to say Seabiscuit,
but I don't really believe that.
Will Win: This could be ROTK's night to win everything as
payback for the rest of the trilogy being almost totally ignored - or it could get screwed
again, at least in categories like this. Still, I'm not sure what else here has the
chops to win. I say if this doesn't go to ROTK, it goes to Helgeland for Mystic
River.
Worst Inclusion: Of those I've seen, Mystic River, though it's
not bad so much as morally nebulous.
Most Surprising Inclusion: Probably City of God, mostly because
I tend to be surprised when films not in English get screenplay nods. It seems to be
happening more these days, though (see Talk to Her last year, which proceeded to
even win).
Biggest Snub: It's a bit surprising that neither Master and Commander
nor Cold Mountain ended up here, but I'm most personally upset by the ignoring of
Shattered Glass.
Best Snub: Nothing leaps to mind.
Best Director
Nominees: Sofia Coppola, Lost in Translation;
Clint Eastwood, Mystic River; Peter Jackson, Lord of the Rings: The Return of
the King; Fernando Meirelles, City of God; Peter Weir, Master and
Commander: The Far Side of the World.
Should Win: Though I haven't seen ROTK yet and though Coppola
was great, Jackson deserves to finally be recognized for what he did with the LOTR
trilogy.
Will Win: I think it will probably be Jackson. If he loses, flip a
coin between Weir and Eastwood - I just don't see the Academy handing one to Coppola, at
least not yet, and Meirelles just seems out of his depth.
Worst Inclusion: Mystic River was up-and-down and hardly
flashy. So why is Eastwood here? Rep?
Most Surprising Inclusion: I'm pleasantly surprised to see Coppola here,
but more surprised that someone as left-field as Meirelles would get a nod (especially
considering how long ago City of God was actually in theatrical release).
Biggest Snub: Where's Minghella for Cold Mountain or Burton for Big
Fish?
Best Snub: First person to say "Tarantino should have been
here" gets slapped.
Best Supporting Actress
Nominees: Shohreh Aghdashloo, House of Sand and Fog;
Patricia Clarkson, Pieces of April; Marcia Gay Harden, Mystic River;
Holly Hunter, Thirteen; Renee Zellweger, Cold Mountain.
Should Win: This is really an oddball year, and this category proves it,
with nominations from both a Katie Holmes movie shot on DV and a movie most people didn't
see co-written by a teenager. I've only seen two of these and would probably take
Zellweger over Harden.
Will Win: You have to think this is Zellweger's category to lose - she's
in the biggest of the movies and got snubbed last year while watching Zeta-Jones (not as
good in the same movie) walk away with an Oscar. The others haven't paid their
nomination dues as much - and Harden and Hunter both have Oscars already. If
Zellweger doesn't win, though, toss it up between the two vets.
Worst Inclusion: It's not mine to judge the three I haven't seen.
Harden wasn't bad, though it was kind of an "eh" character.
Most Surprising Inclusion: Probably Clarkson, considering her movie.
Biggest Snub: None in the movies I saw, unless you want to consider
Nicole Kidman a supporting actress in The Human Stain, though she was better in Cold
Mountain anyway. I also liked Charlotte Gainsbourg in 21 Grams, but it
was a bit small even for a supporting role.
Best Snub: Again, none really leaps out.
Best Supporting Actor
Nominees: Alec Baldwin, The Cooler; Benicio Del
Toro, 21 Grams; Djimon Hounsou, In America; Tim Robbins, Mystic
River; Ken Watanabe, The Last Samurai.
Should Win: In my opinion, Del Toro, who I thought was amazing in what
was, overall, a mediocre 21 Grams. Robbins was also very good.
Baldwin was okay; I didn't see the other two.
Will Win: I don't think Hounsou will win, and Watanabe seems left-field
at best. I think it will be either Del Toro or Robbins - pressed to pick, I'll say
Del Toro because I think he should. I'm a little worried Baldwin will step in and
grab it, but I don't know how many people saw that movie.
Worst Inclusion: Of those I'm fit to judge, Baldwin, who I thought was
fine but nothing spectacular.
Most Surprising Inclusion: Probably Watanabe, when you consider that his
movie got no other important nominations (remember how this was supposed to be Cruise's
Oscar role?).
Biggest Snub: Peter Sarsgaard for Shattered Glass, a strong
performance in one of the year's best - and most overlooked - movies. Also big was
the omission of Paul Bettany, who I thought was great in Master and Commander.
And where's Albert Finney for Big Fish?
Best Snub: There just really aren't ones where people were beating the
drums, they didn't get one, and then I thought "good."
Best Actress
Nominees: Keisha Castle-Hughes, Whale Rider;
Diane Keaton, Something's Gotta Give; Samantha Morton, In America;
Charlize Theron, Monster; Naomi Watts, 21 Grams.
Should Win: Though I did not love the movie, Watts was great in 21
Grams. I'd have to see some of the others before I said anything different, but
it would take a lot.
Will Win: Theron's been getting all the buzz and took the Dramatic Globe.
I can't see any of the first three winning this, so I'd call it a two-horse race,
and this looks to be Theron's to lose.
Worst Inclusion: I haven't seen it to judge, but I always wonder about
comedic roles like Keaton's, especially considering some of the omissions.
Most Surprising Inclusion: Well, it has to be Castle-Hughes. Who
saw that coming?
Biggest Snub: Where's Kidman for Cold Mountain? And where,
for crying out loud, is Scarlett Johansson?
Best Snub: Uma Thurman. Kill Bill isn't that good, and
neither was she.
Best Actor
Nominees: Johnny Depp for Pirates of the Caribbean:
The Curse of the Black Pearl; Ben Kingsley for House of Sand and Fog; Jude
Law for Cold Mountain; Bill Murray for Lost in Translation; Sean Penn
for Mystic River.
Should Win: I honestly wouldn't be unhappy with any of these (the only
one I haven't seen is Kingsley, but I like him as an actor), but I'd love to see Murray
win.
Will Win: Kingsley already has one - though 21 years ago - while Penn is
on his fourth nomination without a win. So it may be between Penn and Murray (fewer
people saw House of Sand and Fog, in addition). Depp and Law, at any rate,
can probably forget it. If I had to make a choice between those two, I'd say Murray
because I want him to win more. But Penn has a comparable chance, I'd offer.
Worst Inclusion: I really have no complaints here - Depp is a bit
left-field but got tons of press, and even though it was more a "fun" role I
hesitate to call it a "bad inclusion."
Most Surprising Inclusion: Maybe Law, but only since Kidman didn't make
it. My review of Cold
Mountain pointed out that he deserved a nod, though.
Biggest Snub: Jeff Bridges and Tobey Maguire were both good in Seabiscuit,
though maybe not Oscar good.
Best Snub: Penn in 21 Grams - I liked him, but I'm glad they
didn't try to have him run against himself, taking away a spot better occupied by someone
else.
Best Picture
Nominees: Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King;
Lost in Translation; Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World; Mystic
River; Seabiscuit.
Should Win: Lost in Translation is my favorite, but let me see ROTK
first (the only one of the five I'm missing).
Will Win: I have to think this is ROTK's to lose, as it's not an
especially formidable crop of opponents. I can't see Seabiscuit or Master
and Commander winning, and Lost in Translation would be really, really
surprising. Between ROTK and Mystic River, I just don't think
people would screw LOTR a third time.
Worst Inclusion: Mystic River, which might have deserved this
had it ended sooner. Aside from that, Master and Commander was enjoyable
but not really a Best Picture, though you could say the same for Seabiscuit.
Most Surprising Inclusion: Probably Seabiscuit, though I'm a
little surprised Lost in Translation got this much recognition.
Biggest Snub: For my own personal taste, Shattered Glass, but
it's not like I thought that would get one. I'm more surprised that Cold
Mountain was passed over.
Best Snub: Hmm, do you think it will be Kill Bill? Yeah.
Volume Two isn't going to win shit either, just so you fanboys know.
Feel free to discuss all this jazz in the forum.
January 26, 2004
Happy birthday, Dad.
They have these new Altoids Sours, apple flavor. They're pretty damn good. Also, I finally finished my review of The Cooler, which is not that favorable. Give me a little time on Big Fish and I'll try and finish that one.
January 25, 2004
I'm all about trying new things. At least when it comes
to snacks and I think I'll like them. Drew, Rich and I went to World Market
yesterday and we found out why I should never be let into a store hungry. The two
key products:
* Krinkle Cut Kettle Chips (Salt and Fresh Ground Pepper
flavor). Holy crap, these things are good. Think double-thick Ruffles
made out of baked potatoes and seasoned with just your basic salt and pepper.
Ooh-wee. So, so tasty. Drew and Rich will vouch for me here.
* San Pellegrino Limonata. Tastes like Lift,
which says it all for me. Problems: only 6.5 fl. oz. per bottle, and they aren't
twistoffs. Whose bright idea was this? I don't have a bottle opener, so I
think I'm going to have to buy one or else never get to drink the rest of these.
January 20, 2004
Clearly it's been a very exciting time in my life. Actually, it kinda has been, I just haven't had the chance to sit down every night and hash it out for you. So you get a big ol' make-up now. Enjoy.
Last Thursday I was talked into going down to Purdue
with the lure of calling a women's basketball game. It had been a while since I'd
been on the air (the WNUR page says February 19, 2003 - I'm not sure how long it's been
since I've updated that page, but I would not be stunned to find that that was in fact the
last time), but I don't think I was too rusty. I must confess, though, that I did
not know very much about the team this year going into the day, which resulted in some
quick studying shortly before game time. If you actually heard the broadcast - which
I doubt - you may have noticed that I asked quite possibly the stupidest question in
history of Coach O in the pregame, that being, "So, any reason you're starting two
freshmen tonight?" Coach: "Uh, yeah, we've had a lot of injuries."
Me (attempting to cover): "Oh, that was it." Retarded.
Other amusing moments of the trip:
* Traveling down with Alex Freedman and Dan Gotera, we hear a
commercial on the radio for Baker's Square which was just ridiculously oversexed, as the
announcer breathed on about "bigger bread bowls," "thick and creamy
broccoli and cheese soup," and "our unbelievable pies." This became a
running joke.
* I didn't know who was back in the studio at halftime and so tossed it
- over the air and everything - to "whoever's there." Tormey then brought
it back from break with "this is whoever."
* The "media parking lot," which was like three spaces under
the bleachers of Ross-Ade Stadium. They were also on a slight incline for some
reason, leading to Dan declaring it the "media ramp."
* Asking for a receipt for 50 cents at a toll plaza. I always
feel like a dumbass doing this, but NUR reimburses, so why not. I did refuse to ask
for one at the 15-cent toll booth, though. I'm just not that big an asshole.
So after all that, I had to turn around and drive out to Michigan on Friday night for a whole weekend of quiz bowl. Recaps of MLK and Ann B. Davis are up, so you can go there for most of the details. I would also note the snow that made the trip back hellish for about 30 minutes, and also how dirty my car got from all the salt and such. The recaps are not quite complete as I write this because I don't have final team positions, but they're close enough.
January 14, 2004
Apparently Verio recently changed how they handled billing,
but the only e-mail address they sent that information to was pop@bigflax.com, which I don't think even exists anymore
(it was the default address back in the day, but it hasn't been for some time now, and I
disabled catch-all to reduce the spam a tad). Thus, nobody ever got that
information, thus the account went unpaid for two months - so service was suspended.
A quick and easy credit card payment over the phone today took care of that little
problem, so we're all cool now.
The end of this week is going to be hellishly busy. First I drive
to Purdue tomorrow to do a women's basketball game, and then head off to Michigan for a
full weekend of quiz bowl not 24 hours later. Oof.
January 6, 2004
Do I really have to go out again in an hour? The current temperature is 7 above, but the wind chill is seven below. That's real fucking fun. At 12:30 pm, no less.
How Cold IS IT?
* It is currently five times warmer in New Jersey than it is here.
And that's non-wind-chill temperature.
* It's so cold it hurts to breathe. Are you familiar with that? When I left
the dorm two hours ago it was a mere three degrees above zero, and my nose and
throat were not thanking me for sucking in that dry, frigid air.
* It's so cold there's ice on the inside of my window. It's not funny.
* It's so cold I'm considering wearing my scarf, even though it doesn't come close to
matching my coat. Like I give a fuck at this point. Maybe I'll just wrap it
around one of my woefully underprotected legs.
In other news, it's always funny getting two-dollar checks, accompanied by now-silly-reading notes on the stationery of Nemo's girlfriend. Who's finishing second, Nemo? Well, that would be Marc Hogan. I think you were back there somewhere. Thanks for the two bucks, though. He also wrote "Quiz Bowl President" below my name on the envelope, in the best Rudnik tradition of attempting to make the postal service scratch their heads. (This year's Rudnik envelope was addressed to "Robert Flax-i-doodle-do," had "Land of the Wildcats" between Evanston and IL, and had a return address of "dr. love" [lack of caps his], although the check was surprisingly pedestrian.)
January 4, 2004
I am officially all but out of space. A lot of shit is coming off here when I get back to school. Wait, why am I not back at school? Oh yeah, four hours in the airport only to have my flight cancelled due to weather in Chicago. Fun!
January 2, 2004
The Devils only tied the Capitals, but it was a pretty good game. It was, it must be said, completely surreal to have spent nearly seven hours in transit and only four and a half in DC.
In the Bowl Challenge, only Marc and I have any shot at winning currently. Whether I win or we tie will be decided by, of all things, the Humanitarian Bowl. I remember Marc - oh cruel fate! - noting to me how possible it was that the new January 3rd date of the Humanitarian (like it deserves so plush a spot) would make it one of the most important games on the slate. How right he was. Speaking of which, here's a conversation between me and Marc that is funny in retrospect:
BigFlax29 (4:24:41 PM): I just needed a tiebreaker score for the sugar bowlIn conclusion, fuck you, Marc.
One of the things I did with my six hours on the train
was power through both Digital Fortress and Deception Point, Dan Brown's
two non-Robert Langdon-starring books. Fortress I shredded in two hours -
it's a bit puffier fare than the other three - while it took me about four to get through Point.
Having completed the Dan Brown canon, I noticed some similarities in the books.
Those who have read both the Langdon books (like Drew) will know what I mean; they
don't get any less obvious when he's not involved, needless to say. Since I've
finished Fortress and Point, anyone who wants to borrow them can.
Meanwhile, to amuse myself, I made a list of How to Write a Dan
Brown Novel in 15 Easy Steps. It's probably much funnier if you've read all
four books - also, and this warning is specifically for Alma and my dad, both of whom are
in the middle of Langdon books, but really for anyone who hasn't read all four books and
plans to, MASSIVE, MASSIVE SPOILERS. If you don't want all four
books largely ruined for you, don't read this. I realize this limits
the potential audience, but hell with that, I was bored. And you can come back and
read it later.
January 1, 2004
The Bowl Challenge got through its 18th game last night. This means there are ten more, half of which are today. I currently lead with 14 games right and Anuj is next with 13, but if one of us is to win this contest that will be decided today - we have the next four games (Outback, Gator, Capital One, and Rose) picked differently but are exactly the same thereafter.
Oh, yeah, something about New Year's. I'm going down to Washington for the day (it's a mere 9:30 in the AM right now, you're watching Perspectives, and I'm Lionel Osborne) to see the Devils play the Capitals. Apparently we have some ruling seats. You're so jealous.
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This page last updated: Saturday, June 12, 2004 04:38:03 AM