first of all, i'll admit that i have been to tower dogs three times in the last four days. yes, that is excessive. but i enjoyed it the first time, and several friends have wanted to try the spot out so i tagged along. i have had:
the tower boat - chili & cheese over fritos - i like the chili enough, although chili + beans might be good for a boat.
the chili dog - chili & cheese on a dog - however, i love this chili on the dog.
the kraut dog - saurkraut + dog - grilled kraut was awesome with mustard and the dog
the mexidog - chorizo + nacho cheese & jalepenos - pretty tasty, and i'll try this again
the caliente hot! hot! hot! dog - habenero sausages, grilled onions & red peppers + sour cream - umm, the habenero sausage was dang spicy. not unbelievably hot, but pretty spicy. grilled peppers and onions nice.
i have loved all these dogs. seriously. these are nice, high quality dogs. the service is quick, and it happens via a walk up counter.
seating is limited, and outdoors, so this may be a problem in hotter or colder months.
they're open 11 am - 10 pm M-Th, but here is the real kicker: friday's & saturdays, 11 am - 3 am! holy crap, bar crowd, you need to hit this spot.
the only real drawback may be that the dogs are a little pricey for some. the dogs pretty much run between $3-$4. but i'm down, they're dang good.
so far, the business traffic seems to be decent. i'm hoping it keeps up after the newness fades. and, i can't wait to try the last call dog. it's only available after 11 pm, and comes with a polish sausage, eggs, hash browns and nacho cheese. super yum.
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
freebord skateboard tetris ad
i saw this video on a couple of different websites and thought it was cool for a couple of reasons:
i love tetris
i like skate videos
it looks fake, but the more you watch you realize it's real
enjoy
i love tetris
i like skate videos
it looks fake, but the more you watch you realize it's real
enjoy
talking during a movie?
sometimes people just don't get the message. last night, adam, brian and i went to see inglorius basterds. we had kept meaning to go, and never got around to it or had other stuff get in the way. anyway, we finally went, and enjoyed the movie very much. most of it.
you see, since the movie has been out a while, the theater was rather empty. that's good. of course, people are going to come in, and we know that. since we were the first into the theater, we picked seats which we felt were the best. of course, people sat near us. that's not bad, in fact i assumed it would happen.
during the previews, the couple behind us was talking a bit. not too loudly, but it did slightly irk me that the guy pretty much had a comment for everything. i like my movie experience quiet. anyhow, the movie starts and the guy is still commenting every so often. adam had already given him the obvious look over the shoulder shush, but he was still talking. i gave a head turn and said, "sir!" still yapping though. and then brian had heard enough. he turned and asked the man to be quiet because he was ruining the movie. this seemed to work. for a bit. he had a few more comments, and then he and his lady friend were out. they left.
i thought it was possible that they might have been offended a bit by the movie, as they left after a pretty violent scene, but they could have also been annoyed brian told them to shut up (not in those words). if it was the latter, i don't care. well, really i don't care either way why they left. i'm just glad i didn't have to hear someone chat the whole damn time.
you see, since the movie has been out a while, the theater was rather empty. that's good. of course, people are going to come in, and we know that. since we were the first into the theater, we picked seats which we felt were the best. of course, people sat near us. that's not bad, in fact i assumed it would happen.
during the previews, the couple behind us was talking a bit. not too loudly, but it did slightly irk me that the guy pretty much had a comment for everything. i like my movie experience quiet. anyhow, the movie starts and the guy is still commenting every so often. adam had already given him the obvious look over the shoulder shush, but he was still talking. i gave a head turn and said, "sir!" still yapping though. and then brian had heard enough. he turned and asked the man to be quiet because he was ruining the movie. this seemed to work. for a bit. he had a few more comments, and then he and his lady friend were out. they left.
i thought it was possible that they might have been offended a bit by the movie, as they left after a pretty violent scene, but they could have also been annoyed brian told them to shut up (not in those words). if it was the latter, i don't care. well, really i don't care either way why they left. i'm just glad i didn't have to hear someone chat the whole damn time.
Monday, September 28, 2009
monday haiku
tower dog opened
enjoyed mexidog, and
tower frito boat
amazing race start
season fifteen shows promise
globe trotters look good
enjoyed mexidog, and
tower frito boat
amazing race start
season fifteen shows promise
globe trotters look good
Sunday, September 27, 2009
roger rocka's face lift?
not totally sure what's happening, but the southern wall of roger rocka's got a new paint job. i'm hoping they put up the old logos and what not, as that roger rocka double r & top hat were the coolest.
i also hope they extend the make over to the whole building because the front is looking pretty shabby.
i also hope they extend the make over to the whole building because the front is looking pretty shabby.
Friday, September 25, 2009
metro by berlin
so, i've recently become a little obsessed with the song metro by berlin. i heard it at a local establishment and not only did it remind me of my enjoyment of synth pop from this era, but it also reminded me of some other things. but i also think the song in kick ass, and totally worthy of listening to. so do it.
at one time i had looked for the song on itunes, and it wasn't there. but it is now. so, you know what i purchased the other day? metro. it's also got me thinking about maybe checking out one of their greatest hits.
the song also brings back a bit of nostalgic memories to me. i didn't have this tape, but i remember listening to it on my first walkman at my aunt kat's. i think she might have lived in this little apartment in santa rosa at the time. she had the tape, and while we were there visiting i just remember listening to the song, rewinding, listening, rewinding and so on. good times.
at one time i had looked for the song on itunes, and it wasn't there. but it is now. so, you know what i purchased the other day? metro. it's also got me thinking about maybe checking out one of their greatest hits.
the song also brings back a bit of nostalgic memories to me. i didn't have this tape, but i remember listening to it on my first walkman at my aunt kat's. i think she might have lived in this little apartment in santa rosa at the time. she had the tape, and while we were there visiting i just remember listening to the song, rewinding, listening, rewinding and so on. good times.
Thursday, September 24, 2009
happenings
ah, the blog week is coming to an end as a lot of people don't check blogs as much on the weekend. for me, the blog week started well, but sorta took a backseat to a lot of other things.
this weekend looks to be a fun time, and there is a ton of stuff going on. shoot, i'm actually using my calendar to manage my time.
friday looks to be a pretty average friday of hanging out with friends, probably over @ the local. during the day i'll finish up my work week and maybe catch up on some dvr'd stuff.
saturday will kick off with the tower streetscape planning meeting. this is the third meeting, and the second i'll have been to, and i'm excited to see the next step in the plan. the drag of it: start time of saturday morning @ 11. that doesn't sound too bad, but i admit that some saturdays i don't drag my lazy rear out of bed until 12.
after the meeting, i'll come home, and adam and i will be sitting down to record a podcast with fresno blogfather, mike oz. i plan to do my best bubba impression and sing the mike osegueda song. so, if you have a question for mike oz, feel free to leave it in the comments.
post podcast adam and i have a rogue planning meeting. we're in charge of art venues for the next festival, and applications go live on october 1st.
after that, it's off to my bro's for a little housewarming party. should be nice, and i'm sure i'll see some folks that i haven't seen in a bit, as well as friends that i see around a lot.
sunday will bring another football and some other fun. the main part of the other fun will be at the tower district's octoberfest celebration
i'm pretty excited about this, and hope it's not too hot to walk around in. i also have a feeling that this will be a lot better than sudz in the city.
this weekend looks to be a fun time, and there is a ton of stuff going on. shoot, i'm actually using my calendar to manage my time.
friday looks to be a pretty average friday of hanging out with friends, probably over @ the local. during the day i'll finish up my work week and maybe catch up on some dvr'd stuff.
saturday will kick off with the tower streetscape planning meeting. this is the third meeting, and the second i'll have been to, and i'm excited to see the next step in the plan. the drag of it: start time of saturday morning @ 11. that doesn't sound too bad, but i admit that some saturdays i don't drag my lazy rear out of bed until 12.
after the meeting, i'll come home, and adam and i will be sitting down to record a podcast with fresno blogfather, mike oz. i plan to do my best bubba impression and sing the mike osegueda song. so, if you have a question for mike oz, feel free to leave it in the comments.
post podcast adam and i have a rogue planning meeting. we're in charge of art venues for the next festival, and applications go live on october 1st.
after that, it's off to my bro's for a little housewarming party. should be nice, and i'm sure i'll see some folks that i haven't seen in a bit, as well as friends that i see around a lot.
sunday will bring another football and some other fun. the main part of the other fun will be at the tower district's octoberfest celebration
i'm pretty excited about this, and hope it's not too hot to walk around in. i also have a feeling that this will be a lot better than sudz in the city.
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
tuesday chops
these photos were taken the other day basically due to a few things:
1. i was bored.
2. i thought i'd share my chops with you. my right chop specifically.
3. document the chopiness.
enjoy.
btw, it's odd cropping pictures of your face, cutting down part, deciding how much to leave in so you don't just have a chop floating out there all by itself.
1. i was bored.
2. i thought i'd share my chops with you. my right chop specifically.
3. document the chopiness.
enjoy.
btw, it's odd cropping pictures of your face, cutting down part, deciding how much to leave in so you don't just have a chop floating out there all by itself.
Monday, September 21, 2009
monday haiku
out with the old, in
with the new, pecha kucha
tonight eight twenty
giants drop one more
rocks and dodgers are too much
is the season done?
rams zero and two
looks like every team will beat
them into the dirt
with the new, pecha kucha
tonight eight twenty
giants drop one more
rocks and dodgers are too much
is the season done?
rams zero and two
looks like every team will beat
them into the dirt
Sunday, September 20, 2009
jennifer's body
so, is jennifer's body a good movie? i probably won't know until like a year from now when it hits cable. and, it looks like a lot of people are taking a very similar tactic. it finished 5th in the weekend box office totals. now, it's possible that 5th isn't bad. especially if the movie was going up against some real winners. let's see who finished ahead of the highly promoted and anticipated jennifer's body:
1. cloudy with a chance of meatballs - hey, it's hard to beat a movie intended for kids. seriously, parents and children's book lovers are definitely going to turn out for this movie.
2. the informant - well, this movie has seen about as much ad time as jennifer's body, so that's not the issue. maybe people just want funny over scary/weird. or, maybe matt damon is a bigger star.
3. tyler perry's i can do bad all by myself - uh oh, the wheels are coming off here. this movie has been out two weeks. it made a lot less than it did it's first weekend. but this movie looks epically bad to me.
4. love happens - aaron eckhardt is dreamy. and he's got helluva chin. err, wait, i mean jennifer aniston is hot. and this movie looks awesome. well, it's a romantic comedy, so i'm sure people were looking for date material or something.
5.jennifer's body.
the good news for jennifer's body is that it did beat sorority row, which looks like a steaming pile of crap.
but box office numbers don't tell the whole story. reviews also matter. rotten tomatoes has it rating @ 42% currently. that's not so good. tonight, i watched the review of it on at the movies. one of the reviewers was trying to say how the movie was sort of good and highlighted the co-star of the film, amanda seyfried. he went on quite a while about how it was a sort of decent movie with a few problems. the other guy dismissed that review and launched into a pretty rough take on the movie. he said that the other review was basically ignoring the major issue with the film, megan fox sucks. sure, amanda seyfried is good, but the movie apparently rambles all over, and did i mention he thought megan fox sucks? oh yeah, i did. he went on from there.
however, roger ebert, formerly of at the movies, said this, "There is within Diablo Cody the soul of an artist, and her screenplay brings to this material a certain edge, a kind of gleeful relish, that's uncompromising. This isn't your assembly-line teen horror thriller." interesting. not convincing, but interesting.
what i do know is that megan fox, who is allegedly the hottest thing around, couldn't get teenage boys to open their wallets. and that's pretty bad. i mean, really, it's a psuedo slasher, teen boys like that. they're advertising some sort of lesbian-y subtext, teen boys like that. megan fox is easy on the eyes, teen boys like that. megan fox was in transformers, and teen boys turned out in droves for that thing. so what went wrong?
beats me. all i know is there are probably a half dozen other movies out right now that i would rather see.
1. cloudy with a chance of meatballs - hey, it's hard to beat a movie intended for kids. seriously, parents and children's book lovers are definitely going to turn out for this movie.
2. the informant - well, this movie has seen about as much ad time as jennifer's body, so that's not the issue. maybe people just want funny over scary/weird. or, maybe matt damon is a bigger star.
3. tyler perry's i can do bad all by myself - uh oh, the wheels are coming off here. this movie has been out two weeks. it made a lot less than it did it's first weekend. but this movie looks epically bad to me.
4. love happens - aaron eckhardt is dreamy. and he's got helluva chin. err, wait, i mean jennifer aniston is hot. and this movie looks awesome. well, it's a romantic comedy, so i'm sure people were looking for date material or something.
5.jennifer's body.
the good news for jennifer's body is that it did beat sorority row, which looks like a steaming pile of crap.
but box office numbers don't tell the whole story. reviews also matter. rotten tomatoes has it rating @ 42% currently. that's not so good. tonight, i watched the review of it on at the movies. one of the reviewers was trying to say how the movie was sort of good and highlighted the co-star of the film, amanda seyfried. he went on quite a while about how it was a sort of decent movie with a few problems. the other guy dismissed that review and launched into a pretty rough take on the movie. he said that the other review was basically ignoring the major issue with the film, megan fox sucks. sure, amanda seyfried is good, but the movie apparently rambles all over, and did i mention he thought megan fox sucks? oh yeah, i did. he went on from there.
however, roger ebert, formerly of at the movies, said this, "There is within Diablo Cody the soul of an artist, and her screenplay brings to this material a certain edge, a kind of gleeful relish, that's uncompromising. This isn't your assembly-line teen horror thriller." interesting. not convincing, but interesting.
what i do know is that megan fox, who is allegedly the hottest thing around, couldn't get teenage boys to open their wallets. and that's pretty bad. i mean, really, it's a psuedo slasher, teen boys like that. they're advertising some sort of lesbian-y subtext, teen boys like that. megan fox is easy on the eyes, teen boys like that. megan fox was in transformers, and teen boys turned out in droves for that thing. so what went wrong?
beats me. all i know is there are probably a half dozen other movies out right now that i would rather see.
Saturday, September 19, 2009
u.s. pole dancing championships
i'll say this right from the start, i'm opposed to strip clubs. and, i've never been to one. i'm not saying this from a 'look at me, pat me on the back,' standpoint, but more from the standpoint of it seems creepy to me and i've got ways i'd rather spend my money.
however, it seems that some of the ladies working in the clubs are quite talented on the pole. get your mind out of the gutter dirty bird, i'm talking about how they are quite acrobatic. check this video, and don't worry, it's safe for work, and probably not offensive. hell, i don't know what offends you.
craziness.
however, it seems that some of the ladies working in the clubs are quite talented on the pole. get your mind out of the gutter dirty bird, i'm talking about how they are quite acrobatic. check this video, and don't worry, it's safe for work, and probably not offensive. hell, i don't know what offends you.
USPDF Highlights 2009 from Savanna Hudson on Vimeo.
craziness.
american outlaws
back in my salt lake city/usmnt recap i talked about walking in behind a supporter group that i initially thought was sam's army, but it turned out to be the american outlaws. they were spirited, they had chants, songs, and even some musical instruments. they definitely provided a lot of heart for the u.s. crowd at that game.
after i found out who they were, i decided to check out their website and see what they were about. their core values and history are this:
Mission:
To support the United States National Team through a unified and dedicated group of supporters.
History:
The American Outlaws started in Lincoln, NE as a local supporters group. Throwing viewing parties at local bars and attending every game possible sparked excitement amongst some of the leaders of the group, who felt like they could do more. In attending these games, a lack of consistency was observed from game to game with regard to the level of supporter organization, particularly with events surrounding the game (ie tailgates, parties, etc.). We then decided to make AO a nationwide, non-profit supporter group. a country as big as the United States, organization is a critical aspect to creating a unified culture of soccer fans. The more the fan base is unified, the greater the fan presence, the more intimidating the atmosphere, which finally leads to better results on the field. This is the goal of American Outlaws.
this sounded really cool to me. i like the organizational idea, providing a unified fan experience, having local chapters be "experts" on where to party, tailgate, etc. and, i hope to attend more national games in the future, even if they're only friendlies leading up to next year's cup. so, i joined the american outlaws. for $15 a year, i thought it could be worth it. camaraderie is definitely nice, but they're also getting hook ups, like discount flights from continental airlines. the $15 also gets you some gear: a t-shirt & a bandanna.
today my gear arrived:
i know it's a stretch, but i'd love to see a fresno chapter start up. what do we need for that?
Chapter Criteria
* A minimum of 25 paid American Outlaw Members
* Have a "home base" bar, where fans can expect to meet to watch each game
* Host a viewing party at said bar for EVERY GAME
* Complete the AO Chapter Registration, which will be mailed to you
* Inform national AO of new members as they sign up
in my mind the real difficult part of this might be to get the 25 paid members. because i'm pretty sure that we can find a bar (sequoia, hero's, some other place) to watch all the games at/host viewing parties.
why would we want to be a chapter?
Benefits of Chapterdom (if that is a word)
* Chapter awarded free banner from national organization
* Chapter receives discounts on merch, as well as benefits in other areas
* Chapter receives free promotional swag from organizations, such as NIKE
* Chapter events receive national recognition to all AO members nationwide
sounds good, right? and, i also think that if we could get a chapter together it would help out the fuego support. so, get yourself over to american outlaws. sign up. let's get our chapter on and support the usmnt.
*cross posted @ wide world of fresno sports.
after i found out who they were, i decided to check out their website and see what they were about. their core values and history are this:
Mission:
To support the United States National Team through a unified and dedicated group of supporters.
History:
The American Outlaws started in Lincoln, NE as a local supporters group. Throwing viewing parties at local bars and attending every game possible sparked excitement amongst some of the leaders of the group, who felt like they could do more. In attending these games, a lack of consistency was observed from game to game with regard to the level of supporter organization, particularly with events surrounding the game (ie tailgates, parties, etc.). We then decided to make AO a nationwide, non-profit supporter group. a country as big as the United States, organization is a critical aspect to creating a unified culture of soccer fans. The more the fan base is unified, the greater the fan presence, the more intimidating the atmosphere, which finally leads to better results on the field. This is the goal of American Outlaws.
this sounded really cool to me. i like the organizational idea, providing a unified fan experience, having local chapters be "experts" on where to party, tailgate, etc. and, i hope to attend more national games in the future, even if they're only friendlies leading up to next year's cup. so, i joined the american outlaws. for $15 a year, i thought it could be worth it. camaraderie is definitely nice, but they're also getting hook ups, like discount flights from continental airlines. the $15 also gets you some gear: a t-shirt & a bandanna.
today my gear arrived:
i know it's a stretch, but i'd love to see a fresno chapter start up. what do we need for that?
Chapter Criteria
* A minimum of 25 paid American Outlaw Members
* Have a "home base" bar, where fans can expect to meet to watch each game
* Host a viewing party at said bar for EVERY GAME
* Complete the AO Chapter Registration, which will be mailed to you
* Inform national AO of new members as they sign up
in my mind the real difficult part of this might be to get the 25 paid members. because i'm pretty sure that we can find a bar (sequoia, hero's, some other place) to watch all the games at/host viewing parties.
why would we want to be a chapter?
Benefits of Chapterdom (if that is a word)
* Chapter awarded free banner from national organization
* Chapter receives discounts on merch, as well as benefits in other areas
* Chapter receives free promotional swag from organizations, such as NIKE
* Chapter events receive national recognition to all AO members nationwide
sounds good, right? and, i also think that if we could get a chapter together it would help out the fuego support. so, get yourself over to american outlaws. sign up. let's get our chapter on and support the usmnt.
*cross posted @ wide world of fresno sports.
Friday, September 18, 2009
32nd annual fresno highland gathering
get your kilt on this saturday. i grew up going to the highland gathering every year out at kombs ranch, but stopped going a while back. a few years back they switched over to roeding park. this year, i'm pretty sure i'm headed down olive to the 32nd annual fresno highland gathering to see some scottish throw events (hammer especially, weight toss for height, etc) and the pipe bands while eating bangers and mash or meat pies. i'll also be looking for some gear to complete my kilt and whatnot.
The 32nd Annual Fresno
Highland Gathering & Games
September 19th, 2009
Gates open @ 8:00am
Competitions start @ 9:30am
-Come and see-
Professional Athletics - North American Hammer Throw Championship-Junior Athletics
Highland Dance Competition - Country Highland Dancing
Piping and Drumming Competitions - Mass Pipes and Drums
Clans and Society Tents - Living History Stage - Scottish Stories
Celtic Merchandise - Great Food - Fantastic Music
Fresno SPCA Mobile Adoption
Parking regulated fee - $3.00 per vehicle
General Admission; $15.00
Seniors (60+), Students, and Military with ID; $10.00
Children 6 -12; $5.00
Under 6 years Free
The 32nd Annual Fresno
Highland Gathering & Games
September 19th, 2009
Gates open @ 8:00am
Competitions start @ 9:30am
-Come and see-
Professional Athletics - North American Hammer Throw Championship-Junior Athletics
Highland Dance Competition - Country Highland Dancing
Piping and Drumming Competitions - Mass Pipes and Drums
Clans and Society Tents - Living History Stage - Scottish Stories
Celtic Merchandise - Great Food - Fantastic Music
Fresno SPCA Mobile Adoption
Parking regulated fee - $3.00 per vehicle
General Admission; $15.00
Seniors (60+), Students, and Military with ID; $10.00
Children 6 -12; $5.00
Under 6 years Free
rademacher bellyflop ep release show 9/18
what are you doing tonight? forget that bizness over @ cedar & shaw, you should be ovver at floradora and van ness.
audie's olympic is hosting a cd release show for fresno's indie vets rademacher. they'll be playing, along with others, but the real gem is a chance to pick up the new album.
here's the original flyer for the show, when it was supposed to be a double release party for rademacher and fay wrays.
sadly, fay wrays had some problems getting their cd all ready to distribute and had to postpone their release. but, i have heard that fay wrays will be having a cd release show on oct 22nd @ audie's olympic. you won't want to miss that, or the new cd, which i have a pre-release copy of. it's fan-effin-tastic.
audie's olympic is hosting a cd release show for fresno's indie vets rademacher. they'll be playing, along with others, but the real gem is a chance to pick up the new album.
here's the original flyer for the show, when it was supposed to be a double release party for rademacher and fay wrays.
sadly, fay wrays had some problems getting their cd all ready to distribute and had to postpone their release. but, i have heard that fay wrays will be having a cd release show on oct 22nd @ audie's olympic. you won't want to miss that, or the new cd, which i have a pre-release copy of. it's fan-effin-tastic.
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
stormtroopers remember the death star anniversary
i wonder how people who really were impacted by 9/11 feel about this
me, 9/11 didn't really hit me all that hard, for various reasons. so, i see the humor in the short, but it also seems pretty crass.
me, 9/11 didn't really hit me all that hard, for various reasons. so, i see the humor in the short, but it also seems pretty crass.
Monday, September 14, 2009
episode 33 of tvlgfhf
new podcast up featuring abigail nolte. check it out @ the view looks good from here, fresno.
Friday, September 11, 2009
backpacker cat
this is an awesome, cute video. enjoy.
neatorama translated some of the website this is video stems from.
1 euro each, 15 000km, 13 countries, 3 years running. Some are willing to kill people for a paper called money.
In a world of economic crisis where money becomes obsessive and when life is hard without money, this young couple from discovering the concept of money through meetings, poor, rich, middle class, everyone tells them how they live or survive.
Still believe in the phrase “money does not buy happiness, it is through their journey that no man will discover, learn, suffer and seek answers to their questions.
He will share the adventure at breast height with both cameras and their companion Kitty, a kitten appeared two months on the road in Louisiana. Sacred destiny for a cat!
More than a walk, a look at a changing society.
neatorama translated some of the website this is video stems from.
1 euro each, 15 000km, 13 countries, 3 years running. Some are willing to kill people for a paper called money.
In a world of economic crisis where money becomes obsessive and when life is hard without money, this young couple from discovering the concept of money through meetings, poor, rich, middle class, everyone tells them how they live or survive.
Still believe in the phrase “money does not buy happiness, it is through their journey that no man will discover, learn, suffer and seek answers to their questions.
He will share the adventure at breast height with both cameras and their companion Kitty, a kitten appeared two months on the road in Louisiana. Sacred destiny for a cat!
More than a walk, a look at a changing society.
Thursday, September 10, 2009
fresno water meters
i was excited to come home and see this in my yard.
can't wait until they actually start using the meters.
can't wait until they actually start using the meters.
Monday, September 07, 2009
road trip reflections: slc and the usmnt
warning, this post is going to be long. but, it's mainly photos and description of my road trip to salt lake city to see the u.s. men's national team play vs. el salvador.
we stopped somewhere to get a coffee and use the restroom, but the mini mart didn't have public restrooms so we went across the street to wienerschnitzel. i saw this sign and wondered if i was?
this little kid was drinking mountain dew
be careful, eating at wienerdude may cause a reaction. usually, my reaction is a full belly.
we stopped for gas, and i thought this was a pretty cool sign. it's up near grass valley, ca.
we stopped for lunch @ the black bear diner, which was somewhere in nevada. i didn't realize black bear was a chain, but that's not a big deal. i think it's sorta fun to hit up obscure joints on the road.
you don't quite get the scale of the chicken fried steak. it was as big as my hand, which is 8". i didn't finish it or the hash browns. too much food.
maybe i'm six, but it cracked me up to think that there was a big bm on that mountain.
trust me, that sign said "deeth starr valley." the darkside is strong in nevada.
nevada is also home to post apocalyptic beverly hills.
in utah, there are some creepy gas station signs. you clown, scare me.
let's talk about friday nights in salt lake city. friday night we hit up a bar called the republican. i learned about the place via twitter, as someone notified me of a usmnt supporters party there. it was a cool little dive bar. and republican refers to irish, not the political party. it was definitely an irish dive bar, but it was also full of hipster types. who knew salt lake had hipsters, and that a lot of people have tattoos. or at least the people at bars had tattoos. we walked down the street from the republican and had tacos from a street vendor. they were amazing, and that's not just because it was close to midnight and i had consumed a few "pops." it was weird that they had all kinds of little roadside taco stands set up, but it makes sense in an area with a bunch of bars. 4 tacos, and $3 later i was back in my seat at the republican. we saw a bar, called the woodshed,that seemed to have cool music going on, but my tab was still open at the republican so we headed back there. even though there wasn't live music, it had a nice vibe and the drinks were pretty cheap ($4 beers, $3.50 for a mixed drink!). since we had been on the road all day and still had to drive like 5 miles back to the hotel, we called it a night before it got too late.
this is the garlic burger w/garlic fries @ the bohemian brewery. a brewery in utah you say? i thought they were a dry state. nope, they do sell booze. it seems that the beer sold in bars/restaurants is regulated down to 4%, which actually helped the taste of some beers. we had a delicious microbrewed amber beer here. the burger was delicious. and the decor of the place was sorta ski lodge, but they had hops hanging all over, which was an awesome touch.
and now onto the game. outside the game we were befriended by some usmnt supporters that were tailgating. we were just wandering in early, and these guys offered us hot dogs. we were still full from lunch, so we declined the hot dog but asked for a beer instead. they were cool, and freely gave us a beer. since we were having beer i chatted them up about beer & alcohol in salt lake. essentially, beer sold at bars and restaurants is a little lighter, but booze is the same as everywhere. we walked into the game behind one of the supporter groups that was chanting, singing and playing instruments. they were organized, and it really felt like a real soccer crowd. it also makes me want to try and organize a better fuego supporters group.
sam's army the american outlaws are filtering in. they were seated next to a big crowd of el salvador fans. u.s. soccer supporters need to learn to play a bass drum or a tom. a snare just doesn't cut it. btw, we walked in behind a bunch of these folks.
a couple more photos from before the game.
see how friggin close we were?
i will not do anything during the game that will cause security to come into the crowd for me.
landon and the boys came out to warm up.
the team during the anthem & introduction. now, i'm not a guy that usually sings along, or would chant usa or even call myself really patriotic. but it was awesome singing alongside my countrymen & women as we support our nation side. and, i really think this was the first time i'd ever entered a usa chant.
the team huddles up before the start
tim howard kicking it in goal. you can get a good idea how awesome our seats were from that picture. we were about 18 yards out from goal, seated in the second row. awesome. and rio tinto stadium was very nice. makes me wish fresno had a soccer specific stadium, and a pro team. the only real drawback to our seat was that the u.s. was shooting on the other goal in the first half, and didn't offensively press much during the second, when they would've been shooting in front of us, because they were ahead.
just after kickoff
el salvador scored first due to some sloppy defense, a failure to close down on open men on loose balls, and poor clearance. i've seen this a bit lately from the u.s., and while i realize we were missing some of our key defenders, it's something we must fix before next year's cup.
dempsey's equalizer was awesome. i took video of it happening, but knew the replay video board would be a little better.
and then jozy altidore, who is definitely my favorite u.s. player right now, put us ahead. again, i've got live video, but replay is a little better. jozy is such a talent, but he looked a bit winded in the second half and seemed a bit lackadaisical. he also had a sick goal in the second half that was called back for seemingly no reason. everyone around us was confused. i asked the guys behind us if they say any signal. i checked twitter and the ussoccer feed was baffled but certain it wasn't offsides. the espn story afterward said the ref claimed altidore "nudged a defender." bs.
celebrating the win with the fans.
some thoughts on the game: everyone gripes about refereeing, so it shouldn't be a surprise that i'll bitch about it here. it sucked. seriously, the linesman on our side was terrible, blowing several offsides calls. and the head ref, well, i already mentioned his terrible fake foul against altidore, but he was missing calls all night, going both ways. he made up a foul against altidore, and when charlie davies was kicked in the knee in while driving in the box, no call. another thought, it was also great to see landon donovan look back up to fitness and delivering very good balls on set pieces.
after the game, we went back and rested at the hotel, and then hit up salt lake city's night life. i already discussed saturday's lunch at the bohemian, but let me tell you about saturday night. we drove by the republican but decided we wanted to try some place different. we were going to go to the woodshed, but there was nothing happening there. seriously, no bands, and about 4 people at the bar. so we drove to the heart of the downtown and looked for a bar that was jumping. we saw several and looked for parking. salt lake has a very nice looking downtown, and is very walkable. in addition, they have a muni-rail that seems very easy to use. we could have stayed downtown, taken the rail to the game and back. next time. so, we wandered by a few bars looking for what would be a nice spot. we saw a piano bar, but didn't venture in. the pianist was playing the hookie pokey while some girl did it on stage. these mormons know how to get down! all jokes aside, it looked like a fun place, but was jammed to the gills. so we kept on, and settled in at...another irish place. murphy's wasn't as dive-y as the republican, but it was nice. and, a patron (a chef from a nearby restaurant) brought in like 4 trays of food, but we were full and didn't have any. we did have a fun time people watching while having several drinks.
sunday morning we got back on the road.
this part of utah was pretty. it was definitely better looking than our route 80 trip.
i think this is in just as we entered arizona.
traffic slowed a bit due to an accident. a trailer had flipped over and the people were gathering their belongings from the wreckage.
the remnants of the trailer.
more arizona.
again, pretty arizona shots.
i didn't take any photos in nevada. i sort of just was in drive fast and get done mode so i pretty much just did that. one thing i wish i had taken a picture of was the view coming into las vegas. it's interesting to come around a bend and see vegas, even in the daytime. but, it was also sorta gross because so much smoke from the southern california fires.
i knew this photo probably wouldn't come out as good as i hoped. as we were driving on highway 58 you could visibly see the line of smoke and where it ended. it was like smokey hazy sky/no smoke clear sky. crazy.
eventually i made it home. both routes (rt 80 going, rt 15 coming back) took about twelve hours. the route 15 path seemed a little nicer looking, but both get monotonous. one bonus of the rt 15 path was that stretches of utah had a speed limit of 80! that means i wasn't speeding as much.
overall, this was a great road trip. i'd do it again, although i'd love for the destination city to be a little closer.
we stopped somewhere to get a coffee and use the restroom, but the mini mart didn't have public restrooms so we went across the street to wienerschnitzel. i saw this sign and wondered if i was?
this little kid was drinking mountain dew
be careful, eating at wienerdude may cause a reaction. usually, my reaction is a full belly.
we stopped for gas, and i thought this was a pretty cool sign. it's up near grass valley, ca.
we stopped for lunch @ the black bear diner, which was somewhere in nevada. i didn't realize black bear was a chain, but that's not a big deal. i think it's sorta fun to hit up obscure joints on the road.
you don't quite get the scale of the chicken fried steak. it was as big as my hand, which is 8". i didn't finish it or the hash browns. too much food.
maybe i'm six, but it cracked me up to think that there was a big bm on that mountain.
trust me, that sign said "deeth starr valley." the darkside is strong in nevada.
nevada is also home to post apocalyptic beverly hills.
in utah, there are some creepy gas station signs. you clown, scare me.
let's talk about friday nights in salt lake city. friday night we hit up a bar called the republican. i learned about the place via twitter, as someone notified me of a usmnt supporters party there. it was a cool little dive bar. and republican refers to irish, not the political party. it was definitely an irish dive bar, but it was also full of hipster types. who knew salt lake had hipsters, and that a lot of people have tattoos. or at least the people at bars had tattoos. we walked down the street from the republican and had tacos from a street vendor. they were amazing, and that's not just because it was close to midnight and i had consumed a few "pops." it was weird that they had all kinds of little roadside taco stands set up, but it makes sense in an area with a bunch of bars. 4 tacos, and $3 later i was back in my seat at the republican. we saw a bar, called the woodshed,that seemed to have cool music going on, but my tab was still open at the republican so we headed back there. even though there wasn't live music, it had a nice vibe and the drinks were pretty cheap ($4 beers, $3.50 for a mixed drink!). since we had been on the road all day and still had to drive like 5 miles back to the hotel, we called it a night before it got too late.
this is the garlic burger w/garlic fries @ the bohemian brewery. a brewery in utah you say? i thought they were a dry state. nope, they do sell booze. it seems that the beer sold in bars/restaurants is regulated down to 4%, which actually helped the taste of some beers. we had a delicious microbrewed amber beer here. the burger was delicious. and the decor of the place was sorta ski lodge, but they had hops hanging all over, which was an awesome touch.
and now onto the game. outside the game we were befriended by some usmnt supporters that were tailgating. we were just wandering in early, and these guys offered us hot dogs. we were still full from lunch, so we declined the hot dog but asked for a beer instead. they were cool, and freely gave us a beer. since we were having beer i chatted them up about beer & alcohol in salt lake. essentially, beer sold at bars and restaurants is a little lighter, but booze is the same as everywhere. we walked into the game behind one of the supporter groups that was chanting, singing and playing instruments. they were organized, and it really felt like a real soccer crowd. it also makes me want to try and organize a better fuego supporters group.
a couple more photos from before the game.
see how friggin close we were?
i will not do anything during the game that will cause security to come into the crowd for me.
landon and the boys came out to warm up.
the team during the anthem & introduction. now, i'm not a guy that usually sings along, or would chant usa or even call myself really patriotic. but it was awesome singing alongside my countrymen & women as we support our nation side. and, i really think this was the first time i'd ever entered a usa chant.
the team huddles up before the start
tim howard kicking it in goal. you can get a good idea how awesome our seats were from that picture. we were about 18 yards out from goal, seated in the second row. awesome. and rio tinto stadium was very nice. makes me wish fresno had a soccer specific stadium, and a pro team. the only real drawback to our seat was that the u.s. was shooting on the other goal in the first half, and didn't offensively press much during the second, when they would've been shooting in front of us, because they were ahead.
just after kickoff
el salvador scored first due to some sloppy defense, a failure to close down on open men on loose balls, and poor clearance. i've seen this a bit lately from the u.s., and while i realize we were missing some of our key defenders, it's something we must fix before next year's cup.
dempsey's equalizer was awesome. i took video of it happening, but knew the replay video board would be a little better.
and then jozy altidore, who is definitely my favorite u.s. player right now, put us ahead. again, i've got live video, but replay is a little better. jozy is such a talent, but he looked a bit winded in the second half and seemed a bit lackadaisical. he also had a sick goal in the second half that was called back for seemingly no reason. everyone around us was confused. i asked the guys behind us if they say any signal. i checked twitter and the ussoccer feed was baffled but certain it wasn't offsides. the espn story afterward said the ref claimed altidore "nudged a defender." bs.
celebrating the win with the fans.
some thoughts on the game: everyone gripes about refereeing, so it shouldn't be a surprise that i'll bitch about it here. it sucked. seriously, the linesman on our side was terrible, blowing several offsides calls. and the head ref, well, i already mentioned his terrible fake foul against altidore, but he was missing calls all night, going both ways. he made up a foul against altidore, and when charlie davies was kicked in the knee in while driving in the box, no call. another thought, it was also great to see landon donovan look back up to fitness and delivering very good balls on set pieces.
after the game, we went back and rested at the hotel, and then hit up salt lake city's night life. i already discussed saturday's lunch at the bohemian, but let me tell you about saturday night. we drove by the republican but decided we wanted to try some place different. we were going to go to the woodshed, but there was nothing happening there. seriously, no bands, and about 4 people at the bar. so we drove to the heart of the downtown and looked for a bar that was jumping. we saw several and looked for parking. salt lake has a very nice looking downtown, and is very walkable. in addition, they have a muni-rail that seems very easy to use. we could have stayed downtown, taken the rail to the game and back. next time. so, we wandered by a few bars looking for what would be a nice spot. we saw a piano bar, but didn't venture in. the pianist was playing the hookie pokey while some girl did it on stage. these mormons know how to get down! all jokes aside, it looked like a fun place, but was jammed to the gills. so we kept on, and settled in at...another irish place. murphy's wasn't as dive-y as the republican, but it was nice. and, a patron (a chef from a nearby restaurant) brought in like 4 trays of food, but we were full and didn't have any. we did have a fun time people watching while having several drinks.
sunday morning we got back on the road.
this part of utah was pretty. it was definitely better looking than our route 80 trip.
i think this is in just as we entered arizona.
traffic slowed a bit due to an accident. a trailer had flipped over and the people were gathering their belongings from the wreckage.
the remnants of the trailer.
more arizona.
again, pretty arizona shots.
i didn't take any photos in nevada. i sort of just was in drive fast and get done mode so i pretty much just did that. one thing i wish i had taken a picture of was the view coming into las vegas. it's interesting to come around a bend and see vegas, even in the daytime. but, it was also sorta gross because so much smoke from the southern california fires.
i knew this photo probably wouldn't come out as good as i hoped. as we were driving on highway 58 you could visibly see the line of smoke and where it ended. it was like smokey hazy sky/no smoke clear sky. crazy.
eventually i made it home. both routes (rt 80 going, rt 15 coming back) took about twelve hours. the route 15 path seemed a little nicer looking, but both get monotonous. one bonus of the rt 15 path was that stretches of utah had a speed limit of 80! that means i wasn't speeding as much.
overall, this was a great road trip. i'd do it again, although i'd love for the destination city to be a little closer.
Saturday, September 05, 2009
quick thoughts on friday's drive
spent a lot of time on route 80. 640 something miles worth. here are a few thoughts:
-went by 4 prisons in nevada
-lots of construction zones on 80 in nevada. slowed up the road trip a little
-route 80 through nevada not that pretty. lots of scrub brush and not much else
-upon entering utah became very isolated. not too much between nevada and slc
-not a friendly reception to utah- almost every exit between border and slc said "no services." good thing i got gas in nevada.
-slc looks nice at night. good freeway system, too.
-went by 4 prisons in nevada
-lots of construction zones on 80 in nevada. slowed up the road trip a little
-route 80 through nevada not that pretty. lots of scrub brush and not much else
-upon entering utah became very isolated. not too much between nevada and slc
-not a friendly reception to utah- almost every exit between border and slc said "no services." good thing i got gas in nevada.
-slc looks nice at night. good freeway system, too.
Friday, September 04, 2009
on the road again
ah, the road trip is finally here. by the time this posts, i should be on the road to the greater slc area. google maps says the trip should take 12 hours, but i'm pretty sure we can do it in less, without going insanely far over the speed limit.
check back because i'll try and do short post from the bat phone over the weekend. thoughts on the road, slc, and of course the u.s. men's national game vs el salvador.
check back because i'll try and do short post from the bat phone over the weekend. thoughts on the road, slc, and of course the u.s. men's national game vs el salvador.
Wednesday, September 02, 2009
blame it on the heat
ugh. blogging has been a little lazy around here lately with a lot of videos. i blame it on the the heat. it makes me damn sleepy when i'm at home, where i do most of my blogging.
but have no fear, i will press on. i'm hoping to post a flyer today or tomorrow. and, friday through sunday i hope to post some thoughts from my road trip to salt lake to see the u.s. men's national team play.
i may also have some other content today and tomorrow. now, i think i may go take a nap. this heat is making me sleepy.
but have no fear, i will press on. i'm hoping to post a flyer today or tomorrow. and, friday through sunday i hope to post some thoughts from my road trip to salt lake to see the u.s. men's national team play.
i may also have some other content today and tomorrow. now, i think i may go take a nap. this heat is making me sleepy.
radiohead cover yeah yeah yeah's maps
how effin cool is radiohead that they mix in the yeah yeah yeah's song maps into a version of everything in its right place? the answer: very cool, even if it is only the intro part.
Tuesday, September 01, 2009
year long beard
in pulp fiction julius talks about walking the earth like caine from kung fu. this guy did it for a year. well, specifically he walked across china for a year, and took daily still shots of himself as he grew a beard and hair on his head.
pretty cool.
The Longest Way 1.0 - one year walk/beard grow time lapse from Christoph Rehage on Vimeo.
pretty cool.
60,000th visitor!
back in april i celebrated my 50,000th visitor, which as best i could tell was eli reyes. i think i finally gave him the gift certificate to yoshi now, but i really can't remember.
anyway, the other day i noticed that i was approaching 60k, and thought i would maybe do a post. d'oh! totally missed it. looked at my site meter today and i was already @ 60,109. oh well, it's not like i was going to do any give aways or fantastic post.
but, if you do want to read some interesting posts, there are two new ones up over @ wide world of fresno sports.
anyway, the other day i noticed that i was approaching 60k, and thought i would maybe do a post. d'oh! totally missed it. looked at my site meter today and i was already @ 60,109. oh well, it's not like i was going to do any give aways or fantastic post.
but, if you do want to read some interesting posts, there are two new ones up over @ wide world of fresno sports.
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