Fresh, Hot Wastes of Time

Here are the stats on the haircolor poll:

1.) Brown: 18 votes, 47%
2.) Blonde: 6 votes, 16%
3.) Red: 7 votes, 18%
4.) Grey: 0 votes, 0%
5.) Other: 7 votes, 18%

Interesting. I read a stat that said average on red haircolor is something like 5%.

I noticed enormous diversity in the blogs of people who have linked to me – from right-wing Christian to left-wing Pagan. It piqued my curiousity and I put a new poll up about political leanings. Please choose just one of each concept.

Go turn on FoodTV. Now now now. Iron Chef is on with Sakai vs. Chen, and they’re cooking turtles. Do it!

Want to book Radiohead for your next party? It’s only a paltry $100k.
Damn good thing the U.S. Copyright Office has those Elvis sightings covered. I’m glad to know where my taxes are going.
I’m getting a little concerned about the Bushes’ appointees. First Ashcroft, now the guy who thinks it’s fine to raise welts on your kids in the name of acceptable Biblical spanking.
RIAA. Thought Police for the 00’s.
Do your boobs hang low?

I’ve gained 5 pounds. I’m pretty sure it’s just a monthly thing, but still. Damn.

Tonight I drank rosewater and ate pomegranites and when the dancer twirled her gold scarf there was a breeze across my shish kebob.

We went to see Signs after dinner. I really, really enjoyed (really!) but I can see why some people didn’t. I’m going to spoil it, so if you want to read about it, highlight the blank area below –

This is not an alien invasion movie. It’s not about humans beating back another race (Independence Day), it’s not about cagey humans getting the better of the naughty aliens (Aliens), it’s not a moral about the dangers of nuclear war (The Day the Earth Stood Still), it’s not about some aliens are good and some are evil (Fifth Element), and it’s not about benevolent aliens trying to further the backwater humans (Contact). This movie is not about aliens in any way.

It is about Christian faith. Mel Gibson’s loss of faith when his wife died and subsequent reaquisition when his son doesn’t die is the sole focus of the film. It’s the cake, the substance, and all that alien stuff is just icing. It’s a beautiful story and gave me goosebumps and made me cry and pump my fist in the air when I saw him in his collar at the end.

The only problem I had with the movie was the gaping, yawning plot hole. Why would an alien intelligence mass forces and resources to invade a planet that was 70% water without first ascertaining that they are deathly vulnerable to it?

M. Night Shyamalan is a genius, as far as I’m concerned. He doesn’t shove points down your throat. You simply must find them out in the due course of events. He leaves you wondering until the time is right to reveal details. There’s no expository “once upon a time” other than a shot at the beginning establishing who the family is.

There are tons of jumps as well as some belly laughs in the movie. Just don’t go expecting “Independence Day”.

All this time I thought the cat was mad at me.

He’d be sleeping, and I’d go in and call his name and he wouldn’t even look at me. When he was walking down the hall, I’d call him and snap and make kissy noises and he’d just ignore me and go on his way.

You know, according to intelligence tests I’m supposed to be a genius. So why did it not occur to me for weeks that the cat might be deaf as a post? Really. Last night I set him on the floor and snapped my fingers behind his head and clapped loudly and hollered – nothing, nada, no reaction. Hub shouted at him really loudly, which made the cat’s ear flicker a tad. In past times it would have levitated him off the bed and downstairs in about 2.1 seconds.

I was prepared for the possibility that he might go blind, since renal failure can cause high blood presdsure which can cause blindness, but the deaf thing really caught me flatfooted.

There is a fine art to a good chalupa. I grew up in San Antonio (I may have mentioned), home of all that is Tex-Mex and good. Hub and I have been on a mission to get good Tex-Mex in Austin and failed. All the places that people rave about are either interior Mexican (Fonda San Miguel), trendy (Chuy’s), or just terrible (Tres Amigos, Serranos, Rosies, etc.). I want a nice, cheesy hole in the wall Tex-Mex restaurant.

Today I think we found one. It’s called Maudie’s and it’s been around since the 50s.

First test of a good Tex-Mex restaurant: the iced tea. This tea was nice and strong, came in an enormous glass, had lime instead of lemon, and a good ice-to-liquid ratio. Check.

Second test is the chips and salsa. Unbelieveably in Austin there is a popular restaurant that serves saltines instead of tortilla chips. Anyway, Maudie’s had really nice thin chips and the salsa was very flavorful with just a little bite. Chip refills were prompt and we never got around to an empty basket. Check.

The third test is the refried beans. We were quite nervous since the menu stated that their beans were 100% vegetarian, and you just can’t have good refrieds without any bacon grease and/or lard. The beans were just ok, passable but not excellent (La Posada del Rey in San Antonio has excellent refrieds, if you’re ever in the neighborhood). Semi-check.

My fourth test is chalupas – it’s what I order the first time I visit a Tex-Mex joint because they’re very hard to screw up and done right, they are heaven on earth.

Note that chalupas (in my opinion, and I don’t want to hear any flak from you Mexican food purists, I’m talking about Tex-Mex and not Mex-Mex, so siddown and sheddap, thank you) bear no resemblance whatsoever to that dreck they sell at Taco Bell. Real chalupas have the following layers, from bottom up: a crispy tortilla base, refried beans, cheese, chicken or beef, shredded lettuce, diced tomatoes, grated cheese (preferably American), and a dollop of guacamole (if you like chalupas compuestos). These chalupas had all that and were excellent. Hub’s cheese enchiladas were apparently good – I did not get a bite because they were gone about 3 minutes after they hit the table. I do hope he chewed just a little.

So anyway, check. And it’s in a tiny little space with a full bar and Elvis paintings on the wall and pink curtains and flies and traditional Mexican music (not Tejano, thank goodness) on the speakers.

Tonight we go to Ararat, speaking of hole in the wall restaurants. It’s a tiny middle-eastern place that has walls, floor, and ceilings covered with Oriental rugs and the tables are so close that sometimes the waitresses have to pass food via other diners to get it to your table. On the weekends they have belly dancers. It’s really hot inside and it’s BYOB and my goodness, is the food good. I can’t decide whether I want to take a shower beforehand because I know I’m going to get hot and sweaty there.

Decisions, decisions.

The wonders of nationalized health care.
Dogs and cats, living together – it’ll be anarchy!
We all live in a yellow submarine.
Dancing boobies.

I’d really, really like to have a “preview” function for the MT posting bookmarklet. That is all.