Best Chicken Fight

Saturday I set some meat to marinating for Sunday dinner, but right now (12:18pm, Sunday afternoon) I can't conceive of ever wanting to eat it (or anything else, ever again) after last night's Momofuku fried chicken dinner.

If you roll up on that chicken dinner (my third!) with only 6 chicken eaters, your pride (and the deliciousness) will get the best of you and you'll eat until you've got a whole angry coop in your stomach.

Wrap after wrap after wrap, wraps without number, wraps without end.

Stephen contributed a quiet, methodical, never-yielding approach to the eating of the chicken. I believe he was the last man to tap out, he fought a beautiful fight.

The platter of shame...these pieces (and a pile of lettuce) now reside in my fridge, waiting for the post-Millenial day when I'm ready to finish them off.

As we left, a party of 4 were presented with their 2 and 1/4 chickens...what manner of humiliation did they wish to bring on themselves? Or maybe they were a club of Kobayashis?

IMPORTANT UPDATE: Just got home from church, nibbled a tiny bit of leftover chicken. HOLY SMOKES! This is the BEST cold leftover chicken I've ever had! Still so crispy.

Best, Well, I Read This

The Savage Detectives is a novel about poetry and poets that contains, at most, two poems. It is a novel divided into two sections that have been split into three sections, it is a novel that is 75% devoid of any charm, it is a novel set more in Mexico City than any other city, but the only elements of Mexico City it contains are street names. It is a novel that made me want to yell "Who even cares?!" out loud on the Subway, it is a novel about unwashed poets in cluttered little rooms. It is a book that made me think about its author and how insufferable he must have been. This book, I just can't recommend it and I feel like a bit of Philistine for saying that, but that's my main reaction to it. "Hey Brigham, what'd you think of the Savage Detectives?" "Ehh, can't say I recommend it." And, like I said, I feel a bit of a fool or failure for saying that, but again, who even cares?

This review from the Observer does a good job of summing the book up if you need a summation.

Best Incredible Discovery

This is just a picture from March of 2009, that's all.

I was having this conversation with a co-worker last week (as I worked last week, so I had co-workers) about the swine flu. It was the first time that anyone ever told me the symptoms of the swine flu (that you're so sick with your flu that you can't get out of bed or lift your arms) and I was like "WAIT! That happened to me!" Because last March I got a cold/flu thing so bad that I barely left my bed for a week straight. I had just moved into Adam and Jordan and Kent's apartment and no one saw me for the first 7 days because I was in my room the whole time, feeling miserable. Ali used to yell at me for not seeing a doctor, I just thought it was a cold. But it was something else, I felt so miserable that I didn't even want to watch TV or play video games...it was all too loud and bright.

Therefore, I conclude that I had swine flu and will from this point tell everyone that I had the swine flu and didn't even know it for a whole year.

Right now I think I have a goose cold, by the way.

And before you say it yourself, let me say: My, what a strange collection of illnesses I've had!

2007: Tonsilitis! (I had almost forgotten about this)

2006: Shingles! (this link will take you to a post with a link to my gnarliest post ever. Click and Click if you dare!)

2004: Salmonella!

And, yes, certain other grave afflictions that would have made for interesting blogging had such a thing existed back then.

Oh, and right now, for 2010, I think my illness is: Stomach ulcers? Because I've got a stomach pain that matches the ulcer description on the internet.

Best I Had a Visitor!

No more going to Utah! Boston or Tennessee! Time for a visitor...

Ladies and Gentlemen, after a nearly four-year absence, Andrew came back to New York and it went well.

Welcomed with a rootbeer...

...within an hour I was teaching him about Shakeshack. Taking calls and teaching burger lessons, that's how I do.

The streets, they're friendly.

And Thursday night? A trip to Brooklyn (previously hinted at) for a little visit to Dumont.

Jeff and Hillary: Keepin' it real as always.

Wait...was Broek visiting, too? NO! Broek's a New Yorker now!

But Lars was in town again...that's his style, appearing unexpectedly, enriching lives, brightening faces.

Well-protected from the elements, the back patio is open year round.

Audrey scribbled.

A table heavy-laden with desserts!

Post-Dumont we took advantage of the environs and paid a visit to the Barcade.

Rampage! This and Double Dragon, they had to be the most popular arcade games of my late gradeschool years.

This one is called Ladybug, a variation of Pac Man. I found its innovations thrilling, but the game made a fool of me. But at least I can practice it online now.

Friday? Lots of walking. A visit to B&H

I tried a 28mm Elmarit on my M8...can you tell?

Andrew tried out keyboards.

A walk down the Highline

And, drumroll, lunch at the Noodle Bar. Color me pleased that Andrew took to it immediately.

They've got tamales now. Take my word for it, these are (left to right): pork shoulder & kimchi, chicken mole, and rajas y queso. The winner? The chicken mole, actually. Surprise, surprise, Chang's crew can do Mexican.

fingerling potatoes, poached egg, and bacon...before:

And after (I love this dish):

and here's the chilled spicy noodles. You really can't chill up a better bowl of noodles in spicy oil, spinach, chinese sausage, and candied cashews than this one.

Then, a visit to the MoMA.

Would you believe this is a drawing?

At home, Andrew kept seeing art everywhere he looked.

Friday night: Rene Marie at the Jazz Standard. Excellent show.

The Standard doesn't have a Minimum BUT they do have the Blue Smoke menu, which renders the concept of a minimum entirely unnecessary. This is how I spent my first twenty minutes at the club: staring down the menu, choosing between too many equally-delicious sounding options until I nodded off (or so it seems). Eventually I chose Fried Chicken.

Saturday Morning: A beautiful opportunity seized! Breakfast had with Keith and Keri at Kitchenette.

Check out the ridiculous breakfasts: gingerbread pancakes, sweet potato waffles, cinnamon roll french toast.

Andrew is a baker, we did some bread investigations. Here's a fine loaf from the Grandaisy Bakery. I'm going to have more of this sort of thing for the rest of my life. There. I just decided that. I like bread that has lots of holes and a hard crust.

That Saturday night, a very important event: Dinner at the Ssam Bar with Emily, Kathryn, and Carol. We ate like Kings and Queens! Pork buns, ham, kimchi apple salad, spicy rice cakes, skate, pork shoulder steak, Brussels sprouts...uhm...I think that was it. No, wait! Rib sandwiches! (and an attack on the Milk Bar resulting in slices of chocolate malted cake, grasshopper cheesecake pie, and a few samples of the salt and pepper soft serve)

A ride home on the bus.

Sunday, after services, a visit to Lincoln Center.

Andrew found himself fascinated by the fur coats of New York City. Particularly this lady's.

After much discussion, we faced the facts: We wanted Noodle Bar again. Thank goodness for Vacation Rules!

Tried the new Duck Salad. Pretty tight.

Those rice cakes? Comped! It seems that the manager recognizes me now? Or he's that friendly to everyone?

Andrew didn't leave until Monday, but I worked Monday. I don't know anything that happened that day. Except he watched some Friday Night Lights, ate french fries, and had gelato.

Best Worst Hand

Behold! My Rummi-tray from last night:

As you can see, I filled the whole thing and required additional tile storage before I could lay my first tiles BUT on my first move I was able to lay all but one tile.

Rummi Game, you're so complex!

Here's the post from a few weeks ago where I declared my love for Rummikub, if you need a refresher.

Best Country Music Hall of Fame Supplement

Loved by some, hated by others, it's time for another trip to the Photo Supplement Blog.

This time, it's to learn about my visit to the Country Music Hall of Fame in Nashtown, Tennessee. Go, See! Learn!