the haunted circus

i was excited to be heading back to texas.  i love texas. i'm a lot more country than i think i've previously realized.  but i was also excited because i'd finally be in the right texas town at the right time, to meet up with my friend old virginia friend, stephanie.  to clarify, she's not old, i'm not old, but our friendship is old. old like a fine wine that just gets better with time.

so, i had a lot to look forward to, and when i got a text from a relatively new co-worker asking if i'd be up for a haunted house while we were in texas, the ante got upped!

the decision was made to visit the strangling brothers haunted circus.  i'd like to tell you that i selected it because it appeared on 'top haunt' lists, or that i am particularly terrified of clowns, but really, i selected it because it was the ONLY option on a monday night.  which makes it a happy accident that it is hands down the scariest haunt i've experienced!

since i'm not especially bothered by clowns, i expected it to be 'okay', but it was beyond memorable.  being there on a monday night meant very short lines.  which should have moved faster.  but when i realized why it was slow going, i forgave the delay.  it turns out that they were staggering each group so that you were only going through with the people you came with. that alone made it stand apart.  i hate being lumped in with a larger group and depending on where you are in that larger group, you may actually see everything coming before it comes.  this was not the case at the circus.

also setting it apart was that rather than being set in some kind of building, in line with it's circus theme, it was actually roughly 30 big-rig size trailers linked together in some case and with some outdoor scenes happening between every 3 or 4 trailers.  this was also most excellent for me as i tend to get very hot in haunted houses and the outdoor vignettes gave my body a chance to regulate it's temperature.

but even beyond these seemingly subtle differences, the quality of the scares was far above average.  while not every 'scene' made me react, there was literally something for everyone. in fact, it was this experience that made me realize that my quirky 'cabin fever' --the one that would make me go driving around the neighborhood in three feet of snow, just to know that i could,  is actually a fear on some level.

there was one area in particular that tapped into the fear.  dense with white fog and populated with people wearing white masks and white clothing so that you could not see them until they were inches from your face, it was also impossible to find a way out.  we were in that trailer for probably 6 or 7 minutes, at least two of which, i spent curled up in a standing ball in a corner. our exit was finally made possible by one of the whiteys with a finger point, and i'm not sure we would have found it without the help.  we couldn't even figure out where we had come from!  it was soooo good!

i recently read a review on yelp where the reviewer, referring to some haunt or another, said he considered a haunt a good value if you got at least a minute for every dollar you spent.  we spent 25 dollars and it took a little over 45 minutes for us to go through the entire experience, never running into or being bumped into by any other participants.  they were truly excellent minutes.

and the texas fun was not over.  the following evening gave me a chance to spend a few hours with stephanie.  she had picked fred's texas cafe, a ddd joint that, it turned out, i hadn't been to. we grubbed and gabbed, and i was reminded just how much i love seeing old friends. i love that they come with a shared built in history.  i love that you share certain understandings and don't have to cover old ground, but can go on the same nostalgia trip should you so choose. and i love that you can just pick up where you left off.

needless to say it was a most excellent tuesday night in texas.

a date with sandy

my recent trip to hollywood, fl (near ft. lauderdale) was memorable for a number of reasons.

in no particular order:

1. a reunion with one of my best friends from high school - 18 years after the fact

me and amanda on naples beach at sunset

thanks to the wonders of email and facebook, we've casually stayed in touch through almost two decades of separation   we've made the attempt to get together during my travels before, but something always came up to prevent it--the most dramatic of which was a nasty fall (mine) on the way into a 7-eleven, resulting in a torn mcl (my second knee injury in six months).  finally, closer than i've ever been to her hometown, i was absolutely determined to see her.

between us, it took three hours of drive time to meet in naples, fl.  we had settled on the beachside restaurant at the ritz carlton, where we knew we could spend a few hours catching up and watching the sun go down over the atlantic.

we seemed to pick up right where we left off and i couldn't have been happier than to sit across a table from my long-time friend, sharing a meal, and the highlights and lowlights of the last 18 years.

2. my first hurricane!

my co-workers did not believe me when i told them that florida had welcomed me with beautiful sunny weather.  instead, they were greeted by heavy winds and rain.

befores and afters

as it would turn out, sandy was much kinder to florida than to the northeast, but we were in awe of the wind and waves on the normally mild atlantic.

3. checking off TWO diners, drive-ins, and dives restaurants

first up, sonny's famous steak hoagies.  i had the #90 (plain with onions), with provolone and green peppers, and i've gotta admit, it was pretty good.

kevin, me, eli, and greg, after stuffing our faces full of steak

i've spent years looking for a steak and cheese sandwich that could compare to the best steak and cheese that ever existed.  i don't entirely know what made that particular sandwich the best sandwich that ever was, but i spent much of my youth praying that dad would make a stop at trio's in dupont circle on his way home from work.  that prayer was often (though not often enough) granted, until the day that trio's ceased to exist.

i never had a chance to discover all the secrets of the trio's steak and cheese, but i do know that the 'steak' was marinated ribeye.   and while ultimately, sonny's (also) marinated rib eye steak and cheese sandwich did not dethrone trio's, it was darn good.  in hindsight, with a lot more cheese, it might have been a true competitor.

greg and i checking out the menu

next up was grampa's bakery and restaurant, where it was clear that the 'bakery' and the service were the real treasures.

iris (maybe 'gramma'?), our waitress, was fantastic.  we spent a lot of time chatting about the experience of filming the show, what guy fieri ate, liked, didn't like, etc.  all while enjoying the complimentary danishes, which, even though i'm not a danish lover, were amazing.

we all ordered the breakfast sandwich and shared chocolate chip pancakes while i satisfied an intense craving for hot chocolate (something about storms!).  aside from the perfect danishes, the meal was par for the course diner food, yet the experience was a highlight in my ddd adventures.

4. the glass-bottom pool

the weather didn't exactly cooperate with our hoped for jacuzzi time, so when the rain stopped temporarily on friday night, we decided to go for a midnight swim.  the real fuel for our fire being the unique pool on top of pool layout at the hotel.

on the upper floor, an infinity pool which formed a sort of 'bridge' over the pool passing underneath it.  what made it even more unique was that a portion of the top pool had a glass bottom, which could be seen from the pool below.

greg and i were itching for a photo opp, which is the only reason that swimming at midnight, in the middle of a hurricane, seemed like a good idea.

i had the benefit of going second (so i learned from greg's failures) and eli was able to capture these awesome pics.

after our photo experiments, we decided to end the night with a dip in the hot tub.  little did we know, things were going to get even hotter when, due to the weather conditions, an electrical fire broke out in the stairwell from the pool up to the lobby.  since it was nearly 1:30am, i ended up walking through the entire lobby in my swimsuit (why i didn't grab a towel is beyond me) to alert the hotel staff.  just one more piece of evidence that my 'emergency' streak is back.

5. no flight delays

we weren't sure if sandy was going to let us leave florida.  eli and i had scheduled our exodus for saturday morning, and since we both had plans that night, we really wanted to get home.  almost unbelievably, there were no flight delays, and in fact, it was the smoothest travel day i've had in some time!

since last we met

i've:

traveled to nine states

visited seven national park units

eaten at six diners, drive-ins, and (or) dives

wandered through three haunted houses/trails

landed twice in urgent care

had one date


i've also:

drunk from a sulphur well

honky tonked my badankadonk

reconnected with old friends

tromped around a cemetery at midnight

enjoyed fall colors in new england

celebrated my 35th birthday

gained a brother-in-law and a niece

become diamond at hilton

become platinum on american


you'll forgive me if i've been remiss in blogging. i will try and be better:)

oldies and goodies

one of the things i love about traveling is the opportunity to reconnect with old friends.

my recent trip to ft. worth afforded two such opportunities, and though i was extremely uncomfortable in my new brace, it helped to have something extra special to look forward to.

extra special #1 was a late night dinner with anne and brian, who stuck around long enough to share a meal with me at ihop (at 11pm) before making the very long drive back to their home in houston. i was too busy stuffing my face with bacon, eggs, crepes, and a chicken fajita (no 'sharing' there - i was STARVING) to take a photo.  and truly, as it had been a long day for all of us, i'm pretty sure i wouldn't have posted it anyway.  just take my word for it, we met, we ate, we conquered.

extra special #2 arose when a long-time-ago friend saw that i would be in dallas for a few days on my facebook page (have i mentioned how great i think facebook is?).   the last time i saw him was when he was starring in, and i assistant directing, a production of 'west side story' for the west valley (utah) community theater, some 13 years ago.  he also lives in houston and is a pilot for a small airline, but though we've attempted before, our travels never land us in the same cities. until now.

turns out we'd be overlapping for a full 24 hours in the dallas area, so of course, i invited him to join me in checking off another diners, drive-ins, and dives restaurants.

i picked him up at his hotel and we headed to avila's, a mexican restaurant.  i warned him that i never quite knew what i was going to get , a diner, a drive-in, or a dive.  and after passing it three times before finding it, it's safe to say, it fell in the 'dive' category.  i had also informed him that i hadn't had a bad meal yet, and fortunately, this place would NOT be the exception. that was some delicious mexican eats, and the queso alone is worth the stop.

the company didn't hurt, and we fell right back into our old groove catching up on the last decade+ of each other's lives before calling it a night.

i'll also mention briefly, that i checked one other ddd location off the menu - chef point cafe.  it was a good meal, but not a standout.  what this place really has going for it is a unique ambiance and HUGE portions.  if you're REALLY hungry, it's not a bad choice.

i was happy to get home after a successful event, and even happier that my travel is almost nonexistent for the next three months.  with only a few small events left for the rest of the year, and most of them local, i'm so excited i can deal with my newly awkward extremity on my own turf!

kneegate: the trilogy (and my trip to florida)

first - an administrative note.  click on the post title to see the trip photo album

my trip to florida began with all the makings of a fantastic experience, and before it's disastrous ending, it was just that.

it started even before the trip did, when a guy i knew in high school saw on my facebook page that i'd be heading to boca raton and asked where i'd be staying.  when i told him, in that small world kind of way, it turned out that he worked at the property, and offered to attempt an upgrade for me.

superfly car for superfly chicks

i wasn't sure if it would come through, but i was hopeful.  and when my friend (and co-worker) melissa and i arrived in ft. lauderdale, i checked in at the alamo desk and was sent to choose my car from the midsize aisle.  what came as a surprise was that i had everything from an suv to a beetle to choose from.   so we agreed on the beetle.  a fun car for a fun trip.

the boca raton resort

when we got to the hotel, i learned that my old high-school buddy had come through for me.  and, in any normal hotel this would have been awesome, but since the event, and our host hotel, was a waldorf astoria property, it was even more happy-dance inducing.  and happy dance i did, when i opened the door to my suite.

the view from my suite

not. kidding.

melissa and i IN the everglades.
and for the record, she's 5'4", i'm 5'9"

the fun was just getting started though, and after melissa and i got the booth setup taken care of, we had some time to kill.  so we decided to head south so that i could check the everglades national park off my parks passport list.  but, we weren't content to settle for your 'standard' park experience, so we opted instead for an air boat tour.  having had such a great time on our new orleans air boat, we were both pretty excited.  and it was....different.  it was worth every penny of the $22, but it wasn't as intense as the new orleans one (which was closer to $100).  in the end we were glad we did it - the everglades is such an unusual place - but if you're ever in that area an considering an airboat tour, we'll talk, so you can go in with the right expectations.

a new stamp for the passport

we made it back from the day's adventure in time for lunch.  some of you may be familiar with the original serendipity in new york, originators of the frozen hot chocolate, and i was thrilled to learn that there was a serendipity at the hotel.  in addition to my lunch, i enjoyed the peanut butter version of the yummy dessert.  

peanut butter and the original

then it was time for work, and we finished out the night at a random chinese place, where melissa tried frog legs for the first time.

ewww.

me, melissa, and the atlantic.

we spent the next day at the hall, and enjoyed a yummy dinner afterwards before heading to the beach club for the conference netoworking event.  truth be told, we didn't do much networking.  instead we spent most of our time dipping our toes in the atlantic, and i gotta tell you, i have MISSED that ocean!  i love california, but dang the pacific is cold, and i had forgotten just how different they are.  if i hadn't been in jeans, i might have gone for an evening swim. --i was definitely tempted.

having a burger at a raw bar

we called it a night - i mean, what could compete with the atlantic?!  thankfully the following day was a short one, and afterwards, we headed to the airport with a diners, drive-ins, and dives lunch stop at the whale's rib raw bar.  since i don't do seafood, i chowed down on a burger, and the whale fries with whale juice  i haven't had a bad ddd experience yet!

and it was shortly thereafter that disaster struck.

we stopped for gas on the way to the airport.  there were tropical storm warnings, heavy rain, and i was wearing flip flops.  i still don't know exactly what happened, but as i was crossing the parking lot, my left knee/leg, 3 weeks post surgery, suddenly moved in a direction that it was not meant to move, and i went down. hard.

i caused a pretty good scene as i lay there in my very own parking spot with a sweater covering my face, as it had been protecting my head from the rain when i went down.  and i stayed down for a few minutes, before i could attempt any movement.  melissa brought the car to me, and we sat in the parking lot for about a half hour while i decided whether or not i was going to the emergency room.

ultimately, i decided no.  while in a lot of pain, i really didn't like the idea of testing out the medical facilities in a completely unfamiliar place.  so we headed to the airport, i dropped melissa off, and made the drive back to the hotel, where i spent the rest of the evening icing and elevating.

the next morning, i was in pain, but i could walk.  i was dragging my bag to the car, and it happened again. same thing.  at least it felt like the same thing, and it didn't feel good.  this time it was the unsuspecting valets who got to watch me go down and wait while i determined whether or not i could breathe, let alone move my leg.

i just kept thinking to myself  'i want to go home. i want to go home.'  i didn't know exactly how that was going to happen, but i was determined to try.  so i tried, and succeeded. and it was by far the most miserable day of my life.

when i got to the rental car agency, the 'drop off' guy could see how much pain i was in and told me to get back in the car.  he drove me over to the terminal so that i wouldn't have to take the shuttle (thank you random rental car guy!)  and, once i got there, i found myself in a wheelchair, where i would remain for the rest of the day, when i wasn't actually on a plane.

to give you some perspective, in the 6 week process of tearing my meniscus through having the surgery, i took a total of roughly 20 vicodin pills.  but by noon that day, i had taken 4.  when i arrived at orange county, my sweet cousin was there to pick me up and take me to my car in the longterm lot.  and when i eventually made it home, it was the first time, since this whole thing began in july, that i was forced to use crutches.

based on the location of the sharpest pains, and my previous experience,  i had a sneaking suspicion that it was my mcl --another ligament i had torn some 14 odd years ago.  and after a visit to the ortho, another set of mris, and another visit to the ortho, i learned that i had a bruised bone, and that i that i had indeed torn my mcl.  i had perhaps, been overly optimistic in hoping that it was only a sprain, and while i am very very grateful that it won't require an additional surgery, i was not expecting them to put a brace on my leg (from crotch to calf) and tell me that i needed to wear it for six weeks, and that i could only take it off to shower.

it's been on for three days now, and i am exhausted.  my sleep is extremely fitful and walking takes twice as much energy as it normally would.  i'm currently in texas, and since i couldn't find a cost effective scooter rental place, i rented a car instead (it was cheaper), and i've been driving it back and forth the 2 1/2 blocks to the convention center. seriously.

the thing is. i'm kind of a trooper.  i'm what you call a 'tough cookie' when it comes to bodily harm.  i tend towards optimism and a 'what can you do but laugh about it?' attitude, and this is going to be a challenge.  but maybe that's the point.  maybe there's a lesson to be learned or a perspective to be gained that requires this challenge.  maybe i missed it the first time, or maybe it's meant to serve an entirely different teaching purpose. here's hoping that in the next 6 weeks i figure out what that is!

ft. worth

i find it interesting that with as many times as i've been to dallas over the years, i've never really spent any time in ft. worth.  i've always lumped the sister cities together, and i'm afraid, in doing so i have done ft. worth a disservice.

don't get me wrong, i've always liked dallas. but what i didn't realize is that ft. worth has a very distinctive personality, and one i was glad to experience.

this was my first post-surgery trip, and for the most part, i was feelin' pretty good.  i may or may not have asked my co-worker to drive me and my boxes the three blocks to the convention center so i wouldn't have to drag them on a cart, and i'm not working the booth just yet, but in general,  i was doing alright.

the event was at the convention center, and we stayed at the 'historic' ft. worth hilton.  it's a registered national historic site, largely because jfk gave his last address and spent his last night there.  definitely cool, but not the highlight of the trip.

we didn't have much playtime on this one, particularly since i was leaving early to head straight to another event, but alana, shannon, and i decided to make the most of what we had, and my last night in ft. worth was a fun-filled one.

the girls were up for joining me on my diners, drive-ins, and dives quest, and the restaurant on the agenda was the twisted root burger company.  anyone who has traveled with me will know that i love a good burger.  it's my comfort food when i'm on the road,  so imagine how excited i was that there was a burger joint on the list!

twisted root is a super casual half bar, half order at the window, style restaurant.  we placed our orders, and instead of giving our names, we were GIVEN names.  alana was erykah badu, shannon was vanna white, i was eva longoria, and we were all 'sweethearts' as far as the cute cashier was concerned.

erykah badu, eva longoria, & vanna white

as you might imagine, it made for some good jokes and good laughs as each order came up and we heard some of the other names that had been assigned.  while we waited for ours to be called, we decided to try the twisted rootbeer flavor of the day, which was strawberry. and for the record, strawberry + root beer = unexpectedly tasty!

our burgers came up and boy were they yummy.  i have to say that the fries and the fried pickles made for perfect complements, but the atmosphere may have been the best part of all.  for most of my first year at the company, every conference consisted of meals at 'nice' places.  while i can appreciate a 'nice' place as much as the next guy, and maybe more than most, if i have the choice, i'd rather be in jeans, in a dive, enjoying a cheap burger, and this place was right up my alley.

he may not smile in photos but he smiles a lot in 'real life'

after dinner we made our way to shannon's house, where i finally got to meet her boyfriend felipe.  having heard so much about him, i was excited to finally put the face to the name, in person.  i was also excited to tour shannon's house, since it was a fairly recent acquisition, and i've been hearing all about the updates and upgrades she's been making. it did not disappoint, and i appreciated the opportunity to go a little deeper with this co-worker who's becoming a friend.

after checking out the house, the four of us headed to the stockyards, and eventally landed at billy bob's. some of you may remember that i visited billy bob's when ann and brian came to visit me in dallas earlier this year.  last time i was there, though, rick springfield was the main attraction, and the crowd demographics were representative of that.  this time is was hats and boots for miles, and i couldn't get enough.  dancing was out of the question for me, but i sure enjoyed watching!

so did alana, who's san francisco sensibilities had never been exposed to anything like it before.  we were enjoying ourselves so much, that we didn't realize how late it was until we closed the place down.

fortunately for me, i could sleep in the following morning before making my way to boca raton, fl for another event.  the morning was a lazy one, and i said my farewell to ft. worth knowing i would be back, in the same hotel, at the same convention center, in less than a month.  how's that for irony?

kansas city: wrap up

as i'm sure none of you remember, this conference, in 2009, was a bit rough.  the booth setup was a challenge, the weather (hot and humid) was a challenge, and i remember being exhausted for most of the show.

this year could not have been more different.  the setup was a breeze, and because of the knee, i could not actually work the booth during the show. the combination of these factors meant that i could really enjoy the trip,  and while i don't mean to imply that i wasn't working as hard, things just seemed to fall into place more smoothly.

highlights from my 'play' time for the rest of the trip included breakfast at 39th street mama's, another diners, drive-ins, and dives restaurant, and a wacky bowling game at lucky strike (i watched and laughed and videod).

i was also super-excited that the concert being hosted by the conference was sara evans, a country singer i particularly enjoy.  and thanks to melissa's early arrival, we had great seats.

a little blurry, but an event still worth being captured.
i finally met melissa's husband nick! 

sara sang most of her well-known singles, but my favorite may have been when she covered 'i want you to want me,' and 'suspicious minds.'

and, while we're talking about highlights, let us not forget the scooter.  the old lady scooter that my company allowed me to rent in order to avoid too much wear and tear on the knee, pre-surgery.  the scooter was an absolute lifesaver.  but more than that, it was a lot of fun.  not only did i enjoy (possibly a little too much) wizzing by co-workers on our way to and from the convention center, but melissa challenged me to a scooter race.

i will confirm her version of the race, but ultimately we were both winners!

my trip was cut a bit short by having to return home for surgery, but all in all, it was absolutely fantastic.  i can honestly say it would rank in the top 3 work trips i've had in the last two years, and i've had some great experiences.  maybe the restlessness of having been grounded for the last couple of months was a factor but i was definitely ancy for a good time, and i got one!

kansas city: day 3

it's my birthday....it's my birthday...it's my birthday.

and it was no secret that i wasn't uber-excited about celebrating it in kansas city. on a work trip.  but life has a way of surprising you - especially when you take the proverbial bull by the horns.  and after my first couple of days in kc, i decided to stop being a baby and make the most of it.

i had selected the location for my birthday dinner over a month before and invited a few of my favorite co-workers.  but on birthday morning, i decided that that was just the first step, and i added 'find birthday crown' to my to-do list for the day.

my co-worker, diana, mused that she wasn't sure i was 'that kind of person.'  my response was that i wasn't, and that that was exactly why i was going to do it!  what the heck, right?!

our mission was a success, and in addition to the 'birthday princess' tiara, i also found a birthday princess sash, a set of birthday princess plates and napkins, and picked up a few mini-tiaras for the girls joining us at dinner. diana also bought me a cake, and we were ready to roll!

i and a couple others headed to the airport to make a pick-up before meeting with the rest of the group at oklahoma joe's, the evening's restaurant choice.

now, this choice was made very carefully, with the single goal of finding good barbecue in kansas city.

despite the cities reputation for great bbq, i'd been consistently thwarted on my previous trip, and i was determined to remedy the situation.  the fact that oklahoma joe's is a bbq restaurant inside a gas station, and that i would be wearing a tiara to said restaurant, as you might imagine, appealed immensely to my sense of irony.  the fact that it was also listed on anthony bourdain's 'top 13 places to eat before you die' list was just icing on the cake. no pun intended.

as expected, there was a line.  but the half-hour wait time gave me plenty of opportunity to catch up with co-workers who had just arrived in town, and whom i hadn't seen in some time.  it also gave me an opportunity to receive a slew of birthday well-wishes from strangers, and one came in the unique form of a 'tip' from an employee, about an off-menu item that was a staff favorite.

i'm no dummy. i took the recommendation, and am happy to report that my mission to find good bbq in kansas city was a resounding success!

after we enjoyed our bbq - and the entire group agreed that it was delicious - we enjoyed yummy cake on our birthday princess plates before calling it a night.

ultimately, what i expected to be a downer of a birthday resulted in one of the more interesting and fun experiences i've had in a long time!

kansas city: day 2

boy was i ready for this trip.  and despite the fact that i was in kansas city for work, i was on a mission to have a good time.  even though i sometimes complain about being on the road too much, travel is addictive.  thanks to the knee, i've been home for a month and a half, and i was in desperate need of a fix.  add that to my impending birthday, an event i always greet with mixed emotions, and all the question marks surrounding knee surgery, scheduled to take place immediately upon my return home, and i was seriously ready to let loose.

lucky for me the 'work' part of the trip went remarkably smoothly, leaving me plenty of time to enjoy myself.  having my little helper along (diana) was a great bonus.  she has been interning for my colleague for over a year now, but she is sharp and hard-working and genuinely pleasant to be around, and we wanted to keep her.  the solution was to bring her on full-time, with her spending half her time focusing on (but amplifying) her current job duties, and half her time helping me with events.  and trust me, i need the help!

diana has no background in events which is kind of fun for me.  she's bright enough and learning quickly, and i'm enjoying showing someone my world from the ground up.  it was also a great help to have her onsite helping me manage the little tasks made more difficult by my physical limitations. and i was glad to have someone to laugh with me and at me as i learned to operate my transportation for the show; an electric scooter.

since i didn't feel it was an option to miss this event, the vp of my department insisted on my renting (on the company dime) a scooter, to help me minimize the pre-surgery wear and tear.  since, in the past, i've pedometered myself, and seem to average about 10 miles per day at events, it seemed like a good idea. in hindsight, i simply could not have managed without it. and while it turned out to be a genuine necessity, it also provided a great deal of entertainment.  one memory etched in my brain forever occurred after i picked the scooter up from the front desk (the mobility company having dropped it off earlier that day).  i carefully cruised my way into the small elevator, and needless to say it was less than graceful.  in fact, it was SO non-graceful, diana literally had to prop herself up in the corner of the elevator to keep from falling down because she was laughing so hard.

and the scooter resulted in a LOT of laughter throughout the weekend. i think i want one for every show from here on out! ;)

me (and my vicodin smile), julie, melissa, and diana

after a relatively smooth conclusion to the first day of setup, we proceeded to the fun stuff, which, in this case of course, was food.  i had scoped out the triple d list before heading to kc and had chosen the restaurant's i wanted to try.  on tap for the evening was swagger, a bar, serving some rather unusual menu items.

woo-hoo! look at this menu!

and lucky for me, melissa was able to break away from her conference duties to join diana, vanessa, julie and i for a very yummy dinner.


melissa went with the suribachi burger, a 1/3 lb. burger patty grilled then tempura battered and fried, with asian mustard, sriracha hot chili sauce, pepper jack cheese, wasabi coleslaw, and boy was it yummy! while the combination of the wasabi and hot chili sauce quite literally made her cry, she let me take a bite, and i completely enjoyed it.  i mean a tempura burger? seriously?!


diana and i both went with the steve martin, a teriyaki marinated chicken breast coated in jamaican jerk seasoning with swiss cheese and topped with wasabi coleslaw.  and holy hannah, i'm still craving it.  it was the most amazing combination of flavors i've had in a really long time.

diana, me, julie, and melissa in the 816 (area code)

while i was mildly disappointed no one opted to try the dead texan (two texas toast grilled cheese sandwiches with a 1/3 lb. burger, 1 egg, 3 slices of bacon, lettuce, tomato, onion, jalapenos, and peppercorn mayo in between) i was pretty happy with my choice, and pretty happy to get another check mark on that ddd list!