The downside of vacations

Wow, did I have a great time in Mexico! We stayed at a fantastic all-inclusive resort in Playa Del Carmen, and I will SO be going back! I didn't do much of anything (no visiting ruins or snorkeling and the like), and it was just what I needed - several solid days of downtime. But I would like to go back sometime and do those things. We were all ready to go back when our time was up, though. Or at least I thought I was ready.

The downside of getting away is having to come back and face all your day-to-day stuff, like work and errands. Worse yet, stuff has built up while you were gone, so now you've got a bunch of stuff instead of just your usual stuff, which you already needed a break from. But oh well. I'm glad I went. :)

My busy-ness getting ready to go and coming back, though, has put me way behind on my TAR recaps! Let's do a two-fer here and talk about the last two weeks!

Okay, last week they started with the flight to Muscat and that enormous incense burner. Everyone got caught up, but Ray and Yolanda showed some signs of splintering.

The SUV drive across the flooded riverbeds was interesting. The local who helped them cross was great, and it was fun watching the Hippies and the Frats try and decide who would cross first. "You go." "Oh, no you go." "Oh, you were here first, you go." I wish the Frats had flooded out, but I figured they wouldn't, because if the river had been impassable, nobody would've been able to cross, which would've slowed the race down considerably. The producers had to know it was passable to have routed the teams there.

Detour: Camel or Watch Tower. I would've picked Watch Tower because I think camels are hard to work with and I'd be afraid of dropping one and hurting it. I was suprised how many people picked Watch Tower, though, since it was the luck one. Mojo switched tasks, which always costs you time. The Frats made me happy by getting lost and losing time.

Roadblock: Dig for Shuwa. I probably could've done this, but if you didn't find something fairly quickly, it seemed like you got pretty exhuasted. Monica's whining I could've done without, though. Just do the task, Mo. The later teams also seemed to have an advantage over the first teams since they could avoid the mounds that had already been dug into. The lamb sounded good, too. Boy, did my heart go out to BJ. He was so exhausted, and that's one of those luck tasks - you just have to happen upon the right mound. Yolanda cracked me up when she muttered about Ray's mama having a pattern and said, "You tell 'em BJ" when Tyler was cheerleading and BJ got irritated. I think Yolie had done had enough at that part of the day.

Pit Stop: Fran and Barry, you rock! I'm so happy for them. I never thought they'd get this far, and now they're in first place! And they won a trip to Rome. Awesome. They deserve it. And FINALLY a non-elimination round! And what perfect timing - just in time to save my hippies. :)

This week.

Okay, my hippies start out with no money or possessions. Good guys Fran and Barry and Ray and Yolanda left them some cashola, but Mojo and the Frats not suprisingly refused. Because they are awesome and fearless, my boys picked up a Bedouin hitchiker who totally hooked them up with gas and food. I gotta admit, I wouldn't have been picking up the hitchhiker. I'm a small, fearful woman who wouldn't be picking up strangers in an Arab land. Good for the hippies for being so open, though! And how fun was it for me to see them board that plane to the dismay of Mojo and the Frats?? Mojo has really been vocal about not liking the Hippies lately. What's that about?

Perth, Australia. I can't tell how I'd feel about a hostel. They just sound dirty. And aren't you sometimes in a room with strangers? I can't see myself actually sleeping in a room with strangers, hoping no one would steal my backpack. And Fran and Barry's room - "The Pleasure Dome." I'm pretty sure I'd be unable to sleep in that room - too many images and not enough confidence the sheets were clean.

Rottnest Island. That biking would've been tiring. Detour: Sand and Sea. I'd have gone with Sand on this one - avoid the luck factor of having to find the right crayfish trap. Not to mention, I might get wiggy and drop the crayfish. The beach brushing was physical, though. No discounting that. And I loved how Mojo screwed up and then complained about their "luck." Uh-uh, Joseph. It's called reading the clue - nothing to do with luck.

Fremantle Prison. It bit that Fran and Barry's taxi didn't show. Did you hear Joseph tell Barry on the ferry that he was taking the first taxi he saw, no matter whose it was, though? Punk. He knows he's a punk, too, b/c he made a point of saying how the cab they took was in their name so Barry couldn't say they stole it. So what? You *would have* so you're still a punk. I loved Jeremy getting frustrated when he couldn't find the tunnels a the prison. If the Frats were Rob from a few seasons ago, they would've bribed MoJo's cab driver and stolen their cab. Just something that occurred to me when I saw that scene.

Pit Stop: You won't believe this, but I was actually glad to see the Frats win the leg over MoJo. MoJo is seriously on my nerves lately. They're jerks. I was sad to see Fran and Barry go down, though. They got so much farther than I thought they would. It was a good run, and they're a great couple.

Una margarita, por favor

Hello there! This is just a quick note to say that I´m basking away on a Mexican beach for the next four days, so I have a better than usual excuse for not keeping up with my blog!

I´ll do my recap on the last TAR when I get back, and I´ll tell you all how super great the resort is here. This Internet time ain´t cheap, though, so I´m going to leave it at that.

Buenas tarde!

Grilled cheese is vegetarian.

I once tried to go vegetarian. I'm an animal lover, and the softy in me just got all guilty that these poor animals are raised, sometimes in less than pleasant conditions, for the sole purpose of being my dinner. I had angst.

I read books on how to get all my vitamins and minerals while no longer eating God's creatures. I gathered recipes and tried tofu versions of things. I really gave it a shot.

But I couldn't stick to it. It wasn't that I suddenly stopped caring. It's just that I couldn't turn my back on a bacon cheeseburger (May I have some meat with my meat? Thaaaaanks.). At some point, I had to just accept a certain amount of emotional dissonance - that while I could never actually kill my own food (or watch anyone else do it), as long as it's appearing in the freezer section wrapped in plastic, I'll just not to think about the parts of the situation I don't like. Someone tries to hurt my pet cat, we are throwin' DOWN! But that chicken breast there in HEB, that's got "fajita" written all over it. My ex once told me I was a hypocrite for eating meat when I claim to love animals, but he was just trying to make me feel bad because he was being a hypocrite at the time, so he can cram it. I'm not justifying it. I'm just saying that's how it is. I like meat, and I'm going to eat meat. And I'm also going to give money to the humane society. I'm not hypocritical. I'm *complex.*

I would prefer that the means by which they raise and kill the animals I'll be eating be as humane as possible. I do pay extra for eggs from free-range chickens, for instance. I do my part to support a pleasant life for the animals. And my time as an erstwhile vegetarian wasn't for naught. I definitely eat vegetarian alot more now than I used to, and I like it when I do. I just don't want to be limited to vegetarian only. I no longer have a mindset that there must be meat involved for it to be a meal, but when I want meat, I want to be able to eat it.

Having said all of that, I had two fab-o meals this week that were vegetarian, and I thought I'd give you all recommendations, should you ever find yourself looking to eat out in Austin-town. One was at Eastside Cafe. I had the artichoke manicotti, salad with dijon vinaigrette, and mashed sweet potatoes. Oh yeah. The leftovers even rocked. The second was at Cosmic Cafe. I had the taco trinity. Super yummy, and again, the taco I took as a leftover was just as good heated up.

The moral of this story is that even if you're not interested in becoming or ready to become a vegetarian, expand your horizons, people. Open your mind. There is some way-good food out there if you're willing to give it a try. Find a friend with a spirit of culinary adventure and get out there and try some new foods! And when you're hankering for that bacon, cheeseburger, you go on and get one.

True artiste

Some people just approach art from a different direction. Today, I discuss the cinema. I think I shall forego the usual directors (Spielberg, Scorsese, Demille) and films (Apocalypse Now, Gone With The Wind, Shawshank Redemption). No, today we shall discuss the genius that is Angry Alien Productions.

Or maybe there's no need to discuss. What is there to say about the magic that is 30-Second Bunny Movies? It's the Cliff's Notes Animated Bunny versions of your favorite film classics. These cinematic experiences speak from themselves. Check it out, people. Spend some time. It's good stuff.

Oh, for pity's sake.

The unthinkable has happened. I have no justification - no acceptable excuse. I can only say that due to overscheduling myself and that stupid schedule change instituted last week, I *missed* TAR last night! Missed it as in didn't see it and didn't tape it! I got no recap. I got no pithy commentary. I had to check the CBS site this morning to find out who got ousted. And wouldn't you know - Lake finally gets the boot, and I MISSED IT!!!

I read the recap online, so I'll just make a few comments based on what they wrote. Looks like there were several different opportunities to level the playing field this time as teams caught up to each other at the train station, the airport and the Agora. I definitely would have tried for the Fast Forward. Since you're all running for the restaurant at the same time (Or you should be if all the teams started at Agora at the same time - why did Fran and Barry get there after it was already over? CBS says they arrived "very late to the party" but doesn't say why.), it's just a matter of luck - who breaks the right plate first (that'd be fun, wouldn't it?). And with several teams vying for it, you're not screwing yourself if you don't get it. You know there's at least one other team that will be behind the teams that didn't go for the FF, so you're not automatically in last place. The fact that E&J got it is just more proof of the hippies' contention that they're dumb, but lucky. I'm so aggravated at their luck/dominance. I think they may win the whole thing, and I just can't stand it.

Anyway, back to the CBS recap. Sounds like Joseph is going to take over for Lake in being a butthead. It says he bitched at Monica when she cried after losing the FF. I hope the guy I find to go through life with is actually a nice guy who when I cry, puts his arm around my shoulder and lets me just have my moment. People are allowed to have emotions, you know.

Roadblock: bungee jump. My partner would have to do this one. Not even a conversation. I don't like heights, and hurling myself off a bridge wouldn't happen unless I was being chased by something even scarier than death. My survival instinct is just a little too strong for bungee jumping.

Detour: Herculean Effort or It’s All Greek to Me. I think I would've chosen It's All Greek to Me unless my partner was really athletic. I am athletic, but since you'd be having to meet competitive standards (according to the CBS recap), I'm not sure how effective I'd be. The wrestling, in particular, could've been a bad scene for me!

I can't believe the hippies went 2 hours in the wrong direction! That would've stressed me OUT if I'd been watching it on the show. Not to mention the 15-minute penalty when they managed to arrive at the pit stop ahead of Lake and Michelle. Just so I understand this, Lake and Michelle arrived last because they got lost after leaving the Detour, and Lake got all upset? (snicker)

Well, it's ain't the same as watching it live, but thank goodness CBS does a recap. I'll do better next week! I promise!

I can get a tuna on wheat at Thundercloud for $3.19

I like food. I really do. I enjoy cooking it. I enjoy eating it. Eating is a pleasure to me - something I look forward to. Some people eat to live; I live to eat; blah, blah, blah. To me, eating is like a massage - a sensory indulgence. And I like good food. I've developed a palate over the years, and I can appreciate the finer things (though the allure of cavier and brie still eludes me). But having said that, anyone who pays $148 for this sandwich is insane:



In case you haven't read the story, a chef named Scott McDonald (oh, the irony) created this little culinary wonder with Wagyu beef (I'm a Texas girl - we know beef - and I don't know what the frig that is), fresh lobe foie gras, black truffle mayonnaise (mushroom mayo? Why?), brie de meaux (see, that's a problem RIGHT there), rocket (that's what my old roommate and I used to call her dog's unit - I don't want that on my sandwich), red pepper and mustard confit, and English plum tomatoes on "24-hour fermented sourdough bread." The charge: 85 pounds (122.53 Euros, $148.33 US). It's on display at Selfridges Department Store in London. On display. At a department store.

It's a sandwich, people. I can get one mighty fine tuna salad on wheat WITH cheese at Thundercloud for $3.19. I can even add pickles for an extra 25 cents. And Thundersauce is free. You can't beat that. Shoot, you can pump it up to a large for $4.19. Add a Coke and chips, maybe even toss in a brownie, and you're still under $10. What would possess anyone to spend $148 on a sandwich? It's just not possible that it's tasty enough to justify the cost. It's not possible. Crazy Brits.

Your Tuesday TAR fix

Well, I'm just barely getting this recap in before the next installment of TAR, but since they've moved it to Wednesday, some of us need a little Tuesday fix of TAR anyway, so here's my recap of last week's episode!

We started the show with the hippies saying the frat guys are dumb, but lucky. This isn't their normal free love attitude, but since I agree, it made me chuckle and love my hippies that much more. I think it's almost a foregone conclusion at this point that the hippies and the frats will be in the final leg. They've been neck-and-neck at the top of the pack the whole race. The toss up is who the third team will be be.

The Detour was Big Fish, Little Fish. I think I would've gone with Little Fish. It would be a risk, but my initial feeling on Detours like this is that selling stuff is never as hard as you think it will be (I think locals kind of like joining in the game), and I'd have a few concerns about the Big Fish. I'm not sure I could carry 30 pounds of dead weight, I might get lost and/or have trouble finding the right fishmonger, and I wouldn't want to smell like fish the rest of the day. I'm afraid I would've ended up like Monica - covered in reeking fish guts and crying on the ground in the marketplace. Fran and Barry kicked butt on selling their fish and had a good time. Great decision-making this time on their part!

David and Lori showed some early signs of splintering with the bickering in the car. Lori was right, though, about asking for directions. There's no time in this race for getting lost and wandering around because your testosterone won't allow you to ask a local where to go. I can't help but wonder if in the end, that made the difference for them.

Lake was a his usual rude self. Some people would say "Rude American" but that characterization is a burr in my saddle. There are rude Frenchmen, rude Italians, rude Brazilians - anywhere you go you can find rude people and rude people from all over the world travel, so I don't give in to the self-hate. Plenty of polite Americans travel and behave themselves just fine. If the world feels the need to denigrate us, then they're just haters. They certainly work hard enough to get here and get their piece of the pie. But I digress. Back to Lake.

Lake honked at an old man who wanted to cross the street and muttered something. RUDE! Then he called Michelle a "ding dong." She kicked butt on the Big Fish thing. She hoisted that thing like it was nothing and hardly had any fish nasty on her when they got done.

Roadblock: water kayak polo. I'd have had to punt this one to my partner. I don't kayak and don't trust myself not look like Barry or Ray - going the wrong direction or tipping over. Oh, and just by the by, what the hell was Lake wearing??? It look liked some kind of bondage stripper halter.

The leg ended as it does too often - with Eric and Jeremy winning. Phhhhht. I was bummed that David and Lori were out, but they had a great ride, and David is right - what they have as a couple you couldn't buy with a million dollars. They're more fortunate than they can imagine.

Anyone else think we're due for a non-elimination round?

Meme #2

It's the second meme of my blog! I stole it from my friend Judy's blog. I'll indulge in this today and give my TAR recap from last week tomorrow.

1. Who was your first prom date? Which prom?

Well, I only went to one prom - mine, my senior year in high school. I went with a guy from my homeroom that I really didn't even know! His name was Frank Smith (really...that was his real name), because neither of us had dates.

2. Who were your first roommate(s)?

My first roommate was my dorm roommate my freshman year in college, Stacy. She was fine, but we were like different beings, sleeping in close, but carefully segregated space. She drove a BMW and was a cheerleader and sorority girl who called David on Young and the Restless a "snake." I drove a 1980 Camaro, sneaked into bars on 6th street and called David on Young and the Restless an "asshole." Different worlds.

3. What was your first job?

I was a cashier at Shipley donuts! Shipley's, mmmmmmmm.

4. What was your first car?

My first car that I got to drive as my own was my mom's hand-me-down 1977 Cougar. It was a hoss. But the first car I bought was a 1980 Camaro. I drove the crap out of it.

5. When did you go to your first funeral?

The first one I remember was my grandfather's. I guess I was about 7.

6. How old were you when you first moved away from your hometown?

18, when I went to college.

7. Who was your first grade teacher?

Mrs. Ickert! She had a Dorothy Hamill haircut.

8. Where did you go on your first ride on an airplane?

My first airplane ride was actually not on a commercial airline. My friend Michelle's dad was a private pilot and flying instructor, and when I was in 6th grade, he took us up for a ride in his plane. We just tooled around! My first flight where I actually went somewhere was later that same year when we took a family vacation to Hawaii. I went from a 4-seater to a wide-body!

9. When did you sneak out of your house for the first time, who was it with?

It was with Melanie, and I think it was around 8th grade. Other than wrapping Martha's house once, I don't remember what we did while running around in the dark! (But boy was it a dumb idea. We didn't have many safety smarts, did we?)

10. Who was your first Best Friend and are you still friends with them?

My first best friend was Stephanie Rickman. Our parents were friends, so we were friends pretty much from birth until sometime in elementary school, when Lee Ray took her place (yes, a BOY best friend!). Stephanie and I didn't live in the same neighborhood or attend the same schools, though (her family was, shall we say, well off), so our lives went in different directions not long after we started school. Props to one of my best friends from elementary school that I AM still in touch with, though! Judy!

11. Where did you live the first time you moved out of your parents' house?

Other than college, when I lived in dorms or in an apartment that my parents paid for, the first time I lived out of my parents' house and paid my own rent was in Houston just after college graduation. I've moved back into their house several times since then, though!

12. Who is the first person you call when you have a bad day?

My mom.

13. Who's wedding were you in the first time you were a bridesmaid/groomsman?

Joelle and Dan's.

14. What is the first thing you do in the morning?

Head to the bathroom.

15. What was the first concert you ever went to?

Hall and Oates' Private Eyes tour, with Melanie, Martha and Melanie's parents. They were troopers to take us!

16. First tattoo or piercing? What age?

No tats, and I think I got my ears pierced when I was 12.

17. First celebrity crush?

Donny Osmond. He was a little bit rock and roll, ya know.

18. Age of first kiss?

7th grade, so 12 years old? Embarassingly, I had to ask my 6th grade friend what to do.

19. First crush?

I started young. My first crush was a boy named James in pre-school. Seriously. I still remember it. I never went through a boy-hating phase until my 30s (just kidding - please set me up with someone wonderful).

TMI

I'm a victim of TMI. Not the kind where a co-worker gives you unwanted information about birthing their third child, but the kind where the news inflicts data upon you before you're ready to know it. Namely, I already know who won last night's leg of TAR and who got eliminated. Darn!!! But this influx of unwanted information will not deter me from watching the full episode and recapping - possibly tomorrow, but maybe not - depends if I get home in time tonight to watch the tape of last night's episode that my mom taped for me. If I get home late after visiting the folks tonight and don't have time to watch the episode, it may take me a few days to get my recap officially logged here.

I do have one current events comment to make. It's not about Duke lacrosse or Tom Delay or Moussaoui trail. I want to know if anyone really cares about Katie Couric moving to primetime news. Really - does anyone care? I think she's gotten more attention than anything else this week, and I just want her face off my computer. I don't watch Today, and I don't watch network news. I watch local news in the morning, then I read a bunch of news sites online during the day. So, Katie's career plans don't interest me in the least. Could we please stop talking about her? Dan Rather didn't get this much play when he retired, and he had a tinge of scandal attached. Katie's got a new job. Let's all move on and try to live like our lives aren't affected...what with them not being affected and all.

What's going on???

Okay, I can't be home tonight for that show of shows, The Amazing Race. So, last night, I go to set my VCR to record it for me tonight, and I can't find it on the tv listings. I check the CBS site this morning, and it shows a preview for tonight's episode, but when I check a different source for my area's tv listings, yet again, it shows no TAR tonight. What's going on???

My VCR is not set, so if TAR IS showing tonight, I'm going to be pretty hacked that I've missed it. But why would the tv guide show a CSI: NY repeat at 9:00 on CBS tonight instead of TAR? I checked the whole primetime schedule for CBS tonight, and no TAR. Don't *make* me miss my show, tv guide!

UPDATE: I just saw on USA Today, that CBS has moved TAR to Wednesdays starting tonight. I was confused last night when I couldn't find it, and then saw online that it would be tonight, but like I said, couldn't find it on the listings. So, I guess the tv guide folks didn't know about the switcheroo. Who moves a show in the middle of the season????

I win!

Well, it's official. I won the NCAA bracket contest I participate in every year. Thanks to the bizarre wins and losses from the Elite Eight on, I am at the top of our leaderboard, and no one can garner enough points in the championship game to knock me off. Too bad there's no money in this particular contest! But the glory...the glory is all mine!!

In other news, I still have the red, swollen place on my pinky finger, so I'm going to the doctor tomorrow to have her see if she can do anything. Why am I pretty sure that my finger is going to hurt worse after my visit than it does now? Stupid plants.