Fun weekend ya'll

Howdy! Here's ya some of what's going on around KC.

Here is where I'll be. Why don't you join me?

Friday night at 5 is the smoke-out at Stroud's north. Join us in celebrating the last day of smoking in this northland destination. After that I'm gunna scadadle on down Toby Keith's. My friend Shannon is having a birthday celebration. Yeee Haw..... get along little doggies!

Saturday some local bloggers are a meet'n at the Harvesters for some good ol' helping out. It will take place from 1pm-4pm. Be there cowpoke. After that it's a ho-down in the West Bottoms for a night of bartend'n. It chaps my hide I have to miss the big Mizzou game. M-I-Z..... say it.... Z-O-U!

Sunday let's mosey on down to the Tower for a game on the picture box. After the game we can gitty up to Jardine's for the debut of Todd Wilkinson's newest band "The Goombahles". He says their hot.... you can bet your boots they are.

Well... that's the plan. What about you?

123,452 people sat on the couch all weekend after reading this.

New for '88

"The most affordable portable anywhere!" This thing weighs almost 2lbs and, "fits in your briefcase".

More shopping

This place is neato......... the Museum Store rocks.

I'll take this Greek vase please.

Time to shop

Check out the Green Head for some cool gifts.

Mmmmmm.... the %100 Bacon Burger.

List of one-liners

Some of these are pretty funny.

1. A clear conscience is usually the sign of a bad memory.
2. A conclusion is simply the place where you got tired of thinking.
3. A day for firm decisions! Or is it?
4. A day without sunshine is like, you know, night.
5. A drunk mans' words are a sober mans' thoughts.

Food Network pulling plug on ‘Emeril Live’

Food Network is kicking Emeril Lagasse down a notch.

The celebrity chef’s “Emeril Live,” which has been on the air for 10 years, will cease production December 11, Food Network publicist Carrie Welch told The Associated Press.

“However, Emeril is under contract with Food Network,” Welch said Tuesday. “We love him, we support him and look forward to a long partnership with him.”

Ask Sister Mary Martha

Check out this site..... very funny stuff.

"Life is tough. But Nuns are tougher. If you need helpful advice just Ask Sister Mary Martha. She'll help you. Just don't expect any sympathy."

from her profile:

Interests

• dusting pews
• scrubbing floors on hands and knees
• hours of comtemplative prayer
• terrorizing children

Favorite Movies

• the singing nun
• the song of Bernadette

Favorite Music

• the Vienna Boys choir

Favorite Books

• the Bible
• the Baltimore Cathechism

Busy week

It has been a busy week.

Tuesday I attended the 2007 inductions into the Kansas City Elder Statesmen of Jazz. I couldn't believe this event was entirely overlooked by the local media. WTF? After the inductions we went to Anthony's downtown. I guess this is our favorite hangout as of late. After dinner I drove a whole half-block to meet Teddy at his place downtown, Arun. We sat at the bar drinking and talking until sometime in the morning.

Wednesday a big group of us met at Kelly's in Westport for the annual Gobble-Off. Gobbling for prizes is good clean fun. The event is put on by Jeff's Uncle Paul, and held the night before Thanksgiving every year. Be there next year. You'll be glad you went.

Thursday the family met at the Golden Ox. We were hesitant to go back since we had each experienced horrible service and inedible food recently. We heard the place changed ownership yet again so we decided to risk it. I'm glad we did. The service was much better and the food was excellent. Of course we all had beef. The folks had the strip, I had the Prime Rib. It was one of the best cuts of meat I have had in a long time. Man.... those cheesy potatoes are awesome! The Ox is back!

Friday I tended bar at a Mizzou rally party. The party was held at the home of a very prominent ex-CEO of a giant, local telecommunications company. It was definitely the biggest house I have ever been in. The event was complete with valet parking and personalized name tags given at the door bearing the Mizzou Tiger logo. Among the attendees were Carl Peterson and the Athletic Director for the University of Missouri, Mike Alden. It was a veritable who's-who of who cares. The host insisted that no cola or red wine be served for fear his carpet might be stained. His severance pay is valued as high as 55.5 million and he is worried about coke on his carpets? And of course...... I didn't get a tip.

Saturday was the Border War at Tower Tavern! It was crazy in there. We did a little boozing. Missouri to Kansas......... suck it!

Congratulations!!!

Congratulations to the 2006-2007 inductees into the Kansas City Elder Statesmen of Jazz.

I would like to extend special congratulations to Dean Hampton, Elder Statesman of the Year. Thank you for everything you do to promote jazz in Kansas City Dean. Your tireless efforts spanning many decades have no doubt impacted the local jazz scene in an immeasurable way. You are among greatest of jazz legends, you deserve it.

Super high tech cooking gadgets

"Just put your ingredients—say, strawberries and black pepper—in a glass evaporation flask, which heats them by rotating in a bath of hot water. A vacuum pump reduces the air pressure in the flask, which drops the boiling point of the water inside to as low as 112ºF. As moisture seeps out of the strawberries and reaches a boil, vapor rises into a condenser. There it cools, collects as a clear liquid, and drips into another flask. The distillate adds flavor to dishes without changing the color or texture."

Wait....what?

10 questions for Bourdain

Check it out..... TIME asks Anthony Bourdain 10 questions.

The Smart Fortwo

This little car looks awesome. I would love to have one.

Exploring the Geography, Glories of Oysters

Man I love oysters..... Check out this article.

"That food is exactly the same as it was when it was pulled out of the ocean," he says. "It's come to you on a plate somewhere and nobody's done anything to manipulate that food. In fact, the food was alive until just moments before."

Groovy Girl

Here's a strangely mesmerizing video of a girl dancing to one of my favorite eletro groups, Daft Punk. They should release this as their next video.

I found another one with her here.

Eat on the cheap

Here is a cool little guide on daily dining specials around town.

Get out and listen

Here is a list of live music playing around town tonight.

Drunk of the month

The people over at KC Drinker have a funny section called "Drunk of the Month". This interview with Jessica is pretty funny.

Why don't you help out?

December 1st at 1:00pm a bunch of local Bloggers, including myself, will be helping out down at Harvesters. We will be done around 4:00pm. Dan over at Gonemild is organizing the effort. Afterward he is having people over for homebrew beer. Unfortunately I can't make it for the beer. I have to bartend a wedding that night. Be there.

Here is a map to get there.
3801 Topping Ave. Kansas City, MO 64129
Phone: 816.929.3000

Stroud's last night

Last night I went up to Stroud's north to meet the folks for dinner. On the way up there I stopped by Cascone's for a drink with my buddy Burns. I had Stroud's chicken for a change. Man was it good. That gravy is like a drug.

Then it was off to the Tower Tavern for Tuesday Night Tallboy Trivia. My neighbor Christa met me up there. We didn't do very well.

Effective December 1st, 2007 Stroud's will become a non-smoking establishment. November 30th we will be holding a "smoke-out" in the bar. Bring your hooka full of tabacco and join the cause.

It's Songza! Internet radio

Enter an artist or song and sit back and listen. I like The Who.

Yeah....she's cool

More from the folks at webjazz. "On the Road With Karrin Allyson". Read about it here. What a woman. Maybe when she gets done seeing conductor/music director/composer/radio hosts she'll come a knock'n. Not!

Behold, the power of Jazz

Touching story sent to me from the folks at webjazz.net

My friend, Carol Comer teaches jazz workshops in K-12 schools. It is quite a specialty. She just had some fantastic results from one of the students. See below - she is highly touched and should be.

Carol wrote . . .

This was forwarded to me by the FANTSTIC music teacher at Ray March (Stefanie Adams) where I spent last Friday doing jazz workshops with the 3rd graders. The letter is from 3rd grader Marlaina's momma. The rest is self-explanatory. THIS IS WHY I DO WHAT I DO. As I told my buds yesterday, I am VERY blessed. XXXXXXXXXXXXXXOOOOOOOOO

Letter from student's Mom. . . .

Subject: Thank you, thank you, thank you!

Ladies,

Thank you for making Marlaina's day on Friday (and mine over the weekend). Typically, I have to drag information out of Marlaina about her day. Friday, she leapt into the car, bubbling about the jazz workshop and how she got to play bass guitar, how she learned the strings ... and said, "If he were here, Dad would have been proud of me." She's never said anything like that about her dad in the 21 months since he's been dead.

In his free time, my late husband played bass guitar. In fact, he played in our church praise band five days before he died. Marlaina would hear and see him play at least two or three times a week between church and practicing at home. After he died, I packed up all of his guitars so they would be safe until my kids became interested. Now Marlaina's interested and wants to take lessons!

Today, out of the blue, Marlaina said, "The last few days I've been thinking about dad a lot."

So, thank you for unknowingly providing the springboard for Marlaina ... for us ... to reconnect with memories and thoughts about her dad. This is huge for a little girl who has expressed little to no emotion about her dad's death. I feel like we've turned a corner. Now, I need to find the right instructor to help this musical connection with her dad flourish.

Thanks again,
Thelma Markwart

P.S. Mrs. Adams, I'm taking an informal poll ... would it be better to help Marlaina develop some sort of musical foundation via piano or guitar before tackling that big, heavy bass? Any recommendations for where to go for lessons? Thanks!

Movies about food

Here is a great list of movies about food... watch and learn.

My second home....

As you may have gathered reading this blog I like to eat and drink. I hang out at the Tower Tavern all the time... you should too. Here is where it is. They have awesome food and of course they have booze, lots of booze. I spent a whole hour building them a tiny website yesterday.

It's 3 o'clock am

Yee Haw cow pokes. Let's all saddle up and read this hilarious review of the Saddle Ranch Chop House out at the Legends. While you're there check out the rest of the blog. Good stuff. I have no idea what possessed this person to go there in the first place, but I'm glad they wrote the review.

........ just Cara!

Ok............ It's just Cara but she seems pretty cool. Anyone into Trip-Hop and crab cakes can't be all bad, can they? Check her bad self out!

Why women can't cook? Someone's gunna get it!

Why Women Can't Cook - by a very brave Husband


The truth is I have never met a woman I thought could out-cook me either. Except, of course, you Mom. :)

The Husband:

"The first is that women are less inclined to experiment. Good cooks are those who take risks, who wonder whether X goes well with Y, or perhaps even with Q. If it fails, it doesn't matter, you can always start again.

Women are more afraid of failure, perhaps because they are wary of all that nasty male criticism, so it does them well to stick to well-trodden recipes."

The Wife:

"While Jamie Oliver, Gordon Ramsay et al have undoubtedly done us a service in getting men off the sofa and into aprons, I don't think I'm alone in thinking the revolution has gone too far. Several of my female friends complain that their men have turned into Kitchen Nazis who won't let them so much as boil an egg without bustling in and taking over."

Misdemeanor murder in NOLA

This article is astounding. Below is a quote from Mayor Nagin.

The mayor, Ray Nagin, has been silent in the face of the sort of mass killing that occurred and often dismissive of it. This summer, he told a group of reporters that the murder rate "keeps the New Orleans brand out there."

Local bar rundown from KC Drinker

Pretty funny summation of a few local bars from KC Drinker.

"Bar 12
1613 Swift Avenue, Kansas City, Mo.
816-221-5255
The "12" in the name refers to the number of karaoke songs you have to sing to avoid getting your ass kicked. This place is fun, but definitely a karaoke bar (favoring country music), and the singers take it quite seriously. Let's just say "Salt 'N' Peppa's "Shoop" went over like a lead balloon, but the booze was plentiful and so I went ahead and did "O.P.P." and "Bust A Move" too. I've since been sanctioned from this bar."

Can I buy you a drink?

Here's to ya! Also....drunk airline pilots are funny.

Bobby Watson: The Best of Kansas City

This stolen directly from Plastic Sax. Check out the video here.

"It's easy to take Bobby Watson for granted. The genial saxophonist has retained his Kansas City-style friendliness in spite of his status as one of the most respected artists in jazz. He's featured here with what appears to be a Russian student band. That's not surprising. Not only is Watson UMKC's director of jazz studies, he also travels the globe with the frequency of a Fortune 500 CEO. His solo commencing at the 2:25 mark is typical Watson. He opens with beautifully lyrical playing and gradually builds to an ostentatious but completely logical peak. Just because we get to hear this brilliance regularly in Kansas City doesn't make it any less extraordinary."

Class is now in session

Here is a post for all you AFCs having problems meeting women.

Like to drink?

Here is a cool blog all about the hooch. Always browse in moderation

Burn Baby Burn – The California celebrity fires

Here is one guy's take on the California fires. He makes some pretty valid points.

KCactive

Here is a great place to find out about what is going on in KC. Here is an extensive list of places you should eat. Sorry it's been a slow week on here. Been busy.

Does this look familiar?

Here is a video of my cat and me this morning.