The whitest thing that's ever happened?

Yesterday Zach and Julie got married (hooray!), and during the reception, I witnessed a dance off.

A Wisconsin versus Minnesota dance off.

To "Bust a Move."

With each team consisting of one teenage boy and one senior citizen.

It was amazing.

Twin Cities Thursday

1. Conner posts some drunken artwork from Art's birthday party. (Oh, and Stephanie also posted some a while back and was horrified not to be included in Twin Cities Thursday, so here it is.)
   
   
2. Glimpses of Soul takes a break from the cute stuff and photographs some fire dancers.
   
   
3. MINNpics posts the creepiest Halloween picture ever.
   
   
4. Bill Roehl wonders how Buffalo Wild Wings (which I put in the "Restaurant Axis of Evil" along with Applebee's and Chili's) does so well.
   
   
5. Secrets of the City/MNSpeak switches things up.
   
   
6. Art risks being run out of town by saying he doesn't like Surly Darkness.
   
   
7. Erica writes about LRT bike trail safety.
   
   
8. Camacho Watcho describes what it's like to really love food.
   
   
9. Stuff About Minneapolis shares some unusual park history.
   
   
10. Dusty Lens posts a photo that makes me sort of depressed about the weather.
    

The Encore Convention

Tonight I went to see They Might Be Giants at First Avenue, and while it was a great show with hands down the most polite, least pushy, and happiest crowd I've ever been a part of, it reminded me of the fact that I hate encores.

Now I'm sure when encores first started happening (maybe at some sort of symphony or opera or story told by a caveman around a campfire), it was pretty cool. Like "Hey, I thought this was over! We get more?"

But now it's the same routine at every concert in every city. The band thanks us, tells us we were a great crowd, and lets us know that this is their LAST. SONG.

Which we all know it isn't.

Then they run off the stage and let everyone scream in the dark for two or three minutes while we wait for them to come back and play one of their hits that we know they're going to play because how could they have skipped it? Then they play one of their more obscure songs or an unexpected over, after which they run off the stage again.

And if we're lucky, they do the whole thing again. It needs to stop.

Yet if it did stop, the entire crowd (probably including me) would feel cheated out of something, even if the band played as many songs as they would have with three encores.

It's never going to end, is it?

More on the Half Marathon

So my decision to run the half marathon, despite the fact that I've never run in a race of any kind (not a 10 miler, not a 10K, not even a 5K) is starting to make me feel a little bit like I'm looking before I leap, and despite the fact that I don't even start training until February, I'm starting to panic a little.

It's kind of like when I agreed to jump off a cliff without calculating how high it actually was (stupid Kiwis and their metric system).

We're not that sporty.

Conversation that took place after Art suggested I try to run at a 7 1/2 minute mile pace:

Emily: Yeah, that's like suggesting that I win the Heisman Trophy.

Art: What? I think you'd be good at hockey!

Spooky Scary

Just because it's nearly Halloween and Art's frequent playing of this song on his laptop means it's constantly in my head.

Twin Cities Thursday

1. Amber is charmingly neurotic about a third date.
   
   
2. Bill Roehl gets his hands on an impressive amount of meat.
   
   
3. Conner gives an update on his lofty life goals. I'm keeping my eye out for nerdy ladies who like pizza for him. You should do the same.
   
   
4. Oh look, a rare double featured blogger! Conner has some really spot on thoughts about Surly.
   
   
5. Speaking of beer, Dusty Lens posts a brewery photo that oddly makes me think of Willy Wonka. Maybe beer is just a little too magical to me?
   
   
6. Sornie examines local grocery prices and grocery store branding.
   
   
7. Art searches for a man purse.
   
   
8. The Heavy Table launches an Atlas of Ethical Eating, which promises to be a handy reference for local diners.
   
   
9. In a controversial move, Paul Merrill hates on the Jucy Lucy.
   
   
10. Reuben reminds me that I'm not ready to be a homeowner.
    

Bacon Wednesday

Were you wondering how Stephanie's birthday celebration went? Of course you were! Well, here it is.

-Emily

Bacon Wednesday #34

Happy Birthday To Me!

or

I Would Pay For Better Bacon, But Hey, It Was Free

When last we talked, I was really effing exited for free bacon at the Triple Rock for my birthday. It ended up being a great night--I wore flannel, ate meatloaf and drank many $3 PBRs. My brother and friends came and there was a fair amount of ridiculousness. And I got a cupcake! Oh, and my roommate was feeling (kind of aggressively) drunk generous and paid the whole group's tab. Good thing the beer was cheap and the bacon was free.

It smelled delicious in there as the clock approached 9 p.m....like imminent bacon. When the waitress brought around the baskets, I was pumped. Then I had a bit, and...eh.


I know, truly disappointing considering my excitement. The bacon was just fatty and didn't have crisp to it. However, someone at the table said that when they blotted it, it tasted better, which I can see. Actually, it sort of reminded me of sad fast food bacon--though let me make it clear that it was not sad bacon, just adequate bacon. But I like thick, meaty, crisped bacon...a lot like what the Triple Rock serves for brunch, actually. I really can't say if a few more minutes of cooking would have saved the bacon; it's worth a shot.

As I am a powerful force of bacon but also one of great forgiveness, you know I'm going back there another Wednesday to test it out again. Because, while it wasn't amazing bacon, that almost doesn't matter. Even the sadness of so-so bacon didn't damper my birthday. Because it was my birthday! And there was free bacon! On principle, I was, and remain, overjoyed.


Like what you've seen here? You can read what Stephanie thinks about things that are not bacon over at How Does She Do It?

I'm announcing this to the Internet so I can't turn back.

Okay, so here's the deal.

The other night when I was having dinner with Art, Zach, and Zach's futurewife Julie at the now-controversial Lyndale Tap House when Zach, now a seasoned marathon runner, started trying to convince Art and I to run the Eau Claire half marathon with him in May.

To which I thought, "Oh, hell no."

I mean, I'm no slouch. I've actually been running and working out quite a bit lately, but at the end of the day, I'm not really known for my athletic prowess. I didn't play sports in high school, I'm not very competitive (or coordinated for that matter), and I've always thought of myself as a bit of an "indoor kid."

Yet on Saturday, after running a 5k on the treadmill (the farthest I've ever run), I was feeling all endorphiny and good about myself when I saw a message on Twitter from Zach about the half marathon.

And, like a moron on a natural high, I said yes.

Which at first sent me into a panic, but after checking out some training schedules, I thought, "Hey, maybe this could be okay."

Most of the runs during the week are three or four miles (not far from what I'm doing right now) with gradually increasing runs on Saturdays, so I'd probably only hate my life on Saturdays, right?

Anyway, today I bit the bullet and signed up.

Training starts February 15th. What have I done?

On Negative Reviews

Quite a few people have asked me this morning whether I have my panties in a twist over The Heavy Table's overwhelmingly negative review of the Lyndale Tap House, presumably because I happen to love the place.

Which I guess means I should be offended by the fact that James Norton gave it 0.5 stars?

But calm down everyone, it' s going to be okay. In fact, I think this negative review could be a good thing!

A negative review provides balance.
I'm not a restaurant critic, and when people like me spout off about how much we enjoy something, it doesn't mean everyone is going to love it or that it's the best thing in town or that we've even tried more than one thing on the menu. And I'm not going to get offended when people don't agree with me. That's silly.

A negative review is a challenge.
Nobody's perfect, and criticism (even if this particular criticism might not have been completely constructive), challenges us to find room for improvement. For example, Norton thinks they're not doing a very good job with their desserts. I'd have to agree. And maybe now they'll step it up.

A negative review means smaller crowds and more pit beef for me.
And I like pit beef.