Tuesday, June 23, 2009

Ten on Tuesday: C

1: Chargers (the San Diego variety) - Some season they'll go all the way. Will it be this one? I hope so!

2: Cupcakes - My wife has an affinity for purchasing cupcakes from cupcake boutiques in downtown San Diego, and I must admit that I am growing rather fond of the little guys (not that I ever disliked them, per se). How can I not like a store that makes cupcakes for dogs?

3: Check Requests - They can be a dangerous (and melodramatic) affair.

4: Chantilly Lace - And a pretty face. And a pony tail. Hanging down.

5: Coldstone Creamery - An entirely delicious place until the guy making your ice cream coughs on it. Then it's just mostly delicious.*

6: Comedy - My cubicle neighbor is currently laughing pretty hysterically, and when he was queried as to why, he pointed at the television which is showing an Obama press conference. I guess I just don't get it.

7: Coupons - I browse deal sites on the web like crocodiles capture gazelles: swiftly and without mercy.** As an example, I got a pair of Oakleys a few days ago for a reasonable price (which is pretty unheard of as nearly everything Oakley makes is sold for an unreasonable price -- Thank you REI closeout sale!). As another example, I love taking my 40% coupons that I find into Borders and slapping it down on the counter with such force as if to say, "Hey! I am a crafty consumer!" Also, we all remember the drama of the five pounds of pens.

8: "Consider the Lobster" - This is an essay that David Foster Wallace*** (an admitted meat eater) wrote for Gourmet magazine (which concerns itself with the preparation and enjoyment of delicious food) about whether it is a morally defensible position to boil lobsters alive (which is the preferred method of cooking them). Gourmet has it posted at this link if you'd like to read it, though it is split up over ten separate web pages, which makes getting back and forth between the end notes and the essay a cumbersome affair. While I do not consider myself an animal rights activist, this essay certainly makes me consider, at the very least, if there aren't more humane ways to prepare them.

9: Connecticut - Definitely my least favorite state to prepare reports for. Their commission is unreasonable and ridiculous.

10: Curmudgeon - This is a funny word that doesn't get enough play, in my opinion. To help rectify this situation, I'll try to use it in my next five posts.

*True story. I was so grossed out, I only ate most of it.****
**That simile got a lot more violent that I intended it to.
***I am currently working on his magnum opus Infinite Jest. My interest was inspired mostly by the website infinitesummer.org. The book is strange and non-linear and wonderful so far.
****It didn't help that what I ordered had both caramel sauce and fudge, both of which have a texture not so different from what people cough up.

8 comments:

Jen said...

I can't believe you ate the ice cream! I will never look at caramel sauce or fudge quite the same way again! You're too much, AC:) Would love to see you work in curmudgeon into a post or two. If anyone can, it would be YOU. Have you entered the Sweet Spot haiku contest yet? If not, you should!

Mama V said...

...and I challenge you to use the word "curmudgeon" in that haiku entry!


....no...I double-dog dare you!

John said...

um...it may not have made for such good blog material, but I'm almost sure you could have requested a new serving of ice cream. just a thought.

Analyst Catalyst said...

Buttercup: I did enter the contest like a Chicago voter: early and often.

V: Please see her comments section for my best shot(s)(s).

John: It was definitely a cough with some phlegm to it, but I guess I should say that he didn't cough directly on it as much as he coughed while he was preparing it (and thus above it, which is roughly the same thing; had he directly coughed into it, I hope I would have said something). I entirely agree that I should have brought it up, as I am now very ill with a similar cough (though I may also be able to blame David, who was also sick). My final answer to this issue is, of course, that David should make me a new ice cream, thus covering all my bases.

Buttercup and V: I feel badly for not writing you longer comments, considering how long my comment was for John. Please consider this comment an amends. I will even throw in an asterisk.*

*See!

Jen said...

Asterisks are fine
But cleverly crafted prose
Is much more preferred

Jen said...

Aw, dang it! The last line is supposed to read "is preferable" - Ohhhh, thank goodness Dr. White isn't on here! He'd be hitting his head on a brick wall right now:P

Mama V said...

It's ok, AC. ANY response is enough for me to know you actually care enough to read my comments!

Buttercup... nice Haiku. You should hav eentered that one into the contest too! ;)

Dan O. said...

Won't be the Chargers this year... unfortunately it's going to be the Pats. Mark it down and bet heavily. There's no Plaxico or David Tyree that'll stop them this year.