Total Recall: My Unbelievably True Life Story

I have to admit, I’m sort of excited to read Arnold Schwarzenegger’s new book, “Total Recall: My Unbelievably True Life Story” due out on October 1st.
This is apparently the first step in Arnold’s comeback and is something that he felt he needed to get out before returning full force to the movie scene. Everyone is well aware that Arnold had an affair with his maid and a kid resulted from it. In this new book, not only does he go over his incredible rise to fame from the very beginning, but he apparently will be addressing that entire embarrassing situation with the maid. Quite frankly, I don’t really think its needed. When it originally happened, you couldn’t go anywhere with a TV and not see something on it. He handled it correctly at the time, didn’t really address it, and kept quiet. Like most things, the story fizzled out and it’s not something people really think about. I’m not sure why he needs to bring it back up, but it will be interesting to see what he has to say.
Never-mind the maid story, the rest of the book should be fascinating. From being born in a small village in Australia, dominating the word of bodybuilding, conquering the movie industry, and then becoming Governor of California-there can’t be a dull moment in this book. I’ll be ordering it this weekend, I’ll have a review of it once I finish reading it (which may be a bit, I’m not the fastest reader).

September 26, 2012 0

Buffalo Day Off.

Nicole and I love our getaways. Its great to see different cities and to see what makes each one special. We share a mutual respect for architecture and we both love to see how different cities live. While being in Chicago we both realized that, even though being in a major city like Chicago is great, we prefer a “medium” city. For me especially, coming home to Buffalo is always a relief. I love this city for so many reasons. When we go away on vacations, we always take one extra day off to recoup before going back to work. We decided to use this day to go exploring downtown on our bikes. Ever since my step dad gave me his old Italian race bike, I have really taken a liking to biking. I bike all over now even if the car is available.

We ended up taking the tour at Buffalo’s City Hall mainly because they told us that by doing so, we would be able to get into areas that we normally wouldn’t be allowed to see, and because its free. We’ve always wanted to check out the observatory on the top floor, but its only open during business hours on week days, and with both of us having jobs, that makes it a bit difficult to get to. The tour was humorous as the guide was an older gentleman who really didn’t seem to know all that much, but he had a knack of pointing out the obvious while making it sound like he was super educated. It was amusing. City Hall was actually really interesting and the tour was, for the most part, worth it. The views from the observatory were amazing. Another thing that was surprising was that we were with an actual group of tourists and one of the girls on the tour just moved here from out of state for a job! When you’re from a city that has been on the decline for over 50 years, it’s nice to see an actual change happening as more and more people rediscover the area.

After the City Hall trip, we took a rode down Main Street to the new noodle bar called “Kaydara“. I have to admit, I wasn’t excited about going to a noodle bar, but this was pretty awesome. The food took forever to come out, but it was really well prepared and fresh. I will definitely be coming back here.

These dumplings were solid. I forgot to take a picture of the noodles because I was too busy eating them…because they were delicious.

To end our afternoon on the town, we wanted to grab a glass of wine somewhere. Unfortunately every place we tried was not quite open yet. So we decided to go to “Caffe Aroma” near our house, a small cafe that has wine, beer, and coffee. Its a great little spot. They had a sign out front promoting hot rum ciders which totally won us over. We were able to have those outside on this cool crisp afternoon. It was really awesome.

To cap off the day, we stopped across the street to the new Gelato place, “Gelateria Luca.” The woman that owns the place was there, and she offered us samples of the Gelato before making a decision. I didn’t need samples, if I see mint and chocolate, I have made my decision. Nicole had the toasted almond. It was really tasty and while sitting there, the woman gave us a sample of some Italian cookies she just pulled fresh from the oven and they were warm and delightful!

Our day off in our city was great and was the perfect way to end our mini vacation. If you are ever coming to the Buffalo area, feel free to ask for some suggestions!

September 24, 2012 0

Back from Chicago: Continued

We took a lot of pictures on our trip, so to avoid gigantic posts I’m splitting it up a little. The next thing we decided to do was head over to “Millennium Park”. I had been here before but Nicole and Molly hadn’t. We went there and saw “The Bean”, and walked around exploring the gardens etc. The park was really busy and there was some sort of electronic music thing going on. It is definitely a place to check out if you are in the city.

More gratuitous Chicago shots after the jump, if you’d like to see.

People play in the water. I find it sort of gross.

A cool little spot in the middle of a big garden.

The same day we did the park, we also went to Chinatown. The Chinatown in Chicago was pretty lame. I am aware that generally they are all the same, weird shady products, skeptical foods and food handling, and plenty of cheesy trinkets, but the Chinatown here was pretty small and wasn’t all that exciting. San Francisco ‘s was way cooler.
My favorite part of any big city is the little neighborhoods around the downtown area. Wicker Park was cool and I wish we were able to have spent more time there exploring. Nicole and I want to go back to be able to spend more time in areas like these. There was another place on Nicole’s Urbanspoon account called “Big Star”. This place was really cool. It’s a cash only place so be prepared for that, they did have an ATM on site. The place served really awesome tacos and had a great selection of beer and top notch booze. We were there at around 3pm and the place was packed. They had a big outdoor area and the front of the place was open faced. Riot Fest was the same weekend in Chicago so there were definitely concert goers on the premise.

Nicole enjoyed a refreshing margarita…

…while I enjoyed a crisp Racer 5 IPA.

Wicker Park was a cool area. It was loaded with all sorts of shops, some commercial, others unique and local. Molly and Patrick had heard of this place called “T-shirt Deli”. It was a gimmic place that wraps your shirt in paper like a sandwich and then they give you a bag of chips. Funny concept, terrible shirts. They were so bad, we were in and out in like 5 minutes. We left Wicker Park with way more left to see, so we will have to go back.
We went to another little place in uptown Chicago called “Hop Leaf”. I looked it up on beeradvocate.com . I couldn’t get any pictures while we were there because it was so dark, but it was worth going to. It was a lot like the “Blue Monk” here in Buffalo, in fact, it was almost the same. The place had really great food and great tap selection. The bottle list was more like a novel. At this point, I was super happy because I did not get to indulge in as much beer as I would have liked. There was a great little beer garden out back that we were able to eat in, but it was so incredibly dark that I could even see the menu yet alone get any pictures. The Blue Monk in Buffalo makes better food.

Taken from Hop Leaf’s website. 5148 N. Clark Street, Chicago IL.

Uptown Chicago was pretty cool and was another area that I wanted to check out in more detail. Molly and Patrick grabbed food at a popular destination called “The Wieners Circle”. It’s a dive but the intrigue lies with the foul mouthed African american ladies that will insult you any chance they get. They were indeed graphic and filthy, to the point where I don’t feel right posting exactly what we heard them say, but it was hilarious none the less. Unfortunately the food was disgusting, Molly and Pat could not finish it. Luckily I passed on the experience knowing that we were headed to “The Hop Leaf” after, but it was something I originally wanted to do and try. If I didn’t discover Hop Leaf, I would have eaten this food also.

Taken from “The Weiners Circle” website. 2622 N.Clark Street, Chicago IL

Just ordered…..(Thanks to Molly and Pat for allowing me to post these pics!)

…..after tasting it….

September 20, 2012 0

Back From Chicago: Part 1

The Chicago trip ended up being a lot of fun and we ended up doing most of the touristy things that I hadn’t done in past trips there. I normally hate doing touristy things, and I still do, but it was still fun.

You can read more about our trip after the jump if you’d like to…

On E.Ohio Street there is a breakfast place called ‘Yolk”. Nicole and Molly had places to eat saved on their Urbanspoon accounts, and this place was on Nicole’s list. We arrived on a Sunday morning where we stood outside to wait the 45min-1hour projected wait time. The menu items looked amazing, and it totally looked like a place worth waiting for. There were so many things on the menu that looked amazing that its unfair to chose even a few to spotlight. Check it out here. We were able to sit outside in a beautifully gardened area on an amazing sunny morning. It couldn’t have been better. I ordered the Carnita Egg Sandwhich which was pulled pork sauteed with a pineapple mango salsa, topped with goat cheese and a fried egg on a pretzel roll with home fries and fruit. Nicole went with the Irish Benny which was an English muffin, corned beef hash and sauteed tomato, topped with two poached eggs and homemade hollandaise sauce. Molly had just created her own omelette, while Patrick ordered one of the more ridiculous/awesome items, “The South Beach”. This consists of a half of a pineapple, filled with yogurt, diced pineapple, fresh strawberries, granola and walnuts. As if this weren’t enough, it also came with a giant muffin. This food was awesome, and the portions were truly american. We loved this place so much, that we went back for breakfast the second day because there couldn’t possibly be better breakfast anywhere else.

For the next touristy thing, we were headed for “Navy Pier”. There was a ridiculous amount of things at this destination to keep people of all ages occupied. With a giant Ferris wheel and tons of carnival like trinket shops, Navy Pier is definitely a place that you go to once, and then have no desire to ever see it again. The city views at this place made it worth while, especially from the top of the Ferris Wheel. The pictures we snapped are a little washed out because we went during prime sunlight. One of things we really wanted to do was the architectural boat tour down the river, through the city. If you ever go to Chicago, I highly suggest doing it as you get to see some magnificent views of the city. Its about 30 bucks a person for an hour ride. There is also a bar, so if you are like Nicole and I and prefer doing most activities with a cocktail in hand, then its a definite plus.

September 19, 2012 0

Travel Log: First full day of our Chicago Trip

Yesterday was totally ruined for us with that air plane ordeal. It had to have been one of the worst airline experiences ever, but on the plus side, I’m glad it was discovered and that we didn’t die. There was a pressure leak in first engine and it was leaking fluids. They told us that it would be a half hour wait…..4 different times…..every half our…which equals 2 hours. This wait would not have been too bad had they not all packed us onto the airplane first. I could have gotten some food, maybe a beer, and dealt with the delay. But no. We were just sitting on the airplane the entire time. Nicole read an entire book, while I made it through a majority of my book:

A pretty decent read if you find David Byrne interesting. Otherwise you will find it insanely pretentious and you won’t make it through more than a few pages (like Nicole). I have enjoyed most of it so far.

We arrived in Chicago around 8-ish and there was no way we were going to make our dinner reservations at a roof top place for dinner. I was already annoyed. We arrived at our hotel room shortly after getting off the Rosemont exit on the Blue line. We are staying at the Hyatt right around the corner from the subway station, and I honestly can’t believe how nice the hotel is. It looks like its from the future and there’s a sushi bar with fire places. It’s one of the more unique hotels I’ve stayed at.

We dropped off our things and we immediately took off to get downtown. This day was terrible so there was only one way to deal with that. Pizza.

We had read awesome things about this place when researching pizza in Chicago. I’ve had Chicago style pizza in past trips here, mainly ordering to a hotel room from a local mom & pop place, and it was really great. This was my fist time going to one of the more “famous” pizza destinations. We were able to sit right down when we arrived and we ordered the “The Malnati Classic” Pizza. Nicole is right. If you go somewhere that has a great reputation, and they have a menu item that they point out as being the best thing they make, just order that. The pizza takes 30 minutes to cook, its something that’s just understood. These pizzas take time. The Malnati Classic is made with lean sausage, extra cheese, vine-ripened tomato sauce, on a butter crust. It was really good. I figured it was just going to be pieces of sausage. No. It was like a gigantic sheet of sausage that covered the whole top of the pizza. The one thing I noticed from the other Chicago style pizza that I had eaten years back, was that it was not as thick (cheese wise). Not that I needed more cheese (I need to diet as soon as this trip ends). The pizza was really good. I consider myself an expert on pizza, and have a history making all types from the many pizzeria jobs I’ve had and my continued pizza making at home. I give this place a solid 8 out of 10. Very good.

It’s supposed to rain all tomorrow so we are going to be doing most of our outdoor things today. I’ll be bringing the SLR for some better pictures.

September 16, 2012 0

Chicago Bound

Nicole and I are in the airport on our way to Chicago. I should have some really great pictures from this trip as we plan on getting a lot in. More to come, go Bills!

September 15, 2012 0

Things I meant to post from the past week…

I meant to post these things earlier in the week but had forgotten to. A few cool things went on last weekend:

-Week 1 of the NFL.
-City of Night: An art show event in the old Buffalo grain elevators.

Football is pretty serious here in Buffalo even though it seems that each year we come closer and closer to losing our team. While we have a team though, we decided to make week 1 a major event in our household. My friend Justin brought over 3 monster racks of ribs to BBQ while I picked up the chicken along with the Cajun corn, corn bread, and BBQ beans. Oh man. It was amazing. We had to get a really early start because the ribs take so long to cook. We started cooking around 10 am. The perfect time for a Foster’s Breakfast Stout.

Totally not my picture. I was too excited at the time and drank it before I could take a picture…

If you are able to get this beer in your area, I highly recommend it. It is a stout with amazing rich flavors of coffee, chocolate, and oatmeal. It is nothing short of phenomenal. We read online numerous ways to cook ribs, the most ideal way would be to grill them on coals. Unfortunately I have a gas grill, so we had to change the methods a little bit. We started cooking them in the oven for almost 2 hours and then finished them off on the grill. We also placed a pan with some water in the oven to help not dry out the meat. When we finished them off on the grill, it was a bit challenging because there was a grease fire every few minutes, but with skills of some ex-Applebees cooks, we were able to get through it.
Our friends Molly and Pat also joined us bringing over a S’mores cake that was super delicious. All of the food was great and it was great watching football again, unfortunately the game was awful and the Bills got destroyed. Better luck next week. I won’t be able to watch next week because Nicole and I will be in Chicago.

Getting the corn bread ready.

Ric is waiting for us to drop the ribs.

Luckily the char was mostly just BBQ sauce, the ribs didn’t burn.

Last Saturday night I rode my bike downtown to the old grain elevators where they were having an event. I went by myself because Nicole wasn’t feeling well, but it was a nice experience regardless mainly because it was such a nice night and it gave me an excuse to take a bike ride through the city. It was truly my favorite part of the outing. When I actually arrived at the event, I didn’t stay too long, but it was definitely cool. Some people don’t understand the grain elevators, after all, they are just grain elevators right? Whats the big deal? These structures are a part of our cities history, and are really something to see in person. I guess you either care about stuff like that or you don’t, but I enjoy these things about Buffalo.

I was there early. This was around 6:30-ish, the event lasted until 2am. I’m guessing it got busier later.

Artists were scattered all over displaying their work. Some pretty cool stuff.

My favorite part of the outing was the bike ride along the waterfront.

September 15, 2012 0

Mustache’s

A few days ago I shaved off my beard….well sort of. I get bored easily with “looks”. In this case, I was bored again. So I started looking up dudes with sweet mustaches….shall we?

Adrien Brody’s mustache is amazing.

TNA wrestler Joey Ryan

My brother in law Bill has rocked this mustache since the entire time I’ve known him.

My step-dad’s mustache in this old school picture is pretty sweet.

So into the bathroom I went for a facial hair make-over. And out I came looking like this…

I kept it for a day and then got rid of it. But today, as I write this blog, I’ve decided to grow it back. I regret the decision, fortunately I am blessed with facial hair that grows by the hour, so in like 4 days I’ll have it back probably. It’s a tough decision when it comes to deciding what type of facial hair you want, especially when you lack hair on your head. I’ll keep everyone update on this, I know its super important to you all!

September 14, 2012 0

Action 100: Highlander

I’m going to start off in saying that I was not excited to watch this movie and that the trailer for it made it look way worse than it actually was. Let’s take a look at what this film is about.

“Christopher Lambert and Sean Connery star in the epic tale of immortality that launched one of the most beloved action-adventure series in film and TV history. After Scottish clansman Connor MacLeod (Lambert) discovers his true identity as a member of a legion of immortals, he embarks on a legendary journey spanning continents and centuries, eventually landing in modern-day New York City. Connor faces his ultimate test when other immortals begin to appear in the city, leading to a titanic showdown where only one can claim victory. Directed by Russell Mulcahy and featuring a soundtrack by Queen, this is the modern classic that has attracted millions of warrior fans worldwide. This is HIGHLANDER!” – Amazon

I ended up enjoying this way more than I figured I would. The movie has its ridiculous moments but it ends up making the film a blast to watch. In the beginning of the movie, there is an appearance from wrestling legends, “The Fabulous Free-birds”. Whats hilarious about this scene is that the film makers found it necessary to add sound effects to the punches that were thrown in the match. The fact that the Queen soundtrack was playing during this scene made it even more ridiculous as you could hear the loud punches during the song. The whole opening sequence is really sweet. Right after the opening scene there is a sword fight in the parking garage of the event. The fight is super long and involves a beheading and several exploding cars, and not one regular civilian strolls into the garage for the entire scene. Hilarious.
The battle scenes from the flashbacks were also really funny. Two armies do battle and collide clashing swords while doing this unenthusiastic yelling. It immediately reminded me of those bad civil war reenactments that you see small towns do sometimes.
Kurgan, the lead villain, is supposed to be the most powerful immortal there is. The actor that played him was so terrible, he was awesome. He looked like someone that you would see in a gay S&M club in 1984. To add to the ridiculousness of his character, they do a scene where they show that he has a special case that holds his powerful sword. The sword is in multiple pieces inside of the carrying case because it makes so much sense that a powerful strong sword would be something that you would assemble…

Perhaps the scene that really made me laugh was when Highlander is shown in a flashback meeting up with his wife who in the scene looks different. Her hair was really disheveled and she had weird white speckles all over her face and giant dark circles under her eyes. She also had dead-like, code blue lips yet she was being portrayed in a happy scene in a field carrying a baby lamb. I thought for a second she was supposed to be ill, but that wasn’t the case. It was just really, really, terrible makeup to show that she was supposed to be an old lady!
Highlander is definitely something that you should see if you have not yet seen it. I already see some sweet baby onesie ideas for the future.

September 13, 2012 0

Action Movie 100: Whats next?

This is going to be tough coming off of such a great movie. I’m sure these next two are good, particularly the first of the two: “Highlander”. I have realized that even though I am familiar with Highlander, I had never actually seen the original movie. I had seen the TV shows, but never the original movie. It was always something that I wasn’t too into but had friends that loved it, like this guy:

Justin loves Highlander.

So sticking to my original pact (that I would watch everything on this list that I hadn’t seen minus the obscure old kung-fu flicks), I watched the trailer to see if I could get totally excited about checking it out. I totally am not excited. Someone help me get excited about sitting through “Highlander”.

I should have my thoughts on my first time viewing “Highlander” sometime next week.

September 8, 2012 0

Author: Aaron F.