Flunky Stereo Thief

broken windowIn the decent of man from apes, one of the defining differences between our early ancestors and apes was the ability craft (and I’m going to assume, select) tools for specific tasks. The great apes were already able to use objects to assist in their normal routines. The asshole who broke in to my van must fall somewhere between our early ancestors and apes because he only brought a single tool, a flathead screwdriver, to steal my stereo. This short-sightedness on his part (once again, going to assume) meant that instead of unscrewing 4 Philips-head screws to remove the stereo, he had to torque the stereo out of its frame, ultimately destroying the dashboard and breaking the circuit board of the stereo and cracking the interface for the removable face, rendering the stereo completely useless.

It’s entirely possible that he did bring more than one tool, but his speed-addled brain didn’t want to finesse it out for fear that it might add hours (or seconds) on to the job. So, after destroying the dashboard, the two main vents, the small (and probably expensive) triangular window, my stereo, the antenna cable and mounting frame, he bolted. The inept f*cktard only managed to do upwards of a thousand dollars in damage without accomplishing anything. I guess a flunky is a flunky is a flunky.

Dirty, dirty animal

Until I lived with one, I had been under the impression that cats were clean and dainty animals. Now I know otherwise. Maybe Tigger is just an exception, too. He is an indoor/outdoor animal, and that has worked well for us because he goes outside and it’s none of our concern except on rare occasions when we’re gardening. The downside to this technique is that when it’s wet, he often tracks in mud, leaf detritus, and an occasional slug. Sure, it’s gross, but it’s generally soft.

After his recent illness and required incarceration while on antibiotics, we got him a litter-box. He begrudgingly used it at first and the novelty and sound were so hilarious that I enjoyed it too. Sadly, he’s now able to come and go as he pleases again but often comes back inside to use the litter-box. He’s also a picky drinker, so he either gets a paw wet while checking the water then uses the litter-box and gets litter/cement everywhere, or he just tracks litter around, sometimes all the way across the house. What makes it especially gross is when you consider what is working as the bonding agent in the litter.
Tigger drinking from the toilet
Back to being a finicky drinker. He won’t drink from a water source if he doesn’t know it’s fresh. We often checks the freshness by pawing at the water, leaving clumps of litter in whatever source of water he drinks from. Sometimes that’s Barley’s water dish, sometimes his own, sometimes your glass of water on the coffee table, or the sink in the middle of the night or sometimes the toilet. What kind of “clean” animal would drink from a toilet?

5 from 05(ish)

As we enter yet another year to get behind in listening to music, I thought I’d reconsider the coolest stuff I heard last year. Naturally, it’s just scratching the surface, but it’s really difficult to listen to just new music when there’s always stuff from the past you’re just finding for the first time. Damn musical influences.

Anyway, here goes.

  1. Dangerdoom. MF is at his best and most clever, and the same can probably be said for Danger Mouse. I’m not sure if it’s just the copy I got off iTMS, but the levels are a bit off so most of the bass rattles too much. Still, the album is 90% awesome. 90% more awesome than Demon Days too.
  2. You Can’t Imagine How Much Fun We’re Having – Atmosphere. Best since Lucy Ford. Great Rza/Wu sound on several tracks with Slug on cruise control.
  3. The Best Reason to Buy the Sun – The Benevento Russo Duo. Why did I try to forget how to play piano? These guys were the highlight of the Ropeadope new music seminar.
  4. Live @ Stubb’s or Live at U. Maryland – Matisyahu. If you don’t listen to this too much, it’s really good. Different and chill.
  5. End of the World Party – Medeski, Martin & Wood. Maybe I’m just in the mood for this album, but I really dig the sound lately.

honorable mention In Between Dreams – Jack Johnson. I can’t believe I picked this but I’ve heard a lot of it and it’s really, really clean. The lyrics are occasionally great and the album makes my baby happy.

Thai Roundup

Michelle and I finally finished trying the thai restaurants on Alberta
last week with some take-out from Monsoon. Each of the four places
some variations but there was a common set of items at each. Of the
four (Siam Society, Thai Noon, Monsoon, and Halo), we’ve only had
multiple visits to Thai Noon, so the opinion we’ve formed is subject
to change. In fact, we hope to increase our sampling over time. Here’s
how things stand so far – in chronological order by our sampling.

Thai Noon

This place fills the neighborhood with wonderful smells and seems to
draw a faithful crowd most nights. Most of the dishes seem somewhat
mediocre but have become a modern comfort food. Like mashed potatoes
or mac and cheese. There are some highlights so far, like their
pumpkin curry, tempura pumpkin, and Michelle thinks they make a great
veggie fried rice. The pad thai (litmus test 1) is average and without
spice. The staff have always been great, and you can get a cheap beer
with dinner and enjoy it with your dog outside. They’ve recently
started some expansion, which seems to be part of a gustatory arms
race taking place on Alberta St.

Halo Thai

The day we placed a bid on the house, we came back in the evening to
walk the neighborhood. We met a few people who thought Halo was the
better of the two (at the time). We tried it shortly thereafter with
my Grandparents and found this to have been correct. The pad thai was
spicy and unique and all the dishes were better than average. Each
place lists catfish on their special menu but Halo’s is the best we’ve
had so far. Dishes here seem to be crispier and drier.

Siam Society

This place is upscale compared to the rest. Definitely a San Francisco
or New York experience compared to the rest. It was the only place I
even gave a moments consideration to my dress. This place is elegant
and modern and everything from the decoration to the service to the
food fits a fancier niche. Still, it’s not exclusive, and the waiter
was cordial and the chef actually came to see how we liked our meal.
The meal, by the way, was fantastic. The pad thai was tart and sweet
and spicy and delicious. The eggplant stir fry easily popped in to my
top five list for eggplant dishes. Even the tea here was great. This
of course comes at a slight premium. Dishes may cost $1-3 more here,
but considering the quality, it is worth it to splurge on occasion.

Monsoon

We almost missed when this changed from E-Zs grill to Monsoon. The
small space barely fits a kitchen so there’s precious little dining
room, but it seems to be full on many nights. We got takeout, which
seems to be roughly half of the business. The pad thai was on the
moister side but the tofu quite tasty. The prah rahm a slight
variation on the dish and with more vegetables and less sauce than
most, but still quite good. Not really much make an opinion with, but
enough to know we can try it again.

Overall, I think we need a larger sampling before passing a final
judgment, but Siam Society and Halo seem to have a leg up on taste so
far.