Troutville, VA

No joke; watching infomercials and surfing the 'net on my laptop thanks to insomnia. Seriously though, after driving nine hours on four hours of sleep, you'd a thunk I'd be facedown right now. But no, sweet, no sleep and I've got one last party hard night in New York.

On another train of thought entirely, I was given one real good piece of advice this past week (from a toothless redneck wearing a confederate flag hat who just so happened to be one of the nicest, and wisest individuals I have met in a long time) and that was to find yourself a best friend and stick with them for the rest of your life.

Simple. But true.

EDIT (on 4/2/09): That redneck's advice was a load of bullshit. Some friends are never really even friends to begin with, so how is one to know who to stick with? Guess we'll never know...

Midway

We are halfway through our Tour de Tennesse, already having hit up both Knoxville and Nashville, and arriving in Memphis just an hour ago. Here are a few things I have learned along the way:

- There's more to fast food than McDonalds, Burger King, Wendy's and Taco Bell. Heck, even the Hooter's have drive-thru's in the South; fast wing's!

- A Yankee is any person living north of the Mason-Dixon Line, not just a delusioned New York baseball fan. By the by, Southerners seem to loathe the Yankee's just as much as us Bostoners.

- Virginia is quite possibly the longest, most boring, and worst state in the United States as a whole. I sort of wish it would un-unite itself, and therefore just disappear from the map.

- Nashville, or Nash-Vegas as some so lovingly call it, is nothing but a tourist trap. The "strip" of 2nd Avenue is less than a mile long and filled with bars that reminded me of Cancun. (I will, however, post later on the amazing, off-the-beaten-path watering-hole that we did happen across last night.)

- Knoxville is clean, but smaller than Providence and other than the Sunsphere, and a pretty alright water fountain garden, it's a virtual bore.

- Southerners seem live on Waffle House, Sonic and fake Italian food.

...to be continued.

And Everything Is Going...

...to the beat.

So totally groovin' on this vid/song:

Tomorrow at noon kicks off Tour de Tennessee! I shall return in ten days with a photo essay for all ya'll's viewing pleaure; or maybe just a link to my Flickr page.

Happy Darwin Day!

Natural selection, anyone?

In celebration of Charles Darwin's 200th birthday today, the Harvard Humanists were providing young naturalists with free drinks and cake, and the tunes of local geek rock bands right on the Harvard main campus. TOTES NERD-COOL!

Today's fun-fact: per Wikipedia, as a humorous celebration of evolution, the annual Darwin Award is bestowed on individual's who "improve our gene pool by removing themselves from it."

Tu Es Jolie

The "Inspirational" section of Smashing Magazine holds a number of the most beautifully artistic black and white photographs I have come across in awhile, such as the one displayed above, also my personal favorite.

On a completely unrelated side note, I think I want to learn to speak French. Hence the French subtitles all over my cultured blog.

Barroom Jams

These guys, The Felice Brothers, are so incredibly, and undeniably talented. You can read a short, yet praising, review of their live show here.

I can't wait to see them April 9th at the Paradise! Despite the fact that the show is the night immediately following my birthday, I still think that it's an amazing way to kick off my 26th year of life!

Funeral of The Heart

In the wise words of Matthew Houck, "There ain't nothing worth saving, except one another."

Joyeux Anniversaire!

To my homegirl, Corin Barnes!

I'll be sure to buy you lots of .25 Jello Shots at the bar in the mountain when we finally reach Whitwell on Friday, February 20th!

Creeptastic

And the number one reason that I (and everyone else in the world) should delete their current Myspace profile(s); SEX OFFENDERS.

What, you must be joking, sex offenders on the internet? No way!

The Next Martha?

I love Japanese food, more than any other culinary type in the whole world. Unfortunately, there aren't many choices here in Boston, and what few choices there are, they are typically overpriced. Therefore, in order to dine on it regularly (more than once every two months), preparing it at home is the best way to go. 

When I saw this recipe for Miso Soup, it forced me to make the final decision to register for a cooking class; sooner, rather than later.

Be proud when it finally occurs, I know I will.