Emma’s Fantabulous Blog

Devon turned 30 yesterday! A big milestone, I think, but I think that he’s still struggling to come to terms with this traumatic event. Plans for a huge blowout in Las Vegas fell through, so for the time being we’re just having a small dinner with some friends and family at a new hot spot: Post 390 in Boston’s Back Bay.

In addition to my brother working in its kitchen, Post 390 serves delicious food in a laid back, but still hip setting. The space is decorated with lots of brick, wood and leather and there are multiple fireplaces, which I especially enjoy because I’m always freezing. Both times I ate here, I was extremely pleased. Their cuisine is totally accessible for even the pickiest eaters, focusing on American classics with an upscale twist. Everything that I’ve had so far has been super tasty. Their Crab & Spinach dip was especially finger licking good, although I never want to see the nutrition info that dish. But a girl has gotta spoil herself sometimes. Along a similar vein, their freshly made pies are insane. Now, I make a damn fine pie crust, but I dare say that their pastry chef’s recipe may trump mine…. (as much as I hate to admit it!)

If you’re ever in the area, give Post 390 a try. They’re located at 406 Stuart St, Boston, MA 02116.

Howdy gang! ….Although it’s been 2 months(!!!) since my last confession, er, blog post, so who knows who is still checking this regularly? Soo, what’s been a’happenin’?

The holidays were a blur, but full of goodness. Family & friends, awesome presents relating to surfing and modern Italian design home decor, crackling fires in the fireplace, a Christmas lizard of doom and other things like that.

I’ve been hitting up a bunch of local rock/punk shows at the Middle East, which has probably been my fav music venue since I was a wee teen. The most recent show I took in was a Punk vs. Metal night, with all sorts of fantastic bands, including the August Spies, who used to play most of the punk shows that I saw in high school. It’s always nice to learn that some Boston punk bands from the ’90s are still around. Ahhh, I’m old.

But yeah. I gotta get better with this whole keeping up with my blog thing. What with discovering microblogging via Facebook and Twitter, it’s harder to make myself sit down for 30-60 minutes and write a real blog post. But I’m gonna give it a shot again.

So last night I was out drinking at a bar….. Ok, I know some of you think  that you know where this is going…. “Just another one of Emma’s stories which would make her parents proud.” Hear me out. In actuality, I was just out having a post-dinner cocktail with a dear friend, at Eastern Standard (a snazzy &  hip eatery/lounge in Boston’s Kenmore Square, which prides itself on authentic cocktails from the pre-prohibition era.). So we walk in & I snag us a couple of stools at see through glass bar by the door. At that point I notice a strikingly dark, tall and handsome gent standing by the waitress stand & say to myself “Wow, he’s really good looking!”.

Let me stop here and say that I am married to the most amazing man in the world who makes me incredibly happy. Devon is the love of my life. That said, I believe that there’s nothing wrong with admiring some eye candy once in a while.

Back to the “lounge”. So, tall, dark and handsome turns around and notices me, and I give him a big cheezy smile, because I’m a mega dork. He smiles back and at that point I realize that he looks very familiar….. I try to place him… Tall, kinda wild brown hair, big wrist cuff, tight & low slung hipster jeans, in a really cool eatery….. And all of a sudden my mind puts 2 +2 together………

Ok, this picture isn’t the best ever….. But!!!!   It’s fricking Sam Talbot from Top Chef’s Season 2!!!!! During his season of the show, he came in 3rd place (but in my opinion was the most talented out of the entire group). Ok, so most people probably have no idea who he is, but I think I’m a pretty big foodie, in addition to being a majah Top Chef junkie. Season 2 was probably the most enjoyable for me. I never really had the hot’s for Sam during the show, although they always made a big deal about him being “the hot contestant”, but man, I can totally see why now that I saw him in person. He’s no my husband, but he’s almost somewhat close.

Anyways. We totally shared a moment, and then I totally had drinks with him (from the other side of the bar). And after he left, our waitress and I recounted how we closely we had come to destabilizing into puddles of ooze.

God, I love this town.

Recently I’ve gotten into surfing. I go to a ladies’ surf night in NH and I’ve been having an amazing time. I’ve started looking at surfboards to see what my options are and have noticed that huge number of women’s surf boards come with hibiscus flower motif’s on them. I’ve also been looking at getting a new motorcycle helmet since my current one is pretty old & should be replaced. In my browsing for women’s motorcycle helmets, I’ve found that the hibiscus motif plague has invaded this area as well. It’s crazy! The manufacturers of inherently bad-ass things are decreasing their “bad-ass factor” by sticking hibiscus flowers on everything. What the heck is up with that?!? I like pink flowers as much as the next girl, but when I’m looking to buy something for one of my non-frou-frou hobbies, I don’t want a stupid hibiscus flower stuck on it….

Therefore, in honor of this phenomenon, I give you a list of 6 things that are made WAYYY less bad-ass (and/or butch) by having a hibiscus flower on them……

#6. A mens’ tie. Unless you’re from Hawaii (and even that is up for debate), you should not be wearing these.

#5. A Knife. A knife is inherently bad-ass. So, why would you go about and muck it up with a design on it? Imagine yourself on a dark night in a bad section of town. A thug jumps out of the darkness and challenges you to a knife fight. Then you whip out this “shank”. True, you might very well win the fight, but only because your opponent would be extremely vulnerable while they are rolling around on the ground in utter hysterics.

#4. A motorcycle. Good for you for customizing your ride, but really? Couldn’t you have gone with some skulls or flames? Or flaming skulls?

#3. A motorcycle helmet. Just imagine yourself:  Sitting pretty wearing your pink hibiscus helmet, riding your hibiscus motorcycle. Looking the the total opposite of bad-ass. Although this look definitely has potential to work if you are employed as a flower delivery person…….

#2. A surfboard. You could totally be one of the guys with this awesome surfboard with a floral motif. Except none of the guys would ever be caught dead riding your chicksauraus-maximus board.

#1. Cufflinks. One question: Why are these even necessary when you can buy cufflinks with ammo on them?

I just finished writing a long e-mail to my friend about my favorite things to do and see in San Francisco. I thought it would also make a good blog post. These are my top 5 things (that I can think of right now) to do in San Francisco, and the surrounding areas.

So…Other than the uber touristy requirements of eating chocolate at Ghirardelli, going on a tour of Alcatraz and getting a sourdough bread bowl with chowder at Fisherman’s Wharf, and then going to check out the Sea Lions…… (all those things I recommend, btw)

Samovar – A Tea House.
They have 3 locations, but I fell in love with the location in Yerba Buena Gardens. Its a great place to just sit and drink some tea. For a light lunch or a little snack, I highly suggest their cheese and fruit platter. Its little and light and perfect for a little zen moment. Some fruit, cheese, nice bread and some honey in the comb. Absolutely delish.

San Francisco Museum of Modern Art – AHhhht.
Practically across the street from Samovar. They have a pretty wide range of modern art, so even if you find alot of the stuff horribly shocking that it’s called art (i did), you’ll also definitely come across some stuff that you really love. Not a huge museum, and do-able in maybe 3 hours? I enjoyed spending an afternoon there, and their gift shop was fun to poke around in.

Chinatown and Dim Sum!
Yeah, Chinatown is pretty touristy, but its fun to poke around shops and getting dim sum is a MUST on a saturday or sunday morning! I can’t remember where I ate, but I started my walk at the big gate on Grant Ave at Bush Street, and I walked north on Grant. I think most restaurants on Grant are often marked up and more touristy, so look down the side streets until you find a place that looks interesting. That’s what D and I did, and we ended up in a totally packed place where we were the only gringos, and the waitresses didn’t speak any english. Luckily with dim sum you just point to what you want off their carts.

Asia SF – Dinner and drinks with talented dancers of the transgendered variety
I think I’ve gone here every time I’ve been in San Francisco, starting with a girl’s weekend trip with my Mom. Reservations are a good idea. It is awesome!!!! Dinner is good, but can be pricey. I think they have a prix fixe type menu thingie. The bartenders have always been great with helping me make a mixed drink decision, in addition to their sake and wine menus.  And don’t even get me started on the lady dancers of AsiaSF!!!! Most real women can’t even stand in 6 inch stripper shoes and here these ladies are, dancing in them on top of the bar to the latest Britney Spears songs. It’s a truly an awesome sight to behold.

Wine Country - Sonoma and Napa Valleys
Do it. I recommending having either a designated driver, or doing using a tour company. I’ve done both, and prefer having a DD, but the tour was pretty nice as well. We got to go to places that weren’t open to the public, and there weren’t a ton of annoying super tourists… I just don’t recommend doing the drinking & driving route. The pourers can have heavy hands.   Wineries I recommend: Domaine Chandon (great champagne, and beautiful landscaping) and Mumm (also great champagne). If you’re driving, I suggest driving up the main drag in Sonoma Valley, Rt.12, i think? and then crossing over at the top and going back down through Napa Valley on rt. 29. And just stop into whatever wineries strike your fancy.

It’s been a while since I’ve written a book review. Probably since most of my recent reads have been trashy romance… erm… I mean “historical-romance novels”. But as of late, I discovered my local library’s graphic novel section… So I picked up a few, and a couple were really good.

My fav thus far: Pyongyang: A Journey in North Korea, by Guy Delisle.

Guy Delisle is an animator who has traveled to many countries through his work…. Helping direct & manage jobs that get outsourced to other countries where its cheaper to employ animators. His graphic novel Pyongyang is about the time that he spent working in North Korea. It’s really faciniating. You rarely hear such indepth reporting from outsiders about what life is like in Korea. Its especially interesting in graphic novel form, since outsiders are forbidden from photographing so many things, Guy had a great advantage as an illustrator, being able to depict his experiences.

His experience with the locals there is surprising, although not entirely unexpected. How there is no opposition to the regime, and how noone ever says anything against their country. The idea of that is just so foreign to me. It’s something I love about the US.  While I have many issues with how many things are handled in my country, I just can’t even imagine such total domination over a country’s population.  The book Pyongyang made everything seem just so “1984“.

In general, I recommend all people to check this book out. It’s very thought provoking to say the very least, and it certainly makes me want to learn more about North Korea’s history and the US’s relationship with them. The book is available at Amazon.com, or see if you can borrow it at your local library.

I think I’m going to start a new series of posts on my blog. Screw “Oprah’s Favorite Things”. It’s ALL about Emma’s Favorite Things. I have WAY better taste than her anyways.

Now that we’ve got that cleared up. My first fav thing is going to be Green Bamboo scented candles from Yankee Candle.

A lot of the Yankee Candles smell terrible. Their pumpin pie spice scent is utterly nauseating & makes me want to barf. In general I steer clear of all of their “food scents”. Anyways. The green bamboo scent is really nice. Light & spring-like.  Which is especially nice when it’s February & its hard to imagine anything ever growing or being green.

Image from Graphicshunt.com

It must be that time of the year again. Valentine’s Day. It’s a great day, especially now that I’m married & have a permanent date for it, of course. Although I usually liked it, even when I didn’t. When else do you have a day dedicated to flowers, chocolates & stuffed animals? A day when you can wear red, pink & white together and people won’t think that you’re “that” big of a freak. Perhaps I’m just a romantic.  But I dig the idea of a day that’s all about pampering other people, as well as being pampered yourself. It’s the I love Love day!

Anyways. I was at the grocery store today, and as usual on the day before Valentine’s day, the flower department was a mad house. Totally jam packed full of dudes, with wide-eyed stares. Think a deer looking into the headlights of a Mack truck and cross that with a gaggle of panicked zombies who just ran out of brains to nom on. It’s kinda crazy. Looking like they’ve never seen a flower, or been inside a grocery store before.

Really guys, come on. Chicksaurs like flowers, all flowers. It’s really hard to be doing something wrong if you have flowers in hand for your woman… (unless said woman is allergic… then you should consider chocolates instead, hehe.).  Any normal chick will be stoked to get anything that shows that you were thinking of her. Really. You could pick up a piece of gravel, and say “I thought this nub of rock was unique & beautiful & it reminded me of you.” and most girls will totally swoon all over it, and you, and keep said piece of gravel proudly on display… Seriously. We’re easy to please. Me? I just want some snuggle time with my man… And perhaps something of the chocolate flavored variety….

I don’t know if I have a point here, or anything….. Maybe it’s just a piece of advice to guys. Chillax. It’s cool. You will get through this day. Good luck & get out there & show some love.  Over and out.

This is my new favorite blog. Hill-frickin-larious!

Is it just me, but does this Barbie Doll set have very inappropriate sexual undertones?

I came across this doll in a local Toys R’ US. Normally Idon’t have a big issue with Barbie dolls that are dressed like hookers, although do I think that Barbies create an unrealistic body image ideal for impressionable young girls, but that’s another whole post. This one, however I find exceeding creepy with a predatory wolf eyeing up a hooker-ish Little Red Riding Hood. I’m just saying, none of the childrens’ books that I ever read depicted Little Red Riding Hood as wearing fish-net thigh highs and spiked heels. The whole box just kinda screams ” Totally Illegal Jail Bait Barbie & Sexual Predator Ken/Wolf”, you know?

Oh look. You can buy it online too… Oh. And it’s recommended for ages 6 and up. Something about that is just VERY not right. Is it just me?