Year in Review - Part I

I was going to write a big old post about how I almost forgot it was my day today and how I'm leaving early & feeling guilty about not finishing this work this year, and blah blah blah. But I realized, hey, it's the last business day (and hence, last regularly scheduled blog day) of 2006. So let's take a look back at some of the best and worst of 2006 . . . .

(Sorry in advance for not having specific links to these - you'll just have to scroll down to the appropriate day).

Friday, January 13 The hottest chick in the airport bar with man hands who will soon, without her knowledge, be immortalized on t-shirts across the nation.

Monday, January 23 The birth of the national obsession with blow job shots, and the birth of a legend (what do you mean 'what legend'? Me and my big mouth, dumbass).

Wednesday, February 1 HaterTot's, er, hoagies, get cut down to mere burgers.

Wednesday, February 15 Most responded to posting of the first 6 months of 2006 - 175 from the Bride's post!!! And, naturally, it's about pet peeves (is it any surprise that the Bride used to be known as Hater??). We are nothing if not a bunch of pissed-off bloggers.

Friday, February 24 OWFL goes way international - all the way to the home of kimchi.

Friday, March 3 OWFL commenting possibly hits an all-time low with 7 comments.

Wednesday, March 8 The first discussion (possibly?) of street vendor food.

Friday, March 17 Another legend is born as LizTurtle's muff makes it's first appearance at a BB HH.
Monday, March 27 The first animal blog. Aw, kitties are so cute!

Monday, April 3 Yet another OWFL legend is born - this time having nothing to do with LizTurtle! Yes, it's . . . UNI'S ASSCAKE!!!!

Friday, April 7 The first offical OWFL conference begins in Washington, DC. (See Thursday, April 13 for full recap with pictures.) Items on agenda: Watchdog welcomed as full-fledged OWFL poster. Schedule, the bane and nirvana of many people's blogging existence.

Tuesday, April 11 One of my personal favorites - lots of pictures to look at - lunchbox posting!

Sunday, April 16 Longest. Post. Ever. And who says HaterTot doesn't have a soft spot?

Monday, May 8 Short-lived experiment with 'Side-Order' posting begins.

Monday, May 22 First post entirely in a different language.

Friday, June 16 BONNAROOOOOOOO!!! Also, combined posting makes people think HaterTot had invaded Lady A's body with all the cursing & effing the czar.

Saturday, June 17 LaChoi returns and kicks TAFKALC out on her (juicy) ass!!!

Monday, June 19 Madame Presidente plots and commits a coup d'etat - deposing the czar, but graciously allowing him to return from exile in Tennessee or wherever the fuck Bonnaroo is held.
Wednesday, June 21 Best. Post. Ever. What was it? Peep ham plank?

Ok, you know what? I've been working on this post for an hour and I know I didn't even scratch the surface of the first 6 months of this year. So I will let someone else review the 2nd 6 months (b/c hey, this year ain't over yet - we still got NYE to do). So tell us, y'all - what was your favorite OWFL moment this year? What was your favorite post? Or hell, your least favorite? What new catch-phrase has been burned into your mind forever because of us degenerates (and, you're welcome!)? And, of course, the burning question we all live for, WFL on this final business day of 2006?

Missing Miso

Miso is slacking and I'm wondering if Peep is locked out of the apartment again in good ol' ROC. Hope not, but if he's not then...WTF?? :)

I have no topic for today, just want to get the ball rolling for any of you guys actually working this week. Today will be a hectic day, we are at the end of the year so we are flooded with last minute donations from all the rich folk who want to get a last minute tax deduction. And all I can think about right now is that I will be in desperate need of a drink post work. AND for the DC crew we only have a few short days before this fine city goes non-smoking. I feel the need to indulge in lots of cigarettes indoors while we can. Who's in??? Angles?

Of course don't forget...WFL????!!!!

Dial-up? Seriously?

In the immortal words of that sage and poet Bing Crosby, "I'll be home for Christmas." In fact, I am home, and it was for Christmas. And, what to my wondering eyes should appear but a dial-up connection, upload time's like a year. So, no pictures today.

The technological backwater of my mother's house is begging to be incorporated in to some tenuously related lunch post. Something along the lines of: "What sort of things did you think were perfectly acceptable, maybe even cool as hell, ten years ago that you cannot even countenance now?" or "Is there any place you like to go for lunch from time to time specifically because it takes forfuckingever to get what you want?"

But, that's not what I came to talk about. I came to talk about down home.

Today, I end my visit home to coastal Georgia by taking a little half-day drive up to that great big Capital City known as Atlanta. Of course, I'm only driving up there because I have a flight to catch tomorrow morning that will take me to Austin where the better part of a week of New Years celebratin' will give way to a three-day Austin-Biloxi-Atlanta-DC road trip to ease me back in to the new working year.

With all that driving ahead of me AND so much of it through God's Country, I have a whole mess of roadside barbecue joints on my mind. As a starter list, there are these places across the state, which includes a joint right down the road from my mom's house that gives me the shits every time I go there (but tastes SO good that I keep going back). Once out in Texas, I guarandamntee at least one of my hangover brunches will stand on the shoulders of the royal figure mentioned first in this article. I won't pretend to even begin knowing what sort of unfamiliar wonders await me as I spend three days cutting across Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, the Carolinas, and Virginia, but I'm all sorts of excited to see it.

So, how about you, OWFLers? Any down-home roadside establishments that you would cross county lines for? Any favorite haunts you visit every time you make that drive to Michigan or downstate? And, of course, WFL, y'all?

Fuck Christmas... eh... Nevermind

Fuck Christmas, everyone!!!

I wonder how many of my fellow OWFLers will be checking in, and if we're lucky sharing tales of their Christmas feasts.

As everyone by now knows, I hate Christmas. And, holidays in general. (excepting of course the Fourth of July and my Birthday, and Easter) However, my Christmas hatred has degenerated into plain, old, boring apathy. While the strains of another shit-soaked Christmas ballad are likely to get my hatred going, for the most part, I simply don't care. Other than the animated steaming coffee mug in the corner of the screen, I could be watching Footloose on VH1 (as I'm doing now) on any Saturday afternoon at any time throughout the year. The only difference is today I'm home in Pittsburgh, wearing pjs and a sweater, freezing my ass off and later I'll eat steak and lobster in an effort to pretend to be festive.

So, I'm feeling rather blah, blah, blah; less "Eff Jesus" and more, "Jesus who?"

If any OWFLers are out there, share with us tales of your holiday eats, holiday travels, holiday travails or whatever else is going on. I know that at least two of you are blissfully free from familial obligation this holiday, one of you making turkey legs, the other making rosemary chicken. What is everyone else doing?

Merry Christmas OWFL, or whatever... WWJHfL? (What Would Jesus Have for Lunch?)

diz is a cruisin'

diz im'd me with the following:

diz: can you post for me?
la choi: ok. about what?
diz: just tell them i'm on a cruise.
la choi: so, tropical foods? where you docking at?
diz: cabo, puerto vallarta, etc.

i don't know what the friggin' topic is actually. let's just talk about where we'd rather be now and what we'd rather be eating at that magical place we all want to be at.

WFL suckas?

Person of the year

First off, Diz, if you have a post to put up, Please do, I'll pull this one down.

I mentioned it a comment yesterday, but I think we deserve a post on the topic.

We are Time magazine's person of the year.

We are bloggers (and to a lesser extent youtubers)

Congratulations OWFL. This is the highest honor we could get with the exception of People's sexiest man alive and that jack ass George Clowney already took the 2006 honors for that.

SO as the person of the year, what kind of treatment would you expect? What will the person of the year have for lunch today?

Is anybody out there?

quickie

The czar sends his apologies for his no-show ass....he's "busy".... ;)

And I am not prepared with an interesting topic....so just let the wild rumpus lunching discussion begin!

If anyone has a certain topic in mind then throw it out there!

WFL bitches???!

I'll Devour Any MC As If He Were a Snack !!

EAT SOME BEANS AND VERY SOON

EVERYBODY IN THE PLACE WOULD LEAVE THE ROOM
AND FOR SOME REASON I CAN'T REVEAL
SO PASS ME A BANANA SO I CAN PEAL!
SLIDE TO THE KITCHEN
STUFF MY FACE
LEAVIN NOT ONE CRUMB IN THE PLACE

CUZ I CAN BUST WITH RAPS
BACK TO BACK
AND I'LL DEVOUR ANY MC AS IF HE WERE A SNACK
I'LL EAT AND EAT AND DRINK AND DRINK
AND I'LL TELL YOU ONE THING MY BREATH DON'T STINK


CUZ I BEAT SO FUNKY
LIKE A BIG FAT MONKEY
AND IT TASTES SO GOOD LIKE AN ALMOND JOY
CUZ I'M BIG AND BAD
MEAN AND BOLD
CUZ MY NAME IS MARKIE DEE
AND I'M A FAT BOY!!

THE FAT BOYS ARE BACK
AND YOU KNOW THEY CAN NEVER BE WHACK!



Man i really loved the Fat Boys back in '86. It's sad to say that this was probably my introduction to hip hop and well, beat boxing. It wasn't, however, my introduction to eating. It was just a good excuse to sit down to Disorderlies and plow through a large pizza and a cheeseburger.

There is something about music themed around food. It's never very serious. Why is that? Can't I shed a tear for that perfect steak AND heartbreak?

So i ask you today to come up with some of your favorite songs about the eats and give us some of their tantalizing lyrics to wash our daily sammy down with.

And while you're at it, WFL???

Down-time lunching

Sorry y'all, I have all day training and just now saw that it was my day to post.

As this is one of those really dead weeks, it might be a good time to take longer lunches and go to places that normally are so busy you shy away.

For me, I like those Potbelly sandwiches, both for taste and price, but damn in that line isn't literally out the door of the establishment. So I think i'll get one of those this week.

Also, in the spirit of the holidays, perhaps its also a good week to have a beer or other drink with lunch.

So on these down weeks where lots of people are out of the office, how will you alter your lunching habits?

And what are you doing today?

Shit

I slept in and totally forgot I had the post today, so I have no topic to speak of. (Why did I give myself a Monday on the sched?!) There's a mushy idea about portable foods in my head, that I don't think I've thought about enough to fully articulate.

Well, let's see. Talk about portable food. Food for the on-the-go, wo/man-about-town. What kinds of foods do you eat when you're wandering around? On the road? Running errands and too busy to stop and sit down for a proper meal?

Me? I lead a life of leisure. I always have time to stop and eat. Plus, I'm way too uncoordinated to eat and walk at the same time.

And, WFL?

Ummm.....Ewwww

Ok, so we've discussed food that grosses us out and things that we swear we'll never try. Or that we have tried and will never do so again. But what are some of the foods that we've seen other people eat that you find as a complete turn off? What are your foodie deal breakers?? Was it that hot guy who took you out on an anticipated date who proceeded to pour maple syrup all over a dish of spaghetti, or that fine young lady who dipped her fish and chips in chocolate syrup?

What are some of your odd eating habits that have disturbed others to the point of claiming that you have just lost some serious cool points for delving into some culinary oddity? FYI - if you ever hang out with earthquake, don't eat dill pickles dipped in bleu cheese dressing and buffalo wing sauce.

And of course...WFL???

Hooky Eatin'

Isn't it sad that you can't say for sure you haven't worked in this specific cubicle?

So I'm taking today off of work. The nice thing about playing hooky from work is that you can just straight up say "I'm taking Wednesday off. No, no reason. Just gonna walk around, do some touristy stuff while there's none of those pesky tourists around, maybe do some Christmas shopping, have a beer with lunch (oh yeah)." There's none of the fear of being caught. Which, maybe, makes it not worthwhile for some of you (you know who you are). Yes, we all love the exhileration of getting away with something. I can't be bothered to deal with that much stress, and it's much easier to say "I'm taking the day off" instead of trying to fake a cough/losing my voice in the morning. Which I would have to continue trying to fake the next day, b/c this cough/voice-loss that's going around sounds like a bitch to get a rid of. Anyways, the point is: what's a good hooky lunch? Since I'll be in the District, I'm going to take the opportunity to patronize at least one eatery I rarely have the chance to hit up. If I'm lucky, maybe I'll make it 2! While you're reading this (uh, for some of you), I'll be eating waffles at the soon-to-be-defunct Waffle Shop with our very own HaterTot (anyone want to meet us there at 10:00, you're more than welcome!). What's for lunch then? Probably a late lunch, as we're eating a) breakfast and b) eating it pretty late. So maybe around 2 we'll hit Ben's Chili Bowl or Ollie's Trolley. Or maybe the famous Breadline. I know nothing first-hand of these eateries. Yes, it's sad. So what's your favorite hooky lunch? Do you prefer the dive-type place or the sit-down special occasion place? Or maybe just that half-smoke cart you've never gotten to around the corner? And should I have 1 or 2 beers? And, of course, WFL today, you poor working stiffs?

holiday eats

hey all!

i know i haven't been as active on the blog lately. most of this is due to "the man" keeping la choi down. anyway, today is our work holiday potluck, and i brought one of the ultimate comfort foods: 5 cheese mac - a stick of butter, monterrey jack, sharp cheddar, mild cheddar, velveeta, muenster, half and half, and some egg went into making this beauty. it is a cholesterol lovers dream come true. however, i cannot take credit for this recipe as it was featured on oprah from the one and only patti labelle. damn, woman knows how to cook!



anyway, this got me to thinking about holiday eats. when you go home for the holidays (xmas, hannukah, winter solstice, kwanza, festivus), what do you have to have? what dish does your family/friends/loved one(s) make that causes you to drool uncontrollably with just the thought of devouring it? please tell us in great detail. consider this the holiday food porn post.

and also, don't forget to tell us WFL on this fine Tuesday in your neck o' the woods.

Meal Deals

I turned 31 yesterday, and it was a food filled weekend.

On Friday, I went to HH@BB and our friendly server, Bob gave us great deals on drinks. He gave us the regular happy hour prices and he threw in a few free drinks. He also gave us some of the best mixed nuts I've ever gotten in my mouth. He had them imported from Lebenon.

Saturday I went to Tonic and they have a great wine deal. Order 2 entre's and you get a free bottle of wine.

On my birthday proper, Little Miss Sunshine took me out to brunch at a place called Georgia Browns. It was great. There was a fantastic buffet with Fruit, Freedom toast, potatoes, grits, bacon, sausage, slow roasted turkey, ham, roast beef, lil' egg benedicts, made to order omlets, desert table, chocolate fountain. Now that buffet was wonderful on its own, but the real deal is that you also get to order a full on meal and they gladly prepare it to go. I got the fried chicken, and it was the best I've ever had.

I bring this up because I want to ask you, the respected bloggers here at OWFL what are some good meal deals that you know about. Get 10 sandwiches, get a free one? Free delivery with order of over $12.00? Free toy with over priced burger, fries, and small coke? Nickle pitcher night? Bottomless breadsticks? Please tell us of the meal deals you know about and let us know what You'll be having for lunch today.

And Happy un-birthday to us all.

Wanna get away?

So I'm burnt out at work and full of rage every time Balls opens her mouth. Exercise is non existent and my two primary food groups are camel (the filtered kind) and turkey (the wild kind). Between the suicidal drivers I share the road with and the brownish tint of the air, I have reason to believe that New Jersey is shortening my lifespan. Obvious solution?

Get the f*ck out of town.

Way the f*ck out: San Diego.

So for the Days of Christmas five through twelve (or Chanukah days three through ten), I'll be about as far away from snow as I can possibly get without finding my birth certificate. (Seriously, I've lost it… I truly am trapped in this militaristic state.) I plan on binge drinking with eurotrash at the hostel, saturating every pore with skin-chafing-wedding-dress-white sand and possibly dropping in to see Jeremy Enigk live.


I'm going to get away... most people vacation to get somewhere.

• "Oooh, I've never been to Paris, let's go to France!"
  
• "Elvis was a god! Nashville, here I come."
• "I live for boobies and sin—how much did you say that flight to Las Vegas was?"
• "Why can't these foreigners learn english?"
  
  

Rarely cited as the justification for an overpriced plane ticket, the meals I've had while vacationing have consistently been my most vivid (and cherished) memories. Mmmm, that first time I tried hush puppies and sweet tea… that Dim Sum in SF where we ordered curried chicken claws… the Popeye's chicken that saved us from certain death in Gettysburg… all those lovely coconuts at that luau and how much I wanted to put them in my mouth….


I could go on forever but I guess I'll save a few for actual comments. So tell me, my fellow OWFLers, what have been your most memorable meals on vacation? What's your opinion on fish tacos? Do you know where my Birth Certificate is? And of course. . . WFL???

I'm on 'E'

I'm in the red. The little arrow on the Czar's gas tank is squarely on E and I can't wait any longer for Miss Miso to post.

As I said up top, my tank is dry and I am walking out to fill it as soon as I publish this post. Unfortunately this means I will probably grab the first edible thing I see and start noshing, or I'll get to a place and spend way too much on way too much food as mine eyes grow exponentially with the emptiness of mine tummy.

Tell us what you eat when you get into the red, and what you're eating today.

And give miso a nice jab for deserting us while you're at it.

WFL?

The value of good service

GG said she would be unable to post today. I don't know if anybody traded with her, so I'll put up a provisional post to get discussions started, since lunch is quickly approaching on the East Coast.

With yesterday's celebration of OWFLs favorite server, it brings us back to the question of service quality.

Does that plain burger taste better when your Hooter's waitress winks at you?

Is that wonderful steak less great if the waiter is a jerk?

How does the service at your lunch joint impact the quality of your lunch?

We've probably discussed this before, but I just thought it would be appropriate after yesterday's celebration.

I still hate the schedule...

I hate it. I hate it. I hate it.

Who’s in charge of reminding people when it’s their turn to post!?!?!? I require at least two day’s notice.

Peeso totally blew me off this weekend. It was in my city for several days. Ummm...who got peeP to start coming to the blog in the first place, where he met his fiancée/fiancé (which one's the dude?) Anyway, not even a lunch. Boy do I feel appreciated.

Please admonish Peeso and tell them WFL?

(Sorry about the lame post, folks. Well, not really. Wait until I find out whose fault this is…)

Celebrate an OWFL Legend

This is not the post for Tuesday.

Bob, the gentle man server at the famed Bravo Bravo is havng a drink with us to show his respect to his favorite customers. What an honor this is. Please make some time in your schedule to come by and enjoy a drink with the guy that keeps us coming back week after week.

Details:
We are meeting him on Tuesday December 5 between 5-5:30 in the bar of The Indian Experience (formerly known as The Ascot).

For those of you who don't know it is located on the corner of 17th and L Street NW.

See you there.

No comments please

Slippery Slopes

A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.

The mighty oak starts as a lowly acorn.

The thin edge of a wedge is never all that far from the thick edge.

If you let a camel put its nose in your tent, you soon have a camel in your tent.

Give 'em an inch; they'll take a mile.

We're good people. Really, we are. We never set out to let things get out of hand:
- "I'll stop by and have one beer."
- "It's just a summer fling."
- "Why shouldn't I have my own photo shoot? He promised it would be tasteful."
- "That blog is so dumb."

But, we are good constantly evolving people; the future tense and the past tense rarely match up exactly:
- "Gimme two fucking jumbo slices, goddammit."
- "Of course you should move in with me!"
- "Please. Just don't get it in my eye."
- "Announcing the PeeSo wedding."

In keeping with my tradition of confessional posts, I want to share something with you, my comrades-in-lunch: I hate mustard. I really, truly hate mustard, especially that godawful, unnaturally colored yellow shit. What viler substance could one create to inflict on otherwise delectable foodstuffs? When I was a little kid, I always dreaded those occasions when someone else's parents would procure McDonald's meals for me. My cheeseburger always showed up with mustard (and pickle! but that's another story), and the mustard would make me gag. I couldn't eat a burger with mustard on it. I couldn't eat anything with mustard on it. Sure, I suppose part of it was being a picky eater, but I remember how strong my reaction to that taste was. I really couldn't stand to have it in my mouth, much less long enough to chew it and swallow it. In my adult life, I have explored (usually by accident) various other offerings of the mustard class, and I have consistently found them to be unacceptable. Mostly, because I hate mustard.

Or, so I thought.

You will recall that I made one of my semi-annual pilgrimages to Chicago for my family gathering around the Thanksgiving feast. You may further recall that I drove a friend of mine to Milwaukee that Wednesday evening in order to keep from overdosing on family too early in the game. (Let's here it for pressure-relief valves!) On the drive back from Milwaukee, I realized that I had missed most of the dinner windows at relatives' houses in the Greater Chicagoland Area so I decided I should pick something up on my way in to town. I decided to hit the Portillo's near Old Orchard. I wound up in the drive-thru because it was so crowded inside, and I wanted to keep my order simple since I'm not intimately familiar with the menu and didn't want to clog up the line like the stupid bitch in front of me kept doing. I briefly weighed my options and ordered a jumbo dog with everything on it.

And, to my shock and dismay, I really really liked it, mustard (and relish!) and all.

So, lately I've been reevaluating my food prejudices. At the same time, I've been scaring myself by peering down the long path on which my hot dog epiphany may have started me. (Sweet Jesus, please tell me there will never be a day when I consider a deviled egg to be something worthy of being put in my mouth.)

My consequent question for you today is: have you ever had any similar breakthroughs (perhaps setbacks) with a food item? Ever wake up one day to discover that your taste buds were not the buds you thought you knew? Did that lead to an uneasy detente or an exponential progression? Any items that you will swear up and down today that you will never ever love?

And, of course, WFL?

The First OWFL Wedding...

so, what kind of lunch spread would everyone like to see at peep and miso's wedding??



P.S: Thanks to all of OWFL for all of the teasing, the advice, the trying to sneak up and take pictures of us kissing but missing and getting the plant instead, and the love (yes HT, thats LOVE)...


love you guys, miso & peep!

ok, enough with the mush...WFL?