Caffeine
I’m not really much of a coffee drinker. At home, I use starbucks via for guests since I don’t have a machine. I do have an aeropress that I use very rarely. I do however, enjoy tea in the morning, and sometimes later in the day as well. I was recently turned on to stash. Their Irish breakfast tea is pretty good. I generally prefer English breakfast tea, but I like to keep both on hand. Check out their amazon reviews. Pretty impressive.
I’m in the office today. I have developed a taste for coffee with chicory, so I bought some k-cups. In my opinion, these have a more pronounced chicory flavor than cafe du monde. Its very rich, heavy, and a tad sweet. I’m a fan.
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TV News
I’ve had PBS Newshour record on my dvr the last couple weeks. Its supposed to be TV news without talking points, and about as centrist/objective as possible. The state of TV news is pretty depressing, but so far, I’ve thought PBS Newshour has been pretty good. I like to throw it on while I’m eating breakfast, or while my wife is getting ready for bed.
Update***
Speaking of news, check out these crazy pictures from Kiev:
http://www.theatlantic.com/infocus/2014/02/bloody-battles-in-kiev/100684/
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V and Prez Day catchup
For Vday, the wife and I went to Sea Pearl in Merrifield. Despite how close it is to us, it was the first time we’d been. The ginger smash (shorter drink) was so good I’d order it again. That said, I was not overly impressed by anything but the company. It was very good, but not great. I found a review here I believe to be pretty fair. Then we went to the angelika film center and saw the Monuments Men. If you like history, I’d recommend it. We also watched the USA Russia olympic hockey match. Amazing.
We went house shopping with my sister in Old Town, and went to Overwood. I had southern eggs benedict. The southern part consisted of fried green tomatoes on the bottom. Delicious. Monday night my wife made homemade bread and then grilled cheese and tomato soup. Can’t beat the classics.
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Sound Body
Swimsuit season will quickly be upon us. House of Cards season two was just released on netflix. What better time for a post about rowing. This time, I’ll focus on indoor rowing, but once the Potomac’s water temp reaches 55 degrees, I’ll be on the water.
* Update, click here for my picture heavy post about the first row of the season!
Frank Underwood likes the natural feel of water resistance, but I prefer the model I grew up using, the Concept 2. I would definitely recommend trying a rowing machine out at the gym before purchasing one. I rowed in high school, but as a coxswain, my technique didn’t need to be all that great. Add a decade of not rowing, and then jump back into it, and you’ve got a recipe for injury. I managed to tweak my back last season, but I’m easing myself back into it. To be clear, I believe I hurt my back rowing an actual boat, not training. I don’t think that the rowing machine is any more or less dangerous than any other machine at the gym. I do believe that the potential benefits of rowing certainly outweigh the risks. My friend that learned to row last year loves it, and fully intends to join me on the water again this year.
If you’re looking to get into the sport, Thompson Boat Center in Georgetown has a great learn to row program that gets you on the water the second day of class. I did this class last year with a friend (pictured below), and it was a blast. Upon graduation, you qualify to rent sculls and go out on your own.
If you do decide to give indoor rowing a try, make sure you get someone at your gym to explain proper technique to you, and this video won’t hurt either (***Update, my back has healed, and is good to go):
If you’ve rowed before, then you may know the basics, but its always good to have a refresher on what not to do. This may have helped me last season:
When I was rowing in high school, rage against the machine was pretty popular. It also made for great workout music. I’ll leave y’all with a video that I find quite apropos, and a short playlist to get you in the workout mood.
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Snow Day Part II
After working from home all day, I got to shovel the vehicles out. It took longer than expected.
Then we took a walk to dinner.
Since my wife saw the chicken and waffles post from earlier in the week and got jealous, I took her to Dogwood Tavern to rectify the situation. We started with fried green tomatoes (not as good as homemade or in season), and then had chicken and waffles with peppered maple syrup. The beer, which was delicious, was some kind of schwarzbier. Also the collards, insane.
No snowmen or snowball fights, but all and all, a good day.
The next morning I had to use some 4wd to get out.
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Snow Day Part I
We went out to get some lunch, and enjoy the snow. Turns out the bike path had become a ski path.
I had some US Olympic hockey on the dvr, so I thought, America:
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Chicken and Waffles
I went into DC for a meeting the other day. On the way back, I walked though Farragut Square, and saw some food trucks. I don’t usually work near food trucks, so I don’t get to enjoy many. As luck would have it, I came across the truck I’ve most been looking forward to trying.
I went with the classic combo.
A sweet and savory delight. If you’re ever in DC, and come across the capital chicken and waffle truck, go for the classic combo. Or better yet, don’t leave it to fate:
@CapitalCW
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Experiential Learning
I posted the other day about starting Bacardi and the Long Fight for Cuba on my kindle. I made good on my promise of a Cuban themed evening:
I picked out my last Monte #2. This stick has been in my humidor for a good while, so it needed to be smoked. I figured this was as good a time as any. And because you can’t have a Monte without rum (though I’m sure I’ve broken that rule a time or two)…:
I paired it with some HC7. I lit up the pyramid took a sip of rum, and got into the book.
All three were amazing. On the first puff, you get that unmistakable flavor. Then a sip of the rum gives you a fairly light body, but rich dark molasses, smoke, and spices. The book kept me turning the pages.
When the cigar got down to about the size of a Fuente WOA, it really hit the sweet spot. The book got into the 1920s, and I went to find some coke. I mixed myself a cuba libre (relax, why not) and finished the chapter and cigar. A great cigar, great rum, and great book made for an amazing evening.
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Weekend Cooking
This weekend I got a wild hair to do some cooking. I started with Salmon steak and a simple salad with balsamic and olive oil. Nothing fancy, just quality ingredients and not overcooking the salmon.
Then Sunday evening I had dinner with the family. I got my dad a pizza stone recently we hadn’t broken in, so I decided to make some fig and goat cheese pizza with prosciutto. I had the wife make some dough beforehand, and grab the groceries. I looked a few receipes for inspiration, but I’m not really one for directions. I made four pizzas, each different. For two, I marinated the figs (two kinds) in red wine, shallots, garlic, and rosemary. For the other two, I just put the figs on. I forgot to put prosciutto on one. I put soft goat cheese on two, and crumbled goat cheese on the others. I intended to put arugula on all of them, but it looks like I remembered it on two.
We also got to break in my mom’s new pots and pans.
My sister’s dog was up to no good, as usual.
After getting the dough into shape, I’d brush with olive oil, and cook one side on the grill. Then I’d bring it back in to load it up with toppings. This gives it a better chance to cook the crust evenly.
I tried to stay warm with two heaters going. The finished product:
As you can tell, I’m more from the Chicago school (pizza not econ in this instance) when it comes to toppings. Everything was awesome. If you have a grill, get a pizza stone and give it a try. I don’t recall what recipes I looked at, but this pizza looks pretty good. It reminds me that I also caramelized some vidalias on the pizzas I made.
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