ebk57

Lovely interview with Leslie Jones today in the NYT: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/20/arts/television/leslie-jones-interview-saturday-night-live.html?hp&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&clickSource=story-heading&module=second-column-region&region=top-news&WT.nav=top-news&_r=0

Damn. Saw him in a show headlined by Tom Smothers a few years ago. A life well lived.

Game was delayed a perfect amount of time for us to finish a couple bottles of wine and a fabulous dinner! And then, a walk-off grand slam! All in all, a damn perfect birthday!!

Best birthday ever!!!! Thanks Manny Machado!

Going to my favorite near-the-ballpark place tonight for my pre-game birthday dinner - Sobo Cafe. If any of you are near the Federal Hill 'hood in Baltimore, eat there. It's wonderful, and the staff is so friendly!

The stagehand walking out at the end and throwing the roses down on the ground during the bows was great.

Got great lower box seats to the game tonight for my birthday - and it's supposed to rain. Lots o' rain. Ah well, at least there will be dinner before the endless rain delay...

Is this where someone pops in and says "round is a shape"? No? Okay, I'll show myself out.

I usually prefer stemware, too. However, I discovered a few months ago that the plastic sippy cups they serve wine in in Broadway theatres is quite practical. We saw Sunday in the Park With George at the newly renovated Hudson Theatre. It's gorgeous! The seats are even relatively comfy. So I got a glass of wine before the show started, and it was in a glass - with a stem! How classy!! Then... I couldn't put it down anywhere during the entire first act because the floor slopes. And it's hard to put stemware between your knees so you can applaud. Therefore, they lost the sale of another glass of wine at intermission. I've decided I like the souvenir sippy cups, no matter how gauche!

My DVR recording cut out in the middle of Keenan as LeVar Ball. I'm very familiar with the Ball family drama, so I think Keenan was spot on, as far as I saw. We tried to find the rest on OnDemand, but it doesn't seem to be there. I'll hopefully be able to find the rest on YouTube somewhere. I loved what I saw and agree that Uday and Qusay were the highlight of the show. Looking forward to next week!

Dinner tonight at Osteria Morini near Nats Park. We had sopressata, smoked trout, and gorgonzola dolce cheese for the antipasti. I had the pappardelle with duck ragu. And we had a bottle (or 2) of Montepulciano di Conero 'Piancarda' | Garofoli. It's been a fine few days of food. To be followed up by my birthday dinners week!

Today, for something completely different, I will be going to the Nats game. Yay...I guess.

I was a little hesitant about the cream part of the onion soup, but it wasn't heavy at all. It was stunning! On my bucket list, too. I don't even live that far away, but it's an occasion place. So I guess I need to make up an occasion :-) It was rich. Really rich. You could taste the aged parmesan but it didn't overwhelm the dish. The whole thing came together quite well, much to my surprise. A pleasant surprise. I'd actually consider going back next year if Mr ebk does the convention again. Just to eat at Fat Canary, because there's not much else going on in Williamsburg once you've done the colonial amusement park.

Ate at Fat Canary in Williamsburg, VA tonight. Started with a cream of onion soup topped with a variety of mushrooms. Delicious!! Entree was Guinea Fowl with Parmesan Gnocchi, Garlic Rapini and Charred Tomato. Dessert was Parmesan ice cream with figs and a port wine reduction. And there may have been a couple of glasses of a rose from Provence. A fabulous meal!!! And, I'll never eat again.

Billy Bragg and Joe Henry put out an album of train songs last year that I love. Here's their cover of Gentle on My Mind. I don't think I ever realized when I was a kid how sad this song is... and so beautiful.

I'm out of town for a couple of days and really hope my DVR picks this up after football. If not, at least I have you all here to keep me up to date!!

I know - quoting yourself may cause blindness, but... I GOT A TICKET!!!!! I'm thrilled - and I'll report back!!

I drank Mateus (loved the bottle!) and... Yago Sangria. Ouch. I think the alcohol varies depending on how the vineyard makes its wine. There are plenty of dry wines with low alcohol content and the other way around. Any competent wine store staffer should be able to help you decide.

She was remarkable. I know she's been ill for a while, but I'm really sad about this. And then, Glen Campbell had to die on the same day. Stupid day.

Damn. I don't get into town until the next day. Timing...

Nice article today about Jost and Che and the upcoming show https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/michael-che-and-colin-jost-are-back-for-more-trump-jokes-whether-they-like-it-or-not/2017/08/08/bc61b954-7b65-11e7-a669-b400c5c7e1cc_story.html?utm_term=.cf3ab4da9772

This was one of the stories in my daily Tasting Table email. It seems impossible...as the comments say. https://www.tastingtable.com/dine/national/halo-top-best-selling-ice-cream?utm_medium=email&utm_source=TT&utm_campaign=Daily&utm_content=Editorial

@ariel, I know you didn't ask me, but if I may recommend a couple: Beiler Pere et Fils Rose Provence ($12 at my Total Wine) Chemin des Sables IGP Cotes Revees ($10 at my Total Wine) E. Guigal Cotes-du-Rhone (around $15) In the broadest generalities, I like French Roses (Cotes du Provence, Cotes du Rhone) that are really pale in color. Ask the person at the wine store. They're pretty good at figuring things out. And if desperate, buy the one in the pretty bottle. That's worked for me in the past.

My wineaux friend and I discovered the "summer of rose" a few years ago and now continue the tradition annually. It's a lovely drink! As for "white zin" and "wine merlot", they're really quite terrible (and there's really no such thing as "white zin"), but I do have to admit that "white zin" was my gateway to drinking actual wine about 30 years ago. So I suppose it served a good purpose!!

Ya know, I was about to say send it to me, but then I remembered that I'll be in NY for Aroldis Chapman bobblehead day...and I don't even care to go. So, garbage can works.