Housewarming/Job Promotion/Non-Hermit Party

Last night I had a few friends over for a housewarming/job promotion/non-hermit party. If you recall this post from April, I promised to update my blog with pictures of my new place after I was all settled in. Well, I live like a lost boy and I needed a party to motivate me to unpack my last box and hang some art on the walls. When I told Anna that I was thinking about hosting a party, she generously offered to bring homemade egg rolls. I then ran with an Asian theme. I served chicken satay with a Thai peanut dipping sauce, edamame, and fruit. Melina brought a heavenly pear pie, Jill treated everyone to her famous mango pie, and Audrey completed the spread with a chocolate cake. 

Here is a photo timeline of the party. Emma took most of the pictures, so the perspective is that of a 7-year-old:

The party started with general milling about. Despite the presence of wine glasses, Melina instinctively went to pour her wine in a red cup :)

Then everyone sampled the food. I was pretty proud of myself for slicing the limes banquet style. 

Can you see the love in these egg rolls? They were sooo good, thanks Anna!

Next, there was pleasant party conversation. Sorry Jill, only Audrey and Bryan made the cut for this picture. I had to crop you out because your eyes were closed. 

Joe and Anna

Super cute Melina and Chris. Middle class white boys everywhere envy Chris' footwear. 

Here are two pictures of the desserts. Katie, Melina's pear pie is a lot like our apple pie. So, if you want to do a fun twist on the pie try substituting pears (I would cut the baking 

time in half if you use canned pears).  

Emma and I being silly after dessert

James and Lindsye 

Finally, my guests started to fall asleep and everyone went home. Overall, everything went pretty well. I was the only one who spilled anything and only Audrey got lost trying to find my apartment. Thanks for coming guys, I hope you enjoy reading this post at work!

Review: It's On with Alexa Chung

A week ago, I had a nasty eye infection that caused me to be home around lunch time. Somehow I stumbled onto MTV's new daytime talk show "It's On with Alexa Chung." The last show I kind of watched on MTV was Laguna Beach. I really have no idea what is going on with the kids these days, so I decided to give MTV a little bit of my time. Well, I must say that this new show (debuted June 15th)  is pretty good for what it is. What makes this show work is the host Alexa Chung. Ms. Chung is a 25 year-old former model from London (her mother is British and father, Chinese).  She also dates someone from the band Arctic Monkey's. Overall, she is pretty likable for an ex-model. Alexa possesses that British charm Americans love and she is refreshingly low-key for a daytime tv personality. She doesn't scream like Trya or annoy me like Kelly Rippa. We get it Kelly, you're a Jersey girl whose wildest dreams came true. Congrats, now please keep it to yourself. Alexa is the kind of celebrity that people think they could be friends with in real life. 

The format of the show is familiar: talk about celebrities, discuss some headlines, make fun of twitter/facebook/youtube, and interview a couple of guests. The stuff I saw regarding twitter and fb wasn't too original, but Alexa was able to keep the show moving forward. Right when I was about to change the channel, adorable Bradley Cooper came on to promote The Hangover. Their rapport was good. Alexa appears very comfortable around celebrities. Actually, she was much more comfortable with Bradley Cooper than when she interacted with her dorky studio audience. 

The purpose of this show is to be the new TRL. However, I think that the time of day this show airs is awkward. Who is MTV marketing to? College girls and hip stay at home moms? TRL worked because it aired when kids were home from school. I don't know how many viewers MTV can steal from Live With Regis and Kelly and Rachel Ray.  I know that MTV wants a new daytime hit, but Alexa's laid back style might be better suited for late night. But that time slot is already crowded with two Late Shows, The Daily Show/Colbert Report, and Chelsea Lately. Really, I don't know where to put this girl.  Anyways, if you are home sick and want something to watch for an hour at 12:00 p.m./11:00 a.m. EST/CST check out "It's On" on MTV. 

Here's a pic and video of Alexa Chung. She really looks so familiar. I must have seen her in some ad campaign/trashy celebrity magazine or something. 

MTV Shows

Dinner, globe trotting, midgets, and vampires

Last night, my friend Jill hosted dinner at her new house. Jill and Emma, Jennifer and Matt, and yours truly all enjoyed each other's company and Jill's delicious vegetarian lasagna, a summer salad, cheesy garlic bread, and homemade frozen yogurt. It was all excellent. By the end of the evening, I was dating a vampire named Sean. Here are a few pics:

The lovely hostesses, Emma and Jill

My new favorite couple, Matt and Jennifer

Globe Trotting

After dinner Emma brought out her globe. Since she styled Matt's hair with numerous bows and headbands during cocktails, this was obviously the ideal post-dessert activity. The kid loves geography and it makes sense seeing how most of the adults she knows are always traveling and talking about different countries. 

My new beau Sean, his sister Emily, and cousin Rose (yes, he wears after six attire daily and sparkles like diamonds in the sun)

I have been very bad about pictures lately, so I will reward my readers with a video of Emma. I cannot remember what we were talking about, but at some point during dinner Emma shouted at the top of her lungs, "I know a midget! I know a midget!" I busted out the video camera to see what the heck she was talking about. What follows is me asking questions that Emma finds pointless. Also, I have a wicked hick accent in the video, please accept my apologies. 

Sea World

This past weekend my parents, brother's family, and I all put on some sunscreen and headed to Sea World. I was 9 years-old the last time I toured Sea World, so it was good to see my old friend Shamu again. Katie had tons of fun watching the shows. She really loved the sea lions and was making the hand sign for Shamu to do a big splash all weekend. Sadly, my family did poorly in the pictures department. I forgot my camera, Erin failed to charge her camera, and my parent's memory card was full. Ugg. Here are a few of the photos we did manage to take. These were all taken after lunch, so it was a little hot!

Me and Katie watching the water ski show

Katie feeding the ducks some snacks

Family photo. This was taken right before we exited the park, little Katie was all tuckered out

Restaurant Review: Fig and Olive

Once again, I am traveling for work. So, this week I am posting from Denver, CO. I am so sad that Continental is no longer my work's contract carrier. US Airways never seems to get it right. Monday's flight was super delayed and PACKED. 

I am going to take a stab at writing a restaurant review. Last weekend, I was in NYC visiting my sister and brother-in-law. On Saturday night, Becky made dinner reservations at Fig & Olive Kitchen and Tasting Bar. Fig & Olive has several NYC locations. We dined at the Fig & Olive in the Meatpacking District. This is where Samantha moved to in Season 3 of Sex and the City. The Meatpacking District has numerous hip restaurants, cobblestone streets, and rooftop bars. Often in NYC, the restaurants are small and cozy. However, the warehouses of the Meatpacking District allow for more space than average. Here is how Fig & Olive took advantage of the extra room (gentle readers, you will have to make do with stolen internet images because I forgot my camera): 

Main Dining Room

In my opinion, the decor evokes a Mediterranean vibe without being overly cheesy. I particularly liked the large wicker light fixtures. Our reservations were for 7:00 p.m., early by any big city standards. This fact allowed our waiter Jonah to be extra attentive. We started with cocktails and a sampled 3 kinds of olive oil. Fig & Olive keeps in stock over 30 different kinds of olive oil. My olive oil pallet is not very refined, so I couldn't tell that big of a difference between the three. My White Sangria cocktail is something that I would recommend to anyone. It was packed with tons of different kinds of fruit - yum! Troy enjoyed his Red Sangria and Becky had a Pomegranate Martini. She is such a sucker for anything with Pomegranate :)

Most of the dishes contained olives and figs served in a clever way. I started with a chilled avocado soup. The portion was too large and I was overwhelmed. However, the flavor was nice and creamy. 

Avocado Soup

For dinner I had their signature salad. The salad was packed with baked figs, olives, walnuts, apples, and cheese and then topped with a sweet balsamic vinegar dressing. My favorite part of the salad was the cheese. There was shaved parmesan, manchego, gorgonzola, and goat cheese. It was indulgent and I liked it. I heard no complaints from Becky and Troy regarding their main meals. Becky chose the rotisserie chicken with string beans and mashed potatoes. Her dish was accompanied by a special kind olive oil that she periodically drizzled over her plate. There was enough chicken to feed a family of four, so I added some to my salad. Troy had the salmon, which looked tasty, but the vegetable medley side looked uninspired. 

Overall, Fig & Olive is a restaurant that I would recommend to friends and family. It is especially good if you have a picky eater in the group. The menu is varied, but contains a number of "safe" chicken and pasta dishes. On a final non-food note, I think that Fig and Olive would be cute names for a pair kittens. Can you picture it?