:: Privatjokr ::

Lesley recently graduated from Boston College. Congratulations to her. Pictures from her graduation and many more of our family screwing around in Boston are available for your viewing pleasure.

Take me to the pictures!

Brian Wilson - A Friend Like You

In 2004 Brian Wilson -- of Beach Boys fame -- released a solo album titled Smile that was met with critical acclaim. This song is from another, lesser-known solo album Wilson released in 2004 called Gettin' In Over My Head. The album features Elton John, Paul McCartney and Eric Clapton (Paul McCartney specifically on this track). This is yet another song that I thank internet radio for showing me. A fun song that offers tribute to that true friend in our lives for whom we are just so thankful. It's sentimental, sure. And I cannot imagine actually playing it for my friends, but if you read this you can take it as an indication that this song says some of how I feel about having you around.

If someone asked me to put fill a bowl with pure deliciousness, I would have to assume it would involve mashed potatoes, corn, gravy, fried chicken and cheese. What else could they possible add to this thing to make it better?

I had one for lunch today. I ordered two KFC Snackers, too, just in case. I did not think with those succulent ingredients KFC would be too generous. KFC has a reputation with me for charging a lot and giving little, though their food is so good. I was surprised to be full after the Famous Bowl**. A combo, which includes a medium drink, was $4.99. The price is right; the food is great.

I love that someone was probably just messing around at KFC one day making his/her own lunch when the Famous Bowl was created. A coworker must have overseen the concoction and marvelled in its glory. I wish I could walk down the street and tell people that this was my idea. We have all made a plate of food that looked just like this, but rarely do my dietary habits make their way into a commercial setting.

This thing was fantastic! Like I was Miss Cleo, I see another trip to KFC for a Famous Bowl in my future.

*The Famous Bowl also comes with rice instead of mashed potatoes.
**And yes, I still ate the KFC Snackers. Both of them. Good gravy am I full right now.

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1. Caddyshack

2. Field of Dreams

3. Hoosiers

4. Raging Bull

5. Remember the Titans

(Honorable Mention: BASEketball, A League of Their Own, Slapshot)

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Alison recently graduated from Wake Forest University. Congratulations to her. Pictures from her graduation and many more of our family screwing around in Winston-Salem, North Carolina available for your viewing pleasure.

UPDATE: The pictures are all here. Mine, Alison's, and Mom's!

Take me to the pictures!

After a month of swirling rumors and anxious moments for some of the nation's top college basketball coaches, the McDonald's All-American announced at a news conference yesterday that he's heading to Villanova next season.

Originally ticketed to the University of Oklahoma, Reynolds asked for and was granted a release from his letter of intent earlier this month after Kelvin Sampson, who had recruited Reynolds, hightailed it to Indiana.

What a neat little place. We went on a Tuesday night with a client and had a great dinner. It was a mild night (relatively speaking) so we sat outside. The restaurant opens into the patio where we were seated. So we were inside...but we were outside. The atmosphere was not inappropriate for our business dinner, though it would be a nice "date" restaurant as well.

We shared two appetizers at the table:

Giant Crispy Prawns
The prawns were best described by my colleague as shrimp wrapped in french fries. Whatever the mix that comprised the "crispy" layer around the prawns, it was good. This appetizer is three prawns.

Spicy Calamari Stir Fry
This dish was pretty spicy. The flavor was only ok. I was not impressed by this dish; no one at our table was.

My entree was very good:

10 oz. Center Cut Filet Mignon
I had to choose between the NY Strip and the Filet since I am not a seafood guy. I made my decision based upon the potatoes served with each. The filet had the buttermilk mashed instead of the roasted garlic mashed. I was more curious about the buttermilk mashed and thus opted for the filet. I could not tell you the last time I ordered a filet, but was not disappointed at Nemo. The steak was fork tender and cooked perfectly. I wish I had a few more of the crispy onions. I think there were like three small strands with my steak. There was a side of greens that occupied the majority of my plate that I would have opted against had I known.

Ordering a side dish was an easy choice:

Lobster Hash Browns
Yeah, you read that correctly. Lobster Hash Browns. Do I really need to go through an explanation of how good these were? Or are you just going to be sure to order them when you go? It was not a shredded potato, but rather a diced potato. The dish had a few other ingredients (vegetables and whatnot) that were fine, but I don't remember. I was too focused on the rest of it. More meals should be served with lobster hash browns.

Dessert was a second highlight behind the lobster hash browns:

Peanut Butter Smore
Thin layer of graham cracker. Thick layer of chocolate. Medium layer of marshmallow. The smore was very good, but very rich. It would be best shared by two people. Satisfy your sweet tooth, round out your meal, but don't eat so much that you have that "I've had too much of it" feeling.

It may not be something that you notice, but I certainly did. At Nemo, the desserts were plated beautifully. It was probably the most expertly presented dessert I have had. It is a small detail, and one that cannot make up for bad taste (and luckily it didn't have to try at Nemo), but one that is appreciated.

For Miami Beach prices, Nemo was not outrageously expensive. It is an area where for a nice dinner out you can expect to pay more than you might in other cities, and comparitively Nemo was reasonable.

Nemo is located at 100 Collins Avenue in Miami Beach, Florida. 305.532.4550
www.nemorestaurant.com

Switters is a contradiction for all seasons: an anarchist who works for the government; a pacificist who carries a gun; a vegetarian who sops up ham gravy; a cyberwhiz who hates computers; a man who, though obsessed with the preservation of innocence, is aching to deflower his high-school-age stepsister (only to become equally enamored with a nun ten years his senior). Yet there is nothing remotely wishy-washy about Switters. He doesn't merely pack a pistol. He is a pistol. And as we dog Switters's strangely elevated heels across four continents, in and out of love and danger, discovering in the process the "true" Third Secret of Fatima, we experience Tom Robbins -- that fearless storyteller, spiritual renegade, and verbal break dancer -- at the top of his game. On one level this is a fast-paced CIA adventure story with comic overtones; on another it's a serious novel of ideas that brings the Big Picture into unexpected focus, but perhaps more than anything else, Fierce Invalids is a sexy celebration of language and life.

I found Tom Robbins while playing on Amazon.com one day. If you haven't played with the Listmania! yet, you are missing out. One book led to another which led to a different author which led to this and to that which gave way to Tom Robbins. The book that I found listed as a "must read" was not Fierce Invalids, but rather Another Roadside Attraction. While walking through a bookstore one day, as I often do, I was actually holding a copy of Another Roadside Attraction when I saw Fierce Invalids on an end cap. I picked it up, read the back, and put Another Roadside Attraction back on the shelf. I know where I can find it when I go back, but on this trip Fierce Invalids won me over.

I can honestly say that I have never read a book like this. I cannot say that I liked the book, though I was fascinated by the writing style. I would actually like to read more books based on the character Switters, though I doubt another will ever be written. He was a character so full of quirks and personal protests against the ways of societies everywhere. He is a man who has been around the world and developed an interesting set of peculiarities from here and there along the way.

The book was about so many things. The topics were minute, cosmic and everything in between. Unfortunately I just felt there was a little too much going on for the book to be enjoyable. I would not say the book was hard to follow necessarily, but more that it was just too much information to want to follow.

Robbins's ideas were interesting and thought-provoking. His writing was poetic and almost seemed too easy to read given the profound nature of the topics he tackled. When I finished the book I said that though it was not my favorite, I would be curious to read more by Robbins. My next conquest, based upon recommendation of a friend (and Tom Robbins veteran), would be Still Life With Woodpecker.

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No, it is not a big chip, but it is a chip none the less. You can really only see it when it is pointed out, so I should just be glad that I did not shatter my tooth. I am still a little bitter about the whole thing, maybe closure will come in time.

Teaser: In my haste to eat lunch between classes last Saturday, the heavyweight showdown was between tooth enamel and stainless steel fork. I believe, based upon what is written above, you know who won the title.

What happened: I had a piece of chicken at the end of my fork too big even for me. Sure, I could put it back down and cut it like a civilized individual...or I could just take a bite from it and leave myself with a more manageable piece. What I had not counted on was biting down...hard...on the fork.

Always the optimist: I paid an arm and leg for my silverware, so I guess it is a good thing that the stuff seems to be of good quality. I wish I had just speculated at the quality of the fork rather than trying to take a bite of it. I was like the skeptical crook in the old movies who tests the piece of gold with his teeth for the appropriate softness signlalling quality, only there was no give from my fork.

Result: I now have the fingernails-on-the-chalkboard reaction to the thought of biting another fork. Oh, and a piece of my tooth missing. It is not pleasant.

Bottle Rocket

An offbeat crime caper that turns convention on its head, Bottle Rocket is "the sort of endearingly oddball project that will be remembered for years to come... for the formidable talent it introduces to the world" (Michael Medved, New York Post).

Newcomer Owen Wilson, in a star-making performance, co-wrote the screenplay about three best friends who attempt to escape their suburban boredom through a life of crime. But these bickering, bumbling thieves are no match for the local 'godfather' (James Caan) who leads them into the biggest heist of their careers. Co-starring Luke Wilson and Bob Musgrave in their film debuts, Bottle Rocket is the cult comedy hit that "will shoot to the top of your favorite film list" (Stephen Saban, Details Magazine).

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Still Life With Woodpecker by Tom Robbins

Still Life With Woodpecker is sort of a love story that takes place inside a pack of Camel cigarettes. It reveals the purpose of the moon, explains the difference between criminals and outlaws, examines the conflict between social activism and romantic individualism, and paints a portrait of contemporary society that includes powerful Arabs, exiled royalty, and pregnant cheerleaders. It also deals with the problem of redheads.

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Bedouin Soundclash - When the Night Feels My Song

I went months without knowing the name of this song, or by whom it was made. I seemed to only catch the end of it when changing stations on my radio. I would even listen through commercials in hopes that after the break they would tell me the artist and title of the last song played. Finally one day it paid off. The song is very subtle and low key, but it puts me in a good, relaxed mood when I listen to it. There should be a button installed in my car that I can press when it rains to hear the part of this song that goes, "A beautiful day...a beautiful day..." to make it not seem so cloudy. Good song indeed. I guess the album came out a long time ago, but the song was not released as a single until relatively recently (in Detroit anyway). If you were looking for it, here it is. You can even watch the video.

'Does the moon have a purpose?' she inquired ... Albert Camus wrote that the only serious question is whether to kill yourself or not. Tom Robbins wrote that the only serious question is whether time has a beginning and an end. Camus clearly got up on the wrong side of bed, and Robbins must have forgotten to set an alarm. There is only one serious question. And that is: Who knows how to make love stay? Answer me that and I will tell you whether or not to kill yourself. Answer me that and I will ease your mind about the beginning and end of time. Answer me that and I will reveal to you the purpose of the moon.

Just days before a massive exhibition opens at the popular New York Museum of Natural History, visitors are being savagely murdered in the museum's dark hallways and secret rooms. Autopsies indicate that the killer cannot be human...

But the museum's directors plan to go ahead with a big bash to celebrate the new exhibition, in spite of the murders.

Museum researcher Margo Green must find out who -- or what -- is doing the killing. But can she do it in time to stop the massacre?

A very long time had passed since I last read a book like this. This was the type of book that pretty much got me hooked on free-reading nearly 12 years ago. Back then I would entertain my brain with as many Michael Crichton books as I could get my hands on. His earlier works were more on parallel with Relic in terms of similar story. I was taken back to a time when I could not wait to read the next Crichton. I read Congo, I read Sphere and of course Jurassic Park. I love those books; they will always have a place on my bookshelf. I would not even know which way to turn to find a book similar to them, however. That was the case anyway, until a friend suggested I read Relic.

A publicity quote on the cover of the paperback edition touts Relic as better than Jurassic Park. I happen to disagree, but that may be my biased "my dad can beat up your dad"-feeling interfering.

This was the first book I have read by either Douglas Preston or Lincoln Child, and not so surprisingly the first I have read by them both. I would have to do a bit more research before picking up one of their books to see what it is about, hoping it would be along these same lines. Relic was a very quick read, even for someone like me who is not the fastest of readers.

I liked the suspense created by the writing itself, but also the cliffhanger chapter endings. I liked the setting inside the old museum; it was perfect for this type of story.

Never underestimate the recommendation of a friend. This was not by any means the best book I have ever read, but it was quick, fun and exciting. And I would have never read it had a friend not suggested it. So my thanks to him.

(The movie came out so many years ago that I have forgotten the details and cannot comment on their similarity.)

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There are enjoyable tracks on this album from the band that hails from Sheffield, England. Their Brit rock meets Indie rock sound is, however, a little too much like Franz Ferdinand (and others) for me. After much deliberation I think overall the album is not as good as I originally thought it to be. The first time I listened to it I had the volume up, windows down, and I was alone to enjoy it. I tried after to put it on with someone else in the car thinking to incite a surprised appreciation for a relatively unknown band. The problem was in starting from the beginning. The strength of the album starts in the middle. The tracks tone down a little and are more enjoyable. This was a very highly praised album coming to us from England; I must say that the lofty expectations created by the hype set the bar a little too high for the Arctic Monkeys. I would not be surprised if you, like me, find yourself saying, "You know who this band sounds like..." more than once before this album is over. You may hear traces of Sublime, The White Stripes, Franz Ferdinand, The Kaiser Chiefs, The Strokes and more...

01. The View From the Afternoon A pretty unlikely candidate for a song to find yourself moving to, but don't be surprised when and if it happens. It is a decent song overall, but not my favorite.

02. I Bet You Look Good On The Dancefloor This is the first single to be released. The high energy of the band is exhibited well. I think it was a good choice to let listeners have this song first. Some singles are not very representative of the rest of the album. If you have heard this song it is consistent with the other songs on this disc. It is a good mix of the fast and the slow songs that follow.

03. Fake Tales of San Francisco This is a track has some guitar interludes that are a bit more than I can handle. The guitar adds a slight sentiment of hard rock that may or may not agree with you.

04. Dancing Shoes This was an early front runner for my top pick on the album. It starts out very well, though does not end as strongly. The bass keeps a good beat, though the guitar drowns it out too much.

05. You Probably Couldn't See For The Lights But You Were Staring Straight At Me This song is just ok. I may be the only one, but I keep waiting for the lead singer to belt out "I bet you look good on the dance floor..." in this song. It may sound a little too much like track 2.

06. Still Take You Home I like this song. I like the picture painted by the lyrics. Someone at the bar who the lead singer seems to think he is above, though he'd still take her home. There are few glimpses into the talent of the guitar player on this album, though some are evident in this song.

07. Riot Van A gentle ballad about underage drinking. This is the slowest song on the album. It is a decent track.

08. Red Light Indicates Doors Are Secured This song more than the others sends my mind in circles. There are so many influences from other bands in this song that I try to pick them all out, though I cannot identify any specifically. Maybe I made it up. Though I doubt it.

09. Mardy Bum The tempo in this song fits my preferences best of all songs on the album; they tone down the guitar and slow the lyrics. I like this song a lot.

10. Perhaps Vampires Is A Bit Strong But... This song is interesting from the perspective that it seems to predict a critical reaction to the album. From a band with 19- 20-year-old band members making their first record, the lyrics that tell "although you pretend to stand by us, I know you're certain we'll fail."

11. When The Sun Goes Down A slower song like "Mardy Bum" complete with references to lyrics from The Police. The story is about a man with a certain nocturnal habit for women he chances upon on the street, but do not let that deter you. This is a good song.

12. From The Ritz To The Rubble This is an ok song. It seems that at a few times it will get too "hard rockish," but then it reigns itself in. This song is more like the earlier tracks on the album.

13. A Certain Romance This song is a nice gem tucked away at the end of the album. Do yourself a favor and don't stop listening before you get to it. It really is amazing how much better they sound when they take the hard guitar riffs out of their music.

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I do not have many thoughts that begin, "Man, I wish I was back in high school/college," so they stand out. Today it is a beautiful sunny day in the low 70 degrees. I wish that, like I was able to do in high school and college, I could talk my boss into holding class outside. You were not going to pay attention in class anyway, so at least you should be able to sit outside and enjoy the nice weather, right? Those were the days...

Unfortunately those days are past. Here are the days where my responsibilities keep me sitting at my desk in my office that has no windows.

From a marketing standpoint I know that companies like spokespersons/icons/slogans that will make you automatically think of their product (in a positive light). Sometimes the ideas backfire. One such example was years ago when Duracell batteries introduced their "Duracell People" to compete with the Energizer bunny. Up until that point, statistics showed that the public actually thought of Duracell when they saw the little pink bunny. Giving a face to Duracell batteries was a mistake. While I have no numbers to back the following story, I need to vent.

One spokesperson over the last few years has become more of an annoyance than anything else. He is none other than Subway's Jared. The man lost a significant amount of weight on a diet that consisted largely of items on Subway's menu (allegedly). He and/or his story must have been a huge success with the public because he began to appear in every Subway commercial. He has been the worst spokesman in recent memory.

(The second worst has been a man who looks like he could actually be a member of Jared's family. The "Can you hear me now?" guy from Verizon Wireless has popped up in more places than I can stand, though he is less annoying overall.)

Maybe Jared's 15 minutes have ended. We can only hope. Subway's newest ad campaign features a new spokesperson. This should make me happy. It can only get better, right? Well, actually I am actually having difficulty deciding who I like less, Jared or the new face of Subway.

Jon Lovitz has a new series of commercials with Subway trying to give a spin on some new hot sandwiches. In these spots he, clad in his nicest smoking jacket, attempts to recreate the feeling of a character he played on Saturday Night Live where he was a "Masterpiece Theater"-esque host. He is overly enthusiastic and the commercials are horrible.

Was Mr. Lovitz ever a big enough "star" where someday we can see his E! True Hollywood Story? Will we see an interview where he will tell us that he was at the end of his rope, short on cash, offering sexual favors to strangers in the subway station to make ends meet when he got a call about a job making commercials...ironically for Subway.

One company. Two horrible spokesmen. I hate to think I might even want them to bring Jared back. He was much easier to ignore.

Before I made the trip to Georgia to visit my brother and his special lady friend I got this e-mail from him. He wanted me to know what our options were for food and bars. I was very appreciative for the time and effort he put into the list provided below, so I thought I would make it available to anyone else who might be in search of a brief word about the area.

(1) food. hope you take a few minutes to check out the links.
achim's k-bob (favorite sandwiches in town)
blind pig (best burgers and fried pickles in town)
the varsity (vintage athens, pretty famous)
farm 255 (maybe a good spot for a nicer dinner, we've wanted to for a while)
barberitos (our qdoba, kristen has to go here at least 1x per week)
mexicalli grille (athens doesn't have much good mexican food, this is our favorite though)
the grit (all vegetarian, but good. as famous a place as athens has, if that's what you seek)
the sultan (middle eastern food)
mellow mushroom (great beer list, my favorite pizza in town)
jot 'em down (perhaps a breakfast biscuit saturday morning)
weaver d's (maybe kristen can bring you here for lunch friday)

(2) bars. friday night fun...bars will be mostly wide open until 12am, then the undergrads come out in huge numbers to some of these places...
allgood (patio upstairs)
room 13 (getting to be my favorite place, nextdoor to farm255)
general beauregard's (sweet tea is a must-have for first time visitors, coeds all around)
nowhere bar (dive bar)
the winery (a little more upscale, ladies love it)
arch bar (nice bar, not too "undergrad-y")
tasty world (may need to go here briefly for kristen's dept. happy hour friday)
the globe (really chill, becoming one of my least favorite places, but fun if you are with fun ppl)
283 (small, but nice)

We have nothing to lose but our winnings, and only the winners are lost.

Head Automatica - Beating Heart Baby

Heard this song for the first time streaming across the internet a few months back and loved it right away. A few weeks/months ago it finally made it to the radio here in the Greater Detroit Area, though I do not listen to the radio very often. I have managed to avoid it being overplayed if it has become so to other people. I still perk up when it comes on. I would love to build a mixtape around this track, but am not nearly familiar enough with whatever genre you would lump this into. Any thoughts?

(Thanks to youtube.com for another video.)

John Keating: We don't read and write poetry because it's cute. We read and write poetry because we are members of the human race. And the human race is filled with passion. And medicine, law, business, engineering, these are noble pursuits and necessary to sustain life. But poetry, beauty, romance, love, these are what we stay alive for. To quote from Whitman, "O me! O life!... of the questions of these recurring; of the endless trains of the faithless... of cities filled with the foolish; what good amid these, O me, O life?" Answer. That you are here - that life exists, and identity; that the powerful play goes on and you may contribute a verse. That the powerful play goes on and you may contribute a verse. What will your verse be?

1. Dead Poets Society

2. Rushmore

3. Wonder Boys

4. Ferris Bueller's Day Off

5. Animal House

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In this eagerly awaited sequel to A Game of Thrones, George R. R. Martin has created a work of unsurpassed vision, power, and imagination. A Clash of Kings transports us to a world of revelry and revenge, wizardry and warfare unlike any you have ever experienced.

A comet the color of blood and flame cuts across the sky. And from the ancient citadel of Dragonstone to the forbidding shores of Winterfell, chaos reigns. Six factions struggle for control of the divided land and the Iron Throne of the Seven Kingdoms, preparing to stake their claims through tempest, turmoil, and war. It is a tale in which brother plots against brother and the dead rise to walk in the night. Here a princess masquerades as an orphan boy; a knight of the mind prepares a poison for a treacherous sorceress; and wild men descend from the Mountains of the Moon to ravage the countryside. Against a backdrop of incest and fratricide, alchemy and murder, victory may go to the men and women possessed of the coldest steel...and the coldest hearts. For when kings clash, the whole land trembles.

Have you ever been weary of seeing a sequel because you know it will not be nearly as good as the original? Or have you been hesitant to see a something a second time because you just know it will not be as good as it was the first time? I have. And that is how I felt as I tried to talk myself into reading A Clash of Kings. At a time when I was struggling to find any books that I was enthusiastic about, I read the first of this 4-(so far)-part series, A Game of Thrones. I enjoyed it so thoroughly I was hesitant to read the second installment. I was skeptical. The book could not be as good, I thought. The book will tarnish the near perfect reputation of its predecessor, I told myself. That is not fair, I reasoned. And I decided that it was time to read the second book.

To be fair, A Clash of Kings is not as good as A Game of Thrones. From a chronological standpoint I feel that it would essentially be impossible for the second book to be as good as or better than the first. The first was the introduction; everything was new. In the second book, though there is still more to introduce and many things are new, the story continues. And there is much more to come.

I apologize if this comparison carries a negative connotation, because it is not my intent. Book two of the A Song of Ice and Fire series by George R. R. Martin, in my opinion bears a resemblance to J. R. R. Tolkien's The Two Towers (also the second book of its series). Both books have "set-up" roles. A lot happens without anything happening, if you follow what I am saying. The pieces are put into place in these books, and they are poised for action in the book(s) to come. That is not to say that there is any lack of action in A Clash of Kings. Far from it, rather. The story is ready to pounce. Book three, A Storm of Swords, should be a thrill ride.

I am still fascinated by the chapter style. Through the entire series George R. R. Martin chooses a handful of characters and each chapter is from the perspective of one of them. Readers are able to be essentially omniscient in the realm of the Seven Kingdoms by seeing the trials and tribulations of characters good and bad, here and there. The book is a series of cliffhangers and it makes the suspense pleasurable is a strange masochistic sort of way. The tension will build and build and then just as it nears its apex, the chapter ends. The action picks up from that point...or not...a few chapters later. It sounds more frustrating than fun, but when you read the books it is actually fun and not frustrating. It also makes the books easier to get through. You will fly through a few chapters to get to the next part about whatever character you are following.

I know that sci-fi/fantasy books are daunting. They seem to all be 700-1100 pages and most are but one piece of a multi-part series. It makes for a lot of reading because by taking the first you may be signing yourself up to read an entire series. I feel the same way and I just try to space the books out so it does not seem as bad. I have a decent memory and found that even though I read the first book almost eight months ago, I was able to pick up right where the story left off. I did not have to re-acclimate myself with the story. This was important because the author does not take time to recap what happened in the previous book. There is a lot of detail and it would make a long book even longer to go through it all.

I do not read many books in this genre, but I truly get excited about these books. I loved A Clash of Kings and I loved A Game of Thrones before it. I look forward to continuing this series.

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Is there a term for that? ... The thing everyone is searching for and hoping not to find?

Barberitos is similar in style to the Qdoba and Chipotle chains, though this "Southwestern Grille and Cantina" is exclusive to the Southeastern US.

The process is the same, by which I refer to these restaurants as "Mexican Subway," because of how your order. Each chain has you start with a bare-bones tortilla and then add ingredients a la carte until you are satisfied with your burrito, much like you would order a sandwich from Subway. The base ingredients are the tortilla, rice, and black or pinto beans. From this point you may add choice of meats, salsas, cheese, sour cream, guacamole, etc...

I am not a fan of Chipotle, so we can call that match-up a draw. Neither place is as good as Qdoba, though Barberitos offers a slightly different menu.

I liked that they offer the option of different tortillas. Patrons may choose a flour tortilla (plain), a spinach tortilla, or chipotle tortilla.

Barberitos serves a Mexican rice rather than white rice steamed with cilantro (which you'll find at both Qdoba and Chipotle).

Beyond that the options are pretty much the same. Finish your order and you get your burrito accompanied by a side of tortilla chips.

The restaurant offers a cheese dip in three different sizes for your chips. The bigger size(s) to come with additional chips. The chips and cheese dip were both decent. Neither was worth additional praise.

I am not sold on Barberitos; my meal was unremarkable. I am still a Qdoba fan through and through, their chips, queso dip, and burritos are much better. If there was a Barberitos near me, I would not go there.

Kings of Convenience - I'd Rather Dance With You

A lot of the music made by the Kings of Convenience is slower than I generally like, but I cannot get enough of this song. I think "Indie Pop" is an appropriate tag for the quiet guitar harmonies from the two musicians from Norway. It is such a fun track that excites me each time I hear it. That is partially a result of having seen the video. I think once you have seen that a time or two, the song will always make you smile. It is one of my favorites.

The name does not sound like much, but the restaurant was pleasant. I went with a group of people who had been there for drinks, but never dinner. It was, in a sense, a first for us all.

The entrance, between two stone pillars, is to the outdoor seating. There are tables and chairs in a courtyard set up for dinner, but also to socialize near a garden and stage. The stage features live music performed by local artists. Beyond some of the outdoor tables is the door inside. It was a beautiful night to sit outside and have dinner, though we opted to sit inside. I do not think one option is necessarily better than the other.

The inside was very open. The lighting was enough, but subtle. Even as the meal progressed the lights came down and candles were brought to the tables. The staff was well informed and friendly.

The menu was not very extensive, but was arranged well. It consisted of three sections that essentially boiled down to appetizers, entrees and dessert. Though each had but a few options, they were diverse enough to cover wide-ranging tastes. I believe I remember there being vegetarian dishes as well.

Their mojitos and mint juleps came very highly recommended by my dining partners. I had never tried either drink, but figured I should sample the local flavor. I opted for the mojito and found that it tasted like nothing more than crushed mint leaves. The others at the table who ordered the same drink raved about it, but it did nothing for me.

We started with the sweet potato chips which came with ranch as a dipping sauce. Sorry dieters, they are fried and not baked. They were good, though for $5 (I think) I was VERY disappointed at the size of the order.

When I was having trouble deciding on my entree I consulted our server. I asked if she would suggest the cheeseburger (boring, I know) or the shrimp and grits (spicy). She told me that their shrimp and grits is usually fantastic; they use Georgia shrimp and Red Mule grits (which apparently come from about an hour south of Athens). Her hesitation, however, was that the boat had not come in and they were using Florida shrimp instead (that night), which she did not feel were as good. I opted for the burger.

The cheeseburger comes with a chunk of a type of blue cheese and is served with fries and a side of greens. My burger (ordered: Medium) mooed a little when it came to the table, but the sage advice to "eat around it" served me well as always.

Purely in the interest of science, I ordered their molten chocolate cake dessert. This dish was essentially a chocolate souffle served with sweet cream and strawberry preserves. Aside from my company at the table (in case any of them read this), the dessert was the highlight. It was very good.

The restaurant was a fun place to go with friends. I think we all had a great time together at Farm 255. I also think it would be a good date spot. Some people were dressed nicely, others less so. The prices were not outrageous.

I really enjoyed our dinner at Farm 255. The atmosphere was comfortable, the people were friendly, and the food was good. If I lived in or around Athens, Farm 255 would get more of my business. See the website.

Farm 255 is located at 255 W. Washington Street in Athens, GA. The phone number is 706-549-4660.