Friday, July 20, 2007 - Friday, September 14, 2007

Friday, September 14, 2007 Comida Mexicana! Current mood: weird Yeah, sure, it's 8:30 in the morning. I've had approximately four hours of sleep, and what am I thinking about now? Making Mexican food, of course! The pork shoulder is ready to go, now to make the accoutrements. Or, perhaps I'll just go back to sleep and do all of this later. 1:34 AM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment - Edit - Remove

Sunday, September 09, 2007 New Pics! Yes, it's true. I've finally posted some new pictures. They've been sitting in my camera for months, just dying to get out, and now they share a home with THE computer. They're all quite self-explanatory, and obviously they're mostly of my travels over the past six months. Quite a few things have been omitted, because, quite frankly, my camera has taken on the burden of capturing all that is in my field of vision, and sometimes it's not so nice. As a matter of fact, I'm thinking that some editing with the most recent additions might be in order. But, then again. Now, to figure out why it is 1:13 a.m., I've put in fifty hours at work over the past three days, and now I want to go out??? 6:07 PM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment - Edit - Remove

Friday, September 07, 2007 Insomnia Okay, so this time around, I was away from New York for merely two days, but for some reason, it put me into more of a state of flux than usual. I waver between total insomnia, and wanting to sleep all of the time. I mean allllllll of the time. On top of this, I almost feel funny sleeping at my apartment. It's not that there's anything necesarilly to be uncomfortable about, it just seems to be the way that it is. To remedy this, I've picked up some catering gigs here in the city, with hopes that the fifteen, sixteen, seventeen hour days will exhaust me, and I'll have no choice but to sleep like a regular person. I think I kind of miss this New York catering thing -- or do I? Well, in any case, I guess it's good to mix it up a bit, because the backstage thing is definitely different from the wedding/bar mitzvah/bat mitzvah circuit. Now, it is eight hours and counting before I have to arrive at some completely empty building, that probably has a great view of the Manhattan Bridge, that will suddenly be transformed into the dream wedding of some girl from Long Island that has a fabulous apartment in Park Slope, or similar environs. We will make her guests happy with lamb, couscous and other delights. She will not eat any of it, because of various reasons, and her mother-in-law will complain a lot. Self fulfilling prophecy, or just real-life experience? You tell me. What I'm really looking forward to are my next two trips. First, my Dad is flying out to New York to meet me for a family reunion in Tunkhannock (sp?), PA. This will be the second one that we've been to, despite the fact that we don't really know this side of the family. That's a whole other story though, and I do only have eight hours to go. We're going to my Dad's cousin's sheep farm, which has been in our family since the early eighteen hundreds. I believe my Great Great Grandfather was born there. Anyway, I've been asked to roast up one of the little lambs from the farm for the reunion. I've done it once before, and it's actually not difficult. The hard part is just getting it on the spit. After that, you pretty much turn on the motor and let it roast away. Not hard. Anyway, after that, off I go to Maine to work with Kerry and company for a two-thousand person cocktail party, and some benefit for Barack Obama. This should definitely be interesting, and I hope I actually get to meet Barack. I usually don't care about meeting anybody that I feed, but this time it's somewhat different. There's - how shall I say - somewhat more of a historical impact with him. Much more than say with Bob Weir. But some might argue with that, now wouldn't they. From Maine, off we go to Echo Project in Atlanta, then hopefully we go to Voodoo Fest in New Orleans. I guess my October is sewed up. What will I do with myself in November? I guess it's a toss up between Minneapolis and Phoenix. Or perhaps I'll just stay here... 6:38 PM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment - Edit - Remove

Monday, September 03, 2007 Yeah, Worm Town! Current mood: drained Off to Worm Town I go, AKA, Worcester, Massachusetts. This time, it's backstage with American Idol. I think I saw the show once, when I went to visit my family in Arizona. Yes, I most definitely did. I was sitting in my brother's living room with my Sister-in-law, and my two Nieces. As a matter of fact, I think my whole family was there. I seem to remember a running commentary throughout the whole program, and especially from my Dad. Ah, the things us Rosses do for kicks. After Worcester, off we go to Atlantic City for yet another American Idol gig! Now, maybe I'll be able to pick the winners out of a line-up. Or perhaps not. I will know what they like to eat, though. That counts for something, doesn't it? Now, if only I could remember what day it is! 3:10 PM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment - Edit - Remove

Friday, August 10, 2007 How Did I End Up in Virginia? Current mood: tired Okay, so what happened? Four days ago I set out for Bridgeport, CT to work a festival, but today I found myself in a truck driving to D.C. with Kerry (my boss) to do yet another backstage gig. This time it's Michael Buble. I believe I've heard his name before, but I'm about 99% certain that I will not be interested in his music. It was a nice drive, though, and frankly, I was glad to go away from the Bridgeport kitchen. Five additional people arrived last night to work in an already crowded kitchen, and I wasn't happy about it in the least bit. They're all perfectly lovely people, but...I guess it comes down to the fact that I need space when I cook, and I definitely don't want anybody touching my knives/tools. Period, the end. So now here I am in D.C. (actually outside of the city in Virginia), and it's kind of nice. Nikki is my roommate in our Comfort Inn suite, and the great thing is that , well the great thing is that Nikki is Nikki! We're watching the South Park episode where Tom Cruise is "trapped in the closet". Our call time is 6:00 a.m., and sleep is definitely on the horizon -- something that I definitely haven't had a lot of since arriving in Connecticut. I have a belly full of mediocre BBQ, and I'm completely exhausted, so, perhaps I should consider bed as an option. Tomorrow will be at least a twenty hour day, and after working, we'll have to jump in the truck and go back to Bridgeport for two more days of hippy action. Monday, we pack everything up, and Tuesday morning we shove off for Mariaville, NY. This time it's an electronic music festival. Well then. Imagine that. 4:15 PM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment - Edit - Remove

Tuesday, August 07, 2007 Bridgeport Current mood: amused I've arrived in Bridgeport, and I'm sleeping in a dorm room. That is all. 1:49 PM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment - Edit - Remove

Monday, August 06, 2007 Picnics are good. Current mood: good I actually rode a bike yesterday for the first time in about eleven-twelve years. Pathetic, I know, but I've always had a fear of riding in NYC. Call me crazy, but it just doesn't seem too safe. Anyway, I loved it, and now I think I'll actually go buy a bike. Nothing fancy, just something to get from point A to point B. Those points won't be in Manhattan though, thank you. Yesterday's destination was Fort Greene Park for a birthday picnic for Linda's friend, Mark. Porkchop, Linda and I got on our respective bikes and rode off into the wilds of Brooklyn. Okay, not so wild, but some might consider Myrtle Ave. a little zooey. We arrived at the park to greet Mark, lit up the grill and started on our first course of grilled Tuna and eggplant. Not bad, but I tell you, if a friend goes through the effort of cooking for me, I'll eat a grilled tire if I have to. Restaurants, that's a different story. You can't take me anywhere. Yes, it's true. I'm a food snob. I admit it freely. Mark had quite a few lady friends there, which is a refreshing change from where I'm coming from. I've noticed, and especially recently, that I have a true deficit in female friends. All of my guy friends are just friends, but they're still dudes. Some are more dudish than others, but it doesn't matter. Time to make some female friends. Linda and I hit it off with a new friend of Mark's by the name of Nicole. Nicole just moved here from Pennsylvania, and she was lovely. Her family owned a bakery for years, so we had lots to talk about - especially on the food tip. An exchange of numbers was made, and hopefully we will see her sometime in the future. The evening progressed, more sangria was made/drank, and more food was consumed. There was even some sort of dance party happening in the park, which we definitely had to take part in. Imagine a few hundred people cutting the rug on a giant slab of concrete in the middle of a park in Brooklyn. Not the usual sort of thing that I would seek out, in say, a club, but hell! I was drunk on sangria, and ready to break it down. It's the sort of experience that reminds me why I live in New York. I returned to the picnic area an hour or so later, hung out with the boys, had some more wine and waited for Linda to return. Jon, aka Porkchop, had to eventually go hunt her down, because she sort of got lost in the park. These things will happen on the sangria, I say. Next stop, Bridgeport, CT for the hippy festival. I jump on a train tomorrow at 2:30 p.m., and won't return until the 23rd! Look out hippies, here I come! When I return, there are plans in the works for a rooftop party with a Mexican wrestling theme. I think we'll have it the weekend after labor day, so save the date! Over and out! 6:00 PM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment - Edit - Remove

Wednesday, August 01, 2007 Twelve Years - 35W It's been twelve years since I've lived in Minneapolis. I say that I would never live there again, but I will always hold a special place in my heart for the city. I got a call from my friend Linda today about the bridge collapsing over the Mississippi River, and I wasn't sure how to react. It took a while before I was able to check the Internet for images or news reports, but I wasn't exactly sure what I would see. Would it be similar to the horrible images of the World Trade Center, with mangled wreckage, smoke, dust and bodies of injured and the dead? I also was having a hard time imagining where this bridge was, and exactly what it looked like. I know I've been over it a million times before, but damn if I could remember it at all. I finally did look at the pictures. I still don't know how I feel about it all. I think overall I would describe the feeling as numbness, that, and yes, of course I feel sad, but it still doesn't seem real to me. I guess you could say that I'm rather detached from the city, hence not even being able to remember what a particular location looks like. It's probably time for me to go back and visit. 7:31 PM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment - Edit - Remove

Tuesday, July 31, 2007 Six more days Six more days before I leave again. I can't wait! New York is starting to get hot, and I'm not liking it in the least bit. At least at Gathering of the Vibes we'll be working by the ocean, plus, I'll be feeding George Clinton! Woo hoo! What should I make??? 12:15 PM - 2 Comments - 2 Kudos - Add Comment - Edit - Remove

Friday, July 20, 2007 West Virginia Current mood: blank I'm back in NYC after having been in West Virginia for the past two weeks. This time I was out to feed the artists and production crew for a music festival called "All Good". The music was mostly of the "jam band" variety, which is definitely not my cup of tea, but to each their own, I guess. I know a lot happened during these two weeks, but for some reason I'm not finding the words to tell the story. I met some really incredible people while out, and actually had a great time despite the long hours and hard work. It was a totally different experience compared to Bonnaroo. The people that I worked with were amazing, and I'm totally looking forward to working with them again! Next stop, Bridgeport, CT for another hippy music festival. This one is called "Gathering of the Vibes". Right after that we go straight to Mariahville, NY for yet another hippy fest by the name of "Camp Bisco". Perhaps I'll have more to say when I return... 3:56 PM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment - Edit - Remove