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Archive for June, 2013

In the news

Posted in Charleston, Current Affairs on June 26, 2013| Leave a Comment »

Hooray for the Supreme Court making sense and not being idiots! Hooray for marriage for all! Down with extremists who use politics to marginalize people! I truly believe that everyone has a right to their own opinion, and the right to express that opinion. But I struggle extensively with the use of religion and the idea of morality when the end result is the lose of rights and privileges in a select group of the population. Especially when the group affected is not significantly represented in the legislature passing the law. This feels like oppression to me. Live your own life, YOLO, join a cult, move to equator, live in a tree house, homeschool your eight kids and teach them the world is flat and the center of the universe, really, go for it, we live in a free country. But let’s protect that freedom by respecting each other enough to remember that extending rights to everyone does not diminish the rights enjoyed by you. And that is all I have to say about that.

Can someone please explain to me why the FBI is so intent on finding Jimmy Hoffa’s body? Is there a chance he’s not dead? Does the FBI not have enough other work to do? Will finding his body result in something more than solving a case where all the parties are already dead? Do we just love a good Mob mystery?I’m honestly confused.

Paula Deen – so, why are people shocked that a 66 year old woman who grew up in Savannah used racial slurs at some point in her life? The truth is that our country has an ugly past. Every generation gets better, but we are all products of when and where we grew up. I’m not supporting Paula, I don’t think you get to be where she is by nice to people, I’m just surprised that people seem so surprised. I have no doubt she treated her employees poorly at some point along the way. And maybe I’m missing part of the story. I find it interesting that her remarks, made under oath, about something she said or did a long time ago, that if she had denied would have been clearly unbelievable, are enough to crumble her empire.

Okay, that is probably enough enough politically charged opinions from me for one day.

On a lighter note, a man threatened to jump off the Ravenel Bridge Monday morning. He stood on the ledge from around 7 am till around noon, snarling traffic all over town. As lunchtime approached, the crisis negotiators were able to lure him off the ledge by placing a hot pizza on the hood of his car and talking to him about how hungry he was. I believe pizza is a good enough reason to live. The news said he is at MUSC, so congrats to law enforcement for successfully saving this guy’s life and I hope he gets the help he needs.

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Harris

Posted in CKP on June 25, 2013| 2 Comments »

(this is a stand up comedy clip, and as such, it includes curse words, so maybe don’t blare it at work with your speakers on in your cube.  I’m sorry I’m not sorry.)

As mentioned previously, I have pretty low standards when it comes to television.  I only need one of the two following requirements – 1.  I want to be told a story for an hour or 2.  I want to laugh for 30 minutes.  Side note, I’m not particularly interested in reality television, but I occasionally make exceptions.  Especially historically significant events like NIk Wallenda’s nauseating tight rope walk on Sunday night.  (I for real thought he was going to fall the whole time, I was a wreck).

Deep down, I have a sincere love for TNT and USA dramas.  Burn Notice and Las Vegas are two shows I’ve never actually watched, but if I listed all of the shows that I have seen, you might be concerned.  Let’s just say that Harris and I have a lot in common, including a love for Cinnabon.  I’m not particularly short or chubby, or Indian, or a teenage boy, but other than that, me and Harris are basically the same.  

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The Charleston Harbor Fish House

Posted in Charleston, Food and Drink, summertime on June 17, 2013| 2 Comments »

 A couple of weeks ago, I got an invitation to the soft opening of the Charleston Harbor Fish House.  My sweet friends Anita and Shannon work for the Charleston Harbor Resort, and we have been anticipating the opening of this restaurant with delight.  As luck would have it, my mom was in town, and was available to be my date for the soft opening.  

We took the water taxi from the Aquarium, which is a treat in and of itself.  If you visit Charleston, or even if you live here, you should take the water taxi.  It is an excellent way to see the harbor and the city from a different angle.  

The new restaurant is open and spacious with lots of windows and clean lines.  There were so many things on the menu that we wanted, but we settled on the hog snapper and the beef tenderloin.  We also had hush puppies for a starter and a side of collard greens for fun.  Everything was fantastic, the service, the presentation, the food, the view, and the company.  After dinner, we went upstairs to the rooftop bar to watch the sunset.  

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If you get the chance, head on over to the Charleston Harbor Fish Camp.  Go like them on Facebook.  Call me when you go, and I’ll meet you there.  Happy Summertime!

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Low pressure systems: re: summertime re:re: deadend airports

Posted in Charleston, summertime, Travel on June 3, 2013| Leave a Comment »

Last night I slept in the front room of Betsy and Andrew’s apartment in the east village. There was a cacophony of thunder and strobe lightening outside, and I made the mistake of reading about the storm chasers who died on Friday by a particularly unpredictable tornado whilst I was brushing my teeth.

Needless to say, I dreamed of severe weather, and awoke in a panic at 5 am, convinced that the quaking ground and roaring din was the tornado I had been anxiously awaiting in my dreams. Imagine my shock when I realized it was just a street cleaning truck and it wasn’t even raining outside.

By the time I made it out on the street to catch a cab to the airport, it was raining again, and catching a cab involved some drama. But there was no traffic to the airport despite the rain, and I encountered no lines to check my bag and make it through security. I was real proud of myself, to arrive, coffee in hand, with plenty of time to spare.

Then my flight was delayed. And delayed. And delayed. Apparently the weather in NYC was so bad that the plane couldn’t leave DC. I missed my connection before I even boarded my first flight.

This series of events has resulted in my sitting at a brewery at IAD at 3:30 on the Monday afternoon. When I sat down, I ordered a beer. The server didn’t speak excellent English, and it took me a second to realize what she was asking me. She was asking if I also wanted a shot of liquor with my beer. I can’t tell if this is a reflection on me personally, or on the average Dulles traveller, but either way I told her the beer was all I needed at the moment.

New York was a blast, I got to see my friends with the following professional monikers: CBS, ESPN, the bartender/drummer, the publisher, the lawyer, the pregnant lawyer, the music CPA, the movie director, the special agent, the bartender with the rose tattoo, and my high school JV cheerleading coach. The space law professor and the animator were regrettable out of town, along with the blond lawyer and his fantastic fabric wife, and the blond cousin and his redheaded wife who is now also cousin. But that just means I will have to come back soon!

Thursday I was suppose to meet my favorite teacher of all time at the metropolitan museum of art where she and her husband were leading a group of kids (including their 4! Kids). My phone died, and I was sitting on the steps outside waiting until the appointed time to go inside. Mardi came up from behind and grabbed me and said – I would know the back of your head and jawline anywhere! You look exactly the same as you did when you were 14! Which I took as an extreme compliment. It was amazing to reconnect and meet her kids and wander the streets of New York for a little while!

Friday afternoon I met the movie director in Williamsburg. We had lunch, and then prowled around looking for a dive bar the director had heard was interesting. We had all but given up when we stumbled upon it.

It was the perfect Athens bar, conveniently relocated to Williamsburg for our beer tasting pleasure. Since it was happy hour, we enjoyed $2 cans of tecate and bud light. You decide which one I enjoyed. The bar wasn’t deserted, but it wasn’t crowded. It was a nice little motley crew of hipsters (townies?) enjoying a Friday afternoon sip.

The director and I were deep in conversations involving relationships and life and timing and other discussions on QUALITY and limiting the IS and other such deep discussions of life and learning, when a long haired fellow across the bar points at me and says “Hey! Are you a lawyer?”, and I turn around (with the knowledge that no one is behind me) and look to my right and left before saying, “Me?”, “yeah, are you a lawyer?” (I am technically a lawyer, but I’m not literally practicing law, so I forget this fact sometimes), and so I hesitatingly wake up from the discussion I was in and say, “um, yeah, I guess so!” And he replys, “This guy went to law school with you!” To which I say awkwardly and reflexively without looking at who he is pointing to – “Hi! I’m Charlsie!” To which the person next to him replies, “I know.”

Turns out it was an old Athens friend that I never expected to run into at the very Athens bar in Williamsburg. I like to believe that Athens is a universally recognized lifestyle that is transferable around the world. Or at least up and down the east coast.

Friday night we went to the Yankees game, and stopped by a bar called Stan’s before entering the stadium. All I could think as we navigated the crowd was, dang, I’ve never seen so many Yankees in my life. Lots of Yankees. To be clear, I love Yankees. Just a little overwhelming at first. Noteworthy at least. The night was full of corn dogs, hot dogs, popcorn, I threw out some braves trash talk for good measure, and capped off with some good ole Sinatra and a horrifically hot subway trip home.

Fingers crossed my plane takes off in an hour. XO

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