Culinary Delights and a Big Undertaking

What a great weekend...Flew to Detroit on Saturday morning, watched 5 & 6 year olds practice hitting for their T-Ball team, went to Comerica Park to see a ball game, and then out with some buddies to cook dinner and watch the final 4. When I say "cook dinner" I mean "create a meal" cause we ate like kings!

We started of with homemade bread that was fresh from the oven. Cooked like a flat bread, we had Artichoke Parmesan, Kosher Salt and Garlic, and Honey Wheat with red onion & seasonings. That was just the first course. We also had Jamaican Jerk chicken (grilled up real nice-like), Garlic Roasted Parmesan Red Potatoes, Sweet Honey Garlic Corn, and grilled burgers made with diced green apples and red onions, served on a potato bun with a nice slice of brie.

Why did we eat like that? Cause dat's how we roll.

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Consider this a warning: When in a strange town (no, Detroit is not strange, just foreign and very scary), do not call up the local Thai place and order their food "Extra Spicy". I powered through Pad Thai noodles, extra-spicy, but I was sweating in places I did not know had sweat glands. My eyes were watery, my ears were ringing, and I saw visions of little blue men dancing on my food. Not sure if they were real or not, but nobody else seemed to see them. Is that bad?

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I promised last week to start naming my top 50 songs and, as predicted by my inspiration YourBeardisGood, it has become very difficult to trim down the list. I thought 100 would be way to aggressive an undertaking, but now I am wishing I could do a top 500. However, in deference to the fact that very few of you really even care about my musical tastes, I will keep it at 50, but add a couple of additional lists along the way...starting today.

My first list of songs are songs that mattered in college. In college I played a lot of sports, ate a lot of good food, enjoyed practical joke wars with my roommates, and listened to A LOT of music. Now, there are more than this, but some of them will appear on the Top 50, and others just don't need to be shared ;-). Here are some of the songs that I loved back then:

1. Roll to Me - Del Amitri ...This song, all 2 minutes of it, is one that I still sing very loudly every time it comes on. Why? I dunno, I just like it. You will see this theme throughout my entire list.

2. Cool Like That - Digible Planets...I have always been a fan of music and had a very eclectic ear, but these guys really stretched what I thought music should be. Mixing Jazz with R&B, well, rocks!

3. I'm Gonna Be - Proclaimers...Every time I hear this song I think of my college girlfriend. We dated for 4 years and listened to a lot of music, but for some reason this is the song I think of. Go figure.

4. Got To Be Real - Cheryl Lynn...I hate disco. With a passion I hate disco, but I love this song. Every time I hear it I am taken back to this little Mexican restaurant in La Mesa California. Why? Well, on Friday and Saturday nights it turned into a club, a club that I was a bouncer in during college. This song was played a couple times every week and, along with DMX Party Up and House of Pain - Jump Around, always teleports me back (and makes me turn up the volume).

5. Hand in My Pocket - Alanis Morissette...My buddy Craig used to say that if he wanted an album, all he had to do was mention to me that it was good and I would go buy it. I think I was 500 CD's deep when I graduated from college (is that a lot?)...this song may not be my favorite on the album, but it is representative of the fact that is got more rotation than just about any other during my sophomore year.

6. Iris - Goo Goo Dolls...I still sing this song, eyes closed, reflecting (I think we all do a lot of that in college, right?). Other songs like that, Tony Rich Project - Nobody Knows and Eric Clapton - Change the World.

7. I Don't Want to Miss a Thing - Aerosmith...Quick, can you name the only song that Aerosmith has put to the top of the charts? No, nothing off of PUMP (although there is some good music there), it is this song from Armageddon. How crazy is that? A phenomenal rock band with outstanding music from start to finish, getting their only #1 hit on a love ballad. Anyway, I loved the movie (I know, cheesy), and still get a kick out of sappy love songs...at least I did not pick My Heart Will Go On.

8. Semi-Charmed Life - Third Eye Blind...Knotts Scary Farm, 1997. Lot's of people in Halloween costumes jumping and dancing at a Third Eye Blind concert...it rocked! Bought the album, but ended up mainly just listening to this one song, a lot.

9. Mo' Money, Mo' Problems - The Notorious B.I.G....Cause Biggy speaks the truth...along with Hypnotize and Coolio's Gangsta' Paradise these songs brought in the "gansta' lean" for this volleyball playing beach bum.

10. Hold My Hand - Hootie and the Blowfish...I saw this video on MTV the day it debuted. I went right out to Sam Goody and bought the entire album. Remember Sam Goody? I still love this entire record.