... and rest of the weekend

Saturday Kirsten and I took part in the Irish Fest 5K Run/Walk for the Arthritis Foundation. The rain that has been going on the past 4 days here in Milwaukee hadn't hit yet so the run was quite pleasant. Not too hot, not too cool. When the sounding gun went off, I broke out into an unusually fast (for me) pace and knocked out the first mile in record time (again, for me).

I paid the price though as I had to walk a few steps during mile three but I still finished in 29:20 which is by far the best I've done so far. Kirsten on the other hand, was quick to show me up though winning her age division with a time of just over 21 minutes I believe so she got a cool medal. I was totally jealous. The winning dude finished in 15+ minutes which is just crazy.

After that we went home quick to shower and change and then hopefully go back to Irish Fest to get in with our wristbands that we received for taking part in the run. But alas, it was seemed that it was not to be as the rain had begun and picked up pretty quickly. We instead went to the Riverfront Pizzeria for some lunch to maybe wait out the rain. We finished up lunch but the rain was coming down even harder so that officially put an end to Irish Fest for us.

Sunday morning the rain was still going on so there wasn't any chance for a nice outdoor brunch after church so we decided to head over to Chez Jacques down on First Street. Kirsten had been to the previous location and I hadn't been to either. We were greeted by the man himself as we entered the restaurant. He was sitting at the bar, white moustache and all. I'm still trying to figure out if his "good morning" was authentic or sarcastic, but for the purpose of this, let's call it authentic.

The place is really cozy and nice and the food is just ridiculous. I had the Ham & Cheese Omelette which was just delicious. It was packed with sliced ham and fresh cheese. It also came with potatoes that were fried up with onions. I've had my fair share of omelette's in my life, but this one goes right to the top of the list. If you find yourself looking for a nice breakfast spot, go there. You will not be disappointed.

pleasant friday evening...

Friday night Kirsten and I headed over to the still relatively new Bayshore (Mall) Town Center up in Whitefish Bay to walk around and catch some dinner. I really like what they've done up there with the outdoor mall concept and all. Walking around, I feel like I'm walking through a little city with all the shops and food places and greenery, fountain, etc.

I remember when the Bayshore Town Center was first announced. I worked in Menomonee Falls at the time (yes I do now as well, but that was my first stint up here) and a couple people, one in particular, would go on and on about what a terrible and stupid idea it was to build something with an outdoor concept here in Milwaukee. "It would only be used like 6 months a year!" I'm not sure where the 6 months came from. I am pretty sure that people's legs work all year round but I'm not no scientist or nothing. Anyway, like most people that enjoy ripping on our great city, this person lived way out in some little town somewhere, near Jackson I think, and only came downtown like twice a year. In other words, she was fully qualified to make judgements on things like Bayshore, expanding the freeways, parking, etc.


ANYWAY, Kirsten and I hit up a couple spots and then finally settled on eating at Bravo! Cucina Italiana. Our initial impression was not good though. Our server had this weird robot vibe going on and I'm not one for messing with robots because they're made of metal, and robots are strong.* We almost left after waiting ten minutes for Mr. Roboto to bring our sodas. I thought that was a little excessive and we discussed leaving but just then, as if sensing our thoughts using his human emotion detector, he returned with our drinks. Then the experience was all up hill. Our food was fantastic. Much better than I anticipated. I had the chicken and shrimp scampi pasta. Delicious. Kirsten had...well I don't remember what Kirsten had, but I do remember she liked it a lot. To sum up, check it out you'll love it, but beware of the robot.


* For you Todd

reunification, irish fest

This past weekend Kirsten and I headed up to Merrill for her 10-year high school reunion. My expectations were pretty low but I would say it was a good time. The main reason we wanted to go was to see a couple friends who have moved away but were coming back for the event.

One such friend is Kirsten's friend Randy who currently lives in L.A. He and his girlfriend Ashley, or Ashelt as her name tag was spelled, made the long trip back home, which was nice. I had never met Randy but he was fun to hang out with, as was his girlfriend. We were wondering what she would be like. Would she be a busty blonde type that LA seems to generate? No, she was originally from Austin, Texas and still held on to her find Southern upbringing and was really nice to hang out with. As for Randy, the funny part there is that he works on post-production of films and TV shows. Well apparently people in Merrill weren't sure what that meant because he was treated like Steven Spielberg. I think one guy even gave him a script. Pretty funny stuff.

There were the other usual suspects that you would expect to see at such a reunion: a couple meatheads, a couple ladies that just looked like disasters with full makeup and Paris Hilton dresses, and a few really nice people whose company we enjoyed. Oh, and beer and food.

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This weekend is Irish Fest at the Summerfest grounds and if you have nothing going on, you should head on down. Kirsten and I and a couple other friends are taking part in the pre-fest 5K run Saturday morning so if you're looking for some exercise, stop by, say hello and get a quick run in!

back in the day

I believe it was in 1987 or 1988 when I got my first real video game system. It was the Sega Master System and it rocked. My favorite game was the now legendary "Alex Kidd in Miracle World" which was just awesome...to a 12 year old at least. The one thing I remember the most about the system other than that game is that the "Reset" and "Pause" buttons were right next to each other. I can't tell you how many times I went to hit "Pause" and hit "Reset" instead causing me to feel like my world had just ended and throwing me into a tantrum of 12 year old cursing which at the time was more like "oh double turds!" as opposed to today's "mother f#$*&!" How times have changed.

My Sega system didn't last long though as it seemed to have issues with freezing up on me which was quite frustrating. I'm sure it had nothing to do with my temper and hitting the console if when I "died" at a crucial stage of the game. Anyway, my Mom returned the system 2 different times and on the third, we exchanged it for the more popular Nintendo Entertainment System and the rest, as they say, is history. Nintendo was great and all, but there was no Alex Kidd to play.

Fast forward to 2007. I'm now 30 years old, married and the owner of 1 dog. I still miss that old system and especially that game. I'm sure the game probably looks crappy by today's standards but I'm a sucker for the old time stuff. Plus, the new video games have just too many buttons to master. I'm not all that bright.

So......now that you have the background, I need some help making a decision. I have a little money sitting in my PayPal account and I have my eye on this little beauty. What do you think?

Do I make the purchase?!

happy birthday, gap

Today I'd like to send out a very special "Happy Birthday" wish to my wonderful wife Kirsten. I hope you're enjoying your day off!

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On another note, I just noticed I'm wearing GAP socks, GAP boxers, GAP pants, a GAP belt and a GAP shirt today at work. Totally unintentional. I would however like to thank the six year old children who's little hands hard at work made this possible. You sure know how to put together some quality clothes.