How to spell yum.

1) Go to the Cottage Place with the family.
2) Our 12 year old daughter ordered the Salmon Linguine with a sparkling cider - served in a fancy champagne flute. The cider, not the entree`.
3) Patty ordered the beef stroganoff
4) I ordered the spinach and goat cheese strudel
5) Wine was a Tobin James Zinfandel. Hey, it went with both mine and Patty's entrees.
6) Dessert: Daughter: Creme Brulee, Wife: Creme Brulee, Me: Pear Flambe`

7) It is so cool to have a daughter that has manners and a gourmet palate.

As If I Needed Another Reason To Drink Beer The Color Of Old Motor Oil

Fun Fact Number Next:

Guinness Stout has fewer calories per gram (or ounce) than Bud Light.

Youtube Vs. Haynes manual

So, I get to replace the water pump on a 1998 mini van. What does the Haynes manual say?

Disconnect battery bla bla bla... jack up vehicle...remove tire... remove hoses... remove plastic shield... remove pulley bolts... serpentine belt... reomve pump bolts... remove... engine bolts.. jack stand... timing belt..secure drive pulley so timing isn't compromised WHAT? Timing belt/chain? Engine bolts? Secure drive? SERIOUSLY?! Bla bla bla. My love for any Chrysler product grows - like Kudzu on a hillside. Yeah, that be a DIY job.

Let's read online: Mirrors Haynes manual, but also says something about experienced home mechanic can do it in 4 hours.

Hmmm. Let me look for a video - can't find one for 1998, but can for a 2003.

summary: jack up vehicle...remove tire... remove plastic shield...remove hose and be ready for a mess... remove pulley bolts...remove serpentine belt... remove pulley... remove pump bolts... remove pump... put new gasket in new pump... reverse process using new pump. Total time for inexperienced me including getting tools together and clean-up: less than 2 hours. And only minor cursing of anything made by Chrysler/Dodge/Plymouth. Not a word about timing belts or engine mount bolts. Video done by mechanics in a shop. My next garage will have a "lift."

Flagstaff Rocks!

Reasons why I like living in Flag

1) Being a college town, it keeps me young
2) Rarely hotter than 90 degrees, rarely colder than minus 15 (I said RARELY - ignore
last year's minus 25 / minus 30)
3) Ice Rink!
4) Ski area less than 30 minutes from town
5) Usually bicycle friendly
6) When not #5 above, it is bicycle tolerant
7) Population fewer than 100K, greater than 50K
8) Smells like pine trees
7) People are cool
8) Grand Canyon, Meteor Crater, Riordan Mansion, etc.
9) When our idea of winter gets to be a drag, a warmer climate is 40 minutes away
10) Outdoor activities!

Two Chemical Haikus

Saying incident
With hydrofluoric acid
Disturbs most chemists

Fortunately the
Incident did not involve
bodily contact

Awesome!

Today, my wife had her company picnic at Ft. Tuthill. Anticipating how I usually wind up feeling restless at these events, I loaded my bike in the truck in case I felt the urge to get some activity in. After about 2 hours, my mood hit - and I was about to fall asleep - so I made my escape to the Soldiers / Highlands trail. I had walked a portion of it a year ago, and forgot some details. I wound up turning the long way on the loop part of the trail and got some extra riding in. I also was awarded some outstanding views. After crossing 89A, I meandered behind Pine Dell and hooked up with Old Munds. Awesome ride! Kudos and thanks to those who built the trail. It takes a lot longer than the shoulder of 17, but Mountainaire is now connected to flag by dirt bike tracks. I felt like a slug for splitting the event early, but at least an active slug. I also needed to compensate for the high fat cheeseburger I consumed. That and my mountain bike was bitching that although it sees a lot of dirt, I rarely take it on a single track. This is an awesome trail, steep enough to not be boring, but easy enough to be good for a gutless wonder such as myself.

The bad, the good, the bad, the good and the ugly.

Father's Day Dinner Adventure:

The bad: For diner tonight, we thought we would go to Buffalo Wild Wings and have a simple and affordable dinner. We were seated at a table with several layers of a cola and beer shellac. My menu had the associated stickiness. This was no problem as I could ignore the menu, and when the waitress stopped by, I would ask for the table to be wiped off. At least 2 waiters passed by several times without acknowledging us or responding to our signals. In their defense, I doubt they noticed. After 15 minutes we left...

The good: for Busters. Within 10 minutes we were seated at a clean table and were enjoying the bread and water/drink orders. I ordered the crab cakes with a spinach salad and fresh vegetables, and a Merlot. Patty and Kim split the shrimp. Patty had a salad, Kim had soup; both had veggies. Desert came. Kim had the chocolate mousse, Patty and I each had the creme brulee. It was awesome, but...

The bad: terribly unhealthy. But it was...

The good: damn good. Seriously damn tasty. No foolin'. It came with a strawberry garnish. Fresh fruit is healthy, therefore good. Then the check came.

The ugly: We spent 3X as much as we would have at Buffalo Wild Wings. Not to mention, it will take a whole bottle of Crestor and Niaspan to undo the damage to my arteries.