Random Hallmark Moments: Hot Dogs!

   We may have gone a lil' overboard for Carrie's 5th anniversary. Given that it was the first day of summer, and Carrie loves summer, and given that she also loves hot dogs—and who doesn't love cooking hot dogs on George Foreman grills at work, risking being caught by the Fire Marshall?—we couldn't resist.

   Alison even made hot dog cookies, and Angela had the Crown Room put my hot dog character on a cake!

   I don't even like hot dogs, but I have to admit that it tasted mighty good today. Have I ever mentioned that I love my team & that they're the best ever?

Hot dog, and a tribute to Carrie's favorite color of OPI nail polish

Happy 5th, Mighty Mac!!!

Downward Facing Cat

   I guess by now Gypsy knows that Tuesday night is always yoga night, because I just caught her in the middle of her practice. If she masters Eight Angle Pose before me, I'm going to be super pissed!

   Britten announced tonight that she is taking over the Thursday night class as well, so my dream from the last 2+ years has finally come true. Yoga is a perfect counter-balance for running and the stresses at work (or anywhere else). And that's not to mention Britten's humor.
   Tonight, though, I was cracking up because there was a woman in the class who kept sighing, and it sounded very cat-like. And a guy who looks a lot like Joey Chestnut, the hot dog eating champ who protected his U.S. title yesterday, though たけるこばやし (Takeru Kobayashi) has beaten his record overseas. Anyway, I can tell you with absolute certainty that balancing on your hands while snickering is much harder than it looks.

Birthday Fun

   On the way to Pasadena for shopping, we stopped at Pink's for fancy hot dogs. They have dozens of variations, and cheesy clip-art signs plastered up all over the place to entice you to try them. How can a place that's been around since 1939 be wrong?

   Normally I'm not a hot dog fan, but I make an exception at Pink's and at baseball games. Plus, after having Thai food last night and Japanese planned for my birthday dinner, I figured it was only fair for Mom to get something she'd enjoy. The line was the longest I'd seen, and we waited about 30 minutes to get to the counter and order. Fortunately it went fast due to plenty of distractions. Hello, Google Street View car! How awesome would it be if we were pictured in line in front of Pink's on Google Maps?!

    Then I turned around and got a big slap in the face... Jason DeRulo is going to be here January 1, and I am NOT. I decided what I want for my birthday: Jason DeRulo. Not the ticket. The guy. I wonder what Freud would say about me eating a hot dog and thinking about Jason DeRulo simultaneously? Forget I asked. It's not my fault he has the world's catchiest jingle. (My favorite example being from "In My Head.")

   Ok, where was I? After enjoying a guacamole dog and a chili-cheese dog, we jumped back in the Mini and headed to Old Town Pasadena for some last-minute shopping.

   Pasadena is a really lovely city with the picturesque bridge that connects it to Los Angeles, green spaces (their botanical garden is really top-notch), and a cute shopping area with upscale architecture and design. It was crowded but not crazy, and just being there felt like Christmas. We spent some time browsing in Barnes and Noble, then Crate and Barrel. Kelley and I both fell in love with the same linen design, a graphic, storybook-like pattern full of animals:

   I kept thinking that it reminded me of the cover of Keane's "Under the Iron Sea" album, and when I grabbed the C&B catalog I discovered that I was right: this was designed by Sanna Annukka for Marimekko.

   Her work is beautiful and distinctive. I've been a fan for a long time but hadn't looked her up in a while, so this was a welcome discovery. CandB also had giftwrap (lousy colors; I wish they offered black & white!):

 

And upon a quick search I found these postcards on Amazon:

   After the unexpected and eye-popping art encounter, we headed back home to meet Eric and have dinner. The Rock-n-Roll sushi place Kelley wanted me to see was booked, so we went to Teru Sushi instead. They bill themselves as LA's greatest sushi experience, and I have to say, I want to try ALL the others to make sure, but it really was excellent!
   We shared a range of things: grilled shisito peppers with ponzu sauce, yellowtail roll, albacore and salmon sushi, spicy tuna on fresh rice cakes, and some fun rolls like the Dragon Ball Roll and the aptly named Yummy Roll. Totally delicious!

   At the last minute we decided to forgo making a homemade double-chocolate cheesecake in favor of a 4-flavor Trader Joe's version, and I must say, I'm not sure we could have made a better cheesecake ourselves!

Belive me when I say, I know how to birthday.

Boo, Joey Chestnut!

68 hot dogs? I call not human.
You may be able to eat a lot, sir, but you are no Kobayashi!
I've backed Takeru ever since his jaw-dropping performance on the ultra-dramatic Japanese competition "Food Battle Club." And I'm sure he'd back me in my upcoming excursion to Maine: