Love At First Bite

Today, I became one of the lucky few (lucky millions?) to try Chick Fil A's new Spicy Chicken Sandwich. You know the drill-- you make a reservation at your local delicious chicken purveyor, show up with your printed coupon, hand over your photo ID and sign over your life and receive your free sandwich. Then: spicy goodness.

I did encounter one little snag in the plan this afternoon, when I realized something-- we don't have a printer. Now, in this digital age, I believe you should be able to just flash your iPhone, open to your email with the coupon inside, at the high schooler behind the counter and that's that. And maybe that would have worked, but I was unwilling to risk it. Off to Fed/Ex Office I went. So my free spicy chicken sandwich ran me about $.75.

Now about that sandwich. In most ways, it's the exact same as a Chick Fil A chicken sandwich. Same breading, same chicken, just different seasoning. But why change things up when the rest was already just right? In the future, when craving Chick Fil A, I would probably go for this one over the original. However, if I were simply craving spicy, this doesn't cut it. Not quite spicy enough for me, although my tastebuds have gotten pretty demanding of flavor in their old age. Your mileage may vary.

And now the crucial question: is it better than Wendy's version of the same? Why yes. Yes it is, thus rendering Wendy's only necessary for fulfilling all your fries-dipped-in-Frosty needs.

My verdict? Worth every delicious penny of that $.75.

Verbal Tapas

They say eating a series of small, snack-like meals throughout the day is healthier than gorging yourself on three squares. Does that same logic apply to a blog post, y'think?

After 23 years of eating Oreo Sandwich Cookies the regular way (you know-- twist, lick, eat), I finally realized they taste way better when eaten in bites like a regular cookie. This, of course, has changed my entire perspective on life.


This picture is currently topping the front page of Reddit, with the headline, "What the fuck kind of measurement is CNN using here?" Indeed. Imagine:

"How tall are you, George?"

"I'm one and a fifth refrigerators tall, Linda."

You know what they say about tall refrigerators...



I bought gnocchi and artichokes and a fresh tomato and sage cream sauce at the Farmer's Market yesterday and made them tonight, despite having poor cooking skills on a good day. The artichokes are totally the best part. I love these things and need to come up with some good recipes starring them.

I've spent the last three weeks not blogging and instead wondering how Michael Sarver the rugged roughneck (we get it) keeps not getting voted off American Idol, then reminding myself that true Americans love country music and that I'm just a flag-burning unpatriotic liberal. Here's hoping tonight one of the bleeding-heart socialist contestants bests him. I miss Jason Castro.

Ever since I moved into my new house, I've developed a curse where every time I get delivered a magazine, it rains. Our mailbox, of course, is a leaky joke of a thing, resulting in sad, soggy magazines. Today I got nothing, but it's supposed to rain for the next few days so there's still time. As long as Robert Pattinson's not on the cover of my Entertainment Weekly (as he is 75% of the issues), I suppose I'll be okay.

Now I'm going to go relish eating an Oreo the right way and prepare to will Michael Sarver's Idol ouster into fruition with my mind (I'm far too cool to vote, you know). I will be back, preferably before another three weeks are up.

Which Came First?

As I do with most holidays, I had big plans for the day after Valentine's Day. On February 15th, I had one goal and one goal only: half price candy. Unfortunately, I was hungover, only managed to make it to Publix, which was completely devoid of Valentine's Day leftovers. Target would've been a safer bet, but I was here and it was far. You know how it goes on a lazy Sunday.

So my epic February 15th failure-- a regular Valentine's Day massacre, if you will-- just made me long for Easter. It is the opinion of this court that Easter is far and away the best candy holiday there is. The rest pale in comparison; they bow down to the superiority that is Easter Sunday. Cadbury Creme Eggs, Cadbury MINI Eggs, Peeps (if you swing that way), chocolate bunnies! But Easter's pièce de résistance, and in fact the clear evidence of its superiority, is the Reese's Egg.

Reese's Peanut Butter cups are delicious treats to be enjoyed year-round. They are imperfect, however, and it is only during the months of March and April that this becomes fully evident. Once you compare a Reese's Egg to a regular old cup, your life may change for the better. And sure, Reese's makes these chocolatey-and-peanut-buttery concoctions for holidays of all sorts-- Reese's Hearts at Valentine's Day; Reese's Trees at Christmas; Reese's Pumpkins at Halloween. But the secret behind the delectable Egg is its chocolate-to-peanut-buttery-goodness ratio.

See, with regular old cups, the ratio is almost 1:1. Scrumptious but imperfect. Then look at Hearts, Trees and Pumpkins-- all are shaped with grooves and curves, allowing for more chocolate-- too much chocolate. Only the Egg, in its sleek oval glory, reaches the golden ratio of peanut-buttery perfection. Old Man Reese's really broke the mold when he came up with these delightful candies. And every other holiday may nip at the heels of the Egg, and those cheap imitations may satisfy 10 months out of the year, but come springtime, I have but one love. And he didn't come from a chicken.

Isle Of...

I haven't been kidnapped, loyal readers, I've just moved. I live in a cute house near downtown Decatur now, and the trade-off is that for the time being our internet is primitive and complicated-- meaning, not wireless-- and I've resorted to skulking in local parking lots, stealing wi-fi from unsuspecting businesses. Expect a return to my regular quantity-over-quality blogging post haste.

For now, here's the latest edition of Isle Of:

Isle Of...



The Laughing Cow Creamy Swiss Cheese. Oh my God. My love affair with this cheese began on my flight to Italy in September. Delta's in-flight semi-sustenance included a little tiny package of this stuff with a little tiny packet of crackers. Spreadable cheese, I thought to myself in wonder. What sort of newfangled dairy product will they think of next?

Then I spread a bit on a cracker and entered dairy heaven. This stuff is like frosting; it's just that good. And I ate it like frosting, too, dipping my pinkie finger into the container and making sure every bit of gooey cheesy goodness made it from the crevices of the foil to my eager taste buds. The cow is laughing because he knows his cheese totally dominates.

Unexpected It Is Unexpected

You know what's the best feeling? When you don't really know what you want, and then when you get something, you find out it was exactly what you wanted.

Like how moments ago, I was hungry, but couldn't figure out for what. We had Thanksgiving at my uncle's lakehouse, so we don't have any leftovers. I moped around the kitchen for a few minutes, pantry and fridge doors ajar, and finally settled on a turkey (cold-cut turkey, that is) sandwich with a little mayonnaise and Parmesan cheese sprinkled on it. I ho-hummed upstairs with my lame-looking sandwich, took a bite and realized-- what I'd wanted all along was a turkey sandwich with Parmesan cheese. Delicious.

Or like a couple of weeks back, when I wanted to watch a movie and couldn't pick one out. I crouched before my racks of DVDs, head cocked, reading each title silently and dismissing it in turn. Sighing, I decided on Stranger Than Fiction, which I'd seen in theaters, then bought on DVD when it was on sale one day and never watched. I wasn't in the mood for it, but then, I wasn't in the mood for any of my numerous movies. But once I popped the disc in the player, I was entranced. Will Ferrell, the delightful graphics the movie utilizes, the Spoon soundtrack-- and he brings her flours [sic]! It was the perfect choice to keep me enthralled and pull me out of the funk I'd been in when I'd set about to choose a movie.

And now my delicious, singularly appropriate turkey sandwich is finished. And, essentially, so is this blog entry. And I don't know what I want to do now. And nothing is jumping out at me. But whatever I choose, I hope it turns out to be exactly what I wanted.