My Town

I wasn't tagged for this, but I volunteered for this one. I am not going to tag anyone either (mainly because I have no confidence that more than three people regularly read this thing), but I would LOVE IT if anyone who wants to will play too. Consider it a birthday present to me (that's right, my big fabulous wonderful birthday is Monday--the 21st! woo-hoo I love my birthday... oh right, meme)...

The Rules:

Add a direct link to your post below the name of the person who tagged you. Include the state and country you’re in.

List out your top 5 favorite places to eat at your location (locally).

Tag 5 other people (preferably from other countries/states) and let them know they’ve been tagged.

My 5 favorite places to eat locally:

1.) Harry's. This fabulous little Cajun/seafood joint is pretty darned great! I will say it can be pricey, but it is usually worth it. My hubbie just dies for their jambalaya, and I am pretty fond of the etoufe (crawfish is best). The good news is, there are very few things we have eaten there that weren't great. And we eat there almost once a week, so we have tried a lot of things! It is fairly casual, the waitstaff is generally great, and it has prime-time location--next to Lillian's Music Store, my favorite bar these days!

2.) Dragonfly Sushi. This grand sushi place lives up to all the hype! This is another one that can be pricey, but if you play your cards right, it doesn't have to be. This place's whole gig (so they say) is to encourage sharing and family-style dining. So, the key here is for each person to pick just one or two things off the menu and for everyone to share share share! I highly recommend the Fire Me Up Wasabi Role, Gator Role, Crunch Role, and their cooked food isn't bad either! D'Fly also has prime location in Downtown, so that's pretty nice too!

3.) Conestoga's. Now this is actually in the next town over, but it is worth the drive! This is a great little country dining experience. You can get liver'n'onions (I refuse to do so, but for those who dig that yuk, I hear it's good), fried catfish, big'ol baked potatoes, sandwiches, burgers, and one of the best steaks I have had at a non-steakhouse kind of place... What I mean by that is that my mom and dad did a terrible thing to me and took me to lots of fancy (expensive) steak houses while I was growing up. I only ate fillet before I met my husband (and really still try to stick to that rule), and I only ate it at the kind of steak houses where your steak comes ala carte. So this little country bumkin kind of place didn't seem like the steak place for me, but man am I glad I took a chance and ordered the tenderfoot. It was spectacular!! Bottom line, it's all good there!

4.) Ashley's Pub. Here's the great thing about this place. You can get pub food or tex-mex! I am sure most of you are puzzled at this point, I know it sounds strange. But, when you are a tex-mex addict (which I am) and you are married to a man who detests tex-mex (but loves a great burger), this place is just too great! The only real downside to the place is that you have to pay for chips and salsa, which I think is a crock, but other than that the prices aren't bad, the food's always good, and the staff is friendly and accommodating. And did I mention peach margies?? Oh yeah, they have fabulous flavored margies (on the rocks, though). They also serve regular margies in the hugest glass/punch bowl thing I have ever seen. It comes with a ladle. I am all about mexican food and booze!

5.) **WARNING**OK, this last one is not actually in my town. It is in the town in which I used to live. I include it here for many reasons. If you get the chance to check this place out, consider yourself lucky!
Eskimo Joe's. I don't actually recommend this place because of the food, because the food just isn't all that great. I recommend this place because of the sentimental value it holds for me and so many other OSU alum. I will say their cheese fries (within the first five minutes of arrival at the table) are fabulous--so fabulous in fact that Barbara Bush made Bush Sr. endorse them while he was in office... The other thing you have to eat while at Joe's is a Little Joe. Now all of their burgers are actually great, so you can't go wrong with a burger. But, the Little Joe is a hangover cure in a sac. It is about the size of a McDonald's hamburger, it comes with MOP--mustard, onions (grilled into the patty), and pickles. You can get cheese. It is a very simple little classic. They are grilled on a flat grill (so no yucky flame broiled goo) and they are just great. It might take two or three to really kill the hangover, but they hold a special place in my heart.

Previous players:

Nicole (Sydney, Australia)

Velverse (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia)

LB (San Giovanni in Marignano, Italy)

Selba (Jakarta, Indonesia)

Olivia (London, England)

ML (Utah, USA)

J (California, USA)

CuriosityKiller (Hong Kong, SAR)

Shelli (Minnesota, USA)

Bluepaintred (Saskatchewan, Canada)

Avitable (Florida, USA)

Amy (California, USA)

Luin (New York, USA)

Tense Teacher (Mississippi, USA)

ffbgirl (Florida, USA)

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p.s., I am starving now!!

Much love to Tense Teacher for this fun little meme!

It's Game Day Baby!

Okay, my goal is going to be to post SOMETHING Monday through Thursday... Fridays and the weekends I try to avoid my computer--therefore avoiding work... So, here we go.

It's Game Day Baby!!!! Go Gators!

The national championship vibe is back in Gainesville! That's right folks, the Gators are playing for a national title. Again. I know, we just did it for football. And it seems like we just did it for basketball. But, yes siree bob, we get to play in a national title game again.

Like how I said "we"? I am a Gator, therefore I am playing for a national title. Those five starters are starting for a team of Gators everywhere. I also claim ownership of what sports teams at Oklahoma State and Texas Christian universities do as well. (okay, random side note there).

So I am very excited and nervous about this game. We beat Ohio State pretty handily earlier in the season, but these are two different teams now. Ohio State has only lost once, that's right ONCE, since we beat them. We have lost more than a few games since then. But, we are a tournament, championship team, so I am going to try not to be worried.

And so if we win, the debate begins between the husband and I if we can go to MidTown and celebrate with all the kids. I want to go. He doesn't. He is right. And I know this. I know once we get down there I will be frigtened by the crowd, he will be annoyed by the crowd, he will have to protect me from the craziness, and we will leave almost as soon as we get down there. But I want to go! (really say that with a whine and it will sound about right)

I really want to go.

And then I will really want to leave.

But, none the less, I want to go. I want to see the pandemonium. I want to see toilet paper on street signs. I want to see happy Gator Fans running around aimlessly. I want to feel the push of the TONS of people walking down the middle of University Avenue. I want that little bit of panic when it gets too crowded. Because even though we have been there twice in a year to celebrate these national titles, I want to do it again. That is what you DO when your school wins a title. Period.

All of this might be irrelevant if we lose tonight. I really hope we win. I really really hope we win. I have prayed about it.

Is it bad to pray about sports? On Saturday, while driving to watch the game, I said out loud, "Okay God. We really need a good parking spot (we were running late and already missed tip off). And we really need a win. Okay? I will take a win over a parking spot, but we really need both! Thanks God!" I literally said this out loud with another person in the car with me (and this other person doesn't really pray so I am sure she thought I was crazy).

And another random question... as a Ph.D. student, am I not supposed to do things like go out on University and celebrate the national championship? When I am a professor, will I not be allowed (or supposed) to do things like that? I sure hope not. I am a BIG sports fan. Big One! And I love the comeraderie that comes with rooting for college sports. I hang out at a non-student bar to root for my team. I don't go to games drunk. I don't act silly. I am a fan. And I hope being an instructor (and someday professor) doesn't disclude me from the enjoyment of being a college sports fan. If anyone reading this has an opinion on the matter, I would really like to know what you think.

Oh yeah and: Ohio State is Gator Bait!!!

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College town activities

So tonight is the Gator Stomp--an event during which large numbers of college students bar crawl through numerous places in town, get free drinks, get a t-shirt, and probably an ugly hangover tomorrow. They, of course, pay a fee of some sort for this. My question is this:what about those of us who do not enjoy drunken debauchery but might enjoy having a drink and some live music on a Thursday night? I will have to avoid my favorite bar because it will be overrun with drunk children. Now when I was 21, I certainly didn't think I was a child. And some of them are not, but when you go out in an attempt to get falling down drunk, that makes you a child--in my humble opinion. So, I think we will be relegated to the really old-fogie, kind of white trash, kind of biker, bar. That is always fun for people watching.

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My husband worked really hard again today at a job that he is not so wild about. All to allow me to continue my pursuit of a degree that will allow me to do what I think is my calling--teach and shape young minds. I think I just had an epiphany... If he is working in a job that sucks to allow me to do this, I need to be honest about it. I want to teach. TEACH. I enjoy research and will do a little of it, but I really LOVE the teaching. It is what God has called me to do, and I want to do it to the best of my ability, at a university that will appreciate my teaching efforts. So I think my first step will be to be honest to my advisor that this is my goal--even if it will make her very angry. She is so all about her and how what I do and become will reflect upon her. But I need to be about me and G. We are our family now and I need to respect what G is doing for me, and in return, I need to be honest and serious in my pursuit of a good teaching job. I feel a little better now with that clarity about what I am doing.

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So I am trying to be somewhat anonymous with this blog... I am not sure that I am doing a good job of it. I searched blogs for my name and e-mail address and I couldn't find this, so I am hoping people who know me in real life might not stumble upon this. I just think that is better. I certainly wouldn't want my advisor to stumble onto this and see that I think she is selfish. So if there is some certain procedure I need to follow, let me know...

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Well post no. 2... So far I like this. I don't think I am very good at it, but I like it none the less. I hope to return tomorrow.

Hopefully with a new puppy--see, training some someday-mommyhood. G and I are going to Ocala tomorrow to see about adopting the cutest little boy. Keep your fingers crossed for me!! I think we will be good puppy parents. This will be good for us!

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