Miscellany
June 24th, 2010
Welcome Asian Carp, I Hope You Like Lake Trout
For months people have been rightfully sounding the alarm about Asian Carp, the vociferous nonnative fish that destroy fish populations wherever they go. The carp eating every fish in some little rivers isn’t a huge deal. But if they get into the Great Lakes, they could inflict a piscatory ass-kicking of epic proportions.
There’s an easy way to make sure the carp don’t get into the Great Lakes. There are locks that could be closed that would shut the Great Lakes off from the waterways that have been infested with carp. But doing so would put a damper on business that use those waters for shipping purposes.
The government of the State of Illinois, that beacon of something other than moral fortitude, assures us that there is no need to close to the locks and that little electric fences will keep the carp out.
Well, now they found a 19-pound carp in Lake Calumet yesterday. Lake Calumet is between Lake Michigan and the locks. The Corps of Engineers has already said this is not making them rethink their approach to the whole carp issue.
Frankly, I’m tired of this story because I know how it ends. Greed and arrogance will win out and the carp are going to be in Lake Michigan. And no lesson will be learned. The End.
June 1st, 2010
See You Next Week
I’m worse at blogging than I am at losing weight. I’ll be back on Monday.
April 22nd, 2010
Top Chef Masters is Back
Technically, it’s been back for three weeks but the first two episodes were underwhelming. Last night’s show, which featured six chefs who were on Season 1 but didn’t make it out of the first round: Rick Moonen, Wylie Dufresne, Mark Peel, Graham Elliot Bowles, Ludo Lefebvre, and Jonathan Waxman.
As Top Chef devolves into too much drama and not nearly enough talent in the kitchen, this show is a reminder of how incredibly gifted these guys are. And thanks to a Frenchman eager to play into stereotypes and five other chefs who don’t take themselves too seriously, there was plenty of entertainment to go with the drool-inducing cooking.
You can watch the show here.
April 18th, 2010
Running Sucks
In preparing for the half marathon in two weeks, I decided to go run somewhere the ground isn’t flat. Such places are not readily available in Chicago, but I knew of one from marathon training a few years ago: Waterfall Glen in a forest preserve in DuPage County.
I was due to run 11 miles today and the main loop at Waterfall Glen is 9.6 miles (pdf). I figured I could run the loop and then run out for a song and a half or so and then run back. First problem: I forgot my iPod and running without music sucks. Second problem: I got lost and ran off the trail onto some side road. Third problem: After getting back on the main trail, I did the same thing a second time.
I got more than the 1.4 miles out of the way on my two detours, but the combination of no music, having to carry water with me, and being way too used to flat ground make this a shitty run with more than a couple of walking breaks.
I finished about 12 hours and and my lowers legs still hurt and I’ve got my worst chafing in years.
April 16th, 2010
A Couple of Runs
I got a little busy this week and got lazy with the running. Only did two runs, one on Wednesday and one on Friday. 11 miles Sunday will be a test.
April 9th, 2010
What a Lovely Afternoon
If all I had done this afternoon was eat leftovers from The Publican for lunch (terrible pics to be posted with other food shots over the weekend), it would have been a good afternoon.
If all I had done this afternoon was find a dollar on the ground, it would have been a good afternoon.
If all I had done this afternoon was watch Fred make sweet sweet love to a pit bull for the first time ever, it would have been a good afternoon.
Having all three of those things happen? Well that’s almost too much to handle.
April 7th, 2010
Nike’s Curious Advertising Strategy
In an apparent effort to double down on their decision to stand by Tiger Woods, Nike released a new ad today on the eve of the Masters. The purpose of the ad seems to be to show that Tiger learned his lesson. The way they opted to get that message across is beyond odd – a recording of some moral lesson from his adulterous father.
Here’s the ad:
One more thing: Today, another mistress came out of woodwork. This time it’s his 21-year-old neighbor.
If Tiger Woods is golf’s Michael Jordan, he will destroy the field at the Masters this week. And then go cheat on his wife some more.
April 2nd, 2010
Ask Fred
Attention loyal readers of Zemanation:
I am hereby announcing a new segment on this blog. If you are curious about anything at all, you are welcome to submit your questions to Fred. He will be available to answer questions on any topic that readers want to know about. Just submit your questions via email by clicking here and Fred will pick his favorites and answer them every Friday at 10:00 AM.