Just folks – and sushi

When we moved to Albuquerque I didn’t expect to see many sushi joints.  But to my surprise, there were quite a few.  Seven actually.  I’ve tried most of them and most are pretty good.  They all seem to be doing fairly well and I chalked it up to patrons, like myself, who came from somewhere else.

But a group of people I know, just regular folks, who have regular jobs, and never lived anywhere but here, went out for sushi recently.

The only reason it was a big deal to me is – it wasn’t a big deal to them.  It was as common to them as going to Applebee’s.

My wife said sushi is trendy now, in Albuquerque.

I smiled.  It was trendy in LA when I moved there in nineteen sixty-seven, and probably earlier.

It’s still trendy in LA.  Although when something’s been popular that long I guess it isn’t a trend any more, is it?

I Goggled Sushi in Detroit, where I grew up, just out of curiosity.  There are seven Sushi joints listed there as well.  Is that a trend?  

Her heart is in the right place

I like to watch professional football and my wife tries to show some interest in the game to support me.

She said recently that she was tired of all the Tom Tebow hoopla.

Tim, I said.

And she hoped that Adam Smith and the Forty-niners would do well next week.

Alex, I said.

It’s nice to have a partner who cares.

They kinda screwed it up for me

It seems to me the food at the ballpark has radically changed.  When I was a kid in Detroit I had the impression Briggs Stadium only served hotdogs.

I don’t know for sure because the only ballgame we ever tried to sneak into, we were caught and ushered to the curb.

My buddies and I couldn’t have afforded a hotdog even if we’d gotten away with sneaking in.  Did I mention none of us had any money?

Anyway, now that I can actually afford a ticket, I’m conflicted about the variety of foods offered in ballparks.

Standing outside, listening to the cheers of the crowd inside, we imagined how much fun it would be to scream, wave our hotdogs around, and smack each other on the back when our team made a great play.

You can’t wave a bread-bowl full of clam chowder over your head when your team scores, can you?

Or nachos with extra cheese and jalapeños, or an Indian taco with beans, shredded beef and chopped lettuce and tomato, or the big mess of charro (it looks like fried worms) with a ton of powered sugar dumped on it, or Dippin’ Dots, or a big sub sandwich overloaded with salad and stuff, or an actual salad, or even sushi for God sakes.

You can wave a giant warm pretzel with mustard on it over your head I guess, but you get my point.

They’ve improved the food and trampled my fantasy.

When I go to the ballpark, I always get a hotdog, in homage to my childhood.

Oh, I get it

We were at an Albuquerque Isotopes ball game, the Dodgers triple-A farm club.  I asked my friend if he wanted a hotdog.  He said no, he couldn’t eat food on an empty stomach.  And ordered a beer.

I laughed and ordered a hotdog and a beer and we found our seats.  After a few innings he finally got himself a hotdog – and another beer.

I like the man’s style.

Not the answer we’re looking for

If you’re not married or don’t have a significant other, you probably don’t know how many different answers there are to the question: What time is it?

The simple answer is pretty straightforward.  It’s whatever time it actually is, in your time zone, at that moment, right?

No, not really.

If you’re in a relationship you know that the answer can, and probably will be, any one of a great number of answers.

Such as:  The movie doesn’t start ‘til seven.  Or: We don’t have to be there for another hour.  Or: The stores stay open until ten o’clock.  Or: Dinner won’t be ready until the noodles are done.  Or: I just have to fold your shorts and then we can go.  Or: We can leave as soon as I feed mother.  Or: As soon as I feed the cat.  Or: Don’t worry, I told them we might be late.  Or: I just have to put my makeup on.

Or, if you lead a really exciting life, the answer could be:  You’ve got ten seconds before the bomb goes off.  Just snip the blue wire!

They’re all good answers, some more exciting than others, all very informative.

But they’re not actually the answer to the question are they?

No, they’re not.

And if you’re in a serious relationship, you know she’s just anticipating what she thinks you’re really asking, so you can’t show your frustration.  You just have to go find a clock.

Eleven minus one equals zero?

Is it possible to be named NFL’s most valuable player without ever taking a snap?  If it is I nominate Peyton Manning.  It’s obvious why.

You gotta start somewhere

A movie channel was showing a really old movie “She Done Him Wrong” or maybe it was “He Done Her Wrong”.  Well anyway, somebody did somebody wrong in the movie.

I turned it on because the listing said it starred May West and Cary Grant, and I was curious.

May West is oddly famous isn’t she?  I mean she wasn’t super attractive, she wasn’t particularly curvaceous, kinda plump actually, and she couldn’t sing.  I guess she did it with innuendo.  “Why don’t you come up sometime ‘n see me?”  One of her famous, often misquoted, lines is cute rather than sexy.  And the flirty way she pumped her hips when she said it was almost LOL.

It was too painful to watch very much of the movie.  The stilted dialogue alone was a killer.  And from what I saw, Cary Grant played a chauffer.  When he showed up in that little cap and jacket I turned it off.