Sunday, April 26, 2009

that didn't last long

As quickly as the playoff beard appeared, it was eliminated along with the Philadelphia Flyers. They lost to the Pittsburgh Penguins 5-3 yesterday in a game which I didn't get to see because I thought it stated at 7 pm. Scheduling is not one of my gifts. I trust that next year I will be able to grow a full playoff beard long into the month of May as the Flyers make a push towards the Stanley Cup.

This week saw another loss for the Chesapeake Whalers, as we got obliterated 8-0 by some team that consisted mainly of teenagers. The game didn't start until 10:30 and I guess older guys don't perform well on ice after 9. The kids we played against were really fast and outskated us most of the game. I had fun and got a great workout so I guess that means I'm a winner.

It sounds like with both hockey teams that my emotions are invested in that I have had a terrible week. This couldn't be further from the truth. It was pretty outside all week, the pollen is starting to subside, and one of my best good friends, Josh Nicoletti, came down to visit me. We joined a bunch of people from church and went to a large yard sale where cheap goodies were purchased. Also, we hung out on the beach for like 4 hours, which reminds me of a funny story. Before my hockey game Thursday, I decided to take a long nap outside after work. It was warm and sunny, so I thought this was a good oppurtunity to catch some rays to help cure my pastiness. I used adequate sunscreen and then fell asleep. I thought I applied the sunscreen evenly, but later that night I noticed an oddly shaped sunburn on my back which had a handprint in it. One thing I have learned: make sure you reach around everywhere when applying sunscreen or you will look funny.

I also introduced 3 new people to the awesome movie that is Hot Rod. I have now seen this movie 12 times and it still makes me laugh real hard. Today Josh and I joined up with my buddies Jake and Amanda and played some beach bocce. Have you not heard of bocce? I feel sorry for you. I could struggle to explain the game here or provide a link which will save you time. Learn about bocce here.

I hope you are doing well. Enjoy this beautiful weather that is here and I hope to talk to you soon. I will have plenty to talk about here next time as I get to hang out with my Dad, my 2 sisters and my niece and nephew, Jenna and Connor. If you have never seen a picture of the two awesomest kids ever you need to.

Clockwise from left: Yours truly, Connor, my sister Bambi, Jenna, my other sister Bronwyn.
Jenna again, this time super excited.

Wednesday, April 22, 2009

What's in a name?

So here I sit at work, contemplating important things. I have realized that I haven't named my car yet. The name "guapo" was good for awhile (good looking man), but I realized I think I want to give the G a proper name. So I figured, why not let my faithful blog readers have some input? I ask you to go to babynames.com and find a name that starts with G. I haven't figured out which sex my car should be, but I think it's a girl. If you have input, let me know. I think the G deserves a name that is strong and powerful, possibly a warrior, rock, something like that. Here are some good names thus far, starting with girl names.

Girls:
Giada
Guinevere
Gertrude
Geraldine
Grazia

Men:
Gavin
Ghazi
Gideon
Gunter/Gunther
Gunner
Guillermo

These are suggestions. Feel free to add input.

Back to work.

Monday, April 20, 2009

Gentlemen, start your playoff beards!

That's right. It's spring which means one thing. Flowers. False. It means it's hockey playoff time! With the onset of the hockey playoffs, I have begun my playoff beard. Fortunately, it is a far cry from 5 years ago when I first began playoff bearding. Back then I had the nickname "patches" for my inability to grow any sort of legit facial hair. I'd like to think my beard has some substance nowadays. I was reminded today that I am not married and therefore I celebrate that freedom by growing a sweet beard. The beard will remain until the Philadelphia Flyers lose or win the Stanley Cup, hopefully the latter. Since my camera is broken, I will rely on my friends with cameras to provide pictures of my beard for me to post here.

This past weekend, I was fortunate enough to spend the weekend at one of Young Life's awesome camps, Rockbridge. There is a large retreat held there by the PCA church once a year for senior high school kids. My buddy Marty asked me to go and since I regretfully struggle to say no to Marty, I went. (Usually Marty convinces me to do pseudo-embarrassing things, thus my regrets for saying yes.) It was a great weekend, not only did I get to hang out with some awesome high school guys, but I also got to see some friends I don't see often. Among these was my roomate from college, Justin. He's really cool.

Last week, I mentioned the ridiculous people I see at the gym. I thought it couldn't get weirder than fanny packs and mouthguards, but I was wrong. There is a room at the gym where you can stretch, do abdominal exercises, or jump rope. I was doing abs in there and an older woman walked in. Nothing out of the ordinary. Then she took off her sneakers and replaced them with a pair of tall, clear heels. Now I don't know much about women but I don't think they are supposed to work out in heels. That doesn't makes sense. By this point I am really confused. She continues the weirdness by walking around in a pair of spandex pants and top. Needless to say I am beginning to rush through my workout, trying hard not to laugh. I am going to give her the benefit of the doubt and assume that she was training in front of the multitude of mirrors in the room for a fitness competition and not a stripper routine, but I did not remain in the room long enough to ask any questions.

Now last week, I promised you a recipe. This recipe is courtesy of my favorite chef, Giada de Laurentis. This recipe is perfect if you have a bunch of extra potatoes around that are about to start sprouting. I hope you enjoy!

Gnocccgi with Thyme Butter Sauce
4-6 servings (54 Gnocchi)

2 baking potatoes, such as russets (about 12 oz each)
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup shaved Pecorino Romano or Parmesean cheese, for garnish
3/4 cup unsalted butter (1 1/2 sticks)
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves

To make the gnocchi, pierce the potatoes all over with a fork. Microwave the potatoes on high until tender, turning once, about 12 minutes. You can also bake the potatoes at 375 F for 50 minutes, or until tender. While the potatoes are still warm, cut them in half and scoop out the flesh into a large bowl. Discard the skin. (Or make potato skins.)Using a fork, mash the potato well. Stir in the egg, salt, and pepper. Sift the flour over the potato mixture and stir just until blended.

Scoop out a large spoonful of gnocchi dough. Roll each scoop on the work surface into about a 1/2 inch diameter rope. Cut the dough into 1 inch pieces. Roll each piece of dough over a wooden paddle with ridges or over the tines of a fork to form grooves in the dough. Set the formed gnocchi on a baking sheet while you form the rest of the dough.

To make the thyme butter, melt the butter with the thyme leaves in a medium, heavy skillet over medium heat until the butter is melted, about 2 min.

Working in 2 batches, cook the gnocchi in a large pot of boiling salted water until they have all risen to the surface, about 3 minutes. Scoop the gnocchi into a colander eith a slotted spoon while you cook the second batch. Reheat the thyme butter sauce over low heat. Transfer the cooked gnocchi to the skillet with the hot thyme butter and toss to coat. Sprinkle with salt and fresh pepper and toss again. Serve with cheese sprinkled on top.
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I hope you enjoy the above recipe. It is healthier without the butter so if you prefer, just make the gnocchi and use in any other gnocchi recipe. I hope you are doing well and I can't wait to speak to you. Have a great week!!!

Wednesday, April 15, 2009

It's been too long

I must apologize. It has been over 2 weeks since my last post. My bad. There is much to be blogged about. First, I am now officially not cool. I learned last week that my dad is the proud owner of a Wii. I haven't owned a video game system since the nintendo 64, back in like '97. Now my own dad, wearer of short jorts (jean shorts) that even I can't look at without making a face, is bowling/golfing/boxing like a pro. I guess I am out of the cool circle.

Another piece of exciting news is that the Peru trip is coming together nicely! I have put in for a full 6 days of leave from the shipyard in July which promises to be awesome. I can't wait to see how the Lord is working outside of my own little world. The trip is July 17-25. My original plans for summer vacation included a trip with my buddy Josh to the Colorado Rockies to hike and enjoy this gorgeous earth. It is amazing how city life and all that is included in that forces you to appreciate the God's creation. After learning about my church's plan to go on a trip to Peru, I decided maybe that would be a great way to spend vacation. Hopefully Josh's job will allow him to come.

Speaking of work, I have learned that the shipyard is a great place to people-watch. Mullets gallore, plenty of crazy beard/mustache/sideburn combinations, everybody with their different colored hardhats (mine's green), and not to mention people at the gym. Oh my. There are folks with fanny packs, headbands, and people who scream when they lift. I even saw a guy wearing a mouthguard the other day while lifting. Who needs to lift that hard that they need a mouthguard. Seriously? While I laugh at these men on the inside, most of them are twice my size and would break me in half instantaneously. I have added basketball to my workouts and there are crazy people there, too. Some guys take pickup basketball way too seriously. Accuse them of doing anything wrong and they yell and pout. It's really funny. I guess alot of those guys assume the NBA is the next logical step after playing Navy basketball.

In other sports news, my hockey team is now 1-4. I have yet to add anything productive to my team aside from effort. I have earned the nickname "Dino" after Dino Cicerelli who wasn't that good at hockey but tried real hard. Our next game is tomorrow, hopefully it will be a winning effort.

If you know me well, you know that my vocabulary stinks and I am a poor listener. To combat both of these inadequecies, I have started taking a dictionary to church. Jack (the pastor @ Trinity) is really smart and well read and uses alot of really big words I have never heard of before. John Herbst, I know you are a follower of this blog and appreciate a good dictionary. Bringing a dictionary to church was all well and good until Jack saw the dictionary one Sunday and asked me about it. I had to humiliate myself by telling him that I'm too stupid to follow him during church. A nice hearty slice of humble pie.

I also owe you a recipe this week, but it will have to wait. It's 4:30 and Giada's on the Food Network. That means I'm going to go watch that now. Bye!