St. Louis!

So as part of Mark and I's efforts to combat quarter-life-crisis-ness, and the general malaise brought about by the cultural void that is Carbondale, Illinois, we decided to make a day trip to St. Louis. Although we were both dreading the 4 hour round-trip drive, it turned out to be well worth it. LIKE REALLY WORTH IT.

We started our day in St. Louis at Iron Barley, a restaurant in south St. Louis that we heard about from the lovely Adam Richman on Man vs. Food. See this post if you need to be reminded how much we love Adam and his fine television program.

We walked in and immediately loved the atmosphere and the selection of beers on tap. We found ourselves a cozy two-person booth and prepared ourselves for the eating experience that awaited us. We knew we were going to love it when we saw this omen sitting directly on the wall to the left of Mark's head.

My apologies for the crumby quality. I only had my cellular device and 

I think it has a whopping 2 megapixel camera. 

It's Adam with the owners of Iron Barley. He wrote:

"Absolutely one of the best restaurants in the USA."

With Adam's blessing we ordered our food and let's just say that although we had high expectations, the food went above and beyond. I ordered the "Ballistic Elvis" which is (prepare yourself): strawberry preserves, cheddar cheese, peanut butter, banana, crushed red pepper and BACON between two slices of texas toast. It was the most intense sandwich (or sammiche, as Iron Barley calls 'em) that I've ever had and it was phenomenal. Mark got oak-roasted pork served with toasted barley. It was heavenly. We got, to share, the Monte Cristo dog as well because Adam spoke its praises on the episode we saw. We were not let down by these two hot dogs, served open-faced on buns smeared with strawberry preserves and covered with swiss cheese. We washed it all down with 6th Row Brewery's Strong Porter. If that paragraph above isn't food porn, I just don't know what is.

After lunch--the leftovers of which became dinner as well--we headed to the City Museum. I had heard wonderful things about this museum from numerous people and thought that Mark and I should check it out before we left the midwest. When we pulled up, we knew we were in for a treat:

 The parking lot and outside of the museum. This is not just a crazy facade to 
a museum, but a jungle gym as well. AMAZING.

The highlights of this fine establishment were (in no particular order):

• 10-story slide
• Man-made caves and caverns that adults are allowed to crawl and play in
• Werlitzer organ accompanying us on our trek to the top of the 10-story slide
• Old school photo booth where Mark and I got cutesy couply pictures
• WORLD'S LARGEST PENCIL
• 3-story slide
• Aquarium where Mark fell in love with an armadillo
• "Baleout"--a vintage clothing and accessories store (yes, inside the museum) where Mark got a new flannel and vest and I got a lovely sweater
• The crazy jungle gym

Also, as we were about to leave, we thought of having a beer at one of the many snackeries in the joint (all of which served alcohol...insane, right?) but we were met with a daunting crowd of Santas. Yes, Santas. We assumed they were having a Christmas party and instead of trying to bob and weave through 30 Clause's, we decided to walk down St. Louis' Washington Street to see if we could find a cool pub.

Not only did we find a cool pub, The Dubliner,  but along the way we found a hat-erie (aka--a store devoted to hats) where we tried on some fantastic styles, and we found out why the Santas had left their Christmas party at the City Museum and were not following us down the street. They were part of a yearly tradition in STL and other major cities entitled SANTARCHY. There was "Mad Santa", "Tranny Santa", "Super Clause" and many others that made our time at the Dubliner very entertaining. After a pint of Magner's with black currant (me) and a pint of Guinness (Mark), we decided to head home. Along the way we stopped at the Gelateria--where one of friends formerly worked--and got some lovely hot beverages (Mark: Peppermint Bark Mocha, Me: Mocha Bianca) to keep our cold selves warm on the way back to the car.

All in all, one of the best days I've had in a while and one of the best daytrips of all time!


Need more proof? Well I shall leave you with this:

Smelly

As much as I love television and the internet, it has two fundamental flaws (and many other small flaws that I will not be delving into in this particular blog post):

1. TV/Internet cannot capture or convey scents to our sense of smell.

2. TV/Internet cannot capture or convey tastes to our sense of taste.

Now I have a friend, the near and dear K-Rae, who is working on her thesis/dissertation dealing with the very issue of "taste" in art. All other senses (even smell and sound) have been tapped in contemporary artworks--due to the growing interest in and popularity of sound art, installation art, and performance art--but not taste, at least not to its fullest extent.

This is fascinating to me--as is the outrageous number of food-related shows that captivate audiences when we cannot really relate to what is happening on the screen because we cannot taste it. Don't get me wrong, I love food shows (See: Man Vs. Food). Top Chef is a favorite as well. But it irks me that I have to trust these judges and their palettes and it frustrates me that I cannot taste for myself.

So why all this talk of taste and smell?

This is my unbelievable roundabout way of getting to a list of my favorite smells.

Why?

Because I was in my kitchen today and it hit me! Nothing causes a more instant shift in mood and disposition like a particular scent.

Example: The smell of rotten eggs.

Now you may be one of those freaks (I mean that in the nicest way possible) out there that LOVES the smell of rotten eggs, and I say kudos to you! But I think I can speak for the majority when I say that this smell can instantly turn me from a happy camper into a sad camper. 

Example dos (Spanish for 'two'): The smell of coffee grounds.

This morning, in my kitchen, I opened our canister of Starbucks African Sumatra and just smiled and sighed. Mmmmm. Suddenly, I felt ready for the day. I hadn't had a drop of coffee to drink but the smell just made me feel calm, at peace with whatever the day would bring. It got me thinking, what other smells can so easily transport me from my mundane existence to a more pleasant version of living. Here's what I came up with:

Coffee grounds (as stated previously)

Not to be confused with coffee. Whole other smell, trust me.

Bacon

(which I'm not particularly fond of eating--unless I get a serious craving--but LOVE the smell of)

Chocolate Chip Cookies in the oven

Lavender

(yes, I like scents that aren't necessarily created by foods)

Old Spice

(instantly, I feel warmer and cozier when I smell this on Mark, or even strangers, for that matter)

Fresh-cut grass

(Though I'm allergic, I still can't help but take in a deep breath--through my nose before it gets clogged--and say, yes, this is a smell I love)

and last, but not least...

Burning wood, or campfires

(If you do not love this smell, then I just don't know what kind of human you are...)

So, for the sake of research, what are some smells you love? Do you hate some of the ones I've listed? I am very curious to see how scents vary between persons and to see if there are perhaps some universal "happy" smells. I'm secretly hoping there are.

Balance

I strongly believe that the most successful life is one of balance. I think it's very important to balance time between friends, family and your significant other. I think it's very, VERY important that a night of heavy drinking is followed by a night of no drinking. AND I think the most crucial balancing act is between work and play (as most of my friends, especially my graduate school friends, can testify). Now, astrologers everywhere will claim this is because I'm a Libra, but I think it's just common sense.

Why this talk of balance? Since my last post was dedicated to tearing down a television show and being negative, it is time for some positivity! The result of my need for equilibrium: Man vs. Food.

There are many reasons to love this Travel Channel gem. I have created a list.

1. The host. Adam Richman is a lovable, hilarious, genuine foodie who has tastes comparable to average Joe's instead of those persnickety critics. Also, while taking on his challenges, he not only has great facial expressions, but FANTASTIC pop-culture references (i.e. Wayne's World and Cool Hand Luke).

2. The information! I now know of some of the greatest eating spots in nearly every US city. Places I most want to visit: Gino's East in Chicago, Iron Barley in St. Louis, East Coast Grill (on Hell Night) in Boston.

3. The food. Watching every episode is a test of my strength and willpower. I'm usually watching Man vs. Food after 10pm and while I do not want to eat a 5 lb. burger like my good man Adam, I really wouldn't mind a quarter-pounder...with cheese. Who doesn't love food shows?! And food?!?



So if you haven't caught an episode yet, I highly recommend you do. The next, new episode is this upcoming Wednesday, when Adam takes on Sacramento, but I'm sure you could find a re-run before then. Contact your local cable provider for listings.