In Search of a Liver...or Speaking of My Trip to Minnesota...
Mood:  party time!
Now Playing: Ry Cooder
Now, having been there, I wonder how anyone in Minnesota ever gets anything done. From what I observed -strike that- observed sounds too much like Marlon Perkins on Wild Kingdom. From what I saw while there, everyone seems to be in a continuous stage of drinking and usually in their garage.

Once again, I must put forth that I think this is a regional thing (the garage part). During my visit, I thought Clan Erickson was just `odd' until I was driven around the neighborhood on the two buck tour and saw numerous families partying and BBQing in their garage.

One would think that there would be that nagging little carbon monoxide inhalation problem with grilling in an enclosed space, but apparently the generations of mutants that have evolved from this practice breathe through their gills or something...but I digress.

In four days, I consumed more liquor than I have in the 14 years since I graduated college. Seriously. I went to bed Friday night/Saturday morning at 4:30 am (A happenstance as I apparently missed the tag-team action that went on mere feet away from my drunken slumbering minutes later. Apparently in Minnesota, no house warming party is complete without a threesome blessing your basement) and awoke at 10:30am with the bonus buzz (AKA still drunk). This went on for a matter of days. I couldn't figure out why I hadn't been hung over, but then I realized, I had yet to be sober.

Upon my return to Arizona and some semblance of sobriety, I logged immediately on to eBay in search of a new liver...to no avail. What's up with that? I thought you could find anything from a Filipino house boy with knee pads to performance fleece on eBay...

Fried Food on a Stick...or the Regional Cooking of Minnesota
Mood:  incredulous
Now Playing: Sound Track from Tank Girl
The regional food of Minnesota (otherwise known as fair grub) consists primarily of things that I had no idea could be fried (e.g., Snickers bars), food on a stick, or a combination of the two. Now don't get me wrong. There is something to be said about food on a stick. I can see the marketing campaign for it now..."It's fun. It's convenient. It's portable. It's food on a stick."

Now I am a firm believer that more meat should be offered on sticks. It takes out that problem of appearing like Henry the VIII (8th for those not well versed in Roman numerals) or a gremlin when sucking down an Atkins-style snack. However, when you start venturing into the realm of "pickle on a stick" you are just getting frigging lazy!

I do find it amazing though that a state where the consumption of beer per capita is more than anywhere else in the United States...ok, not more than Wisconsin, but close, would encourage the promotion of food on a stick. I mean, it's all fun and food on a stick until someone loses an eye...