Random Flashback for Friday 5/6/16

If this were a Friday night twenty years ago back in 1996, chances are there would be a small gathering planned for the Greentree townhouse, which we were running kind of like a fraternity house (now forever memorialized in one of my tattoos as TauEpsilonDelta).

The D for the Delta also stands for DJ, who's the oldest of the Whitmans there on the left ... but it was the littlest Whitman who was the star at these parties (well, at least in the early part of the evening before his bed time).  As I recall, he liked all the pretty girls that showed up at the gatherings -- which, might be obvious, judging from that smile on his face setting there betwixt two of them.

Eventually, Greentree got shut down (but fraternity living was revived one more time in a different place -- a story for another Friday) and DJ passed away ... but we all have these memories of the simpler time long ago ... that somehow also feels like just yesterday.

Random Thought for Thursday 5/5/16

My ongoing series for 2016 continues ... with the SEVENTEENTH of FIFTY tastes of FLORIDA (coming to you on sequential Thursdays.  All.  Year.  Long.)!]

Establishment:  Tequila Sunrise Mexican Grill
Location:  Oakland Park
Meal:  Dinner
Drink:  Frozen Tequila Sunrise Margarita with salted rim
Appetizer:  Chips and Salsa (and Guac)
Main:  Chicken And Steak Fajita
sauteed onions, green and red bell peppers, mushrooms and tomatoes with chicken and steak 
Side(s):  Tortillas, Cheese, Sour Cream and Pico de Gallo
Dessert:  Fried Ice Cream
Server:  Ali

Funny thing ... up until the afternoon of the day our party ate here (actually on cuatro de Mayo ... knowing full well that the post would show up on cinco), we were planning to eat at a different place (which may yet show up as one of the fifty, so I won't jinx it by naming it yet) only to find out that the other place was closed on Wednesdays (the day we were all meeting and eating).  And it's a good thing that happened, because this eating establishment ended up with one of the top three scores to date.  Here's how it got to that number:

AMBIANCE:   10/10 (one of the great things about the place is that it filled up quickly, and yet it never felt crowded with it's bar, tables around it, a separate dining room area AND outdoor seating ... and it had [almost] everything you'd expect to find as decorations [except a Mexican blanket, which was a topic of the conversation at one point and so we were hoping to locate one hanging from the rafters] ... 
FOOD:            10/10 (my go-to at Mexican restaurants is the fajitas [what can I say?  I'm addicted to the sizzle] and the combo was well seasoned and extra tasty and there was enough to go around to fill FIVE tortillas ... then came the dessert, which I shared with the other three in our group [although they were restricted to just one spoonful apiece] ... I don't think a single person in our group left a morsel on their plates, which says a lot)
SERVICE:      10/10 (there's nothing but good things to say about the young woman who played the role of server ... seventeen weeks in to this series, and she's in the running for one of the best of the year so far ... she came across like she *wanted* to be there and that she *enjoyed* her job ... with a smile every step of the way, she hung back at the beginning to allow our party time to reconnect, was right on top of every step of the order taking process, stopped back just often enough during the meal, and chatted personally with our group for a few minutes at the beginning and the end of the experience without any sense of rushing)
BACON:         5/10 (this is the second Mexican restaurant in this series, and I'll say here what I said for the last one:  "it's a tricky category, as traditional authentic Mexican food is more about the fresh ingredients ... and although the menu includes many references to pork and carnitas and such, the reality is that I didn't see a single reference to bacon on the menu ... out of sensitivity to the culture and because of the high scores in all the other categories, I'll put a few points on the board") 
BONUS:         10/10 (+3 again for the hospitality the server showed, +3 for having big-sized booths that comfortably fit four adults, +3 for the alcohol and +1 for being a place to which we will most definitely return)

TroyScore:  45 out of 50 -- aka 90, a low A (one of only three As given to date ...)

Random Wordplay for Wednesday 5/4/16

Chargoggagoggmanchauggagoggchau-
bunagungamaugg.

Used in a sentence:  "You might know that I'm on a quest to dip my feet into all of the Great Lakes (only Huron remains), and now, so close to the end, I want to add a bonus lake on to the list -- the one known as ... Chargoggagoggmanchauggagogg-
chaubunagungamaugg."

Allegedly Indian for "you fish on your side and I'll fish on my side and neither of us will fish in the middle", it just made my travel wish list.

Because, let's face it -- everybody needs a good party story.  And saying that you dipped your toes into lake Chargoggagoggmanchauggagogg-chaubunagungamaugg HAS to qualify.  Anyone know how far it is to Webster, Mass?

SOME HISTORY:
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/11/20/us/whats-the-name-of-that-lake-its-hard-to-say.html?_r=0

SOME SINGING ABOUT IT:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4gwoyIRNpCI

SOME OTHER LAKE POSSIBILITIES:
http://www.fodors.com/news/photos/the-worlds-20-most-beautiful-lakes

Random Tune for Tuesday 5/3/16

All right ... I get it.

It seems a bit off-putting to find Dame Julie Andrews in the trash can this week.

But remember ... this is not meant to disparage any of her talent ... it's only that I also have this same release of 'Broadway:  The Music of Richard Rodgers' on a CD and I'm finally (slowly) purging my collection of any duplicates.

After so much Aerosmith in this series these last few every-other-weeks, I've finally moved on to another 'A' artist.  In so doing, I've also proven that one never knows what one will find when one opens up my music closet.

As for the tune to feature, I'm going to cheat a bit and provide a link to a live performance of almost all the songs that she medleyed together in what she named her "Waltz Carousel" on this album.  I dare you to listen and not end up doing a "von, two, three" in a Lawrence Welk accent at least once while listening to her perform the nearly fifteen minutes of classic Julie singing classic Rodgers.

ALL TOGETHER NOW ... "VON, TWO, THREE ... VON, TWO, THREE":
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T48fqNtRt6o

Random Memorial for Monday 5/2/16

Gone but not forgotten:  thinking that there weren't any alternate ways to spell my first name.

I didn't get to participate in the rite of passage that so many adolescents do when they change the spelling of their name ... changing a 'y' to an 'ie', or an 'ie' back to a 'y', or adding a few extra vowels that might differ from the name that appears on their official birth certificate ... or, at the very least, changing out some dots in some 'i's for hearts and such.

Troy was pretty much Troy.

Sure there was the Star Trek Troi lady -- but that was a last name.  Of course there was an occasional Troy-boy and Tee-roy along the way -- but that was more about how things sounded when said aloud.  And to be fair, that was what others were saying to me and not what I was offering up myself.

Now along comes a most influential teen of 2014 from Australia by way of South Africa, and he brings with him a new way to spell my damn name -- by adding an 'e' to the end.

Opportunity to demand to my high school friends and teachers:  "That's Troy with an 'e'!" ... you are missed.

THE NEW WAY TO BE ME:
http://www.troyesivan.com/

THERE WAS THAT OTHER TROI (AND HER CLEAVAGE):
http://www.thegeektwins.com/2014/06/7-bizarre-facts-about-deanna-trois.html#.Vyf9J4QrLIV

THEN THERE WERE *THESE* OPTIONS:
http://www.bestlittlebaby.com/alternate-name-speller.aspx?name=Troy

JUST ONE MORE ... compliment (May 2016)

JUST ONE MORE ... compliment.

To bring you up to speed ... I'm embracing incremental change with a specific monthly focus in order to empower folks (or just me) to stay positive and solution-focused in a day and age where problems often seem insurmountable, control often seems out of reach and apathy often seems to be running rampant.

With it being the first of the month, it's time for a new challenge (although feel free to continue last month's call to action to smile more ad infinitum).  So for May, it's all about the compliments.  Now, to be clear, the challenge isn't for you to compliment me.  This isn't a fishing expedition.  I already know I'm a special kind of awesome.

Instead, as you go about your day each month, interacting with family and friends and strangers alike ... find a way to offer up JUST ONE MORE ... compliment.  Make it sincere -- this isn't a scenario where you're trying to impress the mean girls with any passive-aggressiveness prowess, and the mean boys don't need to see your skill at "backhanding" in this arena -- but find something nice to say about someone else at least once each day.  Look outward ... pay attention to others ... and bring delight into someone else's day.

After all ... it's so easy ... it's JUST ONE MORE ... compliment.

Random Scandal Sheet for Sunday 5/1/16

What southern Florida is talking about this week:

... the seventh cent.

Although it sounds like there are a few things to work out, this county is headed toward a vote this fall to possibly add a seventh cent to the sales tax.  The "plans" are to split that extra penny on the dollar between the county and the cities in the county to be used on transportation needs.  The quotes around the "plans" are necessary because those "plans" aren't exactly solidified ... and the voters (who have to approve the raise) are being asked to say yes to the increase and "trust" the government to do the right thing (which may or may not include [yet another] local light rail option).

Hey -- it could be worse.  In the county one to the north, they're thinking about going from six to EIGHT percent!

Stay tuned ... and start saving those extra pennies!

IT LOOKS LIKE WE'RE GOING TO A VOTE:
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/local/broward/fl-broward-sales-tax-vote-20160414-story.html

THE FUTURE OF LOCAL TRANSIT:
http://www.broward.org/BCT/Reports/Pages/TransitDevelopmentPlan.aspx

UP NORTH THEY WANT TO GO TO EIGHT:
http://www.wptv.com/news/region-c-palm-beach-county/west-palm-beach/palm-beach-county-sales-tax-could-increase-to-up-to-8