Bathrooms, Hot Dancing, and Burger King Ribs

It's been a fairly quiet week or so. Vivian and I have been taking advantage of our new subscription to NetFlix, and last Friday we kicked off the weekend by sampling some flame-grilled ribs at Burger King. Yes, the Home of the Whopper is now home to ribs, breakfast bowls, and funnel cake sticks. It's apparently about one pancake short of becoming a drive-through Village Inn, but that's OK with us.

In other news, Dennis and I managed to (nearly) finish off the Great Bathroom Project of 2010. We had to improvise in a few places, such as adding a washer and a longer screw when some of the fittings were too short to fit through the new tub shell walls. It was a much better solution that the one a grumpy store clerk at Lowe's gave us, which was pretty much to start all over again.

On Sunday, the Jitterbugs had another episode of Lindy in the Park, which was more than welcome, despite the 90-degree heat. Vivian and I got to work up a sweat outside and then crawl inside Ted & Wally's for some chai and PB&J ice cream afterward. Yummy.

Next weekend, Vivian and I will be hosting the annual Comic Genesis cookout at our house, which means we'll be having a couple old friends staying here for the weekend. That will definitely be an adventure!

Showers, Gardens, and Bike Rides

Vivian and I have been spending a little more time at home (and with each other) over the past week or so, going out for breakfast at IHOP on a whim on Friday and then terrifying each other by watching The Ring on Friday night.

On Saturday, Vivian and her mom started work on our garden while I chiseled away some tile in our bathroom. I saved the last one for her, though, which she happily tore off. That afternoon, Vivian attended a baby shower for our mutual friend Kara while I watched How to Tame your Dragon with my brothers, who happened to stop by for a while. Donna and Vivian did some more work in the garden while we spent quality time playing video games, and I grilled up some brats for dinner at the end of the day.

On Sunday, Vivian and Donna finished up their work in the garden, and then Dennis came over to help us make a little more progress on the bathroom. He patched up the holes we cut into the wall a few weeks ago, and then he and I somehow managed to shove a tub enclosure into a space that was a good half-inch too small for it. It was something of an adventure, but should be all finished as soon as we get the third piece up and seal everything off (likely with a little tile at the end).

On Tuesday evening this week, Vivian and I decided to go on a two-hour bike ride up and down the Keystone Trail. I hadn't actually ridden a bike in about twenty years (I was actually struck by a car while in middle school and kind of gave up the hobby afterward) but it was like, well, riding a bike. We pedaled all the way from the Culver's just south of Cornhusker up to the I-80 overpass off 60th street. We'll likely go even farther the next time around, just as soon as our butts get used to the ride.

15 minutes of fame

It's been a fun, busy week for Vivian and me, with lots of cool things happening in a fairly short space of time. On Wednesday last week, I finally got around to mowing our lawn for the very first time. I had to get up early in the morning in order to make time for it (in-between rain showers and other activities). That evening we both went down to South Omaha to celebrate Cinco de Mayo at El Dorado, a lovely Mexican restaurant on the corner of 24th and Q. They specialize in seafood, and la comida es muy auténtica — our waitress didn't speak much English, and I had to fall back on what I could remember of my high school Spanish in order to translate.

On Friday, I crossed another big milestone in my life: I turned one billion seconds old at 11:45 a.m. (something that happens only twice in an average lifetime)!

I dropped by JNO on Friday, and our good friends from Sioux Falls David and Anna got to spend the night at our place. On Saturday, Vivian and I had some fun trekking down to Lincoln to explore the Secret Bridges for a little while. We returned home that evening with avocado smoothies and Big Sal's pizza to enjoy our Netflix account. Yes, we finally subscribed to the DVD-rental-by-mail cult, and we've filled up our queue to more than 50 different films so far. We managed to cross off Revenge of the Nerds, D.A.R.Y.L., and Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan off the list in the first three days. Hopefully it'll be worth our $9 a month.
Secret Bridges trip

Sunday was Mother's Day, of course, and Vivian prepared a delicious brunch of crustless quiche and strawberry crepes for her parents and me. We also gave her a goofy toad for her garden. I gave my own mom in North Carolina a call to say Happy Mother's Day and make sure she got the flowers we'd had delivered.

We had enough time afterward to drop by the very first Lindy in the Park of the season, working off a few of our excess calories just in time to have some ice cream at Ted & Wally's immediately afterward.

The biggest highlight of the whole week, however, came on Sunday night. On Valentine's Day, I'd given Vivian tickets to see Whose Line all-stars Colin Mochrie and Brad Sherwood live at the Holland Center downtown. They were as funny on stage and in person as they were on TV, and guess who got called up on stage for the sound effects game toward the end of the show? That's right — me! It was quite a thrill to shake hands with two brilliant comedians I've watched on TV for so many years. It was also pretty exciting to burp on command and hum "La Cucaracha" as an imaginary car horn for a couple thousand people.

Burgers, Bathrooms, and Renaissance Fairs

It was another eventful weekend in Omaha, and Vivian and I got to enjoy some of the gorgeous spring weather we've been blessed with. Our weekend started off with a burger grilling contest at Tamra and Andy's house. We competed against them both, along with Tamra's brother Michael and their mutual friend Avery, in coming up with the best burger recipe. Vivian and I took only fourth place with our Bay Burgers made with basil and minced garlic, while Tamra took first with her burger made with "special sauce." It was a good time even if we didn't win, and we got to stuff ourselves with plenty of juicy ground beef all around. (I personally liked Michael's Danger Ranger Special the best.)

On Saturday, I got to attend my very first Renaissance Fair. I'd heard of these things before, mostly from my geeky friends, and had wanted to attend one for quite some time. The event was held at the Bellevue Berry Farm, which seemed like a Western-themed version of Vala's Pumpkin Patch, at least when it isn't dressed up with Medieval Festivities. Vivian and I got to see a joust, some dancers playing with fire, and sword-fighting demonstrations from both pirates and ninjas. We also got to tour some of the more education booths, where we could try on chain mail and churn butter. We also got to have a turkey leg and some homemade root beer for lunch, a swell as browse through a large selection of swords. Topping the day off was a performance by 88 Improv, who were hilarious, as usual.

On Sunday, we took over a Cici's Pizza restaurant with our friends from bible study, and then dropped by Lowe's to buy some things to remodel our upstairs bathroom.

Our friend Dennis gracious volunteered to spend Monday with me tearing it apart and cutting out the 35-year-old plumbing so we could install some new fittings, specifically a shower head for a bathtub that lacked one. We both owe Dennis one of the biggest Ones that has ever been owed, as he did pretty much everything while I mostly watched and handed him tools as needed. After three or four trips to the hardware store (and much soldering), we had a fully functional shower where once had only been a leaky faucet. Awesome job, Dennis!

Durham dancing, grilling, and smoothies

Vivian and I had a fun, and very full weekend together. It started as usual with dancing with our friends, both briefly at JNO on Friday night, and then at the Durham Western Heritage Museum on Saturday. The museum was celebrating Jazz Jam this weekend with live performances by the Street Railway Band and the Sing Sing Swing Orchestra, so a number of Jitterbugs got to perform with them on stage to a fairly crowded house. Next time, we'll have to encourage the museum to have the bands out in the much more spacious foyer upstairs. (Left photo courtesy of Kat via Eric's camera.)

That afternoon, Vivian's parents paid us a visit. Vivian and her mom got to tidy up the garden, while her dad and I put together Eric's barbecue to grill some steaks for an early dinner a little later. I think I've fallen in love with grilling now that I see how easy it is (now that the grill has been thoroughly cleaned and put together).

On Saturday night, Vivian and I headed out to celebrate a couple birthday parties. Our first was with Dennis out in West Omaha. He grilled up hot dogs, hamburgers, and steaks for everyone, and then shared in a bottle of Arbor Mist that Vivian and I brought as a present.

The second birthday party was for Leon, one of Vivian's co-workers, and it was held at 24th and Lake, deep in the heart of North Omaha. It was definitely a cultural experience, and we got to stuff ourselves even further with fried chicken and barbecued ribs while dancing with the cast of characters from Friendship Program.

On Sunday, Vivian and I got to deflate a bit going to church and then working off some of our excess calories at the YMCA. We had smoothies with our Journey Group that night, mixing together mixed berries, bananas, chocolate, peanut butter and any number of other things into some interesting frothy drinks. I also learned that a little instant coffee goes a long way, and I'm not really sure what Lee put in his drink, but it definitely made an impression on Chelsea (above right).

Taco Party

Spring is in the air, with the lovely spring weather with the sweet smell of blossoms in the air is certainly helping to keep everyone's spirits lifted. It's also the time of year for our mutual friend Jenny to throw another wildly successful Taco Party at her house over the weekend. Jenny and Vivian had their last Taco Party back in February of 2007 (a few weeks after Vivian and I first started dating), so it's been long overdue. We stuffed ourselves with self-serve burritos, which included such tasty ingredients as Vivian's pucker-power guacamole. I don't think I actually knew half the people at the party, but most of them were content to play Taboo upstairs while the rest of us played a rousing game of What's Yours Like downstairs. Vivian and I also introduced the rest of our friends to some amusing viral videos that have been keeping us amused, including cute animals on the BBC and the JK Wedding Entrance Dance.

Tea Parties, Easter, Improv and Pizza

Vivian and I enjoyed a pretty fun and busy Easter weekend together. It all started on Thursday, when I was able to kick off my three-day weekend by visiting the Tea Party Express as it rolled through Omaha. It was something like a Woodstock for disgruntled conservatives, and I was able to join a few thousand fellow Omahans who came to participate in the rally at Lake Zorinsky park. There were so many people that the police had to close the gates. A number of people got on stage to give speeches and sing a couple songs, which included a Hispanic rapper from Waco named Polatik. I kept my eyes open for members of the Ku Klux Klan, who people had been whispering lurked in the crowd somewhere, ready to yell out "the n-word" and spit on people they disagreed with. Much to my surprise, the crowd was quite civil, even to the three or four counter-protesters who decided to sit near the back.

It was actually a fun event, and I even got the chance to stand on stage toward the end and attempt to sing God Bless America in front of the crowd with Lloyd Marcus (above on the right) and Diana Nagy, thoroughly embarrassing myself when I realized that I didn't know the words to the second verse. Lloyd gave me props for trying.

I had Good Friday off and was able to have breakfast with Vivian at Panera before she went to work. That evening, we attended a Good Friday service at Calvary Christian Church in Bellevue. We joined our friends at JNO a little later, which included the return of veteran Shoveler Jillian to our dancing crew. Sadly, she was in town because her grandmother had recently passed away, but it was nice to have her back for a dance and some Improv & Pizza (more on that later).

On Saturday, Vivian and I prepared for a big Easter Dinner, and we also did an unexpected amount of yard work. With Donna's help, we trimmed away a good deal of tall grass and other lawn debris from the yard, and I swept up the garage and helped rake things up a bit. The weather was just perfect for it, and being able to take of our very own lawn for the first time help cement a sense of ownership to our house.

On Sunday, Vivian and I were among the few who got up at the crack of dawn to attend the sunrise service at Christ Community Church. There were so few people that we were able to park right up front and didn't have to fight crowds to get inside as we usually do. That afternoon, we had Vivian's parents over for Easter Dinner together. Jack brought ham with a pineapple glaze, and Vivian provided pistachio fluff, green bean casserole, poppy seed biscuits, crab and artichoke dip, and fruit salad. I made my deviled eggs, which turn out differently just about every time I make them. I used honey mustard, white vinegar, dill weed, and garlic powder this time, which seemed to be a decent combination. After stuffing ourselves silly, Donna treated Vivian and me to an Easter Egg hunt outside, which was fun. We found all but one plastic egg, which managed to escape with two Lindor truffles inside (and then turned up with them melted a few days later).

We worked off a little of our meal playing with our new toy — a combination foosball coffee table that is currently living in our basement. It's smaller than your typical foosball table, but seems to work great, and should give our guests something to do downstairs instead of watching TV (or doing laundry).

On the following Tuesday, we had a long overdue reunion for the Order of the Shovel. Since Vivian and I still had possession of the small plastic digging instrument (dubbed by Sarah Little as "Valerie Bruce"), we made an event for dinner and a show in Benson, courtesy of the Pizza Shoppe and 88 Improv. Vivian and I somehow managed to devour a king-sized Round Table while watching three guys make up an improbably hilarious tale of a plot for world domination spawned in a retirement home foiled by a couple wandering priests and a hotel clerk who wants to be a ballet dancer. Now that's comedy.