Below are the 20 most recent journal entries recorded in lensedqso's LiveJournal:

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Monday, November 30th, 2009
9:23 am	Down memory lane I went to college in Chicago. I loved the food there, although not necessarily the same things everyone else loved about it. It was where I discovered that a good salad dressing could really turn a mediocre salad into something delicious and that fresh squeezed orange juice bears little resemblance to the stuff that comes in cardboard cartons - especially if you get to squeeze it yourself. I also enjoyed the pizza, of course, although real deep dish pizza has to be eaten piping hot or it's awful so I tended to stick to the thinner kind unless I was actually going to the restaurant. The very best thin crust pizza I've ever had in my life was at a small place called Eduardo's shoved between two major campus hotspots - Ann Sather's (alas, no longer with us) and the Medici. It didn't have the same rep as Giordano's or some of the other pizza options nearby, but in my mind their pizza was better. The crust was flaky and had some crunch but still some level of softness to it, was perfectly layered in garlic and herbs, and just rocked my world. Last week I found myself lunching at Unos. That particular location had many fewer lunch options than other locations (hopefully that's not a universal trend) and I wound up asking if they would allow me to get a cheese pizza + soup lunch combo. You used to be able to choose between cheese or the pizza of the day, but most locations stopped doing that many moons ago. I really wanted something more than just the soup, though, so I figured it didn't hurt to ask. They said yes, then as an added bonus asked if I wanted regular or flatbread. I selected the flatbread. When I started eating it, I was immediately and viscerally transported back to Eduardo's. They didn't have the same seasoning, but the texture was dead on. I've had Uno's flatbread pizza before but never just a plain cheese one which apparently makes all the difference as that was what I always ordered in Chicago. Their deep dish pizza bears only the most superficial resemblance to real Chicago deep dish, but apparently the flatbread is spot on. Yum. (Comment on this)
Tuesday, November 10th, 2009
6:16 am	Oopsie Wow. It's been almost a month since I posted. I suck. (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Wednesday, September 30th, 2009
8:22 am	I live That is all. (1 Comment |Comment on this)
Sunday, September 13th, 2009
12:58 pm	good grief A woman with a suitcase just came in and asked to use my computer. I asked why and she said that she was trying to find a friend who lived in the building but didn't know her apartment number. I explained that the last names of each tennant were listed by the door phone in front of the building and she could use that phone to connect with her friend. She didn't seem to understand, but eventually left when it became clear I wasn't letting her near my laptop. Why do I attract these people? (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Wednesday, September 9th, 2009
10:25 pm	Motivation I must find some. Soon. Current Music: Sweet Baby James - Greatest Hits - James Taylor (Comment on this)
Tuesday, September 1st, 2009
7:31 am	Happy September May it be a better month than August (Comment on this)
Sunday, August 30th, 2009
11:27 pm	Random play This song perfectly sums up my current mood. It's funny how often that happens on random play. Current Music: The Ballad Of William Robinson - Dr. Demento's Hits From Outer Space - Bill Mumy (Comment on this)
Saturday, August 22nd, 2009
11:55 am	Open Table rocks I cancelled a reservation I'd made via Open Table but when I checked back on my account later it was showing up as a no show rather than a cancellation. I filed a support ticket for it and had an email response within a minute or two that they were excusing the no show so it didn't affect my account (if you have more than two in a year, they cancel your account). I went back to my account page and they'd changed the reservation to reflect a completed reservation so I got points for it. What a surprisingly awesome support experience. (Comment on this)
Wednesday, August 19th, 2009
9:02 pm	Fondue Fun I had lunch at the Melting Pot - three courses of fondue for $20.09 plus tax and tip. They slimmed down the restaurant week menu somewhat, limiting choices to one of three cheese fondues and to the basic plain chocolate dessert fondues. They also made you choose between chicken and steak. I got the cheddar fondue, chicken with oil for my entree, and dark chocolate for dessert. The cheddar cheese was good, but it didn't seem to mix together quite as well as it normally does. Some of the bread was stale - not to the point where it was inedible with the cheese but where it noticeably had less taste than normal. The veggies were the best dippers and I got three cups. The apples weren't as well suited to the cheddar as I remember, but they were still lovely plain and I remembered to save most of a cup for dessert. I didn't realize it until after it came out, but I'd never had the basic oil fondue at Melting Pot before. In addition to all of the normal stuff, it came with two batters you could dip your meat and veggies in before cooking them. The tempura batter looked a little scary (like a slightly watery thousand island dressing) and I was a bit reluctant to try it. Consequently, I didn't use enough the first time. It was a very light batter and really required a heavy hand or it was very bland. It was fabulous with the veggies, especially the brocolli. I'm not a huge fan of brocolli but this was quite possibly the best I've ever had. The potatoes were also good in the batter, although they were thick enough that you didn't taste it as much. I wound up using the other batter on the chicken. It was supposedly a sesame batter, but it didn't really taste like one. It had some light, hard to identify spices that complemented the chicken but still left it a bit bland. For the first time ever, I wound up using the teriyaki and curry sauces provided for post-cooking dipping. I don't think the beef would have worked at all with either batter or this cooking style, so I'm glad I got chicken. It also wound up being a larger portion than the last time where they gave a mix of steak and chicken (it was about 10 cubes). The biggest problem was that the food stuck to the bottom of the pot. I made one piece of chicken without a batter and I literally could not get it off the bottom of the pot. My waitress reluctantly brought me one of the slotted spoons so I could scrape it off and fish it out(apparently they don't usually provide them with oil because of the danger of dripping hot oil where it isn't wanted). Even though that was the best piece of chicken I had, I used batter on the rest of the meat because it didn't stick as much. The skewers also got positively coated with batter and became harder and harder to use as the meal went on. Dessert was a bit of a disappointment, to be honest. Normally their dark chocolate fondue is great, but it was a bit watery today and didn't seem to want to hold any heat. I also got a miniscule portion - about a quarter of what they normally give (they also cut back on the dessert plate). I don't have a problem with getting a smaller dessert even though they didn't do it last time, but they didn't give me enough chocolate to dip. I had to spoon chocolate over the items. I also didn't get any cheesecake or chocolate marshmallows or pineapple (which is my favorite). The plate had one small cube of pound cake, one small brownie cube, two rice krispie treat pieces, three slices of strawberry, two slices of banana, and two regular marshmallows. Again, a decent size for one, but I wish they'd had some pineapple and they'd given me enough chocolate for proper dipping. My waitress was great - very friendly, very funny. I did have some trouble getting water refills, but partly that was because it was so freaking hot that I was completely dehydrated just from walking a block and a half to get there. She also thought I didn't want any veggies at all with my entree instead of just no mushrooms, but she brought out the potatoes and brocolli fairly quickly once I asked. All in all, a better entree than last time, a cheese course with some good and some not as good points, and a disappointing dessert. Still, it's hard to complain about paying $25 (with tax and tip) for three course of fondue. (3 Comments |Comment on this)
3:28 pm	Hot Hot Hot It doesn't seem that much hotter out today than it's been (not that that's saying much as it's been in the mid-to-high 90s for several days) until you try to walk somewhere. Even a block is too much. I can barely move my fingers or keep my head upright now - and I had lots and lots of water before venturing out. (Comment on this)
Sunday, August 9th, 2009
9:47 am	Bribery So I bribed myself to go yesterday by deciding to go to Coolidge Corner instead of Central Square with a promise of dinner at Boca Grande. I took care of business and realized that not only did I have no interest in Boca Grande, I had no interest in dinner at all. I guess bribery works even if you don't follow through. (Comment on this)
Saturday, August 8th, 2009
2:11 pm	Trying to make myself run an errand in town (before 5). It can wait until Monday, but will cost slightly more. The cheapskate in me is fighting with the not moving part. Not sure yet who's going to win. (Comment on this)
Sunday, July 12th, 2009
6:06 am	Dream All I remember was that my best friend from college was back with some excuse for the 10+ years of no communication that I didn't quite buy but was willing to accept to have her back in my life, we formed some sort of cult, and there was a building with Escher-like stairs. Current Music: Hey, It's Can(n)on - iTom 1.0 - Tom Smith (Comment on this)
Sunday, June 14th, 2009
2:17 pm	Writer's Block: You're a Winner! Have you ever won a contest, drawing, or lottery? What was the prize? View 502 Answers Yes, I've won a couple. Believe it or not, I won a free trip to Hawaii when I lived in Albuquerque. It was a drawing sponsored by Little Caesar's Pizza and the UNM basketball team. My friend wasn't feeling well, so I walked across the street to pick up our pizza. It wasn't ready when I got there despite my showing up after the time they gave and I wound up filling in one contest entry out of sheer boredom. I couldn't believe I won. Even more unbelievable is that I was the second choice - the first person selected turned it down. (Comment on this)
Friday, June 12th, 2009
12:29 pm	New math $1.59 for two scoops of tuna on a full sized salad. $1.59 for one scoop of tuna on a half sized salad. When I asked about this, I was told it was only one scoop because it's a half salad. It seemed perfectly logical to them. (Comment on this)
Tuesday, June 9th, 2009
7:07 am	Round or Flat? My mouse died and I needed to get a replacement fairly quickly. Knowing that the selection was pretty dreadful at my local Best Buy, I made my way to Target which I knew had a better although not terrific set of options. I didn't remember exactly which aisle they were in, though, so when I stumbled on a hapless peon near the start of the electronics section I asked where they have their mice. He looked extremely puzzled, then replied "Do you mean computer mice?" I quipped back, "I certainly hope you're not selling the other kind." He agreed that would be strange and then led me to the correct aisle. He then started to tell me that mice come in two varieties - the round kind (PS/2) and the flat kind (USB) and I needed to know which one I wanted. Needless to say, I got him out of there as soon as possible. They didn't really have what I wanted which was a full size mouse with a retractable cord (I loved loved loved the one I had that died) and their other corded selections were pretty dismal, so I wound up trying a wireless mouse that was on sale. I'm not overly fond of it so far and may return it, but I'm still hoping it will grow on me. (Comment on this)
Saturday, June 6th, 2009
7:10 am	Ugh Fell asleep after 4 and still woke up at 6:30 (Comment on this)
Thursday, May 28th, 2009
9:13 pm	What timing! I have an appointment with the ENT while I'm actually in respiratory distress. That never happens. Current Music: This Land Is Your Land - This Land Is Your Land - Songs Of Freedom - Cisco Houston (Comment on this)
Sunday, May 17th, 2009
6:15 pm	What a Maroon So I'm getting on a elevator with doors that open on opposite sides. There's a man waiting on the other side but for some reason his door doesn't open. We hit the door open button from inside and the doors open. He walks in and says "I guess the doors don't open from this side." I replied, "they usually open when you hit the button" to which he replied "That explains it. I didn't hit the button." Apparently he expects the elevator to know he's there and he wants to get on. (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Wednesday, April 22nd, 2009
9:54 pm	Time marches on When did this happen: Microsoft’s New England Research & Development Center Conference Center, 1st Floor One Memorial Drive, Cambridge Don't work in a building for a decade and it goes and changes on you. I wonder if that's what they did with the Sail Loft space. Although I vaguely think the building had British floor numbering and thus the 1st floor is not the ground floor. I'm too tired to remember details. Current Music: He's A Rebel - Golden Years 1962 - Various Artists (2 Comments |Comment on this)