There is this guy who runs a blog called the BS Detective. He’s studied nutrition (at Florida) and knows a good bit. Still, he picks easy targets most of time, but brings a lot of science into his posts.  it’s nice to know WHY there is no scientific backing to say, a colon cleanse, even though it’s not entirely necessary.   Anyhow, a few weeks ago the guy calls Gary Taubes as an Uber Bullshitter.  Taubes is a scientific journalist whose book Good Calories Bad Calories, meticulously outlines how bad science and politics have ‘informed’ everything we ‘know’ about nutrition, and there is nothing in his persona that merits that bit of name calling.  That the book ultimately only suggests four hypothesis’s that Taubes feels should be scientifically pursued, should spare it from some wanker’s Photo-shopped name calling.

But whatever, the BS Detective quickly retreated to the narrowest, and strictest reading of his original post, and still manages an epic-fail, coming off shrill (think cartoon version of StarScream) and desperate (think William H Macy  in Fargo ).   It’s all unremarkable and I only bring it up now, because he recently went after Dr. Eades  on the good Doctor’s own blog. And Dr. Eades, in the comments, has put on a case study on how to treat sophists like the BS Detective.   I encourage you all to go buy Eades' Protein Power Life Plan. It is easily the most recommendable book on Nutrition and its DIRT CHEAP.

While I am here.. hmm… not much new .. I had Veal Hearts and Holeman and it was INCREDIBLE.   Wow.  Veal Hearts.  My poor over-leveraged soul……

First Ski trip was a success except that no one has paid me for it. Second ski trip is in the works. Email me if you want to come.

Started book 1011 of the Wheel of Time Series.   Whatever the number is, the one after RJ died.  It’s good.   As was the previous, if I recall.

I also started StarShip Troupers (Heinlen), after enjoying his “The Moon is a Harsh Mistress”.   

Kay’s latest comes out in April.  It's his celestial novel, as Al would have said.


Finally: BookHouse on Ponce is worth a visit.   Maybe a bookhouse/MJQ night soon. That would be something.    "Get the Pot Pie and bring a cozy group of friends", about sums it up.They have a great beer selection, and a tiki room out back.

Kia Sorento Vegas daydream, #1
Google's French vacation #2

Saints #1
Colts #2

Cakes and ale... I give a 3. The food was good but the service, everywhere except the bar, was disorganized.   If I had to describe the place based on its what little I knew about it before Saturday-- which was what it looked like, and what I has heard from Atlanta Fooduminaries (one of which was at the bar, incognitolike on Saturday)-- I would have said, "bustling hardworking servers, slinging original , forward comfort food, off a small menu, in the kind of place you love to go to before you go somewhere else".   So  the fact that a full meal at  table missed some marks shouldn't concern you too much.  That the 'bustling' staff was still chronically late, should.


But on  a positive note,  Alon's the deli/bakery, out here in Sandy Springs , which I have since learned is an outpost of the original somewhere in the highlands, serves the best soups I have ever had. Yeah, that's saying something. I MAY have had better soups, as one offs from fancy restaurants (Tomato at Jeanty, Carrot Ginger and Scott Howard, and Chestnut and Joel), but Alon's Celery Root, and Alon's Pumpkin-kale were in the same category, and both in one place..   Every few years I look for a good soup kitchen in Atlanta , and wind up and Souper Jenny.  No more.    Alon's is the place.


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On a side note, and in one sentence, and one pass: Part of my response to certain people who have called my music collection forced, that that the lack of popular music was somewhat explainable by my reluctance to buy something I was going to hear so muchanyway, was validated yesterday, when I heard that darn Arcade Fire where-the-wild-things-are song 8 million times, which is a lot more times that I have played it myself , since buying it a few weeks ago.


 

So let’s see, I finally had a solid meal through-and-through at Rathbun’s. Oh, the food, and Service, and Ambiance is always great, but by the time I get through the yaya fries and muscles I’ve usually  put the entrée in a compromised position.  This time, though, armed with hungry colleagues, I managed to reserve enough appetite such that the Veal Chop and Spaghetti Squash carbonara hit the spot.  The meal was still absent anything green or fibrous, but it sure went down well.  Oh, and it was on the company.

Also,  I  went on  a 5 day ski vacation to  Avon Colorado. We lodged aside arrowhead mountain, skied, played poker , Ra, and Puerto Rico, got massages, hot tubbed, smoked cigars and drank.  Same old script, actually.   It was basically spring skiing conditions:  Warm and patchy snow coverage.  

I think this was the first trip ever where I didn’t end up a better Skier than I was the last trip, but there was a three year gap, and , um, I think my skies were amateurish.   I hesitate to call them  that because I am probably not good enough to  be better than these ‘performance’ skies, but after skiing the last three trips on long volkl 6-stars, these average size k2 Rangers seemed too… ambivalent.  Certainly was harder to maintain Edge Lock on steeps, but one weakness of the mountain is that there really weren’t a lot of long steep groomers to bomb.      I can't blame the music, "Quiet Dog Bite Hard" was in fact the killer ski track I expected it to be.


B-rad, however, was killing it.  He doesn’t have Dave’s recklessness and his mere 3 months of crossfit didn’t build enough leg for him to enjoy the moguls,  but he was scary adept at getting down the bumps he accidentally found himself on.  I mean, anyone can learn to slide down a mountain, be b-rad managed to navigate some gnarly bumps. He’s a natural athlete, and only looked awkward when he was thinking too much.

Little Will found his own legs late the second day  and Alex bottomed out on day three due to foot issues.  He redeemed himself by winning the last three board games.
I’m thinking about getting a single speed mountain bike.   I asked a colleague and he said no.  He said that you have to be a monster to ride one, and that it helps too to be unemployed, since such monstership precludes a job.    This warning, of course, only further set my direction.