jimmy kimmel *hearts* ben affleck

Kimmel gets back at Sarah Silverman for f###ing Matt Damon (and manages to keep it surprisingly funny):

the war on futility

When it comes to the funding of all these proposed programs by the presidential candidates, and not bankrupting the economy, aside from taxation and resolving the black hole of the war on Iraq terror, there’s a lot to be gained from addressing our incredibly futile war on drugs. Hendrik Hertzberg has a piece coming out on The New Yorker commenting on this often overplayed card that is flying inconspicuously low on the radar during this election:

“ …there is a glaring discontinuity between the lived experience of Americans and the drug policies of their governments. Nearly a hundred million of us—forty per cent of the adult population, including pillars of the nation’s political, financial, academic, and media élites—have smoked (and, therefore, possessed) marijuana at some point, thereby committing an offense that, with a bit of bad luck, could have resulted in humiliation, the loss of benefits such as college loans and scholarships, or worse. “

” …according to the government’s “National Drug Threat Assessment” for 2008, increases in domestic pot production, combined with the continued flow from abroad, point to a future of “market saturation,” which “could reduce the price of the drug significantly.” Meanwhile, potency has “reached its highest recorded level.” “

Link.

dave’s cafe

Today I met the owner of a cafe in downtown Hot Springs. The Exchange Street Cafe. I was taking pictures out late on Exchange Street when we bumped into each other and struck up a conversation. (It’s not so rare for something like this to happen when you’re holding a camera.) Pretty cool cat.

I was able to ask him for a bit of advice. I told him I planned on checking out one of the bath houses tomorrow and if there was any one he’d recommend. He told me to go to Buckstaff Baths for various reasons, but in part because they’re regular patrons of his cafe and happen to be very nice guys. Actually, I happened to read some good reviews about the place, but the local perspective, if you may, cemented my decision to head out there tomorrow. Something about 100+ degree springs and needle showers makes it irresistible. Plus, I so need the Swedish massage that culminates the 1.5 hour experience. Can’t wait.

As for Dave, he suggested a few other spots I could go snap some good pics. He also said that I would love it here, but probably not as much as Miami. Then he chuckled and drove off.

I’m going to try to make it out to his cafe either tomorrow or Saturday. They happen to have an all-you-can-eat fish fry (seems like the popular thing here) and I’m sure I’ll have worked up an appetite by then.

the arrival

Before flying out, I told my father we should get dinner after he scooped me up from the airport. He suggested a Mexican restaurant nearby, but I told him there was a local place I’d heard of and wanted to try. Besides, I could get Mexican any day of the week here in Miami. (As a matter of fact, there are two Mexican restaurants within walking distance from my place.)

Little Rock is a fairly easy place to get around: named streets run North to South, numbered streets are set East to West, while the highway cuts right through the heart of the city. It was easy to get my bearings after having checked out a map during my flight. This was also particularly handy b/c my dad had no idea where we were heading.

Easy enough to find, right off the highway and by the water. The Flying Fish. Some of the best fried/grilled/steamed catfish around these parts, damn good Po’ boys (from what I hear), easy on the wallet, and almost exclusively run by Mexicans.

We opted for the Wednesday “All You Can Eat Fried Catfish Fillet” special, of which one serving was more than I could handle and it sure was good but nothing out of the ordinary. I think I’m gonna get at their Po’ boys next time around. Or maybe I’ll just try that Mexican place my dad was telling me about.

kalimotxo

 

I was having a conversation with a friend last night and he half regretted not trying a sake bomb the last time we hit that sushi joint in South Beach. He seemed a little apprehensive about the mix but genuinely curious nevertheless. I mean, you get a half-full pint of beer, drop a shot of sake in it and boom. Simple as that. No need to take it to the head, and it’s actually quite tasty. This is when he mentions how in Brazil they like to mix beer and Sprite and that despite the odd combo, it’s not bad at all. (It’s called Shandy around some parts and it’s basically a poor *cough*wo*cough* man’s Smirnoff Ice.)

Interesting. I don’t think I’d ever dare add a soft drink to a beer purposely, but I wouldn’t flinch if it came down to trying something like it. And speaking of mixing, in retrospect, I can’t imagine why I second guessed Dominicans mixing Brugal and 7up, particularly considering I’ve had my fair share of Cuba Libres.

This is when I tell my friend that I’ve been trying to kill this big bottle of cheap wine I have at home by mixing its contents with Coke.

*record scratch*

The thought of mixing wine and coke definitely got his attention.

This was one of those things I would’ve considered blasphemy not long ago, but I was lucky and adventurous enough to pick it up on it while traveling around Spain. I was hanging out in Bilbao, in the thick of Basque Country, eating tapas and drinking kalimotxo for dinner. Good stuff, specially if you don’t have the best of wines to begin with. Think of it as sparkling wine with a tangy twang of Coke. Effervescent.

I wonder if I could order a glass of kalimotxo at a place like Tapas y Tintos in South Beach. (Another friend tells me the joint is good.) This is a hypothetical ofcourse, I mean, most people cringe at the thought of ruining wine by adding Coke to it. I bet they would be even less apt to paying for something like this. Then again, it’s South Beach… if nobody is doing it now, they could have a cash cow of a trend in the making.

Anyway, I recommend it. Kalimotxo that is.

eighteen and one

not this neighborhood…

the new york times vs the miami art culture

The New York Times tackles a budding art scene in Miami on Sunday’s paper. From the warehouses/galleries in Wynwood to the studios in the Design District to the after parties, you get a solid redux of the current state of a scene that’s coming of age in a post Art Basel Miami.

A good place to start if you’ve been curious about the local scene. Of course, there’s always this, this, this, and this (and most likely many more).

Link.

sometimes, a picture is worth much more than a thousand words.

All political cynicism aside, not only is one of them -a black man or a woman- poised to earn the Democratic Party’s nomination for President of the United States, either of these two will most likely become the next Commander-in-Chief.

Is that so crazy? Technically it shouldn’t be, but it is and that has nothing to do with political cynicism.