Memphis...

I think I can now say that I know what it would be like to go inside Club Atlantis on Dauphin Street in Mobile. Saturday night, we got back on our trusty party bus and cruised to Memphis to spend our night on Beale Street.

Yep, still no air conditioner on the party bus, and this time it was 105 degrees outside!

Please ignore our sweat and windy hair.

Tim being sooo awkward because he had to tinkle and couldn't move

whoaaaa sorry about this blurry pic

Here we are waiting in line to be frisked before we're allowed on Beale Street...

Weapon-free! They already took my mace at the Braves game last year

Club 151 - no idea about the mean faces

We got home at 4 am, I cant remember the last time I saw that time of day! Sunday was no fun at all.

Asian Delight

Prepare to be very jealous... Our Chinese friend Jianfeng made us some quite authentic Chinese food last Friday night. He came over at 7:20 and slaved for an hour and a half to cook four different dishes. He had planned to make two more! I'll be honest I was feeling a little questionable about the whole ordeal, especially since he claimed he had no idea what he was doing. WELP, turns out he is either a liar or just a natural chef! He should have his own cooking show. The second he started cooking the smells were DELICIOUS! He was super quick, and somehow only used one pan for all four dishes?

Some of the "ingredients"

Our personal chef for the night!

First dish: Beef Stir Fry

Unidentified ingredients

Second dish bubbling away...check out that crazy red pepper!

Joe holding dish #2

Second Dish: Tofu and ground beef/vegetables

The best dish of the night...Garlic shrimp

The plate is so empty because no one could stop popping them

(this picture refuses to turn, SORRY!)

Finishing touches

The spread!

YUM YUM

Happy customers!

BEACH TRIP!!!!

Over the 4th of July holiday, we took two of our new friends to Orange Beach with us. The weather didn't feel like cooperating, and it seems that I got quite nauseous from a questionable plate of mexican garbage, but besides that it was great to be back at the beach!! Way too short of a trip though. Already ready to go back!

So happy to arrive after a looooong day of traveling and 4th of July traffic

Flora Bama first timers! They loved it

NOT first timers

Tacky Jacks and bushwackers! During a lightning storm..

We made it back to Oxford late Sunday night and got to see a fireworks show over the baseball field.

Not sure how experienced the operators were...lets just say there were several fires on the ground!

Scenes from our Accidental Nature Walk

Saturday morning we went to play tennis, and lasted about 30 minutes before I started whining and complaining about being hot and passing out slash Joe beat me too many times in a row. Then we discovered a secret nature trail that led to Rowan Oak.

Eagle Scout in action

New bridge

creepy voodoo stuff hanging from trees

Checking out William Faulkner's kitchen...not impressed

Someone lost some cred when we tried to make our own trail and started hearing threatening animal noises

Bulgogi and Falafel

Ever since I tasted my first (and only..) bulgogi from Seoul Garden in Mary Esther, I have been obsessed. I want more!! There are no Korean restaurants here though, and I will leave the authentic bulgogi cooking up to the Koreans. This weekend, we made flank steak with a bulgogi marinade. It was yummy.

Marinating away!

We obviously don't know how to cook for two... this thing was HUGE

Somebody is becoming quite the grill master!

Big news - Kathy Z will be delivering real plates to Oxford tomorrow! No more cutting through styrofoam.

Here is the recipe from canyoustayfordinner

Grilled Steak Bulgogi

• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tablespoons grated fresh ginger
• ½ cup chopped green onions
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 2 TBSP sesame oil
• 2 TBSP rice wine vinegar
• 1 lb flank steak

1. Whisk all ingredients in a small bowl.
2. Place the flank steak into a gallon sized resealable plastic bag. Pour the marinade over the steak and press to remove all air and seal. Refrigerate for at least 3 hours.
3. Set all burners of a gas grill to medium. Grill 5 minutes per side. Let the beef rest for 15 minutes before slicing thinly, against the grain.

This is a really good food blog, I have also made the baked falafel, which everyone loved:

Bet you cant guess which pic was taken with the 4g iPhone?

In related food news: someone had their first chicken on a stick Saturday night (Sunday morning?)

yum yum

Great read!

When I moved to Oxford, I knew I would have a lot of free time and would probably be bored, so I moseyed on up to the Oxford Public Library to get a library card. I was immediately declined because I am homeless, and can't prove that I am a resident of Mississippi. SO, I was forced to steal the book Joe was reading (Shouldn't he be studying instead?):

Freakonomics! This is an awesome book that I finished this morning. Its a lot different than my usual favorites (any book by Emily Giffin) because it makes you think. It applies economic thinking to the real world with a bunch of crazy and controversial examples. They explain that the decrease in the crime rate in the early 1990's was caused by the legalization of abortion, because babies who aren't wanted by their mothers are typically the ones who grow up and commit crimes. (See, I told you it was controversial!) Its like the most interesting school book you will ever read! They should teach a class around these theories.

The authors wrote a sequel called Superfrekonomics, which I cant WAIT to read! Now...go get this book!

Peas and Carrots

I miss my chex mix partner. It's hard to eat chex mix by yourself when all of those pesky pretzels are always getting in the way.

This lovely lady used to be very willing to help me out and get rid of them for me:

"Give me all your pretzels!"

How could you resist this little face? Don't worry about her though, she still gets the brown chips when my mom is eating the chex mix at home.