It's been a while...

Hey people,

It's been a while since I last updated and most of you know that it's because I got a new job and have been super busy. As a matter of fact, I'm still busy and don't really have time right now for a proper update. However, since I've been asked by a few people to put something new up here, I'm going to share a recipe with you!

Most of you who know me know that I love to cook (and eat) and I figured since fresh corn season (and grill season, for that matter) is almost over, I'd share my recipe for Cuban Grilled Corn on the Cob with you guys:

What To Buy:
5 ears of corn
1/3 cup softened (salted) butter
1/3 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup grated queso blanco (you can find it in most grocery stores now)
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
1 tbsp ancho chili powder
Lime wedges (optional)

What To Do:
1. Shuck the corn (if you don't know how to do that, get out of my kitchen).
2. In a bowl, mix together the butter, mayonnaise, cilantro and chili powder.
3. Get out some tin foil and tear off 5 fairly large sheets (about a foot long).
4. Place an ear of corn on a sheet of foil and rub all sides of the corn liberally with the butter mixture and then roll up in the foil tightly.
5. Do this with all of the corn and then place on a hot grill (reserving any left over mixture).
6. Do a little dance, make a little love, get down tonight and then be sure to turn the corn every few minutes for about 15 minutes to make sure it doesn't burn.
7. After about 15 minutes, poke one ear on a few sides through the foil with a fork to check if it's soft. If it is, take them off. If not, wait (duh).
8. Once done, go ahead and unwrap them (don't burn yourself, genius) and feel free to apply any left over mixture to the hot corn (or just wipe it on your stomach and ass since it's going to end up there anyway).
9. Sprinkle the corn with the grated cheese and squeeze some lime on it, if that's your gig.

Enjoy, friends!

This looks great (and scary)!

Halloween is my favorite time of year and I'm always down to check out haunted houses, hayrides, etc.

"Fright Haven" in West Haven, CT is always good, as is "Dark Manor" in the Norwich area. There also used to be a great one at the old GFox building in Hartford (unfortunately, the building is long gone from what I'm told).

Last night at band practice I was told about a new one and I must say that I'm really stoked to check it out this year. It's called "Headless Horseman Hayrides and Haunted Houses" and it's located in Ulster Park, NY. Apparently it has been named the #1 haunted house and hayride attraction in the country by a few magazines and I was told that it takes hours to get through and is completely insane; I can't wait!

According to their website "the attraction includes a one mile hayride, a labyrinth style corn maze, three professionally created haunted houses, four food concessions, as well as Ghoulish Gifts, Magic Moon Gifts, Scarewear, Fear Gear and Witchy Woman gift shops."

Check out the video trailer and then click the link below it for more information. Also, let me know if you've been and what you thought!





Headless Horseman Hayrides & Haunted Houses

It Might Get Loud

My friend CJ mentioned this documentary a few weeks ago and I forgot all about it until today when my boy Jay Reason posted a link to the trailer on his Facebook page (I may just let him write my blog for me from now on - the dude can and will find anything on the internet).

The documentary takes a look at three generations of guitarists: Jimmy Page of Led Zeppelin, The Edge of U2 and Jack White of the White Stripes. The film is directed by Davis Guggenheim who was involved in two of my favorite movies ever; 'Traning Day' and 'Don't Tell Mom the Babysitter's Dead' (chill, I loved that movie).

The trio talks about how they came up with their distinctive sounds and their approach to playing guitar as well as their history of songwriting before culminating in a jam session with the three of them playing together.

It's slated for an August 14th release and I certainly hope it plays here in Connecticut.

CT Department of Labor

Hey friends!

As some of you know, I was laid off from my job back in June (yes, just another statistic to add to the nation's unemployment standings). During this time I've been collecting unemployment benefits and, of course, seeking a new job. I figured I'd do my job search thing and they'd leave me alone and just send me my checks. WRONG! Last week, I received a letter from the Connecticut Department of Labor telling me that I had to attend their three hour long "Enhanced Re-employment Services Program" at the Bridgeport CT Works center or I would lose my unemployment benefits.

"Great", I thought, "three hours of my life wasted that I'll never get back".

Today was my assigned day to be there and I figured I'd go through the motions, they would waste my time and at best, I'd get to keep those checks coming in.

I am pleased to say that I could not have been more wrong. I'm still going to get my check every week but it was not a waste of my time. The class was very informative and I had no idea the amount of free programs out there to aid people in looking for a job. There is all sorts of free training, free classes, free assessment testing, resume help, etc. out there and it is all paid for by the Department of Labor. The best thing about it is you don't even have to be unemployed to take advantage of it! It's out there for anyone and everyone, so I suggest you not let this opportunity to either find a job or help advance your current career pass you by.

I left there very impressed and even signed up for a few classes myself.

Here is a link to this month's classes. There is plenty more that you can also access by stopping down and speaking to someone one-on-one.

http://www.ctdol.state.ct.us/bridgept/bridgecal.htm

Good luck!

Hey people, here's a quick video I did after hearing a commercial on the radio for the website AshleyMadison.com and becoming instantly irate because of it. And apparently I was wrong in my video by saying that they have a million members; it's more than four million!!! What is wrong with people?!?!

Maybe giving me a video camera was a bad idea...

Holy crap! Please let this be truth!

Some of my friends on Twitter (notably JayReason and Pitz) have recently been trying to see if there is any truth to the rumor of a possible Sonic Drive-In in Connecticut. We here in Connecticut are pretty much deprived of decent burgers. Burger King, McDonald's and Wendy's just don't cut it and Duchess has really gotten boring over the years. There is the ocassional gem (Plan B Burger in West Hartford and The Black Duck in Westport to name a few) but they are few and far between and can be quite the drain on the wallet, so a Sonic would be pretty swell; especially since we have to see their damned commercials all the time anyway.

Well, Pitz came through like a champ today and discovered the link below which shows a job ad from Careerbuilder.com looking for employees for a Sonic in Wallingford, CT.

Oh joyous night, please let this be true:

http://wallingfordwired.com/?p=896>

Review of 'Hatchet'

It's been a long while since a decent slasher flick made it's way to my DVD player but finally, here it is. Hatchet was released in 2007 and was directed by Adam Green. This flick definitely borrows from past films with the whole 'deformed or mangled child that grows up to be an unstoppable killer' vibe (ie. Friday the 13th, The Burning, etc.) but it gets it done in such a good way.

Hatchet tells the tale of a group of people (led by Joel Moore of Dodgeball and Grandma's Boy fame) lured into a haunted swamp tour through the Louisiana Bayou by an inexperienced tour guide who tells them the story of Victor Crowley (well-played by Kane Hodder of the Friday the 13th series) and Victor's father (also played by Hodder). I don't want to kill the story by telling you too much about it but as you can probably guess, after telling the story, the tour guide wrecks the boat and they get to meet Victor Crowley in person.

Hatchet is not short of humor and certainly not short on gore. The death scenes in this flick are incredible and the effects done by John Carl Buechler are nothing short of spectacular. The cast is also good and the filmmakers pay homage to their roots with cameos by Robert Englund (Nightmare on Elm Street) and Tony Todd (Candyman).

Check out the preview posted below and then forget about your Netflix account; buy this movie today as it is one for the collection.

Hatchet 2 is slated for production in 2010 and you can bet that I'll be ready for it.