Fried okra.  After I had okra for the first time in Greece, I vowed never to eat the mushy, slimy vegetable again.  Maybe it’s because I’m older, but I’ve been trying it again whenever I can, just to make sure I don’t like it.  You know what?  It’s not bad.  Fried okra or picked okra in a spicy Bloody Mary at Screen Door is actually pretty good.

This is jambalaya, if I can remember correctly.  It was a little soupy… is that how it’s supposed to be?  It was spicy and I felt the heat was hiding the dish’s lack of flavor.

Why I haven’t blogged:

1. Grad school: I’m working full-time on an M.A.T. (Master of Arts in Teaching).  That means no time for a job or much else.  On the bright side, I graduate in about a month.
2. New friends: Meeting new people and really enjoying spending time with them.
3. No time: I don’t have much of it, so when I DO update something, it’s Twitter and the occasional Facebook status.  You can follow me at http://twitter.com/LaoOcean

Why I want to start blogging again:

1. To journal: I’ve had this blog for 8 years!  That’s a lot of writing, pictures, and comments.  My first blogging platform was through Homestead, a do-it-yourself website building application.  Think of it as a nicer version of Geocities.  I’m still learning and growing, with plenty of stories left to share.  Let’s continue with this “blog thing”.
2. To photograph: I still take pictures of everything I eat and everything I do.  I’d like to continue sharing it with my friends.
3. To learn: You can’t work with technology and NOT continually learn along the way.

There will definitely be more blog entries to come.  There IS one thing to remember everyone – I’d prefer if you didn’t us my real name on this website.  Use “S” or “lao-ocean” or anything else.  This is my personal site and I’d like to continue talking about myself and the things around me.  At the same time, I will be a public school teacher at some point.  I’d like to keep my private and professional life separate, thank you very much.

Group photo on the cow couch

Warning: Food porn ahead

grilled summer squach panini, feta, pickled peppers, basil

charcuterie board, house made and artisanal daily selection

house made and artisanal daily selection cheese plate, daily selection of three cheeses, marcona almonds, fig jam

barbeque wagyu brisket, cornbread, caraway onion ring, apple slaw

razaor clam poboy, stewed pepper jam, remoulade, red leaf

local summer cherry salad, goat cream cheese, arugula

fish and chips, pacific halibut, farm fries, remoulade

The Urban Farmer menu can be found here.

Tasty Margarita

Kerry had to touch some Nip/Tuck-esque booty on her way out.

Photos taken during lunch.

It was a great lunch with delicious food and wonderful company.  Thanks Ellen!

Above: Panorama of Cannon Beach

My brother and I.  I lurve him!  [In one of the Facebook photos of us, he captions: "At least I'm the second best looking person in my family."  Awww...]

$1 = 1 token = 1 taste = 1/3 of a plastic mug.  $20 package = 1 mug and 14 tokens.

We tried to follow Gandalf through the crowd, hoping he’d lead us to the good beers.  Unfortunately, we easily lost him.  He is a wizard, afterall.

Cheers!

And God said, “Let there be beer.”

We ran into Asians… Johnny is surprised.

Some of those Asians were weird.  We tried not to hold it against her because she’s also Lao and a family friend.

Wait!  Is that a token?  No… it’s just a dirty bottle cap.  No more tokens.  See you next year.