Mardi Gras Time!
So this weekend, the Hive had its traditional Mardi Gras party. "Traditional" might not be the most appropriate word, since our first Mardi Gras party was last year, but since we're displaying foresight and anticipating future similarly-themed parties, we can predict the onset of tradition. We're clever like that.
FRIDAY, 2330 HOURS
Friday night marks my departure for and arrival in Ithaca, New York, ahead of all other participants, including most of those who actually live there. Now that's impressive. Larry meets me and we start jabbering about nothing in particular. Some eating, some drinking, and then someone arrives downstairs. Ah, it must be Bo and Holly, who live there. And then the following exchange is forever etched into our memories:
"WHOOHOO! RIDE ME LIKE THERE'S NO TOMORROW!" - Holly, offsides
"Do you think we should let them know we're here?" - chaosvizier
"Nope." - Larry
Moments later, Bo comes up the stairs and says hello. Holly follows behind him.
"Oh, hi guys. Ummm... did you hear me?" - Holly
"No, we did not hear you say 'Ride me like there's no tomorrow.'" - chaosvizier
And so begins the weekend. Tequila shots were poured, chocolate liqueur was drunk, marasca arrived a few hours later, and I think good times were had. Not entirely sure; I did have quite a bit of tequila. Not as much as Bo, who has nearly no recollection of that evening. Good man.
SATURDAY, 1400 HOURS
One final thing I recalled from the previous evening was Larry mentioning a Chili cookoff in the Ithaca commons. Well now, I love me a good chili, and a cookoff sounds like an excuse to get off my ass and actually go out and do something active, like eat chili. Excellent.
thereject and chrysoberyl arrived that morning. Hooray, I say. marasca and chrysoberyl went shopping. thereject and I went to consume chili. Now, since you, my loyal readers, were unable to attend this fine contest of culinary creativity, we took the liberty of taking notes on the various entries so that you too can feel the things we felt. Like it or not.
#1: Pie Girl's Vegetarian Chili
Yes, Pie Girl. Don't ask questions. Although I am by no means vegetarian, I can still respect a well-made vegetarian dish, and Pie Girl delivered the goods. A mild chili that was thick and solid, not too "veggie intensive"- whatever they used made it solid enough to pass as meat. Probably a tofu kind of substance. But hey, it was all good. This was, in fact, the best vegetarian chili, and the third best sample of the day.
#2: Greenstar's Own Black Bean and Lime Chili
Lime, I thought? An interesting choice of ingredient... This also vegetarian chili wasn't bad- mild, fairly solid throughout, a wide variety of ingredients, and a VERY STRONG TASTE OF LIME. I like lime, don't get me wrong. But it was overpowering in this chili. Had the lime taste been a little less omnipresent, this could have been a higher-rated contender. As it stood, fifth place overall.
#3: Bearcat Chili
No bears or cats were involved in making this vegetarian chili. Unfortunate, perhaps, because they could not possibly have made it taste worse. I will forfeit my review in favor of these accurate words of wisdom:
"This is not chili. It is a bad Thai curry. I want to know in what mad world is this considered chili." - thereject
WORST. CHILI. EVER.
#4: Simeon's Chili
The first meaty chili of the day warmed our hearts for a moment... and then stopped. This one was spicier than the others- still not strong enough to warrant even a sip of water, but enough to heat up the innards. This was good, as it was getting cold out there. There were a lot of chick peas in this concoction. Too many, really. Fie on chick peas! Plus, it was pretty watery for chili. Needed more substance. Sixth place overall.
#5: Early Morning Organic Farm's Organic Chicken Chili
As a side point, the use of the word "organic" to indicate some kind of healthy hippie-friendly food is a pet peeve of mine. Organic is organic, dumbasses! Whether you raised it in an environmentally friendly farm or watered it with the blood of virgins, it's still a carbon-based life form, which more or less defines organic! Pet peeves aside, though, this was a yummy chili. Plus, they had a pet goat, which got them bonus points. Could have used a touch more herbs and spides, but the texture was good and the ratio of meat to vegetables was excellent. Fourth place overall.
#6: Aurora Inn's Chili
Bastards! How they mocked us! This one looked especially good, with nachos given out to dip in the chili. Quite tasty looking. We'll never know, though, because they RAN OUT OF CHILI a mere three persons ahead of us! The horror! At least we got nachos. I stole a strawberry from their display too. Despite having no chili, they still got a better score than Bearcat Chili. Truth.
#7: Tower something Chili
The line for this one was tremendous. That was a major mark against them, as it was really getting cold, and my hands were getting frostbitten. On the other hand, the line passed by the mechanical bull contest (which chrysoberyl later attempted, and performed most impressively on), so we had entertainment at least. Was this chili good? Yes- best chili of the day, complete with fixings. Was it worth the wait? Nope. Their sign said they cater... If they're this slow serving shots of chili, I don't think I'll be needing their services.
#8: Something
My hands were too numb to write at this point. I think they were Spokesman's Grill or Scorpion Hole or Scopesmonkey Trial or whatever. The name is irrelevant. This chili was spicy warm, with a good consistency and a slightly high veggie to meat ratio. thereject called it a good family meal chili. I'll agree with that. As a bonus, they were apparantly associated with a winery, and therefor also had samples of wine with each shot of chili. Damn good wine too. So, second best chili overall, but the wine adds to their score. Wine adds to anything.
With the day thus completed, we returned to party headquarters (after a brief stopover at the liquor store)(where, ironically, a wine tasting was being held, nearly distracting me again), met up with ebontigress, and waited for the night to begin.
SATURDAY, 2100 HOURS
The party began slowly, with a storm of snow, a game of cards and a dinner of pasta. Then someone actually showed up, and the costumes came out and the drinks began to flow. I don't do costumes, but I do know drinking. Everyone looked good after a few drinks. Okay, they looked good before that too. But that's beside the point. marasca had these Boots Of Titans that made her unnaturally tall. mrbigsteve had Boots Of Klingon on that were made from real Klingons, I think.
chrysoberyl wanted to make a drink called Quasimodo With A Twist, which supposedly is a Pilates exercise of sorts. Hmmm... well, after some consideration, we logically concluded that "a twist" should involve lime of sorts and "Quasimodo" should be something French. So, out came a bottle of Cointreau and the lime juice. With some Cranberry juice it became close to palatable, and all that was needed was some Sprite. No Sprite was onhand, but oddly enough, the bargain brand Quist was. Hence...
Quasimodo With A Quist
1/3 Cointreu
1/3 Cranberry Juice
1/3 Quist soda
splash of Rose's Lime Juice
drop of... ummm, something. That weird little bottle of bitters. I forget now.
Eventually the Mardi Gras beads came out. Beads were exchanged freely as currency. Now, for the record, in New Orleans, at Real Mardi Gras, women flash boobies in exchange for beads. Our parties are far more civilized, of course. Although I received beads to prevent me from flashing my boobies, so I think I made out pretty well. And there's always moments like this:
"I think you should give her the beads just because her mouth is full." - ebontigress, about... someone.
thereject provided ingredients for another shot, the PB&J. Peanut Butter and Jelly? Why yes! And somehow, by not involving any of the ingredients of the aformentioned sandwich, it manages to taste just like said sandwich. Magically delicious, as a certain leprechaun would say.
PB&J shot
1/3 Amaretto
1/3 Chambord
Layer 1/3 Bailey's Irish Cream on top
Yumtastic.
No flaming drinks were made this evening, in accordance with the prophecy.
As always, gin and tonics occupied my drinking repertoire. Allowing for the occasional tequila shot, of course. And some other stuff. We were going to call fizrep and ladybugbutt... but then alcohol worked its wondrous magic and the thoughts faded to the distant realms of elves, unicorns and goblins.
SUNDAY, 1000 HOURS
Had to leave early... so I did. 'nuff said.
The Chili Cook-off finally worked its magic on my gastrointestinal system. I am profoundly grateful that no one else was a passenger in my car for the four hour return trip. Hoo boy.
Got home right smack in the middle of another party. Damn, I'm good. The ever-wonderful deinemuse and ghostwriterxx were hosting their colleagues from their sojourn to the Russian Federation earlier this year, exchanging pictures and movies and recapping and having a grand old time. With food and drink. Far be it from me to pass up food and drink, so there I was. Mmmmm... food and drink.
Spent the evening relaxing and recovering. This is good.
This morning my car elected not to start. This is less good.
And so a new week begins.
FRIDAY, 2330 HOURS
Friday night marks my departure for and arrival in Ithaca, New York, ahead of all other participants, including most of those who actually live there. Now that's impressive. Larry meets me and we start jabbering about nothing in particular. Some eating, some drinking, and then someone arrives downstairs. Ah, it must be Bo and Holly, who live there. And then the following exchange is forever etched into our memories:
"WHOOHOO! RIDE ME LIKE THERE'S NO TOMORROW!" - Holly, offsides
"Do you think we should let them know we're here?" - chaosvizier
"Nope." - Larry
Moments later, Bo comes up the stairs and says hello. Holly follows behind him.
"Oh, hi guys. Ummm... did you hear me?" - Holly
"No, we did not hear you say 'Ride me like there's no tomorrow.'" - chaosvizier
And so begins the weekend. Tequila shots were poured, chocolate liqueur was drunk, marasca arrived a few hours later, and I think good times were had. Not entirely sure; I did have quite a bit of tequila. Not as much as Bo, who has nearly no recollection of that evening. Good man.
SATURDAY, 1400 HOURS
One final thing I recalled from the previous evening was Larry mentioning a Chili cookoff in the Ithaca commons. Well now, I love me a good chili, and a cookoff sounds like an excuse to get off my ass and actually go out and do something active, like eat chili. Excellent.
thereject and chrysoberyl arrived that morning. Hooray, I say. marasca and chrysoberyl went shopping. thereject and I went to consume chili. Now, since you, my loyal readers, were unable to attend this fine contest of culinary creativity, we took the liberty of taking notes on the various entries so that you too can feel the things we felt. Like it or not.
#1: Pie Girl's Vegetarian Chili
Yes, Pie Girl. Don't ask questions. Although I am by no means vegetarian, I can still respect a well-made vegetarian dish, and Pie Girl delivered the goods. A mild chili that was thick and solid, not too "veggie intensive"- whatever they used made it solid enough to pass as meat. Probably a tofu kind of substance. But hey, it was all good. This was, in fact, the best vegetarian chili, and the third best sample of the day.
#2: Greenstar's Own Black Bean and Lime Chili
Lime, I thought? An interesting choice of ingredient... This also vegetarian chili wasn't bad- mild, fairly solid throughout, a wide variety of ingredients, and a VERY STRONG TASTE OF LIME. I like lime, don't get me wrong. But it was overpowering in this chili. Had the lime taste been a little less omnipresent, this could have been a higher-rated contender. As it stood, fifth place overall.
#3: Bearcat Chili
No bears or cats were involved in making this vegetarian chili. Unfortunate, perhaps, because they could not possibly have made it taste worse. I will forfeit my review in favor of these accurate words of wisdom:
"This is not chili. It is a bad Thai curry. I want to know in what mad world is this considered chili." - thereject
WORST. CHILI. EVER.
#4: Simeon's Chili
The first meaty chili of the day warmed our hearts for a moment... and then stopped. This one was spicier than the others- still not strong enough to warrant even a sip of water, but enough to heat up the innards. This was good, as it was getting cold out there. There were a lot of chick peas in this concoction. Too many, really. Fie on chick peas! Plus, it was pretty watery for chili. Needed more substance. Sixth place overall.
#5: Early Morning Organic Farm's Organic Chicken Chili
As a side point, the use of the word "organic" to indicate some kind of healthy hippie-friendly food is a pet peeve of mine. Organic is organic, dumbasses! Whether you raised it in an environmentally friendly farm or watered it with the blood of virgins, it's still a carbon-based life form, which more or less defines organic! Pet peeves aside, though, this was a yummy chili. Plus, they had a pet goat, which got them bonus points. Could have used a touch more herbs and spides, but the texture was good and the ratio of meat to vegetables was excellent. Fourth place overall.
#6: Aurora Inn's Chili
Bastards! How they mocked us! This one looked especially good, with nachos given out to dip in the chili. Quite tasty looking. We'll never know, though, because they RAN OUT OF CHILI a mere three persons ahead of us! The horror! At least we got nachos. I stole a strawberry from their display too. Despite having no chili, they still got a better score than Bearcat Chili. Truth.
#7: Tower something Chili
The line for this one was tremendous. That was a major mark against them, as it was really getting cold, and my hands were getting frostbitten. On the other hand, the line passed by the mechanical bull contest (which chrysoberyl later attempted, and performed most impressively on), so we had entertainment at least. Was this chili good? Yes- best chili of the day, complete with fixings. Was it worth the wait? Nope. Their sign said they cater... If they're this slow serving shots of chili, I don't think I'll be needing their services.
#8: Something
My hands were too numb to write at this point. I think they were Spokesman's Grill or Scorpion Hole or Scopesmonkey Trial or whatever. The name is irrelevant. This chili was spicy warm, with a good consistency and a slightly high veggie to meat ratio. thereject called it a good family meal chili. I'll agree with that. As a bonus, they were apparantly associated with a winery, and therefor also had samples of wine with each shot of chili. Damn good wine too. So, second best chili overall, but the wine adds to their score. Wine adds to anything.
With the day thus completed, we returned to party headquarters (after a brief stopover at the liquor store)(where, ironically, a wine tasting was being held, nearly distracting me again), met up with ebontigress, and waited for the night to begin.
SATURDAY, 2100 HOURS
The party began slowly, with a storm of snow, a game of cards and a dinner of pasta. Then someone actually showed up, and the costumes came out and the drinks began to flow. I don't do costumes, but I do know drinking. Everyone looked good after a few drinks. Okay, they looked good before that too. But that's beside the point. marasca had these Boots Of Titans that made her unnaturally tall. mrbigsteve had Boots Of Klingon on that were made from real Klingons, I think.
chrysoberyl wanted to make a drink called Quasimodo With A Twist, which supposedly is a Pilates exercise of sorts. Hmmm... well, after some consideration, we logically concluded that "a twist" should involve lime of sorts and "Quasimodo" should be something French. So, out came a bottle of Cointreau and the lime juice. With some Cranberry juice it became close to palatable, and all that was needed was some Sprite. No Sprite was onhand, but oddly enough, the bargain brand Quist was. Hence...
Quasimodo With A Quist
1/3 Cointreu
1/3 Cranberry Juice
1/3 Quist soda
splash of Rose's Lime Juice
drop of... ummm, something. That weird little bottle of bitters. I forget now.
Eventually the Mardi Gras beads came out. Beads were exchanged freely as currency. Now, for the record, in New Orleans, at Real Mardi Gras, women flash boobies in exchange for beads. Our parties are far more civilized, of course. Although I received beads to prevent me from flashing my boobies, so I think I made out pretty well. And there's always moments like this:
"I think you should give her the beads just because her mouth is full." - ebontigress, about... someone.
thereject provided ingredients for another shot, the PB&J. Peanut Butter and Jelly? Why yes! And somehow, by not involving any of the ingredients of the aformentioned sandwich, it manages to taste just like said sandwich. Magically delicious, as a certain leprechaun would say.
PB&J shot
1/3 Amaretto
1/3 Chambord
Layer 1/3 Bailey's Irish Cream on top
Yumtastic.
No flaming drinks were made this evening, in accordance with the prophecy.
As always, gin and tonics occupied my drinking repertoire. Allowing for the occasional tequila shot, of course. And some other stuff. We were going to call fizrep and ladybugbutt... but then alcohol worked its wondrous magic and the thoughts faded to the distant realms of elves, unicorns and goblins.
SUNDAY, 1000 HOURS
Had to leave early... so I did. 'nuff said.
The Chili Cook-off finally worked its magic on my gastrointestinal system. I am profoundly grateful that no one else was a passenger in my car for the four hour return trip. Hoo boy.
Got home right smack in the middle of another party. Damn, I'm good. The ever-wonderful deinemuse and ghostwriterxx were hosting their colleagues from their sojourn to the Russian Federation earlier this year, exchanging pictures and movies and recapping and having a grand old time. With food and drink. Far be it from me to pass up food and drink, so there I was. Mmmmm... food and drink.
Spent the evening relaxing and recovering. This is good.
This morning my car elected not to start. This is less good.
And so a new week begins.