Things I Know By Heart

I was informed by Ruth over at NY/NZ that she had "tagged me with a meme," a phrase I found vaguely menacing until I realized that it simply meant that she'd created a series of questions and wanted me to answer them. Personally, I think this is a fine idea since it means I won't have to think of anything to write about this morning; Monday's are always the foggiest time for my brain, what with the weekend's excesses and all. So, without further dicking around...

Things I Know By Heart

Two novels/plays/poems you know by heart: "Microserfs" by Douglas Coupland and "Kitchen Confidential" by Anthony Bourdain. I've read both books at least twelve or thirteen times each and they are both, for very different reasons, fantastic. If you're into computer nerds and junkie chefs, respectively, then I highly recommend you check them out. Hell, even if you're not, you can always learn to love those nerdy and junk-sick bastards as much as I do.

Two films/television shows you can quote from extensively: Well, The Simpsons, obviously. I was totally one of those geeks in high school who'd have long conversations with friends that consisted entirely of Homer Simpson quotes. And probably Buffy the Vampire Slayer too. As for movies, it would have to be Annie Hall (Ruth and I have that in common, it seems) and Goodfellas, because I'm in at least one way not a total nerd.

Two songs to which you know every word: Jesus, there are so many. Hmm... Okay, I'm going to take this question to mean, "What songs can you absolutely karaoke the shit out of" and the answer to that question would be Journey's "Don't Stop Believin'" and Take That's "Back For Good." Runner ups would include Air Supply's "All Out of Love," Joe Jackson's "Is She Really Goin' Out With Him," and Hall & Oates's "Private Eyes."

Two dishes you can make without a recipe: Not much of a cook, me (despite the fact that I held down a job for a year as a pizza chef at Whole Foods), but my two "Date Night" dishes are these: Homemade Tomato-Basil Soup and this one pasta that I make that's got tomatoes, spinach, cream cheese and garlic in it. It doesn't have a name, though I suppose we could call it C-Dog's Awesome Pasta That He Makes When He's Trying To Get Laid. Probably wouldn't look great in a cookbook, though.

Two cities you can navigate without a map: New York City (natch') and Austin, Texas, though I've recently found the latter to be not as true as it once was. I can usually still get where I need to go in Arlington, but if it's anywhere that I didn't go all the time in High School, I'm pretty much fucked. And I could probably, if pressed, navigate around Los Angeles a least a little bit, but no promises. So basically NYC is the best I've got.

So there ya go; a little bit more about yours truly. You are all a few IQ points lower for having read this and for that, I'm truly sorry. However, it was fun to write on account of my enormous ego! Thanks again Ruth!!!