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To Zen and Back
Mar. 6th, 2008 06:26 pmI wanted to read the new issue of “The Onion” and the closest restaurant to my office that carries that newspaper is Zen. At work we’ve got a big deadline this week that has us working 10-12 hour days and short-to-no lunch hours. If I were a good little engineer, I probably should’ve stayed at the office and kept working, but I flipped my workstation the bird and took my break. I probably spent more time driving there and back than I did eating, but so what, I wanted to enjoy my lunch. When I entered, a strange realization came to mind. Is it just me, or does teriyaki smell like beer? That sour-sweat wheaty smell? Or maybe my brain has some wires crossed. Whatever.
As I ate my dog-bowl sized teriyaki chicken I read and watched the TV. I like that little animation about the guide dog who rebels against his blind owner and makes his life hell. As if the newspaper and tv weren’t fun enough, as I was leaving I heard Fantastic Plastic Machine playing over the speakers. It took me about 15 seconds standing there in the doorway with my head cocked like a slow dog before I recognized it. It’s not my favorite band, but a close cousin to my #1 Fave: Pizzicato Five, so hearing any music from that genre in public is an awesome surprise. Once I recognized the tune I did an excited little quiver, but not in the lose-my-shit manner like that time I heard Pizzicato Five playing on NPR and nearly drove my truck off the road as a result.
That was a surprisingly cool and entertaining lunch. It just sucks that I have to go back to work afterwards. Ah well.
On a side note, all the blooming trees I’ve been seeing lately have put an odd idea in my head. I thought it might be a fun event to do one of those cherry blossom viewing parties. It could be a cosplay thing I guess; all those little flowers make for pretty backgrounds anyways, but I think it’s the picnic-of-drunkeness that appeals most. Ha ha. So I was looking online to see if there was anywhere in central Texas that might fill the role, but I’m coming up empty. The closest thing I found are the Japanese Botanical Gardens up in Fort Worth. I went to those once back when I was going to school at TCU. Very pretty, but I doubt it’s a BYOB kind of place. Not to mention it's 200 miles out of the way. *shrug*
As I ate my dog-bowl sized teriyaki chicken I read and watched the TV. I like that little animation about the guide dog who rebels against his blind owner and makes his life hell. As if the newspaper and tv weren’t fun enough, as I was leaving I heard Fantastic Plastic Machine playing over the speakers. It took me about 15 seconds standing there in the doorway with my head cocked like a slow dog before I recognized it. It’s not my favorite band, but a close cousin to my #1 Fave: Pizzicato Five, so hearing any music from that genre in public is an awesome surprise. Once I recognized the tune I did an excited little quiver, but not in the lose-my-shit manner like that time I heard Pizzicato Five playing on NPR and nearly drove my truck off the road as a result.
That was a surprisingly cool and entertaining lunch. It just sucks that I have to go back to work afterwards. Ah well.
On a side note, all the blooming trees I’ve been seeing lately have put an odd idea in my head. I thought it might be a fun event to do one of those cherry blossom viewing parties. It could be a cosplay thing I guess; all those little flowers make for pretty backgrounds anyways, but I think it’s the picnic-of-drunkeness that appeals most. Ha ha. So I was looking online to see if there was anywhere in central Texas that might fill the role, but I’m coming up empty. The closest thing I found are the Japanese Botanical Gardens up in Fort Worth. I went to those once back when I was going to school at TCU. Very pretty, but I doubt it’s a BYOB kind of place. Not to mention it's 200 miles out of the way. *shrug*
