This Christmas, I wasn’t able to spend the holiday with my parents, since a) the truck is rattling in a scary way and b) still being new to Austin means the job hunt continues onward (if you just said “What? You mean Shoestring Austin isn’t paying your bills?! How can I help?” you should get in touch regarding our sponsorship and advertising opportunities!). Anyway, this means that the Husbot and I were on our own for the holidays, and not feeling up for making the usual enormous Christmas Feast. As such, we started clicking around online in search of some places that would be open today, December 25, the day of Baby Jesus’ supposed birth.

Kerbey Lane Café, Northwest location (photo via kerbeylanecafe.com)

We found the Kerbey Lane Café, an Austin favorite that has apparently been voted “Best Breakfast” every year since 2005. Nice! Although we haven’t yet taken advantage of their crazy early-bird breakfast special (for a mere $3.45 between 4 and 7 AM, daily), we like the thought of a resto that’s open 24-7 and has a slightly more upscale ambiance than (our admittedly cheesy fave) Denny’s. Inspired by the fact that their Northwest location was open today, we set out in the Truckasaurus to taste the Kerbey Lane Café’s wares.

The Husbot ordered their Cobb Salad, which he’d been salivating over since he noticed it on the web version of the menu. I dithered for a while, trying to decide what would be best, kind of wanting to order a Cobb Salad of my own, or maybe one of their Cobb Sandwiches (basically, a Cobb Salad on bread), but hating that feeling of “copying” a fellow diner. (I like to at least be able to trade a bite or two with my dining companions, to get a better idea about what the rest of the menu is like.) Ultimately, I went with the Chicken Enchiladas Verde, and we also tried the Bloody Mary (he) and Kerbey Kosmo (me) from the drinks menu.

I enjoyed my Kosmo, which was a local twist on the typical Cosmo made with Tito’s Vodka and pomegranate liquor. I had a sip of the Husbot’s Bloody Mary, which was a real kick in the teeth with its spiciness. He thought it was tasty, as he enjoys a good Caesar (or Mary in a pinch).

Annoyingly, when the food arrived I was all the more disappointed in my selection. Should’ve had that Cobb Sandwich! I had a few bites of the Husbot’s big salad, with bleu cheesiness, hard-boiled eggs, bacon, chicken and romaine lettuce galore, and was totally jealous. My enchiladas were okay, but nothing like the spicy authentic Mexican dishes I’ve gotten used to eating here in Austin. I can’t really put my finger on anything I would say was bad about them, but they just weren’t as face-meltingly hot as I like them to be. On the plus side, however, I had room for dessert, which was what I had really wanted to order since we walked in!

Checking out the dessert menu, I noticed they listed cheesecake, and said to inquire with the waiter about daily specials. I asked what the cheesecake of the day was, and our waiter told me it was a peanut-butter and chocolate concoction. Yum! I ordered a slice and offered a few bites to the Husbot, who thought it was “too rich.” (He admits he has lost his taste for desserts since a particularly sweet-toothed ex-girlfriend ruined him with too many breakfast sweets.) I thought it was delicious, although I will also admit to enjoying the pleasures of a straight-up plain cheesecake, which I would be curious to compare it to in the future.

All in all, I would have to say that the Kerbey Lane Café (Northwest location) was a decent spot for lunch, and I’d be interested in giving them another try. The waiter also noted that different locations have different menus, so I’m wondering if perhaps there are other items I might enjoy more than the enchiladas in the future.

ADDRESS: 13435 Highway 183 N. (Northwest location; see website for other locations)
PHONE: (512) 258-7757
ONLINE: kerbeylanecafe.com

High school senior prom was awesome.  The best part about it was that I went with friends instead of on any sort of actual date.  A group of four of us went — two guys, two girls — and my “date” was gay.  It was an absolute blast, because we went for the dancing and the fun times rather than for the hype that everyone puts into the idea of prom.  I was looking back at pictures of that night and laughing to myself, remembering how much fun we had getting dressed up, going to the dance, rocking the night away, then going to Denny’s afterward for some late-night greasy food.

I’ll never know how it came about, but there was an ongoing challenge among some people in my class that involved Denny’s and sugar packets.  Any time any of us went to Denny’s, everyone at the table would compete to see how many sugar packets we could each stand to consume.  Yes, I do mean raw.  Tear the packet open, dump it in your mouth, and swallow.  Once the sugar kicks in, everyone is laughing hysterically and having one hell of a time.  I think the record for one sitting was set by my prom date at a total of 35 sugar packets, but that was only because by the time he had gotten to that many, and the rest of us had also had our share, we couldn’t find anymore packets on the tables, so we had to stop.  That memory always makes me laugh.  So simple and so silly, but such a good memory.

So in the third year of the club, Jamal Eid takes over the presidency, and let me just say he did a terrible job. He had inability to plan events, he couldn’t provide rides, and he wasn’t very good at planning things. I picked up the slack most of the time but by the end of the year, I had just given up. The club was pretty much on its own. After Jamal’s departure Tuan would take over the VOC succession for the class of 2009. Okay, so some events were fun, but most of them were documented, but I’ll provide pictures from the ones that WERE documented!

1) Fullerton College Film Festival. We got to watch a bunch of plays while were were there, and got free t-shirts! It was cute for the most part, and it was very strangely off from past voc events.

Group picture. I can spot 4 past and present VOC presidents in this picture.

In the audience… Lots of hard work!

This was a relatively pretty college. Of course, there was virtually no chance of me attending it.

Nina & Calvin!

Us in jack in the box After. FUN

1) Easter VOC Event. This event ended early. We ended up moving a bunch of tables, and not doing much after. Subsequently we went back to Rancho and messed up a club’s event there… and Kim Chi (ASB president) yelled at us. Nice.

Hard work.

Hard work.

Play.

Group Pictureeeeeeee!

Brian hard at work.

Carmen Tran!

VOC, WHAT WHAT!

3) Rancho’s 50th Anniversary: To be fair, this wasn’t necessarily a VOC event, but for the whole school. We went early there and put up pictures, sat at booths, and hung out essentially. It was chill, laid back, but the turn out for the school in essence really wasn’t that much. How disappointing .

Me hard at work.

Me & my future employer.

WORK WORK WORK!

Analyze the situation. Do it, and get out!

4) VOC @ The FUllerton Musuem: Here we did lots of arts and crafts, and I totally won my ex over here… We did lots of things including face painting, playing, etc.

Me & my fan!

Me & Khanh Tran, from Spanish class. Oh, I miss her quite so!

Here we are waiting patiently for the event.

Me drawing. Notice my face! The guy asked if I was a Kobe fan. LOL

I am NOT checking her out. Hhaa.

Free drinks!

5) VOC Banquet: This was fun. We went to Denny’s and then roamed Downtime Disney subsequently after.

There we all are!

Here I am at Denny’s.

And Here I am going up to build a bear.

AND THATTTTTTTTT is it!

You can print out this coupon when you become a fan
of Denny’s on Facebook. This offer is good until 12/14
Restrictions apply.

I can walk backwards fast as you can, I can walk backwards fast as you can….

Dear Chocolate Chip Banana Pancakes,

I love you….A LOT

Ingredients (makes 4 pancakes)

• 1/2 cup + 1/8 cup Whole Wheat Flour (I can’t do math for my life!)
  
• 1 Tbsp Organic Cane Sugar
• 1 Tsp Baking Powder
• 1/4 Tsp Salt
• 1/2 cup + 1/6 cup Vanilla Soy Milk
• 1 Egg
• ~2 Tbsp Dark Chocolate Chips (probably more)
• 1 Sliced Banana

1. Mix dry ingredients together
2. Whisk in milk followed by the egg
3. Mix in chocolate chips and Sliced Banana
4. Spray pan with cooking spray and preheat
5. Scoop 1/3 cup of batter at a time  into pan to form pancakes
6. Enjoy!!

Jeff and I had these marvelous pancakes for lunch brunch today. I overslept this morning and had to get to school to take a final at 10:30 so all I had for breakfast was this:

Actually not even all that. I only ate a piece and a half of the toast because I was in such a rush! By the time I got home I was starving and Chocolate Chip Banana Pancakes seemed like the way to go!

Since this post is already moving in a backwards fashion, I’ll just continue writing it that way.

I overslept this morning for two reasons:

1. I worked last night from 7-11:30pm
2. When I got home, Jeff and I went to Denny’s (yes-Denny’s)

I don’t have any pictures of our adventure but what originally started as a quest to find dessert ended as a late night breakfast feast.

Denny’s recently added “healthy” items to their menu. The catch is that they charge more for them (so annoying!) I was feeling spontaneous (and hungry) so I decided to Build My Own Grand Slam with the following choices:

• Scrambled Eggs
• Turkey Bacon
• Wheat Toast (Dry-no butter)
• Fruit Salad

I have no idea how a craving for chocolate cake turned into a full on breakfast order but sometimes you gotta just go with the flow.

I ate about half of the scrambled eggs, 1 pieces of toast, 1 of the turkey bacon strips, and all of the fruit.

We didn’t get home until nearly 2 am because I am crazy and decided that staying out late the night before a final was an amazing idea.

Before I left for work last night, I whipped up a quick and easy dinner.

Yes. I had 2 dinners last night and it was awesome.  The above mess is whole wheat spaghetti with peas, broccoli, and cooked baby carrots topped with tomato & basil sauce and parmesan/romano cheese. This combination was so good. I added garlic powder and pepper to the sauce to give it an extra kick.

Earlier in the day, I made an egg sandwich for lunch using 1 egg, a bit of reduced fat cheddar and a piece of WW toast sliced in half

I usually have a piece of dark chocolate for dessert after lunch but instead, I had a bowl of amazingness:

Newman’s Own Honey Flax Flakes with vanilla soy milk. Now the box is gone and I’m definitely going through withdrawal. I need another box immediately.

My snack before lunch yesterday looked like this:

Yesterday morning, after a trip to the gym and 4 miles on the crossramp, I had a bowl of magical oatmeal

Doesn’t it look like there’s a light shining down from the sky onto my banana oats? I feel like there should be angels singing in the background (aaaahhhhhhhh). Also, that glass of iced coffee was one of the best I’ve ever had.

Perfection.

And finally, Wednesday night’s dinner was comprised of yet another homemade pizza

I know I probably said that the other ones were the best but this one, THIS ONE was definitely the best.

What are your plans for the weekend?

I am working tonight (possibly my last shift!). I have an on-call shift tomorrow and then I’m free to relax on Sunday.  Our friends, Jess and Seth, may be coming over tomorrow night for a take-out dinner party.

Have a marvelous Friday night!

P.S. Thank you to Oikos/Stonyfield Farm and Immaculate Baking Co. for the freebie coupons in the mail! They made my day!

Every weekend I will be compiling the best dining, shopping and entertainment deals that are applicable here in Vegas. Not all of them will be exclusive to Vegas, but I will try to only post deals that can be used in Vegas. Have any comments or suggestions? I’d love to hear them so I can make this feature better in future weeks!

Dining Discounts
Rainforest Cafe: $10 off any $25 food & beverage purchase (located inside the MGM Grand)
Carl’s Jr: Various coupons valid for Las Vegas area ONLY.
Buca Di Beppo: $10 off purchase of $20 or more
Denny’s: Free peppermint pancake puppies with any purchase (EXP 12/11)
Einstein Bros: $3 off any bagel bucket
Jamba Juice: $1 Steel Cut Oatmeal (EXP 12/11)
KFC: Various coupons
Johnny Rockets: Free Shake with purchase of any entree/ Free hamburger with purchase of any entree and drink
Wendy’s: $1 off baconator

Shopping Steals:
Aeropostale: $10 off $50 purchase
Build-A-Bear: $5 Pink or Blue Cuddly Hugs Bear (usually $14) when you spend $30
Bath & Body Works: Reminder- Free item up to $13 value with any $10 purchase OR 20% off any $25 purchase here
bebe: 30% off Friends & Family Sale
Borders: 30% off any one item
Coach: 25% off total purchase
Coach factory outlet: 20% off already reduced prices
Express: $30 off $75 purchase or $15 off $30 purchase
GAP: 20% off your total purchase including sale items
JCPenney: $20 off $100 purchase; $15 off $75 purchase or $10 off $50 purchase (Fri & Sat only)
Jo-Ann’s Fabric: 40% off any one item
KMart: $5 off $50 purchase
Macys:  15 to 20% off all items including sale items
Old Navy: $15 off $75 purchase
Pier 1: $10 off $50 purchase
Toys R Us: Doorbusters this weekend only
Yankee Candle: $10 off $25 purchase

Family Fun
Lowe’s: Create Christmas ornaments
Michael’s: Bookmark Workshop

Thanks to CouponDivas for some of these specials!

Guess retailers and restaurants aren’t as in a giving mood as the holidays get closer: just a handful of freebies for you today.

Ho Ho Ho-liday Music for Nothing!

• iTunes is letting you download 20 Christmas/holiday songs for free.

Free Food

• Become a fan of Stacy’s Pita Chips on Facebook, and you’ll receive a free bag of chips. (Thanks to One Cheap Chick at the Salt Lake Tribune for pointing out this offer.)
• Kids eat free at Chick-fil-A on Tuesdays from 5:30-7:30 p.m. (Note: there is a limit of 1 free kid’s meal per adult combo meal purchased, and not all Chick-fil-A locations participate, as some of my readers have written to tell me. Sorry!)
• Now Boston Market lets two kids eat for free on Saturday and Sunday. Good for kids 14 and younger (yeah, mine qualify) and until January 31, 2010. You know I’ll be repeating this freebie in Freebie Friday postings for the next few months–you know, just in case you forget and all.
• Don’t forget that kids eat for free at Denny’s on Tuesday nights–and in some locations on Saturday, too.
• If you join the Dairy Queen DQ Blizzard fan club, you’ll get a coupon for a free DQ Blizzard. Yum. (My fave is the coffee Heath bar blizzard.)

Tax Advice Totally Free

• Through January 31st TurboTax will answer taxing questions on people’s minds, whether they are a customer or not, for free. Taxpayers can submit a personal, federal tax-related question online for free, and they’ll receive a personal call back, at a time they request.

Complimentary Lesson Plans for Teachers

• Paper company Marcal (I buy their Small Steps toilet paper made from 100% recycled paper) is offering free lesson plans for teachers to use if they’d like to educate their students about the importance of saving the environment as well as to empower them to make eco-conscious decisions in their daily lives. The four age appropriate lesson plans they have developed can be used for elementary, middle and high school students. You’ll have to register on the site to access the lesson plans.

Not only is Tim Thomas a mediocre (7.9 points-per-game), overpaid ($90 million career salary), lifetime NBA underachiever (nine teams after being the #7 pick in the 1997 draft), now he’s wanted by the police. According to witnesses and a police report, the Dallas Mavericks forward was involved in a 3 a.m. fight in a Dallas Denny’s restaurant. Actually, melee may be closer to the truth.

The official Dallas police report says Thomas was recognized by a 29-year-old fan who said, “What’s up, Tim?” Thomas responded by telling the man not to talk to him and calling him a “fa—t, bitch ass n—-”. Words were exchanged and a brawl ensued, complete with chair throwing. Thomas apparently hit a 65-year-old woman with a chair. She was at the Denny’s at 3:00 a.m.  because it was her birthday and she wanted a free promotional meal.

Thomas and his friends left the restaurant before police arrived. Thomas is now wanted by the police for questioning.

What’s worse for Tim Thomas’ reputation?

1.) Thomas has been revealed as a violent psychopath

2.) Thomas hit a 65-year-old woman with a chair

3.) Thomas is a Denny’s patron

Your order is ready. Some Buckshot LeFonque cooked up by Master Chef Premo. Enjoy your meal. Peace.

Pancake Puppies?? I was excited to try these at Denny’s.

Neat idea, I guess, but these little balls of fried pancake batter were a bit of a disappointment. Yes, they tried to have flavor, but a cinnamon sugar coat and a bowl of syrup didn’t do it.

Hushpuppies for breakfast?

Pancake puppies from Denny’s had that rough texture of the hushpuppy, but even regular hushpuppies know they ought to be a bit moist. As for taste, hushpuppies have that subtle oniony flavor. Wait, why even compare the two?? I wouldn’t want a hushpuppy imposter for breakfast! I’d expect my morning meal to have a sweet hint of something, or a eggy dish.

That aside, six pancake puppies per order is a satisfactory serving. An order of Hot Chocolate (free refills) is a good companion.

I’m glad the puppies were free because I would hate to pay for plain fried dough. Next time, I’ll skip the pancake puppies and go for the egg dishes on the menu. For breakfast sweets, I’d go with donuts (either soft or cakey) and donutholes, which come in a variety of flavors, at a local bakery or market.

_________________________________________________

EDIT: This deal has ended, but I will leave this portion to in order to preserve the original intention of this post.

*Get free Pancake Puppies with any order*

Get the coupon here – print it out- try it out for yourself. This deal is good until Friday, December 11, 2009.

Lots of free food offers for you this week!

Free Food

• Kids eat free at Chick-fil-A on Tuesdays from 5:30-7:30 p.m. (Note: there is a limit of 1 free kid’s meal per adult combo meal purchased.)
• Now Boston Market lets two kids eat for free on Saturday and Sunday. Good for kids 14 and younger (yeah, mine qualify) and until January 31, 2010. You know I’ll be repeating this freebie in Freebie Friday postings for the next few months–you know, just in case you forget and all.
• Don’t forget that kids eat for free at Denny’s on Tuesday nights–and in some locations on Saturday, too.
• If you join the Dairy Queen DQ Blizzard fan club, you’ll get a coupon for a free DQ Blizzard. Yum. (My fave is the coffee Heath bar blizzard.)

No matter what brand of politics float your boat, you’d probably agree that California is “progressive.”  This is where the hippies, potheads, vegans, homosexuals, Scientologists, surfers, health nuts, and out of work actors roost.  Californians can’t wait to plug their cars in, or even trade them in for bamboo beach cruisers that they valet at the Farmers Market. Right?

NOT in Palm Springs.

There are a lot of gay men here…but other than that I feel like I’m anywhere BUT California.

Smoking–Rat Pack style

One example is smoking.  California is famous for leading the country with it’s tough public & workplace smoking bans.

I grew up in San Luis Obispo–one of the very first places to go smoke-free.  I remember as a kid all the restaurant and bar owners bitching about it, and wondering just how the hell they were going to stay in business if people couldn’t smoke in their establishments.  Go to San Luis Obispo today and you will find one of the nation’s few thriving economies, a beautiful downtown packed with pubs and bars that Cal Poly students frequent, and lots of people eating out in some great locally owned restaurants.

Because of the smoking legislation, California is a different place today.  Less people smoke, and people who do, smoke less. Except here in Palm Springs.

Go to the downtown PS Starbucks, grab a frappucino and find a seat outside on the patio. Now start coughing.  Spastic coughing fits perhaps.  I can’t tell you how long it had been since I’d seen an ASHTRAY on a patio table in California.  Cigarette butts overflowing from the trash can top onto the ground almost everywhere I go…

Palm Springs seems to be emulating Euro-style around the clock smoke-athons. Maybe that’s not shocking where you live, but for me it was like  finding out the place I just moved to doesn’t have running water.

When I go to a house party, or am getting smashed with friends in Vegas, I really don’t care that people around me are smoking.  It truly is their prerogative.  Get me drunk enough, I might even ask for a puff or two.

One of my favorite things about hanging out in Tijuana is this famous little cigar shop on the main drag.  My buddy and I always start our day there (usually around 2pm) with some fresh espresso and a cigar chosen by one of the pretty and friendly shop girls.  But when I’m at a frickin’ Starbucks in GD California? Doesn’t make any sense.

Palm Springs is REALLY hurting financially.  This is a seasonal place that makes oodles of moolah IF the rest of the country (and Canada) is raking it in.  Business owners here are lamenting the lackluster tourist turnout so far this year (Palm Springs “High-Season” is roughly Halloween through April).  And the visitors who are making the trip are spending very little.  Pure speculation here–and YES I know there are other factors–but I can’t help wonder how this place would be different if they started promoting Palm Springs (a place that used to be a SPA destination) as a healthy vacation Mecca…

Hate bikes and people who ride them?

Then move to Palm Springs!  I’m exaggerating a tad, but compared to the the rest of SoCal, the Central Coast, and practically ALL of NorCal; Palm Springs is ass backwards when it comes to bikes.

There is a “bike trail” here that is supposed to loop bikers around town.  It’s 100% RECREATIONAL and it’s mostly on sidewalks.  That’s not biking.  Trying to ride my bike to Farmers Market this morning was a logistical mess.  The official “bike routes” don’t lead to anywhere I’m trying to get to (Sad considering the Farmers Market is in the MALL’S parking lot).

Routing bikes onto sidewalk routes is dangerous. Sidewalks and bikes just don’t mix.  Not only is it unsafe and unnerving for other pedestrians, the cyclist is in danger every time the sidewalk intersects with driveways and the road.  Any concept that bikes have the right of way is lost and instead bikes on sidewalks reinforces the idea that bicycles are marginal and even maligned transportation.

I’ve been in Palm Springs for a little over three months now and I have only seen one die-hard bike commuter.  She rides a bright pink 10-speed all over the place and even does so during the SUMMER!  Good on you whoever you are.

The newer and very popular ACE hotel in Palm Springs is one of the first signs of possible renaissance here.  They turned the old Denny’s into a hip organic gourmet diner, Wealthy Orange County Dad’s bring their families to hang out for a weekend, and young L.A. hipsters wear skinny jeans even by the pool.

And ACE bless their hearts thought it would be cool to offer groovy beach cruisers for their guests to ride around Palm Springs on.  I’m literally embarrassed when I see these poor tourist trying to make their way from the hotel to the downtown area.  You can see the terror in their eyes as they are forced onto sidewalks, almost run over by weaving snowbirds, and buffaloed by impatient locals.  It could be such a neat addition to this beautiful place where you can ride around in shorts on Christmas day. But instead it’s a joke and definitely not cool.

Like inferior produce?

You’re a match for Palm Springs!

Until I found the Farmers Market I was literally aghast at how bad the produce is here.  This is CALIFORNIA dammit.  A place overflowing with great food.  Order a salad in most Palm Springs eateries and prepare yourself for lackluster greens, tossed with inferior oily dressings, and topped with nearly translucent cherry tomatoes.  A travesty.

Vintage Los Angeles Farmer's Market...Very Sexy!

Walk into the grocery stores and find not ripe for another month citrus, sad little (or non-existent) organic sections with even less ripe avocados and fruit [it's like the store manager says "if we're gonna order this here expensive organic shit we best get it green as hell so it lasts till we sells it].  There is no Whole Foods in the entire extended area. My local health food store carries almost no produce, and when they do it’s only for 1/2 the year!  Even though the store OPERATES a cafe & juice bar requiring fresh organic produce–INSANITY.

And the worst part?  So much healthy-beautiful-delicious produce is grown right here and in the surrounding communities!

What Palm Springs needs

I’ve thought about this almost every day since moving here.  Writing about the negatives of Palm Springs isn’t meant to detract from what makes this place so cool.  But, it’s light years behind the rest of California, and I think I know why…

Palm Springs needs more young people.

Sinatra's Palm Springs House Which You Can Rent! See The Piano Shaped Pool!

The old rat pack crowd living here is awesome.  I find them endlessly fascinating.

The gay men who have turned Palm Springs into their own Mecca have done a lot to bolster Palm Springs economy and make it a better place to live.  The working class who live here (that’s me) are the glue for the whole thing.  Almost everyone I’ve met here is friendly, personable, and fun.  They are also attracted to this PLACE and want to be here. But…

There are VERY FEW young people.  The average age here is forty four.

A lot goes into making a place that attracts young artists and thinker types (jobs/venues/etc.), I know that.  But simple things like getting this place healthier, more progressive, and accessible would go a long way.

The best case scenario I could see for Palm Springs would be adding a University (UCR has an extension campus in Palm Desert and there is a sad dilapidated but very popular community college there as well–but Palm Desert is another world away from Palm Springs even though they are so close) .  Even a small college would really balance out Palm Springs culture and business.

The Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians own much of the Palm Springs area and operate profitable gaming establishments including a large casino smack in the middle of downtown.  It would be interesting to see them invest in the community (which they do in other ways) by investing in a totally new kind of University.  Think of the possibilities for tribal promotion, grants, scholarships, etc.

The Coachella Valley is loaded with the very rich.  It’s hard to convey how much wealth is hidden away in the canyons and country clubs here.  And a lot of those individuals would be eager to have some campus buildings named after them I’m sure.

Thanks for reading my unsubstantiated, pulled from my ass, and probably way too long rant about my new home town!  If you live in the Palm Springs area, or have visited, please share your take!

Tomorrow I’m going to share with you some new ideas I’m having about the best way for me to continue eating raw after I finish my 60 day 100% raw-food challenge.

I think it may be very helpful for a lot of other people too, who are trying to figure out a simple way to have more raw foods in their life, and maybe even eat mostly raw…

In the fall of 1984, not long after starting work at Hughes Aircraft in LA (my first job out of college), my good friend Mark called from Phoenix and asked if I would be up for hiking the Grand Canyon, and I immediately said, “Yes!”  We chose to make a two-day hike over Thanksgiving holiday weekend (some of us didn’t have vacation days built up yet).

Bright and early the day before Thanksgiving, five of us left Phoenix and reached the South Kaibab trailhead, where a light snowfall had fallen overnight.  Mark made sure we were well supplied, and we started off on the first day of our hike.

(from Google Earth: south is at the top)  the two day hike began at [S] South Kaibab trailhead to [C] Colorado River, then up to [I] Indian Garden campgrounds, and ended at [B] Bright Angel trailhead

The South Kaibab is steep compared to other Grand Canyon trails.  It’s interesting in that after negotiating a goodly drop, the trail levels off along O’Neill Butte for quite a while, and then you find yourself over another edge with another severe drop to contend with, only to be repeated again at “The Tipoff”.  All the while, the trail is tantalizingly visible as a narrow ribbon in places below.

This part of the adventure started with a combination of switchbacks where we learned to carefully share the trail with the mule-mounted “hikers”.  And what beautiful vistas!  The day was crisp and clear, and warmed up nicely the farther down we got.

looking down from a seat on the edge of the South Kaibab Trail

We were sure to take several rest stops as needed, shifted our packs, and stayed hydrated and checked for any developing blisters that needed preventative moleskin pads applied to them.

South Kaibab Trail vista, near Yaki Point

We began to eventually see the river below, and eventually we reached the bridge to Phantom Ranch.  From now on, we are fighting gravity and heading back upwards.

an early glimpse of the Colorado River from ”The Tipoff”

As we climbed towards Indian Garden campgrounds, our overnight location, the day’s efforts were beginning to take a toll on Gail, and we had to rest more frequently.  As the afternoon wore on, we decided that Kendall and I would go on ahead and determine how much farther along we needed to go.  Darkness was falling, and our flashlight had a bad connection, so much of the trail for the two of us was following a gray ribbon in front and hoping that the occasional water we’d step in was a small puddle and not a little stream.

While our attention had been drawn to the lights at the top of South Rim, Indian Garden snuck up on us before we knew it.  Dark, and now with a light rain falling, we threw our tents up and fell asleep without even bothering with eating a supper.  We had covered around eleven miles this day.

starting back in the morning at Indian Garden campgrounds, our overnight location

Indian Garden is a relatively flat location on the trail where a copse of trees grow near a small stream.  As we ate a hearty breakfast and took inventory, we found we were stiff but none too worse for wear, so we packed up and began Day Two of the journey.

This day wasn’t the sunny hike we had the day before; low clouds and an intermittent drizzle was turning the trail into a orange clay muck.  No chance of overheating, at least.

the view behind us of the Bright Angel Trail

The Bright Angel Trail differed from the South Kaibab in that it isn’t as steep, but it turns into an almost a constant series of switchbacks.  Compared to the previous day’s vista stretching down below, today’s climb was an unending death march to the rim above.  When we finally reached South Rim, we were more than ready to be done.  All told, we had put in about 17 miles in the two days.

We climbed back into the car and drove to Flagstaff, where we stopped at a Denny’s for a Thanksgiving turkey dinner.  We shuffled/lumbered into the place like we had all just given birth, and while we were pleased with our accomplishment, we were anxious to get home to a real bed again.  I really wish I had more than my trusty little 110mm pocket camera to record the trip, but you can find great photos throught the web if you want to see the Grand Canyon in better detail.

So you’re heading down the interstate with a car full of hungry bellies and the endless neon lights of dozens of eateries are setting your retinas ablaze. Where do you stop to satiate the beast within? You no longer have to leave it up to your tired exhausted brain…with this helpful chart we’ll get you to the right calorie laden table in no time. Now the only decision you’ll need to make is whether or not to get the chocolate lava cake à la mode or not, but we know the answer to that America…don’t we?

You may also enjoy our other flowcharts:
Beer Edition
Fast Food Edition
Cereal Edition
Freezer Aisle Edition

Update: Just in time for Christmas, now you can purchase the Where Should I Eat? Chain Restaurant Edition (Flowchart) Poster, it’s the perfect gift for your food loving friends.

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Spotted at nahright.com