Many of you know I love Tacos.

While reading this review on DCist, I couldn't help but notice the following statement:

Braising beef low and slow in a spicy tomato mixture yields a filling that puts ground beef tacos to shame -- and embraces a cooking style that welcomes the fall. Add a corn tortilla shell that will forever quell the crunchy/soft debate, some chunky guacamole, radish matchsticks and cilantro, and you will have one fine taco. Finally, an innovative pomegranate cocktail will have guests singing your praises, while they wipe taco remnants from their faces. Though somewhat time consuming, this recipe is simple, relatively fool proof, and perfect for a lazy Sunday football day.

Okay, let's be clear: I really like ground beef tacos. I'm not opposed to braising beef, but the very reason this reviewer doesn't like ground beef tacos is the emphasis on spice over substance.

But to be more clear, I don't think that a taco covered in radish matchsticks, cilantro and chunky guacamole, served with a pomegranate cocktail belongs anywhere near the proverbial "lazy Sunday football day".

Which brings up another point: I love to eat, but the only reason I enjoy cooking is the end product. The actual work and preparation are, much like gardening or working with computers, merely a task to be performed as quickly as possible in order to obtain the desired result (be it tasty food, a nice place to read outside, or the ability to play a new videogame).

Lazy Sundays for me don't involve cocktails. Or any cooking more complex than grilling. Or tasks more difficult than opening a bag of chips.

I could use one of these.

I mean, it's about as small as you can get and still have a 2 megapixel phone and a display.

So I go into my local bakery, Heller's, last week, and inquire about whether they make salt bagels. After the first guy responds "a what bagel?" the lady on shift says, "yes, we make them every morning." I ask when they open and they tell me.

This morning, a little-rushed, I decided to start the day off right with a salt bagel. I walk into Heller's, ask for one, and receive a blank look. The woman at the counter says, "I'm sorry, a what bagel?" I repeat my request. She asks a second time, and I tell her again, mentioning that I had been told they made them. She walks over to a manager who asks, in an almost comedic fashion, "a what bagel?" I say "salt" and he says "a bagel with just salt on it?" to which I respond in the affirmative, a little annoyed now since it's clear both of them understand the word I'm saying. He says they don't have any. I tell him I was told that they did by an employee. His response? He asks me "who told you that?" as if I was supposed to say "oh, it was crazy gina" or some such nonsense. Instead I tell him I have no idea which particular employee told me, that it was a woman, and late. Seeing that the manager has no intent on even doing a soft-sell on another bagel, I walk out. Considering how non-crowded they were at the time, they could've at least apologized or offered an explanation for why their employees think that they sell a bagel that they do not.

So much for Heller's being my morning bagel stop.

The Miler story finally fell apart this weekend. Here are the various takes:

Salon (pre-revealed).

The Post

Daily Kos

Huffington Post

That's a good start to your Sunday reading...

So Blue Marble: The Next Generation just went live last week. Go check it out!

My opinion of Tonic has been fairly low over the course of its existence, but after hanging out there last night, I'm now somewhat optimistic about it.

After work, while waiting for Sean to join me at Tonic, I noticed that over fifty percent of the clientele downstairs were non-white or Hispanic. Unlike St. Ex, which appears to have moved in the other direction over the past two years, Tonic looks like it's now becoming more associated with its local neighborhood. (I couldn't help but notice that on the top of the bar were several specials including $1 and $2 beers on particular nights...St Ex used to do this as well during the first six months it existed. Yet now, St Ex never has any sort of discounts in place for locals, which discourages some from coming in. Of course, St. Ex is hardly hurting for business, so I suppose it's only in their interest to keep prices high.) The fact that there are 75¢ tacos on one night a week doesn't hurt either.

I'm still not ready to give Tonic two thumbs-up, but it's definitely moving in the right direction and if last night was an indication of the future, I'll probably stop by there more often. Their decision to play XM's blues channel was also a key factor in the coolness of the evening. Listening to B.B.King while chatting with friends is difficult to top.

Nice. A certain club is also mentioned...

I hate flash, but this is amusing.

Read Joel today.

I've taken some time off from Joel, but he's in rare form today so I think I'll have to get back on the achenbus.

In the past four days I've been to the local Giant each day. I've spontaneously driven around DC several times and repaired numerous tiny problems around my new house (lightbulbs, furniture, trash, etc.) in advance of the big blowout b-day party that's upcoming. I've been to Ben's. I've started eating at the local establishments in Mt. P. I've seen so many movies it's difficult to know where to start. I'll try to post a bunch of reviews later today if I get a chance...