72 out of 80

Last night Jim and I met up with friends for trivia at the Old Peculiar Irish Pub. We thought we had a winning team, but only managed to come in second. But hey, we won $20. We also scored a free pitcher of beer for being in fourth place after four rounds of questions. Check out the blog entry by the guys who host it. Don't ask about the name of our team; Jim and Steve had the song "Free Ride" stuck in their brains since poker night last week. Big props to Jim, Steve, the Professor and Izzie for leading the team to almost-victory!

Addenda:
1) We scored 70 of 80. The winners had 72.

2) Someone posted these corrections to 2 of the questions:

The Sepik also flows through Indonesia.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sepik_River
http://www.journeys-intl.com/info/sepik_river/

Utah and Colorado share a common border that is not along a line on longitude. Wikipedia failed you on that one.

http://geology.utah.gov/surveynotes/gladasked/gladkink.htm

That's What She Said...

...is the name of a blog I just found out about that catalogs all of Michael Scott's sexist, offensive, idiotic antics and what they might have cost Dunder Mifflin in lawsuits. (In the slight chance you didn't know, I'm talking about the funniest show on TV: The Office).

Here's a link to the blog, and here's one of entries from it, about the Ben Franklin episode:

LITIGATION VALUE: $800,000+

If an executive learns that a regional manager has sponsored a bachelor party in the warehouse, hired a stripper, offered to “deflower” the bride, taken an employee to a sex store, received a lap dance, and allowed a pervert dressed up like Benjamin Franklin to make a lewd statement to the receptionist, she should fire him. As soon as possible. Anything else and the company is looking at significant liability. Of course, at Dunder Mifflin, Jan is likely caught in a Catch-22. As soon as she fires Michael, she could be facing a charge for her own conduct in having an affair with her subordinate. Ah, what a tangled web we weave….

As this week’s episode colorfully illustrates, it is not enough to have an anti-harassment policy. Dunder Mifflin has one (as Michael mentioned- twice) and look what happened. Rather, employers must demonstrate that they take the policy seriously and that they are committed to stopping sexual harassment in the workplace. If they can’t, a court is likely to find the policy ineffective. And when it does, the company can say goodbye to its affirmative defense and say hello to punitive damages.

OK, I admit that it'd probably be funnier if it wasn't written by someone in HR.

NOT FUNNY!

Happy Chinese New Year

After a late start, Jim and I ventured to Seattle's International District (most other cities have Chinatown) for dim sum. We were going to try House of Hong, but were quickly turned off by the huge crowd. It looked like it would take us an hour to get a table. Next we tried Honey Court. We were optimistic since there were just a few people waiting and empty tables were in sight. We gave up after 10 minutes or so because it didn't make sense why we had to wait plus they seated people who came in after us. We simply crossed the street to the Purple Dot Cafe. Jim describes the decor as McDonalds in Chinatown with gaudy colors like purple and yellow/gold. We were eating within 5 minutes; the food was pretty good too. I think their shu mai was the best I've had in Seattle; though the ones at Jeem in Bellevue, Imperial Garden Seafood in Kent, and Wong's Seafood in Portland are very good too. Frankly we were surprised that they served dim sum after 2pm.

In observance of Chinese New Year, we went to the Wing Luke Asian Museum. Named after the first Asian American to hold an elected office (1962) in the Pacific Northwest, the museum covers the history of Asians in the area. It's a small museum, so it's surprising how much Jim and I learned about Asian history in the Pacific Northwest. I would recommend visiting the museum to get some perspective why Seattle seems to lack a strong Asian community. I mean, it's only the 10th year Seattle's International District has had lion dances! We did have to privilege to see 2 lions that day. I love the drums and the firecrackers!

Trivia night at the Old Peculiar

Bored at work? Want to test your trivia knowledge? Follow this link, http://www.seattlest.com/archives/2007/02/14/seattlest_trivia_night_recap.php#more, for some trivia. You have to love it when there's a round about "Golden Girls."

Happy Valentine's Day

Happy Valentime's Day (Jim accuses me of saying it this way but I don't think I do)! What's cuter than a kid singing a song about being lonely? The song is by Akon; yes, that Akon who sings "Smack That."

They sleep 18 hours and party for 24!

Check out the new SNL digital short, "Sloths!" If you've ever seen a sloth before, you'll really get a kick out of this.

The link is busted; try going to http://www.nbc.com/Saturday_Night_Live/video/#mea=65251.

Hunting wabbits

Eww!! The North Koreans are raising giant rabbits for food. Somehow the North Koreans caught wind of a German breeder who raises oversize rabbits weighing roughly 22 lbs. (yes, that's lbs.) I'm not sure the Koreans have thought this out completely because these oversize rabbits eat 2 pounds of food per day, which is twice the daily ration for humans in the North Korean Workers' Paradise.

Valentine's Day Gift Ideas

I got an email from the Red Sox last week with some great great Valentine's Day gift ideas (click image to enlarge):Please don't ruin the surprise for Irene, but I think she's really going to love her new remote caddy with "B" logo.

Saturday brunch at Kingfish Cafe

This morning Jim and I met up with Steve, the "Professor", Izzy, and Jasper for brunch at Kingfish Cafe. And to our surprise, there was no one waiting for a table at 11am. When was the last time you went anywhere for brunch in Seattle and not have to wait at least an hour? Last weekend we waited an hour for a table for 6 at the Hi-Life in Ballard. Our waitress did mention that the wait time for Sunday brunch at Kingfish Cafe is about 90 minutes, so Saturday is definitely the day to go.

Brunch was pretty good. I had their country breakfast (grits, scrambled eggs, sausage patties, and fruit). Jim opted for their catfish-and-crabcake, poached eggs, herbed hollandaise sauce, home fries, and fruit. He also split a giant biscuit with Steve (yum!).

Books I read in January 2007

Special Topics in Calamity Physics by Marisha Pessl
Ruins by Scott Smith
In the Company of a Courtesan by Sarah Dunant

Another trip to the airport

This morning Jim and I said good bye to Lorraine and Rob who were visiting from Ireland. It was an early start to the day, packing up the car at 5:45am. It was sad to see them go; Fred really enjoyed their company too. Jim and I wish them the best for the rest of Lorraine's pregnancy. We look forward to seeing photos of Baby Slowey when he or she arrives in June.

By the way, today marks my fifth trip to the airport in the past five weeks.
1. Drop off Denise in early January
2. Pick up Helen and Martin mid-January
3. Drop off Helen and Martin late-January
4. Pick up Lorraine and Rob late January
5. Drop off Lorraine and Rob early February