Binkomonster!

Toys, Music and Food.

So if we had to give a rating to the week based on it starting last Saturday, we'd have to say (for once) 'thumbs up!'  Saturday eve started off with a trip up to Napa to enjoy the delights of another Far Niente party.  To be technically correct, this was the Summer Soiree. And what a shindig it was. The caves were open with various tasting stations setup (5 in all if I remember correctly, plus the glass of Chardonnay you were handed upon walking in). The usual yummy nibbles (tuna tartare on cucumber, cheese/prosciutto/ham/cornichon tasting table), coupled with very chilly temperatures (we were in the caves after all) made for a perfect start to the night. Lest we forget, there was also the jazz duo playing in one corner. Dinner was to have started at 7pm, however, 45 minutes later, we were being ushered across the path to the tents, our table (number 11) and the sounds of yet another jazz band. 4 courses and 7 pairings of wine later (with the CTO doing most of the imbibing and the CEO on good behavior), let's just state that we were in a very fine mood.  We had the opportunity to gab with Far Niente production staff as well as some of their growers (Mr. Ostrich Boots, you were a hoot!), and the privilege of having some absolutely lovely food paired with excellent wine. We could bore you with all manner of granular detail, but we'll be kind. The starter? Steamed fish with clam sauce/beans (superb, probably the best dish). The main? Venison. The cheese/salad? Local farm goat cheese (one in particular which we don't remember but which was simply CATNIP to the CTO). And the dessert? Almond semifreddo ice cream with some sort of pastry cookie and Dolce (just shoot us now so we can die happy).

A new approach to numbers

A few weeks back marked the passing of a new milestone. And we aren't going to state what it is, but rather, silently mark the occasion so that when we are old and senile, we can look at this post and scratch our heads wondering, 'what in sam hill was that all about!?'
The champagne has been imbibed, and well, we keep raising glasses to this watershed now that we are almost into week two of its passing. But the happiness that it has engendered never gets old. We're being coy because we don't like raising the ire of Karma and the suspicion of Fate. But suffice it to say, we are now cracking open Excel spreadsheets and pursuing mathematical modeling of a different kind (and with a newfound enthusiasm as opposed to dread).
It is nice being at this juncture. Hopefully we can stay as long as possible.

WinBLEAH 2006

Another year, another field trip for 'the man'. That's right. The CTO is off this week, cape in tow, special power endowed boots in hand to survey the landscape of all things Windowhee. We admit to being tired (see Bay to Blisters) and even more tired (pass the Motrin please). Rather than listening to uber-geek Gates drone on about convergence, and ease of use, and unprecedented scalability, in truth, we'd rather just be curled up somewhere recharging the batteries (which have run somewhat dry). But hey, as someone once said '..them's the breaks.' And so it is. But on the positive side, in town for exactly 90 minutes and already we've added a new culinary gem to add to the black book. It is nice to know that our culi-sleuthing skills are still in top form. Hee. For those 2 people out there reading this little channel, and hoping to catch some buzz on the actual show, you are probably better served by going here, or there, or even over there. As for ourselves? We staunchly refuse to change course on our current (and held since 1988) brand loyalty. We've had what Vista will offer for some time now, and we're pretty happy about it. Now to the important closing note... Drink of the day? Grapefruit kamikaze martini.

Feeling. Blue.

The 'work' for the 'man' continues at its usual nauseating clip. More frustration. More being ignored. More unhappiness. But then, as they say, it's 'just a job' right? Perhaps for those who aren't TypeA personalities, this is easier to deal with. For those of us who are not, it isn't. Comfort is taken in the fact that we are curled up in the newly completed 'study' with a snack and beverage (we are not at this time divulging exactly WHAT that beverage is, but if you read us regularly, you can probably take an educated guess). But sadness is felt in both knowing that instead of continuing to expand personal horizons (it is after 7pm), we are busy slaving away like mice on a treadwheel. Perhaps compounding all of this is the fact that as we look outside the window, the color of the sky is that of our saddest dreams. That kind of blue/grey with some white, peppered with lighting that really, we only are cognizant of having seen in our nighttime slumber.

Shall we try the Daiquiri recipe?

By this point, everyone has had the chance to either watch the state of the union, or at least get the 10 word sound-bite. Our thoughts? I believe it was Defective Yeti that put up a post which best encapsulates the collective Binkomonster view. Must. Suffer. Through. Another. How? Many? Years? Let us not dwell on the disappointing, but rather focus our thoughts on that which alleviates the pain so well. Mixed concoctions. We managed to catch a rather great episode of Good Eats this week. Wouldn't you know it... right up our alley. That Alton Brown. What a hoot. His preparation of a martini was spot on, as well as the advice on the many variations. Our favorite however had to be his closing preparation (perhaps more appropriately referred to as skit) of a mint julep. Just. Sheer. Awesome. And the Colonel Sanders impersonation? 8 out of 10. Really. We took some inspiration from all the drink making to go out on a limb and veer away from the usual Negroni making and try a Daiquiri. A real one. Not the frothy, sticky, sugary mess so often served in most bars. Nope. Just the lime juice. The sugar. And the jigger of 10 cane rum. Delicious. When we find a bar that makes it using the correct methodology (heading over to Absinthe riggggght now), we'll let the interwebby know.

Hey waiter, there's a heart in my latte!

It has been an interesting week. We have managed to sneak a few quality moments here and there. A breakfast break for some capuccino laced with hearts. A real estate soiree followed by girls night out. A quick chat to reconnect with some of the solidiers in our camp that also 'grind for the man'. It has also been cold this week. To those on the East Coast (you know, 'over there'), complaining about 55 and 59 degree temperatures is most likely viewed as serious whining. But for a transplant whose blood has now acclimated (er, thinned), it's getting uncomfortable. This does not bode well. Next thing you know, we'll be in senior-citizen-baking-away-in-hot-humid-sticky-Florida brigade. Oh heaven help us. We've also been making time to scour the interwebby for new nuggets and funnies to generate a few laughs. And the interwebby delivered. See here. The Beast published its list of the 20 most loathsome in America. Heh. While we agree heartily with all the choices, there is a criticism. Why stop with 50? Come on, expand out to a 100 and pickup those we would add. For instance, the list is definitely light on a few stupid cows (Star Jones for one). And really. Just keeping Paris Hilton in the fray is missing the point. No. Much more complete would this be with the addition of her meaningless parents Kathy and Rick. And hey! Why stop there? Kimberly Stewart surely deserves a poke (not a physical one, I'm sure she is not for wanting in that department). And for goodness sake. How can you publish this list without including Jessica Simpson? We're being shortchanged here. Still. Perhaps there is an argument for keeping things compact. After all. Once you get going, the temptation to roll past 100 to oh, say 500 or something would be difficult to resist. And at the end of the day, how disappointing would that be? But we digress...

Things.

Let us start off by stating (since we've been spending FAR too much precious time reading the various things available out there in blog-land lately) what we here at Binkomonster don't do:

1. We don't take pictures every day. Even though we have a really AWESOME camera.
All those high resolution pictures of our board members take disk space folks. We're running out of it.

2. We don't talk about poop. Or farts.
We just show pictures (note our founder below trying to bury evidence of his...)

3. We don't navel gaze.

4. We don't discuss any number of afflictions that may or may not be held by current board members.  Life is short. And meant for providing amusement.

5. We don't pontificate. At least, we try not to. The jury is still out on our measure of success.

What do we do then?
Well, we talk about Binkomonster of course. And also try to provide some guidance on alcohol and food available in the Bay Area. And perhaps rant and rave a bit. So with that, let's venture forth into today's coverage shall we?

Random thoughts on a November evening

It's on the late side here in bee-aay-ooo-tiful SF. And we are lucky enough to be sitting outside on the deck basking in the moonlight, without feeling cold. Wonderful how that works. Dinner has been served and cleared (chicken, salad, rice, and some good basic red wine). Dessert followed close behind (pumpkin cheesecake) with some tea. And now we're just gazing at the inky night sky, happily digesting. The CEO is busy watching Ocean's Twelve (bleah). This week and next will be full of adventures for the Binkomonster crew. Uncle Jerry from Down Under flies in tomorrow evening for a visit. And we are giddy with anticipation. The Binkomonster castle is at its peak when hosting family and parties. Speaking of which, there is a shindig planned for this weekend (for the lucky few) to celebrate the arrival of 'Uncle Jerry'. RSVeePees have started to come in, and suffice it to say it should be a pretty swank time. We'll remember to catch some pix this time (unlike our bad a few weeks ago at the Villa de Binkomonster Italia party). Yes, plenty of evidence to document. Who knows, if we are feeling brave, we may even setup the camcorder to capture folks in their full zaniness.
It's going to be a good couple of weeks. With Uncle Jerry in town, all of this week will quickly become a blur. Next week, the denizens of Binkomonster head out to (drum roll please) Buffalo, New York.  The plan is to have a most intense week of Thanksgiving. There will be the traditional meal, (after of course slogging through the 5 miles of the Turkey Trot), the visit to Inniskillin, and hopefully (!) a visit to Corning to see some glass.  And then? We return back to the castle, and begin to decorate in anticipation of Christmas festivities. And of course, with all of this comes the requisite cooking and foodie exploring. No new joints lately. We've been sticking to the classic list (Chez Nous, Absinthe, and of course Zuppa). We did make it to the 'reopened' Public in our neck of the woods (Folsom street), and are disappointed to state that we will now be removing it from our Top 10 list (both drinks and food).  Sometimes, regime change is not such a good thing. 'Nuff said.  We are however, VERY excited by the new bar/restaurant in our neighboorhood. The Sneaky Tiki has been a most intriguing delight!
The cocktail list is good, but could certainly use some polishing. For example: better garnishes, use real martini glasses, and not so heavy on the sugary components. The food? The menu is good though we admit to only trying a few items at this point. The one item completely worth going for is the steamed fish. Using market available fresh fish, they steam it in banana leaves (with kaffir lime leaves and a whole host of seasoning). The result? Words fail us. Just superb. The atmosphere is awesome (if a bit loud), the whole tiki theme (and glass bar) hit the sweet spot for Shag fans like us.  The plan now is to go back and see how they fare on the 'classic' cocktails (i.e. your standard fare martini, negroni, sidecar, etc.) Need more joints like this in the neighborhood! 
On other fronts, work for the 'man' continues, as it always does. But work on the Binkomonster castle has started to perk up. The collective weekend was spent completely redoing the sacred study area with results that proved to be most pleasing (before and after shots coming soon, promise). One result of course is some time spent moving furniture up for offer on Craigslist.
Happy Monday San Francisco, it's going to be a good week (we can feel it in our bones)!

Chinese New Year, More Adventures in NYC

Chinese New Year. NYC. How to sum it up?
Well easily put, 4 days worth of great meals at home, followed by zipping out to Manhattan
and bar/store/museum crawling.
Spice Market. Hotel Gansevoort. Pastis. Schiller's Liquor Bar.
How is my liver doing you ask? Why just fine thanks.
Had our requisite 2x celebrity sightings.
Exercised control and only purchased 2 pairs of shoes.
Laugh if you must, but that's a record.
Lost control and bought 3 handbags.
BUT they are from a family friend/designer, so my conscience rests without being too perturbed.
For those fashionistas who want to get a head start on the next really cool thing, see here.

Drove by the tents at Bryant Park. Oh that's right, it's Fashion Week.
Drove by the Gates in Central Park. Hey, what are all those orange curtains doing hanging up?

 

2005. Yep. It's here.

It is almost with trepidation that we approach the new year. Well, rather, are plodding through it since we have no choice but to accept it being foisted upon us. Alas that time doesn't run in other directions.
The holidays have been great. Even without all of the merriment, just having a 10 day respite from 'the man' is a most welcome change. No chattering in the email box, no screaming, no phones ringing, and oddly enough, the crackberry eerily silent (well, no choice now, the battery has run down as well).
Add to this recipe two weeks worth of celebrations (with friends and neighbors), and how can you go wrong? The only remorse is that of not being as motivated as we had hoped. The study is still in shambles, but small things have been accomplished here and there. Overall, the castle is looking pretty swanky. Organization has begun to happen on our topmost floor, real shades are up, and there is enough color and style to merit belonging in the pages of Dwell. There was a modern Christmas tree up, cool snowflakes on the front of our building, and more bells and flowers than you could shake a stick at everywhere. And now that the holidays are over, we are back to simplification and organization. De-cluttering. And getting back in shape.