An interview/profile of cartoonist Berkeley Breathed. When his Bloom County newspaper strip first appeared, I remember feeling kinda guilty about enjoying it. It was a bit too crudely drawn and it was so obviously trying to confuse readers into thinking it was Doonesbury...and there were also the promotional interviews Breathed gave wherein he didn't show a lot of respect for his newly-selected craft. But the strip was kinda funny...
Just before I left the house on my trip, I received Volume 1 of the new Bloom County reprint series from IDW. It looks very good and I'm looking forward to actually reading it again and seeing if the strip is still kinda funny. Here's an Amazon link if you want to find out, too.
Eric Idle discusses (i.e., promotes) a recent show...the latest in the endless stream of ways they've found to repackage the joys of Monty Python for our purchasing opportunities.
Tad Friend profiles show biz reporter Nikki Finke. I find Ms. Finke to be very, very good at breaking stories about studio heads and super agents and megastars; not as facile at evaluating the content of what they make. I also like that she rarely seems to commit the big sin of those who cover her beat, which is to report on any two-sided argument by taking the side of whoever is leaking to her.
The In-n-Out Burger chain has outlets in California, Nevada, Arizona, parts of Utah and nowhere else. Folks from other states who visit one of those have been known to plan a visit to In-n-Out as a vital element of their vacations...and it's easy to understand. In-n-Out Burgers are pretty good.
They are not, however, my favorite fast food burgers anymore. Part of that is because every time I've eaten at In-n-Out the last couple years, I've enjoyed it a bit less than the time before. This may be that their product is sliding downhill...but since I haven't seen one other person anywhere say this, I'm inclined to think that ain't it. It also may be that I've had Bad Burger Luck lately. Any restaurant can occasionally serve you a meal that's not up to their standards. Maybe I've just gotten some of those. That could happen.
Another possibility is that I've changed. I gave up carbonated beverages in February of '06. In January of '08, I gave up sugar to the extent that one can give up sugar. I get it in small doses in some things I eat but I lost my sweet tooth and no longer have any interest in candy, ice cream, pastry, Krispy Kreme donuts, etc. My taste buds have changed and maybe that has something to do with the reason that In-n-Out no longer thrills me as it once did.
All these reasons are possible but I know one reason that In-n-Out is no longer my favorite cheap/fast place to get a burger. I've discovered Five Guys. I think Five Guys makes the best fast food burger in all the land.
I wish I didn't feel that way because there's no Five Guys convenient to where I live. There are plenty of In-n-Outs but the nearest Five Guys is twenty miles from me...in an area where I have no reason to ever venture. Fortunately, they have 'em all over Ohio and since I'm in Ohio, guess where I went for lunch today. What's more, I brought back burgers and fries for several friends at the con and even passed out fries to the attendees at one of my panels. Boy, their food is good. If they also served the Creamy Tomato Soup from Souplantation, I'd probably move to within walking distance of one and never eat anywhere else again.
Joe Conason reminds us that the Vast Right Wing Conspiracy that spread so many outright lies about Bill Clinton is still alive and well and aiming the same tactics at Barack Obama. And you know something? These people will always be around as long as there's tons o' money to be made doing that.
October 6, 2009
