Lincolnite

The Missus and I dropped by Krem Le Bistro this past weekend. It's a new restaurant located on the second floor of the Creamery Building, home of Ivanna Cone, Paint Yourself Silly, and a few other local shops. The Missus and I didn't eat at Krem, having just cleaned our plates at Lazlo's across the street. Instead, we just took a glance at the menu. We almost stopped in just for dessert -- the options were very tempting! -- but we were much too full. Krem offers a variety of sandwiches and a few heftier entrees. Prices ranged from about $6.00 to $15.00 or so; the sandwiches were especially affordable. Some quick impressions of Krem Le Bistro:

• I worry about the name. My first impression of the name was "Hmph, sounds like a snooty place with tiny portions and high prices." Not having eaten there yet I can't speak to the portion size, but the prices looked pretty reasonable. Will the name keep people from ever making it up the stairs to their front door to give them a fair shot?
• My first impression of the restaurant itself was much more positive. It looked cozy and warm inside, with a pianist performing some very nice pieces. It looked like a place I wouldn't mind spending some time in.
• The off-the-street location is a risk, but I think it can work out for them. Word of mouth will be key, which makes excellence in service and food quality throughout this first month especially critical.
• Krem can only increase Ivanna Cone's visibility and, by extension, their business. The same will be true for the other small businesses in the building.
• A quick glance at the menu seemed to offer options for most any diner. Carnivores, vegetarians, and, if I recall correctly, even vegans have some good options. (Don't trust me on the vegan thing; I may be remembering incorrectly.) The menu is not large, but it still seemed to offer some good choices.

nThe Missus and I may give Krem Le Bistro a try on this week's date night (Wednesday). We're going out with another couple, though, so we'll have to see what they're in the mood for.

This probably sounds odd, but I'm a little jealous of Omaha, what with all the cougars showing up around the area. Why can't we get a couple of those bad boys down here in Lincoln? Omaha gets cougars, and we get turkeys. Typical.

If you're a big fan of melodrama, check out Life in the Red. I have a really hard time not laughing at doomsday declarations like the ones found over there. They remind me of a teenage girl who finds a pimple on her nose on senior photo day. "My life is ooooover!" I wonder if the sports writers at the LJS are wearing black this week? Q: How many Husker offensive lineman does it take to stop a pass rush? A: I'll let you know the first time it happens. Did you hear about the new restaurant being opened by members of the Husker defensive line? It's a drive-thru. Please, somebody post some actual humor in the comments. This stuff is awful.

Hey hey, what do you know? The Republican Senate is actually going to cut spending. But only a little, and mainly in areas that affect the poor and elderly. That latter fact certainly won't do anything to improve the perception that Republicans only care about the wealthy. Part of me wants to celebrate this news. I mean, any spending cut is a good spending cut, right? To an extent, yes. But why pick on the poor and elderly first? Why not pick on Uncle Ted and other porkers? Of all the excess government spending out there, do Republicans really think that's the place to start? Besides, I thought the war on budget fat was over!

Note to self #1: stop kicking the power strip under my desk. Note to self #2: upon ignoring note to self #1, refrain from swearing loudly enough to draw attention from co-workers when the computer suddenly turns off.

Many of you will scoff, but I'm actually just a little bit excited about the Westfield Gateway makeover being unveiled at 5:30pm tonight. Some Lincolnites believe that Gateway is an anachronism, an outdated mall destined to fade into obscurity. I'm not so sure. I think Gateway can continue to be a relevant and powerful force among Lincoln's shopping venues. I'm very pleased with the resources Westfield has put into Gateway. When Westfield purchased Gateway several years ago I was wary. As it turns out, I needn't have been. Gateway's exterior looks better than it has in years. occupancy rates are up, and the likelihood of hearing somebody say "I'm going to Gateway this weekend" isn't nearly as remote -- or giggle-inducing -- as it was only a couple years ago. It's too early to say that Gateway is back. But from the perspective of the Lincoln shopper, it's nice to know that Southpointe is not the only quality shopping option.

My father and I are going to fire up the chain saw and put on our best lumberjack impressions tomorrow. Place your bets on the likelihood that:

1. One of us ends up in the hospital
2. We damage the roof of the house
3. We pull down a powerline

The Missus and I have pondered the fate of two trees since we first moved in. One is an evergreen bush-tree thing that sits right next to the driveway. It's too big for its britches, and The Missus likes to scrape her car with it every time she backs out of the garage. The other tree is some sort of 25 foot flowering thing with evil, evil roots. Roots from hell. Roots that extend in every direction just at the surface. Roots that literally reach up and grab your ankle, trying to snap it in two. I hate the tree with the evil roots, while The Missus hates the bush-tree. So we compromised: we're chopping them both down. I'm not quite sure what we'll do with the void we'll be left with, but we'll figure something out.

Hey, that Dilbert guy doesn't suck as bad as I thought! Scott Adams' blog is pretty dang funny.

What does Bush keep in his pockets? - CNN

Some groups are up in arms over the references to Judge Samuel Alito as "Scalito." I don't get it. What's so offensive about Scalito?

Silent night, Halloween night All is calm, no ghouls in sight Back in my day the night was so wild Now my doorstep sees nary a child Where are the young trick-or-treaters? Where are the young trick-or-treaters? Silent night, Halloween night Nobody quakes at the sights No ghosts or goblins stream up to my door Who did I buy all this damn candy for? Criminy this night is boring! Criminy I am so bored! Silent night, Halloween night A lonely moth circles 'neath the porch light Oh how I long to hear the trick-or-treats Instead here I wait eating all of the sweets Expanding the size of my girth Oh! Would you look at that girth!

[Oops, I goofed! I didn't see that D.M.B. had touched on the subject. I've turned off comments on this post; post your comments over there instead.] Did Coach Bill Callahan imitate a throat-slashing gesture toward the referees during Saturday's game against Oklahoma? The Journal Star has posted two screen captures showing the gesture, but the images are inconclusive. It would be far easier to interpret the images if there were more photographs showing Callahan both before and after the offending gesture. For example, I recall while watching the scene unfold on Saturday that Callahan swept his arm across his body rather forcefully while pointing to the spot where he alleged a holding infraction had occurred. Is that what the Journal Star's images show? There's no way to know since no surrounding context photographs are included. Still images can be incredibly damning, but they can also be highly misleading. Without seeing the whole sequence -- or better yet, a video of the event -- it's impossible to judge exactly what happened. Anybody got this one on tape or Tivo?

Is there any finer sandwich than a delicious peanut butter and baloney sandwich? I think not. Yum!