Roasting Dogs

Hot dogs, that is. Obviously!

Less obvious -- and you may find this surprising -- is that until a few weeks ago, I had never roasted a hot dog on a stick. How did this come about? Well, how I went 39 years without doing it, I'm not sure. I have great experience with s'mores around a campfire, but I guess I limited my expertise to sweet desserts.

This Labor Day weekend, however, Alison and I decided to spend three or four days at the Aiken camp in North Hero. Unfortunately, our hot and dry summer came to an abrupt halt a few days before the weekend; one of the Atlantic off-shore hurricanes sent off-and-on rain and crazy wind our direction for the whole weekend, confining our activities mostly to reading, Scrabble, and other indoor pursuits.

One night for dinner, however, we ran into trouble. It was so windy we couldn't keep the gas grill lit. Fortunately, we had decided to have a fire in the fireplace. And I think the accompanying photos (along with demonstrating exactly how bald I have become here in my old age!) tell the rest of the story. Jalepeno chicken sausages roasted over hot coals, a whole wheat bun, sauteed onions, and spicy mustard... and I had myself a great meal! S'mores for dessert and a few beers to wash it down... and I was ushering out the last of summer in style.

The Cup

What a lucky girl. On her second anniversary, Alison Aiken got to have dinner with her in-laws AND get her picture taken with Lord Stanley's Cup. Amazing... What a life she leads!

Go Ahead

Are you serious? Sometimes I can't believe the stuff I read in the news. Ordinarily, this isn't a political or current events blog, but some stuff is so ludicrous, I can't let it slide. FIrst it was this mosque down the street from the Ground Zero site. Now it's this reverend who plans to have a Quran-burning in front of his church on Saturday.

Here's where we're at, the way I understand things: pretty much everyone agrees that it is his First Amendment right to have his little book-burning. Everyone is also pretty much in agreement that he's a goldarn idiot for doing it. Most further agree that extremists abroad are only going to take this act the wrong way and that the backlash can only mean bad news for American troops and tourists overseas. Again, I have to ask: you're really serious?

This reverend character has called his critics "cowardly." He has called the Islamic extremists who might retaliate against Americans cowards as well. Well, here's what I say. Anyone can burn the Quran down in Gainesville with our police and armed forces protecting him and his First Amendment right. If he's going to call everyone cowards, how about stepping up to the plate? Why not hold his little book-burning over in Afghanistan or Pakistan? Yeah! Find a city square, maybe right in downtown Islamabad, and set up shop. Then burn your books... go right ahead.

Update 9/13/2010: This reverend guy did end up canceling his book-burning... most likely in response to the logic put forth in this blog.

Latest Article: Climbing the Six Summits

Check out my latest article -- which chronicles my journey this summer to the high point of each of the New England states and which appeared in the September 5 issue of the New York Times. Also be sure to check out their sweet interactive map that accompanied the article. Nice job on the map, NYT!

And, finally, some photos from the adventure: top left: Johnny at the top of Connecticut (JG), top right: me at the Three Corners (JG), bottom left: the high point of Rhode Island, and bottom right: the diner where we had breakfast in Rhode Island (JG). For some real New England accents, check this place out.

New Dental Expert

Despite having just one filling (lifetime), I am no dental expert. However, after interviewing 16 dentists in 6 months, here's where I am an expert: when it comes to Dentists in New Hampshire!

The latest dental exclusive appears in Around Concord magazine. If you like teeth, this one will really give you something to chew on! Exciting write-ups on 7 dentists. Now that's a mouthful.

Okay, enough with the dental puns. Click here to read the profiles.

Chicks Dig Runners

Running has a lot of positive benefits -- it's cheap, keeps you in shape, gives you the leeway to eat more -- but most obviously... chicks dig runners! Here I am enjoying this benefit before the "Dress for Success" leg up the Killington Mountain Road during last weekend's Heart of Vermont Relay. I definitely plan to keep running... and I think I might stick with the hairdo.