Below are the 20 most recent journal entries recorded in pulltaps' LiveJournal:

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Wednesday, July 1st, 2009
12:23 am	My weekend I've got two nights off in a row, Wednesday and Thursday. Anybody want to get together? (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Friday, June 26th, 2009
11:25 am	When it doesn't rain... I had an interview for a beverage manager position in a really snazzy hotel restaurant that went very well on Wednesday, the cruise line that I'm interested in just emailed me back expressing a desire to hire me as a sommelier, and Fifth Group is beginning to understand that I will leave if I can't advance my career with them. The next week will be full of decisions. (21 Comments |Comment on this)
Sunday, June 21st, 2009
1:31 am	How I'm doing Ok. I realize how cliche this is even as I'm typing it. Some things just can't be helped. Several of my friends have commented on how terse I've been since Wade's death, and have expressed their concern. (I love my friends, always looking out for me). I'm doing ok. While I'm sad that Wade is gone, his choices were his own. His death has cast into bright light for me the realization that we are all here for such a short visit. This is, I'm sure, a function of my getting older and Wade's youth. But it has made me realize that I'm squandering my time at so many turns. I've put off doing things with the expectation that I might be leaving Atlanta soon. What I'm figuring out is that I'm here now. I should make my life as rich as possible here, now. I don't know what will happen in 3 or 6 months, but for right now I have a good job with steady income, and lots of free time to dedicate to pursuits other than xbox. (4 Comments |Comment on this)
Saturday, June 13th, 2009
4:27 am	Well this was unexpected My step-brother killed himself tonight. Everyone is still in shock. I'm going to South Carolina to be with my mom and step-dad Wednesday. (24 Comments |Comment on this)
Monday, June 8th, 2009
11:50 am	Playing the field It's time for me to leave Ecco. I still love the place and everybody that I work with. I've just gone as far as I can professionally there. Everyone in management at Fifth Group knows that I'm looking around, and understands. They just don't have a som position to offer me. I had a great interview this past Thursday and it has really encouraged me to carpet Atlanta with my cv. A couple of the jobs/projects that I'm looking at are outside of Atlanta, and certainly outside my comfort zone. We shall see what happens. (10 Comments |Comment on this)
Saturday, May 16th, 2009
2:34 pm	Troubled dreams I don't know what it is, but I've been having very disturbing dreams lately. The kind that wake me up in the middle of the night. Maybe my mind is over-thinking an upcoming, overwhelming change. (5 Comments |Comment on this)
Sunday, May 10th, 2009
11:57 pm	Fandom and Stagnation There's a great article in the Washington Post online dealing with fandom and its influence on new works. I'd be interested to see what all of you think of it. (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Monday, April 27th, 2009
11:23 pm	Wine Culture Demystification #3: Strange Packaging My maternal grandfather, a physician, once told me that we can manufacture a perfectly acceptable replacement for breast milk. Every macro- and micro-nutrient, every vitamin and mineral can be measured, and put into a canned baby formula..... "But you can't beat the packaging." My maternal grandfather is a very wise man. The wine world is going through a major transition these days in terms of the vessels used to ship and store the beverage. There are several reasons for this. Demand for wine is increasing. Wines are made to be consumed immediately, rather than cellared for decades before opening. Fuel prices are rising. Before I really address all of these things, it might be helpful to put this into perspective. There is a lot of ceremony and romance involved in wine (there were entire Greek and Roman gods devoted to the stuff). Wine is nothing more than grape juice that got a yeast infection. There. Now that's out of the way. Regarding Cork Cork is very expensive. It comes from only one species of oak, Quercus suber, that grows only in the southern Iberian peninsula and northern Africa, with limited production in France and Italy. It takes nearly a decade for the tree to recover between harvests. Needless to say, the trees haven't been able to keep up with demand. Another huge stumbling block for the poor cork oak is the presence of TCA or cork taint. This is a chemical flaw that can be introduced to the wine via the cork. Because of these factors, wine manufacturers are moving toward a few alternatives. The two big ones are synthetic corks (they preserve some of the romance, I guess) and screw off tops. Yay! Screw Off Tops! Can you tell which one I endorse? Screw off tops have several advantages. They are easier to remove than synthetic corks (which are often much harder to remove than actual cork), and they allow gas exchange (like an actual cork). But instead of the random and variable gas exchange offered by actual cork, screw off tops can give a more precise rate of gas exchange. This allows the wine maker to have another degree of control of his/her product. S/he can choose the screw off top that allows the oxidation rate that s/he prefers. Glass Glass is very heavy. Glass is pretty expensive. Glass is not biodegradable. This means that, when you buy a European wine, you are paying for glass to be manufactured and shipped, as much as you are paying for the grape juice. And you are adding tons of waste to landfills if you aren't recycling. This leads me to the format that I'm really advocating with this post. BOXED WINES!!!! Boxed Wines One big advantage that boxed wines have is that they are in a relatively sealed plastic bladder. This means that there is almost no gas exchange. The wine won't oxidize before you finish it! You might be able to keep drinking that box for a month! If you want to have your resveratrol fix while still enjoying an inexpensive but tasty glass of wine, the box is the way to go. Yes, friends. There is good wine that comes in a box. So many of us are frightened by our bad experiences with Franzia and the like, but don't lose hope. They are out there, and they are AFFORDABLE! So, while there is tremendous satisfaction derived in removing the cork from a bottle of wine, this isn't the only way. We have advanced as a civilization, and it's time to recognize that advance. (8 Comments |Comment on this)
Saturday, April 18th, 2009
1:44 pm	Indra Thomas is downstairs rehearsing Aida. Why do I have to go to work today? (Comment on this)
Thursday, March 26th, 2009
12:26 am	Two down, Two to go I just passed my second test for the Court of Master Sommeliers. For all of you gamers who have played D&D 2nd ed. it reminds me of the rule that in order to advance to 9th level, a character needs to spend time with characters of much greater level to advance. I spent three days with master sommeliers who critiqued every aspect of my abilities as a sommelier, gave me constructive advice, and bestowed upon me a higher ranking. This week, more than anything, has shown me that there is so much more that I need to learn. In the mean time, I'm going to spend a while playing xbox and drinking for fun. (11 Comments |Comment on this)
Tuesday, March 17th, 2009
2:53 pm	Is it Anzac day already? I was just listening to NPR and they were playing a song that was clearly about Anzac Day. The singer did have a noticeably Irish accent. Perhaps whoever was in charge of the music selection confused the issue. (5 Comments |Comment on this)
Wednesday, March 11th, 2009
2:34 am	Garbage-less There is an initiative put forth by the Georgia Restaurant Association, to make restaurants more eco-friendly. Ecco is leading the charge. As of last week, we are producing zero landfill waste. All waste is either recycled or composted. This has made changes in how we do business. It takes a little bit more time to sort things out. Service will marginally suffer for a few weeks until the front of the house staff gets into the swing of things. Overall, I'm glad to be a part of a restaurant at the forefront. (Comment on this)
Monday, March 2nd, 2009
11:47 am	Lots of respectable people been hit by trains I came into work on Saturday to the news that one of my friends, a line cook at the restaurant, was in the ICU and near death. He was found on the tracks at a MARTA station on Friday night with a fractured skull. The original thinking was that he was hit by a train. Seeing as his wallet and cash were gone, and the nature of his injuries, the revised understanding is that he was mugged, beaten to within an inch of his life, thrown onto the train tracks and left for dead. As of this morning he is still unconscious. I'd like to get some kind of fund going for the servers to donate their tips to cover his medical expenses. (1 Comment |Comment on this)
Sunday, February 1st, 2009
2:08 am	Hunger Walk Sunday, March 1st is the Atlanta Community Food Bank's biggest fund raising event, the Hunger Walk. My restaurant group has been raising money for the event (my personal goal is $1000 from my guests, but I'll match 10% of what I'm able to solicit). As I've been involved in the fine dining/wine industry for nearly 10 years, I naturally gravitate toward food banks for my charitable considerations. (The Food Bank of North East Georgia probably wishes that I still lived in Athens). I'll be walking that Sunday, with a few dozen friends from my restaurant group. Everyone else is welcome to attend, especially if you can afford the scratch for the $25 suggested donation. (9 Comments |Comment on this)
Wednesday, January 28th, 2009
2:47 am	Intermission During my last two years of High School I hung around with a bunch of Jewish mystics. It was easy to do on Miami Beach, and was a great way to rebel against my Litvak parentage. One of the mystics that I knew insisted that the girl in the red dress in Schindler's List was one of the 36 righteous. During my junior year lit class, when the movie came up, I offered this interpretation. The teacher shot me down immediately, as Speilberg would never put anything in one of his movies that was only recognizable to a few scholarly Jews. In any case, I found my copy of Schindler's List in a box two hours ago, and am at the half way point. I've been feeling nostalgic lately and a few of you will be getting some mixes in the mail. (1 Comment |Comment on this)
Friday, January 23rd, 2009
12:36 am	Damn it feels good to be a gangsta "The Nazis had pieces of flair that they made the Jews wear." Office Space is on TV now. I haven't seen this movie for nearly a decade. So glad I'm not working for Time anymore. (3 Comments |Comment on this)
Sunday, January 4th, 2009
10:42 pm	The Iron Lisa My friend Jon's wife Felisa has been trying to land a great gig in academia for a while now, and has been feeling a little down. In order to lift her spirits (as it were), I came up with a drink in her honor. The Iron Lisa (get it?). Start with ice in a mixing can. Add 1.5 oz of blended scotch (we used Dewars) and .5 oz of Drambuie (A rusty nail so far) Then add .5 oz Bacardi light (to pay tribute to her Cuban ancestry). With your fingers, crush up 8-10 oregano leaves (no need for an explanation there) and a large twist of lemon. Add them both to the can. Shake well and strain over ice. Finish with 2-3 dashes of bitters (pursuing a career in academia will do that to a person) and stir. (1 Comment |Comment on this)
Wednesday, December 31st, 2008
6:54 am	Pho Pho 96. 1 PM. This is where/how/when I will ready myself for the NYE onslaught. Anybody is welcome to join me. (1 Comment |Comment on this)
Thursday, December 18th, 2008
1:58 am	Since the Movie... Ok. Let me just say up front, I hate what the movie Sideways has done to the wine industry. Since its release, people think that the crappiest Pinot Noir is better than any other wine, and Merlot is to be avoided at all costs. This is remarkably silly to anyone involved in the wine business as, because of the effort involved in making wine from a grape as moody as Pinot Noir, good PN's tend to be very expensive, while decent Merlots can be found in every price point. This isn't my only gripe with the movie, but I'll save the rest for another post. Last night I opened a bottle of the 2004 Northstar Merlot from the Columbia Valley AVA. I knew it was going to be a big wine, so I decanted it immediately upon opening. At first, the nose was tremendously spicy, with black pepper being a dominant aroma. Blueberry and blackberry fruits were there as well as a clay earthiness. This was a big wine on the palate, lasting a good 15 minutes on the tongue. Rich chocolate dominated the initial flavor profile. Blackberry and raspberry flavors soon came to the fore. The chocolate flavor lingered as powdery tannins were evident. After about eight minutes, the chocolate turned to mocha. This was a great wine, and had the indications of a wine not yet ready to drink. I'd love to revisit this bottle in 5 years or so. (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Monday, December 15th, 2008
3:20 am	New directions I've been thinking about what I'd like to do with my lj lately. While I was in New Zealand, the travelog was great. Now that I've settled into a more mundane routine back at home, I'm thinking that I'll make regular wine reviews. What do you think? Would you like to read critiques of 2 or 3 wines a week here? (6 Comments |Comment on this)