Meals: The Musical – Act 4: Meats

The Story
Meals: The Musical is an original aFa production is about an important aspect of daily life – eating.

Whether it is snack, something on the run, a glorious sit-down feast, or something in between and regardless of the time of day, food is a life necessity. There are three aspects to a truly fantastic meal: the food, the occasion, and the company. We know Meals: The Musical is a festive occasion where friends gather to share wonderful music – thus the acts will focus on what the dining friends will encounter.

Program (Past Posts)
Act 1: Meals
Act 2: Fruit
Act 3: Side Dishes

Act 4: Meat
Many use a meat dishes as the main course, but other incorporate meat into dishes. Then again, some diners prefer meatless. Nonetheless, this act is all about meat, so song titles must include a meat in the title

Producer’s Note: As a guideline, let a typical menu serve as a guide. Menu will include items as sausage, pork, bacon, and ham – but that doesn’t make pig(s) as an acceptable. The producer does not consider seafood or any meat-substitute as  meat.

Production Note
To prevent browsers crashing from loading too many videos, please 1) include the song title and artist in your text, and 2) paste the URL as part of your last line (not a new line). The latter will provide a link, thus not embed the actual video … but I don’t mind unembedding, so apologies are not necessary.

Announcement
Ladies and gentleman, Frank loves this group and this genre because its toe tapping sound is fun. A big round of applause for Asleep at the Wheel with Ain’t Nobody Here but Us Chickens.

On a Burger Trail

Embed from Getty Images

It was about 2003 as I was working on a long-term project for an upstart company. A retired friend and I would talk about him coming down to my work area for lunch. Our target was a nearby establishment having a local reputation for good hamburgers.

He came, we went, had a good time, and even discussed the burger. He returned a month later, but we went to a different place for a burger – discussed and compared. Another time, a third place, a third burger, and then ranking the three. Little did we know about the road ahead.

My project ended, but we continued trying different places – especially ones with a positive reputation or recommendations. I’m not sure of the timeline, but a third friend joined us after he unexpectedly lost his job; thus more comparisons, rankings, and notes.

In July 2005 I decided to start a blog to post reviews of our ventures. I hustled to get local readers by commenting at various local blogs and bulletin boards … then a major (and unexpected) break … a high-profile writer at the Cincinnati Enquirer contact me, and he wanted to have lunch with us. With a photographer and his notepad, we met at the place of our choosing.

I was in Abilene, Texas the day the Enquirer published. Emails were flying into our mailbox, but I didn’t respond because the link to the article was malfunctioning. I did my morning presentation in Abilene, and I was anxious during my flight to Cincinnati. I returned home to discover a call from a local radio station whose powerful signal reaches most of the country, let alone a feature article in the paper’s Life section that extended to an inside page, and many comments on the blog. Yep – the next night we were on the radio for about an hour.

Receiving burger recommendations was one of the benefits from the publicity … thus the reviews chronicling of the adventures of Bucky, Freddie, and Wolfie continued. Eventually, we were also featured in the Enquirer’s weekly entertainment paper – CinWeekly. A local food personality also invited us to her radio show. An upstart podcast company also did a 30-minute interview.

Our journey continued for a few more years. Jobs, projects, or health issues caused us to fade away. Nonetheless, a touch of pride still remains for being one of the Cincinnati Burger Guys … so, Happy Hamburger Week.

From the top down: Freddie, Bucky, and Wolfie

 

On May 2015

May, the fifth month of the year, but one of seven months with 31 days

May, spring in the northern hemisphere, but autumn in the southern hemisphere – making May and November as seasonal equivalents

May, with no other month beginning or ending on the same day of the week as May

The month May was named for Maia, a Roman goddess

Late May, being the official start of the summer vacation season in the US and Canada

May, with its symbols

• Birthstone: emerald
• Birth flower: Lily of the Valley signifying sweetness, humility, and return to happiness
• Zodiac: Taurus (until May 21) and Gemini (May 22 and into June)

May moon

• Called Egg Moon, Grass Moon, and Hare Moon
• Full Moon May 4th 3:43 UTC
• New Moon May 18th 4:13 UTC

May, with national celebrations in Armenia, Canada, Eritrea, Japan, Mexico, Norway, United States, and the UK

May, with many countries celebrating May Day & Mother’s Day, plus Europe celebrating victory over the Nazis in World War II

May embraces Asian American & Pacific Islander heritage, chip your pets, creative beginning, Haitian heritage, audits, Mediterranean diets, Jewish-American heritage, guide dogs, meditation, military appreciation, moving, preservation, older Americans, personal history, preparing tomorrow’s parents, Social Security education, South Asian heritage, date your mate, and recommitment.

May increases awareness in ALS, APS, arthritis, asthma & allergies, medical orphans, brain tumors, celiac, cystic fibrosis, Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, fibromyalgia, Huntington’s disease, homeschooling, lupus, melanoma & skin cancer, hepatitis, neurofibromatosis, preventing osteoporosis, physiotherapy, Prader-Willi Syndrome, pet cancer, toddler immunization, chemical injury, Tay-Sachs & Canavan diseases, Tourettes Syndrome, borderline personality disorder, high blood pressure, Lyme disease, stroke, preeclampsia, and ultraviolet rays & skin cancer.

May celebrates wetlands, clean air, community living, drums, Freedom Shrine, gifts from the garden, golf, Victorian women, Latino books, barbeque, bikes, eggs, hamburger, inventors,
pets, photos, salads, salsa (the food), strawberries, asparagus, beef, chocolate custard, and drinking water.

May promotes global civility, better hearing & speech, building safety, ecodriving, family wellness, gardening for wildlife, getting caught reading, global health & fitness, food drives for homeless animals, heal the children, healthy vision, Oregon wines, business image improvement, motorcycle safety, foster care, good car keeping, mental health, physical fitness & sports, service dog eye examinations, water safety, Finger Lakes wines, youth traffic safety, revising your work schedule, spiritual literacy, women’s health care, reacting, and respect for chickens.

Any celebratory occasions in your life during May? What songs did you listen to in this post? Have a wonderful month of May.

On a Wimpy Today

If you are a baby boomer like I, you probably associate Wimpy as a friend of Popeye the Sailor. Yep, that’s J. Wellington Wimpy to we cartoon enthusiasts.

Created by EC Segar for the original Popeye comic strip, the soft-spoken, kind, intelligent Wimpy was Popeye’s friend. When Fleischer Studios animated Popeye, Wimpy took a less prominent role.

Hamburgers are Wimpy’s favorite meal, and we know he can continuously eat them! Wimpy was also cheap, even a  moocher, thus known for his famous line, “I’ll gladly pay you Tuesday for a hamburger today.”

Wimpy also inspired the name for a fast food restaurant in London (1954). The chain has been bought and sold several times, but we can find Wimpy’s today in over 20 countries. However, this story centers around Wimpy’s in South Africa.

The chain had an ad campaign promoting that it had Braille menus, but a promotion’s effort took a unique turn – they used sesame seeds to place Braille messages on 15 hamburger buns, and then served the hamburger to 15 blind individuals.

Whether a sincere small gesture or intentionally exploitive, this is a feel-good video. Have a good rest of the weekend.

Opinions in the Shorts: Vol. 71

On a Joyous Time
In a world and times with so many negative events and attitudes, the rescue of the Chilean miners shines a bright light on humanity as one of hope and dignity – not one of reality shows, tabloids, political ads, and talk show dogma. Blessings to all involved.

On a Philly Fanatic
The Philadelphia Enquirer Frank Fitzpatrick authored this unkind article about Cincinnati. The comments were the best part, so thanks to the many good Philadelphians who took offense at his article and stood up for us. Good luck Phillies.

On Two College Football Thoughts
Besides last weekend’s Reds playoff game, I also attended the oldest rivalry west of the Alleghenies … one of the oldest college football rivalries at one of the oldest stadiums  … the UC Bearcats hosting the nearby Redhawks at UC’s Nippert Stadium. Bearcat running back Isaiah Pead amassed 197 yards in 10 carries by halftime. Before dismissing Pead’s effort against a MAC school, let us not forget his 21/169 stats against Oklahoma.

Speaking of MAC schools, I earned by undergrad degree at Bowling Green, thus I am a proud Falcon. I know times on the sports front have been difficult of late, but last year’s football time had an interesting stat as they played three teams with a large “M” on the helmet. Who were the opponents? The answer is later in this post.

On the Bengals
The Cincinnati Bengals limp into their bye week with a lower than expected 2-3 record. While some find the struggles with the offense I mystery, I offer these thoughts. The offense lacks an identity. Most of the time it behaves as a team that thinks it can run or pass at will. It also behaves as a pass-first offense, then run. Hence, the problem because it does best when running is the top priority. Oh well – guess this is why I am a fan, thus not an NFL coach.

On the Upcoming Elections
With the midterm election season on the home stretch, it is a perfect time to catch countless examples the self-centered, clueless nature of today’s political culture. On the plus side, their ads, comments, and behaviors provide good examples of teaching young people about how not to be. Then again, that requires someone looking politics without a filter, or at least a limited filter.

I continue to maintain that the independents are the most pragmatic voting group and the ones who consistently decide election winners. Many, many times on this blog I have stated that independents vote parties out, and not parties in – something that the winners do not get. It happened in 2006 and 2008, and will likely happen in 2010, 2012, and 2014. Here’s a good Wall Street Journal article.

Cincinnatians are receiving some good political news! Reports are that the Democratic Party is withdrawing money for campaign television commercials in a local Congressional race. Amen to goodbye to pathetic ads – well, at least half of them.

On an Ohio Hamburger
I recently learned that USA Today listed a Cincinnati establishment for having the best hamburger in Ohio. Figuring this probably done by some sort of voting (and not actual tasting), I need to step forward on this one. Granted, Zip’s Café has a loyal following – but there is also a strong band of Zip’s dissidents, of which I am one. Best in Ohio? Not even close – not even best in the Cincinnati.

Answer to the college football question: In 2009 Bowling Green played Missouri, Marshall, and Miami – all with a large M on the side of their helmet.

Have a safe and enjoyable weekend.