Wild Willy's (Burger Review)

Wild Willy's - Arsenal Street, Watertown Center, Watertown, MA
Rating: √

Anna and I had our first venture to Watertown Sq.'s newest burger joint "Wild Willy's". We have eaten burger's close by at "Low Fat, Know Fat" (Bison Burgers, rather expensive and the experience was "eh"). Back to Wild Willy's, it's an interesting looking red barn-like building. That's the theme, country. You walk in and place an order at the bar and then sit and wait, and wait, and wait (apparently this happens often). The burgers were Angus beef. And again I selected a regular burger and added to it (trying to keep a level playing field throughout the reviews). After a long wait, the burger came, but it was the wrong burger. The next burger came within 2 minutes, kind of weird, but hey, why not? The burger was well worth the wait. Not terribly large, but big enough. Great flavor. However, I do not suggest the soggy french fries as a side, instead select the crunchy onion rings.

Christopher's (Burger Review)

Christopher's - 1920 Mass Ave., Porter Sq., Cambridge, MA (617) 876-9180
Rating: √/√+

Last Saturday Dan, Amy, Anna and me went to "Christopher's" on Mass. Ave. in Porter Sq. to try out their "Best Of Boston" burgers (actually I think their veggie-burgers were once "Best of Boston"). It has a pub like appeal with flat panel televisions for your favorite sporting events (NE Revolution to NBA Basketball). Next door is "Toad" a tiny bar frequented by local music folk. Dan and I chose the "Basic Burgah" in which you can add your own toppings (Yes that's right, they named them "Burgahs"). Anna and Amy each had a "specialty burger". We also had a few beers (from Grape to "Brew Moon"). We started with the spinach artichoke dip with goat cheese. The dip was very good and I recommend it. The burgers were juicy and tasted wonderful.

We Are On A Mission: Burgers!

Why burgers? It turns out that this is the 100th anniversary of the original hamburger. I must admitt I got this idea from the Boston-based show "Chronicle". We are on a mission for Boston's Best Burgers. The best names, the best tasting, the best atmosphere, and even the best looking ones. Here is our list so far* (no particular order). If you have any other places we should check out this summer, please leave a message.

(√) Christopher's - 1920 Mass Ave. (Porter Sq.), Cambridge, MA (617) 876-9180

(√) Wild Willy's - Arsenal Street, Watertown Center, Watertown, MA

Krazy Karry's - Massachusetts Avenue, Arlington Center, Arlington, MA

Mr. Bartley's Burger Cottage - 1246 Mass Ave (Harvard Square) Cambridge, MA www.mrbartleys.com

Eagle Deli - 1918 Beacon St. (At Cleveland Circle) Brighton, MA (617) 731-3232

RF O'Sullivans - 282 Beacon St. Somerville, MA (617) 492-7773 www.rfosullivans.com

The Stockyard - 135 Market St. Brighton, MA (617) 782-4700 www.stockyardrestaurant.com

Doyles - in Jamaica Plain

SOHO - Market Street, Brighton, MA

647 Tremont - 647 Tremont St. Boston, MA (617) 266-4600

Henry's Root Beer Stand - Route 138 Taunton, MA (508) 824-6936

Spiced Pear Restaurant - (At the Chanler Inn at Cliff Walk) 117 Memorial Blvd. Newport, RI (401) 847-2244

Louis Lunch - 261-263 Crown St. New Haven, Conn. (203) 562-5507 www.louislunch.com

* A check symbol (√) indicates we have eaten there.

Just in Time!

Anyone who knows me knows how I am ALWAYS on time. Ok, I've never been on time, in fact, I think I was born late. So Dr. O sent me this link to a page that talks about how researchers have finally figured out "how late is late". It turns out, you are officially late after 10 minutes and 17 seconds. Here is the article below (from ananova.com)

How late is late

Researchers have finally decided how late is late - 10 minutes, 17 seconds.

That is the lateness threshold at which people feel it necessary to telephone and admit they are going to be late.

During that time, 12 babies will be born in England and Wales, there will be eight road accidents, 3,804 people will board an aeroplane and 590 million e-mails will be sent worldwide.

However, about 10% of us would not consider calling until at least 30 minutes beyond the "agreed appointment time", says the study, by motorists' website GetMeThere.co.uk.

More than 80% of people in their 50s claim they are never late for anything because they are gripped by "bus fuss" - the anxiety about being late for crucial events.

But almost 70% of young women believe it is "acceptable, if not fashionable" to be late on a first date because it makes them feel "less desperate".

On one subject, both men and women agree - they "wouldn't care" if they were late for their mother-in-law's birthday party.

Wiki Wiki

I have a NEW site. A "Wiki" site: http://teix.xwiki.com
You can go to my site and edit it to what YOU would like it to be and what text should be on it. Basically its a community site. Everyone can participate, and no, you don't have to sign up or register to do so.

Here is the definition of a "wiki" according to "Wikipedia":

A Wiki or wiki (pronounced [wɪkiː], [wiːkiː] or [viːkiː]; see Pronunciation below) is a web application that allows users to add content, as on an Internet forum, but also allows anyone to edit the content. Wiki also refers to the collaborative software used to create such a website (see Wiki software).

Wiki (with an upper case 'W') and WikiWikiWeb are both used to refer specifically to the Portland Pattern Repository, the first wiki ever created. A lower-case 'w' for 'wiki' is generally used by savvy wiki proponents. The name was based on the Hawaiian term wiki wiki, meaning "quick" or "informal". It is used commonly in Hawaii as part of its rich "pidgin English" -- the creole language of the islands.

If you visit Hawaii, your first encounter with the word wiki will be on the "Wiki Wiki" airport shuttle buses that service the terminals at the Honolulu International Airport.

Real Fact #187

There are over 61,000 pizzerias in the U.S.

And I have personally visited 10,000 of them... ok... like 8,500... ok, ok... more like 40, but close is close enough.

My Other Site

I have this site set up through BU. I haven't really edited it all year, but I will doing more advanced stuff with it through my summer class. So over the next few weeks check it out and see what/how I am doing in class.

http://people.bu.edu/cteix

Google SMS

Yes I have talked about this before, but I don't think you guys know how powerful/useful this tool is for your cellphone. Here is an example of how I used it last week.

Anna and I were on our way to look for a condo and we didn't bring directions. We knew the town well enough for the few major streets, but not the "hidden" roads. So I pulled out my cellphone and typed in: mass ave 02474 to 34 linden st belmont ma. Back came a reply with directions from Mass. Ave. to our destination. It was great, easy to follow, and most important easy to follow.

Another example: We were at the mall and I wanted to purchase a gift for my dad. However, you know that feeling everyone has now-a-days "... I know I can find it online for less money...". But then you have to wait to get home, search for the product (using Froogle of course), then go to the site, fill out some info and then finally buy it. Well I whipped out my cellphone and sent a text to Google. I typed in: f good guys wear black. Google then sent back a list from Froogle showing the cheapest prices for that dvd. Turns out that the price was equivalent to that in the store, so I just went ahead and purchased the one in the store. Amazing, comparison shop the internet with the mall. Great!

Of course none of these stories are true. I just made them up to prove a point. The Google SMS feature can really be useful. Thank you, thank you.

3 More Cool Google Web Tools

Ride Finder - This will (somewhat) accurately pinpoint where your taxi/limo/car service is. Check to see if there is a taxi in your area before calling. Find out how close the taxi is before they get to you.

My Search History - Ever look for something in Google only to go home and search for the same thing a few days later, but forgot which keywords you used? Well My Search History" keeps track of your Google searches and even organizes them by date with a calendar.

Google Web Accelerator - Speed up the web. Google Web Accelerator works with your browser to help web pages show up in a snap.

Google Personalized Homepage

Google has joined Yahoo and MSN with personalizing it's search page (you can find it here). The personalized site is just like the regular Google.com site, but below it adds a few twists. You can add your GMail account (to preview your current messages), add the local weather forecast, stocks, news, etc. It's pretty cool and has now become my new homepage. It's all part of what Google is calling their "Fusion" project. According to Marissa Mayer, Google's consumer Web products director, 'These projects aim to fuse together Google's functionality along with content on the Web into a single unique way to access its content."

Quote of the Day

The point of living and of being an optimist, is to be foolish enough to believe the best is yet to come. - Peter Ustinov

BIRD FLU

To read more about the recent Bird Flu scare go here: Effect Measure

Missing Ring?

Last Saturday night Anna and I returned some movies and decided to go get some pizza at a place near where we used to live. I walked in while Anna stayed in the car with Lucy. After I had ordered I was talking to the guy behind the counter (he kind of knows us, but only from us going there so much). Well he turned away to do something and for some reason I looked down at my hands and noticed my wedding ring was missing. The I glanced up at him, and noticed that he saw me looking at my bare finger. Then I quickly tried to cover up my hand. Why? I don't know, I didn't want him to think I was a bad guy or something. I don't know. So then he asked how "my friend" was. And I said, "You mean my wife?" And he said, "Well I didn't see your wedding ring. Where is your ring?" So I said "I have NO IDEA!" So I told him I would be right back. I went into the car and told Anna I had some bad news for her, "I have NO IDEA where my wedding ring is." He response was typical, "What!? Are you serious!?" ( said with the largest serving of sarcasm allowed in the US). Well we looked in the car and couldn't find it. So we got our pizza and went home (very quiet trip). When we got home I started searching, a minute later while searching in the bathroom Anna came in and got down on her knee and presented me with the ring. She found it on the sofa. Later she said that she should have held out on giving it to me for a bit so that I could suffer a bit more, but...

I plan on getting it resized.. .sometime soon. Hahaha.

Lucy Episodes

It was Tuesday, or Monday, of last week when I was really getting into my sickness. I didn't feel good at all. So what did Lucy decided to do? Stay up late, and whine. She wouldn't stop. She wouldn't sit still in her kennel. So at 2AM I got up and took her for a walk on that cold May night. We got home about 25min later and she still whined. This time I couldn't take anymore and just rolled over and went to sleep. She stopped whining before I fell alseep, but.... what a night!

Happy 3rd Birthday Joausto

Happy Birthday little brother. You will probably never read this, but, hey, I tried. Haha.

Congrats Anna!

Congratulations to my wife. Anna has completed her masters degree in social work from Wheelock College. She has worked so hard for this over the past 2 years and I am VERY proud of her. She's my role-model.

What I will remember from Anna's graduation:
1. Her name being called.
2. Her reaction to seeing her mom holding Lucy and waving her paws.
3. Me stepping on Lucy's paw during the ceremony and hearing her shriek in the rather quiet venue.
4. My head burning and now peeling (I know, attractive!).

I'm Baaaaaack!

After a LONG hiatus, I decided to come back and write "for my fans".

I will now post a few things I planned on posting a while ago before life, and being sick, got in the way.

Interesting: iTunes Allows Video Playback

The newest version of iTunes (v4.8) allows video playback. I added an mpeg4 video to my iTunes library and it lets you double click and watch it. However it wouldn't allow a MS WMV file to be added to the library.

Also, in the preferences menu iTunes gives you the option of viewing the video in the same iTunes window, separate iTunes window, or full screen (something you cant even do with QuickTime unless you pay for PRO ($29).

Could apple be setting up a "QuickTime Video Store"? Will bands start producing "Extended Versions" of their video, or "behind the scenes" versions? Will television stations start selling your favorite episodes of "Grey's Anatomy"? Most importantly, will we all be lusting over a new VideoPod by Christmas?

CNBC: Choose Apple's Tiger

CNBC spoke on the topic of Apple's new OS (Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger). Great review of the potential of Tiger (though a little of the "security due to obscurity" myth pops up).

Check out the video here (On Apple's site using Quicktime)

CNET: Coffee Or Password--Which Would You Choose?

So would you give me your password for a Starbucks coffee?

"... Security vendor VeriSign found 66 percent would choose to give up their passwords for a Starbucks coffee, during an informal on-the-street survey conducted Thursday in San Francisco. In an era of increased security concerns over protecting personal and corporate data, it's surprising to see that a cup of java can go a long way... Survey participants, for example, said they felt comfortable revealing their passwords, because they were not asked to share their user name or logon... Those that revealed their password or gave hints received a $3 gift card for Starbucks--the price of a latte..."

Read the whole article here. Oh, and please post all of your passwords in the comments section (please no usernames).

New Tool at Stop & Shop!?

Thanks to Daniel Clarke for informing me of this:

(From Yahoo News)

"... A Shopping Buddy portable computer, below, is attached to a shopping cart as shoppers make their way down the tomato isle at a supermarket, in Quincy, Mass., Tuesday, May 3, 2005. The device will guide you to the tomatoes or toothpicks, let you order deli meat without standing in line and keep a running tally of your purchases. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)..."

Click on this link to see the picture

Also, if anyone see's one of these or uses it, please let me know. I am curious to see how these work, since a similar project was presented in one of my classes last semester.

Breaking Stuart News {UPDATE}

Stuart has now received his patio furniture. Everyone is invited!

How you like THAT Stuart!?

UPDATE: Stuart's response--> "... Swell, now spell "received" correctly! (I didn't really "receive" it anyway -- I bought it and brought it home. I had to borrow a friend's car to bring home the table.)..."

iTunes Rocks

For some reason I decided to start looking up world music in iTunes. Why? Why not! So I found some Cesaria Evora stuff, but she is international, and I was looking to see if there was any other Cape Verdean music available. I thought I had searched before but found a few good ones (buried within "African Music" compilations). Then I stumbled upon this song "Rosinha" by Livity written in 1992. I have been looking for this song forever. We used to have it on some tape (but we know what happened to those). It was one of my favorite songs growing up, not sure why, but it was (probably because my dad would play it all the time). I downloaded it using one of those Pepsi free iTunes songs things... here are the lyrics:

When you go, tell Rosinha
That if she wants to get married, she can marry
If she wants to wait for me, to wait for me
And if she waits for me, I’ll marry her

Oh Rosinha!
Our marriage is next year

When you go, tell Rosinha
To go to Somada* and buy a matrimonial cerificate
And to go to the church and set a wedding date

Our marriage will be next year
When you go, tell that girl
That it’s me, Jorge, sending this message:
“Rosinha, I love you, my sweetheart,
If you wait for me I’ll marry you.”

*A town on the island of Santiago, Cape Verde

Lucy!

Lucy on Lap, originally uploaded by cteix.

She's heerrreeee...

Weigning in at 4.2 lbs and the spitting image of a baby polar bear... "Lucy" made it in on Saturday night. She had a very long day. She arrived at the airport in Michigan at 10:30AM. From there she proceeded to wait until 12:41PM to get on her flight to Cincinnati. Her plan from Michigan was late and missed it connection flight in Cincinnati. So she had to wait until 7PM for a flight to Boston. In the meanwhile, Anna and I showed up to the Delta Cargo area at Logan Airport to pick her up at 4:30PM (They told us her flight was coming in 30min early). There were 5 people waiting for puppies to fly in, however, there were only 4 dogs. Needless to say, that's when we found out Lucy missed her flight (she sounds more and more like me). Well we had to go home and wait until 9PM to pick her up. We were back there at 9:05PM and Lucy was waiting for us, wagging her tail.

So far Lucy seems like a very mellow dog who has her moments. It's a lot tougher than I thought trying to train/raise a pup. Here's to hoping a kid is a lot easier (someday). Haha.

More pics of Lucy

Here are some more pics of Lucy. Just ask... we've got plenty more... haha

Here is Lucy cuddling on the floor with Anna.


Here is a pic of Lucy and her new favorite toy... a tiny tennis ball made for cats.