The Wingman Cometh

Good Afternoon Ladies & Gentlemen,

 

The Wingman has come… came… and now gone. Yes, the time here was brief & seemed to fly by even faster… but I’m REALLY glad that he was able to come out, visit & just relax and kick it for a few days during an otherwise extremely stressful time. So I’ll sum up the long weekend that was… and maybe even throw in a few photos… though Facebook is probably were most of the good ones are (i.e. pictures with ME!!! BWAHAHAHAHAHA!!!)

 

Wednesday – I worked until the early afternoon, then I met up with the Wingman in Chinatown where he was doing some shopping… and then we visited Rogue Ales Public House for some fine beverages & burgers. I feel like I’ve elaborated on Rogue enough… but that’s some good stuff. We then went back to my place since he had walked a half-marathon during the day… and watched Netflix & HuluPlus the rest of the night and basically doing our own Mystery Science Theatre  3000 routine.

 

Thursday was Thanksgiving so we went to Izzy’s aunt’s for dinner… but first, a few hours of football & we brought our patented homebrews to share with everybody. The response was unanimous that our beer was REALLY good… and some felt that our Pumpkin Ale was probably the best beer that they’ve ever tasted. Granted, these were mostly ladies in their sixties & above… but that also means that they have a lot of drinking experience. We were expecting some harsh criticism from the aunts… but they both LOVED them… so we left them a few to thank them for dinner. The food selection was also great… not nearly the artery-clogging array that I’m used to but still pretty good. It wasn’t vegan and it wasn’t deep fried… so a nice middle ground. Thank you ladies!

 

Afterwards, we headed back to my place to watch movies including “Blanconieves” which is a Spanish silent film retelling of “Snow White” that came out last year… which apparently was the “Let’s have every studio do a version of Snow White” year of Hollywood. The premise was the story of the girl raised by her evil stepmother, etc from the famous Disney version… but set in 1920’s Spain… and involves Bullfighting… which was why we watched. That’s right… bullfighting dwarves. I know what you’re thinking… and it sounds like a horrible movie… but it was actually VERY well done… and I REALLY enjoyed it. I highly recommend that you check it out. It’s a very well done silent film. Granted, there are a few surprising deviations from the original tale… but it’s well worth it… and did I mention the bullfighting? And hot Spanish chicks? Check it out!

 

Blackout Friday – While others woke up early or started the night before to get some “deals”, we decided to sleep in a bit, then head over to Izzy’s side of the bay in El Cerrito to check out Clothing Broker. You may remember this as the place that caters more to the African-American demographic when it comes to suits & other fine clothing… but it’s about the only place in town that can accommodate the giant proportions of myself & the Wingman… and their prices are about a quarter of any of those Men’s Wearhouse or Joseph A. Bank sale prices. I found some nice dress shirts & ties since I had recently bought a few suits there, but the Wingman got to try on the selection as well. We also stopped by Coit Tower to give him an overview of the city... but it was closed for renovations.

 

Afterwards, we visited the Albany Taproom for some refreshments, then Nation’s for a lunch consisting of burgers & pie, then to Elevation 66 Brewery for some more refreshments, stopped by Speakeasy Ales & Lagers for more beverages & some links courtesy of The Missing Link, and then finished off the night back at my place with a pizza from Café Avellino’s (Lombard Special) while watching movies. Oh, we also ordered some Ho’s Thursday night. Ho’s of course being the decent Chinese place that delivers to my place in the Presidio.

 

Saturday – We went out to the Farmers Market at the Ferry Building to get some fresh produce & fine cheeses… and then yeah, was pretty lazy the rest of the day. We also checked out the Christmas decorations at the Hyatt Regency...

 

Dizzy had to work & we’d been walking a lot the past few days… so the Wingman & I chilled and watched yet more movies like the classic “Revenge of the Nerds” and Hulu original series like “The Wrong Mans” & “The Awesomes”.

 

One of the shows we watched was a short-lived TV series from a few years back called “The Cape” starring David Lyons, Keith David, Martin Klebba, Vinnie Jones & Summer Glau. Apparently it only lasted 10 episodes before getting pulled from the air due to a lack of viewership. A cop (Lyons) is framed as a criminal mastermind named Chess and after an explosion during a trap is thought to be dead as he goes into hiding… and tries to clear his name & save the city. How does he do this? He is saved by the Carnival of Crime (David, Klebba & others) and they nurse him back to health… and train him to use a cape made entirely out of spider silk to become a superhero from a comic that the cop’s son reads called oddly enough… The Cape. Feel free to read that again. Criminal carnies teach him to be a superhero… including giving him a special cape made out of spider silk. Okay, it’s not the greatest premise in the world… but you’ve read comics, right? Anyway, there’s the REAL Chess who’s still orchestrating evil plots to take over the city and/or world… and the Cape must clear his name so that he can save his family… but he also gets to meet them from time to time as The Cape… and they don’t seem to recognize him despite he’s not using a goofy “Dark Knight voice” or anything like that… and he basically has a Zorro mask. So I can see why it didn’t last long… and the dialogue & story isn’t exactly gripping… but at the same time, I’ve seen a LOT worse on TV. Oh & Summer Glau stars as the Oracle… er, I mean Orwell who is helping The Cape on his quest by looking up information & providing assistance in a pinch where The Cape can’t be seen. Okay, it’s kind of a ripoff of Batman in many ways… but hey, don’t let that stop you from checking it out on Hulu or something like I did. It’s okay.

 

Sunday – We watched football and finally drank Adam Carolla’s signature beverage Mangria in a delightful concoction known as “The Bro’se” which consists of his standard Mangria red… and his new delightful white peach flavor. It was dangerously good… but be warned, it’s 20% alcohol so it’ll sneak up on you… and headaches are a possibility, especially if you’ve been drinking mostly beer & mead the past few days. Dizzy also amazed us with some incredible sandwiches consisting of local goods… Boudin sourdough bread, hickory smoked bacon, Big Bay Bleu Cheese & various dates from the Farmer’s Market… BEHOLD!!!

 

After football, we quickly headed over to Sutro Baths to show the Wingman before his flight… and we got there just at sunset…

 

Then it was off to the airport so the Wingman could return home to Utah, just in time for yet another cold spell & winter storm warning. Sorry bro… but we’re glad that you got to come visit if only for a long weekend. You’re more than welcome back any time!!!

 

That’ll do it for tonight… More fun stuff coming up soon. Have a great day everybody!!!