What's good lately?

I watched Project Hail Mary and was floored by how good a movie that was. Great for kids.

Starting Widow’s Bay. Hear it is fantastic.

My wife and I went to Greece for nine days, and on a separate trip did a long weekend in Salt Lake City for some hiking with cousins. Recommend both.

WTF is up with you and this positivity lately

Season 3 of GOT HOD has been incredible. It’s peak GOT writing. Season 1 was kinda slow, all background info. Season 2 was almost all buildup until the end (also kinda slow). Season 3 has been a huge payoff. Season 1 & 2 were like watching a wreck materialize and about to happen while season 3 is all wreck & carnage.

So far this year I’m on a pretty epic restaurant run. I’ll give a few highlights:

Tampa:
Bern’s Steakhouse - best steakhouse experience in the country. Caviar, French wine, prime beef. Kitchen tour, $7M wine cellars tour, dessert room experience by piano after dinner…. Sick
The Columbia - the Flamenco show dinner is awesome. Oldest Spanish restaurant in America

Saint Louis:
Mommas on the Hill- the rabbit bolognese was memorable. Classic red sauce joint a lil less formal than my last hill pick, Charlie Gitto’s. You won’t have a bad meal on the hill.

Philadelphia:
The Saloon- insanely good Italian steakhouse. Langostinos, clams casino, lobster francese…. Memorable
Butcher & Singer- swanky steakhouse that was the titts
Skinny Joey’s Cheesesteak- the hot new kid of the Philly Cheeseteak wars. Much better than Gino or Pats. Top of the heap with Del Rossi & Angelo’s (but not eating Angelo’s b/c he’s a rat)
Amada- sick tapas joint by Chef Jose Garces (James beard winner, Iron Chef) in Old City.

Fort Lauderdale:
Cafe Martorano- reservation past 9 and it’s like a nightclub with great Italian food. My favorite restaurant experience in the country. You’ll see celebs & gangsters rubbing shoulders. Best meatball in the country & never had a veal dish that isn’t stellar. Will be back in a Cpl weeks.

Anthony’s Runway 84- Dan Marino’s favorite restaurant. If the rat pack was around today type joint. Had a great family meal. Had the best table in the house (DJ Khaled sat there the next day). The owner, Marc Falsetto, is a top South Fla restaurateur and we had a great conversation. Absolute rockstar who was a gracious as they come.

Locally:
I had the best steak I’ve had in the metro in several years at MM Shapley’s. Plus the stuffed shrimp were awesome. They are still the best in the metro at consistently executing imo. Lately I can’t get away from Lou’s Full Serv. The food is phenomenal. Last, Wing Mouth in Belhaven has the best damn chicken wings in the city.

OG Goat Holder said:

WTF is up with you and this positivity lately

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Recommended for all state fans.

Silo. New season episodes dropping weekly now.

Bought my 5yo son a 1yo Jack Russell pup a week ago, and so far he's the coolest dog I've ever had. I grew up with rat terriers/feists and have always loved them for being a small dog, but still a dog. This is my first JRT and he's just so much fun, and so stinkin smart. He has acclimated very quickly, and is really good with my 5yo.

OG Goat Holder said:

WTF is up with you and this positivity lately

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He wasn't included in the libtard list put out by Paco and this is his way of coping.***

Started an 8 part episode on Neftlix this past weekend called "I'll Find You". A father is in prison for the last 5 years for allegedly beating his son to death w/ a baseball bat but insists he didn't do it. His sister in law sees a picture of the son alive though and it begins a series of events to him breaking out of prison and trying to find the kid and the real killer. Only 2 episodes into it but pretty good so far........

I also went to Sandals St Lucia for our 20th. We got certified for diving ahead of the trip so we could take advantage of the free diving trips. It was amazing. Would highly recommend.

The Peeper said:

Started an 8 part episode on Neftlix this past weekend called "I'll Find You". A father is in prison for the last 5 years for allegedly beating his son to death w/ a baseball bat but insists he didn't do it. His sister in law sees a picture of the son alive though and it begins a series of events to him breaking out of prison and trying to find the kid and the real killer. Only 2 episodes into it but pretty good so far........

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Watched as well. Lots of twists and turns.

dorndawg said:

Any good music/movies/tv shows/books lately? New travel location? Hit up a different Texas Roadhouse? Lay it on us.

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American Aquarium has a new album out. It was released in late June and they’re beginning their tour next week.

I’ve been a longtime fan, and I plan to make it to some shows.

dorndawg said:

Joshua Ray Walker - he's really putting out some quality country music. Looking forward to hopefully seeing him on tour, he has a big one underway and probably coming to a location near you. Speaking of big, my man would make a tip-top Sixpacker. A-

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To borrow from his song ‘Canyon’ Joshua Ray Walker is a big, big man…

What an amazing talent. It’s not just his voice, he’s a great songwriter. He’s been posting in social media about losing weight, and he needs to for his longterm health…

The first time I saw him was at Martin’s opening solo for American Aquarium in ‘19… I’ve seen him several times since then and am hoping to catch him at Hernando’s Hideaway in a couple months…

dorndawg said:

Austin TX - Rapidly losing the things that make it interesting and moving at lightening speed to be... just like every other large growing city in the world. Waymos are weird. BBQ should be priced for poor people. C+

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Tulsa — Underrated city. I’ve made trips there the past couple years.

It’s a GREAT music city. Cain’s is a must go-to venue.

The Woody Guthrie and Bob Dylan centers are excellent. Next time, I want to visit Leon Russell’s Church Studio.

The food there is also good.

FreeDawg said:

Season 3 of GOT HOD has been incredible. It’s peak GOT writing. Season 1 was kinda slow, all background info. Season 2 was almost all buildup until the end (also kinda slow). Season 3 has been a huge payoff. Season 1 & 2 were like watching a wreck materialize and about to happen while season 3 is all wreck & carnage.

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I'm going to disagree. Season 1 was strong, but 2 and 3 have been *** at times. The writing has gotten more and more wacky as they've departed from the source material. For instance, Alicent is a nonfactor in the story once the Blacks take King's Landing, but since they have a high profile actress she's now in every episode and now being sent to kill her son. How many times has she tried to sell out her kids and grandkids? At least she's not letting the gimpy guy wank on her feet anymore.

Speaking of, I will say that I've enjoyed the crippled gang wandering the countryside. It certainly beats all the scenes of Rhaenyra being the most incompetent queen the seven kingdoms have ever seen.

TRH...scariest one is here. The new manager came to our store for something very simple, ended up getting us to do some swag for them.

I rarely get to leave here so all my input on travel is previous life.

Chesusdog said:

I'm going to disagree. Season 1 was strong, but 2 and 3 have been *** at times. The writing has gotten more and more wacky as they've departed from the source material. For instance, Alicent is a nonfactor in the story once the Blacks take King's Landing, but since they have a high profile actress she's now in every episode and now being sent to kill her son. How many times has she tried to sell out her kids and grandkids? At least she's not letting the gimpy guy wank on her feet anymore.

Speaking of, I will say that I've enjoyed the crippled gang wandering the countryside. It certainly beats all the scenes of Rhaenyra being the most incompetent queen the seven kingdoms have ever seen.

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Word. To each his own but I think you are in the extreme minority that season 3 isn’t the best (its 97% rotten tomatoes). It’s been packed with twist, backstabbing, & the pacing has been quick and consistent. I think season 3 has been so good it’s helps 1&2 in regards to the story in its totality. S1 was so slow but the comedy of errors in S2 to get to where we are was all necessary. Not for nothing but this whole story is about the destruction of the Targaryen dynasty so this backstabbing, dysfunction, and bad judgement was expected. Worth noting that I haven’t read any of the books so all of my opinion is from the shows with no prior story knowledge.

OG Goat Holder said:

WTF is up with you and this positivity lately

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Fact:

He’s tried ayahuasca. You should, too.

dorndawg said:

Good looking out on American Aquarium - they're also coming to a small venue nearby and I'm looking forward to seeing them. I've liked them for a long time and for as much as they tour, it'll be my first time.

Agree on Tulsa - if most folks are like me, it rarely gets thought of in general. I think I could live there and find it completely fine.

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agree on Tulsa. I go every year for the Chilli Bowl and every year when I leave I feel that exact thought: I could live here. There’s plenty to do. The air is clean. The people are nice and when you go in restaurants and stores the workers aren’t just sitting there on their phones. I do miss the southern woman tho!

stateu1 said:

Watched as well. Lots of twists and turns.

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You weren't kidding. Watched 3 episodes last night and every episode throws something new at you

Books/Audible: Cocked and Boozy by Brooke Barber, Outlive by Peter Attia, Born Standing Up - Steve Martin, Riding with Evil - Ken Croke, Code Name: Pale Horse - Scott Payne, The Cuckoo's Egg - Cliff Stoll

All of those are solid. Bill Gates, Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniaks auto/biography's were good as well.

mcdawg22 said:

I watched Project Hail Mary and was floored by how good a movie that was. Great for kids.

Starting Widow’s Bay. Hear it is fantastic.

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Widow's Bay is pretty solid. Had some good low key comedy.

The Peeper said:

Started an 8 part episode on Neftlix this past weekend called "I'll Find You". A father is in prison for the last 5 years for allegedly beating his son to death w/ a baseball bat but insists he didn't do it. His sister in law sees a picture of the son alive though and it begins a series of events to him breaking out of prison and trying to find the kid and the real killer. Only 2 episodes into it but pretty good so far........

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The only Harlen Coben adaptation I've been able to finish.

dorndawg said:

Any good music/movies/tv shows/books lately? New travel location? Hit up a different Texas Roadhouse? Lay it on us.

Cape Fear - Very solid tv, loooove that Amy Adams. And Javier Bardem plays a creeper so well. 10 hour long episodes is a lot of time to fill and it kind of drags at times. B+, on apple.

The Rooster - Decent little tv show with Steve Carell, I laughed a few times. It's not gonna change your life or anything but you could do a heckuva lot worse. B-, on hbo.

The Odyssey - I liked it, that Christopher Nolan just knows how to make good, big, pretty movies. He also makes them too long - bring back intermissions at the movies. A-

Austin TX - Rapidly losing the things that make it interesting and moving at lightening speed to be... just like every other large growing city in the world. Waymos are weird. BBQ should be priced for poor people. C+

Joshua Ray Walker - he's really putting out some quality country music. Looking forward to hopefully seeing him on tour, he has a big one underway and probably coming to a location near you. Speaking of big, my man would make a tip-top Sixpacker. A-

Lonesome Dove - It took me the better part of 5 weeks to listen to the whole thing. It's as good as everyone has been saying for the entirety of my life. I'd also somehow never seen all of the mini-series; it's just about perfect. A+

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I just agreed with a freaking (unranked) libtard

mcdawg22 said:

I watched Project Hail Mary and was floored by how good a movie that was.

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Can’t recommend the book enough. As good as the movie is, it’s 100 times better. At least give the audio book a try.. the narrator is fantastic.

A few really good books I've read lately:

Children of Time by Adrian Tchaikovsky is a kind of post-apocalyptic space opera taking place over thousands of years. It's one of the best sci-fi books I've read with lots of interesting philosophical questions and a very satisfying ending.

Man's Search for Meaning by Victor Frankl is about his time in Auschwitz and Dachau and how he survived. I read it with a friend going through cancer, and it was extremely helpful.

Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achabe is a really short and easy read about a colonial era African tribesman. It's considered a classic for a good reason and is really valuable for getting the reader thinking about the point-of-view of other groups we don't really think about much.

The Mosquito by Timothy Wineguard explains how mosquito vs. man is THE defining war throughout the history of the world. It goes through all of human history showing how mosquito borne illnesses affected history in major ways. If you enjoy history, you'll find it an easy, fascinating read.

grinningmule said:

The only Harlen Coben adaptation I've been able to finish.

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I saw where he has written like a dozen of them but don't know anything about him or the series. I just happened onto this one by chance but enjoying it so far

mcdawg22 said:

I watched Project Hail Mary and was floored by how good a movie that was. Great for kids.

Starting Widow’s Bay. Hear it is fantastic.

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I liked PHM also. I had no idea what it was about. My son recommended it.

Saw Spiderman this weekend. It was aight.

The Peeper said:

Started an 8 part episode on Neftlix this past weekend called "I'll Find You". A father is in prison for the last 5 years for allegedly beating his son to death w/ a baseball bat but insists he didn't do it. His sister in law sees a picture of the son alive though and it begins a series of events to him breaking out of prison and trying to find the kid and the real killer. Only 2 episodes into it but pretty good so far........

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Very good. Highly recommend.

Travel: The drive along Beartooth Wilderness Highway from Red Lodge MT to Cooke City MT is highly recommended. Not officially within Yellowstone, but the panorama is incredible.

Xenomorph said:

Can’t recommend the book enough. As good as the movie is, it’s 100 times better. At least give the audio book a try.. the narrator is fantastic.

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Thanks for the suggestion. I have some flights coming up so I downloaded it ahead of that.

mcdawg22 said:

I watched Project Hail Mary and was floored by how good a movie that was. Great for kids.

Starting Widow’s Bay. Hear it is fantastic.

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Project Hail Mary is fantastic. I decided to read the book after the seeing the movie and it’s also really good. Covers a lot more depth of the scientific / technical concepts covered in the movie, which are numerous, and does a pretty good job of keeping in layman’s terms.

Really want to watch the movie again with my son once we get off the Marvel tilt.

Del B Vista said:

My wife and I went to Greece for nine days, and on a separate trip did a long weekend in Salt Lake City for some hiking with cousins. Recommend both.

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Greece is nice but Salt Lake City SUCKS!

SanfordRJones said:

Man's Search for Meaning by Victor Frankl is about his time in Auschwitz and Dachau and how he survived. I read it with a friend going through cancer, and it was extremely helpful.

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It's a damn shame The Statue of Responsibility hasn't been built on the West Coast yet.