Almost as a joke I bought tickets earlier this summer to see Hanson at the House of Blues. Sara and her friend Jon had gotten tickets so I thought why not? Little did I know that I would fall in love with them all over again 18 years after I first heard their big hit, "MMMBop"! Their Roots & Rock 'n' Roll tour is a series of two night events playing in ten different cities throughout October.
Outside the House of Blues in the French Quarter | Promotional window | Hanson opening their first night
Me, Jon & Sara!!
The first night Paul McDonald opened for the guys. He was on American Idol a few years back. I don't know any of his songs, but I liked this one that Hanson came out and sang with him and his band. When I looked it up on iTunes (the song is called "Renegades") there was only an acoustic version, but I prefer this more up beat style.
Paul McDonald & the crowd
The first evening Hanson did a bunch of covers of classics such as Billy Joel, Michael Jackson, and Simon & Garfunkel. They threw in a few of their own songs too, "Man from Milwaukee" any Middle of Nowhere fans??
It happened to be Zac's 30th birthday. That is right, the youngest Hanson is 30 years old. Geez! I mean, I knew that they were all older than me, but the last I recall they were all teens/tweens, not married dads! Isaac and Zac have three kids each, while Taylor has procreated the most, with five children, one being 13. I cannot get over that. Taylor Hanson has a teenager. Let that sink in. I guess that's what happens when you get married at 19 and start spitting youngsters out right away!
Zac jumping around on stage | Isaac rocking on his guitar
Taylor at his piano
Zac's cover of The Darkness's "I Believe in a Thing Called Love"
I honestly cannot get over how pretty they are all, particularly Taylor. He was always my favorite, and in the years since I paid attention to them, he has turned into one hell of a gorgeous man. They were always known for their long blond hair as kids, but with age they've darkened into brown haired men. Zac has brought the longer look back (he was rocking a man bun at one point on the stage!), while Isaac has the most mainstream short cut. Taylor's hair, what can I say, it is the most beautiful hair I have ever seen. I'm ridiculous, I know.
The second night a group called Carrick opened for them before they jumped into playing a bunch of their own songs. Hanson have released six albums over the years along with a Christmas album (Snowed In...it is my favorite holiday album ever!). The Tulsa, Oklahoma men run their own label, 3CG (3 Car Garage), and have self-produced their last four albums. They have been together for over 20 years and toured pretty regularly nearly that entire time.
"MMMBop"...of course!! God, I wonder how many times they have sang this song in the last two decades?!
The brothers saying goodnight
And now for some professional videos instead of crappy iPhone ones...
"This Time Around" off of their Underneath album that was released in 2000.
And another off Underneath, "Penny & Me" performed in 2003. This is a fun one called "Give A Little" from their 2010 album, Shout It Out. Zac was sporting a short do here. Taylor and that tambourine...
And another diddy, "Thinking 'Bout Somethin'", off the same album that channels The Blues Brothers.
As you can see, most of their stuff is very poppy and up beat. It is safe to say that I have rejoined the Fansons (fans of Hanson), and I don't care who knows it! They make good music and they are pretty to look at!
I came across an interesting article the other day about Danny Meyer's restaurant group, Union Square Hospitality Group, doing away with tipping in their restaurants. It isn't a short article, but it tackled the topic from a few angles. Europeans already have a tip-free culture but waiters and waitresses in the States depend heavily on the reward system of tipping to supplement their meager hourly wages. Mr. Meyer's group is attempting to change the way Americans look at the restaurant industry.
Their arguments for a tip-free system include:
Increased pay for chefs and line cooks who do not have the opportunity to benefit from a tipping system. Minimum wage rates in New York, where USHGis located, will soon mean that a cook at a fast food restaurant may earn a higher hourly wage than current line cooks at high end restaurants. It surely takes more skill and know-how to prepare house-made pasta than it does to toss a frozen patty into a microwave. The ability to increase their hourly rates will help with recruitment and retention of talented chefs. Of
Stabilized wages for wait staff so that shift-envy becomes less important: you are more likely to earn more tips on a Saturday dinner shift than a Wednesday lunch shift. Eliminating the dependency on tips would make scheduling staff more fair.
Eliminate the ability of patrons to determine the overall wait staff wages. This may seem odd to some, as many people see leaving a tip as a way to reward exceptional attention and punish mediocre service. Their thought here is that it really isn't fair for a server to essentially have 50 "bosses" a shift (or however many people she waits on that day) that determine their take home pay instead of one boss who is able to set wages and issue raises based off of seniority, experience and overall merit and performance. A patron having a bad day or one who has personal thoughts about tipping that go against the norm has the ability to affect their server's livelihood in a way that isn't accepted in most other service industry jobs. They pointed out in the article that often a patron has consumed alcohol prior to signing their check: would you want your boss to be tipsy when they decide how much to pay you? As an alternative way for customers to provide feedback Danny Meyer talks about creating a type of interface for information to be gathered. So essentially a survey for people to fill out. This way they can express compliments or concerns about their service/experience, but not in a way that directly punishes the server.
No-tipping is a way to hold the restaurants accountable for paying their employees instead of relying on their customers to supplement pay checks.While I don't think that it was mentioned in the article, and I have never personally worked as a waitress, I would think that this would increase the amount of taxed income for service industry workers too. I assume it is easy enough to pocket cash tips without noting them and therefore not paying any income tax on that amount. So, in theory, this tip-free system will benefit the government as well.
USHG is rolling this new system out slowly, starting with just one of their thirteen eateries, but has intentions of swapping all thirteen over by the end of 2016. As a very obvious way of eliminating tips, they are removing the line on the receipt for a customer to fill in. Of course cash can still be left, but it is being highly discouraged.
I thought it was a very intriguing article and that this will lead to a slow but steady transition for many restaurants nationwide to follow suit. There will be push back and resistance I feel sure, but if the larger picture is considered, it seems to me that the arguments for a tip-free culture make a lot of sense. Something to chew on.
I have been eyeing Stick With Me's Instagram account for months now, watching them post beautifully painted bon bons daily. Their website is not up and running at this time so I reached out to them via Yelp to inquire about shipping their treats. After some exchanged emails and a little bit of processing time I received a lovely box that resembles a book! Tucked inside were not words of wisdom, but thankfully, two dozen gorgeous spheres of chocolate goodness!! Clever and unique packaging though!
I certainly appreciate the elegant look of chocolates made in the same shape/mold. Other companies use a variety of shapes and styles, which works as well, but the same size domes in different colors are really eye-catching. The flavor guide that accompanied the box did not provide descriptions beyond the names of each bon bon. Some are self-explanatory while others are a bit ambiguous.
ROW #1
Passion Fruit
Toasted Coconut
Black Sesame & Passion
Bourbon Maple Pecan
House Praline (in dark)
Birthday Cake
ROW #2
Kalamansi Meringue Pie
Mint Chocolate Cookie
Wild Strawberry
New York New York (peanut butter praline with a chocolate covered pretzel center)
Dulce de Leche
PB & Jelly
ROW #3
Raspberry Rose
Malted Milk Chocolate
Vero
Speculoos S'more
Liquid Salted Caramel
Gianduja Hazelnut
ROW #4
Caramelized Banana
Yuzu
Sea Salt Caramel
Black & White
House Praline (in milk)
House Dark
Wow! Every single one of these creations was down right scrumptious!! Each shell was a perfectly thin layer of either white, milk, or dark chocolate, and inside were often a surprise amount of layers as seen in this photo:
Instead of all of the ingredients being mixed together, there were layers of "crust" (in the Kalamansi Meringue Pie, Speculoos S'more & Birthday Cake) and meringues, marshmallows, and jellies. The Black Sesame & Passion was a very adventurous pairing with the sesame seeds lending a gritty feel to the ganache. Everything was so fresh and creamy textured. I doubt these chocolates spent much time, if any, frozen.
While I spent a very pretty penny on this month's club, I was not disappointed by the variety, quality or flavors at all. It would be hard to pick a favorite, but the Gianduja Hazelnut may be the winner :) Here is another shot just for kicks! I am going to keep the box and use it to hold all of the flavor guides I collect from my clubs!
*all names/descriptions were copied directly from the guides provided with the collection.
Brie invited me to join her at Gasa Gasa to see Mutemath last week. I had not heard of this New Orleans based group, but when I looked them up I recognized two of their songs: one from Twilight haha! Despite not being able to sing along, due to not knowing their songs, they put on a really energetic and fun show!
This video was shot at Gasa Gasa the night I was there!
This one is easier to understand what he is singing as well as see the band.
For about three weeks straight I binge watched Sons of Anarchy and obsessed about all of the drama of the fictitious characters. I knew before I started watching that I was going to like the series: bikers, violence, love, drama, what more could you ask for?! Of course everyone adores Jax Teller; he is a badass blond biker who loves deeply and struggles with his life as an outlaw. Charlie Hunnam may never be able to shed the character of Jax, but why would he want to? Kurt Sutter let others shine on Sons too; he gave Peg Bundy a new legacy as Gemma Teller Morrow: queen old lady and club matriarch. Sutter featured guests stars such as Marilyn Manson, Lea Michelle, Tom Arnold, Ashely Tisdale, Courtney Love and Walton Goggins to name a few and Kurt even gave himself a recurring role as Otto. Speaking of Walton, he did a spectacular job of playing a transgender woman named Venus Van Dam who had a very sensitive side. I really enjoyed the episodes where she was a part of the story.
Chibs | Clay | Happy
Jax | Juice | Opie
Tig | Piney | Bobby
Without giving any spoilers away, I was constantly shocked at the lies and secrets told, the violence doled out, the lengths the characters would go to to protect their own, and the betrayals that piled up. It was a complicated show with many pieces working simultaneously and, as the viewer, you were often left in the dark about the plans the characters had up their sleeves until they unraveled. I admittedly cried during the majority of the finale. I couldn't help but think that things could have been different for everyone on the show if this decision hadn't been made or that lie hadn't been told. If they had only talked to this person or got that side of the story the outcome would be very different. But hey, it is a television show, the drama is necessary or the sick, twisted minds of the American viewers wouldn't remain interested!!
Now for a few videos of my favorite scenes because I want to relive life in Charming :)
I received an e-vite a few weeks back to a friend's gallery opening during Art for Art's Sake on Magazine Street. Exciting stuff! Sara and I both worked with Laura at Sucre and I follow her Instagram account that features her art. She and two other ladies share a space near La Boulangerie. I have always loved Laura's watercolors so it was cool to see similar themes re-imagined as oil on canvas. I am particularly fond of her oyster pieces. Of course I was so caught up in talking to Laura and moving out of the way for other viewers that I didn't manage to snap any photos. Check out her website to see her gorgeous work! Here was the invitation:
Across the street from The Studio was another installation at Ashley Longshore's space. A co-worker mentioned that she was going to be dancing at someone's event but I didn't catch any of the details. As soon as I saw about a dozen of so women all sporting black wigs and wearing designer purse costumes I knew she had to be one of them! Sure enough, as Sara and I peered through the window at the rhythmic flailings of the dancers, one came up to the window and waved frantically!
You couldn't go in the gallery, so a crowd formed outside on the sidewalk. There was a jazz band playing on the opposite corner street that drowned out the music that was playing inside the gallery which was a bummer. It was definitely a site to be seen!
