Our Hawaiian Engagement

As most of you know, Elizabeth and I are now engaged. I popped the question during our vacation to the Big Island of Hawaii last weekend. We were attending the wedding of two close friends and I decided that there was no better time or place. We arrived on Wednesday and checked into the Hapuna Prince Resort on the northwest side of the island. The property and views are amazing. I highly recommend it. We spent the entire day Thursday driving around the island from one picturesque place to the next. We saw turquoise oceans, towering waterfalls and smoking volcanoes. Friday we spent with friends by the pool- the beach was closed due to a 15-foot Great White shark that was patrolling the coast. Saturday was our friends' wedding. It couldn't have been more beautiful. We celebrated well into the night...maybe a little too well.

Sunday morning came and we said goodbye at breakfast to everyone grabbing a quick bite before their flights. Elizabeth and I went back to bed and when we got up, I decided it was time. From our balcony I could see that the beach was still closed due to the shark. So I moved on to Plan B and proposed on the balcony. I coaxed Elizabeth out to look at the water. After a few heartfelt (read private) words, I pulled out the ring box and dropped to one knee. Elizabeth was shocked. I was a little too. It's a time I will never forget. After slipping the ring on we sat for a while just enjoying the view and the moment. And the rest as they say...is the future.

Enjoy the slide show.

The Most Epic Dinner Ever.

The next nine posts are dishes from an epic 9-course dinner that lasted over 6 hours. We decided to do an evening of small plates, but still following the guidelines of a traditional meal. We started with finger foods, moved on to appetizers, then salads, a few main courses and finally dessert. Everything is pictured in the order we ate, except we began with a snack of spiced almonds and blue cheese stuffed olives. We kicked off the night with champagne to pair with the smoked salmon, then matched a different wine with each ensuing plate. I haven't listed the wines because frankly I don't remember any of the names, especially towards the end. It was epic. Enjoy!

Potato Pancakes w/ Smoked Salmon

The potato pancakes were light with a trace of scallion running through them. They were topped with cold-smoked salmon, creme fraiche and dill.

Hummus. 5 Ways.

1. Sweet pea and avocado with pumpernickel triangles

2. White bean, parsley and garlic dip with crostini

3. Sun-dried tomato and chickpea on endive

4. Black bean hummus with plantain chips

5. Classic hummus with pita chips

Baked Goat Cheese on Lentil and Walnut Salad

The goat cheese was covered in panko bread crumbs and baked at 400 degrees until slightly browned. The salad was made with prepared lentils, chopped walnuts and chives. It was dressed with red wine vinegar and walnut oil.

Caesar Salad in a Parmesan Bowl

This light version of Caesar salad was made with romaine hearts and a dressing of egg, lemon juice, anchovy paste, Worcestershire sauce, garlic and olive oil. It is served in a bowl made by melting freshly grated parmesan cheese and then forming it over a bowl while still pliable. The salad is garnished liberally with fresh cracked black pepper.

Mushroom Ravioli w/ Three Sauces

The filling for the ravioli was made with sauteed mushrooms, garlic, and onion, then folded into cream cheese. The three sauces are pesto, blue cheese and browned butter with sage.

Grilled Shrimp w/ a Fried Polenta Cake and Apricot Barbecue Sauce

The shrimp were grilled indoors using a cast-iron grill pan. They are served next to a piece of polenta that has been fried in olive oil until crispy on both sides. The accompanying barbecue sauce is made with apricot jam, molasses, cider vinegar, and liquid smoke. The spinach was wilted in sauteed scallions and garlic with a little lemon juice.

Pan Seared Scallop w/ Truffled Israeli Cous Cous

The scallop was seasoned with salt and pepper and seared in bacon drippings. The Israeli cous cous was cooked in a little butter, shallot and chicken stock. It was topped with a drizzle of truffle oil.

Roasted Pork Loin w/ Grilled Vegetables and Fig Sauce

The pork loin was roasted at 425 degrees for about twenty five minutes. It was simply prepared with olive oil, salt and pepper- as were the vegetables. The fig sauce was made with dried figs, chicken stock and a number of spices including cinnamon.

White Russian Milkshake and Chocolate Chip Cookie

The milkshake was made with vanilla ice cream, vodka, coffee liqueur and chocolate liqueur. The cookie was thin and slightly crispy on the outside with a chewy center.

I hate Reunion.com!!!

I apologize if you got a stupid email from me saying I wanted you to join reunion.com. That is not the case. I hate reunion.com and hope that everyone involved with the website gets what is coming to them.

Here's what happened. I got the same email from my uncle that you got from me. I hadn't talked with him in months. I'd also moved recently. I thought that he was trying to contact me to get my new info. He's a busy guy, so I thought signing up quickly for the website would help him. Unfortunately, I now realize he got duped in the same way I did.

The website asks for your email information to match you with your friends/family already registered on reunion.com. What I didn't see in small print was that it also sends an email inviting the rest of your contacts to join. F@ck You, reunion.com!!! Do you really think I wanted to invite my boss to your stupid website? Or the dozens of business contacts in my address book? I'm sure Jim Rome was real happy getting that email.

The worst part is that now I have to explain this over and over again. So I'm wishing for a plague of sorts to befall the offices of reunion.com. I hope you're all reunited in the ICU. Again, sorry to everyone for the email. Please delete it. Thanks.

Let's get Barry Bonds back on the Field!

Barry Bonds is good for sports. There is nothing worse than seeing an athlete waste away when they still have the ability to compete. It makes me ill to think that Brett Favre has nothing to do but riding lawn mower commercials and think of ways to spend the ridiculous amount of money he's made. No. 4 has a gift and should be lined up between the hashmarks. For a brief second after his retirement, I hoped he would come back to the Falcons and the team that drafted him. Favre could make one last stand for the people that brought him into the league. But Atlanta killed my hopes by taking Matt Ryan in the draft last weekend.

Let's be honest, Ryan isn't going to make anyone forget about Michael Vick. A pocket passer isn't going to get Atlanta to their feet. They want someone who freaks out when the first option is covered. They need a running back masquerading as a quarterback. A guy who will take the snap, pump fake and start breaking guys' ankles. At best, Matt Ryan will complete passes, but he won't put butts in the seats. No, the only hope for the Falcons is Barry Bonds.

Hear me out. We know he's an athletic freak. And we know the NFL is lax on steroids and the fans don't care if players use them. I'm not saying you make him your quarterback, but I'm sure there's a slot for him. Arthur Blank has plenty of money from selling power tools and potting soil. He could easily throw a couple million towards the "homerun king". Tell me the stands wouldn't be packed to see B. Lamar Bonds throw on an oversized helmet and lineup for an extra point. And his idol- Henry Aaron- lives right down the street. Barry Bonds and Falcons football. Crazier things have happened. Did you hear the greatest pitcher of the past two decades allegedly cheated to win and cheated on his wife with a country music star who was 15 at the time? See? Now Bonds in Atlanta would barely make the back page of the AJC.

A Diamond in the Rough

I have a new obsession and I hate myself for it. I'd almost rather admit to liking Yanni, than tell you what I've spent countless hours doing over the past couple weeks. It all started when my girlfriend went out of town for a bachelorette party. I came home that Friday night at a reasonable hour to an empty apartment. With nothing better to do and not tired enough to sleep, I flopped down on the couch and began the most famous of American pastimes- channel surfing. What I eventually landed on and am now addicted to, was DirecTv channel 233: Gems TV.

I know what you're thinking- it's home shopping for old ladies. But that's where you're wrong. I have flipped channels for over a decade past thousands of home shopping shows and have never been encapsulated like I am with Gems TV. What's remarkable about the network is that the reason I first started watching is not the reason I still check it out during commercial breaks. I paused on Gems TV out of sheer anger. The presenter was referring to the jewelry auctions as games. I couldn't believe that anyone would be dumb enough to go for it. But much to my surprise people were buying left and right.

The gimmicks didn't stop there. The quantity of items available were referred to as positions. The starting price was "crashed" some 80-90% a couple minutes into each auction. What can only be described as early house music plays underneath every game. And the camera often pans left quickly and cuts to a zoom shot of the item for sale. Not to mention the constant flash of information on screen and the presenter's ad nauseaum descriptions. And possibly my favorite part, no matter what time you buy the item during the auction, everyone pays the lowest price. My anger quickly turned to fascination and now I like to play along. I don't buy any of the jewelry though. The game I play is trying to guess the price they're going to crash to.

But last Saturday night my addiction grew as I discovered a new way to enjoy Gems TV. As an old friend and I downed copious amounts of beer during a power hour that turned into a century club, we learned that if you email the show they'll read them on the air. As the presenter gave a shoutout to "Biggie" (my old nickname), my friend and I high-fived each other and the new game was on. We spent the next hour emailing from every computer, blackberry and phone in the apartment trying to get our messages read. We succeeded three or four times. It was awesome. So the next time you find yourself pre-gaming with some friends or winding down from a drunken evening, give channel 233 a try and send an email to chat@gemstv.com. You might just be surprised how entertaining it can be. And whether you tell your friends about your new hobby is completely up to you.