ONE: It’s too bad that Anthony Bourdain’s No Reservations sucks. His PNW show was, blimey, so boring. He didn’t used to suck…until his producers sucked the life and spontaneity out of him. Gnaw your arm off, Tony. Get out of that contract, and produce your own show for public television.

TWO: The movie Perfume both sucks and blows. This is a dastardly adaptation of a pretty good book. I felt like I was watching the director of NBC’s Passions try to go art house. The one good scene, of Dustin Hoffman smelling a fragrance, shows the visual interpretation of the scent. That was cool. I wanted more of that. And less close ups of the creepy Emo-boy’s schnoz.

Skip this crap movie and just read instead:

Jitterbug Perfume
by Tom Robbins

Hmm, let me don my book reviewer’s platitude hat:

“A magical romp through an unknown world of scents, with immortality and the god Pan thrown in for good measure. A quirky epic only Robbins could imagine.”

Ick. That hat hurts. But seriously, I think this is one of Mr. Robbins’ best books. And the visuals my imagination conjured from this book surely beat the crap out of the cinematography in that awful movie.

THREE: What to drink while you do the underpants dance to news that Barack Obama has launched his exploratory commitee for a presidential run:

This is what my bright blue ass is drinking.

My favorite afternoon drink with leftover roast beef: (Stout + Champers)

One big part each:

Kona Brewing Co.
Pipeline Porter
(a free, UNREQUESTED sample)

Segura Viudas
Aria Cava, *note the diff label
Pinot Noir from Catalunya, Spain

I’m loving this Cava, which I first saw at Vino Bello in Burien, Seattle’s best little burb in the Southwest. It’s sashimi pink and has a fancier-than-it’s-$10-price-tag creaminess and fruit.

The Pipeline Porter is tasty. If you like Black Butte porter, this one’s a little thicker, with definite notes of coffee, malt and mocha. This drink is called a Black Velvet, but I’m going to rename this a Black Forest, since it has a little chocolate cherry cordial flavor.

Cheers and oooooheeeeeee! it’s a great day to be BLUE!