Robin Thicke - Ms. Harmony

I've said it before and I'll say it again.. I'm easy to please.

Bongos+Acoustic Guitar+ Catchy baseline= instant classic!

It's People Like This...

Top Ten Pet Peeves

Unbearablly itchy mosquito bites

Inappropriately condescending people

Party poopers

Waking up and realizing you overslept

When people consistently back out of plans (a.k.a. flakes)

When you get a haircut and hair gets stuck in your collar

Profusely sweating at inappropriate times

People who are picky eaters ("schizzinosi" in Italiano)

Young Neocons

Writer's block

Eurochocolate 2008 Perguia

Perugia was sweet.

I spent the day at Europe's permier chocolate festival. Tents lined the streets and piazzas of Perugia this weekend for its annual event as thousands of chocoholics from around the world packed its narrow streets and alleys consuming everything chocolate-- from the high end, savory truffles of Vanini, to our everyday favorites like Nestle, Toblerone and Lindt. Of course the novelty chocolate items seemed to be the biggest crowd pleasers such as the hemp-filled chocolates and the chocolate condoms.

My personal favorite was the locally produced Baci from Perugina. The chocolate pieces are filled with creamy chocolate mouse and hazelnut chunks. 

Train Your Brain

Here are some easy tips for sharpening your mental skills and strengthening neurological connections.

MEN'S HEALTH

Rule #21

Perfect a simple dish that you can prepare whenever you're invited to a potluck. Don't be the guy who shows up with a bucket from KFC. (I make artichoke dip)

A Tour of Chimay Abbey with Father Thomas

Belgium here I come!

Don't Vote!

Thanks for this video Jackson.

Buddakan

About a two minute walk from my apartment on the North East side of Piazza Santa Croce is an Asian Fusion restaurant called Buddakan. I'm usually skeptical about "fusion" restaurants, but when you go 3 months without Pad Thai you turn to desperate measures.

I ordered the "Zuppa agropiccante con gambieri" a.k.a. tom yum soup and the pad thai. The place is Chinese owned, and I've never been to Thailand so I can't speak about the dishes' authenticity but compared to Thai food in NYC it was decent. I particularly enjoyed the freshness of the cherry tomatoes, zucchini and carrot in the pad thai.

Buddakan is a nice alternative to the hundreds of trattorias and restaurants peppered throughout the Santa Croce area. It's a good choice for when you're tired of having pizza and pasta everyday. Prices aren't cheap and the portions are big enough to share for two.

Classic Nintendo Hit

This reminds me of sitting on the floor blowing on the bottom of Nintendo cartridges to get them to work.

20 Hours In London

Two weeks ago I sat idly in the office. I entertained the idea of spontaneously booking a flight to London for a day. It didn't take much peer pressure until I was a click away from booking a flight.

The day after my 22nd birthday a friend and I packed a change of clothes and a bottle of Limoncello and got on a plane to London. It was an impromptu weekend adventure, but after the wild ride to Munich the week before it seemed like a short drive to the post office.

We got into Liverpool Station around 1AM on Saturday and our crash course on the London public transportation began. We met a friend of mine who is studying in London and proudly presented him with the Limoncello. The next 24 hours were spent navigating the Tube hitting every major neighborhood and tourist attraction possible. We were forced to ration our time wisely, and split most of it between a long lunch at French restaurant (Rouge Cafe on High St.) and the Tate Modern. Everything else could be relived on cheesy Facebook pictures.