May The Stars Light Your Way
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After flying directly from Cincinnati to Frankfurt overnight (with only a few uncomfortable hours for most of the team, and no sleep for other members), we were able to get (quickly!) through customs and security to retrieve our bags and pick up our rental car.…
Everything is done… We had a final fund raiser last night at Midwest Culinary Institute with “action stations†dotted around the Summit Dining Room. (The dish I prepared was a fork-tender tornedeau of beef on a crouton with a rich mushroom demi-glace and topped with crab meat.) The equipment has been collected, packed, shipped, and received in Germany. The foodstuff has been prepared, packed, and brought to the Greater Cincinnati Northern Kentucky International Airport. The official team coats have been pressed and starched, carefully packed away to minimize wrinkling. It is inevitable that we will need to press them once we arrive – a task for Brian and me to solve when we land. Our bags are packed and we’re all set, or we’ve forgotten things (like Brian nearly did with his passport – a last-minute dash to his house solved that problem (thankfully he lives very close)).
Finally, after more than 12 months of planning and untold hours of work, it’s time to go compete. It is hard to believe that, after so much work, the time is finally here.
The team – all five of us – met at Stringtown Grill in Florence Kentucky (the restaurant owned and operated by Rick Potter, team manager) for a last minute meeting, meal, and finalization of packing. A few of the spouses were there to see us off; other spouses were managing the responsibilities of one partner being away for 10 days. From there, we made the short drive over to the airport and began the process of getting through check-in and security. With the amount of electronics (cameras, computers, chargers, CPAP machine, batteries, converters and inverters, and more) that we’re taking with us, we expected security to be more time-consuming than it was. Still, Brian, with his slew of equipment, had his bag run through the X-Ray machine three times before it was hand-searched and cleared.
We made it to the gate in plenty of time for a last-minute team meeting before boarding the plane. As I write this, we’re settled in on the flight, anticipating a meal, then it’s lights-out for me. The miles (or kilometers, if you prefer) are stretched below us, still more ahead of us than behind. I need to get some rest since a large part of my role tomorrow is ground transportation. I need to be on point and rested.
We’re all excited about the competition, and have reviewed our to-do lists over and over. We’re ready to represent the Midwest Culinary Institute.
Please stay tuned to this blog as we will be updating as often as possible during our trip – at least once a day and hopefully more frequently than that.
Midwest Culinary Institute Culinary Olympic Team, 2008 Wines hosted by Joseph Carr of Carr Wines First Course Risotto ala Asperges Fromage Joseph Carr Chardonnay, 2005 Second Course Pan-seared Telecherry Crusted Scallops with Mussels Printaniere Style Joseph Carr Sauvignon Blanc, 2005 Third Course Tournedos Margherita Joseph…
On Wednesday, October 8, I found myself in Cleveland Ohio for a work-related event. Once that event was finished, the evening was my own, so I went to LOLA BISTRO, one of Iron Chef America Michael Symon’s places. Despite not being able to make a…
After the windstorms that ravaged Ohio a few weeks ago, it became apparent that it was time to replace the roof on our house. Calling around to various roofing companies, we were able to make appointments with some, told by others that they were entirely too busy, and never called back from others.
One company, FACTORY DIRECT REMODELING, sent a representative over to look at the roof right away. We were told that he would drive over and look at the roof then contact us for the next step. So far, so good. The representative then called and told us he would not give the quote over the phone (despite our direct request for him to do so), instead preferring to come spend “a couple hours” with us going over the quote. Unhappily, we agreed, because “a couple hours” is very difficult for us to find with all that’s going on right now. Still, we made it happen, and the representative showed up (late) on our scheduled date. I was a bit miffed that he obviously had not looked at the house at all — he didn’t know if we needed a full tear-off or not — and made us walk around with him to look at the roof.
After we got done doing his job with him, he announced the number. It was over $11,000 — considerably more than I wanted to spend — and I told him so. He “crunched numbers” for a while (and hinted that he’d like a drink from the bar in our dining room). Finally, he announced the new price, which he’d dropped down to $9500. I informed him that $9500 was more than $3800 higher than another quote we’d received, but that I would be happy to add his quote to the pile we were generating if that was the best he could do. Sarcastically, he said, “I am so happy to be added to the pile! Oh, thank you for adding me to the pile!”. I said, “I don’t have to add you to the pile if you would prefer I didn’t”. He grudgingly admitted he’d like to be added “to the pile”. He proceeded to tell us that there would be no Mexicans on our job if we hired his company. Wendy & I were very offended and quickly ended the meeting. I don’t need that crap in my house; in my life.
So, we found another company who would do our entire roof — including a full tear-off — for less than half the price quoted by the racist working for FACTORY DIRECT REMODELING. So we went with the other company. They started work today and we’re impressed with most of their work so far… The got all the old shingles torn off and confirmed a problem we suspected — the “decking” (plywood layer) under the shingles was in bad shape for a few reasons:
I should mention that the price (less than half as much as the other quote) INCLUDED the replacement plywood.
The roof that was torn off was not the original roof on the house. The roof we are installing is either roof #4 or roof #5 on the property. I am shocked that the former homeowners would have cut so many corners when replacing their roof. This makes me wonder where else they cut corners when our house was theirs <shudder>.
The roofing team worked extremely hard today while I was on my way home from an overnight in Cleveland. After work, I came home and was washing up in the master bathroom when — BOOM! CRASH! — a worker fell through the ceiling in the dressing area right outside the bathroom. Fortunately, he was not hurt — he fell in the EXACT best spot — 6 inches in any direction would cracked his head on a counter or a cabinet. And fortunately I had clothes on (Wendy asserts that seeing me starkers would have been more damaging to the worker than any impact to his skull). But now we’ve got a man-sized hole in the ceiling of our dressing area. The foreman assured me that it would be fixed to my expectation. I trust them. Well, I guess I don’t NEED to trust them — I won’t pay them until it’s fixed properly.
They have replaced all the decking on the back side of the house. They’ll replace the rest tomorrow and expect to finish the job by Saturday afternoon. Expect a full report if anyone else falls through any other parts of my house. 😉
“Computers are incredibly fast, accurate, and stupid; humans are incredibly slow, inaccurate, and brilliant; together they are powerful beyond imagination.” — Albert Einstein