Celebrity Sighting at Whole Foods!

Today I made a quick run into Whole Foods, and noticed an adorably faggy punk boy who stuck out like a sore thumb. Naturally, I stared. He walked over to his friend, who I immediately recognized as gay punk icon Hunx of Gravy Train and Hunx and his Punx!














Gravy Train's shows were some of the funnest I've ever been to, and I can't get enough of the youtube music videos for Hunx's new band- come on, he's adorable! Well, I wasn't going to let this be like the time I saw my idol John Waters and just stood there gawking, so I went over to say hi and make some awkward conversation. I found out that he was was on his way from New York to Boston to play a show, and he and "Hunx Jr", as he introduced his friend, were stopping off for some snacks. Right here in West Hartford, folks!

Fahrenheit 860

WHAT: "Investigate Building 7: A Call to Reexamine the Most Important Event of Our Time"
WHERE: Millard Auditorium, University of Hartford, 200 Bloomfield Ave, West Hartford
WHEN: Saturday, March 26 9:30am - 9:30pm


This weekend WWUH presents a call-to-action focusing on "Building 7", a third building in the World Trade Center complex, that fell hours after the intitial collapse of the twin towers. Examination of the available evidence does not support the official explanation of a fire-induced collapse, and concerned citizens are urging officials in NY to open an investigation. A panel of experts including writers, researchers, engineers and 9/11 family members will present the overwhelming evidence supporting the need to reexamine the events of 9/11.

The schedule can be found and other info can be found here.

Cuvee: We totally want to live there

We recently mentioned our interest in checking out Cuvee's 50% off everything happy hour, after noticing a sign for it during a boozy Saturday night there. So, when a friend suggested a Tuesday happy hour meetup, we decided to take Cuvee for a spin and see if it was as awesome as we thought it would be.

It was.




















Now, the drinks and food at Cuvee are definitely overpriced, but not outrageously so. When you consider the loungey, swanky atmosphere, plush couch seating, and the air of sexiness, their prices are about what you'd expect. Its certainly not the first time we've overpaid for food and drink simply because we like the place. But two hours of getting everything for half off makes it so much more fun and easy to sample items from the huge booze menu, and interesting small plates of food.

We decided to jump right in with some martinis made with low calorie vodka- pink lemonade for Jackie Scenic and straight up for Laura Fitz. Everyone knows that "low calorie" usually equals "fucking awful", but we actually couldn't taste any difference... probably because vodka doesn't taste very good to begin with.























We made our way around the menu, taking full advantage of that discount. A lot of the cocktails we tasted were on the sweet side, but we did really like the Glacial Pear. For food, we tried their tuna tartar, hummus, ricotta and fig jam crostini, and our friends went with some sushi. Everything was simple and tasty and we enjoyed it, but honestly, we might have been a little drunk. We didn't go for the Sexy Donuts this time around, but were excited to see a couple down the bar eating them.

Justin the bartender was friendly and attentive, and more importantly, extremely tolerant of our antics over the course of four hours. It was such a good time that we decided that we'd like to go there every day, and perhaps even move in. There are lots of comfy couches to sleep on and enough room for everybody. See you from 5-7pm!

Bad Baba Ghanouj at Shish

A few months ago, I procured some of those discounted gift certificates from restaurant.com (they sell $25 gift cards for $2 all the time; totally worth checking out). When we were looking for something to do on Thursday night, Laura Fitzscenic and stand-in Scenic Dayna wound up cashing one in at Shish Ultra Lounge in West Hartford. Ultra!

Now, we only knew two pieces of information about Shish before entering; that its some kind of jammin night club on the weekends where this kind of thing goes on:












and, that they have a dress code.

Tailored Casual Attire Only
Dress or Designer Footwear
No Sport Style Head wear

(We left our visors in the car.)

First of all, this place looks cool. There are two rooms, with lots of leather sectionals and other comfy seating, interesting looking light fixtures, a large dance floor (are you imagining this ok? Because we totally slacked on taking pictures.); they did a great job of making an inviting space where you would totally want to have a sick party. Guerrilla Queer Bar, anyone?

Our waiter brought over the list of "signature" cocktails, and proudly claimed that they had all been "invented by people who work at Shish and could not be found anywhere else". Um, we find it a little hard to believe that they can take credit for the combination of dark rum and ginger beer, aka Dark and Stormy, aka Dark and Scenic. We decided to not point this out and just go with a Cucumber Martini (good) and a Miami Vice (too sweet).

The food menu was small and generally uninteresting, so we decided to just go with some hummus and baba ghanouj. We enjoyed the lemony hummus, but the baba ghanouj? It had a familiar flavor that I just couldn't place, but Dayna was able to identify it immediately:
















We sent it back immediately and ordered a small pizza as a replacement. Imagine our surprise when we received the bill and noticed the $9.00 charge for the uneaten baba ghanouj. We could have bought some actual cigarettes with that money! When we questioned our waiter, he explained that the owner generally doesn't allow charges to be removed from the bill for any reason. What? Not that we have a habit of sending food back in restaurants, but sometimes it has to happen, and this policy is totally out of bounds.

With some persistence, we got it removed. You don't go to Shish for the food, is what we were told by friends later on that evening, and we back that statement. I guess you go there to drink and dance. I don't know if this Scenic will ever be interested in experiencing that aspect of Shish on a Saturday night, but who knows.... stranger things have happened.

Reasons to shop New Park

These days, West Hartford's little "industrial" stretch is good for more than just getting us from Point A (Fitzscenic's place) to Point B (Pho Boston, duh). In fact, we're pretty much obsessed with Hartford Baking Company now that we've tasted their delicious Stumptown Coffee and fresh baked breads and scones (ginger and raisin and cranberry orange - oh my!). And pecan sticky rolls and caramel hazlenut chocolate squares...

Awash in a sea of crappy coffee, we easily forget that it should be more than just a caffeine kick and social prop - that coffee can actually taste good and go down smooth, unlike the bitter water that frequently passes as such. And that it's color should be rich and brown, even when cream is added! The regular old coffee at HBC is great; the espresso drinks are works of art:

Whenever we visit NYC, among the many things stirring up scenic envy are the wealth of decent coffee and fresh baked goods available on every corner - at least in the cool neighborhoods! Well, here in Hartfordshire we are still far from realizing that dream, but we hope that our smaller coffee connoisseur community will turn out on the regs for HBC and keep them in business.

Ho! What have we here? Right next door to HBC is a lovely consignment shop, Panache. How have missed this place? Oh, right, there didn't used to be a coffee and treats destination in this neighborhood so we just weren't looking. But our eyes are open now! Sorry fellas, this shop is pretty much for the ladies in the clothing department. But maybe you need some glass trinkets for your home? The clothes are by and large fashionable and in great condition, and have been conveniently organized for our browsing ease. Unfortunately, they are also kind of pricey, so we couldn't go home with everything we wanted (story of our lives!). It's very clean and tidy inside and easy to find what you are looking for (unlike some other shops we've experienced). The proprietor is particularly proud of the shop's shoes and accessories, which were impressive.

As was this coat, which some adoring suitor really ought to man up and buy for Katie Scenic.

Tune in, Tokyo

Tokyo Sushi, the new sushi joint on Farmington Ave in West Hartford, has quickly become one of our favorite area dining establishments. That's the place that opened in the former home of Kingswood Market back in September, practically across the street from Butterfly.

While driving by, you can see a large sign that reads "Sushi Bar" and "Cocktail Lounge", but once you actually approach the door, a neon posterboard sign reads "Temporarily BYOB". Well, that is just fine with us, especially with the friendly and helpful guys in Harvest Wine & Spirits next door. Have you been there? They have a great selection of wines and a "beer cave", and we just heard that they also host beer and wine tastings. Sign us up!

The next thing you will probably notice at Tokyo is this amazing chandellier in the foyer. At first, we thought we might have been feeling the effects of working closely with an industrial strength adhesive during hours of making SuperScenic eyewear in a poorly ventilated area- but no, those crystals contain lightbulbs that actually change colors! Lovely.


















Recently, Scenic telepathy must have been in effect as Katie and DH showed up mere minutes after I did, without any planning. Crazy, right?!? To accommodate our now larger party, our seating got moved to the private room located just beyond the monster fish tank.


















Katie has a fondness for the King Salmon Roll; I always go for the Spicy Twin. These are both on the special menu posted by the sushi bar, with other fancy rolls we have tasted and liked. DH went with some spicy tuna rolls and octupus sushi; we all had a round of miso soup and shared an edamame appetizer. The portions are generous, and the fish is ridiculously smooth and fresh tasting. Also appreciated: brown rice upon request.

















Tokyo will also make you a special roll to your liking if you tell them what your favorite types of fish are. We totally don't know Ty Hong, but apparently he is a guy from West Hartford that goes there all the time and had a roll named after him (we ate it, its good). We'd like to someday see a Scenic Roll up on that menu!

Its refreshing to find good sushi in West Hartford with free parking, reasonable prices, and BYOB. Color us impressed.

An Interview With Georgina of Black Diamond Body Piercing

While some Scenics are known for performing masochistic deeds such as bikram yoga, this Scenic has a penchant for needles and body modification. We're actually thinking about taking our circus sideshow act on the road. Perhaps we will even debut as an attraction at this year's Odd Ball! Witness the wonder of Katie's and DH's sweat! Marvel as Laura Fitzscenic cleans her earlobes! Jackie Scenic's pointing will astound you!

















When it comes to the piercing aspect of body modification, the go-to girl in the Hartford area would, of course, be Georgina Williamson. Georgina has been adorning faces and body parts in West Hartford since 1997, and has developed a solid reputation as being a skilled and knowledgable professional. In late 2008, Georgina opened Black Diamond Body Piercing on Park Road in West Hartford, and has been the Hartford Advocate Readers Poll favorite her first two years in business.












Black Diamond stands out for many reasons. It is an upscale piercing studio, rather than a tattoo shop with a piercer. Piercing is the focus here, and the idea was to create a clean, relaxing, almost spa-like environment. Black Diamond is also a jewelry boutique, that offers a large selection of piercing jewelry and traditional style earrings.















The shop is also an art gallery and showcase for local talents. Hey, theres friend of the blog and local art star HL Groen's work!






























In addition to selling high quality (and totally gorgeous) body jewelry, Black Diamond carries pieces by local jewelry designers. Wait, isn't that SuperLula's fun and awesome plastic candy and glitter jewelry!?!


































Georgina recently took some time to answer our hard hitting questions and talk a little about the piercing industry.

How did you get started?

I honestly can’t remember a time in my life that piercings and tattoos weren’t of interest to me. I grew up in Long Island, very close to Manhattan and spent a lot of time in the Village, so I was exposed to a lot of different lifestyles and culture at a pretty young age. I can remember wearing fake ear cuffs and nose rings and drawing on myself with sharpies as young as age 8 (which didn’t go over very well with the Catholic school I attended!).

I came to Hartford for college in 1995 as a psych major, and quickly realized a “traditional” job wasn’t really what I wanted for myself, but I stayed to please my parents. I got my first professional piercing shortly after getting to school and I was instantly hooked. I soon got another, and another, and so on... all but the first piercing I got done at the same shop and the piercer there and I became fast friends. I ended up hanging out there a lot and constantly asked to watch him work. Once he saw how interested I was in it and that watching didn’t gross me out or phase me at all, in fact it excited me, he offered me an apprenticeship. It was basically like going to school full time (40hrs a week) and I was still going to college full time, but I loved every second of it and soon realized this is what I was looking for. Piercing is definitely what I was meant to do with my life.















What do you like best about your job?

There are so many things I love about what I do. First of all, I love that I just get to be myself all day, not some “work version” of me like so many people that I know, but I also really enjoy the look on someone’s face when they see their new piercing for the first time. There’s nothing like that feeling of making someone else so incredibly happy!

What about your job is most challenging?

Being a piercer definitely comes with challenges. I think the biggest challenge for me is to be patient with people when they do the exact opposite of what I recommend, and then ask me how to fix what they messed up. That gets a little frustrating sometimes, but I just remind myself that they don’t live in this world of piercings day in and day out, and they don’t intentionally ignore me. There’s a lot of conflicting and outdated information on the internet, not to mention “friends” who have one piercing and think that makes them an expert, and it’s my job to help them navigate through all of it.
















I feel like I've seen piercing trends come and go like anything else, and I'm sure you must notice things like that. Like, in the mid nineties, all these girls started getting their navels pierced. Then, a few years later, tongue piercings became super hot. Is there any particular piercing that is popular right now?

I agree there are definitely trends... but some never seem to go. Not a single day passes at work without navel, nostril, and cartilage piercings. They are definitely here to stay. Right now the biggest trend is definitely microdermal anchors. They’re so versatile.... you can put them just about anywhere on the body and the beads options are endless. I think they’re here to stay as well.















(Georgie bedazzled my chest tattoo with a sweet microdermal)

Do you have any interest in getting into doing more extreme mods, like implants, or shaping or splitting body parts?

I have a lot of respect for the people who do those kinds of mods.... but they’re not something I’m looking to do. I have a few piercer friends who do them in the tri state area and I just refer people to them.

What if there was a way to implant a horn on a person's head to make them like a unicorn?!?

That would be awesome! I think that you should get one. I’ll give you a card ;)

At my diminutive height, I think having a horn on my forehead would be kind of dangerous at crowded parties. Perhaps one of the other Scenics would be interested in this. I see you are a member of the Association of Professional Piercers. What’s that all about?

The piercing (and tattoo) industry is, for the most part, unregulated. In CT, there are very basic requirements, like a minimum age, but when it comes to sterility, jewelry quality, and training, there is absolutely nothing. They basically think it’s the responsibility of the person who wants a piercing to do the research and make sure that the place they choose is clean. Unfortunately, many people don’t know that, so they assume if the shop exists, it must be clean and you must know what you’re doing. Sadly, this is not the case.

The APP (Association of Professional Piercer’s) is a non-profit organization that is dedicated to keeping piercings professional and safe. They help make legislation (in the states that are interested) to keep standards of practice high and keep legislators educated about piercing safety. To be a member of the APP, your shop must meet a VERY long list of “environmental criteria” such as hand washing sinks in every piercing room, a proper “clean” room where cleaning of dirty instruments and autoclaving (steam sterilizing) of instruments, jewelry and needles occurs separately from all other parts of the shop, as well as the overall professionalism of a shop. You also have to meet “personal criteria” such as answering a questionnaire to prove your overall piercing knowledge, and being certified in first aid, CPR and blood-borne pathogens (just like any medical professional). They also have minimum requirements for jewelry quality. This is something that is largely overlooked.... even if the piercing is done correctly, but the
quality of the metal is poor, you will have a lot of problems, possibly rejection of the piercing and may even end up removing it completely because it “just won’t heal”.

So, in a nutshell, going to an APP member piercing shop can give you piece if mind that you have chosen a place with the highest of standards in every way. You can verify memberships and learn more about them at www.safepiercing.org.





























What do you look for when selecting jewelry to sell at the shop?

Well, as far as body jewelry goes, I only sell the best of the best. Any surgical steel (316LVM ASTM F-138) or titanium (6AL4V ELI ASTM F-136) I use/sell is implant grade and is totally hypoallergenic (and no, this is not the same stuff you can buy at the mall). All the gold, white gold and platinum I sell is solid, not filled or plated. As for looks, all of it is hand made with hand set high quality synthetic AND/OR genuine gemstones. The only silver jewelry I sell is for ear lobes (it’s not an appropriate metal for body piercings or any healing piercing) and is solid .925 sterling silver. When it comes to non-metal jewelry, for instance stone, wood, bone and horn, it’s all hand–made and most importantly, beautiful and unique.

As you know I also sell other kinds of jewelry (necklaces, bracelets etc....) as well as art from local artists. My only real “requirement” for that is that I like it, it’s made locally, and would appeal to my clientele.















When you're not poking holes in the fine people of the Hartford area, what do you like to do in the Hartford area?

I’m kind of all over the place. I do enjoy a night out with my friends here and there.... usually at the Spigot or wherever my husband’s band, the Soul Merchants is playing. I also love to go antiquing, thrift store shopping, art shows..... game night at friends houses is a favorite in the winter time. In general, as long as I’m with the people that I love, I’m happy.

The Soul Merchants- we've totally blogged about them! Anything else?

Going out on my own in 2008 was a little scary at first. I now know it was the best decision I’ve made since I chose this profession. The response has been incredible, so there was definitely a need for an all piercing shop in the area, even more so than I realized. I just want to take a moment thank everyone who supported me and continues to support the shop every day with their continued patronage and referrals. I hope to serve as a friendly place for professional piercings, amazing jewelry, as well as a gallery for local artists to get their work out there for many years to come!















Thank you, Georgina. We love your shop and wish you the best! Good luck in that Hartford Advocate Poll we keep mentioning around here.

Photos of Georgina's work can be seen at www.blackdiamondbodypiercing.com. as well as on facebook.

Butterfly Karaoke is No Joke!

The final scenic destination of this past Saturday night wound up being karaoke at Butterfly, that Chinese restaurant on Farmington Ave in West Hartford. We've already told you about (and showed you!) the joy of attention whoring in the form of serenading your friends and countless strangers in a bar. We also like to be karaoke spectators and take in the free entertainment. The thing about karaoke, is that even when its bad, its good. Be drunk. Be loud. Have fun! Just make sure you know the words, and we will probably enjoy you as much (if not more) than your more talented counterpart.














There's Little Laura Fitzscenic, subjecting the audience to her rendition of "Hungry Like the Wolf".

Butterfly's karaoke nights tend to stand out from the others we've been to for several reasons. First of all, where else can you dine while listening to live classical music of a baby grand piano, and then step into the bar, where people are getting trashed with a guy singing George Michael's "I Want Your Sex"?

Also, Butterfly crowd is known for having a more serious element thrown into the mix; in addition to your usual range of amateur singers, this place gets frequented by theater folks and those with serious aspirations of becoming American Idol contestants. The regulars include a guy who sings at least one Meatloaf song a night, so powerfully that he can be heard from the parking lot. Then there is this other guy who has been rumored to bring his own microphone. That's dedication!*

There is no shortage of attention whores in this place, so you need to get there early enough to put your song in if you expect to have a turn. The fun starts around 9:30 on Fridays and Saturdays, and usually goes until close.

A friend of the blog recently wrote this great article to help you avoid karaoke pitfalls, such as being the guy who performs "Don't Stop Believing" for the millionth time. So take notes, superstar, and we'll see you on stage!

*crazy!

A Dong Market Revisited: Potent Man Tea and More!

I've blogged about A Dong Asian grocery superstore before, and the wealth of exotic cheap eats to be found therein. For serious Asian foodies, this place has it all - roosters with they heads still attached, fish, fresh produce, heavy duty cooking ware. Or for mere snack tourists like me, there are aisles upon aisles of affordable rice and bean based treats and interesting beverages.


On a recent visit with DH, we noticed "Potent Man Tea" and had a laugh about the sexy packaging. But walking hard-on DH made some quip about needing impotent man tea instead, so we left this one alone. For the moment. A day or so later I was back at the spot with our newest Scenic, Laura, who agreed that virility in a teabag is a must drink.


We went back to her place and turned up the heat (on the oven, to boil some water). The label indicates this product will nourish the kidney's yin and yang and help improve a man's "strength, vitality, endurance and well-being." IN BED! HA! It also told us what we already know: "The real measure of a man lies in his masculinity, vitality and his character." IN BED!


Objectively speaking, this tea is an herbal blend including ginseng and licorice and a bunch of other stuff. It's got a pleasant, slightly spicy flavor to it, and as long as I don't start growing any (more) burly black chest hair, I'm totally drinking it!

Just keep eating

We're gonna be a little short on hot nightlife to recommend around here this week. You know: holidaze. Stuff is closed. People are expected to be actively Christian and/or spending time with their families. But if you're childless and godless like the Scenics, this week is just another week, only colder and darker. And broker after reluctantly going along with that gift-buying ritual. We'll certainly inform you if we do hear about any action, but in the meantime we'll just recommend one of our favorite Xtian holiday (or any day) activities: Asian cuisine!

I've written before of a compulsion I feel to eat noodles with chopsticks. Maybe it's just because I'm so good at it and need to validated about something. In order to satisfy this need, these past few weeks I've indulged at a couple of new-to-me venues: New Haven's York Street Noodle House and West Hartford's Vietnam Restaurant.


A couple weeks ago I was ready to stay in for the night when nobody was available to go see drag queens with me, but I fearlessly dragged myself off the couch at the last minute - not going to let other bums ruin my night, damn it! So I headed out solo and past my usual dinner hour, and arrived in New Haven hungry and looking for a good place to eat quickly, cheaply and not too pathetically by myself. Luckily, York Street Noodle House is just next door to the bar I was headed to and happens to be casual, fast and reasonably priced. Their menu is actually pretty diverse, but is mostly variations on a big bowl of noodle soup, with pan-Asian influences. I had a bowl of coconut curry chicken soup and a Thai style ice tea, which were just great and ready in minutes and totaled under ten bucks. I'm definitely looking forward to a return visit - maybe next week before the GWAR concert? I do wish there was such a noodle house closer to headquarters.

Vietnam Restaurant wasn't entirely new to me, but I've only eaten there once before and I've eaten at my other two favorite Vietnamese joints about a zillion times each, so it may as well have been. Regrettably though, I must relay that Vietnam won't be unseating Pho Boston or Pho 206 in my heart any time soon. I got my usual (for scientific objectivity) - iced coffee, egg rolls and pho. The iced coffee was served impressively - in a glass topped with an individual filtering device and a side cup of ice. This looked cool, but the result of pouring a fresh brewed serving of hot coffee over ice was (as you'd expect) watered down coffee, which, in spite of a generous blob of condensed milk, lacked the flavor and sweetness I'm used to in my Asian iced coffees. Boo. The soup had issues as well. There was just a hint of liquorice, almost more a smell than a taste - but nevertheless, enough to make each bite a little unpleasant. Sadness. On the plus side, my partner-in-overeating and I decided to try an additional appetizer, fried wantons, where were very tasty and served with a delicious sauce (not sure what it was but it tasted like the plum sauce you get with moo shoo dishes at Chinese). I also especially liked the pot of thick hot sauce included with the condiments on the table.

In The Thai Room

We've developed certain Scenic weekend rituals. Like after a admirable morning of self-denial and physical discipline (breakfast-skipping and Bikram yoga) - not to mention the week-long virtue and industriousness we've exhibited by attending our jobs and generally not killing anyone or breaking stuff - we like to reward ourselves with the indulgence of an exotic meal out. Saturday afternoon, DH and I were both jonesing for pho (a favorite dish around here) and attempted to eat at our current favorite pho joint, West Hartford's Pho Boston. Well, Pho Boston was packed and there were people actually waiting to be seated (this place is often moderately jumping, but we've never seen a wait before). So we decided to try something new (to us) in the same plaza - The Thai Room - previously recommended to me by my frequent blog-tivity partner, SuperLula.


At The Thai Room, I was able to satisfy some of the physical cravings I had hoped to work out over at PhoBo - rich, sweet Asian-style iced coffee and the pleasurable act of eating noodles with chopsticks. The iced coffee was artistic perfection. Observe gorgeous Guiness-esque head and drizzly patterns! We each had a bowl of tom ka gai soup to start. The chicken in this soup left something to be desired in terms of texture and flavor (it was a little dry and bland) but the spicy coconut broth and vegetables were great. I had pad thai (just needed noodles, damn it), which was generously peanutted and came in a portion large enough for two leftover revisits over the course of the weekend. DH had ginger chicken, which was impressively gingered - with substantial, crispy spears of ginger and a zingy broth.


We were pleased with our meal and are excited to add The Thai Room to our restaurant repertoire. And on the even brighter side, we're still looking forward to making up for lost eating with another pho outing - soon!

Holla! It's gonna be compete-for-our-affections Thursday

Oh no, where shall we go this Thursday? We already mentioned the great 80s themed party for our pals CONNetic Dance, which will be going down at Shish and OK Go at the Webster. But don't forget - this Thursday is fourth Thursday which means it's Guerrilla Queer Bar (v.4). This month the Queer Guerrillas are mixing it up a bit and have their sights set on Manchester. Ooohh, where are they gonna go? Will it be the Tiger, the Main Pub, Shea's [a bar I won't even link to on account of their shitty website just put me out of commission for like five minutes - so that would probably be a bad choice]. We'll keep you posted as this story develops.

Decisions, decisions!

80s Party!

Thursday, Oct. 28: Glam Slam 80s Dance Party for CONNetic Dance @ Shish, West Hartford


While Jackie and I technically lived through the 80s, we were actually born in the [early] 80s, so our experience with 80s "style" in its day was mostly hypothetical, piped in through TV and movies or visiting grown-up cousins. And we're kind of glad we missed that boat, because as awesome as being big Cure fans or whatever would have been, hairspray is actually really bad news, and we're glad that Clueless and Clerks could be our generation defining films instead of... whatever people ten years older than us like that much. This also means we're poised to embrace 80s nostalgia at parties like this upcoming benefit for our favorite ballet hipsters and finally dress like our really cool babysitters. Or Madonna.

(Great Aunt Katherine would have had an Etsy store today!)

I'm planning on finally wearing out this great Betsy Johnson dress I happen to own (for like 10 years) that could lend itself to a Madge "Like a Prayer" look - yeah, it looks like underwear. I mean, especially combined with my luscious brunette locks and just the right crucifix. And maybe a sexy black Jesus. Or maybe something completely different. May as well let that dress simmer for another ten.

80s pop culture imagery and style dominated my childhood, including the signature styles of my first favorite recording artists, Paula Abdul and Guns n' Roses. But these were getting towards the end of the decade; in the earlier half it was more like Star Wars, Dark Crystal and Masters of the Universe capturing my imagination. Ooh and Voltron! Needless to say, my day-to-day style sucked. Believe, Katie Scenic was not a born fashionista.

(some idiot would pay big bucks for this E.T. sweatshirt)

Let's make up for lost time next Thursday!

All we do is blog about yoga now (wk. 4, who's counting?)

But what would you expect, with two out of three Scenics going to class religiously [internal memo: time to man up, Jackie]. Just when I thought I was making progress last week, this week I've ended up feeling ouchie in my legs and having to regress a little on a few postures. How demoralizing! But overall, I'm learning how to pace myself at Bikram - you don't want to kill yourself at the beginning of 90 minutes and have nothing left as the class goes on, or focus too much on one difficult posture only to lose your shit in the next. At least that's my take on it. My trial membership is drawing to a close. I've really maximized it for myself, and if you are inclined to do the math, I've been enjoying classes for a little more than a dollar apiece (yeah, I took a couple days of the month off). But I've been effectively hooked. It's time to join up. As appealing as Gabriel's more spiritual yoga from last week was, right now I just want the consistent, predictable physical workout of Bikram. But maybe I can drop in once in a while. That's what open classes are for.


And speaking of... Last week I mentioned that ballet hipster Amy participated in Gabriel's class. Well, she's a yoga hipster too, and you can take classes with Amy. Catch her at Ballet Theater Company Tuesdays at 10 a.m. and Wednesdays at 6 p.m., or at Elmwood Community Center at 6 p.m. Be warned: she is a human pretzel and will make your tight, creaky ass feel way inadequate.

Szechuan Shack

Last night after the excellent Real Ride adventure I caught up with a band (and a restaurant) I have inexcusably neglected. I mean, WTF, I totally know them and totally live here. Well, after all that biking around Hartford, we were feeling energized and hungry, and I knew that Shack was playing at Szechuan Tokyo in West Hartford. Shack is led by trumpeter/composer Stephen Haynes, along with drummer Andy Chatfield, guitarist Kevin O'Neil, and bassist Adam Kubota. I don't really know anything about their kind of music, but I know they are very good at it, and my dinner companion was sufficiently wowed. I said something to Adam about not knowing anything about jazz and he said something about how 'we didn't really get into jazz tonight that was like freakout stuff.' Whatever! Apparently, it's complicated.

Szechuan Tokyo has been providing the West Hartford community with Asian fusion dining and live jazz for years, and I'm excited to list them as another spot where late night dining is possible (we ordered dinner at 10:30 p.m.). Though they seem to have a bit of a sadistic streak; our waiter recommended this hot pepper torture dish to my friend:

SnackQuest: Cosmos

This week my demand for exotic school week snacks brought me to one of my favorite local shops, Cosmos International grocery store in West Hartford, which had great India takeout as well as groceries, and best of all, it's cheap. Wait, maybe "tastes great" is best of all. I can't decide.

So this week between classes, I'll be munching on naan bread (99 cents for the pack!), chocolate coated marshmallow cookie-wiches from Turkey, chikki, and seasoned papadi (chickpea flower chips). This haul came out to about $8 - can't beat that on a good day at The Lot, and certainly not at pricey-but-delicious Tangiers down the street.


Good thing I'm always photographing my food in case I remember to blog it up later. On another recent trip to Cosmos, I had a samosa chat (samosa smothered by chickpea curry, tomatoes, onions, yogurt, chutneys, and little crispy thingies) and a large mango lassi (mango yogurt smoothie, possibly the world's most delicious beverage). This stuff is ready to go, a fraction of the price any normal restaurant bought meal, and tastes as good or better. This meal plus one mango, IIRC, was about $8 as well. When I was working at the Worst Job in the World at the elementary school down the street from Cosmos, I used to walk there all the time on lunch and get something small - like a samosa and a small lassi - for about $3 - less than the school kids were paying for their microwaved happy meal equivalents. OMG public school lunches, don't get me started...

Full Eggroll Jacket: Me So Hungry in West Hartford

SuperLula and I can't afford a fancy getaway to some exotic locale, but on our recent coinciding Staycations, we found the time and dime to eat exotic food. We visited two different Vietnamese restaurants. I ate the same thing at both places. You know, for research. For you all!

My favorite spot for Vietnamese has always been Pho 206 (and whatever it was called before that). That's the one across the street from Green Man, where you got your first tattoo (I got mine from Jerry!). It's 206 Park - see, that's more than just a contempo, catchy name.


I got my usual, including iced coffee, egg rolls and pho soup with tofu. Vietnamese iced coffee, for the uninitiated, is rich and flavorful, especially if you let them serve it the right way - sweet and thick with condensed milk. It's not just sugar milk like Dunkin though - the coffee flavor is strong and good, so it's like a coffee dessert. It's like my favorite thing.

That and egg rolls. The fried ones. SuperLula likes the spring rolls though. I think they're freaky. As she put it: they have no secrets. Or as Patrick Stewart might say, it's too late, we've seen everything.


There's lots of great dishes at Pho 206, but I almost always get the pho soup, because it's the most fun to play with, what with the long rice noodles and all those garnishes. It's served with a plate of fresh sprouts, lime and mint that you can add yourself, and little bits of hot pepper that I like to say you can booby trap your dish with. Vietnamese restaurants traditionally have a variety of sauces at the table and I always add a bit of everything - vinegar, soy sauce, chili sauce - to my soup. If you spice it up, this soup will leave you leaking snot and dripping sweat, which is great for dates. The servings are massive - I get the smaller "medium" portion, which is more than enough.

A few days later, SuperLula and I were at it again. We went to Pho Boston (Shield Street Plaza). Whereas Pho 206 is a quiet little hole in the wall, Pho Boston is a big, bright and open with more of a party vibe. And later hours! Imagine - dinner til 10 pm - in West Hartford! DH Scenic maintains that this is the Vietnamese restaurant to go to, though I admit I got turned off by a bad menu selection my first time out. But this time I went with essentially the same meal I had at 206, and with excellent results.


In fact, I think I liked the vegetable and tofu pho at Boston even better (though I preferred the egg rolls and coffee from 206), because it had more different kinds of vegetables, including adorable baby corn. I like dishes that have lots of different stuff in them. I'm always bummed out by Asian dishes that are served with, like, one veggie. Which is why I'm so partial to East West Grill, for example, where the curries have a like a zillion different veggies and three textures of tofu. Incidentally, the Pho Boston outing was SuperLula's first experience with pho soup. She's a convert.