Sunday, January 23, 2011
Lunch at Nico and Vali
My perennial dining companion actually had time to go to lunch today (the start of a new set of classes at Michigan State means a little more free time) so we headed into Plymouth to look at the ice sculptures, pick up some bird food (frigid temperatures mean hungry birds) and have lunch at Nico and Vali in downtown Plymouth. Yum! I had a chicken panini with pesto, provolone and red peppers. My perennial dining companion had a sausage panini with hot peppers. Sandwiches come with house-made chips. We both brought half a sandwich home. Friendly service, terrific food, and convenient location. We will be back and next time I will leave room for something from the dessert case - wow did it look good! Check out Nico and Vali at http://www.nicoandvali.com/.
Saturday, January 22, 2011
Hockey - The Ultimate 5 on 3 Go Blue Edition
Hockey has a fairly unique way of handling penalties, being slightly similar perhaps only to soccer. In football, you lose yards or give yards up to your opponent if a penalty is called on your team. In basketball, the other team gets the ball or gets to shoot free throws. If you get enough penalties (or fouls as they call them), a player may be removed from the game but other players can still play and both teams keep the same number of players on the court.
In hockey, however, usually the player getting the penalty gets a time out and has to sit in the penalty box out of the play for a number of minutes depending on the severity of the penalty. The player's team has to play short a person for the time of the penalty. This creates a separate sort of "mini-game" for the time of the penalty for both the team on the power play (with more players on the ice) and the team on the penalty kill (down one or more players). The idea, obviously, is that when you have more players on the ice than the other team does, you should be able to score - an obvious disincentive to cross-checking your opponent. The goal of the team with fewer players is simply to "kill" the penalty by shutting down the offense of the other team.
With the University of Michigan, however, being on the penalty kill is not necessarily a disadvantage. You might be able to say they play better on the penalty kill than the power play, but that's not my topic for discussion today. I have never seen a team execute a penalty kill better than Michigan over the last two years (this means college hockey, pro hockey, semi-pro hockey, etc.). Even when in a 5-3 situation where Michigan has three skaters against five opposing skaters, Michigan has the ability to control the game and the puck. Smart play, skilled players, and the backing of the home crowd all contribute Michigan's penalty kill. It may be the most exciting thing in hockey watching your team kill a 5-3 penalty and we witnessed a great one tonight against the University of Alaska at Fairbanks. Go Blue!
In hockey, however, usually the player getting the penalty gets a time out and has to sit in the penalty box out of the play for a number of minutes depending on the severity of the penalty. The player's team has to play short a person for the time of the penalty. This creates a separate sort of "mini-game" for the time of the penalty for both the team on the power play (with more players on the ice) and the team on the penalty kill (down one or more players). The idea, obviously, is that when you have more players on the ice than the other team does, you should be able to score - an obvious disincentive to cross-checking your opponent. The goal of the team with fewer players is simply to "kill" the penalty by shutting down the offense of the other team.
With the University of Michigan, however, being on the penalty kill is not necessarily a disadvantage. You might be able to say they play better on the penalty kill than the power play, but that's not my topic for discussion today. I have never seen a team execute a penalty kill better than Michigan over the last two years (this means college hockey, pro hockey, semi-pro hockey, etc.). Even when in a 5-3 situation where Michigan has three skaters against five opposing skaters, Michigan has the ability to control the game and the puck. Smart play, skilled players, and the backing of the home crowd all contribute Michigan's penalty kill. It may be the most exciting thing in hockey watching your team kill a 5-3 penalty and we witnessed a great one tonight against the University of Alaska at Fairbanks. Go Blue!
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
Sunday, January 16, 2011
Last dinner at eve
Whether you are a fan of Facebook and other forms of social media or not, we would never have known eve, one of our favorite restaurants, was closing at the end of this week if not for Facebook. I happened to be on Facebook when eve posted that the restaurant was closing. My perennial dining companion immediately made us reservations for Wednesday via Open Table. When he checked back a day or so later, there were no reservations available.
We arrived Wednesday night and were seating on time and the restaurant was just buzzing and completely filled. We love the space eve occupied, brick walls, high ceilings. We each had a glass of Malbec and split the conch fritter appetizer and enjoyed the fresh bread, which came with three different butters. I ordered the flank steak, which was served with portabella ravioli and was perfect. My perennial dining companion had the scallops which was served with rice and shredded brussel sprouts. Regrettably, neither of us had room for dessert but the meal was wonderful. The service, as always, was tremendous.
We will miss eve, but look forward to checking out Eve Aranoff's new restaurant in Ann Arbor, Frita Batidos, very soon.
We arrived Wednesday night and were seating on time and the restaurant was just buzzing and completely filled. We love the space eve occupied, brick walls, high ceilings. We each had a glass of Malbec and split the conch fritter appetizer and enjoyed the fresh bread, which came with three different butters. I ordered the flank steak, which was served with portabella ravioli and was perfect. My perennial dining companion had the scallops which was served with rice and shredded brussel sprouts. Regrettably, neither of us had room for dessert but the meal was wonderful. The service, as always, was tremendous.
We will miss eve, but look forward to checking out Eve Aranoff's new restaurant in Ann Arbor, Frita Batidos, very soon.
Monday, January 3, 2011
New Favorite Song of 2011
You and Me. Elizabeth and the Catapult. Great stuff. Check it out - http://www.elizabethandthecatapult.com/
Saturday, January 1, 2011
2011 - The New Year - A Time for Resolutions?
I am not completely a believer in only doing things when they are expected (how awesome is that random gift received when it is not Christmas, a birthday, or an anniversary, after all). But there is something about the New Year that lends itself to resolutions for self-improvement like no other time of the year. That whole fresh start, clean slate thing, I guess. So here goes....
I resolve not to neglect my blog no matter how busy and hectic my life gets.
I resolve to keep my head in every game I play, and to keep my head up while I play as well.
I resolve to finish learning the fundamentals of hockey (that includes the elusive pivot to my right) so I can focus on bringing all of my game to the next level.
I resolve to draw from my freezer as often as possible when preparing meals to make the most of the organic produce I have stored there.
I resolve every day to get the hardest thing I need to do that day done and over with first if possible. That makes the rest of the day so much easier.
I resolve to slow down and enjoy life as much as possible. This may be the toughest resolution to keep -even tougher than the right pivot. I am both Type A and an Aries and we don't slow down for much.
We'll see how I do come June. Check back. Hopefully there will be quite a few updates between then and now.
I resolve not to neglect my blog no matter how busy and hectic my life gets.
I resolve to keep my head in every game I play, and to keep my head up while I play as well.
I resolve to finish learning the fundamentals of hockey (that includes the elusive pivot to my right) so I can focus on bringing all of my game to the next level.
I resolve to draw from my freezer as often as possible when preparing meals to make the most of the organic produce I have stored there.
I resolve every day to get the hardest thing I need to do that day done and over with first if possible. That makes the rest of the day so much easier.
I resolve to slow down and enjoy life as much as possible. This may be the toughest resolution to keep -even tougher than the right pivot. I am both Type A and an Aries and we don't slow down for much.
We'll see how I do come June. Check back. Hopefully there will be quite a few updates between then and now.
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