Ween

Earlier this week I went to see a band called Ween at the Orpheum Theater in Boston. Now the interesting thing about this group is that it was started by a pair of childhood friends who go by the monikers of Gene and Dean Ween....not their real names though. They have been around a while and actually got their start in a little town called New Hope, PA. For all those in the know about the Lehmann history, Jules and I lived in Lambertville, NJ for a while and right across the Delaware River was......you guessed it, New Hope. Now I never actually saw the whole band play in New Hope (something about Gene being in rehab) but I did get to see Dean Ween play in a little bar with about 75 other people. Pretty cool since he absolutely goes to town on the guitar.

I hadn't really listened to their music in a while but I always heard that they put on a good show so I forked over my cash to Ticketbastard (an $11 "convenience" charge...c'mon!?!) and went to see what they were all about. It being a school night, Jules couldn't come with but I think she was fine with that anyway. Now Ween is know for playing all genres of music and tonight was no exception. They played some country tunes (Piss Up a Rope, Help Me Scrape the Mucus Off My Brain), some metal rock tunes (Dr. Rock, Stroker Ace) and some good 'ole psychedelic rock tunes (Buckingham Green, Spinal Meningitis). In all, it was a real solid show, not too crowded and the fans were amped. They have a new album out and they also played some tunes off that, although my favorites of the night were Zoloft and Voodoo Lady. I would highly recommend catching a show by them sometime if you are under 35 or have a hankering for some good rock n' roll and silliness (as you can tell by the song names).

Thanksgiving

Well, I hope that everyone had a pleasant Thanksgiving. I know that I did since I had a whole week off from studying the location of acupuncture points, the theory behind the Oriental Medicine magic, and the origins, insertions, and actions of the body's musculature. It was our first Thanksgiving spent in Boston where we actually hosted the shindig and we entertained Julia's mom Lois, her companion Tom and our friends Alli and Steve.

Waking early enough to prep our 14 lb. turkey which, surprisingly enough, took about an hour, I patted him/her down with some herb de provence and stuffed it with lemon wedges, garlic cloves, onion chunks and some fresh herbs (rosemary, thyme, sage). I put it in the oven and we all took turns watching the skin turn a crispy brown. Of course, we basted as often as possible to keep it moist although the main component of the meat's tenderness was the fact that our bird was brined. We purchased it from Trader Joes pre-brined which means that it is soaked in a salt water mixture that keeps the meat succulent throughout preparation. I would highly recommend this procedure to anyone or at least, buy a pre-brined turkey. I think our guests enjoyed it!

In addition to our favorite sleep inducing food, we also prepared mashed potatoes and stuffing. The rest of the meal came packaged up courtesy of Trader Joe's (ummmm, can you tell I like shopping there) and it included some delicious gravy, a spicy yet creamy carrot ginger soup, spiced hot apple cider with cinnamon sticks, warm buns and a cranberry sauce mixture with orange and chunks of real cranberries.
Alli and Steve brought the requisite green bean casserole (the one with the fried onion bits.....although it is kinda interesting that there doesn't appear to be any actual onion pieces in it) and one of her homemade apple pies which is one of the BEST I have ever tasted. I think her secret is not chunks of apple but flat ribbons of apple that get included in each scrumptious bite. Mix that with homemade brownies and vanilla bean ice cream.....oh, and the Reese's chocolate shell or caramel syrup for topping.....and you have a recipe for some serious food coma.


Sitting down to dinner early in the afternoon afforded us the option of refueling later that evening, as well as allowing us to catch all the gridiron action on the TV. The two puppies, Maggie and Zoey, who are Lois', behaved themselves beautifully and we didn't have any Christmas Story incidents. All in all, it was a successful Thanksgiving dinner and we couldn't have asked for anything else as we drifted off to sleep at night with dreams of all the deals to be had at JC Penney when they opened at 4 am on Black Friday......no thank you:)

Numero Uno

Here 'tis folks.....the inaugural post to my new blog. In this written diary of the life and times of Christopher L. Lehmann I will attempt to capture the wonder and joy that is my life. No seriously....stop laughing!

It is my goal through the regular posting to this blog to keep people up to date about what is happening in the Lehmann, MA edition, household and provide people with something enjoyable to read every so often. So here goes...

We just saw the new Coen Brothers movie No Country for Old Men. Now, we did cheat a little and took out the book on CD for a recent trip to NYC we did. An interesting book by Cormac McCarthy that was intriguing for about 6 of the 7 hours it took to finish it. The last hour or so was hit or miss, mostly miss, but it tried to give an underlying idea of what is happening to America and how it has changed, possibly leading us to the mysterious title. We found the movie to be quick, somewhat confusing (thank goodness we had "read" the book), and violent but a great chase tale that is stripped down to the bare minimum (I don't even remember hearing any music at all....until about 2 minutes into the credits). The antagonist in the film is a psychopathic killer who doesn't get as much development in the film as he does in the book and you get the sense that the protagonist is just a clueless hick who attempts to be bad ass and pulls it off for the most part. There are some humorous parts in it, which is not too surprising considering the other Coen Brothers offerings like Fargo and The Big Lebowski (one of my personal favorites). So overall, I give the film an A- and would highly recommend it; just be prepared for some unexpected parts.

We took a recent trip to NYC to visit with some friends and had an amazing time with them walking around the city. We crossed the Brooklyn Bridge on our way to have "the city's greatest pizza". We were denied the pizza (a 45 minute wait in the cold for a pie is just a touch too long) but we were treated to some amazing views of the Manhattan Bridge and the city skyline. Following that brief introduction to Brooklyn, we hustled over to the Village where our friends Brigid and Dev introduced us to the wonders of the Luxor Lounge and the Middle Eastern hookah. We puffed away on a grape pipe while drinking mint tea (the BEST!) and chatting in the upholstered, low ceiling lounge room. Our friends Deirdre and John, who had joined us around Brooklyn, made the trip back into the city and lead us along the city streets to a restaurant called Old Devil Moon for some funky cajun style food. A yearning for some excitement took us to a karaoke bar that had somehow turned into a private birthday party (so we left) and cruised over to another bar where a DJ forced bleeps and hoots out of his turntables and synths. Since we are not quite as young as we once were, the rigors of the day caught up with us and we were forced to retire for the evening.

The next day dawned brightly and blue skies greeted us as we headed into the city for a final time to enjoy some authentic Southern Indian food with our friends. 4 out of the 5 of us had a dosa (not sure on the spelling though) which is a large crepe-like meal stuffed with potatoes, onions, cilantro, lentils, and other vegetarian delights. After the meal, we said goodbye to our friendly hosts and made our way back to Boston, home of the 2007 World Champion Red Sox (sorry, Brigid).

For a closer look at some photos from the NYC trip, check out my www.fotki.com page. Just search for member cllehmann.

Best wishes to all for a Happy & Healthy Thanksgiving and check back often!