i have found a new love, and she is whole foods. went last night to the grand opening with the SLF, and that place is just phenominal. i had been to one in austin maybe about 5 years ago (i was doing training for my previous job), and i was just blown away by the selection, and that was before i even thought about making a conscious effort to eat healthier. anyway, with the crappy selection of food jobbers that are around here, it was so nice to walk in that door last night. their produce is amazing. i got a bag of the nicest green grapes that i've had in recent memory, and every other bag on display looked to be its equal. their seafood looked fantastic... reasonable pricing on the fresh stuff, and a great selection of flash-frozen cuts; tuna steaks, salmon steaks, etc. moving on to the meat department they had all sorts of ready-to-go treats... flank steak stuffed with asparagus, blue cheese and garlic(!), salmon stuffed with crabmeat, and lobster stuffed with tacos (wait, strike that last one).

their cheese department rivaled that of la chacuterie in shadyside... both in selection and knowledgable and helpful staff. i think i need to have a little wine 'n' cheese bash again, post-haste.

the "crunchy" department was unrivaled... every type of natural potato chip, all the kashi cereal, bars, and underpants (i think) you could shake a stick at. fresh bread that was fantastic.

the SLF was impressed as well... all 3 things that she sort of wistfully said "i wish they had this one thing that i love, but i know they won't"... they did, and at good prices, too.

i think i pretty much spent the entire night walking around saying "i need to have a lie-down."

i'm going to try and get over there tonight and do some serious shopping, but i don't know if i'll have time. my best friend's parents are in town this weekend, and i'm heading out tonight to go to w.v. for a climbing wedding. no, the wedding ceremony won't be held on a cliff, but it is going to be down at the new river gorge, and on bridge day, no less. that means that i need to be down and on the right side of the river before tomorrow a.m., because the bridge is going to be closed all day. furthermore, that means that if i want to see the other parents for a little while, i need to do that right after work, and then truck on down so i can pitch my tent and get to bed at a reasonable hour. can't climb 3 days straight w/out lots of rest.

i realized the other night at the j mascis show that i've started to think in blog. as i'm watching the band, i'm thinking to myself about the lines i might write, and where i'll find useful links to illustrate my points; either sites i already know about, or searches i'll have to do. (i was looking in vain last week for a site i saw years ago that involved dumb guys taking an aquarium pump and sticking the hose up their asses and inflating their stomachs from the inside over the course of a few hours. don't ask.)