Mark L. Van Name's Blog, page 161

This. Yes.

Scalzi already pointed to it, so most of you may have caught it already, but in case you haven't, the redoubtable Jay Lake wrote a simple but important advice entry.  I recommend we all read it and consider heeding it.

I know I regret far more what I haven't done than what I have done.

If you're going to apply for a job

do visit the company's Web site before you send your resume. You should have at least some clue about what the firm does before you ask to work there.

don't misspell the company's name.  Unsurprisingly, people don't like this particular error.

don't misspell the title of the job.  I once received a cover letter asking for a job as a "techicnal wirter."  Yeah, that didn't work out well.

do pay attention to detail in what you send.  If your resume or cover letter is sloppy or full of errors, hiring managers are likely to wonder if your work will be of the same quality.


Are any of these basic reminders news?

I sincerely hope not.

Should any of these basic reminders be necessary?

Of course not.

Are they?

Sadly, yes.  All too often, yes.

A great night to eat outside

The rains finished, the sky cleared, a cool breeze flowed through, and the evening transformed into the kind of night that makes me fall in love with North Carolina all over again. 

So, even though I knew I'd have to cut it short, I and a group of friends and co-workers headed over to MotorCo and FullSteam for a quick dinner under the stars.  I enjoyed a shortrib quesadilla from KoKyu and a small ice cream from Parlour. 

Every single time that I eat at this weekly little food-truck gathering, I have a good time.  Tonight's weather made it all the better. 

If you're having a rough Wednesday--or even if you're having a good one--and you live around here, you should check this out.

Another master passes: Elmore Leonard, R.I.P.

If you've read any of Elmore Leonard's mysteries, you know what a loss this is.  If you haven't read any, go order a few, and then come back here.

Leonard wrote with a command of voice that few authors achieve.  He wrote clearly and cleverly, with a wonderful eye for detail and an even better ear for dialog. 

He also wrote regularly, putting out book after book for many years. 

I never had a chance to meet him or hear him talk, but I've read a fair amount of his work and enjoyed it all. 

I'm sorry there won't be more.

Things that piss me off: Modifying "unique"

If something is unique, it is the only one.  That's what the word means.  Yes, I realize that common usage has led many people to qualify the word and thus enticed dictionaries to add an alternate meaning along the lines of atypical, unusual. 

I don't care. 

We should not modify the word, nor should we misuse it.  Each of us humans is unique; until we have cloning, to the best of my knowledge, that is a correct use of the term.  We are not, however, somewhat unique, very unique, nearly unique, and, as I overheard a person say recently, kinda unique. 

No. 

Nor is your dog almost unique, your baby sorta unique, your idea mostly unique--all phrases I've heard in the last week.

No.  

Leave "unique" alone.  It's a lovely word.  Use it properly.  Let it do its job. 

New Blue Rodeo album coming!

I'm excited to report that one of my favorite bands, Blue Rodeo, will be releasing a new album, In Our Nature, on October 29. 

At least for a short time, you can listen to three tracks from the album here.

If you don't know Blue Rodeo, let me recommend strongly that you immediately buy their eight-CD box set, 1987-93 (available from Amazon here). 

I've featured many of their songs in past blog entries, including this one.  It bears repeating, though, so enjoy it.

Negativity costs

I'm not a Pollyanna.  I don't see everything as being made of unicorns and rainbows, nor do I walk around smiling all the time.  (I've been told my normal facial expression is somewhere between grim and "I'm going to kill you now," but I can't vouch for that because, well, the expression is on my face.)  I do see the dark side of many things, and I certainly walk through life with more than a bit of paranoia. 

All of which may make this statement surprise some folks:  I'm really tired of dealing with negativity.

Constantly seeing the negative costs not only the viewer but those around him.  The viewer pays by having a shittier than necessary life--and isn't there enough shit in all our lives?--and by missing so much of the good things going on all around and even to him.  Those around negative people pay by having to help cheer up those they care for and by having their own positive attitudes constantly battered. 

Negative attitudes also make work harder.  Yes, considering all the available data is vital, and yes, some of that data will be negative.  Constantly finding fault with every option everyone offers and yet coming up with no alternatives, however, isn't being clever; it's being destructive. 

We all get down.  We all wish parts of our lives were different.  We all want things we do not get.  If, though, we respond to these and other life pressures by constantly being negative, then we should consider getting a little help.  The costs to negative people and to those who are around them are too high. 

On the road again: Austin, day 5

Today was a travel day, with many of the usual fun (not) aspects of such days:  lots of traffic on the roads, a delayed flight, an extended stay working in the Admirals' Club, a mad rush to make the second flight, and, hurrah hurrah, an upgrade on that flight.

All of that is just background noise, however, to the true story of this day:  I made my first visit to the world-famous Franklin Barbecue in Austin. 

If you're not one of the people to whom this restaurant is famous, you'll have to trust me that in foodie circles and among barbecue lovers, it most definitely is.  Anthony Bourdain proclaimed its brisket to be the best in the world, and he's not alone; about the worst criticisms of its brisket I've heard yet are that on some days it's not quite as great as others, and it might be only the second best in the world.

As you can imagine, I was eager to try the brisket.

Doing so requires some dedication.  Chef/owner Aaron Franklin doesn't open his doors until 11:00 a.m.  He serves only lunch.  When they run out of meat, he closes the doors.  People start lining up about 7:30 a.m.  One of our group showed up at 8:30 a.m. and secured a spot under the cover of the restaurant's overhang--but it still took us until nearly quarter past noon to get our food.

Click on an image to see a larger version.
Ours is the second-to-last group on the left.

By about ten o'clock, the line was down to the end of the block.



Once you get inside, you see a simple dining room with space for something like 40 folks.



The menu is on the same butcher-block paper they use to wrap the cooked meats.


As you'd expect from a good Texas barbecue house, when you ask for a meat, they cut it right in front of you.  Here he's cutting the fatty brisket--always go for the fatty brisket--for our group. 



Seven of us ate family style from a huge pile of meat, quite a bit of which went home with our local friends. 


Here's a close-up of my brisket and the little bit of sausage I got; they ran out of sausage temporarily just after we bought the last two links.  (They were able to produce another round of sausage before they closed.)


Forget the lines, forget the hype, forget the national reputation.  It all comes down to this:  How does that brisket taste?

As I said aloud after I took my first bite, Franklin's brisket is the truth.  It is the embodied essence of everything barbecued brisket can possibly be.  It is far and away the best brisket I've ever tasted--and I have eaten brisket in a large number of top barbecue joints over the years.  If there was a Maslow's hierarchy for brisket, Franklin's would be sitting alone at the peak, fully self-actualized.

It is just that damn good. 

The sausage is among the best I've ever tasted.  The pork ribs are smoky and wonderful and also among the very best I've ever had.

The brisket, though, is simply the best.  Period.

Periodically, Franklin wanders the tables and talks to folks.  When he came to ours and asked after our meal, we sang the brisket's praises.  "It's what we do," he said, with evident pride.  When we talked about all the places I'd eaten brisket and how this one was far and away the best, he smiled and said, "The secret is, we cook it until it's over-cooked," and then he moved on.

I will wait in the line at Franklin any chance I get. 

On the road again: Austin, day 4

Lunch today was with client friends at a new barbecue joint I'd never tried: Stiles Switch BBQ & Brew.  The brisket was good, but the stars of the show were the huge beef ribs.  If you're in the Austin area and love the mighty beef rib, consider Stiles.

Dinner was at a long-time favorite, Uchiko.  Our group tried the ten-course omakase, basically the chef's tasting menu, and it was delightful.  No dish was too big, each was extremely flavorful, and the collection showcased a great many aspects of Uchiko's menu.  I highly recommend this restaurant. 

On the road again: Austin, day 3

More interesting meetings, more I can't discuss.

Dinner really is the only part of the day I can talk about.  Tonight, we'd hoped to eat at newcomer and hot Austin restaurant, Qui.  The menu looks interesting, and the place is getting national attention, but it doesn't take reservations.  When we showed up about 8:15 p.m., the wait was at least ninety minutes.

I had too much piled-up work to be able to waste that much time, so we headed off to an Austin institution, Fonda San Miguel.  They seated us immediately, and the food was delicious, as always.

As I've noted in past blog entries, I particularly like the lights in the trees outside this restaurant.  The blue tree to the left of the building is a definite favorite.

Click on an image to see a larger version.
This photo is just as I took it with my phone; I've done no work on it, but I love how it came out.

This visit, the red up-lights mixed with the blue tree lights in front of the entrance to create an effect I found delightful.




You can't go wrong with Fonda San Miguel.