Thursday, September 21, 2006

Whole Foods 3X


Yesterday marked the grand opening of a new Whole Foods store, located next door to our office building. What a fiesta that was! WF started the day by serving up free breakfast and coffee in their parking lot, followed by a "bread-breaking" (in lieu of ribbon-cutting) ceremony to open its beautiful new 63,000 square foot store to the public.

For those of you living in areas not served by Whole Foods, let's just say that the store is a Disneyland of Food. It specializes in organically-grown fruits and vegetables but goes far past that to provide total food nirvana. There are cafes, gelato bars, and free food to taste everywhere. Visiting there is like stepping inside The Food Network.

Anyway, the "3X" in the blog entry title refers to the fact that I actually went to Whole Foods three times yesterday -- in the morning for free breakfast and coffee, at lunch just to wander around with friends who hadn't been able to make it to the breakfast, and then again on the way home to pick up this espresso martini mixer that I'd found at lunch. I have done Kroger twice in one day, but I've never visited a grocery store three times in one day (except when I worked in them back in the Seventies).

I think I may need therapy, but I want to make sure that the provider is licensed and uses only treatment methods approved by the FDA and certified as earth-friendly. You get the picture. See you at the checkout counter!

Wednesday, September 13, 2006

My Favorite Video

Popular music videos may come and go, but a few of them seem to have remarkable staying power -- Michael Jackson's "Thriller", Peter Gabriel's "Sledgehammer", and Madonna's "Material Girl", to name just a few.

When this season's American Idol contestant Ace Young performed George Michael's 1988 hit "Father Figure", his odds of becoming the next Idol improved dramatically. Had he chosen another song or two like "Father Figure", and performed them equally as well, he might have gone all the way to the top.

Michael's 1987 "Faith" album, from which "Father Figure" was released, was a blockbuster hit -- it sold millions and crossed a myriad of demographics. The video for "Father Figure" was extremely popular on VH-1, even though it was generally aired late in the evening due to its somewhat risque edge. It has always been one of my personal favorites. It's well-done, classy, and the music is great.

For those of you who have never seen it or just need a refresher, check it out below. Remember where you were? =:)