THE Burger

There is an urban legend that tells of a monstrous burger. A sandwich so deliciously irresponsible, any sane doctor would highly recommend that you not even enter the same room as it, for fear that your arteries might tighten and close from just a wiff of its sizzling glory. For the past few years, since its original inception, I've been on a mission to grab a hold of this burger. Alas, time, distance, and lack of monatery funds have kept me from purposely sending me body into food induced shock by consuming this burger.

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The burger is not encase in bread, but rather a toasted donut....yes, a donut. 2 slices of cheese on each 5oz slab of prime ground beef, brought together by chocolate covered bacon...yes bacon...dipped in chocolate (see above diagram). You're drooling aren't you? Its ok. This burger just premiered at my favorite Philly burger joint, PYT, and I can't wait to take a trip to get one this weekend. Happy Holidays!

Gay Money

I read an article recently on Yahoo's music blog, The Amplifier, about Lady GaGa weeping at her concert in Poland. Apparently she's been disappointed with other female artists waving their "freak flags" after she's made her career on being the biggest kook of all time. She calls out Pink, Nicki Minaj, Katy Perry and Ke$ha on cashing in on the plight of "freaks" everywhere, especially the gay community. Ironically, I was just talking to a sorority sister about the exploitation of the gay/freak/fringe fan base not too long ago, and we both agreed that them screaming: "this music is for you, buy my album!" is tactless and off-putting.

Its no secret that the music industry is suffering. Its been about a decade since P2P file sharing, and downloading music has nearly replaced buying an actual CD. Labels and artists are loosing out big time on the CD dollar, and are scrambling to fill the void using other avenues. A clever way to do this is to push out a crop of similar artist, and have them cater to a fan base that's center stage in the media. At this point, that niche would be the gays community. Lady GaGa was made at the drag and caberet shows of Manhattan, and she's even come out as bisexual. I personally don't believe GaGa is exploiting the audience that made her, and I kind of agree with her outrage.

It took her years of having people slam the door in her face, writing her off as a club/novelty act and mocking her persona (albeit a kooky one). Yet she's always stayed true to her freakdom, even evolving into a Queen Freak over the years. Fly-by-night artist Ke$ha, and rap chick Nicki Minaj haven't been so convincing with the waving of their freak flags. Ke$ha is just weird and comes off as a GaGa/Katy Perry mash-up with meaningless lyrics. Minaj, playing off her built in gay male Hip Hop fan base, alludes to possible encounters with females but doesn't confirm anything. Personally, Pink has always been the rocker/punk/R&B influenced freak, but with her fan base getting older she's been trying to find ways to reach out to fresh faces by using the oldest trick in the book: "my best friend is gay!"

Its really bothersome to think that people would look to make money off of the struggle of another group of people. Yes, Pink and Katy Perry donated their celebrity to the It Gets Better Campaign, but at what cost? To sell albums? Give me a break! And the industry wonders why 90% of music listeners under the age of 30 download music for free instead of feeding the machine. Make authentic music, you fan base will follow.

The Most Wonderful Time of the Year

Its started. They're pumping the Christmas music in through the vents at my job, stores are staying open later and opening earlier, and all the TV commercials are holiday themed. Its that time of year. Strangely, I'm not annoyed or bothered by any of the blatant materialism of the season because I actually love this time of year, not the weather, but those six weeks of harmonious holiday bliss that end every year on a cheerful note.
For me this time of year represents all the best in humanity. It gives me hope that we're not all out for self and really care about each other. Growing up, this would be the time of year where I would go caroling for the elderly with my Salvation Army youth group, help with canned food drives, and share a meal and a laugh with those less fortunate (giving back has always been a central theme in my life). I'm reminded of a time where I was surrounded by family, love, warmth, and took pleasure in the simplest of things. The snow blanketing the ground and canceling school, the family stories, and those holiday CDs that we still play to THIS day (if you don't own It's A Go-Go Christmas, then you're not a true Washingtonian).
As an adult I find myself struggling to re-create the traditions of old while creating new traditions at the same time. This year's goal is to have peace of minding knowing that no matter who I'm with the spirit of the holiday will be felt.