The Chesapeake Bay is magic

It's half as salty as the ocean, an average of 30 feet deep (big areas are 10 feet or less), filled with seagrass, and home to ospreys, crabs, eels, seahorses, stingrays, and a hundred varieties of fish. I stayed for a week in houses on the ocean and watched the sea roll from the horizon onto the front porch. The storms blew through, I held seahorses in my hands, and fish for dinner was as easy as spending an hour with a pole. I fell in love with the Bay. You should too. Let's all save the Bay before our pollution kills her.

Back in the City again

One long hiatus, I know. Both my mother and my girlfriend were complaining that it was getting a little boring to read the same thing over and over again as they click on my Google ads.

Sorry about that. I have excuses, I may even share them. But first I have news:

1) I received a check for $112 from Google in late June. Thank you, dear clickers! That is approximately 33 burgers from Five Guys, the best burger place in all of DC (and maybe, just maybe, the world).

From this excellent Washington Post Article:

"The Five Guys franchising contract is rather specific, stipulating the number of bacon strips (two) and pickles (four) placed on burgers should those items be requested. The Murrells send in secret customers to make sure, for instance, that the hand-cut French fries are shaken 15 times after seasoning. The Murrells have found through extensive study that this tactic takes off just the right amount of grease.

Also, after a burger is placed on the grill, it is to be flattened only once, so as not to squeeze out all the juice. Tyler Murrell was once a customer at a franchise store. He saw the grill man press down more than once on the meat. He leapt over the counter to stop him."

These are the people I want to sell me a burger. I make pretty good burgers, if I say so myself, so if I am going to pay the money, it'd better be worth it. The place better be owned by men who will leap over a counter and attack employees who make their burgers incorrectly. It better be the best burger I've ever had. And, praise be to God, it is.

2) (the second news item, in case you forgot) I went to a HUGE number of islands this summer. Let's see--First there was Fox Island and Tangier Island in the Chesapeake Bay, then Manhattan and Long Island, followed by St. Thomas, St. John, St. Croix, Buck Island (I kayaked there), Tortola, Virgin Gorda, Prickly Pear Island (another kayak trip), Sandy Spit, Jost Van Dyke, and Norman Island. So, all in all, that makes FOURTEEN islands this summer, breaking my own personal record of...well, I don't remember. But I definitely set a record.

3) I have lost hours of my life to the fact that I like to beat video games that I play. After the mammoth amount of time Neverwinter Nights took from me, I am relearning how to spend my free time.

4) I learned a lot this summer and saw a lot of beautiful things, including my family. It was a magical summer. I will tell you more about it in future posts.

5) (last but certainly not least) My girlfriend moved in with me. I am in Heaven.