The hamburger is an American culinary icon and one that has been getting lots of attention lately, especially in New York. As a result of the new found respect for the dish, there are many options for delicious burgers in the city. From the long lines at the Shake Shack to the lofty price tag and gourmet ingredients at DB Bistro Moderne, from the secretive divey-ness of The Burger Joint, to the straight forward divey-ness of Paul's Palace, there's a burger in this town for everyone.

One of the latest additions to the tradition is Five Guys, with locations on 55th, Bleecker and LaGuardia. Actually, to call it new is not completely accurate, the chain has been around since 1986 and it did have one location in the five boroughs – but it was in the hard to get to (for most of us) neighborhood of College Point. Lately, though it's popping up everywhere and I couldn't be happier.

It's a dietary splurge to be sure, especially if you tack on some of their yummy Cajun fries, but when is a burger a health conscious choice anyway? Theirs is moist and flavorful with a great squishy bun (I hate buns that stand up too much to the burger) and fresh toppings.

The menu offers a regular (one patty) or a large (two patty) and an array of free toppings. Be sure to tell them all the toppings you want, they won't assume lettuce or tomatoes or anything else unless you specify. I usually add some hot sauce, which only heightens the eating experience.

The environment (at least at the Bleecker location) is pretty clean and cheerful, particularly for a fast food spot and the food is miles away from the assembly line “junk food” of more typical chains.

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Posted on June 30, 2008

I was so in love with John Cougar Mellencamp when I was a little kid; I wore a wife beater around the house imitating his music video dance and swagger, combing my hair and convincing myself that we were soul mates. My dream was to grow up and marry him, dye my hair purple, and watch all the horror movies my mom wouldn't let me see. I lost out in one respect to a super model but, you know, while I respect his choice to drop the Cougar, I just can't see him as the man I fell in love with–so we'll just call it even.

While I also can't say that his face and voice evokes the same kind of inexplicable excitement in me today as they did when I was in pre-school, there's still a part of deep inside that smiles when a song of his comes on the radio. I believe it was a guest appearance on SCTV that sparked my love for him and I can't help but remember that too.

Lately his profile is a bit lower than his Scarecrow hey day, but he's outspoken about being a lefty (he even asked McCain to stop using Pink Houses in his campaign rallies, much like Springsteen took on Reagan RE: Both in the USA).

A great American coif, farm fed muscles, and a bleeding heart: He just hurts so good.

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Posted on June 30, 2008

In high school my best friends and worked as camp counselors at the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo in the summer. Best friends, adorable kids, arts and crafts, a beautiful zoo, occasional cotton candy and a little pocket money?it was perfect. Except for one thing.

There was an older, meaner counselor who worked there with us–who knows why she chose a job where she'd be surrounded by children, the only animals at the zoo she obviously hated. She'd use a terrifyingly shrill whistle every time the kids got too excited and, believe me, when Dana and I were leading a paper bag puppet making project, it was all too easy to get excited.

Finally, the two of us took the whistle when she wasn't looking and buried it in the dirt. Sadly, she came to work the next day with a shiny new one. We were convinced she had a cache of thousands of them in her lonely home?br/>
But I have some really lovely memories of our time there. One of the nicest parts of the day was when all the kids would sing along to traditional camp songs. The American classic, Don't Fence Me In, originally recorded by Cole Porter based on a poem by Montana State Highway engineer Bob Fletcher, is heavenly when it's sung by a bunch of hopeful little kids.

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Posted on June 30, 2008

I thought I knew what to expect from Easy Rider, the ultimate iconic American freedom movie, but I was surprised not only by how the movie itself unfolded, but by how effected by it I was. That might sound silly coming from someone practically chained to her computer, fully entrenched in all the comforts of modern life, but there's something really appealing about the message of freedom and the pull of a seemingly simpler life–to be someone who can throw off her watch and to “…do your own thing in your own time”.

When the film was released in 1969 many people felt the same way, it became a phenomenon and ushered in a whole new generation of independent filmmaking. Directed by Dennis Hopper with an eye for the awesome American landscape, it's as beautiful as it is far out, man.

Still, these guys are real anti heroes, two dudes on the fringes of society who are rarely accepted by the rest of their fellow men; a danger that is made abundantly clear by certain dramatic events and the shocking and abrupt ending that I somehow got through my whole life without knowing about–which I'm still thankful for because it packs so much more impact when it's undiminished by spoilers.

It's funny to think about how everything has played out (click on that link if you want to see Dennis Hopper sell Ameriprise retirement programs). The young men inspired by this film forged a very different future for themselves than the one Peter Fonda's character, who is called Captain America, would ever have dreamt of; something that's joked about in a very funny way in Albert Brooks ingenius Lost in America. When Jack Nicholson's character George Hanson laments that “This used to be a helluva good country. I can't understand what's gone wrong with it”, you can't help but wonder what he'd have to say about America today.

Speaking of Nicholson: I think his portrayal of a drunk southern lawyer might just be my favorite of his career. His introduction is unexpected and his performance adds a whole new dimension to the film with his varsity sweater, football helmet, and crazy drinking noises.

Hopper too is excellent as an almost too realistically caustic outsider who is tempered by the beautiful ocean of calm that is Peter Fonda… If you don't get excited when Fonda goes skinny dipping, you may not be a woman?br/>

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Posted on June 30, 2008

Thank Mike for the link to this funny Swedish commercial….

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Posted on June 22, 2008