That is right my friends.  Once again your dear friend Ashley has hit the road.  This time I am hanging out in Central Illinois.  The Husband had to be here for work and I am tagging along.  Hopefully I will be able to keep myself busy this week.  I brought four books plus my laptop but more importantly, my workout clothes.  Luckily the hotel has a gym, since the weather outside is a bit on the colder side (under 40).

The good news, is that on the way home I will get to stop by the Costco and the Trader Joe’s in Indianapolis.  The closest ones to me are over two hours away in Nashville, so it will be nice to hit these on the way home on Friday.  If you have never been to a Trader Joe’s, you should find your closest one and get there as soon as you can.  It is a great grocery store.  I can’t wait!

Do you know the song lyrics?  I won’t be singing them for you here, but the song came to my mind.  It is because I got to see a dear friend of mine today, Steph.  Steph and I go back to the years before we were teenagers.  Before we really cared about boys.  Before we really cared about any of the things that seem so important in our lives today.  I can count on one hand the number of people I have known and remained friends with for that many years.  With all the moving around I did growing up (3 elementary schools, 1 middle school, 2 high schools), that is a bigger accomplishment than you might think.  So thank you Steph for being my friend, then and now.

You heard me right.  It might be cold outside but you can head over to the Knoxville Zoo this Saturday for free admission.  They are requesting that you bring items for donation.  The charities and items they need are:

Mission of Hope: non-perishable food items, new toys, new clothing for children sizes 4-18
FISH Hospitality Pantry: non perishable food items
Young-Williams Animal Center: stuffed animals, sturdy dog and cat toys, blankets, towels
The Humane Society of the Tennessee Valley: Purina brand puppy and kitten food
Knoxville Zoo–Mbeli Bai Gorilla Study Club Ebobo: new and used school supplies and materials
Knoxville Zoo Green Team: old cell phones, cell phone accessories, printer cartridges

And I have to say that this will be a worthwhile trip to the Zoo this weekend.  Not only will you be helping charities to help others, but you might also catch a glimpse of the new baby chimpanzee: George. Isn’t he cute?

And if that was not enough cuteness, George has more photos and some videos up at his very own blog (kudos to Knoxville Zoo for blogging).  Go watch George grow up at Chimp Family Chronicles. Now I understand why Michael Jackson loved his Bubbles.

Photo Credit: Chimp Family Chronicles

Today I was sworn into the practice of law in the great State of Tennessee.  Yes, I am officially fit to practice law.  Now I know none of you had your doubts and had confidence and faith.  Actually, I am sure that 50% of my regular readers wrote personal references for me.  So if you find yourself thrown in jail in Blount County at 2 a.m. you will know who to call.

That is me in the center of the picture being presented by the President of the Knoxville Bar Association.

Taking the Oath

Mom was able to watch.  She cried. Again.  Love you Mom!

And even though Dad had to work, he was proud of me too!

Top Chef has got to be my favorite reality television show.  There was a time I never watched reality TV.  I still have never seen a full episode of Survivor, Big Brother, or any of those other shows.  And while I know this has been said plenty of times - there is nothing “reality” about all these shows.  Not eve Top Chef. But I love it just the same.

They were quick to get to eliminations this season, with one going home after the Quick Fire and then another with the Elimination Challenge (if you don’t know what these are, watch the show at Bravo on Wednesday nights 10 pm/9 pm Central).  As I am posting this before the West Coast gets to see the show, I will not ruin the surprise of who was eliminated.

I have not decided who will be the chef that I will be pulling for this season (though I like the two European guys already).  I am proud to say that whoever I choose has always made it to the finals.  But that is no guarantee I will pick right this time.  However, there is a prize in correct picks this year.  Bravo is running a Top Chef Fantasy Game this season (similar to those Fantasy Football games).  I missed the sign-up time for picking a team for the first episode, but I will have my team ready for next week.

There are a couple of observations that I must make about this season already.  I counted about a dozen times where someone said “I have never made this type of food before.”  While I can understand someone never making a Russian dish before, but Italian?  Chinese?  These people are chefs and they don’t try different cuisines?  Maybe that is why I am a cook and not a chef.  I do a little bit of every thing but I am an expert at nothing.  And I like it that way.

And I won’t even discuss a problem that rears its head every season.  OK, I will - half of them will not be able to do desserts.  And they will say it is because they are not pastry chefs.  When you go on Top Chef and you plan on making it to the finals, you know you are going to have to do more than one dessert.  Just plan on it.  Practice them and come prepared to do a couple of basic, simple dishes you can expand upon.  I can be no where near the internet or a cookbook and can still whip up the tastiest brownie you’ve ever had.

I am excited to see another chef from a restaurant I have already eaten at.  Jamie is Executive Chef at Absinthe in San Francisco, which I was at back when I was in law school.  Is it just me, or does she look a bit like Candace Cameron from Full House?

Overall, I think this season there are a lot of great chefs and I am excited to see what they can create this season.