Friday Faves 7/19: Caddying, Stand-up Comedy, Top Gun returns, Seltzer, and snacks

Best Activity

The Country Club in Brookline, Massachusetts is one of the most famous golf courses in the world. It is home to a miracle 1999 Ryder Cup victory for the United States of America. More than 100 years ago it was the site of an historic US Open where an 18 year-old Francis Ouimet looked Ted Ray and Harry Vardon in the face and beat them both. That win inspired a book and then a movie starring Shia LeBeouf.

On Monday and Tuesday of this week I got to walk in the footsteps of some of the greatest golfers in the world while carrying the bag of my friend Matt, who was competing in the Massachusetts Amateur Championship. I had a blast helping out a buddy and watching some excellent golf.

(I wrote about more the experience and what I learned from the two days of caddying: “Natural Feedback For Kids Will Help Them Cope As Adults”)

Best Listens

Confronting OJ - Good lord this is a riveting podcast. It’s produced by Kim Glass and features Kim Goldman, the brother of Ron Goldman. Each episode has Kim interviewing people involved in the case, in essence they are all confronting OJ.

I had not listened to a single episode of this podcast until last Friday. Then on Saturday as I cleaned out my closet (literally), I listened to three episodes on the trot and finished the sixth as I drove my cloths to a donation box (which are IMPOSSIBLE to find in Boston…). The sixth episode was shocking as Kim Glass calls Malcolm LaVergne, OJ Simpson’s lawyer, to ask him to come on the podcast. His response is amazing, in a horrifying way (which led to a Las Vegas radio show confrontation between Kim Goldman and LaVergne this past Tuesday).

The seventh episode is cued up on my phone. Kim Goldman interviews two of the jurors on the trial. I can’t wait to listen, but need to be in the right head space.

“Always Golden” by Iration - This is not the type of music I typically enjoy, but this song came to me through the No Laying Up golf show. The song is used as the intro music to their latest golf travel series in California. I gave the rest of the album a try this week. It’s fine. It’s basically reggae with a California tilt. But I’d encourage everyone to add the song “Always Golden” to their summer beach playlist.

Best Reads

Chuck Klosterman interview: This is all I’ve got this week for you. Klosterman is one of my favorites. He has a new book coming out. I have enjoyed his podcast appearances with Bill Simmons. This interview offers some good reading recommendations and some snarky commentary.

Best Watches

Stranger Things - Tiff and I got sucked right into the binge vortex on Sunday night. It was classic. We had rationed out the first four episodes like normal adults and watched two at a time. When we sat down on Sunday we were in the same headspace, we decided to watch two episodes and save the last two for later in the week. Then that thing happens… we watched two, were left with a big cliffhanger, and were stuck in binge mode limbo. If we watch the penultimate episode there’s no way we save the final episode for later in the week (and Monday was out because we had to pod about the Bachelorette. We HAD to, okay! Rate, Review, and subscribe! to The Random Division, please…).

So we finished the whole damn thing. The season was great, entertaining, scary, and fun. If I could make one complaint it would be that the season could have been an episode or two longer, mainly because it felt like there were a lot of expository scenes where characters are rushing to tell someone something important while the world is fucking ending. A bit more time would have made things happen more organically within the storytelling. But what do I know (answer: nothing)?

Aziz Ansari Netflix Special - I have to admit this one snuck up on me. I had no idea Aziz was back in the public spotlight. Just a couple weeks ago, Tiff mentioned him on our podcast, and I wasn’t sure if he was someone we could, or should, mention (he’s not Voldamort, it’s just me being overly sensitive).

The special was solid. I find Ansari very funny, partly because we’re close in age and many of his observations hit home. I love his delivery and his ability to include audience members. He bookended the special with two serious moments. First he addressed the sexual misconduct that came to light last year and he finished with a mindful moment where he paused and asked everyone to pause with him to take in their moment together. The mindful moment was intense but thoughtful. I’m not sure what I think about how he handled the sexual misconduct, he didn’t apologize and instead said he took it as a learning experience; he was grateful that others in his life had also opened up told him that his mistake made them evaluate their dating past (I wonder what they uncovered… eeeeesh…). Anyway, I think it’s worth watching and it’s also worth reading this NYTimes piece about it.

Top Gun - The movie is back… I’m not even linking to the trailer, I’m just putting it right in your face… this is going to be awesome.

Best Drinks

Wegmans Blackberry Tangerine Seltzer - Firstly, Wegmans is amazing. We live within walking distance of a very mediocre Whole Foods (a renovated Johnnies Foodmaster) that we avoid doing any real shopping at. It’s too expensive and too hard to find the things we really like (and it doesn’t allow me to wander down the cereal aisle feeling like a 10-year-old fighting the urge to grab Cinnamon Toast Crunch or Golden Grahams).

Wegmans is my favorite grocery store. It is massive, so it has anything you would want. The produce is great and the bakery and prepped foods are delicious and varied. The website is also outstanding, and it will organize the items on your list so you just walk up and down the aisles , no wandering aimlessly.

The Wegmans brand seltzer is a collection of different flavors; some haven’t been great (mint lime…) but others are solid. Typically you can get four 12-packs for $10. I took a flyer on the Blackberry Tangerine this week and I highly recommend it. It’s also not a bad drink to add a splash of tequila and a lime.

Best Eats

Nature Valley Biscuits w/ peanut butter- I stumbled upon these delightful little treats while caddying this week. I grabbed one at the first tee and stuck it in my pocket for later. Good golly was I glad I did. If you like nutter butters there is no way you won’t like these biscuits. They were so good, I picked some up at Wegmans and plan to make it a staple in my snack arsenal. I also noticed an almond butter version and plan of giving those a try too.

What were your favorites last week? Have a great weekend and stay cool out there. Summer is coming…

Friday Faves 7/12: Nantucket bites, a hole-in-one, and podcast hate-listening

Best Activity

This past week, my wife and I went to Nantucket for the first time. We spent three nights down there and really enjoyed it. Yes, it’s a pretentious place. Which can be exhausting. Yes, it’s expensive. Which can be daunting. And yes, it can feel rather crowded. Which can be annoying. But overall, three nights was the perfect length of time to stay in a hotel in town and explore the island.

I’d say the best activity we did was take the shuttle bus way out to the eastern coast of the island and check out ‘Sconset (short for Siasconset). This little village is exactly that, little. Its main draw is Sankaty Head Lighthouse, which is about a mile outside of town. After hopping off the shuttle, we walked the mile to the lighthouse. The lighthouse was cool, and offered a great view from the cliff of the ocean and the island. However, the walk to the lighthouse was probably my favorite activity. It was a warm day and after walking through a bit of town that had these charming, small cottages, we ended up Baxter Road. Baxter Road leads all the way up to the lighthouse; the houses and scenery along the road are stunning. These wonderful cape style houses line both sides of the road. I’d imagine the houses on the ocean side get some beautiful sunrises. Most houses were adorned with massive white roses guided by trellises on the roofs and walls. Tall hedges offered some privacy but not enough to stop us from gawking.

The walk up to Sankaty and back was wonderful and it was capped off with an hour or so on ‘Sconset beach to rest our legs. The beach is not known for swimming due to heavy year-round seaweed, but we were pleased to see that a handful of seals decided to visit the beach for the afternoon. They were pretty darn cute, just popping their heads up to look around and then diving under in search of lunch. Once we had our fill of the sun and sand, we swung by Claudette’s, a dynamite sandwich shop near the beach and enjoyed two sandwiches before heading home.

Best Bit of Luck

On Saturday I dragged my ass out of bed for a 7:00am tee time. On the 6th hole, one of the guys in my group stepped up to the par 3 and striped a five-iron right at the flag. The ball slammed into the back of the cup, popped up, hit the flagstick and dropped into the hole. It was his first hole-in-one, and it was the second one I had witnessed. It was pretty cool. A funny complication was that the guy promised his wife he wasn’t playing golf over the weekend and he was just going to practice for a couple hours. The only way he’d get caught in the lie was if he got a hole-in-one and had to share the story with her.

Best Listens

This is one of those posts where I have to be honest with you, which means I have to be honest with myself first. There’s a podcast that was recently started on Barstool Sports that I have been listening to (I might even call it “Hate Listening”) the past few weeks. It’s called the Kirk Minihane Show. Minihane is a former sports talk radio host in Boston on WEEI. He left unceremoniously last fall and was left without a job for eight months.

When I texted my friend Paul that I liked the show, in hopes of some emotional support, he called Minihane a professional troll. It’s probably the best description of him. He is bombastic and rude and outspoken. He fits right into the Barstool ethos; I consume Barstool lightly, like that last beer your friend orders before last call. You know you’ll regret it, but you slowly, carefully drink it. He posts a roughly two hour episode Monday through Friday. He records them early in the morning and they’re ready by 11am. It’s a pretty genius way to do, as his stuff is relevant. He makes an effort to drum up fake drama and craps on former colleagues in the spirit of Howard Stern. However, he does some thoughtful stuff, banters with his producer, and interviews guests well.

It’s not a show I listen to in it’s entirety, but I appreciate that there is always something to listen to if I have exhausted my regular podcast options.

Not into crazy, weird podcasts? Here are some music suggestions for you:

Tedeschi Trucks Band - Just a really great, fun band, especially for this time of year. You can crack a beer out by the grill with this group on the speakers. Led by Susan Tedeschi, who sounds like Reba McEntire, they have ten musicians backing her up. A lot of horn instruments and some fantastic harmonizing. If you live near Marshfield, MA and read this before it’s too late, they are playing on Friday, July 12 at the Levitate Festival. I’m just gonna give you “Midnight in Harlem” and “Part of Me” as my two recommendations. They are their most popular songs on Spotify, but they also offer a good variance of their sound.

Dawes - I love these guys. I’ve been to two of their concerts in Boston. They’re an LA band that teeters on the edge of yacht rock at times (“Roll with the Punches” and “For No Good Reason”) and anthem rock at others (“When the Tequlia Runs Outs” and “When My Time Comes”). I’d recommend just starting with their first album “North Hills”. Fun fact about Dawes: the lead singer is married to Mandy Moore.

Best Reads

I’m a book hopper. Always have been. Always will be. I’ve been working through “A Tree Grows in Brooklyn” the past month or so. It’s excellent. The writing is beautiful, the time period has always interested me, it’s got Irish roots, and I think I’ve realized that I’m a sucker for a great, well-drawn, female character. Having Hermione Granger and Francie Nolan both in my life right now is pretty great.

Best Watches

The best watch this week is one you can’t binge and if you missed it, it’s too late. The US Women’s National Team won the World Cup for a second time in a row and fourth time overall this past Sunday.

The USWNT is a joy to watch. Powerful and clinical and badass. If you missed it. You missed out. Just a great past month of games.

Stranger Things is back and while I haven’t plowed through all of it, I have enjoyed the first few episodes. It feels like they upped their scare level this season. My one complaint is they are really hitting us over the head with the 80’s nostalgia.

One of my favorite things on the internet is created by a group of friends that call themselves No Laying Up. If you enjoy travel shows, I’d recommend watching their “Tourist Sauce” series on YouTube (they also have a website and a podcast). These guys travel the world and play golf. It’s full of history about the areas they visit, they have fun, and they find eclectic locals to interview. Start with their Scotland trip. It’ll make you want to be their friends.

Best Drinks

On Sunday, while taking in the World Cup Final, I enjoyed a delicious Bloody Mary. I have just recently come around on the Bloody Mary, mainly because tomato juice was a non-starter for me. This particular Bloody Mary was a BBQ Bloody Mary from B-Ack Yard BBQ in Nantucket. It had bacon in it, along with a BBQ sauce based tomato juice. It was the best drink I had all week.

Best Eats

A few days of vacation will often lead to eating a lot of delicious things. Toss in a wedding anniversary and things go up another notch.

Here are the 5 best things I ate this week on Nantucket:

1) Blue Crab Fried Rice - The Nautilus

2) Lobster Tostada - The Nautilus

3) Giovanni pizza (potato and rosemary) - Gemelle

4) Taquitos - Straight Wharf

5) Oyster Tacos - The Nautilus

6) Green Monster Ice Cream (mint ice cream and cookie dough) in a waffle cup - The Juice Bar

7) Smoked Turkey sandwich - Claudette’s

A quick note on The Nautilus. It was one of the best restaurants I’ve been to in a while. We arrived at 5:20 and were about 10th in line for a spot at the bar. When it opened at 5:30, we nabbed two seats at the bar. The bartenders were great and the food was delicious. It was a special dinner for us, but even with the mindset of “splurging” a bit, it wasn’t too bad a bill at the end of the meal, especially considering how good everything was.

What were your favorites from the past week? Toss them in the comments section!