Tom's Bar B Q and Deli

Hello all! I know I haven't been making blog posts lately, but this was very noteworthy.
Corky's? It's ok.
Rendezvous? Pretty Good.
Tom's Bar B Q and Deli? Epic with lots of awesome sprinkled on top, and a cherry made of win.
Anybody that lives near Memphis Tennessee might want to read carefully. Forget that, anybody withing 300 miles of Memphis might want to read carefully.
We all know that Memphis is the BBQ capital of Tennessee. There are BBQ places all over the city, much less the state. But I think we have found the best restaurant in the whole state. The place is called Tom's Bar B Q, and here is the story of it's discovery:
The other night, I was watching Food Network (an odd habit of mine.) and I was watching "The Best Thing I Ever Ate." Normally the show is themed, and this time it was BBQ themed. Also normal to the show, most of the places are centered in California, New York, and other major places that are far away from my current state of Tennessee. However, this was the best BBQ they ever ate, so most of the places were not in California or New York, and rather were in Texas and such. You can imagine my joy when I heard the words "Memphis Tennessee." Guy Fieri was the questioned, and he said that the best BBQ he ever ate was at Tom's Bar B Q and Deli in Memphis. So intently I listened, watching the screen and salivating, waiting until the next day when I could tell Mom and Dad and make plans to go there. And so, on Thursday of last week, we agreed that we would go to Tom's. And here is my review of the place:
Tom's Bar B Q and Deli is in the heart of Memphis, and the first impression was not a good one. The place looks pretty worn down, sort of sleazy, and over-all, not very clean. We stepped inside, and it still looked the same. It pretty much looked like an average place in the heart of Memphis. There weren't many people there, but that was probably due to the fact that we arrived around 3. The inside had pictures of Guy and Adam, the owner, plastered all over the place as well.
As soon as we stepped out of the dining area, we got a very warm welcome from the owner, along with questions about if it was our first visit, how we found out about the place, along with other questions like our (being me and my brother's) age, and if we watched Food Network. We then ordered our food from a lengthy menu, which was above the ordering area like a drive through, but on a white board and with a black dry-erase marker. I ordered the Rib Tips, as mentioned on Food Network, and everyone else got Pork Sandwiches. We continued to visit with the owner while our food was being prepared. It arrived in a timely manner, which was less than 5 minutes. We carried the brown-bag held to our table on plastic trays. We opened the brown bags, and then opened the Styrofoam containers and there was sort of an awed silence that swept across out table.

Now to be honest, I am not much of a BBQ person. Sure, it's good and all, but it is not my flavor or style of choice. But. Oh. My. Gosh. It looked amazing. The Rib Tips were different than expected, but that does not change the high-quality and flavor of them. As we got our copious amounts of napkins (it was apparent we would need them.) a server of sorts came in with a plate, piled high with ribs and grilled or smoked bologna (this was a subject of debate amongst family members.) We were confused, seeing as we had not ordered the plate. "Hey man, its where friends meat!" Said Marcus, as we son found his name. He then brought in four cups of the homemade strawberry shortcake, which again we had not ordered.

And then we dug in. I started with a bite of the Rib Tips, which were amazing. I'm still not sure which part of the animal they were, though that did not effect their taste or my enjoyment of them. And there were lots of them, and "tips" is not a very good word for them. I'd call them "Hunks of meat with the bode in them smothered in the best BBQ sauce you've ever had." The size varied, from thin and crispy to downright huge.
And so, a to-the-point way of describing Tom's Bar B Q and Deli: "An amazing place in a less-than-amazing location with the best service you've ever met and mouth-watering food and deserts." We will DEFINITELY return, and I will HIGHLY suggest this place to anyone with a taste for BBQ, or anyone who doesn't have a taste for BBQ. I like vinegar based sauce, and this wasn't vinegar based. And you know what? It was the best I ever had. Sure, they place looks less-than ideal. And sure, the service looks like people you'd rather not meet in a dark alley, but it was, overall, the best dining experience I've ever had. Five stars, Tom's, five stars.

An Exceprt

Over the weeks, I have been working on a little thing I like to call a novel. Right now, the thing is just a rough first draft. A very. Very. VERY. Rough first draft. As Mr. Schwabaur puts it, a "lousy-but-proud-of-it" first draft. You get it. But, despite was I said in the last post, I have decided to post a little excerpt from my novel. Here goes:
If the town was busy, the military base was more so. Most people from the village had gathered there, everybody training with the overseers and trainers breathing down their necks. Despite this, I was still dragged trough the back of camp. The grounds were very interesting in the early morning. Half-asleep soldiers trying so desperately to try in unison as their trainers overseers barked orders, fully alert soldiers trying to get their half-asleep friends to wake up, people sneaking in breakfast much against the rules of the camp, and other spectacles were going on. Besides the early-morning chaos, I was still being dragged through the camp. Soon we reached the back, which was a small gate guarded by one man.
“‘Allo sir and... madam?” He said, Meridath snickering.
“Yes, this is my friend. Let us through.” He replied.
“‘Fraid that’s not an order I can take.”
“And why not?”
“Because I ‘ave a direct order from my overseer not to let anybody out this way.”
“But why?”
“I ‘ave a direct order, Meridath! I can’t let a soul out!”
“That’s ridiculous though! Who told you that?”
“My overseer.”
“And who,” said Meridath, grinding his teeth, “is your overseer?”
“Why, it’s Merilinn! She’s the prime overseer, you know, and any order out from her mea-”
“I’m going to talk to her! I bet she did this on purpose, just to toy with us, just to make me angry! My gosh, when I find her....” He said, all the way back to the cabin, even more rushed this time.
When we reached the cabin, I collapsed on the floor.
“Merilinn!” Yelled Meridath
“Yes, what’s the problem?”
“You ordered the guard not to let anybody out!”
“Ah, yes, so I did.”
“Why did you tell him that!”
“I don’t want you going out that entrance anymore.”
“Why!”
“Well, the military base is for members of the Athapra Military, strictly. And considering you aren’t a member of the Arhapra Military, you have no right to be there. It’s just my way of making sure you don’t go back.”
“What! Couldn’t you have, I don’t know, told me?”
“Well yes, I guess I could, but what fun would that be?”
“Fun! I’ve already been set back 30 minutes!”
“And you’ve had a great time, haven’t you?”
“No! I haven’t!”
“You’re wasting more time.”
“I, erm. Fine! I’ll just go then!”
“Be sure you go out the right way!”
A slamming of doors, and groaning of voices, and a dragging of me commenced after Merilinn’s reminder.
“She could’ve just told me! Why did she do that? I’ve been set back 45 minutes by now! What so hard about it all! I mean, she could have just asked me to stop going through the base, and I would’ve! And I mean really...” This carried on until we went out of camp and back to the gate to the military camp. And when we did, Meridath pulled his finger to his lips, turning towards me and back to the gate. Sneaking close to the chain-link door, he backed away, began to run, and yelled as he jumped onto the door. The poor guard, he turned just in time to see a flying Meridath coming for him. He fell over, landing on his back and screaming. This attracted the attention of the entire camp, and Meridath hid on the side of the wall, pulling me along with him. We were both laughing, as the guard tried to explain to the furious overseers that there was a flying monster that just attacked him, while he was still scared out of his wits. Eventually the overseers left him, and he stood back to guard. Again, sneaking behind him, Meridath whispered, “Hello.”
With much fury, the guard turned back. “You!”
“Me!”
“Why’d you do that!”
“Why wouldn’t you let me through!”
“It was an order!”
“It was a joke!”
“I hate you!”
“Ah, you see now!”
“That wasn’t funny!”
“Oh, I beg to differ.”
“I looked insane!”
“You aren’t?”
“I could have had my ranks pulled down!”
“And you’d pick them back up, yeah?”
“I... I...”
“I’ll be on my way, if you don’t mind. Next time, let me through, yeah?”
“I... I...”
“Good day.”
And at this, Meridath trotted off into the forest behind him, feeling quite proud of himself.

One Year Adventure Novel

.As you know, I'm homeschooled. I do most of the "normal" classes, including writing. But my writing is a bit different. I'm using the curriculum One Year Adventure Novel, which is, as the name states, a curriculum which will help me write a novel in one year. It has three parts: The Map, The Compass, and the DVD program.
The Map is a workbook. In it are very in-depth questions concerning YOUR novel. Not any other novel. You do not normally study any novels besides the one that comes with the curriculum. That is Anthony Hope's Prisoner of Zenda, but we're talking about The Map. The first few lessons deal with the very basic. A hero, and a plot. In the ENTIRE Map, there is one writing exercise that is not associated with your novel, except for your hero. Every question and every answer is relevant.
Then there is the text book, the Compass. It sums up what the teacher and writer, Mr. Daniel Schwabaur (or Mr. S, as we call him,) states in the video. It also contains excerpts from various novels, which are used as examples to further teach the concept learned that day.
Lastly, there is the actual DVD program. Here Mr. S gives us visuals as to what we are learning. Also, in the DVD, he will sometimes give us clips from the movie I mentioned earlier, Cyrano De Bergerac. Amazing movie. Watch it. But that's not the point. He gives us the lesson, basically.
I absolutely LOVE OYAN. Recently I finished The Map, and have started writing. I am insanely excited, and I might, might post the first chapter. Might. But that is pretty unlikely. Wait for me to edit, edit, edit. and then edit some more.
The problem with first chapters is that they HAVE to be PERFECT. It either makes or breaks a book. Draws people in, or throws people out. And it's INSANELY hard to write a good first chapter. Forget the first chapter, the first paragraph! Why read a chapter if the first paragraph is utter junk? And not even the first paragraph! The first /sentence/! But I have my first chapter written. Now is not the stress time. This will be a nasty, ugly, lousy first draft. But it will be a first draft, and that is key. The second draft I can stress, the third draft, the FOURTH draft. The first draft will be lousy. So you'll have to wait on my first chapter, and only two people are allowed to see any of my writing before it's complete. So wait patiently, and you'll get my chapters. It might take a while, but you'll get 'em, I can promise that.

A Geek's Notations of History

As you saw in the last update update (Which, to clear up for you, is an update on updates. Not me repeating the word update. Yah? Yes.) I have a new blog, which I have affectionately named "A Geek's Notations of History." It can be found here. Read the intro. Soak it in. Have some fun. Be prepared for Monday :)
I suppose you aren't going to be satisfied with this little itty bitty post here on Third Time's the Charm? Of Course not! Why would you think I'd leave you up there with a smiley face and nothing more? I would never. Well, maybe, but that time is not now. But what time is not is 4:42. Time to leave for dance class. So I'll get back to you soon. Bye!

Owls, Concerts, Contests, Oh My!

A few, or probably most, of you know I'm sorta kinda OBSESSED with this band Owl City. He/they are amazing. Really. Now that song is not the original, it's a remix. But I've been listening to it over and over and over, so I figured I'd share :)
But that is not the point. I obsess over Owl City. Why exactly do I like them so much? Because he's just that amazing. More specific?
1) h=He's a Christian. He isn't afraid to show it, either. A few months ago on his blog, he covered "In Christ Alone" and shared it for us to listen to. IF you click on the word "blog" I linked it directly to the post. It's touching. You should listen to it :)
2) The music is also fantastic. Now I know not everybody is a mega-fan of the synth-pop genre as I am, but still. The music can energize you like Umbrella Beach, or it can calm you like Vanilla Twilight. All the songs are clean and have meaning too. Well, most of them. There are some of the songs like Hello Seattle, which are more surreal and fun, if you get me.
3) He's really funny and quirky. Again with the blog, if you look at the latest post, it's about the choco-taco. There are a few songs which make you laugh, and he often posts humorous facebook statuses.
4) He is, in my opinion, very in touch with his fans. He writes his own blog posts, he does his own statuses, and writes his own songs. Pretty cool that somebody who's hit top forty (but still underground enough to say, "Oh hey, you know Owl City?" People will probably say no.) still does that, like he did from the start.
But that's just a few reasons, I could listen hundreds. Well, maybe not hundreds, but probably more. But I don't want to bore you, and you don't want to be bored, right? 'Course not! So here's why I'm posting this.
Back in August (I think) they came to Nashville, which is just close enough for us to drive to see a concert. But we were unable to go, sadly. So the other day, I was complaining that they hadn't come back. But sure enough, the very next day on facebook they made the announcement that they were coming to Nashville to kickoff the entire concert tour. How awesome is that! And it turns out there's a contest to win tickets, airfare, a hotel room, and a meet-and-greet (THIS THIS THIS.) Awesome, huh? You can enter every day on Facebook, Twitter, or by signing up for the newsletter.
Now I really don't know how to end this post. There really isn't much of a climax here. So I'll just end it here. Byeee (:

**UPDATE UPDATE**
I'm so happy, I finally pushed myself to go bi-weekly! But that isn't the only reason why I'm adding this bit. I'm homeschooled, yeah? You knew that, of course. I have a history class, in which I take notes on Google Docs. I tend to take rather humorous notes, with lots of bits and pieces of internet humor and geek hilarity. I have decided, from the recommendation of my mother, to start a blog showcasing these. You want a link, yesh? Well you'll just have to wait a bit. The blog is not up yet, and for that matter, I don't even have a title for it yet. I have a few ideas, including...
1) Modern Geek + Olde History
2) Notations of History
3) A Modern Geek's Notations
4) History + Geek
Vote in the poll or comment here for more suggestions. Thankies!

Cyrano De Begerac

Starring José Ferrer as Cyrano, a poet and swordsman in 17th century Paris. It is a wonderful movie from the 1950s, in an old black and white. Cyrano is very arrogant, but he is very heroic all the while. Sadly, the movie did not do well at the box office. But I still like the movie, and I'd suggest it to anybody if they could get their hands on it. I'm watching it on TV as I write it, actually.
Cyrano has been affected by proboscis on his nose, and is not self-conscious about it, except in the first few scenes where he complains, "Think of me. Me whom the plainest woman would despise. Me with this nose of mine that marches on before me by a quarter of an hour. Whom should I love? Why of course it must be the woman in the world most beautiful." The "woman in the world most beautiful" is his cousin Roxanne, who later in the movie tells him that she has fallen in love with a handsome guardsman.
This will be a shorter post, because I don't want to give too much away from the movie :P I would recommend it if you like the genre of movie. It's amazing if you've got the time and are willing to watch it. And now, I finish this post with a rather inspirational quote from Cyrano:
"Falsehood! There! There! Prejudice! Compromise! Cowardice! What's that? Surrender? No! Never! Never! Ah, you too, Vanity? I knew you would overthrow me in the end. No! I fight on! I fight on! I fight on!"

Procrastination

Procrastination. We all do it, whether we admit it or not. I tend to procrastinate a lot, though. So for now, biweekly is not going to happen. After a few weeks of getting into the swing, I might try it out again. That is all :)