ASK A GABBNEB

i went to eli's and got a delicious pate sandwich!

http://esum.files.wordpress.com/2007/09/serious.jpg

i think i will go back and buy more pate after work.

coffee snobs: they have two Clover machines

-- gr8080, Tuesday, 8 January 2008 19:03 (3 hours ago) Link

So is this Clover thing as good as they say?

Grumpy has really great espresso, obv.

Also is Doner Kebab the same thing as Adana Kebab?

http://www.americanrhetoric.com/images/mycousinvinny6.JPG

N-No More Questions.

hey gab,

i refuse to open any of the political threads. can you fill me in on when veep announcement is gonna be? like, speculation? nytimes was RONG so i don't trust anything they say anymore.

thanks!!!!
tza

fyi tza both political threads are actually just gabbneb posting over and over with vp announcement speculation and very little else

srsly gab, i wasn't being a jerk, i am really interested in this!

hi tza,

did the nyt say when obama would veep? i know some sources have said that it would happen as early as wednesday morning, but i don't remember anyone pegging it to a specific time.

anyway, per the fantasies of Mark Halperin, who is a famous political journalist who knows everything about politics, or at least a guy who knows all the insider-y washington people and does a mean al gore impression, it will be tonight at 3-3:30 AM.

that is, unless it is tomorrow at 9AM. or tomorrow at noon. or the middle of the night Saturday. or Saturday morning. supposedly, we will definitely know by Saturday mid-day, because Obama is supposedly appearing with his veep then. supposedly.

we will definitely know who it is by next wednesday, because that is when the veep will veep all over the stage at the democratic convention. that is, unless they do it from behind a curtain with a darth vader voice or something.

hope this helps, and stay strong in the meantime,
gabbneb

friend of mine in the campaign said tomorrow at the latest, probz

gab,

that sorta helps. times didn't say anything definite, but tuesday had an article about how it would likely be wednesday am. at any rate, they thought whenever they do it, it should be in the am so that they can get a full day's news coverage out of it. maybe this halperin fellow is onto something. at any rate, i will have to search for video of that impression!!!

thanks!

t

gabbnebb,

Would you say you are generally a happy person?
Also, do you like hats?

Cordially,

Abbott

tza,

if it's tomorrow, AM is almost guaranteed because the CW is that no one pays attention to Friday afternoon/evening news. unless it's first thing tomorrow (requiring waking up a lot of people with your text message), it will probably wait to saturday.

gbnb

p.s. that impression is recorded briefly at one point in the the documentary The War Room, the greatest movie of all time

gab,

in case you don't own it or something, it appears the whole movie is on youtube in parts. i will probably watch it all at some point, but for now, any idea approximately where in the film this impression happens?

thanks,

t

Abbott,

happiness is an elusive concept, perhaps, but i find lots of things interesting, know how to keep myself entertained, and have a taste for pleasure and the means to be more comfortable than i have a right to be. even if i were not happy, unhappiness would not necessarily command much of my attention.

as for hats, what kind and on whom? though they don't look especially good on me and it is v v difficult to find ones that fit my head well, i appreciate the bad-hair utility, branding possibilities and slight jocularity of a good baseball cap, as well as the skin-cancer-avoiding utility of an extremely ugly, wide-brimmed hat when i am exposed to the sun for long periods of time in the outdoors. if you are referring to womens' hats, i generally find them to be an anachronism, appropriate perhaps for those from the era in which they held sway, but typically a mildly depressing or even tasteless retro-ism on those younger in years. i allow for the possibility that the right sort of hat might strike me as an appropriate personal expression on the right younger woman, probably a hat that expresses a certain bohemianism. both of the former sentences, however, are reflective of a distinct, personal taste and do not necessarily reflect in any appreciable way upon the character of the hat-wearer. though i likely would not share the taste of the character, my limited approval of hats is based in part upon sympathy for the millinery-infatuated heroine of Free Food For Millionaires, a recent novel about post-collegiate Manhattanites by disarming, 40ish writer Min Jin Lee, a native of Queens and graduate of Yale College and the Georgetown University Law Center (both part of universities of which the mascot is the bulldog).

i hope this answers your questions,
gabbneb

tza,

the gore impression appears early in this segment - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cDO7e41YaWY&NR=1

developing...
gabbneb

of which the mascot is the bulldog

of which the bulldog is the mascot, i mean?

Abbott,

Just to elaborate a little bit further, when I say that I might approve of a bohemian hat on a member of the female persuasion, I should note that I refer to a hat and wearer that express a certain joie de vivre. However, I might find a simulacra of same on the part of a young woman of the 'indie' or 'hipster' persuasion most depressing. I would also like to note that baseball caps on women, while variable in attitudinal appropriateness, are often A-OK.

best regards,
gabbneb

p.s. I hope that it is a raspberry cordial that you are enjoying. raspberries are the best.

gn,

clarification was so that she didn't think you were perving on olsens, right?

that impression is pretty fun, would have been more so if you could see his face! thanks for the tip!

t

this guy puts his fucking back into it respect

t,

i am unfamiliar with these olsens of which you speak. note that you can see the halperin's face i that clip.

g

oh gab,

let's not pretend.

i realize there is some face, but you know, a head-on, snl-ish setting would have been fun. still enjoyable, though.

t

Abbott,

Just a further note on happiness as well. While I cannot deny a certain fondness for idleness, one of the things I enjoy is feeling useful, and I try to stay that way a fair amount of the time. See also this thread.

Hopefully helpfully,
gabbneb

gabbneb,

what are your 3 favorite tv shows?

yours -

dn

Dear gabbneb,

I had no idea War Room was your favorite movie. I walk past the Gazette Building where a lot of that movie was filmed at least twice a week.

Below is a list of the second-most populous cities of each state listed. Please state a short opinion regarding each one:

Alabama - Montgomery
Alaska - Juneau
Arizona - Tucson
Arkansas - Fort Smith
California - San Diego

Regards,
P. Plains

this has probably been posted in the other threads, but they'll send you the vp via text or email if you like:

http://my.barackobama.com/page/s/firsttoknow

I'm signed up.

Dear PP,

The War Room is not actually my favorite movie. I do own the dvd though and find it very watchable.

San Diego is only the 4th-largest metro area in California, and I haven't been there since the mid-80s. While I enjoy retrieving impressionistic memories of morning croissants among Hopper-esque huts on a pier and a nighttime party with a mariachi band (i could be making that part up) at the foot of the lit-up Air and Space museum, I feel no pressing desire to return in the immediate future. While I have some interest in Tucson and environs, it too is fairly low on my list. I have no opinion on the other places you mention.

Best,
gn

kingfish,

thanks for the heads-up. i am not part of the text generation/continent, and resisted for a while, but i did give in and sign up the other day, partly to say i did.

i also signed up like, a week ago, though i was hesitant bc i fear soliciting phone calls.

Abbott,

I must follow up again with an important addendum to my position on hats. It has occurred to me that there are a number of antiquated hat varieties the boldness of the wearing of which in this day and age is something I would feel compelled to applaud as a welcome source of amusement. Such hats include those of the cowboy, boater, tri-corn and napoleonic type. The bowler might be added to this category as well, provided that it is not worn by a misguided devotee of Stanley Kubrick's A Clockwork Orange.

Additionally, while I am wont to disdain the 'jester'-type hat as far too facile and juvenile in its merriment-making, I must admit that I myself have a hat nearly two feet in length in the form of a multi-colored tropical fish. In my younger and less responsible days, I wore the hat on consecutive nights to large arena rock concerts by a musical group that shall remain nameless, receiving many accolades from fellow concert-goers in the process, especially on the second night when many acknowledged having seen the fish prominently displayed in the audience the previous evening.

In the interests of full disclosure,
gabbneb

p.s. I am wearing the hat right now.

morning gab,

no texts here. you?

with your lawyering experience, do you ever consider going into politics? why or why not?

happy friday,

t

t,

you have so many questions!

no one has texted me since me last night. while i understand their utilitarian niche, texts tend to make me nervous; why can't people just call or email? get one (1) blackberry already.

with respect to politics, i think my interests in/obsessions with the personalities, strategy, maps, demographics, language, etc., are well-documented, and i think we all know that i am not cut out to actually be a politician myself. while the notion of some sort of involvement in the political arena (or government itself) certainly intrigues me, and would likely be more socially useful than what i do now, i have yet to make any real effort to be anything more than an observer of it. however, i am still fairly young, still figuring out the various things i am good at and enjoy, still developing various kinds of relationships, and still seeking additional security. does this answer your question?

gab

gab,

it's true, i am very inquisitive. i have even more questions, but i do not want to overwhelm you.

i was referring to obama texts -- perhaps i should have been a bit clearer. of course i now realize that, given your profession, a bit more attention to detail when asking my questions would be ideal.

i understand your view of entering a career in politics. it is very well-rounded! perhaps you could follow int he steps of mr. halperin and put this interest to work as an on-air analyst, using your professional background for a little boost, of course.

just a thought,

t

t,

i understood your reference to obamatext.

while it is true that there should be an avenue for sharing my extremely valuable political insights with the wider world, and indubitable that i am very telegenic, mr. halperin's recent airwave ubiquity was preceded by years of experience in hard political journalism and print-based prognostication, and abetted by an ingenuous nature, an apparent entrepreneurial bent, and probably early connections paired with a decent bit of luck.

thank you for making suggestions,

g

PP,

Just an additional note of appreciation for your reference to the Gazette Building. I will have to check that out if and when I make it to La Petite Roche.

fraternally,
gabbneb

dear mr gabbneb,

texts are quite useful for sending concise bursts of information in less time than a phone call. they also can deliver this information without needed to be received in real-time and cannot be forgotten, only deliberately deleted. a 'where the fuck is this place?' text sent to one's drinking companions can be promptly responded with a 'ne30th and broadway, ya fuckin loser. i told you before lol' which allows one to find the proper establishment for the evening.

your humble servant,

mr kingfish

(It's a charter school now.

The kids play out in the old parking lot on this Jacob's Ladder rope deal, and I just know that one of them is going to fall off of it and break their little neck.

I'd take a picture for you all, but my name isn't Kenan Hebert.(

Dear gabbnebb,

Long have a yearned for a thorough assay of hats by a modern 'typical guy' (for lack of a better term). You have really made my week.

Haberdashedly,

Abbott

I wore the hat on consecutive nights to large arena rock concerts by a musical group that shall remain nameless

hahahahahajhahahahahaha

OH MAN

hahaha

mr 'fish,

while i do not spend a great deal of time in drinking establishments and pride myself upon knowing where everything is, i understand this particular sort of utilitarian value to texting. i guess i find the enterprise sort of a passive-aggressive half-measure. perhaps this is because i have not approached it in the more direct fashion you suggest.

thank you for the additional optics,
mr 'neb

xp - now that wasn't called for, Mr. Plains

Abbott,

I am glad that you, unlike I, were willing to risk 'haberdashedly.' However, as I too-faintly implied above, I would seek to avoid giving the impression that my opinions and tastes are those of a "modern 'typical guy'," at least of the sort that predominates in our community here; in fact, they are more likely to be anything but.

With concern,
gabbneb

gabbneb,

thank you for introducing me to zabar's, i go there all the time now. if i am a really lousy mood and don't feel like walking very far, i go to E.A.T. and get very expensive $9 matzoh ball soup that completely rules.

i need to try more of the places you mentioned.

ok i also have a question.

why is a premade egg salad sandwich at e.a.t. like $12? is it really special? it looks so normal!

Dearest gabbnebb,

Hence my addendum to my shortly & inadequately conceived phrase. I am well aware that yours are not the tastes & opinions of that nebulous typical 'modern guy.' I know yours are not those of the typical ILXor male. I suppose I meant "tastes of a tasteful man who does not have the tasteful tastes of a typical tasteful ILX man."

Borderline lucidly,

Abbott

Dearest gabbneb,

I have now learned how to properly spell your handle, and with this new era comes a new question: what is your favorite smell?

In curiosity,

Abbott

b_labs,

while i must note that zabar's is the original institution on the west side, and eli's the more recent east side establishment owned by a more entrepreneurial member of the family, i am glad that you find it useful and enjoyable.

you're welcome,
g_neb

p.s. i stopped in at E.A.T. on a recent night when time was short and it was on my route, and was shocked - SHOCKED - at the prices i was forced to spend for my simple picnic food.

bell,

i believe the answer would have something to do with the comparative rent of commercial space on madison and third avenues, and also with the fact that the night i stopped in at E.A.T., my two fellow shoppers were high school age girls, dressed a la mode, who appeared little concerned with cost. the working adults who use Eli's as grocery store would pay about half the price for the same sandwich.

confusing, huh?
gabb

it makes sense. everything on madison is ridiculously expensive, which makes finding lunch around my work difficult. i just wondered if they had a "famous" egg salad or something.

gabbbbbb,

if you will humor me some more...

was it a dmb concert? or phish?

also: what is your favorite opera/symphony/classical work?

go friday!

t

gabbneb: which USA nat'l park (that you have not already been to) would you most like to visit and why?

awwwwwww

as an occasional poster and constant reader, and in the spirit of keeping it positive, i would like to say that ilx would be(/is) a poorer place without either LJ or G-nebb.

my q though:

how many posters has a gabbnebb suggestbanned?

dan m,

that is an excellent question that i have thought about often in the past. there are a great many worthy contenders, but my first instinct/default response is Glacier National Park, because i like mountains v v much, and the glaciers are generally recognized to be in remission. i hope to go there within the next 2-3 summers, perhaps spending several days backpacking. to provide context for my answer, it may help to know that i have already been to yosemite (once), the grand canyon (several times) and the parks of western washington (numerous times), not to mention a number of urban NPS units, including our great national mall, on which i have watched many fireworks.

keep it wild,
neb

Upt0eleven,

I cannot give you a precise number, but would estimate that i have sb'd approximately 1/4 the number that have sb'd me, while cautioning that i may fail to recollect a number of intemperate sb's of the past.

sb'ed

thx. i have sbed maybe five times. three of which were for lol reasons, one of which was for saying Wall-E was overrated, none of which was you. or roxy.

gab (aka ben) you will never be sorry you spent time in Glacier NP. I hope you have glorious weather and there are no big fires burning nearby.

see ya in 24 days, dom

see ya in 12, gabbneb, louis, and ethan

you know what it's called when you don't mean to troll but you're trolling anyway? trolling. you know what's it's called when you're trolling but you think you can get away with it? being a troll.

e-mail me with all your apologies and extensive praise of my mercifulness in the face of all your insipid meta bullshit