Wahoo! WaHo!

My wallet may be in danger. As well as my arteries.

This new job of mine is creating some crazy changes in my life. It's a 9-5 job, for starters.  The kicker? Nine at night until five in the morning. Sleeping in until 3pm is no longer a luxury,  but necessary,  and I love it. These hours actually allow me to spend time with my dogs and friends, something I have been sorely lacking in the past 6 months. The downside? Work is within 2 minutes of my favorite place to eat, Proof & Provision; next to an Arby's,  and a half a block from a Waffle House- two other restaurants I will go to town at. If I have any weakness, it is food. So having these options so excruciatingly close? It is going to take everything in me to exercise control. Especially as I have already been to the fast food joints a few times in the past week, and P&P once as well... and am intending on going back there tonight (J is coming tonight, I have a good reason GODDAMMIT DON'T JUDGE ME!!!).
If I haven't mentioned it before, P&P is everything I could ever want from a restaurant- great food, incredible cocktails, warm staff, cozy atmosphere, and a flow of clientele that doesn't get crazy-busy until I get to work anyway. I adore it, love it, and cannot recommend it enough. Getting to go back after months of going without was the best treat I could give myself! Nate Shuman,  one of the South's best bartenders and mixologist extraordinaire was there- he has taken care of me since the first time I ever stepped foot in P&P, and getting to catch up with him was a lot of fun. Everyone needs to find a bar like this for themselves... but if you're in the metro Atlanta area,  I guess I can share mine...

Proof & Provision
Open Tuesdays through Saturdays
Dinner Only
(404) 897-1991
Www.proofandprovision.com

Returning to an earlier point, J is coming tonight!!!!!

Through a stroke of serendipity last week, he and I got to spend a day in New York City together (story for another day), and it had been about a month prior to that that I had seen him before,  so I'm feeling pretty spoiled right now, haha! I get the feeling it's going to be a good visit this time, too. I mean, it's usually a good one, but we were talking on the phone the other night and he made a few comments that gave me the idea that this relationship is progressing in a positive way.  Cannot WAIT to see him!!! <3

A Love Note

I have been eating an inordinate amount of grilled cheese lately. It's just a magic fucking sandwich, isn't it? Simplest concept ever- cheese+bread=love. And so many different combinations of cheese and bread! Focaccia and Brie, boule with a mix of gorgonzola and cheddar, rye and Swiss...! Add tomatoes, bacon- who gives a fuck? Still delicious! And it all seems to come from a similar story across America- stuck inside on a crappy, grey winter day, Mom calls you to the kitchen table. Waiting there is a bowl of soup... And an amazing, buttery, slightly burnt grilled cheese sandwich. Simple, classic. I always liked mine with tomato soup. NOT tomato-basil, straight tomato. Don't get me wrong, there is a time and place for tomato-basil soup, it is delish on its own merits. Just don't give me grilled cheese with it. That's a dick move.

Surprisingly enough, if I'm not making it, my favorite grilled cheese comes from Waffle House. It is consistently just like mom used to make (and no, my mother never worked at WaHo). For as much as I love gourmet restaurants and stuff like that, Waffle House holds a special place in my heart. It started off as a joke, and grew into one of my favorite things about Atlanta. Now it's a special place, and I have my own traditions there- I will always order a coffee and a water, with a grilled cheese sandwich and order of hash browns (covered at least, and sometimes capped). It comforts me, and even when I toss my life into periods of upheaval and change, those will always be a grounding factor for me. So here's to you, grilled cheese, and you, WaHo. To wherever life takes me, and your disgustingly tasty American cheese product slices!