It's not that bad, really, but I've reached the point where I'm ready to go home. Busines travel by yourself is rough.Once again, I started my dining day at Tim's, and once again the toasted bagel, banana nut muffin and XL double-double coffee was freakin' excellent for $4. Really, can't we start a petition to bring them to Georgia?
At Midland Asphalt, I got to run two more mixes on the mill. We made, 12,000 gallons of Tack Coat and 9,500 gallons of CRS-2P asphalt emulsion (cationic rapid set - #2 hardness with polymer.) Both runs semed to turn out well and I didn't break any equipment. Running the mill feels very comfortable to me. Using the computer control system and setting percentages and such is squarely inside my comfortable knowledge base. While I still have plenty to learn about the process, I can already see that I will enjoy the job and do it well. Believe me, that's a big relief.
For lunch I went across the street to Athena's Family Restaurant which is, surprise, a Greek place. It really reminded me of a lot of the midsized, family-owned, home cookin' restaurants we have at home. It's just different comfort food. I had the stuffed cabbage special with a cup of split pea soup. The soup was good and thick with lots of flavor without being too salty as is sometimes the case with split pea. The smooth texture and rich flavor is quite a surprise given the scary baby food appearance. Clearly, this stuff didn't come from a can. The stuffed cabbage was two fist-sized meatballs made from savory seasoned ground beef mixed with brown rice, then wrapped with cabbage leaves and cooked with a light tomato gravy. They were even better than they sound, somehow tasting like food I grew up with, although I don't think I've ever eaten it before. The side of slightly lumpy homemade mashed potatos topped with tomato gravy was also great, but the mixed vegetables had seen better days. I'm not sure if they were canned, frozen, or just homeless, but I do know they were inedible. Wrap it all up with a glass of tea and a dinner roll for just under 10 bucks, and I can understand why the place has been busy all week.
For dinner tonight, I set out to find Andersons, another locally famous joint for Beef-On-Weck and milk shakes. I got lost because they had half of buffalo blocked off for a charity marathon of some sort. I ended up within a couple blocks of the Lake Effect Diner and decided to go there instead and try their version of the Buff-town classic. I should have done it sooner. The Kimmelweck (I finally got it right) roll was a work of art. I wish I'd had my camera. A nice high-domed roll crusted with course salt and toasted rye seeds that gleamed like rock sugar and sprinkles was piled with tender roast beef that was sliced slightly thicker than normal and served with a side of fresh horseradish and au jus. I opted to spread on the horse and pour the juice over the beef and top bun before assembly. This makes for one messy sandwich, but more importantly, it was traffic-stopping, jaw-dropping delicious. Of all the Beef-On-Wecks I've had this week, this was miles ahead. The accompanying serving of home fries tasted like i had cubed the tubers and cooked them myself. Since it is, after all, a diner, I added on chocolate malt milkshake to go. Now, I've got a longstanding relationship with the chocalate malted. We go way back. This malt was the best I've ever had, bar none. It wasn't overwhelmingly large, and the chocolate was dark, rich and fudgey, not the limp-wristed, look-I-added-syrup-to-vanilla crap that fast food joints foist off on you as chocolate. Scrum-diddily-umptious, to quote Willy Wonka.
Honestly, if the winters weren't so horrible beyond comprehension, I'd consider moving here just to be on a first name basis with the staff at the Lake Effect. Damn.
Now I'm back at the hotel, mostly packed, printed Delta boarding pass in hand, and I'm ready to wing out of here. I've come to some conclusions about this northern town on the edge of the canals, but you'll have to tune in tomorrow to hear them. Gotta keep you coming back after all....
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