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Zip’s Thursday Rundown

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Just two weeks until Halloween Eve. You know what that means? Halloween is on a Friday this year…yay! Let’s jump right into the latest Thursday Rundown…

In-Laws In Town – Sidney’s parents arrived in Spokane yesterday! Coincidentally, they arrived on Oct. 15 exactly five years ago as well. As with that trip and the other times they have visited us over the past half decade, I know their time here will be marked by memories and fun. Autumn in Spokane is awesome and it is also pretty spectacular in Missoula as well—yes, we will be taking them to Montana over the next couple days. Let the good times roll!

My in-laws visited me on campus today! So glad to have them here.

Zip’s Shakes – This past Friday, I took Sloan and Beau for milkshakes at Zip’s. Sloan ordered a caramel shake and Beau ordered a banana one. This shake stop was right before I dropped them off at my sister’s house for the weekend so Sid and I could attend our retreat. Much in the same way that there isn’t anything more American than milkshakes on a Friday, there isn’t anything more “Spokane” than milkshakes at Zip’s on a Friday. An absolute fast food institution in the Inland Northwest, Zip’s is what Cookout is in the South.

Sloan and Beau drinking milkshakes at the Zip’s in Mead.

Andy Dufrense – Happy birthday to Tim Robbins! He turns 67 today. To be honest, I haven’t seen a lot of movies with Tim Robbins, but he does star in one of the few movies I can watch over and over. I have watched “The Shawshank Redemption” probably 30 times and I still get a kick out of it when Andy saves himself from a beating and wins his fellow inmates beers when he offers tax advice to the top prison guard.

Tim Robbins does a great job portraying Andy Dufrense in “The Shawshank Redemption.”

First Reaction to Taylor’s New Album – Thanks to my wife, I have listened to the new Taylor Swift album non-stop for the past several days. My initial reaction? It will have to grow on me. “The Fate of Ophelia” is catchy but I am not sold on much else. I am also completely turned off by her more explicit lyrics. I liked it more when Sloan could listen along.

Not too impressed with Taylor Swift’s new album.

Pumpkin – Although I think our country’s obsession with “pumpkin” has gotten a little out of control, I am still a fan of the flavor. In October 2016, I ranked my top five favorite pumpkin-inspired items. This is how the countdown went: 5. Pumpkin beer | 4. Pumpkin soup | 3. Pumpkin frozen yogurt | 2. Pumpkin dip | 1. …..you wish I would tell you, right? If you want to know my top pumpkin item, you will need to go back in time nine years to reference my post. Yep, you just said “trick-or-treat” and I gave you the treat.

I like a lot of pumpkin-flavored food/beverage items. Yikes, I might have just given away my favorite.

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Time to get back to my in-laws. Hope everyone has a terrific weekend—I can’t wait for mine to begin! Don’t Blink.

Corn Dog Innovation

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On Saturday, I was all over the place. Both kids had sporting events, I dropped Sloan off at a baby shower that Sid was hosting, I attended a work event, and more. At one point in the middle of the day, it was just Beau and me in the car. I was taking him to his t-ball game where before he played there was an entire hour allotted for team photos. With it being midday, I figured we both needed a little bit of nourishment before we spent a couple hours at the fields on an unseasonably warm April day.

I made the executive decision to order us a couple corn dogs from Zip’s. If you aren’t from the Inland Northwest and are unfamiliar with Zip’s, all I can say is this: I feel sorry for you.

But even if you have never had the pleasure of dining at Zip’s, I know everyone reading this blog post can appreciate the magic of eating a corn dog. About 6.5 years ago, I wrote an ode to corn dogs. I recognized the culinary delight for its taste, ingenuity, and convenience. However, I did briefly grumble about the only drawback I could pinpoint…

The stick.

When Beau and I ate our corn dogs this past weekend, the limitation hit me once again. In fact, I took a photo of my corn dog the moment the thought struck me.

After I took one bite I knew I was already close to the stick. I thought, “There has to be a better way.”

Sorry, but the stick on a corn dog is pretty annoying. For most corn dog consumers, you just get two bites—perhaps just one—before you have to start navigating the stick. Once it is poking out, you have to put the stick in your mouth to continue eating the corn dog and hope that it doesn’t poke the roof of your mouth.

Sloan eating a corn dog in 2018.

The thing is, the stick does serve a purpose. What partially (or perhaps mostly) makes a corn dog so good is its grease. If a corn dog was stick-less, your hands would be a greasy, oily mess…unless of course you violated the entire essence of what makes a corn dog special and ate it with a fork. And you call yourself a corn dog fan?

So I would like to propose a solution tonight. What does the world feel about creating a corn dog with an edible stick? Just imagine: No longer would you have to navigate around a stick. Instead, you would have the freedom of eating the corn dog one chomp at a time in perfect symmetry as you begin at the top and enjoy all the way down.

I know this would take some thought and culinary technology but it can’t be that hard, could it? If ice cream has a cone and taco salad has a shell, something could be paired with a corn dog, right? The stick could be meat-based, perhaps made with the same durability/consistency of jerky. Or what about a hard, thin bread stick?

Okay, I am asking a lot of questions. Here is where I ask my readers for help. If you are supportive of an edible corn dog stick, how could it be pulled off?

An edible corn dog stick wouldn’t just make the eating experience more pleasant. It would also cut down on waste and eliminate the problem of children sword fighting with sharp sticks. Are you with me?! Don’t Blink.

Pre-Easter Rundown

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Good evening to all. I hope you have had a blessed Holy Week thus far. Let’s get going with tonight’s five topics…

Easter Bunny Beau – The beyond cute holiday photos keep coming from Beau’s daycare. Recently they threw some bunny ears on his head and snapped this. We are definitely cherishing the images from all the festive photo shoots that Beau’s teachers are staging.

It’s Beau the Easter Bunny!

Spring Break Tradition – Last year, I wrote about a Spring Break tradition my mom instituted that I revived with Sloan. Growing up, we didn’t go on crazy trips during our week off but my mom would take each of us kids out individually for a nice lunch with her. Sloan is currently on Spring Break and yesterday we engaged in the tradition for the second consecutive year at the exact same spot—Zips’s!

Sloan eating a hamburger at the Zip’s location on Trent in Spokane Valley.

Happy 406 Day – Today is April 6 and that means Montanans are celebrating 406 Day. Although I lived in Montana for 8 years, I never had a personal phone number with the state’s only area code. But I think that is for good reason. As I mentioned in a blog post last year, I don’t think I ever fit in while living in the Big Sky State. Although I loved my time there, I lacked the toughness and resourcefulness that is innate in so many of the people who were born and raised there. Happy 406 Day to all my Montana friends!

Montana is a beautiful place. Happy 406 Day, everyone!

Easter Egg Hunt Planning – For those parents who will be taking their children to Easter egg hunts this weekend, I offer some advice. If you are able to do research ahead of time, see if the hunt(s) you plan to attend offer eggs with candy inside OR if kids simply pick up empty plastic eggs and exchange them for a bag of candy at the end. Last year, I wrote about the problematic latter model which I coined a “participation trophy” hunt. Happy hunting!

Beau hunting for empty eggs. I would have a disappointed face too.

Throwback Feature – I came across this photo of my brother and I which caused me to spend way too much time trying to figure out why we are holding up the fingers that we are. Are we each expressing a number unique to us or are we combining the digits we are holding up (14) to express something else? I simply don’t know. But I did think showing a photo of when I was still considerably taller than my brother would be cool.

Back when we were young. I don’t understand the fingers we were holding up.

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Thanks for dropping in tonight. As we conclude Holy Thursday and venture into Good Friday, let’s prepare ourselves to truly celebrate Easter on Sunday. Don’t Blink.

Pillow Calculation Thursday Rundown

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We have reached the final Thursday Rundown of February. Next week it will be March and that means Spring will be here, right? On that sarcastic note, let’s get to tonight’s five topics…

Ham Bingo – We love bingo. We played turkey bingo in November and we played taco bingo earlier this month as a fundraiser for Sloan’s school. So it goes without saying that we naturally jumped at the chance to play ham bingo this past weekend. My Knights of Columbus council staged the Mardi Gras-themed event. The idea was to have one last hurrah before Lent and allow people to win hams that they could save for Easter. Although Sloan and I didn’t win a ham, we sure had fun eating gumbo, wearing Mardi Gras beads/masks, and hanging with our St. Mary community.

Sloan and I at the Mardi Gras-themed Ham Bingo at St. Mary Catholic Church in the Spokane Valley on Feb. 19, 2023.

Picture of the Week – I mentioned earlier this week that we attended a Whitworth basketball game. Even though I snapped a lot of cool mascot photos, the image below was my favorite from the evening. Sloan, Beau, and their two cousins stood at perfect attention for the national anthem. It made my dad’s heart melt to see his four grandchildren displaying such respect for the country.

Although you can’t quite see Johnny, you can see Beau, Sloan, and Mik focusing all their attention and respect on the national anthem.

Mascot Phobia – Let me use the Whitworth basketball game for one final springboard topic. The mascot birthday party is a dream come true for many children but it is also a nightmare for others. When I worked in the University of Montana athletic department, one of the responsibilities I held was mascot coordinator. Parents would desperately reach out to me and convey that their child was petrified of Monte. On this date 9 years ago, I wrote about how we approached this problem and helped kids overcome their fear.

It’s true; not everyone liked these cute bears.

Pillow Calculation – Let me thank my friend Lindsi for the below rule of thumb. However, I would argue this relates primarily to women. As a dude, I still need just a single, no-frills pillow to sleep soundly. Sidney? You could probably take that formula and add five to it.

How do you feel about this calculation?

Mardi Gras Treat – Let’s end on a sweet note! We celebrated Fat Tuesday by making an ice cream run to Zip’s, a Spokane fast food staple. The kids each got a swirl ice cream cone, Sid got an Oreo Hurricane (the Zip’s version of a Dairy Queen Blizzard), and I ordered a butterscotch milkshake for myself. Beau came with me to place the order and before we brought the goods back to the girls, I took this picture of him admiring our purchase.

Beau admiring our ice cream from Zip’s.

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I am calling it a night. Thanks for your support and I hope you have a fabulous weekend. Don’t Blink.

A Spring Break Tradition

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Thank goodness Sloan is on Spring Break. I was concerned for her. As a pre-schooler who attends class three times per week and puts in grueling half days, you just hope she doesn’t get burned out. This week of R&R couldn’t come at a better time.

Excuse my sarcasm. I actually think it is cute she gets to take a Spring Break with the K-8 students at St. Mary. We are trying to frame her Spring Break, rather she really earned it or not, as an award and milestone in her school year. As she starts going to school full time next year and for the ensuing years after that, we do want her to enjoy and recharge during her Spring Breaks.

Over the weekend, I found myself thinking about what Spring Break was like for me when I was in elementary school. I remember a lot of wiffle ball, computer games, and Blockbuster videos. I also remember something that my mom would do. Throughout the course of the week, my mom would take each of us three kids out to lunch individually. We would get to choose the restaurant and have a nice one-on-one meal with mom. I can recall Taco Bell and Senor Froggy both being destinations of my choosing.

I work remotely most of the week and that held true yesterday. When noon came around, I asked Sloan “McDonald’s or Zips?” She was a little surprised. It’s not like we go on a bunch of one-on-one lunch dates in general. Furthermore, I seldom ever leave the house during my break when working from home. But I was channeling my inner-Mary Reser.

Sloan chose Zips and off we went to the Inland Northwest’s favorite burger fast food joint. We ordered for dine-in and I sat down with Sloan as she ate a cheeseburger, sipped root beer, and suffered a brain freeze as she tried to eat an ice cream cone so big it had to be placed in a fountain drink paper cup. Sloan enjoyed the unexpected treat and I savored the company of my 5-year-old. It isn’t very often that I get to break up my workday like that.

Sloan eating her cheeseburger at the Zip’s on Trent in the Spokane Valley.

I told Sloan that I was taking her out because it was her Spring Break, just like my mom would do for me. I hope to make this an annual tradition for Sloan and, eventually, Beau too. Don’t Blink.