My quest to be selected for Check Please!

This show doesn't exist in San Diego, but there's a terrific public access show in San Francisco (and Chicago, where it originated) called Check Please! I really want an opportunity to sit around the table of foodies and profess my love for one of the greatest Mexican food joints in the city, El Farolito. I was told to write an opus and explain why I think I should be invited in to gush about 'em, and here's what I came up with. Wish me luck!

"Growing up in the wacky suburbs of San Diego, California... consuming Mexican food was as natural as breathing in oxygen, running with scissors, and punching girls on the playground as a sign of affection. Quality Mexican grub flows through the streets of San Diego County like hot candle wax off of Ricky Martin's bare chest. It's so abundant, in fact, that you almost become annoyed at the over-saturation and plead for some fancy tapas joint or a place with truffle oil popcorn to swoop in and take it's place. As the old saying goes, "You better be careful what you ask for, because you just might get it."

Once moving 700 miles north to San Francisco, it quickly dawned on me that I'd gotten that fateful wish. The greasy drive-thrus and 24-hour comfort food that I'd grown accustomed to was replaced by $12 baskets of French Fries and restaurants with single-syllable names. While I love everything about this city otherwise, the lack of quality Mexican food was almost enough to make me want to rent the strongest burro I could find, wrap myself in a Spongebob Snuggie, and hightail it back to Southern California.

Failed attempt after failed attempt to find a comparable Mexican food experience was as fruitless as trusting yet another Nigerian banker with full access to my checking account and expecting a wire-transfer of $13 million the following morning. Broke, hopeless and a credit score of less than 130 later... I settled with the sad reality that Baja Fresh and Chipotle was as good as I was going to get. That is, until I experienced the magic that is El Farolito.

The timing with which El Farolito entered my life must be akin to the moment when Jack Kerouac decided to pack his bags and hit the road. It was an epiphany, almost as though a higher power lifted me out of my funk and dropped me into a bench seat, 30-paces north of the 24th and Mission BART station. Once again, Mexican food was mine!

El Farolito is the Real Deal Holyfield, as the kids say these days. The same Baja-style eats you'd come to expect from the streets of Tijuana and Rosarito, without the sinking suspicion that your pollo asado burrito might actually be made with meat from a Lhasa Apso. From their Super Quesadillas to their al pastor burritos, the nosh they sling from the grills at El Farolito are as good, if not better, than what I was used to in the Mexican food mecca of San Diego. I tried counting on my fingers and toes how many times I thought about leaving work this afternoon to masticate with my calienté compadres at El Farolito, but I ran out of room. Either it crossed my mind more than 20 times, or I lost a digit somewhere between now and fighting for a spot on the MUNI during a torrential downpour.

I doubted it could ever happen, but if anyone tries to tell you that quality sustenance from south of the border doesn't exist in the 415, they clearly haven't been to the corner of 24th and Mission. To paraphrase the great Ice Cube, the flavor of their food runs so deep, 'It'll put yo' ass to sleep.'"

Whoa, it's 2010?

Well, I suppose it's not quite 2010 in these here United States yet, but other countries like Australia have already ushered in a new decade. I don't think you can ever prepare for a momentous flip of the calendar like the one we're embarking on soon, but every 10 years it's pretty normal to reflect on what exactly you've done and accomplished over the past 3,650 days.

If you rewind to the early hours of the 21st century, it's pretty comical to think an entire world populous was concerned about computers running rampant at 12:00:01 a.m. the morning of January 1st, 2000, only to realize that not only was that theory bunk, but we had way heavier affairs to worry about not-too-far down the road. Namely, the mental shift of terrorism awareness after the tragic morning of September 11th, 2001. Kinda makes that Y2K thing seem pretty silly, huh? Personally, I was working my dream job as an intern at 91X when I ran into the adjacent KOGO news room to confirm/deny an inquiry I'd received on the request line when a listener needed confirmation that a plane had struck the World Trade Center. Upon entering the newsroom, I peeled my peeps to the 20-some-odd TVs that lined the perimeter, and saw that second plane strike the neighboring tower. Clearly, two planes crashing into the symbolic center of our nation's economic prowess was more than just a freak incident, it was history unfolding in front of my eyes. The next few days, weeks and months were filled with sorrow, intrigue, and unwavering pride like I've never seen or felt before. But like most things in American culture, unity was a passing fancy. Though that incident has forever changed the lives of every man, woman or child that was around to soak it all in, our focus today is arguably as lackadaisical as it was on September 10th, 2001... but chalk it up to distractions like YouTube, the emergence of Google, the iPhone, iPod, the iBrator (tech-savvy sexual device), and of course, Hot Chicks with Douchebags (dot com).

Personally, I entered the decade at the ripe age of 17, and if my mathematics are correct, I'm exiting as a 27 year old "man." Funny, because I don't necessarily feel any different than I did as a high school graduate, I've just had 10 years to experience love, anger, fear, laughter and every other emotion that has shaped me into the chap that I am today. I was never one for being angry, and fear is for the birds... so I applied my consciousness to detect and exploit love and laughter. I may not be the CEO of a company, and I may not have the rugged good looks of that kid with the nice hair from the Twilight series, but damned if I haven't had an incredible ride that I wouldn't trade for the world.

I've had three serious girlfriends over the course of the past decade, and each of them couldn't have been any different. One was smokin' hot, but completely crazy (let's hope she's not one of the 9 people that end up reading my blog), another was beautiful and exactly what I needed and wanted in the point-and-time in which I met her, and the last one is now my gorgeous fiancé and my entire world, though the jury is out on whether she's as in love with me as I am with her. That's just the way I am, though. I fall hard and fast when it's the right one... so let's hope my gut wasn't wrong about the woman I'll soon be calling my wife. If history is any indicator, I'm pretty confident my instincts won't steer me wrong.

I've had a host of jobs throughout this decade, but one clearly stands out as the most defining 7.5 years of my life. It wasn't my gig as a pedi-cab operator in the Gaslamp or my stint as a balloon twister for children's birthday parties around San Diego County, but my bittersweet career as the morning show producer and "sports guy" at San Diego's 91X. I can't imagine a day when I don't look back on my experience working there and realize that it has single-handedly shaped me into the human being I am today. Of course family and friends come into play, but surrounding myself with the diverse array of people that made this radio station so special opened my mind to everything from new musical horizons to political alignments. Growing up in Fallbrook, CA (avocado capital of the world) wasn't exactly the fast track to a broad world view, but moving 50 minutes south to my first apartment in Bankers Hill and devoting every waking minute of my free time to this station proved to be as fruitful as any investment I've ever made. In fact, there's probably no possible way I could see myself working for a company like Yelp if it wasn't for the life lessons I obtained working for 91X. Many of the people that made my time there so magical are no-longer employed, and it breaks my heart that their parent company is now so broke that it's being put up for auction next week, but being court side for corporate fire sales, personnel changes, technological advances, et al., forced me to adapt quickly and roll with the punches. If it wasn't for my personal quest to have fun in every situation life threw at me, I don't think there's any way I could have survived it all. It's a revelation when I look back on the last 10 years, because one personal mantra has been my foolproof way of evolving, surviving, growing, and at this moment in time, thriving in a city like San Francisco... and it's having fun, no matter the situation. If you wake up with a smile on your face and you're able to carry that energy into everything you encounter day-to-day, month-to-month and year-to-year, the stars seem to align and bless you with a plethora of wonderful opportunities. Be it relationships, the occasional free drink bought for you by a stranger in a dingy dive bar, or the job of your dreams. Stay positive and upbeat, and your world is likely to take a similar path.

One of the most profound things I look back on is where I am now, as opposed to where I was then. Then, attending Fallbrook High School with aspirations of becoming a chef, believe it or not, to now plugging away at a MacBook Pro in my NOPA apartment in San Francisco. At that time, who'd have thought a Macintosh computer would be useful for anything but playing Oregon Trail at the public library? Surely not me, but that's what 10 years will do. Additionally, who'd have thought I'd be one of the lucky ones to escape the bubble of small town suburbia in my hometown, only to be settling down in one of the greatest cities in the entire world? 17 year old me could have never predicted this, so it speaks volumes to embracing the unknown and throwing caution to the wind. Any risk is worth taking, because no matter the outcome, personal growth will have been achieved.

17 year old me had 6 "best friends" that I couldn't imagine living life without. 10 years later, I only remain friends with one of them, and I was fortunate enough to have been the officiant of his wedding back in October. Time and experience surely grants you one thing: a precise social filter. As you grow, you learn to cut the fat, no matter where it comes from. Right now, I've got some of the leanest cuts of meats I could possibly ask for. Amazing friends that I know I'll have for life, a refined palate, a better understanding of beers, wines, women (I think), The Jonas Brothers, and more. In another year, I'll likely have trimmed more fat, and by the age of 40, I'd be surprised if I had but a small bite of vegetarian roast beef left to cherish deeply in my heart.

Obviously, being an adult requires a significant amount of forward thinking, but I try to live life day-to-day as it comes. There's no need to worry about what I'll do tomorrow if I end up getting shot tonight by the friendly fire of a wayward bullet from the gun of a New Years reveler. I believe it was Ghandi (don't take it to the bank) that said, "The past has already happened, and the future is not yet here - the only time is now." I try to take that to heart, and if I can give advice to anyone other than my mom who may, or may not ever read this posting... it's to have a helluvah time enjoying this crazy timeline we call life. If I were to go down today, as I lie on the floor suffering and as I doggie paddle my way to whatever light exists on the other side of this physical body, I'll know I had a great run at conquering this rock situated some 384,403 kilometers from the moon.

Here's to a healthy and fun-filled new decade, bursting at the seams with discovery and rolls of the dice. I promise if you continue checking in, it won't be nearly as boring as hearing me babble on-and-on about my journey into early-adulthood... it'll be more akin to discussing Lindsay Lohan's latest brush with public indecency and the trials and tribulations of that lovable Jon Gosselin and his collection of shiny Affliction tee-shirts. Now if you'll excuse me, I have some Tiger Woods news to catch up on, alongside a dollop of TMZ and maybe some Keyboard Cat courtesy of our fine friends at YouTube.

Happy new year!