Mark's blog
Sporadic blog posts on a wide variety of topics, by Racine, Wisconsin web designer Mark Czerniec.(Also check out my weekly entries in Another Week.)
Oatmeal recipe: Steel cut oats ala Alton Brown, ‘Good Eats’
Poet Stanley Kunitz died on Sunday. In one obituary there was a quote from him which began, "The deepest thing I know is that I am living and dying at once ..." At age 45 and counting, I feel the same thing, and that makes it harder to waste time on many of the...
The Bean, Chicago: A shining, elastic success
Chicago's latest centerpiece was was dedicated at last yesterday, after a protracted birth process that saw it re-enter the womb briefly for a final polishing. (The photo above was taken before that, on September 5, 2004.) Cloud Gate, more popularly known as The Bean,...
Josh Rouse: ‘Quiet Town’ music video
The first time I heard Josh Rouse was when "Dressed Up Like Nebraska" was played on the TV show Ed a few years back. It impressed me enough that I Googled the lyrics, determined the artist's name, and bought the song via iTunes. I still love it. More recently, when I...
Abu Musab al-Zarqawi: Mastermind AND numbskull?
Abu Musab al-Zarqawi was in the news again yesterday when Multi-National Force-Iraq released outtakes of his recent propaganda video. Coalition officials held a news conference during which Army Maj. Gen. Rick Lynch ridiculed Zarqawi's weapons-handling skills and...
Creeping Charlie (ground ivy, Glechoma hederacea)
"Every minute I stay in this room I get weaker. And every minute Charlie squats in the bush he gets stronger." — Capt. Benjamin L. Willard in Apocalypse Now (1979) When we moved here at the end of last August, the drought had baked the lawn pretty well, and it...
President Bush: ‘Signing statements’ make him 3 branches in 1
Remember back in school when you were forced to read and recite all that mumbo jumbo about "separation of powers," "checks and balances," and America's "three branches" of government? What a drag, huh? Happily, schoolkids can forget all...
Taqueria Azteca: Milwaukee Mexican restaurant
View Larger Map Taqueria Azteca 119 E Oklahoma Ave Milwaukee, WI 53207 (414) 486-9447 Finding ourselves on Milwaukee's South Side, we decided, based on a Yelp review I had seen, to try Taqueria Azteca at about 4:30 this afternoon — a rainy, windy Sunday. I was looking...
Birding: Backyard birds in Racine, Wisconsin
We have been feeding birds for years, but moving has made a huge difference in the variety of birds that visit us. The apartment in Kenosha was a second-floor flat. We hung feeders outside a couple of windows which attracted mostly House Sparrows and some House...
Main Moon 2: Chinese restaurant in Racine, WI
View Mark Czerniec's Racine & beyond in a larger map Main Moon 2 4915 Washington Ave Suite I Racine, WI 53406 (262) 638-9888 (262) 638-9988 (262) 638-1388 (fax) With two Racine locations, Main Moon serves this city's most popular...
Recipe: Hummus with Tahini (chickpea dip / spread with sesame seed paste)
Hummus, the ubiquitous chickpea dip of Middle Eastern restaurants (also spelled houmous, hommus, hummous, humus, or homus), is available pre-made in small plastic tubs at Jewel, but it's very easy to make your own at home. We buy the tahini at Tenuta's; they carry the...
Honada Sushi & Hibachi restaurant (Kenosha, Wisconsin)
Honada Sushi & Hibachi 8501 75th St Suite G Kenosha, WI 53142 (262) 697-5228 Wonderful sushi in Kenosha? Kenosha, Wisconsin, the city of tattoos, taverns and pizza parlors? It doesn't seem possible, and yet here it is at Honada. [includeme...
Charlie Beinlich’s Food & Tap (Northbrook, IL restaurant)
View Larger Map Charlie Beinlich's Food & Tap 290 Skokie Blvd Northbrook, IL 60062 (847) 564-9328 Great hamburgers in a great room since 1950. Charlie Beinlich's (charliebeinlichs.com) is a family-run place with knotty pine paneling and mounted trout on the wall....
Barney’s Memphis Style Ribs restaurant (Racine, WI)
Barney's Memphis Style Ribs 2920 Taylor Ave Racine, WI 53405 (262) 636-0051 Update: Barney's Memphis Style Ribs closed in November 2006 and was replaced in March 2007 by Teddy & Vic's Pig n' Out Barbecue. The Pig n' Out menu looks similar (right down to "The...
Tenuta’s Delicatessen & Liquors: Italian deli in Kenosha, WI
Tenuta's Delicatessen & Liquors 3203 52nd St Kenosha, WI 53144 (262) 657-9001 Tenuta's (TenutasDeli.com) is the best thing in Kenosha, Wisconsin. I say this as someone who lived in K-Town for 43 years. It's the number one...
Houmann’s Fish & Seafood (Racine, Wisconsin)
Houmann's Fish & Seafood 1026 Liberty St Racine, WI 53404 (262) 633-2477 Update: The Houmann's retail store described here CLOSED (at least for the time being) on October 7, 2006. Empire Fish in Milwaukee is one excellent alternative. [includeme...
Racine Produce: Mexican grocery in Racine, WI
Racine Produce 3701 Durand Ave Racine, WI 53405 (262) 554-5100 Update: Racine Produce is closed Racine Produce closed in October, 2009. See the Journal Times for more information. For a good selection of reasonably-priced produce, try Kenosha Fresh Market. [includeme...
Food Folks & Spokes in Kenosha: Superweek pro cycling race
Note: This blog post was made during the 1995 SuperWeek Pro Tour. For a more current listing of SuperWeek stages, see my Calendar of Events & Festivals. The past couple of weekends, we've been following the International Cycling Classic, commonly known as...
Kenosha HarborMarket: Farmer’s market on the lakefront
Last Saturday — and then again today — we visited the Kenosha's HarborMarket. My dad used to take me to Kenosha's Farmer's Markets when I was a kid. He made the best dill pickles I have ever tasted. We would go to the grocery store to get the vinegar, the salt, the...
Steve Jobs commencement address wins me away from Windows
At exactly the right time, Steve Jobs has turned me away from the Dark Side. I have been agonizing over a laptop purchase for several months now. My first "real" personal computer (after the Interact I helped manufacture here in...
Memorial Day weekend up north
We spent the weekend visiting family up north. You can see an antonishing mess of stars in the sky up there. You can also find a hell of a lot of ticks crawling on you after a short walk. It is not the wilderness. America's franchise/sprawl culture is sprouting its...
The New Mastersounds at Subterranean in Chicago
It's hard for me to find any new music to get excited about these days. The last band that really impressed me was The White Stripes, and they're venerable veterans now. Before that, Lucinda Williams' Car Wheels on a Gravel Road blew me away. That was seven years ago....