Burning the Midnight Oil

After church, I enjoyed a nice lunch with JC and company at Bowl of Pho. This place always makes me  happy. And for some strange reason conversations tend to be about relationships. I don’t know if it’s something in the broth or the atmosphere.

Beef Noodle Soup

Chicken Noodle Soup

Spicy Chicken with Lemongrass

I’ve decided to start bringing my camera along more often. Since I don’t have much time to do any formal practice shoots with models it would be just as fun shooting the little things throughout the day.

Had breakfast with JC at Starbucks before heading to church. It was nice to be relaxed enough to enjoy some coffee and read a newspaper. Plus we were actually at church on time. I guess Hell must’ve frozen over.The sermon was about sexual immorality — and not just with gays and cheating spouses but also sex outside of marriage. In other words… outside of God’s plan. I bet the congregation was a little on edge about this one — myself included. Even more difficult was preaching such a sensitive, highly unpopular topic. I wonder how much hate mail Pastor Brunson is going to get as a result.

This guys sucks.

After service, we met up at one of my favorite restaurants: Bowl of Pho. I must’ve been really hungry as I’d forgotten to take a photo of the food. I did manage to take a snapshot of the strawberry bubble tea though. Unfortunately, it wasn’t nearly as tasty as P18.

We had a very open conversation about some of things that “irked” me about JC. I’m sure she was a little surprised. But I am a firm believer in open and honest communication. Any relationship worth fighting for depends on it. I just hope that she takes whatever was said to heart.

JC and I decided to try out a new restaurant recently opened in the heart of Ponte Vedra Beach. It was a rainy night but I refused to let it damper my spirit. We were both pretty excited about eating somewhere neither of us have tried.

First impressions as we entered the front door was that this place is going to be laid back, yet upscale. A young lady in a red dress greeted us as she opened the door and within minutes we were seated. The table, in my opinion, was too large for just two people and throughout the night I felt I had to yell just to say anything to JC. Plus it was situated right in the middle of the restaurant and in front of where the wait staff came in and out of the kitchen. With all the high traffic from guests and wait staff the only place worse would have been next to the bathroom.

Our waitress was very friendly and smiled often. Overall she was very tentative, but near the end when we were ready to go she had gotten bogged down by a large party at a table adjacent to us. I worried she had forgotten we were there.

The decor was somewhat interesting although I have to confess my preference has always been that modern, clean look. I really thought it was tacky to have the salt and pepper shakers sitting on the table in their original store bought container.

The calamari was quite delish and nicely tendered.

I ordered the grilled garlic salmon. For the most part, it was pretty tasty. Occasionally the garlic was a little overwhelming… but nothing a little rice couldn’t fix. The broccoli looked as plain and unappetizing but it had a surprisingly nice flavor with just a hint of sweetness to keep you interested. JC and I agreed that it was probably the best thing on our plates.

Jen opted for the shrimp and scallops. The shrimps were nice and plump but overcooked — giving it that tough, rubbery texture. The scallops lacked flavor.

I’d say overall on a scale of 0-10 I’d give it a 5.5. JC on the other hand, wasn’t as impressed. She gave it a 4. Karma really wasn’t all that impressive. If anything, it reminded me of a glorified Apple Bee’s — but for rich people.