An Evening at the Opera

Gioachino Rossini via wiki

Unimaginably incredible.

Truly, that is the best description my brain can come up with.

Attending an opera is something I've wanted to do for a long time. It has always seemed like something very few people have the opportunity to do. How many people do you run into that say, 'I'm thinking about catching an opera this weekend. Want to come?' Pretty much never, unless you and I are living very different lives. Operas are something that have existed in works of fiction and the past, in my mind; movies, books, tv, centuries old entertainment. This weekend it became a reality thanks to L and her appreciation for adventure and culture.

The adventure started with dj L providing an EDM fueled 2 hour drive to Kansas City, Missouri, The City of Fountains. Almost constantly on repeat was Concrete Angel and Eyes, because they're amazing songs.

Upon arrival in KC, it was a quick change into our opera finest. I was in navy with The Thunder around my neck. L was stunning, (as she always manages to be) in an LBD. There was a vote taken regarding dresses and shoes, and I must say, I have good taste based on the number of compliments she received from women. From the 9ish year old on the elevator who said (to the best of my memory), "you're really pretty" to the ladies at dinner and then the opera.

 The Webster House via KC Crossroads

For our dinning pleasure, we headed to The Webster House. If you are going to see an opera or symphony or anything at The Kauffman Center in KC, GO TO THIS PLACE. First, it really is a beautiful old school house in the heart of Kansas City. Second, the downstairs is an antique, gift, and interior design shop that I would have enjoyed perusing if we had a bit more time. The restaurant is on the second floor. The kitchen is on display for all to see at the rear of the largest dining room with smaller rooms off to the sides. We were in one of the smaller rooms. The setting was very comfortable. It seemed they had all the tables arranged to not have anyone being forced to look at someone at another table. It really felt as if we were dining in someone's home. L had the Pan Seared Salmon accompanied by grilled leek, fingerling potato, tarragon and three mustard sauce. I couldn't pass up the Grilled Beef Tenderloin with mashed potato, mushroom ragu, foi truffle butter and port wine sauce. Amazing. Both dishes were amazing.

Also, this needs its own paragraph, our server was amazing. The odd mix between there whenever you need them but not there too much, she had it. The ability to be involved in the meal but not being a 3rd person with us. Providing personal bits of information on the dishes that isn't just some overly worded preplanned response. Trouble is, I don't remember her name. She even gave us an update on the time. I didn't ask her to, I completely even forgot to mention to her that we were going to the opera. I think she actually took note of it right at the beginning of dinner and made sure we wouldn't be late. Great job.

via The Kauffman Center

The Kauffman Center was a block from The Webster House. Like I said, perfect location. As we entered, I think L and I both mustered up something as descriptive as, WOW. Wait, let me back up. Earlier in the evening, L and I had a conversation about what people would be wearing. The Kauffman Center doesn't have a dress code. They say, come in what is comfortable. Now, comfortable has many different meanings. We wondered, will people be in jeans? Maybe. Full on ball gowns? Most certainly. Flip flops? Surely not. More on this latter. As we formed up with the other spectators outside the building, everyone looked amazing. I find a certain enjoyment being dressed up and around others that are also dressed up. It isn't often I see men in tuxes (ones they OWN) and women in ball gowns. And by, isn't often, I pretty much mean never. Everyone around us looked great. It added a sense of excitement. I believe it is a sign of respect and appreciation for the event. Let's face it, most nice clothes aren't as comfy as pajamas. So, if you are willing to go through the trouble of dressing up, you must have some level of interest and caring in what you are attending. As we are walking in, I am admiring what people are wearing, and L is seeing the posters for other performances, making a list of what we are to see next.

Brandmeyer Great Hall via The Kauffman Center

We enter into the Brandmeyer Great Hall. What an incredible space. It functions as the lobby of the two venues in The Kauffman Center. Operas take place in Muriel Kauffman Theatre and symphonies are housed in Helzberg Hall. We are then ushered into the theatre.

My picture doesn't do the place justice.

We took our seats, orchestra section, row P, seats 107 and 108. I don't think there is a bad seat in the house. We were slightly left of center and much closer than I was expecting. It really is amazing how so many people can actually be so close to the stage. We marveled at the people and sights around us. We could see peeks of the orchestra down in the pit. The orchestra began to quietly tune, the last few seats were filled, people settled into their chairs, the lights went down and the orchestra opened with a roar of room filling sound. L and I were both completely amazed. Maybe me more than her but our smiles said it was incredible. I thought, how is it possible for those people to be playing down in that hole and the sound seeming as if it is all around me. I would like to know what the song was. I have heard it before and I bet you have too. The orchestra lulled, the curtain went up, the stage lights lit up shinning upon, the opening night of The Barber of Seville by Gioachino Rossini. And I will say that Figaro is one singing barber!

How can one person, standing on a stage, with an orchestra playing, fill a huge space with so much sound? I have no idea. The balance between the orchestra and the singers was perfect. And those singers were so very impressive. They managed to sing and perform a production in Italian yet translate all of their words into actions and emotions that, even I, was able to understand. For those worried about not understanding, Muriel Kauffman Theatre is there to help you. They have what is called, The Figaro Simultext system. On the seat-back in front of you is a small screen that displays a translation of what is being sung or said. You could turn it on or off and the screens had a special filter so you could only see yours and not be distracted by your neighbor's. I turned mine on and was using it at the beginning, but found myself using it less and less as I was sucked into the performance. L probably only looked at it once and was also able to follow the story perfectly. It really is a good idea, so don't worry about the language. You'll understand the story, or you can read the dialog. Towards the end of the first act was my favorite scene of the whole opera. After a lot of discussion, and causing a lot of commotion, the police arrived. Things went down hill from there and an all out brawl started. This was done in slow motion and even the skeleton was in on the action. All of the audience was laughing and the entire stage was covered in humorous occurrences. Everywhere you looked there was a new bit of comedy. And with that, act I was at an end, and my bladder was really happy.

 Woodley as Basilio (top) and Burdette as Bartolo via The Kansas City Star

Act II was much shorter. Yet my favorite singer had considerable performance time. Don Basilio, played by Arthur Woodley, is a wicked man that is trying to see to it Rosina marries the wrong man. He had such an incredible voice. He sang with such power I think he shook the theatre. When he first opened up, L and I looked at each other, astonished. I'm still not sure if these people are real people or some sort of singing robots. When the curtain closed, I wanted more. I think I could have listened for another 3 hours if they would have asked us to stay so they could perform again.

As we left, L and I noticed a few things. Remember when I was telling you about the dress code? L nudged me and did a discreet point and head nod. Yep, sure enough, jeans and FLIPPY FLOPPIES. You see it all, because right in front of those people was a man in a tux and a woman in a ball gown.

The next morning we had brunch on The Plaza at Gram and Dun. I recommend trying the place out. Very delicious and also a great staff.

And that was our evening at the opera. Completely impressed by everything and a life experience I'll never forget. L and I will be back, we'll be looking to see you there.

The Greatest Chili in the World

Welcome to my kitchen! I actually believe I really do make the best chili I've ever tasted and I thought it was about time I share with you guys.

This is cooked in a crockpot and I'm not ashamed of that. Also, I use canned beans and tomatoes and frozen corn. Yes, corn. I know some of my readers are more into freshness than I am so substitute time and hard work as you please. I'm a single guy and this is how I do it.

I have to give a shoutout to Bin (interesting spelling) at Panera for the free coffee. I went in to buy a cup for this endeavor and he said, "This one's on the house." SCORE.

Matt&Kim's Sidewalks is the musical selection while we make magic.

I use about a pound of ground meat. I say meat because usually this is venison but I'm out. Today is beef from our farm or my great uncles farm, who knows. Start browning this first. My herbivore readers, I bet it is just as delicious without the meat, but I eat meat.

Once you have that going, wash your veggies. Red bell pepper, green bell pepper, 2 jalapenos, the biggest onion you can find, and a whole garlic bulb. You don't have to wash the onion or the garlic, at least I don't. Start cutting! (don't forget the browning meat, it's probably done and you don't want to over cook it)

The meat is now draining with a little help of cast iron.

I don't bother cutting stuff up too small. I like seeing what I'm taking a bite of. It also gives a varying texture in the finished product.

Same goes for the jalapenos, I don't think it is nice to surprise a person's tongue that doesn't like spice. This stuff will get spicy enough without sneak attacks.

All this stuff is going straight into the crockpot. On a side note let's make a deal; I'll be happy to cut onions for you but don't expect it to be pretty. Lets just say some pieces are bigger than others.

Now, peel and crush and mince that whole garlic bulb. Not just a clove, the whole dang thing. I find it easier to peel the cloves if i kind of crush them a bit first.

I don't have a bunch of little dishes like the cooking shows so you'll have to be satisfied with a shot or two of me measuring the spices, but I won't leave out any secrets.

Here is all the delicious spices.

4 teaspoons chili powder, 1 teaspoon dried basil, 2 teaspoons cumin, 1 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper, 2 teaspoons oregano, 2 teaspoons cilantro. Now I'm not what you would call exact in these measurements. In actuality there is probably more in there than what I listed.

At this point I usually start the crockpot crocking.

Bean time!

30 ounces of chili beans, 15 ounces black beans, and 15 ounces dark red kidney beans. I drain these and kind of rinse them. You don't want to rinse out too much of the deliciousness of the chili beans. I use the different types of beans to make it look more interesting. I found most chilies to look boring. Varying the bean types and the different color peppers helps this.

Musical sidebar: I listened to Sidewalks twice, it's a really good album. Also, listened to some Peggy Sue thanks to @naurnie. I find myself liking it the more I listen.

Now, dump all those tomatoes in there!

30 ounces diced tomatoes, 24ish ounces tomato sauce. That picture really doesn't make it look very good, does it?

Ok, stuff is about to get real. It is time for Da Bomb. Seriously for realzz this stuff is da bomb Da Bomb. It is crazy hot but full of so much *flavor* it is insane! Dip a toothpick in this stuff and touch, just touch the tip of the toothpick don't lick it, to your tongue and it will light you up! A quarter to a half teaspoon of this stuff for 5 quarts of chili. This is powerful stuff that you don't joke around with. Today, I'm splitting the difference because I'll probably be the only one eating this but might take some to the cabin this weekend for deer season. Not sure if everyone there will be down for a runny nose and a steaming tongue. For me, this amount of spice is just enough to make me breathe heavy but at the same time doesn't slow me down eating.

Don't forget to put the meat in there.

And you can't forget the 3ish cups of corn! I use frozen corn for this. Most of the time I wait to put it in. Let it crock for a few hours and then put in the corn just long enough for it to heat up. Given my current time constraints for this batch it is going in now. This is another item added for interest. It brightens the bowl and also adds some pop as you chew.

Last item and it is crazy to most people. Brown sugar, just like a young girl should. (thanks, Mick and Keith) I usually let the amount mirror the amount of Da Bomb but in terms of cups not teaspoons.

Now, get in there and stir it up!

Yep, it is supposed to seem that dry. Don't add any extra liquid. Your juices will start to come out of the veggies as it crocks. It will be thick when it is finished, but who wants to drink chili? You should be able to EAT it.

It will take a minimum of 4 hours on high to crock. Normally, I start it right as I leave for work and let it crock on low all day, 9 hours or so. It's done once the veggies are cooked. I like it better when I make it over the weekend so I can turn it off while the veggies are still a bit firm. However, it is so hard to smell it all day and not get into it.

Enjoy!

To recap:

12 ounces ground beef/venison

1 big honkin' onion

1 green pepper

1 red pepper

2 jalapenos

1 whole bulb of garlic

30 ounces chili beans

15 ounces black beans

15 ounces dark red kidney beans

30 ounces diced tomatoes

24 ounces tomato sauce

4 teaspoons chili powder

1 teaspoon dried basil

2 teaspoons cumin

1 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper

2 teaspoons oregano

2 teaspoons cilantro

1/4 - 1/2 teaspoons Da Bomb Beyond Insanity

3 cups corn

1/4 - 1/2 cup brown sugar

5 quart crockpot or you are probably looking at an overflow. Don't say I didn't warn you.

M, The Mighty Quinn

Last night I had the chance to listen to my long time friend, Mike, play a solo show. He's been creating music for longer than I've known him. I've liked it all but he's come a long way since the first band I heard him in, The Kids. That evolved into Non Stop 3. Later came Confident Years but with "real" jobs that project has subsided and Mike is now focusing on M, The Mighty Quinn. He plays everything and records it all in his basement.

The best story I think he has turned into song is, #2. He's now a divorced father of 2. He wrote this song after his wife packed up her stuff and left. Left Mike, his kids, but not the towel bars. Bitch took those too. Dinner that night was served to the kinds sitting on the floor, because she decided the kitchen table was hers too. I'll shut up so you can listen.

M, The Mighty Quinn, #2