the spice of life

yesterday, for some family, we went to baltimore. the point of the trip was to go see the fresh beat band, the real people from a preschool-age tv show with a band that sings and dances and has fun. it's cute and fishie loves them, but they're musicians in the same way the monkees were real musicians.

because the show wasn't until later in the evening, we went early to have some more grown up type fun in the city. or at least older than a preschooler type fun. so we went to fort mchenry, which was neat to see, and i'd never been there before. they do special flag ceremonies at 9am and 420pm, so we made sure to be there in time for the later one. we just happened to be there on the day civil war reenactors were also there, in full uniform, so that was fun. what also made it extra special is that there was also a high school from washington state there, and their chorus sang the national anthem while they lowered the main flag and raised the storm flag. fun fact: fort mchenry was the first place approved by congress to fly a flag 24/7, which is why they take the huge main flag down at dusk and fly a storm flag at night. the storm flag is much smaller and will stand up to high winds better.

we also ended up driving around the city a bit, when trying to find fort mchenry, and then again when we were going from fort mchenry to the theater where the show was. we were on lombard street for a couple of blocks, and i have to say that dear hubby and i were kind of excited. the hotel we stayed at for otakon last year, and the one we're staying in this year, are both off of lombard street. we also went past one side of the convention center where the whole crazy thing is held. needless to say, it was great looking at all the places we were, where we ate and where we walked and where we hung out. we are both getting very excited for this summer.

the best thing about the whole day, in my mind at least, was actually what we had for dinner before the show. after finding parking, we decided it was time to find something to eat. lucky for us, there was a pizza place next to the garage and across the street from the theater. and it was the best pizza i had ever eaten!

some people thought it was too spicy (my poor mother), but i thought it was just tangy, not really spicy-hot. it had a familiar flavor that i couldn't quite put my finger on. then, after looking at the menu to read the descriptions, and also after realizing we were in maryland, i figured out that delicious, familiar flavor: old bay.

i love old bay. it's one of those random things i just adore, a standard in my kitchen, something i use in so many things. like the can says, i use it on eggs and pizza, in sauces and crunchy casserole toppings, and, of course, all sorts of seafood. there's no other spice mix quite like it, and i've never been able to replicate it at home. it is unique and all it's own, familiar to me and totally unforgettable.

it's a happy yellow can in my kitchen and on my table.