Black Jack Meets Four and Twenty Blackbirds

Have you been to the place where pies go when they die? During one of his usual solo days, Black Jack found it. It's an insanely delicious pie shop called Four and Twenty Blackbirds. Obviously drawn to the name and his love for lyric, he found out some interesting details about this one-of-a-kind pie shop.

The name of the pie shop comes from an old nursery rhyme, Sing a Song of Sixpence. Owners/sisters, Emily and Melissa, thought this was a good name because it was nostalgic–like pie is. It's also kinda funny and weird because it talks about kings, queens, and noses being pecked off. "What would you do if you were enslaved in a pie?" Black Jack asked with heated sympathy, "Clearly, it was self defense."




Never to let a physical challenge go unchallenged, he made good use of the ceiling fan. "I'd give it a 3.7 as far as gauntlet exercises go," he drawled. 



Interiors aren't his thing. Or so we thought. We were speechless when he went on about the Old English chic, vintage avian prints, and wood molding. But when he dropped "Martha would like the pussy willow," Yvette flew off screaming like a modern-day Chicken Little.


















































A couple locals filled him in on the pie-inspiration: the owners learned the fundamentals of pie-making from their grandmother, who baked pies for The Calico Kitchen (their mother's restaurant).



Before he ordered, Black Jack got lost in the kitchen. Supposedly, he was checking to make sure there weren't any more birds being "encrusted in pastry." Can you see him?



After he found a table, he ordered the Salty Carmel Apple. It's on par with the Salty Honey. He flew around it a bit and then dove in head first. 

Did you know "chess pie" is a Southern word for "custard pie"?



Did you know that in medieval times, pie crust was only used as a baking vessel, not meant to be eaten?



Did you know the phrase "humble pie" comes from a type of pie that was made using "umbles" or innards of animals?








































How did he like it? He calls it Belly-up Bliss.



On his way out, he asked the owners, Emily and Melissa, a curious question: "If you could give a piece of pie to anybody in the world, under any circumstance, who would it be?" "Our grandmothers," they said. "They were both avid bakers and they both passed before we opened our business. If we could teleport them our pie for approval that would be pretty awesome."

As Black Jack left the shop, he nodded at the sign just outside the door. "Hmmmm. Pretty cool to find out Heaven is just a few blocks from home."

Ski Retreat

Every year I organize a ski retreat for the Jolly Troop. We pack our various gear into a van, head to the mountains and spend a day on the slopes together. Well, my goal is always to spend a day on the slopes together. However...

Algernon prefers the company of hot cocoa and a comfortable chair in the lodge.

Yvette prefers the company of all the boys in the lodge.

Grey prefers one chairlift ride to the top of the resort for a day of snowcapped meditation.

And Black Jack and Penny prefer buzzing by in a competitive blur on brand new snowboards.

At least The Twins and Magnus are willing to ski a few runs with me throughout the day.

But before I begin to sound like I'm feeling sorry for myself, you should know that I still love the ski retreat day, even if there isn't a ton of skiing. Because at the end of it, I get to ride home with my happy and tired friends, listening to their stories and adventures from the day.

And it doesn't get much better than happy, tired friends.

I hope you spend some time with happy, tired friends.

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Sundance 2010

Once a year my quiet, little city becomes the coolest place to be. It's only for ten days, but when the Sundance Film Festival comes around, all sorts of famous things – that don't normally happen – begin to happen. For instance, you just might run across Joseph Gordon-Levitt eating a sandwich in the deli. Or on your lunch you might find art on city buildings by Banksy from the night before. Or maybe you'll get invited to a party and Tom Waits will be there playing music.

Of course, the real point of the festival is the films. Penny and I usually get tickets to a movie or two because while we like to *star gaze* a little, we also like to see new things. And how lovely it is to see new things without even leaving town.

I think this is a great Sundance year.

I hope you think this is a great Sundance year, too.

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Little Cottonwood Canyon

In the canyons there is a time after most of the leaves have fallen but before the snow sticks, that is both serious and beautiful. It is serious because the landscape colors are muted and somber. But it is beautiful because the landscape is so bare and exposed to exploration.

It is in this "in between" time when Magnus likes to hike because there is so much for him to study. In Little Cottonwood Canyon — for instance — he gathers samples from the large quartz monzonite outcroppings found there. He stops frequently to study the decomposing foliage along the side of the trail. He scouts for unfamiliar flowers and plants in hopes of discovering something new to show his fellow members of the Utah Native Plant Society. He charts weather conditions to submit to the Farmers' Almanac.

On hikes like that I mostly just follow and wonder when snow will come and open the ski resorts... different brains I suppose.

But I'm glad Magnus thinks like he does and that I think like I do.

I hope you're glad you think like you do, too.

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