¡Adiós 30s!
Launched Somebody's Basement, developed YourActorMBA, attended Another Harvest Moon premieres.
Taught worldwide. Met SMFA fans.
Purged 10K headshots, restarted class, shelved the showcase.
Supported NO H8, bravely performed, resumed hand modeling and voiceover, ate great southern food.

I took only 11 photos on the 12th, which is of course 12 of 12. I still haven't uploaded them.

I'm not motivated to post anything at this blog because it is so completely overrun with spam comments that we've had to just turn off the whole dang thing. (Well, that's not true, there are still a zillion spam comments waiting for moderation, but I can't even sift through them to see if there are real ones, so why bother, y'know?)

Completely disgusted by the violation of privacy settings (I'm calling it rape, since Facebook has been so aggressively shady about rolling out these "new features" that most folks don't even understand), I've pulled off almost all vids, photos, notes, links, and tags at Facebook, while uninstalling almost all apps and extras. I've also been going at least two days between log-ins at the Facebook, which is ridiculously less frequent than I used to.

I used to think in status updates (like, whenever something would happen, I'd say, "Ooh, 'Bonnie Gillespie is...' HA! That's funny," and then remember that for when I next logged in. Now I don't. I'm using Facebook for its reach now, not for pleasure.

And amazingly, I'm not HURTING for a place to share a list of my favorite shows, a random share meme, a link I found that I think might be interesting, or anything else that social networking (via e-groups, then message boards, then Friendster and MySpace and Facebook) has been so good about helping me cultivate over the years.

I'm so busy with the launch of Somebody's Basement that I really can't focus on anything else. Oh wait, yes I can. Like the casting offer we put out today for the lead in Everything But. Or the casting deal memo that's about two steps away from being executed on the next film project (breakdown next week if we stay on schedule). Or like the collaboration with a few of the finest industry players in this business which will launch later this year. Or my pilot, the treatment for which I have a meeting over the weekend. Or the web series I'm exec producing. Or the fact that my stepson will be in town in just over a month!

Oh...

I see why I'm no longer focused on things like snagging a photo a day, or 12 on the 12th, or updating my status at Facebook. I am so completely overrun with all the other things in my world--things I love, love, LOVE--that I'm just making time to Tweet (thank goodness for the Twitter) and even that, I'm behind on somehow.

I'm feeling okay with this. There's a transition going on both online and within my life. It's like all of the online stuff I did to grow my business has worked. And now I have to run my business. I'm using different muscles now. And it's the best kind of sore, y'know?

This is pretty awesome. Believe me, I am sooo blissed out right now. Even if you don't get a daily status update saying so. :)

===========

Dear everyone,

I know you'll see the Social Plug-Ins (i.e., LIKE buttons outside of Facebook) that Facebook is now offering as a cool new feature. "Neat! I'm on your IMDb page and there's a Facebook LIKE button. I'll click it, because I like you!"

Noooooooo. Step away from the mouse. Read this. And then decide.

First: I am no conspiracy theorist. Not by a longshot. I am not paranoid. When people get all up in arms about websites sharing their personal information, I want to smack them because they're flying into a panic about information THEY have provided being shared, and that just means they don't read the flippin' TOS before THINKING about telling the world they love yoga or dogs or chocolate. So, when you read my words, know I'm not into fear mongering. In fact, I hate that. I don't want to stir up a panic. I just want to be sure folks KNOW what they're doing before they give away the keys to the castle.

Second: I am a PhD dropout, all but dissertation, in Instructional Technology. I spent years in service of combating technophobia. I have a passion for reading the nitty-gritty details and distilling things that other folks gloss over (or don't even read, before clicking AGREE) into one simple, bottom line. So, that's what I'm going to try and do here.

Now--for some context--here are a few articles written by others about the Facebook LIKE button and what it means to us, since Facebook won't tell us, simply. (Wait, why won't Facebook do that? Oh, because last month, every FB user got an update in their inbox letting them know that FB would no longer be sending out changes to TOS. That if we WANTED to be kept abreast of changes that affected our terms in using this site, we would have to become a fan of the FB Site Governance Page http://facebook.com/fbsitegovernance and seek out the updates for ourselves. They rolled out THAT change before rolling out THESE changes, because they didn't want THESE changes so very well-publicized while still in the development phase. With good reason. They're creepy.)

http://www.pcworld.com/article/194818/why_i_like_really_dislike_facebooks_like_button.html

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/discussion/2010/04/22/DI2010042205706.html

http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/news/2010/04/facebook-could-turn-web-likes-into-ad-dollars.ars

http://www.pcworld.com/article/194500/facebooks_like_button_what_we_know_so_far.html

So, we've all opted in to this LIKE thing (Social Plug-Ins) just by being on Facebook. We don't get the option of saying no up front. We're in it, and we have to go through a few not-uncomplicated steps to get OUT of this (and we have to use militant observation of future additions to the approved plug-ins area of our privacy settings to be sure we turn OFF the new ones Facebook will add regularly, before they take our info and give it out all over the web).

Let me break this down.

You see someone's IMDb page and there's a Facebook LIKE button on this non-Facebook site (same is true for Pandora and Yelp, etc., as of now). You say, "I like you. I'll click LIKE."

You've just given Facebook permission to share all of YOUR information AND ALL OF YOUR FRIENDS' DATA to not just IMDb, but Pandora, and Yelp, and any future site with whom Facebook contracts the LIKE button placement.

Here's how to block Social Plug-Ins, right now:

http://www.facebook.com/help/?faq=17090

Go to your Account (top right of any page) --> Privacy Settings --> Applications and Websites --> Instant Personalization --> Uncheck "Allow..." --> Confirm.

That's the first step.

To block what your friends can share about you, go to Privacy Settings --> Applications and Websites --> What your friends can share about you, and uncheck EVERYTHING.

That's the second step.

Next, you have to INDIVIDUALLY block the apps that Facebook whitelists for Social Plug-Ins EVEN if you have disallowed this setting.

AND, any time you slip up and click LIKE on an outside site, you've just RE-ALLOWED Facebook to share all of your--and your friends'--info, all over the web. Yup. Every time. The only way your friends can't share your info through THEIR social plug-ins is to BLOCK the app, and then to NOT slip up and hit LIKE outside of Facebook, which would reverse your previous setting automatically.

So, how to block the individual apps that Facebook has whitelisted so far (and remember, you'll have to check back and keep doing this, as new sites will be added regularly). Go here: http://www.facebook.com/help/?faq=17105 -- Each of the currently authorized partner sites is listed. Open each of their pages (fan pages--see why Facebook will NEVER turn off the nonstop spamming of fan page "become a fan" or, now, "like this" requests at Facebook for this stuff? It's advertiser driven and they will not turn off an advertiser's ability to get their page in front of you again and again and again) and click Block Application. Those apps will now show up in your blocked applications list (which I highly recommend you update, regularly, as there may be some fun meme you wanted to be a part of, but now you're over it and your information is still being fed through to them, their partners, their customers, all of it, per TOS to which YOU agreed--so don't complain, just BLOCK that stuff).

To keep an eye on that list, go to Privacy Settings --> Applications and Websites --> What you share, click LEARN MORE, click the "this page" link at the bottom of that page, and then go through EVERY area of that page by using the drop-down menu at the top right of the table (default stop: Recently Used) and see what you are letting Facebook share about you, EVERYWHERE. Any you don't like? FIRST choose Edit Settings for each app, then uncheck and turn to "me only" on anything that rubs you the wrong way, save those settings, and then click the X in the table to kill it off altogether. But definitely change the settings to "locked down" first, because if you delete while OPEN, your info is still theirs.

Got all that?

Lemmeknow if you have questions. And please, feel free to share this all over FB. :) I've made it visible to EVERYONE (even though the rest of my FB page is locked down to friends only), so you can pass it along.

Yes, I love Facebook and I'm grateful to them for existing and allowing me to connect with people I otherwise could never see on a regular basis, and to connect more deeply with people I may never get to know so well otherwise. I love it. I do. But this latest surrender of our information--without full disclosure--is icky. Plain and simple. ICKY. So, I recommend going with a conservative approach to how we're letting our info be used FIRST and then slowly begin to let some info out, when we learn what of this new level of access is good for us and what is bad, bad, bad.

Thanks for reading! Happy Facebooking! :)

3:17pm 4/23/10 -- Update from Nicholas Sayaan: You may also find this interesting, re: fb allowing apps to cache personal data forever ever (forever ever?), forever ever. http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/how_to_delete_facebook_applications_and_why_you_should.php Thanks, Nick!

4pm-ish 4/23/10 -- Update from BenWhitehair: RT @Twitter_Tips: Your Mom's Guide to Those Facebook Changes, and How to Block Them: http://gigaom.com/2010/04/22/your-moms-guide-to-those-facebook-changes-and-how-to-block-them Thanks, Ben!

5:15pm 4/23/10 -- Update from Marci Liroff: More FB privacy shite. http://gawker.com/5522433/how-to-restore-your-privacy-on-facebook Thanks, Marci!

11:50am 4/24/10 -- Update from Alexis Adair via Jana Perrone DeLuna "This dovetails nicely with Bonnie's note. I found it especially interesting that insurance companies are taking notice. If they're raising premiums, it means there's a solid, proven, numerical correlation. Combine this with the current FB un-privacy changes, and it's not hard to imagine someone or group creating apps for the sole purpose of getting access to enough information to rob you blind, or worse. Stalkers-R-Us, anyone?" http://daol.aol.com/articles/never-say-this-on-facebook-or-twitter Thanks, Alexis!

5:20pm 4/24/10 -- Update from Keith Johnson: "Here's some articles worth reading about Facebook's retarded attempts to do shit without our knowledge and consent." From CNET: http://news.cnet.com/8301-31322_3-20003185-256.html and from the Electronic Frontier Foundation: http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2010/04/facebook-further-reduces-control-over-personal-information Thanks, Keith!

12:19pm 4/28/10 -- Update from Sarah Levin: More fb info... 1.5 Million Facebook Profiles Hacked And Up For Sale | Triona's Tech Tips http://www.guidryconsulting.com/techtips/2010/04/1-5-million-facebook-profiles-hacked-and-up-for-sale Thanks, Sarah!

4:02pm 4/28/10 -- Update from Ellen Ginsburg: Senator Schumer & some other Senators are coming out against Facebook's privacy changes! here's a link to one of the recent articles, in case you didn't see it yet and want to read it. Senators' letter to Facebook - Politico Staff - POLITICO.com http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0410/36406.html Thanks, Ellen!

7am 4/29/10 -- Update from Jeff Greenstein: A timeline of Facebook's eroding privacy policy. http://w2.eff.org/deeplinks/2010/04/facebook-timeline Thanks, Jeff!

12:19pm 4/29/10 -- Update from Masasa Moyo: Hi Bonnie, Here's some more food for your ire. http://www.wired.com/epicenter/2010/04/report-facebook-ceo-mark-zuckerberg-doesnt-believe-in-privacy Thanks, Masasa!

10:55pm 5/1/10 -- Update from Jonathan Latroy: I saw an article/blog entry earlier about the invasiveness of the new "community pages": http://facebookiswatchingyou.blogspot.com/2010/04/your-status-on-facebook-might-be-going.html Thanks, Jonathan!

5:53pm 5/5/10 -- Update from Marci Liroff: Aargh! I LURVE the community here on Facebook, but I'm getting pretty weary/wary of the privacy and security issues and how it seems to change on a daily basis. http://www.boingboing.net/2010/05/04/six-reasons-to-hate.html and http://eu.techcrunch.com/2010/05/05/video-major-facebook-security-hole-lets-you-view-your-friends-live-chats and http://www.boingboing.net/2010/05/04/six-reasons-to-hate.html and http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/06/technology/internet/06facebook.html Thanks, Marci!

And when I get stressed out--like really stressed out--I clean. I really clean.

Took about ten minutes of heavy-duty cleaning today to get my stress levels back in order and sit back down and get back to work.

I realized while this was happening that this is why my house is so dirty, lately.

I don't have as much cleaning-inducing stress these days!

Yup. My life is so stress-free of late that I haven't needed the "get on all fours and scrub a floor for an hour" therapy I used to require more regularly.

So, um, that's actually pretty dang cool!

(I mean, as reasons for being proud of a dirty house go, right?)

(If you really love Bon-photos, I'm also participating in a Spynotebook-generated project called Snapshot a Day. Yup. 365 photos in 2010. Click here to check that out at Flickr.)

As always, please enjoy my 12 of 12, even when it goes up super late (sorry; busy). Click any photo to enlarge. :)

1:14am: Email to Team Cricket Feet about Somebody's Basement. Closer and closer to launch! Yeah, baby!

8:36am: Archie and I would like to keep sleeping a little longer, please.

10:30am: Lovely Miss Chatelaine's Autumn Raspberry and Muscadine Wine Jam for my gluten-free waffle pleasure.

12:43pm: Starline Tours in Westwood.

12:57pm: UCLA MFA Showcase, about to begin! This is the kit in my lap.

2:27pm: The Mighty TicTac in front of South. Had to cure a craving for some pulled-pork nachos, stat!

3:35pm: Wall. Of. Porn.

4:08pm: We were told to bring healthy snacks for game night. I chose veggie flax chips and parmesan pepper cheese. Keith chose Ho-Hos. The Midol is not for game night. :)

5:21pm: This is how my boys take a nap. In two months, these naps will involve Quinn. Cannot WAIT!

8:17pm: Travis is sampling something called a hummingbird from Doughboys. Um, yum.

8:48pm: Dot believes she's a lapdog. Rob doesn't disagree.

9:48pm: My personal best round of Apples to Apples. I am awesome. (But Travis still won.)

As always, thank you, Chad, for another lovely 12 of 12. :) See y'all next month! Thanks for the comments, thanks for the visits, thanks for the love. <3

Our sixth stop on the GSFiSCC was Bertha's Soul Food, 1714 W. Century Blvd., Los Angeles, 90047.

Before I dive into the review of the awesome time we had at Bertha's, let me just say that we now have a contest going on. Until stop six, the clear frontrunner for winner of the GSFiSCC was Miss Peaches. There was no contest. And now there is.

Bertha's is the oldest soul food joint in Los Angeles, so says Rod, the proprietor. (Est. 1965.) When he learned about our challenge, he was intrigued and confident. Knew for a fact his website is the best (it is) and told us about how a golfing buddy offered to create it as a tribute to the food. That's awesome. Also awesome: Just this week, Bertha's Soul Food was selected to be the only soul food joint at LAX. Get ready, Delta terminal, you're in for some good in-flight, carry-on eatin'!

And something very reminiscent of home, here. Bertha's accepts food stamps. That's badass.

When you arrive at Bertha's, you're greeted by men sitting in rocking chairs on the side yard, inside the purple picket fence.

When you walk inside, you're greeted by folks sitting on the benches waiting for takeout orders (or just hanging out and chatting). And you're acquainted with the rules.

Gotta love a place that shows zero tolerance for rudeness. I love it! And I love that you can order at the counter or take a seat in either of the dining room areas inside.

Keith and I arrived just after 5pm, way earlier than anyone else (but we knew there'd be a challenge with a 5pm start time. Still, we have some folks who can join us after work, others who have night classes... so we just try to pick a different start time and day of the week for each stop on the tour). We chose a large table in the second dining room, which had a perfect TV view for each of us. Keith could watch sports on the TV behind me and I could watch--you guessed it--the greatness that is The People's Court on the TV behind him. Bertha's gets bonus points all over the place, now!

André came over and introduced himself, gave us menus, and asked if we wanted to wait for the rest of our party to order. "Heck no," I said! "We're hungry. They're late. We're gonna eat!" He laughed and immediately asked if this was our first time at Bertha's, how we heard of 'em, and whether we needed recommendations on what to order.

Gotta say, the place smelled amazing from the parking lot. Keith said, "I'm having fried chicken," before he even saw the menu. And then he saw the menu. And ordered smothered pork chops (yes, two. That's what comes with the order. Amazing quantities, here. But more on that in a moment).

Joining me on the sixth stop of our GSFiSCC were David, Keith, Masasa, Ryan, and Shirley. This was Keith's first stop on the tour and David asked why I let him figure out where we would be. Soon, Ryan observed that Keith and David are basically the same guy. Yup.

Keith toured the men's room and came back saying, "The men's bathroom is the sweetest-smelling bathroom I've ever been in." And then he showed a photo that explained the why. Yeah. That's a lot of smell-goods for one tiny room.

Dude. Enough with the set-up. Let's eat!

Sweetest cornbread muffins on the tour so far. Masasa refused to try 'em due to lack of real butter as an option for spread ("I don't do spread," she said), but hon', I gotta tell ya, there was nothing wrong with butter-like spread on these warm, sweet muffins. Gluten be damned!

Keith's smothered pork chops looked so good that when Ryan arrived, he ordered 'em too. And Masasa, who always dislikes "meat in sauce," said, "This, I approve of." It was that good. (It wasn't pork that lived in a bin of sauce, simmering all day. It was cooked to order. And delicious.)

I ordered fried catfish after being assured it was battered in cornmeal. Clearly, that ain't cornmeal. So, I gave most of it away and ate enough to know it's fantastic. Just not battered in a gluten-free way.

I also ordered collard greens and black-eyed peas. Every order comes with rice and gravy. That's not terribly southern, but oh my lordy was it delicious! "This rice and gravy is out of this world," is what I actually said. Shirley agreed, "This rice is so good." The greens were too sweet for me. Still good. Just sweet. And I like my greens bitter. The way god intended. Masasa called herself the "rogue on the greens," because she likes 'em sweet. "It might be the Canadian in me," she figures. When we launched into a discussion of hamhocks in greens, Ryan said, "That's the thing I don't want to know exists." "But it tastes like magic," I said. That is true.

The fried chicken was insane. This was a partial order. André brought out a bit of what Shirley ordered because the rest was still frying. "This is so way more chicken than I can eat," Shirley said. No worries. We helped her. And--holy cow--this fried chicken was good. The best we've had. Juicy, tasty, crispy, and oh so good! I cannot undersell this. The chicken was amazing.

Green beans, mac and cheese, and of course the rice and gravy. The green beans were salty. Masasa said, "I can roll around in salt, so if I say it's salty, that's saying something." Actually everything that was sweet was too sweet (except the iced tea--it was perfect, possibly the best sweet tea I've had on the tour) and the salty stuff was too salty, for most folks. David's corn was "sweet. Super, super sweet," he said. As for the above-pictured mac and cheese, I'm told that it didn't cut it. And that Chef Marilyn's mac and cheese is so good that Masasa has been back three times for it. Wow! Anyway, when Shirley said, "Everything's salty," Keith replied, "Everything's just right." He does love his salt.

Masasa models her collard greens, rice and gravy, and mac and cheese with red snapper. Now that is the fish I should've ordered. Cornmeal breaded and lightly fried. That is right. I had a bite of Masasa's fish. Yes. That's outstanding.

Yams were way too sweet. And cinnamony. "I think it's nutmeg," Shirley said. "Nutmeg always goes up in my nose." Ryan suggested maybe it had both spices. Either way, it was way too sweet to eat more than a little taste of, so we passed it around the table and each had a bite. Not bad for a buck-fifty side item. "It's like a pie filling," Shirley summed up.

David sampled inhaled the strawberry soda and quickly said, "I gotta have another one of those!" I loved that the menu mentioned the options of "strawberry, pink, and yellow lemonade." When André walked by with one of the strawberry lemonades for another customer, we all got a little excited. It's like a black and tan. But better.

André displayed a few dessert options for us, including sock-it-to-me cake, red velvet cake, sweet potato pie, and something called a yellow chocolate, which Keith ordered immediately--with milk--and then he loved it so much that he ordered a second one to take home.

And then there was a peach cobbler situation. After I took one, scrumptious bite, I asked, "Anyone want peach cobb--" "YES!" shouted Ryan, before I could even finish my question. "Inside voice, Ryan," I said, as I handed him the piping hot, delicious dessert. After a bite, he reported, "That is GOOD!" I offered some to Keith, who said, "Is it a pie made with fruit, baked? Then no." He doesn't like baked fruit. Okay. More for us! And when I offered some to David--who had arrived late, so his meal hadn't arrived yet--he said, "I cannot have dessert before my food comes." "Not a bite?" I asked. "I'm not that kind of person," he revealed. Again... more for us. :) Good news: André loved us so much, he gave us a freebie to go. David got it. "Yeeessssss!" was the sound of that win.

Now, let's get to the nitty-gritty. How does Bertha's Soul Food measure up, using the criteria I set out when issuing this Challenge?

• Is the eatin' good?

Yes. A little on the sweet side, a little on the salty side, but yes. Good eatin'. The best chicken we've had. The best sweet tea I've had. Goooood food. Yes. "This is like all the foods that I want to feel good about myself," Ryan said.

• Is the eatin' authentically southern?

Absolutely. No question. It was just like home in so many ways. The flavors were very sentimental ones. Ryan said the fixins were especially southern.

• Is the price right?

Everyone thought the price was right, except for Ryan, who always thinks it's high. We got a little generous on the tip because André was so awesome to split checks and comp a dessert. ($60 on $45, $25 on $16, etc.)

• Does the staff make you feel like you're sittin' at your grandma's table?

Absolutely! And the tablecloth is just like my grandmother's with the vinyl on one side and puffy cotton stuff on the other. We were treated like family and included in on the jokes. Staff sat at tables across from patrons and chatted about all sorts of things. It really was homey. When André saw me snapping a photo as he walked by, he joked, "Facebook!"

• Is the place worth visiting, if you grew up on the type of food they say they make?

Without a doubt. It's good, through and through. Just a little over-seasoned in some cases.

• How does it measure up to other stops on the GSFiSCC tour?

Everyone who had eaten at Miss Peaches agreed that Miss Peaches is still in the lead... but barely (and one of the folks who ate at Miss Peaches actually said Bertha's might be better, but I'm not allowed to quote her because she doesn't want Connell coming after her for saying so). And everyone who hadn't had Miss Peaches said Bertha's was the best stop on the tour thus far.

We realized, once we get down to our final four, we should issue an Iron Chef-style challenge where the best contenders can vie--hopefully on a soundstage somewhere in Hollywood or at CBS Radford--for the title in front of a live studio audience. Let's hope we can work that out. 'til then, check back for a review of our seventh stop before the end of the month.

I explained to her my philosophy in dealing with getting hurt. It's a two-parter.

1. If the person doing the hurting is a true friend, I consider his or her intention and don't focus on the words. I do this because a true friend never intends to hurt us, even if the words chosen might do so.

2. If the person doing the hurting is not a friend, I never look at his or her intention (because that's clear). Instead, I focus on the words, because without the intention attached, those words become very easy to deflect.

My new friend took that in and--apparently--really applied this philosophy to her life. When we next talked, she told me it had an impact and had healed some issues (and quickly) that had been festering for a while.

I'm good at compartmentalizing. It's how I get so much done. It's also how I maintain amazing, lifelong, beautiful friendships while keeping business business. And if you hurt me and leave me, it's why I'll forgive you when you come back around. If you're a true friend, I know your intention was never to hurt me. And if that was your intention, your status was never "true friend" to begin with. And that's okay too. It's just a different place in my compartmentalized life.

Our fifth stop on the GSFiSCC was Aunt Kizzy's Back Porch, 523 Washington Blvd., Marina Del Rey, 90292.

One of the major reasons we chose Aunt Kizzy's Back Porch for our fifth stop on the tour is that it offers Sunday brunch. I think it may be the only restaurant of those on our master list that does so. So. We had to check that out.

Oh, before I get into anything about Aunt Kizzy's, can anyone tell me what this thing is? There were two of them on Washington, just a hundred feet or so east of our destination, and there were all sorts of digging machines poised to put these huge things into the ground. What are these things and why do they go into the ground? Thank you in advance, to anyone who can tell me what this is all about. It concerned me so greatly that I did two laps before parking (also I was way early) so I could snap a few pics--all of which turned out "wavy" due to photographing while driving. Um. Oops. Did I just admit to that? Anyway...

I asked everyone to gather early, because I had heard that Aunt Kizzy's gets slammed after church (and that everyone would be in their Sunday best) and I didn't want to worry about how to get our big table, if people started showing up late (as people tend to do, sometimes). Turns out there was no major crush of customers (although things did pick up after 1pm), but Nyah--who greeted us and gave us a nice tour and history overview (including loads of details about Cuba Gooding, Jr.'s term of employment there) about Aunt Kizzy's--was very appreciative that we were so thoughtful as to arrive early.

We were given the option of inside or outside seating. It was a gorgeous day, so we chose the patio. When I began salivating over "sides" options, I was encouraged to get the sides platter (four sides for $9.95). Seeing as each side is $2.50 on its own, you can imagine how elated I was to save that nickel by ordering four sides, together. :\ That said, I have to say that I was very impressed when our waitress--Amber Rose, who is all about the high-five--offered Ryan a sample of the dressing and gravy, when he wasn't sure whether he wanted that with his order. "You wanna try some?" she asked. "Uh, yeah," was Ryan's response.

No question. Several of us would order the dressing and gravy (and then we'd launch into a conversation with the yankees among us about dressing vs. stuffing). No regrets. That was probably one of the best items on any plate! We also ordered a bit of fried okra "for the table" and it came out fast, hot, and--well--over-breaded for my liking. The majority ruled we'd all prefer a cornmeal and pepper dusting to the full-on breading offered with this okra. Bummer. I'm still jonesin' for fried okra done right.

Derek said, "Mason jars? Check!" when the drinks arrived. I had to cut my sweet tea with my water. It was just far too sweet. But I'm a wimp for sweet drinks. My beverages of choice are water and vodka. So, anything with sugar is going to need watering down, most likely. Of course, that sugar is a sweet, sweet (and seductive) thing, upon first sip. My immediate response, "Yes ma'am!" (Realizing as I write this that the Aunt Kizzy's website boasts beers, wines, and mimosas--the latter of which I was looking forward to having--but no alcoholic beverages were offered. Wondering now whether Mason was correct, when he mentioned that a good, southern place like this probably wouldn't offer booze on a Sunday. Hmm. No one asked, so I don't know for sure.) When Ryan saw on the menu, "All I want is chicken and a waffle," he said, "That's perfect. That's just how I'd order it too."

Amber was great about helping us order. She suggested best "shareable" items, saying, "Sharing is caring," when we'd debate as a group about particular options. While we waited for our food to arrive, we discussed whether Ryan should re-up with Compatible Partners, David's reconnaissance mission on diners for next year's tour, and what's uglier: Uggs or Crocs. Then Amber showed up with cornbread muffins fresh and hot. The talking ceased. Immediately. (Note Laura's very cool Feng Shui-friendly purse hook in the background. So flippin' badass. Must have.)

Oh! Before I forget, joining me for the fifth stop on the GSFiSCC were David, Derek, Kathi, Laura, Masasa, Ryan, Tanya, and Shirley.

David--who was a little late--mentioned having "a filtering problem" when it comes to bad theatre, which made me laugh like crazy. And Masasa--who arrived even latter--showed up in her church hat and explained the subtle difference between "CP Time" and "African Time," the latter of which is apparently worse by 30%. Shirley proclaimed that certain things are best when cooked in bacon grease. Everything is, we agreed. Further in this category, Masasa mentioned, "I could Paula Deen out on some butter." Yes. We do appreciate our food in this group!

Masasa was not happy that I neglected to wear my gloves. I should've mentioned to her back when we discussed Sunday brunch wardrobe that my "gloves" are actually Hello Kitty mittens. Not quite the same.

Okay, so let's eat!

I ordered grits, dressing and gravy, collard greens, and black-eyed peas. Not pictured: a biscuit. That biscuit was probably the best thing I ate, frankly. Or maybe I've been dreaming about it because it is so far off the "allowable gluten scale" I've created for myself on these tour stops. *sigh* It was really delicious. Really. Sadly, the grits were not. They were the worst I've ever had. I passed them down the table and no one would have more than a bite. Not authentically southern by any stretch and just absent of any flavor. But the dressing and gravy--as I hinted above--was a real treat. Greens and beans, fine. Nothing special. But plenty good.

Kathi had some mac and cheese, chicken, and bacon--and I had some of that bacon (a bit of Kathi's and a bit of Derek's, in fact). Holy crap, that was good. Really really good. And Kathi's review on her mac and cheese (which I did not sample) was, "Oh, man..." which sounded pretty positive to me! And to Derek. And to anyone else at our end of the table. Kathi seemed to really like that mac and cheese!

Ryan went for the scrambled eggs, mac and cheese, dressing and gravy, and bacon. Awesome! Tanya had the chicken and waffle, after which she said, "I feel a little pregnant with food."

Laura chose chicken, mac and cheese, a BBQ rib, and black-eyed peas. I sampled a bit of that rib, and it was tender and delicious. Laura said the sauce was really good, and she knows her sauce! Shirley shared some of her chicken with me, which was on the dry side, but still tasty. Certainly nowhere near Roscoe's-level chicken. Just sayin'.

When Masasa's smothered pork arrived, she was none too pleased. (See last stop on the tour for her candid thoughts on "meat in sauce.") She tried to get me to take it home to my cats, but Derek decided he'd sample it. After two bites, he was done too. No one liked this, it seems. Uh-oh. As for Masasa's thoughts on the mac and cheese--remember, she had lots to say about this dish at our last stop--she will be going back to Chef Marilyn's for mac and cheese. Back to Aunt Kizzy's? "I wouldn't drive out here again," she said.

So, how's it looking like Aunt Kizzy's Back Porch measures up, using the criteria I set out when issuing this Challenge.

• Is the eatin' good?

Pretty good. Yes.

• Is the eatin' authentically southern?

Eh. Ryan mentioned everything was pretty low in sodium, and I don't disagree with that. All who sampled the chicken mentioned it was a little dry but the breading was pretty good. Biscuits, cornbread muffins, waffles, mac and cheese, dressing and gravy, and most of the other sides were good. Grits were inedible, as was the smothered pork.

• Is the price right?

Kathi summed it up, saying, "seems a little high." And yeah, based on portion size and prices we've seen elsewhere, this was a little on the high side for the amount of food that showed up. That said, it's still a pretty reasonably-priced brunch option, for Los Angeles.

• Does the staff make you feel like you're sittin' at your grandma's table?

For sure. Nyah and Amber Rose made us feel at home from the instant we arrived. Tales of their 25 years in business, the wall of fame (over 1000 photos of famous people, only 300 on display at this location), the now-famous folks who worked there in the past, and paparazzi stalking celebs when they come here to "get their southern grub on" (a line that once ran on TMZ, apparently) were woven into lots of laughs and comments that you'd only let your family get away with making. Instantly casual and intimate, here. That's southern, for sure.

• Is the place worth visiting, if you grew up on the type of food they say they make?

Worth a visit, yes. A good option if you're on the westside and don't want to truck it out to Miss Peaches or do takeout from Chef Marilyn's for something more delicious.

• How does it measure up to other stops on the GSFiSCC tour?

Connell can rest easy, as after five stops, Miss Peaches is still in the lead for service, atmosphere, food, and best overall experience. South is still the best (um, only) party-style option we've visited. Check back for a review of our sixth stop, coming in early April! Thanks, y'all!

Me: I wish your son were here, so I could stay up on things they teach you at that age.
Keith: Uh-huh.
Me: Because clearly, there's a lot of stuff that I either never learned in public school or am forgetting.
Keith: Yeah.
Me: Y'know, it's only gonna get worse!
Keith: I don't mind.
Me: Of course YOU don't mind! You can get away with more stuff!

(Really, it's not the turning 40 that's weird. It's the things I keep learning I never knew about stuff.)

I've been a member of the AFTRA/SAG Federal Credit Union since the '90s. They have my checking account, my savings account, my stepson's Coogan account, my husband's checking account, my husband's savings account, and until today my credit card account. They also once had a signature loan for me. They're good. Except for today.

Seems the AFTRA/SAG Federal Credit Union credit cards are under new management this year and, just like the last time they went under new management four years ago, I didn't receive a bill. Yup. It's a total scam. They change companies and then the second or third bill doesn't come, so you are late with your payment and they can lop on fees, offer you the opportunity to pay by phone, and offer to enroll you in auto-pay plans. Awesome. I remember this well. It happened in late 2005, when the credit card went under new management the last time.

So, February's bill never came and I was traveling and therefore totally didn't notice that I hadn't written a check 'til Miss Henry called me last week to tell me I hadn't. Crap. So, I do a payment by phone immediately and ask her what repercussions this late payment has on my account (increase in APR, fees, etc.). She assures me that the only charge is this $39 fee, which she can reverse since I haven't been late with a payment since 2005, when--strangely enough--the company change happened last time. Awesome. Charge reversed. February bill paid. March bill on its way with the fee showing, but she assures me it's been reversed. Gives me a confirmation number. Yada yada yada.

Today's mail includes a letter from the credit card company ("cardmember services" -- no company name anywhere to be found) stating that "Because you have not consistently paid the minimum monthly payment on or before the due date, we have reduced your credit limit." They've reduced it to my current balance. I usually keep a good five grand available on any credit card, because it's not only good for my credit rating, but it's also always nice to know I have that kind of credit available to me, should an emergency hit.

Let's note for the record here that I have a FICO score of 788.

788.

I am an excellent customer, if you are a bank. I always pay my bills early (except for when my credit card company inexplicably neglects to send a statement, apparently). I never bounce checks. I am your worst nightmare, if you want to ding customers with fees, because I will almost never give you the opportunity to do so. However, if you want a customer who will always pay her bills and carry a balance so you can collect interest, while never costing you in collections, I am your dream come true.

I am also planning on buying a house this year, so I don't need any drama where my credit score is concerned. I am looking forward to my 4.5% home loan after putting only 3% down, plus first-time buyer credit. I am not dicking around, here.

So, when I got a letter telling me that my credit limit had been slammed down to the current balance I carry on my card, I made a phone call.

First there was Marie, who told me that perhaps Miss Henry hadn't been made aware that my credit limit had been lowered, and that's why she didn't disclose it last week when I asked what ramifications existed due to missing February's payment. She then transferred me to Carmen, since what I wanted was a reversal of that cap. She couldn't offer me that.

Neither could Carmen. She said she could certainly put in a request to increase my credit limit, but I'm no dummy. I told her that was not what I wanted, because that would trigger a notice in my credit report that I was seeking access to more credit, just before buying a home. No thank you. That makes me look like a bad risk. Not interested. I just want y'all to undo the punishment you saw fit to bestow upon me without notice, last week.

The call got escalated to a supervisor, Kent. (And let me state for the record that I handled this call VERY well. Sometimes I get hot-headed. Sometimes I yell. Today, I did not. I am very proud of that. Especially because I have every reason to yell.) I stayed calm and repeatedly asked for what I wanted: A reversal of the punishment they put on my account. A return to the credit limit I have enjoyed--yet never hit--in nearly a decade with this credit card.

Nope.

Not gonna happen. They can put in a request for a credit limit increase--which will show up on my credit report as consumer requested--but there's no guarantee I'll get it (bullshit. I'll get it. I'll get it and more. I have excellent credit. They want me to have access to--and to use--many more thousands of dollars on their card than I already do).

Fuckers.

So, I tell Kent not to bother with that request, as I'll simply close my card and transfer the balance elsewhere, rather than giving another penny to this ridiculous company that wants to punish someone with a fucking 788 FICO score.

(*breathe*)

Anyone wanna tell me a great credit card company that loves new, excellent customers who want to transfer over thousands of dollars?

(Yes, I understand that this will also show up on my credit report, and probably does me more harm than "requesting" the increased credit limit. So, what I'll probably just end up doing is closing the account so it shows up "closed; paying as per cardmember agreement" and wait for a credit card company to send me an incentive application that includes 2.9% APR for balance transfers. That's how I closed my Chase Visa, years ago.)

But man, I'm so fucking mad I could spit tacks. This is why we hate the banks, people! You punish good customers in ways that screw their credit rating. You put us between a rock and a hard place and remind us why stuffing money in a mattress is never a bad idea.

(If you really love Bon-photos, I'm also participating in a Spynotebook-generated project called Snapshot a Day. Yup. 365 photos in 2010. Click here to check that out at Flickr.)

As always, please enjoy my 12 of 12. Click any photo to enlarge. :)

2:10am: Home from class. (I got my oxygen back.) It's been a great night, but I've got an early day, so it's time for sleep, like it or not!

6:28am: Hello, pretty kitty. Keith has left for Runyon and Salema has decided my hip is a good pillow. *Yawn!* Good morning, Friday!

9:57am: I'm leaving a little bit late for my ladydate, but I feel good about traffic and my awesome "Do Not Eat iPod" shuffle filled with traveling music. Time to head out from the driveway and into the world!

12pm: Ahh... Babycakes. AnnaVo went downtown yesterday and blew a C-Note on gluten-free, vegan deliciousness. We've eaten a lunch of leftovers (so delicious) and now it's the main event: CUPCAKES! Good news: In addition to being gluten-free and vegan, they're also only 100 calories apiece. (Note: There's one little ballpark estimate-slash-lie in that last statement. Humor me.)

12:10pm: And now, introducing: IZZY! That's Izzy Schmata Tarquinio. She's a four-month-old Italian Greyhound. She is precious and really sweet.

1:04pm: We spent most of the day in AnnaVo's lovely VO studio-slash-office, listening to podcasts, watching YouTube viral darlings, discussing marketing vs. advertising, renting vs. owning, relatives vs. family, setting limits, trust, and living our dreams. We also spent a lot of time petting and playing with a puppy and a kitty (Pilky. Never saw Biscuit on this visit).

1:06pm: Anna with the tongue bandit. Such sweetness!

2:13pm: This is how Izzy spent several hours: in my lap, sleeping. She is such a love! I can't wait to be a homeowner so we can have puppies!

3:15pm: Best! Magnet! Ever!

3:45pm: Heading back to the beach from the Valley along with a few hundred thousand of my closest friends.

4:04pm: Made really good time, even on a Friday afternoon! Crossing from Brentwood into Santa Monica and getting ready for some of my favorite views: the sexy strip of exercising beautiful people running along the divided and tree-lined San Vicente, all the way to the beach.

5:27pm: Sugar coma from the cupcakes. It's time for a nap. Keith's still working on my computer (it had a spa day, today), so I'm gonna go down for a sleep cycle and then get to work!

7:10pm: Sid the MacBook still has another few hours to go, before getting back from the spa, so I'm reading another script. Defragging has been going on for quite some time, at this point, but hopefully the directory restructuring and the few passes through this process will get all its blocks back in the right places and have Sid happily running efficiently again soon.

(Sure enough, here I am working on Sid at just after midnight. So far, so good! Very nice to catch problems before they become ridiculous issues of data loss.)

As always, thank you, Chad, for another lovely 12 of 12. :) Having a blast and ready for a blissful weekend! See y'all next month! Thanks for the comments, thanks for the visits, thanks for the love. <3

Our fourth stop on the GSFiSCC was Chef Marilyn's Soul Food Express, 5068 W. Pico Blvd., Los Angeles, 90019.

Technically, Chef Marilyn's was supposed to be the third stop on the tour, but when we arrived at the restaurant for our dinner Tuesday night, we learned that Chef Marilyn's is NOT a restaurant.

Nope. It's a takeout joint.

Now, maybe I should've picked that up by "Express" in the name of the joint, but seriously, shouldn't "takeout only" be mentioned somewhere on the flippin' website? Crazy! I combed all through that site and saw no way I could've figured out we'd be entering an establishment with no chairs or tables. I just thought "Express" meant fast. Ah... lesson learned.

So, because of our discovery upon arrival--and not wanting to lose out on a tour stop--we wandered down Pico to Roscoe's, which became tour stop number three (see previous entry). And, not wanting to give up on Chef Marilyn--especially because that food looked and smelled so good--we each bought a little takeout and did our critiques of the cuisine from home via email the next day.

Joining me for the fourth stop on the GSFiSCC were Eric, Masasa, Ryan, and Susyn. We were all excited about our little styrofoam containers of southern cookin' and probably could've stood right there and eaten, if we had to. Luckily, the food travels and reheats well. :)

Here's Susyn's review of Chef Marilyn's food:

chicken legs: falling off the bone good

meatloaf: great

collard greens: yum, with a kick stronger than Roscoe's

yams: scrumptious

mac and cheese: yum

corned beef and cabbage: really good, with a nice kick

You may recall that I mentioned in the last post that Susyn told us about something called "chicken bog." Here's the scoop on that! "The official description is it's a conglomeration of rice, spices, and chicken, topped with bacon. It is a South Carolina delicacy cooked in a pot, which gives it that boggy, soggy name." Sounds awesome! Maybe our tour needs to include a good ol' fashioned home cookin' stop!

(Ooh, how I wish I had been hungry enough to order some fish. It looked sooo good.)

Here's Eric's review of Chef Marilyn's food:

Out of the microwave ('cept the banana pudding) at 12:36.

35 minutes later. Damn, that's gooooooooooooood mac and cheese! ♥

Oh, I probably would have finished off the chicken bones too, but i did need to make room for the banana pudding. :)

Hee! That did look good. Eric was so pleased to be able to get his CRISPY mac and cheese. He even asked for extra crispy edges and they scooped out more for him!

More, please!

Here's Masasa's review of Chef Marilyn's food:

I stand by my aversion to meat floating in juice, and my hot link experience did not sway me from that philosophy. As for the sides, I say "PLEASE, Chef Marilyn, can I have some more?" I got a plate of greens, yams, cabbage, and mac and cheese. Back in the day, Scoe's used to have my most favourite mac and cheese ever, but sadly in recent years, I have found theirs to be lacking in the cheese department. There's nothing worse than a "cheese tease," I always say, so I actually stopped ordering it from Scoe's all together. Having said that, Chef Marilyn has MASTERED the art of mac and cheese! And from now on, should I happen to have a craving, I know just where to go.

After having paid proper homage to the cheesy carbs, I moved on to the veggies, and I was not disappointed in the least. Each one was perfectly seasoned and had just the right amount of love. Although I prefer my cabbage to be a little more al dente, the seasoning and other veggies mixed in made up for that. I finished my feast with the candied yams and they were like a yummy little dessert, they were so good!

As for me, I ordered collard greens, black-eyed peas, and mashed potatoes. $4.50. And the helpings were huge. Seriously, two days of leftovers, here!

The collard greens were peppery and delicious. Black-eyed peas were exactly like Momma used to make, and I didn't think I would ever be able to say that about anybody's beans! They were awesome! The potatoes were fine. Nothing terribly special. Still, good eatin'.

Let's see how Chef Marilyn's measures up, in the criteria I set out when issuing this Challenge.

• Is the eatin' good?

Absolutely. Super yummy!

• Is the eatin' authentically southern?

For sure. No question about it, this is true southern food.

• Is the price right?

Absolutely! There's a whole section of 99-cent specials and it's a ton of food you're getting. Holy crap, what a great deal!

• Does the staff make you feel like you're sittin' at your grandma's table?

Well, no, because there is no table. But you're welcomed and joked around with and encouraged to call in orders for free delivery. (I asked, "How far will you deliver?" "Anywhere, if you order enough," was the reply.)

• Is the place worth visiting, if you grew up on the type of food they say they make?

Sure thing! Just be sure you have a next destination, as you will not be able to eat your food here. I imagine a catering situation would be pretty wonderful.

• How does it measure up to other stops on the GSFiSCC tour?

I actually stopped at Miss Peaches for a piece of butter cake last night and, yep, they're still in the lead for service, atmosphere, food, and best overall experience. And, yes, I told Connell that was the case. He wasn't surprised. In fact, he has invited us back for a Sunday book signing and "high-end food" event (coming soon). Everyone who is currently on the southern food mailing list (via Facebook) will be invited. Food will be free, but you'll have to buy a copy of Connell's brother's book. ;) Be ready! The items he's talking about fixing sound outrageously good.

Our third stop on the GSFiSCC was supposed to be Chef Marilyn's Soul Food Express (see next entry for why it was, instead, our fourth stop on the tour. Yes. Two stops in one night, technically). Instead, our third stop on the GSFiSCC was Roscoe's, 5006 W. Pico Blvd., Los Angeles, 90019.

Now, Roscoe's is a Southern California institution, but I've never been sure why folks consider this place "southern," as there has never been a waffle served with chicken at any southern dinner I ever had. But it's a place that got mentioned several times when I first posted about seeking out some good, authentic, southern eats back on 1/1/10. It's also the place my first LA boss took me in 1993, when he promised my mother he'd be sure I ate good, southern food. I reported back to my mother that he was no judge of such things and not to be trusted.

Still, due to the technical difficulties that will be revealed in the next post, we ended up at Roscoe's for the third stop on our tour. Waffles and all.

As Eric said, if we had excluded Roscoe's, we'd have been asked about that choice, so it's fine that we ended up there. Heck, the food was very good, so let's say it was more than fine that we ended up there!

Now, there are a lot of rules at Roscoe's. I didn't even get to the credit card signs or the solicitation signs (yet, strangely, there were two very eager and friendly women roaming the restaurant offering tours, free drinks, and coupons of indeterminate value for a karaoke sports bar for the "luxury car set" -- Is that right, Ryan? -- across the street). But there are rules to visiting Roscoe's. Yes, one in our party was still bold enough to ask to make a substitution. No. No substitutions. Read the sign.

We passed the case of merch and went to table one, after making the staff aware that we'd likely have one or two joining us after they learned we were not down the street at Chef Marilyn's Soul Food Express. No worries, we were assured. A chair could pull up to our table with no issue. Cool. (That did turn out to be true, BTW.)

Now, I usually check out a menu before I visit a restaurant for the first time. That's mainly due to issues with wheat gluten, but also because I'm one of those annoying diners who needs to read the whole menu to decide what I want, rather than just magically spotting something hopping up and down at me from the page, begging to be ordered and eaten. Still, the menu at Roscoe's is not too long, so we were able to figure out what we wanted (yes, even me) by the time our drinks arrived. And I, for one, was hongray.

As for atmosphere, the signs are about it. (This one exists at every table.) Well, there's also art. There are flat-screen TVs (all turned off, from what I could tell). And while we strained to hear if there were any music playing, I still think--if we heard anything--it was someone's iPod. Eric says the Long Beach Roscoe's is the homey-est and this one is more like a diner. Ryan mentioned expansion at the Gower St. location (the only one I have visited, although that was nearly 20 years ago), which should mean it's a bit roomier than I recall.

Joining me for the third stop on the GSFiSCC were David, Eric, Ryan, Susyn and technically Masasa (more on that in the next post, I promise). Our time together included talk of (and quotes from) Bring It On, discussion of Light My Fire (a booth at the Grove specializing in hot sauce), and a domain check on BackYardPorn.com, which David will now not be able to snap up, as it's already taken (.org, however, is available, which Susyn says is a great option, since that could stand for "orgasm"). We also verified that the "Carolinian" in North Carolinian and South Carolinian are pronounced differently (the LIN in the latter is said with an EE sound) and Susyn told us about something called chicken bog, which I'll also cover in the next entry.

So... let's eat! My goal was to order the most traditionally southern meal available. I decided that was the #23, for $13.40 plus tax.

Collard greens (which I've decided I'm ordering at every stop on the tour, as that will be the great equalizer, when tabulating the votes at the end of this journey), candied yams (called "candy yams" on the menu, and, um, that's probably more appropriate, because I swear they tasted like dessert), a fried breast of chicken the size of my head, and cornbread served with a pat of butter (where "pat" is code for "tablespoon of fluffy goodness"). Yum! Good decision-making on the ordering, there, Bon.

Traditional Roscoe's fare: chicken'n waffles, add a side of mac and cheese. All three gents ordered exactly this, but Eric did request the most "baked brown" mac and cheese possible. No-go. This was as dark-brown as it got. Well, 'til David added hot sauce and pepper to his. That was pretty badass, actually. (Note: David refused a Birthday Biscuit Bottom when I offered it, once he realized it was the uneaten part of a biscuit with a fake candle mounted upon it. Pff. That's gratitude for ya!)

[NOTE: I'm going to leave this next bit in, even though I've since been corrected and will set the record straight after this little story. But the story is funny and well-written, so in it stays, just for fun.]

Now, I'm not sure whether my momma tried to save me from the harsh realities of what chitlins actually are, but my whole life I was led to believe that they were chicken necks. So, tonight I decided to finally try one when Susyn offered, thinking that it couldn't be that bad. And it wasn't. Tasted like deep-fried beef jerky. Fine. And then I came home and started to post this blog entry, which involved looking up chitlins (well, chitterlings), to be sure I was spelling everything right and, uh...

I ate pig intestines. Awesome. No regrets. But, I think I'm done with eating chitlins in my lifetime. Maybe. We'll see. Maybe I just need to let it all sink in.

[Okay, so those aren't chitlins at all. They're chicken giblets! As Susyn informed me just now over at the Facebook, "While I have eclectic food tastes, I don't think even I would eat chitlins! Giblets--I was always told--are the stomachs, hence the tough, chewy taste. After doing some research this morning, the official word is that giblets can be the heart, liver, and gizzard (secondary stomach). But, what I had was clearly the gizzard. And yummy it was! :) There you have it!" So, thank you Susyn for setting me straight! I ate chicken innards, not pig innards. Hee!]

Here are the chitlins chicken giblets with the rest of Susyn's dish: a biscuit, eggs, grits, and collard greens. Everybody shared everything (I sampled everything but biscuits, eggs, and waffles, I think) and everyone agreed that everything was tasty and plentiful. I actually said to Ryan, "Oh my god, I think this is the first time in a year of eating together that your plate got cleared before mine did." (He's a notoriously slow eater and likes to keep his food around even if he's not going to finish it, just in case.) His response, as I continued to pick at my food long after I was full: "I couldn't stop!"

We sat for a bit and talked and laughed while enjoying the wet-naps the waitress brought us and each other's company, then it was time to head out. Eric offered me a plastic bag as a souvenir, to which I replied, "No thank you; I'm de-cluttering." (Thank you, David, for capturing that, plus for telling us all about the Dragon Dictation app, which I must remember to download, seeing as I now recall you're the second cute boy to tell me about it in 2010 [I'm lookin' at you, Bill the DILF].)

As we left the restaurant and headed back west on Pico on foot toward our cars (still parked at Chef Marilyn's), we were greeted by the smell of a lovely incense burning in the bushes just under a Roscoe's window (let's just say something else was burning off the back of the parking lot, probably justifying the very large portion sizes provided at Roscoe's) and then spotted the sign offering us information about the scent. There was a table, but no one manning it. Perhaps we were too late to buy any incense. Oh well, we weren't too late to get back to Chef Marilyn's and experience our fourth stop on the GSFiSCC tour. But more on that, next post.

Meanwhile, let's see how Roscoe's measures up, in the criteria I set out when issuing this Challenge.

• Is the eatin' good?

Yup. If you like lots of food, come on by. Several locations to serve you. The chicken is almost "broasted" (roasted in a pressure cooker, according to Eric), but the waitress assured us it was deep fried in oil, and the reason it tasted so moist and flavorful was "a secret."

• Is the eatin' authentically southern?

What is on their menu that is southern is certainly authentic enough. The collard greens had a kick. The grits were buttery. I didn't try the sweet iced tea -- Did they offer any? -- but I think I got more than enough sugar for the day in my yams.

• Is the price right?

Looking at the menu, I thought the prices were high ($13.40 for one chicken breast and two sides, plus cornbread, for me), but when the food came it became clear that there was way more food on the plate--scratch that, it was a platter--than I had anticipated. Five were fed for around $87, plus tip. Not bad at all!

• Does the staff make you feel like you're sittin' at your grandma's table?

We decided no, mainly because your grandma would allow substitutions (says Susyn) and offer water without you having to request it. She wouldn't share the secret to the fried chicken flavor either, but she'd tell a joke or two to take the sting out of that.

• Is the place worth visiting, if you grew up on the type of food they say they make?

Hmm... well, I can't find where Roscoe's says they serve southern food. I think folks around here just made that up and decided to tell their southern friends that there's good southern eatin' there. So, since Roscoe's doesn't seem to want to be southern and is really just offering good, down-home soul food (which, naturally, happens to include a good number of authentic southern options), I'll say, sure! You can get your southern grub on here just fine.

• How does it measure up to other stops on the GSFiSCC tour?

Miss Peaches is still in the lead for service, atmosphere, food, and best overall experience. South is our only alcohol-serving contender at this point, but that'll change at stop five, later this month. All three stops have involved loads of fun and lots of laughs, plentiful food, and good times. And isn't that what southern eatin' is all about?

I really was going to blog more.

Especially after my trip to Atlanta. I even have photos!

Ah well. I'm beat. Overworked. Thrilled, but way overworked. Totally gratified. And tired.

So, here's my "I swear I was going to blog more in February" post.

More next month. It's a longer month. That means the odds are better, right?

Our second stop on the GSFiSCC was South, 3001 Wilshire Blvd., Santa Monica, 90403.

South is the creation of four young guys who clearly enjoyed the frat hangouts of their college days (and beyond). A couple of 'em did time in the south, and that's what they've focused their menu upon. It covers a few states' favorites, rather than trying to stick to one specific southern cuisine, but really, South is a sportsbar, first and foremost. The fact that you can get a good southern dinner there is a bonus.

I arrived promptly at 4pm (their happy hour runs weekdays from 3pm to 8pm. Awesome, right?) and told the manager that we would be a party of... well... it was hard to know, as RSVPs were flipping back from YES to NO all through the day. I also told him we may have drop-ins over the next few hours. So, it could be me alone for an hour and then maybe a dozen folks by the time we were all assembled. But nothing formal. Nothing official.

The manager awesomely offered me the private room. Three flat-screen TVs mounted there, plus a very cool--huge--leather sofa, and two little coffee tables. Problem was, we were looking to eat meals, so I figured having a real table situation would be best. Otherwise, that's a badass room. So noted. Anyway, the manager happily put together a couple of tables and brought over a few extra chairs and our guests began arriving (and kept arriving through 9pm, when we called it a night).

Now, this was the "deadest" I've ever seen South. I've been there quite a few times and it's always loud and full and overflowing with high-spirited whoops and hollers at the various games on TV (or games of flip-cup and beer pong and team trivia going on). But I guess with this being a holiday (Presidents Day) and starting a little on the early side, we got the place to ourselves for a good part of the evening. The manager encouraged us to join him tonight (Fat Tuesday) for alligator meat and loads of fun. He was decorating the space with Mardi Gras colors and props. Looked like it'd be a blast.

Joining me for the second stop on the GSFiSCC were Cristina, Curt, David B., David M., Julie, Kathi, Masasa, Mason, Matthew, Mike, Ryan, and Shirley. Biggest difference between South and Miss Peaches (our first stop on the tour) is the presence of booze. Plenty of it.

Plenty of it.

But let's get to the food, since that's what this whole thing is about.

This was my order: creamed corn, collard greens, and jalapeño cornbread. The greens were amazing. I gave away 2/3 of my corn and 1/2 of my cornbread (but to be fair, these were really large portions, and I ordered a sharing plate of fried stuff, so I was plenty full). Everything was delicious and of very generous portion size.

The "plate o' fried" that I ordered. Okra, fried green tomatoes, and hush puppies. Dang, that was some good stuff. Glad folks shared this platter of gluten overload. (Well, the okra and fried green tomatoes--like the fried shrimp in Marc's shrimp po' boy--were breaded in corn meal, but still. I got more than my share of wheat gluten, for sure.)

That's Marc's fried shrimp po' boy with sweet potato fries. Um, yum.

Ryan's pulled-pork sandwich. (He said the bun was not good, so he ate it open-face. Quote: "I don't eat bad buns.") Note: When we had a conversation about vegetarianism, Marc was quick to quote his dad, saying, "Once the pig is in you, it's in you for life." Yeah, baby. That's good stuff.

I, of course, am a huge fan of the pulled-pork nachos at South. (This photo is from a visit last year, with fellow southerner Camille.) Since I get these every time I'm here, I opted out, but at least four people at our table did go for these, and they were not disappointed. "Thumbs up to the pulled-pork nachos," Mason said. Honestly, I think what makes me love 'em so much is that they're made with baked beans, not refried or black beans. Holy cats, that's good stuff!

As awesome as the food was, we also just had a good time. Lots of laughs, just like at our first stop on the tour, although this time we were the entertainment, rather than the restaurant staff providing the giggles (they, at best, were impolite--except for the very accommodating manager who greeted me upon arrival. One of the toughest elements was that there were several changes in servers in the five hours we were there. That's not unexpected, but it caused some mistaken charges on the night's bill, and inconsistency of experience).

Still, that was minor stuff. We had fun, dangit. And some folks even played a few games of pool...

...and posed in mirrored sunglasses. It's like they planned this or something! (Photo by Masasa Moyo.)

Masasa said, about her cheese grits, which she enjoyed along with collard greens and red beans and rice (and hot sauce, of course), "Best cheese grits I've ever had." Awesome!

Kathi got wings. And so many of 'em! Seriously, the portions at South are plentiful, y'all!

And the napkins were plentiful too. (Thank goodness!)

We really had a good time, despite ambiance that wasn't awesome, according to some. "It's a zero or negative five," Ryan said. "I feel like I'm stuck in an airport waiting for my next flight," Masasa contributed. Definitely we craved knickknacks on the walls and more southern music, and the fact that some glasses were glass while others were plastic was weirdly annoying, but, hey, in the end, this is a sportsbar. It's about what you'd expect in that respect.

Sadly, no one ordered dessert. No deep fried Twinkies. No deep fried Snickers. So, I can't even tell you what those things look like. I kind of want to see 'em! So, we'll go back. Also, no one ordered fried pickles, so I can't tell you about those either. What I can tell you is that eight items on the menu are half off during the five-hour-long weekday happy hour. And drinks are cheap then too. Very not bad!

So, let's see how South measures up, in the criteria I set out when issuing this Challenge.

• Is the eatin' good?

Definitely. Just like with Miss Peaches, it's good, it's plentiful, it's delish!

• Is the eatin' authentically southern?

Pretty much. I got my fried okra and fried green tomatoes (which I was missing at Miss Peaches), and if you're into New Orleans' southern food, they've got you covered. Into Texas' southern food, roger that. Into Georgia's southern food, that one's good too. I think they've done a good job offering a little bit of everything you might want, at least that seemed to be the case at our table.

• Is the price right?

Definitely. Especially during happy hour. Of course, I had told the manager that we'd settle up our check all together, but during the several change-overs of personnel while we were there (and because members of our party were arriving and leaving all throughout the five hours I was there), checks were separated out, so I don't have any clue what our overall bill was. Anyway, my three sides were $15 (and way too much to eat), plus the three fried sides were $13 (ditto). Drinks were five bucks each, due to happy hour. All good.

• Does the staff make you feel like you're sittin' at your grandma's table?

Only if your grandma is Bear Bryant.

• Is the place worth visiting, if you grew up on the type of food they say they make?

For sure! But be prepared: It is a sportsbar. If you're coming for dinner, just know there are many different sporting events on many different TVs, the music is blasting, and as the crowd thickens up the people get loud too. It's just that kind of place! So, for what it is, absolutely, it's a fun stop on the tour.

Since we've now made multiple stops on the GSFiSCC tour, I'm adding one more question to the mix:

• How does it measure up to other stops on the GSFiSCC tour?

Miss Peaches beats South, hands down, for service. Kitschy atmosphere at Miss Peaches beats the college-town frat bar feel of South, for my taste, but that's just a difference in style, and you really wouldn't choose South if you were in a Miss Peaches mood (or vice-versa). Both restaurants rate as tops, as far as food as concerned, and that's really the bottom line. Go to Miss Peaches for supper at grandma's. Go to South to snack, drink, and watch the game with the Pi Kappa Alphas.