"I discovered quite by accident that I have enough hair to be a guido.  Thank god for combs, let good taste prevail."

(After I complained that my hands were dry and rough:) "Oh, be quiet and give me some of that 40-grit loving."

We were given tickets (Phil's birthday gift) to a Next Iron Chef event being held in conjunction with Food Network's NY Food and Wine Festival in October. All of Iron Chefs and contestants had booths with a sample of their work...with only a few very notable exceptions, it was, as you would expect, amazing!  I had the camera (and a lot of the pictures I had to doctor -- the lighting was awful), so lots of photos of Phil and the chefs -- his deal, so I'm ok with it!  (We know he's the more photogenic of the two of us, anyway.)

Phil with Iron Chef Forgione

Us with Alton Brown!

Phil with...Elizabeth Falkner?  I think?

Chef Appleman at work

Phil with the original, Iron Chef Morimoto! 

Phil with Giada -- we spotted her in the crowd and I made him bother her.

Phil with Chef Guaranchelli -- Spoiler alert, she won.

Phil with his choice for winner, Chef Mehta.  Not pictured: my choice, Chef Mehndelsohn.

Morimoto at work

Phil with Iron Chef Zakarian (who was handing out pink bandaids from a tub large enough to drown in)

We pose with their promo

The back room where the Iron Chefs were set up -- you can barely see how packed the room was.

Phil with Iron Chef Michael Symon

The chefs present that evening.

"Look at my skin tone, do I look like I have rhythm?"

Guest Stupidity

Courtesy of one of my coworkers -- at the department holiday party, during a trivia game, after a large number of Jewish students could not properly identify which direction menorah candles are lit: "Do we get a prize for the worst Jew ever?"

Guest...not-really-stupidity

Courtesy of my brother...thank him every time you do this!

"How old is too old to put on your high beams on a snowy night and pretend you're Han Solo entering hyperspace?"

(Talking about when he was in school:) "That was back when I was just a little amazing. ...I was humble once, too."