Picky Pagan #3: Pho Tay Bac in Brea, CA

In the past couple years, Pho has exploded as a popular food among carnivores. It used to be that you would have to go to an ethnic Vietnamese part of a major city to find a pho restaurant. Now there is there is practically one pho restaurant in every city, and sometimes a lot more. Being a fan myself, since I was young, I have always looked for a good pho restaurant in every new place I live in. Being picky in your selection pays off because, often, these restaurants will attempt to use cheap ingredients, powdered stock and poor cuts of meat. For a while, I lived in the Fullerton/Anaheim area of Orange County, which is right next to Westminister. Westminister is contains probably the largest population of Vietnamese in the Southern California area. Along with this comes great pho restaurants. However, sometimes I would not want to drive the 50 minute round trip down the 22. Eventually I started looking in to possible locations to satiate my pho lust in town. I quickly discovered that the majority of the spots in Fullerton were of pretty poor quality. To the north of Fullerton lies the city of Brea (not to be confused with La Brea in Los Angeles). On the border of the two towns there is a small shop situated in a tiny strip mall off of Imperial and Arrow Drive called Pho Tay Bac. They make their pho broth nightly from scratch, using real bones and fresh ingredients. All pho places put MSG in their pho, so the trick is to find the ones that rely more on quality ingredients than the flavor enhancer. Pho Tay Bac has been able to minimalize their use of this product. Their cuts of meat are always decent and their vegetables are always fresh. The staff is also very friendly and helpful. Their other food items are also very tasty. I suggest trying everything that catches your eye, their banh mi is pretty decent. It is not my favorite place (I'm partial to Pho Hoa in San Diego), but as far as Fullerton/Anaheim/Brea goes, its my choice. It is Korean owned though and some of the food could be considered to not be made in the authentic Vietnamese style. Nevertheless, you can always depend on a fresh, clean and tasty meal.

Rating: 4.4 broomsticks out of 5

YouTube Review: Aiden Gallway

While perusing various occult chat rooms, I stumbled upon a link to this Wiccan's YouTube channel. Through this channel, Aiden attempts to explain Wicca to beginners, outsiders and non-practitioners. If you have ever been curious about what Wiccans believe and practice, this is a good place to start. Aiden is young and comes off a little nervous in the first video, but his heart is definitely in the right place and he puts forth an honest and well researched opinion. If you think we worship the devil and run around hexing everyone we do not like, you should really take a look at Aiden's videos. You can find them here:


http://www.youtube.com/user/MrJakerz18?feature=mhee#p/u/3/LoVqfoREO04

October

October is my favorite month of the year. Obviously Samhain is always a good time, but there are many other reason for my affinity towards this time of the year. The weather is perfect in my opinion. It is just cold enough to wear your favorite sweater or jacket, but not so cold that you cannot stand being outside. (Granted it never really goes below 20 degrees in my neck of the woods.) The sunsets become way more spectacular, and the rain clears away the smog so the stars become a lot more visible at night. Camping during this time of the year is great because the heavy rains have not arrived yet, and its cold enough to set a roaring fire in your fire pit. The yellow and red leaves just seem to put my mind at ease. One of the best aspects, however, is that now I get to break out the heavy blankets and quilts for my bed. There is no more comforting feeling than a warm bed when its cold, except maybe a little apple cider and a book to go along with the warm bed.

The Picky Pagan #2: Yangtze Restaurant in Ontario, CA

I have recently moved to Ontario. The day of the move, my parents came to help me. After a long day of moving my existence in and out of the U-Haul style truck, my parents and I were famished. We asked my new land lady, who has been a long-term resident of Ontario, where we could find a good Chinese restaurant (this is the one style of non steak house restaurant that my parents and I consistently agree on). My land lady recommended Yangtze. She related to us that she had been patronizing this establishment for years and it was her family's favorite. With the local recommendation, and the location being a stone's throw away, we felt like we had we were presented with a good choice.

We arrived at about 8:30 p.m. It was a Friday evening and the parking lot/dining room was bare. Red flags started to shoot up in my brain immediately. They had an old cigarette vending machine (not operating) in the rear entrance, which gave the place a pretty nostalgic feeling. The decor seemed as though as it had been there since the 1920s, which I personally like. However, the vinyl on the booth was cracking which was kind of annoying. Our waitress visited us quickly. Seeing as how there was only one other table that was filled, the quick service was expected. Our waitress was getting on in years and told my parents she had been working there for decades. I ordered wonton soup as an appetizer, and my parents had no appetizers. The broth was definitely out of a can, and I am pretty sure the wontons had been bought out or made a week prior and frozen. It did not taste bad, just I could have made the same dish at home for cheaper. My family usually orders family style for entrees when it comes to Chinese. We ordered Kung Pao Beef, Chicken Lo Mein and Broccoli Beef. A pretty standard order for any Americans at a Chinese restaurant. I flirted with the idea of ordering a whole duck or some sea food, but I decided to try the staples and come back for the dangerous stuff another day if everything went okay. Unfortunately it did not. The food came in about 5 minutes, which told me it was microwaved or had been under a heat lamp since the afternoon. The Kung Pao Beef lacked any semblance of spice and tasted a little off. The Lo Mein was pretty slimy and the noodles were overly soggy. The only tolerable dish was the Broccoli Beef and this was due the fact that I love broccoli, frozen or fresh. I have never been one to really send stuff back unless it is undercooked or burnt, so I asked the waitress if they had some Sriracha or any type of chili sauce, she happily obliged and brought a crusty glass cup from the kitchen containing chili oil. I immediately realized why my Kung Pao Beef was off. The chili oil was rancid! I resigned to just finishing my steamed rice and letting my parents eat whatever they wanted to stomach. The one redeeming quality was the owner. He is the son of the man who opened the restaurant in the 1950s. He was extremely friendly and made a sincere effort to talk about the history of the place and converse with my parents, who are of the same age (early 60s), about his travels and their travels. About 15 minutes in to the conversation, after my parents had finished eating, I got an uneasy feeling in my stomach. I proceeded to rush the conversation and my parents out the door. When I we got back to my new residence, my parents and I said our good-byes, and I rushed to the bathroom.

Overall it is a shame that such a historic and unique place should be run so poorly. I can do nothing but give Yangtze a

.5 broomsticks out of 5.


The .5 is accredited due to the owner's friendliness.

Store Review: Controversial Bookstore in San Diego

With the advent of tablets and eBooks, more and more hard copy book stores are closing down. Even libraries are now making a transition to electronic media. I do not think they even teach the Dewey Decimal System in school any more (not necessarily a bad thing). In any case amongst all of this change, for the past 40+ years there has been a little gem in North Park, San Diego: the independently run Controversial Bookstore. North Park is a couple miles east of downtown, and right next to Hillcrest and is a hotbed of niche bars, restaurants and shops. In the past few years North Park has really had a revival of interest with what could be described as the scenester crowd, whereas in the 80s to mid 90s it was a hotbed of gang activity and prostitution. A couple years ago I was in my home town asking around about where I can buy obscure Occult literature, and I was directed to Controversial by many experienced witches (I do not think they would want me to call them "old"). I had not been able to find any quality books on Irish Celtic religious history and practice, and within 5 minutes of perusing the shelves, sure enough they had small section with quality old and new books. The prices were fair and the cashier was very friendly and helpful. I staid for about a hour after my transaction just browsing. They have many books pertaining to almost every metaphysical practice, holistic health technique and obscure religion that I have ever heard of as well as a fair amount of trinkets and incense. If you are like me, and enjoy building a library of substance and occult knowledge, this place is definitely a must if you are down in America's finest city. You can visit their website here.

Rating: 5 broomsticks out 5

The Picky Pagan #1: Log Cabin in Big Bear

     After camping in the San Bernadino mountains this last weekend, I decided to go in to the city of Big Bear and check out some artisan shops and some antique stores (my time-wasting guilty pleasure). I had been out alone all weekend and had not really talked to anyone for the past couple days, seeing as how I was out in the wilderness, so I was in a pseudo-zen state when I arrived in the mountain town. I had been eating granola and dried fruit while camping, so I was definitely ready for a quality warm meal. It was ten in the morning on a Saturday, so I assumed that the breakfast joints would be at their best. I am not too familiar with the establishments in Big Bear, so in the best interest of making a good choice, I decided to drive around and check out my options. On the approach to downtown, I passed by a place called "Log Cabin" with a sign out front that read "Best Breakfast in Big Bear". I considered it slightly and drove on. As I passed other establishments and considered them, that claim that the sign made just started to work its way back in to my mind. I cruised around town, some more until I said out loud to myself, " Best in town, we'll see about that!" and I headed over without even really thinking about it.

     As I walked in through the front door I saw a sign that indicated for guests to wait for their waitress to seat them, so I consequently stood for about 5 minutes until I could get the attention of a waitress. I let her know that I was the only person in my party, and she directed me to sit at a small table were the sun would have been in my eyes, so I decided to sit at the larger booth next to it. Looking around, I noticed that the restaurant was about half full, which I thought was a little odd for mid Saturday morning if you have the "Best Breakfast in Town". My waitress brought me a well used menu and asked if I would like anything to drink. I ordered unsweetened iced tea. As I perused the menu, I noticed that they had a regular section and a German section. Intrigued, I order three different types of sausage, kartoffelpuffer (German potato pancakes) and sour kraut. The waitress took my order with no real interest, just kind of like I was another chore in her day to take care of. I did not take my cell phone in with me as it had been in my trunk the whole weekend, so I do not really know how long it took for my order to arrive, but seeing as how there was a family with a bunch of screaming toddlers sitting in the middle of the dining area, I started to get restless. I started noticing that most of the tablecloths had crumbs on them and the floor looked like it had not been vacuumed for a week. I spied a door to the back that had a patio that I had not recognized until then, so I jumped at the chance to move outside. When the food came I could tell that the German sausages had been store-bought but at least they were well cooked. The sour kraut was good, but inconsequential. The kartoffelpuffer tasted great (although I am no expert in German cuisine). It was all served with a small cup of sour cream and a small cup of what seemed to be Mott's applesauce. I do not like sour cream so that was left behind. The meal was, overall, satisfying but a little greasy. The meal was priced at about 12 dollars and my iced tea was about 2 so I feel it was a bit overpriced for store-bought sausage and applesauce. The waitress suddenly got nicer towards the end of my meal, obviously fishing for a tip. She was pretty attentive and refilled my ice tea a lot so I tipped her 15%. I left full, but on my way out I scowled at that sign.

The rundown: decor was old and dusty, cleanliness was barely tolerable, food was edible, service was acceptable, the prices sucked.

Rating: 2 broomsticks out of 5

comic con, it ain't how it used to be.

Unfortunately after months of looking forward to and getting excited about the biggest event in San Diego, I have been let down. The organizers seem to have allocated less resources towards diverse and interesting guests and more towards pushing this years upcoming Hollywood movies or tweeny cable programs like True Blood. This year's Comic-con seems like more of a who's-who than what it used to be: the biggest annual gathering of like minded nerds. Instead of being annoyed at someone's argument over whether Star Trek or Star Wars is better, I have been running into more and more ridiculously loud sorority and fraternity prats taking up space and breathable oxygen. I don't know if I want to go again next year, and I have been here during the last 3 decades. At least there is a Star Trek panel next.

Store Review: Starcrafts of La Mesa

When I first walked in to this store, the owner was behind the counter conversing with a regular customer. As I walked around and browsed the books, crystals and herbs I could definitely feel them watching me whenever my back was to them in an almost suspicious manner. It was not until I came up and introduced myself that the tension was broken. The owner was very approachable and knowledgeable about her moderately big selection of literature. She recommended some books that were very appropriate to my query. However soon after, she started pushing her's and her husband's various seminars. They hold a men's meetup that they ask you contribute 5 dollars towards, which I attended. Everyone was friendly but there was no real worship or teaching of metaphysical knowledge. It felt like more of a group therapy session than a pagan meetup. It was fun though. The next seminar I attended was an introduction to Reiki that the owner was holding. It was $25.00 and she gave everyone in attendance a full set of Reiki crystals. This meetup was a lot more informational and I felt like it was worth the money, if you are interested studying Reiki. After attending two of their seminars and purchasing a couple items I started to become familiar the community that surrounds this shop, so I decided to go to a solstice celebration and drum circle that they were holding. Being an experienced hand percussionist, this sounded like it was right up my alley. Due to unfortunate circumstances I was about 45 minutes late, but was able to come in and join in on the circle with my djembe for the remaining hour or so. I enjoyed myself, and it seemed as though everyone was having a good time, and in the middle of the revelry, the owner's husband hits me up for the fee as if I was not planning on paying it. As I gave him the 10 dollars, I started to sense an energy about the man that was less about worship and more about profit. It left a negative impression on me and I have not been back since. Overall I feel as though this is a good place to shop for literature and fresh herbs, but be prepared to be upsold a Reiki session or encouraged to attend a seminar.

Rating: 3 broomsticks out of 5

Summer

Summer is beginning. The weather is perfect as always here in San Diego. I have found/rediscovered a wonderful spot near where I grew up for worship and performing rituals. It has a beautiful view and is about as secluded as it gets without going in to the mountains or the desert. The finding of this spot comes just in time for the Summer Solstice, so I am pretty excited and busy preparing for a fun celebration. My only issue is that the solstice comes in the middle of my work week... modern society fucking sucks.

The recent full moon.

This last weekend, on Saturday, we went through a cycle of our moon known as a "Super Moon". It was a full moon phase where the moon itself was closer to the Earth than it has been since March of 1993. I have always enjoyed the moon's presence in our skies, and as a Pagan it holds a strong spiritual significance for me. I am always interested when there is news and buzz about solar system and its bodies. Over the weekend there was a lot of buzz about the concern of scientists that the gravitational pull of the moon might trigger the Earth's tectonic plates to move and cause a serious earthquake. Because of the recent series of quakes and massive tsunami in Japan, the world has been reminded of just how little we are in control of our planet's natural forces. The moon-driven earthquake never came, and I personally thank the moon for not destroying my coast and my home.

The First Post

So I guess my first post for this blog will be a book review. I could write a lengthy introduction for myself and my purpose for starting this blog, but I would rather not beat around the bush and just get strait in to what I want to write about.

One of my favorite historical fiction/fantasy books is by Susanna Clarke and is named Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell. It was a New York Times Best Seller, so chances are you may have heard of it. In case you have not, it focuses on Napoleonic Era England in which practical magic has disappeared from public view. Magic is studied by uppercrusty gentleman but is considered something that only lower class individuals attempt to perform. When a couple of the York Society Magicians take it upon themselves to rediscover England's magic, they come across Mr. Norrell who almost begrudgingly brings practical magic back for the country's use. This book is filled with fantastic stories of wartime use of magic and mysterious beings from the land of Faerie. One of my favorite aspects of this book is that Clarke has filled the book with footnotes that reference a myriad of fictional texts that she seems to have created a whole library of for this particular story.  At 800 pages, it is an undertaking to read, but well worth it, especially if you are fascinated by the occult.