Our Accomplishments - 2012

Hi everyone,
Sorry about our long hiatus from blogging!  The semester was ending, and we always do some traveling to visit our families over the holidays, so things were a little hectic, but hopefully we are back for good.

2012 is almost over, and we are reflecting back on our year and looking forward to a fresh start next year.  We came up with a list of our top 10 accomplishments this year to share with you all.  Here they are more or less in order of importance:

10. We started a blog!
Starting a blog came out of Amy's desire to journal more often and Jesse's knee-jerk suggestion for how she could accomplish that.  We have posted 16 times so far, writing about running, burger joints, important events, etc., and this blog has been a way for us to reflect on what is going on in our lives and learn more about one another.  We hope to continue posting this next year!

9. We embraced new technologies.
This is mainly an accomplishment for Jesse.  About a month ago he got a brand new phone, a smart phone, which was a big step up from his antique flip phone.  Amy was surprised; she never thought Jesse would be interested in stepping outside his technological comfort zone, but she was quick to encourage him to get the phone.  Since getting this smart phone, he has used it to browse the internet, send many text messages (sometimes to multiple people at the same time!), and donate to charities through the Charity Miles app.  Jesse really likes his new phone.
Also, for Christmas Amy got a Kindle, so she is also branching out technology-wise!

Jesse's new phone

8. We ramped up our social lives.
This area of our lives has expanded in several ways this year: Amy and then Jesse started working out with Tory, we started going to trivia at Applebee's with Tory and Spencer, our main group of friends started having dinner together each week, and Amy began going to Stammtisch and Kino Klub more often, which also helped her German.  We also got to go on trips with friends to Oklahoma and Wisconsin/Minnesota.  It has been a lot of fun to increase the amount of time we spend with friends, and hopefully the new year will bring even more opportunities to socialize.

Our friends after dinner one night

 7. Jesse gave up soda.
Jesse's new year's resolution last year was to stop drinking soda, and he did just that.  He says that honestly he doesn't miss it, and he wants to continue taking steps to improve his nutrition and health with his resolutions this year.

6. We started sponsoring a child
When approached on a street corner in Minneapolis by a ChildFund advocate, we thought, "Why not?" and decided to start sponsoring a child.  We are now supporting a little girl named Trinity from Uganda and her parents, and it's nice getting letters and photos from them and writing back.

5. Amy applied for a Fulbright grant.
Although we won't find out until April whether or not we're going to Germany next school year, it was an accomplishment in itself just to apply for a Fulbright grant.  Amy worked really hard putting together her application materials, going through multiple drafts of both essays, and it was a happy relief when it was all done. 

4. We tried AcroYoga.
We decided to attend an Acro Yoga workshop at the Lincoln Yoga Center because it sounded fun, even though we didn't really know what to expect.  What we found was a fun way to step outside of our comfort zones (and step onto one another) and get a little exercise.  We ended up attending several Acro Yoga jam sessions hosted by our friend Katie Schueths, and we really enjoyed trying out new moves and combinations.  We also had the opportunity to do some demonstrating and spotting at an Acro Yoga workshop early this month, and we helped several people, including one sixty-year-old woman, learn their first Acro Yoga postures!

Acro Yoga in the park

3. We completed one 4K, two 5Ks, and three hashes.
Running was one of the biggest things we accomplished this year, since neither of us really consider ourselves runners.  It was tough at first to get into the habit of running while staying positive and being realistic about our progress, but eventually we got to the point where we could be proud of what we had accomplished.  We participated in the Donut Dash on East Campus, as well as the Color Run in Omaha, and we were finally able to run an entire 5K with the Monster Dash at Roca Berry Farm.  Amy started tearing up as we crossed the finish line.  It was a big accomplishment... and now we're looking forward to our first half marathon in May!
We also got into hashing thanks to Tory, and we ran a total of three hashes this year.

Here we are after the Color Run

2. Jesse wrote a screenplay.
Jesse finished the feature-length script he started working on last summer.  The script has already gone through several revisions, and the next step is to start putting the film together, although financing the project is currently an issue.  However, it is so awesome that Jesse was able to write a complete movie script.  It is definitely something to be proud of.

1. We started visiting the 150 burger joints in George Motz's Hamburger America.
Last but not least, our most delicious accomplishment this year: visiting 16 of the 150 burger restaurants in the book I got Jesse for Christmas last year.  At this rate we have nine tasty years ahead of us to get to every place in the book.  This accomplishment is number one on our list because it was one of the most enjoyable things we did this year, and it was something that we could do together.  Amy's favorite thing is exploring new places we would not normally visit, and Jesse likes recording each adventure in our scrapbook.  We can't wait to keep trying new burgers!

At Paul's Tavern in Dubuque, IA

We have so much to be proud of this year, and we had so much fun creating new memories.  Last night we talked about our favorite parts of the year, and Amy said it had to be either visiting her sister, Sara, in Germany with her brother, Steve, or our one year anniversary trip, and Jesse agreed that our anniversary trip to Kansas City was so much fun.  He also loved meeting new people and hanging out with our friends more.

We are looking forward to the year ahead of us.  We are planning on running a half marathon and we are maybe even going to live in Germany for a few months.  Who knows what exactly the next year will bring, but we say, bring it on!

One of our anniversary photos!  (Kati Schwieger Photography)

Until next year,
Amy and Jesse

Hamburger America: The Odyssey - Stop 1

Hey everyone! I'm back again!

In my last post I told the story of how I received a deceptively cool book from my hip, hip wife, Amy, for Christmas last year. That book was Hamburger America by George Motz. I also laid out the premise of the book. (See my last post for details.) Now we’ll start to get into the first leg of our Hamburger America Odyssey. We begin in Wisconsin while visiting Amy’s family for the holidays. It was almost time to head home to Lincoln, NE, and I decided that the trip back was a good chance to check out one of these burger places.

I started outlining a travel plan. There were about a dozen places that we could stop between Green Bay and Lincoln. Since Iowa only had four places, we decided to try and start knocking that state off our list first. We didn’t really care which one we went to, so we just picked whichever one would add the least amount of extra drive time according to our GPS. As things fell out, on January 5th, 2012, we decided to go to Hamburg Inn No. 2 in Iowa City, IA. Sitting on 214 North Linn St. and open daily from 6:30 am to 11:00 pm, this little burger spot would be our first appraisal of the taste of Motz. When we pulled up to the Hamburg Inn No. 2, we decided to pause for a moment and read the passage about it from the “Hamburger Bible” as we’ve affectionately come to call it. (Praise be to George Motz!)

Reflecting on the criteria of Motz, first the meat had to be ground fresh and never frozen. This wouldn’t be a problem at the Hamburg Inn No. 2. They grind all their meat fresh daily on the premises. This restaurant has an interesting history, especially in the political realm. It has become a spot for politicians on the campaign trail to stop off, grab a bite to eat, rub elbows with some locals, and let their “bubba factor” show through. Presidents like Ronald Reagan, Bill Clinton, and Barack Obama have stopped at this college town favorite and mingled with the locals, showing that they are human and hungry for some darn good burgers just like everyone else.

The Hamburg Inn No. 2 has a great atmosphere. It feels like a small town coffee shop/bistro where you could go to grab a cup of joe and a sandwich while you study. We went inside, were shown to a table, and started looking at the extensive menu.

There was a lot of variety, but there was a substantial portion of the menu that was devoted to the burgers. The burgers start as six-ounce balls of fresh ground chuck and are pressed flat on the hot flattop griddle. No preformed patties here. They are served on cornmeal-dusted Kaiser rolls and you have the option of five types of cheese and numerous toppings ranging from the standard fare like tomatoes and lettuce to more exotic burger toppings like pineapple.

Amy and I both decided to go with a fairly straightforward order with our burgers. We got the standard toppings.  The burgers also each came with two sides. I ordered fries and potato salad, which was some of the best potato salad I’ve ever had.

To help wash down my burger I got a cherry shake, which was so rich, creamy, and flavorful it was out of this world. Finally, getting to the burgers. When the food came out we paused to take a quick picture for the scrapbook, savored the fragrance, and finally dug in.

It was love at first bite. Having lived so long in a world of burgers where McDonalds and Burger King were the final word, I had had no idea what I was missing. This first bite redefined burgers and what they should be for me. The meat was moist and flavorful. The flavor and texture of the bun lent a smooth undertone to the fresh beef. It was the first time that Amy ever saw my “burger-gasm” face. As my wife puts it, “It’s when I know you’ve had a good one”. And with that meal I think it’s safe to say I experienced my first multiple burger-gasm. Every bite was sublime. I was in heaven and Amy was right there with me. She definitely isn’t as much of a carnivore as I am, but she was loving that burger.

We finished up our burgers and sat basking in the afterglow of our mealtime bliss. We paid our tab, bought a couple t-shirts, and asked a stranger to take a picture of us outside the front of the restaurant. 

We got back in the car and as Amy started to drive I got out an old photo album that Amy’s grandma had given us and started writing a reflection in our scrapbook. We have a five star rating system for our burger experiences and not many have gotten the coveted five star rating, but the Hamburg Inn No. 2 exceeded all our expectations and whetted our appetite for more burger adventures.

Final rating: 5 stars!

Next time we take on Stella’s Hamburgers, and this time we bring friends!

Hamburger America: The Odyssey

Hi, everyone.  Jesse here.

I would like to take this opportunity to begin writing about something that has been very important to Amy and me this last year. We have be on a quest to indulge in the best burgers in America and this is the beginning of that tale. It will fall into several sections. Maybe a post per restaurant, maybe a post per trip. We'll see. All journeys begin with a single step. This one was no exception.

During the Christmas of 2011, I got a wonderful book from my wife, Amy. We always end up in a weird conundrum when it comes to her picking out gifts for me. She rarely gets me something that I ask for, yet at the same time the coolness of the presents that she selects for me typically pretty quickly outweigh the disappointment of not getting something that I asked for. The book that she decided to get for me was something that she heard about on The Splendid Table on NPR. This book was called Hamburger America.

 

The basic premise of the book is that this fellow, George Motz, traveled around America indulging his love for that simple fast food staple, the hamburger. He traveled far and wide and compiled “A state-by-state guide to 150 great burger joints” throughout the country.  Motz holds no illusions about these being the BEST 150 burger joints in America. He just claims that they are great. He even acknowledges that he may very well have missed some amazing places that are still out there waiting to be brought to light. The establishments that he does endorse though have made it through some pretty strict criteria.

First, the burgers have to be made from fresh-ground beef and never frozen. You will not find mention of a single place endorsed in this book that sells frozen patties. Secondly, there must be some sort of historical significance. This might be a connection to some big person or event or it might even be a great example of entrepreneurial longevity (one place in New Haven, for example, has been in business for over 100 years and continually owned by the same family for four generations). Third, the burgers have to be able to “excite the taste buds” of Motz. Quality almost exclusively beat out quantity in terms of consideration of inclusion for this book. Finally, it has to be a place you would want to go, so many of the places have been, for me anyway, as much about atmosphere as about the burgers. There is usually a lot of amazing personality that goes along with each of these places.

My initial reaction to the book was, “Um…ok. A book of places I’ll likely never go.” However, as I began to look through the book and read about the rich heritage of hamburgers as researched and outlined by Motz, I began to get drawn into this little niche of restaurant Americana. With every story about a seasonal mom-pop burger shack, my enthusiasm grew. Every mention of a horseshoe counter surrounding a flattop griddle and surrounded by red leather, swiveling stools reinforced my resolve. By the time I had finished reading the 367-page book, which took me all of about a day and a half, I was decided. We were going to go to every place in this book. Not only would we go to each place, but also we would make a scrapbook of it, journaling about each one, and if they had a t-shirt for sale, get the t-shirt.

I should clarify something right up front. The plans outlined in the previous paragraph were my plans. Not necessarily something that Amy understood the scope and depth of right away. She got me this book thinking it would be a cool thing to try every once in a while if one of these burger joints were on the way to somewhere we were already headed. She didn’t even see this coming...

Next blog post: the Hamburg Inn No. 2