There was food, too. Really.

John originally uploaded by nicspir.

Actually lots of delicious food.

Apparently peepsNet hasn't been quite obsequious enough about Nicole, so we got the carrot-and-stick treatment. Sort of literally, come to think of it: a lovely vegan meal, and Polish absinthe which, to the best of anyone's knowledge, was 144 proof -- a fact we discovered way, way too late. Think the dental scene in Marathon Man: oil of cloves and drilling without anesthetic.

Then we didn't offer to do dishes. Sorry, Michael.

Nicole, Nicole, Nicole ...

PeepsNet isn't about ratting on the peeps. We aren't interested in the seamy underbelly of their lives. We'd rather not think there was a dark side. We don't want to hear about their weaknesses and foibles, or the gender confusion, addiction, gambling obsession, spiritual ambivalence, Oedipal complex, "daddy issues," and ritual cruelty to small animals.

And neither should you.

But there are limits to our restraint. We have just learned that Nicole has been unfaithful -- Nicole! Here is her unrepentant confession, on the Interwebs:

"A confession: I'm obsessed with cauliflower. And I'm not sorry."

Oh -- you're sorry all right.

We can't fathom what possessed npr.org to publish this metaphor-laden "Story of N." Of course, it is extremely well written, dammit.

"If a head of this funny-looking crucifer doesn't find its way into at least one meal a week, I'm either having a bad month or am out of town too much. A dinner without cauliflower feels off-balance, lackluster. A life without cauliflower is no life at all."

Nicole, please. Try to regain a modicum of dignity. No man is worth humiliating yourself like this. (Or likes to be called a "funny-looking crucifer." This may be your problem).

PeepsNet must find a hip urban dictionary to completely understand the disgusting acts Nicole describes below -- reprinted not for shock value but out of journalistic necessity:

"There are so many ways to adore you, cauliflower. I love you for your delicious, crumbly gratins baked for an hour in the oven on Friday evenings. I love your Monday night soups quickly whirled together and laced with mushrooms and herbes de Provence. I love your lazy Sunday afternoon curries served with coconut rice. But I think best of all I love you slow-roasted at 400 degrees for about a half hour."

I just don't know you anymore.

The entire, pathetic love letter is here. And, if you have a stomach for this, don't forget to listen to the podcast.

The World in a Grain of Rice

She taught us that quinoa could save the world and now Nicole is all about "The World in a Grain of Rice." Make up your mind? What's that? This just in: They are both grains.

Our woman in San Francisco is serving up some Chow (sorry) about what you can do with things called "polenta" and "millet" and "bulgur." Worst cocktails names ever.

But we like lists, and this is a top 10, which means we can just find #1 and go with that without a lot of reading. Cake is mentioned. That's promising.

The "about" part at the bottom is very cool, and peepsNet is going to use this boilerplate for Nicole stories from now on. Our only quibble is calling Cucina Nicolina a "cooking blog." It's about life, people.

---

Nicole Spiridakis contributes to the San Francisco Chronicle and NPR online, as well as other publications, and writes a cooking blog called Cucina Nicolina.

"Cool Photos" from Rich

A shout out from David Newman Music to Rich on some "cool photos."

The are cool. The boy's still got game, even though he is getting on in years.

Resurrecting the Resman

Let's start with the tie.

It was the sort of tie that kids get with their first suit -- a "club" style with irregular stripes of indeterminate and unmistakenly bland colors. The kind of neckwear they keep on hand at fancy restaurants, for uncouth guys who show up in shirtsleeves and baseball caps, because they are too ugly to steal.

Just the ticket for a company stooge who needs to wear a tie every day and wants you to know just how much he appreciates that.

Yes, the Res-man is management scum now, but only the "management" part is new.

He still favors a Bombay martini, dry and neat, but now with a twist of lemon. AP patrician influences, no doubt.

He carries an AP MasterCard, the easier to pay for interviews -- sorry, "travel expenses" for interviewees.

And he still has that ageless twinkle in his eye, even though age has caught up with the former 10/20 vision phenom, who now must occasionally wear reading glasses.

And his hearing is shot. Gotta repeat yourself a couple of times just to get his attention. Of course, we were in a loud bar. But I'm sure he is going deaf.

BYOB

Any peep in the neighborhood is welcome for a rare Resnick sighting, scheduled for 6 pm at the Ebbett back bar.

For those of you who have successfully wiped this man from memory, he is the guy that:

1. Woke up with a vision problem. He couldn't see coming to work today.
2. Has been married 20 years, but it seems like 20 minutes -- under water!

For food or fooling around, Peeps hatch a devoted cult

We are very confused. Is there a licensing issue here?

Duelists II

Duelists II originally uploaded by John C Abell.

Proof that Samer and I are not the same people.

Well, not really, I guess.

And then, there is the masthead picture. Oh, Jeez.

Meat Samer

We've been lobbying for some time for Samer to start blogging again. Yeah, sure, the picture thing is OK, I guess, but anybody can take nice pictures (or act).

Well, our prayers have been answered. And it is a classic case of be careful what you wish for.

Samer is blogging not about Apple, not about GPS, not about the situation in the Middle East, not about Iceland, not about beer.

Samer is blogging about meat.

Not that he isn't a world authority, mind you. It's just that nearly half of the peeps population doesn't even eat meat, so it's kind of a throw down.

And, since the other twin peep is an established food writer -- it's kind of a throw down.

We might just start blogging about redheads. So there.

The Duelists

The Duelists Originally uploaded by John C Abell.

Proud Papa

Proud Papa Originally uploaded by John C Abell.

Final Look

Final Look Originally uploaded by John C Abell.

Cheap Labor of Love

Photo by Samer Farha

Sorry to make this sound like a Jeopardy answer (I'll take "This and That" for $400, Alex: "What capitalists want -- and artists do") but when the honorees at a gala reception are pressed into service to cover the event -- well, that's the sort of blurring of journalistic lines to save a couple of bucks that peepsNet actually approves of, come to think of it.

Samer's pic helps illustrate the DCIst report on the DCIst 2008 Exposed reception last Friday. It's a lovely, evocative snap which, like any work of fine art tells an important story: you can get a lot closer to pretty women you don't know with a camera than without one.

Anyway, word is that there was an overflow crowd on opening night, with the queue running down the stairs and down the block -- in the rain. So if you didn't get in (or brought your camera and met someone on line while waiting to get in and hit it off a little and decided to bag it to get some coffee somewhere dry and then maybe take some portraits back at your place) remember that the show goes on through Saturday, March 15.

Photo by sduffy

Recreating the Moment

Recreating the Moment Originally uploaded by Samer Farha.

Samer's DCIst opening reception looked like a blast -- sorry we missed it, but peepsNet had famNet obligations.

Show goes through March 15, so there is plenty of time. I'm getting a personal tour by the artist next week, which was my secret agenda. We do find that being in closed quarters with the rabble that shows up for gallery openings to be a bore. We don't wait on lines, either. Just so you know.

The entire collection is here -- though oddly enough, there are no shots of the boy wonder.

You Can't Make Me Work With Samer!

Our peeps are traveling far and wide -- first it was Resnick stalking Hillary in Iowa and now this, purportedly Rich Clement at the Oscars.

Caption suggestions?

Samer, Exposed Again

Samer's featured at the DCist show again this year, so save the date (March 7, opening reception, 7-9 pm).

Even better, Samer's entry is featured on the show's official poster.

I Have a Restraining Order -- and I Know How To Use It!

A set of fake steak knives for any peep who can name one person in this picture.

A fake Cadillac El Dorado for the first person to name both.

Can't name anybody? You're fired!

I Know What You Did Last Summer, Finally

Huge backlog over at the Chron must be the reason they are only now printing Nicole's 2007 summer essay about cooking in her brother's tiny Greek apartment. Hell, even he's not there anymore -- rumor has it Kurt is all salty dog up in Maine which, come to think of it, may not be that far from Greece after all.

Anyway, we love the bit about cooking in the sink. Yes, the sink.

Vegan Valentine's Day

Turns out it falls on the same day as that other one this year. But this year we have a bunch o' new recipes from almost-vegan Nicole, via NPR. The Chocolate chocolate cake with chocolate butter cream (air quotes here) sounds mighty good, in case anybody cares what I think.

Laugh!

Laugh! Originally uploaded by Samer Farha.

Samer has once again been selected as a finalist in the annual DCIst Exposed photo contest, for obvious reasons (see above).

Cause for celebration, indeed. By outsourcing, shedding non-essential staff and deciding not to cover either the US election or the Bejing Olympics peepsNet has saved enough to buy Samer a beer. And we totally would except we have a strict professional code of conduct which believe me doesn't permit that sort of thing at all.

But catch us at the opening reception on March 7 at Civilian Art Projects in Penn Quarter. We'll be live blogging and maybe we can free up one of our Davos stringers.