A PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT (written Thursday 24 July 2008):

I’m just going to keep this short, simple, sweet, and to the damn point. Recent studies show that even though there’s a lot more awareness about HIV/AIDS, more people IS having unprotected sex now more than ever. The City of New York has started mandatory tests for every resident, beginning in The Bronx, which has the highest HIV cases in all the five boroughs. Nowadays you can’t look at a person and tell whether they are infected with the virus or not. The sad part is there’s many carrying the virus and don’t even know it. You may hear it on the radio; see it in television, internet, and magazine ad; or from the mouths of celebrities, but I am asking you-no, pleading with you myself: WHETHER YOU ARE STRAIGHT, LESBIAN, GAY, BISEXUAL, TRANSGENDERED, OR WHATEVER FLOATS YOUR DAMN BOAT, KNOW YOUR STATUS. GET TESTED AND GET TESTED REGULARLY (EVERY 3-6 MONTHS). MAKE SURE YOU LET YOUR PARTNER(S) KNOW YOUR STATUS AND YOU KNOW THEIRS AS WELL. IF POSSIBLE GET TESTED TOGETHER. AS THE SAYING GOES, BETTER SAFE THAN SORRY AND IN THIS DAY IN AGE YOU CAN NEVER BE TOO SAFE. DON’T LET A SLIP UP TURN INTO A SCARE OR EVEN WORSE BE THE THING THAT TAKES YOUR LIFE. AND FOR THOSE OF YOU OUT THERE READING THIS THAT MAY BE HIV POSITIVE, AND CONTEMPLATING ON TELLING THEIR PARTNER(S): DON’T CHICKEN OUT. MAN OR WOMAN THE HELL UP AND TELL THEM. IF THEY REALLY CARE ABOUT YOU, THEY WILL STILL BE THERE FOR YOU WHEN YOU LET THEM KNOW. DON’T LIE ABOUT YOUR STATUS, BECAUSE IF YOU SPREAD IT, YOU’RE JUST AS WRONG AND A MURDERER AS SOMEONE PULLING A TRIGGER ON OR STABBING THEIR VICTIM… I KNOW, BECAUSE A FORMER PARTNER LIED TO ME, AND I TRUSTED THEM. BUT I GOT TESTED, AND BY THE ALMIGHTY POWER AND GRACE OF GOD I’M NEGATIVE, AND I’M NOT TAKING ANYMORE CHANCES. SO PLEASE LEARN FROM MY MISTAKE, AND DON’T MAKE IT YOURSELF. KNOW YOUR STATUS. GET TESTED. AND LET OTHERS KNOW YOUR STATUS AND LET THEIRS BE KNOWN. THANKS

-THE BLOGGER (HIV NEGATIVE SINCE 7/23/08, AND HAVE BEEN PRIOR TO THAT)

FOOD AND THE CITY~THE RESTAURANT CRITIC SPOTLIGHT (written Thursday 24 July 2008)

This week’s selection: Chung Moo Ro-10 W 32nd St. (bet. 5th & 6th Aves.)-New York, NY 10001-(212) 594-4963 FAX (212) 594-4964-Serving authentic Korean barbecue and cuisine.

Named for a street and district in the South Korean capital of Seoul, Chung Moo Ro is located in the heart of Midtown’s Koreatown district (the particular stretch of 32nd Street is known as Korea Way). This restaurant is close to Madison Square Garden, Herald Square, and public transportation and is convenient because it is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

One visit and the customer is taken away to the Land of the Morning Calm (Korea’s nickname), or as in the case of this former soldier, taken back to pleasant memories of his time spent there traveling around the country and its rich culture. From the moment you walk in the door until the moment you leave, it is as if you’re not even in New York anymore.

Upon being greeted by the courteous staff, my guest and I were immediately seated to our table with tall ice cold glasses of refreshing water. They were also extremely helping in explaining the menu, which were written in both English and Hangul (Korean). It didn’t take long for us to make up our minds of what we going to order (the menu has many extravagant dishes to choose from, but for customers new to the idea of eating Korean food, I recommend that you stick to the barbecue).

Within minutes of ordering, the staff brought out our drink (a bottle of baek seju, a type of rice wine with a low alcoholic content and sweet taste but packs a powerful punch to the inexperienced), shot glasses, and various side dishes from the delicate daikon, a sweet radish and bean sprouts to Cole slaw with a wasabi vinaigrette and kimchi, the national dish of Korea which is very spicy pickled cabbage, but there are many forms of kimchi within itself. As with most traditional Asian dishes one eats with a soup spoon and chopsticks, but forks are readily available upon request.

Finally the moment of truth came, when after we were served our soup and rice, the stove was lit (traditional Korean barbecue is cooked right at the table-from the grill top to the table within a reach of the chopsticks!) and you can soon smell the delightful aroma of the bulgogi (thinly sliced pieces of marinated steak), kalbi (short rib tips), and chicken mixed with mushrooms, garlic, and onions thrown on the grill for good measure. The staff was impressed how easily my guest and I were accustomed to eating the food, to which I divulged my secret of being stationed in Korean and even spoke to her in her native tongue. We even ate in the Korean tradition by wrapping up the meat and side dishes in the lettuce leaves provided, downing a shot of the baek seju, and gobbling down the wrap by attempting to eat it up in one bite. We ate and ate to our hearts content, and speaking on the other patrons in the restaurant, we definitely were left feeling satisfied with good memories of our Korean experience.

After the bill was paid with a generous tip, we were offered a min-dessert of yogurt smoothie shots, which helped cooled the tongue for the more spicy treats, and were well-wished for our safe travels and speedy return back for more.

On a scale of one to five chefs’ hats, the first entry for food and the city gets our first ever five chefs’ hats. Congratulations to Chung Moo Ro…if you ever want to sample the best of what Korea has to offer, come on down and say Annyeong haseyo (hello) to Chung Moo Ro!

1,2,3,A,C,E TRAINS TO 34TH ST-PENN STA; B,D,F,V,N,Q,R,W TRAINS TO 34TH ST-HERALD SQ; 6 TRAIN TO 33RD ST; PATH TRAINS TO 33RD ST, AMTRAK, NJ TRANSIT, AND LIRR TRAINS TO PENN STA, ALSO AVAILABLE BY MTA BUS

ABOUT THE BLOGGER (written Thursday 24 July 2008)

Bobby Nathaniel Anderson (there I gave you the full name) is a son, a brother, a nephew, a cousin, an uncle, a lover and a fighter, a friend, a soldier, a combat veteran, a scholar, a teacher, a godfather, some other things, but most importantly, a child of God. A Christmas baby born during the winter solstice of the eighth decade of the twentieth century (that would be December 22, 1980 for those who can’t do the math), he falls under the signs of Capricorn, the tenth sign of the Zodiac, and the Asian zodiac sign of the monkey, the animal sign for the year 1980. Bobby can be described as a fun loving character yet serious at times, loyal, trustworthy, a bit sarcastic (ok, ok a real smartass is more like it), ambitious, smart, funny, independent yet reliable, and more, he is a complex man-one very tough nut to crack. He is also sometimes secretive when it comes to his innermost feelings and emotions, ever the quintessential enigma. Although this book is difficult to open, once it is open the reader is able to gain vast knowledge and thus is able to understand the personality and why the former sergeant is the way he is. Not a graduate of a college or university (but currently a student), he does not hold degrees of any particular major subject. However, he has matriculated in the halls of the higher education of the world and has his doctorate from the University of Life’s School of Hard Knocks. A voyager, Bobby has traveled to many places within the globe and experienced many things in order to obtain that knowledge which has been useful in his coming of age. He is also a goal-oriented man with values and above all things family is fist and foremost in his life except for the Lord. Sometime it may appear that he is not religious, but that is far from the case. Bobby is religious but more importantly very spiritual who tries to do what is right. He is also talented, but you wouldn’t know that due to his easy, calm demeanor who can tend to be extremely shy at times. This pretty much sums up the man, the myth, and the legend that is Bobby Nathaniel Anderson, former Sergeant, United States Army. I hope this explains it well. If you have any questions, feel free to ask and I will try to answer them all in the order that they were received to the best of my ability. Peace out and God bless.

The Blogger

A MESSAGE TO ALL READERS (written Thursday 24 July 2008):

Welcome to my blog and thanks for dropping by. This blog will be posted on a semi-regular basis, as I’m not always in front of a computer that often at the moment. As for the content of this blog, the tone will be set depending on the day and the mood that I am in. but everything I write will be whatever is on my mind, in my heart, or both. So once again thanks for coming by, sit back, relax, and enjoy the ride.