Happy Halloween! As you all know from my previous blogs, I am a huge Philadelphia Phillies fan. On Wednesday night at around 10 p.m., the Phillies became the 2008 World Series Champions! What you don’t know is that I was in attendance as the Phils broke the Curse of Billy Penn. It was truly an unbelievable sensation and experience and one I will certainly never ever forget.

Picture this - Monday night, working late. Fran Gallagher, publisher and CEO, gets the chance to snag two tickets to that night’s game - what could be the final game in the series if the Phillies win. In a rush and flurry of red, we hop on 95, park, pick up our tickets and are nestled into our seventh row seats by 7:45 p.m. All the while, I am still in shock that I am even there.

And then, Mother Nature intervened and in a World Series first, play is suspended in the middle of the sixth due to rain. Some may argue the game should have been called sooner, but this is Philadelphia, and things don’t come easily here. On Tuesday, we were pounded with rain and snow and the remainder of the game was pushed back once again.

Wednesday night arrives. The game is on, the anticipation is high. After a delicious dinner at The Palm in Center City, we hop on the subway and head over to Citizen’s Bank Park. The crowded train erupts with shouts and cheers as soon as we pull up to our stop. In the bottom of the sixth, a lead-off double by the Phillies pinch hitter Geoff Jenkins helps us break the tie and regain a 3-2 lead. Top of the seventh, the Rays tie it up. In the bottom of the seventh, we push ahead once again. A scoreless eighth followed by Brad “Lights Out” Lidge. In an incredibly exciting three innings of baseball, the Phillies became champions. It was a moment beyond any words I could find to describe the night.

I can remember only two times in my life feeling a similar level of excitement as I did on Wednesday night. The first was when, during my freshman year at Syracuse University, our basketball team, led by Carmelo Anthony, became NCAA champs. The second moment was when I graduated from SU. In a reverse situation, we were on the playing field of the Carrier Dome surrounded by thousands upons thousands of friends and family cheering on the Class of 2006. These are moments of excitement, anticipation, hope, good cheer and so much more. Once-in-a-lifetime kinds of things. The stuff movies are made of!

After the game was over, the celebration was only just beginning. We hopped back on the subway to Broad Street, where wall-to-wall people were out in the streets, hanging from traffic lights. This city was on fire, and the celebration is continuing downtown today. For the first time in 25 years, a championship parade will fill the streets. Over two million are expected to turn out. You can watch it live on MLB’s Web site.

So, here’s to the Phillies, the city of Philadelphia and the fans. Oh, what a feeling!

-Kimberly Krol, circulation and PR executive, eFlyer editor

First, I’d like to say “Yay!” to the Phillies for winning the World Series for the first time since 1980! As GT’s world headquarters is based just outside Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, I know some of my fellow colleagues were watching with loyalty.

On Tuesday, I attended a private party at Zenkichi, a modern Japanese restaurant on North 6th Street and Wythe in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Zenkichi was celebrating its two-year anniversary and the grand opening of their winter garden. As the venue is located only several blocks from my apartment, I persevered through the cold rain and wind to find Zenkichi’s unmarked door. From the outside, the restaurant can easily be missed, as it displays nothing but simple and chic wooden panels with a small opening to the passerby. Inside I found that, in spite of the inclement weather, Zenkichi was hosting a warm and intimate party with plenty of free sake flowing to warm up the guests!

Zenkichi is made up of three floors with tables to accommodate 100 guests, 70 inside and 30 in the winter garden. Paths of stones and pebbles with bamboo stalks lead to nooks and crannies of private booths. Each mahogany table is sectioned off with a curtain, allowing a very warm and intimate atmosphere for guests.

Each floor featured different hors d’oeuvres, including their signature dish, Maguro Carpaccio, medium tuna sashimi in green yuzu pepper sauce. With a menu that changes every five weeks, this restaurant is definitely a place worth frequenting. Zenkichi’s special Junmai (pure rice) all-natural premium sake was eminent throughout the entire party as just a taste of Zenkichi’s array of 50 assorted sake labels. Within the first 30 minutes of arriving, we had all forgotten about the cold rain blustering outside.

-Courtney Centeno, account executive

Yesterday afternoon my husband and I spent several hours at the Bite of the Rogue Valley, a fundraiser for the local Boys & Girls Clubs. Because the Rogue Valley encompasses several towns and cities (Medford and Grants Pass being the largest of these) and a lot of territory in between, we were a bit disappointed that there were not more businesses represented. As it was, more than a dozen restaurants, a couple of outfitters and lodges (the Rogue is known for great fly fishing), two breweries and seven wineries were on hand to offer up tastes and pours of their best.

One of our local favorites, the Rogue Creamery, was on hand with samples of some of their incredible artisan cheeses. Three of the creamery’s cheeses (Echo Mountain Goat Cheese, Crater Lake Blue Cheese and Rogue River Blue) were recently named to Wine Spectator’s 2008 list of 100 Great Cheeses–and we certainly wouldn’t argue with that assessment!

For a portion of the afternoon we watched an Iron Chef-like competition among local chefs (a feature that seems to have become a standard at virtually every food event in the last few years), but we were really drawn in to the other featured contest of the day: the ice carving competition. We watched in fascination for more than an hour as four men each worked on his own huge block of ice, vieing for the $500 first prize. My husband remarked that he thought it unusual that there were no women in the competition, considering the artistic talent required. I pointed out that since the tools of the trade were large POWER tools, I was not the least surprised that the field was dominated by men.

 Indeed, in addition to a variety of chain saws, we saw electric grinders, sanders, drills and a blow torch in use. A metal tray heated by a common household iron was used to rapidly and evenly thaw the surface of a large slab of ice, and dry ice grated over two adjoining blocks served as “solder” to link them. We also noted that each of the artists was wearing what certainly must be essential safety equipment when working with power equipment in puddles of icemelt: rubber-soled boots.

Gradually there emerged from the ice a butterfly, a large smiling sun, a tropical fish floating above a coral bed and an eagle swooping low. Our favorites, the eagle and the fish, won the top two prizes. The detail their creators managed to bring out of such a (literally) fluid medium with such seemingly crude and cumbersome tools was impressive. I will certainly look upon ice sculptures in the future with a new respect for the work which goes into their creation.

 Patty Vanikiotis, proofreader

A quarter pound of pulled Duroc shoulder? A quarter pound of pork belly? A half pound of ribs? Flank steak? Pulled lamb? However you like to order your barbecue, Fette Sau, located in Brooklyn, NY, has got it covered.

Literally the German translation of “Fat Pig”, Fette Sau is the real deal when it comes to getting your meat. The meat specials are listed on a chalkboard to your right, while the meats are displayed in a deli case farther up the line. When you approach the counter, a server throws a large metal tray on a scale, covers it with a sheet of paper and waits for your demand. One by one, whatever you order - a quarter pound of pulled pork, half a rack of ribs - gets slabbed onto the tray. No plates, this is serious meat-eating business. Sides include delicious beans, sauerkraut, potato salad and pickles. Sauces are provided on the table and include a range of spicy mustard, barbecue, traditional vinegar and a sweet-spicy sauce. Rolls are always provided to make your own barbecue sandwich.

Fette Sau is a narrow outdoor hallway filled with picnic tables, leading up to a renovated garage where you stand in line to order your meat. Or you can sit at the bar to enjoy a selection of tap beers and a menu of 40 American whiskeys. During my first experience at Fette Sau this Tuesday, I went for a 1/4 pound pulled pork shoulder, 1/4 pork belly, baked beans, sauerkraut and a Sixpoint Black Wheat beer. Words cannot describe how satisfying this meal was. Just make sure, when you go, you have a decent walk or bike ride home. Fette Sau will make you leave feeling full like a “fat pig”.

And if you prefer take-out so you can watch the Vice Presidential debate at home, they’ve got that too.

-Courtney Centeno, account executive

We are enjoying several days in Chicago, visiting our girls and witnessing our younger daughter’s dedication ceremony as she enters her junior year in her nursing program at Loyola University. The Affinia Hotel, just half a block off of Michigan Avenue near Watertower Place, is our home for five days and has so far proven to be very comfortable and convenient. (It’s only a couple of blocks from Northwestern Memorial Hospital’s ER, too, a fact which became known to us yesterday morning, and which may be fodder for a future blog.) Gino’s East restaurant, located right next door, provided us with a great pizza the first night we got in.

The weather has been fantastic these last two days: high 70s to low 80s, light breeze, clear skies and mild evenings. It’s hard to believe we’re in the last week of September, and judging from the number of folks out strolling the sidewalks late into the night, everyone is thrilled by this return of summer. And for some Chicagoans, their joy will be complete if only the Sox can win the division!

Yesterday afternoon was spent strolling around Lincoln Park Zoo. Being a gardener, I have to admit I got as much pleasure from the beautiful grounds as I did the animal exhibits–and they are nothing to sneer at. What made the trip even more delightful was the fact that admission is free!! Families must surely enjoy such a great outing in the midst of the city.

This evening we indulged in more Italian cuisine in Old Town at Dinotto’s Ristorante, with everyone in our party more than satisfied with the range of appetizers and entrees we ordered. From there we walked a short block to a comedy show at The Second City e.t.c. (the second troupe at SC). Campaign Supernova, or How Many Democrats Does It Take to Lose an Election? provided two hours of topical humor that had everyone in the room roaring with laughter.

 With two full days left in this visit, we’ve got plenty of other options to fill our days and nights (and stomachs! Got to squeeze in a visit to a Garrett Popcorn Shop sometime.) John Wroblewski has provided us with some great recommendations, and Chicago is also the kind of city where you can find some fabulous places to dine or visit just by getting out, strolling around and keeping your senses alert.

Hope you’ve had a great weekend, as well!

 Patty Vanikiotis, proofreader