Val Kilmer to deliver William Woods commencement address... as Mark Twain.

Really, the headline says it all. This has to be the most head-scratching Missouri news in quite some time. I'm still not sure whether to call this career evolution or revolution. From the Columbia Tribune:

Val Kilmer will perform his one-man show as Mark Twain on the William Woods University campus in Fulton next month."Citizen Twain" is scheduled for 7 p.m. May 1 in the Dulany Auditorium. Tickets are $50 and went on sale yesterday. For reservations, call (573) 592-1176 or email box.office@williamwoods.edu. Kilmer will take questions from the audience after the performance.

My wife told me he's a bit too paunchy to play Twain. "He's ballooned out," she said. I replied, sadly looking myself over, "uh, yeah, that happens eventually."

Still, my default mental image of Kilmer is from the Zucker brothers classic Top Secret! It's a bit much to consider Nick Rivers as an older, paunchy man, dressing up as Mark Twain. But time can be cruel.

Because I just had the best sandwich ever, the blog is back

Yep, that's right, I just had a sandwich so powerful it brought back an entire blog. I've been considering resurrecting it anyway, but finally something happened that is both regionally topical and worth immortalizing in zeroes and ones. The best sandwich I have ever had.

I assure you, the superlative is entirely necessary. I was in my usual lunch rush today and decided to answer my stomach's call for BBQ if, for no other reason, to make my use of the noon hour more expedient. I was on the south side of town and decided to head into Zesto.

Now, if you are a mid-Missouri native, what immediately leaps to mind when I say "Zesto" is a blue cartoon Zesto comin' atcha on the same sort of ice sheet Marvel comic hero Iceman would throw down in a battle with an intergalactic megalomanic and his robot army. Usually, in an attempt to leave very quickly. So, cold things- shakes, sorft-serve cones, root beer floats. And that is all well and good. But something loftier has been afoot exclusively at the south side location. Drive by the place with your windows down and you will no doubt smell their pit. Not their ARMpit, you; their BBQ pit.

I was in the mood for some smoked meats, so I drove through and ordered a pulled pork sandwich. What arrived through my window a few minutes later was nothing short of miraculous. When I opened the foil package, the smell hit my brain and set the dopamine level to 11. I asked for the mild sauce to go with, but the aroma made me wonder if it was really needed. It was not. I was treated to tender shreds of deliciousness with hints of a spicy rub and fire. It was perfectly seasoned, and that is not an exaggeration. I usually like sauce and pickle, if not some onion, with a big pile of smoky meat, but I desired none of that. It was perfect as it was, unadorned, and I am a little embarrassed to admit just how thoroughly I enjoyed it. It almost feels indecent.

Formerly it was my opinion that the best sandwich in Jefferson City, Missouri was the Sub Shop Veggie. And it still reigns as the best sub, in my opinion. See how I wiggled my way out of that? The new reigning champ, in my opinion,  is South Side Zesto's pulled pork objet d'art... But maybe you disagree! I'm curious to hear what you think.