Friday Five: Mornings Are for Coffee and Contemplation

This week's Friday Five:

1. Why are waffles better than pancakes? I've always liked waffles more than pancakes. Waffles have better structural integrity (e.g. pockets, grid holes, etc.) that hold on to condiments and toppings well, whereas pancakes are floppy and spongy so they'll just absorb whatever is put on top of them. Waffles also have a nice crisp exterior that juxtaposes well with its inner fluffy texture, as opposed to the much softer and cake-like consistency of pancakes. Plus, there are so many things that complement waffles, from fried chicken to ice cream, that wouldn't work nearly as well with the dense starchiness of pancakes. Case in point:
   
   
   Soy marinated strip steak and fried chicken with ginger maple and spicy berry compote on waffles from Inspire
   
   Banana bread waffle ice cream sandwich from Inspire
   
   Southern spicy maple fried chicken and Hong Kong-style egg waffles from Fring's
   
   Black sesame Hong Kong-style egg waffle with black sesame Thai rolled ice cream from Toast Delight
   
2. What's something you remember about being 11? I turned 11 in 1997. I was heavily into ABC's TGIF line-up, especially Sabrina the Teenage Witch and Boy Meets World. I fell in love with Leonardo DiCaprio after watching Romeo + Juliet, thereby marking my first ever crush (celebrity or otherwise). Also, the seemingly overnight success of the Spice Girls. Seriously, their increase in popularity was so fast and so sudden that it really did seem like a phenomenon at the time. Naturally, I got sucked in. I might have listened to their cassette so much that I broke it.
   
   
3. What experience do you have with role-playing games such as Dungeons & Dragons? Very little on my own. I watched my brother play RPGs when I was little and I've seen him play Dungeons & Dragons maybe once or twice (honestly, the 20-sided die just confused me), but I didn't really pay attention until he started playing role-playing video games. More specifically, The Legend of Zelda. My favourite to this day is Ocarina of Time. I never played it myself, but I'd always watch him play it and help him on his quests in the various temples and whatnot. It was during these times in our childhood that we actually never argued or fought.
   
   
4. How do you feel about carnival rides that make you go upside-down? I don't mind them, but they're not my favourite. As I've gotten older, I find that they just give me bad neck pain because my head just keeps banging around between the shoulder straps.
   
   
5. You've seen Matthew Modine in more films than you realize (which he famously admitted during his opening monologue when he hosted Saturday Night Live in 1988). (Filmography here.) Which have you seen, and which was the best? As it turns out, of all the work he's been in, I've only seen Notting Hill, The Dark Knight Rises, and Weeds. While I really like The Dark Knight Rises and the Christopher Nolan Batman trilogy in general, I'd still say Weeds 'cause it's actually one of my favourite TV shows.