coorr
Apr. 16th, 2008
11:55 am - Beer, the cause of, and solution too, all of life's problems!
A quick shout out to all the beer drinkers on my friends list. NERAX is back at the Davis sq VFW, April 30th to May 3rd. For those not familiar with NERAX it is the New England Real Ale expo. For four days these guys serve up a huge variety of cask conditioned ales from the US and UK in traditional style. Generally you don't get a chance to drink real ales so this is quite an experience.
There are sessions on Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday. There is an entrance fee and you need to rent a glass (no plastic) for a $5 refundable deposit. It is a cash bar but the prices are very reasonable. I'm busy Friday night but I am thinking that I might go on Thursday but I can be somewhat flexible. The Saturday session is discounted so I might try to head over for that as well. This is a fantastic event and I highly recommend it to any serious beer drinker. If your not a beer drinker feel free to pass this info along to anyone you know who might enjoy the event.
So, who's in?
![[mood icon]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/mood/classic/sad.gif){kind=small}
thirstyMar. 25th, 2008
10:34 am - Dirty Water!
That game was un-real. I have been to a lot of sox games over the years but I have never had an experience like that. I cant even begin to describe it. Maybe I will give it more of a shot later... or after the second game.
I will say this. I called the home run in the 9th inning. Moss off of Huston Street. Probably the least probable outcome of the game. Unreal.
The Japaneses fans were awesome. So much of the game was so different from what I am used to, but at its core it was a sox game and it was a win.
Hearing Dirty Water (and Sweet Caroline) in the Tokyo dome was really unbelievable.
Jan. 30th, 2008
12:03 pm - Anyone interested in Barelywine?
The Cambridge Brewing Company is having a barleywine event on Thursday from 5-10pm. I'm planning on heading down there after work. Probably around 6:30.
Anybody interested in joining me?
Dec. 21st, 2007
02:36 pm - Stewart/Colbert 2008
Good news! "The Daily Show" and "The Colbert Report" will be back on the air next month, even if the writers strike continues. Apparently, without writers, much of the material will be improvised.
According to NPR the two would prefer to go back to work with their writers. However "if we cannot, we would like to express our ambivalence, but without our writers we are unable to express something as nuanced as ambivalence."
I understand where the writers are coming from, but I sure am looking forward to some new episodes.
Oct. 24th, 2007
08:59 am - Any Belgian Beer fans out there?
Im thinking of going to this either the friday night session or the saturday afternoon early session. The saturday session has more variety but friday night would probably be a lot of fun too. I have had pretty good luck with the Beer Advocate events in the past.
Anyone interested?
Oct. 18th, 2007
01:08 pm - Catch the taste sensation!
If your anything like me you have found yourself eating something tasty and though "Man, this is great but it sure could use some bacon flavor."
This happens to me all the time. Steak, veggies, potatoes, eggs, ice cream... is there any dish that couldn't be made better with the addition of bacon? Well now you can find out.
Bacon salt, for when you just cant get enough bacon flavor in your food.
hungry10:42 am - Happy David Ortiz day
Happy David Ortiz Day everybody.
With any luck we will see more Ortiz magic tonight as he leads the sox to yet another ALCS Comeback. I, for one, am looking forward to 5 gloriously calm moments tonight as he comes to the plate ready to dash the world series hopes of the Indians.
![[mood icon]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/mood/classic/smile.gif){kind=small}
calmAug. 22nd, 2007
02:10 pm - I just got a phone call
The number wasnt in my address book and the caller hung up as soon as I answered.
I rechecked the caller ID to see if it looked familiar and this is the number that was listed:
(496) 419-846193
Yes, I know that too long to be a phone number. No, I don't have the slightest clue what is going on. I'm tempted to call the number just to see what happens.
![[mood icon]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/mood/classic/confused.gif){kind=small}
confusedJul. 31st, 2007
09:37 am - Lets motivate the voting public
America tends to have a pretty terrible voter turn out rate. I suspect this is because Americans don't relate well to politicians. Lets face it, the issues are boring. Even the most politically charged issues actually only interest a small number of people enough to motivate them to get out and vote. Most folks don't really care much either way.
What we need to do is spice up the election process, starting with those mind numbing debates droning on and on about fiscal this and foreign policy that... we need to get some action in this. We need to ask questions that can hold the interest of the American public. I believe that this slate article would serve as a good starting point for just such a ratings grabbing debate. Lets start asking questions that will keep the American public engaged.
From the article:
Listen carefully: A computer from the future has sent a shape-shifting cyborg, made of prototype liquid metal, to kill you. At the last moment, the governor of California appears, saying, "Come with me, if you want to live!" We'll start with Governor Huckabee. Would you agree to run with this bizarre, Republican hybrid, if it requires you to soften your stances on gay rights and climate change?
amusedMay. 9th, 2007
10:23 am - This is your mouse on drugs
I ran across a pretty cool animation that shows you the various effects of drugs on the brain. The animation uses cute little drugged out mice that you get to put in a special brain seeing machine and the machine tells you all about how that drug works on the central nervous system. Its pretty decent in terms of the information it provides but the best part is probably checking out the various drugged out mice. I like ecstasy mouse myself... hes just sitting there grovin' away.
Apr. 27th, 2007
07:22 pm - He went to the right
"I got one of those man hugs that I don't know how to handle"
-Jerry Remmy about running into Johnny Damon
Apr. 23rd, 2007
04:40 pm - Here's to alcohol, the cause of—and solution to—all life's problems.
I wanted to alert the beer drinkers on my friends list to NERAX the New England Real Ale Expo. It takes place at the VFW in Davis Sq Somerville, May 2ond through the 5th. ![[info]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small}
library_sexy are currently planning to go on Friday the 4th and maybe again to the Saturday afternoon session if anyone wants to join us
Here is the deal. You pay to get in (price varies based on the night or day that you go) and you put down a deposit on a glass (real ale is not to be drunk from some plastic cup) which you can get back when you return the glass. Once inside you are faced with a long bar with people standing in line to get at the 80 or so firkins (which is what a proper Ale keg is called) of beer from some of the finest breweries on either side of the Atlantic.
What is real ale you ask... well I suggest you check the website for their more complete answer to to that question but basically Real Ale is British style ale, it is served warm (or just below room temp) and rather than using pressurized CO2 to push the beer it is either pumped with a beer engine or gravity dispensed. The firkins (kegs) do get regular old air in them so over time the beer will go stale, but for the few days that a festival like this is going on the oxygen getting into the beer will actually bring out a lot of the subtle flavors that are lacking in many modern beers, in particular the floral tastes and smells of hops.
Also Real Ale is alive in that it is unfiltered, contains active yeast and has been naturally carbonated in the firkin.library_sexy and I went to this event last year and we had a great time. The people were friendly and the beer was fantastic. While the VFW might not be the most natural pub like environment around the ability to try so many different and hard to get ales was well worth the price of admission. If your a beer fan, you don't want to miss this.
Hope to see some of you there.
thirstyApr. 5th, 2007
11:03 am - a warning for WOW players
I don't play myself but I know several people on my friends list do. There is an article on slashdot today about a technique used to gain access to WOW accounts. Apparently there is enough value in selling off the goods and gold that a player has accumulated to make this worth while. Its also a lot easier to snag your WOW login info than it is to get credit card information since its easy to know when a user is logging into WOW and not so easy to know when they are filling in the order form for some online store.
Anyway, as always, be careful out there.
![[mood icon]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/mood/classic/tired.gif){kind=small}
tiredMar. 12th, 2007
02:29 pm - Contradictory cow juice
Ok my cafeteria here at work has a ton of coffee available, different types, brands and flavors... its great, everyone loves it. There are also several options available for lightening said coffee. Skim milk and whole milk are provided as is half and half. So far, pretty normal. But the last container in that group is labeled "Fat Free" Half and half.
Now leaving aside the question of why one would want fat free half and half I'm left wondering what, exactly, fat free half and half is. I mean, what is the difference between that and say, skim milk. How does one remove the fat from the cream half of the half and half and still have something that can be called "cream."
Anyone got a good answer for this? This stuff kind of scares me.
confusedMar. 7th, 2007
09:41 am - What evil lurks
In the hearts of mega-corps?
I ran accross an interesting article. Apparently someone sent these guys a copy of a walmart internal powerpoint presentation about the types of people who shop at walmart and some statistics about them. This sort of thing isn't really that unusual at any large business and really there isn't anything too special about this one. A lot of it should be taken with a truck load of salt since it is really just internal cheer leading (yea look at us... check out these people that like to shop at our stores!). Still it does have some interesting demographics included.
I guess I fall into the category of "Conscientious Objector" but really I wont shop at walmart because they are filthy and depressing, not because I have any moral objections, though I probably would if I wasn't too disgusted with the place to think about it.
curiousDec. 6th, 2006
05:06 pm - Bad news from the land of happy little trees
Well, it sounds like there will be one less game to attract me to the Nintendo Wii.
As I mentioned earlier there were plans in the works to develop a Bob Ross themed painting game for the Nintendo Wii and the DS. It now looks as though this title has been canceled.
According to the game spot article the company that was brought in to develop the game has pulled out. Its not entirely clear why, but I suspect that it was determined that the appeal of such a game was too limited. The article does not say that the game is canceled and it is always possible that Bob Ross Inc. will go on to contract with another company to develop the game. But it sounds unlikely, since such a game has an apparently limited audience (what? you would rather play Madden 2007 than paint happy little trees with Bob and his fro? Kids these days... I swear).
Anyway, quite a bummer. I was looking forward to seeing how they worked the interface on this game. I was looking at the list of titles for the Wii yesterday and I'm just not seeing as many killer tittles as I had hoped for. Its kind of been an anemic launch for Nintendo, hopefully in Q1 they will come out with more titles that grab my attention.
disappointedNov. 24th, 2006
02:04 pm - Something to be thankful for
Yesterday library_sexy and I were cleaning up the house in preparation for thanksgiving. I was cleaning up the guest room and changing the sheets when I noticed a flicker of light coming from beside the bed where it sits against the wall. I pulled the bed away from the wall and saw a rapidly growing patch of flame on the side of the bed. I yelled down to library_sexy for help and then after a second added "fire"
The platform and mattress are covered in a synthetic fabric that really goes up quickly especially since I had moved the bed away from the wall. I realized that in the time it would take to get the fire extinguisher the entire bed could easily be on fire. I grabbed a heavy shirt out of the laundry and used it to smother the fire. It took some doing but it did work.
What had happened was that an electrical cord, which was plugged into the wall by the side of the bed, had gotten pinched between the metal frame and the molding. It had worn through and shorted out, starting the fire.
If I hadn't noticed and walked away or if this happened at some other time, when we weren't home or when someone was sleeping in that bed, this could have been catastrophic. Luckily as it is we have only lost a set of sheets and there is a hole in the platform on the side that sits up against the wall.
Certainly something to be thankful for.
thankfulOct. 18th, 2006
03:53 pm - Happy David Ortiz day everybody!
According to my google calendar it is David Ortiz day!
On this day back in 2004 David Ortiz did something no other baseball player ever has. He got 2 walk off hits in 2 post season games on the same day. A walk off home run to win Game 4 of the ALCS (well after midnight) and a walk of single to win Game 5.
Thus began the greatest comeback in sports history which eventually lead to the Red Sox finally winning the world series. The one thing I remember most clearly about that day, was the sense of total calm that overtook me every time Ortiz stepped up to the plate... with him up there, you just knew that everything would turn out just fine, even in the face of overwhelming odds.
I could use a little David Ortiz these days.
Aug. 9th, 2006
09:47 am - Packed up and ready to roll.
The car is packed and library_sexy and I are ready to head off to pennsic.
Jul. 14th, 2006
04:32 pm - An intriguing article on the future of marriage
Everyone these days is talking about the future of marriage and how this or that trend will destroy or save the institution. There are many varying opinions on what marriage might look like 100 years from now.
This article provides some ideas of what some people think marriage is going to be like 100 years hence... but what makes this particularly interesting is that the quotes are from 1926. Some of them are uncannily accurate.
A nice break from the insanity of the modern marriage debate and evidence that this whole institution isn't as unchanging as some people think.
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