Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving to all. I know I myself don't always remember and tend to forget how lucky I really am and how much I have to be thankful for. It shouldn't take a day like Thanksgiving to realize this, but I think we all need a little reminder sometime.

The Dark Knight

By the way...I saw "The Dark Knight" last night and...eh. It was alright. Too long in my opinion, which could have been alright, but I just wasn't feeling it. The build-up for the movie had me wanting something mind-blowing, but I've definitely walked out of movies with more excitement than this one.

Words To The Wise

Words to the wise: What I learned from my first batches of home brew

1. Don't compromise. If you are wanting to get into home brewing, chances are you already know someone who does. Don't buy ingredient kits from magazines or websites because the description sounds good or sounds like something your friends and family will like. Use your resources and find a recipe from a homebrewer for a beer that you enjoy. Ultimately it will make you happy to drink it, and happy to share what you like with newcomers.

2. I know that brown bottles are best, but something you'll want to do is bottle one bottle per batch in a clear bottle. This will help you better monitor the progress of the bottling stage of your beer.

3. Use liquid yeast. Especially for first timers, liquid yeast is far easier to use than dry. I prefer the Wyeast smack packs.

4. Be patient. You'll want to try your beer along the way, that's fine, but don't get discouraged. Be patient--it really does take 6-8 weeks in the bottle for it to really get good.

Top 5

This is something I'm surprised hasn't come up before now, but since not, I'm just going to run down my top five favorite songs of all-time. Now, before you pan me for not including this song or that song, know that these are just my favorites, not what I consider to be the top five greatest songs of all-time. However, feel free to contribute your own favorites, as I always am looking for a great song.

1. The Taste of Ink - The Used: My hands down #1. Loved it from day one, and still love it today no matter how many times I hear it.

2. I Just Don't Think I'll Ever Get Over You - Colin Hay: Not only is it a part of the best soundtrack ever, Garden State, it is one of those songs that has a soul.

3. Hemorrhage - Fuel: An odd pick some may think, but to me, you can't beat this one for raw emotion.

4. Broken - Seether: Another one of those that had me at hello. Just a wonderful song--before Amy Lee had to come foul it up.

5. I Do - Howie Day: The number five slot is more than likely a revolving door. I had so many other considerations, but this one has a recent resonance and comes from a particular time in my life that just makes it stick with me. Love this song.

Honorable mention:

The Luckiest - Ben Folds
Box of Sharp Objects - The Used
Desparado - The Eagles
Schindler's List Theme - Itzhak Perlman: An honorable mention song worth mentioning. I would put this as a tie in the #5 position.

11/11 - 11:11

I'm not an overly superstitious individual, but there has always been something strange to me about 11/11, or 11:11. It just kind of creeps me out for some reason. Something terrible will probably happen to me because of this post. I'll be happy when today is over.

Beer Virtue

It's been awhile since I posted a beer update...I was a little disheartened this weekend and thinking that my first venture into homebrew was nothing more than a learning experience when a friend came over and wanted to try it. I put out the normal insecurity disclaimer that, "It wasn't very good, but ok." I hadn't tried the Irish Ale in about a week and a half, so I chilled a couple of those and we drank that. What a difference a week and a half makes. Not only did my friend really like my beer, but I was more than surprised myself at how well it had come along. It really does need 6-8 weeks in the bottle. So it did turn out to be a learning experience on the topic of patience: in homebrewing, it is indeed a virtue.

The Mower

Sophia: Could you fix my mower?

Garrett: Sure thing little lady.

Cowboy Football

I Voted

For better or for worse...I participated.

CAD Art

I was messing around with a few commands in AutoCAD one morning and when I zoomed way in on them, I thought they were really neat images, so I jpeged them and thought I would share a few.

maybe I'm on to something...

Priorities

This weekend I found where my priorities lie. At around 11:00 AM on Saturday morning, I had just finished changing the oil in my car when my father in law asked if I wanted to go kayaking. In the back of my mind I was thinking, "Hmmm, the KU-KState game starts at 11:30." Then I took a sample of my surroundings: sixty five degrees, absolutely no wind, crystal clear skies, and an autumn filled scenery. Compare that to watching a football game that was certain to bring nothing but a foul mood...I didn't even think twice as I loaded my kayak into the truck. We went for about two hours down the river and it was just what I needed to unwind. Just paddling down the river, scaring up a few deer along the way, letting your hands float in the cool water, listening to the leaves fall, it was so much better than the alternative. The choice was also confirmed upon seeing the score of the game when we returned.