4.26.2012

Alexis Smith - Glaciers

Sometimes a book will just sneak up on you.  I believe this book was a freebie in my Powell's "Indispensables" subscription.  Small little book I happened to take with me on a trip to Alaska.  Read through all the other books I brought and saved this one for the plane trip back to the Lower 48.  Flying to and from Alaska is prime reading time!  Anyhoo as things happen the main character in the book grew up in Alaska and there were references in the book to where I had just come from!  Strange how things like this happen.  As mentioned it was a quick read.  Finished it on the entire flight.  Love when you take a break from the page you glance out your window and see the cloulds!  All in all a marvelous little read.   Great characters and a very touching ending.  Amazing sometimes to happen upon a book that is unassuming that finds the right bottons to push inside your brain.  Somewhere along the way the author's email was found and I sent along a note.  The response is below:

"Thanks for picking up Glaciers (at just the right moment). You're actually the second person to write to tell me about reading the book on a plane ride. I love hearing about where and how people read Glaciers: it helps me envision it out in the world, in the hands of real people. The image of it flying around the country with people is particularly delightful. Thanks for taking the time to tell me about your experience. I really appreciate it.

Yours,
Alexis"

4.25.2012

Comic Splat - Week 17

Captain America #10
Rogers strength is back
And Falcon has gone crazy
Iron Man saves the day

Secret Avengers #26
The Phoenix returns
All a giant lead up to...
Capt Marvel returns

New Avengers #25
Iron Fist protector?
K'un Lun Phoenix connection
Fails, the Earth will fall


4.21.2012

Haiku #6 (Red Card Red Trial)

Haiku #6 was a recipe from The Best of Brew You Own magazine and was a St. Rogue Red Ale clone (page 36).  My desire was to brew something known, that was red, and had some bitter bite.  It was made with the following ingredients:

1) 1.4 lb 2 Row Pale Malt
2) 0.2 lb Munich Malt
3) 0.2 lb Crystal Malt (15 deg L)
4) 0.2 lb Crystal Malt (40 deg L)
5) 0.2 lbs Crystal Malt (75 deg L) 
6) 0.4 oz Warrior Pellet Hops (15.8% AA) [change]
7) White Labs WLP001 California Ale (Liquid)

Used StarSan sanitizer.

The Mash
Heated 2.5 quarts (10 cups) of water (refrigerator water which is carbon filtered) to 155 deg F.  Add grain and mixed.  Cooked for 60 minutes at 154-160 deg F.  

The Sparge
Heated additional 4 quarts of water (refrigerator water) to boiling then transferred to gallon fermentation jug.  Set up the strainer over the second pot and added the hot grain mash.  Then poured the heated water from the jug over the grains and into the second pot.  Once done recirculated the wort back through the grain once more into the original pot.

The Boil
Heated the wort until it began to boil at approximately 210 deg F.  This was done with just the middle heat on the inside burner on my stove.  Boil lasted 90 minutes with 0.2 oz of Hops at the 90 min to go for the boil then added the remaining 0.2 oz with 0 minutes to go.  

The Fermentation
Placed the brew pot into the sink with ice allowing the temperature to decrease to 70 deg F. Poured wort into a funnel filter into fermentor.  After the fermentor was full, the yeast was added and throughly mixed to aerate the liquid.  Note:  Liquid yeast is designed for 5 gallon batches.  This time did not shake the yeast but opened slowly and mixed with a tooth pick.  Still difficult to determine exact amount of yeast was added.

The yeast began fermentation and a fairly consistent burp began.  Primary fermentation lasted for about 36 hours.  Transferred beer to the basement and put in the airlock.  Allowed to sit for 2 weeks.

The Bottling
Used bottling sugar and dissolved this in 1/4 cup of water, I siphoned the beer into a pot and then bottled into 5 x bomber bottles (~650 mL).  Allowed to sit for another 2 weeks.

The Tasting
Opened and tried on 4/21/12. Good carbonation.  See photo.  Good flavor, little too bitter, not a great aftertaste.   

Got a Red Card (Red)
Two Yellows don't make a Red
When making your beer!

4.18.2012

Comic Splat - Week 16

Avengers #25
Simonson, 'Nuff Said
Childhood artist takes the reigns
Thor artist the best















Avengers vs X-men #2
Hulk and Colossus
All out attack all battle
But then Hope escapes...

The Amazing Spider-Man #684
Avengers are done
Spidey escapes with some friends
Black, Silver, and Red















Haiku Wednesday

Tree (or child)

Season to season
Infinitesimal growth
Startled by your size

4.11.2012

Stacy Schiff - Cleopatra. A Life

Fascinating account of one of history's first powerful woman.  Amazing that no image  (at least that can be agreed on) of her exists today, hence the cover image shown to the left.  The real shame to history is the fact that Alexandria no longer exists.  If I had a time machine that would be one of my first stops.  The lighthouse, the library, it must have been an amazing place.  So much more exotic than Rome, which sounded too much like politics today.  Bunch of backstabbing (literally versus figuratively) senators running around.  Again amazing that Cleopatra actually succeeded in all of this.  Although even in Egypt so pretty strange practices existed especially in regards to royalty.  Marrying siblings, killing siblings, and whatever else to maintain your line to the throne is quite terrifying to think that is how it was.  Good book.

Comic Splat - Week 15

Winter Soldier #4
Doombots will attack
Just diversion to real goal
Launch codes for missiles!

New Avengers #24
What's Luke Cage to do?
His kid, wife or Avengers
Damn he Assembles












Secret Avengers #25
Robots among us?
Hawkeye keeps it a secret
Ant Man knows better


4.07.2012

2011/2102 Ski Season

Nine days on the mountain 88 runs...

2012

versus

2011


4.04.2012

Comic Splat - Week 14

The Amazing Spider-Man #683
Avengers Assemble?
Earth's mightiest take on Six
Doc Ock is prepared...

Avengers vs X-men #1
And so it begins
Merry Mutants - Earth's Greatest
Cyke takes on Captain!










Secret Avengers #24
Core and Descendants?
Teleport to save Ant Man
Protect, Kill Avengers

Ultimate Spider-Man #9
Miles makes a deal
Family is only one thing
Spidey is another



Haiku Wednesday


Sound of the bat
Cracks open Springtime
It rains baseballs