Well That's a Fancy Glass

I made a solemn vow to only go on nights that included some sort of special. This past Friday, I caved. So, because I am weak, I am accepting any and all donations and/or gift cards. Please, support my drinking habit and feel pride in knowing you are allowing me to drink something other than Coors Light swill.




The first of the night was a nice little IPA, Heavy Seas Loose Cannon. They call it a Hop3 Ale because of the use of three pounds of hops per barrel and also because they throw hops into the mix in three different installments. The work delivers a ncie product. Citrus in aroma and taste, and far less bitter than other IPAs I've had. Crisp and extrememly drinkable - even with it's over 7% ABV, so watch yourself light weights!




Grace had noticed this beer on tap in our previous visit to the Saucer and since I'm fairly familiar with the term "bastard" I figured I would give this one a whirl. I was pleasantly surprised that my brew was brought to me not in the standard pint glass, but a snifter! Yes, the very vessel that typically carries brandy and cognac. How fancy! But frilliness aside, this American Strong Ale glows an amber below an average creamy head. Don't take a whiff of it expecting that it's aroma will warn you pre-consumption. No no, the bitterness hits hard but finishes with an almost caramel sweet finish. Perhaps a slight citrus tang in there? Not sure, because the hops lingers a bit. With a whopping 10.5% ABV (we have double digits folks!) it was efficacious to mellowing my mood and lubricating conversation. This is a slow, enjoyable beer... but becareful, even I was left a little woozy!



Not my picture, but an idea of what it looks like. Oh, and whoever took this: Nice (spice)rack.

Beer Ticker: 192 beer to go!

Posterboards and Posterchild

I had my poster presentation for my internship yesterday. Yes, a poster presentation. Think of it as a 6th grade science poster on steroids. My tri-fold board was meant to reflect what my goals had been for my internship, as well as what I had accomplished and learned. There were pictures of Dr. Hall and I, my class, and me working on the history bulletin board (which is still standing unfinished.. whoops!). I even went down to A.C. Moore and "picked up" some nifty scrapbooking stickers of desks, globes, notebooks and various other items that might pop into your head when you think of a history class. This sounds fine and dandy I'm sure. However, waiting until the night before it is due added a bit of stress to my situation. I sat up late writing dribble about my responsibilities and new skills I had picked up along the way until I realized I was not only lying, but I wasn't making much damn sense. One sentence actually read, "Worked Students Better." Now, I don't know about you, but that just might have given off the wrong impression.
Some how I managed to pull it all together before the presentation at 4 p.m. yesterday. I, as well as the rest of my Peace College interns, took our places in the Main Parlor as students, staff and faculty perused through our circle of "professional" accomplishments. Our guests were urged to ask about what we did, learned and what our next step would be after this was all said and done. Some of the interns had cheat sheets on the back of their boards to better explain these points, some had notecards, the brave few of us winged it. I'm glad that I did, because what came from that was not a stiff presentation, but conversations that reached far beyond the boundaries of a rehearsed script.
I had people who met me for the first at this presentation saying what a fantastic job I seemed to have done. I had people who had met me just this semester saying they expected nothing less than amazing from me. But, most importantly, I had those who have been here for my entire journey, while placing a hand on my shoulder, saying how incredibly proud they were of me for how far I have come and how they knew that my time would come. From Latonya in the Reigstrar's office to Angela Kirkley in Financial Aid, they all beamed with sheer and utter delight. Even good ol' President BingBing clutched my hand while saying she has seen me mature far beyond what could have been expected. So, although I was left drained from explaining the specifics of my work, I was excited to be pleasantly, emotionally exhuasted from the people who have seen me work and grow over the past years.




Working on that damn bulletin board. A slur of profanities could be heard by those walking the halls... and possibly those occupying the surrounding classrooms. Sorry folks.

Boozer

Well, Monday nights = Pint Night at the Saucer. That means it's pretty hard to stay away from. All draft beers (or the loosely used "draught") are $2.75. Not too shabby. If only that applied to some of those $10+ bottle beers! So Grace and I ventured on over to enjoy our next three brewskis! Heeeeere we gooooo -




I do love me some Red Oak. A pretty decent amber lager. Very, very smooth in my opinion. Of course, it makes it even better since it's brewed in Greensboro. Nothin' like supporting local breweries!





The Sweetwater 420 is a pretty popular Extra Pale Ale. Pale ales are not typically a favorite of mine, but with such a huge following I couldn't turn it down. Clean, crisp and has a nice finish.



And lastly.. one of my favorite beers of ALL TIME. Ahem, drum roll please:



I'm going to be honest, you could probably substitute all the water I drink for Guinness and I would be as happy as a clam. The water fall when it settles, the thick and creamy head... oh yeah, I'm in love. There is no denying that the rich coffee flavors make this pint one of the most popular in the world. Besides, who doesn't like getting sloshed and trying to get the widget out?!

Another "Hello" from Ra-Ra

Lizzy Weaver says what's up.

We're currently sitting in creative writing, not feeling very creative. Obviously.

Mom should remember her with fond memories.

She demanded I do this... so here it is.


the end.

Where's the beer!?

So I joined Flying Saucer's little beer club. It's been loooong over due. I mean, not only do I get to try incredible beers that the average Joe Blow has never heard of, but I get presents for doing it! It's a win/win situation for me! Interested in exactly what this club is? Google "Flying Saucer, Raleigh NC"

But yes, after $18 to join I get a tshirt, a calendar and a nifty little swipey card that keeps track of every beer I have enjoyed. I, of course, am working towards the ultimate goal of 200+ beers. Doing so labels me a drunk and gets my name on a nifty plate (ahem, excuse me, SAUCER) along with when I was inducted and a quote of my choice. I will be working on the perfect quote up until my final beer. Now, in order to make sure that people aren't trying something stupid like drinking 50 beers in a day, you can only count three a day. Nifty marketing, eh? Oh, and you can save the massive consumption when you finally achieve greatness... because they throw you a party and give you a $100 bar tab. Shweet!

So, Grace and I started our voyage to barley and hops enlightenment. She, of course, started with the lighter, more fruity beers for her first three. I don't remember exactly what they were, but I do know one was the Woodchuck Pear Cider. Not my favorite type of beverage, but pretty tasty. Now, what I will be doing is keeping track of the beers I drink on this nifty little blog. I mean, that's not ALL I'm going to do on here. I'll put my random postings, because I don't want this to turn into a scream for an AA meeting.

What I started of with on November 12, 2009:


Oh, Boddingtons. It was natural to start with the English classic bitter, don'tcha think? Creamy, tasty, with no "kick your ass" bite at the end. I thought this was a great way to start of my brew-haha journey.


Up next... Brooklyn Brown. Looks a lot heavier than it tastes. A nice, smooth brown ale. The aroma was lacking, but the drinkability made up for it. Plus, it was on special. I can't deny a $2.75 pint!





And finally, the last of my three beers of the night - Foothills Seeing Double IPA.
I'm going to be honest, when the girl who donned a skimpy school girl skirt took my order and gave me the nod of approval at my final choice, I didn't expect what occupied my glass. While casually chatting I took a sip and my face quickly responded with a massive twitch. Not the bad "I just lost feeling on the left side of my body" twitch. No, no, this was a "holy fuck balls! someone just hooked jumper cables onto my ass cheeks!" What I just tasted was an ABV (alcohol by volume, in case you didn't know your beer acronyms) of 9.5%.
Let's make a comparison so that the importance of that number can be understood: Your typical light piss beer ranks at about 4.2% - this includes your Miller Lite, Bud Light, Coors Light, and Mich Ultra. Even my Bass only comes in at 5%. So, what I'm saying here is that the name absolutely mirrors the product. I was also impressed by my beer wench and, while squinting to focus, gave her the best drunken thumbs up I could muster.

Well, there you have it. My first three beers of my U.F.O. Club membership. Now.. only 197 more to go!

I'm bizzay.

Despite my lack of activity here from time to time, it is never a forgotten space. What have I been up to lately?

Life pondering
Flight checking
Co-worker ass slapping
Paper grading
Beer experimenting
Creative writing
Running/Walking/Crunching
Granola eating
Apartment cleaning
Music making
Canvas covering
Guitar string breaking
Bulletin board creating
Tennis playing
Toe dislocating
Cricket learning
Nature hiking
Constant learning...

I like to be well balanced after all.

Oh, and the longer my hair is the more recent the picture. Because hair doesn't grow shorter. That would just be shilly.

MO' Pictuuuuuuuuures!

Pictuuuuuuuuures.