End of Year Wrap Up

A up and down year of blogging as I only managed 138 posts (compared to 157 for 2011 although I did stop publishing baseball blog posting on this site and now only publish them to my baseball site).  With the baseball blog posting gone that eliminates about 25-30 posts a year so for the most part I've stayed consistently average.  My one good thing is that I kept up with my comic book haiku.  That was a goal of mine for the complete year.  Also I did crank out 3 short stories which are in the editting process.  While I hoped to send one in for review this year, I still need to work on some of the storylines.  So this is 2012 in a nutshell:

- 34 books read (favorite, Non-Fiction (8 books) - "21" / Fiction (23) - "Glaciers" and "Cloud Atlas" and "Old Man War" / TPB (3) - "Immortal Iron Fist Volumes 1&2")

- Best Comics this Year - Spider-Man (3rd year in a row), All New X-men, and Hawkeye

- Best Movie seen was "Avengers"

- Favorite Album "Synthetica" - Metric and "Theatre is Evil" - Amanda Palmer

- Best Comic Cover was:














- 141 Haiku's Written

- My Favorites:

Solstice
Hot tea, warm fire
Snuggle in, sun's day off
Dog's nose frigid

River
Flowing to somewhere
Endless quest
Ripples uncomplaining

Spring
Sound of the bat
Cracks open Springtime
It rains baseballs

Top Posts
Chris Claremont
Desk Toys Having Fun
"52"
Solar System
Supreme Court
Dream is Still Alive
Clyfford Still Haiku

Top Baseball Posts
GM Thoughts Part II
Holding the Rope
Field of Dreams
Trading for Success
Humidor - A Mirage
Game 25
Open Letter to GM
Coors Field Effect
The Draft
ERA League Average

Neil Gaiman - Sandman Volume 6 Fables

Funny when you connect with a story, this being Volume 6, and finally reading a collection that means something you find out from wikipedia that this is the 'least essential" of the collections!  Perhaps I shouldn't read these once a year and maybe I should just sit down and crank through them but I will keep taking my sweet time.  Maybe the reason I enjoyed this one was because of the variety of story and the how they were a bit more accessible compared to some of the previous volumes.  The beauty of these one off stories was they were very compelling.  I thought the one about Morpheus son was fantastic and hte the last story in the collection about Baghdad.  Rich storytelling.  Gaiman continues to amaze me with his takes on various fables.  Good stuff!

Comic Splat - Week 52

The Amazing Spider-Man #700
Parker's options end
Nothing left, makes final plea
Villian understands?

Philip Jose Farmer - The Other Log of Phileas Fogg

Really I wanted to like this. Whole concept of a mixed universe is so very intriguing but alas this just doesn't work for me.  This is the second Farmer book I have muddled through.  The first was about Tarzan.  Characters and imagination is great, it's just his writing style is so matter fact.  Instead of telling the story he is almost writing like a comic book where he inserts these thought bubbles but the thought bubbles are his thoughts not the storys.  It just makes the story read poorly and you lose sight of the actual story. 

Solstice

Hot tea, warm fire

Snuggle in, sun's day off

Dog's nose frigid

Haiku #9

Haiku #9 was a Chocolate Maple Porter used from a beer kit from Brooklyn Brewshop.  One gallon batch. 

1) 1.2 lbs American 2 Row Malt
2) 0.3 lb Chocolate Malt
3) 0.2 lb Caramel 15 Malt
4) 0.2 lb Black Patent Malt

5) 0.4 oz Fuggle Hops (% AA)
6) 3/4 cup Maple Syrup (15 minutes boil)

7) English Ale Yeast (Solid)

Used Starsan sanitizer.

The Mash

Heated 8 cups of water to 160-170 deg F.  Added grain (placed grain a mesh bag).  Cooked for 60 minutes at 150 deg F.  Raised temperature to 170 deg F at the end of 60 minutes

The Sparge

Removed the grain mesh bag and allowed to drip dry.  Rinsed grain and mesh bag with a gallon of heated water.  Than ran the wort back through the mesh bag.

The Boil

Heated the wort until it began to boil at approximately 210 deg F.  Boil lasted 60 minutes with 0.3 oz of fuggle hops at 0 min (into boil) then added 0.1 oz of fuggle hops at  15 minutes.  Hops placed in a hop mesh bag for duration of boil.  Added 3/4 cups of maple syrup with 5 minutes to left in the boil.

The Fermentation

After boil, removed from heat, cooled wort to approximately 70 degrees.  Filtered the wort through a strainer.  Added the yeast, shook vigorously.  Yeast activated in about 12 hours.

The yeast began fermentation.  Allowed to sit for 2 week.  

The Bottling

Used 3 tablespoons of maple syrup and dissolved this in 1/2 cup of water, siphoned the beer into vessel, stirred and then siphoned into 9 regular bottles.  Allowed to sit for another 2 weeks.

The Tasting

Opened and tried on 12/20/12.  Awesome balanced taste.  Probably my best beer yet as it actually tastes like something you'd buy.  Very pleased.  Surprised that maple syrup doesn't come out as much in the flavor.  Thought it would be sweeter. 

Full and well bodied
Deep chocolate malt goodness
Hint of nature syrup

Comic Splat - Week 51

All New X-men #4
Young vs. Old Battle
How do you fight yourself
Optic Blast of course

Hawkeye #6

Haruki Murakami - Sputnik Sweetheart

A rare short, tight offering from Murakami. Also fairly straightforward until the last half. Having read almost all of his works this one seemed like a bit of a trial for what later becomes 1Q84. Always thought provoking this was a good read. Murakami still appears to struggle with disappearing woman and man left behind to pick up the pieces.  He also loves alternate worlds...

Comic Splat - Week 50

Winter Soldier #13
An All Star Line Up
Black Widow weaves a wide net
Feel bad for bad guy...

Alex Stone - Fooling Houdini

Not the book I wanted.  Think publishers have hit on the Malcolm Gladwell of writing books a little too much.  This book was formulastic in much the same way as the scrabble tournament book and the memory championship book and etc.  While I wasn't looking for the answers to magic maybe I was hoping for more intrigue?  Hard to say but this wasn't it.  Not to say that it wasn't a decent read and I do know a little more about the world of magic now then before I started it just didn't go in the direction I wanted.  Perhaps magic is better seen then read?

Clifford Still Museum Haiku

PH-1039, 1977:

Are they birds in flight?

Perhaps a falling fountain

But see the red heart

PH-163, 1954:

Clifford's still life take

Do you see Vincent's pears?

A composite splot

PH-1071, 1951:

The grey abyss stares 

Wolf pack howl, their mate bleeding

Moon's light documents...

PH-605, 1950:

The blackness caves in

Silver of blue sky remains

Red exposes my fear

PH-247:

Orange screams look at me

Black pillar quietly stands fast

In awash of blue

John Scalzi - The Ghost Brigades

The sequel to Old Man's War and I thought this one was even better than the first.  Compiling storyline, some mystery, and an evil genius, what more could you want from a Sci-Fi story.  Either way the Ghost Brigades is a great storyline and Sagan is a strong female character that is easy to like.  All in all a great book and a decent gotcha for an ending.  Also if the author had the time wrting a series following ghost troopers would be awesome!

Comic Splat - Week 49

All New X-men #3
Cyke forming new team
Breaks out Emma, finds new mutants
Runs into himself?

Amazing Spider-Man #699
Doc Ock last surprise
Peter has one last one too
Will he stay alive?

Hawkeye #5

Comic Splat - Week 48

All New X-men #2
What has the Beast done?
Old team journeys to future
Wolverine surprised!

Comic Splat - Week 47

Amazing Spider-Man #698
Uh-Oh that's not good
The web slinger's new chapter
Doc Ock gets last laugh...

Ben Mezrich - Sex on the Moon

Big fan of Ben's books and thought this one would be a favorite but have to admit it was one of my least favorite.  Think part of the problem was the characterization of the main character.  When writing non-fiction you are kind of stuck with what you've got and this guy was basically a jerk.  Plus while it was true, the heist and follow on weren't really all that gripping.  It was kind of like his previous book about the MIT students being chased by the shadow mob, it just sort of seemed force.  Again a problem with non-fiction is you have to go with what you got and can't force a dramatic build up.

Now if they had gotten rocks out of the vault that would have been a whole lot more exciting!

Karen Walker - The Age of Miracles

The Age of Miracles was an Indispensable from Powell's.  Started the book a while back then was traveling and so it sat on my shelf half read.  The concept kind of freaked me out and therefore I wasn't real keen on continuing the book. Having only given up on one book in my lifetime (Edith Wharton's - The House of Mirth), I wasn't going to make it two.  

Overall not a bad book.  Thought it kind of ended prematurely and could have been a bit more final. The effects of the longer day and the after effects were definitely though provoking.  Kind of makes you think about the only place currently in the universe that we can live on and how perhaps we take advantage of it.  Ok read but nothing I would have chosen to read.  Therefore thanks to Powell's for opening me to new books.

Comic Splat - Week 46

New Avengers #33
Avengers Assemble!
Sorcerer attacks Doctor Strange
Look out magic time

The Amazing Spider-Man #697
Two hoboglobins
And Pete's got lots of problems
Now where is Spidey?

All New X-men #1
All is new again
Originals are back, baby
This I got to see!

Random Haiku - Alaska

River
Flowing to somewhere
Endless quest
Ripples uncomplaining

River hunkers down
Swiftly tries to hold on
But winter grabs hold

Winter
Sun's aches to get up
Winter keeps her close to earth
Snow has won

Grant Morrison - Supergods

Fascinating look at comic book history through the eyes of probably one of the best comic book writers of the Modern Age (Gaimen, Moore, Miller, Claremont?).  Interesting character, funny how another Brit makes good on a medium that is essentially an American invention.  Perhaps looking into America versus living in America makes you less involved and better able to filter the BS from the real stuff?  Great history of the modern art form.  Good take on what it means to create a new baseline on very old characters.  I personally loved what he did to the New X-men although less so with Batman.

Comic Splat - Week 45

Avengers #33
Microverse show down
Avengers get beaten up
Who will save the day?

New Avengers #32
The Doctor is Strange
Sorcerer Supreme is spooked
Now under arrest!

Jack London - White Fang

Being in Alaska and being without any books I went to my Kindle storage feature and found a book that would fit in nicely to the place I was at.  It is amazing that I hadn't read the book up to this point.  Always a fan of Jack London I guess I just never got around to reading it. That is what makes reading so fun.  You never now what your next book is and you never know when a book might make an impression.  

A beautifully written book told from a perspective of White Fang, a wolf.  Really touching and made me look at my dog in a different perspective.  The ending is very emotional or perhaps finishing it in the Anchorage Airport at midnight was a bit too much for me!

Great book, great read!

Comic Splat - Week 44

Winter Soldier #12
Real Soldier returns
Fight bad guys on their own turf
First stop Daredevil?

Blake Northcott - Relapse (The Vs. Reality Series)

An ebook series discovered through the wonder that is Twitter.  Nice little series.  Nothing flashing, nothing deep. Just solid storytelling with some good characters.  I call it a Saturday afternoon matinee type story, popcorn and all.  It will be interesting to see how it ends!  Ebooks can succeed now if only I could surf that tail...

Comic Splat - Week 43

Avengers #32
Someone's still alive
Who the heck is Lord Gouzar?
Inner Space toubles

The Amazing Spider-Man #696
Parker still captured
Modell needs to save the day?
Two hobgoblins?

Captain America #19
Brubaker's last one
Fantastic run, one of best
Captain moving on

John Scalzi - Old Man's War

This will probaby be my favorite book of the year although will have to wait and see.  Written with the DNA of Heinlein with some Ender's Game thrown into it this is what to me defines the genre.  A great set up that leads to even more crazyness.  Throw in the Ghost Brigade and wow what a great concept.  It will be interesting to see how the books down the line continue to carry the concept.

Stephen Chbosky - The Perks of Being a Wallflower

Again another marketing coup because the only reason I read this was because I saw the movie trailer.  The book is a coming of age story.  The story is written in a letter format to some one unknown (probably just us the reader).  Story is one that has been told for every generation.  This one for generation of the 90s and of course has its ups and downs.  The downs being very shocking especially at the end.  The book did have one great character and that is Sam who the letter writer falls for.  Every coming of age tale needs a "Sam".  Good book tough to swallow the ending...

Comic Splat - Week 42

New Avengers #31
It's not what it seems
Luke Cage decides to retire?
The end of the "New"

Cheryl Strayed - Wild

Oh this book wanted to be so much more to me that it was...I love tales of man (in this case woman) against nature struggling with both inner and outer demons to reach some apex of life.  In this case a grand tale of a woman putting some difficult times behind her and hitting the trail to find herself.  The set up is everything I would hope for but what happens when you don't like the main character?  Her struggles are heart felt but the woman she is is not very likeable and that is the challenge in saying whether I truly liked this book or just thought it was a whiners tale. 

I respected her journey.  Didn't respect her.  

Great American Beer Fest

A journey back to the GABF.  Haven't been to the fest in about 19 years.  Being a brewer I decided I needed to taste the competition.  Was truly blown away by the magnitude of beers being poured for our delight.  Favorite moment was getting my picture with president of New Belgium brewery.  

My Favorites from the Fest:

Whoop Pass IPA
Black Butte XXIII
Good Chit Pilsner
Citrum IPA
Cone Lick'r
Sah'Tea
Green Monstah Strong Ale

Haiku #8 - Princess Peach

Haiku #8 was my first try at a fruit beer and I used neighbors peaches.  Also used Colorado grain so this is a somewhat local beer.  Loosely based on a peach recipe on BeerTools.com.  One gallon batch. 

1) 1.8 lbs Colorado 2 Row
2) 0.2 lbs Honey Malt
3) 0.2 oz Cluster Pellet Hops (7.7% AA)

4) 0.2 oz Mt. Hood Pellet Hops (4.1% AA)
5) 0.8 lbs Peaches (15 minutes boil)

5) White Labs WLP320 American Hefeweizen (Liquid)

Used Starsan sanitizer.

The Mash

Heated 0.5 gal of water to 160-170 deg F.  Added grain (placed grain a mesh bag).  Cooked for 60 minutes.  

The Sparge

Removed the grain mesh bag and allowed to drip dry.  Rinsed with a gallon of heated water.  Than ran the wort back through the mesh bag.

The Boil

Heated the wort until it began to boil at approximately 210 deg F.  Boil lasted 60 minutes with 0.2 oz of cluster (bittering) hops at 0 min (into boil) then added 0.1 oz of Mt. Hood hops (aroma) at 30 min and e5 minutes.  Hops placed in a hop mesh bag for duration of boil.  Added a slurry (food processed) of peaches (~ 0.8 lbs or about 10-12 that were pitted and pealed).

The Fermentation

After boil, removed from heat, cooled wort to approximately 50 degrees.  Allowed peach to settle but some peach material were floating.  Difficult to filter into fermentor.  Added the yeast.  Yeast activated in about 12 hours.

The yeast began fermentation.  Allowed to sit for 1 week.  After one week, transferred to a second glass carboy for secondary fermentation.

The Bottling

Used dextrose and dissolved this in 1/4 cup of water, siphoned the beer into into 8 regular bottles.  Allowed to sit for another 2 weeks.

The Tasting

Opened and tried on 10/11/12 (!). Good carbonation. Fluffy head, bit sticky (left residue on side of glass).  Can smell the peaches and a slight hint in the flavor.  Certainly not overpowering.  Good first try. 

Just a hint of peach

Nice smooth, blondish, with curly head

Fit for a Princess

Comic Splat - Week 41

Captain America #18
Capt fights to the core
An all too familiar world
Wish he existed!

Uncanny Avengers #1
First Marvel's reboot
From the ashes of Phoenix
Havok' halo back!

Avengers #31
Who's the mask woman?
Uses her Avengers card
Lost in inner space...

David Mitchell - Cloud Atlas

Where to begin on this one?  I really liked this book.  It was well done, it was also a challenging read because of the setup.  The books starts with characters on a boat sailing back to San Francisco, then jumps to a composer in Belgium, then to a woman journalist in California, then to a British gentleman, then to a future clone, and then finally to remnants of humans.  Once this apex is reached it then goes in reverse order back through the characters with the book finally ending with the original characters who finally reach San Francisco.  Each story is linked to the previous story because the composer reads the diary of the person going to San Francisco, and the letters of the composer goes to a scientist, who then shows up with journalist in California, and then the journalist story is picked up by the Brit, who's story becomes a movie which the clone sees, and then finally the clone becomes a symbol to the human remnants. To some I imagine the convience of these links crossing across the stories become a bit silly but it becomes clearer that all these characters across these stories have all played a similar role.  To me the following quote from the book gives the ahhh moment:

 

"I watched clouds awobbly form the floor o' that kayak.  Souls cross ages like clouds cross skies, an' tho' a cloud's shape nor hue nor size don't stay the same, it's still a cloud an' so is a soul.  Who can say wher the cloud's blowed frmo or who the soul'll be 'morrow? Only Sonmi the east an' the west an' the compass an' the atlas, yay, only the atlas o' clouds."

 

And that in a nutshell is the book.  Fascinating book, one that I gave a lot of thought to which is often rare.  

Comic Splat - Week 40

AvsX #12
It's all down to this
Cyclops versus Everyone
In the end, he's right...

The Amazing Spider-Man #695
Spider sense tingling
Jammers go in overdrive
And Pete gets kidnapped

Captain America - Volume 4

Boy the 70s version of Captain America was sure steeped in the cultural doings of the time.  The language, the background are all painful to read at times.  It will be interesting to see as we move closer to the 80s how the character continues to change to maybe a more Reagan centric view of America?  Stay tuned...

Comic Splat - Week 39

The Amazing Spider-Man #694
Spidey had enough?
Alpha's arrogance too much?
Showdown was lacking...

Winter Soldier #11
Hide and Seek, Bucky
Find me or Natasha's dead
Or maybe a trap?

Comic Splat - Week 38

Avengers #30
A Marvel Team-Up
With Hawkeye and Spider Woman
In love and battle

93.3 KTCL Big Gig - Red Rocks

Took my son to his first time concert at Red Rocks (gotta do it right).  Actually a pretty decent day of bands as well as a fairly diverse group of music.  The day's set began with the Wombats.  Band I knew nothing about and after the day probably the one band that I left with the biggest desire to hear more.  Unfortunately they only have one album so not much more to hear.  They reminded me a lot of the Cure.  The second band was The Hives.  Again a band I knew but couldn't place any of their songs until after their set and then figured out who they were.  Of all the bands the energy they displayed was incredible especially at a Mile High.  A great rock band.  Loved their enthusiam.  The next band was then local favorite 3OH!3.  A Boulder band similar to Linkin Park although I am not a huge fan of alternative rap the crowd made the set pretty fantastic.  The final act was Silversun Pickups which to me made the "gig" although I don't think they are big enough to be a anchor band yet.  Great band as always but I think they are a tweener band right now.  Not quite ready for the big stage but too ready for that big stage.  In the end I was bummed because Nikki, their bassist, was on maternity leave :(  Great day of music at the world's greatest concert venue!

Michael Chabon - Telegraph Avenue

That's Michael in the center standing up!  Always entertaining hearing an author read and discuss his books.  Being one of my top 5 alive authors (Gaiman, Murakami, Chabon, Gibson, and Coupland).

 

I wore my Pittsburgh Pirates hat and sat in the far back, just because.  Not for sure what I think about this new book of his.  Based on what was said at the book signing it seems pretty similar to Fortress of Solitude.  

Comic Splat - Week 37

Winter Soldier #10
An all out hunt starts
Black Widow has now gone rogue
Double Agent fun

Captain America #17
Crowd control lacking
Nemo manipulating
Things look grim again

A vs X #11
Scott disses Emma
Scott frustrates, kills his mentor
Dark Phoenix is back

Ann Aguirre - Grimspace

OK so I got totally hoodwinked on this one.  Was browsing the sci-fi section at Powells in Portland (world's best sci-fi section!) and noticed this author and that she had quite a few series.  Always interested in a new series so bought book one.

 

The book started out fairly well.  Neat premise but then about half way I'm hit with this over the top love scene...what the heck?  Didn't see that one coming.  So I immediately go on line and discover that there exists a romantic sci-fi arm and that the writer is fairly involved in populating the art form.  I did finish the book out.  While it was enjoyable and a good read I don't think this sub genre is for me...

Haruki Murakami - 1Q84

Whew that was a read!  Started way back in November 2011, I had to read this book in spurts which is probably OK because it was published in three separate books in Japan.  Overall a pretty typical Murakami book.  Great characters thrown into a world much like ours and much not like ours.  This one actually did have the characters playing in an alternative Earth, one with two moons.  You can always count on the bizarre coming across as quite normal to Murakami. I wonder if that is a Japanese thing or if the translation brings this out as well.  Overall while I enjoyed the book I thought it could have been told without all the extra fluff.  I mean it was basically a love story which took close to 1,000 pages for the young lovers to finally connect.  In between was a whole lot bizarrenesss but perhaps that was what Murakami was trying for.  That love is hard especially in a world with two moons...

 

Page 441 "What people need is beautiful, comforting stores that make them feel as if their lives have some meaning.  Which is where religion comes from."

Comic Splat - Week 36

Invincible Iron Man #524
If can't trust our tech...
Tony works magic builds suits
Fight with Mandarin?

Amazing Spider-Man #693
Alpha out of hand?
Reminds Peter of someone?
Parker fix problem

Clive Cussler - Crescent Dawn

Dirk and company still getting it done.  Book 21 in the series and Clive and Dirk do their typical magic to make Dirk's adventures still be exciting after all of these years.

Comic Splat - Week 35

New Avengers #30
Luke Cage has had enough?
Heading home to Jessica
Frost under arrest

Winter Soldier #9
Double switches galore
Natasha good or evil?
Look out for beat down!

You Go Bill Nye!

Any scientist who can make science fun is a rare breed.  Any scientist who also speaks out for the sciences is even more rare.  Recently Nye had this to say about parents wishing there children be removed from the discussion of evolution, "And I say to the grownups, if you want to deny evolution and live in your world, in your world that's completely inconsistent with everything we observe in the universe, that's fine, but don't make your kids do it because we need them. We need scientifically literate voters and taxpayers for the future. We need people that can - we need engineers that can build stuff, solve problems. "It's just really a hard thing, it's really a hard thing. You know, in another couple of centuries that world view, I'm sure, will be, it just won't exist. There's no evidence for it."

 

So true...

Comic Splat - Week 34

The Invincible Iron Man #523
A confusing plot
What does Stark have up his sleeve
Whose games his he in?

Amazing Spider-Man #692
Spidey gets partner?
Sidekick, ward, a boy spidey?
Shoes on other foot...

Comic Splat - Week 33

Amazing Spider-Man #691
Everyone's lizard!
And spider jammers stolen
Future storyline

Avengers #29
Xavier switch sides
Avengers needed telepath
But his dream is dead

A vs X #10
Just Scott and Emma
Now Scott versus a Dragon
And now a Watcher!

Jill Jonnes - Conquoring Gotham

Having enjoyed Jill Jonnes book on the Eiffel Tower I thought I would give this book a chance.  Nice little history on mass transit in NY City as well as an engineering record of digging under the Hudson to get there.  Amazed that over time NYers gave up on the great train station (seen to the left) and leveled it to build Madison Square Garden...go figure.  The grandeur that Pennsylvania Railroad saw in the people movers of the time is fantastic. 

 

What was more amazing was the feat of builidng the rail lines under the river to get to the Station.  We do amazing things now but it always seems that which was done in the past in light of the technology of today makes what they did seem more incredible.  This was a good read, she is a good writer of history and technology.

Comic Splat - Week 32

Captain America #16
Manipulation
They are against the Captain
Who's controlling it...

New Avengers #29
Illuminati
The changing alliances
Namor vs Captain

Dream is Still Alive

Comic Splat - Week 31

A vs X #9
This doesn't look good
Spidey versus Colussus
Who needs a nose job?

Invincible Iron Man #521
Mandarin commands
Hope Tony has a real plan
A smack down awaits...

Haiku #7 (The Y Clone)

Haiku #7 was an attempt to create a Yuengling clone.   Recipe cobbled together based on an overview of about 4 recipes.  Tried to take what was similar in each recipe and create something similar.  A one gallon brew was produced with following ingredients:

1) 1.4 lbs Belgian Pilsner
2) 1.0 lbs American 6 Row Malt
3) 0.2 lbs Caramel Malt (60 deg L)
4) 0.3 lbs Flaked Corn

5) 0.2 oz Cascade Pellet Hops (6.8% AA)

6) 0.2 oz Cluster Pellet Hops (7.9% AA)

7) Wyeast 2112 yeast California Lager (Liquid)

Used Starsan sanitizer.

The Mash

Heated 6.0 gal of water to 155-162 deg F.  Added grain (placed grain in a mesh bag).  Cooked for 60 minutes.  

The Sparge

Removed the grain mesh bag and allowed to drip dry.  Used heated water to rinse the grain in the mesh bag and to bring boil volume up to the correct amount.

The Boil

Heated the wort until it began to boil at approximately 210 deg F.  Boil lasted 60 minutes with 0.2 oz of cascade (bittering) hops at 0 min (into boil) then added 0.1 oz of cluster hops (aroma) at 30 min and 55 minutes.  Hops placed in a hop mesh bag for duration of boil.

The Fermentation

After boil, chilled wort to approximately 50 degrees.  Poured cool wort into a 1 gallon glass jug.  Added the yeast.

The yeast began fermentation.  Allowed to sit for 2 weeks.  Fermentation was a little incomplete.  Didn't have a standard bubbling although left town and did not see full fermentation.

The Bottling

Used dextrose and dissolved this in 1/4 cup of water, bottled into 6 x bomber bottles (~650 mL).  Allowed to sit for another 2 weeks.

The Tasting

Opened and tried on 7/27/12. Good carbonation, but the color was too light.  Good color and flavor.  Have to admit not nutty enough to taste like the real stuff.  Beer aged well, more flavorable after about a month refrigerated.

It's my Yuengling Clone

Good flavor, but wrong color

Pennsylvania thing?

Comic Splat - Week 30

Amazing Spider-Man #690
Lizards everywhere
A cure for one but not all
More fun for Spidey

Avengers #28
The Red Hulk Issue
Don't mess with big red muscles
Phoenix Five now know

Captain America #15
The Discordians?
Who the heck are these villains?
Think it's a setup

Winter Soldier #8
Natasha kidnapped
Bucky pulls out all the stops
Will it be too late?

Pat Conroy - South of Broad

Old Mister Conroy you never fail to disappoint.  Just when I need that Southern angst and beautifully written book you always deliver.  You have been delivering this for most of my life.  Having read Lords of Discipline in 80s, being probably the only individual ever to read the Great Santini during Army Jump School in the early 90s, and Beach Music in the 00s, you continue to wax poetic the ups and downs of being from the South.

 

South of Broad keeps the faith.   One has to wonder if you haven't taken a page from Hemingway and if we shouldn't throw out there a "Conroy Hero"  He has been a steady provider of self reflection, angst, dispair, love lost, and embattered for quite some time.  With each book I have to wonder if the archetype will continue or if a new page is turned?  In the end I love Conroy's use of words, I just wish that the characters could all be happy for once!

Comic Splat - Week 29

A vs X #8

A Namor beat down

Done one now the Phoenix Four

Charles confronts Scott...

Invincible Iron Man #521

Tony Stark captured

Mind controlled by Mandarin

Revolt from within?

Don't Tread On Me?

With rhetoric being the highest before every major election it is always interesitng to see what people choose to put on their cars.  Freedom of Speech being what it is I understand why some people feel that need to put forth their political beliefs with stickers but sometimes it just makes me cringe.  The Gadsden Flag is the latest symbol, taken from our history and repackaged to carry the latest lament of our nation which is centered around people's belief that our government has become too much like England back in the 18th Century.

 

Understandably I wish historical symbols would not be remade into something else.  Because of its historical significance I just have to laugh as I see them plastered on back of mostly big assed trucks.  The goofiness being that to me the truck is the symbol of American individuality, ruggedness, and stupidity.  I mean where else in the world could you get away driving a vehicle that gets 15 mph gallon?   So to have one plastered on your vehicle I have to wonder what exactly our you protesting?

Comic Splat - Week 28

Captain America #14
D-Man vs Capt A
Friends and or Foes reunite
Sharon's bullet ends it

New Avengers #28
Utopia mind games
Jessica, Clint, and Luke Cage
An endless nightmare

Comic Splat - Week 27

The Amazing Spider-Man #689
The Lizard is cured?
But Connors is still crazy
And infects Modell!

A vs X #7
Phoenix Five attacks
Wanda is Avenger's Ace
Namor goes solo

Invincible Iron Man #520
Tony gets shock
Mandarin controls his source code
He calls him master

Supreme Court Thoughts

Score a point for the Supreme Court.  Perhaps the court has been political over its history.  It has been my belief of all the branches of our goverment the Supreme Court is supposed to stay above the fray and make sound, rational choices based on the history of law and the Constitution.  It is supposed to stand apart from the rapidly changing ebbs and flows of emotions and make ruling consistent with what our forefathers might have been thinking.  Obviously I understand how there can be differences of opinion of what our forefathers meant and how some laws could be intrepreted but that is the beauty of the Supreme Court.

 

It is my opinion that since 2000, the Supreme Court has stepped into the partisan battle that is Washington.  While granted a President nominates a judge and the Congress approves that judge it is my hope that we don't fundamentally put in Republicans or Democrats into the seats.  Unfortunate of late there seems to be a decisiveness among the Judges leading me to believe that the one last non-partisan entity in Washington has disappeared.

 

This week though it appears that the Court has somewhat changed my opinion and run against its own current especially the Chief Justice.  In not striking down Obamacare, the Chief Justice said in the majority decision, “We do not consider whether the act embodied sound policies. That judgment is entrusted to the Nation’s elected leaders. We ask only whether Congress has the power under the Constitution to enact the challenge provisions.” In breaking with his more conservative judges the Chief Justice restored some of my faith in our nation's law makers.  Let's hope this becomes the new trend.

Haiku #6.2 (Red Card Red 5 gallon)

Haiku #6.2 was the scale up recipe from my modifications of The Best of Brew You Own magazine (page 36).  The purpose of this brew was to mass produce (5 gallons!) for contest at the June 30th Rapids / Timbers game.  Performed at the Do Your Brew facility in Westminster (5/31/12), there were some recommended changes by the Owner, see recipe below.  Biggest change was from a whole grain to a partial mash.  

1) 6.0 lbs Golden Light (malt syrup) [change]
2) 1.0 lb 2 Row Pale Malt
3) 0.6 lb Munich Malt
4) 0.6 lb Crystal Malt (15 deg L)
5) 0.6 lb Crystal Malt (40 deg L)

6) 0.6 lbs Crystal Malt (75 deg L)
7) 0.1 lbs English Chocolate [change, for increase red color]

8) 1.0 oz Chinook Pellet Hops (11.1% AA)
9) 1.0 oz Centennial Pellet Hops (?% AA)

7) White Labs WLP001 California Ale (Liquid)

Used Iodine sanitizer.

The Mash

Heated 6.0 gal of water to 155-162 deg F.  Added grain (placed grain a mesh bag).  Cooked for 60 minutes.  

The Sparge

Removed the grain mesh bag and allowed to dry.

The Boil

Heated the wort until it began to boil at approximately 210 deg F.  Boil lasted 60 minutes with 1.0 oz of chinook (bittering) hops at 0 min (into boil) then added 0.5 oz of centennial hops (aroma) at 40 min and 55 minutes.  Hops placed in a hop mesh bag for duration of boil.

The Fermentation

Placed condenser in the boil to sanitize.  After boil, chilled wort to approximately 50 degrees.  Poured cool wort into a 5 gallon plastic bucket.  Specific gravity of the wort was 1.053.  Added the yeast.

The yeast began fermentation.  Allowed to sit for 1 week.  After one week, transferred to a glass carboy for secondary fermentation.

The Bottling

Specific gravity after fermentation was 1.011.  Beer was 5.6% alcohol.  Used dextrose and dissolved this in 1/4 cup of water, I siphoned the beer into a bucket and then bottled into 23 x bomber bottles (~650 mL) and 12 regular bottles.  Allowed to sit for another 2 weeks.

The Tasting

Opened and tried on 6/28/12. Good carbonation, would like to see more of a head (see photo).  Similar to Haiku #6.0 and #6.1 although not as bitter.  Good color and flavor, a tad nutty.  Good enough for 3rd place in the brew contest!

Comic Splat - Week 26

The Amazing Spider-Man #688
A movie tie-in?
A cure to fix the Lizard?
Not the movie plot...

Haiku Wednesday

Comic Splat - Week 25

A vs X #6
X-men good / evil?
The Scarlet Witch is the key
No more Avengers?

The New Avengers #27
Iron Fist and Phoenix
What's the connection, Danny?
Spidey adds wisdom

Winter Soldier #7
Who is Rodchenko?
He is the Cold War connection
After the Widow!

Comic Splat - Week 24

The Amazing Spider-Man #687
Zombie Avengers?
Spidey and Amazing Friends
Save the day and Earth!

Captain America #13
Ah it's the D-Man
Target located, it's the Capt
Time to dance me thinks

Avengers #27
Noh-Varr a traitor?
Avengers escape a Sun
Time for a beat down

Haiku #6.1 (Red Card Red)

Haiku #6.1 was a recipe from The Best of Brew You Own magazine and was a St. Rogue Red Ale clone (page 36).  The purpose of this brew was to test reproducibility:

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.  I was traveling the day of fermentation so do not have confirmation that a good burp because.  When I left it was just starting to have a positive CO2 push.  Primary fermentation lasted for about 30 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 6/7/12. Good carbonation.  Similar to Haiku #6 although not as good.  Good color and flavor, little too bitter, not a great aftertaste.   

Comic Splat - Week 23

A vs X #5
The Phoenix and Moon
Bad things always happen here
Bad for Avengers!

Winter Soldier #6
Multiple Bucky's?
Man on the hunt for them all...
This ain't the Cold War

Walter Jon Williams - This is Not a Game

This book came about because of an impulse buy at an airport.  Think maybe I've read a Williams book (wow looked up his wikipedia page, and I read one of his first works, Hardwired, way back in 1986!) and I guess those marketing genius earned their pay on this one because the cover was interesting enough to make me buy it.  Story was OK, nothing spectacular.  Looking back at the structure I really wonder what the first quarter of the book really meant.  It seemed like it got thrown into the book but then really didn't have any connection to the rest of the book.  It was just kind of confusing to me and thus the overall book just didn't do much for me.  Interestingly there are two follow on books to this.  While I liked the main character I really don't think I could muddle through two more novels plus to be frank the concept has been done better by Wm Gibson.

Robert Heinlein - Space Cadet

Not one of Heinlein's better novels but written in 1948, I guess it was considered one of  his juvenile novels, whatever that means.  Funny how regardless of when a writer might write their novels there characters seem to be stitched of the same stuff.  You can see things in their characters that gets transferred to newer characters in their later novels.  When I think of the authors that I have read more than one of their novels it is amazing how the DNA gets passed along.  Two of the ones that jump out to me immediately are Hemingway and Conroy.

Comic Splat - Week 21

Captain America #12
A mystery man
Capt A goes after Hydra
And who is Dunphy?

The Amazing Spider-Man #686
The Earth is burning
Doc Ock has the upper hand
Octobot Zombies?

Comic Splat - Week 20

Avengers #26
Noh is a Kree spy?
Steals the Phoenix Energy
Savior or Traitor?

Winter Soldier #5
Gorillas and Doom
Prevent those missile launches
Bucky saves the World...

A vs X #4
Hope find Wolverine
She sides with the Avengers
And heads to the Moon

Comic Splat - Week 19

The New Avengers #26
It's Da Vinci Time
Huh? You know Cosmic forces
Who you gonna call...

Captain America #11
Which bad guy is this?
Perhaps he's Punisher Lite?
Stay tune shield returns...

Haiku Wednesday

Suzanne Collins - Catching Fire

Book 2 in the book cleverly disquised to be an adult book in child's publisher.  Also have to wonder why these books stayed in hard cover for so long?  I think us District's were getting screwed...Book two's have to be the hardest for any author to write.  Knowledge with the writer and reader that this is simply a bridge to the concluding book makes these books difficult to really care.  Sure I need to read it but I know nothing really interesting is going to happen.  I mean there were some surprises and I'm glad that I slugged through it but obviously the final book will be the big reveal... 

Comic Splat - Week 18

Iron Man #516
Iron Man no more?
Tony resigns, hangs it up
But what is his play?

Ultimate Spider-Man #10
Miles vs Uncle
Great Responsibility?
This could be trouble

AvsX #3
Logan vs Rogers
Battle that's been brewing
Who will get last laugh?

Amazing Spider-Man #685
Doc Ock is a mess
But he has world in his hands
Spidey step behind

Haiku Wednesday