20 December 2006

Artsy Crap

Whatever miscellaneous stuff I come across in the next minute I will post forthwith.
Be right back, I have to browse through my photographs.


okay, I'm back. Here you go:

our youngest with sparklers


our next one up the age scale. also with sparklers.


All 3 kids playing at the beach.


our oldest, without sparklers. (just kidding, Kevin!)

I have lots of pictures to share seeing as I haven't posted much in the last 7 months.

Live music...

... in static format?
These are Gross National Product, performing live in Brandon, Florida.
Check out Bacon Towne Records for more info!

brew notes

Then:

The mead (brewed at Mead Day, courtesy of HAMS club) was not stuck, just extremely slow. It still bubbles, but you really have to wait for it.

The elderberry wine tastes pretty good, could use a little more body, but the majority of the bottles blew their corks out! The gravity was so low, I thought I shouldn't need to sulfite. Perhaps I was wrong, eh?

The gingered ale was a hit. I kegged it with the setup Misty bought me back at xmas '03. It was sweet (not the beer, that was a bit on the dry end).

Now:

I'm letting some apple wine ferment complete before adding cherries for "Reverend Olson's Chapple Wine".

Last night I bottled a "Spiced Solstice Ale". The spice seems a little heavy, but will probably mellow shortly. I figure it will be ready by New Year's Eve. I should have bottled it sooner, but I was recently diagnosed with diabetes and wasn't even sure if I was going to be able to drink it. Turns out that "moderation is the key" to controlling blood sugar, so I am able to hold onto my hobby. Anyway, I used (for the first time ever) a kit. It was English, Munton's "Old Ale", and it was much hoppier than I had expected. The orgininal intent was a Fruitcake ale and I brewed it with ginger, brown sugar, and honey, but the hoppiness killed that idea. Instead I spiced it with a cinnamon, clove, and nutmeg tea at bottling.

Next:

A dry mead. 9lbs honey and champagne yeast. Not sure what else.

more later...

18 December 2006

ok, well

I guess I was innacurate in that last posting.



But here's a picture to whet your appetite for the post-xmas vacation photos.

09 September 2006

new post!

Well, I went to the day shift back in May and since have not found the time to blog. I am now getting settled in and think I will return with a new addition. Homebrew notes!

I currently have a mead fermenting (seems stuck at the moment), elderberry wine to be bottled tomorrow (finishing gravity below .990!), and a gingered ale to be bottled within the week.

I'll be including pictures and I suppose, brewing notes as well.

See you soon!

29 April 2006

Super-Macro!

I don't use that setting too much, but it's fun on occasion.
Betcha can't guess what it is.

27 April 2006

The Sun Also Sets...

Yeah, I thought it might be bad for my camera, but I couldn't resist.

I had no idea there were clouds on the horizon. Look at the first picture, they're not there, yet look at the second and there they are. Mother Nature's tricky!


Amazing to me how when the sun begins to set, the sky becomes so much more interesting than the beach everyone is there to visit.





Siesta Beach (yes, again). 2 April 2006

I have a few pics of the drumming circle that night.

They'll be here before too long...

19 April 2006

Millions of Sets of Footprints in the Sand


Isn't that a song?
Maybe not.

Siesta Key April 2, 2006

05 April 2006

"A Portrait of the Blogger"

Yes, me. Fishing in Jupiter a little while back. You remember Jupiter, don't you?
This photo by Kevin.

31 March 2006

Be Cool, Stay in School!

Unless you like the idea of cleaning this up!
For what it's worth, in upper management, you might not even have to use it what with the executive washroom and all.
For any who may be wondering: I was the only person in the whole building at the time this photograph was taken, and therefore did not risk any privacy issues! I certainly wouldn't have wanted anyone walking in on me taking the picture, for fear that I'd have to explain myself!
For any who may be wondering where they can see more urinal photos:click here

29 March 2006

I think maybe I have a bad shopping habit!

Get it??? 'Cause of all the shop pics! Oh, come on, it was a little bit funny, wasn't it? No? Oh, well.

An exercise in perspective.

28 March 2006

"Fly me to the Moon"

...Let me play among the stars...

...Let me see what spring is like in Jupiter...Florida!

Misty's cousin Tammy was in the state, taking a vacation, so we headed over to the other coast where she was staying for a visit.

Snook and snapper, beware!


A lighthouse. It is closed on Sundays, unfortunately. The whole family wanted to check it out.


Flock of Pelicans. Seagulls are more prominant on our side of the state.


Don't ask me why the horizon is so chopped up, I just took the picture. Maybe an ocean expert will let us in on the secret someday.


"Chica" the Chihuahua was given to our daughter Lauren by Tammy the day we left St. Louis, so how were we to resist taking her along for the ride?


It's been a while since we've seen the Atlantic coast. What a difference! The sand is dirtier, the shells are broken up, but the waves, oh the breaking waves... (no, I really didn't get any pictures, but trust me, they are impressive.)



We ate at this little Italian place. It just so happens that while I was experiencing spring in Jupiter, I decided to try their "Chicken Sinatra". It was quite good (once I slid the mushrooms aside), but the service was awful and the prices were quite something to remember. Hopefully, if you eat there, you'll get a different waiter and you'll also understand how expensive Palm Beach County really is before you get the bill!

15 March 2006

Wedding Day for Marck & Heather !!!!!

I failed to bring my camera to the actual wedding (stupid!), but remembered to get it before the reception started. That said, you really should look at Ernie(notBert) first for some really great wedding pics! I mean it! Go look at them!!! I'll wait for you...

Also, if you want to check out the newlyweds' very own website, well, you should have clicked on "newlyweds' very own website"!



Now that you've seen the wedding photos ( you did, didn't you?), I will get on with it:

The first dance. What a happy couple!


I guess they were hungry for some cake, eh?


The traditional dressing for the bride and groom's vehicle.



The honey's moon. (I tried) 3-11-2006


Leaving for the hotel! Happy, happy!


By the way, did you know that Romeo and Juliet were married on March 11?


And yes, those were my Purple Pumas.

11 March 2006

01 March 2006

Another try...

...out the window.

24 February 2006

'twas a dark and foggy night...

Taken upon exiting work, of course.

22 February 2006

first attempt

I think it will take many tries, but I want to try to share with y'all the view out the window in my office. That sunset is a definite perk!

31 January 2006

Beware the coming of the childhood photo albums!

Myself, aged 3 or 4, I'm guessing.

According to the album, in Pompeii.

11 January 2006

step right up...

and take a guess!

New Digs


This'll be the artistic version (I like the reflection of the office) of the view from my new office's window.

05 January 2006

Devin Xmas eve



With one of the presents she really enjoyed!