Who doesn't like getting sideways?! Terrorist, that's who. You're not a terrorist, are you?

http://jalopnik.com/5849236/awesomest-craigslist-ad-ever-for-used-skyline-spits-awesomeness?popular=true

And another thing....

Also per discussion with Rob: to wit

 I think the MOST important reason to drink locally where ever you are and from the best brewers is that there is usually SOME quality about the brew that is critically important to the food or work or weather or dirt or water or politics or cave temps or SOMETHING that makes it the absolute PERFECT beer to drink there. So when in Ireland, of course drink a delicious Guinness, but understand why it is the way it is, get to understand the entomology of the process there, the water, the daily distribution (in my opinion the reason why Guinness is such a "homesick" beer is the body of it, despite being as dark as our women, has the most etherial hop and grain notes that simply will not tolerate sitting around. Every one I had there was probably only days from the tab at St James Gate, not even a week.) Again, its good to be alive. And a beer drinker.

Open, open, open, open, open, open, open, open, open, open, open, open, open, open, open, open, open.....

From Rob:


http://blog.seattlepi.com/thepourfool/2011/09/14/why-i-dont-drink-budweiser-and-why-im-not-alone/

Interesting, but completely misses a salient meeting of brewing and technology: specifically AB, money, and the refrigerated rail car. The ability to move chilled product in ice cooled cars filled by ice plants along the route, crewed by thirsty ice factory workers (among others of course) means fresh product at a massed production price distributed as far as the line would go. Its a classic mass production meets technology meets capitol success story. Sort of....I won't drink it either. But there has never been a better time to be alive as a beer drinker. Perhaps those are really two separate statements. There has never been a better time to be alive. And a beer drinker!

Photo notes seem to work for me. Now, Im not all Temple Grandin about it, but being able to just take a decent snap with my iPhone verses having to write something down means I will actually make the note. Baby steps in productivity, people baby steps. To wit:

I would like to thank you all for embracing my theory of not letting a blog take over your life. As you can see I have stretched this practice to its maximum possible limits.

Actually Facebook steals a lot of my thunder, as most of what I may want to spout off about goes immediately there rather than being massaged into the Atlas Shrugged-like tomes you no doubt have come to expect from me. Perhaps a I am too busy to actually duck press my thoughts into a blog form. I dunno.

I have a photo logged many good beers: to wit

So its not as if I'm not still killing it and having a good time, I'm just being lazy....

I will redouble my efforts.

Looking around...

Was out running the dog in the hood and got a flat. No biggie, gave me a chance to slow a bit and have a look at things I usually dont get to see for fear that split second of inattention will result in a reprise of the spectacular "trouble in turn 2" crash running the dogs a couple of years ago. Full on yard sale with bike in the middle of the road and me in the gutter and dogs looking at me like...well...dogs.

Spotted was:

Some of you are saying "It's a manhole cover, what's the big whoop". I would have too but check out the markings, our very own SJ Light and Power Corp. Interesting if you know some Fresno history...

After the upgrade...

Give me the clicker...

I was lucky enough to have grandparents who were A: Techies, as Gramps was a mechanical engineer, and B: mildly worried about, if not keeping up with the Joneses, being the Joneses them selves, and C: Had the means to do so.

One of the great pleasures for me as a kid was pawing through the accumulated gadgets and other detritus of their lives that included Radios, Black and White TVs, Color TV, Super 8 movies and various other hobbies that keep them busy. One thing I loved was the early remote for the Zenith color TV they had well into the late 70s. If you are not familiar, it was a mechanical device with tuned aluminum bars that were struck to make a sound the TV would respond to. To change the channel you plink plink plink with the remote. Its awesome. I would plink it just for fun. It drove them crazy.

Enter Ebay -

Now to go try it on the dog...