Family shit

So my mom has AML M2( leukemia )  and is undergoing treatment.  Recently her treatment put her in a position of great danger.  She's spent the last month in Ann Arbor at the University of Michigan Hospital.  This has put a huge strain on my family and is starting to greatly effect me in a direct sort of way.  It would seem as though as of late, I am the go-to person for all things, making food, figuring out how to tie your shoes, taking children to school, ect.  This isn't an issue until I feel I am being disrespected.  

Example: 
"Rodger you're a stupid fucking asshole."
5 minutes pass
"Rodger When are YOU making dinner?"
Rodgers reply: I make you dinner and you do the dishes?
"I do so much around this house and you don't do anything"

This sort of coddling they are expecting me to give them reminds me of a mother cat and her kittens, sucking away at the teat, draining the life force from the mother, until her power is so low she slinks away into the night to procure more energy from food/sex/drugs/political rallies/ect.  I however am not a mother cat, I'm not even capable of being a mother, so you can see how this would put me into a predicament.  You see, I can't run, that wouldn't be noble, and I can't stay around very long for fear of eating my kittens.  So I am stuck, letting them suck off the proverbial teat until their true mother cat returns at which point I can scratch their eyes out with my whimsical words and truck on down the road in a fashion only Jim Morrison could understand.

And there you have it...

Barefoot day?!

This is my Holiday!!!!!  April 5th will forever be my second birthday, a perfect excuse to run around in my birthdayshoes!  So here's to the awareness of children without shoes(not that i think children should wear shoes 80% of the time but..) and bring about hopefully a better sense of what's on the ground around you.  Shoes are like bulletproof(read: resistant) vests for our feet.  We walk around this planet, our concrete jungles with pride and arrogance about what we step on and crush.  Take today, and spend it barefoot, notice how slow you move, notice the way your skin reacts to pavement, your muscles too earth.  I'm not trying to push any hippie agenda on you, I am just an advocate for my surroundings.  If you see a piece of rubbish on the ground pick it up!  Don't shrug it off too someone else, take charge!  Today should be a day about building, about learning how we truly interact with the world, and how the little things matter.  Go to the park, blow bubbles, make someone smile, not for a reason, just too do so.  Give a hug too someone who you know needs it, show respect to someone who deserves none.  Give another the chance to be happy, even if only for a moment.  Smile, even if you don't feel like you can!  As the old saying goes " fake it till you make it," and I believe it works.

Wow, as much of a anti-hippy as I am, that was pretty darn close.  On to a different topic we go!  So at the office today, I noticed my 'DOMO' stuffed animal was looking a little sad.  To correct this terrible travesty I decided to give him a pin that my girlfriend and I got on a trip to the fabled 'Freemont Outlet Malls.'  That's right folks, Domo is now at the peak of fashion with a BRAND NEW PIN!   I know i know, I can hardly stand the thought of not showing you a picture, but I had considered not showing you, but that would be cruel, but this picture is probably more unusual.

and now you know...

a night of many wonders.

My day consisted of a great chat with a good friend on how simple it is to control people.  Not that control that the government want, the control of positive energy and bringing great ideas to a community and showing people the way to build and create together.  It takes one simple idea, to bring about a huge amount of change.  One must of course plant the seed before it can grow, and your humble author hopes his seed germinates into something beautiful.  One day I hope to be in a position to spend a great deal of time coaching people in the direction they want to move towards.

This post is what I would call an addendum to my earlier in the day post, and hopefully you read that as well.

Shorts Brew presents : Hangin' Frank India Pale Ale

First blog about ale, one of my loves.  Be kind my friends, and here we go.

First sip is hard, almost a soured taste, very hoppy and bold almost java.  As it courses over my palette heading towards my tummy, a burst of fruit fills my mouth, and of course, the joy begins.

The second taste is completely different from the first.  The hoppy flavor remains and fills your mouth like a bouquet of flowers, bringing out a slightly citrus  finish on this 'sip'( A word I use lightly as a man.)
For the True beer geeks out there, the real info you are looking for is all in the abbreviations, that's right ABV and IBU's baby.

ABV = Alcohol by volume, or how much alcohol is in the bottle compared to how much liquid is in the bottle.
IBU= International Bittering Units.  Think of this as a scale of how bitter your beer is, the higher the number the more it'll make your tongue tingle...

Well while Hangin' Frank might be quite high on the rope in IBU's( at a 67) the ABV on this fine brew is 5.5.  This beauty is an amazing example of what a brewery is capable of.  This offering is only around for a short time in spring, and is perfectly placed in the season I might say.  Just as the buds begin to start to form, this beautiful ale is there to greet you and welcome you into spring.  like so many ales from shorts this finely crafted regular pour ale comes with a great story...

Legend has it, they named the beer after a ghost of one 'Frank Fochtman' a Petoskey local, that haunts a grill in the area(the eatery not the cooking device.)
I do love a good story attached to ale, and it would appear Shorts from the Northern part of Michigan is a big fan as well.  On the whole Shorts is what I dream the beer world to embody in 10 years.  They are a radical brewery making some of the best ales on the market, and hopefully will continue to do so for a great while!

Well there you have it, my first beer review and maybe not the last, this has been a great little adventure into the world of ales, and hopefully I'll hang around long enough to do another.

beer is near..

So maybe I'll start to blog about my life a little more.  I'm 21, and have a special spot in my heart(read:Stomach) for ales.  This love of mine is relatively new too me, and hopefully I can learn as well as maybe bring a few of you into the Craftbrew/microbrew world.  I will give a little background.

My top ales at the moment are as followed:

1:  Hopslam, Seasonal from bells in Comstock/Kalamazoo Michigan
2: Crooked Tree IPA from Dark Horse brewing co.  in Marshall Michigan
3:Arcadia Ales IPA from  Battle Creek Michigan
4:Two hearted Ale From Bells in Comstock/Kalamazoo Michigan
5:Huma-Lupa-Licious from Shorts brewing in Bellaire Michigan


As you can tell I am currently captivated by two things, Michigan and IPA.  Neither of these will per-say sway me away from a great ale based on those criteria, but more-so will be weighted against as a standard of excellence I've grown to appreciate.
So if you would like to read my ramblings about what beer I am currently imbibing or about what my day was like, you're in the right place, hope you enjoy!

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