Beer Never Dies

That's right folks. You probably all thought that we had just given up on beer making since I haven't talked about it for so long. That couldn't be further from the truth. We've pretty much had a steady stream of some damn fine bubbly coming out of this house. Maybe, there was a a bit of a dry streak for much of summer, but we are back in FULL force as of August.

Debuting this late summer is a seasonal beer that will no doubt be a tradition for Stadtman and I. A blackberry wheat. This is a new recipe and all sign indicate that it will fantastic when we try it in about three weeks. The other beer in the works right now is a blackberry lambic (similar to a framboise we are told). Don't get too excited about this one though, at least not yet. This late bloomer gets to sit in the fermenter (bucket) for a year before we even get around to bottling. Get back to me in 18 months and maybe I'll have an update on this one.

Let's see what happened during the brewing of the blackberry wheat (no funny name yet, sorry).

Major advances in brewing technology have been realized since the last report. We now have a more powerful propane burner, and Stadtman wasted no time setting up a low-impact stirring system next to it.

Beer out of a can. Simplicity never tasted so good.

Truth be told, the main reason I created this post was to get this picture out the world. Our good friend Colorado is usually not the touchy feely type, but my bronzed body clearly overwhelmed his better judgment here. You can see the ecstasy in his crazy eyes!

The customary "pitching of the yeast" ceremony.

Good work boys. Cheers for beers.

Pre Labor Day 2006

Orienta and Forky invited Shannon and I (amongst others) up to a Pre Labor Day BBQ at their pad in P-town. We loaded up the cooler and drove Maggie's car (fresh out the shop after months of immobility) to the scene of the crime to make the party happen.

Orienta revels in some slimy attention from her man-pal Forky.

Nothing beats a back porch grill off.

This must have been another "bomb track".

My guess is that this hunk of mystery food is probably not vegetarian.

You'd be bummed out too if you got up for second and return to find your buddy was smoking not only his own tobacco filled pastry, but yours too.

Maggie, her dad, and I enjoy our dinner. You don't know real pleasure until you've bitten into a cheddar brat and it squirts the molten cheddar juice into your mouth. Sometimes you have to pay to play.

The morning after, Maggie takes a mock swig of the leftover booze.

Return of the Haoli

Maggie got a great offer this summer. Her good friend Kurly was in Hawaii for work, and needed a nanny for Lion Thing while she worked. Kurly bought Maggie a ticket to Hawaii, and I got my own and joined them. We got a condo outside of Waikaloa Village on the Big Island and set about our adventures.

Kurly's husband, Flowboy, developed some fancy software called FLO2D. Kurly and Flowboy often travel promoting and training for this software. I like to tell people, "This vacation was sponsored by FLO2D (TM)".

This photo shows how ethnically and religiously diverse Hawaii can be. Where on earth can you find a close-cut Ron Livingston, an Asian child, Colonel Sanders, Anoushka Shankar, and a completely shaved Ari Fleischer all praying for world peace?

I made Maggie love on this depiction of a little girl asleep on a giant sea turtle.

This tree was about 50 feet from the sea, and was perfect for climbing. It also provided excellent shade.

Mmmm. This looks nice.

Return of the Haoli (Narcolepsy and Blue tank top)

Kurly had such great time on this trip. I've dedicated this entire post to her.

Always glamorous and always politically correct, Kurly gave everybody at this scenic viewpoint a truly scenic view of her magic maker.
Kurly and I compare turgosity at the black sand beach.

The effects of mild sun-stroke take hold,...

Sometimes things just got too exciting for the poor girl.

Kurly spent at least half of every day at the beach asleep in the sand.

Return of the Haoli (Waterfalls)

Maggie and I took our leave from the rest of our party and endeavored to visit as many waterfalls as we could in one day. This means a day on the east side of the island, since it gets most of the rain (thus waterfalls).

Above is Rainbow Falls, which is pretty much IN the city of Hilo.I don't remember the name of the falls above, but they were right above a rock formation called the "boiling pots", because of the wild white water flowing through them. You get creative when you don't own a tripod. The largest falls of our tour, Akaka Falls, is 420 ft tall. For you Oregonians out there, Multnomah falls is 542 ft (the main falls). Go Oregon.

Return of the Haoli (Lava)

What's in Hawaii? Everybody thinks white, sandy beaches, beautiful native girls, Mai Tai's, etc. I suppose all those are true, but there is so much more. You may remember my blog about my trip to Honolulu and the island of Oahu. Now read about my trip to the big island, Hawaii itself.

So these islands were all made from volcanoes. And not so long ago (in the grand scheme of things). In fact, new land is added to the big island every day from its active volcanoes.

Woah! I must have upset the lava goddess! She pelts me with lightweight cinders and I crumble under their jagged mass.

The lava flows straight into the ocean on the south side of the island (at least right now it is). The picture is deceptive, but Maggie is actually standing on a lava cliff about 40 feet above the waves behind her.

It may seem as if Flowboy is just collecting some lava-rock for posterity, but no. There is a sign just outside the picture that reads: "Please do not make rock piles" Flowboy, being the natural rebel he is, decides to pile some rocks at the base of the sign. Naughty. Kurly poses next to me as I pack Lion Thing over the expansive lava flows on the south side of the island, in Volcano National Park.

I stopped to take a quick break on the side of the road, and lo! This lava comes out of the blue and tries to consume me.

The lava wave came crashing down over sweet little Maggie-poo.

This interesting sign was overcome by a lava flow between the two giant mountains of Kilauea and Mauna Loa. Kilauea is in the background.

The distance may be off a bit, but the description is certainly accurate at times.