Meet B.B.

B.B (Beer baby) is the affectionate name I've given Jonathan's first home brew. Its not finished, nor will the name stick, but I've given it provided Jonathan's tender love and nurturing throughout the brewing process. Home brewing is something Jonathan has been interested in for quite some time, but this past weekend he dove in head first.

 

  

We picked up the brew kit in Tempe this Sunday and after some helpful chat with the home brew store expert, headed home for Jonathan to start his new endeavor. I stayed almost completely out of this adventure and observed Jonathan while he tended to his recipe one step at a time.

  

 I really do not know the entire process but it was interesting to watch Jonathan brew away while I joined the animals in distant observation.  First there was some grain soaking, then some gentle boiling, then some mixing and a little more gentle boiling. 

At some point the funny pellets, which are actually processed hopps, were added as well as the Irish Moss below.  What else did you think that little bag of herbs was?

                                                                            

Sometime, mid process, the boiling got a little more aggressive than intended, but no worries, Jonathan soldiered on.

Toby apparently found the whole process quite mundane, but took to surveying the scene during the clean up process.

 Jackson also kept his distance and was hoping that despite the toasty temps someone would play with him outside.  He had to make due with some in-house ball fetching.

After the cook was completed Jonathan transferred the brew into another bucket where it will do its beer thing for another 7 days.  This is a sensitive time for little B.B. since the brew needs to be temperature controlled, hence the water, fan and wet t-shirt.

 Check out B.B.'s burps.  The first day if you leaned close for a sniff it smelled like sweet bananas, kind of like a hefeweizen, but as the days have progressed its starting to smell more and more like beer.  Nothing stinky mind you, just a gentle scent if you sniff real close.

Little B.B. will produce quite a bit of beer, so this process may not be one that is repeated with haste.

Here's to wishing Jonathan and his B.B luck!!

Restroom Renovations

Slowly but surely we have been making progress with out bathroom updates. Both are still in need of baseboards, but other than that they're about 98% complete.

I'll start with the Master. Right after we bought the house we pulled up the nasty flooring, and removed the less than lovely matching pink toilet and sink, which we replaced with a new clean toilet, and standalone sink/cabinet.  The set up worked just fine, but it was intended to be more temporary than not, and change was long overdue.  Several months back we swapped out the existing toilet for a more compact model, and had a vent fan installed.  More recently we installed a floating cabinet, replaced the sink, tiled the sink, mounted and installed a new mirror and had the floor tiled.  The tiles for the floor were actually a lucky and totally free find from a neighbor who was clearing some post house-purchase clutter.  The tile is a salt-pepper design and is a perfect match to the tile on the shower's floor.  We really lucked out with the near perfect amount of tile since we only had 4 extra pieces of tile leftover after the floor was finalized.

Fun towel hangers

 

 Moving down the hall to the hall bath, the progression is somewhat similar, but not quite as comprehensive.  Days after we moved in we removed the toilet, much to Jonathan's later regret, and replaced it with a standard model.  Just as in the other bathroom we ripped up the funky floors and set aside a tragically over-painted original vanity, which we intended, and eventually did strip and re-paint. After having a vent fan installed, the next big task was to paint the cabinets, re-install the vanity, and have the floor tiled.  The tile decision required many a tile sample, purchased or provided from many a tile shop before we finally settled on a vintage green combo pattern which looks great with the original tub and sink.  This truly vintage tile was purchased from a funny tile shop in Jersey that specializes in real, not reproduction, vintage tile. Somehow the Graden State's reputation for its drawing power still stands true even if its only to draw us back for random purchases. 

 





If you have ever enjoyed the official 10 cent tour of our house given by Jonathan you will have learned about his guilt of giving away the original toilet as well as his quest to find an appropriate replacement. During the last year or so we've come across a handful of green toilets on our retro store and junk yard adventures, yet none were a close enough color and style match for Jonathan's atomic ranch needs. However, recently his patience and my veto privileges paid off when he discovered an appropriately priced, well color matched green toilet that met his aesthetic, and vintage requirements.  The toilet needs a few internal improvements but will eventually be placed in the hall bath, possibly marking the completion of our bathroom projects.

500 years?

Friday night we watched a random documentary on the narcissistic topic of "life extension". The focus being why, or rather how, some people live as long as they do and what actions can be taken to extend our lives.

Some interviewed attested their existence to strict repetitive routine, others beer, red meat and smoking, some to a an easy going cultural perspective and still others, God.   One perspective that Jonathan knew about, but was new to me, was the concept that the body essentially has a limit to caloric processing and once that limit is met, game over.  The interviewee and photos of its followers just looked hungry. This food lover, flavor and texture seeker sincerely questions if that is really living.  I see it similar to the Amish living this life for the next, but these hungry few are living the current meal in expectation of a 105th birthday. I just don't buy it.  The multitude of factors beyond my control quashed further contemplation of this theory as I gobbled down my fresh from the oven seven layer bar. 
     
A question posed throughout the movies was "if you could take a pill today that would allow you to live another 500 years, would you take it?".  My answer, absolutely not. What in the world would I do with this many years?  It would be incredibly vein to think I could fruitfully live that many lifetimes and be an above average contributor to society. Instead, I'd be a resource hog consuming way more than is naturally intended. I appreciated the perspectives of those confirming the concept that this life's finality is what drives us to some sort of purpose.  Everything has an expiration date, and so should we. Neither good nor bad, just fact.  Those beyond consumed with continued existence were involved in the world of cryogenic preservation.  For a mere $150,000 you too can remain frozen until... until, I don't know what.  What if you're unfrozen post apocalypse only to be enslaved, now that would be a cruel self imposed fate. 

 I cannot say for sure that my perspective, or answers to the questions posed will remain the same many years for now, however I'd like to hope I continue to live by the same basic principles I live by now sans expectation that it will increase my life span exponentially.  Love, laugh, respect others and for the most part do good for goodness sake.  A good mix of cynicism and sarcasm is healthy, and so is eating and drinking what makes you happy, as long as its varied and with a dash of moderation.  Do I want to enjoy my life, of course, but do I want to "enjoy" it for another 400+ years, no thank you.

Service Interruption

Dear Romney campaign,
   Your worthless commercials that interrupt and eventually freeze my Pandora session are epic FAIL. 

 

Jackson, an avid member of "Dogs against Romney" (http://dogsagainstromney.spreadshirt.com/) agrees.  "I ride inside and always buckled in."  Jackson pities the fool lacking enough humanity to allow his dog to ride inside.

Here is to the The Barackness monster for another 4 years!

Libation Education

Recognizing the importance of continuing education, Jonathan and I attended a lecture at the Arizona Science Center this past Friday night.  The academic topic of the evening: The History of Beer.  In addition to the lecture we were promised local, craft brewers providing samples of their brews.  Since Jonathan has a distinguished beer palate we were quite excited to not only support local brewers, but also to enjoy some flavorful craft brews.  Oh yeah, and that whole science lecture sounded pretty interesting too.

Redwood irrigation pipe for orchards.

The showing/sampling of the craft brewers was flat out disappointing.  Two of the three available options were not what I'd call "craft", and the third was a brand Jonathan doesn't much care for.  Two of the breweries are chain brewery/restaurants that span the continental U.S., one of which we used to visit infrequently in Arlington, VA.  And, to top that off, the beer they were sampling wasn't even as tasty as when its served in their restaurant.  Oh well.

With small foam cups in hand we toured the Science Center. Sans billions of screaming children running about, its actually a pretty fun place to check out.  We visited the outdoor water area before touring the building zone and eventually taking a quick tour of the brain.  There was still a lot more to see and play with, but the lecture started at 8 and since the previous lecture filled quickly we decided to get in line as to not miss out.  We started chatting with a young couple that sat next to us and what do you know, the guy was from Alabama and the girl was born and raised in the California bay area!  They were both very friendly and witty and a pleasure to chat with before the lecture started.

The history of beer, and the very simplified molecular science that was presented was very interesting  I appreciated the presenter's laid back style and easy going flow.  His presentation could have been far more overwhelmingly scientific, but keeping with the spirit of the beverage it was funny, interesting and educational. Ironically similar to how people see themselves after a few brews.

Saturday's highlight was certainly the post workout treat, or more appropriately a post work out nullification, of Lo Lo's chicken and waffles, followed by the donating of a toilet to the Habit for Humanity Restore.  The donated toilet that had been residing in our backyard for over a month after having been replaced in early July. Unbeknownst to me at the time of marriage, Jonathan seems to have a bizarre habit of collecting toilets. Never thought I'd have to acknowledge that I have a limit to the number of stray porcelain thrones I'll allow to reside in and around our house.  We still have one hanging out in the backyard, "For parts" he tells me, and one in the back room that is to be connected in the hall bath, one of these days. 

On the same topic of bathroom projects, Sunday I finished cutting and finally set the counter top tile for the master bath sink. I added grout to complete the project on Monday and although its not perfect, its altogether not bad for a first time tiling project complete with custom cut tiles.


We finished the weekend up with some Olympics and an always entertaining, at times painful, Toby back-ride. I think Toby would agree, a successful weekend for sure!