Saturday, June 5, 2021
posted by dave at 4:38 PM in category drink

That's what my family called Weihenstephaner Hefeweizen. It was one of the few good beers I could get them to drink at Rich O's.

I went there today for a pizza, and saw to my delight that they had good old WeffenSteffen on tap. It was as delicious as ever. I was a little ashamed when I checked my app and saw that I hadn't had it since 2015.

Friday, December 2, 2011
posted by dave at 2:41 PM in category daily, drink

See, there's no segue at all. I've tried to think of one. A way to smoothly and eloquently transition from woe is me I miss LaptopGirl to anything else. Anything at all, really.

I've got a lot of topics, but I've never had a segue.

Oh well. This will have to do.

Anyway...

Wednesday after work, because I'm stupid, I went to Sportstime (AKA The Weird Side). Just in case, you know? Last time I went there on a Wednesday was, um, interesting.

While there, I realized that I was there for a stupid reason, so I texted OddlyFamiliarGirl to give me a non-stupid reason for being in that area. Like maybe we could meet at stupid Jack's1 or something. Kind of a virtual Sunday.

Well, she said she could-ish meet me, then she flaked, then she said she could meet me after all, but by that time I was home already. We ended up saying we'd do it Thursday night instead.

First thing Thursday morning, OddlyFamiliarGirl texted to flake again. I didn't let this bother me, because there was plenty of time left for an unflaking. I remained confident.

After work I went straight to stupid Jack's and texted OddlyFamiliarGirl. As I'd expected and hoped, she unflaked and said she'd be there at 6:00.

As I had over an hour to kill, I grabbed a table and shot pool for an hour or so. I was using my Predator SP, the one I bought in Omaha in 2004 and just had shipped to me. I kinda like it, but the main reason I had it with me was because it's the only cue I feel halfway good about leaving in my car.

Anyway, as women are so wont to do, OddlyFamiliarGirl was late. But, as most women are totally not wont to do, she texted me to let me know that she'd be late.

So I killed some time talking to this one dude who's also an outcast from Rich O's, and to this other dude who's pretty much an outcast from society.

Once OddlyFamiliarGirl showed up, we pretty much just did our usual thing. Sat and talked and drank and smoked. Fun and educational. She is trying to help me with this one conundrum so I don't fuck it up and make it even worse than it already is. I think she can help. OddlyFamiliarGirl is really smart and stuff.

Also, that one girl was really hot. I did an admirable job, I think, of pretending to ignore her while I continued my conversation with my friend. Had that girl been wearing glasses, however, then all bets would have been off.

I had myself a couple GumballHeads, then I switched to Diet Coke for the rest of the evening. I'm such a lightweight.

Then, around 10:00, I came back home and eventually went to bed.

It was a nice night.

1 - I don't think I've ever really explained why I call the place stupid Jack's. Instead of, you know, Jack's, which is its real name. It's stupid Jack's because I used to go there to be closer to LaptopGirl's apartment, in case she invited me over. It wasn't stupid Jack's at the time - it was all efficient and shit - but once the invitations stopped it became stupid. This is not the same reasoning behind the name stupid Bearno's when referring to the Floyds Knobs location of that chain.

Friday, July 1, 2011
posted by dave at 8:42 PM in category drink, technology

I guess my recent blogging hiatus has mostly been innocent. I upgraded my PC, in several stages, from XP Pro to Windows 7 Professional 64-bit, and the upgrades didn't go very smoothly. My computer was down for well over a week.

But it's back now. I was actually very pleasantly surprised by the two different Microsoft support girls I talked to. They were very patient and knowledgeable. I also like to imagine that they were hot.

So now there are no more excuses for not writing anything. None except the usual ones, that is. None of that has changed. Just more of the same old shit.

Tonight, my tentative plan is to go out to my garage, glare at my phone, and drink a New Holland Night Tripper. It's a very yummy beer, and it's 10.8% ABV. So maybe I'll be loosened up enough to actually write something later.

I'm not making any promises, though.

Tuesday, November 17, 2009
posted by dave at 10:12 PM in category daily, drink, travel

Back when I started this thing - call it a blog or a journal, I don't really care - the purpose was very different than it's been lately. Back then, it was just something I did so that people (my sisters, mainly) would know that I had a life; that I didn't spend my life sitting in a dark closet, sucking my thumb and rocking fore and aft.

More recently, of course, this thing has been used primarily to whine about my life and the lack thereof.

Well, I'm not going to say that I'm not going to whine anymore. That would be a lie. I guarantee that I'll whine again, and probably sooner than later. But not tonight.

For the next 10 weeks, I'll be gone from that thing that I've been using instead of a life. I'm out of touch, despite the occasional email or text message, and I'm also out of sync. The three-hour difference in time zones sucks. It means that, for example, it's 10:00 PST as I type this in Bellingham, but back home all of the people I care about are already asleep.

I miss my friends and family, and I suppose that's to be expected.

Thursday, October 29, 2009
posted by dave at 11:48 PM in category drink, ramblings, weather

It's such a nice night outside. It's warm, I mean. So even though the predicted thunderstorms look like they're a no-go, it's still nice.

I'm going to go out to my garage, and sit on my el-cheapo white plastic furniture, and drink at least one yummy Marzen, and I'm going to try to get out of this damn writey mood that I'm in.

How do I do that?

Well, I allow myself to be overwhelmed. So that thoughts refuse to line up like baby ducks. So that my mind is awash and aswarm with thousands of conflicting thoughts and emotions. So that I couldn't pick a single tree out of that forest if my life depended on it.

I make no promises, though. I might be able to keep my big fat mouth shut, or I might not.

There are things that I need to say, dammit. There are things that need to be said, dammit. There are thoughts that need to be expressed, dammit.

There are dragons that need to be slain, dammit, or at least acknowledged.

Thursday, October 22, 2009
posted by dave at 3:08 AM in category drink, ramblings

So, there is a very real chance that I'm drunk right now. But that's okay. It's 3:07 AM on a Thursday morning. I'm safely at home, where I plan to stay for the next several hours and/or days and/or weeks and/or months, at least until I become sober again. I am no menace to either myself or to society.

And besides, it's not even my fault at all that I'm maybe possibly drunk. And it's not even OddlyFamiliarGirl's fault, even though before her kind invitation I'd been planning to go to sleep at 7:00 or so, and after her kind invitation I ended up having a nice Marzen (16022) and a nice Urbock (437) while at Rich O's.

It is, of course, LaptopGirl's fault. Who's else would it be? She is, after all, the root of all evil and the fountain of all goodness in my life. Why shouldn't she also be in charge of my drunkenness or lack thereof?

So I ended up buying a bottle of Avery Reverend to take home with me, and then, because of the aforementioned you-know-who, I ended up drinking the damn thing (716) while I glared at my phone and replied to emails and strived to remain useful whilst I died inside.

I will be fair, though. I will share the blame. It was me who poured the beer from the bottle into the glass, and it was me who then poured the beer from the glass into my mouth.

Did you ever wish that water wasn't wet? Or that the sky wasn't blue? Or that the Sun wasn't hot and bright?

Or that love wasn't real?

Anyway, it just doesn't fucking matter. None of it does. I can no more take my heart back now than I could have resisted giving it away so long ago. It no longer belongs to me, and it never will again.

And the truth is that I like this mood I'm in right now. I'm fucking focused, after all. The universe, and the room, and the inside of my skull - these things are all quite blurry and wavy, but everything that matters is still in perfect focus.

I'm in love with her.

So there.

A lot of the fucking time, I wish that I wasn't in love with her.

So there again. Take that.

But wishes are as useful in my life as, as they say, screen doors on a submarine.

I sit here and I sit there and I sit wherever I might happen to be sitting, and I wish and I wish and I wish and I wish, and then on the good nights I wish no more, because I realize that it's a waste of time and effort.

Things are the way that they are. Things aren't the way that they aren't. Not a single thing that I do or say or think or feel will ever change anything, because it's not up to me, and it never has been up to me.

I did not lie.

Not even once.

Not even a little bit.

Lot of good that did me.

So there.

Sunday, October 18, 2009
posted by dave at 12:01 PM in category drink

I went to Rich O's for a bit last night, after HatGirl and I parted company. I wasn't there very long. Just long enough for one beer, but it was long enough, I suppose.

Long enough to get me back into my old habits of flinching every time I'd hear a female voice, and of never ever turning my back on the door.

I'd been planning to just go to the Sportstime side of things, but a glance into the window had revealed that Sportstime was packed. Rich O's wasn't much better, but I was able to sit in the throne while I wondered (a) how stupid I was for being at Rich O's, and (b) who all those people were.

I didn't recognize a single person in that crowd. It was like I'd entered the wrong bar.

Anyway, I had myself a Marzen (15943) and then I left a little before 9:00.

Monday, July 27, 2009
posted by dave at 2:31 AM in category daily, drink, travel, weather

It's funny that I'm calling this part one. That implies that there'll be additional parts. But I seriously doubt it. I'm really taxing my brain as it is, thinking about and writing about something that happened so long ago that it's almost folklore by default.

Anyway, it was 1996. Dinosaurs roamed the Earth, and primitive mammals spent their days scurrying to and fro and counting the days until they'd be in charge of things. I know. I was there. I was one such mammal.

I arrived in Alaska on January 2nd. It was my second trip to Anchorage, but the first one of any consequence or duration. I think the previous visit had been in the Spring of 1994, and it had only lasted a few days.

I wish I'd paid more attention. But, back then, I was too busy scurrying. And avoiding dinosaurs. And watching the sky for comets. And being cold.

I've looked at the weather pages on the internet, and I can't find confirmation, but the high temperature that first day was nineteen degrees below zero, according to the television lady. I remember that she was quite cute, as if that matters.

I spent my first night in a hotel. A Holiday Inn or some such. There was a brewpub in the hotel, and they had a pumpkin ale. Back then, I wasn't into beer at all. I mean, I knew that there was beer that I liked and beer that I didn't like, but I hadn't yet formed any theories as to why any one particular beer might be categorized one way or another. I was pretty sure that I didn't like lagers, and I was starting to suspect that I liked ales, but I'd gone no further that those two preliminary hypotheses.

So I had the pumpkin ale, and it was fucking yummy. Unlike anything I'd had before. I had three or four more.

But I digress.

The next day, my coworker arrived. He took over the hotel room, and I moved to the apartment that my company had secured. Fine with me. Mainly I just needed a place to smoke and watch TV and sleep, and an apartment seemed like a better place than a hotel. I don't know why.

The apartment was in the walk-out basement of a house in the center of town. There was a dude living in the house, and I knocked on his door to get a key to the apartment.

Anybody remember the old Captain Kangaroo TV show? Okay, remember Mr. Green Jeans from that show? Well, the dude who owned the house/apartment looked exactly like Mr. Green Jeans. But he didn't act like Mr. Green Jeans. Nope, this guy was between seventy and three-thousand years old, and, because of senility or brain-freeze or something, had the mental capacity of a turnip.

At first, I tried to make myself feel better by imagining that the dude was just a partier who was drunk all the time, but by the third or fourth time that he'd managed to wake me up by shoveling snow at 4:00 AM, I knew better.

I'm digressing again, dammit.

It was fucking cold.

The weather page on the internet is no help, but the hot lady on TV assured me that, for the first three weeks I spent in Anchorage, the high temperature was eighteen below zero. Then, on or about the 20th of January, it shot up to seven below zero.

Woo-hoo!

T-shirts and shorts became the uniform of the day. All over Anchorage, alabaster skin competed with reluctant sunlight in a contest to see which could cause the most blindness. Me, well I continued to dress like a normal person who was freezing to death - a cheechako in Alaskanese - with my coat and glove and boots and the like. I did learn an important lesson that day, though. For me, the dividing-line between cold and fucking cold is at ten degrees below zero.

There is a difference. There really is. At ten below zero, I can function. At eleven below zero, I might as well be a chunk of ice that won't melt until June.

In Anchorage, they say, there are three seasons each year.

Winter lasts from late August until April or so. Next is Breakup, during which the snow and ice decides that it's maybe time to start thinking about melting and forming puddles. The more disgusting the puddles, the better.

The third season is road construction, and that lasts from the end of Breakup until the beginning of Winter, or for about a week and a half during late July and early August.

Wow, I've already written more than I expected, and I haven't even gotten to the good part yet.

Stay tuned for part two if I ever get around to writing it.

Sunday, July 19, 2009
posted by dave at 12:13 PM in category daily, drink

So I went to the thingy. I went by myself, though that wasn't my preference. I'd invited KittenDamsel, but she was being weird. Then I'd invited LaptopGirl, but she'd thought I was being weird. This latter situation almost made me want to just stay home and pout, but then I called BadPickleGirl and she was going. Plus I was pretty sure that SpoonsGirl would be there, so odds were pretty good that I'd have someone to talk to at the thingy. Even better would have been if Eric and Teri would have gone, but they had some reunion to go to. Oh well.

I'd decided that Gumballhead would be my beer of choice for the evening. I was going to drive to Clarksville to get some, but BadPickleGirl said that the store right there in Greenville carried it. Even though I was doubtful, that's where I ended up going. BadPickleGirl was right, Gumballhead was available. So I got a warm six-pack of that and also a twelve-pack of Fat Tire and went to Dina's.

There were, of course, a million people there. Most of them I didn't know. But that was okay. I talked to BadPickleGirl and SpoonsGirl and SpoonsGirl's husband for most of the night. Over the course of about nine hours, I had a couple Fat Tires (1354) and four Gumballheads (1190). I talked to the aforementioned people. I watched the other people. I didn't glare at my phone too much.

And there were kitties all over the place. I got to pet some of them, and the youngest kitten did a decent job of shredding my hand as I played with it. I like kittens.

Usually I like to make an early Batmanesque exit from Dina's parties, so I have time to go to Rich O's. But last night I stayed until midnight or so, and I was one of the last people to leave.

I guess that's it.

Friday, July 3, 2009
posted by dave at 7:59 AM in category drink, ramblings

Maybe it's just a matter of reigning myself in a little. I've certainly been unable to stop myself, even though quite often lately I've wanted to do just that.

This is an idea I had come to me last night. Apparently this idea was hiding at the bottom of a glass of Marzen (12419). That's a weird place for an idea to be hiding, but I'll still take it.

Wanting something because you feel like you should want it, or because you used to want it, or because you can't think of anything better?

Smells like bullshit to me.

I've been so damn stubborn. I watched everything crumble and I refused to really accept that it was happening. Had happened. Whatever.

Trying to stay somewhat cryptic here, while remaining readable. I don't think I'm succeeding.

The other night I found myself smiling, when I had a realization that there was one thing that hadn't crumbled.

One thing that hadn't changed.

And it never will. And it's the only thing that matters. There need be no expectations to erode or desires to dull. Lust lessens and faith falters and wants wane and hope becomes hazy.

Fuck all that other stuff, all that icing. I really think I can do this. I've already been doing it for years, after all.

Tuesday, June 9, 2009
posted by dave at 8:09 AM in category daily, drink, travel

So Sunday morning I found myself afflicted with a bad case of wanderlust. I didn't really know where I wanted to go, I just knew it had to be somewhere that wasn't New Albany. I looked at Nashville and Indianapolis and even Chicago, but eventually decided on Covington. It's not a big city, but it's got everything I need, especially distance from home.

I called KittenDamsel and invited her along. She declined, saying she'd had a long night. Then she said she might drive up there and meet me. I took this as "No way am I going to Covington" because that's how my brain works. Oh well. More beer for me then.

First thing I needed to do, however, was buy a laptop. I'll need this for when I travel, whether it's for work or play. When my former employer eliminated my position, they had the nerve to take their company-owned laptop back. Imagine that. So I stopped at Best Buy, looked at their selection, and bought an el-cheapo Compaq that would suit my meager needs. Thusly armed, I drove to Covington. It's only a two-hour drive.

After I'd arrived, and updated RockGirl with my location - RockGirl knows everything about my life - I settled into my usual Covington routine. I checked into the Holiday Inn, threw my shit into the room, and walked across the street to Skyline Chili for lunch. Yummy. Then I walked up to The Cock & Bull for a couple pints of yummy Moerlein OTR (463). While I was there, drinking my beer and watching a baseball game on TV, KittenDamsel called and said she was on her way. Yay!

I had some time to kill, so I went back to the hotel and messed with my new laptop for a while until KittenDamsel arrived. She wanted to hear polka music for some stupid reason, so we drove over to the Hofbrauhaus in nearby Newport and had dinner. I don't like that place. Not only is it too loud, it's too loud with polka music. The food was good, though.

After dinner, we walked across this purple bridge spanning the Ohio River, and dicked around there for a while. Then we drove back to the hotel, parked, and walked up to the MainStrasse area where all the bars are. After that the night got a little blurry. I know that I had three more OTRs (523) and a couple Newcastles (13818) as we walked around to various bars and clubs. It was a nice warm night, but not too warm. It was almost perfect, in fact. Especially the company. We drank too much, but neither of us got sick, so that was good.

Monday morning we were both a little hung-over. Not surprising. What was surprising was that KittenDamsel wanted to go to King's Island, a local amusement park. She'd already called in sick, and I certainly didn't have any reason come home right away, so to King's Island we went.

This was the first time I'd been there since I was 14 or so. It's much bigger now, and maybe not as crowded, and there were no dinosaurs to be seen. It was a fun few hours, except for that last roller coaster that went upside-down and made me queasy.

It was a really nice time up there. I'm really glad that I went, and I'm really glad that KittenDamsel could make it. She almost managed to distract me from thoughts of LaptopGirl. Almost. And I think I almost managed to distract her from thoughts of her ex-boyfriend. Almost.

It was kinda weird to spend all that time with her and then have to drive home separately, but oh well.

Oh yeah, I also bought a case of OTR and brought it home. So that gives me something to look forward to.

Sunday, June 7, 2009
posted by dave at 3:13 AM in category daily, drink

It was a good day. Long, but good. Started at about 4:00 this morning at Denny's, and ending I hope very soon.

I was supposed to have Indian food with HatGirl, but she wasn't feeling well. I was disappointed about not getting to see HatGirl, but I hadn't been particularly looking forward to Indian food, so I guess it all worked out.

Problem was, I'd gotten myself all motivated to leave my house, and so I had to come up with some other reason to do so. I tried to book a hotel room in Covington. I was going to surprise KittenDamsel with an invitation because we were supposed to go there last weekend. But Covington was all booked up. I tried three hotels and there were no rooms available in any of them.

Next I tried to just book a room at the local hotel/casino, but they were booked, too.

Shit!

We ended up going down to the casino anyway. We did some gambling - I managed to turn $100 into about $105 playing blackjack - and we stuffed ourselves silly at the buffet. I was disappointed that their Asian noodle salad wasn't on the buffet today, but their Asian meatballs were, so I stuffed myself on those and kung pao chicken and moo goo gai pan. KittenDamsel had fish, because she's boring and stuff.

There was also beer consumed at their Legends bar. I had some Newcastles (13774) and she had some swill, because she's boring and stuff.

Later, what was supposed to be an hour long nap somehow turned into an almost six-hour nap. We have no idea how that happened. KittenDamsel was extremely late in meeting her friends, and I was extremely behind in my phone-glaring quota for the night.

So we parted company. I went to Rich O's and, after I'd glared at my phone for an hour, felt better. The Marzen (11568) didn't hurt matters either. It was quite crowded at Rich O's, survivors from some beer thingy they'd had in Clarksville. Most of the regulars were there, and some of the irregulars. I didn't really talk to anyone except NotHideousGirl and UPSDude.

After Rich O's closed, I came home. I've been glaring at my phone ever since, so I think I've satisfied my quota. Tomorrow it starts over again.

Monday, May 25, 2009
posted by dave at 8:31 PM in category drink

Now I have a decision to make.

I bought cold Barley Island Barfly, introduced to me by LaptopGirl and very good even though it is an IPA. I also bought warm Left Hand Smoke Jumper, a yummy smoked porter that is actually what I went into the store to buy in the first place.

So, I could drink some Barfly right now, even though it's not really what I wanted, and even though it might make me think sad thoughts. At least it's cold and ready to drink.

Or, I could wait another hour or so for the Smoke Jumper to get cold enough.

This is a tough decision. I think I need a drink while I try to decide.

Tuesday, May 19, 2009
posted by dave at 3:31 PM in category daily, drink

My Monday night started out pleasantly enough. KittenDamsel bought me dinner (Wendy's) in exchange for me hooking her DVD player up correctly. I'd told her last weekend that she could get a much better picture and 5-channel sound just by using the proper cables and connections, but she played the girl-card, and so I offered to fix things for her.

Besides eating dinner and crawling around behind her entertainment center, I spent a lot of time poking my finger into her spiffy new sunburn and watching it change colors. Mesmerizing.

Then I went to Rich O's. While there, I alternated between glaring at my phone and glaring at the door. Neither activity proved fruitful. After PearlGirl and her boyfriend left, there really wasn't anyone there I felt like talking to, so I picked up my shit and moved to the bar to finish my Marzen (11138). By 9:30 I was really bored, and my eyes were kind of tired from all the glaring, so I left. But then I remembered that there was no place to go, so I went back to Rich O's.

I was having a nice glass of Franziskaner (39) when OddlyFamiliarGirl came in. So that was nice. We talked and whatever. I switched to Diet Coke. I left again at midnight when Rich O's closed.

That's when it got annoying.

I got pulled over. Or, actually, I went to the haunted Burger King and the cop followed me with his lights flashing, so maybe that doesn't really count as getting pulled over. I'm sure he would have pulled me over if I hadn't been stopping anyway.

The guy came up to my truck and asked for the usual paperwork. I gave him my license and, while I was fishing for my current registration, he told me that I hadn't used my turn signal when turning onto Grant Line Road. I felt like calling bullshit on that. I always use my turn signal, even when I'm leaving my own driveway, but I figured it would be his word against mine. Plus, he was the one with the gun.

He asked me, of course, where I was coming from. I said Rich O's. So he asked me, of course, how much I'd had to drink. I said a Marzen (11138) and a Franziskaner (39). Upon seeing the quizzical look on his face, I clarified that I'd had two beers.

I realize that "two beers" is probably the standard answer given by people under suspicion, so I wasn't surprised at all when he had me take off my glasses and follow his pen around with my eyes. I guess that test didn't yield the result that he wanted, because then he went back to his car for five years, and came back and had me blow into a thingy. As I was not immediately arrested, I knew I'd passed that test as well.

I will admit, however, that for a few moments there I was concerned that I might have grossly miscalculated.

And the guy was just doing his job, helping to keep us all safe. I have a lot of respect for (most) cops.

He ended up giving me a ticket for not using my turn signal, and then he sent me on my way.

I'd originally stopped at the haunted Burger King to get something to eat. But the crap with the cop had lasted just long enough, and they were closed by the time the cop left. So I came home instead.

Tuesday, May 5, 2009
posted by dave at 4:01 PM in category drink, pictures

click for larger image
HatGirl took this picture last night at Rich O's.

It really is too bad that she's not photogenic at all, isn't it?

So this was pretty much the highlight of my night. After HatGirl left I glared at my phone for a while, then went over to Jack's. I was starving, but the kitchen had just closed.

I spent a couple of hours talking to this one dude about various topics, one of which being - All white guys look younger than they really are. So that was good to know, I guess.

They showed a commercial for Skyline chili at one point, and after that I couldn't shut up about how much I was craving some Skyline. So, when I left Jack's, I went to Kroger and bought the stuff I'd need to make my own.

And that's what I did, as soon as I got home.

Oh yeah, I also had a new beer when I was at Rich O's.

Ayinger Leichte Brau-Weisse

(draft) Hazy yellow, with a decent head that lasted long enough. A nice aroma and flavor, both fairly standard for a German wheat beer. Good, a little dry. Tasted stronger than it was.

Monday, April 20, 2009
posted by dave at 10:04 AM in category daily, drink, entertainment, pictures

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One of the weird things was how much that one dude loved my truck. He kept asking me questions about it like what year it was and how many miles it had. He commented on what a shame it was that my rear bumper had some rust. I swear he was hitting on my truck.

Then we walked a mile or so to HatGirl's car, so we could put our extra crap in there and not have to lug it around all day. Next, we walked all the way back to my truck. We walked all the way back to my truck because I'm retarded. I'd left our tickets for the craft beer tent thingy there. When we got back to the parking lot the dude was still admiring my truck. I think he had an erection, but I was afraid to look too closely.

Then we walked back to the riverfront. The craft beer tent thingy didn't open until 2:00, and it was only 12:30, so we went into Hooters where my cousin Jeff awaited. He'd gotten us free wristbands. That was nice of him. We had some Diet Cokes and sat around for a while.

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Then we went and stood in line to get into the beer tent thingy. We had plenty of time then for people-watching. I came to the conclusion that HatGirl and I were the coolest people around. But I might be biased.

Oh, and we saw TremensGirl and Bubbles walking around, so that was nice.

Once the thingy opened, we got something to eat and then went down this steep-ass hill to the river. We watched the airshow, which was very cool. There was a fucking helicopter doing fucking loop-de-loops. I didn't think that was even possible in a helicopter. During this period I had myself a Gumballhead (534). This is also when the events portrayed in the comic two entries ago happened, so I had myself 14 ounces of Upland Wheat (297), too.

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At one point HatGirl may have gotten a little tired. It was hard to tell for sure. I did, however, get a little concerned that the FBI might swoop in to recapture the unibomber.

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Then she spent the rest of the night freezing to death because it was only 70 degrees or something. HatGirl has heat issues sometimes. I worry about her, and wonder how she survives the Winters.

This was about when I had myself another Gumballhead (550). It was yummy.

click for larger image
The fireworks were, of course, totally awesome, and were the reason that everyone was there. The airshow was introduced as a way to entice people to show up early. Also, it's hard to take pictures of fireworks, especially with a blackberry.

Anyway, once the fireworks were over, we were going to hang out for a while, but all of the bars closed early, so we went and sat in HatGirl's car for a half-hour or so, waiting for traffic to start moving. Then we went to White Castle then she drove me to my house.

It was a really fun day, and I only missed a certain person a million times, instead of the asstillion times I'd been predicting.

When HatGirl took me to get my truck yesterday, I'll admit that I was a little disappointed that the dude hadn't washed and waxed it for me. I guess I should have just been grateful that it wasn't covered with his semen.

Friday, April 17, 2009
posted by dave at 9:16 PM in category daily, drink, pictures

The first part of the day consisted of work, punctuated by lunch at Wendy's with HatGirl. I only mention that because, after work, I had dinner with HatGirl at Buckhead in Jeffersonville. I only mention that because tomorrow HatGirl and I are going to this fireworks thingy. I only mention that because, as I said a few entries ago, I got to see HatGirl at Rich O's on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Like I've already said, HatGirl is doing one hell of a job keeping me distracted. In other words...

HatGirl!

Yay!

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So we were talking today about how I'm bound to get bored with seeing HatGirl all the time. Before too long at this rate, I won't be able to take a damn piss without getting some splatter on her. And not in a kinky way. So the joke was that I'd have to get her a new shirt to replace her HatGirl! Yay! shirt. The new one would say HatGirl. Yawn.

It was funny to us.

I will never get tired of HatGirl, by the way.

So then after dinner - I had a Paulaner Hefeweissbier (607) - I decided to stop at Rich O's. You know, just for a change of pace, also known as a Schlenkerla Marzen (10299).

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I went to the bar to order my beer, heard my name called, and turned around to see none other than BadPickleGirl. So that's twice in a week for her, and that's even more unusual than seeing HatGirl four out of five days will be. Oops, five out of six days, because I'll see HatGirl again on Sunday.

This is, from right to left, the lovely BadPickleGirl, my lovely self, and the lovely friend of BadPickleGirl who doesn't get a nickname unless I see her again.

Thursday, April 16, 2009
posted by dave at 7:12 AM in category drink

Tuesday and Wednesday nights were very similar to each other. Both nights I went to Rich O's and met HatGirl.

HatGirl!

Yay!

I'm getting so spoiled by HatGirl. She's been so good about helping to keep me distracted. She's always been really good at distracting me. Plus, she managed to talk me into going to the fireworks thingy without even really having to try.

Also, both nights I drank some beer. Also, both nights MusicalYuppieDude was there and I talked to him some.

Wednesday night was a little different because I texted OddlyFamiliarGirl and she came down after she got off work. So we sat and talked for our usual couple of hours, then I gave her a ride home.

I never said this would be an interesting entry. I'm suprised I can write anything at all.

Sunday, April 12, 2009
posted by dave at 11:13 AM in category drink, entertainment

It was really fucking crowded when I got to Jack's last night. So crowded, in fact, that I had to walk back outside and try to come up with reasons to go back inside. I guess the reasons that I came up with were (a) I'd driven down there, (b) I wanted a beer, and (c) I'd already told OddlyFamiliarGirl that I was there and (d) she was on her way.

Originally, there wasn't going to be any beer last night, and therefore no Saturday Beer Report. I'd had an impromptu date at my house, and we watched Big Fish and Meet Dave courtesy of Netflix. Those two movies put me into a bad mood, mostly the latter, because it was so stupid.

So I decided, once I was alone, that I didn't really want to be alone. So I went to Jack's.

I managed to grab a table and, once OddlyFamiliarGirl showed up, we sat and talked for a couple of hours. I had two bottles of Rogue Dead Guy (879) and they were very good.

Oh yeah, now I'm supposed to watch Gone with the Wind, because OddlyFamiliarGirl says I'm either Rhett or Scarlett. It's been a long time since I've watched that movie, but I'm pretty sure I own it and it's around here somewhere.

After OddlyFamiliarGirl went home, I moved up to the bar and had some Diet Coke and talked to these chicks who kept having flaming homers or something like that. I asked if the flames made the drinks taste any different, and they admitted that it was all just for show.

Saturday, April 11, 2009
posted by dave at 11:42 AM in category daily, drink, travel

Omaha was just too far away, I finally realized. I really wanted to be there, but I didn't want to go there. It's a 13-hour drive, after all.

But I still wanted and needed to go somewhere, just to get away from this situation for a night. So, I went to Covington KY.

The drive up was uneventful for the most part, except for the inevitable slew of emails and texts that always start streaming in whenever I'm driving. I replied to those as well as I could and managed to not get myself killed in the process.

When I was about halfway to Covington, SassyGirl called! We talked for a half-hour or so as I made my way up I-71. She and JauntyGirl are in Las Vegas, of all places. And so, of course, is HatGirl. And StupidGirl, of course, lives there. So three of my favorite women on Earth are all in Las Vegas at the same time. I'm a little surprised that MixedSignalGirl didn't call me to tell me that she was there as well.

And there I was, going to stupid Covington KY.

Once I arrived, I had my usual Covington lunch at Skyline Chili, then drove the short distance (it was raining) to the Mainstrasse area and went into the Cock & Bull bar. Not much has changed since I was last there in November, and that was good. And they still had Moerlein OTR on tap!

Yay!

So I had a couple pints of that (400) and decided that I'd be spending the night in Covington. I hadn't really made up my mind until then. I went and got myself a hotel room and took a nap for a couple of hours.

Went back to the Cock & Bull bar at 8:00 or so. I ordered an OTR, but they'd changed kegs and there was something wrong with it, so I only had a few sips (403) before switching to Newcastle. Then, after my Newcastle (12578) I decided to risk the OTR again. I figured maybe the glass had just been soapy or something. Well, I guess I was right, because my next OTR (423) was just fine.

Switched to Diet Coke and then, once the Cock & Bull got too crowded, I went back to the hotel and tried to sleep.

At 12:30 or so I gave up on sleep and drove home.

It has been proposed that it was weird for me to drive home last night. Perhaps, but I could tell that it was going to be a long sleepless night for me, and I was really dreading driving home this morning on little or no sleep. Better, I reasoned, to just drive home last night when I was still semi-alert. So that's what I did.

I was still awake at 5:00 when HatGirl started texting me from Las Vegas. I didn't complain because (a) it was HatGirl, and (b) I was awake anyway.

I think I finally got to sleep at 6:30 or so. Then I was awakened at 10:30 with an accusatory email.

Friday, April 10, 2009
posted by dave at 1:50 AM in category daily, drink, pictures

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Because HatGirl is so nice, and also because she is so mean, she sent me a picture of herself in Las Vegas.

Las Vegas is so lucky!

So I dropped HatGirl off at the airport, and hung out there with her for an hour or so before she had to go through security. Next, I was planning to just go over to Rich O's because I was meeting BadPickleGirl and some other people at 5:30 or so. But around 4:00 I found myself suddenly starving to death. I mean, I was so hungry that I was actually shaking a little bit. So I went to the haunted Burger King and scarfed down some food. After that I felt better, but my stomach was a little queasy.

I went to Rich O's. I sat at the throne and had a couple glasses of Diet Coke to calm my stomach. I glared at my phone. I waited for BadPickleGirl.

Once they all showed up, it was a pleasant enough evening. I had some glasses of Schlenkerla Marzen (10040) and then a Diet Coke. It was nice to be able to talk to some people closer to my own age.

I came home at 10:00 or so, then slept for a couple of hours before sleep once again escaped my grasp.

Tomorrow I want to take a trip.

Thursday, April 9, 2009
posted by dave at 10:33 AM in category drink

So I decided, before I went out last night, that I was going to write a beer report about my evening.

Then it ended up being a very boring night.

I sat on the throne and had a couple glasses of Schlenkerla Marzen (9958) and talked to StonerGirl and a few other people. Then I switched to Diet Coke and talked to OtherDave for a while.

Then, after Rich O's closed, OtherDave and I went over to Jack's and talked some more. I had a couple bottles of Rogue Dead Guy (855) while I was there.

Other than those things, all I did was glare at my phone.

I'm still doing that this morning.

Sunday, March 29, 2009
posted by dave at 11:42 AM in category drink, pictures

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I think it was when I was eating breakfast that I decided. Or realized, whatever.

There was no way I could risk another "normal" Saturday night. Nope, not with the week I'd had. Any other blow would have been a fatal one.

So I decided that I'd go to Covington. I'd go there and I'd drink some OTR beer and I'd be far away - physically at least - from my life with all of its perils.

But noooooooooooooo!

Some crap happened at work, and I was informed that I'd need to stay close to home, in case things got worse.

So, at around 3:00, I had a brilliant idea. I texted HatGirl to see if she wanted to hang out.

She said yes!

HatGirl!

Yay!

We had a lot of fun just talking and hanging out. We went down to our local casino, ate too much food at their buffet, then drank too much beer at this Legends bar. Or I guess she drank too much beer - I was perfectly fine.

And now this makes two nights in a row, two different girls I've hung out with, and both have gotten sick. I guess I just have that effect on women. This is something I've long-suspected.

Anyway, I adore HatGirl, and she was exactly what I needed last night. After the horrible week I'd just been through, and which promised to spill over into the upcoming week, she was the perfect reminder of why it's sometimes worth the effort to keep breathing.

Thursday, March 19, 2009
posted by dave at 1:48 PM in category daily, drink

I was struck by a small series of thoughts today, as I sat hunched over my liquid lunch (Schlenkerla Fastenbier - 553) contemplating this ridiculous series of rejections that I use instead of a life, and because sometimes I just feel like writing something, I thought I'd write about my series of thoughts.

I guess most of us were young and obnoxious once, except those of you who are still young and obnoxious - get off my lawn, by the way - and even though most of us have outgrown that phase, we still remember what it was like.

Remember how, on warm days, how good it felt to roll down the car windows and crank up the volume on the radio? Or the tape player or CD player or whatever; you know what I mean.

It was impossible to not feel really cool, cruising down the street with your music blaring all around you. People would turn their heads as you drove by, and you'd imagine them thinking, "Now there goes a cool person. He's bringing music to the world. Livening up my boring life. Thank you, cool person."

But the problem is, never once in the history of the world has anyone ever thought those things. The people who drive around with their music blaring so loudly that everyone within a five-block radius can not only hear it, they can feel in their bones and in their teeth as the bass notes vibrate their fillings loose - those people are assholes. I'm also pretty sure that they blow dead goats when they get home.

I never said this would be an interesting entry.

Wednesday, February 11, 2009
posted by dave at 11:47 PM in category drink, ramblings

Of course, I want to write something tonight. I'm actually in the mood to write, but I have no stupid power in my stupid house, so I'm typing this thing into my Blackberry. It works, but it's a hassle.

Both of my cats sensed my mood tonight, and both stayed close to me. Nugget stayed on my lap, and Buddy camped-out on the back of the couch, behind my head.

My fire, in its weird way, also kept me company. It's gone out now. I haven't decided whether I want to burn another log or not. That decision will go hand-in-hand with whether I want to have a third Marzen or not.

I was thinking about something I read once. Back in the olden days, before I was even born if you can believe that, they'd chop peoples' heads off. Criminals, mostly. But also, I like to think, people who were just assholes.

Anyway, I read once that some weird dude decided to conduct experiments with the recently beheaded. Right after the *thud* he'd pick up the head and look into the eyes. He was looking for some sign of consciousness, I guess.

Wait, maybe that's not quite appropriate.

There was a movie I once saw. This one dickhead pulled the heart out of some poor dude. He then showed the dude the heart, still beating in his hand. What a dickhead, right?

So the dude knew he was dead, and he also knew there wasn't fuck he could do about it.

Damn, this entry seemed like a much better idea before I started typing it.

I think it's time for another beer and another fire.

Sunday, February 8, 2009
posted by dave at 10:17 PM in category drink

So, back on December 14th, I wrote that I'd managed to score myself some bottles of yummy Alaskan Smoked Porter. I estimated that those fifteen bottles, with proper discipline, should last me for a year.

Well, tonight I'm drinking my last bottle.

Between my ever-loosening definition of "special occasion" and my totally understandable desire to share my favorite beer with my favorite person, I'm down to one bottle.

I'd been thinking that I should at least save it until my birthday, but now I'm going to Las Vegas for my birthday. And I'll probably be able to buy some Alaskan Smoked Porter there.

Plus, it's been one of the worst weeks I've ever had, so I fucking deserve to have this last bottle tonight.

My only regret is that my swing is gone. I'd love to be able to sit on my swing with this lovely beer. As it is, I'll just sit out in my garage like a sucker.

Tuesday, February 3, 2009
posted by dave at 12:45 AM in category drink

So what do you do when something weird happens? Something so weird and unexpected that there is just no way to prepare for it ahead of time? And no way to react with anything besides reflexive babbling?

Like when you find yourself having a conversation that you'd been expecting to have six months earlier? A conversation that you'd thought was never going to happen, because so much time had passed, and so much trust had been earned and built?

Well, I now know what I do when something like that happens.

After the aforementioned reflexive babbling, I go to Rich O's, and I text OddlyFamiliarGirl to come see me. Then I talk to OddlyFamiliarGirl about various things for several hours.

Oh, and I also have four glasses of Marzen (7778) but three of those are gone before OddlyFamiliarGirl shows up.

Thursday, December 25, 2008
posted by dave at 12:20 AM in category comics, drink, ramblings

whatever

That comic has nothing to do with anything. It's just something I thought of that was funny to me.

This entry brought to you by Alaskan Smoked Porter (773).

Recently - it might have been Monday or it might have been some earlier night, as the last months of my life have quite blurred together - OddlyFamiliarGirl told me that I should write more often. She talked about the things that had first drawn her to my blog; the honesty and the passion that I felt, which would so easily flow from my heart down my arms through my fingers and onto my keyboard. She wanted to read that kind of entry again.

I replied that I couldn't do it, that some things were just too hard to write about.

Like how an important question can seem to go unanswered, but it's not really. Refusal to answer is an answer all in itself. Evasion is taking a stand.

And like how unwillingness to choose is really just choosing to leave things the way that they are. To maintain the status quo, no matter how unstable it is. No matter how untenable the universe is.

And how Patience is a virtue, as some dillhole once said. I suppose I agree with that, most of the time. But sometimes, sometimes patience is a hindrance. Like when it's running out, and you can feel it draining away from you like dirty water spiraling down a drain. It's going away, and you know that you don't have much left, and all you can think about is, What will be left of me when it's gone? Will there be anything left at all?

And how sometimes the only way to be happy is to lie to yourself. To fool yourself into believing, even if only for a few hours, that it's the universe around you that lies, and it's not you lying to yourself.

And how it breaks your heart every single time you're reminded that sometimes love is irrelevant.

And how love can spring from the most unlikely connections, but you can't even come close to writing about that, because it's

Sunday, December 14, 2008
posted by dave at 8:09 PM in category daily, drink

After I got home Friday, I attempted to take a nap. That attempt, of course, failed. By then, I figured, I'd had about eight hours of sleep since the previous Saturday morning.

Yes, I was tired. Thanks for asking.

But I guess I must have hit some kind of wall, like long-distance runners always talk about. I reached a certain point of exhaustion, and not only did it not get any worse, it actually got a little better.

So I was dicking around on my computer, catching up on some of the reading that I'd let lapse during The Week Of Hell. I clicked over to the blog of MrPopular, and saw this entry.

For those of you who didn't feel like clicking, it has a mention about how this dude Mike was selling some bottled overstock and such. But even more interesting than what it says now it what it used to say.

It used to say that the items for sale included some bottles of Alaskan Smoked Porter.

It used to say that, and it doesn't anymore, because of me.

Now, I happened to be wearing pants when I read that Alaskan Smoked Porter was for sale. So the Rich O's crowd was spared the thrill disgust of seeing me run into the place as God might have intended. Not sure that a little public nudity would have made much of a difference, though, as I broke every traffic law known to man getting down there. I think that the trip that normally takes 15 minutes took about 15 seconds.

See, MrPopular has been sitting on these bottles (not literally sitting, I don't think) for a very long time. Every now and then I'd hear rumors about them, but rumors were all they were. Rich O's used to sell Alaskan Smoked Porter, but it's been years since that happened. I could, and did, have that lovely beer every time I went to Las Vegas, but even that luxury had been unavailable for over a year.

So I was excited. And I was also quite fearful that I'd be too late. That it would all be sold before I got there. That's why I broke all those traffic laws, and that's why it was probably a good thing that I was wearing pants when I read about the sale.

What ended up happening was that this server dude and I spent a few minutes looking for that Mike dude. Then, when we found him, I bought every bottle of Alaskan Smoked Porter there was.

Fifteen bottles of ebony ambrosia.

It's out there in my beer fridge now. That crappy dirty old refrigerator. Never before has it served such a noble purpose.

Those beers call to me. I estimate that, if I limit my intake to special occasions, I can probably make those bottles last a year.

But tonight I'm going to have one. As soon as I post this entry I'm going to sit in my detached garage and I'm going to have one.

"What's the special occasion?" you might ask.

It's quite simple, really.

I have fucking Alaskan Smoked Porter, and if that's not special then I don't know what is.

UPDATE: Fucking yummy! The only thing that could have made this beer taste better would have been if I'd been sharing it with her.

Wednesday, December 10, 2008
posted by dave at 7:46 AM in category daily, drink, weather

Last night I was able, thanks to some unseasonably warm weather, to sit out in my detached garage for a while. I'd found a bottle of Schlenkerla Marzen (6789) in my refrigerator and, what with yesterday having been what it was, I needed to drink it. So that's what I did. I sat on my el-cheapo white plastic furniture, drank my yummy beer, and contemplated the universe.

Much like when I went to the grocery store Monday night, I couldn't remember the last time I'd sat in my garage. It had certainly been a while. And, though the circumstances that led me to sit out there last night were pretty horrible, I suppose that I ended up enjoying it. Sometimes it's nice for me to simply enjoy my own company for a couple of hours.

I just sent RockGirl an email. She'd asked me when I slept.

Saturday night I didn't sleep a wink. I finally got to sleep at about 3:00 Monday morning and slept until 7:00. Monday night I think it was about 4:00 when I finally got to sleep. Yesterday after work I actually managed to take a two-hour nap, then I couldn't get to sleep again until at least 2:30.
So, I'm nowhere near caught up on my sleep. And I don't really see things getting any better for a while. Maybe ever.

This is a boring entry.

Sunday, November 30, 2008
posted by dave at 11:19 AM in category daily, drink

Early Friday afternoon I found myself missing my dad. A little more than usual, I mean. I was sitting in my Monte Carlo at the car wash, so that probably had something to do with it. The next thing I knew I was shivering at his gravesite.

Then to continue down nostalgia's trail I went to this Hitching Post bar in Louisville. It was Dad's hangout in New Albany. I try to go in there each year, on the anniversary of his death, and have a Falls City beer to his memory. Well, they don't make Falls City anymore, but they do still make Budweiser (24), and it's pretty much the same thing.

After a while, the bartender recognized Dad's old Monte Carlo parked out front, and so he figured out who I was. Next thing I knew there were three or four people in there talking about Dad, and they all had very good things to say. So that was nice.

Then this lady and her hot daughter came in and sat with me for a while. The mom said she'd met me before. I didn't remember it. The daughter kept making goo-goo eyes at me, and we made half-assed plans to go out sometime. I doubt that will ever happen but, just in case, I've dubbed her GooGooGirl.

Thursday, November 27, 2008
posted by dave at 1:53 AM in category daily, drink

I think I'm supposed to write something now. What, exactly, I'm not sure.

---

I had a very good evening.

---

I'm sober, but I'm not really sure how I managed it. I had a Newcastle (11787) at lunch, then a Schlenkerla Marzen (6592) before dinner, then three bottles of Barley Island Barfly (286) and a bottle of Barley Island Dirty Helen (484). I should be shitfaced, but I'm perfectly fine. Weird.

---

As I was driving home tonight, I saw a very bright shooting star, and I gave my wish to LaptopGirl. I hope she uses it wisely.

---

Today I had lunch with HatGirl.

HatGirl!

Yay!

She's such a good person. One of the best.

---

Sometimes I wish things weren't so lopsided. Because then I'd not only know exactly what to do, I'd actually be able to do it without it being weird.

---

There's been this hole in my soul for a long time. During times like tonight, when that hole is filled, I feel like a real person for a while. And then there was another hole. One I didn't even know about, and a little kid snuck right in and filled that hole like it was never even there.

---

Sometimes I can imagine myself being happy. It's nice, when I can do that.

---

I think I'm tired. I won't know for sure, though, until I go to bed. I guess I'll try that now. Long day tomorrow.

Wednesday, November 19, 2008
posted by dave at 10:48 PM in category drink, ramblings

I think it took a single email, to start me down this path tonight. It doesn't take much, after all, to right that which is wrong.

Three bottles of Gumballhead (494) certainly didn't hurt, either.

I imagine good things, when I'm in this kind of a mood. I imagine them and I let the feelings - the feelings that always accompany such imaginings - wash over me. Wash away the debris from my heart and let it beat freely for a while.

I imagine fitting together. I imagine hands, arms, legs, intertwined. Of course I imagine those things. I'm not a eunuch, after all.

I imagine kissing lips, softly at first. I imagine that a lot.

But I imagine so much more. I imagine my heart, my mind, my very soul melded with those of another. Two people functioning together. So much stronger than the sum of their parts. Unbreakable. Indestructible.

Invincible.

People tell me that my heart, having been awakened by chance years ago, is now something rare and precious. That's just so very strange to me, when I realize just how true those words are.

Unconditional.

Boundless.

Devotion.

My heart is a fountain, longing for someone to take a drink.

Well, that might just be the cheesiest sentence I've ever written.

I am in a very nice mood. I hope it lasts for a while.

Tuesday, November 18, 2008
posted by dave at 8:06 AM in category daily, drink

Work yesterday was fun. I'm on-call this week, and all hell broke loose Sunday and spilled over into Monday. I like dealing with technical problems like that. Much more fun than shuffling paperwork all the time.

Then I had a good evening. Of course I had a good evening. That which had been missing from my life, it was back. So that was cool.

Then all hell broke loose at work again, and I had to deal with that. It wasn't as much fun as it had been earlier.

Anyway, to review:

Pizza Hut Meaty Marinara = tastes like Chef Boyardee.
Schlenkerla Marzen (6396) = yummy.
Barley Island Barfly (170) = good.
Harpoon Winter Warmer (254) = yummy.

Sunday, November 16, 2008
posted by dave at 8:37 PM in category drink

I wasn't even going to write about Saturday night. The entry would have seemed like a copy/paste of Friday, but there were some differences.

Instead of standing at the bar talking to ActualGeorge, I stood in the annex and talked to MusicalYuppieDude. He also wasn't quite as sure of my retardation as ActualGeorge had been Friday.

When I first got to Rich O's, there were about a dozen hot girls in the red room. So that was nice, I guess.

The place wasn't nearly as crowded as it had been Friday night.

After I left Rich O's, I went over to Louisville to see WeirdGirl for a bit. She was having some kind of crisis, but it must not have been too bad because she wanted to go bar-hopping and partying all night. I came home instead.

Those were the differences. The main thing that was the same was that I had three more glasses of Schlenkerla Marzen (6379) while I was at Rich O's.

Meanwhile, my refrigerator is broken.

Saturday, November 15, 2008
posted by dave at 9:37 AM in category drink

Had a million things to do yesterday, so I ended up taking a half-day off work. And I managed to get everything done, mainly I think because HatGirl was sick and had to cancel our lunch date.

Last night I was in a pretty crappy mood, and I felt like I needed to share my crappy mood with other people, so I went to Rich O's at 7:30 or so. The place was pretty packed, both because it was a Friday night and because they were having some thingy out in the special people room. I don't know what that was all about, and I don't care.

At first I sat on the sofa, but as soon as TallLady left I moved to the throne. I had myself a Schlenkerla Marzen (6294) and talked to OtherDave and some other people. Oh yeah, StoreGirl was there. Hadn't seen her in months. So that was nice.

Then MusicalYuppieDude and WeatherGirl came in. It sucked that it was so crowded. I really wanted to talk to WeatherGirl because she's one of the people taking my side about this whole mess I use for a life. But the living room area was packed. I did try to get them to come and sit at the kiddie table, but they didn't, and then some weirdoes sat there instead.

I had a nice text-messaging conversation with HatGirl. She was still feeling a little icky, and declined my offer of free beer if she'd drag her ass to Rich O's. HatGirl is another person who's definitely on my side.

After a while, I got really claustrophobic, so I picked up my shit and moved to the end of the bar. Pretty much spent the rest of the night there, drinking a couple more glasses of Marzen (6328) and listening to ActualGeorge tell me that I'm retarded. Like I didn't already know that.

Once the thingy in the special people room was over, Rich O's proper got even more crowded. Part of the crowd was some photographer. I got to talking to him for a bit. He was there taking pictures for some website. I got him to take a bunch of pictures of me and StoreGirl - she being the only person I know who's more camera shy than I am.

Then I went back and let ActualGeorge tell me that I'm wasting my time for a while. I disagreed with that particular sentiment. Then at 11:30 or so I went to White Castle then came home.

Thursday, November 13, 2008
posted by dave at 3:18 PM in category daily, drink

Tuesday night seems like such a long time ago, but I'm going to try to write something, and Tuesday night would be a good place to start, I suppose.

The entire day pretty much sucked, what with my cat dying and all. I also didn't get to see her at all, and even email contact ended abruptly at 5:30.

So, I went to Rich O's. On a Tuesday night. Weird, I know.

At first I sat in the throne, but people kept trying to talk to me, so I moved to the island once it had been vacated. I had a Schlenkerla Marzen (6193) and a little pizza. I did my best to hold myself together, and I suppose I did okay for a while.

Then people came and joined me at the island and started talking to me. Being too unmotivated to pick up my shit and move again, I stayed put where I was.

Oh, and by people I mean ElPresidente and FirstLady, though some other people stopped by from time to time. I spent most of the next four hours talking to ElPresidente - a conversation which can be summed-up as follows:

ElPresidente: You're still whining about that?

Me: Yes. Yes I am.

ElPresidente: Idiot.

And so it went. But it was still lots better than going home and having to watch my remaining cats search in vain for their missing friend. And I even had another Marzen (6210) to help take the edge off things.

Wednesday was, by my estimation, a million-bazillion times better. I was still sad about Happy, of course, but I found myself a very nice distraction. I didn't get to eat lunch, but I got to see her and play Santa Claus to her son, so it was a very fair trade.

After work I went back to Rich O's. I had myself a Rogue Hazelnut Brown Nectar (243), then I bought a growler of it to take with me. For the second time in only a few hours, I got to be distracted from this bullshit I use for a life. We had this alfredo stuff from Pizza Hut that I thought was very good. We each had a couple glasses of the Rogue (273).

Then on the way home I stopped at Rich O's again. I had a Marzen (6227) and had a nice little email conversation. I also had a nice actual conversation with OddlyFamiliarGirl, who surprised me by still being alive.

OddlyFamiliarGirl said some very nice things to me, and made me feel like an actual decent person. So that was nice of her.

Anyway, then I came home and successfully avoided calling out Happy's name when I walked in the door.

Monday, November 10, 2008
posted by dave at 8:29 AM in category daily, drink

We did end up hanging out for a while Sunday afternoon and evening. I can't write about that, though, except that I had a Barfly (140).

I've been saying that I've got this mood that I can't seem to shake. Well, that was wrong. It's not a mood that I get into, it's reverting to normal. That's why I haven't been able to shake it. Because it's not a mood at all, it's the way I am now. Instead of being a happy person with occasional bad moods, now I'm quite the opposite.

Anyway, after I'd reverted to normal last night, I stopped at Bearno's for a Newcastle. The keg blew, but the dude did manage to get most of a glass poured (11638).

Then I came home.

My cat Happy is very sick. He's going to the vet this morning, and I fear that I won't be bringing him home. I guess I'll know more by 11:00 or so.

I had a couple bottles of Newcastle (11662) last night while I tried to comfort Happy.

Sunday, November 9, 2008
posted by dave at 10:40 AM in category comics, daily, drink

Well I ended up not taking a trip yesterday. The same lack of motivation I'd had about writing kept me from making up my mind about going anywhere until it was too late. So I just dicked around the house for the most part.

Then last night I got to do some stuff I can't write about, I guess except that I had a Marzen (6152) and three bottles of Barfly (128). And I think I did a pretty good job of keeping my thoughts where they belonged.

Today we might do something. Or we might not. It's kinda hard stupid to plan anything more than about five minutes ahead of time. As proof of that statement, I offer yesterday, and next weekend, and probably Thanksgiving. But it's okay. Spontaneity has its charms sometimes, and being penciled in is better than nothing.

A pen would be nice, though, every now and then. It would be nice to be worthy of a pen. The dipshit gets a fucking pen.

or fear, perhaps?

Saturday, November 8, 2008
posted by dave at 10:21 AM in category daily, drink

I'm supposed to write in this thing. That's pretty much what it's here for. Some days it's really hard to get motivated, though. That's what today is. I just don't feel like writing. Because of that, this is going to suck.

My life is a fucking lie. A play in which I'm forced to perform, and they forgot to give me my lines.

Lunch at this weird Lynn's Paradise Cafe place was nice. A little strained, I thought, but that's to be expected, what with everything going on and what with me being in this damn mood that I can't shake.

After work I tried to take a nap. It didn't take. I think I'm overly tired. Two or three hours of sleep per night for a week will do that to a person.

So then I went to Rich O's. I'd thought it might be a short visit, because sometimes I forget that hope is stupid and that I should stop having it. I ended up sitting at the kiddie table for four hours talking to OtherDave for a while, and ActualGeorge for a while longer. I tried to talk HatGirl into coming, but she was busy or sick of me or something.

I had a couple glasses of Schlenkerla Marzen (6135), which were quite good. I had a drawn-out email conversation, and that did help to make me feel a little better.

I stopped at White Castle on the way home. My jalapeno cheeseburgers were very yummy.

Oh yeah, remember how I found out yesterday that MixedSignalGirl wasn't dead? Well, last night I found out that NotHideousGirl wasn't dead, either, because she came in to Rich O's. So that was nice. And I got a couple of text messages from SassyGirl, and she wasn't dead either. I miss SassyGirl. I think I miss just about everyone. My own damn fault. I've almost totally isolated myself.

I want to take a trip today. I need to get away. But I probably won't.

Thursday, November 6, 2008
posted by dave at 7:52 AM in category daily, drink

The rest of Wednesday consisted of spending all afternoon in one of the saddest moods I've had in months, then spending the evening pretending that everything was fine. Until, eventually, thanks to a little kid mostly, everything was fine. What a delightful child. His mommy is kinda neat, too, for a jailer.

But eventually, the cage walls started closing in on me again, and I made a graceful escape. One made a bit less graceful because of my Blackberry. Upon leaving, I sent an email saying that I'd had an overwhelming urge to give her a foot massage. But my Blackberry, in a fit of stupididy, had interpreted my typing of the letters f-o-o-t as d-o-o-r instead.

Now, I don't really know what a door massage is. Sounds pretty kinky. But I bet I'd give a good one, and make her forget all about the dipshit.

On the way home, I stopped at Rich O's and had myself another Marzen (6101) and ordered a pizza to-go.

Sunday, November 2, 2008
posted by dave at 10:55 PM in category drink, travel

And another thing is that I don't care about this blog anymore. Not at the moment, anyway - my interest might eventually resurface. So the only reason I'm writing here now is so people don't think I'm dead. Like my sister today asked me if I was okay, because I'm not writing here anymore.

Today I drove to Covington, KY. Once I got here, I glared at my phone, and I had some Moerlein OTRs (360). Now I'm going to bed.

Oh yeah, I got a nice email from HatGirl.

Saturday, October 25, 2008
posted by dave at 10:39 PM in category drink, ramblings

As I'm clearly unfit for the world, and as the world is clearly unfit for me, tonight I'm just going to stay home and drink some fucking pumpkin beer. I was saving this, but oh well.

Jack's Pumpkin Spice Ale

(bottle) Clear medium amber in color. Small head. Aroma of pumpkin and spices. The flavor was more spicy and metallic than I was expecting. There was also some hop bitterness that I didn't care for at all. Decent is all I can say.
I can see it in my face, when I dare to look into the mirror. My eyes, they're so tired, so sad. And there is no real escape, even far away from any mirror. Escape exists in a pair of hazel eyes, and nowhere else. The rest of the time, this permeates my bones and my muscles and my heart. I can feel it, right now, weighing me down. Pulling me under. It's more a part of me than anything else. It's who I am, now. It's what I am, now.

---

I used to think that I knew how this would end. Not that it would end, I'm not quite that much of a pessimist. Yet. But if it ended, I thought I knew how and why. I was so sure. It was going to be all my fault, but I wouldn't be the one to end it.

Schlafly's Pumpkin Ale

(bottle) Clear copper in color. Small head that dissipated almost immediately. A very nice aroma of cinnamon and other spices. Medium mouthfeel. Very good flavor of all sorts of spices and, of course, pumpkin. The 8% ABV is hidden very well. A very good beer.
I watch this destroy her, and I feel it destroy us. There's nothing I can do. I've already tried my best, and it wasn't enough. My words may as well have been silent. My face invisible. My heart irrelevant.

---

Lately, though, I haven't been so sure. Maybe it won't be her. Maybe it'll be me who recognizes and does what needs to be done. Walks away. I hope not. There's nowhere to go.

Post Road Pumpkin Ale

(bottle) Slightly hazy amber. Smallish head. Aroma of pumpkin and spices. Thin mouthfeel, but the flavor is very good. There's a bit of a bite - not bitter - that is a pleasant surprise. Very good.
But can I ever be happy, being so close and yet so far? I honestly don't know the answer to that question. All I know is that I want to try. With everything that I am and everything I ever will be, I want to try. I don't ever want to give up.

posted by dave at 10:26 AM in category comics, drink, ramblings

So many people advised me to lie to her. To keep living my lie of omission. "Don't tell her everything," they said. "Just be happy with what you have," they said. "Don't rock the boat," they said.

But the damn boat was already sinking. So I sounded the alarm. I stopped lying.

And then, yesterday, she said that nobody ever says what's on their mind, except for me. I took that as a compliment.

---

She keeps using the f-word to describe what we're doing. But I don't think of it that way at all. It's not a friendship, at least not from my perspective.

Nope, from where I sit, it's a one-sided love affair.

A million times better than a friendship, and a million times worse.

---

Considering how I started missing her before I'd made it halfway out of her parking lot last night, of course I wanted to go back later and see her some more. But, considering how I actually started missing her before I'd gone three steps out of her door, I didn't think it would be a good idea.

---

Yesterday the only beer I had was about half a Schlenkerla Marzen (6016) at 1:00 or so. I have some pumpkin beers in my fridge, but I'm saving those for something.

---

This was funny in real life. Not mean at all.

funny in real life

Wednesday, October 22, 2008
posted by dave at 1:40 PM in category daily, drink, ramblings

So she asked me if I was mad. I'm not mad, I'm retarded. Big Difference.

And then, I went to lunch at The Pub - Newcastle (11498) - and surprise! It was a bonus AlliDay!

And then, desperately craving interaction with a girl who doesn't make me crazy(er), I arranged to have lunch with HatGirl this Friday. That should be very nice, as it's been a long time since it's just been just me and HatGirl. What with the whole her-getting-married and stuff.

Also, I can't follow my own fucking advice, so why should it bother me that nobody else follows it? I'll tell you why. Because I don't have a choice in the matter.

I've got all this damn pumpkin beer in my fridge, and now I don't know what's going to happen with it. Worst case would be that I'll drink it, I suppose. By myself. Like a chump.

Also, I think I'd be pretty pissed if I were a pigeon. I mean, being able to fly would be cool. But the rat with wings nickname would get old very quickly, and I'd really be pissed off about not being able to take a step without my head jerking back and forth like I was having a seizure or something.

Also, I really and truly don't think there's any cruelty behind any of this. I don't think my strings are being yanked just to watch me dance. Unfortunately for me, the results are exactly the same no matter what the intentions might be. I end up looking like a jackass, and everyone gets a good laugh out of it. Everybody except me, that is.

I need a nap.

And a vacation. Mustn't forget that.

Sunday, October 19, 2008
posted by dave at 10:14 AM in category daily, drink

I didn't really get much accomplished yesterday. I went to Home Depot to get some lumber for my swing but, while I was there, I kinda lost all motivation for everything. So I just came back home and shot pool for a while.

Then at 3:00 I went to Bearno's for something to eat and a couple glasses of Newcastle (11456). For a while, I was the only customer in the entire place. That was perfectly fine with me.

Traded a few emails with her, and that put me back into a good mood until the subject changed. Then my mood deteriorated very quickly. I said some things that were unwelcome, I'm sure. But, like I keep telling myself, if I'm going to ruin this, as least it will be with the truth. Sometimes I wonder if the two of us are strong enough to hold something this lopsided together. Or if she thinks that it's worth the effort.

Later I went and picked up this Blue Moon Pumpkin Ale (24), which was new for me.

Blue Moon Harvest Moon Pumpkin Ale

(bottle) Clear light amber. Large whitish head. Not much of an aroma or flavor with this one. Everything was very subtle - too subtle. I don't think I'll bother with this again. Decent is all I can say.
So that was a bit of a disappointment.

Anyway, other than having a couple bottles of that beer, and watching some movies, I had a nice phone call that I don't think I want to write about here. I went to bed fairly early and slept for 10 hours.

Today is HatGirl's wedding reception. As was expected, I will be going alone. But it should still be fun to see HatGirl in her wedding dress. I hope she remembers that she was supposed to learn how to dance, so she can give me a quick lesson before I dance with her for real.

Saturday, October 18, 2008
posted by dave at 11:53 AM in category daily, drink

I suppose that a brief beer report is in order. I did, after all, go to Rich O's last night. I bet I could count on one hand the number of times I've been in there, on a weekend night, in the last three months.

Anyway, I wasn't planning to go, but my sister called to say that she and her husband were there. So I went.

It was extremely crowded and LOUD. I ended up standing by the bar, talking yelling with Dina and Kenny. I had two and a half glasses of Marzen (5902). By the time Dina and Kenny left, my mood was shot to shit. I tried to hang out for a little bit longer, but there was no sense in it. I came home around 10:00.

---

Last week I was going to buy some wood to start repairs on my swing. But while I was cutting some rope, I ended up slicing my finger instead. Today, my plan is to go and finally buy that wood. I'll probably manage to amputate my leg somehow.

Saturday, October 11, 2008
posted by dave at 12:25 AM in category daily, drink

I guess today kind of sucked. I don't think it was really a bad day, but compared to Thursday, it sucked. As would most days, compared to Thursday.

This chick who looks disconcertingly like MixedSignalGirl was working at The Pub, after having been fired for the last month or so. Plus, she insisted on talking to me the entire time I was there trying to enjoy my Newcastle (11280). So I was in a pretty shitty mood from about 12:00 on, then after work I had a couple of weird dreams. One was a sad dream, and another was very frustrating and confusing. So I woke up from my nap in a even worse mood than before.

For a while, there seemed to be a .0000000001% chance that my day might end really well, but instead I sat here at home, had a Rogue Chocolate Stout (2669) and a Barley Island Dirty Helen (436), glared at my phone, and wished for about the asstillionth time that things were different.

Also, it turns out that I don't need to feed HatGirl's critters on Sunday, as had been planned. That's the good news, I think. The bad news, I think, is that I need to go to the airport at 11:50 Saturday night to pick her and LuckyFucker up.

It will be really nice to see HatGirl again, but my grand plans for drinking beer and glaring my phone tomorrow night are shot to shit.

Wednesday, October 8, 2008
posted by dave at 11:33 PM in category daily, drink

I'm not sure I should say anything about lunch. I guess I'll say that I had some yummy Thai chili linguini, and I sneaked a couple won-tons. Oh, and I had a Newcastle (11240).

Later in the afternoon I had a stupid meeting that ended up being not stupid, because I was the only person who showed up. So, that was nice.

I'd driven in to work on fumes, and so I had to stop and get gas on the way from work to HatGirl's house. I got $20 worth of gas, got back into my truck, and turned the key. Imagine my surprise when, as a result of my turning the key, absolutely nothing happened.

I was in a pretty bad part of Louisville, I think. So I was quite relieved and a little surprised when this one lady gave me a jump-start instead of murdering me for drug money.

At HatGirl's, I left my truck running while I fed the critters. Still haven't seen that damn kitty.

Then on the way to Rich O's I stopped and paid $150 for a new battery. For that price I assumed that my truck would be capable of flight, but nope, it's still ground-bound. Oh well.

At Rich O's, I had a couple glasses of yummy Rogue Chocolate Stout (2647). I was going to have just the one and then go home with my pizza, but NotHideousGirl and OddlyFamiliarGirl came in. And this time they didn't totally ignore me, so yay!

Once I got home, I took a nap. Then when I got up I nuked a couple hot dogs. Because I'm stupid and completely forgot about the pizza in my fridge.

And now I'm having a Three Floyds Gumballhead (263). I tried to sit out in my garage with my beer, but it's too freaking cold.

Sunday, October 5, 2008
posted by dave at 10:58 PM in category daily, drink, ramblings

Today was the fifth day in a row that I've gone to HatGirl's house to take care of her critters, but I still haven't seen the kitty even once. I do, however, know that the kitty is still alive because I set treats out each day and the next day they're gone.

---

I get so sick and tired of people trivializing my problems and expecting me to act normal all the time. I do good to get out of bed in the mornings. Anything more than that is a bonus.

---

Tonight I had a nice long talk with my dad's ghost. It took some doing, and a couple bottles of Three Floyd's Gumballhead (215), to conjure him up, but I eventually succeeded.

It was a really nice conversation.

---

Every now and then I'll be driving - it's usually in Louisville - and I'll see some random young man walking down the sidewalk, using one hand to keep his super-loose pants from falling down.

I always wonder what kind of a terrible life that must be, the constant pressure that must involve.

Stretching an analogy almost to its breaking-point, I kinda do the same thing as those random young men.

Except that it's not modesty that I'm trying to preserve. Nope, it's my sanity.

I walk through life desperately clutching to pieces of myself that threaten to fall to the ground.

And shatter.

The shattering part is where the pants analogy breaks down. Because pants don't shatter, unless they haven't been washed in a zillion years, and that's an entirely different problem.

---

You know what's really nice to hear from the love of your life?

"Well, I wouldn't say you were the worst person ever."

That's what's nice to hear. Hope springs eternal, and all that.

---

Also, people who don't like the way I am should stop trying to guilt me into being something else. It won't work.

Empathy does not require understanding or agreement. Those are common misconceptions, but those things really are irrelevant to empathy.

Empathy can stand on its own and do just fine.

---

For those keeping score at home, I still haven't renewed any of my vehicle registrations. They were already closed on Saturday when I got there. They were closed today, and they'll be closed tomorrow. So I get to drive around illegally until Tuesday.

Fun!

---

That's it for now. I need to go out to my garage and glare at my phone for a while.

Saturday, October 4, 2008
posted by dave at 12:22 AM in category daily, drink, ramblings

I think all I want to say about tonight is that I was held captive by two hot young women, and that I had fun.

---

Oh shit! I totally forgot to renew any of my vehicle registrations. All three expired the 15th of September. I'll have to see about at least renewing the registration on my truck tomorrow, if I have time.

---

I think what's happened is that I've crossed some kind of sleep-deprivation wall. Kind of like marathon runners will reach a certain point and then running is supposed to become effortless. Well I should be very tired right now, but I'm not at all.

---

My brain is really rambling. You readers are lucky that so little of the rambling is making it to my fingers.

---

I want to go to Antarctica, and I don't want to take myself with me. I don't know how to do that. Or, maybe, I want to go to Antarctica with myself, but then return without myself. I don't know how to do that either. Either way, though, I want to go to Antarctica.

---

Another thing about tonight is that I had a Shiner Bock (17) and a Barley Island Barfly (56). Or maybe that's two other things about tonight.

---

Sometimes a helping hand is exactly that, and nothing more. Sneering at it will only lessen the probability of it ever being offered again.

---

If I had any sense at all, I'd do something. What, exactly, I don't know. Because I don't have any sense at all.

---

I suppose I should go stare at my bedroom ceiling for a few hours. Goodnight, world.

Wednesday, October 1, 2008
posted by dave at 10:24 PM in category daily, drink, weather

I got a very nice surprise today.

An unscheduled AlliDay!

I don't think I'd seen AlliGirl in over a month, and even then she'd been too busy to really talk. But today, I walked into the pub, expecting to see the same boring Wednesday people that I've been seeing for months, and instead I saw some legs. And a shock of blonde hair peeking from under a baseball cap. And, once I got close enough for her to recognize me, a mischievous grin.

AlliGirl!

And, it wasn't too busy in there today, so after the mandatory hug we got to talk for quite a bit and do some catching up.

It was really nice to see her!

Oh, yeah, I had a Newcastle (11106) for lunch.

Then, back to work.

Then, I went over to HatGirl's house to feed her cat and dogs and LuckyFucker's fish. Because they're gone. Getting married. Fucking surreal.

Anyway, HatGirl had assured me that her one asshole dog wasn't an asshole anymore. I'm not saying that she lied to me, but she was definitely mistaken. That damn dog refused to let me pay any attention whatsoever to the other dogs. It's exactly the same as it was a year ago.

And I didn't get to see the kitty at all. It was hiding from me because it doesn't know that I'm a cat person.

Then I went to Rich O's and had an Upland Wheat (231), then I came home.

Now I want to go outside and drink a Marzen but it's too damn cold. I kinda want to take a little space heater out there with me, but I'm afraid that might seem pathetic.

Maybe I'll just drink a damn beer in my living room like a regular person.

Tuesday, September 16, 2008
posted by dave at 9:20 PM in category drink, pictures, weather

A long time ago, before I was even born if you can believe that, I guess a bunch of people wore buttons saying "I like Ike."

You know, because of Eisenhower or however it's spelled.

Well, I think I'd like to introduce a new button. Mine will say "Ike can suck my hairy ass."

You know, because of the hurricane.

For those just tuning in, I live in Southern Indiana. Tornado country. Maybe earthquake country. But not fucking hurricane country.

Well, somebody must have missed a memo or something. That damn hurricane Ike refused to die after wreaking havoc down South where it belonged. Nope, it continued Northeasterly with its hurricane-force winds, and wreaked havoc upon the Louisville area too. Upon my area.

Everybody is affected. Some in worse ways than others. I, for example, have not had power since noon on Sunday (UPDATE: Power came back at 8:30 PM Tuesday). I lost some big-ass branches, and a couple of big trees either fell or split in half. There are millions of twigs and leaves littering my lawn, and some in my living room that are really perplexing me.

But all of that I can deal with. The thing I may not be able to deal with is this:

Waaaah!

That, readers, is my swing. Or the pile of rubble formerly known as my swing. Fucking Ike took it out completely. Ripped it right out of the ground.

I'm sad about this. Much sadder, I'm sure, than I should be. "It was just a swing, after all," people will say.

But, to me, it was really much more than that. To me, standing there Sunday afternoon, it was almost like I'd lost a friend.

I couldn't help but think of the dozens of times I'd sat on that swing with MixedSignalGirl, or the millions of times I'd sat there without LaptopGirl, or all of the other times when I'd just go out there to relax and not think about anything for a while.

It just makes me sad that it's gone.

Let me put it this way: If Ike had destroyed my house, and my detached garage, and my swing - I'd replace my swing first and then worry about the trivial structures.

---

I wrote the above, in my little notebook, while sitting in that same coffee shop, next to that same lovely companion. Trying to feed off her creativity, I suppose, and not really succeeding. I was distracted, after all.

Now I'm across the street at Bearno's. Drinking a Goose Island Honker's Ale (132), scribbling in this notebook, and watching my phone. There's a chance that I might hear from her again tonight. There's a smaller chance that I might get to see her again tonight. So I'm waiting.

There's no sense in going home. No power there, and not even a single bar of reception on my Blackberry - just "SOS."

And, of course, she's not there either. So, I'll wait for a while. She's worth it.

Sunday, September 14, 2008
posted by dave at 9:16 AM in category drink

That's what it says right on every bottle of Stone Arrogant Bastard: You're not worthy

Pretty clever thing, if you ask me. Take a playful jab at your potential customers. Challenge them, dare them to try to drink you.

Anyway, I'm not worthy, apparently.

I bought two 22 oz. bottles of the stuff last night. My plan had been to (a) sit on my swing, (b) glare at my phone, and (c) get as plastered as a lightweight like me can get.

What actually happened, though, was that I had one bottle of the stuff (88), then about four ounces of the second bottle (92) and that was it. I didn't get plastered. Not on 26 ounces of 7.2% beer. But I did get a little queasy in my stomach. That's when I realized that I hadn't eaten a single speck of food all day. Nothing since 6:30 Friday night, actually, when I'd had a little pizza at Rich O's.

So the final part of my grand plan was amended to (c) drink some water.

I'm worthy of water, in case you doubted that.

Thursday, September 11, 2008
posted by dave at 4:26 PM in category daily, drink

I think that, today, I'm going to shut my cat Buddy in the basement when I get home. That way, he won't be able to fight with Nugget, and that way, I'll be able to take an actual nap.

I can't remember ever being this tired, except maybe the first time we all went to Philadelphia for work, a few years ago.

And, speaking of Philadelphia, we're all supposed to go back there in January. Oh boy! Philadelphia in January!

I'm pushing to just have us do the work from here. There's no reason that any of have to actually be in Philadelphia. But I push for this every year, and it never does any good. We always have to go.

Anyway, today I had a nice lunch with her at Hard Rock. With my potato skins, I had a Blue Moon (883) that was pretty damn tasty. My company was lovely as always.

I seem to have lost the ability to tell when someone is kidding. Or maybe I never really had that ability. This was the second day in a row that she totally fooled me with her kidding. My working theory about this is that, because I always expect the absolute worst, that's why I take this kidding seriously.

What might be an interesting experiment would be to be kidded about something good. But then I'd have to face the disappointment when the farce was revealed. And I'm pretty sure that my disappointment quota for this century is already used up.

I guess there's no way to win unless I turn into an optimist so I can recognize kidding. Not much chance of that happening.

I'm rambling because I'm tired.

Sunday, August 31, 2008
posted by dave at 11:15 PM in category drink

Beforehand, I drove.

Specifically, I drove to Indianapolis. See, there's this guitar doohickey that I want. MusicalYuppieDude has been telling me for months that he'll give me one for free, but it's never happened. So I found one on the internet. And today I drove to the closest store that carries them.

Well, I drove to Indianapolis to buy the doohickey, and the stupid store is closed on Sunday. So, I drove back home.

---

Afterwards, I drank a little.

After dinner, I went to the bar at Sam's. I talked briefly with MusicalYuppieDude (should have told him about my trip to Indy) and PhotoDude, then they left and I sat at the bar and had a Blue Moon (817).

Next, I went to Sluttopia and had a Newcastle (10676) before coming home.

---

The beforehand and the afterwards weren't as much fun as the during.

posted by dave at 10:34 AM in category drink

After I went back to Polly's to get Happy his milkshake, I took a fairly long nap. See, there was a .000427% chance that I'd get to do something fun later, and I wanted to be refreshed.

Then at 7:30 or so I went to Rich O's.

It was pretty crowded, mostly with strangers. I ordered a Marzen (5133) and stood at the end of the bar for a while. TremensGirl was there, in an actual dress. That's why I didn't recognize her at first. Also, StoreGirl and her husband NotBill were there. I hadn't seen them in a very long time.

After a while some dorks left the bar so I went and sat there. I had a little pizza. TremensGirl offered me the throne but I declined. There's a limit to my sociability, and there was this one dipshit on the sofa who is way beyond that limit.

Anyway, these two drunk old women came in and sat at the kiddie table. I'd guess they were between 50 and 150 years old. Hard to tell as they were both made up like prostitutes. As luck would have it, they both immediately started trying to engage me in conversation, so I picked up my shit and moved to the recently-vacated island.

What happened next was that StoreGirl and NotBill came over and joined me, and for some reason they invited the old women over as well.

Grrrr.

So our new "friends" managed to slur out that they'd both just gotten divorced, and that they were looking for a good time. I shivered for about 10 minutes and then managed to shoot off a couple of flares in the form of emails begging for rescue.

No rescue ever came, and I was getting pretty sick of being leaned on and having my arm touched. I was just about to get rude and pick up my shit and move back to the bar, but instead NotBill had a great idea. He and I started telling the old women about all the other great bars around. I think they ended up going to Sluttopia.

Oh yeah, at about the time I ordered my second Marzen (5150) my hot girl sensors overloaded. I looked at the door, and it was ImprobablyHotMarriedGirl! I bounced over and gave her a hug, and looked for the other half of TeamHotness, UnbearablyHotSingleGirl. But she was nowhere to be seen. I hope they're not fighting.

It was still very cool though. I hadn't seen ImprobablyHotMarriedGirl in months. Unfortunately, they had too many people in their party to be able to join StoreGirl and NotBill and me at the island, so they went out front somewhere.

I came home at 10:00, because I'd stopped drinking after that second Marzen. There was still a .000016% chance that I'd get to do something fun later, after all.

Well, that slim chance eventually dwindled to nothing, but I got to have a little emailathon, and that was very nice.

At the end of the night I had another Marzen (5167) out on my swing and I thought happy thoughts.

Friday, August 29, 2008
posted by dave at 11:11 PM in category daily, drink, pictures

First, there was a surprise lunch invitation. I'll admit it freely - I was very excited about it. I mean, two days in a row!?! I was truly blessed. Or I would have been truly blessed if those lunch plans hadn't fallen apart as quickly as they had formed.

Second, there was dinner with BadPickleGirl. I really had a feeling that she was going to flake on me. We seemed to be making it much harder than it should have been. Well, sure enough, she cancelled at the last minute.

Third, I figured that I'd at least go over to Louisville, see AlliGirl, and check out CoolHairGirl's purple hair.

But noooooooooooooooooo!

They were having some stupid thing in Louisville, and they were charging a cover just to walk down the stupid street.

So, foiled not once, not twice, but thrice, I ended up just coming home. I ate some pizza. I watched Borat. I sat on my swing. I had a Newcastle (10648) and two Marzens (5116). I glared at my phone a lot.

All in all, It was still better than having my legs knocked out from under me and then being repeatedly kicked in the gut.

Anyway, here's a picture I took while peeing at Sam's this afternoon:

where is an editor when you need one

The part about .40¢ wings and .99¢ drafts and nachos and mini-cheeseburgers, that's one of my pet peeves. If you don't know why, then I probably think you're an idiot, just like I think the person who made this sign is an idiot.

But at least they've brought back mini football helemets. Good for them.

posted by dave at 11:20 AM in category daily, drink

Last night I wore a t-shirt that said I'm blogging this across the front. So, rather than be labeled a liar, I'll go ahead and actually write something.

Let's start with Wednesday, I suppose. There wasn't much to Wednesday. I went to Rich O's. At night. So that was something.

Let's see, I sat at the island and talked with some people. I don't remember who. Oh yeah, MusicalYuppieDude was one of them. I remember because he said there was a crazy guy over at the bar. I looked, but I didn't see him do anything crazy. Maybe he got his prescription refilled or something. Oh, and ExBartender was there too.

I had myself a yummy Schlenkerla Marzen (5047). I sent a million email messages. But mostly I watched the door, more out of habit than because of any actual anticipation.

The place was pretty dead, and they kicked everyone out early, so I came home.

Then yesterday I had a nice day, and it gave me enough confidence to go back to Rich O's last night. Wow, two nights in a row. One might almost think that I'm hanging out at Rich O's again. One would be wrong, but it would be an understandable mistake.

Last night, there was some big change... hope... zombie party going on in the special people section. I didn't go in there. In Rich O's proper, the fucking Thursday weirdoes were in full force. I sat at the island and had a little pizza and a Marzen (5064). Spent most of the time talking to PornAddict and SmooshDude.

And for some reason they kept playing techno music all night. That was messed up.

I was really bored, but I stayed for another Marzen (5081) because I wanted to see what LaptopGirl had done to her hair. I thought it looked really pretty, but of course I'm biased.

Then all the change... hope... zombies left the special people section and came into Rich O's proper looking for brains to eat, and I came home. I sat on my swing and had a Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier (2636) and it was yummy.

Pretty damn exciting, I know. I've got a five-day weekend and I spend the first two nights sitting bored at Rich O's. Maybe tonight will be more interesting. I'm supposed to go hang out with BadPickleGirl for a while, and maybe go see CoolHairGirl's new purple hair.

Then tomorrow I get to have lunch with HatGirl. I'm obviously very excited about that.

Maybe I'll go out of town tomorrow after lunch. Or maybe not.

Saturday, August 23, 2008
posted by dave at 8:18 AM in category drink

The first part of Friday night I spent like the last parts of most nights. Sitting out on my swing drinking a beer. A Newcastle (10560) in that particular case. BadPickleGirl and I had agreed to "ponder" hanging out for a while, so I called her, left a voicemail, then glared at my phone for a while. But after an hour or so of that, I got bored and went to Louisville to see AlliGirl.

At The Pub, it wasn't nearly as crowded as I'd been expecting. I sat at the bar and had a Newcastle (10580) and talked to AlliGirl when she wasn't too busy. It was nice to see AlliGirl. It had been weeks.

Then I went over to Hard Rock and, lo and behold, CoolHairGirl was working! That was a very nice surprise. Pretty much the opposite of a nice surprise was that somebody had ralphed all over one of the urinals there. Quite disgusting.

I sat at Hard Rock for an hour or so, drinking a Blue Moon (777) and talking to CoolHairGirl. Hard Rock was incredibly dead. It was me at the bar and like three or four other people scattered amongst the tables.

Oh yeah, at one point when I was out in the street I looked to my left and saw my niece and some of her friends. That was quite cool.

Anyway, I started to feel a little guilty at Hard Rock because CoolHairGirl started cleaning everything in anticipation of closing early. Plus I guess I got a little depressed about the same old stuff that I always get depressed about, so I left Louisville and headed for home.

While I was driving home, I got a text from BadPickleGirl, so I called her and we bullshitted over the phone until I pulled into my garage. So that was nice.

Then I sat on my swing and had most of a bottle of Marzen (4901). Sent an email to her, got no response, got depressed about it, then went to bed at 11:30 or so.

Sunday, August 17, 2008
posted by dave at 9:41 PM in category daily, drink

So most of my plans fell way short of fruition.

I didn't take my cousin his memorial shirt.

I didn't stop at HH Gregg to inquire about a TV repairman.

And I didn't even get to pretend-marry HatGirl and LuckyFucker as the latter, I believe, chose this opportunity to pretend to have cold feet. Maybe next week, I'm told.

But the most important thing, I did get done. I got LaptopGirl's memorial t-shirt from my sister, and then I delivered it.

Any day wherein I get to see LaptopGirl is a damn good day as far as I'm concerned. Even though her son was eating pretzels and it made me really crave pretzels.

Oh yeah, another thing I didn't do was have dinner at the place where NotHideousGirl works. Nor did I, as I'd halfway planned later in the afternoon, make it to where AlliGirl works. Instead, I went to this Sam's place that I'd never been to before.

While there, I had a couple glasses of heterosexual Blue Moon (761) and some blackened steak tip thingies that were surprisingly good.

On the way home I bought a bag of pretzels. They were yummy.

posted by dave at 11:53 AM in category daily, drink

Never did hear back from AlliGirl about her birthday party. I guess I'd be annoyed by that if I didn't already have a gazillion other things on my mind.

I spent Saturday night as I'd spent Friday night, at home on my swing. I did make one brief trip down to see what all the damn sirens were for. There were sirens wailing nonstop for at least an hour. I went down and asked this girl at the gas station what had been going on. She said she saw a million fire trucks go by. It must have been a pretty big fire, to need a million fire trucks.

All of the local dogs were still howling when I went to bed at 12:00 or so

Let's see, I had my last two bottles of Moerlein OTR (262), even the bottle I'd been saving for MrPopular - it just jumped down my throat before I could stop it. Not that I really wanted to stop it. And so now I'll definitely have to go back to Covington. I should have gone yesterday. I can't go this coming weekend because I'm on-call for work.

I had a couple Newcastles (10444). I drunk-texted BadPickleGirl and she actually responded for once. I had a few email conversations. In one, I got accused of what I think is a class III misdemeanor, and that conversation was the highlight of my week.

I got to go to sleep in a good mood. It's been a while since that happened.

---

Today it seems like I've got a million things to do, but I can't think of what they all are.

I know that I'm going to dinner, probably where NotHideousGirl works. I think that, either right before or right after dinner, I'm pretending to marry HatGirl and LuckyFucker. I should probably call HatGirl to make sure we're still on for that.

Hmmm, I know that I've got to get LaptopGirl's memorial shirt from my sister.

Oh yeah, I've also got to take my cousin Jeff his memorial shirt.

I guess I should stop at the place where I bought my TV and see about getting a repairman out to look at it. I'm afraid that it's going to cost a million dollars, but it's got to be done. Can't really have a 65" TV that doesn't work, can I?

Saturday, August 16, 2008
posted by dave at 1:01 PM in category daily, drink

Last night I didn't do much of anything. Sat on my swing and traded some emails back and forth for a while, but then they stopped. I had a bottle of Stone Smoked Porter (542) and then a bottle of Moerlein OTR (238).

I'm almost out of the OTR, and I'd thought about going back to Covington today and picking up a case or so while I'm there. But I probably won't go, there's no point. And besides, AlliGirl's traveling birthday party is tonight, I think. So perhaps I'll head over to Louisville and try to run into her.

Or maybe I'll just stay home again.

Weeks.

That was the prediction I made, weeks ago. Now I'm starting to suspect that my prediction was just incredibly optimistic. Weird, for me to be too optimistic, I think.

Thursday, August 14, 2008
posted by dave at 11:05 PM in category drink, general

I thought of this awesome thing to write, but then I remembered that people read what I write. So, I might still write it, but not here.

---

I also thought of something awesome to say on my death bed. And of course I can't write that because I'm saving it for when I'm actually on my death bed.

Like in 500 years or so.

---

I'm counting on medical technology to irrelify all of my current stupidity.

It could happen.

---

I made that word up. I like it, though.

---

Did I ever mention that I like hot girls?

Well, I do.

---

I still haven't had any of the 08.08.08 beer. Because I might be able to talk BadPickleGirl into trying it with me. Tonight, I had myself some yummy Moerlein OTR (216).

---

Speaking of OTR, I need to remember to take a bottle to work, so that later I can drop it off for MrPopular.

---

Speaking of BadPickleGirl, she just complained about getting just one MySpace message, from me, in a week. I myself usually only get messages from Jack Shit.

She got a message from me, I get messages from Jack Shit.

She wins, hands down.

---

Because, no matter what certain people might think, I'm much better than Jack Shit.

---

Damn, it's only 11:04, and I'm out of material.

Monday, August 11, 2008
posted by dave at 9:28 AM in category drink, travel

The Cock & Bull was even more crowded that it had been earlier. I remembered that I'd never been in the place on a weekend, and I began to fear that they might have a stupid live band. That would have sucked.

I sat at the bar, ordered a bottle of OTR (72), and was almost immediately molested by some girl sitting next to me. I have never been pawed like that in my life - at least not while remaining fully-clothed. So, that was weird.

The emails and the text messages and the phone calls continued, and I continued to be amazed that my battery was lasting as well as it was. I guess I ended up spending about 1/2 of my time inside sitting at the bar getting molested, and the rest of the time I was outside talking on the phone.

WeirdGirl called just to say she misses me. Awww.

Here's a bit of advice to you women out there. If you ever find yourself needing to break through any resistance I might have, just lick my ear. Works every time.

Anyway, I ended up having three more OTRs (108). The bartender who looks like AlliGirl told me that they sometimes get OTR on tap. So I gave her my number so she could call me the next time that happens. I will definitely make the drive up there again.

I also had a glass of yummy Delirium Tremens (1404) so I could raise a toast to a friend of mine who's having a tough time these days.

At midnight or so, I somehow found some vestige of resolve, and I left GropingGirl with her friends. I walked down to the conveniently located White Castle, had some cheeseburgers, then went back to the hotel.

Then Sunday morning I drove home. It was nice to get away, if only for one night.

Sunday, August 10, 2008
posted by dave at 9:55 PM in category drink, travel, weather

The Cock & Bull was pretty crowded. Much more than it had been in April. I guess warm weather will do that to bars. Except Rich O's, for some reason.

My plan had been to just sit at the bar and drown my sorrows all night. I got a decent start, with a couple bottles of yummy Moerlein OTR (60), but by the time those were gone it was only 6:00 or so, and I recognized that I should probably go to some other places.

The first other place I went to was the Hofbrauhaus. I was there for about 1.7 seconds. There was extremely LOUD POLKA MUSIC and there was also not a single empty seat in the house - not even at the bar.

So I walked down the hill, and over the floodwall, to the Beer Sellar barge. While I was walking there, the stupid Sun came out from the clouds, and the weather went from very pleasant to unbearably fucking hot and humid. Plus, the stupid Beer Sellar didn't seem to have any air conditioning. Just a big fan that did nothing but stir the humid air around, so it felt like I was going swimming.

I was sweating like the proverbial whore in church.

I had myself a Paulaner Hefeweissbier (567) and then some Diet Cokes while I tried to acclimate myself to the humidity. Seriously, the place made me long for the old days I spent in New Orleans. This place was New Orleans with twice the humidity but thankfully none of the smell.

After my third Diet Coke or so, I realized that it was stupid to be there, so I drove back to the hotel, and then I walked back to the Cock & Bull.

My phone keeps ringing. I'll finish this later.

Saturday, August 9, 2008
posted by dave at 11:11 AM in category drink

A few minutes later I was feeling a zillion times better.

I was sitting in LaptopGirl's dining room (see the comic two entries ago), drinking a skunked beer, and finally getting to see LaptopGirl. It had been one day short of five weeks since I'd last seen her, a time period also known as an asstillion lifetimes.

I will concede that it should have been stressful for me. But, compared to the discussions going on at Rich O's, it wasn't stressful at all. Plus it was just a huge relief to get to see LaptopGirl again. It was all so non-stressful, in fact, that I nearly fell asleep.

The skunked beer I had? It was a new beer for me.

Molson Golden

(bottle) Clear fizzy yellow. Thin head that hung in there pretty well. The aroma was of armpits and feet - it was skunked. Mouthfeel was thin. No flavor to speak of, though there was a hoppy sharpness when it first entered the mouth. No detectable finish except a coating skunkiness. I wouldn't wish this on my worst enemy.
So I got to meet LaptopDad, and I got to more formally introduce myself to LaptopMom. I think I nearly bored LaptopMom to death by talking about my beer ratings, but she hung in there quite well. Very polite.

BigWheelGirl was there also, and she and LaptopGirl and I hung out and talked for a couple of hours. At one point LaptopGirl wanted to go to Rich O's. BigWheelGirl didn't want to go, and I already had everything I needed right there, so we didn't go.

At one point I went out to my car and got a bottle of good beer. LaptopGirl and I split a bottle of Schlenkerla Marzen (4697), and I think BigWheelGirl had water or something.

Once LaptopGirl's son (LaptopSon?) woke up crying, I was ushered out pretty quickly, so I came home. I sat on my swing and had another bottle of Marzen (4714) and thought about good things.

Then I remembered that I hadn't eaten anything all day so I went to Taco Bell.

posted by dave at 10:41 AM in category drink

The stress level started rising as soon as I left my house. And it grew and it grew and it grew until I left Rich O's.

It was still too soon. It was still too much. I'd thought it I might be okay with being there at night, but I was wrong.

Anyway, I got there at 8:30 or so. It wasn't too crowded, though what crowd there was had occupied those places where I'd wanted to sit. Places where I could eat and maybe be ignored for a while. I didn't want to get into any conversations. I certainly didn't want any damn encouraging words. I just wanted to wait for LaptopGirl. She being the entire reason I was risking my sanity by being there in the first place.

What I ended up doing was sitting on the sofa for a bit. I said hello to TremensGirl and MusicalYuppieDude. At about the time I ordered an NABC Flat Tyre (1029), this one dork left the bar so I moved up there and ordered a little pizza. But then this other dork left the sofa so I moved back there. I'd decided that having my back to the entrance probably wasn't the most brilliant thing for me to do.

Then the subject started being discussed by those around me, and I felt myself starting to freak out.

Then LaptopGirl emailed me that she wasn't coming to Rich O's after all. So I paid my tab and left, donating my little pizza to whoever might want it.

Monday, August 4, 2008
posted by dave at 7:35 PM in category drink

In retrospect, it was still too much too soon. But I went to Rich O's after work. My excuse was that it was pizza night, and I'd skipped last Monday, so if I didn't have pizza tonight, I might die or something.

Contrary to popular belief, I don't particularly want to die right now.

Also, is pizza-withdrawal a real affliction?

Anyway, there's some new dork working there. I never saw him before in my life, and when I sat in the throne, he came up and asked me if I wanted a beer.

My first inclination was to say, "No thanks. I'm flattered, but I'm straight."

But then I saw that he was carrying an official Rich O's notepad, so I went ahead and ordered an NABC Jasmine (110).

Then people left me alone for the most part, except this one dude who asked me some stupid question that didn't really need an answer.

Then MisunderstoodGirl sat and talked to me for a while about irrelevant things, and that was cool because I was really freaking out that people would want to get relevant on me.

Then ArtGirl came in and I got to talk to her for the next hour or so. We played musical chairs. It was fun.

Then I had another Jasmine (120) even though it was getting pretty late and therefore scary for me to be there.

Then TremensGirl came in and said more words to me in five minutes than she's said to me in the previous four months. So that was nice.

Then I found myself rambling on and on to MusicalYuppieDude about relevant things, so I knew it was time for me to leave. Luckily, my pizza was ready by then, so I came home.

Too soon. I knew that going in, but I still went. That place has a very annoying pull on me sometimes.

Sunday, August 3, 2008
posted by dave at 11:35 PM in category drink

I'll admit, there was some juggling that took place to make LaptopGirl's recommendation come out as my 500th beer rating.

See, there was a chance that we were going to rate it together. But those opportunities kept slipping by. Eventually, I think, we each realized that she has more important things to worry about than my stupid beer ratings.

But the nice thing is that there's plenty of swill in the world, so there will be other opportunities for a joint-rating.

Anyway, here are the last four official beer ratings, beginning with my swill consultant's official recommendation for my 500th rating:

Sapporo Premium

(can) Looks like fizzy urine. Decent white head that seemed to last. Aroma of wet grass - slightly rotten. Thin mouthfeel. Flavor is smooth and a little creamy. Just the slightest hoppy finish. A typical pale lager, neither better nor worse than the rest. Typical lager swill.
Okay, so that sucked. But I was expecting it to suck, so no big deal.

Thirsty Dog Siberian Night

(bottle) Black, with a thin brown head. Aroma was surprising - it smelled like tires. Medium sticky mouthfeel. Flavor of bitter chocolate, roasted malts, and licorice. The finish was extremely well balanced - it just slid down my throat. Pretty damn good.
For that beer, I thank Todd from The Keg in Clarksville, Indiana.

Franziskaner Hefe-Weissbier

(draft) Hazy light brown - darker than others in this style. Aroma standard for the style, bananas along with cloves and other subtle spices. The flavor was subdued and fleeting. A little more yeasty than I was expecting. Very good, though.
That one I had Saturday at Buckhead.

Stone Bitter Chocolate Oatmeal Stout

(bottle) Black with a thin brown head that faded quickly. Aroma was milder than I was expecting - chocolate and malts. Medium mouthfeel. Flavor was malts and chocolate, but it seemed tame. The finish was very strong chocolate, almost too strong. It was only after my taste buds had been beaten into submission that I was able to really appreciate the finish. Lingering and coating dark chocolate. A very damn good beer. I want to try this on tap, but I'm not holding my breath for that.
Another recommendation from Todd, that was the most pleasant surprise, beer-wise, of the week. Though the Thirsty Dog beer was pretty damn good as well.

posted by dave at 11:08 AM in category drink

I seem to have lost the ability to take naps. I don't really count what happened Friday evening - that wasn't so much a nap as it was a collapse.

For the last week or two or three - it's all a blur, I've settled onto my couch after work, called for my cat Buddy (who always takes a nap with me) and waited for sleep that never comes. Sleep does not come to me, only thoughts of drowning.

This was again the case yesterday, after I got home from Jeffersonville. I was as tired as I can ever remember being, but sleep was beyond me. So, I went to my sister's party earlier than I'd expected.

It was a pleasant enough event. Crowds are never my thing, though. Everybody knows that. Usually I'll sit at these things and I'll talk to one or two people exclusively for hours. Last night that didn't seem to be an option. Dina was busy being hostess with the mostest. BadPickleGirl was not coming, despite my calling her and pretty much begging her to do so. SpoonsGirl was in a crappy mood, and Eric and Teri were AWOL.

So I was left with the crowd. All good people, certainly. But they're Dina's people, not mine.

I lost count of how many times I caught myself wondering if LaptopGirl would have joined me, had I specifically invited her. My estimate is that I wondered that about a million times.

Anyway, to drink I had a couple bottles of Spezial (1886) and a bottle of Newcastle (10396). I sat with the crowd and tried to not seem like too much of a weirdo. I petted the cat, a lot. I glared at my phone, a lot.

At one point I noticed that my table had become besieged by women. All that estrogen. I began to feel a strange urge to ask for directions and make doilies, so I moved to their new tiki bar and joined the guys. There, of course, everyone talked about hunting.

I came home at 10:00 or so. I sat on my swing and had a yummy Marzen (4585). And I glared at my phone, a lot.

Saturday, August 2, 2008
posted by dave at 6:12 PM in category daily, drink

Plans quickly changed, as they are so often wont to do.

Instead of HatGirl and I going to look at diamonds then having lunch, It ended up being HatGirl and LuckyFucker going to look at diamonds, then joining me for lunch. I was still invited to go to the diamond thing, but I didn't want to feel like a third wheel all day long.

So, suddenly finding myself with an extra hour to kill, I went to Sportstime. It had been a week since I'd been to the NABC complex, and I was hopeful that Marzen might finally be back on tap.

But nooooooo!

So instead I had myself a nice Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier (2554) and I talked to MisunderstoodGirl as she scurried between the kitchen and her assigned tables.

Then I went over to Buckhead in Jeffersonville. Actually, first I poked my head into the Hooters there to see if my cousin Jeff was there. He wasn't, so I went to Buckhead then.

HatGirl and LuckyFucker were, of course, late in arriving. I guess I'm used to that, and this time it wasn't their fault. A diamond emergency made them late.

Once they arrived, we sat out on the deck and ordered lunch. For some reason, even though there were about 10 open tables out there, the hostess sat us right next to the only other occupied table. It was really strange. It was also quite annoying, and HatGirl especially didn't like it. So we ended up picking up our shit and moving inside.

That HatGirl is so anti-social sometimes. That's why we get along so well I guess.

And one of the waitresses kept giving me the stink-eye. Probably one of MixedSignalGirl's friends. (About your height, Miss. Maybe about 32 years old. With long dark hair in a pony tail. She kinda looked familiar.)

Oh yeah, with my lunch I had a Franziskaner Hefe-Weissbier (24). I would have had a Paulaner, but they were out, the fuckers.

Then once lunch was over I stuck my head back into Hooters. Jeff was there this time, but he was surrounded by a bunch of high-fiving white guys, so I quickly said hello and then came home.

Wednesday, July 30, 2008
posted by dave at 9:35 PM in category drink

St. Bernardus Prior 8

(bottle) Hazy brown, decent head that lasts forever. The aroma is mild, fairly malty and funky. Flavor is sharp - more hoppy bitterness than I was expecting, or desiring. Underlying flavors are raisins and a hint of coffee. This beer wasn't what I was expecting at all. Decent is all I can say.

Monday, July 28, 2008
posted by dave at 10:23 PM in category drink

St. Bernardus Tripel

(bottle) Hazy gold. Large white head that was kind of a pain in the ass. A very nice aroma of citrus and spices and flowers. Mouthfeel was very fizzy. Flavor of apples and Belgian hops, but very well-balanced. The large yeast flakes at the bottom of the bottle really grossed me out. Still a damn fine beer.

Sunday, July 27, 2008
posted by dave at 11:13 PM in category drink

Lost Coast 8 Ball Stout

(bottle) Pours black, with a thin whitish head. Aroma and flavor of roasted malts and coffee. The coffee was very understated, so it didn't bother me at all. This is a very good malty stout. Extremely drinkable.

posted by dave at 7:58 AM in category daily, drink, ramblings

I wake up underwater. I'm asleep one second, then the next second I'm disoriented and drowning. Struggling to survive, wondering if I have the strength, wondering if it's worth it.

So, that's not a lot of fun.

---

I've mentioned before how I can't stand to be away from my phone, for fear that I might miss a call or an email or a text from someone important. As this past week has been especially dramatic, I've taken to having my phone shoved up my ass when I shower, just so I'm sure that I won't miss anything.

Then, yesterday afternoon, I went to get my empty trash can from the end of my driveway. I'd been sitting in my garage, contemplating shit, and I left my phone where it was. I even remember telling myself, "Self, you idiot. Now just watch you'll get a call while you're getting your precious trash can."

So then I walked to the end of my driveway and back, and looked at my phone, and the fucking thing was blinking.

I only dropped it twice, fumbling to enter the password, so I'm getting better at that.

---

I did get another call later on. MixedSignalGirl called to check on me and say hello. We talked for an hour or so. I really screwed up with her, but she's happy now, and that's all that matters.

---

Then I got to go on a Super Top Secret Mission of Mystery, fraught with peril. It was fun, and there were no hitches. It was all very sneaky and clandestine. I wish we'd have worn ninja costumes, though. That would have been cool.

---

When I got back home, I sat on my swing and had about a bottle and a half of Left Hand Goosinator (115) and thought about the past and the future.

Not the present, though.

Fuck the present.

---

Friday night I rated my 496th beer. I've been thinking a lot about my 500th rating, which will probably happen this week. I want it to be something crappy, just because I think it would be funnier that way.

Because LaptopGirl is my official swill consultant, I have charged her with selecting the beer that will be my 500th. She suggested Lone Star. That's a good choice, though I'm not sure if I can get it around here. Her backup suggestion is Sapporo.

(Update: Her emergency fallback selection is MGD.)

(Update again: Or Mad Dog. I see her evil plan now. She's trying to drown me in swill. One way to get rid of me, I suppose, but there are more humane methods. I bet the Geneva Convention strictly prohibits drowning-by-swill.)

Anyway, I guess that's it.

Saturday, July 26, 2008
posted by dave at 8:03 AM in category drink, ramblings

I suppose that last night was one of those damn average nights at Rich O's. Better than I expected it to be, worse than I wanted it to be, the whole night just pretty much existed, and that was it.

I actually went there twice last night. I went after work, for about 30 seconds. Then I went back at 9:00 or so.

It's wasn't too crowded. I was able to grab a seat at the kiddie table fairly quickly. I had a Delirium Tremens (1394), and I talked to PlantDude, and I watched the door.

Fast-forward an hour or so, and the only thing that had changed was that I was having a new beer.

Grado Plato Strada San Felice

(draft) Not at all what I was expecting, as it was listed as "chestnut amber" on the beer board at Rich O's. Clear reddish amber in color. A pretty decent head that lasted throughout the glass. A faint fruity aroma - maybe cherries. Mouthfeel was medium-thick and clean. Flavor was very well-balanced. Malts and dark fruits and a tinge of hoppy bitterness. The finish was surprisingly fruity. A damn good beer.
Fast-forward another hour or so, and I was having a Diet Coke.

After I got home at 11:30, I sat on my swing for several hours. I began composing a journal entry in my head. It was a good entry, I thought, but it was also a familiar entry. Too familiar.

Turns out I'd already written the damn thing, back in early 2007. The original version of this entry was much more rambling than the version I wrote in my head last night, but this last part was exactly the same.

The question was Why is it better to love and lose, than to never love at all?

Because sometimes, like maybe once in a lifetime if you're lucky, you don't lose.

Because sometimes, you get to love and you get to win.

To love is to open yourself to that possibility. To surrender yourself to that possibility of happiness. To allow yourself to have hopes, and dreams, and to imagine just how incredibly wonderful life could be.

If only.

This time.

I could be loved back.

Then I would win.

That hope, that trumps everything else. All of the pain. All of the heartache. All of the disappointment and the depression and the suicidal thoughts.

Hope is what separates us from the animals. Hope is what makes us human. So we keep looking. Even after failure after dismal failure, we keep looking for hope.

And, when we find ourselves in love, we also find the hope that's been buried so deeply within us that we almost forgot it existed. Love unearths it, and breathes new live into it, and resurrects it.

It takes over.

Nothing else matters.

Nothing else exists.

We become hope.

And I can't think of a loftier goal.

Someday, I hope to love and win.

Wednesday, July 23, 2008
posted by dave at 7:07 PM in category drink

Today, I caved on the whole beer thing. I had myself a Stupid Arrogant Bastard (66). I actually ordered it like that, with capitalization and everything.

It wasn't too bad. I might even like it if they'd take out half the hops.

But then I did something stupid. I'd bought two bottles of Stone Smoked Porter to bring home, and I totally forgot them when I left.

And now I can't seem to motivate myself to go back and get them.

(Update: Okay, so I went back and got my beers. Never before have I moved so qiuckly - I bet I was in and out of there in less than a minute.)

posted by dave at 1:38 PM in category daily, drink

So today was probably the last AlliDay ever. Though I guess there may be one more, next week. AlliGirl is changing shifts and won't be working Wednesday day-shift anymore.

Wednesday. What a boring word that is. And, from now on, it will probably be a boring day.

My Newcastle (10200), by the way, was yummy.

Sunday, July 13, 2008
posted by dave at 10:22 PM in category daily, drink

Crap crapity crap!

So there I was, sitting on my swing and enjoying a lovely Malheur 10 (96). Counting lightning bugs, glaring at my phone, whistling for the neighbor's dog.

I was having a nice night, but then something horrible happened.

My fancy Gulden Draak glass, still almost full of yummy beer, suddenly leapt from its position between my thighs and flung itself onto the bricks at my feet.

Shattered, into a hundred pieces. The beer draining into the spaces between the bricks before I could even think of getting my tongue down there.

It all happened so fast.

Why? Why did my glass take its own life like that?

*sniff* I didn't even get a chance to say goodbye.

I wish I'd known that something was wrong.

I wish I'd known what danger signs to look for.

And I definitely fucking wish it had waited until it was empty, instead of taking ten ounces of yummy Malheur 10 with it.

Such a waste.

Wednesday, July 9, 2008
posted by dave at 2:16 PM in category daily, drink, travel

I was up to Saturday night with these ramblings, and then I stopped. I don't know why I stopped. Because, after all, absolutely nothing happened Saturday night. I myself stayed home and made gift baskets for orphans all night long.

If you think that anything happened Saturday night, then you're clearly smoking crack and you should seek professional help.

---

So then Sunday I ended up going to Don Pablo's for dinner. I got to see NotHideousGirl for the first time in a million years, and I got to eat yummy food. So there.

Then I went across the street to Hooters and had some Newcastles (10008) and talked to this one dude I went to school with.

You may notice that I passed 10,000 ounces of Newcastle. This doesn't count, though, because I was supposed to save that occasion for AlliDay. I screwed up, and it was only because AlliGirl is so nice that I was given a do-over.

---

Let's see, Monday night I had one of the new beers that I'd bought Saturday at Barley Island.

Barley Island Bourbon Barrel-Aged Oatmeal Stout

(bottle) Black with thin tan head. Mild aroma of bourbon. Medium mouthfeel. Flavor more intense and bourbony that the aroma had hinted. As an oatmeal stout, there isn't much flavor except for the bourbon. Pretty good, though gimmicky.
So that was pretty good.

Then yesterday after work I had another new beer for me.

Victory Golden Monkey

(draft) Pours clear and golden with a large long-lasting head. Nice aroma of apple peels and malts. Smooth and creamy mouthfeel. Flavor more malty than most tripels, maybe some caramel in there that coats the mouth. Quite damn good.
One of the most pleasant surprises I've had in a long time, beer-wise.

---

And then today, for AlliDay, I had my official 10,000th ounce of Newcastle (10028). There was a big party with balloons and dancing girls. It was fantastic.

Okay, what really happened was that AlliGirl bought my beer for me and gave me a hug. Still pretty damn cool, though.

---

The dude I talked to Sunday reminded me that my high school reunion is approaching in less than three weeks. I guess I don't care. I had originally planned to go, but I don't want to go by myself.

So, basically, waaaaah!

---

Tomorrow I go to Atlanta. It might be fun, but I doubt that I'll find myself in Atlanta, either.

Monday, July 7, 2008
posted by dave at 10:07 AM in category daily, drink, pictures, travel

Now, where was I?

Oh yeah, at the stupid depressing park.

I'd gone there, as I'd gone to Polly's Freeze earlier, looking for myself.

I wasn't at either place. I remember running into myself once a long time ago. At Rich O's of all places. That was nice, but that was also the last time.

Anyway, by the time I'd returned home from the floodwall park, it was clear to me that there was a 0% chance that anything good would happen Friday night. Understandable, but of course disappointing. Because of this, I saw no reason to bother leaving my house at all. So that's precisely what I didn't do at all. Instead, I sat on my swing and I glared at my phone and I had three yummy bottles of Delirium Nocturnum (157), and that was it.

Then by Saturday at around noon, I'd once again gleaned that there was a 0% chance of anything good happening. Still understandable, still disappointing. But whereas on Friday that 0% had caused me to lose all motivation, on Saturday I couldn't run out the door and jump into my truck fast enough.

Luckily, I always carry a spare pair of pants in my truck, for times such as that. When I don't want to waste time putting on pants before I leave my house.

What I did, and this really was a spur of the moment decision, was I drove up to Noblesville, Indiana. To the Barley Island brewpub, specifically. Just something to do, really. I might just as well have picked Oaken Barrel, as it's slightly closer to home, but I had Barley Island on my mind because LaptopGirl had been raving about their Barfly IPA.

The drive up took a couple of hours. It was uneventful, though I felt bad because I kept getting emails but I was driving and couldn't type my responses very well. I managed to survive the drive* though. I even managed to respond to some of the emails, when the traffic and the rain let up enough.

The first thing I noticed, upon entering the brewpub, was that it was really dark. Like being inside a cave at midnight with my eyes closed and a bag over my head. But then my eyes started to adjust, and I was able to grope and stumble my way, around a bunch of empty tables and up an unfortunately-placed step, to the bar area.

I only took one picture, and it's a pretty crappy picture, even by my standards.

Barley Island

The first thing I did, after seating myself, was order a trio of small samples, of the three available draft selections that I hadn't had before.

Barley Island Sheet Metal Blonde

(draft) Color of hazy grapefruit juice. Light citrus aroma. Very light citrus flavor, with a bit of sourness, like grapefruit juice. Good, not great.
Okay, a Belgian-style wheat. Always welcome.

Barley Island Blind Tiger Pale Ale

(draft) Clear light brown. No detectable aroma or flavor. There was a slightly bitter hoppy finish, but not enough to be completely disgusting. A waste of my time.
I only had about one ounce of that crap.

Barley Island Barfly IPA

(draft) The color of clear weak tea. Light aroma of floral hops. Medium mouthfeel. Flavor decent but mild. The slightly bitter finish went away after a few sips. Maybe a good session beer.
Yet another IPA, but this one was with the floral kind of hops that I like sometimes. This was the beer that LaptopGirl had been raving about since she'd discovered it at the beer date thingy last weekend.

I went ahead and ordered a full glass of the Barfly (20), and enjoyed that with my yummy burger and fries. I traded a bunch more emails with LaptopGirl, and a few with RockGirl.

I relaxed fairly well I suppose, but I could already tell that I wouldn't be staying. I guess I'd been hoping to find myself, up there away from all of the distractions of home. But I wasn't there, either. I'm still a slippery bastard I guess.

So next I had a Dirty Helen (400), which is one of my favorite brown ales. And then I had something I wasn't expecting. The place had a couple of guest beers available, and one of those guest beers was an all-time favorite of mine. So my last beer was an incredibly yummy Two Brothers Domaine DuPage French Style Country Ale (310).

Before I left, I bought a couple of bottles to have at home sometime. I also picked up a growler of the Barfly for LaptopGirl.

The drive home was uneventful.

* - Poet and don't know it.

Sunday, June 29, 2008
posted by dave at 10:17 PM in category daily, dreams, drink

First, I had got to do some stuff for work. There were three things to do, and I got two of them done. The third thing showed some potential problems during final testing, so I decided to put it off until I can research it some more. Because I'm all about quality control and shit.

Then, I took a nap. I dreamed about LaptopGirl, probably because she emailed me and woke me up right at that precise moment when I was about to drift off to sleep. Anyway, it wasn't a very good dream, because LaptopGirl was mean to me in the dream, and in the dream I got angry at her. Then when I woke up I was still angry at her for a while. Stupid, I know.

Then HatGirl and LuckyFucker came over for a while.

HatGirl!

Yay!

I took about 800 pictures of them. Standing in front of a tree. Sitting on my swing. Standing in front of another tree. I have no idea why HatGirl chose me to take the pictures. But it was still fun to pretend that I had a clue about what I was doing.

(Deleted)

Then, I went to Hooters and had a couple glasses of Newcastle (9910) and watched some baseball on TV.

Then, I came home.

There's still a chance that HatGirl and I will test my video chat capabilities tonight, but it's getting pretty late so probably not.

posted by dave at 8:40 AM in category drink

So after Friday night's swillfest, I knew that I'd want to return to my roots on Saturday night. I got to Rich O's at 8:00 or so. It was only about half-full, so that was nice. I sat in the throne and talked to some people about some stuff.

Two glasses of Schlenkerla Marzen (4130) later, I was still sitting in the throne talking to some people about some stuff.

It was a nice evening, except that my stupid email on my Blackberry has been broken since Saturday morning. At least I think it's broken. Every time I send an email with the thing, I get an error back saying that the recipient doesn't exist. This causes me great concern, because I'd certainly prefer that they exist.

Some of my emails seem to go through anyway, but I can't be sure if they're all making it.

Anyway, I left Rich O's at 10:15 or so and went to Sluttopia. I talked with my Uncle Wayne for a while, then sat and had a glass and a half of Newcastle (9870). I'd tried to talk LaptopGirl and BigWheelGirl into coming to Sluttopia, but they declined. So there was really no point in me staying there. I went back to Rich O's for a couple of minutes, then went to Jack's. Nobody I knew was at Jack's, so I came home.

It was a warm night outside, so I sat out on my swing, drinking Diet Cokes and contemplating the universe. I stayed out there until 5:00, only coming inside long enough to post a couple of strange blog entries.

Saturday, June 28, 2008
posted by dave at 2:27 PM in category daily, drink

Friday night, LaptopGirl and I went to this Bier Prost 2008 thingy at our local riverboat casino complex. I insisted on calling this a date. LaptopGirl insisted that it was merely a thingy. But then I guess her mom said it was a date. So there. Majority rules.

I don't think that either of us was at all sure what to expect there. The flyer said something like, "Beer and food from around the world." So that sounded cool. right? I guess I was expecting it to be more beery than it was. I mean, they had a bunch of tubs with bottles of beer in them. We got cute little ceramic sample cups that would hold about two ounces of beer. Then we'd walk around and ask the bored people working the tubs for whatever we wanted.

None of those people knew about or cared about beer. The only brewery representatives there were from NABC.

It was like the people running the event just went out to a liquor store and bought a bunch of bottles and then put them in tubs full of ice. Even the other attendees seemed to be there just for the charity aspect.

But most disappointing to me was the food. It was just like they called some caterer and said we want some various stuff, and that's all they got.

But the point of the thing, for the people running it, wasn't beer and it wasn't food. It was some charity thing that I never heard of before. So they obviously wanted to save costs wherever they could.

The point of the thing for me, of course, wasn't beer or food either. It was to get to spend some time with LaptopGirl away from Rich O's. And that goal was very well satisfied.

Anyway, I did have some beers. Most of these were just 2-ounce samples. Here are the ones that were new to me:

Barley Island Flat Top Wheat

(bottle) Fizzy, with a nice aroma and a pretty good taste. Very light. More like a Belgian wheat than an American or German wheat. Pretty good. I'll look for this.
Grimbergen Dubbel
(bottle) Dark brown with a nice head. Aroma of dark fruits and maybe some chocolate. The flavor was surprisingly good to me. I will definitely look for this again. Probably today.
Grimbergen Blonde
(bottle) Usually I know to steer clear of any beer calling itself a blonde, but this was listed as a Belgian Triple in the flyer, so I tried it. I liked it. There was nothing outstanding about it, but neither was there anything wrong with it. Maybe a watered-down Delirium tremens. Good.
Singha
(bottle) Straw and other dead weeds, in both the aroma and the flavor. Not very hoppy. Not very much of anything. Disgusting.
Hansa Pils
(can) Pretty metallic. Quite gross. I don't think that even people who like lagers would like this.
KEO
(can) Just gross. Smelled of rotten hops, and tasted very metallic. It tasted to me like it was skunked. Suprisingly bad.
Okocim Porter
(bottle) I know I'd had this before, but I'd never reviewed it. As a Baltic Porter, it of course reminds me of my beloved Baltika 6. Dark and roasty and chocolatey. Just a touch of alcohol burn at the finish makes me want more right away. Good.
After the thingy was over, we walked down to the actual riverboat casino and looked around for a couple of minutes. Then we went to the Legends bar to sit and talk some more. We each had another beer, in a full-sized glass this time.

Then we came back to New Albany, and LaptopGirl got this sudden intense craving to stop and eat at this one place I'd never been to before called Waffle House. Anxious to prolong the evening as much as I could, I readily agreed. So we sat and talked some more while she got something to eat, then I took her home and then I came home myself.

It was a really fun night for me. Kinda surreal, but really fun.

Sunday, June 22, 2008
posted by dave at 7:24 PM in category daily, drink, pictures, weather

So today I went to Jeffersonville.

First time in a couple of years, I think, that I've graced that town with my presence. At least on my own - I seem to recall going to Buckhead for lunch with some coworkers more recently.

Buckhead is where I went today, of course. I like the food there. I like the memories that resurface there. And they usually have good beer, too.

I sat out on the deck, oddly optimistic that it wouldn't rain while I was eating, and I enjoyed a yummy Cajun burger and a Paulaner Hefeweissbier (551) in a plastic cup.

It was very nice out today, as long as it was cloudy. As soon as the Sun would come out from behind the clouds - as happened several times - I'd almost immediately start being roasted alive.

But, it was usually cloudy, and so I survived.

Then, I went across the street to Hooters to see my cousin Jeff. I haven't seen him since my nephew's funeral, but that's not entirely my fault. He has agreed to share a lot of the blame.

Anyway, here's a picture of the potential storm that rolled in right after I got to Hooters.

maybe stormy

All that storm really did was dump rain. It cooled things off, though, so that was nice.

While I was at Hooters, I had a couple glasses of Newcastle (9808) while I talked with Jeff. Then I went to Sluttopia to meet up with some old guy who was going to loan me a guitar, but he was a no-show. Damn old people. They can't be trusted for shit.

And that was it. Now I'm back home, wondering what happened to my weekend.

posted by dave at 12:06 PM in category drink

I was really bored for most of the day yesterday. I watched a couple of movies and shot some pool, and that was about it. At about 6:00 I went to Rich O's. It was quite early to be going there, but I thought I might be leaving early, so then it would all even out.

It was pretty dead in there. Kind of a typical Summer Saturday night. So I was able to grab the throne after just a few minutes. I sat there all night. I had three Delirium Tremens (1350), over the course of about four hours, then I switched to Diet Cokes. I traded some emails with RockGirl and LaptopGirl. I talked to PearlGirl in person, and I talked to WeirdGirl on the phone.

Once PearlGirl left, still fairly early, the place was a sausagefest for the rest of the night. Just me and some PBDs sitting around yammering about various nonsense.

I did manage to always keep at least one eye on the door, but nobody interesting ever came in. So that was disappointing.

When they closed-up and kicked everybody out, I came home. I was going to go to White Castle, but I forgot.

Oh yeah, some AWOL guy let me try a sample from his bottle of mead. It was gross.

Saturday, June 21, 2008
posted by dave at 9:11 AM in category drink

I wasn't really planning to go to Rich O's last night. I also wasn't planning to not go. I was just going to wait and see if I was invited. Because I'd already screwed things up Thursday night, I didn't expect any such invitation.

So I was trying to take a nap. I'd just been woken up, actually, by a text message from MusicalYuppieDude telling me that it was "fuckin loud" at Rich O's. Then a few seconds later, my brother-in-law called to invite me down to Rich O's.

Okay, so not the invitation I'd been wondering about, but a welcome one nevertheless. I threw some clothes on and went.

Upon arrival, I immediately saw the source of the noise that MusicalYuppieDude had complained about. There were a half-dozen drunken idiots over at the bar. Lucky for me, Dina and Kenny were at the island, so I was able to join them and pretty much ignore the noise. Pretty much.

I had a Schlenkerla Marzen (3972) and a little pizza and I talked with Dina and Kenny for an hour or so. LaptopGirl came in and, after some gentle coaxing, talked with us briefly. So Dina got to met LaptopGirl, finally. She had, I'm sure, suspected that I'd just made her up. Like she used to think I'd made HatGirl up.

Speaking of HatGirl, at about the time I ordered my second Marzen (3989) HatGirl texted me that she might be coming to Rich O's. This was a huge relief for me, because I was very seriously dreading what would happen to my mood when Dina and Kenny went home and I was left alone in that crowded room.

I could feel the stirrings of an anxiety attack. It was going to be Thursday night all over again, and there wasn't a damn thing I could do about it.

Anyway, after Dina and Kenny left, and a million PBDs stole my seat at the island, I sat at the bar and tried to contain myself while I waited for HatGirl. I had a third Marzen (4006). I went outside and got some air about a million times.

When HatGirl arrived, I was in a pretty crappy mood. But HatGirl was also in a crappy mood (probably not for the same reason) so it all worked out. We were crappy together.

After I'd finished my Marzen, I had what was left of HatGirl's Delirium Tremens (1317). By the time HatGirl left, LaptopGirl was already long gone, so I just sat at the bar drinking a Diet Coke for another hour or so and waited for my hands to stop shaking.

It was a better night than I'm making it out to be. It certainly could have been worse. Like after I got home I managed to install my new toilet thingy without somehow burning my house down. So that was cool.

Friday, June 20, 2008
posted by dave at 4:51 PM in category daily, drink

Please sit down before reading this.

I'll wait.

Okay.

Today, get this, I actually left my house on a day off work!

I know, unbelievable. But true nevertheless.

After spending the first half of the day thinking up creative ways to kill myself*, I suddenly found myself energized this afternoon. This was a good thing, because I had important and pressing shit I needed to do:

1. Buy a toilet thingy, because my old thingy broke.

2. Buy some water-softener salt.

3. See what new DVDs were at Wal-mart.

So I did the first thing, then I skipped the second thing and went to Wal-mart. While I was buying some new movies, and contemplating going back home to preheat my head at about 400 degrees*, my phone rang.

HatGirl!

Yay!

So instead of offing myself*, I ended up going to Louisville to have lunch with HatGirl. It was, of course, very nice. though this is now twice in less than a week that I've had lunch with HatGirl. I may be becoming spoiled. I may just start showing up at her house to demand, "What are we eating?"

Anyway, I didn't eat anything today. I had a Breckenridge Porter (146) though. It was good. And the company was so good that I didn't need to eat.

And AlliGirl got to meet HatGirl, and vice-versa.

Then we went upstairs to check out some bar prospects for HatGirl's bachelorette party. Because AlliGirl might be able to get HatGirl and her friends in for free.

HatGirl begged and cried*, but I had to put my foot down and tell her that I wasn't available to be the stripper at her party.

Then I went and took care of item number two from above, then I came home.

Fun!

* - Not really.

posted by dave at 12:14 AM in category drink, ramblings

I see, looking back, that it's been over a month and a half since I last reviewed a new beer. This is inexcusable, but the excuse that I'm going to use is that Schlenkerla Marzen has been readily available at Rich O's, and so I've been drinking a lot of that.

Well, tonight was a bust at Rich O's, in several ways, so now I find myself sitting at home almost stone-sober. This can not stand. So I've broken into my 'fridge and am now imbibing a new beer for me. I even took a picture of the thing.

Slaapmutske

Slaapmutske Triple Nightcap

Hazy dark yellow. Decent head that faded rather quickly. Much more yeasty aroma than others of this style, quite intriguing, though. Mouthfeel a little thin, but standard for the style. Flavor pretty much what the aroma had led me to believe. Apples and yeasts, and some spices in there as well. Pretty goddamn good. I will definitely have more of this.
Anyway.

Tonight was, like I said, a bust at Rich O's. There were several reasons for this. First, I had a glass of New Holland Dragon's Milk (104) in honor of HatGirl, who couldn't make it. I've liked the Dragon's Milk okay in the past, but tonight it just didn't sit well with me at all. It seemed a lot stronger than I remembered. I barely finished the 10-ounce pour.

Next, I tried to drink a Smithwick's, but I couldn't finish the glass (1724). It wasn't helping at all.

The other reason that tonight was a bust was that I, once again, managed to forget what's really important to me. I get so fucking selfish sometimes, I forget almost everything besides my own wants and my own needs. Like those things ever mattered in the least.

I forget that this is all real now, present-tense, and that my actions and my behaviour can have very real consequences.

I ended up coming home at 9:30 or so, and then managed to make matters worse by spending a good part of the next hour and a half flinging giant greasy turds into spinning fan blades.

I hope I can be forgiven. And, if not, then I hope I can forgive myself.

Wednesday, June 18, 2008
posted by dave at 10:59 PM in category drink, pictures

My AlliDay lunch started out on a sour note for me, but it got better.

First, the Newcastle keg blew as AlliGirl was starting to pour it.

Slightly undaunted, I asked for a Breckenridge Vanilla Porter.

That keg blew as well.

I figured I'd go ahead and go for the trifecta, so I asked for a Young's Double Chocolate Stout.

Imagine my surprised relief when AlliGirl was able to pour me a full glass (500). It was very good.

Also, AlliGirl has agreed to help me test my video chat capability. I guess she's not afraid of seeing my dick, like everyone else. So, yay for AlliGirl! Way to be brave!

Now all I have to do is find my old webcam and microphone for her, then we should be able to video chat. Wait, maybe she'll need chat software as well.

Anyway, here's a picture I took today. It looked cooler in person.

up through some glass

Sunday, June 15, 2008
posted by dave at 11:30 PM in category drink

Of course I could have just gone back to Dina's. And maybe I should have. It would have been the brotherly thing to do, if nothing else.

But see, the thing was, I hadn't seen LaptopGirl in a million bazillion asstillion years, and there was a chance that she might go to Rich O's. So, that's where I went.

I guess I got there a little before 9:00. It was pretty dead - kind of a typical Summer Saturday night. Fine with me. The throne was open, so I sat there and talked with PirateDude and a couple of his friends for a bit.

My first beer was an NABC Flat Tyre (969). This choice, as it turned out, was stupid.

After PirateDude and his friends left, I was alone in the living room. Just the way I like it. But then these two uberhot blonde girls showed up. That was nice of them.

MusicalYuppieDude came and joined us shortly afterwards. In fact, for the rest of the night there was a fairly constant stream of guys coming to sniff around at the uberhot blondes.

My next beer was a Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier (2390). It was good, but at about the time I got it, I found out that Marzen was on tap.

D'oh!

So I spent the next hour or so just vegging out. I talked to the uberhot blondes for a bit, but my heart wasn't really in it.

I did have a Marzen (3816) for my next beer. OMG it was yummy. I let one of the uberhot blondes have a sip. I don't think she liked it, but VPs almost never like smoked beer.

At 11:00 or so, LaptopGirl showed up, and so of course I promptly forgot about the uberhot blonde girls. I think they were still there, though, because random guys kept sniffing around and the air became tainted with testosterone.

I talked to LaptopGirl for an hour or so.

Yay!

Some ugly old bitch plagiarized her shit. That sucked.

We supposedly split a Guinness, but I ended up drinking most of the thing in one gulp (1869). I was thirsty.

Then somebody suggested that we all go to Jack's. I wouldn't have bothered, but LaptopGirl wanted to go. So we went to Jack's, and LaptopGirl and I "split" a Miller High Life( 8).

Then LaptopGirl got bored, so I walked her back to her car, and we each went to our respective houses.

---

I used to do this thing where I'd migrate between rooms and beds throughout the night. I haven't done it in months, though. But last night I went to sleep in my master bedroom and woke up in my guest room It's kinda scary, that sleepwalking thing. I hope it's not going to become a regular habit again.

Saturday, June 14, 2008
posted by dave at 9:33 AM in category drink

I liked Friday night, for the most part. I was in an inexplicably good mood. One that didn't change to the more familiar feeling of foreboding until I was walking into Rich O's. So that was cool.

They were having a sausage festival in the living room area. I needed to eat so I sat at the kiddie table. Before I'd even ordered my beer and pizza, ArtGirl came in and joined me. That was really nice of her, and very good timing.

So I sat with ArtGirl for the next couple of hours, talking about various stuff. I had a couple pints of NABC Cone Smoker (4158) and then about half a pint of NABC Flat Tyre (949).

Once ArtGirl dumped me to go talk to FutureDude, I was faced with a choice. I could either (a) join the continuing sausage festival, or (b) go home, or (c) stay at the kiddie table and stare at the door on the off-chance that LaptopGirl would show up.

I ended up going home, and apparently missing LaptopGirl by about five minutes. So that sucked.

What's kinda funny is that, if ArtGirl hadn't dumped me and I'd stayed for five more minutes, I'd have dumped her to talk to LaptopGirl.

Friday, June 6, 2008
posted by dave at 1:33 AM in category daily, drink

So the other day I was asked to provide an example of my weirdness. I provided an example at that time, and I wrote about it here.

And now, at great risk to my already fragile reputation, I will now give another example of my weirdness.

This was Wednesday night. I got this really stupid fantasy in my head. I was sitting out on my swing, enjoying a lovely Marzen (3579), and I thought that my phone might ring. Never mind that it was very late at night - it was my really stupid fantasy, and so the time was pretty much irrelevant.

Anyway, my phone never rang. So I got more and more antsy about it, and I did something stupid.

I sent an email.

Surely, I thought, Surely now my phone will ring to either indicate an incoming email or a text message or a phone call.

But alas, my phone sat silent beside me on my swing. Mocking me with its silence. My phone is so mean sometimes.

Then, at about 2:30 in the morning, I began to feel tired. I needed to go into my house and get some sleep, but I still had that really stupid fantasy in my head. And in that really stupid fantasy, see, I was outside when my phone rang. So, I figured, if I went inside my house, I'd be giving up on my really stupid fantasy.

Well, I didn't want to give up on the thing. It was a nice really stupid fantasy. I didn't want to go into my house and go to bed and give up on it.

So, brilliant tactician that I am, I went and got my tent and my sleeping bag and my pillow. I set up camp in my backyard, and I slept out there.

Weird, right?

But I never gave up on my really stupid fantasy. Because I'm all stubborn and shit.

Monday, May 26, 2008
posted by dave at 11:50 PM in category daily, drink

I think today was kinda boring. It must have been because I can't remember any of it.

Hold on a second while I scour my brain...

Okay, found some things.

First, my guilt-induced insomnia really played havoc with me Sunday night and into Monday morning. I bet I got three whopping hours of sleep. So that sucked.

Then some crap exciting and challenging activities I was doing for work finally finished, so I was able to stop checking my computer every 10 minutes. So that was cool.

All day long I was starving, yet totally unmotivated to get dressed and leave my house. I just saw no point in it. I see no point in much these days. At about 5:00, however, I noticed that I was almost out of Diet Coke, so I showered, grudgingly put on some clothes, and exited the premises. Because there's no way I'd be able to get up in the morning without my caffeine.

I drove my Monte Carlo (the day's predicted tornado stampede never materialized) to Red Lobster for dinner. My phone rang when I was on the way. It was StupidGirl! Yay! She's so nice. She wanted to wish me a happy Memorial Day because I'm a veteran. Of course, I'm not a dead veteran, but it was the thought that counted.

At Red Lobster, I had my usual yummy food. So that was cool. And I texted OddlyFamiliarGirl in case she was working, but I guess she wasn't.

Then I went to Hooters and had a couple glasses of Newcastle (9618). I traded a few million emails with RockGirl. Then I came home.

I've been watching a bunch of tivoed episodes of The Alaska Experiment.

Now I want to move back to Alaska. I liked it there, except for it being a nonstop statewide sausage festival. It was pretty, except for all the sausages.

Sunday, May 25, 2008
posted by dave at 8:38 PM in category daily, drink

Okay, so after my last entry, I remembered that I was bored, so I left my house.

I went to Polly's Freeze for dinner. Some dipshits had my table, but I got over it.

When I was waiting for my food, there was this old woman standing nearby, also waiting for her food. She kinda looked like the mother of a childhood friend of mine, except much older.

"Excuse me Ma'am, are you Brian's great-great-great-great-great-grandmother, by any chance?" I asked.

"I'm his mother," she conceded.

So I told her who I was, and that it was good to see her. I'm pretty sure that she even remembered me. Weird how she's managed to age a quarter-century since I last saw her, a quarter-century ago. I'm sure it's my fault somehow.

But seriously, it was cool to see her. I always worry about people dying. I'm glad she didn't.

Interestingly enough, her son Brian was the model for one of my youngest sister's imaginary childhood friends. For about six months after this one day when Brian came down to our house to play, my sister Neisha was always, "Brian this," and "Brian that." it was quite cute, actually. Her other imaginary friend was named Rakis and I always figured that she'd heard the word rapist on TV or something.

After I left Polly's, I went down to Sluttopia for a Newcastle (9578). I might have stayed for another one but this one drunk kept mumbling to me about the race that was on TV. He kept saying, "Aaarg yuuurg blarr farrrrrrrr uttttt," which I think translates as, "Look at them make all those fucking left turns."

I soon realized that I was just as bored at Sluttopia as I'd be at my house. I also realized that there weren't any mumbling drunk NASCAR fans at my house. So I came home.

Saturday, May 17, 2008
posted by dave at 1:02 AM in category daily, drink

Thursday was okay. I went to Rich O's, because I was taking Friday off. All the regular Thursday weirdoes were there encamped in the living room, plus there was an art show, so there were art show weirdoes scampering about as well. I ended up having two pints of NABC Cone Smoker (3833) while I talked with OddlyFamiliarGirl. She distracted me from all the weirdoes, so that was cool.

Then today I developed this overwhelming feeling that something terrible is either happening or about to happen. Even now, several hours later, I can't shake this feeling. I remind myself that I'm not psychic, and that helps a little, but there's still a very strong urge to go hole-up in my basement for a couple of years.

Tonight was my niece's 21st birthday party thingy. We started out at Hard Rock, and then AlliGirl did a fantastic job of hooking everyone up at Rock Bar. They got full V.I.P. treatment, and my niece totally deserved it.

Also, AlliGirl totally disappeared at around 11:00.

Weird.

Oh yeah, I had a Newcastle (9516) in a plastic cup from the Pub.

Monday, May 12, 2008
posted by dave at 1:05 AM in category drink, ramblings

Sometimes I say things or, more rarely, do things. Things that might not be totally selfless. Things that, on the surface at least, aren't obviously bad, but that are still at least a little bit suspect.

Why did he just say that? people might ask.

What does he mean? people might wonder.

What's he doing now? people might question.

I think it's usually subconscious for me, when I do some of the things I do, and say some of the things I say. I mean, I don't hardly ever intend to do/say these things - they just happen. And then, once they've happened, I'm fucking glad that they did.

I was thinking tonight about certainty.

Some synonyms: assurance, certitude, confidence, conviction, positiveness, surety

Some antonyms: ambiguity, doubt, hesitation, questionableness, tergiversation

It seems to me that we all go through our lives with an almost unbearable amount of uncertainty. Our jobs, our families, our friends, our lovers - none are open books. All harbor secrets or, if not really secrets, at least knowledge that hasn't been uncovered. Questions that haven't been answered or even, in many cases, asked.

Will this last?

What does that mean?

Have I blown it?

What just happened?

Sometimes, I do things or say things. Things that, I hope, either reduce or, ideally, eliminate uncertainty about the way that I feel. And why I feel the way that I feel. About the way that I intend and expect to always feel, forever and ever.

Purposeful or not, intentional or not, planned or not, these things that I sometimes do and say - they all have at their core the one thing that's the most important to me as I struggle to keep my head above water through these turbulent times.

They are all the absolute truth.

If, for example, I say that I always want to see a certain person then that's exactly what it means. There's no ambiguity in the word always. It means what it means, Weird and unsettling as it may be, it's still the absolute truth. It's still a certainty.

I've spent so much time without any certainty about the things that are most important to me. I hate hate hate fucking hate the thought of some people being uncertain as to my intentions, or my feelings, or my motives.

I fucking hate that thought. So sometimes I say things, and sometimes I do things. Things that just might help to clarify things, to answer some of those nagging yet unasked questions.

In case you haven't figured it out yet, I'm in a weird mood. I can thank New Holland Night Tripper (68) for this mood.

Sunday, May 11, 2008
posted by dave at 8:06 PM in category drink

To be honest, I don't remember an awful lot about Saturday night between about 7:00 and about 11:00. But I'll start writing anyway and maybe it'll all come rushing back to me.

---

After LaptopGirl left, I think that was about when I started my fourth Dirty Helen. (322). I'd been considering maybe possibly thinking about going to Louisville, but that fourth beer pretty much put that idea on hold. Not that I really wanted to go anyway. LaptopGirl might come back, she'd said.

I'd somehow managed to grab the throne. I don't remember moving there. LaptopGirl and I'd sat on the loveseat when she was there.

Anyway, I was on the throne, just kind of vegging out. Then NotHideousGirl came in. It was very cool to see her, arm in a sling and all.

I didn't word that correctly. The sling part wasn't cool. I meant to say that it was cool to see her despite the sling.

At one point, MusicalYuppieDude came in. I think that was about when I ordered my fifth Dirty Helen (342).

So the three of us talked about random bullshit. The place was pretty dead - just the way I like it. I don't think anyone bothered us except this one dude that's always mooching cigarettes off everyone.

I switched to Diet Cokes at about 8:30 or so. I still felt fine, actually. I just knew that another beer would result in my not feeling fine. So I cut myself off.

Then, at about 10:00, I had an interesting phone conversation. At 10:30 or so, I left Rich O's to go to Louisville.

And then some stuff happened, and some other stuff didn't happen.

For one thing, I got pee on me.

posted by dave at 3:17 PM in category daily, drink, pictures

You don't have to tell me that it's kinda silly for me to be here now. And by here I mean the red room at Rich O's, and by now I mean 3:30 on a beautiful Saturday afternoon. You don't have to tell me, because I sort of already know it. But what I also know is that I've got a damn good reason for being here. Now.

I'm supposed to meet LaptopGirl here at 5:00, to tell her something which she already knows. Not that one thing which she already knows, silly. Another thing. I need to tell her that her computer is probably on its last legs.

Anyway, I got bored at home and I didn't want to start anything new at 3:00, so I came down here instead. And now I'm sitting and writing and enjoying a Barley Island Dirty Helen (262). But mostly, I'm waiting. I do that a lot, it seems.

So this morning, after I took care of some bullshit exciting challenges for work, I took my Monte Carlo to get its oil changed. That wasn't particularly interesting except that this one dude kept bugging me to sell my car to him. Not gonna happen, OilChangeDude, so back the fuck off.

After that, I drove around for a while. I checked out the new NABC brewery location. Not much to see except for this one temporary banner thingy. I took a picture:

NABC Banner Thingy

Then I went down to the other side of the floodwall and looked at the river for a while. That place used to seem so isolated when I was a teenager. Now it's some kind of stupid park. They've got fucking bandstands and bleachers and shit. Plus, it's closed at night. Much slaking used to take place there at night. I wonder where people go now, when they want to slake.

Then I went to Polly's Freeze for lunch. And I got to sit at my favorite table, so that was cool.

Next I drove to Lanesville. I'd decided that I was apparently retracing my childhood in reverse-order. I mean with the floodwall and Polly's. With the oil-change place and the brewery, not so much. So I went to this park in Lanesville where I used to play until I was six and we moved away. It used to be a pretty shitty (hey, poet and don't know it) park. And I suppose it's still shitty. But they keep adding new buildings to the place. They're all locked, though. Maybe that's where they keep all the cool stuff.

bane of my youth

I took pictures of this slide. I can't believe it's still here after all these years. I'd have thought it would have rusted into a heap by now. This slide was always scary as fuck to me, when I'd climb up those shaky chains and then pull and contort myself between the bars to the platform. It was worth it, though, because the sliding-down part was really cool.

the fun part

Next I drove to my old house there in Lanesville. I keep hoping to see somebody in the yard, but I never have, and today was no different.

Next I went home for a bit, but I got bored and came here to Rich O's.

Oh yeah, now I'm having my second Dirty Helen (282) and it's yummy.

So there.

Saturday, May 10, 2008
posted by dave at 9:45 AM in category drink

I'll admit, I was a little concerned last night. This dive bar burned to the ground the other morning, and so there was a lot of barless riff-raff in New Albany all of a sudden. So I was concerned that many of those people would infest Rich O's and start doing their drugs in the restroom and start arguments with the bartenders over the lack of swill to drink.

But, if there was any riff-raff there, I didn't see them. It was a fairly nice and relaxing night.

That was the good news. The bad news was that LaptopGirl made only the briefest of appearances. Just enough to whet my appetite. It's okay, though; we're not fighting again. She just had to go back home.

I knew I should have just gone to Covington.

So I spent the bulk of the night sitting at the kiddie table. I started out with a glass of Delirium Tremens (1258) and I followed that up with a couple of pints of Barley Island Dirty Helen (242). All were good. I spent some time talking to SmooshDude, and once he left I moved to the loveseat and talked to PearlGirl and a couple of other chicks. One of the other chicks has been in enough that I will christen her PoolGirl because she's a pool player.

At the end of the night I found myself standing at the end of the bar talking to FutureDude for a while. I came home at midnight or so.

Oh yeah, ActualGeorge was there for a while, too. But he stayed out in the loser section with his family, so I only talked to him for a couple of minutes.

Thursday, May 8, 2008
posted by dave at 12:03 AM in category daily, drink, travel

First, I do want to. And I think it's time. But I can't. I was asked to never do it, remember?

---

Monday I finally had the water pump replaced in the Monte Carlo. So now I can actually drive it again. This is beyond cool to me. I even drove it to work today, risking door-dings in the parking garage. Once I get the exhaust repaired (it's a little LOUD) then there'll be nothing wrong with the car except that its owner still won't really be cool enough for it.

---

One of these years I should probably fix the gutter that was torn loose in January.

---

I think I want to go back to Covington this weekend. I seriously doubt that I'll do any such thing, because last time I checked, Covington wasn't located inside Rich O's.

---

On Monday I got to hang out with NormalGirl and RahRahGirl for a while after work. They were dressed to the nines (whatever that means) in sexy slinky black dresses. I don't think I did a very good job of averting my gaze, especially regarding NormalGirl.

---

I've felt myself starting to lose faith in one of my friends. Not that I ever really had any reason to think that I could trust him completely. But lately I've become a little convinced that he'd betray me in a heartbeat. So, I'm getting a little preemptively angry at him. I'm being stupid, I know.

---

Oh yeah, I managed to poke myself in the eye or something last night while I was sleeping. It's been hurting me all day, and it's a lovely shade of red. I hope it doesn't rot and fall out, but if it does then I'm going to get a glass eye that's brown. That way I can walk around with two differently-colored eyes and see if anyone notices.

---

It's midnight and I still have 3/4 of this Marzen (3591) left in my glass. I'd better get to drinking it.

---

I still have better topics that I want to write about. I still can't motivate myself to write, though, so crap like this is all you get for now.

Wednesday, April 30, 2008
posted by dave at 10:34 PM in category drink, travel

Okay, I'm back now. Heartfelt thanks go out to the zero people who noticed that I was gone. I get tears in my eyes when I think about all zero of you.

Anyway, I was in Covington, KY, which is across the river from Cincinnati and next to Newport. It was for a work thing, a series of meetings that lasted from 8:30 until 5:30 Wednesday. I drove up Tuesday after noon and spent the night.

After I'd checked into the stupid Marriot, I set out on foot in search of food and beverage. I walked from my hotel, at the river's shore, about 18,000 blocks South. All I found were pawn shops and cash advance places. So, not the best part of town, I figured. Next, I shifted a couple of blocks to my left, turned around, and trekked back towards the river. Still, pawn shops and cash advance places, but now with some strip joints thrown in for good measure.

I got back to the stupid Marriot, intending to get in my truck and drive to Newport. I know they have beer there. But, at the hotel, I got to talking to the doorman, and he told me where the touristy section of Covington was.

Remember, back two paragraphs ago, I said that I'd shifted to my left. Well it turns out that I should have shifted to my right. Because to the right was where all of the bars were.

The guy told me it was a two-minute walk. It was more like a zillion years, but I finally made it there. By the time I arrived in the touristy area, I was dying for Newcastle. So I went into the first likely-looking place, called the Cock & Bull.

I'd been hoping to find a Guinness, maybe a Newcastle. I most certainly hadn't dared to hope that I'd find Delirium Tremens, or Unibroue Maudite. Or a bottled beer selection that even MrPopular might envy. It was a very nice place, and I stayed there for hours.

Because I had fish and chips for my late lunch, I was bound by both honor and propriety to have a Newcastle (9367). The glasses were only 16 ounces, but they were unchilled. I was very happy. Even though I thought the fish kinda sucked.

My next beer was a Delirium Tremens (1225), and I spent some time talking to this one dork who wanted Beck's and would settle for nothing else.

Next, I tried something new to me.

Moerlein O.T.R.

(bottle) Clear dark orange. Kind of a weird color. No head to speak of. An aroma of malts and hops that was pretty enticing. Medium mouthfeel. The flavor was extremely good. The hops seemed to be a mixture of the piney kind (which I hate) and the flowery kind (which I love) and there was also a strong malty component to the flavor. Definitely very interesting and balanced and drinkable. I'd love to try this on tap someday. Yummy.
I ended up having three bottles of the OTR (36), getting progressively stupider as I went.

Just one example of my stupidity: I was talking for a couple of hours to this one cute girl about my reason for being there and the upcoming derby and beer and whatever else. It was a good conversation, I will call her EyesGirl, because she had two of them. Anyway, at one point she suggested that we go to some of the other bars in the area. Because I'd told her that I was only in town for one night, she said she wanted to show me a good time.

And not in a hooker way, I don't think. In a I'm a nice girl but I'll be naughty with you way.

So, naturally, I told her that I was seeing somebody. Even though I'm clearly not seeing anyone.

EyesGirl left shortly afterwards. Probably went home to masturbate, the poor thing.

I ended up convincing my boss, in town for the same work thing, to come up to the Cock & Bull and have dinner. I had another Delirium Tremens (1235) and then I talked my boss into giving me a ride back to the stupid Marriot.

Then today I had meetings then I drove home.

I need to see if Rich O's can get the O.T.R. there. I think people would like it, but mostly I'd just like to have it again without having to drive to Covington. It's kind of a cross between Rogue Dead Guy and Three Floyd's Gumballhead.

Sunday, April 27, 2008
posted by dave at 11:09 PM in category drink

Last night I didn't even get to Rich O's until about 9:00. I think that's better for me. Less time to build up hope, so not as much disappointment. Last night, my late arrival was a godsend.

I think I've said this before. If so, I'm going to say it again. I think that Rich O's is going to become more and more unbearable between now and November. They don't even pretend to be neutral anymore, as the new signage on the front door attests. Now, I certainly don't mind people having opinions, in fact I support it with everything I have. But it's become perfectly clear to me that only one opinion matters at Rich O's. No dissenting opinion may be spoken, lest the speaker be treated to a verbal assault that would make the drill sergeant in Full Metal Jacket seem like Mr. Rogers.

Anyway.

The place was only about half full, and most of the people there were strangers crammed into the living room area. I sat at the island with UPSDude. WomanRepellant and this one dude who looks like my cousin Robbie were at the bar, but I didn't recognize anyone else.

I had myself a Paulaner Hefeweissbier (501). I talked about random crap with UPSDude. I glared at the strangers in the living room area. I watched the door.

At one point, I think about when I ordered my second Paulaner (518) I texted HatGirl with the incredibly clever and sweet message, "Hi, HatGirl!!!"

I guess it worked, because about ten seconds later HatGirl walked in.

HatGirl!

Yay!

She hadn't got my text message, she and LuckyFucker had already been on their way - probably in the parking lot - when I'd sent it. But I still took the coincidence as proof that great minds thing alike.

LuckyFucker ended up at the kiddie table talking to WomanRepellant, and HatGirl joined me at the island. So I was treated to an uninterrupted hour or so of HatGirl's company. That was very very cool.

Oh yeah, I ended up drinking the last several ounces of HatGirl's Delirium Tremens (1215), because she's going through another lightweight phase.

Yay for free Tremens!

Oh wait, I paid for HatGirl's beer. But still, yay for Tremens!

A few minutes after HatGirl and LuckyFucker left, some utter bullshit happened that put me into a very bad mood, and I left Rich O's. I ended up going to Sluttopia for about 10 seconds, then I came home. What happened next will not be written about.

Saturday, April 26, 2008
posted by dave at 10:56 AM in category daily, drink

First, I need to get Wednesday out of the way. Besides it being AlliDay, which is always nice, I went to Rich O's after work to see BadPickleGirl for the first time since right after my Nephew was killed. I had booze for her and that was enough to lure her to see me. So we talked and split a pizza. I had two NABC Cone Smokers (3357) and then she followed me so I could drop my truck off to get its alignment fixed.

One weird thing was that, while I was filling out the little card so I could drop my key in the slot, a little black car pulled into the parking lot. I thought to myself, That looks kinda like Dina's car.

As it turned out, it was exactly like Dina's car, because it was Dina's car. She'd seen my truck and pulled in to say hello. So that was cool.

The next day I don't think anything remotely interesting happened except that I got my truck back.

By Friday night, I'd decided that I wasn't going to go to Rich O's. So of course I went to Rich O's. This has become a very annoying pattern for me. I decide that I'm not going, that I'm going to go someplace different, but then I go because I'm afraid of missing you know who anyone anything. Then, I get in there, and too often lately I find that I'm miserable because of the weirdoes and the fucking loud music and the increasingly belligerent political discussions. But I stay and I watch the door for hours and, more often than not, I leave disappointed. And I vow that, next time, I'll do something different.

But last night was pretty decent. For one thing, it wasn't very crowded at all. Certainly not like a usual Friday night. It was mostly regulars, and we mostly just sat around and babbled about random things.

I'd started out at the kiddie table, where I had two glasses of yummy Delirium Tremens (1209), then when TallLady left I moved to the throne. Most of the night the living room area held myself, MusicalYuppieDude, PlantDude, and PillowDude. At one point PearlGirl came in. She had apparently time-traveled back to the 1960s to buy a dress before coming to Rich O's.

My next beer was a Paulaner Hefeweissbier (484). Then I switched to Diet Coke for a while. I was considering going over to Louisville. AlliGirl had invited me to come see some band I never heard of. I asked MusicalYuppieDude about the band, and he said they're supposed to be pretty good. Plus it would have been nice to see AlliGirl again.

But then LaptopGirl came in and I forgot about wanting to leave. I forget about a lot of things when LaptopGirl is in the room.

I most certainly will not apologize for that.

I babbled a lot. I blame the Tremens I'd had earlier. Plus, she kept asking me questions that seemed to necessitate babbling answers.

Oh yeah, we ended up splitting a glass of Browning's Bourbon Imperial Stout. I already knew that it was yummy, but I think this was LaptopGirl's first time to have it. She said she liked it too.

Once LaptopGirl went home, I briefly thought about heading over to see AlliGirl and the band after all, but in the end I just came home and sat on my swing and did some navel gazing.

Sunday, April 20, 2008
posted by dave at 9:27 PM in category drink, ramblings

I keep seeing these little flickers in my brain.

I'm pretty sure that they're not symptoms of a tumor. And they're not quite entry ideas, but I think that someday they might be. The latter, I mean. Maybe, someday, they'll turn into entries. If they can get over their fear of the light. If they can come out and show themselves to me, so that I might do this writing thing that I seem to want to do today.

Or, if I can catch them before they scurry away again.

Cowards!

I've noticed these flickers, these little thoughts, before. I've written about them before.

The thoughts are there, running around inside me, but they flee when I try to capture them. They hide behind trivia and inane bullshit, and they snicker among themselves about how easily they evade me.

Only the weakest among them are ever at risk.

Sometimes I manage to catch one of these lesser thoughts. Then I'll dissect it and expose its innards to the world. And its brethren watch in horror from their hiding places, and they stop their snickering, for a while at least.

Okay, so maybe it's the whole dissection thing that's keeping the flickers in hiding.

I'm in a fairly strange mood tonight. I don't know why. It might have something to do with the bottle of Ommegang Three Philosophers (49) that I've now almost finished. But I don't think that's it. I think it's something else. Something much deeper than alcohol.

I think that maybe I've just taken a good hard look at myself, and maybe I've started to suspect that I'm not as happy as I think I am.

That would really suck. Because I fucking like being happy.

But I've been noticing shit, every now and then.

I'm starting to suspect, if I look at things objectively, I'm starting to suspect that things aren't quite as fantastic as I've been thinking. There seems to be an underlying stress to my life. Just a touch of effort to interactions that should be effortless. I think it's like walking up a very long, very slight, upgrade. You don't really notice that you're putting any extra effort into walking, but your heart beats faster than it should, and your muscles get tired much sooner than they should. My life is kinda like that. It's harder than it seems.

I'm finding myself being extra careful about what I say. I'm finding myself paying extra attention to what I hear. I'm finding myself working hard during those times of my life that should be the easiest and the most enjoyable. Also, I'm sensing that extra effort in those around me, when they talk to me, they seem to be working harder than warranted.

Oooooh!

I just saw another flicker! I'm going to stop writing now, and try to catch the little bugger.

posted by dave at 9:58 AM in category daily, drink

Remember back when the supercontinent Pangea split, and the flora and fauna of Africa and South America were left to develop and evolve independently?

Well, That's about the same time that my sister Neisha last came into Rich O's. Until last night.

I'd been told, earlier in the week, that both of my sisters were coming to Rich O's, but I very nearly forgot. I guess it was just so unlikely that my brain refused to waste valuable memory space with it. So, I nearly forgot and took off for Nashville Saturday morning.

I'd been thinking about going to Nashville because it's fairly close and I wanted to get away from Rich O's for a night. LaptopGirl had said she wasn't going to be there Saturday night, so it seemed like a perfect opportunity.

But I was late for my truck appointment, so I didn't get its alignment fixed. And then on the way home I remembered about my sisters.

What I ended up doing was talking them to Tumbleweed. This was the first time I'd been in there in a very long time. It will probably be a very long time before I go back. The food just wasn't that good.

After that we went to Rich O's. My sisters got to put several names and nicknames with faces. It was fun. I had an NABC Cone Smoker (3517) and tried to decide what I was going to do after my sisters left. I didn't see any point in staying at Rich O's if LaptopGirl wasn't going to show up.

But what happened was, MusicalYuppieDude and I split a bottle of yummy Malheur 10 (65), and it was so damn yummy that we split another bottle (78). By the time that second bottle was gone, I needed to stick around for a while to sober up. So I had some Diet Cokes and talked with various people about various crap.

Then LaptopGirl emailed me to ask about what she was missing. I asked her to please come. And so that's what she did. Yay!

We sat on the sofa and talked about how she made the front page of a local alternative newspaper. So now she's all famous and shit. I hope it doesn't go to her head.

We split a Guinness, and then she ended up pouring most of her half into my glass (1851).

After LaptopGirtl left, I came home.

Oh yeah! There was a fight when I was on my way to Rich O's!

Let me see if I remember clearly. Just in case I'm ever called as a witness or something. I'll put that in another entry, because I want to have a picture.

Saturday, April 19, 2008
posted by dave at 2:02 PM in category daily, drink, weather

I know, I suck. You don't have to remind me. I need to update this thing more often. Even if I only have boring things to write about, I still need to do it.

Thursday was another virtual Friday for me, so I went to Rich O's for some stupid reason. The fucking Thursday weirdoes were there, of course, and they made my life miserable with their existence, of course.

I sat at the kiddie table and had three yummy glasses of Delirium Tremens (1187) and they were yummy. I didn't really talk to anyone except WomanRepellant, and even that was just for a while.

I got really really bored and left once I'd realized that nobody interesting was going to show up. Also, now there are three of the Thursday weirdoes wearing those stupid hats. Before, it had been just the one uberweirdo. But now there are three of them doing it.

So then Friday morning we had us some earthquakes.

When the first one hit, all three of my cats jumped off the bed and hauled ass down the hallway. I woke up and wondered for a second if my cats were really fat enough to cause the house to shake like that. When my mind cleared a little, I thought that a tornado must be barreling toward my house. But when I turned my head and looked out my window, I saw stars in the sky. That's when I figured that it was either an earthquake or a plane crash or something.

The thing about earthquakes is that you don't know how long they're going to last or how strong they're going to get. So I put on some pants in case I had to run outside.

The other thing about earthquakes is that you don't know anything. I mean, it could have been a .01 earthquake right under my house, or it could have been an 11.5 earthquake in St. Louis. I didn't know, and I wanted to know, so once the shaking had stopped I went and checked the USGS site. I was very impressed that they already had information about the quake - it had only been a couple of minutes.

The second earthquake that I felt was at 11:15 or so. I was in my kitchen, and all of my bottles started rattling together, or I might not have even noticed it.

Anyway.

Friday afternoon was fun. I went to Polly's Freeze for lunch. There were 18 million high school kids there, but they arrived right after I did, so I didn't have to wait for my order. So, haha stupid high school kids. Then I got an email from LaptopGirl. Then I went and had the oil changed in my truck, then I bought new tires for my truck. The old tires were 9 years old, so I got my money's worth.

Friday night I got a couple of text messages from TremensGirl. She seemed to want me to be at Rich O's, for some reason. But of course by the time I finally arrived there were people more interesting than me there. Hard to believe, I know. But that's okay, I have enough to worry about, and I'm sure it's all my fault anyway.

I sat at the island and watched the door all night. The place was pretty packed, mostly I think because some dude nobody ever heard of was playing music in the special people section, and so anyone who didn't feel like paying the cover charge had to use whatever space they could find and/or manufacture in the remainder of Rich O's.

So I sat at the island and I had a couple pints of NABC Cone Smoker (3497) and then after LaptopGirl arrived (yay!) we split a Smithwick's (1688) and talked mostly about babies and murder-mystery stuff. I had a brilliant idea for a Rich O's murder-mystery. Maybe someday it will actually happen, but I'll have to write it myself because LaptopGirl doesn't like my idea.

Then when I came home I sat in my garage and had a bottle of Schlenkerla Marzen (3431). It had been raining earlier, or I'd have sat on my swing.

Then today I was supposed to have the wheels realigned on my truck, but I got there too late. Oh well.

Okay, I'm all caught up with this blog thingy now.

Saturday, April 12, 2008
posted by dave at 10:15 AM in category drink

I got to Rich O's at 4:00 or so. That had been my plan all along. So when SassyGirl called at 3:00 to let me know she and JauntyGirl were back in town, and I told her I could meet her at 4:00, I didn't choose that time just to piss her off. Though I could somehow hear her face fall when I told her that. They had other plans, so they wouldn't be at Rich O's until later.

So, like I said, I got there at 4:00 or so. There were four strangers in the living room, but it looked like they were getting ready to leave, so I sat at the kiddie table and positioned myself to pounce onto the throne. I ordered a small pizza and an NABC Flat Tyre (839).

Once the stranger quartet had left, I moved my shit and sat on the throne. PearlGirl came in with her hot teacher friend, so that was nice of her. Even nicer was that my sister called to let me know that she was on her way to Rich O's. That was a nice surprise.

I used a variation of the word nice three times in that paragraph. I need a new thesaurus.

After my Flat Tyre, I had an NABC Cone Smoker (3397).

Dina and her husband Kenny came in and sat on the sofa, and we talked about various fluff for a while. Then SassyGirl and JauntyGirl came in and squeezed onto the sofa. It was all very nice and pleasant. SassyBoy joined us at one point.

At about 6:00, it was time for Dina and Kenny to be getting ready for bed, so they left. I think this was about when I switched to Diet Coke for a while.

The rest of the evening passed quickly enough. It mostly consisted of SassyGirl giving me shit for not dropping my tentative Saturday plans to see LaptopGirl, and hanging out with them instead. She gave me a lot of shit about that, and I asked her more than once to please stop. See, nobody understands. I would skip my own fucking funeral if there was even a slight chance that I might get to see LaptopGirl instead. I will not apologize for my priorities.

My next beer was a Delirium Tremens (1157), and it was the best-tasting beer I'd had in a long time.

Once SassyGirl and her posse left, I sat around for a few more minutes, then I came home at 9:30 or so.

Friday, April 11, 2008
posted by dave at 8:41 AM in category drink

I'm working from home again today. Burning yet another day of vacation so I don't lose it completely at the end of the month. I'll have 36 hours left to use, after today. I might make it.

Anyway, so last night was a sort of virtual Friday for me, so I went to Rich O's. I got there a little before 9:00, and I was quite dismayed to see that not only were all the Thursday weirdoes still there, they had infested the entire living room area. I said hello to MusicalYuppieDude and TremensGirl, who were suffering on the sofa, and then I sat at the island and talked to some dude who needs to get a nickname.

I think I was expecting to be sad all night. I think I was even looking forward to it, at least a little bit, as it would be a chance to visit a version of myself that I haven't seen in a long time. Accordingly, I didn't fuck around when it came to my beer selection. I went straight for a bottle of Avery's The Reverend (547). It was yummy as always, and it's actually all I had there last night.

I never did become sad like I'd been expecting. WomanRepellant came and joined me for a while. I traded a couple of emails with LaptopGirl. OddlyFamiliarGirl came and sat with me. The two of us talked for at least two hours about various stuff. I had two Diet Cokes once my beer was gone.

It ended up being a much nicer night than I'd been expecting, so my reunion with my past self never happened.

When I came home I sat on my swing with a yummy Schlenkerla Marzen (3338), sent another email to LaptopGirl and a couple to RockGirl, and then watched the lightning until it started raining. Then I went to bed.

Tuesday, April 8, 2008
posted by dave at 12:00 AM in category drink

The random girls in the previous entry, I met them at this new PJ's Brewhouse in Louisville. Please note that I called it a brewhouse instead of a brewpub. Apparently, there's a difference. Also apparently, calling something a brewhouse means that you don't have to brew beer there.

Something like that.

I heard about this place about a month ago from a guy at work. I knew I wanted to check it out, but I had a tough time getting motivated to go over there. I invited LaptopGirl, but she didn't want to go. I invited WeirdGirl, but she was mad at me. I dropped several hints onto HatGirl Saturday, but she politely ignored them.

So I went by my damn self.

It seemed like a pretty nice place. It seemed even more nice when the bartender decided to give me samples of seven beers on the house. Because I'm all famous and shit.

Anyway, I sampled all of their beers except for a maibock. I don't remember why I didn't sample the maibock.

BJ's Blonde

(draft) Clear golden. Metallic hoppy taste. Served way too cold. I was not expecting to like this, and I didn't. A waste of time.

BJ's Harvest Hefeweizen (2)

(draft) Hazy yellow. Strong aroma of cloves, yeast, and bananas. Maybe some vanilla in there. Flavor was like the aroma, except there seemed to be roasted malt in the thing too. Weird for a hefeweizen, but pretty good.

BJ's Jeremiah Red (5)

(draft) Clear copper color. The aroma and flavor were mild, but malty and fruity. Very smooth and creamy mouthfeel. Good.

BJ's Nutty Brewnette (5)

(draft) Stupid name. Clear dark brown in color. Aroma and flavor of roasted malts and light hops, with a lingering bitter hop finish. Too damn hoppy for a brown ale. Decent is all I can say.

BJ's Piranha Pale Ale (2)

(draft) Clear amber in color. Light hoppy aroma and flavor. Just a slightly bitter finish. Pretty tame. I don't like the style, but this was endurable.

BJ's PM Porter (5)

(draft) Fizzy (?!?!?) dark brown, almost black. Light chocolate aroma. Mouthfeel is watery and creamy. The fizziness is very weird in a porter. Flavor of watery chocolate and a touch of roasted malt. Good flavor, but not very much of it, so this gets only a decent rating.

BJ's Tatonka Stout (21)

(draft) Black in color. Roasted malts dominate the aroma and flavor. A mild alcohol burn finishes. For an alleged imperial stout, this is pretty lame. For a regular stout, it's pretty good. Reminds me of Bell's Kalamazoo Stout. Good.

Clever readers may deduce that I had a full (16 oz.) glass of the Tatonka after my sample was gone.

I ended up being there for about three hours, mainly because of the random girls who kept pestering me. I also had some chicken pot sticker thingies that were very good.

It was fun. LaptopGirl and/or HatGirl and/or WeirdGirl should have come with me. I don't bite. Except when asked.

Sunday, April 6, 2008
posted by dave at 10:07 AM in category drink, entertainment

My plan had been to try to take a quick nap before going back to Rich O's, but I was afraid that I'd fall asleep and not wake up until this morning. So I ended up going back at 7:00 or so.

The place wasn't all that packed, but it was all weirdoes and strangers. Except for CrewCutGirl, I didn't recognize a single customer in the place. The living room area, in particular, was full of weirdoes.

I sat at the kiddie table and had an Ommegang Three Philosophers (24). I emailed LaptopGirl about the weirdoes. I emailed OddlyFamiliarGirl about her Olive Garden discount. I emailed RockGirl about something or other. Mostly I just sat and watched the door.

I had an NABC Community Dark (281) and sipped at it for a couple of hours.

Oh yeah, I was also starving. I was going to eat something, but I'd told LaptopGirl that I'd hold off in case she wanted to split a pizza or something. We were supposed to go listen to karaoke at Sluttopia, and I thought that she might be able to swing by Rich O's first.

At 10:00, I ended up going over to Sluttopia. LaptopGirl met me there. I had a Newcastle (9149) and a sip of LaptopGirl's Sierra Nevada ESB while we endured this one weird origami guy demonstrating his creations.

They didn't even start the karaoke until late, because of some basketball game. So that sucked. And then, once people started singing, they were all fairly terrible.

I tried to talk LaptopGirl into singing, but I didn't press very hard.

LaptopGirl got to stay for a couple of hours. That was really nice. I ended up drinking the last half of her Newcastle (2159). When she had to leave I gave her the wine I'd bought for her today. I hope she enjoys it.

It was a really good night. One of the best.

Except I never did eat anything.

Saturday, April 5, 2008
posted by dave at 6:03 PM in category daily, drink

It's been a fun day so far.

First, I woke up at 5:30 in the flipping morning. Now, on a lot of Saturdays, I'll just go ahead and get out of bed at times like that. Because I know that I'll be able to take a nap later. But today, today I knew that I'd be spending a good chunk of the afternoon with HatGirl, so I forced myself to go back to sleep.

I almost overslept and missed my lunch date altogether.

But, I did manage to wake up with enough time to spare. I even arrived early to The Olive Garden. HatGirl, of course, was late. But at least she'd texted me that she would be late.

Lunch was good. I don't think I've been to Olive Garden since MixedSignalGirl and I were together, and I'd definitely never been to this particular one. I ate about half my ravioli and got stuffed. I'm still stuffed even though it's been almost five hours.

After lunch, we went booze shopping. I managed to get everything on my list except for this one wine that MrPopular had requested. Apparently you can't get that particular wine in this country.

But everything else, I got. Even the supposedly hard-to-find wines that LaptopGirl had requested.

It was fun. Food was good. Shopping was fun. HatGirl is charming company. She had this hole in the thigh of her jeans. I used my psychic powers to try to widen the hole, but by then she'd become self-conscious and was covering the hole with her hand.

Speaking of LaptopGirl, on the way to Rich O's to deliver booze to MusicalYuppieDude and MrPopular, I spied LaptopGirl and her son out in front of her house. I stopped and asked if she wanted her wine then and there. She said she'd get it later. A part of me is now wondering if she is now desperately making plans to move, now that it's obvious that I know where she lives.

I stopped at Rich O's and, surprise, both MusicalYuppieDude and MrPopular were there. So I gave the former his booze, and the latter his wine. Then I sat at the island and screwed up:

Paulaner Salvatore

(draft) I ordered this by mistake, as I'd thought I was ordering their hefeweissbier. I could not have been more wrong. I did have a few sips of this, to see if it was as disgusting as all dopplebocks are to me. It was. I only had those few sips.
To wash that disgusting taste out of my mouth, I ordered an NABC Cone Smoker (3357). It was yummy.

I also waved at ArtGirl, who was busy doing something artsy in the red room, and then TremensGirl once again graced the state of Indiana with her presence. So I talked to her for a bit before I came home and wrote this entry.

posted by dave at 11:13 AM in category drink

I keep having this problem, when I go to write my beer reports. I almost invariably think of one or two things that I shouldn't write about. Usually the most important and/or interesting things. And because I can't write everything that I really want to write, I ended up losing motivation to write anything at all.

Anyway, Thursday night was packed. Standing-room only for much of the night. My theory is that the regular Thursday weirdoes have somehow learned to reproduce themselves. If I'm right about this, then the world is about to become a very scary place.

So for the first hour or so, I stood in the annex area and glared at everyone. I had a new beer:

Maredsous 10

(draft) Hazy bronze. Huge heaping head. Aroma and flavor a little faint for a tripel. I was astonished to discover that this beer has 10% ABV - it's almost undetectable. I like this, but there are many better tripels out there.
By the time I was finished with this, a seat had opened up at the island. I sat and talked with MusicalYuppieDude and FirstGirl and CrackerDude.

FirstGirl was having a beer that looked intriguing, so that's what I had next:

Glazen Toren Saison dErpe-Mere

(draft) Yellow with a slight haze. Very good head and lacing. At first, it seemed a little watery, but then subtle flavors of apple peels and sour apples became evident. Pretty good.
Some people came and some people arrived. Specifically, MusicalYuppieDude and CrackerDude and FirstGirl left, and OddlyFamiliarGirl arrived, and then MusicalYuppieDude came back. I had yet another new beer:

Ommegang Three Philosophers

(draft) Clear dark reddish brown. Huge head that lasted forever. Aroma and flavor both surprisingly understated, with malts and a hint of cherries. Very smooth. Very good.

At one point, I did something I'd never done before at Rich O's. I spilled an entire beer. The damn glass just slipped out of my hand. Or maybe somebody pushed it. Or maybe it jumped. Though it didn't seem depressed to me. Whatever, it fell about six inches onto the island and broke. There was beer everywhere, especially on my pants and shirt. So that was embarrassing.

I made sure to text TremensGirl about what I'd done. I gave her shit once when she spilled a beer, and I felt that it was only fair that she be allowed to return the favor.

Once I'd managed to clean up the mess, I got a new glass of the same beer. It was yet another new beer for me:

Bluegrass Grand Old Fella

(draft) Their Jefferson's Reserve Bourbon Barrel Stout, but aged for three years. The results are a much more intense bourbon aroma and flavor. Still pretty good, but maybe a touch too intense for me. I like the regular version better.
After that, I just sat around for a while, talking mostly with OddlyFamiliarGirl. Then I came home at midnight or so.

---

Friday night was much better, crowd-wise. Or it at least seemed that way because I got to sit on the loveseat right away. To start the night, I had one of those Glazen Toren Saisons (24) and enjoyed it a lot. I was a little disappointed to find that it had 7.5% ABV in it, because that meant I couldn't drink it all night. I had to pace myself.

So next I had a bottle of Schlenkerla Marzen (3253) which was yummy as always. I suppose I talked to PearlGirl while I sat there, but mostly I think I just watched the door.

My next beer was a bottle of yummy Rogue Chocolate Stout (2509), and I nursed that for at least two hours. I very much prefer it in draft form. I hope it comes back on tap soon. Hint hint.

At 9:30 or so, all the cool stuff started happening. I was outside talking to RockGirl on the phone, telling her about how I'd almost given up on LaptopGirl showing up for the night, and my phone beeped to announce an incoming call. I suppose the dramatic thing would have been if it was LaptopGirl calling. It wasn't, but it was just as good. It was HatGirl! She wanted to know how crowded it was. I lied my ass off fudged the truth and told her there were plenty of seats, and she said she would be there shortly.

About an hour later, I'd not only given up on LaptopGirl, but I was starting to give up on HatGirl as well. But then HatGirl finally arrived.

HatGirl!

Yay!

As had been prearranged, MusicalYuppieDude vacated the loveseat so that HatGirl could sit with me. We talked about various stuff, such as how it had been trillions of years since we'd last seen each other. I took her out front to show her the poster that looks like her.

When we got back to the loveseat, LaptopGirl finally emailed me asking what was going on. I replied that it was all drunken debauchery, as usual. So then LaptopGirl came in. I introduced them. I used their real names, but I had a very strong urge to introduce them to each other as HatGirl and LaptopGirl.

Now, I'd been concerned, after HatGirl had arrived, that if LaptopGirl showed up as well I'd pay all of my attention to LaptopGirl. She has this effect on me where everyone else fades into the background. I didn't want HatGirl to fade into the background. Well, I think I did a pretty good job of talking to both of them. It didn't hurt that I was squeezed into the loveseat between them. It was quite warm, sitting there. And I'm not talking about the temperature.

This was about when I ordered an NABC 15B Porter (372).

Anyway, by the time HatGirl needed to leave, I guess this one dude was being strange, so I walked HatGirl out to her car. We talked for a few minutes in the parking lot, mostly about her upcoming wedding, and we both shivvered the whole time.

When I got back inside, some dork had stolen my seat next to LaptopGirl, so I sat at the kiddie table and talked to her from there. I guess she must have been bored at Rich O's, because she wanted to go to this my bar place nearby. We went there, but we didn't go inside because (a) there was crappy music audible from the parking lot, and (b) they had a cover charge for their stupid DJ, and (c) there was some emergency brewing at LaptopGirl's house, like the baby was waking up or something equally disastrous.

So we went back to Rich O's and talked for a few more minutes until she left. I left a few minutes later, my night complete.

Wednesday, April 2, 2008
posted by dave at 11:29 PM in category drink, entertainment, general

So today, instead of flinging myself off the top of the nearest tall building, I figured that I'd try HatGirl one more time. I was really starting to freak out, and I sent her a message telling her as much.

She responded!

Yay!

We traded a couple of emails. I guess most notable was that she looked at my entry from Monday and called the resemblance "scary."

She did not offer an opinion as to whether her ass is better than the one in the poster.

---

On another front, I keep saying that the tiniest little things can mean all the difference to me. Tonight someone declined an invitation I'd made. But it was still very cool, because I was expecting no answer at all. Even the tiny little act of turning down my invitation will end up being one of the high points of my week.

---

I think I'm going to try to take a day of vacation Friday. I've still got a lot of hours that I need to use or lose by the end of April. I'll most likely have to work several hours on Friday but, as I said last week, I can work from home and I won't have to put on clothes. Plus, having Friday off means that I can go to Rich O's Thursday night.

---

Saturday I go booze shopping. I'm trying to put together a list of stuff to buy, so if you know me you can send me an email and I'll add your choice to my list.

---

Tonight I watched this stupid I Am Legend movie. I also had most of a bottle of Left Hand Snow Bound (112). I say most of a bottle because I managed to backhand the glass onto the floor at one point. Oops.

---

I think that's it for now.

---

Oh, wait. LaptopGirl told me that I'd be sad when I found out who got eliminated from American Idol tonight. She probably thinks that I'd be sad if Ramiele was voted off, so that's going to be my guess.

Saturday, March 29, 2008
posted by dave at 11:29 AM in category drink

I ended up burning a day and a half of vacation Thursday and Friday. Still had to work several of those hours, but at least I got to work from home and I didn't have to put clothes on. Except when my sister came over Friday morning. I wore clothes then.

Let's see, Thursday night I got to Rich O's very early. My time sense was all out of whack because I'd left work early. I remember being excited because it was Thursday night and the usual group of weirdoes wasn't there. I pointed this out to MusicalYuppieDude, and he pointed out that it wasn't time for the weirdoes yet. What a buzz-kill.

Sure enough, the weirdoes all showed up for their 7:00 circle jerk. But they stayed in the red room, so it was okay.

I spent most of the night talking to FirstGirl's legs. I think FirstGirl was there too. Yes, in fact she was, because we talked about why so many women's shoes have such pointy toes. I think they look like elf shoes.

At about 9:00, suddenly and desperately looking for any distraction from a violent craving to bother LaptopGirl, I started texting and emailing everyone else under the Sun. A few people even replied, thank you very much. So that was cool. Except HatGirl didn't reply, so that sucked. And my craving subsided, so that was cool.

I had an NABC Cone Smoker (3297) and then about a bottle and a half of Rogue Chocolate Stout (2487). The Rogue was particularly yummy.

Friday night started out pretty loud. When I first arrived, I sat at the island where ExBartender was sitting with a couple of other dudes. Now, ExBartender is generally a fairly loud person. But I'm used to that, and it's part of his charm or whatever. What I wasn't used to was sitting with three people who were basically screaming at each other. Not screaming in anger, just with the joy of life or alcohol or something.

So I only put up with that noise for about 10 seconds before I picked up my shit and moved to the bar. I finished my Cone Smoker (3317) and then had a Regenboog Guido (42) for the first time in a few years.

I texted HatGirl again. Still no reply. So I'm officially freaking out and becoming convinced that HatGirl is mad at me for some reason. I can't imagine what that reason might be, though. Maybe my awesomeness is making LuckyFucker look bad in comparison.

(I'm kidding. Really. Maybe if I rag on you two you'll come to Rich O's and defend yourselves.)

TremensGirl had said that she'd be in, but there was no sign of her. So I texted her that this one blonde chick she knows was there. You know, in case I wasn't cool enough on my own to lure TremensGirl in.

About ten seconds passed, and TremensGirl came in and went to sit with the blonde chick.

Several million years passed, during which I accomplished taking a piss and moving to the sofa. But finally LaptopGirl came in. After I had established that we weren't fighting (I had to ask) we sat on the sofa and talked about various stuff like how my brain works. Or doesn't work. Whatever.

I felt a little bad because I'd texted TremensGirl to invite her to come in, but by the time she'd got around to me, LaptopGirl was there and everyone else blipped off my screens. But then MrPopular came to the rescue and kept TremensGirl company except for this one tense moment when she almost tried to pick a fight with LaptopGirl over politics.

(There. I used your new nickname. Your life is now complete.)

By the time LaptopGirl went home, I'd finished a second glass of the Guido (54) and a couple of glasses of Diet Coke. I'd been thinking about maybe going over to Louisville, but instead I just came home.

Saturday, March 22, 2008
posted by dave at 1:36 AM in category drink

I have other stuff to write about, but for now, the chance to make OddlyFamiliarGirl feel envious of me, of all people, is just too good to pass up.

After I got home, I sat on my swing and had a lovely Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier (2357). It was yummy, and though the wind made it a little chilly, it was well worth it.

So, ha ha!

Thursday, March 20, 2008
posted by dave at 12:15 AM in category drink, ramblings

I think that, too often, I manage to see only the good in people. Then, when they reveal their true nature, I take it as a personal attack.

I think that, too often, I see only the bad in people. Then, when they reveal their true nature, I ignore it and soon forget that it ever happened.

This might not be the best way to live my life. Seems kinda lopsided, if that makes any sense.

---

I was thinking about sweetness tonight, as I enjoyed a Fastenbier (376), which had magically reappeared on tap even after FutureDude had told me it was gone. I think FutureDude is pissed at me for some real or imagined reason.

Anyway, I know two girls who I would absolutely characterize as sweet. Not particularly nice, perhaps, but definitely sweet.

Shut up. There is too a difference. A huge difference.

There is just something special about a sweet girl. I wish that I knew more of them. But alas, they are very rare, at least in the world that I inhabit.

I think that's why I'm so drawn to sweetness.

I'm not saying that no other qualities matter to me, because they certainly do. But sweetness trumps everything else.

---

I'm not even sure that I could describe what the fuck I'm talking about.

---

I am tired now.

Sunday, March 16, 2008
posted by dave at 11:34 PM in category drink

Last night my afternoon nap ran a little longer than I'd planned, so I was late getting to Rich O's. I was so late, in fact, that NotHideousGirl commandeered somebody's phone to call me and make sure I was on my way.

It's nice to be missed.

When I finally arrived, a little before 9:00, I was quite dismayed to see several hundred weirdoes in the living room area, with NotHideousGirl reigning supreme in the throne. I also saw MusicalYuppieDude, HairDude, and UPSDude sitting over in the red room.

I ended up sitting in the red room. There was no seat available in the living room area. Plus there were weirdoes there.

I already mentioned that, Friday night, I'd had several sips of LaptopGirl's Moinette Brune. Those sips, evenly distributed between offered and pilfered, were all pretty good. So that was the first beer I had when I sat down:

Moinette Brune (15)

(draft) Cloudy dark brown, with a large tan head. Aroma of dark fruits and something else - maybe caramel? The flavor was much more subdued than my earlier sips had led me to expect. The beer tasted a little flat and/or one dimensional. Not really anything wrong with it, but not worth having again.
So that was a little disappointing. I got over it very quickly, though, with my second beer:

New Holland Night Tripper (12)

(draft) More than black, this beer absorbed all light from within a radius of several feet. The tan head was fairly impressive as it lasted until the glass was empty. A light aroma of roasted malts, with a touch of coffee and chocolate in there as well. Flavor was almost all roasted malts, though the beer somehow managed to stay very well-balanced. Extremely yummy.
I was very tempted to just drink the Night Tripper for the rest of my life the night, but there were a couple of old friends that had gone on-tap, and I needed to visit with them for a bit. So, my next beer was an Avery Old Jubilation (62), and my final beer was a New Holland Dragon's Milk (82).

The Dragon's Milk had me particularly excited because, as soon as I heard that it was available, I texted HatGirl and told her the news that one of her all-time favorites was finally available. I was excited myself, but the thought of an actual possible HatGirl appearance nearly made NotHideousGirl wet herself with excitement. Actually, she may have wet herself; I neither asked nor checked.

But alas, the visit was not to be. HatGirl wasn't feeling well, and so she probably won't make it to Rich O's until next weekend. I have serious doubts that Dragon's Milk will still be available then. My excitement will, however, be undiminished.

Besides talking with the guys in the red room, and enjoying the occasional visit with NotHideousGirl, and trading text messages and picture mail with HatGirl, I did what I always do. I watched the door and waited to see if LaptopGirl would make an appearance.

By the time she finally showed up, I'd almost given up on her for the night. I'd moved to the throne (most of the weirdoes had left by then) and I was just starting to allow myself to relax for the first time all night.

Then the emails and the text messages started pouring in. A couple of the former from LaptopGirl, and about a million of the latter from WeirdGirl. It seemed that I would need to do some damage control with WeirdGirl, but it was going to have to wait, because LaptopGirl came in a little after 11:00. Yay!

The only seat available was at the far end of the sofa. After I glared at some weirdoes and intimidated them into vacating, I was able to go sit with LaptopGirl and talk to her for a bit. Fantastically surreal, as always.

At some point during the night, the plan had been established that NotHideousGirl and I would go to Sluttopia so she could sing at least one song to honor her deceased friend. Well, the situation with WeirdGirl looked like it was going to prevent me from going. In fact, everyone else left for Sluttopia, and it was only after a couple of phone calls to WeirdGirl that I felt right about going myself.

Sluttopia was pretty much like normal. Not to write about except that I got to introduce NotHideousGirl to my Uncle Wayne, who runs the karaoke shows in there.

At 2:00 or so, everyone else had gone off to do whatever it is that they do. I myself came home and talked to WeirdGirl on the phone for a while, then I went to sleep.

Saturday, March 15, 2008
posted by dave at 12:59 PM in category drink

I figured that, while I wait for my houseguest to rise from the dead, that I'd catch up on some beer reviews.

There's this high-alcohol festival going on at Rich O's, called Gravity Head. It's their biggest festival every year. I usually manage to have a few of the strong offerings, but I don't bother trying to sample them all.

Anyway, here are the new high gravity beers that I've had over the last couple of weeks.

Alvinne Podge Belgian Imperial Stout

(draft) Black in color, with a thin tan lacy head that faded quickly. Aroma of malts and light chocolate and dark fruits. Medium mouthfeel - not quite syrupy. The flavor is fairly tame, mostly malts and chocolate. I like this. Dangerous though, because the high ABV is hidden very well.
Dark Horse Scotty Karate Scotch Ale
(draft) Clear dark amber. Good long-lasting head. No detectable aroma. The mouthfeel is a little watery, and the flavor is mostly roasted malts. A decent beer, but kind of a waste of time. The alcohol was hidden very well, a little too well, I think.
New Albanian V - Fifth Anniversary Ale
(draft) Hazy brown in color. Minimal head that lasted. Strong aroma of hops and alcohol. Flavor more of the same. I can see how most people would really like this beer, but it's not a style that I care for. Decent is all I can say.
Gale's Prize Old Ale (from 1998)
(draft) Hazy dark brown, with no head to speak of. According to JauntyGirl, this smells like hairspray. I myself would say that it smells of roasted malt and alcohol. Fairly thin mouthfeel, with the flavor of roasted malts and overriip cherries. No alcohol burn at all. Pretty darn good.
New Holland Pilgrim's Dole
(draft) Clear amber in color. No head at all. Zero. Smells a little bit like laundry detergent, of all things. Mounthfeel is meduim syrupy. The flavor is a little weird to me - as with all barleywines. There is a noticeable alcohol burn at the finish. Decent.
Kasteel Kriek (Rouge)
(draft) Very dark red, with a light pink head that shrank but lasted. There was some discussion as to what the aroma was, and it was decided that this smells like Luden's cough drops. Flavor is cherries and cranberries. No alcohol burn at all. Quite good, but also quite strange.
Bluegrass The Queen's Knickers
(draft) Clear dark orange in color, this beer didn't seem to have much of an aroma. So I was surprised to find such a funky and citrusy flavor. To be fair, this beer may have clashed greatly with the chocolately porter I'd had earlier, but I don't think I'd have liked it all that much anyway. I only drank a few sips, then I gave the rest away.
Schlafly's Bourbon Barrel Imperial Stout
(bottle) Black with tan head. Aroma and flavor of coffee and light chocolate. Not much of a bourbon flavor, but a lingering alcohol burn that was bourbony.
Schlafly's Imperial Stout
(draft) A fairly standard imperial stout, though I was disappointed to find not even the slightest hint of chocolate. This thing was all coffee and roasted malts. Not my favorite by a long shot.
Brugge Brasserie Tripel de Ripple
(draft) Hazy golden in color, with a large head that shrank quickly. Fairly standard aroma and flavor for a Belgian of this style - so pretty good. There was a tiny bit of unexpected creaminess as it swirled in my mouth. The finish was a little drying, but not so much as to be obnoxious. A pretty good beer.

posted by dave at 11:16 AM in category drink, entertainment

I guess I'm having the same problem this morning that I had a couple of Sundays ago. I think about the previous night, and writing an entry about it just seems too daunting a task.

So, that Saturday Beer Report from a couple of weeks ago never got written, and this Friday Beer report will probably end up being a brief one, though the night itself certainly wasn't brief.

First, while it's on my mind and while I'm sitting at my keyboard, two Saturdays ago, I went to Rich O's and was greeted with the question, "Did you see SassyGirl?"

I replied that I had not, and I was told that she was sitting out front.

I ran out front and, sure enough, there sat SassyGirl!

Yay!

She and JauntyGirl had come into town that day. She hadn't called to let me know, because she'd wanted to surprise me at Rich O's.

Well, that plan certainly worked. I was definitely surprised.

The timing of their visit was close to perfect, as Saturday through Tuesday were pretty stressful for me, and those girls provided a lovely distraction for several hours of those days.

Anyway, a bunch of other stuff has happened between then and last night, but it seems like it would be hard to write it all down. So, I won't. I'll just skip to last night.

I arrived at Rich O's at 6:00, that early hour determined by the fact the my sister Dina and her husband Kenny were there. We talked until 7:30 or so, when they had to get home for some basketball game or something.

I ate a pizza and sat at the island by myself. There was a couple sitting at the other end of the island, but I didn't talk to them much. Mostly, I just watched the door and waited for LaptopGirl.

She arrived at 9:00 or so. I got to help her fact-check an article she's writing. That was very cool. It's nice to feel useful.

We talked for a while until EuchreDude came and horned in on sat with us. I because invisible for an hour or so, until after they'd moved to the living room area. I followed mostly because to remain where I was would have felt slightly more awkward.

Eventually, I managed to get LaptopGirl's attention again. Mainly by plopping myself down on the coffee table two feet in front of her. We talked for another hour or so, but eventually she had to go home.

Oh yeah. Beer.

Let's see, my first beer was a yummy Schlenkerla Fastenbier (308), which has made it's brief Spring appearance. My next two beers were NABC Flat Tyre (749), though I did have a few sips of LaptopGirl's Moinette Brune. It was good, and the next time I have some I'll write a proper review.

That number for Flat Tyre above is an estimate, because LaptopGirl had several sips from my glass as she waited for news from her homefront.

Once LaptopGirl had gone, I went and sat at the kiddie table and talked to WomanRepellant for a while. Then NotHideousGirl came in. She was sad, because her cat had died. Poor kitty.

We somehow got to talking about karaoke, and she suggested going to Sluttopia. I called, and they said that they had a band instead.

Well, we ended up going to Sluttopia anyway. WomanRepellant followed us there, but most of the crowd just went to this Jack's bar closer to Rich O's.

NotHideousGirl became even more sad when, upon our arrival, she was told that one of her friends from there had died a couple of days ago.

The band sucked big hairy ones. I did my best to distract myself from the racket by drinking a Newcastle (9071) and talking to WomanRepellant and NotHideousGirl until they started kicking everyone out at 3:00 or so.

Then I came home.

Then, despite my staying up until after 4:00, my stupid circadian rhythm woke me up at 8:00. And here I sit, looking forward to the wonderful nap I'll get to take in a few hours.

Hmmm, I guess this wasn't as brief as I'd feared.

Saturday, March 1, 2008
posted by dave at 11:32 AM in category drink

Last night was the first night of the NABC Gravity Head festival at Rich O's. The busiest night of the year, I'm sure. And the crowd certainly didn't disappoint. Only once, on the first night of Gravity Head a couple of years ago, have I ever seen so many people crammed into that space. It was standing room only, and even finding a stable spot to stand was a daunting task.

But, stand I did. For the first hour or so. I stood at the end of the bar, talking alternately with some dude I sort of recognized, and a half-dozen or so Gravity Head virgins who, for some reason, decided that I would make a good sommelier.

Oh yeah, FirstGirl was there. She's making a pendant out of my rock. She says that she's got it finished, and that I might get it back Saturday night. So I'm very excited about that.

My first beer was a new one for me.

Alvinne Podge Belgian Imperial Stout

(draft) Black in color, with a thin tan lacy head that faded quickly. Aroma of malts and light chocolate and dark fruits. Medium mouthfeel - not quite syrupy. The flavor is fairly tame, mostly malts and chocolate. I like this. Dangerous though, because the high ABV is hidden very well.
Eventually, I began to ease my way over to the living room area. Just to be a little bit closer, to be more prepared for the unlikely event that a seat would open up. Well, to my astonishment, a seat did open up on the sofa. I quickly moved there and allowed myself to relax for the first time. This was also about the time that I ordered my second beer, another new one for me.

Dark Horse Scotty Karate Scotch Ale

(draft) Clear dark amber. Good long-lasting head. No detectable aroma. The mouthfeel is a little watery, and the flavor is mostly roasted malts. A decent beer, but kind of a waste of time. The alcohol was hidden very well, a little too well, I think.
While I was drinking that beer, a couple of interesting things happened. The first thing was that SpoonsGirl came in and a few minutes later her imaginary hot friend joined her. They had managed to scam seats at the bar though, so we didn't really talk. I'd just throw something at her every now and then, and wave when she turned around.

The second interesting thing was that LaptopGirl emailed me to inquire about the crowd. Then a little bit later she came in, and the crowd faded into obscurity. LaptopGirl and I had a pretty weird conversation. Weird, but still good. Always good.

For my next beer, I had myself a Mad Bitch (296). It was very yummy, and it was the real Mad Bitch, not the oak-aged abomination that has been the only version available at Rich O's for the last million years. I enjoyed it a lot, in part because I knew that it would have to be my last beer of the night.

After LaptopGirl left, and the crowd rematerialized around me, I moved up to the kiddie table and talked to SpoonsGirl and her imaginary hot friend for a bit. I watched NotHideousGirl get up and leave without even a glance in my direction. Eventually I just sat and talked with SpoonsGirl about various stuff.

I went to White Castle and then came home at 12:30 or so.

Sunday, February 24, 2008
posted by dave at 2:40 PM in category drink

There seems to me a misconception at Rich O's lately. I'm sure I've heard this particular misconception expressed before, but I've heard it twice within the last couple of weeks, and so it may be gaining popularity. At least among the cretins.

The first time, it was this one supremely obnoxious guy. He tried to play himself off like he was some kind of uber regular who'd been coming in since the dawn of time, but my personal opinion is that he was just trying to fit in. Perhaps compensate for a tiny penis. Anyway, the fucker was loud and overbearing and totally clueless. He actually seemed to think that people actually liked him. What a dumbass.

So, he spouted his bullshit, and I didn't pay much attention to it. I treated his words just as I'd been treating him all night. I ignored them.

Then, last night another person expressed the same misconception. And this particular person should know better. She's been coming in long enough to know better, and she's also smart enough to realize that we're supposed to be living in a society that's somewhat evolved from the days when being the loudest and/or the strongest brought power.

This particular misconception, and I think I've got the quote correct, goes like this:

Move your feet, lose your seat.
In response, I've come up with my own rule:
Steal someone's seat, and you're an asshole.
Sure, my rule may not rhyme, but it's got the rhythm of truth behind it, so it wins.

Anyway.

Last night was kind of boring. I only had a couple of beers. A Schlenkerla Marzen (2930) and an Upland Wheat (206). I spent most of the night on throne listening to everyone else talk and choking on cigar smoke. This one dude's hot sister told me that I smelled good, and I'm pretty sure that Ric Flair was there. Other than that, it was a dull night.

Saturday, February 23, 2008
posted by dave at 3:16 PM in category drink

Last night wasn't as bad as I'd feared. So I'm thankful for that. But it still wasn't a particularly good night.

Rich O's proper seemed to be only about half-full, but that was an illusion. Every ostensibly empty seat was being saved, so there was no place to sit. I ended up going out to the special people room and sitting there like a dork for an hour or so, until MusicalYuppieDude texted me that this one weirdo had finally left and that there was a seat available.

So I sat on the sofa and enjoyed my second NABC Flat Tyre (593) of the night. At least I tried to enjoy it. My taste buds were still pretty messed-up.

Eventually, LaptopGirl emailed me that she was coming in, so that cheered me up some. When LaptopGirl arrived, HairDude gave up his seat at the kiddie table so she and I could sit together. We talked about various crap for an hour or so. It was nice to see her, as it had been a trillion years. I'd been hoping that she might want to split a pizza or something, because I was starving to death, but instead she went home.

I came home shortly afterwards, not quite finishing my third Flat Tyre (609).

Oh yeah, I got to hear this one story about a slut. I suppose it was an interesting story. Then I was talking to StupidGirl on the phone and she told me another story about another slut. What is it with all these sluts all of a sudden?

Monday, February 18, 2008
posted by dave at 6:41 PM in category daily, drink

This damn flu has taken things to a very personal level, now. Twice.

The first time was Friday night, when LaptopGirl invited me to Rich O's and I had to decline. Yes, that sucked giant donkey dicks. First time in a million asstillion years that LaptopGirl has invited me to Rich O's, and I had to decline. Woe is me, indeed.

The second time this fucking flu got personal was about an hour ago. I'd forced myself into going to Rich O's, because I'm a stubborn asshole and also because it's Pizza Night. I saw, to my great surprise, that NABC Cone Smoker was back on tap.

Yay! My first beer in a week was going to be one of my all-time favorites!

But not so fast there, Speedy. The Cone Smoker (3177) tasted like shit. Not because there was anything wrong with it, but instead because there's something wrong with me. This damn flu has wreaked havoc on my taste buds. And so now even one of my favorite beers is unenjoyable.

And then my pizza tasted like crap, but I was expecting it by that point. Everything has tasted like crap since last Tuesday. I keep feeling like there's some magical combination of herbs and spices that will wake my mouth back up, and make things taste good again, but I just haven't found it yet.

I've been given the green light to return to work tomorrow, at least for a while. I've been sleeping between 18 and 22 hours a day for a week, and so I don't know if I'll be able to stay up long enough to put in a full day of work, but I'll give it a shot.

Saturday, February 9, 2008
posted by dave at 9:21 AM in category drink

Early Friday evening I was, as is quite often the case lately, trying to convince myself to do something besides go to Rich O's. I was toying with the idea of maybe going to this Sergio's place I've heard about. I was thinking about maybe going down to our local casino on the river. I even thought about just staying home and watching some movies.

It's just that sometimes I don't get the point of that place, and I felt like I needed a break. Even if it's just to prove to myself that I can take that break. Plus, I'm on-call this week, and that always sucks the life force right out of me.

But then HatGirl texted me that she was on her way to Rich O's, so what little willpower I might have possessed evaporated like spit on a summer sidewalk.

I had to park on the far side of Mars. This was a bad sign. Another bad sign was that there was an unlikely abundance of huge 4WD trucks in the Rich O's lot, all with those lift kit things that make you need a ladder to get into them. It was like Rich O's had turned into a redneck bar. Or that there was a tiny-penis convention taking place. I wondered if they would try to block my entrance.

Inside, the place was beyond packed. I nodded and waved at several people who were sitting around the living room. MusicalYuppieDude, TremensGirl, PlantDude, PearlGirl, PearlGirl's hot friend, probably some other people.

HatGirl and LuckyFucker were sitting at the bar, the only two seats available in the place, so I went over and stood behind them.

HatGirl!

Yay!

After about a million years, two cool things happened. First, some chick left the bar, and I grabbed the seat, Second one of the bartenders caught a glimpse of me through the crowd and took my beer order.

After a bit longer, UPSDude left the bar, so I took my NABC Flat Tyre (463) and slid down closer to LuckyFucker and HatGirl.

After a bit longer, some strangers left the loveseat, and PlantDude left the throne, so we all moved down there.

The next couple of hours were quite pleasant, talking to HatGirl and LuckyFucker. He's finally going to make an honest woman out of her, or vice-versa. I'm happy for them, but I know that the world will mourn when HatGirl is officially and legally off the market.

By the time HatGirl and LuckyFucker left, I was on my third Flat Tyre (503), and I'd moved over to the kiddie table because HairDude had stolen the throne when I went to pee. That was okay, though, I'd been starting to feel a bit claustrophobic because of this one chick from the sofa.

So I was sitting at the kiddie table with TremensGirl. It was a strange conversation we were having. Like we were breaking up or something. But we weren't, I probably just felt primed for that activity because WeirdGirl and I had just broken up over the phone. Something about my priorities and hers not matching up often enough. Oh, well.

Anyway, then LaptopGirl came in and, after TremensGirl left, sat at the kiddie table with me. We proceeded to have a very nice conversation about all sorts of relevant stuff. I had a half-pint of the Flat Tyre (513) to close out the night.

Oh yeah. MusicalYuppieDude said that the band that ArtGirl and I are supposed to see tonight doesn't start until midnight. We'd been told before that they would start at 7:00 or 8:00. So I called ArtGirl to let her know, in case that would affect her plans. She hasn't called back. I'll call her this afternoon.

Oh yeah again. NotHideousGirl came in for a while. She missed HatGirl by about twenty minutes, and I bet she was disappointed by that. It was nice to see her.

Thursday, February 7, 2008
posted by dave at 2:21 AM in category drink, entertainment, ramblings

It happened twice tonight. While I was watching my tivoed recording of American Idol and drinking a yummy Schlenkerla Urbock (320) and mentally kicking myself for, once again, letting my nap run on for far too long.

I don't even think I dreamed tonight. That's strange, because usually there's something about sleeping on my back, on my couch, that gets the old eyeballs moving rapidly. But not tonight, I don't think.

So, I was sitting there on my loveseat watching mostly bad singers, hoping for a good singer, or at least a hot girl to look at. During the boring parts of the show, I'd think about things. Do some navel-gazing, basically. And twice I was completely overwhelmed. I was completely overwhelmed and nearly incapacitated. The first time it was sadness that washed over me, the second time it was joy. Each time, it was perfect. Just incredible unblemished emotion. The first time a single sob left my lips. The second time, it was a laugh.

Tuesday, I talked to ArtGirl about experiencing every moment. Good, bad, or neutral, all moments of life should be lived and experienced in their entirety. Because they're not going to happen again. Ever. So, may as well pay attention to them. They might be important. They probably are important.

Tonight I had two perfect moments. One was good, the other was bad. I wouldn't trade either of them for anything. Perfect moments are our most precious gifts to ourselves.

Anyway, this all got me interested, so I did a search on my blog for the phrase perfect moment. I found one promise, one declaration, and one memory. I'd have thought there'd have been more. It certainly seems like the kind of thing I'd write about more often.

I think that the whole purpose of this entry was to put that link in. I think that I just wanted to prove that I used to be able to write decent drivel, even if I can't seem to do it anymore.

Tuesday, February 5, 2008
posted by dave at 2:10 AM in category daily, drink, pictures, ramblings

Sunday night, the pizzeria side of the NABC complex was open for some sporting event. Usually, they're closed on Sundays, so it was a special occasion, and I usually go. Just because it's such a rarity. I really couldn't care less about the sporting event.

Anyway, while I was on the way there, OddlyFamiliarGirl called. I'd texted her Friday night because I had a question about astrology. She's into that stuff, she's just not into returning text messages in a timely manner.

While I was talking, and driving, I happened to glance down at my odometer. I quickly said goodbye to OddlyFamiliarGirl and pulled off the road at the earliest opportunity.

The earliest opportunity, it turned out, wasn't quite early enough.

darn

That there, even though it's really hard to see, is the odometer on my truck showing 100001 miles. I think it would have been cool to get a picture of it at exactly 100000 miles, but it wasn't meant to be.

Here's a close-up. Still hard to see, though.

so close

Once at Sportstime The NABC Pizzeria, I had myself a couple pints of their Old Lightning Rod (490). The place was really dead. I guess nobody cared about the sporting event. Or maybe they were all at some cool party to which I wasn't invited.

So they closed the place down at 7:30 or so. I went over to Tucker's and had some cheesesticks and a glass of Guinness (1783). I'd been thinking about having a steak, but I changed my mind for some reason.

And that was Sunday. Pretty exciting, huh?

Monday wasn't anything special except that while I was at Rich O's The NABC Public House, waiting for my pizza and having a yummy NABC Old Lightning Rod (510), OddlyFamiliarGirl and NotHideousGirl came in for a bit. It had been a million jillion gazillion years since I'd seen OddlyFamiliarGirl. It had only been a couple of days since I'd last seen NotHideousGirl, but it always seems longer when it's her. I just thought I'd better mention seeing them, lest I get into trouble for some reason.

Then tonight it was really warm, so I sat out on my swing and enjoyed a Schlenkerla Urbock (286) and smiled a lot. I thought about all of the times I'd sat out there and thought about sad things, and about how much happier I am now. It really doesn't take much to make me happy. Even the tiniest things can do it, especially when the tiniest things are so incredibly huge to me.

Sunday, February 3, 2008
posted by dave at 1:50 PM in category drink

Somehow, I managed to get magically drunk last night. I have a theory about this, and I'll write about it in a bit, but first I should have a disclaimer.

The lines between reality and fantasy and imagination are blurred almost beyond distinction, at least as far as last night goes. So you should probably treat this entry as fiction, just to be safe.
The night started out pretty early. My sister Dina was supposed to meet some chick somewhere, and she wanted to meet up with me at Rich O's first. So I got to Rich O's at about 6:30.

The place was almost empty. This contrasted in a stunningly beautiful way with the madness that Friday night had been. Dina was on the sofa, all by her lonesome like a weirdo or something. I sat on the throne and ordered an NABC Flat Tyre (343). Dina and I bullshitted with each other for an hour or so, then she left to go meet the chick, and I found myself sitting all by my lonesome like a weirdo or something.

A couple of people drifted in and out of the area. They'd come in to smoke, and I could tell that they were all wondering who the weirdo sitting by himself was.

Eventually, the regular Saturday night crowd started to form. This one cute blonde accused me of being 23. That's actually starting to get a little tiresome.

Oh yeah, when I was bored because I was in the living room area all by myself, I texted AlliGirl and WeirdGirl and VigilanteGirl. VigilanteGirl texted back asking who I was. I said never mind, and she called me. I reminded her that she'd given me her number. She said that she would call me for directions to Rich O's, but I never believed that for even a second.

TremensGirl came in and sat on the sofa where Dina had been. I think this was about when I ordered another Flat Tyre (383). I started getting emails from LaptopGirl, hinting that she might come in.

This one chick, who kept coming in to smoke, took one look at TremensGirl and I talking and announced, "You two should date."

So that was weird, how quickly she picked up on our vibe. I said that TremensGirl and I have massive crushes on each other but that things are complicated, and I left it at that.

Then, I had a Schlenkerla Marzen (2828), which was yummy.

After a million more years and a few more emails, LaptopGirl finally showed up. At that point I pretty much started ignoring everyone else in the room, because LaptopGirl and I somehow found ourselves having an actual relevant conversation. People kept trying to interrupt us and/or worm their way in, but for the most part I managed to keep it just between the two of us. It was very nice.

At one point, I looked up, and NotHideousGirl had managed to sneak in. Of course I talked to her as well, but I kept returning to my conversation with LaptopGirl.

I think this was about the point where I got magically drunk. Please note that I'd had three weak beers, over the course of about four hours.

Some dude bought a round of drinks for everyone. I didn't want a whole beer for myself, so I just ended up drinking most of LaptopGirl's free Guinness (1761).

It seemed like everyone left at about the same time, but I stuck around and had a couple Diet Cokes. And I wished that LaptopGirl and I would have shared that pizza we'd discussed, because the room was really spinning. Food would have been nice, but the kitchen was closed.

I ended up taking a cab home from Rich O's. That almost never happens, because it's almost never necessary.

I said, back at the beginning of this novel, that I had a theory about how I'd managed to get so drunk on so little alcohol. Well, my theory is that the alcohol had very little to do with it. I got to have an actual relevant conversation with someone very important to me. This was something that I'd waited years to do. My theory is that I got drunk on that surreal series of moments.

So there.

Saturday, February 2, 2008
posted by dave at 1:14 PM in category drink

For the most part, I think it was a pretty boring night, at least until I left Rich O's. It was very crowded. It was very loud. I talked to some people. I drank some beer. I got groped. I think that the most unusual thing about my time at Rich O's last night was that I received the most unsubtle text message ever from this one girl.

I ended up having a pint of NABC Old Lightning Rod (450) and two pints of NABC Flat Tyre (343). All were yummy.

WeirdGirl kept having to work later and later, as usual. So I walked over to this Jack's bar when Rich O's closed. I sat with some of the Rich O's people for a while and had a Diet Coke. Then, out of the blue, my friend Eric called. He was over at Sluttopia, so I went there for a while. It was cool to see Eric and some of his friends from his high school class. Sluttopia didn't live up to its new name last night, though. It was pretty much a sausagefest. They had a band there. I bet if they'd had karaoke there'd have been more girls.

Then at about 2:00 I went over to wait for WeirdGirl to get off work.

Monday, January 28, 2008
posted by dave at 12:37 AM in category daily, drink, ramblings

This entry, such as it is, brought to you by:

Bluegrass Russian Imperial Porter

(bottle) Pours black, with a minimal tan head that faded quickly. Light aroma of roasted malts and chocolate. Flavor was pretty much the same - roasted malt and chocolate. The finish was a little drying, but otherwise the 11% ABV is hidden very well. A very good beer.
It ended up being a pretty boring day. One which constantly hinted at the possibility of distraction, but one which failed to live up to those tokens. So, it could have been worse.

WeirdGirl and I slept until after 10:00. We probably would have slept even later, except my sister called with some disconcerting news. Everything, in the end, so to speak, seems to have turned out well. So that's cool, but it did make for several hours of at least slight trepidation.

After WeirdGirl left, I settled into what's become my normal Sunday routine. Doing laundry. Shooting pool. Watching movies. Glaring at my phone.

But that last thing, I think I did more out of habit than out of any real sense of anticipation. I certainly never expected it to make it's little woo-hoo noise. And, of course, it never did. I was oddly okay with its silence, though. Just like I was oddly okay with the silence than ran through my head all day today.

The silence from my phone was familiar. The silence in my head? Not so much, but still, okay.

See, I don't know what happened, but I have to assume that there must have been a good reason for it. I stated my case, for whatever that might be worth. Nothing changed. So I jumped into my time machine. I was right, it's not so bad.

Anyway, some things are funny to me. They have to be funny, lest they be tragic. And I've got enough tragedy, thank you very much.

The thought that a pretty face, or a sexy body, or a friendly personality - the thought that any or all of these things might be enough for me - that thought borders on hilarious.

There's always something missing, it seems. That thing which is intangible and all-important. That's the thing for which the need permeates me. I've found something to fill that need once, twice, maybe three times. I may never find it again. That would be sad, I think.

Desire is more important than satisfaction. Because you can never really have the latter without the former. If you try, it inevitably feels hollow and empty. It feels like a lie, and for good reason.

WeirdGirl and I talked about this stuff for a while, our breathing still synchronized, in the late hours before sleep took us. We've discussed it before, and it's starting to sink in, the things that I say. She's finally starting to understand me, and her understanding will probably signal the end of this. Whatever this is.

Saturday, January 26, 2008
posted by dave at 11:13 AM in category drink

The place was pretty freaking packed. I'd been expecting a big crowd. Friday nights are always crowded, plus they were having another art show out in the special people section. The entire place was packed, often standing-room-only, for most of the night.

But that was okay. MusicalYuppieDude gave me a seat on the sofa when I first arrived, so I didn't have to stand. Also at least half of the non-regulars in the crowd were girls in various stages of hotness. Most of them were hippies, but hot hippies. There also seemed to be a very unlikely proportion of blonde girls.

When I first arrived, I waited in vain for a bartender to make his way to me. I ended up going out to look at the art for a while. As in most art shows, there was some good stuff and some bad stuff. It's all subjective. I didn't see any paintings by either MisunderstoodGirl or NotHideousGirl, so that was a little disappointing.

They also had a small beer stand set up at the art show entrance. On the way back to Rich O's proper, I glanced at the labels on the taps.

Cone Smoker!

Yay!

I guess they'd saved some just for the art show.

So, guess what beer I had.

Guess!

Cone Smoker!

Yay!

It was only a 12-oz pour, into a plastic cup, and it took about 15 minutes to pour it, but it was still yummy (3157).

When I got back to Rich O's proper, I had a brief conversation with LaptopGirl, who I hadn't seen before but who was sitting at the kiddie table with some guy I don't like. The conversation was indeed brief. It consisted of her saying, "Hi," followed by me saying, "Hi."

Oh, how the mighty have, once again, fallen.

My next beer, because I didn't want to have to wait so long for another Cone Smoker, was an NABC Flat Tyre (153). In fact, because of some ordering confusion, I was presented with two pints of Flat Tyre at the same time. So that's all I had for the rest of the night (173).

The group in the living room talked about various stuff for a while, and at one point we found ourselves playing euchre. Actually, we all spent the night trying to teach euchre to this one dude. He didn't have a nickname before, and I'm going to pick HairDude for no particular reason. Also playing/teaching was SmooshDude, and PlantDude.

It was a fun night. At one point PlantDude's fiancé, NiceGirl, took his spot in the game, and NiceGirl and I proceeded to win about 7,999,999 of the next 8,000,000 possible points. NiceGirl and I would apparently dominate the Professional Euchre Tour, if such a thing existed.

It was a fun night.

Wednesday, January 23, 2008
posted by dave at 1:29 AM in category drink, ramblings

This entry brought to you by:

Stone Vertical Epic 07.07.07

(bottle) I'm calling this a Belgian because I don't have any better ideas. Cloudy orange when backlit. No foam. An aroma of citrus that was a little bit intoxicating all on its own. Flavor of malts and oranges and light hops. This was a surprisingly good beer, as I usually don't care for citrus. Almost yummy.
It's fascinating to me, how two or more people can all look at the same thing, and all see something different.

Like, I know some girls. I may have mentioned girls from time to time. I look at some of these girls, and I see something indescribably wonderful. But, some people, when they look at the same girls, they see a crazy person, or a whore, or a stuck-up bitch. They see a waste of space.

Sometimes, it's reversed. Sometimes, I'm the only one seeing the bad side of people. It's not very often, though, and I'm probably right about those assholes anyway. It's Everyone On Earth that's wrong, I think.

They see sinister motives where none exist. They see affection where none exists. They see lies and selfishness where none exist.

It's, like I said, fascinating to me. But not in a good way.

Anyway, that's not what I wanted to write about.

For a long time, Everyone On Earth has, at one point or another, told me to get over it and move on.

I envy the people who can do those things. Apparently, they're fairly common abilities. I mean, just look at the divorce and remarriage rates.

Let's ignore for a second the fact that I'm divorced, okay? It's not really relevant.

Thanks.

To review:

Step One - Get over it.

Okay, that's not really a choice, is it? Getting under it, so to speak - that was never a choice, not if it was real. So why should the opposite be true?

Step two - Move on.

Seems obvious to me that step two is doomed to failure unless step one has been accomplished. After all, it hardly seems fair to whoever you move on to. Ask MixedSignalGirl if she thought it was fair, what I put her through. Don't get too close when you ask her though. She bites.

So, the problem is with step one. The whole get over it crap. You manage that feat, and the rest is a cakewalk.

Do cakewalks even happen anymore, or am I just showing my age?

But I digress.

Right off the top of my head, I see three ways to get over it. One way would be, and this would be ideal I think, one way would be to just meet someone new, and be overwhelmed by them. That would be cool, I think. You'd be doing both steps at the same time. It would be all efficient and shit. Maybe you'd get to meet Al Gore, as a sort of bonus, because he likes that efficiency stuff.

Another way would be, and this should really be a last resort only, to just give up. Shut down.

It's weird that you give up but you shut down. There are many more examples like that. Feel free to do your own research. You'll find that up and down have completely cornered the idiom market. You hardly ever hear anything about left or right or sideways. This seems grossly unfair to me. I may vote for the presidential candidate who embraces this issue.

But I digress.

Remember, giving up only accomplishes step one. And step two is going to be pretty fucking tough after you've turned into a robot or a zombie or something else with no emotions or soul.

The third way to get over it is probably the most common method.

Just wait. Hold your breath and suffer and pity yourself and whine all the fucking time, perhaps pour your heart into a blog, and maybe, eventually, things get better. Maybe, eventually, you find that you have indeed gotten over it.

After that, you can feel free to move on. But not before. I cannot stress this enough. Step one must be completed before step two can succeed.

For those keeping score at home, I'm still fucking awake.

Tuesday, January 15, 2008
posted by dave at 12:12 AM in category drink, travel, weather

I went to Rich O's after work today. More out of habit than any particular desire to observe Pizza Day or have a beer. But it's cool that I went in, because after a few sips of Upland Wheat (126), I saw that NABC had tapped their Old Lightning Rod a couple of days early. I traded the rest of my Upland for a pint of the Old Lightning Rod (250) and it was very good as always.

---

Today I counted up the vacation days that I've used since May, when our fiscal year started. I've still got a buttload of days left to take. To help rectify this situation, I'm taking this Thursday and Friday off. So, because Monday is a company holiday, I'll get a five-day weekend. What will I do with this five-day weekend? Probably not a damn thing.

I need to take a week off sometime this Spring and go somewhere. Las Vegas is my obvious first choice, but I'm also thinking about maybe going up to Seattle instead. I haven't been there since 2002, and I find myself thinking about that place, and those people, quite often.

---

Oh yeah, this morning it snowed like a motherfucker for about an hour. Flakes the size of 50-cent pieces. It was quite pretty, and I got a little excited that maybe it would accumulate. But alas, it melted on contact with the ground. I'm not a huge fan of snow, but I detest cold weather, and snow at least makes it bearable for me. They're saying that it might snow here Thursday, but I suspect that's just a ploy to get us to watch the evening news.

---

Funny, I thought I'd have more to write about tonight.

Sunday, January 13, 2008
posted by dave at 2:42 PM in category drink

Last night was supposed to be completely different than it was. I was supposed to have a date with WeirdGirl, but it kept getting delayed and delayed and delayed because, well my theory is it's because her boss is an asshole.

So I went to Rich O's after all, at about 7:30. The parking lot was totally packed. I ended up parking on Mars. During the long trek back to Rich O's, I began to really dread the crowd that I was sure waited inside. But I was pleasantly surprised and very relieved to see that it wasn't that bad at all. The special people room was full of PBDs having a party or something - that's why the parking lot was so full - but Rich O's proper was only about a third-full.

I sat on the throne and ordered an Upland Wheat (123) and talked briefly to the makeout couple sitting on the loveseat.

For the next hour or so I kinda vegged out. My phone kept going off about various work emergencies and, because this is my on-call week, I had to respond to every text message that came in. But I got over it. I talked to MusicalYuppieDude. He says he's going to give me some doohickey which may allow me to mess with my electric guitar in my actual living room. Instead of in the far corner of my basement. So that will be cool.

At about the time PearlGirl came in with her hot friend from a few weeks ago, WeirdGirl texted me that she'd been delayed again. I was going to order another Upland, but the keg had blown, so I had a Pyramid Snow Cap (90) instead. It was yummy.

There was some dude at the kiddie table sampling all of the beers that NABC makes, and since I couldn't talk to PearlGirl's hot friend (she was busy talking to PearlGirl) I talked to him instead. It's nice when strangers aren't assholes. It's also quite rare, but that's part of what makes it nice.

At about the time I finished my Pyramid, and ordered a Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier (2323), WeirdGirl texted me again to say she was going to have to work until closing. So that sucked. I'd turned down an invitation to go to my sister's because of my date, and now it wasn't even going to happen until at least 2:00. But then I remembered that I don't get cell phone reception at Dina's, so I couldn't have gone anyway, because of the being on-call thing.

Anyway, at one point I was wandering around talking to some of the PBD girls. We were talking about traveling the world and stuff like that. I said that I wished I'd done that stuff when I was younger, but that now I was too old.

StoreGirl told me, "You're certainly not any older than 30."

So I gave her a hug and told her I loved her.

Then this other PBD girl, who for some reason doesn't have a nickname (It's OldBob's wife) told me, "Well, you're definitely younger than 40."

So I have her a hug and told her I loved her.

The night became a little blurry for a bit. I was trying to decide if I wanted to go to Louisville to wait for WeirdGirl, or to just go home, or to hang out at Rich O's some more. I ordered a Diet Coke and did some mingling.

At one point I found myself in the special people room. I showed StoreGirl my drivers license. It was funny to see the look in her face when she saw how old I was.

I thanked PearlGirl for bringing her hot friend with her. I'm pretty sure that I talked to UPSDude for a bit. I ate an egg thing that wasn't too bad. A little bland, I thought.

Oh yeah, I told ElPresidente about running into that girl who used to ride our school bus. His first question was, "Is she still hot?"

I said that she was indeed.

At 10:30 or so, I found myself sitting at the island, talking with StoreGirl and some other PBDs about various fluff. I know that it was around 10:30, because it was way too late for LaptopGirl to be showing up.

But that's exactly what she did.

Yay!

This is the part where I have to be careful about what I write.

I'd gone out front to talk to LaptopGirl while she looked at the draft board, and when I went back into Rich O's proper, OldBob's wife had stolen my seat at the island. I said that was fine because I was moving back to the throne anyway.

This was about when the bartenders decided to crank the music up to level 10.

So LaptopGirl and I basically screamed at each other for several minutes. I couldn't hear more than every third or fourth word, though, even after she moved to the Loveseat.

So I asked a bartender, as politely as I could, if there was any way that the music could be turned down a little.

He turned the music completely off.

I'd managed to piss off a Rich O's bartender, and that's one of my rules. I'm not supposed to do that.

Anyway, so I picked up my shit, and I said goodbye, and I left. I sent LaptopGirl a text message to apologize. While I was driving home, PearlGirl texted me 500 times to ask if I was okay. LaptopGirl didn't reply at all.

After I got home, I ended up sending an email to LaptopGirl, apologizing again for my abrupt departure. I also texted WeirdGirl to let her know that I wouldn't me driving to Louisville after all.

Then I ate some chicken and went to bed.

Saturday, January 12, 2008
posted by dave at 1:09 PM in category drink

I'm too old for this shit. My tolerance for idiots has been plummeting steadily for months, maybe even for years. And my tolerance levels for loudness and crowding were never very high to begin with.

I'm glad that TallLady was in the throne when I arrived. Otherwise I might have reflexively sat there. That would have been bad, because I'd have lasted about ten seconds before I'd have moved again. And I'd have had some explaining to do.

What I ended up doing was sitting at the kiddie table. I tried my best to ignore the incredible noise level coming from the living room area while I enjoyed an Upland Winter Warmer (280). It was pretty good, but I decided that I just wasn't in the mood for anything strong.

When TallLady left, she offered the throne to me. I declined. No fucking way was I adding myself to that obnoxious mix. I could barely hear myself think as it was.

When PhotoDude left the bar, I moved up there. It was still way too loud in the place, but having all of the noise at my back did help a little.

There's this ridiculous pattern that keeps repeating itself.

1. People tell dick jokes very loudly.
2. The bartenders turn the music up so the entire bar doesn't have to listen to the loud people tell dick jokes.
3. People get even more loud so that others can hear their dick jokes over the music.
4. The bartenders turn the music up even louder, so that people in other states don't have to hear the dick jokes.
5. I wonder what the fuck happened to the quiet place I'd grown so fond of.

Anyway, my next beer was a yummy Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier (2296), which I hadn't had in a long time for some reason. It really hit the spot.

I spent a good part of the next couple of hours trading text messages and emails back and forth. I asked MusicalYuppieDude the first question. His answer neither surprised me nor bothered me. Eventually, I expect it to bother me.

UPSDude kept asking me if I was mad at him. He does this all the time, but last night he seemed unwilling to take "no" for an answer. Eventually, he did manage to annoy me by pressing the issue so much.

At about the time I started my second Weihenstephaner (2306), the second question was asked. Then, right after that, MusicalYuppieDude and I got to talking about guitars and amps and headphones, and the third question was asked.

I didn't finish my last beer. It was getting late, and I was in a crappy mood by then, so I paid and came home.

At about 2:30, a fourth question was asked. It was a very welcome question. An invitation, actually.

My answer was, "Try and stop me."

Saturday, December 29, 2007
posted by dave at 10:33 AM in category drink

Yesterday was a pretty good day. I took a late lunch, and went to see AlliGirl for a while. For some reason I didn't eat anything, I just had some Newcastle (8533). Then, on the way home, I suddenly got hungry. I was near White Castle, so I went there. It's been months since I went there.

So I ordered my food, and I was standing back waiting for it to be ready, and I felt a tingling. It was my hot girl radar, pinging loudly and clearly. I turned to my left and saw a little blue car leaving the drive-thru.

Driving that little blue car was none other than VigilanteGirl!

Yay!

She saw me, stopped and waved at me through the window, and motioned for me to some outside. Of course I went outside, somehow remembering to open the door instead of just crash through it.

We talked for a minute or two. She gave me her card with her number on it, and said she had to get back to work. I called her a little later, so now she has my number, too. I told her that I didn't want to wait another year and a half to see her, and that we should figure out a way to keep that from happening. She sounded dubious.

But still, it was very cool to see her and talk to her.

---

Then, later in the evening, I stopped at GasNStuff on the way to Rich O's, and VigilanteGirl was sitting in her car talking on her phone. I waved at her, but that's it.

---

Rich O's was crowded as fuck.

I stood around for a while until this one dude finished eating, then I squeezed by him and sat on the sofa. I had an NABC Cone Smoker (3071) and enjoyed it immensely. Other than that, I felt pretty claustrophobic sitting there because it was so crowded. As soon as PlantDude left the throne, I moved there. ArtGirl was sitting at the kiddie table with some dude. I talked to her for a bit, and I chastised her for getting a new boyfriend and not even considering my lovely self for the position.

Next, I had a Smithwick's (1678). I'd resolved that I wouldn't be cutting myself off before 9:00, as I'd done the last two nights, so I was going to alternate between strong beers and tame beers.

This was a nice plan, but it didn't quite work that way. Once most of the weirdoes had left the sofa, MusicalYuppieDude moved over there. We ended up splitting a bottle of Malheur 10 (53). It was fantastic, but it certainly wasn't tame. After that was gone, I had what was left of my Smithwick's, then switched to Diet Coke for the rest of the night.

Then, at about 11:00, at about the time I started to get bored and disappointed with the night, I got a surprise phone call.

I had a couple of hours to kill, so I came home and did a quick straightening-up.

Thursday, December 27, 2007
posted by dave at 11:59 PM in category drink

There are two, maybe three people, who are probably wondering what I'm going to write about tonight. I thought that there might be four, but I've decided that the fourth person wasn't listening. Her gain, actually.

I've decided that I'm not going to write shit about what happened to me today. I didn't write about anything leading up to it, after all, so to just spring this on the Internet would only make people yawn. Like it's not a big deal.

Well, screw that. It's a fucking huge deal.

Anyway.

Tonight, I was in an incredibly shitty mood. So shitty that, in fact, I actually found myself wishing against something that I've done nothing but wish for since 2004 or so.

And then, then my fucking wish came true, and so that just adds insult to injury. Stupid me and my stupid wish coming true. Stupid.

I spent the majority of the night sulking at the bar. Some people had tried to cajole me into sitting in the living room area, but I'd have none of that. Too many weirdoes about.

So I sat at the bar. I had a Pyramid Snow Cap (70) then a De Dolle Stille Nacht (76). Both were yummy, but both were also quite strong. So I had a little Dark Horse Tres Blueberry Stout (165) and then I cut myself off. At like fucking 8:30. Sometimes I really hate being a lightweight. Anyway, I ended up drinking Diet Cokes for the rest of the night.

Most of the time I spent sulking, but I did talk to MusicalYuppieDude off and on. And I tried to talk to OddlyFamiliarGirl, but she'd have none of that bullshit. Then I got really claustrophobic because this one PBD was seriously invading my space, so I picked up my shit and moved to the kiddie table.

After another half-hour or so of sulking, I came home.

posted by dave at 12:14 AM in category daily, drink

I've been trying to decide if tonight was a good night or not. You be the judge.

Good: I feel much better, health-wise, than I've felt for days.

Bad: I didn't get to see LaptopGirl, so now it's been two weeks since I was so blessed.

Good: PearlGirl gave me a little card that said I was Hott with two Ts.

Bad: There were a bunch of weirdoes who scared me away from the living room area.

Good: I got a boner.

Bad: I texted the girl about my boner.

Good: There was a girl who I thought might have been a blast from my past.

Bad: She turned out to be the underage daughter of FirstGirl - and I'd never seen her before. She just looked like that other girl.

Good: I had a yummy NABC Cone Smoker (3051) and a glass and a half of yummy Rogue Chocolate Stout (2370).

Bad: I couldn't finish that second glass of Rogue, because I'm a lightweight.

Good: The place was full of random hot girls.

Bad: The place was full of random hot girls.

Good: My pizza was yummy.

Bad: I'd been hoping to split a pizza with LaptopGirl.

Bad: I'm a shithead.

Good: I'm an honest shithead.

Bad: Tonight I missed, in no particular order; HatGirl, MixedSignalGirl, LaptopGirl, SassyGirl, and NotHideousGirl.

Good: I'm excited that I'll get to see AlliGirl tomorrow.

Bad: When I left, I saw LaptopGirl's car in the parking lot, so I should have stayed until she came back.

All in all, I guess the night was a wash.

Thursday, December 20, 2007
posted by dave at 11:12 PM in category drink

I was doing fine. I really was. Even though the place was completely infested by weirdoes. My sister Dina was there at first, and she and I talked for a while. After Dina left, I was able to escape the weirdoes in the living room and join the PBDs at the island. I had three yummy Rogue Chocolate Stouts (2336).

I was doing just fine, for several hours, until this one PBD decided to utter the magic words that never fail to piss me off.

It gets blurry after that.

Sunday, December 16, 2007
posted by dave at 11:36 PM in category drink, ramblings

I'm pretty much forcing myself to write something tonight. I don't know what I'll write about. It will probably be boring.

I have a couple of good ideas for entries, but I can't remember what they are. I wrote them in my notebook, though. So I'll eventually get around to them. Maybe.

Today I was supposed to go shopping, but I didn't. All I did was drive around and get pissed at crowds of shoppers and football fans. The latter are the worst, if you ask me. Not that you asked me, but if you had, that would have been my answer.

Anyway, I did something sort of nice yesterday, and it's been ignored. So that bugs me a little. It might bug me a lot except I've had myself a bottle of yummy Left Hand Smoke Jumper (193).

That reminds me. Last night NotHideousGirl asked me how I'd been doing over the eleven gazillion years since we'd last talked. I decided to pretend that she actually cared, and answer her. My answer seemed, at first, to be a load of drivel. But I thought about that answer, today while I was driving around getting pissed at people, and it's making a bit more sense to me now.

What I said was that I was happy for the most part, but that sometimes I was sad. That wasn't the drivel part. The drivel part was when I went on to say that I'd done some sort of weird 180-degree flip. Instead of being a sad person, I was a happy person. Instead of being a sad person who, every now and then, got into a good mood, I was a happy person who was subject to the occasional bouts of sadness.

Wait, that wasn't the drivel part either. The drivel part came next.

What I said was that the contrast between my varying moods seems to be a lot stronger now than it was before. Like, back when I was sad and I experienced happiness, it was noticeable, but nothing spectacular. Except for one time back in May. But now, now that I'm a happy person, those moments of sadness really stand out to me. Affect me. Turn me into an asshole, some might say. Or a dolt, NotHideousGirl might say.

It's contrast, like I said last night. Black spots against a white background vs. white spots against a black background. They should be the same, more or less. But they're not. Not even close.

I have a theory about this. I think that maybe I'm not really happy at all. Maybe I'm just not sad. I hate to use this word, but maybe I'm content. Maybe I'm lying to myself, and recent events have not quite lifted my spirits as much as I've thought.

That would suck, I think. If all I could manage was content. Because, seriously, I don't think things are ever going to get much better than this.

---

Okay, I guess that answers the question of what I was going to write tonight. I was going to write crap, apparently.

Ta-Da!

posted by dave at 9:12 AM in category comics, daily, drink, weather

Yesterday we had snow and sleet and freezing rain here, pretty much all day. This was strange, because Al Gore keeps saying that won't happen.

I spent my day at home. Messing with a web page design for LaptopGirl in between power outages. I'd planned to do my Christmas shopping, but I didn't feel like dealing with the idiots on the roads. They're bad enough even when the weather's good.

Anyway, a few times in the past, when it's snowed, people have been known to puss out and cower in their homes instead of going out. And, when Rich O's is really dead, they'll close up early. I was a little fearful that they'd be closing early last night, so I went there very early. Like at 6:00 or so. I figured that if it was dead in there I could at least buy a growler to take home.

But it was okay. The place was fairly full. A bunch of people I know were in the living room area, and for some reason they saved the throne for me. So that was nice of them.

I had myself a pint of NABC Cone Smoker, and enjoyed that immensely while I talked with TremensGirl and MusicalYuppieDude and NotHideousGirl. NotHideousGirl and I have agreed that we will each pretend that we share fault for our crumbling friendship. This is a good compromise, I think.

At about 8:00, I remembered that it was the Ides of December, so I got myself into a bad mood. I briefly toyed with the idea of just going home. Actually, I obsessed over that idea for quite a while. But eventually I decided to just have another Cone Smoker (2881) and stop being a baby.

At one point during the night, I observed this conversation:

women are strange

I will never understand women.

I had the brilliant idea to text BikerGirl and invite her to Rich O's. I'd thought that maybe having NotHideousGirl and me both there might be enough to entice her. This thought helped to slow the descent of my mood, and I ordered another Cone Smoker.

But then I remembered that BikerGirl was working.

I drank about 2/3 (2895) of my beer, but I saw no point in staying any longer, so I came home at 10:00 or so.

Saturday, December 15, 2007
posted by dave at 8:32 AM in category drink

Last night, I was late getting to Rich O's, having gotten caught up in some work bullshit exciting opportunity that took longer to resolve than I'd hoped. I didn't get there until after 9:00, an hour after HatGirl had texted me inquiring as to my whereabouts. I feel bad for making HatGirl wait - she does enough of that already.

When I first arrived, it was pretty crowded. So I stood at the end of the bar and chastised PearlGirl a little for almost getting me into big giant trouble the other night. PearlGirl had some cute girl in tow. I forget her name.

Anyway, after some strangers left, and after some preliminary seat-shifting, I found myself in the throne. I had myself an NABC Naughty Claus (43) and talked with HatGirl and LuckyFucker for a while about various nonsense. I also watched the door a lot, out of habit more than out of any sense of optimism.

At about the time HatGirl and LuckyFucker left, I ordered a second Naughty Clause (63). I like this year's version. UPSDude had moved to the loveseat at some point, and I spent the next hour or so babbling to him.

That was pretty much it. The place was only about half-full for most of the night, and it was almost all strangers.

I had most of a glass of Schlenkerla Marzen (2289) and came home a little after midnight.

Wednesday, December 12, 2007
posted by dave at 12:03 AM in category daily, drink, general, ramblings

I'm feeling much better, thanks for wondering. It's always like this with me. I get all worked up over something and then, well I suppose I get it out of my system. Or maybe I just get used to it.

I guess I'll just go back to what I've always done. I'll wait. I'm good at waiting, and I'm pretty sure that my wait won't be in vain. Eventually, something good will happen.

---

A guy at work shot himself this morning. It's in the paper, so I guess I'm allowed to mention it here. I didn't know the guy. I just knew who he was. I imagine that a lot of people would say exactly the same thing. Maybe that was part of his problem.

I fully support a person's right to end their own life. To choose when their life will end. We get so few real choices as it is. But I don't support shooting yourself at work, where someone will have to find your body, and where someone will have to clean up the mess, and where someone will be traumatized. It would be much better, I think, to just disappear and never come back.

---

The other day I had this totally brilliant idea for an entry. For an article, actually. If I ever get around to writing the thing, and if I do as good of a job with it as I'd like, it may end up being my main contribution to mankind. That would be cool.

---

It's hard to stop counting days. I count the days until something good, or I count the days after something good. Because, right now, I have nothing specific to look forward to, I'm mostly counting the latter. Then, when that number gets high enough, I get to freak out a little. So maybe I do have something to look forward to.

---

Yesterday it took, I shit you not, an hour and a half for my pizza to arrive. And then, when I finally got it, it was ice cold. So much for enjoying Pizza Night.

So today I went back to Rich O's after work for another attempt. Rogue Chocolate Stout is back on tap finally, so I had one of those (2196). Right before I finished that glass, I got a little reckless.

Dave's Smoked Chocolate

(mixture) I mixed Rogue Chocolate Stout and NABC Cone Smoker in a 1:1 ratio. I'd been expecting these two very different flavors to elevate each other to new heights. But that's not what happened. They pretty much cancelled each other out. Good thing I didn't waste too much beer with this experiment.
Then, I had the rest of the glass of Cone Smoker I'd bought for the experiment (2789). It was kinda funny, how horrified PearlGirl was when she saw me mix my beers like that. It almost made my disappointment worth it.

Today's pizza arrived in about ten minutes, and it was yummy.

---

One of the things that keeps tempting me is the fact that, with about fifteen minutes, I could end all of this confusion. I could correct all of these misinterpretations. I could answer all questions. Now, knowing myself as I do, I realize that I'd try to stretch that fifteen minutes out to like a thousand years, but I think fifteen minutes is all I'd really need.

---

I just thought of something else, but it's worth an entry all on its own.

Sunday, December 9, 2007
posted by dave at 12:19 PM in category drink

I'm in a crappy mood.

I'm not allowed to be in a crappy mood, and I'm not allowed to say why I'm in a crappy mood. These two restrictions combine to shove me into an even crappier mood. It's all circular and shit.

I actually wrote a nice little entry about my crappy mood. It stayed up for about eight hours before I deleted it. I hate it when I write bullshit like that.

Anyway.

I got to Rich O's a little after 6:00 last night. This was pretty early for me, but I wanted to give myself the best chance of getting a seat. I needn't have bothered - it wasn't too crowded at all, and seats were fairly plentiful.

I sat on the loveseat for a while. This dude who looks like my cousin Robbie was there with some of his friends. I had myself a Gouden Carolus Noel (50) and listened to them rag on each other for an hour or so. Then I moved to the kiddie table so I could eat some pizza in peace.

My second beer was new to me:

Jolly Pumpkin Noel de Calabaza

(draft) Hazy dark amber. Decent head that faded quickly. Slightly sour aroma. Slightly sour finish. Not much else to it. A decent beer, but not really worth my time. I tried to give half the glass away, but nobody wanted it.
I talked to Roger for a bit. I'd had an idea for a sort of sampler special that I wanted to run by him.

Then some bullshit happened.

Then HatGirl came in with LuckyFucker.

HatGirl!

Yay!

This was about when I had a Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout (14). It was quite good, and quite strong. So I cut myself off for a while, and had Diet Cokes while I talked to HatGirl and LuckyFucker.

Then some more bullshit happened.

Eventually I found my way to the throne. I sat there and talked to HatGirl and TremensGirl for quite a while. After HatGirl and LuckyFucker left, I continued to talk to TremensGirl for a while. I don't remember what any of the conversations were about. Probably stuff like, "Stop being such a grouchy pussy, Dave."

I ended up having a couple glasses of Schlenkerla Marzen (2263) to close out the night.

Saturday, December 8, 2007
posted by dave at 12:35 PM in category drink

Two hours after my dentist appointment, my tongue still lay in my mouth like a dead rat. I began to fear that it might not return to normal in time for tonight's Saturnalia kick-off at Rich O's. The thought of missing the good beer put me in a bit of a funk. Plus, HatGirl kept emailing me to see which beers Saturnalia would have to offer, and when I would be there.

Luckily, magically, amazing, at about 6:30, my tongue returned to life. So I emailed HatGirl that I'd be there by 7:30 and I jumped in the shower.

Friday nights are always busy at Rich O's. The opening nights for beer festivals are also always busy. Roger, via some bizarre decision-making process which I will probably never understand, invariably chooses to start his festivals on Friday nights.

So, it was very crowded. Between all the Friday weirdoes and all the festival beer snobs, the place was already filled-up by the time I got there a little after 7:00. As I made my way into Rich O's proper, I spied a lone open seat at the bar. So I hurried over there, saying hello to TremensGirl on the way. She was sitting on the loveseat.

Once I'd seated myself, and ordered a Schlenkerla Marzen (2195), I surveyed my surroundings. About an even mix of weirdoes, strangers, and regulars. The one weirdo sitting alone at the kiddie table turned out to be PlantDude, so I decided to move there. But then I looked at the sofa and, lo and behold, there was NormalGirl!

She hadn't seen me yet, so I texted her a quick, "Hi, stranger!"

But before her phone could ring, our eyes met, and I had to go and ruin the surprise by telling her that I'd just texted her.

Because NormalGirl is 4,430,087,701.00046 times prettier than PlantDude, I eschewed the kiddie table and moved to the sofa instead, strategically placing myself between NormalGirl and this other hot girl who turned out to be one of her friends from nursing school. I shall call her RahRahGirl, because she's a cheerleader, and that's what cheerleader's do.

So the three of us talked for a while, and all the other guys in the place got jealous. NormalGirl told me that she's been very busy. I said that I understand. If and/or when and/or where our second date might occur, I'm still leaving that up to her.

Oh yeah, NormalGirl told me that I'd just missed my sister, Dina. So that sucked.

At 8:00 or so, HatGirl texted me to ask about the seating situation. Right then, as it turned out, there were a few empty seats in the place. Weird, because it was still very crowded. It was just that a lot of the weirdoes were standing around instead of sitting. Because that's what weirdoes do - weird stuff. So I texted to HatGirl that there were some seats.

Unfortunately, by the time HatGirl and LuckyFucker arrived, those seats were gone. NormalGirl suggested that we all squeeze together on the sofa, but by that time HatGirl was in a bad mood, and so they left after only a couple of minutes. Probably just as well. Had I been squeezed between NormalGirl and RahRahGirl for any length of time, I wouldn't have been able to stand up for a week without getting arrested.

It probably would have been worth it.

Anyway, I spent more time talking to the girls. I had a second Marzen (2212). Idiots and weirdoes and regulars and strangers came and went, but I barely noticed. I was busy. Plus, I felt bad about the HatGirl situation, like I'd let her down somehow. Not a good feeling at all.

Once NormalGirl and RahRahGirl left, at about 10:00 I think, I moved to the throne. I had a third Marzen (2229) and just kinda vegged-out for a while. I found my mood slipping. Everyone was in their own drunk little worlds, and it was too late for me to join in any of the conversations. So I ordered a pizza and came home.

Friday, November 23, 2007
posted by dave at 10:55 AM in category drink

So Wednesday, after WeirdGirl left, I headed on down to Rich O's.

The night before Thanksgiving is typically one of the busiest nights of the year there, and Wednesday night started out looking like it would be terribly crowded. People were double and triple parked in the lot. I parked in Chile and hiked in.

The loser area was packed, and the front area was packed. Rich O's proper actually had a couple of open seats. Yay! First thing I noticed was GlassesGirl on the sofa. So I sat on the loveseat and talked to her and her husband and TallLady for a while. I had myself a Cone Smoker (2396). GlassesGirl kept trying to talk me into writing a novel, and I kept trying to protest that fiction is hard and stuff.

After a short while, LaptopGirl came in looking very pretty in shades of brown. She sat at the kiddie table and I pretty much forgot about everyone else. Eventually there was some shuffling of seats, and LaptopGirl moved to the throne and I moved to the kiddie table. We messed with her laptop for a while. I was very disappointed that an initial scan didn't turn up any spyware. So I'm kinda stumped as to what might be wrong with her computer.

Oh yeah, PlantDude smoked a clove cigarette. The smell made me hungry, and it made LaptopGirl queasy, so we split a pizza. I'm sure that, by then, I was on my second Cone Smoker (2416).

Crap, I almost forgot! At one point I looked over at the sofa, and half of TeamHotness was there! Specifically, UnbearablyHotSingleGirl was there! So I of course talked to her for a bit. She looked fantastic. I asked her where ImprobablyHotMarriedGirl was, and she said she was over at the Sportstime side of the building. So I skipped over in that direction, and I met ImprobablyHotMarriedGirl coming my way!

Yay!

Very cool to see them both!

After my tearful reunion with TeamHotness, I went back to the kiddie table and talked with LaptopGirl some more. The dude who's name I'd gotten wrong had shown up at some point. I talked to him a little just to be polite.

LaptopGirl didn't want to finish her beer, so I choked it down for her.

Barley Island Black Majic Java Stout

(draft) Black with brown foam. Strong coffee aroma. Flavor not as intense as the aroma led me to expect. Not very good at all, but I dislike coffee flavor in beer so I didn't expect to like this. I gave this beer a decent rating (instead of swill) because they seem to have at least tried, and I can imagine some people might like it.
After LaptopGirl left I moved to the throne. I'd been thinking that I'd go home, but MisunderstoodGirl came and sat on the loveseat. I hadn't got to really talk with her for what seems like years, so I ordered a half-pint of Cone Smoker (2426) and stayed for another hour or so. It was very nice.

The whole night was very nice.

Thursday, November 22, 2007
posted by dave at 10:58 AM in category drink

First, I want to say that I was mostly right about something. I had the date and the time and the circumstances right. All I got wrong was the name of the person. That's forgivable, I think. He was a very minor character in our little show, anyway.

Second, I've been such a big slacker about my Rich O's entries this week. As in, there haven't been any. As in, I've been there the last three nights.

I'll start in the logical place. Monday evening. I'd just left work, and my phone vibrated. My first instinct was that some coworker had some last-minute question or problem for me. So I was very pleasantly surprised when I looked at the phone and saw SassyGirl's picture.

She and JauntyGirl had finally come back to visit! Yay!

So of course I went to Rich O's to meet up with them. It was very cool to see them. SassyGirl hasn't changed. JauntyGirl is a blonde now. We sat around for a couple of hour and talked and did some catching up. I emailed LaptopGirl that SassyGirl was in town. I had two Cone Smokers (2316). When we all left, there was much hugging as they were going off on another of their adventures Tuesday.

Tuesday was virtual Friday for me, so I went to Rich O's at 8:00 or so. I was pretty sure that it was a bad idea to go. I wasn't in the best mood. I told RockGirl that I'd probably end the night either sad or very sad - depending on what actually happened.

I sat at the island and had, of course, a Cone Smoker (2336). I had the island to myself, so that was kind of nice. I waved at OddlyFamiliarGirl, who was sitting with some gay guy at the kiddie table. She was wearing her DaveFest shirt.

Then these three girls came in and sat with me at the island. I didn't know them, but they all seemed nice. At about the time I'd decided that I'd end the night sad instead of very sad something cool happened. SassyGirl and JauntyGirl and SassyBoy came in! The girls had decided to postpone their new adventure for another night. Very cool.

I ended up having another two pints of Cone Smoker (2376) while we all bullshitted about various stuff. At the end of the night, there was, once again, much hugging. I ended the night in an actual good mood.

Wednesday I was off work. I slept half the damn day away, and so I was a couple of hours late for AlliDay at The Pub. But I made it there eventually. I had a couple Newcastles (8201) and talked to BikerGirl for a couple of hours. The place was fairly dead, so that was a good thing for me - more time with BikerGirl!

There. That brings me up to Wednesday night. I think I'll give Wednesday night its own entry.

Sunday, November 18, 2007
posted by dave at 1:10 PM in category drink

I know I always say this, but I wasn't even planning to go to Rich O's last night. I always say it, but then I follow-up by saying that I went to Rich O's.

I went to Rich O's at a little after 6:00, because MusicalYuppieDude had texted me that NormalGirl might be there. So I rushed out to my truck, drove about halfway there, then came back home and put on clothes, then drove all the way to Rich O's.

When I arrived, MusicalYuppieDude told me that I'd missed "her" by five minutes. Whoever it was. Might not have been NormalGirl at all - all MusicalYuppieDude had to go by was a grainy picture I'd sneaked with my phone's camera the night I'd met her.

I texted NormalGirl and asked if she'd been at Rich O's. No response, but that could mean a lot of things. First thing on my mind, of course, being that I've somehow blown it with her and will never see or hear from her again, perhaps that a restraining order is in the works even as I type this sentence. That's the fun way that my mind works.

Anyway, the place was pretty full of weirdoes, but luckily the kiddie table was available, so I sat there. I had, of course, an NABC Cone Smoker (2246) and I, of course, glared at the weirdoes.

I noticed ArtGirl sitting over at the stand-up bar - she'd drug a chair there. So I went and talked to her for a bit, and invited her to join me at the kiddie table. She politely declined and continued to write in her notebook. Probably a restraining order.

OddlyFamiliarGirl came in and sat with me, and I spent most of the rest of the night talking with her about various stuff. It was all nice and pleasant, even though some of the topics covered were anything but nice or pleasant. Also, LaptopGirl has been looking for OddlyFamiliarGirl, so I emailed the former about the latter's presence. No response, and another possible restraining order.

At about the time I got my second Cone Smoker (2266), my friends Eric and Teri came in. Surprise! I was very glad to see them. Last time had been for my nephew's funeral in August. So I talked with them until they left to go do something or other.

I rejoined OddlyFamiliarGirl at the kiddie table and talked to her some more while I had a third Cone Smoker (2286). I see that Cone Smoker has moved into second place on my all-time beer consumption list. It passed Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier by 7 ounces, and it trails Newcastle by only 5,875 ounces. Not that anything will ever catch Newcastle. Availability + Yumminess = Supremacy.

OddlyFamiliarGirl moved up to the bar to talk to Roger, and I ended the evening just as I'd begun it - alone at the kiddie table. Also, I'd got a text message from HatGirl, but then something happened to my phone and a lot of my messages were lost. This put me in a bad mood, so I came home.

Saturday, November 17, 2007
posted by dave at 11:08 AM in category drink

Last night, Rich O's was fairly full, but it seemed empty for a couple of reasons. Reason the first was that there were several actual parking spots available in the actual parking lot. Reason the second was that just about all of the people there were either PBDs or at least regulars. So no idiots or weirdoes. So that was cool.

One of the PBDs had the throne, so I sat at the kiddie table with my first yummy Cone Smoker (2206) of the night. I exchanged a few pleasantries with some of the people in the living room, but for the most part I just vegged out.

Oh yeah, TremensGirl was there. She'd said a while ago that she wouldn't be back until at least December. I'd said that she'd cave before November was over. So I'd win that bet, if we'd actually bet anything.

Nothing happened for a long time. I emailed LaptopGirl that her BFF was there. I resisted the urge to text NotHideousGirl or NormalGirl. I talked to the regulars and the PBDs. At one point GrammarLady "lost" her purse and there was an impromptu Keystone Kops skit as everyone searched for it. It was found, eventually, in her car. Duh.

Then FirstLady gave me the throne. That was nice of her. TremensGirl said something about the universe being right again.

I had a second Cone Smoker (2226) at one point, then I got annoyed by one of the regulars, so I cut myself off lest I say the wrong thing. Again.

This one PBD wanted to buy me a beer, but I had to decline. Three Cone Smokers would have been too much for me last night. The offer was certainly appreciated, though.

Anyway, I ended up coming home at 11:30 or so. Kind of a pleasant night, but also kind of a waste.

I stole this from a thread at fark.com. I want this on a t-shirt:

meter thingy

Thursday, November 15, 2007
posted by dave at 1:02 AM in category daily, drink

Took too long of a nap tonight. Might have slept all night except my phone Woo Hooed at me at about 11:30.

A message from LaptopGirl!

Woo Hoo!

Anyway, this morning I was in a bit of a pickle. As far as I knew, I had about 83 cents to my name, and I was nearly out of gas. So I had the brilliant idea to actually check my bank balance instead of just assuming that I was broke.

Almost $94 in there, on the day before payday. I've been eating dirt for the past week for nothing, it seems.

So I was able to gas up my truck and make it to work. Later, with my newfound wealth, I was able to go and observe AlliDay at The Pub. BikerGirl got her hair cut off and dyed slightly red. She looks hot. I told her that it was like I'd discovered that she had a hot twin sister.

I ended up having a pint and a half of Newcastle (8139), and a dude from work paid for it.

Then, after work, I went to Rich O's and had a Cone Smoker (2128). While I was there, Bubbles came in, and she'd messed with her hair as well. Went from blonde to completely black. A huge difference.

I was talking with NotHideousGirl's ex-husband, and this one chick I never saw before. The subject of hitting a deer on the road came up, and I mentioned that I'd met MixedSignalGirl when she'd hit a deer while driving in front of me. The chick I never saw before said that she'd hit a deer once, too. Turns out that the chick and MixedSignalGirl have the same name.

Weird.

Now, after my nap that ran on for way too long, I'm wide awake at 1:00 AM. I'm having a glass of Cone Smoker (2146) in lieu of anything with caffeine, so I hope I'll be able to grab some sleep in a couple of hours.

Monday, November 12, 2007
posted by dave at 11:12 PM in category drink

Not much to report today, so I'll make this brief.

After work, I went to this Hitching Post bar, where my dad used to hang out. I was going to have a disgusting Falls City in his honor, but they didn't have any, so I had a disgusting Bud Light (336) instead. I drank it straight out of the can, like Dad would have done it.

After that, I went to Rich O's and had a yummy Cone Smoker (2108).

I couldn't afford a pizza, so this week's Pizza Night is postponed until Thursday.

I told you this would be brief.

Sunday, November 11, 2007
posted by dave at 12:32 PM in category drink

It was a pretty decent night, I suppose. Quite crowded, partly because of this big meeting the PBDs were having, and partly because there were a lot of strangers all over the place. But about half of the strangers were pretty women, so that made it bearable.

I arrived way earlier than normal, hoping to catch LaptopGirl, but I was too late for that. I grabbed a seat at the kiddie table and ordered a Cone Smoker (1994).

My night consisted of sitting at the kiddie table, enjoying my beers, and talking with StoreGirl and/or FirstGirl, as one or both of them would frequently come in and sit with me for a while. MusicalYuppieDude was at the bar, so I did talk to him every now and then.

Other than those people, and the main mass of PBDs who mostly stayed out front, I didn't recognize a single person in the place. Oh yeah, except for HopGirl. She came in and sat with some people in the red room. I went over and talked to her briefly. I think she did something to her hair, because she was looking disconcertingly pretty. Oh, and ArtGirl made a brief appearance before she moved out front. Ditto on the pretty thing.

I think that's about it. I ended up drinking a couple more Cone Smokers (2024), then I went and said goodbye to ArtGirl, and I came home at 11:00 or so.

Saturday, November 10, 2007
posted by dave at 9:33 AM in category drink, pictures

I got to Rich O's early, about 7:20 or so. I hadn't really been planning to go at all. I was just going to sleep and wake up whenever I woke up. But then HatGirl texted me that she was at Rich O's. So I went to Rich O's, even though I was very tired, because, duh, HatGirl!

Also, Thursday I went there after work and saw this bit of loveliness on the board.

Cone Smoker is coming soon yay!

I asked Roger when he thought it might be available, and he guessed that it would be around the first of December.

So, imagine my surprise and glee when I went in on November 9th and saw this.

Cone Smoker is here yay!

Cone Smoker was on tap! Yay!

I went into Rich O's proper and sat on the sofa. I said hello to everyone around me. MusicalYuppieDude, some dude without a nickname, LuckyFucker, HatGirl.

HatGirl!

Yay!

Then, after about 10 minutes, I realized that none of the bartenders were going to ask me what I wanted, so I went up to the bar and ordered my first Cone Smoker in 18 months or so (1936). It was a little darker than I remembered. More malty, and not as bitter. Quite yummy, though - that hadn't changed.

I ended up having a second one (1956) then most of a third one (1974) before my stupidity irritated me to the point where I became unfit for human company. At that point, I came home.

I don't feel like writing anything.

Wednesday, November 7, 2007
posted by dave at 10:45 PM in category daily, dreams, drink

Today was Wednesday, otherwise known as AlliDay. One of the highlights of my week, when I can sneak away from work and go have lunch at The Pub and talk to BikerGirl for a bit. Work has been crazy lately, but today I did manage to spare an hour. I had a nice Newcastle (8109) for lunch, and talked to BikerGirl for a bit.

At the end of the day I got my hairs cut, then I stopped at Rich O's for a quick Schlenkerla Marzen (2056). I don't think that my spiffy new good mood quite fits in with going to Rich O's after work anymore. I haven't felt happy there after work for a long time.

Anyway, I had a dream tonight. I think I can remember enough about it to describe it. I'll try.

I was at Rich O's. But it wasn't the real Rich O's. It was the same one from this dream. Instead of there being a single living room area, with couches and stuff, there were dozens of them scattered about. I was sitting in one such area when she came in.

Some hot blonde girl. I never saw her before in my life, but she seemed to know me. She certainly acted like she did. Within about 10 seconds after her arrival, we were making out like teenagers. So, pretty much exactly like my waking life. Not.

The blonde girl and I went outside for some reason. I asked her what her name was. "Zwanka," she said.

So that was weird.

When we came back inside, there was a huge crowd waiting to hear some band play, and Zwanka and I got separated. I was looking around for her and I saw a baby sitting on the floor all by itself.

I somehow knew that this was LaptopGirl's baby. But I hadn't seen her anywhere around, and nobody seemed to be paying any attention to the baby. I was afraid that somebody might step on it or abduct it or something. So I scooped it up and started walking around looking for LaptopGirl.

The baby and I talked as we walked around. He was about a year old, but quite a good little talker. He helped me look for his mother, but it seemed that just about every girl in the place had dark hair and glasses, so we kept going on little wild goose chases. It was fun though. I remembered thinking that I hadn't held a baby in a very long time.

Then I saw that Dan was bartending, so I asked him to put the baby up on this shelf behind the bar. That way, if LaptopGirl came in, she'd be sure to see her baby up there. I asked the baby if he wanted to go play with Uncle Dan for a while, and he agreed. So Dan put the baby up on the shelf, and I went looking for Zwanka some more.

I never did find Zwanka, but the next time I glanced at the bar, the baby was gone, and Dan gave me a thumbs-up.

I think that I can understand most of this dream. Random hot girls are, of course, a staple. As is Rich O's, even this super-expanded version. The part about wanting to help LaptopGirl's baby wasn't too much of a stretch either.

But, Zwanka?

Where did that come from?

Tuesday, November 6, 2007
posted by dave at 6:22 PM in category daily, drink

Okay, so I was in the restroom at work when it happened. By it, I of course mean that my building burst into flames.

Well, maybe not really. But I couldn't really know that, could I? I was in the restroom, busily doing restroom stuff. There were storms in the area, and there was a very loud crack, and then the fire alarm went off.

I have some questions. If you're taking a shit, and you fear that your building has just burst into flames, what actions should you take before you run screaming from the restroom?

Should you wipe? Pull your pants back up?

Should you wash your hands?

These questions, they haunt me now.

Anyway, it turns out that lightning had struck our building in such as way as to set off the fire alarm, but we didn't find that out for a while. Because it was raining pretty hard, we only mostly evacuated. We went to the bottom floor, near the door but not quite outside the door.

Then all the firemen (I actually do think it was all of them) came and started checking everything out. I texted NormalGirl that I might be late for our date, because my building might be on fire.

Then one of the firemen told us about how our building wasn't on fire, so we went back to work, and I texted NormalGirl back that I'd be on time after all.

---

Later, as I was leaving work, I got a message from NormalGirl that she was on the Sportstime side. So, that's where I went. It's weird on that side.

I'd been hoping that NormalGirl wouldn't wear anything cute, so that I might be able to get to know her better without all the distractions, but alas, she was wearing a cute hoodie and had cute sunglasses on top of her head. But I persevered. We had a nice time, I think. I poured on all of the charm I could muster, and I think we were each genuinely interested in what the other had to say.

It was fun.

Let's see, to start off the evening, I had a Delirium Tremens (1053). NormalGirl was having an Upland Wheat. We shared a pizza and some conversation. For the next beer, we split a bottle of Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier (2279) on my recommendation. She seemed to like it okay.

As the conversation continued, I had a bottle of Schlenkerla Marzen (2022). I had NormalGirl try a small sample of that. She didn't gag, so that was cool.

We have agreed that, since I chose the time and the venue for this date, she will be in charge of the next one. I hope that the next one happens. I like what I've seen and heard so far.

---

After NormalGirl left, I went over to Rich O's and talked to MusicalYuppieDude while I had another Marzen (2039).

Sunday, November 4, 2007
posted by dave at 2:04 AM in category daily, drink

I'm a little bit torn right now. There are several things that I'd like to write about. But it's late, and I'm tired. So I have to be very brief.

---

I got to see HatGirl - Yay! - tonight, for the first time in a million zillion gazillion years. It was very nice to see her.

---

There was about a 40/60 ratio of girls to guys at Rich O's tonight. That would be strange enough, but what made it even more strange was that the entire 40% consisted of hot girls. There wasn't a bowser in the bunch.

---

I had four bottles of Schlenkerla Marzen (2006) tonight. All were yummy.

---

There were a lot of weirdoes tonight. Many more than usual. The presence of all the hot girls somehow turned all of the guys into weirdoes. Wouldn't be the first time, but I've rarely seen such outbreaks at Rich O's.

---

Toward the very end of the night, I began to feel some of my recent resolve deteriorate. Luckily, they declared last call before I did or said anything stupid.

---

It was a nice night. I was in a good mood even before I got to see HatGirl, and after that I was in a fantastic mood. A couple of people and events tried to spoil it, but tonight my mood was invincible. I don't expect this invincibility to last very long. The good things never last.

---

Okay, that's it. I'm tired.

Saturday, November 3, 2007
posted by dave at 7:17 PM in category daily, drink, general

I'm dewrinkling some clothes now, so I have a little bit of time to kill. This one stupid shirt probably won't get dewrinkled, and I'll have to iron it. I hate it when that happens.

Yesterday I had a dentist appointment. It was routine, except for the girl who did most of the work. She was far from routine. She was gorgeous. Way too pretty to be working in a dentist's office. I mean, I generally like for any girls sticking their fingers in my mouth to be of reasonable appearance. I wouldn't want some old hag doing it, neither would I want a super-model doing it. At least not in that context, super-models should all feel free to stick fingers in my mouth at other times. And this chick was as pretty as any super-model I've ever seen. Especially when she had her cute little mask on, and all I could see were her incredible eyes.

So I spent all of my time in that chair thinking about baseball, so I wouldn't spring an erection and distract the poor girl as she worked inside my mouth with sharp metal utensils.

The greatest moment that I ever personally witnessed in baseball was several years ago. The Mariners were playing the Indians, and Kenny Lofton had spent about a week calling Randy Johnson a headhunter. When the game started, Lofton was the lead-off batter, and for the first pitch Randy threw a fastball straight at Kenny's head.

A big to-do ensued. There was no fight, but there was a lot of arguing. The umpire gave Randy a warning not to do that again, ever, young man.

Things settled back down, and the game resumed. For the second pitch of the game, Randy threw another fastball straight at Lofton's head, then he walked off the field. Classic.

Anyway.

Last night I went to Rich O's. I hadn't been planning to go, but LaptopGirl wanted me to take a look at her computer. That's not a euphemism. Her computer has been acting up.

So I had a nice pleasant evening talking with LaptopGirl. It didn't seem as surreal as it has lately, so I guess maybe I'm getting used to this new reality. I hope so.

Her computer is running Vista, and it's got some crap wrong with it. I managed to correct one glaring problem, but the rest will have to wait until we can scan the thing for spyware. I'm fairly convinced that's what's causing most of her computer woes. Also, the damn thing bluescreened on us three or four times. I didn't think Vista was ever supposed to bluescreen, and I'd definitely thought that Microsoft would have done away with that particular anachronism by now.

Like I said, it was a nice night. I had most of two bottles of yummy Koningshoeven Quad (722), and I had most of three bottles of yummy Schlenkerla Marzen (1938). LaptopGirl had the rest.

Later, the place turned back into a sausagefest. I stayed around for a little while, though. Talking to MusicalYuppieDude and a couple of other guys. I left just before they started kicking every out.

Saturday, October 27, 2007
posted by dave at 12:43 PM in category drink

I wasn't planning to go to Rich O's last night. Or all weekend for that matter. But, after the week I've had at work, I really wanted to relax for a while. Sure, I can relax at home, but it's just not the same. Plus, I think that I was actually fit for human company for a change, and I didn't want to waste that rare opportunity.

The place was fucking packed. Standing room only everywhere, even out in the Special People Room. The crowd was about 99.999% strangers and weirdoes. I recognized a couple of people at the bar. PlantDude and this other dude who looks like my friend Eric's dad. But that was it.

I stood at the end of the bar, ordered an NABC Old Bob's 15B (284), and surveyed my surroundings. It didn't look good. The strangers in the living room area seemed fully-entrenched, as did the weirdoes at the island. But luck was with me, because some dork left the seat at the end of the bar, and I sat there.

I didn't do much of anything for the next hour or so, except listen to PlantDude get progressively louder. Oh yeah, I did get to talk to MisunderstoodGirl for a few minutes, so that was very cool. She was wondering if I'd seen NotHideousGirl at all. I hadn't.

Then LaptopGirl came in, then some strangers left the loveseat and the throne, and we ended up moving over there. She with her obligatory Guinness, me with my second pint of 15B (304).

The next couple of hours were very nice. Even though it was still pretty crowded and loud, I managed to ignore all of the petty distractions so I could talk to LaptopGirl.

Let's see, I had a pint of Guinness (1528) next, in a fancy new Guinness glass that I might have to buy someday. Then a while later I had a half a Guinness (1538) that LaptopGirl donated to me. Yay for free beer!

Once LaptopGirl had gone, I stuck around for a little while and had a Diet Coke. I was thinking about maybe going over to The Pub to see BikerGirl. Her boyfriend's band was playing there. But I really couldn't justify the cost, so I just came home and shot pool until the Sun came up.

The night was much more interesting and wonderful than I've made it seem here.

Sunday, October 7, 2007
posted by dave at 10:38 PM in category drink

Since last Wednesday, I've looked forward to several things. Most of those things have come and gone, usually with much less impact and import that I'd envisioned. But one thing has remained in the to-do list I keep in my head.

Last Wednesday, I bought a couple bottles of Schlenkerla Marzen. And they'd been sitting in my fridge until tonight. Waiting for tonight. Waiting for the night when I wouldn't feel like going out, because I'd have to work the next day. For the night when I could sit on my swing and drink yummy beer and contemplate the universe that surrounds me and suffocates me.

Today was a so-so day. I really can't give it a better rating than that. I played Half Life 2 all day, then I went to this country-fried place for my grandmother's birthday dinner. I ended up paying over $3.00 for one french fry, and it was gross. Cold and raw and bland.

After the birthday "dinner" was over, I went to Famous Dave's in Clarksville and had some real dinner. Then I came home, and opened up a Marzen (1509), and sat on my swing and relished it. Then I had another one (1526). Then, I was out of Marzen.

Waaaaaaaaaah!

I think that, the sad thing is, this was probably the highlight of my week. It could have been so much better.

I want a lot of things from this life of mine. Most will prove to be unattainable. But some things, I could have, if only I'd do a better job of planning ahead.

I wish I'd bought more Marzen, when I had the chance. Another bottle would be terrific, right about now.

posted by dave at 1:02 AM in category drink

MixedSignalGirl used to give me shit, if I didn't write something every day. She'd tell me about how she couldn't properly start her days until she'd had her coffee and read my blog. She was, along with many other wonderful things, my muse. Though that's not really the correct word. She didn't always inspire my writings. What she did was inspire me to write. The difference is subtle, but it's still a difference.

Anyway, the other day TremensGirl told me pretty much the same thing that MixedSignalGirl used to tell me. That I should write something every day. I tried to protest that my blog is boring now, but then I realized that being boring just might be a good thing.

I mean, if I write a boring entry, as I'm so wont to do lately, and somebody reads it first thing in the morning, well then they have nowhere to go but up. It's the contrast that's important.

Maybe, just maybe, I provide a valuable public service here, with my boring drivel.

Oh yeah, I spent several hours tonight talking with OddlyFamiliarGirl. She said that she was excited because she might be mentioned in my blog. Far be it from me to crush such lofty dreams, so I have indeed mentioned her.

Also, I had a new beer tonight.

Brooklyn Abbey Singel

(draft) Looks like a hazy pale lager. An odd aroma of what I guess is Belgian yeast. Flavor a bit like a saison, but weaker. It looked so much like a lager that I think I imagined lagerish components to the flavor and the finish that weren't really there. Decent, but that's it.
So that was a bit of a waste of time and money.

After that I had a pint and a half of Three Floyds Gumballhead (85) and then a Diet Coke.

It was a boring but pleasant night. Just what I needed after the drama of this past week.

Thursday, October 4, 2007
posted by dave at 9:56 PM in category drink

There are certain things in this life that we can just take for granted. Immutable and immobile laws of reality.

Sunrises and sunsets. Death and taxes. Cats are finicky. Water is wet. I don't like hoppy beers.

Today I was at Rich O's after work, wondering about something and enjoying a beer. At about the time I ordered a second pint of the same beer, Roger (The owner of Rich O's) came up to me. Incredulous, he asked, "Do you really like that?"

Since I'd never lie about beer, I had to admit that I did. It seemed to be a bit more citrusy than I remembered, but it was still pretty damn good.

Roger then commented that it was, "Loaded with hops."

I guess I kinda sorta knew that already. It was an APA after all. But this isn't a normal hoppy APA. See, to me, hoppy has always meant bitter - especially in the finish. And this particular beer isn't bitter at all. Nope, instead of the usual piney hops, this one has what I can only call floral hops. I'm sure there's a more technical term than that, but floral is good enough for this humble venue in which I write.

The beer?

Three Floyds Gumballhead (53).

If you think you don't like hops, well then maybe you're wrong.

I know I was.

There's a first time for everything, I suppose.

Sunday, September 30, 2007
posted by dave at 10:17 AM in category drink

Having totally failed to learn any sort of lesson about timing from Friday night, I got to Rich O's at 6:00 or so Saturday night. To be just a little less hard on myself, I had been planning to stop at Wendy's for something to eat, but then I remembered that I'd had a pretty big lunch, so I went straight to the bar.

They were having some art show thing in the special people area, so the place was full of weirdoes. Most significant for me was that the living room area was full of weirdoes. So I sat at the island by myself. I had an NABC Flat Tyre (83).

After a little while, this uberhot girl came in, clearly looking for a place to sit. She looked at me and I smiled. She smiled back and asked, "Are you sitting by yourself?"

I said that I was, then I followed with my standard joke. "Hard to believe, isn't it?"

So she laughed, and then she left. I never saw her again.

Oh well.

I spent some time sending emails and making phone calls. I had another Flat Tyre (103). Eventually I went to check out the art show, mainly to see if there was anything by MisunderstoodGirl or NotHideousGirl on display. There was nothing from either of them.

So I tried to call NotHideousGirl about the art show. I didn't have any success in calling her, so I had the brilliant idea to just go and see her. We've kinda been in a fight, and I've been really bothered by that. I figured that I'd do what I could to help mend things between us.

I was all prepared to throw pebbles at her window, but she ruined that idea by answering the door when I knocked.

For the rest of this entry, NotHideousGirl will be referred to as Sicky McSickypants.

Because she was sick, in case the new nickname didn't make that clear.

I talked to Sicky McSickypants for a while, and I drove her to the store so she could get some juice. Then I took her back home and talked for a few more minutes.

I feel like Sicky McSickypants and I are still on the outs, but not as far out. So that's good. I agreed to help her fix her car Sunday morning. Hopefully it's just a dead battery.

Anyway.

So I went back to Rich O's and sat in the throne, because the weirdoes had cleared out during my brief absence. I had myself a bottle of yummy Aecht Schlenkerla Marzen, and then MusicalYuppieDude and I split another bottle (1546).

One thing about art shows. Besides attracting weirdoes like moths to a flame, they also attract lots of pretty girls. There'd already been the uberhot girl earlier, and usually that would satisfy the Rich O's quota for the night. But not last night.

At one point, this other uberhot girl came in and looked around wildly. I called out and asked her what she needed. Hoping that she'd say she needed a 42-year-old man to take her home and ravage her.

But no, all she wanted was to know where the restroom was.

Never have I moved so quickly. I jumped from the throne, levitated myself over the loveseat, and landed gracefully at the girl's side. Taking her hand, I told her, "It's kind of hard to explain. I'll just take you there."

Yes, I really did that. Then I led her to the restroom, and I asked her if she thought she'd need any help finding her way back. She promised to call out if she got lost.

And so that made two good deeds that I'd done that night. The first being when I went to check up on Sicky McSickypants.

Talk about satisfying a quota.

Then, for some reason, I found myself babbling on and on to MusicalYuppieDude about various upcoming events. I'm fairly confident, however, that he won't go around blabbing. I still wish that I'd kept my mouth shut.

While I was babbling to MusicalYuppieDude, yet another uberhot girl came in. She came right over to me and sat at the kiddie table. She showed me her bar bill, and said something about how she wondered if I could do something about this one $23.00 item. I promised to do what I could do.

What I could do, well pretty much all I could do was give the ticket to the bartender and tell him that the uberhot girl with the cornrows had some kind of problem with the $23.00 item.

But that still made three good deeds for me, all in the space of about three hours. I was exhausted.

I also went out and told the girl that (a) I didn't work there, and (b) I'd brought her concerns to the bartender's attention, and that (c) I really liked her hair.

Then I went back to the throne and talked to MusicalYuppieDude and TremensGirl and TShirtDude for a few minutes, then I came home.

It was a pretty fun night. I found out this morning that, had I just stayed up for another 10 minutes, it could have been a great night, because I missed an email that came in 10 minutes after I went to bed.

Saturday, September 29, 2007
posted by dave at 12:40 AM in category drink, ramblings

I had this brilliant idea. What made it brilliant was its utter simplicity.

I'd sit at this computer, and I'd write an entry.

---

Ta-da!

Wait, does this even count as an entry? Have I written anything, really?

Not yet, I don't think. Needs more cowbell.

---

I took the day off work today, and I didn't do shit except go to lunch and talk to BikerGirl for about thirty seconds. And drink a Newcastle (7745).

---

I can't help but wonder if I'm doing the emotional equivalent of nesting. Just cleaning house, getting everything nice and ready for what's coming. Or for what I hope is coming. As if I'm capable of telling the difference. Or of admitting to myself that there is a difference.

---

I'm in a really good mood now. I blame this particular good mood on the yummy Allagash Grand Cru (89) that I've been drinking since I came home. Before I came home, I had a couple pints of NABC Flat Tyre (63), but Rich O's was such a sausagefest that I left before 8:30.

---

I think that I want to be a part of something special. No, wait. I am part of something special already. What I want is to share something special with somebody special.

---

I've read this Blink! book a couple of times recently. If you ignore the thinly-veiled racism of the author, it's a pretty interesting book. It basically says that we should all trust our instincts. My instincts tell me two things, right now. I'm ignoring or at least discounting one, and I'm practically betting my life on the other.

---

I had another paragraph up there a few seconds ago, but I deleted it. They weren't very nice, the things that I wrote.

---

I'm thinking that certain people could use some lessons in empathy. I mean, who are certain people to judge if someone is hurting enough, or feeling pain the right way? To fail to recognize sorrow doesn't mean that it's not there. Everyone deals with pain in their own way, and sometimes denial is the only tolerable option.

---

There. I hope that's enough cowbell, because I'm kinda tired of writing.

Friday, September 28, 2007
posted by dave at 12:40 AM in category drink

Made a quick stop at Rich O's after work. Not really worthy of an entry except for this new NABC beer that I tried:

New Albanian Flat Tyre

(draft) Clear dark copper in color. Decent head that faded quickly. Aroma of molasses and hops, and flavor more of the same. The finish was much more smooth than the flavor indicated. I liked this beer a lot. Easily one of my favorites from NABC.
So yeah, I enjoyed this. And I, therefore, immediately figured that, because I liked it, they'd never make it again. The bartender pretty much confirmed this hypothesis when he told me that this beer had been a mistake. They'd been trying for something else. Probably something overly hoppy, knowing those guys.

Anyway, as long as I'm typing an entry anyway...

I sat at the bar because there were weirdoes in the living room area. I had a small sample of the beer reviewed above, then a full pint. FirstGirl came and joined me for a bit. I talked to her about possible ways to make a necklace out of my rock. She's some kind of professional jeweler or something. She had some interesting ideas, and she promised to bring some demos to show me later.

Other than that, I pretty much just sat and drank my beer. TremensGirl's BFF was one of the weirdoes in the living room area, and I did my best to tune him out. Didn't have much luck though, so I bailed as soon as my glass was empty.

I never said this would be an exciting entry.

Monday, September 17, 2007
posted by dave at 12:44 AM in category daily, drink

I spent the first half of Sunday not doing a damn thing worth noting. That's my privilege, and I don't regret it.

Then I spent an hour or so out messing with my Monte Carlo. The engine wouldn't turn over, so I had to hook the battery charger up before it would start. I guess maybe my battery has gone bad after all. Oh well, that's not a big deal compared to the water pump that I still hope to have replaced before I die of old age, or even compared to the window switch that continues to vex me.

I picked up the half-dozen or so pieces of the broken switch that I could find, and sometime this week I'll return them to the person I bought the switch from. I've been promised a replacement, but I'm not feeling very optimistic. For now, I've gone ahead and put the original switch back in, because at least it works, even if it is a pain in the ass to use.

After I'd let the Monte Carlo run for a half and hour or so, just to keep things lubricated, I put it back into the garage and went into the house.

That's when something good happened.

I got to spend almost two hours talking to MixedSignalGirl. Until the battery on her phone died. It was just incredibly good to talk to her. It was exactly what I needed.

(By the way, Dina. Remember that girl who was afraid to ever even meet you? She sends all her love and condolences to you. Trust me, that's a really big deal.)

So I spent a fantastic couple of hours on the phone, then I spent a horrible couple of hours as, once again, the truth of the (lack of a) situation between us ripped fresh wounds into me. But it was, overall, pretty fucking wonderful to talk to her.

Then, at about 6:00, I went to this Mac's bar to meet up with SassyGirl and JauntyGirl and EuropeanDude. We had a very nice and pleasant time together. I had some Newcastles (7605) and we all got to see The World's Craziest Guy in action. That guy is probably worth an entry all on his own. Maybe I'll do that some other time.

Sunday, September 16, 2007
posted by dave at 2:06 PM in category daily, drink

Okay, fine. I'll write something. Don't particularly feel like it though. Plus it's mostly irrelevant. And boring. You've been warned.

---

Friday, I took a day of vacation, as I had a bunch of shit to do. I guess I did the mandatory things, such as re-register my cars and have lunch with NotHideousGirl. The car thing went much more smoothly than I'd expected because I found out that they've discontinued the emissions tests here. So that was cool. Lunch was fairly smooth as well, though there's still something wrong between us. Something that's not quite definable but still noticeable and disconcerting and irritating.

Anyway, at lunch I had a couple pints of Newcastle (7521) and then a Diet Coke while NotHideousGirl and I talked and pretended that nothing was wrong. Oh yeah, I also got to see BikerGirl for the first time in a couple of weeks. So that was nice.

While we were sitting at The Pub, my phone rang. Vibrated, actually, but whatever.

It was SassyGirl! Yay! But I sent her to voicemail because I didn't want the first time I'd seen NotHideousGirl in two weeks to be interrupted.

So, after lunch, I went and took care of some more shit, then I stopped at Rich O's. I ordered a Spezial (1712) and called to check my voicemail.

SassyGirl is in town! Yay and yay!

I called her and she said that they'd come to Rich O's and meet me. The "they" ended up being SassyGirl, JauntyGirl, and some European dude who I never saw before. So I gave SassyGirl a huge hug, and I gave JauntyGirl a medium-sized hug, and I shook EuropeanDude's hand. It was all quite touching and moving.

SassyGirl and I got to talking about some of the changes that had taken place at Rich O's since her last visit. The most noticeable being the new pint glasses with the NABC logo on them, and the sampler trays with their miniature NABC glasses. She hadn't seen the sampler trays, so I asked FutureDude to show us one.

I guess I wasn't clear enough, or FutureDude didn't hear well enough, but instead of just bring a tray for us to ooh and aww over, he bought a full sampler tray. Complete with six beer samples.

Oh well, right? Beer is beer. Couldn't let it go to waste.

I ended up drinking the samples of NABC's Croupier (8), Bob's 15B Porter (124), and Community Dark(224). And I didn't hate any of them. The Bob's especially seemed to have undergone yet another transformation since I'd had it last. It was quite good.

I ended up having another Spezial (1732) before SassyGirl and team left to go to some HickFest in my hometown. Then I came home and took a nap.

---

Friday night I was, not surprisingly, hung-over. It wasn't so much the quantity of beer I'd had earlier, it was the mixing of all those different styles. So I went to Rich O's and sat on the throne and had a few Diet Cokes. Once I felt better I had a Spezial (1752) and then a Paulaner (409).

There were people there and stuff, but I never really felt like talking to anyone, so I didn't.

---

On Saturday I went to The Pub to see BikerGirl. I had lunch and a Newcastle (7541) and then a BBC Jefferson's Reserve Bourbon Barrel Stout (521). I also bought the DVD set of Heroes season one, and I'm pretty excited about that.

---

Saturday night, Rich O's was about half full. That was the good news. The bad news was that the crowd that was there was about 90% weirdoes. Luckily, the island was unoccupied so I sat there. I had a Spezial (1772). After a while, the weirdoes ran TremensGirl off the sofa so she came and joined me. We talked a couple of minutes before WomanRepellant came in and joined us. Sure enough, TremensGirl moved back to the sofa at the first opportunity.

(I just left out a very relevant thing that I did.)

So I talked to WomanRepellant for a while and had another Spezial (1792). Once he'd gone, and once The Weirdo King had vacated the throne, I moved over there and sat. Mostly I just listened to TremensGirl and this one blonde girl talk about how they think various celebrities are smoking hot. How they managed to think about other hot celebrities with me sitting right there in their midst, I'll never know.

At some point I had another Spezial (1812) and then I switched to Diet Coke for the rest of the night.

After last-call, TremensGirl and the blonde girl and her boyfriend wanted to go over to this Jack's bar. I wasn't planning to go, but then about 10 seconds after they'd left MusicalYuppieDude came in and he also invited me over there. So I went. I had a couple more Diet Cokes and mostly just listened to everyone else talk.

The blonde girl guessed my age at 30. I gave her another guess, and she guessed 34. So I told her that I loved her, but really I just like her a a friend.

(I just left out several more incredibly relevant things that happened.)

Then I came home and ate some catfish tenders from Famous Dave's that I'd bought earlier and watched the unaired pilot of Heroes from my new DVD set.

---

I told you it was boring.

When I can't and/or won't bring myself to write about anything important, all that left is the unimportant stuff.

Monday, September 10, 2007
posted by dave at 8:01 PM in category drink

It was a quick after-work trip to Rich O's today. Mainly because Monday nights are my pizza nights. Plus, sometimes they have beer there. Or so I've heard.

I got there at 5:30 or so. I checked the beer board, and saw that Marzen was all gone. So that sucked. But there were still four smoked beers on tap, so I figured that I probably wouldn't die of thirst.

At first, I sat at the bar because a group of weirdoes was infesting the living room area. I tried to remember if I liked Spezial or Schlenkerla Weizen better, but I couldn't decide. So I attempted, for a third time, to have a glass of the new NABC smoked beer. This time I managed to swallow three times before killing myself seemed preferable to swallowing again.

I hate that I don't like that beer. I mean, I like rye beer, and I like smoked beer. But combine the two? No, thank you. It still sounds good on paper though.

What I ended up having was a Schlenkerla Urbock (67). A little stronger than the Marzen I'd been hoping for, but I figured that I needed something stronger to wash my mouth out after what I'd just tried. The Urbock was quite yummy, and it was just what I needed.

At about the time my beer arrived, TremensGirl and IForgetHisNameDude came in. The weirdoes were still in the living room area, so they sat at the kiddie table. Then the weirdoes all left, and I moved to the throne. TremensGirl and IForgetHisNameDude stayed at the kiddie table and talked. Probably about football.

After a half-hour or so, during which I ordered a pizza and finished my beer, I got up and went back to the bar to pay my tab. I'd been out of my seat for less than a second when TremensGirl and IForgetHisNameDude zoomed from the kiddie table to the loveseat. I don't think that the cushion on the throne had even had time to lose the impression left upon it by my ass.

Clearly, they were waiting for me to leave the area. Clearly, to them, I was a weirdo! And they'd avoided sitting with me just as I'd, not an hour earlier, avoided sitting with the weirdoes who'd been there when I came in.

So after I'd paid my tab and picked up my pizza, I threw a big turd in their fan. I went and sat down on the sofa and *gasp* started talking to them.

Oh, the horror!

Of course they denied that their sudden relocation had anything to do with me. But I knew better. I clearly and distinctly heard the sonic boom that they created when they moved from the kiddie table to the loveseat.

This is another reason that I am the way that I am.

I thought briefly about fucking with them some more, by staying and eating my pizza and ordering another beer and *gasp* talking to them some more. But I didn't because I'm pretty poor this week.

Then, when I got home, I saw that my pepperoni and sausage pizza was instead an artichoke pizza. So I didn't eat any of it, and now I'll probably starve to death. But at least I won't die of thirst.

Sunday, September 9, 2007
posted by dave at 2:42 PM in category daily, drink

My weekend started out nicely enough, Friday after work, when HatGirl's dog bit me. And it was one of the nice dogs. Okay, I guess they're all nice dogs, but two of them are regular nice and the other is super-spazzoid nice to the point of being mean.

It was one of the regular nice dogs that bit me. Didn't break the skin though, it just bruised my palm.

Anyway, then I went home and took a nap. I didn't set my alarm because I wasn't really planning to go out. I just figured that if I woke up in time, I'd go out, and if not, I wouldn't. But I did wake up, and while I was getting dressed and stuff TremensGirl texted me to let me know that the requisite band of Friday weirdoes had just left Rich O's.

That was pretty good timing, I think.

I went to Rich O's and had a couple Schlenkerla Marzens (1249) and talked to TremensGirl and MusicalYuppieDude until they started kicking everyone out. Then I came home and sat on my swing and had another Marzen (1266) and drunk-emailed NotHideousGirl.

So that was Friday.

On Saturday, I spent an hour or so out working on my Monte Carlo. I'd bought a new power window switch for the driver's door (the thingy on the old one had snapped off) and so I took my door apart, put the new switch in, and put the door back together. Imagine my dismay when, upon testing the new switch, I found that it didn't work for shit. It wouldn't control the driver's window at all, and it would only open the passenger's window but not close it.

So that sucked.

What sucked even more was that, when I started taking my door back apart to, I dunno, check the electrical connection or something, the entire new switch assembly exploded into about a dozen pieces of deadly shrapnel.

I spent the bulk of my Saturday, after that, either shooting pool downstairs or watching the rest of my Lost season two DVDs. I was going to take a nap but, as usual, my cats started fighting so I couldn't sleep.

Then, at 6:30 or so, I went over to this O'Sheas place in Louisville to meet up with my sisters and their families. Later, we were all going to a tribute gig being put on by my nephew's friends. The O'Sheas part was just to have a couple beers and eat something.

I had a couple small classes of Newcastle (7439) and about three bites of some disgusting chicken tenders that were about 90% breading. Then, we all went over to this Tailgater's place to listen to Cory's friends play and sing. They're all really talented. At Tailgater's, I was very pleasantly surprised to see BBC Nut Brown Ale on tap, so I had three small glasses of that (100). It was yummy and malty, just like I remembered it.

Once I got bored, I came home and sat on my swing and had a Marzen (1283) and drunk-texted TremensGirl for a while. Oh yeah, I drunk-emailed StalkerGirl too.

Wednesday, September 5, 2007
posted by dave at 1:26 AM in category daily, drink, pictures

the compound

Dedicated stalkers will, of course, recognize that this is where I live.

Between my house and my detached garage? That little structure is my swing. One of my favorite things to do on the warm nights is sit on my swing and contemplate various things. So, Saturday night, hoping to somewhat salvage my mood, I got myself a Left Hand Smoke Jumper (100) and went out to my swing to do some contemplating.

Right behind my swing is a tree. You can probably see it in the picture. Anyway, As I sat down, I heard this rustling from under the tree. My eyes hadn't adjusted to the dark yet, so I couldn't see anything. Then I heard the rustling again. Closer this time.

"Kitty kitty?" I asked hopefully.

Then there was more rustling, and something, some thing ran under the swing and across my driveway to the front of the house.

And it wasn't no damn kitty.

From what little I could see about its size and the way it moved, I'm guessing it was a big raccoon. Or a small grizzly bear.

Yes, it freaked me out a little. Rabies probably wouldn't be a fun way to die. Being mauled and/or eaten probably wouldn't be that great either.

Sunday, September 2, 2007
posted by dave at 8:53 PM in category drink, pictures

Okay, when I was sitting at Famous Dave's this evening, having some yummy catfish tenders and a yummy Newcastle (7327), I noticed this coaster under my glass:

truth in advertising

This struck me as being really funny. Because whoever made this up probably thought it was a good slogan which would cause lots of Miller Lite to be sold.

Anyway, I turned over the coaster, and found this:

not a classification

And this struck me as being even funnier. Because saying Best American-Style Light Lager is kinda like saying swilliest swill or pissiest piss.

Somebody needs to tell these Miller people, who keep bragging about this award, somebody needs to tell them that American-Style Light Lager is NOT a classification.

It's a diagnosis.

Saturday, September 1, 2007
posted by dave at 12:34 PM in category drink

When I woke up, I remembered that they were starting a new beer festival at Rich O's. And that there would be three smoked beers from Schlenkerla on tap at the same time. And that NABC was unveiling a new smoked beer of their own. So I still didn't eat, because there was just no time for stuff like that. I just went straight to Rich O's. I got there at about 7:00, and I got to park in the main lot for a change.

It was about halfway crowded in there. I sat at the bar and ordered a half pint of the new NABC beer. Honestly, I didn't like it even a tiny bit. But I'm going to give it another try before I write an official review.

TallLady and MusicalYuppieDude were sitting on my right side. But they were talking with some people standing on my left side. This made me very uncomfortable, as TallLady's voice had to drill through my skull to reach its intended recipients. That discomfort eventually evolved into a little panic attack. In an attempt to stave off a full-blown attack, I picked up my shit and moved to the kiddie table. Then I went into the restroom to splash some cold water on my face, and when I came back somebody had stolen all of my shit. Luckily, it was just one of the bartenders thinking that I might have left.

So I got my stuff back, ordered a Schlenkerla Weizen (239) and waited an hour or so for the attack to subside. It really sucked. I hadn't had a panic attack since May. But it did eventually subside, and I felt a little better. I felt a lot better when some weirdoes left the living room area and I could move to the loveseat.

Back when I first started coming in to Rich O's, one of the bartenders tried to kill me. Well, last night I tried the Schlenkerla Urbock again, and revised my review:

Aecht Schlenkerla Rauchbier Urbock

The first time I had this, I wasn't very impressed. Now, four years later, I see that my palate has become sophisticated enough for me to recognize this for what it really is. A truly great smoked beer. Can best be described as a more intense Marzen.
So that was very cool (27).

Oh yeah, speaking of very cool, when I came back from the restroom to the scene of the crime, there was a hot girl sitting next to MusicalYuppieDude at the bar. I didn't recognize her at first, but it was TremensGirl, with a sassy new hairstyle. She looked fantastic, and we all told her so, many times.

Let's see, I ended up chasing my half pint of Urbock with a full pint (47). Eventually this one dude left the throne so I moved there. I ordered a Spezial (1572) which was also on tap for the festival.

Various people came and went and talked about various crap. Eventually TremensGirl came and sat at the kiddie table so we could talk about stuff. Like how I need to be more animated.

We seem to have developed this disconcerting habit of talking with our faces just inches apart. In our own little world, whispering secrets to each other. It's really quite nice. As the night went on, I found myself becoming more fascinated by her lips with each passing moment. I mean, they were right there and I couldn't take my eyes off them.

Like I said, quite nice.

When they started kicking us all out of Rich O's, everyone else left to go to some other bar that I can't stand. So I came home and finished my new Orson Scott Card book.

posted by dave at 10:10 AM in category daily, drink

My day started after about three hours of sleep, at the unholy hour of 7:00, when I got up to do some last minute pre-cleaning because VacuumLady was going to be there in the morning. Of course, after I'd showered and done that pre-cleaning, I saw the email telling me that she wouldn't be there until the afternoon.

But by that time I was already committed, and it was too late to try to get any more sleep. So I left. I paid my water bill and got a haircut and dicked around Louisville for a while. Then, at 11:00 I went to The Pub and talked to BikerGirl and waited for NotHideousGirl. I'd promised to buy lunch for the latter. Because I'm nice.

Had a Newcastle (7295) and then another one during lunch. I wasn't very hungry yet, so I didn't eat. Accordingly, I was only going to have a half glass of Newcastle next. But BikerGirl challenged my manhood - or maybe she just wanted to get me drunk - and so I ended up having a second full glass (7315).

After NotHideousGirl went back to work, I went to Red Star to wait for BikerGirl to get off. I'd bought some books at Borders, and so I sat at one of Red Star's outside tables and read part of my new Orson Scott Card book and had a yummy Paulaner Hefeweissbier (392). By this time, I was getting a little hungry, but I figured I'd wait for BikerGirl.

BikerGirl arrived at 1:45 or so, and we had a pleasant little talk and late lunch. I still didn't eat anything, because they fucked my quesadilla order up. But it's not like I was starving. I was more tired than anything else. Once this, my second lunch of the say without eating, was over, I went back to The Pub and had a Diet Coke. Then I came home and took a short nap.

Friday, August 31, 2007
posted by dave at 8:45 AM in category daily, drink

All day yesterday I was craving these catfish fingers from a place called Famous Dave's BBQ in Clarksville. I'm not sure who this Dave guy is, but I'm pretty sure he's never had his own DaveFest. So I'm clearly the real Famous Dave.

So at 6:00 or so I went to said BBQ place and had me some yummy catfish fingers. I had a bottle of Newcastle (7275) with them, and I bought a couple more orders of fish to take home.

Rich O's was packed with strangers. Or fucktards, as I kept calling them. I tried for a while to sit at the island with some weirdoes, but most of the night I stood at the end of the bar (called the g-spot for some reason) and glared at the people in the living room area. Turned out that they were all from the New Albany High School class of 1971. Whoopee.

Anyway, I stood at the end of the bar and had a couple pints of Rogue Dead Guy (486) and glared at people. Then after a while NotHideousGirl's sister, OddlyFamiliarGirl, came in and stood with me. I talked to her for a while, and I traded text messages with NotHideousGirl.

Then, because I'm nice, I took some cigarettes and a gluten-free beer to NotHideousGirl. We talked for a while, then I came home and ate the rest of my catfish fingers.

To finish the night, I sat on my swing and almost managed to finish a pint of Dead Guy (504) from a growler I'd bought the other day and then forgotten about.

Thursday, August 30, 2007
posted by dave at 1:48 AM in category drink

I don't have to work until Tuesday. I'm actually pretty excited. Not sure about what, though. I mean, I'll probably just go to Rich O's every night and wait in vain for something to happen. I'm probably just excited about getting to sleep in for a few days.

Anyway, I went to Rich O's tonight. I got there at about 7:00. I hadn't planned on getting there that early, but neither had I planned on my cats Buddy and Nugget declaring jihad on each other while I was trying to take an after-work nap. The sound of their hissing and growling always cuts right through me.

So I got there a couple of hours earlier than I'd planned. I got to park in the official parking lot, and it was pretty dead at first. There were a couple of strangers at the bar. MusicalYuppieDude was sitting with more strangers at the island. Some dude who kinda looked familiar was in the throne. I sat on the sofa and had a Rogue Dead Guy (408).

For the longest time, nothing happened. After KindaFamiliarDude left the throne I moved there. I had another Rogue (428). I sent a couple emails to RockGirl.

After another hour or so this one dude who looks like my cousin Robbie came and talked with me for a bit. Then FirstGirl came and sat on the loveseat. We talked about various fluff for a while, so that was nice.

I ordered another Rogue.

At about 10:00, a bunch of PBDs came and sat all around the living room area, and they started talking about football. So I got bored very quickly, paid my tab, and left. I didn't quite finish that last glass of beer (446).

Oh yeah, one cool thing was that I got a message from BikerGirl. Actually, it was an email saying that she'd left a comment about my spider entry.

Anyway, kind of a boring night. I think the best part was when I got home and I got to sit on my swing and contemplate the universe for a while. That's always fun.

Monday, August 27, 2007
posted by dave at 12:15 AM in category daily, drink, ramblings

There was drinking, certainly. And conversation, absolutely. I got the crap flattered out of me by a girl who wasn't completely drunk off her ass. I got to see my sister, Dina, smile for the first time in two weeks. I got to see HatGirl and NotHideousGirl at the same time in the same place. I got to see a dog wearing sunglasses. MusicalHippieDudeMusicalYuppieDude and I split a bottle of yummy Malheur 10 (41). I learned something bad about myself, and I began to suspect something bad about a friend.

I don't want to say that none of that stuff mattered to me. Because it all mattered. But I don't think that any of it mattered as much as it could have. Or, perhaps, should have.

Because through it all, I was waiting. Not anticipating. Certainly not dreading. Simply waiting. Because waiting is the context of my life now. And, not coincidentally, it's also the title of this entry.

On Sunday I spend almost the entire day in my detached garage, working on my dad's old Monte Carlo. When, at 7:00, it finally roared to life, well that was one of the most welcome sounds I've heard in a long time. I let it run for a half-hour or so. I watched the white smoke fade to gray and finally to nothingness. I listened to the motor transition from a very rough idle to a smooth, albeit loud, purr. I watched coolant drip from a small hole in the lower radiator hose and form a spreading green puddle on my driveway.

I did those things and more but, mostly, I waited. After I put the Monte Carlo back in the garage, I took a shower, and I waited. I went to the store to buy cigarettes and Diet Vanilla Cokes, and I waited. I bought dinner at McDonald's, and I waited.

For almost the last three years, I mourned. And that was the context behind everything in my life, every word of every entry in this journal. Behind every word I said and every thought I had and every action I undertook, I mourned.

Now, I don't do that anymore. Instead, I wait.

This is better, I think. Definitely easier.

I think I could wait forever. Sometimes I think that it might be best if I did wait forever.

Because, I know that if the waiting ever ends, then the real work begins.

Context doesn't add background to a life. Context defines a life.

Monday, August 20, 2007
posted by dave at 10:59 PM in category drink

A Rich O's tonight, they had a thing for this Stone brewery guy. I was just there for my regular after-work beer (plus Monday is Pizza Day for me), and I didn't stay for the Stone dude, but I did have one of their beers.

Stone 10th Anniversary IPA

(draft) Clear copper with a firm white head. Aroma of flowers and bubble gum - very intriguing. Flavor was very complex and hard to describe. There was definitely some lingering hop bitterness at the finish but it was accompanied by the complex flavors so it wasn't overpowering at all. An IPA that I actually like. Wonders never cease.
And that, ladies and gentlemen, was my 400th beer review for my official list, so yay!

I'd had a Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier (2226) before that, so I was already over my quota for the evening.

Oh yeah, there a new guy working at Rich O's who looks disturbingly like FutureDude. Same shaved head and glasses and general build. I was referring to him as FutureDude's mini-me but then I heard someone call him Bizarro FutureDude and I think that's the nickname that will stick. It really is quite funny, but I don't think FutureDude shares the mirth.

What I want to know is, why can't they hire more people who look like CuteBartender?

Sunday, August 19, 2007
posted by dave at 10:00 PM in category daily, drink, pictures

so very true

I stole this from somebody at fark.com the other day. I wasn't going to post it because of copyright concerns, but it's just so damn fitting and accurate that I couldn't resist.

Just like I couldn't resist going to Dina's today to see her new kitten.

A new kitten!

Yay!

It is, of course, a comfort kitty, which is one of the best kinds of kitties. It's a Siamese, and it's about the size of my hand, and it likes to meow and climb and sit on people.

I could have stayed and petted that kitten for weeks, but I think that it might have become awkward for my sister's family after a week or so. So I tore myself away, and I tore the kitten from my lap, and I went to Hooter's in Clarksville.

While there, I had some yummy mozzarella sticks and three yummy glasses of Newcastle (7107), then I bought some crab legs and brought them home.

I never said that this would be an interesting entry.

posted by dave at 10:48 AM in category drink

Observant readers may have noticed that there was no Friday Beer Report this week. There's a simple explanation for this really. There was no Friday beer. After work I slept until after 11:00, and I was still in a crappy mood, so I stayed home.

So I'm feeling very disgusted and disillusioned. I'm thinking that I'll coin the word disgullusioned to more efficiently describe this mood. Or maybe disillusted. Whichever term I choose, I get the feeling that I'll be using it a lot.

Since I hadn't so much as stepped outside my house for 24 hours, I succumbed to the peer pressure from the voices in my head at about 6:00 last night, and I went to Rich O's.

It was fairly empty at that early hour. Just some weirdoes in the living room area. I sat at the bar and had a Sclenkerla Marzen (943), which I just noticed has made it to number 11 on my all-time consumption list. That's just in the few months since SteveFest.

Anyway, I sat at the bar for a while. Then TremensGirl came in and joined me. I think I put too much pressure on her almost immediately. I mean, how was she supposed to counteract the disgullusionment I was feeling for her entire species?

Once the weirdoes left, I moved to the throne and TremensGirl moved to the loveseat. Various people came and went at various times. My next beer was a very yummy Baltika 6 (396).

Last night BikerGirl was having a wandering birthday party, and I ended up trading a few text messages with her to see where they had wandered to. They were going to The Pub, so I went over to Louisville. I was early, so I stopped at Hard Rock and tried to talk to CoolHairGirl for a bit, but they were very busy in there.

At The Pub, I had a couple Newcastles (7047) and talked for a bit with BikerGirl and her posse. I watched the clock very closely, and right at 12:00 I gave her a birthday hug and then came home.

Wednesday, August 8, 2007
posted by dave at 1:51 AM in category drink

Because, as everyone knows, I'm such a people person, I left the throne at Rich O's today and acted as Beer Ambassador to a couple who'd never been in there before.

This couple had come in and announced that it was their first time. The bartender gave them the 10-second spiel - Smoking in the bar area, non-smoking everywhere else, draft beers on the blackboard and bottled beers listed at most tables.

I was sitting, as I said, on the throne. Enjoying a yummy Delirium Tremens (1018). After a while, the new dude came in and sat on the sofa to have a smoke and I talked to him for a bit. I asked him what he and his wife had decided on. He was having an NABC beer, and his wife hadn't decided yet. He admitted to me that it was his wife who was the real beer snob of the two of them.

I went out front and talked to his wife for a while. She likes porters and Belgian beers. So I immediately liked her. We discussed the beers on the draft board - there were a couple of pretty good Belgians that she'd never tried before, and even a yummy porter listed. What wasn't listed, even though I knew for a fact that it was available, was Gulden Draak. I talked her into trying a small sample of Delirium Tremens, but I think she'd already made up her mind and so she had a Gulden Draak. I went back to the throne.

I knew that I wanted another beer, but I also knew that another Tremens would be out of the question on an empty stomach, so I had a small sample of something new to me.

Brooklyn Summer Ale

(draft) Clear gold in color. Good heaping head. No detectable aroma. Tasted like watery grass. Not very good. Not very good at all.
Oh well. At least I tried.

My second full beer ended up being a Paulaner Hefeweissbier (358) and then I came home.

Sunday, August 5, 2007
posted by dave at 4:55 PM in category daily, drink

I can't for the life of me remember enough about Thursday and Friday to write about. So maybe I'll write about last night and that will jog my memory or something.

Got to Rich O's very early because I'd thought that NotHideousGirl was having car trouble again and I was going to ride her around give her a ride around town. So by the time I was ready to leave, and I found that she was already at Rich O's having dinner, it was too late to turn back.

Oh, yeah. I spent all day Saturday alternating between reinstalling XP on my home computer, and hacking away at this sludge-filled pipe under my kitchen. The XP install went okay, though I had a pretty big scare at one point when it looked like I'd lost two disk drives. The plumbing work went okay too. My kitchen sink now drains normally. But, at about 4:00 Saturday I found myself covered in nasty gray sludge that smelled like sewage. Between sawing through the pipe, and then carrying the pipe outside, and then banging the pipe on the ground to loosen the sludge, I basically showered myself with that nasty crap for two hours.

And two hours is about how long I spent in the real shower, later, before I began to feel clean again. While showering, I wondered if the sludge would either (a) kill me, or (b) bestow upon me some super powers. More on that later.

Anyway.

I got to Rich O's a little after 7:00, and had a Wostyntje (308) and talked to NotHideousGirl for a while. She was in a shitty mood though, and she left pretty quickly. I moved to the sofa and vegged out for a while. I had a couple more Wostyntjes (328) and then I had a beer that was new to me.

Avery Karma Ale

(draft) Clear copperish amber. Average head that dissipated quickly. Aroma almost undetectable, but of apple peels and spices. Flavor started out very weak, but as my tongue became accustomed to it, I ended up like this beer a lot. A 5.2% Belgian session beer. Pretty damn cool.
I liked that enough to have another one, but remember how I was wondering about maybe gaining super powers? Well, the only super power I seem to have gained was that of invisibility to bartenders. After I spent about 25 minutes trying to get one of them to at least make eye contact with me, I gave up and came home a little before 10:00.

Then I sat on my swing and had a Schlenkerla Marzen (705). Then I went to bed.

---

Let's see, Friday night. Hmmm.

Okay, here's something. My sister Dina and her husband Kenny came in for a while. I had three glasses of Paulaner Hefeweissbier (307) and sat at the island and talked to them for a couple of hours. After that I don't remember what I did. I think I texted some people but they were all being mean and not replying. That would explain my Friday night entry I suppose.

---

Because I had Friday off work, I went in to Rich O's on Thursday too. I think it was boring there, except that at one point my friend Eric came in. Also, there were a lot of hot girls around. I don't remember much about Thursday.

Oh, yeah. I had a new beer Thursday night.

Three Floyds Gumballhead

(draft) Had a sample, and was intrigued enough to have a half-pint next. Hazy yellow in color. Good head and great lacing. Aroma was mostly floral, with a touch of the bubble gum scent that was expected because of the beer's name. Flavor was pretty damn good. Intense, but it never quite got to the point where it was overpowering. Not bitter at all. A little weird. I liked it.
I was going to have more of that Friday night but it was gone.

---

Okay, I'm all caught up now.

Sunday, July 29, 2007
posted by dave at 9:45 AM in category drink

Okay, I just remembered how the conversation shifted last night.

I'd been telling TremensGirl about the crushes I'd suddenly developed on the girl at the island and the cute hippie girl at the bar. And the crush I'd had for a long time on the cute blonde bartender girl.

Those three girls all look very different from each other, and TremensGirl told me that I was weird. Then she was like, "Speaking of you being weird, LaptopGirl blah blah blah..."

Anyway, that's how that topic was broached. Now everyone can go on with their lives. You're welcome.

posted by dave at 9:32 AM in category drink

Got to Rich O's at 8:30 or so. I got to park in the actual Rich O's parking lot. So that was a good sign, but it was a misleading one.

The place was completely packed. With strangers. MusicalYuppieDude was sitting on the throne, I sat at the kiddie table. Neither of us recognized anyone in the place except for each other.

But, at least the strangers brought women with them. So the usual Saturday night sausage fest was cancelled.

My first attempt at a beer was something new to me.

New Holland Black Tulip

(draft) Pale amber, fizzy, good head. All standard for Belgians of this type. Aroma seemed a tad stale to me. Flavor was average but subdued. The finish was very reminiscent of rubbing alcohol. Bitter and drying. I was disappointed with this beer, and I didn't drink very much of it.
I switched to Gulden Draak after that. Had two glasses (313) and they were both yummy.

Let's see, there was a very pretty girl at the island. She reminded me a lot of LaptopGirl's friend WeatherGirl. She was sitting with a bunch of dorks and hippies though. And there was a very cute hippie girl at the bar with her boyfriend. When I started to explain to the bartender that I might finish the Black Tulip later, the cute hippie girl turned around and looked at me, and I totally forgot how to talk. It came out as something like, "I might sdflhgy sdwoq nnuue lllllllllllllllllllaaaa."

The bartender got the gist though. Then TremensGirl came in and I gave her the rest of the Black Tulip.

We just talked about various crap for a while. Like how I've never thought the simma down now skits on SNL are funny at all. At one point, I don't know how, the conversation shifted to that same old topic. And there were some pretty fucked-up opinions thrown my way. I was, as I said in my last entry, saved from getting all defensive and making as ass out of myself by the unexpected arrival of HatGirl and LuckyFucker.

HatGirl!

Yay!

So I moved up to the island (the strangers there had left) and talked with those two for an hour or so. It was nice.

Once HatGirl and LuckyFucker left, WomanRepellant came and joined me. I'd cut myself off after my second Gulden Draak so I just had a couple Diet Cokes while WomanRepellant and I talked about various crap.

I was going to stop at White Castle on the way home, but I forgot again.

Saturday, July 28, 2007
posted by dave at 10:00 AM in category drink, ramblings

I'm in a much better mood this morning. I got to cross a person off my list. Yay!

People would probably look down on me if they knew just how much value I place in tiny little gestures. And, I know, it is sad that I pretty much base all of my happiness on such tiny things.

But, you know what's even sadder than that?

Basing my happiness on those things, and then they don't happen.

I don't want to go back to those days. It's a fairly constant fear of mine. And fear fuels the funk.

So I got to Rich O's at 8:30 or so, after a quick meal at the haunted Burger King. I should probably have gone to Wendy's or Arby's instead. The meal didn't sit right in my stomach, and that slight nausea only made my mood worse.

The place was packed, and loud. Too packed. Too loud. I wanted to turn around and leave, but for some stupid reason I didn't. I grabbed a Wostyntje (242) and sat on the sofa with MusicalYuppieDude and TremensGirl.

It was loud.

It was packed.

I should have left. I wanted to just get up and leave. I told myself that about every ten seconds.

But I didn't leave. I guess I still held out some hope that something would happen to renew my faith in humanity. If I could only hold out for just a little bit longer, then something would happen and I could go back to being happy.

I eventually moved to the throne, and I had a couple more glasses of Wostyntje (278).

My mood never got any better. Those poor souls around me, to their credit, did a fantastic job of resisting my attempts to suck all of the life out of the room.

I'm sure that everyone was very relieved when I finally left.

I know that I was.

Friday, July 27, 2007
posted by dave at 1:17 AM in category drink, general

I was just out on my swing, drinking a yummy Koningshoeven Quad (522) and I managed to get excited about writing something. Not anything in particular, though, just a mish-mash of subjects.

I don't like the mish-mash entries. I know that I'm only using them as placeholders. Just so it looks like I'm an active blogger. And I use them to touch upon subjects which really deserve their own entries, but which I'm unable and/or unwilling to write about at length.

For example: Today somebody was somewhere undergoing something. We were a little concerned, but everything turned out okay.

And that's all I can say about that, because it's nobody's business.

Anyway, on with the mish-mash.

---

This morning I was subjected to an interrogation. I evaded the questions as well as I could, but I didn't fool my questioner at all. There are answers that I'm going to have to provide before too much more time has passed. Just to ease some potential concerns if for no other reason. But I need to be able to answer my own internal questions before I can answer any external ones.

Things are complicated, and confusing, and convoluted.

I like it.

---

The ignore game champion of the universe has, apparently, challenged me to another match. I don't know why - her supremacy is undoubted. But I guess I'll play, because I've got nothing better to do.

---

When I was out on my swing just now, that one cat that I call Pete Jr. was there. He was scared of me on the swing, though, so I couldn't get him to come to me.

---

The other night MixedSignalGirl called to let me know that she was moving away Monday morning. Now, she's been gone almost four days. I'm pretty sure that I'm in deep deep deep denial about this. Otherwise I'd be a lot more sad than I am.

I told her everything. About how she's the one. About the rings. She still left. She's still gone. I'm still not as sad as I should be.

---

You guys hear about DeathCat? That cat in that nursing home that predicts when people are about to die?

Pretty creepy stuff, if you ask me.

---

The other day I was accused of being someone's best friend. This was a bullshit accusation, I thought. But, more than that, it put an awful lot of pressure on me to keep doing what I'm doing, and not change a single thing. This pressure is in direct opposition to some other pressure that I'm undergoing. Life is fun.

---

I've been on-call this week for work. This is always a pain in the ass, but this week it's been especially irritating because most of the problems which have arisen have been problems that I can't do a damn thing about.

---

Being on-call also means that I can't go to this dealie that my sister is having on Saturday, because I don't get any signal on my Blackberry at her house. This is annoying enough under normal circumstances - I feel like a caveman or something, being all cut off from the world like that. But when I'm on-call, I must be able to get text messages at all times or I'm screwed.

---

I spend about 33% of my time worrying about one thing, and about 33% of my time worrying about the exact opposite thing. For the remainder of my time, I'm free to worry about whatever suits my fancy.

What the fuck is a fancy, anyway? Sounds dirty to me.

---

I guess that's it for now.

Thursday, July 26, 2007
posted by dave at 1:05 AM in category drink, ramblings

I've used the mosquito metaphor before here. Hmmm, almost exactly a year ago. Weird.

Anyway, I suppose that's a lot of what's going on with me now. Just a bunch of little things, and no overshadowing big thing to occupy my mind.

One thing that I thought about today, as I sat at Rich O's - Rogue Chocolate Stout (2136) - after work, my brow still furrowed, was that I'm starting to see some disturbing parallels. Disturbing because parallel tracks quite often lead to the same destination. And I certainly don't want to go to that place again. Ever.

So that's part of it, certainly. But I also think there's something else. Along with the obvious (to me anyway) similarities, there are also quite a few glaring differences. Problem is, I think, that I don't really notice the differences except every now and then. Just once in a while, I'll remember something. And it kind of hits me harder than it should. Just for a second though.

For example, say you're lying on your back, with a book on your belly. No big deal, right?

Now have someone pick up the book and drop it onto your belly. A little uncomfortable, isn't it? But it only lasts for a second.

Now have that same somebody pick up and drop that book every ten seconds for hours and days at a time.

Well, that's a really horrible analogy. Maybe I should have used the Chinese water torture instead. But you readers are smart. I'm sure you get the gist.

It's not that the differences are bothering me. The differences will probably be what keeps me safe when it's all said and done. The differences don't bother me, but they try to bother me so suddenly and so unexpectedly. That's what's really irritating. Not the differences themselves, but the surprise that they arrive with.

I can't seem to keep any of these things in my head. So I forget. And I start wondering about the similarities. Contemplating the parallels. Sometimes I even catch myself getting excited about the parallels. Then the differences hit me. Repeat ad infinitum.

To summarize, I'm weird.

Monday, July 23, 2007
posted by dave at 12:39 AM in category daily, dreams, drink

All day, I looked forward to drinking the last Schlenkerla Marzen in my fridge. It was a nice feeling, knowing that, no matter how boring the rest of my day was, I'd be able to end it with something special.

But noooooooooooo!

Apparently, I drank my last Marzen last night, while Eric was here. So tonight I had a new (for me) Belgian instead:

Chimay Rogue (Red)

(bottle) Cloudy dark amber. Smallish head. Faint aroma of dark fruits and malt. Flavor fairly mild, consisting mostly of apples and plums. A little drying at the finish. Pretty good.
It wasn't the Marzen I'd been hoping for, but it was still a nice way to end the day.

Anyway.

I don't know that I have enough material on any single subject to make an entry about it, so I suppose I'll just list some random crap.

---

At the hotel in Philly, there was some kind of showbiz-people convention going on. I know that television news was represented, because one of the guys I talked to a lot had been a TV news reporter in Chicago for like 38 years. And at least one guy I talked to was some kind of theatre performer or director or something like that.

Wednesday night, I was sitting at the hotel bar. I glanced over at the big TV, and they had The Larry King Show playing. I didn't think too much about it until I looked at the table directly in front of the TV and saw Larry King sitting there.

At least I'm pretty sure that it was Larry King. People always look older in person than on a screen. So it might have been Larry's great-great grandfather instead. Either way, it was kind of interesting.

---

I had a dream this evening about one of my female friends. The dream was disturbing to me. Not, as one might expect, because it was a sex dream. I'm actually used to having sex dreams about some of my female friends. This particular dream was disturbing because it wasn't a sex dream. Instead, it was one of those touchy-feely hugs and soft kisses dreams. And it was very nice and sweet. So, shit!

---

Today I bought a new George Foreman grill and a deep fryer. Then I grilled a couple of hamburgers and cooked some fries. I don't know why I do these strange things. I hate cooking for myself, and I'm perfectly happy going out to eat. So now I've got two new appliances that I'll never use again.

---

Some things in my life are starting to turn around. So I don't have much grief these days. This whole being in a good mood thing is something I might have to learn to accept. No matter how boring it makes the stuff I write.

---

But still, I find myself wanting more. All the time. That desire will probably keep my creative fires burning for a while longer. I hope so, anyway. A life without desire wouldn't be much of a life, I don't think.

---

Tomorrow is going to be a long day. I've got to leave extra early because of the construction traffic, then I've got to stay extra late to give NotHideousGirl a ride home. I'm sure I'll be pretty exhausted by the time I get home tomorrow night.

---

I should try to sleep now.

Sunday, July 22, 2007
posted by dave at 10:24 AM in category drink

Ugh. This morning I'm hung-over. Not my fault though. More on that later.

While I was in Philadelphia, I had me some NotHideousGirl and BikerGirl withdrawal symptoms. Nothing too severe, but I most definitely noticed the lack of pretty girls to talk to. So, early yesterday afternoon, I went over and talked to BikerGirl while she worked. I had a yummy Newcastle (6680) while I was there. I was going to get something to eat, but nothing really looked appealing, so I picked up some Long John Silver's on the way home instead.

Later, when I left to go to Rich O's, I invited NotHideousGirl to come with me. She readily agreed, and we got to Rich O's a little after 8:00.

The place was completely packed, with about half PBDs and half strangers. The strangers were particularly annoying because they'd taken over the living room area. So NotHideousGirl and I sat at the island with some semi-regulars and drank and attempted to talk. I had a Rogue Chocolate Stout (2036).

Eventually, the strangers on the loveseat left, so we moved over there. Then, the rest of them left so I moved to the throne. The next couple of hours we just kinda vegged out. I had two more Rogues (2076).

Oh, yeah. Earlier in the night my friend Eric had called to say that he might be up for going out later. So after I took NotHideousGirl home at 11:00 or so I went back to Rich O's. I'd cut myself off by then, so I had a Diet Coke and talked to a couple of people I don't really know. Then I came home.

Eric called while I was on the way home, and I invited him over to my house for a couple beers. I broke into my beer fridge and gave Eric a nice Belgian that I'd been saving. I had a Schlenkerla Marzen (569) myself. I did end up having a bit of Eric's Belgian, but I didn't have enough to base an official review on. Plus, I was pretty tipsy by then.

So we talked for a few hours. We split a small bottle of some smoked beer that somebody gave me a couple of months ago. I liked it, but again, I was in no shape to remember enough about it to make an official review. Eric left at about 3:30, and I went to bed almost immediately.

Anyway, it's Eric's fault that I'm hung-over this morning.

Sunday, July 15, 2007
posted by dave at 8:42 AM in category drink

I'm a little hung-over this morning. I don't think it's that I drank too much. It's just that I didn't eat anything all day yesterday except a pack of crackers. I don't know why I didn't stop and eat something either before Rich O's or after. Probably because I'm stupid.

Anyway, I got to Rich O's a little after 8:00, and sat in the throne, and had a Rogue Chocolate Stout (1856). Then I don't think I did anything of import for a couple of hours except text NotHideousGirl a couple of times. I was getting pretty bored, but then HatGirl texted me that she was on her way. That perked me right up. I texted NotHideousGirl that HatGirl was coming, but she was busy.

After a few minutes HatGirl and LuckyFucker arrived. By that time I'd managed to run everyone away from the sofa and loveseat, so those two sat on the sofa and we talked for an hour or so, mostly about hookers I think. This was about when I ordered my second Rogue Chocolate Stout (1876). TremensGirl was there at some point.

HatGirl has apparently been taking night classes on drinking or something. She actually finished her Chimay. LuckyFucker had a Rogue Imperial Porter, and I tried to smell it to see if I wanted one of those next, but the Chocolate Stouts I was drinking had deadened my olfactory nerves, and I didn't smell a thing.

Oh yeah, they were having a 20th anniversary party for Sportstime Pizza in the special people room. I walked through there once but I didn't stay.

The whole damn night was really subdued. After HatGirl and LuckyFucker left I had another Chocolate Stout (1896) and a Diet Coke. I talked to MusicalYuppieDude and WomanRepellant for a while, then I came home.

Saturday, July 14, 2007
posted by dave at 10:14 AM in category drink, pictures

After a quick meal at Wendy's, I got to Rich O's at 8:45 or so. The place was packed. Seemed to be an even mix of regulars and strangers.

Oh yeah, they finally got their order of Schlenkerla beers in. This was good news, but it caused me a bit of a problem right off the bat.

See, Rogue Chocolate Stout was still on tap. And I have a contractual obligation with my liver to drink Rogue Chocolate Stout whenever it's available. But I really wanted to have a couple of Schlenkerlas at the end of the night, and I knew that there'd be much clashing of flavors if I had the Rogue first.

So I broke my contract, and I had a couple Dirty Helens (202). I sat at the bar and talked to some dude who should probably get a nickname, I got a text message from NotHideousGirl featuring the drunk womanese word wrAnfo and deciphering that word occupied a good part of my brain for the rest of the night. I still haven't figured it out.

I talked to MusicalYuppieDude and TremensGirl for a bit, and some people cleared out from the sofa so I moved over there. I talked with a chick who I shall call FirstGirl. Not, as one might suspect, because she was my first girl, but rather because she was the first person to ever talk to me at Rich O's after I started hanging out there. Anyway, FirstGirl was puzzling over her own little mystery.

Click for larger version

She'd found this napkin on the table, and her brain was about to explode from trying to figure out its meaning. We spent some time trying to figure out the napkin, and we spent some time trying to figure out NotHideousGirl's wrAnfo, but we never did decipher either one of them.

My next beer was a Schlenkerla Weizen (222), and I overlapped the last part of that with a Schlenkerla Marzen (547). I wanted to do a side-by-side comparison of the two. I don't think that I can really declare a winner. The Weizen is certainly lighter, and it would make a better session beer than the Marzen. But the Marzen is flat-out yummy.

Even though the Marzen was flat-out yummy, I only drank about 8 ounces of it before I cut myself off and then snuck out and came home. I don't think I missed much, because they'd declared last call at 11:30 even though the place was still totally packed.

Thursday, July 12, 2007
posted by dave at 1:25 AM in category drink, general, travel, weather

I just came in from sitting on my swing outside. I was going to sit out there until I managed to think of something entry-worthy, but it's a little too chilly, so I came back in.

---

At Rich O's today after work (Rogue Chocolate Stout (1826)) I had an idea. What if I took all of the penis-enlargement spam that I get and bought everything they offer?

A couple of inches from a special diet, four inches from pills, an additional 20% from some stretching gizmo. And so on. What if I could add them all up?

I bet that, six months and a couple of thousand dollars later, I could sit at Rich O's and drink beer all day, but I'd continue to get paid because my dick could still be sitting at my desk at work doing my job.

It would be win-win!

---

There's a new stray cat outside. It's a very light gray color. I have named it Ghost, in case I ever see it again.

---

WeirdGirl is being a little mean to me. But I guess that's better than being nice to me. Because nice would remind me of what I'm missing.

---

Not that it really bothers me.

It's kinda funny. Not too long ago I kept trying to convince myself that I was a normal happy person. That deception never worked. These days I catch myself trying to get in a bad mood, and that doesn't work either.

---

Today, for some reason, I thought about this one kid from my youth. Not a friend by any stretch of the imagination, just a kid who lived next to my cousins for a while. So we were kinda forced to play with him sometimes. He was a real dick. He's probably in jail or dead by now. Or he's a billionaire. Man, what a dick that guy was!

---

There's something that keeps becoming more of a possibility all the time. Something that I should really be more worried about than I am. But I'm not worried about it very much at all. This may end up biting me in the ass.

---

I can't believe it's 1:00 AM and I'm still up. This is pretty stupid. Especially since I have to get up at the butt crack of dawn again tomorrow. I'm giving NotHideousGirl rides to work as her car woes continue unabated. It's nice to feel useful though.

---

If you ever want to see something funny, go to Rich O's when Roger is there and say something about how 8664.org wants to tear down I-64 in Louisville.

---

I was watching Big Brother tonight (shut up, I like it) and I got to thinking about a Rich O's reality show in that same vein. I don't think I'd be the first regular evicted, but I bet I'd be in the first five. I know without a doubt who the first evictee would be. And I'm pretty sure I know who'd end up winning it all. At least I know who I'd vote for.

---

I'll be gone all next week. If it's anything like the last time I went to Philadelphia, I won't have any time for anything but work. So I might go as many as five days without posting anything. The world will probably keep turning without my input.

---

Now it's 1:18 AM and I'm still up. I am stupid. I think I'll go to bed as soon as I finish this Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier (2085)

Sunday, July 8, 2007
posted by dave at 12:24 PM in category drink

Last night was fun. Weird, but fun. A little disappointing, but fun.

I got to Rich O's at 8:00 or so. The place was packed with strangers. It was like I'd walked into the wrong bar or something. Not that I really paid that much attention to the crowd. I was on a mission. Checking the beer board to see if Rogue Chocolate Stout was really back, or if Roger had just been fucking with me again by writing it on the employee board.

It was there! Yay!

Inside Rich O's proper, there were more strangers. I didn't recognize a single person except GlassesGirl. She was sitting at the island, so I sat with her. She was very relieved to see someone she knew, and I immediately felt pressure to keep her entertained. But after a bit TremensGirl came in and joined us, so the pressure was off a little.

For the next couple of hours I talked with the girls and had a couple Rogue Chocolate Stouts (1706). I got a million text messages from various people, including HatGirl. I had a million phone calls from various people, including HatGirl.

After a while some other regulars started showing up and joining us at the island. I started to get a little claustrophobic, but there wasn't anything I could do about it because the fuckers in the living room area were still showing no signs of ever leaving. But NotHideousGirl came in for a bit so I talked to her and that made me feel a little better.

I think that's about when I had my third Rogue Chocolate Stout (1726).

After NotHideousGirl left, the strangers finally left the living room. So I high-tailed it over to the throne where I could get some breathing room. Everyone else, of course, followed me over there. Or maybe they were going there anyway.

Once MusicalYuppieDude came in and stole all the women from me, I had a fourth Rogue Chocolate Stout (1746) and then came home.

It really was fun. I got to talk to a lot of pretty girls. I got to see NotHideousGirl. I got text messages from HatGirl, and I got to talk to her on the phone. I was pretty disappointed that ArtGirl didn't come in. And BikerGirl had said that she might even come in, so I was pretty disappointed when she didn't show. I think it would have been funny to watch BikerGirl demolish some of the wannabe pickup artists at Rich O's.

But it was still a fun night. I think that I might have been a tad too honest in a couple of the conversations I had. I'll just have to wait and see if there are any repercussions.

Saturday, July 7, 2007
posted by dave at 2:26 PM in category drink, general

I'll admit it. I'm not ashamed. I'm not embarrassed.

I like girls. Especially hot girls.

I will go out of my way to see them. To talk to them. To do other things with them, when the chemistry and timing is right. This does not mean that I'm an asshole, or a bastard, or a player, or a male chauvinist pig.

It means that I'm a normal straight single guy.

Like today, I went to lunch. I had a yummy meal, and two yummy Newcastles (6479), and I talked to a pretty girl. If BikerGirl hadn't been working, I might have turned around and gone somewhere else. If BikerGirl was an 800-lb geriatric paraplegic with bad body odor, I'd probably have gone somewhere else in the first place. Like to Lucky Strike maybe. There are pretty girls who work there every now and then.

Appreciating female beauty and company is not a fucking crime against humanity.

It feels good to vent sometimes.

posted by dave at 11:07 AM in category daily, drink

There's not really a whole lot to say about Friday. Though I guess I issue disclaimers like that a lot, and then I ramble on for hundreds of words anyway. I'll try to restrain myself.

Because I had to burn a day of vacation for some stupid thing, I spent a very long lunch at The Pub. Had a couple Newcastles (6439). I was going to eat something. I was going to order fish and chips, eat the fish, and give the chips to NotHideousGirl, but she didn't have time for lunch. So we just met outside for a while. Then I went back in and talked to BikerGirl. Then I went and did the stupid thing.

Later, at Rich O's, I was pleasantly surprised to see that it wasn't too crowded. The throne was empty, so I sat there and talked to a couple of regulars about various crap. I'd thought that maybe Rogue Chocolate Stout would be back, but it wasn't. I had a bottle of Avery The Reverend (476) which was quite good.

HatGirl texted me a couple of times. She's out of town, so that sucks. NotHideousGirl texted me that she didn't didn't feel like coming to Rich O's, so that sucked. Really, the only thing notable about last night was that there was a moderate infestation of hippies in the red room, and they provided some amusement for me. Other than that, it was a pretty boring night. I ordered a Paulaner Hefeweissbier next, but I only drank a little bit of it (152) because The Reverend had pretty much used up my alcohol intake quota for the night.

I came home at 10:30 or so and IMed StalkerGirl for a couple of hours. Then I emailed RockGirl, then I went to bed.

See? I just used 290 words to pretty much say nothing.

Thursday, July 5, 2007
posted by dave at 12:23 AM in category drink, ramblings

My first prediction is that I will wake up tomorrow full of resolve. My second prediction is that my resolve will evaporate by 11:00 or so.

I know what I should do. Or, more accurately, what I shouldn't do. It's perfectly clear in my head. It would be perfectly understandable to anyone, if I felt inclined to explain it.

You ever just get sick and tired of being taken for granted? Of being lied to? Of being used and then discarded? You ever just want to turn your back and walk away?

Yeah, me too.

Tonight, I sat on my swing and drank a yummy Schlenkerkla Marzen (484) while all around me neighbors shot fireworks into the air.

I wrote to my friend that it was like my life in a nutshell. The Reader's Digest version of Dave. Every now and then the sound of laughter would make its way to my ears, adding insult to injury.

My second Marzen (501) went down as smoothly as the first.

Tomorrow, I will wake up full of resolve. By 11:00 or so, that resolve will be gone. Because, by 11:00 or so, I will have remembered three things.

Sometimes, I'm appreciated. Even if it's for one tiny little thing, for one tiny little moment, those snippets of appreciation still give validation to this thing I use for a life.

Sometimes, I'm told the truth. It's happened before, and I'm certain that it will happen again. Eventually. If I can just be patient, and hang on long enough.

Sometimes, I'm merely set aside instead of discarded, and the possibility of being needed again is palpable, and it keeps me breathing.

Tuesday, July 3, 2007
posted by dave at 12:12 AM in category drink, ramblings

This entry brought to you by Left Hand Smoke Jumper (75).

I've decided to try an experiment. I'm just going to type. Whatever comes into my head, I'm going to let it flow out through my fingers.

I don't expect this to be anything good. Or interesting. I suppose that I do expect it to be real, though. And that's gotta be worth something.

I'm a sucker for tears from a woman. Wait, that doesn't sound quite right. Because the word sucker implies that I'm being deceived. That I'm being naive. And I'm not. At least usually I'm not. Usually the tears are real.

They cut right through me. Make me want to drop everything else in my life and do something, anything to help make the tears stop. Even if I don't have a fucking clue what I should do or say, the need to do or say something is almost overwhelming.

That's pretty normal, I think. To want to help someone in need.

But then there's the other thing. The realization that something special is happening. The realization that I'm seeing a girl at her most open and honest, and that she feels comfortable enough to share that kind of intimacy with me. It makes me feel a little bit special, and a part of me actually wishes that it would continue for a while longer, so I could feel special for a while longer.

If I could somehow milk the tears. Control their pace and their ferocity to something manageable. Ride that wave for as long as I can, and carry the intimacy that we're sharing along for the ride.

I think that tears are a lot like orgasms. A woman is never more real to me than when she's crying, or when she's climaxing. At those times, she's her most primal self. Her most authentic self. No bullshit. No games. No doubts. Just her. The real her, and she's sharing it with me, of all people.

I want to help. I really do. To turn my back would be just incredibly selfish, and that's one thing I'm not. But what if I can't help? What if I shouldn't help? I mean, maybe I'm just supposed to listen. Maybe I'm just supposed to be there for her, offer a shoulder to lean on, lend an ear, say a kind word every now and then.

I want to help, I really do. But if I can't, if I shouldn't, then I'd still want to be there. I'd still want to share that intimacy. I'd still want to feel special for a while.

I don't think that makes me selfish. I think that makes me human.

Human. Imagine that.

Saturday, June 30, 2007
posted by dave at 2:57 AM in category drink, pictures

Two fucking fifty three. In the morning.

I'm so tired. I've got so much crap to do tomorrow. I've got to work early Sunday morning.

Basically, I'm fucked.

I won't get anything done tomorrow before I go to my nephew's graduation party. I won't be able to get to sleep after the party, so I'll go to Rich O's or something. Then I'll be up all damn night until it's time to start work.

That's when I'll suddenly get tired.

Anyway.

Tonight was kinda fun. I got to Rich O's a little after 8:00. Had a Dirty Helen (122), then TremensGirl and I split a bottle of Allagash Grand Cru (63), then I had another Dirty Helen (142). When I first arrived, NotHideousGirl was there at the island with OddlyFamilarGirl and MusicalYuppieDude. I joined them for a while, but eventually I moved to the living room for my Allagash. It was a little strange to have to share NotHideousGirl with a group. I've become accustomed to having her all to myself during our lunches. I guess I've been spoiled. As has she.

After a while, ArtGirl came in, and I pretty much spent the rest of the night waiting for opportunities to talk to her, and then taking full advantage of those opportunities once they arose. Had her completely to myself for an hour or so at one point, then we moved to the red room and sat with some people there. That's why I was out so damn late. I wanted to leave, but ArtGirl was totally kidnapping me and keeping me trapped in the corner. But it wasn't so bad. She's warm. She's pretty and nice. So of course she has a boyfriend.

ArtGirl and I not only closed out Rich O's, we stayed almost three hours after closing. Not even during the days of LaptopGirl have I ever stayed there so late. I felt pretty guilty about it, but one of the owners was right there with us, so I guess it was okay or she'd have kicked us out a long time ago.

Man, I need to get some sleep. I'm rambling.

---

Oh gee wowie zowie. I managed a whopping four hours of sleep. Damn circadian rhythms.

There's some shit I forgot to mention about last night.

tower thingy

At one point this one dude and I were talking about mechanical engineers. Specifically, we were talking about how much they piss us off by being so damn smart. I mean, a mechanical engineer could have told us whether our little tower was stable without having to build the thing.

At one point I found myself back at the island with MusicalYuppieDude and PillowDude and PorterBob. They were sampling some beer. I had a very small sample myself.

Nøgne Ø Imperial Stout (2)

(bottle) Black with nice brown foam. Aroma of roasted malts and not much else. Flavor of roasted malts and not much else. Quite a bit of malt bitterness at the finish. Everyone around me was raving about how great this beer was, but I didn't share their enthusiasm. Decent, but no better than that.
Also, at the very end of the night, I was sitting with ArtGirl and OddlyPrettyGirl in the red room, and there was a half a Smithwick's there, so I drank some of it (1658).

ArtGirl asked me how old I am, and for some reason I told her. When she didn't run away screaming, that earned her some points. Not that she needed any more points.

I also found myself writing down my website address for her. I don't know why I do crap like that. Now she might actually read some of this drivel. Just in case, Hi ArtGirl!

Friday, June 29, 2007
posted by dave at 7:47 AM in category drink

I've only got a few minutes to write this thing. I don't know if I'll get it done in time. Normally this is about when I'd be going to work, but today I've got the day off. Yay!

But I still get to leave in about 15 minutes because I'm a nice guy. NotHideousGirl is having car trouble, so I'm giving her a ride to work. Did it yesterday too. You know how I've mentioned before that I'm not a morning person? Well, I'm not. Usually between the hours of 7:00 and 9:00, I might say one or two words to the girls at the GasNStuff, but that's it. Yesterday I talked with NotHideousGirl nonstop all the way to Louisville. Probably do it again today. I'm not saying that it bothers me. It's just a little out of character for me to talk so much in the morning. Or a lot out of character.

Last night I went down to Rich O's for a while. I just didn't feel like sitting at home. I sat on the throne and had a half of a Rogue Chipotle (52). I'd ordered a full pint, but it was so bland and boring that I switched to Dirty Helen. I had two of those (102) and they were very good. So good, in fact, that I've upgraded their rating to yummy on my site. So there.

Besides from brief appearances by TallLady and TremensGirl, and even more brief appearances by WomanRepellant and MusicalYuppieDude. I spent most of my time talking with this one dude who should probably get a nickname. Then after a while a group of weirdoes broke up their meeting in the red room, and OddlyFamiliarGirl came over and talked to me for a while. Apparently, she's a fan of this blog for some reason.

Hi, OddlyFamiliarGirl!

Anyway, I guess it's time for me to go.

Wednesday, June 27, 2007
posted by dave at 5:33 PM in category daily, drink

This morning, at a meeting, they had breakfast for us. Not that it did me any good. I'd already had breakfast.

But it did provide a bit of comic relief, because everyone was eating strawberries with a knife and fork. One person started it, and before long everyone was doing the same weird thing.

It was a very Seinfeldian experience.

Eating strawberries with a knife and fork is just wrong. They should either be eaten with the fingers, or as I prefer it, smashed onto the belly of a beautiful woman and then licked off.

---

NotHideousGirl and I had lunch again today. I had a Newcastle and a half (6233) and a piece of fish. She had fries.

We've been working on a new code to use between us. Those things that she says all the time, she can just save her breath and just hold up one through five fingers. For example, one finger means that she's sleepy. If we ever progress beyond five common phrases, she'll have to switch to gang signs or something.

---

I completely forgot to give NotHideousGirl shit about her MySpace survey thingy. It's totally full of trick questions.

---

WeirdGirl has decided to give her ex-boyfriend another go. I wish them well, but I'm not particularly optimistic for them. I've heard too many bad stories about him.

Also, I guess now I get to start keeping track of the last time I got to have sex, and hope that the last time wasn't the last time.

---

The new big thing at work is scheduling meetings that include lunch. I've tried to tell these people that I have a standing hot date at lunch, but I don't think they care.

---

That's it for now.

Monday, June 25, 2007
posted by dave at 11:52 PM in category daily, drink, entertainment

Sunday night:

Aecht Schlenkerla Helles Lagerbier (3)

(bottle) Golden color, minimal head. Aroma of stale hops. Flavor of a citrusy stale lager tamed just a bit by smoke. The flavor wasn't too bad, but the damn aroma was disgusting. I poured most of the bottle out.
Monday evening. Actually, Friday night and then again Monday evening:

Barley Island Dirty Helen Brown (22)

(draft) Dark copper, with huge head and good lacing. Malty flavor with caramel and toffee in there too. Mouthfeel a little thin, but a great-tasting beer. I will look for this again.
I'm up to 384 beers now. Wild.

Today was pretty boring, as Mondays usually are. Had Lunch with NotHideousGirl and got to listen to some dude in a groovy shirt try valiantly and lamely to pick her up. Talked to WeirdGirl for a minute or two on the phone - she's still not feeling well. Worked on a bunch of disaster recovery plans for work. Talked to my sister Dina on the phone. Went to Rich O's. Had the aforementioned Dirty Helen beer. Bought a pizza. Came home. Watched 10 Things I Hate About You.

I continue to be in a strange mood. I feel like I'm being hit from all sides by things which I don't understand and for which I'm woefully unprepared. So I'm a little bit jumpy. On edge, as I said in my last entry. But not just about the timing thing. I'm on edge about everything. I kind of feel like I'm living a pre-apocalyptic phase of my life, and I need to do something to prevent something terrible from happening.

Weird, I know.

Sunday, June 24, 2007
posted by dave at 10:23 AM in category daily, drink, weather

I don't really feel like writing anything, but I guess I will or I'll be annoyed with myself.

This edition of Saturday Beer Report is a little different than others. This one is about Saturday afternoon. There will be nothing about Saturday night because I just stayed home.

Anyway, my first stop was Buffalo Wild Wings for Naked Tenders and Spicy Garlic sauce. I had a Newcastle (6003) of course, but there was something a little off about it. I think that place needs to clean their lines or something. There was a huge storm that tore through the area. Customers and employees were freaking out a little. But all that really happened was the lights flickered a few times. We all survived.

Next I went over to The Pub to see BikerGirl. I had a Newcastle (6023) there, and it was yummy as usual. Also yummy was BikerGirl, but she wasn't feeling well and she left as soon as she got off work, and some dude took over the bar. I spent quite a bit of time talking to this heart surgeon and this older couple about beer. I drew everyone maps to Rich O's. The heart surgeon guy wanted one for himself, and the older couple wanted one for their beer-snob son. I am the unofficial Rich O's ambassador to the world. I should get diplomatic immunity or something.

Next I went to Lucky Strike to see if this one cute-as-a-bug girl was working, but there was some dude instead. So I went to Hard Rock to see if CoolHairGirl was working, but the dude there said she'd called in sick. So I went down to Red Star to see if this one chick was working but it was, once again, some fucking dude. I had a Newcastle (6043) and contemplated the serious lack of female bartenders on Fourth Street.

Every time I go to Red Star they play this John Waite song that makes me miss a certain person, so I sent some emails to RockGirl complaining about my lonely life. I'd been thinking for a week that it was a Bryan Adams song, but it's John Waite who I hate. Hey, that rhymes.

I also tried a few times to call NotHideousGirl. I ended up leaving a message, asking if she wanted to go do karaoke later. Specifically, she would sing and I would listen.

On the way back to The Pub, I popped into Sully's, just to confirm that the bartender there was a dude too. At The Pub, I had yet another Newcastle (6063) and talked to the older couple some more. Then I came home and slept.

NotHideousGirl never did call me back about the karaoke. That's probably a good thing, as my mood has been quite strange for the past couple of days. So I stayed home and watched the American Pie movies after I woke up from my nap.

Pretty damn exciting.

Friday, June 22, 2007
posted by dave at 1:05 AM in category comics, daily, drink

There's some shit going on that I'm not going to write about, but unfortunately it's all I can think about, so I'm kinda stuck with writing random snippets of crap.

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Rich O's has Rogue Chocolate Stout (1606) on tap again, so yay!

When I went in after work, FutureDude asked me what I wanted to drink. I said, "Let's see how well you know me. What do you think I want to drink?"

My question stumped him. But, to be fair, he didn't know there was going to be a quiz today.

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There was also a hot girl and her boyfriend there. They didn't know what to drink, and I recommended Weihenstephaner. They liked it, because it's one of the world's greatest beers.

The hot girl looked really familiar to me. I think there's an actress that she reminded me of. Some Asian chick, and it's weird that I was attracted to her, because I have a pretty strong phobia about Asian women.

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This entire week has sucked at work, but it should start getting better now that an arbitrary deadline has been met.

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Today, I had to go make an addition to the police report I made the other day, as that bullshit is continuing.

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My niece messed-up one of my Rubik's Cubes today, and I cried and cried for hours.

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Not really, I just thought it would be funny to write that.

I solved it in about 20 seconds. It was only a 2x2x2 cube.

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I've been on a search for a new hosting company for barenada.com. I thought I'd found one, but I cancelled that account this morning because they wouldn't give me access to the web server's error logs.

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At lunch today, NotHideousGirl was dressed up as a Catholic schoolgirl, and lamenting about how guys keep telling her that she's cute. Well, duh. My grandmother would look cute in that outfit.

There's a dude at The Pub that always wears a kilt. The last part of this conversation didn't really happen because NotHideousGirl didn't think of it fast enough.

And flowers would be nice

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I can't think of anything else to write.

Sunday, June 17, 2007
posted by dave at 3:18 PM in category drink, entertainment

Yesterday was a long day.

First, I got to go file a police report about some crap. Look for the story on Law & Order in the Fall. I will be playing myself, and I think I'd like Patricia Velasquez to play my love interest. Not that the story really has a love interest, but I'm maintaining creative control here, and I say it needs one. A hot one.

Then I went to Buffalo Wild Wings for my customary naked tenders. They were out of Newcastle so I had a heterosexual Blue Moon (555) instead.

Once she finally got off work, I went and hung out with WeirdGirl. Then we ended up sleeping until about 9:30 when she had to fucking go back to work because of some big bartending emergency.

So, I came home and was debating going back out when HatGirl called.

HatGirl?

Yay?

Damn right, yay!

She'd been thinking about going to Rich O's, even though it was pretty late, so of course I broke all sorts of traffic and physics laws getting there. But it was too late. They were already threatening last-call, so HatGirl wasn't coming. Oh yeah, I had a yummy Upland Winter Warmer (220) while I was there.

When they started kicking everyone out of Rich O's, I texted WeirdGirl. She was still working. So I went over to this Mac's place to listen to karaoke. I'd been thinking that maybe NotHideousGirl would be there, but I think she was still watching her nieces or something.

You know what's weird? When a cute young girl, who you never saw before in your life, follows you into the men's restroom at Mac's and talks to you while you valiantly attempt to pee anyway, then she drapes herself all over you so she can get by the doorman without getting carded.

You know what else is weird? When you're just sitting at the bar, kinda listening to karaoke with maybe half a percent of your brain, and you recognize a voice. Then you turn around and it's your uncle Wayne who's running the karaoke at the place.

I ended up having a couple Newcastles (5740) and talking to various people about various crap, like how rap music always gives me the urge to start killing whities. I tried to talk to PeeGirl, but I'd already served my purpose with her. Her friend actually seemed more interested in talking to me, but she was with some dork.

Then I came home at about 3:00. I was going to go to White Castle, but I forgot.

Saturday, June 16, 2007
posted by dave at 11:01 AM in category drink, travel

I was pretty fucking tired when I finally got home last night. Way more tired than I should have been, I think. I mean, the switch back to EDT gave me three bonus hours, so it was suddenly like I'd gotten up at 6:00 instead of 3:00. And I'd had at least three hours of sleep the night before, so WTF?

If I could sleep on airplanes it would be different. But I can't. All I can manage is to sort of zone out for a few seconds until my head falls and then I almost break my neck jerking my head back upright.

So, when I finally got home, I was very tired. While waiting for my luggage, I called my sister to let her know I'd arrived safely. I emailed RockGirl and WeirdGirl with the same message. I texted NotHideousGirl a few times. She wanted me to meet her at The Pub in Louisville. I declined. She called me gay.

So I went home and took a nap for a couple of hours.

I ended up going to Rich O's at about 10:00. TremensGirl moved from the throne so I could sit there. It was nice of her, but I didn't ask her to move. People all think I'm an asshole about that chair.

Still feeling pretty tired, all I had to drink was a glass and a half of Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier (1932). I traded a few more text messages with NotHideousGirl. Most of her messages were incomprehensible to me. I asked if anyone around me spoke Woman, and some of the girls tried to translate, but they didn't understand NotHideousGirl's particular dialect of that odd language. I think it's known as the drunk dialect.

Anyway, at one point I misinterpreted one of her messages as saying that she was at Mac's, so I undertook the short drive over there to see her. But the doorman said she hadn't been in. Then I talked to her on the phone and learned that it wasn't Mac's she was at, it was this Third Street Dive place over in Louisville.

So I came home and typed up a couple of blog entries. NotHideousGirl texted me that I suck. I went to sleep.

posted by dave at 12:17 AM in category drink, entertainment, pictures, travel

The conference ended at 1:00 on Thursday, which was quite cool because it gave me some time to attempt to take a nap. It would have been even cooler if the nap had actually happened, but the construction going on in the room above me prevented any Zs from being caught.

I managed to snap a picture of the construction equipment as it was heading to the room above me. How they fit all that shit into one room I'll never know:

After I gave up on sleep, I took my last bottle of Alaskan Smoked Porter down to the race and sports book place. They were perfectly willing to let me use one of their glasses, but they said that some red tape bullshit rule prevented them from opening the bottle. Then this one dude took pity on me and showed me how to open a beer bottle using a lighter. I've already mentioned learning this valuable skill. The Alaskan Smoked Porter (589) was yummy, by the way.

Then I had a Fat Tire (587) and played video poker and glared at my phone for an hour or so. See, I maybe had a date. I wasn't even going to mention it here, in case it didn't pan out. But I had a maybe date with StupidGirl, because my new best friend had told his girlfriend that I was in town, and then his girlfriend had told StupidGirl. She finally called me at 6:00 or so with the excuse that she just got off work.

For those joining me late, I realize that StupidGirl is a terrible nickname. I would change it to SweetGirl, but StupidGirl actually likes her nickname. She says that it gives her a story to tell. So the nickname stays.

Anyway.

StupidGirl and went up to Fremont Street and dicked around there for a while. We were going to have dinner at Main Street Station's brewpub, but they were out of their Triple 7 Porter, and all of their other beers suck. So, in protest, we ate at this Grill Bar Saloon place. I drank Diet Coke, and StupidGirl had some foo-foo thing.

After dinner, we went back to The Strip and took in the volcano at the Mirage and the fountains at Bellagio. Walking down The Strip holding hands with a pretty girl is still one of life's perfect moments for me. I wish I could do it every night. In front of the Bellagio fountains there was much slaking. I think it was all the gushing of the water that gave us the idea. Some lady took our picture slaking in front of the fountains. I gave her my email address so she can send me a copy.

This part is probably going to seem pretty lame, but nothing reportable happened beyond that. I really like StupidGirl, and I'm going to leave it there. Maybe next time I'm in Las Vegas...

Thursday, June 14, 2007
posted by dave at 5:00 PM in category drink, entertainment, pictures, travel

Here's some crap I wrote Wednesday night.

Another Las Vegas Wednesday. Another night when I get to realize that it's the last full night I'll have here for months. Another night when I get to wonder if I could have done more with my week. Well, this time it's more like a certainty than a wondering, and it's more like a lifetime than a week. But, that's just my mood right now. It fluctuates, in case you haven't noticed.

I'm sitting at the Tilted Kilt, drinking a yummy Tilted Kilt (656) and just kind of soaking in the place for the last time. See, it's going away. Probably late this Summer. And I won't be back until November, so tonight is the last time I'll sit at this bar. This sucks. This place has been my main escape and distraction during an awful lot of troubled times. Las Vegas just won't be the same for me without it.

Also, I really like the free shows here at The Rio. Here's a crappy picture:

Rio Show

See, that kind of thing almost never happens back at Rich O's. Not even for DaveFest. Plus, it's kinda funny to see five of the gayest guys on Earth, trying to feign interest as they dance/grope five of the hottest girls on Earth.

Much time passes...

I've stayed here at the Tilted Kilt longer than I'd planned, and I've had more glasses of Tilted Kilt (720) than I'd planned, because I've realized that when this bar goes away, it takes this beer with it. This makes me even more sad, hence the staying and the drinking.

Wednesday, June 13, 2007
posted by dave at 6:02 AM in category drink, travel

Okay fine, I'll write something. I don't feel like it though, so I'm pretty sure that the quality will suffer greatly.

Yesterday, after the conference sessions mercifully ended, I walked down to New York New York. It's a long walk, but it wasn't as bad as I'd expected. I stuck my head in ESPN Zone to see if this one chick was working. She wasn't. I stuck my head in Nine Fine Irishmen to see if this one Hawaiian bartender was working. He wasn't. So I had a slice of pizza for dinner and watched people idiots for a while.

Then I went to Coyote Ugly to shirt-shop for WeirdGirl and BikerGirl. Coincidentally, they're the same size.

Then I walked over to The MGM Grand and dicked around there for a while. I ended up at this little bar where I had a couple draft glasses of Fat Tire (479). Before my second glass of Fat Tire, I had a small sample of something new.

Peroni (5)

(draft) Good head. The color of very pale piss. Aroma is very slight, and of hops. Probably the palest, definitely the most watery, beer I've ever had. I'm rating this as swill only because it's so inoffensive. Otherwise it would get a rating of piss.
As long as I'm in beer-rating mood, I had another new beer at The Freakin' Frog when I was there Monday.

Speakeasy Imperial Wheat (4)

(draft) Clear light amber. Good mound of foam. Smells and tastes like hops and alcohol. Kinda gross, but some people will probably like it.
So, not the best week for trying new beers, I guess.

On the monorail back to The Venetian, there was a hot girl wearing what may be the greatest t-shirt in history:

How dare I wear this fucking shirt in front of your fucking kids?
I wanted to take her picture for my blog, but her boyfriend wouldn't let me. I guess he didn't like the idea of the Internet jerking off to a picture of his girlfriend. Oh, well.

Back at The Venetian, I tried to take a nap. I was not successful, though, because they're doing some kind of construction in the room directly above me. I hate them, whoever they are.

So I took the free shuttle over to The Rio, and to The Tilted Kilt therein. I sat at the bar and waited for the bartender to recognize me. He did, so that was a bit of validation for me. On tap, they had one of my all-time favorites, Pyramid Tilted Kilt. So yay for that.

I spent the next few hours drinking five Tilted Kilts (640). It's so easy to forget just how good that beer is. I feel a little ashamed for doubting its supremacy.

Besides drinking, I spent time talking with the bartender and a few of the waitresses. It was a fun evening. At 11:00 or so I took a cab back to The Venetian and went to sleep.

Tuesday, June 12, 2007
posted by dave at 5:25 AM in category drink, pictures, travel

Monday morning, circadian rhythms forced me awake a little before 4:00, so I played some video poker and drank diet cokes for a few hours. Yes, I rock.

Then I remembered a couple of cool things. First, there's a free shuttle running between The Rio and Harrah's. Second, there's a monorail servicing the strip.

So, guess what I did.

Guess where I am now? I mean now as I write this, not now as you read it.

I'm at The Rio. Yay! One thousand DavePoints for anyone who guessed correctly.

I love The Rio. It's a much better place for someone like me. The Venetian is for millionaires. So I went to The Rio, and I immediately felt better. Just being in the place did me worlds of good. And then, and then I saw something that lifted my spirits to new heights.

Tilted Kilt

The Tilted Kilt is still there! Yay! I'd heard that it might be gone.

They weren't open yet though, so I couldn't go in, and I couldn't quite read the taps to see what was available. I'll be going there Tuesday night though.

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I wrote the above stuff sitting at The Rio. Now I'm back in my hotel room and it's pretty damn late and I'm wide awake but little hung-over.

I'm hung-over because, when I left The Rio, I went to The Freakin' Frog. First, I took the free shuttle back to Harrah's. Then I bought a three-day pass for the monorail. Then I took said monorail to The MGM Grand. Then I took a cab to The Freakin' Frog.

Their draft list didn't impress me too much today, but I got over it quickly enough, as soon as I confirmed that they had Alaskan Smoked Porter in bottles. They had four bottles left, and I bought all four, and I drank three of them (567).

And that's why I'm a little hung-over.

The fourth bottle is here in my hotel room. I haven't decided if I'm going to drink it this week or if I want to try to figure out a way to get it home.

posted by dave at 4:56 AM in category drink, travel, weather

First of all, if wanting to have sex with Ashley Judd is wrong, then I don't want to be right.

I don't suppose there's much to say about the trip here. Had a layover in Dallas. I think the humidity there was forty-six million percent. I arrived in Las Vegas at 3:00. This is much later than I usually get here, much later then I prefer to get here. I felt like I'd wasted the entire day before I had even started.

After the usual long wait for my luggage, and the very long line for a taxi, I got to The Venetian and checked in.

SCRIBBLERESQUE PARENTHETICAL THOUGHT: This pen really sucks. I need to get a new one.

For the next several hours I searched The Venetian and some of the surrounding establishments for a decent beer place. All I found was a bar at TI with Newcastle on tap. This was not ideal because (a) it wasn't where I was staying, (b) it was served at 32.00001 degrees, and (c) Nevada's new anti-smoking laws made it impossible for me to enjoy two of my favorite vices at the same time. So I ended up leaving after two of the slushy Newcastles (5673), and I went back to The Venetian to sulk for a while.

After a dinner consisting of two giant pretzels with cheese (Nutrition First, I always say) I sat at this little bar on the casino floor, where I could smoke, and asked the bartender what bottled beers he had.

"Everything," he replied.

"Oh really?" I said. "I'd like a bottle of Alaskan Smoked Porter, please."

Hey, it was worth a shot.

"Never heard of it," the guy said.

Figures.

So I ended up having a couple bottles of Fat Tire (447). It's a pretty good beer, and I began to feel a little less sorry for myself, and a little more optimistic that I might be able to enjoy myself this week.

At about 10:00, jet-lag kicked in so I retired for the night.

Saturday, June 9, 2007
posted by dave at 8:13 AM in category drink

I got to Rich O's pretty early last night, at a little after 6:00. This was partly because my sister Dina had called earlier and said that she might stop by. Partly.

The place wasn't too crowded when I got there. I sat at the island and had a Schlenkerla Marzen (288) and some potato wedges with beer cheese. I basically just vegged out and emailed RockGirl and watched the door.

Then after a while PlantDude got sick of the weirdoes in the living room area so he came up and joined me. We talked about various crap, like Paris Hilton's breasts, for a while. I had another Marzen (305), and watched the door some more.

Then a bunch of weirdoes came and joined us at the island. I had another Marzen (322) and watched the door.

Then I got sick of the weirdoes at the island so I moved over to the sofa. I had a Diet Coke and paid my tab.

Just as I was getting ready to leave, WeatherGirl came in with some dude. I didn't really talk to her though, as they left for the SportsTime side of things right away. I had a brief moment of hope that perhaps LaptopGirl might be at SportsTime so I ran and/or skipped over there. I didn't see LaptopGirl, but I did see NeighborsDaughter, so I stopped and chatted with her for a minute or two.

Then I came home a little before 10:00.

And now today I have a gazillion little things to take care of to get ready for Las Vegas, and then tonight I'll go back to Rich O's and watch the door some more. It's nice to have a plan, I suppose.

Wednesday, June 6, 2007
posted by dave at 12:28 AM in category daily, drink, travel, weather

Today I was presented with the possibility of something which just might be the most terrible, mind-wrenching thing that could ever possibly happen. I described the horrific scenario in an email to RockGirl.

Now, you have to realize, RockGirl knows me and my frailties better than just about anyone on Earth. There was no doubt in my mind that she would instantly realize the implications and understand the true horrors of this scenario.

So what was her response?

"I think that would be awesome."

Clearly, RockGirl has been abducted by aliens and replaced by some kind of pod-person. I will be writing her local congressman and urging him to start an immediate investigation. Hopefully the real RockGirl's whereabouts can be determined before it's too late.

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I'm not really sure why, but today I had HairCutLady use clippers on me instead of just scissors like she normally does. My hair hasn't been this short since I got out of the Air Force in 1992. Plus, now I look like I'm about twelve years old.

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NotHideousGirl wore a skirt today. Of course I checked out her legs. But because I'm a gentleman I told her, before she even stood up, that I'd be checking out her legs. I didn't even try to be sneaky about it. They're nice, by the way.

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MisunderstoodGirl is writing a screenplay as a Summer project. People she knows are being asked to contribute character ideas to represent themselves. I can't think of a good character for myself. I thought "freelance gynecologist" was a pretty good one, but FutureDude already got dibs on that character. I'm thinking that "professional beer snob" might be the best I can come up with.

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NotHideousGirl is also considering a screenplay, but all of her characters are girls.

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Five days from right now I'll be in Las Vegas! Woooohoooo!

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I have less than five days to either find my testicles, or grow a new pair.

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I saw a pretty fucking impressive wall cloud today after work. I got really excited about the potential severe weather, but all it did was rain for a while. At least at my house that's all it did. I haven't watched any TV tonight, so maybe there's been death and destruction all around me. That would be just my luck.

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There was a chick at work today who looked very familiar to me. I think she might have been a girl I had a crush on back in junior high. If I see her again I'll have to ask her.

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Schlenkerla Marzen (219) is yummy.

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I kinda think I want to move back to Alaska. Not forever, but for a year or so. I would live in a secluded cabin and be a recluse. It would be cool.

Sunday, June 3, 2007
posted by dave at 12:09 PM in category drink, ramblings, weather

Yesterday I managed to put myself into a bit of a funk. Understandable, I suppose. Being in a good mood is kind of like wearing clothes that are completely wrong for me. I might be comfortable, and I might even look good at first glance, but once I catch a glimpse of myself in a mirror, I realize just how ridiculous I really look.

Some people might be able to get away with leather pants and flashy jewelry, but not me. Some people might be able to get away with smiling and laughing all the time, but not me.

So yesterday I got a glimpse of myself, and I was a little embarrassed, and even a little revolted, by what I saw.

And the other reason that I found myself in a bad mood yesterday was because, once again, my inertia had run out. And I found myself hoping for another push. And, if you've been reading me for any length of time, you know that hope is a terrible thing for me to have. I wrote once that hope is a strange thing. It exists only to disappoint, for if it's fulfilled, it vanishes.

Yesterday, despite knowing better, I found myself hoping for another push; a couple of specific pushes actually. And then my stupid brain had to butt in and remind me that the odds were very much against either of those things happening, so I went into a preemptive funk.

It would be nice if happiness could have the same inertia as sadness. Maybe it can, eventually. I hope so. That would be cool.

Anyway.

For a late lunch yesterday, I took what has become my customary trip to the Buffalo Wild Wings in Louisville. I had my customary yummy Newcastle (5505) and my customary yummy naked tenders with spicy garlic sauce. I talked with the bartender, and I wrote in my notebook, and I watched nubile young girls play softball on TV. It was nice, I suppose.

Later, on the drive to downtown Louisville, there was a fuck of a storm. I was sitting at a red light and a damn newspaper box went tumbling down the road in front of me. Surreal. My truck shook violently, and I would not have even batted an eye if I'd have flipped over. Turning onto Fifth Street, I saw that it was littered with newspaper boxes and construction signs. The whole scene looked like hurricane footage from The Weather Channel.

So I stopped at Hard Rock and talked to CoolHairGirl for a couple of minutes, then I went to The Pub. I had a Newcastle (5525) and talked with BikerGirl. I also had a new beer:

Kentucky Bourbon Barrel Ale (10)

(draft) Clear amber in color. No head to speak of. Very strong aroma of coconuts, of all things. Mouthfeel was fairly thin. Coconut predominates the flavor, just like it does the aroma. Smells like suntan lotion, and tastes like what I imagine suntan lotion tastes like. After an inch or so was gone, this started to taste a little better. What was strange was that I got absolutely zero indication of this beer's alleged bourbon influence.
Then I ended up giving WeirdGirl a ride home, and we hung out for a while. I swear, we're having the least successful break-up ever but it did manage to put me back into a good mood. So, yay!

My intention, once I got back home, was to take a nap for an hour, then go to Rich O's. Well my nap ended up being two and a half hours long, so that sucked, and I didn't get to Rich O's until after 9:00.

The place was pretty dead, but I didn't care, because LaptopGirl was there on the sofa.

Push number one!

Yay!

I sat in the throne and had a Diet Coke. My stomach was a little upset, I think because of the coconut beer. I didn't get to talk to LaptopGirl because (a) these people on the loveseat kept talking to me, and (b) LaptopGirl was talking to BigWheelGirl the whole time anyway. Still, it was of course nice to see her. And I'm probably not supposed to say this, but she looked very pretty in her pretty dress and pretty shoes.

About ten minutes after LaptopGirl and BigWheelGirl left, HatGirl came in.

Push number two!

Yay!

Take that, universe! I got both pushes, you asshole!

Feeling much better, I had myself a Delirium Tremens (1008) and a Koningshoeven Quad (508) while I talked with HatGirl and LuckyFucker for an hour or so. HatGirl was wearing these transparent sandal things, and I had to fight the urge to play "this little piggy" with her toes. It was a tough fight, but I did manage to win.

Once HatGirl and LuckyFucker left, I had another Diet Coke and talked with WomanRepellant and MusicalYuppieDude for a while, then I went back to Louisville to hang out with WeirdGirl some more.

Oh, yeah, I have LuckyFucker's phone. It had fallen behind the sofa cushion. So maybe I'll get to see HatGirl again when I take his phone back to him. Two days in a row would be very cool.

Saturday, June 2, 2007
posted by dave at 9:01 AM in category drink, entertainment

Okay, first I need to get this out of the way. It's a beer I tried for the first time on Thursday.

Aecht Schlenkerla Rauchbier Marzen

(draft) I was not expecting to like this. I don't know why. A nice clear dark amber color. The aroma of a smoky campfire. The smoke flavor is fairly apparent, and it's just smoke - no bacon or grapes or anything else to taint the flavor. I liked this a lot.
I ended up buying a growler for home consumption, I liked it so much. I'm also kicking myself for not discovering it sooner. I weep for the wasted years. I do that a lot, it seems.

Anyway, on to Friday night.

Rich O's was moderately crowded when I arrived. Mostly with strangers. And there was a buttload of SteveFest celebrators out in the special people section. I sat at the bar and had a Koningshoeven Quad (498), then one of the aforementioned Marzens (55).

NotHideousGirl called at one point from Louisville, and I went outside so I could talk with her for a bit. She invited me to join her at the pub but I needed to stick around Rich O's for a while longer just in case anything cool happened. When I went back in to Rich O's, I had Roger introduce me to SteveFest Steve. As I'd been expecting, I never saw him before in my life.

I was thinking that maybe there could have been some official ceremony to mark the passage from the year of DaveFest to the year of SteveFest, but there was none. One dude took pictures though, so they might show up somewhere.

After a while the strangers left the island, so I moved there. I had another Marzen (75) and talked with various people for a while. This one chick said that a ceremonial beer stein might me a good thing to incorporate into future ceremonies.

Right after I ordered my third Marzen, some secret admirer arranged for a new beer to be delivered to me.

Monk's Cafe Flemish Sour Red (10)

(draft) Clear ruby-brown in color. A nice fluffy head. Sour cherries and apples in both the aroma and the flavor. Very comparable to Metreechs. Quite good.
To be fair, it clashed quite a bit with the Marzen, or I might have liked it even more than I did.

I ended up only drinking the last half of the Marzen (85). I went over to Louisville to see this fashion show they were having for breast cancer awareness. By the time I got there, NotHideousGirl had already left. WeirdGirl wasn't working. So I hung out at Hard Rock and talked to CoolHairGirl and had several Diet Cokes.

Once the models started stomping along the runway (why do they have to stomp around like that?) I went out and watched them for a while. I tried to take pictures but none of the turned out worth shit. All of the models were, of course, quite hot. But I found myself thinking that maybe they should divert some of the proceeds from the event to buy the poor girls something to eat. It was cool though. First time I've gone to a fashion show, mostly because I'm straight.

Oh yeah, I texted HatGirl to let her know that Dragon's Milk is on at Rich O's. She replied that they might come in Saturday night. If so, yay!

I think that's about it.

Sunday, May 27, 2007
posted by dave at 10:41 AM in category drink

It was pretty dead at Rich O's last night. I had a Paulaner Hefeweissbier (51) and a couple Guinnii (1464). I had of course been hoping to see LaptopGirl, but that didn't happen. In fact, I don't think anything interesting happened except that WeirdGirl kept calling me trying to pick a fight or something.

So at 10:30 or so I went over to Louisville to fight with her in person. While I waited for her to get off work I had a Newcastle (5312) at The Pub, then a part of a BBC Alt (368) at Hard Rock. I got to talk with CoolHairGirl quite a bit, mostly about the show Heroes. She's nice.

WeirdGirl had to work a lot later than she'd thought she would, but finally at 12:30 she was allowed to leave. She seemed to have lost the urge to start shit about things that I cannot control, so we went up and checked out this new bar that I can't remember the name of. It was fucking loud, but there were a lot of hot girls in various states of dress and undress.

I like hot girls. I especially like it when I'm with one of the hottest. Social proof, I like to call it.

Anyway, WeirdGirl had way too much to drink. I had slightly too much to drink. So we took a cab back to her place and crashed.

Then this morning I went to get my truck, I saw that somebody had vomited all over the side of it. Not cool.

Saturday, May 26, 2007
posted by dave at 4:16 PM in category daily, drink

As I write this, I'm sitting at Buffalo Wild Wings on Bardstown Road in Louisville, having a yummy Newcastle (5270) and waiting for my yummy naked tenders with spicy garlic sauce to arrive.

I brought my notebook with me. I was going to try to write a long-overdue update for my anonymous journal, but this cutie bartender keeps distracting me with her various feminine attributes. And talking to me. A lot.

Damn these good looks of mine!

To be fair, however, it's probably more than that. Or maybe even something completely different than that.

See, what's happening, I think, is that people, such as this little cutie-patootie bartender with the perky and shapely breasts, people see me smiling. Smiling like I'm smiling today. Smiling like there's no tomorrow. And they assume, because of the smiling, that I'm a friendly and maybe even *gasp* a sociable person.

They don't know the story of why I'm smiling. They don't know how rare it is. How could they possibly know?

So they see me smiling, and maybe they hear me laugh out loud for no discernable reason. And I seem like a nice enough person. And they talk with me and sometimes they flirt with me.

And I don't have the heart to tell them that this smile, and this laugh, they're not for them. And that I kinda wish they'd leave me alone for a while.

posted by dave at 9:58 AM in category drink

I thought I'd lost my rock, and it took me over a half an hour to find it. Then, on the way to Wendy's to get something to eat, I started having a panic attack. By the time I got to Wendy's I could barely stand up. Even my legs were shaking.

It might have been residual panic from thinking I'd lost my rock. It might have been because the last time I'd gone to Wendy's had been on Awkward Night. Or it might have been for some completely random reason. All I know is that it was bad.

After I ate, I felt a little better, and I went to Rich O's. I had to park on Mars, and so I was pleasantly surprised to see that the entire living room area was empty. Of course I grabbed the throne. I ordered a Stone Smoked Porter (400). StoreGirl came in right after I did and she sat on the loveseat.

There was a dude there from Velocity, one of the local free papers. He was taking pictures of the place for some bar-hopper segment they do. Then he came and sat on the sofa and talked to StoreGirl and me for a while. He got our names and conducted a little interview with me because I'm famous and shit. He seemed particularly interested in the customer appreciation festivals like DaveFest and SteveFest. It was pretty cool. This was actually the second time I'd been interviewed at Rich O's. The other time was a couple of years ago.

After the newspaper dude left, people started showing up. The living room area got pretty crowded, and my panic attack resumed with added intensity. I was actually starting to wonder if there might me something physically wrong with me.

Then LaptopGirl came in and smiled, and I was fine after that.

For the next couple of hours, I sat on the loveseat and talked with LaptopGirl. It was surreal and fantastic. I had another Stone (420). Once LaptopGirl left, I moved back to the throne and talked with MusicalYuppieDude and TremensGirl and CoffeeDude for a bit. I ordered another Stone, but I only drank half of it (430). I had a Diet Coke and then I came home.

I couldn't sleep at all so I sat on my swing and thought about happy things.

Friday, May 25, 2007
posted by dave at 6:00 PM in category drink

It might seem, to those of you who read this entry, that I went out to the bar last night. It would be a perfectly understandable mistake.

I got there at 8:00 or so. It was pretty crowded, mostly with regulars. I ordered a Paulaner Hefeweissbier (34) and sat on the sofa.

For about ten seconds.

The music was too fucking loud there. Way too loud. I'm talking concert-level sound. So I picked up my shit and moved up to the island.

For about ten minutes.

The assholes behind me were practically screaming at each other, just to be heard over the music. Plus I think they were drunk. Their shouting was threatening to vibrate my skull apart, and that would have been gross, so I picked up my shit and moved to the bar.

My second beer was a Stone Smoked Porter (380), which isn't my favorite smoked beer but it's pretty good when it's on tap. I sat there and talked with TallLady and various people about various things.

At one point one of the bartenders poured me a sample of a new beer for me. This is actually a beer I bought for myself the other day, but it still sits unopened in my beer fridge.

Malheur 10 (4)

(bottle) Hazy gold with lots of fizz. Good-sized head. Aroma fairly standard for Belgian ales. Flavor quite yummy. The usual for this style, but with some tiny hints of spices and maybe even some caramel in there.
So I liked that a lot.

Once it was gone, I finished my porter and talked with WomanRepellant and various other people about various crap. Towards the end of the night I had a Diet Coke and talked with TremensGirl about various crap, like how she's under the delusion that I'm brave.

Like I said, it might seem like I went to the bar last night. But it only seems that way.

What I really did, what I really did was take a deep breath, and then hold it for four hours. Then, when I got into my truck to drive home, I exhaled.

And tonight I'll probably do it all again.

Thursday, May 24, 2007
posted by dave at 12:38 AM in category daily, drink, entertainment, ramblings

I think that, to a lot of my friends, I'm quite handy. I'm a flashlight in the bottom of a cluttered kitchen drawer. Used briefly, and then put away and forgotten. Until the next time I'm needed. It's a lonely existence most of the time, but it's still nice to be useful.

---

I went and bought some bottles of Spezial Rauchbier today. I had two of them tonight (1504). It's pretty damn good. I want more.

---

Tomorrow is virtual Friday for me. Then it's a four-day weekend. What will I do during this four-day weekend? I'll wait and hope, of course. What else would I do?

---

Just about every day, when it's warm, I walk to The Pub for lunch. Google says it's seven-tenths of a mile. It seems longer than that.

---

In two and a half weeks I'll be in Las Vegas again. I should really start trying to get excited about the trip. I could certainly use the distraction.

---

HarpO wrote an entry yesterday which contained this sentence:

"Sometimes people do every thing to lead you on then if you make the effort to respond they pretend you acted without stimulus."

I'm think that this just might be the truest statement ever written. Also, HarpO and I are apparently living parallel lives.

---

I opened my present from yesterday, and it was exactly what I thought it was. It made me smile for about an hour.

---

Today I spent a lot of money on something that I'll probably never use.

---

I'm very confused about tonight's Lost finale. If the thing with Jack was supposed to be in the future, then why was his dad still alive?

---

There are two people, ostensibly among my best friends for my entire life, and I haven't seen one of them in seven months, and I haven't seen the other one in almost a year. This is not completely my fault.

---

I'm in a weird mood.

Thursday, May 17, 2007
posted by dave at 7:55 PM in category drink, pictures

purchased today

Malheur Dark Brut
Malheur Brut Reserve
Gouden Carolus Grand Cru
Gouden Carolus Classic
Malheur 10
Abbaye d'Aulne Triple Brune
Gouden Carolus Triple
Konigshoeven Quad

Except for the Koningshoeven, these are all new beers for me.

already in my fridge

Rogue Ten Thousand Brew Ale
Allagash Curieux
Rodenbach
Rodenbach Grand Cru
Ommegang Three Philosophers
Avert The Reverend
Three Floyds Behemoth
Canaster Winterscotch
Cassissona
Delirium Tremens

All new to me except The Reverend and Delirium Tremens.

And I actually have even more waiting to be enjoyed. I just didn't want to post a picture of everything because I didn't want people to think I was a freak.

Tuesday, May 8, 2007
posted by dave at 11:15 PM in category drink

Like I've said before, It doesn't take much.

It's one of the good things about being a fucking willow branch.

Anyway, Monday after work, Roger, the owner of Rich O's, told me that Rogue Smoke would be there on Tuesday.

I think that his exact words were, "Rogue Smoke will be here tomorrow."

His exact words were apparently important.

Today, after work, after my nap, I was taking my newly dewrinkled shirt out of the dryer when MusicalYuppieDude texted me from Rich O's.

I asked him if Rogue Smoke was on tap.

He said that it wasn't.

Shit shit shit shit shit shit!

I thought about Roger's exact words. He hadn't, after all, said that Rogue Smoke would actually be available for purchase. He'd only said that it would be there at Rich O's.

So maybe he wasn't a big fat liar after all.

Since I was all dressed up anyway, I went down to Rich O's. Maybe, I thought, Maybe the beer board is wrong. Maybe Rogue Smoke is on tap anyway.

Well, the board wasn't wrong. Rogue Smoke wasn't on tap.

But I didn't care, because LaptopGirl was there.

Yay and fucking yay!

And, this time, she actually talked to me!

Yay and fucking double-yay!

Like I said, it doesn't take much. Especially when not much is actually everything in disguise.

So I had a Brooklyn Brown Ale (80) and talked to LaptopGirl for a bit.

Then I had a glass of Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier (1822), which is back on tap for a while.

Then I had what was left of LaptopGirl's Guinness (1424), because she didn't want to finish it.

I was so fucking happy to talk to her! I am still so fucking happy!

After LaptopGirl left, I moved up to the bar and talked with WomanRepellant for a while. He seemed to be in a better mood than he'd been in the last time I'd seen him. Or maybe my own good mood was turning out to be contagious.

I spent some time trying to bribe the bartenders into putting the Rogue Smoke on tap. There was, after all, at least one empty tap in the place, right in front of me. But none of them would do it, so great was their fear of Roger and his official beer board, complete with tapping order.

It was a fantastic night. Just fucking fantastic.

posted by dave at 1:52 AM in category drink, ramblings

I suppose that it's relevant that I'm pretty much blind at night; the rods of my eyes having been weakened by sparkles a couple of years ago.

Were those even real?

Does it even matter?

So, I'm blind at night, especially on nights like tonight when the Moon is nowhere to be seen. I cannot see shapes, only varying degrees of blackness.

I couldn't see the one, two, three somethings that crossed my driveway tonight, as I sat in my swing enjoying a Rogue Chocolate Stout (1576). I couldn't see them, but I could tell that they were there. They glided like ghosts, and one of them, the largest, stopped not more than fifteen feet away from me. Fascinated, perhaps, by the glow of my cigarette as it rose and fell between my lap and my mouth. I flicked the butt onto my driveway, and the shape slid silently away.

And those other things, those shadows that flitted about at the very edge of my peripheral vision? They seemed to be jockeying for position. I imagined them chattering to each other, bargaining for their favorite angles. From which to watch me. To wait for me. To attack and devour me.

But I did not fear them, those unseeable monsters that lurked in the dark. Instead, I welcomed them. It had been a long time since I'd felt their presence. I'd actually missed the pitiful horrible things.

Tonight, they left me alone. Without my fear to fuel their bravery, they eventually retreated back to their origins. Back into my own imagination.

I am perfectly content, right now.

I am, once again and finally, blissfully aware of my place in this world.

Sunday, May 6, 2007
posted by dave at 11:20 PM in category daily, drink

Like I wrote yesterday, everything seems like a bad idea to me lately

This entry right here is a perfect example. I should not be writing this. There is no good that can come from writing this. It's not only a no-win situation, it's a lose-lose situation. Writing this entry will only make things worse than they already are.

Anyway.

Friday night sucked. I got this damn wild hair up my ass to go over to Louisville and check out this big Derby party they were having at Fourth Street Live.

That was a stupid idea.

As near as I could tell, there was exactly one seat in the entire complex. That seat was, fortunately, at the bar at the Hard Rock. So I sat there and had a BBC Alt (362) and talked very briefly to CoolHairGirl. But she was busy, so I didn't stick around. Nobody I knew was at The Pub, plus there were no seats available there, so I left and went to Rich O's.

I was in a shitty mood. I should have just stayed home.

But what I did instead was sit on the sofa for about ten seconds. Then people tried to talk to me so I moved to the island. I had a couple pints of a new beer:

Brooklyn Brown Ale (40)

(draft) Almost black with a decent tan head. Aroma of malts, and not much else. Same for the flavor. No bitterness. I liked it.
So that was okay I guess. WomanRepellant joined me for a bit, and he was in a shitty mood too, so we got along okay.

Saturday sucked. I spent the entire day feeling worse than I'd felt in months. Like the absence which had been my constant companion, like it had suddenly decided to turn on me. It became a giant hand which closed around my throat and squeezed as hard as it could.

Then I walked into Rich O's. I'd planned to just sit at the bar and be a hermit for a while. I was looking forward to it actually. So I walked straight through the door and straight to the bar. I ordered a Delirium Tremens (940).

Then I heard a voice.

Her voice.

I turned around, and there was LaptopGirl. Sitting with her friends BigWheelGirl and WeatherGirl.

I waved.

She waved back. I heard her say the word awkward to her friends.

And that was it. I wasn't invited over to join them, and I certainly wasn't going to impose myself on them.

So I sat at the fucking bar like a weirdo and watched my hands shake away every bit of progress I've made since last Summer.

Then I had another Tremens (957).

Then I went home (waved goodbye, got a wave back) and sat on my swing, and had a couple bottles of O'Fallon Smoked Porter (72).

Then I went to bed and stared at my ceiling until this afternoon when it was time to get ready for this family reunion thingy at my sister's house.

While there, I had four yummy bottles of Aecht Schlenkerla Rauchbier Weizen (171). Then I came home and wrote this crap of an entry.

Sunday, April 29, 2007
posted by dave at 1:26 PM in category daily, drink, pictures, ramblings

So why do I keep spouting the same drivel over and over, even long after it's become perfectly clear that it does more harm than good?

Because it feels right in my head. Because it fits onto my heart like a glove fits onto my hand. Because it belongs.

Because one night I leaned against a railing, and I looked at her as she sat and cried on this little wall...

boo

and I broke through the clouds, and I saw how far I was going to fall. And I knew, right then and right there that my life would never be the same again.

That's why I keep writing crap like this.

Because I was right. Everything changed then.

Anyway.

My next stop, after Buffalo Wild Wings, wasn't the BBC after all. It was the Haunted Highland Tap Room. I had a couple Newcastles (4682) and had a little séance. Funny, we only came here once, but this place seems as haunted as any other. Maybe even more than Rich O's, because there are fewer memories competing for attention.

Next, I went over to The Pub. Actually I went to Hard Rock first, but CoolHairGirl wasn't working, so I went to The Pub and had yet another Newcastle (4702) and talked to BikerGirl for a while.

My sister Dina called to see if I was going to Rich O's later. I hadn't really made any plans to go there, but I told her that I'd meet her in about an hour. I invited BikerGirl to come to Rich O's when she got off work at 8:00. I wrote down directions for her, just in case. I think going to Indiana was about tenth on her list of possibilities for the evening.

But at least she didn't laugh when I invited her. So that was cool.

Got to Rich O's a little after 7:00. I sat at the kiddie table with Dina and had another Diet Coke. Her husband Kenny came in after a while. BadPickleGirl came in with some dude, but I think it was just a coincidence that they came in. Unless she's stalking me.

Eventually, I had a bottle of yummy Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier (1805). Once everyone else had left, I waited until about 9:30 to see if BikerGirl was going to show up.

Then, some fucked-up shit happened.

Then, I stopped at White Castle on the way home.

posted by dave at 12:55 PM in category daily, drink, ramblings

Yesterday I was all excited to take a trip somewhere. Or maybe not excited exactly. But at least not ambivalent. And that's pretty good for me lately.

I was going to go to either Indianapolis or Nashville. I was going to drink some good beer, eat a good meal or two. Spend the night in a hotel, then come back this afternoon all refreshed.

But nooooooooooo!

About ten seconds before I walked out the door, I remembered that I had to work this morning.

So my trip was cancelled before it started. I decided to play tourist right here close to home.

My first stop was this Buffalo Wild Wings place in Louisville. I'd been craving their naked tenders and spicy garlic sauce since I'd first discovered that combination in Indianapolis a few weeks ago. There are, as it turns out, several million of these places in Louisville. I picked the one closest to the BBC because I thought that I might go there next.

I had a heterosexual Blue Moon (490) and six naked tenders with spicy garlic sauce. I also tried the parmesan sauce. It was all very yummy.

During this time, I also traded a couple of emails with RockGirl. Told her about my aborted trip. She said that she sometimes envied my ability to just up and take off. I replied with this lump of drivel:

Don't envy my travels too much. It's really nothing more than running around in circles, arms flailing, trying to escape this existence.
Some people may wonder why I continue to write crap like that. Why I don't just shut the fuck up already. I suppose, to some people, I might seem to have a pretty decent life. I make pretty good money doing something I mostly enjoy. I shoot a good game of pool, and I get a lot of pleasure from playing. I'm at times surrounded by beautiful women who actually like me, as long as I don't get any ideas. I can strike up a conversation with just about anyone and end up with a new friend.

So what if it's all superficial?

So what if I end up dying alone and unloved?

There are some who would argue that I deserve that particular fate.

Saturday, April 28, 2007
posted by dave at 12:04 PM in category drink

Friday seemed like a waste to me. It was a night of going through the motions of being a person.

I got to Rich O's a little before 8:00. The place was full of strangers and/or weirdoes. I sat at the kiddie table and had a couple pints of Smithwick's (1614) while I waited for something to happen. Nothing in particular, just anything at all.

Well, nothing ever did happen, so I went over to that stupid Mac's place to see MisunderstoodGirl and listen to karaoke.

That place was pretty packed. At least the bar was. There were a lot of empty tables. I sat at the far end of the bar and vegged out for a while. I talked to MisunderstoodGirl for a bit before she had to start getting the karaoke stuff set up. She was wearing a Jamaican wig. It was pretty cool.

I ended up having a couple glasses of Newcastle (4650) and talking with two bombshells who'd come in and sat next to me. They're semi-regulars at Rich O's, but I don't think they recognized me. Imagine that. I bought them a round of beers, they bought me a beer. It was pleasant, but I was still just phoning it all in.

Once the Bombshells left, I got bored. I switched to Diet Coke and waited for NotHideousGirl to show up. I called her at one point to make sure that she was still coming. She was, so I waited around.

But by the time she showed up my boredom had reached epic proportions, so I left. I was going to go over to meet WeirdGirl at this new Rock Bar place, but then I remembered that (a) I'd broken up with WeirdGirl and (b) for a reason, (c) even if it was a stupid reason, and (d) I still can't afford to develop feelings for WeirdGirl.

So I went instead to this Jack's bar next to Rich O's and had half a PBR (42) before coming home.

Sunday, April 22, 2007
posted by dave at 11:23 PM in category daily, drink

Today was kinda cool, I suppose.

I had lunch at Polly's Freeze again, and it was good, but this was the second day in a row in which I had to sit in the old people section because kids were at my favorite table. That scenario is all a little too leading and obvious and ominous for my tastes.

Heh, I originally wrote testes instead of tastes. I must be channeling Beavis or Butthead.

I was getting ready for my sister's cookout, and I didn't have enough appealing beer at home. Just one bottle of Spezial, and a bunch of strong Belgians. So I went to this stupid liquor store in Louisville (Indiana liquor stores are closed on Sundays) and looked for some smoked beer. I didn't find any, so I just bought some Hoegaarden White.

Dina's thingy was fun, as those things go. I never quite feel right. Like, I know I'm not a stranger to those people, but I feel like I'm one. So I did my best to stay out of everyone's way. And I really enjoyed the Spezial (1470) I'd brought from home.

I got to see BadPickleGirl. That was cool. And I got to see my friend Eric's wife Teri. Eric himself was a no-show. Something about some cousin from Detroit that I never heard of.

I had one of the Hoegaardens (44), but it just didn't taste very good. I'd really had my heart set on smoked beer. Oh well.

Then the guys all went to pitch horseshoes and, lacking a partner, I stayed with the women folk. If Eric had been there we'd have pitched some games, but again, there was that cousin from Detroit thing.

There have been times when Teri has completely saved me, by giving me someone to talk to for hours. Today was not one of those times. She and the kids left fairly early. BadPickleGirl left shortly afterwards, and I suddenly found myself surrounded by people who've no doubt been bombarded with endless stories of what an asshole I am.

So, I left as well.

On the way home, I stopped by BadPickleGirl's house and watched some TV. And I got my beer glasses back. So that was cool. She's very pretty, and her daughter's very charming and precocious, and it would probably be funny if I wrote some gushing love diatribe about BadPickleGirl, but it just seems like too much trouble. And it wouldn't be that funny anyway.

And now I'm very tired, but I don't want to go to sleep because, when I wake up, I have to go back to work.

posted by dave at 12:27 PM in category drink

Oh yeah. As we were leaving Rich O's, I put NotHideousGirl in charge of reminding me that I was cut-off from beer for the rest of the night. It wasn't because I felt that I'd had too much. It was just on the principle of the thing. I mean, I'd had three Delirium Tremens.

So I got to Mac's and I didn't know anyone. I sat at the bar and ordered a Newcastle (4450). I know, NotHideousGirl had failed in her duty already! And she wasn't even there yet. Though I guess, to be fair, the fact that she wasn't there yet may have contributed to her dereliction.

A couple of minutes after I sat down a cute blonde girl came and sat a couple of places down from me. So I got to talking with her, and that was pretty much the theme of the night for me. I'd talk to CuteBlonde for a while, then I'd go over and sit with NotHideousGirl and her friend Calculon (or something like that) for a while. Then CuteBlonde would wave me back over, and I'd go talk to her some more.

It was a little scary at first, how much we had in common. So we spent some time searching for reasons that we shouldn't just run away together. A couple of little things came to light, but none of them seemed to be insurmountable obstacles to our everlasting love...

...until she said that she thought that Dwight Schrute could beat up Jack Bauer.

So that particular romance ended before it had even really began. But I still spent the rest of the night continuing to alternate between her at the bar, and NotHideousGirl and Calculon at a table. And FutureDude, who had snuck in at some point.

I also alternated between Diet Cokes and Newcastles. I really have no idea how many more Newcastles I had. Some number between three and eight hundred million. I think I'll just say three (4498).

I didn't get to hear NotHideousGirl sing nearly as much as I'd have liked. It seemed that every time she got up to sing I was over at the bar talking to CuteBlonde.

They closed the place down at 3:00 or so, and everybody left. CuteBlonde gave me a hug. I'll probably never see her again.

And this is the part of the entry where I think I'm finished. But then I always think of a bunch of little trivial tidbits that I wish I'd mentioned. So I'll try to think of them before I post the entry this time.

---

It seemed like NotHideousGirl was trying to wing for me at one point. This was a bad idea because CuteBlonde had been convinced all night that (a) NotHideousGirl and I were a couple, and (b) that NotHideousGirl was going to start a fight with her over me.

---

This seems to be a recurring theme in peoples' thoughts lately. We may need to stage that break-up fight after all.

---

This one dude, I shit you not, walked up to the dartboards, picked up six darts, and threw six bulls-eyes in a row. I saw this from across the room and then I went and told him that it was awesome.

---

There was a guy there who CuteBlonde confessed to having made-out with a few weeks earlier. So part of my mission for the night was to make sure that CuteBlonde was never left alone for very long.

---

Right at the end of the night I had a fucked-up phone conversation. Other than that, it was a pretty fun night.

posted by dave at 10:57 AM in category daily, drink

6:45
I'm feeling a little uneasy right now. Maybe I'm simply dreading the after-thunder crowd I'm sure to encounter later. Or maybe it's just the 24 ounces of industrial swill sitting in my stomach. Whatever the reason, I just don't feel quite right.

I'm sitting at Tucker's, waiting for my steak and baked potato and mushrooms. Come to think of it, maybe this place is why I feel uneasy. We used to come here, every so often.

6:50
I'm going to need another Diet Coke soon. 'Cause it takes a million years to cook steak the way I like it. "Burnt," most would say.

6:56
They're showing the airshow on TV, of course. Looks really crowded. Later, they'll show the fireworks, and they'll be sure to waste a lot of airtime showing the faces of people as they watch the fireworks. I think they do that just to annoy people.

---

After that I didn't take any more notes. My steak was good. It was a bad cut, with a big line of fat running through the middle, but it tasted really good. Baked potato was good. Mushrooms were good. My second Diet Coke arrived just in time. Thanks for your concern.

I got to Rich O's at 8:00 or so. The parking lot was completely full. I hadn't been expecting that. Everybody was supposed to be at the airshow. But when I went in I saw that it really was kind of dead inside. Except for a birthday party going on in the special people section. So that explained the parking lot.

By this time my unease from earlier had gotten a little worse. Because I'd eaten way too much. I should have passed on the mushrooms, I think.

I sat on the throne and ordered a bottle of Delirium Tremens (891). A nice light Belgian will often calm down an upset stomach. LaptopGirl taught me that. But by the time I'd finished the bottle, I wasn't really feeling any better. I almost went home, but instead I just moved up to the bar. I think that the way I was sitting on the throne may have been contributing to my discomfort.

So I moved to the bar, and I had another Tremens (902). And I warned the bartenders that I might let out a 15-minute belch at any moment.

Talked to the bartenders, and then a couple I know moved up from the living room to the bar and I talked to them.

By the time I'd finished my third Tremens (913) I was feeling a lot better. I'd never had that 15-minute belch, but I'd had about a million little burps. I know, thanks for sharing.

FutureDude had told me earlier that NotHideousGirl would be singing karaoke at that Mac's place that I don't like. I already knew that because I'd read it in her blog. I wasn't planning to go because I'd been sure all week that NotHideousGirl had been avoiding me. It's this persecution complex that I have. Runs in my family.

But NotHideousGirl came into Rich O's to get something to eat before she went to Mac's. She sat at the bar with me and so I figured that maybe she hadn't been avoiding me after all. Or, if she had been, she'd gotten over it. In any event, after NotHideousGirl had picked at her food for a while, we left Rich O's. I went straight to Mac's, and she went home because she'd forgotten her glasses.

I feel like I'm really starting to ramble now, so I'll finish this entry later.

Saturday, April 21, 2007
posted by dave at 5:36 PM in category daily, drink, travel

Lunch at Polly's.
        It's comfort food for me.
        Had to sit in the old people section,
                Some kids were at my usual table.

Continued Westward.

Took the scenic route as opposed to the non-scenic route.
        Consists of a ten-mile speedtrap.
                Known as Highway 37.
        HatGirl called me, so that was cool.
                Except that I almost died until I pulled off the road.
                HatGirl!
                        Yay!

Arrived in Derby.
        Also known as where?
        And never heard of it.

River was up pretty high.
        Probably as high as I've seen it down there.
        They had a signpost showing old flood levels.
                So it wasn't really that high at all.
        I should have taken a picture.

Ramsey's Tavern hadn't changed at all.
        Same generic old man at the bar.
        Same generic interchangeble bikers at the tables.
        Same stuffed deer heads on the walls.

They don't have Falls City anymore.
        I guess some things do change.
        The bartender remembered Dad.
                I think she's the one who had a major crush on him.
        Had two Bud Lights.
                Not as gross as I was expecting.
        Had a moment of panic when I saw that I had no phone signal there.
                What if HatGirl had tried to call again?
                        Ahhhhhhhhh!
        So I left.

Took the non-scenic, with-speedtrap route back home.
        Brought back memories of the day I met MixedSignalGirl.
                Which I think was the last time I went to Derby.
        Seeing the disabled car really brought back memories.
        It was a hot girl.
                Scantily-clad.
                With two kids hiding in the shade at the treeline.
                And a husband crouching in the driver's seat.
                        Oh, well.
        They didn't need anymore help.
                Somebody was already going to get some gas for them.
                i wish I'd had some cold sodas for the kids though.
                        They looked miserable.

posted by dave at 10:31 AM in category drink

TremensGirl said something last night that struck me as deep, and true, and I told her that I was going to use it, and credit her for saying it.

There's a fine line between a pussy and an asshole that every man must...
See, I forgot the last part.

Every man must what?

Walk?

Lick?

I'm thinking more likely the former, because it wasn't a sexual discussion. It was more about the two extremes of personalities that guys must avoid. I wasn't really in the conversation. I was just listening. But I should have tried harder to remember the entire quote.

Anyway, I spent the first half of Friday night at Rich O's, in the throne. It was a nice night. It wasn't too crowded at all, and the people who were there seemed to have about the same energy level that I had. I had a couple pints of NABC Jasmine (70), and about a half-pint of Upland Wheat (53). I had a couple of nice conversations with someone from my recent past, conversations that managed to pick me up and knock me down at the same time. I emailed RockGirl.

I left Rich O's at 11:00 or so, and went over to The Pub. There are a bunch of strangers and weirdoes in town for the annual Thunder Over Louisville air show and fireworks display, and I was kind of in the mood for talking to new people.

I ended up sitting with some people from Indianapolis who make the trek every year. One of them was particularly nice, and I talked to her pretty much exclusively for two or three hours. IndyGirl asked for my email address. I'm sure I'll never hear from her again.

Oh yeah, I had a couple pints of Newcastle (4434) and then a Diet Coke to round out the night.

Friday, April 20, 2007
posted by dave at 9:19 AM in category drink

Now I'm attempting to write an entry just because I have nothing else to do. My house is being cleaned right now, and I want to stay out of their way. Also, I don't want to feel guilty for not helping out.

So I'll write an entry about last night, and I'll type slowly to kill extra time.

Let's see...

Um...

Oh, yeah.

I went to Rich O's at about 7:00 or so. The parking lot was completely full, so I parked on Neptune. The crowd wasn't too bad inside the place. TallLady was in the throne, and some strangers were on the loveseat. I sat on the sofa and ordered a Schlenkerla Rauchbier Weizen (86). I kind of vegged out and did my best to deflect any questions directed at me.

Then after TallLady left I moved to the throne and ordered another Schlenkerla (103).

Then the weirdoes started pouring in.

One was HotEuchreGirl. She is, um, hot but she has weird friends. So it wasn't even that much of a chore to tear myself away from her and move to the island. The mass of weirdoes in the living room area took about a second to shift and heal the hole my departure had left.

SassyBoy and that one super cute girl from a couple of weeks ago came in. I sat at the island and talked with them for pretty much the rest of the night. Or, to be more precise, I talked to SassyBoy and somehow lost the power of speech every time I even looked in SuperCuteGirl's direction.

My next beer was going to be another Schlenkerla, but they're out of those now. Thanks to me. So I had a yummy Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier (1788) instead.

HotEuchreGirl came and sat with us for a while. I moved to the other end of the island so I could talk to her. I managed to scare her away fairly quickly. Probably with all the drooling.

My last beer was a Koningshoeven Quad (432) and it was nearly my downfall. I doubt that I could have had another drop of alcohol even if I'd wanted to.

So, I had a few diet cokes and then came home at around 12:30 or so.

Kind of a boring night.

Wednesday, April 18, 2007
posted by dave at 11:55 PM in category drink

Tonight was virtual Friday for me, as I'm off work until Monday. So, yay!

There, I wrote something happy. I saw HotGirlsHotCousin tonight, and she told me that my journal was too depressing. I don't know why she should feel that way. I mean, it's not like she has to live my life. She, and all of my other readers, they should all be grateful that they're not the ones having to put up with this bullshit. Reading what I write should make everyone happy, by contrast if nothing else.

Anyway, I went to Rich O's at about 7:00, and I sat with the aforementioned HotGirlsHotCousin and one of her cousins who should probably get a nickname but I haven't picked one yet. Since there was nothing on the beer board that looked appealing to me I had a Smithwick's (1534).

Then, an hour or so later, I had another one (1554).

I spent the vast majority of the night emailing RockGirl and probably bugging the shit out of her. But that's okay. She's tough, and I know she can take it.

My next beer was a Schlenkerla Weizen (69), which smelled and tasted fantastic to me. I even made everyone around me smell it, I was so proud.

Then, I got bored with sitting on the sofa, so I moved over to the kiddie table and talked with TShirtDude for a while. By then I was drinking a Regenboog Guido (30) which I really loved.

At one point I drunk-texted NotHideousGirl. I wasn't expecting a response, and I didn't get one.

At 10:30 or so, a smoking hot girl came in and sat out front. So, feeling frisky, I stole a pen and a notepad from behind the bar, adopted my most professional expression, and went and took her beer and food order. But then the real bartender took over and didn't let me approach the hot girl anymore.

Then at about 11:00 I got really bored, so I went to White Castle and then came home.

And tomorrow, I have a decision to make. What to do with four days off work?

Monday, April 16, 2007
posted by dave at 6:27 PM in category daily, drink, ramblings

This entry brought to you by:

New Albanian Jasmine the Mastiff (10)

(draft) Black with a decent tan head. Strong aroma of roasted malt and a touch of chocolate. Flavor is like the aroma. Mostly roasted malt with a touch of chocolate. And no hop bitterness! Yay! I really like this beer, so I'll probably never see it again once this batch is gone. I'd better drink up while I can.
I would have had more, but this was after work and my stomach was empty.

Today, StalkerGirl completed my game of 20-questions. She got it right at number 20. So, yay for StalkerGirl!

Meanwhile, RockGirl continues to toil. I lost track of the number of questions she's had after 8,000,000 or so. Actually, I'm pretty sure she's just been fucking with me.

Anyway, now I have to get cryptic.

One of my more self-destructive habits, mentally destructive I mean, is that I tend to obsess over whatever I figure is the worst thing that could possibly happen. And then I start playing some horrible scenario over and over in my head until, in theory at least, I become immune to it. Or at least less susceptible to its harmful effects.

That's the theory.

It even worked. Once.

I used to obsess about this one terrible thing. I'd write about it and I'd talk about it and I'd even joke about it sometimes, and then, when it actually happened, I was surprisingly okay with it. Not really okay per se, but I never did implode or explode the way I'd have thought I would. I think my biggest problem was wondering when and/or if I would realize the horror of the situation and then collapse into a spreading pool of misery and self-pity.

But it never happened. So that was cool, I guess. Though sometimes I think that it might have been nice to have felt something.

Now, now I've found myself a new obsession. Once that's admittedly even less likely than the last one. Less likely, perhaps, but a million times more terrible should it ever happen.

And this scenario, I can't talk about it. I certainly can't fucking joke about it. I did try writing about it. Once, in an email. It was completely ignored.

A while back I wrote an entry about something terrible. For a few days I was sure that this would be the worst thing that could happen. But I realized that I was wrong. It wouldn't even be close to the worst thing. Nope, the worst thing is something that I can't even bring myself to imagine with any semblance of detail.

So, in the unlikely event that it ever does happen, I'll be woefully unprepared.

Great, now I'm in a shitty mood. Way to go, Dave. You dipshit.

Sunday, April 15, 2007
posted by dave at 11:50 PM in category drink, ramblings

This entry bought to you by:

Left Hand Smoke Jumper (25)

(bottle) Almost completely black. Huge heaping head. Heavenly smoked malt aroma. From under the massive layer of foam, some chocolate notes rose and made themselves known. The mouthfeel is a lot thinner than I was expecting. Flavor is intensely sweet. Some smoke in the finish. After the first few sips, I became numb to the sweetness, and the nice overall balance of the beer became evident. Quite yummy.
So, that was good. It's certainly no Alaskan Smoked Porter, but it'll do in a pinch.

So, I've been toying with this idea all day. This idea of writing something completely honest and straightforward.

Just as sort of a test. To see what might happen if I took someone's words and interpreted them as truth. Words saying that honesty and openness are paramount to her.

I don't think the truth would be appreciated. I think that it would be seen as a series of dismissals and denials. Or even worse, as a mere subset of the real truth.

Why even bother?

Because I could be wrong, that's why.

So, here goes.

Two or three or four times a week, I sit at The Pub during lunch, and I listen to my friend bad-mouth men. I listen to her tell me that all men are assholes, that men only want sex from women, that men are lying backstabbing bastards. That there are no good men in the world, that they're a bunch of apes who are nothing more than a life-support system for a penis.

I sit, and I listen to this. I even nod at the appropriate times. At least a part of me does. The friend part. That's the part of me that climbs out of bed late at night to go where I'm needed, just because I'm needed. That's also the part of me that exits unannounced, lest some word or action or facial expression betray some unauthorized thoughts or feelings.

That guy, that Dave-as-a-friend guy, he's a pretty decent fellow. I think everyone should have a friend like him. I know that I wish I did. Even if he is kind of a pussy.

But there's another part of me, sitting in that bar two or three or four times a week. The part that's not a friend. The part that's a man. The part that wants to jump up onto the bar and scream in frustration when he hears those hateful and hurtful words. And defend himself as the man that he is. A good man. A decent man. Not a lying backstabbing bastard who only wants sex. More than a penis life-support system. Much fucking more.

But, problem is, she doesn't think of me as a man at all. If she did, she wouldn't be talking to me the way she does. She probably wouldn't be talking to me at all.

My hair is, after all, the wrong color.

That's fair, I suppose. She has the same name as a whore I used to be married to. So that makes it even, right?

Look, this frustration of mine isn't even about my friend. She and I, as woman and man, would have many more forbidding obstacles than my hair and her name. This thing with her and me - it's just the most fitting and most current example of what frustrates me.

Why can't I be both? Why can't I be a friend and a man? Why must I fucking choose and, if I refuse to choose, why then is that choice made for me?

I sit at the bar several times a week, listening to my friend bad-mouth men. And I empathize and I nod at the right times. I do these things because I'm her friend. But I also think about what it might be like to kiss her lips, or hold a hug for a few seconds or minutes longer than necessary. I do these things because I'm a man.

Why, I wonder, why can I have a friend who's also a woman, but I myself can only be seen as friend or as a man. Not as both. Never as both.

It frustrates the hell out of me, and that's the truth.

Now, let's see how that truth gets misinterpreted.

posted by dave at 1:46 PM in category daily, drink

And so another long Saturday leads to another long Saturday Beer Report. One in which I'm certain to leave out several interesting tidbits as I strive to keep from rambling on and on and on and on. And on.

My day started when I went to see WeirdGirl for a bit. She's starting a new job and wanted me to check the place out. It's not my kind of place. There's no good beer there, and the stage was an ominous presence. Loud music and crappy beer make Dave something something.

So then I went over to Borders and bought a book and a notebook and a pen. Then I went to The Pub and had a couple pints of Newcastle (4352) with my fish and chips. It was kinda boring there, plus this one bartender wouldn't leave me alone, so I went over to Hard Rock to see if CoolHairGirl was working.

She was, so I stayed.

I had a couple glasses of BBC Alt (330) and talked to CoolHairGirl whenever she'd get a little break. One cool thing was that we were talking about gluten intolerance for some reason, and she mentioned that she'd met a girl at this Third Street Dive place who suffered from it. From the description I was pretty sure that she was talking about NotHideousGirl. So I whipped out my blackberry and pulled up a picture of NotHideousGirl.

It was her! Small world, as they say.

At about 5:30 or so, I got bored so I left Hard Rock. I'd thought that maybe I'd just go straight to Rich O's, but (a) HatGirl was sick, and (b) I wasn't really in the mood for another sausage-fest. So I did something different.

I went down to our local Caesar's casino.

That place was really packed, as I'd been expecting. I'd wanted to play some blackjack, but there wasn't a single blackjack seat open anywhere. So instead I spent about three hours playing pai gow poker and losing about $22.

Then I left the boat and went to this Legends bar there in the Caesar's complex. They always have decent beer there. I sat at the bar and ordered a BBC Jefferson's Reserve Bourbon Barrel Stout (432).

I'd only been sitting for about ten seconds when my phone started vibrating. It was, of course, HatGirl. No longer sick, and sitting at Rich O's wondering where I was. I somehow fought the urge to skip and turn cartwheels all the way to Rich O's. Instead, I texted back that I was down at the boat.

So then HatGirl texted for me to stay where I was, and that she and LuckyFucker would come down there.

Never has an hour passed so slowly.

I spent most of that hour talking to this hooker who was sitting next to me. She and her girlfriend were having a two-for-one special going on, and there weren't any takers. At least up until that point. I reminded her that the night was still young. I also ordered some nuclear hot potato skins and managed to get one of them down without melting holes in my cheeks.

HatGirl texted me again when they left Rich O's, and I started to get even more excited. It was really going to happen. I was going to get to see HatGirl. My heart threatened to leap from my chest.

I nearly gave myself whiplash for the next several minutes, jerking my head to the left every two seconds to see if they'd arrived.

And then, they did!

HatGirl!

Yay!

So HatGirl and LuckyFucker and I spent a couple of hours talking and drinking beer. I had a couple glasses of Newcastle (4364). HatGirl had her usual Guinness. LuckyFucker had the BBC bourbon barrel stout I'd been drinking earlier. A good time was had by all. Especially me. Because, HatGirl! Yay!

Once the happy couple left I moved back to the bar. The hooker was gone, so maybe she found a customer after all. I had a couple Diet Cokes while I unwound, then I came home.

Saturday, April 14, 2007
posted by dave at 11:40 AM in category drink

Man, I slept half the day away. That's what my dad used to say, when I was a kid, if I slept beyond like 9:00. Well this morning I slept until 11:00. It's so gloomy outside that I guess my body got fooled into thinking it was still just after sunrise.

Anyway.

Like I already said, it was very crowded last night. Standing-room only.

Actually this brings up a question I've had nagging at me.

Is it standing-room only, or standing room only, or standing-room-only? I can never figure out the rules for whether there should be hyphens or not.

So I stood at the end of the bar and MusicalYuppieDude and I complained about the crowd together for a while. There was nothing on the draft board that really looked appealing to me, so I went back to one of my old standbys (or is it stand-bys?), a Smithwicks (1514) that went down very well.

A few minutes later I smelled something good to my left. I turned, and it was ThatOneHotGirl who I'd noticed when I'd fought through the crowd on the way in. We talked briefly for a few minutes. It was nice. I like girls.

Then this one dude left the end of the bar so I went and sat there. OracleDude was sitting at the kiddie table and I talked to him except for those times when ThatOneHotGirl would come over and sit next to me. We talked about beer and the food there and being drunk kids in our early twenties. It was her first time ever at Rich O's. She didn't know what she was drinking, "Some pale ale" is all she knew. I promised her that I'd try to find out for her.

Then a bunch of weirdoes left the island so ThatOneHotGirl went and joined her friends there. I went back to talking with OracleDude, and I ordered a bottle of Koningshoeven Quad (420). I left a couple of ounces in the bottle.

Oh yeah, one of the bartenders was in a really terrible mood. I was actually a little concerned that he was going to go postal on everyone. I was certainly too frightened to ask him for an empty sample glass. I'm pretty sure that he'd have thrown it at me. So, once FutureDude slowed down enough, I asked him for one instead.

Then I poured the rest of my Koningshoeven into the sample glass and took it over to ThatOneHotGirl.

Yes, I was that smitten already. I wouldn't give up that beer to just any girl. But it gave me a chance to talk to her for a few more precious seconds. And to meet her boyfriend. I know, oh well.

After a while, TallLady left the throne and I moved there.

Spent the next couple of hours talking with various semi-regulars and waving at ThatOneHotGirl when she'd turn around and see me. I was in a very strange mood, and to prove that point, my next two beers were Upland Wheats (43). I don't even like that beer very much.

After a while, I had an urge to throw a wadded-up (should that be hyphenated?) napkin at ThatOneHotGirl. Just to get her attention so I could wave at her again. Because it had been a while. I asked MusicalYuppieDude and OracleDude if they thought beaning her with a napkin would be appropriate behavior, and OracleDude said he'd pay me five bucks if I did it. Well, I was going to do it anyway, so I took careful aim at the back of her head, and I let fly.

My aim was a little off - I hit her in the side. But this was partly because she and her entire group had chosen that moment to stand up and get ready to leave. ThatOneHotGirl felt the paper hit her, and she glared at this one girl who was sitting on the loveseat.

Well I couldn't have her being blamed for my misdeed, so I followed ThatOneHotGirl out front and confessed to her that it had been me. That I'd just wanted to talk to her again before she left. So she punched me (hard!) in the arm several times and laughed. I like her. She would be fun to make out (make-out?) with. But then her boyfriend came out from the bathroom and ruined everything. ThatOneHotGirl went off into the night, and I went back to the throne.

At least OracleDude owes me five bucks.

And this is about the point where my last entry picked up.

Or it is picked-up?

Those damn hyphens. They confuse me.

I should have asked her what her name was.

Monday, April 9, 2007
posted by dave at 12:26 AM in category drink, ramblings

This entry brought to you by...

Allagash Four (22)

(bottle) Hazy brown. Minimal head. Aroma is complex and very strong, with malts and hops and nothing else. Flavor is mostly weird malts. Most Belgian quads feature dark fruit flavors, this is all malts. The two inches of sediment in the bottom of the bottle grossed me out. Overall, not bad, not great.
Somebody once said that if you don't have anything nice to say, then you shouldn't say anything. Or some crap like that.

I'd bet that if bloggers took that advice to heart, then there'd be no bloggers.

Anyway, today I'm pissed. At pretty much the entire world.

I think I just get tired of hearing the same bullshit over and over, only to see it contradicted just as fiercely via actions and inactions.

Those two things speak louder than words. Actually, words don't speak at all. They mean nothing. They are hollow.

This is why I've given up. Because I've stopped listening to you people out there. Telling me how great I am, then turning your noses up at me when I show some emotion you don't agree with or understand. Offering comfort, but only so you'll feel less uneasy around me. Spouting advice, when you haven't a fucking clue as to what's happened to me.

It's all so fucking convenient, to seek my friendship when you need it. I'm always there. Where else would I go? But let me fucking need you, and you scatter like cockroaches in the middle of the night when the light is suddenly turned on. Because I don't fit into your mold. Because suddenly I'm the needy one. You reject the reality of the situation. You reject the truth. You reject me.

Today, I'm pissed. At pretty much the entire world.

Sunday, April 8, 2007
posted by dave at 1:13 AM in category drink

Okay, fucking fine.

Today was kind of a weird day for me. Weird in a way that I'm not really sure I can describe. Or that I should describe.

The thing is, I'm thinking that I should probably be more sad than I am. Meanwhile, I should also be more happy than I am. Since I'm neither happy nor sad, despite various conspiracies, I'll just call it a weird day.

First, I went shopping again. Bought some work clothes.

I know, zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.

Then I went over to The Pub and talked with BikerGirl for a bit while I had a Newcastle (4232). That was about the time when I figured that I'd managed to alienate both HatGirl and NotHideousGirl in the same week. This should have bothered me, but it didn't. At least, not as much as I'd have thought.

Then I called MixedSignalGirl.

I know, I'm not supposed to do that anymore. But I had a good reason, and I'm pretty sure that she'd agree that I had a good reason.

You know that bullshit saying about If you love something let it go blah blah blah? Well I'm testing that saying, and it sucks. Big giant green ones.

Then I came home and took a nap. I dreamed about my ex-wife. That always pisses me off. There are a gazillion people more worthy of my dreams than her. Oh well.

Then I went to Rich O's. I had a couple glasses of Fastenbier (132) and talked with some of the guys I know.

The place was a total sausage-fest tonight. Even more than usual.

Plus, I kinda got the feeling that FutureDude was irritated with me. I may have violated one of my prime directives: Never piss off a bartender.

Anyway.

I got tired of the sausage-fest, so I went over to Louisville. I figured that I'd just chill out at The Pub or at Hard Rock for a while, let today sink into me a bit.

No such luck.

Hard Rock was fucking closed.

The Pub was fucking closing as I walked up to the doors.

So I walked down to the Red Star, and they were still open, and the cutie bartender agreed to serve me a beer.

Yay!

So I had a heterosexual* Blue Moon (469) as is my custom in that place.

When I got up to leave the Red Star, I glanced over at one of the tables, and I saw a pretty brunette who kinda look familiar. I didn't think much of it though, until I got outside.

Once I got outside, I turned around, and there she was.

BadPickleGirl!

Yay!

So we went back inside and talked about various crap for a few minutes. It was good to see her.

Then I came home. I'd been thinking about going over to this Third Street Dive place, but by that time I'd had enough excitement.

* - without the ubiquitous fruit wedge

Saturday, April 7, 2007
posted by dave at 2:16 AM in category daily, drink, weather

Anyway, today I went shopping at the mall for a while. My tax refund had finally come in, so I had to buy something or risk going more insane. I kept my spending somewhat in-check, so that was good. Some of this money is supposed to go towards my Las Vegas trip in June.

When I left the mall, it was snowing like a mother fucker. In April. Pretty damn weird.

I went to Hooters and had a couple Newcastles (4212) and a quesadilla. All were yummy. The bartender said that she liked my Pink Floyd shirt, and I returned the compliment for her skimpy Hooters top. Then I stopped by Rich O's and had a Mad Bitch (284). It was also quite good.

After a quick nap, I went back to Rich O's at 9:00 or so. It was really packed, and I stood around for a half-hour or so drinking a Fastenbier (77). It was pretty boring, but then three really great things happened.

First, TeamHotness came in. Second, some old people left the kiddie table. Third, some weirdoes left the bar.

So I sat at the kiddie table and TeamHotness sat at the end of the bar and I got to talk to them for a couple of hours.

There may have been other people at Rich O's, and in fact I'm pretty sure that there were other people there, but I didn't care because TeamHotness had my undivided attention.

Oh yeah, I had another Fastenbier at some point (94).

In case I've never explained this before, TeamHotness consists of two girls. I've never seen either of them without the other. One I call ImprobablyHotMarriedGirl and the other I call UnbearablyHotSingleGirl. I think I've used other, less descriptive, nicknames in the past, but I'm not sure. It doesn't matter anyway. They are TeamHotness, and I'm totally smitten with them.

Also, I've been trying to get some people to play 20 Questions with me. To guess what I bought at the mall. RockGirl isn't playing right, and I doubt she'll ever get it. StalkerGirl didn't respond to me until late. But NotHideousGirl played along via text-messaging and guessed correctly in thirteen questions.

Once TeamHotness left, it got boring really quickly. I ordered another Fastenbier, but I only drank a little bit of it (98). Then I talked to this one PBD about various crap. Some of the crap we talked about was LaptopGirl, and I got sad for a while, but I got over it quickly enough I suppose.

Near the end of the night I had an unexpectedly powerful urge to make out with NotHideousGirl. But I didn't. Partly because she wasn't there, but mostly for other reasons beyond my control. Such as, apparently, my hair color. So instead I just came home and petted my cats.

Not the same thing at all.

It was still a good night, though.

Friday, April 6, 2007
posted by dave at 2:00 AM in category drink

So tonight was virtual Friday for me. I'm off work tomorrow. Along with, apparently, every other person on Earth. Because every person on Earth was at Rich O's tonight. Except for about three people who I'd really liked to have seen. But, oh well.

Tonight featured two highlights for me. First, and I'm only mentioning this to justify the title of this entry, I had two yummy glasses of Aecht Schlenkerla Fastenbier (60).

Second, and this is the really cool part, I got to talk to a really cute girl for a few hours. She was there with SassyBoy, and she was nice, and cute, and young. Plus, she thought I was 25-years-old.

For some reason, partly because she asked but mainly because I'm stupid, I told her how old I am. The look on her face was priceless. Probably the same look I'd have gotten if I'd clawed my way out of a grave right in front of her. Except there was slightly less screaming in terror.

And now I'm completely smitten with this girl. This is a good thing, as long as I never see her again. I mean, it's pretty damn cool to be distracted from everyone and everything else for a few hours. That's what she did. She distracted me.

Oh, wait. She didn't quite distract me from thinking about one certain person, but c'mon, only HatGirl can do that.

Wednesday, April 4, 2007
posted by dave at 7:49 PM in category daily, drink

That's right, a rare Wednesday Beer Report. Mainly because I had a couple of new beers and I've been slacking off on describing new beers lately.

Anyway.

For lunch, I had a yummy Newcastle (2180) at The Pub. NotHideousGirl was a no-show today, but that was okay. I talked to this BikerGirl bartender. She's nice. And smoldering hot. And about twenty years too young for me. I found out what the Japanese characters on her tattoo mean. I'd been hoping for, I secretly lust after Dave, but alas, they mean something totally different.

At least, she says they mean something totally different.

After work I went to Rich O's to see what new beers Gravity Head had in store for me. I saw a couple of beers that looked interesting, and chose my first one via a mental coin flip.

Clipper City Heavy Seas Holy Sheet (10)

(draft) Dark clear copper. Good head. Smelled like a barleywine, and pretty much tasted like one too. That weird flavor of beets or prunes or whatever it is - I don't like it. This beer did grow on me a little as the glass got more empty, but I still can't really say that I liked it.
When I was about halfway finished with that beer, BadPickleGirl's hot cousin came in. So that was cool. She was dressed all sparkly, especially this one scarf thingy that I'm sure my cats would love to get their paws on.

HotGirlsHotCousin casually mentioned that her cousin was coming in. So I had a little anxiety attack which wasn't allowed to develop into a full-fledged panic attack because, when her "cousin" came in, it wasn't BadPickleGirl at all. Nope, it was some other cousin who I remember meeting briefly a couple of months ago.

My next, and last beer, was another new one for me.

Aecht Schlenkerla Fastenbier (20)

(draft) Cloudy dark brown. Medium head. Delicious smoke aroma. Flavor was pretty good. Much more subdued than other Schlenkerla offerings. Maybe a little bacony, but this was surprisingly good.
By the time I'd finished this beer, I found that I was starting to ramble a little. So, instead of rambling out loud to the people at Rich O's, I came home and sent off a rambling email to BadPickleGirl.

Saturday, March 31, 2007
posted by dave at 11:55 AM in category drink

There was just the cutest girl at Rich O's last night.

Now, I know that sometimes women object to being called girls. At least the ones who are bitches do. But this girl, this girl last night was so young, and so cute, that the word girl was a perfect fit. Plus, as it turned out, she wasn't a bitch, so I'm sure she won't mind.

This girl was allegedly 21-years-old. I didn't ask for ID, though. And neither did anyone else as far as I could tell. If she'd been carded, revealed to be underage, and subsequently asked to leave, I'm sure there'd have been a riot. Incited by me. And nobody wants to deal with that. Friday nights are busy enough.

Meanwhile, I have age spots that are older than this girl. Oh well.

The point I was going to make was that she reminded me of the sister of my sister's ex-husband. Joyce was equally cute, and almost as young, the last time I saw her. Which was years ago. I think she's married now. Oh well.

Rich O's was pretty packed when I arrived, but I was able to grab a seat at the island with MusicalYuppieDude and TremensGirl and some PBDs. I'd been planning to have myself a Mad Bitch, but it had blown, so I had an Urthel Samaranth Quadrium (92).

I listened to the PBDs talk about various crap. I joined in the conversation a few times, but mostly I just listened to everyone else. And looked at the cute girl sitting on the loveseat.

My next beer was going to be a Bell's Sparkling Ale, which I remember quite fondly from the one time I had it back in December 2005. But that was blown too. Shit! I should have had it first. Oh well.

So I had myself a Left Hand Snow Bound (92).

Lately, I've been quite remiss in describing new beers here. I'm still putting my reviews into my official beer list, but failing to transcribe those reviews into this journal.

I will try to get back on-track. At least this once.

Left Hand Snow Bound

(draft) Clear dark copper in color. Good head and lacing. Strong spice and malt aroma and flavor. Mouthfeel seemed a little watery at first, but it seemed to thicken as the glass emptied. Flavor is nutmeg and cinnamon and a touch of citrus. A lingering slightly hoppy finish. A yummy beer.
In all honesty, the best thing about the Snow Bound is its aroma. It smells so fucking fantastic that, had the flavor lived up to the aroma's promise, I'd probably have a new all-time favorite. But alas, the flavor was merely yummy, not transcendent.

Once the island conversation shifted from fun topics, like one person's whore grandmother, to divisive political topics, I picked up my shit and moved over to the sofa and talked to those people for a while. I finished my Snow Bound and ordered a bottle of Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier, but only drank half the bottle (1757). That damn Quadrium had been too ambitious a beginning, I guess.

One chick came in to smoke a cigarette and told me that I looked like I was 19. So she was clearly drunk. I mean, I've been accused, many times, of looking younger than my years, but people usually guess me to be in my early 30s. Not my fucking late teens.

I did get to talk to the cute girl for a while. That's how I found out she wasn't a bitch. But then she and her friends left and some other strangers filled in the empty spaces. I got bored and went to White Castle and then came home.

Sunday, March 25, 2007
posted by dave at 10:48 AM in category daily, drink, entertainment

I hate how I've been putting off my beer reports lately. I've been putting them off for so long that I never get around to writing them. And then if I do decide to write them, they end up being a gazillion lines long.

Like this one will probably be. Oh well, can't be helped. I need these things to keep track of my own comings and goings. Like I don't have a fucking clue what I did last Saturday night.

Let's see. Friday night I went to this stupid Mac's place again to listen to NotHideousGirl sing karaoke. I had a couple Newcastles (3944) and a couple Blue Moons (448). All were good, but they were about the only things good about the night. I couldn't hear NotHideousGirl sing at all. I don't know if it was her, or if it was the noise in the place, or if it was the karaoke sound system being messed-up. I could hear the other singers, the ones who sucked, just fine though. So it was probably that NotHideousGirl sang too softly.

Then the entire night started to take on a sour note because women are weird and often mean. Plus, WeirdGirl started drunk-dialing me. The calls started out angry and, over the course of about a half-dozen calls, ended up being sad. Since the situation at Mac's had been rapidly deteriorating for an hour or so anyway, I left there and went to talk to WeirdGirl. I think we're okay now. She'd been hearing rumors and making assumptions. I straightened her out. The truth didn't exactly make her happy, but it wasn't nearly as bad as what she'd been thinking.

Anyway.

Saturday evening my friend Eric called to see what I was doing. It was his birthday, and he figured he'd be out later. So that was cool. It promised to distract me from the panic attack I was having, wondering if MixedSignalGirl was going to call about her CD.

I left home at about 6:00, and went over to Louisville. I went to The Pub and had a Newcastle (3964) and some cold fries and nuclear-hot chicken tenders. The place was really packed, and I got claustrophobic, so I didn't stay. I stopped by Hard Rock and talked to CoolHairGirl for a few seconds, but that place was packed with kids, so I went to Rich O's at 8:00 or so.

I was in a pretty shitty mood until I got to Rich O's. My mood got a lot better when I saw that TeamHotness was sitting out front. They always make a big deal out of seeing me because I'm so awesome.

Rich O's proper was full of mostly strangers, but the throne was open so I sat there and ordered an Urthel Samaranth Quadrium (56). I love that beer. Tried to talk to some of the weird people around me, but I didn't really have any luck until this one hot girl came in and sat on the arm of the loveseat. Our proximity pretty much required that we talk, so we did. I'll call her BBCGirl. She's nice.

At about the time I started my third Quadrium (76) things started happening at a rapid pace. OddlyFamiliarGirl came in and I talked to her for a bit. I also, as promised, put in a good word for Roger to her. I think my exact words were, "Roger says to put in a good word for him if I see you so, Yay Roger!"

I made sure to raise my hands in the air to add emphasis.

OddlyFamiliarGirl confessed to reading my journal, so that was weird. Hi, OddlyFamiliarGirl!

Then TeamHotness came into Rich O's proper and crammed in next to me and, for half of the team, on top of me. I really like those two, and I wish they'd come in more often.

Then, surprise!

HatGirl!

Yay!

She was a little grouchy because of the crowd I guess, but grouchy HatGirl is still a zillion times better than no HatGirl. LuckyFucker was with her of course, and this time he seemed to be the one in a decent mood. Wonders never cease. We three stood in the middle of the room for a bit, but when a couple of strangers finally left the sofa we moved back to that area. Then TeamHotness came in again and reminded me that I'm awesome.

Then my friend Eric showed up, and I made everyone sing Happy Birthday to him. I don't think he cried, but I'm sure he thought it was a nice thing to do.

There were no more seats available in the living room area, so Eric and I went up and sat at the island. HatGirl joined us there, and we just talked about various fluff for the next hour or so. Once HatGirl and LuckyFucker left, WomanRepellant joined us for a while.

I ended up drinking the rest of HatGirl's Quadrium (82). I think it was too strong for her. But, Yay for free beer!

Eventually, WomanRepellant left. Everyone left actually. Eric and I stayed and talked until the bartender kicked us out. Then I went to White Castle and then came home.

When I got home, I was still excited that I'd got to see HatGirl, so that's what the previous entry was for. Just letting off some extra steam.

Tuesday, March 13, 2007
posted by dave at 12:39 AM in category drink, travel

It's recently come to my attention that I write boring stuff. Especially when it comes to my beer reports. There are, in fact, surprisingly few people who care what I drink when I go to the bar. And even fewer care about where I sit, or who I talk to while I'm there.

So I'll try to be less boring. But I can't make any promises.

Saturday night at Rich O's wasn't nearly as bad as I'd feared. The Daytonians who usually overrun the place on the first Saturday of Gravity Head were, apparently, diverted to Columbus. At least most of them were. Only a half-dozen or so made it here to New Albany and, as luck would have it, they were the polite and charming half-dozen.

So that was nice.

Let's see, my first beer was an Avery The Beast (22), and my next two were Koningshoeven Quads (376).

MusicalYuppieDude was on the rag over something or other. Probably some chick, they're all trouble. Too bad they control the world's pussy supply.

I found out that WomanRepellant's mom passed away last weekend. That really sucks. They were quite close, and he'll get my full condolences when I run into him again.

Oh yeah, this one dude ordered, I shit you not, an NABC Community Dark. This is an odd enough thing to do during Gravity Head, but get this - he ordered the thing with a fucking lemon wedge. The obvious yet unstated request - that the bartender also spooge into the guy's glass - was not granted. And for that I'm grateful. Nobody wants to see that. Except for LemonWedgeGuy I guess.

Anyway, as I hinted at a couple of entries ago, when I left Rich O's I went over to see WeirdGirl. I've changed her nickname because, well, because she's weird. I mean, two weeks ago when she found out how old I am, she basically accused me of being a child rapist. Now I guess it's okay. She says it doesn't bother her. I think maybe she gets off on it. Or maybe she figures I'll die in the throes of passion and she'll inherit my kingdom.

Sunday morning I didn't feel like going home. So I decided to go for a drive. I asked WeirdGirl if she wanted to go, but she declined. Fine with me. I needed to do some soul-searching anyway. Needed to try to find myself as I seem to have gotten lost lately.

Well I drove all the way to St. Louis and back, and I never did find myself. I'm a slippery bastard I guess.

Saturday, March 10, 2007
posted by dave at 9:59 AM in category drink

I should have written this entry when I got home last night, but instead I wrote an email to RockGirl and, by the time I finished that, I was too tired.

So now I've got to try to go by memory. There was a lot of stuff. I'm sure I'll leave something important out. As an excuse I offer up the indisputable fact that I'm old.

Anyway, last night was the start of Gravity Head 2007, which is the annual Rich O's beer festival featuring high gravity (as in high alcohol) beers. The first weekend of Gravity Head is typically the busiest time of the year at Rich O's.

I'd planned to go there at my more-or-less regular time, like maybe 8:00. But when I was on my way home from work my sister Dina called and said that she was probably going there because she was bored. So I stopped by my house just long enough to change clothes and do a little straightening up, then I went to Rich O's. I got there at 6:30 or so.

I parked on Mars, and to help kill some time during the trek from my parking spot to Rich O's, I called SassyGirl and told her that I'd arrived early.

Inside, it was of course crowded as fuck. The special people section was full of PBDs, and the loser area and the front area were all full of strangers. Inside Rich O's proper, it was packed as well, but not as bad as I'd feared. It wasn't quite standing room only.

Dina was sitting on the loveseat talking to GlassesGirl. I sat on the coffee table and ordered my first beer. Koningshoeven Quadrupel has recently become one of my all-time favorites, and this was the first time I'd seen it on tap. So of course that's what I had first (356).

Then this one chick left the kiddie table so I moved over there. TallLady was in the throne, so I talked to her and to Dina and GlassesGirl. The chick who's seat I'd taken came back and we talked for a bit as well.

Some strangers left the sofa at about the time that SassyGirl and JauntyGirl and SassyBoy arrived, and they sat there. TallLady left the throne, so I sat there. Dina's husband Kenny had also arrived by that time. My second beer was a new one for me.

Kasteelbier du Chateau Triple Blonde (10)

(draft) Hazy dark ruby-colored. Minimal head. Mild fruity aroma. A smooth and creamy mouthfeel and flavor, with a hint of an alcohol bite at the end. Damn good.
At about 8:15, I drunk-texted HatGirl to complain that everyone was at Rich O's except for her and LuckyFucker. After a shorts series of questions and answers about how crowded it was, then about an hour of waiting, they showed up.

HatGirl!

Yay!

First thing I had to do was introduce Dina to HatGirl. So now Dina can stop worrying that I'd just conjured HatGirl up in my imagination. As unlikely as it may seem, she's real.

Let's see, at one point I got a weird picturemail of some meat from NotHideousGirl. What was even more strange was that when I went to reply, I got FutureDude's cellphone instead. FutureDude checked his phone, and he'd certainly not sent me any meat pictures, or any other pictures. So that was very strange, and eventually I'll talk to NotHideousGirl and asked her (a) What's with the picture of the meat? and (b) How'd she do that?

My third beer was another new one for me.

Schmaltz HeBrew Genesis 10:10 (10)

(draft) A very nice surprise. Dark clear amber. Minimal head. No detectable aroma. The yummy malty and fruity flavor came out of nowhere. There are supposed to be citrus adjuncts but I couldn't detect them at all.
It was a very nice night. I got to see my sister and SassyGirl and HatGirl all in the same night. I got to drink some good beers. It was such a nice night, in fact, that I only caught myself missing LaptopGirl and MixedSignalGirl a few hundred times each.

One time I went outside to make a phone call, but HatGirl followed me and I ended up talking to her for a while instead. Got some shit off my chest, but mainly I urged her to not read too much into what I'd written Thursday night. Pointed out that I'd been drinking when I wrote it.

Then Dina and Kenny left, and HatGirl and LuckyFucker left. SassyGirl told me that they were leaving town Saturday (today) instead of Sunday, so there was much hugging and wailing when they left.

My fourth beer was yet another new one for me.

Regenboog t-Smisje BBBourgondier (10)

(draft) Clear dark copper-colored. Decent head and lacing. A dry fruit aroma and flavor. The alcohol is hidden very well. Pretty damn good.
Then FirstLady and ElPresidente came and sat on the sofa, and I talked to them for a while. Those nicknames are no longer accurate, but I'm not changing them. FirstLady told me that reading my blog makes her want to kill herself, so that was interesting. I told her what was supposed to happen was that people would read my shit and then feel better about their own lives.

At about midnight or so I gave Roger a ride home, stopping at White Castle on the way, then I came home myself.

It was a good night.

Thursday, March 8, 2007
posted by dave at 10:42 PM in category drink, ramblings

This entry brought to you by Brother Thelonious (75) from the North Coast Brewery.

I have a feeling, a near certainty actually, that this entry isn't going to be published. It's not going to be good enough. It's not going to be worthy of the thoughts and feelings driving its creation. So, I figure, maybe I'll just use this as a practice entry. I'll save it in my drafts folder and then some night I'll be drunk or lonely and I'll rewrite it as something worthy of being published.

Or maybe not.

So SassyGirl is back in town for a visit. I wish I could describe here how fucking wonderful it was to see her Tuesday evening, and Wednesday evening. How much I look forward to seeing her tomorrow night at Rich O's. I wish there were some words that I could use to adequately describe how happy I've been to see her. Words that I could use without fear of people reading the wrong feelings into my words. I doubt that such words exist, and if they do, they continue to elude me.

It is just a visit though. I can't let myself get too satisfied with my life. Such as it is. In a few days or maybe a week, everything will go back to the way it's been for months. Me vs. the world.

You know, I used to never have any friends. All I ever had was acquaintances. They came into my life, and they left my life, and I noticed that they'd gone, but I didn't care. Not really.

All of that changed with LaptopGirl. Sure, I may not have been much to her, but she was my friend. And she came into my life, and she left my life, and I definitely noticed. I may have written about it from time to time, how much I fucking noticed. I don't see her anymore. I've seen a girl who looks like her, and sounds like her, a couple of times. But it's not her. It's not my friend. I don't even think that person ever really existed, except in my head. And my heart.

Anyway.

I met SassyGirl about a month after I met LaptopGirl. In this blog, I used to call her RealTrainGirl. That seems like a million years ago. SassyGirl is so much more fitting. Anyway, that time, the relationship was pegged from the start to remain a platonic one. That time, I never had any of those pesky romantic feelings get in the way.

And you know what?

It was wonderful.

Then SassyGirl left, and once again, I fucking noticed. I was sad. But it was okay. She'd said goodbye. We said goodbye to each other. And besides, it was never going to be forever. We'd see each other again.

Like six months later. Like Tuesday evening.

So that was cool. And it will continue to be cool, like I said, for a few more days or maybe a week. Then we'll say our goodbyes again. And it will be okay, because we'll know that it won't be forever.

Now, this next part is going to be a little tough for me to write. Tough because it's a tough subject for me, and tough because I can just about guarantee that it's going to be misinterpreted.

But I've got to write this. If I don't, if I don't then I'm going to explode some night.

The thing is, everybody leaves.

I think that at least a part of me has known this for a long time. Nothing lives up to the expectations originally hinted at or hoped for. Nothing lasts. Nothing.

Ahem.

HatGirl is leaving.

In either fifteen months or in ten months, she is leaving. The deadline varies but its meaning to me and my life - such as it is - is as steady as a rock.

When HatGirl leaves, it's going to destroy me. It's going to destroy me and every bit of the progress I've made since LaptopGirl left. And I think that there's not a thing I can do about it. I could start to pull away right now, but that would not lessen the blow. I could strive to make every day that I have left count, but that would only delay the inevitable.

It's my fault, of course. It's pretty much always my fault.

It's not love, I once wrote, but it's something.

Something that I should have seen coming. Something that I should have nipped in the bud, as they say.

And now, now I find myself unable and/or unwilling to write anything more about this. What else could I say?

HatGirl is leaving. Those three words. Those three fucking words.

They sear my soul.

Sunday, March 4, 2007
posted by dave at 11:22 PM in category drink, ramblings

I have a tiny confession to make now. One that will come as zero surprise to anyone who's been reading my drivel for any length of time.

I don't know what I'm fucking talking about. Or writing about. What the fuck ever.

Luckily, for me, and for you at home, I sometimes have help. Like tonight. Tonight I've been fortunate and privileged enough to have had The Reverend (370), from the Avery Brewing Company, join me for an evening of contemplation and soul searching.

I've had a question on my mind for a couple of years now. Closer to three years actually, but it doesn't matter exactly how long it's been. This question is eternal, and it's been asked by nearly everyone since the beginning of the beginning of the beginning of consciousness.

It's been asked for a long fucking time, in other words.

It's a two-part question actually. The first part is Is it better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all?

The answer to that question is, of course, fucking yes and yes and yes and fucking yes.

I've written about this before, and it's actually one of the few subjects in which I don't feel like I'm just pulling answers out of my ass.

It's approximately seven hundred gazillion asstillion times better to have loved than to never have loved. Go ahead. Prove me wrong. I dare you to try.

And the really neat thing is, to love and then lose doesn't change a fucking thing. We live to love.

I'll say it again. We live to love.

Losing is, while not quite irrelevant, losing is nothing nothing nothing nothing fucking nothing compared to the loving.

So that's the first part of the two-part question.

The second part of the question is Why is it better?

And, tonight at least, I know the answer. At least as much as someone like me can know the answer.

The answer is actually quite simple.

Because sometimes, like maybe once in a lifetime if you're lucky, you don't lose.

Because sometimes, you get to love and you get to win.

To love is to open yourself to that possibility. To surrender yourself to that possibility of happiness. To allow yourself to have hopes, and dreams, and to imagine just how incredibly wonderful life could be.

If only.

This time.

I could be loved back.

Then I would win.

That hope, that trumps everything else. All of the pain. All of the heartache. All of the disappointment and the depression and the suicidal thoughts.

Hope is what separates us from the animals. Hope is what makes us human. So we keep looking. Even after failure after dismal failure, we keep looking for hope.

And, when we find ourselves in love, we also find the hope that's been buried so deeply within us that we almost forgot it existed. Love unearths it, and breathes new live into it, and resurrects it.

It takes over.

Nothing else matters.

Nothing else exists.

We become hope.

And I can't think of a loftier goal.

Someday, I hope to love and win.

posted by dave at 7:57 AM in category drink

Not a bad night, I suppose. A little irritating at times, but I've already gotten over it.

First thing I did was get something to eat at Wendy's. They have these fancy bread sandwiches, panini or something like that, that are delicious. Especially the steak and mushroom version, which is what I had.

Then I went to The Pub and had a couple Newcastles (3524) and talked to a couple of chicks from Canada, eh.

Oh yeah. I found out something very interesting. But of course I can't write about it. I'll just say that I came within three years of realizing a pretty common male sexual fantasy.

When I left The Pub I was planning to head over to Rich O's and have a Rogue Smoke, but I peeked into the Hard Rock, like I usually do, when I walked by. I was, as usual, looking to see if CoolHairGirl was working. And this time she was!

So instead of going to Rich O's I went in and had a Diet Coke and talked to CoolHairGirl for a while. It turned out that she'd still never made it to The Pub for a Newcastle, so when she got off work I invited her to join me for one.

Then, as I wrote in the previous entry, her boyfriend materialized and he joined us as well. I swear, I didn't even know CoolHairGirl had a boyfriend. Now I feel slightly guilty about some of the thoughts that have been running through my head about CoolHairGirl.

Anyway, I had a Newcastle (3544) and then a couple of Diet Cokes while I talked with CoolHairGirl and PajamaDude.

Plus there was this one chick who I thought might be a friend of my sister. So I went over and asked her. It turned out that I had her name right, and that she did know a girl with the same name as my sister, but it still wasn't the girl I'd thought she was. Still pretty weird.

At 1:00 or so I came home.

Saturday, March 3, 2007
posted by dave at 9:08 AM in category drink

Just a couple of surprises, both of the pleasant variety. So I was worried for nothing.

I got to Rich O's after 9:00. I got a parking spot in the actual Rich O's parking lot, so like a dumbass I thought that maybe it wouldn't be too crowded.

Wrong.

It was packed as fuck. With mostly strangers but quite a few weirdoes as well. Luckily I didn't see any fuckheads or idiots. I did see my cousin Jamie sitting in the loser section when I first walked in. I count him as a stranger.

Inside Rich O's proper, I gave Bubbles some shit for the crowd. It was supposed to be her night to keep the weirdoes away. She said that she didn't get the memo.

Anyway, the first pleasant surprise of the night was that Rogue Smoke was on tap. So I had one of those (530). I stood at the end of the bar for a while, then I moved some dude's jacket so I could sit at the kiddie table, then when the jacket dude left the throne I moved there.

Then it got boring for a while. But then a familiar and lovely shape darkened the doorway. I looked up, and it was HatGirl!

Yay!

So the next couple of hours were fun. Even though one drunk dude stole my seat when I went outside to take a phone call from work, and when I came back in I had to sit on the sofa. It was very nice to see HatGirl, and LuckyFucker seemed to be in a much better mood.

So all was good.

When I was about halfway through my second Rogue Smoke (550) a bit of reality started to sink in. Even though I've been doing my best to ignore and deny it. So I was glad that I could at least tell HatGirl a couple of things that had been on my mind. Then, of course, I apologized to her for dumping my problems onto her shoulders. She can take it though. And now maybe I can be a little less cryptic when I write about how bothered I am by all this.

Anyway.

I'd been kinda sorta halfway expecting to maybe even see SassyGirl last night. I talked to her Sunday, and she and JauntyGirl are slowly but surely making their way back towards Southern Indiana. But they didn't show last night. Oh well.

Once HatGirl and LuckyFucker left I had a Diet Coke and talked to FutureDude for a bit. Then I came home.

Wednesday, February 28, 2007
posted by dave at 10:54 PM in category drink, entertainment

Before I get into my reviews of the girls this week, I should point out three things.

First, I will typically watch the performance, then write my thoughts. Then I'll listen to what the judges had to say. Randy I can always ignore because he's a racist asshole. Paula I can safely ignore because she's too damn nice, and she may be drunk. Simon, I usually end up agreeing with. Sometimes, if Simon and I really disagree, I'll write something about that fact. But usually not.

Secondly, I'm in a bad mood.

Thirdly, joining me for tonight's viewing was Brother Thelonious from the North Coast Brewery (50).

Gina: Very good. That one loud and out of tune background singer should be fucking shot though. I like Gina. (75 points)

Alaina: A good job, but this week her voice seemed very generic. There are lots of people on the radio who sound worse than her, but there are lots more who sound better than her. I gave her a million bonus points for being so hot. I thought the judges were way too harsh on her, and I'd like to hug her and pet her to make her feel better. (1,000,070 points)

LaKisha: She had her hair redone. It looks good. She looks her age now. She did an amazing performance of a great song. Give her the fucking title right now. (100 points)

Melinda: Stupid song, but an incredible performance. She finished particularly strong. No flaws. (100 points)

Antonella: She looks hot in a groovy dress. A good song, but her performance was wavering at times and flat at others. I adore Antonella, but not her singing. Now I'm in a bad mood. She seems so nice. I give her a half-million bonus points for not being stuck-up. (500,065 points)

Jordin: Disneyesque performance of a stupid song. Much better than last week though. (80 points)

Stephanie: Maybe it's all the fault of the horribly stupid song choice, but I thought this was a train wreck. (5 points)

Leslie: Adorable. Boring song. I took off 100 points for that stupid skat stuff. (negative 40 points)

Haley: Disconcertingly pretty. I really like her voice, and I thought she did a good job. (80 points)

Sabrina: She's managed to gain some depth to her voice in the past week. Wow. (85 points)

Saturday, February 24, 2007
posted by dave at 9:55 AM in category daily, drink

I got ready to leave at 6:00 last night. I didn't know where I might be going, but I wanted to be ready. For when she called. Just in case she'd changed her mind.

Well, at about 9:30 I got tired of doing nothing but glare at my phone, so I went to Rich O's.

It wasn't too packed there. A bunch of regulars were sitting in the living room area. Strangers were everywhere else. I sat at the kiddie table and had a Dark Horse Tres Blueberry Stout (100). This was supposed to have been a Saturnalia beer, but it had arrived quite late. It arrived quite late last year too.

Oh yeah, SpoonsGirl and SirTalksALot were sitting in the red room. I talked to them briefly when I first arrived.

Anyway.

Once a spot opened up on the sofa I moved over there.

It was boring, and when my phone finally vibrated at me I welcomed the diversion.

I went outside to talk to MixedSignalGirl. It was not a fun conversation, but it needed to happen. After all, moving on is what I've been trying to do for months. It's only reasonable for her to want to do the same thing. So, no more lunch dates. No more semi-planned meetings. Only happy accidents will be allowed from now on.

Speaking of moving on, I left Rich O's at 10:30 or so and went over to Hard Rock. I'd met a girl there yesterday, and she'd said that she might be there with her friends later. Well she wasn't there, but that's okay. I'm taking her to the 1950s tonight. At least that's the plan. I'm kinda being a pessimist.

I overslept this morning. I was supposed to be in Louisville at 10:00 to watch EllaGirl and 1000 other weirdoes jump into the Ohio River for some Special Olympics thing. But it's 9:54 as I type this sentence, so I don't think I'm going to make it. I'll go see EllaGirl at work in a couple of hours and see if she's still alive and, if so, what shade of blue she is.

Thursday, February 22, 2007
posted by dave at 7:34 PM in category daily, drink, pictures

I had fun today.

First, I overslept. So that was cool.

Then at lunch - Newcastle (3334) - I ran into NotHideousGirl. First time I've seen her since HatGirl's birthday party in December. So that was way cool.

Then we went to Borders so she could buy some CDs. This was about as useful as taking a blind man to the paint store, but I went anyway.

Oh yeah, I got a new Blackberry yesterday, and guess what.

It's got a camera!

Yay!

First time I've had a camera phone in months.

NotHideousGirl was kind enough to let me test the camera on her, and post the results here.

still not hideous

So that was fun. It was a little strange to leave a bookstore without any books though.

Then, after work, I went to the local hardware store to buy a bunch of PVC shit for my sink. I figured that I'd go ahead and give it a try, and then if I screwed it up Kenny could always come and laugh at me as he corrected my mistakes.

Well, I managed to twist the PVC stuff around enough so that now I have actual drains running from my sink. I also managed to install and wire up the new garbage disposal without killing myself.

Anyway, here's the old ugly sink.

hideous

And here's the new sink. Ta da!

Ohhhh! Ahhhh!

Just so none of you people start to think I'm infallible, here's what's under the new sink.

leaking

Those bowls are because the new drain lines leak. Not very much, but enough to be annoying. So I called Kenny and apparently I need some Plumber's Putty to put between the sink and the traps. Either Kenny or I will get some of that, we'll tear everything apart and reinstall using the putty where appropriate, and then this project will be done!

Except that I think I need Kenny to use one of those snake thingies on the drain line that goes into the wall. Everything still drains pretty slowly.

And the garbage disposal works too! Nugget is scared of it.

Wednesday, February 21, 2007
posted by dave at 11:10 PM in category drink, entertainment

I always like the girls nights, at least until all the hot girls have been eliminated. This year there's an abundance of hot girls, so I was really looking forward to tonight.

Joining me on tonight's viewing journey was a yummy bottle of Gulden Draak (271).

Stephanie: Born 60 years too late. A fantastic performance which I fear will be marginalized simply because it came first. (85 points)

Amy: Cute as fuck. She sang a little flat, and she mumbled a lot of words. (65 points)

Leslie: Also quite cute. Stupid song. She went flatline several times. (65 points)

Sabrina: Damn, another cute girl. No wonder I like girls night so much. Anyway, a technically perfect performance, but her voice has no depth. I don't know if she'll be able to overcome that handicap. (75 points)

Antonella: Smoldering hot. Singing was all over the map. Mostly all wet. I feel bad for her because she seems very nice and sweet. (60 points)

Jordin: Drunken karaoke at first, but the second half of the performance was much much better. I took off 10 points because she spells her name wrong. (65 points)

Nicole: A lovely girl. She jumped around between nasally and artificially low and screaming. I couldn't understand a word she sang. (50 points)

Haley: Adorable. I love her rich voice. Her performance was severely limited by her stupid song choice. I hope she gets a chance to pick a better song. (75 points)

Melinda: One of my favorites form the earlier shows. Still one of my favorites. Second-best of the night, I thought. (90 points)

Alaina: Fuckalicious. Fantastic voice, which she chose not to showcase by picking a Stevie Nicks song. I hope she stays, because I adore her. I gave her 10 bonus points because she's carrying my child. (75 points)

Gina: Cute as fuck. My absolute favorite from the earlier shows, and my absolute favorite after tonight. Fantastic song choice, fantastic performance. (95 points)

LaKisha: She's weird. She looks like she's 50-years-old until she sings, then she drops 30 years. She sang a huge song, and it wasn't even close to being big enough for her voice. This girl can fucking sing. (85 points)

Tuesday, February 20, 2007
posted by dave at 10:59 PM in category drink, entertainment

Okay, I'll admit it. I'm an American Idol watcher. I've been hooked, more or less, since the first season. When I realized that I loved Kelly Clarkson.

For the last couple of years I haven't been as big of a fan. I usually stop watching the guys after a couple of weeks. I'll keep watching the girls, but eventually my favorites get eliminated and I stop watching altogether. Until the next season.

Like this season. I'll watch it for a while, and I'll make entries like this one for a while. but it will all stop eventually.

So don't get hooked on my reviews. Please. That's too much pressure for me.

Anyway, tonight the guys sang. This is always boring to me, probably because I don't have a vagina. But I watched, and I wrote down my impressions. I had a yummy Koningshoeven Quad (346) while I watched.

Rudy: Sang a Six Flags version of a Six Flags song. I know this guy can sing, but he chose to coast through tonight. He's a lot better than this. (80 points)

Brandon: I fell asleep he was so boring. I'm giving him 50 points because it's my birthday.

Sundance: Stupid name, but probably not his fault. Great song. He seemed a little unsure about what to do with his arms. He sang great though. (85 points)

Paul: His tone was way too low for this arrangement. The volume of his voice was also too low. (70 points)

Chris R: Drunken karaoke. Awful. (40 points)

Nick: I really like this guy's voice. I thought he did a great job. (87 points)

Blake: Great song. Started out great. Finished great. This guy really surprised me. A lot. (90 points)

Sanjaya: I fell asleep, and I only woke up when he mangled a note. Horrible. (20 points)

Chris S: I expected to really like this guy, and I was a little disappointed. Put him in front of a club band, and he'll shine. As a solo artist, not so much. (75 points)

Jared: Nice job. Forgettable, but nice. (80 points)

A.J.: There seems to be a rule that anyone named A.J. or AJ that goes on this show must suck. I shot pool until this guy was done. He gets 50 points only because it's my birthday.

Phil: My favorite guy from the earlier shows. He started out like his nuts were in a vise. Then he spent the next part overcompensating. He finished quite strong though. (75 points)

posted by dave at 8:19 AM in category daily, drink

I was going to write a Monday beer report, but there's not much to write about, so I'll just cram that stuff at the beginning of this entry.

I had a half a Smithwick's (1454). I'd been planning to have a full pint but the keg blew when it was only halfway poured.

There were some people there. I didn't talk much. Mostly I just listened to everyone else.

Then I had two bottles of Delirium Tremens (858). Then I came home.

Ta da!

---

Today I've got a bunch of shit to do. So I'm taking a day of vacation.

I've got to go to my bank and try to find out why my card was denied twice over the weekend.

If the bank thing gets straightened out, I want to try the whole buy a kitchen sink thing again. Just maybe not at Lowe's. Depends on what the bank says.

I desperately need to get a haircut.

My driver's license expires at midnight, so I need to get a new one. First I have to find out where the BMV moved to. They're not over by Kelsey's anymore.

It seems like there's something that I'm forgetting.

Monday, February 19, 2007
posted by dave at 5:41 PM in category daily, drink

So I chickened out. There was just no way that I could justify the risk versus the reward.

If HatGirl forgot my birthday I'd probably have been devastated and cried for a month. If she didn't forget my birthday, well then I'd have just been relieved.

So the risk of devastation was not worth the reward of relief.

I decided to fuck the risk. I called HatGirl and reminded her ass that tomorrow is my birthday before she'd have a chance to forget.

Then there was some phone juggling and I ended up having lunch with MixedSignalGirl. She's already having lunch with me Friday, so today was a big bonus for me.

Everything was nice and pleasant. Not a whole lot of tension between us anymore. I'd had a mild panic attack about ten minutes before she showed up, but I was fine after that.

Then EllaGirl decided to mess with us. She came over and, right in front of MixedSignalGirl, told me that she thought I'd left my hat in her apartment the other night.

Not cool.

This was, of course, utter bullshit. I only wear hats when I'm in disguise. So I sort of wondered out loud how many other guys it could belong to. Then EllaGirl stomped away.

EllaGirl deserved that for trying to stir up shit.

But MixedSignalGirl is a class act all the way. She didn't even bat an eye. She asked me if that was the famous EllaGirl, I said it was indeed, and that was it.

Oh yeah, during lunch I had a Newcastle (3304).

After MixedSignalGirl went back to work, I stayed and had a half-glass of Newcastle (3314) and talked to EllaGirl for a bit to see what her problem was. She acted like it was perfectly normal to go up and intrude like that. She said she was just being nosey, not possessive. I'm just glad that I wasn't on a first date with someone.

All this female interaction got me to missing BadPickleGirl, so I sent her an email of some cute animals. I'm not really expecting a response, but it would be a nice birthday present.

Saturday, February 17, 2007
posted by dave at 11:19 PM in category drink, weather

Tonight, it snowed. Not very much, but enough to scare the shit out of everyone except the most die-hard people. So Rich O's was pretty dead, and they started kicking people out very early.

It was a weird night. Ten minutes of interest, followed by two hours of boredom, then another ten minutes of interest, and another hour of boredom.

The interesting parts were provided by some drunk guy. I don't think I ever saw him before, but I guess he knew who I was. And apparently he didn't like the cut of my jib or something. He kept threatening to "knock my block off" - which was funny for the nostalgia brought on by that old-fashioned term at least as much as it was for the mental image of him actually trying. The dude could barely stand up.

Look, I'm sure he's a helluva nice guy. I'm sure he was just in a mood tonight. Live and let live, right?

My first beer was a bottle of Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier (1690). It was yummy as always.

So I sat on the throne. For a while I talked to a guy who proclaimed himself to be The Asshole. Not just any asshole, mind you, but The Asshole. I told him that it was an honor to meet him.

Then this one PBD sat and talked with me for a while. He told me something that really disturbed me. I guess that there are people at Rich O's who think that the whole DaveFest thing was my idea. That I thought up the concept of the customer appreciation festivals, and that I nominated myself to be the first honoree.

Nothing could be farther from the truth. Ask Roger. It was his idea, and picking me for the thing was his idea too. It was a huge honor for me, and it bugs me that some people think that it was my idea all along.

I may have an ego on me, but not that much of an ego.

Anyway, after a while WomanRepellant came in and sat on the sofa. Almost immediately, that same drunk guy tried to pick a fight with WomanRepellant. I'd venture to say that he came a lot closer to succeeding than he had with me. It took two or three people to restrain the guy and drag him away.

Like I said, I'm sure he's a nice guy. He's just a really mean drunk I guess.

About five minutes later DrunkGuy came back in, again, and tried, again, to pick a fight with WomanRepellant. He was dragged away, again.

It was kind of weird. I'd spent the first part of the night thinking that I must be really special to have DrunkGuy hate me so much. But as it turned out I wasn't special at all. Oh well.

The rest of the night was calm and relaxing. I had another Weihenstephaner (1707) and then I came home at 10:00 when they started kicking people out.

posted by dave at 6:26 AM in category comics, drink

I don't know why I ended up going to Rich O's last night. I mean, I've skipped the last two Fridays at least, and it hasn't killed me. It's been nice actually. Because I didn't have to worry about being too disappointed if certain people didn't show up.

I don't know why I ended up going last night, but I did. I remember dreading it, both during the drive, and when I was looking for a parking spot. I had to park on Mars, so that was a bad sign.

The place was crowded as fuck. It took me at least five minutes to walk the ten feet between the front door and the entrance to Rich O's proper. Then, when I finally got there, I was blocked by a solid wall of people. It was standing room only in there. Strangers all over the fucking place.

But wait!

My sister's husband Kenny was part of the solid wall of people! My sister Dina was there too! Yay!

They were, as it turned out, celebrating this one blonde chick's birthday.

Anyway, I'm rambling.

After a year or so, I made it through the throng to the bar and I ordered a Brownings Bourbon Imperial Stout (82). I also talked to GlassesGirl. I hadn't seen her in months, so that was nice. Dina and I stood around for a while until some dude left the kiddie table, then we sat there and talked. I decoded a couple of my recent blog entries for her, because I guess I confuse her sometimes.

After a while the strangers left the living room area, so Kenny and the rest of Dina's group took over that area. I eventually moved to the throne.

I ordered another Brownings (98) but I didn't quite finish it.

Oh yeah, there was a smoldering hot girl ordering a growler of Arrogant Bastard, and I went up and talked to her for a while.

and whatever else she wants

She ended up taking a raincheck. Oh well.

After Dina and crew left I had a Diet Coke, then I went to White Castle and then came home.

I woke up at 4:00 this morning, very dehydrated.

Tuesday, February 13, 2007
posted by dave at 12:30 AM in category drink

I've completely dropped the ball on my weekend beer report. It's Tuesday already, and I haven't even mentioned it.

Not that there's much to mention.

Friday, I stayed home. I was still sick. I had myself a couple of bottles of The Reverend (332) and the alcohol therein managed to do what Sudafed had failed to do - it dried my sinuses up to the point where I no longer feared that I'd drown in my own snot.

So by Saturday morning I was feeling much better. I actually felt like I was going to live. More than that, I felt like I wanted to live. Wonders never cease, huh?

Saturday afternoon, I preheated some empty pizza boxes and filled my house with smoke. So that was fun. I managed to keep the smoke alarm from going off by opening my windows and turning on my ventilation fan. Yes, it was fucking cold.

I think that would be a pretty shitty way to die. Burning my house down because I was too lazy to check my oven for trash before turning it on. Probably get a Darwin Award though.

Saturday night, I went to Rich O's. I sat in the throne with my yummy Wostyntje (229) and talked with MusicalYuppieDude and TremensGirl for a while. I was kinda feeling like a shithead. See, Saturday was the night of BadPickleGirl's birthday party, and I wasn't going. I'd politely declined her invitation.

But I guess the consensus is that I was not being a shithead. I detailed the situation, and the history, to MusicalYuppieDude and TremensGirl, and they both said that I shouldn't have gone to the party. In fact, they both said that I'd been way too nice about the whole thing. So that's good.

My next two beers were bottles of Delirium Tremens (836).

After MYD and TG left, I talked for a while with WomanRepellant, some chick who doesn't have a nickname, and a couple of strangers who'd sat on the sofa. I asked the chick for her opinion on the whole am I being a shithead thing, and she also said that I was being too damn nice.

Since I seemed to be in the mood for asking peoples' opinions, I borrowed one of the stranger's glasses for a bit, and held an informal frame-off. The stranger's frames are a lot like my own frames, just more rectangular than oval. The consensus was that I looked better with the more squarish frames. See, that's what I thought, back when I bought these glasses last year. But SassyGirl had told me that I should buy the ovalish ones. Next time, I'm going rectangular.

At 10:30 or so, I drunk-texted HatGirl. I haven't seen her in a million years. I tried to get her to come to Rich O's, but she declined.

So that sucked, and my mood plummeted.

I went over to Louisville and just basically dicked around for a while. Had a couple Diet Cokes. Talked to EllaGirl for a bit. Talked to the bartenders at The Pub for a bit. Then I bought some White Castles and came home at 1:30 or so.

Let's see, on Sunday I had to work all morning, then I went and drove all over Southern Indiana and Northern Kentucky, then I came back home.

Sunday, February 4, 2007
posted by dave at 11:16 AM in category daily, drink

First, I went down to Rich O's at a little after 3:00. They're having an art show in the special people section, and I wanted to buy one of NotHideousGirl's paintings if there were any still available. The one that I wanted was still for sale, so I snapped it up.

I had myself a Wostyntje (209) and looked at the rest of the art. It was nice to see that MisunderstoodGirl had also sold a painting.

I'd planned on heading straight over to Louisville after I left Rich O's, but like an idiot I'd left my Blackberry at home. This always cause for concern, but yesterday it was especially so because I'm on-call this weekend. So I went back home and dicked around for an hour or so, then I went over to Louisville. With my Blackberry this time.

After a quick meal, I went to The Pub. I had a couple Newcastles (3224) and talked to a couple of the bartenders. The place was pretty dead, but it was still fairly early. next I walked over to The Hard Rock. It was packed as fuck with birthday parties for screaming teenagers. That, plus the fact that CoolHairGirl wasn't working, kept me from staying there.

So I went down to The Red Star, and there were only like three customers. I told the cute bartender that it looked like they'd had a fire drill or something. I didn't stay there.

I walked through the alley to this Third Street Dive place that I'd gone to with EllaGirl last weekend. That place was dead too, but the HotLibrarian bartender assured me that it would pick up by 10:00. I had a glass of BBC Jefferson's Reserve Bourbon Barrel Stout (390) and looked at some weirdoes.

After a while, EllaGirl came in. She jokingly gave me some shit about ditching her last weekend. I explained my reasons. All was forgiven, and we moved over and sat at a little kiddie table. I had another Stout (406) and we talked and flirted and did various other things until a really loud band started playing. Then EllaGirl suddenly said that she was going to go clean her apartment, and to give her my number so I could come over after it was cleaned. I assured her that I didn't care how messy her place was, but she insisted.

So I gave her my number and she left.

I was pretty sure that she was going to flake on me, so I went back to The Pub. It was much more crowded by then. A bunch of hot girls and a bunch of yuppies trying to pick them up. I had a couple Diet Cokes, and a small sample of something new for me:

Belhaven Twisted Thistle IPA (4)

(draft) I'd never have guessed that this was an IPA. The aroma was mostly of malt and dirt, but good. Flavor was a little peaty and a little smoky. No bitterness. I liked it a lot more than I expected to.
Right at the time I finished my second Diet Coke, EllaGirl called. I went over. Her apartment was clean. We spent the night distracting each other from our lives.

And I don't feel guilty at all. Yet.

Friday, February 2, 2007
posted by dave at 11:54 PM in category drink, ramblings

So I chickened out tonight. I stayed home, drank a bottle of Rare Vos (40), watched Apocalypse Now.

Just basically hid from the world, the idiots, the whores. And the disappointment and the pain and the anger.

Sometimes those things are all that I see. Or all I that I let myself see.

It's not you, world. It's me.

Sunday, January 28, 2007
posted by dave at 10:32 PM in category daily, drink, weather

I don't remember much about Friday night. I'd been deprived of a nap by some unsettling news. I remember that Rich O's was crowded as fuck, and that I had some Wostyntje (149), and that I left early.

---

On Saturday, well at least she called. To tell me that she wouldn't be able to accompany me. Even though it was a negative RSVP, it was still was very nice and considerate of her, and it kept me from thinking that she might be a bitch or something. So that's good. I don't like thinking bad thoughts about people.

---

Plan B was DooRagGirl, but she was, understandably, hesitant to attend a party where she wouldn't know anyone but me. I am, apparently, not good enough on my own. Oh well. Story of my life, right there.

---

I had no real plan C, so I decided that I wouldn't be attending the party at all. Instead I was going to go to Louisville and hang out there for a while. Maybe talk to CoolHairGirl and see if she'd liked the Newcastle she'd finally tried.

But nooooooooooooooo!

I got a text message from HatGirl, leting me know that they were going to Rich O's.

So I went to Rich O's, where I sat with HatGirl (yay!) and LuckyFucker. He was being a dick for some reason. I don't know why. I had myself a couple glasses of Wostyntje (169) and talked to HatGirl about what lousy drivers we used to be.

After the happy couple left, I talked with DooRagGirl for an hour or so. I had another Wostyntje (179). I really like that beer. Plus, it's nice and light. I seem to have some kind of mental block about dark and heavy beers. Ever since my illness. That, and ground beef. Ugh.

Anyway.

Once DooRagGirl left, I became concerned that some weird people were going to try to talk to me, so I left too.

(Note: I have been working on being more sociable. It just doesn't seem to work very well at Rich O's.)

----

So I went over to Louisville. CoolHairGirl wasn't working, so I didn't get to see her. I went over to the pub and got to talking with EllaGirl. She actually remembered my name this time, so that was cool. After a while, we all went to this little dive bar so everybody could unwind. It was okay I suppose, but I'd cut myself off hours ago, so I could only sit and watch while EllaGirl and her friends got shitfaced while I drank Diet Cokes.

At 3:30 or so, I came home alone. By choice.

---

On Sunday, I didn't do much except play pool and watch a couple of movies. I watched Sleepy Hollow. HatGirl had told me before that she looks like Christina Ricci, but she's wrong. Christina Ricci fucking wishes that, on her best day, she looked a gazillionth as pretty as HatGirl looks on her worst day.

---

Sunday night I had one of the beers that I purchased the other day.

Unibroue Trois Pistoles (25)

(bottle) Black, revealing amber only when strongly backlit. Huge creamy head. Aroma of oak and malty apples and cherries. Flavor is like the aroma, only better. There's something else there, maybe grapes of all things. Pretty damn yummy.
---

Oh yeah, it's freaking cold here. It's supposed to get down to single digits tonight, with a wind chill of minus 8,000,000 or some crap like that. Also, it snowed all morning, but there's not even a light dusting. What a waste of cold weather. I hate Winter.

Sunday, January 21, 2007
posted by dave at 11:43 PM in category drink, ramblings

This entry brought to you by:

Unibroue Don De Dieu

(bottle) Hazy light amber in color. Huge head. Fantastic aroma of apple peels and bananas and cherries. A strong Belgian wheat flavor. More sharp and tangy than most. Think Blue Moon on steroids. Yummy.
Anyway.

Who was that guy? Seriously, who the fuck was he, and what was his problem?

Don't even try to tell me that guy was me. You'll never convince me. He might have looked like me, and sounded like me, and lived in my house, but he most definitely wasn't me. I would never allow myself to get that messed-up over losing something I never wanted in the first place. No way. That's just crazy.

That guy was fucked-up. I am normal.

For example:

I miss LaptopGirl. As a friend and nothing else. I'm allowed to miss my friend, so fuck off if you don't like it.

I miss MixedSignalGirl. As much more than a friend. But I'm so happy for her, that she's finally found the happiness that was misplaced when she met me. And there's a contentedness about her now. I don't think she ever had that before. I will not take any credit for that transformation, but I'm sure as hell glad that I got to see it.

I miss HatGirl. Because, more than anyone else, she reminds me of the good that is possible in the world. Of how wonderful people can be as long as they just stop trying, and just be themselves.

I miss BadPickleGirl. And I wonder what happened. I'd thought we were getting along just fine. I'd thought there was potential there. Damn she's beautiful.

I miss KittenDamsel. I hope that she's doing okay, and I hope that she finds what she's looking for.

And my dear friend SassyGirl. The only truly platonic girlfriend I've ever had, and maybe the best of them all.

I miss RockGirl. Though I've never met her. Though we email each other every day. She is my strength, and I weaken when too many hours pass without her.

There are so many others. MysteryGirl. PictureGirl. EnglishGirl. PonyTailGirl. EllaGirl. MaineGirl. The girl with the beautiful brown eyes. The girl who was married to my best friend.

I miss them all.

But I'm okay. I'm not obsessed.

I'm normal.

Sane.

Finally.

posted by dave at 10:23 AM in category drink

Wow, two decent nights in a row at Rich O's. I'd never have believed it. Especially not on a weekend when I knew there'd be no HatGirl sightings.

I got there at 8:30 or so, and parked on Mars. The local PBDs and some Cincy PBDs were having a big meeting in the special people area. So that place was packed, but Rich O's proper wasn't too bad. Some weirdoes were in the living room area, and some strangers were at the island. I sat at the end of the bar and had a Wostyntje (129).

Oh yeah, yesterday I stopped at this liquor store and bought about $100 worth of Belgian ales - the big 25-ounce bottles. Mostly stuff I've never had before, but a couple of known favorites. I tried to call BadPickleGirl to let her know about these fantastic new tasting opportunities, but I got no answer. I pretty much managed to convince myself that she wasn't ignoring my call. Pretty much.

Some drunk dude sat next to me at one point, and he kept trying to talk to me, but then Roger distracted him with talk of jazz, so I picked up my shit and moved to the island since the strangers had left.

After a while, UPSDude came and joined me. I spent the next couple of hours talking with him. I also made a couple of trips into the special people area to talk to some of the PBDs. On one such trip, there were a bunch of Cincy PBD girls standing around in a group. I wanted to meet them, so I "accidentally" bumped into one. That got me shanghaied into about five minutes worth of dance lessons. It was that riverdance crap. I kept trying to protest, pointing out that I'm both straight and white. The former preventing me from being able to master that particular dance style, and the latter preventing any other styles that they might want to suggest. But they kept trying, like I said, for about five minutes. Eventually they gave up and I was allowed to leave.

One of the girls was wondering out loud if I'd be blogging about it. I guess she can stop wondering now.

Let's see, my next two beers were both Delirium Tremens (814). No, it's not on tap right now. I had two bottles. I just wanted something light so I wouldn't have a repeat of Friday night's time bomb.

Shortly after UPSDude left, the PBD meeting broke up, and a lot of them came swarming into Rich O's proper. I got a little claustrophobic after a while, and I came home at around midnight.

Saturday, January 20, 2007
posted by dave at 10:38 AM in category drink, pictures

Okay, so that one particular cool thing didn't happen. But it was still a pretty nice night. I got to relax and look at pretty girls. And I got to wear my cool new t-shirt.

what a crappy picture

this is a little better

They're having a big S.I.G.H. convention around here somewhere, and all the girls seemed to have picked Rich O's as the place to unwind. From their hotness seminars or pillow fight tournaments or whatever they do at those things.

So the place was packed, but there were at least ten very pretty girls there. This is at least nine and a half more than usual. Pretty girls definitely make the crowd bearable.

When I first arrived, I sat on the loveseat. Some semi-acquaintances were scattered about the rest of the living room area. They know SassyGirl, so I told them about how I'd finally been getting emails from her. We talked for a bit about the good old days of lesbian mud-wrestling parties. I had an NABC Old Lightning Rod (190).

After a bit I moved up to the island and sat with MusicalYuppieDude and some PBDs. My second beer was a Wostyntje (119).

CoffeeDude and WomanRepellant came in at some point. I was talking to them when the President of S.I.G.H. arrived with some dork. I almost lost all self-control, and it's only thanks to CoffeeDude's impromptu therapeutic intervention that I kept from making a complete fool of myself. I did, however, have a Rogue Smoke (450) and then couple of Diet Cokes to kill some time so I could keep looking at Madam President when the opportunities arose.

Oh yeah, at 10:00 or so I drunk-emailed BadPickleGirl. This is always a waste of time because she won't even get the thing until Monday.

Anyway, I've been developing this theory about beer. About me and beer actually. There are some beers, and some combinations of beers, that I simply should not be drinking.

Last night I stumbled on one such combination.

I felt fine when I left Rich O's, at about midnight. I spent some time digging around for some batteries for my camera. Then I took those two awesome pictures above.

Right after I took the second picture, I fell back against the wall, and I was immediately drunk.

Spinning room drunk.

Pretty damn weird.

So I didn't get to practice pool last night. Instead I went to bed and hoped that I wouldn't get sick.

I didn't.

Friday, January 19, 2007
posted by dave at 2:08 AM in category daily, drink, ramblings

Wednesday was a pretty good day. Thursday wasn't so great. A couple of people in my life got some disturbing news, and I'm not really sure what I'm supposed to do. Or say. Or feel. Please note that these instances are completely unrelated to my previous entry. In that case, I know exactly what I should do, which is nothing.

After work, I went by Rich O's to have their Old Lightning Rod beer (170). They only have this available in January. It's some kind of tribute to Ben Franklin. I wish they'd have it on all the time because it's one of the best beer they've ever made there.

When I got home, I was supposed to just take a nap, but I slept right through my alarm. My two-hour nap ended up being a six-hour sleep. So now it's almost 2:00 and I'm wide awake.

I kept a schedule like this on purpose for a while. I actually liked it. The solitude I got from just being at home always seemed to be magnified in the middle of the night, and I liked it.

Now, not so much. I don't know what's changed. I guess there's a fine line between solitude and loneliness, and at some point over the past few months I've crossed that line.

Oh, well.

Maybe I'll read a book. One of the Heinlein juveniles. They're nice quick reads.

Sunday, January 14, 2007
posted by dave at 7:44 AM in category drink

I've been trying to remember if I ever saw them both on the same night before. I can't recall any such night.

Hey universe, seriously, one per night is enough, okay?

My night started out at The Pub in Louisville, with some curry fries and a yummy Newcastle (2934). Shortly after I arrived, I found myself wondering if I'd see MixedSignalGirl. I just had a feeling that I would. I actually got a little nervous just thinking about it. So, to either ease or confirm my concern, I asked her. I texted her, told her I was at The Pub, and asked if she'd be there.

She responded that she'd be there at 8:30.

Yay!

I found myself with forty-five minutes to kill - forty-five minutes which dragged on for a million years. It would have been nice if I could have gone into a quickie coma or something so I wouldn't have had to wait. It's funny. I've played very important pool matches. I've presented to captains of industry, and generals of the military. I can speak to any crowd on a wide range of topics. I don't get nervous doing any of those things. Yet, when it comes to MixedSignalGirl, I still shake like a leaf. I had another Newcastle (2954) to calm my nerves.

She showed up right on time, which was odd. She was beautiful, which was expected.

The Pub was pretty busy. There were no booths open. Plus this one cow that we didn't want to see was there, so we went across the street to the poolhall Felt where we could have some privacy.

It was very nice to see her. The friendship is still there. I'd had no real idea, until last week, how much the thought that she hated me was dragging me down. When I saw her last week, a huge weight lifted from my shoulders. This was more of the same. I float when I'm with her. We're friends again. Anything else, well anything else still seems to be beyond our capabilities. Eventually, we'll learn to deal with that.

At 9:30, her friends started calling her, wondering where she was, and so we parted company.

Next, I went to Hard Rock and had a Winter's Bourbon Cask Ale (84). I tried to talk to CoolHairGirl, but it was pretty busy in there, so we only got to chat for a minute or two. One thing she told me was that she'd never had a Newcastle. I told her that The Pub has the best Newcastle around, and she said that she might go in there with her friend later. She promised to let me know what she thought.

Next, I went over to Rich O's. I went to the restroom as soon as I arrived, and when I came out, lo and behold, there was LaptopGirl, standing there talking to ExBartender.

Yay!

I said Hi and waved at her, even though I was standing about a foot from her. I was a little flustered. I'd been all set to spend the rest of the night missing MixedSignalGirl, and those plans had suddenly gone out the window. Now, I had to shift gears. Now I had to act like a normal person for a while. Make LaptopGirl think I was a normal person.

Inside Rich O's proper, I talked to MisunderstoodGirl for a minute or two. Normally, of course, seeing MisunderstoodGirl would be a cause for minor celebration and several minutes of talk. But not with LaptopGirl in the room. Plus, she was busy talking with OddlyPrettyGirl.

The throne was empty, so I sat there. On the sofa sat BigWheelGirl, LaptopGirl, and WeatherGirl. On the loveseat sat a couple of hippies. Those five were all there together, and I felt a little bit like I was intruding. But what was I supposed to do, sit at the bar? With LaptopGirl to my back? No fucking way.

Oh yeah, beer. I had a Wostyntje (109), and a small sample of something new to me.

Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout (4)

(draft) Black with a large tan head. Fantastic chocolate and malt aroma. The flavor is chocolately and roasty. Very roasty. I'm not even sure that's a word, but I'm using it anyway. Pretty damn good. The 10.6% ABV is very well hidden.
I spent the next hour or so pretending, as well as I could, to be a normal person. I tried several times to make eye contact with LaptopGirl, so that we might actually exchange words. On those occasions when I succeeded, I wriggled like a puppy.

But, she wasn't there to see me. She was there with her friends. And I didn't want to intrude. Actually, that's a lie. I most certainly did want to intrude. I wanted to intrude the hell out of her. Drag her off someplace so we could have an actual conversation. Like the old days. I wanted to intrude, but I somehow restrained myself. Like the old days.

After a while, I gleaned that she'd be heading Westward again soon. So when she got up to leave, I must have said goodbye about a million times. That wasn't enough, so when she was out in the front area saying goodbye to some people out there, I stood and I watched her, and every time our eyes met, I mouthed the word goodbye again.

And then she left, and I started missing her again.

After that, I spent some time spilling my guts to WeatherGirl, because she asked, then I spent some more time trying to undo that damage.

After they started kicking everyone out of Rich O's, I went over to this Jack's place and had myself a PBR (36) and pretended that I was a normal person again.

Saturday, January 13, 2007
posted by dave at 11:39 AM in category drink

Yesterday, for lunch, I had four french fries and a Newcastle (2914) at The Pub. After that, I was completely stuffed, but I wasn't sick.

Yay!

So, armed with renewed confidence that my innards would function correctly, and bristling with excitement over HatGirl telling me that she'd be at Rich O's, I went there.

I arrived a little after 9:00. HatGirl and LuckyFucker were sitting out front. This told me that Rich O's proper was full. Probably with idiots and/or weirdoes, but full in any event. Like I cared about Rich O's proper when HatGirl was sitting out front.

HatGirl!

Yay!

I joined them and checked out the beer board. Rogue Chocolate Stout was still on. There was also a Brooklyn Chocolate Stout that I'd been looking forward to trying. But I just couldn't bring myself to have either of them. See, the last beer that I had, last Saturday, before I exploded all over myself and my bathroom, was a BBC Dark Star Porter (288). It wasn't the beer's fault that I got sick, but I still felt some kind of subconscious reflexive aversion to dark and rich beers.

I had myself a Wostyntje Mustard Ale (89) and it was very yummy.

We sat and talked for an hour or so. LuckyFucker rambled on about some ninja show he'd watched. HatGirl expressed concern about what to do with her little dog. They're going on a trip, and she doesn't want to leave the dog. So I suggested that she just take the dog with her.

"But I can't take her into places," she pointed out.

"You can if people think you're blind," I suggested. "In fact, I suspect that people already assume that you're blind, when they see you with LuckyFucker."

Zing! Take that LuckyFucker!

Anyway, I thought it was funny.

After my friends left, I went on into Rich O's proper. It was pretty packed, mostly with semi-regulars. I talked to MusicalYuppieDude for a bit, and to WomanRepellant for a bit. MusicalYuppieDude noticed that I'd lost weight. I told him about what I'd gone through to accomplish that feat. He agreed that it probably wasn't worth it.

I ended up sitting on the sofa with a bunch of people that I don't know. I had another Wostyntje (99) and then I came home at 11:30 or so.

Oh yeah - at HatGirl's birthday party, GlassesGirl had said that she might show up with my "long lost stepbrother" in tow. That had caused some speculation as to who she might mean. It turns out that she'd meant it literally. I did, for a brief period of time around 1990, have a stepbrother. When my dad remarried after my mom died, his new wife had a son. J-something. I only met him once. Anyway, that was who GlassesGirl was talking about.

Sunday, December 31, 2006
posted by dave at 5:52 PM in category drink

People are wondering what I've been doing for the past couple of nights.

Ha ha. I'm just kidding. Nobody cares. Hell, I barely care myself.

But, since I plan to drink tonight, and since that'll probably lead to some stupid crap being posted, I figured that I'd strive for one last bit of normalcy and write an entry about my weekend.

On Friday I arrived early. I didn't want to miss the De Dolle Stille Nacht, as I had back in 2004. So of course that's what I had first (66).

Since I'd arrived so early, the throne was available, and I sat there. I'm pretty sure that there were some other people around, but I really didn't care. I think one was a girl who should probably get a nickname. Maybe later.

Next, I was feeling experimental, so I experimented.

Dave's Weffenspezial (20)

(mixture) I mixed Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier and Spezial Rauchbier on a 1:1 ratio. Amazing head, courtesy of the Weihenstephaner. Aroma of bananas and cloves, slightly subdued. Flavor of a German wheat beer. The smoke shows up in the finish. Yummy. I'm a freakin' genius.
Once that was gone, I had the rest of the bottle of Weihenstephaner (1622).

Again, I think there were other people there. But again, I didn't care. I'd been told that a certain person would be at Rich O's that week, and there could be no substitute.

One of the anonymous people made me try a sample of some Schnieder Aventinus Weizen Dopplebock (24), even though I insisted that I'd had it before. It's still just a beer, so I have nothing to add to my review.

Next, I had a beer from the Saturnalia list. A beer that was new to me.

Ridgeway Lump of Coal (10)

(draft) Very dark ruby-colored. No aroma. Nice head. A pretty thick mouthfeel, with coffee and licorice fairly well-balanced. Decent, but not worth my time.
Another thing about that beer was that it was fucking 8%. So I cut myself off and switched to Diet Coke for a while.

Once that was gone, there was still nobody who mattered at Rich O's, so I gave up and left. I went over to The Hard Rock in Louisville and talked to CoolHairGirl while I enjoyed a Winter's Bourbon Cask Ale (52). It was pretty good, and it was nice to see CoolHairGirl before she got off work and disappeared.

On Saturday, I went to HatGirl's belated birthday party. I had several bottles of Blue Moon Winter Ale (142). I had fun petting HatGirl's dogs, but I didn't get to pet her cat. It was being a scardie-cat.

There was also weird stuff going on, but it was still nice to see HatGirl and NotHideousGirl and LuckyFucker.

I guess that's it. Pretty boring stuff.

Saturday, December 30, 2006
posted by dave at 2:49 PM in category drink

That's what FutureDude called this week, this period between Christmas and New Year's Eve. He was referring to the extremely crowded conditions at Rich O's. Crowding like that is normally only seen on Fridays, but this week it's been standing room only every single night.

FutureDude works at the place. He has to stay somewhat diplomatic. Hence, Festival of Fridays.

Me, I don't work there. I can call it was it really was.

Week of Weirdoes.

Hippies, specifically. But I couldn't find a word for a period of time that starts with H.

Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, the place was overrun with hippies. The scents of patchouli and cloves hung in the air, almost but not quite obscuring the unmistakable aroma of clothing that's been subjected to years of marijuana smoke.

I don't know where they all came from. I just hope that they go back. Soon.

Friday was much better. The crowd seemed to consist mostly of people with actual jobs. So that was cool. It was still pretty damn crowded though.

Anyway, because I'm a stupid gullible idiot, I went to the place every night. I scrambled for any available seat. I drank beer. I ate a lot of potato wedges. I watched the door. I became irritated with my own naiveté.

I had my notebook with me, but I didn't do a very good job of taking notes. I'll probably do an even worse job of going from memory. But you'll get the gist.

Tuesday, the highlight for me was getting to see NotHideousGirl for only the second time in three months. The first time had been Sunday night, at a secret event. An event that also featured HatGirl. So, yay!

I sat at the island with a bunch of PBDs and NotHideousGirl. My first beer was the 2006 edition of Anchor's Christmas Ale.

Anchor Our Special Ale 2006

(draft) Dark ruby in color, almost black. Nice head and very nice lacing. Fruity and spicy aroma. Fairly thin and highly-carbonated mouthfeel. Flavor of tingly dark cherries, a little sour even. Finish is tingly. Better than decent, barely good.
It tasted better by the time I finished the glass, but it still wasn't that great.

Also on Tuesday I had a couple pints of Spezial (1342). I always drink a lot of that beer when it's on, plus the board in back indicated that De Dolle Stille Nacht would be next on that tap, so I wanted to help move things along.

On Wednesday night, I sat at the bar and pretended that the place wasn't full of weirdoes, and I had a Dragon's Milk (70) and then a couple more Spezials (1382).

On Thursday night, I sat on the throne and talked for a bit to some semi-normal people. I had a couple pints of Rogue Hazelnut Brown Nectar (115) and then a Spezial (1402).

Friday, well my Friday memory is still somewhat intact, but I don't think that anyone cares. And I don't feel like writing anything right now. I'll write about Friday later. For now I've got laundry to do.

Sunday, December 24, 2006
posted by dave at 11:59 AM in category drink

After the Christmas thingy was over, I of course went to Rich O's.

It was pretty crowded, but I wasn't going to be sitting in Rich O's proper anyway. As soon as HatGirl arrived I'd be sitting out front with them. So even though this one dude offered to give me the throne, I just sat at the kiddie table and tried a new beer.

Hambleton Nightmare Porter

(draft) Almost black. Good head, good lacing. A very faint coffee and hop aroma. There was a slight bitterness to the flavor and the finish. Not worth my time. Just barely decent.
I only had about five ounces of that, then I switched to another new beer.

Bell's Hell Hath No Fury

(draft) Black, with a decent brown head. A sugary sweet aroma. Flavor was fairly intense, with spices and a slight hint of coffee. Pretty damn good.
So that was much better than the first beer had been.

While I was drinking that, HatGirl came in to make sure that I knew she'd arrived.

HatGirl!

Yay!

I went out front and sat with HatGirl and LuckyFucker and HatGirl's sister for several hours. I had another of the Bell's beers (20) and we all just relaxed. Because it was HatGirl's birthday, I must have sang Happy Birthday to her a dozen times, but I kept my voice down so everyone in the place wouldn't find out, start singing, and embarrass the shit out of her.

At one point HatGirl picked up her camera and recorded me singing to her. Hopefully I won't be seeing that on Inside Edition anytime soon.

Weird, I think I was more excited about her birthday than I ever am about my own.

For my next beer, I had a New Holland Dragon's Milk. I'd had this before, but I went ahead and updated my review.

New Holland Dragons Milk

(draft) Very smooth for so much alcohol. I really liked this, but I'd probably like it even more without the oaky undertones. Almost black with good head and lacing. There were subtle hints of vanilla and bourbon that were a very pleasant surprise.

I switched to Diet Coke for a while after that, but I ended up having a Spezial Rauchbier (1292) at the end of the night.

Once HatGirl and her posse left, I went back into Rich O's proper for a while and had another Diet Coke.

Then I went to Kroger to buy some shrimp. Then I went to White Castle. Then I came home.

Friday, December 22, 2006
posted by dave at 11:24 AM in category drink

Man, it was crowded last night.

At first, I sat on the throne. Some strangers were on the sofa. I suspected that they might be weirdoes, but I gave them the benefit of a doubt while I had a Rogue Chocolate Stout (1352). Plus, one of the people wasn't a stranger - it was HotEuchreGirl, and I was convinced that she was about to lose a button on her shirt. I didn't want to miss that when it happened.

For the next hour, at about five-minute intervals, more people kept showing up and joining the living room area people. It was quite ridiculous. Every time someone would walk through the door, the crowd of now-confirmed weirdoes would holler out greetings, and the new person would squeeze into the area.

Luckily, by the time I ordered another Rogue Chocloate Stout (1372), this one hot girl had left the bar so I moved up there and sat.

I talked with MusicalHippieDude for a while about various crap. He will be getting a new nickname, but not until after the holidays. I don't know who reads this thing. I also had some potato wedges with beer cheese. I just kind of vegged out.

At 9:30 or so I walked over to this Jack's place next door. Mainly I wanted to see if (a) HotEuchreGirl was there and (b) if that button had popped off yet. It had certainly been under a lot of strain when I'd seen her earlier. I've read that spider silk is the strongest substance in nature, but I don't believe it. I think it's the thread that was holding that fucking button on.

Well nobody I wanted to see was at Jack's, so I went back to Rich O's and had a beer that was new to me:

Harviestoun Old Engine Oil (10)

(draft) Black in color. Decent white head. Roasty cola aroma. Very well-balanced between coffee and chocolate. Pretty damn good.
After that, I left Rich O's again and drove to this Mac's place that I don't like. I don't know why. I guess I just didn't feel like going home, but Rich O's was just unbearably crowded.

At Mac's, I didn't see anyone I knew at first, but then I saw a familiar hand sticking up out of the crowd.

MisunderstoodGirl, waving at me!

Yay!

So we spent a few minutes talking about what she's been up to since I last saw her. There wasn't any need to talk about me because nothing ever changes with me.

I came home at around 11:00 and played some pool for a while.

Thursday, December 21, 2006
posted by dave at 8:14 AM in category drink

Went to lunch at The Pub yesterday, just mainly to get out of the office for a bit. I had a Great Lakes Edmund Fitzgerald Porter (204) while I was there. It was quite good, though it clashed with my curry fries a bit.

Then after lunch I got a text message from this chick I know. Her name escapes me, but she wanted to see if I was going to Rich O's after work. I said that I'd go if she would.

Then I went and got a haircut, then I went to Rich O's. I had an NABC Bonfire of the Valkyries (40) at the island while I waited for some strangers to leave the living room area.

Then they left so I moved to the throne.

Next I had a beer that I didn't think I'd had before. I was wrong about that. I did, however, go ahead and update my review:

Ridgeway Seriously Bad Elf (22)

(draft) Take a bland IPA, and wash your socks in it. Then take it to your local steel mill, and use the same beer to wash the socks of everyone who works there. This just might give you a good idea of what this beer tastes and smells like. Actually, it would taste and smell better than the beer does, but I didn't want to go overboard with my description.
So I only had a few sips of that swill.

Then some weirdoes came and took the sofa. I figured it would be okay because WhatsHerName could still sit on the loveseat.

But noooooooooooooo!

Another weirdo came and sat on the loveseat. Disgusted, I moved picked up my shit and moved to the bar.

At about 6:30 I was starting to figure that WhatsHerName had stood me up. I was thinking about leaving, but then she came in.

So I ordered a yummy Rogue Chocolate Stout (1332) and we talked for an hour or so. It was nice.

I'd really like to see WhatsHerName again. I hope I remember her damn name by then. I can't call her "Hey you" forever.

Tuesday, December 19, 2006
posted by dave at 5:32 PM in category drink

Got to Rich O's last night at around 8:00 I think. It was pretty crowded, and so I had to sit at the kiddie table. That put me in a bad mood.

Then I went to the bathroom and on the way I saw LaptopGirl, so that put me in a good mood.

Then I got to talk to LaptopGirl, so that put me in a great mood.

Then I got into an argument with a chick over the throne. The strangers had finally left the living room area and we both wanted the throne. I was closer, and I'd been waiting longer, so I took the seat.

She called me an asshole. I called her a bitch. But I gave her the fucking seat.

Then, after a while I felt bad about the name calling, so I apologized.

All of that crap knocked me back into a regular good mood.

Oh yeah, I had three yummy Rogue Chocolate Stouts (1292).

Monday, December 18, 2006
posted by dave at 7:52 AM in category drink

Last night, just like last Sunday, I had a nearly overpowering urge to write something stupid. So last night, just like last Sunday, I went over to Louisville instead.

I started out at The Pub where I had a couple of yummy Newcastles (2838) and talked with some dude from North Carolina.

Next I had a Great Lakes Edmund Fitzgerald Porter (164), which I hadn't noticed when I first went in or it might have been all I had.

Then I went to The Hard Rock and talked to CoolHairGirl. It was sort of dead in there. I had like three Diet Cokes, and then one of those Winter's Bourbon Cask Ales (36), then another Diet Coke.

It was a nice relaxing evening. I wish I'd have taken my notebook with me though. Then I could have written something stupid in it.

Sunday, December 17, 2006
posted by dave at 7:11 AM in category drink

I suppose the real start of this Saturday Beer Report would be when I was at Rich O's at 3:00 or so. I'd done my Christmas shopping and decided to reward myself with a yummy Rogue Chocolate Stout (1222). I talked to Roger, the owner, for a bit. I expressed my frustration that, here in Indiana, we can't get Alaskan Smoked Porter at all, yet in Las Vegas the owner of the Freaking' Frog can simply call his distributor and get a keg from 1998.

Something is definitely wrong with this system.

Anyway, after that I came home and dicked around for a while, then I went back to Rich O's at 8:00. The place wasn't too crowded. At least Rich O's proper wasn't. The PBDs were having a party in the Special People Section. I stuck my head in. It looked crowded as fuck.

There were some weirdoes in the living room area, so I sat at the bar. I had an Upland Winter Warmer (200) which is still yummy.

Not a whole lot happened for a while. My next beer was a Delirium Noel (70). A couple next to me were having the conversation. It seemed to be mostly about everything that was wrong with the guy, but I wasn't really listening - only when the occasional snippet made its way into my ears. So he may have gotten some jabs in too.

I got a text message from HatGirl, saying she wasn't going to make it in, but I guess I made her feel guilty or something so she said she'd be there. Yay!

After the weirdoes left I moved over to the throne. That was about the time I had another Delirium Noel (80).

Then a little before 10:00 HatGirl and LuckyFucker came in.

HatGirl!

Yay!

I didn't mention it before, but Friday night HatGirl was strangely dressed. On Saturday she was back to normal.

So we talked for an hour or so. I had a half-pint of Rogue Chocolate Stout (1232), and I came home shortly after HatGirl and LuckyFucker left.

There's something going on that just isn't right. I don't really want to elaborate. But there is context to all this random boring crap that I write.

Saturday, December 16, 2006
posted by dave at 10:42 AM in category drink

4:50
Arrival - about an hour later than I'd planned. The crowd isn't too bad yet. I'm sitting at the empty island, and having a N'Ice Chouffe. Apparently I'd had it before, but I've updated my review:

N'Ice Chouffe (14)

(draft) Dark cranberry in color. Huge head. Aroma is a very faint sweetness. Tastes like watery cranberry juice. Kind of disgusting.
(According to my beer page, I've now had 14 ounces of that crap. The 4 ounces last night plus another 10 ounces sometime in the past. I astounds me that I ever managed to choke down 10 ounces of it in one sitting.)

5:00
All of the strangers just left the living room area. Yay! I'm moving to the throne. Yay!

5:05
This Chouffe stuff is too disgusting. I'm ordering another new NABC beer.

New Albanian Naughty Claus (10)

(draft) Cloudy brown. No foam (duh). Aroma of sugar and unidentifiable spices. Flavor is decent - reminds me of pumpkins. There's a slight citrus tang at the finish. Not too bad.
After that, since I was sitting on the throne, it was too much of a pain to write down every little thing, so the play-by-play format stopped there.

My next beer was another new one for me.

Bluegrass Hell For Certain (10)

(draft) Clear dark bronze. Decent head. No detectable aroma. Flavor of dried cherries. The finish was quite drying as well. A good beer, but a little weird.
While I was drinking these last two beers, I talked to OldBob and to MusicalHippieDude for a while. Oh yeah, this one chick from Ohio remembered that I'd talked to her months ago and that I'd blogged about her. She was the one who'd driven down here for some beer that I never heard of. I used my Blackberry to try to find the old entry, but I couldn't find it. I'd just wanted to make sure that I hadn't said anything bad like calling her an idiot or anything like that. I found the entry when I got home and it was okay.

Sometimes I use words like idiot when stranger would be much more appropriate.

My next beer was something I've had before, but I wanted to update my review.

Delirium Noel (60)

(draft) Dark brownish red with a very dense head that lasted forever. A very nice completion to the Delirium triad. Not as much spice as I was perhaps expecting, but very drinkable. More similar to Delirium Nocturnum than to Tremens. Yummy.
So my tastes have changed a little. Before I'd just called it good.

At 7:10 or so I started getting text messages from HatGirl that she was on her way.

At 7:30 HatGirl and LuckyFucker arrived.

HatGirl!

Yay!

For a few minutes, HatGirl had to stand. LuckyFucker had taken the only available seat in the place - at the kiddie table. But I laid a guilt trip on this other dude and talked him into moving from the kiddie table to the sofa so HatGirl could sit.

This was also about the time I switched to Diet Coke for a while.

So I spent the next couple of hours talking to HatGirl and LuckyFucker and GuiltTripDude and a few other people in the living room area.

At one point I got into a bit of an argument with one of the PBD girls. I feel kinda bad about that, but I doubt that she even remembers it. I still apologize.

I also found out that this one PBD is the bartender's dad. I'd had no idea, but once I found out I could really see the resemblance. Small world.

My next beer was a Rogue Chocolate Stout (1192).

After HatGirl left the night settled down for me. A couple of uberhot girls that I sorta know came over and sat with us. Those two are like an unstoppable force of hotness, so I didn't pay much attention to less important things like breathing for the next couple of hours. Once TeamHotness left I had a half-pint of Rogue Chocolate Stout (1202) to close out the night, and I came home at about 12:30.

Friday, December 15, 2006
posted by dave at 12:13 AM in category drink

Wednesday was one of those nights when I couldn't help but wonder what the fuck I was doing.

I mean, I knew exactly what I was doing, but it seemed so stupid that my mind wouldn't quite accept that it was me. I've written this before, but it was like I was watching a movie and I couldn't believe how stupid the main character was.

Other than that, the night was okay. I arrived straight from work. It wasn't very crowded. I sat at the throne and had a Weihenstephaner Hefeweiessbier (1581).

It was yummy. So yummy, in fact, that I had two more (1615).

Other than that, nothing at all happened. Oh yeah, I talked to this one dude and this one chick, but I don't think we talked about anything important.

I had a Guinness (1407) and came home at around 9:00.

---

Thursday night I went home after work. I tried to take a nap but it didn't work out. Then I had to do some work shit until a little after 8:00. So I didn't get to Rich O's until 8:30 or so.

Man, it was fucking crowded!

One of the biggest crowds I've ever seen there.

It sucked.

I stood around for an hour or so, drinking a Rogue Dead Guy (288), until a seat opened up at the island. Then I sat with some semi-regulars for a while.

My next beer was a new one for me. A new one for the world actually:

New Albanian Bonfire of the Valkyries

(draft) Stupid name, I think they've given up there. The beer was black. More than black. It was anti-light. Very little foam, as is typical for NABC beers. Not much of an aroma, just a touch of smoky malt. Fairly thick and creamy mouthfeel. Flavor is a bit sharp and smoky, surprising after the tame aroma. Finish is creamy smoke. I liked it.
So I had another half-pint of that while I played a game of euchre with HotEuchreGirl and a couple of bit players.

HotEuchreGirl and I were getting our asses kicked - down 4-8 - but then we decided to start playing and we won 10-8.

So, yay!

Other than that, the place stayed fucking crowded all night. I hated it, mostly because if you pack eight million people into a space made for a couple of hundred, there should be a rule that one of those eight million people will be the one you want to see.

When I'm in charge of the world, that rule will be fucking enforced.

Anyway, I had fun I guess. I sorta have a crush on HotEuchreGirl now.

Monday, December 11, 2006
posted by dave at 1:58 AM in category daily, drink

Sunday night was pretty fun. Surreal, but fun.

After I'd finished vomiting words into my notebook - see the previous entry - I found myself talking to a girl that I've seen before. Both at Rich O's and there at The Pub. A girl who looks almost exactly like Ella.

A hot girl. A girl who's way out of my league. But somebody forgot to tell her that, and it somehow slipped my mind as well.

Oops.

So EllaGirl and I went over to The Hard Rock to eat. And drink. And talk. And even flirt a little. Surreal.

Let's see, I'd been planning to just have a Guinness, but CoolHairGirl informed me that they were out, so I had a Blue Moon (336). I had some chicken tenders too.

We stayed there for a couple of hours. She's a very neat girl, and I somehow managed to keep her entertained. We each had a sample of a new beer from Anheuser-Busch. I liked it enough to order a full glass.

Winter's Bourbon Cask Ale (20)

(draft) Clear bronze. A very interesting vanilla and smoke aroma. Despite the name, there wasn't even the tiniest hint of bourbon. A nice medium mouthfeel, with vanilla and light smoke in the flavor as well. Pretty fucking good. I don't care who makes it.
So that was a nice surprise.

A friend of mine told me earlier in the evening that she needed a distraction from her distraction. I guess I needed the same thing. I guess maybe EllaGirl did too.

It was fun.

posted by dave at 1:31 AM in category drink, ramblings

I had to get out of my house.

I was getting very close to writing something stupid.

So I left.

Now I'm sitting in The Pub in Louisville. I'm drinking a yummy Newcastle (2778), and I'm probably about to write something stupid in this notebook.

But I'm not worried. I'm miles away from my home and my computer. I've got a mandatory buffer zone between what I write and anything that I might publish.

Besides, this way I can always blame the beer.

Anyway.

In the movie Team America: World Police there's a scene that goes something like:

Person one: I didn't mean to hurt you.

Person two: I know. You just didn't care if you did.

I know exactly how person two felt. I mean, if she was real and not a puppet, and if it was real life and not a movie, well then I'd know exactly how she felt.

I can't help but think back to the cruelest words ever said to me. Not said exactly. Texted. Those eleven fucking words. Yeah, I know exactly how that puppet chick felt.

(Having a Young's Double Chocolate Stout (383) now.)

That was almost two years ago, but it set the tone for most of the relationships and non-relationships and pseudo-relationships since then.

It's weird. You'd think that deliberate cruelty would be worse. Than apathy. Than ignorance.

But it's not.

I sat at home today, and I sit at this bar right now, and I just want to scream. I want to cry. I want to wail. I want to go into a rage. I want to spontaneously burst into flames.

I want to be noticed, for better or for worse. I'm fucking sick of being irrelevant.

(Having another Newcastle (2798) now.)

I could make myself be noticed. I could become relevant. It wouldn't even be that hard. I could end the apathy and the ignorance.

It would be easy.

Sunday, December 10, 2006
posted by dave at 10:31 AM in category drink

I'm wondering if I'm supposed to be writing something relevant. Maybe I am. Maybe that's what it would take to add the proper context to everything else. Without that context, these are just disconnected entries.

I dunno. I'm not doing it though. Not today, anyway.

Last night I was craving Red Lobster, so I went there for dinner. It was very yummy, as Red Lobster always is for me. OddlyFamiliarGirl was working and I got to talk to her for a bit.

It was really fucking crowded in Clarksville because of all the Christmas shoppers.

So I got to Rich O's just after 6:00. Way earlier than normal, but if I'd gone home after dinner I'd probably have fallen asleep. They were having a wedding reception in the Special People Section, and I had three heart attacks and a couple of strokes before I got up the nerve to look in there. I saw nobody I knew. In particular, the bride was nobody I knew, so that was a relief. Not that I should give a shit either way. And maybe I don't. But that doesn't mean I'd be able to cope with having it rubbed in my face.

I sat on the throne and had three Koningshoeven Quads (195) over the course of a couple of hours. I talked with a couple of PBDs about various stuff - mostly beer.

I switched to Diet Coke after that. And I waited. And I wondered. And I watched the door.

I noticed at one point that the place was packed, and that 90% of the people there were old women wearing red sweaters and/or red coats and/or red scarves. I talked to one of the old women. Turns out that they were all going to some concert over at IUS.

I was a little bored for a while, kicking myself a little for drinking three strong beers so early in the evening. I might have even been thinking about just going home. But then HatGirl and LuckyFucker came in.

HatGirl!

Yay!

That perked me back up. I talked with those two, and with the PBD who was still there, for the next couple of hours. I had myself a Guinness (1327).

After HatGirl and LuckyFucker left I had a Diet Coke and then I came home and glared at my phone for a while.

And now I'm in the mood to write something relevant. I need to get away from this computer before I do anything stupid like that.

Saturday, December 9, 2006
posted by dave at 8:35 AM in category drink

The problem last night, as I saw it, was that I don't think I ever shut up.

Actually, that was more of a symptom of the real problem. The real problem was that people could have seen me last night and decided that I was sociable or something. People might start trying to talk to me all the time. That would suck.

Anyway, I got to The New Albanian Public House a little after 7:00. That's what we're supposed to be calling Rich O's now. Quite a mouthful, isn't it? The parking lot was packed, so I parked on Mars and walked in.

Inside, it was about half full I guess. Mostly strangers. I sat on the throne and ordered a Browning's Bourbon Imperial Stout (45). A chick from work was there with her husband. They're cool people, and I spent quite a while talking to them about everything from love to skiing.

My next two beers were Rogue Deal Guy (268).

At 9:30 I drunk-texted BadPickleGirl that I missed her.

At around 10:00 or so, NeighborsDaughter came in with her husband, and I talked to them for the rest of the night. Mostly we talked about my neighbor's dog, Dino. I guess he's feeling his age quite a bit. I should walk across the street to see him.

Because VigilanteGirl used to work with NeighborsDaughter, I got to missing her quite a bit. I stopped by this little bar where she used to hang out, but she wasn't there.

Thursday, December 7, 2006
posted by dave at 1:26 AM in category drink

It was maybe supposed to snow here tonight. I thought that I'd write something about it, if it did.

But it's not snowing yet, so I'll switch to plan b.

Write about beer!

Yay!

Here are my reviews of a couple of new (to me) beers that I've recently had the pleasure of drinking.

Schlafly's Christmas Ale (40)

(draft) Dark bronze. Very light foam. A strong aroma of whatzit and orange. The flavor was mostly whatzit, with some light orange peel thrown in. Despite the citrus, I did like this beer. I just wish I knew what the whatzit really was.
Browning's Bourbon Imperial Stout (25)
(draft) Black. Large brown head with great lacing. A nice chocolately flavor behind the bourbon, which shows up mainly in the lingering finish. Pretty damn yummy.
So, two very good beers.

The Browning's was especially surprising. I've never been a fan of the beers from there, but there's a new brewer now. I should go in and see what else they have to offer.

The Schlafly's is pretty damn good too. I wish I could indentify the "whatzit" though. Perhaps someone will enlighten me.

Saturday, December 2, 2006
posted by dave at 10:43 PM in category drink, ramblings, travel

(Written Saturday afternoon)

Three hours this time. Stupid Delta.

I'm sitting in the BBC bar at the Cincinnati airport, having a yummy Dark Star Porter (248). It's yummy.

Anyway.

I can still really feel Southern Indiana trying to repel me. I bet the plane used extra fuel as it carried me Eastward. I bet the pilot was concerned.

I am a salmon being forced to swim upstream, but I have no spawning to anticipate.

Back to the grind I go. No choice, really.

At least no choice that I'm willing to make. No chance that I'm willing to take.

Hey, that rhymed!

My Pulitzer awaits.

Update: it ended up being a four-hour layover because of the stupid weather on the East coast.

Update Again: My cats were glad to see me. I guess that's something.

posted by dave at 10:33 PM in category drink, travel

(Written Friday night)

Man, this has been a week of boring entries. But that's okay. It means that there's been no drama stirring up crap in my head.

I suppose that will change though.

It always does.

The conference ended at 11:30 this morning. I didn't stick around to watch them clean up. I took a cab over to The Hard Rock so I could buy a souvenir glass and eat lunch at The Pink Taco. I'm not a huge fan of Mexican food, but I've always loved the enchiladas at The Pink Taco. Plus they seem to have a rule that only drop-dead gorgeous girls can work there. I was surrounded my supermodels and movie stars. So, just like my regular life back home. Not.

After lunch I took a cab over to New York New York. I stuck my head in ESPN Zone to see if PonytailGirl was working. She wasn't, so I went over to Nine Fine Irishmen.

I sat at the bar and the guy asked me, "Smithwick's for lunch?"

That's what I said to him every day when I was here in August. Pretty cool that he remembered.

So I had two Smithwick's (1444) then I dicked around New York New York for an hour or two. I really like that place. It's got style.

After I'd cabbed it back to The Rio I tried a couple of times to take a nap, but it never took.

And now I'm at The Tilted Kilt drinking a Tilted Kilt (526). The plan is to make this a short night because I have to get up at like 3:30 to leave.

Oh yeah, VegasDude finally called me back. He was quite apologetic. I told him not to worry about it.

Deschutes Black Butte Porter (4)

(bottle) Cola color. Roasted malt and caramel aroma. Fairly thin mouthfeel. The flavor was of cola and caramel. Slightly dry finish. Good.
That beer was a nice surprise. They'd had some people in to pitch some beers to the bar, and they'd left an extra bottle, so a bunch of us split it.

Other than that, I had three more pints of Tilted Kilt (560), and I talked with HenPeckedGuy, then at around 10:00 I went up to my room and slept.

Friday, December 1, 2006
posted by dave at 4:08 PM in category drink, travel

This will be my last full night in Las Vegas for a long time. At least six months, maybe a year. The conference ends tomorrow at noon. Maybe I'll go over to the strip then. For tonight, I'll just stick with The Tilted Kilt. I'll take notes.

6:40
I arrive. Some fucker is in my seat. HenPeckedGuy isn't working - some hot girl is behind the bar. I've talked briefly with StupidGirl and ordered a Fat Tire (423).

6:45
This fucker better leave my seat soon.

6:50
This bartender is hot. I hereby dub her HotRioGirl. Believe it or not, the outfits the girls wear here aren't very flattering. Some of the girls can't really get away with wearing them. HotRioGirl can.

6:54
I should eat something. Nothing here ever looks edible though. Except the waitresses.

6:59
A bunch of assholes just came in. They all ordered Sam Adams. What a bunch of sheep.

7:05
I drink too quickly in Las Vegas when the beer is yummy. I'm ordering an Arrogant Bastard (46) to slow myself down.

7:06
HenPeckedGuy is here now.

7:07
Arrogant Bastard is kind of nasty, but I'm sure it'll get better as the glass empties.

7:14
I just saw HatGirl's twin. A little chubby, but still hot. She caught me slobbering at her and she smiled.

7:17
This fucker still hasn't vacated my seat.

7:20
I'm moving to the other end of the bar. It was either that or murder the fucker.

7:23
I've ordered a pizza thingy with no tomato sauce.

7:25
The waitresses here aren't allowed behind the bar. Weird.

7:29
I'm in a strange mood. I'm ordering a heterosexual Pyramid Hefeweizen (16).

7:31
Here's my official review:

Pyramid Hefeweizen

(draft) The color of dirty piss. A decent head and good lacing. Aroma of orange peels. Thin and citrusy flavor and mouthfeel. A touch of grapefruit bitterness at the end. Quite disgusting.
7:35
My pizza thingy is here. It's pretty good. Needs more garlic though.

7:45
Piss time.

7:54
I just checked, and I don't see Bass Pale Ale on my beer page either. So now I know what I'm having next.

8:02
I just made two nerds try the Tilted Kilt Ale, and they liked it enough to order full pints. Yay me!

8:05
HotRioGirl forgot to pour my Bass.

8:08
Finally.

Bass Pale Ale (16)

(draft) Light copper. Good head, good lacing. Whoa. A strong malt and hop aroma, quite dry. Thin mouthfeel but still quite coating. Malt and hops predominate everything. Surprisingly bad.
8:17
Piss time.

8:20
This beer is gross. No wonder a lot of people mix it with Guinness.

8:25
I just drunk-texted HatGirl. I told her about her twin.

8:26
I miss HatGirl.

8:29
There's a new waitress here who looks like Erika from Big Brother. She's hot.

8:33
This isn't working. I'm not slowing down at all. I'm switching tactics and changing to lower ABV beers. Ordering a Guinness (1307).

8:37
Except for the waitresses and HotRioGirl, this place is a sausage-fest tonight.

8:55
Piss time.

9:00
Ordering a Smithwick's (1404). I've been talking to some dude from Ireland, and he got me in the mood for one.

9:20
I am so cut off. Switching to Diet Coke.

9:35
Piss time.

9:54
Still talking to IrishDude. Now I'm thirsty though. Ordering a Tilted Kilt (496).

10:30
I am so cut off. Seriously.

10:35
Piss time.

10:38
Apparently, if you go to France, it's better to butcher their language than to simply admit that you don't speak it. This is according to IrishDude.

10:45
OMG that chick has huge tits!

10:47
IrishDude has left the premises.

10:51
Now two old women from Scotland are here. They just came from the Chippendales show. They are drunk. I'm one to talk.

11:00
Two new dudes are here. I think they're from America of all places. They're cool.

11:04
Dead Guy time (198).

11:12
The American dudes bought my Dead Guy. That was nice, but I'm not putting out.

11:17
The ziggy-zaggy guys are here now. Oh fucking boy.

11:21
Switching back to Diet Coke. I'm so cut off.

11:40
Been talking to a guy from Belgium that I met the other night. He's pretty cool.

11:45
BelgianDude bought me a Newcastle (2758). Fuck.

12:20
Piss time.

12:55
I guess I've drank all the beer in Las Vegas, and they're closing the place down. I'm going to sleep now.

Thursday, November 30, 2006
posted by dave at 5:52 PM in category drink, travel

So I had a date last night. Sort of. It was advertised as a date, and it started out like a date, but I don't think it was a date.

I think it was more of an interrogation.

But that's okay. It was still fun. We ate at this seafood place in The Rio. The food was fantastic.

But no slaking took place, and it ended early because she had to go to work.

Anyway, with my newfound winnings, I took a cab to downtown Vegas. Specifically, I went to Main Street Station, more specifically to the Triple 7 brewpub therein.

Usually when I go to downtown Vegas I spend some time dicking around Fremont Street, but it was too cold for that last night. So I got right down to business. The business of beer.

I had three Black Chip porters (153). That beer is world-class. Easily worth the cab fare to get downtown and back. All of their other beers suck, so I didn't see any need to mix things up by ordering anything else.

After my three beers it was still too cold to dick around, so I took a cab back to The Rio and went to The Tilted Kilt.

The place was packed, but HenPeckedGuy managed to find an empty stool for me at the end of the bar. I had a Tilted Kilt Ale (480) and talked to some dude from Belgium for a while. He was drinking a fucking Stella. Yuck.

Then later some pompous doucebag took offense when I laughed out loud at his demand for two orange wedges in his Blue Moon. So I asked HenPeckedGuy if he knew how to make a Heterosexual Blue Moon. That's one without any fruit.

Then I asked if OrangeWedgeGuy could get a little umbrella for his beer.

My Blue Moon (318) was good. The look on OrangeWedgeGuy's face, as he stomped out of the place, was priceless. I bet he went back to his room and cried himself to sleep.

Wednesday, November 29, 2006
posted by dave at 5:53 PM in category drink, travel

Tuesday night, as promised, I did a formal beer comparison instead of just drinking beer.

This certainly slowed me down. I hope you appreciate it.

This is not a competition. So, as David Letterman used to say, Please, no wagering.

I got to The Tilted Kilt at about 8:00. I'd have been there earlier but I had a yummy cajun burger and a yummy Alaskan Amber (2150) at this All-American Grille place first.

HenPeckedGuy was working at The Tilted Kilt. He didn't even bat an eye when I asked for four small servings of four different beers. In fact, he acted like weird people ask him to do strange things every day. It must be some Las Vegas thing.

Once I had my four beers in front of me, along with my notebook, I got down to business.

Appearance
Tilted Kilt: Cloudy brown. Some graininess to the clouding.
Rogue Dead Guy: Kind of a flat copper color. A little cloudiness.
Fat Tire: Bright dark copper.
Newcastle Brown Ale: Very dark brown, almost cola-colored.

Aroma
TK: Yeast and malt.
DG: Malty, and a little hoppy.
FT: Strong malty sweetness.
N: Deep malt. Some hop notes.

Mouthfeel
TK: Slightly thick.
DG: Oily and coating.
FT: Watery and a little drying.
N: Fairly thick, no coating.

Foam (after 10 minutes and a few sips)
TK: No head, no lacing.
DG: 40% thin foam covering.
FT: 100% thin foam covering, great lacing.
N: 10% thin foam, pretty good lacing.

Flavor
TK: Malt and yeast. Sweet.
DG: Malty with a little bite.
FT: Malt and something else. Maybe vanilla.
N: Roasty and sweet, with a bit of a bite.

Finish
TK: Slightly dry, no bitterness.
DG: Coating and sweet.
FT: Slightly dry. Vanishes instantly.
N: Just a hint of a bitter bite at the end.

Aside
This one hot girl says she's dying to know what I'm writing. I wonder what she'd do for a peek.

As I said, this was not a competition. But, if it had been, Newcastle would have won. Newcastle would have been followed by Tilted Kilt, then Fat Tire, and finally Dead Guy.

All are very good beers though.

For the rest of the night I had three pints of Tilted Kilt (464). I did end up showing the hot girl what I'd written. I think she was underwhelmed.

Tuesday, November 28, 2006
posted by dave at 4:56 AM in category drink, travel

Monday was a long day. The first full day in Las Vegas is always long. My EST ass woke up at 5:30 and refused to go back to sleep so I stayed up.

I did some stuff for work. I ate some breakfast. I caught up on some writing. I basically just dicked around The Rio until noon, then I took the shuttle over to the strip. Then I dicked around on the strip for a while. I'd thought that I might buy a new watch at this place by The Alladin, but all of the watches they had were ugly.

At 3:00 or so, I took a cab over to The Freakin' Frog. I had a yummy Alaskan Amber (2134) with my lunch, then I had another one for dessert (2150).

The bartender was new to me. I liked her because she didn't argue with me when I asked for an unchilled glass - always before it's been an international incident. I liked her even more when she pointed out that they also had Alaskan Smoked Porter on tap. I fell in love with her when she said that it was vintage 1998.

Wowie fucking zowie.

So, guess what I proceeded to drink four of.

Alaskan Smoked Porter is correct.

I had four beautiful and yummy 10-ounce pours (485), and I wish I could have had more. Being a lightweight really sucks sometimes.

Besides the bartender, I talked to the owner for a bit. I've talked to him before, and I can never remember his fucking name. Andy or Matt or Adam or something generic like that.

There was also a guy in a suit who was pretty cool despite his affection for Miller Lite, and an Hispanic guy who drank eight million Bud Lights in an hour then left a $1 tip.

Anyway, after 32 ounces of Alaskan Amber and 40 ounces of Alaskan Smoked Porter, I was a little tipsy. I was also exhausted. So I took a cab back to The Rio and took a nap.

Later, I went down to The Tilted Kilt and had a couple Tilted Kilt Ales (412).

Monday, November 27, 2006
posted by dave at 11:32 AM in category drink, travel

8:00
I was thinking about eating something. Not because I was particularly hungry. Just because I knew I'd be drinking.

I wandered around The Rio for a while, but nothing really jumped out at me, food-wise. Then I had the idea of going to downtown to grab some dinner and a Black Chip Porter at Main Street Station. then I remembered that I was supposed to call SpoonsGirl's brother, VegasDude. I called him and left a message. I guess there's a chance that we could end up downtown sometime this week. He's a guy, so the universe will not implode if he calls me back.

So I went and played three hands of video poker, got a royal flush, and decided to quit while I was ahead.

Now I'm sitting at the bar in The Tilted Kilt, having a Tilted Kilt Ale (348).

8:17
Just used my Blackberry to check the Freakin' Frog website. They always have their current drafts listed there. I see that they currently have my beloved Alaskan Amber on tap!

Yay!

So now I know where I'm going tomorrow.

8:22
The taps for Newcastle and Fat Tire and Dead Guy and Tilted Kilt are calling to me. I should do a formal comparison of those four. They're similar enough that it should be interesting.

8:25
StupidGirl is working. I should probably give her a new nickname, but I've become attached to this one. I'm sure I'll talk to her sometime tonight. She looks cute.

8:27
This bartender working tonight is slow.

8:28
Scratch that - while I was writing about how he was slow, he was already pouring me another Tilted Kilt (364).

8:35
I think I'll do the tasting on Tuesday when HenPeckedDude is working. This guy tonight would probably screw it up.

8:40
I need to eat something. For some reason I always crave grilled cheese sandwiches in Las Vegas.

8:46
I must remember to buy some lip balm.

8:47
And a case of condoms. Ha ha.

9:00
Piss time.

9:03
Another Tilted Kilt (380).

9:27
It's surreal to be sitting here. I've gone through a lot on this stool.

9:45
Piss time, and Diet Coke time.

10:00
So, I guess PictureGirl is seeing someone now. I think I'm relieved. I mean, it would have been nice to see her, but the thought of her waiting around for me to visit creeped me out a little.

11:15
Been talking to StupidGirl. I'd love to talk some more, but the time zone change is catching up with me. Time for bed.

Sunday, November 26, 2006
posted by dave at 2:18 PM in category drink, travel

It's funny how things work out sometimes.

Allow me to 'splain.

My mind is your basic two-track male model. Sometimes I can squeeze in a third track, but usually it's the same two over and over.

So, because of one of the tracks, I was looking forward to having Rogue Chocolate Stout while in Las Vegas. I discovered that wonderful beer here last December, and when I came back in August it was here waiting for me.

So I had it last December in Las Vegas. I had it at Rich O's during DaveFest in June and July, and I had it again when I returned to Las Vegas in August. Throw in the few times I've had it in bottled form, and I've had it a lot. About 1,000 ounces, up until last week.

Now I'm up to 1,172 ounces.

Because, last week, it came back to the Rich O's draft list.

Yay!

This was very cool, and it was made even more cool because it was a surprise to me.

But I remember thinking, last Wednesday as I drank a yummy pint, I remember thinking, Now what am I supposed to look forward to drinking in Las Vegas?

Fat Tire I can get here. I like Fat Tire, but it's not really enough to wrap an entire trip to Las Vegas around.

Ditto for the Black Chip Porter up at Main Street Station. Besides, that's only available up there, and it's a $50 cab ride away from The Rio.

I had no idea what beer would end up defining this trip.

Until I walked into The Tilted Kilt this afternoon.

There was no Rogue Chocolate Stout on tap.

But, that was okay, because in its place, there was...

*drumroll*

Pyramid Tilted Kilt!

Fucking yay and yay!

This beer, for those of you who haven't been studying me as much as you should, is a beer that I discovered here in the Spring of 2004. It immediately became one of my all-time favorites, and I drank a lot of it.

Then, I never saw it again. I was even told that Pyramid had stopped making it.

I was devastated, I tell you.

But no more.

Because Pyramid Tilted Kilt has come back into my life, and now I know which beer will define this entire trip.

I had two small pints (332) with my lunch, and now I've got to try to get some sleep.

But first, here's the rest of my day so far.

My suitcase was the third one to arrive at baggage claim.

The taxi line was a million miles long, but I overheard a dude tell a driver that he was going to The Rio, and I ended up sharing the taxi with him.

There was a hot naked chick at the check-in counter. She was yelling something about something.

I got a room right away. Sometimes I have to wait for hours before a room is available.

Anyway, I'm fucking tired now. I was too excited to sleep last night. I need to sleep now, at least for a couple of hours.

Saturday, November 25, 2006
posted by dave at 10:01 AM in category drink

The place was pretty damn busy last night. I ordered myself a Rogue Chocolate Stout (1152) and stood at the end of the bar until a spot opened up on the sofa next to some strangers. I did try to talk to them a little, but my head just wasn't in it, so as soon as TallLady moved from the bar I moved up there and took her old seat.

I texted RockGirl that they seemed to be having a S.I.G.H. convention at Rich O's, but that I didn't really care. The members who I'd been hoping to see weren't there.

Then this dude who looks like my cousin Robbie came up and started yakking at me. Wanting me to go to this Mac's place that I don't like. I told him that I was doing perfectly fine where I was. "But there are girls at Mac's!" he protested. "Big fucking deal," I responded.

Then the throne opened up so I moved there.

I texted HatGirl to see if she was coming. She responded that she wasn't, so that sucked. But at least she did respond. That seems to be an impossible feat for some people these days.

Let's see, at about the time WomanRepellant came in, I ordered another Rogue (1172).

I sat and nursed my beer and talked with WomanRepellant and a couple who had been in Wednesday night. The whole time my mood got worse and worse.

So I left Rich O's at about 10:30, and went to try to find VigilanteGirl.

Yes, I was in that much of a mood.

But she wasn't at the place I went, so I just had myself a Newcastle (2738) and listened to some karaoke and then came home.

Friday, November 24, 2006
posted by dave at 1:04 AM in category drink, general

Every place was closed tonight. At least every place I felt like going to was closed. So I just came home and opened a bottle of Bluegrass Mephistopheles Metamorphosis. This bottle is completely flat too.

---

I think every risk should have an associated reward. You have to weigh them against each other. If the risk is too great, or if the reward is too small, then you pass on the whole thing. This is just common sense. And then there are times when there's no real risk, and there's no detectable reward. Then it just becomes a fucking waste of time.

---

Happy Birthday to LaptopGirl. There, I fucking said it. Fuck off if you don't like it.

---

I have some relatives who seem to be pissed at me for some unknown and probably stupid reason. I feel like I should give a shit, but I don't.

---

I think that the perfect scenario would be for me to somehow win a gazillion dollars in Las Vegas and then never come back here except to retrieve my pool cue and my cats.

---

I didn't ask for this bullshit. I don't think I deserve it either.

---

Maybe I should get me one of those voice recorder dealies. I have these stupid random thoughts all day long. I could record them and post them in my blog to show the world how boring I am.

For anyone trying to figure out what I want for Christmas, that was a hint.

---

There was one path to forgiveness but she didn't take it. Her loss. I really shouldn't care, but I'm not getting any younger I suppose, so I do care.

---

I'd decided that I would politely decline the invitation. Now, now I've decided otherwise. Bring it on. I'm looking forward to it.

---

Seriously, what the fuck is going on? Am I being set up? Am I being placed into the batting order? Am I being benched? I think I've done everything I can do to get put into the game. Yes or no, please. No more fucking maybe.

---

Tonight I might get to see HatGirl and NotHideousGirl. Either would be cool. Both would be fucking awesome. So I probably won't see either one them.

---

I keep writing about the same subject and then deleting it. It's over, and every time I write about it, it gets more stupid and pointless.

---

This beer is fucking with my head.

---

There was a girl at Rich O's last night that looked like puppyshark. She was hot.

---

I miss SassyGirl.

---

I am so excited for my friend RockGirl. This thing she's going through is similar to what I went through at this time last year. It was the beginning of the end of the pain. I'm so excited for her.

---

I need to make it to Memphis one of these weekends to see harpo play a gig.

I wish I had musical talent.

---

I wish I had more turkey to eat right now. All I've got is some Nacho Cheese Doritos. Not quite the same thing.

Thursday, November 23, 2006
posted by dave at 8:43 AM in category drink

The night before Thanksgiving is typically one of the busier nights of the year at the bar. Last night was no exception.

After a quick meal at the haunted Burger King, I got to Rich O's at a little after 8:00.

THE PLACE WAS FUCKING LOUD. AT FIRST I DIDN'T THINK THERE WAS ANY PLACE TO SIT, BUT TALLLADY MOVED HER SHIT AND SO I WAS ABLE TO SIT AT THE BAR. IT WAS REALLY FUCKING LOUD IN THERE. I TRIED TO ASK THEM TO TURN THE FUCKING MUSIC DOWN, BUT THERE WAS NO WAY ANYONE COULD HEAR MY WORDS OVER THAT CRAP THEY WERE BLASTING THROUGH THE SPEAKERS.

I'm not going to shout this entire entry, but I could.

In my rush to dramatize the loudness, I forgot to mention the beer.

Rogue Chocolate Stout!

Yay!

I went outside to call HatGirl, to tell her about the Rogue being on. Got her voicemail. Then I came back in and managed to use pantomime to let the bartender know that I would like a glass of Rogue Chocolate Stout, please. And turn down the fucking music, please.

I spent some time shouting back and forth with one of the PBDs. We weren't in an argument, it's just that we were all of two feet away from each other, so shouting was the only way we could be heard.

Did I mention that it was fucking loud?

Well, it was.

After a while, some dude left the throne so I picked up my shit and moved there. Then I went back outside to call HatGirl again to let her know about the Rogue being on tap. This time I got to talk to her. Maybe Friday she said.

I spent the remainder of the night there on the throne. I occasionally talked to some people sitting around me. I talked briefly to a couple of hot girls who I hadn't seen since June. I think I impressed them by remembering their names. I know they impressed me by remembering mine. But mostly I just sat back and enjoyed my Rogue Chocolate Stouts. I had three of them (1132).

Let's see, I did, at one point, see a blur that might have been MisunderstoodGirl, but if it was her she couldn't hear me over the damn music and so she didn't stop.

Then towards the end of the night WomanRepellant came in so I talked to him until they started kicking everyone out. Then I came home.

Sunday, November 19, 2006
posted by dave at 10:18 PM in category daily, drink

Didn't do a whole lot today. Worked for a few hours on a server that a coworker put into a coma yesterday. It's still nonresponsive.

I also went to the store and bought a turkey. Then I cooked it. This is something I usually do on the Sunday before Thanksgiving.

I figure there are two main goals to strive for when preparing and eating turkey:

1: Do not burn the house down.

2: Do not die from food poisoning.

So far so good. My house still stands. The food poisoning thing, well I guess I'll know by this time tomorrow.

I also got to talk to BadPickleGirl for an hour or so tonight. That was a very pleasant surprise. I have no idea why she calls my home number though. That ringer has been turned off for years. It was only because I happened to see the phone light up that I even knew that I had an incoming call.

BadPickleGirl is nice. I'll miss her when I'm in Las Vegas next week. I hope that doesn't freak her out.

Also, tonight I had myself an Avery The Beast (24). It was yummy.

Tomorrow I start another on-call rotation. That will suck I'm sure. This year I'm on-call for Thanksgiving, and Christmas, and New Years Eve. I was actually on-call for July Fourth too, but I got a coworker to trade with me for that day because I was in Cleveland.

Anyway, it was nice to end my Sunday on a good note.

posted by dave at 12:01 PM in category drink, family

That's what everyone hollered when my sister Dina returned home last night.

Of course she already knew we were there. All the cars in the driveway and the front yard would have given it away, even if she hadn't already seen the party noted on someone's calendar.

But when she and Kenny pulled into the driveway, we turned off all the lights anyway. And we all hid in the kitchen anyway. And we all hollered surprise anyway.

It's the thought that counts, right?

The occasion was Dina's birthday party. The actual birthday isn't until Wednesday, but nobody wanted to get plastered on Thanksgiving eve, so the party was last night.

Most of the usual suspects were there, with the notable exceptions of my cousin Jeff, who apparently hasn't figured out how to use his voicemail, and BadPickleGirl, who was stuck at home with a sick child.

Yes, I was very disappointed that BadPickleGirl wasn't going to be there. I'd been looking forward to seeing her and talking with her. I'd also planned to introduce her to The Reverend.

Speaking of The Reverend, that's what my first beer was (202). I'd originally thought that it would be my only beer, but I drank it fairly quickly and surprised myself by wanting more.

I spent the first couple of hours inside the house watching Nick at Nite with some kids. The other adults were outside either freezing to death or huddled in front of Dina's fancy new outdoor fireplace.

Then my friend Eric's wife Teri came in, so I had someone to talk to. SpoonsGirl joined us inside for a while too. I got the number for SpoonsGirl's brother, VegasDude. Since I'll be there next week I may look him up.

Since Eric hadn't shown up yet, Teri was out of beer. And since I'd finished mine, I was out of beer. So we went on a beer run to this little store in Greenville. They actually had a few beers that looked interesting. I chose one that was new to me:

Blue Moon Winter Ale

(bottle) Clear bronze. Good head and lacing. I got hints of several spices and unusual flavors, most notably of vanilla. Very easy to drink. Very good.
So I liked that a lot. I know that most of the PBDs I know would sneer at it because of who makes it, but that's their loss. More for me.

By the time we got back to Dina's, Eric had shown up. So I had someone else to talk to.

Then at one point everybody went inside the house to play some game but Teri and I stayed out by the fireplace and talked for a couple of hours. I had a second bottle of the Blue Moon Winter Ale (24).

Oh yeah, I got to talk to HatGirl early in the evening. They were going to Buckhead's and she wanted to know if there were any good beers there. I told her that I hadn't been there in months, but that they'd always had at least one or two beers that weren't swill.

Then later on I texted HatGirl to see which beer(s) she'd chosen but she texted me back saying that they hadn't gone after all. They'd gone to Rich O's.

At around midnight or so the last of the party guests started leaving, and I came home.

Saturday, November 18, 2006
posted by dave at 12:31 AM in category drink, ramblings

The place isn't too crowded tonight. Little pockets of humanity are scattered about. I'm sitting at the bar. Alone, for now, though I doubt that good fortune will last.

Koningshoeven Tripel Trappist Ale

(bottle) Hazy dark gold, smallish head, some lacing. A nice clean aroma. The flavor is not too bad. A little musty for some reason. Given a choice between this and the quad, you should always take the quad. Always.
It's good for now though. I have no desire for company. Not that kind anyway. Not the real kind. The kind where you have to smile and talk and laugh at the proper times. Fuck that.

I'm in a strange mood.

This morning I realized that it was November 17th. This date is of no significance, but Tuesday, Tuesday sure should have been. Used to be. This year, I didn't even notice, and now it's too late.

But that's not why I'm in a strange mood.

I caught myself this afternoon hoping against something. Wishing that it wouldn't happen. But at the same time I knew, if it didn't happen, I knew that I'd be incredibly disappointed.

This struck me as weird, to not want something yet know I'd be bothered if I didn't get it. Like I said, weird, and that was something new for me. For the longest time, I'd say or feel or write crazy things, and they'd seem perfectly acceptable to me. I suppose that, at some level, with whatever tiny vestige of logical thought I still possessed, I knew that I was insane. But I didn't care, back then. Because, back then, I had no choice. So I saw my behavior as completely normal. Normal for me, anyway.

Then today, I caught myself thinking something crazy. And I realized that it was crazy. This just might be a sign of actual progress.

But that's not why I'm in a strange mood.

Anyway, at about this time WomanRepellant came in and joined me at the bar. I talked to him for a couple of hours. I had myself a yummy Koningshoeven Quadrupel Trappist Ale (71) and then a Guinness (1291). I texted NotHideousGirl a couple of times, to no avail. I sent an email to RockGirl. Then I came home.

I'm still in a strange mood.

Sunday, November 12, 2006
posted by dave at 11:53 PM in category drink, general, pictures

Tonight, for a change of pace, I had a beer. This was the fourth bottle that I took to BadPickleGirl's house on Friday. We didn't get to it then, so I got to it tonight.

Bluegrass Mephistopheles Metamorphosis (25)

(bottle) No foam at all. I mean none. I've seen tap water with a bigger head. Other than that, poured a slightly hazy orange. Taste was, as expected, fairly flat and generic. Yeasty and bland in flavor, this beer did grow on me as time went by. I'd love to try this in draft form someday. Maybe there'll be some fizz then.
Meanwhile, I sit here with three ideas for blog entries. All of them good ideas, but none of them exciting enough that I'm going to start typing them up now.

I think, instead of trying to tackle any of my new entry ideas, I think I'll just quote from my friend NotHideousGirl's blog:

Dave Siltz is the weirdest normal person I know, and I love him for it.
So, isn't that just the sweetest thing?

In response to that, I'll say this:

Kat is the most beautiful girl I know, who doesn't act like she's beautiful, and I love her for it.
Also, today I didn't talk to BadPickleGirl at all, and that bothered me a little. Uh oh.

Finally, my sister Neisha accused me the other day of killing and eating my cat Nugget, since she hasn't seen him in years and years. As proof that Nugget still lives, I present this picture (taken tonight) of him in all his fatness, along with the scratching post that he's slowly but surely shredding to bits:

hail his fatness

posted by dave at 1:10 PM in category drink

This will probably be a long entry. It will probably also be boring. But a lot of stuff happened that I want to record.

Today is the eighth anniversary of my dad's death and, since Indiana bars are closed on Sundays, I went last night. I went to this little dive called The Hitching Post where Dad used to hang out so I could have a Falls City beer in remembrance.

I walked into the place at about 7:30. There was one guy slumped over the bar, and one bartender smoking a cigarette and watching a football game on TV. She looked at me when I came in and asked, "Falls City, right?"

I was pretty fucking impressed that she remembered me from a year ago, when I'd come in for the same reason.

So I had my Falls City (36) straight out of the can, the way Dad would drink it. It was pretty gross, but that wasn't the point. I didn't really get a chance to see if I could pick up any vibes from Dad because the bartender kept talking to me about her dad being in the hospital.

I left after that one beer.

BadPickleGirl had been telling me about this little diner in New Albany that I should go to. She said I'd be sure to get good ideas for blog content. Well I drove past the place, but I didn't go in. I'll go there someday with BadPickleGirl if she wants.

After a quick meal at Wendy's, I got to Rich O's at 8:30 or so.

The first several minutes were pretty chaotic.

When I arrived I went straight to the restroom. There was a pretty girl who looked very familiar sitting in the front area.

There were also a bunch of special people holding some kind of special people function in the special people area.

After purging the last of the Falls City from my system, I attempted to walk through the front area to get into Rich O's proper. I tried to get a better look at the pretty girl, but this one chick from work saw me and screamed out my name.

I gave her a nod and continued walking, but another girl saw me and screamed out my name and jumped up and threw herself at me.

It was CanadianGirl! She used to work at my company up until a couple of years ago. Now she lives in Omaha. She's back for a visit.

So I'm standing there talking to CanadianGirl and I realized who the pretty girl was. She also used to work at my company. I think she moved to Columbus. She used to be CanadianGirl's boss. So that mystery was solved.

So I'm still standing there talking to CanadianGirl and I feel a tap on my shoulder. I turned to see LuckyFucker and HatGirl making their way around me and going into Rich O's proper. I called out that I'd be in there with them shortly.

So I'm still standing there talking to CanadianGirl and I feel another tap on my shoulder. I turned around to see MisunderstoodGirl. Yay! I talked to her for a good minute or two. I asked her if she knew how to get in touch with SassyBoy. My thinking was that maybe I could call SassyBoy and see if he'd heard anything from SassyGirl since she fled the country. Well MisunderstoodGirl didn't know SassyBoy's number but she had heard through various channels that SassyGirl and JauntyGirl were doing just fine traveling around Europe. So that was a load off my mind as I'd been getting a little worried about those two.

Then I went back to talking to CanadianGirl for a minute or two. I guess she doesn't like Omaha as much as I'd liked it when I lived there. Her boyfriend and her aren't together anymore. This was her first visit back to Rich O's since she moved.

So I was standing there talking with CanadianGirl and I heard a "Hello Dave" from behind me. It was CoffeeDude making his way into Rich O's proper. I quickly excused myself from CanadianGirls grasp and followed him in. I needed to make sure that, if CoffeeDude was going to run HatGirl off with his "witty" comments again, that I at least got to spend some time with her first.

I always say, timing is everything.

Inside Rich O's proper, HatGirl was on the phone. I could tell that something bad was happening, and I was really afraid that she was going to cry. There was no way I'd be able to deal with seeing HatGirl cry, so I left her in LuckyFucker's care and went up to the bar to order my beer.

I ordered myself a yummy Gulden Draak (247)

I went and sat on the loveseat. HatGirl had gone off to the restroom or outside to finish her phone call or something. LuckyFucker said that HatGirl had been in a good mood, but that she'd suddenly developed a shitty mood. He filled me in on the reason for the change. I half-expected HatGirl and LuckyFucker to just leave, but they didn't. When HatGirl came back in, she was at least smiling.

HatGirl!

Yay!

After the chaos of those first five minutes, the rest of the night was rather uneventful. The place was packed with strangers. I did my best to just sit and talk with HatGirl and LuckyFucker, but I was accosted by CanadianGirl a few times, and by CoffeeDude a few times, and by that one chick from work a few times. My mission for the night was to do my best to keep HatGirl from crying. I did my part by making sure that CoffeeDude was kept so busy with other conversations that he wouldn't feel the need to jump into ours and say something inappropriate.

At about the time I ordered my third beer of the night, a Smithwick's (1368), this one dude sitting at the end of the sofa decided to take the picture of me and SassyGirl down. Why did he do this? I have no idea. But after about an hour of trying to get it back on the wall, he gave up and they ended up hanging it up in another location. The new location is directly above the throne. It looks better there. HatGirl took a picture of it in its new location but I have yet to figure out how to get the picture out of my blackberry. If I figure it out I'll insert it here.

At 10:30 or so, the group of current and former coworkers left for greener pastures. I was groped a few more times by CanadianGirl. She's always been a very friendly drunk.

And, just like that, the place was quiet.

I had another Smithwick's (1388) and talked to HatGirl and LuckyFucker for a few more minutes before they went home.

I spent a few minutes talking with CoffeeDude, then I came home myself at 12:30 or so.

Saturday, November 11, 2006
posted by dave at 3:17 PM in category daily, drink

I arrived at BadPickleGirl's house promptly at 8:45. This was quite an amazing feat because I was sure I was lost. I'd written down directions, and at one point I'd written one-tenth mile. This was clearly an error as the actual distance was a thousaand million bazillion miles.

I did my best to look casual as I walked up to the door. I guess I did okay because she waved me in.

After a few niceties, we got down to business.

Unibroue La Terrible

(bottle) Very dark, almost black. A smallish head that faded almost instantly. It had a very dry aroma and flavor. More like wood than the fruit I'd been expecting. A very good beer though. It certainly didn't taste like it was 10.5% ABV.
BadPickleGirl had chosen that bottle to be first because of the bottle. That's the same reason I'd bought the beer in the first place. It's a very attractive bottle which has defied all attempts to be photographed.

The next bottle was another new one for me:

Duinen Tripel

(bottle) Slightly hazy orange. Quite fizzy in both aroma and flavor. Hints of apples, expected for the style, but the fizz was the predominate characteristic. Reminiscent of champagne. Good, but not great.
Of the four bottles I'd brought with me, three were strangers. I had, however, brought one ringer. A beer that I discovered a few weeks ago but one that I hadn't gotten around to reviewing yet. I think that, by the time the Duinen was gone, BadPickleGirl and I both knew that the third bottle would be the last. So I chose the one that I knew was yummy.

Koningshoeven Quadrupel Trappist Ale

(bottle) Cloudy dark red. An intense fruit aroma, with a mixture of dark cherries and apples and citrus. Easily one of the best beers I've ever had. Fucking yummy.
As it turned out, we didn't finish that bottle. We got about halfway through it and BadPickleGirl moved over to her other couch and stretched out. I believe that her exact words were, "That last beer sent me into Led Zeppelin oblivion."

Well, seeing her stretched out on the couch threatened to sent me into another sort of oblivion. So there.

But I'm a gentleman, so instead of sitting and staring, I spent some time trying to cram the cork back into that last bottle, then I put it in her fridge. Then I gave BadPickleGirl a hug, thanked her for the lovely evening, and came home at about 1:00.

This morning, RockGirl put bait on her breath and sent me an How was the date? email. My response, in part, was as follows:

There was no slaking. We just sat and talked and drank some bottles of Belgian beers. I got to know her a little better, which is what I really wanted to do. She's nice.

Sunday, October 29, 2006
posted by dave at 4:23 PM in category daily, drink

Yesterday, I went driving.

First, I went to get my oil changed in my truck.

Then I went out to my sister's house to see her new kitten.

Then I hit the road.

After about six hours of driving, I ended up in downtown Louisville. A mere five miles from my home. I obviously took the scenic route.

So at a little after 7:00 I was sitting in this place called The Dark Star and I was eating a yummy cheeseburger and drinking a yummy BBC Jefferson's Reserve Bourbon Barrel Stout (314), and the cast of all the Batman movies walked in.

There was Batman, and Catwoman, and The Joker, and Two-Face, and some harlequin chick that I guess was one of the Joker's henchmen.

Catwoman and the harlequin chick were hot. All of the costumes were great.

After I'd finished my meal and my beer I walked up the street to The Pub and had a couple of Newcastles (2626) and I wrote down all of the costumes that I saw. You should be aware that some of these might not have been actual costumes. Those characters marked with an * are the ones that might have been real:

  • The Blues Brothers

  • Pirate

  • Stupid Hairstyle Guy *

  • Active Herpes Outbreak Girl *

  • Joe Dirt

  • Kermit (or, Green Tights Dude with Frog-Shaped Tumor On His Head)

  • Terrorist (had a bomb in his turban, how original)

  • Hot Rasta Girl

  • Security Guard *

  • Prostitute *

  • Fireman

  • Hot Pirate Girl

  • Fat Bumblebee Girl

  • Assorted Zombies

  • Living Crocodile Hunter

  • Dead Crocodile Hunter

  • Nacho Libre

  • Assorted Faeries

  • Stick Up Her Ass Girl *

  • Cute Devil Girl (my waitress)

  • Rambette (like Rambo but a girl)

  • Green Dude In A Suit (maybe an alien?)

  • Vampire Couple

  • World's Gayest Guy *

  • Assorted Sexy Nurses

  • World's Ugliest Cheerleader

  • Goth Girl

  • Orange Pants Faggot *

  • Joe Dirt (another one)

  • Fatass Ex-Jock Guy *

  • Assorted Evil Clowns

  • Assorted Non-Evil Clowns

  • Striped Shirt Girl

  • Skinhead Punks *

  • Gay Black Uncle Sam (his description)

  • Really Tall Skull Dude

  • Little Miss Muffet

  • Bloody Surgeon

  • Hot Navy Girl

  • Hot Army Girl

  • Hot Burkha Girl

  • Assorted Cute Princesses

At 10:00 or so, my phone vibrated.

HatGirl!

Yay!

They were at Rich O's.

So I went there. Out on the street there were a gazillion more people in costumes, but I didn't stop to write any of them down or I'd still be writing.

Oh yeah, I'd talked to this one zombie at The Pub and he gave me a beer shirt and a free glass to give to HatGirl. I had to lie and say that they were for my girlfriend, but the sheer joy in HatGirl's eyes when I gave her those gifts - well it was certainly worth a little fib.

When I got to Rich O's I got to sit on the throne because TallLady had just left. I knew this because I'd talked to her in the parking lot. There were some girls I didn't recognize scattered around the living room. They might have been cute but I wouldn't know because HatGirl was at the kiddie table.

Yay!

I had myself a Diet Coke and talked to HatGirl and LuckyFucker for a while. I got NotHideousGirl's phone number from HatGirl, but it might have been a fake number because I sent a test text message and I've recieved no response.

Then after HatGirl and LuckyFucker left I talked to WomanRepellant for a while.

Then I came home.

Saturday, October 28, 2006
posted by dave at 11:20 AM in category drink

8:00
I haven't cheated on a entry like this in a while. By taking notes. Tonight seems like it's going to be one of those nights though. Boring and irritating and disappointing.

I got here about 15 minutes ago. There are fuckers sitting and eating in the living room, but I had to sit with them for a bit because there were no other seats available. Now I'm at the kiddie table - the people who'd been here left for a table out front. Good riddance.

I'm having a Rogue Smoke (460) and I'm already regretting coming here tonight.

8:05
I hope this fat fucker leaves the bar so I can move up there. I hate this little table. That picture of me and SassyGirl is right in front of me, reminding me of all of the people who don't come in here anymore. Plus the ghost never sits at this table with me.

8:10
There are three semi-hot girls sitting at the island. I bet if I drink enough I can promote them to fully-hot.

8:17
I managed to stay awake through HatGirl's ringer, and I left a message.

8:23
This is stupid. What am I doing here?

8:26
I think these fuckers might be leaving!

8:32
Nope. They ordered another round. I hate them.

8:40
I hate this fat fucker at the bar too.

8:42
Oh fucking boy, that one shithead is here now. I hate him as well.

8:43
I think I hate most people tonight.

8:45
Damn, it just got crowded in here!

8:46
Notice how I haven't used any variant of the word fuck in four minutes? I must be slipping.

8:49
Another Rogue Smoke (480). Yummy.

8:51
That one shithead started talking the second he walked into the room. I predict that he will shut up no earlier than 11:00.

8:56
The guy finally left the bar. Yay! I'm moving up there.

9:00
I have drunk-texted BadPickleGirl.

9:08
Piss time.

9:14
I never said it was a good idea, I just said it was different.

9:29
This is a shitty night. No responses to anything. And, for those keeping score at home, that shithead has not closed his mouth even once.

9:36
This one dude is pissing me off, carrying on like he didn't just throw something wonderful away.

9:44
This was a waste of time. I'm outta here.

9:56
I'm at this Mac's place that I don't like. I'd thought that NotHideousGirl might be here, but she's not. This place sucks.

9:57
I'm having a Newcastle (2602).

10:00
They're having a Halloween party here tonight.

10:04
You know who I hate? Whores, that's who.

10:08
There are three hot girls with spray-on pants standing right in front of me. Maybe my life isn't so bad after all.

10:12
Piss time.

10:25
They're starting karaoke now. It might be entertaining.

10:28
You ever think of a million reasons why something is a bad idea, but you don't care? I'm doing it right now.

10:37
Piss time. That's not the bad idea though.

10:39
A bunch of weirdoes have joined me at my table.

10:44
Having another Newcastle (2618).

10:47
This Pocahontas chick is an awesome singer!

11:30
I've been talking to Pocahontas. She's nice. Finally, the night doesn't feel as much like a total waste.

Sunday, October 22, 2006
posted by dave at 7:49 AM in category drink

After Friday's um, interesting scenery, Saturday was back to the same old same old at Rich O's.

Strangers and weirdoes. Assholes and idiots.

They were having some kind of fancy music thingy in the special people area, and society's elite took advantage of the opportunity to look down on us beer-drinking trolls. So that was fun.

When I arrived, a little before 8:00, It was pretty crowded. I didn't know anyone except at the island, which was full of regulars. But since it was full I had to sit on the loveseat and get gawked at by a couple of weirdoes who were sitting on the sofa.

I had a yummy Rogue Smoke (370).

After about a million years, during which absolutely nothing happened, some assholes came and sat with us in the living room area. Luckily a space had opened up at the island by then, so I picked up my shit and moved over there.

I had another Rogue Smoke (390).

I spent the rest of the night emailing RockGirl and talking with MusicalHippyDude. I tried to call HatGirl, to she what she was doing, but I fell asleep during the epic masterpiece that she uses instead of a ringer on her phone. Oh well. I would have called NotHideousGirl but I don't have her number on my new Blackberry. Oh well.

Let's see. I heard an interesting story about SuperShitHead which further confirmed the appropriateness of that particular nickname. I talked to one of the PBD ladies about this secret school for smart kids. MusicalHippyDude told me that I had "The gift of pen" which I decided to take as a compliment.

After several million more years during which nothing happened, I went to White Castle and then came home.

And now it's 7:45 in the morning and I have to work for another hour or so.

Yippee.

Saturday, October 21, 2006
posted by dave at 5:32 PM in category drink

(continued from here)

Okay, I've decided on new nicknames for HotGirl and HotGirlsHotCousin. They shall now be known as BadPickleGirl and ForkGirl, respectively.

I suppose that every silver cloud has a dark lining. At least they do in my experience. But as I'm sure that nobody who'd ever read this would be able to summon even the tiniest smidgeon of pity for me, I'm going to keep this particular observation to myself.

At one point WomanRepellant came in and sat at the island with some PBDs. It turned out that ForkGirl knows him from like twenty years ago. Small world. So she went up to talk to WomanRepellant and I got to stay with BadPickleGirl. Courtesy might have required me to take advantage of some of the empty space that was then available on the sofa, but I wasn't going to move - I was going to make BadPickleGirl ask me to move.

She never did.

So there.

I found myself being irritated with my hands and arms. It was like I'd just got them on sale or something and they weren't quite under my control yet. So I kept my hands clasped together in my lap to keep them from doing anything stupid.

ForkGirl and WomanRepellant came back and joined us at about the time that I talked BadPickleGirl into trying a Rogue Smoke. She claimed to like it okay. It's always surprising to me when a VP likes a smoked beer. I had a half-pint (350) myself.

Let's see, BadPickleGirl told me a line to use if I ever again find myself in a situation like last weekend where I need to get away but I still want to maintain some dignity.

What I have to do is look the other person in the eyes and say, "I'm sorry, but I have to go take a shit."

The beauty of this line is that it's very unlikely that anyone will ever argue with it. So you can get away cleanly. Oh, and you can also go take a shit if you feel like it, but you probably shouldn't come back to the other person with proof of the shit. That would be overkill I think.

I think that's about it. One by one, most of the moths gave up and left. MusicalHippyDude came over for a while. Everybody just relaxed. BadPickleGirl and I waited for a million years or so while ForkGirl finished her beer.

Or maybe it just evaporated - it was hard to tell. But at any rate it was eventually gone, so we all left. I got a big kick out of the remaining moths and their last-ditch efforts.

posted by dave at 12:02 PM in category drink

I need to make up a couple of nicknames. I'm drawing a bit of a blank though. Maybe I should let them pick their own nicknames, if I ever see them again. For now, I'm going to go with HotGirl and HotGirlsHotCousin. Not very creative, but descriptive.

Friday I left work a little early so I could go buy some booze for HotGirl. I was buying some top-shelf tequila so I went to this Party Mart place because it has a huge selection. Even though I was there for tequila, I went straight to the beer section.

I ended up buying about $100 worth of Belgian beers, most of which I've never heard of, before I even got close to the tequila section.

So that gives me something to look forward to on the dark and lonely Winter nights.

The deal was that I was supposed to meet HotGirl and her cousin at Rich O's. After a quick meal at Wendy's I got to Rich O's a little before 5:00.

It was a typical after-work crowd except for one chick who I suspected might be HotGirlsHotCousin. She was at the bar fending off potential suitors. I sat in the throne and ordered a Rogue Smoke (320) which is finally back on tap after being in the bullpen for a million years or so. The damn hopheads and their damn hoppy beers had all the taps used up.

After a while, HotGirl called me to tell me that she was running late. She also said that her cousin might already be there. Since I'd already suspected that, I hollered out "HotGirlsHotCousin?!?" into the crowd. Sure enough, the chick at the bar turned around and it was indeed her. She came over and sat on the loveseat and we talked and got to know each other a little before HotGirl arrived. She described herself as being "just like SpoonsGirl" - SpoonsGirl being a mutual friend.

When HotGirl arrived she was, as promised, wearing her DaveFest Shirt. That's still so damn surreal. I highly recommend that everyone reading this have their own beer festival and have t-shirts made. It's beyond cool.

For a while I sat on the throne and HotGirl sat on the sofa and HotGirlsHotCousin sat on the loveseat and a few random guys had been drawn moth-like to the area and were scattered about. At one point I returned from the restroom and HotGirlsHotCousin had taken the throne. This will hereafter be known as The Greatest Thing That Ever Happened Up To That Point. So I sat on the sofa between HotGirl and one of the moths.

This was probably about when I had a second Rogue Smoke (340).

I talked with HotGirl and HotGirlsHotCousin and had quite an enjoyable time watching the moths beat themselves senseless. I switched to Diet Coke for a while because I'm a lightweight, then I had a Smithwick's (1292).

There was much jostling of position as the moths tried to get as close as they could without getting burned. At one point during the jostling HotGirlsHotCousin moved over to my left side. This will hereafter be known as The Greatest Thing That Ever Happened Period as it left me squeezed in between two of the prettiest girls to ever set foot in Rich O's. It was totally a Dave sandwich.

There were pictures taken, so there is proof of this, but I doubt that I'll be posting said pics here because I somehow managed to look fat and stoned in every one of them.

I was so not stoned.

(to be continued)

Thursday, October 19, 2006
posted by dave at 1:04 AM in category drink, ramblings

This entry brought to you by two fucking yummy bottles of fucking yummy Gulden Draak (237).

This is pretty long, but it's not drivel.

Do whatever you want with that information. Read it, or not. I'm fucking writing it anyway.

I was sitting in this meeting this morning, listening to this lady drone on and on and on about our personality test scores and how they relate to our happiness and our suitability for certain activities. At one point, the lady was talking about numerical reasoning or some shit like that. As I looked at the big bold numeral 10 on my sheet, and I listened to what the lady was saying about how the higher the score a person had, the happier one would be in a technical line of work, I was suddenly struck by the absurdity of her words.

Her words just didn't ring true to me. They just seemed wrong.

That's not right, I thought. I may work in a technical field, but it's not who I am. It's not what I'm most suited for. It's not what I want to be. It's not what I'm supposed to be.

This whole personality test exercise was supposed to give me insight about myself and how I think and interact with others. It was supposed to be a good thing, for me and for the team I'm part of, and for the company I work for. It was supposed to make me a better worker.

Oops.

I sat there and listened to this lady rattle on about team dynamics and the need for balance and blah blah blah, and I realized that none of it mattered to me. None of it was relevant to me, or to who I am.

I am not a technical person, my resume and training and experience notwithstanding.

I am a writer.

Stop laughing.

I didn't say I was a great writer, or even a particularly good writer. But does a person have to be good at what they're supposed to do, or is it important only that they do it?

The latter, I think.

Anyway, I used to write. I used to write actual meaningful entries. So what if they were only meaningful to me? I enjoyed the writing, and even more, I enjoyed reading what I'd written. To vicariously relive my own life and my own thoughts and my own feelings through my own written words - that's a pleasure that I've enjoyed for as long as I can remember. When I've allowed myself to do it.

I enjoy it, so I'm fucking going to do it right now.

If you don't like it, then stop reading. But, I have to ask, if you don't like it then what are you doing here in the first place?

---

I've written about how it began. The struggle that had been lost before it had even started. The stubborn refusal to accept that there were things inside me that I could not control. The night that I died. How I was reborn into a world of pain.

I've written at length about how it progressed, and about how it stagnated and withered and regained strength. About how it seemed to abandon me in a gray place or on a lonely beach.

I've written about the beginning, and I've written about the middle, but I've never written about the end.

That is something I'm about to change. That is an injustice I'm about to correct.

If you don't want to know, then stop reading. I don't know how I can be any more clear than that.

---

I was sitting on the couch at Rich O's. I'd just arrived a few minutes earlier, and I was still getting settled. My first beer and cigarette of the night had barely been touched. I was talking with UplandWheatDude.

"What's wrong with you?" he asked me.

"Nothing," I replied.

"You seem pissed," he said.

"No, just a little tired I guess," I answered.

"Oh," he said. "I thought you might be pissed because LaptopGirl is in town."

I went numb.

"Oh. Is she in town?" I asked. I wanted to run. I wanted to run and never stop running, but I didn't know where to go.

"Yeah," he answered. "At least, she was in here on Monday."

Twenty seconds later, she walked in the door.

Later that night, in another journal, I wrote this entry:

If I don't write something tonight, I'll probably never forgive myself.

Problem is, I'm not sure what to write.

Anything I write will be inadequate to describe what I'm feeling. Even though I'm feeling nothing, the depths of the nothingness that I feel cannot be expressed in words.

Not by me, anyway.

I had a bad feeling about tonight. This is somewhat normal for me. I'd like to say that tonight, that tonight I felt especially apprehensive, that I knew before I even left my house that tonight would be special. I'd like to say those things, but I won't.

I won't lie to you. Tonight, it was just a regular bad feeling. No better and no worse than all of the other bad feelings I've had every night for almost two years. Just a feeling, a knowledge, a certainty, that I wasn't ready for what might happen. But there was nothing special about tonight. Nothing at all.

I saw you tonight. I saw you tonight for the first time in almost a year. I saw you tonight, and I didn't even know it was you until you turned around and someone pointed you out to me.

We never spoke. We never even looked at each other at the same time, as far as I was able to determine. We simply existed in the same place at the same time.

Strangers.

No, wait. That's not right. Not strangers. Something else.

Something else, because I didn't just carry on as if nothing unusual was happening. I tore my eyes away from you, and I bit my tongue, and I fought back my tears.

Something else, because you didn't fail to see me. You sat five feet away from me, and you ignored me.

I looked at you, when I could. You're a bit heavier now. You're tan has faded. Your hair is shorter. Your smile is as beautiful as ever.

But something was missing. I looked, when I could, and I never did see what I most expected to see. I never did find what I most wanted to find and needed to find.

There were always sparkles before.

Tonight, there weren't any sparkles.

Tonight, there was nothing.

And that's what I'm feeling after seeing your beautiful face again after being denied it for so long. And that's what I'm feeling after hearing your voice after being denied it for so long. And that's what I'm feeling after missing you and needing you and loving you for so long that I can't remember a time when I didn't miss you and love you and need you.

Nothing.

This will change. I'm told that you'll be in town for several weeks. I will not hide from you, so I will see you again. Perhaps, one of these nights, you'll see me. Perhaps you'll acknowledge me. Perhaps you'll speak to me. Perhaps I'll get lucky and die at that moment, while the sound of your sweet voice still reverberates in my head.

Perhaps there'll be sparkles.

I saw her a few more times, before she left. Before she went back to her new life. The one without me. The one where she's happy.

The next time I saw her, I apologized for being such a baby.

The time after that, she sat next to me, because there was no other place to sit, and we talked for a bit. We talked about DaveFest. I told her that I wished she could have been there for it. I told her that I missed her.

The next time I saw her, I wanted to talked to her like we had in the old days. But it wasn't meant to be. There were too many other people, too many complications, too many obstacles. I watched and I waited for an opportunity, but none ever came.

She said goodbye to me while she said goodbye to everyone else. I was incidental. A face in the crowd.

But you know what?

It was okay.

I'd gotten what I needed.

What I wanted, that had fluctuated over the days and weeks and months and years. What I wanted had waxed and waned far more often than the Moon which I used to imagine us sharing ever had. But what I needed, what I needed, that never changed. And what I needed, I was given on a wonderful night in September of 2006.

Fuck all that other stuff. It's too late for any of that. Sometimes I think that it was always too late for any of that. But the thing that I needed, I got.

I got a little piece of that friendship back. Not all of it, for all of it is probably impossible. But I got enough. An inkling of a hint of a suggestion is all I got. But it was enough. Enough to make it all worthwhile.

I once wrote, I just want two more seconds. I believe that I'll be destroyed in those two seconds, but it would be worth it.

When I wrote those words, I meant them. Two seconds would have had to be enough, because I felt that two seconds was all I would ever get. I would not live to see a third second.

Well, things change. Circumstances change. People change.

Tonight, in October of 2006, I still want those two seconds. But tonight, in October of 2006, I don't see them as the poignant and overdue end to a sad story.

Tonight, I see those two seconds as the continuation of a new beginning.

I'm getting my friend back, and that's all that really matters. And the thing is - that's all that's ever really mattered. Every hope and dream that I'd ever had about anything more just muddied the waters and clouded my judgement. Beneath everything else, and towering over everything else, I missed my friend.

---

It's been tough tonight, writing this. To put a label on something brings, after all, a risk of error and exposure. I've been wrong before. More often than not, in fact. I suppose that I could be wrong again, but I don't think so. Not this time.

This time, there is a calmness about me that I haven't felt for a very long time. It's pretty disconcerting. Like I was born in a maelstrom and I'm suddenly facing clear skies for the first time in my life. It's pretty fucking weird is what it is.

This long nightmare is over. What a strange and wonderful and frightening thing that is to say.

The end. What a delightful tragedy those two words are.

Sunday, October 15, 2006
posted by dave at 2:13 PM in category drink

Saturday night was fucked-up.

Saturday night I was fucked-up.

It started out okay. I went out to The BBC. I had a yummy BBC Dark Star Porter (228) and spent some time talking with this one chick that I went out with about five years ago. So that was nice.

Then the text messages started coming in. From HatGirl.

Yay!

NavelGirl wasn't quite as thrilled as I was that I was texting HatGirl. Not that I really cared. There was, after all, a reason why we stopped going out. Besides, it was HatGirl!

After my beer I said that I was going to The Pub at Fourth Street Live in downtown. NavelGirl must not have been too upset about the HatGirl thing because she followed me there, and we had dinner together. After a while she left though, so I was free to text HatGirl to my heart's content.

I had three Newcastles (2566) while I just sat at the bar and vegged out. I was trying to decide whether I wanted to go home or to see if HatGirl was still at Rich O's when this other chick came in.

And that's when things got fucked-up.

I learned some things, I guess. Confirmed some others. Most of what I learned I could have lived without learning, and most of what I confirmed was that I'm an asshole.

I had another Newcastle (2586) while BlondeGirl raked her fingernails across my soul. It was like driving by the scene of a terrible auto accident. I just had to slow down and look at the carnage. Problem was, I was the carnage.

So after a while I just couldn't take it anymore. I told BlondeGirl that I was going to go home and kill myself but instead I went over to The Hard Rock and talked with CoolHairGirl and some dude that works at The Pub. I had a couple pints of Blue Moon (302) and listened to PubDude tell a never-ending series of jokes. Most of them seemed to be funny, but I can't remember any of them as I was getting pretty fucked-up.

I took a cab home because I'm a good citizen and stuff. I'm still an asshole though.

Saturday, October 14, 2006
posted by dave at 1:15 PM in category drink

Last night I was really craving a Newcastle, and I was sitting at home trying to decide where to go for one. Like, I could have gone to The Pub in Louisville - they have the best Newcastle I've ever had - but I wasn't really in the mood for the crowd that's always there. I could have gone to Hooters in Jeffersonville but that was an even longer drive. I was seriously thinking about going down to our local riverboat casino and sitting in the bar there, but then I got a text message from HatGirl.

HatGirl!

Yay!

It seems that they were at Sportstime, which is the sister business to Rich O's. I texted back that I hadn't decided where I was going, but that was a fib. HatGirl was at Sportstime, so I was going there. But, since I wanted to try to preserve my image of casual indifference, I didn't immediately run out the door still naked from my shower and continue running all the way to Sportstime.

I probably should have though.

Because by the time I'd dewrinkled my clothes and gotten dressed and driven to Sportstime, I was too late.

HatGirl was already gone.

Boo!

So I went in Rich O's proper and sat at the kiddie table with MusicalHippieDude. I talked to HatGirl for a bit on the phone and learned that they'd just arrived back at their home. So that sucked.

Rich O's is having their hoppy beer festival, also known as the fuck you Dave festival, so the draft board out front was pretty useless to me. I did see Founder's Red Rye listed though, so I had one of those (120). FutureDude was shocked that I ordered that beer, but I've had it several times before. It's pretty good, in a weird way.

The place was packed with strangers and PBDs - all hop-heads. So I didn't do much except just talk with MusicalHippieDude and WomanRepellant for a while. Eventually I ordered another Founder's but I only drank a little of it (124). I'd decided that my Newcastle craving wasn't going to go away, so I left Rich O's and went to this Mac's place that I don't like. I'd thought that NotHideousGirl might be there doing karaoke or something, but they had a stupid live band so I didn't stay there long enough to look for anyone I knew. I just went to White Castle then came home and shot pool for several hours.

Tuesday, October 10, 2006
posted by dave at 10:30 PM in category daily, drink

After work today I stopped by Rich O's. Mainly to get a pizza, but then they had a new beer for me on tap:

t Smisje Halloween (10)

(draft) Cloudy yellow/orange. A nice head that faded quickly. This is a very citrusy Belgian when it first enters the mouth, but then the pumpkin takes over and coats the mouth with sweetness, then there were some nice spices in the finish. Just yummy. It seemed like it had a high ABV, but its 10.5% still surprised me.
So that was a nice surprise.

Then, then as I was walking out the door Roger (the owner) called out to me.

"What?" I asked.

"I can get Harpoon now," he answered.

My head immediately started swimming. And here's why:

Harpoon Winter Warmer (100)

The web page says cinnamon and nutmeg. I got none of that. What I got was ambrosia. The most unusual beer I've ever had, and it took me a while to pin down what I was experiencing. Copper colored, good lacing, and an actual flower aroma. The flavor was incredibly indescribable, but I'll try anyway. Take a beautiful woman, have her bathe in lilacs and Mr. Bubble. Now perform oral sex on her. That's how good this beer was.
That's the review I wrote of Harpoon Winter Warmer during my trip to Portland Maine in the Spring of 2005.

Then Roger said something about how he's getting Harpoon IPA for this hop festival thingy they're having. It starts this Friday. But I don't care about that. All I could think about was that their Winter beer festival (Saturnalia) is coming up in December. I always look forward to it, but this year it goes beyond that. This year it gives me something to live for, because Harpoon Winter Warmer could be there.

Sunday, October 8, 2006
posted by dave at 11:48 PM in category drink

Astute readers may have noticed that I drink beer from time to time.

Very astute readers may have noticed that I will sometimes put little beer reviews in my journal entries.

Psycho stalkers have probably noticed that all of my beer reviews also appear over here. If you don't believe me, go there now and see for yourself.

I'll wait.

* looks at watch, taps foot, whistles, considers masturbating, balances checking account *

Okay, that's long enough. You were just supposed to look. Not memorize the thing.

There are, as of this writing, 301 entries there. I had planned to make entry number 300 a special one, but it didn't work out that way. I screwed it up last night by trying two new beers. So now I'm at 301 instead of 299, and the special review that I'd wanted to be number 300 will be number 302 instead.

What I did is I combined two of my all-time favorite beers. I am a fucking genius.

Dave's Weffentremens (28)

(mixture) I mixed Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier and Delirium Tremens in the 16.9:11.2 ratio dictated to me by the bottle sizes. Mixing what are perhaps the ultimate representations of German wheat and Belgian strong ales, I'm not quite sure what I was expecting to accomplish. One thing that I definitely wasn't expecting was to create a beer that would make me believe in God. Well, so much for expectations. Way beyond yummy.
Like I said, I am a fucking genius.

posted by dave at 8:19 PM in category drink

In this entry I will, once again, try to be funny in such a way that only one person on Earth will get the joke. But that's okay, because she's the most important person.

But first thing first. After work this week, on two occasions, I had this beer:

Regenboog Guido (20)

(draft) Very good. Cloudy brown color, little head to speak of. Taste of apples that have almost gone sour. There were a couple of other, more subtle flavors. Maybe raisins and honey. I wanted more right away.
Okay.

Last night I got to Rich O's fairly late for me - about 9:30 or so. Before I'd even left my truck I could tell that something special was happening. It was like a tingle that went down my spine. Except it wasn't my spine.

The place was full of hot girls!

By Rich O's standards, anyway. There were at least a half-dozen of girls in various states of hotness scattered around. One in particular, with dreadlocked hair, really got my attention when our eyes met as I walked in. She smiled at me from her seat at the island, and I ended up walking kinda funny to the bar.

My first beer of the night was one of these:

t Smisje Blond (10)

(draft) Cloudy dark urine in appearance. No head to speak of. A very citrusy aroma, but the flavor was quite similar to a German wheat except for the thinner mouthfeel. A decent beer.
After a few minutes the strangers at the other end of the bar left so I slid down there and sent some come hither glances in RastaGirl's direction, but all she would do in response was give me a little smile. So maybe she's shy. Yeah, that must be it.

My second beer was one of these:

Dogfish Head Pumpkin Ale (10)

(draft) Clear bronze. A thin tan head that faded quickly and left nice lacing behind. Besides the unusual (for me) pumpkin flavor, there was a strange bitterness that came and went before the finish. Once my tastebuds had become numb to the bitterness this was a pretty good beer.
For the better part of an hour I just sat at the bar with the ghost and drank my beer. Then some fuckers left the living room so I moved over to the throne.

Right after I sat down another hot girl came in with some gay guy and they sat in the loveseat. I didn't talk to them though because by that time I was in a bit of a mood.

My next beer was one of the aforementioned Guido beers (30).

I spent a lot of my time on the throne trading text messages with RockGirl. LonerBoy came in and sat with me for a while but we didn't talk much.

Then RockGirl told me to grow a pair, so I did, and I went home.

Saturday, October 7, 2006
posted by dave at 12:56 PM in category drink, entertainment

You can find ghosts in the most obscure places.

Especially when you're looking for them.

Last night was, as I wrote yesterday, the occasion of the thing in the place with the people. It was supposed to be a surprise, so I didn't say anything more than that. Well the surprise is over so I have free reign I suppose.

The thing was a comedy show, the place was The Comedy Caravan in Louisville, and the people were my friend Eric, his wife Teri, my sister Dina, her husband Kenny, Eric's brother Todd and his wife, and some people I don't really know - except that one of them may be Dina's only hot friend. The whole deal was because it's Teri's birthday today. Happy Birthday!

I'm pretty sure that it's also my grandmother's birthday today. Happy Birthday!

The show didn't start until 8:00, and I got there early, so I walked across the street to a little bar. A little haunted bar as it turned out. I hadn't recognized the place, but I'd been there before, back near the beginning of the end. Back when I broke through the clouds and caught a glimpse of just how far up I was. How far I had to fall.

Anyway, I had myself a yummy Newcastle (2506) and did a bit of catching up with the ghost of my own innocence. Then I went back across the street to the comedy place. Dina and Kenny were already waiting, and everyone else showed up shortly afterwards.

I hadn't been to the Comedy Caravan since this night, even nearer to the end. I don't suppose things have changed very much. Some of the people were funny, and some of them weren't. I think the highlight of my time there was when I went out to the lobby to have a smoke and got to talk to Dina's hot friend for a while. Talking to pretty women always lifts my spirits. For a while at least.

Oh yeah, I had two bottles of BBC Alt (282) which were a little skunked. It was also very strange to be drinking straight out of the bottle.

After the show was over, I went over to Cumberland Brewing with Eric and Todd and their wives. I had myself a yummy Cumberland Nitro Porter (180) and we all just sat around and talked for a bit. Eric told me a very funny story about his dad, but I won't relay it here because you'd really have to know Paul to see how funny it was.

After my friend left, I moved up to the bar and had another Nitro Porter (200) and thought about the times I'd gone to that place with MixedSignalGirl and SassyGirl.

Speaking of SassyGirl, nobody has had any word from her and JauntyGirl since they left. So that sucks.

After I left Cumberland, I stopped by Rich O's for a second, then I went to White Castle and came home and watched the new X-Men movie.

Monday, October 2, 2006
posted by dave at 11:45 PM in category drink

So after my sole reason for even being in the place left in an understandable huff, I left Rich O's myself and went out to the BBC or Bluegrass Brewery or whatever the fuck it's called. There are two of the places, and they used to be the same company but now they're not and nobody fucking cares because we all have enough drama in our lives without our bars getting into the act. Anyway, I went to the one way out in East Louisville because they have hot girls there.

I had two main reasons for going to the BBC - besides the hot girls. The first was the yummy BBC Alt (258) that I'd had at Rich O's. I'd actually ordered a BBC Dark Star Porter but oh well. The second reason was the yummy BBC Dark Star Porter I had at Rich O's (188). Both of these beers are among my favorites, and Rich O's only had them in bottled form. I wanted drafts. So I went.

It was, as usual, quite crowded there, but I found myself a seat at the bar and had myself a Dark Star (208).

Do any of you remember that one stalker guy that followed me from the BBC to Rich O's a while ago?

That same fucker was at the BBC again. I don't think he saw me though. Whew!

Next I was going to have a BBC Alt but they'd just blown the keg or something so instead I left and went to The Pub in downtown Louisville.

While I was there I had a couple pints of yummy Newcastle (2492) and I talked to some uberhot girls who were there for a bachelorette party. So that was fun until one of the girls asked me why I was in a bad mood and I said that men are insensitive pigs who only think about one thing and that started all of the girls agreeing with me a little too enthusiastically. Plus they wanted me to do shots with them and none of them were Holly so I declined. At one point I realized that I was surrounded by estrogen so I left the girls and went down the street to this Sully's place and had a Diet Coke.

Then I came home at around 1:30.

Saturday, September 30, 2006
posted by dave at 11:41 AM in category drink

I think I must be weird or something. I think this because I realized yesterday afternoon that I actually like getting my teeth cleaned. I like the picking, and the scraping, and I even like the polish thingy.

Anyway, after my dentist appointment I took a nap, then at around 8:30 I went to Rich O's.

The place was completely packed with strangers and assholes, so I turned around and left immediately. I stood out in the parking lot and tried to decide what I should do. I could just go back home because I was pretty tired after all. I could go over to The Pub in Louisville and have some of their yummy Newcastle. I briefly considered then dismissed the idea of going to The BBC for some of their yummy porter.

In the end, all of those options seemed like too much trouble, plus my sister had told me that she might come to Rich O's, so I went back in.

For a while I just stood at the end of the bar and had Smithwick's (1172), then some strangers left the bar so I sat there and had another Smithwick's (1192).

I talked to no corporeal beings all night, even when people would come up to me I did my best to shoo them away. It was not a night for socializing.

My last two beers were in the form of bottled Newcastle (2452.) Both were absolutely yummy.

In retrospect, I should have just stayed home last night. The entire night was a waste. Even the ghost couldn't bring me out of my funk.

Sunday, September 24, 2006
posted by dave at 11:13 AM in category comics, drink

8:55
It's pretty dead here. There are about 10 strangers, including a bunch of beatniks in the living room. Some dipshit is in my favorite seat at the bar, so I'm sitting at the island. My beer: A bottle of Avery The Reverend. That's right, a rematch from last night.

9:00
There are strangers working tonight. The regulars are all at some wedding.

9:02
All three of those beatnik girls are hot.

9:05
CuteBartender just stopped and talked to me some. She's cute as a bug. Oh yeah, CuteBartender is working tonight, so it's not all strangers.

9:12
I think the two blonde beatnik girls are twins. Mmmmmm, hot twins.

9:18
These idiots behind me are talking about how the Rich O's in Nashville is better because you can get burgers there. News Flash: There's only one Rich O's, and you're sitting in it. You dumbasses.

9:19
Burgers would be cool though.

9:21
That brunette beatnik girl is smoldering hot. She looks like HatGirl, except slutty.

9:25
Reverend, your name tries to mask your true nature, but I am not fooled. Tonight, I am ready. Tonight, you will be defeated.

9:27
I wonder what SassyGirl is doing right now. (checking watch, calculating time difference) Probably sleeping. She wouldn't think any of these beatnik girls are hot. She never liked any of the girls I liked.

9:28
I miss SassyGirl.

9:37
These temporary bartenders have an annoying habit of looking at me all the time. I am not, as I've already stated, a piece of meat.

9:39
This dingbat behind me just asked me why the red room is called the red room. I told her that it might have something to do with the wall that's painted red, but that my money was on the 11,000 pieces of Communist memorabilia on the walls.

9:40
Piss time.

9:42
The ghost is here.

9:55
The ghost is leaving.

10:00
There a surprise party in the red room now. I'm picking up my shit and moving to the bar.

10:03
The beatniks are leaving.

10:06
Who the fuck was that?

10:07
There's a chick with a laptop, not LaptopGirl, pretty much the opposite of LaptopGirl in fact, and her laptop's screen is way too bright. It's filling the room with an eerie glow. It looks like aliens are invading.

10:15
ArtistGuy just came in. He's fucking plastered. Or exhausted. I'm betting on plastered.

10:20
CuteBartender won't take that bet.

10:21
And The Reverend (180) is down! Dave wins! Dave wins!

10:22
I order a Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier (1547).

10:40
I've been talking to the dipshit. He's pretty cool. He was going to buy a DaveFest shirt but I'm out of his size.

10:45
They're perfect, I bet. Firm and perky and just the right size.

10:47
Piss time.

11:00
nothing personal though

11:15
I order a Schlenkerla Rauchbier Weizen (52).

11:27
The wedding party has arrived.

Saturday, September 23, 2006
posted by dave at 6:40 PM in category drink, weather

I suppose I should write my Friday report, before I'm washed to my doom in this flooding.

(DISCLAIMER: I know that some people have real floods to deal with. Some people lose everything they own, even their lives, to flooding. But I don't know any of those people, so it's okay.)

When I left my house to go to Rich O's last night it was pouring down rain.

I got there at about 8:00 I think. Doesn't really matter. The place was fucking packed. I ordered a Bell's Kalamazoo Stout (470) and sat at the island with some people I know and some people I don't know.

After a while, the voice of one of the people I don't know started slicing through my skull and vibrating all of my brain cells into mush, so I grabbed my shit and moved to the bar. It was either that or murder her.

And there I sat.

At the bar, I spent most of my time talking to the ghost. It was nice to see her again. I also texted RockGirl and I also talked to some stranger who was sitting at the other end of the bar.

The Bells's wasn't tasting very good. Probably my fault. So I ordered a bottle of Avery The Reverend.

And then I sat some more. I was really enjoying the solitude. Really. I sorta wished that I'd brought my notebook though. I could have written down the conversation that I had with the ghost.

Well The Reverend turned out to be too much for me and my semi-empty stomach, so I didn't quite finish the bottle (158).

When I left Rich O's it was pouring down rain. When I got home there was water seeping into my basement. It sucked. It still sucks.

Anyway, I was bored so I was going to go to this Korner Kitchen bar near my house but NotHideousGirl texted me so I went to see her instead. I went to this Mac's place that I don't like and I drank about a million Diet Cokes and talked to NotHideousGirl until they closed the place down at 3:00 and kicked us out.

On the way home (again) it was still fucking pouring down rain.

The main road to my house was blocked because of flooding, so I took the alternate road. That road featured about a dozen telephone poles in various states of scatteredness. These were I guess new poles that somebody had stashed somewhere so they'd be available when it came time to install them.

Brilliant plan, asshole.

The first pole I encountered was completely blocking the road, but I was able to shift into 4WD and drive through the ditch next to the road. Then there was a truck coming my way so I waved to get him to stop and told him about the pole. He told me that there were a dozen more poles waiting for me in the direction I was heading.

Yippee!

Most of these poles were not completely blocking the road so I could just drive around them. But one of them, the last one in fact, lay across the road at a point where there was no way to go around.

So I shifted back into 4WD, and drove right over the fucker.

That was pretty cool.

So I made it home and spent some time sucking water off of my basement floor with my shop vac.

When I went to bed it was still pouring down rain.

As I write this it's pouring down rain again.

I think I saw an ark go by earlier.

Sunday, September 17, 2006
posted by dave at 10:11 AM in category drink

The other day after work I had a beer that was new to me:

Rogue Imperial Porter

(draft) Pretty good. This reminded me of Bell's Kalamazoo Stout more than anything else. A slight slant toward the coffee side of the flavor spectrum as opposed to the chocolate side. The fairly high ABV is very well hidden.
Now that that's out of the way...

Friday night was SassyGirl's going-away party. After an after-work nap that lasted about an hour longer than I'd wanted it to, I packed up some beer and headed to the boonies.

Parties at SassyGirl's have always consisted of two or three people that I know and a bunch of strangers. It's a lot like Rich O's I suppose, except that at these parties the strangers have been screened a little better.

To drink, I had two bottles of yummy Rogue Chocolate Stout (1050) and two yummy bottles of Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier (1497). Not all at the same time though. I stretched them out for several hours.

It was a very subdued affair as parties go. There was some drama fairly late that made everyone feel uncomfortable, and so I came home a little after 2:00.

Saturday night, because my sister's party was cancelled, I went to Rich O's. SassyGirl and JauntyGirl were there with some of their friends, most notably TrainGirl who I hadn't seen in a long time. So that was cool.

I sat in the throne and had a pint of the aforementioned Rogue Imperial Porter (40).

Then there was more drama. SassyGirl almost got herself 86ed from the place, on her last night, by carrying a lit cigarette through the nonsmoking section. It's a good thing nobody died.

At some point I had another Rogue (60).

Once the girls had left some PBDs came over and sat with me in the living room area. One of them told me that I'm in trouble for offending someone with one of my comics. My response is basically don't look if you don't like it.

I was going to have another Rogue, but it's pretty strong (7.77%) so I only drank half (70) and I gave the rest to CoffeeDude.

I stopped on the way home at this little bar to see if VigilanteGirl was there, but she wasn't. I ended up staying and having a bottle of slightly skunked Newcastle.

This morning I'm just incredibly hung-over.

Tuesday, September 12, 2006
posted by dave at 11:54 PM in category daily, drink

Found out yesterday morning that I'm on-call this week. This sucks extra hard because (a) SassyGirl's going away party is Friday night, and (b) My sister is having a party on Saturday.

I absolutely will not miss SassyGirl's party, and my sister may kill me if I miss yet another one of her parties, so I've pleaded with my coworkers to trade some on-call days and cover for me from Friday evening until Sunday morning. No response yet.

There is absolutely nothing else going on. There probably should be, but there isn't.

I went to Rich O's after work yesterday, and had an NABC Artemsia (300). I also managed to put myself into one of the best moods I've felt in a very long time. I was able, for a half hour or so, to forget that the last two years ever happened. It was nice.

Then today I went after work to see SassyGirl. I had a Smithwick's (1152).

This is boring.

Sunday, September 10, 2006
posted by dave at 11:26 AM in category drink, pictures, travel

Man I'm so behind on these things. But I don't feel like writing so I'm just going to rush through this.

---

On Tuesday, I went to Rich O's to see SassyGirl and JauntyGirl. This could be the last time I get to see them in that place, so it was kind of bittersweet for me. I took a picture to remember them by.

SassyGirl and JauntyGirl

To drink, I had myself three glasses of Delirium Tremens (712).

After the girls left I stuck around and talked to CoffeeDude for quite a while. I think I bored him with my stories, but at least we didn't talk about coffee. I also tried to get MixedSignalGirl (yes, we're talking again) to come but we got into a fight instead.

---

Wednesday night, I was in Broomfield Colorado. There was a brewpub right next to my hotel. I think it was called CB & Potts, but it was the Big horn Brewery too. Or maybe Ram brewing. It was quite confusing.

Anyway, I had myself a yummy steak dinner, and with it I had a couple of beers:

Big Horn Hefeweizen (20)

(draft) Served in a glass that was way too cold. There were ice crystals in the beer. Once it had thawed out a little, this was a pretty good beer. Very much a German-style wheat, but with the tiniest little bite of hops in the finish. I liked it.
For my next beer, I asked the girl to thaw me a glass out ahead of time.

Big Horn Total Disorder Porter (20)

(draft) Very nice. Chocolately and roasty and malty. If this was available near my home it would be one of my favorite beers.
After that I went to this place who's name escapes me. I'd gone in there earlier to see what they had on tap, and the hot bartender had told me to come back after I'd eaten, so I did.

While I was there I talked to the hot bartender and I had several phone conversations with MixedSignalGirl. To drink, I had a 24-ounce glass of Fat Tire (403) and then a regular 16-ounce glass of Newcastle (2348). Then I ordered some chicken tenders and went back to the hotel.

---

Thursday I didn't drink anything. I didn't do anything except go to class and then read a book in my room.

---

Friday I didn't drink anything. All I did was check my email every 10 seconds and try to avoid having a total meltdown.

---

Saturday I flew back home.

After a nice meal at the haunted Burger King, I went to Rich O's and got there at about 8:00. I waved at MusicalHippyDude and GlassesGirl who were sitting at the island, and I sat in the throne and talked to a couple that seemed to know me. I will now christen then Scarecrow and HopGirl.

I had a Delirium Tremens (722).

After a while everybody around me started talking about boring stuff so I moved up to the island. This was about the time I had another Delirium Tremens (732).

Then those people started talking about boring stuff. I realized that I was just bored and that it had nothing to do with anyone else. So I texted HatGirl on the off-chance that she'd come to Rich O's.

Well it worked! I got a reply back that they'd be coming in! Yay!

I think that this was about when I ordered my third Delirium Tremens (742).

After a million years, during which I tried somewhat successfully to lure MusicalHippyDude into interesting conversations, HatGirl came in to say "Hi." She and her sister and LuckyFucker were sitting out front. So after a suitable interval I went out to sit with them.

HatGirl!

Yay!

I spent the next hour or two migrating back and forth between the island and the front area.

Sometime during that period I had a fourth Delirium Tremens (752).

After HatGirl and company left I moved back to the island for good. WomanRepellant had snuck in at some point, as had Bubbles and NoNickNameDude. So I finished my beer and talked with them for a while. I also had a couple Diet Cokes to give the beer time to wear off.

I came home at 12:30 or so.

Sunday, September 3, 2006
posted by dave at 10:57 PM in category drink, pictures, ramblings

I feel kind of silly writing this, my Saturday beer report. More than that, I feel a little bit guilty about writing it. 'Cause see, I can't or at least won't write about what was important. And I don't want those things that I do write to take away from the significance of those things that I can't or won't write about.

Did you ever see a shooting star so brilliant that it just took your breath away, and you just stood there watching it blaze across the sky, so awestruck that you forgot to make a wish? Did you ever then realize that you're wish had come true anyway?

Yeah, well me too.

Saturday I needed to get to Rich O's early. It was imperative. There were people that were going to be there and I needed to have suitable seating available.

So I left my house a little before 7:00. I was on my way to the haunted Burger King to get something to eat when HatGirl went zooming by me, honking her horn and giving me a heart attack. HatGirl was one of the people I was supposed to meet at Rich O's. One of the reasons that I needed to be there early. But she called to let me know that she'd be later than expected. Didn't matter though. I still had to find suitable seating. There was another.

I grabbed a quick meal and got to Rich O's at 7:30. There were already strangers in the living room area. Fuck! The island was empty though so I went to sit over there, but I glanced at the bar and saw MisunderstoodGirl. That was a very nice surprise. I sat at the bar and talked with MisunderstoodGirl and QuietDude. I also kept looking behind me to see if the fuckheads would be leaving any time soon. It didn't look good. They seemed to be well entrenched.

My first beer was a Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier (1483). Actually, so were my second and third beers (1523).

After much discussion about such lofty topics as boobs and lesbian mail-order brides, some other stuff happened. This is the part where I shut up for a while.

After that, HatGirl and LuckyFucker came in.

HatGirl!

Yay!

MisunderstoodGirl left, so I moved down one spot and HatGirl and LuckyFucker joined me and QuietDude at the bar. I continued to turn around to check out the living room area. Actually I increased the frequency of this quite a bit. I really really really wanted to move over there.

(Seriously, I really did. The opportunity just never presented itself. I was not afraid.)

But it was not to be. The fuckheads had given their seats to some new arrivals, and so I spent the entire night sitting at the bar.

As the night at Rich O's wore to a close, the living room area did eventually empty out. Not that I cared by that point. I and QuietDude and FutureDude and DooRagGirl all moved over there.

Oh yeah, HatGirl and LuckyFucker had gone, and DooRagGirl had come in. Try to keep up please.

Then they closed Rich O's up. The four of us went over to this Mac's place that I don't like. They had a band that was covering Pink Floyd and AC/DC though, so that was pretty cool. It was quite loud there. I had a Newcastle (2308) and we sat around for an hour or so basically shouting at each other because that was the only way to be heard.

At 2:00 or so, DooRagGirl suggested that we all go to her house where we could hear ourselves think and hear each other talk. I thought that this was a great idea because we'd been talking about her pussy and I'd become obsessed with the idea of getting to pet it.

So we all went over to DooRagGirl and FutureDude's house, and I got to pet her pussy. Several times in fact. I'd heard some scary stories about her pussy but it was really quite nice. You just have to know how to treat them.

Nice pussy

I also got to meet the famous Harry the dog.

I also had another Newcastle (2320).

At about 4:00 or so I left and went to White Castle then came home.

Saturday, September 2, 2006
posted by dave at 1:54 AM in category drink, ramblings

The place was packed. There are three dipshits taking up four spaces at the bar, and there's an old couple eating at the island, and UplandWheatDude is in the living room with some dipshits. I ordered a Delirium Tremens (650) and asked the old people if I could sit with them as long as I promised not to bother them. They agreed, but before I could sit down the living room people invited me to join them. Against my better judgment - such as it is - I went and sat on the loveseat next to some drunk fucker.

After a couple of minutes I picked up my shit and moved back to the island because the various drunk dipshits in the living room kept trying to talk to me.

(Edit: I do not include UplandWheatDude among the annoying dipshits. He's a good guy.)

---

I hope these old people leave before they try to talk to me.

---

These things in my head, these thoughts and memories and inklings - I wonder how many of them are real and how many exist simply to hide the truth. Or to impersonate the truth. I'd like to believe that there's some truth on the surface of me, but sometimes I can't tell. And I've surprised and shocked myself so many times that I don't think I trust myself anymore. It's not the best feeling I've ever had.

---

Fuck I wish these people would leave. They paid their tab 30 minutes ago and they're still sitting there yakking at each other.

(Update: Fucking finally!)

---

Oh shit! I just had an awful idea. What if that one loud bitch is that one dude's new girlfriend? If so, I may vomit.

---

Okay, this was messed up. You need to look at the map I guess.

Map of Rich O's

After the old people left I moved to the spot marked with the "X." A few minutes later, a guy and a girl came in. They sat in the two spots next to me. What made this weird, what made this strange, what made this incredibly fucked up, what totally creeped me out was that - get this - the other side of the island was completely unoccupied! This creeped me out, like I said, and so I picked up my shit and moved back to the living room. Once I got there, people once again tried to talk to me, but that was nothing compared to those two freakazoids sitting right next to me.

About an hour later WomanRepellant came in. I offered him 5 bucks to go sit at the "X" seat. He was going to do it but there was a chick that distracted him and so he ended up sitting across from the freakazoids instead.

---

To write that last section, I took my second Delirium Tremens (660) and moved to the kiddie table. I don't feel like moving back.

---

Some people insist on talking about politics and religion in here. Some people suck. In many cases, these two groups overlap. Coincidence? I think not.

---

FutureDude is funny.

---

Hot girl alert!!!

---

I just figured out why I hate this one fucker. He's a pretentious asshole, but there are a lot of those around. But this guy is also an ass kisser. It's a pretty powerful combination.

---

Oh boy, I get to listen to CoffeeDude tell The Story Of His Home Roaster again.

---

What sucks about tonight is that the place is full of fakers. I find myself painfully aware of SassyGirl's impending departure. She'll join LaptopGirl and Spikeboy in the group of people who used to make this place worthwhile for me, but then moved away or otherwise stopped coming in. HatGirl doesn't come in often enough to make a difference. Neither does DooRagGirl. Once SassyGirl leaves I think that I'll have one friend left here.

---

Sure, there are plenty of people who I like just fine, but none of them are like me. There's something fake about every one of them.

---

Plus, a lot of them are just incredibly stupid.

---

I could probably do another Tremens, but it's Diet Coke time for now.

---

I probably shouldn't say this, but last night was the best night that I've had in a very very very very very long time. Maybe the best night of my life. So there.

---

I am stupid.

---

I wrote that I was stupid because I was 0 for 3 on returned calls tonight. But right after I wrote that HatGirl called me back. So now I'm 1 for 3. I'm still stupid though.

---

Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier is back on tap! I'm ordering one, but I probably won't drink it all (1463).

---

After that, I quit taking notes because HatGirl came in.

HatGirl!

Yay!

It was very nice to see her after so many millions of years. We ended up closing the place down together.

Then I went to White Castle and then I came home.

Friday, September 1, 2006
posted by dave at 12:48 AM in category drink

I bet, if I had any long-term readers left, I bet they'd be pretty pissed at me if they knew what was going on. What I'm keeping from them.

Good thing I managed to bore them all into a coma a long time ago.

---

Since I'm off work for several days, I of course went to Rich O's Thursday night. I'd expected the place to be packed, what with the holiday weekend and all, but it was only about half full. I sat on the throne and ordered a Smithwick's (1152).

Then WomanRepellant came over and pointed out that they had Delirium Tremens on tap.

Yay!

So I ordered one of those (650) and drank it first.

This is the part where I don't say anything.

Finally, I'd had enough "me time" and I went up to the island and listened to WomanRepellant and CoffeeDude and some dude I don't know talk about music for a while. It was boring, but it was better than having more time to think would have been.

At 11:30 or so, even though they were clearly kicking everyone out of the place, I wasn't quite ready to leave, so I had a Diet Coke and listened to some more boring music discussion.

Then I came home.

And this is another part where I keep my fucking mouth shut.

Sunday, August 27, 2006
posted by dave at 12:35 PM in category comics, drink

I keep starting this entry and then abandoning it.

I guess I just don't feel like writing anything.

Saturday was a good night. I got to see a lot of people. I didn't get spit on. I got to drink three pints of NABC Artemsia (250). I got to go to White Castle.

Oh yeah, SpikeBoy came in. Nobody had seen him in like nine months. I guilted him into buying a DaveFest shirt.

it was nice

Tuesday, August 22, 2006
posted by dave at 12:54 PM in category drink, travel

Monday night, after my nap, I took a cab up to The Riviera. I didn't stay very long though. Just long enough to briefly check for anyone I knew. I didn't see anyone, so I took a cab to The Rio.

I took notes.

8:30
There's something about The Rio that feels like home to me. I love walking into this place - it just energizes me. And that goes double for The Tilted Kilt. Even though they seem to have gone insane with remodeling, it's still my favorite place in Las Vegas.

Anyway, the first thing I noticed was that I didn't know the bartender. I'd been hoping that HenpeckedGuy would be working. The second thing I noticed was that PictureGirl was nowhere to be seen. The third thing was that Rogue Dead Guy Ale was on tap, so I ordered one (194).

Lastly, I noticed that Rogue Chocolate Stout was on tap. Yay! So I guess I know what I'll be drinking for the rest of the night.

8:40
PictureGirl doesn't work here anymore. That's probably for the best. Also, HenpeckedGuy will be working here tomorrow night.

8:45
I'm struck by the realization that this is the first time that I've sat in this bar and felt completely safe. There is zero chance of a surprise visit. It's a pretty nice feeling, or at least it would be if I were sane. For me, it's quite dull. This is probably one of the reasons that I've felt so strange about this entire trip. I've achieved safety via isolation, and isolation is something I've never wanted.

8:56
Some dipshit just ordered a black and tan.

8:59
StupidGirl still works here. She smiled at me. I should ask her what happened to PictureGirl. Scratch that - I should ask her no such thing.

9:07
Rogue Chocolate Stout time (858).

9:10
Problem is, I'm still a bit hung-over from lunch.

9:15
I should have stayed at The Riviera longer. It would have been nice to see some people I know.

9:16
In case nobody has ever noticed, that Sharipova girl is hot.

9:20
I wish I was staying here instead of at The Luxor.

9:24
OMG, this fucker next to me just told the bartender that he's not a lightweight so he drinks Bud and not Bud Light. I'm sitting here biting my tongue to keep from laughing in his face.

9:26
He's noticed me grinning, and now he's glaring at me. I may have to beat the shit out of him.

9:42
So instead of getting into a fight with PussyMan, I've been talking to him. He's a Yankees fan. Seems like a decent guy despite his delusions about beer.

9:44
Another Rogue Chocolate Stout (874).

9:46
I like hot girls.

9:48
Stupid people have arrived.

9:55
StupidGirl just offered to give me PictureGirl's phone number. I told her that I was seeing someone. That was, of course, a big fat lie.

10:05
Okay, I compromised. I gave StupidGirl my number.

10:09
Honesty time. I told StupidGirl that I'm not in a relationship, but that I'm taken nonetheless. This confused her. I fear that her brain may explode now.

10:16
She keeps trying to see what I'm writing, but it's none of her business so I'm using my free hand to hide it.

10:17
I told her about the hiding what I'm writing. She asked if it was about her. I said it was. She asked it if was good. I said it was neutral. Her face fell.

10:20
I could probably have sex with StupidGirl if I wanted to, but I don't want to. That's weird.

10:30
I'm going to the Grand Canyon tomorrow morning, and I don't want to be hung-over, so I'm outta here.

---

So I took a cab to New York New York and had a Diet Coke and talked to PonytailGirl while I waited for my chicken tenders to get ready. Then I walked back to my room at The Luxor and ate then slept.

In an hour or so I leave for the Grand Canyon! Yay!

posted by dave at 11:41 AM in category drink, pictures, travel

Monday morning, after I'd won a little bit of money playing video poker, I did some walking around. My plan had been to walk up to The Riviera where there's a pool tournament going on, but I only made it to Caesar's Palace.

I took a bunch of pictures.

Paris Las Vegas is quite photogenic.

paris las vegas

I did another zoom test with my camera. Here's the unzoomed view of New York New York.

nyny

And here's the zoomed view.

nyny zoomed

I think this stained glass dome was inside Paris Las Vegas.

stained glass dome

I took a lot of pictures of fountains. I like fountains.

fountains

I stopped at Planet Hollywood inside Caesar's and this creepy thing was on the wall.

creepy thing

More fountains.

fountains
fountain
cool fountains

These were cooler in person.

more statues
statue chick

Here's the obligatory strip shot taken from just outside New York New York.

obligatory strip shot

The first time I ever came to Las Vegas these talking statues were probably the coolest things in the city. Now they seem kind of cheesy.

talking statues

I really wanted to jump into the water in front of Bellagio.

cool cool water

That's the Rio way out there on the right. It was too far to walk though.

too far to walk

A tower.

tower

For lunch, I had three Smithwick's (1004) and then I had a Guinness (1277) for dessert. I'd still like to duplicate this bar in my basement some day.

nine fine irishmen
nine fine irishmen
nine fine irishmen statue

Then I came back to my room and took a nap.

Monday, August 21, 2006
posted by dave at 10:22 PM in category drink, travel

Ugh.

Let's see, I guess I better start trying to get caught up. If I don't do it now then it'll just be that much tougher later. Sitting here typing is pretty much the last thing I want to be doing right now. Partly because I'm hung-over from lunch, and partly because it's Las Vegas.

Mostly it's the being hung-over thing.

Yesterday I arrived here as scheduled, just before 4:00. After getting my luggage and getting a taxi and getting a room it was just before 7:00. That's right, three hours. Two hours of that time was spent at The Luxor waiting in line to get a room. It was ridiculous. especially for a place that's kind of a shithole compared to the places around it.

Speaking of places around it, once I'd thrown my stuff into my room, I walked over to The ESPN Zone at New York New York and had something to eat. And drink. And trying to get my cell phone to work. It died just after I got here, and it didn't start working again until this morning.

Anyway, to drink, I had three Fat Tires (133) which were very good, and a wheat beer that I hadn't tried before.

Widmer Brothers Hefeweizen (16)

(draft) The bartender didn't know if this was an American or German wheat, so I had a pint to find out. What it is is a very weak American wheat. Very little aroma or flavor. Since I don't like American wheats, this one was actually very tolerable.
I spent most of my time at ESPN Zone talking to the bartender PonytailGirl, trying to get her to go to The Freakin' Frog with me after work. She declined. Weird, huh?

The time zone change caught up with me at around midnight, so I walked back to my room and slept until 5:00 this morning.

Sunday, August 20, 2006
posted by dave at 12:18 AM in category drink

8:05
The place is about half full. Or half empty. Whatever. The throne is open but two idiots are sitting on the sofa and eating, so I'm sitting at the island. I order an NABC Artemsia (210).

8:10
This is good though. I can write when I'm sitting here. But not this entry. Something else. I should get started.

8:25
One page so far, and I'm not even halfway to where I want to get. It's too long. Keep it simple stupid. I'm starting over.

8:26
MusicalHippyDude and GlassesGirl have joined me. Oh well. Maybe I'll write on the plane tomorrow.

8:50
GlassesGirl is ordering a pizza with beer cheese instead of pizza sauce. This was my idea.

9:04
Okay, that's a decent second draft. I'll run it by RockGirl and see what she thinks.

9:20
Another Artemsia (230).

9:40
CoffeeDude is here.

10:12
Piss time.

10:15
Another Artemsia (250).

---

And that's all the notes I took.

I talked with CoffeeDude for a while. I texted DooRagGirl to ask her to come to Rich O's. I had a Diet Coke. I left at 11:00 or so.

Then I went to this place by my house called the Korner Kitchen and had a couple of Newcastles (2316) while I wondered if (a) KittenDamsel was going to show up, and (b) if it was a good idea to be looking for KittenDamsel.

In the end, I drank alone. I did get a text message from GlassesGirl telling me that DooRagGirl was on her way to Rich O's, but it was too late. I'd already written the entire night off as a waste of time.

And now it's 12:15 and I really should be thinking about either sleeping or packing for my flight tomorrow.

Saturday, August 19, 2006
posted by dave at 11:28 AM in category drink

8:40
Very crowded, but the sofa and the throne are open. I of course grab the throne. I order a bottle of Rogue Chocolate Stout (820) and wave at my friends sitting with some weirdoes at the island.

8:45
That one slut and a couple of her friends have taken over the sofa.

8:50
I've had a bad feeling about tonight. I still have a bad feeling about tonight. I may end up wishing that I'd just stayed home.

8:56
That one slut's friend keeps trying to talk to me. Doesn't she realize that I'm trying to compose myself here? And that I'm failing?

9:09
She just gave me her card. Subtle.

9:10
She keeps telling me her name. Like I care.

9:20
The weirdoes have left the island, so I'm moving up there to sit with MusicalHippyDude and GlassesGirl. That one slut's friend is devastated.

9:30
Just talked to SassyGirl on the phone. She is weird.

9:40
Piss time.

9:42
Another Rogue (842). Yummy.

10:12
I'm bored.

10:14
I'm also a lightweight.

10:20
Piss time.

10:22
GlassesGirl may be developing an unhealthy fascination with my bodily functions.

10:24
Some woohoos have taken over one of the red room tables.

---

After that I didn't take any more notes.

SassyGirl and JauntyGirl came in for a while. I switched to Diet Coke and we all just sat around and bullshitted.

I came home at around midnight and thought for a while about what a huge fucking mistake I've made.

Sunday, August 13, 2006
posted by dave at 12:46 AM in category drink, ramblings

10:30
I'm supposed to be writing something now.

At least that's the excuse I gave the PBDs when I left their little group and moved up here to the island. I've got my notebook open, my pen in hand. Just in case they look, I need to appear to be writing something so they're not offended because I left.

Truth is, though, that I've got nothing.

My mind is so full of shit tonight that it seems to have seized up. Like the proverbial wrench in the works, a certain thought has entered my head and totally jammed everything.

All of my emotions are pitted against each other.

It's a stalemate, so far.

I am so sad that I could sing and dance. I am so happy that I could slit my wrists. I am overflowing with nothingness. I am upside-down, inside-out.

I am Opposite Man.

I curse my blessings while I relish my failings. The silence deafens me and the darkness blinds me. I am dizzy from the stillness. I am calmed by the chaos.

This gray place has erupted in colors, and I am repulsed by the beauty that suddenly surrounds me.

The die has been cast, and its flight is my world. When it lands, when it stops, then so do I.

It will be horribly wonderful.

I will love it.

And I will hate that I love it.

Anyway, tonight Rich O's was only about half-full. This was fantastic, especially after last night. I sat on the loveseat and enjoyed my Piraat (175) and talked with some dude that claimed to know me although I didn't have the foggiest idea who he might be. It sucks getting old.

After a bit, the stranger in the throne left so I moved there. A bunch of PBDs joined me and we spent the next couple of hours talking about nothing much.

My second beer was an NABC Community Dark (220). I had to pace myself, see, after the 10.5% Piraat.

I talked to the PBDs, and I talked to SassyGirl on the phone for a bit. It was a nice and calm and relaxing night.

I hated it.

My third beer was supposed to be a Hoegaarden, but they were out, so I had a yummy Weihenstephaner (1451) instead.

They closed up early. Before 11:00 even. So I went to White Castle and then came home.

Saturday, August 12, 2006
posted by dave at 8:31 AM in category drink

Got up at the butt crack of dawn this morning because either my doorbell rang or I dreamed that it rang. I'm guessing the latter because there was nobody at my door.

Anyway, I'm up and so now I'm logged in to work monitoring the last few remaining backup jobs from last night. Pretty fucking exciting, I know.

Last night Rich O's was crowded as fuck. It was standing room only in the place. It hasn't been that bad for a very long time.

Plus, it was about 90% strangers.

I sat at the kiddie table with one such stranger and ordered a Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier (1411) and talked with GlassesGirl and LibertyGirl for a bit. Then the throne opened up so I moved there.

For the longest time I just sat and drank my beer and talked with the strangers sitting around me and texted RockGirl. I don't know where they all came from. One guy suggested that maybe IUS had started back up. That's as good a theory as any I suppose.

My second beer was another Weihenstephaner (1431).

As the night wound down GlassesGirl and MusicalHippieDude and WomanRepellant came and joined me in the living room.

My last beer was an NABC Artemsia (190).

There was something else. What was it?

Oh yeah.

I wasn't going to write about it until I'd talked to MixedSignalGirl. Plus it wasn't really anyone's business. Well I talked to her finally on Thursday and told her what was going on. She didn't seem nearly as excited as I'd hoped. Timing is everything I suppose.

Sunday, August 6, 2006
posted by dave at 5:01 PM in category drink

(continued)

Showing up at 8:00 always means that I've got to really pace myself or I'll end up going home at 10:00 like some old man. I needed to drink only tame beers. So I sat on the sofa and ordered an NABC Artemsia (180) and talked with a couple of regulars. Regulars who will no doubt be disappointed that I haven't given them nicknames.

Anyway, there was some old lady in the throne. I talked with her for a bit. She seemed really nice, which was strange because most old ladies really creep me out.

Once the old lady and the regulars left I grabbed the throne for myself.

I'm pretty sure that some other stuff happened, but I don't know what. It must not have been important, or interesting.

Actually, that brings up a point. I'm woefully unprepared to write this, the second half of my Saturday beer report. I took notes at the BBC, and I had my notebook with me at Rich O's, but I made very little use of it. In fact, here are the only notes I took at Rich O's last night:

Don't forget. Three times a lady.
I wrote this because they played that song over the radio or CD player or whatever they have back there. I was reminded of a dance I went to when I was in 8th grade. This girl had a crush on me for some reason and we danced all night. They must have played that song a dozen times. That was in 1978.
Weirdoes at 10:00.
A whole herd of weirdoes came in at 10:00 and looked around for a bit. Then I guess they went and sat out front.
PretentiousAsshole
This one guy shows up every now and then and makes fun of everyone's beers. I hate him, and I guess just about everyone hates him.

At a little after 10:00 I texted DooRagGirl, telling her to put down the paintbrush and come to Rich O's. About an hour later she came in, but not (she claimed) because I'd asked her to. Didn't matter, it was nice to see her.

My next beer was a Smithwick's (936).

I spent the next hour or so talking with DooRagGirl and MusicalHippyDude and GlassesGirl. I determined that I haven't managed to completely alienate DooRagGirl. The HatGirl question remains unanswered. Also, I guess MusicalHippyDude is supposed to get his hair cut next week. I probably won't bother giving him a new nickname. We'll see.

They started kicking everyone out at 12:30, so I bought myself a couple of Gulden Draak bottles and came home.

See, I hadn't slept since Friday morning. I gave it a hell of a try, but certain images and events and non-events prevented it. So I devised a plan.

I would drink until I passed out.

Not the healthiest plan I've ever had, but I figured that if I didn't manage to get some sleep then I'd probably end up in the hospital. And that's when the accusations would start flying. I couldn't let that happen.

So I came home, and I sat out on my swing, and I had two bottles of Gulden Draak (204). I was still conscious, so I had a bottle of Delirium Tremens (599).

That did the trick. I woke up at 12:30.

I kinda wish that I could sleep until it's time to leave for Las Vegas. I doubt that the next couple of weeks will be very much fun.

posted by dave at 12:53 PM in category drink

This is me trying to be funny. Not with the content of the entry, more like the theme. Or the lack thereof. Only time will tell if I am successful or not. Well, time and RockGirl, what with RockGirl being the only other person on Earth who might get the joke.

Plus, I'm kinda repeating the same joke from the Friday report, so this time it might fall flat.

Anyway, Ha Ha.

Saturday evening I went out to the BBC brewpub on Shelbyville Road. I'd been craving their Dark Star Porter and I'd been thwarted last weekend when I went downtown. So I this time I went straight to the source.

I sat at a table over by the outdoor area, and the first thing I noticed was that ExoticGirl was sitting outside. The second thing I noticed was that her husband was sitting with her. Oh, well.

I ordered a spicy cheeseburger and fries and a Dark Star (194). The beer was yummy. At least what I had of it was. What happened was this - Out of the corner of my eye I saw ExoticGirl lean forward in her seat and expose some panty material. For some reason I chose that exact moment to reach for my beer, but in my distracted/excited state I didn't so much grab the beer as knock it over. Actually, I didn't so much knock it over as backhand it across the table and onto the floor.

Oops.

So I only had about a half-pint of the Dark Star (184).

My second beer, which arrived at the same time as my food, was a BBC Smoked Porter (54). It was pretty good, but the caution with which I found myself drinking it - that caution neutralized some of the enjoyment for me. I was being very careful because I figured that if I managed to spill two beers in a row they'd probably call the cops just on principle. I'd go directly to jail. I wouldn't pass go. And I most definitely wouldn't collect $200.

The remainder of my time at the BBC passed without incident, and I got to Rich O's at about 8:00.

(to be continued)

Saturday, August 5, 2006
posted by dave at 3:44 PM in category drink

Had to work for a while last night, so I didn't get to Rich O's until a little before 10:00.

The parking lot was empty, but inside was the usual Friday night crowding. I sat on the sofa and had a Rogue Chipotle Ale (42), which is on tap for a while. It was decent, but that's all.

Talked to UplandWheatDude and WomanRepellant for a while until I started feeling claustrophobic, then I moved over to the island. There, I had about 10 seconds to myself before a bunch of people joined me. It was okay though. I probably needed the distraction.

My second and third beers were Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbiers (1371). I guess technically that's the last of the DaveFest beers. I'm pretty sure that it's been on tap nonstop since DaveFest started.

Once they started kicking everyone out, I came home and glared at my phone.

Tuesday, August 1, 2006
posted by dave at 7:53 AM in category drink

I almost forgot. Or I guess I did forget until just now.

There's a new NABC beer at Rich O's. I had a small sample of it on Saturday during the sausage fest, and then yesterday I had a full glass after work while I talked with OddlyFamiliarGirl.

New Albanian Strathpeffer Heather (23)

(draft) Dark gold. There's an unidentifiable (by me at least) aroma and flavor, both reminiscent of evergreen shrubbery. The finish is drying and long-lasting. It kind of reminds me of when I was a kid and I'd chew on Sassafras leaves. The finish is the most notable characteristic. A decent beer.

posted by dave at 12:56 AM in category drink

I took notes Saturday, thinking I'd use them to write a proper entry sometime Sunday. Well that plan sucked, and it's two days later, so I'm just going to try and get caught up.

7:22
Browning's is too fucking crowded. I doubt that there's a beer on Earth worth putting up with this.

7:40
I'm at The Red Star Tavern. My night here has started out just fucking great. The waiter rolled his eyes when I requested no slaw with my burger and fries. So now I'm getting a spitburger. Oh yeah, and a BBC Bourbon Barrel Stout (294).

7:43
They usually have BBC Dark Star Porter here. I hope it comes back.

7:47
I always like it here at Fourth Street Live. There are actual girls all over the place, unlike Rich O's. It's also a little haunted, and that is like Rich O's.

7:51
This beer is yummy.

7:54
I just made them change the TV from some poker documentary to the Reds game. I'm an asshole.

7:55
Food is here. No slaw. No detectable spit.

8:07
Everyone working here is scowling. It's probably my fault somehow.

8:10
I just noticed that on the Milwaukee Brewers' shirts it says "Cerveceros." That's weird.

8:14
Food is gone. I've moved to the bar so they could have their booth back. I also tipped 30%.

8:20
I'm outta here.

8:25
Now I'm at The Pub. I don't see that one bitch working. Good. I order a Newcastle (2260).

8:29
The Pub has also pulled Dark Star Porter for the bourbon stout. What, it would kill them to have two BBC beers on at the same time?

8:30
This Newcastle is yummy. Which backs up what my friends and I have been saying for two months. Either what they sold at Rich O's during DaveFest was old and stale and flat Newcastle, or it wasn't Newcastle at all.

8:40
The Stella Artois drinkers crack me up. They pay a premium price for imported piss when they could drink domestic piss for a much lower cost. And, for the truly cost-conscious, I'd piss in their glasses for free just to watch them drink it.

8:45
Speaking of piss, I have to.

8:52
It's a very quiet crowd here tonight. Not just here at The Pub, but all along the street. It's crowded, but quiet.

8:55
Another Newcastle (2280).

8:59
Some shithead across the bar just ordered a black and tan, took one sip, then paid and left. Maybe he realized how stupid he looked drinking a black and tan.

9:15
The bartender tells me that all the hot girls won't start showing up until after 11:00. That sucks.

9:18
Piss time.

9:20
I'm not really sure what I should think about a certain reader's absence. I'm quite hurt and disturbed by it, but I shouldn't be. I shouldn't care at all, but I do.

9:29
Fuck.

9:31
Some woohoos have sat at a nearby table. I hate them already.

9:32
Except for that one girl. She's smoldering hot. I like her just fine.

9:34
The dingbat next to me just ordered "An ale, but alight ale." I hate her.

9:36
The woohoos suck.

9:40
Okay, the woohoos and the light ale dingbat have run me off. I'm outta here.

9:45
Piss time at the Hard Rock.

9:48
I'm just having a Diet Coke here. This one bartender has awesome hair. It's spiky and purple and pink and black. She's hot.

9:55
This guy next to me has had a shot sitting in front of him since I sat down, but he hasn't drank it. I'd drink the fucking thing myself, but Holly isn't here. I only do shots with Holly. I miss Holly.

9:59
Okay, now the guy is sipping his shot. What a pansy.

10:05
I'm outta here.

10:26
I arrive at Rich O's and take a piss.

10:28
I have a Smithwick's (896).

10:35
I wonder if that pansy has finished his shot yet.

10:36
This place is a sausage fest again. There are two girls out in the loser area, but that's it for all of Rich O's.

10:46
It's boring here. I should go somewhere else.

10:56
I'm outta here.

---

So I went over to another bar, and I ran into a girl I know, and I drove her home because I'm a sucker for damsels in distress. I was a perfect gentleman though. We talked and watched a movie and she fell asleep (passed out) on the couch with her head on my lap. She was like a sleeping kitten, and so I didn't want to wake her so I just reclined the thing back and slept myself.

When I woke up my entire leg was numb from the weight of her head, and I could barely walk.

Saturday, July 29, 2006
posted by dave at 8:37 AM in category drink

Last night was okay, I suppose. I'd like to have left my house earlier and gone over to Louisville, but a nap that ran too long kept that from happening.

So I went to Wendy's and then to Rich O's.

The place was mostly full of strangers that didn't move for the entire night. I talked for a while with some of them, but my heart really wasn't in it.

I had three beers, a Smithwick's (876), an NABC Jenever (60), and an NABC Artemsia (140).

Nobody that I wanted to see came in. That's probably a good thing.

Sunday, July 23, 2006
posted by dave at 9:13 PM in category drink

Last night I got to Rich O's late, and I should have just stayed home.

The only good thing about last night was that I had two pints of yummy Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier (1331).

I could have stayed home and done that.

Saturday, July 22, 2006
posted by dave at 12:55 AM in category drink

8:30
Pretty crowded, but I wanted to sit at the bar anyway, and there's a seat open. Some dude wants to buy an XL DaveFest shirt, but I'm out of that size. I order a Bluegrass Jefferson's Reserve Bourbon Barrel Stout (234), which is back after a brief absence.

8:41
I'm in a shitty mood already.

8:45
FutureDude tells me that he can't find any DaveFest shirts. There should be several of them left. Maybe Roger needed some rags to wash his car.

8:49
I've been on a Saltine-only diet all week. I should keep that in mind when I order beer tonight.

8:51
This one fucker thinks he's so smart, so deep. He's deep all right. He has to be to hold all that bullshit.

8:56
Meanwhile, there's been a hot girl in the red room all this time and I didn't see her until just now. I'm such a slacker.

9:04
They're having an art thing here tomorrow, and I just found out that MisunderstoodGirl will be here. Yay!

9:07
I think that if nobody tries to talk to me tonight, then I'll be able to maintain my mood at merely shitty.

9:09
Ugh. Fucking PBDs.

9:13
People keep telling me that they like this kind of entry, with the times and the mundane thoughts and shit. I don't know why they like them. Are they living their lives vicariously through me? Well, if so, then I've got bad news for them. This is no life. This is just me wondering if anything will ever happen ever again.

9:19
The PBDs at the island are leaving. Maybe I should move over there. That hot girl's blouse may accidentally fall to the floor. Or maybe she could trip and fall and accidentally impale herself on my dick.

9:20
Too late. Some strangers just took over the island.

9:26
Another BBC bourbon thingy (254).

9:28
The geeks at the right end of the bar are leaving. I'm moving over there.

9:30
I have this scenario that keeps running through my head. The perfect scenario. The only scenario that I can imagine that would allow me to move past this bullshit. Fortunately, it's no longer the least likely scenario that I can imagine. Unfortunately, it's still pretty fucking unlikely, and I don't have a backup plan.

9:34
Fucking PBDs.

9:47
People are hovering all around me again. I hate it when this happens.

9:52
I'd try. I'd really try to be strong. But I'd fail, and my eyes would give me away and reveal my weakness.

10:00
King Kong Bundy just sat at the other end of the bar.

10:03
Piss time.

10:04
Holy shit! Eric and Teri are here! We go and sit in the red room. This is very cool.

10:30
Now DooragGirl is here. Yay!

10:45
DooragGirl is avoiding me, or she's at least picking the PBDs over me. Either way, that's just fucking fantastic. Not.

10:48
Piss time.

10:49
WomanRepellant is here. He owes me money.

10:55
Time for another BBC thingy (274).

11:20
Teri thinks that I should have done what MixedSignalGirl asked me to do. I could not disagree more.

11:35
Eric and Teri are leaving.

11:36
Diet Coke time.

11:37
Hey! ActualGeorge is here!

Then I went to White Castle (and ended my Saltine diet) and then I came home.

Sunday, July 16, 2006
posted by dave at 5:13 PM in category drink, general

Yesterday was a pretty decent day. I actually left my basement and went out to shoot some pool. This was the first time I'd shot in a place other than my basement since January. It was also the first time I'd played an actual opponent since January.

So that was fun. My left leg is actually a little sore today. Need to work on my balance I guess.

On the way home I stopped at Taco Bell and grabbed a couple of chili cheese burritos. Shut up, I like them. I've liked them since they were called chilitos. Anyway, after I ate, I realized just how tired I was. It was 7:00 and I was too tired to even think about going out. So I wrote off my Saturday night and went to bed...

...and I couldn't sleep. My cat Buddy just would not allow it. So I went down to Rich O's.

The place was pretty empty, so I liked that. A bunch of strangers were in the living room, but I didn't feel like sitting there anyway. I grabbed my favorite seat at the island and ordered an NABC Artemsia (60).

There seemed to be a S.I.G.H. convention in the area. Several times girls would come into Rich O's proper, glance at me and the open stools around me, then veer around me to stand in the annex area. Whatever, whores.

MusicalHippyDude came and sat with me, and we were able to talk for a bit before we got interrupted. Then I managed to hurt said interrupter's feelings by picking up my shit and moving over to the (recently vacated) throne.

For the rest of the night I just sat and smoked and drank two more Artemsias (100). One note about that beer: None of the bartenders have any clue how to pronounce it. This may be an indicator that it's a stupid name for a beer. But that's just my opinion of the name. The beer itself is weird and yummy. Just like me.

(Note I've asked Roger, the owner of Rich O's, and he says it's ar-TEM-zee-uh.)

I also did something sneaky while nobody was looking. We'll see how that turns out.

After a while, LonerBoy came and sat with me, and we talked about various crap. He's going to Seattle, and I'm pretty jealous of that. I haven't been there since 2002.

Rich O's closed up early because it was so dead. LonerBoy and I went over to Jack's and I had a Blue Moon and wished I was about 20 years younger. It turned out that Jack's was where the S.I.G.H. convention was taking place.

The Blue Moon was a bad idea, and so I ended up staying at Jack's drinking Diet Coke until the wee hours of the morning, waiting for the alcohol to leave my body and talking with a bunch of girls from Logan's Roadhouse.

posted by dave at 12:28 PM in category drink, general

I'm a pretty stubborn guy sometimes. This stubbornness reveals itself in various ways. Like when I refuse to take a hint if I don't like what's being hinted at. Like when I'm completely wasting my time but I keep trying because I keep imagining that it could all be worth it in the end.

Friday night, it poured here. Floyd County got like 5 inches of rain in an hour. This is all my fault because I washed all three of my vehicles. It was raining so hard that the 20 yard sprint from my car to the GasNStuff left me completely soaked. I was wet for the rest of the night.

So I sloshed myself into Red Lobster. This is just more of my stubbornness. I was supposed to be in Indianapolis, but instead I was wasting my time back home, so I went to Red Lobster to make the night at least a little bit unusual.

The TV above the bar was nothing but weather reports. From the flash floods and the lightning. The sound was muted, so I can't be sure that they officially blamed me for all of it, but they probably did. Every fucking thing else that's ever happened is my fault, after all. Anyway, the TV was muted, but the closed-captioning was still on, but it's wasn't the text of the weather reports that was being displayed. It was instead the show that was supposed to be on at that time. That was kind of weird.

My food was good, as always. I like Red Lobster a lot. The waitress kept bugging me though. Asking if everything was okay. I said that it was, but I guess I wasn't convincing enough because then the manager came over and asked me the same question. I told him that the food was just fine, but that I kept getting interrupted by people asking me questions. He took the hint and everyone left me alone after that. I just make friends everywhere I go.

Next I went to Rich O's and sat with LibraryGirl and her friends for a while. I had myself an NABC Artemsia (40) and then a Rogue Smoke (250). I think there were people there and I think that I probably talked to some of them, but I'm sure that it was nothing important.

posted by dave at 12:02 PM in category drink, general

I'm craving a steak. Again. Must be some old age thing. Like I need meat to help make up for withering away.

So I'm at this place in New Albany called Tucker's. We used to come here, every now and then. The food is pretty good. The bartender is hot. Plus, there's something about the Guinness here. It's fucking yummy. Much better than it is anywhere else.

I'm having a Guinness, of course. A tall glass of frothy pleasure while I wait for my steak and my baked potato and my sautéed mushrooms. Not that the sides matter. It's all about the steak tonight. And the Guinness. And the hot bartender.

---

The red room at Rich O's is fucked up. Some plumbing problem. So what little crowd there is has, um, crowded into the rest of Rich O's proper. I don't care though. I'm not even officially here.

They've got two new beers on tap. Both seem intriguing to me.

New Albanian Jenever Rye(10)

(draft) Dirty gold. Zero fizz. Has a sweet aroma, if that makes any sense. Flavor is quite sweet with some odd indescribable undertones. Pretty good, but dangerous because the alcohol is very well hidden. No bitterness.
8:12
This one chick is going to piss me off, but not as much as this fuckhead on the sofa is going to.

8:20
They're playing fucking Johnny Cash again. I never had an opinion about him at all, but now I hate him because they play the dead fucker so damn often in this place.

8:23
Great, now the fuckhead on the sofa is singing along to the music. I hate him.

New Albanian Artemsia Ale(10)

(draft) Clear brown. Zero fizz. Smells like a pine tree - must be the mugwort. The flavor is very weird, and very good. I like this a lot. Tastes like it should have more alcohol than it does.
8:35
TallLady has left the bar. I'm moving up there to get away from this fuckhead.

8:45
Piss time.

8:55
Another half-pint of the Artemsia (20).

9:00
The strangers just left the other end of the bar. I would move down there, but it seems hard.

9:06
Some guy from the future just took the right-hand barstool. He seemed upset when his Upland Wheat didn't come with a citrus wedge.

9:08
PotatoGirl is having trouble pouring Pilsner Urquel because it's so foamy. This has prompted me to write a new advertising slogan for that beer. Pilsner Urquel: A lot of effort for a little flavor.

9:15
I had a brilliant idea for a series of 'blog entries yesterday. But it seems hard, so I probably won't do it.

9:16
The guy from the future has gone. The time portal must be about to close.

9:18
Piss time.

9:25
Ordering another half-pint of the Jenever (20).

9:35
I am sooooooooooooo glad that I deleted her number from my phone. Really.

9:37
Fine, maybe I'm stupid, but at least my stupidity lets me do the right thing. Most idiots have no excuse at all.

9:20
Bubbles is here.

9:40
PotatoGirl wants me. She needs to get in line.

9:45
This Artemsia stuff is yummy. That means that it will never be here again, so I'd better drink up. Not tonight though.

Tuesday, July 11, 2006
posted by dave at 11:40 PM in category drink

Okay, it's over. I have declared it to be so.

The last pint poured during DaveFest 2006 was a Rogue Smoke (230), and it was yummy. The festival is now over.

Sure, that last keg of Rogue Smoke is still on, but it's the last of the special-order beers. Guinness and Smithwick's are still on, but they're always on. If I waited for those two to run out then DaveFest would last for a year.

Hmmmm, The Year Of Dave...

Nope, too late. I have declared it to be over.

More than that, even. I've removed the little DaveFest thingies from the beer board, and I've stolen the DaveFest sign that hung at the Rich O's front door.

No going back now.

Now is as good a time as any. I've never hidden the fact that, for me, the whole point of the thing was to give Roger a reason to bring back Rogue Chocolate Stout. Well, he did bring it back. And now it's gone. It must have blown sometime on Monday. To have the thing drag on when the star of the show is gone just wouldn't seem right.

Besides, and speaking of the star of the show, I'll be in Chicago for the next few nights. What's a DaveFest without a Dave? A ThatOneDudeFest?

So, it's over. And I have a few closing remarks.

For Roger, and for the regulars at Rich O's, and for the strangers and idiots that have come in over the last 6 weeks, DaveFest has either been a pleasant diversion, or a cruel joke, or whatever. For me, for me it's been a singular honor. I send my heartfelt thanks to everyone involved. From Roger, who had the idea in the first place, to Tony, who did the artwork, to Tim, who made the shirts, to all of the bartenders, and to all of my friends and family members who came in and treated the thing like it was real, I am eternally grateful.

And that goes double to everyone who bought a DaveFest shirt. Take care of those things. They're collectors items now.

Roger has indicated that he may have more of these customer appreciation festivals. I hope that he does. I also hope that whoever gets picked for the honor always takes it seriously and appreciates it as much as I do.

This was the first one. The first one at Rich O's, and the first one like it anywhere as far as I've been able to determine. DaveFest 2006 made news on beer sites all over the country. I hope the concept catches on. People everywhere should have the opportunity to receive this type of honor.

Like I said, this was the first. And because it was the first, there were some kinks. If, next year, there's going to be a TimFest or a Bobfest or whatever, what can be done to make things go more smoothly? I have some ideas.

1. Beer
The next honorees should really take their time in their beer selections. I really just kind of threw my list together because I didn't think it would ever really happen. The next people won't have that excuse. They will know that Roger doesn't fuck around when it comes to beer. I should have known this myself.

2. Advertisement
DaveFest 2006 was advertised in two places: my 'blog and Roger's 'blog. No matter what Roger and I might like to think, there are better ways to get the word out. I'm envisioning a sign on the wall at Rich O's, a big sign with 180 days until MargaretFest or whatever. A countdown sign. Get people wondering about the thing well before it happens. DaveFest came as a surprise to nearly everyone. In fact, on the day before it started, one of the bartenders still hadn't heard of the thing. There should be flyers at the bar at least a couple of weeks in advance.

3. Beer Again
This year, the two Rogue kegs were two weeks late. This wasn't really the fault of any one person or organization, it was more of a cluster-fuck designed by the universe to screw with me. This is something that should be watched more closely in the future.

4. Shirts
The shirts were a fantastic thing, but they were too late. We waited too long to do the artwork, and that meant that the design got to the t-shirt guy too late. So I missed out on having DaveFest shirts for the opening weekend. And now I'm left with $300 worth of shirts that may never sell.

5. Beer Menus
Usually, when Roger has his beer festivals, there'll be special Beer Menus made up that list each of the beers along with a brief description. I'd thought about doing this for DaveFest, and I'd even talked to Roger about it. Well, I dropped the ball. I kept putting it off, and I just put it off too long. The festival beer lists are probably the best advertisement that these festivals have. Future honorees should take the time to write about the beers they've chosen and have a nice beer menu put together. Plus, this would make an excellent souvenir.

6. Dancing Girls
The DaveFest Dancers that Roger ordered for opening night never showed up. Future festival dancers should be given better directions.

I guess that's it.

Sunday, July 9, 2006
posted by dave at 7:41 PM in category drink

I mentioned that on Friday night a bunch of weirdoes came into the bar. I'm thinking now that they must have just been the advance team.

On Saturday night, sitting right there on the loveseat, in all her glory, was Purpella, Queen Of The Weirdoes.

I tried not to stare. I really did. I went over and stood at the island where a bunch of people I know where sitting. Including HatGirl. Yay!. I stood at the end of the island, and I tried not to stare. After a bit, I sat in Bubble's vacated seat, and I still tried not to stare.

Fuck, HatGirl even pointed out that she was wearing a skirt, and still I couldn't help but stare at Purpella.

She was a freak. A freak with hair that was about a million different colors of purple.

Anyway, after a while some of Purpella's royal entourage left the living room area, so HatGirl and LuckyFucker and I moved over there. The rest of the night consisted of not much worth mentioning, except that I had two pints of Rogue Chocolate Stout (776) and I had a pretty tough time not looking at HatGirl's legs. At least I did once Purpella had left.

Oh yeah, the place was pretty dead. By 10:00, there were just the three of us in the living room area, and about a dozen or so strangers in the red room, and that was it. All of the cool people must have been at some party. In fact, LonerBoy had asked me earlier in the night if I was going to such a party. I declined because (a) I'm on-call this weekend, (b) I had to work in the morning, (c) I wasn't invited to the PBD party he was talking about, and most importantly, (d) HatGirl!

Towards the end of the night I saw something very sweet, and that put me in a strange mood. Stranger than normal I mean.

Saturday, July 8, 2006
posted by dave at 11:19 AM in category drink

I must have decided a million times that I wasn't going out last night. My sleep schedule was all messed up and I'm on-call this weekend. Those would be the official reasons. The unofficial reason would be that I just didn't feel like going out only to have my mood deteriorate as the inevitable feelings of disappointment appeared once again.

So the plan was to come home from work, sleep until midnight or so, then shoot some pool.

Didn't happen.

My phone wouldn't stop ringing. It was either work calling about some perceived disaster, or my sister, or my friend Eric. The work calls I had to answer, the others I sent to voicemail. Don't these people know that I'm trying to sleep? Guess not.

About the eight zillionth time my phone rang, I looked at the screen, and saw a local number that sort of looked familiar. A number that looked a lot like one I'd deleted from my phone a while ago, because I couldn't trust myself not to call it.

I answered.

HatGirl!

Yay!

She wanted to know if I was going to Rich O's.

Well, duh! Of course I was. Try and stop me.

So, while my new Hard Rock Cleveland shirt was dewrinkling in the dryer, I connected in to work to do what I could about the problems there. I called my friend Eric back. I didn't call my sister because all she wanted was for me to bring my camera if I was going to Louisville to listen to my nephew play guitar, and I wasn't going because (a) It was too late, and (b) HatGirl!

When I got to Rich O's, there was an über hot girl dressed like a flapper, and another girl dressed like, well I don't really know how to describe it. It was some kind of period costume. More on those two later.

Inside, I found HatGirl and LuckyFucker sitting on the loveseat, and a couple of strangers sitting on the sofa. I sat on the throne and ordered a Rogue Chocolate Stout (736).

After a few minutes, HatGirl and LuckyFucker left. Remember that disappointment stuff I wrote about up above? Inevitable.

The strangers recognized me from the whole DaveFest thing, and I spent the next couple of hours talking to them. They recently moved here from New York They're pretty cool people, which probably means that I'll never see them again.

My second beer was a Rogue Smoke (190).

At one point FlapperGirl and some other people came in and sat at the island. I went up and tried to start a conversation with her, mainly about why she and her friend were in costume. She blew me off and said it was just normal clothes. "But you're dressed like a hot flapper!" I protested. "And your friend is dressed like an Elizabethan alien or something!"

She didn't seem to like this, and her look told me to go away, so I did. But later, when I went to the bathroom, the guy I was talking to said that FlapperGirl had checked out my ass. So that was cool.

My third beer was a Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier, but I only drank about half of it (1240) because after the New York couple left a bunch of weirdoes came and took over the living room area.

Once I got home all hell broke loose at work again, so I spent the rest of the night trying to deal with that.

Friday, July 7, 2006
posted by dave at 12:18 AM in category drink, ramblings

Okay, at what point am I allowed to be pissed at you without making myself seem like a jackass?

Hopefully, that point has already passed, because I'm pissed right now.

It's one thing to call me and arrange to meet me at the bar after work.

It's another thing to then not show up.

And then, then to not answer your fucking phone or return a voicemail - that's just fucking rude.

To do the all of the above like a dozen times in a row, well I don't have the words to describe it.

And, just when I start to get used to that mistreatment, you fucking find a new way to abuse me.

You call me and tell me that you're already there. That you're waiting for me. That you'll see me when I get there.

But noooooooooooooooo!

When I get there, you're nowhere to be found.

So I fucking call you to ask what's up.

Again.

And I leave a fucking voicemail.

Again.

And you fucking don't return it.

Again.

Remember, you're the one fucking calling me.

Anyway, while I was wasting my fucking time waiting for you to return my call, I had a beer that was new to me:

Rogue Altbier (5)

(draft) Looks like a brown ale, smells like an alt, but tastes like an IPA. Bitter flavor followed with a bitter finish. An Altbier is supposed to be balanced, dammit! A very disappointing beer from one of my favorite breweries.
After that, I had a half pint of yummy Rogue Smoke (170).

Look, I know that lately I've put too much stake in the actions of others. I know that I do that. But dammit, there are some people that I should be able to fucking count on.

I thought that you were one of those people.

You fucking called me.

Tuesday, July 4, 2006
posted by dave at 10:11 PM in category drink, entertainment, pictures, travel

On Monday morning they must have declared some kind of ice shortage or something, because the ice machine, located conveniently across the hall from my room, was in constant use from about 6:10 in the morning until I left at around 9:00.

What I'd decided was that I'd go and try to find a Best Buy or something so I could buy a new power adapter for my laptop.

And that's just what I did. It took a long time to find a Best Buy though.

When I got back to my room, it hadn't been touched. Big surprise.

Monday afternoon, after I'd done a little writing, I walked down to this Cleveland ChopHouse and Brewery place that the cabbie from Sunday night had recommended.

Cleveland ChopHouse and Brewery

With my very yummy sirloin and my kinda rubbery shrimp, I had a couple of beers:

Cleveland ChopHouse Stout (16)

(draft) Black with cream-colored head and incredible lacing. Flavor slanted a bit more towards coffee than chocolate. A decent beer.
Cleveland ChopHouse Saison de Chop (16)
(draft) Wow! Unexpectedly good. Extremely well-balanced and very refreshing. It also tasted like it had a higher ABV than it really does.
Then I went back to my room (still no maid service) and dicked around for a while before it was time to go to the Indians game.

It was a pretty good game. Indians vs. Yankees. I heard from somebody that it was the first time this season that Jacobs Field had been sold out. I believe this is because the Indians suck this year, but I'm really not sure.

Jacobs Field batting practice

Jacobs Field Scoreboard

Also, and maybe it was just the area where I was seated, but there seemed to be more Yankee fans than Indians fans at the game. That's kinda sad, I think.

As is my custom, I bought a cap and rooted for the home team.

The Indians actually won. I gathered that this was a surprise to everyone, especially the Indians.

After the game was over they had fireworks, but I wanted to beat the crowd so I high-tailed it down to the Winking Lizard and grabbed a seat at the bar. I had myself an Edmund Fitzgerald (144) and then I realized, quite suddenly, that I'd be leaving Cleveland in the morning. I decided that, no matter how yummy the Great Lakes porter was, I just had to try something else.

They have a pretty impressive beer menu. You can actually see it here if you want to play along at home.

The first choice was a no-brainer. I'd loved the Harpoon Winter Warmer so much, when I'd had it in Portland, that I just had to try their Hefeweizen.

Looking at the bottle, I should have known that something was wrong:

Harpoon UFO

Look a little closer:

Aaaaaaaaaaah!

That's a fucking citrus wedge, right there on the bottle!

Well I told the bartender that I didn't want the damn fruit wedge, bottle artwork notwithstanding. I used my standard "I'm straight" line as an excuse.

Harpoon UFO Hefeweizen (12)

(bottle) Despite the name Hefeweizen, this is an American wheat beer. Despite that, I liked it anyway. There was none of the hop bitterness that I usually associate with this style. The thing tasted like a Belgian wheat, and it tasted good.
The next beer choice took a little longer. There was this banana beer on the menu that looked intriguing, but it was an awfully big bottle and there was no guarantee that it wouldn't be disgusting. So I chose instead the following:

Unibroue Blanche de Chambly (12)

(bottle) Although supposedly a Belgian wheat, this had much of the aroma and flavor of a German wheat. If I had to put a label on it, I'd say that is was a blend of those two excellent styles. A very good beer from what is becoming one of my favorite breweries.
During all this I spent most of the time talking to a couple of Clevelandites about various crap.

Then I walked back to my hotel.

The fucking bitch maid had not visited my room all fucking day.

After I tried to write some entries, I went to sleep, then I got up and made sure that the manager knew how lazy the maid was, then I drove home.

Yay!

posted by dave at 9:25 PM in category drink, pictures, travel

I feel like I need to say something here, before I say anything else. One of the things that I really hate about traveling is having to work my schedule around the hotel's cleaning people.

On Sunday morning, I was gone from my room for about four hours. When I returned, my room hadn't been touched yet.

During my driving around I'd passed this Winking Lizard place that I'd remembered from my pre-trip research. It was close to the hotel, so I decided to walk. After I'd walked a couple of hundred yards, it started to sprinkle. After I'd walked another couple of block, it started to pour. By the time I got to the bar I was soaked to the bone. I guess this Winking Lizard place is pretty famous or something. They had a decent draft selection, and a very good bottled selection. What I did was have three Great Lakes Edmund Fitzgeralds (112) and some Cajun-spiced chicken tenders while I watched the Indians game on TV.

Here are a couple pics I took inside the place:

Winking Lizard

Winking Lizard

When it was time to leave, I went out front and bought a t-shirt, and took this picture of what I must assume is the bar's mascot:

Iguana

Either that, or they have a really bad pest problem.

Oh yeah, there was a smoldering hot girl sitting at the next table. She had very thin straps holding her top up. I tried using my mental powers to unravel the straps, but it didn't work. Oh well.

So I walked back to my hotel room at about 5:00, and my room hadn't been touched. I grabbed my dirty towels and went out and tracked the lazy bitch down and traded for some clean towels. I also told her that I wouldn't be needing any additional service that day.

Then I took a nap. Then I watched Catwoman on TV. Halle Berry is hot, in case you've been living in a cave on Mars and didn't know yet.

We're up to Sunday night now. I took a cab to the Rock Bottom. While there, I bought a t-shirt from an improbably cute hostess, and I had some beers.

Rock Bottom Walleye Wheat (Cleveland) (16)

(draft) No detectable aroma, and not much flavor. I can't tell if this is an American or a German wheat. It's very bland, but still good.
Rock Bottom Riverbend Red (Cleveland) (16)
(draft) Looks and tastes like weak tea, but with the slightest hint of creamy caramel. Not too bad. If a beer like this is too much for you then you probably shouldn't be drinking beer..
Rock Bottom Dawg Pound Brown (Cleveland) (16)
(draft) Very dark brown - almost black, with a nice tan head. Very roasty and malty. Not sure that this should be called a brown ale, but whatever you want to call it, it's still good.
Then, once the bartender found out that I wasn't driving, he gave me this on the house:

Rock Bottom Le Flats Saison (Cleveland) (16)

(draft) Clear gold in color. Looks like a lager, so scary. The flavor is awesome. There are the typical apple undertones, but this is a lot thicker-tasting than most saisons I've had. Damn good. Yummy actually.
The place closed up early, because it was Sunday, so I went out and stole a cab from somebody who'd called for one but didn't get there in time.

I told the cabbie to take me back to my hotel, but about halfway there I changed my mind and had him take me to the Winking Lizard instead. While there I had a Great Lakes Edmund Fitzgerald (128) and got some chicken tenders to go, then walked the short distance back to my hotel.

Monday, July 3, 2006
posted by dave at 3:32 PM in category drink, pictures, travel

The Bier markt was a weird place. It was, for one thing, huge. For another thing, it was empty. At least until 9:30 or so. Before that point there had been more bartenders working the place (2) than there were customers (1, my lovely self).

Bier Markt

The draft selection was indeed impressive. I wrote them all down but I'm not going to bore you people by listing them all here. There were a half-dozen or so Belgians that I've never even heard of. I had two:

Ommegang Rare Vos (16)

Dark copper-colored, firm head. A neutral flavor, with perhaps a touch of apple. A very fizzy mouthfeel. A good beer. The aroma was a little perfumy.
Leffe Blonde (16)
Looks like a lager, so scary. Smells like unpeeled apples. OMG tastes fantastic! I may just cream. Fucking yummy.
So, I liked the Leffe okay.

I spend a good amount of time talking with the hot blonde bartender. Then I found out that she's only 22 years old. Seeing nothing handy with which to kill myself, I decided to hang in there. Who knows? Maybe her grandmother is available.

At about 9:40, the place became packed, and 90% of the customers were hot girls. I decided that I loved the Bier Markt.

Also, no matter what city I go to, no matter what bar I visit, no matter where at the bar I sit, I always end up having people hovering all over me while they order their beers. Must be my after-shave.

By 11:00, I was pretty well-lit, so I walked outside to look for a cab. I ended up talking with some Clevelandites out on the patio for a while. One chick wanted a DaveFest shirt, but the one I was wearing was the only one I'd brought with me. She ended up still wanting it. So I put on my Bier Markt shirt and sold her the DaveFest shirt. Then I went back to the hotel and crashed.

posted by dave at 12:58 PM in category drink, pictures, travel

(Today I went and found myself a mall and bought myself a power adapter, so I'm free to type away. But, since I'm typing into this tiny laptop keyboard, I cannot be held responsible for any typos. I apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.)

People that don't know me very well, people that perhaps only know my online persona, they might think that they know why I chose Cleveland for this trip. "It's the baseball," they might say. Or maybe, "It's gotta be the lake and the other scenery."

Wrong and wrong.

Other people might guess that I picked this city because of the Great Lakes Science Center or other cultural crap.

Again, wrong.

All of that shit did play a part in my decision, but the real reason, and the only reason that could have stood on its own merit - is the Great Lakes Brewery.

Great Lakes Brewery

I took a cab to the place, though as it turned out, it was probably within walking distance. I took a few notes which I will now transcribe:

Patio area outside, packed as fuck. Not a good sign. The bar area inside, also packed. But wait! There's another section upstairs! Also packed. Shit. But wait again! There's yet another area down in the basement! Fuck, it's packed too, but I manage to cram myself in next to a guy that looks like ExBartender from Rich O's.
I figured that, as long as I was there, I'd have some beer.

Great Lakes Market Street Wheat (16)

(draft) Almost overpowering aroma. Flavor was good, but much more subdued than the aroma had hinted. The head disappeared almost immediately. Zero fizz.
Great Lakes Holy Moses White Ale (16)
(draft) Smells and tastes more like a German than a Belgian wheat. As a German, it's quite good. As a Belgian, it's a little musty.
Great Lakes Elliot Ness (6)
(draft) No aroma to speak of. the taste and the mouthfeel reminded me of a dopplebock more than anything else. Not worth a full glass.
Great Lakes Edmund Fitzgerald Porter (64)
(draft) I've had this before, but I don't remember what I wrote about it. Right now I want to write "yummy and roasty."
The main thing about the place, aside from the beer of course, is that it's completely non-smoking. I think that the main effect that this kind of policy has on me (aside from the occasional urge to murder everyone) is that I drink very quickly. I mean, I had all of the beers listed above in one hour. Somebody should do a study on this type of thing. Instead of drink, drag, drink, drag - it was drink, drink, drink, drink.

So by 8:30 or so, I was ready to leave. I was also half-shitfaced. I'd been talking to the bartender and she'd recommended this Bier Markt place around the corner. "They allow smoking," she said, "and they specialize in Belgian beers." Once my erection subsided I bought a souvenir t-shirt and walked out to find my Mecca.

Sunday, July 2, 2006
posted by dave at 11:42 PM in category drink, pictures, travel

I got to Cleveland right on schedule, a little bit before 4:00. Right at my exit was Jacobs Field, home of the Indians.

Jacobs Field

This was also the point where MapQuest let me down. I had to drive around for quite a while before I found my hotel, and I had to drive around even longer before I found the parking garage.

I'd been pretty tired, and a little hung-over, during the drive up. But my arrival gave me some new energy. I was quite suddenly alert and starving. So I threw my shit into my room and I went to find the local Hard Rock. I already knew that it was close because of my pre-trip research. It turns out that it was inside a mall called The Tower Mall or some such. Here's a shitty picture I took inside the Hard Rock:

Cleveland Hard Rock

Oh yeah, here's one of he inside of the mall:

Cleveland Mall

After I'd had a mushroom cheeseburger and fries, and a souvenier glass full of Guinness, I bought myself a t-shirt and then went back to the hotel.

Here are some more pics I took:

Cleveland

Still Cleveland

Saturday, July 1, 2006
posted by dave at 8:46 AM in category drink

On Friday night, one person was stupid, and another person was mean.

Yet another person, I'm convinced, continued to avoid me. Not that I blame her.

It's like there was a secret meeting wherein these people all got together and worked out the best way to give me a disappointing and shitty night.

Also, I had three Rogue Chocolate Stouts (696).

Also, I went to White Castle.

And now I'm going to Cleveland.

Sunday, June 25, 2006
posted by dave at 9:15 AM in category drink

Saturday night was a fucking sausage fest.

When I first arrived, I talked to EwokGirl for a bit. She was wearing her DaveFest shirt. Surreal. Then EwokGirl's husband complimented me on my Rogue Smoke selection.

All I did all night was sit and listen to a bunch of semi-regulars that I don't know yack and yammer about stuff that I had no interest in listening to.

I guess one thing that was kind of cool was that there were a bunch of people from Russia or some other heavily-accented country, and one of the guys recognized me from my 'blog and from the whole DaveFest thing. None of them bought any shirts, though.

To drink, I had three Rogue Chocolate Stouts (676). They were yummy.

Saturday, June 24, 2006
posted by dave at 10:00 AM in category daily, drink, pictures

First things first. Yesterday I had the first half of the day off work, but at noon I had to go to Churchill Downs for a work thing.

I guess I'm kind of anti-horseracing. It just seems a little cruel to me, especially when they use the whips. Maybe that makes me a pansy. I dunno.

Here's a picture I took:

Go Baby Go!

Anyway, that's how I spent the day Friday.

Friday night I was on my way to Rich O's, and I ran into VigilanteGirl in the parking lot at the GasNStuff. So I talked to her for a half-hour or so. This was quite disconcerting because she was looking very sexy. I displayed willpower that I didn't know I possessed by keeping my eyes locked on her own. Mostly. Drift was inevitable, and understandable, I think. Damn she's hot.

She bought a DaveFest shirt. That was nice of her.

So by the time I left GasNStuff, I was running late, but I still needed to eat something, so I stopped at the haunted Burger King for a quick meal.

While I was waiting for my food, my cousin Jeff called to let me know that he'd be coming by Rich O's later to get his DaveFest shirt.

When I finally arrived at the bar, it was crowded as fuck. A couple of PBDs were on the loveseat. ActualGeorge was at the kiddie table, and strangers and assholes were everywhere else. How could I tell the difference between strangers and assholes? I'm glad you asked. The assholes were the ones sitting on the sofa, eating, and drinking fucking water.

Water.

What a bunch of assholes.

Anyway, I stood at the end of the bar and had myself a yummy Rogue Chocolate Stout (576) and glared at the assholes. At one point I went and sat with ActualGeorge for a while but then WomanRepellant came in so I went back and stood with him.

It was pretty boring, but I didn't mind too much.

After a while the strangers left the island so WomanRepellant and I and some PBDs went and sat there.

My second beer was a half-pint of Rogue Smoke (100). I like that beer (another DaveFest selection) a lot, but I wanted to save room for more Chocolate Stout.

At about the time Jeff arrived, The PBDs were leaving the loveseat, so we went and sat there. Then the assholes left the sofa and the throne.

Yay!

I guess that was pretty much it. I gave Jeff his DaveFest shirt, and we sat and talked for the rest of the night. A couple of times somebody would come in and interrogate me about DaveFest, and I did my best to sound humble about the thing. But it's hard to be humble when you're me, I suppose. At least when you're me and people are wearing shirts with your likeness on the front.

Oh yeah, that one girl that looks like Ella came in and sat out front. With her was, I shit you not, the hottest girl who has ever sat foot in Rich O's. You could hear straining zippers all over the place as erections formed on every man there.

So the night was pretty tame. WomanRepellant joined Jeff and me in the living room, and I had a couple more Rogue Chocolate Stouts (616) before they started kicking everybody out of the place.

Friday, June 23, 2006
posted by dave at 12:48 AM in category drink

I'd already planned on going to Rich O's. I'm off for the first half of the day tomorrow, so that means that my Thursday night is free. So I was going anyway.

Then I got the latest Publicanista! email from Rich O's. I'm sure that it said some other stuff, but nothing, I mean no-o-o-o-thing was even close to the importance of this:

The Rogue distribution rights have transitioned back to North Vernon Beverage Co., the pallet was delivered on Wednesday afternoon, and Dave's two faves are ON TAP now:
Rogue Chocolate Stout and Rogue Smoke
I somehow remembered to put my pants on before rushing to Rich O's.

Once I got there, I took notes.

8:25
I arrive. There are probably people here, but I don't care. I grab my favorite seat at the bar and order a Rogue Chocolate Stout (526).

Yay!

8:30
Oh, dark master, how I've missed your frothy presence.

8:35
That one chick's voice cuts through everything. No wonder her husband always looks so miserable.

8:37
I hope these two fuckers next to me don't babble like that all night. They're ruining my special moment.

8:40
I should have stopped and eaten something on the way here. That failure will undoubtedly cost me later, when it causes me to cut myself off early.

8:50
First there was A, and A consumed me. Then B came along and distracted me from A. B was a very welcome distraction. But now A had lost its power, and I wonder what will become of B. Should I start looking for C?

8:53
For those keeping score at home, these fuckers still haven't shut up.

8:56
I should write about reactionary idiots, but I'm worried about what the reactions would be. I think that's irony or some such.

9:00
The fuckers are talking about high school soccer. Kill me now.

9:02
PotatoGirl is wearing horizontal stripes. What is she thinking?

9:04
WomanRepellant is here. He still owes me for his DaveFest shirt.

9:05
Scratch that. He just paid me.

9:07
Today we had to go to this Famous Dave's place for lunch. Despite the cool name, it's not my favorite place. I had a beer that was new to me:

Spring Heat Spiced Wheat (12)

(draft) Touted as being "like Blue Moon" and I suppose that's not too much of a lie. A decent Belgian wheat, but with lagerish undertones and a touch too much citrus. Kind of a blend of Belgian and American wheats.
9:11
Oh boy. Some guy has decided to squeeze into the stool next to me.

9:15
Another Rogue (546).

9:16
This one girl that works here, I used to call her HatGirl before The HatGirl came into my life. So now this girl needs a new nickname. I think I'll call her KillerBodyGirl. Yeah, that's it. KillerBodyGirl. It has a nice ring to it.

9:25
Speaking of HatGirl, I texted her as soon as I found out that the Rogue was on tap. No response.

9:26
I'm reminded that I'm supposed to be mad, or at least disappointed, with one of my friends. Right now, I don't care.

9:29
The babbling fuckers have finally left, and PestoBoy has moved to the other end of the bar. Yay! Now there's room for hot girls! Bring on the hot girls!

9:31
Seriously, bring on the hot girls.

9:32
I'm thinking that I might have a Rogue Smoke next. I waited a long time for it, too.

9:47
Piss time.

10:04
Been talking to BreakfastDude.

10:15
Trying to talk ElPresidente into buying a DaveFest shirt. He claims to have no money.

10:21
Another Rogue Chocolate Stout, but I only drink half (556).

10:35
ElPresidente wants a shirt, but I think I'm out of his size.

10:37
I sold him the shirt I'd reserved for my friend Eric. Oops.

10:50
DooRagGirl is here. Yay!

11:05
Ordering a Diet Coke.

11:09
Piss time.

11:16
DooRagGirl is leaving. WomanRepellant lived up to his nickname.

11:17
I'm outta here.

Sunday, June 18, 2006
posted by dave at 10:11 AM in category drink

Well this should be interesting, trying to remember the last couple of days.

Yesterday was such a long day that Friday seems like a million years ago.

Let's see. Friday night. DaveFest Night Thirteen.

I might have gotten to Rich O's a little early. I want to say it was like 7:30 or something. There were some dipshits in the living room area eating, and this Joe Cool fucker was at the island. I sat at the bar next to one of the PBDs, and had a half a Cone Smoker (1916).

I'd figured at first that I'd just sit at the bar all night. I was looking forward to it actually. But after the PBD left a couple of loud strangers sat next to me at the bar and started trying to talk to me, so I picked up my shit and moved over to the throne since the dipshits had left.

The rest of the night consisted of talking with MusicalHippieDude and WomanRepellant, and wondering if HatGirl was going to come in. To drink, I had a Newcastle (2200), then a Bell's Kalamazoo Stout (450), and finally half a glass of Mestreechs (115).

The second half of that glass I gave to GlassesGirl. It wasn't that there was anything wrong with the Mestreechs. It just clashed incredibly with the Bell's I'd just had. Much worse than, say, drinking orange juice after brushing your teeth. Much much worse, in fact.

Other than that, not much happened. One of the regular bartenders had the night off or was on vacation or something, so they had this one cute chick from the Sportstime side bartending the Rich O's side. So now everyone is spoiled.

But there were no HatGirl appearances, and the cute bartender wasn't able to make up for that lack, so the night was pretty boring.

---

Saturday sucked dead donkeys. I worked all day, and I worked most of the night. I guess that's what I get the big bucks for though, so I can't complain too much.

---

By the time I got everything back to normal at work, it was almost 10:00. I briefly considered going over to my sister's house for this party she was having, but in the end I figured that it was too late for that. I ended up at The Pub in Louisville instead.

I like that place, at least I like it when that one bitch bartender isn't working. She wasn't working last night, so there.

Pretty much all I did was have a couple Newcastles (2240) and then a Hoegaarden White (32). I think this was the first time I'd had the Hoegaarden in draft form. It was pretty good.

There was this one chick there who was convinced that she knew me from somewhere, but she couldn't remember any details. I actually do remember the details, and I did the right thing in blowing her off. She's a coworker of MixedSignalGirl's.

By the time I got home I'd been up almost 24 hours, so I cancelled my pool practice for the night and just went to bed.

Wednesday, June 14, 2006
posted by dave at 10:41 PM in category drink

Partly because I feel a bit of an obligation because of DaveFest, and partly because I just want to, I've been going into Rich O's after work each day this week. Not much has happened that's worth writing about, but I gotta write something.

Monday
You know, I can't for the life of me remember a single thing about this except that I had a Smithwick's (826) and there was this one hot girl and her husband who recognized me from my 'blog.

Tuesday
I had to take the day off work to wait for the cable guy to show up and fix my Internet. Once that guy left I went to Rich O's. I got there a little earlier than I'd planned - about 4:30 - because SassyGirl had called and wanted me to call her when I went to Rich O's.

So, I had a Newcastle (2160) and I called SassyGirl about every 15 minutes or so, always getting voicemail, sometimes leaving a message.

Also, LibertyGirl was there and she kept trying to start up a conversation, but I just wasn't in the mood. Hopefully I didn't piss her off. Since then I've been trying to remember just how much LibertyGirl knows about the whole LaptopGirl situation. I seem to vaguely remember spilling my guts to her one night.

Then, I had another Newcastle (2180) and kept trying to call SassyGirl, but I still had no luck.

Good thing SassyGirl isn't straight or I'd probably start to get a complex. This is about the zillionth time she's done this shit to me.

Oh yeah, and Roger told me that the two Rogue ales for DaveFest (Rogue Chocolate Stout and Rogue Smoke) might be available Thursday. He didn't sound very optimistic about it though. We'll see what happens.

Wednesday
Today I had myself an NABC Cone Smoker (1906). I had the living room area all to myself but then this hot girl came in with her Great-great-great-great-grandmother. She had a Lindeman's while her remote ancestor had a glass of wine.

The girl was just too hot. I kept having to tear my eyes away from her, and when I got sick of doing that I moved up to the bar and finished my beer there.

Sunday, June 11, 2006
posted by dave at 7:18 AM in category drink

Took the lazy road in preparing this entry. I took notes.

7:20
Gave PhotoDude his DaveFest shirt. He wants me to sign something on it. I'm thinking about signing, "Here's your fucking shirt."

7:25
Assholes in the living room, strangers at the island. I'm having a Newcastle (2140) at the kiddie table.

7:30
This one chick from work wants me to go sit in the loser area with them. No thanks.

7:34
Assholes left. I'm moving to the throne.

7:42
Some people are incapable of shutting the fuck up.

7:44
I just had the glorious realization that the two women that I care most about in the world - the last words that each of them said to me were lies.

8:10
I've been talking to PhotoDude and his wife, but now some hot girls have arrived. I might not be writing much for a while.

8:12
I order a Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier (1061).

8:20
This one chick, she reminds me of a girl I used to lust after before I even knew what lust was. What I'm saying is that the lust I have for this girl has deep roots.

8:27
I know her name now. Same as a month. Not September.

8:34
That fucking fuckhead just came in. He better not acknowledge my presence.

8:46
Piss time.

8:50
She's 24. My imagination cannot accept that much of an age difference.

8:55
Wait, now she's 30. That's better, but she seems to be aging very quickly.

9:04
She grew up very close to where I lived in Lanesville. Small world.

9:22
Her friend is quite hot too, but married.

9:40
Another Weihenstephaner (1081).

10:20
Hot girls just left. Probably to masturbate while thinking about me.

10:30
I'm outta here. White Castle sounds good.

Saturday, June 10, 2006
posted by dave at 12:20 PM in category drink

Boy, talk about going through the motions.

This is the third time I've sat down to write this entry. It's so boring that I keep slipping into a coma, and then I have to start over after I regain consciousness.

I'm thinking that I should probably just give up on writing things from scratch, that I should probably just carry my notebook around with me all the time. It's the lazy way to write, sure, but maybe lazy isn't such a bad thing.

So I got to Rich O's early, a little after 7:00. The living room area was full of strangers drinking Red Stripe. I guess they don't realize that (a) You can get that stuff in liquor stores, and (b) It sucks.

At the island, we had a couple of old people celebrating their 800th wedding anniversary or something. It was gross and sweet at the same time. It was greet.

I sat in the red room and talked to MusicalHippyDude, GlassesGirl, and PhotoDude for a few minutes. My first beer was a Newcastle (2120).

At 7:30 the old people realized that it was waaaaaaaaaaaay past their bedtime so they left, and I jumped up to the island so I could glare at The Red Stripe Bunch more easily. My second beer was a Domaine DuPage (290).

SassyGirl and JauntyGirl came in and joined me. JauntyGirl was wearing a shirt with a start button on the front. I guess there's some band called The Start or some such, and it's one of her favorite bands. Anyway, I had an almost irresistible urge to press that start button. That damn button taunted me all night.

Once The Red Stripe Bunch finally left we moved over to the living room area, and then after a while DooRagGirl came in, followed closely by my sister Neisha and her husband Chris.

My third beer was a Mestreechs Aajt (110).

Not much happened after that. I think everyone was bored. I know that I was.

My last beer was a Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier (1041).

I sold a couple of DaveFest shirts, and just about everybody put theirs on right away. Not SassyGirl though. She didn't like the new shirt smell.

Oh yeah, the Rogue beers didn't make it yet. That will probably make HatGirl happy since it means that she'll get a chance to try the Rogue Chocolate Stout, but it was disappointing to me.

I feel another coma coming on, so I'm going to stop now.

Thursday, June 8, 2006
posted by dave at 7:47 AM in category drink, pictures

Ugh.

How, I wonder, do you get a hangover without being drunk the night before?

I dunno, but I seem to have stumbled upon the secret.

Too bad I still don't have a clue what that secret might be. Maybe when the cobwebs clear out of my head.

Anyway, last night the DaveFest t-shirts were to be delivered, so I made a rare Wednesday night appearance at Rich O's, arriving at 7:00.

Some stranger was eating in the living room area, so I sat at the island and had myself a Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier (1021). After a short while, some old lady showed up and sat across from me. I decided that the lesser of two evils was the eating guy, so I picked up my shit and moved to the loveseat.

TShirtDude arrived at about 7:45 with my shirts.

Yay!

I put one on almost immediately, then I sold one almost immediately to one of the PBDs sitting at the bar. I'd kinda been hoping that HatGirl would buy the first one, but we don't always get what we want.

HatGirl (yay!) did come in a little after 8:00 to drink a beer and buy a shirt. It's always nice to see HatGirl, but seeing her wearing a DaveFest shirt was positively sublime.

My second beer was a Piraat (165).

Let's see, I also hung a shirt on the wall so people would know they're for sale:

DaveFest Shirt

After HatGirl left the place got really boring really quickly, but I stuck around anyway and had a couple of Newcastles (2100) and talked to TShirtDude and some guy from some website for a while.

And tonight I get to do it all over again, except I think I'll skip the Piraat.

Ugh.

Sunday, June 4, 2006
posted by dave at 2:02 PM in category drink

Saturday night was much more subdued than Friday had been, but that was only on the outside. In my own head it seemed much more frantic.

I'll blame this on the fact that I was completely exhausted. I got up too early, then I spent the afternoon at my sister's delayed wedding reception. After I made a quiet exit from there I had a fitful nap before going to Rich O's a little after 8:00.

The place was pretty full. A slew of strangers had taken over the red room, and the rest of the place was full of PBDs.

I ordered a frenchy beer (250) and sat on the loveseat for a while and talked to the PBDs, but I was feeling pretty claustrophobic so I ended up moving to the end of the bar where I stood for most of an hour.

WomanRepellant came in and sat at the kiddie table, so I went over and joined him at about the same time that I ordered a Bell's Kalamazoo Stout (430). In all of my excitement over the impending arrival of (and my disappointment over the delay of) Rogue Chocolate Stout I'd completely forgotten that the Bell's was a DaveFest selection that was already available. It was quite good.

At one point ElPresidente relinquished the throne so I moved there. WomanRepellant and I spent a lot of time just bullshitting, mostly about ExoticGirl and how pretty she was.

HatGirl had told me on Friday night that she'd be in on Saturday, but it was after 10:00 and I was starting to figure that she wasn't going to be in after all. This put me in a bad mood but, to be honest, my mood hadn't been that great to begin with. My third beer was a yummy Newcastle (2020).

At 10:45 or so I finished my Newcastle and had decided to leave. No HatGirl and no Rogue Chocolate Stout makes Dave something something.

Or something like that.

Just to be safe, I shot HatGirl a text message along the lines of, "Are you coming?" or something equally brilliant.

No pun intended, really.

About 3.4 seconds after I sent the text message, HatGirl and LuckyFucker walked in.

I bet you think that you know what's coming next, don't you?

Well, you're right:

HatGirl!

Yay!

My mood instantly better, I ordered another Newcastle (2040).

There was much shuffling of seats while HatGirl and I talked about website stuff. At one point the seat shuffling found LuckyFucker and HatGirl and I all crammed into the loveseat. That is certainly a memory that will stay with me for a long time.

To be honest, I don't remember much else. I know that HatGirl and LuckyFucker left after a while, and that I talked some more with WomanRepellant and ElPresidente and FirstLady.

No White Castle last night. I was too fucking tired.

Saturday, June 3, 2006
posted by dave at 7:40 PM in category drink

(continued)

Night two will begin shortly, after my jeans finish dewrinkling in the dryer.

I've decided that trying to describe, in order, everything that was said and done last night would be (a) hard, and (b) inaccurate, so I'm just going to list the highlights that I can think of and leave it at that.

My fourth beer was a yummy Newcastle (2000) and I'll once again take this opportunity to thank Roger for this treat.

Beer number five was a Delirium Tremens (503). This was the only strong beer I had all night.

My sixth beer was another frenchy one (230).

Remember, most of these beers were only 10-ounce pours. I paced myself very well.

Throughout the night, I had the opportunity to talk to several people on topics ranging from (a) who the fuck am I and why am I so special? to (b) does this mean that I'm buying all the beer?

EwokGirl's posse made me feel very special by hooting and hollering every time I walked past them going to or from the bathroom. Their chants of, "We're not worthy" really warmed my heart.

Shortly after Dina and Kenny left the clothing started coming off. I'm afraid that most of the remaining pictures (stored in SassyGirl's camera) will not be suitable for public viewing. One, in particular, was taken of me when one of my friends was molesting me. It will be interesting to see what she remembers.

Once the clothing went back on, HatGirl and LuckyFucker came in.

HatGirl!

Yay!

SassyGirl tells me that I've got to stop doing that whenever I write about HatGirl. Problem is, if I stop now then everyone will wonder if I'm angry or something. So I'll keep doing it.

At one point most of the girls went over to drink shots at Jack's. I stayed and talked with WomanRepellant for a while.

We ended up closing the place down.

I went to White Castle then came home.

posted by dave at 1:45 PM in category drink, pictures

(continued)

The first two arrivals besides myself were TallLady and UplandWheatDude. I sat in the throne and talked with them for a bit until the floodgates opened up and people started flocking to the area. Before too long, the scene looked like this:

DaveFest people

Let's see, going from left to right: My sister Neisha's hand, UplandWheatDude, My lovely self, MisunderstoodGirl, my sister Dina, Dina's husband Kenny, DooRagGirl, SassyGirl, and TacoBell. Just off-camera to the left was GlassesGirl, and off-camera elsewhere were MusicalHippyDude, TallLady, HornDog, and Neisha's husband Chris.

Notably absent when this picture was taken were HatGirl and LuckyFucker. They didn't show up until later.

Oh yeah, and EwokGirl and her posse were all out sitting in the loser section:

EwokGirl and posse

My sisters and their husbands all feel left out because they don't have fancy nicknames. I've been giving this some thought, and so maybe they'll get some before too long. We'll see.

The biggest surprise of the night, for me, was definitely the appearance of MisunderstoodGirl, who has been absent from my life for over six months now. I was so excited to see her that I leaped out of my chair and pretty much threw myself at her.

Let's see, my second beer was a Goose Island Honkers Ale (94). It seemed a little flat to me.

A grand time was had by all I think. One of the reasons that Roger chose me for this honor is that my beer tastes aren't too extreme. So everyone was able to find something that they liked. Even Neisha.

My third beer was a Weihehstephaner Hefeweissbier (1001).

I'm having a tough time figuring out what to write here. I guess I'll think about it some more. I've got to go to Dina's wedding reception now anyway.

(to be continued)

posted by dave at 12:07 PM in category drink, pictures

The hard part about writing this will be remembering what the fuck I had to drink.

But wait!

I wrote it all down!

So I guess the next hardest thing will be remembering who all showed up.

But wait!

There are pictures!

Maybe the hard part will be writing something that does justice to how much fun I had. Especially since I don't have much time to write anything. I've got to go to my sister's wedding reception before too long.

Oh, and I must buy cat food first.

For my cats, not for the reception. How white-trash do you think we are?

I took a day of vacation Friday, mainly to make sure that I could get my sleep schedule back on track, but also to play the new Half Life 2: Episode One game. I managed both feats, so it was worth it.

I left my house at about 5:30 and stopped by GasNStuff for some provisions.

VigilanteGirl was there!

Yay!

I hadn't seen her since she left for her new job, and I actually hadn't seen too much of her in the weeks before that. She's as pretty as ever. I invited her to DaveFest though I knew very well that she wouldn't come. It was nice to see her though.

Went to Wendy's for dinner, passing up the haunted Burger King because I didn't want my mood to be spoiled. Plus, I like Wendy's. So there.

I got to Rich O's very early for me, at a little after 6:00. My first evidence that this whole thing is real and not some kind of sick joke was the front door:

DaveFest front door

They probably scared some customers away with that sign.

The next evidence came in the form of the beer board:

DaveFest beer board

The DaveFest beers are the ones with the logo next to their listings.

Finally, this is the sign that announced that the living room area was reserved for me and my group:

DaveFest reserved sign

Now, having 10 of my favorite beers on tap at the same time presents a bit of a logistical problem. Especially when I start drinking before 7:00. I knew that I'd have to really pace myself if I was going to make it through the night. So I resolved to only have half-pints, and I also resolved to start out with the lower alcohol selections.

Accordingly, my first selection was a Two Brothers Domain DuPage French Style Country Ale (210), or "that frenchy beer" as I like to call it, just to save time. I hadn't had this in a couple of years. It was yummy of course. As good I remembered.

(to be continued)

Tuesday, May 30, 2006
posted by dave at 12:21 AM in category drink, general

Well that last entry was clearly crap.

Oh well. Can't be helped now. Google has it in its grasp.

So, in an effort to show some semblance of normality, I present this entry.

I've used that line, or one very similar to it, at least three times now. I like the way it reads. Makes it seem like something important may be coming. Kind of like when a woman says, "Oh, this old thing? I just threw something on." And then she looks totally hot and stuff.

Not. This. Time.

Anyway, yesterday started out okay.

I watched the first twelve hours or so of the 24 first season DVDs. I'd forgotten what an asshole Tony was in the beginning, and what a useless brat Kim was. It's a good show.

Kiefer Sutherland is cool as fuck.

At 4:00 or so I drove to the other side of the Moon, otherwise known as Salem Indiana, to feed my sister's cats. I forget where she went. Some Renaissance Faire I think.

My sister Neisha has a shitload of cats. I can use that word in its slang sense as well as its literal one, the latter because when you get that many cats sharing a single litterbox it's - well, it's a shitload.

She's got one new kitten that might be a bit of an asshole, but it's a kitten so it's cute. It was also one of the only cats that didn't seem to be scared of me. Even E-Coli or whatever his name is seemed skittish about me being there. That cat used to just love me, and would happily shred the skin on my forearms at the slightest provocation.

Oh yeah, and Gleelore was also glad to see me.

After I'd cleaned the litter box, I spent a few fruitless minutes trying to decipher Neisha's feeding instructions. In the end I just kept dumping food into plates and making sure that all of the cats got something to eat. This turned out to be no small feat, because the kitten was, as I said, a bit of an asshole.

After I left Neisha's I drove to my other sister's house. Dina was, for some reason that I cannot quite fathom, hosting a graduation party for the son of a friend. This would be Hell for me, as the only thing I can think of that would be more annoying than a bunch of screaming teenagers would be a bunch of screaming teenagers that I never saw before in my life.

But, Dina has always been the hostess of our little group. Plus, she's got a pool.

But I didn't go to Dina's for the party.

I went to see her new kitten.

It's a tiny thing, only a few weeks old. Its mother abandoned it, and all of its siblings died. I hope this one grows to be big and strong because Dina is obviously quite attached to it already.

Also at the party were a bunch of people, some that I knew, and some that I didn't. I left fairly quickly as I had a date.

---

After my date disintegrated, I was left alone at The Pub in Louisville's Fourth Street Live district. I guess I could have gone home, but a part of me was thinking that the whole episode might have been some kind of sick joke. I half-expected Allen Funt and MixedSignalGirl to walk in and point out the hidden cameras and then everybody would have a good laugh.

Is Allen Funt even alive anymore?

So I stayed. I stayed and I had myself a couple of yummy Newcastles (1980). I would have had another one except the bartender told me that I was better off and that, "That girl isn't that pretty anyway." So I left her a $.01 tip and went next door to The Hard Rock.

At The Hard Rock, I had myself a Guinness (1239) in a souvenir glass, and I watched videos for a while, then I came home.

---

I did try to call her. I got voicemail.

I tried again this morning. I got voicemail.

I won't try again.

Sunday, May 28, 2006
posted by dave at 11:17 AM in category drink

Got to Rich O's early last night. 7:30 or so. It's one of my quirks that I like to watch hot girls come in, and HatGirl had said that they'd be in on Saturday so I went early to give myself the best chance of getting a seat with a good view. HatGirl and LuckyFucker typically keep early hours at Rich O's.

Ideally, I'd have grabbed the throne, but there was some stranger sitting there, and his date was on the loveseat. I don't know why but they looked like they'd be the annoying type, so I sat at the island instead of joining them.

I ordered a Smithwick's (786) and just kind of vegged out for a while. The place was pretty dead, and I don't think it was because I was early. Some people have these things called lives and so they sometimes go to places besides Rich O's on long holiday weekends.

ElPresidente came in and told me about some PBD campout or some such thing that's in a couple of weeks. I reminded him that DaveFest would probably still be going on so I doubted that I'd be doing any camping.

At 8:30 or so, SpoonsGirl came in with her brother VegasDude. He's in town for the graduation of SpoonsGirl's son. So we sat and talked and I tried a couple of times to make beer recommendations.

My second beer was a yummy Avery The Reverend (120). I went ahead and ordered a 20oz pint of it instead of the usual 10oz glass.

So we sat and talked for a couple of hours about nothing much. Stories of their childhoods, Las Vegas, and crazy women drivers. TallLady came and joined us, and I became concerned that there'd be no place for HatGirl and LuckyFucker to sit if they came in.

This fear was realized when TallLady invited a couple of Daytonians to join us, but by then it was 9:30 and I'd started to suspect that my friends wouldn't be coming after all.

At 9:38 I got a text message from HatGirl that they'd be in "shortly."

At 10:38 I sent HatGirl a text message asking if she'd changed her mind.

At 10:45 HatGirl and LuckyFucker came in.

HatGirl!

Yay!

I'd already told SpoonsGirl and her brother and the Daytonians that I'd be leaving them once HatGirl arrived, and that's what I did. I moved down to the red room table where we talked about TV and similar exciting topics.

My last beer was a Guinness (1217).

A little after 11:00, DooRagGirl came in and sat with us.

DooRagGirl!

Yay!

It turns out that DooRagGirl has never seen the show Lost! and so HatGirl, LuckyFucker, and I spent some time urging her to correct that injustice.

Once the bartenders started giving everyone their bills (their subtle way of saying get the fuck out so I can go home) the place cleared out fairly quickly. I sat for a few extra minutes with DooRagGirl while I finished my Diet Coke, then I went to White Castle then came home.

It was a nice night.

Saturday, May 27, 2006
posted by dave at 8:48 AM in category drink

For some reason I woke up right at the crack of ridiculous this morning. It wasn't because of my fancy alarm clock though. Probably one of my cats doing something loud.

Anyway, I'm up. So I guess I'll write about last night.

On the way to Rich O's I stopped at the haunted Burger King for a quick bite. They have these new flavor packet thingies that you're supposed to shake onto your fries. Maybe I'll try those one of these days. I like spicy things.

Rich O's was fairly crowded, but SassyGirl and TacoBell had arrived early and they'd managed to secure the island. I sat with them and ordered a Cone Smoker (1846).

SassyGirl and I talked about DaveFest and t-shirts and just generally got caught up because we hadn't seen each other in a million years or so.

CoffeeDude joined us for a bit. He also expressed an interest in a DaveFest shirt.

Everybody seemed to be in a shitty mood. Except me. I was fine.

So we were sitting there talking about nothing much and LuckyFucker came in an sat in the living room area. I gave him a quick wave and wondered where HatGirl was.

About a thousand years later, HatGirl came in.

Yay!

She also sat in the living room area.

Boo!

So I gave her a wave as well and tried to remember if I done anything to piss those two off.

My second beer was a Smithwick's (766).

After what seemed like another thousand years, HatGirl came up and talked to us.

Yay!

Then SassyGirl and TacoBell left and I had a few blessed moments alone with HatGirl. We talked about DaveFest. Then LuckyFucker came over and joined us.

Everybody seemed to be in a shitty mood, like I already said.

My mood was fine, though it was getting worse because of all the grumps.

So HatGirl and LuckyFucker left after just a few minutes with me. I checked my deodorant. It was working fine.

I was alone at the island for a minute or so, until WomanRepellant moved over to join me. He, at least, seemed to be in a good mood.

My third beer was a Gulden Draak (160).

I suppose that's about it, except that this one chick came in that looked like a porn librarian. I drooled at her from afar for a while. WomanRepellant moved over to the throne to get a better look, and I came home.

Sunday, May 21, 2006
posted by dave at 10:13 PM in category drink, ramblings

This entry brought to you by Rogue Chocolate Stout:

yummy!

So I'm clearly losing my grip on reality here.

Not that it was ever that tight to begin with, but I can feel it slipping away from me a lot more lately.

Eventually it will slip away completely, fall to the ground and shatter at my feet. Probably cut me and give me tetanus in the process.

I have such a convenient memory. Such a nice fancy pair of rose-colored glasses. Such a fucking idiotic way of seeing only what I want to see and completely ignoring anything that doesn't fit into these delusions that I use instead of hope.

I should be dead, you know. For a while I thought that the fact that I'm still alive might be a sign that I'm actually getting better. That maybe this long dark Winter was coming to an end.

Hell, I've even managed to convince myself, for short periods of time, that it was all nothing more than overblown hysteria.

But then I look at this picture that I've found. To be fair, the resemblance is fucking uncanny. Her own mother would look at this picture and smile because her daughter looks so pretty in it.

Problem is, it's not her daughter.

It's nobody at all. Just a pretty girl. Just a pretty brunette with glasses who would completely freak out if she knew that, right now, I'm looking at her picture and my eyes are filled with tears.

It's not her I'm looking at. It's not her I see. I'm looking at a fake. An imposter who from that angle, under that lighting, with her expression just that way, coincidentally happens to look like someone else.

But do I care that she's a fraud? Fuck no. My mind won't accept the truth enough for me to care.

That picture is the best link I have to a past that never really existed. To a future that will never happen. I guess it's fitting that it's a fake.

Besides, Beggars can't be choosers, right?

posted by dave at 6:15 PM in category drink

So I'm a little late with this entry. Been doing laundry all day long.

And, I'm sorry to say, this entry is not really worth the wait.

It was a pretty dull night.

I arrived late, a little after 9:00. The first thing I noticed was that the loser area was packed. The second thing I noticed was that it was EwokGirl and her entire posse. So I said a quick "Hey" to her and then moved on.

In Rich O's proper, the entire living room area was full of strangers, and WomanRepellant was sitting at the bar.

That was it.

So I ordered myself a Cone Smoker (1806) and sat at the bar myself. WomanRepellant was eating, so not very good company, so I moved over to the island. The bonus to this move was that I was able to see if the girl I'd seen sitting on the loveseat was as hot as that first glance had hinted.

Ehhhh.

After WomanRepellant finished eating he moved over to the island with me. Then, after a while, CoffeeDude came in and joined us.

And that was it.

I don't think anyone came or left Rich O's proper for the rest of the night except EwokGirl, who came in to say goodbye to me, and this one flaming guy with two hot girls in tow. They came in and laughed at something in the red room then walked back out.

Let's see, my second beer was an Avery The Reverend (90) which I've promoted to yummy status.

At about 10:30 or so I started text-messaging people I was so bored. Nobody replied. That's kind of sad.

My third, and final beer was a Rogue Hazelnut Brown Nectar (75), but I only drank half the glass.

And that was it.

posted by dave at 3:44 PM in category drink, pictures, travel

It's been a pretty fantastic weekend here, weather-wise.

I realized this fact yesterday, after RockGirl's incoming email woke me up at the crack of noon, and I made the momentous (for me anyway) decision to (a) get off my ass, (b) leave my house, and (c) maybe even go someplace.

But where?

Why, Madison, Indiana of course.

But why?

Because they were having some festival or such and the NABC had a booth and they had Cone Smoker with them. And, you know, if there's anything better than drinking a Cone Smoker, it would have to be drinking a Cone Smoker in Madison.

Right?

So, basically, it gave me something to do. It also gave me a reason to take my new digital camera.

I've never been to Madison. It's about an hour up river from New Albany. I took the "scenic route" which so-named, as far as I can figure, because it's curvier than the other route.

After I'd driven for 45 minutes or so, my phone started vibrating. It was Awesome Larry, an old pool-playing friend from Omaha. So I pulled off into this ice cream place and talked with Larry for 15 minutes or so.

I know, this is boring.

When I was almost to Madison, I passed the entrance to Clifty Falls State Park. Hey! I didn't know that was by Madison! I'd gone there once as a kid with Boy Scouts or something and I remembered that it had been pretty cool, so I postponed going to the festival thingy, turned around, and went into the park.

I paid $5 to get in. I think I want my $5 back.

When I was a kid we'd been able to climb these stairs all the way down into the canyon. Then we'd been able to actually walk behind the falls. It was awesome.

Remember that scene from "The Last of the Mohicans" where they're all behind that waterfall while the bad guys are chasing them? It used to be kinda like that, except without as much water, and without people in funny wigs shooting at you.

But that was then. It was very cool.

Now, it's pretty much the exact opposite of cool.

Now, you can't do shit.

The stairs leading down to the base of the falls are gone. As near as I can tell the only ways to actually see the falls are to either jump and get a good look before you splatter onto the rocks, or hike approximately 8,764 miles up though the creek.

No thanks.

* drumroll *

And now, without further delay, ladies and gentlemen, I present to you, Clifty Falls!

Ooooooh!

What's that? You can't see shit?

Okay, I'll move over to the left and zoom in a little.

Ahhhhhh!

And that's all you can see. The falls are like 60 feet tall but you can only see the first few feet, and even that I don't think is the real falls.

It's not even impressive enough to make you want to pee.

So I didn't pee. I just left.

On the way back out of the park I stopped at this one overlook place and took a couple of pictures to test out the 12x optical zoom on my camera. Here's the normal shot:

not zoomed

And here's the zoomed shot:

zoomed

Pretty cool. If there was a naked chick over there by that thingy, I'd totally be able to see her boobies!

But there were no boobies to be seen, so I left the park and continued my original journey into Madison.

zzzzzzzzzz

This was the street down by the river where this festival was supposed to be going on. There were about 50 people there. I stopped by the beer tent and had a Cone Smoker (1796) in a plastic cup and talked to Roger.

Then I drove back home.

All in all, I'd say that the day was more interesting than doing laundry would have been, but not by much.

Saturday, May 20, 2006
posted by dave at 6:51 AM in category drink

After the hangover I had last Sunday morning I knew that I'd have to do things differently. Unfortunately, this meant that I wouldn't be able to do what I really wanted to do, which was drink at least two Cone Smokers. This is something I've suspected before - there's something about the smoked ales that can give me a hangover even when I don't drink enough to feel anything the night before.

I got to Rich O's early, a little bit before 8:00. I was feeling sociable and I wanted to try and grab a seat in the living room area. I guess the place was fairly busy, but it was mostly people I knew. I sat on the sofa and talked to PhotoDude and MusicalHippyDude and GlassesGirl. There was one of the PBDs that I don't really know there as well.

My first beer was, of course, a Cone Smoker, but I only had a half-glass (1780).

We mostly talked about DaveFest and how surreal it's going to be for me to see people wearing t-shirts with my picture on them. Surreal, but cool. I emailed the picture to the artist yesterday. He says he's finishing up the design. I can't wait to see!

GlassesGirl told me that she'd seen Dina's friend SpoonsGirl out front, but I hadn't seen her when I'd came in, and I'd failed to spot her during a piss break, so I figured she'd left.

But she hadn't. She came wandering back into Rich O's proper and spotted me. We ended up talking for the rest of the night about various fluff.

My second beer was a Rogue Hazelnut Brown Nectar (70) which I hadn't had in a long time. It was much better than I remembered, so that was nice.

People came and people left. Specifically, CoffeeDude came and PhotoDude and the PBD I don't know left. I told CoffeeDude about how I'd gotten a hate-comment from one of those chicks that had been there the last time I saw him.

My third beer was an Avery The Reverend (80), which just keeps getting better and better each time I drink it. I may have to promote this beer from good to yummy.

SpoonsGirl gave me shit for her nickname. I explained that I'd had to pick something, and that night had pretty much been the defining moment of the ten or so years that we've known each other. We explained the nickname to the people sitting around us, so now everybody can call her SpoonsGirl. That's funny to me.

My fourth, and final, beer was a Smithwick's (746).

Once SpoonsGirl left I hung around for a while talking to my friends. GlassesGirl told me that she'd had some Rogue Chocolate Stout the night before! At Rich O's!

I wondered if that meant that the DaveFest kegs had arrived. If so, I wanted to see if I could spend a few moments alone with the Rogue Chocolate Stout keg. The bad news was that it had not arrived yet. The good news, the good news was that they had it in bottles.

Yay!

So I bought myself six bottles of incredibly yummy Rogue Chocolate Stout, and now I can't wait until the next time I feel like drinking at home.

Yay!

Once in possession of my six new best friends I went to White Castle and came home.

Woke up very dehydrated at 4:00 and I've been up ever since drinking water.

Friday, May 19, 2006
posted by dave at 2:11 AM in category drink, pictures

I went to Rich O's after work today for a Cone Smoker (1770), and PhotoDude told me about this:

blackboard

That's the blackboard over at the Sportstime side of things. Nothing written on the Rich O's side yet, but maybe they've decided to go with neon, or maybe a blimp.

Dancing girls would be cool too.

---

I found a picture today that makes me sad. This is good timing because the picture that I used to use for that purpose only makes me happy now.

I'm weird, I know.

Tuesday, May 16, 2006
posted by dave at 2:09 AM in category drink, general

I guess I'm just writing for the fuck of it now.

I overdid my after-work nap, and now it's almost 2:00 AM and I'm probably up for the rest of the night.

Gotta do something, may as well write.

For those of you reading this at barenada.com, you may or may not know that I duplicate my 'blog over at barenada.journalspace.com. Well, that site has been down since Friday morning. Some kind of hard drive crash is what they claim, but I don't buy it. What I think happened is that this chick's new profile picture melted the hard drive.

It's that hot.

Anyway, today after work I stopped by Rich O's and had a small Cone Smoker (1670) and a small Smithwick's (736) while I talked with Roger about DaveFest. It's looking like all of the beers I selected will be available except for the Avery Old Jubilation, so that's cool. I was expecting six taps but it's looking like there'll be eleven.

The t-shirts are still a go I guess. I met the artist the other day and I'm expecting him to contact me again about designs and colors. Or maybe not. Maybe he'll just wing it. He's the artist after all. We're going to order a couple of dozen shirts, and I suppose we can order more if we need to. I really have no idea what kind of interest there'll be.

I'll be at Rich O's both nights of DaveFest's opening weekend, June 2nd and 3rd. This will get me into trouble with my family. Maybe when their favorite hangout decides to honor them with their own festival they'll understand.

Sunday, May 14, 2006
posted by dave at 6:10 PM in category drink

Last night seemed a lot longer than it actually was, I suppose. I only arrived at Rich O's an hour early - at 7:00 instead of 8:00.

I went early because HatGirl was going to make an appearance and I wanted to grab some seats in the living room before any strangers could do it. Ideally I wanted to grab the throne, but some old man was already sitting in it. Another stranger was sitting on the loveseat, and WomanRepellant was sitting on the sofa.

I staked out my claim for a sofa seat, ordered a Cone Smoker (1640) and then went out to the special section and talked with Roger and some of the PBDs for a bit. They'd had this brewerania thingy, which I'd missed because of the wedding. By the time I got there a homebrewing contest was going on as the first part of a PBD meeting. Everybody kept asking me to try the beers in the contest but I stood firm. I'd promised myself that I'd be having two 7.5% Cone Smokers, and I wasn't going to let some sneaky homebrew with a zillion percent ABV derail that train.

Roger and I discussed t-shirts for DaveFest. I guess we're going to go ahead and order a couple of dozen. I told him that if he had any left over I'd buy them off of him. I'm hopeful that at least a few of my readers will want one, and perhaps The Smithsonian would like one as well.

Roger also introduced me to the artist who'll be doing the t-shirt design. I'm looking forward to seeing how they come out.

So WomanRepellant and I spent some talking with the old man and the guy who turned out to be his son for a while. The old man looked really familiar to me, and I had a suspicion about who he might be, but it wasn't until WomanRepellant called him by his first name that I knew for sure.

The guy had been my vice-principal when I was in high school.

Small fucking world.

He claimed to remember me, but as I was a pretty good kid I seriously doubt that he remembered me. Plus, he probably met like a gazillion kids in his life, so I bet everyone on Earth under the age of fifty looks familiar to him.

When VicePrincipal and his son left I moved over to the throne. My second beer was a Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier Dunkel (80). Had to drink something lighter before that second Cone Smoker.

At one point I went to piss and when I came back, both HatGirl and DooRagGirl were sitting in the loveseat.

HatGirl! Yay!

So the next couple of hours were quite nice. HatGirl and I and DooRagGirl and WomanRepellant bullshitted about nothing much in particular. HatGirl and I traded some text messages back and forth. I had my second Cone Smoker (1660).

Oh yeah, when HatGirl had first come in I'd asked the bartender to bring her a small sample of Cone Smoker. She didn't like it, but she at least tried.

I'd planned to try to squeeze in another Weihenstephaner, but by the time I'd finished the Cone Smoker I could tell that I needed to cut myself off. So that's what I did, except for the Guinness (1207) that HatGirl didn't finish.

Once HatGirl left MusicalHippyDude and GlassesGirl and some other chick (ha ha) moved from the bar and joined us.

It was a fun night. No idiots pissed me off, and no strangers got in my way. I got to see HatGirl and DooRagGirl on the same night.

It was fun.

This morning I had an incredible hangover, but it was worth it.

Saturday, May 13, 2006
posted by dave at 11:16 AM in category drink, entertainment

I don't know what was going on at Rich O's last night. But I didn't like it very much. And I'm glad I didn't have to stay.

I arrived at about 9:00. I parked in Northern Alberta and hiked in. The new front area For Special People Only was crammed with Special People. The loser area was crammed with losers, the regular front area was crammed with strangers. Rich O's proper was crammed with strangers and, I immediately suspected, woohoos.

I spent about 10 minutes wondering if (a) a bartender would ever notice me, and (b) if I'd have time for a beer before it was time to leave, and (c) where the fuck all these people had come from.

I ended up leaving and going over to this Main Menu place early.

The Main Menu is an oddity to me. I don't know why. I guess partly because it's so close to Rich O's and Jack's but nobody from Rich O's ever goes there, unless we know people in a band that's playing there. Like last night, MusicalHippyDude's band OTTO was playing at 10:00.

The band was getting set up, and I talked with MusicalHippyDude briefly. GlassesGirl was there too, but the other people at the groupie table I didn't know.

So I sat at the bar next to an improbably hot girl and I ordered a Newcastle (1900). There was something wrong with it - like it had been in the keg for 10 years or something. I did manage to finish it though.

I also had the very cute bartender take a glass out of the freezer for me so that my next beer wouldn't have to suffer being poured into a chilled glass.

Speaking of next beers, my next three were all Blue Moons (258). I like Blue Moon. I especially like it when I remember to ask the bartender to leave the fruit out of it, as I did for the second and third glasses. For the first glass I forgot, but I fished the offending citrus wedge out before it completely ruined the taste.

I spent some time talking to ImprobablyHotGirl and her friend while the band continued to get ready. A few more Rich O's people came straggling in, and they kept bugging me to go join them at the groupie table.

See previous entry.

Once the band started I moved over to a table with PhotoDude and bobbed my head to the beat and stuff.

The band is good. They play all original stuff though, and this means that there weren't any people dancing.

I have the same problem with all live bands, and OTTO is no exception. The music is too damned loud, and it completely drowns out the singing. I'm sure that the lyrics were great and all that, but you just can't hear them. I'd like to see every band in the world cut the instrument volume in half and leave the vocal volume as is. But, last time I checked, I was not in charge of every band in the world, so I'm not exactly holding my breath waiting for this to happen.

When the band got down to just a couple of songs left, I drove the short distance back to Rich O's.

The vast majority of the strangers and the losers and the Special People had all left.

Yay!

I sat on the sofa (the throne was occupado) and ordered a half-glass of Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier Dunkel (75), on tap for the first time in over a year I think.

I'd just gotten settled in, and DooRagGirl came in.

Yay!

I gave her some shit for being such a stranger lately and then we just talked about various crap with the three strangers sitting in the living room area with us. Once the strangers left I moved to the throne.

At one point, DooRagGirl asked me how I was doing and I said that I was "about the same." So she said something like, "Oh, pretty bad then."

This was a bit of a shock to me because I realized that I'm not "pretty bad" anymore. Since this wall went up I'm actually doing pretty well. Better than I should be doing certainly.

Once DooRagGirl left I drove back down to The Main Menu, but ImprobablyHotGirl wasn't there anymore, so I came home.

Wednesday, May 10, 2006
posted by dave at 11:18 PM in category drink, ramblings

(continued)

The problem was, I still knew nothing about beer. I'd managed, over the course of more than three decades, to find a whopping three beers that I liked. Hmmmm, they were all brown. Perhaps that was the secret.

I looked at the people around me, at what they were drinking.

Black, oily-looking beer. Fizzy pale beer in foofoo glasses. Piss-colored yellow lagers.

And one guy, one guy was drinking a brownish beer. Copper-colored actually. A lot like my beloved Alaskan Amber.

"Excuse me," I said to the guy. "But what is that beer you're drinking?"

"It's called Cone Smoker," the guy replied. "They make it here. It's pretty good."

I thought it was a stupid name for a beer, but I asked the bartender - I think it was FutureDude - for a glass of this Cone Smoker stuff. He gave me a dubious look. I was, after all, That Guy That Only Likes Newcastle. I don't blame him for doubting me.

"Have you ever had a smoked beer before?" he asked.

"What's a smoked beer?" I answered with a question of my own.

"You should just try a small sample first." He handed me an overgrown shot glass with about an inch of beer in it.

I picked up the glass, and held it up to my nose, and I smelled the beer. That's the way I'd seen the PBDs do it. Then I tasted it.

It was yummy. Yummy and completely different than anything I'd ever had before.

Back in part one of this entry I wrote that my discovery of Pete's Wicked Ale hadn't been very dramatic. I wrote that I'd liked to have compared it to having a blindfold finally removed.

Well, I couldn't say it when I discovered Pete's, but sure as fuck could say it when I discovered Cone Smoker.

And it wasn't because the Cone Smoker was that great. It was great, but that wasn't the point. That wasn't the light that I'd finally seen. Nope, what made my discovery of Cone Smoker so important to me was that I'd never known that a beer could taste so different and still taste good.

That got me to theorizing that maybe, just maybe there were other beers out there, each different in its own way, but each also good in its own way.

I went, quite suddenly, from being a guy stuck in a world of piss and swill, a guy who had occasionally lucked into finding something drinkable, to a guy in a world of different beers with different tastes and smells. A world of good, maybe even great beers.

The piss and the swill hadn't been the world. It had only been a very small part of it.

A part that I was quite happy to leave forever.

It wasn't beer that I didn't like. It was lagers.

Now when I made that realization, that was a dramatic moment. From that moment on, I didn't see Rich O's beer menu as a haystack of swill in which I'd be lucky to find a tasty needle. From that moment on I saw that menu as a list of possibilities. A constant reminder of just how many beers were available to try. I knew that there'd still be some that I wouldn't care for. But that was okay, because there'd always be something else to try. And there'd be some that I would like, and there'd even be some that I'd love.

Since then I've probably tried 300 different beers. I've sought out brewpubs and beer bars in Las Vegas. I've flown to Portland Maine because there was a bar I wanted to check out. I've found that, besides lagers, I don't care for IPAs either. Or anything too hoppy. I've discovered the wonderful beers of Belgium, and the dark and mysterious imperial stouts. Hefeweizens and Winter brews. My God, the Winter brews.

I've turned into a beer connoisseur. A beer snob. A beer nut.

And it all started, really started I mean, with that small sample of New Albanian Cone Smoker, way back when.

Anyway, the reason I started writing this entry is because Cone Smoker (1580) is finally back on tap at Rich O's. It came back on Monday. I had a glass after work, and I bought myself a growler, and I'm having a glass right now.

It's yummy.

Tuesday, May 9, 2006
posted by dave at 11:50 PM in category drink, ramblings

(continued)

So I figured What the heck? At least I knew it wouldn't kill me. I ordered one.

Either it was different, or I was different, because this time, this time it was delicious. After 15 minutes I was thinking Fuck Pete! After an hour I was wondering Pete who?

So just like that, I switched beers. I never drank anything but Alaskan Amber until I moved away from Seattle three years later.

I hated Memphis. Part of the reason that I hated it was because it wasn't where I wanted to be. Part of the reason was that everyone seemed racist to me. Part of the reason was that there was no beer worth drinking. Not that I found anyway. My own stubbornness kept me from ever really getting out to explore that city.

Nope, I spent most of my weekends during my Memphis tenure back home in Southern Indiana. Sleeping on my Dad's couch, and hanging out with my sister Dina and my cousin Jeff. With the latter, and a couple of times with the former I guess, we'd go out to some bar and I'd drink whatever there was. It didn't seem to matter anymore. There was no Alaskan Amber. A couple of places had Pete's, but the recipe had changed since their sale, and it just didn't seem the same. Plus you couldn't get it on tap anywhere that I ever went.

And to me, no Pete's and no Alaskan Amber meant that there was nothing at all. I resigned myself to drinking swill and that's pretty much what I drank when we went out.

Until this one time.

This one time we all went to this weird little bar with the weird little name of "Rich O's" and played euchre in a weird little area that was set up with living room furniture.

Sofa and loveseat and a padded chair. In a bar. Pretty damn strange.

This place had dozens of beers. It seemed like thousands to me. I was overwhelmed by all of the choices. I asked the bartender for a beer recommendation and he brought out some foreign beer that I'd never heard of.

Newcastle Brown Ale, it was called.

It was yummy.

So just like that, I found a new favorite beer.

Newcastle and I were inseparable for years and years. I moved back to Southern Indiana, hung out even more with my sister and my cousin, but I didn't drink swill anymore. I drank Newcastle Brown Ale, by God.

Usually, right after I moved back home, I hung out at this place called Bailey's in Clarksville. At first, Bailey's had been more of a pool hall than anything else. A pool hall with Newcastle. A pool hall with Newcastle and hot waitresses.

In other words: Heaven On Earth.

But all good things must be ripped away from me eventually. Bailey's went through several management changes and, after several failed attempts to become a date bar, it closed for good. But by that time I didn't really care that much. I'd stopped going soon after they stopped taking care of the pool tables. I'd stopped going out altogether, and I'd stopped drinking completelly. It was a happy time in my life though. I was perfectly content just being by myself, playing pool in my basement and watching TV with my cats.

But I did start to get bored with it. So, every now and then I'd go down to that weird Rich O's place and have myself a Newcastle.

One of the times I went down there fairly early in the evening, and I saw a pretty girl sitting off to the side, typing into a laptop computer.

I wish I could remember the date, but it happened before I started doing this 'blog stuff.

But I digress.

Because of the Newcastle, and maybe partly because of the pretty girl and the hopes of catching another glimpse of her, I became a bit more of a regular at Rich O's. The PBDs in there would all look down at me and my beer choice, but I was perfectly content.

Like I said though, all good things must be ripped away from me eventually.

Rich O's started brewing its own beer. It was decided that one of those beers was too close to Newcastle in style and flavor, so Newcastle was pulled from the draft list.

I thought that decision fucking sucked back then, and I still think it fucking sucks now. The reason that I was given was the Newcastle sales suffered when the NABC Community Dark was introduced. Well, duh. Of course people are going to try a new beer brewed in-house. Of course sales of an allegedly similar beer will suffer initially.

But it seemed to like they only gave it a week. It seemed to me like Newcastle never had a chance. It seemed to me like the decision had been made months earlier.

Like I said, it sucked.

But I had become accustomed to Rich O's, and I had gotten to meet some interesting and nice people. MisunderstoodGirl and DooRagGirl were among the first. As were ElPresidente and FirstLady.

I kinda liked the place, and so I didn't venture back out into the world in search of another bar with Newcastle. I stayed, and I looked for something else to drink.

(to be continued)

posted by dave at 12:46 AM in category drink, ramblings

Back when I was young, shortly after the glaciers retreated, I would drink whatever I could get my hands on.

For a long time, whatever I could get my hands on was Jack. My friend Eddie's dad owned a liquor store in Louisville, and we could get all the Jack we wanted. It was weird. Eddie's dad knew that we were going to steal something from the store, and he told us to just stick to Jack and to never, never take any beer. I never did figure out what that was all about.

So anyway, we drank Jack and we drove around in Eddie's van with all of our friends and generally amazed ourselves that we never got arrested or worse. We didn't drink Jack because we particularly liked the stuff, but because like I said - we could get all we wanted.

Which was a lot.

After Eddie joined the Army and disappeared from the face of the Earth, I switched to beer. Swill, actually. Whatever I could get my hands on. Whatever was available. Budweiser at a friends apartment. Little King's down by the river. It didn't matter what it was, I didn't like any of it. But at that age I already knew that beggars could not be choosers.

And so it began.

Eventually, my taste buds having been completely pussified by swill, I actually convinced myself that there was nothing wrong with what I was drinking. That there was something wrong with me. That for some reason I didn't like beer, but that I could at least tolerate it when necessary. To keep up appearances. Or whatever.

Well beyond my 21st birthday, I still drank Bud Light. Or Coors Light. I actually thought that there was a difference between the two, but I can't for the life of me imagine what that difference might have been.

Beer was just something that I didn't like. And forget about anything stronger than beer. I've always been a lightweight, and once I finally realized it, after rolling Eddie's van into the Ohio River, I never drank the strong stuff again.

Except for shots. With Holly. But that's only for special occasions. Like when I'm with Holly.

I miss Holly.

Anyway, when I lived in Omaha, I'd often go for months at a time without a drop of alcohol. Not because I'd become a Jesus freak or anything, just because I never liked the stuff and I didn't see the point of drinking something that I didn't like. Plus I had this crazy idea that it might affect my pool game.

When I moved to Seattle, I ran a pool league for a while. It was called The Bud Light Pool League. So, guess what beer I drank? Bud Fucking Light of course. Gallons of it over the course of a year or two. I still didn't like it, but I drank it out of loyalty or some bullshit like that.

And then, in 1994 or so, everything changed.

I was shooting pool at my regular bar in Kent Washington and this chick came in. A hot chick. I say that now but I really couldn't even begin to describe what she actually looked like. I just know that she must have been hot. She must have been hot because she offered me a weird beer, and I tried it.

I tried it, and I liked it.

Me. The guy that had never had a sip of beer that he liked in his entire life. The guy that only drank because everyone else was doing it. The genetic freak who lacked the ability to enjoy beer at all. That guy had a glass of beer, and actually enjoyed every bit of it.

Then that guy had another.

That beer was Pete's Wicked Ale.

My first non-lager.

Wow.

I'd like to say that it was like being blindfolded for my entire life and then suddenly being given the gift of sight. I'd like to say that, but it wasn't nearly as dramatic.

I'd simply found a beer that I liked. So I drank it. And nothing else.

There was no need for anything else. The way I saw it, I'd disliked 99% of all of the beers I'd ever tried, and I'd finally found something that I enjoyed. So why tempt fate by trying anything else?

There was no reason that I could think of, but eventually fate came up with a reason that I couldn't ignore.

I was in Juneau Alaska, and none of the bars had Pete's.

I asked one of the bartenders at one of those bars for a recommendation, and he poured me a pint of some stuff I'd never heard of.

Alaskan Amber. "Brewed right here in Juneau," the bartender told me. Like I was going to be impressed or something.

I don't think that I really cared too much for Alaskan Amber when I first tried it. I certainly didn't start seeking it out once I moved back to Washington. What I did was I went back to Pete's Wicked Ale until that fateful day when the owner of my favorite bar told me that they'd stopped carrying it forever. Apparently I was the only one drinking it, plus the entire Pete's operation had been sold to some outfit back East.

When you're in Western Washington, just about everywhere is back East.

So, desperate to find something, anything to drink besides Bud Fucking Light, I looked at the taps along the bar. I mean, for the first time I really looked at them.

Red Hook? I'd tried it once and it was swill.

Sierra Nevada? Give me a break. Everything I'd hated about beer for years, condensed and magnified.

Henry Weinhard's Hefeweizen? At least it wasn't a lager, but my friend John already drank that, and I didn't want to simply copy him. Plus the citrus wedge it was always served with seemed a little gay.

And, of course, there were all the obligatory taps for, as Roger calls them, mass-produced industrial swill. I didn't even consider those.

Then I saw a tap that caught my eye.

Alaskan Amber.

(to be continued)

Sunday, May 7, 2006
posted by dave at 12:49 AM in category drink

Relaxing and reminiscing. Thirst quenching. Flinging steel arches at cold metal spikes. Drawing promises of fortune out of a box, and feigning excitement as brutes flee whips that they can never outrun.

Such was my day.

Familiar faces in unfamiliar surroundings, they just don't seem to fit. Or maybe I am the one out of place. Sound crossing still waters, driving its rhythm into my bones. Man's best friends, excited to see me, though they've never done so before. If they only knew.

Such was my evening.

A comfortable chair. A comfortable friend. Silent camaraderie. Life exhales and allows itself to relax.

Such was my night.

Ha ha. Just kidding.

Today was a long day, even though it didn't really start until 3:00.

First, I went to my friend Eric's Derby party. This party, like last year's version, consisted of Eric and his wife, and about 800 people that I don't know - mostly friends of Eric's from high school.

To drink, I had the same thing I had at last year's party. So maybe I'm starting my own tradition here. At any rate, I had five bottles of Blue Moon (270) and it was quite good. I'd like to have had something better, but not in the middle of the day when I know I'll be drinking for several hours.

After some preliminary crap like eating and being introduced to people whose names I immediately forgot, we pitched some horseshoes.

The first game, Eric and I were down 19-10 and I caught fire. We won that game 21-19.

The second game Eric and I just ran away with. I think we won with a score of 21-4 or something equally embarrassing for our opponents.

The third game we had our asses handed to us. We both just sucked.

The fourth game we lost 21-19. Close, but close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades, and this time it didn't even count in horseshoes.

Once the fourth game was over it was time to watch the race. I'd drawn the name of some horse I never heard of in the $5 pool. I think it's still running.

Then, it was time for me to move on to my next appointment. This one chick was having some people from Rich O's over for a post-Derby party.

While there, I had the last of my Blue Moons (282) and talked with the PBDs. It was definitely strange to see those people outside of Rich O's.

The people across the pond were having The Party To End All Parties. There must have been 50 cars parked all along the street outside that house, and their music must have been audible for miles. I expect arrests to be made at that party before the night is over.

I couldn't stay at that party for long though, because I had yet another appointment.

I'd promised SassyGirl that I'd meet her at Rich O's before she had to go into work.

The place was dead. I sat on the throne and ordered a Smithwick's (746). After a while SassyGirl came in and we bullshitted for a while. We also spent some time making fun of this one pretentious asshole that was sitting at the bar. It was a nice way to wind down a busy day.

Once SassyGirl left for work, I went to White Castle then I came home.

Saturday, May 6, 2006
posted by dave at 2:16 PM in category drink

I figure I better go ahead and write this now, or I won't get to it until Sunday morning.

I was going to go to Burger King before I went to the bar, but some asshole had my parking space so I went to Wendy's instead.

After that, I went to Rich O's.

It was one of those calm and quiet nights that I love but the bartenders hate. All of the cool people must have been at some party as LaptopGirl and I used to say.

UplandWheatDude was sitting on the throne talking with some strangers who were sitting at the bar and the kiddie table. There were some PBDs, including GlassesGirl and MusicalHippyDude, sitting at the island. A few more strangers were scattered around, and that was it.

I loved it.

I had myself a Founder's Red Rye (120) and just kind of vegged out for an hour or so. I did try to call SassyGirl but I got her voicemail so I figured she was working.

Once the strangers at the bar and kiddie table left, I talked with UplandWheatDude for a couple of hours, mainly about women and how weird they all are, but we also discussed a couple of the PBDs that have, apparently been hounding him about LaptopGirl just as they used to hound me. So, while I used to think that their obsession was with the concept of LaptopGirl and me as a couple, now I think that it's just LaptopGirl that they're obsessed with.

I know the feeling.

My second beer was a yummy Delirium Tremens (481).

I made sure to tell UplandWheatDude about DaveFest. He's been quite erratic with his Rich O's visitations lately and I might not see him again before June.

Near the end of the night I found myself sitting alone on the throne, but I wasn't ready to leave yet, so I had myself a Guinness (1217). I talked with FutureDude for a while since he was waiting for DooRagGirl to come and pick him up.

I was going to go to White Castle, but I completely forgot to do that, so I just came straight home.

Friday, May 5, 2006
posted by dave at 6:32 PM in category drink

With last night being virtual Friday and all, I of course went out.

When I got to Rich O's I was feeling slightly sociable, so I took my Founder's Red Rye (120) and went and sat in the throne.

This was a mistake, as evidenced by the fact that two chicks I never saw before immediately decided to talk to me.

Luckily, this one dude came and sat on the sofa and talked to the chicks so I wouldn't have to.

Unluckily, the dude wouldn't shut up, and I decided that I couldn't stand it the sound of his voice any longer. So, as soon as some PBDs left the bar I picked up my shit and went and sat there.

After that, not very much happened for a long time. That's the way I like it.

At about the time I ordered my second beer, a yummy Upland Winter Warmer (200), a bunch of foreign people came in. If I had to guess I'd say Ireland, but that's mainly because one of them was wearing a Guinness shirt and another one was a leprechaun.

Oh yeah, at one point some dude came out from the kitchen and started calling me sir and stammering out a greeting. By the time he managed to ask me my name, I'd figured that he might be the elusive ArtistGuy that's supposed to talk to me about DaveFest t-shirts.

But, when I told him my name was Dave, he said, "Sorry, I thought you were someone else."

So apparently the guy a had a blind date lined up for after work. Not my problem.

I ended the evening by drinking a half-pint of Smithwick's (736) while I talked with some dude that looked like Grizzly Adams but clean-shaven.

Sunday, April 30, 2006
posted by dave at 7:30 PM in category drink, pictures

Friday night was kind of a bust.

The place seemed more crowded than it was, mainly because of the presence of certain assholes.

I sat at the bar and had myself a Founder's Black Rye (32). I was pretty sure that I'd had this before, but the bartender didn't remember them carrying it. Well, I was right - I've had it before and I liked it okay.

Then some bullshit happened.

Then this one douchebag finally left the island so I moved my shit away from this one asshole and sat up there.

Coincidentally, or maybe on purpose, Rich O's also had Founder's Red Rye on tap. So I had one of those next (100). It was pretty good.

After a while, WomanRepellant came in and sat with me. Then some other people came and sat with us. Then some other people came and stood around us.

I was feeling pretty claustrophobic, and plus for some reason those two beers were going straight to my head.

So I went home.

On Saturday, SassyGirl called to see if I wanted to go over to the Cumberland Brewpub. Well, duh. Of course I did. They have such a yummy porter there.

I braved the weekend Bardstown Road traffic and met SassyGirl at about 6:30. I'd actually gotten lucky and I got to park right in front of the place. This is different than usual, when I have to park on Mars and then walk the rest of the way. So Yay!

I had a burger and fries, and a couple of yummy Cumberland Nitro Porters (160) while SassyGirl and I caught up on what's been happening since we last saw each other. We also talked about stuff like how her gaydar is quite accurate and mine sucks. I guess that makes sense though.

There was a chick at the bar that I thought was hot, and I was sure that SassyGirl would think so as well, but she once again baffled me by going, "Ehhh."

When we left Cumberland we went down the road a little to this place called Willy's. I'd never been there before, but I'd heard that they had a lot of beer on tap.

Well that part was true. Here's a picture of some of their 68 taps:

Taps at Willy's

Pretty impressive, but also quite hard to read all those taps. Luckily they had a beer menu so we checked it out.

Proving once again that great minds think alike, except when it comes to which girls are hot, we chose the same beer:

Bert Grant's Perfect Porter (24)

(draft) I guess this place has gone out of business. Hmmm, I wonder how long this beer has been sitting in the keg. The first thing I noticed was that it was quite thin. Like water. It took me a long time to figure out how to describe the flavor. That's because there was nothing. It was all roasted malt. I think I'd have liked this better if it wasn't so old-tasting.
Seriously, the beer compared to a porter the way a 7up compares to a Coke. The underlying structure was there, but it wasn't holding anything up. Plus, it had an extremely watery mouthfeel.

SassyGirl had to get ready for work, so we left Willy's at about 9:00. I took this picture of the dance floor on the way out:

Where is Willy?

Apparently there's a giant iguana that lives under there. Those are Mannequins of The Blues Brothers. Weird.

So I dropped SassyGirl back off at her truck and headed back to Indiana.

First thing I did, because I was in a mischievous mood, was go to Buckhead's. I didn't really plan to heckle my friend who recently started working there, but I wasn't feeling averse to making her think I was going to heckle her. For a minutes anyway.

Well, she wasn't there, but sometimes shit happens even when it's not the shit you were expecting.

MixedSignalGirl was there.

I was walking around the bar, looking at all the waitresses to see if my friend was working, and I nearly ran into MixedSignalGirl. She'd been walking around the bar, in the opposite.direction, looking for me.

Okay, to be fair, she wasn't quite looking for me. Just wondering if I was there. Well, I was. And so was she.

We spent a good few minutes joking about how fate had once again thrown us together. That's kind of a theme with us.

But she couldn't stay. She'd ordered food for herself and the asshole, so we went our separate ways.

It was still early, so I went to Rich O's next.

The place was actually pretty dead. I loved it. I sat at the bar and had a Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier (873) and talked for a bit with ElPresidente.

Once the PBDs cleared out, I had a bit of an episode. I looked at this...

Empty

...and felt a little nostalgic. Okay, a lot nostalgic.

Luckily that wave of emotion passed through me quickly, and I felt fine after that. I came home and shot some pool until about 4:00.

Thursday, April 27, 2006
posted by dave at 11:58 PM in category drink, general, ramblings

(continued)

I'll tell you what I wish. You won't be surprised.

I wish that I'd met MixedSignalGirl about six months earlier.

Because that way, see, my heart would already have been awakened, but it would not yet have imprinted itself on anyone. And by anyone I of course mean you know who.

Yes, I wish I'd met her earlier. Before it was too late. There was beautiful potential there. There really was.

I was sitting at Hooter's tonight waiting for my cousin Jeff to arrive and give me a ride home. He came in when I typed (to be continued) earlier.

Jeff and I sat and talked with each other and with the pretty bartender. It was good to see him. It was especially good to see him away from his usual haunt, which is the Hooter's in Jeffersonville. When Jeff's away from his normal hangout he's more like his old self.

Let's see, I ended up having a couple more Newcastles (1884) and a Diet Coke.

Obviously, I was in more of a mood to write earlier than I am right now.

At least I finished the thing.

posted by dave at 8:26 PM in category daily, drink, ramblings

The bartender just dug a pen out of her purse for me. She must want it up the ass. Not the pen though. Or maybe the pen. I dunno, but I bet she wants something up the ass.

I'm sitting at the Hooter's in Clarksville, having just dropped my truck off at the nearby Toyota dealer. They're having a recall so they can replace some steering doohickey. Apparently, these doohickeys are prone to breakage and causing hilarity on the highways. Yikes! I'm also going to get my A/C fixed in the thing.

Oh yeah, I'm having a yummy Newcastle (1848) and it's yummy. So take that, Roger!

I was sitting here thinking about, wondering about actually, what would have happened if I'd taken the advice of so many people and just went for it. Or, "Whipped it out," as it was more often suggested.

I don't know why I was wondering about this. I already know what would have happened. I've known all along. Even when it was still easy to know, even then I knew there was no future for us.

A couple of weeks. Maybe a month. Maybe a little longer because I'm stubborn and because she's so incredibly fucking beautiful and wonderful, but that would be all.

I'm having another Newcastle (1860) now.

Where was I?

Oh yeah. Nowhere.

I'm just killing time here.

I continue to be astonished by the fact that I'm still alive. That this news didn't kill me. In many ways, I'm more perplexed and surprised now that I was back when all this shit started. Oh, back then that took me by surprise, sure, but since then I'd begun to think that I'd gotten to know myself fairly well. Well enough to know the difference between that which would completely devastate me and that which I'd simply shrug off.

Well, I was wrong. Again.

I'm thinking about having that engraved on my tombstone. Like this:

tombstone

Anyway, to jump back to the beginning of this sorry excuse for an entry, there was never any real possibility for a future between us. My brain has always known this, but it took time for my heart to finally shut the fuck up long enough that my brain could be heard.

You know what I wish?

Of course you do. You have my entire journal memorized. Plus, you can read my mind.

(to be continued)

Sunday, April 23, 2006
posted by dave at 9:50 AM in category drink

Once again, I'm taking the lazy way out. I took notes last night.

8:20
Rich O's is closed, so I'm going to this Mac's place that I don't like very much. They have Newcastle on tap, and maybe MisunderstoodGirl will be there.

8:45
There's nobody here but fuckheads and idiots. Not even Newcastle is worth putting up with these people. I'm outta here.

8:55
I'm at Sportstime, the sister business of Rich O's. At least they have the decency to be open. LIke I always say, it's weird over here. I order a BBC Jefferson's Reserve Bourbon Barrel Stout (204).

9:05
This is so boring.

9:10
The guy at the next table and his beard are drinking LIndemann's - a popular chick drink. I don't think she'll be getting any dick tonight. At least not from him. Maybe they'll just cuddle or something.

9:14
It's like a million degrees in this place.

9:15
Idiots leave and new idiots immediately fill the void. There's no end to the cycle of idiots.

9:18
Everybody thinks that one girl is hot. I don't know why. She's shaped like a potato.

9:20
That one chick better hope that the fire marshall doesn't come in. Her hair is so big it's blocking all the escape routes. Nice tits though.

9:25
I'm moving to another table. One with better airflow.

9:27
Much better!

9:35
The sign outside the brewery says "Cone Smoker 4/26." The would be a very welcome addition to the NABC lineup.

9:38
The board also mentions something called "Hoosier Daddy." Firstly, I don't know what that is, and secondly, that's a stupid name.

9:40
Upon further review, the board does say "Cone Smoker" but there's no date next to it. Figures. How dare I get my hopes up that they'd make a beer that I actually like? It's already been a zillion years.

9:44
The server doesn't know what "Hoosier Daddy" is either.

9:50
I'm dying of thirst over here! Hello, ServerDude!

9:51
At least PotatoGirl dresses nicely. Everybody else looks like they got smuggled in inside somebody's car trunk.

9:53
They're out of Weihenstephaner, so I order a Baltika 6 and cross my fingers.

9:54
They're fucking out of Baltika 6 too, so I order a BBC Alt and cross my fingers and my toes.

9:55
Yay! I have a BBC Alt (232).

10:00
Piss time.

10:11
The 1970s called, and they want their hairstyle back.

10:16
Boring, I tell you!

10:25
Piss time.

10:26
I get another BBC Alt (244). The first one was yummy, so why not? I also order a pizza to go.

10:34
Such a lovely copper color!

10:37
I'm watching a fucking basketball game. That's how bored I am.

10:40
I think PotatoGirl might be pregnant. If so, it's not my fault.

10:47
Pizza is here. I'm leaving.

Saturday, April 22, 2006
posted by dave at 12:54 PM in category drink

Last night was just strange.

The parking lot was full. The lot across the street was full. The lot at Kroger was pretty fucking full.

Not a good sign.

So I walked into Rich O's. The loser area was completely packed. The front area was completely packed. Rich O's proper was...

surprisingly, not packed.

So I sat in the throne and wondered what was going on with the crowd. There wasn't a single familiar face in the entire establishment except for the bartenders and the two people sitting on the sofa. It was like I'd walked into the wrong bar or something.

Pretty damn weird.

My first beer was an Upland Winter Warmer (180). This beer would later prove to be my downfall.

I talked with the couple on the sofa about nothing much. SassyGirl called to let me know that she'd be in later. WomanRepellant showed up, as did a few of the PBDs.

But mostly the place was full of strangers and assorted idiots. I ended up theorizing that these were people that had come to the area for the big Thunder Over Louisville air and fireworks show. At least that's one possible explanation. Another might be that the universe hates me.

My second beer was a yummy BBC Jefferson's Reserve Bourbon Barrel Stout (184).

By the time SassyGirl showed up, I was already starting to regret drinking the Upland. Not that it's not a great beer - it just seemed to hit me harder than it ever had before.

So I ordered a Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier but I only drank a little bit of it (856). I ended up coming home a little after 11:00.

Now tonight the place will be closed because it's always so dead in there when they have the stupid Thunder show. So I don't know what, if anything, I'll do tonight.

Sunday, April 16, 2006
posted by dave at 10:24 PM in category drink, travel

For my final night in St. Louis, I decided that I wanted to experience Laclede's Landing. So I took a cab back over to the Morgan Street Brewpub.

I took notes.

7:45
The bar is packed. The street is packed. I steal a stool from a guy that got stood up and I sit. I order a yummy Morgan Street Irish Stout (16) and a Diet Coke. I know I'll need to pace myself tonight.

7:47
The exact same bartenders are working - two hot girls and a neo-nazi and a punk rock guy.

7:50
This one bartender with the pigtails reminds me of someone. I don't know who though. Somebody hot I guess.

7:55
I didn't pace myself very well today. I think it was that Scotch Ale that messed everything up.

7:56
This beer is more roasty than I remember from yesterday. Still yummy though.

8:00
I missed HatGirl's party today. That sucks.

8:03
Piss time.

8:07
I'm ordering some smoked duck in wontons. I don't know why - I guess it just looked intriguing.

8:09
One of the hot bartenders asked me what I was writing about. She asked me if I was writing about what I ate and drank, and I said that I was. She then asked if it was because I was on a diet. Ouch.

8:11
The guy I stole the stool from is talking on his phone. He's talking about his dick and how he makes it go grocery shopping and check his mailbox for him. It's hilarious.

8:17
OMG this duck stuff is delicious!

8:24
The last one was burned. Oh well.

8:26
DickGuy and LongHairedHottie are talking about tans and the lack thereof. They both, at the same time, pointed at me and said, "Now that guy is white!" So now I'm a fat albino. Great, just great.

8:39
The brewer's name is Mark Gottfried, according to LongHairedHottie.

8:47
I spent the last 10 minutes telling a guy what he'd just sampled and explaining the differences to him. He then went and asked the bartender the exact same questions. WTF? I'm wearing a shirt that says "Beer is Food" right on the front so that should be a slight indication that I know what I'm talking about.

8:49
LongHairedHottie and PigTailHottie just tore ass out of here. They're probably going home to masturbate while fantasizing about my fat albino ass.

8:55
Piss time.

8:58
OMG The World's Most Lickable Girl is sitting right behind me!

8:59
DickGuy just now ended his phone call.

9:03
The new hot girl that took over for LongHairedHottie must be new. I'm dying of thirst and she's just standing around looking pretty.

9:07
I order a Winter Lager (40) and I move to the outside seating. It might be too dark to write out there.

9:08
It seems like it may storm soon. Cool.

9:10
I guess I'm in the Morgan Street patio area, not the street seating. It's boring here.

9:13
I'm moving to the street seating.

9:16
I've been sitting out here two minutes and I've already been interrogated twice. I'm staying until somebody want to sit here and eat.

9:21
These streets seemed a lot more rowdy 20 years ago. Nice everybody is nice and tame. I wonder where the woohoos are. I guess it's still kinda early though.

9:23
This Winter Lager stuff is fucking yummy!

9:26
It's an older crowd here than I would have expected. Some of these people are even older than me if you can believe that.

9:27
I feel sorry for these horses that have to pull idiots around all day.

9:29
I finally, just now, heard my first "WooHoo!" of the night. About fucking time.

9:34
I might vomit now, because this chick walking past me is gross.

9:35
Crisis averted. I closed my eyes and thought about MixedSignalGirl, and how we were always supposed to come to St. Louis together, until the skanky gross chick had gone by.

9:36
Guess who I miss now.

9:38
I'm taking my shit back into the bar because I have to piss.

9:40
Piss time.

9:42
LongHairedHottie and PigTailHottie are back. They just went to get something to eat. Or so they say. I'm sticking with my masturbation theory.

9:50
LongHairedHottie keeps talking to me. She wants me. Can't she tell that there are like three or four other girls ahead of her in the line for my affection?

9:51
I wish I was a poet. I could write a poem now.

9:55
The gay hockey fans just arrived.

9:57
LongHairedHottie has a nice ass, but it's not as nice as the girl's from last night.

9:58
The gay hockey guys are woohoos.

10:00
Either the lights just dimmed or I'm having a stroke.

10:01
Whew! It was the lights.

10:04
Under the arch there's a museum. In the museum there's a stuffed bison. The bison is posed with its tail slightly raised, so its asshole is exposed. The taxidermist must have spent a lot of time perfectly preserving that bison's asshole. Maybe my job isn't so bad after all.

10:10
I'm cutting myself off. I'm such a good citizen.

10:14
I kinda want to stick something into one of PigTailHottie's orifices. I don't really care what I stick, or where I stick it. My toe in her nose? That would be awesome.

10:33
I just spent 15 minutes talking to some Romanian chick. I must be the first person that's ever talked to her in her entire life because she wouldn't shut up.

10:40
Piss time.

10:45
The chicks that were in the bathroom have asked me to joined them at their table outside. I have to stop writing now so I can go sit with hot girls. Woe is me.

---

I should just stop this entry right here. I had one hot bartender, one Romanian chick, and two hot girls that like to go the bathroom together - all interested in me.

I should just stop writing and let everyone's imaginations run wild.

posted by dave at 9:41 PM in category drink, pictures, travel

Everybody told me that I just had to go to Schlafly's bar slash brewery.

So I did.

I went there at around four I think. I drove myself, figuring that I could always take a cab back to the hotel if the situation warranted.

It's a pretty big place, and at first I thought they might be closed because the parking lot was almost completely empty. Inside was almost empty too. There were just two people sitting at the bar. Some dude and some lady.

I recognized the dude!

It was EvilLou, a pool player I know from my days on the rec.sport.billiard newsgroup and also from the Derby City Classic.

Man what a small world it is.

Of course I knew that EvilLou lived in St. Louis so I guess I shouldn't have been that surprised. I, on the other hand, surprised the shit out of him.

So I sat at the bar and talked with EvilLou and his wife while I had some beer.

Schlafly's Hefeweizen (20)

It's always a crap shoot as to whether a hefeweizen is in the true German style or the crappy American style. This was American, so I didn't like it. As with most beers, however, this did get better as the glass got emptier. By the end, it was passable. This is not the beer's fault - I just don't like the style.
Here's the only picture I took inside this place:

Schlafly's

My next beer was much better:

Schlafly's Scotch Ale (20)

More malty than other Scotch Ales I've tried, and that extra maltiness was needed to help mask the alcohol. A very good beer.
EvilLou and his wife left while I was drinking that last beer, so when I looked at the beer list and saw nothing interesting at all, I decided to head over to another brewpub.

The place I went to was called the Square One brewpub.

Square One Brewpub

Square One Brewpub

I guess they're affiliated with the Augusta brewery because all of the coasters were from that place.

I had myself some yummy beer-battered chicken tenders, and a beer sampler tray. They had a Belgian Red listed, and that sounded intriguing, but the waitress said they were out. Oh well.

Square One Nut Brown Ale (6)

Pretty good. Malty with a hint of cola to balance it out. A lot like Goose Island Hex Nut Brown Ale.
Square One California Common (2)
Hoppy and malty, with a bitter finish. Common is a very good name for this beer - there are a zillion just like it, and I don't like any of them.
Square One Bavarian Weizen (6)
The aroma is fantastic, as is the flavor. Maybe a bit more mellow than other German-style wheats. A very good beer.
Square One Stout (6)
A typical dry stout. Nothing wrong with it at all but nothing great either. Quite roasty, and better than average I suppose.
I had myself another of the Weizens (26) and that was it for me for a while.

I ended up taking a cab back to the hotel.

posted by dave at 8:06 PM in category drink, pictures, travel

Friday night after the game I hailed a cab and took it to this Growlers place that I'd heard about.

Growlers Pub

It's easy to get to: You just go to the Moon and then take a left.

That means that it's pretty far away from downtown. The cab ride cost me forty bucks with tip.

Anyway, I did something kind of stupid, but there was just no way I could have known.

I sat at the bar.

There was a constant crowd of people standing all around me, leaning all over me as they tried to get the bartender's attention to order their drinks. I got extremely claustrophobic and I actually started regretting my decision to come to the place.

But I had to justify that forty buck cab fare, so I drank.

The place has a pretty impressive beer menu, both in selection and in price. The selection part is a good thing. The price part is not so good. They charged $8.50 for a bottle of Delirium Tremens. That's just ridiculous.

But I wasn't going to be drinking bottled beer anyway, so no skin off my back. I checked out the draft selections. There were maybe 30 beers on tap, almost all of which I've had before at one time or another. There was nothing that really jumped out at me, so I just had myself a Newcastle (1856).

The place was a freaking madhouse!

a madhouse I tell you!

While I had my Newcastle I kept looking around for a more private place to site, and eventually one of the tables opened up, so I hightailed it over there. I had that table to myself for maybe five seconds before three people joined me. I'll call them OriginalDude, PlayaDude, and SweetAssGirl. These three ended up being my companions for the rest of the evening.

My second beer was a Fat Tire (105). I hadn't had this in a long time. It was good.

The three of us sat around for a while and talked. They all knew each other but obviously they didn't know me. I told them about my Easter trip custom and shit like that.

My third beer was another Fat Tire (125).

Here's the view from where I was sitting. Those are barrels up there. It's kind of hard to tell though.

Growlers Pub Barrels

So, as near as I can figure it, OriginalDude and SweetAssGirl have been friends for like their entire lives. OriginalDude is clearly in love with her, but SweetAssGirl is either clueless about that fact or she's just choosing to ignore it. She actually spent most of the night either flirting with me or with PlayaDude.

Towards the end, PlayaDude was falling victim to SweetAssGirl's charms much more readily than I was, so I spent most of my time talking with OriginalDude.

My fourth beer was a Guinness (1217).

At one point these four chicks joined us. I think they knew SweetAssGirl and OriginalDude from before. One of them was quite pretty - she actually looked a lot like this girl.

Oh yeah, I had myself some very yummy blackened chicken quesadillas.

My fifth beer was a Diet Coke. I cut myself off after that Guinness.

I guess Missouri must have some draconian blue laws in place, because the place was still packed as shit when they did last call and eventually kicked us all out.

The cab back to the hotel cost me another forty bucks.

posted by dave at 6:21 PM in category drink, pictures, travel

Both Friday and Saturday were quite busy, so I'll be breaking this trip report up into several entries. Otherwise it's just seems like too daunting a task and I'd probably never get to it.

So, Friday afternoon. I checked into my hotel. It seemed like a cool place at first.

a hollow hotel

I wonder if anyone has ever dove in from the ninth floor

But I quickly discovered that the "free Internet access in every room" was simply a myth to lure in customers. I had no signal in my room, and when I called them to complain they basically told me that I was SOL, and why not just take my laptop down to the lobby? There's a strong signal there.

So that sucked, but I wasn't supposed to be sitting at my computer all weekend anyway.

Once I'd checked in, I took off down the hill to see the arch. Should that be capitalized?

The Arch?

I dunno. Or care.

view from the arch grounds

I took a shitload of arch pictures. I'm only going to post a few though. You'll thank me later.

hey look! it's an arch!

This next one is semi-interesting. This was the first time I'd touched the arch in twenty years or so. I didn't cry though.

look ladies, no ring!

As I'd expected, the ride to the top was completely sold out, so I bought a ticket for 12:40 on Saturday. Then I walked over to Laclede's Landing to check out this Morgan Street Brewpub place. Behold my photographic prowess.

I don't remember it being that blurry

While I was at Morgan Street I figured what the heck, I'll have some beer.

Morgan Street Honey Wheat (4)

The bartender didn't know if it was a German-style or and American-style wheat, so I just had a sampler glass. It's American-style, so I didn't like it. The honey was not apparent except that the usual hop bitterness I find in this style was not there. Bland and boring.
The bartender said that it was their most popular beer by a wide margin. This did not bode well.

I also had a sample of this Winter Lager stuff (4) which I'll get to in a minute.

Morgan Street Irish Stout (16)

Fucking yummy and chocolately and yummy. Whoever says that there's no good beer at Laclede's Landing is an idiot. This beer was worth the trip all by itself.
Morgan Street Dopplebock (4)
Quite boring and generic. No hint at all of the strangeness that I usually associate with this style. I see no point to even making this beer.
Morgan Street Winter Lager (20)
Despite the name, this is an oatmeal stout aged in used Jack Daniel's barrels. The bartender says that every beer in the place is "lager-style" which to me means yeast. Whatever they call it, this beer is yummy.
I really wanted to talk to the brewer to see if the bartender was full of shit about the "lager-style" stuff. But he is apparently out of town. I have to ask some of the homebrewing PBDs at Rich O's.

posted by dave at 2:34 PM in category drink

I'm writing this Saturday morning. This will test my memory.

I guess a lot of people must get Good Friday off work, because Rich O's was looking more like a Friday than a Thursday. The place was packed with strangers. I ended up sitting on the loveseat drinking a couple BBC Jefferson's Reserve Bourbon Barrel Stouts (144) for the first hour or so. There were some idiots sitting on the sofa and the throne. I didn't talk to them because they were idiots and I didn't want to be associated with them.

I was quite bored. I tried, for about the millionth time, to call SassyGirl. It went straight to voicemail. Again.

After a long time, some strangers all got up from the island and left, So I bolted over there. For about .0003 seconds I had the island to myself. CoffeeDude ruined that by sitting across from me and attempting to start a conversation. A conversation which I quickly squelched by grunting a lot. For about 2 minutes CoffeeDude and I had the island to ourselves. But then about 8000 PBDs came in. They'd been having a brew club meeting out front and as soon as that was over they stampeded into Rich O's proper because people don't like to sit out front - it's cold and impersonal out there.

So for a while I was pretty irritated, mostly because this one PDB lady kept fanning herself with a menu and the menu kept smacking me in the ear. Right at about the time I was trying to decide between (a) moving elsewhere and (b) murdering the PBD lady, two cool things happened.

First, the PBD lady left and went to go assault somebody else.

Second, DooRagGirl came in and sat beside me.

A bonus cool thing was that I recognized her right away - first time that's happened since she got her hair cut.

So the rest of the night was pretty good. The crowd there at the island dwindled to a reasonable number, and we all sat around bullshitting.

I had myself a Weihenstephaner (850).

I think that just about the only other thing of note was that HotEuchreGirl was there and one of the PBDs that I was sitting with decided that he was going to help me pick HotEuchreGirl up. There were several things wrong with this plan, not the least of which was that her boyfriend was already standing right there talking to us.

Not cool, dude.

Sunday, April 9, 2006
posted by dave at 9:13 AM in category drink

The first thing I noticed last night was the hot girl sitting in the loveseat.

The second thing I noticed was the other hot girl sitting on the sofa.

The third thing I noticed was that there were about a dozen other people crammed into the living room area. All strangers. Some kind of wedding reception or something. Classy.

So, there was no place to sit at all. I stood at the end of the bar for a while and talked to some of the PBDs. I had myself a Spezial (1170). Once this one lady left the other end of the bar I went and grabbed that seat.

So, I'd been there like 15 minutes, and I was already sitting in my new favorite seat. Not too bad I suppose.

My second beer was a Stone Smoked Porter (220). I sat with my back to the strangers and didn't talk to anyone for a long time. That's the way I like it though.

The strangers kept getting louder and louder. Eventually they progressed beyond simple loud talking and entered the WooHoo Zone.

So of course I decided that I hated them.

I hated them so much, in fact, that I'd pretty much decided that I would leave when my beer was gone.

I felt a tap on my shoulder.

It was HatGirl and LuckyFucker!

Including HatGirl! Yay!

There was only one seat open at the bar, and HatGirl was going to take it, but this old fucker that I already hated made me hate him even more by taking that seat so he could eat.

So the three of us went out front and sat at a table for a while and talked mostly about the vacation they just finished.

I had myself a Weihenstephaner (816).

Once the WooHoos left we went in and sat in the living room area.

It was nice I guess. It's kind of hard work pretending that I'm talking to both of them with equal interest.

ElPresidente and FirstLady came in and joined us. Then ExBartender and Bubbles joined us. I started to get claustrophobic and I stayed that way until the crowd thinned out a little, but by then it was time to leave anyway so that's what I did.

Saturday, April 8, 2006
posted by dave at 10:36 AM in category comics, drink, general

I guess I should start the Friday report with the weather.

Around 3:00 is when the tornado warnings and severe thunderstorm warnings started hitting the area. I was working, but some people glued themselves to the local radar pages on the Internet. I overheard some people talking about tennis ball-sized hail in Georgetown. Even though these things are usually an exaggeration I used it as an excuse to leave and go see if my house had any busted windows or skylights.

It must have been a different Georgetown, because there was no hail at my house. The few leaves that have made an appearance this Spring are still on the trees, and any hail at all would have torn them down.

So I took a nap on my couch, and woke up at 7:30 to the sounds of my phone ringing and thunder rumbling. The call was from my sister, but when I tried to call her back I got no answer. I figured she was calling to make sure I knew about the weather, because when I turned on the TV there were huge red blobs all over the radar.

Nothing much happened at my house though. Just a lot of rain - and even the rain wasn't that impressive.

Once the red blobs had all moved East of me I took a shower and went to Rich O's.

The place was fairly full, and it seemed more full than it was because a lot of the PBDs were just standing around getting in everyone's way. I sat at the loveseat and had myself a BBC Jefferson's Reserve Bourbon Barrel Stout (100) and talked with HotEuchreGirl for a bit.

i smell a setup coming

WomanRepellant came in and we bullshitted some too. He told me at first that HatGirl had been in last Friday, so I spent a few agonizing minutes torturing myself with thoughts of her being at Rich O's but not talking to me, but then we figured out that she had really been in on Saturday when I was at SassyGirl's party, so the suicide has been postponed.

That was a joke.

My second beer was a new one they're brewing at Rich O's:

NABC St. Radegund Bitter (10)

(cask) I guess I was expecting something bitter. You know, because of the name of the beer. This wasn't bitter at all. The aroma was malty and a little flowery. My first impression of the flavor was that it was watery. That watery impression did fade by the time I finished the glass. This beer is very easy to drink. Not my favorite though.
After a while a couple of strangers left so I moved over to the throne and ordered a half-pint of Stone Smoked Porter (200). This was the first time I'd had this on tap, and it was quite good.

My last beer was going to be another half-pint of the BBC bourbon stuff (104), but MixedSignalGirl called me so I only had a few sips.

Wednesday, April 5, 2006
posted by dave at 6:41 PM in category drink, general

So I figure I'll make an attempt to stay up a little bit later this evening. It's Wednesday and I only have two nights to get back in sync with the rest of the world.

It has been nice getting plenty of sleep for the last few nights though.

Today, I ate lunch at Buckhead's with some work people.

I almost never eat lunch on a weekday, but I've been craving a Buckhead's Cajun burger for several weeks now, plus I've been asked by a friend of mine to stay away from that place at night, plus the other work guys were going there.

So I went.

My food was yummy, as was the Stone Smoked Porter (190) I had with it. Even though they had it on tap, for some reason the waitress gave me a bottle. I didn't drink the whole bottle though, just 20 ounces of it.

After work, I tried to call SassyGirl, but got no answer.

I went to Rich O's and sat at the bar and had a Spezial (1150) which was yummy. There were about a zillion loud fuckers over by the island. The bartender told me they were good people though so I didn't scowl at them too much. Plus one of the girls was kinda hot.

PatronizingAsshole came in and sat beside me at one point and proceeded to lecture the bartender on how he should go to Dublin and learn how to pour a pint of Guinness. I hate that guy so much. He wasn't even drinking Guinness - he just saw fit to be a dick. There's not a damn thing wrong with the way any of the bartenders at Rich O's pour a pint.

I came home to a clean house and a mowed lawn. That was pretty nice, and well worth the money I spend so I don't have to do that shit myself. This was the first lawn mowing this season for those of you keeping score at home.

Man I'm bored.

I need to find something to do or I'll get sleepy and that'll ruin my grand plan to stay up until at least 10:00 tonight.

You know what's funny?

I miss MixedSignalGirl more than I miss LaptopGirl.

Fuck, I even miss HatGirl more than I miss LaptopGirl.

Maybe I've been abducted by aliens and replaced by a pod person.

But wouldn't I, of all people, know it if that were the case?

I don't really feel like a pod person, I'm just acting like one.

Oh yeah, HatGirl is having a yard party, but I'll be in St. Louis that weekend. Sucks to be me.

Man I'm bored. And tired.

posted by dave at 4:41 AM in category daily, drink, ramblings

What a boring person I've become.

Whether it's shock or denial or a combination of the two, my mind seems to have shut itself down.

This is a good thing if I want to sleep, and it's certainly allowing me to do that lately. This is also a good thing for my readers if they want to sleep, for if there is anything more likely to cause drowsiness than reading about another person's boring life and mundane thoughts - I don't know what it would be.

I feel like there must be something here inside my head that, if I could only get a good enough grip on it, I could force it to generate some passion within me. Then I could let some of that passion spill out onto this keyboard.

There must must be something in here.

Today, I went shopping for booze. This is an annual event in which I spend a lot of money, on things that I will never drink, simply because my company expects it of me. So now I've got even more wine and whisky and whiskey and vodka to place alongside all of the bottles that I've bought in previous years. My liquor cabinet overflowed last year - bottles are now starting to crowd onto my kitchen counter. My freezer is filling up with flavored vodka.

I try to give it away to friends and family, but I don't have a lot of either, and most of the people I know are beer drinkers anyway.

I could throw the fuck all of parties, but since I don't like people that much, I doubt that I'll be doing that anytime soon. Or ever.

My fridge is also filling up with beer. Like today I bought myself a six-pack each of Bell's Kalamazoo Stout and Upland Chocolate Stout. Six months ago I never drank at home, but I've picked up that habit lately I suppose. Mostly in an attempt to stir my creative juices. I gotta watch that shit though. I gotta remember where I came from. What my parents were.

After the booze shopping I stopped by Rich O's and had myself a glass of Spezial Rauchbier Lager (1130) which started being promised in January I think but only just now showed up on tap. It was yummy.

Once I got home I went to sleep and slept for nine hours.

I dreamed that I missed a certain person, and I was so happy to be feeling anything again, but then I remembered that I'm not allowed to miss that person anymore. So I dreamed that I missed someone else until the same realization put an end to that as well.

So, apparently, I'm not allowing myself to feel anything at all, not even in my dreams.

How messed up is that?

Sunday, April 2, 2006
posted by dave at 11:57 AM in category drink, pictures

Last night was SassyGirl's party. Of course I went.

I only knew a handful of the people there, but I think that's part of the appeal of the thing. I don't know them, and they don't know me. It usually takes a while for people to figure out how fucked up I am.

Here are some people I didn't know. The King Kong Bundy guy I have seen at Rich O's before though.

strangers

SassyBoy, TacoBell, and SassyGirl hamming it up for the camera. SassyBoy got fucked up.

hamming it up
hamming it up more

SassyGirl had a keg of some NABC beer (I think it was the Bob's Old 15B Porter), but I took my own stuff. I had three bottles of Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier (799) and a bottle of Baltika 6 (324) plus a sip or two of Panil Barrique (10), which I'd brought for SassyGirl.

It was fun I suppose, but (surprise!) I'm not much of a party person. For me the fun part is watching everybody act like fools. I also spent a lot of time trying to convince SassyGirl's cat that I wasn't going to torture and kill and eat it.

here kitty kitty

I got bored and left at about 12:30.

Then, as is usual, I got sad on the drive home because I couldn't help but think about how the last time I was ever happy was driving home from a party at SassyGirl's house back in 2004, with LaptopGirl beside me I think I need to find a different route to take home the next time.

Saturday, April 1, 2006
posted by dave at 6:50 AM in category drink

Friday morning I emailed RockGirl that I was going to let fear keep me from going to Rich O's on Friday night. Not my proudest moment, but there it was anyway.

Friday afternoon I emailed HatGirl that I was feeling exposed, and that I wouldn't be at Rich O's on Friday night.

On Friday night, I went to Rich O's.

I arrived quite late - after 10:00 - because I really had planned on just staying home. But my cat Buddy got into a fight with the blinds in the guest room where I was sleeping and that woke my ass up.

When I pulled in behind the place to park there was a storm rolling in, so instead of going around front I just snuck in the back door. None of the bartenders even saw me. I'm sure that some Hollywood people will be calling me about becoming the next James Bond.

Let's see. the place was about half full. A bunch of strangers were in the living room area, and a bunch more were in the red room. ExoticGirl and a couple more chicks were sitting at the bar...

I've had a problem for the past several weeks. I seem to be unable to recognize DooRagGirl with her new haircut. She was sitting right there next to ExoticGirl and I didn't even recognize her until she turned around and even then she had to pretty much smack me in the head.

I think she should start wearing a long wig to Rich O's. She can cut a couple of inches off the wig every week. That way it will be a gradual enough change that I may be able to keep up. I'm sure that this wouldn't be too much trouble for her.

Also sitting next to DooRagGirl was her sister OddlyFamiliarGirl who I guess thinks that I'm mad at her because I didn't talk to her last week. It wasn't that at all, I was pissed at the person she was sitting with, not at her. But whatever, OddlyFamiliarGirl didn't even turn around.

Anyway, one of the PBDs already had taken the spot at the end of the bar, so instead of standing there and talking with the ladies I moved over and sat at the island for a while.

My first beer was one of these:

Bell's Rye Stout (10)

(draft) I found this to be a basic stout with a slight chocolate flavor and a touch of rye bitterness at the finish. I liked it a lot, and I will probably go try to find it in bottles.
That was really good, but I wanted to try another new beer. So I did:

JW Lees Manchester Star Porter (10)

(draft) Smelled like snot, but that might have been because I was developing a cold. Served too warm for my tastes, and I almost never say that. A very creamy and smooth chocolatey porter. It contains more alcohol than I'd have guessed. I'd like to try this again once they get the cooler fixed.
Sometime during the time when I was enjoying my second beer, the girls all left the bar, and I moved over there. DooRagGirl waved at me but OddlyFamiliarGirl just stomped out.

While at the bar, I had myself a couple Guinnii (1237) and talked with the bartenders and the PBD that had been there all along. Then I came home a little after 12:00.

Oh, shit! I almost forgot again. The other day I went to Rich O's after work and tried one of these:

Upland Castle Rock Irish Red Ale (20)

(draft) My first impression was that this beer was simply a relabeled Smithwick's. After a bit, however, I did begin to notice a slight hint of bitterness. More like a hint of a hint actually. Smithwick's is better.

Sunday, March 26, 2006
posted by dave at 11:35 AM in category drink

In yet another attempt to maintain some semblance of normalcy, I present this entry. Don't expect much though as I haven't slept since Saturday morning.

I got to Rich O's a little after 9:00. The place was packed. FutureDude told me that Friday had actually been fairly dead. Well that makes sense - I wasn't in there on Friday so nobody really saw any point in showing up.

So, like I said, the place was packed. There were some people that I know in the living room area, but I really didn't feel like squeezing myself in there, and I really didn't feel like having to entertain anyone, so I just stood at the end of the bar and had myself a BBC Jefferson's Reserve Bourbon Barrel Stout (60).

After a short while, the strangers sitting at the end of the bar left so I sat there and basically didn't move for the next two hours except to piss and call SassyGirl to see if she was coming out after work.

My second beer was another of the bourbon thingies (80).

My third beer was a Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier (718).

I was enjoying a nice quiet evening, and nobody bothered me.

SassyGirl came in a little after 11:00 and we talked for a while. She told me the news that prompted my last entry. I came home at about 12:30 and stared at my ceiling until about 5:30, then I had to go to work.

Saturday, March 25, 2006
posted by dave at 2:41 PM in category comics, daily, drink

Last night, I did not go to Rich O's. I did not, in fact, go to any bar at all.

Weird, huh?

That's what I thought.

What I did was I went to a surprise birthday party for my friend Eric. Though I'm not sure how much of a surprise it was, what with all of the cars in the driveway. Maybe seeing all of those cars was the surprise.

First things first, though. I went to the liquor store. I was planning to pick up a six-pack of Weihehstephaner, but they were out. So instead I bought a six-pack of Upland Chocolate Stout, then came back home and constructed my own little party pack consisting of two bottles of the Upland (286), two bottles of Winterkoninkske Winter King (136), and two bottles of Weihenstephaner (701) that I'd forgotten were in my fridge.

Thusly armed, I went to the house of this dude that graduated with Eric for the party.

i might have had a stroke as well

It was a nice quiet affair. We talked. We played some euchre. My brother-in-law Chris and I won about 800 games in a row I think.

she had a bud light

I actually managed to drink all of the beer I'd brought with me. And I didn't die.

That's simply amazing to me, mostly because that Winterkoninkske is some pretty strong stuff.

muhaha

One other thing that was nice was that my phone kept ringing. People wanted to know where I was, why I wasn't at Rich O's, when I was coming to Rich O's, how they were supposed to keep on living if I wasn't at Rich O's. I assured them all that I'd be there on Saturday night.

What I didn't tell them was that I have to work Sunday morning so I may not stay for very long.

Sunday, March 19, 2006
posted by dave at 1:57 AM in category drink

I went to Rich O's. I took notes.

9:40
The place is about half-full of strangers. The only person I recognize is CuteBlonde. I sit at the kiddie table and I order a Delirium Tremens (444).

9:44
I'm trying to use my mental powers to make the fucker at the end of the bar realize the futility of his life and leave. He has no beer. He's reading a fucking newspaper. What, they don't have newspapers anywhere else?

9:50
This Tremens is so yummy. I wish it had less alcohol in it.

9:52
I'm supposed to tell people about SassyGirl's party, but she hates even more people than I do.

9:55
I think this fucker is trying to memorize his newspaper.

9:56
CuteBlonde left, so I'm moving to her seat at the bar. It's the wrong end, but it's still better than the kiddie table.

10:00
This one chick keeps looking at me. She might be the same one that tried to pick me up that one night. If so, nice body. If not, still a nice body.

10:10
I'm trying right now to be sad. It's not working.

10:15
Now I'm trying to be happy and that is working. Imagination is a funny thing.

10:16
PaperBoy is finally fucking leaving. Yay! I'm moving my shit to the other end of the bar.

10:20
The secret to being sad is to imagine that you're happy. After a bit, abracadabra, reality shows up like a bull in a china shop.

10:21
I order a Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier (659). They've got the big bottles again. Bigger is better.

10:25
I can imagine those two seconds, lurking somewhere in the future, I can imagine them over and over and over, and it never fails to make me smile.

10:32
Piss time.

10:34
I'm not finished with the Weihenstephaner, but I'm ordering a half-pint of this:

BBC Jefferson's Reserve Bourbon Barrel Stout (10)

(draft) A very dark red. Bourbon aroma is very faint - almost not noticeable. The flavor is a quite mild stout with only the slightest hint of bourbon showing up in the finish. Not too bad.
10:38
Last week I found out that my 'blog had gotten somebody in trouble. This week I could put somebody else into a world of hurt. But I won't.

10:50
I finally remembered to ask about the ABV in this bourbon beer.

10:55
Nobody knows. I'm guessing it's less than 7%.

10:57
After further review, this beer is yummy. I don't know why though.

10:59
Piss time.

11:01
That one slut changed her hair. It looks good, but there's no telling what it will look like once she washes all of the semen out of it.

11:02
I've finished the bourbon beer. Back to the Weihenstephaner.

11:05
A chick just came in that looks like Ella, but not as hot.

11:06
I wish a Natalie or Neela or Rachel clone would come in.

11:09
I miss HatGirl.

11:15
FutureDude has joined me.

11:16
Apparently the bartenders call the island area the "red bar" area. I like mine better.

11:30
Piss time.

11:40
I order a pint of Diet Coke and I buy a Weihenstephaner glass and two bottles of Weihenstephaner. FutureDude thinks that I'm planning to get fucked up tonight.

11:41
Fuck it. I'm going to ask.

11:42
He claims to have no idea what I'm talking about.

11:50
DooRagGirl is here.

12:00
I'm outta here. White Castle sounds good.

Saturday, March 18, 2006
posted by dave at 11:18 AM in category drink

Not much of a report this time. I didn't even get to Rich O's until 11:45.

There were some strangers sitting in the living room area, and a couple of regulars at the bar. I sat at the island and had a couple pints of Guinness (1197), partly because of the St. Patrick's Day thing, but mostly because the place would be closing soon and I wanted something that wouldn't kill me or get me arrested if I pounded it.

I think that island seat is my favorite seat in the place. When any of my friends are there I usually end up sitting in the throne, but sometimes there's too much pressure to be entertaining over there. I'd rather sit at the island and watch all the other idiots. Failing that, I'd rather sit at the bar with my back to the world.

It was a short but relaxing night. I got to visit the ghost for a while, and then at the very end FutureDude and I talked for a bit. None of the bartenders seemed to care very much that I had to work last night. I wonder why.

At least I did manage to make it out. It had been looking for a while like I was going to have to work all fucking night.

Monday, March 13, 2006
posted by dave at 6:10 AM in category drink

This should be a brief entry. I don't feel like typing anything.

Saturday night started out weird. The first reason it started out weird was that I arrived at 7:00 instead of my usual 8:30ish time. The second reason it started out weird was that I went into the Sportstime side instead of the Rich O's side.

Both these bits of weirdness had the same cause. My sister Neisha, and her husband Chris, and her friend that was visiting from up North, were all there.

That side of the building is just strange, but at least they have the same beer list. I started out with a Guinness (1137) which I drank while everybody else had pizza. I had already eaten, plus I've pretty much given up on the pizza at Sportstime.

Three people that I know from Rich O's had expressed interest in seeing Neisha if she ever came in. The only one I knew how to contact was DooRagGirl, so I texted her. HotRedHead came in on her own, so she got to see Neisha, and I guess she also called GlassesGirl.

After everybody was done with their pizza we went over to Rich O's, stopping on the way to say hi to my cousin Jamie. He was sitting out front.

So, this is boring.

We sat in the living room area and talked and drank some. I had myself a Gravity Head beer:

Christoffel Werelds Winterbier (10)

(draft) Poured a lot darker than I expected. A pretty good beer. No spices or adjuncts that I could detect, so I'm not sure that I completely agree with the "Winter Beer" classification. Good though.
Let's see, DooRagGirl managed to arrive in time to see Neisha, but they all left fairly early so they could go over to my other sister Dina's house.

GlassesGirl arrived about two minutes too late. I tried to call Neisha to see if she wanted to turn around and come back but I guess I fat-fingered my phone and I ended up leaving a message at her home number. Duh.

I think that it was about this time that I had another Guinness (1157).

I talked with DooRagGirl and GlassesGirl for a while. Eventually I had myself a Weihenstephaner (618).

I came home fairly early myself because I had to work early Sunday morning.

I could write about more shit from Saturday but I'm not going to.

Saturday, March 11, 2006
posted by dave at 3:08 PM in category daily, drink

Yesterday we had to go to our local Caesar's for this work thing. I really don't get the purpose of these things. It's like there's this perception that nobody likes each other, but that would all change if we could somehow be forced to spend time together away from work.

Brilliant.

Not.

The people that I like I still like, and the people that are assholes are still assholes.

Actually, I think I like most of the people that went yesterday, so if there was an asshole among us it was probably me.

Anyway, I turned my $10 into $110 playing blackjack. It was quite boring though. My dealer's name was Chance I shit you not. What a stupid name, but if you're going to be a casino dealer I guess it's not too bad.

I'd considered just staying at the casino Friday night, because Rich O's has been so full of idiots lately, but by the time we got released from our team-building stuff I was just too tired. So I called SassyGirl and let her know that I'd be at Rich O's later if she got off work and wanted to come by.

Then, then I got home and I had an email that put me in a bad mood for the rest of the night.

I got to Rich O's a little after 8:00. It was of course standing-room-only. So I stood at the end of the bar and ordered my first beer. I had a sip or two of this a long time ago, but this was my first official tasting:

Urthel Samaranth Quadrium (12)

(draft) This beer is evil. Pure evil. To taste the way it does, which is actually fairly mild, but to pack that much alcohol - well like I said it's evil. As I said, a fairly mild (and fairly standard) Belgian taste. A slight alcohol finish is the only thing that hints at the wolf underneath this sheep's clothing.
When I was about halfway through my glass, this fuckwad at the bar that I never saw before noticed the Guinness tap in front of him. He took this opportunity to be a dick.

"That Guinness, it's only for little girls and pregnant women. I can't stand that stuff," he said to his posse of fuckwads. They all chuckled of course, and I decided that I hated them all.

So, of course, I ordered myself a Guinness. I looked all the fuckwads in the eyes and waited for one of them to say something. They didn't though, because they're all fuckwads.

I drank my Guinness (1117) fairly quickly, and I was considering ordering another one just to push the fuckwads over the edge, but some strangers left the loveseat so I picked up my shit and went over there.

That was, in retrospect, a stupid thing to do, but I guess it was at least better than standing. Maybe.

I finished my Samaranth, and ordered another Gravity Head beer:

Founder's Blushing Monk Belgian Razz (5)

This really sucked.
After I'd managed to somehow choke down about half of the glass, I gave up and ordered a Young's Double Chocolate Stout (351).

Some other shit happened. There were idiots all over the place. I did my best to keep to myself, and I came home fairly early.

Friday, March 10, 2006
posted by dave at 4:09 AM in category drink, pictures

Paco the Alpaca

Here's a picture of Paco the Alpaca, brought to me all the way from Peru by SassyGirl.

Paco is admiring my second yummy bottle of Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier (606).

Sunday, March 5, 2006
posted by dave at 1:41 PM in category drink

I'm just going to combine all this into one entry.

Friday was so damn long ago, but I'll try to describe it for those of you that actually care for whatever reason.

SCRIBBLERESQUE PARENTHETICAL THOUGHT: Besides my lovely self, there's one person on Earth that knows the courage it took for me to go into Rich O's Friday night. Even though that courage was wasted, I'm still kind of proud of myself.

The place was, of course, packed as fuck. It wasn't quite standing room only though. In fact the only seat still available was the throne. This dude that looks like my cousin Robbie was there in the living room area with a bunch of people, I asked him if the throne was taken, and he said that it wasn't. So I took it.

I ordered a Founder's Dirty Bastard (30). At the time I didn't remember that I'd tried this last year, or I'd have ordered something else.

The group in the living room area consisted of the dude that looks like my cousin Robbie, a smoldering hot blonde girl, and some dipshits. I think they were dipshits because of their ages though - they may grow out of it eventually. At least they were all drinking real beer.

Oh, before I forget. The other day I came in after work and tried something I hadn't tried before:

Unibroue Maudite (10)

(draft) Quite yummy actually. This surprised me until I remember that the same brewer makes La Fin Du Monde. If I had to describe this, and I guess I do, I'd call it Newcastle on steroids.
One of the dipshits kept trying to talk to me. I answered his questions as efficiently as I could while I scanned the room for a better place to sit.

So then this tall hot blonde girl with very short hair got up from the island and walked over towards me. She got to within about four feet before I recognized her.

It was DooRagGirl!

Man, she'd got her hair cut short! It was really a huge difference.

Anyway, I ended up giving DooRagGirl the throne and I moved over to the arm of the loveseat. The dipshits were becoming more and more dipshitty - one of them started loudly proclaiming his desire to have "anal sex with any girl, at any time."

Classy, huh? I redoubled my efforts to find better seating.

Eventually some people left the island so DooRagGirl and I moved over there and sat with CoffeeDude and InterruptingCow.

I had another beer:

North Coast PranQster (10)

(draft) A very pretty beer, hazy orange with a nice creamy head. The taste was a little sour, but in a good way. It reminded me of a good lambic more than anything else.
The night was fairly tame, despite my heightened surprisaphobia. I talked with CoffeeDude and DooRagGirl, then once InterruptingCow left a couple of PBDs sat down and we all just bullshitted for a while.

I had myself a couple bottles of Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier (558), then went to White Castle and came home around midnight.

Saturday, I was in a strange mood all day.

I wasn't going out at all. I'd already tried to go out in the early afternoon, but I'd ended up just turning around and coming back home.

Then, at around 6:00, I figured that going out would be a waste of time, so I decided to just stay home instead. I slept on the couch until I was awakened by HatGirl wanting to know how crowded Rich O's was. So I told her that I wasn't even there yet, but that I'd let her know.

The place was packed with strangers. I texted HatGirl that information then, a few minutes later, I texted her again and told her I was leaving.

What I ended up doing was going over to The Pub in Louisville where I had myself a couple of yummy Young's Double Chocolate Stouts (335).

Then I went back to Rich O's, hoping that the crowd would have died down a little.

It hadn't died down that much, but the seat at the end of the bar was at least open, so I sat there with my back to everyone.

I had a couple bottles of Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier, and eventually the ghost showed up and made me smile.

That's it. Another weekend gone.

Sunday, February 26, 2006
posted by dave at 12:12 PM in category drink

Last night, the Daytonians invaded Rich O's.

They do this every year I guess for Gravity Head. This year, Roger sat aside the new front room for their use. Whether to give them special treatment, or to keep them away from the rest of us, I don't know. Whatever the reasoning, it seemed to be an idea that fell flat on its face.

The Daytonians crowded into Rich's proper and did what they do best - stand around and talk as loudly as they can.

Hell, the two or three times I went and looked into the new front area it was mostly just local PBDs in there.

Anyway, the place was packed, but my new best friends in the world MusicalHippyDude and GlassesGirl had semi-saved me a seat at the island, so yay! I sat my ass down and ordered my first beer:

t Smisje Kerst (10)

(draft) Looked like coffee with cream, I guess because the keg had been jiggled. Flavor was pretty good. Lots of berries and fruits. A fairly strong alcohol bite at the finish.
I was hesitant to even rate this beer because it was so obviously not the same beer that I'd seen people drinking Friday night. But I asked GlassesGirl to take a sip and compare it to what she remembered from Friday. She said that it actually tasted better, so I went ahead and finished my glass and did the rating.

If anyone cares, my surprisaphobia was in full swing last night.

I pretty much just sat and drank and glared at the crowd and kept an eye on the entrance. I didn't feel like talking to anyone, and after a while talking would have been impossible over the noise from the crowd. My second beer was another new one for me:

Great Divide Hibernation Ale (10)

(draft) This beer was simply hard to drink. Part of the problem was that it really clashed with the beer I'd just finished, but most of the problem was that it tasted like cranberry juice. It did get better towards the end of the glass.
I think that beer put me into a bad mood. I'd really been looking forward to it, and I was disappointed.

My last beer was one that's always highly-touted, but it was new to me:

EKU 28 (10)

(draft) Had a strange flavor that I've never been able to accurately describe in this type of beer. Very thick, almost syrupy mouthfeel. The alcohol was quite evident.
Kind of strange, but a Dopplebock beat out two Belgian style beers and ended up being my favorite of the night. What's the world coming too?

The night ended up being a bit of a bust, so once I left Rich O's I had this idea of going and trying to find VigilanteGirl. I have no idea why. I didn't find her, and that urge is thankfully gone from me now. But while I was at the little bar near my house I had myself a Newcastle (1836), and it was quite yummy.

Saturday, February 25, 2006
posted by dave at 12:01 PM in category drink

So last night was the beginning of the Gravity Head festival at Rich O's. This is the biggest, and oldest, and most crowded festival of the three that they have every year.

This year there'll be four because of DaveFest.

Anyway, I spent some time yesterday feeling a little bit torn as to whether I'd go or not. There were two things that helped sway my decision. First, They've got this new seating area out front and all of the PBDs were supposed to use that area, hopefully lessening the crowd for us civilians. Second, NABC was unveiling a new beer and I definitely wanted to try it before it ran out.

So I got there a little before 9:00. It was pretty crowded, but not as bad as I'd feared. SassyGirl was sitting on the throne, and UplandWheatDude was at the kiddie table, and SassyBoy was in the new loveseat. I took the other kiddie table seat and ordered my first beer.

New Albanian Thunderfoot (10)

(draft) As with all Imperial Stouts, this one took a few sips before my palate was numbed enough to appreciate it. A little more subdued than I was expecting, absolutely drinkable. The alcohol was masked very well.
For various reasons, whenever I talk to UplandWheatDude, the subject of LaptopGirl always comes up right away, and last night was no different. It didn't bother me though. I think he understands the situation better than most because he was witness to it in the beginning.

After a while, some assholes left the island so we moved up there.

Our conversation turned to a more recent subject. It was kind of funny I suppose. UplandWheatDude asked me what had ever happened between "that one girl" and me. I assumed he was asking about MixedSignalGirl, so I told him about her going back to her ex and how she'd just became tired of waiting for me to get over LaptopGirl and all that. At one point he said something about how young she was, and I said that she's 35. He freaked out and kept saying that he just couldn't believe she was that old - that he'd have guessed middle to late 20s for her age.

I had my second beer:

Dark Horse Sapient Trip Ale (10)

(draft) Absolutely nothing special about this beer except that it's an Abbey Tripel, so it's special by default. Very good, but not great.
After a few minutes a light bulb went off in my head, and I asked UplandWheatDude to describe who he thought we'd just been talking about.

He was talking about a completely different girl!

Duh.

So I had to update him on that situation, and that's an update that I'm not going to be typing up here for the world to see. Sorry.

My third beer was an NABC Bob's Old 15B (80). I hadn't had one of these in a long time. It was pretty watery after the two strong beers I'd just had.

We were joined, sort of, by GlassesGirl and HotRedHead. GlassesGirl wants a new nickname, because she doesn't wear glasses any more. If I think of a good one for her I'll use it, but for now it will remain unchanged.

My last beer was another Gravity Head offering:

Great Divide Oak Aged Yeti Imperial Stout (10)

(draft) I've never been a big fan of oak aged brews, but the oak undertones of this are subtle enough that they're hardly noticeable. Just enough chocolate and coffee flavor to almost mask the alcohol burn, but not quite. Pretty good.
At one point UplandWheatDude pulled a disappearing act. I stuck around and talked with the girls for a while. I had a Diet Coke and came home a little after midnight.

So, the night wasn't too bad. Much better than I'd been expecting. There were no big surprises. The crowd wasn't unbearable. I wish I could have talked to SassyGirl more.

Tonight is the night that the Daytonians invade. They've been given the new front area for the night, but I bet the whole place will be very crowded. We'll see.

This is a boring entry.

Monday, February 20, 2006
posted by dave at 8:51 PM in category drink

I'd actually been hoping to leave work early today, because of my birthday.

But nooooooooooooooooooo!

We had a 1.5 hour meeting that magically turned into a 3 hour meeting, so I didn't get to leave until normal time.

After work I went by Rich O's to see SassyGirl, who I didn't get to see over the weekend at my pre-birthday thingy because she had to work.

I had a couple glasses of t Smisje Wostyntje Mustard Ale (74).

I got a Happy Birthday text message from HatGirl!

Yay!

And then, HatGirl called me!

Double-Yay!

And then, after a while, HatGirl came into Rich O's.

Triple-Yay!

We didn't talk much though, and she left rather abruptly.

I finished her Guinness (1097).

Then I went to Pizza Hut and then I called HatGirl to make sure she wasn't too pissed at me (To be fair, I had warned her that my recent reversion would turn me into a dick.) and then I came home.

Happy Birthday to me!

Sunday, February 19, 2006
posted by dave at 6:07 PM in category daily, drink

Weird.

The house two houses down from me is burning.

At least that's what we all assume. The six fire trucks and the four police cars are sort of a dead giveaway. They've blocked off the street at my driveway, and again about a mile down the road, so you can't actually see any fire. A couple of hours ago the smoke was impressive though.

So I went down to Buckhead's for my birthday dinner. I was alone, but I kinda had a point to make, so I did.

With my meal I had some Newcastle (1854).

I came home to find nothing changed except that there's no more smoke. All of the fire trucks are still there, and the road is still blocked off. I walked out and asked the cop in front of my driveway if everyone got out okay, and he said that they did, so that's good. I don't know those people but their cat used to come and eat some of Spook's food back when Spook was alive.

posted by dave at 12:11 PM in category drink

(Part two)

Up to this point, we'd all still been sitting in the red room, but maintaining watchful eyes for any other seats to open up. I still didn't know who was going to show up, and the red room - even with both tables - will hold about ten people and that's it.

Once a couple of strangers (ha ha, take that, FutureDude!) left the island we moved there and took advantage of the more compact grouping to bullshit about various fluff.

I showed everyone my new rock.

My next beer was a yummy Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier (510), which has I guess switched to twelve-ounce bottles for now. I actually had two more of these (534).

At one point my friend Eric came in. I hadn't seen him in like a million years. His wife had to stay home with a sick child, so Eric ended up completing the attendee list. So, to review:

  1. My lovely self

  2. SpoonsGirl

  3. SpoonsGirl's husband SirTalksALot

  4. My sister Dina

  5. Dina's Fiance Kenny

  6. My oldest friend Eric
And, lurking in the background:
  1. MusicalHippyDude

  2. GlassesGirl

  3. HotRedHead

  4. This other hot girl that turned out to have the worst taste in ex-husbands I've ever seen
Missing in action:
  1. HatGirl

  2. LuckyFucker

  3. SassyGirl

  4. SassyBoy

  5. TacoBell

  6. SpikeBoy

  7. My cousin Jeff

  8. DooRagGirl
Except for DooRagGirl and Jeff, everyone else had already told me that they probably wouldn't make it.

Eventually, as nights tend to do, this one wound down. Eventually it was just me and Eric. I had myself a half-pint of Guinness (1092). We were joined, at various intervals, by NoNicknameDude and ElPresidente and FirstLady, though they were there for their own reasons - not for my pre-birthday thingy.

Several people wanted to go over to Jack's once Rich O's closed. Eric was one of those people, and because it's so rare to see Eric anymore I agreed to go as long as nobody tried to force me to drink shots.

(SCRIBBLERESQUE PARENTHETICAL THOUGHT: There's still only one person one Earth that I'll do shots for, and her name is Holly, and she wasn't there last night. I miss Holly.)

So Eric and I and NoNicknameDude and HotRedHead all went over to Jack's. I had a couple of Diet Cokes, and we played a few games of pool. We ended up closing the place down. I'd planned on going to White Castle but the temperature was in the single digits so I came straight home instead.

posted by dave at 11:26 AM in category drink

One of the more unpleasant, but not at all unexpected, repercussions of having friends and family gather at Rich O's for an occasion like last night's pre-birthday thingy is that I'm roped into being the beer guru for the evening. At least for those VPs in the group that are, as Roger would say, flavor-impaired.

Of course, I'm the logical choice for this assignment, but that doesn't mean that I have to enjoy it.

So, first things first. DooRagGirl left me a voicemail at about 6:00, suggesting that I call Rich O's and tell them how many people I was expecting and ask them to reserve some seating for me. I didn't do that because (a) I didn't know how many people would be there, and (b) To ask for reserved seats, in last-minute fashion, for a Saturday night, in that ever-shrinking smoking section, well it's just not something I'd do. I may be evil, but I'm not an asshole.

I arrived at about 7:30, sporting my new WTF? t-shirt that RockGirl had included in my birthday package. It did shrink quite nicely, RockGirl. Anyway, the only people from my group there were SpoonsGirl and her husband, who were sitting in the red room. I was immediately asked to choose a beer for SpoonsGirl that was not bitter, or hoppy, are those the same thing?

Having my priorities in order, I went up to the end of the bar to order myself a beer first. ActualGeorge was sitting there, and we talked for a bit. I mentioned that it was my pre-birthday thingy, and that there were an awful lot of strangers clogging up the living room area. This is my standard gripe lately, as you all probably know, but for whatever reason FutureDude decided to give me shit about it. He told me that those people were there all the time, and that it pissed him off when I called people strangers. Gee, I wonder how he'd have felt if I'd called them assholes or fuckers like I usually do. My definition of a stranger is a pretty basic one: If I've never seen them before in my life, then guess what? They're strangers.

(SCRIBBLERESQUE PARENTHETICAL THOUGHT: Also, if you crowd into the living room area, and you pile several hundred coats onto the throne, thereby eliminating that seat from the already small number of seats in the place - if, in other words, you don't have enough people to completely take over the area so you use coats to prevent anyone from sitting there and breaking the flow of your little circle-jerk or whatever you're doing - then you most definitely deserve to be called something worse than strangers.)

So, that was just great, FutureDude was on the rag, and I'd managed to piss him off, and I still hadn't even ordered my beer.

Still having my priorities in order, I took care of the biggest problem first. I ordered myself a t Smisje Mustard Ale (54).

By talking to SpoonsGirl and FutureDude, I gathered that she had already asked for a sample of almost everything Rich O's had on tap, and that she was probably about to send FutureDude out to the local liquor store to pick up more stuff to sample, when I came in.

Okay, so the problem wasn't me. Or it wasn't all me. SpoonsGirl was sampling them to death. I pitched a couple of proposals to her - she had already sampled and dismissed them. So I had her try some of my mustard ale and she liked it enough to order her own glass. So, yay! One down.

My sister Dina and her fiancé came in at about this time, and I was once again pressed into service. Dina didn't want to like anything either, but she was eventually, no thanks to me, able to find Lindemann's Peach tolerable enough to drink.

(SCRIBBLERESQUE PARENTHETICAL THOUGHT: When trying a new beer, it is sometimes necessary to do more than simply dip your tongue into it. Beer is meant to be experienced, from the aroma through the flavor to the finish. And sometimes it takes more than one drink before the full experience can be appreciated. To dismiss a fine beer like Bell's Kalamazoo Stout after only a token sip, well it just seems wrong to me.)

My next beer was what was left of Dina's Kalamazoo Stout (354).

(To be continued)

Saturday, February 18, 2006
posted by dave at 8:23 AM in category drink

What am I, a piece of meat?

The bar was pretty crowded last night, but there was an opening at the left end of the bar. I sat and ordered one of those mustard beers that I like so much (44). There was a chick standing at the end of the bar smoking a cigarette, and she kept poking her head around the wall and looking at me.

So after about five minutes of this, the girl stepped two feet to her right, which put her right next to me, and just stared. After a few seconds, which to me seemed more like a million years, she asked me if I was okay.

I told her I was just ducky, and asked her why she wanted to know.

She said that I looked like I was deep in thought.

I told her that I'd be sure and stop that.

We told each other our names, and she began rubbing my arm while we talked for a few more minutes.

When she left to go rejoin her friends in the front area, she told me that it was nice to meet me.

That's what she thinks.

Weird.

The annoying part was that she was standing like a foot away from me, so all I could see of her was her face. She had a pretty face, but I couldn't check out the rest of her without being obvious about it.

Anyway.

I spent the next hour or so just sitting at the bar. I like sitting there sometimes. With my back to crowd, I can let my imagination out to play for a bit, and travel back to a time when Rich O's was a much happier place for me. To a time when she was there. It's a nice feeling.

WomanRepellant came in and took the seat next to me, and we talked for a bit.

I had a Bell's Kalamazoo Stout (315).

After a half-hour or so, I noticed that there were about twenty people completely surrounding me. They were all talking to WomanRepellant. I don't like being closed in, so I picked up my shit and moved over to the throne.

Then, some people came and sat around me and started yakking, so I picked up my shit and went and sat at the island.

I had another Bell's (335), and eventually made my way back to the throne where I talked for a bit with FutureDude and ExBartender.

Came home a little before midnight and shot pool for a while.

Thursday, February 16, 2006
posted by dave at 1:12 AM in category drink, pictures, ramblings

This entry brought to you by:

Zinnebir XMas (25)

(bottle) The aroma was almost overpowering at first, but after that it was difficult to even detect. The flavor was mild and tasty. It was kind of strange to pull a cork from a bottle of beer and find something this generic inside. Good, but not great.

Zinnebir XMas

I'm not complaining.

Really, I'm not.

I did this to myself, on purpose, with full awareness of what it was going to do to my mood. I knew what was going to happen, and I did it anyway. For several reasons. Eight or so that I've mentioned publicly, and at least one that I've kept private. I did it because it was necessary.

So I'm not complaining.

Just observing.

Observing that this can, and has, picked up exactly where it left off. I sort of thought that it might have faded a little bit after so many months. I sort of thought that, like a two-liter bottle of Coke, that things might have gone a little flat despite being so tightly capped.

Didn't happen.

The only thing that's different, the only thing that's different this time is that I seem to be able to withstand it better than I did before.

Which is, of course, not saying much, because before I couldn't withstand it at all. Because before, it was killing me.

Now, I think I just might survive. Whatever that means. However I might define who I am. What I am.

Lonely.

Heartbroken.

Empty.

Pussy.

But you know, that's okay. It's nice to feel something again. It's nice to just let things wash over me again. It's nice to just let these emotions flow through me and dictate my moods. It takes all the pressure off my brain when I let my heart run things for a while.

I'd thought that, once I'd proven my point, that I'd put those corks back in. I'd thought that, once I'd reassured myself that what was truly important to me hadn't changed one fucking bit, that I'd bottle these feelings back up and get on with my life again.

And therein lay the problem with my great plan. There might not be a life to get on with.

I once wrote these words:

For he died in the depths, and he was reborn in the depths. Without their cold embrace he cannot exist.
The he referred to was, of course, my lovely self.

You know what? I miss her. I have no reasonable rationale for still missing her after all this time. I have no justifiable excuse for what happened to me when she left. I have no logical explanation for how these feelings can still flow through me so strongly.

And right now, right now I don't want any of those things.

Right now, I just want to lie back, and remember, and imagine, and wish, and smile, and hope, and cry, and long, and laugh, and wait, and dread, and hurt, and love.

What's a little insomnia if it gives me all that? That's a pretty small price to pay, if you ask me.

Wednesday, February 15, 2006
posted by dave at 2:01 AM in category comics, drink

You got a better reason?

Not much of an entry tonight. It's mainly notable because I hadn't seen SassyGirl in about a million years.

Since I've turned my sleep schedule upside down, getting to Rich O's right after work meant getting there right at my bedtime. So I was pretty tired.

I had myself a t Smisje Mustard Ale (34) and then a half-pint of Flying Dog K-9 Cruiser (44). I'm really liking both beers, so they'll be gone soon.

I got a little Valentine's donut coupon from SassyBoy. This was the only thing I got this year except for an e-card from one of my readers that was quite sweet.

Anyway, we sat around and talked to this chick from Cincy that had made the drive to Rich O's just to buy some Dogfish Head beer that I've never heard of.

Then I came home and went to sleep.

Sleep. What a concept.

Sunday, February 12, 2006
posted by dave at 4:09 PM in category drink

I always feel a little uncomfortable, walking into Hooters. I can't get two feet inside the door before some young hottie smiles at me and checks me out and welcomes me. So yeah, it's just like every other place I ever go in my life - except for those orange shorts.

Those orange shorts really make me feel funny in my special place. They need to come off, I say.

The other reason I don't feel comfortable at Hooters is that I like to consider myself a gentleman, and I know that I'll find myself staring. Staring is rude, but I know I'll do it anyway. I'll try to be discreet about it, but I'll still know even if none of the girls know. At Hooters I'm a dirty old man.

Speaking of dirty old men, I hadn't seen my cousin Jeff in a while, so I left my house extra early (like 5:30) so I could swing by Hooters and grab some dinner and catch up with him for a bit.

Everybody - all of you reading this - should get to know Jeff. Everybody loves Jeff. He is one of the world's truly great people.

And, last night, he was one of the world's truly drunk people.

So I had my dinner of a fantastic mushroom and cheese burger and inedible cold and stale french fries, and Jeff and I bullshitted for a couple of hours. The waitress was unfortunately named. There's a lot of that going around lately, but she understood my desire for an unchilled glass, so I decided to forgive her parents for choosing that name. Also, they probably didn't do it to spite me and make me feel sad twenty years later. Probably.

One of the nice things about Hooters, besides Jeff being there and having the opportunity to imagine the girls without their shorts, is that they carry Newcastle on tap.

I had four of the things (1824). In two hours. That's a lot of beer for me, but Newcastle is a fairly safe beer, and it really is quite yummy. No matter what certain owners of certain bars like to think. Hey, I should have put Newcastle on my list for DaveFest!

Jeff, of course, kept up with me easily. Plus he'd already been there for probably several hours. I don't know how he does it. It's like we average each other out. I get to be the lightweight and he gets to drink all he wants and never get sick. He gets to have Hooters girls fawn all over him and I get - well, I think we know what I get.

There was no way I was staying there all night long. UnfortunatelyNamedHootersGirl's top had developed this annoying habit of rising up and exposing her belly, and I'd developed an annoying habit of looking at her belly. So she kept catching me, then looking me right in the eyes and making a big show out of pulling her shirt back down. Like nobody had ever looked at her before I came in with my evilness and my lecherous thoughts.

Oh yeah, at one point I tried to call SassyGirl to ask her if she was going to be pissed at me forever and ever. But SassyBoy answered the phone. He was drunk as shit. I guess they're in West Virginia for some reason (not the wedding that we'd talked about a while back) and that was probably why SassyGirl hadn't been returning any of my calls. Spotty cell phone coverage in West Virginia.

After I got off the phone I told Jeff that I been *gasp* talking with an actual gay guy, and wasn't he worried that the gay cooties would travel through my phone and land on him and make him gay?

He didn't think it was very funny. Homophobia is really Jeff's only problem as a human being. He thinks they're all going to rape him and give him the gay.

I left Hooters at about 8:00. Jeff stayed, as I'd known he would. The girls probably fed him grapes all night or something. Everybody loves Jeff.

Hey! Guess where I went next! Guess guess guess!

Okay, I'll tell you. I went to Rich O's.

The place was about half full. All strangers of course. I ordered a Bell's Kalamazoo Stout and stood at the end of the bar and thought about how much prettier the staff at Hooters was.

After a while, the dude that looks like my grandfather left the end of the bar so I went over there and sat. I took some notes.

8:30
No points, I think. Maybe just half a point.

8:38
Who are all these people and what are they doing in my bar?

8:40
I think that my theory was correct, and that my experiment has been successful. I think.

8:45
It's funny how people change, and when they do, it's usually for the worse. Except me of course. I got better.

8:48
This chick to my left used to be a brewmaster over in Louisville. Her beers sucked, I thought.

8:50
Should I be happy about that? I think so. It's like going back to your old neighborhood. There's all this new construction and everything's different. You decide that it sucks, but then you see that one store that's still there, and it suddenly feels like home again.

8:51
ActualGeorge is here!

8:59
I got a Diet Coke. I have to pace myself a little because some friends are coming.

9:07
Piss time.

9:08
Wow, that girl just eye-fucked me. I feel violated. In a good way.

After that, HatGirl and LuckyFucker came in, so I quit writing in my little book. DooRagGirl came in and we all moved over to the island. HatGirl has cute new glasses and a cute new hat. A tough test for my theory, but it withstood that test, I'm happy to say.

Let's see. Eventually the strangers left the living room area so we all went over there. I ordered myself a Guinness (1082).

I'm sure that we all talked about stuff, but I don't remember a lot of it. Just normal stuff I guess. I remember thanking HatGirl for coming in even though I'd been such a moody jerk the last time she'd seen me.

My last beer was a Smithwick's (686).

So, it was a long night, starting at around 6:00, and ending at maybe 12:00. A long night, but a good one.

Nice and relaxing.

Saturday, February 11, 2006
posted by dave at 11:06 AM in category drink

Sometimes I think I should stop these beer reports. They're all so damn similar. As in boring.

But I guess I'll keep writing them. They at least let people know that I'm somewhat alive and that I have something of a social life.

My surprisaphobia was really acting up last night. Probably just from lack of sleep. I got to Rich O's at about 8:30. The place was about half full. For a Friday night, half-full is flipping wonderful to me.

So I sat on the loveseat and I ordered a Flying Dog K-9 Cruiser (34). After about 10 seconds the PBDs sitting around me tried to talk to me, so I got up and moved to the bar.

I was enjoying myself, reading some fiction that had won awards in a local newspaper's contest, when this dude decided to stand right behind me. I mean right behind me. I got the impression that the fucker wanted to sit in one of the two empty stools, but I didn't ask. What I did was pick up my shit again and move over to the recently-vacated island.

My next beer was a Bell's Kalamazoo Stout (295). Some dude came over and sat on the other side of the island, but he didn't try to talk to me, so I let him live.

After a while, WomanRepellant came in, so I talked to him. See, I do talk to people sometimes.

For some reason, a million people all crowded around the island and started yapping at each other, so I picked up my shit and went over and sat on the sofa.

I ordered another Bell's, but I only drank a little bit of it (300). I guess lack of sleep is messing with my ability to drink, making me even more of a lightweight than I normally am.

I went to Wal-Mart and bought some CDs and DVDs, then I went to White Castle and came home.

Friday, February 10, 2006
posted by dave at 5:17 AM in category drink

I guess SassyGirl is mad at me. I didn't go to their Gay Night thingy on Monday because I was too tired. Haven't been able to get in touch with her since. So of course I assume that she's pissed instead of simply working.

Thursday evening I went to Rich O's. It's pretty rare for me to go out on a Thursday, or any work night for that matter, but I'm supposed to work at 6:00 AM Sunday morning so I figure that Saturday night will be a bust and I made up for it Thursday.

Anyway, there was nobody I knew there. I sat on the loveseat and had myself a yummy Bell's Kalamazoo Stout (255) and listened to a couple of guys talk about computers. Neither of them knew the slightest thing about them. I got a kick out of it for some reason.

Also one of them was drinking three different beers at once. I shit you not. He had three half-pints in front of him, each with a different beer. He'd take a sip out of one, then the next, then the next. Very strange.

Once those dipshits left I moved over to the throne and read my stupid horoscope from Free Will Astrology:

Happy Valentine Daze, Pisces! Borrowing the words of poet Pablo Neruda, I've prepared a love note for you to use as your own. Feel free to give these words to the person whose destiny needs to be woven more closely together with yours.

I love you between shadow and soul. I love you as the plant that hasn't bloomed yet, and carries hidden within itself the light of flowers. I love you without knowing how, or when, or from where. Because of you, the dense fragrance that rises from the earth lives in my body, rioting with hunger for the eternity of our victorious kisses.
Barf.

I know writing is bad when even I can do better. But of course I won't bother because there's nobody. Waaaaaah!

Anyway.

This dude that looks like my cousin Robbie came over and we bullshitted for the rest of the time I was there.

I had another pint of the stout (275) and finished up with a glass of the Wostyntje Mustard Ale (24). It's pretty good. I think I like weird beers. I was one of the only people that liked that Hitachino ricey stuff when it was on tap.

I really don't want to go to Rich O's tonight. Which of course means that I'm probably going to Rich O's tonight.

Sunday, February 5, 2006
posted by dave at 1:52 AM in category drink

(Transcribed from notes I took as the evening progressed. This is the lazy way to make an entry, I know.)

9:15
I arrive. The living room area is full of strangers. The bar is full of PBDs. I sit in the red room and make small talk with CoffeeDude. Mostly about DaveFest. I order myself an NABC Community Dark (200). I'm thinking that tonight might end up being more about the quantity than the quality of the beer. Not that there's anything wrong with the Community Dark.

9:19
I miss out on everything when I sit back here.

9:20
CoffeeDude says that a bunch of them are going to Steinert's to listen to some band later. He's thinking that I might want to come. I'm thinking that it will be nice when some of these people clear out of here.

9:25
If the idiots leave the living room area then I'll probably move over there, but I don't know why.

9:26
I had a dream today where she showed up as a blonde. She was hot as a blonde.

9:28
I think I'll write an entry about what I said vs. what I meant and/or didn't say. For example:

I said: I am your friend, but I have to go now.
I meant: I am your friend, but right now I can't even look at you.

9:30
Some dork and his semi-hot date just took the other red room table. I'll predict a Corona for him and she'll settle for Spaten Lager after being told there's no Bud Light.

9:33
She ordered a White Zinfandel. Well la dee fucking da your majesty.

9:34
Okay, my psychic skills are crap tonight. He ordered a Bell's Two-Hearted.

9:36
Maybe I'll wait for the bar to clear out and sit there instead. That way I'll still be able to write shit.

9:40
Here's another example:

I said: It's good to see you. What's it been, two weeks?
I meant: It's been twelve days, twenty-two hours, and fourteen minutes, since I last looked into your eyes. And now I'm afraid to do it.

9:46
The sweetness of this beer is coating my mouth. I don't think I'll have another one.

9:50
OddlyPrettyGirl is here.

9:51
Piss time.

9:53
I have a couple of small samples of beer that I've never had before.

Flying Dog K-9 Cruiser (4)

(draft) A mild aroma and flavor. There was a hint of spice at the finish. Quite interesting. I liked it.

t Smisje Wostyntje (Mustard Ale) (4)
(draft) Kind of funky aroma, which was to be expected I suppose. A mild mustardy flavor. Interesting enough that I'll probably try it again some night.
9:56
The idiots are leaving the loveseat.

9:59
I order a half-pint of the Flying Dog (14) and move over to the loveseat.

10:10
I ended up on the throne instead. Everybody left but HotRedHead and her boyfriend.

10:18
Sorry guys, but Gay Night is Monday.

10:20
I order myself a Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier (464).

10:30
It's hard to write when I'm sitting in this chair.

10:39
This beer is yummy.

10:42
I'm not interested in the free live porn show, so I'm moving to the island.

11:12
I just spent a half-hour listening to EuchreDude tell his tales of Internet dating disasters. Scary stuff!

11:17
All these memories keep flying back at me. So far they're bouncing off. So far. I take another drink.

11:20
I want to see her. Right now.

11:22
Another example:

I said: I hope you feel better soon.
I meant: I want to hold you, and rub your back, and stroke your hair, and make you feel better. But I won't, because I might not be able to stop, and then you'd have a whole new set of problems.

11:25
I order a Diet Coke so I can kill some more time here.

11:30
A bunch of people have surrounded me so they can use the ashtray. That one girl is hot!

11:31
You wanna know a secret? I think I want a baby in my life.

11:33
Yay, I miss her! Wait, I mean shit.

11:34
To be perfectly honest, this feels right. This feels natural. This just fits.

11:40
At least I'd know, if I uncorked all these bottles, at least I'd know what I was up against.

11:41
This one chick that just sat on the sofa has nice tits. Fake, but nice.

11:45
I dreamed that she was a blonde, and that she was beautiful, and that I wasn't afraid.

11:48
Fuck.

11:51
I was ready to leave but SpikeBoy came in, so now I'm going to stay and bullshit with him for a while.

Saturday, February 4, 2006
posted by dave at 11:27 AM in category drink

I guess I should write about last night. Just to get it over with, if nothing else.

I shouldn't have gone out at all. It was a waste of time. Less than a waste of time, actually, because I probably managed to alienate most of the people that tried to talk to me.

Oh, well.

This entry isn't going to make anything any better. There are things that I will not write, just as there are things that I will not say, and things that I will not do.

Last night was mostly about not doing and not saying, and this entry is about not writing.

Anyway.

To drink, I had myself an Upland Winter Warmer (140). It was of course good, but I'd been hoping for something new on the board. Something interesting and appealing. Didn't happen.

I spent a bit of time not talking to HatGirl and LuckyFucker and GlassesGirl and MusicalHippyDude and WomanRepellant. They'd all saved the throne for me, even though I'd tried to just sit on the end of the loveseat where I wouldn't feel like the center of attention. Where I wouldn't feel like it was up to me to keep everyone entertained. But they'd saved the damn seat for me. To not take it would have been rude.

I was feeling pretty claustrophobic, so I'd get up and go outside for a while to try to clear my head a little. I did this a couple of times, but I don't think it helped.

My second beer was a Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier (430), which was actually quite yummy.

Once InterruptingCow sat at the kiddie table and started, well, interrupting every conversation I attempted to have with anyone, I'd had enough. I went and stood at the bar. InterruptingCow took over the throne.

After a while, HatGirl, probably quite disgusted with me and my behavior, came and told me that she and LuckyFucker were leaving. I apologized for my mood. What else could I do?

Nothing, that's what.

Eventually, InterruptingCow left the living room area, and I went back over there and sat.

I had another Weihenstephaner (447).

GlassesGirl tried pretty hard to get me into a conversation, but I don't think it worked. I did tell her that the 18th of this month is probably the best chance she'll have of seeing my sister Neisha at Rich O's this year. My birthday is Monday the 20th, so I imagine I can talk some of my friends and family into coming to Rich O's for a while on the 18th.

That's it I guess.

Tuesday, January 31, 2006
posted by dave at 12:12 AM in category drink, travel

So I'm not in the best of moods right now.

Hard to believe, I know. I'm usually nothing but giggles and grins and I shit fluffy bunnies.

I don't know what that means.

After work I went by Rich O's. SassyGirl's Gay Night thingy is really picking up steam, and I'm not needed there anymore. In fact, I'm quite literally in the way. I realized this fact pretty quickly, so I just had myself a Dark Horse Tres Blueberry Stout (80) and then left.

I didn't even bother to say goodbye to anyone. I do that sometimes, partly because I'm a dick, but mostly because I don't want to have to explain myself and my mood when a bunch of strangers are sitting around listening.

Right now would be a good time to have a million dollars. Quite unlike all those other times when having a million dollars would just suck. If I had it right now, I'd go somewhere. I don't know where I'd go, but I'd just disappear for a while. No cell phone. No laptop. No nothing. I was reading another journal today in which the guy wrote about maybe going to Russia or Japan. The idea the guy had was to just get away from everything - including the language and the cultures that he's accustomed to.

It sounded like a good idea to me. But, then again, a lot of things sound like a good idea until you actually do them.

I did think about traveling a lot today. Easter weekend is coming up, and I'll be going somewhere for that. I don't have a fucking clue where though. I think about maybe going back to Portland, or maybe New York City, or maybe even Niagara Falls. I also think about going to Myrtle Beach, and that's probably my leading choice right now, though I don't know why.

In the Fall, I really think that I want to go to Hawaii. I've been saving my miles up for years. First, I saved enough for a trip for one, then I saved up enough for a first-class trip. Next, because I used to be an actual optimist if you can believe that, I saved up enough for two people to take the trip.

See, the idea was that I'd have someone special to go with me.

Ha ha ha ha ha.

I kill me.

I guess I could go to Hawaii by myself, and that way I could also go to Jamaica or something. Or Europe.

My company has offices all over the world. I've hinted several times that I'd like a chance to be on a team that visits these offices someday. Maybe I should hint more strongly.

I could go to Australia and find out what happened to Jodie.

I could go to London and try to find EnglishGirl.

I could get the fuck away from my life here for a while. That's the most important part.

Sunday, January 29, 2006
posted by dave at 1:47 AM in category drink

Man, what a fucking study in contrast Saturday was.

I didn't want to go anywhere, but I did. I went to Rich O's. I'm not really sure why, but if pressed, I'd have to say that it was because something deep inside me wanted HatGirl to see me in my new glasses and melt with desire.

I'm probably not supposed to say that, but it's okay, because it didn't happen anyway.

First things first, though. I had to get something to eat.

I was on my way to Burger King, and SassyGirl called me. She was thinking about maybe considering coming out. I told her that I was unfit for company, but that it would still be nice to see her if she thought that she could put up with my moodiness. I also promised to let her know if I left Rich O's early, so she wouldn't have to make the long drive, from her home on the dark side of the Moon, for naught.

When I got to Burger King, there were about 11,000 old people in line to order. To make a long story short, I didn't stay. I found myself wanting to say mean things to the old people. Things like, "Please either die or order something already."

Instead of being mean to the old people, I went to Wendy's instead. Yummy. While I was at Wendy's SassyGirl called me to tell me that her girlfriend had unexpectedly gotten off work, so she wouldn't be coming out after all.

When I got to Rich O's. I got to park in the main parking lot again. This is not as exciting when it happens on Saturday as it is on Friday, but it was still pretty cool.

So I went in, and I sat at the bar. In the same seat I'd occupied Friday night, in fact. There were some strangers in the living room area, and a bunch of PBDs in the red room, but that was it. And that was fine with me. I didn't want any company, and I was pretty sure that any company wouldn't want me.

I had myself a Dark Horse Tres Blueberry Stout (60), which was quite good. So good, in fact, that I originally envisioned drinking nothing else all night.

But anyway.

After I'd sat for a while, and enjoyed the solitude, HatGirl sent me a picture of her new dog, and told me that she wasn't coming out. I felt both relief and sadness. Relief because I wouldn't have to feign humanity, and sadness because, well, you know why.

My second beer was an NABC Old Lightning Rod (150). It was also yummy. Anyone that doesn't like it sucks, and anyone that doesn't wish they'd put it on their regular beer rotation also sucks.

I spent quite a bit of my time at the bar trying to let my imagination conjure up suitable company for me. It didn't work though. The image I kept coming up with kept dissolving before I could get any enjoyment out of it. This is progress, I think.

At one point, the strangers left the living room area, so I went and sat on the throne for a while. It was quite boring, and nobody joined me (maybe because I was glaring at everyone that even looked like they were even thinking about sitting down), and I ended up moving back to the bar after about an hour.

Maybe 8.4 seconds after I'd moved back to the bar, the night took a change for the better.

I looked back and ElPresidente and FirstLady were sitting in the living room area. I moved my shit over there, and bullshitted with them for quite a while.

After a while, MusicalHippyDude, GlassesGirl, and HotRedHeadGirl came over and sat with us.

HotRedHeadGirl actually grabbed my arm and made it a point to tell me that she liked my glasses. So she made about the fourth person who's even noticed the things since I got them. It was cool though.

The remainder of the night I spent in a much better mood.

I had one of these:

Aecht Schlenkerla Rauchbier Weizen (17)

(bottle) The first thing I noticed was the color. Very dark - almost like a porter. Not what I was expecting from a weizen. The entire beer, in fact, was not what I was expecting. Instead of toning down the smoke to keep a fair balance with the light-flavored wheat, they left the smoke intact. The result was a smoke beer, with no hint at all of its wheat heritage. This is not to say that I didn't like it, because I did. I just didn't like it as much as I expected to.
Oh yeah, WomanRepellant came in tonight, just as I'd known he would. The guy just cannot hold a grudge.

Also, I got to talk with SpikeBoy for a bit. He was out in the front area with his new girlfriend.

I saw EuchreGirl, but I couldn't get her attention to say hello.

I think that's about it. The entire night was enjoyable. The first half because I was able to have some privacy, and the second half because I was able to talk to some people that I don't get to talk to that much lately.

Maybe I'd have been better off in Indianapolis or St. Louis, but maybe not. It was an okay night.

Saturday, January 28, 2006
posted by dave at 12:31 AM in category drink

Tonight was a blessed relief, especially compared to the last few Fridays.

I arrived at Rich O's a little before 9:00 and, get this, I got a fucking parking spot in the fucking main lot!

This was a huge deal to me. I didn't have to park at Kroger. I didn't have to park at the employment services agency. I didn't even have to park at the catering place. I parked right in the Rich O's parking lot. For probably the first time on a Friday night, since the year 345,555 B.C.

I parked in the main lot, just like a regular person.

So I went in, and I did my usual hot girl inventory.

Nada.

Next, the asshole inventory.

That FuckingAssholeThatIHate was sitting on the sofa. Other than that, it seemed safe. It seemed good, in fact.

Finally, the friend inventory.

Nada to get excited about. MusicalHippyDude was sitting at the island, with his usual posse of PBDs, and WomanRepellant was sitting at the bar.

I sat at the bar, next to WomanRepellant. He was in a shitty mood, as usual. This time it was because he'd been beerless for like 10 minutes. He became convinced that all of the bartenders hated him, and he left after muttering, "Fuck this place. This place sucks."

He'll probably be back tomorrow. WomanRepellant has a very low threshold for thirst, but an even lower grudge-holding capacity.

I had, of course, looked at the beer board when I first went in. I hadn't seen anything interesting, so I ordered an NABC Old Lightning Rod. The bartender mentioned to me that the long-awaited blueberry stout was on tap. I hadn't seen it on the board, but I had definitely been waiting for it, so I had one:

Dark Horse Tres Blueberry Stout (20)

(draft) A stout, not just an ale, which was news to me. I didn't get much of an aroma from this, and the blueberry flavor was more subtle that I was expecting. The blueberries showed up mostly in the finish, which had absolutely no trace of bitterness. The undertones were mostly roasted malt, and the flavor slanted a tad more towards coffee than chocolate. A very good beer, worth the wait.
I sat at the bar all night, even though that fucking shithead that made LaptopGirl cry left fairly early, so I could have moved over to the sofa. I was enjoying the privacy that's been to hard to come by on recent Fridays. I did send a text message to HatGirl telling her about the Blueberry Stout (I got no response), but that was pretty much the extent of my social interactions.

It was nice.

I had a second blueberry stout (40), and I began to wonder about the ABV in the thing. It seemed to be fairly strong, at least by the way it was affecting me.

I've since checked it out on the Internet and I see that it's a whopping 4.5% ABV. So I am a pussy, apparently, because I stopped after that second pint.

So I left Rich O's a little after 11:00, and I went over to this Mac's place that I don't like. MisunderstoodGirl supposedly hangs out there, but she wasn't there tonight, so I left without drinking anything.

Then I came home.

Tonight, though boring on the surface, was pretty much exactly what I needed. I'm pretty sure that I'm not fit for human company right now, so tonight was, as I said earlier, a blessed relief.

Tuesday, January 24, 2006
posted by dave at 10:02 PM in category daily, drink, pictures

I don't know where to start this entry.

At the beginning seems like the logical place, but it just doesn't read correctly in my head.

Oh well, I'm going to start at the beginning anyway.

I took the day off work today. One hour of sleep just wasn't going to cut it. I had some comp time coming to me from having to work all day Sunday. I'd planned to use that to have my birthday off, but there was no way I could have gone into work today, so I used my comp time a month early.

Anyway, I didn't do fuck all day long, really. I slept until 11:30 or so, then dicked around on the computer and downstairs on the pool table.

At 2:30 or so, SassyGirl invited me to meet her at Rich O's after work.

Little did she know, I wasn't even at work. Muhaha.

Since I had laundry going, I agreed to meet her at 4:00.

Once there, I had myself a half an Upland Winter Warmer (120). Why just the half-glass? Because I'd decided that I'd go ahead and buy myself some new glasses. So I'd called in to LensCrafters ahead of time to make sure that they had everything in stock, and I figured I'd go there and pick up my glasses after Rich O's.

Since LensCrafters has glasses in about an hour, I had an hour to kill between the time I got my pupils measured and the time I'd be able to pick up my new glasses. To kill that time, I invited SassyGirl to go to Red Lobster with me (it's right across the street from the mall) and she agreed.

Let's see, during dinner SassyGirl's phone rang, and she saw that it was TrainGirl, so she handed me the phone so I could answer. TrainGirl didn't recognize my voice, not that I can fault her for that.

Also, with my dinner, I had a glass of Blue Moon (210). I'd remembered to asked for an unchilled glass, but I forgot about the fruit garnish so they put a fucking orange wedge in the thing. I guess I got it out before it completely ruined the beer, because it tasted okay.

After we left Red Lobster we went back to get my glasses. Here they are:

new glasses

And here are the old ones:

old glasses

After that we went back to Rich O's.

While there, I had myself an NABC Old Lightning Rod (110), and later a half-glass of Guinness (1040). DooRagGirl came in and sat at the kiddie table and talked to me for a while. She kindof noticed my new glasses, but only because I'd taken them off and was waving them in her face.

Tonight didn't feel at all like a Tuesday night, but it was. I do have to work tomorrow, so I came home early.

Sunday, January 22, 2006
posted by dave at 10:09 PM in category daily, drink

This morning I faced an eight hour work day, and I dreaded it.

Right now, I face a long entry, and I dread it just as much.

Not because it's anything bad, but just because it's a little bit boring to everyone but me.

So I don't think I'll write a long entry or two about last night. I'll just hit the highlights.

After I left Lenscrafters, I went over to the Bluegrass brewpub and had some dinner. With my burger and fries I had a BBC Dark Star Porter (174) and a BBC Alt (220). Both were quite yummy.

I text-messaged SassyGirl to see if she was working or not.

At about the time I left the brewpub, MixedSignalGirl called me.

I didn't call her, she called me.

I just want to make that clear to those readers that have been giving me shit for leading the poor girl on.

Anyway, she was just wanting some company and she wanted it to be me. As it turned out, she's been having a problem with her ex-boyfriend (also named Dave) and she figured that my truck parked in her driveway would do some good.

We talked for a while and ended up going to Red Lobster where I managed to eat some cheesesticks despite already being full from eating at the brewpub.

That was it. We talked about nothing much, and we ate. It was nice though. There was no massive drama bubbling away beneath the surface of either of us.

After I left her house, at around 9:30. I went to send her a text-message thanking her for the company, and I saw that I'd missed about 46 phone calls from SassyGirl. I'd had my stupid phone turned to "completely silent" instead of "vibrate" as I usually do.

Duh.

SassyGirl was at Rich O's, and I went there. While I was on my way, HatGirl text-messaged me asking me where I was. I hadn't expected HatGirl to be there last night, so that was a nice surprise.

The place wasn't too crowded at all, but that was at least partly because I arrived at around 10:00.

To drink, I had a couple glasses of Piraat (155) and a glass of Gulden Draak (140). All were quite yummy.

I think that's all I want to say now.

Told you it was boring.

Saturday, January 21, 2006
posted by dave at 1:03 PM in category drink

I took a nap after work yesterday. My sleep schedule has been so messed up all week, I halfway expected to sleep all night long, and that would have been fine with me.

While I was napping I dreamed that my sister Dina had called from Rich O's.

When I woke up I had a voicemail from my sister Dina. She'd called from Rich O's.

Weird. There was more weirdness but I don't feel like writing about it.

So I went down there at about 8:30. It was of course extremely crowded. I stood at the end of the bar and talked to Dina and Kenny and MusicalHippyDude. I had myself an NABC Old Lightning Rod (60).

Dina and Kenny are getting married on May 13th, which is the same day as the brewerania sale that Rich O's has every year. Hopefully it's not also when DaveFest will be going on. Actually I think it'll be okay - the wedding will be in the afternoon.

After Dina and Kenny left I took the seat at the bar that Dina had vacated. Then DooRagGirl came in and right after that some shitheads left the sofa so we went over there.

I spent the bulk of the night talking with DooRagGirl and listening to one of the PBDs rattle on and on and on about things that he knows nothing about. Typical for him - it's the same guy that thinks opossums aren't mammals.

I had another Old Lightning Rod (80).

At one point the conversation took a slightly personal turn, and I found myself hoping that I'd shut up. I didn't have to shut up, as it turned out, because FutureDude got off work so DooRagGirl went over and sat with him and some of the PBDs.

I ordered another Old Lightning Rod, but I only drank half of it (90).

Oh yeah. I talked to EuchreGirl for a short while. I don't think she recognized me as EvilDave.

Wednesday, January 18, 2006
posted by dave at 1:41 AM in category drink

I'm sure that everybody already knows this (kidding) but yesterday would have been Benjamin Franklin's 300th birthday.

To celebrate the occasion, because brewers and beer drinkers are always looking for any reason to celebrate, several breweries around the country unveiled a beer in the style that Ben himself might have brewed. There's more information here at Roger's 'blog.

When I went to Rich O's after work, the place was packed. Everybody wanted to try the new (old?) beer.

So did I.

So I did.

New Albanian Old Lightning Rod (10)

(draft) Dark and sweet. There was a slight bitterness to the finish that made me want to take another sip right away. The description says molasses, but I didn't get any of that. I got more of a fruity flavor that might have been plums or cherries. A very pleasant surprise was that it's not that strong (7% ABV). A very good beer that I will probably drink until it's gone.
After that first half-pint, I had another (20) and then I had to go home and eat.

Monday, January 16, 2006
posted by dave at 11:23 PM in category daily, drink

Today, after work, I went and bought myself a new doorknob, then I went to meet SassyGirl at Rich O's.

Lately I only get to see SassyGirl once a week, on Mondays. I'd already decided that I wasn't going to be at the bar this evening for their Gay Night experiment, but stopping by immediately after work was certainly doable.

So we talked for a while about her new girlfriend and I had myself a Robert the Bruce (160).

Tonight I watched 24. I love this show. While I watched I had one of the beers that's been sitting in my fridge since before Christmas:

Winterkoninkske Winter King (11)

(bottle) Wow. I wasn't expecting a beer this special. The label says "Belgian Ale Brewed with Juniper Berries." There's not a whole lot that I can add to that description, but I owe it more. Flat-out yummy. I want more.
Now I'm thinking that I should have gone to Gay Night, but if I had, then I wouldn't have had this beer while watching 24, so I wouldn't have known how yummy it was, so I wouldn't have known to order one.

It's a conundrum, all right.

Sunday, January 15, 2006
posted by dave at 10:57 PM in category drink, entertainment, ramblings

Tonight, in honor of the return of the show 24 to my TV, I had myself an Alaskan Smoked Porter (330) while I watched the season premiere.

This show and this beer don't really have anything in common, except that they're each one of my favorite things in the world.

I can't believe that David Palmer and Michelle are dead.

I wish, I'd like to be, at least a zillionth as cool as Kiefer Sutherland. Then maybe I wouldn't have to resort to evilness to lure in the ladies.

But anyway.

The other night I wrote this as part of a night of drunken rambling:

I'm at such a fucking pivotal point right now. In my life, in my work, in my journal. In everything. I sometimes think I could toss it all away and start fresh, but then I remember that it'd still be the same old me, so why bother?
I get in these moods every now and then. I just get so damn apathetic about everything and everyone around me - I figure there's got to be something better out there. Somewhere. Anywhere. And I start to imagine that better place, and I begin to tune out the reality of where I am. Where I'm stuck.

And it's not just external. This 40-year-old shell of a man that I inhabit, I know that there's more I could do with it than eat, sleep, work, drink, occasionally fuck, and write random journal entries.

But what would I do?

But where would I go?

I've asked myself those two questions so many times that it's become almost reflexive to me.

Sometimes, every now and then, I even manage to come up with an answer. Not a particularly good answer, but an answer nonetheless.

Anything but this.

Anywhere but here.

Tonight - I say tonight but this really goes much deeper than that - tonight I realized that I've been asking myself the wrong questions.

It's not "Where?" and it's not "What?" that I should be asking myself.

It's "Who?"

You see, I've become very much afraid that I'm not going to be truly happy as long as I'm alone. And, and this is the kicker, I'm very much afraid that I'm going to be alone for a very very very long time. Maybe even forever.

I never thought that this bothered me before. I thought that I was happy before. I was my own man, living my own life and making my own decisions. But lately, lately that little nagging voice inside me has been getting louder and louder. I can't help but hear it now. It's only a matter of time before I start listening to it.

But Dave, what good is a life if there's nobody to share it with?

Maybe it's always been this way. Maybe I mistook contentedness for happiness for so long that they became interchangeable in my mind. Everything was fine with me. Not great, but still good.

And then I met her and everything went to shit. Like a magician's mirrors, all of my illusions shattered. I was forced to look at the cold hard truth of what I was.

Not just alone, but lonely.

I sit here tonight, January 15th, 2006, and I look into the future. I don't particularly like what I see.

Actually, I fucking hate what I see.

Bridges burn all around me, and I either don't notice or I don't care or I don't understand what's happening until it's too late.

Great, now I'm in a bad mood.

Just fucking great.

posted by dave at 12:10 AM in category comics, drink

like I care

And so began my Saturday night.

The rest of the night comes to you courtesy of my little notebook.

8:04
Rich O's is fucking crowded again. There's nobody here worth talking to. I'm outta here.

8:25
Buckhead's is out of Upland Chocolate Stout. It feels weird here without MixedSignalGirl. I'm outta here.

9:00
The Pub has Young's Double Chocolate Stout. Yay! I get one (275)! Yummy!

9:14
Fuck.

9:20
In here I'm the stranger. I wonder if the regulars hate me. I wonder if there are any regulars here.

9:22
This place is strange. Maybe I'll just have two.

9:30
This one chick is smoking a clove cigarette. It smells good.

9:31
The waitresses here are fucking hot.

9:39
there is something recursive about this

9:44
Fuck.

9:45
I order another Young's.

9:51
I get my beer (295). Finally.

9:55
Fuckity fucking fuck fuck.

9:57
I will not claim that the grapes were sour. The grapes were sweet and delicious.

10:00
Piss time.

10:07
Oh boy! The marines have landed.

10:11
I should have worn my Red Sox cap. Then I could have pretended that I was a tourist.

10:12
In a few minutes, I'll have a decision to make.

10:15
that was intriguing, but a little scary

10:19
Decision made. I'm outta here.

10:41
I arrive at Rich O's and take a piss.

10:42
I say hi to BamaCouple.

10:43
It's still fucking crowded in here!

10:45
I order a Piraat (135) and I sit in the red room.

10:48
There's a dipshit at the bar that I don't like, but I can't remember the reason. He's got a hot girl with him - maybe that's why.

10:51
Hey! That Russian chick with the cool hair is sitting at the other table. She talking to some dipshit.

10:53
RussianChick is drunk.

10:54
This one chick - the wife of one of the PBDs - is about a gazillionth as pretty as she thinks she is.

10:56
Fuck! I need to snap out of this mood I'm in.

10:58
Nice tits and a decent ass do not make up for having the face of a horse. Not with the lights on, anyway.

11:01
Girls with foreign accents are hot.

11:06
I'm moving to the bar. I don't know why.

11:15
My beer is gone. I'm outta here.

Saturday, January 14, 2006
posted by dave at 5:26 PM in category drink

I've thought about this all day, and there's just no way I can make last night seem even remotely interesting.

So I'm going to stick with boring. It's what I do best after all.

The place was fucking crowded. I wanted to leave. I had myself a half a Guinness (1030) and planned to go someplace else, anyplace else where I could actually sit down and actually hear myself think. I was, in fact, on my way back to my truck to head over to Buckhead's but HatGirl text-messaged me and said that she was her way.

So I turned around and went back inside, to where the strangers and idiots had once again taken over.

I don't think I like this new Rich O's very much. This new Rich O's where all of the assholes that used to stay out front, out of my way, are now suddenly compelled by the new smoking policy to come into Rich O's proper.

It's just so fucking crowded.

One of the PBDs remarked that the crowd was certainly good for the owners, and I have to agree that this is true. For now. But what happens when all of the regulars get so sick and tired of standing around all night waiting for a place to sit that they stop bothering to come in at all? What happens when they decide that it's not even worth checking to see what the crowd is like? What happens when they just go somewhere else?

I don't know the answers, and I don't have any solutions. I am pretty sure, however, that doubling the size of the place, but reserving that new space for port tastings and other "special" functions, when it's asses to elbows every single fucking Friday night - well that just doesn't seem like the most brilliant thing I've ever heard of.

But it's none of my business. I'm just an innocent bystander, a victim.

But anyway, the whole night sucked. We did eventually get to move over to the living room area, but my mood was already shot. I sat on the throne and listened to everyone else yammer on and on about various topics. HatGirl and I traded some text messages back and forth because it just seemed easier even though she was sitting three feet away from me.

I had myself a Smithwick's (676). I was still drinking the lightweight stuff. I guess a part of me was still hoping that I'd get up the nerve to just leave and go somewhere else, and I wanted to keep my alcohol intake low enough to keep that possibility open.

I pussed out, and I lost all ambition to try to salvage a Friday night. I had most of a bottle of Stone Smoked Porter (154), and LuckyFucker had the rest. I was going to order a Weihenstephaner, but surprise! they were out. That's probably my fault. They're also out of Baltika 6. That's probably my fault too.

So I ordered a Fischer's Amber Ale, and only drank a little bit of it, then I went home.

What a waste of a night.

Tuesday, January 10, 2006
posted by dave at 7:07 AM in category daily, drink

As I've mentioned before, some of my friends are trying to turn Mondays into Gay Night at Rich O's, and I've been named an Honorary Gay for these occasions.

That's honorary only, so you girls just go ahead and breathe those sighs of relief.

Monday was my last day of vacation. I normally don't like to go out when I have to work the next day, but I figured that since I was technically still on vacation, what the fuck.

It was a pretty quiet night. I think that Gay Night might be a bust - most of them have been quite sparsely attended. I drank three bottles of yummy Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier (413) and talked with SassyGirl, SassyBoy, TacoBell, and LibraryGirl.

I guess SassyGirl's brother is getting married in February. I may go to that, even though I don't know the guy. It would give me something to do, plus it'd be nice to meet some of SassyGirl's relatives. The wedding will be in Eastern Kentucky, right next to West Virginia, so it'll probably be full of redneck clichés and stuff.

Let's see, what else?

SassyGirl took this lovely picture of me.

aaaaaaaaaah!

SassyBoy saw a guy out in front of Rich O's that he said looked like me, but I didn't see any resemblance at all, except that we were both wearing glasses. I guess all straight men look alike to SassyBoy.

This one bull dyke came in, but it was just a coincidence- she didn't know about Gay Night. Her girlfriend was a very hot brunette though. I thought about asking her to put on my glasses, but I was afraid that the bull dyke would beat the shit out of me.

On a completely unrelated note, I've deleted VigilanteGirl's information from my cell phone's memory.

On another unrelated note, HatGirl was a no-show (she's another Honorary Gay) so that sucked.

Monday, January 9, 2006
posted by dave at 1:38 AM in category drink, ramblings

A year ago, I sat in this little bar at The Executive West hotel in Louisville. I talked for a while with a friend from the Internet, and I drank some BBC Dark Star Porter. After my friend left, I stayed for a while. I looked at the empty chair across from me, and I imagined that she was there with me, smiling at me, laughing with me.

Tonight, I sat in that same bar. At the same table in fact. I drank the same BBC Dark Star Porter (154). It was a different friend that sat with me this time. More of an acquaintance really. Just one of the local players. Most people think he's a jerk, but I think he's an okay guy.

After he had left, I stayed for a while, and I looked at the empty chair across from me.

She wasn't there of course. No more than she'd really been there last year at this time. No more than she's really been in my life at all since she moved away.

She wasn't there, but that didn't stop me from seeing her.

Just as an experiment, I loosened my grip just a little bit, and I allowed the slightest trickle of that which I'd so successfully stopped back in the Summer. Just to see what would happen.

It was good. It was a happy delusion.

An awful lot has changed in the past year, but some things remain the same.

Saturday, January 7, 2006
posted by dave at 11:35 PM in category drink

I paraphrase here:

Dave, I have flung shit into the fan. Brace yourself for the splatter.
On that lovely note, my Saturday night began.

And what really sucks is that there was nothing to follow that up. There I was, wearing my best raingear in hopes of weathering the shit storm that was about to hit, and nothing else happened. Nothing at all.

And what sucked even more was that there was nobody that I could whine about it to. None of my friends were at Rich O's - unless you count CuteBlonde and her husband, who I don't count, or DooRagGirl, who was there with some kids for a brief time - and I ended up bracing myself for nothing.

While I waited, and braced myself, I had some beer. Specifically, I had a couple of bottles of my beloved Baltika 6 (298) and a bottle of Weihenstephaner (378).

And now, now I wait.

posted by dave at 4:42 PM in category drink

Last night I wasn't supposed to be at Rich O's. I was supposed to be over at the tournament.

Didn't work out that way. I plan to write more about it, but for now I'm still coming to grips with it a little. Plus, I don't want it to sound like sour grapes. So maybe later.

Anyway, after a nap, I went to Rich O's.

The place was so fucking crowded. I really just wanted to leave, but I stayed to keep up the appearance that I wasn't as bothered by things as I really was.

The draft list didn't have anything that interested me, but the bartender recommended one of these:

New Holland The Poet Sweet Stout (4)

(draft) Recommended by the bartender. I didn't really give this beer a fair tasting. It was very roasty, and tasted a little burnt to me. Past experience tells me that if I'd finished the glass I'd probably have liked it better by then. I'll attempt to have this again someday.
I ended up giving most of that glass to LuckyFucker.

After I'd stood at the end of the bar for an hour or so, the island opened up and I went and sat with DooRagGirl and LuckyFucker and this dude that doesn't have a nickname yet.

I switched to something I know and like for the rest of the night. I had three bottles of Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier (362) and all were yummy.

Eventually all of the strangers left the living room area so we went over there. LuckyFucker and his friend left soon afterward and I just spent some time talking with DooRagGirl and making fun of this one fucker who was wearing a leather cowboy hat.

Thursday, January 5, 2006
posted by dave at 10:04 PM in category drink, ramblings

Once upon a time, something inside me snapped, and a part of me that I didn't even know I had screamed. And it screamed, and it screamed.

Echoes of those screams still reverberate inside me, bouncing around to and fro off the walls of this hollow shell that defines the place where I used to keep my soul. The echoes are softer now. Usually, I have to really concentrate to be able to detect them at all. And, even if I do think I hear something, I'm usually able to ignore it. To dismiss it as a memory of a memory, not relevant at all.

Usually.

But sometimes, like tonight, one of those echoes manages to bully its way close enough to the surface, close enough to the surface that I simply cannot ignore it. So I have what might be called an anxiety attack, or on bad nights, a panic attack.

Tonight was a bad night.

It started when I was about halfway through my glass of Delirium Tremens (409). There was a time when a good Belgian ale would actually calm my stomach down. But not tonight. My hands started shaking and my gut started doing flips, and I knew right away that this was not a good night for me to be at Rich O's.

Trooper that I am, though, I did try to tough it out. After my Tremens, I had a half glass of Upland Bad Elmer's Porter (42) and enjoyed that while I kept my eyes locked on the entrance to Rich O's proper. I don't know who I was expecting to walk through that door. The grim specter of death might have been a welcome sight - that would at least have explained the anxiety, the incredible sense of dread that was washing over me.

No such luck.

By the time my porter was gone, I knew that there was no way I could stay in that place for another minute.

So I left.

Eventually, hopefully, I'll stop shaking, and then I'll go downstairs and shoot some pool. I really need the practice.

Tuesday, January 3, 2006
posted by dave at 7:53 AM in category drink

Not much to report, but I want to put something out there, so I will.

Last night, SassyGirl called to remind me that (a) They're trying to make Mondays into Gay Night at Rich O's, and that (b) I'd been named an honorary gay and was therefore expected to attend.

I told her that I'd think about it. I spent some time trying to come up with an excuse that would be better than but I have to work tomorrow and I wasn't having much luck. I thought to myself that if HatGirl was going to be there I'd definitely go.

Two seconds later, my phone rang. It was HatGirl, wondering if I was going to Rich O's. I told her of course I was.

So I went.

In an attempt to force myself to not spend the entire night at Rich O's, I went for the strong stuff right off the bat. My Delirium Tremens (389) was delicious.

As I said, not much to report. SassyGirl, SassyBoy, and several of their friends were there, and they pretty much just talked to each other. HatGirl was there, and she spent most of her time talking with some old bald dude while I wished that I was old(er) and bald.

My second (and last) beer was a half glass of Bell's Kalamazoo Stout (215). It was also yummy. By the time I finished it, SassyGirl had vanished, and HatGirl had gone home.

Just when I was ready to leave, SpikeBoy came in, so I spent a few extra minutes catching up with him. I'm pretty sure that I told him some stuff that I shouldn't have told him. Hopefully, he's better at keeping his mouth shut than I am.

He couldn't be worse.

Monday, January 2, 2006
posted by dave at 1:10 PM in category daily, drink

After reading this, you may decide that I'm an asshole.

If you do, then you're in good company, because I agree with you.

I can tell you what happened, but I cannot tell you what I said to make it happen. This stupid discretion thing is such a pain.

So I can tell you that I made MixedSignalGirl cry last night, and that's about it. Even if I tell you that I was being completely honest, even if I tell you that we've always been brutally honest with each other, even if I tell you that I'm as bothered by what I had to say as she was, none of that matters because I can't tell you what I said. I can't tell you because, because...

Fuck! I can't even tell you why I can't tell you.

So feel free to let your imagination run away with you, if that's what you want to do. I made the girl who's probably the only person to love me in over a decade - maybe ever for all I know - cry. I deserve whatever ire your imagination can generate, because I knew before I said anything what the outcome was going to be, and I still said it.

SCRIBBLERESQUE PARENTHETICAL THOUGHT: This is completely unrelated, but I'm looking at the comic at davethepa's journal as I write this, and I really wish I could draw. I should work on that I think.

Anyway, there are two slightly mitigating factors. First, everything I said was the truth, even though it made zero sense, not even to me. Second, we've had a couple of talks since, and we're okay again. Until next time I suppose. Perhaps she'll learn to not ask questions of me unless she's sure that she wants to know the answer.

Not that I'm blaming her. Not at all. It's my stupid heart's fault. Again.

All of this drama took place at Buckhead's. I'd gone there to pass the time last night, rather than just sit around the house waiting for Nat to show up in my visitor list. Plus, I did need to talk to MixedSignalGirl. Plus they still have Upland Chocolate Stout on tap.

I called her from the Hooter's parking lot, and I made a quick run into that place to talk with my cousin Jeff for a few minutes, then I went across the street to Buckhead's.

As I said, I can't get into the conversation too much. Or at all.

To drink, I had a couple pints of Upland Chocolate Stout (262) and, after MixedSignalGirl had left in tears, I had a Weihenstephaner (311). Then I remembered to order some fried green tomatoes for VigilanteGirl.

I wrote recently that sometimes shit just happens. Well, shit is definitely happening. I wish I could explain it. I wish I could have explained it to MixedSignalGirl, and I wish I could explain it to my readers, and I wish I could explain it to myself.

But I can't, so I must be an asshole.

And that's right back where I started with this entry.

Sunday, January 1, 2006
posted by dave at 11:22 AM in category daily, drink

Anyone who's been sitting on the edge of their seat, waiting for my tale of drunken debauchery, is going to be very disappointed.

It was just not that exciting of a night. It most certainly was not the kind of party that RockGirl suggested.

I went to this very nice house that belongs to a friend of my sister, Dina. I spent the night talking with Dina and her fiancé Kenny and SpoonsGirl and her husband. I didn't know anyone else, and I really didn't see the point of getting to know anyone else. I'm kind of a jerk sometimes, I guess.

So we played some darts. SpoonsGirl's husband and I won two out of three games.

We played some Euchre. I think that Dina and I won 2 out of three games, then later Kenny and I lost two out of three.

To drink I had a couple bottles of Weihenstephaner (295) and a couple bottles of Alaskan Smoked Porter (286).

The highlight of the night, for me, was going outside at about 11:45 and doing my little yearly rehash thingy. Just like last year, I ended up talking with a ghost. But it was okay. I got through it, and came back into the house at about 12:15.

It's 2006. Yay.

Saturday, December 31, 2005
posted by dave at 1:46 PM in category drink, pictures

Man, what a difference a day makes!

The past two nights had been pretty much unbearable at Rich O's, but Friday night was pretty decent. Good in fact.

I arrived a little after 7:00. It was pouring down rain. There were some strangers scattered around but the living room area was empty except for DooRagGirl and LaptopGirl's ex, who I will start calling WheatDude for reasons that should be obvious.

I ordered an Upland Chocolate Stout (180) and enjoyed that while marveling at our ability to have an actual discussion without having to shout. Mostly we just talked about how pleasant it was. I also made a couple of beer recommendations to WheatDude.

A little before 8:00 HatGirl called me, I guess because DooRagGirl's phone was broken. She wasn't sure if she was going to come in. I handed my phone to DooRagGirl so she could talk some sense into her friend, then I crossed my fingers and toes and eyes.

It worked! DooRagGirl went to pick her up.

Let's see, I talked with SassyGirl. She was on her way for a quick drink or two before work. That's okay though - she just drives zillion-ton trains for a living. But you don't have to steer them.

At about the time DooRagGirl came back with HatGirl I was finishing my second Upland (200), and I'd started my third (220).

I took the girls over to see the port tasting party going on in the new area:

Oooooooh, fancy!

We were very quiet, so as not to startle the port people.

From my fourth Upland, I only drank about half the glass (230). This was because I'd had the brilliant idea of having an Alaskan Smoked Porter put on ice for later. Everybody wanted to try what I'd been touting as one of the world's best beers, so I let everybody have a sip.

I think they all liked it - especially DooRagGirl who tried to steal my glass.

I feel the need to interject here that I'm probably going to have to have a talk with WheatDude. Just because a girl is in a slightly bad mood, that does not mean that she's "ripe for the picking," as he so crassly suggested. Plus I'm a gentleman.

Once WheatDude had left, and SassyGirl had left, and these other two people who are friends of SassyBoy had left, it was just Me, DooRagGirl, and HatGirl. I moved over to the throne and HatGirl moved over to the loveseat. It was like I was in a little cocoon made of hot girls. Hot girls with boyfriends, as I'd had to remind WheatDude several times.

At one point I started craving Steak N Shake, and I decided that I was going. This extra driving meant that I had to cut my drinking off a little early. DooRagGirl was more than happy to relieve me of the last of my Alaskan Smoked Porter (238).

I had a couple Diet Cokes. HatGirl wanted to go to Steak N Shake. DooRagGirl didn't want to go unless her boyfriend could get off work, so I ended up taking HatGirl in my truck. Good thing I'd just given it its annual cleaning.

Well Steak N Shake was a bust, and we ended up going to Denny's instead. This was the first time I'd been in this particular Denny's since about a zillion years ago when I took SpoonsGirl there. The food was yummy, the company was charming.

I dropped HatGirl off at her house and managed to find my way out of that maze of streets, then I came home and dicked around until a little after 4:00.

I've got a couple of days to try to get my sleep schedule back to normal, or Tuesday morning is going to really suck.

Friday, December 30, 2005
posted by dave at 11:37 AM in category drink

Got to Rich O's early last night - a little before 7:00.

I'd had this crazy idea that maybe it wouldn't be so crowded that early, that maybe I'd be able to grab some spots in the living room area for when my friends arrived.

Yeah, right. Dream on, Dave.

I ordered myself an Upland Chocolate Stout (110) and sat at the end of the loveseat. There were three guys in the area who all knew each other, but they were all strangers to me.

I should have known that this was a bad sign.

A new guy would show up. Another stranger, and therefore probably another idiot. The guys sitting around me would all cheer and greet the new guy like he was an old friend. Because that's what he was to them. Then the new guy would sit down in the living room area, and the noise level would increase.

This happened five more times over the next thirty minutes. I shit you not.

When I gave up my seat, it was to the ninth member of that group.

I was forced to stand around like a dork for a few minutes, but then I saw that one of the PBDs was leaving his seat at the bar so I grabbed it and spent some time talking with TallLady.

When HatGirl and LuckyFucker arrived, TallLady was nice enough to move down to the other end of the bar.

The theory was that, since my friends and I had three seats right next to each other, we'd be able to talk.

Yeah right. Dream on, Dave.

I've seen it more crowded at Rich O's. I've seen nights where people have been forced to stand for the entire night it was so crowded. But last night was easily the LOUDEST that I've ever seen it. Those fuckers in the living room area were just incredibly obnoxious. I could barely hear HatGirl sitting right next to me, and LuckyFucker may as well have been on the Moon. We were forced to attempt lip-reading with each other.

If I'd never sat foot in Rich O's before, and I'd gone in last night for the first time, I'd have turned around and never returned. Good beer and the occasional hot girl be damned.

So I drank a couple more Uplands (130,150) while HatGirl and LuckyFucker calculated how quickly they could leave without hurting my feelings. I don't blame them a bit. At one point I turned around toward the living room area and said in a fairly loud voice, "Every one of you that can remain silent for one minute, I'll buy you a beer."

All nine of the shitheads became ineligible before ten seconds had passed. Oh well, it was worth a try I suppose.

Once my friends gave up and left, I had myself a half-glass of Upland (160) then a couple glasses of Diet Coke.

DooRagGirl came in and I talked with her for a few minutes, mainly about her boyfriend's "hairstyle."

At the very end of the night I talked with WomanRepellant and EuchreDude about women and romance and stuff. We're all such experts. That's why we were by ourselves.

The nice thing, and the only nice thing, about nights like last night, is that it will never get any worse than that. Last night was as bad as it gets. It's all downhill from there. Or uphill. Whichever one is easier. And quieter.

Thursday, December 29, 2005
posted by dave at 12:48 AM in category drink

8:40
I wasn't not even completely through the door when HornDog - sitting in the loser section for some reason - informed me that he's drinking the last of the Rogue Chocolate Stout. Fuck. I checked the board, and the Upland Chocolate Stout is still listed.

8:41
I order an Upland, and I'm told that it is gone too. Fuck Fuck.

8:44
I order one of these:

Young's Winter Warmer (20)

I was expecting more from this beer for some reason, but I should have known better. This is, after all, the brewery that touts their chocolate stout as "double" chocolate even though it's clearly the weakest of any that I've ever had. But enough ranting. A decent brown ale with a touch of something that I couldn't identify - there's not enough of whatever it is.
8:45
It's fucking crowded! I sit in the Red Room.

8:50
Some assholes that I never saw before in my life have just joined me and are *gasp* trying to talk to me. Don't they realize that I hate them with a passion that burns to the very core of my being? Well, don't they?

9:00
TallLady has left, so I'm moving to the island to the space that she vacated.

9:08:
These fuckheads keep trying to talk to me.

9:17
This one fucker keeps trying to read what I'm writing, so

HEY FUCKHEAD READ THIS!!!!

9:18
The fucker is now complaining about the smoke in here, so I'm lighting three at once.

9:20
It worked! He's leaving!

9:22
This chick keeps trying to talk to me about port wine, even though I told her I wouldn't drink port if she held a gun to my head. She just won't shut up about port this and port that and how they're going to drink port on Friday and port is yummy and port port port port port.

9:30
Hey, the assholes at the bar just left! Finally! I'm moving over there. PortGirl is stunned! Stunned I tell you!

9:32
After a small sample glass, I order a half-pint of one of these:

Bell's Sparkling Ale (12)

(draft) Smells like old socks. Looks like a lager. Tastes fantastic. Reminds me of the winter ales from the established Belgian breweries. Apples and other, unidentifiable, fruits predominate. A very surprising beer from one of my favorite breweries. Yummy.
9:35
PortGirl gave me a dirty look as she left. Now I'm going to cry. Not.

9:42
The fuckers in the living room area all suck giant green ones.

9:45
Some fucker just sat at the other end of the bar and he's tapping it like he's a drummer or something.

9:47
Yay! I miss her! Wait, I mean Boo!

9:50
You wanna know what I hate more than people eating at the bar, more than people hiding the ashtrays, even more than strangers in the living room area?

(I'll let the fucker to my left provide the drumroll...)

It's people that start rearranging the furniture like they own the place. They suck.

10:00
Half the fuckers in the living room area just left, and it's still full of idiots over there.

10:07
I keep turning around to see who's here. I don't know who I'm expecting or hoping for, but it's always the same idiots every time I turn around.

10:11
The rest of the idiots have gone. Yay! Now it's just some hot blonde and her gay boyfriend over there. I'm staying where I am.

10:18
The Stille Nacht is gone. The Delirium Noel is gone. The De Ranke - I can't remember if I like it or not. I order a Guinness (1020).

10:20
FutureDude is trying to start shit.

10:21
Upland Chocolate Stout is still here! Yay! I order one! (80)

10:30
I've been talking with HornDog. I forgive him for drinking all of the Rogue because he's who told me that the Upland was still here.

10:35
Piss time. You know you care.

10:50
Advice for women: Don't rub yourself all over me while telling me that you think of me like a brother. This type of behavior is, believe it or not, actually not a big turn-on for me.

10:55
Some dude just sat next to me and ordered one of those green beers that SassyBoy used to be named after.

10:56
Another Upland (90). Yummy.

11:00
NewGreenBeerGuy goes to I.U. but he doesn't know my niece or her boyfriend.

11:10
Piss time again.

11:15
There's some new hot girl working the Sportstime side of the business. That side gets all the hot girls.

11:17
I'm smiling because I miss her.

11:30
I'm outta here.

Wednesday, December 28, 2005
posted by dave at 2:01 PM in category drink

Last night Rich O's was, once again, moderately packed. I guess a lot of people are like me and not working today.

I arrived at about 8:30 and sat at the island with RealTrainGirl and MisunderstoodGirl. Actually, ReadTrainGirl has got herself a new short and sassy hairstyle, so she will henceforth be known in this 'blog as SassyGirl. Then, so GreenBeerDude doesn't feel left out, I will hereafter call him SassyBoy.

Guess what I drank.

Go ahead, guess!

Rogue Chocolate Stout is correct! Ding ding ding!

It was a nice and quiet night. A bunch of idiots were scattered around the place, but they didn't bother us for the most part. I had a couple pints of the Rogue (418) while talking with my friends and making fun of the idiots, and then, after my friends left I had a half glass of Rogue (428) and then came home at like 11:30.

Then I dicked around the house for a while and then I slept for like 10 hours.

It's nice to have a day off in the middle of the week. Makes it feel extra-special.

Tuesday, December 27, 2005
posted by dave at 7:56 AM in category drink

After last night's beer-off I didn't just go home. Nope, I stayed and drank some more. Since I already had my notebook handy, I took notes.

5:20
I'll just get a half-pint of each to start. Don't want to seem greedy.

(The beer-off commences immediately.)

5:40
Fuck I'm here early. I'd better pace myself.

5:45
I keep rambling to Exbartender about how yummy the Rogue is. I bet he wishes I'd shut the hell up.

5:50
Tried to call SpikeBoy to tell him about the Rogue. No answer.

6:00
ExBartender's "friend" is very quiet. He is drinking Lindeman's Frambroise. Not that there's anything wrong with that.

6:09
I have another Rogue (338).

6:10
HornDog has joined me. Oh boy.

6:15
Two dudes are standing over there talking about playing pool. They are clueless.

6:20
RealTrainGirl and GreenBeerDude have arrived.

6:30
RealTrainGirl and GreenBeerDude have declared that it shall be gay night at Rich O's.

6:35
GreenBeerDude has a present that's wrapped in gay wrapping paper.

6:37
He made it himself, using pictures cut out from magazines.

7:35
I have another Rogue (358).

7:45
HatGirl and LuckyFucker arrive.

7:50
GreenBeerDude has declared gay night a success.

8:00
There are about a half-dozen hot girls in the red room for some reason.

That's all the notes I took.

I did have another Rogue (378) before I left though. Yummy.

posted by dave at 7:47 AM in category drink

The other day I was nagging at Roger, the owner of Rich O's, about the lack of chocolate stouts on tap. After he'd assured me that my beer-off was only postponed and not cancelled, we talked a bit about other beers.

One of the topics was the idea of a kind of customer appreciation mini-festival to fill in some of the gaps between the three big festivals. Roger's idea was that he'd take a single customer and make it a point to have several of that customer's favorite brews on tap at the same time.

This is a great idea, I think. And it's an even better idea if I get to be the customer being honored.

I don't know if anything like this will ever actually come to pass, but it could be a fun little fantasy exercise. So, I'm going to pretend that the first annual DaveFest is going to take place in the Spring.

The rules are these:

  1. Six taps will be provided for beers of my choosing, but I should specify at least ten beers so that alternates are available if any of my main selections cannot be procured.

  2. I need to choose beers that Roger can actually get, so no Alaskan Amber and no Alaskan Smoked Porter or anything else that he can't get in a keg.

  3. I need to choose beers that he will actually sell, so no Newcastle.

  4. Some beers are always on anyway, like Guinness, so I needn't bother specifying them.

My six primary choices:
  • Delirium Tremens

  • Rogue Smoke

  • Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier

  • Rogue Chocolate Stout

  • Arcadia Scotch Ale

  • Goose Island Honkers Ale
My six alternates:
  • De Dolle Dulle Teve (Mad Bitch)

  • Bell's Kalamazoo Stout

  • Avery Old Jubilation

  • Two Brothers Domain DuPage French Style Country Ale

  • Hitachino Nest Red Rice Ale

  • Piraat
Please note that the above lists do not necessarily represent my favorite beers - just those very good beers that satisfy the rules of this exercise.

If I were able to select six beers and there were no rules, those six beers would be:

  • Delirium Tremens

  • Alaskan Smoked Porter

  • Harpoon Winter Warmer

  • Rogue Chocolate Stout

  • Alaskan Amber

  • Baltika 6
This was a fun exercise. Now I'm thirsty.

Monday, December 26, 2005
posted by dave at 11:43 PM in category drink, pictures

Before going out tonight, I first had to get ready.

Tonight was going to be the big beer-off between two of my all-time favorites; Rogue Chocolate stout and Upland Chocolate Stout.

I was way too excited over a couple of beers being on tap at the same time, but I'm bottling everything else up and I need to have some outlet for my emotions, so fuck off.

Besides, I take my duties as unofficial Rich O's beer reviewer very seriously. So seriously, in fact, that I had VigilanteGirl help me put together a special uniform for tonight's activities.

Behold me in all my scruffy and/or evil glory:

Evil Dave

If you look closely enough (not at my crotch you perverts) you may notice a reflective patch on my shirt. This shirt normally says Irish Stout Official Taster on it but tonight, for one night only, the word Irish has been replaced:

Ta Da!

At around 4:30, I called the bar and asked Roger, the owner, if he was going to shatter my dreams again. He assured me that both of my favorite chocolate stouts were indeed on tap.

Having thus confirmed that my mission was still a go, I arrived at Rich O's a little after 5:00 PM. Right off the bat, I checked the board:

Yay!

Yay! They were both listed!

Did I mention that I was excited?

Well, I was.

I ordered a half glass of Rogue Chocolate Stout (318) and a half glass of Upland Chocolate Stout (70), which will hereafter in this entry be referred to simply as Rogue and Upland, and I sat in the throne with my beers and my notebook to begin my beer-off.

With both beers in front of me, calling to me, I tried to remain as scientific and impartial as I could. I alternated each beer through each of the following tests:

Color

Upland: Jet Black
Rogue: Jet Black
Conclusion: Tie

Head

Upland: Beige, faded quickly to a thin coating
Rogue: Light brown, lasted forever
Conclusion: Rogue easily wins this contest

Aroma

Upland: Good chocolate aroma, a bit sharp when inhaled deeply
Rogue: Rich and malty chocolate aroma
Conclusion: Rogue easily wins this contest

Flavor

Upland: Dryer than I remembered, with a touch of coffee but mostly a slightly bitter chocolate - yummy
Rogue: Tastes like it smells, rich and malty and chocolately - fucking yummy
Conclusion: Rogue easily wins this contest

Mouthfeel

Upland: A decent thickness, more syrupy than anything else
Rogue: Thick and creamy
Conclusion: Rogue wins this contest by a nose

Overall Winner

Rogue wins in a landslide.

I want to make this perfectly clear: The Upland Chocolate Stout is a fucking fantastic beer. On any night in which the Rogue wasn't on tap, the Upland would almost definitely be my favorite. There's not a damn thing wrong with the Upland - it's just no Rogue. And that's not such a bad thing. I, for example, am no Brad Pitt, but give me a try and you'll keep coming back. Unless Brad just happens to be in the room, then I'm screwed.

Sunday, December 25, 2005
posted by dave at 8:52 PM in category drink

Okay.

Saturday night after I left my grandmother's house, I went to a secret thing. It was all very hush-hush, and I felt privileged to even know about it, let alone be allowed to attend.

After that I went to do some more secret stuff.

I feel like a spy or something.

Or a criminal.

So because everything's a big secret, this entry will just be to say that I had myself a couple of pints of Bell's Double Cream Stout (80), and then a glass of De Dolle Stille Nacht (32). All were yummy.

Today I watched a couple of movies, then I typed The World's Longest And Most Boring E-Mail to RockGirl, then I watched a couple more movies.

Right now I'm getting ready to watch another movie, and I'm drinking a Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier (247), one of several yummy and/or exotic-sounding beers that I've stocked into my fridge lately. I had, before the secret thingy presented itself, planned to just come home Saturday night and play pool and drink beer, so that's why I've all of a sudden got beer in my house.

Saturday, December 24, 2005
posted by dave at 11:39 AM in category drink

Once I left my sister's house, and the holiday festivities therein, I headed down to Rich O's for HatGirl's birthday celebration.

SCRIBBLERESQUE PARENTHETICAL THOUGHT: I was only a few seconds from Dina's house when she called me to tell me that I had a taillight out on my truck. Since this is a time of year that cops are just dying for any excuse to pull people over, I stopped at my house and switched to my Intrepid before continuing to Rich O's. Now this morning I can't figure out how to get the damn bulb out so I can replace it.

Rich O's was, as expected, pretty fucking crowded. After a quick nod to my friends I checked out the blackboard, just to confirm that what I'd been promised on Tuesday was indeed happening on Friday.

It wasn't.

There was supposed to be Rogue Chocolate Stout and Upland Chocolate Stout, both on tap at the same time.

I'd been looking forward to it all week. I'd been telling everyone I knew about this special occasion. Mouths all over Floyd County were watering at the thought of these two beers, side-by-side, vying for the title of Best Fucking Stout On Planet Earth.

But nooooooooooooooooooooooo!

I spotted Roger, the owner, holding court at the bar, so I went and talked to him about this lack of chocolate stouts. He assured me that both kegs are on the premises, and that either Monday or Tuesday they'll be on tap. Yay!

So, once I'd gotten over my initial disappointment, I selected something from the board.

Bell's Special Double Cream Stout (20)

(draft) A nice roasty chocolate flavor. The extra alcohol, as compared to similar stouts, seemed unnecessary to me, and annoyed me a little. A beer this good doesn't need the alcohol gimmick.
Oh yeah - RealTrainGirl and GreenBeerDude were sitting on the loveseat. I've already said that HatGirl was in the front room. So I spent the first hour or so ping-ponging between them.

The front area is just weird. I don't think I like it out there. But after RealTrainGirl left I pretty much stayed out there for the rest of the night, mainly watching HatGirl and her sister play some card game that I've never heard of called "speed."

Since the Saturnalia board was actually looking a little boring to me, my second beer was the same as the first; another Bell's (40).

My last beer was a half-pint of Guinness (1000).

I didn't say this would be an interesting entry. I had fun, but a couple of things happened that gave me pause. I won't be writing about them here.

Tuesday, December 20, 2005
posted by dave at 10:36 PM in category drink

Because I missed all of Saturday night, I knew that the only chance I had of making it through the Saturnalia beer list was to go every day after work and have at least one. My plan was to only have new beers, at least until Rogue Chocolate Stout entered the mix. Then all bets would be off.

That plan isn't going so well.

Monday I had myself a Rogue Hazelnut Brown Nectar (60). I didn't remember having it before, but I had tried it two years ago.

Tonight I started out with a Mahr's Brau Christmas Bock (20), which I've also had before, and which I also didn't remember having before. Neither is a particularly memorable beer, and my failure to recall drinking them before kind of reinforces that point I guess.

I nursed the shit out of the Mahr's until RealTrainGirl showed up. Then, we were having such an enjoyable conversation that, instead of going home for my nap appointment, I had one of these:

Summit Winter Ale (20)

(draft) had a decent flavor, but there wasn't much flavor to it. I kept getting hints of spices and such, but the hints faded as soon as I started to detect them. Good, but not great.

This beer I also nursed the shit out of, simply because I didn't care that much for it. I wonder if my chocolate beer cravings that I've had for the past several months have permanently tainted my judgment. We'll see.

RealTrainGirl wasn't even close to finishing her glass by the time I finished mine, so I decided what the Hell and ordered a half glass of this:

Schmaltz HeBrew Jewbelation 5766 (13)

(draft) Tried some the other night and wasn't impressed. Had a full glass tonight and still wasn't impressed, but it certainly went down easier. For all the hops and malts used, I should have detected more complexity. Just a decent beer that does a very good job of hiding its high ABV.

Then, finally, some spots opened up in the living room area so we went over there and talked with TallLady for a bit.

I had just about decided that I'd be going home when, lo and behold, HatGirl and her boyfriend came in. HatGirl was wearing her hat, so I of course recognized her immediately. I ordered myself a Diet Coke and we all just sat around talking about nothing much for ran hour or so.

Sunday, December 18, 2005
posted by dave at 10:23 PM in category daily, drink

What's this? A beer report on a Sunday?!?

It didn't start out that way, but not many things in my life live up to the promises made at the beginning, so what the fuck.

After I spent all day Saturday working in the prison hospital with that girl, I was feeling a little ripped off. No beer make Dave something something. Or something like that.

Today, after I slept off the 20 hours of work from Saturday, I awoke at about 11:30, just raring to go. Go where, you ask? Back to bed actually. But I didn't.

Instead I went and got part of my Christmas shopping out of the way. A couple of things about that:

  1. Remember when Toys R Us used to have actual toys? Now it's a damn clothing store.

  2. This store called Hobby Lobby was closed. On the Sunday before Christmas. A sign in their door proclaimed This store is closed on Sunday to allow our employees the opportunity to worship with their families. As an agnostic that lives alone, I'm offended by this shoving of the so-called Sabbath into my life, not to mention the rubbing into my face the fact that I have no family to spend my Sunday with. Plus, I really needed to pick some shit up there for Christmas, and now I'll have to go back on a weekday. Fuckers.

So I got about half my shopping done, and because it was still a little bit early, I went to Buckhead's in Jeffersonville to get something to eat.

This was either a brilliant idea or a huge mistake. I haven't decided yet.

As is typical for me, I first checked out the taps. Did my eyes deceive me? No! That's Upland Chocolate Stout! Yay!

I sat at a table and ordered a beer, remembering to get an unchilled glass.

I tried to divert this nagging impulse that had taken over my brain. I really did try.

I relished my Upland Chocolate Stout (44) and I perused the food menu.

I called my cousin Jeff, but he was busy doing some shopping of his own. He said he'd be at the Hooter's across the street from Buckhead's in a couple of hours though.

I called SpikeBoy, but he was on his way to work.

Once the waitress, who recognized me from before, asked me if "that blonde girl" would be joining me, my resolve was all gone.

I called MixedSignalGirl.

So much for that compassionate disassociation thing that I've been trying.

She made the quick drive over to join me for lunch, and we did a bit of catching up. I told her about my Las Vegas trip. Everything about that trip. She told me about her new job, and that her car (the one that she hit the deer with) had finally died so she was driving a new one.

I'd like to say that it was just like old times, but it wasn't. Something was definitely missing. We both noticed it, but neither of us would say it. Not to each other anyway. I'll say it here.

Whatever it was that she felt for me during the Summer, it's gone now. I looked into her eyes and I saw nothing. Serves me right I suppose.

I had another Upland (60). I'd really like to have a beer-off between the chocolate stouts from Upland and Rogue. It just may be possible, since Rich O's is slated to get the Rogue sometime during Saturnalia.

After we'd eaten I walked her out to her new car. It's pretty nice. We exchanged a hug and a quick kiss, and said goodbye. Perhaps for the last time, I dunno.

Kind of sad.

On the way back to my truck, I stuck my head into Hooter's to see if Jeff had arrived yet. I wasn't sure if I'd even recognize him since it's been about nine months. He was there, and I did recognize him.

I sat and talked with Jeff for an hour or so and had a couple glasses of Newcastle (1760). Yummy as always.

I guess that's it.

posted by dave at 7:58 PM in category drink

A million zillion years ago, or it might have been Friday night, I went to Rich O's.

It was the first night of their Saturnalia festival. A couple dozen yummy rare, seasonal, and festive beers from around the world. The highlight of my beer year.

I arrived at about 8:00. The place was pretty crowded, but not quite as crowded as I'd feared. I managed to grab a seat at the kiddie table, and I ordered my first beer.

Ridgeway Seriously Bad Elf (20)

(draft) Arrived within a storm of convtroversy, so a bit of a tough reputation to live up to. I don't think it quite managed. A nice dark amber beer, with good head and lacing. The flavor was a little sour - something that I wasn't expecting at all. I won't be bothering to have this beer again.
During my time at the kiddie table, I spent most of my time talking with TallLady and GlassesGirl. I also focused most of my attention on the throne, where some shithead was sitting, because it looked like said shithead would be leaving soon and I wanted to grab that seat. To sit in the throne on the first night of Saturnalia would be a rare privilege indeed.

But that's exactly what happened. About 1.2 seconds after the shithead stood up, I planted my butt onto the throne. I ordered one of these:

De Dolle Special Extra Export Stout (10)

(draft) Fizzy and a little metallic, which was quite a strange sensation coming from a stout. More coffee than chocolate flavored, so not my favorite even once the fizz had faded.
Oh yeah, UplandWheatDude was there. He's one of LaptopGirl's ex-boyfriends. Not that asshole - the cool one. We did quite a bit of bullshitting throughout the night until he dropped a bit of a bomb on me and I sort of shut up. More about that later, maybe.

After a while, HatGirl and LuckyFucker came in and joined us in the living room area. There was also some patronizing fuckhead that I didn't like at all. He basically badmouthed everybody's beer selection all night long. What an asshole.

My third beer was another new one for me.

Oaken Barrel Epiphany (10)

(draft) A fairly standard tripel with a hint of apricots. Quite good. I wish I could say more about this beer, but there was really nothing special about it.
I'd like to be able to say more about Friday. It was a fun night. It was good to see UplandWheatDude, and seeing HatGirl is always a treat. In fact, once PatronizingAsshole left, it was one of the most enjoyable nights I've had in a long time.

But most of the conversations will either remain private or they'll get their own journal entry. So for now, you readers will just have to yawn your way through the beer descriptions.

My last beer of the night was, again, a new one for me.

Anchor Our Special Ale 2005 (20)

(draft) Pretty damn good. Higly malty, with a touch of coffee. No chocolate or licorice at all, but still a good beer.
Anyway, like I said, it was a good night. I got to talk with GlassesGirl, and HatGirl, and TallLady, and UplandWheatDude, and LuckyFucker. I talked to RealTrainGirl on the phone for a bit. I had fun. It was expecially fun considering how crowded it was. Without the good company I'd have been a basket case.

Sunday, December 11, 2005
posted by dave at 12:21 PM in category drink

After Friday's crowding, Saturday night was just what I needed.

I got to the bar a little after 9:00, and stood at the bar and talked with SpikeBoy for a few minutes. He's still seeing the same girl, so I may have to come up with a nickname for her. We'll see.

The rest of the night I spent over in the living room area talking with the likes of CoffeeDude, DooRagGirl, and GreenBeerDude and his friends. Everything was nice and quiet and relaxing.

To drink, I had a Bell's Kalamazoo Stout (95), then one of those Strubbe things that I'd had on Friday (20), and finally a yummy Alaskan Smoked Porter (222), which had managed to sneak back onto the shelves without my noticing.

We had some interesting conversations that I may end up writing some entries about, so I'm going to cut this entry short.

On the way home, I saw that VigilanteGirl was still working, so I stopped and saw her. When she found out that I'd gotten home Friday she was a little pissed. She threw candy bars at me and completely denied seeing me, and ignoring me, when I'd stopped to see her first thing Friday. Women are strange.

Saturday, December 10, 2005
posted by dave at 11:14 AM in category drink

I woke up this morning and I thought for a few seconds that it was Sunday instead of Saturday. I'm very glad I was wrong.

Got home yesterday at around 3:30. RealTrainGirl called me about 30 seconds after I walked off the plane, wanting to know if I was going to Rich O's. Duh.

While I was gone they'd gone ahead and declared Winter here. Temps in the 20s and a nice little coating of snow and ice on the surface streets.

My cats were excited to see me, in part I'm sure because they had no food in their dispenser thingy, but I also like to pretend that they noticed I was gone and actually missed my company.

Took a quick nap. I didn't really need one, but it just seemed like the thing to do.

Rich O's was very fucking crowded. I spotted RealTrainGirl sitting on the throne, but there were no openings around her, so I stood at the bar. I had myself an Upland Winter Warmer (110), back on tap finally, and traded some text messages back and forth with RealTrainGirl about who are all these fuckers? and why won't they leave?

Well, some of the fuckers did leave, or at least they left the sofa, so I went over there and sat. RealTrainGirl was glad to see me. She missed me. Awwww!

The place was very loud. We sat and drank and talked. MusicalHippyDude and GlassesGirl and RedHairGirl were sitting on the loveseat. Some old guy that I don't know was next to me on the sofa. GreenBeerDude and a friend of his came and managed to squeeze in somehow.

My next beer was something new for me:

Strubbe Couckelaerschen Doedel (10)

(draft) A very nice beer, with a good blend of various unidentifiable spices. I got no citrus at all, and I'm glad for that. Quite yummy actually.
After a while RealTrainGirl and her posse left so I moved to the throne and talked with GlassesGirl, mostly about how she's going to try to get my sister Neisha to come to Rich O's some day. The last time I checked, Rich O's wasn't located in my sister's house, so we'll see about that.

So then those people wanted to make a quick run to Molly Malone's in Louisville. They wanted me to go, but I didn't really see the point - both girls have boyfriends - so I told them I'd wait and save their seats if I could.

I couldn't. Save their seats anyway.

ProfessorDude asked me if I wanted to play some euchre. Yay! I haven't played euchre with actual humans in years. I ended up partners with a guy I'll call EuchreDude, while ProfessorDude (henceforth to be called LonerBoy) was partnered with some hot girl that I'll call HotEuchreGirl.

At about this time I ordered a Spezial Rauchbier Lager (970).

I think that EuchreDude and I won two out of three games at Rich O's, or maybe three out of five. Whatever, we closed the place down and went over to Jack's to play some more.

LonerBoy offered to buy us all beers, so I had myself a PBR (24) just for kicks.

We played a few more games. I think that EuchreDude and I won the majority of them. At about 3:00 I let PretentiousShithead take my place and I went to White Castle and came home.

Friday, December 9, 2005
posted by dave at 7:18 PM in category drink, travel

Well, I'm back home from Las Vegas.

Just thought I'd transcribe my notes from Thursday before I head out to Rich O's tonight.

At around 3:00, I went up to The Four Queens to check out this Chicago Brewpub that I'd never heard of before. It was a tiny place, so I'm thinking that this may not be the actual brewery. Only one beer looked interesting, so that's all I had:

Chicago Old Town Brown (24)

(draft) I've rated this a little higher than most brown ales because there was something special about it. I don't know what, though. There was a slightly spicy aroma and flavor. Whatever it was, it was good.

Later Thursday I went back to The Tilted Kilt and took a few notes.

6:55
I ordered a Rogue Chocolate Stout (260).

6:56
The bartender was really fascinated when I was here last year and I told him how we'd met. Back in May, he was disappointed to learn that we'd broken up, but he insisted that my running into her at White Castle a week earlier had been a hopeful sign for us. He even went so far, back in May, to predict that we'd be married or engaged by the time this, my December visit, occurred. I didn't have it in me to tell him the real end of our story, so I lied and told him I hadn't seen her since that night at White Castle.

7:05
I know I'm supposed to be winding down this vacation of mine, but I certainly don't feel like it. I'd stay another month if I could afford it.

7:16
What the hell, I'll have another Rogue (276).

7:19
I'm really going to miss this beer. Even if Rich O's gets it as part of their Saturnalia festival, I should probably drink beers that are new to me instead. It will be tough though.

7:20
There she is. Maybe this vacation will end with a bang after all.

7:24
I keep thinking about a scared little girl. Can't get her out of my head.

8:05
Another Rogue (292).

8:07
I've started talking about boring computer stuff with some guy from Chicago.

9:05
Another Rogue (308). Still talking about boring computer stuff with the Chicago guy.

9:10
She's off. We're outta here!

Wednesday, December 7, 2005
posted by dave at 11:46 PM in category drink

Prologue
Had a couple of yummy Alaskan Ambers (2068) with my yummy steak dinner. Got in a really bad mood for no good reason, just a memory that surfaced unbidden.

7:40
Quite crowded, so I sit where the cock smokers sat the other night. I order, duh, a Rogue Chocolate Stout (196).

7:45
The bitch didn't tell him about my wanting an unchilled glass. Now she gets a penny for a tip.

7:50
I couldn't do it to her. It's not her fault she's stupid. So I gave her a normal 25% tip and told her I'd find another waitress for the rest of the might. Let her try to figure out why.

7:54
Moved to another table, closer to the window and away from StupidGirl's area.

8:00
I was already furious when I got here tonight. Maybe I shouldn't be taking my anger out on the stupid waitress.

8:02
There was a girl in the show last night that looked almost exactly like DooRagGirl. I wish they'd allowed pictures.

8:10
Wow, this is my last full night here for who knows how long. That sucks.

8:12
PictureGirl is giving me that come hither look, but if I go thither won't that be breaking her rule about when she's working?

8:15
I wonder what ever happened to RioGirl?

8:20
She wanted to know why I was mean to StupidGirl. I didn't think I was particularly mean, but I told her why.

8:22
Let's not make a federal case out of it, okay?

8:23
I wonder if I should just go watch Lost at 9:00.

8:25
I'm a little disappointed that I've had no stalkers this week. None that I know about anyway.

8:30
This one chick should get her money back from her implant doctor. They keep sloshing back and forth after she stops walking. Gross.

8:34
Another Rogue (212), in an unchilled glass this time. Yay!

8:35
All girls with mousy brown shoulder length hair should be required to turn and face me as soon as they enter a room. My heart can only take so much.

8:37
It's kind of strange that one of my coworkers is here at the same conference, but I've only seen him twice for about twenty seconds total.

8:40
If I was a chick I'd have long brown hair with those kinky curls and lots of blonde highlights. I'd also be a lesbian. A slutty one.

8:41
Santa Claus just came in. He's younger than I thought.

8:46
There's nobody here to make fun of tonight. Everybody's normal now that Santa has left.

8:54
She's off work now. She's tired. It's my fault that she's tired. Hee hee. She's going home now.

9:02
Maybe I'd be a lesbian with shoulder length, very kinky, dirty blonde hair. Definitely a lesbian though. Love the puss. Hate the cock.

9:14
I think I need a side by side comparison. Both girls are quite hot.

9:16
With me in the middle.

9:18
MixedSignalGirl always tried to get her hair that kinky but after like five minutes it'd be straight again.

9:19
Great. Now I miss MixedSignalGirl too.

9:25
Another Rogue (228). It must be the low humidity or something that's letting me drink so much.

9:30
I'm moving to the bar. I don't know why.

9:33
This goat roper just came in and asked for a Bud Light in a bottle. Upon hearing that they only have it on tap, he left in disgust. I hate him.

9:36
My rock is pointy, kind of like an arrow. When I spin it, it stops in some random direction. Maybe it's broken.

9:45
Two waitresses and a busboy went into the cooler. When they came out a few minutes later the busboy pretended to be zipping his pants up. It was funny.

9:56
I've been surrounded by loud people.

10:05
Piss time.

10:07
Another Rogue (244). WTF?

10:10
Man this place got crowded quickly!

10:15
Blinded by the light
revved up like a deuce
another runner in the night

How fucking appropriate. Or not. I don't care.

10:26
Friday would be a good date to get engaged. Not gonna happen though, because I'm a dumbass.

10:29
Some hot girl is running around with some kind of petition. I don't know what it's for though because she's scared of my evilness.

10:30
Holy shit I've drank a lot tonight.

10:31
It's not a petition - it's you give her your info and she gives you free chewing tobacco. No thanks.

10:36
I think it's her smile that I miss the most, or maybe the way she sparkled.

10:39
Alcohol saturation achieved. Ordering food and switching to Diet Coke.

10:49
Food has arrived. I'm outta here.

Tuesday, December 6, 2005
posted by dave at 11:37 PM in category drink, entertainment, travel

What a difference a day makes.

To be fair, this was a long ass day, so its difference making potential was greater than most to begin with.

To start, I got to meet Dave Barry. I got a free copy of his latest book, and he signed it for me. He did this because I came to this same conference last year. Therefore I'm special. Like you didn't already know that.

Dave Barry also had a speaking session, which was a very welcome respite from all of the technical information making up the rest of the week. I wish I was funny like him.

Anyway, after the day's boring sessions, I grabbed a cab and went down to New York New York. I had 7:30 tickets to see Zumanity.

After I picked up my ticket I still had a couple of hours to kill. So guess what I did.

Go ahead, guess.

If you guessed that I ate dinner and drank some beer, then you guessed correctly. If you guessed anything else, then you probably thought you were reading somebody else's journal.

I went to the ESPN Zone and had a burger and fries. With this delicious meal, I had one of their large mugs of Fat Tire (85). After that was gone, I talked with PictureGirl on the phone for a bit and sent some text messages off to some friends. I also had a Guinness (990).

The show itself, well it was different. The audience interaction was very funny. I even got to be a small part of it. It's a pretty sexual show. So much so that even the stunts and acrobatics managed to get a little bit lost in the sexual undertones. I liked it, but next time I go I'm taking a date.

After the show, I went over to Nine Fine Irishmen and paid $6.57 for a Smithwick's (636). That's a ridiculous price, even for Las Vegas, so I didn't stay. I went back to The Rio and had a couple pints of Rogue Chocolate Stout (180) which were yummy and reasonably priced.

PictureGirl was working, but she was busy. She'd made it clear last night that I needed to respect her work and not start any trouble or rumors or anything, so I just said "Hi" and that was about it. She's supposed to call me when she gets off work. We'll see.

posted by dave at 10:30 AM in category drink, entertainment, travel

Last night I took PictureGirl to The Freakin' Frog. Actually she took me, because she drove, but I paid, so whatever.

Back in May, the first time I went to this bar, my plan had been to only drink beers that were new to me. That plan was immediately ruined by the fact that they had Alaskan Smoked Porter on tap.

Last night, my plan was, once again, to only drink new beers. Last night, that plan was ruined by their having Alaskan Amber on tap.

Not that I'm complaining. I haven't had draft Alaskan Amber in two years, since the last time I was in Seattle. I managed to limit myself to just the one glass (2044).

I had to ask for a thawed glass. The bartender tried to argue with me about that. "Most Americans like to drink from chilled glasses," he told me.

"Most Americans can't tell the difference between piss and beer, and they wouldn't be caught dead in a place like this," I responded. So the bartender granted me my point and he provided unchilled glasses for the rest of the evening.

PictureGirl and I grabbed a booth and had some dinner and a lot of that mundane first (and in our case, only) date chat about nothing much. For the most part we just made fun of the other people in the place.

The Freakin' Frog is similar to Rich O's in that most of the women are lesbians. There are beer snobs as well, but this place's beer snobs are all very young and they play chess. They all drink Chimay, and the lesbians all drink PBR or Mickey's.

PictureGirl stuck with Alaskan Amber, and I branched out a little.

Flying Dog Gonzo Imperial Porter (10)

(draft) Looks nice, with good lacing. A fairly intense coffee/licorice flavor that didn't appeal to me very much. The high alcohol is fairly apparent. The second half of the glass tasted better to my numbed taste buds than the first half had.

They had a Galaga video game there. I put a dollar in so we could play. I wanted to see how much I sucked after 30 years. Well the machine stole my dollar, so it wasn't as much fun as I remembered from when I was a kid.

Alaskan Stout (12)

(bottle) A decent head that faded very quickly. Aroma was mainly chocolate, with perhaps some cola as well. Flavor was a mix of coffee, chocolate, and cola, with maybe a touch of juniper. A decent and safe beer from one of my favorite breweries.

I don't know if it's a Las Vegas thing, or just a Freakin' Frog thing, but a lot of people were wearing strange hats. There was one guy wearing a gray flannel gangster cap. Another was wearing a straw hat like the scarecrow in The Wizard of Oz might have worn. This one beatnik dude with a disconcertingly pretty girlfriend was wearing some strange knit winter cap but it had a bill on it. PictureGirl and I, we were hatless.

At one point, we found ourselves watching bits of this Underworld movie that they were projecting onto a big screen TV. Then PictureGirl said not to watch it anymore, we could go to her apartment and watch the whole thing.

Check, please!

We only ended up watching about half the movie.

Monday, December 5, 2005
posted by dave at 7:16 AM in category drink, entertainment, travel

I know, I know, I'm late. I skipped an entire day.

Yesterday was a long day. For some stupid reason I'd bought tickets for the 10:30 PM showing of La Reve. Probably because I'm a dumbass, but possibly because the other showings were sold out. I don't remember.

Anyway, because it was going to be such a long day, I slept in until 9:30 or so. I just hung around The Rio all day long. I played some video poker, and for lunch I went and had a Rogue Chocolate Stout (126) with my chicken tenders.

Then I took a nap for several hours.

This is exciting, isn't it?

Before I went to the show I stopped and had dinner. With my dinner I had a couple more Rogues (158). I traded some text-messages back and forth with VigilanteGirl and RealTrainGirl, then eventually I took a cab over to The Wynn.

La Reve Theatre

That's (obviously) the outside of where they had the show. You're not supposed to take pictures of the inside but I managed to sneak this one before the show started:

La Reve

This was a pretty cool show. More dancy and less acrobatic than the Cirque Du Soleil shows that I've attended in Las Vegas. Actually, a large part of the show was ruined for me when The Most Beautiful Girl In The History Of The Universe popped out of the water about five feet in front of me and smiled. I spent the rest of the 90-minute show finding and then staring at her whenever I found her.

When The Most Beautiful Girl In The History Of The Universe wasn't visible I watched the other performers. I really like this artsy-fartsy stuff.

After the show I went back to The Rio. I was thinking about grabbing another beer but The Tilted Kilt was already closed so I just played some video poker for a while (I actually tripled my money, too bad I was playing for quarters instead of dollars) and got to bed a little after 2:00.

Saturday, December 3, 2005
posted by dave at 11:03 PM in category drink, pictures, travel

Prologue: Same as last night. I sat at the bar and wrote in my notebook when I felt like it.

8:14
I arrive and order a Rogue Chocolate Stout (80). Tastes awful because I just brushed my teeth. The solution: Drink faster.

Here's my rock admiring the Tilted Kilt glass.

Rock and Rogue

8:18
It's pretty dead in here right now, at least at the bar. Good.

8:25
A couple in their forties just sat next to me. They're looking at the beer list. I'm going to guess: Bud Light for her and Sam Adams's for him.

8:28
I was off, but not as far off as you might think. He got a Sin City Amber and she got a Sprite. I hate them.

8:35
One of the waitresses was complaining that somebody took her picture without permission. I told her that it happens to me all the time. I'm not sure what's so funny, but she laughed and touched my arm. She must want it up the butt.

8:40
I'm revising my opinion of the couple next to me. The girl is in her mid-thirties, and the guy with her may be her father.

8:41
Another Rogue (96). Fucking yummy.

8:44
Another revision. The chick is a pro and the dude doesn't know it. He actually thinks that she's interested in him.

8:45
The john just got a black and tan. He's telling the hooker that it's what everybody in Europe drinks. What a dork.

8:49
I wonder if every entry I make this week is going to be this boring.

8:50
There are some incredibly ugly people in the world.

8:55
Some fuckers just sat to my right. I'm guessing three Foster's. I may have to close my notebook as one of the fuckers is being nosey.

8:57
Two Grey Goose Martinis and one Bacardi & Coke. I should have known, but my brain is geared toward beer.

9:00
I'm taking off my glasses. Watch out ladies!

9:10
Steve the bartender is working tonight. We're talking about how freaked out I was at this time last year.

9:12
Showed PictureGirl my rock. She thinks it's cute. She definitely wants it up the butt. My dick, not the rock.

9:15
A hot girl just sat to my left.

9:22
This glass is almost empty. Do I want another Rogue?

9:25
Yes. Yes I do (110).

9:35
The hot girl left. Oh well.

9:40
I can feel myself being pulled to the Southeast. I wonder, if I'm being pulled by her, am I not also pulling her toward me?

9:45
Time to take a piss.

9:50
A goth couple just sat to my right. My guess: Guinness for both of them.

9:51
I nailed it.

10:00
GothGuy is smoking a clove cigarette. Now I'm starving to death.

posted by dave at 6:40 PM in category drink, pictures, travel

Today I went up to downtown and dicked around for a few hours.

Here's a picture of the famous cowboy on Fremont Street.

Fremont Street Cowboy

To eat and drink, I went to the 777 Brewpub at Main Street Station.

Fremont Street Cowboy

Fremont Street Cowboy

I mentioned back in May, but the Black Chip Porter there is world-class. I had a large glass (69) and chased it with a small glass (81).

Here's my rock being all jealous of my yummy beer.

Beer and Rock

Now it's time to take a nap before I head back to the bar tonight.

posted by dave at 12:07 AM in category drink, travel

Prologue: Today at the airport I bought myself a little notebook. This entry is a transcription of what I wrote in that notebook tonight at the Tilted Kilt.

10:00
Another Rogue (48). I forgot to order an unfrosted glass so I'm letting it sit for a while. Fucking frosted glasses. I hate them so much.

10:05
There are an awful lot of what my friend Mike used to call "goat ropers" around. But I guess these are real cowboys because there's some rodeo thingy in town.

10:10
I like Las Vegas. There's so much opulence here - it's a city built upon the rubble of broken dreams after all - but that opulence, that glitz and glamour, it's not pretentious at all.

There are two fuckers sitting at the table in front of me. They're wearing fucking leisure suits and drinking fucking martinis. They clearly think that they're better than anyone else here. They suck. But Las Vegas doesn't do that, it doesn't put on airs. It doesn't judge and it doesn't cater. It just is, and it will take my money just as readily as it will take the money of these George Hamilton wannabes sitting in front of me.

For all its fakery and all its posing and its pretty wrappings, Las Vegas is still one of the most honest places I've ever been.

10:25
To my right is a guy in a cowboy hat being hit on by this fat rodeo groupie. I guess she figures that he's used to riding livestock, so what the hell. He's ridden worse. Maybe.

10:35
I deleted her number from my phone back in June. I'm sure I had a good reason for that.

10:36
Five assholes just sat at the table to my left. I bet they order a bunch of Coronas.

10:40
Four Coronas and one Jack & Coke. I guess I know which one of them will be playing the man at their orgy tonight.

10:41
OMG one of them just told a joke or said something funny and now they all high-fived each other. High-fiving white guys really piss me off.

10:45
I wonder what happened to the girl from the plane.

10:46
I'm drinking too fast, but this is fucking yummy. I order another Rogue Chocolate Stout (64).

10:47
The cowboy and the heifer just left together. Maybe I should buy myself a cowboy hat.

10:48
The assholes are taking pictures. They're passing the camera around, and each of them is taking a picture of the other four.

10:52
Now they've got the waitress taking a picture of all five of them.

11:00
I'm thinking about how different this night could have been if I wasn't a dumbass.

11:04
Two hot girls just sat at the table behind me. I can't look without being obvious.

11:05
I wonder how yeast would deal with Sucralose or some other fake sugar substitute.

11:07
The Jack & Coke guy is the only one smoking cigarettes. The others must limit their smoking to cocks.

11:10
The girls are from St. Louis and they just asked me what I'm writing. That's all the opening I need. I'm going in.

11:30
I'm back out. They're tired. That's okay though. I'll be here for a week.

11:45
I'm tired too. My body is telling me that it's 2:24 in the morning. I'm allowed to be tired.

Friday, December 2, 2005
posted by dave at 9:33 PM in category drink, pictures, travel

After checking into my room, and managing a fitful nap, a woke up a little after 5:00 and went down to the casino.

First things first. I needed to eat. So I went to this All American Bar place for a burger and fries. That's not why I went there though. I went there because they have Alaskan Amber, one of my all-time favorites.

I ended up having two of them (2024) with my dinner. Absolutely yummy.

This is just a picture of the bar. Exciting, isn't it?

All American Bar

Next, and if you've been reading me for more than six months you already know this, I went to The Tilted Kilt. Probably my favorite bar in Las Vegas, and definitely my favorite place on the strip.

Tilted Kilt Bar

The only person there that I knew is this one waitress. She remembered me, which I will consider to be a good thing because I'm not the type that gets remembered for being obnoxious.

To drink, I had some of the best beer I've ever had the pleasure of drinking.

Rogue Chocolate Stout (32)

(draft) A fantastic beer, from the intense chocolate syrup aroma through the creamy mouthfeel to the delicious finish. Beyond yummy.

I kinda wanted to just stay there and drink these all night long, but I'm still, even in Las Vegas, a lightweight. So I came up here to write some journal entries.

Now I'm going back down to drink some more.

Thursday, December 1, 2005
posted by dave at 6:00 AM in category drink, pictures

After work Wednesday, as I said in my last entry, I went to Rich O's to see RealTainGirl.

Checking the board, I saw quite a few beers that looked interesting. One that I'd never heard of before. I asked the owner to describe it, then tried it anyway:

Rogue Honey Cream Ale (4)

(draft) I just had a small sample glass of this, as I was not expecting to like it. I was right. Had that dirty sock aroma that I associate with too many hops. It was very watery tasting, but had sort of a thick mouthfeel. Hard to believe that this comes from Rogue.
Because I hadn't expected to like the Rogue, I'd also ordered an old favorite that hasn't been available since this time last year. A pint of Goose Island Christmas Ale (120) went down quite nicely.

There was something strange going on in the red room. Roger was having some kind of private tasting for a bunch of guys in suits. That was odd enough, but the really weird part was that they had a spit bucket! RealTrainGirl and I decided that they were a bunch of pussies.

Since we were enjoying ourselves so much making fun of the spit bucket brigade, I decided to stay for another half pint. At about the time I ordered my Spezial (950) these people came in:

Odd People

I know, that's a pretty useless picture. That is a picture of a hot girl carrying a microphone, and another hot girl carrying a camcorder. With them, but not pictured, was some dork with a notebook.

They were doing some kind of profile on Rich O's for IUS, the local small college. The hot girl with the microphone interviewed a couple of the after-work PBDs, then she came over and interviewed me for a bit. She could tell that I was interview-worthy because I was sitting on the throne.

I showed great restraint by actually looking her in the eyes instead of at her chest. The concentration needed for this, unfortunately, also prevented me from saying anything funny. RealTrainGirl was clearly disappointed that I hadn't used my camera time to poke fun at the bucket brigade.

See, this is what happens when I forget my rock. I end up on TV or something. If I'd had my rock then it could have been on TV too.

Sunday, November 27, 2005
posted by dave at 12:33 PM in category drink

I actually had a pretty decent night. There was no surprisaphobia for the first time in quite a while. It would have been the perfect time for a surprise, but it didn't happen. So yay!

Let's see, I stopped and saw VigilanteGirl first. She's stopped being grouchy long enough to remind me to pick her up a shirt from "anywhere in Las Vegas" while I'm there. The girl is simply beyond cute. My intentions toward her are not entirely honorable, so buying her Hard Rock shirts and shit helps ease my guilt a little.

When I walked into Rich O's, SpikeBoy was sitting out in the loser area with some girl. I didn't recognize him with a girl.

Compared to Friday night, the place was dead. This Russian dude with a fucked up website was playing in the front area, with a half-dozen or so people listening.

Walking into Rich O's proper, I immediately saw HatGirl. Without the hat again. My peripheral vision seemed to detect that there were several cute girls scattered around, but, of course, none of them mattered, not with HatGirl in the room.

So I sat on the loveseat and ordered a Spezial (900) and talked with HatGirl and LuckyFucker for pretty much the entire night. After a while DooRagGirl came in. She also failed to distract me.

LuckyFucker was asking me for advice on what beers to try. I think that so far he's liked my recommendations, except maybe the Rogue Imperial Stout - that one may have been a bit too much for someone that's only been to Rich O's like three times.

My second beer was another Spezial (920). When this beer goes on tap I usually drink a lot of it, but after a week or two it gets a little boring.

My third beer was a Guinness (974) and then I switched to Diet Coke.

Oh yeah, I was asking DooRagGirl if she knows GlassesGirl, since they both know my sister Neisha from school. DooRagGirl wasn't sure if she knew her or not. Right after I asked, GlassesGirl walked in. She seems to be dating MusicalHippyDude.

By the end of the night, I'd started feeling a little bad that I chose LuckyFucker as a nickname for HatGirl's boyfriend. He's a nice guy. He actually reminds me of my sister's ex-husband, who used to be one of my best friends. But, he is a lucky fucker so the nickname will stay.

Anyway, once HatGirl and her boyfriend left I sat for a bit with DooRagGirl, just to foster the illusion that I hadn't stayed for as long as I did for the obvious reason, then I went to White Castle and came home.

Saturday, November 26, 2005
posted by dave at 8:14 AM in category drink

Whew!

I made it though the last three nights, and this fuckwad of a month is effectively over for me. Tonight I'll get to enjoy a relatively stress-free Saturday.

It'll probably be boring.

Anyway, last night I got to Rich O's at around 8:30. The parking lot was only about half full, plus there were about 20 people all leaving at the same time. It looked like they were having a fire drill or something. So it was strange to walk inside and see that the place was completely packed. Not a place to sit anywhere.

I waved at SpikeBoy, who was looking quite miserable on the throne surrounded by weirdoes, and went and stood at the end of the bar. I had myself a Spezial (880) and talked with GlassesGirl for a few minutes, then LibertyGirl, and then RealTrainGirl came in so we moved four feet and stood in the annex for a while.

After a bit, MisunderstoodGirl came in, and actually talked to us. No, really. She was in a talkative mood. That was quite a nice surprise.

Finally, some idiots left the island. About fifty people scrambled for the seats, but only six people succeeded. My friends and I were three of them, the others were some PBDs that I don't know.

So we spent the rest of the night just drinking and talking. My second beer was a Rogue Imperial Stout (36), available on tap. Yummy, but deadly.

My last beer was something new for me:

Schneider Aventinus Weizen Doppelbock (20)

(draft) Good, but not as good as everyone else seems to think. Nothing noteworthy at all. I'd describe some details but there really aren't any. It's just a beer.
It was a good night, especially after maybe 9:30 or so when I decided that I wouldn't be having a nervous breakdown after all.

Thursday, November 24, 2005
posted by dave at 9:49 AM in category drink

When you're concerned about having a nervous breakdown, then merely being irritated all night could almost count as having a good time.

Almost.

Last night was Virtual Friday because of Thanksgiving.

Yay!

The night before Thanksgiving is, traditionally, one of the busiest nights of the year for bars.

Boo!

I've seen bigger crowds at Rich O's, but not very many. I don't think that I've ever seen a more irritating crowd though.

So I didn't do much in the way of socializing. Talked for a while with this one dude who doesn't get a nickname.

To drink, I had a couple pints of Spezial RauchBier (860) then a half-pint of Smithwick's (630).

It was all quite dull. It definitely could have been better. It absolutely could have been much worse.

Tuesday, November 22, 2005
posted by dave at 9:12 PM in category drink, general

I'm irritated now, but I don't know why. Maybe I just needed a longer nap.

Tomorrow is Friday for us, so that's good, but tomorrow night is also when my stress will peak, or if not then, Friday night. If I make it past Friday night, I should be okay for a while. Like a week maybe, but by then I'll be in Las Vegas.

Monday after work I met up with RealTrainGirl and GreenBeerDude. I had myself a half-glass of Bell's Kalamazoo Stout (155) and then a half-glass of this stuff:

Belhaven Wee Heavy (10)

(draft) This was decent, but there was just something strange about it. Some fruity characteristic that I couldn't identify. There was also a bitterness that came out of nowhere at the finish.
Man I'm bored. And irritated. What a fantastic combination.

I should probably be more willing to open up to the people that offer to help me. I guess I just don't feel like explaining everything all over again.

I should write something better than this. I hate it when a crappy entry is the first thing people see.

Sunday, November 20, 2005
posted by dave at 9:35 AM in category drink

Walking into Rich O's last night, I did my normal survey.

Hot girls in the front area? Check, check, check, check.

Hot girl on the sofa? Check.

Hot girls at the island? Check and check.

Hot girl on the loveseat? Check

Wait a minute.

Where the fuck was I? This couldn't be Rich O's. Doesn't Roger have some kind of rule about hot girls? Oh, I guess it is Rich O's, because there's SuperShitHead being all supershitheady over at the stand-up bar.

I thought for a second about grabbing the throne, but the hot girls in that area were with guys, so I sat at the bar and turned sideways so I had a view of the whole room. I had myself a Bell's Kalamazoo Stout (125).

There was this very LOUD 200-year-old man at the bar, and I almost immediately regretted my seating choice. I was contemplating the throne again when SpikeBoy came in and grabbed the seat next to me.

I showed him my rock, and we talked about what a douchebag SuperShitHead was, and we went ahead and divvied up the hot girls in the place. I got dibs on the brunettes and SpikeBoy got everyone else.

I'd just finished striking up a cooperative wingman deal with SpikeBoy. He could have first shot at every girl that ever came in except for two. First was LaptopGirl, and second was HatGirl. This struck SpikeBoy as a perfectly fine arrangement because like he'd ever have a chance with either of those girls anyway. In return for my generosity, SpikeBoy agreed to immediately call me if either of those two girls ever stepped foot in Rich O's again.

Eventually the couple on the sofa got up and left, so we grabbed our shit and moved over there. I sat on the sofa and looked across the coffee table into the eyes of... HatGirl.

She'd been sitting there the whole time, I'd checked her off when I first came in and did my site survey, but I hadn't recognized her without her hat. This isn't the first time this has happened either.

Of course she was with her boyfriend, who I like to call LuckyFucker. Doesn't seem like a bad guy actually. I ended up talking with him and HatGirl for the rest of the night.

I showed her my rock.

After a bit, I moved to the throne because (a) the couch is in really bad shape and (b) having HatGirl directly in front of me was a little disconcerting.

I had another Bell's Kalamazoo Stout (145).

Eventually HatGirl and LuckyFucker went home. SpikeBoy had already left, so I was left alone again. I had a half-pint of Guinness (954) and left at about 10:30.

This proved to be a bad time to leave, because VigilanteGirl was still working at Gas-N-Stuff. She grouchily denied being grouchy lately. And grouchily accused me of being grouchy.

Whatever. Grouch.

Saturday, November 19, 2005
posted by dave at 10:58 AM in category drink

I almost didn't go out last night. Not because I didn't feel like going out, but because I took a nap after work and didn't wake up until almost 9:00. Much later and I'd probably just have stayed home.

But I really did want to go out. I wanted to take my rock to Rich O's. So that's what I did.

The front area was very crowded. It was full of sk8tr bois and other assorted idiots. This did not bode well for what Rich O's proper would be like, so I was pleasantly surprised to see the entire living room area open.

I sat at the throne and ordered a Great Lakes Christmas Ale (120). I'd only had about two sips of the beer when DeadLady and her son/boyfriend came in and sat on the loveseat. So I grabbed my shit and moved over to the island.

After a while, WomanRepellant came in and joined me. We bullshitted for a while. I had a Corsendonk Christmas Ale (50) which was quite yummy and WomanRepellant and I made fun of all of the strangers that had suddenly taken over the living room area. I'm glad I'd moved when I did.

At one point Bubbles came in so I went over and showed her my rock.

Yes, the night really was as boring as I'm making it out to be.

Contemplating what my last beer would be, I told the bartender that I wished that the Bell's Kalamazoo Stout was on tap. He pointed out that it was indeed back. Yay!

So I had a half-pint of the Bell's Kalamazoo Stout (105). Yummy.

That was it for me. That Corsendonk is like a time bomb or something, so I got out of there before it went off. I stopped at this little bar on the way home, hoping to talk with VigilanteGirl, but she was busy with some trivia game, so I just listened to some karaoke and had a Diet Coke, then I came home.

Wednesday, November 16, 2005
posted by dave at 9:22 PM in category drink

You don't see very many after work beer reports from me for a few reasons.

First, I kind of stopped going to the haunted bar after work.

Second, I hardly ever try anything unusual or new after work.

Third, I'm lazy.

Fouth, nobody cares anyway.

Well today I went to Rich O's after work. I went because I'm subscribed to this e-mail thingy that the owner sends out, and the e-mail thingy I got Monday promised a certain beer. I went, and I had some of the beer. I even updated the official description on my beer page:

Great Lakes Christmas Ale (80)

Another winner from this excellent brewery. Very complex but well balanced. Starts out sweet, followed by a surprising bit of cinnamon heat at the end. Nothing overpowering. Yummy.

Sunday, November 13, 2005
posted by dave at 1:15 AM in category drink, pictures

Tonight, I was in a strange mood.

Not good, not particularly bad. I guess nostalgic would be a good description. Makes sense, anyway.

I tried a couple of times to call SpikeBoy to see if he was in the mood to do something besides Rich O's tonight, but I couldn't get in touch with him. Oh well, can't say I didn't try.

So what I ended up doing first, to help make up for not going to the cemetery today, was go to The Hitching Post and have myself a Falls City (24) in Dad's honor. Straight from the can like a real man would drink it.

Falls City Beer

Disgusting.

I talked to the bartender for a bit, told her what I was doing there, but she'd only been working there for a couple of years so she didn't remember Dad. On the way out some dude initiated the brief conversation depicted two entries ago.

Next, big surprise, I went to Rich O's. There, big surprise, I had a Bell's Kalamazoo Stout (95).

I started out sitting at the island, talking with ExBartender and CoffeeDude, but then this old fuckhead sat with us and he pissed me off so I went and stood at the bar and talked with FutureDude for a while.

My next beer was an Avery Old Jubilation Ale (50), which I haven't had in a year and which was quite yummy.

After a while DooRagGirl (FutureDude's girlfriend) came in so I went to White Castle and then came home.

The kitty wasn't at White Castle tonight, for those of you who care about that sort of thing.

Saturday, November 12, 2005
posted by dave at 1:10 AM in category drink, pictures

Today I slept a lot.

I slept from about 10:00 until 7:00, then I decided that going to work would be stupid.

So I slept from 9:00 until 1:30.

Then I had to do some work. I had a conference call with some vendor support people. It was quite trippy trying to deal with technical issues with a fever.

Next I slept from 4:00 until 9:00. I had the strange dream.

After that I took a long, hot shower and I actually felt better. I felt halfway normal actually.

So I went down to Rich O's.

All I did there was have myself a Bell's Kalamazoo Stout (70), and talk to BamaCouple for a while. Once they left I had part of another glass of the stout (75) and then I went to White Castle.

Here are some pictures of the cat at White Castle, which I have named Slider and which I hope to be able to actually pet some day.

White Castle cat

White Castle cat

White Castle cat

Wednesday, November 9, 2005
posted by dave at 9:01 PM in category drink, ramblings

Infer whatever you want from this, but I'm now being stood up by lesbians.

This, aside from the obvious ego-bashing that goes along with it, also has the unfortunate effect of leaving me sitting by myself, at the haunted bar, for an hour and a half.

Not good.

As I sat at the island, trying to stay upright while wave after wave of emotion washed over me, I decided to have myself a beer.

This wasn't written on the board, but the bartender became my new Best Friend In The Universe when he knew enough to pour me one of these:

Bells Kalamazoo Stout (20)

(draft) Oh, Bell's Kalamazoo Stout, where have you been all my life? This is as close to the perfect stout as I've ever had. All of the flavor of an imperial, but without the high ABV and without the alcohol burn. My new favorite stout in the entire world. Yummy.
I nursed that beer for an hour and a half, and I adored every sip. I would have just loved to have had another one, but I was going insane sitting there. Going to Rich O's after work is not something I'm supposed to be doing any more, and today I was brutally reminded of that fact. I waited for my friends as long as possible, but not for one second longer, then I came home.

Sunday, November 6, 2005
posted by dave at 11:22 PM in category drink, pictures, ramblings

This entry brought to you by:

Rogue Imperial Stout

Rogue Imperial Stout (26)

(bottle) Hard to find anything wrong with this beer. If I had to pick something it would be the high ABV which limits the amount that can be consumed. A yummy chocolately flavor with a fairly intense alcohol burn. Quite good, and I will be buying more bottles which I will try to let age.
So, this is tough, writing this entry.

I can think of a million reasons why I've been putting it off, and I'll list them right now, one by one.

No, I'm kidding. I'd never do that to you.

Instead I'll just start typing and hope that the main reason reveals itself quickly before I die of boredom.

This entry will close out the period from October 9th, 2004, until middish/lateish September, 2005.

I will call this period The Wasted Year for reasons that are probably already evident to some of you, and which will become evident to the rest of you.

If you don't die of boredom yourselves before I finally get to the fucking point.

So, where was I?

Oh yes, I was dead. I died on October 9th of last year. I'd call my death a metaphor. Some may call it an exaggeration. Others may call it whiny crybaby drivel. But whatever you call it, it's all the same thing.

When I found out that she had left, I was devastated. Obliterated. I'd waited 39 years to meet someone that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with, but I fought it and denied it and ignored it until that veeeeeeeery moment when I couldn't deny or fight or ignore it any longer. That very moment when I brilliantly figured out that I'll probably only meet the love of my life but once in my life so I should probably stop being so fucking scared and just take a fucking chance for once. So, I decided to take that chance, and I was too late. She was gone. And every last bit of anything and everything that she'd inadvertently reawakened inside me died.

(I have this yummy beer I'm drinking to thank for that last paragraph. I'll probably read it tomorrow and delete it.)

You know what really pisses me off about the past year?

There was a girl. A girl that was everything I ever wanted. In a companion. In a girlfriend. Maybe even in a wife. She was everything I ever wanted except for one thing. She wasn't the one I was in love with. I tried so hard, I tried for so long, to divert my attention toward her, but it seemed like the harder I tried the more resistance I met. And, and this is what really pisses me off, all of that resistance was coming from inside me. My own heart betrayed me on a daily basis. Every minute, every fucking second, my heart waged war against me.

I could spend the rest of my life telling MixedSignalGirl how sorry I am that I didn't love her. I probably will spend the rest of my life at least thinking about what a colossal failure I was when it came to her.

I was supposed to be her hero, and instead I was the dragon and the black knight all rolled up into one.

Almost an entire year. Wasted on a dream that I never wanted to have in the first place. Almost an entire year, searching for answers to the questions I was afraid to even ask. Almost an entire year, hurting someone that truly cared about me while I longed for something that was simply not meant to be. Almost an entire year, wasted.

I think I was supposed to make a point here. Why has it been so hard for me to write this entry? To close out this chapter of my life?

For a while, I thought that perhaps some hidden part of me was actually still clinging to hope.

Wrong.

For a while, I thought that perhaps some small part of me was still waiting for some answers. For some closure.

Wrong.

What's been holding me back from writing this entry, what's been holding me back from closing out that period of my life when all I did was mourn and hurt and miss and long, what's been holding me back is that...

...I died, and whatever it was that arose from death wasn't me anymore. It was something that only existed to feel pain. If I let the pain go away, there will be nothing left, and I'll have to once again start over.

So that's one reason. The other is...

...The last time I had to start over, it wasn't a choice. Oh, I thought it was a choice for a while. I thought I could control my own emotions and my own destiny and my own happiness. But I was either lying to myself or fooling myself. Probably both. There was no choice in the matter. At the moment that I first looked into her sparkling eyes, the number of paths available to my heart dwindled to one. I would love her.

But this time, this time it is a conscious decision on my part. The things that I've finally done and finally found to stop the flood of pain - I could switch them off in an instant.

It's ironic really. This 'blog is to blame for a lot of the problems I've had. If I'd been able to restrain my writings way back in the Summer of 2004, things might be a lot different for me now. The irony is that it's this 'blog that has enabled me to be sitting here writing this entry.

There's this one girl. A regular reader of mine. She is the one that pointed out to me that the pain was killing me all over again. She's the one that suggested that I had to try something different. Instead of trying to deal with the pain, she asked, why not try bottling it up?

And then there was this other girl. My kindred spirit. A series of coincidences led me to her, and she has given me what nobody else has been able to give. Understanding. Not judgment. Not argument. Not even pity. Simple understanding, from someone going through the same thing I'd been going through.

I don't know which girl deserves the most credit for curing me. I suppose they're equally responsible. On the Internet, everybody is secretive, but these two girls have shown me trust and understanding that I never could have found anywhere else - not even from my family and my closest friends. I've already said this, to each of them, many times, but I feel compelled to say it here:

To T and to N, what you have given me can never ever ever be repaid, but I vow to do the best that I can, for as long as it takes, to repay it anyway. You have helped me to get my life back, and I seriously didn't think it was possible.
Anyway, where was I?

Oh yeah, the choice thingy. This time, ending this era, this wasted year, this pain-filled period, this time it's a choice. And with this choice comes responsibility. What if I'm fooling myself once again? What if suppressing these emotions and getting understanding isn't enough? This hasn't been tested, after all. I will be tested again. Eventually.

I sit here right now, and I know that I'm not ready to be tested. How can I truly consider myself healed, how can I honestly feel like I'm ready to close out this past year, when I know that all of that pain is still there inside me, building up pressure, ready to explode the next time she walks into my life?

I dunno. It just feels like I should close it out, this past year. Even if I'm not ready to be tested, everything else has changed over the last few weeks. I was in pain every day. Every single fucking day, I missed her. And now I don't. Even if it doesn't last, even if this turns out to be yet another false sunrise, and even if the darkness returns, this is still the end of an era.

I wasted a year, missing her. But I no longer fear spending the rest of my life missing her. I know that I can feel better, because I feel better right now. If I, reborn into pain, can still manage to live for a few weeks without that pain, then anything is possible.

This leopard can change its spots.

This scorpion can change its wicked ways.

This once broken man can have a life worth living.

And now I've got to go out onto my deck and finish this beer, to complete my little stupid tradition.

Saturday, November 5, 2005
posted by dave at 11:41 PM in category drink

First of all, before I get into my regularly scheduled Saturday beer report, I want to say that I'm a little bit irritated right now. I'm too nice of a person to single anyone out and state publicly why I'm irritated, but that should not be taken as any kind of acceptance or understanding of the transgression. This should not have been done, and I hope that it's not done again.

I will accept any apology that you wish to offer. Like I said, I'm a nice person. I'm just not a doormat.

Anyway, tonight seemed like about the gazillionth weekend night in a row that I didn't want to do anything. It also seemed like the gazillionth weekend night in a row that I went out anyway, despite my misgivings.

I think the thing is, I'm becoming quite fearful. I feel okay, but my mood hasn't really been tested, and I'm not certain that I'm ready for that test.

Man, I've just started this entry and I'm rambling already. This does not bode well.

Because I'm mainly afraid of Rich O's, tonight I went way out East to the BBC Brewpub. I was hoping that they'd have some of their smoked porter available, but they didn't. I ended up having one of the regular Dark Star porters (130) with my burger and fries.

After I finished eating and drinking my beer, I stopped by Buckhead's in Jeffersonville where I had a yummy Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier Dunkel (235). This is rapidly becoming one of my all-time favorites.

While sitting at Buckhead's, and getting frustrated because Coweena kept blocking my view of HotBlondeGirl, I had two realizations:

  • There is perhaps nothing sadder in the world than a pitcher of Bud Light.

  • I actually hate the Foster's and Corona drinkers more than I hate the BudMillerCoors drinkers. Bunch of fucking poseurs is what they are.
Since Coweena was starting to gross me out, I left Buckhead's and went to Rich O's.

I had one of these:

Goose Island Hex Nut Brown Ale (20)

(draft) I know I've had this before, but it was a long time ago. I'm not sure if "roasty" is a word, but it should be because it would be the perfect word to describe this beer. Not bad, but not great.
I was pretty bored at Rich O's. So bored, in fact, that I text-messaged something to VigilanteGirl. She of course ignored it. I was actually getting ready to leave when, lo and behold, Dan "Holy Shit" Kruer and his wife came in.

So we talked for a while. They were killing time before they went to boogey down to some disco band at a nearby bar.

Once they left I talked with BamaCouple for a bit then came home.

All in all, I think I'd have been better off staying home tonight and drinking my Rogue Imperial Stout that I still haven't had any of.

posted by dave at 12:28 AM in category drink

I don't think tonight was quite as bad as I'd expected it to be. Not that it was a good night, but it didn't completely suck.

I started out in the red room with RealTrainGirl and GreenBeerDude and TrainGirl and WhatsHerName. I had myself a Stone Smoked Porter (134).

After a while, those people all left to go to this Mac's place that I don't like, so I stayed.

I spent some time sitting on the loveseat, and some time talking with BamaCouple at the island.

My second, and last, beer was something new for me:

Sierra Nevada Porter (12)

(bottle) I've never been a big fan of this brewery, and this beer did nothing to change that. A decent coffee flavored porter with the typical Sierra Nevada lagerish finish. It got better the more I drank, but it never quite reached the point of being good.

It was a pretty dull night, actually. I think the highlight was going to Walmart and buying some movies.

I'll probably think of some other stuff to write about tomorrow morning.

Monday, October 31, 2005
posted by dave at 9:39 PM in category drink

Got a call from RealTrainGirl today. She was wanting to know if I was going to Rich O's after work.

Told her yes, and told her why.

The other night the beautiful girl told me she'd looked for me at Rich O's recently and I wasn't there. Not that she went in to look for me, but that she'd looked for me while she happened to be there anyway. Huge difference, but not important - she had not only remembered me, she had actually looked for me.

Please note that I'm not using my standard line about what she wants and where she wants it. The fact that I'm not trying to be funny here should say a lot. It does to me at least.

So I told RealTrainGirl that I'd be at Rich O's every day after work until either The End Of Time, or until I got to see the beautiful girl again. Whichever comes first.

Then, on the way there after work, I remembered something that RealTrainGirl had told me Saturday night. Something that had been buried under all the nagging and bitching and gay jokes that came later. Something pretty damn cool.

* drumroll *

TrainGirl is visiting! She is in Indiana! No longer as far from Indiana as is possible whilst remaining in the lower 48 states!

Yay!

I pulled into the parking lot, got out of my truck, and there she was! Not in my truck, in the parking lot. TrainGirl!

Yay!

So in we went, and there I sat. Inside Rich O's. With two of my favorite people, for the first time in a very long time. It was almost like the good old days. Better than those days actually, because if it had really been like old times another person would have been there and I'd probably have been sad.

Anyway, I had myself a Ettaler Kloster Dunkel (50) and talked with the girls. There was another girl there with TrainGirl but I didn't catch her name. Seemed nice though.

(I want to say at this point that I really do miss MisunderstoodGirl and being glad to see TrainGirl does not diminish that in any way.)

At one point TrainGirl asked about you know who. I was struck by the fact that she knows basically nothing about what I've been going through since the last time we talked about it, last October. I had a pretty strong urge to drag her somewhere private and tell her everything, but that would have been rude to RealTrainGirl and WhatsHerName, so I didn't. Plus it might have required me to unbottle some things and I certainly didn't want to do that and risk ruining my good mood.

Let's see, I had a half-glass of Guinness (944), then my food was ready so I came home.

It was very cool to see TrainGirl again!

Yay!

Sunday, October 30, 2005
posted by dave at 10:42 AM in category drink

Wait for something long enough, and eventually it just might happen.

Just wanted to say that.

I ended up getting to Rich O's about an hour earlier than I wanted to last night. RealTrainGirl called and made it sound like they were suffering greatly without my presence, so I dropped my grandiose Red Lobster plans and settled for Arby's, then got to Rich O's just after 8:00.

I don't know what the big deal was about getting me there so damn quickly. RealTrainGirl and GreenBeerDude were sitting at the island with about 8 million other people. I said hello and then sat at the bar and talked to a beautiful girl that I hadn't seen in months. Once she went back to join her group I talked with BamaCouple for a bit. My first beer was this:

Founders Black Rye (12)

(bottle) You know, I wasn't really expecting to like this. Most ryes are just too strange for me. But this one was actually pretty decent. There was nothing notable about it though, so I probably won't bother to have it again.
So RealTrainGirl started giving me shit because I hadn't squeezed myself in with the 8 million people at the island. Man I really felt like I was being pulled in three different directions. BamaCouple were trying to talk to me. The beautiful girl had asked me to join her group in the living room area. RealTrainGirl was trying to get me to move to the island.

Actually, I felt like leaving. The place was just too damn demanding. I hadn't even been there five minutes and I was already exhausted. Plus my toe was hurting.

Anyway, what I ended up doing, once the 8 million people had dispersed, was go sit at the island and try to fit into the conversations they were having while at the same time sneaking looks at the living room area. It was too crowded over there as well. Not really, but I was feeling pretty claustrophobic.

My next beer was a Young's Double Chocolate Stout (223).

My friends at the island were carrying on and on about some gay bar that they wanted to go to. I didn't want to go. I wanted to stay at Rich O's and look at the beautiful girl some more. So, to make a long story short, RealTrainGirl pissed me off my harping about it for an hour until a place finally opened up in the living room area so I moved over there away from the nagging and bitching and gay jokes. I can be pretty stubborn at times. Or maybe all the time.

Another thing about last night - there were several very hot girls at Rich O's - not just the ones I've already mentioned. There's this Russian dude that plays "music" out front sometimes. He was there last night, and I might have to give him some of the credit for the unusually feminine crowd. Way to go, RussianDude!

So, I was sitting on the throne. The beautiful girl was next to me but on the sofa, and SpikeBoy was next to me but on the loveseat. I tried to maintain a nice balance between the two, not so much because I gave a shit about SpikeBoy's feelings (he was busily trying to hit on this chick at the kiddie table) but because the beautiful girl had her boyfriend sitting right there and so I didn't want my fascination to be too obvious.

For my next beer, I went with something new again. Something that CoffeeDude had recommended:

Sinebrychoff Koff Porter (12)

(bottle) Highly recommended to me by a coffee lover, so I was expecting coffee flavor in the beer. This instead has a good chocolate base to the flavor. A little extra bite at the end, because of the 7.2 ABV, that I could have done without. Good though.
At one point, the place cleared out. I mean cleared out. It was like a fire drill or something. Maybe SpikeBoy farted, I thought. Or maybe WomanRepellant had come in. Nope, everybody just felt the urge to leave at the same time.

So SpikeBoy and I were joined by CoffeeDude (wearing a stupid Halloween hat) and that was the end of the night's excitement. I did have a half-glass of Ettaler Kloster Dunkel (30) at the end though. Then I got some White Castles and came home.

Saturday, October 29, 2005
posted by dave at 1:42 PM in category drink

First of all, before I could do anything last night, I had to do something about my toe situation.

After briefly thinking about wearing sandals, and briefly thinking about cutting the siding off an old pair of sneakers, and very briefly thinking about just staying home, what I ended up doing was this:

I took my oldest pair of sneakers and hacked away at the insides of the right shoe with a pair of sharp scissors to remove the padding around where my pinkie toe would be. I then unwrapped said pinkie toe and rewrapped it with about one-fourth the amount of tape that had been there.

After all that, my foot actually fit in the shoe, and while it was a little painful, I felt I was ready to take on the world. Or at least Rich O's.

I got there a little before 9:00 and sat at the bar. I've written before I think about sitting at the bar. I have to be in a certain mood to be able to do it comfortably. Last night I was in one of those moods, so I just sat and let my imagination take me back to happier times.

All of the beers I had last night were new to me. This was the first one:

Ettaler Kloster Dunkel (20)

(draft) Not what I was expecting, but a pleasant surprise instead. The main flavor I got was caramel, but there was really an awful lot of complexity behind that. Everything was subdued, but noticeable. Pretty good.
The crowd, when I bothered to turn around and check it out, consisted of mostly PBDs. A couple people that I know fairly well were scattered around and among people that I don't care to know at all.

My next beer was this:

De Dolle Stille Nacht (Silent Night) (12)

(bottle) Poured an orange/red color, without the massive head I usually find in De Dolle beers. Aroma much more massive and much more complex than their other offerings. Along with the standard Belgian apple tones, I also got what I'll call cherries and apricots. Did not taste like it had 12% alcohol in it.
So I stayed put until only CoffeeDude was left in the living room area. I grabbed my shit and moved over to the sofa. CoffeeDude was in a nosey mood apparently so I spent most of the night talking about my newly-regained sanity and shit like that.

My third beer was this:

Anchor Porter (12)

(bottle) Didn't get much of a head with this one. Strong roasted malt aroma. Flavor was biased a little more towards coffee than chocolate, but malty sweetness was the primary flavor. Pretty good, but not great.
And that was it. I came home a little proud of myself for not getting depressed.

Wednesday, October 26, 2005
posted by dave at 10:29 PM in category drink

I rarely drink at home, believe it or not, but tonight I decided to try a bottle of this stuff:

Bells Batch 7000 Ale (12)

(bottle) Very intense aroma as soon as the cap was removed. No head to speak of. After the first few sips that were nothing but alcohol burn, the rest of this went down quite nicely. Too much coffee and too little chocolate for it to ever be a real favorite. I got some cola from this too, especially in the aroma.

Sunday, October 23, 2005
posted by dave at 10:59 AM in category drink

I bet if I just start typing, then before I know it I'll have an entry to post. That's usually the way it works, anyway. I have no idea what I'm going to write then my fingers just start rambling.

So we'll see.

Seeing as how I was promised an answer to my date proposal by 3:00, and seeing as how it was 8:30 and I hadn't heard a thing, I used my incredible deductive reasoning skills to determine that VigilanteGirl and I would not be visiting the haunted sanatorium last night.

This meant that I was free to do whatever I wanted. So I decided to forgo Rich O's and spend the evening instead at Buckhead's in Jeffersonville. I had visions of yummy Weihenstephaner lined up in front of me, and lovely eye-candy to talk to while I drank.

But noooooooooooooooooo!

The phone rang, and it was SpikeBoy, wondering when I'd be at Rich O's. I thought about telling him that I wouldn't be going to Rich O's, but he just sounded so damned lonely as he told me how dead the place was. Sometimes I feel like SpikeBoy puts a little too much pressure on me to be interesting, but he's probably my best friend at Rich O's, so I told him that I'd be there shortly.

The place wasn't that dead. SpikeBoy and CoffeeDude sat in the living room area. BamaBoy and BamaGirl (new nicknames for those two) sat in the red room. Some dipshits sat at the bar. I sat on the sofa and ordered a Rogue FestivAle (40), then I sent the following text-message to VigilanteGirl:

So, I guess that's a "no" then?
See, not returning a call is rude, but promising to return a call and then not doing it - that's just flat-out mean. See here and here. Anyway, what followed was a brief little text-message conversation wherein I learned that I had been sent her answer at 3:00.

I never got her message, so I assumed that she was blowing me off. She never heard back from me, so she assumed that I had changed my mind about going.

The moral of this story is: Text-messaging is unreliable. Make an actual phone call if it's something important.

So now I feel like a real dick for jumping to conclusions.

As the night wore on, more people arrived. BamaCouple were joined in the red room by a hot blonde girl. Speaking of blondes, CuteBlonde came in and sat at the bar with a friend of hers. At one point, lo and behold, LibertyGirl made an appearance. I guess we had all figured that she'd gotten married or went to jail or something, because she hadn't been seen in months.

So, with the gang more or less all there, we proceeded to yak and yammer about whatever single and lonely people yak and yammer about.

My next beer was a Smithwick's (600).

At one point, my friends bet me that I wouldn't go talk to BamaCouple's hot blonde friend. They don't know me very well at all apparently. I went over to the red room and introduced myself. I told them this joke I'd read in Jill Soloway's new book, and also the interrupting cow joke.

One thing was kind of funny. BamaGirl and I were talking about her encounter with SuperShitHead last weekend. I guess he was really trying to impress her and telling her how integral he was to the operation of the Brewery. I straightened her out on the SuperShitHead situation.

Anyway, because I'd gone and talked to HotBamaBlonde, that meant that LibertyGirl had to go talk to this dude that was sitting out in the loser area that she'd had a crush on for years. She did, and she may have actually gotten a phone number for her efforts. Good for her!

I'm going to wrap this up now as I'm getting quite bored.

My last beer was a yummy Weihenstephaner (199), which had snuck back into the draft rotation when I wasn't looking. After that was gone I stopped at White Castle and came home.

Another weekend gone.

Saturday, October 22, 2005
posted by dave at 9:06 AM in category drink

I started out last night not knowing what I was going to do. I was thinking about maybe just staying home for once and watching some movies that I've purchased but never watched. Just a nice quiet night, me and the cats, a preview of my old age.

Thankfully, it didn't come to that.

I don't know why I wrote thankfully there. I guess because I'm still of a mindset that staying home on a weekend night would imply a failure of some type. Wouldn't a real failure be going out and returning home alone, with no prospects, and nothing to show for your evening except a bit of a hangover?

Anyway, RealTrainGirl called last night and told me that they were all up at Cumberland, so I went out to see them. I sat with her, MisunderstoodGirl, and GreenBeerDude. I don't think we really talked about much. There was tension in the air, tension that was not my fault, but I think we were all affected.

I had a Cumberland Nitro Porter (100) and enjoyed it immensely. I wish the place were closer to my home, so I could get that beer, and enjoy the crowd, more often.

After a while the girls (ha ha) wanted to go to some place downtown. After much deliberation I decided that I was just going to stay. The tension was bringing me down, plus I wanted another porter.

So I moved up to the bar and ordered another pint (120). Yummy. After a bit, this cute blonde chick sat down next to me. She sort of looked familiar but I've met so many people that I'm never really sure. I was trying to think of something to say besides the clichéd "Haven't I seen you someplace before?" when she turned to me and asked, "You work at XYZCorp, right?"

Okay, so mystery solved. We work at the same company. I talked to her for a few minutes, letting her sample my porter, until her date showed up and gave me dirty looks. Then they went and got their own table, and I was left to finish what I'd started before the chick had interrupted me - assessing body parts of the cute bartenders and mentally taking the best of each and building The Perfect Woman. This is something I can never do at Rich O's. Only guys work there. Except this one chick that kind of gives me the willies.

After my two yummy beers, I'd been halfway planning to stop by The Pub and have something, but it was nearing 11:00 and I ended up going to Rich O's instead.

The place was about a third full, typical I guess for last Friday night. I had something new for me:

Rogue FestiveAle (20)

(draft) Poured dirty orange. Aroma was musty - reminded me of a lambic. Taste also reminded me of a lambic, except this wasn't particularly sour. There was quite a bit of complication behind the obvious mustiness of the aroma and the flavor. I liked this beer.
While drinking that I talked with FutureDude and some guy I never saw before.

It was kind of boring.

Wednesday, October 19, 2005
posted by dave at 7:30 PM in category drink

For the first time in a couple of weeks, I went to Rich O's after work today.

I met up with RealTrainGirl and MisunderstoodGirl. I had a Baltika 6 (241) and we sat around and shot shit for a while. It was very nice. I really miss the old days at Rich O's when I had actual friends that would actually go in there.

I haven't been going there after work for a while because, as part of my bottling process, I'm supposed to be staying away from the scene of the crime as much as possible. I guess that's working out pretty well, but there's a gotcha there too.

Going there during the weekdays was always supposed to be my early warning system. It didn't do me a bit of good in August, but I can really see it saving my ass at some point. I really don't want to be afraid of the place, but without any warning system I'm not sure I can avoid at least a little bit of fear. As much as I glossed over what happened in August, it really did do quite a number on me.

Oh yeah, at Rich O's there were about twenty of the LOUDEST MOTHER FUCKERS I've ever seen. I really really really REALLY hope they never come back. I hate them so much.

Sunday, October 16, 2005
posted by dave at 11:37 AM in category drink

After MixedSignalGirl left, I moved up to the bar. I had myself a yummy Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier Dunkel (173) and thought up ways for the night to get worse than it already was.

My mind jumped to one thing, one possible event that would be the perfect cherry to sit atop this fucked up sundae of a Saturday. My mind jumped back to what had happened on August 19th. The Day The Meteor Hit.

But hey! I figured, if I don't go to Rich O's then I'm at least safe from that. It's a zillion to one against, but why take that chance? I ordered another Weihenstephaner (189) while I contemplated my next move. I didn't want to stay at Buckhead's for fear that MixedSignalGirl would come back and catch me in my lie about my "plans" for the night. I wasn't ready to just go home. I tried to get in touch with RealTrainGirl but that didn't work. Fourth Street Live was not an option for the same reason as Buckhead's. Ditto for the Cumberland or BBC brewpubs.

So I went to Browning's. They never had any beer that I really liked, but I recently heard or read that they had a vanilla stout. Now that sounded intriguing, so I went.

All they had on tap was their regular stuff. Oh well. I left and walked the short distance to the Bluegrass taproom.

Again, just their regular stuff. Plus they were having a poker tournament or something and the place was packed to the gills. Oh well. I left and went to Rich O's. Meteor be damned.

I'm always complaining about Rich O's being full of strangers. Last night it wasn't that full, but the utter strangeness of the people who were there more than made up for their lack of numbers.

At the bar we had HippyOldCouple. They looked like they had passed out during Woodstock, woken up last night, and walked into Rich O's. Plus, they'd decided to eat at the bar and that always pisses me off.

At the island, there were three couples. Not much to say about them except that they sucked because they wouldn't leave.

In the living room area, well it's kind of hard to describe. Actually it's not. The words white trash are a perfect description. You know the kind. The 100-pound meth addict guys and their 400-pound girlfriends? A white trash couple had taken possession of the sofa, another had the loveseat. And in the throne, reigning supreme, was JabbaTheHo.

Look, I don't really care if you weigh 400 pounds. Maybe you have a medical reason for it, or maybe your boyfriend likes big girls. I also don't care if you dress like a slut. Sometimes I even like it.

But please, for the love of all that is holy, pick one! Either weigh 400 pounds, or dress like a slut. Please don't do both. Think of the children! Think of me! Show some fucking compassion!

As a general rule, the more skin you have, the less you should show. So if you have, say, enough to repair the Superdome's roof several times over, you should probably look into getting one of those nice burqas that are all the rage in the Middle East.

Oh yeah. Beer. I had some. Specifically I had a yummy Baltika 6 (224). I sat in the red room, by myself for a few minutes until SpikeBoy arrived and gave me someone to complain about women and white trash to.

After a while a bunch of PBDs came in. They were also forced into the red room by the crowd of stranger-than-usual strangers. I got a little claustrophobic, but I had myself a Guinness (934) while I engaged in an odd little text-message conversation with VigilanteGirl. My Guinness was yummy too. All of the beer I had last night was yummy in fact.

When I left Rich O's, I was halfway planning to go see VigilanteGirl, but decided instead to just get some White Castles and call it a night.

Saturday, October 15, 2005
posted by dave at 1:51 AM in category drink

I was almost going to stay home tonight. Took a nap after work and I didn't set the alarm. I thought I might sleep all night.

But I didn't. I woke up at 9:00 and reflexively jumped into the shower and got ready to go out.

Rich O's was pretty crowded for 10:30 at night, which was when I got there. I soon found out why. MusicalHippyDude pointed out that an actual attractive and single girl was present. She was sitting on the loveseat, surrounded by about 10 guys who were all old enough to be her father.

I stayed away from that shit.

What I did was stand at the bar and have a Smithwick's (580).

After a while SpikeBoy came in and I sat at the island with him while I had a Baltika 6 (207).

Oh yeah - MusicalHippyDude told me that ButterFace was in earlier - sans Nerdlinger - and that SuperShitHead spent a lot of time trying to put the moves on her. Yeah, right. Like that fucker would have a chance at anything with two legs.

Sunday, October 9, 2005
posted by dave at 10:38 AM in category drink

Last week, I wrote that Louisville's Fourth Street Live area was IDing everyone because of this OktoberFest thingy. Well I guess I was wrong. They apparently ID people Thursday through Saturday nights. I was also wrong about the swill booths in the street being because of OktoberFest. They apparently are there whenever the street is closed to traffic.

And that's only the tip of the iceberg, as they say, of things I've been wrong about lately.

Friday night, MixedSignalGirl and I decided that we wouldn't be getting back together. It was a mutual decision. Really. There's just too much bullshit that we'd have to overcome. I may want to write about this later, so I'll just leave the subject for now.

We'd met at Sully's. I had a Guinness (891).

After MixedSignalGirl left I went over to The Pub and had a couple pints of Young's Double Chocolate Stout (206), and finally a small sample glass of the Old Rasputin (44). Yummy on both counts.

The place seemed pretty dull as compared to the previous weekend. Might have been the cool weather. I ended up heading over to Rich O's a little after 10:00.

All I did there was have a Smithwick's (560) while I talked with Nerdlinger and Butterface. I really have to give these two new nicknames. They are really nice people. I'll think of something I'm sure.

Also, the place, the front area at least, was having some kind of hot blonde convention. None of them came into Rich O's proper though.

So, that was Friday.

Saturday night, after I arrived to my nephew's gig too late to do anything but stand outside and listen through the window, I walked around New Albany's Harvest Homecoming for a while. This was the first time I'd been there in over twenty years, and I don't think anything has changed at all. Crowds consisting of married couples and giggling school girls, both serving to remind me of what I'm missing. So I left and went to Rich O's.

They're out of Spezial. I knew that this was coming, but it still disappointed me. I had a Baltika 6 (270) while I sat at the bar and talked with WomanRepellant, but then SpikeBoy came in and he and WomanRepellant talked amongst themselves while I stared at my beer and contemplated the significance of the date that was fast approaching.

At about the time WomanRepellant left, I ordered a bottle of Stone Smoked Porter (112). SpikeBoy and I talked about various crap. CuteBlonde came in and said hello, but then she moved over to the living room with some idiots.

I came home a little after 11:00, intending to watch the movie Saw but instead responding to a lot of PMs and reading journals.

By the time October 9th arrived I realized that I didn't even care. Just another day.

Sunday, October 2, 2005
posted by dave at 8:19 PM in category drink, pictures

Hmmm, I would have sworn that I started typing this before I went out earlier, but it's not here so I'll start over. Strange.

All day yesterday I tried to make up my mind what I'd do that night. The only thing that I knew for sure what that I didn't feel like going back to Rich O's.

I toyed with the idea of making a little circuit of the four brewpubs in Louisville. I thought about going to Jeffersonville and hanging out with my cousin. I even thought about just staying home and catching up on the television that's been tivoed over the last couple of weeks.

In the end, I went over to Fourth Street Live, which is part of Louisville's downtown revitalization vision. I kind of like it there. It makes me feel like a tourist. Like I'm on vacation or something.

So they were having this OktoberFest thingy, which in Louisville at Fourth Street Live, means that they ID you when you enter the block, and they have booths with BudMillerCoors beers in the middle of the street.

I wandered up and down the block a couple of times, looking to see if there was anyone I knew. I seemed to remember RealTrainGirl talking about OktoberFest recently. I don't think this is what she was talking about, but I figured that it would be a nice surprise to run into them.

I ended up at this place called The Pub. They have the best beer selection at Fourth Street Live. I ordered myself a Newcastle (1684).

While I was drinking my beer, I sent out a couple text messages, and I looked around the place to check out the local talent, as they say. There was one girl that sort of looked familiar, and she caught me looking at her and smiled. Yikes.

After about 15 minutes the girl started inviting me over to join her and her friends on their side of the bar. I declined politely because (a) Her friends were two guys and I figured that at least one of them was probably her boyfriend (maybe both of them from the dirty looks they were giving me), and (b) I'd texted MixedSignalGirl and was hoping that she'd show up, and (c) Normal girls do not invite me to join them in bars. I did not want to wake up in a tub of ice missing a kidney.

Seriously, what is it about women and their radar for when a man is vulnerable?

Anyway, after my Newcastle I had a new beer for me:

North Coast Old Rasputin Russian Imperial Stout (20)

(draft) A wonderful beer. Intensity everywhere from the aroma to
the flavor to the finish. Dark chocolate and quite a lot of roasted malt. A sweet burning finish that made me want another sip right away.
At one point KidneyGirl and her two guy friends were joined by two other girls - the actual girlfriends of the guys from the looks of things. This left KidneyGirl alone, and it left me with only two reasons to not join them. It was probably too late by then anyway.

I had another of the Rasputins (40).

At one point I got a call from RealTrainGirl. There weren't at Fourth Street Live, but they'd be at Rich O's later. She and GreenBeerDude were going to "show me something." Yikes!

I hadn't heard from MixedSignalGirl since the early evening, so I figured that she wasn't coming. I shot off a message telling her where I'd be, and that I wanted to talk to her, then I drove back to Indiana and to Rich O's.

When I got there the usual assortment of idiots was in the living room area. I stood at the bar, ordered a half-pint of Guinness (871) and talked to Bubbles for a while until RealTrainGirl, GreenBeerDude, and MisunderstoodGirl arrived.

Here's what they had to show me:

Matching Pizza Guy Tatoos

Matching tatoos of what looked like a logo for a pizza place or something. I'm just guessing here, but there was probably alcohol involved in their decision to have them done.

So we just hung out for a while. RealTrainGirl and GreenBeerDude were quite animated, probably from the pain or something. MisunderstoodGirl was busily plotting revenge on the world or something, so she didn't say much.

It was a nice end to the weekend festivities, and it took my mind off MixedSignalGirl, who I still haven't heard from as I type this entry.

Saturday, October 1, 2005
posted by dave at 1:31 PM in category dreams, drink

Well I don't think this one needs much in the way of interpretation at all.

The bus is old, like a Greyhound from the 1950s or something. I enter the door and climb up the steps. The bus is about half full. It's all of the people from the bar. I wonder where we're going, and I sit nine rows back, on the driver's side, next to the window.
The first thing I noticed when I went to Rich O's last night was that the new annex area was having some kind of party. Looked like a kid's birthday party or something. Very strange to see that many strangers at Rich O's.

The living room area was a study in contrast. On the loveseat sat MusicalHippeeDude, Nerdlinger, and ButterFace. The sofa and the chair held a bunch of strangers/assholes/idiots.

I sat at the island with WomanRepellant and OldBob's wife. I had a Spezial (800) to start the night.

The doors creak closed, and the bus shudders to a start. Everyone seems pretty excited that we're finally on our way. Conversations start up all around me, but I can't make out what they're saying.
I talked with WomanRepellant for a bit, but I was really just being polite. I was more interested in when the fuck the shitheads would leave the sofa so I could go talk to ButterFace.

CoffeeDude came in at about the same time that WomanRepellant left. He joined me at the island and we bullshitted for a while about nothing in particular.

The shitheads ordered another round of beers.

I still don't know where we're going, but wherever it is, we're taking all these backroads instead of the expressway. The bus leans crazily with every turn we take.
Next I ordered a Weihenstephaner (157). I guess they're on the last keg of this, so I wanted to have it one more time before it runs out.

One of the bartenders was in a shitty mood. That's pretty normal, but it's usually not this guy that's like that. I wondered what was bothering him while I waited 15 minutes for my beer to arrive. I guess it was probably all the strangers running around out front. I'd be in a bad mood too I suppose.

I look around the bus, and I don't see any of my friends. It's just a bunch of people that I recognize from the bar, but there's nobody I feel like talking to.
Nerdlinger and ButterFace pay their tab and leave. They both gave me little smiles and waved on their way out. They're good people I think. It's pretty rare to find a couple that comes into Rich O's and keeps coming back. I felt a little bad for them that they had to listen to the shitheads all night.

Oh, great. Now the shitheads finally decided to leave. MusicalHippeeDude was left alone in the living room area. Meanwhile, CoffeeDude and I had been joined by several PBDs, so I was feeling a little claustrophobic. I grabbed my shit and moved over to the sofa.

The bus pulls into the Rich O's parking lot. Some people get up and leave, but I can't leave because there are new people getting on that are in my way. The doors close and I settle back into my seat.
CoffeeDude and SpikeBoy moved over to the living room area and joined us. I was going to try this Rogue Saison, but I figured that it was probably too strong to drink after what I'd already had, so I decided on a Baltika 6 (236) instead.

So the four of us sat and drank our beers and rattled on about nonsense. We could have been any four guys sitting in any bar in the world. I wondered, for about the zillionth time, just what the Hell I was doing there. I left the sofa and went to stand at the bar while I finished my beer. Then I paid my tab and left.

I make my way to the front of the bus and ask the driver to take me home. He takes me to a ranch house in a subdivision. I try to tell him that I don't live there anymore, but he's not listening to me. He keeps looking at his watch, and tells me to either get off or stay on. He's got a schedule to keep.

I get off the bus, and I start walking home.

Sunday, September 25, 2005
posted by dave at 11:45 AM in category drink

I don't feel like writing anything, but I guess I'll get this over with.

Last night Rich O's was just incredibly dead. One of the PBDs was having a party and all of the other PBDs has gone to it. Not that I particularly miss those people.

MisunderstoodGirl was sitting at the bar when I came in, but she was talking with one of the assholes that does nothing but badmouth you know who all the time, so I went over and sat at the island.

I had a Smithwick's (540). I started off with a tame beer because I'd originally planned to be there for a while and I wanted to pace myself.

After the asshole left MisunderstoodGirl came over and we talked for a while. I wanted to try something new, so I had this beer from Lithuania.

utenos

Utenos Porter (17)

(bottle) Very malty and sweet. There might have been some chocolate and/or coffee flavor under all that malt, but I couldn't be sure. Mouthfeel was creamy and sticky. Finished like it had a higher ABV than it really did.

About halfway through this beer my friend left and the entire place pretty much emptied out except for some idiots that I don't know in the living room and some more idiots that were sitting behind me in the red room.

So by 9:30, I'd only been there an hour and I'd already had two beers. So much for pacing myself. I thought about maybe switching to Guinness but then I figured that it would only make my mood worse, so I paid and left.

Went to White Castle and spent a few minutes trying to get this cat that was in the parking lot to let me pet it, but it kept a four foot buffer between us at all times and just meowed.

Got home a little after 10:00, ate my White Castles, and played pool for a while.

Yippee!

Saturday, September 24, 2005
posted by dave at 12:34 AM in category drink

Tonight Rich O's was about half full. There were, of course, some strangers sitting in the living room area. I ended up grabbing a seat on the loveseat anyway. It was either that or stand.

I had myself a Spezial Rauchbier (760) and sat and listened to the three drunk idiots sitting around me. It actually made me feel a little better about myself, knowing that I was so much cooler than those dorks.

Once the idiots left, I had the brilliant idea of asking the bartender if Baltika 6 was back yet. It's back! Yay! Of course I had one (192).

Nerdlinger and Butterface were sitting at the kiddie table and I had moved to the throne. I spent some time talking with Butterface, who had to look past Nerdlinger to see me. Kind of prophetic I think. I could so steal her if I wanted to, at least for the night. But I'm not that kind of person.

DisgustingMakeoutCouple came in at about the time I ordered my second Baltika (209). Those two really make me uncomfortable, but at least tonight they did a pretty good job of keeping their tongues in their own mouths.

That's it. A pretty boring night. Just what I needed.

Sunday, September 18, 2005
posted by dave at 8:41 PM in category drink, pictures

This entry is late because I had to work all day. It sucked, but it doesn't happen very often that I have to work on a Sunday, so I guess I'll live with it.

The entry is boring because all of the passion has either been sucked out of me or bottled up inside me. I'm not really sure which is the case, and it probably doesn't matter very much at the moment. The end-result is the same - a boring entry.

You have been warned. I suggest that, instead of bothering with this entry, you go read PassionateKisses instead. She's funny as fuck.

I feel like a visual is needed here.

Seating

Last night, when I got to Rich O's, I was sitting in the chair, which we all call the throne. NotGeorge was on my right, and WomanRepellant was on my left, and there were a couple of other guys that I don't know all that were sitting around as well.

I had myself a Delirium Tremens (357), and the group of us bullshitted about various fluff. I was already feeling a little bit claustrophobic because WomanRepellant was sitting just about as closely to me as he could while still maintaining some ass-sofa contact. I have no idea what that was all about.

Anyway.

To my immediate right is the kiddie table. This dude comes up and grabs a chair from the kiddie table and turns it towards our group so he can talk with us. Mainly he was just talking with WomanRepellant.

So I found myself stuck in the middle of a conversation between two people who were way into my personal comfort zone. I put up with this for about 10 seconds, but that was all I could stand. I grabbed my shit and went and sat at the end of the bar next to the idiots that had been there Wednesday.

I ordered one of these:

Upland Wheat (3)

(draft) Very fizzy. Too damn fizzy. There was too much citrus and it was a little sour tasting. I didn't care for it at all.
To wash the taste of that crap out of my mouth I ordered a Spezial (740) - a new keg since I'd blown the one on Friday.

At one point WomanRepellant came up and stood at the bar. He'd apparently gotten sick of all the football talk that was going on, and he knew that football was the last thing I'd want to talk about. So we talked for a while about anything but football.

Next I had a Weihenstephaner Dunkel (140).

At one point I returned from taking a piss and my seat had been taken. So I grabbed my shit again and moved over to the other end of the bar since the idiots from Wednesday had left.

At about this time I noticed that there was a Smithwick's handle attached to one of the taps behind the bar. After confirming that they did indeed have Smithwick's on tap I found some chalk and went out and wrote it on the board.

I wrote this!

So finally, I've been able to leave my mark in this world. I've always wondered what form it would take.

Once my Weihenstephaner was gone I ordered a Smithwick's (500).

I guess that's about it. I had a fairly enjoyable night, probably because I was irritated for having to pick up my shit and move not just once but twice. Irritated is close to being an actual feeling, and feelings have been hard to come by lately.

As long as I'm trying to break my own record for the most boring entry ever posted, I'll include a couple more pictures:

Mad Bitch

I'm so going to steal this Mad Bitch poster some night.

BBC Taps

This was a picture I took of the taps at the BBC when I went there recently.

Finally, here's an awkward ending to a pointless entry.

Saturday, September 17, 2005
posted by dave at 3:39 PM in category drink

Got a PM, after that last brief entry, asking me what was wrong.

What's wrong is that there's nothing wrong. I feel nothing. Not a fucking thing.

I'm out of the water, but I'm certainly not soaring. Just drifting along. Again. Caring about nothing. Again. Forcing myself to write something. Again.

Last night, a little after 6:00, MisunderstoodGirl called me and asked me to join her at the bar. I declined, saying that I needed to take a nap before I went out. I told the truth. I always take a nap after work on Fridays. But just because I always do something doesn't mean it's mandatory. I should have gone to see MisunderstoodGirl. She's been working these screwed up hours and I think I've only seen her a couple of times in the last six months. I should have said "fuck the nap" and just gone.

But I didn't, and I felt bad about that. Still do actually.

Once I finally got my lazy and selfish ass off the couch I headed out the door a little after 9:00. I stopped to see VigilanteGirl who, true to form, took the opportunity to bail on seeing the exorcism movie with me this weekend. Maybe next weekend I'm told. Once again, I'll believe it when I see it.

So I went to Rich O's. Nothing but guys there as usual. I ordered a Spezial but the keg blew while it was being poured. It ended up looking like coffee in my glass. It tasted okay, but it was creeping me out a little so I only drank half the glass (720).

Spezial was blown, Baltika was gone, the place was a sausage fest again. There was just nothing for me at Rich O's. I did what I should have done hours earlier. I called MisunderstoodGirl to see where she was, and went to see her.

It was this Mac's place that I don't care for very much, but at least they didn't have live music last night. Just karaoke, and I can stand that. MisunderstoodGirl and I sat at the bar and bullshitted and caught up for a while. I had a couple Newcastles (1664).

After a couple of hours MisunderstoodGirl was ready to leave so I had no reason to stay there either. I went back to Rich O's and had a Guinness (861). The place was winding down, but there was still no place to sit. I just stood at the bar for a while and wondered what I was doing there. MisunderstoodGirl actually came into Rich O's - I guess great minds think alike - but she was, being a girl, able to squeeze into a spot on the loveseat. I had to stand at the bar until some idiots left the sofa. Once they'd left I sat over there and talked with MisunderstoodGirl and DooRagGirl for a few minutes before they started closing the place up.

Came home and watched The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.

Thursday, September 15, 2005
posted by dave at 12:46 AM in category daily, drink

Well, that was exciting.

Stopped by to see VigilanteGirl on the way to the bar. She wanted me to stay but I'm afraid of getting her into trouble at work again, so I didn't stick around very long.

Rich O's was pretty dead. I sat on the sofa and a couple of strangers, who came in at the same time I did, sat on the loveseat. I didn't talk to them because I'm pretty sure that they were idiots. The girl drank coffee and the guy asked for something lighter than Upland Wheat. What a pussy.

Rich O's is out of Baltika 6 Porter. Waaaaaaaaaaaah! Why does everything I love go away? Waaaaaaaah!

So I had a Spezial Rauchbier (710) and then a Young's Double Chocolate Stout (166).

It was pretty boring there, so I left after the two beers and went to Wal-Mart to buy The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. I also picked up a new computer game and a CD. I can't remember the name of the guy on the CD, and it's all the way in the kitchen so it's too far to go look. It's got that song Beautiful Soul on it. I love that song. If I ever do karaoke again it'll probably be that song.

There was a yellow tabby kitty in the parking lot when I left the store. I followed it around for a few minutes calling "Here kitty kitty kitty!" but it was too timid to let me get too close. I really should carry cat treats in my pockets for occasions like this.

Tuesday, September 6, 2005
posted by dave at 11:01 PM in category drink

So Rich O's is selling this Abita Purple Haze for $10.00 a glass, and sending the money to Katrina victims.

Yes, I though it was a nice gesture as well, until I drank the beer.

Abita Purple Haze (5)

(draft) A cloudy beer with a slightly pinkish tint. If it had any actual flavor I'd decribe it here, but alas, there was none. A waste of time.

I could have finished the glass, but why on Earth would I want to? So I had a Spezial Rauchbier (640) to remind myself what a good beer tastes like.

Sunday, September 4, 2005
posted by dave at 12:16 PM in category drink

Last week I tried this new BBC beer. I promised to try it again, and tonight I kept that promise:

Bluegrass Smoked Porter (34)

(draft) The first time I saw this, they were calling it "Smokey the Beer." What a stupid name. This beer tasted terrible for the first few ounces, then once my palate had been beaten into submission, it tasted pretty damn good. A lot like their regular, non-smoked porter. It's probably the same beer. Just a touch of smoked malt, a little chocolate. I liked it.

I ended up having two glasses (a 20oz. and a 10oz.) of this beer. I talked to the bartender for a while (see previous entry). I also attempted a couple of conversations with the people sitting near me at the bar, but they would have none of that. If the place wasn't so damn far from my house I probably would have just stayed there for the entire night. There were a lot of pretty women there. Women that have no idea what a dork I am. I felt like a tourist, and I liked it.

But I did end up driving back to the world after just the two glasses, and I went to Rich O's, where something strange happened.

When I first walked in, there was this incredibly hot girl sitting with a bunch of people in the loser area. She locked eyes with me and licked her eyebrows. Or maybe she just smiled. Doesn't matter which - the result was the same. I got weak in the knees and transformed into a shy schoolgirl. As my powers do not normally work inside that building I just smiled at her and then went into Rich O's proper.

NotGeorge was there at the bar, so I sat and had myself a Spezial Rauchbier (620). I bullshitted with him a for a while, pausing about 10 times to go to the bathroom so I could lock eyes with the hot girl again.

I still wanted to do something with my Saturday, and the living room area was full of loud people, and there seemed to be no chance that they'd be clearing out anytime soon, and NotGeorge was leaving, and I was obviously incapable of actually approaching the hot girl in the loser area. I remembered that DooRagGirl's ex-husband's band was playing at this Mac's place, so I decided to go there.

Oh yeah, while NotGeorge and I were sitting at the bar this dude came and sat with us. It was one of the guys that had blown me off at the BBC earlier! He swore that he wasn't stalking me, but I couldn't be sure.

As I was leaving Rich O's, the hot girl smiled at me and said "Bye, Dave." I managed to sputter out that I was going to Mac's Hideaway if her and her friends wanted to come, then I left.

I have no idea where this girl knows me from.

So I went to this Mac's place and ordered a Newcastle (1620) in a non-frosted glass. There was a wedding reception going on (how classy is that?) and so there were a half-dozen pretty girls in their bridesmaids dresses. It was fun watching them all dance, and I had a couple Diet Cokes to finish out the night.

Saturday, September 3, 2005
posted by dave at 12:23 PM in category daily, drink

You know, I'm sitting here, beginning another double-venue entry, and I just don't see the point. This will be very brief and it will still be too long.

Yesterday afternoon we had lunch at The Red Star. I had a Goose Island Honker's Ale (84). Seemed a little more bitter than it was in Chicago, but that may have just been my mood.

Next I had a draft Bluegrass Dark Star Porter (110). Pretty good I guess, but I'm starting to think that this beer is nothing but burnt malt, with a little burnt chocolate in it.

Last night, Rich O's was completely full of idiots. I grabbed a seat on the sofa where I was treated to some words of wisdom from this old lady who was there with her grandkids or great great great grandkids or something.

I bet that 90% of the people that stayed in New Orleans only stayed so they could rob the houses of the people that had evacuated.
You racist bitch.

I almost spit out some of my precious Delirium Tremens (337) when I heard that one.

The next vomit to leave this woman's mouth was this, about 'blogging:

What happens is, these 'bloggers get a consensus about some current event, then they write about it, and there's a discussion about it.
You utter moron.

This is pretty much the exact opposite of what 'bloggers do.

At about this time I got shit from one of my friends for not wanting to drive eleven zillion miles to sit around and do nothing but drink. I can sit around and do nothing but drink at Rich O's (much closer to my home) and there's always a chance that somebody that's not retarded may come in and make an interesting evening of it.

Also at about this time I ordered a Baltika "6" Porter (142). Yummy.

But my favorite idiocy of the night came from one of the great great great great grandkids. He was sitting on the loveseat, reading a food menu, and he stopped the bartender and asked:

Hey, Chief, can we get food here?
I so wanted the bartender to tell him that sorry, the menus are for decoration only. But he didn't.

When these people finally left (off to a Mensa meeting no doubt) the old lady dug out some Mardi Gras necklaces for me. That was nice of her, but she's still not getting any. I gave the red necklace to TallLady, and after a while Bubbles came in so she got the purple necklace. I'm saving the green one for VigilanteGirl.

The Tremens had, as I'd known it would, screwed up my drinking schedule, so I only had the two beers. I got home a little after 10:00 and watched The Blues Brothers.

Wow, this entry turned out to be a lot longer than I'd expected. Still boring though.

Friday, September 2, 2005
posted by dave at 10:32 AM in category drink

One of the nice things about my company is that we get a four-day weekend for Labor Day.

So that made Thursday a virtual Friday. So I went to Rich O's.

The place was pretty dead. Only a few semi-regulars, and nobody that I'd consider a friend. WomanRepellant was there so that may have had something to do with it.

To drink, I first had a Baltika "6" Porter (125). Yummy as always. Next I had a Young's Double Chocolate Stout (135). This craving for chocolatey beers has been going on for quite a while now. Not that there's anything wrong with that, but I do find it surprising to be craving anything that's not a smoked porter or a Belgian.

It was a fairly boring night. Once CrewCutGirl and her friend left I sat alone in the living room area for a while, then I went to White Castle and came home.

Tuesday, August 30, 2005
posted by dave at 10:04 PM in category drink

Okay, I'm told that I have to write something, even if it's boring.

So I will. Write something boring.

Today after work I went by Rich O's and ordered myself a SmithWick's (480). While I was drinking that RealTrainGirl called and said she was coming up. So I ended up ordering some food and then I had a Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier Dunkel (120) while I waited.

Once RealTrainGirl and GreenBeerDude arrived we just bullshitted for a while. We split a bottle of this Italian beer:

Panil Barrique (Sour) (5)

(bottle) Does weird necessarily equal good? If so, then this is a very good beer. Very sour in both aroma and flavor. Supposedly oak-aged and stuff but I couldn't detect anything beyond the sourness. Fairly decent, but I cannot imagine ever having more than a single small glass.

So I didn't get home until about 9:30 - way past my normal nap time. I'll try to hang in there until midnight to keep myself on a regular schedule.

Oh yeah that asshole dipshit fuckhead was at Rich O's when I got there. I didn't say "Hi" to him. The fucker.

Sunday, August 28, 2005
posted by dave at 12:42 PM in category drink

This Saturday beer report encompasses two different venues, and it's still pretty much a waste of effort. You have been warned.

First there was the Brew at the Zoo. After I'd spent a few hours walking around and feeling sorry for all of the caged and penned animals, the event opened up and the approximately 3 zillion people waiting in line were allowed in.

This was the first one of these that I'd gone to, so I wasn't really sure what to expect. Beer and food I guess. That's what the flyers said.

Funny how the flyers didn't mention the incredibly long lines and the nearly total lack of places to sit.

You got this little 4 oz. tasting cup with your admission, and this ended up being the root of the problem I had with the event.

I'd wait in line for an eternity, get my little beer sample, and it'd be gone in about 2 minutes. Then I'd get in another line and repeat.

So I ended up drinking just three beers at the Zoo. The first was a Bell's Porter (64), which I've had before.

Next I had this:

Broad Ripple Stout (4)

(draft) I think there was something wrong with this beer. It actually tasted skunked. I hope it didn't taste this way on purpose.

And then this:

Bluegrass Smokey the Beer (4)

(draft) First off, what a stupid name. Secondly, I could detect no smoke in this beer, either in the aroma or in the flavor. Just an intense roasted malt flavor. Not very good, but I once said the same thing about their regular porter, so I will try this again someday.

After this third beer I walked over to another tent, but when I saw how long the line was for the Cumberland Brewery I just kept walking all the way to my car.

After a nap I went to Rich O's.

You know, this is boring me to death, writing about last night.

I had myself a Delirium Tremens (317) and then a Baltika "6" Porter (100). Nobody interesting was there and I came home fairly early.

Saturday, August 27, 2005
posted by dave at 10:50 AM in category comics, drink, pictures, travel

I ended up, as directed, going to Bloomington yesterday. I actually took a half day of vacation so I could get there early. This ended up being a good thing, but I'll get to that later.

During the drive up I ping-ponged between two thoughts.

First, I was a little excited to be doing this spur of the moment thing and following the sign I'd imagined getting on Thursday. I had no idea what to expect in Bloomington, but I figured it must be something interesting or I wouldn't have been led up there.

Second, I felt a little silly. I was basically driving up there because a coaster had told me to. I was also a little afraid that maybe I was missing something exciting and/or interesting at Rich O's. Of course maybe that's what the coaster was really trying to do - just keep me away from Rich O's for the night.

Those coasters, you never really know what they're trying to accomplish. They're sneaky and mysterious.

The first thing I did after I got to Bloomington was get a hold of my niece so I could check out her new dorm room. Here's a pic:

messy

Next I went over to the Upland Taproom. Here's another pic:

Upland Taproom

It's a smaller place than I'd imagined. It was also quite crowded especially when you consider I got there at 6:00. I noted the complete lack of a smoking section and grabbed a seat at the bar.

I told the bartender that I was looking to taste some beers and that the first thing I wanted to taste was their Chocolate stout. So she poured me a little sampler glass (4) before I could stop her. I drained that and asked for a 12 oz. glass.

Upland Chocolate Stout (16)

(draft) Incredible head and lacing. Had a strong coffee aroma but the flavor was an incredible blend of both coffee and chocolate. Very creamy and very yummy.

So this is now my favorite stout in the world, and I almost decided to just stick with it, but in the end I figured that The Coaster would want me to sample some other beers. So that's what I did.

Upland Bad Elmers Porter (32)

(draft) Had a very strong roasted malt aroma. The flavor was quite nice with roasted malt and a mild chocolate. A dry finish that made me want to take another drink right away.

Upland Valley Weizen (12)
(draft) Very fizzy but sweet. A mild banana aroma and flavor. Mouthfeel was fizzy wheat. There was a slight tartness to the finish. I liked this, but I've had better dunkels.

I'd actually drank, and rated, the Porter before, but I went ahead and updated my old rating because I like to think that my palate is a little more sophisticated now than it was back then.

During the time I was drinking my beers I found myself looking around, trying to figure out just what I was doing up there. The place was completely packed, but everyone was with their own little group. The only person I really talked to was the bartender.

cheesy

By the time I'd had my three beers it was only about 6:45. This is something I've noticed each time I've gone into a non-smoking bar. I drink a lot faster. Now some people might consider this to be a good thing but I'm such a lightweight that all it means to me is that my nights end early.

I ended up having a final Chocolate Stout (28) and starting back towards home a little after 7:00.

By the time I got back to New Albany it was only 10:30 so I (of course) went to Rich O's. I ordered a Smithwick's (460) and was just settling down on the sofa when something cool happened.

My friend Eric and his wife Terri came in!

So what had been slight disappointment from not having anything exciting happen in Bloomington turned into a pretty good mood by the end of the night.

Man, I've written this long rambling entry and I'm going to stop now. Nobody reads this far anyway.

Sunday, August 21, 2005
posted by dave at 1:10 AM in category drink

Tonight RealTrainGirl and I went back to The Cumberland Brewpub in Louisville. I'd been wanting some more of their porter, and she was looking for something to do on her night off. Rich O's was out of the question, so to Louisville we went.

We ended up having a couple of the Nitro Porters each while I attempted to explain what's been going through my head lately. I'm pretty sure that I failed, but I did manage to get the main point across. I hope.

When we were nearly done with our second beers, the waitress brought us a couple bowls of ice cream that had been made with the porter. At first I thought the waitress was flirting with me, but after a bit I decided that she was actually flirting with RealTrainGirl. Oh well.

Anyway, the vanilla version of the ice cream tasted like - get this - vanilla ice cream. Just like you'd find at any grocery store. I tried pouring some of my beer over it, and that made it taste better.

The chocolate version of the ice cream was quite yummy. The porter flavor was very apparent.

Next we went to this place called Flanagan's where we both had just one beer:

Beamish Irish Stout (16)

(can) Nice and creamy, though that could have been because of the widget. Compared to Guinness, a little sweeter, with a subtle chocolate flavor instead of coffee. I liked it, and would probably like it more if I could ever find it on tap.

That was it. We had a nice relaxing evening. Much better than if I'd just sat at home feeling sorry for myself.

I guess that's it.

Saturday, August 20, 2005
posted by dave at 12:54 PM in category comics, daily, drink

I very nearly stayed home all night last night.

I wanted to go have a beer, but going to the dentist messed up my jaw. I was just in terrible pain, and could hardly move my mouth at all. That'll teach me to get a cavity in a back tooth. It's just too hard for the dentist to reach back there without nearly breaking my jaw to do it.

So by the time the Novocain wore off my tooth wasn't hurting at all, but my jaw was just killing me. I still wanted to go out, but first I had to eat something. I nuked some cheese bread and somehow managed to get it down by taking small bites and only using the right side of my mouth. It was still excruciating though.

I got to Rich O's a little bit before 10:00 and grabbed a seat in the living room area next to some people I don't know.

To drink, I had myself a Baltika "6" Porter. I cannot stress enough how much I like this beer. I may just marry it.

The people in the living room area kept trying to suck me into their conversation. I was in no mood for it, so I moved to the bar and began trying to decide what my next beer would be. I was leaning toward another Baltika but something even stronger might have helped ease the pain in my jaw, so I was considering some Belgians.

impact

What was left of me didn't even think. I got the hell out of there as quickly as I could.

Some people are just good. Some people will always be there for you when you need them. No matter how much pain you've caused them in the past. No matter how much pain you promise for the future. When you need them, they come through for you , no questions asked, and no expectations.

I'm not one of those people. I wish I was, and I'm closer to it than most people I know, but I'm not one of them.

Last night, when I left Rich O's, I went to see one of these good people.

I didn't have to say a word. MixedSignalGirl could see it in my face. She knew that I wouldn't just show up like that unannounced. She knew what had happened, and she pulled me to her.

Driving home this morning, I found myself wondering just what we'd done to deserve each other.

I must have done something really wonderful.

She must have done something terrible.

I will never understand what she sees in me. I will never be able to give her what she deserves. But I will also never forget last night, and I will be her friend for as long as she'll let me.

Sunday, August 14, 2005
posted by dave at 9:09 AM in category drink

Went and ate a very good steak dinner with MixedSignalGirl last night. I know, this was probably a bad idea. I think she figured that out as well because she bailed after we'd eaten and I'd assured her that nothing I've been writing about lately (the bullshit last week) had anything to do with her.

To drink with dinner I had myself a Guinness (736). For some reason the Guinnii at Tucker's taste better than the ones at Rich O's. I think it has something to do with the temperature, but I'm not really sure.

So next I went over to Rich O's. The parking lot was jammed but I guess everyone must have been on the Sportstime side because Rich O's itself was only about 1/3 full. I sat on the sofa with the beautiful HatGirl and ordered my first beer.

Rogue Chipotle Ale (22)

(bottle) Very faint peppery aroma, with a little smoke thrown in. Not much taste until the finish, then a little pepper heat. I was expecting more pepper, so I was expecting to dislike this more than I did.

I was really having a hard time keeping from jumping into HatGirl's eyes and swimming around, but after a while this dude showed up and sat with us and HatGirl left pretty much immediately. Just a coincidence I'm sure. Not.

OldBob joined us then and we both tried this Jenlain beer.

Jenlain Farmhouse Ale (10)

(draft) Orange. Some faint apple flavor, but even more apricots. A little too sweet and citrusy for my tastes.

The rest of the night was pretty dull. The place was even more of a sausage festival than it normally is, thanks I suppose to WomanRepellant, who sat and talked with me about this one fucker that we both hate.

Got home a little after 11:00 and finished watching Last of the Mohicans.

Saturday, August 13, 2005
posted by dave at 9:38 AM in category drink, pictures

Last night I went to the Cumberland Brewpub in Louisville and met up with RealTrainGirl and GreenBeerDude.

This was my first time going to this place, despite (a)It being a brewpub and (b)It being only about 30 minutes from my house. The first thing about the place is that it's very hard to find a parking place. Luckily it wasn't raining. The second thing about the place is that there were a lot of pretty girls there.

These aren't particularly good or even interesting pictures, but they're all I've got:

Cumberland Brewpub

Cumberland Brewpub

I arrived before my friends and ordered some food and my first beer. I ended up drinking two of these:

Cumberland Nitro Porter (40)

(draft) Took a long time to pour, but worth the wait. Very smooth. Nice chocolate aroma and flavor that reminded me of Young's Double Chocolate Stout. This is a very good beer. Yummy.

After a while we went to the upstairs (which I didn't even know existed) and I had a small glass of the only other beer that seemed interesting to me.

Cumberland Nut Brown Ale (10)

(draft) Another winner from this small brewpub. Quite malty and nutty, but enough hops to keep it nicely balanced.

Then we all went to Rich O's. I'd been wanting to try this Rogue beer, but by the time I got there I decided that it was too late to be cranking open a 22-oz. bottle, so I just asked the bartender to set one aside for me to drink Saturday night. I just had some Diet Cokes.

We sat around at the island. NotGeorge joined us and then, lo and behold, MisunderstoodGirl came in! Very cool to see her after what seemed like forever. RealTrainGirl gave me shit for not talking up a storm, but really I was just basking in the glory that is MisunderstoodGirl. Words were unnecessary.

After the girls (ha ha again) left NotGeorge and I talked for a while, then I came home and shot some pool until the Sun came up.

Thursday, August 11, 2005
posted by dave at 8:17 PM in category daily, drink

I'm still quite wiped out. I don't understand how I can still be so tired.

So after work I went to Rich O's to meet up with RealTrainGirl. I needed to tell her what happened Tuesday night, plus it's always good to see her.

To drink, I had a Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier Dunkel (91) and then a Guinness (712).

RealTainGirl and I plan to go to the Cumberland Brewpub Friday night. I hate plans, but I've really been needing something to do besides visiting the ghost at Rich O's every weekend.

Oh yeah, I was also supposed to take a look at VigilanteGirl's computer tonight, but I've been stood up. For something she asked me to do. Women. Typical. Hmmph.

So now it's not even 8:30 and I'm going to try to get some sleep. Maybe I'll actually catch up and not be exhausted all day tomorrow.

Wednesday, August 10, 2005
posted by dave at 9:41 PM in category drink, travel

Okay, as I mentioned, I left the game early to check out this Boston Beer Works place.

I was very much aware that there were 50,000 people across the street watching the game and I figured that a large number of them would be coming in soon to do some drinking (and distract the bartenders from getting me more beer), so I ordered two beers right off the bat:

Beer Works Bunker Hill Bluebeery Ale (5)

(draft) This might have been sweet and syrupy or it might have been all the blueberries floating up and down. I couldn't finish the glass. Those things hitting my lips were just too strange.

Bluebeery Ale

Seriously, those blueberries were just too much! I ended up leaving the glass sitting in front of me for the entire night. The blueberries would rise and fall constantly. It was like a little lava lamp or something. As far as the beer went, I just never got a good enough taste of it to really form an opinion.

Beer Works Watermelon Ale (12)

(draft) A light brown ale (think Newcastle) with a wedge of watermelon in it. Once I removed the offending fruit I couldn't detect anything noteworthy. Maybe a bit of a hoppy finish.

This beer wasn't too bad, but without the fruit wedge there wasn't really any watermelon taste to it.

So by this point I'd found myself in a conversation with a cute girl from England. She's going to get her very own entry in this 'blog, but for now, she was very cool and we spent the entire night talking until they closed the bar and kicked us out.

Beer Works Beantown Nut Brown Ale (12)

(draft) A nice malty brown ale. Very pretty lacing. There was a bit of a coffee overtone that I could have done without. Quite good though.

Before I ordered this I asked the bartender if there were going to be any surprises. She didn't get what I meant. It was good enough that I'd have had another one if there weren't any other beers that I wanted to try.

Beer Works Haymarket Hefeweizen (12)

(draft) A very cloudy yellow beer. Strong banana aroma. Came with a citrus wedge that I seem to have removed before it ruined the flavor. Quite yummy.

Another fucking piece of fruit! Don't these people know anything? Anyway, with the fruit gone, this was my favorite beer of the night. EnglishGirl tried some too, breaking away from her fairly constant stream of Boston Common beer. She claimed to like it but didn't quite finish it before ordering another Common.

The guys I'd been traveling with came in at about this point and, thankfully, didn't mess with me and my new friend. I'm sure they considered it though. If they had, I may have lost it because by this time I was quite fascinated with EnglishGirl. This was probably fairly apparent to them, and I appreciate their restraint.

Beer Works Buckeye Oatmeal Stout (12)

(draft) Pretty good. A slight coffee taste. A slightly bitter finish. More roasted malt flavor than I'm used to in this style, and I think that's what saved it for me.

By the end of this glass I really liked this beer.

The place had another dozen or so drafts listed, but there were none that looked appealing to me, so I just had another glass of the hefeweizen (24). By this time I was also amazed at all of the alcohol I was putting away. I guess the twelve oz. glasses made it seem like more than it really was.

As I said before, EnglishGirl and I ended up staying until they kicked us out...

posted by dave at 9:01 PM in category drink, entertainment, travel

Our flight to Boston was delayed because they had to replace some part of the plane, and they had to fly the part in from Atlanta. I didn't complain too much because it was a better option than trying to get just one more flight out of the failing part would have been. Some kind of fuel regulator or something equally important sounding. An antiexplodometer perhaps.

So we got to Boston a couple of hours later than we'd planned on. This severely cut down (eliminated) our pre-game sightseeing, but who cared? We were going to Fucking Fenway Park! It was suggested (maybe by me) and agreed upon (definitely by me) that we'd go to Fenway two hours early and check out the surrounding bars before we went into the park.

Outside Fenway

Driving up to Fenway sent chills down my spine, and I guess I spent much of the rest of the night muttering Fenway. Fucking. Park. Cool.

Our second stop (after a souvenir store) was The Cask 'n Flagon, a sports pubby place with a decent beer selection. The only local beer they carried was Harpoon IPA though, so I opted to have a couple Guinnii (672) instead.

After everybody had lubed up a little we went into the park. Fenway. Fucking. Park. Cool.

Outside Fenway

A view of The Green Monster from our seats..

Fenway

The infield from our seats.

Fenway

The Boston skyline.

Fenway

We were sitting in that last glass-enclosed luxury box.

Fenway

I really had to fight the crowd to even get this close to the playing field.

Fenway

Play ball!

I now officially understand why people will get drunk and naked and run out onto the playing fields at sporting events. I wanted to do it myself. It's Fenway Fucking Park! Cool!

It was a pretty good game. The Bosox won of course. I actually left the game just as the eighth inning started because I wanted (needed) to check out The Boston Beer Works...

Sunday, August 7, 2005
posted by dave at 1:34 AM in category comics, drink

surrounded

Saturday night was much more bearable than Friday had been. The place was only about half full, for one thing. For another thing, there were a lot of women. I actually think they outnumbered the guys for once.

RealTrainGirl was there so went spent the first part of the night bullshitting about various fluff. I had an NABC Cone Smoker (220) to start out. MusicalHippyDude joined us and the two of us waited very patiently for this girl in the red room to turn around or stand up so we could check out her front. RealTrainGirl kept telling us that it was a guy. RealTrainGirl needs glasses.

Let's see, DooRagGirl came in and after a short while her friend HatGirl joined us as well. I had myself a couple pints of Dave's Cherry Porter (60) while I did my best to keep my eyeballs in their sockets and my tongue off the floor.

RedRoomGirl did eventually stand up, and she was indeed cute, though way too tatted up for my tastes.

After RealTrainGirl left I stuck around and had a Guinness (660) then a couple of Diet Cokes to finish the night. I like sitting with women and joining, as much as I can anyway, in their conversations. Their perspective on life in much different than what I hear from most of my guy friends. Much more balanced.

Anyway, once all of the hot girls had left it was closing time so I left before the bartenders had to turn a hose on me.

Saturday, August 6, 2005
posted by dave at 12:44 AM in category drink

Okay, I'm going to vent a little.

These all go out to different people.

  • What, I'm not good enough for your precious list? Fuck off then.
  • I tried really hard to miss you tonight, but I failed. That's good, right?
  • You have no idea how good it is to have you in my life. You help ground me.
  • I'm beginning to see what others dislike about you.
  • You're coming on a little strong. Just ease off a little and I think we can still be friends.
  • I have serious concerns about your taste in men, but you still intrigue me.
  • Don't fucking ask the question if you're not going to listen to the answer.

Tonight Rich O's was incredibly crowded. There were a few people that I know, but it was mostly strangers. I actually would have left after just one beer but RealTrainGirl was coming and I wanted to see her.

To drink, I started out with a Smithwick's (420), then a Baltika 6 Porter (32). While I was drinking the porter RealTrainGirl came in. She and her roommate and GreenBeerDude and I talked for a bit, though GreenBeerDude left rather abruptly, and RoommateGuy I don't know at all.

For my final full beer I had this bottle of stuff from Finland:

Kataja Olut (11)

(bottle) Zero carbonation. Zero fizz. This lack of head reminded me of every NABC beer ever made. It was a very nice copper color, and it had a very nice and sweet flavor. I'd love to try this in draft form someday, but I don't really expect that to happen. This would get a yummy rating except for its flatness.

While we were wrapping up our evening, I sampled some of RealTrainGirl's beer:

Gaffel Kolsch (2)

(bottle) A fairly standard lager. Not as fizzy as some, but not as flavorful either. Nothing special.

While I'm listing beers, I'll go ahead and describe a couple that I tried in Chicago:

Bells Oberon (5)

(draft) Bright and fizzy. This would probably be good if it was a hot enough day. Like a million degrees or something.

Goose Island 312 Urban Wheat Ale (5)

(draft) Take a light American wheat and spray lemon pledge in it. Not the worst thing I've ever tasted, but far from the best.

What the heck, I'll also list the new NABC beer that I've now tried twice:

New Albanian Phoenix Kommon (8)

(draft) No matter how hard I try, I cannot detect any aroma or flavor. All I get is a slightly drying finish.

Tonight was one of those nights that make me wonder just what the hell I'm doing. It's one thing to drift through life, but a completely different thing to live by habit and inertia. If I actually gave a shit I might start looking for other things to do on my weekends.

Wednesday, August 3, 2005
posted by dave at 11:02 PM in category drink, entertainment, pictures, travel

Tuesday was actually a pretty interesting night.

There were a couple of reasons for this.

First, we all went to a Chicago White Sox game. I took pictures of their new (to me at least) park.

US cellular Field

US cellular Field

US cellular Field

US cellular Field

My company had rented this party deck waaaaaaaaaaay out past center field. Kind of prestigious I suppose, but not much chance of a ball ever being hit there. Especially without Frank Thomas playing.

This ballpark has no good beer at all. I only tried one that I thought sounded a little interesting:

Canoe Honey Wheat Ale (2)

(draft) Lord, why hast thou foresaken me? I thought this was crap. I only drank about two sips and then I threw the rest away. Blech.

The White Sox lost their game, just like the Reds lost their game when I went to see them. I wonder if I'm cursed.

I of course bought myself a Sox cap. I also bought myself a Cubs cap because I was planning to head over to the Wrigley Field area later and didn't want to be murdered for wearing the wrong cap.

As it turned out I didn't make it to Wrigleyville. I instead went to this Piece Brewpub that Roger from Rich O's had recommended to me.

A pretty nice little place, though a little bit too dark for pictures. The pizza smelled fantastic, and I'm kinda kicking myself for not trying any of it.

I did try several of their beers though:

Piece Hoppy Ending (4)

(draft) An otherwise bland vehicle for a bitter hoppy aftertaste. What's the point?

Piece Golden Arm Kolsch (4)

(draft) Very light and citrusy. Tasted like a Bud Light to me. Supposedly an ale but I'm not convinced.

Piece Dysfunctionale (4)

(draft) I've rated this right down the middle in every category. Nothing at all stands out. I don't like the style, so I don't like the beer.

Piece Dark Bier (20)

(draft) Dark Lager, almost black. A light coffee flavor. Fairly thick mouthfeel with some lagery fizz at the end. Not too bad, but not great.

Piece Belgian Three-Way (24)

(draft) Citrusy aroma. Light apple flavor, with maybe a little apricot? No finish at all. Decent, but the apricot turned me off a little.

So I ended up liking the Belgian okay, and I had two glasses.

Then I went back to McCormick and Schmick's to drool over the pretty waitress some more. I had a couple of Guinnii to give me an excuse for being there.

Saturday, July 30, 2005
posted by dave at 11:47 PM in category drink

Spent most of the night at Rich O's talking with RealTrainGirl. To drink, I had a Smithwick's and then one of these:

Hitachino Nest Real Ginger Ale

(draft) The first few sips, understandably, brought to mind a beer with ginger ale poured into it. By the end of the glass I'd decided that I did like this beer, and that I wished that it was even a little stranger than it was. Very unusual, and very drinkable.

To finish up I had a Guinness.

The night was very ordinary and boring - until about two seconds after RealTrainGirl left.

At that point, as if on cue, these two guys that had been sharing the living room area with us started talking about YouKnowWho. Now exactly what RealTrainGirl's leaving had to do with anything I don't know. What I do know it that both of these guys are assholes.
They know nothing about YouKnowWho but they still started spewing crap about her.

The last time this happened was back in March. At that time I jumped to YouKnowWho's defense and didn't let up until the bitch doing all the badmouthing left in a huff. This time, for a while at least, I let it go.

I got up and went to stand at the bar. It's none of my business what people think, or what people talk about. Plus, I don't care about anything or anyone at all. That's been the theme of this 'blog for a couple of weeks now.

So I stood at the bar and tried not to listen to the two assholes badmouth the person that - well I don't really know how to finish that sentence. There are really no words left in me to describe her and what she's meant to me. Means to me.

I stood at the bar, trying not to listen, and I thought I was having some success at it.

After a bit though, one of them said something that I just couldn't ignore.

...

So here I've been coasting along for more than two weeks, unable or unwilling to care about anything or anyone. And out of the blue, from left field, out of my ass even, I find something that I feel passionate about. Someone that I feel passionate about. No big surprise that it's the same thing, the same person, that it's been all along.

I sit here now, typing this entry, and I feel nothing once again. It's all like a fuzzy memory of a dream I'm not even sure I had.

Still, it's nice to know that I'm still capable of caring about something.

posted by dave at 10:07 AM in category daily, drink

When I last went to my old Kent, Washington hangout back in '03, I'd been hoping to see it exactly as I'd left it. Even though I'd been gone for three years. Well, they hadn't just mothballed the place and wrapped it in plastic to wait for my return. Time had continued to march forward, the fucker.

There were an awful lot of people there that I had never seen before. In MY bar. It was a little disconcerting having to look around for people that I knew. I used to know everyone.

That disconcerting feeling is the same one I've been having when I enter Rich O's lately. Last night, as is typical for Fridays, the place was full of strangers. I spent the first part of the night either talking with MusicalHippeeDude and TallLady at the bar, or sitting on the sofa trying not to interact with some retarded people.

When I first went in, I saw that NABC had brought one of their old beers back. I couldn't remember if I'd liked it or not, so I ordered one:

New Albanian Kaiser 2nd Reising

(draft) I'd never call myself a pilsner fan, so I didn't have great expectations for this beer. Having said that, this just wasn't very good. A little citrusy, and a little bit of some odd flavor that I cannot pin down. Must be the corn. Hey, at least I tried it.

I guess I drank about two inches, which was more than enough, and then I switched back to beers I know I like. Specifically, a Smithwick's and then a Bell's Porter.

The retarded people apparently know this guy named Dave, and he is apparently the center of their universe. It was Dave this and Dave that all night long. I was trying hard not to eavesdrop, and trying equally hard not to stare at the retarded girl's breasts - easier said than done, they were right there - but I wasn't especially successful at either endeavor.

Eventually these girls (more strangers) left the island so I moved up there and was quickly joined by CuteBlonde and this dude that I didn't remember but that seemed to remember me.

For my last beer I held a gun to the bartender's head and forced him to sell me a 2004 Alaskan Smoked Porter. Man I miss that beer.

Today I really wanted to go to Indianapolis for this microbrew thingy, but I've got to harvest my lawn (it's way past mowing) and then do some laundry. I'm going to Chicago in the morning and I guess clean clothes would be useful.

Early in the night I sent off a text message to my friend Eric, inviting him and his wife to Rich O's. I guess they were busy. Kids can do that to you.

Oh yeah, I talked with VigilanteGirl for a while on the phone. I apologized for being unavailable lately, and assured her that it's not just her that's become an innocent victim of my mood.

Speaking of my mood, I was actually able to depress myself a little bit last night. This news I got Thursday has irritated me just enough that my mind has started looking for something else to occupy it. I guess I shouldn't be too surprised at what it found.

Sunday, July 17, 2005
posted by dave at 11:06 AM in category daily, drink

So, like I already said, I was in a pretty strange mood last night. Untethered, unfettered, and a little bit disengaged.

Started out the night going to check out this new place in Georgetown that Dina and Kenny wanted to go to. I needed to get there early to see if they had any good beer.

They not only didn't have any good beer, they didn't have any beer at all. The place was like a Burger King, except with pool tables.

So I left there and got to Rich O's way earlier than normal. The place was crowded as fuck, with the prerequisite infestation of strangers taking up all of the seats at the bar and in the living room area. I just hate those people so much.

Because I'd arrived so early, and because I didn't plan on leaving early, I knew that I'd have to make an adjustment to my drinking regimen. I decided that I'd just stick to Guinness.

You know, I'm really bored sitting here writing this, so I'm going to stop fairly abruptly.

I ended up having three Guinnii and then a Stone Imperial Stout. Dina and Kenny came in for a while. It was a nice night.

Saturday, July 16, 2005
posted by dave at 12:09 AM in category drink

Had a pretty good night at Rich O's. It seemed a little full of idiots, but the living room areas as open so I spent the night talking with TallLady and HomelessGirl. Nice and relaxing, Calm and pleasant.

To drink, I first had a Delirium Tremens, on tap for the first time in a long time. I've already said how much I love this beer. Next I had one of these:

Stone Imperial Stout

(draft) First off, looks fantastic. Black with a firm brown head, I was almost reluctant to drink it for fear of messing up the head. Flavor is a nice chocolate, with just a hint of bitterness about halfway through. I was a little surprised, and a little disappointed, that the ABV is so high on this one. I'd love to be able to have more than one.

For my last beer I had a Smithwick's. Yummy as always.

HomelessGirl and I talked about a lot of different shit. One of the topics that stood out was when we traded spooky real-life stories. Pretty creepy.

After I left Rich O's I wanted to listen to some karaoke, but they were closed, so I went to this bar that had been one of my dad's main hangouts for the last few years of his life.

The place has changed so much that it's barely recognizable.

I just deleted a bunch of shit here. I don't know why I bothered.

Thursday, July 14, 2005
posted by dave at 11:14 PM in category drink

Tonight I went out to Rich O's, hoping that something would piss me off enough to make today's experiment a success.

No such luck.

I ended up drinking a couple of beers that I'd already had earlier in the week.

Bells Porter

(draft) Not a thing wrong with this beer. That's the first thing I thought of. No aroma to speak of, a mild chocolate flavor that was quite yummy. No bitterness at all. An excellent session porter.

Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier Dunkel

(draft) Took a long time to drink - it's pretty filling. Very nice aroma and a good flavor. This beer has convinced me that I now like hefeweissbiers. Seemed to affect me more than its 5.3% alcohol would suggest.

The place was fairly crowded tonight, with a bunch of idiots taking up the living room area, so I just sat at the bar. Pretty boring.

Saturday, July 9, 2005
posted by dave at 10:39 PM in category drink, ramblings

Eleven months ago, my body started having a problem with alcohol.

It seems to be coming back. Over the last week, I've turned into even more of a lightweight than normal.

Tonight I had myself an NABC Cone Smoker, followed by about three-quarters* of one of these:

Baltika 6 Porter

(bottle) I was quite impressed by this. An aroma that I can only describe as chocolately-grapey. A flavor that stayed with me from the time my lips touched it to the time I swallowed - in other words, consistently good. Quite yummy. I wish I'd had another one.

That was it. I'd had enough. So I ended up getting home way before 10:00.

I'm in a fairly shitty mood, but not for my normal reasons. Tonight I just found myself thinking about some problems that friends and family are having, and I realized that I just don't give a shit. No matter how much I try to care, no matter how obvious it is that I should care, I just don't

I am, as I've said before, a horrible person.

When I was a kid I took a golf ball apart. There was the rubbery outer layer, then about a zillion miles of rubbery string, then a hard rubber core.

If you were to take me apart right now, I'd at first seem to be a lot like that ball.

A fairly innocuous outer layer covering a much more complex layer.

But the similarity would end when you got to the core.

I don't seem to have one.

What I have, at the very center of my being, is a hollow space.

This annoys me, because I feel like a fairly normal person, I look like a fairly normal person. But deep inside I guess I'm some kind of zombie or something.

My soul, that part of me around which everything should be based, has shrunk to nothing. Beaten and ridiculed, it has curled into a little ball so tight that it may never be whole again.

I've been going about this, my healing, the wrong way. I've been working from the outside in. I act like I'm a person so people will think I'm a person, then I start to feel like I'm a person, but deep inside there's nothing. At the center of my being I am still nothing. My rebirth was but an illusion.

So how do I start over? How do I rebuild myself from the inside out?

I have no idea, and it bothers the Hell out of me.

Or at least it would, if I had a soul to be bothered.

* - I had the word "questers" here instead of "quarters" all night. What a dumbass I am.

posted by dave at 12:47 AM in category drink

Okay, I'm just going to rush through this entry because I don't feel like writing anything.

On the way out tonight I stopped to see VigilanteGirl*. She's in a much better mood tonight, so that's good.

At Rich O's, I started out with a Gulden Draak, reasoning that if I had the strongest beer first I'd be better able to pace myself later. Ha ha.

My plan (MisunderstoodGirl made fun of me for having an actual beer plan) was to next have an NABC Cone Smoker and then end the night with a Smithwick's or two.

But noooooooooooooooo!

After the Gulden Draak, I saw a beer written on the board that intrigued me - especially after last weekend's experimentation.

Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier Dunkel

(draft) Took a long time to drink - it's pretty filling. Very nice aroma and a good flavor. This beer has convinced me that I now like hefeweissbiers. Seemed to affect me more than its 5.3% alcohol would suggest.

I drank this beer over the course of about two hours while sitting with RealTrainGirl and MisunderstoodGirl in the living room area. Once it was finally gone, I realized that I'd seriously miscalculated something and that even a Smithwick's would be too strong for me.

So I ordered a Guinness.

I drank about three inches out of it and decided that I'd had enough.

So tonight, for whatever reason, 10 ounces of 10.5% beer plus 20 ounces of 5.3% beer plus about 4 ounces of 4.2% beer was my limit.

I know not why.

So I left Rich O's a little before 12:00 and went back to see VigilanteGirl again. She's taking her unsettling news very well, though I guess she could just be in shock. I know I would be. I'll be there for her as much as she'll let me.

That's all I want to write.

* - When this entry started I was using a different nickname here. After reading it this morning I decided that I didn't want to have to keep track of two names for her, so I switched back.

Wednesday, July 6, 2005
posted by dave at 10:02 PM in category drink

Today I welcomed two old friends back into my life.

First, out of the blue, I got a text message from RealTrainGirl. She is apparently finished being pissed at me, though she denies having ever been, and wanted to see if I was going to Rich O's after work. I was, and she did too.

The second reunion of the day was in the form of NABC's Cone Smoker, back after being gone for over a year. Of course I had some.

New Albanian Cone Smoker (Second Coming)

(draft) The second brewing of this beer, this time from NABC's new brewer, has a slightly tweaked recipe. Or so I hear. Pretty good. To compare to the rauchbiers that I've had the most of lately: Slightly less bite than Spezial, slightly less smoke than NABC Noble Smoker, but could probably pass for either one. Very minimal carbonation though - a trait that's pretty common with all NABC beers.

To tell the truth, I'm not enough of a beer guru to understand the difference between this and the NABC Noble Smoker that ran in the Spring. I'm also not sure I understand the need for two such similar brews in the NABC stable. Buy hey, when it comes to rauchbiers, the more the merrier.

Also, this near-total lack of carbonation has become something of a trademark for this little brewery. I find it to be something that I just put up with, like the broken springs on the sofa and the fruit flies that surround me whenever I have a Belgian beer.

Sunday, July 3, 2005
posted by dave at 1:52 PM in category comics, daily, drink

ouch"

So I went to this thing yesterday.

There was a lot of running. That's all I really want to say. I left at 6:00 and went to Polly's to eat something for the first time in 24 hours, then went home and slept.

After my nap I went down to Rich O's, successfully avoided the scene depicted above, and ended up sitting with PipeGuy and GrammarLady for a while. I hadn't seen these two in a while, and PipeGuy in particular seemed quite insistent on talking about you know what. I changed the subject as quickly as I could, but not before making sure that they knew that all of the things that they had imagined happening between her and me were just that - their imagination. Actually, theirs and about a million other people's.

After they left, DooRagGirl and FutureDude showed up.

I got the name FutureDude from an old Seinfeld episode, by the way.

I didn't drink anything worth noting last night. I think I was still reeling a little from the night before. Smithwick's and Spezial. Nice and tame.

FutureDude told me that my Monte Carlo doesn't really seem like a Dave kind of car. I'm not really sure how to take that.

I'm starting to feel another implosion coming on.

posted by dave at 12:05 AM in category drink, entertainment, travel

(Refer to the earlier entry for pictures.)

You know, people are going to read this and start to worry about me. There's really no need.

I arrived in Cincinnati a little after 2:00 in the afternoon, and pretty much immediately grabbed a cab to Newport. I certainly could have driven there but I was a little confused by the street layouts.

I had the cab take me to the Hofbrauhaus. Looking at their beer list, I was not particularly fired up, but I did manage to choose two beers, and both were surprisingly good.

Hofbrauhaus Newport Altmunchner Dunkelgold

(draft) Not a thing wrong with this beer. Not a thing noteworthy about it either. A little nutty, a little malty, a little tasty. Not my favorite style, but one of my favorites in this style.

Hofbrauhaus Newport Munich Weizen

(draft) There aren't many hefeweizens that I can say I actually like. This one I like. Sweet and fruity, with none of the citrus that usually ruins this style for me. Yummy.

While I was drinking my beers, and eating my lunch, I talked with the bartender about other places for good beer in the area. One of the places that he said was a "must see" was The Beer Sellar on the river.

I walked the two or three blocks to the place, and it was indeed quite nice. When I first walked in it was hard NOT to notice the huge array of taps. My erection quickly dissipated, however, when I realized that about 2/3 of the draft selection consisted of watery lagers. I ended up having a Young's Double Chocolate Stout, and then I selected the following from the bottled list:

Belhaven St. Andrews Ale

(bottle) Nobody else has said it, so I will. This beer had a greenish tint to it. There, I've said it. Aside from the odd coloring, this was a pretty decent beer. The bar had it listed as a smoked beer, so I was a little disappointed to find an ESB instead, but it was quite decent. Actually reminded me more of a Alt than an ESB.

Okay, so after two beers at the Hofbrauhaus, and two fairly strong beers at the Beer Sellar, I was kind of glad that I hadn't actually driven to Newport. I walked across this purple bridge (very cool to walk across the Ohio river) and back to my hotel to grab my Reds ticket.

Not much to say about the game itself. The Reds suck, and they lost. I was a huge baseball fan when I lived in Seattle, but since I've moved back to Indiana this local club just hasn't fielded a team worth rooting for.

So after the game I walked up to the Rock Bottom brewpub and had a little sampler array.

Rock Bottom English Mild

(draft) Smelled pretty good. The flavor and mouthfeel brought creamy bananas to mind. A pretty strange beer, but decent.

Rock Bottom White Tiger Wheat

(draft) I'm convinced that this is the same wheat beer that Hofbrauhaus is selling. Quite a good beer in a style that I don't normally care for.

Rock Bottom Cincinnati Porter

(draft) No aroma. Very faint coffee flavor. Very fizzy mouthfeel. Not very good.

Rock Bottom Brown Bear Brown

(draft) More malty than sweet, so a little unbalanced. Good head and lacing. Pretty good.

At this point things got a little surreal.

I was walking around downtown Cincinnati, looking for this Nicholson's place that I'd heard about, and I was having no luck at all. This homeless guy - a black man about fifty or so, and carrying a large flowery PURSE, approached me.

The first thing this guy said to me was "I promise I'm not looking to rob you, but I could really use some money. I want to buy myself a beer."

So what I ended up doing was enlisting this guy to help me find this Nicholson's place. I promised him that I'd buy him a beer if he kept to his word and didn't rob me.

So we struck a deal. He'd lead me to beer, and not rob me, and I in turn would buy him a beer.

His name was Leroy, and he was actually a pretty cool guy. He kept saying that he knew where Nicholson's was, but it soon became apparent that he had no clue. He did remember this place called O'Malley's, so that's where we went.

I had myself a Guinness, and I bought Leroy a Bud Light.

It was a little scary. Not because I was hanging out with a street person, but because I'm pretty sure that Leroy was the first black man to set foot in O'Malley's since its founding. We got a lot of pretty strange looks.

Leroy's purse probably didn't help matters either.

The O'Malley's bartender gave me directions to Nicholson's and, after we'd finished our beers, Leroy and I parted company. He said that he was seriously grateful to me for trusting him. I guess that trust between whites and blacks hasn't been that common in Cincinnati lately.

So I walked up to Nicholson's. I had myself a couple pints of Smithwick's then I went back to the hotel and slept.

In the morning I drove home.

I had a good time on this trip. I've got some thoughts in my head as to why. Maybe I'll put those thoughts into words later this weekend.

Tuesday, June 28, 2005
posted by dave at 11:39 PM in category daily, drink

Kind of a fucked up day for me.

I wasted yet another day of vacation because the repair guy (supposed to show up at noon) didn't get here until 7:00.

I watched Rob and Amber Get Married, tivoed when it originally aired but never watched. Brilliant move, that was. Watching people in love starting a new life together. Just fucking brilliant.

So eventually my A/C got fixed, and I went to Rich O's to celebrate.

The place was crowded as fuck. It was more like a Friday than a Tuesday. I text-messaged RealTrainGirl about the crowd but I guess she's joined the legion of women that are pissed at me after all. This made the third message in as many days that she's ignored. Or maybe she just hasn't been getting them. A lot of that going around lately. Fortunately for me there's currently only one woman on Earth that is capable of truly hurting my feelings, and it's not RealTrainGirl. I'm mostly invincible.

So I hadn't been in Rich O's for more than ten seconds when TallLady started in on me about smiling and why I wasn't doing it. I'm afraid I got a little gruff with her. I don't smile on command, and I told her so.

She apologized for offending me, but I told her that she hadn't offended me, she had annoyed me. If she had said "Smile, you pumpkinheaded fuck," then that would have offended me.

To drink, I had a Spezial Rauchbier. Very good as always.

Next I did some experimenting.

Dave's Double Chocolate Cherry Ale

(mixture) I mixed Bell's Cherry Ale and Young's Double Chocolate Stout in a 1-to-1 ratio. Just a fantastic combination. A nice deep red color. Chocolate flavor that's followed by a slightly sour finish. I'd definitely buy this if it was available commercially. Yummy.

Next I had the rest of the Young's, straight this time.

Next I had a pint of Guinness, for no reason other than its low ABV.

I stopped and saw VigilanteGirl on the way home. Her normal voice has returned. Oh well.

Tonight I missed her more than usual. I blame the television I watched earlier. Unfortunately, whenever I let my thoughts stray to topics like love, marriage, happiness, whatever, my imagination always reveals the same person standing next to me. This sucks, but I guess I'm getting used to it.

One interesting thing about tonight: I was talking with this dude about this girl that obviously had the hots for him. He didn't know it. Didn't want to believe it. My advice to him was to just go for it. To just grow a pair and take a fucking chance.

See, I can advocate bravery as long as it's not my own heart on the line.

Sunday, June 26, 2005
posted by dave at 3:51 PM in category drink

One of those damn tame and relaxing nights that have become so commonplace lately.

Rich O's was moderately empty. All the cool people at parties again I guess.

I sat on the sofa and talked with QuietDude and DooRagGirl.

To drink I stuck with mild stuff: two pints of Smithwick's and two Guinnii.

Oh yeah, NotGeorge now has a new nickname. He will henceforth be known in this 'blog as SpikeBoy.

I had this great idea to call my friend Eric and see if he and his wife wanted to come down and try some lambics, but by then it was after 10:00 and I figured that it was too late.

DooRagGirl and FutureDude may come and take my old washer/dryer. It'd be nice to get it out of my garage.

Saturday, June 25, 2005
posted by dave at 1:50 AM in category drink

Rich O's is having this event, called Belgian Lambic By The Glass II, this weekend. Pretty descriptive, albeit uncreative, name. C'mon Roger, you can do better than that! I'd suggest FunkFest 2005.

I arrived a little late. VigilanteGirl was busily trying to pick a fight at work so I had to stick around and be her bodyguard for a while.

Rich O's was pretty crowded. This had been fairly typical for Fridays, but tonight's Friday crowd was not made up of the amateurs usually seen. Tonight the place was full of PBDs.

I've never had any lambic beer. I wanted to find something funky. Something musty. Something weird. It took me a while, but I was eventually successful.

Cantillon Bruocsella 1900 Grand Cru

(bottle) Don't know what vintage this was. Incredibly sour taste. Like sucking on lemon rinds. Not musty or funky at all. Drinkable, but not noteworthy.

Drie Fonteinen Oude Geuze

(bottle, 1999 vintage) Less sour than other lambics, but much more of a dry finish. A subtle hint of funkiness in both the aroma and flavor. Pretty damn good.

Cantillon Organic Gueuze

(bottle) Funky and Musty. Very dry finish. Hard to pin down exactly what this tasted like. I liked it.

Cantillon Lou Pepe Gueuze

(bottle, 2002 vintage) Like a regular, somewhat mild, Belgian strained through dirty sweat socks. This is what I was expecting from a lambic festival! A little sour, a little drying, a lot tasty.

Hanssens Mead the Gueuze

(bottle) I kind of expected that this mead/lambic blend would be disgusting. I was right. Probably the nastiest thing that's touched my tongue in years.

I spent most of the night standing up. When I finally did grab a seat at the bar some shithead came in. I really didn't want to deal with him so I moved over to the annex area and stood while I had a Stone Smoked Porter. Yummy.

Tonight, everybody thought I was in a bad mood. They were all wrong at first, but their suspicions became self-fulfilling after a while.

Wednesday, June 22, 2005
posted by dave at 10:47 PM in category drink

Backwoods Brown Ale

(bottle) Given to me by a homebrewing friend. No description or name given, it was all up to me. Pours a nice amber/honey color with lots of foam. The aroma is very sweet - almost too sweet - and that sweetness is quite evident in the taste as well. A good brown ale, but perhaps a little too cloying for me to ever spend an evening drinking it. Much better, of course, than anything I've ever made.
Sunday, June 19, 2005
posted by dave at 10:47 AM in category drink

Saturday was pretty boring. I didn't know anyone at Rich O's so I just sat at the bar all night.

I had a pint of the Bells Cherry Ale that I'd discovered last night, then I ordered a Mad Bitch. The bartender screwed up and accidentally poured me something I hadn't had before:

Poperings Hommelbier

(draft) I see all these descriptions about sharp and hoppy and peppery - I got none of that. What I got was a pale beer with a huge head that didn't have much of anything in the way of aroma or flavor. What there was, however, was quite good. At 7.5%, this beer is a lot stronger than it tastes or smells.

Once that was gone I had a Mad Bitch for real. Yummy as always.

I also had a pretty good idea - one that I should have thought of months ago.

I deleted her number from my cell phone's memory.

I did this for two reasons:

  1. Every time I scrolled past her name it made me a little sad.
  2. Without that number stored in the phone I no longer have to rely on my own fleeting willpower to keep me from making a bad situation worse.
Friday, June 17, 2005
posted by dave at 11:58 PM in category daily, drink

What a fucked up night.

As far as I've been able to determine, every heterosexual woman on Earth that is not a sister of mine is pissed at me.

That's quite an accomplishment, especially since I have no idea what the hell I've managed to screw up this time.

At first, I thought it was every woman in the world, but then I remembered that I'd talked to each of my sisters and they didn't seem pissed. Then I got a call from RealTrainGirl, so the lesbian community didn't seem to have a problem with me.

I don't know what the hell was going on, but I got evil text messages or dirty looks from every other woman I interacted with tonight. LibertyGirl and DooRagGirl tried to pretend that they weren't in on whatever it was, but I wasn't fooled.

To start the night, I had a Spezial Rauchbier. Very good, as always.

Next, I had a sample of this Bells Cherry Ale stuff. My first impression wasn't too good, but it grew on me very quickly.

Bells Cherry Ale

(draft) No aroma whatsoever. The first couple of sips reminded me more of cranberries than cherries. About halfway through the glass I decided that it wasn't too bad and ordered another pint. A little sour, a little sweet. Really quite drinkable though.

After that I felt a little reckless so I did an experiment:

Dave's Cherry Porter

(mixture) I mixed 1/2 Bells Cherry Ale with 1/2 BBC Dark Star Porter, and ended up with something greater than the sum of its parts. The too bitter porter balanced very nicely with the too sweet/sour Bells, and it was just excellent. I, apparently, am a frickin' genius.

Now I'm back at home. I think I should probably shoot a text message off to a couple of girls that are pissed at me, but I'm not going to until/unless I find out what it is I'm supposed to be sorry for.

I don't understand the female species at all.

Sunday, June 12, 2005
posted by dave at 9:07 AM in category drink

Ended up leaving the house early last night to escape the heat. After some ping-ponging back and forth I decided to eat dinner at this Tucker's place that I hadn't been to in months.

Tuckers

This is a pretty decent little place when it's not too crowded. The only decent beers they have on tap are Guinness and I guess Blue Moon. If you ask for a large beer they'll give you this big giant glass that I'd guess is about 24 ounces. I chose a large Guinness to go with my fish and chips.

While I was eating I talked with my cousin Jeff for a while on the phone. This was good because everyone had pretty much figured that Jeff had died since nobody had been able to contact him for weeks.

Once I finished eating I went on over to Rich O's.

All of my preferred seating was taken. DeadLady and her boyfriend/son were on the loveseat, some young couple were on the sofa, and two women I don't know were at the island. I sat at the bar and ordered a Spezial Rauchbier. Pretty good.

After a while DooRagGirl came in a sat at the bar. We talked a little bit, mostly about her writings. I ordered a Smithwick's.

At one point ElPresident and FirstLady came in. One of the things that FirstCouple and I discussed was the fact that Rich O's had unveiled a new beer, and that I should really at least try it, if only out of loyalty to the place. So I did:

New Albanian Croupier IPA

(draft) Just had a small sample of this, as IPA is probably my least favorite style. This didn't taste too bad until I swallowed it, then the hoppiness made itself known. A pretty heavy beer, one that I probably won't bother having again.

I talked DooRagGirl into trying a Mad Bitch. She didn't like it so I finished her sample glass for her.

Eventually enough people left the living room so I went and sat in the throne for a while and had a Diet Coke.

A pretty boring night which I ended fairly early because I'd yet to do a single thing to get ready for my Orlando trip.

Saturday, June 11, 2005
posted by dave at 12:43 AM in category drink

Kind of an abbreviated beer report tonight. Abbreviated because of this:

Founders Dirty Bastard

(draft) This beer knocked me on my ass. Very dark red, nearly black, with a decent head and more lacing than I expected. The flavor was a little intense. I kept wanting to call this a Winter warmer without the Winter part. A beer to celebrate happiness or drown sorrows, not a beer to simply enjoy.

Hey Roger, this stuff is 8.3% according to ratebeer. It hit me like it was more like 18.3% though.

I had this after work. It pretty much gave me an instant hangover. Even after I took a nap and got up at 8:30 I was still hung-over.

So of course I went to Rich O's.

I'd figured that I'd just drink Diet Coke tonight, but after the first one I did end up having a pint of Smithwick's. Pretty good, but it did nothing to cure me, and I switched back to Diet Cokes for the rest of the night.

Spent the night feeling pretty claustrophobic, sitting in the living room area with OddlyFamiliarGirl, CoffeeDude, NotGeorge, and several people that I don't know.

Oh, yeah. My cousin Jamie was sitting out in the loser section. I didn't talk to him for very long though. Kind of felt like I was intruding or something. Jamie's sort of hard to read.

Usually when I'm sitting with a bunch of people, I'll just keep quiet and listen in on the conversations, only adding my $.02 rarely. Tonight I really felt like an outsider, sitting there with my Diet Coke while everyone else drank beer and talked about fishing and their kids' elementary schools. I had very little to add to those discussions so I kept very quiet all night. They all probably think I'm sad about you know what, but I'm not. Just a little hung-over, and a little clautrophobic.

After I left Rich O's I stopped and visited VigilanteGirl for a while, and that helped my mood a lot. She made me take some donuts home. They're taunting me from the kitchen.

Wednesday, June 8, 2005
posted by dave at 7:48 PM in category daily, drink

Man I'm tired.

Today we had a working lunch meeting at the Hard Rock. Probably only the third or fourth time that I've eaten lunch at work in the past 10 years..

This is not because I'm an anti-social asshole, as conventional theory holds. It's because when I eat I get tired, and when I eat in the middle of the day it just wipes me out and pretty much makes me useless for the rest of the day.

The food at the Hard Rock was okay. Just basic stuff I guess. I had a cheeseburger that was underdone and it came with like a dozen fries. I also sampled some potato skins and this pineapple-chicken-bbq quesadilla thingy that wasn't too bad. Potato skins with cheese and bacon are perhaps the 20th century's greatest contribution to mankind.

Or maybe not. I still like them.

My drink choices at the Hard Rock were, as expected, pretty limited, so I had a couple Guinnii. Pretty damn good stuff, that Guinness.

After work I stopped by Rich O's to meet up with RealTrainGirl and MisunderstoodGirl. While I was waiting I had an NABC Blonde Abbey.

While I was waiting some more I had a couple more Guinnii. Yummy.

Anyway, the girls finally showed up and MisunderstoodGirl and I got a kick out of listening to all of the train lingo that was being slung by RealTrainGirl and ChefDude.

I've been helping MisunderstoodGirl set up her own 'blog so we talked about that for a bit, and I offered to host her pictures because the free account she has at JournalSpace doesn't allow pictures.

I think I'm going to go to sleep now. Big day tomorrow. Going to the track.

Also, I missed her today. It was probably because of the Guinness.

Sunday, June 5, 2005
posted by dave at 11:09 AM in category daily, drink, family, friends

Proverbs - The Brewing Art

This poster hangs at Rich O's. I really like it. It's just so busy. Everywhere you look there's something going on, people having fun. Each little section is its own scene, unencumbered and uninfluenced by the goings-on of the scenes elsewhere.

This is kind of like the scene at my niece's graduation party yesterday.

Except that there wasn't quite as much beer. And instead of people making beer, there were people swimming and talking and pitching horseshoes and playing volleyball. And instead of workers and pagan characters and smiling buildings and royalty, there were a bunch of people that I hadn't seen in several years. And instead of hops growing all over, there were eighteen year old girls hopping all over the volleyball court.

Just to briefly list the relatives that I hadn't seen in a long time (or ever) that showed up yesterday:

  • My cousin Durenda and her husband Kevin (two or three years)
  • My cousin Lynette and her husband Bill (maybe a year, maybe two)
  • My aunt Susie (about 6 years!)
  • My second cousin Taylor (never in her twelve years of life)
  • My cousin Michelle and her husband Barry (13 years!!!)
  • Three more second cousins - Michelle's kids (never seen before)

Most of the regulars were also there, with the exception of my cousin Jeff who wasn't returning any calls, and Dan "Holy Shit" Kruer and his wife Chris who had other plans.

So I guess my sister has been holding out on me. She does have hot friends. At least one anyway, and I'm now hopeful that she'll "remember" some others. Some that aren't married.

I spent about the first hour on the deck by the pool talking with my sisters and my cousins and my aunt. At one point I realized that I was completely surrounded by estrogen and decided to escape before, as Neisha warned, I started getting cramps and developing uncontrollable urges to ask people for directions.

I pitched a dozen or so games of horseshoes. The first game I lost with my cousin Mike. The next ten games I won with a coworker of Kenny's or with my friend Eric, then I lost the last game with Kenny.

By then it was dark, and I sat for a bit talking with Eric's wife Terri while the guys tried to pitch one final game of horseshoes by sense of smell or something. I don't think that worked out very well for them, but no paramedics were called so it could have been worse.

Let's see, to drink I had a half-gallon of NABC Blonde Abbey. That's a lot of 7% beer to drink but it was spread out over several hours so I was okay.

Once I left Dina's I drove down to Rich O's (even though I was filthy) and had a diet coke while talking with RealTrainGirl and MisunderstoodGirl, and some dude that looks like Buddy Rich, and DooRagGirl.

I guess I'm a little sunburned. I don't look that red by I can definitely feel it in my face. It will probably start to peel, further increasing my already undeniable sex appeal. Today I get to mow my lawn so I'll probably look like a tomato by this evening.

Friday, June 3, 2005
posted by dave at 11:42 PM in category daily, drink

Just in case this was legit, though I really doubt that it was:

I miss you too, but only sometimes.

Like now.

And now.

And when I breathe.

But those are the only times.

Except for now.

---

(Now the subject changes completely.)

Anyway, tonight I was supposed to go out to the BBC and help usher CanadianGirl out from Louisville. She's moving to Omaha, one of my all-time favorite places, and a bunch of people from work were supposed to meet there tonight to get her drunk and maybe talk her into dancing on the bar or something equally embarrassing.

Well I did make the longish drive out to Shelbyville Road, and I did (eventually) find my way to the BBC brewpub. What I didn't do was stay there for more than about five minutes.

I looked around for anyone I knew and didn't see anyone, so I left. I probably could have done a more thorough search, but there was this asswipe playing a guitar and if there's one thing I really wasn't in the mood for tonight it was live music.

So I left Louisville's East end and went to Rich O's.

The place was really crowded, and I ended up sitting at the bar all night. All I had to drink were a couple pints of Smithwick's and then I came home. I'm pretty fucking tired still from last night's supernap and the resulting sleep deprivation.

So now my plan is to go to sleep and get up before 10:00 so I can buy Kelly Clarkson tickets.

Monday, May 30, 2005
posted by dave at 1:51 AM in category daily, drink, pictures, travel

(I'm putting this in the travel category because I kind of felt like a tourist.)

Saturday night I was irritated. The girl at the Gas'N'Stuff had put me in a bad mood, and I never really got a chance to improve my mood because my fucking phone kept vibrating.

That's how my Saturday night went. Pleasant conversations at Rich O's interrupted every half-hour by MixedSignalGirl calling or texting me about how pissed she was at me for what happened in Las Vegas.

Because I'm such a selfish asshole, I didn't return any of the calls until this morning.

Because I'm not a complete selfish asshole, I called her right after I woke up.

To make a very long story short, we agreed to meet up at this place called Sully's for dinner so we could, once again, hash things out and, once again, decide that we are completely wrong for each other and/or our timing sucks.

Fourth Street Live

Fourth Street Live

LaptopGirl used to call this place Fourth Street Dive but I actually kind of like it. It reminds me a little bit of Fremont Street in Las Vegas. There are good bars and lots of neon. Pretty damn cool for Louisville if you ask me.

I arrived at Sully's about five minutes late, and had myself a Smithwick's. I'm really really starting to like this beer. It just goes down smooth. I feel like I could drink it all night.

I like the layout of this Sully's place. A long and narrow room with a bar running the length of one wall and tables and booths for eating scattered about. The entire wall opposite the bar was glass so we could see out into the street.

Sully's

MixedSignalGirl arrived about a half-hour late, and I suppose I should say that if she was late because she was busy making herself up, then it was worth it. I've never seen her look so pretty.

Sully's

So despite the near-frantic calls Saturday night, she decided tonight to completely ignore the burning issue of her being pissed and we proceeded to have a fairly standard date. I had a burger and fries that were very good and she had some chicken fingers and fries. We mostly just talked about how cool the bar and Fourth Street Live was, and how it'd be nice if they did something like it in New Albany.

Eventually our conversation became more serious and I'm not going to get into it here except to reiterate what I told her, more or less:

I'm very sorry that you were hurt. I've never meant to cause you any pain at all. I really didn't think you'd care. We broke up months ago, and you told me you were doing fine. I told you that I wasn't ready for a relationship, and that's still true. What happened in Las Vegas was a simple one night stand. I don't even have her number, and I don't expect to hear from her again. It was not about you, or because of you, or in spite of you. I wasn't about anyone. Just two people that happened to hit it off and decided to enjoy each other with no strings or baggage to worry about.

During all this I had myself another Smithwick's. MixedSignalGirl was drinking some foofoo thing that was green and brown.

Once we left Sully's we went briefly to the Red Star Saloon and then into the Hard Rock where I bought us t-shirts, then we went to this place called The Pub.

The Pub - Louisville

This was another very nice bar. They also had a pretty impressive draft beer selection. I had myself a four-beer sampler:

Whitbread English Ale

(draft) No head at all, but somehow managed to have very good lacing. A hint of caramel in the flavor. A slightly lagerish finish but not too fizzy. Not bad at all.

Young's Double Chocolate Stout

(draft) Good head, good lacing. Subtle chocolate aroma and more subtle chocolate flavor. Nothing else to distinguish it at all. It did kind of grow on me though.

Black Sheep Monty Python's Holy Grail

(draft) No head. No aroma, No flavor. A very dry and fizzy mouthfeel. Probably good for an upset stomach but little else.

Tetley's English Ale

(draft) Good lacing. No detectable aroma, flavor, or aftertaste. There was just a hint of bitterness that faded before swallowing was complete. Not bad, but very boring.

So the beer, while new to me, turned out to be pretty boring. I'd like to try the Young's again someday though. It was intriguing. This place had at least a half-dozen other beers that I've never seen on tap at Rich O's, but I think most of them were IPAs so I wasn't interested.

The Pub - Louisville

At The Pub I bought another t-shirt. The staff was all wearing shirts with the bar's logo on the front and different bits of English culture on the back:

  • Bollocks!
  • Abbey Road
  • Another pint, love? (Something like that anyway)
  • Piss off! (I really wanted this one)
  • Wanker! (MixedSignalGirl made me get this one)

We ended up having a pretty good night together, getting along great. That was never our problem when we were together. Our problem was that at different times one or both of us would have our minds someplace else or with someone else. We were always just using each other as placeholders, as safe havens against the unknown, as crutches to help us get through the tough times.

Tonight, we said goodbye and once again went our separate ways. I hope I managed to smooth things over a little. I think I did. She's very sweet, and her feelings are important to me. It's just that, like I've said before, those things she sees in me are not meant for her. In the end, I have to be true to myself. I cannot lie my way through a relationship. It wouldn't be fair to either of us.

I will, however, admit that I've often caught myself imagining a deeper relationship with MixedSignalGirl. Hell, I caught myself doing it tonight. I see in her eyes something I haven't seen in many others - genuine affection. For me of all people. But I also see something else. My own eyes reflected within hers. That's what gives me pause and reminds me that there's a reason we're not together.

My own eyes remain focused a million miles away.

(I'm going to update this to say that there are real reasons that things would never work out for us. It's not all because I'm insane. We both know what those reasons are, and I'm not going to get into them here. Hell, I wouldn't have even written about tonight if she hadn't asked me to.)

Sunday, May 29, 2005
posted by dave at 1:28 AM in category daily, drink

Tonight I wrote down my URL for this chick at Rich O's. We'd been talking about writing and somebody had told her that I have a 'blog.

Even though I told her that everything except some entries in the ramblings and the peril categories is boring and stupid, I'm now feeling a little bit of pressure to write something halfway decent.

That way it will at least look like I'm still capable of a coherent thought every now and then.

The problem is, I've got nothing. So I'll just write about my day, such as it was.

After I washed my car Koko and I went over to Polly's for lunch.

After that I went down to my cousin Mike's new house to check it out. Not exactly a castle, but it's not like he needs anything special. It's certainly got to be better than living with his parents has been these past few months.

After my late afternoon nap I stopped to see VigilanteGirl. Now it looks like she won't be changing jobs. I have mixed emotions about this. I mean I'm glad that I'll still be able to see her on a regular basis, but I know I should feel bad because I know she was looking forward to making more money and having her weekends off. This is just another example of me being a selfish bastard I guess.

This one chick at the Gas'N'Stuff gave me shit about being in there three times today. I have no idea what that was all about. For one thing, I was only in there twice. For another thing, it's a fucking convenience store. You're supposed to go there when it's convenient for you, not when it's convenient for the people working there. For another thing, it's none of her fucking business how many times I go in there. So now I'm afraid that I may have another person to avoid at that store. The first one I don't think works there anymore.

I got to Rich O's and for a few minutes I was literally the only customer there. In the bar proper I mean I think there were a couple of people out in the front room. I talked briefly with NotGeorge on the phone and basically told him to hurry up if he was coming because it looked like the place would be closing soon.

Let's see, I took it easy on the beer tonight. All I had were some Smithwick's and some Guinnesses (Guinni?). Spent some time talking with NotGeorge, ClownGirl, Bubbles, DisgustingMakeoutCouple, and the aforementioned chick.

At one point everyone else had gone and I found myself talking with AforementionedGirl about my 'blog and how 99% of it is crap, and 99% of the semi-good stuff is about you know who and how fucked up I am and/or was about her. I ended up writing my URL down for some reason.

I'm going to stop writing this entry now. I've got an idea for a new entry though. Maybe tomorrow I'll write about signals if I can figure out a way to keep it fairly generic.

Saturday, May 28, 2005
posted by dave at 12:08 PM in category drink, technology

Friday night at Rich O's was fairly crowded, but I guess it wasn't too bad because I actually got to park in the main parking lost - first time that's happened on a Friday in months.

I ended up sitting on the throne and having a pretty tame night.

My first beer was this:

La Rulles Triple

(draft) A fairly standard tasting tripel. Perhaps a little more citrus than I'd prefer, but very drinkable.

There were some PBDs that I sort of know sitting around me, and ExBartender and CoffeeDude were around as well. I stayed pretty quiet.

One of the PBDs was drinking a Chouffe Bok, and, based on his recommendation, that's what I had next.

Chouffe Bok 6666

(draft 2002 vintage) A nice reddish-brown. Had a fruit component that wasn't the apples I'm used to from Belgians. I'm going to call the flavor a mix of cherries and beets. Not too bad, but not worth a second glass.

RealTrainGirl and MisunderstoodGirl came in. They'd got new call phones with cameras in them but it looks like we cannot send pictures between us. I guess Sprint and Verizon are not playing well together. I text-messaged a couple of people to have them try to send a picture to my phone but none of the people I tried have camera phones. Oh well.

Any of you faithful readers out there want to try go head and contact me via e-mail or the message form at the side of the page. I'll respond with my cell phone number.

(update: A few people have managed to send pictures to my cell phone. None of them have been with Verizon though.)

Thursday, May 26, 2005
posted by dave at 11:27 PM in category daily, drink, work

We had this work thing today at Louisville's Fourth Street Live. Specifically at the Lucky Strike bowling lanes and the poolhall Felt.

I suppose that, as these offsite meetings go, this one was okay. I can always think of about a zillion real things I could be working on instead of attending these day-long meetings.

During the lunch break several people grabbed a pool table and started playing 8-ball amongst themselves. I got my own table and started banking balls in. Even with the crappy house cue, the dismal lighting, the large stains on the cloth consisting of I don't want to know what, and the fact that the entire table leaned heavily to one side, I found that it's surprisingly difficult to miss a bank shot on an eight foot table.

Most of the people that know me at work know that I'm a pool player, and that I'm a pretty good one. I'm not sure that they grasp just how good compared to them, or that if there was any money in it at all for a player at my level I'd hang up my keyboard and make my living doing something I love instead of something I merely enjoy.

I heard some people talking today, making little comments about how I was playing by myself and wondering if everyone was just too scared to play me. These comments were all made jokingly and everybody got a good laugh out of it, including me. But nobody came over to my table.

If all they're wanting is a chance to win, then they did well to stay away. If winning is what's most important to them, they shouldn't get within ten feet of me and a pool table.

I understand the desire to win. I've seen it often enough, felt it often enough. I just never let it take away from the simple enjoyment of playing. Those times when I found myself outmatched and I lost, I still enjoyed every minute of it. Those times when I knew going in that I wasn't likely to win - I still played. To avoid the competition because of a fear of losing - what's the fun in that?

Maybe part of the reason for my ability to enjoy myself is that I've generally been pretty good at whatever I do. Better than average I guess you could say.

Darts. Horseshoes. Shooting baskets. Bowling.

Bowling was the team-building portion of the offsite meeting. We split up into teams and bowled all these crazy frames; opposite handed, granny style, backwards granny style, blindfolded, etc.

Those were the odd-numbered frames. The even-numbered frames were real bowling.

Back when I was in the Air Force, we'd take a Friday off each month and just go bowl together. We always had a lot of fun, even without all of the goofy-assed odd-numbered frame restrictions. I wish we'd done that today. Just bowled.

So I scored a 91. My even-numbered frames probably made up 75 of those points. My odd-numbered frames were fairly useless. If I'm figuring things correctly I'd have bowled a 165 or so if the whole game had been normal bowling. I used to average about 185 in my Air Force days, but I'd certainly take a 165 considering how I've bowled about 10 games in the last 13 years.

I mentioned a while back that this Lucky Strike place has Smithwick's on tap. I had two, and they were delicious. Everybody else was using their drink tickets to get drinks made with our company's products, but I paid for my own beer. People told me that I should use my drink tickets - nobody would care - but I would care so I bought my own beers.

Just wanted to write something today. This is a pretty boring entry I guess.

Oh yeah I stopped at Rich O's on the way home and had a Spezial Rauchbier. Tried to text-message RealTrainGirl to see if she was stopping by but got no answer.

Wednesday, May 25, 2005
posted by dave at 5:00 AM in category drink

After work yesterday they had NABC Stumble Bus on tap. I'd never tried it before so I gave it a go:

NABC Stumble Bus

(draft) Looked and smelled fantastic - good enough that I pushed past my initial dislike of the taste to give it a fair shot. Eventually the bitterness wore me out, and I ended up giving about half the pint away. I can understand the appeal of this beer, it just doesn't happen to appeal to me.
Monday, May 23, 2005
posted by dave at 8:10 PM in category daily, drink

This morning, already looking forward to getting off work, I started thinking about the beer I would drink this evening.

I was thinking about the NABC Blonde Abbeys I'd had Saturday, and the Mad Bitch I'd had Friday, and I decided that I wanted something smoky. But not too smoky. Just enough to take the edge off the sweetness still lingering on my palate.

The beer I was thinking about was a Spezial Rauchbier. I got to wondering when Rich O's would have it on tap again.

Many boring hours at work passed, and I walked into Rich O's a little after 5:00 to see, lo and behold, that Spezial Rauchbier was on tap.

Needless to say, this is what I had. Two of them actually. It's kind of neat to imagine that I was able to make a certain beer appear just by thinking about it. Tomorrow I plan to think about beautiful brunettes in glasses.

And winning lottery numbers! Must not forget!

When I first arrived I sat on the sofa and listened to a couple of very hot, very young, girls practicing for a Spanish exam. I was pretty surprised that I actually remembered most of the words that they were practicing, and I was even able to help tutor them a little. Pretty good after twenty-three years. Even better considering how CalienteRoja was posing and contorting herself on the loveseat - quite distracting.

After I'd been there for a few minutes, RealTrainGirl and MisunderstoodGirl came in. That's why I had two beers instead of my usual one. We just talked for a while about not much in particular.

I stopped and talked to VigilanteGirl on the way home. She's leaving her job I guess, so that sucks for me, but she'll make more money and she'll have her nights off, so she should be a lot more relaxed.

Sunday, May 22, 2005
posted by dave at 12:18 AM in category daily, drink

Tonight was my second annual pilgrimage to the boonies to attend RealTrainGirl's birthday party.

I guess it was a combination party this year as MisunderstoodGirl's birthday wasn't too long ago.

Just to get the beer part out of the way, I took a growler of NABC Blonde Abbey and drank about 2/3 of it before I cut myself off. I have to work in the morning after all.

The crowd consisted of two main groups: people from the railroad, and people from Rich O's. I was of course in the latter group. I'd say that we were outnumbered about 2-1, but everyone was cool so it didn't matter.

It was a nice pleasant evening. I can only think of two things worth writing about.

I met this dude from Rich O's that seemed completely embarrassed to admit that he'd read my 'blog. I tried to tell him that if anyone should be embarrassed it should be me, but I'm not ashamed of what I've written. I haven't gone through anything that millions of people haven't gone through. I just happen to write about it. It's good therapy for me.

The other thing is that when I left, and I was driving home through the sticks, I realized that the last time I'd driven that road, back in August, was perhaps the last truly happy time of my life. After that night, everything started to unravel, and there's still a big mess of shit coiled at my feet.

Now I've got to go to bed because I have to get up at 5:30 for work.

Saturday, May 21, 2005
posted by dave at 2:47 PM in category daily, drink, travel

After I dropped PigtailGirl off and returned my rental car I just dicked around the Luxor for a while and bought some shirts for my nieces at New York New York, then at about 11:00 I took the monorail up to the Riviera.

I walked around the tournament site for quite a while and was just about to leave when I finally ran into Awesome Larry.

We strolled around and bullshitted for an hour or so then he had to get some rest before his team's next match. I took a cab to the Hard Rock, ate lunch at the Pink Taco, and bought some shirts for my nephews that I hope fit.

Then I went to the Nine Fine Irishmen bar at New York New York and had a couple pints of Smithwick's. Two guys from Ireland came and sat next to me at the bar. They were (of course) drinking Guinness and that inspired me to switch. I had a few pints with them.

I think they were a father/son duo. I could understand the son fairly easily but I didn't understand a thing that the father said because of his accent.

By the time I left it was only about 4:00 and I was about half-pissed (that's what the Irish guys call being drunk) so I just went back to my room and finished the book I'd been reading and made a fairly early evening out of it.

posted by dave at 11:27 AM in category daily, drink, travel

Okay, once I got back to Las Vegas I drove over to The Freakin Frog.

I had myself another draft Alaskan Smoked Porter then I had a new beer for me:

Traquair House Ale

(bottle) Dark reddish brown with a complicated aroma that seemed to include cola. Started out bitter but finished very sweet. A very thick mouthfeel and a very nice flavor that made me drink very quickly. Quite yummy, but perhaps not as yummy as the $15 I paid for it would indicate.

Later in the night I took a cab up to Main Street Station to check out their brewpub. A reading of their beer list was not very appealing to me. Only two of the dozen or so beers seemed worth trying. One was a cherry stout and they were out of that.

The other was a porter, and it ended up being the best beer surprise I had all week.

Triple 7 Black Chip Porter

(draft) That first taste nearly overpowered me. I still can't believe that this beer comes from a brewpub catering to the flavor-impaired masses. Very chocolately, very roasty, very delicious. One of the best porters I've ever had.

I ended up having two of the porters, one while I waited for PigtailGirl to arrive and another while we sat and talked. She'd called right after I'd arrived at Main Street Station and wanted to get together without her friends "cramping her style" in her words.

This was of course intriguing.

At a certain point it was pretty obvious how the night was going to end so we actually both relaxed. There was no more pressure to be charming, and we were in no hurry.

We took a cab to the Rio and I talked her into trying a couple of actual beers instead of the foofoo drinks she'd been drinking. I myself had a couple pints of Newcastle and she tried Newcastle and Fat Tire before settling on (yuck) a Stella.

The next morning I drove PigtailGirl (no longer a descriptive name) up to her hotel and then returned my rental car.

A thing about this - I really really really needed it. Being treated like shit for months - whether intentionally or not - can do lots of damage to a person's ego, and my own self-image was never that great to begin with. I've never been a one-night-stand type of person, and I don't expect to become one in the future. Sometimes people and circumstances just merge and combine and it just feels right. I don't know what PigtailGirl's story is, and she doesn't know mine. There was no need to get into any of that.

Do I feel a little guilty? You bet your ass I do.

But it's not the same guilt I felt when I was with MixedSignalGirl. Back then I felt like I was betraying and belittling my feelings for someone else by being with her. This time my guilt is because I was in part just using PigtailGirl and she really deserved my full attention instead of just serving as a placeholder.

Of course the situation may have been reversed. I could have been used as well. If so, that's okay. It was a great night, and I think we helped each other get through some shit, even though we didn't discuss what the actual shit was.

posted by dave at 10:03 AM in category drink, entertainment, travel

Looks like my last Las Vegas entry with any substance was Tuesday evening, so I'll try to pick things up there.

Went to the MGM Grand to see this new KA show. This was my third Cirque du Soleil show, and I guess I have to say that it's my least favorite. With the exception of this one dude running around on the outside of a spinning hamster wheel thing there just weren't a lot of the stunts and acrobatics I was expecting. I'd have to say that the real star of KA was the set. The most amazing piece of machinery I've ever seen.

Once the show was over I turned my cell phone back on and found out that I'd had a call from Awesome Larry. Larry is a friend from my old Omaha days, and I'd been hoping that he was in Vegas for the BCA tournament.

Well because of a big misunderstanding - there's a Monte Carlo casino on the strip and a Monte Carlo tower in the Riviera - I didn't meet up with Larry until Thursday.

The last part of the night I spent at the ESPN Zone drinking a couple of their 24oz. mugs full of Newcastle.

posted by dave at 1:39 AM in category drink

Tonight was a pretty typical Rich O's night.

I had a Mad Bitch draft, and later two Smithwick's pints.

The highlight of the evening was listening to CuteBlonde completely decimate SocialistDude for several hours. Each time SocialistDude would make a point, CuteBlonde would counter and just dismantle whatever SocialistDude had just said.

It was fun listening to them because SocialistDude was not beng an asshole about his beliefs like a lot of people at Rich O's. I ended up buying them a round of beers just so I could listen some more.

CoffeeDude was there later in the night, as were ExBartender and DooRagGirl.

It was a pretty nice transition back to the real world for me.

Tomorrow night I'm going to a party at the home of RealTrainGirl and MisunderstoodGirl. The timing is a little shitty because I'd really like to see CuteBlonde again, but I'm also looking forward to seeing my lesbian girlfriends again.

I bet that last sentence really lights up the search engines.

Tuesday, May 17, 2005
posted by dave at 7:12 AM in category daily, drink, travel

Yesterday was a long day.

After the last conference session I took a cab to The Freakin Frog out by UNLV. This is a bar touted on the Internet as having the best beer selection in Nevada.

I believe it. Their bottled beer list is the only one I've ever seen that rivals that of Rich O's. On tap, they only had nine or so beers, with no less than three IPAs.

My plan, going in, was to drink some beer that I hadn't had before. This plan was shattered when I saw that they had Alaskan Smoked Porter on tap. Of course I couldn't resist this, one of my favorite beers, in draft form.

While I enjoyed my porter and a cheeseburger and fries I perused the beer list - about twenty pages of beer, sorted by country of origin. I think the same list is available at their website.

My second choice was easy. A beer I hadn't had before but always wanted to try:

Alaskan Winter Ale

(bottle) A nice copper color with a decent head. Starts out a little bitter but has a sweet finish and aftertaste. Works out to be very well-balanced. Another winner from Juneau.

Making a choice, from all the beers available, for my final beer proved to be too tough of a decision for me to make. I asked the bartender (a girl that reminded me a lot of MisunderstoodGirl) to find me a good Belgian that I hadn't had before.

What she came back with, after a couple of suggestions for beer that I'd already had in the past, was a Belgian from Canada that I've seen at Rich O's but never ordered:

Unibroue La Fin Du Monde

(bottle) A very fizzy mouthfeel. Hint of apples - common in Belgians. Quite good, could use more flavor and less fizz.

After I took a cab back to the world, er, the strip, I was supposed to go see Zumanity at New York New York. At least that's what I thought. It turned out that I'd purchased a ticket for the April 24th show, not the May 16th show. Why did I do this? I blame the fact that I bought the ticket on April 12th when I was quite distracted by other events.

So I didn't get to see the show. What I ended up doing was hanging out at The ESPN Zone drinking Newcastles with some girls from Portland Maine who were drinking some foofoo drinks. I was wearing my Great Lost Bear shirt so that's how I was able to infiltrate their little group.

At one point everybody wanted to go up to Fremont Street. Well, everybody except me. I wanted to take one or more of the lovelies back to my room. But of course I'm much too shy too ever actually suggest such a thing, so I went to Fremont Street with them. I switched to Diet Coke while the girls somehow managed to keep drinking. We formed a sort of structural support, where I ended up walking and standing with all three girls putting almost all of their weight on me. I'm sure we were quite a sight, and I'm also sure that I got a few jealous looks from guys in the crowd.

As it turned out, nothing happened except for some nice kisses that I got for being such a sweet guy. I spent the night with them in their room and then came back here to Mandalay Bay this morning.

Now I have to check out of here and go check in to The Luxor.

Monday, May 16, 2005
posted by dave at 12:07 PM in category drink, travel

Last night I went over to The Monte Carlo's brewpub. The place was, like all Las Vegas establishments, beautifully decorated and laid-out. Unfortunately all the money they've obviously thrown into the place hasn't made it to the beer. I only tried two that, going by their styles, might appeal to me. They didn't.

Monte Carlo Silver State Stout

(draft) Very thin flavor and mouthfeel. Definitely drinkable, but so is water.

Monte Carlo High Roller Red

(draft) Quite disgusting. Has that tingly mouthfeel that I detest in lagers. I was surprised to find it in this, ostensibly an ale. This is a beer trying to appeal to the swill drinking masses and the good beer drinkers at the same time. It fails at both.

When I left The Monte Carlo I took a cab to The Rio and went to The Tilted Kilt.

While there I had a Newcastle and a couple of Rogue Dead Guy Ales.

It was pretty cool to be back at The Tilted Kilt though. I wish some of the people I've gotten to know over the years had been working. I'm told that I should come back Tuesday.

Sunday, May 15, 2005
posted by dave at 5:51 PM in category daily, drink, pictures, travel

Today I kinda impressed myself.

I walked from The Stratosphere to Mandalay Bay, a distance of approximately 664,323.4 miles.

I'd never been to The Stratosphere before. I was pretty impressed with all the restaurants and shit they have there. I guess because they're so far out of the way that they pretty much have to be able to provide for their guests.

looking up

Walking up to the thing is pretty impressive. I mean, you know it's tall, but you might not know that it's fucking tall. Don't feel bad. It's a fine line between the two.

looking down

Down there somewhere is the place I stood when I took the first picture.

retarded people

Here are some people that may be about to die. Or at least buy some new underwear.

some idiots

The elevator operator was telling me that when they first opened up this ride they had problems with it. I asked if he meant that it was flinging people to their deaths and he said no just with the wind, where the whole thing would shut down and leave people hanging there.

strip view

another strip view

Anyway, once I left The Stratosphere I waked down to The Riviera. The BCA tournament is going on and I thought I'd look to see if anyone I knew was there. I did see a couple of people from Louisville, but nobody from Omaha or Seattle or New Orleans or Memphis. I plan to go back sometime this week, and I also called a couple of people to see if anyone I knew was at the tournament.

waterfalls in from of wynns

After The Rio I walked to Wynn's new place and checked it out. Pretty cool, but so crowded that I didn't stick around for very long.

When I left Wynn's I walked and walked and walked and walked and walked and walked and walked and walked and walked and walked and walked to New York New York and went into this place called Nine Fine Irishmen for lunch and some beers.

nine fine irishmen

A pretty beautiful place. I took other pictures but they're all shaky and unviewable, like this one:

shaky bar

I've been thinking about putting a bar in my basement. I don't I could pull something like this off though, what with 7-foot ceilings and all.

Kinsale Irish Lager

(draft) Nowhere on the tap did it have the word lager. That's false advertising as far as I'm concerned, but so is the lack of the phrase watery baby bunny piss. This just might give a Stella a run for its money as the weakest non-American lager in the world.

To wash the taste of that stuff out of my mouth I had a Smithwick's with my lunch, then had another beer that was new to me.

Ballingarry Warehouse Stout

(draft) Lacing doesn't even begin to describe the foam that clung to my glass. A very nice stout - reminded me a lot of Murphy's. There was just a hint of chocolate, but nothing overpowering or pretentious at all. Yummy.

One more thing. The other day I saw a living creature draw its last breath and fall over dead. I thought I'd seen everything after that, but I was wrong. Here's how my fish 'n' chips came packaged:

food as art?

The server told me to just dump the contents of this paper cone onto the plate. I did, but I really felt like I was desecrating a work of art when I did it.

The meal was delicious though.

posted by dave at 7:48 AM in category daily, drink, travel

Sometimes I seem to live in my own little world.

It's a lot like the real world except that it's just a little more bearable.

In my little world, I'm the one being stubborn.

In my world, it's kind of nice sometimes to get to be the mean one, even when the target of my meanness does not deserve it. Much.

Meanwhile the real world just keeps turning, oblivious to my hallucinations.

Here are some pics I took of the Fremont Street Experience last night:

Fremont Street Experience

Fremont Street Experience

Fremont Street Experience


Sin City Amber

(draft) A lager by any other name is still a lager, and I still don't like it. Kind of a sickly-sweet taste that I can't really describe and I don't want to drink more of it just to get a better description.

Chimay Blanche

(draft) A nice beer. Not nearly as sweet as other tripels I've have. I got a subtle undertone that reminded me of smoke. There was very little head, though this may have been caused by the filthy glass. I liked it a lot, but there are a zillion better Belgians out there.

Ate dinner last night at a place called Bar Grill Saloon or maybe Grill Saloon Bar. I shit you not. The burger I had was fantastic though.

When I left Fremont Street I took a cab car automobile back to Mandalay Bay and went to this place location establishment called Burger Bar where I had the beers drinks beverages listed above.

By about midnight the time zone change had completely incapacitated me so I went to sleep.

Saturday, May 14, 2005
posted by dave at 7:36 AM in category daily, drink, travel

Last night I had a splitting headache. A headache that overwhelmed all of the pain sensors normally associated with headaches and spilled over into my teeth and my neck.

To try to dull this pain, I went to Rich O's and had some beer. I hadn't been planning to go but then I found/realized that I didn't have to fly out until 10:30 AM.

My first beer was one I know I've had before but I couldn't find any reference to it here, so I went to RateBeer.com and copied my rating from there:

Tripel Karmeliet

(draft) Had a head that lasted forever. Quite a bit blander than other Belgians I've enjoyed - this had a more lagerish taste to it, and no apple taste at all. Despite that I did like it though.

Next I had a couple of the new NABC Blonde Abbey beers that I wrote about the other day.

None of these helped my headache.

I wanted very badly to make a phone call or send a text message, but I didn't. I guess I should be proud of my restraint, but to even need that restraint indicates a bit of a failure on my part.

Here's the current rambling wisdom for me from Free Will Astrology:

One of the world's longest streets is Figueroa Street in Los Angeles. It runs 30 miles. In contrast, Bridge Street, a lane near my house, is about 50 yards long and connects two lengthy roads to each other. The path you're on right now, Pisces, has a metaphorical resemblance to Bridge Street. Your time on it will be brief, and it will serve as a bridge between two phases of your life story. Soon you'll turn onto a longer thoroughfare more like Figueroa. In the meantime, pay maximum attention to the sights and sounds. This leg of your journey will be short, but it will reveal clues that will be essential as you shift gears.

I can't help but wonder about the timing of this horoscope. I mean, I've got this shoe hovering in the air. I'm off to Las Vegas for a week. I don't feel like anything's really going to change with me during this week, but I guess you never know.

Perhaps I'll hit the jackpot somewhere.

Perhaps I'll meet the girl of my dreams, or at least someone to change my current dreams.

Perhaps I'll see The Grand Canyon and become so inspired that I become an artist or a tree hugger or something and move to some hippie commune.

There's lots of shit that could happen, but I doubt that anything really will.

In fact, just about the only prediction I can make with any sort of confidence is this:

I will not allow this trip to be ruined like the last one was. I'm way too irritated to let myself fall into that same bullshit loop again. Plus, it wil be warm enough that I can actually leave the hotel.

So, I'm outta here. I'll update when I can. Probably every day unless I'm on the road or out enjoying the scenery.

Tuesday, May 10, 2005
posted by dave at 6:48 PM in category daily, drink, pictures

...the recognition I deserve!

ultimate shirt

Here we see the lovely MisunderstoodGirl modelling the next big thing in fashion.

Also, the NABC surprised us by unveiling a new beer today.

NABC Blonde Abbey

This is what I've been waiting for! A Belgian that won't kill me if I have more than one in a night! Very good, it reminded me of NABC's Tunnel Vision except not quite as sweet. Could use a little more carbonation, and it lacks the appley taste I've become accustomed to from Belgians. I liked it a lot, and I'm looking forward to the next batch to see if they up the carbonation a little.
Monday, May 9, 2005
posted by dave at 9:38 PM in category drink

Just a quick note to say I drank some weird stuff after work today.

Mestreechs Aait Flemish Red Ale

The board at Rich O's said "Flemish Sour Beer" and that's as good of a description as any. Tasted like somebody had dissolved a Green Apple Jolly Rancher candy in it. It was actually pretty decent for about the first 7 ounces. After that it got a little old. Definitely different, and definitely worth a try.

MisunderstoodGirl, RealTrainGirl, and GreenBeerDude came in while I was choking down the last ounce of the above beer. I had a couple half-pints of Newcastle while we all bullshitted for a while.

I'm also quite pleased to note that I'm not detecting that fuck you asshole vibe from MisunderstoodGirl at all anymore. Perhaps she's mellowing in her old age.

That was a joke.

Please don't kill me.

Sunday, May 8, 2005
posted by dave at 9:19 AM in category daily, drink

Yesterday I went to a Derby party at my friend Eric's house.

I really only knew Eric and Terri there, but there were also some people from high school that I at least remembered. There were a lot of kids running and screaming. All of the kids were boys. I thought that was a little strange.

Drank some Blue Moon and threw some horseshoes. I now officially suck at horseshoes. Not that I was ever great but I was always better than that.

I drew two horses in the $5.00 pool. One was the favorite and the other was like a 12-1 shot or something. I think they're both still running.

Left the party at seven-ish to get showered and head down to Rich O's.

Rich O's was moderately dead. I sat alone in the living room area for quite a while, drinking a Founder's Red Rye and feeling a little depressed. I think it was seeing all the happy families at the party and feeling like that life is something I'll never experience again.

There's something you say to only a few people in your lifetime. To feel it in your heart but be unable and/or unwilling to say it is kind of a pain. Plus it'd be kind of nice to think that the other person would at least be listening.

After a while this dude that looks like Buddy Rich sat with me. I had a Newcastle Brown Ale and we just talked about various crap.

I came home at about 11:00 and played pool until 4:00.

So this morning I'm a little irritated with myself for letting my mood slip last night.

Saturday, May 7, 2005
posted by dave at 9:44 AM in category drink

I bet some people would have a hard time cramming two day's worth of stuff into a 'blog entry.

For me it's easy: slept, worked, drank, watched TV, repeat.

You want more information? Fine.

On Thursday I was sitting at home waiting for Survivor to get tivoed when I realized that I only had a half-day of work Friday. This meant that I could risk going out to Rich O's for a bit, so that's what I did.

I had myself some Newcastles and sat in the living room area listening to these people around me argue about Star Wars and The Lord of the Ring trilogy. It was kind of nice to know for sure that I was by far the coolest person in that area of the bar. I usually suspect that it's the case but the geek squad there provided definite proof.

Oh yeah, I also apologized to ExBartender for doubting his ability to keep his mouth shut about things discussed last weekend. My estimation of him has certainly gone up a notch.

Friday night Rich O's was a lot more crowded, but there was a place next to this cute girl on the loveseat so I sat there and waited for her to stand up so I could check her out.

My first beer last night was a Fantome Saison. I've had this before and liked it. It tasted a lot more sour than I remember, but in a good way, so I had another.

It's been a while since I've actually had anything new to drink. For my next beer I had one of these:

Founders Red Rye

(draft) The first sip of this was just disgusting, but I vowed to drink a couple of inches to give it a fair test. At about halfway through the pint I decide I sorta liked it. By the end of the pint I wanted another one. An odd-tasting beer that just grew on me. Not sure I can describe the taste.

Once CuteGirl and her posse left (waiting for her to stand was worth the wait) PorterBob and some other PBDs whose names I don't know came and sat with me. We talked about various fluff, interrupted by the occasional head turns while WorldsHottestGirl or DooRagGirl would walk by.

WorldsHottestGirl is actually becoming a bit of a regular at Rich O's. I hope the air conditioning is in good working order or it may be a long hot Summer in there.

My last beer of the night was a Newcastle.

Tuesday, May 3, 2005
posted by dave at 11:34 PM in category daily, drink

Tonight, I missed her.

I thought for a while that my good mood was coming to an end, but then I realized that the reason I missed her was that I wanted to share my continuing good mood with her. Never mind how impossible that would be. Kind of like a snowflake wanting to spend a day at the beach with a magnifying glass.

VigilanteGirl got her hair cut. I guess that her boss and I are the only ones who noticed. Bonus points for me!

Today is MisunderstoodGirl's birthday, so I broke a long-standing tradition by going out on a Tuesday night. I also broke a recent vow by going to this Mac & Cheese bar to help her ring in her new year.

To drink, I had a couple of Newcastles. The first one came in a glass that was encrusted with at least 1/8 inch of frost. The second one I had the girl pour into the old glass.

In attendance tonight besides MisunderstoodGirl, RealTrainGirl, and me, were about a half-dozen people that I didn't (and still don't) know. One girl was fairly hot.

MisunderstoodGirl talked me into taking a sip of this Jager Bomb or some such. A sip is all it took for me to know that I wouldn't be finishing it. There's still just one person in the world that I'll drink a shot with, and she's in Washington state, and she's named Holly.

Hi Holly!

Anyway, I figure that since I'm to the point of feeling nostalgic it's about time for me to be shit upon again so I can go back to being irritated.

Now it's 11:30 and I know it'll take me another several hours to unwind enough to sleep. This phone sits here taunting me but I will control myself. There's nothing to say anyway.

Monday, May 2, 2005
posted by dave at 11:31 PM in category daily, drink, ramblings

Man I'm tired.

My early morning excitement has gradually been overtaken and surpassed by the realization that there is virtually no scenario I can imagine wherein all this ends well.

I just noticed that I've used the word wherein three times in two days. I really need to buy a thesaurus.

Anyway, to die in my sleep has always seemed like one of the worst ways to go. A life should be experienced, and that should include the end of a life. To go out in a plane crash, or a fire, or a shooting, to feel something right up to and including the last moments of life - that's how I want to go.

I don't want to go to sleep one night and just never wake up. I want to SCREAM my last breath.

I'm not really sure where I'm going with this - it just doesn't seem right to let things fade away. Some things deserve a grand exit. Some things deserve closure. Some things do not deserve to be pushed aside so they can fade over time and eventually be forgotten completely.

Abrupt topic shift here...

After work today I met up with RealTrainGirl at Rich O's. I had an NABC Bourbondaddy. After a while MisunderstoodGirl and GreenBeerDude came in. Tomorrow is MisunderstoodGirl's birthday, and they're going to this Mac & Cheese's bar that I don't really like. I don't know if I'm going or not. I don't like the bar and it's a Tuesday night. It's Amazing Race night, and I have to work Wednesday. We'll see.

Oh yeah, Roger told me that Rich O's will have Newcastle on tap for a while! I'd like to be able to figure out a way to convince him to carry it all the time but he thinks it competes with one of their NABC beers. I think the only similarity is the alcohol content. I'm very much looking forward to being able end my sessions with Newcastle for the next few weekends.

Another abrupt topic shift here...

I'm feeling a little guilty about this past weekend. I have no reason to feel this way, but a lack of reason has never stopped me before. It's not like I'm going to do anything about it - it's just an observation.

Man I'm tired.

Sunday, May 1, 2005
posted by dave at 12:42 AM in category drink

Tonight I took it fairly easy on the beer.

I drove my Monte Carlo to Rich O's and decided that it was probably more of a cop magnet than my truck or my Intrepid so all I drank was a draft Mad Bitch and then a couple bottles of Newcastle.

I spent the bulk of the evening talking with ExBartender about shit that I've been going through and lessons I've learned. The guy is a damn good listener and, after several threats, I managed to convince him to resist his urge to try to help.

I hope.

The thing is, the situation is not broken, so it doesn't need fixing. Things are as they are. They are good, they are bad, they are all things in between. There is balance, there is acceptance, there is resolve.

I'm pretty sure I managed to drive those points into his head.

I hope.

Another thing I did tonight was try to call TrainGirl to make sure she'd heard the news about MiddleNameGuy. I ended up leaving her a voice mail, saying I didn't want her to hear about it in that format so she should call me.

She ended up calling later but I didn't notice my phone ringing so I missed the call.

Now I'm realizing that if she reads this 'blog she definitely knows the news already.

Saturday, April 30, 2005
posted by dave at 11:21 AM in category daily, drink

Last night, I didn't even leave my house until nearly 10:00 because a half-hour process for work turned into a two-hour one. The person that had made the error is also the person that caught it, and found the solution for it, so that was cool. Eventually.

I'd been planning to meet up with RealTrainGirl and MisunderstoodGirl, but by the time I left home they had already migrated to another bar - one that I didn't want to go to - so I told them I was just going to Rich O's.

I probably would have been better off at the other bar.

Rich O's is, as I'd feared, out of Noble Smoker. I ended up having an NABC Bourbondaddy and after that the place was SO LOUD that I couldn't even hear myself think so I left at about 11:30 and went to wait for OutOfTheBlueGirl to get off work.

We ended up going down to Caesars and hanging out there for a while. It was pretty good to see her again.

This morning I overslept and I had two funerals I was supposed to go to and I'm not going to make it to either of them.

Wednesday, April 27, 2005
posted by dave at 8:31 PM in category daily, drink, work

Just some stuff about my day. I'm killing time until Lost gets tivoed enough that I can watch it and skip all the commercials.

By the way, if you're not watching Lost, then you're missing out on a great show.

Scratch that - if you're not watching Lost then you suck.

Anyway, today for work we had to do some bullshit.

I've often said that while I don't consider myself especially smart, I do think that a lot of other people are idiots.

After today, I see no reason to revise that assertion.

One good thing about work today was that I got to have a Newcastle Brown Ale during lunch. Yummy and anyone *cough* Roger *cough* that thinks otherwise is obviously so far up the ladder of beer snobbery that there is little hope for common ground between us.

After work I went to Rich O's and had one of the last NABC Noble Smokers, maybe forever. No, I haven't sworn off beer, it's just that they're on their last keg and I remain pessimistic about this fine smoked beer ever coming back.

As I was getting ready to leave Rich O's I saw, lo and behold, that RealTrainGirl and MisunderstoodGirl had come in with GreenBeerDude. I had myself a Diet Coke and did some catching up. The girls are having a party the day after I return from Las Vegas (but that's not the reason, silly) so I'll need to stretch my good-mood goal out one extra day to the 21st.

I think I can do it.

Got home and checked out my new garage door opener. No more hernias for me from opening the door on my detached garage. Yay!

I guess that's it.

Sunday, April 24, 2005
posted by dave at 1:55 PM in category drink

Let's see, an uneventful weekend. Can I make an entry about it anyway?

Friday Rich O's was full of strangers. I spent a good amount of time standing in the annex area talking with Roger and drinking an NABC Noble Smoker. It turns out that they've tapped the last keg of this beer, so I tried to really savor it.

After a million years or so the idiots left the living room area so I went and talked with LibertyGirl for a while until DooRagGirl came in and then they just talked with each other.

I also had an NABC Tunnel Vision.

Friday's lesson learned:

Way too many women have had a certain person's dick inside them. It really doesn't matter how pretty or sweet or smart you are otherwise - if you have voluntarily let that person's dick get inside you, then you are a slut, and I have no interest in you.

On Saturday, Rich O's was dead. The fact that they were closed for Thunder Over Louisville may have had something to do with it. Sportstime, however, was open so I went there and had a Noble Smoker while I pondered the weirdness that is that side of the building.

After a while NotGeorge came in and we talked about our favorite subject for a while. I had an NABC BourbonDaddy which was quite good.

ActualGeorge came over and sat with us for a while.

Saturday's lesson learned:

There are a lot of pretty girls at Sportstime. Most of these girls would never dream of going into Rich O's. But that's okay, because they're all stuck up bitches anyway.

I guess that's it.

Tuesday, April 19, 2005
posted by dave at 4:50 AM in category daily, drink

Well I'm told that I have to write something.

I don't feel like it, but I will comply. I'll write about Saturday night.

Yippee.

Rich O's was almost empty for most of the night. NotGeorge and I sat in the living room area and bullshitted for a while.

I had two pints of NABC Noble Smoker.

At one point some stupid people came and sat with us so I got irritated.

Right when they were getting ready to close up my friend Eric called - he was in the parking lot. Since Rich O's was closing Eric and I went to the bar next door and shot some pool for a while.

Saturday, April 16, 2005
posted by dave at 3:57 PM in category drink

Last night I should have stayed home.

But I didn't.

I should have left when I saw how crowded Rich O's was.

But I didn't.

I should have kept my big mouth shut.

But I didn't.

I definitely shouldn't have had that De Dolle Oerbier.

But I did.

So the whole night was pretty much a waste of time. My time as well as the time of those unfortunate to have to listen to me.

My hidden agenda, as near as I can figure it (because it's hidden even from me) is to completely alienate everyone so they'll STOP ASKING ME THE SAME FUCKING QUESTION OVER AND OVER.

The answer is NO.

But I ramble.

I drank my usual NABC Noble Smoker then, for some reason that I cannot fathom, I had the aforementioned De Dolle Oerbier.

I've had this before and I didn't like it. I still don't like it.

It doesn't like me either.

After I left Rich O's I went to listen to some karaoke but they were closing up so I just helped my uncle pack his things up in his trailer.

Then I came home and shot some pool.

Thursday, April 7, 2005
posted by dave at 1:44 AM in category drink

Back in February I did a little experiment.

Today (actually, yesterday) I tried another one.

For my after-work beer I had my usual NABC Noble Smoker. Once I had that glass down to about 1/2 full I ordered a 10oz. glass of NABC's Tunnel Vision and dumped it in with the Noble Smoker.

This experiement did not turn out as well as the previous one had.

I think, because the Noble Smoker is not as strongly-flavored as the Rogue Smoke was, a 1-to-1 ratio was probably not the best combination.

It was still good, but I think it would be better made with two parts Noble Smoker to one part Tunnel Vision.

Sunday, April 3, 2005
posted by dave at 10:05 AM in category daily, drink, pictures

It seems that there was a sporting event of some kind last night. People stayed home to watch, then when it was over, I guess they all went and threw themselves off the Sherman Minton bridge. Whatever people were doing, they weren't at Rich O's.

Here's Rich O's at 8:45 on a Saturday night:

where is everybody

man is it dead or what

LaptopGirl and I used to say, on those nights when Rich O's was dead, that all of the cool people must be at some fantastic party. A party to which we weren't invited. Last night was like I was the one having the party, but nobody felt like coming.

Anyway, the place was dead. I caught a glimpse of CoffeeDude, and DisgustingMakeoutCouple showed up after a while, but other than that it was me and the bartenders. By the time I left at midnight a whopping dozen or so strangers had managed to push aside their grief over some guys scoring more points than some other guys, so the place was only quiet, no longer dead.

To drink, I had (surprise!) an NABC Noble Smoker. DayShiftDude recommended a Schlenkerla Fastenbier so I had a half-pint of that.

Schlenkerla Fastenbier

Supposedly lighter in smoke than Schlenkerla's other rauchbiers, and I guess that's right because I didn't feel like I was eating a charcoal briquette. I'd say it was pretty good for one glass. By the time I finished my second glass I was pretty much smoked out.

I drank my beers in a silence interrupted only by the occasional interloper to the living room area. I had some news on my mind that I was trying to come to grips with. Not sure that I really made any progress, and any that I did make was overshadowed later, so I guess the night was pretty much a wash for me.

Oh, yeah. I stopped and protected VigilanteGirl from some mumbling crazy guy. He was really creepy so I stayed for a while to make sure he didn't come back.

I'm such a stud.

Saturday, April 2, 2005
posted by dave at 3:16 PM in category daily, drink, family

Last night I went to Rich O's.

I'll give you a few seconds to recover from that shocking news.

...

...

...

Okay, now breathe. It'll be okay. The Sun'll come out tomorrow.

Actually, the night started out with other plans. My sister Dina had called me to say that she and SpoonsGirl would be at a bar called O'Shea's in Louisville, and I figured that I'd go there and hang out with them.

Right after I left home, however, Dina called me to tell me that O'Shea's had been boring and that they were now at a place on Market called Farmer Brown's or some such.

A few relayed questions to the bartender confirmed that this Buster Brown's or wherever had only piss on tap, and I told Dina that I'd be going to Rich O's after all.

They joined me, and we spent a few hours in the red room talking about various stuff.

At one point this guy (one of those fucking pretty boys that always gets his way that I hate) tried to pick up one or both of the girls with the classic line, "I'm going to the store, do either of you need anything?"

My sister rattled off a shopping list consisting of feminine hygiene products and various ointments and creams. It was quite funny.

To drink, I had (of course) a couple pints of of NABC Noble Smoker. Dina had two "peachy things" which I guess were Lindemann's, and SpoonsGirl had something so boring I can't remember. Probably Spaten Lager.

After I left I went to listen to some karaoke with my cousin. There was a girl there that I went to school with but didn't really know. I will say that BigHairGirl is aging quite well.

Once I got home I played pool, pausing every minute or so to glare at my cell phone, until about 4:00 then went to bed.

Tuesday, March 29, 2005
posted by dave at 7:31 AM in category drink

This has been out for a couple of weeks now, and I've had a pint almost every day, so I guess I can go ahead a put up an official review:

NABC Noble Smoker

(draft) A very worthy successor to Cone Smoker. Less bite to the smoke, and much more consistent from glass to glass. Easily one of my all-time favorites.

Of course, it will be going away soon, and with the NABC brewer position up in the air I don't even know if I can count on it coming back. That's why I haven't been drinking anything else at Rich O's lately.

Sunday, March 27, 2005
posted by dave at 4:38 PM in category drink, pictures, travel

Okay, I'm back from my Portland trip.

It was, as I'd expected, a very nice diversion, and a welcome respite from the suprisaphobia I've been experiencing back home. Not once, over the entire weekend, did I find myself jerking my head up to see who had just entered whatever room I occupied.

Portland Snow

The first thing I noticed about Portland was all the snow on the ground. I know they had a pretty substantial storm a couple of weeks ago, but I guess I wasn't expecting there to be between one and two feet covering all of the grassy areas. The photo above is of a snowdrift next to the ramp leading to the rental car desks.

Portland Coast

The weather was beautiful - not a cloud in the sky - for the entire time I was there. It was a little chilly - in the high 40s - during the day but there was not much wind so it was quite nice. Above is my first view of the Atlantic Ocean in several years. I was standing in about a foot of snow when I took this picture. Weird.

Also weird was that all of the dry rocks near the water were just covered with buzzing flies. It was like something out of The Amityville Horror.

Portland Surf

There's just something about the ocean that's always fascinated me. I imagine how the biggest swimming pool, pond, or lake, that I've ever seen would be completely swallowed up by this expanse of water. I imagine how the waves crashing against the rocks could have started halfway around the world. It's just neat. The relative proximity to the ocean is one of the reasons I chose Seattle over Colorado Springs back in 1992 when I was deciding where to move.

Portland Fort

All of these waterfront pictures were taken at a park called Fort Williams or some such. There were a dozen or so of these old structures scattered about. I actually took a lot more pictures but my camera's batteries had given out so they're all dark. I spend about four hours on Friday just exploring the old buildings at this park.

Great Lost Bear Taps

On Friday night I went to The Great Lost Bear, the bar I've heard the most praise about in Portland. I guess I liked it okay. The beer selection was very good, and the layout was something I could see working with a place like Rich O's. I guess my only complaints about the place would be (a) the lack of parking, (b) the crowd, and (c) the food. The latter was greasy and cold - not at all what I was expecting when I ordered seafood in Portland Maine. I guess I should have gone to a real restaurant instead of a bar for dinner.

Anyway, the picture above is of about half of the beer taps at the place. There is another row around that corner to the left.

Great Lost Bear Best Seller Board

They had a board up which listed, in order, the best-selling drafts for the previous month. I thought that was a pretty cool idea.

Great Lost Bear Samples

My first beer of the night was a Harpoon Winter Warmer. More on that later. Next I had a sampler tray consisting of five 5oz beers. I took notes on each one:

Sunday River Alt

A decent, but not great, alt beer. Balance favored the hoppy side, especially in the aftertaste. Looked and smelled great, but the taste was a little disappointing.

Allagash Double Ale

Yes, Virginia, there is indeed such a thing as too much malt. This beer just needed something to balance it out. I don't know what it needed. It had nothing but malt. Seven different kinds according to the web page.

Atlantic Bar Harbor Blueberry Ale

I had high hopes for this one. Blueberry flavor in a beer would definitely be something new and unusual for me. This actually ended up being my least favorite beer of the weekend. It tasted to me like an IPA. If there was any berry component to the flavor it was too subtle for me to detect it behind all the damn hops.

Harpoon Smokey Porter

I told the drunk next to me (he had asked) that I predicted that this would be my favorite beer of the night. I was wrong. The smoke was reminiscent of bacon, or perhaps beef jerky. Probably the only smoked beer that I've ever had that I didn't like.

Gritty's Scottish Ale

Creamy and malty. Very good, and I ended up having a second one. The best lacing I've seen in a long time.

My last beer of the night was another Harpoon Winter Warmer. More on that later. Took a cab back to the hotel but I probably didn't need to.

On Saturday, after getting completely lost about a dozen times trying to get to the "Old Port" tourist area of Portland, I gave up and headed West instead. My plan was to drive through New Hampshire and into Vermont. The thing I found out is that even though these states are pretty close geographically to Portland, you just can't get anywhere very quickly. I ended up turning around after about five hours, only having made it into New Hampshire. Vermont will have to wait until another day.

Once back in Portland, having spent a fruitless hour or so trying to find another bar for Saturday night, I just gave up. The streets in Portland are, I believe, nothing more than paved cow paths from the 1500s. They wind around, merging and splitting, changing direction often. It was difficult to go more than a few blocks without getting lost.

Great Lost Bear Crowd

So I ended up back at The Great Lost Bear for Saturday night.

I had another sampler tray, this time with only three beers:

Smuttynose Robust Porter

With a name like Smuttynose, it has to be good, right? Right. A very strong chocolate aroma and flavor. Like the NABC Haggisdaddy Stout it reminded me of, this would probably be good poured over ice cream

Sheepscot Valley Bold Coast Pemaquid Ale

Thick but fairly mild. Not sure what I was expecting, but this wasn't it. I got a little coffee flavor and a little butterscotch. No aftertaste at all.

Geary's Hampshire Special Ale

Smelled and tasted like an Alt, even though it's supposed to be an English Stong Ale. The only non-Altish characteristic was that the aftertaste was quite bitter - too bitter for my tastes.

Great Lost Bear View

So that was the end of my experimenting. I went back to the one truly great beer that I'd encountered. The beer that I found myself calling CoffeeDude about. The beer that actually made the trip worthwhile.

Harpoon Winter Warmer

The web page says cinnamon and nutmeg. I got none of that. What I got was ambrosia. The most unusual beer I've ever had, and it took me a while to pin down what I was experiencing. Copper colored, good lacing, and an actual flower aroma. The flavor was incredibly indescribable, but I'll try anyway. Take a beautiful woman, have her bathe in lilacs and Mr. Bubble. Now perform oral sex on her. That's how good this beer was.

If my work schedule and my vacation pool would have allowed it, I would have extended my stay in Portland just to keep drinking this beer. Hell, I'm already trying to figure out when I can go back next year, when it will be available again. It's brewed in Boston so maybe that city will be my Easter trip next year. I called CoffeeDude Saturday night and asked him to have Harpoon Winter Warmer written on the board at Rich O's for Roger to see.

Anyway, Saturday night there was this girl sitting by herself at the other end of the bar. I heard HotBartender ask her what was wrong, saying she seemed to be in a bad mood. The girl, who I will call MaineGirl, told HotBartender that she was just fine, and that she didn't know why everyone always thinks she's a grouch.

So this girl is apparently my female counterpart in Maine. I ended up talking with her for several hours while we compared tales about how everyone thinks we're so anti-social. MaineGirl, and of course DrunkGuy from Friday night, were the only people I had any actual conversations with all weekend. MaineGirl reminded me of TrainGirl (who is from Maine so I guess that kind of makes sense) and, like TrainGirl, she had no problem at all having a long conversation with someone she'd just met in a bar.

I went back to the hotel at around midnight, slept fairly well, and arrived back home (pouring down rain in Louisville - surprise - not) at about 3:00. VigilanteGirl was in one of her moods, so that made it official. I was back.

The guess the main question (or the Maine question, ha ha) I had before going on this trip was: Would I be able to enjoy my own company without constantly thinking about missing my friends and my established routines? I'd have to say that I did enjoy myself immensely. I think that anytime you return from a trip and wish that you'd had more time that's a pretty good indicator that you enjoyed yourself. I could have spent several more days in Portland.

I will go back again someday.

Sunday, March 20, 2005
posted by dave at 6:33 PM in category drink, pictures

Okay, here's a picture of me in October 1965.

Me Like Beer

This is what I looked like back then, at least on the outside. It is also, coincidentally, how I sometimes look on the inside here in 2005.

At least my taste in beer has improved since then.

posted by dave at 9:14 AM in category daily, drink, entertainment

I don't think it would have been that bad.

I mean, I knew it was a bad idea, but it wouldn't have been the end of the world or anything. I wouldn't have said anything that hadn't already been implied (or at least inferred) a zillion times.

I knew it was a bad idea though. Kind of like breaking a taboo. There are some things that you just don't do. No matter how strong, or how persistent, the urge is.

So last night, sitting at Rich O's enjoying my two pints of Noble Smoker, I kept reaching for my phone. I'd take a drink from my beer, take a drag from my cigarette, and reach for my phone. Then sanity would kick in for a second and I'd jerk my hand away from the cursed thing.

This cycle repeated for the entire two hours I was there.

It would have crossed a line, and I've crossed way too many of those already. This one I need to honor. I know this, but as my brain becomes soddened my heart becomes bolder, and I think we all know that my heart cares little for right, or for propriety, or even for common sense.

So here's what I did: I gave my phone to CoffeeDude and asked him to hold on to it until this morning.

Most weekends it's just something I notice and laugh off. This pressure. Last night I found myself doubting my ability to resist the urge to use that phone.

It was a pretty uneasy feeling. Most of the time I'm possessed of fairly strong willpower (except for the smoking thing) but lately it's been tougher and tougher to keep myself reeled in. Last night, I was afraid that the line would break.

Last night, I found that I didn't trust myself to do the right thing. Or to not do the wrong thing. Whatever.

After I'd entrusted my phone to CoffeeDude, I went over to another bar. A friend from Rich O's is in a band, and they were playing a gig at this place just around the corner.

I had a good time. The place had Newcastle on tap, and that was a pleasant surprise. Of course I could only have one as I'd already had two pints of the 7.5% Noble Smoker.

Came home a little after 1:00 and dreamed of what might have happened if I'd hung onto my phone.

Sunday, March 13, 2005
posted by dave at 12:14 PM in category drink, pictures

Whereas on Friday night the Rich O's crowd seemed fairly typical for a busy Friday night, last night's crowd was all Gravity Head.

Standing room only. If you were lucky enough to find a place to stand.

The place had been invaded by a bunch of Daytonese, and they filled every available nook and cranny. It was only through my charm and good looks that I was able to get a spot on the loveseat within an hour after I arrived.

Gravity Head crowd

Daytonese Invasion

Many of the Rich O's regulars were there as well, crammed into whatever spot they could find (and manage to hang on to) and most of us spent the night exchanging empathetic glances.

As for me, I was pretty much in misery. I don't like crowds. I especially don't like crowds of strangers. I should have left but I'd sort of promised NotGeorge that I'd give him a ride home so I was stuck.

To drink, I had a couple of the NABC Noble Smokers and a Delirium Tremens. The Tremens I had to get from a bottle because the Belgian wave of high gravity beers hasn't started yet. This weekend was mostly about the hops and the stouts. I did, however, manage to have small samples of the following:

  • Avery "The Beast" Grand Cru
  • Bell's Batch 6000
  • Great Divide Oaked Yeti Imperial Stout
  • Rogue Old Crustacean Barley Wine

Once the Daytonians had left - there were mumblings about skinny-dipping in the hotel pool - CoffeeDude and NotGeorge joined me in the living room area. By that time I'd switched to Diet Coke, but NotGeorge had just ordered a Bell's Batch 6000 so we sat around for a while. It was actually kind of nice to be able to have a conversation. It'd been way too loud earlier. Our conversation consisted mostly of wondering whether ExoticGirl tasted as good as she looked. Neither of us will ever know.

Fairly late in the evening DooRagGirl came in looking all rastafied, and I gave her my sister's e-mail address.

Left at about 12:30, dropped NotGeorge off at his house, and came home.

Saturday, March 12, 2005
posted by dave at 1:52 AM in category drink, pictures, weather

When MisunderstoodGirl annouced that it was "pouring down snow" I thought it was a pretty odd thing to say.

After driving home in the stuff I can't think of a better way to describe it.

I haven't driven through snow this heavy since I experienced some blow-back in Juneau, Alaska, 10 years ago, and that wasn't officially snow at all.

Snow was piling up on my windshield faster than my wipers could take it off.

But anyway, I obviously made it home, and here I sit.

I had pretty much decided that I wasn't going to Rich O's tonight. The dreadicipation (I just coined that word) was giving me an actual anxiety attack. I was freaked out about the Gravity Head (Rich O's strong beer festival) crowds, I was paranoid about the numerous times I'd been quizzed about my plans for the night, I had gotten to the point where I could only imagine the worst possible outcome if I went to the bar.

While I was quietly having a nervous breakdown at home, however, two things happened.

First, RealTrainGirl contacted me and promised to be my rock if the Gravity Head crowd started to get to me.

Second, if you think I'm going to write about what was second you're wrong. Let's just say that my full Moon theory has been blown to bits.

So I ended up braving Rich O's, getting there at about 10:00.

Gravity Head Crowd

The place was pretty damned crowded, though it wasn't as bad as I'd feared. I'd had the good timing to arrive when the island was unoccupied so I grabbed a seat and RealTrainGirl and MisunderstoodGirl joined me.

To drink, all I had was a couple pints of NABC's new Noble Smoker. I really like it, and I didn't feel at all like experimenting with any other beer. Not tonight anyway.

We ended up staying until 12:30 or so. RealTrainGirl once again impressed me with her ability to drink. MisunderstoodGirl did not emanate a "fuck you asshole" vibe, so that was good.

I had a good night. Much better than it would have been if I'd shut myself in a closet and sucked my thumb at home, as was my original plan.

Oh, yeah. RealTrainGirl told me a little bit of gossip that I found intriguing, and she also agreed with me that a certain dipshit must have been lying to me when he told me that TrainGirl didn't remember me. I of course knew that already, but it was nice to have a second opinion.

Sunday, March 6, 2005
posted by dave at 12:17 PM in category daily, drink

Last night I told NotGeorge that I really needed to look up my horoscope. It didn't say what I expected:

The more you do to participate in group activities, the better. An opportunity to make personal changes should be taken advantage of. Don't let anyone cost you money.

This is what it should have said:

Last night, your sleep was interrupted by thunder. Similarly, your good mood of the afternoon will be broken by a series of evening encounters that may leave you wishing you'd just stayed in bed. Hang in there, Pisces, for the approaching calm will provide time to reflect, and you will realize that those who appreciate you far outnumber those who mistreat you.

Last night, I had to deal with three bitches before I could even have my first beer. The first, I ignored. The second, I walked away from. The third, well the third I reflected her bitchiness right back at her until she left in a huff. Never to return I hope.

Don't talk shit about my friends when (a) you know nothing about them and (b) they're not around to defend themselves.

Anyway, by the time I ordered my first beer, a Piraat, I was in a pretty shitty mood. NotGeorge showed up and kept asking me stupid questions for which I had no answers, and I pretty much told him as much. He threatened to "jack slap" me if I didn't snap out of it.

We were standing in the annex area and we stayed there until the couple in the living room area left. Neither of us had wanted to interrupt the guy's valiant efforts to get whatever he was hoping for. Don't know if he was successful but the two of them did leave together.

At about this time I had myself an NABC Community Dark.

So NotGeorge and I went to the living room area and sat with OddlyFamiliarGirl and talked for quite a while. At one point it was revealed that OddlyFamilarGirl knew my sister Neisha, a fact that I eventually confirmed by calling my sister and finding out when she'd graduated.

The coincidences piled up even higher when DooRagGirl came in and it turned out that she was OddlyFamiliarGirl's sister, and that she also knew my sister from school.

Oh yeah, there was this professor dude there too, but the circle was broken when it turned out that he didn't remember my other sister's ex-husband James, despite being at IUS at the same time.

Anyway, at one point I had a bottle of Alaskan Smoked Porter, which was quite yummy, then I had a couple glasses of Diet Coke while we all waited for the evening to come to a close.

I would have liked to have talked with DooRagGirl some more, as she was looking as beautiful as ever and I've always thought she was an interesting conversation partner, but TheProfessor pretty much monopolized her time.

Saturday, March 5, 2005
posted by dave at 5:27 PM in category drink, entertainment

Got to Rich O's fairly late last night, and was able to grab a seat on the loveseat pretty much right away.

I talked with TallLady while I had a bottle of t Ij Ijnde Jaars (yes, that seems to be the actual name), a beer recently recommended by Roger in his 'blog. I liked it a lot. Here's my review:

t Ij Ijnde Jaars

(bottle) Reminded me of a winter seasonal. Lots of fruit that I cannot quite define (cranberries? plums?). Thick and strong, yet refreshing at the same time. I really wish I could drink more than one.

After a while TallLady and I moved to the island to talk with CoffeeDude and I had one of these:

Avery New World Porter.

(draft) A fairly mild porter that smelled and tasted of baker's chocolate. No bitterness or coffee taste that I could detect, and I think that's a good thing.

Also, I was talking about how impressed I was that these two girls in the living room area had managed to drink an entire bottle of mead between them, and the bartender, cleaning up their mess, found a second empty bottle! An entire bottle of mead for each of those girls goes beyond impressive and ends up somewhere near insane.

Once I left Rich O's I went to where my uncle and cousin are doing karaoke again. At least they're doing it on Fridays until business picks up more.

A pretty tame night.

Wednesday, March 2, 2005
posted by dave at 5:17 AM in category drink

Tuesday after work I was waiting for my calzone to cook and had a Goose Island Honker's Ale. I really liked it, and it was definitely a good beer to have on an empty stomach. Here's my ratebeer.com review:

(draft) A great beer for starting out an evening, yet interesting enough to make an entire session out of it. Smooth and malty. The little bite at the finish makes it tastes like it should have a higher ABV.

I also had the priviledge of sampling a glass of NABC's new Noble Smoker smoked ale. This is I think slated to be the replacement for their Cone Smoker.

I liked this new stuff at least as much as I liked the old stuff. The smoke was much more subdued than I'd been expecting. Ditto for the hoppy bitterness.

Overall a nice beer with a little smoke and pretty well balanced. Reminded me a lot of Spezial Smoked Lager except with a little bit more smoke. I'm looking forward to its official debut as Gravity Head kicks off next weekend.

Saturday, February 26, 2005
posted by dave at 3:04 PM in category drink, pictures

In my never-ending quest to become the most boring person in the world, I present this, yet another entry about going to the bar on Friday night.

Actually, I went to two bars last night.

Woo hoo.

The first one, recommended by some people who's opinions really shouldn't matter to me as much as they do, was this place called Mac's Hideaway.

I was there for thirty, maybe forty seconds.

My new enemy was there, probably hiding from my hatred by avoiding Rich O's, and I didn't see anyone else I knew, so I left.

When I got to Rich O's it was after 10:00, and it was only moderately crowded. I tried to grab a seat on the loveseat but some assholes told me that they might be expecting some people to join them. My official Rich O's regular card must have been lost in the mail so I couldn't pull rank on these jerks, and I sat at the island instead.

some assholes

My first beer was a Sierra Nevada Harvest Ale. I thought I had tried it last week and wanted to give it another try.

The first big mistake was that I hadn't tried it before - it was Goose Island Honker's Ale I'd been thinking of.

The second big mistake was actually trying this Sierra Nevada crap.

I took one sip and decided that it was just too disgusting for me to risk another. I had the bartender take the vile thing away from me and pour me a Guinness instead.

After a while CoffeeDude came in and joined me and I had an NABC Community Dark. I don't know if they've tweaked the recipe or if my tastebuds simply weren't suffering from sensory overload like they usually are, but it tasted different to me. In a good way.

At one point, lo and behold, the assholes did have some people join them in the living room area. I decided to forgive them for their rudeness because (a) they hadn't been lying to me earlier, and (b) their friends consisted of SweetLookingGirl and TooHotGirl.

I chose that nickname for the latter because after she came in I went out to the front area to make sure that NotGeorge had seen her, and to invite him to join me and CoffeeDude. He told me, "Dave, I just can't go in there. She's just too hot."

Indeed.

At one point some young girl came in and sat with us at the island. I've decided to call her HairGirl because she just wouldn't and/or couldn't stop twisting and twirling with her hair.

Okay Dave, time to start wrapping this up.

Once the living room people left, and the temperature dropped about 20 degrees, CoffeeDude, HairGirl, and I went over to the living room area and I had myself a Piraat.

Once the conversation turned back to coffee I got bored and came home.

Sunday, February 20, 2005
posted by dave at 10:06 PM in category daily, drink, family, pictures

Okay, so this will be quick because I don't really feel like writing anything right now. Maybe I'll come back tomorrow and add some stuff. Or maybe not.

Friday I had one of those fucking nice and pleasant evenings at Rich O's. Boring boring boring. I'm pretty sure I had a Corsendonk Christmas Ale and a couple pints of Guinness.

On Saturday my sister Dina had arranged for several family and friends to meet up at Rich O's to help usher me into my forties. It was supposed to be a surprise but I ruined it by showing up early, plus I'd already had my suspicions when Dina called me a week before to ask what my Saturday night plans were. I ended up leaving and then coming back in so I could let them surprise me.

surprise

From left to right: Dina, my old friend Eric, Dina's fiancé Kenny, Eric's wife Terri, my sister Neisha, and her husband Chris.

Making later appearances were Dan "Holy Shit" Kruer and his lovely wife Kris. CoffeeDude also came in but I don't think Dina had a hand in that.

My first beer was a Piraat, back on tap after a long absence. After Dan and Kris had arrived, and Eric left the kiddie table, I moved over there and spent a while talking with Terri about books and the intriguing fact that she has single sisters.

CoffeeDude had been recommending a Goose Island Honkers Ale so I had one of those.

Goose Island Honkers Ale

(draft) A great beer for starting out an evening, yet interesting enough to make an entire session out of it. Smooth and malty. Tastes like it should have a higher ABV.

Once Terri had relinquished the throne I moved there and had a Guinness in honor of LaptopGirl, who was of course still absent physically but was nevertheless present in my thoughts.

Also in my thoughts were TrainGirl, gone for months now, and MisundersoodGirl and RealTrainGirl. MisunderstoodGirl is not working there anymore so I fear that I won't see either her or RealTrainGirl very often. Oh yeah, NotGeorge was supposed to be there but was a no-show. He'll be pretty bummed when I tell him that Dina was there.

For my final ceremonial beer of the night I had an Alaskan Smoked Porter and, once everyone else had gone home, I found myself sitting nearly alone with CoffeeDude as the big and little hands met at the top of the clock behind the bar.

So I began this new year in my life as I'd spent most of the previous one - sitting at Rich O's talking with a good friend and enjoying a good beer.

Sunday, February 13, 2005
posted by dave at 9:58 AM in category daily, drink, ramblings

Saint Fucking Valentine's Day is tomorrow.

I think that some people, usually the people with vaginas, must have a kind of secondary internal clock - sort of like circadian rhythm but an annual one - that kicks in each February.

An alarm goes off around February 10th and these people start scrambling like mad to make sure they're not alone on the 14th.

I have a different kind of goal for Valentine's Day. The goal of not doing anything so stupid I'll regret it for a very long time.

Twenty years ago tomorrow I proposed to my ex-wife. Seemed like a good idea at the time, but that one action, fueled in part by the timing of the holiday, proved to be disastrous.

Last night I did my best to enjoy myself despite feeling like a complete asshole. I managed to do okay. I had a CorsenDonk Christmas Ale while talking with CoffeeDude, and after a while NotGeorge came in and I had a Robert The Bruce and a Tunnel Vision.

The Valentine Effect was very evident last night. Rich O's was the site of a nearly constant stream of attractive single women, all looking for whatever it is they're looking for when they get desperate. NotGeorge is a good person to share nights like last night with - his radar for pretty girls is highly accurate and useful.

So I ended up having a good, but not great, night at Rich O's. The lack of sleep begun the night before, combined with the necessity of again having to run the emotional gauntlet that is MixedSignalGirl, had put me in an irritated mood. Then the parade of lovelies and the good conversations picked me back up to normal.

Saturday, February 12, 2005
posted by dave at 8:43 AM in category drink, entertainment, family

Went to see the play Seussical at the high school last night. My niece was in it, and my nephew made a couple of appearances as a stagehand.

I enjoyed the play, especially the performance of one of my niece's friends as a yellow bird. There were two things that struck me as unusual though.

I realized about halfway through the thing that, as good as it was, it would probably be unbelievable if I were stoned - and that's a thought I haven't had in over two decades.

Near the end, when the Whos are trying to be heard, one of the characters takes a deep breath and shouts

Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu...

I was positive that this kid was going to say fuck but the applause over how long he held the fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu made it impossible to hear how he finished.

After the play, I went to Rich O's and met up with my sister's friend SpoonsGirl and her imaginary friend HotBlonde. I had a Corsendonk Christmas Ale, a Rogue Dead Guy, and a Hitachino Red Rice Ale. Rich O's wasn't as crowded as Fridays have been lately, but of course I did arrive later than usual.

SpoonsGirl wanted to steal a mead cup then, when I told her I wouldn't allow it, she grudgingly offered to buy a mead cup, but they didn't have any for sale. I promised SpoonsGirl to remind someone to order an extra one sometime so she could buy it.

Wednesday, February 9, 2005
posted by dave at 12:08 AM in category drink

Sitting at Rich O's after work today, talking with Roger and some guy I don't know, and drinking a couple of those Hitachino Red Rice Ales, I was reminded of an idea I had last night.

To test this idea, I asked the bartender to bring me a small amount of NABC Tunnel Vision and a small amount of Rogue Smoke Ale.

Oh, yeah, I asked him to bring them both in the same glass.

For whatever reason, I just figured that the honey sweetness of the Tunnel Vision and the smoky bitterness of the Rogue Smoke would play off each other quite well.

I actually think I was right. I would drink the stuff if it were available.

Now I know, if I ever decide to cave in to the peer pressure and dabble at homebrewing, what my first beer will be. A Belgian wheat with smoke and honey.

Monday, February 7, 2005
posted by dave at 5:38 PM in category drink

I found out today that, for some unknown reason, I've never rated Delirium Tremens at ratebeer.com. I just corrected this injustice:

Delirium Tremens

(draft) My desert island beer. I only wish I could drink more than a couple without going into a coma. The ultimate Belgian as far as I'm concerned.

Another thing about this beer - when I tell the bartender at Rich O's that I'd like a Tremens, he invariably asks, "Delirium Tremens?"

Like there's any other.

posted by dave at 12:33 PM in category daily, drink

I didn't plan to do anything last night except just have the game on in the basement while I shot some pool.

That way I could say I'd watched the stupid thing without being a complete liar.

At one point, however, I went to the store to gas up my truck (so I wouldn't have to do it this morning) and when I left the gas station I just reflexively headed to Rich O's.

Actually Rich O's was closed, it being Sunday and all, but its sister-business Sportstime Pizza was open so I went there.

Football really pisses me off. It preempts my regularly scheduled programming. It always runs late. It's boring.

And it makes otherwise normal people into obnoxious drunken idiots.

I ended up sitting at Sportstime with NotGeorge while I had a Gulden Draak and a Tunnel Vision. Every time somebody on TV would do something people would start jumping up and high-fiving (fiveing?) each other like they were the ones that had just done whatever it was.

Only NotGeorge, red-blooded male that he is, was able to pull his attention away from the TV long enough to pay proper homage to SmolderingHotGirl who was sitting a few tables away. She was with people we were assuming were her parents and her daughter, but now I realize that it could have been her parents and her sister, in which case NotGeorge and I might both be going to hell.

I bet it's all Bud and Miller there.

Sunday, February 6, 2005
posted by dave at 1:28 AM in category daily, drink

I guess the theme of tonight - at least the theme of the conversations we had tonight - was what the fuck does/did she see in him?

Not very original, I know. This question has been pondered since the dawn of time, and will continue to be pondered at least until the Sun expands 93,000,000 miles and turns our little planet into charcoal.

Original or not, there it was. The Big Question.

What the fuck does ExtremelyHotGirl see in ShavedHeadFatFucker? What the fuck does KindaCuteGirl see in ClearlyGayGuy?
What the fuck did you-know-who see in FullOfHimselfDude, or in NaiveAndCluelessGuy?

These questions will probably never be answered.

Tonight was a fairly typical night at Rich O's, highlighted only by a little paranoia on my part that proved to be unfounded.

To drink, I had a Rogue Smoke, a Delirium Tremens, and an NABC Tunnel Vision. Nothing new for me, thanks anyway. All are excellent beers. The Tremens, in particular, is just fantastic.

The first half of the night I spent talking with MusicalHippyDude and the guy who I think is the singer in their band. The second half of the night I spent talking with one of LaptopGirl's ex-boyfriends. The cool one, for those keeping score at home.

ElPresidente is turning 40 this Monday. This revelation only served to remind me of my own impending birthday, just two weeks away. I'm not depressed about this milestone at all, but I am irritated by it. There was a lot of stuff that was supposed to have happened by now that, I fear, will never happen as I slide down the other side of this hill I'm about to crest.

I have more to say, but I'm going to hold off. It's this new "restraint" thing I've been working on.

(PS, 020805: I fucking hate typos. I just corrected one in this entry that had sat for nearly three days. If you hate typos as much as I do, please point them out to me so I can correct them as soon as possible.)

Saturday, February 5, 2005
posted by dave at 1:00 AM in category drink, family, pictures

"Watch this, CoffeeDude. I bet I can get that girl to come sit with us."

CoffeeDude took a look at the girl at the bar, then took a look at me, then took another look at the girl at the bar, and then gave a little chuckle. "Go for it." CoffeeDude was skeptical.

He was more skeptical when I began flailing my arms and calling out "Hey you!" trying to get her attention.

He was the skepticism king of the universe when, having failed to lure her gaze with my flailing and hey-youing, I wadded up a napkin and threw it at her head.

Hey, girls like that stuff, right?

Right?

Well my aerial bombardment did indeed get her attention, as I'd known it would, and I patted the couch and told her that a seat was available. She got up and made her way over.

We couldn't very well turn CoffeeDude loose upon the world, thinking he'd discovered a new secret of chick-magnetism, throwing stuff at all the women he encountered, so after enjoying a couple of seconds of being CoffeeDude's hero, I introduced him to my sister Dina.

meanddina

Dina's fiancé was out enjoying a boys night out so she came to Rich O's to have a couple of beers with her older brother. Awwww.

Other than this little bit of rarity, it was a pretty tame night. We all sat in the living room area and talked. I had a Gulden Draak and a Delirium Tremens. I introduced Dina to NABC Tunnel Vision, and she seemed to like it.

Also, I guess the place where my uncle and cousin have been doing karaoke has decided to stop for a while, so unless they get another gig somewhere I'll be going straight home from Rich O's.

That's what I did last night.

Sunday, January 30, 2005
posted by dave at 10:23 AM in category daily, drink

Started out the night by journeying to Hooter's in Jeffersonville for some Newcastles. More and more I'm finding it to be a real shame that my regular bar, one of the best beer bars anywhere, pulled this fine beer from its draft rotation two years ago in favor of a much blander substitute that just happens to be more profitable for them. Per glass, anyway.

It's just sad, really.

But I digress.

There was this unbearably annoying guy working the kitchen at Hooter's. I don't know if he was some kind of manager or what. Whatever his official title, his job last night, as he saw it anyway, was to ring this loudass bell and scream at the top of his lungs, "WE'VE GOT FOOD AT THE WINDOW, LADIES!!! AMANDA! TIFFANY! JESSICA! AMBER!"

This happened approximately every 2.5 seconds from the time I walked in until...

At one point this dipshit decided that he wasn't getting the respect he deserved, so, instead of ringing his fucking bell, be took an empty tray and slapped it against the bar with great force. "LADIES, WE'VE GOT FOOD AT THE WINDOW!!! JULIE! BRIDGETTE! AMY! CARRIE!"

It's been estimated by scientists that when Mount Mazama exploded about 7,000 years ago, forming what is now Crater Lake in Oregon, it was the loudest noise ever heard by humans.

This guy slapping his fucking tray on the counter is probably in second place. A close second. It sounded like someone had fired off a cannon into an ammo dump in my head.

Half the place jumped, the other half had mild heart attacks. One of the former, a customer sitting about five feet from this jerk, rose to his feet and quite calmly said, "If you ever do that again, you're going to have that tray shoved up your ass, then we'll see how loud you can really be."

So now this guy is my fucking hero. And that of a lot of others I suspect, because loudass guy was much quieter after that.

Once that little drama was over I headed to Rich O's and sat at the bar talking with MusicalHippyDude while I enjoyed a Rogue Smoke Ale.

Rich O's was about two-thirds crowded. There were a bunch of strangers in the living room, and a bunch of PBDs at the island. Nobody I knew very well.

My next beer was an Orval, sort of recommended by a friend the other night.

Orval

(bottle) Huge head, bordering on the ridiculous. Taste, as I expected, was that of a fairly mild Belgian. A little less sweet and a little more hoppy than I'd generally prefer, but a very good beer anyway.

Bubbles came in and she and MusicalHippyDude went over to the island to talk with the PBDs. I ended up talking with some guy that I'm sure has a name, but I could not (can not) remember it, and I had myself an NABC Haggisdaddy Stout.

NABC Haggisdaddy Stout

(draft) First time drinking the non-bourbonized version of this stout. I got an almost overpowering sense of chocolate - both in the aroma and the flavor. Pretty good, but would probably be too much for me to wrap an evening around. I was pleased to detect no coffee or licorice at all.

After talking with MisunderstoodGirl for a few minutes I left Rich O's and listened to some karaoke with my cousin Mike for a while before heading home.

Sunday, January 23, 2005
posted by dave at 11:24 PM in category drink

Went and picked up a couple bottles of Blue Moon Belgian White so I could do a proper tasting.

Blue Moon Belgian White

(bottle) A commonly-available beer that I put off drinking simply because of its availability - reasoning that something so widely accepted must be bland and boring. I was quite wrong (see Newcastle for another example of my flawed logic). This is a very nice beer that went down very easily. I think I could drink it all night, and that's not something I could say about most Belgians.

Also had the De Dolle Ara Bier that I had in my 'fridge.

De Dole Ara Bier

(bottle) Pouring this into a glass resulted in about a 5/1 head/beer ratio. I actually lost patience waiting for the head to dissipate and ended up disrupting it with my finger. Once I got to the actual beer I really enjoyed it. A little lighter in both flavor and ABV than other Belgians I've enjoyed, so more suitable as a session beer. Black flecks that settled to the bottom of my glass turned me off a little.

Finally, one more from De Dolle:

De Dole Boskeun

(bottle) Fizzy, hazy orange. Citrus undertones that I didn't care for at all. MIght be okay on a hot Summer day. My least favorite from this otherwise wonderful brewery.

(I just corrected a typo in this entry. I'd had the word Belgina instead of Belgian in the first sentence. Belgina, what a lovely name that would be for the daughter of a beer lover such as I.)

(Yes, I'm kidding.)

posted by dave at 1:01 AM in category daily, drink, entertainment, pictures

A little bit different tonight.

Rich O's was my second stop. My first stop will remain private.

Anyway, at Rich O's I had an NABC Tunnel Vision, a Hitachino ricey beer (can't remember the name, but I find it oddly appealing) and finally a Gulden Draak.

Rich O's was moderately crowded but I was able to grab a seat at the bar before my second beer.

One of my friends is in a band, and they were playing a gig at this dive down by the river so I went there. MisunderstoodGirl and OddlyPrettyGirl came in a little after I did and joined me.

charm school dropout

One of my friends being all dainty and ladylike and shit.

OTTO

My friend Tim rockin' away.

While there, I tried my very first Blue Moon Belgian Ale. I actually liked it a lot, but my taste buds were a little overworked from my earlier beers so I'll hold off on doing an official review until another day.

I'm home fairly early because the place where I've been going to listen to karaoke was mysteriously closed.

Saturday, January 22, 2005
posted by dave at 11:56 AM in category daily, drink

Friday night Bob and I spent an hour or so at the hotel bar doing some final reminiscing before he returns to Arizona. I had a couple of the BBC porters and Bob drank MGD for some reason.

I want to state again, for the record, that it was very cool to see my old friend again. We'd kind of drifted apart a little during his last days in Omaha, and of course there'd been no contact for 14 years after that, but Bob was a big part of what may very well turn out to have been the best years of my life, and that little blast from the past that seeing him brought was very refreshing.

After I left the hotel, and took care of a little drama that's been developing nearer to home, I went to Rich O's and had myself an Upland Winter Warmer. Rich O's was only about half full at that late hour. I waved at GlassesGirl and sat on the throne, then talked with GrammarLady and her husband for a while.

GrammarLady told me that she'd never seen me looking so worn down and with such dark circles under my eyes. Gee thanks, GrammarLady. Just the pick-me-up I wanted.

Once my companions left I spent a few fruitless minutes trying to make eye contact with RealTrainGirl or MisunderstoodGirl, but they were, shall we say, busy.

Stopped at the karaoke bar on the way home. I'm finding it to be a nice way to end out an evening.

Friday, January 21, 2005
posted by dave at 11:06 AM in category daily, drink
Please come see me. I need to talk to you.

That's what the text message said. No contact from MixedSignalGirl for a week and now this. A little ominous if you ask me.

So I left the tournament site (I was a little bored anyway) and drove back to Indiana where, of course, she was nowhere to be found. Two attempted phone calls only got me a recording saying that her voicemail was full. So I sent a text message and went to Rich O's.

I walked in and immediately turned around and walked back to my truck. The crowd was unbearable, and since the tournament site has been so crowded I really felt the need for some space around me.

Once I got back to my truck, though, I realized what a baby I was being so I went back in and ordered a Delirium Tremens. The strangers sitting at the island left and I grabbed a perch.

I spent a good part of the night sitting there checking out the various cute brunettes in glasses - there must be a convention in town somewhere, and after a while CoffeeDude showed up and joined me and some dude I don't know.

I had an Upland Winter Warmer and asked the bartender to put an Alaskan Smoked Porter on ice for me.

Yawn. After a while we grabbed seats in the living room area and I got to talking with some guy about computer storage. Very exciting stuff.

Once I had finished my porter (yummy) I tried MixedSignalGirl one more time (still full voicemail) and came home.

Thursday was sort of the last night of my vacation. Tonight it reverts to just a regular weekend. Man it will suck to have to put a suit on again.

Wednesday, January 19, 2005
posted by dave at 11:22 PM in category drink

My 100th beer rating at ratebeer.com:

De Dolle Oerbier

(bottle) Highly recommended by several people, but I'm not really sure why. I've never had cherry wine, but I'm convinced that I now know what it would taste like. Very sweet, very winey. No bitterness to balance the sweetness at all. Not very good.

Before this I had an Upland Winter Warmer, one of my favorites from last Spring. Yummy.

posted by dave at 8:56 AM in category drink

Was going to go out to the tournament site, but decided to stop by at Rich O's first. Had an NABC Tunnel Vision and decided to skip the (boring to me) one-pocket night at the tournament.

RealTrainGirl and MisunderstoodGirl joined me and we talked for a while about nothing much.

I'm pretty close to my 100th rating at ratebeer.com so I did something I normally wouldn't do - I had an Arrogant Bastard.

Stone Arrogant Bastard

(draft) Roasty, malty, hoppy, weirdness. I'd like this more without the bitter finish.

Next I had a Sierra Nevada Celebration Ale.

Sierra Nevada Celebration Ale

(draft) One of the better IPAs, but that's not saying too much for someone like me that doesn't like the style. Just decent, nothing more. Not bitter but a little sour.

To end the session I had one of those Hitachino ricey things that I had before. It's weirdness is a little endearing.

Came home at 8:00 and practiced some more 9-Ball.

Tuesday, January 18, 2005
posted by dave at 11:42 AM in category daily, drink

Sunday night, still at The Executive West for the tournament, I went to the hotel bar with my friend Bob and his friend Mike. I had a couple BBC Porters. Last year I had this (it's the only decent beer the hotel bar carries) and didn't care for it too much, but this year it is excellent. I don't know if it's because my tastes have changed or because last year it was simply a bad keg.

Anyway, Bob and I caught up with each other a little and talked about the olden days in Nebraska. It was all very nice and pleasant.

Monday night I had a beer with my friend Fred and then sat around the bar having a couple more porters while I did some people-watching. It was also very nice and pleasant.

Life's too nice and pleasant lately.

I need some drama dammit.

Thursday, January 13, 2005
posted by dave at 12:15 AM in category daily, drink

Off tomorrow (yay!) so I went to Rich O's and celebrated virtual Friday.

Well, maybe celebrated is the wrong word. Perhaps observed would be better.

Rich O's was fairly empty and I sat at the island by myself all night. A few of the professional beer drinkers were scattered around, and three semi-cute girls were sitting in the red room, but that's it. Nobody I cared to talk to was present.

Determined to try new beers, and only new beers, tonight, my first selection was a Ridgeway Santa's Butt Porter. Here's what I said about it at ratebeer.com:

(draft) Probably the blandest selection that Rich O's Saturnalia has to offer. A bit of a chocolate smell and taste that's followed up by a very watery finish. Decent but not memorable at all.

Next I had a Hitachino Nest Red Rice Ale.

(draft) Tastes like a pilsner until you swallow, that's when the funkiness takes over. I guess the funkiness was due to the sake yeasts used on the rice. My enjoyment of this beer grew with each sip, but by the time the glass was gone I still didn't like it enough to order another pint.

Finally, I had a XX Bitter De Ranke, a beer with a scary (to me) name.

(draft) The hop aroma was very evident and I was surprised to find such a tame flavor behind it. This is a beer I could drink all night, but I wouldn't want to because it's pretty boring.

So I had a very pleasant and relaxing night, disturbed only by VigilanteGirl's continuing perkiness. My castle walls have been completely rebuilt so she's wasting her time trying to get in. My loss, really.

Sunday, January 9, 2005
posted by dave at 1:04 AM in category daily, drink, family, pictures

Actually more of a Saturday beer report as Friday I stuck to Diet Coke, but let's not get too picky, okay?

Friday night I arrived late, mainly to get some food for my flu-ravaged body. The place was incredibly crowded.

pandemonium

Even after 10:00 it was mostly standing room only.

At one point, however, I did grab a quick seat on the loveseat and I and some people I didn't know got to comparing cell phones.

blondie

I took this picture of the cute blonde sitting on the sofa and sent it to her phone eventually. My first attempt went to some random number and some guy called me back and asked "Who's the blonde? She's hot!"

coffeedude and musicalhippydude

This picture was not from Friday night - it was just in my phone from the week before or something. These are a couple of my Rich O's friends.

oddlyprettygirl

OddlyPrettyGirl paused long enough to smile for the camera.

After I'd left Rich O's and eaten some food I felt a lot better so I went to where my Uncle Wayne does karaoke.

wayne and carol

This is my Uncle Wayne and my Aunt Carol and some Hispanic guy that I don't know.

On Saturday I felt pretty much back to normal so I went to Rich O's and had some half-pints of several beers.

Some other stuff happened but I'm keeping it to myself.

Sunday, January 2, 2005
posted by dave at 7:04 PM in category daily, drink

Just a quick entry about Saturday night.

Rich O's was closed again, so I ventured to Jeffersonville in search of some good beer. They almost always have Newcastle on tap at Hooters.

I'd been hoping to meet up with my cousin Jeff (one of my resolutions is to see more of people from my childhood) but alas, he was trying to load up on as much college football as possible in preparation for the upcoming dry season.

While I sat and drank my Newcastles (I remembered to ask for an unfrosted glass), I had ample opportunity to check out the local talent. I came to the following three conclusions:

I am an old fart fast on his way to becoming a dirty old man.
Somebody in the area is making a very good living supplying breast implants to girls that undoubtedly looked a lot better without them.
Even though it's Hooters policy that their waitresses wear those skimpy outfits, some girls really should at least lose the baby fat before dressing up like that.

Each of these conclusions mangaged to get me in an irritated mood so I decided against my earlier plan to finally try a Blue Moon ale and left at around 10:00.

While I was contemplating my irritation I got a call from MixedSignalGirl who, as usual, promptly decided to attribute my irritation to her own actions of the night before.

I let her have her little fantasy.

Thursday, December 30, 2004
posted by dave at 1:17 AM in category daily, drink

Actually not much to say about tonight's Rich O's trip. I had a Delirium Noel and a Fantome Saison. I've had both before and liked them both.

Rich O's was moderately crowded, though not as much so as I was expecting. I was able to grab a seat on the sofa right away where I talked with a few people I don't know.

After a while CoffeeDude and ElPresidente joined me and we bullshitted for an hour or so.

Oh yeah, DooRagGirl came in at one point. CoffeeDude seems to know her better than I do. She was looking very pretty, but I didn't talk to her as CoffeeDude was pretty much monopolizing her time.

I left fairly early so I could catch VigilanteGirl before she left work.

Tuesday, December 28, 2004
posted by dave at 11:21 PM in category drink

Still trying to play catch-up with Rich O's Saturnalia list, I actually had two different beers after work today. The first was a Bells Third Coast Old Ale. Here's what I thought.

(draft) Cloudy brown, with a nice long-lasting head. The taste was malty and nutty, with a fairly bitter finish that became more tolerable as the glass became emptier.

Next I had a De Ranke Pere Noel. I actually thought I'd had this a couple of weekends ago but I was wrong.

(draft) A nice cloudy copper color that was quite intriguing. Nothing particularly special about the taste - actually this beer seemed a little too well-balanced. All of the flavors seemed to cancel each other out.

Tomorrow is virtual Friday (the next two days are holidays for us) so I was tempted to stay for a third beer and continue my conversation with ExBartender but, in the end, I figured that three strong beers on a stomach that'd only had a Twix bar in it all day would not be the best move I'd ever made.

Monday, December 27, 2004
posted by dave at 11:09 PM in category daily, drink

Today, Rich O's was finally open again, so I stopped by after work and sampled a Three Floyds Alpha Klaus Christmas Porter. Here's my ratebeer.com review:

(draft) Of all the beers at Rich O's, this one is perhaps the one that's been recommended to me most often. Frankly, I don't understand all the hype. It is a good beer, but not a great one. I think my main problem was the gritty feeling I got in my mouth while drinking it. It almost seemed like there was something that hadn't quite dissolved all the way. By the end of the glass it was better. Other than the gritty mouthfeel, this beer smelled and looked fantastic, and it had a really good flavor - one that wasn't nearly as sweet as I was expecting. A very drinkable beer, but any place that has this probably has something better as well.

While at the bar, I spent a little time talking with the owner about 'blogging, and I got an idea for a post in my head. The title for the post would be If you don't like it, stop reading it and it would contain an awful lot of venting.

We also talked about something that's been on my mind for a while - the importing of old (in my case paper) journals into 'blog form. Roger's concern seemed mainly about how to deal with grammar and euphuism, while my main concern would be whether to import the things at all.

Anyway, I guess that's it. I had a nice end to a very boring day at work.

Wednesday, December 22, 2004
posted by dave at 8:39 PM in category daily, drink, weather

We got about 5" of snow today. Now there's sleet and freezing rain. Supposed to be another 6-10" of snow later tonight.

Pretty damn cool.

We had a brief lull at around 5:00 so I (of course) went to Rich O's and had a beer. Didn't really feel like experimenting so I just had a Great Lakes Christmas Ale.

I guess that's it.

Tuesday, December 21, 2004
posted by dave at 10:42 PM in category daily, drink

So Rich O's is having this pagan/christmas beer festival yet, because of the unfortunate holiday timimg, they're closed for the next two weekends. I'm a little afraid that I won't get a chance to sample the 35(!) beers scheduled to be on tap over the next couple of weeks.

Accordingly, I went back after work today to cross another beer off my list.

What I had was a St Feuillien Cuvee de Noel - I'd provide a link but their page seems to be broken.

Here's what I thought:

(draft) One of those beers that takes a long time to pour. Once in a glass, the head faded fairly quickly. I detected a strong oak smell until the head had gone, then lots of malt and alcohol with some fruit. The alcohol-bitter aftertaste reminded me strongly of bourbon. I liked this, but I'd recommend it to close out a session instead of beginning one.

Meanwhile, I'm sitting here semi-depressed about the holidays. I've never been one of those people, and I'm pretty sure I won't really become one. I'm just a little more aware this year of things that might have been, and things that used to be, and things that almost were, than I've been in recent years.

I do know what I want for Christmas though. About two feet of snow between now and tomorrow morning so I can skip work.

I don't know if I've been good enough to deserve that present though.

posted by dave at 12:21 AM in category daily, drink

Stopped by Rich O's after The Day Of Hell at work. Had a Corsendonk Christmas Ale while talking with DooRagGirl's ex-husband, who I suppose needs a new nickname. One that's not so much of a downer.

(draft) Smelled better than it tasted, but it smelled fantastic. Nice and malty with some spice aroma that I couldn't identify. Taste was very similar to the Great Lakes Christmas Ale - if you like that, you'll like this.

With a name like Corsendonk, it has to be good, right?

VigilanteGirl didn't make it to the doctor today. She's supposed to go tomorrow. I find myself concerned, but I am in a pessimistic phase.

My nap, which was supposed to be one hour, turned into a four hour affair, so now it's after midnight and I'm not even close to tired. I should probably try to sleep anyway as I don't expect tomorrow (today!) to be any better at work.

Sunday, December 19, 2004
posted by dave at 9:18 AM in category drink

Saturday night at Rich O's had much less of a madhouse atmosphere. I was actually able to grab a seat on the sofa fairly quickly.

Based on several Friday night recommendations, my first beer was a Gouden Carolus Noel. I liked it, but not as much as I was expecting given the rave reviews.

(draft) Highly recommended by all who'd had it at Rich O's. Definitely a Christmas Ale - all sorts of complex flavors. I thought the fruitiness was a little bit too much but I suppose it was needed to mask all of that alcohol.

Got to meet some of the other ratebeer.com people. I'm pretty horrible with names but there were two cool guys and one hot girl that had made trips of varying length to enjoy Saturnalia.

My next beer was a Pyramid Snow Cap Ale.

(draft) Nice and smooth, no particular flavor jumped out and grabbed me. This kind of reminded me of Pete's Wicked Winter Ale.

My last beer of the night was a draft of Spezial Rauchbier Lager. I've had this before, from a bottle, and don't really have any updates to that old rating.

I liked it a lot, but I could detect no smoke whatsoever.

Aside from the beer, I spent the night talking with one of LaptopGirl's ex-boyfriends about nothing in particular.

I got text-messaged about a dozen times by someone asking if I was pissed off. By the end of the night I was a little pissed - because of all the damn text messages.

I left fairly early as I had (have!) a rare Sunday morning work appointment.

Saturday, December 18, 2004
posted by dave at 12:23 AM in category drink, pictures

Tonight was the beginning of the Saturnalia Festival at Rich O's.

Unlike Gravity Head and the Hop Festival, I've really been looking forward to this festival. Nearly every beer on the list is one that intrigues me.

As a special bonus, interspersed with my beer ratings in this entry will be some pictures!

My first selection from Rich O's pink Saturnalia menu, and this is no big surprise when you consider my love for Delirium Tremens, was this:

Delirium Noel

(draft) Dark brownish red with a very dense head that lasted forever. A very nice completion to the Delirium triad. Not as much spice as I was perhaps expecting, but very drinkable. More similar to Delirium Nocturnum than to Tremens.

This first beer was consumed while standing at the end of the bar waiting for anyplace to open up where I could sit.

One funny thing during this time - some girl forced her way through the crowd and ordered two glasses of wine! The bartender's eyes rolled so far back in his head I thought he'd turned into a zombie for a second.

Just a couple views of how crowded Rich O's was. These pictures were taken from the kiddie table - the only place I could sit for the first two hours.

some idiots

some idiots

Once I'd managed to worm my way onto the sofa I was ready for my next selection, a Grottenbier Bruin, or Grotten Brown as the menu listed it.

(draft) A nice spicy aroma that led to a fairly tame-tasting beer. There was a slight mustiness to it that didn't exactly thrill me. By the second half of the glass the head had dissipated so both the spice and the must had gone. What was left was good but not great.

One annoying thing - at one point I looked to my left on the sofa and saw an empty space. That empty space beside me in such a crowded bar reminded me that I'm supposed to be sad, so I got a little sad. Then I moved to the loveseat so some friends of DayShiftDude could have the sofa.

More idiots - but not the people on the loveseat - they are actually pretty cool.

some idiots

My third beer was something which I can't for the life of me remember.

(draft) Fruity and spicy and citrusy. It was the citrus that turned me off this beer.

By the end of the glass I'd warmed to it a little but not enough to have another one of whatever it was as my last beer of the night.

At around 10:00 it got crowded again. This lady's ass didn't help matters.

Ass Lady

My last beer of the night was a Great Lakes Christmas Ale. I've had this before and like it a lot.

DayShiftDude and I talked for most of the night.

DayShiftDude

My lovely self, with ElPresidente in the background. I'm drinking a half-pint of Great Lakes Christmas Ale here. Yummy!

Your Host

Wednesday, December 15, 2004
posted by dave at 11:00 PM in category drink, entertainment, work

Went to a little project completion party at Louisville's new Lucky Strike Lanes today.

We bowled three games.

It didn't suck as much as I'd expected. There were several people from HR and PR that I didn't know - and couple that I kinda wish I did know.

I actually won the first game with a pretty shitty score, and I think I might have tied for second in the second game.

Oh yeah, the place had Smithwick's on tap. That was a pleasant surprise so I had three of them.

Sunday, December 12, 2004
posted by dave at 10:32 AM in category drink

Last night Rich O's was actually sort of dead. There were only a few idiots there, sitting at the island, and I took a picture of them with my new camera phone.

idiots

To drink, I had some Goose Island Christmas Ales. I'd had this last December and didn't see anyting special about it, but last night they were very good. Here's my ratebeer.com review:

(draft) Had this a year ago and didn't see anything special about it. Had it again last night and really liked it a lot. I thought I detected roasted nutmeg but don't see that mentioned anywhere. Very much a Winter ale, and very much a good one.

Spent most of the night talking with NotGeorge about not much in particular.

I had some small samples of Thomas Hardy Ale and some new Belgian Quad called Urkel or something. Both were good enough that I'll be getting them again, but both were also strong enough that I couldn't safely have any last night after my Christmas Ales.

Friday, December 10, 2004
posted by dave at 10:01 PM in category daily, drink

I've just astonished myself with my fragility.

First of all, I've lost my glasses somewhere. How I manage to lose things when I live by myself I'll never know. I don't really need my glasses to function but driving without them does make me feel a little out of sorts.

Second of all, there were no less than a half-dozen Jeeps in Rich O's parking lot when I arrived. Each of these must, of course, be checked out for the telltale stickers. All proved themselves to be innocuous, but not until each had taken a second or two to pick me up and then slam me back down.

Third of all, Rich O's was crowded with strangers again. This is really starting to bother me. As I told CoffeeDude last week, if Rich O's turns into a date bar then I'll stop going there and then there'll be no place for the likes of me.

Fourth of all, there was a new batch of one of NABC's beers. I won't say which one because the guy who invented it is a friend of mine. What I will say is that this new batch is absolutely the worst example of its style that I've ever had. I don't even know what style it should be in - bitter horse piss perhaps. I can't believe that someone actually sampled this before unleashing it on the consuming public. I paid and left after about two sips.

Fifth of all, some asshole nearly ran me off the road on the way back home.

Sixth of all, some other asshole in front of me drove fifteen MPH all the way down my road.

I guess that's it for now. I'm sure something else will piss me off before the night is over.

Sunday, December 5, 2004
posted by dave at 2:36 AM in category daily, drink, entertainment

a-dor-a-ble
adj.
1. Delightful, lovable, and charming.

a-bra-sive
adj.
1. Harsh and rough in manner.

cor-nu-co-pi-a
n.
1. An overflowing store; an abundance.

Just to get the beer report over with, I had a Delerium Tremens, which I really like, and followed that up with a couple pints of Guinness. All were good.

I also sampled a little of CoffeeDude's Anchor Porter. I liked it enough to resolve to have a full pint next weekend if Rich O's still has it.

Rich O's tonight was the site of, apparently, a meeting of Southern Indiana Girls that are Hot (S.I.G.H.). This is otherwise known as a bachelorette party. Never before have so many nubile young cuties gathered at Rich O's.

Once they had all left Rich O's became boring, so I went and talked VigilanteGirl into going to a bar where my uncle and my cousin were doing karaoke.

VigilanteGirl is adorable, and it was quite nice to have some time to talk with her away from her work distractions.

I guess that's about it. When I'm in a good mood it's harder to think of things to write about.

Oh yeah, I did tell VigilanteGirl about the tracing and about the jealousy and about LaptopGirl. These were things she needed to hear from me before she read in my 'blog.

Monday, November 29, 2004
posted by dave at 4:18 PM in category drink, travel

Last night, after exhausting the rest of the draft selection at The Tilted Kilt, I tried a Kronenbourg 1664 lager. I didn't think much of it:

(draft) An absolutely terrible, bland, watery excuse for a beer. Tastes exactly how it looks - weak and boring.

Next I had a Fat Tire. I've had this before several years ago. I liked it:

(draft) Very well-balanced ale, probably meant to be a copy of Newcastle Brown Ale, and it is a very good copy indeed. A little more malt than the Newcastle. Very drinkable.

Other than these two beers I stuck with Newcastle all night in-between nervous breakdowns.

This morning I made a wonderful discovery. There's a bar at the Rio that carries Alaskan Amber!!!

It's bottled instead of draft but still, what a pleasant surprise.

Sunday, November 28, 2004
posted by dave at 12:40 PM in category daily, drink, ramblings, travel

Yesterday was not about beer, though there was a lot of beer consumed.

Yesterday was not about sleep deprivation, though I went about 30 hours without sleep.

Yesterday was not about Las Vegas, though I'm here.

Yesterday was about the fact that I couldn't stop laughing.

This is a new kind of insanity for me. My mood became so much better than it'd been for the past couple of weeks that the whole evening and night was like an extended emotional orgasm or something. I didn't want to go to sleep because I was afraid that the reality of the situation would somehow claw its way back to the surface of my mind.

Well I did sleep eventually, and while I'm no longer laughing, I'm still grinning.

Things are still gloomy, but they no longer threaten to completely obliterate me. Things are actually back to exactly what they were three weeks ago. The cruelty being directed at me was not coming from the person they pretended to be. At least that's the story and I'm sticking to it.

So I've managed to scramble back into the frying pan, and that's what yesterday was about for me.

There was beer involved too.

Most of my day and night consisted of a simple two-step dance:

1. Drink a couple of beers.

2. Try to get some sleep.

This dance repeated a half-dozen times, so I drank a lot of beers. I rotated between Newcastle, Smithwick's, and Guinness, and at one point had a Stella Artois. What crap. Here's my rating:

(draft) I asked for a Belgian and got this awful thing. I don't like lagers, and this was a pretty bad lager. Bland mixed with boring.

Now it's Sunday morning and I'm surprisingly not hung-over.

I'm sitting here second-guessing a decision made a couple of weeks ago, and second-guessing has become second-nature to me, so I'm back to normal I suppose.

As normal as I get anyway.

Saturday, November 20, 2004
posted by dave at 11:02 AM in category daily, drink

Three times.

That's how many times VigilanteGirl called me last night while I was at Rich O's. This makes a total of three times that she's ever called me. Our flirting has always been face-to-face, but now I'm wondering if we've graduated to phone flirting.

I spent the first part of the night at Rich O's standing around waiting for a seat to open up somewhere. I'm really starting to develop a selfish concern for the way Rich O's has been on Fridays lately. I mean, if the place becomes too hip and popular, the crowds of Spaten and Heineken and Corona drinkers will drive us regulars away. Or at least drive me away. I really wanted to leave right off the bat but RealTrainGirl and GreenBeerDude arrived and gave me something to do besides stand around and glare at all the strangers.

Finally, some strangers left the island area and we all grabbed seats. MisunderstoodGirl was with us too. The last time I saw her I kind of got a fuck you, asshole vibe from her, a vibe that I thankfully did not detect last night.

I finished my Mad Bitch at about the second time VigilanteGirl called, this time with an update on the goings-on at a really loud bar that I had no interest in going to. She hinted that her entourage might come down to Rich O's later so I decided to pace myself and therefore ordered an NABC Beak's Best.

After a while, my companions left for quieter pursuits and were replaced by ExBartender - not exactly an even trade but still a little better than sitting by myself would have been.

By the third time VigilanteGirl called, this time to tell me she was on her way, I'd switched to root beer.

By the time I'd finished my root beer another hour and a half had passed, and I was alone at the island.

I drove up to the loud bar, and saw nobody I knew there, so I went home and played Half Life 2 for a while.

Sunday, November 14, 2004
posted by dave at 1:36 PM in category daily, drink

Friday night sucked. The place was full of idiots that refused to move from the living room area. The only place to sit was the kiddie table, so I sat there and glared at the idiots while I drank first an NABC Tunnel Vision and then a Mad Bitch. I suppose the most interesting thing that happened was that one of the idiots ate an entire calzone, then he ate his girlfriend's calzone, then he ordered and ate an entire thing of lasagna.

Saturday night was much better. Rich O's was only moderately crowded and I was able to grab a seat on the couch pretty quickly.

I had a Robert the Bruce. I've had this before and I like it a lot. Next I had an Avery Old Jubilation, which tastes like a spiced ale to me (in a good way) but I'm told there's really no spice in it. Just a mix of hops. A pretty good beer though.

Throughout the night I spent much of my time feeling bad for a very cute, very unfortunately-named girl who was serving as a designated driver for her brother and another guy that may have been her boyfriend. The poor girl had to sit and watch her charges drink beer after beer and eat pretzel after pretzel while she wasn't offered a single thing. I tried to help ease her boredom by carrying on a mostly one-sided conversation.

I thought this was interesting. The boyfriend(?) has the same birthday that I do, and the unfortunately-named girl has the same birthday as my sister Dina.

Anyway, I should have stopped after the Avery, but I wasn't ready to leave, so I ordered a Tunnel Vision and only got about halfway through it before the alcohol timebomb inside me went off. I raced home and nuked some White Castles and then played pool all night.

Saturday, November 6, 2004
posted by dave at 11:14 PM in category daily, drink

Just thought I'd get both Friday and Saturday out of the way with one entry.

Friday night was boring. I had an NABC Tunnel Vision and an NABC Beak's Best. The night was a complete bust as far as conversation went. Nobody I knew was there, and nobody called.

Tonight (Saturday) it was equally boring at Rich O's. The only person I knew was ExBartender and he was in full-blown obnoxious node.

I had a Delerium Nocturnum first. Here's what I thought of it:

(bottle) Very dark, very fruity aroma. Taste reminded me of cherry wine. The second half of my glass - once the head had dissipated - was much better than the first half.

Next I had a Gulden Draak.

(draft) My first tasting of this rather famous Belgian. Not at all what I was expecting. I got a lot of fruit that I'll call raspberry. Too sweet for my taste.

The entire time spent at Rich O's was pretty much a waste of time. I left at around 10:00. This is what happens when you base your happiness on a single possibility, and that possibility doesn't pan out.

I will shut up now.

Sunday, October 31, 2004
posted by dave at 10:39 AM in category daily, drink

schiz-o-phren-ic
adj.
1. Of, relating to, or characterized by the coexistence of disparate or antagonistic elements.

con-trast
n.
1. A difference, especially a strong dissimilarity, between entities or objects compared.

I've been sitting here, my hands poised over my keyboard, for an hour now. I've managed to copy/paste two dictionary definitions, and write two sentences.

I suppose I'll just try to mow through this block.

This makes four sentences.

Saturday night, Rich O's was pretty dead. When I first arrived there were some people in the red room that I didn't know, ProbableLesbian and CluelessSuitor were in the living room area, and that was it.

I ordered an NABC Tunnel Vision and joined the couple in the living room area. They left shortly afterward, but I've got enough to be paranoid about so I didn't take it personally.

The entire night was tame and relaxing. CoffeeDude came in, followed a short time later by TrainGirl, RealTrainGirl, and GreenBeerDude.

I tried one of the green beers (don't know what the hell it was called) and didn't care for it. I ordered a Stone Smoked Porter.

CoffeeDude and TrainGirl and I got to talking about dreams and lucidity in dreams. TrainGirl seems to have much better control than I do - she can even choose to replay certain scenes if they don't turn out the way she wants.

Anyway, like I said, a pretty boring night. After my Stone I had another Tunnel Vision, and I went home at around 11:30.

I didn't really have a reason, but I started the night expecting something unusual to happen. I don't know what I expected. Perhaps LaptopGirl would call. Perhaps my sister would visit, or my friend Eric. Just something unusual or interesting to go along with the unusual and interesting phenomenon of my good mood.

Nothing at all happened.

I'll now end this entry in a awkward way.

Saturday, October 30, 2004
posted by dave at 8:47 AM in category daily, drink

an-noy-ing
adj.
1. Causing vexation or irritation; troublesome.

mo-ron
n.
1. A person regarded as very stupid.

loud-mouth
n.
1. One given to loud, irritating, or indiscreet talk.

I got to the bar a little before 9:00. The place was extremely crowded, but I was able to grab the only seat at the bar next to a group of Rich O's professional beer drinkers.

Oh yeah, before I sat down I grabbed the latest postcard from LaptopGirl and read it so I could get that task over with. Of course I got sad, and that pretty much set the tone for the next couple of hours.

I had a Mad Bitch and listened to the PBDs play a game of Trivial Pursuit while I checked every ten seconds to see if a spot anywhere else had opened up. The Mad Bitch tasted a little off to me - there was kind of a rotten flavor that I couldn't quite identify. My next beer was an NABC Tunnel Vision that tasted very good.

At one point, shortly after UnbearablyAnnoyingDude started arguing that opossums are not mammals, I had what I thought was the brilliant idea of leaving the bar area and sitting in the dining area. Anything to get away from the throng.

CoffeeDude had appeared and he ended up joining me at a table. I hadn't seen him since LaptopGirl's departure and I felt compelled to spew my guts out. I keep saying that I don't want to talk about it, but once I get started I can't seem to shut up.

CoffeeDude recommended a Bell's Best Brown Ale so I had one of those. Here's my ratebeer.com rating:

(draft) Not too bad, but not all that great either. There was nothing that really stood out at all. Just a decent fairly generic brown ale. I like Newcastle better.

LaptopGirl called for her Rich O's report and her horoscope reading. There seemed to be some kind of interference with the call and it was quite difficult to understand what she was saying. One thing I was able to pick up was that the original plan of LaptopGirl visiting me in Las Vegas next month has been replaced with my driving to visit her instead. To be perfectly honest, both plans scare me, and I told LaptopGirl as much. I'll just have to see what kind of a mood I'm in when the time comes. Perhaps we can just arrange to wave at each other from opposite rims of the Grand Canyon.

After what seemed like an eternity Rich O's proper finally cleared out enough that CoffeeDude and I were able to grab some seats in the living room area. We were joined by ExBartender. I didn't stay too long after that because it seemed that I'd miscalculated my alcohol intake. Got home around 1:00 and watched The Blair Witch Project.

Tuesday, October 26, 2004
posted by dave at 7:07 PM in category daily, drink

Man I'm so ate up.

This evening, fueled I'm sure by the two NABC Tunnel Vision pints I had while waiting for my calzone to arrive, I found myself calling LaptopGirl.

I was stuck in traffic, or at least what passes for traffic in Southern Indiana, and the need to talk to her just overwhelmed me. Just for a couple of seconds, but long enough to scroll to her number in my cell phone's memory and hit talk.

It was very nice to talk to her if for no other reason than the paranoia-easing tone of the conversation.

Beyond that, however, I'm truly happy for how relaxed she sounds on the phone. I'm truly relieved that she didn't simply hang up on me.

I think I just need for her to know that even though she's a zillion miles away there's at least one person back in Indiana that misses her unconditionally. Of course there are undoubtedly several, but none of those people are talking to me anymore. What with everything being my fault and all.

Oops, there's that paranoia again.

Oh yeah - I'm supposed to read this new postcard that she sent to Rich O's, and the thought of that fills me with dread, but I'll read it because she asked me to.

I've decided to pretend that I didn't hear the part about the new job. That just sounds too permanent so I'm going to pretend I didn't hear it, and I won't write about it again.

I'm going to stop writing now because I'm in a good mood and want to stay that way for a while.

Saturday, October 23, 2004
posted by dave at 11:56 AM in category daily, drink

taunt
v.
1. To reproach in a mocking, insulting, or contemptuous manner.
2. To drive or incite (a person) by taunting.

On Friday I got to Rich O's a little after 9:00. I was in a fairly decent mood for once, I suppose because I'd played okay pool at The Bank Shot.

There was nobody I knew at Rich O's. I sat at the bar and ordered a Corsendonk Pater. I'd tried one of these last week and vowed to try it again with a clean palate. Here's the review I made at ratebeer.com:

(bottle)I thought this beer smelled and looked fantastic. I'm not really sure what I was expecting tastewise - I suppose a combination of a Belgian and a Brown. What I got was a strange-tasting beer that I can't really say I liked all that much. It just tasted like something was wrong with it, but I couldn't point to any one thing.

Oh yeah, before I'd even sat down at the bar the bartender pointed out these postcards from LaptopGirl leaning against a stack of coasters and asked if I'd seen them. Those damn things sat there mocking me for the rest of the night. I told myself that I wasn't going to look at them and ruin my (rapidly plummeting) mood.

After the Corsendonk I had a bottle of Kwak. I've written about this before. I generally like it but this time there was a very strange perfume smell/taste that I could never quite get a handle on. I don't think I've been turned away from this beer for good but if I ever get another bottle like that again it just might drive me away. One other thing is that the bartender tried to give me an official Kwak glass with the bottle but I was afraid I'd break the expensive-looking thing so I had him give me a regular Belgian glass instead.

For my next beer I asked for something a little lighter but said I'd like to stay with the Belgians. I was given a bottle of Hoegaarden. Here's what I thought of it:

(bottle) Recommended to me because I asked for something with a lighter taste. A cloudy yellow color that looked to me like a cross between a wheat and a lager - neither of which I care for. The taste was actually pretty decent though. The bartender was telling me about all of these different flavor components but I didn't really get any of them. Just a fairly plain, safe beer.

During the entire time I drank these three beers I kept checking behind me to see if anyone I knew had come in. They hadn't. Also, those damn postcards kept taunting me from the other end of the bar. I realized that I was sitting there drinking just to be drinking instead of drinking for the enjoyment of it and that really annoyed me, so I ordered a Mad Bitch to close out the night.

While I was drinking my last beer, ExoticGirl and her boyfriend sat at the bar. To my horror, she picked up the postcards and started reading them aloud. I went to the bathroom, but by the time I got back my resolve had evaporated. I picked up the cursed things and actually even read a couple of words on the first one before I got a grip on myself and put them back out of arms reach.

LaptopGirl did call me at some point after I got home. Because I wasn't at the bar I was useless so it was a very short conversation.

My ever-changing mood shifted from sad to irritated, and I found myself hoping that it would stay that way for a while because I'm tired of being sad.

Tuesday, October 19, 2004
posted by dave at 8:42 PM in category daily, drink

Just a quick note - mostly a follow-up to my Saturday entry.

Way back then I wrote that I wasn't able to give a fair tasting to Traquair Jacobite Ale because my senses had been overpowered by the Stone Smoked Porter I'd started the night with.

Well this evening I was able to correct that injustice.

While waiting for my yummy chicken-sausage-mushroom calzone I sat on the couch at Rich O's and enjoyed a bottle of Jacobite. RealTrainGirl was there and we spent a few minutes talking about my uncle, her girlfriend, and LaptopGirl.

(Just a quick edit to point out that a)those are three different people, and b)I didn't bring up the topic of LaptopGirl and I kinda wish I could go through a single conversation without being reminded of how much I miss her. In the case of RealTrainGirl though, I know she's just concerned and not prying.)

The Jacobite is, as I suspected on Saturday, quite an interesting beer. Very complex, with flavors I don't think I've ever encountered before. The stuff was good, though perhaps just a little too fruity for me to say I really liked it. I will have it again sometime though.

Sunday, October 17, 2004
posted by dave at 11:12 AM in category daily, drink

(The previous entry actually stems from a conversation that occurred before Saturday night. I just happened to be intoxicated enough late Saturday night to write that rambling mess. Saturday night itself was a pretty good night, all things considered.)

Saturday night, thankfully, Rich O's wasn't nearly as crowded as it had been on Friday.

There was nobody I recognized at the bar or in the living room area so I sat at the island and pondered what was the first happy mood I'd experienced in several weeks. I ended up having a couple bottles of Stone Smoked Porter while listening to the strangers sitting nearby arguing about whether picking the meat out of chili made it vegetarian or not. (He was right, she was wrong. If you cook it with meat then it's not a vegetarian meal.)

The Stone Smoked Porter is a very good beer, and it's even better when it's the first beer of a session. I ended up having a second bottle while I searched the beer menu and planned out my beer for the rest of the night.

At one point I got sick of the bickering about chili and I went over to the living room area where MisunderstoodGirl and I talked for a few minutes before her break ended.

I ordered a Traquair Jacobite Ale which was something I'd never had before.

I still can't really say that I've had it. I got the impression that it was very good but the Stone had overpowered my senses and so I really cannot give a fair description of the Jacobite.

Anyway, after a while TrainGirl came in and she and I spent the rest of the evening talking. I pretty much told her everything that's been going on inside me. She's a very good listener and I hope a very good keeper of secrets because I told her some things that I'd never told anyone before.

NotGeorge came and joined us at one point but he snuck out later. I think he may have felt left out as I was too busy confessing everything to TrainGirl to pay much attention to anyone else.

My last beer of the night was a Corsendonk Pater and I had the same problem with it that I've already described about the Jacobite. I just couldn't tell what it tasted like because of the Stone I'd had earlier.

I've promised myself to try both the Jacobite and the Corsendonk the next time I'm at Rich O's.

The night ended with me, TrainGirl, MisunderstoodGirl, and OddlyPrettyGirl sitting in the living room area just basically passing the time. It was quite pleasant. LaptopGirl had called briefly but cut the call short, promising to call back, then never did.

Saturday, October 16, 2004
posted by dave at 10:49 AM in category daily, drink

(Everybody gets different nicknames for this entry. Just mixing things up a little.)

I don't know how to start this entry.

The most natural place to start would be at the beginning, but what was the beginning?

Was it when I arrived at Rich O's? Was it when ZodiacGirl called to see if I was going to Rich O's? Perhaps it was sometime during the day when I began imagining all kinds of scenarios, each one worse than the one before, that had me all but convinced that setting foot outside my door would be a very bad idea.

Because even though my life and my mood have taken a turn very much for the worse, there's still a lot of room for things to degrade even more.

If I hadn't already used up the balancing metaphor back in August this would be a perfect time to whip it out. Back then I flailed my arms to stay happy. Now happiness isn't really an option and I need a new metaphor.

Hmmmm.

Oooh! I know! I'm in a frying pan, trying to keep out of the fire! That's a good one!

Yesterday, as I mentioned, I kept thinking up all these ways that Friday night could possibly play out. I wanted to get all of the possibilities in my head so (a)I wouldn't be surprised by any of them, and (b)I would know how to respond. What ended up happening wasn't the worst thing I imagined, but it was far from the best.

I got out of the shower last night and found that ZodiacGirl had left a message. She needed to know if I was going keep my promise to be her eyes and ears at Rich O's while she was away. Being blown off on Monday, having no contact all week, then being called on Friday for this reason - I suppose now we know just who misses who the most.

I win! I am the saddest! Yay for me!

Anyway, I called ZodiacGirl back and promised to call her from the bar and tell her the happenings therein and read her horoscope to her.

On the way, I stopped to see TracingGirl. I had to tell her that she needed to snap me up quickly as I surely wouldn't be on the market for long. Maybe I'd start rebuilding the walls that had crumbled lately, or maybe I'd succumb to the charms of someone like the old lady at Wendy's. I told TracingGirl that for this very brief period I was both vulnerable and unattached so she'd better act quickly.

When I arrived at Rich O's I wanted to turn around and leave. The place was very very crowded and there was no place to sit and there was nobody I knew there. I couldn't leave until I'd made my report to ZodiacGirl though. I called her, got her voicemail, and read her horoscope to her as she'd requested.

I decided to stay for just one beer. I sat at the couch, ordered myself a Kwak, and did my best to ignore the weirdoes sitting all around me.

It's amazing how alone a person can feel in a crowded room.

Perhaps the loathing I was radiating towards the weirdoes actually worked. Perhaps they were leaving anyway. What was important is that they did leave shortly after I'd sat down. I ordered myself another Kwak and talked to ZodiacGirl again on the phone. I told her that there was nobody but a bunch of strangers there and that was pretty much the gist of the three or four more conversations we had last night.

At one point I looked up and was very surprised to see my sister and her fiancé Kenny come in! Dina knew my mood and I guess wanted to help cheer me up. It worked.

The three of us sat around while Dina and I talked about dreams and nightmares and other fluff.

SunburnGirl joined us for a while.

There was a girl that looked like a cross between ZodiacGirl and CannonGirl. And she was cute. So now I know that those two would have cute kids if only biology would allow it.

I had a Mad Bitch.

ZodiacGirl called a couple more times. I told her I missed her and that nobody interesting had appeared at Rich O's.

Once Dina and Kenny and SunburnGirl had left I had myself a Guinness in ZodiacGirl's honor then talked with BusDude for a while about his party next Friday. I will probably go.

Maybe I'll take WendysLady.

Sunday, October 10, 2004
posted by dave at 11:18 AM in category daily, drink

In an attempt to feign some semblance of normalcy I present this entry.

I got to Rich O's at about 8:00, expecting a huge crowd (they're having their hoppy beer festival) but the place was actually only about half-full. CoffeeDude was talking to some lady at the bar, and MisunderStoodGirl was sitting in the living room area with a bunch of guys I never saw before.

I grabbed a seat at the island for two reasons. First, I was still reeling about the news from LaptopGirl, and second, MisunderstoodGirl had a large sign proclaiming "Warning: Live Homosexual Acts Ahead" and if I'd sat on the couch with her I might have had a lot of explaining to do.

So I sat at the island, by myself, and had a Belhaven Ale while I tried to get a grip on myself. After a bit I called my cousin Jeff and promised him some good beer if he'd come down to Rich O's. I had a bottle of Kwak that was quite good, though not as good as I remember the draft version being.

As the night progressed Jeff did show up, as did NotGeorge and PirateGuy. MisunderstoodGirl was joined by TrainGirl and RealTrainGirl. I took the opportunity to update RealTrainGirl on my uncle's condition and promised to tell him that she wished him a speedy and full recovery.

The responsibility of providing good beer to Jeff was not one I took lightly. I started him out with a Mad Bitch. This may have been his first Belgian ale. I'm not sure if he really liked it or not - all I got from him was "It's certainly different." It certainly is, especially when you're used to drinking Newcastle almost exclusively.

It was at about this time that LaptopGirl called from the road. I ended up passing the phone around to the girls so she could talk to all of them. Once I got the phone back I was asked a series of yes-or-no questions. I'm hoping for an explanation as to what this was all about sometime soon.

Once I'd finished my Kwak and Jeff had finished his Mad Bitch I had the bartender bring out a couple of bottles of Alaskan Smoked Porter. Jeff had introduced me to smoked beer years ago and I certainly wanted him to be able to drink one of the best there is.

The girls had heard about Jeff's slight homophobia in the past and they - especially MisunderstoodGirl - all wanted to mess with his head but I guess I talked them out of it because everyone was very civilized.

One other item of note was that Rich O's was nearly overflowing with beautiful women. By overflowing I mean by Rich O's standards - there were three beautiful women there that nobody had seen before. Jeff and I split on who was the prettiest. He was partial to the long-haired brunette sitting on the couch, while I couldn't stop twisting my neck around to check out the mousy-haired girl behind us in the red room. To end this tie-breaker I enlisted RealTrainGirl who seemed quite sure that RedRoomGirl was indeed the hottest girl of the two.

Once Jeff left, and the strangers in the living room area finally left I went over and sat with the girls for a while. They were going out somewhere and they all invited me. MisunderstoodGirl actually tried to lift me from the couch to get me to leave with them. I was able to decline because MisunderstoodGirl, while seemingly quite fit, weighs in at maybe half what I do.

Once I was alone in the living room area LaptopGirl called again. I had this sudden vision of my life becoming a series of random and meaningless events highlighted only by the occasional call from LaptopGirl. I may never be able to sleep soundly again for fear that I'll miss a call. This phone call continued the earlier yes-or-no line of questioning, and I understood it even less this time than I had earlier. LaptopGirl accused me of talking too loudly and allowing everyone in the bar to hear me but that really wasn't the case. The bar was very nearly empty at that point and the people that were there were all in the red room.

Once I got home LaptopGirl called again and updated me on her situation. The bar I'd recommended from the brewspaper had turned out to be a dud. She was off looking for a better place. Kind of the theme of her entire trip I suppose.

When I finally got to sleep I dreamed that LaptopGirl and I were taking a trip to some unnamed place. At one point Jeff joined us and he and LaptopGirl got into an argument over politics. We ended up murdering Jeff and dumping him into the Grand Canyon. Then it was several years later and LaptopGirl's presidential bid was in jeopardy because someone had found Jeff's body and I had to take the fall.

That's what friends do after all.

Sunday, September 26, 2004
posted by dave at 12:57 AM in category daily, drink, ramblings

dra-ma
n.
1. The quality or condition of being dramatic.

re-al-i-za-tion
n.
1. The act of realizing or the condition of being realized.

vul-ner-a-ble
adj.
1. Susceptible to injury.

out-gun
v.
1. To overwhelm or defeat.

shit
n.
1. Something considered disgusting, or poor quality, foolish, or otherwise totally unacceptable.

re-treat
n.
1. The act or process of withdrawing, especially from something hazardous, formidable, or unpleasant.
2. A place affording peace, quiet, privacy, or security.
3. A period of seclusion, retirement, or solitude.

in-ev-i-ta-ble
adj.
1. Impossible to avoid or prevent.

My beer selection tonight was fairly tame: two Belhaven's and two Piraats.

Other than that I spent some time with LaptopGirl, NotGeorge, CoffeeDude, and MisunderstoodGirl, talking about kites and paper and stuff.

None of that is relevant though.

What is relevant is that drama is inevitable, and I have chosen to do what I can to limit that drama to myself.

Man it sucks that my entries have seemed so tortured lately.

Things are not really as bad as a quick reading of my 'blog would make them seem. I'm actually more shocked than anything else. I really didn't expect to be in this situation ever again.

If I had to pick a single word to describe the last three months: fascinating.

If I had to pick a word to describe the last two days: overwhelming.

All that talk about balance and road trips and serial killers was simply an attempt to solidify my resolve. To remind myself that sometimes the right thing is not the easy thing.

Sometimes it's pretty damn tough.

I've been though this before actually. A long time ago in Omaha I found myself struggling with nearly the same situation. At that time I was able to make a clean break, to get the hell out before things progressed to their inevitable conclusion: Drama and pain.

This time around I cannot simply pack up and move to Seattle. I can, however, still do what's right. I cannot change the past, but I can prevent at least a small part of this particular future.

My friends at Rich O's will either understand or they won't - I can't even explain my actions without making things worse. Not that anyone would believe me anyway.

Everything that was wrong is now right. Everything that was right is now impossible. Nobody is more surprised than I am, because that which I've been fighting and denying, and which everyone else has been assuming and awaiting, is actually coming to pass. Despite my best intentions, I'm human after all.

This really blows.

For the better part of a decade I was content. Not over-the-top happy, but content.

Now that contentedness has given way to this terrible blend of vulnerability and uncertainty and shock, and I don't like it one bit.

I'll say it again, this really blows.

(I've edited the hell out of this entry, trying to make it a litle less gloomy. I've had little success though, because it is a gloomy subject after all.)

Saturday, September 25, 2004
posted by dave at 10:49 AM in category daily, drink

I suppose I could say that last night was pivotal, but as this belief stems from a drunken realization instead of anything substantial, I'll probably just continue to wait and see. Perhaps I still have some common sense in reserve.

I arrived at Rich O's unfashionably early, having failed once again to decipher VigilanteGirl's flirtatious ramblings, and was surprised to see GeneralElectricGuy sitting in the living room area. I grabbed myself a Belhaven (very smooth and creamy on tap) and joined him and what turned out to be one of his coworkers.

I hadn't seen GeneralElectricGuy since the party last month, and I don't know him very well, but he seemed a little subdued. Later I guessed that this was simply because his friend CheeseGuy was doing enough talking for ten people.

The three of us talked about widely varying topics for a couple of hours, interrupted occasionally by TallLady trying to interject controversial topics into the mix. I finished my Belhaven and decided to try a Bell's Amber.

That was a waste of time. It sucked. Watery with orange peel flavoring.

So I went back to one of my favorites - a Piraat. Yummy but I knew it was way too early to be drinking the strong stuff. I'd have to pace myself.

At one point LaptopGirl joined us, and almost immediately declared that she'd be leaving after one beer. This makes twice in a row and so now I'm starting to get a little paranoid. This is also about the time I finished my Piraat and switched to Guinness.

CoffeeDude came in fairly late in the evening. This was quite cool because I hadn't seen him in over a month and I was actually becoming a little concerned. Everything's fine though - our schedules just haven't been overlapping.

Through all of this CheeseGuy kept up a steady stream of words, and once he and GeneralElectricGuy left the place seemed eerily silent. One pretty cool thing was that CheeseGuy paid my tab. I don't think that's ever happened before at Rich O's.

At one point NotGeorge came in and joined CoffeeDude and me in what was basically just sitting around sipping our beers.

I got home at about 11:30, realized that the thing which I've feared most may have come to pass, and spent the rest of the night staring at my ceiling.

Sunday, September 19, 2004
posted by dave at 12:18 AM in category daily, drink

gor-geous
adj.
1. Dazzlingly beautiful or magnificent.
2. Wonderful, delightful.

poof
interj.
1. Used to indicate a sudden vanishing.

After Friday's near-perfect evening I knew that Saturday had its work cut out for it.

As it turned out Saturday was a good night as well, though for different reasons.

My night started out with a quick visit to where VigilanteGirl works to semi-apologize for not calling her the night before as we'd semi-arranged. I think that we also semi-arranged to see each other in the morning but I'm only semi-sure about that.

I arrived at Rich O's right at 8:00, way too early but I keep saying that and it keeps happening.

The played was packed with strangers but I was able to grab a seat at the bar before too much time had passed. I ordered myself an NABC Beaks's Best, remembering how good it had been the night before.

It was still quite good, but I'm thinking that the Beaks's may not be a good choice for the first beer of a session. It was a little bitter.

I'd barely started into my beer when LaptopGirl came in and, not seeing any better prospects, she grabbed a spot at the bar next to me. (LaptopGirl hates sitting at the bar.)

Lately I've been hesitant to write anything complimentary or derogatory about LaptopGirl in this 'blog for fear of unwarranted extrapolations. Tonight I'm still a little hesitant, but I'm also a little tipsy so I'm going to say that she is one very pretty young woman and leave it at that.

Too bad she's got that conjoined-twin thing or whatever going on with her neck. (ha ha inside joke)

While I amused myself with LaptopGirl's attempts to find anyone interesting at Rich O's I enjoyed a Delirium Tremens, a very nice Belgian that I think has less alcohol than the other Belgians I've had lately.

Fairly early in the evening LaptopGirl left for greener pastures and I was left to enjoy a couple pints of Smithwick's. I'm growing more and more fond of this beer each time I drink it, so it will probably be going away soon.

At one point I tried to call VigilanteGirl (who's also waaaaay out of my league) to invite her to Rich O's but I got her voicemail instead. After waiting for a half-hour or so without hearing back from her I went home.

Saturday, September 18, 2004
posted by dave at 11:43 PM in category daily, drink

sur-prise
v.
1. To encounter suddenly or unexpectedly; take or catch unawares.

de-li-cious
adj.
1. Highly pleasing or agreeable to the senses, especially of taste or smell.
2. Very pleasant, delightful.

Because of my computer problems I'm writing this entry late on Saturday night.

On Friday I arrived at Rich O's and did my customary survey of the parking lot for the cars of anyone I know. I saw no familiar vehicles, so I was surprised to see LaptopGirl sitting at the bar. After a short time some people left and some other people (thanks, TallLady) changed seats so I sat at the bar and pretended to be keeping LaptopGirl company while in actuality she was so buried in a map of some hiking trail that it would have taken someone a lot more interesting than I am to get her attention.

Speaking of interesting, while I was drinking my first beer of the night, a Smithwick's, I felt a tap on my shoulder. I turned and was delighted to see my old friend Eric and his lovely wife Terri!

Their company was exactly what I needed - not because I felt that I was lacking in companionship, just because they're good people who I knew would understand me.

Shortly after Eric and Terri arrived LaptopGirl left and sure enough, I was immediately interrogated. The difference between this occasion and every other time I've been questioned about how I'm feeling was that this time my words were taken at face value. What a relief it was to not be pitied!

Anyway, while I talked with my friends we all had some Piraat Belgian Ales. I've already written about how much I like this stuff. I don't think Eric and Terri shared my enthusiasm, for they both switched to much tamer beers (Guinness and NABC Beak's Best) for the next round.

At one point during the evening we were joined by NotGeorge and, after Eric and Terri left, NotGeorge and I spent some time talking about what perverts we both were. I had a Beak's Best myself and it was probably the best glass of that particular beer I've ever had.

Friday was one of the more enjoyable nights I've had lately. Everything was perfect. The company and the beer all flowed and blended together to form a night that relaxed and stimulated me at the same time.

Sunday, September 12, 2004
posted by dave at 12:24 AM in category daily, drink

claus-tro-pho-bic
adj.
1. Relating to or suffering from claustrophobia; Uncomfortably closed or hemmed in.

potential
n.
1. The inherent ability or capacity for growth, development, or coming into being.

Tonight wasn't the most comfortable night I've ever had.

Rich O's was fairly empty. I started out sitting in the living room area with some of the regulars, but when more people joined us I felt a little crowded.

I moved over to the island area thinking this would allow me to drink my beer (a Rogue Dead Guy Ale) in peace.

(Belushi) But noooooooooooooooo! (/Belushi)

All of the regulars followed me to the island area and continued to yap amongst themselves.

Somehow I managed to suffer through the evening with my Dead Guy and my Alaskan Smoked Ported (Yum!) and after those two beers I left.

I went to meet MysteryLady in order to decipher the cryptic voice message I'd been left earlier. Instead of clearing things up I'm now afraid that I've managed to blur the situation.

I had to be a little forceful I'm afraid, reminding her that this arrangement (such as it is) was all her idea and that she'd promised to be able to deal with it.

The alternative is simply too risky and now I seem to be the only one who realizes that fact.

Saturday, September 11, 2004
posted by dave at 11:58 AM in category daily, drink

a-dor-a-ble
adj.
1. Delightful, lovable, and charming.

pu-trid
adj.
1. Decomposed and foul-smelling; rotten.
2. Extremely objectinable; vile.

When I got to Rich O's last night I nearly turned around and left immediately. PutridPipeGuy was really stinking up the place with that dogshit or whatever it was in his pipe. Pipe smokers try to act like they're soooo sophisticated and stuff but that effect is ruined when the paint starts peeling off the walls and even the cockroaches start evacuating the premises.

Anyway, I didn't leave. I sat at the bar and started out with a Dead Guy Ale from Rogue. I've had this before and I really like it.

After what seemed like an eternity PutridPipeGuy and his entrourage finally left. This meant that Rich O's was effectively empty becuase everyone smart had already fled the aroma.

As for me, I ended up having a couple of Piraats. This is a very good beer that, as I stated in my RateBeer review, would probably kill me if I ever had more than two in one sitting.

Eventually MisunderstoodGirl appeared in the living room area and I moved over there. We talked for a while about travel and moving while I tried to ignore the idiots holding a political debate at the end of the couch.

At about the time I finished my second Piraat LaptopGirl came in looking, I guess "comfortable" would be the word. I ordered a Smithwicks and after MisunderstoodGirl left I spent a pleasant hour or two talking with LaptopGirl until someone more interesting came over and I realized two things:

1. I had drank too much.
2. I was no longer needed.

I left pretty abruptly because I knew that if I didn't I'd be there closing out the place with LaptopGirl and I'd probably be sleeping in my car if I didn't get home fairly quickly.

Saturday, September 4, 2004
posted by dave at 10:49 PM in category daily, drink, entertainment

First off I need to catch up on what happened Thursday and Friday.

Thursday I broke one of my new resolutions and did something stupid for a stupid reason.

How do you suppose that worked out?

Not very well, that's how.

Friday when I got to Rich O's all of the regulars I know were crowded into the living room section. There was clearly no room for me so I ended up at the bar.

At one point I realized a couple of things:

1. Some seats had opened up near my friends.
2. None of them had even bothered to invite me over.

Now I know I've been a little moody lately, but c'mon. I suppose this should tell me something but I'll probably continue to play dumb.

Tonight (Saturday) I went bowling, of all things, with my sister Dina's family.

This was the first time I'd been in several years and the rust was quite evident. I bowled two games, each of which saw a score that was barely half my old average. I think my 9-year-old nephew beat me the first game.

Back to Rich O's to drown my sorrows, I had a Three Floyd's Pride & Joy English mild ale.

I liked it. It could have used a little more malt to balance it out but I'll definitely have it again.

Sunday, August 29, 2004
posted by dave at 6:24 PM in category daily, drink

em-pa-thy
n.
1. An identification with and understanding of another's situation, feelings, or motives.

ram-bunc-tious
adj.
1. Boisterous and disorderly.

boon-ies
slang.
1. Rural country or jungle.

Last night, appearing in the role of BigWheelGirl, was yours truly.

My mission, should I choose to accept it, was to accompany LaptopGirl and her friend GeneralElectricGuy to a party at TrainGirl and RealTrainGirl's house - and, I believe, by my presence dissuade GeneralElectricGuy from getting any ideas.

I did choose to accept the mission as, even though it seemed to be a disaster waiting to happen, it did at least represent a promotion from carpool dummy.

Despite starting out with this, perhaps the worst idea in history, everything turned out very well. There were a lot of people at the party and I got to see and do things that just don't come up in my normal boring life:

1. I got to show LaptopGirl the field in Maplewood where I grew up.

2. I got to see a bunch of women mud-wrestle in various stages of dress and undress.

3. I got to hear LaptopGirl play a guitar and sing karaoke. She's just so damn cute when she's shy like that.

4. I got to spray a bunch of muddy women with a hose to remove mud.

5. Finally, I got to verify a legend of sorts when one of my friends from Rich O's did indeed get naked at a party.

My beer last night was a growler (half-gallon) of Smithwick's. Actually I think I had about half of it. It ended up tasting pretty good but I cut myself off pretty early because I'd need to return LaptopGirl to her car in New Albany.

GeneralElectricGuy seemed to me to be a genuinely nice and smart guy that may just be a victim of bad timing. He went to a party where he only knew one person and seemed to enjoy himself. I actually decided that I liked the guy enough that I wouldn't try to lose him in the Southern Indiana sticks as he followed LaptopGirl and me back to New Albany.

Sunday, August 22, 2004
posted by dave at 2:06 AM in category drink

mis-in-ter-pre-ta-tion
n.
1. The act of interpreting erroneously; a mistaken interpretation.

tim-ing
n.
1. A suitable or opportune moment or season.

ob-so-lete
adj.
1. No longer in use.
2. Outmoded in design, style, or construction.

un-be-liev-a-ble
adj.
1. Not to be believed; incredible.

fed up
adj.
1. Unable or unwilling to put up with something any longer.

Tonight I did not have a particularly great night.

One item of interest that I feel like sharing is that I had a Fantome Pissenlit. My review at ratebeer.com:

I was expecting something different, and perhaps even better, from this beer. What I got was, to me anyway, a bland, somewhat dirty tasting belgian. I certainly don't understand the hype.

I don't feel like writing anything else.

So there.

Saturday, August 21, 2004
posted by dave at 12:04 PM in category daily, drink

sub-par
adj.
1. Not measuring up to traditional standards of performance, value, or production.

beau-ti-ful
adj.
1. Having qualities that delight the senses, especially the sense of sight.
2. Excellent; wonderful.

use-less
adj.
1. Being or having no beneficial use; futile or ineffective.
2. Incapable of functioning or assisting; ineffectual.

I started Friday unsure if I was ready for a night drinking at Rich O's or not.

After work I went to shoot some at The Bank Shot and I really stunk up the place. I suppose I'll write about that session in my pool 'blog, but after I finally quit I figured that the night was already going so badly that going out drinking wouldn't be much of a risk.

Rich O's was very crowded, with about 50% strangers and the rest regulars that I kind of know. I sat at the island with TrainGirl and RealTrainGirl who invited me to a party next weekend. I plan to go after I go to this Brew at the Zoo thing that I've been looking forward to.

While I talked with the train girls and later LaptopGirl and some other regulars, I enjoyed my first beer of the night - a Robert the Bruce. I'd had one of these Monday, and while this time it didn't seem quite as refreshing, it still ended up being a good choice. At one point I noticed DeadLady sitting at the little table, and I was glad to see her still hanging in there.

Once a bunch of strangers left the living room area we moved over there so LaptopGirl would feel more comfortable.

On ElPresidente's recommendation I had an Avery "The Reverend" which I thought was a stupid name but the beer was really good. Perhaps not as complex as the Great Lake's Anniversary Ale but with a flavor that's as good as any belgian I've had.

Several people seemed to drift in and out of the area. CoffeeDude boldly went where I feared to tread - he attempted to cheer LaptopGirl up. ExBartender also did whatever it is that he does. I pretty much stayed out of the way since the last time I tried to make things better I ended up getting yelled at.

I decided to stop after just the two beers and switched to a Diet Coke. After another hour or so, spent mostly talking with MisunderstoodGirl and LaptopGirl about how mean MisunderstoodGirl is and whether Lewis and Clark had to fight alligators and ferns before they could even start on their expedition, I left pretty abruptly when nobody wanted to listen to my fascinating story about my Extreme Home Makeover dream.

This morning I don't have a hangover. I'm becoming cautiously optimistic that perhaps my recent problems with alcohol were just a temporary thing.

Friday, August 20, 2004
posted by dave at 3:21 PM in category drink

Yesterday after work I decided to kill some time before grocery shopping and have a couple of beers at Rich O's.

Since Monday's experiment of ONE beer went well I thought I'd try TWO beers and see what happened.

My first beer was a BBC Organic Amber. CanadianGirl has told me several times that this is her favorite BBC beer. She can keep it - I thought it was horrible. Chewy Budweiser.

My second beer was a Smithwick's that tasted okay, but not as good as it has in the past. I blame the poor showing on my senses being rattled by the BBC beer.

Anyway, these two beers didn't kill me, and I didn't have a hangover this morning, so I may be ready to risk Rich O's sometime this weekend after all.

My original plan to wait until September when NABC Cone Smoker came back has been scratched because it now looks like Cone Smoker won't be back until late November.

Monday, August 16, 2004
posted by dave at 9:46 PM in category daily, drink

pull
v. tr.
1. To apply force to, so as to cause or tend to cause motion toward the source of the force.

This past Friday and Saturday I could feel my favorite bar calling to me as I drove home from Louisville.

I was able to resist that calling, telling myself that if I couldn't even spend one weekend away from Rich O's then maybe there was indeed a problem.

Today, on the way home from work, I felt the pull again, and this time I relented.

I stopped and got myself a pizza, and while I was waiting I decided - what the hell - I'd have myself a beer.

What I had was a Robert The Bruce scottish ale. I'd never had this before, but I was definitely intrigued by its scottish name. After my experience with the Pyramid Tilted Kilt ale in June I'm not very likely to pass up any scotch or scottish (I forget the difference) ales anytime soon.

This was really good. If it's still there when I next make a weekend trip to Rich O's I'll definitely be having more. I actually noticed three things that really stood out. First was the reddish color that revealed itself when I held the glass up to the light. Second was the slight gritty feeling that continued until the head had dissipated, and third was the slightly bitter aftertaste - something new to me in my limited experience with this style of ale.

Sunday, August 8, 2004
posted by dave at 12:09 AM in category daily, drink, ramblings

un-com-fort-a-ble
adj.
1. Experiencing physical discomfort.
2. Ill at ease; uneasy.
3. Causing anxiety; disquieting

2. doomed
adj.
1. Marked for certain death.
2. In danger of eternal punishment of hell.
3. Marked by or promising bad fortune.

I didn't even want to go out tonight.

My body seems to be rejecting alcohol. Last weekend I got quite a hangover from three beers - this weekend I got quite a hangover from just two beers. Clearly something inside me is telling me to stay away.

Just as clearly, I'm not listening, though I hope to change that.

Tonight Rich O's was about as dead as I've ever seen it. This may be in part due to the incredible boringness of the beer board. IPA this, ESB that, not the best arrangement for someone with my tastes.

My first attempt at a beer was an NABC Beak's Best. Something was incredibly wrong with this beer. The bitterness was almost eye-watering. I could only take a couple of sips before returning it.

While I had a Diet Coke to calm my stomach back down I talked with LaptopGirl and her friend FLAZNCGuy. Actually I sat feeling uncomfortable while they talked. After a little while I got the idea that a Belgian ale might make me feel better so I had a Mad Bitch.

I was right - this helped a lot. By the time it was gone I was feeling like myself again so I ordered an NABC Tunnel Vision.

I think I've had this before, but I didn't remember much about it.

I liked it. The pale color scared me to death but this beer proves that you can't always judge a book by its cover.

Anyway, at one point we were joined by NotGeorge and CoffeeDude. I welcomed them both as they gave me something to do besides stare at my feet.

A bit of comedy was introduced when a bachelor party showed up at Rich O's. The poor groom had a bowling ball chained to his leg to symbolize his impending nuptials. Even though the ball and chain was cleary done in jest, I thought LaptopGirl had a good point when she said she'd never want to marry anyone that thought of her that way.

Anyway.

I've clearly screwed something up, and I feel like I'm under a microscope - everything I say or do is being noted and analyzed. People are making unwarranted assumptions about me, and while I suppose in some ways that's better than being ignored, it's still not welcome.

This, combined with my body's new behaviour of punishing me for every drink I take, has led me to the following decision.

I need to lay off.

I need, for a short while at least, to stop going out to the bar every weekend night.

This drastic measure would hopefully accomplish two things.

First, it would allow my body the time to heal from whatever the hell is causing alcohol to affect it so much.

Second, it would let me prove to myself and others that things I've been saying are true. I'm tired of being looked at with concern and pity.

I'm fine.

I don't believe in this stuff at all, but an old roommate of mine used to swear by his astrology books, and I remember he'd always tell me how August was my opposition month (I'm a Pisces) and how that opposition would tend to throw one obstacle after another at me. It was up to me to overcome these obstacles.

I'm not sure that "avoiding obstacles" would really count as "overcoming obstacles" but it's the best plan I can think of at the moment. This whole situation sucks and I have nobody to blame but myself.

Saturday, August 7, 2004
posted by dave at 12:54 AM in category daily, drink

mis-in-ter-pret
v.
1. To interpret erroneously; to understand or to explain in a wrong sense.

Apparently I've screwed up.

I wish I hadn't, and I hope the misunderstanding can be resolved.

I thought I was being completely honest and that I was doing all I could to avoid this misunderstanding, but I guess I didn't do a good enough job.

Anyway, today after work I went to The Bank Shot to shoot for a while. This was the first time I'd been there in several months, and I guess it was good to see that not much had changed. I suppose I'll post about my play in the pool 'blog.

I got to Rich O's at around 10:00 and, like it's been lately, the place was filled mostly with strangers.

There were a few people I knew, and I spent some time talking with them while I had my boring beers.

NotGeorge explained to me that I had fucked up.

CoffeeDude assured me that he was doing just fine.

MisunderstoodGirl reported that her sunburn was healing nicely.

I had a Fischer's and a Stone Smoked Porter, and that's it. I'd last eaten at around 4:00 and I didn't feel like I was ready for anymore alcohol.

There were several Russian girls at Rich O's. I was semi-interested for a bit until they started talking about how much they all hated cats.

What kind of person hates cats?

Not the kind of person I want to know.

One of the Russian girls had pretty cool hair though, and I urged MisunderstoodGirl to grow her hair out like that. I doubt she will.

Saturday, July 31, 2004
posted by dave at 12:21 PM in category daily, drink

e-clec-tic
adj.
1. Selecting or employing individual elements from a variety of sources, systems, or styles.
2. Made up of or combining elements from a variety of sources.

ac-cus-tomed
adj.
1. Frequently practiced, used, or experienced; customary.
2. Being in the habit of.
3. Having been adapted to the existing environment and conditions.

form-fit-ting
adj.
1. Snugly fitting the coutours of the body.

Not much to report tonight. It was a regular Friday night. I had a Great Lakes Anniversary Ale, a Fischer's Amber Ale, and an Alaskan Smoked Porter. All were good, and all were beers I've had before...

...Just not in that particular order.

I've decided to call this particular alcohol combination the TimeBomb.

Last night I was fine for most of the night. I was fine at Rich O's talking with LaptopGirl, TrainGirl and RealTrainGirl, and DooRagGirl's husband and ExBartender. I was fine when MysteryLady and I had a surprise phone conversation while I was on the way home. I was fine once I got home. I was even fine when I started making this entry last night.

But at one point - specifically when I typed the words "and all were beers I'd had before" - The room started spinning. Then the house started spinning, followed in quick succession by the Earth and the entire Milky Way.

I did not get sick.

I just wished that I would.

Now today I've got that lovely dehydrated feeling that can only come from too much alcohol.

Tuesday, July 27, 2004
posted by dave at 9:06 PM in category daily, drink

So yesterday I was bored so I decided to sign up at ratebeer.com.

I then went back through all my old 'blog entries and put all of my beer ratings into the ratebeer site.

I was a little surprised to see that I've already got 59 ratings, and I only need 41 more to qualify for their elite premium membership.

That's when things will turn around for me.

I mean, chicks dig guys who drink a lot of beer, right?

Right?

Sunday, July 25, 2004
posted by dave at 1:51 AM in category daily, drink, ramblings

na-ive
adj.
1.
a. Simple and guileless; artless.
b. Unsuspecting or credulous.

per-fec-tion-ism
n.
1. A propensity for being displeased with anything that is not perfect or does not meet extremely high standards.

re-al-is-tic
adj.
1. Tending to or expressing an awareness of things as they really are.

bit-ter
adj.
1. Marked by resentment or cynicism.

des-per-ate
adj.
1. having lost all hope; despairing.
2. Marked by, arising from, or showing despair.
3. Reckless or violent because of despair.
4. Undertaken out of extreme urgency or as a last resort.
5. Nearly hopelessl critical.
6. Suffering or driven by great need or distress.
7. Extremely intense.

Set-tle (for)
v.
1. To accept in spite of incomplete satisfaction.

The words listed above are a timeline of a typical woman's romantic imperatives. This list was verified by a lesbian so it must be correct.

The women my own age are divided between the desperation and settling stages, and neither sounds very appealing.

Moving to progressively younger women I pause briefly at the desperate ones, though most of those are already in a doomed relationship, though they don't know it yet.

Next we find the bitter group.

No thanks.

Finally we come the good ones - the realistic ones.

These are the women that have gotten over their innocent theories about life and romance and have also successfully made it through their search for ThePerfectMan.

The realistic ones are the smallest group. They are also the most sought-after.

This sucks for me, but at least I know it.

I'm in a realistic phase myself.

Friday started out as a waste of time.

I wanted to appear less creepy to LaptopGirl - especially afer last night's ramblings - so I decided to spend at least the first half of the night at Hooter's drinking Newcastle with my cousin Jeff.

There were several things wrong with that plan.

First, Jeff wasn't even at Hooter's. He was at home apparently having a fight with his weedeater.

Second, Hooter's was out of Newcastle.

This pissed me off. The only place in the area where I can get Newcastle on tap and they were out. I ended up having a glass of water with my cold french fries and burnt burger and left pretty disgusted with the whole place.

So instead of getting to Rich O's fashionalbly late I got there a little after 8:00. Again.

Getting there that early in the night presents some challenges. I cannot drink my normal allotment of a couple of strong beers and a few weaker ones. I have to pace myself.

Tonight I chose to drink only strong beers, but to sip them and make them last.

Anyway, when I first arrived Rich O's was dead. I saw ExBartender, but didn't really talk to him. I sat at the island with DooRagGirl's husband for a while and had a couple Great Lakes 15th Anniversary Ales.

Yummy.

Oh yeah, I hadn't been there 10 minutes when LaptopGirl called to tell me that she'd be there at 10:30. This was significant because it meant that I could not allow myself to leave no matter how boring it was.

Once DooRagGirl's husband left I moved to the living room area where I was joined by a couple I didn't know. ProbableLesbian and CluelessSuitor turned out to be pretty good people. ProbableLesbian in particular seemed very nice, and she also helped to pass the time while all the whippersnappers talked about transformers and other things I'm too old to remember.

At one point I had a Fischer's Amber Ale. This was the only French item on Rich O's bottled list. I ordered it because I thought it might be similar to the frenchy beer from the Two Brothers Brewery I'd enjoyed so much in the Spring. Well this wasn't anything like the Two Brothers ale but it was still quite delicious. Had I known then what I know now I would have been drinking this all along.

At around 10:00, a half-hour before LaptopGirl was scheduled to arrive, one of her ex-boyfriends joined us in the living room area. I was a little concerned because I couldn't remember if I was supposed to be mad at him or not. As it turned out everything was fine.

LaptopGirl arrived and was very cute and, because of ExBoyfriend's presence, I became invisible. This was okay, though, because ProbableLesbian and I were able to pass the time by talking about how old the rest of the group made us feel.

MisunderstoodGirl joined us after a while, further lowering the average age of the group.

Wow.

All of a sudden I'm very conscious of the fact that I'm rambling. I need to stop now.

But wait!

On the way home I was quite surprised to see VigilanteGirl still working. I talked with her for a few minutes - being careful to not freak her out again. Once I was satisifed that she was no longer scared of me I was able to go home.

Saturday, July 24, 2004
posted by dave at 3:30 AM in category daily, drink, ramblings

ob-sta-cle
n.
1. That which opposes, stands in the way of, or holds up progress.

hin-drance
n.
1.
a. The act of hindering.
b. The condition of being hindered.
2. That which hinders; an impedenance.

Friday was a strange night. All the way home from Rich O's I tried to figure out what made it so different from all the other nights I've spent there.

I figured it out.

I ended the night in a good mood.

It took me a while to figure this out because it was such an unusual feeling for me.

The night was, despite factors that could have caused stress, quite relaxing.

So anyway, first off I got to Rich O's very early. I'd left home at 7:30 hoping to catch VigilanteGirl at work, but alas she wasn't there so I got to Rich O's well before 8:00.

I did no experimentation with beer, prefering to stick with my regular indulgences. I had two NABC Beak's Bests, an Alaskan Smoked Porter, and a Guiness, in that order.

Keeping me company tonight were LaptopGirl, CoffeeDude, TallLady, and GrammarNazi and her husband.

For most of the night LaptopGirl and I talked about various fluff that I'd rather not broadcast to the world.

That brings up a good point.

I write this thing for myself - not for anyone else.

Because I write for myself I think I should write mostly ABOUT myself and what's going on with me and in my head.

At times, just to keep things in context, I need to mention things that are going on with my friends, but lately I've been feeling a little guilty whenever I do that.

I mean, it's not the world's business that one friend of mine is getting a divorce. It's also not anyone's business that another friend is contemplating a move, or is in trouble at work.

As I get to know these people better I get a desire to protect their privacy that I didn't feel before. Making up nicknames for the people I write about can only go so far, and lately I've felt the need to go a little farther - to be less candid and less specific in my entries.

All of this new secrecy can make for some pretty boring entries I know, but since the only intended audience is myself I'll try to deal with it.

Back to Friday, such as it was.

LaptopGirl and I spent most of the night sitting in the living room area with the other aforementioned regulars. I got a strange vibe from LaptopGirl that was difficult to identify. Once I did identify it I was quite pleasantly surprised.

I mattered to her.

It amazes me how much that little realization meant to me - and how much it still does. I've spent so much time these past several months waiting for the inevitable InvisibityFactor to kick in that to realize that tonight it wouldn't come was like a kick in the teeth.

In a good way though.

At some point during the recent past I seem to have been promoted, in LaptopGirl's mind, from mere acqaintance to friend.

That word, "friend," can often be a bummer. Guys get placed into the "friend zone" and there's no escape - no matter what the guy may actually want.

This time I'm actually okay with it. I'd absolutely rather be in the friend zone than the acqaintance zone. Any higher promotions would be fraught with peril and I know it.

Would it be worth the risk? Perhaps.

Do I expect that opportunity? Not at all. And I'm okay with that.

I'm 39 years old. I've been through a spectacularly failed marriage, and a handful of other serious relationships, none of which have worked out.

This is quite weird to be writing this, but nobody in my life - not my ex-wife, any of my old girlfriends, or any of the women I've had crushes on - have ever occupied my thoughts the way LaptopGirl does.

Something about her just fascinates me, and I catch myself thinking about her several times each day.

Not all of these thoughts are good ones. I've become quite perturbed by the InvisibilityFactor several times. Some of her opinions are so different from my own that I think we must be from different planets. Her not recognizing my voice on the phone last weekend bothered me much more than I'd have thought it would.

It's very strange. I've had crushes before, but they've all had at least some element of hope. In this case I've never had any indication whatsoever that there could ever be the slightest interest in me.

But I don't care.

This fascination, not quite a romantic one, not quite a platonic one, has kept my mind more occupied than it's been for a long long time.

I'm writing this entry on a Friday night - actually early Saturday morning - and I've suddenly become timid. I found out tonight that LaptopGirl has indeed checked out my 'blog, so there's a decent chance that she'll read this entry as well.

Perhaps I should delete it.

Don't want to scare her off after all - to make her think I'm some kind of stalker or something.

But that's the thing; there's nothing to be scared off from. I'm really content with the way things are. I'm not scheming for anything more.

That just blows my mind.

How could I meet such a beautiful and intelligent woman and NOT want more?

Perhaps it's because I've been hurt several times in the past. Perhaps it's things like the InvisibilityFactor. Perhaps I just know better than to try to become involved with someone so different from me.

Perhaps I'm just kidding myself and I don't know what I want at all.

I don't know, but I'll keep enjoying the ride while it lasts.

Sunday, July 18, 2004
posted by dave at 10:08 AM in category daily, drink

On Saturday, for whatever reasons, I found my myself in a mood for the apple taste of a Belgian ale.

My initial attempt to satify this craving was a Great Lakes 15th Anniversary Ale. Yummy, but I still wanted more apples.

The second beer I tried was a Mad Bitch - I'm sure it has a real name but everyone just calls it Mad Bitch.

This was as close to drinking hard cider as I think I could stand. I liked this beer, but at a whopping 10% alcohol I know that one will always be my limit.

Once the Mad Bitch as gone I got a little bored with Rich O's Nobody I knew was there except for ExBartender and he was involved in a loud conversation with some tatooed guy.

I ended up leaving and going to Jillian's of all places.

VigilanteGirl had mentioned earlier that she would go there after work, so I went and had a couple of Newcastles while I waited.

I guess we had a misunderstanding as she didn't show up. Actually as it turns out she was there for a bit but her and her friends didn't stay - they had gone by the time I got there.

Once I left Jillian's I went back to Rich O's, got talked into going to a party, got bored at the party, and went home.

Saturday, July 17, 2004
posted by dave at 1:03 AM in category daily, drink

com-pas-sion
n.
1. Deep awareness of the suffering of another coupled with the wish to relieve it.

fu-til-i-ty
n.
1. The quality of having no useful result; uselessness.
2. Lack of importance or purpose; frivolousness.
3. A futile act.

dis-miss
v.
1. To end the employment or service of; discharge.
2. To stop considering; rid one's minds of; dispel.
3. To refuse to accept or recognize; reject.

Tonight was certainly interesting.

I spent the night talking with LaptopGirl, CoffeeDude, and CoffeeDude's brother.

I had a couple of Guiness pints, and an NABC Beak's Best. The only experimentation I did was to have a SkullSplitter.

It was quite disgusting at first, but after an inch or so it started to taste pretty good. I suspect that my initial disgust was caused by the Beak's Best still coating my mouth. At 8.5% it was too strong for me to risk getting a second opinion.

Tonight I basically tried to be a nice person but apparently failed. Not only was I blown off, I was told that I was being blown off as it was happening. People sitting across the room were like, "Dude, you just got DISSED" and I was like "gee like thanks for letting me know as I am like stupid and would never have noticed otherwise."

They say nice guys finish last.

CoffeeDude did try to stick up for me but it was clearly a lost cause at that point.

Also, it was pretty cool that LaptopGirl took one look at this stranger at Rich O's and guessed that he was CoffeeDude's brother, and it turned out she was right.

Sunday, July 11, 2004
posted by dave at 3:16 PM in category daily, drink

group-ie
n. Slang
1. A fan, especially a young woman, who follows a rock group around on tours.

Saturday night was much like Friday. It seems that most of the regulars were in attendance at one time or another and I spent the night in the living room area talking about various topics ranging from my quiet demeanor to the severe lack of attractive, single, straight women at Rich O's.

I had the same beers I had on Friday, in probably the same order.

What a wild-man I am.

As I left I spotted LaptopGirl sitting in her car so I said hello and left before I got drafted into chauferring her and her new boyfriend someplace.

Saturday, July 10, 2004
posted by dave at 3:08 PM in category daily, drink

ex-ot-ic
adj.
1. From another part of the world; foreign.
2. Intriguingly unusual or different; excitingly strange.

I'm having a tough time thinking of anything to write about Friday. Everyone was at Rich O's and there were a lot of interesting conversations, but nothing really sticks in my mind...

...EXCEPT the presence of FilleFrancaiseSexy who was there with CanadianGirl and her entourgage from work.

I heartily recommend that CanadianGirl bring more sexy French girls to Rich O's. They're just what the place has been missing.

For the beer part of this report the only experimenting I did was to order a Great Lakes 15th Anniversary Ale. This is a Belgian Ale, and it had all of the appleness that I've come to expect from Belgians, but this beer had a lot of other characteristics that I cannot even begin to describe. It was one of the most complex beers I've ever had.

I liked it, and so now the Great Lakes Brewery is about 5-for-5 when it comes to making a beer that I like.

Other than that I had a few of my regulars; NABC Beak's Best, Arcadia Scotch Ale, and Alaskan Smoked Porter.

Sunday, July 4, 2004
posted by dave at 12:16 AM in category daily, drink

as-i-nine
adj.
1. Utterly stupid or silly; asinine behavior.
2. Of, relating to, or resembling as ass.

First off, Friday night.

I had a pint of the Arcadia Scotch Ale, which I like more and more each time I drink it. What happened next was NOT the beer's fault. About halfway through I started feeling a little queasy. By the time I finished my pint I wasn't feeling very good at all so I left. I have since figured out the reason for my little anxiety attack, and it's nobody's business but mine. So there.

Anyway, once home I felt a little better. I had a bottle of Stone Smoked Porter while I watched a movie. It was pretty good beer actually, not as strong of a smoke flavor as some of the other smoked porters I've had, but enough to be recognizable, and enough to be pretty good.

On Saturday, I resolved to be in a better mood.

The night started out pretty well. VigilanteGirl was very fired up about the adventure she'd just had. She'd chased down some gas thieves and got their license number for the cops. She was VERY fired up, and her enthusiasm was quite contagious. I arrived at Rich O's in a very good mood. Ahhh, youth.

My mood was quickly diminished by what has to have been to most fucked up conversation I've ever heard. Now I want to be clear that I consider these people to be my friends, and that hasn't changed, but when people start talking about how cool Nazi's are and how, even if they're not cool, America is no different than the Nazis, I have to either bite my tongue or go off on someone.

I chose to bite my tongue. People like that are, I've found, not very receptive to conflicting views, and like I said, these people were my friends.

After a while I moved over to the island area and spent a good couple of hours talking with CoffeeDude about a lot of things.

Oh yeah, beer. While all the stupidity was going on I had an Arcadia. Once I'd moved to the island I switched to NABC Beak's Best.

I was able, via my conversation with CoffeeDude, to turn my mood back to a positive one.

Thanks, CoffeeDude.

Sunday, June 27, 2004
posted by dave at 12:21 AM in category daily, drink

wan-ton
adj.
1. Immoral or unchaste; lewd.
2. Gratuitously cruel; merciless.
3. Unrestrainedly excessive: wanton extravagance; wanton depletion of oil reserves.
4. Luxuriant; overabundant: wanton tresses.
5. Frolicsome; playful.
6. Undisciplined; spoiled.

I need to learn to keep my mouth shut.

I kind of like this word of the day thing I've been doing in my 'blog. It really cuts down on the creative pressure.

Anyway, tonight several of the regulars were at Rich O's. Let's see, there was CoffeeDude, the dude from last night, LaptopGirl, MisunderstoodGirl, TrainGirl and RealTrainGirl, plus a couple of others that don't warrant special mention - except that one of them had a really hot girl in tow.

I had a pint of the Arcadia Ale, which was quite good. No, really, I liked it a lot. It's just too strong to safely have more than one.

Next I had a pint of SwithWick's (apparently the "W" is silent) and I liked it but after the Arcadia it tasted a little bland.

My next beer was a 2003 Alaskan Smoked Porter, and my last was a half-pint of NABC's Beak's Best ESB.

There were several conversations, but I don't feel like relaying any of them.

Just about the only thing I will point out, to those people reading this for social advice, is that every time a massage is given, at least one of the two people involved is having sexual thoughts about the other person. Perhaps some of you people should remember that the next time you decide to get rubbed down in a public place. For an hour and a half.

Monday, June 21, 2004
posted by dave at 10:37 PM in category drink

Regular readers may notice that I've added a new beer to my list of favorites. Obsessed readers will also notice that I've placed it first, before even my beloved Alaskan Amber.

Yes, I have a new favorite. The Pyramid Tilted Kilt ale I enjoyed so much in Las Vegas has unseated my favorite of over a decade.

Put an Alaskan Amber and a Tilted Kilt in front of me right now, and I'm going for the Alaskan. Put the same to beers in front of me in six months, however, and I'm pretty sure the Tilted Kilt is the one I'll be drinking first.

That's why I've ordered them the way I have.

Sunday, June 20, 2004
posted by dave at 2:37 AM in category daily, drink

I didn't expect much to happen tonight.

I went to Rich O's after my family reunion, and ran into ElPresidente and his wife. We spent a couple of hours talking about the recent storms and just passing the time.

After a while LaptopGirl surprised me by coming in. I'd seen InfatuatedGuy earlier but LaptopGirl had indicated that she wouldn't be in on Saturday.

Anyway, while talking with the FirstCouple I had an NABC Beak's Best and a 2003 Alaskan Smoked Porter. Once they left I moved to the living room with NotGeorge and sat with LaptopGirl and InfatuatedGuy.

Though I had been planning to leave after my smoked porter, LaptopGirl's appearance changed all that. I ended up having a couple half-pint's of Rogue's Dead Guy Ale. I really liked this stuff, which was weird because Rogue's beers are usually too over-the-top for me. This was a mild ale that tasted quite good and didn't seem too high in alcohol.

To close out the night I had one of the Sprecher Cream Sodas.

For the second night in a row I closed out Rich O's with LaptopGirl. Tonight we didn't go to the other bar. This was probably a good thing, as my blood-alcolol content was undoubtedly eating away at my sense of restraint.

Saturday, June 19, 2004
posted by dave at 4:46 AM in category daily, drink

Tonight marked the seventh night in a row that I went out drinking.

This is rare for me, but being in Las Vegas is also rare, so everything works out.

Tonight, back home in Indiana, I of course went to Rich O's. I went even though I was still hungover from the previous night. I went even though the last thing my body needed was more alcohol. I went because it's what I do on the weekends. To stay home would have been to surrender to the forces of boringness that I've been fighting for a decade.

So I went.

And I'm glad I did.

My beer selection last night remained pretty tame. I had a couple of pints of NABC's Community Dark, an ale that's only good when I'm hungover and when it's the first beer of the night.

Near the end of the evening I had one of NABC's Beaks Best ESBs.

The story of last night was not, however, about the beer I had. It was about getting back into my groove and leaving the Las Vegas mindset behind.

It was also about getting to see LaptopGirl, who was a real sight for sore eyes after spending a week in Silicon Valley.

I spent most of the night talking with LaptopGirl and ExBartender about nothing in particular. ExBartender can be a little abrasive when he's been drinking, but LaptopGirl didn't object so I just minded my own business.

Once Rich O's closed LaptopGirl and I went to Jack's where, for the first time ever, I did not become invisible. Hard to believe, but for one night I was the most interesting person around.

posted by dave at 2:58 AM in category drink, travel

As I write this I'm back home from my week in Las Vegas.

I could probably write a pretty long entry about the week - and I may still write about a couple of the smaller touristy things I did - but I can sum up the week with two main topics:

1: Pyramid Tilted Kilt Ale. This beer continued to surprise me all week long. Every night I went into The Tilted Kilt bar at the Rio, intending to sample something from their array of a dozen or so good beers, yet most nights I ended up just drinking one Tilted Kilt Ale after another.

Just fantastic. So good, in fact, that on Tuesday the bartender accidentally gave me a Newcastle and I could immediately tell the difference and I could immediately tell that the Tilted Kilt was a better brew.

2: I missed LaptopGirl. It started during the long drive to Death Valley, and continued through every show and event I attended, and every attraction I visited. I thought about how much more enjoyable things would be if there were someone to experience them with, and my thoughts invariably went to LaptopGirl.

Monday, June 14, 2004
posted by dave at 2:18 AM in category daily, drink, travel

Just a quick report on the beer I've been drinking here in Las Vegas.

My bar of choice is The Tilted Kilt here at the Rio. They have 24 draft beers, and only a half-dozen or so are piss.

My favorite discovery here, by far, is Tilted Kilt Ale by Pyramid. I think the name is just a coincidence. This scottish ale is just flat-out good.

On Saturday I tried a Boddington's. I'd heard some good things about this, but I can't for the life of me figure out why. This was water with a couple of drops of beer flavoring added. It reminded me of the Abita Amber I tried several months ago. I only drank about an inch from the glass.

On Sunday I started out with another Tilted Kilt. I also sampled a John Courage Amber, which had an applely taste that I didn't find disgusting but I didn't like it enought to have a full pint.

I also, on the bartender's recommendation, tried a Smithwick's. This beer was intriguing enough for me to order a full glass. There was a slight watery taste that at first turned me off, but after a few sips I started to imagine, believe it or not, a slight peaty characteristic to the water. I won't go so far as to say that I liked the Smithwick's, but I so think I'll try it again this week before I leave Las Vegas.

Sunday, June 6, 2004
posted by dave at 12:33 AM in category daily, drink

I'm typing this after returning home from Rich O's on Saturday night. For this reason it may be full of spelling errors and/or other problems.

I don't care. I just want to get the thing typed so I can watch a movie.

This weekend started out early as far as beer was concerned.

At lunchtime on Friday we had a little farewell luncheon for my old boss who is leaving for a new job.

We had this luncheon at Brownings in Louisville.

I've never been a big fan of Eileen's brews. I'm sure she's great and everything but I just have never been impressed with anything she's put out.

MysteryLady really liked the Stout, though I found it watery.

Everything at Brownings is either too watery or too bitter for my taste.

On Friday I first had an "Unfiltered Rye" that tasted bad. I then tries an "ESB" that was so bad I could only have an inch out of the glass. Finally I had a "Nut Brown Ale" that was decent. I've had that before and as brown ales go it was watery but at least drinkable.

On Friday night I went to Rich O's and started out with a new beer from NABC who's name escapes me. I didn't like it very much.

I then had a Beak's Best, returned after a several-week absence, and enjoyed that a lot. To end the night I had a couple of Alaskan Smoked Porters.

When I got home I realized that I'd had way too much to drink. It was one of those nights where I wished I'd just get sick but I didn't.

On Saturday all I had were a couple of Beak's Best pints. I spent some time talking with NotGeorge who is at least as much of a pervert as I am so I no longer feel the need to convert to Catholicism just so I can confess my impure thoughts.

I didn't get to see LaptopGirl all weekend. It feels like such a waste.

Plus I'll be in Las Vegas next weekend so I won't get to see her for at least two weeks.

It's a good thing I've gotten over my crush or I'd really miss LaptopGirl.

Monday, May 31, 2004
posted by dave at 8:35 AM in category daily, drink

Just a quick report about Saturday.

I had a Frenchy beer and two Alaskan Smoked Porters while talking with LaptopGirl and some guy that's clearly in the early stages of infatuation with her.

LaptopGirl looked very good. I think the new job has helped her a lot. She smiles more now.

I told you it would be a quick report.

Saturday, May 29, 2004
posted by dave at 2:08 PM in category daily, drink

I actually went to Rich O's twice last night.

The first time was around 8:00. I had just, litterally out of the blue, lost power to my house, and so I went out earlier than is usual for me.

When I got to Rich O's I made a quick survey of the parking lot - LaptopGirl's car was not there. I went in anyway and almost immediately turned around. DisgustingMakeoutCouple had decided to put on one of their little shows on the couch.

So I came back home for a while (power was back on) and then returned to Rich O's at 10:00 PM.

There was nobody there except a couple of the professional beer drinkers. I ended up sitting at the bar where I had a Frenchy beer and an Alaskan Smoked Porter.

A pretty boring night.

Sunday, May 23, 2004
posted by dave at 2:56 PM in category daily, drink

Kind of a boring weekend at Rich O's. There were no LaptopGirl sightings, and most of the other people I know there were also missing.

On Friday I just had a couple of the Upland Winter Warmers. This weird guy kept bugging me with inane questions, plus there was a dead old lady sitting across from me. I left after just the two beers.

On Saturday things started out a little more interesting. MisunderstoodGirl actually sat with me at the bar and actually initiated a conversation. Perhaps I was just being paranoid about her being pissed at me for some unknown reason. A more likely scenario is that TallLady, who I talked with at last weekend's party, relayed to MisunderstoodGirl that I was detecting some animosity from her.

Anyway, I wasn't really in the mood for anything heavy when I first got to Rich O's. I'd been working on my siding all day and my sunburned skin needed something a little less drying.

What I had was one of those Frenchy Two Brothers beers, then another one. I cannot stress enough how much I like this beer.

After my second Frenchy beer I was feeling a little cooler so I tried a Belhaven Scottish Ale. This came in a can (with one of those foaming widget thingies) and I liked it a lot too. It was a lot creamier than the Scotch Ale I'd had in Omaha last month. The beer had a lot of shit floating in it. Shit that, by the time I got down to the last inch or so of the glass, was starting to creep me out. Instead of getting a spoon for that last inch I pushed it aside and had myself a Winter Warmer.

One other item of note was that CreepyGuy was there with some of his CreepyPosse. CreepyGuy had a black eye and a Band-Aid on his face. He must have creeped someone out to the point of violence. Whatever happened, I'm sure he deserved it.

Thursday, May 13, 2004
posted by dave at 10:58 AM in category daily, drink

Last night I figured that as long as I was using up my vacation days I'd try to make the most of a bad situation and so I went to Rich O's.

Also, LaptopGirl started her new job today and I wanted to see how that went.

Rich O's was fairly crowded - I'd heard that Wednesdays were popular - but I got a seat at the Island with RealTrainGirl and Matt-Josh-Willy Whatever (turns out one of my guesses is right) and ordered an Upland Winter Warmer. I also had an Alaskan Smoked Porter put on ice for later.

The Upland beer is becoming one of my favorites. This of course means that it wil be going away soon.

After a little while LaptopGirl showed up (HOT!) and she was pretty excited about her new job. I'm hopeful that the stress she felt at her old job is a thing of the past.

RealTrainGirl is having a party this weekend, and I may actually go if I don't have to work Sunday morning. They'll have a keg of NABC Solidarity which is really good, but scary because it's so sneakily strong. I may even take a tent.

MisunderstoodGirl joined us for a while. I'm becoming convinced that I've done something to piss her off - or else maybe she'd just been in a bad mood for a couple of months. What used to be pretty interesting conversations have been reduced to grunts and nods.

Anyway, I drank my Upland beer very quickly and since my Smoked Porter hadn't had a chance to chill I ordered a Domaine DuPage French Style Country Ale. I've actually just been calling it "that frenchy beer" rather than butcher the proper pronounciation. I like it, though after the Upland it seemed a little weak.

At one point LaptopGirl noticed her ex at a nearby table so she zipped over there, leaving a little puff of smoke in her wake. I can say that I've come to expect these occurances and I wasn't really bothered.

After RealTrainGirl left Bubbles and MusicalHippyDude joined us at the island. LaptopGirl came back after her ex left and began bad-mouthing him. I can say that I've also come to expect this and I think it's funny.

My Frenchy beer went down pretty quickly and I had the bartender bring out the Alaskan Smoked Porter (Vintage 2003). It hadn't quite cooled down as much as I would have liked but that was my fault for drinking too fast.

The smoked porter is just a very good beer. Like many of my other favorites I wish it had a little less alcohol so I could drink more of it. This ended up being my last beer of the night, though I did have a root beer while LaptopGirl continued to complain about her ex and MusicalHippyDude continued to be more interesting than me.

Sunday, May 9, 2004
posted by dave at 1:00 AM in category daily, drink

The events of Friday night tear at my mind. Once I manage to come to grips I'll post about it. Perhaps. I may decide that it's just too much to process and decide to ignore the whole incident.

But for now, just a beer report.

Friday night I started out with one of NABC's Solidarity porters.

I don't remember if I've had this before (I think I have) but I kindof like it. Nothing special, just a decent porter without any bitterness. I hate bitterness.

My next beer was a Domaine DuPage French Style Country Ale by the Two Brothers Brewery. This beer, oddly enough, is not listed on their website.

I have to say that despite the long-winded name and its French implications, this is one of he best beer I've had in a long time. Smooth, not too strong, not too weak.

I ended up having four of these things, then I had three more on Saturday night. What an excellent session beer! I wish I could describe it more clearly. "Drinkable" is the word that comes to mind most often.

Also, on Saturday, I went to Hooters to see my cousin Jeff and I had a Newcastle Brown Ale. It was a little flat - they had warned me beforehand - but it was still very good. I miss being able to get Newcastle's on tap in New Albany. Jeffersonville is just too far to drive for a beer.

Sunday, May 2, 2004
posted by dave at 1:23 PM in category daily, drink

I'm combining the Friday and Saturday reports for a couple of reasons. The first reason is that I think the stark contrast in the styles of the two nights will provide an interesting example of the ebbs and flows of the life of a single man. The second reason is that I'm just plain lazy.

Rich O's was moderately crowded on Friday, with a few of the regulars I can actually stand to be around. I was able to grab a seat at the island and ordered my first beer - an Upland Winter Warmer.

I actually had this beer a couple of times last weekend - when I was starting my writing drought - and I really like it. It reminds me of the Great Lakes Christmas Ale that I enjoyed so much a few months ago. There was some fruitiness that I will call raspberry and some nutmeg as well. My only real problem with this beer is that it's rather strong and I cannot safely have more than one.

Next, on the advice of one of the regulars I tried an Old Slug Porter and I just can't describe it very well. I'm sure it had some flavor and some characteristics, but I just couldn't detect anything after the Upland beer I'd just had. I'll be sure to try it again when it comes back to Rich O's.

At about the time I was finishing my Old Slug, LaptopGirl arrived and WOW! She was looking sexier than I've ever seen before in her little skirt and top. She looked like she'd come straight from a figure skating competition.

(I should point out that while I'm no longer romantically interested in LaptopGirl, I'm still a straight single man and I still find her physically quite attractive and mentally fascinating.)

Once her interesting friends left, LaptopGirl joined me at the island and I spent a good couple of hours striving to make eye contact instead of looking down her top.

Once my Old Slug was gone I ordered an Avery Czar. At 10% alcohol I knew this would be the only one of these I'd have. I liked the taste of this a lot. I detected a definite bourbon odor, and I asked if it was aged in an old bourbon barrel but the bartenders didn't think so. There wasn't really any bourbon to the taste so I may be insane.

After a while the living room area cleared out so LaptopGirl and I moved over there. I was enjoying the conversation (and the scenery) so I ordered an NABC Beak's Best and that ended up being my last beer of the night - though I did have a draft root beer while LaptopGirl finished her NABC BourbonDaddy.

As we've done several times in the past, LaptopGirl and I closed out Rich O's. As we've also done a few times, we went over to Jack's where I had a Diet Coke and wondered how long it would be before the InvisibilityFactor took effect.

It didn't take long. We were sitting with a couple of other Rich O's regulars and MusicalHippyDude is certainly more interesting than I am. Once I was fully invisible to LaptopGirl I was able to finish my drink and leave unnoticed.

Saturday night, as I think I hinted way back at the beginning of this entry, was completely different than Friday.

Rich O's only had a dozen or so people, all in the bar area. A couple of people there I recognized, but I wouldn't say I knew any of them, so I just stood at my spot at the bar and talked with the bartenders.

Wanting something fairly weak after the previous night's strong brews, I first ordered an NABC Beak's Best. They were out. I then ordered a bottle of Newcastle Brown Ale. They were out of that too. Starting to feel desperate, I ordered my old old OLD standby, Pete's Wicked Ale. They actually had that and I had a couple more during the night. I won't say too much about the Pete's because it makes me sad that it used to be one of the best but now it's simply passable.

I was also able, thanks to the bartenders, to sample a couple of beers that I really liked. Unfortunately I was sworn to secrecy and I cannot break that trust. I'll just say that I liked them and I wish they were more readily available.

After a relaxing couple of hours I left Rich O's at 11:00 PM and went home.

Saturday, April 17, 2004
posted by dave at 12:12 PM in category daily, drink

Not much beer - and actually not much report - for this entry.

I went to Rich O's as usual, though I was pretty tired from all the shopping after work.

The place was fairly crowded - standing room only, but I stood at the bar with my Beak's Best and listened to LaptopGirl and her ex talk about farts for a while. How fascinating that was!

After a while CreepyGuy started hitting on me or whatever it is he's doing so I left.

I'm pretty surprised by the display of idiocy that LaptopGirl put on. It's like she dumbed herself down so her ex wouldn't feel uncomfortable.

I'm not jealous. Much.

Saturday, April 10, 2004
posted by dave at 3:21 PM in category daily, drink, travel

This morning I found myself at a very cool brewpub/restaurant in Omaha.

The Upstream Brewery is one I haven't even heard of before. It turns out that they don't sell outside of the Omaha area and they weren't there a decade ago when I lived there.

Anyway, this was a really nice place, and I wish there was something like it in Louisville.

My first beer was their Dundee 90 Shilling Scotch Ale. This was my first scotch ale, and I guess it was a little blander than I expected. I did really like it though. Before I left I talked to one of the brewers who told me that this particular batch was indeed a little bland and the next batch would be more flavorful.

My next beer was their Firehouse ESB. This was another really good beer, and I don't even like ESBs that much generally.

Since it was still before noon and I hadn't even had lunch yet I decided that two semi-strong beers would be enough.

Sunday, March 28, 2004
posted by dave at 9:53 AM in category daily, drink

I went out way to early last night.

Because I'd gone to the liquor store to spend my product promotion allowance I ended up at Rich O's at around 8:00 PM.

It wasn't very crowded, but it seemed that all of the people there were (a) annoying, and (b) likely to be glued to their seats all night.

I ended up standing for the whole time I was there.

The first beer I had was a Kiuchi Hitachino New Year's Celebration Eisbock. I've decided that "eisbock" must be some foreign word for "tastes like shit" because this is the third or fourth variation I've had over the past several months and I haven't cared for a single one. Rotten molasses is how I wil describe it, though I don't really know what rotten molasses tastes like.

Next I tried the second Gravity Head beer from the Fantome Brewery, the Fantôme d Été.

At least that's what I thought. It turns out that this may have actually been the Fantome Saison, and that I had the Fantôme d Été last weekend. They were switching things up to confuse me apparently.

At any rate, the Fantome Whatever I had last night was much more cider-like that the Fantome Whatchamacallit I had last weekend. This one was actually too applely for my taste.

By the time I'd spent an hour choking down the eisbock, and then another hour choking down the Fantome, I was ready to leave. All of the people at Rich O's were still there glued to their seats, and they were still annoying.

I got home just after 10:00 and went to sleep.

Saturday, March 27, 2004
posted by dave at 3:20 PM in category daily, drink

I had such high hopes for last night.

First off, both of the beers I'd been most looking forward to sampling were on tap at the same time. To make things even better LaptopGirl had reappeared a week earlier from wherever she'd been. Finally, I was just in a good mood - something that's been a little rare since I started my ill-executed painting project.

When I arrived at Rich O's the first beer I tried was Uerige "Secret" Sticke Altbier. I actually got the very last half-glass from the cask.

I should have left it in the cask. I didn't like it at all, and I don't think I can properly describe the displeasure I had while drinking it, so I won't try.

After that disaster, I had the other beer I'd really been looking forward to. The Rocky River Kohlminator Smoked Bock was a beer I'd been hoping would (a) help me to get over the loss of my beloved Cone Smoker, and (b) cost less than the Alaskan Smoked Porter I'd been getting my smoke fix from recently.

I didn't like this beer either. There wasn't very much smoke, and what there was was the "grapey" kind of smoke that I don't really care for. To make matters worse, there was no bitterness, only sweetness behind the smoke, and those two flavors clashed quite a bit.

Well so much for that. I went back to the bland, but safe, Community Dark for the rest of the evening.

I'd started out the night at the bar, from where I'd occasionally glance to the sitting area to see if a space near LaptopGirl had opened up. Eventually one did so I moved over and sat in the chair.

LaptopGirl was looking quite pretty, and beyond that she was in a much better mood than she'd been in when I'd last seen her. She was optimistic about her writing and was happily telling anyone who'd listen about the BIG director who was reading one of her screenplays.

After a while, for reasons I cannot fathom, CoffeeDude decided to start lecturing LaptopGirl on the realities of life, and of The Arts in particular. He kept telling her how hard it was to break into show business, and how she shouldn't be disappointed if this particular opportunity fell through.

I'm sure that CoffeeDude meant well, and he was certainly telling the truth, but I didn't think that LaptopGirl needed to hear it. Especially on this particular night. I asked him to ease up, and to let LaptopGirl enjoy her optimism. LaptopGirl herself asked him to be quiet several times.

Eventually whatever evil plan CoffeeDude had came to fruition. LaptopGirl fell into a funk even worse than I'd seen the previous weekend. Then she left. I tried to apologize on behalf of men everywhere (and especially CoffeeDude) but she never stopped moving as she walked out the door.

I'd started the night with fairly high expectations, and by the time I went home I'd had two beers that I didn't like at all, plus as an added bonus I'd got to see LaptopGirl cry and there was nothing I could do about it.

That'll teach me to be an optimist.

Sunday, March 21, 2004
posted by dave at 11:19 AM in category daily, drink

Last night Rich O's was actually pretty dead. Perhaps the novelty of their Gravity Head festival, now a couple of weeks old, has begun to wear off.

The first thing I noticed when I walked in was SuperHotYoungGirl sitting with her friends in the front area. She actually made eye-contact with me and I nearly professed my love and adoration for her right then and there.

Somehow I resisted that urge and went into Rich O's proper. Things in there did not look good. DisgustingMakeoutCouple had stationed themselves on the couch and were doing their best to make everyone in the room feel uncomfortable by sucking and groping at each other. Seriously, get a room.

Beyond that display, right in "my" spot, stood CreepyGuy. He gave me his customary grin/leer. The guy either wants to pound me in the ass or chop me up and feed me to his pet ferrets. Neither option sounds particularly appealing so I try to steer clear.

Luckily a spot opened up at the bar so I was able to grab a seat. I ordered a Community Dark and had the bartender put an Alaskan Smoked Porter on ice for later.

As I drank my beer I'd occasionally look around the room to see if SuperHotYoungGirl had entered Rich O's proper. She hadn't but at one point I saw someone even better. LaptopGirl had managed to sneak in and was sitting there reading a book.

It had been at least a month since LaptopGirl and I had seen each other, and I swear she seemed as glad to see me as I was to see her. She moved her stuff over to the bar so we could talk.

While I talked with LaptopGirl about things ranging from her artistic endeavors to the National Park Service I finished my Community Dark and had the bartender bring me the Smoked Porter I had put on ice earlier.

This was the 2002 vintage Alaskan Smoked Porter. I usually have the 2003, and according to the Rich O's beer experts there is supposed to be a substantial difference.

I couldn't really detect a difference. I liked the 2002 exactly as much as I like the 2003. That is to say I liked it a lot, and I wished I could drink more than one in a night.

While I'd originally planned to leave Rich O's fairly early since I had to work the next morning, the appearance of LaptopGirl changed all that. I ended up having a couple of NABC's Beaks Best pints while she sampled a couple of the Gravity Head beers.

At one point we also sampled a Fantome Saison that I really liked and LaptopGirl didn't seem to care for all that much. It had the apple taste that I've come to expect and enjoy from Belgians.

As Rich O's closed LaptopGirl made a couple of references to going over to a nearby bar. I somehow remembered that I had to work in the morning and told her so. I also managed to stop myself from babbling on about the invisibility factor and the fact that Jack's Tavern seems to be a catalyst for that phenomenon.

Saturday, March 20, 2004
posted by dave at 10:41 AM in category daily, drink

Last night was supposed to be a change of pace. I'd been invited by a friend from work to go to a Louisville bar with the unlikely name "The Backdoor" to shoot some pool. I was also told that this bar had Newcastle on tap, so the trip seemed like it would be a worthwhile diversion from the Gravity Head crowding at Rich O's.

I found the place easily enough and I was happy to confirm that despite its name, The Backdoor is not one of "those" places. Not that there's anything wrong with that.

Anyway, my friend wasn't there and I ordered a Newcastle and waited.

There was something wrong with the beer. Maybe it had been in the keg for years - The Backdoor didn't seem like the type of place to go through a lot of imports. Maybe the glass was just dirty. For whatever reason I couldn't even finish the glass. My friend never did show up so I left.

Rich O's wasn't nearly as crowded as I'd feared. Maybe everyone was off watching Louisville choke its way out of the NCAA tournament.

I had one of NABC's Solidarity Baltic porters. I remember having this before - about a year ago, and liking it, but I didn't remember much else about it.

What a scary beer! It tastes very good, with no bitternes at all, and just the right amount of carbonation. The scary part is that it's over 8% alcohol. I ended up having two of them then I had to switch to root beer to make sure I'd be able to find my truck, let alone drive home in it.

The only regulars I saw were Bubbles, who was looking all tropical, and CreepyGuy. CreepyGuy kept looking at me and grinning (leering?) so I kept as far from him as I could and made sure nobody followed me home.

Monday, March 15, 2004
posted by dave at 11:49 PM in category daily, drink

I've combined my Friday and Saturday reports for this past weekend for a couple of reasons. First, It's now Monday and I just want to get the thing typed. Second, Saturday was pretty much a bust, as I'll explain later.

Rich O's is having their annual "Gravity Head" festival, where they feature the strongest beers in the world, so I went in on Friday to sample some of these deadly concoctions.

Before I got three feet into the door I was accosted by CanadianGirl from work. She was upset that I hadn't been visiting her at the sample tasting lab lately. She was also drunk. (Yes, I'm talking about you. You're a very cute and friendly drunk though.) I spent a good deal of time reassuring her that my absence had nothing to do with her or the lab - I'd just been either sick or very busy for over two months. I promised to make every effort to start going to the lab again.

Also representing my work at Rich O's on Friday were CanadianGirl's hot boss(can I say that?) and CheerfulGirl, who for some reason didn't seem very cheerful at all.

Anyway, I first ordered a "Hercules" from Louisville's Browning's Brewery, and I drank it while talking with CanadianGirl's boyfriend and CheerfulGirl's husband. I also finally got to see if CanadianGirl's hot boss (can I say that?) was wearing a ring or not. She isn't.

I didn't like the Hercules. It was just too bitter.

Once the crew from work left I had a new beer from Rich O's own NABC. The 5B Brown Porter I also did not particulary like. I know the guy who invented this recipe, and I know he'll understand that just because I don't like his beer that doesn't mean that it isn't any good. More on that later.

Oh yeah, during all this time while I was choking down my first two beer I also had an Alaskan Smoked Porter on ice. It became my last, and only good, beer of the night.

I ended up in the "Living Room " area of Rich O's talking with MisunderstoodGirl, TrainGirl, and RealTrainGirl. It was pretty cool to have some of the women regulars there, as it had been a while.

On to Saturday. I've been completely swamped with work so I wasn't really sure that I'd go out at all, but the glamour and glitz of Gravity Head called to me so I went back to Rich O's.

The crowd was unbelievable. It was also unbearable.

I'd been thinking about the 5B Brown Porter that I'd tried the night before. I wondered if I'd given it a fair test, what with my taste buds still being all shot to hell from the Hercules I'd had just before it. I decided that, to be fair to my friend who'd invented the recipe, I'd have another pint and see how it stood on its own.

Unfortunately, I still didn't like it. Just too bitter. It took me over an hour to drink the thing, and that hour was spent walking from section to section trying to find a place to simply stand. There was no hope whatsoever of being able to sit down because the crowd was so thick.

I ended up going home after that one beer, and working until the wee hours of the morning.

Sunday, March 7, 2004
posted by dave at 11:43 AM in category daily, drink

When I first walked in to Rich O's last night I already knew what my last beer of the night would be. I asked the bartender to put a bottle of Alaskan Smoked Porter on ice for me, since they usually keep it at room temperature.

While waiting for my real beer to chill I had a couple of NABC's Community Dark pints. There was some weird guy playing what I suppose could be called music and doing what I guess some would call singing, but my musical tastes are not nearly broad enough to appreciate the poor bastard.

Once again there were none of the women I know at Rich O's so I spent most of the night talking with CoffeeDude about things neither important nor interesting.

Once CoffeeDude left my Smoked Porter was ready so I moved to the bar and tasted that beer for the first time in several years.

Definately more smoky than I remember, but more complex also, I liked it a lot. I'm not sure if I like it as much as the Alaska Brewing Company's Alaskan Amber, but I'd have to put Smoked Porter in my top five beers. I'll definitely be having more of it, at least util Rich O's decides to stop selling it.

Not that I'm bitter about Cone Smoker being discontinued or anything.

Nope, not me.

Saturday, March 6, 2004
posted by dave at 11:22 AM in category daily, drink

Last night I was in the mood for some Newcastle so I went to Hooters and met up with my cousin Jeff. This time I even remembered to ask the Hooters girl to give me my beer in a non-frosted glass.

Newcastle remains one of my favorite beers, and I enjoyed a couple while catching up with Jeff and admiring the Hooters scenery.

Next I moved on to Rich O's and had a Beak's Best. It wasn't too bad - better than the last time I had it. This beer is not fluctuating. It's just that my enjoyment of it depends greatly on what I've had to drink earlier. It tastes pretty good when following Newcastle Brown Ale.

Last night Rich O's for some reason was severly short on female presence. LaptopGirl was nowhere to be found, and MisunderstoodGirl only made a brief appearance. I spent the time talking with one of the regulars about his homebrewing and his plans for some bourbon char we'd picked up at my work earlier in the day.

At one point the guy went out to his truck and came back with some homebrewing sample bottles and several of us got to try his latest brews.

I don't remember much about what happened after that - except that I didn't like the cider, and all of the samples were very strong on alcohol content.

I woke up this morning pretty dehydrated as is usual when I drink stronger brews.

Sunday, February 29, 2004
posted by dave at 1:55 PM in category daily, drink

I'm combining the Friday and Saturday reports in an effort to get enough information to make this post worth posting.

No such luck.

I had boring beers, all of which I've had before, and Rich O's itself seemed pretty boring.

I really miss Cone Smoker.

Sunday, February 15, 2004
posted by dave at 11:42 PM in category daily, drink

These beer reports are going to have a lot less beer and proportionally more report for a while. At least until Rich O's gets something interesting to drink I'll be limiting myself to the boring old Beaks Best, Community Dark, and Guiness.

Tonight my mood was a lot better. I arrived at Rich O's at the same time as LaptopGirl (who was looking quite hot) and there were seats available in the "living room" at Rich O's. I spent a few enjoyable hours talking with LaptopGirl, MisunderstoodGirl, CoffeeDude, and some lesbian who's name I can never remember.

Several times in the past I've joked that I only feel normal if I'm pining away for someone that, for whatever reasons, is unavailable or otherwise inappropriate for me. Currently I'd say that LaptopGirl is filling that niche. She's pretty and smart and interesting. She also, at times, seems shallow and transparent and completely wrong for an old fart like me. It is kind of nice to have someone I look forward to seeing though.

After a while one of the Rich O's regulars, who I will call PillowGuy, joined us in the living room and, as he is apparently more interesting than I am, I became invisible to LaptopGirl. She did ask me to join PillowGuy and her at Jack's Bar after Rich O's closed, but it was clear even before we got there that I was no longer needed and so I left after only a few minutes.

I don't think anyone noticed.

Saturday, February 14, 2004
posted by dave at 10:43 AM in category daily, drink

Whores and Sluts.

I'm sure that one of my old friends will recognize that old mantra, that oft-repeated phrase we used during that time in our lives when all women seemed to be evil, manipulative, and just plain repulsive.

My friend got lucky and found himself a good one. I remained unlucky and wasted a couple more years trying to work things out with my ex-wife.

He's still married, I'm still single, and I think we're both pretty happy.

I found myself thinking of those old days while I sat at Rich O's Friday night. There was a group of women who, to me and my already foul mood, seemed to be the perfect poster children for loose and bitchy women.

Anyway, they reminded me of that old slogan. My mood was foul for a completely different reason. My favorite Rich O's beer, Cone Smoker, has been pulled from the rotation, and I was forced to drink some lesser brews.

What I had was a Beak's Best and a couple of Community Darks, both decent beers, but neither is substantial enough to wrap an evening around. I found myself drinking beer just to drink it, not to enjoy it as I've been able to do lately.

Most of the regulars were there. MisunderstoodGirl and LaptopGirl seemed to notice my foul mood and left me to myself. Other's weren't quite so understanding and I was probably a little surly towards them.

When I left, much earlier than I usually do, I simply paid my bill and walked out. If anyone noticed my departure they were probably relieved.

Sunday, February 8, 2004
posted by dave at 8:45 PM in category daily, drink

That's right, a very rare Sunday report. This will probably be my last Sunday report also.

LaptopGirl called me this evening to see if I was going to this beer club meeting in Louisville. I hadn't been able to make up my mind about going, as is typical for me, but I was unable to say no to LaptopGirl.

Even though I knew I was probably being jerked around I went to the meeting, arriving fashionably late at about a half hour past the scheduled start time. Well, after about an hour of sitting around I got bored and left. LaptopGirl did not make an appearance. There were a lot of people from Rich O's there but there didn't seem to be much discussion going on. Everyone seemed content to just sit around and stare at their feet while they waited for the meeting to start.

One guy told me that these things usually last until between 10:00 and Midnight. That's just too late for me on any work night - especially on a Sunday night when my insomnia is sure to be a factor anyway.

For the Beer Report part of this Beer Report I'll note that I had one of BBC's Alt beers. I'm convinced that this beer has changed since the big BBC split that occured last year. I don't think the change was for the better either. I've got to take BBC Alt off my list of favorites, and that's kind of sad.

posted by dave at 1:34 PM in category daily, drink

Last night was pretty tame for me. I had some Cone Smoker at Steve's party, then went to Rich O's and had a couple of Community Dark pints.

One item of particularly bad news - Rich O's is out of Cone Smoker, and they're not expecting anymore for at least a couple of months. This seems to happen a lot to me. I find something I really like and then it goes away. I don't know if beer is mimicking life or vice-versa.

I also spent the first few minutes at Rich O's talking with LaptopGirl about various things until someone more interesting came in and I became invisible.

Last night also saw another appearance by DooRagGirl and her husband, though I didn't get a chance to talk with them much.

Saturday, February 7, 2004
posted by dave at 1:43 PM in category daily, drink

Last week's sickness has made me a little paranoid, so I stuck with some pretty tame beer tonight. Tame to me means Guiness and Community Dark and I had a couple of each.

Rich O's also has a new pre-prohibition style beer that I tried and didn't like at all. There was a very strange smell that I just couldn't get past. The smell was horrible, the taste was okay, and the aftertaste was horrible. Chalk one up to experience, and I won't be having any more of that.

Sunday, February 1, 2004
posted by dave at 1:48 PM in category daily, drink

The last two nights I haven't been myself. I've just gotten over this horrible flu and it's probably stupid of me to be going out at all. But a guy's got to eat, and I found myself at Rich O's ordering pizza to go.

While my pizza was being cooked I had a little to drink - I think I had a Community Dark on Friday and that's about it.

Last night I was feeling a little better physically but was in a bad mood otherwise. I had a Cone Smoker and then tried a Bell's Two-Hearted Ale. Nasty nasty nasty. That damn smell was just too much.

I'm sure there were other people at Rich O's and I'm sure I talked to some of them but I'm pretty sure nothing interesting was discussed.

Sunday, January 25, 2004
posted by dave at 12:13 PM in category daily, drink, family

Last night was a special night at Rich O's. For one thing I actually got my sister Dina to come by for a while. This rare event was then surpassed by the arrival of Dan "Holy Shit" Kruer, a friend from 20 years ago, and his wife Chris, a childhood friend of Dina's.

First things first though. When I arrived I knew that I'd need to find a suitably weak beer for my sister to drink. I asked some regulars what was the wimpiest beer at Rich O's and was told it was Spaten Lager. I had one of these to field-test it for Dina and it was indeed wimpy.

I sat for a while, drinking my wimpy beer and talking to RealTrainGirl and her friend Matt-Josh-Willy-Whatever about various things like would I be able to recognize Dan and Chris when they arrived.

Dina arrived and immediately wanted to know where LaptopGirl was. I guess she's read about my fascination with her in my 'blog. Unfortunately LaptopGirl didn't arrive until after Dina had gone but she did get to meet RealTrainGirl and MisunderstoodGirl before Dan and Chris arrived.

While the girls drank their wimpy Spaten Lagers I tried to make recommendations for Dan. I think he tried the Beak's Best, then sampled the Cone Smoker and Community Dark before settling on the Dark as a beer he liked.

I ended up having a few half-pints of Cone Smoker and then a couple of Community Darks. The Cone Smoker is style#1 and the Community Dark remains unchanged.

After a while my sister and then my friends left in search of some industrial swill and I sat and talked to LaptopGirl and a couple of Rich O's professional beer drinkers until they closed the place up and kicked us out.

Saturday, January 24, 2004
posted by dave at 1:52 PM in category daily, drink

Being on vacation all last week, I ended up at Rich O's every night before going back to the Executive West to watch more pool.

For the most part I stuck to my regular NABC brews - Cone Smoker and Community Dark. I did, however, have a couple more of the Beak's Best beers. Knowing I'd be driving back to Louisville I definitely watched my alcohol intake even more than I normally do.

Other than that, I spent the time talking to some of the various regulars I've gotten to know. LaptopGirl and MisunderstoodGirl remain my favorite conversation partners, though TrainGirl and RealTrainGirl are also pretty fun to be around.

On Friday it was standing-room-only until quite late. I got so claustrophobic a couple of times that I went out and sat in the (empty) non-smoking section.

Wednesday, January 21, 2004
posted by dave at 2:18 AM in category daily, drink

A rare Tuesday report - courtesy of my company and their vacation benefit - starts out like any other - with a Cone Smoker. It's back to style #1, which is very good, especially after having to endure the BBC porter I've had for the past few days.

After my Cone Smoker I tried one of NABC's Beaks Best ESB beers. For a beer with the word "bitter" in the name it wasn't bad at all. A lot darker and more complex than I expected.

One interesing thing (to me at least) was that MisunderstoodGirl plays both the guitar and the bass guitar, and speaks Arabic. She also painted the numerous new pieces of artwork adorning the walls at Rich O's. This girl has more sides to here than a D&D dice set. Sigh. If only she wasn't so far out there in weirdo land.

Next I had a Community Dark just to have something to drink. I detected some roast malt character this time that I hadn't noticed before. Still pretty good and still pretty bland.

After Rich O's closed I went to another bar with LaptopGirl and a couple of other Rich O's regulars.

For some odd reason that I cannot recall I decided to have a PBR. It, like the Falls City I had a couple of months ago, wasn't nearly as bad as I remember. Not a lot to describe about it. It was just good and mellow.

Meanwhile, I find LaptopGirl to be more and more fascinating every time I talk to her. She has shown some really shallow sides to her personality but at other times, like tonight, she has shown some depth beyond her years. Her extreme intelligence, along with her dorky cuteness, makes her the official hottie of Rich O's and the woman that most makes me wish I were ten years younger. I get the impression that age is an issue with her, though I can't imagine too many guys her age being able to keep up with her mentally.

Saturday, January 17, 2004
posted by dave at 12:04 AM in category daily, drink

I didn't expect to have a beer report tonight. For one thing, I'm playing in a pool tournament (see the pool blog), and for another, I didn't expect the hotel bar to have anything worth drinking.

Well I finished my only match of the day before 7:00 PM, and the hotel bar had BBC Dark Star Porter.

I've had this before, a long time ago. It's not my favorite. A little too bitter for my taste, and the roasted malt was a little weird tasting.

Still, it was a lot better than anything else in the hotel bar. Just not quite as good as the Bad Elmer's I had a few weeks ago.

Monday, January 12, 2004
posted by dave at 9:10 PM in category daily, drink

This entry is a day late for a simple reason. My Internet provider sucks. I was offline for about 8 hours total yesterday, and during those brief periods when I was online I had to use the time for some real work.

Saturday I was in the mood for a little experimenting. I first had a beer that's been recommended to me several times by MisunderstoodGirl, Delerium Tremens. I guess I liked it, but I can't really explain why. There was nothing remarkable about it except its smoothness.

Next I had a little Chouffe Nice. Again, this was okay, but I think a little too fruity (tasting) for me to ever have another.

Next I ended my experimenting by having a Cone Smoker and an Anchor Christmas Ale.

One particular item of interest was LaptopGirl, dressed like a homeless person as usual, is proving to have quite a hot little body under all those rags and hippie clothes she wears. CoffeeDude agreed with me on this, as did some other guy that I don't know.

Saturday, January 10, 2004
posted by dave at 3:58 PM in category daily, drink

Last night was perhaps the most crowded that I've ever seen Rich O's. It was standing-room only for most of the night.

To start off I had an Anchor Christmas Ale. I wanted to make sure I had at least one more before they ran out.

While drinking that first pint, I overheard the owner of Rich O's tell someone that they'd just tapped a new keg of Cone Smoker. I found this very interesting as it was the first time that I was definitely aware of a change. Of course I had to have one.

It was good, style #1 I'd say. I'm very curious to see how this new keg ages over the next couple of weekends - or however long it lasts.

Sunday, January 4, 2004
posted by dave at 6:50 PM in category daily, drink

Started out simple tonight by having one of NABC's Community Dark pints. In the recent past this beer has been treated unfairly because I've been drinking it after much stronger beers - it always pales in comparison.

Well tonight it got in the first shots at my taste buds and I remembered why I liked it in the first place. It's full of malty sweetness (or sweet maltiness) and not much else. It has a low enough alcohol content to make it a very good session beer.

Next I had an Anchor Brewing 2003 Christmas Ale. I spent the entire pint trying to decide (a) if I liked it or not, and (b) what the hell I was drinking. Apparently Anchor changes the recipe for their Christmas Ale each year, and they keep that recipe pretty secret. If I had to guess I'd say the best way to describe this year's version would be "smoky nutmeg" but I could be way off base about the nutmeg part. There was definitely some smoky something in there. At the end I decided I did like it, but more than one in a given session would probably be too much.

Lastly I had a Cone Smoker, partly to verify that it was indeed smoke I'd been tasting in the Anchor Ale. It was, though it was more like the smoke in Schlenkerla Urbock Smokebeer than the smoke in Cone Smoker. Grapier.

About halfway through the Cone Smoker MisunderstoodGirl and TrumpetDude started talking about jazz. Every damn third word for over an hour was jazz. Blah blah jazz? Blah blah jazz. Blah blah jazz! If I ever hear the word jazz again in my life I may kill myself. Or maybe I'll just kill whoever says the word jazz instead.

Saturday, January 3, 2004
posted by dave at 3:51 PM in category daily, drink

As the Kentuckiana Death Flu is still trying to drag me down I wasn't even sure if I'd make it out last night, but after a long nap I started feeling better and went to Rich O's.

I'd been hoping to get another pint of Great Lakes Christmas Ale but alas, they had run out. I had a Cone Smoker and I'm still happy to report (knock on wood) that style #2 is still on tap.

My second "beer" was something called "Bad Elf" that I'm not going to even bother looking up because it's not worth the effort. Tasted like fermented Mazola Corn Oil, and not in a good way. Blech.

In a rare show of non-competiveness, Rich O's was also offering BBC Alt on tap so I had a couple of those followed by another Cone Smoker. The Alt, nestled as it was between Cone Smokers, was not as good as it's been in the past. It's also still the only beer I know of that tastes better in bottled form than draft form. That still didn't stop me from having two of them.

In attendance at Rich O's were several people from the New Year's party. I think I got most of their names right - though I continued to use nicknames in my head. MisunderstoodGirl showed up later and I was mysteriously glad to see her. She gave me an excuse to stop mingling with all the other regulars that were looking down at my BBC Alt.

Thursday, January 1, 2004
posted by dave at 3:35 PM in category daily, drink

First off, I'm a dumbass.

For those readers that may doubt that statement and require more proof I submit the following:

I've known for a month that I'd be going to a New Year's party. I've known for a month that I wanted to take a couple of growlers of beer from Rich O's to the party. I've known for a month that Rich O's would be closed all day on December 31st.

So what did I do with all this knowledge? I forgot to get beer from Rich O's on Friday, Saturday, Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday.

Like I said, I'm a dumbass.

Anyway, what I ended up taking to the party was a six-pack each of BBC Alt and Great Lakes Porter. They're both good beers, and the porter especially was well-received, but compared to the Cone Smoker and Great Lakes Christmas Ale that I'd been planning to take, they were a little dull.

The porter was, however, the best porter I can remember having. The Great Lakes Brewery is now one of my favorites.

Sunday, December 28, 2003
posted by dave at 5:52 PM in category daily, drink, friends

Last night was a special occasion for a few reasons.

First, I was very pleased to see that my favorite style of Cone Smoker is still hanging in there at Rich O's. This is the longest that this beer has stayed drinkable yet.

Another high note last night was the appearance of my friend Eric, who I hardly ever get to see anymore. But that's as much my fault as his.

After my first Cone Smoker I tried a Bell's Winter White and did not like it even a little bit. Oh well, live and learn.

While I was choking down the Bell's Eric was enjoying a Great Lakes Christmas Ale. I had one as well, and I really liked it. No, really. Even though about 90% of the beers I try at Rich O's are, IMHO, crap, every now and then something good comes along. I will definitely have more of this when it's available.

I closed out the evening with another Cone Smoker, something I knew would finally wash the taste of the Bell's out of my mouth.

Let's see, also in attendance were DooRagGirl and DooRagGirl's husband. DooRagGirl I almost didn't recognize as she was without her trademark bandana.

Saturday, December 27, 2003
posted by dave at 7:31 PM in category daily, drink

Last night Rich O's was very crowded, probably because they were closed on Christmas.

Anyway, I broke my new rule right off the bat by having a Cone Smoker. It's still style #2, but it may be turning a little. I'll probably know tomorrow night.

Next I tried a Rogue Santa's Private Reserve, one of the Christmas beers currently being featured at Rich O's. I've never been a huge fan of any of the Rogue beers, with the exception of their rauchbier, and one again, Rogue proved to me to be a little too much frosting and too little cake. I tasted malt, malt, and more malt. It wasn't particularly bad, it just wasn't particularly good either.

Next, on MisunderstoodGirl's recommendation, I had a Mahr's Christmas Bock (Reviewer's Site).

I've never been a big fan of bock beers. I'm still not.

I spent quite a bit of time trying to come up with a way to describe this beer. MisunderstoodGirl was no help at all. I detected coffee, chocolate, malt, and hops, all in miniscule amounts. There were no citrus components to the taste and for that I was grateful.

All in all, it was an enjoyable evening. MisunderstoodGirl, TrainGirl, and Bubbles proved to be pretty good company, though I usually prefer more one-to-one interaction than the group interactions we had.

Sunday, December 21, 2003
posted by dave at 3:51 AM in category daily, drink

Tonight I arrived at Rich O's early, determined to sample their new Silent Oath and their Bourbondaddy, which I've had before, before they ran out.

The Bourbondaddy is a stout aged in a used bourbon barrel. I had this last year at about this time, and I remember liking it, but I don't remember much else about it. This time around I actually paid attention to what I was drinking. It's a little bitter at first, but after that it's very good. Nothing extremely special, it tastes the way it should - a medium stout with a little bourbon flavor added.

Next I tried the NABC's newest brew, Silent Oath. They're calling it a "Belgian Brown Ale" but I don't really know what that means so I'll call it "Newcastle with Apples in it." It was okay, and the apple undertones weren't that strong. I liked it.

Lastly, I had a Goose Island Christmas Ale, and I honestly couldn't tell the difference between it and their regular Nut Brown Ale. Perhaps this was because I'd already had a couple of pretty strong beers. I liked it, but I didn't see anything special about it.

I was contemplating trying another Christmas Ale but then MysteryLady surprised me by showing up so I had sex instead.

Saturday, December 20, 2003
posted by dave at 10:55 AM in category daily, drink

After I left my sister's house I went to Rich O's, partly to be around some adults, and partly to try their new belgian ale. Well I got my dates mixed up and the new ale won't be out until Saturday so I ended up just having a couple of Cone Smokers. Still style #2, and I'm still quite happy about that.

While we enjoyed our drinks, LaptopGirl, MisunderstoodGirl, and I hashed out some ideas for a cinematic masterpiece.

The girls are thinking more of an indy-film type of documentary, and while I think that it would be great for the 15 or so people that would actually see it, I think the idea would work much better as a weekly TV reality show.

Also, I think that LaptopGirl needs to drop the whole "obsessed with shoes" angle altogether unless she's wanting to make a fetish film.

Sunday, December 14, 2003
posted by dave at 10:38 AM in category drink

Not so much of a report this time as simply an update.

Cone Smoker #2 is back! At least for now.

That is all.

Saturday, December 6, 2003
posted by dave at 11:41 PM in category daily, drink

Tonights tastings are bound to be slanted by two factors: the lack of sleep caused by last night's supernap, and the fact that I'm coming down with the Kentuckiana Death Flu or something.

Anyway, I went into Rich O's and actually followed my own advice by not making Cone Smoker my first beer of the night.

My first beer was, in fact, a Rogue Hazelnut Brown Nectar. It wasn't the worst beer I've ever tasted (that would be skunked Beck's Dark) and it wasn't the best (Alaskan Amber Ale) either but it was quite drinkable. It also solved a little mini-mystery of mine when I realized that the undefinable taste and smell could be attributed to hazelnuts, of all things.

My second experiment of the night was Spezial Rauchbeir Lager. Though this is supposedly a rauchbier, I could detect no smoke whatsoever. Perhaps someone working at the brewery is a chain-smoker, and that's how they feel justified in calling this a rauchbier.

Anyway, it was pretty good, for a lager. If I had to pick a single word to describe it, that word would be "thick" and that description would help no one.

Lastly, I had a Cone Smoker, and it was the best thing I had tonight. Its ever-changing flavor had landed back on style #1, which is really quite good. Smoke, malt, a slight hop background. Yummy.

Sunday, November 30, 2003
posted by dave at 11:44 AM in category daily, drink

After last week's fiasco I'm still feeling a little less than adventurous.

Last night I had some Newcastle at Hooter's, then went to Rich O's and had a couple pints of Upland's Bad Elmer's Porter.

This beer was a very refreshing surprise after the flavor overkill I've seen with stouts and porters lately. There was no chocolate, coffee, or dog shit taste. Just roasted malt, and not too much of that. I'd definitely drink it again.

Saturday, November 22, 2003
posted by dave at 9:50 AM in category daily, drink

I hardly ever get a hangover. This is mostly because I'm such a lightweight when it comes to alcohol that I don't drink that much. It is possible, however, for a new beer to sneak up on me and whack me in the head repeatedly before I know what's coming.

My first beer at Rich O's last night was, as usual, a Cone Smoker. I'm tempted to call last night's glass a sample of yet another version of this Sybil of beers, but it was actually very close to version #5, with a slightly less bland background behind the smoke.

Next I was on to the experimentation phase of the night. The NABC has released a new Belgian-style pale ale called Merckx, and I had a small pint of that. The only word I can think of to describe it is "cloying." There didn't seem to be much of a distinct flavor, but what there was lingered for quite a while.

I next tried to order an Alaskan Smoked Porter, but they were out. The bartender then tried to kill me. She selected a bottle of Schlenkerla Urbock Smokebeer, reasoning that since I like smoky beer I should try what is perhaps the strongest entry in that field.

Well, the smoke was indeed very powerful. It was also quite a different type of smoky flavor than the Cone Smoker, Rogue Smoke Ale, or any other Rauchbier I've tried. I got a definite grapey taste from the smoke. I don't know if I would call it a good taste, but it certainly did the job of concealing the alcohol behind it.

After just two or three drinks I began to suspect that this would have to be my last beer of the night. After a couple more I started wondering if I would even finish the bottle.

I did manage to finish it and raced home before the alcohol still in my stomach could join its brethren in my bloodstream.

Now this morning I feel like shit and probably look worse.

Sunday, November 16, 2003
posted by dave at 2:05 AM in category daily, drink

Tonight I reacquainted myself with one of my favorite beers, Newcastle Brown Ale.

I had three glasses at Hooters with my cousin Jeff while waiting for MysteryLady to call. Hooters is one of the few places in the area with Newcastle on tap, and the half-naked women aren't bad either.

Newcastle Brown Ale

Newcastle is one of those beers that tastes good from the first sip of the first glass to the last drop of the third glass. It's as steady as a rock. Not as flavorful as some of the beers I've been drinking recently, but it's extremely well-balanced, and with only 5% or so ABV, it makes a very good session beer.

Later in the night MysteryLady and I went to Rich O's. This was a risk but our fears proved to be unfounded as nobody there knows her.

I had my obligatory Cone Smoker (Still style #1) and she had some Lindemann's Peche.

After my Cone Smoker I decided to try a little experiment.

I ordered a 10oz Guiness and a 10oz Rogue Shakespeare Stout and did a side-by-side comparison.

The Guiness, which I've had several hundred times before, is the standard by which I judge all other stouts. That said, the Rogue was pretty good.

Rogue Shakespeare Stout

Less bitter than the Guiness, and with more of a chocolate/coffee aftertaste. Definitely drinkable, but given a choice between Rogue and Guiness I'll always pick Guiness.

I also had a sip of Lindemann's Peche and, as I expected, it tasted like beer with peach juice in it. While I can understand its appeal to some, it's just not something I can see myself ever buying again.

Saturday, November 15, 2003
posted by dave at 9:02 PM in category daily, drink

Last night was certainly an interesting one.

The Good: My sister has gotten engaged, and we all met her and her boyfriend (fiance!) to congratulate them and share in the joy and all that mushy stuff.

The Bad: The bar where all the festivites took place carries no beer worthy of human consumption, so I settled for a couple of Diet Cokes and waited for an appropriate time to sneak out.

Seeing so many of my family members together at once got me thinking about my dad, and I decided to have a Falls City in his honor.

It wasn't the battery acid that I remember from the occasional sips I took as a kid. As lagers go, it's probably better than most American ones. That's not saying much though. Hoppy, with a little bit of a citrus tang that didn't make me want to vomit. Not after just one at least. I didn't risk another.

The Ugly: Apparently that's me. I was at Rich O's, drinking some Cone Smoker (Style #1 again) to remind myself why I drink, and having a very lively discussion with LaptopGirl about things ranging from England to beer to her ex-boyfriend.

LaptopGirl is quite cute, in a dorky way. Since I'm quite dorky in a cute way, we were clicking right along. Or so I thought. Right in the middle of a sentence LaptopGirl stopped and loudly told her girlfriend how cute she thought the guy standing next to me was. The guy overheard that and promptly moved to the head of the line for LaptopGirl's attention. They ended up leaving together shortly afterwards.

Tuesday, November 11, 2003
posted by dave at 6:10 PM in category daily, drink

During lunch in Cincinnatti today I looked over the sparse beer selection and chose to try Abita Amber since I'd never had it before.

I chose poorly.

Water with beer-flavoring added. The tap water taste overpowered the beer taste. Very unsatisfactory.

Sunday, November 9, 2003
posted by dave at 1:55 AM in category daily, drink

Last night's Friday Beer Report was preempted by a five hour nap, so I didn't go out last night at all.

Tonight, after the play, I went to Rich O's and sampled three beers.

First, the ever-changing Cone Smoker. I say ever-changing, although it's actually been pretty stable for the past few weeks. Not tonight.

Tonight it was a watered down Brady Bunch version of itself. Very little smoke, very little anything in fact. It kind of seemed like they'd mixed Cone Smoker with their Community Dark and ended up with a beer that would appeal to no one except old women and twelve year old boys.

For those keeping score at home:

Version #1: Good, well balanced, with a good smoky taste.
Version #2: Very strong smoke flavor, a little too strong at first but by the end of the glass the smoke seems just right. Very good batch. My favorite of all.
Version #3: No smoke at all. Hoppy taste predominates. If I wanted high gravity and hoppy taste I'd just order an Arrogant Bastard.
Version #4: See version #1.
Version #5: Smoky, but otherwise more bland than any other version so far.

And now, version #6: Combines the smokeless taste of version #3 with the blandness of version #5.

Next on the menu tonight was Kostritzer Black Beer. I was expecting a stout, and it did look like one, but the taste was more like a lager. There was, however, a bit of chocolate and roasted malt taste that seemed pretty well balanced. Overall a bit bland.

Speaking of bland, the next beer I tried was Rogue's American Amber. This beer reminded me a lot of Community Dark except it was a little less sweet. And what, you may ask, is Community Dark without the sweetness? Iced tea, that's what.

I finished off the night with a draft root beer, and that was the best drink I had tonight.

Saturday, November 1, 2003
posted by dave at 10:12 AM in category daily, drink

Not much to report in the way of new beers for last night. I had two Cone Smokers, still style "A" so I think they've got the recipe down pat now.

After those I tried to drink a pint of Anchor Liberty Ale. I say tried because I just couldn't stomach the shit. I don't know if it was just clashing with the Cone Smoker or if it would suck just fine on its own. I'm pretty sure it didn't need any help to suck.

Anchor Liberty Ale

(draft) The citrusy smell and taste reminded me of the Pilsner Urquel from a couple of weeks ago, except that Libery Ale was even worse. It tasted like beer and orange juice mixed. Blech.
Wednesday, October 29, 2003
posted by dave at 8:23 PM in category daily, drink, travel

While in Seattle the last few days I drank Alaskan Amber every chance I got, since I didn't (and still don't) know when I'll get another chance. There were a couple of places that for some insane reason didn't carry it though, so I got to add a couple new beers to my "tried" list.

First was at a little pub in Issaquah where Gene, my boss Tom, and I went after having dinner across the street. The place had a dozen or so Rogue beers, and for some goofy reason, Bud Light and Coors Light. That's it. Nothing else.

After searching the taps and the list of bottled beers I found "Rogue Smoke Ale (AKA: Rauchbier)" and that sounded intriguing. It came in a pretty cool bottle that I was going to keep but the bartender took it.

Rogue Smoke

(draft) It was a good beer, not nearly as smoky as I'd been hoping, but the smoke flavor and aroma was still pretty apparent. It had a less wide-ranging and complex flavor than the Cone Smoker I get when I'm back home.

On Monday I met one of my former bosses for a couple of beers near where I used to work (it was quite strange to be taking that exit off hwy 520 again) and once again, they didn't carry Alaskan Amber.

What they did carry, and I've had this before, this:

Mac & Jack's African Amber

This beer is quite simply excellent. Brewed and sold only in the Northwest, it's exemplifying a level of quality and taste that all microbreweries should strive to meet instead of just churning out random recipies with unusual labels.
Monday, October 27, 2003
posted by dave at 4:20 PM in category daily, drink, travel

I can hardly describe how much these past two days have helped my mood. I'm more relaxed and happy than I've been in months. Seeing all of my friends in the Seattle area was just the therapy I needed - even though I didn't know I needed therapy.

And not just my friends. Even those people who I'd only count as "friendly acquaintances" were all a welcomed sight. People who I barely remember have been coming up to me, shaking my hand, and reliving moments from the old days with me. Man, I sure got to know a lot of people while living here.

Yesterday Gene and I played pool for several hours during the day, and I'll post about that in the pool 'blog. Last night I went back to The Sports Pub in Kent, mainly to see Holly. It was league night there and I got to see even more people and catch up on even more old times.

Holly was of course happy to see me, though perhaps not as happy as I was to see her still doing well. She made me drink a couple of shots and that's something I would only do for her. After a shot of Jagermeister and a shot of peppermint schnapps, plus four Alaskan Ambers, I ended up staying until after midnight drinking Diet Cokes and waiting for the alcohol to wear off.

During another late breakfast at Shari's I began to dread the impending end of my vacation. My boss will be arriving tomorrow and then it's back to work.

Still, coming on this trip, and especially coming up here early, may have been the best two ideas I've had in years. The knowledge that I touched so many people when I lived here, most of them positively, really makes me feel good about myself and my ability to make friends wherever I go.

Now if I can just figure out a way to get to Omaha to see all my friends there.

Sunday, October 26, 2003
posted by dave at 1:37 PM in category daily, drink, travel

I'm back!

In Seattle, that is. Landed yesterday evening after a day of flying and was pretty tired until I left the airport. That's when the old familiar sights got me quite excited. Even the long drive from the airport to Bellevue, then from Bellevue to Kent, seemed like an old friend welcoming me back. You drive a stretch of freeway at 5 mph for three years, as I did when I lived here, and you get to know that stretch pretty well.

So like I said, I went from the airport to Bellevue to check into my hotel. I just threw my luggage in the room and left immediately for Kent.

My excitement level had reached a peak by the time I arrived at my old hangout, The Sports Pub. I was greeted by my friend Gene as soon as I went in, then I walked around and said hello to everyone else I knew from the old days. I was a little surprised that there were so many people there that remembered me, and that I remembered as well.

Another thing I did pretty much right away was order myself an Alaskan Amber. Wow, still as fantastic as ever. Absense makes the heart grow fonder they say, and I was as fond of that beer, and the three others I had, as any I can remember. Even the frosted glass (I'd forgotten about that) couldn't kill the perfect balance of that Juneau treasure.

Alaskan Amber

(draft) My favorite session beer. Perfectly balanced sweetness, bitterness, and maltiness. Too bad I have to fly 2000 miles to get it.

The place was pretty crowded, more than I remember, so Gene and I ended up playing scotch doubles against a couple of other guys. I'll post about the pool itself in the pool blog, but to summarize: we should have won every game and we won most of them.

I was a little disappointed that Holly wasn't working last night. I'll definitely need to catch her there on Sunday. One pleasant surprise was the appearance of Reeny, an bartender from the old days who remains the most beautiful woman I've ever known in person.

Bars in Washington close at 2:00, so Gene and I had a long breakfast at Shari's (another big deja vu!) and I made my way back to the hotel at around 3:30.

Saturday, October 18, 2003
posted by dave at 12:28 AM in category daily, drink

After a long after-work nap I went to Rich O's tonight. The first beer I had was my local favorite Cone Smoker. I've already said that this beer fluctuates quite a bit, and tonight it had done it again. I've gotten to where I always order a small sampling of Cone Smoker before I commit to a 20oz. pint. Tonight's version was very drinkable, though not my favorite. To review:

Version #1: Good, well balanced, with a good smoky taste.
Version #2: Very strong smoke flavor, a little too strong at first but by the end of the glass the smoke seems just right. Very good batch. My favorite of all.
Version #3: No smoke at all. Hoppy taste predominates. If I wanted high gravity and hoppy taste I'd just order an Arrogant Bastard.
Version #4: See version #1.
Version #5: Smoky, but otherwise more bland than any other version so far.

Also on the menu tonight was Rockies Brewing Company's Hazed and Infused, part of Rich O's Hops festival.

Hazed and Infused

(draft) Much blander than I was expecting. Just a beer, neither great nor horrible. I'm starting to think I've got the wrong idea that hoppy must mean bitter.

The Hazed and Infused reminded me of a pretty famous beer, Pilsner Urquel from the Czech Republic. I decided to have a Pilsner to see if the similarity was just in my head.

It kindof was in my head. I've had Pilsner Urquell before and enjoyed it, but tonight I couldn't even drink half the glass. There was a strong orange peel sensation that I just couldn't stomach. As I said, I've enjoyed this beer before, so I think tonight it just clashed too much with the Cone Smoker I'd had earlier.

Pislner Urquell

(draft) Citrusy piss. I recall having this a long time ago and somewhat enjoying it, but my last attempt caused me to swear that I'll never let this touch my lips again.
Saturday, October 11, 2003
posted by dave at 11:25 PM in category daily, drink

Tonight I met up with my sister and her boyfriend at Rich O's for a couple of beers. It was very nice indeed to see my sister who's become quite a stranger to me this past year. Also nice was to get another chance to get to know her boyfriend who my sister seems crazy about.

There were a couple of other highlights to the evening. For one, LaptopGirl made an appearance. She's still very cute in a dorky way - quite intriguing. Also making an appearance tonight were DooRagGirl and her husband. DooRagGirl may be pretty much the perfect woman for me - back when I was in my late 20s. We spent a while talking while her husband talked to CoffeeDude.

Besides my usual Cone Smoker, I had another beer with the word "Thumper" in the name. For a beer featured during a hop festival this wasn't bad at all. Very close to the "lipshitz Goze" or whatever it was I had a couple of weeks ago.

Saturday, October 4, 2003
posted by dave at 10:32 PM in category daily, drink

...there's good beer.

Cone Smoker is back! After a couple of weeks of suckiness Rich O's has moved onto a new batch of Cone Smoker and it's got the smoke once again.

What a delicious brew! My only complaint and this is only because I'm such a lightweight, is that at 7.3% ABV the Cone Smoker beer is a little too strong for me to build an evening around it. Two 20oz. glasses and I'm done.

Despite the high gravity, I'm still delighted to see Cone Smoker back in its enjoyable form. I've now tasted four distinct batches, and experienced three distinct tastes. To review:

Batch #1: Good, well balanced, with a good smoky taste.
Batch #2: Very strong smoke flavor, a little too strong at first but by the end of the glass the smoke seems just right. Very good batch. My favorite of all.
Batch #3: No smoke at all. Hoppy taste predominates. If I wanted high gravity and hoppy taste I'd just order an Arrogant Bastard.
Batch #4: See batch #1.

This beer is rapidly becoming one of my favorites. Once they pick a style and stick with it it may even surpass Alaskan Amber as my all-time favorite beer.

Tonight, in between glasses of Cone Smoker, I also tried a pint of BBC's Bearded Pat's Barleywine Ale.

This was my first taste of a barleywine, and I suppose it was okay. Just imagine regular wine without any grapey taste, and add a hint of hops. That's what tasted like. It was okay, but I cannot imagine having more than one in an evening. This has been described to me as a "World-class Barleywine" and I trust the source of that recommendation. I'll just add barleywine to the list of beer styles that I've tries and found acceptable but not great.

posted by dave at 9:36 AM in category daily, drink

As a frequent traveler to Alaska during the 1990s, I grew to love one particular Alaska product even more that its spectacular scenery. Alaskan Amber beer was first thrust upon me in a small bar in Juneau and I've loved it ever since. when I can get it.

The problem with living in Indiana is that even the best source for beer (Rich 0's) cannot get me this fine brew, so I've managed to find several other beers that I like almost as much as Alaskan Amber.

Usually my substitute was Newcastle Brown Ale, an excellent beer in its own right. But recently, and for some reason that I cannot fathom even though they tried to explain it to me, Rich O's pulled Newcastle draft from its rotation.

It was about then that I recalled the little tag at the bottom of Alaskan Amber's bottles - "Alt Style Beer" - and something clicked. "Alt" is a class of beer, not just a marketing gimmick. I quickly remember that Louisville's own Bluegrass Brewing Co. has its own beer called BBC Alt.

Well Rich O's didn't have this on tap but they do carry it bottled so I ordered one. Wow. This stuff is so close to the Alaskan Amber that I've been missing that I've been kicking myself for not discovering it sooner. Since then I've made it a point to go to the BBC BrewPub once a month or so to enjoy some real Alt beer on tap.

BBC Alt

(draft) That nice copper color was a welcome sight to an old altbier drinker. This beer has a pretty good balance - maybe a little on the bitter side. I also think it's changed a little for the worse since the brewery split apart several months ago.

Last weekend I heard two things about the BBC. They've got a second location in downtown Louisville - much closer to both my home and to my favorite pool hall - and they're experiencing some kind of split within their company. Last night I went to the closer location and enjoyed some BBC Alt on tap. It was as good as ever. The bartender wasn't clear (or wouldn't tell me) which BBC faction would end up with the Alt after the split. It's probably their biggest seller and I'm sure both sides want it.

Saturday, September 27, 2003
posted by dave at 12:24 AM in category drink

Every now and then my company has events that combine brand education with team building. One such occasion happened yesterday at Louisville's Papa John's Cardinal Stadium.

The highlight of the day, for me, was the opportunity to taste Ardbeg's 10-yr-old scotch whiskey.

This stuff has the most peat content of anything else on Earth. The smell was intoxicating - so much so that I can still vividly recall the aroma 18 hours later as I sit here typing this sentence.

The taste, well the taste was pretty extreme. Probably the most buring sensation I've ever experienced short of one stupid day when I sampled straight Everclear.

This stuff burned, then softened, then lingered in the mouth very nicely.

I find myself craving the peat smell and aftertaste. So strong is this craving that I think it may even be instinctive.

Ah, the peat. I dont' remember where I first heard that phrase, but I now know what it means.

posted by dave at 12:09 AM in category drink

Tonight I went to Rich O's as usual.

The first thing I did was ask for a sample of the Cone Smoker to see if it was still the same crappy batch as last week.

NABC Cone Smoker

(draft) I've given this a fairly high overall rating based on just some of the many dozens of glasses I've had. This beer fluctuates quite a bit, but the "normal" flavor has a pretty good smoke taste with just the right amount of bitterness. A nice change from all the smoked porters out there.

It was, so I ordered one of my old stand-bys, Community Dark.

NABC Community Dark

Pretty bland unless it's the first beer of the night. I remain sad that Rich O's pulled Newcastle in favor of this one.

It tasted exactly like iced tea. No flavor at all. I guess drinking the stronger tasting beers has changed my palate enough that I've lost my taste for Community Dark. That's a shame since I used to like it a lot.

My next beer tonight was something was something very different for me:

Kwak

(draft) This stuff smelled and tasted like apple cider. It wasn't really bad, but I can't imagine ever drinking more than one in a night.

My final experiment of the night was this:

Leipziger Gose

(draft) This beer, while not a wheat beer, tasted exactly like I'd always expected what beers to taste like. It had no characteristics whatsoever. No sweetness. No bitterness. Just a slightly filling texture. All in all it was the best thing I drank tonight.
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