. Favourite Beer of the Week

Primator Double Bock is the most alcoholy tasting beer I have ever tasted. At least, I think it's the alcohol I am tasting. It's 10.5% abv for goodness sake.



Its rich and malty and very, very sweet. Hang on, I'm going to ask Nif to try it. Nif doesn't like beer.


Nif says, "It's not bad. It tastes a bit like port."

She's right. That's exactly what it tastes like.

"And Pu-erh tea. It numbs the tongue like pu-erh tea."

I'll take Nif's word on that. I don't like tea.

Bock Beers were orignally brewed in the 15th century by Italian monks who were required to fast during Lent, so they drank this "nutrient-rich" beer instead. I'm drinking it with a sensible snack of celery and humous, and I'm still getting drunk. Those monks must have been off their tits.

. Book of the Month

I have not read many books in the last couple of years. I have listened to a lot of audio books that I borrow from the library and illegally download into my ipod and play in the car on the drive to and from work, up and down highway 280, twice a day, 5 days a week, 360 hours a year.

But listening to an audio book is not the same as reading. When you read a book it's just you and the words. When you listen to a book it's you and the words and someone else telling you how to feel about them before you get a chance to make up your own mind.

So this year I have determined to read more actual books. A book a month. This month's book was "Candide" by Voltaire.

Here is my report:

[spoiler alert!]

Candide is an innocent young man who loses the girl he fancies and spends the rest of the book wandering around the world looking for her. And as he wanders he tries to figure out if it is "the best of all possible worlds," while he (along with pretty much everyone else in the book) is beaten, tortured, raped, robbed, swindled, imprisoned, enslaved, betrayed, and killed.



So it's kind of a black comedy in the guise of a romantic adventure. And lots of satirical jokes are made about religion, philosophy, science, law, war, mathematics, and all the stuff that the author didn't like, including publishers, journalists, the opera, the British, and Jews.

It was written in the 18th century, so half the book is footnotes that explain why the jokes are funny. So they are not.

Next month I will be reading "The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo", the European bestseller by muckraking Swedish journalist Stieg Larsson.

Why don't you read it too? You can tell me what you think. It will be like a Book Club, but no one will have to clean their house and make tea.

. An Apology

I would like to apologize to my lovely wife for posting my previous post right on top of her post about the Kala Open Studios, which is today, and you should go, cos she's brilliant.

Sorry.

. 33 years ago

In 1977 I am 8 years old. What else happens?

Let's take a look.

Star Wars opens and becomes the highest grossing film of all time.


Mull of Kintyre becomes the UK's best selling single of all time.


The Sex Pistols release "Never Mind the Bollocks Here's The Sex Pistols"


Elvis Presley dies.


Apple Computers release the Apple II. It costs $1300, and has 4K of RAM.


The Queen has her silver jubilee.


We have a street party and I dress as an octopus.


The USA reinstates the death penalty and executes serial killer Gary Gilmore by firing squad.


Red Rum wins the Grand National for the third time.


Ford launches the Granada.


A 44 pound lobster is caught off Nova Scotia.


Kenny Dalglish becomes Britain's most expensive football player ever.


San Francisco elects Harvey Milk.


The cold war continues.


I am at my Uncle Jeff's farm in Skipwith, North Yorkshire, in little brown shorts and a Micky Mouse t-shirt.

. Kala Open Studios

Kala Artist-in-Residence Open Studio
2990 San Pablo Ave (between Ashby & Heinz)
January 23rd, 11am-5pm
http://kala.org/event/event.html#open_st

Tales of Mr. Fritz (part one)

. New Construction

David Trubridge says putting up his lampshade takes one hour and no tools. Ours took three days and one tool (the tool being Anthony when he shorted the old light fixture and we had to call out an electrician to fix it).

. It's cold in the old country

. Golden Gate Park

New paths, new things to pick up off the ground & put in Anthony's pockets.

. Bubbling Brew

lazy carbon dioxide micro-kneading tastes good...

. Favourite Beer of the Week

Coffee in the morning and wine in the evening and everything else is boring boring.

That's what indie pop diva Lisa Germano sings on 'Bruises', the third track of her 1996 album 'Excerpts from a Love Circus' (the one before her record label dumped her and she joined the Smashing Pumpkins and got fired immediately and worked in a Hollywood bookstore and got signed again and released three more albums).

And she makes a good point.

Until you consider Lagunitas Cappuccino Stout. Is it a coffee? Is it a delicious alcoholic beverage? Is it both?

What would Lisa Germano think?


I think it's rather nice. It's not as coffee-ish as Hitachino Espresso Stout. But then cappuccino is not as coffee-ish as espresso. So that makes sense.


Lagunitas Cappuccino Stout was recommended to me by our good friend Erik Marr, who knows all about beer, and has a spinning cat.



Lisa Germano loves cats. Her latest album, Magic Neighbor, is all about them.

Coffee in the morning and wine in the evening and everything else is boring boring, except maybe a cocktail-hour cappuccino stout.

And cats.

. The Future

Remember "Scramble" in the 80's?


We used to play a version on your ZX Spectrum called "Penetrator." Sounds a bit rude now, but it didn't then.


Well, there's a new game called "Pixeljunk Shooter" that you can download straight into your PS3. It's old-school style two-player side-scrolling fun for all the family. Might be something diverting to do in the dying hours of the Christmas hols to keep your mind off the fast approaching awfulness of Monday morning.


And it costs less than Penetrator did in 1982.


And you can play with a friend at the same time! But not online. So not with me.

So much for the future.