bierkergaard

I ordered a Russian Imperial Stout kit a couple of months ago. I was waiting on brewing it until Trump assumed the presidency. Building on the prior batch of Vlad the Imperialer three years ago, I have named this rendition Vlad II: The Putinator: I Will Break You , given DT's posh treatment of this former KGB Russian Autocrat Putin who assassinates and imprisons his opponents. A strange world we are living in. ISIS has made Russia and the U.S. allies. A Trump and Putin Bromance, each probably playing another as a sucker underneath it all.   As an aside, I read the Koran over Christmas Vacation. Actually, much less violent than the Bible but it does appear to enlist the  faithful in God's War against the infidel. The Koran uses what is termed the "Royal We"  when Allah speaks of Himself, which is awfully odd considering its strong Monotheism. My thesis is that the  "We" language does seem to permit the faithful to spread Islam by force. Historically, we...

The individual I connected to most in the Blue Mountains of Jamaica was a dude nicknamed Ox. When I first arrived at the guesthouse where he was employed, he told me his real name was Paul, so that is what I called him for most of the week. It turned out his real name wasn't Paul. So, he was just messing with me. Having some fun at the white boy's expense.  Ox was nicknamed such, I presume, because he worked hard like a strong beast in the fields, pulling a plow. Whenever anyone needed something done, they would call out "Ox" and he would magically appear. Here, in this picture, he was assisting the owner in launching one of those fiery floating paper lanterns.   Ox was the first one up and the last one to bed. He would greet me in the morning and make coffee. At the end of the week when I was settling my account, I had to throw him under the bus so to speak. He had only charged me for four coffees all week (six days) when in fact every morning I had usually ...

The morning after the aforementioned rowdy and loud party at the Blue Mountain Guesthouse and Cafe (see last week's blog post), I was sitting out on the cafe porch, drinking coffee, and a reggae song was playing on the sound system.  I took a video/audio recording of it because it seemed to restore the proper Jamaica vibe over the environs, replacing the specter of the sappy 80's pop music from the night before party. Be gone! Now that I have two iPhones, thanks to AT&T no longer offering a discounted new replacement, I downloaded the Shazam app on my older phone to use it to identify the song on my new iPhone. I brought my old iPhone to  Jamaica as a back-up in case my new iPhone was stolen, damaged, or etc. I also used the old phone to take pics when walking on steep paths and out in the wild and sweating a torrent.   I was chagrined to find out that the song playing was by a Jamaican musician Mavodo (who genre is a combo of Rap and Rasta, plus auto-tuned...

The second to last day I was in Jamaica, a bunch of 16 white people party animals crashed where I was lodging in Jamaica. I tried to discern who they were...not U.S. citizens (thankfully) but from what I could tell ex-Pats from various European countries (some obviously Germans/Dutch by their gutterality) and caucasian natives from the Jamaican lowlands. For about 5 hours, the mountain peace was disturbed by excessive drink, saccharin 80's Pop music blasting, and bawdy jokes. English was the lingua franca. BTW, I am going to be on a Jamaica jag for a while. Great experiences crack us open with ideas and reflections. I wondered why any group of people would travel over 3,000-4,000 feet up to party their brains out when any hovel would do, with dangerous ride to boot down the treacherous road to Kingston. It wasn't a case of sour grapes of me wanting to join the party. The older I get, the more I go for quality in relationships and conversation, not quantity. I am not loo...

This is one cup of coffee that technically should not have been french pressed for my consumption. Let me explain...  I kind of ran things on two levels in Jamaica. I had back-ups for everything. Phone, credit card, iPhone charging cord, travel documents, and personal hygiene products--learned from being stuck in Quebec/Toronto last Christmas vacation for two extra days--to have at least deodorant, toothpaste/brush, and floss in both my carry-on and checked baggage in case my travel bag didn't wind up in time where I was. Boy, I had never craved flossing so much in my whole life.   These items were in two different locations at all times. Financially in particular, one set of credit and cash on my person, the other stashed deep in my travel bag behind lock and key. So, if I got robbed, then I could put in place the back-up. Turns out, that wound up being a misplaced fear.  But, I wanted to be prepared. The downside of prepping  in such a manner had little cost...

Last winter for Christmas Vacation I sojourned to the snowy Canadian province of Quebec. I wanted winter and I got it. Cold, bitterly cold, and two big snowstorms--one of them a Blizzard. How massive was it? The Winterfest, an annual celebration of carnival rides and such, was completely deserted. I recall the Ferris Wheel spinning around empty. Snow is a lot more enjoyable without shovel duty and driving.  This Christmas Vacation, instead of Mr. Cold Miser, I am Mr. Heat Miser. Mr. 101. Jamaica, Mon. Not resort Jamaica, sitting in some cocooned enclave sipping a rum-infused concoction, but off-the-grid Jamaica. In the Blue Mountains. In search of that elusive perfect cup of coffee. Very much the opposite of the cold austere Quebec, vibrant, lush. I am hoping the rats ain't too massive. Traveling over Christmas has become a tradition. I don't have a family of my own and I don't want to spend the holiday vacation sulking. Don't get me wrong. I am happy to be sing...

Luke 13:34 O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, that killeth the prophets, and stoneth them that are sent unto her! How often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her own brood under her wings, and ye would not! Luke 19:10 For the Son of Man came to make search for those who are wandering from the way, and to be their Saviour. We had our third rendition of Libations: Craft Beer Church on Thursday night at Columbia Kettleworks. I was the speaker and decided to go brief and keep it to 10-15 minutes. Believe me, that is terse for me.  The gist of my message was that Christ makes room for us under the shelter of His wings but we make no room for Him. Or, to find shelter under His branches.  Jesus, the gift of God, not under the tree but on it. Do you like my Craft Beer Bottle Christmas Tree?    For Christians at least, the cares of the world choke out His presence. I think we are far too busy for our own good however we s...