Hai Karate

This morning as I have done for so many year before, I sat on the couch with bed head and opened wrapped presents around a lit Christmas tree. This year our bounty was meager yet just as appreciated. I placed a box of Whitman Samplers underneath the tree for the Mrs. The Third. Her father used to always leave her one when she was younger. As I have stated, I am big on tradition. But I have to confess that it was for Easter morning that he left out the candies. Oh well so I have modified them a bit. It is the thought I suppose. I set here drinking fresh Starbucks coffee (Christmas Blend 2009) and admiring my four new pair of Banana Republic boxers (which I picked out). My wife is in the kitchen cooking eggs Ranchero. My mother used to cook that for us on Christmas morning. I got some really nice cologne (Dolce Gabbana the one) , a cooking pot for my home brew beer (from the Rock Star Mentality), a gift certificate to Austin Brew Supply (from The Prodigy and The Jim). I see my peeps are really reading my blogs. I also received (from The Mrs. The Third) a very small cast iron skillet to hold basting sauce for my grill/pit. I am really impressed with it. It made me recall past Christmases and me thinking what were my very favorite presents.

My Aunt Pete and Uncle Jay used to always give me multiple pairs of Gold Cup socks. At one time I owned every color that they made. I think I finally wore out the last pair of them only a few years ago. My Aunt Mary Nell used to always give me Old Spice cologne. I drop hints to my family that I would appreciate some each year. Some years I do get some and some years (like this year) I do not. When I do not get any I usually go out and buy some anyway.

I have received countless record albums, eight tracks, cassettes, CDs and DVDs. I could not tell you how many sweaters, shirts, pants, jackets and other assorted articles of clothing I have received. I have received electronics,watches, bedding, guns, fishing equipment, tools, baseball gloves, footballs, basketballs, cigars, art work, musical instruments, jewelry,(including a Saint Christopher's medal from an old girlfriend) alcohol, and food (even boudin). I have received at least two bicycles, In addition to the Old Spice and Dolce Gabbana I have received a lot of cologne. Conoe, British Sterling, Brut, English Leather, Polo, Arimis, Royal Coppenhagen, Paco Rabon, Lagerfield, Grey Flannel, Currier and Ives, various Avon fragrances and yes even Hai Karate to name only a few. Of course I received toys when I was younger and even a few when I grew older. My father once had an old pulp wood truck parked in front of our house and a set of keys hanging on the Christmas tree. He had me convinced that he had bought it for me. Thank God he did not. I guess my D-28 qualifies as my favorite gift of all time. But there is a story that goes with it and I will tell it another day. Most of my readership already knows the story.

My father's mother and father never gave me a Christmas present. Well they did sort of. Each year they would give my mother and father a check (a pretty good one actually) and my parents would use it to purchase our presents. We got a pretty cool bounty each year. Each Christmas I tended to purchase Dit a new wallet. He would always say he loved it. A few months after he died I was going through his desk and I found 13 wallets. All new. As his oldest grandson I received the wallet he actually used. It was worn and tattered. I am not sure if it was one that I gave him or not.

So... I must say that it is not the receiving of gifts and for that matter not the giving of gifts. It is what it is, and what it is is special.

Yes, it is the day the Catholic Church designated as the Feast of the Birth of Christ or Christ's Mass. And yes, it is a United States federal holiday. But it is special in it's own individual way to each of us.

So my trilogy of Christmas blogs is complete.

Happy Christmas to you all and to all a good night,

Santa (aka The Third)

"Der Bingle"

I have lived my entire live living in the South. In the past 4 years while being employed by the Power Load, I have had the opportunity to travel all over the United States and as a result I have experienced all sorts of weather. I have been in minus 13 degree weather and I have been stranded on I-80 in a blizzard. I have traveled in a virtual white out. I have watched White Christmas more times than I care to admit. I even drove through Vermont in late December, but I have never seen actual snow falling on Christmas Eve. That is until today. I am looking out my front window and watching small snow flurries. I realize it will not stick to the ground but I, after 58 years, am having a White Christmas.

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow.

The Third

Family Tradition...The Soaking of the Beans

Well today is the day that I once again re enact a family tradition. As I wrote in one of my earlier blogs (Dies Natalis Solis Invicti --December 22, 2008), a few minutes ago I poured a packet of "15 beans" beans into a pot and will soak them overnight. Thus the soaking of the beans. I know it sounds strange or hokey, but it really does mean something to me. Traditions are easy to establish, difficult to maintain, but nearly impossible to pass on. But I am trying.

Today has been a good day. We visted Austin. We had a great breakfast at Mimi's , made a beer run at Spec's, visted Austin Brew Supply, did some Christmas shopping, purchased a Honey Baked Ham and then took a trip to visit Uncle Billy's Brew and Que. I had looked on the internet and saw that they had one of my favorite beers on tap. Sadly they ran out two days ago. On my friend Matt's (who was visiting family in Western Pa.) recommendation, I tried the Hop Zombie IPA. It was pretty damn good. I did have my taste up for Hell in Keller though. Well at least I have a reason to return now.

Happy Christmas!!!!!! Kyleigh (Little Cat), Levi (Little Man), Sarah, Kimmie, Tommy, Kristina, Jennifer, Jim, and Ann......


Pax Omnem Per Terram

Big Cat, (The Third)

Post Script

Today is also Festivus. So as I gaze at my Festivus Pole, I extend a heart felt Happy Festivus.

"It's a Festivus for the rest of us"

3rd

The Best is Yet to Come

I really have no excuses as to why have not submitted any recent blogs. I have been working on a few but thus far I have yet to edit them in order to be posted. I did not want my one year anniversary to pass (which it did actually) without acknowledging it.

So fans stay tuned. The best is yet to come.

Always

The Third

Brewing on the Party Patio

“Buy a man a beer and he’ll waste an hour, teach him to brew and he’ll waste a lifetime"- Bob Stoddard


I realize in my last blog that while I asked for contributions I failed to mention how much I would actually need. This short blurb is in reply to inquires regarding same.

So I have been asked exactly do I need to commence my brewing journey.

I do not want to be too complicated but I want to be complete.

There are several online sites where one can order what ever he needs to become a home brewer. One of the more popular ones is Austin Homebrew Supply of which I have actually visited and have one of their tee shirts http://www.austinhomebrew.com/index.php

There are multiple “kits” / mixes that include all of the ingredients needed to make around 5 gallons of beer. (2 cases of 12oz bottles)
Essentially the kits (for IPAs ,Pale Ales, Porters and Hefeweizens) are the same a cake or cookie mix. Most include bottle caps for 50 bottles. These kits usually cost about $ 30-35. As I would learn the essentials of brewing I could venture out and begin to brew from scratch and eventually develop my own beers and ales.

As far as bottles are concerned, they can be recycled bottles that I have collected.

One thing that would be nice is a 45 Bottle Drainer Tree for $ 27.99 and Vinator Bottle Rinser for $ 18.99. Sanitation is essential in brewing and bottling good beer, The tee and rinser makes the process of bottle sanitation easier and much more efficient.

There are several “starter kits” ranging from just under one hundred bucks and going up to about four hundred dollars

They include just about every thing needed. The one I feel would best suit me would be the one called Super Deluxe Beer Making Equipment Kit it sells for $ 196.49 but I would need an additional component called a secondary fermenter. By having this, the end result (beer) will be much clearer. It would cost $ 25.98.

The first thing or first process of brewing beer is boiling water. Therefore I would need pot at least a 32 quart size. These can be purchased just about anywhere. The one I found at Austin Home Brew goes for $ 54.99.
Of course in order to boil water I must have a heat source and although the kitchen stove would work, I am afraid the Mrs. The Third may have a few issues with me invading her sanctuary. I would have much more room on the “party porch” and I could use a propane burner. Austin Home Brew sell one called Bayou Classic Outdoor Propane Burner available for $ 69.99
A pot and burner can be obtained nearly everywhere, including Academy and Wal-Mart
The burner and pot could be used for other purposes as well, including boiling crustaceans.

So the total cost to get me going….. $ 393.43 plus tax


I might suggest that my loyal readers consider banding together to make an investment in my brewing future.


Hoppily Yours

The Third,
Future Home Brewer and future Reality Television Star

6th Street Brewery

Last Friday night the Mrs. The Third had to work from 3:00 PM till 9:00PM. We usually travel up to the local pub and tip a few. I decided I would go alone. I then received a phone call from the Rock Star Mentality that I needed to pick her up at 6:00 PM. It was beginning to look as if my weekly trek to the pub would not happen. But I decided to ask my youngest if she would mind going by O'Brien's. She said it was cool with her so on we went. While there I visited with my friend Byran from Belfast Northern Ireland. He seemed enamored with my daughter. The owner of the pub called me to the bar and introduced me to a young couple. They were interested in forming a local home brewing club* and considered meeting at O'Brien's. We chatted for a while. They were interested in my travels and the beers I have sampled. I told them I had moved into an old house down the street and that I was considering finally starting to home brew. They then invited me to come over to visit them the following Sunday because they were bottling a pumpkin ale. Matt showed me a picture on his cell phone of his harvest this year of hops. Wow I was getting excited.

As things turned out, they were not able to bottle their beer and I have yet to visit them. But it got me to realizing that I really need to focus on thingsbeer again.


One of my son in laws sat out on my back porch. In his deep voice he exclaimed. "Wow! This is a party porch" I must admit the Mrs. The Third and I spend a considerable amount of time setting on our "party porch" If you look close you can see my BBQ pit on the right. The door on the left leads in the kitchen and the window in the middle are from our dining and family room. We can gaze out our window and see the same things we do as we set on the aforementioned porch. As you look at the picture, note the step down on the left side of the picture. It leads to a concrete walkway. It traverses through the yard and leads to a wooden shed. ( where I store my lawn stuff etc.). If you look closely to the left you will see the side of the rose garden
Behind the rose garden is where I plan to plant a vegetable garden where I will plant tomatoes, squash, peppers and cucumbers. As Guy Clark said " There are only two things that money can't buy... true love and home grown tomatoes."

I was thinking. If homegrown tomatoes are so much better than store bought ones, I bet that fresh "homegrown" hops would be awesome as well. Besides Matt had inspired me. So I have decided to grow hops as well.

On the side of the wooden shed I plan to construct a hop trellis. It will be built as follows:
Two 6 foot sections of 2" PVC pipe will be buried 18" into the ground 4 feet apart. These two will be centered and adjacent to the wooden shed (pictured here). I will then place a 2" PVC "tee" on the top of each of the aforementioned 6 foot sections. I will then attached a 4 foot 2" PVC pipe to both of the tees thus attaching the two 6 foot pipes together. I will then attach two more 6 foot sections to each of the sides of the trellis and will attach a similar 4 foot 2" PVC pipe to the top. I will then attach two 16" section of 2" PVC pipe each facing the opposite direction of the 4 foot sections. The trellis will stand 10 1/2 feet high and will be 7 feet wide. (I have been told that hops will actually grow as much as 35 feet high if allowed) I will plant 5 hop rhizomes spaced evenly about 18" away from the base of the trellis. Next to each rhizome I will place a wooden stake in which I will tie a piece of twine leading the the top of the trellis. As the rhizome sprout and grow, vines (actually called bines) will be trained to climb each of the five pieces of twine.
I plan to construct the trellis over the next few months and will be planting my hops at about the same time I will plant the vegetable garden. (in the Spring). View of our vegetable garden should be obstructed by our rose garden but we will be about to see the hops as they grow. I understand that they emit a wonderful fragrance as well. Furthermore they attract butterflies too. That will be cool. The hops will grow through the Summer and should be harvested around mid September. At least that is what I expect.

Now I realize this blog is really strange but give me break....It has been nearly two months since my last one. I promise future blogs will be much better.

Yes, I do want to open a microbrewery but I have to admit that it has been fairly presumptuous on my part to think I could do such a thing without the home brewing experience. For that reason I am hereby announcing the formation of 6th Street Brewery. I will begin to look on the Internet and will be procuring items needed to brew beer. I anticipate spending around $ 300 to $ 400 for such items. You can purchase these from multiple places on the web or you can visit home brewing stores. There is one in Austin called Austin Homebrewing. I actually have one of their tee shirts and on the back it says "Make your own damn beer!"
If any of my loyal readers want to make an investment in the 6th Street Brewery I will gladly accept such. This can be done by purchasing equipment for me for Christmas or birthdays gifts. Money will be accepted as well.


So my brewing process has finally begun if only in the planning phase.


Whoooooo Hooooooo


The Third
Brew Master
6th Street Brewery
Charter Member of *Lone Star Brewers Guild

09:09/09/09/09

I spent the first 7 years of my life living in deep East Texas. When I was nearly 8, my mother, brother and I moved in with my mother's mother (in the country) and we lived there for 2 years. We lived in a small community known as Wallace, Louisiana. We lived on a dirt road about 3 miles from a small two lane black top. We really were in the country. We lived in an area known as Dolet Hills (pronounced Doe Lee Heels). We then moved to Shreveport, La. where we lived ( in 3 separate houses) until late Spring 1974 . In August of that year I was married to the first Mrs The Third (who now and in the future will be referred to as "plaintiff"). She and I moved to Houston, Texas in October 1974 and I lived there until June 1988. I then moved to Tomball, Texas ( a suburb of Houston) and lived there (except from 1990-1992 where I lived and worked in Bakersfield, California) until mid September 2005 when I moved to Temple, Texas. I have to admit here once and for all. I have never felt as if Temple was where I belonged. I have felt the people here are weird but I think that I have never given them a chance. It is the only place in Texas that I have ever been to (trust me I have been to a LOT of places in Texas) that does not have one single good Mexican Restaurant. MY GAWD!!!! Not even one. We still live here. Temple is not North Texas (such as Dallas) nor is it East Texas or West Texas or even South Texas. What it is, is Central Texas or sort of in the middle of the road. We have been here 4 years this month and I have finally accepted the fact that I am a resident of Temple, Texas and not just passing through. It is not completely as bad as I first thought. Hell,it is still in Texas and that is not too shabby.

When we first moved here we moved into an apartment. It was not too bad actually but due to the design of the complex our living room and bed room would flood nearly each time that it rained. Although it rains here infrequently, it still was a royal pain in the ass. I constantly complained and turned into a real prick a few times. But my ranting never stopped it from flooding. About a year ago, one of my brother in laws informed the Mrs The Third that he wanted to rent his house out. It seems his common law wife of about 12 years or so decided she wanted greener pastures and she left him. She promptly moved in with another guy whom she later married. A few days after their not so holy union, he was arrested as a result of driving while being intoxicated. WAIT .....I am am not talking about The Plaintiff for a change. It seems it was not the first time he had been convicted for such an offense. Come to think of it it was neither his second third or fourth time either. So he is currently residing in the care of The State of Texas Penal Housing Authority. No, I told you I am not talking about my first wife. My brother in law Markie Mark, was not too sure he could handle the note on the house, so renting it out was his plan. The idea sounded very good and both the Mrs The Third and I jumped at the idea. Later he modified his offer and informed us that he would remain in the house and that we could split the bills. My brother in law is a good man and I personally never have had any problems with him. Yes, he tends to be manic at times and he talks less than Calvin Coolidge did. He lives by the same credo that most of his siblings do. "The world is on a need to know basis". Or, "If I wanted you to know I would have told you."You only learn of something if he decides to tell you or you ask it of him and he decides to answer. His significant other left him and that alone could make you be in a bad mood. Add the fact that he was broke and then had a small heart attack, and you could see how living in the same house with him can mess your buzz.We lived in a three bedroom house and spent a predominant amount of our time sequestered in a 14' X 12' master bedroom.We have split the monthly bills, (electric, water, sewer, garbage,rent,) He has paid to have the lawn fertilized and mowed etc. I have mowed the grass a couple of times only. We have paid 100% of the cable and internet bill. This amounts to around $ 150.00 per month. I am sure he would have been happy to split that bill but we never asked him to. We also purchased 98% of all of the groceries consumed. But...I am in no way complaining about the financial arrangement. This past year has been good for both of us. Yes, we each had to sacrifice but it has worked. Recently, he has met a woman who has a lot of common interest as he does. For a man who does not talk that much, I can testify that he spent countless hours talking to her on the phone and recently he invited her to move into our abode. I mean .... it is his house. She seems nice enough and her two lap dogs are cute enough as well. The Mrs. The Third and I both felt it was time for us to move into our own place again. Let me say and I want to be clear about what I am about to say. I was ready to move to our own place about 30 minutes before I moved into my brother in laws house a year ago. I knew I would be completely miserable from the moment I moved in. Nothing against Markie Mark, I just want my own place. and......we finally found a place. It is not only ours but it is cool as hell. It is located very near to the historical district of Temple. I admit it is small but it has an amazing back yard with a huge covered patio. It even has a rose garden in a large back yard which surround by trees and a bamboo break. ( the bamboo provides privacy but bamboo can be a real pain in the ass. More on that later in this blog) It has a small wooden storage shed in the back of the yard and a concrete walkway leading to it. The front yard has a huge magnolia tree. The leaves will be a nuisance, but when it blooms it will be worthwhile. We can now get a dog. I want a dog and name him Uncle Bud. It has a one car garage with a garage door opener and now finally I have room to actually brew my own beer. (I predict I will name my first offering Estelle. ( I have decided to name my beers after people. Estelle was my mother's oldest sister.) There is a cat who hangs out on the back porch already. I learned from my next door neighbor, Wayne that the cat belonged to the person who used to live in this house. I am not a cat kinda guy. But I could never allow an animal to starve. The Mrs. The Third is allergic to cats and she wants the feline to simply go away. I put out a watering dish and purchased some dry cat food. The cat has eaten all I have put out thus far. I was going to name her Latifah but what's the use. Cats are strange and I find that I am too old to try to learn how to get along with them. I will simply refer the cat "the cat" and will continue to feed her until she leaves or dies.

I am making a real effort to accept that I am a real Central Texan. Now that I have a home of my own. Now that I am a responsible grandparent. Now I am ready to cast my vote and will actively campaign for someone for the governor of the great state of Texas. Who...why Kinky of course. "Why the Hell not!" Now you may think I am falling in the same trap that the people of Minnesota did when they elected a professional wrestler/B movie actor. My personal political philosophy is slightly inconsistent I guess. I first registered as a Democrat (back in 1970). The first presidential election found me casting my vote for George McGovern who lost by a huge landslide. I placed a placard for McGovern in our front yard. When my dear beloved Dad came home he went ballistic. He wanted to know if I was on dope. In Louisiana, I tended to vote Democratic since that was pretty much the only choice you had. Yes, Charlton Lyons ran for governor of the State of Louisiana as a Republican. He lost. I was not old enough to vote for him at the time but my vote would not have helped him. My cousin Mike (the one who went to Woodstock with me) ended up marrying Charlton's granddaughter. (Mirian) I have found that I have prospered better (personally and financially) when a Democratic was president. I find that people who serve us in elected office should first and foremost be "of the people". Andrew Jackson was probably the last US President to be "of the people. After his inauguration he opened the doors of the White House and invite everyone to "party". Of course what happened was that the place was "trashed".

We, as a people, tend to fall into the trap of believing that certain families or people are destined to be our leaders. Family names such as Long, Kennedy and Bush come to mind. But I must admit I am at a point that I have seen that the way that things have been have not been that perfect. I could and would never run for political office. I admit I feel I would not be as bad as you may think. Yes, we can laugh at the people of Louisiana who elected not once but twice a country singer by the name of Jimmie Davis. We can joke about Minnesota electing a former Pro Wrestler and comic by who invented the character of Stuart Smally. Hell we could laugh at California for electing a B movie Western Cowboy or the Govenator too. What about The State of Iowa electing a former Love Boat Star as one of it's representatives in congress.. The State of Tennessee for electing a former star of Law and Order. What about a former Texas Governor W Lee "Pappy Lee" O' Daniel. Those people did pretty good and to be honest I feel it would be refreshing

We have been in the house for about a week and I have already spent more time outside either just setting or working than I have in the three years in our apartment and the year at Markie Mark's. I spent the best part of this past weekend cutting down bamboo. My backyard looks like a war zone. But I discovered that the back yard had more space than I even thought. the bamboo was over ten feet thick from the back fence and had completely covered up several really cool trees. One is a hundred year old or more live oak. I am only about half of the way done. It will take two or more long trailer loads (to the dump) to dispose of the cut cane. The roses in the back yard are dried up and look pretty unruly, but with a little tending the rose garden will look wonderful. I will be placing a concrete statue of Mary in the middle of the garden. the back patio has already become a place for the Mrs The Third and I to set and talk each evening. It is quite pleasant. I feel after I have removed the excess bamboo and have trimmed the roses and watered the yard back to some shade of green rather than dirt colored, added a few bird & squirrel feeders and few more wind chimes, we will have a very nice little "private garden".

So....... fans, things are looking up here. I find I will be a lot more at peace and will be able to devote more time to the actual Brew Chronicles. I can now set on my back porch/patio and work on my future blogs and write to whom ever I need to get my shot at reality television stardom.
Until then I will begin to look diligently for a real job a little closer to home. the Power Load is pretty much petered out. But I am planning to work in Paso Robles, California near the end of this month. It is the home of Firestone Walker Brewery. They make great beer such as DBA or Double Barrel Ale. It rates high on my list.

Back to the cutting.....

The Third