Gunny Lamps

I showed the beer fans some interesting lamps made from beer bottles recently. In fairness, here are some lamps of interest the gun fans too. The folks at Loaded Objects Ceramics create lamps and other objects modeled after pistols, rifles, and grenades. Their website shows an interesting array of art. The pieces are unique and attractive.

Loaded Objects is currently selling three styles of lamps at their Etsy page.

FTC Disclaimer: I am in no way affiliated with the company, I'm just reporting.

Date Night

Colleen and I treated ourselves to a "date night" Friday evening. It being a Friday in Lent, our choices were limited to non-meat dishes. That meant we pretty quickly decided on the Fish & Chips at Park Lane Tavern. The lightly battered white fish filets are quite tasty and one of our favorite menu items there. Of course, we needed some good beers to go along with the food. I prefer a smooth, maltier beer to go with the light flavor of the fish, rather than a strong, bitter hoppy beer. Park Lane's menu offers several apropos selections.

Colleen opted for Fuller's Extra Special Bitters. This English Ale is a dark reddish-brown in color with a mildly bitter, nutty flavor. For my selection, I opted for a Belhaven Scottish Ale. This beer is a available in several ABV ranges, Park Lane serves the 3.9% ABV "session beer." The beer comes to the table looking like a light-colored milkshake, with a cascade of nitrogen induced carbonation. The flavor is mild toffee and caramel, with just a hint of bitterness. As expected, the mouthfeel is creamy and smooth, leaving behind a faint sweetness. It was quite enjoyable, even for this fan of big and bold ales.

We finished our meal with a shared dessert of Irish Whiskey Bread Pudding. The Park Lane version of this classic is served with ice cream. It's tasty, but the whiskey part was not quite noticeable. I prefer the version we serve around here. However, we still enjoyed it very much it while we sipped a couple of mugs of coffee and relished a fun evening out.

It's Friday!

Have a great weekend!

Demetri Martin on WhoSay

Blue & Gray Groupon Tour Offer

Thursday's DC-area Groupon offer features a "Grape and Grain Tour." The tour features two local stops, the Blue & Gray Brewery and Bowman Distillery.

Grape and Grain tours bestow imbibers with a whirlwind six hours to sip and savor a kaleidoscope of diverse beverages. A chauffeur from Prime Transportation begins the day by whisking patrons to a brewery, distillery, and winery, each of which grants samples of their unique brews and vintages while instilling educational tidbits about their creation. At the Mediterranean-style Potomac Point Winery, patrons explore the wine cave and tour the cellar, dining on a bistro lunch and stopping at the olive oil bar to tend jaws creaky from chewing. At Blue and Gray Brewing Company, samples of seasonal beers emerge straight from the tanks to wash down a complimentary dessert, and the tour of family-owned A. Smith Bowman Distillery—a Fredericksburg mainstay since 1934—imparts tricks of the brewing trade that toe the line between tradition and innovation. Discounts on return visits and gift-shop merchandise urge tours to return, and patrons depart with souvenir glasses from each venue that will always remind them not to drink out of the brewer's tank.

The Groupon price is discounted 1/2 off the "retail" price, but not having done a chauffeured tour myself, I'm in no position to judge. The price does include transportation from the DC area, so it's probably not a great deal for local folks. In any event, it does sound like it would make for a fun day.

See the Groupon offer page for complete details.

Note: I have purchased Groupon tickets for Blue & Gray, as well as other local restaurants, in the past, but I am in no way affiliated with the company, I'm just reporting.

Beer Can Guitar Amp

Personally think a Dale's Pale Ale can would make it sound better.

Corned Beef Recipe

I previously shared the recipe for the Irish Coffee with which we relaxed after dinner on St. Patrick's Day. Before that dessert we enjoyed a traditional Irish American meal of corned beef, potatoes, carrots and cabbage. Because of the long day of festivities planned, a slow cooked meal was called for. Colleen found this recipe, which she prepared with just some minor adaptions. It turned out to be a winner, that we'll be having again. We certainly won't save it only for St. Patrick's Day. You shouldn't either.

Ingredients
1 bottle Guinness Draught
1 head cabbage, chopped
1 (generous) shot of Irish whiskey
1 tablespoon of coriander seeds
1 tablespoon of ground cumin
1 tablespoon of garlic powder
1 tablespoon of Tabasco Sauce
12 red potatoes, roughly cut
2 cloves of garlic, minced
2 onions, chopped
4 carrots, sliced
4 cups water
5 pounds of corned beef

Directions
Open the Guinness the night before to let it go flat.
Line the bottom of the slow cooker with the potatoes, onion, garlic and carrots.
Add the beer, whiskey, water and spices (including the Tabasco Sauce if you chose to use it)
Place the corned beef on the bed of vegetables.
Add the cabbage.
Add salt and pepper to taste.
Set the cooker on high and cook for 8-9 hours until fork tender.

With all the activities during the day, our meal actually spent about 11 hours in the crock pot. The beef came out tender with the classic bright red color. The flavor took on a roasted quality. The potatoes, carrots, and cabbage all took had a smoky spice, while keeping their own unique flavors. Interestingly, the cabbage seems to have absorbed the spicy Tabasco flavor the most. Upon finishing our meal, we all agreed that this had to be the best tasting corned beef "pot meal" we can remember. We're saving this recipe so we have handy it for future meals. Easy preparation and unattended cooking, with good eating waiting at the end of the day. What more does a busy family need?

Nothing To Do Is Not Boredom

As you may have gathered from previous posts, I was required to be in Orlando this past weekend for work. I flew down Friday, had 3 hours worth of meetings on Saturday, and have another two hours to do this morning. Our meetings were at the Orlando World Center Marriott. It's a beautiful property, and the service and attention by the staff was excellent. However, it also proved rather isolating. I had little interest in going to any of the nearby theme parks such as Walt Disney World, SeaWorld or Universal Studios. If my family had been with me, perhaps, but not alone. I arrived wondering just what I'd do in my "off" time. It was settled when I asked at the hotel "entertainment" desk about activities in the area other than those parks, and golf, and was told "That's about it." That actually turned into a blessing in disguise.

I only recently discovered the benefits of Kindle books. I know to many folks electronic books are old news, but I've always preferred the feel of a real book in my hand. However, I've learned recently to appreciate the "always there" aspect of the digital equivalent. I don't own a Kindle, but do have the app on my phone, and have a small library of books I want to read. I've been really enjoying being able to make use of any found time to do some reading. It's actually allowed me to keep up with my Lenten reading promises. This weekend I was treated to more reading, for pleasure, than I have been able to do in a long, long time. I read in my room. I read in the hotel lounges. I read by the pool. I read in the garden under palm trees. The outdoor reading was interspersed with joys of watching the antics of the critters in the trees, and a bit of people watching.

Coming from a guy who works in IT, my late acceptance of this technology may seem odd, but I am glad to have finally come around. And this weekend, it was more than a convenience, it helped to create some very enjoyable breaks over those days.

Even for all the joyful relaxation that was found, even though it's been just three days, the greatest joy will come when I am back home with my family. That's just one plane ride and a long drive in rush hour traffic away...

Intro to IDPA

A while ago I posted this video about USPSA shooting that showed why the sport is so addicting. Since I've recently started shooting IDPA again, I thought I'd share a similar video about IDPA.

They are two different games, with different rules, and different goals. It will be interesting to see if I can keep the two straight and compete regularly in both.