reality is not what it seems

Carlo Rovelli picked a great title when he chose Reality is Not What it Seems for this follow up to his Seven Brief Lessons on Physics,* which started out a pamphlet and became an international best seller. Rovelli talks a little bit about this in the introduction; how this book came to be; how people had been asking him to explain the theories of quantum gravity in layman's terms, which he was reluctant to try and do. He did try when pressed, and the result was a small book, but because of its popularity, he was pressed further to expand on that work and the result, he explains, is this book.

I will go ahead and tell you now, that I was quoting phrases, and reading passages out loud to anyone who would listen. my apologies to my family When I finished, I gave the book to my wife and recommended that she read it.

In the first few chapters, Rovelli traces the history of where we are in physics, and our understanding of how the universe works. How scientists and philosophers built upon the work of their predecessors to unlock the secrets of the universe as we know it. Because I am interested in this kind of thing, I had a pretty good idea about where we are and how we got there, but the story that Rovelli tells both provided missing links in the trail of information, extended what I understood and how different theories relate to one another, and in a way that was both succinct, and mesmerizing. Two chapters in and I was hooked.

Rovelli then goes on to describe quantum physics, and what we know about it, building upon what we've learned in the past, until he gets to the point where the theories aren't proven yet, and its still conjecture and competing theses. He points out that there are two main branches of theories, the one he is working on and believes in, and the other, which is string theory. You got me about which is correct, or more correct, but he makes a passionate argument.

Read this Book--I enjoyed it thoroughly--but maybe only if you are interested in this kind of stuff. Its good, but I'm not sure how much general appeal it will have for the less geekily inclined.

* You can download a copy of Seven Brief Lessons on Physics by clicking here.

 

 

the overstory

The Overstory by Richard Powers is organized unlike any other book I can recall. Its like a series of short stories, that kind of grow together, around and among the trees. Its a series of related fables? Ovid's Metamorphoses is mentioned in here somewhere, and its at least part of the inspiration for this story, as much as global warming and deforestation is the implied warning or moral.

I don't recall reading anything by Richard Powers before, so I took a quick look, and this book apparently won the 2019 Pulitzer Prize in Fiction, so go figure. I enjoyed this book, but I'm not going to put it in my 'read this book'* category only because it was a little slow and disjointed for me. Its my guess that this won the Pulitzer because it is so different from other things I've read, and the structure of this book's story arc is like nothing else I've read. For me personally, being different as not the same as being entertaining, and that's why I read fiction. 

Lets be clear, was entertained, and I did enjoy this book, I'm just not weeping because I finished it, rapt with longing for more, and kicking down doors to find the next book by this author. Now, also to be clear, I don't feel that way about every book that makes it to the 'read this...' group, that's a high bar indeed, I just reserve that for books I'm recommending without reservation.

Powers writes fiction about science and technology, and it seems as though he is pretty well known for it. I'll keep my eye out and if I run into another that looks good I'll probably pick it up.

 

* The link to my 'read this book' tagged books can be found anytime by clicking on the appropriate tag on the tag cloud on the right-hand column on this page. Its under the heading: 'what i'm talking about'. You can use any of the other tags in the same way. They also show up at the bottom of every post, so if you're looking for something similar, I may have labeled it that way

 

nerax 2025

The New England Real Ale Exhibition (NERAX) was held this year again, at the South Boston Lithuanian Citizens' Association and Lithuanian Kitchen, also known simply as the  Lithuanian Club. This is the second time I've been to NERAX at the Lithuanian Club. Its a big hall on the third floor of an older building on West Broadway in South Boston, just 5 or 6 blocks up from the Broadway T Station. Because of a mix-up on the dates, we bought four advance tickets for Friday (yesterday) but two of our party had other plans, so we bought four more tickets and went on Thursday. We still had tickets for yesterday, so we asked two other folks to go with us for a second round. I think that may have been the first time I've gone twice during an NERAX event. Wasn't a bad thing!

I sampled quarter pints, which is one quarter of an Imperial Pint, or about 5 ounces. They have a graduated scale for costs based on ABV (alcohol by volume). Most beers were below the 7% limit, and therefore $3.00 for a quarter pint. Between 7% and 10% is $4.00, and over 10% is $5.00 for a quarter. They also limit the draft size. The lower ABV beers are available in quarter, half, and full pints, whereas the mid-range in quarters and halves, and the over 10% beers only in quarter pints. There were only a few in these upper ranges that I saw, but I spent my time on the lower ABV beers, usually 6% and under. I sampled mine in one of the NERAX badged half-pint nonic glasses they have available for a $5 deposit, which you can forgo and take the glass home, which we all did. You can see the half-pint glasses in the pictures below.

THURSDAY NIGHT

Phil, Alessia, Stefan and Jacob. Happy Birthday Stefan!

 

Fen Slodger - 8 Sail Brewery, Heckington, Lincolnshire, England (ABV 5.0%)

This is the first beer listed in the program. tasting notes sounded good, so I dug right in. Penny brown-copper colored with a light head of little clinging bubbles. Malt and dark chocolate on the nose. Herbal, grains, and a soft, balanced bitterness, with a strong but pleasant bitter, astringent finish. A great start.

Everlasting - Attic Brewing Co., Birmingham, West Midlands, England (ABV 3.4%)

Molasses, malt and rye on the nose. Deep coppery color with a ivory colored thin and shiny head. It took a second, but the taste reminded me strongly of the brown bread they used to serve at Bugaboo Creek restaurant. I said that to my kids, who were there with me, and my son showed me a recipe on his phone, which was called Molasses Rye Bread. nailed it Thin, slightly sour, watery bitterness, with a smooth and silky bread crust finish. This one was labeled vegan.

Orkney Best - Swannay Brewery, Orkney, Scotland (ABV 5.2%)

Very light hops on the nose. Grassy-honey gold. Wild, initial high & low flavor profile. Bright, tart, citrusy sweetness floats over the top of a slightly sour, leather, pith, and sawdust bitterness. Like throat singing in a glass! Super clean and crisp finish.

Morph - Brass Castle Brewery, Malton, North Yorshire, England (ABV 5.0%)

Fruits, yeast and hops on the nose. Deep honey blonde. Balanced tart fruits with residual sweetness, apricot, and peach pit. Lingering, dry bitterness with citrus and salad greens. Very pleasant.

A Petition to the King for the Repeal of the Intolerable Acts - Amory's Tomb Brewing Co., Maynard, Massachusetts (ABV 6.5%)

This one was described as a dark ale--a blend of porter and brown ale--conditioned on spruce tips. Herbs and pine on the nose. Juicy mouth feel, frutti di bosco tartness, and dark fruits sweetness gives way to a roasted vegetable and braised meats depth of flavor, with a grapefruit skin and roasted tomato tang. The flavors sparkle in this one.

Proper Chap - Nod Hill Brewery, Ridgefield, Connecticut (ABV 4.4%)

Amber brown, with a wispy head. Malty, toast crust, dessert without much sweetness. Almonds, walnut skins, and dry caramel flavors.

FRIDAY NIGHT 

Phil, Stefan, Carmela, and Chuck

 

Pacific Porter - Kelburn Brewing, Glasgow, Scotland (ABV 5.5%)

Quiet hops on the nose, chocolatey red-brown with cream colored head. Juicy spices and brown bread. Tart, dry, bitter finish.

Ox Blood - Little Ox, Oxford, Oxfordshire, England (ABV 4.3%)

Bright and clear. Orangey-red with a straw yellow, wispy head. Clean, fruity citrus. Smooth, lasting but mild bitter finish.

Bravehop - Loch Lomond Brewery, Dumbarton, Dunbartonshire, Scotland* (ABV 4.3%)

Its another Coppery red ale! I tried lots of copper colored ales this year. Huge mouthfeel, complex wash over the tongue; herbal, vegetable, bread crust, crackers, and orange skin all playing in there. Smooth, long and super clean finish.

Tiddly - Fox Farm Brewery, Salem, Connecticut (ABV 3.8)

Walnut brown with a white, frothy head. Molasses, bread and vanilla nose. Melted snow, mild leather, with prunes and maybe some smoke?

Luminary - Medusa Brewing Company, Hudson, Massachusetts (ABV 5.6%)

Described as a cream ale, and vegan. Pale gold and clear. Watery, bubbly head. White fruits, top sweetness, smooth, snappy tartness. Melon and pineapple.

Unfiltered Helles - von Trapp Brewing, Stowe, Vermont (ABV 4.9%)

Goldenrod yellow, with a thick, frothy head. Pancake batter, wheat, berries, friar's tang,** leather, and biscuits.

Mildred - Liars Bench Beer Company, Portsmouth, New Hampshire (ABV 4.0%)

Last call! Deep red-brown smoky color with cream colored head. Roasted fruit and root vegetables. Hermits and raisins, with a tangy stickiness; Amaro. Light sour finish. Here's to Millie!!!

 

 

* Yes, its Dum-barton, in Dun-barton-shire, Scotland. That's an N and an M. Not a typo.

** Friar's Tang is that Belgian wild yeast, cave beer flavor from centuries old monastery beers. Just tastes like basement to me. Its  good thing the Helles I tried only had a little taint of this flavor.

 

 

ii march planning guide

 Sweet, sweet March! said no one, ever

Its that time of year friends; actually its 5 days into that time of year as I write this. My apologies for being late, and I hope I haven't messed up your ability to effectively plan your month's activities without the ii March Planning Guide at your fingertips. As today is the 5th, its Wolf, or the Wolf of March, in the generally accepted nomenclature of pretty much nobody but me. But maybe that's changing! 

New and Improved for this year!

This is exciting folks. Not only have we added the days of the week, but we've also highlighted the weekends. That's five full weekends this year in March, so now the ii March Planning Guide is even more useful than it ever was! no way to go but up, amiright

So what are you planning for Saturday, the Horse of March this year? Should be a pretty good one. Sunday the Pig, maybe not as much.

And finally, where else folks are you going to learn that the Snake of March this year--in the Year of the Snake--is on a Saturday! There's your party theme, right there! Sunset is at 6:51 PM in the Boston area that night. Its also the Ides of March, as it is every year, just not as stabby. Now that's a planning guide, brah.

UPDATE: There is a lunar eclipse late tonight, the Bat of March, into Monkey. The penumbral eclipse begins just 3 minutes before midnight, here in the east, or just before 9:00 PM on the west coast. Partially eclipse starts at 1:09 AM on Monkey here, and at 10:09 in Cali. Totality starts at 2:26 AM, here, and 11:26 tonight in the west. Totality goes for about an hour. If you're up late, take a peek! This is what color the moon will be!

MARCH 2025

March 1, Saturday - Lion: Its a good thing it was on a weekend. 4 inches of snow three weeks ago, and its still here!
March 2, Sunday - Tiger: About 11-feet long, they can leap over 30-feet in length.
March 3, Monday - Bear: Its a Monday, of course.
March 4, Tuesday - Shark: Dwarf lantern sharks are the smallest at about 8-inches. That's like... here to here
March 5, Wednesday - Wolf: They don't want to be friends.
March 6, Thursday - Bull: Ole! Looks like rain.
March 7, Friday - Moose: Up to 6 1/2 feet at the shoulder
March 8, Saturday - Eagle: America! Turn your clock ahead tonight
March 9, Sunday - Scorpion: Sunny but cool. Like a bug with sunglasses?
March 10, Monday - Dingo: Dogs that returned to their origins
March 11, Tuesday - Hawk: We have about 7 hawk types in Massachusetts. Skinny Accipiters & chubby Buteos
March 12, Wednesday - Lynx: Not the same as a bobcat, but similar.
March 13, Thursday - Bat: Hang a bat house!
March 14, Friday - Monkey: New world monkeys have prehensile tails. African & Asian monkeys don't. HBD Coleen!
March 15, Saturday - Snake: The Snake of March, on the Ides of March, in the Year of the Snake!? Dude! PARTY!
March 16, Sunday - Ox: Yep, just a trained cow.
March 17, Monday - Elephant: Green elephants for St. Patricks Day?
March 18, Tuesday - Raven: They still keep ravens in the Tower of London
March 19, Wednesday - Stag: Symbolic of many things from nobility to Christ trampling the devil.
March 20, Thursday - Crab: Sidewids walkin' sea bug. First day of spring! Equinox at 5:01 AM in the Boston area
March 2, Friday1 - Goat: Symbol for practical wisdom and diplomacy. And, you know, satan.
March 22, Saturday - Horse: Spanish horses were introduced to the American Continent in the 1500s.
March 23, Sunday - Pig: Thars mud in yer sty, varmint!
March 24, Monday - Dog: You have a dog? OMG, I have a dog too!
March 25, Tuesday - Dolphin: Dolphins have a snout. Porpoises are like small whales.
March 26, Wednesday - Rooster: One rooster for every ten hens is the rule. Harem say what?
March 27, Thursday - Turtle: All tortoises are turtles, but not all turtles are tortoises. Tortoise = just on land.
March 28, Friday - Toad: Frogs got thin, slippery skin. Toads have thick, lumpy skin to hold in moisture.
March 29, Saturday - Robin: "In flew a sea robin (la!)". Yeah, that's not it.
March 30, Sunday - Rabbit: We have New England Cottontail rabbits here AND snowshoe hares. Similar. HBD Kelton!
March 31, Monday - Lamb: Useful for socks, hats, and BBQ.

 

 

 

biblio tech

The full title of this book is BiblioTech: why libraries matter more than ever in the age of google. This book is from 2015, and when I got a fair way into it, I thought that maybe I had just waited too long to read it, given that what John Palfrey is discussing here is how libraries stand against cutting edge technology. So perhaps its was because the technology he was analyzing is from 2015, and that's what made his arguments a little weak.

Nope.

Its because the majority of of what John Palfrey says in this book is included in the book reviews. Here an example from Goodreads, which I assume is written by... who, the moderators? crowd sourced like a wiki? Who knows, its not attributed:

"... John Palfrey argues that anyone seeking to participate in the 21st century needs to understand how to find and use the vast stores of information available online. And libraries, which play a crucial role in making these skills and information available, are at risk. In order to survive our rapidly modernizing world and dwindling government funding, libraries must make the transition to a digital future as soon as possible -- by digitizing print material and ensuring that born-digital material is publicly available online."

He also says it will be difficult, and it will cost money, and therefore we as readers and library supporters need to support libraries so they can take on this task, collectively.

That's it. Its an 8 minute speech, tops.* Its a pamphlet. In BiblioTech, he just repeats this nine times, in chapters 1 through 9, and the repeats it again in chapter 10, which he helpfully titles "Conclusion." Each chapter focuses on a different point such as how preservation, cloud computing, or networking tie into the problem and the solution he's suggesting, but each of these points is included in nearly all of the chapters. "hey john, how can we spin this crimson article up into a book?"

By the time I was three-quarters through, I was pretty sure that each chapter was written as an stand alone essay in support of the main message. And probably with enough time between them, that he wasn't exactly clear on what he'd written in the others.

Here was the clincher for me: Each chapter has a quote taken from history or literature that one assumes is designed to set the tone for the chapter. The quote at the beginning of Chapter 9: Law, is from an 1813 letter from Thomas Jefferson to Isaac McPherson. It reads:

"He who receives an idea from me, receives instruction himself without lessening mine; as he who lights his taper at mine, receives light without darkening me."

Ah, learnin' I get it. We share what we know, and it helps others without harming us. Sharing knowledge should therefore be freely undertaken. Gotcha, good one. Inspiring, actually. Pretty sure I've heard it before though... where was it? Oh, yeah, 9 PAGES EARLIER, in Chapter 8: Education, word for word, same quote. 

That's just sloppy. you come on up here and write we must support libraries on the blackboard three-hundred times, smartypants.

All good ideas. Make a bullet list and print them on a bookmark. Don't waste my time.

* It is a speech, you can find it on YouTube and other places. Its over an hour! Criminy! I'm sure you can find it yourself.

march monthly planner

March is yet again upon us.

After a few teasers of warmish weather here north of Boston last week, it chilled down again in the past few days so that we slid into March with cold days and colder nights. It was sunny yesterday, March 1, but still cold and windy as all heck. That's Lion for you.

Today it started cloudy and now, at about 5:30 PM, its getting dark, its rainy and cold. But its Saturday! Can't be all bad, right, and while today is definitely the Tiger of March, tomorrow the rain is supposed to stop, and it will just be cloudy all day, and may even get up to 50!

Yeah, a Bear. Definitely. We going to grill anyway. Just try and stop me.

But it just gets better from here. March may come in like a Lion and go out like a Lamb, but don't forget all the days between, and what their names are. How else can you plan your month? In a few weeks it will be Saturday the 16th. Got plans? It may be important to know that Saturday the 16th is the Ox of March. And the next day is Elephant, in case you're planning the whole weekend.

Not sure why that matters? Well feast yer eyes, my friends!

March 2024

March 1 - Lion: How was this beast for you this year? Did it help to have Leap Day first?
March 2 - Tiger: I just ran an errand, and yep, today feels like a 700 pound killer.
March 3 - Bear: Sounds like we may have more of a black bear than a grizzly tomorrow.
March 4 - Shark: Rain and clouds forecast for the rest of the first week. Sharks don't care.
March 5 - Wolf: These dogs hunt in packs.
March 6 - Bull: Can get to 6-feet, and 2500 to 3000 pounds.
March 7 - Moose: Road signs say Brake for Moose. Its not to save the moose.
March 8 - Eagle: Hunter from the skies.
March 9 - Scorpion: If you're not careful they can get into your collar, or up your pant leg.
March 10 - Dingo: Here's where's... I left it right here! Turn your clock ahead! *
March 11 - Hawk: Maybe not as fierce at the Eagle, but keep your cats and small dogs in view
March 12 - Lynx: Not a house cat. Think jaguar in a smaller package.
March 13 - Bat: Seeing these guys in the night sky means the bugs are back.
March 14 - Monkey: Monkeys have tails, apes don't. HBD Coleen!
March 15 - Snake: No legs, but they DO have a neck, backbone, and a tail. Horrible mistake.
March 16 - Ox: Slow and strong.
March 17 - Elephant: Huge and gray.
March 18 - Raven: Black, and bigger than it has a right to be.
March 19 - Stag: Also called a hart, these big boys run in small family groups in Spring.
March 20 - Crab: Watery and unchanging. First day of spring!
March 21 - Goat: Cheese and devil associations.
March 22 - Horse: Clydesdale or pinto.
March 23 - Pig: Get your boots!
March 24 - Dog: Time for a walk! And maybe a catch.
March 25 - Dolphin: Bright, fun and wet.
March 26 - Rooster: Early rise, and lets get things done.
March 27 - Turtle: No one stays closer to home.
March 28 - Toad: Nobbly and damp.
March 29 - Robin: When these guys come back, news is looking up.
March 30 - Rabbit: They live in shrublands, which is why they like the suburbs. You got shrubs right? HBD Kelton!
March 31 - Lamb: Fluffy, warm and delicious!

If you find this helpful, let me know in the comments. 

Headed back to work Monday? Its Shark, take an umbrella. And maybe some reinforced pants.

* Turn your clock ahead at 2:00 AM on Dingo, up to 3:00 AM. That's right you lose an hour or sleep between Scorpion and Dingo this year. And don't make plans for 2:30 AM, Dingo morning, that time doesn't exist.

patriots logo - round 2

Proposed New Patriot's Logo, click for larger view

A few years ago, I suggested that it was time for the Patriots to update their logo. They've had it for about half of the life of the franchise, prior to the current, flying Elvis design they had Pat the Patriot, a guy in a three point stance waiting to pounce. Pat lasted for the for about 30 years, and flying Elvis has been at it for another 30+ years. In a 2021 article, the folks at Upper Hand did a researched article which ranked the NFL logos good to bad, based on how people feel about them, using a series of metrics based on 7 different sports sites. They aggregated the data and the Patriots, I was not surprised to see, was ranked 28 out of 32 for their logo.

Graphically, the Patriots logo stinks, and people don't like it. There are others, who just love tradition and don't want to see things change. To those folks, I say this: Washington Commanders. their logo stinks too, by the way. this isn't college ball.

So what's wrong with the Pat's logo? It doesn't hold up. Part of the problem is the team name. Don't get me wrong, I'm not trying to change that, but the teams that are named after a "person," simply have a harder time, unless that person has some kind of strong visual iconography attached to it. The Vikings, for example, have a little something to work with. The Raiders? Nope. What does a raider look like? The Buccaneers? myeh, sort of a privateer, which a semi-legal pirate, from the Caribbean, so... Florida Pirate-y? The 49ers? What, I guy with a shovel?

Updated Version of my 2019 Logo

 

And the Patriots: A patriotic person, of the New England variety. So a guy in a tricorn hat? Again, not a lot of helpful iconography. So my thought, in 2019, was to take inspiration from the Flying Elvis logo, which includes some red stripes or ribbons trailing from his tricorn, and the white star on his blue hat, which obviously represent the stripes on the flag, and boil that down to try and eliminate the person represented by the Patriot. I came up with something similar to this, which I have since tweaked to eliminate the odd shape I had in blue. Its much more flag, or pennant-like. But maybe too much so, and maybe too close to what the Pats currently have.

 

Proposed Patriot's Logo on a Blue Background

That's where I started, and after looking at the logos that did best according to the Upper Hand research, I decided to simplify further, and go with the letters NE for New England, similar to what San Francisco, Green Bay, and even Kansas City did, AND still use the flag iconography that's built into the current logo, and the Patriot name. I used some curves to graphically express forward motion, and to recall the shapes of a football. I ran the white stripes through the letter forms to accentuate the action, and they recall gridiron lines on the field. I used a variation of the wordmark I came up with in 2019, but I removed the additional blue outline from the star as it was too similar to the Cowboys Lone Star logo. Its bold, recognizable, and easy to stitch on a hat.

On White Background with Wordmark

return to nerax - 2023

George Gendron

2016 was the last time I went to NERAX, the New England Real Ale Exhibition, 7 years ago.* That visit was actually to NERAX North, and I went with my newly minted 21 year old. This time, it was with both of my kids, at the NERAX's new home at the South Boston Lithuanian Club. We attended the Saturday evening session, and its a fun time to go, not as crowded as the Saturday daytime or the Friday evening sessions, but the casks do start to kick pretty quickly, and there were many options we didn't get a chance to try. I say that, but I've only ever tried 5 or 6 each time I go, there are just too many options.

A quick word about this year's program cover photo. I got a kick out of telling my kids about how much fun it was to see so many familiar faces of the volunteers, staff, and founders at the event. I was able to point out the woman who was tickled to see that my oldest had just turned 21 last time, reminisced a little about her own youth and then gave Alessia a few drink passes! What a sweetheart. One who I didn't see last night was George Gendron, one of the founders of NERAX, and the man on the program cover. George passed away a few years ago and is fondly remembered in a tribute within program. Thanks to George for all he's done for this great festival!

This year's exhibition dates were moved at the last minute due to some kind of scheduling problem, but we were informed in plenty of time, and our advance tickets were transferred over with no problems. However, that did mean that there were no food vendors this year at the exhibition, as they couldn't accommodate the late change in their schedules. We ended up bring a small box of snacks, which is typically not allowed. Thanks to the NERAX folks for allowing this, having a little food is great. As I normally do, I sampled quarter pints so that I'd have the opportunity to try a few things, and to be honest, I focused on the imports, given that my opportunities to try some of those ales without traveling is probably limited. All but one of the beers I sampled was from the UK.

There were close to 100 ales available this year

Dark Fruits Porter - Salem Brew Co., Wainfleet All Saints, England (ABV 4.4%) **

The first two beers I asked for were already kicked before the Saturday evening session started. The Dark Fruits Porter was my third choice, and it almost wasn't to be. They were able to get a quarter pint for me, and then maybe only one or two more before the cask kicked and the Reaper came out to erase it off the board, accompanied by a death knell, rung out on an empty keg. Bright black cherry on the nose, with notes of lemon lollipops. Dark, nut brown with a browned-butter colored, lacy head. Thin bodied, fruity and super smooth. There is a snappy brightness at first, smouldering to a soft, lasting bitterness. Reminded me of jam on toast!

Cross Borders Session Pale - Cold Black Label, Bridgend, Wales (ABV 4.2%) ***

Pale honey colored, with a light and wispy cream colored head. Citrusy fruit salad on the nose, which delivered in the initial taste. Full mouth flavor with a bready, sourdough finish and smooth mouth feel.

Beach Hut - Leigh On Sea Brewery, Leigh On Sea, Essex, England (ABV 4.5%)

Dried grass yellow with a frosty looking haze with a thin, wispy head like cirrus clouds and a fine ring of white foam at the glass edge. Slight funk with fruit juice on the nose, and notes of pineapple. Finely texture, creamy mouth feel, tropical fruits, and a dry, wheat cracker bitter finish. I like this one very much, and the next one I went for was from the same brewery.

Legra Pale - Leigh On Sea Brewery, Leigh On Sea, Essex, England (ABV 3.8%)

Blazing bright, warm yellow color with a fine bubbly, tatted top. Huge, juicy start. Clean, grapefruit pith astringency, and a crisp dry finish. I bragged about this one, and made a note that this would be a perfect house beer. Super drinkable and refreshing, with a low ABV so you could have a few throughout the day. Would be great for a winter party or a summer barbecue.

Sweet Stout - Well Drawn Brewing Co., Bedwas, Caerphilly, Wales (ABV 5.0%) ****

Deep brown-black that let no light pass with a caramel colored, bubbly froth. Brown bread and molasses on the nose. [All of the beers I've had so far are thin! This one too.] Rich dried fruits flavor. Prunes, maybe? Cherry cordial filled chocolate, like a Bon Ami. After after, slightly under ripe pears, with the skins still on. Long, creamy finish. There was a lot going on with this one. Dessert beer at its best.

Ishmael Ale - Rising Tide Brewery, Portland, Maine, USA (ABV 4.9%)

Call me Ishmael. The tasting notes indicate that this beer is a collaboration with New England Distillery Co. They rested the beer in American oak barrels, which had been used for a rye whisky, that was distilled from one of Rising Tide's rye based pale ales. Rich amber brown with a delicate head. Sweet, malty tones on the nose. Citrus juicy with red wine tannin and sweetness which evaporates to a dry, orange amaro bitterness. Sweet, clean burnt sugar finish. The whiskey aromas dance over the glass and on the palate. This was a great way to finish up for the evening!

 

Stefan & Alessia sampling the wares

* The first time I went to NERAX was in 2010. I just took a quick look at that post, from 13 years ago, and I was pleasantly surprised to see that I paid $15 to get in, and $5 glass deposit. Exactly the same as we paid last night! The quarter pint sample were pretty close to the same price to, if not the same. I didn't record that in 2010. What that means is that the sponsors of NERAX are stepping up to keep this longest running real ale exhibition in North America affordable for all of us.

** I think the tasting notes on this one may need some clarification. I found the Dark Fruits Porter by George Bateman and Son Ltd, Salem Bridge Brewery, Wainfleet, Lincolnshire. I think Salem Brew Co. is a subsidiary, or a brand/trade mark owned by Bateman. Bateman had their XXXB on tap for the festival as well.

*** Cold Black Label also appears to be the mother company to at least two beer labels: Brecon and Lithic. Brecon had their own three offerings, so perhaps this was a special cask for the festival. Note: Brecon's website just has a beautiful mountain scene splash page and no content, which you can find thru Cold Black Label's site.

**** Well Drawn doesn't seem to have their own website, altho I found some links to a facebook page, and a listing on Untappd, which actually includes some comments about their NERAX offering this year.

march

Clickity Click for a biggerer view

Its March fourth--that's the best day for armies to go to war right?--but for us, what March 4th really means is today is like a Shark. A Shark you say? Doesn't make any sense! But if I were to say that March 1st is like a Lion, and March 31st is like a Lamb, no problem, right?

And if the 1st is ferocious and the 31st is docile, what does that make the days in between? Weeell, now, my friends, you no longer need to worry or wonder, we've got it all worked out for you right here. Here in the Boston area, its currently cold, with a wet snow falling today. A 'wintry mix' they say.* In terms of ferocity, we aren't all that far from the Lion of Winter. not to be confused with the lion in winter, which is a  play by james goldman. 

Birthday on March 9? Celebrate with a Scorpion Bowl?

Going skiing on March 17? Lunch at Elephant Walk?

Anniversary on March 25? Dolphin, 'nuf said.

It all here, feast you eyes...

March 2023

March 1 - Lion: 4-feet tall at the shoulder, 420 pounds.
March 2 - Tiger: 3 1/2-feet tall at the shoulder, maybe 680 pounds!
March 3 - Bear: Grizzly Bears can be 3 1/3-feet tall at the shoulder, and 600 pounds.
March 4 - Shark: 1000 species, been around for 400 million years.
March 5 - Wolf: Biggest in the canine family; males can grow to 180 pounds.
March 6 - Bull: Can get to 6-feet, and 2500 to 3000 pounds.
March 7 - Moose: The big boys are almost 7-feet to the shoulder, and 1500 pounds.
March 8 - Eagle: Seeing more of these in Eastern Massachusetts now.
March 9 - Scorpion: the smaller ones can be worse than the big ones!
March 10 - Dingo: Like a wolf, but smaller... and shifty.
March 11 - Hawk: Red Tail can reach speeds of 120 miles per hour
March 12 - Lynx: The Red Lynx, or Bobcat, is what we've got in the U.S. 16 to 30 pounds.
March 13 - Bat: 9 difference species in Massachusetts; no blood suckers.
March 14 - Monkey: Nearly 200 species from 4 1/2-inches to 3 1/2-feet. HBD Coleen!
March 15 - Snake: 3900 species from 10-inches to 23-feet. Ophidiophobia is the word you're looking for.
March 16 - Ox: Difference between an ox and a steer? Training. Yeah, that's it.**
March 17 - Elephant: African Bush Elephant, up to 13,000 pounds.
March 18 - Raven: "Ghastly grim and ancient Raven wandering from the Nightly shore..."
March 19 - Stag: NOT the one Julie Andrews is singing about. Stags are mature, male deer.
March 20 - Crab: Been around since the Jurassic. First day of spring!
March 21 - Goat: Probably domesticated from the Bezoar Ibex in the Middle East.
March 22 - Horse: Large riding horse can be 5 1/2-feet at the shoulder, and 1200 pounds.
March 23 - Pig: Can be over 6-feet long and 800 pounds. And sloppy.
March 24 - Dog: Our third entry from the canine family. Least likely to eat you.
March 25 - Dolphin: Up to 13-feet long and 1300 pounds.
March 26 - Rooster: Domesticated from junglefowl, from Asia.
March 27 - Turtle: Shells are flatted and fused ribs***
March 28 - Toad: They're a type of frog that hangs out mostly on land, at night.
March 29 - Robin: Migratory American Robins are an early egg layer.
March 30 - Rabbit: Does anyone else have 20 rabbits in their yard? HBD Kelton!
March 31 - Lamb: Adorable, and available just in time for Easter.

 

* Why does SUMMERY have an E in it, while WINTRY doesn't? I don't know, man.

** There's your number one take away, right there.

*** Dude, that's a pretty close second.

read this book

'Read this book' or a version of that statement, is typically the last line in one of my book reviews for a book that I am recommending. Sometimes I qualify that recommendation, and many times I add something like 'and do it right now' if I think the book is great. Anyone who has read through this blog a little has probably noticed that.

Now, I've spend a hour or so, and I went back through each of my 550 posts over the past 13 years and I've found all of those books that I've given the 'Read this Book' credit to and tagged them that way. So, if you mouse on over to the tag cloud on the right of the page titled "what i'm talking about" and click on the tag read this book, you'll get a sort of all of the reviews that have that tag, arranged in order of most recent to older.

As as was going through my past reviews, I found a few that probably should have included the Read this Book phrase, such as The Count of Monte Cristo, but if they didn't, I didn't tag them that way. I'm happy to report that there are very few books that I really liked that don't include my accolade of choice. Going forward, I will also tag future reviews in the same fashion.

I hope this is helpful to some. i'm hoping that its helpful to me too

march 2022

 

It's that time of year!!!!! It's March, baby! Let's DO THIS!

As all four of you know, I like to celebrate the end of winter each year with the incunabular illumination March calendar. We've all heard that March comes in like a LION and out like a LAMB, but there's a whole month in between there, that starts our very lion-like and slowly shifts toward lamb-like, and folks want to know what those incremental shifts are, so they can plan their day. They don't want to guess. Should I wear my duck boots? My down coat? My umbrella? My chair and whip?

Welp, wonder no longer. Or indeed, WONDER at its greatness. Gaze in awe at it's completeness. Revel in its splendor.

March 2022

March 1 - Lion: Of course. Its in like a lion, right?
March 2 - Tiger: Even bigger than lions,. Year of the Tiger this year.
March 3 - Bear: As Dorothy said/sang. 'Oh my!'
March 4 - Shark: the 'great white' is still with us. Hopefully, not as toothsome
March 5 - Wolf: Not Wolverine, just the basic red riding hood eating kind.
March 6 - Bull: No kidding. Watch the horns.
March 7 - Moose: Wet, swampy, big, and heavy.
March 8 - Eagle: I saw a bald eagle flying over the Mystic River in Medford last week!
March 9 - Scorpion: Doesn't look dangerous. May be hiding in your boot.
March 10 - Dingo: Looks like a dog... with friends... but not so friendly.
March 11 - Hawk: Swoops down on you.
March 12 - Lynx: Scrappy, wary, may sneak up on you.
March 13 - Bat: Watch the skies at night.
March 14 - Monkey: It'll cling onto you; watch the tail. HBD Coleen!
March 15 - Snake: The Ides of March. Eve was like: 'Seems like a good idea!'
March 16 - Ox: Its not all kisses and hugs, but it is reliable.
March 17 - Elephant: Huge, gray, goes on forever. Trunk at the front tho.
March 18 - Raven: Like Poe said.
March 19 - Stag: Also called a Hart, altho that typically refers to red deer.
March 20 - Crab: Hard, wet, pinching. First day of spring!
March 21 - Goat: Will eat anything. This one is tough, but on the small side.
March 22 - Horse: Hard working, handsome to look at.
March 23 - Pig: Its a sty out there.
March 24 - Dog: Lets play outside!
March 25 - Dolphin: Wet but Bright.
March 26 - Rooster: Up early, and some of the color is coming back.
March 27 - Turtle: There are water types and dirt types.
March 28 - Toad: They love the mud, but the grass is popping where the sun shines.
March 29 - Robin: They're out there, and so are the worms.
March 30 - Rabbit: Shrublands will be covered with winter fluff. HBD Kelton!
March 31 - Lamb: Warm, woolly, and delicious grilled.

book of treasures

was scrolling through LinkedIn today, as I normally do not do, and I found a video post from the American Library Association which offered a glimpse at the Book of Treasures, or in the original old French "Li livres dou tresor," a medieval illuminated manuscript by Brunetto Latini, politician, historian, poet, philosopher, and teacher (and friend) of Dante Alighieri. Ooo, I thought, a glimpse at a great old tome from the National Library of Russia, count me in.

My first thoughts when the video starts: Wow, that book looks great for its age. Wow, that's not the book that's a box. A box? Wow, that book looks great for its age. Why does that guy opening it have his bare hands on it? Wow (now looking inside at the illustrated manuscript pages on vellum) that book looks great for its age. Well... [spoiler] its a copy. Limited? sure. Less than a thousand copies? yep. Handmade? no doubt. For sale, and this is the glam video for all those patrons of book porn? you got it. The LinkedIn poster: Victor Moliero. The Company: M. Moliero. to be fair, Vic is proly a member of the ALA. whatever.

Its a nice copy, I'm sure. I would have preferred to ogle the original however.*

Also known as Tesoro or Trésor (the treasure) the encyclopedia was written in French during Latini's exile to France between 1260 and 1267. There is a copy of the manuscript in the Biblioteca Medicea Laurenziana in Florence, where it is labeled as Ashburnham 125, which may or may not be the very volume from his old teacher that Dante read. The encyclopedia contains three books: biblical, Troy, troyian? Roman, and Middle Ages histories, and natural history, including astronomy, geography and animalia, the second book is about ethics, vices, and virtues, and the third book concerns political science as seen, and in the opinion of, the author. 

The National Library of Russia manuscript is rife with decorated initials, borders, and miniature illustrations including many "arabesques and drolleries" according to the Moliero video, which is why they chose this version to reproduce. Arabesques are ornate designs of interwoven geometric, floral, foliate figures. Drolleries are comedic images, designed to be oddly amusing, whimsical, or jesting. Examples of drolleries in this book include: deer-riding arrow-shooting monkeys, children jousting while riding piggyback on their parents, and a sword swallower. Many of the illuminations are gilded. Other versions are not as illuminated.

More about M. Moliero and what they do can be found on their website if you're interested in, what I assume, is an expensive copy of an awesome old book.

* I tried to find images of the original the Moliero folks copied on line so I could check it out--and share it here--but no luck. If you find it let me know in a comment.

firing point

Take a look at this book cover. Do you know who DIDN'T write this book?

That's right Tom Clancy didn't write this book. He "slipped the surly bonds of Earth" nearly 10 years ago. it means he's dead

So is this a "Tom Clancy Brand" book or something? Has anyone Penguin Random House come out and said what this is about? My wife bought this book, thinking it was written by Tom Clancy. The publishers must know that is going to be the case, and I'm sure they feel confident that adding the real author's name on there covers them in the legal department, but is that the right way to do business? Lying to customers? I don't think so. its not the smallest font on the cover I guess

For a while, books like this said something like "Tom Clancy's: super bad-ass character," which claimed some ownership, either of the story, or the characters, or something. When you look at the Tom Clancy page at Penguin Random House the 's books way outnumber the books Clancy actually wrote. Penguin Random House has them listed as books Tom Clancy "contributed to." That sounds a lot like the co-authorship attributed to James Patterson on approximately 30% of the books published in America, based on my extensive sarcastic research project. After reviewing 3 or 4 Wikpedia articles on Clancy, it looks like he started to work with co-authors a few years before he died. He also appears to have collaborated with Steve Pieczenik on the creation of the Op-Center and Net Force novel series, of which he wrote nothing. So he an Steve came up with these ideas, and then some authors got assigned to it like cub reporters in a publishing newsroom or something. 

Its like the Agribusiness of writing.

So I finished it. Jack Ryan Jr. is in the same vein as Son of Frankenstein, as far as I can see. They'd like to keep writing Jack Ryan stories but the haven't figured out how to disengage him from a normal human life span like they've managed to do with James Bond. So Jack Jr. does the same kind of word saving things his dad did, just not as well written.

If you're into the whole Tom Clancy brand, and you assume that the publishers are only working with authors who have Clancy's raw talent, and would otherwise be writing bestsellers on their own, if they weren't so interested in keeping Clancy's characters going, then you'll probably enjoy this. Mike Maden asked me to suspend disbelieve a few times too far.

I wouldn't bother. In fact I'd say we skip the book mill fake authors like the Clancy brand and James Patterson and anyone like them. We don't need publishers and marketing executives clogging up the bookshelves with curated crap and formulaic plot points designed to drive sales and make money. We want quality authors, working hard at what they do, and we want room for them on the shelves. 

Organic, farm-to-table writing, please.

wonder woman suit redesign - part iii, final

Wonder Woman Suit by Phil O'Brien, 2021

 

Here's what I came up with. click on the image to bigerize it I actually did this drawing and one more version, which I'll put in down below so you can see why I decided against it, just recently.

I worked on the original design drawings late last year, and I'm just getting to the posts on these things now. I'm not sure why, but its been fun to do. After working on the posting of the drawings I did a while ago, I got to thinking about some fine tuning. I had some favorites in the Wonder Woman sketches I did and so I took those and worked on adding back a little bit of that iconography that helps identify Wonder Woman. Even tho I don't like the tiara, I can see why the numerous folks that have redesigned her suit have kept it; its a really strong icon.

If you take a peek below, you'll see an image of the lorica musculata or muscle cuirass I talked about in my earlier post redesigned with the eagle similar to Gal Gadot's from the movies. I tried to incorporate that better into the breast plate and tried to avoid the eagle's head sticking way up over her chest, which seems a little dumb to me. I was bale to pull that off, but ended up with an eagle design that is just too... eagley?

My other favorite design from my earlier versions is the red armored top, so I took that and incorporated a stylized eagle wing design inspired by the Linda Carter TV version; the later one. The early design of that top is horrible. Here's a picture of the later design from the 70s TV show with the stylized eagle wings I used for inspiration for mine.

Its a subtlety in my design, but I've also picked up on the interlaced Ws used on the Gal Gadot suit. I didn't use the Ws myself, because why would the amazons fabricate a suit with WW on it when they had no idea Americans would call Diana Wonder Woman. My design just picks up on the weaving idea.

Here's that other design with the eagle armor that is over the top. Fun, but a little campy.

Let me know what you think, nerds!

wonder woman suit redesign - part the second

You can read about some of the recent history of Wonder Woman's super suit, and my problems with it, in a previous post. In that post, I planned to write a few quick thoughts and then get to my design efforts, but I guess I had more to say than I thought. 

My redesign efforts are driven by improving on Wonder Woman's suit; to make it better, more usable (and user friendly) and perhaps a little more dignified. I won't repeat what I don't like here, you can read about on my other post. I did have some goals I set for myself for the redesign, which you may or may not agree with, but I felt it was important for the task I set myself to understand those goals.

Design a suit for Wonder Woman that:

• Is flexible, usable, and comfortable to wear
• Is suited to the tasks and challenges the user may undertake
• Is robust enough to withstand the wear and tear expected
• Is identifiable and iconic, appropriate to the wearer's status as a hero, both in reality, and within the reality which the wearer is extant
• Is dignified. In other words, evocative of the wearer's heroism foremost, as opposed to her sexuality

I think there is room in a design challenge like this to keep a lot of what we think of as Wonder Woman's iconography. Part of that image IS her sexuality, and I would argue that is the case for most superheros, male and female alike. the ladies in my life are like, 'oh, Thor!' As part of this endeavor, I've tried to think of it this way: If Wonder Woman was to design her own suit, even assuming she is aware of the history of her suit design over the years, what is she likely to want to improve upon? What would her goals be? I have a hard time thinking her goals would include things like: 'more thigh,' or the irreconcilable 'armor here, but completely naked there.' *

I tried a series of things--some are just variations--so I stuck them in a simple movie so you can see what I did and how it evolved. [UPDATE: The movie was a bust, Blogger potatoed it, so I junked it put in pics] started with a two part suit, long sleeve red top, long blue pants, red boots, gold trim. Simple, but I thought it could be simpler, so I removed the gold star and the boots. [CLICK on the images for a larger view, and you can scroll thru them]

Next I added a gold breast plate that extends over the shoulders, as most armor breast plates do. A variation of that is the armored breast plate without the red long sleeve shirt.

The last three are variations, showing a lower cut breast plate built into the top. Tactical clothing or armor integrated into the clothing, so its red with a faceted red breast plate, red with faceted gold breast plate,and last is a gold breast plate, sleeveless, with a red tint on the some of the gold plating.

I'd still like to look into how to incorporate the eagle insignia, and I have some ideas about simplifying that similar to what I did with the Superman logo. I would also like to think a little more about lariat carrying and storage. A rope hanging at your side seems like a hazard, and because its used pretty rarely, I think storing it in suit on the lower back or something may be better.

And the sword and shield? Those are a newer developments, and tho a sword has been used occasionally in the comics, it didn't really show up consistently until the New 52, in 2011. And of course the movie from a few years ago figured them prominently, but not in the newest one. My biggest problem with them: Wonder Woman doesn't need them, so in keeping with my simplification ideal, I'm going to ignore them and assume that if needed, she can strap on a sword belt, baldric, or back sling as needed.

 So... more to come...?

* You're right, I'm not a woman, and I'm not a super hero, so maybe I'm not the best person to make decisions like this on Wonder Woman's behalf. Moreover, Wonder Woman's creators may have written the character with the personality traits that embrace the design of her suit as it is. Its hard to argue with an author, but, as with Superman, these heroes have so long been a part of our pop culture, that I feel some ownership.