no more bedhead

Back in February, we went to the International Motorcycle Show.  It was awesome.  (I got to sit on a 2014 Indian Chief Vintage - totally want!)  While there, we visited all the different manufacturers and many of them had cards to fill out so they could get your contact information, usually in the guise of running a contest of some sort. Triumph Motorcycles was no exception.

I wasn't all that impressed with the Triumph lineup, but the cruisers did catch my eye. Of those, I especially liked the Thunderbird LT. I dutifully filled out my contact card, listing that as the bike that I'd like to test ride.

Last week I got an email from someone at Triumph stating that I had indicated I was interested in a test ride, but hadn't listed a model. I emailed back that I was interested in the Thunderbird LT, and got a follow up email that she would contact "her counterpart" who would arrange for a test ride.

Yesterday morning I got an email from him (the counterpart) who said he had spoken with a salesman at the closest Triumph dealer and that guy would be contacting me. His email went on to say that unfortunately the dealership didn't have any Thunderbird LTs in stock.  About an hour later I got a call from the dealership and was told that they had, just 20 minutes earlier, gotten one on the sales floor. Psyched, I made arrangements to go in on Saturday for a test ride.

Perhaps 10 minutes later, the phone rang again. It was the salesman calling to report that he is not allowed to let people test drive that bike, but he could make me a good deal on one if I still wanted to stop by. Ummmm...yeah.

So, I saved myself $17,000 and I got this crappy Triumph pen from the motorcycle show.

It's getting to be spring. Or so they say. The weather isn't really cooperating with that.  Still, it's time to get ready.  That means it'll soon be time for motorcycle riding.  And, I'll need some boots.  I've been wearing my sneakers for all my riding so far, but reluctantly.  I want something a little more sturdy and something that will keep my laces out of the way.

I ordered some boots. Specifically, Joe Rocket Big Bang 2.0 boots, from Revzilla.com.  I like the style, and the price is right.

Shortly after ordering the boots, I was lacing up my sneakers and busted out the second loop that holds the laces. As it was the second one in the row on the left shoe, it made securing the shoe to my foot almost impossible. Time to go out and buy new sneakers, too.

Got myself some Merrell Catalyst Ventilator shoes, similar to the Merrell Moab Ventilators that I usually get. This time, I was looking to get away from the brown/earth tones, and I found ones that are predominantly grey with some blue trim and have yellow and black laces. The Catalyst are a style from a couple of years ago, so I got a decent price on them.

Here are some photos:

New Sneakers!

New Boots!

I've been on a bread-baking kick this week. Somehow, I got the idea to make a Heady Topper bread. Heady Topper, brewed by The Alchemist, is, IMHO, the best beer ever. Allow me to say that I'm really not a hoppy beer enthusiast (give me a good strong porter or stout any day), but Heady hits you over the head with the hops.  And I like it - it works for me somehow.

Again, for some reason, I decided I wanted to make bread using Heady Topper. But, I didn't want to use a can until I knew that the recipe was going to work. (Heady is only available in Vermont, so I have a somewhat limited supply, that can only be refreshed on trips east.)  I did a quick search and found a beer bread recipe that looked promising, so I figured I try it out and get a good feel for it before I took a stab at the final goal.  I also thought that "testing the recipe" would be a good way to use up some of the, um, less-than-stellar beers that are just sitting here.

My first attempt was with a straight-up ale.  Figured I couldn't go wrong there.  I picked a bottle of Oberon Ale from Bell's Brewery.  Oberon is a Pale Wheat Ale that I gave a 2.5 star rating (out of 5*) on Untappd. Mixed it up, threw it in the oven, and an hour later had a really nice loaf of bread. Crispy crust, good flavor, tasted like bread.

Wanting to make a side-by-side comparison, I immediately made another loaf, this time using Abita Brewing Company's Turbodog.  Turbodog is a dark brown ale (that I rated 2.5 stars on Untappd).  Again, it produced a nice loaf of bread with a good taste.  The only difference really was that it was darker in color. I really didn't notice a difference in taste in my comparison.

The next day I thought I'd start moving toward my Heady goal, and I pulled out an Abita Jockamo IPA.  The Jockamo is an American Indian Pale Ale (wait, what?) and I actually enjoyed this offering from Abita, giving it 3.5 stars.  Still, this bottle went into the bowl.  What came out was pretty good. While I got the expected color difference from the other two loaves, what set this apart at first was the smell. It smelled like beer.  And not in that "down at the club, everyone has spilled their beer on the floor" kind of way. In a good way.  And, tasting it was great - it tasted hoppy.  There was a bitterness to the bread that was very unusual, yet satisfying.  This bodes well for the Heady bread (Bready?).

What's left of the IPA bread after one day. Nom, nom, nom!

In the meantime, I think I want to play around with the recipe some more. Maybe throw a stout at it to see how it reacts. Maybe try a smoked beer, or something unusual, just to see what happens.


*Heady Topper I rated a 5/5. I would have given it a 6.

Last night, Ellen and I went to see Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. It was part of Playhouse Square's Broadway Series. Originally it wasn't one of the offerings, instead "The Music of Andrew Lloyd Webber" was supposed to be our March show.  We had already decided to opt out of that when they announced that Joseph would be replacing it.  I was happy because I actually wanted to see Joseph.  When I was a kid, Joseph was my sister's favorite soundtrack (or at least that's how I remember it based on the number of times I had to hear it), so I was familiar with the show and the music.

We got to the theatre later than normal, so I didn't have time to browse the Playbill as thoroughly as I wanted to, but I did notice that the two leads (Narrator - Diana DeGarmo,  and Joseph - Ace Young) were both American Idol "graduates".  Not only that, but they are married.  To each other.

The show opened with what first appeared to be smoke rising from the stage, but upon closer inspection proved to be a projection of smoke on a scrim.  As the lighting started to (slowly) rise, the figure of a sleeping man became apparent below where the smoke was being projected. The smoke then started to morph into images that swirled and changed, making it clear that this guy was dreaming.

This scene was framed by a false proscenium made of flown-in fabric. The sides were angled so that the bottom opening was wider than the top, and the top of the arch was made by a single straight fabric that was front of the other two.  It reminded me of a pharaoh's headpiece.  As the scrim rose and the guy woke up from his dream, projections started on this false proscenium.  They continued throughout the show as a way to set the scene, and were frankly amazing.

The lighting (by Howell Binkley) and projections (by Daniel Brodie) were consistently incredible throughout the course of the show. (I'll also shout out to scenic designer Beowulf Boritt, as I don't know which designer was responsible for which element, and suspect that they worked together closely to pull this off.)  There were some effects that stood out to me.  One was the interior lighting (or maybe projections?) of some of the set pieces. The set was very minimal - mostly blocks and platforms (door-sized) that could be carried around by the actors.  In a couple of instances some of the blocks glowed - clearly being lit internally.  Also there were three movable staircases, one of which was similarly lit internally.  The best part was that it was really subtle.  Both the stairs and the blocks looked like they could have just been reacting to the stage lights.

The other effect of note was projections on items other than the false proscenium (and other backdrops).  In one scene, Joseph's brothers were tending sheep (which appeared to be luaun board cutouts painted white). They picked up the sheep and held them together to create a "canvas" upon which was projected various graphical elements. Similarly, later in the show, angels costumed in white appeared on the stage. They came to the edge of the stage and held their arms out, allowing their flowing sleeves to merge together into another canvas for projection.  This concept culminated in the final scene when Joseph is standing on one of the stair units and the backdrop has been split into several pieces, all of which are attached to his coat. The backdrop then becomes a canvas for the projection of the continuation of his coat motif out and up over the cast.

Speaking of the coat, it was amazing (pardon the pun). Created by costume designer Jennifer Caprio, it was inspired by 12 stained glass windows that were created by Marc Chagall for the Abbell Synagogue at Hadassah University Medical Center in Jerusalem.  You can read the whole story on the Joseph website.  I can't even begin to explain it, so I'll just have to show you.

This is the design (front on top):



Here's a photo of the coat in production:

Joseph in his coat, with the Narrator

Much of the acting/performing was great - the brothers especially.  I wasn't impressed with the Narrator, her voice was shrill and couldn't project over the musicians (even mic'd).  Joseph wasn't bad. He had a nice voice and seemed at his best when he was playing off the other characters.  I couldn't help but think that these two were on this tour in order to draw people in - "You saw them on American Idol, now see them On Stage!"  But, the supporting cast was fantastic. The brothers had some great lines, and played a lot of comedic effect, and the Pharoah was wonderful with his Elvis persona.  Between the main characters and the company all on stage, the choreography had to work, and it did.

Jacob with some of his sons (Joseph's brothers)

It's been five years since the dog came home.

I might be warming up to him.

Four years. This dog has been here for four years now. Apparently, he thinks he's staying, and is making himself comfortable - in my bed.

We buried our cat today.

Sixteen years ago, Ellen and I went off to pick out a cat. When we got ready to leave, Ellen had chosen a little yellow furball who we ultimately named Mufasa.  I was drawn to a black and white kitten we ultimately named Neelix.  So, instead of the one cat we had intended, we ended up coming home with two (and dodging the landlord for a couple of years).

Mufasa was always the eager, spry, underfoot cat. On the way home with us that day, he kept peeking his head out of the cardboard box, as if he were eager to jump into this new adventure. The first couple of nights we tried to keep these energetic ones in the kitchen, so that we could get some sleep without them crawling all over us. We didn't have a door in the kitchen, so we propped up a card table to block the opening, and figured we were good to go. Not long after settling into bed, Mufasa came bounding up the stairs and onto our heads.  Seems he had figured out that he could jump to the chair, to the table, and then launch himself over the propped up card table into the living room.

That kind of set the tone there. I don't know how many times I stepped on his tail, or clonked him in the head with the cabinet door because he was trying to insinuate himself in whatever I was doing. Especially if there were food involved (or might be food involved).

Last week, we returned from Thanksgiving at Ellen's folks' house, and Mufasa was listing along on one side, acting very groggy, and dragging himself from place to place. We figured something was up, but it was confirmed when he only ate just a little bit (and the next day when he wouldn't eat at all).  Ellen took him to the vet on Tuesday morning, and asked them to check him out. (He'd had some pretty weird health-related things before.)  The vet called to let us know that Mufasa was suffering from kidney failure, and that the best they could do would be to try intravenous fluids for a few days to see if he responded.  If he did, he could come home and we would be on a maintenance program to keep him comfortable.

After talking it over, we decided that the best thing to do would be to let him go.

We buried him in the backyard today, with many tears.

Sixteen years - a good life - a good cat.



As of this writing, my "About Me" block on this blog says "4 kids, 3 cats, 2 adults, 1 family (and a dog)". Please excuse me if I don't update it for a while.

Today was a crazy day as far as the kids were concerned. Three kids needed to be at three events in three different parts of the county - at the same time.

Keke had a Math Team competition, and we were able to drop her off after arranging for a ride home with one of her friends. She competed in word problems, and she did all right.

Stewie had a regional Pinewood Derby event. As the overall winner of the Pack Derby, he got to compete at the regionals. He also did well. They only showed the results for the top three finishers in each class, and his name wasn't displayed, but his time was only .01 seconds off the third place finisher, so I figure he was right up there, too.

Beenie had his second Regional Spelling Bee competition. The winner of this competition goes to Washington DC, for the national competition. Ellen took Beenie to this round. The bee started off as last years did, with a number of people being knocked out, and the competition was quickly down to ten spellers. After that, the eliminations slowed, and several rounds passed before the winner was determined.

The words that was given to spell were:

predicate (practice word)
hydraulic
impetuous
(10 spellers left)
epiphany
patel
angstrom
(5 spellers left)
eureka
(4 spellers left)
bureaucracy
tachometer
(3 spellers left)
bezoar

Unfortunately, Beenie spelled the last word beezoar, and was eliminated. But, he did come in third in the region, and that is something to be very, very proud of! The kid who won was the kid who has won the regional bee in three out of the four years he's been involved, so the competition was tough.

Way to go Beenie, and Stewie, and Keke!!

It's the last year for Beenie to compete in the spelling bee.  Last year he followed up 2 years worth of second place by coming in first and moving on to the regional spelling bee. In a way that created less pressure as he's already been there. In a way it created more pressure - the pressure to repeat.

So, we were a little on edge last night as we sat down to watch the Middle School Spelling Bee.  26 entrants from grades 5-8 sat on stage, under the lights, and had to spell in front of an audience of parents and siblings. In each of the first five rounds, only a handful of kids got eliminated each time.

In the sixth round, all that changed, instantly.  The round started with five kids standing, and the first three each spelled their word incorrectly.  Then it was Beenie's turn.  He got "monstrosity" and spelled it correctly.  One kid followed, and he missed his word.  That left Beenie to spell one final "championship" word to win the whole thing.

The announcer said "herringbone", and Beenie got a sly little smile on his face. I could tell as he started h-e-r that he knew he had it, and he was just trying to slow himself down so as not to make a silly mistake.  r-r-i-n-g-b-o-n-e, and bam - he's the champion for the second year in a row!!!

I swore I was not going to get all worked up this year.  Since he did this last year, I was good with however he did.  I was wrong. When the kids started missing in round 6, my heart was pounding.  When I hit the stage, I wrapped him in a big bear hug (much to his chagrin, I'm sure).  So much for the cool, collected, dad.

Again, we're on to the regional bee, where the words are exponentially harder. We'll see what happens.

The (correctly spelled) words from this bee:

I tend to stress out at the thought of the Pinewood Derby.  I am not a woodworker, so I figure the chances of me messing something up permanently are pretty high. This is made worse with the knowledge that I'm messing up something that my kid is making.  That was the situation I found myself in earlier this week, as Stewie and I started working on his first Pinewood Derby car.

We talked about some simple designs he could use (that wouldn't require too much finesse on my part), and he told me exactly what he wanted. He wanted a car with a steep incline in the front, then a gradual slope from the top to the back of the car. Okay, I can do that. A little bit of sawing and Stewie doing some sanding, and we've got the basic shape.

Next comes the paint. Stewie wanted a red car with a pair of racing stripes down the middle.  So, we busted out the art kit and he got busy with the painting.  We ultimately decided on a silver racing stripe, and Stewie put it on as one full stripe, then I painted the thin red line down the middle that would separate it into two.  Came out looking pretty nice, I must say.

Car is lookin' good!

The day of the derby we got there, got signed in and inspected and decided to add some weight to the car. Six nickels seemed to bring it to the right weight, and Stewie set off for his den heat. He finished second, losing by a hair to one of the other boys, but it was enough to get him to the finals.

The finals featured a number of really fast cars, and they were winning every race. When it came time for Stewie to go up against them I was surprised when he beat every car except one.  Pretty amazing!!  When the race was over, the Pinewood Derby Committee gathered behind closed doors and emerged a few minutes later, declaring the one car that Stewie lost to disqualified (they moved the axles to the ends of the car - a no-no).  That meant that Stewie won the first Pinewood Derby he ever was in!!!  The best part - using a design that he created.

Next stop - the district Pinewood Derby.  (Which actually had Stewie a little upset because all he wanted to do was to go home and play with his car.)