The Beer Traveller

For some of you, you probably already know I’m back.  For those that haven’t spoken to me…I am back home in Seattle.  Been back for almost 3 weeks.  Wish I could say that was the reason for no recent blog entries, but to be honest it’s really just extreme laziness.  Not only have I not entered anything into the blog, but I also haven’t started looking for a job; which was my whole reason for coming home.

Good news is my TV shit the bucket so I got to go out & buy a new HD LCD; this is something I’ve been trying to justify for a while.  Sold my old home theater speakers & installed my new ones.  Also bought (w/ credit card pts) a Blue Ray player.  So even though I haven’t looked for a job, I’ve prepared everything possible for sitting home & being unemployeed; considering I’m no longer driving around the country drinking beer.

I also had plans of hitting the gym.  Yea know start eating healthy & cleansing my body from the last few months.  Well that has yet to start either.  I’m still waiting for the fire to be lit under my ass.

So here’s the deal: I WILL be working on my resume today & starting the process of looking for employment.  I do plan on updating my blog as I have several entries from before I got home (i.e. more brewpubs & Burning Man).  Weather here has turned to the typical Seattle fall; wet & rainy.  This gives me more incentive to update the blog…unless of course I decide to turn on the Blue Ray & drink beer.

…Please stand by

Luckily there was a state park not too far from 5 Points as I was exhausted & couldn’t wait to crash.  I got there right before the park closed & checked in.  It was than time to find my campsite.  The good news is y this point I had smartened up & applied some DEET before leaving my car.  This surely helped w/ the skeeters but didn’t do a whole hell of a lot for the heat & humidity.  Generally I leave my rain fly off my tent as I feel it holds in some unnecessary heat.  My tent is comprised of above 80% mesh, which helps with ventilation.  This is taking into account that there is even a faint breeze & the humidity is below 95%.  With this being said you can only strip down so far.  The morning tent pole is something that should have it’s tent on at all times as to prevent charges & physical removal from camp.  Needless to say it was not a comfortable night & I awoke not much more rested than when I went to bed.
I packed up & couldn’t wait to get out of here & sit in my air conditioned truck for the next 5 hours.  There was one minor hold-up.  Apparently 47 in a 25 mph zone is a no-no.  I was pretty sure I was f@#ked.  The Ranger was polite as he escorted my license back to his SUV.  After several antagonizing minutes he came back & asked if I was sweating yet.  I was tempted to answer since I entered this god-forsaken state, but decided to answer w/ a simple yes.  He stated this was good & that he realized I was a long way from home & he would be letting me go.  This was than followed up with an offering to get a rock to place under my accelerator.  The one thing that beats a polite lenient cop is one with a sense of humor.  Officer, thanks for the warning & thanks for having a great attitude.

Zach is one of my best friends & I don’t get to see him nearly as much as I would like.  I went to his wedding (the one I blogged about) a couple of weeks back.  I decided since I had to skip Atlanta to make it to the wedding in Alabama, I would now back-track East to visit Zach & Gwen in their new home in Canton, GA.
I arrived right around dinner (perfect) & Gwen wasn’t getting in (still working in AL) till later.  Zach & I hit Jock & Jill’s (sports bar chain) for dinner.  It wasn’t our 1st choice, but the BBQ joint was closed for the night & this looked like it may have some nice eye candy.  We got a table outside on the patio to partake in some sub-par beer & fried food.
Turns out it was trivia night & we figured why not…we’re both fairly smart guys.  So what do 2 Yankees decide to call themselves for the big event…how about ‘Civil War Winners’.  Well you can just imagine that that went over about as well as a fart in a Baptist church.  I believe we took 10th place out of 18 teams.  Not too bad considering we were an Engineer & an Ecologist taking on tables of 10 with numerous questions on movies, music, & TV.  We nailed the science & geography questions!
We than headed home to enjoy some brews & swigs of wedding sake with the new wife.  I was glad I had decided to make the journey.

Next stop was to be Spanish Fort, AL to visit an old college buddy that I haven’t seen since college.  Bill is a great guy w/ a great/sarcastic sense of humor (my favorite).  Since we last hung out, he has travelled Europe & Asia, married a beautiful Thai woman, & had a beautiful baby girl.  Unfortunately there has also been a tremendous amount of tragedy.  My timing was impeccable per usual as Bill had just taken a new job in Mobile & they had been in their house for all of about a week.  Just what everybody wants…a beer-guzzling guest when they have a new house, piles of things that need to be unpacked, a new job, & a 17 month (I think) old little girl.
Needless to say both Bill & his wife were amazing.  We went out for a fabulous seafood dinner overlooking Mobile Bay.  It was great catching up & getting to know the new family.
Highlights for the night included Bill recommending to his wife that they leave little Elizabeth in the car overnight b/c she’ll be fine & the man-eating spider.  Bill & I were on the couch drinking beer when Soi called him in to the bedroom.  Bill quickly summoned me & I went in to find he had cornered a spidered that was about the size of my open hand.  He wanted me to keep an eye on it while he went to get a broom…I was thinking he should have grabbed the .357 instead.  He than came back & wanted me to get ready to open the front door to let him & the spider out.  I was shouting for him to just “kill the monster” as I didn’t want to risk losing that thing in the house that I would soon be trying to fall asleep in.  As he gracefully captured the beast, between the broom & dustpan, I realized he wasn’t kidding.  I wish he would have given me time to at least slip on my snake-proof gaiters.  After we got outside, he informed me that due to Soi’s religious beliefs, he couldn’t kill it.  Another smooth move on my part.
Surprisingly, Soi still invited me back & offered to cook me an authentic Thai dinner.  I can assure you, I’ll be cashing in on that offer.

From Florida I than made my way to Gulf Shores, AL.  The state synonymous with wacky & irrational beer laws.  Things like dry counties, no beer sales on Sundays, & all brewed beer must be kept below 6% ABV.  What I can say is that Gulf Shores is miles ahead of Panama City Beach in regards to quality of beaches, restaurants, & people. 
I hit the beach for a couple of hours before looking for a place to camp.  I found a local state park & proceeded to pay $24 to set my tent up next to an alligator infested lake.   It was than off to find some beer & a spot on the beach.  Surprisingly I was able to find some non-bud & picked myself up a 6’er of Sierra Nevada’s Summerfest.  I emptied a couple in to my water bottle & it was off to the beach to watch the remaining surfers & remaining sun.  On my way home I decided to stop by one of the local establishments, which advertised live music, for a couple more brewskis  I ended up meeting 2 ‘Bama boys from northern AL.  In typical bama fashion there were stories of ‘ol ladies & guys named “booger”.  Before the night was up, I found myself dragged to the front of the house by the lead singer of this R&B/funk band.  He sat me down in a chair next to a beautiful blond & forced us to have a sing-off.  For those that know me, this was not pretty.  After a while, I knew my time was up & was looking forward to hittn’ the tent.
By this point I had some liquid courage built up & decided to seek out some gators.  Armed w/ a flashlight &….well nothing else now that I think of it, I started probing the shoreline to see if I could find anything.  Unsure if it was the beer googles or the fog, but I didn’t see shit.  What a disappointment! 
The next morning I was awoken by the hot Alabama sun & a 90 degree tent.  Just what everybody wants after a long night drinking.  Guess the good news is the gators didn’t get me.

As anyone who keeps up on my blog knows, the places I stay are even more entertaining than the brewpubs I make it to.  Rick too had attended Geekapolooza back in NY, but I had never met his wife or kids.  I had arrived, in Pace, FL late Sunday after driving from the wedding in Bama.  I felt bad about arriving rather late, but Rick & Sheila are about as laid back as they come.
The next morning I found that their kids (a 3 & 7 yr old) are about as extroverted as they come.  Two adorable little girls that will (& did) provide a week’s worth of entertainment.  The youngest (Chloa) is anti-apparel & the oldest (Maggie) always has something to show ya.  My background is sales & I have no prior experience in kids 101.  Admittedly I was a little ‘deer in the headlights’ when Maggie was at the table filling me in on everything & Chloa was in the living room doing the same at the same time.  My experience has taught me to always make eye contact when listening to someone…it is physically impossible w/ 2 people talking at the same time in 2 different places.  Sheila may be able to confirm this but I believe I had the bobble-head look going on.
The kids don’t know it yet, but they have the coolest mom ever.  Everything from launching bouncy balls throughout the house, throwing the inflatable ball into the running ceiling fan, & turning the tiled kitchen floor into a slip & slide made me want to be a kid again.  Yea that’s right, the little ones are allowed to dump glasses of water onto the kitchen floor & than spin & slide until their hearts content.  Other activities included swimming, drumming, & tie dying (kitchen floor again).  Thanks to digital cameras, photography also took place; the pics were interesting…lot’s of out-of-focus butt shots!
The kids are smart beyond believe & Rick will surely have his hands full.  My 1st morning was me @ the kitchen table on my computer; I looked up to see Chloa, the 3 yr old, standing on the kitchen counter reaching for a glass glass up in the cupboard.  I was unsure of where the boundaries lied, but my time in the paper industry told me that OSHA probably wouldn’t approve.  I asked if she was suppose to be up there & she said…”mommy said I could be up here as long as an adult is watching me…and your an adult & you’re watching me!”  Who was I to argue…everything she said was correct; I just didn’t know that I now had responsibilities.
It was one of the more enjoyable weeks I’ve had even though I looked forward to Rick getting home every night.

I say dog house because dogs Duke & Duchess obviously run the roast.  Two beautiful goldens that get to do (& do) whatever they please. I grew up w/ Golden Retrievers & know how they can be, but these 2 are more than a handful.  This was quite evident as I received numerous tongues to the face, paws to the nuts, & had to retrieve my cell from between several sets of canines.  It should be pointed out that the phone was on top of the dining room table when it was retrieved without request. 
This was the first time I had met Murray’s belle Melissa & she contained all the charm & hospitality of a true southern lady.  I will say her energy level rivaled that of the jacked-up ADHD dogs.  OMGzie girl sent me more emails, checking on her bitches, while she was at work than I have received from all other emailers combined this summer.  The funny thing is after Melissa’s nightly sugar buzz, she would crash like a 3 yr-old who had spent the day at Disney. To the point where Murray would scream @ her head without so much of a flench on her part.  Murray is quite the opposite which helps balance the extreme energy of the other residents.
I greatly appreciate the meals, beer, & lodging.  I also want to thank Duke & Duchess for not completely castrating me.

Due to my late start & bad timing leaving DC I arrived in Cary, NC a little later than anticipated.  Cary is the home base of some family friends.  John & Mary went to school  with my parents in upstate NY & I spent the summers w/ their kids growing up on the St. Lawrence river.  I was a little disappointed that Aly had already left to head up north for some time on the river.  Sister Maggie was supposed to meet up w/ me & her father, but she later flaked.  Something about working too hard…I really can’t relate!  Big John was nice enough to take me to a local pub even though it was 9PM & he had to work the next day.  It was a nice place & we had a good chat.  Thanks Mr. D for picking up the tab & providing me a cool place to sleep.

After almost running over a couple of cops & having some Beers @ lunch, I decided to do the tourist thing.  After a few wrong turns, I actually found a prime parking spot right off of the Capitol Mall & a short distance from the Capitol building. I grabbed the camera & was off like a prom dress.  Nothing more to say other than walking around for 3 hours on a 95 degree day.  Looking at a map, I didn’t think it was too far from the Capitol to the Lincoln Memorial…boy was I wrong. The day went pretty smoothly until I started meandering my way back to the car & noticed the tow trucks were out in force.  I was thinking just how screwed I’d be if I got back & had been towed.  Let’s see…all my shit for the entire summer & my cell phone were all in it.  I luckily got back to find the baby was still there, no ticket either.  I have no idea where I landed on the 3 hour time allotment as I have pretty much stopped keeping time since leaving on this adventure.  The one thing I did take note of was the fact that I have a limited amount of clothes, no way to do laundry, & was sweating like Nixon @ the Watergate trial.  Ahhhhh perfect, I had made it back to the car just in time to hit DC rush hour.  Idiot!

Geekapooloza is a get together of a bunch of us that went to college together, all for Paper Science & Engineering. It was named after the music festival lolllapalooza & consists of a bunch of highly intelligent individuals, who now have families & good jobs, trying to re-live their college partying days for one weekend a year. Every year someone (w/ spouse’s permission) agrees to host the event. This year it was held in a little town called Brownville by the gracious John & Kathy. It involved a lot of talking shit, quotes out of context, beer pong, horseshoes (who doesn’t like heaving heavy things @ each other when their drinking), frisbee, & ladder golf. John & Kathy also had some local friends & their 3 sons in town. I’d like to say more, but things are a bit fuzzy & how much can you really say about a party. It’s about being there…right Brian, Stuckey, & Amy?

I will be posting pics in my photo album section of the website.