• Because You Love Me…
  • Follow
  • About
  • Friends

Useless Things Need Love Too

Useless Things Need Love Too

Monthly Archives: April 2017

Let It All Be For Me or: Attention Shoppers! (Eugeology Entry 15)

20 Thursday Apr 2017

Posted by TGBII in Music Review

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

Aerosmith, Bill Aucoin, Brendan Harkin, Cheap Trick, Eugene B Sims, Eugeology, Joe X., Jon Lowder, KISS, Looking Glass, Michael Lee Smith, Pete Sweval, Rex Smith, Richie Ranno, Starz, Stories

Salutations™!!

Attention_Shoppers!

©Capitol Records

I was really pleased with last week’s entry. That surprised a few people because they know how much I can’t stand Aerosmith. But, a good album is a good album. Jon has been traveling and Eugene has had work things to take care of. As I told them, it’s for fun. So, we’ll get their reviews in due time. Now it’s time for this week’s entry.

#15 – Attention Shoppers! by Starz.

Although I had heard of Starz, I had never heard anything from them. I had heard of them because they were one of the bands in the Bill Aucoin stable. Bill Aucoin was the manager of KISS that pretty much got them rolling like the huge rock mastodons they were. He got them signed to Capitol Records. Good job Gui!

There’s not a lot of info out there about the band, really. It sprouted from what was Looking Glass after their lead vocalist left. Add Rex Smith’s brother Michael Lee Smith on vocals and a guitarist (Richie Ranno) from Stories and you pretty much have Starz.

But I can say that this is power-pop beautifully done. It’s a lot like hard rock meets 50’s early rock. It does remind me a lot of Cheap Trick, which can never be a bad thing. The twin guitars of Ranno and Brendan Harkin are melodic and harmonic all at the same time. Pete Sweval’s bass lines aren’t just mimicking the guitars, either. There are some gritty and nasty bass runs and riffs on this album. I love when drummers aren’t afraid to be hi hat heavy and Joe X. is certainly that. I think a drummer that can tastefully make the hi hat more than a time keeping device, that’s most impressive.

The real star(z) on this record, though, is Michael Lee Smith. The guy has some serious chops and a great rock and roll voice. He can get gritty, he can be velvety, he can have oomph, he can have tenderness and probably most importantly, his range is wide. It’s all there. And the harmonies on this record are amazing. Listen to the opening track. “Hold On to the Night,” and you know you’re in for a fantastic vocal journey and the music isn’t bad either. Other faves of mine are “She,” “(Any Way That You Want It) I’ll Be There,” “Good Ale We Seek” and “Johnny All Alone.” My absolute favorite on the album, though, is “Third Time’s the Charm.” I just love that song.

I really don’t know why this band didn’t get farther than they did. It wasn’t like the 80s when there was an overabundance of musical acts to choose from. There were a few dozen handfuls of bands to choose from in the 70s. I know that’s really a stretch but I am just disappointed they weren’t more popular. Perhaps Cheap Trick cornered the rockin’ pop market and cornered them out? Now, I do understand that their previous albums were a little more raw and that after this album a few members were “relieved of their duties” because they thought they should have stayed this course, whereas the remaining members wanted to go back to the more raw sound. I did briefly touch on Violation, the album prior and it was okay, but this is more my speed. If you like good  great power pop music that seems to have just about all the elements you need for a darn-near perfect album. This is it. Thanks Eug, for this one. Can’t wait to hear your and Jon’s take on this. I know Jon heard a few bars of the opening track in the studio and he seemed to dig it.

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“If you miss it on the first one, you’ve got to be strong, my son. Get up and try it again and again until the pieces fit right in. The third time is the charm. Don’t you know the third time is the charm?” – “Third Time’s the Charm” (Starz)

Space Dust IPA or: The Less Desirables Beer of the Week

19 Wednesday Apr 2017

Posted by TGBII in Beer

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

ABIn-Bev, BeerAdvocate, City Beverage, Elysian Brewing Company, New Belgium, RateBeer, The Less Desirables, Untappd

Salutations™!!

City Beverage, the Official Beer Sponsor of The Less Desirables, presents Space Dust IPA by Elysian Brewing, The Less Desirables Beer of the Week. unnamed (10)

Elysian Brewing is located in Seattle, Washington and Fort Collins, Colorado. Yes, where New Belgium is from, originally. Spencer said this beer was a great balance of bitter and malts. I hope so. We had a special request from tonight’s guest to be an IPA and I like to give my guests what they want, at least when I can. I don’t know anything about Elysian other than they were three-time Large Brewpub of the Year at the Great American Beer Festival and that they opened in 1996. Spencer said Elysian had gotten purchased by ABIn-Bev, but I’m not seeing much about that on their site or carton. So, I’m going to assume that they’re not owned (yet) by the big conglomerate.

The beer has some heft, too. The ABV is 8.2% and the IBUs are 73. That’s up there. I hope it is in my preferred taste bracket. BeerAdvocate has this rated at 91 (Outstanding) with no Bros Score. Untappd has it at 3.95 caps out of 5. RateBeer has it at 96 Overall, 88 in Style.

Have you had this beer? What did you think? If you haven’t or just have a hankering for more, head to City Beverage and grab your sixer. Tell them it’s the beer of the week and get 5% off your order. Listen in later tonight or early tomorrow to hear what Caitlin, Danielle, Meghan and I think of it.

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“Known for variety, Elysian has brewed over 350 craft beers since it opened on Capitol Hill in 1996.” – Elysian Brewing Company

Fifth Second Birthday or: The Things We’ve Done

18 Tuesday Apr 2017

Posted by TGBII in Life as We Know It

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

3B, Costa Rica, Dr. Bret Borchelt, Europe, Family, Health, Heart Surgery, Honeymoon, Jon Lowder, Life, Paul Jones III, The BCPF, The Beer Dads, Zipper Club

Salutations™!!

It was five years ago today that I received my “zipper.” Being at the hospital before the sun came up, getting shaved from neck to (literally) toe, seeing my family, having my (then) fiance – The BCPF – standing holding my hand and trying to keep a happy face, having my parents pray over me as I get wheeled through some ominous doors, being moved onto a mostly comfortable operating table and telling stupid jokes to the operating staff before I just blacked out counting back from 100. That’s how I remember it.

I groggily stirred with a breathing tube snaked through my gullet whilst hearing a nurse, whose name I believe was Sandy, talk to me and me nodding that I understood whatever it was she was saying to me. The BCPF came in to see me, touching me, stroking my hair (I still had a little bit). I’m not sure of the timeline, I was still very doped up on morphine at the time. Maybe some time passed, maybe it didn’t, but Ma Mère came into the recovery room and in a moment we will all talk about until we’re no longer here, she patted me on the left shoulder and said, “see, you really do have a heart.” At this point I pointed to “Sandy” and made a motion to bring me a writing utensil and something to write upon. In my continued, and glorious haze, I scribbled to my mother the following:

Leave the comedy to me!

I remember everyone laughing. My job was done, I went through another phase of “blacked out.” They had collapsed my lungs in order to get to my arteries and heart and whatever else they were doing with me and, as a lifelong asthmatic, my lungs and me have a long history of arguing. They weren’t wanting to cooperate and inflate so I could breathe on my own. So, recovery took a little longer than it should have. Then they wheeled me up to my own private room. I had to get up and sit in a chair. I asked for my phone and that’s when this selfie was taken:

Tim After Surgery

My son came in to see me, as did my family. I had put them all through a lot. They were tired, nervous, but happy that I was sitting there making stupid faces at them, I was alive. I had survived. Hand me my heart-shaped pillow and let me cough. There was no laying down for a while, that’s for sure. When I sat back, I could feel my chest shifting. After all, they did saw me in half. I didn’t lay down for about four weeks, actually. But, over time my strength came back and I was able to maneuver around like a real person.

On the way to that, though, I had people watching over me like a hawk. The BCPF made sure that someone was “on duty” with me the whole time, from my sister to my mother, her to her mother. Someone was always here. It got to where I had to fake needing to go to the bathroom just to go sit on the toilet lid and be by myself for a few minutes. I had some great friends bring me and my chaperones food. I can’t tell Chris and Ashley, Doug and Molly and Jerry and Jennifer how much I appreciate them doing that.

After this, though, The BCPF and I decided that we’re going to live. LIVE! And, that’s what we’ve done. We’ve been to Europe twice, the second a wedding/honeymoon expedition. We accompanied friends to Costa Rica. We went to Walt Disney World with my family. We have time with each other. We enjoy just about everything we do. We collect records, we eat really delicious food, we hang out with really terrific friends, we just love our lives.

I have to really thank The BCPF for everything, because if it
weren’t for her, making sure I take my meds regularly, eating right, doing what little exercise I’ll do, going to my doc appts, and just living the heck out of IMAG0150me, I wouldn’t be here today to write this. She didn’t sleep much that first week, when she did it was in my hospital bed. My boy is also a huge part of my life. He’s almost 15 so he’s testing my ticker a good bit, but I love that boy to no end. They together are truly my everything. To my family, thank you all for your support and being here for me. To my friends, you’re all my bedrocks. You’re my foundation that I build on. To The Beer Dads, Jon and Paul, thank you guys for traversing this weird ride with The BCPF and me in our quest for World Domination. To everyone. I love you. Just… I love you. To Dr. Bret Borchelt. Thank you for “fixing” me.

I was 41 when this happened. I’m 46 now. I have to at least make it to 82 for me to be satisfied with it. I have to say, in all sincerity, I would never want to go through this again. However, in the grand scheme of things, it was all worth it and really, for me, wasn’t all that terrible. I think my family and friends had it worse than I in this ordeal. I got taken care of, waited on and yes had to endure some pain, but it wasn’t too awful. I’m just glad we have hit the “magic number” (no not three in this case) of five. That’s when the docs stop looking so closely at the procedure. I’m still here and other than being ridiculously fat, I feel great. So, all is well on this side of the world. I hope all of you have as wonderful a time as I do. Happy fifth second birthday to me.

Until tomorrow, still kickin’…
Scorp out!

—
“Open-heart surgery is now part of a typical life experience for many people. Folks talk casually about ‘having a stent put in,’ as if they had their tires rotated.” – Roger Ebert

Pardon The Interruption or: Back and Again

17 Monday Apr 2017

Posted by TGBII in Blogging, Life as We Know It, Podcasting, The Less Desirables Network

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Jennifer Filipowski, SiteGround, The Less Desirables, WordPress

Salutations™!!08c6c-tld

Many apologies to any of The Less Desirables listeners who couldn’t access the latest show, be it via iTunes, Stitcher, Google Play or any of the other aggregators that you may use to subscribe to the podcast. Additionally, if you tried to visit the website, it has been down since Friday afternoon.

Most of it was my “fault.” A few years back we had updated WordPress (the platform we do the site from) and the way the site had been built, the updates created chaos and the site went down. A new site designer was able to get it back into working order but said we couldn’t update WordPress. We decided to build a new site to overtake this one. Well, for whatever reasons, that didn’t work out and the site was used, but unupdated for about three years. There were several WP updates in that time. Well, that left the site vulnerable to malicious instances.

The hosting company that I use for everything except two of my websites flagged it and quarantined the site. I had to download every file from the server (13,000 of them!!) and run an Anti-Virus (AV) program on them. The AV showed nothing but one thing that had nothing to do with my site files. So, I had to delete the content of the server and reupload the files. Well, that wasn’t good enough. Even though my AV showed nothing, the software that the hosting company uses said some things were still malicious. I deleted those files and it turns out it wasn’t malicious, just old. The files were elements of the site that were outdated and not necessarily recognized by the software as “viable.” They restored those and, now, the site is back up and running. That means the quarantine has expired and all is back up and running. And, I did update all the WP software and things are working okay, still. Whew. That was a rough Easter weekend, at least in that aspect.

Okay, well, again, we’re back. Get back to the listening and enjoy! Thanks to our newest web designer, Jennifer Filipowski for her help in getting things back to order. She’s awesome. Thank you to Siteground (the hosting service) for their help, understanding and expertise.

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“Founded in 2004 by a few university friends, SiteGround gradually but steadily turned into a leading web hosting service provider.” – SiteGround

Silent Sunday or: The Haul 4/16

16 Sunday Apr 2017

Posted by TGBII in Silent Sunday

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Bette Midler, Bob Dylan, Carole King, Cheap Trick, Chicago, Christopher Plummer, Discogs, Genesis, Heatmiser, Henry Mancini, J Geils Band, Joan Baez, Julie Andrews, KISS, Linda Ronstadt, Paul Davis, Peter Paul and Mary, Records, Richard Rodgers, Rodgers and Hammerstein, Tchaikovsky, The BCPF, The Ventures, Underdog Records, Vic Damone, vinyl

Salutations™!!

The BCPF had Friday off so we made two trips to Underdog Records this weekend. We Love_gun_covermade off with a ton of stuff, mostly from the $1 bin – you’ll maneuver a plethora of great finds there, so don’t be afraid of the $1 bin. So, here’s the rundown for this week:

From The BCPFs choices:

  • Joan Baez – Joan Baez
  • The Ventures – 10th Anniversary Album
  • Joan Baez – One Day At A Time
  • Peter, Paul And Mary* – In Concert
  • Peter, Paul And Mary* – (Moving)
  • Linda Ronstadt – A Retrospective
  • Carole King – Fantasy
  • Heatmiser – Mic City Sons
  • Bob Dylan – The Essential Bob Dylan

From my choices:

  • Rodgers And Hammerstein* / Julie Andrews, Christopher Plummer, Irwin Kostal – The Sound Of Music (An Original Soundtrack Recording)
  • Chicago (2) – Chicago V
  • Richard Rodgers – Slaughter On Tenth Avenue – The Sound Track Album
  • Henry Mancini – Brass, Ivory & Strings
  • Tchaikovsky* – Kraft* & Alexander* – 1812 – Nutcracker Suite
  • Bette Midler – The Rose – The Original Soundtrack Recording
  • Henry Mancini – Breakfast At Tiffany’s (Music From The Motion Picture Score)
  • Cheap Trick – Dream Police
  • Cheap Trick – Cheap Trick
  • Genesis – Trespass (MCA Records, MCA Records
  • Paul Davis (3) – Cool Night
  • The J. Geils Band – Bloodshot
  • Kiss – Rock And Roll Over 
  • Kiss – Love Gun (first KISS record I ever owned)
  • A Vic Damone/Strativari Strings album that I can’t find on Discogs at all so I’ll have to log it, my self.

So, I think that was a great haul. Do you have any of these on vinyl, Dear Reader? I’d love to talk vinyl collecting with you. Meet me at Underdog Records some day and let’s talk. Even if you don’t meet me, go see Jonathan and buy some records. Listen to The Less Desirables each week to find out what the TLD/Underdog special is for that week. Also, if you are a collector of music and you’re not logging your vinyl, and even your CDs, then you’re totally missing out on a true collecting experience. Have a great Sunday (or Easter if you are so inclined).

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“I try to sleep, they’re wide awake. They won’t let me alone. They don’t get paid to take vacations or let me alone. They spy on me, I try to hide, they won’t let me alone. They persecute me. They’re the judge and jury all in one.” – “Dream Police” (Nielsen)

Toys or: The Less Desirables Movie of the Week

15 Saturday Apr 2017

Posted by TGBII in Movie Review

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

a/perture Cinema, IMDb, Joan Cusack, LL Cool J, Michael Gambon, Netflix, Robin Williams, Rotten Tomatoes, The Less Desirables, Toys

Salutations™!!

a/perture cinema, the Official Movie Sponsor of The Less Desirables, presents The Less Desirables Movie of the Week, Toys (1992), starring Robin Williams, Michael Gambon, LL Cool J and Joan Cusack.Toys_poster

Per IMDb: “When a military general inherits a toy making company and begins making war toys, his employees band together to stop him before he ruins the name of Zevo Toys forever.”

Kenneth Zevo is dying. He has two children Alsatia (Cusack) and Leslie (Williams) who have basically “grown up” in the toy factory that Kenneth has spent his life making. The workers are happy, the facility is a happy place, all is well. As Kenneth is about to leave the Earth, he asks his 3-star general brother, General Leland Zevo (Gambon) to take over the company. Leland is apprehensive. He’s serious and “Kenny” is a fun-loving free spirit who made a fortune making toys. Why not give the company to his children? Kenneth thinks they’re too childish to run a business.

Leland, desperate to win the approval of his elderly father, who was a 4-star general and played by Jack Warden, and seeks said approval in taking over Kenneth’s company. The old man tells him to make up his own mind. He takes over the company and is bored out of his mind until he hears that there’s a leak in toy designs. That sends him back into full military mode. He decides he wants to find the leak and enlists the help of his military son, Patrick (LL Cool J). In that Leland decides to start making miniature war toys to be sold to the government. Leslie is dead set against the idea because he knows his father would have also been against it. Leland says he won’t make any but can he have a tiny bit of space to make is own toys? Does he get it? Does he make war toys? You’ll have to watch to find out.

I saw this film when I was about 21 in the theater. I liked the fantasy and whimsy of it. I have to say that watching it now some 25 years later, it has lost a good bit of that luster. There’s good and bad here. The good: the cast, the scenery (mostly sound stages but great nonetheless), the ambition. The bad: the story line is dated and weak for even 1992, no direction, lack of actual comedy. With this cast, Williams is kind of sedate and even when he’s breaking loose he’s almost forcing the character to come out. Michael Gambon is a long way from his role in The Cook, The Thief, His Wife & Her Lover previously and as the second Albus Dumbledore in the Harry Potter series. He was unrecognizable but he was good. LL Cool J was pretty good. I think the real star here is Joan Cusack; she played the best part. But, while the film was funny in parts, it was, like Williams’ portrayal, forced and a bit weak.

I was disappointed in the overall film as it wasn’t what I remembered it to be, but there was still a nostalgia that was keeping me watching. I just wanted to see it, I guess. Rotten Tomatoes has it at a lowly 26% Rotten, with an audience score of a slightly better 39%. IMDb has it at 5 stars out of 10; exactly 50%. I saw this on Netflix and, sadly, I have to rate it only a straight up 3.0 out of 5 which on a scale from 0-5 would also be right down the middle. Have you seen it? What did you think? What would you like to read/hear me review? Let me know.

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“We’re going to fight fire with marshmallows.” – Leslie Zevo

No, Not Yet or: It Was Bound to Happen

14 Friday Apr 2017

Posted by TGBII in Life as We Know It

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

3B, driver's education, driving, The BCPF

Salutations™!!

Well, this was a day that I have dreaded for 5446 days, 21 hours, 47 minutes and 36 unnamed (2)seconds. That’s 14 years, 10 months, 28 days. It was the day that my son, 3B, sat behind the wheel of a car for his “in-car” driver’s education class. For the first time ever, he drove a car, on the road. I was sick to my stomach all day. I know that my usual worry over him is about to pale in comparison to what the rest of my life will be, starting now.

I asked him about it and he said he had a little trouble at first, figuring the turns and how to maneuver them, but soon he was doing fine. His words: “easy peasy, lemon squeezy.” Well, okay then. He sent me a text saying he had ran the car into a wall. I told him to stop it. He laughed. Anywhat!

Keep me in your thoughts or whatever it is you do. In all seriousness, keep him in that. Getting ready to take him for day #2. And, The BCPF is off today, so I’m keeping this short. Happy Friday, Dear Reader.

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“The one thing that unites all human beings, regardless of age, gender, religion, economic status, or ethnic background, is that, deep down inside, we all believe that we are above-average drivers.” – Dave Berry

F.I.N.E. or: Pump (Eugeology Entry 14)

13 Thursday Apr 2017

Posted by TGBII in Uncategorized

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Aerosmith, Brad Whitford, Bruce Fairbairn, Eugene B Sims, Eugeology, Joe Perry, Joey Kramer, Jon Lowder, Music, Pump, Randy Raine-Reusch, Steven Tyler, Tom Hamilton

Salutations™!!

To my chagrin, I liked last week’s entry. I didn’t want to, but I couldn’t resist. It was like trying to eat only one Lay’s potato chip. Eugene hasn’t written his entry for that one yet, but Jon really dug it. I’m glad. So, last Thursday, it was time to be issued our next project, this came through:

Aerosmith_Pump

©Geffen Records

#14 – Pump by Aerosmith.

Let me say that I cannot stand Aerosmith. I can’t stand Steven Tyler and they’re so very over played. I have seen them live twice. Once with the drummer from my old band Heavens Sake. It was a shed show and we had gotten free tix for advertising in a local mag. Free seats, usually, equates to no seats but lawn access. That was awful. I will never go to another shed show to sit on the lawn. That’s dumb. The second time was on a double-bill co-headline show with KISS. I had gotten gold circle seats because I wrote the cover story for the same magazine.

I was kind of offended that KISS went on first. They were the better “headliner” I thought. When they were done, I had shifted my thought on that because that meant I could leave four songs into the Aerosmith show because they were horrible. The keys were too loud and Tyler was too interested in dancing and prancing than singing in key. I just can’t stand them. Bottom line.

Now, all that being said… I really love this album. This and its predecessor, Permanent Vacation, both were fantastic albums. It could be that I thought it sounded better when they were straight and sober. It could be that this was the first stuff that I really paid attention to from the band (my history of rock was skewed because of my access as a child, I’ve explained that before). It could be that I like slick production. Whatever the reason, I don’t get annoyed with this or Vacation. When something comes on from these two albums, I don’t turn it. Anything after or before, I turn it. Overplayed and overdone.

There’s not a lot of difference in this and the earlier (or later) stuff, it sounds like Aerosmith, but I guess it was my age. I was freshly out of high school (I graduated the spring prior to its release) and had this on cassette. That makes it one of only two of these albums that I have previously owned (Invasion of Your Privacy) and was familiar with. It just seems there was some direction here. This and the one before were a proving ground for the band to show they could write sober songs. I think they did a darn good job.

There’s some weird stuff going on. I’m not used to Tom Hamilton being a slap bass kind of guy but in “Janie’s Got a Gun,” he’s doing just that. And, he co-wrote the tune. The harmonies are really cool and textural. They’re scattered around and put in great spots. Yeah, it’s almost entirely Steven Tyler, but it’s more layered than older Aerosmith. I believe “Love in an Elevator” is really the only song that has other people singing backing vocals. They either use a backing track or a harmonizer live, because it’s almost all Steven Tyler. There’s also a dulcimer, a didgeridoo, Thai naw (a mouth organ made from gourds and bamboo) and a glass harmonica, all played by a fellow named Randy Raine-Reusch. It adds dimension and depth. I like that. Even album producer Bruce Fairbairn threw in some horn work on the album.

Joe Perry is on, keeping his blues-laden riffs in tact. Brad Whitford (not the actor Bradley Whitford) is there trading licks, too. I don’t know that Joey Kramer was this solid a drummer when he was stoned. Tom Hamilton, as stated earlier, is doing that slapping thing but he’s laying down some fantastic riffs and lines on this album. Very nice work. And, yes, Tyler does a really great job. He shows more range and dynamics on this album and the one prior, I think, than the “classic” albums.

My favorite tunes on the album are “Love in an Elevator,” “Janie’s Got a Gun,” “The Other Side,” “Medicine Man” and “What It Takes.” There’s none that I dislike. So, yeah, I like an Aerosuck, er… Aerosmith album. This wasn’t a stretch for me, as I’ve always liked it. And, I still listened to it the (mostly) minimum six times. I recommend it and want to hear Eugene and Jon’s takes. Hopefully, they won’t be too long. And, hey Eug, what’s next!?!

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“Gonna be a penthouse pauper. Gonna be a millionaire. I’m gonna be a real fast talker and have me a love affair. Gotta get my timin’ right. It’s a test that I gotta pass. I’ll chase you all the way to the stairway honey, kiss your sassafras.” – “Love in an Elevator” (Perry/Tyler)

MexiCali Stout or: The Less Desirables Beer of the Week

12 Wednesday Apr 2017

Posted by TGBII in Beer

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

BeerAdvocate, Birdsong Brewing, City Beverage, Drat the Luck, RateBeer, The Less, Untappd

Salutations™!!unnamed (5)

City Beverage, the Official Beer Sponsor of The Less Desirables, presents MexiCali Stout from Birdsong Brewing Company, The Less Desirables Beer of the Week.

Last week for The Less Desirables, none of the three hosts rated the Birdsong Brewing Company’s Paradise City because it tasted like soap. This past Monday for The Beer Dads, we had it (bought at the same time) and it was really good. I don’t know what about that first batch was so wrong but it really wasn’t good. But, I decided to give Birdsong another TLD try.

However, I feel that Caitlin is going to gripe at me hard for this one. She doesn’t like stouts and especially doesn’t like coffee flavored ones. But, I’ve been very concessionary with IPAs over the last bit, so she can grin and bear it. I’ll probably get heck for that one, too. This beer is a Mexican coffee stout, so it may have a little spice (cinnamon, I think) to go with that coffee flavor. It’s only 5.8% ABV so it’s not high octane.

BeerAdvocate has it at 87 (Very Good) with no Bros score. Untappd has it at 3.96 caps out of 5. RateBeer has it at 80 Overall and 58 In Style. None of those are too shabby, really. Have you had this beer? What did you think? If you’ve not had it or just have a hankering for more, head down to City Beverage and grab you tallboy quad. Then, later tonight or early tomorrow, tune in to The Less Desirables to hear what Caitlin, Danielle, Drat the Luck and I think of it.

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“The MexiCali Stout balances both sweet and spicy elements for a delightful taste that will have you ordering another pint before you’ve even finished the first.” – Birdsong Brewing Company

Escaping Neverland or: How We Found a Way Around

11 Tuesday Apr 2017

Posted by TGBII in Life as We Know It

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Amazon, Charlotte, Costco, Discogs, IKEA, The BCPF, The Less Desirables, Twin City Hive, Underdog Records, WSNC

Salutations™!!

In Sunday’s “Silent Sunday” I said that we had purchased a cabinet for our LPs. This was greatly needed because we’re wracking up the number of LPs in the house and they’d become stacks, which isn’t good for the records themselves. We had been looking online for some stuff, Amazon, office supply stores and what I believe to be Hades, even though I’ve never been there, IKEA. Some people love it and that’s great for them.

unnamed (1)

Yes, I reused the picture from Sunday.

I just know that The BCPF and I are both impulse buyers, or at least have a tendency to be, and I didn’t want to risk being sucked in to the gingerbread house for the witch to eat us after tempting us with delicious treats. I’m not saying I won’t go to IKEA, but I just haven’t and am in no hurry to do so. I hear “horror” stories of others calling for the death of the place because it was so enticing and got them to overspend due to interest beyond practicality. Nah.

Plus, the closest one is in Charlotte and while I’m okay with Charlotte, I just wasn’t in the mood to drive down there just to “shop.” We had stopped in at Underdog Records (the Official Vinyl Sponsor of The Less Desirables) to get our weekly fix from “the Candyman” Jonathan and we talked about going shopping for cabinetry. He was really pushing the IKEA idea. My stomach turned… nope.

We went to Twin City Hive (Official Coffee Sponsor of The Man Who Walked the Town) to get The BCPF’s caffeine on and Joey told us that Costco has a record shelving system, or at least had one. We like Costco and decided it was worth the look. Well, we found what we were looking for and it was only $99.99. It’s a sturdy cab and it looks pretty good. It wasn’t too hard to put together, either. About 25 minutes is all it took us to put it together. Then we spent an hour alphabetizing the collection because that’s how we roll. You should have seen the both of us wringing our grubby little hands in anticipation of that kind of fun. We both have enough OCD (or CDO with the letters being in the correct order) that we need alphabetizing for our sanity. It went fairly quickly, though.

We just had a ball doing that. I separated all the albums into stacks according to what the first name or artist was (that’s how Discogs alphabetizes) and The BCPF sorted them into alphabetical order. If we have multiples of one artist, we decided to put the releases in chronological order. It was just fun. We love that stuff. Now, when want to do a “random grab” or use Discogs’ randomizer it will be more organized and easier to find stuff. We use an orange card to show where we took the LP from so it can go right back in without sifting. We’re just excited. So, look out #nowspinning group on Facebook. There’s more to come! Head to Underdog Records to get your record fix and check out my collection on Discogs.

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“Just go through the exit and directly into the warehouse. You skip all the selling that way.” – Jonathan Hodges on IKEA

← Older posts
Newer posts →
Follow Useless Things Need Love Too on WordPress.com

Social

  • View tgbii’s profile on Facebook
  • View bassmantnc’s profile on Twitter
  • View timbeemanii’s profile on Instagram
  • View timothy-beeman-ii-9ab93827’s profile on LinkedIn
  • View +TimothyBeemanII1970’s profile on Google+

Recent Posts

  • Sounds Like Saturday or: Just a Lil’ Bit
  • Now Normal Chronicles or: Sorry
  • Now Normal Chronicles or: Bless Those Rains
  • Now Normal Chronicles or: Holy Hale!
  • Now Normal Chronicles or: Electric

Recent Comments

TGBII on Boy No Longer or: Man of All…
John the Catalyst on Boy No Longer or: Man of All…
TGBII on The Longest Continuous or: Ele…
Damien on The Longest Continuous or: Ele…
Damien on Silent Sunday or: Two of My Ne…

Archives

  • April 2021
  • March 2021
  • February 2021
  • January 2021
  • December 2020
  • November 2020
  • October 2020
  • September 2020
  • August 2020
  • July 2020
  • June 2020
  • May 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • February 2020
  • January 2020
  • December 2019
  • November 2019
  • October 2019
  • September 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • May 2019
  • April 2019
  • March 2019
  • February 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • September 2018
  • August 2018
  • July 2018
  • June 2018
  • May 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • February 2018
  • January 2018
  • December 2017
  • November 2017
  • October 2017
  • September 2017
  • August 2017
  • July 2017
  • June 2017
  • May 2017
  • April 2017
  • March 2017
  • February 2017
  • January 2017
  • December 2016
  • November 2016
  • October 2016
  • September 2016
  • August 2016
  • July 2016
  • June 2016
  • May 2016
  • April 2016
  • March 2016
  • February 2016
  • January 2016
  • December 2015
  • November 2015
  • October 2015
  • September 2015
  • August 2015
  • July 2015
  • June 2015
  • May 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • February 2015
  • January 2015
  • December 2014
  • November 2014
  • October 2014
  • September 2014
  • July 2014
  • May 2014
  • April 2014
  • March 2014
  • January 2014

Categories

  • Beer
  • Blogging
  • Food
  • Friend Friday
  • Honeymoon
  • KISS
  • Life as We Know It
  • Movie Review
  • Music Review
  • Podcasting
  • Product Review
  • Rant
  • Records
  • Silent Sunday
  • Sounds Like Saturday
  • Spinning Sunday
  • Spirits
  • Talking Tuesday
  • The Less Desirables Network
  • Travel
  • Uncategorized
  • Video
  • Wine

Meta

  • Register
  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.com

Dealspotr

@themanwhoatethetown - influencer profile on Dealspotr
dealspotr.com
Follow Useless Things Need Love Too on WordPress.com

Enter your email address to receive notifications when the idiot who runs this blog updates by email.

Join 1,956 other followers

Recent Posts

  • Sounds Like Saturday or: Just a Lil’ Bit
  • Now Normal Chronicles or: Sorry
  • Now Normal Chronicles or: Bless Those Rains
  • Now Normal Chronicles or: Holy Hale!
  • Now Normal Chronicles or: Electric

Recent Comments

TGBII on Boy No Longer or: Man of All…
John the Catalyst on Boy No Longer or: Man of All…
TGBII on The Longest Continuous or: Ele…
Damien on The Longest Continuous or: Ele…
Damien on Silent Sunday or: Two of My Ne…

People Who Say Things That Rock!

Categories

  • Beer
  • Blogging
  • Food
  • Friend Friday
  • Honeymoon
  • KISS
  • Life as We Know It
  • Movie Review
  • Music Review
  • Podcasting
  • Product Review
  • Rant
  • Records
  • Silent Sunday
  • Sounds Like Saturday
  • Spinning Sunday
  • Spirits
  • Talking Tuesday
  • The Less Desirables Network
  • Travel
  • Uncategorized
  • Video
  • Wine

People who love to read my spoutings.

  • 47,636 hits

Archives

  • April 2021
  • March 2021
  • February 2021
  • January 2021
  • December 2020
  • November 2020
  • October 2020
  • September 2020
  • August 2020
  • July 2020
  • June 2020
  • May 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • February 2020
  • January 2020
  • December 2019
  • November 2019
  • October 2019
  • September 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • May 2019
  • April 2019
  • March 2019
  • February 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • September 2018
  • August 2018
  • July 2018
  • June 2018
  • May 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • February 2018
  • January 2018
  • December 2017
  • November 2017
  • October 2017
  • September 2017
  • August 2017
  • July 2017
  • June 2017
  • May 2017
  • April 2017
  • March 2017
  • February 2017
  • January 2017
  • December 2016
  • November 2016
  • October 2016
  • September 2016
  • August 2016
  • July 2016
  • June 2016
  • May 2016
  • April 2016
  • March 2016
  • February 2016
  • January 2016
  • December 2015
  • November 2015
  • October 2015
  • September 2015
  • August 2015
  • July 2015
  • June 2015
  • May 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • February 2015
  • January 2015
  • December 2014
  • November 2014
  • October 2014
  • September 2014
  • July 2014
  • May 2014
  • April 2014
  • March 2014
  • January 2014

Meta

  • Register
  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.com

Copyright For All Ramblings:

©Timothy G Beeman II

Blog at WordPress.com.

Fan Interference Podcast

The Fan Interference Podcast, part of The Less Desirables Podcast Network

Asylum: Tales from the Devereaux Diaries

Asylum: Tales from the Devereaux Diaries

Eat Drink Triad Podcast

The Podcast of Triad Food and Beverage Coalition

Beeman-Metz Media

Coming Soon

myfox8.com

News, Weather, Sports and more from WGHP FOX8

As Ardmore Turns

An almost true-to-life soap opera that practically writes itself.

Beeswax Vinyl and More

A NC-based Podcast About Music and Vinyl

Defining Yellow

Eddie Huffman

SippingNC: The Art of Drinking

A Blog and Podcast all about North Carolina libations.

Dr. Rock's Blog & Roll

Your dose of the BEST music ever made! (www.DrRock.com)

Sipping NC: The Art of the Drink

North Carolina Libations from Beer to Wine to Spirits

benedictbeerblog

Funny Redhead Loves Beer. Funny Readhead Writes About Beer.

The Beer Dads Podcast

Three guys having a beer and talking about being dads.

The Man Who Walked the Town

Exploring WSNC One Step at a Time

Somewhere Over the Olive Tree

Way up high in the Valencian mountains

Daily Inspiration Blog

The NC Triad's altweekly

Greensboro, High Point and Winston-Salem's alternative newspaper and media source

Wrestling-Online.com

Covering pro wrestling news since 1998!

I've got a Roman Candle Now!

Cancel

 
Loading Comments...
Comment
    ×