Five O’Clock Friday: Coffee or Whiskey
Author: David From http://www.musingsoverabarrel.com/ • Nov 17th, 2023Category: Blog Entries.Local
It's a problem easily solved with Irish Coffee.
Cheers!
Have a great weekend.
Cheers!
Archives for the ‘Blog Entries.Local’ Category
Category: Blog Entries.Local
A Chilly Night Smoke and Sip
Author: David From http://www.musingsoverabarrel.com/ • Nov 16th, 2023Category: Blog Entries.Local
Anyone who reads these Musings for any length of time, knows I am no fan of cold weather. It takes me a few weeks to accept and adapt to the season change. After a celebratory dinner recently I was in need of some "digestive" time. And it was cold outside.
For the evening's chilly repast I grabbed a warm bourbon and a robust smoke -- Horse Soldier Reserve and Black Label Trading Company Viaticum Lancero.
The Horse Soldier Reserve is the distillery's Barrel Strength expression. This is one I enjoy often with a robust cigar. The bourbon is bottled at 124 proof. The nose has dark caramel, sweet maple, along with hint of vanilla and fruit. When sipping I get charred wood, dark fruit, molasses, and a cinnamon like spice. In the finish an interesting fruit note comes up, reminiscent of dark cherries and plums. The 124 proof imparts some heat to mouthfeel, but it is very balanced by the flavor notes, and not overwhelming in the least. Summarize all that to say it's right on target for my flavor preferences.
Black Label Trading Company makes a bunch of full bodied, flavorful smokes. The Viaticum line is a variation of their Last Rites series, with the same tobaccos put together in a modified blend. It features an Ecuadorian Habano wrapper, a Honduran binder from Honduras and fillers of Nicaraguan and Honduran tobaccos. This lancero is an attractive 6 3/5 x 40 stick. The tobaccos create a robust blend of creamy chocolate, coffee, and cedar. It's full bodied but very balanced. The Viaticum makes a worthy companion to the hefty bourbon flavors.
Sitting under the infrared table lamp, and in front of the portable propane heater, the hour spent with the smoke and drink was quite bearable. I might just survive these cold months.
Cheers!
Pay or Die
Author: Chris ODonnell From https://odonnellweb.com/pelican/ • Nov 15th, 2023Category: Blog Entries.Local
Pay or Die is a documentary available on Paramount+ the follows the efforts of some families in MN to pass legislation to ensure nobody dies because they can't afford insulin. Unfortunately, the reason these families are so adamant about this issue is that they all lost young adult kids that died from trying to ration their insulin when they could not afford to resupply.
I'm sure those of you reading from civilized countries like (insert just anywhere that is not the US) are wondering how this can be a thing. We are too. Capitalism and regulatory capture is the answer. Companies like Eli Lilly spend tens of millions every year influencing government to not do anything about the high cost of life saving medication.
I'll make my point-of-view very clear. Any medication necessary to stay alive should be free. Period.
A vial of insulin runs $300-$400 retail. The average type 1 diabetic will use 4 vials a month. If that diabetic is using an insulin pump you can add another $1000 or so a month for disposable medical supplies attached to the pump and blood sugar sensors. So a person with type 1 diabetes needs $2000 a month (or more) just to stay alive. And they still have to eat, pay rent, etc.
A vial of insulin cost about $10 to make.
I have good health insurance. And by good I mean a high-deductible plan where the first $4500 each every year is out of my pocket, and the out-of-pocket maximum is $6500. So from a budgeting standpoint, I need $4500 in Q1 each year to pay for insulin and pump supplies, then we will hit the out-of-pocket max for my wife at about month 6 or 7. I haven't accounted for myself in the above numbers. If I have any serious issues or even routine stuff like x-rays or a colonoscopy (due next year!) that is also all coming out of cash flow, at least until I hit $4500 spent. Add in the premium and on Jan 1 I'm down $9000 for the year at a bare minimum. More if I need any healthcare.
How many people do you know that have $9000 minimum each year for healthcare? This is the best health plan I've had in a while. I had been spending more like $14k+ every year for the previous 5 or 6 years. My health insurance helpfully promotes what I would have spent without them. It will come in right at $42,000 for the year. How many people do you know that have $42,000 for healthcare over the next decade, let alone next year?
The US Defense budget is almost $1 trillion dollars.
The next time somebody (a Republican) tells you there isn't enough money to keep people alive, I need you to remember something.
They are lying.
The United States is still the wealthiest country in the world. People dying from lack of healthcare, people freezing in the streets from lack of a home, and all the rest could easily be handled for a fraction of the defense budget.
We simply choose to not do anything about it. I wish I believed in an afterlife, because the thought of all those fuckers burning in hell for failing to give a shit actually makes me smile.
Oh, and watch Pay or Die. Paramount+ has a free 7-day trial, and when you try to cancel, they'll offer you 2 months free.
New Riff Single Barrel (Again) and Viva La Vida Cigars
Author: David From http://www.musingsoverabarrel.com/ • Nov 13th, 2023Category: Blog Entries.Local
I've been looking forward to smoking the Artesano del Tobacco Viva La Vida cigar since it arrived in the October Luxury Cigar Club monthly shipment. I've smoked this cigar line produced at the AJ Fernando factory in the past. Both the lancero and toro vitolas have made appearances in these Musings. This time it was the 5 x 54 robusto that I was enjoying. The attractive maduro Nicaraguan Habano Oscuro 2000 wrapper, Nicaraguan Corojo 99 binder, and the Nicaraguan Criollo 98 filler combine to make a flavorful smoke. This is full-bodied smoke with notes of leather, black coffee, pepper and a moderate cinnamon spice. The robusto was no less delectable than the others I've tried.
As the accompaniment for the evening, I poured some New Riff Single Barrel. The New Riff is a high rye bourbon with the expected rye-influenced kick. This particular batch is bottled at a robust 110.3 proof. The spice of the rye is prominent in the nose, along with cinnamon, brown sugar and sweet fruit notes. The proof is noticeable in the mouth giving a nice heat, one that stands up well to the full bodied cigar. The rye spiciness makes itself known more as the liquid rests on the tongue. The spiciness is balanced by some vanilla and cream sweetness. I was very pleasantly surprised by enjoyment of the pairing. This despite a memory of this one being a little more harsh previously. That harsher profile remembered was the reason I chose it for the pairing.
I went back and looked my previous remarks on the New Riff, which pretty well confirmed my memory. Then I noted that the previous tasting had been accompanied by a less than stellar cigar. It so happens that the same cigar has since disappointed on multiple occasions. Maybe that had some effect on my perceptions. This outing, I found the bourbon to be a most agreeable drink.
It's often said that the enjoyment of a particular bourbon, or a cigar, is influenced in no small part by one's mood or the accompanying food or cigar or drink, as the case may be. The more I explore bourbon and cigar pairings, and revisit some of the individual players, the more I experience that. I certainly found this to be true with the New Riff Single Barrel. I look forward to enjoying it again, with yet another cigar.
Cheers!
Cheers!
Birds and Beer
Author: Chris ODonnell From https://odonnellweb.com/pelican/ • Nov 12th, 2023Category: Blog Entries.Local
My weekend - went birding twice, and checked out the newest brewery in RVA.
Saturday birding was at Tuckahoe Creek Park, and Sunday morning was Echo Lake Park.
On Saturday night we watched the new Jennifer Lawrence flick, No Hard Feelings, on Netflix. It's a rom-com, or raunch-com as described in Netflix. It's probably most notable for the full frontal nudity scene on the beach that apparently is all Jennifer Lawrence. It's funny enough and a worthy 105 minute diversion on Netflix.
On Sunday after noon I checked out RVA's newest brewery, Waygone Brewing. I had a fabulous dry stout and a really tasty NEIPA. I'm normally not a NEIPA fan but their Tree Huggin' IPA has a hazy look and tastes more like a juicy IPA than a NEIPA. I would happily drink both again.
Five O’Clock Friday: It’s Soup Weather
Author: David From http://www.musingsoverabarrel.com/ • Nov 10th, 2023Category: Blog Entries.Local
It will warm you on the inside too.
Have a great weekend.
Cheers!
Cheers!
Lunch Hour Range Visit
Author: David From http://www.musingsoverabarrel.com/ • Nov 9th, 2023Category: Blog Entries.Local
It's that time of the year when the daytime temperatures can vary by 25° or more from one day to the next. I took advantage of one of the higher end of the spectrum on a recent afternoon to scoot over to the range for some brief trigger time. I only took 100 rounds of ammo with me, a choice I quickly regretted.
During some recent home purging activities, a full box of cardboard USPSA targets was discovered in the basement. I've been out of the IDPA version for some time so this was a fortuitous find. Grabbing one of my metal target bases completed the target supply needs. Using the stand-alone target setup turned out to be a good choice as the breeze at the range would have played havoc with the usual target hung from a rope.
As switch from the usual routine, I skipped the OWB range holster and stuck with my IWB holster for the SIG P320 Compact. Current events illustrate that these are good times to stay fresh on the EDC weapons.
I spent most of the time simply drawing from under a t-shirt and shooting the target set at 15 yards. Shooting various head/body combinations ate through the 100 rounds pretty quickly. Nonetheless, it was an extremely relaxing time amongst the fall colors in the trees. Not a bad way to spend a "lunch hour."
Cheers!
Cheers!
Your phone probably is the problem
Author: Chris ODonnell From https://odonnellweb.com/pelican/ • Nov 8th, 2023Category: Blog Entries.Local
We've all heard the stats about how we spend 4 hours or whatever starting at our phones everyday.
Adam did the math, and that is 68 full days a year staring at your phone.
68 Days!
What did you do with that time before iPhones?
Maybe you should start doing that again. Also, read Adams article. All those things you're too busy for, all the books you don't read, art you don't create, the novel that never gets written, all of it, is probably being absorbed doom scrolling on social media.
BTW, this is a new blog post 4 days in a row. I probably haven't done that since my 31 posts in 31 days stunt back in 2018.
Another Cool Evening Smoke
Author: David From http://www.musingsoverabarrel.com/ • Nov 7th, 2023Category: Blog Entries.Local
After a long week of activities that did not include a chance to relax with a cigar, I was looking forward to the start of the weekend. I'd been eyeing the CAO Flathead V660 cigars resting in my humidor for a couple months, waiting for the opportunity to enjoy one. The large stick offers nearly a two hour smoke, and though I wasn't sure I'd want to be outside that long, I opted to light one anyway.
I selected the Michter's Small Batch US*1 Bourbon to go along with the smoke. The Michter's is a 91.4 proof bourbon that provides plenty of flavor return for the lower proof and reasonable price point. There's a pleasing aroma of raisons, cherries, and vanilla. The taste has dark fruit, vanilla, oak, and pepper. The finish is short with some lingering spice.
As the name suggests, the Flathead V660 is a 6 x 60 box-pressed stick with an extremely flattened cap at the end. I always use a punch to cut the cap when smoking the Flathead. The large size and flattened shape gives an awkward feel in the hand. A Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper covers an Ecuadorian Connecticut binder and Nicaraguan fillers. The smoke has a rich, semi-sweet chocolate and espresso flavor profile. As I find with many large ring gauge cigars, the draw is wide open, even when using a small punch. This limits smoke production somewhat, but the stick maintained an even burn.
The portable propane heater took the edge off the cool temperature, and I did enjoy the entire two hour smoke. The Michter's and the Flathead providing an enjoyable pairing to wind down the week.
The evenings are cool and the dark comes early but the whiskey is "warm" and the smoke refreshing, so it's still a win.
Cheers!
Cheers!
My default apps
Author: Chris ODonnell From https://odonnellweb.com/pelican/ • Nov 7th, 2023Category: Blog Entries.Local
Remember when memes like this spread on blogs? This is how the cool kids did it back in the day. Anybody still blogging regularly is a possible cool kid, if they aren't an asshole.
The emojis were not working for me so I deleted them all.
- Mail Service: Polaris mail
- Mail Client: Group Office (open source)
- Notes: Text files synced with Dropbox
- To-Do: Open task
- Calendar: Group Office
- Contacts: Group Office
- RSS Service: n/a
- RSS Client: Feedbro (Firefox add-on)
- Launcher: whatever the Gnome 3 default is
- Cloud storage: Dropbox
- Photo library: Dropbox
- Web Browser: Firefox
- Chat: Text messaging
- Bookmarks: Firefox and Pinboard
- Reading: Paper books
- Word Processing: Libre Office
- Spreadsheets: Libre Office
- Presentations: Libre Office
- Shopping Lists: Spreadsheet
- Personal Finance: Homebanc
- Music: Audacious with my personal collection
- Podcasts: Antenna Pod
- Password Management: Bitwarden
- Social Media: Mastodon
- Weather: NOAA Weather
- Search: DuckDuckGo
- Code Editor: text editor
