Start of the weekend in Portland

Just arrived in Portland after a 7.5hr drive from Boise. Settled into our room at the Marriott and about to have our first of many microbrews for the weekend. First stop, Deschutes Pub downtown. The photo is the view from the hotel room with the Columbia River and Mount Hood in the background. Very nice!

A Good Weekend Is On The Way

Tomorrow I'm hosting a group brew for my local homebrew club, the Snake River Brewers. About 15 of us will pack my garage and backyard to make 70 gallons of a British ESB, eat some good food, and drink even better beer (mostly homebrew). Should be a great time for all. Getting together tonight too for setup and prep activities, including milling ~150 lbs of grain! Prost!

What Would Michael Moore Do?

A buddy forwarded me this analysis of how we can "eat the rich" to help pay for the current budget shortfalls we're experiencing. Doesn't quite achieve what some would like it to, but it's still entertaining. Enjoy.

Being touristy in LA

Only in Hollywood

I saw this billboard on the side of a building in West Hollywood last week. I guess it shouldn't surprise me that this "religious beacon" looks alot like a marquee since many of the most well known proponents of it are movie stars. Regardless, the sight of it did make me throw up in my mouth a little bit...

New Motorized Grain Mill

I have been crushing my grain the hard way ever since I bought a hand-crank 2-roller barley crusher from Northern Brewer a years back. Recently I'v ebeen using a portable drill to speed up the process but it's still a P-I-T-A. Luckily for me, that's all over now. I saw an article in December's Brew Your Own magazine for a homemade motorized mill and decided to start compiling the equipment needed to make it happen. Found a 1-hp motor on Craig's List for $40, bought the sheaves and belt from Grainger for another $40, and spent about $4 in other assorted hardware. All the wood is scrap or leftovers from the shop. Finished assembly and testing over last weekend. Here's a few photos:

The motor is controlled by the mounted switch and the sheaves cut the speed of the motor down about 8:1 to a speed closer to what is recommended by the manufacturer (200 rpm). Gave it a test run last night and it works great. No more 2-hour grain crushing sessions!

Cheers.

Can't We All Just Get Along :-)

This is an overture to everyone on the subject of spirituality and faith. I ask anyone who looks at this blog to read the essay at the link below with an objective, open mind. You will have an enhanced understanding of why some people embrace atheism. It's all about logic, science, and the difference between faith and god.

http://blogs.wsj.com/speakeasy/2010/12/19/a-holiday-message-from-ricky-gervais-why-im-an-atheist/