Goodwin 1st MRB

I like to brew (on an absurdly small scale) - and today I made my jump to all-grain brewing. For those of you who don't know - all grain is a style that gives you complete control over the beer. You pick out the grains that end up becoming the malt, the hops, all of it. You extract the sugars from the grains, you boil the stuff, the whole 9. I had a lot of fun and the lady was bored with the camera. So I figured I'd share some pictures. Here is my mashtun (brand new, finished making it yesterday!) Mashtun! The mashtun is where you hold the grains, and pour in the hot water, then it sits for an hour while the hot water 'extracts' all the good flavorful sugars from the grains to make up the 'malt' of the beer. This is the 'wort' that is extracted from the mashtun and boiled to create the 'beer' Wort! Here is the boiling wort! Boiling hawt! This is who helped me out today (along with another brewer buddy of mine who has over 30 brews under his belt in the past year): Worker Beez! This is my hydrometer reading - this is the Original Gravity. After fermentation I'll take another reading before I bottle and then a calculation of both gravities will tell me the exact ABV of the beer. My goal was 1079, this beer is at 1080 - so it was REALLY close. If things work out like they should - this beer will be around 8% ABV and delicious as hell. Hydrometer! And the final product, here is the beer on it's way to being beer - beginning the fermentation process. In about 1-1.5 weeks I'll probably pop open the cap and dump in almost 2 ounces of hops for 'dry hopping'. This will help give the beer a really hop 'fresh' aroma. Then probably another week or two after that it'll be added to some sugar water, and bottled. It will 'carbonate' in the bottles for about 2-3 weeks, and then be ready for drinking! Beer, mmmm... I was attempting a Hop Rod Rye clone. Hop Rod Rye is brewed by Bear Republic, and it's an amazing Rye IPA. I highly recommend. Anyhow, hope you all want to brew beer now. :-P In total, the grains/hops to make this cost me around $15-20 and I'll probably get about 2 cases of amazing brew out of this. It's only a 2.5 gallon batch, all my previous batches have been 5 gallons - but since this was all grain, I wanted to 'start small' and see how it worked out.

It was beyond crazy! I kept waiting for him to smack a mirror or something... insane!

I was a psych major. Almost went back for masters... but now I'm mastering child care raising my 2 boys.

Anyone who's been on bikes long enough, has a name for people like that "oil slick" Nothing more fun then opening a door when you see folks flying up on you, or doing the 'i'm going to change lanes without a blinker, wait, just kidding' maneuver! People like that are idiots! Eventually they'll end up like this (caution, graphic photos): http://cbrforum.com/forum/showthread.php?t=44930 And I say good riddance.

Bingo. IMO, I don't like movies like that because as anyone who's ever taken a few statistics courses should know, stats can be twisted to work 'for your cause' in just about ANY scenario if you have the right numbers and crunch them the right way. It seems everyone and their mom seems to think just because there is a correlation (which is EASY to find in just about anything) that there is some form of causation. Which is like rule #1 in stats: Correlation does NOT imply causation. You could make ANYTHING look worse than it really is with statistics. That's why people use them, because most people don't put the thought into it to find out where their 'statistical argument' fails and falls short. 'selective selling'? Does 'selective selling' make the person buy the product? Or does 'selective selling' make it impossible for the person to use a little personal judgement and just say no? Nope. If you're going to eat tons of that shit and expect to have no ill-repercussions, that's absolutely stupid. But sadly, those are usually the people who hire a good lawyer and use their own blatant stupidity to make a quick buck, because suing companies for stupid shit that is ultimately that persons responsibility has seemingly become the way to do things.

I'm not saying their job is the most dangerous, or that they're paid 'appropriately'... I think they're over-paid as well... But if people are going to pay it, people will ask for it. Like I said - right off the top of my head I can think of about a lot of jobs that overpay a lot more in terms of amount of work put in, to the amount of money they make. It's a lifelong commitment these guys make to the game to get to where they are. They sacrifice life and limb on that field every week - hell, they have career ending injuries IN PRACTICE! CEO Of a bank? Odds are he just has a few fancy degrees from some college where he partied hard and used a calculator well, and made the right connections. Never really 'worked' a day in his life. When was the last time you heard of a CEO suffering a career ending injury while 'practicing' to count his bankroll? There are millions of jobs that people deserve more money out of as well, our military for example. All you guys should be paid like athletes because you're willing to put your asses on the line every second of every day for all of us poor schlubs who don't have the balls (or physically can't). All of you going overseas? That 'career ending injury' does more than just keep you from being able to strap on a helmet and go hit some guys on a field... see what I'm saying? It's a vicious cycle. There's no justifying it, there's nothing that will make it better. It's capitalism. Oh, and I do think guys from way back when hit a bit harder too. They were out there with one goal in mind - to kill you if you had the ball. That was it. No protection came from weird rules, they would bite you, gouge at your eyes, anything they could do. It was vicious! I loved it!

I'll say this to start: I agree they're overpaid, somewhat. However, they're the BEST PLAYERS ON THE PLANET. Think about that for a second and let it sink in... these few thousand people, are the absolute best on the entire planet out of BILLIONS of people. You couldn't do what they do, neither can 98% of the population. Sure, it's a 'sport', but what they do in that sport forces them to have their bodies ready at levels you and I can't really fathom. The speed those guys have at their size is fucking impressive - and if you think for even 1 second "I could do that", it just tells me you never played even college football. College football is pretty fast paced, but the NFL is a whole new world of speed. It's not even comparable. I do think the greed is a little sickening, however I also see that these guys are risking their whole life every game. Paralyzation, broken bones, career ending muscle tears, etc. And while many of these guys have an education to back them - this is THEIR career. When it's over they want to retire. Shit, most former professional sports players die fairly young when it's all said and done. So why shouldn't they get paid well for what they do? Think about more than "well, that's more than anyone I know makes, that's bullshit!" This is their career, and it's usually short. Why shouldn't they get paid appropriately for the risk factors and level of ability it takes them to get to where they are? You want to complain about money? Complain about the CEO's of banks and shit who make MORE than professional athletes, give themselves 10% raises EVERY SINGLE YEAR, and tell the government they won't take a paycut to save their business, but want BILLIONS of dollars in hand-outs. Like I said - I think they make plenty right now; but I can also see their point that having a little more is always nice, especially considering everything else associated with that sport and the dangers in that 'sport'. It's not a leisurely game on Sunday with friends - they're playing at a level you and I can't comprehend.

I used to use FL Studio a lot for just goofing. For actual music, I used to use Cool Edit 2.0 (now Adobe Audition). I really think it was a much better program when it wasn't Adobe actually... Recorded an entire cd's worth of material with a few band mates on it in 1 weeks recording time. Worked flawlessly. If you're talking techno stuff or whatever, I dunno. But as far as actual music & recording - you'll find supporters of pretty much any software.

Laughed so hard I think everyone knows I wasn't looking at work related materials!

At some point those other systems 'worked' too. Very soon ours will have 'worked', when the next good thing comes along.

'does work' is a broad comment, a blanket statement if you will and ultimately incorrect I feel. There are plenty for whom capitalism doesn't work, just as there are plenty for whom it does work. It has it's place, it has it's pro's, but it also has con's. To think it a system without con's and failings/shortcomings? Well sir... that's just not right. It works 'okay', but can there be better ideas? Of course. Don't tow the line just because it's always been that way. At one point everyone thought the world was flat, and according to your logic we should've went with that because "IT WORKS!" - everyone believed it and we used that theory for hundreds of years. Guess what? Someone came up with something better. The blanket statements of "IT WORKS!" is a little over ambitious IMO.

Prayers sent to your family buddy. If you need anything (like an ear to bend), I'm around.

Often I find myself playing devil's advocate just because I enjoy some debate Re: JFK, I did take an entire semesters worth of a class which focused about 90% of it's study on the JFK assassination specifically. The class was called "The History of Assassinations of American Presidents" - it was pretty darn amazing in all respects.

I'll concede the point regarding the constitution and income tax. However - I still stand behind my information regarding the Federal Reserve. However, I feel debating that whole subject is a little like debating Area 51, or the JFK assassination. Just asking to open a can of worms that's not intended for this thread (nor is it a can of worms any of us can truly answer with any certainty or 'facts') And yes, our government was in on JFK!

Well, one could go on to say that websites themselves are for the most part entirely lacking credibility - as a lot of shit can get posted pretty much anywhere. Wiki itself doesn't claim responsibility for any made up shit that is posted - yet you claim them as a reputable source. Pot, calling all kettles... IF there were documented citations, listing numerous books - would you take the time to hit the library to look it up? Most likely not, so what's the difference? Regardless, you can go elsewhere on the great interwebs and find other information (from much more credible sources I would assume - possibly up to your standards) that say the same things I won't post them now because A) I fear further derailment of thread, and I'm at work. Of course, my guess is that if they say those things - you'll refute their credibility on that merit alone. Also re: Russo, what does what he's produced in the past have to do with the factual merit of a documentary? Nothing actually - so the fact that you're questioning his credibility only on the fact that he's 'produced films and tv shows' proves what? That he's an established director who understands what it is to work behind a camera and direct scenes? How does that have ANY effect on the factual merit of the CONTENT of what was produced? It has NO effect. The logic behind that statement is completely unfounded, and proves that as I said originally, you simply don't like what he has to say and the facts he presents. Regardless... back to the original idea.

Why would they be honest about what they really are? Also, the Federal Reserve has the power given to it to coin money, and set it's value. Why? There are plenty of reasons why they should NOT have that power (listed towards the end of the article) If you just saw the 'fear evoking' stuff in the video - you didn't listen to some of the facts listed therein. The director (Aaron Russo) has made a couple documentaries on various aspects of the government, and is pretty well known for doing his research and approaching these things in a well documented manner. I'm sorry that because the video says things you don't like you refuse to have the open mindedness to entertain the ideas therein. America: Freedom to Facism, is not some 'conspiracy video', it's a legitimate documentary that asks a lot of questions - and is worth a watch (with an open mind). It directly deals with the Sixteenth amendment, the IRS, and the Federal Reserve. He did far more research than I'd be willing to do for a simple forum post. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aaron_Russo Regardless, I guess you're right - this would be best left for another thread entirely.

- Sure - it's a trailer so it's edited to show some interesting stuff, but the whole video is quite good as well. Also, the Federal Reserve is a private corporation. Why are we allowing a private corporation (who's goal is to benefit it's owners) to regulate our dollar? Just tell me why. Also Federal Reserve notes - which are backed by assets, are LARGELY backed by the power of congress to lay tax. Income tax? That thing that there is no real 'law' to? Awesome. The fact that there's a private institution holding such a huge amount of power - and I'm supposed to believe that this private corporation is solely concerned about the citizens of this country and not about their own wallet? Come on. Also, you never addressed the fact that Bush wrote into law that the Federal Reserve NO LONGER (forget the dusty tomes) has to report to Congress twice a year. That is no longer. There was a lot of uproar about that at the time, but it slipped under quite a few radars. Can't have the people realizing what's going down you know. Yes, he got rid of that 'accountabillabuddies'.

Do you realize the history of our 'money', and where it's at now? Are you aware of some of the facts around our pape.. I mean 'money'? You used to actually HAVE something in order to get 'money', it used to be tied to things with real value. I can't remember the exact time, but our wonderful government in all their wisdom, slowly did away with that - and eventually just replaced it with paper. So in 'reality', yes, it's a piece of paper - that's it. It USED to hold meaning, and have actual 'value', but for the past 75 years? Nah. At any moment in time we could just print up hundreds of billions of dollars more, would that make you feel better? Do you see the point I'm making here? Also 'you people', why do you say that? Are you hearing it from plenty of people? If it walks like a duck, and quacks like a duck... Anyhow, the 'dollar' used to actually 'hold value', because the 'federal reserve' (which is about as 'federal' as federal express - it's a privately owned company that our government pays interest to for all money printed, despite the fact our government could print it's own cash but chooses not to - intelligent right?) had to be held accountable for every dollar printed, and report it to the American public. This gave people (and countries) a good idea on how much currency was in circulation at any given moment, how much was being printed, thus adding a more statistically relevant 'value' to our money. Bush signed into effect some bills and they no longer have to do that - which lends itself to making the stability of the 'dollar' very unstable. They can print as much as they want, without having to report how much was printed. So how much is in circulation? Well, some people probably know, but it no longer has to be 'public record' or reported or what have you. This lends itself to much more 'speculation' relating to our currencies 'worth'. That's why the value of our dollar is going down down down.

Our current monetary system is failing terribly - and it started when money became just 'a piece of paper', and we stopped requiring there to be some sort of value tied to it. We've dug our own hole with this, and it's a damned terrible shame. Not like having to bail out our own banks wasn't a big huge red blinking "YOU FAIL" sign to American banks, but oh well. That said - others have pointed out the shortcomings of this communist 'twist', so I won't get into it. But no one can say we're really 'better off' than anyone else with our current system, at least people have the mind to put forth thoughts on these things and not be so 'in the box' as the majority of citizens who rely on banks (who are giant failures mind you) for 99% of their everyday life. Where else do you find people who have options, but continue to put their trust in companies who are in the business of money, and can't even keep their own finances in order?

Cool thread. I've got some great home discovered recipe's that have become favorites of friends/family. I'll post 'em up in a bit (except my one, secret, internationally acclaimed (yes, other countries have tasted and enjoyed) Chicken recipe) I like this thread!! I'm also working at a place that's 100% Polish - so I've been getting recipe's off them for some different cuisine. I'd love to get some ideas for recipes from around the world - I LOVE trying new things.

I totally agree. 100% Just pointing out that our world has a whole lot of nasty shit going on in it. It's a crazy world we live in... Had I thought about that fact ahead of time, I might have reconsidered having children to be honest. When I'm dead and gone, I feel bad for generations later! It's not getting any better.

Oh, and my point about that guy who worked for that crappy pet store? He's very rich, and VERY successful. He doesn't hurt animals, he doesn't kill people, but he had to do stuff like that because - well, it was his job. If those girls live in a 3rd world country, sometimes stuff like that (especially on very rural farms and such) can be much more 'common', and less looked at as cruelty. Still not right, I still say kill 'em all, but yea.

There are so much worse in the world IMO. I'm not saying animal cruelty is good, or correct, but rather that there is much worse to creatures with a higher level of understanding (i.e. humans). I hate to see things like that go down, and it infuriates me too, however they are puppies. Had they been born in the wild? Half of them would've died anyway. And to say that she'd go on to kill humans? Well, that's not necessarily all that correct. I know of a guy who worked for a pet store that didn't have the proper ways to euthanize animals brought in... the owner would still accept animals to be 'put down' - Often they'd have to take the animals out back and just break their neck. Definitely not 'status quo', or right, but it happens. But there are people out there shaking babies, kicking kids, beating humans who have the capacity to understand on many higher levels beyond a dog. For example, the baby who was born to a family - DCFS was called in because the baby had been bent over a railing by his parents in an attempt to get him to 'shut up', they continued bending the baby, so far that they broke his back. Literally bend him in half - paralyzing him waist down. This same baby was allowed to live with those parents, who later beat him, shook him, and he died because of it. Upon autopsy, they found his own teeth in his stomach. That should've NEVER happened - that baby should've been removed and those parents shot on sight. Stories like this? All too common. I'm sorry but I think that trumps a few puppies getting tossed in a river. Fix humans, the rest will take care of itself.

The Bears aren't on that list? Their preseason is just 'warm-ups', once real season rolls in, they'll start out slightly shakey, and be unstoppable towards mid-season and carry that through to the superbowl. Mark my words!

Polish, German, Irish - probably some other junk in there somewhere along the lines.