I’ve got a shelf full of backed-up work that is essentially useless because the applications, file formats, and technologies I used to create the work no longer exists.
What value is an archive if it’s not usable years later?
Month: February 2011
Tuesday, 15 February 2011
Monday, 14 February 2011
Free as in Air. Free as in Dirt.
RepRap a GPL’d home factory.from Adrian Bowyer’s.
The RepRap is to physical objects as WordPress is to ideas.
Sunday, 13 February 2011
Fermenting: “Marley was Dead” Barleywine
“Marley was dead: to begin with. There is no doubt whatever about that. The register of his burial was signed by the clergyman, the clerk, the undertaker, and the chief mourner. Scrooge signed it: and Scrooge’s name was good upon ‘Change, for anything he chose to put his hand to. Old Marley was as dead as a door-nail.” – Charles Dickins, A Chrismas Carol
Last night Jon came by to help me brew the Christmas barleywine recipe I’ve been working on for month now. It went super smoothly. And rather than sticking the boil pot in the snowbank to cool it off (doesn’t work), we shoveled snow into the sink (also doesn’t work). Either way, I had a great time.
- “Marley was Dead” Barleywine recipe
- 12# Northern Brewer Organic Light Malt Extract
This is my first experience w/ Northern Brewer’s house extract, sounds like this Organic Light is a little darker than pale – exactly what I was looking for. - 4# Maris Otter
Seems like the right adjunct grain for the English side of the recipe. - 2oz. Spruce essence
I’m hoping this provides a touch of Christmas to the overall flavor. Prior to the popularity and availability of hops for preservation & bitterness – young growth spruce was commonly used in beer. Particularly in Colonial America. For an inspiring story on using actual spruce in a barleywine – I recommend: Spruce Barleywine, Part 1 - 2oz. Galena @ 60min
a fruity, citrus-y, high alpha (13%) bittering hop popular in American ales. - 2oz. Galena @ 30min
- 2oz. UK Kent Goldings @ 15min
Traditional English aroma & dry hop – with a sweet floral nose. - 2oz. UK Kent Goldings – Dry Hopped
- WYeast’s Headwaters Ale Yeast
The new strain from Midwest Supplies designed for big American ales – alcohol tolerance is 10%.
- Original Gravity: 1110
- Potential alcohol content: 15% (far higher that I’d like – I’m trusting it’ll fall).
- Bottling scheduled for: November 12, 2011.
Update 3 June 2011: I couldn’t wait until November. It’s June – and already I needed the reminder of winter’s chill – so I bottled.
Final Gravity: 1.030.
ABV: 10.7%
IBU: 94.1
Here’s the recipe on hopville: http://hopville.com/recipe/641796/american-barleywine-recipes/marley-was-dead—test-2011
Tuesday, 8 February 2011
Less than Beautiful
Sunday, 6 February 2011
Poke
This question – on its face – is good. Load in all the U.S. media stories about Facebook being used to organize government revolts, the value of China to the U.S. economy, Wikileaks, and Dave’s work at RebootNews.com – and it becomes a 21st century riddle of the sphynx if not double jeopardy.
Babãr
Even before the Abbey Cyser experiment I’ve been intrigued with the idea of a bragot/bracket/bragawd/bragaut [1] – a mead with a beer base.
Over the weekend, I tried a bottle of Brasserie Lefebvre’s Babãr. Amazing and balanced. The honey had a presence, the ale had a presence. And despite their distinctive flavors – neither overpowered the other. It was delicious – and got me looking up bragot recipes at hopville.
1.
Writers Blocks
Imported from Detroit
Best Superbowl ad since 1984. I alternated between shouting ‘Hell Yeah!’ and crying.
This is the message Chrysler needed to give, Detroit needed to give, and America needed to hear. Assisted by Eminem just underscores the point.
Friday, 4 February 2011
12 Weeks or 90 Days.
“And we have 12 weeks?”
“Yes.”
“Well, then we can make miracles happen.”
– Timothy Ferriss, 4-Hour Body
I’ll second that. In my experience 12-weeks of deliberate effort is the minimum required to do anything of significance. Those 12 weeks will change your life. But you have to change your life first to make that deliberate effort.
Either way, day 70 is re-org day.