I'm looking forward to checking out our analytics to see how well this posting does compared to others on 2blokes.

The sign above is showing your internet address, the interweb service you are running, your operating system and the internet browser you are using.  When you are online, there is a great deal of information about you that just hangs out there for someone to pick up.

For example:

Have you ever looked at the left hand side of your screen when you are search Google?  There will be ads for your area.  Mine say things like, 'Buy a home in Sacramento!'  They know that I am surfing from Sacramento because of that 10 digit number above.  The XX.XXX.XX.XXX number that Mr. McCain (which who should be holding the sign at this moment.  It rotates through the candidates) is holding is registered to an area of the country that can be referenced by the ad software.

So what else do they know about us?  Cookies.  They know about cookies.  Cookies are little text files that are stored on your computer so a website can more quickly identify you.  For example, you check your mail and go to bed.  You wake up and power your system on and go to your e-mail site.  It usually at least remembers your name.  All it did was read a cookie on your system.  These same cookies can be used to track your internet usage and send it back to companies to try and further evaluate your habits. 

Now when it comes to cookies tracking me, I used to believe that it was absolutely wrong and I would do anything to stop it.  I would wipe out my cookies every 15 minutes and routinely purge my browsing history.  But then I got to thinking: Why not make it harder to figure me out?  So now I get online, go to Woot, then to the Starbucks website, surf on over to AARP and pull up a few articles.  From there I head to my favorite bodybuilding website for albino midgets and wrap it up with a trip through the Green, Libertarian, Reconstructive Monarchist site just for good measure.  All in all, it make me feel better.

And so it goes.

f

Now, with four under the age of seven, I find that I am not nearly as daunted by the thought of taking them out alone as I used to be. Take, for example, an annual festival in a town less than an hour away. We have lived here for five years, but have never been. Some years it was the weather. Others, it was that I would have to take the kids by myself because of my spouse's work schedule. This year, it was another one of those years where my spouse had to work.

Did that mean we wouldn't go? NO! By golly, this year we were going!

The local businesses had signs in their windows welcoming the crowd. It wasn't a big crowd. It was a very hot day. We came armed with an ice-cold one-liter bottle of water, a stroller for the baby, and small change in the pocket just in case. I brought the camera and an activities list.

First stop? The free watermelon, of course! Sponsored by the local chamber of commerce, they had several slices of watermelon on each plate. It was sweet, seedless, and only slightly messy. It definitely hit the spot on a hot summer day. And who could beat the price?

The free watermelon stand happened to be in the beer garden area. We had a good view of the keg tapping that happened while we were cleaning up after the watermelon. Apparently, they have this one free keg of beer. Once it is gone, you have to pay once again for your beverages. As I was the sole guardian in charge of four children and going to be driving home, I did not have any. (Besides, I have to admit not liking the taste or smell of beer.)

We were soon on our way to see the firefighters water fight. I haven't seen one of these since I was a small child. The kids weren't too sure when we got there that they were interested. We had passed the "bouncy house" and hadn't stopped. That looked like a lot more fun than watching guys put on fire fighting gear.

Once the water started, though, they were much more interested. We watched at least six or seven match-ups between area volunteer fire departments. One set was even made up of women. (They tied with the all-male team they were up against.)  

When the wind was just right, we got misted with the water and it felt GREAT. The crowd would roar appreciatively at the slight wetness, irrespective of how the actual water battle was going. There was a small group of children who sat on the ground, pretty close to the action. They were soaked before the end of the first match. But my kids weren't quite sure they wanted to be that wet. And I wasn't sure I wanted them to be that wet - so far from home and with an emergency change of clothes only for the two younger ones.

Soon, however, even the water fights had stopped being able to hold their interest. They were asking to go back to the jump house we passed. We only had to wait a few minutes for our turn. Soon, however, #3 child was stepped on by another child and #1 child let #3 out to rejoin #4 and mother on the outside.

After this little bit of fun, we ambled over to watch the children's pedal tractor pull. My kids had not expressed interest in entering, so we watched other children pedal the box up the ramp. I had never seen one of these and still don't know quite how it works.

After a few more less-exciting activities, we headed back to the vehicle to drive home. Our water was now almost gone and had that hot plastic-y taste to it. The fireworks weren't going to be until dusk and there wasn't much else to keep the children's (or my) interest until then. We had missed the children's and regular parade along with bed races, the run/walk, and the poker run.

We did stop at a Baskin-Robbins for a few of their 31 flavors to help cool us down on the long ride home. (We had pink bubblegum, chocolate Oreo, jamoca Oreo, and chocolate chip cookie dough.) We finally made it to Germanfest and perhaps next year, there will be some free beer imbibing and one of the children will want to take part in the pedal tractor pull.

On one of my favorites sites, Woot.com, they feature a 4 o'clock flash section.  At 4 pm they highlight a new flash game.  The neat thing about this game, Nine Billion Miles From Earth! is that it's done in stop motion animation, just like the classic si-fi movies were done.  To play it all you need is a flash player and the link, which is here.  It takes a few minutes to load and you need to have the sound on for the full effect. 

My favorite quote is from level six.  'Jiminy Christmas, things are getting hot out here!'.  Please persevere until you reach that level.  Pay close attention to the speak at the end.  Classic eye shot.

And so it goes.

f

I am part of the school of thought that believes Omaha is on its way up in the music world and won't peak for 10 years at least. If you need proof of this, go to the OEA summer showcase on Friday night and you'll see what I mean. Almost 40 bands at 6 venues right in the heart of Benson! And, since I am cheap, would like to mention that this night of wild local entertainment is only 10 bucks!! Also, this is a night for you, the spectator, to be a critic. Really pay close attention and decide for yourself which bands you like best and why you liked them. Then in the winter, you, the audience, will get to nominate and vote for your favorites to win big at the Omaha Entertainment Awards.

Much more fun stuff out there than I could possibly mention, you just have to look for it. I like to start by checking SLAM Omaha. There are two popular free entertainment publications to check as well. If you are  adventurous enough to try something new, check out Jazz on the Green at Joslyn because it is a great excuse to get outside, crack open a bottle of wine and learn to appreciate a true American art form. *I assume you are in the learning stage only if you haven't been to this 24 year mainstay event before!*

If you prefer something more folk/ rock, check out the Saddle Creek Bar this Thursday for Bret Saxon, Platte River Rain, Spiders for Love, and up-and-comer Patrick Langdon. I'll be there doing what I do and the beer is oh so cheap! Speaking of cheap beer, how about FREE? Yes, that's right, free beer tomorrow night, Tuesday, July 15 for those of age at Shea Riley's! This special event is in recognition for Shoot Your Mouth Off's 4 year anniversary party and is featuring Platte River Rain! NO COVER!!!

Let me know what you think about my page so far and if you think I'm not covering something I should, send me an email or leave a comment! Have a great week!

Yesterday we went to Strasbourg where we had a boat trip on the river, then today we went to the DDR museum in Pforzheim before Jan's parents left to drive back home. Tonight I've been out for a meal with my colleagues. We went to Stövchen, a very student friendly restaurant/pub in Karlsruhe. I had Flammkuchen, or "tarte flambe" as they call it in Alsace, where it comes from. Very busy weekend with lots of early starts and long days. I'm now exhausted, which is why I'm keeping this blog short. It's definitely past Bev's bedtime...

Let's start with the un-altered original:

The timing is everything here.  The music adds the perfect touch, as music often does.  Now let's see what happens if you equip this little critter with a light saber:

Notice how the author has shaded the rodent's face slightly red.  Nice touch.

Now let's look at this rodent holding the world for ransom.  For One Million Dollars!!!!!

Nice, huh?  Now let's look at our rodent after holding the world ransom.  As you can see, he has become pure evil...

This one is my favorite:

And finally, here is the original clip.  Enjoy

And so it goes.

f

To help battle this poor performance, I have developed a driving style that allows me to get between 25-30 mpg no matter where I go.  Here are some of the tips:

1.  Inflate your tires to the max rated pressure.  The more rubber on the road, the more friction that you have to power through.  The down side is that you have less contact with the asphalt and less traction.  Fortunately, the speeds I travel are rarely subject to that kind of worry. 

2.  Control that cruise.  Cruise control is an absolutely wonderful tool if you use it.  You can let the car decide how much gas to use at the given moment.  You tell it to stay at 40 mph and it will.  If you are going down hill, it will lay off the gas. 

3.  Be a slow poke.  If the speed limit is 50, go 48.  I guarantee you that you will not have to slow down for someone.  Why should you waste all of the precious energy just to get behind someone going slower?  Odds are you will get to where you are going just as fast.  Maybe even faster!  People who drive faster tend to weave in and out of traffic and may get caught behind some moron doing 2 mph under the speed limit. 

4.  Pick a good lane.  When you switch lanes, you are not going completely straight anymore.  That adds distance to your destination. 

5.  Practice the old 'California Stop'.  The one where you roll through a stop sign.  Again, don't waste that golden momentum just because of a bunch of lawyers tell you to!  Seriously, it takes gas to go from stop to start.  Leave out that step, save a bit of gas. 

6.  This may seem silly, but don't idle for no good reason.  You get 0 mph when you idle. 

7.  If you really need to to speed up, wait until you are going down hill.  Let some gravity help you out.  In a rig like mine, you can pick up some serious speed.

So if you do all of that, you can really help save yourself some money and the earth some abuse. 

And so it goes.

f

"Daddy, what color should I make this?"

"I don't know.  How about blurple?"

(pause)

"You mean purple."

"No, I mean blurple.  You know, blue and purple."

(another pause)

"Oh.  Violet."

I mean, come on!.   Since when do six year olds know violet.  I buried my face in my hands and sobbed for a while. 

In case you are wondering, I have decided that I don't like not blogging and my self-imposed unemployment restriction was probably unnecessary. 

And so it goes.

f

Past events have been held at the Tap Room and Hamilton's. The next event is July 2 and you have to register by June 27. They e-mail you the location before the event. It's like a rave, but for dorks.

From ESPNsoccernet:

VIENNA, June 10 (Reuters) - A Vienna brewery is promising a lifelong supply of free beer to any Austria player who scores a goal for the co-hosts in their remaining Euro 2008 group matches against Poland and Germany.

Austria, competing in the finals of the tournament for the first time, made a disappointing start with a 1-0 defeat against Croatia on Sunday. 'Maybe this is the kind of motivation that will give them the last kick our team needs to be successful,' Ottakringer Brauerei AG chief executive Sigi Menz said in a statement, adding he would personally deliver the brewers's supply for the first year. Austria, ranked 92nd in the world, take on Poland in Vienna on Thursday before completing their Group B fixtures against Germany at the same venue on Monday.

No wonder Ivica Vastic looked so happy when he scored Austria's equaliser last night...

"As everyone knows free beer will make you drink more and get drunk. When you get drunk you will speak more freely. So it will be free speach by free beer." - Slashdot komentaras

Tikras Alus pristato pirmąjį Rytų Europoje atviro kodo alų!

Buvome nudžiuginti, prieš daugiau nei mėnesį sulaukę naujos šiuolaikinio meno galerijos Vilniuje Tulips & Roses kuratorių kreipimosi ir pasiūlymo dalyvauti jų galerijos atidaryme ir parodoje "The Store". Bendradarbiaudami su vienais iš originalaus Free Beer recepto iniciatorių Superflex, modifikavome paskelbtą atviro kodo receptą ir sukūrėme naują - LIETUVIŠKĄ - Free Beer versiją. Recepto pagrindas - bazinis lietuviškas salyklas. Parodai išvirėme 100 butelių šio TIKRO ALAUS, kuriam buvo panaudoti tik klasikiniai ingridientai - 4 rūšių salyklai, 2 rūšių apyniai, vanduo ir mielės.

Šio alaus bus galima paragauti Tulips & Roses galerijos atidarymo (gegužės 23 d.) bei pačios parodos "The Store" metu, iki birželio 21 d.

Receptūrą, alaus gaminimo techniką ir nuotraukas netrukus paskelbsime mūsų žurnale.

--

Prieš keletą metų Kopenhagos IT studentai ir Kopenhagos menininkų kolektyvas Superflex sugalvojo pritaikyti šiuolaikinius programinės įrangos bei atviro kodo/laisvo kodo (free sorce/open source) metodus tradiciniam fizinio pasaulio produktui - konkrečiai, alui.

Trumpai tariant, atviro kodo metodas reiškia, kad kodas gali būti laisvai kopijuojamas, modifikuojamas ir gali būti naudojamas savo arba verslo reikmėms nemokamai - bene žinomiausi pavyzdziai yra Firefox, Linux, Open Office. Taip pat egzistuoja daugybė kitų laisvo kodo programų.

Programinės įrangos atveju kodas - tai išeities tekstai, alaus atveju šis kodas - tai receptas. Paprastai didžiosios alaus gamyklos laiko savo receptą paslaptyje - iš dalies bijodamos konkurencijos - tikėtina, kad taip pat norėdamos nuslėpti cheminius priedus ir kitas manipuliacijas, kurios galėtų išgąsdinti vartotoją, sužinojusį, kas iš tiesų yra jo bokale.

Pirmoji FREE BEER alaus versija, sukurta danų, buvo Vores Øl v. 1.

FREE BEER receptui ir brandingo elementams galioja Creative Commons licencija (Attribution – ShareAlike 2.5). Ši licencija visiems suteikia teisę naudotis receptu arba keisti receptą kuriant savo FREE BEER versiją, naudoti ir keisti dizainą bei brandingo elementus. Kiekvienam suteikta teisė gaminti ir pardavinėti FREE BEER, tačiau jie turi išviešinti savo receptą pagal tos pačios licencijos reikalavimus ir nurodyti pirminius autorius.

Receptą, brandingo elementus ir daugiau informacijos galima rasti: www.freebeer.org

Daugiau informacijos apie atviro kodo judėjimą - lietuviškai - galima rasti: http://www.akl.lt

¿Porqué aplicar la GPL sólo al Software? ... esto debieron preguntarse los creadores de Free Beer y Open Cola, dos buenos ejemplos para demostrar que el poner a disposición pública el conocimiento, "las recetas", y el código fuente es la mejor manera de convivir e inovar.

FreeBeer: Es la versión libre de la cerveza, al igual que pasa con el Free Software, FreeBeer da la posibilidad a los consumidores de perfeccionarla, es decir, disponemos del código fuente o receta de cómo hacer, modificar y mejorar esta cerveza y luego distribuirla o venderla si queremos. Un buen ejemplo para comprender la GPL ;) Gracias Jale.

Ya está embotellada la versión 3.3 disponible junto con su código fuente (receta) en: http://www.freebeer.org/blog/

OpenCola: es la segunda de las bebidas libres que os presento. Como desarrolladores o consumidores de OpenCola, podremos igualmente mejorarla, modificarla, distribuirla o venderla. Si alquien se anima algún día a enredar ... que me avise! :)

Aquí tenéis la receta de la OpenCola:
Receta de la OpenCola.

It was a great night
me playing my tambourines
for a few free beers

I made some new friends
and reaquainted as well
it was a great time

The girl did sing well
but her soft voice and picking
made me so sleepy

The rockin'  part came
with Arvid on EVERYTHING
he rocks stuff with strings

sitar to guitar
six or a few dozen strings
he can play it all

I was quite lucky
to play my favorite song
Sweet Em'ly Brown

free beer || imagénes

Pues sí, las licencias Creative Commos y la cultura libre siguen traspasando fronteras con su ánimo de liberar la cultura de las manos del egoísmo y la competitividad exacerbados.

Ahora le toca el turno a las recetas de cerveza, "de esta forma, al menos sabes qué estás bebiendo y se respeta así un derecho básico de cualquier consumidor moderno."

En fin, me pareció divertido y casi útil, pues ando inmerso en una práctica sobre el Cógigo Publicitario de la Cerveza en España.(Esto es lo que llamo yo información espontánea)

FREE BEER versão 3.4 (Codename: ‘Germania’)
Brewer: Arnaldo RIbero, Sao Paulo, Brasil, November 2007.
(CERVEJA ALE, 100% MALTE DE CEVADA, EXTRATO ORIGINAL 11,5ºP, AMARGOR TOTAL 12 IBU, ÁLCOOL 3,8% V/V, VOLUME FINAL DE 19 L)

Ingredientes:
Água (11,7 L)
Malte
Pilsen (2,0 Kg)
Pale Ale (0,6 Kg)
Caramelo (230 g)
Carafa (100 g)
Lúpulo
Variedade Galena (22,5 g em pellets de 10,5% alfa-ácidos)
Variedade Perle (10,0 g em pellets de 4.4% alfa-ácidos)
Levedura
Ale (alta fermentação, SAFALE SO 4)

Passo a passo:
Moer os maltes (2,930 Kg).
Misturar os maltes moídos em 11,7 L de água a 66ºC (proporção – 1 Kg malte : 4 L água).
Manter mosto a 66ºC por 60 minutos.
Elevar temperatura para 72ºC.
Manter mosto a 72ºC por 5 minutos.
Elevar temperatura para 78ºC.
Manter mosto a 78ºC por 10 minutos.
Iniciar filtração coletando aproximadamente 9 L de mosto.
Lavar o bagaço com 11 L de água a 78ºC, coletando no total 20 L de mosto.
Ferver mosto filtrado por 75 minutos.
Adicionar 12,5 g de lúpulo Galena 1 minuto após início da fervura, 10,0 g de lúpulo Galena 30 minutos após início da fervura e 10,0 g de lúpulo Perle 1 minuto antes do término da fervura.
Resfriar o mosto a 19ºC e transferir para fermentador limpo e esterilizado. Aerar o mosto frio, dissolvendo o máximo de oxigênio possível.
Dosar levedura (proporção – 5 a 8 g levedura : 10 L mosto frio).
Fermentar a 20ºC até processo de fermentação completo (aproximadamente 4 a 5 dias).
Cuidar para não mais aerar a cerveja em processo de fermentação e maturação.
Resfriar para 8 a 10ºC e manter esta temperatura de maturação durante 10 a 15 dias.
Resfriar para 0 a 2ºC nos últimos 2 dias de maturação para garantir o máximo de sedimentação e remoção de leveduras possível.
Acondicionar em garrafas limpas e esterilizadas e manter a temperatura entre 2 e 4ºC para consumo em, no máximo, 20 dias.
Saúde!

[link= http://www.freebeer.org/blog/]

Unnamed beer number two or Sterbl Stout a dry irish stout was our second beer from our good friend Mr. Sterling Blackheart.  We were all feeling pretty good about where we had just been with his pale ale, so on to the stout.

If I learned one thing and one thing only after having two of Sterling's brews... he knows his stuff.  Really... I figured one great beer could be a fluke (although I didn't really think that, really) but after I was blown away by his Sterbl Stout, I knew we had a beer-friend for life. 

I promise you that I am not just blowing smoke anywhere because I was fed free beer.  I have more integrity than that and we talked about it.  Sterling wanted the truth... good, bad, or ugly, and he was going to get it.  Thing is, this is another great beer. 

Sterbl Stout is a super-dark, super-smooth stout that has hints of smoke but no burnt taste.  A muddy brown head kept to the top of the brew while the taste settled in light and easy.  You could definitely drink this beer any time of year, any weather.  It wouldn't have to be cold or wet outside in the least.  I even heard it called that this was better than Guinness, which I agree... a bit of a different ballpark, but much more flavorful while still being silky soft.

Facts and info:

• 5.9 ABV
• Yakima Magnum Hops (double the amount in his pale ale)
• Recipe based on one from http://www.northernbrewer.com/, but with some "improvements"
• 42 IBU
• Another super-smooth brew

JBB6 Rating: For the Win

Today was a wondrous day... a day that will live in infamy as one of the best beer tasting days ever.  It begins like most other days... a few meetings, a few budget reviews, and ends amazingly well with two top notch brews that you can't find at the local AM/PM...

Our new friend and colleague Sterling Blackheart...

Sidebar: Po and I think this is a pretty damn cool name.  Sounds very medieval... or definitely a good name for a brew master.  Sir Blackheart... nice ring to it.

Anyhow, Sterling stops by my office about noon with a bag and 4 unmarked, dark brown bottles.  The only distinguishing facts about them are two have the numbers 10, written in ink, on their shiny metallic caps and two have dark black caps.  I knew what they were... these were the product of Sterling's handiwork and our good friend and colleague Marksto happens to know Sterling's abilities quite well and thought we should all get together and share... we share our blog space and Sterling shares his sweet beer nectar.

So... the beer goes in the beer fridge and we all head off to get some work done.  Skip forward to 4:00pm and our very important meeting... Sterling, Marksto, and their partner in crime MiMead show up and it is time to begin.  Later, we had 4 others join as well, but I am leaving their names out to protect the innocent. 

So... this is the review of the first of two... unnamed bottle #10 or Sammamish Pale Ale.

I will have to say... this being my first true home-brew, I didn't know what to expect... really.  So... I dusted off my Estonian beer mug, we popped the cap, and poured the copper colored ale into the mug.  Great color... not a real pour, so only a small head.  First smells were key and you could really smell the malt and hops... good smells... not too strong.  First taste was smooth as silk and it only got better.  This was a fine, fine pale ale and all of those that came buy to taste it agreed 100%.  Sterling had done something very right.  Great mixture of hops, malt, and smooth goodness. 

So... long story long... we quickly shared in this great libation, many grunts, smiles, and words of pleasure (all in my little office and all about the beer, I promise) and we were done... with that beer, at least.  Next post on beer number two.

Facts about Sterling's Sammamish Pale Ale:

• 6.3 ABV
• Admiral and Yakima Goldings hops
• Super secret malt
• Super secret yeast
• 3rd Batch
• 31 IBU
• Created from the mind of Sterling Blackheart, after several English brews, he wanted to go American…
• Sterling has 4 primaries and this is a favorite.  Designed for his wife and doesn’t usually like this type, but this one is just too good…
• Tasting note at time: Smooth, perfect aftertaste, low on the bitterness scale.

JBB6 Rating: For the Win

It's in that eastern part of Williamsburg (not actually Bushwick- for serious). I haven't been yet but im totes interested. Who's down? Did I mention they have ms.pac man?

Happy St. Patrick's Day! 

Want something free? Like Chili's restaurants? Feeling like you need to drink something green today?

Chili's is offering one (1) free green beer with coupon. It's pretty sweet.
So, enjoy the day and go here for the coupon.